Chapter 19: Back to the Grind
Buffy rolled her chair back from her desk with a groan. She'd entered her office earlier to find a full inbox on her desk and an even worse off one in her e-mail. It had taken her the entire morning to sift through most of it. She turned her chair to face the window to her right, gazing out at the expanse of trees in the backyard.
The day had gone better than she'd expected so far. There hadn't been any messages from Satsu, nor had there been any awkward silences whenever she'd entered a room. That was of the good. It meant that maybe—just maybe, their problems had all ready made the circuit and were now old news.
She could hope, at least. She turned her head to look at the white phone sitting by her monitor, contemplating calling Faith and inviting her to lunch. Then it rang and she jumped, blinking in surprise. She laughed and shook her head as she turned to answer.
"Buffy Summers, how can I help you?"
"I need to see you in my office, please," Giles replied abruptly.
"I'll be right there."
She pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at it. I can't believe he just hung up on me. Who pissed in his tea?
She winced and shook her head as she replaced the phone on the base. I've been spending entirely too much time with Faith.
Buffy stood and left her office. Then she walked down the hallway to the office at the end which displayed, "Rupert Giles, Head of the Watcher's Council", in gold letters on the glazed window. She opened the door and peered inside, entering at Giles' gesture. She crossed the room to settle in one of the comfortable leather guest chairs.
"What's the what?" She asked, tilting her head curiously.
Giles smiled and leaned back in his char, folding his hands on top of the desk. "I simply wished to inquire as to how you are and find out if your return has gone smoothly."
"It's been a little tense, but other than that everyone's minded their own," Buffy replied, leaning her elbow on the chair arm.
Giles leaned forward unconsciously and caught her gaze, giving her a concerned look. "And how are you?"
She smiled slightly and murmured, "Better than I'd expected, truthfully. Faith really came through for me and helped me deal a lot better than I would have without her."
Giles settled back in his seat once more, smirking faintly. "That doesn't surprise me. I'll take this time to say something I should have long ago. I – told – you – so."
Buffy stuck her tongue out in reply and then chuckled along with Giles. She sighed and nodded. "I owe you a lot for not letting me mess up again back then."
They shared a knowing look. When Giles and Faith had first returned to work alongside Buffy to retrieve the Scythe, he'd had to run interference more than once. They hadn't had time to deal with the aftermath of the mess with the rogue slayer, Genevieve since they'd continued to avoid each other. Buffy was determined to force a confrontation, while Faith had simply wanted to get the job done and get away from the blonde.
Then one day the blonde had managed to catch Faith alone and they'd argued bitterly. Giles had arrived just as Faith had stormed from the room. He'd been absolutely livid and went off on the blonde, explaining exactly what had happened before and after her appearance during Faith's mission in vivid detail. Then he'd told her exactly what kind of effect it had had on the brunette and he'd given her a clear warning to stay away from Faith if she insisted on continuing with their past behavior.
It had been a sobering experience for Buffy to have him so angry at her. Then once she'd calmed down later on, his words had actually sunk in and she'd finally felt the weight of it. Learning the effect her words and actions had had on the brunette and the situation had flooded her with shame and guilt. That had been the turning point for her and the cornerstone of her decision to try to change the way she reacted to Faith.
A knock on the door interrupted Giles' reply and he called out, "Come in."
Buffy lowered her head slightly, smiling broadly as the tingles told her who it was. The brunette had still been asleep in the den when she'd left for work that morning. She turned to look over her shoulder as the door swung open and then Faith sauntered in.
"Mornin', G-man, B," Faith rasped, approaching them.
"It's closer to afternoon, Faith," Giles said, arching his eyebrows slightly.
"We've had this discussion before, ain't we?" Faith asked, moving to sit on the arm of Buffy's chair.
"Yes," He muttered and then added, "You do realize there is another chair, don't you?"
"Yeah," Faith replied, shrugging.
"Are you here simply to drive me insane?" Giles asked when she didn't move.
"Nah," Faith replied with a smirk. "I figured that was what B was for."
Buffy rolled her eyes and leaned her elbow on Faith's thigh. She head-butted the brunette's arm and then it settled over her shoulders. Then she glanced up at her and narrowed her eyes.
"Why are you here?" She asked. "I was planning to call you when I got back to my office to invite you to lunch."
Faith tugged at a strand of blonde hair that had fallen loose from the bun Buffy had her hair in. She glanced briefly at Giles and smirked at the obvious attempt he was making to ignore their actions as he cleaned his glasses. Then she glanced back at Buffy.
