Chapter Twenty-Four: Ennui

Tell me I'm what your hands were made for
Tell me I'm who your mouth was made for
– Tegan & Sara "Come On"

Tonight we've got a chance
Sunrise
The last sunrise
– Aiden "Last Sunrise"

It had been three and a half days since the final life-force attack, and the feeling of an impending apocalypse was enveloping the entire mansion in a blanket of tension. Faith's current form of dealing with this seemingly dire situation was listening to a portion of the Scooby Gang chattering idly about the renovations to the mansion that Buffy had Okayed with Xander to begin in June over tea. Faith had her chair at the dining table turned sideways, her feet up on the chair next to her, a mug of tea cupped between her two hands in her lap as she listened to Dawn explain the necessity of additional bathrooms, as if two communal bathrooms, two private, and two public bathrooms weren't enough already, Faith mused before lifting the mug to sip quietly, her eyes flicking to meet Buffy's, whose gaze had narrowed on the spot where Faith's lips met the mug rim. Faith couldn't hid the cocky smirk that spread out across her features as Buffy realized Faith had caught her and turned her head quickly to refocus on Xander's response to Dawn.

"Just remember, more bathrooms means I need to remodel the entire structure of this place in order for the piping to be done correctly. You can't just throw a toilet into the far corner of the third floor without thinking about how to get the water in and the waste out," Xander replied, leaning forward in his seat and resting his elbows on the table edge.

"Oh," Dawn sat back in her seat, a forlorn look on her face.

"What about another bathroom on the first floor? Next to the headquarters? Or Willow's giant study, whatever it is," Andrew asked.

"It's more of a combination of the two, Andrew," Giles explained tersely, and Faith grinned again, knowing Andrew's discontent over Willow getting a bigger study.

Xander ticked his gaze to Buffy, who nodded, "Sure, we can do that. Not so much trouble on the first floor. It's the other floors it would be more difficult with."

Before another topic could be broached, Willow strode in and slapped a manila folder down on the table, effectively shattering the relaxed mood.

"What's with the tragedy mask Will?" Xander asked when Willow didn't speak, but merely looked from face to face.

"Your meeting with Alice yesterday really helped us pin-point the time frame for when everything is supposed to go down," Willow began, addressing Faith.

Faith nodded, sighing. She had finally gone to visit the psychiatrist that Willow and Giles asked her to go to almost two weeks ago. In all honesty, the only real reason she went was because of the unavoidable and fast-approaching apocalypse in addition to the attacks on both her and Buffy. There was a large amount of pride swallowed in walking through those doors willingly, and Faith was glad that no one seemed to take a joking interest in her visit.

"When?" Buffy prodded, refocusing Faith's thoughts.

"Three days from now. Early morning," Willow explained, her eyes flicking back to Faith.

"Before dawn," Faith breathed, her dreams finally coming together.

"Yeah," Willow agreed, "There's a cold front moving in with rain; it's supposed to reach us then."

"So we pull all of the people here who are capable of fighting and get them ready," Buffy began, standing from her seat to pace.

Giles nodded, "That sounds like a good idea. We can formulate a mode of attack later on tonight and go from there."

"Sounds good to me," Buffy nodded, then, to Willow, "Do you have anything new on the magicks?"

Willow sighed, "I finally found a weak link this morning on the signature with the Coven's help. I can go into all the details tonight so I don't have to repeat myself."

"Hey, why not a full scale meeting in the Pit tonight after Vi, Ken and Rona get back from patrol?" Faith added, glancing around.

Dawn nodded her agreement, and after glancing around the table, Buffy also nodded, "Okay, ten p.m. meeting in the Pit, everyone in the house is to be there. Andrew? Can you make sure the message gets out?"

"Not a problem," Andrew smiled reassuringly.

"Thanks," Buffy returned the smile with a tight one of her own as she shifted her weight to her other foot as the small group fell silent.

"Has Sandra started up her pre-apocalypse music yet?" Dawn asked suddenly.

"Oh yeah. Select songs from Aiden, Linkin Park and the Underworld: Evolution soundtrack have been playing the past few days," Faith replied with a grin, "Which reminds me," Faith looked over at Buffy, "We should go down and get the final OK from her about us."

Buffy nodded, then looked around, "Are we good for now?"

Willow nodded, "Yup. I'll get all the information I've got together for tonight."

"That'd be great, thanks Will," Buffy smiled before making eye contact with Faith, who stood and followed her as she turned and walked towards the door leading to the basement.

As Faith's boots clunked their way noisily down the stairwell behind Buffy, Faith began to hear the strains of music making its way up to them. Coming up short at the platform where the stairwell emptied out, Buffy turned to look back at Faith, a question in her eyes, "This sounds familiar."

Faith cocked her head, focusing on the music floating through the double doors before grinning, "It's Frou Frou."

"Foo who?"

Faith chuckled as she brushed past Buffy and strode towards the double swing doors. The sound of her pushing them open caused Sandra to look up over her reading glasses, her hands placed on the table on either side of a sheet of paper, a pen held lightly between two fingers in her right hand.

