Chapter 7: The Bad

"TAKE THAT BACK!!"

I put my hand to my lip and check it for blood. I lift it to my blurry line of site and all I see is red, and now I'm pissed!

"Take what back?!"

"WHAT YOU JUST SAID!! AND THAT SMARMY LOOK!!!"

Fuck, why didn't anyone tell me Buffy'd gone crazy?! I guess they didn't think I mattered. Fuck `em.

"I said, `Hey, B. Who's the new girl?’" I look over at the Asian girl who has a disgusted look on her face. "And, what smarmy look?"

She's so pissed off her face is beet red and if this were a cartoon she'd have steam comin' out of her ears and from the top of her head, possibly through her nostrils, too. I'd laugh if I didn't feel like cryin' from the shot she gave me.

"Faith! Don't fuck with me!! You're this close to having me kick you in the head." She holds up her and hand her thumb and forefinger are pinched together.

"Well if it's anything like the love tap you just gave me, B, I'd say wail away, `cause that shit tickled."

I'm such a fuckin' liar! Her punch jarred my mandula oblongata enough to `cause my fuckin' fingers to go numb. Shit, she's gonna put me in another coma.

She and I are just circlin'; waitin' for one of us to drop our guard. I don't know what the fuck she's on about, but this shit's gotta stop. One of us could wind up dead here, and my money's on me.

"What in the bloody hell is going on here?!"

Fuckin' finally! It's about time G showed up. He said he'd only be a few minutes. I wonder if minutes are measured differently over here like every other fuckin' thing seems to be. Fuckin' metric system. Or is that the Dewey Decimal system? Fuck, what the hell am I thinkin' of? Don't need to lose concentration and give B a shot at my face.

I look over at Giles for help briefly and that gives her the in she needs, suddenly I'm back handed enough for the inner part of my lip to cut itself on my tooth and bleed like a bitch. I recover in time to see an uppercut blur its way into my jaw.

MOTHER FUCKER! That lifted me off the ground but I still manage to land on my feet, I'm doubled over a bit though. Damn! My head is spinnin' and I can't think of what I was goin' to ask her. Come to think of it, who is she? Oh shit, my mind's goin'.

Xander and Giles are tryin' to restrain Buffy and finally Willow puts a bindin' spell on her.

"May I remind you both that we are here to help each other?"

"May I remind you that once Willow releases these restraints I'm going to put Faith in another coma?"

Shit, I fuckin' knew it!! Why me?! What the fuck did I do but walk in the room, smile at her and ask who the new girl was?

My vision clears a bit more and I can see that same girl, whatever her name is, bein' restrained by some other girl who's dressed like Xander. Some kinda sweater with pads on the outside of the shoulders. I think I've seen that in some movie but I'll be fucked if I can remember which one right now.

Giles tries to hold it together and he's succeedin'. B makes it real hard for him.

"Go on, Giles. Tell me how your new golden girl is here to help?! All she's done is come in here and beg for a beating!"

G-man doesn't say anything but I can see a bit of Ripper in his face. He and I have been through too much recently for Buffy to talk shit about me. He lets go of her after he makes sure Willow's spell is holdin'.

Damn, I feel a bit woozy. I'm about to fall on my ass when a chair literally comes out of nowhere. Red used magic so I could sit. I know she hates me but that was nice of her.

I smile at her and she looks all concerned. I must look a picture.

"So, are you going to apologize, Faith?!"

"For what?" I say, but it sounds like, "Fuhwuh". My mouth is so busted and the blood is just runnin' makin' anything I say worse than Rocky Balboa-speak.

"Will someone please go get a towel?!" Giles shouts.

Xander lets go of Buffy and rushes out of the room.

"Yes, please help the helpless bitch that doesn't know she's not wanted."

"ENOUGH!" Giles stops on his way over to check my cuts and turns on his heel towards Buffy. "What in the bloody hell is your problem?!"

"I want to know why you insist on bringing her here?! She's not wanted! I have a thousand other slayers at my beck and call and I don't need her!!"

I snort with laughter but it sounds a little garbled. Blood's backin' up into my throat and I gag a bit. Xander comes in with a couple of towels and someone that looks like a doctor.

I look around the room and the other slayers that are at B's `beck and call' look a few different ways: Some looked pissed at the `beck and call' thing, some look scared at what's going on, some look disgusted at the amount of blood pourin' from my face, some look concerned and some look like they wanna behead me. I guess my rep preceded me. I wonder how.

"Buffy, at the risk of making you even more upset, can I ask why you're so mad at Faith? We could use her help." Red's tryin' and I respect her for it. Doesn't mean B's gonna listen.

Buffy doesn't take her eyes off of Giles as she answers Willow, "I thought you weren't her biggest fan?"

"No, I'm not, but we need her help. We're going to be beaten if we don't get help and Faith...."

"Yeah, Faith's got `help' written all over her." B's Asian friend replies.

Buffy's laugh makes my stomach turn. She really wants me dead. Why, is what I wanna know? What did I do now? Is it because Giles is helpin' me now? I tracked mud in her room? What?!

"Xander, perhaps you should see Faith to the infirmary."

"Yeah, we wouldn't want her to hear all the nasty things `mean old Buffy' has to say about her that she should hear before she gets the fuck out of my life, ONCE AND FOR FUCKING ALL!!!"

Ouch.

That hurt more than a thousand of her punches ever could. But I don't say shit, I don't even let the tears that are tryin' to build up in my throat passed that point. `Cause they're not. I mean, I'm not upset that she said that. It's just that my jaw hurts like a bitch and it's makin' me want to tear up.

