“Hey Giles,” Buffy said in greeting.

“Buffy. You sound...” His voice trailed off for just a moment before returning with more concern. “Are you alright?”

Giles may not have finished his thought, but Buffy could feel the shaking in her own voice. She had tried to steady herself and regain some form of control before talking to Giles, but nothing in her body was willing to calm down yet. “Yeah, I'm OK.” She watched her hand, clenching it into a fist in an attempt so steady her slightly trembling fingers.

“Thank heavens. And Faith?”

Buffy couldn't answer that question because she really didn't know. She looked over at Faith who had slumped to the floor next to the punching bag. Her back was slack against the wall, and her knees were tucked up close to her chest. Troubled eyes gazed at the laminated floorboards below her feet. Everything about her screamed exhaustion, and Buffy could hear the cry even from across the room.

“Buffy?” Giles prodded.

“She's here with me now.” She knew that wasn't exactly what Giles had asked, but it was the only thing she could be sure of. She lowered her voice. “Listen, I'm going to be here a while longer. I'll fill you in later, but for now I need you to keep tabs on the council.”

“Wesley is keeping in regular contact with them, and so far it would seem they've made little progress.”

“Good. Star sixty-nine this number and call me if anything changes.”

“Of course. The second we know anything, you will too.”

“Thanks, Giles.”

She hung the cordless handset back on its stand before taking a slow, steady breath. It didn't do her much good. Returning her focus to Faith, she wondered that, if that was the hard part, surely the easy part was pretty much due. She crossed the room to the statue-like girl and slid down to echo her position, only a small space separating them. She laid her head back against the wall in an attempt to relieve some of the tension from her neck and shoulders. Despite the earlier nap, she felt an overwhelming desire to close her eyes and let herself drift off again.

“Hey,” she said softly. Apart from asking to make a call, it was the first word she had said to Faith since their silent agreement to give it another shot. Or Faith's silent agreement; Buffy had all but become a rambling idiot.

“Yo,” came Faith's subdued reply.

Buffy wanted to know what was running through Faith's head, but she felt too uncomfortable to broach the subject. “So, it sounds like the council are getting nowhere fast. It'd probably be best if you kept a low profile though.”

“You mean hide.” There was no anger or accusation to be heard. In fact there was no emotion whatsoever. The energy that Buffy had always found in Faith had seemingly been worn away.

“Just keep out their way for a couple of days. Besides, I think you've had enough excitement for one year.”

Faith's gaze remained on the floor, missing the small smile Buffy offered. “Right.”

With Buffy's attempt to lighten the mood having little effect on Faith, she switched to a different approach. “It's probably best if we both keep out of sight for a while really. There's a good chance the police will be looking out for us as well, what with the breaking, and then the entering, and, well, you know. If no one recognises us maybe they'll think we were from out of town. Just a couple of drunk teens passing through.”

She realized the chance of that happening was pretty much zero, especially given her worryingly increasing number of run-ins with the police, but that wasn't really the point. She just wanted to show Faith that she wasn't alone; that whatever mess they were in, they were in it together.

“I wouldn't worry about that. It's already taken care of,” Faith said matter-of-factly.

Given Faith's previous stunted replies, Buffy hadn't expected much of a response, and she was caught off guard when it came. Alarm bells went off in her head. “What?” she blurted out. After the police had shown up, she had ran for the hills the first chance she had gotten. Now she wondered if Faith had done the same, or if – she tried to banish the thought. “Taken care of how?” she asked, careful to keep her voice even despite secretly dreading the answer.

“The boss knows someone high up in the force. Told them he'd take care of it personally.”

“Oh,” Buffy breathed in relief. Right, she thought, that actually kind of made sense. Her pulse felt like it had about doubled in the last thirty seconds, and it had already been beating far too fast. She was convinced Faith would be the reason she'd become the first Slayer to die of a heart attack.

Faith twisted her neck to look at Buffy, a puzzled expression on her face. It didn't stay long. She opened her mouth as if to speak but instead averted her gaze. Her shoulders seemed to sink farther as her eyes returned to the floor.

Buffy knew she'd put her foot in it. “No, Faith. I didn't mean – I just...” Damnit, she thought, her voice trailing off as she failed to find a convincing cover-up for the veiled accusation. Idiot, she scolded herself. Maybe it would be better if she just stopped talking. Like, forever.

“I know I haven't made the best choices,” Faith said, a sliver of strength returning to her voice. “I never wanted to end up here. Everything just...” Her brow furrowed. “Kept coming. It wouldn't stop. God, I just wanted it to stop.” She quietened for a moment, and her hands fidgeted on her knees. Buffy gave her time, and when Faith looked up there was a new found resolve in her eyes. “But I swear, Buffy, I haven't killed anyone. Not since...” The corners of her mouth twitched as she stopped mid-sentence, but her wide, pleading eyes remained locked on Buffy's.

“The accident,” Buffy finished softly.

Faith gave a small nod. Her mouth formed a brave smile that was lost before it could reach her eyes.