"Are we holding out for a hero?" Faith asked, grinning, causing Sandra to grin back.

"I figured it'd be nice to listen to something less depressing and more upbeat," Sandra explained before glancing over Faith's shoulder to Buffy as the blonde walked in.

"I still don't get the significance," Buffy shrugged before coming to halt upon the last lyrical line that streamed forth.

"He's gotta be strong/ and he's gotta be fast/ and he's gotta be fresh from the fight…"

Faith quirked an eyebrow as the mixed emotions of realization and dislike battled over her features.

"What?" Sandra asked.

"Oh sure, ‘cause there are no women who can be heroes," Buffy grumbled before hopping up on a bed.

Faith chuckled again and walked over to her, kissing her forehead gently, "Cute," Faith whispered along her brow line before turning to lean on the bed and face Sandra. "We're here for the final check up that you demanded."

"Right, well, with the injuries and blood loss you sustained," Sandra glanced between the two, "Even as Slayers, I still wanted to make sure everything was A-ok. I know you will heal in just over a day from most any injury, but these particular ones were hindered by either not enough blood, or by have your very life sucked out of you."

"Well, when you put it that way, I feel all violated," Faith faux-grumbled, rolling her eyes.

"You should," Sandra shook her head as she went to wash her hands.

Buffy leaned over against Faith's shoulder, her head laying to rest against Faith's temple while they waited, and Faith felt a satisfied smile make its way to her face before Sandra turned around. Upon taking in the comfortably intimate moment, Sandra returned Faith's smile before walking over, causing Buffy to sit back up.

"Who wants to go first?" Sandra asked glancing between the pair, "No takers? Right then, Buffy, lose the shirt."

"Whoa," Faith's eyes widened and the sudden need to either become turned on or laugh caused her to jerk and start coughing.

"Faith? You okay?" Buffy asked, laughing herself as she deftly pulled her t-shirt over her head.

Faith sobered up instantly, her eyes drawn to the pale skin, marred only by a white scar dancing jaggedly along her clavicle and disappearing upon reaching her throat; a hint of bruising the only remains of the horrific night in the mausoleum. Sandra placed her hands along the scar, and Faith felt herself take a sharp breath, a tremor in her slayer connection causing her to look up at the blonde, who was eyeing her with a confused look in her eyes. Faith shook her head at the silent question and let out the breath, calming down.

"This doesn't hurt?" Buffy shook her head as Sandra put pressure along the scar, "Has there been any tightness or sensitivity?"

"It's felt tight, but today it's been pretty good," Buffy replied as Sandra pulled away and nodded, signaling Buffy that she could put her shirt back on.

"You should be perfectly fine by tomorrow," Sandra replied, "Put some lotion on it, keep it from drying up."

Buffy nodded before asking, "Will I always have this scar?"

"Scar tissue," Sandra shrugged.

"It fades," Faith replied absently before shaking her head and glancing up curiously at Buffy, whose eyes had widened at the comment.

"Buffy?" Sandra prodded softly.

"You said that back in Sunnydale…" Buffy trailed off.

Faith furrowed her brow, "No I didn't."

Buffy swallowed audibly, "You don't remember?"

Faith felt a stirring of worry flash through her but ignored it, "Remember what?"

Buffy sighed and shook her head, "Never mind."

"O-k…" Sandra eyed Buffy a moment longer before turning to look at Faith, raising her eyebrows in question. Faith, for her part, could only shrug before pulling her shirt off without being asked.

Sandra, attempting to move the mood and conversation past the awkward moment, gently touched Faith's ribs, applying pressure, "No pain? I don't see any bruising."

"I'm five by five," Faith replied calmly.

"And your back?" Sandra added. Faith sighed and turned around.

"That scar should go away shortly, it healed well," Sandra continued after glancing at Faith's back for a moment.

Faith turned back around and pulled her shirt back on, "We good Doc?"

Sandra glared at Faith, only to relax at the wink the rogue slayer aimed at her, "As far as I can tell, you two are good. Just…try to take care of yourselves in this battle."

"You know us…" Faith began, grinning.

Sandra cut off her statement with a wave, pointing them towards the door. As the pair exited the trauma ward, Faith lightly gripped Buffy around her arm and pulled her aside.

"Hey, what was that in there?" Faith asked gently out of curiosity.

"It…it doesn't matter," Buffy sighed, shaking her head.

"It seems to matter to you," Faith countered, cocking her head to one side and smiling gently.

Buffy stopped for a moment, as if trying to figure out a way to say whatever it was that Faith was unknowingly prodding for.

"Did…when was the first dream you remember having with me in it?" Buffy asked, then, off of Faith's suggestive look, "Slayer-type dream, cryptic and the like."

Faith became serious and thought for moment, "When you came into the dream I was having about Germany."

"Really? Never before? Not even…" Buffy trailed off, a shadow crossing her face.

"What?" Faith asked before sensing a vampire. Turning her head, Faith saw Spike leaning on the doorframe that led to Xander's workshop.

