Complement

XXXI – Promises
(Part B)

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"So what... basically, what all that just said is that me and B are gonna be trained by all of you. As well as Soul-boy, Junior, X-man, Red, Blondie and everyone else. Cause like me and B are these kick-ass Warriors for the Light and pretty much on the same level as you guys. Only we can still die, can't we? So when do we get to learn how to do that fading thing?"

"Yes Faith you pretty much summed it up, except you don't get to do the fade thing."

Faith pouted for a second about not being able to fade, then shrugged her shoulders.

"It's cool anyway... So why didn't ya just say that instead of reading that old long ass piece of paper, Snow?" Faith asked Chris, having decided that his nickname would be Snow because of his pure white hair. Faith smiled at everyone at the table, they were all looking at her a little dumbfounded, tact definitely wasn't one of her many skills.

"Snow?"

"Don't worry about it mate, she gives everyone nicknames. Hell the little git calls me Junior and I'm old enough to be her great-grandfather..."

"She does, doesn't she? That's my little woman for you..."

"B you so did not just call me that..."

"I sure did. My little woman! Isn't she cute...?"

They all started talking at once as the Slayers continued to squabble. They all sat around the table chatting well into the night, until finally someone noticed that both Crow and Dawn had fallen asleep in their chairs. Buffy and Faith half dragged, half-held Dawn between them as they said their goodnights.

When they got back to the cottage, they helped the more asleep, rather than more awake Dawn into the nice little rollaway bed that was right next to their bed that Lilith had laughingly provided them with.

They crawled into bed grumbling about having to wear shorts and t-shirts for the next seven days to sleep in, rather than their usual birthday suits. They snuggled into each other, then both leaned towards each at the same time and they kissed softly, tenderly goodnight. They fell asleep listening contently to each other's purring.
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She was in that in-between place that her mate had been taking her to every morning for the last few weeks. For once, she had woken first. She carefully moved out from under her mate and rolled over onto her side facing her. She slid her hand under her mate's t-shirt, completely forgetting why they were both wearing clothes as she decided to bring her mate with her into this place, bring her to her.

Her hand unconsciously started to trace over the almost invisible scars that she knew where high up on her mate's shoulder. Scars from her childhood, scars that he had recreated for her, had recreated for them both. Her fingers ran gently, soothingly, tenderly and with all of her heart, she wished she could caress both them and the hurt that came with them away. Her fingertips moved down of their own accord to the other scars that were on Faith's lower back and buttocks, soothing them too. Then continued along over the rest of her silky smooth back to touch with love all the other scars she knew were there, both visible and invisible. The one she wanted to remove with every fiber of her being she could not reach while her mate lay upon her stomach, it was the one that she herself, had given Faith, the jagged knife scar that ran along Faith's abdomen.

Her touch changed from that of soothing to sensual, running along her mate's side, to brush the outside of one breast. She moved in closer to Faith, snuggling into her intimately, careful not to lie on top of her. She nudged Faith's hair away from her neck with her nose then with just the whisper of her mouth placed feather light kisses along it. She inhaled deeply the musky, sweet scent that was Faith. It flowed through her, in her, a part of her now, just as Faith was a part of her, would always be a part of her.

She ran her tongue delicately along the shell of her mate's ear then teasingly bit the lobe. She opened her sleep heavy eyes and they were drawn like a moth to a flame to her mark on Faith's pulse point. Her mouth was drawn there of its own volition and Buffy could not have stopped it even if she had a mind to. She kissed it softly, then harder, sucking upon the flesh around it, ensuring that the mark would not fade. That same primal desire from yesterday rising up fiercely in her, she ran her tongue reverently over the teeth marks, then with the daintiest of touches she bit down.

It came to her through their bond, the white-hot fury of passion and love her biting of the mark caused Faith even in her sleep. She bit a little harder wanting to feel that rush from Faith again.

"B..." Faith moaned waking to the intense feeling Buffy's mouth and teeth wrought as they nipped and sucked upon the mark Buffy had given her just yesterday.

Her hips bucked involuntarily into the mattress and suddenly she wanted to know if her mouth, her teeth upon the mark she had given to Buffy would cause the same reaction in Buffy. She moved swiftly despite her sleepy state. Before Buffy knew what was happening Faith had turned and latched her mouth possessively over the mark she had given her. Buffy's whole body arched into Faith's at the touch, she stifled her moan in Faith's neck. She arched into Faith again when Faith scraped her teeth along the mark and this time Buffy couldn't stifle her moan of desire.

They were both reeling from the feelings they were getting from each other through their bond. The urgency was there to touch the other, to express with hands, mouths, tongues, bodies that which words could never express. They had found their safe haven with each other again. There was still fear floating around in the edges of both of their minds, but both had learned to listen to the other through their bond. They had developed absolute trust in each other not to go where the other was not ready to go. And the need to be together like thiter ter so long had taken a hold of both of them again just like it had yesterday. The need to erase all of his touches from each other's skin, the painful memories, the horrific sights, the agonizing screams, the anguished moans and replace them with their own loving touches, memories, sights and sounds was all they knew right now.

They sat up together hands eagerly reaching out to pull the clothes from the other's body. Their only thought to feel the warmth of each other's skin against their own, until Faith's eyes fell on the empty rollaway bed next to theirs.

Buffy was oblivious, she started to tug at Faith's t-shirt, wanting her with a passion that obliterated everything, and anything in its path. "Baby... please help me... need to feel you... need to touch you..." Her voice a low pleading whisper.

"Dawn..."

"What?" Buffy asked as she started to run her hands up under Faith's t-shirt, until Faith grabbed them and held them still.

"B, Dawn's here 'member?" Faith told her in a voice that was raspy, husky with desire.

Buffy just groaned and dropped her head onto Faith's shoulder, and Faith just pulled her closer and held on to her tightly. Both Slayers tried to calm their breathing and their bodies, a little bit amazed now that they were awake that their desire, their passion could be so hot, so fierce from only those few touches.

"Warning..." Dawn yelled from the other side of the kitchen door. "I know you guys are awake, I can hear you. So, whatever you're doing stop, 'cause I'm commmminnn-gg in there."

