Faith pulled Buffy along as they walked through the streets of a city long gone. Some of the buildings were still standing, but most were simply piles of rubble. She kept looking around and behind them, expecting something—anything—to pop out from the darkest shadows. They'd been walking for what felt like hours at the very least and with no way to tell how long had actually passed it might as well have been days. Buffy slowed down, tugging on Faith's hand until she let go.

"I can't walk any further, Faith."

"Gotta keep goin', B. Gotta find somewhere safe."

"Where?" Buffy asked, groaning as she walked over to the nearest building and leaned against the wall. "Where are we even going, Faith? We've been walking for so long and..."

Faith sighed as she stood in front of Buffy and gently tucked her now wild and slightly wavy hair behind her ears. "I don't know, B. Just know we gotta find somewhere safe. Kinda fuckin' worried about the whole water and food sitch too."

"We're going to die here, aren't we?"

"No," she said as she shook her head and brushed away the tears that had fallen from Buffy's eyes with her thumbs. "Not gonna die here, B. I'm not gonna let that happen. Now come on, we have to keep moving."

Buffy groaned as she pushed herself off the wall and they began to walk down the street littered with dirt, papers, and debris from the buildings that had fallen or burnt out. Faith could feel the beads of sweat rolling down her back, down her cleavage and down the back of her neck in time to each step that she took. She stopped briefly to rip the sleeves from her t-shirt and tucked the fabric in the back pocket of her jeans. It wasn't any kind of relief, but she wasn't about to walk around nearly naked when she had no idea just what was out there watching them.

She thought back to when they'd laid out on the rocks, their clothes and hair drying quickly in the heat. Buffy was scared and she didn't think she'd stopped trembling for more than a minute. They'd eventually left the beach, headed for the path that led through a patch of dead trees and to the edge of the forgotten and lost city.

They spotted the dead end in the street just ahead and Faith looked around for another way, grabbing onto Buffy's hand as she headed left.

"Faith, I really need to stop," Buffy sighed as she stopped walking and tried to take a few deep breaths. "God, it is way too hot here."

"Bet Hell is hotter," Faith muttered under her breath as she stopped walking, her eyes constantly darting around them, waiting for whatever it was she just knew was following them, watching them. "How long do ya figure till Willow and Giles find a way to get us home?"

"I don't know."

"Come on," Faith said as she motioned for her to follow her to the only stable looking building they'd passed. "What do ya think? Should we check it out?"

"It looks like someone lives here," Buffy said as she looked at the entrance. Unlike the crumbled and neglected ruins that comprised the other buildings, this one looked like it was actually being maintained. "We should keep going."

"Nah," Faith said as she opened the door. "I'm checking it out. You comin' with, B?"

"Stop," Buffy whispered as she grabbed onto Faith's arm before she could walk inside. "Don't you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Shh," she said as she placed a finger over Faith's lips. "Someone or something is in there."

"Prob'ly just a rat or somethin'," Faith shrugged as she walked inside the dark building.

From the looks of things it was a warehouse of some sort and the front room had apparently once been an office—a broken desk was prominent in the room with a heavy steel door behind that. Faith waited for Buffy to follow her inside before she closed the exterior door. Buffy looked around the small room before walking over to a filing cabinet that lay on its side. It was considerably cooler inside compared to outside, yet it was still hot and Faith could still feel the beads of sweat rolling down her back slowly.

"Faith," Buffy whispered as she knelt next to the filing cabinet and pulled out a picture from among the piles of paper. "We might not be in our world, but it looks like this used to be a part of our world."

"Huh," she said as she barely cast a look at the picture Buffy held in her hands. "I'm checkin' the rest of this place out. You gonna stay here?"

"No," Buffy replied. She allowed the picture to drop back on top of the papers and followed Faith over to the heavy steel door. "What if there's something on the other side?"

"Like what?"

"Oh, I don't know—a demon or something else hellish? We don't have any weapons."

"Got our fists and our strength and speed. Pretty sure we can fight whatever bad guy is hiding out there with our bare hands, B."

"We don't even know what could be here, Faith. This isn't like it is in our world."

"No shit. I got eyes, Twinkie. It's pretty fuckin' obvious things aren't the same as they are in our world. For one thing," she sighed as she turned to face her, "have you noticed the total lack of sunlight or even a fucking breeze? It's like we're trapped in some kind of fucked up bubble or somethin'."

Not waiting for further objections, Faith slid open the heavy steel door and they both cautiously made their way into the nearly dark warehouse. At the far corner there was a single candle burning and they both stopped when they heard sounds of footsteps coming from the loft to their right. Faith held her breath as the figure of a woman came down the rickety stairs and approached them slowly. She could feel Buffy tense up next to her almost as if she was expecting the worst.

The woman was barely taller than Faith. Her clothes were well worn and even in the faintest of light she could see the bags under the woman's brown eyes and the grey that streaked her wildly unruly brown hair. The woman looked them up and down and clutched the long sword Faith finally noticed she had in her right hand.

"Who are you?" The woman asked, her voice hoarse as if she hadn't spoken for a long time. "What're you doing here? You are trespassing."

"I..." Buffy started to speak, already stumbling over her words as she looked over at Faith then back at the woman. "I'm Buffy. This is Faith."

"What are you?" The woman asked as she pulled out a silver lighter from her pocket and lit it, leaning towards them to get a better look at them. "Humans?"

"Slay—" Faith started, her words cutting off abruptly as Buffy nudged an elbow hard into her side. "Yeah, humans. What are you?"

"Human. I am Jacqueline, or I once was before I was sent here. How did you get here? Magic?"

"Portal," Faith replied, "inside the Cleveland Hellmouth."

"Cleveland? Ah," she sighed as she turned and began to walk towards the candlelight, motioning for them to follow her. "It seems as if it moves. In all the years I've been here I've wondered just that."

Buffy and Faith just exchanged a look as they followed the woman across the empty floor and came to a stop by a metal table on which the candle rested. Faith wasn't sure how to feel about this woman. Something just faintly felt familiar about her and she was trying so hard not to listen to her gut instincts seeing how wrong she'd been before one too many times. She and Buffy stood side by side, watching as the woman pulled open a wooden trap door in the floor and disappeared down it.

"What the hell? Do you really think she's human?" Buffy whispered as she leaned into Faith a little.

"Looks like one, sounds like one, walks like one."

"So she must be one?"

"Guess so," Faith shrugged. "Then again you never know with some things that crawl around. Like vamps. If we weren't Slayers and didn't know how to pick 'em out of a crowd, we wouldn't fuckin' know they're vamps, right?"

"If she isn't human...then what?"

"Fight her?"

"What other choice would we have?"

"Dunno, B. She seems...nice."

