The Gift, Take Two

Title: The Gift, Take Two - Chapter 24: Rules Of Engagement
Author: Dafmeister
Email: Dafmeister@hotmail.com
Disclaimer: The Buffyverse is owned by Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, Fox and a bunch of other people who aren't me. No infringement of copyright is intended blah blah blah...
Pairing: Buffy/Faith
Spoilers: Anything up to the end of Season 6 Buffy/Season 3 Angel
Distribution: Ask and Ye shall receive.
Rating: R
Feedback: Have you ever heard of a fanfic author who didn't want all the feedback they could get their grubby little paws on?
Summary: Faith has to face up to a new responsibility.
Author's notes: Huge thanks to Kaz, beta extraordinaire

*****

"You know, B, this'll probably go a lot better if we actually get out of the car."

Buffy nodded, staring across the street at the Magic Box and imagining her friends waiting inside. "Right. Get out of the car, go over there and just tell them." Her finger tightened around the steering wheel until her knuckles turned white.

Faith took the teasing note out of her voice. "Look, Buffy, if you don't want to tell them about us, that's five by five. I don't mind keeping it a secret for a while. Just tell them you're okay."

"No, no, I have to do this. Today. 'Cause me hiding things from my friends? Never ends well." Buffy turned to look at Faith with something very like fear in her eyes. "What if they can't deal? I mean, Tara'll probably be fine with it, and Anya's just going to want to know if we've had sex yet, but Will and Xander? I don't know how they're going to feel about this. And Giles? What am I going to say to him?"

"Quit worrying about Giles, he's cool."

"Giles? Cool? About Slayers dating each other? Nuh-uh, not cool. Three states over from cool. Big states. Alaska-size states. There'll be throat-clearing and 'Dear Lord' and cleaning of glasses! It'll be a nightmare! Oh God, what am I going to-"

Faith kissed her, smothering whatever she was going to say next. "We'll get through this, B, whatever it takes. Chosen Two, remember?"

"I know. It just seemed a whole lot easier last night. In daylight..."

"I get it." Faith kissed her on the tip of her nose. "You're going to do fine, B, I'll be right there with you."

Buffy smiled at her and opened the door.

*****

As soon as Buffy entered the shop, she looked quickly at each of her friends in turn, sitting around the research table with their eyes on the door the moment it opened. She passed quickly over Anya and Tara, and didn't linger on Giles, knowing that he wouldn't show anything obvious until he chose to. It was Willow and Xander who bothered her most.

Willow's reaction only confirmed her fears; she had clearly been worried, but that seemed to ease a little as she saw Buffy, only for her face to harden as Faith appeared.

Xander, however, surprised her. He looked just as worried as Willow when she walked in, and his concern only abated after he saw Faith. "Hey, Buff, what's up? Not that I mind an excuse not to have to watch my crew scarfing down cheeseburgers and stuff, but usually it means we've got bad guys inbound."

Buffy sat down in the only vacant seat, clasping her hands together on the tabletop to keep from fidgeting. "Okay, guys, here's the thing... last night, in the alley... I think you all saw... Me and Faith, we're..."

"Boinking like ferrets?" Anya offered.

"No!" Buffy almost yelled, panic tingeing her voice. "Oh God, I didn't mean... not no as in..."

Faith took a couple of quick steps from where she was standing by the counter and laid her hand on Buffy's shoulder. "It's okay, B, just slow down, take your time," she said, glaring at Anya.

Buffy felt calmer as soon as Faith touched her. Placing her own hand on top of Faith's, she addressed her friends again. "For a while now, there've been some feelings developing between us, but it took a while for us to figure it out. After last night we've decided to see where it leads. We're dating as of last night. I hope that's okay with you guys, 'cause... Will, please, listen!"

"I can't, I can't be here..." She turned on her heel and stormed off into the training room.

Tara was about to go after her, but Xander stopped her. "I've got it."

*****

Xander had barely closed the door behind him before Willow was pulling open the back door. "Will, wait!"

"How can you be okay with this? Ever since Faith came back things, have been wrong, and now she's dating Buffy? How am I supposed to react to that?"

"Maybe be happy that Buffy found someone?"

"Are you insane? We're talking about Faith! Remember, knife to my throat,' I like to kill people'? How can I be happy about this?"

