Finally and update ;-)
Chapter 12: Coming Out
Int: Kitchen, Buffy's house.
"They have been up there for ages." Anya commented, glancing up the stairs, taking a sip of water.
"I haven't heard anything smashing yet." Xander commented, looking warily up the stairs, "Do you think they're ok?" He turned to Anya, "Should I go up and check on them?".
Anya looked positively horrified at the thought, "Eeeuw, no, what if they are bumping pelvises or something." A look of disgust on her face. She turned to face Xander and whacked him on the arm.
"Ow! What was that for?" he grumbled, rubbing the stinging in his shoulder.
"You were thinking about them having sex! Don't even try and deny it." Anya huffed at Xander as he turned bright red.
Xander turned his attention back to the stairs, absently rubbing his shoulder. He still looked undecided about whether or not to go and check on the Slayers, he was worried that Buffy might have killed Faith after what she did to Spike. He was worried because the way Faith had been brooding lately it wouldn't have surprised him if she had just let Buffy end her. He started up the stairs however he didn't get far before he heard Buffy's bedroom door open and the slayers both appeared at the top of the stairwell. Buffy was supporting Faith a little, the concussion still making her a little woozy.
"Hey guys." Xander said, nervous, not quite sure what to say, "Is, ah, everything ok?" He was scrutinising both slayers, looking for tell tale signs of fresh injuries. He raised an eyebrow at Buffy when he noticed her arm around Faith's waist.
Buffy smiled down the stairs at her friend, "Well, yes, why wouldn't it be?" she teased, smirking.
"Well, you know, its just, well, you guys have a very violent relationship with the knives and the stabbing and the punching...it's all very aggressive when you two are in the same airspace."
"It's 5 by 5, Xan." Faith said, a smirk on her face as she glanced at Buffy, leaning in to her, enjoying the warm, tingly, feelings from being so close to the other slayer.
Giles entered the kitchen at that point, distracted, reading a book. He glanced up the stairs, looking over the tops of his glasses, "Buffy. Faith. Good!" he said, oblivious to the mood in the room, "I am glad to see you up and about, Faith." He continued, "Please do come down, both of you, Willow has uncovered some important information about the, ah, scythe."
Willow followed Giles into the kitchen and glanced up the stairs, pausing when she saw the Slayers. She smirked at them both, the look not missed by either of them, and she continued in to the kitchen.
At the bottom of the staircase Faith started to feel self conscious about this closeness to Buffy so she separated from the blonde Slayer. A hurt look flitted across Buffy's face, but when she saw Faith looking at her, a small smile on her lips, she relaxed. It was a small reassurance that everything was ok but Faith was not comfortable with public displays of affection, yet. Buffy stood as close to the other slayer as possible, enjoying the feeling of their slayer connection. It felt different, stronger, warmer, more comforting, now that they had finally admitted their feelings to each other.
Dawn was last to assemble, "Spike took off." She said, folding her arms across her chest. She looked directly at Buffy and then Faith, sensing the change in their relationship; they seemed more relaxed around each other. Her stare turned back to Buffy, and she could see something she hadn't seen in her sister for a long time. She seemed, well, happy.
Buffy caught Dawn's gaze and smiled briefly at her sister, "Did he say where he was going?" she asked.
"Just that he needed time away to heal." Dawn shrugged, "He'll be back, he can't stay away."
Buffy nodded, her gaze falling to Faith, "I hope so, we need all the warriors we can get if we are to have any chance against the first." She noticed the other Slayer was glowering; Buffy took her hand briefly and gave it a squeeze before letting it go again. That brief contact was enough to remind Faith that Buffy wasn't going anywhere, that Spike was definitely not competition. That brief contact was also noticed by Dawn who was stunned at the change between the two Slayers. She stared intently at Buffy with her, You have some explaining to do later, look. Buffy smiled back at her sister and nodded slightly before turning her attention to Willow who had started to speak.
"So I managed to find some information about the scythe." Willow began, "What we do know is its very old and most importantly that Caleb tried very damn hard to hide its existence from you. What we don't know is who forged it and why and what it does," Willow paused, "If it, in fact, does anything." She looked at the slayers, "I am going to hedge a bet that it does because you have both described feeling the power emanating from it when you hold it."
Both Buffy and Faith nodded in agreement, "It's as if it belongs to the Slayer." Buffy commented.
Willow nodded, "I have a lead as to where you might find some more information about this weapon."
Faith found her thoughts and attention wondering, she was suddenly very distracted by the blonde slayer standing at her side. She stole a few looks, trying not to seem too obvious. She loved the way Buffy's nose turned up ever so slightly at the end, it was cute and endearing. Her gaze fell to Buffy's lips, they were slightly pursed in concentration as the blonde was listening intently to Willow. God she's cute when she concentrates. Faith smirked as she pictured herself kissing those lips; she slowly raised her hand to her own lips as if she couldn't believe she had been kissing Buffy just 10 minutes ago. The slight movement distracted Buffy and she turned and saw Faith staring at her. There was so much emotion in those brown eyes; it took Buffy's breath away to see, to feel, how much Faith loved her. How had she been so blind all these years to not have noticed. How had she been so blind as to not acknowledge her own feelings for the dark Slayer. For a brief moment they were both lost in each others gaze, the rest of the world, the First, all a distant memory.