"Didn't mean to listen in," Spike began, and the anger boiling within Faith slowly began to rise.

A soft hand on her forearm let Faith know that Buffy could tell what she was feeling and shook her head slightly; you want me to be calm with thisguy?

"What is it Spike?" Buffy asked calmly, and Faith suddenly felt the tension in the hand gripping her forearm.

"I just," Spike trailed off, glancing from Buffy to Faith before refocusing on the blonde Slayer, "I didn't mean to be…"

"All judgmental and Jump-to-Conclusions-Guy?" Buffy supplied quickly when he trailed off.

Spike swallowed and glanced at Faith before nodding, "Yeah. Can… can we talk?"

Buffy looked up at Faith for confirmation, and Faith smiled gently, inwardly grateful for the inclusion in the decision, "Go. We can talk later," Faith murmured before leaning in and placing a gentle kiss on the blonde's mouth.

Buffy lifted her hand to cup Faith's jaw, her thumb brushing across her cheek as the brunette pulled away slowly. A last look at the peroxide blonde, whose jaw had gone slack, and Faith brushed past the older slayer, willing herself to appear cool and collected as she made her way to the stairwell. Claiming the stairs two at a time, Faith barely heard Buffy state in a clipped tone, "Talk," before she exited into the dining room. Feeling the need for fresh air, Faith strode past Giles, Willow and Dawn; the only ones left at the table, and slid open the door. Collapsing on the top step at the end of the patio, Faith let out a ragged sigh and leaned back on her hands. Hearing the door behind her slide open and shut again, Faith waited to see who came out.

"Hey," Dawn's voice floated down to her, and Faith glanced up to watch as Dawn seated herself, leaning forward to rest her head on crossed arms on top of her knees.

"Hey back," Faith replied before looking out into the backyard.

Silence stretched comfortably between the pair for a few minutes as they both gazed into the serene woods. It wasn't until Dawn shifted her weight to lean backwards onto the patio that Faith looked at her again.

"What's the sitch lil' D?" Faith asked, cracking a grin after Dawn's eye roll from the nickname.

"Just when I think you might've matured…" Dawn trailed off, shaking her head, smiling. "How are you?"

Faith eyed the younger Summers woman, thinking of how to answer the question, "Five by five."

Dawn turned to look Faith dead on, an eyebrow quirked in amusement, "Really?"

Faith felt the cocky grin slip into place, "Yeah, you want details on the how and why? ‘Cause I don't think big sis would like me dishing those out."

"Ugh, Faith, please," Dawn frowned, waving the rogue slayer into silence, "She's my sister for God sakes. I never want those details."

Faith laugh out a raspy laugh and broke the eye contact, looking out into the backyard once again.

"Seriously though," Dawn cut in.

Faith looked back at the brunette, her browed furrowed.

"I haven't seen you smoke in a while," Dawn continued, and Faith nodded in understanding.

"Early April," Faith stated quietly.

Dawn looked a question at her, and Faith continued.

"The last cigarette I lit up was in early April. I watched it burn, right down to my fingers," Faith explained, her voice growling slightly at the low volume of her words.

"Almost a month ago?" Dawn asked incredulously.

Faith nodded, "Yeah. Buffy began to take the lead right around that time. She took initiative."

"Wasn't that like, right before all the shit began to go down, in Forest Hills and stuff?" Off of Faith's nod, "Wow. Recent."

"Sorta," Faith shrugged. "It ain't easy but…" Faith sighed and ran a hand through her wavy hair, "She makes it easier."

Dawn nodded, "I get that."

"You do?" Faith knitted her brows together.

Dawn glanced over at her and shrugged, "Yeah." Sighing, Dawn dipped her head forward and rubbed the back of her neck with her hand, "She's my sister, Faith. As much as we might want to kill each other at times…" Faith snorted, "I love her. She makes living and surviving easier."

"She makes it worth it," Faith murmured, the commonality between them suddenly apparent.

"Yeah." Dawn stated quietly, "I'm a part of her, more than any normal sister relationship. I live for her…"

"And because of her," Faith finished. The pair sat silently for a moment, taking in their new understanding of one another, "Fuck."

Dawn chuckled, "She's saved the world more times than any single human being; if she hadn't been here, how would we know that we'd be here?"

"Luck?" Faith asked rhetorically, gaining a smack on her arm.

"I'm not saying we owe our lives to her, but, she definitely has helped in their continued existence," Dawn finished.

Faith placed her elbow on her knee and rested her chin on the top of her fist, "Quite the mind fuck."

"Philosophical mind fuck." Dawn agreed with a short nod.

"Was there even a point to this?" Faith turned to look over at Dawn, a glimmer of humor in her eyes.

Dawn shrugged, "Maybe. Maybe not. Tangents-R-Us."

"Def," Faith accepted the response before sighing and standing with a tired groan. "C'mon Brat, let's head in before Giles notices that our heads have grown exponentially or some shit like that."

