Chapter Seven
Faith was heating up some chicken broth and Buffy was still unconscious. It'd been a rough few hours, and Faith knew it wasn't anywhere close to being over yet. The next however many days were going to be a real bitch, and there wasn't much she could do about it. She'd prepared as much as she could, now whatever went down was going to be what went down. All she could do from here on out was her best, and she was going to have to make sure it was good enough.
Right now she needed to get Buffy eating and sleeping naturally again. Both of those things would go a long way in helping her Slayer healing kick back in. Of course the real trouble was that they didn't have time for a long rehab. In a couple of days Willow's spell was going to lose its mojo, and then they were going to have to be on the move.
There was no way Buffy was going to be anywhere near full strength by then. She'd be lucky to hit one quarter over the next few days. Only time was going to get her on the mend, and time was a luxury they didn't have.
Faith figured there was no point in worrying about any of that now. It wasn't something she could control, so why waste the energy? Right now the soup was ready, and that meant it was time to get Buffy back into the land of the awake.
She tried shaking her lightly while calling her name, but she got not the slightest response. Next she tried slapping her cheeks, but still nothing. Faith kept calling to her as she splashed water on her face, and finally Buffy began to stir.
"B, c'mon now...stay with me here. B! That's right. C'mon now, it's time to eat a little something."
Faith held her in a sitting position, letting Buffy lean against her while she got her bearings. As Buffy became more alert, she began trying to pull away:
"...N...No."
"Just some broth, okay? Thought we'd see how your stomach handles that before..."
The next thing Faith knew, Buffy had knocked her to the ground. She'd fallen forward on top of her and was now slugging Faith with everything that she had. It didn't really hurt, but Faith knew she needed to put a stop to it before Buffy injured herself further.
"Whoa, easy B. It's okay, just..."
"Not her...Tired of...playing...games."
"I am her B, just...Ow!"
Buffy caught her hard on the jaw and Faith saw stars for a second.
"Fuck, that hurt! Would ya just stop and let...Shit!"
She could feel the blood trickling down from her nose, and she knew she had to gain control of the situation right now. Buffy might not be up to her usual standards, but she was still Buffy, and that was clearly more than dangerous enough.
They grappled for a few moments, each fighting to claim the upper hand, and then Faith managed to grab onto both of Buffy's wrists. She just held her there as she fought to break loose, then was forced to tighten her grip when Buffy nearly succeeded.
"B, c'mon...Buffy, stop now. Not gonna hurt you."
Buffy responded by jamming her knee into Faith's ribs, applying as much pressure as she could. Faith yelped, but she didn't let go. She brought her own legs up and squeezed tight, preventing Buffy from moving at all.
Normally she would have just flipped Buffy onto her back and pinned her to the ground, but there was no way she could do that right now. All Faith could do was let her stay right where she was, making sure to keep her grip Slayer strong while she waited her out.
After what seemed like a long time, Buffy went limp with exhaustion.
"B, swear to you this is real. Spiran's fucked up your head, but if we can stay clear of him for a few..."
"Don't...Don't believe you. You're...not her."
"Okay, I know. Let's just get you something to eat, you'll feel better."
"Won't...tell you...Never...tell you."
"I know that. Good thing I'm never gonna ask, yeah?"
Faith sat up and adjusted Buffy onto her lap. She reached over and pulled the soup closer, lifting out a spoonful.
"Let me help ya eat. You're tired and I don't mind...Hey B, c'mon now. All ya gotta do is open up and..."
"No."
"Food'll help ya get better. Kinda jump-start your Slayer healing, right? C'mon B, please? Just eat a little and..."
"Fuck...you."
"B?"
"..."
"B?"
"What?"
"Are you hungry?"
"..."
"Are you?"
"...Yes."
"Okay then, what's it matter who the fuck I am? Here's some food for ya, eat it."
"...Or what?"
"Or nothing. Not gonna force ya, I just want you to."
