Stubborn

Disclaimer – Don't own anything you might recognize. They all belong to their respective owners.

Stubborn

The sky was just beginning to darken by the time Buffy and Faith arrived back at the apartment. Faith, wasting no time on friendly chit chat, grabbed a hold of Dean by the front of his shirt and dragged him away towards her bedroom, a suggestive smirk adorning her face. Dean barely had time to wink knowingly at Sam before he disappeared behind her rapidly closing door.

"Oh God," Sam groaned, flopping down onto a kitchen stool and burying his face in his hands. "It's started."

"What's started?" Buffy asked distractedly, bending over to stick her head in the fridge, looking for anything that might resemble something pre-slayage snackworthy. "Hey Sam, you want a sandwich or something?"

"Oh, yeah!" The sound of Faith's pleasured cry reverberated throughout the entire apartment.

Buffy's head shot up, crashing loudly against the roof of the fridge. Wincing, she moved away more carefully, rubbing the offended spot with her hand. "Okay, that was something I never needed to hear."

"Oh, there's more," Sam assured her regretfully.

About to ask what he meant, Buffy paused when a loud, repetitive thudding sound began emitting from Faith's bedroom. Her eyes widened in horror.

"We got kicked out of two motels because they kept breaking the beds," he admitted with a cringe. "We had connecting rooms but I could still hear them."

"And I repeat, something I never needed to hear."

"Hell yeah, big guy! Just like that!"

Sam and Buffy looked at each other in shared disgust.

"Are they always so...loud?"

Sam nodded apologetically. "The fact that we got away with it last night was a miracle. They must have been too tired after the drive up here."

As the thuds continued, and the sound of Faith and Dean's moans got louder and loader while their talk got dirtier and dirtier, Buffy awkwardly sidled back over to the fridge and closed it gently with her foot, suddenly no longer hungry.

"That's right, baby! Put it deeper! Oh yeah, that's good!"

"I'm gonna go patrol," Buffy said quickly. "Wanna come? Uh, I mean, wanna join...with me...on the patrolling?"

"Oh God yes."

"...so then Dean starts humming Metallica under his breath to calm himself down," a grinning Sam was recounting as they strolled side by side through the graveyard nearest to Buffy's apartment. "The people around us were looking at him out of the corners of their eyes like he was some kind of crazy."

She laughed delightedly and stopped walking to lean against a mausoleum wall. "I can't believe big, mean ol' Dean is scared of flying. That's just too good."

"I know, right?" Sam replied, leaning next to her. "After everything we've ever seen, that's what scares him."

Not moving from their positions against the mausoleum, they stayed that way, companionably exchanging stories about hunting and their siblings, right up until the sun had completely set and the sky had turned dark.

At a pause in the conversation, Buffy stopped to heave a faux dramatic sigh. "You can come out now," she called to the bushes to her right, before turning back to Sam. "Sorry, it's just there's been a vamp spying on us for the past five minutes, and I was trying to be all patient and wait for him to work up his little vampire courage and come out and face us, but it's getting kinda lame."

Sam smiled and raised an eyebrow in appreciation of her talents, and watched as an embarrassed vampire stood up, brushing dirt off of his shirt and pants and trying to walk out from behind the bush in a somewhat dignified manner, only to get tugged back as his shirt got caught on one of the thorns.

Buffy snorted in amusement, but didn't move from where she was leaning against the wall.

"You may laugh now," the vampire said threateningly, trying unsuccessfully to yank his shirt away from the thorns. "But you'll be begging me for mercy soon, little girl."

"Uh huh," she replied, her tone unimpressed. "Sam, you want this one?"

"Sure." He pushed himself away from the mausoleum and dug the stake Buffy had given him out of his back pocket. He'd taken barely a step forward before the vampire, finally managing to pull himself free, hissed and flew at him. Sam easily knocked him off course with a quick punch to the face. The vampire howled and stumbled backwards, covering his bloody nose with both hands, and Sam took the opportunity to kick his legs out from underneath him, before crouching down and slamming the stake through his heart.

"Well, that was...anticlimactic," he commented, accepting the hand a grinning Buffy held out to help him up.

