Lizardmm - "Soulless" - Buffy/Faith - rating NC17 - part 3 - Complete

Chapter 13: One Foot on the Gas, One Foot in the Grave

The Boston girl chuckled to herself as she rummaged through the various outfits in Buffy's walk-in closet. She held up two different pairs of leather pants to her lower torso and silently lamented how much taller she was than Buffy. It was a shame to let leather go to waste, after all. And she doubted the Chosen One would make good use of her new, inherited wardrobe.

Buffy walked out of the master bathroom. “What's so funny?” she demanded, running a wide-toothed comb through her wavy blonde locks.

Faith looked over her shoulder at her sister-Slayer and tried not to drool. Facing a minimal amount of resistance, the Boston girl had convinced her golden-haired colleague to wear an outfit she had picked out. If they were going to investigate at a gothic bar, she reasoned to the elder slayer, then Buffy needed to look the part.

The lithe woman wore a short leather skirt, black leggings, and a dark purple halter that squeezed her modest breasts together. The vampire's midsection was deliciously bare, displaying the Californian's well-disciplined stomach. Her normally flat-ironed hair fell in wild, loose waves and her hazel-green eyes were outlined by dark kohl-eyeliner.

“Guess Dawnie won't be playing dress up with Big Sis's clothes anymore,” the Boston girl murmured appreciatively. She allowed her gaze to linger on the smaller woman's svelte form.

“Oh, no! Dawn!” Buffy blurted out, nearly dropping her brush on the carpeted floor. “I hope she's okay,” she worried aloud. “She still thinks I'm dead!”

Faith clucked her tongue on the roof of her mouth and returned the clothes to the wardrobe. “You are still dead.”

Buffy shook her head, and a small smile curled onto her red lips. “Details, details,” she lightly chuckled. The Californian hiked a leg up on the king-sized bed and bent at the waist to zip up knee-high black boots over her dark leggings.

Faith unconsciously licked her full lips as her eyes trailed along Buffy's slender legs from the boots up to where her dark leggings disappeared underneath the short skirt. “Gotta say, B,” the brunette cooed, “dead looks good on you.”

The Boston girl kept the remainder of her musings inside her head: But I would look even better on you.

I'm serious, Fai,” the blonde sighed, standing upright. “I should really get back to Sunnydale. I have no idea who's watching Dawn since Willow's here in LA. But I need to find out what I did the past three months, or it's gonna drive me crazy. And I've got to figure out how I got my soul back,” she added with a wistful look.

Faith sat down on the oversized bed and became momentarily lost to her own thoughts. The formerly rogue slayer hadn't thought about Buffy returning to Sunnydale until just now when the blonde had brought up the topic. But the younger slayer knew it was inevitable. Buffy had a life and a family back in SunnyHell. Faith knew her elder counterpart couldn't shirk her responsibilities and gallivant around Los Angeles with her forever.

“Do I need a belt with this skirt?” Buffy asked with her hands on her hips.

“Hmmm?” The brunette woman blinked a few times and shook her head, finally allowing her gaze to resettle on the expectant blonde. “Oh. Yeah,” Faith nodded. “Maybe something studded.”

Buffy hummed a wordless tune under her breath as she opened the top drawer of the hotel dresser. Her eyes flipped wide open and the song became lost in her throat, however, when she saw the contents of the bureau. She quickly slammed the drawer shut and moved on to the shelf below it.

The Californian's horrified expression was not lost on the brunette woman. “What's wrong, B?” Faith asked with a little grin. “What's in that drawer?”

“Erm, nothing really,” the vampire lied, not looking up to meet her sister-Slayer's predatory gaze. “No belts,” she babbled uncomfortably. “Just looking for a belt.”

The Boston girl hopped off of the bed and flew toward the drawer with a mischievous twinkle in her dark eyes. “Uh-uh, Blondie. You're not gettin' away with that. You're a terrible liar.”

The vampire positioned her body between the furniture and the dark beauty. “Please, Faith. Don't open it,” she pled. “It's so embarrassing.”

“Outta my way, B,” the brunette purred, licking her full lips. “That is, unless you like being a Buffy sandwich.”

Buffy could smell the sweet breath of her taller colleague - a mix of menthol and mint. Her warm breath delicately tickled against the blonde's neck. Faith pressed the front of her warm body more fully into the smaller slayer, causing Buffy's backside to bump against the wooden bureau. The furniture quietly creaked and groaned from the pressure of two feminine bodies pressed tightly against it.

“Uhm..I…” the blonde mumbled. She stared into the younger slayer's chocolate eyes and watched mesmerized as the dark pupils slightly dilated. Buffy could feel the Boston girl's heart beating rapidly inside her chest, and it made it difficult for her to form complete thoughts. The undead woman closed her eyes momentarily, futilely ignoring the mental picture of Faith's thick, warm blood throbbing through her veins.

Faith abruptly shoved the vampire out of the way, determined to examine the contents of the bureau drawer. Buffy jarred sideways, nearly falling over. Her arms flailed slightly in the air as she attempted to regain her balance.

The brunette yanked the top shelf open and released a shallow gasp. “Holy hell, Twinkie,” Faith exclaimed, her words dripping with approval. “I never knew you had it in you.” The Boston girl snickered at her choice of words. “But maybe I shoulda said, lookit all you've had in you.”

The Californian groaned and flopped down on the bed. She covered her face with her hands. “I'm in Hell,” she mumbled. “I died, and I'm in Hell.”

The brunette fished around the top drawer and pulled out an impressive vibrator. “This might be your Hell, but I think I'm in Heaven. Damn girl,” she laughed, returning the toy back to the bureau. “I don't think I even know where half of this stuff goes.”

“Can we just go now?” the small slayer whined, sticking her bottom lip out in an impressive pout.

“What for, B?” the taller woman leered, still sifting through the drawer. “Looks like we've got enough stuff in here to keep us entertained for at least one night.”

Buffy tried to ignore the younger woman's over-the-top innuendos. “So…” she began, rifling through her brain for a subject change, “You wanna do a quick patrol and then go play Encyclopedia Brown?”

“Role playing?” Faith wiggled her eyebrows lasciviously and closed the dresser drawer the a nudge of her hip.

The small blonde rolled her eyes dramatically. “God, don't you ever stop?”

“Naw, B,” the Boston girl said with a sly wink. “I can go all night long.”

“Encyclopedia Brown was a kid detective in a series of children's books,” the blonde stated matter-of-factly. “My dad used to buy me a new book whenever he'd come back from one of his business trips.”

“Oh.” Faith made a face. “Wasn't much of a reader when I was little. Not much of a reader now either,” she admitted sourly, “unless you count comic books.”

“Are you sure this outfit is okay?” Buffy looked down at her carefully chosen ensemble again. “'Cause I don't think I can squeeze any more leather on my body without looking like a suitcase.”

“Believe me, B,” the dark-haired woman assured the vampire. “You look good enough to eat.”

++++++++++++++++

The two slayers weaved their way through the front lobby of the Sunset Marquis. Buffy felt slightly embarrassed to be dressed in such revealing clothing when the majority of the other hotel patrons wore business suits and long, flowing dresses. If they could only get out the front revolving doors with no one seeing them…

“Ms. Rabbati, will you be needing your vehicle tonight?” A helpful male voice caused the two women to halt their exit. “I can call the valet to bring it around for you?”

Buffy looked at the dark slayer with panic in her hazel-green eyes. “I have a car?” she mumbled to the younger woman.

“Oh, this I've got to see,” the brunette beamed. “With your driving skills, it probably looks like something from a crash-car derby.” Faith turned to grin at the hotel clerk behind the front desk. “Bring the car around, Jeeves,” the Boston girl ordered, with one finger in the air.

“I can't believe you're enjoying this so much,” the blonde muttered when the hotel employee left to call for her vehicle.

“What's not to love, B?” Faith smiled, drumming her fingers against the hotel counter. “Isn't playing detective a little fun?”

“Whatever,” Buffy huffed. “You're not the one with the three month-long blackout binge.”

“True that,” the Boston girl nodded. She wiggled her eyebrows at the elder slayer. “But I just love watchin' you squirm.”

The hotel employee reappeared in front of the two leather-clad women. “Ms. Rabbati,” he smiled kindly, “your car will be out front in just a minute.”

The two women left the hotel lobby through the front revolving doors and stood on the curb. A menacing vehicle covered in chrome sped around the corner and stopped abruptly in front of the slayers.

The Boston woman's jaw fell open. “Holy shit, B,” she laughed.

“I have a Hummer?” Buffy sputtered, her bright eyes wide with surprise.

“Oh hell, yeah,” the younger woman smirked, snatching the keys from the parking attendance. Faith opened the drivers' side door and hopped up into the elevated vehicle. Her hands curled around the leather steering wheel and she grinned. “This night just keeps getting better.”

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

After parking the less-than-subtle vehicle a few blocks away, Faith led the elder slayer to a small, out-of-the way cemetery within the city limits. The Boston girl knew from months of patrolling that vampires were fairly scarce in the quaint pauper field. Although she didn't want to shy away from the opportunity to fight side-by-side with the blonde woman again, she was somewhat hesitant to face off against too many vampires with the elder slayer, now that Buffy was one of the undead as well.

“So you patrol pretty regularly, huh?” Buffy asked, catching up to the long strides of the taller woman.

Faith nodded. “Yeah, I try to every night, unless I'm banged up too bad. Then Angel or Gunn will do a sweep for me. LA's a little bigger than Sunnydale, so it's nice to have the help.”

The blonde snorted. “Yeah, just a little bigger.”

The two continued walking down a cobblestone path in the dark cemetery in silence. Buffy looked sideways at the taller slayer. “Gotta say. I'm definitely impressed. I never imagined you still be slaying after…” she paused, looking for the words that wouldn't offend her colleague, “…everything that happened.”

Faith ran her fingers through her long, dark waves. “Yeah, me either,” she admitted. She cleared her throat, feeling herself getting a little choked up. “Prison was probably the best kind of rehab for me though. About halfway through I stopped feeling sorry for myself and started wanting to really reform.”

Buffy gave the taller woman a shy smile and slipped her cool hand into Faith's, lightly interweaving their fingers. “Faith?”

“Mmhmm?” The brunette found her mind lost in the cool grip of her sister-Slayer.

The blonde chewed on her bottom lip and remained momentarily silent as if unsure how to proceed. Finally, she asked the question that had plagued her since first seeing the former convict in the lobby of the Hyperion. “Why didn't you come back to Sunnydale after you were released from prison?”

Faith pushed out a long breath between her lips. She had wondered when the blonde would get around to asking her this question. The Boston girl felt the vampire's marble touch subtly tighten, as if silently encouraging her to reveal her secrets.

“To be honest, B,” the dark-haired woman began, “I wasn't totally convinced that I was reformed when they first let me outta prison. Gettin' out early for good behavior was a total shock.” Faith shook her head. “I mean, I kept my nose clean, but not that clean. I guess I was worried that if I went back to Sunnydale - threw myself back into the place where it had all gone wrong - I'd relapse. Kinda like a recovering alcoholic avoiding the discount liquor store, ya know?”

Buffy nodded and remained silent. She didn't let go of the Boston girl's hand, however, and Faith squeezed her fingers. “Since we're all about the honesty tonight,” the raven-haired rogue started with a sly smile, “how come you never visited me in prison?”

“You mean when I wasn't busy dieing?” the Californian quickly quipped.

The brunette chuckled and swung their conjoined arms back and forth like a swing-set. “Yeah, I guess being six-feet under's a good excuse.”

“I guess I was embarrassed,” Buffy offered. “The way things ended between us, I just felt…” She paused, searching her emotions for the Truth. “I followed you to Los Angeles and acted like a raging lunatic,” she exasperated. “Threatening to kill you if you apologized? What was that about?”

“I didn't exactly have a monopoly on sanity myself, B,” Faith reminded the elder woman.

Buffy nodded, remembering all-too-well the Boston girl's fragile sanity. The Californian took a deep breath, a reflex, rather than a necessity. “This is nice,” she breathed. “It's so quiet out here. I haven't had a moment of silence since waking up, it seems.”

Faith tilted her head to the dark sky. Only a few stars were visible due to the city lights and pollution. The night air felt crisp and the faint scent of burning leaves lingered in the air. The dark-haired woman looked back at the profile of her sister-Slayer and tensed suddenly when she saw her features.

“Uh, Buff?” she stated awkwardly.

Buffy stopped walking and turned to fully face the younger slayer. “Yeah?”

“Might wanna do something about your mug,” the Boston girl joked. “I don't think bumps are in style this season.”

“Oh God,” the blonde gasped, covering her face to hide her demonic visage. “I still don't have control over that,” she lamented. “You must think I'm horrifying.”

“You could never be anything but beautiful to me, B,” the Boston girl admitted quietly.

“Oh, well…umm…thank you,” Buffy verbally blushed. She pulled her hands away from her face and the bumps and ridges smoothed out. The elder slayer cast her eyes away and looked slightly embarrassed to have lost control like that. The Californian's bashfulness was contagious, however, and Faith suddenly felt as though she had revealed too much.

The Boston girl kicked at a small pebble, sending it careening off the narrow pathway. “So, uhm,” she bumbled awkwardly. “Wanna go dancing?”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Suggested Listening: “Bad Things” - Jace Everett

“I thought you said this was a goth bar?”

The two stood in the entranceway of the club where Faith had first run into the vamped-up slayer. The normally chaotic dance floor in the center of the club now featured tidy, neat rows of solitary dancers. If the Boston girl didn't know any better, she would have thought they were practicing some new kind of gothic army drill. But no, they were just line dancing.

 

 

“And just when you think you've seen everything,” the brunette woman muttered as a burly tattooed man passed them on the way to the restroom. His kohl-lined eyes seemed a little less imposing because of the small cowboy hat on top of his head.

“C'mon, Twinkie,” Faith chuckled. She grabbed onto Buffy's elbow and led her deeper into the dank club. “At least the alcohol won't have changed on us.”

The two women saddled up to the long bar. Faith nodded at the pale-skinned bartender. “What's up with the cow-folk?”

The bartender grimaced slightly, sticking out his forked tongue just beyond his parted lips. “Gothic cowboys. Who knew? Don't worry though, Sweetness,” he winked. “This nonsense only goes until midnight.” He wiped down the sticky bar top with a white rag. “What can I get for you and your lady friend?”

Faith held up two fingers. “Gimme two beers and two Afterburners.”

The bartender gave the brunette woman a curt nod and turned his back to fill the order.

The vampire scrunched up her face. “Afterburner?” she repeated the word waveringly. “Why does that sound dangerous?”

The Boston girl laughed at the novice drinker. “Don't worry, Lightweight. You'll like it. It's got all kinds of girly alcohol in it: Malibu, Bailey's…”

“Oh, well I do like those,” the Chosen One smiled as she took a seat on one of the empty bar stools.

“See?” the younger woman grinned, sitting down beside the blonde. “I wouldn't steer ya wrong.”

The tattooed bartender turned around again and placed four drinks in front of the slayers. “Two beers and two Afterburners.”

Buffy reached for the smaller drink, but pulled her hand back when the bar employee produced a Bic lighter. She watched as the man lit the top of each shot, creating a pale blue flame.

“Thanks muchly,” the Boston girl smiled, giving the bartender a wink. “Bottoms up, B,” she grinned. Faith blew on the top of her drink, extinguishing the flame, and quickly tipped the shot back.

Buffy made a face, but picked up the fiery alcohol. She filled her lungs, pursed her lips and blew. But nothing happened.

“Erm, Faith?” The blonde stared nervously at the flaming shot glass. She tried blowing again, but with the same results. “Uh, Faaiiith,” she sing-songed, tugging at the taller woman's arm. Buffy cautiously placed the shot back on the bar and leaned away from the burning beverage.

The Boston girl swiped at her mouth with the back of her hand, wiping away the remnants of alcohol. “B, you gonna drink that or just let it burn down the bar?”

“I don't have any breath,” Buffy explained, still staring at the small shot glass.

“Oh! My bad!” The younger slayer bent slightly at the waist and quickly blew out the burning drink. “Sorry, B. I didn't even think about that.”

Buffy stared at the wasted drink, silently lamenting the loss of another function that made her human. Faith slid a glass bottle in the elder slayer's direction, garnering her attention once more. “Here, B,” she coaxed. “Don't need air to drink a beer. Or better yet,” she said with a wink, hoping to lighten the blonde's mood, “there's always body shots.”

The elder slayer grabbed the beer bottle and took a long pull from the cool liquid. She quickly swallowed and hungrily went back for more. Buffy hadn't fed since earlier that morning, before getting banished from the Hyperion, and was starting to get hungry again. Although the alcohol wasn't what she really desired, the liquid was soothing in its own way.

“Looks like you found another brunette to scratch that itch for you.”

Buffy turned away from the bar to find the owner of the bitter voice. A pretty brunette with a scowl across her face stood with her arms folded across her chest. Her blood-red lips were twisted in a grimace. Her dark hair was long and hung straight down her back. Her skin was eerily white, even for being a patron of this bar.

The blonde vampire's eyes grew wide, the neck of the beer bottle still between her lips. She flashed her eyes in the direction of the Boston girl and gave her a small shrug with her eyebrows, hoping the younger woman could read her thoughts. Buffy had no recollection of who this woman might be.

“I can't believe you would bring another girl here. And a human, at that!” the stranger sniffed, uncrossing her arms and clenching her fists at her sides. “You know I always come here on Thursday nights.” Anger seemed to roll off the curvaceous woman in waves.

“Hey there,” the dark slayer interrupted. She stuck her outstretched hand in the disgruntled woman's face. “I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Faith.”

The dark-haired stranger looked between Faith's hanging hand and the blonde slayer's face. “So this is the infamous Faith,” she purred, the corners of her mouth curling up.

“Uh, yeah. I'm Faith. And that would make you…?” the brunette slayer trailed off.

The anonymous woman stared hard at the perplexed blonde. “Just the replacement,” she growled quietly.

