by Invalid Reality

"Undercover Lovers" Challenge:

Rating: NC-17
Summary: Dawn has been kidnapped...or has she? Buffy and Faith head out to find her and bring her home, unaware of what's really going on...
Author's Notes: After suffering from major writers block for the original version of The Set Up, I decided to scrap that and rewrite it with the same premise. There may be some parts that are the same as I originally wrote, but for the most part it's completely rewritten. I'm a lot more satisfied with this as a one-shot split into three parts. Enjoy :)

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Part One

Another slow, boring night, Buffy thought as she sat perched on top of a headstone and watched the handful of younger slayers as they spread out around the cemetery.

It'd been like this for months. Buffy figured it was because word had gotten around Cleveland and surrounding areas that she, Faith, and about a dozen younger slayers had recently set their operations up there. In the six years since they had left Sunnydale, this year was the worst--the worst meaning next to no activity and zero attempts with a Big Bad trying to take over the world or end it. That wasn't the only thing that had been slowly driving her crazy; she had to deal with Faith.

Faith had never been easy to deal with and the level of energy she always had made Buffy tired just thinking about it. The slow activity on patrols had taken its toll on all of them, but it was Faith who made the biggest deal out of it. And it wasn't like Faith was around much either, but when she was, Buffy's level of patience was tested. She only came around when she was needed it seemed, and lately she hadn't been around on patrols or shown up for the daily meetings they held at the house Buffy shared with Dawn, Willow, and Kennedy. Buffy knew of Dawn and Faith's growing friendship and she didn't like it, she hated it. She hated the idea of her sister and Faith being close and she hated knowing that whenever they went out on a Friday or Saturday night, Dawn would come home at four or five in the morning smelling like a brewery, hardly able to walk straight as she tried to sneak into her bedroom.

Buffy clenched her fists at her side, not bothering to question why, after all these years, she still had that lingering hate for Faith deep down inside. She'd seen how much Faith had changed, acknowledged the fact that Faith was all about the good deeds now, but she never tried to be her friend. Not once. Faith hadn't changed drastically though, not to the point where she seemed like an entirely different person. Buffy knew of all the times she just picked up and took off for days, sometimes weeks at a time and would come back acting like it was nothing new that she'd disappeared for a little while. She never said anything to Faith, knowing it wasn't worth getting into a senseless, stupid fight with her over her habits of picking up and running off to do whatever it is she did when she left.

"God, she's so infuriating," Buffy muttered to herself and she hopped off the headstone and walked down the narrow gravel path that lead through one of Cleveland's biggest cemeteries. "Great," she groaned when she saw Faith walking towards her.

"Hey, B," Faith said casually as she came to a stop a few feet in front of her. "How's it going?"

"Slow."

"As usual," Faith laughed and she shoved her hands into the front pockets of her dark blue jeans. "Any chance you seen Dawnie tonight?"

"No, I haven't seen her all day. Why?" Buffy asked, knowing exactly why Faith was looking for Dawn. It was Friday. They always went to a club, sometimes just the two of them; sometimes a few of the younger slayers that were of drinking age tagged along. Not once did they ever invite Buffy, and in some weird way, she hated that they didn't ask her to come out with them.

"Didn't show up at my place a few hours ago like she told me she was gonna. Guess it's no big," Faith shrugged. "Probably hooked up with that guy she met last weekend and ditched me."

"She met a guy last weekend?"

"Sure," Faith said and she shrugged again. "Kept trying her cell, but she won't pick up so either she's busy or she left it at home."

"Give me your phone," Buffy demanded as she held out her hand. Faith just stared at her as if she was asking for more than just her cell phone. "Faith, I left mine at home."

"Told ya I kept trying to call Dawnie...pointless when she won't answer, you know?"

"Just give me your phone," Buffy groaned and Faith scoffed and dug her cell out of her pocket and handed it over. She punched in Dawn's number and waited. It didn't ring and it went straight to her voicemail. "Great. She's turned her phone off. Come on."

"Come on? Where are we going?" Faith asked as she followed Buffy towards the main entrance. "Buffy?"

"We're going to find her since she can't be bothered to answer her phone."

"B, when you gonna stop acting like her mother? She isn't a kid anymore. You do realize that, don't you?"

"I do realize that," Buffy sighed and stopped when they reached the street. "Where were you two planning to go tonight?"

"Already checked all the spots and even stopped at the house. Ken told me she'd gone out. Didn't say where though."

Buffy sighed and headed for the house just a few blocks away. Faith trailed behind her, keeping her distance as she usually did around her. She could barely stand being so close to Faith. The buzz she felt around her confused her to no end. She hadn't felt that buzz with any of the other slayers and she definitely hadn't felt it when she hooked up with Satsu those few times a couple years ago. She was definitely feeling it tonight even with Faith trying to stay a handful of steps behind her. Rather than dwell on what she was feeling with Faith being around, she turned the corner and spotted Giles' car parked in the driveway. Since it was past two in the morning, she knew Giles being at the house was not a good sign, but she tried to stay calm and motioned to Faith to follow her inside the house.

She felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach as she opened the front door. What if something had happened to Dawn? Wouldn't someone have come to find her to tell her? Surely if something had happened to Dawn, Xander of all people would've been the first to track her down and let her know what was going on.

"Wonder what's up?" Faith muttered from behind her, tucking her unlit cigarette behind her ear as she walked up the front steps. "Giles wouldn't be here in the middle of the night if something wasn't up."

"Just shut up," Buffy said under her breath and she walked in the house, wishing she could slam the door in Faith's face, but instead she held it open long enough for her to walk in.

Buffy found Giles, Willow, and Xander all seated around the table in the kitchen and the looks on their faces made Buffy's heart drop. She slipped off her jacket and crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for one of them to start talking and at least tell her what was going on and why they were all sitting around in the kitchen at two in the morning.

"Buffy, we--we tried to get a hold of you," Willow said softly as the tears welled up in her eyes. "You left your phone here again and we didn't know where you took the girls tonight so we couldn't find you and--"

"What's going on? Where's Dawn?"

"We thought she went out with Faith," Xander said and he sighed heavily as Buffy stared at him intently. "Will called me when Faith came here looking for Dawn and that's right about the time Giles got a phone call."

"What is going on?" Buffy demanded, feeling it hard to keep her anger in check. "Where is she? Giles?"

"She's been taken--kidnapped," Giles said and he pinched the bridge of his nose as Buffy stood there, barely showing a flicker or emotion at his words. "I received a phone call from a woman, a demon actually, that goes by the name of Angeline. She said she has Dawn and wants an exchange."

"Then we'll give her an exchange," Buffy said firmly. "What does she want?"

"She wants a slayer. Dead."

"This is fuckin' ridiculous!" Faith burst out and she laughed as she began to pace around the small kitchen. "Why the hell would some demon take Dawn? Just `cause she wants Buffy or some other slayer dead? Gotta tell ya, these vamps and demons have turned into pussies since we got here! Couldn't they come up with something better than kidnapping a slayer's sister?"

"Faith, just shut the hell up," Buffy said as she glared at her. "We're not giving this demon what she wants, obviously. So, what other options do we have here, Giles? What do we even know about this demon?"

"I have a couple members of the Council looking into it at this moment and right now, I'm afraid to say that I'm not sure what we can do here, Buffy. If we try to locate Dawn, we could be putting her life in danger."

"We can't just sit here and do nothing!" Faith nearly yelled and Buffy sighed as she shook her head.

"Faith's right," she said, never thinking she'd ever say those words before. "We can't just sit here and do nothing. Do you even know where this demon is holding her?"

"Uh, Willow?" Giles said as he motioned to her. "You have a location, do you not?"

"The locator spell I tried didn't work so well and when I tried to trace the number Angeline called from, it just came up from a payphone in downtown Toledo."

"How long would it take to get there?" Buffy asked. Nobody said a word so she looked over at Faith. "How long does it take to get to Toledo, Faith?"

"About two hours, tops."

Buffy grabbed her jacket and her keys and ignored the others as she headed straight for the door. She stepped out into the unusually warm December night and felt a few tears slip out. She was worried about Dawn, worried about the reasons why this demon wanted Dawn and had kidnapped her. They couldn't give this demon what she wanted, that was out of the question, but Buffy would do anything for her sister. She did die in her place once, but that was not a viable option now and she knew it.

"B? You okay?"

"Faith, just go home, please."

"You're thinking this is my fault, aren't you?" Faith asked as she lit her cigarette and casually sat down on the front steps as Buffy leaned up against the post.

"No. It's nobody's fault."

"I know you, B. You need someone to blame it on and I know you wanna blame it on me."

"It's not your fault," Buffy said as she struggled to stop the tears. "Just please go home, Faith."

"I ain't going anywhere," Faith said firmly and she got up from the steps so she could look at Buffy. "Look, Dawnie is my friend and she's in a sitch right now she needs us to get her out of. We'll find a way to get her home safely, B, and then we'll kill the bitch that took her and thought she'd get away with it."

Buffy wiped away her tears and forced down the bubbling anger she felt inside of her. As much as she didn't want Faith there, she knew Faith was needed. She knew that, like herself, Faith would do anything for Dawn. She didn't need to hear it coming straight from Faith to know that, she just knew from the countless conversations she'd listened in on when Faith and Dawn thought she wasn't around.

She was tired, angry, growing restless and more worried about Dawn by the minute, but the logical parts of her brain were telling her it was too late to do anything and if they were to make a move to find Dawn, it'd have to wait until the morning at least. She allowed herself to look at Faith and she saw the worry in her eyes, the tears Faith was trying so desperately to hold back and almost losing the battle as they stood there staring at one another.

Buffy didn't say a word as she headed back inside. She ignored Willow as she climbed the stairs and headed for her room, just wanting to be left alone with her own whirlwind of thoughts. As soon as she reached her room, she broke down into tears, collapsing to the floor at the foot of her bed. She hated feeling weak and this was a moment of weakness she didn't need, not when Dawn had been kidnapped by a demon they knew nothing about. She angrily wiped at her tears and pulled herself up from the floor. She opened her weapons chest, grabbed a duffel bag, and began packing everything she thought she'd need.

She was going after this demon in Toledo even if she had to go alone. She'd find Dawn, kill the demon, and bring her home safely. The only thing was she had no idea where to start looking for Dawn. Toledo was a big city, one she'd never been to, but that wasn't about to stop her. The only thing on her mind was finding Dawn. Nobody took her sister and got away with it. Nobody.

Faith stood in the kitchen while Giles spoke quietly on the phone with one of his contacts through the Council. They all jumped when they heard the front door slam shut and nobody had to question it, they just knew that Buffy had taken off and was likely headed for Toledo in search of Dawn and the demon that had taken her.

"Any of you gonna go after her?" Faith asked and Giles motioned for her to stay quiet. "You're just gonna let her go off on her own?"

"Faith, please be quiet," Giles snapped and he walked out of the kitchen with the phone.

"Jesus," Faith muttered and she sat down at the kitchen table across from Xander. "She can't just go off on her own."

"She can't get far without a car," Xander pointed out. "And you know how Buffy gets. If she has her mind set on something, nobody can stop her from doing what she wants to do. It's dangerous. Kennedy is the last one to figure that out and you know all too well what it's like when you stand in her way."

"Don't remind me, my jaw already hurts just thinkin' about it," Faith said, laughing bitterly as she idly rubbed her jaw, feeling the ghosting pain from the last time Buffy's fist met it with a hard right hook. "Still, we can't just let her go off on her own."

"Faith is quite right," Giles said as he came back into the kitchen and placed the phone on the counter.

"Twice in less than half an hour I been told I'm right. Gotta be some record there."

"I have found out a piece of vital information about our kidnapper," Giles continued, ignoring Faith's remark. "We have reason to suspect that Angeline has more motive than just wanting a dead slayer in exchange for Dawn. My informant has told me that he believes Angeline is part of a group of demons and vampires that have been recruited by a government agency set out to destroy what we have spent the last handful of years building."

"Great, so we're up against a demon who works for the US government?" Faith asked, shaking her head and stifling a laugh. "What else did this informant of yours tell you, Giles?"

"I was given a location of Angeline's only known whereabouts."

"But? Sensing a huge but here," Faith asked, leaning forward and staring Giles down, watching as he nervously fiddled with his glasses. "Spit it out."

"She owns a private club in downtown Toledo."

"And that's a problem because?"

"It isn't much of a problem, but the fact of the matter is, we still do not know what this Angeline looks like. I do know she can take human form, so I believe she can be just about anyone. Faith, I need you to go after Buffy and do not let her tell you off. I need you in on this mission together."

"Let's backtrack a little here," Faith said, trying to make sense of what Giles was avoiding. "This demon owns a private club, right? If we wanna know who she is and track her down to find Dawn, we're gonna have to go to this club to find her, right?"

"It's a private club, Faith. One you have to be invited to or are a member of."

"No big, I'm sure I can sweet talk the bouncer or whoever to let us in."

"It's a gay club," Giles sighed. "For couples only."

"Let me get this straight," Faith laughed and she got up from her chair and began pacing. "In order to find this demon and track her, we gotta get into this private gay club for couples only. So, what's the big? Me and B can go undercover for a night."

"You realize that this is Buffy you're talking about?" Xander asked. "You know that there is no way she'll ever agree to go undercover as a couple with you."

"She'll do anything for Dawn just like I will. You guys know that."

"Buffy won't go for this plan, Faith. We all know that," Giles said, sighing heavily. "I need you to go after her and stop her before she gets to Toledo. We need to come up with a plan, a viable plan that will work and will not put any of us harm's way. Xander, I want you and Faith to go out and find Buffy right away so we can--"

"No need," Buffy said as she walked into the kitchen and dropped her duffel bag to the floor. "Realized by the time I got to the corner that I can't exactly walk there. What plan are you guys talking about?"

Giles explained everything to her that they had just discussed. Faith kept looking over at Buffy, trying to read her reaction to all of it, but Buffy just blankly stared at Giles, only occasionally shaking her head as if she could barely believe a word he was saying. Faith kept thinking about Dawn and how she allowed herself to be kidnapped by a demon in the first place. She had been training with Dawn for months on an end, secretly since they both knew how much Buffy hated when they spent any time together, and she knew there was no reason for Dawn to have not fought back.

