Title: Five by Five
Summary: Faith's long lost twin sister Hope has come to Rome in search of her sister. When two sisters meet everything seems to brighten but does something supernatural threaten to end this new reunion of sisters? And the question of whether Hope is a Potential is overpowering but will she bow down to the ways of the slayer?
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except for Hope.
Author Notes: I'm making the Wolfram and Hart office of Italy to be the same design as the early season LA branch. In this chapter the story is finally moving on, it goes all down hill from here and picks up pace as it does…
Chapter 20: Whiskey and Scotch
Faith reached the Wolfram and Hart office without any real drama. She got to the door and took the first step inside, her heart pounding to match her footstep. Swallowing hard, she swept the lobby with her gaze and found Angel and Hope kneeling on the ground in the corridor near the elevator. She quickly walked over to them, not making eye contact with the guards that sat at the desk and kept their eyes on her as she progressed across the lobby.
When she was about half way there Hope looked up, sensing her presence and they made eye contact and a message passed between them. Hope got to her feet, assisted by Angel who had noticed Faith after Hope had looked up to spot her. They stood there, looking at her as if not quite sure what to say, as if she had to know what had happened, as if she hadn't felt it. But she had. And she knew what happened as soon as she looked into Hope's eyes. She swallowed hard as she saw the pain reflected in the chocolate eyes of her twin sister.
Instead of trying to comfort her with words she just enveloped her twin in her arms and held her tightly, feeling the overwhelming need of comfort by touch, just like Hope was feeling at that moment. Well, it was really Hope's feelings, but Faith was feeling it as strongly as if they were her own feelings. She held her sister closer and whispered something in her ear that only Hope heard. Hope sniffed and nodded into her sister's shoulder. Then she replied in a louder, but at the same time barely audible, voice.
"I know." They then separated and Hope took in a deep breath before looking at Angel.
"What says you to getting out of here?" Faith asked, her eyes on Hope. Angel nodded when Faith's eyes went to him.
"I'll get the car out the front." With that he went over to the security desk in the foyer and exchanged a few words with them.
Faith stood there with Hope and watched her intently. Hope noticed this and stared back at Faith. Faith grimaced and grabbed Hope's hand in her own.
"I'm not usually one with the touching, but you need to know, you're not alone." Faith said, her face the most serious she had ever been. Hope was the one to grimace this time and she squeezed Faith's hand.
"I know, don't worry, I won't go telling Buffy about how you're a pushover." Hope teased Faith lightly and Faith scrunched up her nose.
"I am so not a pushover, you take that back." Faith insisted.
"Aww come on sis, you're a pushover and you know it." Hope retorted, the effect of Faith being there for her making her forget about her situation that had made her be so down in the first place.
"I am so not…" After a meaningful look from Hope, Faith sighed and gave in, "Maybe only to you." She grumbled and Hope flashed her a smile.
"There ya go, don't you feel so much better now that you've said the truth?"
"No." Faith replied stubbornly. Hope raised an eyebrow and Faith raised an eyebrow back at her. There was a cough and they both turned to see Angel standing there, with two eyebrows raised.
"The car's out the front, so if you two want to go…" He said and Hope frowned slightly.
"Aren't you coming with us?" She asked and Angel sighed lightly.
"No, it always gets more complicated when I get involved."
"Angel…" Hope whined slightly.
"What?" He asked, curiously.
"You said you would come and drop us off and explain everything." She said and looked at him with a disappointed look.
"I don't exactly mix well with the Scoobies. Xander always thinks I'm going to start killing them, Giles glares, Willow is uncomfortable because of everyone else's reactions, and Buffy… Well, you know." He said and Hope looked up at him with big eyes. Finally he gave in, his shoulder sagging, "Fine, I'll come. But we'll have to wait until sunset, which is in an hour or two."
To this Hope just gave him a blinding triumphant grin and said, "That's fine, I need to go get my stuff from the hotel anyways."