Buffy swallowed down her beer and pretended to be interested with the design on the bottle's label. She didn't know who this woman was, but the familiar way in which she stared at her made the Californian squeamish.

Faith dropped her hand at her side. “This place is pretty dead tonight…if you'll pardon the pun,” the Boston girl winked playfully. “How about the three of us go someplace more happenin'?”

The dark-haired stranger paused momentarily, looking thoughtfully between the two women. “I don't want to be a third wheel,” she muttered, unable to keep her eyes from lingering on the undead woman's slight curves.

“The more the merrier, right Buffy?” the raven-haired woman beamed.

“Will you excuse us for just a minute?” Buffy asked in a panicked voice as she dragged Faith a few feet away. “What are you doing?” the undead slayer hissed at her darker colleague. Her hand tightened around the Boston woman's bicep. “She's obviously a vampire.”

The Boston girl nodded. “But she's a vampire who seems to know you. This is the lead we've been waiting for, B,” she stated emphatically. Faith glanced back at the other brunette woman. The demon was giving the two slayers an impatient look. “Just play along,” the raven-haired slayer insisted. “Nothing bad's gonna happen, okay?”

The blonde grimaced. “I know. You're right - this is the kind of thing we've been looking for. But…I'm starting to get a little hungry,” she stated with a small frown.

Faith waved a hand in the air, dismissing the elder woman's concern. “If it gets too bad, then just have s'more of mine. I've got plenty of blood to go around.”

The undead slayer worried her bottom lip and sighed. “Encyclopedia Brown never had to deal with anything like this.”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Chapter 14: Let the Flames Begin

The three women wove around piles of discarded trash and empty cardboard boxes. Faith confidently followed the brunette vampire, yet internally she questioned if she had made the right choice in convincing her blonde-colleague to leave with their new acquaintance. Buffy obediently followed the dark slayer, deeper down the narrow alley, holding anxiously onto the crook of her arm.

The strange vampire, who had later introduced herself as “Vivien,” stopped in front of a blood red door. She turned briefly to the stricken blonde. “I thought we'd stop by one of our old haunts, Sweetie,” she smiled saccharinely.

Buffy nodded and gave the dangerous creature a tight-lipped smile. “Sounds great,” she forced out.

The undead brunette stared eerily at the other vampire, but shook her head after a moment. Turning away from the two slayers, Vivien knocked briskly on the iron door. Reminding the slayers of some old Mafia cliché, a small trap window squeaked noisily open. Two blood-shot eyes stared back at the threesome. “Yeah?” a gravely male voice snarled out into the alley.

“Let us in,” Vivien sighed, clearly annoyed by the delay.

The demonic eyes scanned the attractive group. “Identification?” he demanded.

Buffy instinctively reached into her jacket pocket for her State ID, but tensed when she remembered the drivers license in her stolen wallet didn't have her picture on it. How was she going to get into this club?

Vivien flashed her fangs at the doorman. “That good enough for ya?”

The red-rimmed eyes appeared unimpressed. “What about your two friends?” he sniffed.

Buffy smiled at the bouncer and allowed her fangs to slip out as well before morphing back to her human canines.

The demon behind the door raised a thick eyebrow. “And the other one?”

The brunette vampire grabbed Faith's bicep. “She's with us,” she stated boldly, glaring at the bouncer, challenging him to deny her this.

The trap door crunched closed and the heavy metal door swung open, screaming and protesting against the rusty hinges. The three women quickly entered the club and the heavy door closed solidly behind the group.

The bouncer was a thick-necked vampire in a dirty white tank top. Two arm-sleeves decorated his beefy biceps and forearms. The undead man lit a cigarette and gazed admiringly at the feminine forms. “Have fun in there, ladies,” the lecherous demon rasped.

The three women walked past the coat-check station and descended a narrow set of twisting stairs. Faith's knees buckled slightly when she walked deeper into the poorly lit club. “Woah,” she mumbled under her breath, allowing her blonde colleague to hold her up. “Vampire bar,” she muttered to the other slayer. The Boston woman took a couple of deep breaths, willing the room to stop spinning. With so many vampires surrounding her in such a confined space, her Slayer senses were overwhelmed.

Buffy paused momentarily, sensing her dark-haired friend's ill ease. “Are you okay?” she whispered, low enough for only Faith to hear.

The raven-haired beauty coughed once, clearing her throat, and stood a little straighter on her own. “Five-by-five, B,” she stated finally.

“I don't think this is a good idea,” the blonde vampire murmured in her sister-Slayer's ear as they followed Vivien toward the bar. The bar had no windows and the walls were painted black. A scattering of overhead lights illuminated the dank space. Buffy could feel the lingering eyes of dangerous vampires sizing them up. The small, dark room seemed to ooze death.

Faith clutched onto Buffy's hand and gave it a tight squeeze. “You'll be fine, B,” she smiled. “Just act like a big bitch and everyone will think you're the same soulless bloodsucker.”

The Californian subtly rolled her eyes. “I'm not worried about me,” she stated through clenched teeth. “I can handle myself. I'm worried about you,” she admitted. “I can't protect you from all of these vampires.”

Faith patted the elder woman's chilly hand patronizingly. “That's real sweet, B.” She batted her eyelashes. “But I'm a big girl.”

“But we're surrounded by vampires.” Buffy narrowed her hazel-green eyes at the reckless woman.

Faith looked disgruntled by her blonde colleague's adamant behavior. “Hey Viv,” she called out. The brown-haired vampire turned away from the bar and raised an eyebrow. “We're just gonna hit the john, okay?”

Vivien pursed her lips. “You don't have to tell me twice,” she snickered. “I know how much Buffy likes bathrooms.”

The blonde stood bewildered and allowed the dark-haired slayer to drag her away to the unisex restroom. “What does that mean?” she wondered aloud.

++++++++++++++++++

Buffy stared at her non-reflection in the mirror and waited for the Boston woman to exit the bathroom stall.

“Why would they have mirrors in the bathroom of a vampire bar?” she questioned. She looked away from the plane of glass when she heard the toilet flush.

Faith swaggered out of her stall and zipped up the front of her pants. Buffy averted her eyes when she saw a flash of dark purple lace. The brunette maneuvered her way in front of the other slayer to wash her hands. “Dunno, B. Some kind of twisted irony, I suppose,” she stated, as she lathered up her hands. Liquid handsoap in a demon bar made her curious as well. Did vampires really worry about germs?

Buffy placed her hands on her hips as she watched the carefree slayer finish washing her hands. “How can you be so calm and collected when this place is teeming with vampires?” she demanded.

The Boston girl shrugged as she dried her hands. “Listen, if you're really that afraid for my safety, all you have to do to tell them I'm yours.”

“Say that again?” the blonde asked, raising an eyebrow.

Faith wiped her slightly damp hands on the back of her pants. “There's like an unwritten blood sucker rule - it might actually be written down, now that I think about it. If a vampire claims a human as his or her own, no other vamp can touch `em.”

“So all I have to say is that you're mine and they'll leave you alone?” the Californian asked incredulously. “How do you know this and I don't?”

“Angel and I used to do it all the time in some of the outskirt demon bars,” Faith explained nonchalantly. “If we needed to go there to pump some baddie for information, he'd tell the other vamps that I belonged to him and they'd leave us alone.”

Buffy's eyes grew wide. “Angel did that? With you?”

The Boston girl scowled. “Don't get your panties in a twist, Blondie. I'm not hording in on your man if that's what you're thinkin' - it was purely professional.”

“No, I…that's not what I…” Buffy frowned. “Never mind.”

The two stood in awkward silence for a moment. “Did he ever….bite you?” the blonde asked with a grimace.

Faith made a face. “That's disgusting, B. Gross. You actually think I'd let Angel bite me?” She shuddered, her curvaceous form slightly gyrating.

Buffy looked down at her stylish-but-affordable knee-high boots. “So I'm the only one…” she trailed off.

The raven-haired slayer chuckled lowly. “Yup, Blondie. You popped my vampire cherry.”

++++++++++++++++++++++

Suggested Listening: “Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddon” - Marilyn Manson

The two slayers swaggered out of the bathroom and sauntered toward the bar. After her brief pep talk with Faith, the blonde woman felt more confident. Now when the lingering eyes of some vampire swept over her leather-bound form, she rewarded them with a steely glare. If she let herself think about it, it felt almost like when she was a cheerleader back at Hemery High. Before vampires and slaying ever entered her vocabulary, she had looked down through her nose at scum like this before.

A short, wiry vampire intercepted the two women. His hair was red and spiked in a messy faux-hawk. You could tell that he hadn't been the kind of human who tanned easily, but perpetually sunburned instead. The undead man gave the two women a sly grin. He cocked his head toward the sparse dance floor where mixed vamp-couples slowly grinded on each other. “Wanna dance?” he leered, not directing the question at any of the two slayers specifically.

Buffy placed the flat of her palm on the man's scrawny chest. “Back off, Twiggy,” she sniffed. She looked the man up and down and showed her distaste. “We're not tourists.”

The Boston girl touched the blonde's elbow as they stalked past the dejected vampire. “Nice job, B,” she murmured for only the elder slayer to hear. “If I didn't know any better, I'd say you'd been an icy bitch before,” she winked.

Faith and Buffy slid up next to Vivien at the bar. The soulless woman passed a pint of thick red liquid to the undead slayer and flashed her a brilliant, toothy smile. “I got you A positive - I remembered it's your favorite,” she purred.

Buffy gave the brunette vampire a fake grin and raised her glass in mock salute before taking a deep sip. She was thankful for the snack, even if it came from Vivien. Her hunger had started to become distracting and she really didn't want to feed off of Faith anymore - as delicious as she tasted. Not only did it mildly creep her out to drink from a human, period, but the slayer's blood was like a dangerous aphrodisiac. Feeding from the beautiful Boston woman threatened Buffy's fragile self-control.

Vivien looked thoughtfully at Faith as Buffy busied herself with emptying the contents of the pint glass down her throat. “I would have gotten something for you too, but I don't think they have anything here for your kind,” the vampire sneered.

The Boston girl shrugged and drummed her fingers on the bar top. “S'ok,” she shrugged nonchalantly. “I'm not all that thirsty.”

Vivien licked her full lips and glanced toward the blonde. Buffy set the empty pint glass on the bar top and wiped at her top lip. “I'm curious to know what's so special about this human,” the undead brunette stated questioningly. Her teeth slipped out of her mouth. “Does she taste as sweet as she smells?”

“Don't!” Buffy yelled out, garnering the attention of half the bar's patrons. The blonde slayer coughed quietly when the dark-haired vampire looked at her with wild eyes. “Um…she's mine.”

Vivien looked mildly impressed and took a step away from the Boston woman. Her teeth retracted. “Oh really? It's as serious as that, is it?”

The Californian averted her eyes. “Yeah, she's mine. So just leave her alone.”

Vivien looked between the two slayers. “Well, let me know if you change your mind,” she drawled. “Cause she's absolutely divine.”

Faith couldn't help the small smile that curled onto her lips. She felt a flush of pride and lust when Buffy called her mine, even though she knew it was just for her own safety.

“So Viv,” the brunette slayer began, remembering why they had agreed to shadow the vampire in the first place. “How did you and Buffy meet?” she asked. “I never did hear that story.” Faith slid her arm around the lithe slayer's thin waist possessively and pulled her close so their hips bumped against each other. Buffy flashed the taller woman a warning look, but the Boston girl merely grinned innocently in return.

Vivien set down her pint glass and smiled mischievously. She licked the blood away from the corners of her mouth. “Well of course she wouldn't have told you that story,” she mused. “It's not for the faint of heart,” she sniffed.

Faith leaned forward. “Try me,” she grinned manically.

“We met at some feeder bar,” Vivien began. “I walked in on this one feasting on a sorority girl in the bathroom.” The vampire knocked her elbow against the startled blonde conspiratorially. The undead brunette smiled proudly. “You should have seen her, Faithy,” she breathed in admiration. “I thought I'd walked in on Lucifer himself.”

Vivien's eyes looked glassy as she recalled meeting the blonde for the first time. “Blood poured down that bimbo's neck, staining the front of her white t-shirt. Her right hand was mangled beyond recognition. It was breathtaking, really. Buffy had the woman on her knees on the bathroom floor,” she continued. Vivien appeared to become more excited the further she dove into the story. “Her leather pants were undone and this hapless co-ed was licking away at her pussy even though she'd just been fed on. I'd never seen thrall that powerful before.”

Vivien paused for effect, and swept her eyes over the Boston girl's face to gauge her reaction, but the beautiful brunette stared back, unflinching. If anything, the brown-haired woman had pulled the Californian even tighter against her body.

“When I walked in,” the dark vampire continued, “Buffy was kind enough to let me have a turn, and then we drained that pathetic girl. The whole scene was so utterly erotic, that we fucked like satanic rabbits on the bloody bathroom floor afterwards,” she crudely revealed.

If it was possible, Buffy's skin paled even more from Vivien's admission. Had she actually…done all of that? She had killed another innocent in such a degrading and inhumane manner? She had sex with another vampire? And this time it was a woman? And why did vampire doppelgangers always turn out to be so gay?

The Boston girl bravely held onto the smaller woman when she felt Buffy's body falter. Faith tore her eyes away from the shaking slayer to glare at the cruel vampire. This was getting a little too personal; she had wanted to help Buffy remember what had happened the previous three months, but now all the Boston girl wanted to do was protect the smaller slayer from what had happened.

“You know…I heard all about you,” Vivien revealed to the Boston girl. The vampire smirked, as if laughing at a private joke. “I never expected you'd be a fang-banger though - thought you woulda been one of us.”

Faith's eyebrows went to her hairline. “Fang-banger?”

Vivien ignored the unasked question. “This girl certainly likes her kinks, doesn't she?” she purred. The vampire trailed a manicured fingernail down Buffy's bare arm, making the blonde slayer shudder. “But I'm sure I don't have to tell you that,” she winked lasciviously.

Vivien clucked her tongue on the roof of her mouth. “Sex with this human,” she wondered aloud. She sighed wistfully. “What I wouldn't give to be a fly on that wall.”

The Boston girl felt slightly unnerved, although her stoical face belied her unsettled emotions. She knew the soulless version of Buffy had killed humans, but she had never imagined the level of cruelty and perversion. And although Buffy had had sex with her in her soulless state, she had somehow held out the hope that she had been Buffy's only female experience.

“I'm tired of all this talking,” the undead brunette whined. She grabbed onto the slayers' hands. “Let's dance.”

Buffy's face snapped into its demonic visage. “Keep your hands off of her,” she snarled. She shoved Vivien a few steps backwards. “I said she's mine.”

“Oh yeah?” came a challenging voice from a corner of the bar. A thick woman standing by the jukebox straightened herself and stared menacingly at the blonde slayer. “I've been watching you three all night and I don't like what I've seen. If she's supposedly your human, then where's your mark?” The bar became eerily quiet.

Buffy lowered her voice menacingly. “Not all scars are visible to the eyes,” she growled.

A slow chant germinated from a hidden corner of the demon bar: “Bite her.”

The mantra became louder and louder, and eventually became punctuated with vampire fists crashing down solidly on tables. Pint glasses full of thick blood rattled on the wooden tables as the undead bar crowd worked themselves into a frenzy.

“Bite her. Bite her! Bite her!!”

Vivien took a menacing step toward the two slayers. “Yeah, Buff. I wanna see you feed off of her. If she's your human, after all,” she cooed, “it shouldn't be a big deal.”

Buffy looked helplessly at the younger slayer. Faith raised a carefully manicured eyebrow at her sister-Slayer. They could possibly take on all of these vampires to avoid the blonde biting her again, but it would be suicide. Wordlessly, Faith brushed her long, flowing locks away from her neck and tilted her head to the side. She stared hard at the California slayer, challenging her to do what needed to be done.

The chanting echoed hollowly in Buffy's ears as she slowly crept closer to the Boston girl. She stared at the flawless neck and then flicked her eyes back up to Faith's face. The dark-haired girl grimaced, but her breathing sounded heavier to the blonde slayer's sensitive hearing.

Buffy gently wrapped her arms around the brunette's thin waist and pulled her closer. Faith arched her back slightly and the blonde stifled a groan when their cores unintentionally bumped together. The slayer-vampire trailed her fingers down the smooth skin and paused to feel the rapid pulse beating under her icy touch.

“Just do it already, B,” the Boston girl groaned quietly.

When Buffy sank her teeth into the porcelain skin, the sound of demonic cheering rushed into her ears, but it was soon drowned out by the rhythmic thudding of Faith's heart. The slayer-vampire closed her eyes and drank deeply, tightening her hold around the younger woman's curves. Even though she had just downed a pint of blood from the bar, there was always room for slayer blood.

The vampire deep inside her coaxed Buffy to continue drinking - to drain the Slayer until her heartbeat fluttered to a stop. Every basic instinct commanded the small slayer to kill the woman in her arms. But Buffy Summers - not the demon - won out, and the blonde disengaged her toothy-lock on the taller woman.

Somehow, despite the chaotic frenzy churning around them, Buffy was able to maintain control of her demonic urges. The Chosen One had previous experience denying her most primal urges. As a slayer, everyday had been a testament to that. It seemed, however, that around the Boston woman, the golden-haired slayer had a history of letting her animal desires win out.

“Are you okay?” the Californian whispered softly. Buffy nuzzled her nose into the younger slayer's neck and licked at the twin wounds.

Faith reached down and squeezed the thin arms that continued to circle her waist. “Five-by-five,” she panted.

Vivien's eyes had turned a sickly yellow color. She flicked her pink tongue across her bottom lip. “Fuck that was hot, kids,” she murmured. “How about we go someplace else and continue this?”

Faith held her hand around her neck, keeping pressure on the wound. She knew she would stop bleeding in moments, but didn't need the vampires in the bar knowing she was a slayer. “Yeah,” she grunted. “I still feel like partying.”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Vivien rushed out into the night air and exploded into manic laughter. “I can't believe you went all possessive like that, Buffy,” she giggled. “It was so cute. Maybe I'll have to get a human of my own, too.” She turned to look at the two slayers who had followed her out of the club and into the abandoned alley.

