Nusac

Chapter 45
Faith’s POV

The annoying little bell above the door signals my entrance to the Magic Box. I have to look up and glare at it. If I have to stay in this reality much longer I swear I’m going to tear that down. How can I be lurking and stealthy with a little bell on the door?

Everyone looks up from whatever they are doing as I descend the few steps into the body of the shop. Anya even comes from behind the counter to greet me. I can almost see the dollar signs in her eyes until she realises I am not a perspective buyer. She lets out a long sigh. “Oh it’s just you.” Before returning to her cash register. The register opens with a ring and she begins to count the green notes inside. She does like money.

“Nice to know I’m wanted Anya.” I can only smile as she grunts at me in agreement and begins a recount. Note to self. Never disturb the ex demon while she’s counting money.

I make my way further into the shop. It’s unusually empty for this time of day. Or to be more accurate this afternoon. Namine is hunched over a book talking to herself. Which wouldn’t be so strange if she happened to be speaking in Latin. No there she is mumbling to herself in English. This place just gets weirder and weirder. D is stood close behind her looking over her shoulder with interest.

G. Well somehow he’s landed the job of stacking his own shelves. Doesn’t he pay Anya to do that? How come she gets to handle the money and he’s stuck stacking shelves. No, correction she’s smelling the money now.

I have to shake the image out of my head and decide right there and then that I am in no way shape or form going to get involved with the work habits of those two.

I sit heavily at the large round table trying to get a glimpse of the book Nam is reading. “What are you doing?” Did I mention how little patience I have?

She clicks the little black box in her hand, which I have only just noticed and sets it down next to the huge book open in front of her. “I am translating some of Giles’ books.”

Both of my eyebrows shoot far into my hairline. “Really?” When did she get that good at English?

She smiles excitedly at me as she reaches for her small box. “Yes. He also gave me this small magical box. I can hear myself through it.” She presses play and her voice comes through the speakers.

“It’s a Dictaphone Nam.” I take she small device from her hands and click it off momentary. That’s pretty genius. Getting someone who has Latin as their first language to translate all the Latin books. How much research time will that save?

I look up from the device to see her confused expression. Now I’ve started something. “A dictor...” She tries to wrap her mind around this new and exiting word I’ve given her.

“Yeah.” I need to escape this conversation now. Some time before she asks me how it works. Somehow I don’t think ‘It just does’ is going to cut it. “Dictaphone. For dictation and stuff.”

I hold the device out between us for us to take. She’s still got that curious look on her face. “How does it work?” Damn

“Erm…” I’m still for a long moment. I know she can still see me. But if I keep very, very still she might get curious about something else. Something I can explain to her. She cocks her head to the side urging me to continue. “Err… Dawn?” My gaze flicks above Nam’s shoulder to the young Summers.

Her eyes go as wide as saucers. “I have... Erm Homework.” She leaves Namine’s side and drops into the chair opposite me. Burying her nose deep into her textbook.

“Thanks for the help D.” She nods at me making a noise in the back of her throat. Nam’s still waiting for me to answer her question. I take deep breath pulling her hand towards me. Placing the dictaphone into her palm and closing her fingers around it. My eyes close and my jaw clenches as I begin to say the one phrase I have been avoiding for the past two weeks. “I don’t know how it works Nam.”

Her fingers intertwine with mine, my eyes open and gaze upon our joined hands. “Faith.” I bring my gaze up through my lashes to look her dead in the eye. “Why do you have such trouble saying that?”

“I should be able to answer these questions for you.” I give her digits one last squeeze before pulling back to sit back heavily in my seat. “Just makes me feel stupid I guess.”

“I do not expect you to know the inner workings of everything in this world.” She’s doing it again. Always knows exactly what to say and how to say it. The bell behind me jiggles and I hear the joking voices of both Xander and Buffy as they enter the magic box. “If I do not ask I can not learn. Please do not feel embarrassed if you do not have the answers I am asking for.”

“How do you do that?” I ask her in wonderment. She merely tilts her head to the side in question. “Make me feel better about myself. You’re always doing it, it’s like you’re not even trying.”

She chuckles at me closing the large volume in front of her. “The reason for your self reproach eludes me. Where you see danger and darkness within yourself I can see the light in your eyes and your good intentions.”

For a long moment I can only stare at her. “Well of coarse you would. You’re whipped remember.”

“Whipped?”

I laugh out loud just as B and Xand come to sit with us. “I’m not sure I could explain it Nam. Try asking B.”

“What.?” Gotta love it when B gets that completely confused look on her face. It’s somewhere in between fear and desperation. “What do I know? What’s going on?”

“Not much B.” Glad to see someone who isn’t me is actually putting some effort into trying to pretend last night didn’t happen.

“Faith will you return this book for me.” Nam holds out the large book for me to take.

I would like to point out that at no point did I say that I wasn’t whipped. “Sure thing Nam.” I take the book from her grasp and begin to climb the steps to G’s upper library. For some unknown reason he’s put all the really dangerous books up here. I really don’t understand how it stops members of the public getting their hands on these things but whatever if this is how he wants to do it.

