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Seasons of Faith	By : norwalker Category: -Buffy the Vampire Slayer > FemmeSlash - Female/Female > Buffy/Faith Views: 4355 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS), nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
Seasons of faith
Chapter 18
~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~

Things were happening in the little town of Sunnydale. Like, DUH!

Things had settled into an uneasy peace at the Revello Drive home.
Dawn was beginning to accept who she was, and what she was. But that didn't mean there weren't a lot more freak outs and surliness on her part. For awhile she couldn't stand being around Buffy or Faith or even Joyce. She was rude, often saying things to hurt. Like she was hurting. She would go around, blowing things off, because after all, she's just a blob of energy, what did all this matter, anyway? Right?
Then came the night of her final freak-out. She'd had a particularly bad day of it, trying to cope. Everything had seemed so unreal. And, on her way home( Home? What's that? I don't have a home. I'm nothing! She kept saying to herself), she'd run into another madman. And he, on cue, started in on how she wasn't real, didn't belong here, how pure and bright the energy around her was. It was just too much. She screamed at him, cursing him, yelling he was a loony and a nutcase and to just leave her the hell alone. She ran off, tears streaming down her eyes. But she'd gotten control by the time she'd returned to the familiar house( LIES, ALL LIES) house on Revello Drive.
She was silent and moody for the rest of the afternoon and evening. Dinner was tense, Dawn being especially rude and raw. Finally, Joyce, with her own problems, had enough. She ordered Dawn to her room, she could come down when she could act civil. Dawn said, why should she? She wasn't real, anyway. Why should she be all nice ? Why should she even do what Joyce said? " YOU'RE NOT MY MOTHER! YOU'RE NOT THE BOSS OF ME!" Dawn screamed. But she stomped off to her room, nonetheless.
The other women sat stunned. Joyce, all of it too much, hung her head, and started to cry. The slayers were overwhelmed. Neither of them, in their memory, could think of a time when Joyce Summers had cried. But she was now. They rose to comfort her.
"My baby. My poor baby" Joyce said, her voice choking. " I know she's not my baby, Buffy. I know that. In my head. But I can't help it. I feel it, here" She points at her heart, at her gut. "She's mine, even if I never carried her!"
Faith held Joyce's hand, squeezing it and stroking her arm, trying to comfort her. She felt tears coming. She was scared. Joyce never freaked…never. But here she was, freaking. Buffy stood beside Joyce, on the other side, holding her hand, and stroking her hair. She'd never seen mom like this. It was breaking her heart.
"Mom, it doesn't matter where she came from. She's real. And she's part of this family, same as you, and me, and Faith. " Buffy added, looking at her lover. Faith smiled. It was the first time she could remember Buffy including her in the family. More tears threatened. "She's part of our blood, mom. She's part of us!"
Joyce looked at the two young women trying so hard to comfort her, and she pulled them close for a hug. She didn't know what she'd do without these two here to support her.
"How do we help her, Buffy?... Faith?" Joyce asked, her eyes showing her hurt." I love her. I can't stand seeing her this way!"
I don't know, Mom" Buffy said. She'd been trying everything she could to make Dawn feel better." But we won't stop trying!"
"We'll find a way, Mrs. S." Faith said." I promise ya. We'll find a way!"
"Faith. You're part of this family You've been part of it a long time now. You're like my daughter, honey. Isn't it about time you called me Mom?" Joyce asked, smiling through her tears. She really did love the young woman like a daughter.
Faith nearly lost it. She'd craved forever being a part of a family. Belonging somewhere. She nearly started blubbering like a baby right there, but something interrupted that, and everything else happening at the table.
A loud piercing shriek of an alarm went off. All of the women tensed up. Buffy and Faith for a second thought something was attacking…then realized what it was.
"The smoke detector? What the hell?!!" Buffy said, starting to run upstairs. Joyce and Faith followed.
They converged on Dawns room, because that was the one going off. The door was locked from the inside. Buffy broke the lock, calling out to Dawn…who wasn't there.