Something about this didn't feel right to Faith, but because it was late and she was just as exhausted as the others were, she was blaming her suspicion on the lack of sleep. While Giles, Willow, and Buffy discussed a plan, Faith slipped out the back door and lit a cigarette, not realizing at first just how badly her hands were shaking. She flinched when she heard the back door open and yet she didn't need to turn around to know that it was Buffy.

"Do you think if we do this it'll work?"

"Dunno, B. Still processing this right now."

"We can't even spend more than five minutes together," Buffy said quietly and Faith cast a quick glance at her before looking away. "How are we going to go undercover as lovers and be convincing?"

"Awesome acting skills?" Faith shrugged. "Look, I want to get Dawn back home safe just as much as you do. I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to find her."

"I want to wait until the morning, but I want to get to Toledo as soon as possible. We can sleep once we get there and we'll figure out where to go from there."

"So, you wanna leave right now?"

"You've got a car," Buffy pointed out. "I already packed weapons. We're pretty much set."

"Pretty much but not quite. Little problem here, B. I ain't got any money."

"I have a credit card."

Faith sighed and took a drag of her cigarette, watching as the smoke drifted up in the night air. She had her doubts about this whole thing, about going undercover in order to find this demon. She couldn't expect it to be easy. Nothing was ever easy in life and she knew that from a lifetime of experience. Taking one last drag of her cigarette before flicking into the snow-covered garden, she turned to Buffy and forced a smile.

"Meet me at my apartment in about an hour and then we'll motor," she said and she motioned up at the house. "Find out if Giles can get us anymore information by tomorrow night. Oh and B?"

"Yeah?"

"Pack somethin' sexy to wear to that private club."

Faith left, leaving Buffy standing by the back door with a mix of emotions fluttering over her confused face. Her apartment was only about three blocks away and it didn't hit her what they were about to do until she was inside and shut the door behind her. In less than an hour they'd be on their way and there was no way she was backing out. Not even if she was suspicious about this entire thing from the kidnapping right down to the plan Giles and Willow came up with. She could barely even stand to be close to Buffy and to be alone with her for longer than five minutes, well, she wasn't sure how that'd work out, but she'd find out soon enough.

Willow waited until Buffy had left the house before she joined Giles in the kitchen. She found him sitting at the table sipping a cup of tea while flipping through yesterday's paper. She grabbed herself a bottle of water out of the fridge and couldn't help the smile that came out when she sat at the table across from Giles.

The set up had been planned out for weeks and it was Dawn who had come up with the entire thing and recruited the others to work with her on it. Willow was the first one to agree to it without questioning Dawn as to why. She'd seen enough since Sunnydale between Buffy and Faith that proved to her that it was long overdue for the two to finally get over their differences, maybe even find a common ground, friendship even, once all was said and done.

It didn't take much for Dawn to convince Giles, but Xander had been completely against the whole plan right from the beginning, yet agreeing to go along with it for the sake of keeping some of the peace around there. Life wasn't just tense--more than ever lately--for Buffy and Faith, it was like that for all of them. Xander knew it just as much as the others did, that it was time for a change and all they needed was a little force, a small push to get things started. Xander ended up getting in contact with an ex-demon Anya had talked about before and it hadn't taken much convincing on Dawn's part to get her on board, with promises of a small amount of money she requested for going through with it.

Kennedy had been an entirely different story when it came to agreeing to the plan. She said she'd go along with it, taking Xander's side, yet she didn't want anything to do with it. She was the only one that had ever heard Faith express what she felt about Buffy. Dawn wasn't the only one that Faith had gotten close to, but Faith had never talked to her about Buffy before, she'd told Kennedy so herself. And with Faith, Kennedy had to keep her trust, never repeating a word of what she was told to anyone no matter how much she wanted to. It changed the whole plan, but she never said a word to anyone about it.

After that, it was all about the timing. With Faith being unpredictable in when she'd take off for a little while without any contact, they had to make sure they made it happen before she ditched Cleveland for again. And Buffy was always out on patrol each night despite the lack of activity and becoming more and more distant with everyone. It started when Faith had taken off for almost a month back in the summer and the last few months everyone had noticed the slight changes she'd gone through.

Especially around Faith.

It only took Willow a few weeks to figure it out herself just what Buffy was going through, even if she was still deep in denial land about how she felt about Faith. Willow hated seeing Buffy like this, feeling more alone than she'd ever felt before in her life. Even though Buffy had never talked to her or anyone else about it, Willow read between the lines she'd learnt to read since they left Scotland.

"Do you think it worked? Do you think they really fell for it?" Willow asked.

"I believe so, yes," Giles nodded without taking his eyes off the paper. "I imagine there will be certain complications on their part, perhaps a bit of scepticism, but if you want your plan to work, we'll have to figure out a way to stop them from finding out about it too soon."

"How are we supposed to do that?" Willow asked. "I can't believe we didn't think about that!"

"If anything, it'll be Faith that'll figure this set up before Buffy does. Buffy's judgement is clouded with the fact that her sister has been kidnapped. I never wanted to go along with this plan in the first place."

"Then why--"

"I agreed to this only because I too have seen the way things have been between them and if this doesn't help resolve whatever tension they have between each other, I can only hope that this'll help them finally find a common ground and form a friendship that we can all agree is long overdue."

Willow nodded and frowned when she saw the complex look on Giles' face as he continued to read the newspaper. "Giles, what if this was a big mistake? What if Dawn was wrong? What if this whole thing completely backfires on us and they end up trying to kill each other?"

"Willow, please, let's get some rest and if one of them calls, please get me on the phone as soon as possible," Giles said and he got up from his chair and glanced at his watch. "I expect them to call around six when they arrive in Toledo. Whatever you do..."

"Don't say anything that'll give the whole thing away, I know," Willow muttered and sighed heavily, resting her chin on her hand as she grabbed the paper and looked over the front page. As soon as Giles left the house, she went upstairs to her room and crawled into bed next to Kennedy.

"Did it work? Did they fall for it?" Kennedy asked sleepily as she turned over and cuddled up to Willow. "Please tell me it worked. And why did it have to happen in the middle of the night?"

"The plan sort of didn't go off as we thought it would. Buffy was supposed to find out about Dawn's "kidnapping" before midnight, but you know Buffy being Buffy, she forgot her phone here like she always does. I already called Angeline and told her we're a bit late on the original plan."

"I can't believe you talked Anya's "friend" into this stupid plan," Kennedy groaned. "Hey, I'm all for helping friends out and everything, but this might be a step too far, Will."

"I know I'm not the only one that's seen the way they look at each other sometimes."

"Like they hate each other's guts and are plotting ways to kill each other?"

"No, they're past the whole enemies thing," Willow said quickly. "Sure they aren't the best of friends, but they do need a little...push in the right direction."

"By sending them on a mission to find a demon who "kidnapped" Dawn and act as undercover lovers in order to find this demon? This plan is crazy, Will, and I know I'm not the only one who thinks that."

"It'll work out in the end and hey! Who else thinks this plan is crazy?"

"Everyone but you and Dawn. You know Giles only agreed to this because nobody can say no to you and Dawn," Kennedy laughed and she kissed Willow's frown away. "You know I won't be able to protect you if Buffy and Faith try to hurt you and Dawn for coming up with this crazy plan."

"I can take care of myself."

"I know you can, baby. Do you have a plan in case they find out that this is just an elaborate set up to get them together?"

"Nope."

"No back-up plan?" Kennedy groaned. "You better hope they don't find out about this."

"They won't."

"Sure of yourself, are you?"

"Nope," Willow sighed. "Let's just get some sleep, baby. The second part of the plan is gonna happen in a couple of hours and no sleep equals a very loopy Willow who can't keep a secret and who babbles uncontrollably and--"

"I get it," Kennedy said, laughing as she put a stop to Willow's babble-fest. "Go to sleep. We'll deal with whatever happens when it happens, but right now..."

"Sleep?"

Kennedy laughed and Willow turned off the light. Even as tired as she was, she couldn't fall asleep. The way she was feeling, that restless feeling she couldn't quite push away, was undoubtedly the same feeling she sensed coming from Buffy and Faith for the last couple of months. No matter what Kennedy or any of the others thought, she knew she and Dawn were right. Buffy and Faith needed this push and even if they didn't end up "together" together, at least they'd become closer than they'd ever been before.

Faith pulled the car over to the side of the road, grumbling angrily as she hit the steering wheel with both hands. She'd ran out of gas and they were stuck in the middle of nowhere at nearly five in the morning on a road just off the highway. They still had about an hour's drive to go and she checked her watch before reaching for her cell phone sitting on the dash.

"Damn it," she sighed when the phone showed there was no signal. She got out of the car, careful not to wake Buffy sleeping in the passenger seat. She walked around the car, up and down the road, trying to find a signal.

After ten minutes of trying, she gave up and slid the phone into her pocket. It was still dark out and the stretch of highway they were on was nearly dark and empty. She walked back to the car and got back in. Buffy was still asleep and Faith tried to relax as she sat behind the wheel, trying to figure out what to do now. She could walk to the gas station five miles up the road, but the thought of doing that when she was exhausted didn't seem like a doable option to her. The silence between her and Buffy since they'd left had been deafening and because of it, she found it impossible to keep her mind from wandering to thoughts she normally forced herself not to think about. It was turning out to be more painful of an experience than being on the receiving end of a tiny, hard fist hitting her will full slayer strength.

Not having a single clue how she was going to get through this situation with Buffy, she hoped Giles would at least figure out another way for them to find this demon and find out where she's taken Dawn. Being alone with Buffy for the last hour and being so close to her had driven Faith to the point where she was too wrapped up in the buzz to pull herself out of it like she normally did. The whole undercover plan had her wigging out and she knew it'd be different if she didn't actually have feelings for Buffy, as crazy as that seemed to her. They were too different, yet too much alike in some ways, that having feelings of not just loving Buffy, but being in love with her didn't seem possible. It was very real and Faith had figured that out as soon as she stopped denying what she felt.

It had all she'd been thinking about since they got in her car. It didn't help remembering the few conversations she'd had with Dawn when they'd been out dancing and drinking all night when she was told that Buffy might possibly feel something for her. A drunk Dawn was a talkative Dawn and Faith normally dismissed that as drunken rambling, but thinking back on it, she'd felt that tiny glimmer of hope spark at those words. The same glimmer that was put right out as soon as she saw Buffy. Everyone knew Buffy could be a downright bitch at times and Faith had been on the receiving end a lot more since the summer had passed. She just chalked Buffy's behaviour up to the restlessness she knew they all were feeling with this major decline in the demon and vampire activity around not just Cleveland, but all over the world.

"Why'd we stop?" Buffy asked as she opened her eyes and looked over at Faith. "Don't tell me we ran out of gas."

"Got it in one."

"What are we going to do? Just sit here and wait for someone to drive by?"

"Do you really feel like walking out there, B?" Faith asked, raising an eyebrow at her and watched as she looked out the window for a moment before turning back to her. "Didn't think so."

They sat in silence for a few long minutes. Faith looked back over at her when she heard Buffy shiver. She grabbed the blanket she had folded under the seat and offered it to her. Buffy looked a little surprised and took the blanket, spreading it over both of them before she relaxed back in her seat.

"How close are we?" Buffy asked quietly, still shivering a little as she tried to warm herself up.

"About an hour away."

"Not exactly walking distance, is it?"

 "Definitely not," Faith laughed.

"Great. Did we pass a gas station or anything?"

"There should be one about five miles up the road," Faith replied, trying to remember from the last time she'd gone to Toledo and spent nearly a month there. Buffy gave her a pointed look and she laughed. "What? You want me to seriously walk there to get gas?"

"I was thinking we both could."

Faith shrugged and looked out the window and at the road ahead of them. It was a good walk especially in the melting snow on the side of the road. "How about we walk until we get a signal on my phone?"

"Did you already try?"

"Yeah, got nothing, not even a single bar. Must be a bad area or somethin'," Faith shrugged. "Plus it's a helluva lot colder than it was when we left and I really don't feel like freezing my tits off out there right now."

"Says the girl who grew up in Boston and is used to this kind of cold."

"Still got that warm Californian blood running through you, huh? You'd think you would've been used to it by now."

"I don't think it's something I'll ever get used to," Buffy sighed and she pulled a bit more of the blanket around her.

Faith shook her head and tried to get comfortable in her seat. She was far too tired to stay awake any longer and talk to Buffy. It wouldn't be long before they started bickering. It never took this long, but she knew it was coming. Always did. She quickly looked over at Buffy and saw her with her eyes closed and trying to fall back asleep. She grunted quietly as she made the seat recline a little more before she closed her eyes too and willed the pull of sleep to take her in.

Buffy woke up at the first rays of dawn, groaning as she stretched out her stiff muscles from sleeping in the front seat of Faith's car. She'd been worried about Dawn, unable to shake that heavy feeling in the pit of her stomach since they'd found out what happened. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about Faith either and she blamed it on the fact of the plan that had been made in order for them to find this demon. There had to be other ways, Buffy knew that, but she wasn't in the right frame of mind to argue her way out of this one. A part of her thought maybe this would be more than just a rescue mission. Maybe this time she and Faith would finally just bond and things wouldn't be so tense between them all the time after this.

As much as she avoided becoming friends with Faith, she'd seen Faith get close with Dawn and even with Kennedy. She'd heard the laughter that always came whenever she was around and she had gone through hours of Dawn talking her ear off about all things Faith. As annoying as it had been most of the time, she was almost...jealous.

"Any cars pass by yet?" Faith asked, her voice husky and heavy with sleep as she blinked several times.

"No, I don't know. I just woke up too."

"Looks like we're hoofing' it to the gas station then, B. Pretty sure there's this diner right next door and we can get some coffee and breakfast while we're there."

Buffy said nothing as they got out of the car and she let Faith walk up ahead, wrapping her arms around herself to try to keep the warmth from the cool morning chill that hit the instant she'd gotten out of the semi-warm car. A slight fog started to roll in from the fields surrounding the road and she picked up her pace, trying not to fall too far behind Faith. She could handle anything, that was for sure, but she couldn't handle crazy humans. She wasn't about to take a human life just to save hers and there were plenty of crazies whenever one least suspected it.