"Fledglings. All talk, little action. That was good though. Really good. You take on many vampires?"

"Not really. I mean, my dad always told Dean and I that they were extinct, so it was kind of a surprise when Faith told us she was going patrolling for them. She showed us the basics though. You know, stake through the heart, decapitation, fire. That sort of thing."

"And you learned all that other fighting stuff off your dad, right?"

"Yeah," Sam replied, looking uncomfortable. "He was a good teacher."

"Well," Buffy said, pulling a face as she brushed a little vamp dust off of his chest. "You carry on like that and we'll make a scooby out of you yet."

Sam smiled and watched her for a moment as she finished brushing him off and then turned to continue their patrol. And then he frowned. "Wait," he called, loping after her. "What's a scooby? Is that a good thing?"

"Slow night," Buffy said with a sigh, some time later. It had been an hour since they had last come across a member of the undead, and while she and Sam had been taking the opportunity to get to know one another, she couldn't help wishing for some action. She'd been on edge ever since Sam's very annoying brother had riled her up that morning, and she'd been hoping for a good fight to calm herself down.

"Wait. What's that?" Sam asked, holding up a hand to halt their movements.

"What's what?"

"Can't you hear it?"

Buffy stilled, straining her ears for whatever it was that Sam was talking about. Now that she was listening, she too could hear the soft murmur of low, muffled voices, not far from where they were standing.

Putting a finger to her lips to signal for Sam to keep silent, Buffy led the way, tiptoeing towards the source of the noise.

Seconds later they were stood in front of an old crypt. Its door had been left wide open, and Buffy could only marvel at how much dumber the vampires seemed to be getting. They knew how freakin' close they were to a school for vampire slayers, and yet they were as rowdy as ever, not even caring to close the door to keep the noise down. It was like they wanted to be slayed.

Peering inside, she could see that the large, stone coffin in the center of the room had been moved, revealing a smallish, man sized hole. She could just spot the top rungs of a ladder sticking out of it. From the sounds of it, the vamps were right below them.

Buffy blinked, flashing back to the crypt Spike had commandeered back in Sunnydale. It was eerily similar.

She shook her head, clearing her mind of the memories, and silently indicated for Sam to follow her away from the crypt. She stopped when she was sure they were far enough away not to be heard.

"How many do you think are down there?" Sam asked.

"From the sounds of it, I'd say between ten and fifteen. I didn't get a look at them though, so I can't be sure."

"So what's the plan?"

Buffy eyed him carefully. "You sure you wanna go down there? We're outnumbered. Could be dangerous."

Sam looked straight back at her and raised an eyebrow, and she grinned and rolled her eyes.

"Hey, I had to ask," she said with a grin, before arranging her face into a serious expression. "Okay, I think our best bet is to surprise them. We'll jump down and take them by force. I doubt they're anything more than fledglings but don't let your guard down. Watch my back and I'll watch yours."

"Sounds good."

They had taken not two steps back towards the crypt when they heard a rustle from behind them and a crossbow bolt shot straight from the bushes towards Buffy's head. Her hand whipped up and caught it a mere inch before it pierced her skull.

"Nice reflexes, B!" A smirking Faith sauntered out of the shadows, a crossbow slung casually over one shoulder. A wide eyed Dean followed her, his own crossbow hanging limply by his side. "Haven't let yourself go while I've been away. I'm impressed."

Buffy grinned and threw the bolt back towards Faith, who caught it easily and pocketed it along with the others. "Nice aim. Though I gotta tell you, not much with the stealthy. I could hear you stomping through the bushes a mile away."

"Nah, did that on purpose. Didn't want you to actually go and die on me. Might get messy."

Sam was watching the two girls with wide eyes and an open mouth, his head whipping between them in a mixture of awe and horror. "You just...she just...shot...and with a...huh?"

Faith chuckled. "Chill out, Sammy boy. I was just testing her."

Still wide eyed, Sam looked over at Dean, who was shaking his head in wonder. They'd both seen Faith in action before, but that had been with the bad guys. They'd never seen her physically interact with another slayer before. It was then that Sam realized that even though Faith had literally kicked he and Dean across the room, she had still probably been going easy on them. He wondered if they'd get to see the two girls spar...