They stared at each other for a few moments, and then Faith tried again:
"Buffy, will ya please try some? Please B?"
Buffy opened her mouth and Faith quickly spooned some in. She swallowed with difficulty, but then turned her head towards Faith for the next bite. It got easier as it went, and it wasn't long before she'd eaten the entire amount.
"...Can I have more?"
"Little later, okay? Should make sure you can keep that down."
Buffy tried to lie down, but she couldn't get comfortable. She obviously couldn't lie on her back, her left side was out because of her sore shoulder, and her ribs ruled out her other side. She began crying softly, and Faith so wanted to kill Spiran.
"Hey, hey it's okay B. Ground's just too hard, is all. C'mon, you can sleep on me."
"No."
"It's what we did before I made the soup. Works pretty good once you get squared away."
"...You're not...No...This isn't real."
"Yeah it is, but that's not the point right now. Just let me hold ya, you'll fall right asleep."
"..."
"Please B? If you don't like it, swear I'll let ya go."
Buffy nodded and Faith carefully picked her up. She sat down with her back leaning against a tree and let Buffy shift around until she found a comfortable position. It took a while, and Buffy squirmed and whimpered a lot, but then she was okay.
"You just sleep now B, best thing for ya. I'll keep you safe, don't worry."
"You...you can't be...Faith......Faith hates...me."
"No I don't, I never did. Now shhh...just go to sleep."
And then Buffy was out cold, her body leaning heavily into Faith's as her muscles relaxed.
As she sat there holding her, Faith could feel the rage building inside. She could feel it coming for her, and she let it start filling her up. That son of a bitch was going to pay, and he was going to pay so big there wasn't even a word for it.
No matter what it took, no matter what it cost her, Faith was going to make it her personal mission to make sure he got what was coming to him and more. Nothing was going to stop her, nothing was going to get between him and her. She didn't care what she had to do, who she had to...
She knew she had to stop, and she knew she had to stop right now. The feeling coursing through her was one she was intimately familiar with. It led right to everything that was bad in her, and although it felt good, it wasn't good. It was what made her a murderer, what made her evil, and it was what made her need jail to save herself.
Being that person, going back there, was something she never wanted to do again, not for any reason. She'd fought too hard to get clear, and no matter what happened she was not doing it again. She knew if nothing else, she owed the woman she was holding in her arms better than that.
Faith stared down at Buffy and began taking deep breaths, centering herself as much as she could. It was tough, but she kept struggling to narrow her focus until she could see what she needed. After a few minutes, she found what she was looking for.
She could see the place she needed to be, and she put her energy into getting there. Here she wasn't a killer, she wasn't evil at all. She was a Slayer, a force of goodness, and she was someone who could be counted on and trusted to do the right thing.
All of that was inside her too, and she clung to it until she sensed the evil fading into the background. She was going to do this right this time, the darkness could just go fuck itself. She was Faith, the Vampire Slayer, and that meant more to her than almost anything.
Her arms tightened around Buffy as she smiled:
"Don't worry B, I gotcha."
They stayed like that for three hours before Buffy awoke with a gasp. She pulled away from Faith as forcefully as she could, and landed right on her back. She screamed in pain, and Faith grabbed her arm and quickly pulled her up into a sitting position.
"You're okay B, it's okay. Here, don't..."
"Get away from me!"
"B, it's just me. You're okay, just stop..."
"No, get away from me! Don't touch me!"
Faith let go of her slowly and moved away.
"It's okay, okay? Not coming anywhere near you, alright?"
Buffy looked like a scared animal, and Faith knew better than to try to approach her. She could see how much she was hurting, so she dug around in the bag for the jar of cream. She found it and held it up.
"B, see this stuff? I put some of it on your back when you were out cold. It helps with the pain and speeds up the healing. Just time to do it again is all. Red says it lasts about four, maybe five hours, then we gotta..."
