The Quickening

Previously:

"Well, I'll do what I can. I can't promise anything. Faith will have to decide on her own whether to accept my offer. I'll go to the motel tonight and talk to her, on her own ground, where she'll be most comfortable," Giles said.

Chapter Fourteen:

Faith slammed her fist down on the ice machine as a last resort to try to convince the machine to work. She was trying not to lose her temper, but her jaw was throbbing from a rather painful hit she had taken during patrol. All she wanted was a few ice cubes to keep the bruising down. "Come on," she growled out in frustration. She tried hitting every button on the machine to no avail. Finally, in one last effort, she lashed her foot out, solidly connecting with the machine. It sputtered for a moment before dropping out a handful of ice cubes into her bucket.

Faith smiled and silently congratulated herself. Grabbing the bucket, she stared down the machine for a few more seconds before walking back to her room triumphantly. Once there, she gathered the ice into the t-shirt Xander had let her borrow the night before, and gently pressed the homemade ice pack against the side of her face. The cold seeped through the material and after a few minutes, her face felt numb. Sitting down on her bed, she leaned back against the headboard, and flipped on the television. A black and white movie was on, and though it wasn't something she would have normally cared to watch, she wanted something to distract her mind, to keep it from wandering back to the events of the previous couple of days.

The movie soon began to lose her interest, however. She could smell Xander's scent on the shirt pressed against her face; it was mingled with her own – the smell of the cologne he wore and her distinctive mix of cigarettes and cinnamon gum. She tried not to smile when she thought back to earlier that morning, when she and Xander had been walking to the motel, and he had hesitantly reached over to hold her hand. Any other guy she probably would have punched in the face. But when Xander did it, it felt right. She couldn't explain it, but when he touched her, sparks seemed to tingle underneath her skin. At the same time, however, she was filled with a sense of calm and certainty, a sense that for once in her life things might turn out okay.

However, that certainty was constantly plagued with doubt. Buffy had been acting strange recently. She showed up for patrols and training, but her mind seemed to be elsewhere. It didn't bother Faith too much, except when that detachment got in the way of fighting, as it had that evening. Buffy hadn't been paying attention when the vampires attacked them in the cemetery and, as a result, Faith took a beating from three of them while Buffy struggled with one. Whatever was going on, Faith hoped the older slayer figured it out before it cost them more than a couple of bumps and bruises.

Despite her initial misgivings, Faith was starting to develop a routine in Sunnydale. Every morning, she went to the library to train with Giles. When school let out, she would train with Buffy until it was time to patrol. Once she had finished patrolling, she would grab some food and return to the motel to watch whatever ancient movie happened to be on that night. However, Faith would have to show up late for training the next day if she wanted to come back to a roof over her head. She was broke, despite the fact that Xander had been treating her to every meal he could sit her down for, and she didn't have any paid time left at the motel.

A knock at her door interrupted her musings and she contemplated ignoring it. However, she knew she would hear about it the next day if Buffy or one of the others had come knocking with important demon business and she had pretended to be out. Pulling herself to her feet, she tossed the ice pack onto the bed and made her way over to the door. When she looked out of the peephole, she was surprised to see Giles standing there, patiently waiting. Opening the door, she looked him over.

"Hey, what's up?" She asked, noticing how out of place Giles looked standing outside of her dingy motel room in a tweed suit.

"I was hoping to talk to you for a moment, if you don't mind. May I come in?" Giles asked. Faith opened the door a little wider and he took that as an invitation. She closed the door behind him and leaned against the dresser with her arms folded across her chest. "How was patrol?" Giles asked, turning to face her. He had taken a few moments to survey the room and instantly understood why Xander had been concerned about Faith's living arrangements. The motel was absolutely appalling.

"You came all this way to ask me how patrol went?" Faith asked, somehow doubting that had been Giles' intent.

"Of course not," Giles said, smiling softly. "But that doesn't mean I'm not also interested in how the fight against evil went this evening."

Faith chuckled and shrugged. "Went fine. We dusted four vamps. Place was kinda dead, to be honest," she replied.

"Well, I don't suppose a lack of the undead is something to complain about," Giles responded.

"True, but it makes life pretty damn boring," Faith retorted. "For a slayer anyway."

"I imagine so," Giles said. "Well, I suppose I should get to the matter at hand then. Xander asked me to come by, actually. He's been concerned that, perhaps, the motel is not the best place for you to be staying."

"Seems fine to me," Faith replied absently, her tone belying the fact that she was scrutinizing Giles. But she could find no pity in his eyes or voice, simply concern.

"Yes, I'm sure it does. At your age, it would have seemed fine to me as well. However, now that I've advanced some in years," Giles said, smiling when Faith rolled her eyes, "I find myself wondering perhaps if I haven't been mistaken all these years."

"Mistaken about what?" Faith asked with curiosity.

"You know, Faith, I've lived on my own for a long time. It gets rather lonely after a while. I'm sure you know what I mean. I wouldn't mind the company and as your temporary Watcher, I would feel much better knowing that you had a solid roof over your head," Giles said.

"Cut the crap, Giles," Faith said, trying to decipher the point he was trying to make. "What do you want?"

"I would like you to move in with me. I have an extra room and I assure you, I in no way desire to tamper with your independence. I simply feel that it would benefit us both," Giles said, watching as Faith tossed his words around in her mind.

"Xander wanted you to come here?" She finally asked. Giles nodded, surprised at her question. Faith smiled a little at that and looked down at the ground, ruminating over her options. On the one hand, she liked being able to come and go as she pleased. However, constantly struggling to find enough money to pay the rent was wearing her down. The fact that Xander had been concerned enough about her to send Giles to speak to her nearly made her want to cry, knowing that someone cared that much about her.

"It will take some getting used to, for both of us. If you don't like it, you can come back here if you wish. But I think you'll find I'm not as bad as I'm sure you imagine," Giles said, smiling a little when Faith looked up at him, guilt flashing through her eyes for a moment. "What do you say?"

Faith sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Give me a few minutes to pack up?" She asked and couldn't help but smile slightly when Giles grinned.

"Of course, I'll just be outside," he replied and quickly exited. Faith laughed to herself, imagining that Giles had been quite eager to escape from her dirt-infested hellhole of a room ever since he stepped into it. Grabbing her duffel bag out from under the bed, she quickly shoved her belongings into it. She dumped the ice out of Xander's t-shirt and placed it in her bag last, zippering it up. Then she turned off the television and grabbed her key from the dresser. Giles was waiting outside as she locked the door behind her.

"I just gotta return this," Faith said, holding up the key. Giles nodded and grabbed her duffel bag, sliding it into the trunk of his car as she lightly jogged down to the rental office. A couple of minutes later she reappeared and got into the passenger's side of the car.

"Ready?" Giles asked, looking over at her. Faith took one last look at the motel before nodding.

"Yeah, let's go home."