CH. 3: Lord Voldemort
Life was a total bitch, Faith decided. Just when you start thinking that it couldn't possibly get any worse, it hits you in the face with something new. As if having two separate groups of people wanting her dead wasn't enough to deal with, now she had to deal with "The Letter" as she had dubbed it. Its contents had left her thinking and feeling things that she had shut out years ago. Things she didn't want to think about. Feelings she'd rather not feel. For one second, for one long second, she had thought maybe, maybe it was possible, maybe she did have a family but just as quickly as the idea had come, she discarded it. She was Faith, she didn't need family, she didn't need friends, they weren't worth it and in the end the only person she could count on was herself. And all she wanted to do now was forget. Forget about the letter, forget about her bad luck and forget about the people that wanted her dead and the only surefire, non-alcoholic, non-sex related way to do that was to kick some major vampire ass, hence the reason for walking around Sunnydale at this hour. Also, she had needed to be alone and away from the Scoobies.
Out of the corner of her eye, Faith noticed some movement in the alleyway across from her and decided to go check it out.
"Well, well, well, look at what we have here," Faith said as she entered the alleyway. There was a large male vampire standing over a girl that looked about thirteen years old even though her clothes and make-up were meant to suggest that she was older than that.
"Get lost, bitch," the vampire growled.
"You know what? I don't feel like it." Faith said taking a step forward.
The vampire snarled and leaped towards her with his fist extended. Faith ducked his punch and gave him one of her own. She took out the stake she had managed to snag and made short work of him.
"That was almost too easy," Faith said with a ghost of a smile. "You okay, kid?" she asked turning towards the girl.
The girl nodded shakily.
"Well, go on home. You shouldn't be out at this hour." Faith said.
The girl nodded again before turning around and running out of the alleyway.
Faith resumed walking. She had decided to go to Sunnydale's main cemetery since there was bound to be some demon or vampire activity there.
The second she stepped inside the cemetery, the hair on the back of her neck stood up. "Bingo," she whispered softly.
She followed her senses and started weaving her way thru the cemetery towards its center. She knew there was a clearing there and she had a hunch that was where her bad guys were. And she was right.
Standing in a circle was a group of about fifteen men. They where all dressed in black robes and silver masks but something was wrong. While Faith was getting some mega evil vibes from them, it wasn't like the vibes she usually got from other demons and vampires.
"We've been expecting you," came a voice from behind her.
Faith whirled around, her stake in hand mentally cursing herself for not sensing that somebody was behind her. She came face to face with what she was sure was the world's ugliest creature. Unlike the others he wasn't wearing a mask so she got a good look at his face and wished she hadn't. He had extremely pale skin; so pale that it almost seemed to glow in a dark, sinister way. He didn't have a nose, or what she would normally consider a nose, instead he had two slits like a snake. His eyes were an eerie red color and they were gleaming like a cat. He was inhumanly thin with large hands and unnaturally long bony fingers.
"Okay, it's times like these that plastic surgery is an absolute must," Faith said taking an involuntary step backwards. "Who or should I say what are you?"
The creature gave her a cold smile. "I am Lord Voldemort. You must be Faith."
"Ya'll heard about me, huh?" Faith said with a smile. While she had a cool, almost careless facade her mind was racing. Something was totally off, the thing in front of her wasn't human, you could tell just by looking at him but at the same time, he wasn't all demon either. Faith was sure about one thing though; he was filled with power and darkness.
"But of course," he answered. "Doesn't she look exactly like Bella?"
There was a murmured agreement among the hooded figures.
Faith had no idea who the hell Bella was, nor did she care. "Then you know I'm the slayer, right?" Faith said as she watched closely to see how he would react.
"Yes," he said.
"And how I'm supposed to slay big bad evil thingies." Faith continued.
"Supposed to is the key word." He said in an offhand way.
Faith stiffened but she continued like nothing happened. "Then don't feel bad when I kill you and your friends cos you guys definitely go in that category."
"I do not wish to fight you at this moment," he said.
"That's too bad, cos I'm just itching for a fight." And with that she lunged at him. At the same time he took out his wand, pointed it at Faith and suspended her in mid air.
"Holy shit," Faith gasped. Her surprise quickly changed to anger. "Put me down, you bastard!"
