Title: No Sense In Running
Disclaimer: Purely for entertainment. No infringement intended.
Pairings: Hard to say at this moment. Will become apparent as story evolves.
Time: During S7 (Buffy), S4 (Angel).
Rating: R
Final Note: Some themes in this story you may find offensive. Warnings will be displayed and if you are against, do not read. You have been warned.


CHAPTER 1

- My heart's been in this pollution, for too long and
I belong to no one else…No One Else, Operator

I always wondered whether or not the cigarette butt knows where it's goin' after I'm done with it. I watched the end of the white stick, and the orange glow, trying not to think about where I was getting' my next packet from. Yep. Last one. I tried desperately to save it, but no such luck.

Her cool skin touched mine and I glanced her way. 'Gimme a drag, Fay,' she said, her raspy tone demanding.

I passed it her way, allowing her to suck off the end a few moments. I watched the glow in her eyes, the reflecting lights of the streets a dull glimmer in her eyes.

I took it back and slid down into my seat a little. 'Thanks,' I heard her say, her mind and everything else focussing on getting us out of here.

My mind began to do a little body check on her. Her brown hair was tied back into a tie back, and silver hoops played at her neck, her roll-neck swallowing her neck up.

She had such amazing features. Scared the shit out of me because she had this fierce look on her face all the time, sorta like scary jail-bird, 'I could bust you' look. She wants something, people have no choice but to say yeah, because her temper flies and you won't see daylight again, simple as.

It's kind of incredible, though. I look at her and see this…wicked strength in her. Like, she's made of steel. I'm watchin' her hands clasping the wheel and I'm automatically safe, just cos…I know she has control, and everything's gonna be alright. Cos she says so.

Seems kind of dumb really. Depending on shit cos someone 'says so.' Isn't that what weak people do?

Seriously. She formulates it all and I actually believe in her. It's kind of weird how I do. But I let her control me, and it's all okay.

Had this whole 'I don't need anyone' thing goin' on before, but things changed. I met Jesse.

I didn't realise I'd been staring and she glanced over at me, watched a moment, then chuckled.

'Your eyeballs stuck or somethin'?' she said, looking back to the road, then at me again, as I shuffled around in my seat a little. I shook my head and threw the cigarette stub out of the window, giving it a thought before I flicked it. She reached towards volume dial on the stereo and turned down the blaring music. 'You're thinking.'

I ran my fingers back through my hair, exhaling as I did. 'Erm…'

'Second thoughts?'

'Are you kiddin' me? We had to get outta there, ain't no second thought about it.'

Silence. She clenched her jaw and reached for the volume, turned it up again. She rested her elbow on the open window frame and tapped her fingers calmly to the music on the stereo. She liked a lot of rap.

I glanced at her again, my eyes scanning over her hands and the silver jewellery on her fingers, wrists. She caught me and shuffled a little. 'Itchin' for a cig?'

She'd caught me off-guard and I woke up a little. 'What?'

'Hungry?'

I sat back and contemplated this. 'Could do with a quick fix, actually.'

'I said hungry, not horny, you daft chick.' She tutted at me and then smiled to herself, amused at my naughty tendencies.

So here's the deal. We both escaped. From the penitentiary system. Escaped convicts, fugitives here we go. Seriously. We escaped. This afternoon. It was kinda creepy, kinda cool. Everything was planned out, ready to go. Can't believe we actually pulled it off.

See I always believed I could get out of jail (of my own accord) if I wanted to. But Jess…she said she needed to. Otherwise her life would be ended before the end of the month. So she said.

It was a long story. First segment was in the yard, I was liftin' some weights, mindin' my own business. Suddenly this woman's yellin', screamin', she's way whacked…mental, psycho. Freaked out at nothin'.

Funny thing. I hear her a couple of days later, in her cell a couple down from mine, yellin' her lungs out at hell knows what. Some guards collect her, don't hear of her for like, a week or so. Then news comes back to us, this woman's killed herself, in the prison hospital, bed sheets, slipknot, it's a self-explanatory deal.