The three of them saw what was causing the ruckus. In the middle of the room, Dawn's trashcan was on fire. It'd been stuffed with all of the journals and diaries Dawn had kept for so many years…the Dawn Chronicles( or at least, that’s how everyone remembered it). The room had filled with smoke, and set off the alarm. Faith ran for the fire extinguisher downstairs in the kitchen, while Buffy tried to smother the fire with the blanket on Dawn's bed. Joyce was stunned, watching the life Dawn had written about for so many years going up in smoke. Finally, Faith returned with the extinguisher, and between her and Buffy , they put out the fire. Not before, however, major smoke damaged had happened to the room.
At that moment, no one cared. Dawn was missing! They spotted the open window, and realized Dawn must've gone out the window. Who knew what she'd run into; demons… vampires… Glory!
Buffy got on the phone and called the Scoobies. They met out front of the Revello Drive home.
" We got to find her, guys" Buffy said, obviously worried." All kinds of bad things out here, get to her. Especially Glory. Lets break into teams and sweep the area. Giles… you and Xander take the west side. Willow? You go with Tara, take the east side. Faith? Take a sweep of the cemeteries. Mom, stay here, in case she calls, or comes back. If you find her, call me on the cell. Meet me at Sunnydale General when you've finished your area. Everybody got that?"
"What are you gonna do, Buffy?" Joyce asked.
"I'm going the check the hospitals. See if she's …." She trails off, not liking to think of that.
" I want to help, slayer" A voice emerges from the shadow. Spike steps out into the light. " What can I do?"
" Spike! What're you doing here?" Buffy asks, growling. This is HIS fault!
" I heard… the nibblet is gone. I want to help find her" Spike says." I like her. I don't want her to get hurt."
" We've had more than enough of your help, Spike" Buffy says. She doesn't want to see this … thing right now. She turns away.
" Buffy, please… let me help…." Spike starts, but Faith interrupts him.
"B. Let him. We can use all the help we can get" Faith says. Right now is not to quibble about who did what.
" Fine. You want his help? He's with you , Faith! He can help you sweep the cemeteries. He ought to blend right in there" Buffy says, turning away.
"B! That isn't what I meant…" Faith protests. Buffy turns back.
"I don't trust him Faith. I'm not letting him put others in danger. If he pulls anything, dust him. Got it?" Buffy says, her tone harsh. She walks off towards the hospital. She's done listening now.
" Got it" Faith says quietly, almost to herself. Louder, to Spike." Well, c'mon limp fang, if you want to help. Try to keep up!" She starts towards Restfield.
Spike follows Faith, looking none too pleased. The others break up, pursuing their instructions.
~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~
Spike and Faith are walking through the graveyard.
Faith is not bothering to pace with Spike. She is moving fast, whether he can stay up or not. She so didn't want the bleach blonde with her, but she's stuck with him. ' doesn't mean I have to coddle him, though' Faith thinks.
"Slayer! Would you slow down, please!" Spike says, complaining. He's still got a limp from the last little 'call' the slayers made on him.
"This aint no picnic, Spike. Dawn's out here, and could be in trouble. If you can't keep up, just get lost. Go home. I don't really give a rat's ass. Got it?" Faith says, calling over her shoulder. She's not waiting for Son of Fang. No fucking way.
" Dammit, Slayer, I'm doing the best I can. I'd be a lot better off if you and Blondie hadn't decided to make me your punching bag." Spike complains." After all, she probably wouldn't even be out here if you two did your jobs right!"
Faith stops dead in her tracks. You can see the tension just run up her spine. And the stake she pulls out of her belt. She turns on Spike.
"Listen to me, Fangless. If it hadn't been for the little stunt you pulled, breakin' into the Magic Box, lettin' her read Giles' journals, she never woulda known about this Key biz. She'd be a happy, healthy and bratty little teenager, just like she'd been before. So, it's really rich you tryin' to blame me and Buffy for your mess. I oughta take this" She holds up the stake," and dust you right here, right now."
"Sod off, Slayer. You don't have the goolies for it. 'specially since I'm right. Why was the bitty bit out that night, anyway? If you were doin' such a bang-up job lookin' out for her, how'd she get out that window? Maybe I should've just let her wander about , run into all sorts of nasties as there are at night around here?"