"I don't know about nice, but—"

Buffy stopped when the woman came back up with a jug of what looked like water. She placed it on the table, walked to the metal shelves along the wall, and pulled off two glasses. She looked at the two of them and chuckled softly, a sound that was so eerily familiar to Faith that it made her shudder slightly. There was something about this woman—and she couldn't figure out just what—that made her feel more comfortable than she'd ever been around any other stranger.

"Please sit," she said as she motioned to the crates placed by the table. "It's warm today. I'm sure you two could use a glass of water or two. I don't have anything else. Gotta stock up when it rains and those times are few and far between."

"You live here?" Faith asked as she sat down on the longest crate and watched as Buffy walked over to sit down next to her.

"Unfortunately."

"How long ya been here for?"

"Not sure. It's hard to keep track of time here. There was a man here I met when I first came here. He'd been here for what he believed had been a very long time. He told me that time is different here. Sometimes it moves forward, sometimes it stands still, and there are times when it moves backwards."

"Are there any others?"

"None that I've come across. You two are the first I've seen in a long time," she smiled at them as she poured some water in each of the glasses. "I barely leave this place, even during the shifts."

"Shifts?" Buffy asked as she reached for the glass closest to her.

"The man, he wasn't really...human, but the soul of one. His name was Henry. He told me this place shifts from Hellmouth to Hellmouth over time. Everything I know about this world I've learned from him and from exploring. That is," she said, pausing as she pulled up the tattered hem of her skirt to reveal a very mangled right leg, "before the accident. I can't get around too easily."

"Jacqueline—"

"Jackie, call me Jackie," she said softly to Buffy as she placed the jug of water back down on the table.

"What are these shifts like?"

"Very violent. Most of the building change and others appear. This place, however," she said as she motioned around them, "has always stayed intact. When the sky turns from orange to purple, you must be prepared for what feels much stronger than the strongest earthquakes there are on earth—in your world. It's how the accident happened. I wasn't aware the shift was coming."

Faith grabbed her glass of water and brought it to her lips, nearly downing the entire glass as soon as the warm water hit her parched lips. Jackie and Buffy talked quietly with Jackie asking Buffy questions about the world she'd been forced out of. She was listening to them talk, but her thoughts were elsewhere as soon as Buffy placed her hand on her left thigh. It felt like electricity each time Buffy stroked her fingers idly and it made her feel more alive than she'd ever felt before. Buffy's touch had never quite been like that before—although there had always been a slight spark, their connection that reached out for one another, it was never so intense.

She could feel everything Buffy was feeling much stronger than she had before. It had been building over the last couple of days, becoming stronger without her realizing it. She'd gotten so used to feeling Buffy—to really feeling her—that she had hardly noticed where the line ended between her own feelings and Buffy's.

She closed her eyes, just for a moment, and she could almost see just the faintest bit of the others inside of the house, of Willow sobbing uncontrollably by the front door as Kennedy held her close. Buffy gave her leg a gentle squeeze and she opened her eyes, blinking away the sudden tears that sprang up seemingly out of nowhere.

"Are you tired?"

"Exhausted," Faith nodded.

"There is a mattress up in the loft," Jackie said as she pointed over towards it. "Or if you wish you two can take the one over there."

She pointed to a small closed off corner with a tattered sheet hanging over in the doorway. Buffy just grabbed onto Faith's hand, thanking Jackie for the water and for a safe place to sleep and pulled Faith towards the stairs that led up to the loft.

"You really tired, B, or were ya just tired of answerin' all her questions?" Faith whispered as they walked up the stairs together.

"A little of both," Buffy replied quietly as they made their way over towards the bare mattress by the boarded up window. "Who knew falling through a portal in a Hellmouth to a world like this would take so much out of you?"

"Spent a hella long time in that nasty-ass water and then what with all the walking…" Faith replied with a roll of her eyes as she sat down on the mattress and slipped off her boots. "I could really use a shower right about now too."

"Does it look like there's running water here?"

"No. And ya don't gotta be so fuckin' sarcastic, B."

"Look, I'm not exactly thrilled we're stuck here either."

Buffy sat down next to her, pulling off her boots slowly as she stared ahead in the darkness. Faith was about to move to the middle of the mattress when Buffy stopped her. Before Faith could take a breath, Buffy's lips were on hers. If Buffy's touch had been electrifying, a kiss was ten times as much. Faith's whole body was buzzing and she had to pull back from the kiss to catch her breath.

"Hate to say it," Faith whispered softly as she relished in the feel of Buffy's fingers over the back of her neck for a moment, "but I don't think we should..."

"What? I can't kiss you now?"

"It won't just be kissing, B. After the other night, I kiss you and I can't stop. Not really a fan of havin' an audience listenin' in either."

"We'll be quiet," Buffy whispered, pulling Faith with her as she laid back on the bed.

"B, you are kidding me, right? You couldn't be quiet if your life depended on it."

"Why do you have to be such an ass?"

"Far as I remember, you like my ass," Faith winked as she hovered over Buffy, their bodies barely touching. Even though it was far too warm to be too close, Faith just planted a light kiss on her lips and moved to lay down next to her. "Sometimes I think of how it is between us and I can't even remember what it felt like before."

"But that's a good thing, right?"

"I think—yes," she smiled as she ran her fingers over Buffy's stomach and reached for her hand. "You are really getting to me, B. Every second I'm with you I..."

"You what?"

Faith shrugged, not knowing where the sappy, sentimental side of her came from. It felt so weird to be able to easily convey her emotions to Buffy now. Weird because it was easy, like she'd always been able to let down her walls and just say the words she never knew how to say before—to anyone. She knew Buffy was going through the same thing with her. She knew Buffy well enough to know that being in love was hard for her. She didn't need to hear the words from Buffy; she could feel it and see it every time Buffy just looked at her now.

"Faith, talk to me," Buffy whispered. "Stop thinking and just talk to me."

"Every second I'm with you, I feel different. A good different. It used to scare me, y'know before everything went bad the last time, but I'm not lettin' it scare me this time."

"It's scary?"

"Buffy, it's not like that," Faith sighed as she let go of her hand and rolled onto her back. "It's how you make me feel and that used to scare me cos I never thought I could feel that way 'bout someone else."

"Like how, Faith?"

"Ya really want me to say it, B? Ya want me to tell you that I'm fucking falling in love with you?"

"You—oh. You are?"

Faith chuckled softly as she watched Buffy blink a couple of times before she turned to look up at the ceiling. She felt more nervous with each second that ticked by as Buffy remained silent. She couldn't read what she was thinking, she had a mask over her emotions and it felt like she'd slammed a door shut on her. Buffy turned to look at her after a moment and breathed in slowly as she stared into her eyes.

