"Faith," Willow greeted, walking into the living room and joining the younger woman on the sofa.

"No."

"I didn't say anything!"

"But you're goin' to and the answer's no," Faith said, her attention not leaving the television.

The redhead pouted. "But, Faith, it's a good deed. You do good deeds now, right?"

Faith glanced at Willow, her curiosity piqued. "A good deed?"

Willow nodded. "One more to add to your list," she said, smiling encouragingly.

Faith was quiet for a moment, lost in thought. "What is it?" she asked finally, trying to look uninterested.

Smiling brightly, knowing she had won, Willow turned sideways to face the Slayer. "Well, today is Valentine's Day, and... Buffy's all alone."

Faith frowned, not understanding. "So?"

"So are you."

"I ain't alone. I can go out whenever I please and pick up anyone I want."

Willow's smile dropped a little. "You... could. Or... you could take Buffy out."

Faith's eyes widened. "Are you nuts? Why would I do that?"

"Faith, you and I both know how you feel about Buffy," Willow said softly, not wanting to spook the brunette. "Valentine's Day gives you an excuse to ask her out."

"If I ask B out, she'll likely kick me into next year, Red." Losing interest in the conversation, Faith turned her attention back to the television.

"But... but what if you disguise the fact it's a date?" Willow asked, not ready to drop her idea.

"Disguise it?"

"Yeah, you know, like... you both go out on patrol together and stumble across a... carnival."

"Carnival's not in town, Red."

"A... picnic beneath a tree."

"In the cemetery? Creepy."

Willow sighed, losing hope. "It's just... she's been so down lately, Faith. You know what she's like when she's down, she starts thinking she's doomed to be alone forever." She boldly took Faith's hand. "None of us like it when she gets like that, do we?"

"You want the house to yourself, don't cha?" Faith smirked. "Got romantic plans with Ken-doll?"

The redhead blushed. "That has nothing to do with it. Buffy is my best friend and I don't want her to be alone."

Faith turned her attention back to the television, thinking it over. Something about Buffy had always appealed to her, going back to their days in Sunnydale, Faith had been interested. But she wasn't stupid, she knew the blonde was not only out of her league, but straight as well. Buffy had never shown any signs of being interested in her, or any woman.

Sighing, Faith got to her feet and used the remote control to turn off the television. "All right, I have an idea. But you have to come with me, in case I get in trouble."

Green eyes widened. "Why would you get in trouble? What do you have planned?"

Grinning, Faith offered the redhead her hand. "Come with me and you'll find out."

Unsure and apprehensive, Willow took Faith's hand and allowed the Slayer to pull her to her feet. "It's not... illegal, is it?" she asked quietly.

"No. Trust me, Red. I think you'll like it." Faith dropped Willow's hand and headed for the door, the witch following her.

"Hey, babe," Kennedy called out, making her way downstairs. "Where you off to?"

"Uhh... I'm just going out with Faith. I'll be back soon." Willow looked at Faith, unsure. "We'll be back soon, right?"

Smirking, Faith wrapped her arm around the nervous woman's shoulders. "Real soon. Don't worry, Ken-doll, I'll bring her back in one piece."

* * * *

Willow followed Faith along the street, eyes darting about, trying to work out where they were heading and what Faith's plan was.

Since the implosion of Sunnydale, Faith had become one of the group, she had stuck around and fought the good fight; but she still had mad moments where the old Faith would shine through. That's what had Willow worried.

"Faith, it's not that I don't trust you, but you make me kinda nervous when you smirk and mention trouble. And now we're going somewhere and you won't tell me where, so, me being me can't help but worry..."

"And breathe," Faith interrupted. "Chill, Red. We're not goin' to get in trouble, I just... might need your mojo powers." Turning right down a side road, Faith finally came to a stop and pointed. "I was thinkin' of bringin' her here," she said of the Italian restaurant. "It's new and apparently serves up the best Italian food for miles. But, my guess is they're fully booked on Valentine's Day. So, I was thinkin'... that you with your mojo could magic us a reservation, seein' how this is all your idea."

Surprised at this tender side of the dark-haired Slayer, Willow could only gape at Faith.

Faith shifted from foot to foot, suddenly unsure of her idea. "Or... you know, if that's a crap plan..."

"No! No, no, no, it's a great plan!" Willow exclaimed loudly, drawing attention to them. "I just... you surprised me. I... I didn't think you were really into this and then bam, you surprise me with this."

"Yeah, well," Faith shrugged. "If I'm gonna do this, I may as well do it right."

Looping her arm through Faith's, a bright smile curling her lips, Willow started them walking towards the restaurant doors. "She'll be so surprised. And I bet she'll love it."

"Or it will completely backfire and she'll hate both of us."