I feel a couple of people help me up from the chair and I shrug them off when I get to my feet.

I stand there defiantly and notice that the room is swayin' just a little. I gather all my knowledge of findin' my center and calmin' my inner demons that Giles and Angel taught me and straighten up. More blood rushes into my mouth and I smile what I know is a red and pretty fuckin' gross smile. I spit whatever's in my mouth on the floor. Most of it makes its way onto my shirt but I still look pretty badass doin' it.

Some of the junior slayers cringe and a few of them are sayin' shit about me.

I want to say somethin' real smart and make Buffy look about 3 feet tall, which is about a foot shorter than she is anyway, fuckin' runt, but I can't seem to make my mouth work right. So, I gather strength one more time and I say as sweetly as I can, "Fuhyu" and flip her the bird.

"FUCK YOU TOO! I WANT YOU GONE YOU FUCKING BITCH!!!" She's strainin' to get free and it looks like it hurts.

Fuck her, I'm not listening. And I don't care that she looks like she's hurting, not my fuckin' problem.

I nod to Willow as I make my way out of the room with Xander and the doc behind me. Giles is still standin' in front of B like he's gonna yell at her as soon as I'm gone.

Once we're passed the door, Buffy's girl closes it. Wait...No, fuck no! Buffy's girl. That's why she was so fuckin' pissed off!!! I should have seen it before, but it just hit me now when that girl just looked at me. Buffy didn't want me to find out she's fuckin' a girl !!

There's a fuckin' kick in the nuts!

My legs give out and I fall right the fuck to my knees. My escorts rush up and are quick to hold me up so I don't face plant on the floor. They help me stand and I rest my head on Xander's shoulder while they walk me to the hospital room.

"Yeah and it had nothin' to do with you bein' a wuss." I say but it sounds like `Yah nahd nuff tahdo wif binawuss'. Shit what did she do to me?! I've been beat up before but this is just fuckin' nuts!

"A what now? From that little smile you tried to give there I'd say you were sayin' something to make fun of me, but with your face being all busted up it's hard to tell."

I want to laugh but I think I'd choke.

"Put your head back, Faith." The doc says to me. "Open you mouth a bit."

Ugh, bad idea, it hurts like you wouldn't believe and the blood's just chokin' me.

"No! Ok, ok! Bring your head back up, sweety. Xander call Trina in here and get me gauze pads and another towel!!!"

I want to ask what's wrong but I don't think I can talk. Somethin's really fuckin' wrong.

Xander rushes back in with a black woman hot on his heels. All I can think of is `Damn, she's pretty.' when the doc says somethin' I didn't think was possible.

"Her jawbone is broke clean in half, it's pushing through the bottom of her mouth. We're going to have to operate right away. Xander..."

"I'm on it!" Xander says and rushes out of the room.

My breathin' is gettin' all fucked up, and the doc is tryin' to soothe me.

"There, there, Faith. No need to panic, dear. We'll have you sorted out in a jiffy. Nothing I haven't seen before, what with all the injuries slayers get on a daily basis."

"Cnafoolme," I try to talk but she stops me. But they can't fool me, I know this is bad. Shit's written all over their faces.

"No, no, don't try to speak, it will only cut the bottom of your mouth more. We're going to prep you for surgery. I'm going to ask you a few questions, blink once for yes, twice for no. Understand?"

I blink once.

"Very good. Very, very good, dear girl."

Shit, she sounds just like my first watcher, she gently pats my hand and I want to cry. But I'm not a fuckin' wuss, so I don't.

Suddenly, six other people file into the room all wearin' scrubs. The doc asks me her questions and I do my blinkin' and then they have me lay back slightly while Trina gets me ready to be knocked out.

Heh. Should save the anesthesia and just call in B to finish the job.

Wow, there must be more than knockout drugs in that shit. I think I just saw a giant Dawn lookin' through the window.

"Faith?"

Can't answer you D, I'm goin' under. And even if I wasn't your sister did a number on my jaw. Lucky sho

"Faith?"

Fog rolled in G, can't see ya. Can't even tell ya that either because my jaw won't move a fuckin' inch.

I feel what I assume is Giles' hand squeezin' my own.

"I know you might not be able to hear me Faith, but I just..." Giles' voice breaks and I'm stunned. He's cryin' over my stupid ass? He recovers in that British way he has. "I just wanted you to know it has been a great pleasure working with you these past few months. You're going to get better, Faith. I'm sorry. Sorry for bringing you to Scotland, I assure you I had no idea Buffy would react that badly. I have no idea what transpired between you two, but I will be getting to the bottom of it. I want all of this...bad blood to stop."

"How is she?"

I can hear Xander walk into the room.

"She's not in a coma, which is very good considering how hard Buffy hit her. They put her jaw back together and stitched her tongue back into place. The bone had almost severed it. One tiny bit more and she might have choked to death on her own tongue."

Fuck, that was close.

"Gaaaah!" I can just picture Xander cringin' in the way only Xander can do. Makes me want to laugh, but for some reason I feel like cryin' again.

Why? Shit happens. Different fuckin' day, week, month, year. B's never gonna forgive me, I have to get that through my stupid fuckin' skull.

I want to go home. But where is home now? Boston? My family doesn't wanna see an ex-con, that shit's for sure. Ma's dead. Never really was home I guess.

Shit, that's not true, I had my Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles. The ones who gave a shit about me, anyway.

Fuck, I'm a black fuckin' cloud. It's a whole fuckin' site different than when I woke up this mornin'. What mornin' is it anyway? If it's even mornin' anymore. I wish I could ask but my mouth still won't budge.

Shit, I should just get some sleep.

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