"How long?"

"What?"

"How long have you been falling in...love with me? And you aren't just saying this because we're stuck here, are you?" Buffy asked, her lower lip trembling slightly as she spoke.

"No and I don't know how long it's been, B. Maybe since the day I first saw you. It's kinda hard to tell, honestly. All I know is those feelings started coming back once we got to Cleveland."

"So, you're in love with me?"

"Is that so hard to believe?"

"No," Buffy smiled as she leaned in to kiss her, stopping short just before their lips met. "I just never thought that we could...feel this way about each other. And I kind of think it's a little crazy we're lying here talking about it when we should be more worried about the fact that hello, we're stuck in a world between worlds with no way out unless Willow and Giles figure out how to get us home."

"Well, the way I look at it, we never do things the conventional way, do we?"

"No," Buffy laughed as she slid her arm around Faith and pulled her in closer. "And Faith?"

"Yeah, B?"

"I am too. Falling in love with you, I mean."

Faith's heart was beating too quickly now as she stared deeply into Buffy's eyes. She wished they were alone, back home and in her bed at the apartment. Her whole body ached to take Buffy, to rip her clothes off, to feel her body flush against her own. Her clothes were sticking to her and the heat was getting to her. The heat from Buffy's body pressed into her own was scorching.

"You are right, though," Buffy whispered as she trailed her hand down Faith's back and slipped it under her shirt, raking her nails over her skin. "It is a little scary. It always is in the beginning, but it's not like I'm some kind of expert on this kind of stuff."

"I'm not either. Don't really know anything at all, actually."

"It doesn't matter."

Faith smiled a little as she felt her eyelids growing heavy. The heat, the darkness, the fight they'd just been through—not to mention being sucked through the portal to end up here in the first place—was beginning to take a toll on her body. They shared one last, soft kiss before moving away from each other, it being much too hot to even simply hold each other as they slept. Faith just closed her eyes and focused on the sounds of Buffy's soft breaths as she fell asleep.

Several times while they slept they were awakened by slight rumblings and the sounds of Jackie mumbling to herself in her sleep. By the fourth rumbling, Buffy curled up against Faith's side, her fingertips tracing over her tattoo in random, soft patterns. Faith dozed on and off, finding it nearly impossible to fall into a deep sleep with the heat and the rumblings that seemed to get a little more intense and a few seconds longer each time. They both jumped off the mattress when Jackie ran up the stairs.

"The big one is coming. Come now, we'll go underground and wait for it to pass. As soon as the rain comes, it's over," she said quickly as she motioned for them to follow her. They slipped on their boots and followed the woman down to the trap door by the table where they climbed down the stairs into what looked to be a bomb shelter. "If the building shifts, we'll still be safe."

"Jackie, how often does this happen?" Buffy asked as she slipped her hand into Faith's in the darkness.

"There's enough time between the shifts to sleep almost five times," Jackie said as she lit a candle and sat down on the crate by the ladder. "That is if you try to sleep regularly. These shifts last for hours."

"So, we just stay down here and wait for it to stop?" Faith asked as she and Buffy sat down on the cot along the far wall. "Great."

"It isn't the ground that shakes but the air around you. We're safe down here," Jackie muttered as she picked up a piece of wood and a knife and slowly began carving into it.

Faith just moved back on the cot and leaned up against the wall. She tried not to let the hopelessness take her over, create that fear and despair she hated feeling. She relaxed when Buffy sat back next to her and leaned her head against her shoulder as she stifled a yawn. She couldn't be so close to Buffy without having to touch her, to slip her arm around her and just hold her. The more minutes that passed the more painful it became not to do just that.

"What about you two?" Jackie said as she stopped carving her knife. "Are you two...what's the word…" she paused as she thought for a moment, "lovers? Is that the right way to say it?"

"Lovers?" Buffy laughed, not moving an inch from Faith's side. "Does it matter?"

"I was curious. You two seem close and not just with this," Jackie laughed as she motioned to their position. "It's been a long time for me to know love and I can feel it coming off of both of you. It's powerful and it is deep."

Faith smiled a little as she closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the smooth steel wall. For her to hear a complete stranger say something like that to her, it gave her a warm feeling in her very soul since she knew deep down how true those words really were. She wondered how different things could have been if she'd just allowed herself to feel Buffy, not just Buffy herself, but her very soul. It could have changed her, stopped her from doing all the things she'd done she still regretted to that very moment.

Even as they'd gotten closer over the last few weeks, she didn't quite feel so...whole then. With everything that had happened with Julie and the others, it still hadn't stopped her from letting down the walls she'd built around her heart to let Buffy in.

"Where'd you come from?" Faith asked as she looked over at Jackie. "Originally?"

"Boston. I was—it was a long time ago. I can't really remember too much."

"There's a Hellmouth there?"

"No, I was...running away. Running from my life. That much I can remember," she replied quietly. "I choose to accept the voids so I do not remember that part of my life. Sometimes I see being sent here as a blessing rather than a curse."

"This ain't a blessing," Faith said as she let out a sharp laugh. "Lady, you got things wrong. This isn't reality. This is close to Hell, maybe even some form of it. Have ya looked outside lately?"

"It isn't Hell," Jackie said calmly. "The environment here is like this because of the shifts. It is what I've been told."

"By Henry's soul?" Faith scoffed and she turned to look over at Buffy. "Ya think this could be the same Henry we knew?"

"It's possible," Buffy shrugged. "I mean they were opening the Hellmouth to get Julie's soul back from...here I guess."

Faith just wanted answers, figuring knowing the answers could make being stuck there a little easier to deal with if she knew. She knew that spending god knows how many years in a place like this had affected Jackie. It was apparent in the way she spoke, the way her eyes shifted warily around the room. There was fear in the woman's eyes and Faith knew that she'd seen things here nobody should ever see.

"You two do not trust me, do you?" Jackie asked as she shook her head and continued carving the piece of wood she held firmly in her hand. "When the shift stops, I will show you something that will make you see this place differently."

"How are you going to do that?" Faith asked as Buffy moved off the cot and began to pace the floor slowly as if she was thinking too hard and was trying to figure things out for herself.

"When the shift stops, the souls that have been trapped are shaken free. It's only for a little while, but it is only then will you see what this place is. We'll be safe inside and when the rain that starts just after the shift stops, the cycle continues all over again."

"Oh god," Buffy sighed as she sat back down on the edge of the cot. "We're definitely in Hell."

"Yeah," Faith nodded as she kept her eyes on Jackie who seemed to be ignoring them as she focused on the knife, carving into the wood over and over again.