"So, what are you guys doing here, anyway?" Buffy asked. She'd kinda thought that they'd be busy for the rest of the night, judging by what she and Sam had overheard earlier. She could feel her cheeks reddening just remembering about it.

"Had some energy left to burn. We didn't realize you guys were already here. You know there's a nest back there?" she pointed a thumb somewhere vaguely behind her. "Me and Dean were just about to go deal with it when we heard you two chattin' like old timers."

"There's another nest over here," Sam informed them. "We were talking strategy."

Faith clapped Buffy on the shoulder affectionately. "Always with the planning, eh? Same old Buffy."

"Two nests in one graveyards," Buffy mused. "And I took out a big group last night. Man, I'd like to know what's going on around here. You got any other weapons on you? We've got a couple of stakes but something a little bigger might make this easier."

"Nah, we've just got stakes and crossbows. Hey Dean, why don't you give Sam your crossbow and then we're all square?"

Dean scoffed. "Have you seen the kid with one of these things?"

"But I've seen him with a gun and he's fine."

"Guns are different to crossbows. Trust me, you don't wanna put one in Sammy's hands unless you want him to accidentally shoot blondies head off."

While Buffy and Sam both frowned at the conversation that was taking place about them while they were stood right there, Faith heaved an annoyed sigh. "Jeez. Fine. Dean, you go with Buffy and I'll take Sam. Happy?"

Buffy grimaced and groaned in distaste, and Dean pouted. "I don't wanna go with her."

Faith turned to him and crossed her arms. "You know, it's just so damn sexy when you whine like a brat. Really gets me hot. And unless you want me smack that mopey expression off your face, you'll shut the hell up and get moving."

Buffy rolled her eyes, reaching forward to grab Dean by his wrist to drag him towards the crypt. "We'll meet you back here once we're done," she called back to Faith and Sam, before turning to Dean with a devilish smile. "Come on, Deano. I'll teach you how the professionals do it."

"Hey Faith, can I talk to you about something?" Sam asked, as she led the way towards the other nest of vampires.

"What's up, stretch?" Faith stopped walking and crossed her arms, leaning casually against a tree, not wanting to get too close to the nest if Sam was gonna start yapping. Man, she hoped he wasn't about to spring a heart to heart on her or nothing. No way did she wanna deal with that kinda crap. That was more up Buffy's alley.

Sam stopped in front of her and shoved his hands into his jacket pockets, rolling back and forth on the balls of his feet nervously. "I kinda wanted to ask you something about Buffy."

Faith, seeming to come to her own conclusion, smirked and punched him on the shoulder encouragingly. "You got a thing for Buff, huh? Well, no need to ask my permission. I say go for it. Girl could use a good roll in the sack."

"What?" he gasped. "No! That's not what I meant. Geez, Faith, get your head outta the gutter."

"Oh. Then this conversation just got boring."

"It's just...after you and Buffy left the library earlier today...Dean and I sort of overheard some stuff..."

"What stuff?"

"Nothing really bad, I guess. I mean, it was kinda childish. It was just her friends were saying some pretty spiteful things about her, and then we talked to Andrew and he told us that it happens a lot. And I know you guys are tight, and it's not really any of my business, but I guess I just wanted to make sure she had some kind of support."

"Off me, you mean?" she questioned, glaring at him through narrowed eyes.

Sam cringed, sensing that he had pissed her off. He knew he should have worded it differently. He wasn't even sure why it mattered. He hardly knew Buffy, and even if he did get to know her better it wouldn't matter because then he'd just have to leave. That was just the way their lives went. But he liked her. They'd connected tonight. She'd been thrust into the world of evil with no choice about it just like he'd been, and he knew how lonely it could be. He guessed he just wanted to make sure she'd be okay once they'd finished up here and left.

If Dean was there he would have told him to shut the hell up quit being such a girl.