"So, it didn't like hit you that maybe breakin' into the Magic Box wasn't the right thing to do? Maybe she shouldn't be nosin' around there?"
Faith asks sardonically." Of course, look who I'm askin'"
' Nice, slayer. But maybe if you and the bitty slayer had included the little bit more in what you were doin', maybe if you hadn't treated her like some kinda bother, maybe she wouldn't a felt like she had to sneak around to find stuff out" Spike shoots back.
"Right. It's all for Dawnie's sake. What you did. You piece of crap" Faith says, her anger rising" I know what you're doin' here Spike. You don't give a crap about Dawn. All you care about is gettin ' in B's pants!" Faith spits at him.
If Spike could flush, he would've. " That's not true!! I care about the nibblet!"
Faith gives him a Yeah, right look. She starts walking away.
"I do. I like the little bit. At least she doesn't treat me like somethin' you scrape off your shoe, like you and Buffy do!" Spike yells after her, trotting to catch up." You two cocked this whole thing up, and now you want to blame me. Well, it's just not so!"
Faith turns on him, and grabs him by the coat, lifting Spike off the ground. " Listen to me, William" Faith sneers his name." This isn't Buffy you're talkin' to. I can see what's what. I can see the way you look at her. I'm not blind. I recognize when someone's got it bad for her, havin' it bad for her myself." Faith says. She growls at him. " Back off, dead boy. She's mine. Got it?"
Spike smirks down at her. " Jealous a bit, are we?" He mocks.
" Of you? Hardly." She throws him, and he lands hard on his butt. " Listen, Dead boy. This isn't about you, me or Buffy. This is about Dawn. We gotta find her, before someone or something else does. If you wanna help, fine. Just keep your fuckin' mouth shut, and keep up. I don't have time to coddle you!" Faith turns, and stalks off.
Spike gets up, brushing himself off. He starts after the slayer, a small little smirk playing over his lips. He trots off to keep up with Faith.
He knows fear when he smells it.
~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~
"I'm not even real!" Dawn exclaims, looking to Ben for sympathy.
Ben smiles. He knows how sisters can be. " I've got a sister too, Dawn. Lots of time she treats me like I'm not real. You can't let Buffy get to you. She really does care about you"
"No, Ben. That's not what I mean. I'm not real. I'm… some kinda blob of energy or something. Some key. I don't exist. Buffy's not my sister, my mom's not my mom… it's all fake. All lies" Dawn says.
Ben stands up, and backs off. Oh, god. She's the key. What if Glory finds out? This is a disaster. Oh no… oh god NO!!!
"Dawn. Run. Get out of here. She's coming!" Ben shouts at Dawn. Dawn looks at him like he's nuts. She stands up, backing away. " RUN. She's coming. Don't ask how I know….I just do…RUN DAWN…RU…." But it's too late.
Before her eyes, Dawn sees Ben start to change. His whole body gets slimmer, and smaller. Then….Glory is there, standing before her.
"Hello there, little girl. Boy, I swear. Our Benny's quite the perv these days. He's goin after them younger and younger." She smiles her less than reassuring smile at Dawn. " God, what is this I'm dressed in, anyway? Cotton… how…common!" She walks over to Ben's locker, and opens it. She pulls out a dress, silk of course. After removing Ben's hospital garb, she slips into the dress. " Ahhh…silk. Now, there's a fabric!" She walks back over to Dawn.
"Hey, don't I know you?" She asks Dawn. She's trying to remember her.
"N-N- No.." Dawn replies, terrified.
" Yes I do" She says, puzzling over it. The light bulb flashes in her head. Her smile widens." Oh, yeah. You're …uh…what's that slayer's name? Muffy? No… Bunny!… no… Buffy. That's it. You're Buffy's sister, aren't you?" Glory smiles at her.
Dawn gulps.
"Come here, sweetie. You 'n I gotta little talking to do" Glory grabs her, and pulls her closer." Your sister has something of mine, and I want it back. And I bet you know where it's at, don't you?"
