| ACT ONE FADE IN INT. ESPRESSO PUMP - DAY TITLE: ONE WEEK EARLIER Buffy and Willow sit with their drinks. WILLOW So then she tells me that the skirt might be a smidgen short. BUFFY Kennedy said smidgen? WILLOW Actually, she phrased it as "your ass is gonna show anytime you move which would be fine if your ass didn't belong to me". She can be possessive. BUFFY I can see why...you've got a fabulous ass. WILLOW Thank you. Yours is majorly exceptional too. I've thought about that piece on many... Willow drifts off once she realizes what she's saying. She blushes. BUFFY A lesbian admiring my ass...could there be a better compliment? (beat) What was it like? In the beginning with Tara? WILLOW You mean the relationship or the transition to a different lifestyle? BUFFY Second one. WILLOW Why do you want to know? BUFFY We've never really talked about it. I personally don't know any other gay people besides Kennedy and I'd rather not talk to her unless absolutely necessary. I'm curious--you always seemed so male- oriented. WILLOW You know, I think I've overplayed the whole gay-now hand. I actually find myself attracted to men. Faith is right--take a serious look at Giles and he is pretty yummy. BUFFY A sentiment not shared by my tummy. WILLOW I was with Oz for a long time. I was in love with him and there would be moments where I was Dorothy stuck in the magical land of OZ...Kansas so far away and that wouldn't bother me. If I got stuck in OZ forever, I'd be happy. And if he hadn't left, I think we'd still be together. BUFFY Really? Even with-- WILLOW --Tara had perfect timing. Maybe that's fate--I was sinking and she pulled me back up. Falling in love with her was so easy because it felt right. It felt good, just as good as, if not better than Oz. BUFFY Doesn't sound so conflicting. WILLOW I've been doing the girl-girl thing for a while now. I thought there was something seriously wrong with me then. How could I feel that way for a girl? Why was I feeling these things? Was it her--me--Oz? Were my emotions just screwing with me? (MORE) WILLOW (CONT'D) I had to summon every ounce of strength just to stay sane. Something so beautiful as discovering a new slice of your identity can be so painful and I felt so isolated, so afraid of everything in me and around me...and I didn't want it to be happening, but I couldn't help it. When I let go, faced the music, I ended up sharing my life with a wonderful person and I'll never regret it. BUFFY (shakily) I don't know what to say. WILLOW It's okay. Women--men--not much of a difference if you're lucky. I'm attracted to both--I could very well spend the rest of my life with Kennedy, but if not, then, to me, anyone is for the taking. I know some great guys--Xander, Giles, Dino...Dino is the kind of guy I could get behind. BUFFY Dino doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would enjoy THAT. Willow bursts out laughing and smacks Buffy on the arm. Buffy joins in. WILLOW I'm glad we did this. Voicing bisexual tendencies is actually tougher than choosing sides. BUFFY I bet it is. CUT TO: EXT. RESTFIELD - NIGHT Faith handles a RED DEMON while Buffy takes on a big BLUE DEMON. Faith struggles while Buffy massacres the Blue Demon. Buffy kicks the Blue Demon and then jams her stake through his face. The Blue Demon drops and Buffy pulls out her stake, pleased with herself. She turns to watch Faith get hit a few times and then flung into a tree by the Red Demon. Buffy's eyes glaze over and she bumrushes the Red Demon, nailing him with a wave of blows that he can't stop. Buffy unloads on him until she straddles him on the ground and punches him over and over and over again until the Red Demon lies motionless, his face smooshed and gooey and almost non-existent. Buffy gets up as Faith approaches. FAITH Never thought I'd say it, but that's excessive. BUFFY Deserved it. (worriedly) Are you okay? Are you hurt? FAITH I'm fine--stunned me, that's all. How are YOU? Buffy stares for a moment. She smiles weakly. CUT TO: INT. DEAN HOUSE - DAY DAWN and ELLE sit on the floor writing in notebooks. DAWN How's that algebra coming? ELLE I figured out what X is: exasperation. Letters should just be letters and numbers be numbers-- why try to be something you're not? Brittney Spears is a singer--she can't act so the dimwit must stop. DAWN Uh, Brittney Spears isn't a singer. Purveyor of a slutty image--yes; singer--no freakin' way. ELLE Well, I'm done. DAWN I finished about 3 minutes ago-- I've been waiting forever for you! Dawn and Elle exchange notebooks. They look at them. DAWN This is totally fab. Thanks. ELLE The scoobs were so wrong--you Summers girls aren't academically deficient. DAWN That's Buffy. She got slayer power, I got a brain. Rather have the power. ELLE You got plenty--not just physical strength, but the power to attract vivacious humans like me. DAWN Human. Singular. ELLE People might be a little freaked by you...proving how they're ignorance is selective. They know something's up with you, just not what it is. They're loss. DAWN You don't have to keep doing that. Working on my ego. ELLE I don't want you to feel down about yourself. DAWN I don't...as much. Dawn reaches out and takes Elle's hand in hers. DAWN I want you to understand that you mean a lot to me...that I feel special just for spending time with you because of the kind of person you are and not what you say. Elle's taken aback by that. Her eyes begin to water. Dawn gets on her knees and makes a move downwards. Elle closes her eyes for a long moment before jumping away and on to her feet. That startles Dawn and she falls back ELLE (nervously) I need to go to the bathroom. Elle rushes up the stairs. Dawn cradles and shakes her head in her hands. CUT TO: INT. SUMMERS HOUSE - DAY Willow, XANDER, and DINO sit around a coffee table reading books. GILES enters with a book of his own. GILES Any progress? XANDER Nothin'. We got nothin' on top of the first 3 hours of nothin'. WILLOW NothinG. XANDER What? WILLOW Faith has an excuse for not sayinG her endinG G's. You don't. XANDER Thank you for that much-needed grammar lesson Miss RosenburG. DINO Hey, let's keep our eyes on the page here, continuing the reading that we've been doing for 3 hours as Xander pointed out before the stupidity. We're supposed to read these books thus completing the necessary research. Get with the reading program people and read. GILES (to Willow and Xander) Everything he said. You can learn from him. Giles nods. Xander and Willow roll their eyes. Giles leaves. Dino pulls out a map and lays it out on the table. WILLOW My route is the way to go. XANDER I still say we should stop at Disneyland. DINO Nuh uh, no way. I will not associate with any person or company that associates themselves with Michael Fat Ass Moore. WILLOW For the ninth--and hopefully last-- time, straight beeline for L.A. with no diversions whatsoever. DINO Mine has diversions? XANDER A geisha house tends to be an attention-grabber. DINO Like you two wouldn't enjoy that? Willow and Xander look at each other, then at Dino and bow their heads in shame. CUT TO: INT. APARTMENT - DAY Buffy and Faith look around the empty place. BUFFY This place is you. FAITH This place is dull. I ain't dull so it ain't me. BUFFY Sure, it's got issues like no furniture or paint. Of course, everything the previous owners had they took with them. It's called moving. FAITH Mockin' me won't convince me of the allure. What's wrong with the hotel--I got it good there. BUFFY Sunnydale is your home now. Hotels are for passersby. FAITH Who says I'm stickin' around? There's a world outside SunnyD. I've seen it--you should too. BUFFY Believe it or not, I like it here. Faith SCOFFS. Buffy's indignant. BUFFY It took a few years, but I know what I have. You have no reason to leave...or is it no reason to stay? I guess you can screw and slay in any hotspot in America. FAITH Never been a complex girl B. I don't need much. BUFFY Different from what you want. FAITH I know what I want. Do you? Buffy and Faith stare for a moment. ANYA