Strange, I'm thinkin' to myself. Woman never seemed crazy before. Actually she was quite young, teenage girl, around nine-teen I'm guessing. Doesn't seem disturbed AT ALL. But then one day she just goes mental? Nah.

I wrote Angel a letter, askin' him to come down and see me. I told him I was a little itchy about the situation for the girl. Dunno why, nothing to do with me, but…just seemed so weird.

He came over like, two, maybe three weeks on, and we talked. Not about much. Just that demonic activity shouldn't be ruled out, but just to keep an eye in case if it started with one of the other in-mates.

I did. Keep an eye. Seems it didn't help though.

- - -

The prison cell bars made shadowy patterns on the cool concrete floor, and the streetlight shone out, allowing me the tiniest percentage of light. Another one of those nights where sleep wasn't an option. My mind wanted awake. So I just stared at the shadows on the floor and the walls, looking at how they never moved, not ever.

But then something distorted the shadow and I frowned.

'Ah, I remember all those sleepless nights,' a voice came from the darkness, sounding unusually familiar. 'You wanna sleep but your mind wants to wander. Just could NOT get over how much thoughts ruled me.'

I looked up into the dark space, wondering what the hell was going on. I sat up hurriedly, my eyes darting back and forth the open space in the cell. I tried to examine the shadows. Then I saw. I sat up, swivelled round and saw.

'What?' I said, my voice a little gravely from the lack of speech that day.

'Can't think forever, Faithy.'

I hopped off the bed and watched as the form began to pace. 'How…?'

'Thinking won't get you anywhere.' It paused. 'Specially where you're goin'.'

'…Dreaming?' I muttered to myself as I watched a smaller form pace up and down my cell territorially.

I saw it stop and look at me, I'm guessing, taking in the word I had muttered beneath my breath. 'Oh no, no, no, Faithy. Dreaming? No, no, no…You have a lot to learn, Faithy.'

I squinted at the body before me, standing before me, arms folded, all calm and… nonchalant.

'Buff…'

'No.'

We stood in silence for a few moments, her just looking at me. Me just…dreaming?

'I don't really…understand…'

'You know what? All this thinking still doesn't help you understand anything. Tough luck, it's not like it's gonna get you anywhere. You're stuck here…they're out there. And you don't have any idea.'

'Any idea…about what?'

'About what you're gonna face.'

I furrowed my eyebrows. What the hell? What was I gonna have to face? Face up to my crimes? Am I not doing that? Seems everyone's starting to talk in crossword clues. I don't get it and I'm standing here wondering why the hell I'm staring at someone who couldn't be in LA. Not right now.

'There you go again. Thinking it through.'

'What are you?' I finally asked, wondering still how I was staring at blondie and we weren't rippin' out each other's guts.

'Part of your thoughts.'

'Yeah? Since when did my thoughts start getting' up and walkin' around?'

'Just let her know it's nearly time. That you or no other has the strength, nor time to defeat this. You can't escape this time. Not you. Not anyone. Because if you try to leave…it'll follow…Count on it.' A white light materialised and took away the figure standing before me.

I sat down on the camp bed, feeling the hard springs protruding harshly through the mattress. I didn't understand.

- - -

I don't know how she knew. But it seems she had no hesitation in letting me know…her troubles.

Liftin' weights and watching everyone around me, becoming more cautious as the days passed, those words circling my head continuously reminding me that time was 'running' out, and 'strength' wouldn't help.

But she approached me and I was astounded at the weights she started lifting. I dunno if she was just freakishly strong or…had some sort of supernatural strength goin' on, but…seemed unbothered by the fact that I was staring her down.

'Jess,' she muttered.

I blinked. 'Er…Faith.'

'You know how important this thing is, right?' she finally said, simultaneously concentrating on the weight training.

'What thing?' I asked her, letting my weight down to the floor.