"W-What's that?" Dawn asks, nervous.
"My key, baby. She's got my key. And I want it back" Glory says.
KEY! Dawn thinks. Oh my god! What if she finds out I'm the key? She pales a little (Yes, observant reader. There's a mojo going on here. Glory has a power that wipes out people's memory of her changing into Ben, or visa versa. ). She's gotta stall her somehow…find a way to escape.
"Key? What's it look like?" Dawn asks." Maybe I can tell you , If I know"
"Quit stalling, kid. You know very well what it looks like. Tell me. I'd hate to have to eat your brains…no, well, that's a lie. I'll probably do that anyway. I'm feeling a bit peckish, you know? But… tell me" Glory squeezes Dawn's hand…hard!
Dawn screams!
~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~
Buffy and the rest of the scoobies(minus Faith and Spike, who're still sweeping the cemeteries) hook up outside Sunnydale General.
Buffy is near panic mode. They've covered most of Sunnydale, and still no sign of Dawn. What if she's dead somewhere. Or hurt? Or…what if Glory has her? Oh, god…this is all her fault, she's thinking. If only I'd followed her right up. If only I'd paid more attention. If only….
Stop it , Buffy. No time for that now. You still haven't checked here. There are still places to check. She pulls herself together, and leads the other Scoobies inside.
They head for the admissions desk, to find out if she's been admitted. They are torn; on one hand, they want to find Dawn, and hope she's in this hospital…alive. On the other hand…well, you get it. They don't want to think about that hand.
They're just getting to the desk when they hear a scream.
"Buffy!" Willow says. Her face looks worried." That sounds like…"
DAWN!!! Without thinking, Buffy turns towards where she heard the scream come from. The scream is repeated, and she starts running towards the Men's locker room. The Scoobies follow at her heels.
"Hey, you can't go in there!" A guard attempts to block her entry.
"Are you deaf? That's my sister screaming!" Buffy says. She doesn't pause, but knocks the guard out of the way, and bursts into the locker room.
She sees Glory, and Dawn. Glory has hold of Dawn, and appears to be trying to hurt her. Buffy sees red, and attacks, not even pausing to think. She's on Glory faster than fleas on a dog, and is punching and kicking her for all she's worth. Glory, taken by surprise, lets go of Dawn and faces Buffy. She's knocked back a few times, not ready to fight. She's still in shock that anyone would dare hit her!
"Dawn? RUN!" Buffy says, attacking Glory. Dawn doesn't need a second warning. As soon as Glory lets go of her, she's running. Giles, along with Xander, get her out of the room.
Buffy is still attacking Glory, but Glory is ready for her now. She starts hitting back, and Buffy finds herself flying against the lockers. She kicks out, and gets a kick on Glory's hip, which knocks her back a little. But Glory starts in to attack.
Willow, with Tara, is muttering close at hand. They're doing a chant, a precursor to a spell. As Glory is hitting on Buffy, they come to the end of the chant. Buffy ducks, and moves away, Glory's hand going through the space where she was, and through the metal of the locker doors. She extricates her hand. But at that moment, Willow runs up to her, throws some glitter over her, and holding Tara's hand, yells " BEGONE!"
Mystical energy begins to swirl around Glory. She looks confused, and gets out " What the hell?" just before she magically disappears from the room!
Willow's eyes roll up in her head, and she faints. Tara, concerned, kneels next to her lover, trying to revive her.
Buffy, worse for wear, stands up. She feels she's gone 15 rounds with the heavyweight champion…of the universe. She shakes off her aches and soreness, and goes over to where Willow is lying prone on the floor.
"Tara, is she ok?" Buffy asks, looking at Willow. She doesn't like this one bit.
"She'll be ok, Buffy" Tara reassures her. " It's just that this spell is very taxing. It takes a lot of mystical energy".
Buffy looks around, seeing Glory is gone. To say she's amazed is an understatement.
"Wh-What did you do to her?" Buffy asks, a bit shaken. Willow is starting to come around. She groans.
"W-W-We did a transport spell on her" Tara replies. She sees Willow beginning to stir, and is relieved. "W-We sent her away from here!"
