But I hold onto what I have, knowledge my only desire

[maris_ocean]

Characters: Maris Newell, Faith Lehane
Rating: PG
Time Period: Modern day to the Dawn of Time
Location: castle halls, now in a pool somewhere in a prehistoric jungle
Relative Date: immediately after this thread
Status: Finished

Comments

[slayergal_faith]

Faith turned to face Maris. "Thanks," it was all Faith could offer. When she'd said she was a lone wolf that was truth. She left out the horny, sex-loving bit, but as she'd matured, the one night stand thing was getting old.

"Yeah, I can show ya my dogs. I like my privacy, it's outside. It's 'Loss,'" Faith didn't explain, she didn't have to.

The two girls talked about inconsequential things, as they made their way to her place. Stupid things, important things and silly things.

As the took the long way around to avoid all the commotion, it was obvious, something was up. Things were happening in the kitchen and the make-shift clinic. The girls avoided it all. Faith couldn't help but wonder what happening.

It didn't take long to get there. "Feel free to crash here if you ever need to."

Faith went to her trunk, opened it and began to rummage through it. Maris became extremely quiet, the unease covering Maris like a blanket.

Grabbing her own duffel bag, she stuffed in everything she needed, used the facilities, the idea of having one great huge outdoor toliet didn't appeal to Faith. She grabbed a few rolls of toliet paper.

"Grab some water bottles, will ya," Faith yelled as she got he med kit, then she changed as well.

The trip back didn't seem to take quite so long. Faith led them back around the side of the Castle and into a hidden entrance. Faith didn't count on making it back through the chaos with out interruption a second time.

Together they made their way deeper into the bowels of the Castle, then Faith stopped in her tracks.

Her spider senses were tingling. "I think it's this door."

[maris_ocean]

Maris had learned the art of small talk over the years tending bars in various places. How to talk a lot without saying much, or revealing anything, even though she preferred to remain invisible and in the background. It wasn't as important in the job she'd had before coming here, but it was easy to slip back into the habit.

She stayed close to Faith, observing and trying to memorize the routes they took rather than worry about other things. When they stopped at a door, she raised an eyebrow at Faith's surety, but reached out to open the door anyway.

Her eyes widened a moment at the decoration in the room, though she controlled her expression quickly, stepping inside, and stepping to the center of the room. Turning on her heel slowly to study the entire room before she did anything. Paintings and blank frames, each with a red button underneath, a few statues that didn't look like much at all.

"How did those who've mentioned this room say it worked?"

[slayergal_faith]

"I'm not sure. But notice how the buttons are under some of the paintings? I think if you press one button it takes you to the place depicted in the picture." Faith shrugged looking at Maris.

"I'm pretty sure that's it, question is once we get there how are we getting back. There has to be a way, people do it all the time. I just hope the return trip is just as logical."

"You chose," Faith trusted Maris' judgment.

She wished Buffy was with them.

[maris_ocean]

"That... sounds disturbingly simple." Maris looked at each of the paintings a moment before touching one of them lightly. It looked like it had interesting terrain, at least, and not disturbing or boring. "Wherever, whenever this is, I think."

She looked over at Faith, raising an eyebrow as she waited for the other woman to join her, one hand hovering over the button.

[slayergal_faith]

"Doesn't it?" Faith had to laugh as she followed Maris. Faith place her hand over Maris' delicate one. "One, two ... three!"

[maris_ocean]

Maris shook her head slightly, but didn't say anything as she pressed the button, wondering just what time travel would feel like. As it turned out, it didn't feel like anything at all, though the change in scenery did look spectacular. A riot of prehistoric vegetation, and all that's left of the castle is the wall in front of her with a button that looks just like the one that brought them here.

"Spectacular," she breathed, a grin coming to her face. "And it should absolutely impossible." Clearly it wasn't, but everything she knew said it should be. Shaking her head to clear that thought, Maris turned around, looking at the jungle around them a moment.

"Your turn, pick a direction." She didn't particularly care where they go, so long as they find water sooner or later. She didn't even know if she cared how long it took them to get back from here. Other than knowing she had time constraints on the nanites, and even that wasn't as much a worry as she thought it should be.

[slayergal_faith]

Faith stood there speechless. Without realizing it, she moved closer to Maris, their shoulders touching. This moment was something that, at least for Faith would bond them and make Maris her friend, well at least it was the first step in the long journey toward destination friendship.

