In Janice's house, the girls had all settled down for the night. Janice was fast asleep in her own bed while Dawn and Kennedy were lying on the bedroom floor in sleeping bags. They were very much awake, looking at one another in the darkness, trying to figure each other out. There was very little space between them, as Janice's bedroom wasn't very big and was even cramped for her and Dawn whenever Dawn stayed over. The tight circumstances now only helped to make the butterflies in the youngest Summers member increase by ten fold. There was something definitely alluring about this new girl, Kennedy.
"Hey there, enjoying the view?" the sweet, cocky voice brought Dawn out of her stupor very abruptly. Kennedy's eyes were sparkling in the moonlight that was shining in through Janice's window. They were sparkling with humour and also with something else that Dawn couldn't quite comprehend.
"Yeah, sorry about staring like that," she replied nervously, "I just can't believe that Janice never mentioned you to me before. So, how long have you known that you were gay?" Dawn surprised herself with her boldness and blushed furiously after asking that question. Kennedy's eyes merely widened slightly in surprise then she smiled and reached her hand out to entwine it with Dawn's.
"I've known since forever I guess," she replied gently, "I used to watch 'Gone With The Wind' and wish that I could sweep Scarlet off her feet. That was when I was five, so I'd say from that point onward. How about you? Have you always known that you liked girls?" Dawn blushed even deeper, although Kennedy couldn't see the colour change that was occurring in her face.
"Well, growing up in a house with two gay wiccas and a big sister that has had deep feelings for another girl for years," Dawn said honestly, "it was kind of hard not to end up being gay. I've just always witnessed the love between two women for a good part of my life and when I see what love with a guy is like, it can't hold a candle to the love two women have for one another in my eyes." These heartfelt words that left Dawn's mouth went straight in Kennedy's ears and warmed her from deep inside.
"I feel the same way, Dawn," Kennedy whispered shakily, "it's the way I've always felt about other women. I hope to have someone to share that kind of love with some day soon." Dawn couldn't help but notice the hopeful lilt at the end of Kennedy's words. This gave her hope and courage to draw upon as she spoke next.
"Why don't we see how things go with us from here?" she asked nervously, "I mean, I know we've only just met tonight and you're a few years older than me, but I really like you, Kennedy. Want to give things a try?" Kennedy responded by moving closer to Dawn so she could wrap her arms around the Summers girl.
"I'd really like that, Dawn," she whispered into Dawn's ear, "let's see what tomorrow brings." With these words, both girls went to sleep in each others' arms.
As the sun rose the following morning, it shone on the happy and contented forms of the slayers lying in each others arms. Both girls had not long awoken before sunrise and were just relaxing, enjoying the joy that the other girl gave to them. Buffy had her head resting against Faith's chest and was lazily drawing circles on the brunette's stomach. Faith meanwhile was playing with a strand of Buffy's hair that she found to be particularly shiny and beautiful in the morning light.
"So, Faith, would you like to move in with me and Dawn?" Buffy asked, with a hint of nervousness in her voice. She knew that the dark slayer wasn't known for settling anywhere for too long, that she found it hard to trust anyone and had never known the security of a family. Faith heard every word from her girlfriend and simply continued to play with her hair for a few seconds longer before responding.
"B, I don't ever want to go anywhere that doesn't have you," she whispered shakily, "now that I've found you, I believe that I've found my home. You're the most important person in the world to me and I want to spend the rest of my life proving that to you." Buffy raised her head from Faith's chest and leaned up to give her girlfriend a deep and lingering kiss. This left them both breathless as once more, they felt the love that the other girl had for them.
"I guessed you weren't planning on leaving anytime soon, after I saw my bank balance," Buffy replied, noting the way that Faith blushed when she mentioned the bank balance. It was almost cute, although she wasn't going to mention it at that point.
"Well, you know, I don't really need all that money," Faith stammered nervously, "I also knew you were struggling as far as money goes, so I decided to help out." Buffy silenced the brunette's rambling with another kiss that was softer than the previous one. This kiss began to deepen and the lovers both felt their passion once again threaten to take over. Before it could, however, Buffy pulled back and said:
"Together forever, the chosen two, as it was always meant to be." Then, the slayers rose and went to have a long shower together in order to prepare for the day ahead.
That night saw Buffy and Faith doing their usual patrol. As they had skipped it for one night, they were having an unusually busy time of it with a lot more vampires attacking them or rising from their graves than what they were accustomed to. This wasn't helped any further by the fact that Buffy was somewhat distracted. Dawn had returned home that afternoon from Janice's, seeming as though she was on Cloud 9 for some reason, yet when Buffy had asked what had made her so happy, the teenager had refused to let her sister in on what was so amazing. Faith couldn't help but think how cute this was to observe, as she picked up on what had made Dawn so happy. She could read the signs as easily as reading a book; the girl was in love. However, knowing how protective Buffy was of her little sister and also knowing how horrible it felt to have your feelings aired for public viewing, the dark slayer had said nothing to her girlfriend. The two of them had told Dawn that Faith was to move in permanently with them, which had elicited a shriek of delight from the younger Summers girl and then they had called everyone to inform them. Xander and Anya had expressed their fondest wishes for the couple, as did Willow and Tara. Giles had replied with a small matter of a potential impending disaster looming.
'"I'm not entirely sure what's going to happen, Buffy", he said urgently, "the signs over the past few days have indicated that something unnatural is occurring at the graveyard. Like I say, I have no indication whether this could be a good occurrence or the end of the world."
"Hmm, going on what we've seen before," she replied gravely, "I think we should assume it's something of the end of the world category. Just when things were going so well in my life as well." Giles couldn't help but feel bad at the ominous sigh at Buffy's end of the telephone. He truly felt guilty for the suffering which his slayer had endured in her short life.
"Keep your spirits up, Buffy," he soothed gently, "with Faith on your side this time, everything should work out in your favour. By the way, I'm very happy for the both of you. I believe that you bring out the best in each other and I give you my blessing." Buffy couldn't help but blush, although she knew Giles couldn't see it.
"Thanks Giles, that really means a lot coming from you," she whispered softly, "I'll check in with you later after we've patrolled."'
This was also praying heavily on Buffy's mind as she fought off a couple of rather heavily battle-scarred vampires. As her concentration was off, it wasn't long before the blonde was on her back and the vampires were descending for the kill. However, before they could cause any serious damage, Faith managed to dust both of them. She pulled her girlfriend to her feet and gently dusted her down.
"You alright, B?" Faith asked gently. Buffy nodded before wrapping her arms around the brunette and pulling her in for a tight cuddle. No words were needed, as Faith could sense the pain coming from her lover. Even before they became this close, the younger slayer could always sense whenever Buffy was suffering pain, physically or mentally. They parted slowly and continued walking in silence, holding hands and seeking reassurance from the other girl's presence. They had just walked past Joyce Summers' grave when suddenly, Faith felt very strange. It was as though something was pulling her from the inside, her eyes were being made to close against her will and she could feel herself falling. As soon as she felt herself land, Faith opened her eyes and looked around nervously. Everything around her was white, Buffy was nowhere to be seen and there was no other creature or person nearby.
"Well, this is a hell of a thing," she said out loud to no one in particular.