Dawn laughed as she stood, only to stop suddenly when she walked into Faith.

"What'd you wanna talk to me about before I crashed from the Kartuk?"

Dawn thought for a moment before understanding what Faith was asking, "You just remembered that?"

Faith gave her a look but didn't respond.

"I wanted to ask you about the smoking actually, that's why I wandered out now," Dawn answered.

Faith nodded and turned to continue into the house, leaving Dawn to play catch-up as she made it to the door before Dawn started walking. After that conversation, I could seriously go for a smoke, Faith thought, shaking her head as she headed into the kitchen.

Faith's eyes were steadily following the curve of her lover's hips as they swayed with every resolute step she took upon entering the Pit. As the days had crawled by and preparations were being made, both women were too exhausted to do anything aside from crawling into bed and sleeping. Now though, as the last day was ticking down before all hell attempted to break loose, Faith felt the exhaustion slip from her weary bones, as a flammable cocktail of anticipation, desire and tension seeped through her veins like a long pull on a cigarette. The effects were adverse to that of a cigarette however, and Faith shifted her feet upon seeing Buffy looking at her, feeling her gaze; her body kicking everything up a notch as she felt herself get wet from the smoldering look Buffy leveled at her, telling her everything the blonde was thinking in that moment.

Fuck. I'm not gonna get any sleep tonight, Faith thought, a wicked grin spreading across her face. When Buffy broke the gaze, her twinkling eyes darkening at Faith to reply to something Willow was saying to her as they came closer, Faith moved forward and took a seat on the edge of the Pit. Ken, Vi and Rona making room for her.

"Do you know how long this is gonna take? I've got brownies baking in the oven," Vi asked as Faith settled in to her seat.

Faith grinned, "No idea, but you're sharing now."

"Didn't we go over the plan like three days ago?" Tracy asked, leaning forward, her elbows on her knees to look around Rona at Faith.

The other women smirked and shook their heads, and Faith could empathize with them, newbie.

"That was more of an…outline," Kennedy explained, taking pity on the younger woman, "This is the actual plan."

Rona began coughing and Faith slapped a hand on her back when the word "speech" was coughed out.

"Is everyone here?" Willow broke the quiet chattering, and a hush fell over the room as all eyes turned to the red head.

"Yeah, I was the last one in," Buffy answered, taking a seat beside Giles as Willow swept her skirt forward under her thighs and sat down on the blonde's other side.

"Okay then, I guess we can get started," Willow began, "There will be serious magicks going on between the Coven and myself, as well as the Kartuk's shamans- who will probably have a few not in on the ritual, just to be able to attack any of you or us. So be aware; if anyone ends up having something happen to them, the key point is to pull them back and re-team with others."

"By the re-teaming," Buffy began once Willow finished speaking, "We mean to say that this entire fight could go poorly if anyone decides to be all Top Gun and pull a maverick. Start in pairs. No one goes into or stays in a fight by themselves. Outside of Sandra- who will be the only Slayer to be aiding in protecting the Coven and Willow- all the other slayers here will pair up with one another. Pick someone you trust and have a grasp of their fighting style. They will be the best partner to have by your side in the fight." As Buffy finished, her eyes, which had been moving through the group of women, landed on Faith, who nodded almost imperceptibly.

"What's everyone else doing? So we know where people will be in case of a Plan B," Kennedy piped up.

"Along with Sandra, Dawn, Xander, Andrew and Giles will be backing up the Coven, for their various attributes. Angel and Spike are exclusively focused on dealing with any demons that make it through the Hellmouth. The slayers, as I said, will be focused on the Kartuk. Get their numbers down far enough, and the group can split up to help the other factions." Buffy explained before falling silent as Giles began to speak.

"The slayers will be split into two flanks to attack from two sides, which will allow for the greatest amount of confusion. The Kartuk, as several of the women here have experienced firsthand, are a demon short in stature, built for brute force. The best weaponry against them are any variety of bladed weapons. Over the past few months, I have been in talks with a few associates for a protective type of armor that would reduce the effect of the blows a Kartuk could land on any one of you. Both Faith and Buffy have been prime examples of the danger these demons pose to any of you in large numbers. I hadn't brought this up to anyone before now, because I wanted to see what all of you thought; would any of you choose to wear this protective gear?"

"Is this a uniform?" Rona asked skeptically.

"Like the X-men?" Andrew asked with hopefulness.

"Um, well, not exactly." Giles pulled his glasses off and proceeded to clean them.

"What is it, plated armor around a body hugging suit to provide both maximum comfort, mobility and protection?" Faith asked, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

Giles stopped cleaning his glasses and looked up at the dark slayer with surprise.

"Get out, seriously? I got it in one?" Faith leaned forward, incredulous. "Go me."

"How…" Xander began, trailing off.

"So not the issue right now," Buffy cut in, exasperated, but Faith caught the amused glint in her eyes, "Has it been tested?"

