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Chapter Twenty-Eight

Twenty-eight days had passed since Buffy and Faith were sucked inside the portal and nobody was getting any closer to finding a way to bring them home. The women from the coven and Willow had found the location of the portal, no longer inside the Hellmouth in Cleveland but in the one in Italy. They had managed to cast a spell to keep it from moving, but when it came to trying to pull Buffy and Faith out, nothing they ever did worked. Kennedy could see how tired Willow was, exhausting herself using magic that drained her almost completely.

Kennedy had tried to talk Willow into taking a break since that morning, but Willow kept telling her it would feel like she was giving up and she couldn't do that. Kennedy ended up lounging under the tree in the backyard with Satsu for most of the afternoon. Satsu was reading one of Giles' books and glancing up from it every couple of pages just to look at Kennedy and flash a small, sweet smile her way. The sun was hot, the air was muggy, and the dark clouds were rolling in from the west slowly with promises of a late afternoon summer storm.

"Do you ever wonder what it'll be like for us if we never get our power back?" Satsu asked as she closed the book and placed it on the ground next to her. "I know Althenea said she and the others were working on finding a way to activate the scythe again, make us all Slayers again, but you ever wonder what if they can't?"

"Every day. We weren't even Slayers for very long, but I miss the power I felt."

"Right, that's what I was trying to explain to Carmen the other day. Doesn't matter how long you've had that power, the point is you've felt it and you crave to have it back."

"Willow and the others are trying to fix everything else first," Kennedy said quietly as she looked back up at the house. "Thing is, I don't think they realize that maybe the world would be better off staying the way it is now. Sure there's chaos, but it's calmed down now."

"Maybe," Satsu shrugged. "I don't know, I'm just thinking too much lately."

"We all are. There isn't much else we can do other than sit around and do fuck all while we wait for Willow and the other witches to figure everything out."

"Rather bitter, aren't you?"

"Yeah."

"It'll all fall into place in the end, you'll see."

"And if it doesn't?"

Satsu sighed softly as she picked up her book and stood up. "If it doesn't, we'll worry about it then. You can't worry about something if it hasn't happened yet."

"Where are you going?" Kennedy asked as she got up and shook off the numbness in her left leg from having sat on it for far too long. "Satsu?"

"Inside," she replied softly and stopped to look up at the sky. "Storm is coming."

"Yeah, I can see that," Kennedy muttered under her breath as the first few raindrops began to fall. She followed Satsu inside to find the women from the coven sitting around the table with Giles and Willow. "What's going on?"

"We found a way to fix everything," Willow said as she turned to look at her, smiling for the first time Kennedy could remember since Buffy and Faith were sucked into the portal. "We are going to fix everything, Kenny."

"Great. How?"

"We are going to open the portal and bring them home. It's a spell and it's...sort of complicated," Willow replied as the women around the table began talking quietly among themselves. "I can do the spell on the scythe tonight and by Sunday," she smiled wider as Kennedy forced a smile back, "and by Sunday we'll bring them home."

"If it's a spell, how come you didn't—"

"Like I said," Willow said as she cut her off. "It's complicated, Kenny. Complicated but really not at all impossible like we thought."

"And what are the consequences? You know, you told me before all magic comes with a price."

Willow stood up and the two of them went out into the hallway to talk alone. "The consequence is the fact that when we bring them back they...they'll be stronger."

"Stronger how?"

"Althenea told me that if we reactivate the scythe and open the portal to bring them home, they'll channel the essence of every Slayer that lived and died before them."

"So they're going to have super superpowers when they come back? That's the consequences of pulling them out of the world they're stuck in inside the portal?"

"Yeah."

"And that's bad because?"

"Because they'll have so much power inside of them, more than anyone should ever have. You don't know what too much power can do to you until you have it and let it control you."

"Will, we're talking about Buffy and Faith coming back as super Slayers here, not..." Kennedy sighed as she leaned against the wall. "Look, just do what you have to do to bring them home. Let me know if you need any help later or whatever."

"Kenny..."

"What?"

"Why are you being like this?" Willow asked as she took a step closer to her. "Shouldn't you be happy we've finally figured it out?"

"I am happy," she replied with no emotion in her voice. "I just don't think...no, I do think. That's all I've been doing for the last month is think. We all have. It's not healthy and I can't fucking stand it anymore."

"Stand what?"

"Questioning myself about our relationship."

"Wait, how did this turn into a conversation about us?"

"Because it never...you know what? Forget about it," Kennedy scoffed as she headed for the stairs. She wasn't in the mood to get into it with Willow again and after the other day, the doubts she was having about their relationship were making her feel guilty.

"Kennedy, we're doing it tonight," Willow said as Kennedy reached the bottom of the stairs. "And by Sunday, everything will be okay again and then we can work on being okay again too. I promise, baby. Everything will get better. It'll never be like this again."

"I know."

"They've been gone almost a month. Everyone is feeling the strain, the stress. Everyone is worrying about them, but they are alive and well and together."

"How do you know that?"

"Althenea and I, when we found the portal we were able to take a quick glance inside. The darkness became light there and we were able to stop the shifts that world goes through every time it moves from place to place. I saw them, just for a second, and they were together and they looked...happy almost."

"How can they be happy where they are, Willow?"

"Because they have each other. If anyone told us that they'd find something within each other two months ago, you know that each and every one of us would have laughed and thought it was crazy because hello," Willow said, letting out a sharp laugh as she slowly approached Kennedy, "I mean its Buffy and Faith. They were never close, they were never able to spend more than ten minutes together without one of them saying something that would fuel the other and they'd end up fighting, with words and with their fists. Something changed when we left Sunnydale and whatever it is, it's still changing everything."

"Higher power guiding them on a path of what, happiness and love when the rest of the world has gone to shit?"

"Don't you get it?" Willow asked as she took Kennedy's hands in hers. "Buffy could never easily love and Faith, well she...she's always been a little rough around the edges. Maybe this really was supposed to happen so they'd finally have a chance to find each other, to really see what was right there in front of them the whole time. The Fates wouldn't make something like this happen if it wasn't for a reason."

"I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Kenny..."

"It's too much, Will. Just...do what you have to do. Make us all Slayers again and bring them home. I'll be upstairs if you need me for anything."

"Kenny?"

"What?"

"We really need to sit down and talk. About us. About everything."

"Didn't we talk about this the other day?"

"We need to talk about it again," Willow said softly. "As soon as we're done in the kitchen and finish preparing for the spell we're doing tonight, I'll come upstairs and we'll talk. Okay?"

Kennedy just nodded her head slowly and headed up the stairs, finding it hard to stare straight ahead when all she wanted was to look back down at Willow and offer her a smile that meant so much more. She couldn't and didn't and she let out a choked sob as soon as she reached their bedroom door. Everything was falling apart, everything. It was almost as if another kind of evil had inched its way into all of their lives and started picking them apart where they were most vulnerable. Anyone in love was vulnerable, for when you are in love you are blinded from things you'd normally see with clear eyes and an unrestrained heart.

She was starting to understand Faith more than she ever thought possible. They really were too much alike and in so many different ways. Faith was complex in her own way, just as she was, but it was the way they dealt with things without actually dealing that made them the same. Kennedy nearly kicked open the door and sat down on the edge of the bed, forcing back her tears as she tried not to let her emotions get to the better of her. She had to stay strong and it was all she'd been doing since Buffy and Faith were sucked into the portal. She needed to be strong for herself now, the others didn't need her, and Willow didn't need her.

Maybe that was why she felt like she was being pulled towards Satsu. The sense of calm she felt with her was like no other. Still, despite how she felt, she couldn't do that to Willow. She lay back on the bed and closed her eyes, hoping that the days would go by faster and that everything would just go back to being the way it should be, with Buffy and Faith home where they belonged and everyone fighting the good fight, side by side once again as a family.

Even with the essence of the Slayer inside of her, she could still feel both Faith and Buffy. She could even feel Satsu, Amber, and—much to her dislike—she could feel Carmen too. She could feel Willow, but it was different, there was something not right with the way she felt her. Willow shared that same essence, but it wasn't really the same inside of her as it was for the others. She wondered—since she could still feel the others, could they feel her too without even realizing that's what they were feeling? She could feel her body slipping away, giving in to the exhausting pull of sleep. All those nights tossing and turning were finally beginning to catch up with her.

Barely had she begun to slip into a world that only existed in her dreams than she was pulled out of it by the insistent knocking on the bedroom door. She groaned as she sat up slowly and looked over at Willow as she stood there as if she was unsure if it was okay to come into her own room or not. Kennedy sighed as she moved to sit against the headboard and motioned to Willow to come and sit next to her.

"Everything all set for later?" Kennedy asked her as Willow finally sat down next to her, keeping a little bit of distance between them.

"Everything is all set, yes. We're just going to wait for Carmen and Amber to get back from shopping with Dawn to start."

"They're still out?"

"Yeah," Willow replied with a soft chuckle. "Should be back soon. Giles didn't give them that much money to spend."

"Tell me about this spell you're gonna do to bring Buffy and Faith home."

"It's hard to explain, Kenny."

"Try."

"We have to open a door and I have to go in, not physically, but I have to project my own soul inside to draw them out. This is why the women in the coven are here and why there are so many of them. It's dangerous trying to pull something out of another world, another dimension, when that place isn't done with them yet. We know that the Powers That Be are behind this. It's so much more than them being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's so much more than me not being able to close the Hellmouth before it pulled them in."

"I told you it wasn't your fault."

"I know that now," Willow replied, taking in a deep breath as the storm outside grew fiercer by the second. "We have to wait until Sunday. There's only a small window of time we have to do this and we cannot afford to screw it up."

"I've got complete confidence in you."

"I know."

"Are you scared?"

"Very scared. I keep thinking it's not going to work and they'll be stuck there for who knows how long, forever maybe. I can't leave them there."

"You'll bring them home, Will. I know you will."

"Everything will be fine again in a couple of days," Willow said softly, not just to Kennedy but to herself, as if she was trying to convince herself that everything would be okay no matter what happened—or didn't happen. "I don't even want to think of how being stuck in a place like that is going to change them. Giles already told me not to expect them to come back as themselves."