"You're not afraid of me," Voldemort said, coming so close to her that she could feel his rasping breath on her face. "I find that…amusing." He stroked the side of her face with one bony finger.
There were a couple of chuckles heard from the robed figures.
Faith refused to flinch and give him any satisfaction. "What the hell did you do to me?" she asked as she tried to get down but to no avail.
"A simple levitation spell. I'd be more than happy to teach you how it works." He said amiably.
"I don't give a fuck how it works as long as you let me go." Faith snarled as she struggled.
He acted as if he hadn't even heard her speak. "I could also teach you many other things, many powerful things."
"And I'm gonna teach you how painful death can be if you don't let me go." Faith said menacingly.
"As you wish," Voldemort said letting her drop.
Faith scrambled to her feet and swung her arm towards his jaw but she didn't connect. With a loud pop he disappeared.
"What the-" Faith said, looking around wildly.
Just as quickly, he reappeared behind her. "You are strong, no doubt. You are also a fighter, I like that. But you have much to learn, my child. I am willing to teach you."
There was something about the way he said 'my child' that chilled Faith's blood. "And who said I'm willing to learn?" She said, gritting her teeth as she tried to kick him again and again missed. By now she had noticed that whatever mojo Lord Thingy here was doing had something to do with the stick in his hand, his wand, she thought remembering her dreams for a fleeting second. She reasoned that if she was able to get it out of his hand, she might be able to get the upper hand in this fight. If only he would stop disappearing.
Voldemort chuckled softly. "You will be once you hear about the preposition I have to offer."
"Oh really? Why don't you let me be the judge of that?" Faith said.
"I know about your –how shall put this- problems with the Council and will gladly help you-"
"I don't need any help," Faith stated coolly.
"Is that so? In that case why are you staying with that other slayer and her little friends when you know they hate you?" It wasn't a question as much as it was a fact.
"None of your goddamn business," Faith said coldly. It was really starting to freak her out that this guy knew so much about her. What else does he know? She wondered momentarily.
Voldemort nodded, he knew he had touched a nerve. "Oh but it is. You see I'm one of the very few people on this earth who care about what happens to you."
"Now why would that be?" Faith said.
"Because you'll be of great use to me and because I knew Wilkins."
This stopped Faith dead in her tracks. "You- you knew him?' she asked in a voice barely above a whisper.
"We have history together. What would he say if he saw you associating with his murderer? I daresay he'd be quite disappointed. He had high hopes for you." Voldemort shook his head.
"He talked to you about me?" Faith said in the same low tone.
"Yes," Voldemort said with a nod. "He did me a service a while ago and in return he asked me to take you under my wing if anything happened to him. The Dark Lord always repays those who stand by him so naturally I agreed to help you out and like I said-"
"What part of I don't need help don't you get?" Faith shouted.
There were a couple of surprised murmurs from the robbed figures but the one closest to Faith took a step towards her and spoke to her.
"Nobody yells at the Dark Lord and lives to talk about it," he said in low voice. "Nobody," he repeated ominously.
"Let her be, Macnair." Voldemort said sharply. "She's not yet trained in our ways."
"I'm sorry, master." The man named Macnair said before stepping back into the shadows.
Faith snorted. "Master?" she repeated scornfully. "Is that the job you want to offer me? To become on of your lackeys? To sit around and take orders from you and be treated as a slave? Doesn't' sound too appealing."
"No, as an- as an equal." It was not without difficulty that Voldemort said this. It raised some more hushed whispers from his followers but with one look he silenced them.
"Keep talking," Faith said.
"I'm sure you do not who I am. If you did you wouldn't be so impudent. I am the most powerful wizard in the world and soon the whole world will know that."
"Let me take a wild guess?" Faith said sarcastically. "You're another one of those psychos hell-bent on taking over the world and getting rid of all the humans?"
"Not quite," Voldemort said. "I only plan to get rid of muggles, mudbloods and all those who stand against me. The others can live if they join me."
"Not much of a choice." Faith commented. "Join you or die."
"It's the only one or if they are fools they can try and fight me." He said.
"I see." Faith said with an exaggerated nod. "Now correct me if I'm wrong. You just said something about being the most powerful person-
"Wizard," Voldemort interrupted. "You must have noticed by now that I am not a human being."
