| Stories ~ Leave Comments ~ Links |  |
View Comments ~ Disclaimer ~ Email |
Witch's Faith
"Faith? Where are you?! Faith!"
Buffy saw an arm sticking out from under a bush and ran as fast as she could. "Faith!" She pulled the dark Slayer's body into the open. The side of Faith's face was bloody.
"Buffy..." Faith began to wake up. "Elise, she... shit. Oh, shit, Buffy."
"I saw you two fighting, where is she?"
Please, don't let Buffy have seen what I did to her! thought Faith. "She caught me off guard... knocked me out."
"I lost sight of you when I was coming through the trees, and then I got here and you were both gone!" The last time Buffy had seen them, Faith had had the vampire trapped helplessly and was feeling inside her clothes, probably confiscating weapons. "Are you OK?"
Buffy didn't see! "I will be. But... she got away..." Faith felt terrible about what she had done to the vampire. It felt like she had betrayed Buffy, even though Buffy would never be jealous. And even worse, instead of performing her duty as a Slayer, she had senselessly abused Elise once again. In an entirely new way. Faith felt sick to her stomach.
Buffy helped Faith to her feet and examined the bruise at Faith's temple. "You know, I don't think we should tell Mrs. Betts about this."
"I agree." Faith turned her face away from Buffy, afraid that she must have the scent of Elise on her breath.
But Mrs. Betts had witnessed everything Faith and Elise had done. And she was still in hiding nearby, taking great interest in what the Slayers were saying.
"You sure Tara won't mind me taking you out like this?" asked Faith, handing Willow her ice cream.
"I'm sure. She knows the past is behind us." Willow licked her cone. "You seem to be doing well, Faith. I'm glad. I was so worried about how you would deal with all this."
Faith watched Willow's tongue digging into the ice cream and realized that she would never truly be over her affair with the witch. But she, too, was surprised at how well she was dealing with it. "Yeah, I'm doing OK. Five by five. Except for Mrs. Bitch of course. And what about you? You must be feeling better if you're eating ice cream!"
"Yeah, I think I'm back to normal. Except my powers are pretty sad still. But they are coming back bit by bit, and besides... it's just as well I'm not tempted."
Willow looked thoughtfully at Faith, not sure how to bring up the thing she really wanted to discuss. Faith had a sundae with chocolate syrup–one of many foods that would forever remind her of the day she had licked all her meals off of Faith's naked flesh. "Faith... is there any particular reason you are moving on so quickly?"
Faith stared at Willow. "What do you mean?"
"Buffy...?"
Faith sighed. "It's that obvious?"
"Pretty much! Faith... you do know she's straight?" Willow touched Faith's hand, offering emotional support.
"Oh yes. She has made that quite clear!"
"I just don't want you to get hurt all over again."
"Don't worry, it's nothing serious. It's just... have you seen her?"
Willow laughed. "She's a fox. No doubt. But I've talked about being gay with her many times. It's of zero interest to her. Such a waste, but... don't get your hopes up."
"Don't underestimate me!" said Faith with a gleam in her eye. "Besides, you have no idea how nice she has been to me. You can't blame me for trying for more."
Faith was about to greet Buffy and ask if she had learned anything new from visiting Spike. But the instant the Slayer was in the door she threw a pair of panties in Faith's face. They smelled of sex. Faith was speechless, and sat there stupidly with the lacy black garment hanging off of one ear.
"What are you doing, Faith?!"
"What am I doing...?"
"Nailing used panties to the front door! I'm gonna have to fix the hole, now! What's wrong with you?"
"Whoa, B! I don't know what you're talking about!" She snatched the underwear off of her head and looked at it. Her heart skipped a beat, but she said coolly, "Somebody's playing a prank on us. I promise you I didn't do it."
Buffy was about to make a sarcastic reply, but Faith seemed be telling the truth. "OK... sorry, then."
"Don't worry about it. I might have done it if I'd thought of it!"
Buffy went upstairs and Faith fingered the panties with a nervous frown. The crotch was torn open. They were the panties Elise had worn when Faith attacked her.