They walked for almost two hours before they reached the gas station. Not one car had passed them on the road either, which Buffy found strange since they were on a main road just off the highway. She'd lost count on how many cigarettes Faith had smoked during their walk from the car to the gas station and she'd bit her tongue each time whenever she wanted to tell Faith she'd rather her not smoke so much. While Faith got some gas in a canister, Buffy looked over at the small diner across the road, the smell of fresh coffee filling the cold morning air and wafting over to her, temping her, luring her in.

"B? Kind of short on cash. Guy wants another twenty," she said as she walked up behind Buffy.

"Oh," Buffy sighed and pulled her wallet out of her jacket pocket, finding a crisp twenty-dollar bill and handed it to her. "Are we going to walk back to the car or...?"

"Got us a ride," Faith said as she hitched her thumb over to an old man driving a beat-up truck. "We'll stop there on the way and get us some food and coffee."

"And you plan to pay for that how?"

"You're the chick with the credit card and the cash, B. Wasn't my bright idea to leave at four in the morning here."

Buffy ignored her and followed her over to the old man's pick-up. They piled into the front seat with him and she was relieved Faith had chosen to sit in the middle. The old man never spoke, he just leered at the two of them as he turned over the engine and headed down the road the way they'd come. It was cramped and Faith was pressed right up against her, causing that buzzing she always felt to intensify to the point where she was beginning to feel a little dizzy. It didn't take too long before the old man dropped them off at Faith's car and he muttered a goodbye as Faith slammed the passenger door shut and grabbed the canister of gas out of the back.

Buffy stood at the side of the car, watching as Faith poured the gas into the tank and threw the empty canister in the trunk. They got in the car and Faith wasted no time in speeding down the road. Buffy hated the silence between them and flipped on the radio, hoping that maybe some music would drown out the thoughts she was so desperate to keep from filling her head.

But the music did nothing to drown out the thoughts she was having about Faith, the very same thoughts she used to easily ignore and push aside, never feeling too comfortable thinking about Faith like that. She tried to convince herself that she felt the way she did because of all the mixed signals Faith had always sent her right from day one, but the reasonable part of her brain kept trying to convince her that it was so much more than that. It got her thinking back to when she and Satsu had been briefly together and the conversation they had the second--and last--time they'd slept together. Satsu told her she needed to stop denying what she felt and to go to the one she wanted even if it didn't make any sense. And it didn't not at the time, but she had a few years to think about what Satsu had meant when she said that. Satsu was talking about Faith without actually bringing up her name and Buffy had to wonder even now how she even knew what she felt for Faith in the first place.

"Here I thought I'd never get you to shut up and call me crazy, but," Faith laughed as she turned down the music, "kind of miss you bitchin' at me for stupid shit."

"I don't bitch at you."

"Yeah, you do."

"Do you really want to fight about this?"

"Nah, was just sayin', B. Don't you think we should try to come up with a plan ourselves here before we get there? I mean," Faith said and Buffy saw a flicker of nervousness in her eyes when she cast a quick glance over at her. "I keep thinking there's got to be a better way to find this demon, don't you?"

"You heard what Giles said when he told me about the plan. This demon likes to blend in with the rest of the population and that means she'll be next to impossible to find if we just go in there looking for her."

"And we can't just walk into that club of hers either. Gotta find us a way to get in and I'm getting the feeling that sweet talking the bouncer ain't gonna work for us."

"So," Buffy sighed. "How do you expect us to get into a private gay club for couples only then, Faith?"

"A little PDA outside the club with us looking all...couple-y might work? Fuck, I really don't know," Faith groaned and she gripped the steering wheel tighter. "We'll call Giles once we find a hotel or something and see if he knows how we can get in this club. I keep thinking there's gotta be another way we can find Angeline."

"Maybe there isn't?"

"Why aren't you wigged out about this, B?"

"Oh I am wigged, I'm plenty wigged. I'm the definition of wigged right now."

"Sure ain't showin' it."

"For your information, if we do this whole undercover thing, it's not exactly new territory for me."

"What?" Faith laughed as she looked over at her and pulled the car to a stop at the red light. "You mean you been with another chick? How did I not know about this?"

"It was a few years ago and it--it wasn't serious or anything," Buffy muttered under her breath, feeling her cheeks flush a little just thinking about Satsu. "It was just..."

"Sex?" Faith asked and Buffy could only nod. "Who was it with?"

"Another slayer."

Buffy couldn't believe how easily she'd told Faith, but she didn't want to tell her anymore than what she already had. Faith didn't press her for any more about it and she hit the gas as soon as the light turned green. Buffy looked out the window, feeling uncertain and not knowing what to talk about now that Faith knew she'd been with another woman before.

"Kennedy told me," Faith said after a few minutes. "She told me about you and Satsu."

"If you knew, why'd you ask me who it was?"

"Wanted to hear it from you. You know how Ken likes to talk shit sometimes," Faith laughed and she smiled at Buffy. "So, Satsu was your one and only girl-fuck or was there another slayer nobody knows about?"

"I'm not talking about this."

"Did you like it?"

"Faith! Please shut up," Buffy groaned and she closed her eyes and fought off the blush she knew was creeping over her cheeks. "I can't believe Kennedy told you about that."

"We just got to talking one night and it kinda came up. It's not a big deal or anything here, B. So you got wriggly with another slayer. Being cooped up in the castle probably made you crazy and needing a way to release a bit of that tension after patrol. Non-fat yogurt stopped working for you, huh?"

"Just please," Buffy said with a pointed glare, "shut up."

"Come on, B. We're adults here. Sure, we're not friends, but we can talk about sex, can't we?"

"No."

"Did you like it?" Faith asked, unable to wipe the smirk off her face. "You did, didn't you? Betcha that's why you haven't dated since we moved here, huh?"

"No."

"You liked it though, didn't you?"

"Maybe," Buffy shrugged, giving in a little bit. "It was...different. It was nice. A nice different."

"Just nice? So this chick didn't rock your world or anything?"

"Faith, this conversation is over."

Faith laughed and pulled into the diner parking lot and came to a stop. While she headed across the street to return the canister she'd rented, Buffy headed inside the diner and took a seat at the long counter. It wasn't busy, the diner was a little run-down, and after she ordered herself a coffee, she spotted a pay phone by the washrooms and headed over to it. She called the house, hoping to talk to Willow before she called Giles and she was relieved when Willow answered the phone on the second ring.

"Where are you guys?"

"We had a bit of a problem that involved Faith's car running out of gas in the middle of nowhere."

"Are you in Toledo yet?"

"No, still got about an hour to go I think. Will, please tell me you've found out something more about this demon and where she's taken Dawnie."

"Giles has a few phone calls to make still, but all we really know is that Angeline owns this club and that she's always there. I might have found a way to get you two in."

"Yeah? How?"

Willow gave her an address to go to and told her to find a guy named Ronnie there. He worked as a bouncer at Angeline's club and was also a demon, but worked on the side of the good. Buffy told her she'd call as soon as they found a hotel once they were in Toledo and she hung up as Faith walked in and took a seat at the counter. Buffy sat on the stool next to her and sipped her coffee while Faith looked over the menu.

"You talk to Giles?"

"Willow," Buffy said and she held out the napkin she'd written the address down on to her. "We might have a way in the club. We just got to find a guy--a demon actually--by the name of Ronnie and talk to him."

"It's a start, right?" Faith asked and motioned to the waitress to come over. "You hungry, B?"

"Starved."

They each ordered themselves a rather big breakfast, ignoring the dubious look the waitress gave them when she took their order for a meal that would feed four grown men. They didn't talk at all and Buffy was relieved about that. She was afraid if they did talk that the conversation would head back to the way it'd been going in the car. The last thing she wanted to talk about was her quasi-relationship with Satsu. It was done and over with, locked in the past with the rest of her memories she'd much rather just forget about. And to top it off, she was exhausted and only wanted a nice warm bed to curl up in and get a few hours of sleep before they went to find this demon named Ronnie later.

Buffy knew it just wasn't just her imagination that Faith had suddenly started acting a little different around her since that conversation in the car about Satsu. It was going to be a long couple of hours that she knew for sure. And the sooner they found this demon and found out where she had taken Dawn, the sooner they could go home and go their separate ways and have their lives go back to the way they were with the two of them staying out of each other's way.

Dawn paced back and forth in the small kitchen, waiting for Willow to answer the phone. When she finally picked up, she let out an exaggerated sigh and stopped pacing.

"So, did the plan work?" Dawn asked. "Are they on their way?"

"I think it worked. They're about an hour away now."

"They didn't seem suspicious about this or anything did they?"

"No, I don't think so. Buffy is pretty determined to do whatever it takes to find you, Dawnie. You don't think that maybe we--"

"We didn't take this too far, Willow. You know we need to do this for them. It's the only way."

Dawn was starting to have a few doubts about pulling this off. All they needed was a couple of days without either Buffy or Faith finding out about this elaborate set up to get them together. Dawn had been tired of seeing Buffy mope around the house and only go out to slay and she was tired of seeing Buffy and Faith fight and bicker any time they were in the same room together. In her mind, it was the only way to finally get them to see that there is definitely something more between them.

"I keep thinking there could've been a better way to do this, Dawnie. I mean, you being kidnapped is nothing to joke around about."

"But I'm not really kidnapped," Dawn pointed out and she began pacing the small kitchen once again. "Buffy is really worried, isn't she?"

"She is. You know how protective she is about you. Look, I'll call once I've talked to Buffy again and let you know what's going on. Make sure you run the plan by Angeline again before tonight. We can't let them find out about this too soon, okay?"

Dawn hung up the phone and sighed heavily. They were in over their heads, they knew that, she knew it, but it hadn't stopped them from going through with it. As much as she hated having Buffy worried for no reason, that reasonable voice in the back of her mind kept telling her that this was the only way. It wasn't like they could lock Buffy and Faith in a room together and expect them not to kill each other. It was how she came up with the whole kidnapping plan in the first place.

She just had to hope that in the end it'd all work out according to plan and that Buffy wouldn't want to kick her ass too much once she found out that she was the one behind this whole thing.

"We'll all be better off once they figure it out," Dawn mused to herself as she opened the fridge and pulled out a carton of milk. "What's the worst that could happen, really?"

Part Two

"Are you serious? That's five hotels we've been to that declined your card, B!" Faith groaned as they got back into her car. "Did you go over your limit or something?"

"No, I don't know...let's just find another place, Faith. I'm tired and I just want to crawl into a bed and get some sleep."

Faith drove around downtown Toledo before she came to a stop in front of a motel that looked too out of place from the rest of the buildings around it. Shrugging, she pulled the car up in front of the office and motioned to Buffy to go get them a room. She watched Buffy get out of the car and head into the small office and she drummed her fingers impatiently against the steering wheel. They'd been trying for over an hour to get themselves a room and being declined not once, but five times from some of the higher end hotels in the city got Faith a little more suspicious about this whole thing.

Not to mention the fact that she could barely look at Buffy since that little conversation they had earlier. When Kennedy had told her about Buffy and Satsu, she chose not to believe it. When Buffy brought it up, even though she didn't want to talk about it, Faith burned with jealousy she hadn't felt in a long time. It actually hurt to know that it was true, that Buffy had been with another woman, another slayer at that, and it hadn't been her. It should've been her; she should've been Buffy's first, and not some random younger slayer who just got lucky that Buffy had been horny enough to fall into bed with her.

"One room left," Buffy said when she got back into the car. "And surprisingly my card wasn't declined here."

"Yeah, whatever. What room, B?"

"Uh," she sighed as she looked at the key card in her hand. "Room twenty."

Faith spotted the number on the door on the far end of the building and pulled the car up into the parking spot in front. She got out and stretched, groaning softly as her body reminded her how tired she really was. They got their bags out of the trunk and Faith grabbed the key card from Buffy and opened the door. The room smelled a little musty and it was dark, the blinds still drawn shut over the small window. She flipped on the light and groaned loudly as she tossed her bag onto the worn chair that looked out of place in the small room.

"What?"

"One bed," Faith muttered. "Bonus though," she sighed as she walked over to the bed and sat down. "At least it's a king size. Kinda rare in shitbox motels like this, don'tcha think?"

"Great," Buffy said as she rolled her eyes and shut the door behind her. "It could be worse. It could be a double."

Faith had to laugh and she took off her boots before lying back on the bed. She watched as Buffy looked around the room and disappeared into the bathroom. She sat up on the bed and pulled off her jacket before she pulled back the heavy comforter and settled into the bed, taking the right side even though she was sure Buffy would end up telling her she wanted that side to sleep in. She really didn't want to sleep in her clothes, but she doubted Buffy would be okay with her sleeping in the nude like she was used to and it wasn't like she even owned pajamas.

"Bathroom doesn't seem too bad," Buffy said as she walked out. "It's clean at least. Only downside is there's no door. Why wouldn't there be a door?"

"Beats me," Faith shrugged and yawned as Buffy cautiously moved to the other end of the bed. "Let's just get some sleep. We can't go running on empty later when we go looking for that guy Ronnie."

Buffy took off her jacket and her boots before she got into bed and stayed right on the edge as far away from Faith as she could get without falling off. Faith couldn't blame her for wanting to keep her distance, but still, even she could still feel the intense buzz coming from Buffy with a few feet between them. It'd be hard to sleep, she knew that, but her body was protesting too much to care. It didn't take either of them very long to fall asleep either, not with everything they'd gone through in the last couple of hours together.

When Faith woke up later, she checked her phone and saw she had two missed called and a voice mail. The clock on the display told her it was nearly five in the afternoon and she couldn't believe they'd slept the whole day away just like that. Buffy was still sleeping and she tried to quietly pull her boots and jacket on before slipping outside to have a cigarette and check her messages. It was only Giles that had called twice in the last four hours, and both messages he told her exactly what Buffy had found out from Willow about meeting up with that demon named Ronnie. She called Giles back and the only thing he could tell her was to talk to Ronnie about getting them into the club later that night and not to let him know the fact they were undercover and looking for Angeline. They couldn't screw up their plan and even though, as Giles plainly put it, Ronnie worked on the good side, he still couldn't be trusted.

Faith hung up the phone and finished off her cigarette before she slipped back inside the dark room. Buffy was awake and muttering angrily to herself as she tried to find a channel on the TV that worked. Faith smirked and made her way to the bathroom, grabbing her bag on the way. She changed out of her clothes and dressed in her clubbing clothes, a black tank and her black leather pants. She fixed up her hair and put on her makeup, applying it a little heavier than she was used to doing lately. She stood there and checked herself out in the small mirror above the sink. Satisfied, she walked out of the bathroom and tossed her bag onto the unmade bed.