"What...What did you say?"
"That it lasts like four hours, then we..."
"Where did you get that?!"
"Easy B, Red gave it to me and...Oh shit, okay guess we'd better talk about..."
"Willow's dead...you goddamn bitch...This isn't...real...No!"
"This is real. Spiran's been fucking with your mind, messing you all up. Nobody's dead, Willow didn't get turned, and she's not the one who's been..."
"Shut up! I'm not...listening. This...this isn't real. They're all dead...I saw them...One by one I..."
Buffy began sobbing then, and Faith took the opportunity to edge a little closer.
"They're not dead B, none of them. Look you need to rest, let's talk about all of this later. For now let's just..."
"I won't tell you...Not ever."
"Did I ask ya to?"
"...What?"
"Did I ask you to tell me?"
"No."
"Not gonna either. I'm not asking you to believe me, and I sure as hell ain't asking you to trust me. But we got some rough days heading our way, so all I'm asking is for you to let me take care of you."
Buffy looked confused and uncertain as her eyes met Faith's.
"If it turns out this is all some big ass mindfuck, well ya can't stop it anyways, right? So please B, just let me put this on your back. It'll make you feel a lot better, you'll see. Please Buffy?"
"...Okay...but you don't...fool me."
"I know that. Look, this hurts pretty bad when I put it on. Last time I had to knock you out, but I can't keep doing that."
"Just put it on."
Faith's heart skipped a beat because even though there were still tears glistening in Buffy's eyes, there was now steel in her voice. Just like that, Buffy was The Slayer.
"Okay, brace yourself B."
Buffy flinched and gasped, and by the end she was flat-out crying, but she let Faith apply the ointment. When that was done, Faith fed her some more broth and gave her some water to drink. She then pulled her back onto her lap, and Buffy fell asleep almost instantly.
There was just enough time for a good nap before sunset, so Faith let herself doze off as well. She was sleeping, and yet she was totally aware of her surroundings. It was a skill Angel had taught her, kind of like meditating, and she'd become a master at it in prison. It was coming in way handy now.
Four hours later, Buffy awoke moaning in pain. They repeated their routine, and then Faith carried Buffy to the edge of their campsite and helped her go to the bathroom.
"Check it out B, T. P. and everything. Even scored some of that soap ya don't need water to use. Let's get ya all cleaned up and ready for supper."
Buffy drifted off while she was eating, and Faith sat quietly with her on her lap. The vampires came looking for them a couple of hours later.
Faith just sat there holding a sleeping Buffy while the vampires walked all around them, never sensing them for a second. Willow had promised that no one would be able to see anything but the illusion, and her word was as good as gold. Still, Faith held her stake at the ready just in case.
There was no need though because despite the fact that one of the vamps was standing mere inches from Faith's leg, he was picking up on nothing. He was completely oblivious that what he was seeking was sitting right next to him.
"Damn it! What the hell did they send us way out here for? How would they even make it this far?"
"Well the talk is the dark haired one's a Slayer too."
"Yeah, right. There's only one at a time, everybody knows that."
"The story I heard is that the first one died, but got revived. While she was dead, the other bitch got called."
"And where's she been all this time?"
"I heard she went evil and the other Slayer killed her or she went to jail or something."
The skeptical vampire bent down to pick up a rock, which he then tossed off into the woods.
"So now she comes back to help? That sounds like fairy tale crap to me. Why would she even want to help out the first Slayer?"
"I don't get that part either, but the rest of it kind of makes some sense. I mean, how'd they get away in the first place? She'd have to be something to..."
"Look I don't know what she is, but I do know she's not a Slayer."
"But Eric says that The Brothers did some magic and Spiran knows her now."
"That's convenient. How come he didn't know her when he was talking to her?"
"Supposedly she had some kind of spell going that sort of cloaked her."
Another rock went sailing off into the thick grouping of trees.
"And the Boss confided all of this to Eric?"