She sat back and rolled up her sleeves. Come to think of it, chick had an impressive set of triceps. Slender but present.

She wiped her brow and sighed out a breath of air. 'You know.'

I watched her a moment, her chocolate complexion glistening in the summer heat. 'Erm…I don't actually know.'

She eyed me a moment, before lifting with her right arm. I watched her a moment and she worked on her right. I don't know if she intended to answer or what, but I have this wicked obsession with needing to know everything. Moment someone suggests something, I have to know. Call me nosy. Whatever.

She caught me still lookin' at her. Not liftin' my weights. Got a little worried she might've just wanted to start something with me. But when she put the weight down, stretched out her arm and pulled her hair out of it's tie-back, then put it back up, I realised she wasn't interested in the brawls and bitching. She was being serious.

She leaned in closer to me and lowered her voice. 'You're one of them, right?' she mumbled under her breath, glancing around, just to make sure she wasn't being watched herself. 'It's just…I heard you're one…of two…'

I watched her intently, waiting for her to finish talking.

'Slayer,' she said to me quietly.

I sat back a little. 'What?'

'I know, Faith. My watcher told me.'

'Your watcher?'

'Yeah.' She cleared her throat as someone walked by and watched them move away from us. 'I'm a potential. Not yet been called…but…lined up, if you get me…'

I sat, a little surprised. Potential? 'So…what you're next after me?'

She looked at me a moment, I think unsure of what I'd just asked.

'Do you know how the system works?' she asked me gently, beginning to lift weights again.

I looked at her lifting. Explains some.

'Yeah. I die, you get called, simple as.'

She shook her head.

'There's hundreds of us. Well…were, hundreds…we're being offed, one by one…murdered, destroyed, cos…the biggest evil's comin' to town. Bringers…these weird dumb and blind guys, they…work to destroy us – potentials. And…you, IF they can get to you.'

I had begun to lift weights once again, but stopped for a moment. 'So, wait; back up. Potential slayers, right?' She nodded and I continued. 'Being killed by bringers?' Again, she nodded. 'And…the biggest evil's trying to kill us, why?'

- - -

I put down my tray on the table and slipped into a seat beside her.

'Ever heard of the First? Strongest, most powerful evil existent ever. Trying to take over the world, using Bringers, and some apparent other immortal forces of darkness, not sure who exactly, but someone. Gonna start a war. Very soon.'

'So…the First…what is it, like a demon?'

'No, no, it's evil. The essence of it. Only its…abstract, can't be touched. The First Evil can be any dead person it wants, and it comes to people, talks to them. But that's all it can do. Can't touch them, hurt them, physically. Deals in words. Makes you believe stuff.' She chewed on a mouthful of goo and begun to talk again. 'Hear about the in-mate who hung herself?'

I nodded, chewing slow on some food.

'Potential. First got to her.'

'So…it made her…'

'Go crazy.'

'No sh-'

'It's all true. Hailey. Knew her since I been in. She was a potential alright. Worried that Bringer's would somehow get to her in here. I told her it was kind of hard considering they'd have to get past all the guards. Told her she was safe inside.' She shook her head a little. 'Girl was scared out of her skull. Said she couldn't hack it. Needed to get away.'

I figured it out. The First had paid me a visit. Explains a lot of things. So I wasn't going crazy. Thank fuck. Or at least not right now.

'But if it's true and this thing said that we don't have the time or strength, we can't hide; where the hell do we go? Are these Bringer's strong dudes?'

She furrowed her eyebrows and paused in chewing. 'It talked to you?'

Silence.

'What makes you say that?'

'You just said it said there was no time…I never told you that…'

Crap. 'It might've done.'

'Shit…who'd it materialise as when it came to you?' It worried me slightly that she was smirking a little at the thought of the First Evil coming to visit the locked up Slayer…powerless.

'Doesn't matter- what do we do?'

She swallowed her mouthful of food and put down the cutlery, shoved the plate forward a little and cocked her head away from me, signalling me to move in close to her.

'We escape.'