"Wow, flash from the past much, Faith?" Buffy asked when she looked over at her, looking rather surprised to see Faith looking the way she did.

"We're going to a club, B. Gotta look good. Now hurry up and get ready. We gotta meet this Ronnie before the club opens."

"It's still early."

"So?" Faith shrugged as she took the remote from Buffy's hand. "We'll talk to Ronnie then go out for a dinner, make a date outta it."

Buffy just flipped her off before grabbing her own bag and headed into the bathroom quickly. Faith laughed and lounged back on the bed, flipping through the TV until she found a channel that worked. It was only a news channel but she figured it was better that the snow that the other channels had. From where she sat on the bed, she could barely see Buffy in the bathroom as she stripped out of her clothes and pulled on a short and tight black cocktail dress. She felt a tightness in her chest as she watched Buffy and allowed her eyes to roam over her pert backside, the dress so tight it fit her like a glove. She got up from the bed and casually strolled over to the bathroom doorway and leaned up against the frame.

"Looking hot, B."

"It was the only thing I had in my closet that was clean," Buffy muttered, not looking too happy having to wear a dress, specifically that dress since Faith thought it made her look like sex on a stick. "It makes me look like a complete slut, doesn't it?"

"Nah, you look hot," Faith drawled, smirking when Buffy turned to look at her. "Definitely the kind of chick I'd be dating if I dated in the first place."

"Um, thanks?" Buffy said, blushing as she turned to the mirror and focused on her makeup. "I was thinking," Buffy said after a moment. "If we're gonna pull this off, we need kind of a back story, don't we?"

"Sure," Faith nodded, unable to keep her eyes from roaming to Buffy's ass. "What kind of a back story?"

"You know," Buffy waved, thinking as she turned around and scowled at Faith. "Were you just staring at my ass?"

"Of course I was. Getting into character here," Faith grinned, hoping Buffy would just let it go. "Back story like how long we been dating, right?" Faith asked quickly.

"Right. I was thinking maybe we can say we've been together for awhile?"

"How long is awhile?"

"A couple of years?"

"B, I'm lucky if I go out with the same guy twice in a month. I don't do dating and I definitely don't do years of commitment here."

"We aren't being ourselves so I don't think that matters," Buffy said and she groaned as she turned back to the mirror to finish her makeup. "What are we getting ourselves into, Faith?"

"I have no idea, but it doesn't mean we can't have a little fun doing this either."

"Fun? You think Dawn being kidnapped is fun?"

"Not what I meant!" Faith said, surrendering as she held up her hands in an attempt to stop Buffy from getting too pissed off at her. "We gotta go undercover and we gotta be convincing. I'm thinking the only way we can do that is let loose a little and try to look like we're having fun tonight."

Faith grinned as Buffy rolled her eyes and finished fixing her hair. Faith tried to swallow the nervousness she was feeling, knowing she could pull this undercover deal off without a hitch. As soon as Buffy pulled on her boots, ones that came just below her knees, they headed out to her car. It didn't take her long to find the address to find Ronnie. It was a demon bar; she knew it before they even walked in the place. Her slayer senses were going haywire and she knew Buffy was feeling it too.

"Hey, know where I can find Ronnie?" Faith asked as she approached the bartender who was busy gathering up empty beer bottles off the bar.

"In the back," he replied gruffly as he pointed to a door marked "private". "Make it quick. I told him before no visitors while he's working."

"Thanks," Faith said and she grabbed Buffy's hand and led her to the back room. It was a storage room and they found a man who was about seven feet tall moving a couple kegs of beer into the walk-in freezer. "Ronnie?"

"Yeah?" He answered as he turned to them. "Who are you?"

"I'm Faith, this is Buffy," Faith said, turning on the charm as she casually draped an arm over Buffy's shoulders. "I was told you could help us out."

"With what?"

"Angeline's club," she replied. "I heard we need an invite to get in?"

"That's right. Who told you this?"

"Willow," Buffy said. "She told me to talk to you about getting in to the club tonight."

"Angeline's is a private club, ladies. Couples only. She's very...particular about who comes in there."

"We're together," Buffy stammered. "We just wanted a night out and heard Angeline's was the place to be in Toledo on a Saturday night."

Ronnie eyed them both up and down before laughing and reaching into the pocket of his baggy black trousers and pulled out a shiny silver card. "This'll get you in. If you two wait until about nine, I'll be working the door and I'll get you in ahead of the crowd."

"Thanks," Faith said as she grabbed the card and slid it into the back pocket of her leather pants. "We'll see ya later, Ronnie."

Faith led Buffy out of the room and out of the demon bar quickly, not wanting to stick around in case any of the patrons there decided to get a little frisky. They didn't need to call any attention to themselves if they didn't want their cover to be blown before they even found out who Angeline was. Tracking down a demon that looked human was harder than it looked since even Faith knew how well they blended in with the rest of the population. She didn't head for her car; instead, she gripped onto Buffy's hand and led her across the street to the small Italian restaurant she spotted when they pulled up at the bar.

"Time to put this undercover deal to the test," Faith whispered to her as she opened the door. "We gotta be able to pull this off, B."

"I guess so."

"Come on, it'll be easy, B. Just pretend you're totally in love with me," Faith grinned and she intertwined her fingers with Buffy's and giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. She walked up to the hostess and smiled widely. "Do we need a reservation or something?"

"Yes."

"Could you see if there's a table available for us? We're out on an anniversary date."

"Oh?" The hostess raised an eyebrow at the two. "I uh--I'll see what I can do."

"Faith," Buffy said through gritted teeth, not looking too happy with Faith's easy lie. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to get us a table so we can eat," she replied and smiled as the hostess motioned them over to a small and secluded table near the back of the dimly lit restaurant. "Come on, babe."

Buffy sipped her red wine as she and Faith waited for their meal. She couldn't believe Faith and her lie to get them a table. The anniversary thing seemed a little...weird to her, but Faith had been right about one thing. It was time to put the whole undercover thing to test before they went to the club later. The restaurant, even though it was packed, was quiet and she couldn't stop staring at Faith as she kept sipping her wine. They'd been waiting for their meal for almost half an hour and in that time they'd gone through two bottles of red wine, the first one on the house and all because of that anniversary lie Faith used to get them a table.

"This is...nice," Buffy said quietly, breaking the unbearable and deafening silence between them.

"Would be better if it didn't take so fuckin' long for the food to get on the table," Faith muttered as she leaned back in her chair, pouting like she was five years old. "Then again, we got a few hours to kill before we head over to the club. Once we get there, we're really gonna have to up our game. You realize that, right?"

"Up it how exactly?"

"You know," Faith said, leaning forward so she could talk a little quieter. "Not just with the handholding shit, but if we're gonna be convincing..."

Buffy slinked back in her chair, knowing exactly what Faith was getting at. Handholding wasn't going to be enough. They'd truly have to act like a couple at the club and that meant there'd have to be more closeness, probably even kissing. Buffy coughed and downed the rest of her wine at the thought of kissing Faith and motioned to the waiter to bring another bottle over. She was starting to think they were in over their heads and that they both were probably crazy for agreeing to this undercover deal in the first place. How were they going to pull this off long enough to find out who this Angeline was and follow her wherever she went once she left the club for the night?

"B, you okay?" Faith whispered as she reached across the table for her hand. "You're completely beyond wigging out right now, aren't ya?"

"Oh yeah. Way, way beyond."

"You need to loosen up," Faith said with a sly grin as she leaned forward and lightly kissed her on the lips. Buffy froze up, but in a move that surprised even herself, she grabbed onto the back of Faith's head and kissed her back. Faith pulled back when the waiter cleared his throat and she grinned up at him with the silliest, stupidest grin on her face that Buffy had ever seen on her. "Any chance you can give us another bottle on the house? It is our anniversary after all."

"How long have you two been together?" He asked casually as he poured them each a glass. "Quite some time, I imagine from the chemistry I can see here."

"Five years," Buffy blurted out. "We've been together for five long, great years."

"Congratulations," he smiled sweetly at them. "I'll see about putting this bottle on the house for you two. Your meal should be ready in about ten minutes or so."

"Thanks," Faith said and she glared at Buffy as soon as he walked away. "Five years? Are you crazy, B?"

"Apparently," she muttered and realized Faith was still holding onto her hand. She didn't pull away; instead, she intertwined their fingers, marvelling at how soft Faith's hands were.

She could feel how tense Faith was and she wondered if it was because of the kiss they just shared. She didn't have much time to dwell on it though since Faith jerked her hand away and muttered about needing to go to the bathroom. Buffy took another sip of her wine and looked at the couple seated at the table next to them. She felt her face burn red as the older couple smiled sweetly at her and whispered their congratulations on her anniversary.

It was going to be a very long night and Buffy decided as she stared at the wine in the glass that the only way she'd get through it without wigging too much would be with alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol.

Hangover be damned.

The line-up at Angeline's club was long and it was cold. Faith wrapped an arm around Buffy as they made their way to the front of the line, hoping that Ronnie was there even though they were a little early. She's driven back to the motel and left the car there, figuring it'd be safer to walk to the club just a few blocks away instead of trying to drive later if she'd had a few drinks. Buffy was well on her way to being smashed and Faith warned her halfway through their meal to slow it down. There was no way she was having a drunk Buffy hang on her all night, even if it'd help them in their undercover plan. She needed Buffy sober and alert, although a drunk Buffy was fun and easy going, as she was starting to see. And very touchy-feely from the hand that casually slipped down her back and landed on her ass.

Ronnie waved at them as they approached the door and he let them in, much to the protests coming from the crowd. "Show the card when you get to the bar inside, it'll get you a few free drinks," he said as he ushered them inside and out of the cold. "Enjoy yourselves, ladies and say hello to Willow for me when you see her."

Faith nodded and led Buffy to the coatroom where they both checked their coats and headed straight for the bar. It wasn't like Faith had much of a choice, Buffy was practically dragging her towards the big long bar that took up a good portion of one end of the small club. Dance music thundered through the room and crowds of same-sex couples danced on the dance floor and mingled at the bar.

"Go get us a table, B," Faith said as they waited at the busy bar. "I'll get us a few drinks to start us off."

Buffy nodded and headed over to where the tables were and found an empty one. Faith struggled to get the attention of one of the three bartenders working behind the bar and she flashed the card Ronnie had given her to the woman with fiery red hair that approached her looking rather stressed out.

"What can I get you?"

"A glass of red wine and a beer," she said loudly so the woman could hear her over the music. "And two shots of whiskey. JD."

While Faith waited for her to get the drinks, she turned to look over at Buffy and laughed when she saw a woman approach the table, clearly hitting on a very uncomfortable looking Buffy. She grabbed their drinks, barely making it over to the table without spilling the shots and she placed the glasses on the table and pulled Buffy in for a quick kiss.

"Miss me, baby?" Faith asked sweetly and she glanced over at the dark haired woman that had been trying to hit on Buffy. "Who's your friend?"

"Uh..."

"I'm Carla. I'm sorry; I thought she wasn't here with anyone."

"Isn't this a couple's only club?" Faith asked, raising an eyebrow at her as she sized the woman up.

"Sometimes people come that are single. It's rare and besides your girlfriend is really gorgeous. You can't blame me for trying, right?"

"Right. Nice to meet you, Carla," Faith said through gritted teeth as she wrapped her arms around Buffy from behind as Buffy sat on the stool. As soon as Carla sauntered off, Buffy groaned and turned in Faith's arms a little. "What was that all about, B?"

"She just started talking to me, asking me if I was here with anyone and if I wanted to go up to the VIP lounge with her for a drink."

"Damn," Faith chuckled and she shook her head as she let go of Buffy and grabbed one of the shot glasses. "Maybe you should've taken her up on that offer. Betcha that's where Angeline hangs out if she's here."

"She's here. Willow said she's always here every night," Buffy said and she reached for the other shot glass and downed it before Faith had a chance to drink her own. "Please don't leave me alone anymore, Faith."

"Scared of the dykes, B?" Faith laughed, winking as she sat on the stool next to her. "Don't worry. Give it a half hour tops and everyone in this place will know we're here together and nobody will be hitting on you."

They sat at the table and sipped their drinks, listening to the dance music, feeling the thudding bass surrounding them as if they were inside the music, and they watched the couples on the dance floor. Faith's eyes flickered up to what she guessed was the VIP area. She knew they had to find a way to get up there, find out which one was Angeline. It was what they were there for, although Faith was starting to wish they really were there to have a good time. She never taken the time to ask Buffy if she wanted to tag along with her, Dawnie and the other girls that regularly came out clubbing with them, and she was starting to wonder why she never did, aside from the fact that they could barely stand each other. That'd changed since early that morning and even though Buffy still looked nervous and unsure about this whole mission, she looked a little more relaxed now that she'd had more than a few glasses of wine in her.

"Want to go dance?" Buffy asked, leaning into Faith as she tried not to fall off the stool.

"Might be a good idea," Faith nodded. "We better lay off the drinks for awhile too. Can't have you drunk as shit when we got a job to do, B."

"But I--"

"How about when this is all over, we'll go out and have ourselves a good time, just you, me, and whatever alcohol you wanna drink?"

Faith hadn't meant to be so blunt about it, but there was no hiding it anymore that she wanted to spend time with Buffy. She wanted for them to get over whatever bump it was that was keeping them from becoming friends. Buffy, to her surprise, just nodded and grabbed onto her hand. Faith allowed her to lead the way to the dance floor and as soon as they'd found themselves a spot, she took the lead, gripping onto Buffy's hips and pulling her in close as their bodies moved to the pulsing beat.

Faith couldn't deny there was definitely some chemistry between them. She'd been feeling it more so since the restaurant and she couldn't get enough of it. She also couldn't deny the flood of feelings she was having about Buffy either, she just hoped to hell she was able to pass most of it off as being in character for their undercover mission.