However long they'd have to stay down there, Faith knew the hours would drag on and on. She just leaned her head back up against the wall and closed her eyes, hoping she'd be able to get a little more sleep. She had to ignore the hunger pangs in her stomach too as Buffy moved back to sit next to her and laid her head on her shoulder. When she slept she could forget all the things that had happened. She never wanted to fall into a peaceful sleep more than she did right then and no matter how hard she did try, the rumblings always woke her before she could.

Somehow she ended up lying down on the cot with Buffy curled up against her side and she opened her eyes to see nothing but darkness. She could hear the soft snores coming from where Jackie was and she let out a soft sigh as she wrapped an arm around Buffy, feeling her smile against her shoulder as she moved closer to her. Buffy leaned in to her and placed a soft kiss on her neck before she moved back down and returned her head to Faith's shoulder. It was little things like holding Buffy that made this whole situation bearable. If she had been there on her own, she wasn't sure how she'd be able to get through each minute without completely losing her mind.

She knew she had to touch Buffy, to hold her, to stay calm and to feel strong despite the apparent fear Buffy was trying to fight inside of her. Buffy was holding that line between their world and this one close to her and if that's what it took, she was never letting go of her if she could help it.

"It's over," Jackie whispered as she lit the candle, waking Faith and Buffy from a light sleep. "It was a quick one this time. It's all over."

"That was a quick one?" Buffy whispered to Faith as they waited for Jackie to climb up the ladder first. "Felt like days."

"I know," Faith nodded. She gave Buffy a small smile as she picked up the candle and watched as the blonde climbed up the ladder slowly. By the time she got up, she noticed how much it'd cooled off from before. "Where'd she go?"

"Outside," Buffy said as she motioned to the small door not too far from them. "It's raining."

Faith placed the candle on the table and grabbed Buffy's hand as she headed for the door. They both came to a stop as they reached the door and saw Jackie scrambling around with buckets to collect the rainwater.

"If you girls want to clean off, you gotta come out here," Jackie called out to them, laughing as she threw her head back and looked up at the sky. "Give me a minute to get washed up then I'll leave you girls to have a little bit of privacy."

Buffy raised an eyebrow as she and Faith looked at each other and backed up inside. "Weird."

"What?" Faith asked as she wrapped her arms around her and smiled. "It's weird cos the woman wants to get clean? Not like there's any running water here to have a nice hot shower."

"Weird because I didn't need to see her almost strip out of her clothes," Buffy replied and it caused Faith to laugh as she backed away from her and pulled her shirt over her head. "What are you doing?"

"I ain't goin' out there in clothes, B. Need to get that nasty feeling off my skin. How else ya expect me to do it?"

The rain was coming down harder now and they both looked away as Jackie ran inside with her wet clothes balled up in her hands. She disappeared inside the small room and Faith got out of the rest of her clothes, waiting for Buffy to follow suit before she pulled her outside with her into the warm and heavy rain. It felt like hours they were out there, trying to get clean, but with nothing but the rain falling, it was hard to get as clean as they both wanted to be.

"I swear when we get home I'm going to spend the entire day in the shower," Buffy muttered as she shivered slightly under Faith's roaming eyes. "A very hot shower," she added as she ran her hands up and down her own arms.

"Right there with ya on that one, B."

They could hear Jackie moving around inside, humming to herself. Faith blinked away the raindrops that fell down her face as she approached Buffy slowly and wrapped her arms around her.

"What are you doing?"

"You're cold?"

"A little."

"Then I'm just tryin' to warm ya up, B," she smirked as Buffy pushed her away. "What? It isn't like she's watching."

"It's not that I..." Buffy trailed off as she shook her head and ran her fingers through her tangled wet hair. "Just forget about it. Let's just get dried off and dressed and see if she has any food."

Faith led the way back inside, picking up their clothes and handing Buffy hers. They dressed quickly out of view from Jackie and joined her by the table where she was making what looked like soup on the small fire she'd built in the hole in the ground.

"Feel any better?" She asked as she looked over at Buffy and Faith. "It's not much, but it does the job," she said when they didn't answer. "The soup?"

"Oh, right," Buffy laughed nervously as she sat down next to Faith on the long crate. "What kind is it?"

"Potato. I have a garden on the roof and unfortunately it is the only thing that grows. It was there when I found this place."

Buffy pulled a face as she looked over at Faith, but they both knew they had no other choice. It was either that or starve. Faith would eat just about anything to keep herself from starving but she knew Buffy wasn't used to having to resort to 'anything' when it came to food. She'd gone through a lot of rough times in her life and she was beginning to look at the situation as one of those 'do all you can do to survive' things. She just gave Buffy a smile as she took the offered bowl from Jackie.

"Just eat it, B."

"It's not so bad if you don't think about it," Jackie said softly as she handed Buffy a bowl. "It'll keep you from starving to death unless you wish to die that way."

Buffy groaned as she took a sniff and pulled another face. Faith just shrugged as she lifted the bowl to her lips and took a sip. Jackie walked around to the other side of the table, humming under her breath as she sat down on the other crate and began sipping the soup from her own bowl. Faith finished hers first, belching loudly as she leaned back a little and placed her hands over her stomach. She smiled a silent thank you to Jackie and watched as Buffy forced herself to finish off hers.

The three of them said nothing even after Jackie got up and headed into the small room off to the side. She still hummed under her breath, breaking through the silence in the vast space. The sound of the thunderous rain had slowed down in the last while and Faith just sat there, shaking slightly, needing a cigarette so badly she felt as if she was going to puke. Buffy reached out for her and after Faith flinched and calmed down, she began to rub her shoulders and work on releasing some of the tension that seemed to settle at the nape of her neck.

"You okay?"

"It'll pass," Faith said under her breath as she turned to look at Buffy. "Prob'ly woulda never started smoking in the first place if I knew the withdrawals were gonna be this fuckin' bad."

"When we get home, you aren't going to start again. Look at it this way; you got a chance to quit since you really don't have any other choice."

"B? I'm more stressed thinkin' about just surviving here than findin' a cigarette or even thinking about quitting."

Buffy sighed as she moved to sit directly behind Faith, wrapping her arms around the brunette as she rested her chin against her shoulder. "We'll be okay, right? No matter what happens here, we'll be okay?"

"Yeah. Hope so."

"Things could be worse," Buffy whispered as she placed a light kiss just below her ear. "Things could be a lot worse than it is now."

Faith knew she was right. They could have been sucked into a Hell dimension instead of being stuck in a world between worlds. Maybe Jackie had been right about looking at this place as a blessing instead of a curse. They still didn't know what this world was really like and what kind of creatures and monsters roamed about here. A part of her wanted to find out, but a bigger part of her just wanted to stay holed up there in the warehouse with Buffy at her side and with a crazy lady who'd been trapped in that world for god knows how long now.

