True Faith

To be continued...like, now. Whee! Two-chapter update!

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Tru pushed open the changing room door and did a slow spin for Lindsey. "So, what do you think?"

Lindsey raised an eyebrow. "This is for...what again?"

"A costume party." Tru glanced over her shoulder at her reflection. If she'd known her ass could look this good, she would have done this sooner. "How do I look?"

"What are you supposed to be going as?" Lindsey asked, leaning back and eyeing Tru up and down. "Because right now you just look like yourself in a really skanky pair of leather pants."

"Perfect." Tru pulled her jean jacket over a white wifebeater and took out her gold hoop earrings. She accepted her bag from Lindsey and rummaged through it, bringing out the makeup she'd bought earlier. "Now...tell me what my idiot brother did this time."

"He was holding a conversation with the man at the next table about the comparative merits of three different bars that hold wet t-shirt contests," Lindsey said. "While we were ordering." She paused, then: "How did you know he'd done something?"

Tru met Lindsey's gaze in the mirror. "You're my best friend. I could see it in your eyes."

Lindsey simpered. "That is so sweet."

"Plus I know Harrison," Tru added. "If you guys went for a week without breaking up--"

"--then you'd be worried," Lindsey finished. "Well, the make-up sex is good, at least."

"Ew," Tru squealed. "I did not need to know that...but...were you planning on that any time soon? Say, today, around noon?" She put the finishing touches on her makeup and backed away from the mirror.

"You want me to whisk Harrison away for make-up sex today at noon?" Lindsey said, handing her back her bag.

"Yeah...I'm, I'm meeting someone in the diner, and I don't want Harri to see me like this," Tru said, waving at her outfit.

"Oh-ho!" Lindsey bounced in excitement. "Tru, is it Luc? Are you guys back on? And is there really a costume party, or is it more like a costume party, if you know what I mean?"

Tru turned away to hide her blush. "It's not Luc," she said. "I don't think he and I can make it work. It's just--complicated."

"But..." Lindsey tried to lead her on. "...there's someone new?"

Tru disappeared back into the change room so that she wouldn't have to meet Lindsey's eyes. "Just a friend," she said, her voice muffled as she struggled to get out of the leather pants. There was probably a trick to it. She suspected that all Faith had to do was wiggle her hips just so and that would be that.

Oh, for the love of God, was she jealous?

"Mmm-hmm. Someone who could be more than 'just a friend'!" Lindsey said in a mocking sing-song.

Tru tossed the leather pants over the door at her. "I don't think so."

"Uh-huh. Listen, Tru, I know you," Lindsey said. "You know when Harrison's been an idiot, and I know when you've got a guy on the sly!"

Truled led her eyes and pulled her jeans on. "Oh, really? And when was that, exactly?"

Lindsey waited until she was out of the change room. She folded her arms and smirked. "You thought I never knew about Professor Donutface."

"You mean Mark? You knew about that?" Tru asked. She winced, remembering Mark and how that had ended. Well, she for one was happy it had, but it had hurt at the time.

"Just like I know that you've got it bad this time," Lindsey finished triumphantly. "Best friends! See, we know these things."

Tru sighed and took the pants back from Lindsey. Was there really anything to know? Depending on how she played the day, she and Buffy could do anything, or nothing. Of course she wanted to save Buffy. That went without saying, destiny or no destiny. But maybe it was wrong to trick her like this. And what would happen if and when Faith showed up? If Buffy had to choose--

"Nothing's going to happen," Tru said. Fate had given her the day and she wasn't going to mess it up. Save Buffy's life, then worry about the consequences.

"Okay," Lindsey said, raising her hands like she was disassociating herself from all of Tru's decisions. "But I'm telling you, look at me and Harrison. If we were normal people, this wouldn't be happening, but obviously we're deranged, so it is. I'm not talking about wedding bells, I'm talking about getting back on the horse."

Tru slapped the leather pants down on the clerk's counter and handed over her credit card without a second glance at the price. "Speaking of getting back on the horse...and, again, ew, I can't believe I just said that...but how much groveling are we talking for Harrison?"

"Oh, candy, flowers, a nice night out with no mention of other women's breasts, perhaps a werewolf-shaped Pez dispenser--they're really rare--" Lindsey shrugged. "I'll let him come over and apologise to me, for a start."

"Great." Tru pulled out her phone. "I'll tell him you're expecting him."

"Don't think this doesn't mean you owe me, Tru," Lindsey said. "I mean, I know you say there's no such thing as too much cleavage, but that shirt is really stretching things. And I'm talking literally. So there had better be details tomorrow."

Tru forced a smile. "I'll see what I can do." She put the phone to her ear. "Harrison?"

"Hey, sis, I promise I'm not going to be late--"

"Harri, listen, I'm shopping with Lindsey, and--"

"Aw, come on, Tru, is this a conspiracy? Does everyone have to know every time I screw up? The guy ran a Hooters franchise! And I'm supposed to not make polite conversation? I'm an interested consumer. Lindsey is railroading me..."

Tru sighed and let Harrison go on for another minute. "Harrison, I'll try to calm her down. But I want you to go over to her place this afternoon and apologize!"

"I don't think so! I know the rules, you gotta have a cooling off period or whatever. And, Tru, you know Lindsey and me'll be fine. Anyway, I thought we were meeting for lunch."

"Not today." Tru took her bag from the clerk and smiled her thanks.

"So it's a rewind?" Harrison asked.

"Yes. And I'm telling you, you'll be better off with Lindsey than with me today."

Harrison chuckled. "Will I get lucky?"

Tru glanced at Lindsey's contented expression. "Depends on the groveling."

Harrison paused to consider that. "Make up sex, huh? Better than yesterday?"

"Better than getting shot down in the diner," Tru promised.

"Ooh...but was I shot down by a hottie?" Harrison asked.

"Let's just say she liked me better," Tru said, lowering her voice and waving goodbye to Lindsey.

"And this is supposed to keep me away." Harrison made little tsk, tsk, sounds. "I don't know, Tru, Lindsey and I can make up any time, but watching a girl hit on you might be my once-in-a-lifetime opportunity..."

"Harrison." Tru forced herself to stay calm. "She asked for my help. And to help her, I need you to be gone. Got it?"

"All right, but you could really ease the sting if you happened to know the Pick-3 number..."

"Goodbye, Harrison." Tru hung up, took one last, long moment to wonder if she had gone round the bend, then headed home to change. She was due to meet Buffy in the diner in less than an hour.


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Heh. Now the fun starts. Or, more accurately, it starts when I write more. But it will be fun. Okay, I'll shut up now.