Buffy threw her head back, completely lost in the music as she wrapped her arms around Faith's neck and pulled her in impossibly close. They weren't the only two on the dance floor dancing the way they were, in fact, she could call what they were doing very prudish compared to the couple dancing next to them. They were practically dry humping, not dancing, and making out, completely lost in their own world. As the song changed to something with a much slower beat, Buffy relaxed in her arms and sighed softly, blowing hot air over her neck, causing her to shiver slightly.

Faith could feel Buffy's heart racing against her own and she just held her as they swayed to the music. Buffy leaned back at little and stared into her eyes. "What?" She asked only loud enough for Buffy to hear her over the loud music. "You okay, B?"

"I'm fine," she smiled. "This is kind of...nice."

Feels right, Faith thought, but kept it to herself. There was a line she had to draw and that was never crossing over into the territory of letting anything of what she really felt be known. It was bad enough she'd already told Kennedy once before how she felt about Buffy. Sure, things were going smoothly now and Buffy had really loosened up, but things could take a turn for a worse if Buffy really knew how Faith felt about her and that she kept having the thought of wishing this was more than an undercover mission for them.

She closed her eyes as Buffy ran her fingers over the nape of her neck. The slightest caress, one so small, so simple, had her whole body heating up and she couldn't stop herself as she leaned in and kissed Buffy lightly, testing the waters and hoping to hell Buffy just went along with it. Now she knew how the couple next to them felt and she quickly found herself spiralling into a world where only she and Buffy existed and the only thing she was completely, fully focused on was the kiss.

Oh god, I'm kissing Faith and I like it. What's wrong with me? Buffy thought as Faith slipped her tongue over her lips, trying to deepen the kiss. She gripped on to the back of Faith's neck, allowing her to deepen the kiss and she felt her knees go weak as their tongues quickly became acquainted. She pulled back when Faith's hands slipped down to her ass and she panted slightly as she searched Faith's eyes, wondering if the kiss was more than just a kiss to keep them from blowing their cover.

She moaned when Faith immediately crushed her lips back against hers and she didn't try to stop her either. How could she when Faith kissed her like that? Nobody had ever quite kissed her the way Faith was, not Angel, not Riley, and definitely not Spike or any of the other guys she'd kissed, which wasn't a whole lot. Not even Satsu had kissed her the way Faith was, so deeply that made her toes curl and her body heat up, the buzzing completely out of control now that they were so close. Buffy knew if she didn't stop this, things would end up a little out of her control and without a doubt with hands in naughty places.

"Faith, I need a drink," she gasped, pulling back and trying to catch her breath. "Come with me?"

"Sure," Faith said casually, grinning as she reached for Buffy's hand and easily intertwining their fingers as if it were the most natural thing in the world for them to do now. "Water though, B. Might be a good idea to lay off the booze for the rest of the night."

"Yeah," Buffy nodded, knowing she'd need a much clearer head for when they found Angeline, whenever that'd be. At the rate they were going, they were no closer to finding out who Angeline was or finding out just where she'd taken Dawn.

They ordered two bottles of water at the bar and since the table they'd been at before had a few people seated there, they went off to the side of the dance floor and stood by the pillar. Faith nearly downed her entire bottle of water and Buffy couldn't stop looking at her. She felt like she was being sucked into Faith and she was doing nothing to stop herself from feeling things she normally denied when it came to Faith. It was hard though, especially after being kissed like that.

"So, uh, about that kiss," Buffy said quietly, sounding a little nervous as she leaned into Faith's side. "What was that all about?"

"Playing my part," she shrugged, but she didn't look at Buffy when she said it. Buffy scoffed and nudged her elbow into her side. "What?"

"I find it really hard to believe you kissed me because you are playing your part."

Faith laughed and raised an eyebrow at her as she backed her up against the pillar. "What to see what else I can do to play my part, B?"

Buffy gulped, not knowing just what Faith would do, even though she knew what Faith was capable of. She'd heard the stories from Dawn and Kennedy about what Faith was like when they went out to the clubs. Buffy was starting to blame the overwhelming horniness on the fact that it'd been quite awhile since she'd had sex, ignoring the plainly obvious fact that it was Faith getting her worked up and making her just about ready to jump her there in the middle of the club.

"You're wicked cute when you're confused," Faith chuckled as she placed a hand on Buffy's hip.

"Thanks?"

"You wanna go back out there and dance a little more before we go looking for Angeline?"

"I think I'm good right here," Buffy whispered, letting Faith take her bottle of water out of her hand. She placed both on the floor and moved in closer to Buffy.

"You think we're doing a good job at being a convincing couple?" Faith asked, cocking her head to the side as Buffy ran her hands up her bare arms.

"Yeah," Buffy nodded, her breath catching in her chest as Faith leaned forward and placed a series of small, light kisses along her neck and jaw. "Very convincing I'm thinking."

They both jumped when Ronnie approached them and cleared his throat. "Miss. Angeline has requested your company," he said and he motioned up to the VIP lounge. "She's had her eye on you since you walked in. You best go up and have a drink with her."

"Great, thanks," Faith said, smirking as she grabbed onto Buffy's hand and followed Ronnie's lead. "Easier than I thought it'd be," she whispered quietly to Buffy.

"Yeah. Easy," Buffy muttered under her breath, her skin feeling flush and not just from dancing. It was all Faith and it was making her utterly confused, more so than she'd ever been before when it came to her feelings for Faith.

She let Faith lead the way up the stairs behind Ronnie and she gripped onto Faith's hand a little tight as they stepped into the VIP lounge. There were at least a dozen couples up there, seated on the couches and engaged in some heavy kissing and groping. Ronnie pointed to the very back where a woman dressed in a dress very similar to Buffy's was seated on the plush purple couch, surrounded by beautiful woman vying for her attention. As soon as Ronnie introduced them and left, Angeline shooed the women around her away and patted the couch next to her.

"Please, sit," she said, smiling at the two as Faith sat down and pulled Buffy down on her lap. "How are you two enjoying yourselves tonight?"

"Having a great time. Nice place you got here," Faith said easily.

Buffy looked over at a few of the couples on the couches, blushing furiously when she saw two women with their hands down each other's pants. She looked away quickly, focusing her attention back on Angeline.

Angeline looked very much human and what puzzled Buffy was the fact she wasn't getting the usual demon-y vibes with her. But she could definitely feel Faith, that was for sure and she barely made a move when Faith began to idly stroke her bare knee as Angeline motioned to the bartender behind the small bar to bring them a few drinks. The woman brought over three champagne flutes and poured them each a glass, sharing a brief open-mouthed kiss with Angeline before she went back behind the bar.

"Since this is your first time here, I'm sure you're wondering why this is a private club," Angeline said and she sipped her champagne as she stared at them. "There is really no place in this area, Cleveland and Detroit included, that are very open to all aspects of sexuality."

"I can definitely see that," Faith smirked and she casually ran her fingers up Buffy's thigh until she reached the hem of her skirt. "Too bad B here is a little uptight when it comes to some serious PDA."

Angeline and Faith laughed and Buffy groaned softly as she moved from Faith's lap to sit on the couch next to her. Now that they'd met Angeline and knew exactly what she looked like, she wanted to get out of there and wait somewhere else for her to leave so they could follow her wherever she ended up going later. But she knew they couldn't just get up and leave and the pink champagne tasted far too good as she sipped it. Angeline and Faith carried on a rather casual conversation about various clubs around the area and Buffy sat there, unable to join in since she hadn't been to any of the places they were talking about.

"As for your girlfriends PDA problem, another glass of this will have her loosening right up," Angeline said with a wink and that caused Buffy to grow tense in alarm. "Don't worry, Buffy, darling, the effects will wear off in a few hours."

"Ef--effects? From what?"

"A special additive that I had added to the champagne. It's perfectly harmless. Just relax and enjoy yourselves. I must go find my ladies and mingle with the regulars."

Angeline smiled at the two before she left them sitting on the plush purple couch alone. Buffy turned to Faith, slightly worried about just what was in the champagne. She hated drugs and she knew drinking was a bad idea, scolding herself for ever thinking it was a good idea to have a few drinks to loosen up.

"B, it'll be okay," Faith whispered. "Might not even have any effect on us."

"I want to get out of here," Buffy sighed as she placed her nearly empty champagne flute on the coffee table in front of them. "I'm a little...uncomfortable being up here, Faith."

"All the rampant, raw sexuality getting to you? Making you all hot and bothered?" Faith asked huskily as she moved a hand to her thigh and began playing with the hem of her skirt. "Maybe it's about time you pulled that stick outta your ass and learned to really let loose a little."

It wasn't a question, more of a statement and Buffy held her breath as Faith leaned in, letting her fingers drift under the hem of her skirt, trailing a slow path up her inner thigh. She had no idea why she wasn't stopping Faith. This was pushing the undercover thing. This was Faith pole-vaulting over the line that was drawn yet not really spoken of or agreed on. And she couldn't stop herself from letting her legs fall open a little more as Faith's fingers brushed the edge of her black lace thong. She pulled Faith in close, their lips barely touching and she gasped as Faith's fingers brushed over her pussy, easily finding her now throbbing clit.

"Faith..."

"God, B, I can feel how fuckin' wet you are," she breathed out and she nibbled on Buffy's lower lip as her fingers grew bolder, touching her as if it wasn't the first time and as if she wasn't afraid she'd get her ass kicked later for it. "Isn't just the champagne doing this to ya, is it?"

"No," Buffy gasped, gripping onto Faith's shoulders as she slipped her fingers under the barrier of her panties and slipped them through her wet folds. "Faith, fuck..."

"You like this, B? Do ya want me to fuck you right here?"

Buffy was at loss for words, moaning against Faith's lips as she deftly slid a single finger inside of her. it seemed like that was all Faith needed and she slipped a second finger inside of her, moving Buffy back against the couch a little to get a bit more leverage as she found a steady rhythm that had Buffy so quickly on the verge of an orgasm. Buffy pulled her in for a deep, passionate kiss, trying to stifle some of her whimpering moans she couldn't quite hold back anymore. She arched into Faith when she began to rub her thumb against her clit and all it took was a few more deep thrusts from her fingers before she was coming. Hard.

"Oh god," Buffy cried out and buried her face into Faith's neck.

Faith kept her fingers buried knuckle deep inside of Buffy, feeling her ride out her sudden and quick orgasm. Buffy dug her short nails into her back, holding her close as she felt her pussy spasm against Faith's unmoving fingers. She moved her head to the side, sighing contentedly as Faith trailed light kisses over her neck and she felt her eyes nearly roll back in her head as Faith's fingers brushed up against her g-spot, sending her over the edge with just one touch.

"Damn, that was wicked hot," Faith growled sexily as she slipped her fingers out of Buffy's pussy. Buffy felt her trail her fingers down her thigh before she leaned back and brought her fingers to her lips, making sure Buffy was watching as she licked them clean. "What do you say after we find out where Angeline goes off to later we continue this back in our room?"

"I--I don't know if that's such a--a good idea, Faith."

"Sure it is," she smirked and she leaned in to kiss her only to come in contact with Buffy hand. "What?"

"I need some air," Buffy said quickly and she got up, nearly stumbling over her own feet since she could barely feel her legs. She left Faith sitting there on the couch, staring at her as if she was crazy for leaving her now. Buffy barely looked back as she made her way to the stairs before she saw a set of stairs that lead up to the rooftop. As soon as she stepped out into the cold night air, the reality of what they'd done hit her. "Oh god, what have I done?"

Faith didn't know if Buffy knew she was right behind her and hearing the words she just said ripped like a searing hot knife through her heart and her gut. Things had gotten far too out of hand inside and Faith had felt completely powerless, unable to stop herself from taking Buffy the way she wanted to. She was going to blame the champagne since she normally had herself under control, especially around Buffy. She licked her lips, still tasting Buffy from when she'd licked her fingers clean and she groaned quietly, fighting with her libido at taking more of what she wanted from Buffy.

"Faith, we--you shouldn't have done that," Buffy said as she kept her back to Faith and wrapped her arms around herself. Faith didn't need to look at her to know that she was crying.

"Shit, Buffy, I'm sorry," Faith said, tentatively reaching out for her. "I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry, B."

"This isn't what we're here for," Buffy said as she turned around and angrily wiped away her tears. "We're not here to have a good time, Faith style. We're not here so you can fuck me on a couch in the VIP lounge like I'm some kind of...slut."

"Buffy--"

"Yesterday I couldn't even stand to be around you," Buffy snapped at her, positively fuming mad now. "And now," she shook as her emotions flickered across her face and the tears welled up in her eyes again. "Now, I'm starting to feel things I don't want to feel."

"Like what?"

"Faith, our relationship has always been nothing short of complicated and complete with a busload of mixed signals from you. I don't even think we can call what we have a relationship. Oh god, I don't know why I ever agreed to doing this undercover bullshit with you! Sure, it'll help us find out where she's taken Dawn, but nothing good can come from what just happened between us."

Faith swallowed the lump that rose in her throat, forcing back her own tears. Buffy was now in full-on denial mode and didn't look to be backing down anytime soon. She knew she had to calm her down before she blew their cover and Angeline figured out just who they were and did something to hurt Dawn.

"B? Look, I'm sorry, okay. We can't blow this. We gotta find Dawn and we're gonna have to wait until she leaves and hopefully leads us to wherever she's keeping Dawnie captive. We gotta go through with this just long enough to find her."

"How come you make this easy?" Buffy whispered, turning her back to her again.

"Easy? What are you talkin' about?"

"You make this whole thing easier than it should be, Faith! With the touching, the dancing, the way you keep looking at me, the way you kissed me..." Buffy trailed off, shaking her head as she turned back around. "This isn't just some undercover mission for you, is it?"

"Give me a break, B. You are so fucking full of yourself, aren't you? You really think you're so fucking special, don't you?"

"And you're nothing but a fucking liar!"

Faith waited for the punch she knew was coming, but in a move that completely caught her off-guard, Buffy's lips were on hers, kissing her hard with wanton desire that made her crave so much more. She was almost shaking as Buffy fumbled with the front of her pants, trying to get them undone and she broke away from the kiss, her eyes searching Buffy's, trying to figure out just what the hell was going through her mind. She'd never seen Buffy look so sexy before, the lust making her eyes a deep, dark green. Even out in the cold, Faith's entire body was flush and hot, aching for some form of release.

