Faith stood with unblinking eyes on the patio with a thin, black folder pressed against her chest almost painfully. She watched dully as the BMW sped down the gravel road until only an echo of the V8 engine's roar remained.
She was startled as a person appeared in her peripheral vision from behind her. "What did he want?" Miyoko asked quietly. She took a step back as the Slayer turned an ashen face in her direction.
"Do we have any booze in the house?" Faith asked monotonically, almost like a robot.
"Faith, I don't think... Please, sit down with me and tell me what happened," Miyoko requested soothingly and sat down on the patio steps. She reached up and gently grabbed Faith's elbow, tugging her down. The Slayer didn't offer any resistance as she practically fell on her butt next to Miyoko.
"Can I...?" Miyoko asked hesitantly, indicating the folder Faith was hugging almost convulsively. She noticed the slight loosening of Faith's grip and took it as a permission to pull the folder loose. Opening it somewhat reluctantly, Miyoko noticed it contained only a few legal-sized papers in it. She started reading the topmost.
"I, Richard Wilkins III, a resident of Sunnydale, California, and a citizen of the United States of America, declare this to be my Last Will...
"...I direct that after payment of all my debts, my property be bequeathed in the manner following: I give, devise and bequeath all the rest, residue and reminder of the property which I may own at the time of my death, real, personal and mixed, of whatsoever kind and whatsoever situated, to Faith Bridget Lehane (XXX-XX-XXX) to be her absolutely and in fee simple, if she shall survive me.
"All property left to Faith Bridget Lehane in this will is to be maintained and held in a trust for Faith Bridget Lehane until she reaches the age of twenty-one and shall only devolve upon her at that time. I name Lilah Morgan of Wolfram & Hart LLP as trustee of the Faith Lehane trust and if she is unwilling or unable to serve, I name Rupert Giles of the Council of Watchers as alternate trustee...
"The trustee must distribute net income of the trust to the beneficiary on an annual basis, but thereafter may liquidate assets as need may be in order to provide for the beneficiary's maintenance, education, health requirements and living expenses until the vesting day of the trust..."
The supplementary documentation detailed the property and assets left behind by Richard Wilkins – some cash, but mainly stock and investment funds. Also, some real estate in the City of Sunnydale. There was also a transcript of a declaration the guy had apparently recorded as a video. As Miyoko reached the last page, her eyes widened in shock.
"$11,747,237.69," she gasped.
"After taxes," Faith stated in a monotone, still staring straight ahead.
"That's...," Miyoko stammered. "I don't know what to say."
"Ain't gonna take it."
"You're not...? In the name of all that's holy, why?" Miyoko asked in absolute disbelief.
"Why?" Faith snorted incredulously and turned to face Miyoko. "The guy was a fucking monster. He was... more than a century old, maybe several centuries. Who knows what fucked-up stuff he pulled to amass that kind of money? It's all fucking tainted, and I'm not gonna touch a cent of it."
They sat in silence for several minutes, Miyoko in deep thought. What Faith had said made sense, in a twisted sort of way, but there was more to this than the Slayer saw.
"Faith... did you tell this to that lawyer?"
"Yeah," Faith shrugged. "He said he'd be back tomorrow for my final decision."
"And what will happen to this... wealth if you decline?" Miyoko asked. It was specified in the will, but she wanted Faith to say it.
"That law firm will get it, I guess," Faith shrugged again.
"Faith," Miyoko started seriously and laid a hand on the Slayer's knee. "You're saying this... Mayor was evil, right? Yet he chose you, a Slayer, someone dedicated to fight evil as his sole heir. That and this transcript here... Doesn't all that mean that somewhere deep inside, he wanted his wealth to be used for good purposes by someone he knew he could trust?"
Faith stood up and brushed Miyoko's hand angrily away. "You don't fucking get it, Cat-Hands. Something like this just doesn't happen to me. It's... fucking bullshit!"