" How far away?" Buffy asks, amazed. She didn't think Willow or Tara were this advanced.
"Not too far" Willow whispers, hoarse. She's still recovering from the spell. " We're not that powerful" She smiles at Tara. Tara hugs her close.
"Doesn't matter. She's gone for now, and Dawn is safe. Thanks guys" Buffy hugs Tara, then Willow. Both the slayer and the witch groan. That so hurts! But they smile. Buffy helps Tara with Willow, and help her out of the room.
The three of them meet the rest of the Scoobies in the lobby of the hospital. Seeing Buffy, Dawn hangs her head and bites her lip. She knows she so gonna get it now!
"Do you have her?" Buffy asks Tara. Tara nods, and holds onto Willow as Buffy breaks away. She goes over to Dawn.
Dawn stands there, bracing for the scolding she's going to receive. So, imagine her surprise when Buffy just pulls her into her arms, and kisses her forehead and cheeks. Dawn can feel Buffy's tears on her cheeks. She looks at Buffy, and sees her eyes spilling tears, her lips trembling. Dawn feels her own tears coming, and clings to Buffy.
At that moment, Faith, followed by Spike, walks up. She hangs back, seeing Dawn is safe, and that Buffy and her are having a sisterly moment. She smiles, relieved that Dawn is safe, and so is Buffy.
Spike, standing next to her, says quietly " Right, then. The little bits back."
Faith hears the relief in his voice. Despite the little dust-up they had earlier, she has to admit that Spike seemed to genuinely be concerned about Dawn, and had really tried to help find her. He'd even helped her dust a few vamps they'd met along the way. She turns to him, and starts to speak.
"Look, Spike, about earlier…." She says, but halts. Spike is gone, faded into the night. She is puzzled , but shrugs her shoulders. Who can ever figure him out?
Buffy releases her hug on Dawn, and looks at her. " I should be so mad at you!" She starts, seeing Dawn tense up. She continues " But I'm not. I'm just glad you're ok. You're ok, right? She didn't hurt you, did she?" Dawn holds up her wrapped hand. Buffy's expression hardens.
"I'm gonna kill her!" Buffy says, her anger rising. " I'm gonna make that bitch pay for this. I promise, Dawnie!"
"It's ok, Buffy. She just sprained it. No broken bones" Dawn smiles. Then frowns. "Am I in like…mega trouble?"
"Mom did say something about grounding you til you're 25" Buffy says, giving Dawn a sidelong glance. Dawn gulps. She throws an arm around Dawn and hugs her. " Kidding Dawn. I think , considering what you've been through, you might get a free pass on this one." Dawn looks relieved.
" Do you think she'll make cookies, too?" Dawn asks.
"Don't push it, Dawn!' Buffy growls playfully at her. Looking up, she sees Faith waiting at the edge of the group, and smiles at her. Faith smiles back. Coming over, she puts an arm around the smaller slayer's waist, kinda supporting her. She can see that Buffy is in none too good of shape herself. ' Oh, well,' she thinks to herself,' guess I'll have to do some patching up on her. Hmmm….then , of course, I'm gonna have to kiss all those boo-boos to make 'em all better….' A small evil grin breaks out on her face. Buffy, seeing the grin, asks 'What' with her eyes. Faith just grins. Buffy rolls her eyes. Oh, boy!
High above Sunnydale, in the night sky, a very disoriented Glory appears. She looks around. She sees she's NOT on terra firma. She just manages to get out " Oh…crap!" when she starts to fall.
Down at the entrance of the hospital , Dawn points up into the sky.
"Hey, guys. Look. A falling star" She points to it "Make a wish!"
They all wish Glory would go to Hell.
NOW!

~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~

At Glory's penthouse, there was an air of urgency starting to build. The minions had cast the bones… the time was drawing closer to the time when the universe would be aligned for Glory's return to her dimension. This was foretold in prophecy when she was cast out by the other Gods in her dimension. Soon she would be free of this mortal plane, soon she would return in triumph to her own elevated status. Soon she would have vengeance on those who'd trapped her here. Soon. Provided she found the one missing piece….