"Oh, God, Faith! That feels soooo good!" Buffy closed her eyes and tuned out everything but Faith's fingers.
"Take off your bra."
"Like hell."
"Come on, B., I won't be able to see anything!" She didn't wait for an answer but simply unhooked Buffy's bra and let it fall to the sides. Buffy, lying on her stomach, permitted this. Faith was giving Buffy a much-needed back rub, sitting astride the Slayer's lower back and kneading her neck and shoulders. Buffy wore only jeans now.
Faith let her hands slip down Buffy's sides. How she wanted to let them slip under the girl's chest! But she knew she would be lying on the floor with the wind knocked out of her the instant she dared try such a thing.
And yet, the sight of Buffy's naked, sculpted back–and the delicious sounds she was making under Faith's hands–were intensely arousing. Faith inched herself imperceptibly back, little by little. Eventually, she was sitting on Buffy's buttocks. Her genitals pressed into her friend, and her breath quickened slightly. She thrust her hips, ever so slightly. It felt wonderful.
"Don't... even... think it!" warned Buffy. Faith used all of her willpower to keep herself from grinding herself against Buffy's warm behind. She settled for simple contact, hoping that Buffy was feeling the same heat between them that Faith was.
When it was Faith's turn, she was naked except for a small towel around her hips. Buffy put her shirt back on and reluctantly straddled Faith's lower back.
"The shoulders mainly... Mrs. Bitch had me using double clubs today."
Buffy turned her attention to Faith's pretty shoulders. Faith's vocalizations were even less restrained than Buffy's had been.
"Reach under. In front, around my collarbones." Buffy tried to comply but couldn't reach very well.
"Here..." said Faith, unexpectedly rolling onto her back between Buffy's legs. She placed Buffy's hands on her shoulders.
Mouth hanging stupidly open, Buffy massaged Faith as requested. But this position was very different. Now, Faith's cries of ecstasy–ever so slightly exaggerated?–came out while the Slayers looked each other in the eye. That alone seemed far too intimate for comfort. But the way Faith's naked breasts bobbed when Buffy tugged the skin of her shoulders and upper chest... that was a sight Buffy did not need to see. She tried to look anywhere but at Faith's erect nipples.
"Cover yourself!" Buffy said at last, finally finding words. Faith obligingly reached for her brassiere and draped it over her breasts, without fastening it. The motion of her breasts under the bra was no less obscene than before, and before long Buffy simply stopped and moved away.
Faith chose not to press her to start again. "Thanks, Buffy. I needed that. Was it good for you, too?"
Buffy didn't answer. In rolling over, Faith had loosened the towel, exposing all of Faith's body on the right side. Buffy tried to find someplace to direct her eyes.
Thankfully, Faith found the next message from Elise herself. A polaroid photo of the vampire. Nude. Legs spread. The slightest smile on her face, but pure malice in her eyes. On the back, a note in Elise's handwriting: "I will give you what you need."
The memory of assaulting the vampire stirred Faith in ways she did not care to admit to herself. But somehow the photo did not stir Faith in the same way. Elise looked quite delicious in the picture, and yet... she was just another attractive girl. Only Elise's immediate physical presence brought out the dark, confusing needs hidden in Faith's soul. And Faith would not allow that to happen again. Elise would gain nothing from trying to seduce the Slayer. The vampire was trying to use sex to gain power over Faith? Ha! Faith invented that game.
Buffy, Faith, Willow and Tara gathered at the Magic Box, hoping that Xander and Anya would have identified the demon who would activate the Key–if Elise were to capture Dawn. But no luck. Xander and Anya stayed behind, poring over the books, while the others left the shop to go on patrol.
When they emerged from the store, Mrs. Betts was waiting for them. "I'm coming with you."
"What?" asked Buffy, annoyed. "No way. We can't be watching out for a tourist all night a long."
"Ms. Summers, I slew my first vampire before your mother met your father. I'm coming on patrol. From now on." She offered no explanation, and did not reveal what she had seen Faith doing with Elise.
"Are you kidding? I'm not doing it!" Buffy was furious.
