Learning Curve
by rebelrsr
Chapter Twenty
[reviews]
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and lots of people in expensive suits. I'm not making any money here, just trying to create a happier Buffyverse for my favorite characters.
Spoilers, etc.: I altered the timeline of "The Yoko Factor," "Primeval," and Angel the Series "Sanctuary" with reckless abandon. It's mostly AU from here. Thanks to the best beta crew: Desirata41, Zenithar, and Zigpal I couldn't do it without you.
A/N: Character thoughts are enclosed by **. Flashbacks are enclosed by //.
Archiving: By permission only.
The four girls clattered down the stairs, laughing at Tara's reaction to the brunette Slayer's comment. "C'mon, T. I didn't mean nothing, honest," Faith pleaded. She absently rubbed the spot the blonde witch had smacked.
"Oh, you're not getting off that lightly, Slayer," her witch threatened.
"I'd watch out if I were you, Faith," Buffy joked. "Tara sounds really scary."
The younger Slayer snuck another glance at Tara. Despite the glower twisting her features, the blonde's blue eyes sparkled with laughter. She winked when she caught Faith peeking at her. Relaxing, the young girl told the other Slayer, "She is, B. Damned if the witch didn't tie me to the bed and have her wicked way with me."
"Faith!" Tara smacked the brunette on the same arm she'd punished earlier. "Would you please just stop!"
Buffy and Willow were leaning against each other, giggling madly as the quartet burst into the kitchen.
***
The group sobered quickly once they sat down to breakfast. Game faces replaced gaiety as the Scooby gang prepared themselves for battle. "OK, guys, what's the plan?" Xander asked.
"Yeah, B, what's the plan?" Faith seconded.
The older Slayer frowned. "Well, we need to find a way into the Initiative," she began.
"Hey, baby. This isn't really my area of expertise. How about I clean up while you masterminds make your plans?" Willow wrinkled her nose. "It was nice to have clean clothes and get some sleep, but I haven't showered in a couple of days."
"Wow! That's what that smell is." Xander grinned goofily.
"Sure, Will. We'll just hammer out some details and get the equipment together while you shower." Buffy hesitated. Blushing slightly, the blonde dropped a quick kiss on her witch's lips. "Don't be long, OK?"
Nodding, the redhead hurried from the kitchen and jogged up the stairs.
Once her girlfriend had gone, the Slayer turned back to the gathered Scoobies. "It'll be easiest to get in through Lowell House. There's an elevator from the main floor of the house into the lab."
"Buff?" Xander raised his hand as if he were in school. At the blonde's questioning look, he said, "Elevators are a big security risk. I'm betting they'll have locked the controls and made the cars inaccessible."
The Slayer stared at her friend in shock. "It's really the only way in, Xan. The sewer entrance was sealed off a few weeks ago."
"I brought some climbing equipment," Giles put in. Seeing the gang looking at him, he explained, "I thought perhaps we might have to climb down one of the old access tunnels under the University."
"Whatever the reason, G-Man, it was a nice save." Faith smiled at the older man. "What about once we get there?"
"We sneak into an armed military base to a super secret lab and kick Adam's ass," Buffy summed up.
"Right up my ally, B."
"OK, then. Let's get moving." Buffy led the gang out of the room. The weapons chest in her bedroom closet yielded several stakes, a hand axe, and a couple of short swords. Carrying the arsenal back downstairs, the blonde Slayer dumped her armful into a large duffel bag. Giles added a large gourd, a spell book, and what looked like mountain climbing gear.
Faith stepped up and grabbed the heavy bag, looping the strap over her head and shoulder. "So, once Red comes back down, what's next?"
"I'm here, Faith," Willow said from the bottom of the stairs. "Now we go find Adam and explain that you don't get to beat up on my girlfriend without the Scoobies returning the favor."
***
Buffy opened the door to Lowell House and waited for the rest of the gang to join her inside. Usually, the faux frat house teemed with off duty soldiers pretending to be college students. But the large house was eerily silent and empty. "OK. The entrance to the underground base is this way." She walked quickly through the main room and down a hallway. Stopping in front of a large mirror, the senior Slayer turned to face the six people committed to the fight.
"OK, guys, game faces. We're going in." She lashed out with a booted foot, shattering the mirror. Behind the broken glass lay an empty elevator shaft.
Faith dropped the duffel bag on the floor and quickly unloaded the climbing ropes and gear. It took a bit of Slayer strength to mount anchoring pitons in the floor of the hallway, but the gang quickly kitted out after that. Faith and Willow were the first two to begin the descent into the Initiative. The brunette Slayer was nervous as they rappelled slowly into the dimly lit shaft. It was too dark to see the pair of climbers above them.
About halfway down, the redhead's foot slipped from the wall, and the witch squeaked as she banged into the side of the elevator shaft. Faith reached over, gripping the line tightly, making sure Willow didn't continue to swing. After a few attempts, the older girl managed to get both feet planted firmly against the wall. Glancing at her companion, the junior Slayer asked quietly, "You doing OK, over there?"
"Super. What was I thinking using stairs all this time?" the redhead responded.
A few more minutes passed in uncomfortable silence. "Red... I mean, Willow?"