Miyoko stood up herself and faced the slayer without flinching. "'Something like this just doesn't happen to me'?" she mimicked. "Oh, really, Ms Champion-of-the-Powers-That-Be?"
Once again Faith was struck dumb. She didn't offer any resistance as Miyoko circled her arms around her and pulled her close. She felt a warm breath against her lips.
"I've never kissed a millionaire before," Miyoko whispered and closed the remaining distance between their lips.
At first the kiss was one-sided but eventually Faith started responding. They both jumped when a cleared throat nearby shocked both of them back to their senses.
"So, Faith... either you got good news or very good news," Pauline smirked from where she was leaning against the door frame with a cup of coffee in her hand.
"I dunno...," Faith muttered, feeling uncommonly self-conscious. "I still don't know if I should do this."
"Why don't you get back in bed and tell us the whole story? Maybe recalling it from the beginning would help both you and us put everything into perspective and understand the underlying premise."
Once in her bed, Faith just fixed her eyes on a crack in the ceiling and began talking. "It all started in a back alley after me and B..."
Olivia Williams stood in silence with a cup of tea in her hand, watching Rupert being totally oblivious to anything around him as he poured over a stack of notebooks, occasionally marking notes in a separate notebook or a piece of paper. How could something that... ordinary manage to look sooo sexy. She laid her cup down on the serving counter and untied the belt of her dressing gown. She stepped quietly over to Giles' chair, pushed his back against the rest and straddled him with her gown fully open at the front.
"Even old and stuffy librarians are allowed to take breaks, Ripper," she purred huskily.
"I'm not old!" Giles huffed in mock indignation. "Nor a librarian anymore."
"But stuffy, mmm... You definitely stuffed me with your stuff earlier." She could feel Giles getting aroused again inside his pyjamas. "Think you could... pack your stuff in a little bit tighter?"
"What are you thinking about?" Olivia asked Giles later as they were lying side-by-side in bed.
"The past, the present and the future – the usual," Giles answered quietly, still looking at the ceiling; something he had been doing for the past five minutes.
"Why don't you start with the past and go on from there?" she prompted, snuggling in a little bit closer.
"Alright. In the beginning..."
"Rupert!" she snapped and slapped Giles' chest.
"Livvy, please," Giles stopped her, taking her hand. "I'm perfectly serious."
"Uh-oh," she grinned. "A serious librarian indahouse. Should I be concerned?"
"Rascal," Giles smiled fondly and kissed her. "No, there's no reason for concern. I've just been contemplating on what I know and what's been written about the beginnings of this world. I've told you some of the myths and legends surrounding the Primordium Age – The Powers That Be, the Old Ones and so on."
Olivia nodded.
"The more I read the less of it just doesn't add up."
"Ok, now you lost me totally."
"Are you familiar with the Omphalos hypothesis?"
"Last Thursdayism? Yes, what about it?"
"I'm not sure something like that didn't happen at some point in the past – maybe several."
"What do you mean?" Olivia asked in astonishment.
"Because it's all a bloody patchwork, that's what!" Giles burst out angrily. He was forced to take a few deep breaths before being able to continue more calmly.
"Rowan mentioned once that an Apocalypse initiated by the Old Ones some 65 million years ago almost unravelled time and space. This particular Apocalypse coincides with the commonly accepted timeframe when a catastrophe wiped out all land-based dinosaurs."
Olivia was listening to all this in total silence, her mouth hanging slightly open.
"While I'm sure Rowan told the absolute truth, as he saw it, something about it has been bothering me ever since. A local phenomenon like that, however colossal, shouldn't have that kind of an effect outside its frame of reference. No, what I'm hypothesising is that something even more catastrophic must have occurred on a multi-dimensional scale much farther in the past, and this later event just threatened to cancel its effects on a local scale.
"Then, a few months later, Willow described a botched temporal fold spell which gave her... glimpses of possible alternate realities, much like this one but subtly different on various levels."