Faith lowered her hand from her neck. The wound had closed up already. She gave her sister-Slayer a knowing smile. “So what do ya think, B?” she considered aloud. “Think that's all this bitch knows?”

Buffy looked thoughtful and cocked her head to the side. “I think that's all the information we're gonna get from her.”

The vampire backed up a few steps and her eyes went wide with worry. “What the hell are you two yappin' about?”

The two slayers continued to close the distance between themselves and the soulless demon.

“You want this one? Or can I have her?” Faith asked, licking her lips.

“She's all yours, Fai,” the blonde vampire purred. “I just wanna watch.”

The Boston woman pulled the wooden weapon from the waistband of her dark pants. The vampire's eyes widened with recognition. “You're-you're a Slayer, too,” she sputtered.

Faith smiled widely and held the stake up. “Ding! Ding! Ding!” she mocked. “And the lady wins a prize.”

“But in your case,” the blonde vampire called out from the darkness, “you've won a ticket straight back to Hell.”

The stake flew through the air and pierced the doomed creature's unbeating heart. The brunette vampire clutched at the wooden dagger just before she exploded into a cloud of gritty dust. The weapon fell to the paved alleyway, clattering against the solid ground.

Faith walked over to the dust pile and retrieved the stake. She slipped the weapon back into the waistline of her leather pants. The Boston girl sauntered over to the elder slayer who sat atop a wooden crate. The dark-haired woman reached out and brushed away an errant lock of blonde hair that had found its way onto the Californian's unlined forehead.

Faith's eyes flashed wildly in the dimly lit alley. “The sun's gonna be up soon,” she breathed. “So your hotel or mine?”

Buffy looked momentarily startled, unsure if the Boston girl had a hidden agenda. “Your apartment is closer.”

+++++++++++++++++++++

 

Chapter 15: How it Feels to be Me

Suggested Listening: Dave Matthew's Band - “Lying in the Hands of God”

Faith drew the heavy drapes closed so the undead slayer wouldn't have to worry about sunlight while she slept during the daylight hours. After quickly disposing of Vivien in the back alley of the random demon bar, the two slayers had returned to the Boston woman's apartment to avoid the sunrise. Now the two remained awkwardly in the bedroom of the dark-haired girl's modest home.

“What does it feel like when I…yuh know…bite you?”

The raven-haired slayer turned back towards the blonde. Her face looked flushed in reaction to the undead woman's seemingly innocuous question.

“What does it feel like?” the Boston girl repeated the question.

Buffy nodded from her seated position on the bedroom's double mattress. Her feet dangled off the edge of the bed and swung her bare feet back and forth. She had taken off her high-heeled boots and leggings at the door. “Uh-huh. I mean…does it hurt very badly?”

Faith opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the elder girl.

“Cause I've only been bitten once…” Buffy started, “well twice, if you count Dracula, but that was totally a thrall thing and so I totally didn't even really feel it, so I think it shouldn't really count. But when Angel bit me, he was like my boyfriend at the time, and I was attracted to him, so I didn't hurt as much as I guess another vampire biting me would. In fact it was kind of a turn on, which is kinda freaky if you think about it - a vampire slayer being turned on by getting bit by a vampire. But then again I was dating a vampire, so that in itself is kind of bizarro. And wow, I can babble for a long time without stopping now that I don't need to breathe any air. Feel free to stop me whenever.” The vampire took an unnecessary deep breath.

Faith blinked a few times and stared open mouthed at her sister-Slayer. “Holy shit, B,” she remarked. “That's gotta be like some World Record or something.”

The blonde looked embarrassed by her outburst, but was determined to know the answer.

The Boston girl sat down next to the smaller woman on the bed. She intertwined the fingers of one hand with the other slayer's feminine digits. Although the two had been little more than coworkers when the Californian's heart still beat, it now felt uncannily natural to touch the small slayer in such a familiar way. When Buffy didn't pull away, but instead leaned in, the dark-haired girl felt encouraged.

“Well, it hurts,” Faith admitted. “At first that is.” Absentmindedly, the Boston girl touched her fingertips to the still tender marks near her clavicle. The bleeding had quickly stopped where Buffy had bitten her in the vampire bar. She imagined the skin was bruised, however, as it felt a little sore. “There's like this sharp prick in the beginning,” she continued. “And then, I guess when your teeth are goin' in, there's this burning pressure. Like something's forcing itself in where it doesn't belong.”

Seeing the guilt beginning to cloud the blonde's eyes, Faith squeezed Buffy's knee. “But that's over pretty fast,” she assured the undead slayer. Her lips twisted into a wry smile, and her fingertips fluttered over the Californian's smooth skin. “And then, when you feed, my entire body feels alive. It's like,” she paused, trying to align her feelings with the adjacent words, “ maybe you feel the most alive just before you're going to die.”

“Well, that's reassuring,” Buffy deadpanned.

Faith scowled. “Shit, I don't know how to describe it, B.” She turned to look more fully at the golden-haired woman. “What's it like for you?”

Buffy tensed and pursed her lips. She slipped her hand out of Faith's hold and placed both her palms on her bare knees.

Faith smirked. “Not that easy, is it?”

The Californian flashed her eyes at the cocky slayer. “I could tell you,” she protested. “But it's embarrassing.”

“Embarrassing?” Faith repeated. She wiped her hands on her jeans. Her palms had become sweaty and clammy holding the vampire's hand. “What's so embarrassing?”

“Cause…you know…”

“No, I don't, B,” the dark-haired girl smiled, leaning subtly closer.

“You know what Slayer blood does to vampires,” the Chosen One mumbled, casting her eyes to the ground.

Faith smiled smugly. Watching the undead girl become so flustered brought back early memories of Sunnydale - before everything had gone to Hell.

“Why don't you tell me exactly what it's like?” the dark slayer urged thickly.

“I feel…human,” Buffy started slowly. “I feel so numb all the time because - hello…dead….But when I'm feeding, it's like I'm human again. But it's borrowed.”

The vampire shook her head, her eyes looking glassy as she recalled how drinking from the dangerous brunette made her feel. “The anticipation is intoxicating. You just smell so good. And your skin,” she winced,” is soft and warm and alive. And even though I know you're strong, you still feel fragile and vulnerable in the moments before I bite you.”

Buffy released a shaky breath. “And when I finally taste you…the blood - your blood - is warm and thick and a little spicy. Drinking from you is liquid adrenaline. It's pure rage. It's ancient and primal…and it's lust. If slaying makes you hungry and horny, feeding from a Slayer is…” she trailed off, unwilling to allow herself to say the words.

The Californian blinked once hard as if pulling herself out of a trance. She turned to look again at the woman seated beside her. Faith's chocolate eyes appeared dark and dilated. Her breathing sounded ragged as if she had just run a great distance.

For the first time since waking up in Los Angeles, the undead woman felt afraid.

“Faith,” Buffy whispered cautiously as she watched the Boston girl leaned in until their lips were less than a breath's width away.

The raven-haired beauty reached up and slid her fingertips through the elder slayer's tousled locks. Her breath felt warm on the Californian's face like a soothing ocean breeze on a humid summer day. “Buffy,” she murmured in return.

“I-I don't know if I can,” the vampire sighed, leaning into the younger slayer's delicate touch.

“Why not, B?” the Boston girl breathed. She brushed her full lips against the elder slayer's quivering mouth.

“I don't know…if I can stay in control,” the smaller woman murmured.

The tip of Faith's pink tongue darted out from between her parted lips and flicked along the blonde's bottom lip. “I trust you.”

Buffy whimpered and her eyes fluttered shut when she felt the deliciously soft pressure against her mouth. Faith's hands traveled up the elder woman's porcelain neck. Her fingers dove into the blonde curls at the nape of the vampire's neck and her fingertips gently massaged into Buffy's scalp. Tentatively, the Californian deepened the kiss, and smiled when she felt and heard the younger woman moan into her open mouth.

Faith's mouth danced along the vampire's lips. Buffy eagerly returned the kiss, stroking her tongue along the Boston girl's own. The elder slayer had never kissed a girl before, unless you counted innocent experimentation at sleepovers. She silently pondered if all women were this good at kissing, or if the dark-haired girl was just specifically talented.

Faith released her tight grip on the slayer-vampire's golden hair. Her hands traveled down to the leather bodice that squeezed the blonde's modest breasts together. The Boston girl's nimble fingers made quick work of the laces that had fasted the dark purple halter tight across the smaller woman's upper torso. The brunette slayer hastily ripped the top away, causing Buffy's naked breasts to spill out.

The vampire gasped when the morning chill attacked her sensitive nipples. Faith's warm hands cupped the palm-sized globes and purred at the sensation of Buffy's hardened nubs digging into her palms. She gently squeezed the naked flesh, pulling a guttural moan from the smaller slayer. Buffy arched her back slightly, pushing her chest more fully into the Boston girl's expert grip.

Faith dipped her head to wrap her lips around a hardened nipple. The vampire hissed at the sensation - the Boston girl's warm mouth felt like a luxurious bubble bath. The brunette paused long enough to allow the elder slayer to pull her top over her head before reattaching herself to the blonde's upturned breasts. She had seen this naked body before…she had done many of these things before to this same body….but never with Buffy Summers. The dark slayer took her time, knowing that this might be her last.

The brunette moaned into the soft swell of Buffy's breasts when she felt the blonde girl boldly remove her bra. The Boston girl's tits swung freely, no longer confined by lace and underwire. The vampire's chilly fingers traveled to Faith's naked breasts and clamped and twisted on her hardening nipples. The slayer-vampire rolled the jumbled buds between her fingers, applying the smallest amount of pressure on the sensitive flesh as if she instinctively knew what the dark slayer liked.

Keeping her mouth rotating from one rose-colored nipple to the other, the Boston girl slightly rose from the bed. Her free hands went to the clasp of her tight denim pants, and she shimmied the clothing and her barely-there thong down her curves and onto the floor.

Buffy pulled away from the younger woman, her breasts slipping from the brunette's candy mouth with a noisy plop. She took a moment to run her eyes along the expanse of the Boston slayer's impressive naked form. Her breasts were significantly larger than her own, but without a hint of sagging. Her thin, tapered waist narrowed and gently flowed out to meet the natural curve of her womanly hips.

The Californian's hands went to the side snap of her leather skirt and she lifted her backside off of the bed to remove the offending clothing. Faith's hands reached for the blonde's and stopped her before she could slide her lace panties down her slender thighs.

The brunette looked hard into the golden slayer's hazel-green eyes. “Let me,” she husked deeply.

Buffy chewed on her bottom lip and silently nodded. Her eyes immediately left the brunette's achingly beautiful face and flicked down to her hands. The slender, feminine hands hooked under the slight waistband of the delicate underwear. The blonde slayer once again lifted her backside from the bed to allow the Boston woman to slide the barely-there garment off her lower body.

Taking her time, and enjoying the painful reveal, Faith slowly inched the lace material down Buffy's hipbones, gliding the panties down the soft swell of her lower stomach, and lower still to reveal her hairless mons. The Boston woman groaned quietly, her eyes never straying from the view. The lace panties shimmied down lower, giving away to the slightly protruding clit and pouting pussy lips.

Faith screwed her eyes shut when she felt the bruising pressure on her parted lips. She fell backwards on the squishy bed when she felt a strong hand press firmly on her breastplate. The Boston girl looked up, half stunned, to suddenly find the slayer-vampire. naked and crawling on top of her.

Buffy rested on top of the younger slayer, her delicious hipbones jutting out from the soft swell of her feminine belly. Faith trailed her fingertips along the blonde woman's bare abdominal muscles, mesmerized as the hard flesh flexed under her touch. The dark slayer reached up for the elder woman's head and gently entwined her fingers through the blonde's long, golden locks. Pulling the Californian's head down, she guided Buffy's mouth to her aching left nipple. The Chosen One tentatively latched her mouth on the tender bud, lashing the tip of her pink tongue against the erogenous skin.

“Buffy, oh God. Buffy,” Faith panted through pursed lips. Her skin felt warm and sticky despite the cool marble flesh of her lover.

The Boston woman attached her hands to the blonde's naked backside. The soft globes fit perfectly in the palms of the younger woman's hands. She kneaded and caressed the soft, pliable flesh with her fingers as Buffy continued to suck and bite at her breasts.

Encouraged by the groans filling her ears, Buffy ground her naked sex into the dangerously beautiful woman beneath her. Faith's body tensed in pleasure when the slayers' clits brushed intimately against each other. “Fuck,” the dark-haired woman moaned, thrusting up into the elder woman's core. “Right there, B.”

Buffy pushed forward again, her most intimate parts gliding along the soft, wet folds of the younger slayer. The vampire bit her bottom lip hard, stifling a loud moan. The two women rocked against each other, naked flesh rubbing and pressing in just the right spots.

The slayer-vampire moaned loudly when the woman beneath her deftly slid two fingers inside her pussy just as she was grinding downwards. “Faith!” she called out into the room. The dark-haired slayer's digits spread her cunt, and her clit rubbed against the pad of Faith's thumb.

Obeying her instincts, the blonde slightly raised her hips off of the painfully sexy woman writing beneath her and slid herself further down the Boston girl's fingers as she lowered her pelvic bone back down towards the mattress.

Faith groaned and slammed her free hand on the bed sheets beneath her. “Fuck, she moaned loudly. “That's so fucking hot. God, Buffy,” she cried as the elder slayer began a steady rhythm above her. “Your pussy is perfect.”

The air was filled with the sounds of Buffy's wet sex and the sexiest groans and mewls that Faith had ever heard. Buffy bounced up and down on the Boston girl's hand. Her small breasts undulated with every crescendo, and her tight pussy clamped Faith's fingers like a vise.

The Californian dropped her head to her naked chest and closed her eyes. Her hands sought out something to hold, something to keep her grounded to this plane of existence. Her palms slid along the Boston woman's taunt stomach, up to her fleshy breasts and she squeezed hard.

Faith continued to jar her fingers upward, meeting the downward thrust of the slayer hovering above. The Boston girl ran the calloused pad of her thumb across the Californian's protruding clit, and Buffy jerked her body as a flood of pleasure ran from her clit to her nipples.

“Uhn,” the blonde panted. “Faith, I'm so close,” she breathed.

The dark-haired slayer rubbed harder, pressing and manipulating the sensitive bundle of nerves. Her rigid fingers continued to jut in and out of the undead woman's liquid core. Buffy's arousal coated her digits, pooling in the cracks between her fingers. An unneeded breath caught in the blonde girl's throat, and the strangled cries of her climax filled Faith's ears.

Recovering from her own, unexpected orgasm, the undead woman slid two fingers solidly into the Boston woman's flooded pussy. Faith cried out into the darkness of the room as she felt the small slayer fill her like no one had ever before. It was as if Buffy had not only entered her eager sex, but also her damaged soul.

The Boston girl slid her fingers out of Buffy's spent sex and allowed the elder slayer to return the favor. The Chosen One's face was scrunched together in concentration as she seesawed her fingers in and out of the dangerous brunette's pussy. Her beautiful features were entirely focused on pleasuring the woman straddled between her thighs.

Buffy slid her fingers out of Faith's cunt and trailed her wet digits along the young slayer's hairless crevice. Her sticky fingertips bumped against the Boston woman's tightest entrance. The brunette clawed at the bed sheets and felt her pussy become impossibly wetter. The Boston woman gasped loudly when the blonde slowly slid a single digit up her ass to the first knuckle.

The blonde thrust her tense digits in and out of the younger slayer's most intimate holes. She slid two fingers hard into her cunt and one into her ass. Faith's breathing became more and more erratic and labored with every penetration. Her hips and pelvic bone rose and fell in time with the Californian's efforts.

Faith twisted her fingers around silky strands of gold. “Fuck, Buffy,” she moaned, her voice sounding pained and thick with emotion. She squeezed her eyes shut, twin tears slipping out and rolling down her face.

“Bite me,” came the whispered command. “Please, bite me.”

The blonde didn't hesitate this time, but instead did what felt natural to her. Her elongated canines slipped out of her mouth like a knife being unsheathed. Faith pulled her lover's mouth down to her well-defined clavicle and felt herself pushed over the edge when the sharp teeth scissored through her delicate flesh. The Californian's body tensed and she bit down harder, coaxing the life-giving fluid to flow from her mate.

Faith's muscles tightened around Buffy's unrelenting penetration. She dug her heels and fingers into the vampire's marble flesh and screamed out into the room as a second, stronger, orgasm pushed her towards insanity.

Feeling the body beneath her relaxing from exhaustion and sexual satisfaction, the slayer-vampire slid her canines out of the younger woman's skin. Her tongue immediately bathed the open wound, both capturing escaping rivers of blood and tending to the bite mark.

“Was that okay?” the Californian whispered, not looking up at the younger slayer's face. Faith wrapped her strong arms around the smaller woman and squeezed her with reassurance.

Buffy curled into her lover's arms and sighed contentedly. She pressed her nose and pursed lips against Faith's fragrant skin and breathed in deeply. Not only was her blood lust sated, but her lust-lust had been expertly taken care of by the dark-haired slayer as well.

“Buff?” the young woman called out in the darkness.

“Mmhmm?” the vampire purred, nuzzling deeper into the warm body wrapped around her like a human blanket.

Faith stared at the ceiling for a moment, considering if she wanted to have this conversation: “Things aren't gonna get weird now, are they?”

Buffy opened her eyes, realizing that the Boston girl wasn't going to let her enjoy her post-orgasmic cuddling until they'd talked to death about what just happened between them.

“What do you mean…weird?” the blonde asked, although she knew the answer.

“Like, when we wake up are you gonna get all pissed off at me and re-lodge that stick up your holier-than-Thou ass?” The Boston woman's voice had suddenly become bitter.