"Spending a month in a Hell-like dimension would definitely change anyone. They're strong, though, Will. We all know they are. They're stronger than even they think they are. You're strong too, baby. You'll bring them home safely."

Willow smiled as she leaned in for a soft kiss and they both sat back against the headboard just listening to the storm as it raged on outside. They needed to talk about them, about their relationship, but Kennedy was tired of talking and she knew Willow was too. They never just sat there anymore just to be together, to be near each other, to touch, to see, to understand without words what the other felt. Kennedy knew what they had—what they shared together—was deep, and it was real despite how far apart they felt now. She knew nobody else would ever be able to touch what she had with Willow. Not even Satsu, despite how she felt about her and how good Satsu made her feel. As good as it was, it still felt not quite whole, still missing something.

With everything going on, now wasn't the time to talk to Willow about their relationship and where it was going, or rather where it wasn't going. Somehow, though, she knew that Willow knew exactly what she was feeling. It was probably why they were drifting apart and finding it hard to just talk about it. She stroked her thumb over Willow's, turning to look at her and finding it impossible to force a smile. She just wanted to be happy again and she knew they all wanted that.

"Are you tired?" Willow asked her as they both tried not to yawn. "Yeah, me too."

Kennedy chuckled softly as she pulled Willow against her as they laid down on the bed. "A few hours of napping won't kill us. Besides, you should be well rested before you do the spell tonight."

"Yeah," Willow nodded her head as she held onto Kennedy tightly. "We still need to talk. About us."

"We'll get there," Kennedy whispered as they shared a silent understanding of just what that talk would be about. "But for now, let's just be, okay?"

"I can do that. I'm good at that."

"You really are," Kennedy said with a smile as she gently kissed the top of Willow's head and closed her eyes. "You're good at other things too."

"Like magic?"

"You are more than the power you have, Will. You know what else you're good at?"

"Hmm?"

Willow turned to look at Kennedy, both of them grinning as Kennedy just licked over her lips slowly. It'd been too long for her, for them, and she was starting to feel that burn inside of her to touch, to taste, to feel, to possess and worship and devour the woman she looked at like her own personal Goddess. The glint in Willow's eyes told her she was thinking the same thing and as their lips met in the first deeply passionate kiss they'd shared in a good long while, everything else seemed to melt away. All their worries, everything, gone with a kiss.

And Kennedy understood in that moment why Buffy and Faith were okay. They had found a similar solace within each other that made the rest of the world melt away and disappear just for a little while.

There were brief periods of day and night now, the shifts having long since stopped, and the rain that came with every rise of the unseen sun and continued long after darkness took over. The heat came in waves and where it should have been cool in the darkness, that was when it was hottest. Faith had spent far too much time out on the roof alone while Buffy slept. Jackie would nearly always come up there with her and they'd sit there on the ledge looking out over the forgotten, crumbling city, neither saying a word to one another most nights. A few times, though, they'd sit and talk quietly, but never about Faith and her life, only about the future and what would happen once they all went home.

More and more she was finding it easier to look at Jackie as her mother, but the words 'mom' never felt right to say to her. Jackie understood and she had told Faith just once that she never expected her to call her 'mom'. She was and always would be just Jackie to her and they had formed some kind of mutual understanding over it. She was growing more comfortable around Jackie and finding it easier just to talk about almost everything. Despite the fact that Jackie had more than a few screws loose, she wasn't all crazy. More and more, with time that passed, Faith could see that bit of insanity that had been with her for twenty years because she'd been alone was going away.

She was alone on the rooftop this time, her clothes soaked from the rain. She felt Buffy before she heard her come up to the roof and she couldn't keep the smile off of her face as Buffy stood behind her and gently wrapped her arms around her.

"Aren't you tired, Faith?"

"Exhausted."

"Then why don't you come inside, get dried off, and we'll get some sleep?"

"Don't feel like sleeping right now, B."

"You just feel like standing out in the rain?"

"Pretty much."

Buffy chuckled softly as she moved to stand in front of Faith, not once dropping her arms from around her. "Sometimes I understand you," she whispered as she leaned in for a soft, light kiss, "and sometimes I don't."

"Crazy, ain't it?"

"Oh yeah," Buffy smiled as Faith slid her arms around her and held her close. "I wouldn't have it any other way, though, you know?"

"I know."

"It's crazy how much I love you," she whispered as she blinked through the rain, trying to keep her eyes locked with Faith's. "I never knew I could love someone as deeply as I love you, even after everything we've gone through. I...sometimes I can't even put it into words how you make me feel. It's like you...see me, and not just me on the outside, but all of me."

Faith smiled widely at that, her whole heart feeling full with those words. Buffy could tell her every second of every day how much she loved her and how she made her feel and she'd never get tired of hearing it. She felt like it was crazy, too, how Buffy made her feel and how she made Buffy feel. Before coming back to Sunnydale, she never would have thought they'd ever be able to have something like this together. She never thought she'd be able to have something like this with anyone, no matter who, but Buffy had shown her otherwise and she was forever grateful for that.

"We're just a couple of love-sick fools, aren't we?" Faith asked, a teasing smile curling over her lips as Buffy smiled shyly at her. "Y'know I wouldn't have it any other way now, B."

"I know. Me neither. I bet the others would think we've done lost our minds if they saw us the way we are now," she said softly, laying her head on Faith's shoulder as they stood there in the rain just hold onto one another. "Come on, let's go get some sleep."

"In a minute, B. Just wanna stand here and hold ya for a little while."

"You can hold me while we sleep," Buffy whispered as she leaned back and smiled at her. "You are pretty stubborn about almost everything, aren't you?"

"Just figurin' that out now?"

"No," she laughed as she began to tug Faith away from the ledge. "Come on, Faith. Once we get back home, who knows if we'll have the luxury of sleeping whenever we want and to just be together whenever we want to be."

Faith knew she was right. She was always right. Everything would change once they were back home. Whether those changes would be good or bad or something in between, she knew that despite where they were they had to make the most of their time together in any way they could. She could feel the need coming from Buffy and it made her laugh softly at what an animal she'd become when it came to fucking, to making love. Buffy was insatiable and Faith could never quite get over how much and how often Buffy just wanted to spend all their time naked and writhing against each other and crying out in ecstasy as wave after wave of pleasure coursed through their bodies.

They barely made it inside and into the loft without ripping their clothes off each other, without their lips attacking, devouring, and unable to get enough of one another. Buffy let out a squeal as Faith pounced on her and they fell onto the mattress, giggling for a moment before the lust took over once again. Faith let out a low, feral moan as Buffy wrapped her legs around her waist and held her close, her nails digging into her back as Faith kissed her hard and deep. She moved to the side just a little, her hand roaming over Buffy's stomach, tracing small teasing patterns over her skin.

"Is that all you ever do? Is this all you're good for? Scratchin' her itch, pretending it's something else? Got some news for you, Faithy. That's all you're good for. Love? Love doesn't happen to you. Not from her. Not from anyone."

Faith pulled back from Buffy suddenly, not expecting to hear Julie's voice loud and clear like that and especially not now. Every last word echoed through her mind as she struggled to push them out and ignore them. She knew every last word was a lie and she wasn't letting it take her over, not this time. It was like the other half of the darkness inside of her, pushing the light out and trying to take over.

"Faith?"

"I'm fine."

"Faith, what is—what's wrong? Did you hear it too?"

"Julie?" Faith asked and Buffy only nodded her head.

"Ignore it," Buffy whispered. "Stay right here with me."

"Tryin' to, B."

"I can't believe she's messing with us. She's supposed to be seriously dead right now."

"Souls can't die," Faith said quietly. "Never go away either. Looks like hers found us."

"Why would she even do this?"

"Cos she can. Cos we let her."

"Any way that we can tell her she's got really shitty timing?" Buffy asked, holding Faith close to her as if she was afraid she was going to move away completely. "Because this really sucks. You hear that? You got really shitty timing, bitch!"

"B, calm down," Faith whispered softly. "Babe, just chill, okay? Yeah, the timing fucking sucks, I'm with ya on that one," she said and paused to deliver a sweet, soothing kiss which seemed to calm Buffy down just a little. "Now, where were we?"

"Right about..." Buffy trailed off as she reached for Faith's hand and placed it over her stomach, "here."

She kissed Buffy again, pushing out every thought in her mind along with the ghostly whisper of Julie's voice. She had to keep herself calm. She had to keep herself in control. It was hard at times, especially when she felt her weakest, but she was strong and she knew it and Buffy was one of the reasons she could keep it together and deal as best as she could with whatever was thrown her way unexpectedly.

Every moment they shared when they were together like this brought them closer and pushed everything else out. It was far too easy to get lost within each other and they both knew they wouldn't have it any other way. Not now. Not ever.

Faith smiled against Buffy's lips as they both tried to catch their breath, her fingers dancing over the blonde's stomach, teasing her in a way she knew the other girl loved despite the whimpering pleas that escaped past her lips with every little touch. But the exhaustion of being there was really beginning to take its toll on both of them and despite the urges and the need to feel one another, sleep couldn't be forced away any longer. Faith laid one last tender kiss upon her lips before moving to lie next to her, her hand still tracing small teasing patterns over her stomach.

Buffy said not a word as she turned on her side with her back to Faith and pulled her arms around her. Their bodies were flush against one another, fitting together as if they were two pieces of a puzzle. The sweetest of dreams always came when Faith held Buffy this way and she always placed a hand over Buffy's heart, feeling it beat in time with her own. This was their time here in this world between worlds and it would be time they'd never get back once they were home. The only way Faith could keep the worry of things changing for the worse once they were back home was holding Buffy close and hoping that despite it all, the bond they had now would never grow apart. She had a suspicion that the bond they had together was even stronger than she knew, stronger than she felt that it was. If this was what love meant underneath all the complex layers that came with it, she was never ever letting go.

Her dreams this time were filled with memories, recent memories of the time after Sunnydale, the slow pace her and Buffy's friendship started off as and then of how they just came together after a night of drinking with one simple kiss. If it hadn't been for Buffy being so bold in taking what she wanted, they wouldn't be where they were now. Even in her dreams she thought of the future, the near and far distant future both, and not one single part of it was without Buffy. Buffy was her whole world now, inside and out, here and back home. The last part of her that felt like she only deserved to spend her entire life alone was slowly disappearing and she very gladly said her final goodbyes to that part of herself.