Now all I have to do is figure out this filing system and we’ll be in business. All I know for certain is that it is not alphabetically.

The bell jingles for a third time the door closes a little more forcefully than I remember and I distinctly hear the metal click as the bolt is thrown across locking the door. This cannot be good.

With the heavy book still in my grasp I discreetly look over the railing to these newcomers. G turns to see what is going on as two men descend the steps into the back of the shop. Their right hands concealed under their brown leather coats.

Alarm bells are already ringing in my ears as G takes this moment to speak up. “What is the meaning of…?” His question is cut short as a 9mm is aimed between his eyes. The man holding the gun has shaved black hair and a small scar running along his right cheekbone. He holds his ground steadily and keeps the ex watcher within his sites. Positioned in a way that he can watch every move Anya makes from behind the counter.

The other man pulls out his own concealed weapon and aims in the direction of the research table. Effectively stopping any movement from the occupants of the table. His aim twitching from one person to the next keeping them all in his sites at all times. He has slightly longer hair then his counterpart. This time light brown and no visible scars to speak of.

The guy with a serious twitch worries me. He’s got himself what looks like an itchy trigger finger and Namine has no idea what a firearm can do. For the most part she is staying very still and very quiet. Knowing my girl though that can and will change at any given moment.

“What’s going on here?” B asks raising from her seat. She lived in LA for how long? You would think she would know what to do in this situation. Not standing up is a big part of that.

Mr. Twitchy sets his aim on B. Loosening and retightening his grip on his pistol as he does. “Where is she?” British accent, on a vendetta to kill me, has to be one of the council goons.

B fakes complete ignorance. “Where’s who?” her eyebrows raise and her arms cross defiantly across her chest.

Scar face decides to take over this little conversation. “We want the other slayer.”

“Haven’t seen her.” B cocks her head to the side and sizes up Scar face. “You still haven’t caught up with her?”

For fuck sake B, please don’t antagonise the men with guns.

Mr. Twitchy grips his weapon again and takes a step closer to the slayer, his index finger covering the trigger ready to fire.

I have to do something now.

Looking back over to Scar face he also has his trigger finger at the ready. I’ve got two targets and time enough for one shot. At this point timing in crucial.

The large heavy book flies out of my hands in Giles’ direction. It hits the council goon right in the nose and he goes down. He falls backwards onto the floor, the firearm discharging on his decent. A small amount of rubble falls from the ceiling with the bullets impact. So not blanks then.

At the exact same time I leap from the upper level of the magic box. My target; Mr. Twitchy. My feet connect solidly with both of his shoulders as he turns to aim in my direction. His back hits the ground hard. The distinct noise of metal sliding across wood reaches my ears as he loses his grip on his pistol and it skids harmlessly across the floor. My knees bend to take the full impact of the fall and as fast as lightening my fist shoots out and connects solidly with his nose. His body goes limp under me as he succumbs to unconsciousness.

A second shot is fired though the air. It grazes across my back and my muscles tense. I turn my stare onto the remaining council member. Was kinda hoping that book would have him on the floor just a little longer.

He readjusts his aim and takes a step forward. Bad move. I reach out my fingers clasping around the cold metal grip of his firearm, the fingers of my other hand covering the still smoking barrel. It twists easily from his grip and into my waiting palm.

As I take my step back my index finger covers the trigger and my left hand comes up underneath the stock of the gun to steady my aim.

His jaw clenches so tight it pulls against the ugly scar across his cheek as he raises his hands in surrender. Great I win. Now what, I can’t very well shoot this man in cold blood.

All I can hear around me is the scraping of wood on wood as chairs are pushed out from under people. Scurrying around but I can’t look. I take my gaze off this guy for just a moment and the tables will turn. I resist the urge to call out for what is going on and set my jaw.

A sadistic smile spread right across his face. “Are you going to kill me slayer?” His British accent is doing nothing to soothe my frayed nerves.

I keep my gaze down the barrel of the handgun. “Trying really hard not to. Can’t really figure out why.”

Namine’s voice calls to be over the frantic noises behind me. “Faith. Dawn’s hurt I need you.”

The penny drops in my mind. One stray bullet unaccounted for. “You son of a bitch.” The gun barrel drops and discharges once into his thigh. He bends at the hip quickly to hold his wound as the stock swings around and hits the side of his head with all of my slayer strength. He goes down like a tone of bricks. Hitting the floor his blood beginning to drip from his thigh. “Giles deal with them.”

I turn on my heel both the slide and the barrel twisting easily into my hands. They hit the floor somewhere in the corner of the room. The magazine slides into my hand and the remaining part skids harmlessly across the floor. I push the half full magazine into my back pocket as I reach Dawn on the floor.

My knees hit the floor at her side. Namine is knelt at her head cradling it with her hand. Her other hand is reaching down her body holding D’s left side low on her abdomen. Blood already soaking between her fingers and over the back of her hand. She looks up at me from the gaping wound, her face pale and filled with pain. The pain she must be getting from Dawn is really starting to affect her. “What is this?”