Both Slayers groaned, then Buffy mumbled against Faith's shoulder, "Welcome to hell week baby..."
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By dusk the third day of Dawn's stay with them, both Slayers began to think that they really were caught up in some warped version of the movie Hell Week. If they had to listen to Dawn bring up their hickeys one more time they were going to throttle her. Not to mention that Dawn had gotten quite creative and inventive about using the words Come in, in just about every other sentence.

Faith had a pounding headache from the constant bickering of the two Summers' sisters. Dawn had been awful clingy with both of them since she had gotten here despite all the constant taunting and bickering. The reasons for the clinginess were floating around the edges of Faith's mind. The thoughts though, couldn't fight their way out through the sledgehammer that was beating a steady tempo on her brain.

"B, I'm gonna go inside for a little while. Do you mind?" Faith worriedly nibbled her bottom lip; they had invited most of the Immortals and Crow of course over for a BBQ. And now, all she wanted to do was go lay down, she felt a little guilty. But she hadn't been sleeping well the last three nights and the headache had seemed to make its way into her eyes now as well. She had been trying to block Buffy from feeling it and blocking her just seemed to be making the headache even worse.

Buffy and Dawn were trying to set up the volleyball net when Faith asked her question after she finished bringing out the food from inside. Buffy had been about to just say okay, when something about Faith's tone made her stop what she was doing and turn around to look at Faith.

"Stay here Dawn, I'll be right back." Buffy walked quickly over to Faith. "You okay Fai?" Buffy's eyes quickly scanned Faith's face, she could see the lines of pain etched on her face and her eyes were a little bloodshot.

"Just a headache, bad one. Think I just want to lay down for a little bit, maybe take a nap. I'm kinda tired."

Buffy reached up and gently stroked the side of Faith's face, "You haven't been sleeping too good the last few nights." She smiled a little at Faith's surprised look, "Yes, I knew. How did you think I knew to cuddle you just at the right time?" Buffy saw the I should have known better, look come over Faith's face. "Go lay down for a little while, Dawn and I can finish ourselves. And stop blocking me! It's probably only making the headache worse."

"Thanks, B." Faith whispered and dropped her blocks; she turned to go and stopped at Buffy's gentle touch on her arm. Buffy leaned up into her and kissed her so softly that had Faith's eyes not been open she would have thought that she had just been kissed by a butterfly.
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"Is Faith okay, Buffy?" Dawn's voice trembled just the slightest bit.

"Yeah, she just has a headache. She's going to take a nap. She's been getting them on and off since we got back from Glory's domain. She gets them when she doesn't sleep well or she's stressed. Lily thinks they will go away after more time has passed. Sort of a side effect from being there."

She instantly regretted saying as much as she did when she saw the guilt flash across her sister's face. She had spoken without thinking, both she and Faith had gotten used to not hiding the aftereffects of their stay in Glory's hell during their time spent at the cottage. Now she had not only alarmed her sister, had had managed to bring the guilt back up to the surface. As she looked at her sister, she couldn't help but to wonder if Dawn had really ever rid herself of the guilt in the first place. Or if Dawn had lied to her the day of the Joining ceremony. She knew for herself that the guilt wasn't so easy to let go of, it still reared its ugly head from time to time and she knew that the same thing happened to Faith as well.

Dawn felt like her sister had just punched her in the gut. The familiar taste of guilt rose up in the back of her throat; she had been living with the guilt since the night on the tower. She had lied to her sister the day of the Joining, not wanting to add an additional burden to her sister and Faith's already overburdened shoulders. It didn't matter to her that the Living Scroll had predicted her sister's death, Buffy had beaten prophesies before, she could have this time too. No matter how hard she tried, Dawn could not shake the guilt that all of this was her fault. Even now, that she could see that things were a thousand times better between the Slayers'. Even though they were finally, after all the torturous weeks after they returned from Glory's domain, moving once more back to the way they were, the guilt was still there.

More guilt had been added to her frail shoulders after they had disappeared the night of the Joining. They didn't know that she had seen what had happened before Clotho had faded them away. They didn't know that she had overheard some of their conversations about what had been done to the two of them when Glory had held them captive. She knew on some level that they were trying to shield her, trying to protect her, but there was a part of her that believed deep down the Slayers', that all of them blamed her for what had happened. Blamed her because it should have been she that died that night, she was, after all, not really real. It didn't really matter though, because if in fact they did blame her they could never hope to equal the amount of blame that she placed upon herself.

The guilt had been festering, eating her up alive inside. There were only two people who could ever understand what she was feeling and they were the last two people she could ever talk to about it. On some level, she knew she should, but on a deeper level, she was terrified that despite what the Chosen Two said, they really did believe she was to blame. Instead, she just let the guilt slowly but surely eat away second by second, hour by hour, day by day, all that she was.

There were moments when she briefly forgot about the guilt, like when she had first arrived here. Moments that she almost forgot about what had happened to her sister and Faith. Pretended that it was all just a bad nightmare, that none of it had happened and for the last few days seeing Buffy and Faith together, playful, loving, laughing, giggling, being how they were before, she had almost convinced herself that it really all had been just a bad dream. But what her sister had just told her so casually had broken, shattered that illusion and had slammed the guilt right back into her with just as much, if not more force than when they had first returned from Glory's hell.

"Dawn I..." Buffy was cut off by Mars as he joined them to help finish putting up the volleyball net.

"For a Slayer you're awfully slow Giiiizmoooo..."

Buffy shot Mars daggers with her eyes, she hated when he called her that, she only liked it when Faith called her that, though she would never tell Faith that. The rest of the Immortals made their way over and before long, they had a heated extremely competitive volleyball match underway.

Dawn covertly watched her sister from the other side of the net, happy to see her smiling and laughing. She couldn't help but notice over the last few days how comfortable and relaxed both Faith and Buffy were with the Immortals, especially Lilith and Clotho. In a lot of ways Lilith and Clotho were exactly like Faith and Buffy, right down to the warped sense of humor that all four of them seemed to share. She missed having them around though, it wasn't that she didn't like Willow and Tara, but what she really needed was the Slayers'. She didn't say anything to anyone about it, she knew that they needed this time to heal.