Buffy lifted herself up on her elbow in bed and recognized the confusion and betrayal swimming on the surface of Faith's eyes. “You're afraid, aren't you?” the blonde asked, the surprise thick in her own voice.

The brunette grumpily crossed her arms over her naked breasts, causing the bare flesh to squeeze together. “Afraid?” she snorted, staring at the ceiling rather than her bedmate. “What would I be afraid of?”

Buffy paused and placed a cool hand on the curvaceous woman's hipbone. “A lot of things, I think.”

Faith gave the blonde woman an amused smile. “Oh yeah, Princess? Like what for instance?”

“I think you're afraid of letting yourself feel again,” the blonde announced. “I might be the dead one, but in some ways I'm more alive than you are.” Buffy chewed on her bottom lip, unsure if she should continue. “And…you're afraid I'm gonna go back to Sunnydale and forget about you.”

Tears began rolling down the Boston girl's olive-tinted cheeks. She turned away from the Californian so Buffy couldn't see her anguish. “Yeah right,” she choked out, curling her body into the fetal position. “You've got some kinda ego on you, B.”

“Faith,” Buffy called out softly. She curved her small form around the backside of the Boston woman's larger frame. “Faith,” she repeated the name. The Californian pushed the dark hair that trickled down the brunette woman's neck over her shoulder. As delicate as a butterfly's wing, she placed small kisses at the base of Faith's neck.

Faith's body shuddered as a strangled sob escaped her lips. She held her breath to keep other unwelcomed noises from parting her mouth, but it only caused her huddled body to shake.

Buffy pressed her chilly lips against the nape of the younger woman's neck. “Shhhh…” she soothed into the fragrant skin. She draped her right arm around the taller slayer's waist and stroked her fingertips along the gentle swell of Faith's lower stomach. The Californian's hand dipped further beneath the bunched up comforter and slid between the brunette's slightly parted thighs. Faith slightly tensed when she felt her sister-Slayer's fingers expertly brush against her swollen clit.

“W-what are you doing, B?” she asked in a raspy voice. Faith spread her legs further apart and melted into the vampire's tender touch.

“Everything happens for a reason, Fai,” Buffy whispered into the other woman's ear. “You'll see.”

+++++++++++++++++++++

 

Chapter 16: A Different Version of the Truth

The Boston slayer walked through the front door of the former hotel complex. She briefly scanned the dimly illuminated lobby for signs of life before heading towards the office area.

As much as she didn't want to leave the blonde vampire's side, she knew that Angel would be worrying about her if she didn't stop by. Pulling herself away from the soundly sleeping woman had been one of the hardest things Faith had ever had to do in her young life, yet she knew she would find no peace until Angel and the others knew she was doing fine. Part of her was still angry with the ancient vampire for banishing Buffy from the Hyperion. But it had also allowed the two slayers the time and space to come together.

“Helloooo?” Faith called out, her low voice echoing in the open space.

“Faith,” Angel noted, stepping out of the shadows. “It's good to see you're still alive.” The broad-shouldered demon walked out of the back room. In his hands was an ancient-looking text.

The Boston girl made a face at her sometime employer. “Of course I'm alive,” she retorted.

“How are things?” the man asked quietly. He looked down at his hands, rather than the brash girl standing in front of him.

“You mean, how's Buffy,” the dark-haired woman tossed back.

Angel looked up from the text and smiled warmly at the young slayer. “That too,” he murmured. “Do you still think it's her?”

Faith nodded her head. “There's no way it's anyone but her, Angel. I don't know what was going on with Red's mojo, but the girl you guys tossed outta here is definitely Buffy Summers.”

Angel sighed deeply and raked his fingers through his tousled hair. “I thought something might be wrong with Willow's magic as well,” he admitted. “But I couldn't keep Buffy here on the off-chance that her soul really hadn't been returned. I couldn't put you all in danger like that.”

“And yet you couldn't take the chance of killing her on the off-chance that it really was her,” the brunette slayer challenged.

The vampire nodded somberly, easily agreeing with the Boston girl's pointed accusation. “You can't blame me for still loving her, can you?”

Faith felt her face flush. “No, I guess not,” she mumbled uncomfortably. “So where's Red now?” the Boston girl asked, quickly changing the subject. Although bedding the elder slayer had always been a dream, now standing before her ex-lover, she felt mildly guilty. She crossed her arms across her chest and looked sour. “Causing more problems? Killing more of her friends?”

Angel frowned deeply at the scarred girl. He could tell that Willow's betrayal had injured the young slayer. The two had never gotten along with one another, and this latest insult wasn't helping their cause. “She went back to Sunnydale,” he sighed. “Well, more like I insisted she go back,” he corrected himself. “She wasn't doing any good here…she just kept pacing around the Hyperion yelling about how we were useless and that we were letting a murderer roam the streets. But she knew she couldn't go after Buffy without my consent.”

“So she's back watching Dawn now?” Faith asked, suddenly remembering the blonde girl's younger sister.

Angel shook his head. “I don't know, honestly. I'll make some calls though and find out how things are over there.” He set his lips in a straight line. “But regardless, she should be getting home soon.”

Faith lowered her eyes, knowing to whom the vampire was referring. “I know I can't keep her.”

“If that's really Buffy, she has someplace else to be, Faith. And it's not in Los Angeles.” The vampire paused meaningfully. “And I don't think you should follow her to Sunnydale.”

“What?” the dark-haired girl flashed her eyes up to meet the paternal gaze of the ageless man.

“I don't think it's healthy for you to get involved with Buffy,” the undead demon warned. “There's no future for you together. She's dead, Faith. And you've still got so much to live for.”

The Boston girl clenched her jaw. “Oh, I see how it is,” she spat bitterly. “Now that you know it's really her, you just want her for yourself.”

The soulled vampire held up his hands. “Woah, slow down there. I never said -,”

“You already told me you still love her, Angel, so you can't deny that. And now that she's a Vampire with a Soul,” Faith ranted, her voice becoming more and more agitated, “you can be together again. It's like you've finally paid for your sins, so the Fates are giving you this gigantic present.”

“It's not like that at all, Faith…I just mean that…” Angel trailed off as he allowed himself to really look at the Boston girl. “It's a little warm for scarves, don't you think?”

The Boston girl narrowed her eyes and touched her fingers at the uncharacteristic accessory wrapped around her neck. “Lay off me. It's a fashion statement,” she growled.

“Uh huh,” the ancient man nodded, unconvinced. He jerked his hand out and grabbed an end of the scarf. The winter accessory fell off of the Boston girl's shoulders and neck, revealing a pair of angry yellow and purple bruises outlining vicious-looking vampire bites.

Angel's dark eyes went wide. “Good Lord, Faith,” he gasped. “What has she done to you?”

The dark-haired slayer snatched the scarf out of the soulled vampire's hands. “She didn't do anything, Angel,” she sneered. “At least nothing I didn't want to happen.” She haphazardly tossed the woolly accessory around her bare neck again and leered at the undead man.

“You're letting your feelings for Buffy cloud your vision, Faith,” the brooding vampire warned with emotion. “You can't keep letting her feed off of you.”

“Stay out of this, Angel,” she seethed, turning on her heels to storm away. “I won't warn you again.”

+++++++++++++++++++++

The dark-haired slayer's bad mood was instantly lifted when she entered her apartment. Although Angel's concern and words of warning echoed in her ears, all was forgotten when the Boston woman opened the front door and saw the blonde slayer waiting for her return.

The Californian stood in the small kitchenette, leaning against the formica countertop. In her hands was an oversized coffee cup, no doubt filled with blood she had found in the brunette's freezer. Since she didn't have any clothes at Faith's apartment besides her outfit from the previous night, she had borrowed one of the younger slayer's Boston Red Sox hoodies, paired with short flannel boxers. The sweatshirt was oversized on Faith and even more so on the smaller blonde.

Buffy held up a small piece of paper when she saw Faith enter the apartment. The dark-haired girl had hastily scribbled a note to let her know where she had gone in the morning. “Leaving love notes on my pillow?” she lightly joked.

Faith grinned and set the paper bag she had been holding in her arms down on the floor. “Didn't want ya to think I'd bailed.”

The blonde vampire smirked. “I did worry about that when I woke up alone, so thanks for it. Although your handwriting is horrible.” She stood up a little higher on her tiptoes. “Groceries?”

The brunette picked up the bag again and brought it to the refrigerator. “Stopped by a butcher buddy of mine and got ya some pigs blood,” she explained as she put the plastic containers of red liquid in the fridge. “Sorry it's not the real stuff, but the blood bank's not open on Sundays.”

Buffy stuck her bottom lip out. “I could have gone out with you, ya know. You didn't have to go and leave a note in your place.”

Faith coughed anxiously. “I had to stop by Angel's, too,” she revealed.

The blonde slayer's lip popped back into her mouth. “Oh.” Her hazel-green eyes dropped to the floor.

“But everything's okay, B,” the dark-haired girl insisted. “I just needed to drop by and let him know I'm still alive. He might have been a jerk for kickin' ya out, but I at least owed him that.” Faith shrugged uncomfortably. “He was there for me when no one else was, ya know?”

The Californian nodded in understanding. “So did you tell him I'm not evil?”

Faith cocked an eyebrow at the blonde. “Wait. You're not evil?” she stated in mock surprise. “I thought I would have lifted some gypsy curse last night.”

Buffy snorted and took another sip from her coffee mug. “Oh, you think you're that good, huh Slayer? Gave me a `total moment of happiness'?” The small blonde smiled mischievously at the other slayer over her ceramic cup.

“Oh, last night didn't do it for ya, huh Blondie?” the raven-haired woman laughed. “Well, I'm ready to go again,” Faith boasted as she quickly unsnapped the front button of her tight black jeans. The Boston girl playfully grabbed for the elder slayer.

“Faith!” the vampire chastised. “You're gonna make me spill blood all over your clothes.”

Faith pulled the smaller woman close and ran her warm palms up the front of Buffy's thick cotton top. The elder woman wore nothing beneath the hoodie and Faith quietly groaned when her hands met the naked flesh of her sister-Slayer. The Boston woman deftly palmed the smaller woman's modest breasts in her hands.

“That would be a pity,” Faith murmured quietly. She nuzzled her nose and breathed heavily into Buffy's ear. “Cause then I'd haveta get you outta those clothes.”

Buffy swallowed hard, feeling butterflies attacking her insides. Being this close to the Boston woman had always made her a little weak in the knees, but now that she knew exactly what the talented girl was capable of, her legs turned into jello.

“W-What do you want to do tonight?” the blonde panted. She cocked her head to the side, allowing the taller woman better access to her neck. Faith suckled and nuzzled at the bare skin there. “Do you want to do s'more detective-ing?”

“Was thinking we might take the day off,” the younger slayer purred into the Californian's pale skin. She brushed the tip of her nose against the vampire's neck. “I mean, it's not like you're gettin' any older.”

“Cute,” the blonde chuckled. She took a step backwards, away from the smoldering Bostonian and set her half-filled glass of blood on the kitchen countertop. “So if we're not gonna work, what do you suggest we do instead?” she asked.

Faith watched in wonder as Buffy hooked her thumbs under the waistband of her shorts and slowly slid the material down her smooth thighs. The blonde cocked an eyebrow at her slaying partner and stepped out of the pajama bottoms. The sweatshirt was long enough to cover Buffy's most intimate parts, but that didn't stop the wetness from flooding Faith's underwear.

Faith pursed her thick lips and wet her bottom lip with a flick of her tongue. “I think you're a mind-reader, B,” she growled, her voice low and husky.

The blonde girl stalked closer, narrowing the distance between herself and the taller woman. Faith stepped backwards, instinctively on guard. Her backside bumped against the kitchen counter and she looked behind her, suddenly aware that she had nowhere to go.

A small smile fluttered onto Buffy's lips. “Feeling trapped?” she smirked.

Faith swallowed hard and gave the elder slayer a tight grin. “Just surprised, is all.”

Buffy trailed her fingers along the v-neck of the taller woman's grey t-shirt and toyed with the material of the scarf wrapped loosely around her neck. Her small breasts pressed into the younger woman's chest. She looked up into the dark slayer's eyes and noticed how they shifted from side to side. “Surprised that I was still here when you got back?”

Faith nodded, her eyes never leaving the vampire's angelic face.

Buffy bit her bottom lip and looked mildly embarrassed. “Surprised that I'm wearing practically nothing right now?”

“Uh-huh,” the dark-haired girl rasped thickly, allowing her eyes to sweep down the length of Buffy's naked legs.

“Surprised that I want to make love again?”

The Boston girl released an involuntary groan at Buffy's words and grabbed onto the blonde's naked backside. She pulled the smaller slayer in, crushing their bodies together and placed a heated kiss on the vampire's parted mouth. With uncanny strength, the undead woman grabbed outside of the taller girl's thighs and lifted her onto the kitchen countertop.

Faith gave the small woman a surprised look from her perched position on the counter. “You've been holding back,” the brunette murmured.

Buffy returned the shocked expression with a shy smile. “I didn't want to scare you.”

Faith leaned into the blonde girl and placed a fluttering kiss against her red lips. Using her heels and feet, she pulled the vampire closer to her. Buffy reached for the waistline of the younger slayer's jeans. The top button was still unfastened, and she slowly pulled down the zipper, still keeping her mouth on the taller woman's expertly moving lips.

The Boston girl lifted her backside and eagerly helped the small slayer pull her black jeans down her hips and thighs. The vampire tugged at the legs, but frowned when the material wouldn't budge any further. “Shoes, Buffy,” Faith chuckled, pointing to the black boots that kept her pants stuck to her legs.

The undead slayer laughed. “Sorry,” she bumbled. “Guess I'm not that experienced taking off another girl's clothes.”

Faith pulled off her boots and gave the smaller woman a sly wink. “Well if I'm lucky,” she purred, “you'll get lots of practice with me.”

When the curvaceous Boston woman finally ridded herself of her tight pants, Buffy took a hesitant step back toward her. Although seducing the brunette woman was one thing, actually carrying out on the action was uncharted territory. Faith gave her an encouraging smile and slightly spread her muscled thighs wider apart.

“You don't have to, you know,” the dark-haired slayer murmured.

Buffy swallowed hard and nodded. “I know…but I want to,” she stated quietly.

Faith leaned backwards, putting all her weight on her palms. She held her breath as the Chosen One wordlessly narrowed the distance between them. Buffy slightly bent at the waist and leaned in toward the Boston girl's panty-covered pussy. Only a thin barrier of black lace remained between her mouth and the younger woman's rapidly accumulating arousal.

“Oh!” the blonde gasped suddenly, pulling her head away from Faith's parted thighs. “You had sex with a vampire!”

“What?”

“There's…there's scars….” the Californian fumed.

“Oh shit,” the dark-haired girl muttered. She mentally slapped herself in the forehead. “The only vampire I've ever had sex with is you, Buffy,” Faith insisted, sitting up straighter on the kitchen counter. “I promise.”

Buffy's eyes narrowed briefly. “Then how did -,” The blonde's eyes went wide with recognition. “Oh my God,” she quietly muttered. Buffy pushed herself away from the Boston girl and glared hard at her. “You had sex with the demon,” she accused.

“Buffy, I -,”

“It wasn't me, Faith. You didn't have sex with me,” Buffy exploded. “It's just like when Riley…” the blonde trailed off. Tears automatically sprung to her eyes. “How could you do that to me? How could you violate my body like that?” she exclaimed, her small form shaking with emotion. “Do you hate me that much?”

Faith stood up abruptly, jumping down from the countertop, and tried to look as dignified as she could half-naked. “Hate you?” she called out in disbelief. “Do you hear yourself? I could never hate you, Buffy,” she revealed. “I did it because I love you so Goddamn much.”

The Boston girl tensed momentarily, self-censuring herself for saying the words aloud. “I thought you were dead,” she tried in vain. “I thought you were gone forever. And—and it hurt so much to think I'd never see you again.” Faith shook her head and closed her eyes. “I know it was wrong,” she rasped. “And I suffered the consequences.” The dark slayer opened her chocolate eyes. “I knew she wasn't you, but I just needed to pretend. I only wanted to be with you.”

Buffy stood still and blinked a few times. “You love me?”

Faith gave the elder woman a lop-sided grin. “Wow, you really are a blonde.”

“I-I can't do this right now.” Buffy hastily grabbed at her clothes and wiped at her face with the back of her hands. “I have to go, I'm sorry.”

The brunette clasped onto the smaller woman's elbow as she moved to leave. “Buffy, please,” she implored, her eyes dripping with sorrow. “Don't run.”

“I'm not running,” the blonde cried. “I just…I just need some space. Please, Faith,” the soulled vampire breathed. “Just let me go.”

Faith dropped the elder woman's arm and hung her head. “Can you promise you'll call me or something if you decide to leave town?”

Buffy took one last furtive look around the small apartment, making sure she hadn't left anything behind. “I can't promise you anything.”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Chapter 17: Touch me and I come alive.

Buffy slammed the door of her hotel room closed and cursed loudly. It was all she could do to express herself, now that her tear ducks had unrelentingly emptied themselves during the cab ride back to her hotel room. Luckily Los Angeles taxis accepted credit cards, or she would have had to hitchhike back to West Hollywood. Not wanting to risk getting in a car accident and explaining to the police why she had someone else's wallet, the blonde vampire had left the Hummer outside of Faith's apartment complex.

She cursed herself for never taking the time to properly learn how to drive. Slayers were supposed to be born with natural instincts and grace, so why was driving a car so hard? The blonde shook her head bitterly as she stalked into the hotel suite. Even though she had known all-too-well that Slayers came with an expiration date, she had put off so many things.

The slayer-vampire felt discombobulated as she quickly stripped out of Faith's oversized sweatshirt and the short flannel pants and walked into the oversized master bathroom. The taxi ride from Faith's apartment had felt like a Walk of Shame. Even her taxi driver had given her a sympathetic look, telling the grieving woman, “Forget about him. No guy's worth all those tears.”