makes a loud entrance. ANYA Absolutely not Faith. The west side is nice, but you are an uptown girl...the wisdom of Billy Joel must be acknowledged, appreciated, and astutely followed. FAITH I agree. (to Anya) You like my hotel right? ANYA The more I go, the more I want to stay. Faith smirks. Buffy shakes her head, frustrated. ANYA So, what are we doing tonight? CUT TO: INT. THE BRONZE - NIGHT Xander, Anya, Willow, and Dino are seated. DINO I'm gonna make one more plea for the geisha. WILLOW Keep pounding it home, I'll probably give in eventually. DINO Really? WILLOW No. XANDER Well, I for one am not allowed and proudly so--forbidden by my girlfriend. (to Anya) Right? Anya ignores him, fixated on the dancefloor. XANDER Girlfriend--Anya--my girlfriend Anya--Anya, the girl I date and sleep with...An. ANYA They were fighting earlier. How do you just disregard a fight? XANDER We fight all the time and disregard it soon after. ANYA Acute difference. They're not us. Dino and Willow become thoughtful. They look at each other. Dino nods away and Willow nods in the affirmative. They get up and leave. Anya turns her attention to the dancefloor. We head over there where Buffy and Faith dance with abandon and virtually no air in between their bodies. Eyes shut, they seem lost in the flow. Buffy rests her arm on Faith's shoulder and opens her eyes. She gazes at Faith intensely. The SOUNDS of the club suddenly drown out, replaced by a deep HEARTBEAT. Buffy and Faith entangle their bodies, Faith opening her eyes nearly thrown back by Buffy's gaze. They continue like that, the only sound a HEARTBEAT that speeds up as time passes. Their faces inch closer and closer, the HEARTBEAT faster and faster. Their faces touch as Faith leans into Buffy's ear to whisper: FAITH I'm sorry for earlier Buffy. BUFFY Don't be--I'm the one who's sorry. I just don't want you to leave. FAITH No need to apologize for THAT. Faith pulls back and smiles winningly. Buffy does the same. The HEARTBEAT continues for a few moments until all the SOUNDS of the club return and the SONG ends. Buffy and Faith disengage from each other, slowly and reluctantly. FAITH Somethin' you want? BUFFY Huh? FAITH Drink? Pretzels? Shoppin' spree at Barney's or whatever? BUFFY I'll take one of the first, none of the second, and a lifetime supply of third...at your convenience. I'm going to the bathroom. FAITH No prob. Have fun. Don't fall in--unless you like that kinda thing. Faith wiggles her eyebrows. Buffy laughs and heads off. We follow Faith to the bar where a DUNCE bumps into her and spills his drink on her. DUNCE Sorry. FAITH Yeah, that helps. I hate cleanin'. Faith moves in the direction of the bathroom. CUT TO: INT. BATHROOM Buffy splashes water on her face. She takes a long look at herself in the mirror before placing her hand on her chest. BUFFY What is going on? What is wrong with me? This is so fucking wrong and ridiculous. God Buffy, complicate your life at will by adding Faith to the mix. You're not Willow. Why me? Why now when I'm just starting to not only regain my life, but mold it into something I LIKE. Why? Why? (screaming) ANSWER ME. Buffy rubs her face. CUT TO: INT. THE BRONZE - MINUTES LATER Buffy exits the bathroom and makes her way to the gang. Dino and Willow are back in there seats. Xander's tired, probably because of Anya and her haughtiness. BUFFY Where's Faith? WILLOW On the dancefloor with you...but obviously not anymore...so, I'm going to say pass. XANDER Maybe she got lost in the crowd, looking for you? DINO Outside for air? ANYA Shunning me in favor of you and those hips. Xander prays to the ceiling. Buffy frantically scans the club. She roams the area, no Faith in sight. CUT TO: EXT. THE BRONZE - LATER Buffy shoots out. She takes a few steps one way, then jogs in the opposite direction. Buffy's breathing hard. She looks stricken. After surveying the area a couple of times, Buffy raps her arms around herself, as if cold. END ACT ONE |
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