Things definitely could be a lot worse. Faith knew that and she tried not to think of just how much worse things could possibly get from there on out.

The walk back took longer than it seemed. Faith could feel the changes in the air, could feel the rumblings long before they started. She stayed far behind Jackie and Buffy, lost in her own thoughts, fighting back the tears she so desperately wanted to let flow. What she'd been told had made her thoughts go into overdrive and the thing that scared her was the fact that this woman Jackie was not only her real mother, but she'd just known there was something about her right from that first moment they'd met. She just knew from looking into her eyes that it was true, that it was real, and that she—for the first time in her whole life—was looking into the eyes of the woman who brought her into this world, so different from the woman who had raised her and turned her life into shit.

Buffy and Jackie were talking quietly ahead of her, talking about the place they'd just been to. Jackie was trying to explain it to Buffy, but the words failed her and Faith could feel the confusion in her strongly. She ran her hands through her tangled hair, laughing to herself when she started to realize the little things that made them so much alike. The way Jackie would laugh at times, that throaty laugh that sent shivers down her spine since it almost sounded as if it came from her. The way she'd just look at her or Buffy at times, as if she was trying to pick them apart, Faith knew was identical to her own scrutiny of newcomers. The way she would nervously run her hand through her hair when she wasn't sure of what to do or say, the very same way and the very same hand that Faith ran through her own hair.

She started to think of just how different her life could have been had her real mother been there. Would it have been any better? Worse? Virtually the same with just a few different details? She knew she'd drive herself insane if she kept trying to look further into the answers she'd been given and she wished more than anything that she had a cigarette or ten right there to help calm her frazzled nerves.

"Faith?" Buffy called out as they made it back to the edge of the city. "We have to hurry up!"

Faith said nothing as she kept walking, kicking the stone she'd been kicking for what seemed like miles. She only just now noticed that and she let out a soft sigh as Buffy walked over to her and stopped her where she was. Buffy just stared at her, searching her eyes as if that was all it'd take to get whatever answers to whatever questions she had.

"What's wrong? What did they tell you in there?"

"Nothing, B."

"They told you nothing?" Buffy asked as she raised an eyebrow. "Or nothing is wrong?"

"Forget about it," Faith said as she walked past her and tried to catch up to Jackie who'd kept on walking. "Just…forget about it."

"Well something is bothering you, Faith. Why can't you talk to me? What did they say to you in there? Just tell me."

"Told ya," she sighed as she turned to look at her. "They said we'll go home. Eventually."

"There's something else."

"There is nothing else."

"No," Buffy groaned as she grabbed onto Faith and forced her to stop walking away. "They told you something else. What?"

"Forget about it, Buffy."

"No, I am not just going to forget about it," she said as she held onto Faith to keep her from moving from the spot. "What did they say to you?"

"Jackie," she whispered, feeling the hot tears stinging at her eyes. "They told me that she's—god, this is ridiculous."

"That she's what?"

"My mother. They told me that she's my mother. That she was taken from me and that her sister raised me while she spent the last twenty-two fucking years here. Do you realize what that fucking means, Buffy? It means my whole fucked up life happened cos my real mother was taken from me and I was stuck believing all this time that I had a deadbeat drunk of mother who died choking on her own vomit."

"Oh my god, Faith. Are you serious? Jackie is...your mother?"

"Yeah, kind of had a hard time letting that goddamn mind fuck sink in myself. Still is kinda sinkin' in here, as you can fuckin' see."

"Does she know?"

Faith shrugged as she stepped past Buffy and kept walking, trying to keep her footing as the ground shook beneath her feet. "They said she thinks it's her mind playing tricks on her, but she knows."

"This explains a lot," Buffy said quietly as she caught up to her. "Did you—you know, before they told you..."

"Did I what? Think that there was a sliver of a chance that I knew her? That I was related to her? I got a feeling of familiarity, but that's about fucking it!"

"Calm down," Buffy said as she slipped her hand into Faith's. "Please just calm down, Faith. I know this must be a lot to take in right now, considering all that we have to deal with—stuck here between worlds, no way home in sight—"

"Willow's gonna find a way to bring us home, B. They told me. She's coming with us too, apparently," she said under her breath as she pointed ahead to where Jackie was. "I fucking hate this."

"Hate what?"

"Feeling everything. It was so much easier when I just felt my own emotions, but no, I have to feel yours and hers and god knows who else's. I feel you more than I feel myself, Buffy."

"And that what? Scares you?"

"No, right now, that makes me feel angry and a second ago it was making me feel calm. No second guesses on just who I'm feeling right now."

"Is this why everything changed between us?" Buffy asked as they walked quicker and tried to keep up with Jackie. "Because of the empathy you feel now?"

"Maybe."

"So," Buffy sighed out as she let go of her hand, "if you didn't become affected by that barrier spell, this," she said as she motioned between them, "wouldn't even be happening, would it?"

"I don't know, Buffy! You think that you could love me if you weren't affected by the barrier spell? Do you really honestly believe that you could? I mean shit," she laughed as she shook her head and shoved her hands into the front pockets of her jeans, "you love me even after all we've been through, even after the fact that yes, we hated each other and couldn't even stand to be near each other. If that's not fucking crazy, then I don't know what it is!"

"I love you because I see who you are, really see you now and not because of the spell, Faith. I know I love you. I feel it every day. I feel it every time I just look at you. Don't you dare fucking question how I feel about you ever again."

"You realize that's the first time you told me ya love me by using the actual words?"

"Oh."

"Love ya too, B."

"Faith," she sighed as she looked at her with tears in her eyes. "Say it properly."

"Properly?" Faith looked at her, feeling rather confused for a moment until she got it. "I love you too, B."

"Girls? Hurry up, we need to get back!" Jackie called out. "You'll have plenty of time to talk later."

"You know what's crazy, B?" Faith asked as they walked a little quicker. "One minute we're like...fighting or whatever and the next we're saying we love each other. Ya think our whole relationship is bipolar or somethin'?"

"Maniac highs, depressive lows, and mellow in betweens," Buffy paused as if she was thinking about it seriously, the smile creeping over her lips giving her away. "Definitely. We got bipolar love syndrome. You know what the best medication is for that?"

"What?"

"A kiss," she said, stopping as she pulled Faith in close as the ground shook harder beneath them. "And maybe later we could...you know..." Buffy trailed off as their lips met in a brief kiss.

"Girls, please. We don't have much time at all!" Jackie yelled, beginning to run as best as she could as the ground continued to shake.

"Come on," Faith said as she grabbed onto Buffy's hand and they began to run, following Jackie towards the warehouse just up ahead.

