Part two

"I can't believe you sicked Giles on me," Faith snorted, kicking an empty soda can the length of the alley.

The two girls had been patrolling for three hours, and this was the first time Faith talked to her after their meeting with the Watcher. Buffy smiled to herself, knowing full well that she won this battle. She knew that if anyone could convince the headstrong Slayer to enjoy a little R&R, it would be Giles.

"Hey, a Slayer's got to have all the ammo she can get, right?" Buffy said smugly, "Besides, he's right. I mean look at us," she pointed out both their appearances, "We look like something even a cat wouldn't drag in."

Faith smiled back and shrugged, "We do look kinda wrecked."

"So," Buffy asked, leaping over a turned over garbage pail, "What are you planning on doing with a whole day off?"

Faith looked at the ground as she spoke, "Oh, I'll think of something. You know me...I'm an expert at finding something fun to do."

It was then that Buffy realized, Faith was going to be alone, "You're going to stay home and do nothing."

"Who me? Nah, I can find fun even in a one horse town...not that I've ever been to a one horse town before, but...shhhh!" she said, grabbing a hold of Buffy's arm," You hear something?"

The two girls stood perfectly still for what seemed like an eternity, listening and waiting.

Waiting for...

"Vamps!" Faith hissed, sliding out of the way of an incoming demon.

"Heads up!" Buffy shouted, swinging a metal garbage top at one of the vampires, severing its head, "Or should I say...heads off!"

Buffy turned around to see if Faith needed help. Her "sister-Slayer" had backed up two vampires into a corner, and was taking equal, and quite brutal, shots at them. Just as Buffy decided to step in, she was tackled from behind.

She rolled away from her attacker and swung her legs up to meet him in the gut, propelling the vampire six feet back. The Slayer quickly rose to her feet and scrambled for her stake, which was knocked from her hands when she hit the ground. When she couldn't find it, she looked frantically for a suitable substitute, and found none. This fight was not going well.

Even Faith, who managed to dispatch one of the two vampires, was beginning to tire. Three more vampires jumped out of the shadows and targeted her, pinning her against the very wall she had used to trap the other vampires. Buffy knew that if she couldn't do something soon, they wouldn't see a day off...they would see the rest of their lives off. However brief that might be.

"You know," Buffy said, kicking a female vampire, that vaguely resembled a student she once went to school with, "this is getting very old, very quickly."

"Don't worry," the student-vampire growled, "it will end soon."

"You're right," Faith said, stabbing the vampire in the back, and sending Buffy's missing stake through its heart. She smiled and handed it back, "Missing something?"

"Thanks," Buffy sighed, relieved that she now had a weapon other than her fists.

"Hey, a Slayer isn't a Slayer without her handy dandy stake. Never leave home without it."

"Now," Buffy said as the two Slayers stood back to back ready for the next round, "Who's next?"

The remaining vampires paused, considering their options...then ran.

"I thought so."

******

The handsome black man sat at the computer, typing on the keypad. His eyes darted back and forth across the screen taking in the scrolling information the Internet was all too willing to provide. He loved this century. The whole world was literally at his fingertips, and he was more than able to take it all.

What a great century for a vampire!

"Mister Trick," one of his followers said, "I have a little gift for you." The vampire presented him with a young, terrified woman, bound and gagged, with a red bow around her neck, "I thought you might like this vintage."

Trick stood up and walked over to the girl, who was now in tears. His hand stroked her cheek with the same gentleness as it did at the computer, but his eyes said another story. From the moment he looked at her, she knew she was going to die. Only, she didn't know exactly what was going to kill her until it was too late.

"My, my," Trick said, running his hand through her long brown hair, "she is a pretty young thing," then turning to the girl he added, with a sinister grin, "I wonder if you taste as good as you look?"

******

"Well, that was about as much fun as getting teeth pulled," Buffy snorted, putting her stake back in her purse.

"Oh, I don't know, B," Faith replied with a mischievous grin, "it might not be so bad if the dentist was a hottie."

Buffy took off her shoe and shook a pebble from it, "Always the optimist."

"You know it."

The two girls walked in silence for a while, both on the alert, knowing that the night was far from over. The sounds of their footsteps seemed to echo throughout the deserted streets, sending chills down Buffy's spine. "God," she thought, "why don't we just tie bells around our necks and say, 'come an' get us'".

