The Quickening

Notes: Thanks for the reviews. Keep them coming. Also, I haven't been updating as much as I used to. This will probably continue until June, as I have way too much stuff going on. Hopefully after that, I'll be able to update as I usually do.

Previously:

Giles was about to take a sip of his tea when he stopped. "Well, it's about time you start," he said, setting the teacup back down on the table. "We have company."

Wesley turned around, only to see nearly a dozen members of El Eliminati standing in a semi circle in front of the library doors. "Bloody hell."

Chapter Fifty-Four:

Cordelia stood in the doorway of her bedroom. The moon was shining in through the bedroom window, creating a web of shadows on the floor and the bed, where Faith was lying. Her face was covered in darkness, but Cordelia could see her eyes rolling underneath her eyelids as she slept. She was dreaming. Cordelia could only imagine the images flashing through Faith's mind at that particular moment. She knew that the face of Alan Finch would plague her own dreams and she had only played a passive role in his death. It had taken them a long time to move the body from the alley to the harbor. They did not have a vehicle, or any other mode of transportation, so they had to carry the body the entire way. It had taken all of Cordelia's will power to keep her grip on the body as they carried it. She had dropped it several times on the way and, each time, his falling limbs would slap against the concrete of the road in a sickening, smashing sound.

Cordelia shuddered and wrapped her arms around her body, trying to gather her warmth. She was not entirely sure how to handle Faith. She knew that Faith trust her, otherwise Faith would not have come to her house after killing Finch. However, Cordelia knew that Faith would need more than just her friendship to get through the difficult times that would lie ahead. Looking over at the phone on her dresser, Cordelia was struck by a sudden inspiration. She knew that she needed to call someone to help Faith work through her anger and grief. Giles was out of the question. Faith had not gone to Giles after the incident. He represented authority, structure, the ramifications of her actions, and the Watcher's Council.

However, she knew that Faith wanted to go to Xander, she was just afraid of how he would react. Cordelia smirked. She knew that Xander would have freaked out initially when Faith told him. However, if she told him, he would have time to process the information before reaching her house. That way, by the time he arrived, he would understand Faith's situation. Moving silently over to the phone, Cordelia picked it up off the receiver. Then she slipped out of the room. Dialing Xander's phone number, she held the phone against her ear and closed her bedroom door behind her.

…………………………

Buffy strolled through the darkened hallway of Sunnydale High. She was trying to find the words to say to Giles in order to explain what had happened that night. The more she thought about it, the less she blamed Faith for her actions. However, something inside of her thought that it was wrong to exonerate Faith for killing a human being. Being a slayer meant protecting and preserving life, not ending it. They fought so that innocent people could go about their lives without ever having to worry about the forces of darkness. Though Buffy was quick to want to judge Faith for killing someone, she had to stop and think. Buffy could have easily been the one to stake that man, had she been on the other side of the alley.

It had only been chance that Faith was the one; that she was in that place at that time. Vampires had been coming from everywhere, attacking them in succession. Faith did not have time to stop and think. In battle, a warrior had to attack without thinking about what would happen as a result of it. They were in a life and death situation and Faith had made the judgment call to attack. If she had waited, and the man had been a vampire, Faith could have died. Buffy sighed and ran a hand through her golden, blonde hair. The situation became more confusing as she thought about it. She knew that she had reacted badly when it happened. She had blamed Faith without taking any time to think about anything other than the fact that a man was lying dead in front of her. However, things were not as black and white as that.

As Buffy neared the library, she was pulled out of her thoughts by a nagging feeling in the back of her mind. Something was wrong, but she could not identify the problem. It dawned on her as she neared the library doors that she could not hear anything happening inside of the library. She had expected to hear Giles and Wesley arguing, but she heard nothing. Pushing the library doors open, she stepped inside of the room. "Not good," she muttered to herself as she saw the state of the library. The tables were turned upside down and books lay scattered across the entire floor. Pages had been ripped out and were blowing around the floor as the wind came in through the opened windows. Giles and Wesley were no were to be found.

"Giles!" Buffy shouted, rushing through the library. She checked the office and the stacks, but she could not find him. She knew that El Eliminati must have taken the two Watchers. They probably assumed that Buffy and Faith had the amulet. They would want to make an exchange in order to get it. However, Buffy knew that they could not exchange the amulet. They would have to fight to get Giles and Wesley back. Buffy sighed, knowing that she could not go to Faith. She was still trying to figure out where she stood on the matter of Faith killing a human being. She could not go to Faith for help. But she could go to Angel.