"You don't have to, Ms. Summers. Only Faith does. She and I can go patrolling on our own. You need not join us." Not true, of course: everyone needed to work together, and Buffy knew it.
"Whatever. Get in the car."
Mrs. Betts removed something from her own car and returned.
"What the hell is that thing? Planning on doing some mining?" Buffy asked, more annoyed than ever. Instead of a weapon, the Watcher held an enormous pickaxe. The handle was about six feet long, and the head was over three feet long. It towered over Mrs. Betts, who said nothing. The tool barely fit in Buffy's car, even when the Watcher placed it between the front seats.
Buffy pulled to a stop in the middle of the woods. Two graveyards bordered this large stand of trees, and it seemed like a likely meeting place that should be thoroughly searched.
Mrs. Betts's pickaxe looked incredibly heavy–even the handle was metal–but she held it easily. Faith reached out to examine it. The Watcher hesitated a moment, and then handed it over. The balance was very odd, and Faith nearly dropped it. The head was as massive as it looked, but the handle weighed next to nothing. Faith decided it must be a hollow tube. It looked hand-made, but was in excellent condition. One of the blades ended in a wickedly sharp point. The other was similar, but flattened into a two-inch-wide blade. The handle was oval, so the bearer would always know which way the blades pointed without even looking. "May I?"
The Watcher nodded. Faith swung in a sudden blur, and the pickaxe buried itself in tree trunk over a foot thick, the point coming out the far side. Only the axe's handle stopped it from slicing right through the tree. "Not bad!" said Faith, impressed. Buffy was watching all this skeptically, but Faith could tell this was no digging tool. This was a weapon built specifically for slaying. She practiced with it in the air, spinning it around quickly, slicing an imaginary foe with a forward swing and then whirling to catch another on the back swing. She handled it like a fighting staff, then like a battle axe. She parried attacks, first with the handle, then with the blades.
"You're a natural." Mrs. Betts was pleased–she was used to people laughing at her chosen weapon.
"Great for demons," commented Faith, feeling the sharp points, "but you need wood to stake a vampire."
Mrs. Bett's smiled. "The metal points go through bone and armor. But inside each tip is a core of wood." Even Buffy was impressed, and leaned in for a closer look.
As a gravedigger by day, Faith also had to try the pickaxe on the ground. It made short work of stony earth. "Nice! Where can I get one of these?" Faith realized that although this was a large and heavy weapon, it could be carried in full view without attracting too much attention. Try that with a battle axe! Buffy did not appreciate the weapon, but Faith immediately wanted one.
"I couldn't tell you. It belonged to the Watcher who trained me. When he died, it showed up on my doorstep. For all I know, he made it himself."
Faith reluctantly handed the implement back, and the group split up. Buffy and Willow went in one direction, Willow carrying a crossbow. Tara didn't think she could bear to touch a crossbow ever again, so she settled for stakes and magic, and accompanied Faith and the Watcher in the opposite direction.
It wasn't clear whether a meeting was gathering or not, but there was a great deal of slaying to be done in these woods. Mrs. Betts proved that she too could handle the pickaxe effectively, dispatching the first vampire they came across with a swift, lethal blow.
After that, the party encountered a small, reddish demon. Faith leapt towards it. "Wait, Slayer! I bring you a message from Mistress Elise."
Faith held back. "Make it snappy!"
"The Mistress says... that she will give you what you need." The same message that she had written on the photo. Mrs. Betts eyes narrowed–this was exactly the kind of thing she was here to watch for.
Faith was furious. "I don't know what you're taking about!" More than anything else she was angry at herself. Once again, she had a dark secret she was hiding from the people who cared about her. It was a pattern she had thought was behind her. But deep down inside her was something dark. She was not as good as everyone seemed to think. Everyone but Mrs. Betts.
Faith killed the demon on the spot.
But every demon they met carried the same message.
Working their way in the other direction, Willow and Buffy had the chance to speak alone. Elise had no messages for them, and they had met no enemies. Willow commented, "I can't believe how well you and Faith are getting along! I'm starting to get jealous."