To this Angel nodded and walked towards the doors of the law office. Faith stood there with Hope and gave her a look.
"What?" Hope asked and Faith just kept giving her a look and then walked behind Angel. Hope jogged after Faith.
"What?" She asked again but Faith refused to answer and no matter how much Hope bugged her she wouldn't say anything.
As they left Wolfram and Hart, Angel sprinting to the car, they were unaware that two pairs of eye followed them to the car.
"Is that the One?" Asked one of them and the other nodded. "And the other?" They asked again.
"The last needed for the ceremony. One shall fall so the other will rise, one sister making the ultimate sacrifice so the other can lead us into the ultimate battle. And finally, we shall rise. It's actually all quite poetic."
"You certainly know your stuff." The first observed and the second shrugged.
"I was bored and there was nothing else around to read." The second said offhandedly and the first nodded understandingly.
"What about the assassin?" The first asked after a pause.
"George? Oh, he'll die. He's become a liability and we can't afford to let him live. He's just too immersed in the whole legend. Plus, his whole sexist thing which makes him hate the fact that it's a woman who's getting the high and mighty position."
"He's sexist?"
"Yeah, didn't you notice how willingly he murdered those slayers?"
"Ohh, right."
"Yeah."
"So.. You wanna go and get a drink?"
"Yeah, I've been craving a pina colada all day."
"'Kay, I'll get Marty and Kultrey to cover the watch." And with that a quick phone call was made and the two beings went off to a bar to have a drink.
Meanwhile…
Hope, Faith and Angel were at the hotel room and Hope excused herself, going into the bedroom and picking up the hotel phone. Taking a deep breath she dialled the number.
"Spike here, not available at the moment, so leave a message and… Aw screw this, if I'm not answering then I don't give a bullocks who the hell you are, not as if I ever check this bloody thing anyways." Then there was a beep and Hope tried not to fall apart, taking a deep breath once again before starting.
"Hi, Spike. It's me, Hope. I'm going back to the Scoobies. I mean, I had to go back there at one point or another, they still have my duffel bag o doom. That coupled with Angel's stirring speech was just too much. And I heard, that wasn't even one of his most stirring speeches. Well now we know that once someone gets all motivational, I'm at their mercy. Good thing I never went to one of those 'pyramid' schemes." Hope sighed heavily,
"But that isn't the reason I called. Well, not the only reason. I realised something, a little too late. I love you Railroad. I love the way you act like a gentleman to me when it matters most. I love the way you make me laugh. I love that look you get in your eyes when you smile. I even love your self satisfied smirk. God. I love you so much, I'm so sorry… Will. I remember the last time I called you that." Hope chuckled.
"You got so righteously pissed off." She sighed, "I'm going to now, leaving for slayer hq. I'll call la…"
"Hope! Hope, I'm here!" The only reply was a dial tone on the other end. "Idiot, idiot, idiot." He smacked himself in the head with the receiver.
Hope hung up and took a long cleansing breath, she almost thought she heard Spike, but she knew that that was not possible. She gathered herself and followed her sister, who had caught the bottom end of the conversation, out the door.
"Ready for show time?" Faith asked and Hope stuck her nose in the air.
"Bring it on."
Hope, Faith and Angel were cruising in a mini limo waiting for sunset to come and were drinking the whiskey and scotch that the Italian branch of Wolfram and Hart had kindly provided for them. Angel watched the other two get more and more drunk, stopping them before they got too tipsy, to the protests of the twins. Taking both of the glasses off them, he put them away in the cabinet of the limo.
The only reason he ever let them get this far was that he understood Hope's need to forget the reason she needed to lean on him earlier, and Faith was pretty much along for the ride. And Angel had noticed that Hope had drunk more than Faith, and understood, and almost supported her.
"Don't be such a square." Faith whined at Angel as he put away the alcohol and Hope giggled.
"Hehe, square." Hope said and continued to giggle.