“Small piece of metal acts like an arrow.” I pull my amulet from beneath my clothing, it slips easily over my head and I push is into D’s hand. “Dawn listen to me.” She focuses her gaze on me, she’s already pail, going into shock and losing blood fast. “Do not let go of this. Nam can’t help you if you let go of this.”

She nods in understanding her breath coming in shaky gasps. I reach behind her back and close my eyes as a feel the sticky warm sensation of her blood over my fingers. “I’ve got an exit wound. If we don’t do something fast she’s going to bleed out.” I cup my hand around the large hole in her back hoping to slow the bleeding. It takes seconds before the blood has soaked through my fingers and is dripping onto the floor.

Buffy is knelt on the other side of Dawn franticly trying to get my attention. “What’s going on? What are you two talking about?”

We both ignore her frantic questions. Namine leans over and begins to speak very quietly. “This wound will kill her.”

My whole world crashes around me with her softly spoken sentence. I feel my jaw clench so tight that I’m in fear of breaking my teeth. “There’s nothing you can do?”

“I must cauterise the wound but the shock will kill her. She has already lost too much blood.” Her face is serious as she continues. “There is a solution to this. I am able to take this pain into myself, the physical manifestation of it. I have a much higher chance of surviving.”

“I can’t lose you Nam.” I can’t just sit here and watch this girl die either.

“Can you lose her?”

My jaw clenches again. “Put it in me.” She goes to argue with me but I shut her down. “You put your memories in me you can put this in me.”

“I do not know if I am able, even if I were Faith what makes you think I would?” She’s shaking her head at me.

I can’t lose either of these people. “I can survive this, you’ve seen me survive worse.” She’s getting an angry look in her eyes.

Buffy give up on trying to gain either of our attention and pushes herself up to call to Giles. “Call 911!”

“Don’t you dare!” I snoot my venomous look over my shoulder to Anya who already has the phone to her ear. “Two counts of murder remember.”

Buffy looks at me like I’ve grown a second head at my comment. “You’re not the one bleeding all over the floor.”

“Not yet.” Namine refuses to look at me. “Nam we do this my way or we watch this girl die. We do not have time to argue.”

I wrap my fingers around her lower arm so she can fell how stubborn I will be with this matter. She sighs and nods in defeat. “Agreed, under extreme duress.”

"Understandable. Please Nam”

She nods again and rests her hand along Dawn pail cheek. “Get the amulet. You must be touching me when the transfer occurs.”

I nod at her as her closes her eyes and prepares. I reach for Dawn’s hand, which is holding tightly to my amulet. “Dawn you gatta let this go.”

She turns her fear filed eyes on me is surprise. “But you said…” Her face pulls into a grimace of pain cutting off her sentence.

I nod remembering what I have said. “We’re going to try something else.”

Reluctantly she releases her tight grasp on the small piece of stone and I set it very carefully behind me. “You ready?” I unbuckle my belt from around my wait pulling it through the belt loops of my jeans.

“Almost.” She eyes are still closed and a warm glow is emitting from her palms. That looks like ready to me. The knife concealed in my boot slides out easily and I place it within easy reach to my right-hand side, closest to Namine. “I am ready.”

I take one last gulp of air before warping my fingers around her upper arm. Immediately pain rips through my whole body I jolt forward but do not lose my grip. Agonisingly slowly the skin of my lower abdomen beings to pull apart from the inside out. My hand covering my friend’s exit wound has to leave its post to hold my side. Immediately I feel a fresh flow of warm blood coating my fingers.

My breath catches in my throat, as I am unable to exhale properly. I have to cough around it in order to breath. “Are we almost done?” I push the gritted teeth.

The glow around Nam’s fingers stops abruptly and she removes her hands from the still pale Dawn. “It is done.”

I release my hold on Namine and hear her breath of relief. I fall backwards onto the wooden floor. I’m already shivering, going into shock. Reaching down I push myself onto my uninjured side. Giving Nam the access to the wound that she needs.

My hand reaches out for my belt as I see Namine reaching for my knife from the floor. Awkwardly with one hand I fold my belt in half and place the strip of leather between my teeth. Biting down hard as not to bite off my tongue when she goes through with this.

“Faith, I need you to heat this up.” The small blade invades my vision. It’s starting to blacken at the edges but I need to stay awake just for a few more moments.

Shakily my hand comes out holding my palm up. It opens to reveal my very small fireball. I don’t have the strength to keep this up for long. She runs the blade through the fire; it takes seconds for the metal to glow dim red with the conducted heat.

“This is going to hurt.” The blade presses flat against my back. Covering the bullets exit hole. My skin sizzles and I scream into the folded leather in my mouth. Tears, already beginning to seep from the corners of my eyes. When she is happy with my back she dips the tip of the blade into the entrance wound stopping any blood flow. All that can kill me now is the shock.

Lethargically I spit the folded leather from my mouth across the floor. Reaching out for the amulet in front of me. The cold stone soon hits my fingers and I grasp it firmly in my palm.

The moment my skin touches the stone her fingers are running through my hair, helping to sooth the pain from me.