The vampire turned on the shower to a scalding temperature. She just wanted to scrub at her naked flesh and erase everything that had happened in the past few days. But she knew that no amount of body wash would ever make her feel all right. She was dead. And there was a murderous demon living inside her.

The water cascaded down her naked form like a monsoon's rain shower. Buffy closed her eyes and dunked her head under the heavy flow of steaming water, feeling the warmth blanket her naturally room-temperature body. The vampire placed one palm against the tiled wall and rested her weight against it. She knew the marbled wall should feel cool against her hand, and instantly missed the temperature contrast. It was small things like this that constantly reminded her that she was no longer human.

With her other hand, Buffy pushed her wet, matted hair out of her face and sighed deeply.

Leaving the Boston girl so abruptly had left her unsatisfied in more ways than she had expected. She worried her bottom lip as her left hand instinctively traveled down the front of her lithe form until her fingertips rested at the apex of her aching sex. Her urges were so raw, so at the surface now. In life, Buffy had prided herself on self-control, on self-denial, especially when it came to sexual cravings. But now, just one fluttering touch against her throbbing clit had her yearning for more.

Buffy slipped her thin digits through her pussy lips, groaning lowly when she felt her wetness already on the pads of her fingers. Although she was wet from the shower, she could distinctively tell the difference between her own arousal accumulating between her thighs and the rush of water beating down from the large showerhead above.

The Californian wondered, with a slight mental blush, if the dark-haired slayer had touched her body this intimately back when they had switched bodies. Buffy hadn't been afforded time to really appreciate being inside Faith's body, although she doubted she would have had the nerve for self-exploration. The blonde momentarily panicked, trying to remember if she had shaved her legs in the days before the body switch. It would be just her luck to have gotten lazy with self-grooming and for Faith to believe she was some kind of unkempt, hairy monster. Buffy grumbled to herself. Why do I care if my legs were hairy or not? It would serve Faith right to get stuck with that.

As Buffy's hands traveled up to her hardening nipples, she reflected on the fact that the two had never quite talked about what had happened during the body switch. All she knew was what Riley and Willow had told her. She doubted the Boston girl even knew that the Council's henchmen had captured her and how close she had come to being dragged away to England.

Buffy tried to enjoy the jolts of pleasure that rocketed through her body when she roughly squeezed and pulled at her nipples, but thinking about the body switch only reminded her that once again someone else had taken her body for a joy ride. At least the first time it had been Faith; this time, however, it was an evil demon. Who knew how many innocent people she had killed in those few months? But more importantly for the slayer, who knew how many people she had fucked in those few months?

The more Buffy thought about her current situation, the more angry and frustrated she became. She brought one hand back down to her naked pussy and flicked at her hardened clit. The blonde slightly widened her stance, spreading her legs apart. She sawed her middle finger back and forth along the right side of her clit, her single digit slicing through her swollen lips. Her cunt felt wet, raw, and angry - just like the rest of her body - but her release was far from close.

The vampire grunted in frustration. “Who do I have to blow to get an orgasm around here?!” she called out to the Heavens. Her desperate voice reverberated against the tiled walls of the bathroom. “Why can I never get a break?!”

Resigned that the Fates were against her and any subsequent climax, the blonde vampire angrily turned off the shower faucet. She stepped out of the tub and onto the bathmat and roughly scrubbed at her skin with an oversized towel before wrapping the material around her svelte form.

The undead woman stalked back towards the master bedroom and threw open the door of the walk-in closet. She growled, finding only leather clothes clinging to the various hangers in the wardrobe. Apparently her doppelganger had Faith's fashion sense and found no need for cotton.

Buffy tensed when her mind fluttered inadvertently to the Boston girl once again. This was becoming an unsettling pattern.

Abandoning all hope of merely finding an outfit, the Californian pulled on a white terrycloth robe and stomped into the main section of her suite. Buffy turned on the television and threw herself down on the overstuffed couch in the sunken living room. Finding nothing off interest, however, she growled and turned off the LCD screen, throwing the remote across the room in frustration.

She needed to get out of this hotel room. It was filled with too many reminders that someone else had been using her body for the past few months. She needed to leave this place.

She needed to talk to the one person who could understand what she was going through.

++++++++++++++++++++

“Angel?” the blonde called out in the seemingly empty lobby. She tried to peer her head into the open door, but an invisible barrier kept her outside. Apparently the soulled vampire hadn't been bluffing about reinstating his no-Buffy in the Hyperion policy. The sound of dress shoes clicking on wooden floors caused the slayer's eyes to drift toward a shadowed corner of the spacious main floor.

“Buffy,” Angel stated flatly, stepping out of the darkness. “I didn't expect to see you here.” The tall vampire walked toward the threshold.

“Well, I, uh, didn't really know who else to talk to about this.” Buffy paused and tried to look behind the broad-shouldered man. “Can I come in, or is this not a good time?”

“I've got all the time in the world,” the undead man stated as he moved to the side. “Please,” he motioned with his hands, “come in.”

Buffy walked through the threshold of the Hyperion and nervously rubbed her palms along her arms. She still wore Faith's sweatshirt, but had changed into the one pair of non-leather pants she had found among her new slut-fest vampire wardrobe.

“So what's up?” her ex-boyfriend asked nonchalantly.

“Let's just cut to the chase,” the slayer stated bluntly. “You know it's me, right?” she asked, turning around to look at the man. “I mean…you know that I've got my soul back?”

Angel nodded somberly. “Yes. And I'm sorry I kicked you out before, Buffy. I just needed to be sure it was really you.”

The Chosen One chewed on her bottom lip. “Yeah, I get it,” she sighed. “The other Buffy was pretty…umm…unstable.” The slayer-vampire looked up at her ex-boyfriend. “I need your help, Angel. I'm back, and I'm not entirely sure why,” she continued. “I mean, if Willow didn't return my soul, then why am I back instead of still floating around with wings and a halo?”

The soulled vampire looked with interest at his ex-lover. “You were in Heaven?”

Buffy nodded glumly. “For the second time, actually,” she revealed, “but it appears that I'm not destined to ever just…stay dead.”

“And you need my help with…” the undead man trailed off, not entirely sure in what direction Buffy's brain was headed.

“Finding out why and how,” Buffy clarified. “And you seemed like the obvious choice for help with this. I mean, it's not like I know any other vampires with souls.”

Angel looked thoughtful momentarily. “If I help you,” the brooding man began, his eyes looking darker than usual, “I want you to leave Faith out of this. I want you to leave her alone.”

“Faith?” the blonde grunted sourly. “Oh, don't even get me started on her.”

The ancient vampire stood a little taller and set his jaw. “I'm serious about this, Buffy. I forbid you from seeing her again.”

“You forbid me from seeing her?” the blonde snorted in disbelief.

“You almost killed her, Buffy.”

“I so did not,” the blonde protested. “I mean, I might have fed off of her a few times,” she shrugged, glad she was no longer able to blush. (Being dead had some advantages it seemed, including hiding her visible embarrassment). “But certainly not enough to -,”

“Not you,” Angel interrupted. “The other Buffy. The one without a soul.”

“Well I'm not her,” the small Californian pointed out, “so you don't have anything to worry about. Besides, it appears that Faith had quite a bit of fun with that Buffy.”

“Do you love her?” Angel challenged.

The small vampire looked momentarily stunned by the unexpected question. “What?”

“It's a simple question,” the Los Angeles vampire frowned. “Do you love Faith?”

“I-I…it's not a simple question at all,” Buffy retorted.

“I'm not here to judge if you do love her,” the ancient demon noted. “God knows how long she's pined over you,” he added wistfully. “But I'm not going to stand idle while you ruin all the progress she's made these past few years.”

“Ruin?”

“I know you, Buffy. I know how you work,” the vampire boomed, surprised at the anger quickly bubbling inside him. “You come here, to my city, and create a path of destruction wherever you go. You may not mean to do it,” he added as an aside, “but it happens. And Faith ends up the worse for it.”

Buffy narrowed her eyes at her ex-boyfriend, but contained her mounting rage. She knew she was significantly stronger than the ancient demon, but she didn't want to resort to violence. They could be adults about this, she tried to assure herself. “Why are you so concerned about Faith?” she demanded. “Maybe I should be asking if you love her, instead of you asking me such ridiculous questions.”

“This is a mistake,” Angel stated coolly. “I can't help you,” he muttered. “We can't function together, you and me. I'm sorry, but there's too much water under the bridge.”

“Tell me, Angel!” the newly soulled vampire exasperated, not willing to let the matter drop so easily. “What's going on between you and Faith?!”

“There's nothing going on,” Angel insisted with a sneer. “Ask yourself this, Buffy. Are you really upset because you think Faith is involved with me, or because you believe I'm involved with Faith?”

“You make no sense, Angel,” the Californian huffed, stubbornly crossing her arms across her chest.

“Are you jealous of Faith being close to me because you and I used to be together?” the ageless man tried to clarify. “Or are you jealous because I'm the one who helped Faith when she lost her way? Does it hurt you to know that I'm the one person in this messed up world that she trusts?”

Buffy's mouth dropped open, horrified by her ex-lover's accusations. “Never mind, Angel,” she stormed. “You're talking crazy person talk. I'll figure this Soul crap out on my own.”

+++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy stood in front of the closed door and sighed miserably to herself. She hated apologies. She hated admitting when she was wrong. But she hated apologizing to her even more.

She didn't even know if the other Slayer would still be around. Maybe she had visitors, the blonde silently worried. Maybe as soon as she'd left, Faith had gone out and found herself another bedmate. Maybe Buffy had blow it yet again.

After a few more silent moments of self-torment and doubt, the Californian finally knocked on the door. The wooden entrance swung open immediately as if Faith had been expecting the vampire's return. The younger slayer stared wordlessly at her visitor.

“Can I come in?”

“Never uninvited you,” the Boston girl grunted as she stared at the ageless blonde. Faith leaned against the door jam and cast her eyes up and down Buffy's body. Her gaze was cool and unemotional.

“Yeah,” Buffy sighed, feeling anxious outside in the hallway. She suddenly felt self-conscious under the steely glare of her sister-Slayer. “but I was really mean before. I wanted to be polite and not just barge in.”

Faith pushed herself off of the doorframe and moved to the side. “Mi casa es su casa.”

The vampire hastily entered the room and quickly scanned the small space to detect if the younger slayer had any visitors. The air smelled like cigarette smoke, as if the Boston woman had been chain smoking in Buffy's absence. But beyond the olfactory assault, the space remained the same as when she had left.

The Chosen One could no longer hold her tongue: “Why didn't you tell me I almost killed you?”

Faith slowly closed the door with a solid click and replaced the safety chain. “Wouldn't have been the first time you tried to off me, Blondie,” she muttered with her back still turned away from the new vampire. “Didn't think it was a big deal.”

Buffy narrowed her eyes slightly. “Why do you do that?”

The Boston girl lazily turned to face the elder slayer. “Do what?”

“You shut down,” Buffy complained. “You give me these glimpses of emotions, and then the next second it's like a giant door gets slammed shut in my face.”

Faith's lips pursed together like she'd just eaten something sour. “Well excuse me for just wantin' to be careful, Princess. I mean, fuck, B,” the taller slayer snarled, showing her teeth. “I tell you I love you, and how do you respond?”

The vampire hung her head sheepishly. “I ran away,” she whispered lowly.

“Yeah,” the brunette snapped. “So sue me if I'm not all puppy dogs and sunshine when you finally show up at my door again.”

“I'm sorry,” the vampire apologized lamely.

“What do you want, B?” Faith sighed. She raked her fingers through her brunette locks. “Why are you here?”

“I overreacted before,” the blonde sighed. “I freaked out on you, and that was unfair.”

“Yeah, well…maybe you were right to spazz out like that,” the Boston girl muttered. “I shoulda told you before…I just…I mean…I didn't know how to…”

“…How to tell me that my evil vampire-twin tried to suck you dry while she ate you out?” the blonde finished for her sister-Slayer. She placed her hands on her hips and flashed the dark slayer a cocky grin.

Faith's eyes bulged. “Uh, yeah. I-I guess that's one way of puttin' it.”

The two slayers shared a childish grin. Maybe they both needed to profess more apologies, but neither woman was overly eager to do so. And they definitely needed to talk more about this L-word stuff.

“So…” Faith hesitated. She looked around her apartment and then back over at the blonde. “Now what?”

“Well,” Buffy smiled, “we were interrupted before I had the chance to -,”

“Do more detective work?” Faith guessed, interrupting the blonde slayer.

“No.” Buffy shook her head. “Lick your pussy until your eyes roll back into your head.”

“Damn, B,” Faith swore, shaking her head in amazement. Hearing the Californian say the p-word made her all kinds of horny. “You've got a mouth on you today.”

The Californian felt the tug at the corners of her lips. “You haven't really given me the chance to show you yet.”

The taller slayer winced as if in pain. “You do realize what talkin' like that is doin' to me, right?”

Buffy licked her lips briefly and a smile curled onto her mouth. “I'm just trying to figure out why you're still so far away.”

Without another word, the dark slayer quickly crossed the living room. Her long legs made short work of the modest space, and she took the smaller woman in her arms. “Is this better?” she breathed in the vampire's ear. Her voice came out low and husky.

Buffy had wanted to seduce the taller girl, but now found herself a little unsteady on her own feet. She was thankful that Faith's arms were wrapped so tightly around her waist, not only for the delicious proximity it afforded her, but because she feared she might otherwise topple over.

Faith gave her lover a quick squeeze. “Not plannin' on runnin' out on me any time soon, I hope?” she murmured. “Cause you can't just talk like that and get away with it.”

The Californian pulled away slightly to look at the young slayer's beautiful face. “Did you really mean what you said?”

The dark-haired slayer knit her eyebrows together. “About what?”

“That you…” Buffy hesitated. “That you love me.”

Faith swallowed hard. Okay, so maybe they were having this conversation now. “I…I just…”

The vampire pursed her lips together. “Do you want to take it back?”

“No!” the brunette insisted. “I…I don't…I mean, I kept it to myself for so long `cause well, we were kinda hatin' on each other for a while there, and then I was incarcerated and you were dead, and then I got out but was wicked afraid to see you again, but I still had all these fuckin' feelings knockin' around, but I wasn't just gotta call you up in SunnyD and be like `Yo, B. I'm a free woman and guess what, I kinda dig you more than just as a friend, so how's about we forget all the bullshit we've put each other through and just pop each other's corks instead?'”

Buffy silenced the Boston slayer's uncharacteristic rambling by pressing her lips against the other woman's moving mouth. Faith's eyes instinctively closed as she gladly welcomed the distraction. The taller woman tightened her hold on the slayer's tapered waist, marveling at how naturally their bodies molded together.

Faith flicked the tip of her talented tongue across the blonde's bottom lip and ran it along the front of Buffy's perfect teeth. The vampire parted her mouth more, inviting the dark-haired beauty inside. While keeping gentle pressure on the shorter woman's mouth, the rogue slayer traced along the tips of her lover's straight tip with her tongue. She paused when she felt the elongated canines.

Buffy looked at the younger woman, her beautiful face confused, when Faith pulled slightly back. “What's wrong?” the Californian asked, unaware that her teeth had changed shape.

The Boston girl smiled, unafraid. “Do your teeth just do that?”

Buffy ran her own tongue along the tips of her teeth and made a face when she realized what had happened. She smiled coyly and batted her eyelashes in an exaggerated manner. “Is it my fault they pop out when I get turned on?”

Faith chuckled huskily. She leaned in and captured the blonde's earlobe between her teeth and gently nipped at the skin. “What else happens to that body of yours when you get horny?” she taunted playfully.

Buffy gripped her hands on the Boston girl's biceps and sharply sucked in an unneeded breath. “Why don't you find out for yourself?” she challenged.

The brunette smiled broadly. She found this kind of banter to be the most delicious foreplay - the light teasing, the knowing words. It was almost as stimulating as the fact that Buffy's hands had traveled down to cup her pert ass.

Faith looked around the untidy living room while still holding tight to the vampire. “So, uh, you wanna do this here? I mean, we could always use the couch over there, but I wouldn't trust the carpet. I don't exactly own a vacuum.”

The vampire snickered. “Wow, Fai. You really do know how to make me wet. All this pillow talk's really sweeping me off my feet.”

Before the smaller woman could spout anymore sass, however, her feet were literally swept off of the floor as the Boston girl picked her up. Faith cradled the blonde in her arms. “You keep bein' a smart-ass, B,” the brunette playfully warned, “and I'll drop you on your ass.”

The soulled vampire kicked her feet back and forth like a child throwing a tantrum. “Put me down,” she whined. “I hate being little and this just reminds me that I am.”

The Boston girl casually carried the impetuous blonde back towards her bedroom, ignoring her pleas. She placed a chaste kiss at the tip of Buffy's nose. “Isn't there some saying about good things in small packages?” Faith grinned.

Buffy snorted. “I bet you've seen your share of small packages.”

Faith unceremoniously dumped the smaller woman onto the unmade bed. Buffy made an angry sound and rearranged her body so her weight rested on her elbows, propping herself up slightly. “This just keeps getting more and more romantic,” the blonde deadpanned. “I don't know why the girls aren't breaking down your door.”

The dark-haired slayer shrugged as she looked down at the reclining woman. “Not really the romantic type, B.” Her hands went to the hem of her t-shirt and she pulled the piece of clothing off, tossing it towards a giant pile of laundry in one corner of the room. She stood before the elder woman, naked from the waist up. Faith leered at her lover. “But my tits make up for it all.”

Buffy swallowed hard and nodded as if in a trance. Her breasts really were magnificent. The Californian indulged herself, her hazel-green eyes freely roaming over Faith's slightly olive-tined skin. The Boston girl had no visible tan lines. Her soft breasts stood at attention, capped with dusky colored nipples.

The blonde slayer sat up more fully and crawled to the foot of the bed so that her eyes were at Faith's breast level. She couldn't help herself, and her eyes strayed lower, honing in on the tiny line of raised skin that seemed to bisect the younger woman's abdomen. Buffy stroked her fingertips down the faint scar. “It's still there,” she murmured.