"MY KEY!!!" She screams, her anger rolling off her in waves. " What does it take to get you worthless pieces of flesh to do one simple task. FIND MY KEY!!!"
"Most Holy and Sacred light of our life" the minion grovels at her feet." We've scouted the slayer. Her friends. All of it. We've found nothing. They have it so well hidden, we cannot find it."
At that moment there was a disturbance at the door. Jinx, the head minion, stumbled into the suite. He'd obviously been hurt…perhaps mortally. In his pain, he overlooked the usually obsequious deference he paid his God. She glared at him as he stumbled to her, and sank to his knees… whether in pain or fright, we're not sure. Looking up at his god towering over him, his eyes glazed from the raw pain of his wound, he speaks.
"Oh, Divine one" He begins. Glory looks askance at the minion. He's bleeding all over her carpeting. This better be good! Jinks continues, his voice weak with suffering" I have found…"
Glory is overjoyed. She kneels down beside the injured minion" YOU'VE DONE IT. MOST WONDERFUL MINION! YOU'VE FOUND MY KEY!" She's enraptured in her joy. She even deigns to touch the scabby flesh sack. Her joy knows no bounds.
"…information about the key" He groans. He knows he's going to pay for not having the key with him.
Her face contorts in anger " WHAT? You come here and bleed all over my carpet, and THAT'S IT? Information?" She kicks him in her rage. Jinks groans in pain, rolling away from the God. She continues." IF I wanted information, I'd call 411. I … want… my … key!"
"Most revered and adored Glorificus" Jinks gasps out, the pain from the kick adding to his misery." I… spoke to Ben…"
"BEN? What does HE have to do with this?" Glory growls. Ben, the bane of her existence…and the other soul sharing this miserable sack of flesh she uses in this pitiful existence.
Ben. The name made her shake in frustration and anger. She'd been locked to this "Ben" for the entire 25 years ( seems like an eternity, she thought) she'd been trapped here. It was in his body she'd been imprisoned. It'd taken years, nearly into his adolescence, before she found a way to escape from her prison. Being trapped inside a there all that time had been…horrifying.
The problem was, she couldn't remain free. Her energy drained, and she disappeared back into that dark place in his brain where she existed. It was awful there. The noise, the filth…the things that crawled through, and touched her holy presence. She couldn't think there, it was too awful. It drove her mad( Oh, yeah, she wasn't already the cover girl for Psycho monthly, I suppose?). In her prison, she was unaware of the physical world around her. There was only darkness and noise…and the things. She couldn't escape it. She couldn't hide. All she could do was wait til she could break out. She endured, somehow, the torture of being there. But as the time grew closer, she was able to break out more and more. Soon she would shed this world, and this prison, disposing the persona of Ben as she ascended to her rightful place in her dimension. Soon. But NOT WITHOUT HER KEY!!!.
"Ben…let slip…about the key" Jinks wheezed, talking becoming harder.
"What , you moron? What did he say?" Glory goaded him. God, these minions are so damned troublesome…and fragile!
"The key. It's an innocent. The… monks made it human!" He gasps out.
Glory stares at him. Understanding breaks out over her face. A HUMAN. Of course. It was so cunning. Hide the key in plain sight. By making it human! But who? It had to be someone the slayers knew. Someone important to them, that they'd want to protect it at all costs.
Very clever, monks. But not clever enough. This narrowed the field down a lot. She felt the joy surging through her. She looked at the scabby demon minion rolling on the floor, and called to the others.
"Quick, fix this one up. I want to hear all about it again…without the blood and messy stuff!. Then, there are new assignments for all of you. Yes, my children. We're close now, really close. Soon, we'll have the key!"
As the minions pulled the injured Jinks out to restore him, Glory sat herself on her favorite divan, awaiting her minions to return with Jinks. A smile, a really scary smile, played across her face.
Close. It was so close she could taste it. She nearly drooled at the thought. Soon she would be away from this miserable place.
Freedom. It tastes sweet.

~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~&~~
- 17
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Seasons of Faith