"Where are you going with this?" Olivia asked quietly but fascinated.
"Maybe, just maybe time and space were fractured, split, at some point in the far, far past – and I'm using this term carefully – and the... slice we live in is just a fluke."
"Wow, Ripper. You've certainly outdone yourself this time," she shook her head. "But as it seems you won't be able to set things straight here and now, from this bed, I say you fast-forward to the present. I'm much more comfortable with that one anyway."
"You're right," Giles nodded and kissed her again. "Maybe all this is just symptoms that my advanced age is starting to affect my brain and thought processes. I'm sorry I subjected you to these ramblings of a doddering old fool."
"You feel very springy for a doddering old fool," Olivia grinned as her hand found its way down Giles' lower belly under the covers.
"Well, yes, erm... the present," Giles sighed and closed his eyes. A small smile caressed his lips. "The Council recently returned me back to their payroll, but I feel I just cannot let myself become a 'gentleman of leisure'. Being the high-school librarian gave me a purpose, and I just cannot fathom doing nothing. Buffy doesn't need me anymore..."
"Stop right there, Ripper!" Olivia interrupted him (and her ministrations under the covers). "Why are you so harsh on yourself? Of course she needs you. You're the only real father figure in her life, and her mentor. She might not always be able to show it, but she really does need you. Who else would she turn to when the life of a Slayer starts to weigh too heavily on her shoulders?"
"There's Willow and Xander and..."
"That's a load of tosh and you know it. They are her friends... a totally different dynamic. She is still a young girl in most aspects and really needs an adult male role model. As I've understood it, her biological father hardly ever contacts his former family. You don't have to wait for her to come to you; it's probably hard for her anyway with what I can assume are lingering feelings of rejection by her father. It would mean a world to her if you reached out sometimes. How many times have you called her over the summer? Does she even know of your new status as far as the Council is concerned?"
"Well, there've been..." Giles muttered, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"Right, well," Olivia huffed. "First, you tell me about the future, then you call your Slayer and ask her for tea. Just her."
"Thank you, Livvy," Giles smiled. "Actually, what you just said did slightly change what I've been planning for the future. Like I said, I cannot really visualize myself becoming a 'gentleman of leisure', so when I thought about my future options, I saw only two paths ahead of me. First, return to England. Second, go into business here in Sunnydale."
"And you have now discarded option #1, I hope?" Olivia asked with a raised eyebrow.
"More or less."
"So, what kind of a business have you been contemplating? Something that could act as a believable front for your... other operations?"
"A magic shop. There is already one here, but Spike killed the then proprietor late last year. Later the same day, he, Buffy and Rowan fought a group of vampires there which practically demolished the interior. Then, early this year, the shop was bought and renovated by Mr Robert Bogarty and re-christened as 'Uncle Bob's Magic Cabinet'. The business hasn't been good, though, due to all the rumours surrounding the place – mainly because of our Trio's little endeavour – so he's lately been thinking about retiring altogether. With Council's support I could acquire the establishment from him for a reasonable price and transform it into a new centre for our Sunnydale operations. I have already made a few visits there with that idea in mind. It has a large storage area in the back which could be easily converted into a training room for Buffy – and Faith, should she ever return to Sunnydale from her quest. There's enough room in the basement to store all extra inventory."
"Rupert, that's brilliant!" Olivia beamed. "I can already visualize you as a slightly absent-minded but good-natured antiquarian who keeps his books manually and curses under his breath when the numbers don't add up."
"Olivia, do you have any idea how much I..."
"Rupert, don't," she shook her head and silenced him with a finger on his lips. "Not now, not yet. Let's just enjoy what we have for the present, without attachments. You're not the only one with plans for the future, Ripper, but it's not the time yet."
"I understand, Livvy, I do," Giles nodded but couldn't keep the slight hurt away from his voice. "Thank you."
Olivia smiled seductively and slid herself on top of Giles. "Not nearly good enough, Rupert. You better thank me properly..."