Nineteen: Back To LA
A/N-Ok, so this is going to bleed straight into season 7 for Buffy/season 4 for Angel pretty quickly. Gotta bring Angelus in some time or at least mention him.
Buffy was sitting up when Faith got back.
The blonde smiled at her as she came in and shut the door.
"Where'd you go?"
Faith shrugged. She was tempted to lie, she didn't want Buffy knowing where she'd been, that she'd made her presence known to her friends and told them that Buffy was alive but that they couldn't see her. It made Faith look possessive but then she was fed up of the lies, the betrayal and to lie to Buffy right now, would be cementing her place as a liar in the other slayer's mind.
Faith licked her lips.
"I went to see your friends."
Buffy's eyes widened.
"You what?"
"I had to tell them that you were back and I wanted to know why they-"
"Faith, you had no right to do that! I thought I was safe with you! That they wouldn't find out about me being back until I was ready!"
"You are safe with me!"
The words sounded strange even to her own ears. Not once had she ever been able to assure someone that they were safe with her and the way Buffy was looking at her now, she knew Buffy would never feel safe with her.
"I really don't think I am. And now they know I'm alive and they'll start looking for me! I just wanted some alone time, Faith! Ok, maybe it would have been with you but you're the only one who..." Buffy trailed off and shook her head.
Faith frowned slightly. She really wanted Buffy to finish that sentence.
"Who what?" She pushed gently.
Buffy looked up at her, the hurt evident in her eyes.
"Who doesn't expect anything from me...who just doesn't care what I do as long as-"
"You're happy." Faith finished for her.
Buffy nodded.
"But I know the only reason that you feel like that is because of your feelings."
Faith held up a hand.
"Woah there, B. I care about you, sure and I want you to be happy but that doesn't mean-" Faith stopped at Buffy's raised eyebrow and she threw her hands in the air with an exasperated sigh.
"Oh fine! I got feelings for ya, ok? Let's not make an issue out of it."
Buffy bit back a smirk and avoided the other slayer's gaze.
Faith lowered her voice.
"I can still care about you and want you to be happy without having the feelings though."
Buffy nodded. She agreed with that. She felt the same for Willow and Xander and now Anya (as weird as that sounded).
Faith put her hands in the pockets of her jeans.
"So, what are you gonna do?"
Buffy sighed and scratched the back of her head.
"I don't know. What do you think I should do?"
Faith shrugged.
"I dunno, B. I mean, they're your friends but then they pulled you outta Heaven so I can understand why you're angry at em."
Buffy's eyes suddenly widened again.
"Do they know that? Did you tell them I was in Heaven."
Faith frowned.
"No! I would never! That's your business."
Buffy relaxed considerably and then let out a breath.
"Ok. So they know I'm alive. Do they know where I am?"
Faith shook her head.
"No, but it won't be long before they start sniffing around every motel in Sunnydale. They know I don't have the cash to get a place of my own and being as the cops are still on my ass, I can afford to put down roots, y'know?"
Buffy nodded in understanding.
"So we run."
Faith frowned.
"What?"
"We leave. Get away from Sunnydale."
Faith licked her lips.
"B, you're still the slayer. You can't just up and run."
"Why not? You did." The other slayer countered.
Faith nodded.
"Yeah but look at me, B! I'm a mess! I needed to run...and fuck it, I'm still runnin'." She said sadly as she sat down on the edge of the bed.
Buffy felt for her.
She was now stuck in a world that she'd been freed from and Faith was still on the run even when she was trying to do something right. It just didn't seem fair but they both knew that life wasn't fair.
Buffy looked at Faith then, knowing what she had to ask even though she already knew the answer; she was just hoping that Faith would tell her something completely different.
"So, what should we do?"
Faith stared at her intensely.
"I wanna agree with you and catch the first freighter outta here but...I know that's not what we should do. What we should do is for you go back to your friends and I need to turn myself in, again." She added with a roll of her eyes.
Buffy nodded. She knew Faith was right and it kinda bugged her that Faith was now the voice of reason. But she was right.
Buffy climbed off the bed and went to stand in front of of the slayer.
"I have to go now." She said softly.
Faith nodded.
"I know you do."