Faith's face softened as she watched the array of emotions flit across his face, and she recrossed her arms and tilted her head to make sure he was looking at her. "Listen, Sammy. I know you get into this whole emotional crap thing, and you just wanna look after everyone and make it all hunky dory, but trust me when I tell you that Buffy doesn't need taking care of. She doesn't need me or you or anyone else coddling her. Hell, she'd probably stick you one in the nose right here and now if she even heard you talking stuff like this. And as for her friends, to hell with them. They've never understood the whole slayer gig, and they never will. But for some reason Buffy seems to like 'em. So we just gotta deal, okay? And she has plenty of support. She's got geek boy, and Giles, and her lil' sis, and me when I'm around. And there are others, okay? So stop sweating. Cool?"

Sam nodded, though he was still doubtful. But she seemed so sure and it seemed like a touchy subject and he really didn't want Faith to get mad and kick his ass. Maybe he'd talk to Buffy about it sometime.

"Right then," Faith said, seeming satisfied. "Let's go kick some demon ass."

Faith walked ahead of Sam to make sure he couldn't see her face. Sure, she'd learned how to mask her feelings over the years, but Sam was one of those touchy feely kinda guys, and she didn't want to take the chance that he'd see right through her.

Because honestly, she hardly believed the bunch of crap shed just spouted herself.

Were things really that bad for Buffy? She hadn't mentioned it, but that was Buffy for you. Too stubborn for her own freakin' good. What if she really was having a rough time, and there was Faith, swanning off and leaving her at every opportunity. And with Dawn away in England, that left her with Giles and Andrew.

Faith cracked her knuckles anxiously. Holy hell, what kind of a friend was she? She'd never even thought...

She just wasn't used to the whole friendship thing. She'd never had to think about other people's welfare before. And sure, she'd had the past couple of years with Buffy, but she'd always just taken that for granted.

Damn, she hated guilt.

Quickening her strides, she resolved that she would do something about it. Maybe they could do the whole girly chat thing? Although she wasn't sure she'd be able to stomach it. Perhaps she'd just take Buffy on a night out instead.

Reaching the manhole, she flung it aside easily and jumped straight down, landing in the middle of the vampire nest. "Hello boys," she greeted with a taunting smirk.

She grinned readily as the vampires turned and rushed her. Damn, she needed this.

"Aw, hell!" Dean choked out, as the vampire straddling him on the floor moved its fangs towards his throat.

He stretched his arm out towards where he had dropped his crossbow when the vamp had jumped him moments before, and almost yelled in relief when his fingers brushed across it. He grabbed the weapon tightly in his hand and brought it up to smash against the head of his attacker. It had the desired effect, and vamp boy was distracted long enough for him to flip it off of him. In the couple of seconds it took for the vampire to recover, he glanced down at the crossbow in his hands, wincing as he realized it had broken into pieces. Having no time left to ponder it more as the vamp came back at him, he lifted a piece with a jagged edge and rammed it into the vampires chest. It barely had a chance to register its surprise before it burst into a cloud of dust.

He rolled up onto his feet, quickly assessing the room for his next target.

There had been eleven of them as far as Dean could tell when he and Buffy had first dropped in. Buffy had thrown her stake at the first one, rendering it to dust, before pulling out another stake from her jacket pocket. He'd gotten one with his crossbow and then had a little fun pummeling another rather obnoxious vampire before staking it with one of his crossbow bolts. Buffy and he had fought back to back when the rest of the vampires had began to circle them, and together they'd managed to take out another three. He'd just had time to watch as the vampire Buffy had been fighting with turn to dust before he had been jumped.

And now Buffy was fighting against the remaining three vampires. About to step forward and join the battle, Dean instead found himself stopping to watch her in action, sensing that she didn't really need his help anyway. There was a smile on her face and she kinda looked like she was having fun. She was...damn, she was mesmerizing. He brought a hand up to rest against the wall, and watched as she span around and kicked out at the nearest vamp, sending it flying into one of its buddies. As she continued to pound into the vamps, Dean began to compare her to Faith, unable not to. Faith was good. Hell, she was amazing. But she...she just...aw crap, he didn't wanna start sounding like Sammy but she just lacked the simple grace that Buffy had. The perfected technique. Faith was good, but she was nothing compared to Buffy.