"Hey, hey, slow down a sec. It was me she went all Boston Strangler on, remember?" "Look, I'm not bouncing off the ceiling about Faith either, but just think back to last night, okay? Buffy's been miserable for months, and if Faith can change that, I say let her try. You saw them in the alley. Faith cares about her, you can't deny that. We've got to give them a chance."

"And what if it all goes wrong? What if Faith screws it up or turns on us again?"

"We pick up the pieces and help Buffy through it, same as always. Then we look into payback, maybe with voodoo dolls."

"Promise?"

"Cross my heart, Will." Xander's voice was uncompromising. "She blows this chance, she doesn't get another one. Look, I'm not saying you and Faith should start braiding each other's hair - though that is something I'd pay good money to see - just give her a chance. Can you do that?"

Willow wanted to say 'no', but her mind kept returning to the previous night and the state Buffy had been in when they left her. "Let me talk to her."

"Buffy?"

"Faith."

*****

No one said anything after Xander left the room. Everyone had focused on Buffy, but none of them could think of anything to say. Anya was about to try when the door opened and Xander emerged. "Faith, Will wants to talk to you."

"Me?" Faith was confused, but she complied.

Willow was standing with her back to the door and her arms folded across her chest when Faith entered the training room. "Got something to say, Red?"

"I don't like you," Willow replied without turning around. "I don't trust you. Everyone else thinks you've really changed. I'm not so sure."

"You want to skip to the end? I already know this part."

"Shut. Up." Willow turned around, and the look in her eyes did more to silence Faith than any words. "I will give you one chance to get this right. We are not friends. We will never be friends. I will be polite to you because it'll be easier for Buffy, but no more. Make her happy and I'll play nice. Hurt her and I swear by every power I can name that I will end you."

"Geez, Red, I get the point..."

"I'm not finished." Willow came closer until she was standing eye to eye with Faith, her voice dropping almost to a whisper. "I had this talk with Riley, but I don't think he took me seriously, so let me be very, very clear. I can't take you in a fight, but I don't need to. You have no idea of the powers I can call on, and if you betray her again, I will invoke every one of them to make you pay. I can tear your skin from your flesh, boil your eyes in their sockets and burn you alive from the inside out, and I can keep you alive, conscious and sane through it all. And when I'm done, I will tear your soul from your body and cast it into the darkest, deepest pit of hellfire I can find to burn for the rest of time. Do you understand?"

It took Faith a moment to remember how to speak. "Yeah... yeah, I got it."

"I hope so." Willow walked past her and back out into the shop. She stopped at the table and asked Buffy, "Are you coming to the Bronze after your date?"

"Uh, yeah, we'll probably stop in before patrol... You're okay with this?"

"Getting there," Willow replied, hugging her friend. "Just be careful, okay?"

"All right, then," Giles said as Faith rejoined them. "I think that's everything. Buffy, if you and Faith would like to get the practice equipment ready, I'll join you in a moment. Oh, Faith, would you mind coming over to my flat this evening, say five-thirty? Since you're staying in Sunnydale, there are some aspects of your training I'd like to discuss.

*****

"Do you think the redhead was serious?" Ryan wondered as he watched the group dispersing on the screen in front of him. "I think she was serious."

"The witch isn't our concern," Clark replied, picking up his cell phone. "Hammond, you're clear. You and Evans get to the house and start wiring the place up. We'll call you if the Slayers leave the shop."

*****

Faith had managed to push Willow's outburst to the back of her mind and there was a spring in her step when she reached Giles' flat that afternoon, full of nervous excitement about the evening ahead. She almost barged straight in, but restrained herself and instead gave a brisk knock on the door.

Giles opened it almost immediately. "Faith. Come in."

The cold formality in his voice caught her off guard. "Nice to see you, too. What's yanked your chain?"

"Just sit down, please."

"This isn't about training, is it?" Faith asked as she crossed to the couch. "That's why we're here instead of the Box. This is about me and Buffy."

"Yes."

"God damn, I thought you'd be cool with this." Faith threw herself onto the couch and glared up at him. "What is it, you think I'm just gonna screw her and dump her? I don't know what Demon-Girl's been saying, but we're not playing around here. We only got together last night, and you think we're doing it already? Or maybe I'm just not good enough for her, is that it?"