Faith ran a few strands of Buffy's golden hair through her fingers. “It's okay, B,” she rasped. “It's like wherever I go, I always take a little piece of you with me.”

The Chosen One sighed and shook her head sadly. She pressed the side of her face against Faith's stomach and listened to the steady throbbing of her heart. “How did we get here?” she wondered aloud.

The Boston woman gave her lover a lopsided grin. “We always hurt the ones we love.”

 

 

Suggested Listening: Britney Spears - “Ooh Ooh Baby”

Buffy pulled herself up and kneeled at the end of the double mattress, so she was at eye-level with the brunette. Her small hands went to the waistband of Faith's jeans, and she tugged at the front, causing the younger slayer's body to lurch into her. Buffy placed a smoldering kiss on the dark-haired woman's mouth. Her hands made quick work of the front snap and zipper of Faith's pants and she and Faith worked together to tug the tight denim down her hips, thighs, and calves.

Faith melted into Buffy's eager kiss. She pressed her lips solidly and passionately against the blonde's mouth. The Boston girl crawled onto the bed, gently pushing the elder slayer onto her back, never letting her mouth stray from her lover.

“I think you're a little overdressed, B,” she breathed as she hastily tugged at the blonde's baseball hoodie. The two stopped kissing just long enough for Faith to pull the offending garment over Buffy's head and it was quickly discarded onto the floor. The Boston girl popped open the front button of Buffy's pants and roughly yanked at the zipper, nearly causing the Californian's jeans to split. Buffy raised her ass off of the mattress, helping the taller slayer rid her off her pants.

The two slayers clung to each other, their naked torsos and limbs brushing and rubbing together. Faith crushed her mouth harder into her blonde lover's, feeling her body temperature rise. Their teeth gashed together and she tweaked the vampire's hardened nipples between her thumbs and forefingers. The brunette pulled and pinched the sensitive buds, producing delicious moans and mewls from the smaller woman beneath her.

Faith's hands rushed down to the Californian's flimsy panties and she yanked on the material, causing the underwear to shred and tear. The Boston girl shoved a single digit inside the vampire's seeping pussy.

“Faith!” Buffy moaned loudly, surprised to be enjoying this more primal aspect of her partner. Her manicured nails dug into the Boston girl's upper arms.

“Buffy,” the younger slayer panted, finally pulling her mouth away for oxygen. “I need to taste you,” she begged as she continued to finger fuck the blonde vampire. “I need to taste your pussy.”

The Californian's slender hips thrust upward with each bruising penetration. She wanted her talented lover to fill her up completely, but she also wanted to feel her tongue on her clit. Releasing her stranglehold on Faith's arms, Buffy placed the flat of her palm on the top of the Boston girl's head and pushed down.

The dark slayer grinned as her vampire lover pulled her face into her naked pussy. Faith continued her single-finger-assault, but quickly captured the Chosen One's clit between her lips. Buffy hissed and tightened her hold on Faith's ears when she first felt the Boston girl's oral attentions. She thrust her hips toward the ceiling again.

“Oh God, Faith!” she cried out loudly. Faith could feel her lover's sex clenching tightly around her finger. Buffy must have really been worked up, because she knew it wouldn't be long before she exploded.

Faith moaned when she felt another contraction. The vampire's wet cunt was strangling the circulation from her finger. “Buffy,” she groaned, thrusting hard into her lover's core. “You feel so fucking good. Your pussy is so fucking tight.”

Buffy moaned and arched her back, thrusting her naked breasts toward the sky. “I'm so fucking close, Faith,” she exclaimed. “Please,” she begged. “I need to cum. I need your mouth.”

Not needing to be asked twice, the Boston girl re-attached her mouth to the elder woman's clit. She sucked the little bud into her mouth and flicked her tongue against the fleshy nub. Buffy's body tensed suddenly and she hollered out her orgasm. The dark-haired slayer only slowed the steady thrust of her finger when she felt her lover's undead body finally relax.

Faith pulled her sticky finger out of the golden slayer's cunt and brought the digit to her lips. She quietly moaned and sucked the juices off of her hand. Even though her lover was still coming down from her climax, the Boston girl needed to taste more straight from its liquid source. The brunette buried her face between the vampire's slightly splayed thighs and slowly licked her way up and down Buffy's shaved outer lips.

Buffy looked down to the apex of her sex with surprise flooding her eyes. “Again?” she croaked, her voice slightly raw. “So soon?”

The raven-haired beauty hummed her approval into Buffy's drenched cunt.

“Faith,” Buffy panted, slightly thrusting her pelvic bone upwards to meet her lover's mouth. “I-I want a turn too,” she weakly protested.

The Boston girl remained wordless, and only clamped her hands tight against the blonde's upper thighs, forcing her legs to part wider, and she continued to lick up and down the Californian's oozing slit. Buffy's eyes rolled back when the rogue slayer's tongue finally penetrated her tight entrance. The undead woman marveled that anyone's tongue could be that thick and fill her so well.

“Faith,” she tried again, squirming under the Boston girl's unrelenting attentions. “I really want to…to eat you out,” she pleaded.

The brunette raised her face from Buffy's thighs. Her face was covered in the elder woman's arousal. “I know something we could do that'll make us both happy, B,” she grinned, licking noisily at her kiss-swollen lips.

“Please,” Buffy whimpered. “Don't make me wait any longer.”

The Boston woman hopped up from the bed and shimmied out of her own boi short underwear, rendering her completely nude. The reclined slayer moaned lowly when she was finally awarded the view. Faith crawled back onto the bed and lay next to her lover. The Californian raised an eyebrow at the younger woman, awaiting further instructions. Faith placed a gentle kiss on Buffy's mouth. The Californian licked at her lips when the dark-haired girl pulled away, tasting herself on her sister-Slayer's mouth.

“Sit on my face, Buffy,” the formerly rogue slayer commanded.

Buffy opened her mouth to protest, but the Boston girl cut her off. “If you want the goodies, you need to do what I say. Cause there ain't no way I'm gonna stop suckin' on that sweet pussy of yours.”

The vampire hesitated momentarily, but finally pulled herself up to a seated position. Faith looked up at her lover from her reclined position on the bed and gave Buffy a cocky grin and a wink. “Whatcha waitin' for, B? Get on my face.”

Slowly, the Californian inched her way toward the younger slayer. She crawled up her experienced lover's body and positioned herself so her pussy hovered above Faith's mouth. Just as she began to lower herself down, Faith stopped her. “Not that way, B,” the dark-haired beauty interjected. “Turn around. We're gonna sixty-nine.”

The undead slayer obediently followed her lover's instructions and positioned herself above Faith's head, but facing in the right direction this time. Her body tensed slightly when she felt the Boston girl's hands clamp down on her thighs. “Relax, baby,” the brunette woman purred. “This is gonna fuckin' blow your mind.”

The Californian lowered herself down and shuddered when she felt her lover's tongue slide back into her hole. Faith continued to fuck her with her tongue, but before Buffy could lose herself to the talented ministrations of the woman whose face she currently straddled, she felt Faith's hand snake up her naked back and gently push her forward.

Buffy felt momentarily uneasy with her ass so close to Faith's mouth, but she soon forgot her trepidations when the Boston girl rubbed her clit with the pad of her thumb.

Buffy fell forward slightly, her face now even closer to her lover's neglected sex. The blonde slayer stuck her tongue out and flicked the tip against Faith's clit. The woman beneath her tensed and her thighs twitched from the sudden sensation. Growing increasingly confident, the golden-haired slayer leaned down, further still. She placed her hands on either side of Faith's pussy and pulled her outer lips apart, fully exposing the Boston girl's clit. Using the tip of her tongue once again, the vampire licked circles around her lover's engorged clit.

Buffy buried two fingers inside her lover and gasped at the wetness and heat that now suddenly coated her digits. She thrust hard inside and curved her fingers back toward herself, intent to bump them against the brunette's G-spot. Faith pulled her face out of the Californian's pussy long enough to loudly moan her appreciation. “Fuck, B. Thatta a girl,” she coaxed. She thrust her hipbones up to meet Buffy's hand. “Fuck me. Fuck my pussy hard.”

The vampire closed her eyes and felt a fresh flood of arousal. If the woman beneath her didn't drown in her juices it would be a miracle. It felt like liquid sex was leaking down her thighs and into Faith's mouth.

The Californian stabbed her fingers back into Faith's cunt. It felt like the younger woman was on fire and burning Buffy's fingers. If the vampire was going to spontaneously combust into flames, however, she couldn't imagine a better scenario. Faith stuck her tongue back into her lover and her chin somehow bumped against Buffy's clit. Okay, so maybe it did get even better.

Buffy began a steady rhythm, simultaneously sucking on Faith's clit while slamming her fingers into her ready sex. She eagerly lapped up the excess arousal as though the younger woman's juices were enough to sustain her. With the blonde's efforts so highly concentrated, the Boston girl's concentration began to wan. She slid two fingers into Buffy's sex, however, hopeful to get the undead slayer off at least once more, even if it wasn't with her mouth.

“Oh God. Right there, B,” Faith moaned when Buffy's fingers bumped against her insides in just the right spot. Licking Buffy's pussy was stimulating enough without having the girl in question fingering her own cunt and sucking on her aching clit. The blonde hastened her pace, encouraged by the way Faith's hips bucked.

“Fuck, Buffy!” the brunette screamed out again. “Your fingers. God…your fingers. Don't stop. Please don't stop. I'm so fucking close. I wanna cum for you.”

Faith's head rocked from side to side and she screwed her eyes shut. Sweat poured from her body and soaked the cotton sheets on which she lay. Buffy's sex forgotten for the moment, she abandoned herself to her lover's rigorous attentions. When she felt Buffy gently bite her clit, the Boston girl's climax quickly crashed down on her, and she yelled out into the bedroom.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

“Faith?”

The Boston girl rolled over in bed and stretched out her long limbs. Her body had that satisfying ache that comes with having just been fucked. “Mhhmm?” she purred.

The Californian chewed on her lower lip as she stared at her lover. “I have to go back,” she announced. “Back to Sunnydale.”

Faith stared at the cracked ceiling above and blinked a few times. “Oh.”

“And…” The Californian paused meaningfully. “I want you to come back with me.”

“Buffy?” The younger slayer turned on her side to stare at her lover.

Buffy propped herself up slightly on her pillow, to look more directly at the Boston slayer. “We could be a family, Faith,” the blonde explained excitedly. “You, me, and Dawn.”

“You're not just sayin' that cause I'm good in bed, are ya?” the brunette lightly teased. She poked the woman lying beside her. “Wantin' me to follow you to SunnyD so I can be at your beck-and-call to scratch that itch for ya?”

Buffy slapped her partner on the arm. “Stop it.” The slayer-vampire looked slightly flustered. “But you are good at that…” She licked her lips and looked over the brunette's barely covered form with smoldering eyes. “But I'm serious about this, Faith,” she continued, her voice a little lower. “I-I love you. And I want us to be a family.” The blonde reached out and stroked her fingertips down Faith's bare arm. “You are my family.”

“Are you for real, B?” the dark-haired girl croaked out in disbelief. “Cause if you're just playin' me, I don't think my heart could take much more disappointment in this life.” Hot tears dripped down the Boston girl's face.

“No more games,” the blonde insisted. Buffy kissed her slayer fully on the mouth. She could taste the saltiness of the younger woman's emotions. “I love you, Fai. Come live with me.”

+++++++++++++++++++++

The Boston girl rolled over in bed, hoping to feel the elder slayer's form next to her own. She wasn't much of a cuddler, but then again, she'd never really had sex with anyone she truly loved. She snuggled into her warm pillowcase and breathed in deeply, smelling the delicate scent of Buffy's shampoo lingering on the cotton sheet.

Faith stretched out her legs, stiff from sleeping in the same position for too long, and ran her toes along the smooth, chilly calves of her bedmate. She lazily shifted her arms under the covers to brush her fingers against the motionless woman beside her. If she was lucky, she smiled to herself, maybe Buffy would be interested in Round Three.

Faith sat up in bed abruptly when she felt the warm, sticky liquid seep onto her fingertips. Even in the blanketed darkness of her bedroom, she sensed something was wrong. She brought her fingers to her lips and recognized the sharp iron tang of blood.

The overhead light in the master bathroom flicked on, dimly illuminating the modest bedroom. The sickly, pale light flooded over the grey Berber carpeting. At least three bodies lay discarded on the floor. A man in a suit and tie with his face twisted in terror, his arms and legs hanging at unnatural angles. A strawberry-blonde woman in her mid-twenties, her sun-golden strands matted to the side of her face; thick, dried blood caked on one side of her scalp. And a thin, middle-aged Asian man whose throat had been slit lay crumpled on the carpeting. His face was pale and his lips had turned a blue-ish hue. Dark blood soaked the flooring, creating crimson pools where the corpses rested.

The Boston girl looked next to her where the recently soulled vampire slept. Faith hesitantly reached across the bed, and rolled the pale feminine figure over on her back. The dark-haired slayer gasped aloud at what she saw. The woman was not the slayer-vampire, but another anonymous corpse. Blood still oozed from the deep wound on her neck, and her pale grey eyes stared blankly up at the ceiling above. Faith looked down at the bed sheets crumpled around her. The pale green cotton blankets were spattered with fresh blood.

Buffy stepped out of the bathroom, flossing her teeth. “Oh hey, baby,” she casually chirped, stepping over the disfigured bodies towards the double bed. She dropped the used floss from her fingertips. Faith watched as it seemed to flutter in slow motion onto the floor, next to the corpse in business attire.

The blonde girl climbed up from the foot of the bed and smiled sweetly at the still-startled Bostonian. “I hope you don't mind,” she purred. She leaned in and placed a lingering kiss on Faith's unresponsive lips. Buffy tasted like a cocktail of iron and mint. “I got hungry while you were sleeping, so I brought home a little snack.

+++++++++++++++++++++

 

Chapter 18: Conspiracy

Flashback

The Californian's hazel-green eyes went wide when she recognized the twins. “Y-you,” she stuttered, taken aback by the unexpected visitors.

“We don't normally make house calls, vampire,” the blue-veined male sniffed. “But for you, we had to make an exception.”

The stony female took a step closer to the cowering demon. “You're messing everything up. Our Seers do not like what they have seen of the Future,” she sternly noted. “And if Our Champion isn't prepared to kill you, We intend to stop you.”

++++++++++++++++++

“We don't have the power in this realm to dispose of you ourselves,” the female Power continued. She passed her wavering hand through the undead slayer's arm. “As you can see, we're not corporeal in this dimension.”

“But that doesn't mean We are without Power,” her male twin interjected.

Buffy narrowed her eyes as the Powers. “What do you want from me?” she demanded. “I'm not one of your playthings anymore.”

The woman sniffed at the demon. “Yes. And that is unfortunate. As annoying and stubborn as you've been these past few years, you were an effective Slayer.”

“So now what you do is no longer of concern to us,” her brother noted with contempt. “Except when it concerns the other Slayer.”

The vampire's eyes went wide. “Faith? You're here because of her? What do you want with her?”

“The Slayer is meant for great things,” the male continued. “There's a Battle coming in which she will play an imperative part.”

The female marbled figure looked stern. “And she'll be unable to play her role if she's a vampire.”

Buffy crossed her arms across her chest and smirked. “Oh, I see,” she laughed darkly. “You're afraid I'm going to Turn her, and you wanna cut a deal. Well guess what?” she mocked. “Faith is mine. No amount of wheelin' is gonna change that.”

“We do not `cut deals,' Vampire,” the blue-veined woman called out, outraged by the very idea. The air seemed to shimmer around her. “Especially with one so insignificant as you.”

“Insignificant?” the slayer-vampire raised a skeptical eyebrow. Although she knew she should be cowering before these powerful twins, she was too proud and stubborn to show her fear. “If I'm so insignificant, then why all the big fuss?”

“Because the Slayer loves you,” the female Power stated. “No,” she paused, “she loves Buffy Summers. And she'll do anything to be with her. Your little tryst at her apartment proved that.”

“And without hope,” her brother continued, “without something to live for - we'll lose the Slayer.”

Buffy looked back and forth between the two Powers, like watching a tennis match, as they revealed why they were confronting her in this abandoned alley.

“We cannot do anything to change Buffy Summers' death or transformation. Her time is up in this world,” the woman stated unemotionally. “She has served her purpose.”

“But we can do something,” the male Power continued, “something temporary to give our new Champion hope.” He smiled to himself. “To give our new Champion the faith she needs to survive your temptations.”

The Powers paused dramatically and shared a silent smile between themselves.

“Well?!” the vampire demanded, throwing her arms in the air. “Tell me! What are you going to do?!”

The female looked once more at the undead slayer. “Return your Soul.”

+++++++++++++++

Present Day

Suggested Listening: “Conspiracy” - Paramore

POV Faith

“W-What the Hell, Buffy?!” I cry out, still unable to take in all the destruction that now inhabits my once corpse-less bedroom. Well, corpse-less if you don't count Buffy.

The blonde in question sticks out her bottom lip in that patented pout. “What?” she whines, uncharacteristically. “I was hungry. You can't expect me to just waste away, can you?”

“T-there's pigs blood in the fridge,” I sputter out. “You knew that.”

“Why settle for that when the real stuff is so good,” she purrs, nuzzling my neck.

My body tenses when she touches me. What the fuck is going on here? When did Buffy decide to go all death and destruct-o girl on me? I thought she had more control than that. And what was that big speech about last night - about not hurting humans - if she was just going to do this a few hours later?

And then I feel it. Or more accurately…I don't feel it. I scramble out of bed as quickly as I can and stare at her in wonderment and fear.

“Y-you're not Buffy,” I stutter nervously. My eyes shift around the room, looking for any kind of weapon.

She looks up at me from her reclined position on the bed. “I don't know why everyone always underestimates you,” she smiles softly. Those familiar hazel-green eyes flutter at me. “You're a quick one, Faithy.”