She woke up first and let out a soft content sigh as Buffy stirred slightly in her arms. This is how they'd both survived without breaking down in the last while—waking up like this, feeling at peace, feeling at home despite being so far from where there real home was. Still, even after hours of sleeping, hours of pushing it out of her mind, Julie's voice echoed through the rest of her thoughts, louder and clearer than it had been when she'd actually heard her voice.

She wanted nothing more than to scream out and tell Julie she was wrong, call her a liar and a bitch, call her out of the shadows she was hiding in and finish her for the last time. Souls never died, but she knew if she tried hard enough, fought hard enough with all that she had, Julie would be nothing but a speck of a memory by the time she was done with her. She tried to push it out of her mind yet again as she laid a gentle kiss to Buffy's shoulder that made her stir just a little more.

"Faith..." she mumbled sleepily as she slowly turned around in her arms. "Feels like we just fell asleep."

"I know, but we didn't."

"I was dreaming of food, real food," she said softly and pouted when Faith just laughed. "It's not funny."

"Nah, that wasn't why I was laughing. You're too fucking adorable sometimes for your own good, B."

"Oh."

Faith smiled and pulled her in for a deep, passionate kiss, trying to keep her hands from roaming too much. The rumbling in her stomach reminded her she needed to eat and soon and with the mention of Buffy dreaming of food, it just made the hunger pangs that much worse. If it were up to her they'd spend hours upon hours lying there together, holding one another, kissing and touching until they just couldn't move any more. But it was too easy to do that and dangerously neglect everything else. Buffy had gotten her into sparring on a regular basis again and it always came after they slept and ate.

Jackie always watched them spar, looking on with pure fascination at the graceful way they moved. There were times when it got out of hand like it had when the light first came, but it no longer scared Jackie the way it had before. She now understood their need to unleash their full power even if their intent wasn't to hurt one another.

It took them a little while to get motivated enough to get up and dressed in their clothes that were still damp from the rain. They were wearing thin, but it wasn't like they had a choice to wear anything else. Jackie was already cooking up a pot of soup, the bland smell of it mostly lost in the strong smell of the wood burning in the fire. Jackie was humming softly and tunelessly as she always did while she cooked. Faith chuckled as she grabbed Buffy's hand to spin her around and quickly wrap her arms around the shorter girl, swaying slightly to the sounds of Jackie's soft humming.

"It ain't real music, but it's enough to make me wanna dance with ya like this, B," she whispered softly into her ear as they held each other close.

"It's nice," Buffy whispered back and leaned back to look into Faith's eyes, smiling at her as she cupped her face in her hands gently and leaned in for a kiss. "I sure could get used to this."

"What, this? You mean dancin' like this with me?"

Buffy just nodded her head, smiling at her as they continued to sway together slowly. They hardly noticed that Jackie had stopped humming until they heard her clear her throat a few times to get their attention. "If you two lovebirds are done dancing when there is no music," she said with a laugh and pointed to the bowls on the table, "the soup is ready."

Buffy blushed slightly as she and Faith pulled apart. Neither of them were used to the casual way Jackie treated them, especially when she saw a moment transpire between them. They joined Jackie at the table and ate quietly. There was something different about Jackie now aside from the obvious level of comfort the three of them had found around each other. Faith couldn't quite put her finger on it, but it was like Jackie seemed happy, just as she and Buffy did.

"Do you two wonder just how much time has passed?"

"Yeah, but who knows?" Faith replied as she placed her now empty bowl on the table in front of her. "Can't be too long, right?"

"Doesn't feel nearly as long as I have been here, but it's been awhile," Jackie said softly. "You can't tell how much time has passed, can you?"

"No. Everything's outta whack. Guess once we do get home we'll find out."

"A month," Buffy whispered under her breath as she looked over at Faith. "We've been here for about a month, give or take."

"How do you know that, B?"

"I feel it."

"Huh," Faith sighed as she stretched her arms out over her head. "You ready to spar for awhile?"

"Give me a minute," Buffy said as she got up from the table and headed out the back door.

"She might be right," Jackie said softly as she picked at the dried wax on the table near the candle. "You two might just have been here for about a month now. It's hard to tell. The longer you're here, the more time doesn't feel like time. Do you understand?"

"Yeah. I do."

"I don't know if I'll be okay going home," Jackie whispered as she leaned over the table a little. "I don't know how I'll deal. I've been here far too long to go back to the world."

"You'll be okay," Faith said as she smiled over at her. "You'll be with us. You'll be okay. Promise."

She turned to look at Buffy as she walked back inside carrying two long metal poles. She grinned from ear to ear as she stood up and grabbed one of the poles that Buffy tossed to her. They walked to the center of the warehouse, circling each other as Jackie moved to sit near them to watch in the dim flickering light of the only candle that was lit. Within seconds the only sounds that could be heard was the clang of the metal poles as they clashed together and the heavy breathing coming from both of them as they struggled to keep up with one another.

They came to a stop, pushing the poles together with all the strength they had, trying to gain the upper hand. There was fire dancing in both their eyes as their faces were mere inches apart. Faith chuckled softly as she felt the burn in every muscle in her body as she strained against Buffy's strength, a perfect match to her own until that one split second she became distracted. She blew Buffy a kiss, using that moment to sweep her legs from under her, bringing the end of the pole around to the center of the blonde's chest and pinning her to the floor, both of them breathing heavily as Buffy pouted at her sudden and unexpected defeat.

No matter what did happen they had ways of forgetting and just living with what they had. It was a lesson Faith had learned long ago and one that Buffy was now also beginning to learn for herself.

 

 

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Those voices, the whispers from the ghosts of their past, began haunting Faith, touching her in places that were so deep she couldn't stop it from happening. It had started when she heard Julie say the things she'd said to her and she couldn't ignore them, not anymore. After their sparring session, Faith had retreated to the rooftop once again, her muscles deliciously sore and the voices in her head taunting her louder than ever before. Even in the thunderous roar of the rain as it came down endlessly she couldn't quiet those ghostly whispers.

"Phenomenon, my ass," she muttered under her breath as she remembered what Giles had said to them about it before. "It's a goddamn pain in the fuckin' ass!"

She knew how crazy she'd look screaming to herself all alone on the roof to anyone or anything that didn't know the turmoil she was going through, but she didn't care. The frustration was getting to her, the anger consuming her, and the fire she felt growing in the deepest, darkest pits of her soul threatened to take over and throw her deep into the darkness she'd tried so hard not to fall into since the day she turned herself in. She couldn't even think of the amount of time she'd sat in her prison cell fighting her inner demons. Internal screaming wars were endless and they brought on the nightmares that left her scared to fall asleep. It'd gone on until the few short months before Wesley came to her and now, after being here for god knew how long, those same feelings were back.

She couldn't fight it anymore and she let herself go as she gripped onto the edge of the ledge that came just up to her waist. She saw a blur of memories, starting during her first few months in Sunnydale. They weren't all bad memories, not the ones in the beginning with Buffy. But then there were those long lonely nights after patrol, the random men and women, the few times she'd robbed her bedmates blind, so out of it they hadn't even seemed to notice or care. After those memories it was a whirlwind of darkness, of hatred, of fear. Of Buffy wielding that knife—her knife—on the rooftop of her apartment and of Buffy plunging the knife deep into her gut. Of the fear she saw in Buffy's eyes that had no doubt mirrored her own.

Then there was the nothingness that was the only time she'd felt at peace in her life; those months she'd spent in that coma, months that had been stolen from her. She remembered how she felt after she woke, feeling so utterly betrayed to find that Buffy was no longer with Angel, the one she'd gutted her for. It had fuelled everything that happened afterwards, which brought on the darkest of the evil she'd always felt inside of herself.

"Shut up! You think I'm afraid of you? You're nothing!"

"You're disgusting! A useless, murderous bitch!"

"You're nothing!"

It was like an echo, the voice still clear in her head. Although she'd been in Buffy's body then, screaming at herself and not at Buffy, she heard her voice over the one that actually had come out of her mouth. That was the one memory that drove her to want to better herself, to seek redemption and change her life. She couldn't look at herself that way anymore and she didn't want to ever again. Buffy seeing her go through that, seeing how she'd completely lost it, had made her feel vulnerable and weak and she set out to fix it then the only way she knew how—inflicting pain and misery, hunting Angel and hurting those close to him. It was what she did best.

But there'd been a fleeting moment then when she lost herself, lost that evil wild child inside of her and wanted to end everything just so she didn't have to feel anymore. She hated feeling. She'd hated it then and still hated it now, even though everything was so different. Feeling was just plain hard and it fucking sucked. She hadn't thought of that time in her life in at least a year. The last time she had, she'd broken down completely and ended up in solitary for over a week.

She heard the door open and turned to look over at Buffy as she walked over towards her with her arms folded across her chest. She let out a soft sigh as she stood next to Faith and they both turned to watch the rain as it fell all around the crumbling city.

"I heard you before," she said softly as she turned to look at her. "I...I know what you're going through right now, Faith. I mean...I really don't know exactly what you are going through, but for some reason I can feel what you're feeling right now. It hurts."

"No shit, B."

"It's never going to be like that again."

"You don't know that, B."

"No, I do know it is never going to be like that again. Don't let them win, Faith. I know you want to give up because you can't ignore them anymore, but don't you dare let them win. I'm not letting you go, not now, not after everything we've just been through."

"You never used to care," Faith said, ignoring everything she'd just said, becoming lost in her own thoughts. "You never used to care about anyone else, Buffy. You were all detached and stuff, no emotion, same way I was. What the hell happened?"

"We beat the First," she whispered in reply as if that was answer enough. "That talk we had in my room, it made me see something inside myself after that. It made me realize that despite how alone I've felt I've never been alone since you came around. Maybe the real reason we never got along before is because we always pushed each other out of the way?"

"We never tried."

"What?"

"We never fucking tried, Buffy. Sure, it seemed like we tried, but it wasn't enough. It wasn't like it was after we left Sunnydale. It was..."

"Easier?" Buffy finished for her when she trailed off and let out a soft sigh as she struggled to find the right word. "It was easier after."