"Uh ha, it's kinda hard not to notice," Faith said wrinkling her nose at his appearance. "But while we're on this subject what's up with the whole wizard thing? And for the record what the heck is a muggle?"
"You don't know?" Voldemort asked surprised. "The Council never told you?"
"Told me what?" Faith asked.
"About the wizarding world." Voldemort said impatiently.
"Must've been absent that day." Faith said with a shrug.
"That's quite strange." Voldemort said with a shake of his head. "But never mind that gives me an advantage over them."
"That's nice," Faith said, getting the feeling that he was talking more to himself than her. "But let's get back to the whole wizarding shit for a second."
"Ah yes, simply put, wizards are people who have the power to do magic." He said.
"And are they always guys?" Faith asked her curiosity getting the better of her.
"No, many women can also do magic, they're the witches. Along with many magical creatures such as fairies and centaurs, we make up the wizarding world." Voldemort explained quite accurately.
"And why haven't people like me heard of people like you?" Faith asked.
With her question, Voldemort curled his upper lip in disgust. "Because many wizards are afraid of how muggles- people who don't have magic- would react if they found out about them."
"That's stupid," Faith said pointedly. "I mean you guys are the ones with all the mojo. Why the hell are you afraid of people who are less powerful than you?"
"That's exactly what I believe. We are stronger then them. Why are we the ones in hiding?" Voldemort said angrily.
"You tell me," Faith said with a shrug.
"Because the wizarding world is being run by a bunch of fools who think that we should stay hidden in order to keep world peace but that wouldn't last long." He said with malice. "Wait till they-"
"Okay, back the main topic." Faith said hurriedly. She was sure this was one person she'd rather not see have a temper tantrum. "You mentioned somewhere in your whole 'I'm gonna rule the world' speech that you're the most powerful wizard in the world. Of course that's probably a load of oversized male ego speaking, but it did get me thinking. If you're so powerful, then why haven't you already taken over?" she said practically.
"Rest assured that I am indeed the most powerful wizard but there are some people who don't believe that. Ignorant fools. They're placing all their trust in a mere boy."
Faith had a sudden vision of green light and she once again she heard that low chilling cackle from her dream. She shook her head to clear her mind. "And who exactly is he?" she asked curiously.
"I wish I were able to say that he is nobody important but that is not true. He is the one thing stopping me from succeeding."
"How?" Faith asked.
"There was a prophecy made a long time ago that states that one of us must defeat the other. So in order for me to actually have won I must kill him first."
"Okay, that has got to be the most ironic thing I've ever heard," Faith said. "You're the most powerful wizard in the world and in order to take over the world you have to kill some kid. Why haven't you done it yet? I mean, he's just a kid right?"
"True, but lucks always been on his side but I have a feeling that his luck is about to end." Voldemort answered.
"I see. So how do I fit in to your master plan?" Faith asked.
Voldemort smiled, the girl was smart. "You join me." He stated simply.
"Yeah, I pretty much figured out that part," the brunette answered. "But what I don't get is what you want me to do?"
"Whatever I tell you to." Voldemort said.
Faith quirked an eyebrow, "I thought we just went over this. I don't take orders from nobody." She said.
"What about Wilkins?" Voldemort pointed out.
Immediately Faith's temper flared. "That was different, okay? I was the one who went to him. I wanted to help him. You, however came to me and you are the one who wants my help."
"On the contrary you owe me." Voldemort corrected.
Faith couldn't believe her ears. "I owe you?" she asked. "For what?"
"For saving your life," Voldemort answered. "Twice."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Faith demanded. "I've never seen you before today."
"How do you think you got out the comma? According to those muggle doctors, your body was so damaged, they were sure that you'd never get out of that comma and if you somehow did miraculously wake up, you'd never go back to normal but look at you now. Barely a week later and you're as good as new."
"But how?" Faith managed to say.
"Ancient magic. Powerful ancient magic." Voldemort said. "Only a few people practice it today."
"And the second time?" Faith asked, sure she knew the answer.
"I thought that would be obvious." Voldemort said. "Right after you left the hospital you came across the pack of Pergola Demons. They would've killed you had I not killed them."