Buffy bit her lower lip as Faith moved her hands over hers, helping her undo the front of her leather pants and she groaned loudly as Buffy quickly slid a hand inside, her eyes going wide when she found that she was going commando. Faith grinned sexily, allowing Buffy to back her up against the wall by the door and take her the way she obviously wanted to. Buffy's fingers were sure, slipping through her folds to find her completely soaked, ready and waiting to be fucked just like she'd fucked Buffy a few minutes before inside. And from the way Buffy roughly slid two fingers inside of her without hesitation, she knew she wasn't just going to be fucked; she was going to be completely possessed by her.

"Fuck," Faith moaned as she gripped onto Buffy and tried to stay standing as Buffy slowly but surely fucked her with her fingers that felt a hell of a lot longer than they looked. "B?"

"Don't talk," Buffy hissed, licking along her neck before she sucked on her pulse point. "Don't say a goddamn word, Faith."

"You keep talking to me like that and you'll have me comin' faster than I--"

Buffy grabbed her head with her free hand, crushing her lips against her in a kiss that was hotter than the last. The chill of the cool night made her shiver, made her wish they were still inside on the couch, but they were alone out there and from the looks of thing, Buffy really came out of her shell without others around. Either that, or the champagne and whatever Angeline had put in it was working.

Faith was surprised she hadn't tried to take over. She was never a submissive lover, always giving as she received, always about the equal opportunity. But this wasn't just about sex; this was about payback for what she did to Buffy inside. She rolled her hips in time to Buffy's deep thrusts, feeling her orgasm building up deep inside her quickly. She placed her hands on Buffy's hips, one hand slowly trailing up to cup her breast and the other working its way under her skirt. Buffy bit down on her lower lip and moved quickly, grabbing both her hands and forcing them against the wall just over her head with just her free hand.

"Fuck," Faith moaned loudly, coming hard against Buffy's relentless fingers. "Jesus, B."

Buffy grinned as she slipped her fingers out of Faith and rolled her throbbing clit between her thumb and forefinger, prolonging her orgasm just a little bit before she pulled her hand out from inside of her leathers, dragging her nails roughly against her skin.

"There's definitely somethin' in that fuckin' champagne," Faith murmured, her voice feeling a little raspy and she was out of breath from having one hell of an intense orgasm. "Goddamn, B. Now that was wicked hot."

"Mm-hmm," Buffy sighed and let go of Faith's hands as she took a small step back. She watched Faith as she did her pants back up with shaky hands, grinning as if she was satisfied with herself. "Come on, let's go back inside. I feel like dancing."

Faith found herself speechless as Buffy brought her fingers to her lips, making sure that she was watching her as she licked her fingers clean just as Faith had done after she fucked her. Faith almost stopped Buffy from heading back inside, wanting to continue this--whatever this was between them, whether it was just a fuck or the champagne or something else, but she didn't and allowed Buffy to lead her inside and back down to the dance floor.

Angeline watched the two slayers with a satisfied smile as they made their way to a secluded spot on the dance floor. Dawn's plan was working so far without any complications and what she had just witness out on the roof had been proof that it was, that the two had finally let down whatever walls they built up to keep each other out and let each other in. Angeline watched the two as they began dancing, kissing wantonly without a single care in the world, and headed for her office. She picked up the phone and dialled a number, waiting for the other person to pick up the phone.

"We need to start the third part of the plan," Angeline said into the phone.

"Is it following through?"

"It is, Dawn. I just witness the two become...rather "friendly" with each other. Twice," she chuckled softly and laughed hard when she heard Dawn gag on the other end of the line. "I'm thinking maybe we should get the third part of the plan rolling soon, or we'll end up doing this again tomorrow night."

"Did you give them your "special" champagne, Angeline?"

"Just a small dosage. You did say they needed a little push. Consider this their little push. Now, I need you to go over to the house within an hour. I'm going to make sure they catch me leaving and follow me. You do remember how to lock yourself in the room, don't you?"

"Of course I do. You only showed me about a hundred times since last night. I'll see you in an hour."

Angeline hung up the phone and walked over to the set of monitors. She looked over them, searching for the two slayers and spotted them no longer on the dance floor, but at the bar ordering themselves a couple bottles of water and unable to keep their hands off each other.

When Xander called her and explained the situation and then Dawn did, she had no second thoughts. Since becoming a human, very much like Anya was before she died in the battle against the first in Sunnydale, she was all for other human's finding love with the right person, not necessarily the one. And from what she learned from Dawn and then from Willow, Buffy and Faith were each other's One and they just needed to figure it out by being thrust into a situation that forced them to be alone together. Besides, she really only agreed to it when she was told she'd be paid for going along with it. It's how they ended up bringing in Ronnie, a very close friend of hers, in on the whole elaborate plan.

"The night is still young," Angeline mused as she grabbed her jacket and headed for the door. "It's time to do what I've been paid to do. Easiest thousand dollars I've ever made. Anya would be so jealous."

She laughed to herself as she made her way down to the heart of her club, making sure Buffy and Faith saw her as she said her goodbyes to some of the regulars. She used her cell phone to quickly and discreetly text Dawn to let her know they'd be much sooner than an hour. She just had to hope things didn't get too out of hand once they reached the house. As a demon she would've been able to take them both, but as a human--a weak human at that, she wasn't sure she'd be able to take one punch from a slayer, much less two of them.

It was hard not to feel good about herself since everything was going smoothly and according to plan. She could only smile to herself when she faintly heard the sounds of Buffy and Faith laughing quietly as they followed her out into the street.

Part Three

Faith and Buffy kept back about a block, not wanting to alert Angeline that she was being followed. Buffy stayed closed to Faith, trying to use her body to keep her warm and grumbling about how she should've worn something warmer than a dress. After they walked a few blocks, they nearly almost lost sight of Angeline, but luckily spotted her as she disappeared inside of a small house.

"Damn, what do you think we should do now?" Faith whispered as they slowly approached the house. "I'm thinkin' we should check it out, see how many others are in the house with her and try to find out if Dawn is in there."

"Don't let her see us. We don't have any weapons and I can't exactly fight in the state that I'm in."

"What state is that?" Faith asked with a lazy smile as Buffy leaned more into her as they came to a stop a few houses down. "Damn, B, you're getting pretty clingy here."

"I'm cold," she muttered, shivering until Faith wrapped both arms around her. "Do you think we can...come back tomorrow?"

"B?" Faith furrowed her brow as she looked down at her. "Tomorrow? What about Dawn? She could be in there!"

"I know, but we're not exactly sober here, Faith," Buffy said pointedly and sighed as she looked up at the house. "It could be dangerous, not just for Dawnie, but for us too."

Faith sighed, knowing how right Buffy was, but she hated being so close and yet they weren't going to do anything about it. She memorized the numbers on the house and let Buffy tug her in the direction of the motel. Buffy actions were surprising her, more so than what happened on the roof of the club. Her pussy throbbed just thinking about the way Buffy had taken her, possessed her and made her cum harder than she ever had before.

She tried to keep her hands to herself, which was something since Buffy couldn't keep hers off of her. they walked the six blocks to the motel as quickly as they could and as soon as Faith had the door open, Buffy's lips were on hers, kissing her feverishly as she backed Faith up into the room. Buffy pushed off her jacket as she kicked the door shut behind her and Faith felt completely helpless as Buffy roughly pushed her down on the bed. Not wanting to say anything, Faith leaned up on her elbows and watched as Buffy slipped off her jacket and then her boots without taking her eyes off of her once. Faith let her eyes roam over Buffy's body hungrily, knowing how stupid she'd be to put a stop to this now even though the chances of Buffy seriously kicking her ass for this once she sobered up were becoming more and more likely.

Buffy pointed to Faith's boots, indicating for her to take them off and with a few tugs and pulls, she had them off and grabbed Buffy by the waist and pulled her down to the bed. Buffy squealed as Faith flipped them over and moved them more to the middle of the bed. Faith tried to kiss her and Buffy practically growled as she sucked Faith's lower lip between hers and flipped them back over until she was straddling Faith's hips.

"Damn," Faith groaned as she ran her hands over Buffy's thighs and stopping short as she reached the hem of her dress.

Buffy didn't say anything, still likely lost under the haze of passion and lust she was feeling. Faith ran her hands up her sides and around to her back and tugged on the zipper, waiting for Buffy to stop her or allow her to keep going. Buffy leaned forward and kissed her softly, lingering there for a moment before she slipped her hands under the front of Faith's shirt and began to tug it off. Faith sat up, sliding the zipper on Buffy's dress down before allowing Buffy to pull her tank top off. She smirked as Buffy tossed the shirt behind her and moved to stand on the floor at the edge of the bed. Faith could only watch her as she very slowly let her dress slide off revealing a matching lace bra and thong underneath.

"Come here," Buffy, whispered and Faith moved to the edge of the bed. "You want me?"

"Fuck yeah I do."

"Will you stay here tonight?"

"Where else am I gonna--"

"Faith," Buffy sighed as she ran her fingers through Faith's unruly hair. "Will you stay here tonight?"

"Of course," Faith nodded, finally getting what Buffy was trying to say. She knew Buffy was probably afraid after they did this that she'd take off like she normally did. But Faith knew it'd be different with Buffy. She had this dream, this fantasy about a million times in her dreams and she never once left her. Tonight was no different from all those times she imagined a moment like this happening with Buffy.

She leaned forward and kissed Buffy's stomach just above her belly button, and couldn't help but moan as Buffy gripped onto her hair a little roughly and forced her to stand on her feet. Buffy kissed her, pulling her in close until their bodies were flush against each others. Faith ran her hands over Buffy's back and stopped when she reached the clasp on her bra. She flicked it open and smirked against Buffy's lips as she pulled her bra off and let it fall to the floor. Since she was already without a bra herself, she slid her arms tighter around Buffy, both of them moaning into the kiss.

Buffy moved her hands to the front of Faith's pants and Faith reluctantly broke away from the kiss and stepped aside. She wiggled her eyebrows and hips a little as she undid her pants and slowly began to slide them down. Buffy watched her for a moment before she helped her out of the tight leathers and pulled her in for another crushing kiss as they fell back down on the bed together with Faith successfully taking the spot on top. She pulled back from Buffy's lips after a few long minutes and ran a hand down the length of her body, stopping when she reached the black lace thong she was still wearing.

Faith couldn't believe she was nervous. She never got nervous during sex. She quickly covered it up by slowly kissing her way down Buffy's neck. The soft sighs coming from Buffy was turning her on to the point where it was bordering almost painful, but she kept it slow, not wanting to rush this in case this never happened between them again.

Faith trailed her tongue over the top of Buffy's breasts, teasing her as Buffy scratched her nails up and down her back slowly. She circled her right nipple, nipping at it with her teeth before moving to the other. Buffy's skin was burning hot and it felt so good against her lips and tongue. She sucked on her left nipple, tugging at it and feeling Buffy arch up and moan, a hand going to her head and holding her right where she was.

Right. Like she was going anywhere.

Faith kissed her way slowly down Buffy's stomach; loving every sigh and moan that slipped past Buffy's lips the lower she went. She stopped when she reached the top of Buffy's panties and glanced up at her, waiting, almost expecting Buffy to stop her any minute now. Her normal "want, take, have" attitude had skipped out on her at some point throughout the night, but as she ran the tip of her tongue along the waistband of Buffy's panties, she knew she had to get it back.

She began to slowly slide down the flimsy, lacy panties down and she bit her lip as Buffy raised her butt to help her out a little. Buffy was breathing heavily, one hand stroking lazily over her stomach and the other still on the back of Faith's head, gently stroking her scalp. As Faith moved down, sliding her panties down her lean, soft legs, she licked over her lips at the tantalizing display of Buffy lying naked before her. As soon as she had Buffy's panties off, she tossed them behind her, smirking as she let her eyes drift over Buffy's body. Even in the dim light of the run-down motel room and against the god-awful ugly flower bedspread, she'd never seen anything more beautiful and sexy in her life.

Faith ran her hands up Buffy's legs, spreading them as she settled down between them. She ran the tips of her fingers along Buffy's inner thighs, staring up at her, trying to gauge her reaction or what she was thinking. All she saw in Buffy's eyes was lust and it drove her completely crazy and made her not want to take things as slow as she had been. She let her eyes fall lower and she licked over her lips as she saw Buffy's pussy, spread open, wet, and so ready for her.

As much as she did not want to admit it, she'd never actually gone this far with another woman before, yet she wasn't about to let that stop her from taking exactly what she wanted from Buffy. She leaned in and kissed along the inside of Buffy's thighs, teasing her, nipping at her skin, inching her way upwards, feeling how worked up and tense Buffy was getting the longer she drew this out. She pulled back and slipped her fingers through Buffy's folds, feeling how wet she was, how hot she was. She leaned forward, her tongue sneaking out for a little taste as she spread Buffy's lips open.

"Oh god, Faith," Buffy moaned as her hands went to the back of Faith's head.

Faith licked her slit from the bottom up, using the tip of her tongue to circle over her clit. Buffy's hips jerked forward as she wrapped her lips around her clit and sucked hard. She moved to lift Buffy's legs over her shoulders before she ran her tongue down the length of her slit once again, drinking her in and absolutely loving the taste of her and the feel of her against her tongue.

She gripped onto Buffy's hip with one hand, holding her down to keep her from moving too much and she moved the other, using her thumb to circle over her clit as she slid her tongue deep inside of Buffy's hot core. Faith swore under her breath as her cell phone began to buzz, but she didn't stop, moving her fingers in place of her tongue and she moved to hover over Buffy. They both ignored it and they kissed hungrily as Buffy pulled Faith's hand out from between them and wrapped a leg around her waist. Faith rolled her hips down, sliding her wet pussy over Buffy's as they gripped tightly on to each other.

"Fuck," Faith sighed out, pulling back from the kiss and burying her face into Buffy's neck.

Faith arched into Buffy as she dragged her short nails down her back. Buffy's sighs, moans, and gasps were driving her to the edge and she let Buffy roll them over and let Buffy take over. And god did she ever.

"Buffy," Faith cried out as Buffy gripped on to one of her legs, spreading her open more as their pussies slipped and slid against each other. Faith reached between them and spread Buffy's lips and felt her clit bump against hers as soon as she pulled her hand away. "Oh god, Buffy."