"Thank you...for taking care of me. Even if it was only for a few hours." She added with a little, humourless chuckle.
Faith didn't even so much as crack a smile.
"It's cool. You woulda done the same for me."
Buffy nodded in agreement.
"I would have."
Faith stood and gestured to Buffy's clothes.
"You can keep them. I'm not gonna need em back where I'm going."
Buffy smiled tightly.
"Thanks..."
The blonde then turned and headed for the door. Then she stopped and turned back around.
"I'll come and visit you."
Faith waved a hand at her.
"Nah, you don't have to."
"I want to."
Faith paused and then nodded, her face stoic and unreadable until she smiled a very small, barely-there smile.
"I'd like that."
Then Buffy left and Faith sat back down on her bed with her head in her hands.
This was not the way she'd wanted things to go. She'd been so tempted to run with Buffy, to leave Sunnydale and Los Angeles behind but the cops would still be after her and what kind of life was that for Buffy? Certainly not one she wanted the other girl to have with her. One where she was always looking over her shoulder and they could never settle, then there was the problem of always being on the move and then of course, the real silent problem; Buffy would never love Faith and Faith didn't know if she could deal with that; being around the other girl all the time but knowing she couldn't have her or that the blonde didn't feel the way she did.
Faith sighed and found herself looking at a spot on the wall; It was then that she made a decision; she could lose these feelings. She could move on, fuck it, she would move on.
She'd give up on this and she'd be free.
Faith knew that if she didn't, she was just another loser in love and she wasn't prepared to be love's bitch. Not for Anyone.
...
One Year Later
Faith tried not to feel overjoyed when she was told she had a visitor.
Buffy had been to see her a few times but apparently, some big bad was brewing and it called her back to Sunnydale and forced her to stay, but maybe she had some time or the big evil had been defeated.
Faith smiled to herself as she went into the room, but that smile slipped when she didn't see Buffy but Wesley.
She licked her lips as she sat down and picked up the phone.
"What's up, Wes? You never come to see me."
"It's Angel." He said.
That was him now. No pleasantries, no 'hello, Faith, how are you?' Just got right down to it. Faith could respect that. She wasn't one for all the nicey-nicey shit either.
"What about him?" Faith asked with a slight frown.
Wesley looked around before lowering his voice. He didn't know who might be listening.
"You know about the Beast, I assume?"
Faith nodded.
"Yeah. I see he blocked out the sun. Nice touch if you're a douche."
Wesley ignored her attempt at humour and told her straight.
"The Beast has a master, we're not sure who or what it is but our main problem is that the beast is now working with Angel."
Faith's frown turned into a full on scowl.
"What?"
"Faith, Angelus is back."
Faith stared at him before she stood.
"Get away from the glass."
Wesley stood and back and watched Faith launched herself through the window.
Wesley helped her take out a few of the guards before they managed to get outside and into Wesley's car.
He'd brought some clothes and Faith changed in the back while Wesley gave her the low down on everything that had happened and not just with Angel and Co but also Buffy, the Scoobies and Sunnydale; it was bad on all fronts.
They arrived back at the hotel where Faith was introduced to everyone.
Fred was sweet but probably wouldn't last a day out in the field (to her way of thinking), Gunn was tough but the soft spot he had for Fred was plain to see, as was Wesley's unrequieted love for the same woman, bet that was tough on all of them, Cordelia was well...Cordeila (only pregnant) as far as Faith could tell, there was a demon here called Lorne but he was friendly and they all seemed to trust him.
Faith mulled this over in her head until a voice, deep and judgmental, snapped her out of her thoughts.
"So this the slayer."
Faith turned and a corner of her lips turned up in a half smile.
"And you must be Angel's brat."
Connor sneered at her.
"You've been brought in to help bring Angelus back." He said.
Faith shrugged.
"Somethin' like that, yeah."
"Angelus is a demon and should be killed."
Faith frowned.
"You're talkin' about your father there, son. I wouldn't give up on him just yet."
Connor shook his head.
"I'm not your son." He growled.
Faith nodded.
"No, you're not because if you were my son, I'd be handing your ass to you right now, but because you're Angel's boy, I won't touch you, unless you give me a reason to." She said but added that warning in case the kid got a little too big for his boots.