Giles let her finish before sitting down in the armchair opposite her. "Faith, I didn't ask you here to object. As long as the two of you are healthy and happy, and your work isn't affected, then what you do together in private is not my concern. Frankly the fewer details I have the happier I'll be."

"So what is it?"

"I'm worried about Buffy, and I need your help."

"Something's wrong with B?"

Giles didn't answer her right away, and seeing the normally eloquent Watcher struggling for the right words sent a shiver down Faith's spine. When he spoke, it was to ask a question of his own. "How old were you when you met your first Watcher?"

"Thirteen, going on fourteen."

"You were something of a loner, I believe."

"Pretty much. There were some guys I hung out with, but nothing major."

"And you saw less of them once you began your training?"

"Yeah, Miss Harper kept me pretty busy, and she was always big on the whole 'higher purpose' thing. I snuck out a few times to blow off steam. What's that got to do with B?"

"Have you ever wondered why the Council's policy is to limit a Slayer or Potential's contact with others?"

"I figured they were just a bunch of uptight Brits. No offence."

"None taken," Giles assured her with a dry smile, then he grew solemn again. "It isn't done out of malice or heartlessness, Faith, however much it might seem that way. The Slayer stands at the forefront of humanity's defence against the darkness. Self-confidence, self-reliance, strength of will; these are vital parts of her arsenal in a battle where help is seldom available. By keeping Slayers and Potentials at a distance from friends and family, the Council has always sought to keep them focused on their task and prevent them from developing a dependence on others."

Giles leaned forward in his seat, looking right into Faith's eyes as he spoke. "That never happened for Buffy. We didn't find her until after her predecessor was killed. She was flung into the battle completely unprepared; it's a testament to her spirit that she survived, but becoming the Slayer took a heavy toll on her. She lost every friend she ever had, and then had to leave her home and come here. She'd never been alone in that way, and I don't think she's ever truly recovered from it."

"Yeah, but she's doing okay now, right?" Faith said. She didn't see what Giles was getting at, but she didn't like what she was hearing. "She's got you and Red and Xander and all."

"I'm afraid that's the problem."

"What, you think her having the guys is bad?"

"There's no doubt that Willow, Xander and the others have been an enormous help, probably the key to Buffy's success, but there is another side to the story. When she came here, Buffy consciously rejected the idea of a Slayer working alone. I'm afraid that the strength of the group is weakening her as an individual."

"No, you're wrong."

"Am I? Do you remember the night when Glory took Dawn? Buffy collapsed completely, and I don't think she would have recovered without Willow's intervention."

"Her sister got snatched by a hell-god, Giles!" Faith's voice rose, smouldering with anger. "Who wouldn't freak out?"

"A Slayer can't." Giles replied, putting more force into his voice, meeting her anger head-on. "The stakes are simply too high. If it were an isolated incident, I wouldn't be so concerned, but there's a pattern. Her father left, then Angel and Riley, and then her mother died. With each loss, Buffy has leaned a little more heavily on those that remain. When you were hospitalised after we defeated Glory, Buffy was close to breaking point. The thought of you leaving Sunnydale terrified her, and last night, after you ran, she crumbled. She looked exactly as she did when Joyce passed away. It wasn't just an emotional loss, Faith. She relies on you, and that's dangerous."

"You don't think she can trust me?" The thought that Giles still saw her that way hurt, more than she thought it would.

"It's not a question of trust, Faith."

"Then what's the problem?"

"You could die." Giles' response cut the legs out from under her anger. "Any one of us could. The work we do is dangerous in itself, but there are the other risks we all face but never think about. It could be a car accident, or a fire, or a fall down stairs, or any one of the thousand other mundane ways people die. It could happen to any of us, at any time, and I don't know what the consequences would be. I'm not so concerned about you because you had to learn self-reliance long before you ever heard of the Slayer, but Buffy's always had someone to turn to."

"So what do you want me to do? How do I help her? You said you don't want me to break up with her."

"No, no that might cause exactly the crisis I'm trying to avoid. I wouldn't ask you to do that even if I thought you'd listen." Giles gave her a real smile for the first time since she'd arrived. "What I'm asking for is a lot more difficult. Be there for her, fight beside her, but don't let her use you as a crutch, no matter how hard it is to resist. If you truly care for her, help her find the strength to stand alone."

"Sounds easy when you say it like that," Faith said sarcastically. "How do I know where to draw the line?"