"And now it's really fuckin' easy and pretty fuckin' confusing too."

"How is it confusing?"

"Cos I can't just be here near you without wantin' to touch you. I feel like I always need to be touching you, feeling you...I just...god, I can't even say it."

"Say what?"

"I feel like I'm a part of you, Buffy. If I can't feel you I feel like I'm losing myself."

"Really?"

"And that is as close to all that romantic crap as I'll ever get," Faith muttered, chuckling softly when she saw the perplexed look on Buffy's face. "Wasn't even really romantic."

"Faith," Buffy smiled, taking Faith's hands in her own as she stepped in front of her, "I totally get it. I really do. And it was kind of, sort of, romantic in your own little way."

"Guess it's somethin' I gotta work on, huh?"

"Also got to work on your..." Buffy smirked as Faith raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue.

"On my what?"

"How loose you talk," Buffy shrugged. "You didn't when you came back, then it was like all of a sudden, bam, right back to the old Faith. It's a comfort thing, isn't it? When your guard is down so is speaking proper English. Hey, we were talking about working on things, just thought that—"

"Y'know if I wasn't head over fuckin' heels in love with you right now, I'd be offended. But strangely, I'm not. Not even a little."

"Good," Buffy smiled. "And I was only teasing, Faith."

"I know."

"So, you're okay after everything that just happened up here? If you want to talk about it..."

"Nah, talkin' about it's only gonna make it worse. Rather just forget about it and move on."

"What about dealing—"

"I have dealt, B! It's all fuckin' comin' back and I've dealt with it, okay?" she snapped, shaking uncontrollably as she tried to keep her anger from exploding. "It's those goddamn voices, B. Ghosts of the past or whatever the fuck they are. They are getting to me. Again."

"I know, I know," Buffy sighed as she stroked her hands up and down Faith's arms slowly. "Come inside. I finally convinced Jackie to try to make something besides soup with the mountains of potatoes she's got."

Faith let out a short, sharp laugh, finding it impossible to refuse the pout now adorning Buffy's face. "I so fucking never wanna see or eat another goddamn potato once we get home."

"Deal."

"B?" Faith said as she stopped her from walking away. "Thank you."

"Anytime, Faith."

They shared a quick kiss before running inside, both giggling as Faith flicked the water running down her fingertips at her. How quickly everything could change just with Buffy near her, talking to her, touching her in small, innocent ways that affected her just as strongly the most intimate touches could. Jackie, as always, paid no attention to their little giggle-fest as they chased each other across the warehouse floor over to where she was by the fire. She just cast a glance towards Faith as they approached her and she began humming softly, winking at Faith as she watched her take Buffy by the hand.

"Now this," Buffy whispered as she wrapped her arms around Faith and smiled sweetly at her, "is some of that romantic 'crap' that I like."

"Ya told me that before," Faith replied just as softly, smiling right back at her. "Really do like this, B. Just, y'know, holdin' ya like this, dancing to god knows what song she's singin' over there."

"Well, in the future I'll have to keep that in mind. For those late night dances in the privacy of oh, I don't know, the living room at your apartment."

"Our apartment. If ya want...and as long as it's still mine. Who knows what's happened since we got here."

"You're asking me to live with you?"

"After all this time we spent together? Don't think I could stand bein' apart from ya for very long, B."

"Me neither," Buffy said as she leaned close to whisper it in her ear. "Plus it's not like we'd get much privacy at the house. If the others don't like it, they'll just have to deal."

"Keep wonderin' what we're gonna do with her," Faith whispered as she looked over at Jackie.

"We'll figure it out, Faith. Don't worry, okay? We'll set her up at the house and we'll all look out for her until she's okay enough to be out in the world on her own."

"Seems like ya got the answers to everything sometimes."

"Not everything and not all the time, barely even sometimes."

"But you do...sometimes," she smiled at her when Buffy scoffed. "Even when all that shit was goin' down 'fore we walked into the battle against the First, you just...shit, B, you know what you're doin' even when ya don't. You're one hell of a woman, you know that?"

"Spike said that to me."

"When?"

"When I got kicked out of the house and he found me that night. We talked and he kind of...put things in perspective for me."

"Oh. Well you are, so I guess I gotta agree with him on somethin'. But that's about it."

"We're seriously going to have to talk...about everything one day, Faith. We can't put it off forever."

"But for now?" Faith said softly, the tips of her fingers sliding under the hem of Buffy's shirt and stroking the skin there. "Can we just..."

"Be?"

"Yeah," she smiled. "Let's just be us, the way we are right here right now."

"This your way of forgetting what happened to you up on the roof, Faith?"

"Might be," she laughed and kissed away Buffy's pout. "Yeah, it is. Ya got a problem with that?"

"Not unless you stop," Buffy replied as she pulled her in for a long, passionate kiss that left them both breathless once they broke apart. "And you better keep kissing me like that."

"Oh, I plan to," Faith smirked as she twirled Buffy around before pulling her back in close, her lips instantly finding the other slayer's before the blonde could take in another breath.

Just like every time she kissed Buffy like that, she melted away, feeling only Buffy's lips upon her own lips, Buffy's tongue dancing against her own. She could feel the heat increasing between them, forcing her to pull back from the kiss, both of them just as breathless as the first had left them. She planted one last light kiss upon Buffy's lips before she pulled back and stared at her, smiling as Buffy slowly opened her eyes.

"I think you two give a whole new meaning to lovesick," Jackie chuckled from where she stood by the fire. She shook her head as she turned to watch the smoke that billowed up and out the vent above.

"I'm taking that as a compliment," Buffy said. Then muttering under her breath, "That better have been a compliment," but apparently it was just loud enough for Jackie to hear.

"It is a compliment, in my own special way. It's saying 'stop being so sweet, you're melting my heart'," she said, winking at both of them. When Faith gave her the finger, Jackie just returned the gesture with a smile, making all three of them laugh.

Faith looked back at Buffy, still quite aware they were barely moving together, barely swaying, mostly just holding, feeling, and being together. She could still hear the whispered voices, but they were less now as she got lost within the depths of Buffy's eyes. It felt too easy, far too easy, and that scared her because she knew every time things started to feel this way it all went reeling back to where she'd been before, to where the voices had control over her and brought that darkness out. Buffy reached up and tenderly stroked her cheeks, almost as if she knew exactly what was going through her mind at that moment, and just from the tender touch, the soft, loving look in her eyes, she was telling Faith to stay with her and to keep them out.

They stood there for a little while longer just staring at one another. Faith felt like Buffy had become her anchor, the one thing that kept her from losing her mind completely while they were stuck there. Jackie had tried to make french-fries and surprisingly after eating nothing but potato soup they were nearly heavenly, even without any salt or the buckets of ketchup Faith liked to douse her fries in. They were more filling than the soup, but they made her taste buds crave a nice, thick, juicy burger to go along with them. She couldn't keep doing that to herself; she couldn't keep thinking of everything she'd rather eat when they had no other choice right now.

Jackie went to lie down after she put the fire out. Faith's muscles felt strained, the same way she always felt when she needed to go out and slay. She opted instead to spar with Buffy for a while, but her heart wasn't into it this time around. She ended up back up on the rooftop, but she wasn't alone. Buffy wouldn't let her go back up there alone to deal with those ghostly whispers that tried to pull out the demons she had inside of her. The rain had let up, yet the sky still was dark with that eerie orange glow that Faith had gotten quite used to seeing.

They sat on the ledge side by side, their feet dangling and banging against the bricks as their hands reached out for one another, fingers intertwining without even thinking of it. They stayed up there until the heat slipped away and the sunless sky lit up, brightening the world around them, blinding them just a little and chasing them inside. She was thinking again, just like always, but it wasn't of the voices, of the darkness, of the world they were trapped in. She thought of the future, the near and distant, and wondered how they'd end up. Would they stay together, find something more within each other? Or would they eventually drift apart when that spark died off between them?

She hoped and wished it'd never happen, but somewhere along the line she'd heard someone say that first love was called the first for a reason, there was always another bigger and greater love waiting in someone else. It hurt to think of ever having what she had with Buffy with someone else. She hated thinking about the what-ifs of the future, but it wasn't like she could stop herself. She knew Buffy was thinking the same thing nearly every day. It was only then that she suddenly asked herself if she was prepared to be at Buffy's side for the rest of her life, if she was prepared to love her with everything she had and everything she'd gain as the days went by.

The only answer she got was yes. She could and she would and she'd make sure that nothing and nobody ever came between them. But she also knew if things changed, if Buffy's feelings for her changed, she wouldn't hold her back and that she'd let her go no matter how much it killed her inside.

She held on to Buffy as the tiny slayer fell into a sound sleep. For Faith sleep was far off despite the exhaustion she felt as a result of the sweltering heat. She closed her eyes, trying to relax as much as possible, but instead she only saw blinding white light and heard a voice she hadn't heard since they were sucked into the portal. Kennedy's. She couldn't make out what she was saying, what she was asking. It frustrated her to no end, causing her to ask why she'd heard Kennedy's voice now. Was Willow close to bringing them home or was Kennedy sending out the call that they were doomed to spend whatever was left of their life stuck there?

"Go to sleep, Faith," Buffy murmured quietly.

"Tryin' to, B."

"Stop thinking," she sighed as she turned around in her arms and pushed the hair that had fallen over her eyes out of the way. "You always think way too much, Faith."

"How do you know I was thinkin'? Coulda just been layin' here listening to ya breathe."

"Don't ask me how or why, but I feel it. You become...tense. And I think it's official."

"What is?"

"We're definitely spending way too much time together if I'm picking up on all these things about you. I've never...not with anyone else...ever been able to get to that point before. Life always got in the way. Slaying always got in the way. Never had enough time just to be with someone the way I have time to be with you now."

"Ain't like we got much of a choice with the whole spendin' too much time together thing, B. And I got news for ya, Twinkie," she laughed as Buffy groaned at the nickname. "Ain't gonna be any different once we get home. Always gonna make sure we're together one way or another."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really," Faith smirked, gently nibbling on Buffy's lower lip as she pouted. "And this pouting thing ya always do, B? So don't work on me anymore."