"No, he says he overheard him talking."
"Well I'm not buying any of it."
"Yeah it does sound a little..."
"It sounds like bullshit, is what it sounds like. Man, I am starving."
"Food's definitely getting harder to come by, that's for sure."
"Boss had better break her fast or we're going to be chasing squirrels."
"Don't even joke about it. Shit, where could they be?"
"Well they're nowhere out here. Let's go."
They moved off, and after several long minutes, Faith put her stake down. All of her muscles were flexed, and it took her quite a while to calm down. Buffy had mercifully slept through the whole thing, never so much as stirring.
Faith had to laugh at how stupid the vampires had looked, wandering around a campsite they couldn't perceive. Funny for sure, but scary and tense as hell too. The good news was that Willow's magic was working just like it was supposed to, and Faith had overheard some valuable information.
So Spiran knew who she was now, well that made them even. She'd been wondering what his problem was, but since he didn't seem to remember her, she'd figured there was no reason to clear it up for him. Way she saw it, there was no reason to make anything easy for him.
When she thought about it, it seemed way possible that the spell used to mask her scent had also covered up something else. That something had somehow confused the shit out of Spiran, how and why, well Faith had no idea. She didn't understand that stuff, and she didn't want to. She couldn't see how it mattered, things were what they were.
The night passed, as did the following day. Faith fed Buffy, treated her injuries, and got her to sleep as much as possible. All of her free time was spent planning for the fast approaching time when Willow's spell was going to die out. It wouldn't hold much longer, and then they were going to have to be on the move.
It wasn't going to be easy. Buffy was incredibly injured, and that wasn't even the worst of it. Her mind was still all fogged up, and based on the best guesses of Giles and Willow, that was likely to be the case for at least two more days. There was nothing to do about it except ride it out and stay clear of Spiran. If Buffy didn't have any contact with him, her mind should clear and his "special talent" would never work on her again.
That sounded good to Faith, really good. She could see that Buffy was already starting to shake off the effects, but it was slow going. Evidently this mind warping stuff was something that Spiran had been doing for well over two hundred years, no wonder Buffy didn't know up from down.
Buffy stirred, rousing Faith from her thoughts. Her eyes snapped open suddenly and she moved away as quickly as she could, even though Faith hadn't moved a muscle.
"You're okay B, everything's good."
Buffy looked at her like she was a lying sack of shit, and Faith supposed from Buffy's point of view, that's exactly what she was.
"How ya feeling?"
"...Better."
"Look better, for sure. Wanna try some ‘food' food?"
"Maybe."
"Got doughnuts and juice boxes. Not exactly a gourmet spread, but after an all broth diet, well it's gotta be kinda tasty."
Buffy looked around, obviously confused:
"What's...What's happening? What is this?"
"We escaped from Spiran. He's been fucking with your mind, making you see things that aren't real. Gonna be a few more days before you..."
"No! I won't...I won't ever tell you."
"I'm not gonna ask. Remember we talked about this? You think it's a setup, I don't blame ya. But I promise, I'm not gonna ask you for anything, okay? All I want is to take care of you, and you agreed to let me. Not looking for anything else here."
Buffy stared at her and then smiled:
"You? You want to...take care of me?"
"Crazy as it sounds, yeah I do."
".........Give me the juice."
"Sure okay, here ya go. Think I could get a look at your back, maybe put some of this on it again?"
Buffy didn't answer. She merely inhaled her juice and asked for another. Her eyes never left Faith's, but after a couple of minutes, she turned around.
It was still really horrible, but it was clearly improving. The combo of Willow's magic paste and Buffy's Slayer healing were truly doing wonders. It was still plenty gruesome looking, but at least the sight of it didn't make Faith feel like she was going to hurl her doughnuts back up.
"Looking way better. Can I put this stuff on? You remember how much it hurts?"
"Just...do it."
Faith's touch was as gentle as she could make it, but Buffy still groaned and flinched through the whole process.
