2

A month earlier, Faith had broken out of the Big House. A few days later she'd arrived in Sunnydale, where she'd been harbored by the other Slayer, Buffy Summers. Among Buffy's co-conspirators, were people who Faith had known from her last time in Sunnydale. Xander Harris, his girlfriend Anya, Willow Rosenberg and Buffy's kid sister Dawn were all now noticeably older. Rupert Giles hadn't aged all that much, but he was an entire generation older than the others.

Spike the "electronically neutered" Vampire was another long-term guest.

Buffy was also hosting about two dozen teenage girls, who were all potential Slayers; training them for the upcoming War Against the First Evil. Faith had tried to give a hand, but she'd never been someone who liked giving orders, or especially taking them.

Faith had been at the Summers' house for about two weeks, and the thundering herd of potentials was getting on her nerves.

There had been a phone call. Dawn picked it up.

Then she'd called out, "Buffy, Willow just called from the hospital! The girl's awake!"

Then Buffy, Xander and Giles left.

The blonde Slayer had told her, "Look after the girls."

"Look after them?" Faith had sneered, "What do they need someone to change their diapers?"

Once they were gone, and the car pulled out of the driveway, Faith walked down into the basement and sat on the steps. She'd shut the basement door, but she couldn't get away from the sounds of the girls chattering.

Faith sighed, took out a cigarette, and lit up.

A male voice spoke, from the dark, opposite side of the basement

"You craving a moment alone in the dank, or can I bum one?"

That was Spike, sitting on his cot with his shirt off.

Faith smiled and stood up.

"Well," she said, "I guess you can smoke all you want. The big C not really an issue."

She walked across the dark, damp smelling concrete floor, and handed her cigarette to Spike.

He said, "Teeth get yellow after an eternity. Gotta watch that."

She reached in her handbag, and took out another cigarette for herself.

Then she said, "Huh?"

She was looking at chains and shackles, hanging on the wall behind Spike's cot.

Spike looked over at the chain. "Right. Not what it looks like."

"Hey, to each his own, man." She told him, "This one guy I ran with, he liked me to dress up like a school girl and take this friggin' bull-whip..." She gestured like she was using a whip. "and I'd be like..."

"I got dangerous," he told her, "for a while."

She asked, "This before the soul, or after?"

"After, but I got over it; in case you're feeling all dust happy again, after your long incarceration."

She smiled "Not if you're all repenty. Takes the fun out of it."

The girls upstairs were getting very loud.

"No more Starbucks for the wannabe's man." Faith told him, "They've been spazzing for, like, hours."

"Yeah, does get a bit much up there."

"They're good girls. Just green is all."

He asked, "So, why aren't you up there...imparting?"

"That's Buffy's thing. Anyway, I just spent a good stretch of time locked away with a mess of female types. Kinda had my fill."

"Hm. But you waited until Angel needed your help to bust out of jail."

"Three squares, nice weight room, movie every third Sunday. Could've been worse."

"What movie?"

"Last one was 'Glitter'."

"No."

"I guess it couldn't have been worse."

He told her, "You had the power to walk away anytime. Nothing to stop you."

"I stopped me. I got dangerous for a while."

She took off her jacket, revealing her bare shoulders, above her very tight halter-top.

Spike asked, "You over it?"

She stretched her arms. "More or less. I pull for the good guys now."

"What's the less?"

She grinned coyly. "The usual stuff..."

"Such as?"

She continued grinning. "I was thinking about looking up the guy with the bull whip. Long incarceration."

Spike chuckled. "You could do better. School girl thing's old hat."

"It's all old-hat, man." She shrugged her bare shoulders. "Every guy's got some whack fantasy. Scratch the surface of any granola-type dude. Naughty nurses and horny cheerleaders." She shrugged her bare shoulders again. "I figure, if you can't beat 'em..."

"Join 'em."

"Just don't forget who's on top."

"That, I suspect, would be you."

Faith grinned. "You got that right."

She now sat on the cot beside Spike. "I've met you before, you know."

"Yeah," he told her, "you made a great impression on my chin."

"Not in the graveyard. Before that. I was kinda wearing a different body."

"Pity."

"You seemed OK with it."

"The body swap?"

Faith nodded.

He said, "With Buffy."

"She fill you in on that whole deal?"

He nodded. "She told me it went down. Failed to mention who was driving her skin around."

"I may have said a few things..."

Spike looked into Faith's eyes. "Like you could ride me at a gallop 'til my knees buckle, squeeze me 'til I pop like warm champagne. That's not the kind of thing a man forgets."

"Should've known it wasn't blondie behind the wheel. She'd never throw down like that."

"Oh, you have been away." Spike chuckled.

Faith laughed. "Don't even tell me little Miss Tightly-Wound's been getting her naughty on?"

Spike spoke with a tone of bitterness. "Not of late."

"Wow. Everybody's just full of surprises."

He put his arm around her. "How'd you like me to surprise you?"

She grinned, "In what way?"

"I can't forget the ride, that you said you could do to me. Would you like to see what kind of a ride, we have together?"

"Go ahead stud." she told him, "Let's see what you got."

Then the two of them went at it with each other. Neither was disappointed

When they were done, they separated, and lay naked together on his cot. That was when Faith saw that Spike's face had changed. His demonic features were on full display. His fangs were fully extended.

"Now time for the surprise, oh mighty Slayer. The electronic chip in my brain has ceased to function."

Then his cold mouth was against her neck, his fangs stabbed deep inside her flesh, and he began sucking her blood out, really fast.

She began to fight back. Then her mind vanished.

That was two weeks ago. Tonight Faith waited in a cheap hotel room, in a Mexican town, that had a name that she didn't know how to pronounce. She also had a pair of fangs, a thirst for blood, a fear of the daylight, and a hope that she would soon be wearing the Gem of Amara.

Unless, she thought, I'm as big an idiot as those two retards, who said they could bring it to me.

The Gem of Amara. She thought, That's what I'll be wearing, when I return to Sunnydale.