"Y'know, great minds and all that," She replied, wiggling her eyebrows.
Giles put his glasses back on and sighed, "As scintillating as your conversation is, ladies, I do have work to do unlike some people."
Faith ignored the pointed glance she was given and tilted her head, looking at Buffy curiously. "Ya ever get the feelin' he's tryin' to get rid of us?"
"Constantly," The blonde replied, snickering.
"Let's go see if Red and Ken can stomach our company," Faith said, standing and holding out a hand to the blonde.
"It's you they can't stand," Buffy grumbled as she grabbed the offered hand and let her friend tug her up from her seat.
"Un-uh," Faith replied as she led them from the office. "You're the one who ran 'em off Friday night."
"Nope," Buffy muttered. "That was you and your roaming hands, miss grabs-a-lot."
"I wasn't alone—"
The door closed on Faith's words and Giles laughed. "Dear lord, I think I preferred it when those two didn't get along," He muttered, smiling despite his words.
As they entered the dining room, both Slayers were still laughing from the teasing they'd subjected each other to. Their arms were loosely wrapped about each other's waist and their comfort with each other was obvious. Buffy laid her cheek on Faith's shoulder as the brunette glanced around, looking for their original quarry. Their visits to Willow and Kennedy's offices had come up empty so they'd hoped to find them here.
Faith found the two women almost immediately. Her gaze locked with Willow's and she gave her a nod as she tugged Buffy toward their table. They released each other's waist and entwined their fingers together so they could navigate between the small tables that dotted the room. She slowed as they approached their friends, taking in the files and paperwork strewn over part of the table.
"Hey, what's the what?" Buffy asked as she took the seat opposite Willow.
Faith turned her chair backwards and straddled it, crossing her arms and leaning them on the back. She tilted her head and studied the sheepish look Willow was giving her. Then she sighed and shook her head.
"I got the feelin' I ain't gonna like it, whatever it is."
"Well, neither of you probably will," The redhead muttered, glancing back down at the paper she held.
"Just tell us and get it over with, please," Buffy said, her tone on the verge of becoming a whine.
In answer, Willow replaced the paper she held in one of the files and slid it across the table to Faith. The brunette simply gazed at her in annoyance and she gestured at it with her head.
"Look at it and you'll see."
Faith flipped the file open and scanned the first page, her lip curling into a sneer. It was apparent that work was about to intrude into her vacation once again. There was a photo from the Slayer's ID and she studied it briefly. The girl seemed familiar, but considering just how many Slayers she'd met with multi-colored hair and far too many piercings, she wasn't surprised.
"Can't one of the other case workers handle her?"
"No, this one needs someone we know can get the job done. She's one of the more volatile cases we've been dealing with lately and she's only getting worse."
Faith nodded in resignation. That meant they'd tried everything and this was their last chance. She glanced at Willow.
"Am I going in as a case worker, a team leader, or a grunt?"
Willow sighed in relief and replied, "Shawna doesn't respond well to authority. Giles suggested sending you in as a teammate, since those are the only ones she'll really interact with."
"Aight, so grunt it is," She muttered, running her fingers through her hair.
She hated the cases that required that. One of the things she truly disliked about it was that it meant lying to the junior Slayer. It also meant risking damage to her progress if someone blew her cover. She glanced at Buffy and met disappointed hazel eyes.
"Sorry, B. Looks like I'm gonna have to give lunch a miss."
Buffy reached over and clasped Faith's thigh under the table. She gently rubbed the firm surface with her thumb and shrugged. She was disappointed, but she understood that they both had responsibilities.
"It's okay. Will I see you before you leave?"
"Dunno yet," Faith replied as she got up. "Gotta go get debriefed by G-man first."
Buffy stood and pushed the chair out of the way so she could hug the brunette. She wrapped her arms tightly around Faith's waist and was immediately surrounded by strong arms that encircled her shoulders. She rubbed her cheek gently against Faith's bare shoulder, and couldn't help but smile at the contact.
"Try not to be gone too long," She whispered in the brunette's ear.
"I ain't makin' any promises, but I'll see what I can do," She mumbled, and then she kissed Buffy's temple as she reluctantly pulled away.
"Bye, Faith," Willow said when the Slayer turned to retrieve the file from the table.
"Later," She replied as she turned to jog from the dining room.
Buffy watched until she was gone and didn't move until she felt someone approaching her from behind. She turned and bit back several cusswords as she came face to face with Satsu. She met the obviously upset Slayer's gaze steadily as she crossed her arms over her chest. This is not going to be good, She mused.
