Chapter 11

“Unbelievable, you have a lot of nerve showing your face around here again.”

Angel scowled at her. “How the fuck did you do that?”

Buffy matched his scowl with one of her own. “That’s none of your business. You’re not a part of our lives anymore, so I don’t have to tell you anything. What right do you have beating on him like that?”

“I’m his grandsire, I had every right,” he retorted, wondering why the young girl was so protective of the bleached pest.

Buffy was about to respond, but another voice beat her to it.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

Angel’s anger faded at the sight of his ex-girlfriend, still looking just as beautiful as ever, if not a bit more pissed off. “Faith, it’s good to see you.”

The Slayer crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at the unwanted vampire. “The feeling’s not mutual, you didn’t answer my question.”

He nodded, glancing at the irritated faces around him. “I came to warn you. Drusilla was in Los Angeles, I have a feeling she’s on her way here. I think she’s after you, Faith. She was going on about how the strong girl stole her William from her,” Angel said with distaste, “that she was going to make her pay. I just assumed she meant you. It didn’t work out with us, so you go to the next vampire you can find? You can’t trust him,” he finished, pointing at Spike.

Faith rolled her eyes. “Are you kidding me with this? I’m not dating Spike, you moron. He’s with my sister.”

Angel finally took notice of the fact that Spike was standing close to the blonde girl, an arm around her waist, suddenly feeling really foolish. “Oh, right, I knew that.” He paused, shaking his head. “No, wait, you’re actually okay with this?”

She shrugged. “Things are different now; I no longer see the world in black and white. Spike’s been really helpful lately; he’s been good for her.”

Buffy was surprised by her sister’s response, giving the dark haired girl a grateful smile.

“Okay, then I’m guessing Buffy is the one Dru was referring to. You should be careful.”

“I can handle myself,” she told him.

Spike took her hand in his, giving Angel one more glare. “If Peaches is finished, we’ll just be off now. I’m sure you two have a lot of catching up to do.”

Buffy didn’t want to leave them alone, but let Spike lead her away. This was something Faith had to do on her own.


* * * * *


“Spike and Buffy, that’s something I never would have seen coming. I have to admit, though, I’m glad it’s not you.”

“Why is that, Angel? You wanted me to have a normal life, even though I’m the Slayer and normal isn’t exactly in the cards, why wouldn’t I have moved on? Do you think I’ve just been spending all my time pining over you? I’m not that pathetic,” Faith spat, trying not to give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry. “I haven’t thought about you much at all. In fact, you did me a favor. I could only handle your broodiness for so long; at least Angelus had a sense of humor.”

He nodded. “I guess I deserve that. I know I can’t make up for what Angelus did, or for leaving, but I only wanted the best for you. I never meant to hurt you, Faith. Despite what you may think, I still love you. That’s why I had to leave; I couldn’t risk Angelus resurfacing again. It was just too hard being around you, knowing I couldn’t touch you the way I wanted.”

“Right, so it was only about sex? Figures, you’re all the same, dead or alive. It didn’t matter that I could have gone without; all you cared about was not being able to get into my pants without having a major happy. Thanks for the warning, but you can go now. You’re not really wanted here.”

Angel watched her walk away, feeling utterly hopeless and knowing that he deserved everything he got.


* * * * *


“Spike, calm down, it’s not a big deal.”

He shook his head. “If Drusilla is coming here, I would say it is. Bloody fuck, I thought I was done with the crazy bitch. I should have known the second I even thought of being with someone else, she’d find some way to ruin it for me. Angel was right, pet, you need to be careful. I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to you.”

Buffy placed a calming hand on his arm, pulling him down on her bed. “I can take care of myself. I’ve been training for weeks with you and Faith, you said yourself that I was a pretty fast learner, and then there’s the magic. Sure, I’m not as great as I used to be, but I’m getting pretty damn close. Willow and Tara have really been helping me out. If that psycho shows up, I’ll be ready for her. Don’t worry about it, okay?”

Spike knew that wouldn’t be easy, but he would try for her. “Just promise me that you won’t go anywhere by yourself at night? Not until we know for a fact that she’s not a threat.”

She nodded. “I promise.”

He hugged her to him, kissing the top of her head. Drusilla wouldn’t stand a chance against his girl.


* * * * *


Buffy was woken up in the middle of the night by a noise coming from downstairs. She checked to see that Spike was still sleeping peacefully, quietly getting out of bed as to not wake him, then slowly making her way down the stairs, shocked by the sight that greeted her. Faith was in the kitchen, tears streaming down her face, a tub of ice cream placed in front of her. Buffy immediately went to her side, putting an arm around her sister, who then turned and buried her face against her neck, crying her heart out. This was new for both of them, so Buffy wasn’t really sure what to do. She just rubbed Faith’s back soothingly, telling her that everything would be okay, praying that it would. She hated seeing her sister like this.


* * * * *


Spike came downstairs when he noticed that Buffy was gone, taking in the display of the sisters comforting each other. He gave a sad smile, for the first time really feeling for the Slayer.


* * * * *


A dark figure watched the house, the occupants inside completely oblivious to what was in store for them.