"Positive thinking, Faith. Just be positive." Opening the front door, Willow stepped inside the restaurant and looked around. It was perfect for a romantic dinner, the lighting dim, the ambiance calming. Already, couples were out enjoying an early meal.

"Can I help you?" a smartly dress man asked, appearing in front of them.

"My friend here would like to make a reservation for tonight," Willow said politely.

The maître d' looked briefly at Faith, then back to Willow. "I'm sorry, we're fully booked. Today is after all Valentine's Day."

Willow started working her mojo. "Are you sure? Can you check your book?"

"Yes, I can check for you." He stepped behind his little podium and looked down at the reservation book. "Ah, it seems we do have a spot open. 8 p.m. Is that to your satisfaction?" he asked, looking at Faith.

"That's perfect, my man. Put it under Lehane," Faith told him, impressed with Willow's power.

The maître d' wrote Faith's name down. "Dinner for two?" he asked.

"That's right."

"Very good, signorina. I shall see you later."

Faith followed Willow back out onto the street and reached into her pocket for her packet of cigarettes. "I'm impressed, Red. You did good." Slipping a cigarette between her lips, she lit it and took a deep drag.

"Thank you, Faith. I like to do good deeds too," Willow smiled. They walked side by side, as they started making their way back to the house. "So, how do you plan on getting Buffy to the restaurant?"

"I don't have a solid plan yet, I'm working on it."

"You don't have a lot of time, Faith."

Faith blew out a smoke ring. "Don't need a lot of time, might just wing it and see what happens."

Startled, Willow's head whipped around in Faith's direction. "I... I uhh... I don't think that's a good idea, Faith. Not when it uhm... comes to you and Buffy."

Flicking away her cigarette, Faith sighed. "All right, fine. Ask me again when we get to the house."

* * * *

Standing in the kitchen an hour later, Faith stood opposite Willow, the pair alone for the time being. "Okay, Red. Hit me," the Slayer said, planting her feet securely.

"What? No!"

"Come on, Red, hit me and I'll tell B there's a demon on the loose," Faith explained. "Then I'll drag her out to hunt it down. There ain't no way she's coming out with me otherwise."

Despite knowing the brunette was right, Willow refused to resort to violence. "Well, I am not hitting you, Faith!"

"Ken-doll, hit me," Faith said to Kennedy, as she walked into the kitchen.

Kennedy punched Faith without asking questions, then continued on to the fridge for a bottle of water. "What?" she asked her girlfriend, seeing the look of disbelief on Willow's face. "Who am I to question Faith?"

"Am I bleedin'?" Faith asked, putting her fingers to her lip then checking for signs of blood. "I'm not bleedin'. Jesus, Kennedy, you hit like a girl!"

"Want me to hit ya again?" the younger Slayer asked.

"Yeah, I need a cut so it looks convincin'."

"What?"

"Look, your girl will fill you in later. Just hit me so I can put my plan into motion," Faith told her, not wanting Buffy or anyone else to walk in and ask what was going on. This time Kennedy split her bottom lip, making the story she was about to tell plausible. "Thanks, Ken-doll. Enjoy your evenin', love birds."

"What the hell is going on?" Kennedy asked, watching Faith leave the kitchen.

Faith ruffled her loose hair, making herself look dishevelled, then opened the front door and slammed it shut. She raced upstairs, taking them two at a time. "B! Buffy, you here?" she shouted out. "B?"

Buffy rushed out of her bedroom. "What is it, Faith?" She looked the brunette over as the other Slayer came into sight. "What happened?"

"Demon jumped me from nowhere. Fancy goin' huntin'?"

"Sure. Better clean that wound first, don't want you bleeding all over the place."

"No time, B. Demon will get away."

Buffy sighed. "Make time, Faith." She moved past the brunette and headed downstairs. "In your own time," she said sarcastically.

Grumbling under her breath about the blonde being difficult, Faith made her way into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. Kennedy had busted her bottom lip, but it wasn't all that bad. In fact, the wound had already closed. Running a face towel under the hot water tap, she dabbed at the drying blood on her chin, making sure she wiped it all away, before heading for the door. She wanted to look her best, even if this wasn't an official date.

"All right, B," Faith said, getting downstairs. "Let's move."

* * * *

Buffy silently followed Faith, green eyes barely taking note of her surroundings. She was feeling melancholic and couldn't make herself focus on the job at hand.

"It was somewhere around here," Faith muttered softly, knowing Buffy could hear her thanks to Slayer hearing.

"Maybe it's long gone, Faith."

"But we should look for it, B. It's dangerous. Just... came out of nowhere and attacked me. Good thing I was a Slayer," Faith replied, not liking Buffy's nonchalant attitude. "You don't want innocent people gettin' ambushed, do you?" Faith looked at the blonde, knowing that bringing up innocent lives would get Buffy on her side.