"No? Pity," Buffy said, pouting once more and laughing as Faith leaned in to nibble her lower lip again. "But I'm serious about the thinking. You let it consume you. It shouldn't get like that."

"But it does. Just how it is, B. Been this way for a while. Granted, not quite like this before, but this place has changed me, it's changed both of us."

"Did you think a lot when you first came to Sunnydale?"

"Not a lot. Always just acted before I thought. You know that. Didn't really start getting' all deep and shit 'til prison, I guess."

"But when you thought...what'd you think about?"

"You, mostly. Drove me fuckin' crazy half the time too," Faith replied with a soft laugh to show there were no hard feelings and no more lingering doubt from that time in her life. "How 'bout we try that whole sleeping thing now, B?"

"You just don't want to talk about this," Buffy whispered as she turned back around in her arms and leaned her back fully against Faith's front. Even with the heat increasing, Buffy still pulled the sheet over them and sighed softly as Faith placed a gentle kiss to the back of her neck. "We'll talk when we wake up, okay?"

Faith said nothing as she nodded her head and forced her eyes shut, pleading for sleep to come even though she knew it wouldn't any time soon. She should have told Buffy she heard Kennedy, but that was a conversation they could have once Buffy had slept and once she'd lain awake for hours just holding her while she dreamt of home, of anyplace other than where they were now. She longed to join Buffy there in her dreams, longed for home, longed for the life they had before they were brought there. She'd get it back. She knew she would. If she lost faith in ever going home, the hopelessness would consume her just as her thoughts did and those whispered voices, the ghosts of her past, would eat her alive and spit her out as who she'd been before things started to change and turn around for her.

And she'd never let that happen again. She couldn't. She'd rather leap off a cliff and fall to her death than have to go through being that Faith again.

Andrew held up the black outfit, beaming with pride as everyone stared over at him. He'd done research and found that lightweight Kevlar outfits would benefit the Slayers when it came to patrol and any battle they found themselves in. It would keep their injuries to a minimum and plus, as he put it, black was stealthy and they always needed to be stealthy.

"You expect us to willingly wear that?" Carmen asked with complete disgust. "You're out of your mind, nerd-boy."

"You aren't seeing the bigger picture," Andrew said rather calmly, much to everyone's surprise. Even Kennedy half expected him to whine about it. "I've even special-ordered a big supply. I can make the outfits for each one of you and for Buffy and Faith once they come back home."

"Andrew, as important as it is for the girls to stay as safe as they possibly can, we've got bigger issues on our hands right now," Giles said as he shifted in his chair, the heat wave and the broken air conditioner making the house nearly unbearable to be in.

"Sorry, Mr. Giles. I thought since we were having a meeting that I'd bring it up."

Kennedy grabbed the outfit, the prototype to Andrew's 'big idea', and studied it while Willow tried, once again, to explain what would happen in just a few short hours. They were going to bring Buffy and Faith home, 'try' no longer a word in any of their vocabulary. They were bringing them home and everyone seemed to have complete faith that Willow would be able to pull this off without anything going wrong. She and the women in the coven had reactivated the scythe, which in turn made all the Potentials all over the world Slayers once again.

Kennedy had been growing rather impatient since feeling her Slayer strength come back. She'd even managed to connect to Faith when she got a few minutes alone that morning to meditate and reach out to her. She knew Faith had felt her, heard her, yet didn't understand her. She felt a hint of fear, of confusion, of longing, and so many more emotions when she'd reached for her. She'd noticed she was more aware of the others around her now, especially of Satsu who couldn't seem to do anything but stare at her whenever they were in the same room.

"Why do we have to wait?" Dawn asked, interrupting Willow as she strayed off the main topic of explaining what they were planning to do. "Why can't we do it now?"

"We have to prepare," Willow replied. "Althenea and the others are out gathering supplies. They want to try to teleport the portal closer, somewhere local. They think it'll be easier than trying to teleport Buffy and Faith here once we—I pull them out."

"You've had a week to prepare!"

"Dawnie," Xander said softly as he reached out and put a hand gentle on her shoulder to try to calm her down. "You know we can't rush this. We can't screw this up. I know you just want them back home. We all do. They'll be home before you know it."

"A couple more hours, Dawnie. I promise they'll be home by dinner," Willow said with a smile, hoping to reassure her of it. Carmen just scoffed and shifted where she sat on the floor, trying to get more comfortable. "Do you have a problem, Carmen?"

"Just think this whole thing is bullshit. There is no way you are going to be able to pull this off."

"Will, don't," Kennedy said as she reached out for her before she could launch herself off the couch and over at Carmen. "Don't listen to her."

"If you've got a problem, there's the door," Willow said through clenched teeth as she pointed to the front door with a shaky hand, her anger very visible to everyone in the room. "Now just shut up and listen or get out."

Kennedy smiled smugly, as did Willow, while watching Carmen stand up from the floor and storm upstairs. Willow continued explaining the plans that would happen in a few short hours. Kennedy just continued examining the lightweight Kevlar outfit Andrew had designed with the spare time on his hands and she tried not to look thoroughly impressed with the job he'd done. She flashed him a smile, not daring to interrupt Willow, and he just beamed brightly and leaned against the wall where he'd been standing. She only vaguely remembered the story about Riley Finn that Xander had told them all a few short weeks ago, but she knew that's where Andrew had gotten his idea for the outfits.

Willow was exhausted from talking when she finally finished. The briefing over, everyone went off to do their own thing. Kennedy stayed in the living room with Willow and Giles, folding the outfit and placing it on the surprisingly not cluttered coffee table.

"Kenny, I need you to try and keep Dawnie away while we do the spell later. I know she's anxious to get Buffy and Faith back, but it's dangerous for her to be around while we do this. It's dangerous for every single one of us. Anything can go wrong if concentration is broken. I could be...sucked in there and stuck there just like they are."

"I'll do whatever you need to me to," she smiled at her as she leaned in for a quick, chaste kiss.

"Thank you."

Kennedy's smile morphed into an evil grin. "I could even make sure Carmen has a brutally painful 'accident' that'll keep her in bed for at least a day."

"Just let Satsu deal with her, Kenny."

"Fine."

"Giles?" Willow said as she looked over at him. "Any word on the new air conditioner yet?"

"Unfortunately for all of us, I was unable to arrange for a Sunday delivery. I'm afraid it will not be delivered until tomorrow."

Kennedy let out a quiet groan as she got up from the couch, the backs of her legs sticking to the fabric as she did so. She headed for the kitchen and grabbed a glass of ice-cold water before joining the others out in the backyard. Xander had been keeping busy, working hard even on the weekends at trying to fix the place up and make it feel more like home. Despite Xander's at times rather vehement protests, Andrew was helping him build the gazebo and it really was coming together quite nicely.

"Almost done, huh?" Kennedy asked as she walked over to Xander, who was checking a few measurements on the blueprints he'd drawn up. "What's the point of this, anyway?"

"Place to sit for some peace and quiet," he shrugged. "It's giving me something to do."

"I've convinced him to put a garden in around it," Andrew said with a goofy smile as he picked up one of the long boards and handed it to Xander without having to be asked. "Someone told me that home is where you make it and that you need to make your house feel like home. This is just one thing that's going to make it feel like home."

"If you say so," Kennedy laughed as she walked over to join the others under the shade of the tree.

"Are you nervous?" Dawn asked her before she could even sit down. "What if Willow can't pull this off?"

"She'll bring them home, Dawn. Don't worry so much. It's not like she's doing this alone," Kennedy replied, fighting back the urge to slap some sense into Dawn since she was really beginning to get on her last nerve. "Everything is going to be okay again, you'll see."

"I knew coming here, all of us coming here, would be one big giant mistake."

"It wasn't a mistake. Things happen. Some dumbass vampire just wanted her soul back and caused all this shit because of it. It would have happened no matter if we were all together or apart, here or somewhere else. It's just the way things are, Dawn."

"Destiny, fate, yadda yadda, I've heard it all before."

"Why are you so...bitter, Dawn? Don't you have any faith in Willow?"

"Oh I do, I just—"

"Then stop with the whole bitch attitude with an extra dose of negativity. It isn't going to help," Kennedy spat at her and breathed in deeply, still fighting the urge to slap Dawn hard across the face. "Everything will be back to normal by tonight. Buffy and Faith will be home and we can all stop worrying about them so much and go on with our lives."

"You think they'll come back the same?"

"Why wouldn't they?"

"Angel told me that when you spend some time in another dimension it changes you."

"They'll still be Buffy and Faith, Dawn."

"How can you be so sure about that?"

"Because I've seen them," Kennedy whispered, getting her looks from Satsu and Amber. "I was having flashes and I kept seeing them, well, I saw Faith anyway. They're fine, Dawnie."

"How come you never told us you've seen them before?"

"I told Willow and Giles. We thought it'd be better to keep it between us."

"But that's my sister! I have every right to know these things!"

Kennedy just rubbed her throbbing temples as she felt the onset of a major headache begin to creep in. With Carmen acting like the royal bitch that she was, having to deal with Dawn like this was about to make her head explode. She was growing impatient herself, wanting Buffy and Faith to be brought home as soon as possible so life could go on the way it should. Buffy would be in charge of their little group of Slayers and Faith would be right there at her side leading with her. In Kennedy's mind, things would go just as Giles planned for things to end up, but she knew in reality things could end up very differently.

Worse come to worst, Buffy and Faith could end up taking off, doing their own thing once they were back home and leaving them all to deal with things as they had been trying to deal in the last month. Giles wanted to start up a training school for the Slayers that were age fourteen through eighteen. He wanted them to learn how to fight properly, smartly, to keep themselves from being killed and he wanted Buffy and Faith to lead them. Kennedy knew Faith by herself would blow it off, but she wasn't so sure what Buffy would do. There were so many different ways life could go from here on out, but the only way she wanted to accept was the one where things would go back to exactly the way they were before Buffy and Faith were sucked into the portal.

Kennedy knew she'd stay on with Giles and the others no matter what ended up happening between her and Willow. She hoped that once Buffy and Faith were back home she and Willow would have a chance to find the happiness between them again, to find the love that seemed to disappear with every passing day. She stopped rubbing her temples, hardly realizing she'd closed her eyes until she opened them to find Satsu staring right at her while Dawn and Amber talked quietly.