The vampires regrouped and circled Buffy. About to go and help her out, he once again stopped when she threw her arm behind her, easily staking one vamp, and then threw the same arm in front of her, staking another. The remaining vampire, looking terrified, glanced between Buffy and Dean and then back again before seeming to come to a decision and making a dash for the exit. Still without taking his eyes off of Buffy, Dean held out his arm, and the vampire ran right into his makeshift stake.

The dingy room fell silent, and Buffy looked up at Dean, an giddy smile on her face. Her cheeks were pink and her hair was a tangled mess, and she was breathing heavily from a mixture of fighting and adrenaline. The shoulder of her jacket was ripped, and she was sporting patches of dirt and dead guy dust, and Dean really hoped she didn't look down any time soon 'cause he had just the biggest hard on for her.

"That was fun." The breathy tone of her voice was not helping, and Dean shifted his legs uncomfortably. "Didn't you think that was fun?"

"Yeah, it was just dandy."

His sarcasm seemed to be lost on her, however, because her smile just widened as she came towards him. "You did good. Grazed your face a little, but you were good. Great, even."

Dean blinked in surprise. Was that an actual compliment? Were they forming some sort of truce? Should he compliment her back? Tell her how amazing he thought she was? Damn, he wasn't good at this sort of thing.

So instead he replied, "That's not all I'm good at, princess." and he winked.

Buffy scoffed. "Wow, for a minute there I almost forgot what a gigantic jerk you are."

"Whatever. You know you want me."

"I'm gonna go ahead and not dignify that with an answer." And then she turned and began ascending the ladder, leaving Dean to watch her ass as she climbed up. Shaking his head to rid himself of any thoughts that were likely to get the crap beaten out of him by Buffy and Faith, he sighed and followed, wincing as his post-fight aches began to make themselves known.

Faith and Sam were just heading back towards the meeting spot when Buffy and Dean arrived. Faith was looking satisfied, and Sam was looking exactly how Dean felt – tired and sore. He couldn't wait to go back to the apartment and crash.

"Man, that was a blast!" Faith called as she got closer. "Little guys really put up a fight. I mean, for a second there I actually thought it was gonna be a challenge."

Buffy shrugged, moving next to Faith as the two girls took the lead as they made their way towards the cemetery exit. "Nah, it was way too easy. I didn't even dent my stake, see?" she asked, holding it up for Faith to examine.

"Aw. Well, it's chipped a little," Faith consoled.

Following behind them, Dean and Sam looked at each other in bewilderment. Dean was holding onto an aching shoulder, and Sam was walking with a slight limp. Both were exhausted, and yet the two girls in front were practically skipping. Oh yeah, they'd really underestimated what a slayer could do.

"So what do you wanna do now?"

Buffy considered for a moment, before turning to answer Faith's question with a smirk on her face. "Hungry?"

Behind them, the two Winchester's groaned.

"Giles called while you were out," Andrew announced, mere seconds after the four had entered the apartment.

"He did? Why?" Buffy inquired.

"Yep. He said he figured out what that stone thingy was on the necklace you stole from that dead lady. He started to tell me and then he got all boring and English about it and I was in the middle of re-reading Harry Potter so I was a little distracted. You should probably go call him."

"Goody. I'll get right on that. I should tell him about the extra vampire activity anyway." She turned to look at Faith, Dean and Sam, grimacing when she really looked at the roughed up former two in the lamp light. "Uh, Faith will show you where the first aid kit is. I'll be back soon."

"Well, that was an incredibly boring conversation," she announced fifteen minutes later as she rejoined the others in the living room.

Faith looked up from where she was wrapping a bandage around a gash on Sam's calf. "What, you forget you were talking to Giles or something?"

"I know. I mean, I love him and everything, I do. But boy can that man talk." She heaved a weary sigh and flopped down onto the couch next to where Dean was sprawled, a beer in one hand and the remote control in the other, of which he was using to channel hop relentlessly.

"So what did the big guy want? Something up with that pendant?" Faith continued.

"Uh huh. He said it's a spirit quartz. People use it to channel their inner selves or whatever. Only this one's got a little black bit in the middle if you look real closely which Willow says means it's cursed." To her right, she heard Dean chuckle at something on the television screen, and she turned to glance at him to see what was so funny, only to stop when she caught a look at his face. "You not gonna patch yourself up?" she questioned.