"Yes it has, I only brought it up because it seemed that…"

"I'm not against anything that could help us, Giles," Buffy smiled gently, rebuffing his unnecessary apology. Then, to the group, "Anyone that is interested, see Giles afterwards, and we'll go from there." After looking around for moment, and seeing that no one else had something to add, Buffy slapped her hands onto her thighs, "Well, I'd like everyone up and ready to head out by 4:30. I would tell everyone to try and get some rest, but I know from personal experience that that is a hollow request. Just keep the volume down for the younger women in the house, as well as anyone who actually chooses to try to sleep."

The last comment was made with a smirk, and the entire group were all knowingly grinning. Faith was remembering the last apocalypse she had spent around Buffy, remembering the game of Dungeons and Dragons that had been played into the wee hours of the morning- heard only by the enhanced hearing she and Buffy had then been privy to by themselves. Now, almost every female in the entire mansion had that type of hearing, and Buffy's comment, will made glibly, actually conveyed a more serious point. As the group began to filter out, or crowd around Giles, Faith watched Buffy pull back and away from the group, moving over to the exercise equipment, where T'wanii was leaning against it. Faith didn't remember seeing or hearing him come in, and shook her head at her complete tunnel vision.

"Hey Faith!" At her name, Faith turned to see Aggie looking at her, Vi and Rona flanking her.

"Yeah?"

"Wanna hit up Halo 3?"

Faith smirked, "Don't you know it," She began, only to feel a tingle go through the slayer connection, "Maybe tomorrow night."

"You mean, after the apocalypse? Ha. Seriously," Kennedy broke in, laughing, "You and most of these people here will be tearing up a dance floor somewhere in town, not playing a game of Halo."

Faith smirked, "You know me too well."

"I know you, Buffy, myself, and Dawn too well. Everyone else is fair game as to what they do with the after-apocalypse cravings." Faith caught the innuendo but didn't bite; instead, she shook her head, smiling.

"If I remember correctly, Xander likes to sleep, Willow usually wants a drink and Giles spikes his tea with scotch," Faith replied, causing the women to chuckle, only to join in at the scandalized looks both Willow and Giles aimed at her, "What? Don't look so guilty, I remember quite clearly pouring you, G, into your bed!"

Faith could see Giles clench his teeth, the muscle in his cheek flexing, and she flashed him a pair of dimples before winking. Glancing at Willow, Faith saw that the redhead had given up and was focusing on something Xander was saying instead- pointedly not looking in her direction. Refocusing on Kennedy and the other women, Faith shrugged, "I think you'll be too busy trying to keep your own volume down to worry about me keeping mine down."

Kennedy chuckled, shaking her head, but didn't reply.

Faith smirked before nodding at Vi and Rona and turning to walk towards where Buffy and T'wanii were still talking.

"…I have no problem with it." Faith came within earshot at the second part of Buffy's sentence, and only began to grasp the point of the conversation at T'wanii's next statement.

"I thank you, I feel it is a duty to avenge my clan, and being in the fray alongside you and your slayers is perhaps the best for me," T'wanii nodded slightly in acknowledgement of Faith's presence before looking back at the other Chosen One.

Buffy reached out and gently grasped the demon's upper arm, "I won't stand in the way of any extra help we can get, and I hope you can find some sort of peace after tomorrow."

T'wanii's mouth flicked upwards for a moment before blinking and bowing, ending the conversation. Faith turned and watched the demon head out, the last being to leave the room save for Andrew waiting for him at the doorway.

"Hey," Faith felt her stomach do an uncharacteristic flip at the huskiness of the voice, and turned on her heel to drink in the sight of Buffy now sitting on the horse, leaning back slightly.

"Hey yourself," Faith replied, her own voice drawling as she moved forward and eased the blonde's legs apart and stepped between them, destroying any sense of personal space.

Buffy closed her eyes, her lips parting to breathe through them, and leaned forward, pressing her forehead against Faith's. Whispering, Buffy asked, "Ever think about the alternative uses of the pommel horse?"

Faith allowed a dimple to appear as she smirked, "Mmm, now I am. Then again, you still haven't learned all the pleasure that comes with the pain of fucking against a brick wall."

Buffy shuddered and leaned in to capture Faith's lips in an open kiss. Faith groaned as Buffy merely teased her, sucking her bottom lip into her mouth and pulling away slowly, releasing Faith from the kiss. Placing her hands on the sides of the blonde's thighs, Faith ground her body into Buffy's precariously perched one. Buffy exhaled loudly, her eyes falling shut, before placing her hands on Faith's shoulders and gently, yet firmly, pushing her away. Before Faith could react, Buffy had slid off of the horse and was moving past her, making sure her body brushed up against Faith's heated body in all the right ways.

Faith snapped her head around and leaned back against the horse, "Leaving so soon?"

Buffy glanced over her shoulder, "Need to eat."

"Why leave then?" Faith shot back, a grin on her face.

At that, Buffy stopped and turned around, her eyes moving slowly over Faith's entire body. Faith licked her lips, feeling her heart speed up at the thorough once-over she was being given before grinning again as Buffy started walking back to her quickly.