"Right, you're right." Buffy sighed and folded her arms. Valentine's Day and not only am I single, but I'm out hunting some demon. No romantic dinner for me, no girly movie in front of the television, no flowers... She sighed again. Stupid made up holiday. She followed Faith along the street and scowled when the brunette suddenly stopped in front of her with no warning. "What the hell, Faith?"

"Maybe you were right," the brunette said, looking into green eyes.

"I was?" Buffy frowned. "About what?"

"The demon being long gone."

"Right," Buffy nodded. "But don't feel bad or anything, Faith. You did the right thing in coming to get me when you realised you couldn't handle it alone."

Faith scowled, but begrudgingly nodded. "Yeah, right. So, uhh... I'm starvin', how about we get somethin' to eat?"

The blonde frowned. "What?"

"You hungry?"

"I... I guess I could eat."

Faith smiled her most charming smile and took Buffy's hand. "Great, let's go in here. Looks like it's open." She led the way inside the Italian restaurant she had visited earlier with Willow, before Buffy could protest, and walked up to the maître d', flashing a smile his way. "Hi, how you doin'?"

The smartly dressed man looked at her in distaste. "I'm sorry, signorina. We're fully booked tonight."

"Good thing I have a reservation then," Faith smirked. "Lehane. Table for two."

Not believing the brunette, the maître d' looked at his reservation book, running a manicured finger down the page and stopping in surprise when he found Faith's name. "I apologise. Please allow me to show you to your table."

"You planned this?" Buffy asked in disbelief. She turned around and headed for the door, intending on leaving.

"Wait, wait, wait," Faith called out, catching up to the blonde and putting a hand on her shoulder to stop her from leaving.

"What the hell is this, Faith? Why do you have a reservation here?"

"Look, I didn't plan this, B. Okay, I sort of did," she said, seeing the incredulous look Buffy shot her. "Red put me up to it."

"Willow! Why?"

"I guess she wanted the house to herself tonight. You know, for her and Ken-doll." She sighed. "You're alone, I'm alone, she figured we should be alone together. Come on, B, we both gotta eat, right?" She watched Buffy, not sure if the blonde was going to give her a chance. "Give me tonight, B. Tomorrow, we'll forget this ever happened."

Buffy looked into brown eyes, wanting to leave, not wanting to believe anything Faith was saying. But maybe it had been Willow's idea, she was part of a couple and she might very well want the house to herself. "All right," the blonde sighed. "But this isn't a date."

"Course not," Faith grinned, relieved Buffy was willing to stay. Turning back to face the waiting maître d', she smiled sheepishly. "Lead on."

The maître d' led them towards the back where a candle lit booth was, secluded from other diners and very cosy. Perfect for a romantic meal for two. Faith waited until Buffy was seated before sliding in opposite her, noticing the uneasy look on the blonde's face.

The maître d' handed them each a menu and smiled politely, as he was joined by a smartly dressed waiter. "This is Giovanni, he'll be your waiter this evening."

"Buonasera, signorinas," the handsome man greeted them, flashing his teeth as he smiled.

"I shall leave you in his capable hands," the maître d' said, before taking his leave.

"Can I get you something to drink before you order?" their waiter asked.

"I'll take a beer," Faith told him. "B?"

"A beer, Faith? Really?" Buffy scolded. She looked up at the waiting man. "I'll just have a soft drink, please." She waited until he left before scowling at Faith. "Should you really have a drink when there's some demon roaming around town? We still have to walk home yet."

"Relax, B. I'm not a lightweight, I can handle one beer." She opened her menu and started looking over what was available. "Do you fancy some wine?" she asked, her attention still on the menu she held.

"This isn't a date, Faith," Buffy replied.

"Who said anythin' about a date? People order wine with their meal all the time, B, and, I think you'll find wine goes well with good Italian food."

Feeling a little silly for overreacting, Buffy slowly nodded. "Wine would be nice," she said softly. "We should probably order first though, because different wines go better with different foods."

Faith blinked, not sure if that was true or not. She wasn't exactly a big wine drinker. "Uhh... right." Her eyes dropped back down to the menu. "Think I'll have the stuffed tomato to start and then the... ooh, steak." She grinned, looking over the top of the menu at Buffy. "I love steak."

Despite her best effort not to, Buffy found herself smiling at the brunette. She liked the softer side of Faith, she didn't get to see it often.

The waiter returned with their drinks. "Are you ready to order, or would you like a little more time?"

"I'm good to go. B?"

Buffy nodded. "Sure." She smiled up at the waiter. "We'll both have the Pomodori col Riso to start."

"An excellent choice," he told her, jotting the order down on his pad. "And for your mains?"

"A filetto marinato alla griglia for her and I'll have... the Orata al cartoccio, please."

"Both good choices. You shouldn't have too long a wait. If I can get you anything else, just give me a call."