God he was like his dad! Dark, brooding, more with the attitude than anything else but he was young and probably a little more hot-headed. Well, with a mother like Darla, that had to be in there in some form or another.
Wesley had given Faith a little of their history but only enough so she knew who and what she was dealing with.
The human kid with the vampire parents. It was a new one on her, she had to admit.
Faith turned back to Wesley.
"Ok, so we go track Angel?"
Wesley nodded and then turned to the rest of the group.
"You get that protection spell up and running, Faith and I will track Angelus."
They nodded but of course, Connor didn't agree.
"No way! I can help! I can track him just as well as a slayer can!"
Wesley rolled his eyes.
"Connor, we don't need-"
Faith held up a hand.
"Wait a sec, Wes. Ok kid, if you're as good as you say, we'll try you out, you disappoint me, you're coming straight back here, understood?"
Connor smiled a little.
"Understood."
Faith nodded.
"Good and being as we're taking Live wire Boy with us, Gunn, you wanna come, keep him in check?"
Gunn nodded and they grabbed all the weapons they needed before heading out.
Connor went on ahead when Faith caught up to him.
"This is a capture mission, got it? No killing. Just taking."
Connor nodded but he didn't look like he was really listening and he proved that when they circled an industrial estate and a vamp jumped them.
Connor was on him in seconds, turning the undead thing to dust.
Faith lashed out in anger, pushing the brat against the chain link fence.
"You got a hearing problem, Kid?! What did I say?!"
Connor struggled but Faith held him in place.
"He was a vampire!"
"Yeah, and so is your dad! I said NO killing."
Faith shook her head in disappointment.
"Go home." She said quietly.
"What? No! I can do this! I swear!"
"Well you've just proved to me that you can't. I don't need you. Go!"
Connor glared at her before Faith glanced at Gunn and they both left Faith and Wesley to continue the search.
They walked in silence for a while until Wesley smiled a little at her.
"You handled Connor well back there."
Faith shrugged carelessly.
"Didn't have a choice, Wes. The kid was acting up. Can't have that."
Wesley nodded and then stopped as they neared a well known demon bar.
"I say we check in here."
Faith nodded.
"Good call. Rustle a few feathers or...scales or whatever, and see if anyone's seen him."
They both entered the bar and a few of the vampires scattered, not because they knew that the humans wanted answers on Angelus and his whereabouts but because it wasn't just Wes on his own, he'd brought a slayer with him and they feared her more than anything.
That was how you knew the real players from the wanna-be losers.
Wesley stood next to her.
"Do you think anyone knows anything?"
Faith nodded.
"I do. Lets see who's willing to talk."
Wesley gestured to the room at the back and Faith turned her nose up.
"Wes, I don't wanna talk to any blood whores, alright?"
Wesley took her arm.
"You will if we want to find Angelus. But I will warn you, what lies beyond there is like nothing you've ever seen."
Faith shrugged and went to go ahead when Wesley held her back.
"There's no coming back from this, Faith. I need you to be ready."
Faith nodded.
"I'm a slayer, Wes. I can handle it."
"Yes, you are a slayer, but you're not who you once were. I can see it. I need you to be you, Faith."
She frowned in confusion at him.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Wesley's eyes darkened and Faith didn't like what she saw there but chose to ignore it anyway.
"I need you to be ruthless, fearless. I don't need you caring for people while we've got dangers such as Angelus and the Beast to deal with."
"What makes you think that I care about anyone?"
"Guilt. It consumes you and you so badly want to make up for what you did but by being this way, it makes you weak, Faith and we don't need it right now. Maybe if we survive this, then fine, but not right now."
Faith glared at him. He was right about her wanting to make amends but he was wrong about her feeling fear, she didn't, not at all but then she had yet to face the Beast and Angelus.
"Just focus on what you gotta do, I'll focus on what I gotta do, ok?" She said, trying to appear unaffected.
Wesley nodded but he knew that Faith had changed and he knew that she wouldn't be able to cope with what had to be done.
Well, looks like he would have to show her then.
A/N-Sorry for any mistakes. I'm tired and it's late. Enjoy anyways! x