……………………….

Cordelia set the phone back down on the receiver. As she had anticipated, Xander freaked out when she explained to him what had happened that night. But after a few minutes, he had calmed down enough to realize that the killing had been an accident. After he realized that, he knew how much Faith was hurting. He was heading to her house at that moment. Cordelia knew that Faith would want him there when she woke up. Cordelia looked down at Faith as she slept. Smiling a little, Cordy leaned down and gently kissed Faith on the forehead. "Everything's going to be okay," Cordelia said softly. "Xander and I are going to look after you from now on."

Moving out of the room, Cordelia decided to wait downstairs for Xander to arrive. Knowing him, he would be breaking every traffic law imaginable in order to get there. She waited for several long minutes in the dark. The light of the street lamps outside played on her face as she stood in front of one of the foyer windows. The night was so silent and still. Cordelia could barely believe that the world had not screeched to a halt. But then, people died every night and the world still turned. The sun still rose and people still went about their lives as if nothing had happened. She had seen it too many times to be shocked by it anymore.

Headlights blinded her for a second as Xander pulled into her driveway. He was driving his uncle's car again. He must have borrowed it. Cordelia smirked, imaging how exactly Xander had been able to coerce his uncle into loaning him his car in the middle of the night. Xander jogged up the driveway and was at the front door as Cordelia opened it. "Where is she?" Xander asked, slipping inside of the house.

"Upstairs, in my room," Cordelia said, pointing up the stairs. "She's asleep."

"Okay," Xander said, running a hand through his hair. "Thanks, for everything you've done for her tonight," he said. Cordelia smiled and nodded.

"Just go up there. She really needs you right now," Cordy replied. Xander nodded and started up the stairs. Cordy sighed and moved into the living room, sitting down on the couch. She hoped that Xander could be what Faith needed at that moment.

Xander stood outside of Cordelia's bedroom door. Inhaling deeply, he gripped the doorknob and pushed the door open. He could see Faith lying on the bed. Moving into the room, he closed the door behind him. Then he walked over to the bed. Gently sitting down beside Faith on the bed, he reached out and brushed her hair out of her face. "Faith," he whispered softly. "Wake up." Faith groaned and rolled over, unconsciously leaning into Xander's touch.

"Xander?" Faith asked. She opened her eyes and pulled herself up into a sitting position, leaning against the headboard of the bed. "What're you doing here?"

"Cordelia called me," Xander answered. "She told me what happened."

"She did?" Faith asked quietly. Xander knew that Faith was starting to freak out by how her eyes widened slightly when he spoke.

"Yeah," Xander replied. He leaned against the headboard beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Do you think I'm disgusting?" Faith asked, looking down at her hands.

"No," Xander said immediately. "Why would I think that?"

"I killed someone," Faith replied.

"Accidentally," Xander answered. "You killed someone accidentally. The circumstances were entirely understandable. You're not to blame for this."

"A man is dead because of me, Xander, how am I not to blame for this?" Faith asked.

"He was in an alley with lots of vampires. Vampires, might I add, that were actively attacking you. He jumped out at you, as if about to attack you, and you reacted as anyone would in that situation," Xander explained.

"I guess," Faith replied, leaning into him.

"Trust me on this one. You may doubt yourself. But I don't. Just believe in that," Xander said.

"What about Giles?" Faith asked. "What is he going to do?"

"I don't know," Xander responded honestly. "But I think he'll understand. The world's not a black and white place. If there's anyone here that gets that, it's Giles."

"Yeah," Faith replied, smiling as she thought of her legal guardian. "I was so scared," Faith admitted quietly. "Buffy just looked at me like I was a monster."

"Buffy doesn't react well to things. She'll come around once she has time to think," Xander said. "I've known her long enough to be on the receiving end of her short sightedness many times. But she always figures things out once she stops and thinks."

"I hope so," Faith replied. "Things were starting to become good with us. She was really starting to see me as an equal and not just the back up slayer."

"Don't worry about her," Xander said. "You're not alone in this. Remember that. We can help you."

"I know," Faith said, looking into Xander's face and smiling. "For once in my life, I really know that."