He shrugged, his eyes not leaving the television. "Nah, it's not that bad. Just a scratch."

"You have dried blood down one side of your face. You don't think that's bad?" He shrugged again, and Buffy tutted. "You hurt your shoulder, right? Hurts to lift your arm up to sort your face out?" She smiled in the satisfaction on being right when his eyes whipped around to meet hers questioningly. "I saw you holding it on our way home," she admitted.

He turned his focus back to the T.V, and Buffy rolled her eyes, muttering 'big baby' under her breath and reaching for the first aid kit on the lounge table in front of her. Taking out a cotton ball, she dipped it into the bowl of warm water Faith had brought in, moving onto her knees and leaning up to grasp Dean's chin between her fingers and turn his head towards her.

From Buffy's other side, still being tended to by Faith, Sam watched on in amusement as Dean pouted, but silently allowed Buffy to clean the blood off of his face. His brother could be so freakin' stubborn sometimes. Even now Sam could see by the mixed expressions warring across Dean's face that he was grateful to Buffy for helping him out, yet refusing to allow her to see it because of their stupid feud.

"Anyway," Buffy continued over her shoulder. "Giles wanted to crack the cursed gem thingy open, study it further, you know? But Willow threatened to turn him into a toad if he did any such thing. Apparently that would be bad. So she's gonna do a few spells, see if she can figure out what curse it is. It's gotta be important somehow, if Mr Vamp was digging it up."

"You're right, that does sound like a boring conversation," Faith acknowledged as she finished placing the last bit of tape on Sam's bandage. "There, all done, champ," she told him, slapping his leg and chuckling when he hissed in pain. Turning back to Buffy, she asked, "Talking of spells, what about Willow's location spell. She find our missing slayer?"

Buffy shook her head sadly and threw the now dirty cotton ball towards the trash can. Rooting through the first aid kit, she drew out an antiseptic wipe and ripped it open. "Nope. Maggie's nowhere on the map."

"What does that mean?" Sam asked. "Is she...uh, is she dead?"

Once again, Buffy shook her head. She leaned up to brush the antiseptic wipe across Dean's graze. "No, Willow would be able to tell if she was dead. She's just-"

"Ow! Holy crap, woman! What's on that thing? Acid?" Dean cried out, whipping his head away from her touch.

"God, you're such a kid," she countered. "Stop being such a baby and let me finish."

Dean scoffed and folded his arms. "Yeah, like that's gonna happen."

Buffy sat back on her heels and raised a brow. "Fine. We'll just leave it dirty and then you'll get an infection and then your head will drop off. You know who that'd be funny for? Me."

"At least if my head dropped off I wouldn't have to listen to your annoying crap anymore."

"My annoying crap? God, self involved much? You know, maybe I should just let your head drop off, then you wouldn't spend so much time in front of the the mirror, vain guy. How long were you in the bathroom this morning anyway, like two hours?"

"What can I say, princess? Looking this good takes work."

Faith sat back in the armchair next to the couch, a grin adorning her face as she flipped her legs over the arms and crossed them. "This is great," she said delightedly to Sam as they watched the pair continue to bicker. "Like T.V but wicked funnier."

"And more absurd," Sam emitted, puzzling over how crazy his brother and new friend were being.

"I know right, I kinda feel like grounding them or something. Hey, where's Andrew? He'll be sorry he missed it."

Back on the couch, Dean and Buffy were still in the midst of their argument. "Well, I've got news for you, buddy boy-"

"Buddy boy?" Dean interrupted, accompanied by a burst of laughter. "What, are you eighty?"

"Shut up! I've got news for you, jerk face," she ignored the sound of Dean's snort. "I'm disinfecting your stupid face whether you like it or not!"

"Oh yeah, and what exactly are you gonna do?"

"I'll get you in a head lock if I have to! And you know I so could."