Faith didn't have time to react as Buffy simultaneously leaned into her personal space and grabbed the crotch of her jeans. Gasping, Faith shuddered, and closed her eyes to the assault before opening them to curious green eyes. Buffy cocked her head to one side, and pushed her palm against the ridge directly over Faith's clit, causing Faith to bite her lip, refusing to break eye contact. Adding more pressure with her fingers against the heat seeping through Faith's jeans, Buffy allowed a playful smirk to appear before leaning in and capturing Faith's lips, her tongue easily making its way into Faith's willing mouth. Groaning under the onslaught, Faith stood up fully, pressing her body up against Buffy's, capturing the blonde's hand between them. Breaking the kiss, Faith gasped, her eyes still closed as Buffy lowered her mouth to attack her neck, her free hand landing on Faith's hip and forcefully pushing her body back against the horse. Fuck, maybe we won't make it out of here.

No sooner did the thought appear than Buffy released Faith completely from her hands and mouth, backing up a whole foot to be able to take in the slowly recovering brunette. Faith, for what she was worth, was shocked at the aggressive streak Buffy had just exhibited; and, if the dark green eyes told her anything, the blonde enjoyed it just as much as she did. Licking her lips slowly, enjoying watching Buffy follow her tongue, Faith took a final deep breath and stood up, straightening her shirt out.

"Seems someone isn't content with always being a bottom," Faith grinned at Buffy, winking as she moved back into Buffy's personal space, intent on coming out on top despite her recent loss of control under the other woman's ministrations.

"Guess not," Buffy replied, leaning into Faith, who leaned her head down to nip at the blonde's ear.

At the shudder that ran through the shorter woman's body, Faith flicked her tongue out, lightly tracing the outer curve of her ear, "Good."

With that food for thought, Faith pulled back and brushed past Buffy, satisfied that she was not the only one left hot and bothered. Turning when she made it to the doors, Faith saw that Buffy had merely turned around to watch her, but hadn't moved to follow yet.

"Coming?" Faith asked, her eyebrow arched, a lascivious smile spread across her features.

"Not soon enough," Buffy returned, grinning at Faith's mildly surprised look before moving to catch up with her.

Faith was leaning over the edge of the couch, a hand holding her face up, as she watched Kennedy bash Vi to death in Halo 3.

"Seriously Vi, stop shooting and start bashing," Rona grumbled.

"I'm better at shooting!" Vi shot back.

"News flash:" Faith interrupted, "You definitely aren't."

"It's sad, you know? I'm kicking your asses, and you're teamed up against me," Kennedy leaned back; the game paused for the moment.

"Faith, you sure you don't wanna join?" Vi asked again.

"For the fourth time, no." Faith replied, sitting up straighter and dropping her hand.

"Then what's with the hanging?" Kennedy asked.

Faith sighed, "B's bent on cooking pasta. I fear slightly for the kitchenware, but it's not my food."

The women laughed, before Rona glanced over her shoulder from her position on the floor to look at Faith, "So where's everyone at anyway?"

"Well, I know that Trey is playing pool with Spike downstairs; probably meanin' Angel's down there as well. Giles got dragged into another Dungeons and Dragons rematch with Andrew, Dan and Xander; who, I presume is soon to be distracted by Sandra as soon as she finishes tallying her sheet in the trauma ward. They're all back in the dining room, while any other slayers are probably attempting to sleep."

"What about Dawn?" Vi asked, only to have Kennedy snort at her, "What?"

"She's with Peter," Faith stated simply, "Which reminds me, Ken, why aren't you distracting Red yet?"

Kennedy shrugged, "She wanted to go over a few last minute things with the Coven before sleep. And by ‘sleep' she literally means sleep."

Faith arched an eyebrow, "Are you seriously gonna just let her sleep?"

Kennedy looked over at Faith, "Look you're talking about a very powerful Wicca. I'd rather let her get some sleep rather than exhaust her when she needs to focus tomorrow. You know Will; she's a nervous wreck before any apocalypse, especially when she has a pivotal role in stopping it. It was her one request to me."

Faith nodded, she had only been through one aborted apocalypse with the witch, but she knew Willow's personality well enough to grasp what Kennedy was telling her, "So this is how you decided to get through the night?" Faith gestured to the paused Halo game.

Kennedy grinned, "Well, part of it. Will did request to be woken up extra early."

Faith chuckled, "What, gonna try to calm her pre-apocalypse nerves?"

"It's a plan that has never ceased to be a success," Kennedy replied before turning back to the game.

Faith felt a quiver through her connection with Buffy and looked over her shoulder to the entrance of the living room across from the dining room. Back lit by the dining room lights, Buffy leaned against the door frame, her arms crossed under her chest. The sound of a shotgun firing before bashing and connecting with its target jolted Faith to glance at the TV and then at Kennedy, who gave Faith a sidelong glance and arched an eyebrow before rolling her eyes and shaking her head, refocusing on the game. Faith took that as her cue to leave and stood from her seat, stretching her arms above her head, a hand grasping a wrist and pulling to one side. The snort from Kennedy caused Faith to drop her arms, as the brunette slayer knew Faith's seductive game, and mocked it with just that one sound. Swatting Kennedy lightly in the arm, Faith moved around the couch and over to Buffy, who stood up straight and turned to walk into the kitchen, followed closely by Faith.