Needed to have the responsibilities of being Slayers at least for a little while lifted from their shoulders so they could concentrate on taking care of, helping each other to work through and get past what had happened to them. All on her own over the last few days she had come to the same conclusion that Lilith and Clotho had, that Buffy and Faith needed to be young, be carefree, just be themselves, be with just each other, to help start the healing process. And without anyone having to tell her, she innately understood that the day she had arrived Buffy and Faith had just really started to get past and to move on with their lives and truly start to heal together from what happened to them in Glory's hell. She wasn't sure how she knew, maybe it was the state of the cottage or the silly grins they had been wearing, as well as every other adult, she just knew. Her being here certainly didn't help. It was just another thing she now felt guilty about, intruding on their time here, because she knew that neither of them would ask her to leave.

She continued to covertly watch Buffy right through the five games, the fifth being the tiebreaker between the teams. Her heart leaping with joy each time she saw her sister smile or heard her laugh. For the first time Dawn could ever remember Buffy was just Buffy, the Slayer mantle had been lifted from her shoulders at least for a little while. Dawn couldn't stop her own laughter and smile of joy when her sister jumped up and down in glee when her team won, much to Mars' warrior ego's shame.

They all walked back over to the picnic table, grabbing something cold to drink from the coolers on the way. They sat around chatting and laughing at Mars who continued to grumble that Buffy's team had somehow cheated. Apparently, the Incarnate of War did not like to lose. Someone suggested maybe they should start up the fire in the fire pit and Mars volunteered, brushing off the offers of help.

"Maybe I should go wake Fa..." Buffy stopped mid-sentence, her head cocked to one side as if she were listening to someone whispering in her ear. Her face fell; she jumped up from the picnic bench and took off towards the cottage. She was nothing more than a blur.

Dawn watched in horror as a look that was all too familiar washed over her sister's face. Those who had been at the Mansion when the Slayers' had first returned from Glory's Hell had become well acquainted with that look. Dawn felt her stomach clench as if an invisible hand were squeezing it tightly. Then Buffy moved so quickly that for half a second Dawn thought she had imagined it, then she was off and running after her sister towards the cottage. She almost stumbled and fell when she heard Faith's anguished scream, a sound Dawn had prayed she would never hear again.

They were all blurs, it all happened within a second. Mars took off running after them, a sword suddenly appearing in his hand. He ignored those shouting at him to stop and was taken down by Luc from out of nowhere. Clotho had grabbed Lilith before she had a chance to go running after the golden-haired Slayer and her sister. Crow found himself stopped by the ancient one, Atropos. And Lachesis was given the task of stopping the thunderous force of Lily, Mother Nature.

"Let go of me you stupid ass... I have to help them... help Faith..." Mars growled at Luc, trying to dislodge him as he heard Faith cry out again.

"Calm down you old warhorse," Luc told him, Mars just gro in in response and kept struggling to get loose. "You can't help..." Luc grasped Mars' face and forced Mars to look at him, "Mars, listen to me. She's having a nightmare about there. If you go in there you will only make things worse." Luc got up off Mars and they both cringed as they heard another scream come from the cottage.

He watched the helpless look cross Mars' face and knew exactly how he felt. He had, they all had, felt the same way for those first few weeks after the Slayers returned. It was a sound he had prayed to the Creator that he would never have to hear come from either of the Slayers ever again. He ran his hand through his hair, his own guilt over the part he had played in what happened to Faith and Buffy, eating away at him.
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Dawn stopped her headlong rush after her sister just inside of the cottage doorway. She stood with her arms wrapped tightly around herself, silent tears falling freely down her face as she watched the two women that meant more than anything and anyone else in her life clinging to each other on the bed. She listened as her sister tried to calm down Faith, whispering to her softly, assuring her that they were safe, home. That nothing could hurt her, that Glory and Johnny were dead. She watched as Faith ran her hands over Buffy as if to reassure herself that Buffy was real, as her tear-filled eyes looked up into Buffy's equally tear-filled eyes, as she laid her head against Buffy's chest listening to her steady, strong heartbeat. And Dawn felt the guilt rise up in her so fiercely that she couldn't breath, she was drowning in it and it felt as if it were holding her head underwater and at this moment in time, she had absolutely no desire to try and survive.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." She whispered in a choked sob and then turned and ran from the door, away from the others towards the stables.

Luc helped Mars back up to his feet. He watched Dawn as she stood huddled, holding herself against the doorframe of the cottage. When she turned to flee, for an instant he saw her face and in that instant came understanding. He had seen that look staring back at him from his own reflection in the mirror every day since he had given Johnny to Glory. They had all assumed that the Slayers had helped and convinced Dawn to get over her misplaced guilt, they all had been wrong. He saw Atropos start to move to follow the youngest Summers' girl, he silently reached out to his mate through their bond letting her know that he was going to follow Dawn. As he moved quietly and quickly to follow, he saw out of the corner of his eye his mate stopping any of the others from following as well.
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He stood quietly right inside of the door to the stable and watched Dawn. She was standing in front of Obsidian and Sol's stall. Shortly after the Slayers arrival here, they had convinced Lilith and Clotho to make a double stall hat hat the stallion and his mate need not ever be separated. The stallion and the mare were softly nuzzling the young girl as if they understood and felt her pain. Somehow, Luc had not a doubt that they did, there was a connection, a bond between the Slayers' and the horses, just as there was a connection that ran deeper than blood, which ran back through time itself between the Slayers and Dawn. She shared with them a part of their Slayer mystical energy, just like Buffy and now Faith because of their Soul-Thread, shared a part of the mystical energy that made Dawn the key. And Luc knew, though neither of the Slayers knew it yet, that Sol was pregnant with her first foal and according to Lily the colt was to belong to Dawn just like Dawn was to belong to it. The colt Sol was to give birth to had already revealed its name to Lily, and his name was to be Tyro. The name Tyro's meant a beginner or novice in learning something and it was as apt a name for both the colt and the young woman who would help to raise and care for him.

"Hey, Dawn..." He called to her softly, not wanting to startle her or the horses.

"Go away Lucifer..." Dawn snarled, she didn't bother to turn she knew it was him. She was surprised that he didn't call her by his nickname for her, she liked when he called her that. If she hadn't been so upset right now she would have laughed at the absurdity of liking a nickname given, of liking period, the man who was feared by even the most fearless of men, the Prince of Darkness himself.