A bark of laughter escaped Dean's lips, until he looked at Buffy's face and saw that she was completely serious. Quickly he glanced over at Faith, who held up her hands and said, "Don't look at me, hot stuff. I'd payto see that show." and then to Sam who just grimaced and shrugged helplessly. Finally realizing that he would have no choice but to submit to Buffy's care or go through some severe humiliation, he stuck out his bottom lip and moved back towards where she could reach him, grumbling, "Fine," through gritted teeth.

Buffy beamed in the satisfaction of winning, silently adding, 'one point to me' in her head, before going back to tending to his face with a fresh wipe. She did, however, proceed more carefully, and refrained from giggling when she saw him clench his jaw to keep from wincing.

"So you were saying?"Sam encouraged, breaking the silence.

"Oh yeah. Well, Maggie's not dead. Willow would be able to tell. But she's not anywhere where Willow can find her, which means one of two things."

"What's that?" Dean asked, curiously.

"Either she's in some kind of alternate dimension, or someone's cloaking her. Either way means someone with some serious mojo. Giles and Willow think it may be the cloak."

"Damn."

"Yep."

Buffy finished cleaning Dean's face and then took it between her hands, turning it from left to right to study it. From their closeness, Dean was able to see the speckles of brown in her green eyes, and for a moment he was unable to look away.

"Huh?" he blurted out a moment later, as he realized she had been saying something.

"I said I you don't need stitches. It's pretty much stopped bleeding so we'll just tape it up. How's your shoulder doing? Dislocated?"

He shook his head. "Just sore."

After she was done, Buffy cleared up the first aid kit and moved away from Dean, and he found himself wondering why exactly he was missing her contact so much already.

"Did Giles say anything else?" Faith called out as Buffy headed towards the bathroom to put the kit away.

"Uh huh. Get this," Buffy replied upon re-entering the room. "They couldn't find anyone who matched our Louisa Abbott – you know, grave gal? So we're thinking that Louisa might have been a fake name. So they're gonna dig up her body and do some tests, see if they can get a match on her dental records or whatever those science guys do."

"That's gross." Faith stated.

"You know what else is gross?" Buffy grumbled, inspecting a lock of her hair. "When there's more vampire dust in your hair than actual hair. I'm gonna go take a shower and then hit the sack. Night Faith, Sam. You." She aimed her last word at Dean, and with a piercing glare at him, left the room.

"Man, I love that girl," Faith snickered, earning a chuckle from Sam and and the finger from Dean.

"I have summoned Hatoss," the black haired girl informed the man as she entered the dark room. She joined him by the large window, where he was stood still, watching the flashing lights of the city below. "He shall be here within the fortnight, though he will not be alone."

"Of course not," the man replied. "A man as powerful as he. Never travels anywhere alone, old dog."

The girl shivered in disgust. "I hate those creatures he commands."

He raised a mocking eyebrow. "Because they are demons?"

"Certainly not!" Her eyes widened in fright, but he merely chuckled and clucked his tongue.

"Don't worry about offending me, my dear, for I am more than any mere demon. But they frighten you, yes? They are more than you are. What are you? Not a human, not a demon. Always searching for the acceptance you will never earn." He sighed and turned to face her for the first time. "What of the pendant?"

She looked down. "The slayer has it."

She barely had chance to regard the flash of yellow in his eyes before he had her pinned against the wall, though he hadn't moved from where he was standing. "I thought I made it perfectly clear how important the pendant is to my plans." His voice was filled with a rage that shook the girl right down to the core.

Struggling against the unseen force that held her in place, she turned her pleading eyes to his. "I had over a dozen vampires on the job. She took out all of them."

It seemed to have been the right thing to say, for not a second later, the force was dropped and the girl slid down to the floor.

The man smiled delightedly. "Yes indeed. And that is why one day she will stand right by my side. But that is inconsequential for now. Right!" he clapped his hands in a business like fashion and strode over to where the girl was still hunched up on the floor and lifted her up by the arm so that she was standing in front of him once again. "New mission for you. Get my pendant back. I don't care how you do it, just get it done before Hatoss arrives. He doesn't like to be kept waiting. Fail me again," he said, patting her on the head in a friendly manner, before tracing her dark skinned cheek with one finger. "and I'll gut you with my big, shiny, silver knife."

By the time the girl dared to look up, he had vanished.