“W-What did you do with her?” I demand. The tears sting my eyes and blur my vision. I can't have lost her. Not now.

She sits up quietly, her face looking thoughtful and almost a little injured. “I didn't do anything, lover. I was just biding my time until I could come back.” A half-smile wiggles onto her mouth. That same half-smile that Buffy would give me and make me feel like I was the most beautiful thing in the world. Now I just want to slap it off this vampire's face.

“Your Buffy is back up in Heaven where she belongs,” she coos. “But you, my dear, are here with me.”

Buffy - or rather the demon who now controls her beautiful body - stands up from the bed. She's wearing a sheer black nightgown that falls just above mid-thigh. I have no idea where she got it - it's certainly too girlie to be anything from my wardrobe. But on her, it's perfection. The spaghetti straps sag slightly on her shoulders, almost begging me to brush them down her soft skin. Her golden hair flows down her slender shoulders in thick, wavy curls. My eyes seem to be disobeying my brain, because she catches me sweeping over her delicious body. Looking at her makes me ache all over, but I shake my head like an Etch-a-Sketch, trying to erase all the naughty images that have unwillingly popped into my brain. I have to keep reminding myself that she's not Buffy.

“But why?” I ask, not sure that this vampire knows the answer. “Why was she here…and now she's not?”

The undead woman shrugs. “Couldn't tell you. The last time I was in control of this body I was jumping out the window of a teen shelter. By the way,” she winks coyly. “You're one helluva kisser.”

I feel the blood boiling inside my veins. Why does the world hate me so fucking much? Haven't I atoned for all the fucked up shit I did before? Shouldn't the Fates be smiling down on me or something? This has got to be the cruelest 180 in the history of the planet.

“Where is she?!” I scream, taking a menacing step toward the demon. “Where's Buffy?!”

“She's gone, Faith!” the soulless demon screams back. “And she's not coming back! Can't you see?” she grabs onto my arm and I try to shake her off, but her grip is too tight. “Your only chance for happiness is with me now. I told you before. Kill me or join me. There is no in between.”

Her free hand goes to my neck and she squeezes slighty, making my eyes bulge out. I can feel the strength pulsing through her thin fingers. Her eyes look manic and raged. “I could kill you right now, Faithy. I have so much power surging through me,” she rants. “You have no idea what being a Slayer and a Vampire is like. But I'm not going to kill you. I want you, Faith. I want you with me. We could be together,” she whispers into my ear. “Forever.”

I look deep into her liquid hazel eyes and find myself falling. It would be so easy to just let go…

Her lips are suddenly on mine, and she forces her tongue into my mouth. The taste of blood is still in her mouth and it makes me gag. I pull away and stare at her, horrified, but also a little turned on. It seems like I can't help myself around Buffy, dead or alive, soulless or not.

She gives me one last desperate look. “Think about it, Faith. Just think about it.” Buffy looks fleetingly at the open bedroom window and I can tell she's already planning her escape. “You'll know where to find me when the time comes,” she observes.

I can only stand, frozen in place, as she disappears out the open window. I know I should follow her rather than allow her to kill more innocent people, but my bare feet seem stuck to my bedroom carpeting. I rush over after a few moments and watch as the vampire quickly descends the rickety metal stairs in the back of the building and escapes into the night.

Everything seems to be happening so fast. Too fast. Last night with Buffy was…was amazing. And then I wake up and she's no longer with me? Maybe the past few days have been nothing but a dream.

I'm jarred back to reality when I hear someone pounding on my front door. “Is everything alright in there? I heard some yelling?” comes the male voice.

Fuck, it's the Building Manager.

I hastily pull on some worn jeans, a t-shirt, and grab my leather jacket before hopping out the back window myself. I'm not in any shape to follow Buffy, but no way am I gonna stick around here. Even if I wasn't an ex con, there's no way I'll be able explain how all these dead bodies ended up in my apartment.

When my feet hit the black pavement, it starts to rain. A sardonic grin finds its way to my lips. Of course it would start raining. The gravel bites into the bottoms of my bare feet. Leave it to me to run without grabbing shoes first.

I can hear police sirens screaming in the background, getting closer. No doubt the building Superintendent let himself into my apartment and found the remnants of Buffy's midnight snack. Those boys in blue sure are fast responders.

A crowd has started to assemble in front of the apartment complex as the police scream up in their cars and they barricade the area. At least people in Sunnydale always had the good sense to run the other way when disaster struck. These freaks in LA are wicked nosey, just itchin' to see a dead body or something. I pop the collar of my leather jacket and dip my head down low as I walk past a couple cops.

I turn down a deserted alley, looking for someplace to hide until the police leave the area. Garbage and boxes and crates are all around me, but I find a dry place to sit down on the back stoop of some red brick building. There's a slight overhang and it somewhat shields me from the light sprinkle that's suddenly turned into an all-out-downpour.

A scrawny black kitten hops out of the darkness and settles on the concrete slab beside me to find some shelter as well. It shakes its pathetic-looking body, small droplets of water flying in all directions. It looks pretty brave, for being on its own, and I reach out to pet it. The black fur is wet and sticks to my fingertips. The cat tenses slightly when I first touch it, but then I feel it's small body relax, and it starts to purr like a frickin' motor.

The kitten crawls up onto my lap and turns once before laying its body down. The wetness on my own face could be rain, but I'm pretty sure it's tears.

I'm shoeless. No wallet. No money. No weapons. Just the clothes on my back.

And as I look up at the pale moon, I realize now what I have to do.

Even if it kills me.

+++++++++++++++++++++

 

Chapter 19: Are You Ready?

Suggested Listening: “Hometown Glory” - Adele

The brunette woman held her breath as she slowly crept up the back fire escape. She moved carefully so as to not cause the rickety metal stairs to shriek and groan with her slight weight. Her neighbors may have left her alone while she resided in the apartment complex, but with the previous night's adventures, she wasn't convinced her fellow apartment-dwellers would mind their own business.

Faith jarred the bedroom window open, thankful that the LAPD hadn't locked her safest entry. She crawled through the opening and her bare feet hit the carpeting with a muted thud. The Boston girl had spent many nights without a roof over her head, but since being released from prison, she had gotten used to the stability of her independent address. She had spent the previous night and subsequent day in the shadows, keeping close to the LA-based apartment on the off-chance that Buffy would return.

Her body tense and ready for flight if need be, the Boston slayer quickly scanned the dark bedroom. She stood still while her eyes adjusted to the limited light. A light post beyond her bedroom window cast its cool illumination into the space. The HVAC team had already begun to clean out her room. While her belongings were still mostly scattered around the rest of the apartment, the bedroom itself was practically empty. The blood-soaked mattress had been discarded so that now only the wooden bed frame remained. The carpet felt slightly damp on the soles of her naked feet, no doubt from being cleaned and steamed to remove the numerous blood stains.

Faith cursed quietly when she discovered that her bedroom closet was also empty. All of her clothing had been donated or thrown away. She explored the rest of the apartment with a grim face, but was relieved to find that her favorite Doc Martins still sat near the apartment's front door. Well at least now she had shoes.

The woman took a quick tour of her kitchen. She yanked open both the freezer and refrigerator doors. Empty. She swore again remembering that her icebox had been stocked with blood. That certainly wasn't going to look good for her. What kind of person kept quarts of pig's blood in their house?

Faith hastily rummaged through the kitchen cabinets. Although all the perishable food had been removed from the kitchen, her dry food pantry remained intact. The Boston girl ripped off the top of a cereal box and shoved a handful of dry Cheerios into her mouth. In addition to having a bed to sleep in, the brunette had gotten used to eating since her incarceration as well.

Faith sat down at her two-person kitchen table, continuing to eat Cheerios straight from the box, and thought about her options. There was no way she'd be able to convince the police, especially being an ex-convict, that she had not been culpable for these murders. She knew virtually no one in the building who could be a character witness. On the contrary, her neighbors had witnessed her dragging herself home at bizarre hours, clothes suspiciously blood stained and torn.

The Boston girl could see the newscast in her mind. Oh yes, pretty girl…kept to herself…always covered in blood and bruises. Didn't think anything of it at the time. Just thought maybe she was a butcher or MMA fighter. Guess you can never tell what kind of people live next door.

Faith doubted Angel or any of his crew would have her back, either. Not after the shenanigans of the past week. She had, after all, chosen Buffy over all of them. And the way she had left things between her and Angel….

For all the good she had tried to do - for all the mistakes for which she had tried to amend ever since being released from prison - she had thrown everything away for the opportunity to be with Buffy.

Faith tossed another handful of cereal into her mouth and chewed.

++++++++++

“Honestly,” the former beauty queen huffed. “What's wrong with those two? They think they can just barge in here whenever and insult you like that?”

“Cordie,” the brooding vampire mumbled. “I don't need you to protect me from Buffy and Faith.”

The brunette woman crossed her arms across her chest and looked sourly at her employer. “But it's just rude. I mean, I can see Buffy being a bitch, because she kind of puts the `B' in Bitch. But Faith?” The former cheerleader shook her head. “After everything you've done for her?” She blew air out her parted lips. “Totally rude.”

Angel closed the book he had been trying to read in his office. He now regretted telling Cordelia about his visits from both Faith and Buffy. Although the former Sunnydale resident had certainly matured and grown into her role as his connection to the Powers-that-Be, whenever old friends visited Los Angeles, she had a habit of reverting to her former `Queen C' self.

“I mean, we all know that Faith's had a huge boner for Buffy since forever,” the brunette Seer snickered. “And I'm sure being in an all-lady's prison only exaggerated her curving sexuality. Not that I have anything against lesbians,” she was quick to assert. “But Buffy's a little boney for my tastes.”

Angel raised his eyebrows at his employee but dared not interrupt. He knew the former beauty queen had far from finished her verbal tirade.

“How could Faith be so delusioned though?!” Cordelia stared hard at her vampire employer. “I mean, so what if she's crushed on Buffy since the beginning of time? She can't expect there to be any kind of future there. They really should listen to your advice instead of blowing up and running out,” the brunette noted. “I mean, a vampire and a human together? Sure they both have souls, but what's to keep a vampire with a human when she starts to age and get horribly saggy like a Sharpei puppy while they continue to look like a Greek god?” she exclaimed. “There's no amount of botox that can compete with immortality,” she noted wistfully. “All the cosmetic surgery in the world couldn't keep up with that brooding goodness.”

“Are we still talking about Buffy and Faith?” the soulled vampire asked quietly.

“Angel…I…” the former cheerleader started. Her face looked slightly flushed and she leaned in toward the broad-shouldered man. Maybe now wasn't the time to admit she had grown overly attached to her brooding employer. Especially now that Buffy was back.

The brunette woman stumbled briefly as the beginnings of a massive migraine unexpectedly stabbed her brain. The Powers that Be had horrible timing. Her arms flailed wildly as she reached out to catch herself on Angel's oversized wooden desk. Acting quickly, the undead man swooped in on the Seer before she could fall to the floor.

Bright white pain flooded Cordelia's brain and every fiber in her body felt like it was on fire. She had often humored herself that she'd get used to the visions and the partnered pain, but every new episode seemed more intense than the last. Cordelia did her best to memorize every detail that the Powers had decided to send her way. The human and the demonic faces. The neon flashes of signage. The sour smell of sewer. Everything was important.

She heard a muffled voice in the distance and after a few moments, as the connection to the PtB was severed and the ache in her cranium subsided, it became clearer. Angel was calling her name.

“Woooh,” the bronzed beauty gasped. She touched her fingers to her nose when she felt wetness on her upper lip. Her nose had begun to bleed. The Californian grimaced. “That was a doozy.”

“What was it, Cordie?” Angel implored. “What did you see?” He reached for the Kleenex box on his desk and handed the brunette a tissue. Cordelia dabbed at the blood and shakily stood up.

“Faith,” the woman declared as she held her palm flat against her forehead. The front of her brain still throbbed. “I saw Faith. And…and she with Buffy.”

“Where?” Angel pressed. “Did you see where they were?”

The woman narrowed her eyes slightly, thinking back to all the brief flashes of images the Powers had sent down to her. It was times like this when she wished they would just use a fax machine or something.

“I saw a red door. And a sign.” She paused and closed her eyes trying to picture the letters on the door. “The Red Dragon,” she said, opening her wide eyes again. “Does that sound familiar?”

The undead man frowned. “It's a demon bar downtown,” he noted. “But it mostly only caters to vampires.”

Cordelia flashed the soulled vampire a concerned look. “I saw…I saw…” She swallowed hard before continuing. “Buffy was feeding from Faith.” The girl paused and looked stricken. “Angel…I think Faith was letting Buffy turn her.”

++++++++++

Faith banged loudly on the non-descript metal door. She shoved her hands deep into the pockets of her leather jacket and anxiously waited. The eye-level window screeched open and the familiar pair of blood-shot eyes appeared.

“Hey there, gorgeous,” the bouncer leered. “You lost?”

Faith looked sourly at the hidden face. “Is she here?” she demanded with a sneer.

“I have no idea what you mean,” the bar employee innocently admitted.

“Cut the shit, dude,” the slayer growled. “You know who I'm talkin' about.”

A rumbling chuckle floated out into the dank alley. “Listen girl, it's not my problem if that blonde chick found herself a new pet. I don't want any trouble in here.” The vampire bouncer paused. “Fuck,” he laughed. “Yes I do.”

The metal window slammed noisily and after a series of clicks, the entrance to the demon bar swung open. Faith stepped into the club and glared at the bounce. “Took ya long enough,” she spat.

The heavily tattooed bouncer raised a shaped eyebrow at the brunette. “Now don't start the show without me, sweetheart. I want a front row seat the next time that hot little tart bites a chunk outta you.”

Faith gave the vampire a two-fingered salute before storming off deeper into the club. The Boston girl quickly descended the spiral staircase into the belly of the bar. She paused on the final step, letting her Slayer-senses adjust to that familiar, overwhelming itch that indicated vampires were near. Normally the instinctive radar was a faint twitch at the base of her spine, but with so many of the undead in such close proximity, it forced a wave of nausea to flood the dark slayer's senses. She paused momentarily until the vertigo passed.

As the dark-haired woman stomped closer to the bar, the vampire-induced unease was quickly replaced by something else. Jealousy. The Boston girl's eyes possessively narrowed when she spotted the familiar blonde cozy with a beefy-looking human. Buffy was feeding from someone else.

Not caring that her heavy boots echoed loudly against the concrete floor of the dank club, Faith made her way noisily towards her sister-Slayer. Buffy sat on a barstool at the bar. The formerly soulled vampire drank voraciously from the wrist of a man whose eyes were half-closed in pain and pleasure. The man was on his knees in front of the seated demon. Buffy's face was twisted into its vampyric visage and her eyes were focused on her victim's wrist, rather than her surroundings.

The thickly muscled man wore dirty jeans and a stained white t-shirt. His sandy-blonde hair was unruly and bite marks covered the insides of his forearms like a heroin junkie -

but vampires and pain were his drug of choice. Faith knew all too well the kinds of emotions he was experiencing. She shuddered slightly remembering what it felt like to have the blonde's fangs deep inside her flesh.

Noticing the newest bar patron, the bartender swept her yellow eyes over the dark slayer's tense form. Faith's balled fists clenched and unclenched at her sides as she watched Buffy feed from this anonymous junkie.

The vampire bartender snickered. “Looks like your Pet came to find you after all.”

Buffy looked up suddenly and disengaged her canines from the built man's wrists. Her face instantly returned to its human form when she saw the brunette woman. The blonde vampire wiped at her mouth. “Faith,” she breathed.

“Looks like you still have a thing for the thick, brainless types,” Faith stated unemotionally.

The soulless vampire's eyes flicked briefly to her recent snack. “It's more of an acquired taste, really,” she stated with a small smile. Her eyes returned to the taller slayer. “You know you're what I crave though, lover,” she purred softly.

Buffy looked back at her prey, who was still on his knees in front of her. She placed a stilletto'd heel on his shoulder and kicked hard. The man fell hard backwards onto the dirty floor. She curled her lip in distain. “You can go now.”

The man gave the vampire a wounded look as he pulled himself from off the ground and brushed at his already dirty jeans. Blood spilled down his arm from the forgotten wound. He lingered in his place and looked between Buffy and the newcomer with a silent hunger.

The blonde vampire quickly hopped off of her barstool and leaned in menacingly toward the man. Although she only came up to the stranger's chest, she looked dangerous and powerful. “Are you deaf?” she yelled. Buffy grabbed onto Faith's hand possessively as if to indicate that he had been replaced. “I said you can go.”

The man grabbed a worn cordoruy jacket off of an adjacent barstool and made a hasty exit.

Buffy turned to face the brunette and stepped dangerously into her personal space. She wrapped her arms around the back of the taller woman's neck and pulled her in close. “You have no idea how happy I am to see you,” she hummed contentedly.

Faith's body tensed and she looked anxiously around at the bar's other patrons. She felt dozens of eyes all staring at her, especially in light of the scene that had just transpired. “Can we go…someplace else?” the brunette asked.

Buffy's mouth flopped into a frown and she stuck out her bottom lip. “But this bar is so much fun, baby. Why would you want to go?” she lightly complained. “You just got here.”

Faith stared hard at the demon. “We need to talk…about your offer.”

Buffy dropped her arms from the younger woman and took a step backwards. “Well that was faster than I'd expected,” she admitted. She raised a suspicious eyebrow. “This isn't a trick, is it?”

The Boston girl swallowed hard and shook her head. “No…I'm ready.”

The vampire ran her tongue along her bottom lip and at the corners of her mouth. “Kiss me first,” she instructed. “Then I'll believe you.”

Faith sucked in air through her nostrils and pushed a long breath back out her lungs. She was acutely conscious that every deep breath she took might be one of her last. The Boston girl licked her full lips and placed her hands on the elder woman's jutting hipbones. She pulled her roughly toward her, causing their fronts to bump together.

Buffy's eyes visibly dilated as she looked up into the younger woman's face. “Mmm, Faith,” she purred. “How did you know I liked it rough?”