Luc ignored her and moved closer, Obsidian tossed his head and brayed a warning at Luc. The Devil and the black horse whose sire was Luc's stead, stared at each other, then the young stallion nickered softly. They had reached a silent understanding for Dawn's sake and Luc knew that Lily had somehow had a hand in it. He placed his hand lightly on Dawn's shoulder; she reached up quicksilver and angrily pushed it off.

"Are you fucking deaf? I told you to go away. And don't touch me!" She hissed, and couldn't help think, 'Whoa channel Faith much?'

"Deaf no, stubborn yes. But then again, stubbornness seems to be something that all our little extended family is famous for. And obviously something you've learned from both Slayers." He wanted to just drag her into a hug but he decided against it, he felt both anger and guilt coming off her in waves.

Dawn spun around facing him, she was angry and felt guilty about that too. Because it wasn't him she was angry at, it was them, her sister and Faith. And, after all they had been through because of her, how could she possibly justify being angry at them? But she was and it just left her feeling confused, more angry and even more guilt ridden then she already was. She opened her mouth to say something, only nothing would come out, instead the tears started falling again.

Luc watched the conflicting emotions crossing her face. His heart went out to her; he knew this was something that he could not help her with in any real way. This was something she needed to resolve with both Buffy and Faith, for now though he could just be here for her. Get her to calm down, because he doubted whether either Slayer would be in any condition, after Faith's nightmare, to handle this.

"It's okay Dawn. I understand, it's hard, I know. The guilt and the anger, it's confusing. And I know that I am a poor substitute for Buffy and Faith, but at least for right now I will have to do. I know you won't believe me but none of this is your fault. It is no one's fault and being angry at them, believe it or not is a normal reaction."

He opened up his arms to her; Dawn didn't move she just stared at him. She wanted to, needed to, but she couldn't, until he finally whispered, "Come here Little One."

Dawn launched herself at him, his soft endearment for her breaking her paralysis. In all the time since Buffy and Faith had returned from Glory's hell only they and he knew what she had felt. And since the Slayers had been staying here within the Incarnates' combined domains only he had noticed that she was still feeling all these mixed emotions. Willow, Tara, all of them, just assumed everything was all right. They didn't notice her fake smiles and laughter. Didn't notice the sorrow and loneliness that seemed to surround her. Didn't notice that she seemed to alternate between being happy and angry at the drop of a hat.

Luc just gathered her up tightly in his arms as she cried against his shirt, his own tears falling unnoticed by him with hers. He soothingly stroked her hair, cooing to her, and made a silent promise to himself that he would see her through this, would see all of them, Buffy, Faith and Dawn through this. More than anything, he wanted these children of his heart to move past this, to see all the things that made them and the world such a beautiful place to live in. He wanted all of their todays and tomorrows to be filled with laughter and smiles.
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Faith was still holding Buffy, taking comfort in her arms, the nightmare had faded and she was just basking in the warmth of her mate. She listened to the steady heartbeat and the soothing purr coming from deep inside of Buffy that had, still gave her such comfort and filled her with warmth and love.

Buffy held onto Faith taking comfort in the feel of the Dark Slayer's arms as well. It had been two weeks since Faith had one of these types of nightmares. They both still had nightmares but the intensity of them had lessened over time. Though, Faith more frequently than she did, still had the kind of nightmare that left her completely disoriented, awake and stuck within the nightmare realm of Glory's Hell. Usually Buffy woke her before they had gone this far, the bond between twas was so strong now and Buffy was so in tune with what Faith was feeling even while they both slept that she would wake and then wake Faith almost the second after the nightmare started.

Buffy shifted slightly on the bed and winced, a soft, "Ow!" escaped before she could stop it.

"B?" Faith gently detangled herself from Buffy; she twisted on the bed so she was facing her. She saw a little grimace of pain cross Buffy's face. When Buffy had first tried to wake her from the nightmare, she hadn't known it was her and she had lashed out. "B, are you hurt? I didn't hurt you did I? I didn't... I..." The thought that she might have hurt Buffy twisted her stomach up in knots.

"No baby you didn't hurt me..." Buffy smiled gently at Faith and softly stroked the side of her face. "I ah... well... I kinda hurt my shoulder when I... well, I ah..." Buffy turned her head and jerked it towards the front door.

"Oh shit Giz... You broke the front door..." Faith and Buffy both stared at the front door, which was once again hanging haphazardly by one hinge. Faith sucked her lower lip into her mouth to keep herself from giggling, it was funny, but it wasn't funny at the same time. A quiet snort of laughter escaped her anyway.

"It isn't funny..." Buffy looked at Faith and gave an internal jump for joy seeing the laughter sparkling in her eyes once again. A little giggle escaped her as well.

"You're right B it isn't..." Faith put on her best serious face, only to burst out laughing. "I'm thinking maybe we should have all the doors here and at the Mansion changed to the swingin' kind. What ya think B?"

"Ha ha Faith..." Buffy grabbed Faith by the hand and pulled her up off the bed. She wrapped her arms around Faith's neck, leaned up, and gave her a light tender kiss. "You ready to go back outside now?" She asked her softly.

Faith smiled widely at Buffy, leaned down and gave her a hot, open, wet kiss as an answer. "I'd rather stay in here with you." She leaned her forehead up against Buffy's.

"So would I but we do have company and considering how noisy you are, we would windup having our guests knocking down the walls trying to save us like Gran and Kiddo did the other day. My little screamer you..." y smy smirked at Faith as she moved out of her embrace and started towards the door. Faith just watched her, liking how Buffy's ass looked in her shorts.

Before Buffy walked outside, she turned her head and looked over her shoulder at Faith, her eyes mischievous, and asked her, "Cummmminnnn.... Fai?"

"Oh you so didn't... You're gonna pay for that Giz..."

"Gotta catch me first my Little Woman..." Buffy called back and took off running, Faith hot on her tail.

Faith scooped Buffy up and kept right on running towards the picnic table and the food. She hopped over the bench and sat them both down, keeping Buffy on her lap. "Caught ya B..."

"You caught me a long time ago Fai..."

"And you me B..." Both Slayers groaned, this was too cheesy for even them.

"We're getting way too mushy for even me Fai..." Buffy laughed then buried her head in Faith's neck giggling, Faith promptly joined in.

"And me..." Lilith smirked, then reached under the table, "Oh and here's the toolbox, everything you need to fix the front door is in there." Lilith plopped down the large toolbox on the table.

