Chapter 2
Both girls found themselves lying on the cold grass stakes cut in half by my Sai and having trouble breathing. They would live but I couldn't say the same thing for the vampire.
"What's wrong?" I asked advancing slowly. "Trouble breathing? Mmm, you don't breathe." I answered smiling. His face showed his unease and that only made me happier. "It must be the bloody smile on your neck."
He couldn't move since my Sai had him perfectly pinned to the tree trunk. He was smoking from each wound where the silver still pierced his body. He did try and yank the blade out of his gut but only hurt himself more with each yank on the hilt.
I flipped the Sai in my hand feeling the cool metal on my skin. I can't explain how comforting that is and maybe I'm just weird but the weapon felt like it was a part of me.
"STOP!" a new voice ordered and since suck head wasn't going anywhere… "Don't kill him."
I turned. There she was. The petite blond with green eyes looking pissed off and ready to fight with a group of young girls just behind her. Gee, who could it be?
"You must be Buffy." I said and waved a hand. "Be right with ya." I turned my attention on the vampire ready to make another pile of ash which the wind would disperse before long when she threatened me.
"Put the knife down or I'll do it for you." The steely tone of her voice brought my attention towards the Slayer again. I scoffed in disbelief because clearly she was out of her mind. I decided to ignore that and sighed looking at my Sai. The blade shimmered in the moonlit night looking very pretty in a deadly sort of way.
"Why does everyone think this is a knife?" I asked her. "Didn't your Watcher teach you about weapons?" she scowled and I bet she was wondering how I knew about her having a Watcher. It made me smile inside, the fact that I knew who she was and what she did while she had no idea who I was or what I did.
"This," I raised the Sai and flipped it showing off the blade and my skill. "Is called a Sai. They're offensive weapons. Used for killing and was first introduced in Japan." I pointed to the vampire behind me. "This thing is dead. It needs to be put to rest."
"That thing has a name, Spike. And he's with us." Buffy hooked a finger behind her to encompass the girls who obviously looked uncomfortable. I glanced once over my shoulder to the blond vampire and grimaced before looking at the girls.
"The Potentials don't look too…" I shrugged not really needing to contradict her if that's what she wanted to believe. "Well, if you say so."
"I do. Now who are you?" she motioned two of the girls toward the tree.
"Me?" I shrugged watching as the two girls hurried past me to the vampire. They looked at me apprehensively and I offered them a small smile of reassurance. It was meant to let them know I wasn't going to kill them. "Name's Phade Vartan. I brought something that belongs here."
"Like what?" I could see her glancing past me to where the girls were having trouble dislodging her toy.
"Another girl. From LA-." I stopped because she wasn't really listening. "Do you mind?" I asked pointing behind me. She arched an eyebrow to which I rolled my eyes.
"Oh, please!" I turned feeling my back tense and I knew she had some weapon in her hand. "He'd be ash already if I'd wanted to."
"Move." I told the girls both of whom jumped out of my way like I would burn them. Not that they knew-.
The Sai made a squishy sound and just out of spite I twisted the blade as it came out then the vamp fell to his knees, gasps of pain, which sounded like heaven to my ears, sputtered out of his mouth. I moved out of the way holding out a hand for my stakes which the girls gingerly placed in my palm before bending to help him up.
"Why do you keep him around?" I said frowning as the girls carried him behind Buffy. "He's not very good."
"That's none of your business." She motioned for the girls to leave turning to follow them.
"Actually." I said stopping her retreat. "It is."
"She's a what?" Buffy asked feeling herself tense up.
"I-I know its not-." Willow stammered seeing her friends face harden. After the way the girls had brought in Spike-. Well, Buffy had a right to be angry. Who was going to train the girls while he recovered? It wasn't as if they had a lot of time to prepare for the fight ahead nor did they have another vampire that could…
"She's too old to be a Potential!" Buffy exclaimed. She was angry that no one had told her about the woman and more angry that she knew who and what Buffy was but the fact that she worked for Angel, actually lived in his hotel…
"The spell I used to find Amanda also found Phade." Willow replied. "I know it doesn't make sense but I saw it and she was telling the truth about it."
"Buffy, though most of these girls are in their teens-." Giles interjected taking his glasses off and pinching the bridge of his nose. Her green eyes flashed as she turned to him.
"No!" her palm slapped the table top in anger. "She's like what? Twenty something? A Slayer's never lived that long." Buffy refused to hear him.
"You have, B." at Faith's comment the others quieted.
"That's different. I've died twice already!" Buffy turned her glare on Willow. "How do you know she didn't lie?"
"Buffy…" Willow sighed once again trying to explain. "Phade has this… she's…" the witch wiped at her face in consternation. "She's a telepath."