"Well, I didn't ask for your help so technically I don't owe you." Faith said, recovering from the shock of what he had just told her.
"This is all beside the point." Voldemort said impatiently.
"Hey, you brought it up." Faith retorted.
"The point is we can both help each other hence making us perfect allies." Voldemort said. He practically spit the last words out. As much as he hated acknowledging it, he knew that this girl was his equal even though she didn't know it.
"Really?" Faith said, folding her arms across in front of her chest. "We'll see about that after you tell me what's in it for me."
"You won't have to depend on that other slayer or her friends. You'll also get you're revenge on her."
"I like the sound of that," Faith said with a smile.
"There's more." Voldemort said. "You can also get back at your former watcher and anyone else you want to get revenge on. I'll make it so that merely the mention of your name stirs fear in people's hearts and when I win, you'll have everything and anything you want and I will win."
He said with such conviction that Faith couldn't help but believe him. She nodded slowly. "One last question," she said. "Why me?"
"You're a slayer, which automatically makes one of the strongest people in the world and," Voldemort paused for emphasis. "You're a witch."
As he had expected, Faith was struck speechless. "No, no, you have got to be mistaken, I'm not a witch, I- I can't be a witch. All that mojo shit is not my thing." She said when she found her voice.
"I'm not mistaken. You are indeed a witch and you're the slayer. An extremely rare and powerful combination." Voldemort said. "In fact there hasn't been a combination like that for centuries."
Faith didn't give a damn how rare it was, it was bad enough she had been chosen to be a slayer, now she had to deal with being a witch. So she did what most people do when they're told to deal with something they don't want to deal with. She denied it. "I don't think so. I mean, I've never done any magic in my entire life and I'm sure that if I really was a witch I would've been able to do at least some magic by now."
"So you're telling me that you've never done anything unexpected or unexplainable when you're really angry or upset?" Voldemort said.
Faith started to say no but then realization dawned on her as she remembered quite a few moments when she'd done things that could only be explained as magic.
"Oh shit," Faith said as she grabbed onto the nearest tree for balance, she didn't trust her legs to support her. Yet another curveball thrown at her, and she had no idea how to react to this one. She couldn't handle all of this. "How did all of this happen?"
"How did all of what happen?" Voldemort asked.
"How did I become a witch? When did I become a witch? And how do I stop being one?" Faith asked wildly.
"First of all you don't become a witch or a wizard. You're born as one. It's hereditary." Voldemort said.
"So you're saying I'm a witch because my parents were witches and wizards?" Faith said as her mind struggled to comprehend this fact.
"Precisely." Voldemort answered.
"So if I had any brothers or sisters, they'd also be witches or wizards?" Faith asked her heart sinking.
"Yes," Voldemort said.
Faith let out a stream of curses, using every foul word she knew and then some. This was too much. She never should've come out here in the first place. It had only led to more trouble.
"So do you agree?"
Faith looked at him blankly.
"To join my cause." Voldemort said.
Faith shook her head dazedly. If only he had asked that question before he had told her she was a witch, she would've said yes first and thought about the consequences later but now she wasn't so sure. Two major things had happened to her in one day and she just knew they were both connected. "Tell you what, let me sleep on it and I'll tell you my answer then." She said at last.
He had expected her to give him an outright yes so he was a little surprised by her answer. He could try to use magic to force her but no matter what little training she had she was still very powerful and he wasn't sure what would happen and he'd rather not risk it. Besides, it would be better if she came willingly. He had waited nearly two decades for her; he could wait a couple of more days. "As you wish," he said slowly. He was positive that the old man didn't have a clue about the girl or her value so he didn't have anything to worry about.
Before Faith had a chance to speak, he and his followers had disappeared.
"Me and my damn luck," she muttered. She had come out her to stake some vamps and forget all about her troubles, instead she got another carload of troubles. Impulsively, Faith started walking towards The Bronze. Since slaying hadn't worked out, the only way she could forget now was to get really drunk. She could deal with her problems and the serious hangover she was bound to get tomorrow.
"Hey guys, I'm back!" Buffy called as she walked in through the door.
"Talk about stating the obvious," Spike muttered, lighting the cigarette that was dangling from his lips.