"But... how come you fixed..."

"The bathroom door was a freebie, a one shot deal. From now on, you have to live by the same rules as us. You break it, you fix it." Clotho told them with the same smirk on her face that Lilith had.

"Oh that's so not fair... We don't get to fade, we can't wave our hands and do magic... Elder...." Faith whined.

"Oh don't Elder me child..." Atropos watched with a chuckle as both Slayers tried to give her their best puppy dog eyes. She was almost ready to give in when Mars started bellowing from the fire-pit asking what everyone wanted to eat.
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Dawn woke an hour or so before sunrise. Two full days had passed since the night she had cried her eyes out against Luc's comforting chest until there were no more tears. They had rejoined the party after he had faded them back to the cottage that belonged to himself and Atropos so she could wash her face, fix her hair and compose herself. It was with relief that she saw Buffy and Faith laughing and acting like a couple of teenagers when they rejoined the little BBQ. Before Luc had faded them back to the Slayers' cottage, he had elicited a promise from her that she would talk to Buffy and Faith about what she was feeling before she left and as of yesterday, she still had not said a word.

It still amazed her a little that they could laugh, that the two of them managed to find the humor in everything. She supposed, it was one of the things that had helped them survive Glory's hell. By rights, the two of them should be jaded, bitter and cynical, but they weren't. They were loving, carefree and so full of laughter and life, they humbled her a little. She knew, she remembered for the longest time Faith had been that way, but even back then there were times when Faith had been with her that she saw glimpses of the Faith that had been holding her sister on her lap the night of the BBQ. It was that Faith, she knew, that her Mother had seen too and now finally Buffy and the rest of the world got to see her as well. For that, Dawn was eternally grateful.

She sat up on her rollaway bed and looked over at them on the bed. Their backs were to her and they were spooning, Faith behind Buffy, an arm thrown protectively around her. Dawn had noticed over the last five days that they always slept cuddled in one way or another with each other. The sheets were always a tangled mess around their feet, and Dawn was pretty sure that they never slept in clothes and only were now because she was here. Usually they required little sleep, almost always they were awake before her, but here they seemed to sleep longer and she had to wonder if sleeping wasn't part of their healing process as well.

She envied them she realized suddenly. They had each other to turn to, to wipe away their tears, soothe their fears, smile with, laugh with, kiss, hold, love. And she, who did she have? No one, there wasn't anyone for her, Buffy used to be there for her and Faith had been too for a while, that was until they had found each other and then they both had forgotten about her. She had become secondary, neither of them, certainly not her sister, was there for her anymore. To hold her when she was frightened, happy, sad, lonely and she was angry at both of them, but she realized mostly at Faith for taking her sister away from her. Some part of her knew this was irrational, that in her mind she was blaming Faith for all the real things that were bothering her, making her feel guilty, angry as a way to avoid them. She got up from the bed quietly and made her way to the kitchen; she looked back at them so peaceful, so close and felt the guilt and the anger fight for dominance within her.

She put on a pot of coffee and wondered if they would be getting up soon. In the five days that she had been here, they hadn't gotten up once to watch the sunrise. In fact, now that she thought about it, Willow had told her the last time they had watched the sunrise was the morning when they all, except her, had stood in front of the Magic Shop. That last sunrise they had watched had herald the day that had brought forth the night they had tried to defeat Glory and rescue her. The day that their world had come crashing down around their heads in a way that none of them had seen coming. She still rose every morning to watch the new day come in but she hadn't heard any promises being brought forth since that morning she had shared her first sunrise with Buffy and Faith and had told them; "I figured it was time I joined in the family tradition." She didn't expect that this morning would be any different.

Dawn made her way to the bathroom while the coffee was brewing. She threw on a pair of jeans and a sweater. She went back into the kitchen, performed a quiet search and destroy mission for a hot thermos for the coffee. Usually she just sat up in the bed and watched the sunrise through the window of the cottage but today she wanted to be outside by the lake. She also wanted to give the Slayers, despite all the conflicting emotions running through her, some time alone. She knew they would wake shortly. They might not rise from the bed to go watch the sun's ascent into the morning sky, but they still woke up each morning before the sun rose. She had heard them whispering, softly kissing, not realizing that she was already awake every morning since she had gotten here. She quickly scribbled a note telling them she would be at the stables and would be back when it was time to leave for Lilith and Clotho's. The couple had invited the three of them over for breakfast last night and had already granted them permission to enter into theittagttage's property. With a whispered sigh, she left the note on the nightstand by the bed then Dawn let herself out of the cottage, taking one last look at the slumbering Slayers.
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She slowly woke, her body spooning her mate's. One arm under her mate's neck, the other wrapped possessively around her waist, hand up and under the t-shirt, they were both forced to wear while Dawn was here, gently cupping one firm breast. Her face buried between the pillow, Buffy's neck, and her own arm. She inhaled deeply the unique scent that was just simply Buffy and it filled and surrounded her. She lifted her head from its burrowing place and softly laid it partially on top of and next to Buffy's.

She rubbed the palm of her hand lightly over Buffy's breast waking her nipple, which began to poke insistently against her palm. She placed soft kisses on the back of Buffy's neck, sneaking her tongue out for a quick taste. She felt Buffy push back into her further and knew she was awake.

"Morning..." She whispered softly for Buffy's Slayer hearing only. Right now, she was too comfortable to turn around to find out if Dawn was still sleeping and if she was, she didn't want to wake her.

She missed the little morning ritual they had fallen into since coming here. Missed waking and staying in that in-between place, missed slowly waking Buffy and bringing her there with her. She wanted more than anything to make love with Buffy now that they had finally gotten passed the last barrier. She wasn't stupid, she knew that they would be haunted by the memory of Glory's Hell and what happened to them there forever, but the more they moved away from letting it control their actions, emotions, who they were alone and together, the less power it had over them. In a way, she was afraid that by them having to control their desire for one another so soon after re-finding, reaffirming it with each other it would just make the fear in her grow strong again, regain it's foothold in her soul.