"You okay, Kennedy?"

"I'm fine, Satsu. Headache. Must be the heat," she replied, shrugging it off as if it was nothing.

"Would you like me to go inside and get you another glass of ice water?" Satsu asked softly, but Kennedy just shook her head no. "Are you sure?"

"I said I'm fine. A little stressed out about the spell Willow and the women from the coven are going to be doing, but it'll pass."

"Stressed?" Dawn interjected and shook her head as she laughed almost cruelly. "I knew it. I knew I wasn't the only one worried that Willow isn't going to be able to pull this off even with the women from the coven here to help."

"Dawn?" Kennedy said through clenched teeth as she really tried to keep herself from lunging at the youngest Summers. "Shut the fuck up before I make you shut the fuck up."

"Make me," Dawn shot at her as she stuck out her tongue and she was up and running over to Xander and Andrew before Kennedy could blink.

"If she wasn't Buffy's sister..." Kennedy muttered under her breath and caught Satsu smirking at her. "What?"

"Nothing. It's just, everyone is stressed out as it is and yet," she waved her hand idly in the air as she looked like she was struggling to find the right words, "it just seems like no matter what, there's always some kind of joke, some silliness or fighting going on that just...I don't know, makes it all seem normal."

"Well, this is as normal as life for all of us is ever going to get," Kennedy replied with a sigh. "Have I told you that I'm kinda glad you and Amber are here?"

"What about Carmen?" Satsu asked, chuckling when Kennedy made a face and Amber only laughed softly. "That's what I thought. I'm not too happy she's here either, but we were called and we've been trained most of our lives to go with our calling."

"Weren't things better when we didn't know about the things that went bump in the night?" Kennedy asked and then she realized just to whom she was talking. "Guess you really wouldn't know, right?"

"Sometimes I think it'd be better if we didn't," Satsu shrugged. "But then there are other times where it's almost comforting to know what we are, what's out there, and that we can kick their asses no matter if we have the strength or not."

Sometimes Kennedy really was glad that Satsu was around. Something about her just made her feel at ease, no matter what situation they found themselves in, day in and day out. It was something that made her constantly question her own feelings towards the girl; something that just kept getting murkier as she spent more time with her. It made her feel guilty when she climbed into bed with Willow at night too and held her when Willow asked her to. Sometimes , though, when Satsu just looked at her she felt a fire burning deep inside, a fire she'd never felt with anyone before.

And it made her wonder if it was a Slayer thing or a Satsu thing? Was the slayer essence jump-starting something that wasn't naturally there, or was she really that drawn to the Asian slayer? How did Buffy and Faith figure all this out? So many damn questions.

She really couldn't wait for Buffy and Faith to come home.

 

 

Chapter Thirty

Everyone in the house had grown tense as soon as the women from the coven arrived with all the necessary ingredients they needed for the spell to retrieve Buffy and Faith from inside the portal. Everyone was under strict instructions not to enter the house until they were called inside. Dawn was the only one not sitting, constantly pacing around the backyard while the others lounged under the tree or sat at the picnic table. Xander sat across from Kennedy and they both had a bottle of beer in front of them, both untouched and sweating in the late afternoon heat. Satsu, Carmen, and Amber lay on the grass under the tree and Andrew, who had been sitting at the picnic table at first, soon joined Dawn in pacing, wearing down a dirt trail in the dry grass.

"How long is this going to take?" Dawn asked, nearly shrieking as she gave up and sat down next to Xander. "Did they say how long it's going to take?"

"No," Xander replied calmly as he turned to look at her. "Don't worry, Dawnie. Everything is going to be okay. Just relax."

"Relax? How can anyone relax when they are inside doing god knows what kind of a spell to bring them home!"

Kennedy tried to drown out the shrillness of Dawn's voice as best as she could as she picked at the label on her bottle for a moment before taking a sip. Angel was supposed to be arriving before midnight. He wanted to be there when Buffy and Faith returned home in case they needed a more 'understanding' shoulder to cry on. Kennedy didn't understand why he wanted to be there. It wasn't as if they had been sent to a Hell dimension. Not like the one she'd been told by Willow that Angel had been sent to when Buffy had killed him. Kennedy didn't like Angel despite him being on the side of the good. The last time he'd been there, there was just something so...off about him.

Or maybe she was just reading way too much into everything, feeling the stress just as everyone else was and allowing it to get to her. The Satsu thing was throwing her off, majorly, and she wasn't sure how to deal with it without hurting Willow in the process. If she and Willow couldn't fix whatever had been going wrong between them, someone was bound to end up getting hurt one way or another.

Everyone fell silent as Giles came outside and slowly closed the back door behind him, letting out a heavy sigh as he walked across the yard and sat down at the picnic table. Although Kennedy didn't know Giles nearly as well as the others did, she knew that look on his face, the look that said he was having serious doubts and was seriously worried. And when Giles got that look that was the cue for everyone to feel that way as well. Dawn was the first to panic and it took Xander running his hand up and down her back lovingly, soothingly, while whispering to her that everything was going to be okay to keep her from a full blown wig-out.

"What's going on?" Kennedy asked Giles, breaking the thick tension that hung in the air heavier than the heat itself. "Giles?"

"They're working on it," he muttered under his breath. "They kicked me out and told me that everything was going to be okay."

"See, Dawnie?" Xander said with a forced smile. "I told you everything is going to be okay."

"But Giles has Worry Face. It's just as bad as Willow's Resolve Face!"

"Dawn," Giles said calmly as he let out a heavy sigh. "We don't have time for this nonsense. They are working on it right now. They've managed to bring the portal right into the living room."

"And?" Dawn asked frantically as she pushed Xander's hand away from her. "Why did they kick you out?"

"So I wasn't in the way. I wasn't necessarily kicked out, per se, more like asked to leave rather forcefully by Althenea. She said it was dangerous for me to be near when they open the portal. They still aren't sure what is going to happen once they do."

Even in the bright late afternoon sun, they could now see the glow emanating from inside the house. Now all they had to do was wait. It's all they'd been doing since the day Buffy and Faith had been sucked inside the portal.

Buffy was circling her, laughing every time Faith tried to make a move only to end up missing her completely. They'd been going at it for what felt like hours and it wasn't just the hot muggy air that was making them sweat. The sparring—though at the moment it more resembled a game of keep-away—was making its own contribution to their perspiration. Jackie was watching them, pure amusement written over her face every time Faith lunged forward only to find herself nearly falling face first on the dusty cement floor.

"Come on, B. This ain't fair!"

"Nobody said it had to be fair," Buffy chuckled as Faith lunged for her and failed yet again, and this time she did fall face first down on the floor. "But it sure is fun."

Faith grumbled as she picked herself up off the floor and dusted off her clothes. "Fun for you, maybe," she muttered under her breath, finding it hard to fight back the smile as Buffy laughed yet again in response.

Hearing and seeing Buffy so carefree, so happy, made every inch of her tingle in a way she thought she only could when she was on the brink of climax. She'd never seen Buffy like this before, not until they'd been brought there—and after the initial fear had worn off, of course. She knew she'd never been happy like this either and she didn't want that to end once they were finally back home. She snapped out of her thoughts, unable to wipe the smile off her face as Buffy motioned for her to come get her.

Faith tried again to tackle her, this time moving too quickly for Buffy to react, and they both tumbled to the floor, both laughing as Buffy struggled and wriggled beneath her, trying to get free. If it hadn't been for the sound of Jackie trying to stifle her own laughter, they would have forgotten they weren't quite alone and things would have definitely gotten out of hand between them. It was far too easy now for both of them to suddenly decide to have their naughty way with each other, pretty much whenever they damn well pleased. Buffy launched Faith off of her, flipped up to her feet, and they both began the tedious task of circling each other once again.

"You two are like children, very stubborn," Jackie said as she tried to keep a straight face. "You two are both of equal strength and speed and yet," she waved her hand in the air as she shook her head, "you always think you're one step ahead of the game when you are of an equal match."

"Equal?" Faith scoffed. "B ain't playin' fair here, how the hell is that equal?"

"Again with the fair," Buffy chuckled as she reached out and playfully swatted at Faith. "Nobody ever said we had to play fair, F."

"Be nice to have some kinda rules for a change."

"You are just bitter because you can't get me," Buffy smirked and stuck out her tongue as Faith managed to grab onto her hand and pulled her close. "Well, I let you get me that time. It doesn't count."

"Ya tryin' to be cute, B?"

"Who, me?"

"Yes, you," Faith laughed at the way Buffy tried to keep that 'I'm innocent' look on her face and failed miserably as she slowly licked over her lips, waiting for the kiss she knew was coming. "Nuh uh."

"What?"

"I know what ya want."

"What's that?" Buffy asked as she cocked her head slightly to the side.

"Ya want me to give in, give ya a kiss so I'm all distracted 'n shit so you can win."

"Win? Who said it was about winning?"

"B? Patience. It's wearin' thin here," she said with a half-hearted chuckle as she let go of Buffy and took a couple steps back. "Come on, let's dance and do it right."

"Do it fair, you mean?"

"Like children," Jackie muttered as she got up from the crate she was sitting on and headed for the back door. "When you two are finished playing, I could use some help with those buckets outside. They should be nearly full by now."

"Sure, give me five minutes," Buffy laughed as she swept Faith's feet from under her the second she looked away. "Or half a second."

Faith just groaned as Buffy smiled smugly down at her before walking away without even offering to help her up. She felt it then—a shift, but not like the shifts they'd gotten used to there. It was a shift denoting change was coming and it was coming soon. She made no effort to move, every muscle in her body not quite aching the way she'd like, but tired and sore nonetheless. She closed her eyes at the sound of Jackie and Buffy laughing outside and it didn't take her any second guesses as to just what they were laughing at either.

Everything had become eerily quiet as the light glowed brighter inside the house. The birds that had been chirping happily as they nestled in the trees had suddenly disappeared. The sounds of the city—cars driving by, horns honking, sirens blaring in the distance—had fallen away. Dawn had even quieted down, leaning into Xander as he slipped an arm almost protectively around her. Kennedy took that moment to look around at the others, lingering on Giles the longest, watching as the worry lines on his face deepened with every second that ticked by.