She tried to soften her steps, but her hearing was far too acute to make much of a difference. No matter how softly she walked, it would still ring loudly in her ears. Oh well, that was one of the perks of being the Chosen One, she supposed. Of course, she would rather have chosen a long life over super hearing and strength any day...

She looked up at the sky and noticed, for the first time that night, the stars. She couldn't remember the last time that she saw them shine so brightly. Then again, she never really took the time to look. Who does, when they have their whole life to see them? Still, she reminded herself, she should look up more often, she might not get many more opportunities to.

"What are you looking at?"

Buffy stopped, and turned to Faith, "The stars. I never noticed how pretty they are."

"Okay," she said, "Somebody's been watching 'Men in Black' on video again."

Buffy shook her head and continued walking, "No, I'm serious. I mean, have you ever just looked up at the sky and looked at the stars, for no other reason than just to look?"

"I guess," Faith said. Her features suddenly became too serious for Buffy's liking, "Of course, right now, I'm more interested in watching those two vamps over by the Bronze."

Their patrolling had brought them to the only real hang out in town...the Bronze. It was an all ages club in the bad part of Sunnydale. But its location didn't stop the local teens from flocking there every night. And where there were crowds of unsuspecting people crammed in an enclosed place...there were bound to be vampires.

The two vampires in question, Buffy recognized as Mister Trick's henchmen...or was it henchvamps? Ever since his arrival to the Hellmouth, life had gone from bad to worse. They thought that in killing off Kakistos, the ancient vampire Trick had worked for, that would have scared him off. But, after seeing one of the vampires try to pick up a girl exiting the club, Buffy knew otherwise.

Trick was still here...and was taking up permanent residence.

Buffy and Faith watched as the young vampire escorted the pretty girl away from the club to a deserted alley around the corner. The other vampire had managed to get a "date" of his own. Buffy couldn't help but feel sorry for the two teens, not only because they were about to become the main course for a demon dinner, but that they probably thought they both had met their "misters right". Boy, they couldn't be more wrong.

As the two Slayers moved in closer, they could hear the girls arguing with their prospected dates. They were clearly getting more than they bargained for.

"Hey, boys," Buffy taunted, "Why don't you pick on somebody who can fight back."

The red headed vampire turned to face her and snarled, "Like who?"

"Like us," Faith said, stepping out from around the corner.

When the two vampires saw whom they were dealing with, they forgot their prey. The young girls, however, stood still against the wall, unable to move from fear. It wasn't until Buffy shouted at them did they finally respond...by screaming at the top of their lungs and racing toward safety. Well, at least they got away.

"I'm gonna grind you into dust!" the dark skinned vampire growled, charging Buffy.

Buffy stepped aside and let the vampire slide on passed. "Funny," she said, connecting a round house kick squarely on his jaw, "I was just about to say the same thing about you. Of course in your case, grinding into dust would be a pretty accurate description. Right?"

The vampire swung around and punched her in her eye, sending Buffy flying back...unceremoniously onto her butt. He then took an upturned garbage pail and flung it at the Slayer. Buffy managed to avoid being hit by the pail, but she ended up being covered in trash. She wrinkled her nose and leaped to her feet.

"I didn't know you guys resort to fighting with moldy fruits and vegetables," Buffy said, blocking another blow, and connecting with her own, "Then again, who am I kidding, I like meat."

"Meat?" the vampire looked confused.

"Stakes, that is," Buffy said triumphantly, thrusting the wooden stake through the vampire's heart.

When the cries of the vanquished vampire ceased, Buffy turned to help Faith. The red headed vampire realized that he was fighting a loosing battle, threw her into Buffy and took off.

They both stood up, brushed the remaining garbage from themselves and started to walk away from the club in silence. There would be no partying at the Bronze for them tonight.

******

Eric paced back and forth as he told the events of the night. His usual neatly combed red hair was a mess, and he was sporting several cuts and bruises. All of which would heal by morning, but the damage to his pride would not be so easily mended.

"I can't believe it," he said, "those two brats got the best of Jake and me. And I was looking forward to a nice quiet dinner."

"Don't worry, my friend," Trick said, placing a comforting hand on the younger vampire's shoulder, "That is a problem that will soon be taken care of."

"How?"

Mister Trick strolled over to his computer and tapped a few keys, "Just by hitting a few buttons, sending a few commands, I can have anything sent directly sent right here to us," he turned to Eric and rubbed his chin, "Even death in a box."