"Welcome to my world. Faith, I wish I had a handbook or a manual for this but I don't. We'll both just have to do our best and hope that it's enough. Can you do that?"

"Don't have much choice, do I?"

"No, Faith, we really don't."

*****

"Too slutty... too slutty... not slutty enough... can't fight in this skirt..." With each muttered comment, the pile of discarded outfits got higher and Buffy's frustration went up another notch.

"Are you ever going to be ready?" Dawn walked in from the bathroom, arms crossed, the picture of teenage impatience. "I swear I'll never take this long when I start dating."

"Which will be never," Buffy snapped, tossing another blouse onto the heap. "And you have no idea how hard this is. It's our first date, Dawn. Getting the outfit right's hard enough even without the dating-a-girl and may-have-to-fight-demons issues. Is Faith waiting? She's probably waiting already. It's so easy for her; all she has to do is throw on a tank top and some tight jeans and pow! Instant sex-bomb."

Dawn burst out laughing. Seeing Buffy's aggrieved look she explained. "Okay, first of all, you are so into her, it's actually scary. Second, Faith's still in her room looking at clothes. You guys are making such a big deal out of this."

"It is a big deal!" Buffy flopped down onto her bed, surrounded by clothes. "What if I get this wrong? What if I screw up somehow? Everything's happening so fast, I don't know if I can handle it. What if she doesn't like me?"

"Okay, look," Dawn said, sitting beside her. "Faith already likes you. I know this is the first official date, but you guys have been dancing around this stuff for weeks. Just be Buffy. She likes that, for some reason."

Buffy gave a rueful smile. "I'm not sure I even know who Buffy is any more. This last year I haven't had time to just sit back be me. I think I've forgotten how."

"That's what tonight's about, remember? Nothing big and complicated, just a movie, pizza and some hang-time at the Bronze. Be Buffy and Faith instead of the Slayers."

"Yeah, that's the plan, assuming I ever figure out what to wear."

"That top, those pants and black boots with the buckles. Also, you might want to wear a bra with some support, make the most of what you've got." Giggling, Dawn ducked out of the room just ahead of a thrown slipper.

*****

The phone rang. Quentin Travers put down his tea and newspaper with an scowl and picked up the handset. "Travers."

"Good morning, sir. This is Michael Ryan, Intel Team 6."

"How did you get this number?"

"Intel, sir, finding things out is what we do."

"Very amusing. What-"

"I'm sorry to have bothered you so early in the day, but I just finished my shift, and I wanted to thank you for the new equipment you sent us for the Sunnydale operation. It's top gear, best I've worked with."

"What Sunnydale operation?"

There was a pause, and when Ryan spoke again he couldn't keep an element of pride out of his voice. "I knew this job wasn't legit."

"Ryan, if I remember rightly, you've not been with us for long, so let me give you some advice. If you wish to remain in the Council's employ, I strongly suggest you explain yourself immediately."

"Yes, sir. We finished our last asignment, that werewolf pack in Canada, and we were supposed to be coming home for some leave but we got diverted to Sunnydale instead. We've been here for over a month."

"Doing what?"

"Watching the Slayers. To start with we just watched the house; that's what got me wondering about the job, we didn't have the right gear. That all turned up a couple of days ago. We've got cameras and microphones in the Slayers' house and their Watcher's shop, plus trackers on Slayer One's Jeep and Slayer Two's bike."

Travers' initial irritation was condensing into cold rage. "On whose orders?"

"The Council, sir, or so we've been told. Everything came through direct from your assistant, Mr. Graves. All the reports go back to him, too."

"Written orders?"

"No, sir, everything was done over the phone."

No paper trail eh, Julian? "Very well, Mr. Ryan, you've done the right thing contacting me."

"What do you want me to do, sir?"

"For the moment, continue the operation as before. Contact me again tomorrow on this number, and I'll give a secure line of communication. I need to know everything that your team is reporting to Mr. Graves, and if your orders change, inform me as soon as possible, but don't break cover unless absolutely necessary."

"Understood, sir. Should I contact the Watcher or the Slayers?"

"No, best not to tip our hand too soon. Stout heart, Mr. Ryan, we'll get to the bottom of this."

"Aye aye, sir."

Travers put the phone down. So, Julian, what are you up to?