"Well it's true, his shoulders are kinda hard and squarey." Faith said and patted Angel on the shoulder who just looked at both of them with a bemused look. Then he peered out the window, trying to ignore the twins in front of him that started to giggle and point out things that wouldn't be so humorous if they weren't drunk.
"Hey, look sunset, the sun has set, meaning we're going off to Scooby land." Angel said, a little over eager about it.
"Someone's a little too happy about getting rid of us." Hope sang and Angel protested at that half heartedly.
"No I-" He began, not really putting much effort into it. Faith covered her mouth in mock shock at this.
"Oh my god, you totally do."
"No I don't. I'm just worried."
"Bout what Ace?" Hope said and then hiccuped, which made herself laugh.
"The whole pending apocalypse mostly, plus I'm really getting that feeling that I left something on… Like the oven or something…"
"But… you don't own an oven." Hope said, scratching her head and then laughed uncontrollably, "Oven, hehehe."
"I know, but I've got this really bad feeling of impending doom." Angel said, showing his fear that had been building over the past few weeks to the two tipsy twins.
"Don't worry your pretty head Angel, everythin'll be fine." Faith said as Hope kept shaking with laughter.
"Pretty head, hehehe." Hope said to herself and continued laughing.
"Okay, I'll drop you guys off, give a short explanation to the Scooby on duty, and go back to Wolfram and Hart and see what I can do from there."
"What if the Scooby on duty is Buffy?" Faith asked with big eyes and Angel shrugged.
"Then the explanation will be even shorter and the pleasantries, non existent." He said matter of factly and both twins 'aww'ed.
"Pleasantries, hehehe." Hope said after awwing. The limo slowly came to a stop and the window which separated the back seats from the driver slid down.
"We're here, sir." The driver said and Angel nodded.
"Thanks, Marty." Angel said and the driver tipped his hat to him.
"No problem sir." Then Angel thought he saw him glance off to the side, where Hope and Faith were sprawled across the seats laughing to themselves about something. But he just dismissed it and opened the door and ushered the twins out. Hope walked in a vaguely straight line, depending on Faith to keep her on the pathway. Faith, who was better at holding her liquor, kept Hope in her vague straight line whilst also laughing along with her, head bent and whispering to each other.
Angel followed after them, back to his broody self, hoping and praying to the Powers that Buffy would not be the one who would answer the door. The sisters climbed onto the porch, with a little difficulty, and then rang the bell. Apparently the PTB were busy at the moment, because it was Buffy who answered the door and Angel noted the glow that seemed to surround her thanks to lights that reflected off her blonde hair.
She was slightly bewildered that Hope and Faith were on the doorstep, giggling and obviously drunk. Then she spotted Angel lurking in the background and she forgot about the twins for the time being.
"Angel?" She asked and Angel winced, it was that tone. That hurt, unsure, shocked, disbelieving tone that cut right into him.
"Hi, uh, Buffy." He said and shifted uncomfortably on the spot. Hope and Faith looked at each other, and even in their slightly tipsy state, they knew tension when they felt it. They just went inside, Buffy let them pass, giving them a strange look as they did.
"Are they drunk?" Buffy asked and Angel shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Uh, yeah."
"You let them get drunk?"
"They're adults, Buffy, they can get drunk if they'd like to."
"And you let them?"
"Yes, I did Buffy, I kept an eye on them and let them make their own decisions. They have a right to do that, and I have no right to stop them."
"But still…"
"They had their reasons."
"Reasons huh?"
"Yeah, reasons."
"You gonna tell me, or am I going to have to guess?"
"It's their business not mine, if they want to tell you they will. It's not my place."
There was silence as they both stood there uncertainly. Then Buffy tried to make conversation, even though ever part of her body language showed that she really didn't want to make conversation. But of course, curiosity got the best of her.
"So… Why are you here?" She asked and Angel finally let some of the tension leave his body, a simple question for once.