******

The day Buffy had been looking forward to all year had finally come...Halloween. The day that little children, and adults, dress up as monsters and demons and run amok through town, while the real ones stay at home. And for the Vampire Slayer...it was a day of rest.

Unless of course you count the time Ethan Rayne decided to play a nasty Halloween trick on Sunnydale, turning every one who bought a costume in his shop into what they dressed up as. But, Buffy reminded herself, as she walked the halls of the school, that was the exception...not the rule.

She hoped.

She had to admit, that if she was into dressing up and partying on Halloween, today would be the perfect day. Halloween fell on a Friday this year, which meant, no school the next day. Curfews for the kids were extended, and there was more mischief and mayhem they could cause before they had to go home. She almost envied those people who thought that this holiday was only a reflection of mythology.

Mythology...she had wished this was all just someone's twisted imagination. Vampires, demons, ghosts, and other creatures that go bump in the night, were real, and living in Sunnydale. And that was something that had always wigged her out. When parents used to tell stories about trolls living under bridges or monsters under the bed, to frighten kids into behaving, little did they know how right they were.

And perhaps it would have been better if they didn't know. She had trouble sleeping at night knowing this...and she was the Slayer. She couldn't begin to imagine how her friends and, more importantly, her Mother coped with the day to day Slayage.

Her Mother...

God, how it hurt Buffy to see her worry every night when she went on patrol. She wanted to comfort her, to tell her that she would be fine, but she wasn't even sure of that herself. She was good at fighting evil, sure. Giles even said she had the makings of being the best slayer to date, but she knew it was only a matter of time.

One mistake, one error in judgment, and they would be calling another to take her place.

Her encounter with the Master proved that. She had in fact died, even if it was only for a few minutes, and now there were two. Kendra was killed, and they sent Faith. It was the way it was, and had been, for generations. So why was she so scared? Why couldn't just accept her fate they way Kendra did, or block out all thoughts of dying the way Faith did?

"Because I'm seventeen years old," she thought to herself, opening the library doors, "and I'm not ready to die...just yet."

"Buffy, there you are," Giles said with a warm smile, "Faith was just telling me of your encounters with the local vampires last night. I would say the two of you set a record for most amount killed in a three day span. Congratulations."

Buffy saw her slayer counterpart sitting on a chair with her legs propped up on the study desk. She walked over, dropped her books on to the table and sat down. She looked at her Watcher closely and gave a weak smile. Since when did he lose the tweed to sport a nice black suit? And since when did she even notice?

"So," Buffy said, shaking that bizarre thought from her mind, "do we get a medal? Or, at least a really nice plaque with a brass plate that reads...'For service above and beyond what a Slayer should be doing'..."

"I would think that ridding the world of demons would be satisfaction enough?" Giles said, apparently missing the joke.

"Gee," Buffy returned, "I guess 'employee of the month' would be out then, huh?" Then turning to Faith, she added, "I see you got over your fear of school? Does that mean we're gonna get to see more of you?"

"Yeah, but I still like talking about vamps over hot pizza," Faith shifted her legs to sit up, "Speaking of which..."

"Yes, we are going out for pizza," Buffy sighed, then giving a warning, "But no talking about vampires. Scott's coming along."

"That's cool," Faith nodded, "Just a bunch of friends talking about friend stuff," She paused, "What are we gonna talk about?"

"I'm sure the two of you can think of something," Giles pointed out, finishing the remaining book returns, "Enjoy your night off, you both have earned it."

"So, Giles," Faith asked, getting up and walking over to him with a smile, "what are you planning on doing tonight?"

Buffy watched as Faith subconsciously moved closer to Giles. She definitely had a crush on him...even if it was only a small one, and Buffy couldn't understand why. He was old enough to be her father. But maybe Faith liked older men. Or maybe, she didn't have a good relationship with her own father, and was more than willing to make up for it.

Still, it was too weird to imagine Giles with Miss. Calendar, and she was at least close to his age...

"Well," Giles said, subconsciously backing away from Faith, sending a sigh of relief thought Buffy, "I think I'm going to spend a nice quiet evening alone with a book."

"Want company?"

"Um, Faith," Buffy said, "I think the whole purpose of being alone is not to be around any one else."

"Buffy," Giles said gently, then turning to Faith he smiled, "I appreciate your offer, but I seldom get an opportunity to just relax with a book that has nothing to do with vampires or demons...I was just looking forward to it, that's all."