Buffy tipped her head back, leaning it onto Faith's shoulder. She softly hummed, murmured under her breath a husky morning back. She pushed further, deeper into Faith's warm body behind her, arching her back to bring her breast more firmly into the warm hand that was cupping it. Faith's warm breath against her ear and neck like the caress of a sen rol rolling breeze. She loved waking like this in the morning with her. Before the day, their life, anything, anyone, intruded. It was just them, warm, safe, loving, right, together, like it should be, how Buffy always wanted it to be. It was selfish she knew, but she didn't care. These few minutes in the morning before the world became real were just hers and Faith's and she didn't want to share them with anyone else. She didn't think it was too much to ask, there was so much of themselves, their time that they gave to the rest of the world everyday, she thought they deserved, should be allowed to have these few precious minutes each day.

Faith moved her hand down to Buffy's stomach and pulled her to her even tighter, silently cursing the t-shirt and shorts that were keeping the warmth of Buffy's skin from her own. She ran her hand in light, little circles over Buffy's stomach. She smiled and moaned softly when she felt Buffy turn her head and start planting soft little kisses on the inside of her arm that was under her head. Her tongue coming out to delicately trace and taste, sending desire whipping straight though every part of Faith.

"Where's my sweet morning breath kiss?" Faith gently nipped Buffy's earlobe when she finished murmuring her question.

The shudder that husky voice caused in her rippled down from her neck to her toes. She could listen to Faith talk in that low, raspy, husk forever and it would always elicit the same response in her. She turned onto her stomach and nibbled her way up the arm that had served as her pillow throughout the night. She buried her nose for a few precious seconds into Faith's neck, inhaling deeply the scent that was just Faith; in the same way, that Faith had only minutes before inhaled the unique scent that was just her.

After what felt like an eternity, Faith finally felt those soft lips pressing against hers. The kiss was slow, airy, a mere mingling of breath, mouths and souls. It was these types of kisses, like the just-because touches that made Faith feel cherished and loved. They asked for and demanded nothing more then just the touch, just the knowing, that the feel of the other's warmth was more than enough. They spoke to her in volumes, they told her with absolute certy tty the depths of Buffy's love for her and solidified the knowledge that no matter what, she and Buffy would be together, belonged together, were truly soul-mates.

When the kiss finally ended, Faith stayed with her eyes closed. She smiled softly when she felt Buffy's fingertips tracing the contours of her face, her touch delicate, loving, sensuous, warm. Slowly she opened her eyes to find Buffy's hazel-gold eyes staring into hers and Faith thought she just might melt.

"Sweet enough?" Buffy continued memorizing the planes of Faith's face with her fingertips while she waited for her answer.

"Always. You know..." Faith trailed off, her eyes lowered slightly suddenly shy. A part of her laughing at how ridiculous it was that she still had or had ever even had these moments where she grew shy around Buffy. Maybe it was because of the harsh life she had that made her feel stupid or inept when it came to being soft or speaking what was in her heart. Or perhaps it was the horrific way she had learned not to open herself up to anyone, or allow herself to be vulnerable. Whatever it was, it made her hesitant and shy when it came to speaking what was in her heart and mind.

She took a deep shaky breath, her voice came out low and ragged, "...you're the only one who has ever kissed me like that. The only one I've ever made love with. You make me feel special in a way that no one ever has before. You were one of my secret wishes I made in the morning before the sun rose; a wish that I never, ever thought would come true." She kept her head and her gaze lowered, afraid even now to look up into Buffy's eyes. Afraid she might see rejection or that Buffy would think she was being stupid or silly. She knew better, but she couldn't shake the insecurities that had been a part of her, her whole life. She knew she wasn't good at this, she wasn't the flowery or pretty word type, she was uneducated, harsh, crass, crude and expressing herself still didn't come easily.

Buffy slid her hand down to under Faith's chin and gently lifted her head up; she waited patiently for Faith to raise her eyes up to hers again. When she finally did, Buffy could see the fear, the vulnerability in those dark eyes and not for the first time she cursed the two people that had put that look in her eyes. She wanted to erase that look, those harsh lessons that caused those insecurities in Faith to rise up still after all this time, all they had been through together, all that she knew Faith knew. That despite the fact that Buffy knew Faith had not a doubt that Buffy loved her, was her eternal mate, that what she felt for Faith was unconditional, nonjudgmental, Faith still expected to be hurt by her on purpose and maliciously.

Buffy knew she couldn't promise to never hurt Faith's feelings, but she could promise not to do it with clear intent or just because she knew she could. She had done that once that night long ago in the Magic Shop and she would rather end her own life than ever do that again. She knew it would take time for Faith to move past this, and what happened in Glory's hell had only served to reinforce all of what happened to Faith when she was a child. For now all Buffy could do was keep on chipping away at the insecurities that had ruled Faith's whole life until one day with a lot of love that wall of insecurities crumbled to nothing more than dust.

"You, god Faith, you make me feel special too. Special in so many ways, I would need hundreds of lifetimes to tell you them all. I'm glad, more than glad that I could make one of your secret wishes come true, I can only hope that I can make them all come true for you. And there is never, will never be anyone else I ever want to share these types or any kiss with ever again. And no one has ever made love to me the way you do." She slowly began to smile a soft sigh escaping her as she watched the fear and the vulnerability fade from Faith's eyes.

Buffy leaned in and gave Faith a hot, demanding, so not sweet, but an, I want you now, morning kiss. They leaned back from each other gasping. Their world narrowed down to just the two of them and the feel of the hot caress of the other's breath upon their face. Buffy's eyes turned decidedly impish and more gold.

"Yup... for a beginner at making love, you're not half bad..." She leaned in and quickly nipped Faith's bottom lip when Faith arched an eyebrow at her comment. "Hmmmm... with a little practice who knows..."

Buffy found herself rolled onto her back before she had even finished speaking, the impish glint now in Faith's eyes. She watched as Faith slowly lowered herself down onto her. Faith's hands sliding underneath her shoulder blades then up to behind her neck to finally bury themselves in her hair. A soft kissed was first placed on the tip of her nose. Then Faith's mouth was hovering over one of her eyes and she was forced to close them, and then a soft kiss was placed on each one of them as well.