"Shit, I'm sorry B."
When Buffy spoke, her voice came out all strangled:
"I...know you...are."
Then they were finished, and Buffy downed some doughnuts and another juice. She was sitting up under her own power, but she looked like she was beginning to fade. Faith moved slowly and sat down next to her.
"B, maybe you should lean on me, yeah? You're looking a little tired."
"...Thanks."
"Sure. We're gonna have to be on the move soon. Pretty sure Red's cloaking device is gonna hold through the night, but no way's it gonna go..."
"...Willow?"
"Yeah. She gave me this little red crystal thing that..."
"Will was the...last one. She was the only one left."
"Buffy..."
"I let them...I let them kill her. Willow died."
"No she didn't, none of them did."
Buffy's body had become tense, her eyes clouded as she remembered:
"I never should have let them stay...I let them stay inside the barrier and..."
"No you didn't B, Spiran's twisted it all up on you. Nobody but you stayed inside and..."
"He turned her right in front of me...I...I had the shot, but I hesitated...I broke my promise and he turned her...Willow..."
"No, none of that's real B. None of that happened."
Clearly Buffy wasn't listening.
"She killed him after she rose."
"No she didn't."
"I saw it!"
"How?"
"...What?"
"You're saying you saw Red kill Spiran?"
"Yes...She rose and killed him...about ten minutes later."
"Yeah? You weren't there, so how'd ya see it?"
"...What? I..."
"You're saying you saw Willow rise, right? Saw her kill Spiran?"
"Yes."
"How? You weren't there, you musta already been on the run."
"I wasn't...I mean...No."
"Shhh, it's okay. Ya don't gotta figure it all at once."
They sat quietly for a long time, and then Buffy whispered:
"How did I see that? It...it doesn't make sense."
"No it doesn't. The Scoobies found out Spiran's special skill deal is that he can make people think shit that's not real. It seems real B, but it's not. That's why you..."
Buffy grabbed onto Faith's arm:
"Faith...Is it you? Are you really...real?"
"Yes."
"...And everybody else? Dawnie...Is Dawnie...God, they died Faith! They all..."
"No they didn't. They're all safe and sound on the other side of the barrier."
"...Safe? We're all safe?"
"Could put it that way, though can't say I'm positive about us yet. Not like this is the safest place we...OW!"
Buffy's punch took Faith completely by surprise, and she was knocked onto her back several feet away.
Buffy was on her quickly, and she stunned Faith with another blow to her temple. As Faith tried to gather her wits, she felt Buffy's hand fumbling around unsheathing her knife. The next thing she felt was the blade against her throat.
"Now we're going to talk, and if I don't like what you have to say..."
Faith winced as she felt the tip of the knife draw blood.
"Who are you?"
"B, you know who I am. It's me, Fai...OW! Shit!"
"You're lying. Who are you?"
"Black sheep Slayer reporting for...Jesus!"
Faith felt the knife slice off a chunk of her skin.
"B, please..."
"Shut up! I asked you a question, and all I want to hear from you is the answer. Who are you?"
"Already gave you the...Fuck!"
Faith could feel the blood rolling in a steady stream down her neck, and now the blade was right against her jugular.
"B, I am Faith. Much as I'd like to talk this out, wicked tough with a knife at...Shit!"
Buffy dug the knife in, and Faith didn't like the look in her eye:
"You're not even real, are you? I could just slit your throat and then what? Would I find myself still chained to the wall or the ceiling? Why don't we find..."
"Sorry B."
Then Buffy was screaming as Faith smacked her on the back. The knife fell from her hand, and Faith tossed it aside. Despite being in agony, Buffy tried to come back at her, but Faith was able to restrain her easily.
"Okay, it's over now. Just stop B."
"Let go of me! You're...not...Faith."
"Yes I am. Shhh, it's alright, okay? Shhh..."