"Don't worry, you're my number one witch, Willow! But yeah, it's been awesome having Faith around again."
"I see her coming on to you, even," said Willow with a wink.
Buffy shook her head, smiling wryly. "That girl needs to get laid. I try not to hurt her feelings, but she just won't drop it." Willow was relieved to hear that Buffy was sensitive to Faith's vulnerability in this matter.
"And she doesn't have any chance? I can personally guarantee that you are really missing out on something!"
"Are you kidding? Have you ever seen me so much as look at a woman?"
"Yes... I have."
"What are you talking about?"
"Faith. You should see the two of you together. You're just too cute! If you were gay I'd be buying wedding presents already."
"Yeah, well I'm not. And anyway, Faith mainly comes on to me to piss me off."
Willow shrugged. "If you say so. Just... promise you'll be gentle with her." She left the underlying accusation unspoken: not long ago, Buffy had rebuffed Spike quite cruelly. Willow didn't want to see Faith get the same treatment.
"I promise!" said Buffy. She certainly would never want to hurt Faith. Not anymore.
After patrolling, the group drove to Spike's crypt to pick up Dawn. Faith was fuming about the messages from Elise–which she claimed were a mystery, but Mrs. Betts knew otherwise.
Buffy had left the car alone to fetch Dawn, and the others heard her scream in the darkness. "Dawn!"
Faith outran the others and found Buffy trying to pry open the doors of the crypt. They were charred black on the bottom, and the smell of smoke and gasoline hung heavy in the air. The damaged doors broke open to a horrifying sight. The floor and walls of Spike's crypt were blackened, stinging gasoline fumes filled the air, and most of Spike's furnishings were either missing or reduced to charred scraps. Faith and Dawn kicked through the rubble in horror.
"Nothing!" coughed Faith, as the others appeared at the door.
"Thank God..." said Buffy. There were no remains here. Her sister was not dead... probably. But Elise had her, and there was no telling where she had been taken!
"Over here!" Mrs. Betts pointed to the ground outside. Dawn and Spike's running footsteps headed towards the cemetery gates. "I think they got away."
They found Spike and Dawn at home in Buffy's kitchen. Spike's legs were burned and Dawn was tending to the wounds, her eyes red from smoke and crying. Dawn's clothing was somewhat charred but she was nearly unharmed. "They poured gasoline under the door and lit it," said Spike bitterly. "If they wanted to flush us out they were stupid–they nearly killed us both."
"Spike picked me up to keep me out of the fire, and we hid in the back room." Luckily, the fire had not spread beyond the main room. "One vampire came in to look around, but Spike killed him and we got away."
"Did you walk home?" asked Buffy, her eyes filling with tears of relief as she waited in line to hug Dawn.
"No, we took a taxi most of the way," answered Spike.
Buffy was thoughtful. "It's just possible you weren't seen. Elise may think she's killed Dawn!"
While everyone's attention was on Dawn and Spike, Mrs. Betts discreetly opened the hall closet where Faith had tossed her stakes. Searching quickly but efficiently, she turned up a very interesting item hidden underneath a box on the floor. It was the photo and note from Elise.
Continue to Episode 21 – Futility.
Tara climbed softly onto the bed. Willow was so cute in her sleep! It was odd for her to take a nap in the middle of the day, though. Tara was in the mood for something more satisfying than sleep, and decided to wake Willow with a little surprise. She unbuttoned her blouse partly, and slipped out of her bra. Baring one breast, she slipped the nipple between Willow's slightly parted lips. No response. "Willow?" Nothing. It was as though Willow were in the sprite trance, except that Willow claimed her powers were still too weak even for that. Tara grew alarmed, and looked around the room hoping to see Willow's sprite come dancing out of hiding. "Willow? Come to me! Where are you?
I would be grateful if you would give me your comments and rate my stories in my Guestbook, or email me. Reader responses will determine whether I publish more stories, and will help improve them! Thanks for reading!
| Stories ~ Leave Comments ~ Links | |
View Comments ~ Disclaimer ~ Email |
www.angelfire.com/grrl/wyndgyrl