Her eyes roamed over to Satsu, who was looking over at the house just like everyone else, but almost as soon as she looked over at her Satsu had turned to look right back, smiling a little as their eyes met and lingered for a very long moment. The once sweet smile quickly turned into a very lascivious grin and it made Kennedy's whole body tingle in a way she was quickly getting used to when it came to Satsu. In those dark brown eyes of hers there were hidden promises of what could come between them if only she let it. Satsu had a naughty side to her, a kinky side, and just by staring into her eyes Kennedy could see past the mask she wore, right into her very soul, and just feel every last one of her desires, her needs, her wants, her fantasies.

"What's happening?" Dawn whispered as a slight rumble began to shake the ground. It pulled Kennedy out of the daze she'd fallen into with Satsu and her own worry and fear took over.

"She's got it open," Giles replied quietly as he slowly removed his glasses and blinked a couple of times as the light became impossibly brighter. "It's happening now."

"Faith?" Buffy called out as the ground began to shake and the sky began to light up brighter than it'd ever been in the entire time they'd been there. "Faith!"

"Still inside, B!" Faith yelled out, barely heard over the ferocious roar of the ground shaking violently beneath them. She struggled to get up from the floor and made it to the doorway. She got there just in time to see the buildings around them sway violently, most of them crumbling within seconds. "B, we gotta get outta here!"

"Jackie, she's..." Buffy gasped as she grabbed onto Faith and forced her to look over at where Jackie lay on the ground unconscious. "She just collapsed."

"Something hit her?"

"No, she just...as soon as the rumbling started she fell."

"Shit," Faith said under her breath as she pushed past Buffy and ran over towards Jackie. She lifted her up with ease and frantically looked around as the blinding brightness made it impossible for her to see Buffy even though she knew she was only a few feet away. "Buffy, we seriously gotta fuckin' get outta here, now!"

Buffy reached her just as the warehouse crumbled to the ground. "Go where, Faith? Where the hell are we going to go?"

Faith suddenly felt like every last emotion she'd ever experienced in her entire life was now running through her. She sank slowly to her knees, careful not to drop the unconscious Jackie, feeling Buffy kneeling down next to her, shaking in fear just as she was. Over and over she told herself she didn't need to fear anything, that she was a Slayer and that she was more than that. She was a strong woman and she finally realized that and it would be pathetic and useless for her to forget it all now and give in to the fear that seemed to be the one emotion pulling at her more than the others.

With the ground moving as violently as it was beneath them, she found herself shaking as Buffy wrapped her arms around her almost as if she was trying to protect her, though she was telling herself she didn't need to be protected. Not even from herself and the emotions running rampant through her, ripping through her as if they were trying to pull her apart from the inside out.

"It's gonna be okay," Faith whispered to herself, unable to let her inner voice talk over all the other voices she heard in her head. "It's gonna be okay. It'll be over in a minute. Everything is gonna be okay."

"Faith—"

"It's gonna be okay, right? Tell me it's gonna be okay, B."

"It'll be okay," she said soothingly as she kissed the side of her head and held on tighter. "It'll be okay, Faith."

Willow was chanting softly along with the women surrounding her and the portal. She had her eyes shut tightly, tears forming as she finally saw Buffy and Faith along with an older woman huddled together and surrounded by collapsing buildings. She was struggling to hold herself together, feeling the power coursing through her body and making her feel slightly lightheaded.

"Buffy!" she called out for her, hoping she'd hear her. "Buffy?"

"Will?"

"Buffy, hold onto them, I'm pulling you out!"

"Now?"

"No, tomorrow. Yes, now!"

Willow tried not to laugh so as not to break her concentration. She had one chance to pull them out before the world inside the portal collapsed within itself. She could feel Althenea as she reached out, channelling more strength, more power to her as she began to chant softly again, watching as Buffy, Faith, and the woman Faith held onto began to lift up from the ground. She had to keep her concentration. If it slipped, they'd fall back to the earth and she knew from the distance they were at now, they wouldn't survive a fall like that and she wouldn't be able to gather enough strength to try to pull them back out again.

The bright light began to fade and everyone sat there, unable to move, barely able to breathe. Kennedy, Satsu, and the other two Slayers could feel the power, the magic, coming from inside throughout every inch of their bodies and souls. It was empowering and Kennedy finally was getting a taste of what it felt like for Willow, finally understanding just how she felt and why she was so wary about doing magic most of the time.

She barely noticed that Satsu had moved from sitting beneath the tree to sitting next to her on the bench. They were all nervous, not knowing just what was happening inside, and she tensed when Satsu casually grabbed onto her hand and intertwined their fingers. Out of the corner of her eye, since she dared not turn to look at her, she could see her smiling, just a little.

"Is it over yet?" Dawn asked as the light began to fade, the slight rumbling stopped, and the sounds of the city began once again. "Is it over?"

"I am not sure," Giles replied quietly.

"It's over," Xander said as he pointed to Althenea as she slowly opened the back door. "It's finally over. They're home!"

"Stay outside," Giles said as he got up and headed for the house. "Nobody sets foot in this house until I say so."

Faith was shivering, unable to open her eyes or let go of both Buffy and Jackie. She knew they were home, they were finally home, but the fear she'd been feeling was wreaking havoc on her body. There was something else happening to her, she could feel it burning inside of her, and she forced open her eyes, blinking when she saw a group of women she'd never seen before and Willow kneeling on the floor trying to get Buffy to open her eyes.

"Shit," Faith muttered softly as she gently moved Jackie and laid her across the floor. "What the fuck was that?"

"I brought you home," Willow said softly as the women from around them backed away slowly to give them some air. "You're home. Everything is going to be okay now."

"Faith?" Buffy whispered as she clutched onto her tightly, ignoring Willow completely. "Faith?"

"B," she whispered back, watching as Buffy slowly opened her eyes. "You okay?"

"Yes," she said softly, shaking just as badly as Faith was. "I'm okay."

"Who is this?" Willow asked as she went to check on Jackie. "Faith, who is this?"

"My mother," she replied in a hoarse whisper. "My real mother."

Faith felt so cold. She pulled Buffy closer to her, afraid to let go, and they both watched as Willow and two of the other women lifted Jackie and placed her on the couch. Neither of them could move from where they sat on the floor and Faith knew Buffy was just as afraid as she was that this wasn't real, that they weren't really home. It felt too easy, way too easy. Faith couldn't help but wonder—if it really was that easy, why didn't Willow try to bring them home sooner?

The other women left the room when Giles walked in. He looked like he was about to cry as Buffy let go of Faith and stood up slowly. Faith could hardly move as she watched him throw his arms around Buffy, tears streaming down his cheeks as he held onto her tightly. Willow knelt down next to Faith and placed a hand on her shoulder, forcing her to look away from the happy little reunion between Buffy and Giles.

"Faith, I need for you two to tell me what it was like where you were."

"Not now," Faith said as she shook her head and let Willow help her to her feet. "We're really home?"

"Yes," Willow laughed softly. "You are really home, Faith."

"Shit, why is it so cold?" She shivered. Willow laughed again as she wrapped her arms around her and hugged her tightly for a split second before backing away quickly once she realized just whom she was hugging. "Seriously, why the fuck is it so cold?"

"It's not," Willow replied. "We're in the middle of a heat wave. It must be a side effect from pulling you out of there. It'll pass."

Faith moved away from her as Buffy let go of Giles and walked to stand next to her, their hands instantly finding each other's as Xander, Dawn, and Kennedy ran inside. They were both nearly tackled by Dawn as she reached them first and Xander and Kennedy were right there a second later, their arms around them in one big hug. Buffy was crying tears of happiness, holding onto Dawn and Xander and looking like she never wanted to let go. Faith managed to get out of the group hug and instead found Kennedy's arms instantly around her. She let out a soft laugh as Kennedy held onto her tightly, Slayer tight, and she had to pry her arms from around her just so she could breathe.

Faith quickly found herself being pulled back into the group hug by Xander. She looked over at Giles as he watched the scene unfold until Jackie began to awake and he knelt down next to her. After what felt like forever, the group hug ended, the last of the tears of happiness finally stopping. That happiness she'd seen in Buffy before was still there, but there was something different now. She didn't have time to dwell on it since all attention was now on Jackie and the soft murmurs from everyone asking who she was and why she'd come back with Buffy and Faith.

"Faith?" Buffy whispered as she moved close to her again. "We're really home, aren't we?"

"Yeah, looks like."

"Why does it feel..."

"Different? Dunno, B."

Buffy sighed, shivering almost uncontrollably as she slid her arms around Faith and buried her face in her neck. A huge wave of exhaustion hit Faith and she had to struggle to stay on her feet and not just fall to the floor. Being pulled out of that dimension they'd been stuck in had taken a lot out of her and for the first time in what felt like forever she couldn't hear the voices in her head any longer. Faith just closed her eyes and held on to Buffy, not ready to let go and not quite ready to face being back home just yet.

Faith felt cornered as everyone started asking questions at once. She just held tightly onto Buffy, feeling her hot tears against her neck as Buffy tried to stop crying. Giles made everyone leave and then motioned for the two of them to sit down next to a very delusional Jackie who sat there mumbling incoherently to herself. Giles let out a soft sigh as he sat down on the coffee table and stared over at them, looking as if he wasn't sure what to say or where to start.

"How long?" Buffy asked softly as she wiped away her tears and leaned into Faith as they both sat back on the couch. "How long were we there, Giles?"

"Thirty days."

"A month? I knew it," Buffy groaned as she looked over at Faith. "I knew it."

"How are you feeling?" Giles asked.

"Tired," Buffy replied without taking her eyes off of Faith. "Very, very tired."

"I won't expect you to tell me everything that happened there right away," he continued. "I know it's been a very long month for you two. It has been for us as well. But, I would like to know who this woman is."

"My mother," Faith said softly as she looked over at him. "Kind of a long story."

"Isn't your mother—"

"Dead? No, the woman who I thought was my mother is dead. Like I said," she said as she let out a deep breath, "it's a long fuckin' story, Giles."

"Is she all right?"