Arriving in the kitchen, Faith leaned her hip on the side of the counter, crossing her arms and watching Buffy move around the island, an amused expression on her features.

"What, boiling noodles took too long?" Faith jeered lightly.

Buffy glanced over her shoulder at the brunette, "Something like that." Turning back around, Buffy pulled open the microwave and pulled out a dish of the mashed potatoes that Xander had made the night before.

Faith's eyes narrowed as Buffy lifted a forkful of the steaming potatoes to her lips and blew on them before putting the food in her mouth and slowly sliding the fork back out between her lips. Flicking her gaze up to Buffy's eyes, Faith was surprised to see the green orbs watching her for her reaction. Licking her lips, Faith pushed herself from the counter and slowly walked around the island towards the doorway leading to the stairs. Stopping in the archway, Faith glanced back over at the blonde.

"I'm going upstairs," Faith informed her, her gaze dropping once again down the length of the smaller woman's body before flicking back up to meet dark green eyes, "Maybe I'll defy precedence for the night before an apocalypse an get some shuteye. Considering you're just hungry for food."

At that, Faith smirked and exited, hearing Buffy begin to scarf down the potatoes. No rush B, I can take all night.

Faith was leaning on her thigh, her foot on the edge of the roof, a pair of night vision binoculars held to her face as she scanned the ground below. The sweltering heat even in the night was causing sweat the make tracks down her skin, making semi-clean trails through the layer of dust on her body. Of everything she had heard about South Africa- uncomfortably hot was not one of them. Despite the heat, Faith still needed to try to remain hidden, and wore a pair of black pants, boots and a black t-shirt, her wavy hair pulled back into a thick ponytail.

Catching a glimmer of movement, Faith zoomed in to make certain of what she saw. When a demon lumbered out of the shadows into the moonlight, followed closely by eight other demons, two of which carried bound humans over their shoulders, Faith sighed and lowered her binoculars. ‘This is gonna be a long night.' Faith thought, unslinging her bow and pulling an arrow from her quiver. Notching it, Faith pulled the string taut. A local informant had given her the arrows, telling her that they were laced with a poison that was fatal to the breed of demons on the street below. Ignoring the feeling of déjà vu, Faith waited until she saw a glimmer of movement in the moonlight before releasing the arrow.

A growl of pain, followed by the sound of the demons crying out in confusion and anger caused her to smile as she notched another arrow, ‘Just another Tuesday night," Faith mused as she pulled the second arrow back, "They always seem to be the longest ones." Releasing the arrow, Faith exhaled as another demon screamed out in pain and fell.

Faith had pushed the door back behind her with her fingertips upon entering the bedroom, leaving it slightly open. Moving towards the bookcase, Faith pulled a book out and flipped it open, scanning it while waiting for Buffy to finally catch up- hopefully without choking on food to get here, Faith thought sighing quietly as she turned the page of the hardcover to read the title page, Tomorrow, When The War Began. They got that right, Faith mused before shutting the book and replacing it at the beginning of the series that ran after it. You'd never know she read to listen to her. Faith shook her head and turned, her gaze falling to the bed before the sound of rapid footfalls made her turn her head over her shoulder to watch Buffy enter their bedroom and shut the door behind her, leaning back against it as she did so.

Faith watched Buffy as the blonde regarded her silently for a moment, and took the time to turn her body to fully face the other woman. At this shift of movement, Buffy pushed herself from the door and closed the distance between the two of them in two strides, her hands coming up to cup Faith's face, pulling her down to her mouth. Faith leaned down into the blonde, a shiver shooting through her body at the aggressiveness being exhibited. Faith was too focused on keeping up with the tongue swirling around in her mouth to realize that Buffy was slowly pushing her backwards. Grunting when her back hit the bookcase, causing it to shake, Faith broke the kiss to exhale, lifting her face up to breath, only to groan as Buffy lowered her lips to assault her neck.

"God, B…" Faith trailed off, "You'd think there wasn't gonna be a tomorrow."

At this, Buffy stopped and pulled back slightly, just enough to be able to look Faith in the eyes, yet still let her breath tickle the brunette's skin, and quietly stated, "I don't wanna think about tomorrow."