A thin sheen of sweat coated both their bodies as Buffy kept the rhythm steady. Faith already felt her climax building and she tried to hold off as long as she could, but it was nearly impossible to with the feel of Buffy against her. She felt a sense of urgency, of possession; of lust so strong, it nearly tore her apart as she clung onto Buffy as if she was hanging on for her very life. Buffy's body started shaking and shuddering as she struggled to keep up the pace of her thrusts. Faith just smiled as she pushed Buffy's hair off her face and pulled her in for a breathtaking kiss as they came together, muffling their cries of pleasure as they devoured each other's mouth and tongue.

"Mm," Buffy sighed as she licked over Faith's top lip and moved to lay her head down on her chest. Faith was still coming down from her orgasmic high and basking in the feel of Buffy on top of her when she felt Buffy start to kiss her way over her breasts, a lazy tongue coming out to lick over her hard nipples.

The smouldering look in Buffy's eyes drove her crazy and she leaned up on her elbows a little, watching as Buffy licked and nipped her way down her body, looking right back up at her as she did just that. She ignored the buzzing of her phone as it started up again and placed a hand on the back of Buffy's head, encouraging her to keep going. She felt like a prepubescent boy, ready to pop and Buffy hadn't even gone down on her yet. She breathed in and out deeply, trying to keep her cool and her body calm, but it was hard with the one woman she never thought she'd have a chance in hell with slipping between her legs and running her tongue over her achingly wet pussy.

She was lost in the feel of Buffy sucking on her clit as she slipped two fingers easily inside of her. She leaned up a little, panting and moaning as she watched Buffy slide her fingers out and run her tongue down the length of her slit before driving her tongue deep inside of her. She fell back on the bed, arching into Buffy as Buffy lifted her legs over her shoulders, fucking her deeper and faster with her tongue as her thumb circled over her sensitive clit.

"Fuck, B...just like that," Faith cried out, digging her heels into Buffy's back.

Buffy moaned as she tongue fucked her to ecstasy and Faith gripped onto the sheets as her orgasm flooded through her. She came with a cry of pleasure and lay there unmoving on the bed as Buffy continued to lick at her pussy, sucking the cum out of her quivering hole as it trickled out. Faith moved her hands to Buffy's head, wanting her to stop just for a minute, but Buffy nipped at the inside of her thigh before wrapping her lips around her clit and sucking on it hard, clearly not finished with her just yet.

Faith wasn't sure, when she'd blacked out from the sheer amount of pleasure she was feeling, but when she came to, Buffy was laying next to her with a lazy, sexy grin curling over her lips as their eyes met. She felt her skin flush, almost embarrassed she'd blacked out on Buffy, but impressed at the same time since that had never happened to her before.

"You okay there, Slayer?" Buffy whispered, languidly running her hand over Faith's stomach.

"Five by five," she sighed. "Goddamn, B. That was sure something else."

"I've never made anyone...you know."

"Black out?" Faith asked, grinning as she turned on her side and slipped a leg between Buffy's thighs. "That was wicked hot, babe. Here I am always bragging about my skills when you got them and then some."

"Oh my god," Buffy groaned loudly and she sat up in bed, pulling the sheets with her. "What did we just do?"

"Uh--"

"It was the champagne Angeline gave us," Buffy said, her eyes open wide in alarm. "Oh my god," she laughed and she slipped out of bed, taking the sheet with her and wrapped it around her body. "Whatever was in that champagne--"

"B? You okay?" Faith asked as she reached for her clothes at the foot of the bed.

"Do you realize what we've done? We ditched a chance at finding Dawn because I--because we--oh god," Buffy said quickly and she grabbed her bag and pulled out some clothes. "What if something happened to her, Faith?"

"I'm sure she's fine," Faith said softly as she quickly got dressed and checked her cell phone. She had five missed calls in the last couple of hours and she groaned when she saw it was mostly phone calls from Kennedy. "You want to go over to the house right now and do what, B?"

"Find her, get her out of there, and kill that bitch who took her."

Faith grinned, feeling her whole body tingle in anticipation of a fight, of finding Dawn, and possibly afterwards having a little more naked time with Buffy. As soon as Buffy was dressed, they grabbed the weapons bag and got into Faith's car.

Buffy couldn't stop looking over at Faith as she drove the six blocks to the house Angeline had led them to earlier. She'd been trying so hard not to wig out after the reality of what she and Faith had done hit her. Over and over again in her mind, she told herself it was the drinks they had, the champagne that Angeline had given them, and the heat of the moment. But she wasn't about to deny that satisfying ache she'd felt from the moment Faith had kissed her in the restaurant. They were just undercover and it meant nothing, right?

"B, about what happened..."

"Can we talk about this later?" Buffy asked quietly as Faith came to a stop in front of the house.

"Yeah. Sure," Faith sighed and she reached into the back seat to grab one of the two axe's Buffy had brought along. "Let's just get this over with. This is what we came here for, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna check upstairs," Faith whispered as they approached the dark house. "Keep an eye out for anything down here, okay?"

"Faith..."

Buffy sighed and watched her as she climbed up the drainpipe to the roof above the front porch. Buffy shook her head and looked in the windows, unable to see any light coming from inside. From what she could make out, the house was nearly empty, at least the main floor was and she looked up at the drainpipe for a moment before climbing up there herself. Faith was quietly opening one of the windows and she shushed Buffy as she moved to climb inside. Buffy looked down to the street, it was quiet and empty and the houses nearby were just as dark.

Buffy followed Faith inside and they found themselves in an empty, musty smelling room. Faith crept to the doorway, trying to keep quiet, but the old floorboards creaked with every step she took. Buffy reached out and grabbed onto Faith's arm, shaking her head no when she went to open the door. Faith was about to protest when she heard it too, the soft voices coming from a room not too far from the one they were in. The voices were too quiet, too muffled for either of them to make out just what was being said.

"We gotta check it out," Faith whispered as she gripped the doorknob and turned it slowly. "Stay close or stay back. Don't know what were walking into here."

"No kidding," Buffy muttered in a hushed whisper as she walked next to Faith down the dark, narrow hallway.

They moved quietly and slowly, checking each of the rooms they passed until the voices faded completely and they came to a stop at the last door in the hallway. The door was locked but a faint yellow glow came out from the bottom. Faith tried the door again, shaking her head as she turned to Buffy.

"Locked. Can't even break it."

Buffy reached forward and tried to crush the doorknob in her hand. It didn't even budge. She raised an eyebrow and moved forward, looking through the keyhole into the room. "Faith," she whispered as she motioned for Faith to look. "Dawn is in there."

"I'll try to pick the lock. I'm gonna need you to watch my back in case Angeline or anything else shows up and decides to crash our party."

Buffy watched Faith pull out a pocket knife from inside her jacket and she turned to face the stairs, standing close to Faith and gripping onto her axe, waiting and watching. Her heart was hammering in her chest and she was growing increasingly agitated. Dawn was just on the other side of the door and they couldn't let her know they were there, at least not yet. Buffy stayed quiet and listened harder, wondering where the voices they both hear before had been coming from. Aside from the room Dawn was locked up in, the rest of the house was dark, quiet, and empty.

"Shit," Faith growled under her breath. "This ain't a normal lock. Ain't gonna work."

"Dawn?" Buffy said just loud enough for her sister to hear her through the heavy wooden door. "Dawn, it's me."

"Buffy?"

"How many brought you here?" Buffy asked as she gripped on to the handle of the axe tightly. "Dawn? How many brought you here and locked you in here?"

"Just one," Dawn replied from behind the door. "Are you going to get me out of here or what?"

"Can't pick the lock, Dawnie," Faith said and she put her knife back in her jacket. "You think that demon is here right now?"

"No I--I don't know."

"Stand back," Faith said as she gripped her own axe in her hand, getting ready to swing it at the door. "Dawnie, just stand back. We're gonna get you outta here."

Faith motioned to Buffy to help her chop through the door. Buffy nodded and took a deep breath and they chopped at the thick wood door, each blow just barely making a dent in what Buffy knew was definitely a magically enhanced door. Buffy wasn't going to panic. She told herself repeatedly that she wasn't, but everything that had happened through the night had somehow made her feel like all her defences were weakening and she wasn't as strong as she had been before. Either that or it was all in her head and she was using it as an excuse to forget about what had happened between her and Faith.

Not to mention the fact that they had sex.

"B? We gotta keep trying," Faith said as soon as she noticed Buffy had stopped trying to chop her way through the door. "Why'd you stop?"

"It's being held together by magic," Buffy said and she dropped her axe to the floor, the sound of it echoing through the hallway. "I thought we were just dealing with a demon?"

"Demon with magic or at least a witch on her side," Faith shrugged and she walked over to the door. "Dawnie? Do you know what kind of magic is holding this door together?"

"Yes."

"Well?" Faith asked and Buffy could tell how tense she was growing from the way her body went stiff as she waited for Dawn to answer her. "Dawn?"

"It's me," came the hushed reply and Buffy's eyes went wide. "I cast the spell on the door when I heard you two come in."

"Why?" Faith demanded as she slammed her fist against the door. "Dawn, what the fuck is going on?"

"I think we should talk," Willow said from behind them, making them both jump at the sound of her voice.

"You set us up?" Faith asked for what felt like the hundredth time since Willow told them about the plan Dawn had come up with and how they all had gone along with it, some not as willingly as the others had. "You fucking set us up?"

Buffy was still standing by the door they'd tried to break down. She clenched her fists at her sides, anger and confusing bubbling furiously inside of her. It was sinking in, everything that Willow had just told them. Slowly it was sinking in. They'd been set up and Dawn had never really been kidnapped. It was all a plan to get her and Faith to spend more than five minutes together and what? Buffy didn't really understand just what they all expected to come out of this. Did they expect them to go as far as taking the undercover lovers ploy and make it real or did they just expect them to come over their differences and becomes friends?

"Who the hell do you people think you are, setting us up like that?" Faith growled and Buffy grabbed onto her before she could lunge at Willow. "Do not touch me," Faith spat at Buffy as she pushed her back. "How can you just stand there? They fucking set us up!"

"I know," Buffy said calmly. "I heard everything she just told us."

"It wasn't supposed to go as far as it did," Willow said and she flinched when Faith turned to look at her. "We just--we wanted you two to--to find a common ground, I guess."

"And you thought that having Dawn fucking kidnapped was a great idea?"

"It got us here, didn't it?" Buffy said quietly and she breathed heavily as Faith turned to look at her, clearly angrier than she'd ever seen her look before. "So, Angeline isn't even a demon anymore?"

"No," Willow said, shaking her head quickly. "She was a long time ago, but she became human before Anya did."

"Willow, when we were at the club, Angeline gave us some champagne and said there was a special additive she added to it," Buffy said, needing to know if what happened between her and Faith was because of them or something else. "What the hell was in that champagne we drank?"

"A spell," Willow said quietly. "A lust spell. It wasn't my idea!"

Faith took off down the stairs, the sound of the front door slamming behind her making Buffy shudder. Buffy could feel the tears welling up in her eyes and she wasn't even sure why she felt like crying. Maybe it was the overwhelming feeling of learning this whole thing had been nothing more than an elaborate set up, or maybe it was the feeling of Faith taking off, already having made her mind up that it all happened because of the lust spell and not because it was what Buffy wanted.

"Buffy?" Willow asked as she stepped up to her. "I'm sorry. We just thought you needed this, you both needed this and--oh my god," Willow gasped as she took a step back as if she realized something. "You two--you and Faith--with the--oh boy."

"It just happened. It was the spell," Buffy choked out. "It obviously didn't mean anything."

"Guys?" Dawn said quietly as she opened the door. "Buffy? I'm sorry--"

"What were you thinking when you came up with this idiotic plan, Dawn?" Buffy asked, her anger finally surfacing as she looked at her sister. "Because of your plan I ended up having sex with Faith!"

"What!" Dawn laughed and stopped abruptly when Willow motioned for her to stop. "Oh god," she frowned. "As soon as Angeline told us what happened and how you followed her back here from the club, but then took off, we knew it'd gone too far."

"Do you realize how worried I was about you? What if something happened to you?"

"Nothing was going to happen to me, Buffy. I'm fine, see?"

"Clearly."

Buffy took off down the stairs and ran out the front door, expecting Faith to be long gone and not standing by her car with a cigarette dangling from her lips and her eyes closed as she tilted her head back. Buffy had no idea what to say to her, she had no idea how just to look at her now that she knew they'd been under a lust spell since Angeline had given them the champagne.

But what about before that? Buffy wondered and she sighed as she slowly walked up to Faith, making sure to keep a bit of distance between them. She wasn't sure what was going through Faith's mind, what she was thinking, what she even thought about what happened other than knowing she'd been pretty pissed off to find out it'd all been a set up. Buffy wasn't even sure what to make of what happened between them, but she knew they had to talk about it instead of doing what they did best and avoid it completely.

"Thought you would've been long gone by now."

"Thought so too," Faith scoffed. "Funny how when things fuck with your head and you wanna run, yet you don't."

"I'm thinking now is a good time to talk about what happened between us, Faith."

"What's there to talk about, B? It was just a fuckin' spell."

"No," Buffy said quietly as she wrapped her arms around her. "It wasn't just a spell. You can't blame what happened between us tonight because of a spell. What about what happened before that?"

"I was playing my part," Faith said through gritted teeth then burst out laughing bitterly as she turned to look at her. "Some fucking mission this was, huh? Sending us to find this demon, who coincidently turns out to not be a demon, but an ex-demon, and pretend we're fucking lovers just to find her? I knew there was something off about this whole thing right from the fucking beginning."

"Then why didn't you say something?"

"I would've, but you and I aren't exactly known for our stellar communication skills, are we?"

"No, we aren't."

"They must be crazy coming up with a plan like this."

"I'm thinking everyone has a little too much time on their hands."

"Due an apocalypse soon, aren't we?"

Buffy cracked a small smile. She knew what Faith was doing and it was exactly what she'd been doing to her for far too long. Faith was in full on denial mode and Buffy was too, but she couldn't stop the thoughts of how good it'd been with Faith and how good her body still felt even now knowing it was only because of the lust spell they'd been put under at the club. Her feelings had been played with even though nobody else knew just what she felt about Faith, and she should be hurt and angry with Dawn and the rest of her friends for putting them through this and yet, she wasn't.

"Probably," she said after a minute. "Thanks for jinxing it, Faith."