"How about a good wine," Faith said, not liking the way he was looking at Buffy.

"To go with your meals, of course. For your steak, I can recommend a nice Chianti Classico Riserva Uggiano, a red wine from the Tuscany region. It has spicy, dark cherry flavours and a long lasting smooth finish, and compliments lamb or beef dishes. Or we have Barolo Castiglione, another red wine from the Piemonte region. It has a complex spicy, smoky savoury nose with generous meaty flavours..."

"I wanna drink it, not eat it, pal," Faith interrupted, wincing when Buffy kicked her under the table. "I'll take a glass of the first one."

"The Chianti," he repeated, making a note. "And for you, signorina, I can recommend a Canti Pinot Grigio Rose, a rosé from the Veneto region. It has delicate floral hints and is perfect any time. Or we have an Inycon Estate Pinot Grigio, a white wine from Sicily. It has tropical fruit aromas and a fresh lively aftertaste, and goes well with seafood dishes."

"That sounds great, thank you," Buffy smiled charmingly, shutting her menu and handing it back.

"So..." Faith said, once they were alone again. "I uhh... guess you're a flowers and chocolates kinda girl, right?"

"You going to run off and get me them if I say yes?" Buffy asked suspiciously.

Faith snorted. "No." That was a lie. She had been frantically trying to think of where she could find an open shop.

"Good, 'cause this isn't a date or anything. We're just... two women who are having dinner together because we've got nothing better to do tonight."

"Exactly," Faith nodded. "Though with the amount of times you keep saying date, I'm beginning to think you want it to be one," she grinned.

"As if," the blonde scoffed. "If I could be anywhere right now, it wouldn't be on a date with you, Faith."

"Ouch, Jesus, B, I get it all right. But I'm doin' a good deed here. Red wanted the house so she could have some alone time with her girl, who am I to deny her?"

Buffy picked up her glass and swirled her orange juice around, watching the liquid swirl within. "I always thought you were a get some get gone woman," she said softly. "Never pegged you for a romantic meal kinda girl."

"First time for everythin', B."

Green eyes found brown across the table. "But this isn't a date," she insisted, not so sternly this time.

Faith shook her head, a charmingly smile curling her lips. "Nope. You're just my... practise run. You know, for when I feel like datin' someone." Her smile widened when Buffy laughed, a sound she had always liked.

* * * *

Leaving the restaurant, Buffy had to admit that the night hadn't been awful, despite her best effort to hate everything about it. Faith had been charming and funny, the food had been delicious and the wine was giving her a small buzz, the whole evening was... perfect.

"Can I uhh... walk you home?" Faith asked nervously, playing with her jackets zip.

"We live in the same house," Buffy replied, rolling her eyes.

"We're goin' in the same direction then."

Laughing, Buffy felt comfortable enough to loop her arm through Faith's, and nestled against the brunette's side. "All right then."

Surprised, but not complaining, Faith smiled and they started walking towards the house they called home. After a great meal, she was craving a cigarette, but Buffy hated it when she smoked, so she told herself she could hold off until she was alone. This night had been about cheering Buffy up after all.

"Was there really a demon, Faith?" Buffy asked softly. "Or did you just tell me that to get me out of the house?"

"If I hadn't told you there was a demon on the loose, would you have come out with me?"

"No, probably not without a fight," Buffy answered honestly. "The cut lip and bruising?"

"Kennedy," Faith grumbled. "The first time she hit me, she didn't draw blood."

"So you let her hit you again?" Buffy laughed. "Wow, that's dedication to your good deed!"

"Yeah, she'll probably brag for a good long while," Faith chuckled. "The fact I let her hit me will be left out of course!"

"Of course," Buffy agreed.

Reaching the house, they stopped at the bottom of the steps, suddenly nervous and awkward. Neither was sure how they were supposed to end this, a handshake? A wave? A polite thank you?

"I... had a nice night, Faith. Thank you," Buffy said softly.

"You're welcome, B." Faith watched the blonde walk up the steps and head for the front door. "Hey, B..." She watched Buffy turn back to look at her, an inquisitive look on her face. "If uhh... if you're not doing anything this time next year, how about we do this again?"

Smiling warmly, Buffy walked back towards Faith. Stopping on the step above the brunette, she lowered her head and softly kissed plump lips briefly. "How about this Friday?" she asked, pulling back to look into surprised brown eyes.

Startled but pleased, Faith grinned. "It's a not-a-date date."

Laughing, Buffy turned and walked away, slipping inside the house before anything more could be said.

"Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all," Faith muttered to herself, eyes on the front door Buffy had slipped past. "Should probably thank Red." She walked up the steps. "Tomorrow, I'll thank her tomorrow." She stepped inside. "Hey, B?" she called out. "How do you feel about watchin' a movie?"

The End.