The dining room was silent; even Buffy's angry stare lost some of its heat as she considered that.
"I know how this sounds but that doesn't change the fact of what she is or that my spell lobs her in with the others." Willow waved at the girls currently in residence.
"Telepath?" Xander echoed wondering how he was going to keep his thoughts to himself and then his face heated as he realized she'd probably already seen-.
"Be that as it may. She's brought another Potential." Giles interjected bringing everyone's attention back to the reason Phade had come to Sunnydale. "Sabine Andreas. She's 13 and knows about us, what she is. Seems some one has explained to her what a Slayer is and her purpose for existing." Every one looked towards Faith. She noticed and quickly threw her hands up as if to ward them off.
"Hey, Wesley was a Watcher." Faith answered from her seat at the end of the dining room table. At their looks she shrugged. "What? He was. Besides, Phade's good. We could use her in the fight plus she can help us train the others…"
"Buffy. If Angel sent her…" Giles began. His first impression of the young woman said that she was worth trusting, for the time being. He wasn't naïve to think Angel had sent her only to deliver another Potential. The vampire had caused him enough grief to last a life time and he wasn't about to let him inflict more pain.
"Enough with dead boy." Xander interrupted. He moved away from the wall dropping his arms. "What are we going to do with 'Wonder Woman'?"
"Read enough comics?" Dawn asked from the doorway. Everyone turned at the unexpected interruption not that living in a house full of teenaged girls contained much privacy.
Buffy took the short two steps towards the dining room doorway and placed a gentle hand on her sister's arm.
"You shouldn't be up, Dawn." Buffy couldn't keep from eyeing the livid hand print still on Dawn's cheek from Phade's slap. Again she felt the anger rise inside at the woman's complete disregard.
"Oh right cuz I'm such a fragile thing." she retorted feeling Buffy's domineering attitude rise again. Not for the first time did she wish Buffy would just chill and be more her sister than a mother.
"Dawn-."
"Okay time for a break you two." Xander moved in calling attention to himself but as always…
"Faith's right, Buffy. That girl was fast. Dana and I both went at her at the same time and Spike-." Dawn drew in a breath shaking her head. Her blue eyes mirrored Buffy's concern. "Buffy, she went three against one and didn't break a sweat. Not to mention Spike, impaled, not much help and he's a vampire." She finished with an off hand shrug. Faith nodded silently. Buffy caught her look and frowned.
"I've seen her fight. She'd give Angelus a run for his money." Faith didn't say Phade had actually done just that. Not to mention the fact that Phade had gotten her in a body lock, then again, not something that was gonna help her image as the dark Slayer.
At mention of Angelus, Willow went deathly pale and hoped that Buffy wouldn't notice. She hadn't told any of them about her trip to LA not that there had been much time for anyone to ask her.
"Fine." Buffy said. Everyone raised their heads coming out of their thoughts to look at her. "But she better follow rules."
"I what?"
"Phade… just humor her. It's the easiest way to get along." Faith said from her position on my bed.
"Humor-. Oh no." I shook my head already stomping into the bathroom to change. "This kid has no idea who I am. How can she think of giving me rules? Rules! God dammit. What the hell's wrong with her? She full of air?" I asked Faith waving a finger at my temple. She laughed which brought a smile to my lips. I didn't think she'd had much reason to laugh in the past and it was good she did now.
I sat on the edge of the bed and pulled on my dark brown boots and sighed. Today was gonna be rough no matter how I started it so… I glanced at Faith were she lay and looked her over. The girl was obviously borrowing someone's clothes which was never a good thing.
"Hey kid. I got a great idea." I said smiling. Besides we could always get something for the other because the way they were living…
Faith barely raised her head off the bed to glance at me. "Is it good?" she asked and at my full grin she flopped back.
"Where's a vampire when you need one?"
"I can't believe I'm here." Faith said once more.
"Is this it?" I asked looking around. I hadn't thought it would be this small but at least they had what I was looking for.
"I can't believe I'm here!" Faith said again and I just laughed. The look on her face was just too funny. She looked like I was torturing her…
"Quit the winning or we're heading to Victoria's Secret first." I threatened though I did think Frederick's of Hollywood would be more her style.
"Yeah, well not today." She muttered looking around with a bit of unease.
"Oh come on." I grabbed her arm and led her to the first of many stops. I got a lot of information out of her during our expedition not to mention plenty of clothes and necessities for the girls back at the house. I've never shopped like this before and hoping there was enough work for me to pay these credit cards off was more like a prayer. The way things were going back in LA I didn't foresee that being a problem any time soon. I wondered why Buffy hadn't done the same thing Angel did and opened her own 'help the helpless' office.
Living on the HellMouth meant there was no shortage of beasties to kill and helpless to help.