The Boston girl crashed her mouth hard against the smaller slayer's open lips. Her tongue thrust into the cold cavern and wrestled with the vampire's own tongue. Hips and teeth and tongue battled for dominance in the middle of the sparsely populated demon bar.

Buffy clawed her polished nails against the back of Faith's thin top, raking her fingers along her feminine, yet powerful back. The Boston girl's hands traveled south to find the undead woman's perk backside. She cupped the perfectly shaped ass in her hands and pulled the smaller slayer's lower torso bruisingly closer. Cat-calls and hollers of appreciation filled the dark slayer's ears, but she didn't care.

She had made her decision, and for once, she was going to follow-through.

++++++++++++++++++

The dark convertible flew down the nearly empty streets of Los Angeles. Angel looked down at the car radio and grimaced as each passing minute seemed to taunt him. If Cordelia's visions were correct, he only had a few moments to spare in order to save the wayward slayer.

As his car screamed past the city-skyline like a neon blur, he cursed himself for allowing the two slayers to flit in and out of the Hyperion's front doors. He should have done something more than play the disapproving father when he first saw the bite marks on Faith's neck. He shouldn't have forbid Buffy from seeing the dark-haired girl; he should have known it would only make her want the Boston girl even more.

Angel raked his fingers through his rigidly gelled hair and looked back down at the clock.

He only hoped he would make it in time.

++++++++++++++++++

“Have you ever Turned anyone before?”

Faith looked alongside at the former slayer. The two women walked along a darkened alley a few hundred yards from the demon bar.

“I haven't, no,” the blonde vampire admitted with a shrug. “I've done my research, though. But even if it doesn't work, I'll at least have a belly-full of Slayer.”

The Boston girl tensed and gave the undead woman an uneasy glance.

“It's not exactly rocket science, Faith,” the vampire chuckled as she continued along at her easy gate. “I bite you. You bite me. Then you die. And when you wake up, you'll be better than before. Dead,” she admitted with an amused look on her pale face, “but definitely better than before.”

When the Boston girl remained quiet, Buffy gave her an encouraging grin. “Trust me, Faith,” she smiled and her step lightened. She threw her hands up toward the pale moon. “You'll never experience a rush like this. Being a vampire and a slayer?” she shook her head and giggled. “Plus,” she continued excitedly, “if you thought our little romp between the sheets was hot before, just imagine what it'll be like when you and I are at equal strength again!”

Faith looked over at Buffy and then back down to her hands. She picked at her cuticles to give herself something to do. Was she really prepared for what she was about to do?

She set her jaw and gave herself a silent pep-talk. There was really only one option now.

“Where do you want to do this?” the Boston girl asked in a rough voice. Swallowing was becoming increasingly difficult as she felt her throat tighten with every step towards her Destiny.

Buffy stopped her walk and looked at the girl with a curious grin. “There's no place like the Present, don't you think?”

The dark-haired girl looked nervously around the dark alley. “You-you mean right here? R-right now?”

The elder slayer shrugged with one shoulder. “What? This isn't like you imagined it?” she asked with a coy smile. “Don't tell me you've gone all soft on me and were expecting white sheets and rose petals?”

Faith closed her eyes and shook her head. “No. You're right,” she rasped sullenly. “It doesn't really matter where it happens.” She opened her dark eyes again and stared longingly at the vampire. “The only thing that matters is that I do this before I change my mind.”

The Californian's face transformed into its demonic visage. The moon high above them cast an eerie light on her normally angelic face, making her features look more exaggerated and frightening than usual. The soulless vampire flicked at the ends of her elongated canines with the tips of her tongue. “So you ready to get this party started, baby?” she asked around her enlarged teeth.

The dark-haired slayer swallowed hard and nodded. “I'm-I'm ready,” she said shakily.

Buffy swabbed her tongue the length of her bottom lip. “This might hurt a little,” she stated softly as she closed the distance between herself and the taller woman. The Boston girl leaned back slightly, but paused in her retreat when she felt the gentle touch at her neck. Buffy brushed the younger woman's unruly locks out of the way, sweeping them over her shoulder so that she had an unobstructed view of the taller woman's skin.

 

 

The vampire tenderly fingered the fresh wounds on Faith's neck. “Looks like you and I started the party early,” she murmured smugly.

Faith sucked in a deep breath when she felt the vampire's mouth suddenly on her exposed neck. Buffy licked at the still-tender marks on Faith's neck, the tip of her tongue poking at the barely-healed scars. There was no familiar burst of air, however, like when a lover nuzzles seductively into your body. There was just an emptiness to the undead woman's closeness. And then suddenly a hot searing pain as the vampire sank her elongated teeth into the slayer's flesh.

The Boston girl moaned quietly when she felt Buffy's hands clamp tight on her arms. Her veins seemed to be opening all at once for the demon as if her body knew her intensions. Her blood rushed out in great bursts and gushes, and the vampire sucked hard so as not to spill any of the life-giving sustenance.

Faith screwed her eyes shut, yet felt the prickling of tears itching at the corners of her eyelids. She had been bit by this vampire before, but this felt different. Lost was the eroticism of Buffy branding her breast. Lost was the gentleness with which Buffy had previously handled her. Now she was only victim to an insatiable demon.

If one's life truly flashes before their eyes in the moments before they die, Faith mused as she felt herself slipping away, then her own life had been wholly insignificant. While others' minds might be filled with the faces of loved ones or fond memories, the raven-haired slayer's mind only contained a dark void.

The undead slayer disengaged her teeth from the weakening woman's neck. Buffy could feel the Boston woman's heartbeat faltering with each moment. She needed to time this right or the slayer would be wasted. Buffy wiped the blood from her lips with the back of her hand. She looked down at the trail of crimson on her pale skin with an amused grin.

“I knew you'd come around, Faithy,” the blonde taunted quietly. “I knew you loved me.”

The Californian released her tight hold on the taller woman momentarily so that she could slice her own wrist open for the faltering woman to feed from.

The dark-haired woman coughed roughly and with great pain. “You're wrong.” Faith clenched her jaw muscles and ground her back teeth together. “I don't love you,” she muttered. “I loved Buffy Summers.”

With her last ounce of strength, the dark slayer reached into the waistband of her jeans.

++++++++++++++++++

Flashback

Faith chewed thoughtfully on the dry Cheerios.

She didn't trust she was strong enough to defeat this vamped-up, former slayer. In hand-to-hand combat she didn't believe she could come out on top. She needed to lie. And she needed to do it convincingly so that she could finally end this. Faith didn't know what she would do with herself afterwards, if it even worked. But she loved Buffy too much to allow a soulless demon to continue wearing her body.

Faith stood up from the small kitchenette table and opened the closet door in the entranceway to her apartment. The Boston girl rummaged briefly through her belongings, looking for a specific item. Her fingertips brushed against the familiar, polished wood and she pulled the weapon out of the closet.

The stake felt heavy in her hand as if it knew what she intended to do.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Killing Buffy was easier than Faith had expected.

Even though the blonde slayer was a new vampire, a part of Faith had anticipated that there would be some visible difference - something that set this kill apart from all the others - like when she had finally staked Kakistos and his body slowly crumbled around his rigid skeleton. Or like what she imagined killing the Master had been like for Buffy.

Buffy had been a kind of super vampire, Faith figured, being a former slayer and all, so it should look different. But when the wooden stake wormed its way past her ribcage and plunged into her unbeating heart, the undead slayer exploded into a cloud of dust just like any other vampire. Even the look of disbelief and shock plastered on her face just before her body exploded was the same.

Where her toned body had once stood was now just a thin pile of dust. Just like the hundreds of undead creatures the dark slayer had killed before.

The Boston girl fell hard to her knees and the wooden weapon fell from her lax hand. The rough concrete bit through the denim material of Faith's pants and cut into her raw skin. And then the dark-haired woman surrendered herself to unconsciousness.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Chapter 20: Epilogue

Faith's POV

Suggested Listening: “Kill the Lights (Rock Remix)” - Britney Spears

My hair whips around my face as I speed down the sparsely populated streets on my black motorcycle. The delicate package in my coat pocket feels bulky and I'm careful not to crush it anymore than I already have. I don't have a lot of time to waste. If I was any good at this kinda stuff I woulda planned on picking it up yesterday instead of waiting until the last minute. But in my defense, it's not like I've ever done this before.

I pull my bike into the driveway of the Revello Drive home and kick the stand down so my motorcycle doesn't topple over. I look up at the house and smile to myself. It still feels kind of surreal being here. Fuck, sometimes it feels surreal to still be alive.

I push through the front door and pull off my heavy boots, setting them on the welcome mat in the foyer. I remember Joyce always tried to keep the house tidy, demons be damned, so I work hard to keep up that tradition. I tug the small, crushable plastic container from my pocket and set it on the wooden table just within the doorway.

“Faith?” a girlish voice calls out from upstairs. I've learned quickly that it's hard to sneak home undetected around this one. “Is that you?”

“Yeah, Dawn,” I yell up the staircase. “You almost ready?”

“Just a few more minutes,” she promises. If I were a bettin' kinda girl I'd wager she's still got a good half an hour of primping to go. I know how those Summers girls are when it comes to gettin' dolled up. Every hair must be in its place.

“Did you get it?” the brunette teenager bellows down to me. I still can't see her yet. She's probably standing in the bathroom, just staring at herself in the big vanity mirror. I guess I can't blame her for wanting to look perfect, though. It is a big day - for a teenager at least. And if anything, I've worked hard to give her some semblance of normality.

“Yeah,” I yell. “It was one of the last ones, so don't blame me if it's a little crushed.”

Her head pokes over the railing. “You didn't crush it on your bike, didn't you?” she asks, her face lined with worry.

“D,” I soothe. “Don't worry about it, okay? It looks just fine.”

Her head disappears again and I groan. Alright, maybe she's got more than another half an hour of primping. Seriously, how many times can you fix your make-up or flatiron your hair?

The doorbell rings behind me and I groan again, this time louder. “Dawn?” I call up the stairs again. “Your date is here!”

Her head pops out again. “Just a few more minutes,” she uselessly promises. “Could you get that for me?” she pleads, batting her heavily mascara'd eyelashes at me. “And don't scare him!”

I grumble under my breath, but open the front door. Standing on the front porch is a gangly-looking kid whose lookin' mighty anxious. He looks stiff in his black tux like he's never worn one before, and he keeps shifting the plastic box with the corsage from one hand to the other.

“Ya gonna come in, or what?” I laugh after a few painful seconds.

The kid manages to squeak out a little smile of gratitude. “Oh, uh, thanks Ms. Lehane.”

+

“It's Faith,” I bark as the teen walks into the house. “How many times do I have to tell ya that, Tony?”

“S-sorry, Faith,” the poor boy sputters. I like to give him a hard time, but he's a pretty harmless kid as far as teenage boys go.

“So the Prom, eh?” I leer as I close the door behind him. “Don't get any funny ideas, cause Dawnie's not like that.”

His blue eyes are wide and I can tell he's afraid I'm gonna toss him out the front door. I might have done that the first time I caught them making out in the living room. “Not in this house,” I had snarled as he went hurtling through the air. I didn't worry too much about tossin' him though; the grass on the lawn is soft and teenage boys always have a knack for bouncing.

I hear the sound of someone clearing their voice, interrupting me scaring Tony just a little more. We both look up towards the staircase and see Dawn making her grand entrance. She's wearing the strappy lilac-colored dress we spent hours upon hours looking for. If I never have to go dress shopping with her again, I'll be a happy camper. Her dark brown hair is flat-ironed just so, with half of it pinned up in one of those fancy updos you see in Seventeen or YM. She's a little wobbly coming down the staircase in the high-heels she insisted she was old enough to wear, but I'm not worried. She'll get used to `em before the night is through.

“Y-You look great, Dawn,” Tony bumbles next to me. I force back the snicker I can feel bubbling up in my throat. Like I said, the kid's not so bad as teenage boys go.

Dawn flushes pink a little from her date's stumbling compliment and then looks expectantly at me. My eyes search around the foyer frantically cause for the hell of me I can't remember where I put that stupid plastic box. When my eyes finally rest on the slightly crushed container, I grab it and shove it toward the brunette. Who woulda thought that Faith the bad ass Vampire Slayer would be pickin' up flowers for the Prom.

I watch anxiously as Dawn pins the boutonniere on the slightly taller teen's lapel. We practiced a few times beforehand, but I'm still nervous. The kid didn't exactly get Slayer grace, and I'm worried about Tony bleeding out all over the foyer rug. Xander just had it steam-cleaned.

“I know I said be home before sunset,” I begin with a grimace. The two look up from their flower fumbling to glance over at me. I'm a little overprotective when it comes to this girl. “But you guys can stay out later tonight.” I shrug, trying to not make a big deal about it. “I mean, how many times does a girl get to go to Prom, right?”

Dawn unexpectedly tosses her arms around me and squeals in excitement. “Oh my God! Thank you, Faith!” The kid's got a set of lungs on her, that's for sure. I might be deaf now in my left ear.

I squeeze her back a little when the ringing in my ears subsides. “Yeah, yeah,” I mumble. “Just be safe, okay?” I pause, thinking maybe I should keep the next thought to myself, but I can't help it when the words stumble out: “They would have been so proud of you,” I murmur in her ear.

Dawn leans back from the hug, and I can see the tears forming in the corners of her eyes. I don't have to say who “they” are, because she knows I mean her mom and Buffy.

So here's the part of the story where I tell you what happened.

That night, about three months ago now, Angel found me just in time - before I died from loss of blood, that is. But not before I had dusted the vampire-in-Buffy-clothing. He told me later that Cordelia had received a vision that she'd interpreted as me being turned by Buffy, so he'd raced over to the Red Dragon to find me. I don't think the Powers were fooled though. I think they just needed Angel over there as my backup, knowing that I'd be in no shape afterwards.

I was hospitalized for a few weeks because of my injuries and my mental instability. Since I'd been in the hospital so recently due to blood loss, the doctors were worried I was a suicide risk. It's probably a good thing they were so cautious with me because who knows what I would have done if they'd released me after my physical wounds had healed. I was wicked messed up for a while. Lost large chunks of time and all that.

Angel, Cordelia, and the rest of the Los Angeles gang came to visit me everyday while I was in the ICU and then later in the psych ward. Gotta give them a whole lotta credit. If any of them had been as bitchy and reckless as I had, I don't think I woulda been jumpin' on the Get Well Soon bandwagon like they all did. And Angel and I had some really deep conversations about everything in my cell of a room. About Life. About Love. About Loss. But mostly about Buffy.

He wasn't upset with me for…for killing her. Once I told him that she'd lost her soul again, he looked almost relieved. He gave me a tight hug, which is totally not like him, and told me how strong I had been to be able to do what he wouldn't have been man enough to do. And he said something to me that blew my mind at the time - he said what I did proved that I loved her more than he ever did.

I was released from the temporary mental ward after I'd convinced the doctors I wasn't gonna Off myself. Then word got back to us at the LA office that Willow had gone off the magical deep end. After the major fuck-up with Buffy and the vampire juice, Red got swallowed up by magic. Really dark shit, too from what I hear.

She became obsessed with finding a way to bring Buffy back the right way, and Tara dumped her. That made it even worse, and from what Xander tells me, they nearly lost her. I hear Willow's doing okay now though; she's in England with a coven there helping her wean herself off of the dark stuff. Magic rehab, I guess.

Once it was clear that Willow wasn't coming back for a while, what was left of the Scoobs persuaded me to come back to Sunnydale. They weren't so much concerned about watching the Hellmouth, but more worried about Dawn. Giles and Xander are still here, of course, but neither of them was really equipped to take care of a teenage girl. I mean, not that I am either, but at least I don't blush a million shades of red when the kid runs out of tampons.

So I'm back to fighting the good fight. Back to protecting the Hellmouth and being one of the good guys. And you might ask yourself why I'm doing it - why I would come back to this town filled with so many miserable memories.

Because I know it's what Buffy would have wanted.

“Uh, so should we go?” Dawn's prom date squeaks out uncomfortably. I let go of Dawn and she gives me a really watery smile. Shit. Now I think I might start crying too.

I shoo them away with my hands before the waterworks starts and everyone's mascara is ruined. “Everybody out!” I bellow, not wanting them to see how all this bonding has turned me softer than a marshmallow.

I walk the young couple out the front door and holler out s'more threats to Dawn's date, just to make myself feel better. “I mean it, Tony,” I call out from my position on the front porch. “Keep your hands to yourself, or I'll arrange for your hands to be physically removed from your stubby little arms.”

Dawn flashes me a look of warning and I give her a dimpled grin in return. Sometimes this `parenting' stuff is hella fun. Her date looks wicked uneasy as he opens the door for Dawn, and she slides into the passenger side of his parent's Buick.

I lean against the door jam and give a curt nod when I see Dawn waving spastically back up at me. She's a good kid. Awkward as hell, and all kinds of whiney at times, but she's got a good soul.

As I watch the two pull out of the driveway and slowly crawl down the street and out of sight, I fish around in the one of the potted plants for my hidden pack of cigarettes and lighter. Dawn hates that I smoke. It's the one last vice I've got though, so I try to be sneaky about it. I'll have the occasional drink once in a while, but Jack Daniels and I aren't as familiar friends as we used to be. And I can't remember the last time I had someone in my bed…No, I take that back. I can, but I'm not ready to really think about her in the past tense just yet.

I'm not gonna pull your leg and say that all of this is easy.

Slaying, saving the world? That's the easy part - that just comes naturally.

But Life? That's a battle that tests me like no apocalypse can.

A very smart woman once said that the hardest thing in this world is to live in it. And when I'm laying alone in her old bedroom at night is when it hits me the hardest. You might think me a masochist for staying in her room instead of Mrs. S's old digs, but I do what I can to keep her alive, at least in my mind.

Because there's one thought - one truth - that gets me through the days and makes this Hell a little less painful.

Because I know now.

I know that Buffy loved me.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

The End.

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