Buffy wasn't sure if getting that out had given Faith any form of relief, but it had certainly helped ease her own anxiety. She reached out and placed a hand on Faith's shoulder. Faith tensed at the contact, but Buffy didn't let that deter her, and she gave it a gentle squeeze.

“We'll get through this together, Faith. I promise.”

----------

Buffy sat on the kitchen counter alongside Willow, and Giles and Xander were stood nearby. She couldn't shake the feeling of guilt for leaving Faith by herself after what had happened, but she knew bringing Faith along would have been dangerous. They had to be careful until she could get the council to leave town. She'd told Faith as much, apologising even as she left, but she couldn't help but worry that Faith would think she was blowing her off. Again. She decided she would swing by Faith's that night after patrol to make sure everything was OK.

First though, with her mum away she had gathered the gang to her home. She suspected it would afford them more privacy to discuss things without risking another unwanted visit from Quentin and co. She had given everyone a very vague summary of the events with Faith – essentially telling them that they had talked it out, which she figured was more or less the truth.

The main agenda for the meeting was solving their mayor problem. They needed to stop him before he had a chance to use the Shards of Ursula, and every day they gave him put people's lives at risk.

“The question is: how?” Giles asked. “Even if we find a way to reverse whatever it is the mayor has done to make himself impervious to damage, we'd still need to get close to him, and I suspect he won't make that easy.”

“Well two slayers are better than one,” Xander pointed out. “Especially when one of them has an all-access pass to the dark side.”

“No. I don't think pitting Faith against the mayor is a good idea,” Buffy said, taking an instant dislike to the idea.

Giles look at her questioningly. “Buffy, the mayor is incredibly dangerous as it is, and he clearly has at least part of the vampire populous on his side. If Faith is on board then we could really do with all the help we can get.”

“I know, but the last thing I want is for her to think I'm using her. Believe me, if she offers to help then I will gladly take it, but I can't ask her to do this.”

Giles gave a small nod. “Then I guess we'll have to be enough.”

She gave a Giles an appreciative smile, glad that he wasn't going to push the idea, and she replied with certainty. “We always are.”

“OK, so we have us, but what exactly are us – I mean we – going to do?” Willow asked. “Don't get me wrong, storming city hall sounds cool in theory, but aren't we all going to end up kinda, you know, in jail?”

“Willow's right,” Giles said. “We can't risk a full on assault. Our best bet is to draw the mayor out. Somewhere away from the public eye.”

“Except we don't have a whole lot that he wants. He already has his magical lamps,” Xander said. His eyebrows rose. “Hey, maybe we can offer him Wesley. I mean who can resist a tasty, late night soul snack?”

Buffy smiled at the thought of using Wesley as bait, but she knew Xander was joking and that the mayor wouldn't take risks for something he needed in bulk. “We have me,” she said simply.

“I'm not sure I follow,” Giles said as his brow furrowed.

“The mayor is almost home and dry right? And he knows no one else in town is going to get in his way. So if I arrange to meet him one on one do you think he'll pass up the chance to take me out of the picture?”

Giles didn't look happy at that suggestion, but it was Xander who got in first. “Ahh yes,” he said in mock thought. “The old 'throw yourself into the fire and see how badly you burn' plan. A time honoured classic among dead people!” His voice rose at the end, nailing home his point.

Buffy gave him a disapproving look, but the phone rang before she could expand on her idea. “Sorry, must be mom check up time,” she said. She hopped off the counter and made her way into the hallway to the receiver. “Hello?”

“Hey boss.”

“Faith?” Buffy asked, instantly confused. She had left Faith her home number in case of, well, anything really, but she hadn't expected a call so soon, and the greeting was a little odd even for Faith. “Is everything OK?”

“We're on the way to pick up that package for you now. Hanger six right?”

That didn't make a whole lot more sense. “Package? What package? There's a package?”

“OK, just checking. I know this is important, and I didn't want to screw it up.”

Buffy's brow furrowed. She wondered if she'd pushed Faith into some sort of mental breakdown. “Huh? Faith, what's going on?”

“We'll be there in five. That'll give us ten minutes to set up before they land.”

Realization was slowly sinking in, and worry matched Buffy's confusion. “Are you OK? Who are you with?”

“Don't worry, boss. Between me and the vamps, they won't know what hit them.”

“Airport, right? Hanger six. I'll be there as soon as I can. Just...” She frowned, trying to think. She wanted to say something helpful, but she still wasn't exactly sure what was happening. “Try and stall them or something.”

“Right, boss, I'll pay more attention next time.” There was silence on the other end for a couple of beats. “Sorry.”

The apology seemed unnecessary, and Buffy wasn't sure if Faith was trying to be convincing to her present company or if it was actually aimed at her, but she erred on the side of caution. “This isn't your fault, Faith. Just be careful.”

The connection went dead, and Buffy hung up on her end as well. She turned to return to the kitchen, but Giles, Willow and Xander were already stood in the doorway as they eyed her questioningly.

“Giles. Airport. Now,” she said as she moved for the stairs.

“What's going on?” Giles asked.