"Shut it, Spike," Buffy said wearily as came into the living room. She shrugged off her sweater and threw herself on the couch. Immediately she noticed something was wrong. The house was much too quiet. "Where's Faith?" Buffy asked suspiciously.
"Gone," Spike said absently.
"What?" Buffy screeched, getting up so fast the couch nearly toppled over.
Spike winced. "Can you tune it down a bit? I'm trying to watch the telly." He complained.
"What the hell do you mean she's gone?" Buffy said marching over to Spike.
"As in she's not here. Honestly slayer, are you that dense?" Spike said without looking up.
Buffy grabbed Spike by the front of his jacket and lifted him off the armchair. "Where is she?" she said between clenched teeth.
"I don't know." Spike said struggling to get out of her grip.
Buffy pulled back her arm and punched him in the jaw. "I'm not going to ask again, where the hell is she?"
"For the last time slayer, I. Don't. Know. Ask Red if you don't believe me." Spike said exasperatedly.
Buffy threw him across the floor. "Where is Willow?" Buffy asked.
"She's locked herself in the room." Spike said rubbing his jaw, sitting back down in front of the TV. He was about to take a drag from the cigarette but Buffy snatched it from him.
"Hey!" he complained.
"Didn't Giles tell you not to smoke inside the house?" she asked before grounding the tip of the cigarette on the ash try that was already overflowing with old cigarettes.
"Well it's not like I can go outside," Spike retorted.
Buffy sighed and stormed off to find Willow.
"Willow," she called knocking on the door. "Open up it's me, Buffy."
Buffy had to knock two more times before Willow opened the door.
"I just came in, Spike's outside alone, Faith's missing, and you're locked up in the room and from the looks of it you're trying to do a spell. Something is definitely wrong with this picture. You wanna tell what it is?" Buffy asked.
"Faith left." Willow said in a way of explanation.
"Uh ha, I kinda figured that out. What I don't get is why and where? Spike refused to tell me." Buffy answered.
Willow sighed. "I'm sure he doesn't know. She just left." She said waving her hand absently.
"Just like that? She didn't say anything?" Buffy questioned.
"Not really. I've been trying to do a location spell on her but no such luck." Willow said shaking her head and going back to the spell book.
"Okay. When exactly did she leave?" Buffy said sinking down on the floor next to her.
"A little over two hours ago. Long story short, she got a letter, she read it, said she need some air and left." Willow said.
"A letter?" Buffy repeated, dumbfounded. "Who'd be writing to Faith?"
"You won't believe it. I had to read it at least five times before I was sure it wasn't a hoax and then I had to read it another twenty times for it to actually sink in and I still don't believe it." Willow said. "Come to think of it, I don't think Faith believed it either. She was all in this trance like state when she left but I don't blame her. I'd go crazy if I found out about my past like that."
"Will, I'll go crazy if you don't show me the letter now," Buffy said.
"It's right here," Willow said, holding out a piece of paper.
Buffy snatched the paper from her hand and started to read.
Dear Faith,
You'll probably feel very strange reading this; I feel strange enough writing it! Just in case you're wondering, you and I have never met and I doubt you have ever heard of me. I know what I am about to tell you is very unsettling news and I am extremely sorry I've never told you before. To be completely honest, I never knew how to tell you and even today as I write you this letter I'm still not sure. I have thought about letting you live your life without knowing but that would be unfair to both you and Lily, and I would never forgive myself. I assume your parents who raised you told you were adopted. If they didn't, I'm sorry you have to find out this way but it is the truth. Lily, your biological mother and my best friend in the whole world, gave you up for adoption when you were three days old. Rest assured that it wasn't because she didn't love you. On the contrary, it was her love for you that made her give you up. She was barely sixteen at the time, still very much a child herself, and still in school. She knew she didn't have the means to give you the life you deserved so she made the painful decision to give you up to a family where you would have two loving parents. Lily always planned to come and meet you in person when both you and her were a little older but fate stepped in. When she was only nineteen years old, she and her husband were murdered. Yes, Lily had gotten married after graduating from Hogwarts (the school we went to) but no, it wasn't to your father. It was to his best friend. I'm not going to get into the details of this or their death because it would be too complicated to write down. I'd rather tell you face-to-face but that is your decision to make. Since I was the only one who knew about you, she had entrusted in me to tell you about your past if anything should happen to her. I'd love to be able to meet you and so would you're father, who by the way is my cousin, and I'm sure you're brother would too once we tell him about you. Yes Faith, you have read correctly, you do have a brother, a half brother to be exact from you're mother's side. He has just turned seventeen, which makes him about two years younger than you. I'm sure you'd really like him if you met him but like I said that is your decision to make. If you want to tear this letter up and continue on with your life like nothing happened, its okay and I'll respect your decision (I'm not sure about your father though!). But if you want to get to know your biological family better than let it be known that we welcome you with open arms. Just send us your reply and I will arrange a date for us to meet.