They made it inside just as the rumbling became worse and they headed straight for the hatch, Buffy and Faith both dropping down and helping Jackie down quickly. She was out of breath and they led her over to the cot and sat her down. Faith fumbled for the lighter in her pocket, one that Jackie had given to her during the last shift, and she lit the candles as Buffy got her some water. She sat down on the crate by the ladder, watching as Buffy helped Jackie sit up to take a few sips of water.

It gave her a few moments just to look at Jackie, to see the softness in those same brown eyes as her own and to see the outpouring of love she was beginning to feel for both of them. For a woman who had spent the last twenty-two years of her life trapped in this world with no human contact, with nobody to talk to—physically at least—she couldn't imagine what it'd be like to finally have not one, but two human beings there with her now. Faith knew that to Jackie, it didn't feel like all those years had gone by. Time was different there and even she knew that what felt like a week could be longer, it could even be less, days or hours even.

Buffy came to sit beside her when Jackie fell asleep. She said nothing as she leaned against Faith and let out a soft, tired sigh. She missed being able to sleep soundly and she knew Buffy did as well. She wanted to get back home and spend a week just sleeping off the never-ending fatigue she'd been feeling since they were sucked inside this world. She just leaned against the cool steel wall and closed her eyes, trying to focus on Buffy's soft, steady breaths rather than the rumblings that were constant now.

"Do you think she'll be okay?" Buffy whispered. "Jackie, I mean. She's pretty out of it."

"She's just tired, B."

"I know, but she doesn't look well. You don't think she's getting sick, do you?"

"Dunno."

"Faith," Buffy sighed as she reached up and gently cupped her face and forced her to look at her. "I know you are exhausted and you just want to go home. I do too. But you kept saying before that we have to make the most out of being here. I don't know how to do that."

"Me neither. Why do ya think I got the answers to everything, B?"

"I don't—"

"I wish I had the answers, I really fuckin' do. I get that you wanna know all the answers too, but I'm tired of talking about this. All this lack of sleep is making me fucking cranky and—"

"Bitchy," Buffy cut in, smirking when Faith just raised an eyebrow at her. "I know. It's okay. What you found out today would make me feel a little more than cranky and bitchy."

"How can you be so understanding?"

"I don't know. I guess it's something that comes hand in hand with love."

"Really?"

Buffy nodded her head slowly before leaning in for a soft kiss. Faith's tongue snuck out for a quick taste before they both pulled apart at the sounds of Jackie mumbling in her sleep. Faith moved to sit on the hard floor and pulled Buffy down from the crate with her. She spread her legs for Buffy to sit there in front of her and she loosely wrapped her arms around her. She didn't need to see Buffy to know she was smiling just a little and she kissed the side of her head before she leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes.

She dozed on and off until the rumblings finally stopped. She woke Buffy up with a gentle kiss on the side of her neck and she headed up the ladder while Buffy tried to wake Jackie up. The rain was coming down, sounding almost thunderous as it hit the building and the ground steadily. Faith threw open the door and stared outside, momentarily mesmerized by the heavy rain. She turned to watch as Buffy helped Jackie up the ladder and led her over to the crate by the table. She did look sick and her eyes were slightly glazed over.

"Jackie, are you okay?" Buffy asked her softly as she knelt down next to her, taking her shaking hands in her own. "Is there something we can do for you?"

"I'm fine. It'll pass," she said with a soft smile. "Every once in awhile I get like this. It's the...place I took you to. It gets under my skin, crawls like a thousand spiders in my blood. Once I get something to eat, I shall be fine again."

Faith just turned to look back outside, crossing her arms over her chest as she leaned against the open door. She heard Buffy get the small fire started, knowing she should help, but didn't want to be bothered. She didn't have an appetite, which was becoming normal when all there was to eat was potato soup. She wanted something else, something that resembled actual food. It was asking and wishing for too much and she knew it was worse for her to think of the things she'd rather eat.

"Faith, can you help out?" Buffy asked softly as she placed a pot of water over the rack just above the fire. "Faith?"

"I'm gonna go collect some water. Supply is starting to get a little low," she said under her breath as she went to grab the buckets and headed outside.

She shivered as the rain instantly soaked her clothes, her hair, and her skin. She placed the buckets on the ground and sighed as she titled her head back and closed her eyes, feeling the warm rain against her skin. Her right arm was twitching and she felt Buffy before she even stepped up behind her and reached out for her arm.

"What's wrong, Faith?"

"Nothin's wrong, B."

"You can't stand to see her like this, can you?"

"Really can't."

"She'll be fine. She told us she would be fine. I helped her to her room so she could rest and now she's sleeping again."

"She's coming back with us—y'know, once Willow finds a way to get us home. I don't know how she's gonna be able to deal with life then. She's been gone from our world for so long, B. Afraid someone will end up puttin' her in some mental institution or something."

"She'll stay with us. We'll make sure she's okay," Buffy said with a smile as she wrapped her arms around Faith. "Giles won't let anyone take her away from us; from you. I won't let it happen either. None of us will. She'll be stuck with us for the rest of her life whether she likes it or not."

"Great," Faith laughed dryly as she shook her head and tried to blink away the rain that fell in her eyes. "Do you think I should talk to her about this? Tell her it's real, that it's true?"

"Maybe wait until she's woken up and feels more like herself. Come on, let's get inside and get dried off and we'll eat and get a few hours of sleep, okay?" Buffy said as she dropped her arms from around her and pulled her by her hands towards the doorway.

Faith gave in and willingly allowed Buffy to drag her back inside. She headed up for the loft, peeling off her wet clothes as she did. Buffy wasn't too far behind her. She hung her wet clothes over the metal railing and made her way over to the mattress, the fatigue really starting to hit her now. Buffy stood at the foot of the mattress, her wet hair dripping steadily as she stared down at her. Faith knew that look. She'd gotten used to seeing that look whenever they had a little bit of time alone.

"Guess the whole eating thing will hafta wait 'till later, huh?"

"Yeah, guess so," Buffy smirked as she crawled over the mattress and on top of Faith. "How is it that I always want you?"

"Cos sex is addictive?"

"Well duh, but I...every second that passes I just want to..." Buffy trailed off as she held herself up with one hand and ran the other slowly over her left breast.

"We're insatiable, B."

"Is it always going to be like this?"

"Hope so, cos I can't get enough of ya," Faith whispered huskily as she ran her hands down Buffy's back, stopping when she reached her hips to pull her down close, both of them moaning at the contact. "But I think right now," she said as she grabbed on to Buffy's hand currently caressing her breast and pulled it away, "we should probably make some of that fuckin' nasty soup and eat something. Feels like we're both wastin' away here and I can't have that. You're already fuckin' skinny enough as it is."