She had to bite her bottom lip to remain quiet as she felt Faith's body slide up hers to place another soft kiss upon her forehead. She continued to bite her lip as Faith slid the length of her body back down and then Faith's teeth were gently tugging her bottom lip loose. Faith's warm tongue ran over the length of it soothing away the little indentation from Buffy's own teeth. She squirmed a little as she felt whispered kisses being placed along her mouth and over her jaw, down to her neck. One of Faith's hands traveled back down drawing delicate patterns over the back of her neck. Right now, more than anything Buffy wished they had been granted the power to fade themselves, because more than anything she wanted with a passion to be somewhere alone with her mate. She shivered again as she felt Faith's warm lips and breath caress up the side of her neck until her earlobe was gently nibbled.

"Practice sounds good to me. I'd practiced twenty-four hours a day if you'd want me to B..." Faith whispered low, with longing into Buffy's ear. She wanted, in the worst way, to make love with Buffy, it was consuming her the desire was so strong.

"I'd let you practice twenty-four hours a day Fai..." Buffy turned her head towards Faith and kissed her tenderly, "But right now we have a house guest. Speaking of which... Dawn you awake?"

Both Slayers' turned their heads towards the rollaway bed and were surprised to find that Dawn wasn't in it. Faith lifted her head a little, sniffed the air, then smiled.

"Don't know why I didn't notice before, but I smell coffee. Seems Gamin woke before us again," Faith sat up straddling Buffy's thighs and pulled her up to her, catching her in a tight hug, she whispered in her ear, "If I can't have you I guess I'll just have to settle for coffee. A poor substitute at best, hell not even close..."
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Faith was surprised that Dawn wasn't in the kitchen. She made another pot of coffee when she saw that the machine was off and the coffee in it turned out to be cold. Buffy was still in the bathroom.

The coffee finished brewing and neither Buffy nor Dawn had appeared yet. She busied herself fixing a cup of coffee for herself and Buffy; she idly glanced at the clock and saw that they needed to get ready soon. They were expected at Clotho and Lilith's in a little under an hour for breakfast. Taking small baby steps so she wouldn't spill the coffee, she carefully carried the two large mugs of coffee over to the table, a waitress she would never be. She sat down and waited for Buffy and Dawn, she started a drum cadence with the two spoons on the tabletop, impatient as ever and bored sitting there by herself.

"We need to get moving we have less than an hour 'til we need to be at Gran's..." She started as Buffy came through the swinging door, then trailed off as she looked up and caught the wicked, down right evil look that Buffy was giving her as she walked, no, stalked towards her from the door. "B? Where ah... where's Dawn..." Faith squirmed a little in her chair she knew that look, knew what it meant.

"Looks like Dawn's went for a walk and won't be back until it's time to go for breakfast... So... mrpf"

Buffy never got to finish, the second she was within arms reach of Faith, she was pulled forward, lifted, set down so she was straddling Faith's legs and the rest of her sentence swallowed by Faith's mouth.

Any earlier thoughts Faith had about making slow, passionate love to Buffy were totally annihilated when Buffy took control of their kiss and completely devoured her mouth in a heated rush. Faith slid down in the chair while they kissed, drowning in the velvetiness of Buffy's tongue caressing her own. She felt Buffy's legs come up to surround her waist and she broke away from the kiss gasping for air. She rested her head back against the top of the chair and was rewarded by Buffy latching onto her arched neck. Her hands found the bottom of Buffy's t-shirt and she started to tug it up, she stopped when Buffy refused to stop attacking her neck.

"B... let me..." Faith gave up trying to talk when she felt Buffy's hands on her breasts. She arched her back thrusting her breast into those knowing hands. Her breathing hitched up a notch then went into complete overdrive when Buffy bit down on her mark on her pulse point. Her whole body bucked at the touch and a trail of fire blazed down her body straight to the junction between her legs. "OH CHRIST!!!"

Buffy sat back a little, brought her hand up and pushed Faith's t-shirt to the side so she could look down at the mark she had given Faith on her pulse point. She ran her finger gently over it, tracing the upper and lower teeth marks. They should have been gone by now even if she had broken the skin and granted almost every day she had bitten it again, but she had only broken the skin that once. She looked closely and realized that underneath the indentation from her most recent bite, the original bite when she had broken the skin, five days before, had scarred. There was no way it should have scarred, not with their Slayer healing.

Faith watched Buffy's face as she delicately traced along her mark on her neck. She had been wondering when Buffy would realize that they weren't going away. That the mark on her neck and on Buffy's had scarred. Sometimes Buffy could be so oblivious. She wondered if Buffy had noticed that the mark Angel had given her had faded, that it was now a very faint scar. It was almost as if Angel's mark had faded when it had acknowledged the presence of Buffy's true mate mark, the one that Faith had given her. She further wondered if this happened because of them merging with the source of what made them Slayers. The part of them that was primal, feral, needing to claim, to possess, to mark each other as mates. And somehow their bodies, their souls, the Slayer in them accepted, knew that they were soul-mates and had instead of healing the mark, turned it into a scar.

She had been afraid to say anything to Buffy. A part of her fearing that Buffy would deny the meaning of the mark and she loathed the part of herself that was still insecure, that knee jerk reaction of expecting to be rejected or denied by Buffy. She knew that it wouldn't happen. She truly deep down in her soul knew that she and Buffy were forever, that if what happened in Glory's Hell couldn't tear them apart, nothing could. But being there had just reinforced all of her old insecurities and had brought to the forefront once again the need to run before she could be hurt or rejected, just like she had the night of the Joining. She fought it back almost every day and as she stared at Buffy's face, something became clear to her. It wasn't fear of rejection, or getting hurt that was making her scared, not really, it was part of it sure, but what truly scared her was that she needed Buffy, needed her as much, if not more, then she needed the air to breathe.

And in the space of those few minutes Faith learned another lesson about life and love. Just like asking for help didn't make you weak or shameful, wasn't something to be embarrassed about; there was no shame or weakness in needing someone. And deep down she knew that Buffy needed her just as much as she needed Buffy.

"B?" Faith questioned softly, she took a deep breath, trying to compose her thoughts and figure out how to ask, to say everything that had just gone through her mind. The thoughts scattered into the wind when Buffy tore her gaze away from the mark and looked deeply into her eyes. She saw wide-eyed wonder, vulnerability, need, love and so many other things in Buffy's hazel-gold eyes it rendered her speechless.