"No, really, Faith. It's not as scary as I thought." Willow had a death grip on the line in front of her and panted slightly from the exertion.
For just a second, the Slayer contemplated remaining silent. "That's good. Um, but it wasn't really what I wanted to talk about." Seeing the wide-eyed look the witch was giving her, Faith concentrated on her boots as they scrabbled for purchase on the slick surface of the wall. "I just —" She blew out a frustrated breath. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I hate how messed up things got last year."
Willow opened her mouth to respond, and the younger girl braced in anticipation. "Ya know, Faith, it wasn't entirely your fault."
"Huh?"
The redhead giggled at the look on the Slayer's face. "Don't think I'm letting you off the hook, though. Still mad, here." Unwisely, the young witch took her lead hand off the fixed rope and waved it at the other girl. Realizing what she'd done, Willow paled and quickly returned the errant hand to the rope. "Being held at knife point and threatened isn't something easily forgotten."
Faith basked in a tiny bit of hope. *So Red might be able to forgive me? Maybe she'll stop trying to turn me into a crispy shell?* "Yeah. About that whole knife scene...It wasn't anything personal, really. I wouldn't have killed you."
"Could have fooled me."
"It was supposed to, Willow." *Damn, Red always did push my buttons.* Taking a deep breath, Faith continued, "Look, the Boss was getting real unhappy with you. I knew B was gonna come after you, so I was tryin' to make sure none of the Mayor's bully boys tried to do the Boss a favor by killin' his biggest headache."
The usually talkative redhead was silent for a minute, thinking about the explanation. "OK. Maybe I could have misinterpreted the whole thing with the knife. But what about the big fight with Buffy? You tried to kill her," she accused, furious at the memory.
If the brunette had had a way out of the elevator shaft, she would have disappeared. "About that...well, see, I..." This wasn't as easy to talk about. "Ah, hell, Red. I wasn't any threat to your girlfriend," she finally blurted out. Knowing she had to say this before her brain convinced her to shut up, she rambled on. "The reason I knew B was throwing the fight in the Church was because I'd done the same thing that time at the apartment. I'd hit bottom so hard, Red, I wasn't sure which way was up anymore. Right or wrong, I got B so mad 'cause I wanted her to just help me stop the pain. I fucked everything up from the time I got off the train in SunnyD. That night on the roof, I was hoping to get B to kill me." A single tear slipped down her cheek as a vision of Buffy's face, twisted in anger, filled her mind. "She stabbed me, but it wasn't enough to finish the job. And, when the knife went in, I knew I couldn't let her kill me. She wasn't a murderer. I jumped off the building on my own."
When Faith fell silent, Willow mulled over the younger girl's story. There was a small part of the witch screaming, *She's lying. You can't trust her.* The larger part that was just Willow, friendly hacker and novice witch, finally looked at the events of her senior year in high school and saw that none of the Scoobies had been blameless. She relinquished her hold on the lead rope, and grabbed the Slayer's nearest arm "Faith, all of us help screw things up last year. I-I don't know that I can forget, but I think forgiving is an option." The relief in the younger girl's brown eyes caught Willow by surprise. Needing to reinforce her message, she awkwardly leaned over and caught the brunette in a tight hug. Unfortunately, releasing the fixed rope with both hands sent the entwined girls hurtling down the elevator shaft.
"Falling now," Willow stated unnecessarily. Adrenaline surged and she sought a spell to keep both of them from certain disaster. Finding an incantation that seemed helpful, the witch began to chant as her sneakers touched the floor. A little deflated that she hadn't gotten to save the day, she snuck a glance at her companion. The junior Slayer still seemed shaken; although, Willow wasn't sure if that was from the fall or the earlier discussion. Launching herself across the tiny space, she latched onto the brunette.
After stiffening at the friendly attack, Faith gingerly returned the embrace.
Seconds later, Tara and Buffy joined them at the bottom of the climb. Tara smirked, seeing her Slayer's unease at the hug. The senior Slayer decided it was time for a little payback. "So, Faith, what's with snuggling with my girlfriend?" she growled.
"Oh, ah, hey, B. It was all Willow. She just kinda grabbed me." Silently cursing, the brunette tried to move away from the clinging witch. "Look," she tried waving hands and arms trapped beneath Willow's. "No hands in inappropriate places. I swear!"
"Oh, I'm not worried about that. I was a little upset you didn't ask me to join in." Buffy grabbed both girls in a crushing hug.
Xander finished his descent and couldn't help staring at the group hug. "Um, Tara, what are they doing?"
Shrugging, the blonde witch answered, "I'm not sure. I thought maybe it was a pre-battle ritual. I'm kinda new at this Scooby stuff."
The trio of Scoobies broke apart as Giles and Joyce dropped to the ground. The blonde witch couldn't stop a slight smile at the confusion and tentative happiness surrounding the Rogue Slayer. The gang gathered around the closed elevator door leading into the Initiative. Using pry bars, the men grunted and strained to gain access to the government facility. Finally, Xander managed to slip the bar between the doors, slowly opening them.
"OK," Buffy addressed the group. "We stick together and everything should be fine. Everybody ready? The doors shifted suddenly, widening the gap. "Let's," the Slayer stared at the row of automatic weapons held by soldiers in the open doorway, "do this."
***