Faith came out of the dressing room then and the dark jeans fit snugly down her waist and thighs slightly flaring at the knee then loosely down her calves. They were just a little long but then again we still had the shoe department to check out.
"Perfect!" I exclaimed.
"Sure." The look on her face said she didn't believe me.
"Hey! I said you look great and I mean it! Now hurry it up." By the time we called it quits the sun was down and we were late.
"Oh shit. You think they've noticed?" I asked Faith who just rolled her eyes as she got in the car. The back seat full of our 'gifts' we drove off munching on the cheese sticks and lemonade I'd bought at the mall. Both our stomachs growled but we weren't going to have time to stop and get something to eat.
"Where have you been?" Anya asked. I realize she's an ex-vengeance demon and she's not totally used to being human but since when does that qualify as an excuse for being rude?
"I don't just kill vampires." I threatened.
"Nice to see you all too. So, what'd we miss?" Faith asked coming up the steps and inside with yet another set of bags. Anya eyed the parcels with an inquisitive eye nervously moving out of my way.
I'd noticed she was always just a bit fidgety and tended to make her movements very jerky, as if she didn't feel comfortable in her body.
"Just more tactical stuff but you're a Slayer so it's not all that important what with your enhanced strength and-."
"You still talking?" Faith grimaced as she came back into the living room.
"He does that a lot." Anya commented looking over the short kid. To me he gave the impression of being extremely self conscious and uncomfortable around people, maybe he was just a bit gay as well.
"Then you two would make a perfect pair." I quipped with a sweet smile. Faith guffawed as she carried another armful of bags upstairs. "Hey, you're a big boy why not pretend you're full grown and get the last of the bags from the car." I took his arm and lead him towards the door while he pulled back acting as if he were afraid to head out side.
"He can't!" Anya exclaimed. I threw her a glare as she grabbed his other arm and yanked him in the opposite direction.
"Of course he can't what with you pulling on him. What's your malfunction?" I yanked again and he squealed, face scrunching up and big fat tears slipping down his face. "Now what the hell's wrong with you?"
"What is all this racket?" Mr. Giles asked heading into the living room. All of them broke in at once voices raised and my name flew about quite often. "Silence!" he roared and I was amazed they actually obeyed. I mean they both seemed like complete babies and that usually meant they weren't into listening. "Now, Miss Vartan." He turned to me wiping at his face in that same tire way Wesley had. "What is going on?"
"I asked him to get the last bags from the car when your ex-vengeance demon started her screeching-."
"I do not screech!" Anya interrupted in her highest screech to which Mr. Giles winced. "And who told you I was a vengeance demon?"
"Didn't think it was confidential what with you always mentioning it." Faith said on her way past us. "Hey." She said by way of greeting to Mr. Giles. He barely nodded starting to say something but Anya cut him off with a glare to Faith's back.
"That's personal information! I don't go about giving out yours like the fact that you're a murderess or that you kill humans-." Anya was getting redder by the minute but Faith didn't let the woman get to her.
"How 'bout when I slept with Xander?" she threw over her shoulder.
"You what?" I asked turning to see Faith reaching into the Shelby for the last bags. I noticed the silence and turned to see Anya heading into the kitchen. "Wha-." I couldn't believe it. The woman just walked off.
"Miss. Vartan-."
"Phade." I corrected absently.
"Phade, yes, err Andrew is not exactly a guest-."
"I didn't go outside, Mr. Giles. I didn't go!" Andrew interrupted.
"Yes, yes." Rupert patted his shoulder placatingly and I couldn't help wondering about all this weirdness. This place was definitely worse than the Hyperion. Comparing both places I'd say we are the saner of both groups, hands down. "Andrew is our prisoner."
"He killed his friend and opened the seal." Faith said walking past again.
"Well, killing the friend, opening the seal. Of course." I nodded as if all this was normal. "You're all crazy."
"You're late."
I turned to the petite blond currently standing with crossed arms and glaring at me.
"We brought gifts." I said with a half smile as I headed towards her and the rest of the group currently in tactical mode.
"You're taking the kids out?" I asked from my corner. All eyes turned to me and I felt a bit uncomfortable but you never let the enemy see you flinch no matter what. Buffy and the Scooby's weren't my enemies but I was new here and letting them see my discomfort wasn't going to help.
"Did you have something else in mind?" Buffy asked all solicitous though deep down she must've been annoyed by the interruption.
"No." after a moments pause she went back to planning the nights training then sent Willow to call down the Potentials she would be taking. Buffy didn't know it yet but I was tagging along whether she asked me to or not. This was one event I didn't plan on missing. Maybe I'd volunteer for vampire duty considering William still looked like he was in pain. I couldn't help the satisfied smirk though I hid it from the others. It wouldn't be polite to let them see it.