"Ok you two." Willow's voice interrupted the Slayers, "So once you have finished checking each other out do you think you could concentrate on the task at hand?"
Both Buffy and Faith snapped their heads towards the witch, giving her their undivided attention, both blushing at her words.
"I, ah, ahem…" Buffy cleared her throat, "Sorry, Will, yes, the tomb, unconsecrated ground, scythe forging…" Buffy smiled sheepishly at her friend. Willow smiled warmly at Buffy and then turned her gaze to Faith, she was genuinely happy for her friends.
Faith relaxed when she saw Willow's gaze, she smirked and gestured to herself, "Can't help being this hot, Red." She turned her head to Buffy and winked at the blonde slayer making her blush even more.
"Are you two sex friends now?" Anya blurted out. Her comment made Giles raise his eyebrows and he removed his glasses and started cleaning them frantically.
"Um, well…" Buffy wasn't too sure how to respond to Anya, she looked to Faith for support but realized that the brunette was enjoying this interaction far too much to be of any assistance. She was smirking at Buffy, eyebrow raised, waiting for Buffy's answer. It was Willow who came to her rescue.
"It's about time you two finally admitted your feelings I mean, jeepers, the sexual tension the past few weeks has been driving me insane." She smiled, got up and walked over to the slayers and grabbed them both in a hug. Faith stiffened, not comfortable with all these public displays of affection towards her however to her credit she let Willow finish the hug.
"Yes, well, very good." Giles commented, smiling warmly at the Slayers as he replaced his glasses. The mood in the room was suddenly very jovial as Dawn, Xander and even Anya congratulated the Slayers.
"This makes me happy." Anya beamed, "Now you won't try to have sex with Xander anymore." She stared pointedly at Faith, making the slayer squirm, a flash of guilt crossing her face.
"Honey…" Xander gaped at Anya, "It was only one time." He muttered, avoiding mention of the second attempt when Faith had tried to strangle him.
Buffy rolled her eyes at the pair and then looked at Faith. She could sense that the brunette was starting to become very uncomfortable with all the banter and attention. It was too much too soon. She needed time to adjust to all of these people, many of whom she had tried to kill in the past, being so nice and accepting of her. Buffy grabbed Faith's hand and gave it a squeeze, "We should probably go and find the, ah, tomb." She gestured outside, "Night falls." Buffy looked at Faith who gave her a grateful smile as she quickly exited the kitchen and bolted through the front door.
Ext: Summer's Residence Front Porch
Buffy was finally able to drag herself away from her friends and their interrogation and she burst through the front door to find Faith standing there, taking a drag on a cigarette. She exhaled smoke gently and watched the patterns form in front of her, mingling with the darkness of the night.
"For a moment there I thought you might have bolted." Buffy said, coming to stand beside Faith.
Faith looked down at Buffy, a flash of hurt crossed her face. Buffy saw this emotion and grabbed her hand, "I'm sorry, but you have been known to do that." She squeezed Faith's hand, "I am glad you didn't." she said smiling up at the taller Slayer.
Faith exhaled a deep breath she had been holding, "I have a reason to stay now." She said quietly smiling at Buffy before turning her attention back to the darkness, "He's out there." She said, taking another drag on her cigarette, changing the tone of the conversation before it became too deep.
"Who?" Buffy stared into the night, confused but then she felt it, the tingle that alerted Slayers to the presence of a vampire. She couldn't see him but she knew Spike was watching them.
Faith dropped her cigarette butt and squashed it with her boot, then she turned completely to face the blonde Slayer and pulled her close for a kiss, her tongue exploring Buffy's lower lip. She probed gently for access and explored enthusiastically when Buffy opened her mouth. Faith wanted Spike to see, she broke the kiss and pulled Buffy in close to her, scowling out over the blondes shoulder into the dark night. Daring the vampire to ever lay another hand on Buffy.
"Faith." Buffy received no response.
"Hey, earth to Faith." She said louder, untangling herself from the dark Slayers embrace.
"Sorry, B." Faith mumbled, smiling at the blonde.
"Possessive much!" Buffy stated, but she was smiling at Faith.
"And, this," Buffy pulled the pack of cigarettes out of Faiths pocket before the dark slayer could react and chucked them on to the deck, "this habit needs to be kicked if you want anymore kisses."
Buffy smirked at the look on Faith's face, "I am not kidding, Faithy, cigarette breath is rank." Buffy knew she was entering dangerous territory, telling the dark Slayer what to do but she was also enjoying testing the waters.
Faith eyed the other slayer warily, God I have it bad, and did she really just call me Faithy?! "We should get going, research this scythe thing." She said non-committedly, starting into the darkness towards the cemetery.