"It's not that bad," Buffy replied as she got off of her, grabbing one of the sheets that was folded up at the end of the mattress and wrapping it around herself. "At least it partially resembles actual food. It could be worse. We could've starved to death by now."

Faith chuckled as she grabbed the other sheet and wrapped it around her own body. "Pretty sure it'd take a little longer than we've been here for us to starve to death, B. Besides," she sighed as she followed Buffy to the stairs, "I've been through worse times. Never having more than maybe a piece of bread and watered down juice every other day. The potato soup is a helluva lot better than that if you ask me."

"One day I want to hear everything about what it was like for you," Buffy said quietly as she turned to her. "I want to hear everything about your life, Faith."

"It's bad. Some stuff I'd rather not talk about. Ever."

"Faith, it can't be—"

"It is," she said sharply, trying to control her bubbling anger. "You have no fuckin' idea how bad it got at times and how fuckin' depressing it is for me to talk about it. I get that you wanna know everything about me, but my childhood doesn't exactly define who I am now, B. Maybe in your world it does, but not in mine. I am who I am today cos of..."

"Because of what?"

"You. All the changes I've gone through since I came back is cos of you, B. Believe it or not, I wanna be better than anything I'd ever been before. I wanna be good enough for you."

"You are good enough for me," Buffy whispered as she stopped her from heading down the rickety stairs. "Never believe for a second that you aren't. I know our past is rocky and that there was a lot of bad between us, but it is different now and it's never going to be like that again between us."

"How can ya be so sure?"

Buffy took her hand and placed it over her chest so Faith could feel her heart beating rapidly. "I feel it in here, Faith. And you know something? I always trust what my heart tells me."

"Always?"

"Yes, always. Before, when it came to you, I was afraid. Sometimes," she whispered as Faith ran her hand up and over Buffy's shoulder slowly, causing her to pause for a second longer than she probably intended. "Sometimes I still am afraid because what I feel for you is so deep and it is so real and strong. It's not like anything I ever felt before."

"Not even with Angel?"

"The way I feel about you doesn't come close to what I once felt about Angel. It's stronger," she whispered, leaning into Faith's touch as she gently traced her fingers over Buffy's jaw. "And it's much more real because I can actually be with you and..."

"And we can fuck as many times as we want to without me going all grr-argh, right?"

"I—it's more than just being able to fuck, Faith. It's about being able to truly love. You know what I mean?"

"Starting to get an idea, yeah."

"Come on, let's eat and check on Jackie, make sure she's okay. We'll talk more later," Buffy whispered, leaning in to kiss her quickly before she turned and headed down the stairs.

Faith stood there for a moment and just watched her as she walked across the floor to the small fire. She took a few deep breaths before she headed down the stairs and went to Jackie's room to check on her. She stood in the doorway for a moment, staring in at the woman lying on the mattress, and tried to see her as her mother instead of the crazy lady who had taken them in—given them shelter, water, food, and some knowledge of the world they were trapped in. It'd take time for her to accept Jackie as her mother even if she did feel a connection with her.

"Faith?" Jackie said softly as she lifted her head slightly. "Come here."

"Everything okay?"

"I want to talk to you about what you were told," she said as Faith sat down on the end near Jackie's feet. "What did they say to you, Faith? What did they say that made you so afraid?"

"Who said I'm afraid?"

Jackie chuckled softly as she sat up and took in a deep breath. "I can see it. Fear projects itself in many ways and your emotions are always shown in your eyes even when you try to guard them from those around you. What did they say to you, Faith? Did they tell you that you are stuck here or did they tell you something else?"

"We're not stuck here. I mean we are until Willow—"

"Then what?"

"They told me who you are."

"And who am I?"

"My mother. My real mother."

"I feared I'd be right," she muttered under her breath as she moved to sit next to Faith. "I feared it the moment I first laid my eyes on you. I thought it was my head—the voices in my head playing tricks on me again. I remembered, just a little, of my time before I was sent here. I remembered a little baby girl with the most beautiful brown eyes and the feisty attitude. She was my little girl, the little girl I wanted my whole life, and she was taken from me just days after..."

"And given to your sister who I grew up believing was my deadbeat mother."

"I'm sorry," Jackie whispered, the tears streaming down her cheeks as she reached out for Faith. "If I knew...if I could have come back..." she trailed off as Faith moved away from her, fighting off her own emotions as best as she could. "It was bad for you, wasn't it? I should have never gotten mixed up with that witch."

"What witch?"

"Her name was Laura," she whispered. "She promised me she could make the voices in my head go away if I helped her. I couldn't help her and she sent me here as punishment for lying to her about helping her."

"Help her with what?"

"Her own daughter. She was lost and she was desperate to help her daughter find herself again and I...I thought I could help. I thought she was lost as in she'd run away, but I was wrong. Her soul was lost and it wasn't until she sent me here that I did find it. But it was too late, as you know, and I heard the whispers that I'd be stuck here until the day my own daughter found me. I guess it was true."

Faith took in a deep breath, trying to hold back the tears, the anger, the laughter that came along with learning that Julie's mother was responsible for her own mother being sent to this place. She should have seen the signs; she should have pieced it together when Jackie had told her about Henry's soul. She should have known there was so much more to what Julie had been trying to do when she opened the Hellmouth. She wasn't just trying to get her soul back to regain her powers; she wanted to send her and Buffy here, semi-damned in a world where it was nearly impossible to survive with your sanity intact.

Everything was connected, everything happened for a reason. Every mistake and every choice, every decision she'd ever made in her life had led her here. She turned to Jackie and watched her as she struggled to stand up. She walked over to the filing cabinet and pulled out a picture and handed it to Faith.

"It was all I had on me when I was sent here other than the clothes on my back. It's my only reminder of my daughter—of you," she whispered as she wiped away her tears. "I'm...I never expected her to keep your name. I only said it once to her when she came by while we were still in the hospital. She never cared. She only came to me when she wanted money and a place to crash for the night. How she managed to take care of you..."

"She didn't. Not any way that counted," Faith whispered as she stared at the picture in the flickering candlelight. "It's all done and over with now. Can't keep crying over the past and a fucked up childhood, can I?"

"Too late to change it," Jackie replied as she took the picture back and placed it in the filing cabinet drawer carefully. "Always too late. You know, you were my miracle baby, Faith. Your father and I, we tried to get pregnant for nearly ten years before it finally happened. It's a pity he ran off before you were born. He might have been able to stop me from trusting that woman, that witch that destroyed your life and mine."

Faith stood up slowly, wiping away her own tears and clenching her teeth together to keep herself from saying all the things she really wanted to say to her. She wanted to ask her so many questions, questions that just wouldn't form at the moment. Her thoughts were running wild, her emotions fuelling them, and all she could do was stare at Jackie. She pulled the sheet tighter around her body, feeling more vulnerable with her emotions than she had in her entire life, even in those moments when she opened herself up to Buffy. This was her mother she was facing, the mother she never knew and yet had a chance to now.