Yours truly,
Narcissa Black
"That's not even the craziest part," Willow said when Buffy finished reading the letter.
"Do I really want to know?" Buffy asked.
Willow acted as if she hadn't even spoken. "It was delivered by an owl." She said.
Buffy blinked. "It was delivered by a what?" she asked.
"An owl," Willow repeated.
"Wiggy," Buffy said. "But we're in Sunnydayle, the land of wigginess so I'm assuming I shouldn't be shocked. But going back to the letter- it's - I mean - I honestly don't know what to say."
"I know what you mean," Willow agreed. "That's such a huge blow. I actually feel sorry for Faith. I'm not excusing all the crazy things she's done." She added quickly. "But when it comes to family, she hasn't really had the best of luck."
"Yeah. First her mom died, then her watcher, then the mayor, who despite all his evilness was like a father to Faith, now this." Buffy said. "It's like every time she gets close to somebody she loses them."
"What do you think she's going to do about this?" Willow inquired.
"Knowing Faith, she's going to assume her whole "I'm so big I don't need anybody" role and act like this is nothing." Buffy answered.
"Well, what do we do now?" Willow said.
"I'll go look for Faith and you do your thing and try and locate her family." Buffy said getting up.
"Are you sure about the last part?" Willow asked worriedly also getting up. "Faith might not like it."
"She might not like it now but she will appreciate it in the long run." Buffy said.
"If you say so." Willow said, still hesitant.
"Will, don't worry so much. It'll be okay." Buffy said, putting on her jacket. "Faith will be with her family and she'll be out of our hair so we can focus our energy on The Initiative. I'll get to spend more time with Riley and you can focus on your Wicca group."
"What makes you think that the Watcher's Council will stop hunting for her?" Willow asked quietly.
"I don't but it won't be our problem anymore." Buffy said starting to get out the door.
"You sure you'll find her? Maybe I should go with you. We'll cover more territory that way." Willow suggested.
"Will, Sunnydale is an extremely tiny city. There are no buses or trains running at this hour so she couldn't have left town. Knowing Faith, she's probably in one of the cemeteries taking her rage out on some helpless vampire. I'll find her." Buffy assured.
"Okay." Willow said. "I'll get to work."
"If you need anything call Giles." Buffy called before leaving.
As she left the house, Buffy speculated where she should go first. After a while, she decided on Sunnydale's main cemetery.
What am I going to tell her? Buffy wondered silently. She decided she would know when she found her. Buffy walked into the cemetery. Everything was strangely quiet and there was no sign of any demon or vampire activity. Faith must have taken care of them all, Buffy thought with a grim smile. She walked around the cemetery listening carefully for any sound. After walking around for a couple of minutes, she started to sense that somebody was following her. Buffy tensed up, getting ready to get into slayer mode if she had too. She took a deep breath and whirled around, her stake ready in her hand…..
Only to find her ex-cradle-robbing, creature-of-the-night boyfriend, Angel standing there. And he didn't look too happy.
A/N: Okay, ppl before you start freaking out; give me a chapter or two (or three) to explain. There are a couple of things I need to clear up now though. I know I said that Faith was two years older than Harry making her nineteen, making her older than Buffy. Now I know cannon says Buffy's older and Faith is the younger slayer but I had to change it around to make it fit the storyline and besides Faith always seemed older than Buffy.
Also, I said in the letter that the Lily died when she was 19. Cannon states that she died when she was twenty-one but in order for the story to fit I once again had to change cannon.