Willow stood in the doorway watching them as they started laughing and joking as they sat on the hood of Faith's car. Dawn walked up to her and looked out at Buffy and Faith before turning to Willow with a smile on her face.

"Looks like it ended up working after all."

"Faith is right though," Willow said quietly. "We got to be crazy for coming up with a plan like this just to get them together. Who does that?"

"We do?" Dawn asked and they both laughed. Willow grabbed onto her hand and teleported them home. "Warn me next time you're going to do that!"

Willow held her steady until the dizziness faded and Dawn rolled her eyes and stormed out of the kitchen and up to her bedroom. Willow sighed and turned around, nearly walking straight into a half-asleep Kennedy.

"Did you end it?" Kennedy asked sleepily. "Is this ridiculous set up over?"

"Yep. It's over."

"And? Did it work?"

Willow nodded. "You want to know the craziest thing about this? I really think it did work."

"Great," Kennedy yawned and grabbed onto her hands, tugging her towards the stairs. "Now come on, let's go to sleep. "

Faith looked over at the flash of light where she'd just seen Dawn and Willow standing. "Did they just--?"

"They did", Buffy nodded. "What I want to know is why we couldn't have just been teleported here in the first place."

Faith couldn't help but laugh and motioned for Buffy to follow her into the car. Faith was feeling a mix of emotions she couldn't even name, she was tired and the sun was just starting to come up. She needed sleep before she could process everything that had happened and then she could figure out why Dawn or any of them would put them through something like this on purpose. Buffy wasn't talking either and Faith didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. They did need to talk, but she'd never been good with too many words and she definitely had never been any good at voicing how she felt.

After a quick stop at the motel to get their bags, they were on the road, headed back to Cleveland, the silence once again between them becoming deafening. Faith kept stealing a quick glance at Buffy every once in awhile and saw that she was staring out the window, her eyes showing how deep in thought she was. Faith wanted to know what was going through Buffy's mind. Did she regret it? Was she going to kick her ass once they were back in Cleveland? Faith kept thinking of all the other possibilities, but she knew better by now to think of what was realistic rather than those thoughts that built up her hopes only to be completely shattered.

"Are you hungry?" Buffy asked, breaking the silence in the car much to Faith's relief. "I was thinking we should stop at the diner we ate at yesterday morning. That coffee was the best coffee I'd ever had in my life."

"Sure, we'll stop. I gotta get some gas anyway or we're not gonna make it home. Don't worry, I'll pay ya back."

"Or we can just get Willow and Dawn to pay our expenses," Buffy said under her breath and cracked a smile when Faith laughed. "Faith, about what happened...can we just...forget about it?"

Sure, I'll just forget what was probably the best night of my life aside from finding out we'd been set up and drank a lust spell and you're trying to blame it on that, Faith thought but she didn't say it. She couldn't. "If that's what you want," Faith said as she kept her eyes on the road ahead. "Consider it forgotten."

"I don't want things to get...weird," Buffy said softly as Faith pulled into the gas station and came to a stop. "Faith?"

"What, B?" Faith sighed as she turned off the engine. "You don't want things to get weird, I got it. We'll just go back to doin' what we were doin' before and staying outta each other's way."

"I don't want that."

"What do you want then?"

Faith could tell it was a loaded question, not just for Buffy, but for herself too. She knew what she wanted, she wanted Buffy and after having a taste of what it'd be like, she didn't want anything else and she definitely didn't want them to go back to being the way they'd been before. She let the question settle for Buffy and she got out of the car to fill the tank up. She'd barely finished and was about to ask Buffy for her credit card to pay for the gas when Buffy walked around the car and grabbed her by the front her jacket.

"I know what I want," Buffy said as she backed Faith up against the side of the car. "The questions is can you give me what I want?"

"Depends on what it is you want from me."

"Everything you can give me," Buffy replied.

Faith wasn't sure what to say and with Buffy holding her against the car, her body nearly flush against hers, their lips just a few inches apart, Faith had a feeling she knew exactly what Buffy wanted when she said everything. Faith knew she should be scared and running right about then, but she wasn't moving, she was barely breathing. Her heart felt tight in her chest and she took the next step, making the next move and kissed Buffy lightly on the lips.

"Dunno if I can give you everything, B," she whispered. "We got some stuff we gotta work out together. Our history just won't go away `cause we want to forget about it."

"I know."

"How about we talk more about this over breakfast?"

Buffy nodded and headed for the small hut to pay for the gas while Faith waited for her in the warmth of the car. She couldn't wipe the smile off her face and she knew she probably looked every bit the lovesick fool she felt like she was. Maybe Dawn's plan to set them up had worked. Maybe that was just what they needed to break the ice between them even though things had gone a little too far. As pissed as she was at Dawn and the others for setting them up, she almost wanted to thank them. Yet, she still wasn't sure she'd be able to give Buffy everything she wanted, everything that she needed, but she sure as hell would try. She'd be stupid not to try.

After breakfast, which consisted of fresh donuts and coffee, they were back on the road and headed home. They hadn't talked about much over breakfast; it was hard to when they both sat there in the booth doing nothing more than staring at each other. Faith was trying to figure out how, in the last twenty-four hours, they'd gone from barely being able to tolerate each other to making moon eyes at each other over breakfast. Things just don't change overnight, she knew that, but maybe it was different between her and Buffy because of the history they had together.

And when they finally did talk, it was when they were almost home. Since they didn't know where to start on their relationship, it was Buffy that decided they take things slow and let whatever would happen, happen. They shared a soft, sweet kiss when Faith dropped her off at the house and the last thing Buffy said to her was about seeing her later for patrol. Faith didn't drive off right away either. She just sat there watching Buffy as she got her bags out of the trunk and headed up to the side door.

Feeling far too tired to try to figure out the sudden change in Buffy, she drove back to her apartment, fully intent on sleeping the rest of the day away. She'd figure it out later. She'd get the answers she needed and hoped to hell that Buffy didn't do a complete one-eighty and turn back to blaming it on the set up and the fact they'd been under a lust spell that led them to having sex. With her mind on far too much, she stripped out of her clothes and crawled into her bed, falling asleep almost the instant her head hit the pillow.

Whatever would happen next, wherever their relationship would go, Faith now had no doubt in her mind that they would take a few steps forward instead of forever taking a step back. Knowing that was enough for her. For now.

(Three Weeks Later)

Buffy ran through the cemetery, chasing down the last of the group of vampires they'd been attacked by, dodging the headstones and trees as she tried to catch up. Faith wasn't far behind her and she saw her out of the corner of her eye go to the left and start running faster as they tried to corner the vampire. Faith was faster than she was, and normally Buffy would've been a little pissed about it, but tonight she was relieved. Fighting three dozen vampires with only Faith, Kennedy, and two other slayers on their side had been tough, but they'd managed to dust all but the one she and Faith were chasing down. The same one Faith was now beating to a bloody pulp as she held him to the ground.

In the last few weeks since they went through the elaborate set up, they'd spent a few nights out on patrol together, but nothing more. They talked on those extra slow nights on patrol and when one or both had gotten a few kills, Faith was always the first one to leave. Buffy wasn't stupid. She knew why Faith left her so suddenly. They were supposed to be taking things slow, but the last few nights had been ridiculous. Buffy couldn't understand why--after all they talked about--Faith kept running from her.

"Are you gonna stake him, or--?"

"Give me a minute here, B," Faith grunted and she punched the vampire one last time in the side of the head before pulling her stake out from her jacket. "Had to rough him up a little."

"Right," Buffy laughed and watched as she staked him and got to her feet, casually brushing off the vampire dust and grass from her clothes. "I don't even need to ask why."

"Been too long since we had a fight like that, huh?" Faith asked, grinning as she twirled her stake around a few times before tucking it back into her jacket. "Where'd the girls go?"

"I don't know," Buffy said as she looked back where she expected Kennedy and the girls to still be standing. "Maybe they headed back to the house?"

Faith shrugged and turned as if she was about to walk away, but stopped and turned back around to face Buffy. She didn't say anything as she walked right up to her and grabbed her, pulling her in for a deep, passionate kiss that had Buffy's whole body humming in a matter of seconds. Faith broke apart from the kiss first, leaving Buffy breathless and wanting so much more.

"Do you wanna--?"

"Yes," Buffy breathed out. "I do."

"You didn't even let me finish," Faith laughed. "How'd you know what I was gonna ask you?"

Buffy smirked and rolled her eyes as she pulled Faith back in for another kiss, wordlessly whispering, "I want you too" over her lips. She'd waited for three weeks to kiss her again and she'd be kidding herself if she said she wasn't waiting for more than just a kiss. She slid her hands down Faith's back and grabbed on to her ass, causing Faith to let out a little squeal.

"Feelin' a little frisky tonight, B?"

"Maybe a little."

"So you wanna head back to my place?"

Buffy kissed her again and smiled as she reached for Faith's hand and intertwined their fingers as she headed for the cemetery's front gates. There was no doubt in her mind where she wanted to be. She wanted Faith and she wasn't going to hold back in taking what she wanted. That night in the motel had plagued her mind for the last three weeks, driving her crazy, pushing her libido on an edge it'd never been on before. She didn't just want Faith. She needed her. And it was the need that was driving her, pushing aside those lingering feelings of doubt that still hung around.

They made it to Faith's apartment in less than ten minutes. Neither had said a word the entire walk there and as soon as Faith let them in her apartment, Buffy's lips were on hers; her hands tugging off Faith's leather jacket as Faith stumbled backwards, trying to lead them to the bedroom. Faith took the lead, slowing Buffy down and stopping her from nearly ripping her clothes off. She ran her hands slowly down Buffy's arms and stared into her eyes as they stood in the small, dimly lit bedroom. Buffy held her breath as Faith's hands slipped under the hem of her shirt and slowly began to lift it up. Buffy was thriving on the hungry desire she saw in Faith's eyes and as they slowly lost their clothes, the anticipation of Faith touching her, kissing her, fucking her, was building to the point where she knew it'd be impossible to keep things slow.

They landed on the bed with Faith on top and it took Faith all but a second to break before they were at it hard and fast. Faith's hands, lips, and tongue seemed to be everywhere at once and Buffy couldn't get enough of it and of her. She found it hard to keep up at first, but once Faith had slowed down, they were devouring each other, rolling on the small double bed, almost fighting for a position on top. Buffy knew that by the time they collapsed in each other's arms, she'd have bruises and scratches along with small love bites that would disappear in a couple of hours. To her, it felt more than just a fuck. She was being worshipped by Faith and loving every second of it, craving more, wanting this night to never end.

"Buffy," Faith breathed out when Buffy finally got control and ended up on top. "Fuck."

Buffy moaned as she slipped her hand between Faith's legs, two fingers easily sliding inside of her. Faith followed suit, using her free hand to grip onto Buffy's hair and pulled her in for a deep, passionate, toe-curling, spine tingling kiss. Buffy pulled back from the kiss, a lazy, satisfied smile on her face as she laid her forehead against Faith's. This what had been missing from her life, not just the sex, but also the passion that came with it. And Faith was full of the passion she'd always sought out for, yet never found since nobody had ever been able to keep up with her sex drive. Nobody but Faith.

For hours they fucked, driving each other to the edge again and again. Faith was the first to collapse, completely spent and murmuring how amazing it'd been. Buffy could only lay there with Faith still partially on top of her and listen to the sounds of her heart still racing and the ragged breathing coming from both of them. Buffy's body ached deliciously and she felt satisfied and completely content, a feeling she'd never thought she'd feel when it came to being with Faith, but she wasn't complaining. Not one bit.

"Damn," Faith sighed as she lifted her head to look at Buffy.

"Mm," Buffy smiled and leaned in for a kiss.

"This is what we've been missing out on all these years," Faith said, laughing softly as Buffy nodded her head slowly. "Gotta hand it to Dawnie. She sure had balls to come up with a plan like that to get us together."

"Sure did."

"Gotta thank her for that, you know, after I get some feeling back in my legs and sleep the rest of the day."

Buffy laughed and sighed contently as Faith laid her head down on the pillow next to her. "I never thought it could be like this," Buffy whispered as she turned to look at her. "And I never thought you wouldn't kick me out afterwards."

"Funny how things change, huh?"

"Oh yeah," Buffy nodded. "Things really did change big time, didn't they?"

"Can't blame it on a lust spell this time though," Faith grinned and she ran her fingers lightly over the soft expanse of Buffy's stomach. "That was all us, wasn't it?"

"Also a little bit of the fact that we had one hell of a tough fight last night with those vamps."

"B?" Faith stopped trailing her fingers over her stomach and took in a deep breath. "No regrets?"

Buffy knew what she was getting at. She knew Faith was worried that she'd regret this and try to get out of it before it went any further. But she wasn't regretting this and she wasn't about the leave the warmth of Faith's bed just yet. She turned to her and kissed her deeply, conveying her feelings that she couldn't quite put into words, feelings she wasn't ready to say out loud just yet.

"No regrets," Buffy whispered across her lips, feeling Faith smile before she kissed her again.

"You know something, B?" Faith asked, trying to get Buffy to stop kissing her long enough for her to say what she needed to say. "Last night was probably one of the best fuckin' nights of my life and not just `cause of all the fucking."

Buffy laughed, pinching her side before pulling her closer. "Really?"

"And the night in Toledo, before you went and wigged out, that was another one of the best nights of my life."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Faith grinned and she tried to stifle a yawn and failed miserably. "Damn, you wore me out, girlfriend."

"Oh, so you tell me that and then you go and try to get out of it? You set me up with unspoken promises of morning sex and then tell me I've worn you out?" Buffy asked, pushing Faith until she was on her back and moved to straddle her hips. "I don't think so."

Faith laughed as she pulled the covers over them. Buffy almost thought for a moment she was about to tell her she loved her, but she didn't. And she was okay with that. They still had a long way to go and if Buffy could keep Faith from running--and she had no doubt in her mind that after last night there was no way Faith would run from this or her--they'd make it to the point of saying those three words that neither ever just threw around unless they meant it.

One night in Toledo, an elaborate set up, a fake kidnapping and one dose of a lust spell had gotten them to this point, and Buffy could only look to the near future and all the endless nights she hoped they'd have together. They sure had a lot of years to make up for and from the glint in Faith's tired eyes, she knew they'd barely scratched the surface.

The End