Buffy trotted behind her to catch up and grabbed her hand, "We'll discuss this later." She said to Faith, feeling euphoric that she might have crossed a small hurdle, interpreting the lack of argument over Faith's smoking habit to mean that she could get away with teasing Faith. She hoped that was the case anyway, the brunette could be so complex with the mixed signals sometimes, it was frustrating.
"I don't doubt it." Faith responded, a small smile gracing her lips, as she turned towards the cemetery.
Ext: Cemetery and Int: Tomb
The slayers headed towards the tomb that Willow had described to them. Faith was uneasy, they hadn't encountered a single vamp or demon yet, it just seemed too easy. She scanned the perimeter, looking for any small movement which might indicate they were being watched, or followed. She started when she heard a loud crash and she whipped around to find Buffy, a brief moment of terror that something might have happened to her. The blonde Slayer turned and grinned at Faith, she was standing in front of the door to the tomb, or rather the crumpled mess that used to be the door. She shrugged when she saw the dark slayers exasperated expression.
"Oh come on." Buffy took in Faith's disapproving scowl, "You never used to be so cautious." Buffy started down the stairs into the depths of the tomb.
"So much for the element of surprise." Faith muttered under her breath. She was about to follow Buffy when a slight movement in some nearby trees caught her eye. She stared at the spot, her brow furrowed in concentration as she tried to find the source of the movement.
"Come on, Faith." Buffy descended cautiously into the tomb. It was lit inside, dimly, but enough to determine that there were no demons lurking. Buffy relaxed a little when she felt Faith come up behind her. They were both startled when they heard a woman's voice from behind a drape.
"I'd forgotten. I'd forgotten how young you would be." She pulled open the drape and stared at the Slayers.
Buffy and Faith took in the appearance of the old woman standing before them; she had long white hair and an air of authority about her. She gestured to the scythe in Buffy's hand, "I see you've found our weapon."
"Who are you?" Buffy demanded, she could sense Faith take up a defensive position just next to her.
The woman smiled patiently at the dark Slayer, "One of many. Well...time was. Now I'm alone in the world."
"So what are you? Some kind of ghost?" Faith queried.
The woman chuckled softly and shook her head at the slayers, "Nope. I'm as real as you are. Just...well... let me put it this way— I look good for my age. I've been waiting..."
She held out her hands towards Buffy. The blonde slayer handed over the scythe. She could feel Faith tense behind her, the dark slayer was wound so tight, ready for an attack.
The woman continued, "You pulled it out of the rock. I was one of those who put it in there." She gazed at the scythe, admiring her handiwork.
"What is it?" Buffy nods at the weapon in the woman's hands.
"A weapon. A scythe. Forged in secrecy for one like you who— I'm sorry. What's your name?"
"Buffy."
The woman looked at Buffy quizzically, "No, really."
Buffy shrugged, she could hear Faith snickering behind her. She gave her a quick kick in the shins, which shut Faith up. The woman turned her attention to the dark Slayer, "You are the other one." It is a statement not a question.
"Faith." The brunette offers her name. She is still ready to spring into action but she is relaxing a little. She is getting no vibes off this woman that she means either of them any harm.
"There are not meant to be two but here you are." The woman continues. She smiles at Faith, "The slayer line is with you now, you, the one who has not died…" she pauses and stares intently at the brunette, "Yet." That last word sends chills through Buffy; Faith just scowls but before she can give her retort the woman continues.
She holds the scythe in front of her, "We forged it in secrecy and kept it hidden from the Shadow Men, who—"
Buffy interrupted her, "Yeah. Met those guys. Didn't really care too much for 'em…so what did you mean by, has not died yet?" The woman purposefully ignored Buffy's question.
"Ahh, yes. Then you know. And they became the watchers. And the watchers watched the slayers. But we were watching them."
"Oh! So you're like... " Faith pauses, confusion in her expression, "What are you?"
"Guardians. Women who want to help and protect you. We forged this centuries ago, halfway around the world. Forged there, it was put to use right here...to kill the last pure demon that walked upon the Earth. The rest were already driven under. And then there were men here, and then there were monks. And then there was a town, and now there was you. And the scythe remained hidden."
"I don't understand. How is it possible that we didn't know any of this?" Buffy asked, frowning.
"We hid, too. We had to until now. We're the last surprise."
Buffy stared at the woman, hope in her eyes, "Does this mean we can win?"
"That is really up to you. This is a powerful weapon." She hands the scythe back to Buffy, "But you already have weapons." She turns and stares directly at Faith. Buffy follows her gaze to the confused dark Slayer at her side.
"Use it wisely and perhaps you can beat back the rising dark. One way or another, it can only mean an end is truly near."
Buffy looked at Faith, for the first time since the battle with the First begun she had hope. The sounds of bones cracking drew her attention back to the woman. She watched as the woman fell to the ground, dead, revealing Caleb standing behind her.
"I'm sorry. I didn't catch that last part on account of her neck snapping and all. Did she say the end is near... or here?