She wasn't exactly sure herself, but she knew enough. “Faith might be in trouble. I need to grab some supplies, but I'll meet you in the car.”

----------

“Come on, Giles,” Buffy urged. “Whatever's going down, it's going down right now!”

“And I'm going as fast as I can, but this isn't exactly a people carrier,” Giles said. “I don't think it's ever had this much weight in it.”

“Hey!” Willow and Xander simultaneously objected from the back.

Giles rolled his eyes. “How about we let me focus on the driving, and you three worry about what to do when we get there.”

“If we ever get there,” Buffy muttered, drawing a wry look from Giles.

----------

The car pulled in at the airport almost twenty minutes after Faith had made the call. Buffy was half way out the door before it had even stopped, and the rest of the group followed almost as quick. Sticking to the plan, they lagged behind ready to stop any vampires who tried to flee. Whatever Faith had been sent to collect for the mayor, Buffy wasn't letting it leave with anyone but her.

The airport wasn't huge, and at her brisk pace Buffy reached the outside of hanger six a minute later. It was nestled over in the back corner – the perfect choice for shady dealings, she thought. She rounded the corner and looked inside, making out three bodies laid on the ground outside of a small private plane. She broke into a run, slowing down only when she was close enough to discern that none of them were Faith. Or, also to her relief, human. The last thing she wanted was for Faith to take another human life and end up in who-knows-what frame of mind.

The bodies were sprawled out together right next to the plane, suggesting that they had been hit hard and fast as soon as they landed. Her eyes fell on the hand of one of the demons, and she scrunched up her face. It was laid a foot away from where it should rightfully have been attached.

Frustrated, she turned away from the scene. She was too late. Faith had gone. The vampires had gone. The package – whatever it was – had gone. She moved quickly to the hanger exit, almost running into her friends as they came around the corner.

“Anything?” Willow asked hopefully.

“No,” Buffy said. Why hadn't Faith given her more warning? “Damn it.” She walked away from the group, giving herself space to think. She hadn't seen anyone on the way in, but she could have easily missed them if they'd left by a different route. Or maybe the plane had landed earlier than expected, and Faith and friends were long gone before she'd even arrived.

Something on the ground caught her attention. At first glance it had looked like oil, but she'd seen enough of the substance before to realize it was something else. Blood. Only a few drops, but they were in more of a rough line than a clump. Her eyes followed the direction of the droplets, and there were several more a couple of metres ahead. Looking all the way along in the same direction, her eyes landed on a single path that lead between two warehouses.

“This way,” she called behind her. She took off quickly, not waiting for any response. She passed more blood as she approached the walkway, and she didn't slow when she reached it. A stack of barrels stored against the side of the building almost entirely blocked the path, but she nimbly dodged past them without missing a step.

Out on the other side she came into view of a group heading away from her. She counted six in total, including Faith who was leading the way. “Bingo”, she said to herself. She looked back to find that there was nobody behind her yet. There were more vampires than she had expected, but she kept moving, unwilling to risk letting them get away while she waited for the others to catch up.

The open area offered nothing in the way of cover, leaving her with little choice but to take a more direct approach – running straight at them. The vampire at the back turned as she drew close. It growled, gathering the attention of the rest of the group.

“Hey guys, got room for one more?” Buffy asked as she wound down to a stop.

The vampire that had spotted her was the first to run forward, and she thrust a small bottle into its face. It roared in pain as the smashed glass released the contents, and it swung out one arm even as the other tried to wipe the holy water from its eyes. She telegraphed the attack easily, grabbing its arm and flipping it on to its back. It was too busy scratching at its eyes to see the stake that she drove through its heart.

None of the other vampires seemed overly keen to go next, and they stood in place as they looked at each other anxiously.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Faith asked. “Or should I tell the boss he needs a new crew?”

At once the four remaining vampires surged forward, apparently more scared of either Faith or the mayor than of Buffy. The first to reach her ran straight into the toe of her highly placed boot. That was quickly followed by a backhand that sent it stumbling away to one side. She aimed a roundhouse kick at the next to arrive, and would have taken it clean out were it not for the third charging right into her. The two of them were sent tumbling to the ground, with the snarling vampire landing on top. It tried to pin her arms to the ground, but she brought her knee up hard into its stomach before shoving it off. She flipped back to her feet only to receive a hard kick to her side, and she had to dodge back a few steps to avoid a second.

“A little help would be nice,” she said, looking over to Faith for support. The girl simply stood there, her face expressionless, and Buffy's brow furrowed.

The circling vampires left her with no time for contemplation. With one in front and another to each side, she turned to find the last sneaking up from behind. Jumping forward, she raised her boot straight into its chin, snapping its head back and sending it reeling. From the left, one vampire caught hold of her arm, and before she could knock it off another grabbed her from the right.

“Faith!” she yelled as she struggled to shake them off. She really felt the hard knock to the back of her head, and she let out a small moan as she found herself trying to shake away stars.

The vampire in front grinned as it moved toward her once more. “I've always wanted to taste a slayer.”