"I was escorting Hope and Faith back."
"No, I mean in Rome." Ok, not such a simple question anymore.
"I wanted to visit Rome again." Angel said and prayed that she didn't ask why.
"Why?" No luck for Angel today.
"Business." He said, his entire body tensing up, knowing what was about to happen.
"Right, of course. Wolfram and Hart." Buffy said, with disappointment clear in her voice.
"Buffy, I…"
"Don't. I don't even know who you are anymore." Buffy said, her lip curling slightly at Angel and he took a victim stance, shoulders hunched and eyes dropped to the ground.
"I'm sorry. But there are some things that you don't know about that made me make this decision. I'm not selling out." He raised his eyes to Buffy's and made sure that she knew that he meant the last sentence. But it didn't really reach through well.
"No you're betraying me and everything that we both stand for. You're not fighting evil, you are evil." Buffy said, her eyes blazing and then she promptly turned on her heel and slammed the door in Angel's face. Angel stood there in shock, her words cut deep and he had lost his motor skills for the time being.
He stood on the porch for a few more moments, really feeling the loneliness that was magnified by the previous happenings. It was a feeling he knew well, but it never stopped hurting. This was the feeling of being completely alone.
"Harsh."
Ok, not completely alone. He looked into the shadows next to the porch where it had originated.
"Faith." He said, detecting a whiff of Faith scent. Plus a big stench of alcohol, and considering Buffy's opposition to the substance, Faith and Hope would be the only ones with any slight stench of alcohol on them.
"Spot on soul boy."
"You saw that." Angel stated and Faith nodded as she stepped out of the shadows.
"Feeling the coldness of that exchange sobered me up quite a bit. I mean, I thought you two were gonna get to blows there for a second."
"Might've been better that way." Angel muttered under his breath.
"Hey, you got me, right?" Faith asked, stepping forward with her arms open, "Plus Hope."
"Where is she?"
"Inside, dozing some of the alcohol off." Faith said, getting out a cigarette and a Zippo, "So this is the only time I can smoke. That girl can lay it on thick, seriously, the only time I'm safe is when she's drunk herself unconscious." She lit the cigarette and took a drag. Angel looked at her glumly before offering her a half smile.
"I better go back to headquarters and try and get the situation vaguely under control."
"You can get you and Buffy under control at Wolfram and Hart?" Faith asked, lost of a second.
"What?" Angel looked at her in shock and then quickly corrected her, "No. I mean, the apocalypse." He explained.
"Ohhh. Gee, sorry Angel." Faith said, wincing at her mistake but Angel waved it off.
"It's okay, I should go." Then he looked back at the front door, "Can you-?"
"Argue with her for your honour?" Faith asked and Angel gave her a look
"Apologise." He said and Faith rolled her eyes and took in a drag.
"That is nowhere near as interesting." Faith said and Angel gave her another look. She offered him a cheeky smile and then he stopped giving her a look and just looked at her with a slight approval in his eyes. Then he turned away and walked off the porch and started down the path.
"Take care of your sister, Faith." He said over his shoulder before getting into the limo. Faith waved to the limo before it left and sat on the front steps of the porch, taking a long drag from her cigarette. There was a rustle from the bushes that she had just been in and she stood up quickly and stared at them. A man stumbled out of them and looked at Faith. Faith just raised her eyebrow at him as he brushed leaves and branches off of himself.
"Are you Faith?" He asked and Faith frowned.
"Who's asking?" She asked back and he nodded, apparently that was enough of an answer to make sure that it was her. Then he took out a tranq gun, quite calmly and shot Faith before she could move fast enough to stop him. She dropped to the floor slowly, her eyes rolling upwards, while the man looked on.
"I'm Kultrey, nice to meet you." Then he bent down and picked up Faith easily, swinging her over his shoulder.
Hope ya had fun reading, I'll be back with another chapter as soon as possible…
JB