Buffy stared into Faith's eyes and saw all the same things she was feeling reflected back at her in Faith's eyes, including fear. She continued to delicately, reverently trace along her mate mark on Faith's pulse point. She didn't need a mirror, didn't need to touch her own neck to know that Faith's mate mark on her own neck had scarred too. The fear in Faith's eyes was telling her that she already realized this, realized or at least partially realized the meaning behind the mate marks and was afraid of her reaction, afraid that she would reject her or reject what the mark meant.

Buffy had to wonder if she hadn't deep down wanted the mark she had given Faith to scar, hadn't wanted it to erase, to take away the power of the other marks on Faith's body that had been forced upon her with hatred. Hadn't wanted hers to represent the complete opposite of the other marks, represent commitment, eternal love and the fact that the mark didn't fade told her that Faith wanted the same thing, otherwise the mark Buffy had given Faith would have healed, Faith's Slayer healing would have seen to that.

"You know..." She began hesitantly, still trailing her fingers over the mark on Faith's neck, a little afraid that maybe she was reading too much into this. She closed her eyes for a brief second and then opened them to stare deeply into Faith's again and saw the same fear she was feeling echoed there. "It's not going to... the bite mark, my bite mark it scarred. It..."

"I know B..." Faith reached her hand up without breaking her gaze from Buffy, her own fingertips unerringly finding her mark on Buffy's neck. "Just like the one I gave you did..."

"Do you know what these, the marks, mine, yours are, mean?" Buffy asked Faith quietly, still staring intently into her eyes, as they both continued delicately to trace the scarred marks they had given each other.

Faith didn't respond and as Buffy continued to hold her gaze she could see and feel the fear lurking both in their bond and in Faith's eyes. Faith watched as Buffy gave her a soft loving smile and she couldn't help but to return it.

"Vampires call it a scarring mark or a claiming mark. It's a mate mark Faith. But you knew that already didn't you?" Buffy watched as Faith just nodded silently to her, then watched as Faith's eyes briefly flickered to the other side of her neck to where the scar from Angel's bite was. She saw confusion in Faith's eyes and a lot of fear, but even more love. What surprised her most though was she saw and felt no doubt coming from Faith about them, their love, or Buffy's love for her.

She ran her hand up the side of Faith's neck, softly stroked her face and just let her hand lay gently against Faith's cheek. She smiled a little as Faith leaned into her touch and she felt the warmth of Faith's love flow through her. She brought her other hand up to her own neck where Faith's fingers were still stroking along the mark on her neck and entwined their fingers.

"You want to know about the mark from Angel don't you?" Again, Faith just nodded silently to her.

Faith was holding her breath waiting for Buffy to answer her. Was it possible that Buffy was soul-mate's with more than one person and that she had just chosen her over Angel? She didn't doubt for a minute what Buffy felt for her, she had made a promise to Buffy that morning after the Joining ceremony in the kitchen that she would never doubt the depth and breathe of Buffy's love for her ever again. And much to her own surprise she found that she didn't even have a second, no not even a millisecond of doubt. This was right, what they were together, who they were together, them being together this way, lovers, best friends, mates, soul-mates, everything, all of it, was right. And she knew it with every cell, every part of her, her mind, her heart and her soul and no one and nothing would ever be able to convince or tell her differently ever.

"Angel's mark is and isn't the same thing. Because for it to truly be a claiming or mate mark both people have to claim each other. And I never claimed, or bit Angel hard enough to break his skin or leave my teeth marks. I never wanted to, I never thought about it. Before you ask, it had nothing to do with his being a vampire either. I wasn't afraid of his blood, a bite like that and that amount of blood could not turn me. We both know that... I don’t know why it scarred, teenager romantic notions but I know, without even having to look, that Angel's mark is faint, almost faded away to nothing." Buffy paused and took a deep breath she was rambling. "And what happened with us, it happened, I... it... I don't... it just felt right somehow... Like a part of me needed to claim you as mine in a very primitive way." Buffy hesitated and started to blush. "Almost like I needed the rest of the world to see it and a part of me wanted it to replace, erase Joh... his marks or claim on you with my own... I'm selfish I... I just... and, Faith, the marks they wouldn't have scarred if we, if I didn't want it to. If I didn't believe with everything inside of me that you and I... that were soul-mates."

They just stared at each other, neither saying anything for long seconds. Buffy watched as the confusion and the fear faded from Faith's eyes, until just the love for her blazed hotly in those dark-chocolate-emerald eyes. They burned a path right into her soul and filled her with such intense love and warmth that her breath caught in her chest and her heart started racing a thousand miles an hour. Faith's eyes claimed her in a way that no mark ever could and as she continued to stare into Faith's eyes, she felt through their bond all the same things being echoed back to her from Faith.

Faith struggled to find the words to express what she was feeling. She didn't think there were any, in any language that ever could. Anything she said would pale in comparison to what she was feeling, what she knew Buffy was feeling for her.

"It was right... felt right... I felt the same need to make that claim on you. I didn't mean to bite that hard but once I did and I realized I broke your skin a part of me... A part of me reveled in it... thrilled to it... outright purred in satisfaction and something was unleashed inside of me when I felt you mark me in return. Like everything I was, all of me, the parts of me that were disjointed, the Slayer in me all merged. I feel you in a way now, feel connected to you in way that goes deep down inside of me to my soul. It's stronger, the bond we share... I don't know how to explain it any better. I don't think there are words for it... I just know that nothing can ever separate us, could ever change how I feel about you. And every second I spend with you what I feel for you just grows stronger, larger, more. I love you B it's as simple as that and I will beyond even death."

"You... God, you, you're so beautiful, you don't even know how beautiful, how precious. I would have to be stupid not to feel the same way for you as you do for me." Buffy paused, and felt like she was seeing right into Faith's soul. She smiled so softly, her eyes reflecting her amazement, her awe of Faith and what they shared. "...And, I'm not stupid. I feel the same way, Faith, about you..."

They leaned in towards each other. They shared but a whisper of a kiss. It was, they both realized more intimate than any other touch they had ever shared, as they slowly explored each other's mouths with growing passion, with love, as they shared each other's breath and fell into the warm embrace of the other's arms and souls around them.

And had anyone happened into the kitchen in those minutes while they were kissing they would have seen the swirling white and blue mist of the combined, but separate aura's of both Slayers as the very essences of them, their souls danced in joy as it surrounded them.
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Continued in Chapter XXXI – Promises (Part C)