Faith looked over at Jackie next to her. She was rocking back and forth, muttering to herself and her eyes brimming with tears. She still couldn't stop shivering and she only had one thing on her mind at the moment—taking a very long, very hot shower and getting dressed in clean clothes. She could see Dawn hovering in the doorway that led to the kitchen, watching them. When neither of them said a word after a few long minutes, Giles removed his glasses and let out a heavy sigh.

"There are a lot of things we need to talk to you two about," Giles said quietly as he snapped his fingers at Dawn, stopping her cold as she tried to walk back into the living room. "It is still too soon to determine what physical or psychological changes you may have experienced, though I am certain there will be at least some after-effects. However, at the moment I know you two must be very tired and in need of a very long, very hot shower."

Faith chuckled softly at the bemused look on Giles' face as he spoke slowly. As each minute passed, the shivering began to subside and Faith no longer felt as cold as she had when Willow had first pulled them out of the portal and deposited them, rather gently, on the floor of the living room. Andrew came into the living room carrying a tray with glasses of ice-cold water and a few sandwiches. Before he could even place the tray down on the coffee table, and almost before Giles had even moved out of the way, both Buffy and Faith lunged for the sandwiches, nearly inhaling them as they disappeared in just a few quick bites.

"Giles, are they...okay?" Faith heard Dawn ask him from where she still stood hovering in the doorway. "They came back normal, right?"

"They are fine. Exhausted and perhaps a little shaken up, but they appear to be perfectly fine."

"Andy," Faith said with a mouthful of the peanut butter and jelly sandwich. "Feel like whippin' up a few more o' these for us? Fuckin' starving."

"I can make you two anything you want," he replied with a big smile. "I'll even order you pizza, wings, a bucket of chicken, Chinese food, whatever you want. Name it and I'll get it."

Faith's stomach growled loudly and Buffy just giggled as she grabbed the last sandwich off the plate. Faith broke off half of her sandwich and offered it to Jackie. She got a puzzled look in return, just for a moment, before Jackie took the half of the sandwich and took a small, tentative bite.

"Order everything ya can, Andy," Faith said to him, smiling sweetly as she reached for one of the glasses of ice-cold water.

"What is her name?" Giles asked calmly as he walked back over to them and handed the cordless phone to Andrew.

"Jackie," Faith replied with her mouth full and was elbowed by Buffy hard in the side. "What?"

"Was she like this there?" Giles asked, stifling a laugh at the way Buffy had elbowed Faith.

"She was a little off, yeah," Faith nodded her head slowly. "Not like this, though."

"It must be a shock to her system. Have you any idea how long she'd been there?"

"Giles?" Buffy said as she stopped Faith from answering him. "Can we talk about this later?"

"We can indeed. What do you want to do with Jackie?"

"Get her settled in, cleaned up and fed. I'm going to have a shower. A very, very long shower," Buffy said as she stood up slowly, pulling Faith with her. Faith just shoved the last of her sandwich in her mouth as Buffy pulled her towards the stairs. "She'll be fine," she said softly when Faith stopped to look back over at Jackie. "We'll all take care of her."

"Not what I'm worried about," Faith replied with a sigh as Buffy began to pull her up the stairs.

"Then what is it?"

"I dunno," she shrugged, finally giving in and following Buffy up the stairs and into the bathroom. "She seems really out of it, B. Feels kinda weird to leave her down there with everyone."

"She'll be fine. Giles will make sure of it."

Faith just nodded her head and leaned against the bathroom door, locking it as she watched Buffy walk over to the shower stall and turn on the water. The last thing she should be thinking about was fucking Buffy in the shower under the hot spray of the water, but as she watched Buffy strip out of her clothes it suddenly became the one and only thing on her mind. Everything else she should be thinking about, worrying about, just fluttered away as she stripped out of her own clothes and joined Buffy in the shower.

"God, this feels so good," Buffy moaned out softly as Faith stood behind her and wrapped her arms around her.

"Guess ya don't know what you're missin' out on 'til ya don't have it anymore, huh?"

Buffy just turned around in her arms, smiling a little before she planted a quick yet sweet kiss upon her lips. "After we shower and eat until we feel like we're about to burst, we'll talk to Giles and tell him everything we can about where we were. Then after all is said and done, we'll get some sleep, okay?"

"For sure, B. God," she sighed as she furrowed her brow and stared down into her eyes, "when Willow was pullin' us outta there…don't think I've ever felt that fucking scared before. Wasn't sure what the hell was goin' on."

"You weren't the only one," Buffy whispered softly, kissing her once more before they switched spots under the hot, steady spray of water. "I really can't believe we're home, we're safe, and we're together..."

"Aren't ya happy we're home?"

"Of course I am. What makes you think that I'm not?"

"Life was...easier there, B. I know it and you know it. Now we're back to the way things were before," Faith said softly as she gently moved Buffy's wet hair away from her face. "You can feel the change comin', can't ya?"

"I feel something," Buffy quipped as she reached down and playfully pinched Faith's ass.

"B," Faith chuckled as she reached for her hands and pulled them away. "Be serious for a sec here. Gotta feelin' somethin's different. Giles said something about physical and psychological changes. You don't feel it, do ya?"

"I don't know. Maybe I feel a little...stronger? Tired and absolutely starving are kinda blanking out anything else."

"Forget it," Faith said as she reached for the shampoo bottle off the small shelf.

They didn't say another word as they showered slowly, savouring every last drop of hot water that streamed over their bodies. There were a few long, passionate kisses shared, soft caresses and long gazes they'd gotten so used to sharing between them in the last month. Faith didn't want any of that to change. She needed Buffy that way; she needed to be near her, touching her, kissing her whenever she felt the need to. She'd never needed someone as badly as she needed Buffy, even now that they were back home; it hadn't lessened in any way, shape or form.

After getting dressed, they went downstairs to join the others and found them all out in the backyard with Jackie, a spread of food that Andrew had ordered laid out over the picnic table. Everyone was full of questions and both Buffy and Faith did their best to answer each and every one of them between mouthfuls of food they'd only dreamt of in the last month. Faith kept looking down at Jackie, watching her as she grew more comfortable being around so many new faces. She and Giles were talking quietly among themselves while Dawn and Willow kept asking Buffy questions about what it was like where they'd been.

Faith was amazed at how everything had just fallen into place in the few hours since they'd been brought back home. It nearly felt like they hadn't left at all in some ways. She looked around at everyone, at the women from the coven in England, at the new Slayers that sat under the tree with Kennedy and Andrew. She grabbed the beer that sat unopened in front of her and the last slice of pizza out of the box and got up, smiling down at Buffy when she stopped midsentence to look up at her. She let Buffy pull her down for a quick kiss before she walked over to join Kennedy and the others under the tree.

"You two are sure all loved up," Kennedy said quietly, smirking as Faith barely reacted. "I'm guessing since you two had a lot of time to do nothing while you were stuck in that dimension that you did nothing but fuck, right?"

"None of your business, Ken."

"I knew it."

Faith laughed, punching Kennedy in the leg as she leaned back against the tree. "Well, what the fuck else was we supposed to do? Play imaginary card games or some shit? Besides," Faith said as she watched Buffy, unable to stop turning to look at her every couple of seconds, "that wasn't all we did there."

"Well, I'm just glad you two are back home safe and sound," Kennedy smiled as they both raised their beers and clinked them together. "We were all pretty worried about you two. Guess we really didn't need to be after all. From the way you two described it, didn't sound nearly half as bad as we thought it was for you there."

"Definitely not my choice for a vacation spot," Faith said, smirking when the three other Slayers laughed in agreement with her and Kennedy. "So, catch me up on what's been goin' on around here. Curious about the sitch since we've been gone."

She was trying to keep her mood stable, her spirits up, and a smile on her face. She was happy to be home, but something was seriously bothering her. She tried to listen and pay attention as Kennedy told her very vaguely about the out of control vampire and demon population, about how they were working with Perry, Marshall, and a few other guys that had worked for Sam in trying to control it. She caught that much out of the babble that spewed from Kennedy's mouth, but her eyes and her mind wandered back to Buffy and she watched her as she talked animatedly with Willow and Dawn.

"Faith, are you even paying attention?" Kennedy asked, the irritation very clear in her voice.

"Yeah, what?"

"I asked you if you and Buffy are going to start coming out on patrol with us again or if you're gonna wait a little while?"

"Might as well jump right in, get back to the way things were," Faith replied, her eyes not once leaving Buffy as she spoke. "Or...maybe give us a couple days."

Kennedy raised an eyebrow at her before she continued talking, but her voice faded from Faith's ears as soon as Buffy turned to look at her. All she could see was Buffy and all she could hear was Buffy as she spoke quietly to Dawn. She just sipped her beer, nodding her head every once in a while to make it look like she was listening to Kennedy, and when her beer was finished she got up and motioned for Buffy to follow her inside. Buffy didn't follow her right away so she stood by the edge of the counter, breathing heavily as she waited for her to come inside.

"Is there something wrong, Faith?" Buffy asked as she stepped inside and closed the back door behind her. "Faith?"

"Just needed to get away for a few minutes. It's too much."

Buffy nodded her head slowly, understanding exactly what Faith was getting at. It was too much all at once, to be brought back home and to slip into the fold as if they'd never been gone in the first place. Buffy stepped in front of her, smiling a little as their arms instantly found their way around each other. Faith couldn't tear her eyes away from Buffy's as she fought the urge to just grab Buffy and take off for the apartment.

"What are you thinking?" Buffy asked softly as she lifted a hand and gently ran her fingers over Faith's furrowed brow. "You want to leave right now, don't you? Tell you what," she paused to deliver a deliciously sweet kiss and pulled back from a rather stunned Faith with a smile, "we stay here for tonight and tomorrow we'll go to the apartment, okay?"

"That was kinda freaky, B. Ya just pretty much read my mind."

"Nah," she laughed as she moved her arms from around Faith's waist and loosely draped them over her shoulders and neck. "I just learned how to read you really, really well."

"And what am I thinkin' 'bout right now?" Faith asked, smirking as she slowly licked over her lips.

Buffy only answered her with a wildly passionate kiss. As it had every time their lips met lately, everything else just fell away until the only thing her mind was set on was Buffy. She knew it was almost dangerous to let Buffy consume her that way, but it was all she wanted right then and there.

 

 

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