Buffy continued to struggle, but her strength faded fast and she practically collapsed. Faith pulled her onto her lap.
"You're okay B, just rest now. You're okay."
Buffy didn't protest, and Faith reached over and grabbed some gauze for her neck. They sat quietly and then just as Buffy began drifting off to sleep, Faith heard her voice. She sounded scared and weak, like a little kid terrified of the monsters under the bed:
"What's wrong with me?"
"You're under a spell. It'll wear off soon B, don't worry. You're gonna be just fine real soon, I promise."
"It's...it's really you, isn't it?"
"Yeah, it really is."
"...But don't you hate me?"
"Never B. Shhh, we'll talk about it later. Just rest now."
"Okay."
And with that, Buffy was fast asleep and Faith let out a sigh of relief. Her neck was killing her, and she was just about willing to return the favor for a cold beer. Instead she grabbed a box of warm cranapple juice and was damn grateful for it.
She had to laugh. Here was Buffy, beaten to an actual bloody pulp and barely able to stand, and she'd still somehow hauled Faith way too close to the white light. Buffy was tough, the toughest person Faith had ever known, and if it wasn't clear before, it sure as hell was now.
Buffy was The Slayer, there was no doubt about it. Even in her condition, hell even in her sleep, her goodness blazed out of her brightly like a beacon or something. She was a hero all the way, and just like heroes do, Buffy willingly put her life on the line to save others. She fought every step of the way and she never gave up because she was all about doing what was right.
She was The Chosen One, and whoever picked her knew exactly what they were doing. Buffy would never betray her duty, she would never stop trying. Even when she thought she had nothing left, even when she thought everyone she loved was dead, she still hung on. She was amazing and she was beautiful, and Faith still couldn't believe what a miracle she was.
After a while she let herself nod off, waking only when Buffy did. They went through their usual paces, and there were no more throat cutting episodes. Faith remained alert in case Buffy had any more surprises planned, but nothing happened that wasn't supposed to.
They settled back down, and Faith decided to stay awake. The sunrise was fast approaching and she figured she might as well greet it. Today promised to be busy and jam-packed, so there was no time like the present.
She waited until Buffy had fallen back into a deep sleep, then gently eased her onto the ground. She stood up straight and stretched, and God did it ever feel good. Being a human mattress, even Buffy's, wasn't as much fun as it sounded.
She yawned and started puttering around the campsite like she was some housewife out in the suburbs. She was just getting the fire going when she heard it. There was a loud snapping noise, and then the air around them began shimmering.
It was just like watching the heat rising up from a blacktop on a blisteringly hot summer day. Then white and gold flashes started flaring up all around the perimeter, brighter and brighter until they became so intense, Faith was forced to look away. And then just like that it was over, and although nothing looked different, Faith knew everything had changed.
There was no more cloaking device, the Klingon vessel was now just sitting there for everyone to see. It wouldn't take long before the Enterprise started closing in and when that happened, well things were going to become extremely dangerous for all involved.
From here on out, it was nothing but down and dirty. There were no more magic tricks, no more cool little gizmos to whip out when things got tough. All that was left was them and whatever they could manage to bring to the game.
Against all odds, that thought had Faith laughing right out loud. They were Slayers. Yeah sure they were a little banged up and under the weather at the moment, but they were still Slayers nonetheless, and what they had to offer was pain and death to every evil thing they could get their hands on. It was their calling and they were going to answer.
Sure things didn't look so good right now. There was no denying that Buffy wasn't in tiptop shape, but that didn't really matter at all, not when you got right down to it. It all came down to payback, and man was there a lot of it to start handing out.
Faith herself had explained a long time ago that payback could be a real bitch, now it was time to make it clear just what happens when you piss off a couple of Slayers. You could call it a lot of things, Faith didn't much care what words were used. She already knew what it was, and she was ready. Hell, she was way past ready.
"Step right on up you motherfuckers, it's time to play."