"Yeah, sure," Faith said, walking to the door, "No prob. Have a good night off. See ya on Monday."

The moment Faith left, Giles turned to Buffy and asked, "Might I ask what that was all about?"

"I don't know," she lied.

"What are you planning on doing tonight?"

"Scott and I are going to rent some movies and spend it alone...at home...by ourselves," the Slayer emphasized, pushing a strand of hair behind her right ear.

"I see," Giles said slowly, nonchalantly flipping through a book, "And I suppose that Willow, Oz, Xander and Cordelia are spending equal quality time together? Alone?"

"I guess."

"Buffy," he said, running his hand through his hair, "Has it occurred to any of you that Faith might be lonely? You are her only friends in Sunnydale, and on the one night a year you can relax, you're excluding her. I'm sure she doesn't feel very wanted right about now."

"I never thought of that," Buffy admitted, "It's just that, we spend so much time together as it is, I needed some time to myself. You know, in the dating capacity."

"All of the time the two of you spend together is doing your jobs. It's a far cry from a social engagement. So, does that mean you only regard her as a co worker?"

"No," Buffy said, then realizing what he meant she sighed, "You're right, all we do is fight monsters together. It's great for Slayer bonding, but not much fun. Well, at lunch I'm going to fix that," Buffy got up and headed for the exit. She stopped and turned to her Watcher, "And Giles?"

"Yes?"

"Have a great day off."

******

The Pizza place seemed to rapidly become the meeting ground for the "Scooby gang". It had great food, good music and it was as far away from the school as possible, without leaving town. Although, Xander often thought, leaving town might not be such a bad idea. With all of the vampires, demons, and other supernatural monsters residing in there, it made the young man think that LA would be a safer place to live. He would take drive bys over being sucked into hell any day.

But today, there was no mention of vampires or anything else relating to the Hellmouth. Today, they could just be seniors in High School. Today was Halloween.

Buffy sat in silence, watching her friends talk exuberantly about their plans for the night. Oz and Willow had planned on going to a Masquerade party that his band was playing at. Xander and Cordelia were planning a night of....well, what ever it is that those two did when they were alone...which was more than Buffy wanted to know.

And then there was Faith. She too sat in silence, but not in sentimental bliss. Her eyes darted back and forth watching the other talk. Buffy could see the look of isolation on the Slayer's face, and felt bad. She couldn't imagine not having friends to go to, or to have fun with, and yet she could relate. Even surrounded by Willow, Xander and the others, she was ultimately alone. She was the Slayer...she would always be alone.

"Hey, I have an idea," Buffy suggested, watching Faith pick at her pizza, "What if we have a party at my house?"

"Yeah, I remember the last time we had a party at your house," Xander said, "A dead, smelly cat and lots of...." He stopped himself, realizing that Scott, an outsider, was present.

"We found my, uh, neighbor's cat dead in the back yard," Buffy said, hoping that her friend didn't do too much damage. Then turning to Xander she said, "Besides, nothing is going to happen tonight...remember? Come on, guys, it'll be fun! When do we ever get to just hang anymore?...other than at school and the Bronze," she added for Scott's benefit.

"Look, B," Faith said, secretly appreciating the effort, "You don't have to do that for me. I'll be fine on my own. You guys don't have to change your plans."

"I don't know," Scott interjected, "I think it'd be fun."

"Yeah," Buffy quickly added, grateful that he was so understanding, "A night of chips and dip and movies. What more fun can you ask for?"

"I can think of several." Cordelia said.

"Well, I have to play at this party," Oz said, "But when it's over, I'm in. How 'bout you Hon?" he looked at Willow, and held her hand.

"Yeah, sure!" she said with excitement, "Besides, I don't know anybody at the party anyway. I would feel a little..."

"Uncomfortable?" Oz squeezed her hand, "Willow, why didn't you tell me that? You don't have to go to the party if you don't want to. Tell you what. You go to Buffy's, and I'll try to cut out early from the gig. I'll see you later."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely," Oz said, giving her a soft kiss on the lips, "I never want to hurt you or make you feel uncomfortable."

"Okay," Xander announced, "Party at Buffy's...eight o'clock sound good to you?"

"Sounds fine to me," Buffy said, "Faith?"

"I'm cool with that," Faith smiled, taking a huge bite out of her slice of pizza.