"I know things might seem different now that we both know, but if you have anything you want to ask me—"

"I don't. Not now."

"I understand," Jackie said as she headed for the door. "Let's get some food in us, yeah? We'll talk when you want to talk and anything you want to know, I'll try to answer. I have a few questions for you too."

"She's dead," Faith said quietly before Jackie walked away. "Your sister. She's dead."

"Oh. How?"

"Choked on her own vomit after going on a weeklong binge. At least that's what I heard. I wasn't living with her. Was living in a foster home at that time."

"Oh dear," Jackie said, trembling as she clutched her chest. "Those voices really do speak the truth. How old were you?"

"I—I don't remember. It was more than ten years ago," Faith shrugged, shaking at the memories that came back with thinking of that part of her life. "I don't want to talk about this now, Jackie."

Faith stayed in the room alone, sitting back down on the mattress and finally allowing the tears to fall. She didn't even try to stop them when Buffy came in to check on her. She could barely see Buffy through the tears as she sat down next to her and wrapped her arms tightly around her. She was done trying to hold it back and cried in Buffy's arms, feeling the calm and the strength in full force coming from her and yet this time it just wasn't working. She needed to feel weak and vulnerable now. No more running and hiding from it if she ever wanted to move on from it and become the strong woman she knew deep down inside that she could be.

The world they were trapped in had its share of blessings and curses and right now, it was nothing more than a mixed bag.

Kennedy ran as fast as she could to keep up with Satsu, Carmen, and Amber as they ran through the cemetery trying to chase down the newbie vampire they'd been waiting for almost all night. The last two weeks had been hard for everyone with the exploding vampire population. It was so much harder for the four of them to keep things under control now that they had only knowledge of how to fight them and not the strength and the power they had briefly enjoyed.

"Split up!" Satsu yelled to them as she and Amber headed left.

"Come on, Kennedy. Keep up!" Carmen yelled back at her as she headed right with Kennedy desperately trying to keep up with her still. "God, are you always slow?"

"No," Kennedy breathed out as they came to a stop when they reached a dead end. "And apparently this was not a good idea to split up. Who the fuck made Satsu boss anyway?"

"Giles."

"Right. Great. Fucking fantastic," she groaned as she leaned against a tree and struggled to breathe.

"You really should give up on the whole smoking thing," Carmen said as she looked her up and down. "It really doesn't agree with you and running, it seems."

"No kidding," Kennedy muttered under her breath as she closed her eyes. "God, I miss Faith and I'm even gonna go as far as saying I miss Buffy too."

"We miss them and we've never even met them. Do you think they are still Slayers?"

"They weren't activated by the scythe, so yeah, they are."

"Where are Perry and Marshall?"

"Staking out the entrance," Kennedy said as she finally managed to take a deep breath without feeling as if she was going to puke. "If it weren't for them last night, we'd all be dead."

"Right, because we're nothing but nearly helpless women who need to be saved by big, muscular, heroic men. Give me a break."

Kennedy groaned as she pushed herself off the tree. Of the three girls that had shown up a week ago, she hated Carmen the most. She was cocky, arrogant, full of miss-know-it-all attitude and even Kennedy knew that if Faith was around, she wouldn't get away with half the things she said to any of them. Just once she wished she could grow a pair and show Carmen a thing or two with her fists, but Giles had warned her to keep her hands to herself after a training session between the two of them got out of hand, leaving both of them with split lips and black eyes and torn shirts.

Satsu wasn't too bad. Kennedy had grown a soft spot for her. She had leadership skills, that was certain, but she wasn't bossy, not the way Buffy could get at times. For one fleeting moment—okay, several in the last week, she knew she'd developed a tiny bit of a crush on Satsu. It was hard not to. She was sweet, she had her moments when she was funny, she was smart, she was a great fighter even without the Slayer strength and power, and she just seemed to connect to everyone around her easily. The crush wasn't one sided, either. She'd seen some of the too-long gazes Satsu had aimed her way and not quite managed to hide.

They caught up with Satsu and Amber just as they managed to corner the newbie vampire. Carmen pushed Kennedy out of the way as she pulled out her stake and charged after the vampire before any of them could move in for the kill. Kennedy pulled herself up from the ground just in time to see Carmen stake the vampire. She shook her head, dusted off her clothes, and headed for the entrance, done for the night. Carmen's antics were really starting to drive her insane—borderline homicidal insane.

She passed through the gates, ignoring Perry and Marshall as she headed on the short walk back to the house. There was only so much 'leadership' crap she could deal with in one night and with Carmen constantly trying to take over that role, she was about to lose it. She got why Giles didn't want her in charge while they were out on patrol. She had a hot head, did before she thought, and she was just 'too much like Faith for her own good' or so Giles had stated more than once in the last two weeks since Buffy and Faith had been sucked inside the portal.

She didn't go inside right away, opting to sit on the bench Xander had built for the front porch instead. She pulled out the pack of cigarettes from her pocket and lit one as Willow walked out the front door and sat down next to her.

"I don't know why you smoke," she said softly. "Kissing you now is like kissing an astray."

"So don't kiss me then," Kennedy retorted and she took a long drag, inhaling sharply as she leaned back and closed her eyes. "God, I can't wait to bring Buffy and Faith home. It's fucking hell on patrol without them."

"Problems with that newbie vampire?"

"Problems with Carmen," Kennedy muttered. "Why does she have to be such a fucking bitch?"

"I take it you two still aren't getting along?" Willow asked as she casually slipped her hand into Kennedy's and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Just don't let her get to you, baby. Maybe a little bit of sorta good news will cheer you up?"

"What news?"

"Kind of comes with a bit of bad news too," Willow replied, taking a few deep breaths as Kennedy turned to look at her. "Giles and I found a spell to locate the portal that leads to wherever Buffy and Faith are. We can't bring them home unless we find the portal they were sucked into."

"Locate? Wait, isn't the portal inside the Hellmouth?"

"It moves. It is no longer inside the Hellmouth as far as we can tell. A few women from the coven in England are coming to help in a couple of weeks and until then...we have to wait."

"A couple of weeks?" Kennedy nearly yelled as she ripped her hand from Willow's tight grasp.

"We don't have a choice! If we want them home safely, we have to do it right."

Kennedy let out a heavy sigh as she closed her eyes once again. Wherever Buffy and Faith were, they were safe, but for how long was anyone's best guess. She knew they'd be able to bring them home, she had complete faith in Willow, but for some reason she had a strange feeling that they wouldn't be the only ones coming back.