Faith nodded mutely, understanding the unspoken request, and quickly dropped her head to capture Buffy's lips, her tongue trailing along Buffy's lower lip, seeking almost instant access to the hot mouth. Sighing against her mouth, Buffy shifted her hands, one holding a handful of brown hair against the back of Faith's head, the other left to its own devices as it trailed down Faith's body. Jerking her hips against Buffy's as the small hand cupped her breast, Faith spun the smaller woman around and pushed her against the bookcase. Exhaling against Faith's mouth, Buffy pressed her body up against Faith, who slipped her hands down to shorter woman's hips, who responded by hopping up, and Faith easily slid her hands under her thighs to hold the blonde up. Pressing Buffy's back solidly against the bookcase, causing it to rattle as their weight pressed it against the wall, Faith felt nimble fingers make their way to the hem of her shirt and inhaled sharply as nails dragged up her back as the shirt came up under Buffy's arms. Shifting her mouth to land a kiss on Buffy's jaw before dropping to her neck, Faith licked the other woman's pulse point before beginning to suck on it, smiling when Buffy threw her head back and unashamedly moaned, her hips jerking against Faith's, making her falter for a second.

"Faith, bed," Buffy panted into Faith's ear, causing the brunette to shudder.

Complying, Faith pulled away from the bookcase and turned around towards the bed, making her way quickly and dropping Buffy to the mattress, following her down on top of her. Leaning slightly over Buffy, Faith angled her head down, capturing the shorter woman's mouth in an open-mouthed kiss as she felt her shirt being pulled up her back and only broke the kiss to allow it to be pulled over her head and tossed carelessly to the ground. Leaning back down, Faith nipped at Buffy's jaw, smiling against her soft skin as she felt the clasp on her bra deftly flicked open, and rose up on her hands over the other woman to allow the bra to slide down her arms to land on top of Buffy, whose hungry eyes took in every newly bared inch of skin. Feeling her panties getting wetter, Faith moved a hand down to the hem of Buffy's shirt, pushing it up to the bottom of the blonde's bra, and, after sparing a glance, shifted down to land a kiss on the taut skin, the muscles flexing beneath the skin at the onslaught. Pushing the shirt up, Faith allowed Buffy to pull it over her own head before she bit the skin of her bellybutton, causing the blonde to gasp and arch her back, giving Faith the chance to slide a hand beneath her and unclasp her bra, pulling it off in one quick motion.

Moving up slowly, Faith's free hand found Buffy's, interweaving their fingers as she slowly moved back up the blonde's body. Nipping at the underside of one breast, Faith felt Buffy's breath hitch before flicking her tongue out and over a pert nipple. Breathing hot air over it, Faith finally succumbed and closed her mouth around the nipple, her hand sliding out of Buffy's grip and cupping the other breast. Arching up, Buffy snaked her hand into Faith's hair.

"Fuck," Buffy hissed, and Faith felt her body quiver at the neediness in the other woman's voice.

Releasing the hard bud from her mouth, Faith looked up over the rapidly moving chest at a pair of dark green eyes. Fuck. In an instant, Faith was on her back, and Buffy stretched her body out over the length of her body, one leg dropping down in between Faith's two. Pushing her thigh against Faith's body, Faith saw Buffy's dilated eyes delight in watching her arch in response. Gulping in a breath of air, Faith had the fleeting thought, I have never felt like I'm trying to keep up before. Her thoughts dissolved as she became aware of nimble fingers hooking in her sports shorts and pulling them down, her panties sliding with them. After kicking them off once they were far enough down, Faith felt her jaw drop slightly when Buffy rose up on her knees and slowly- dangerously so- took off her own shorts, her panties going with them. Breathing in the musky scent, Faith's eyes fell shut when Buffy settled herself in between her legs, and nearly jumped when she felt a nip on the inside of her thigh.

Opening her eyes, Faith looked down with lidded eyes at the blonde, whose almost wicked smile caused Faith to groan even before she felt the flat of her tongue drag over her clit.

"Fuck," Faith breathed, clenching the sheets in her hands.

With the tentative swipe of a tongue from her entrance to her clit, Faith threw her head back, moaning, her back arching in pleasure. It was then that lips took hold of her clit as two fingers slide into her that left her gasping, never feeling so at a loss of control. To her credit, Buffy never let up, her goal seemed to be to push Faith over the edge as powerfully and quickly as possible. Tumbling through her orgasm, Faith felt the aftershocks fluttering through her as Buffy plunged her tongue inside of her, giving her no time to recover.

"B-Buffy, oh…god, fuck," Faith grunted, moving a hand down to tangle in the blonde locks.

Writhing beneath a strong hand on her hip, holding her down gently, Faith jerked her hips as Buffy flicked a thumb over her tender clit, sending her quickly into another orgasm. Reaching down as she felt Buffy's tongue licking her clean, Faith dragged her nails along slender shoulders, conveying her need as Buffy finally gave in and moved back up her body. Pulling her down, Faith captured Buffy's mouth, a hand cupping her cheek; her thumb brushing along a cheekbone, a kiss mixed with tenderness and sated desire. Rolling them over, Faith broke the kiss and looked down at Buffy. The blonde's eyes were dark and dilated, her breath rapid, her mouth open slightly with swollen lips from kissing.

Nipping playfully at Buffy's bottom lip, Faith smiled when the blonde groaned, "My turn."

She had plans to not only make Buffy forget that there was an apocalypse in less than six hours, but also to forget her own name and maybe even the English language all together. High goals make things so much more fun.

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