As a slayer, she'd had many incredibly defining moments, but this one topped them all.

Faith was grinning from ear to ear, "Wicked," she sighed, lids closing memorizing the moment.

Turning in a slow circle Faith scanned the terrain. "I'm a road less taken kinda girl." Faith pointed to the left, "looks like everyone goes that way." Turning she looked at Maris, contemplating just what the girl could handle. As she thought, she took out a bowie knife, carving in an F.

"I'd go the other way. Now, that's either gonna be the best pick, cause no one has been there so we might find somethin' no one else has seen. Or it's gonna be the worst."

Using the knife, she carved a straight line under the F, waiting to put the end cap, or chevron to finish the directional arrow.

"You up for it, or would you rather go the tourist route?"

Faith waited to see if Maris would agree and deal with the overgrown fauna or take the path that many had before. It had taken many people to trample down that path. Faith wondered if they all came back.

As Maris made her decision, Faith finished the arrow. She had been careful not to do anymore damage than necessary to the tree.

[maris_ocean]

"Something new, or we're just regathering information everyone knows." Maris shrugs, bouncing on her toes a moment before starting to push through the undergrowth. Knowing that she should, theoretically, be concerned about disturbing some prehistoric predator and becoming a snack, but something about the place made her feel safe.

[slayergal_faith]

"Don't get too far ahead, remember, I'm the brawn here. And I gotta tell ya somethin' I respect your spirit of adventure. If I didn't drive stick, I'd have such a girl crush on ya, you're one hot chick, you've got spirit, I like that. I don't mean to creep ya out, that's not a come on weird way of sayin' I'm hopin' we'll be friends."

One thing about Faith, she had a tendency to be blunt. The compliment was lost to Maris as there wasn't any way for her to know Faith had never told anyone she'd like to be friends.

"But, bein' around me can be dangerous, that hole slayer gig."

That adventurous spirit is Maris' led Faith to believe she might that comment might scare her, but hell they were walking where no one had been. That was pretty damn brave.

[maris_ocean]

Maris looked over her shoulder, a grin flashing across her face a moment. "If you don't want me to get too far ahead, don't fall behind. And keep an ear out for running water."

Running water meant that eventually there would be still water to swim in, if the stream itself wasn't deep enough to do so. That, more than anything, was what she was focused on, even though it came across to Faith as a sense of adventure. Perhaps it could be that, just as the nanites were, since she'd never backed down from anything she'd decided to do.

"Danger is relative, you know, and somehow I don't think there's a whole lot of danger out here. Just a feeling, but a pretty good one."

[slayergal_faith]

"Fuck," Faith stopped a second laughing, "you give good banter, I'd take the credit and say I'm rubbin' off on ya, but I think it's been there along."

Grinning while she spoke, she used her slayer speed and she was on now in front of Maris. "Don't worry," Faith said a bit smugly, putting her palm out to stop Maris. Reaching into her duffel bag, Faith pulled out a second machete.

"I get this is all sacred, but practically we gotta make it," Faith emphasized the next word," through all this and it's gettin' thicker."

Faith stood there in front of Maris, "use it this way,fluid arm motion, don't stop,let it through, or your arm will get sore."

If it had been Buffy, Faith would have said, think quick and thrown but, Maris wasn't.

"We're lookin' for water?" Faith's head lifted, nose in the air smelling, "how'd you know it's this way?"

[maris_ocean]

Faith's speed had surprised her, but she hid it for the most part, hesitating only a moment before taking the machete. She'd prefer not to use it, but Faith did have a point about making it through the undergrowth - which would be easier if they cut through it, rather than trying to shove through it.

"Instinct." She paused, a wry smile crossing her face. "And maybe a lot of wishful thinking."

More of the former, she hoped, than the latter, but either way, she really wanted to go swimming. And the thicker vegetation might actually mean there was water somewhere nearby, though how far, she couldn't be certain. Or if the appropriate direction for finding it might just be down, perhaps some flooded caves.

[slayergal_faith]

"One extremely important thing, I'm easily distracted. We have to keep the trail markers - put an F and an arrow. I'd say put an M, but if someone had to come lookin' for us could be confusin'. It's possible we might hit one or more paths, we don't know for sure our entrance was the only one. We need to be able to get home.

"You got good instincts," Faith smile, "I mean who'd ya choose for your first friend. Lead on doc." Why Faith called her doc, she had no clue, just felt right.

[maris_ocean]

Maris chuckled, continuing on her path, though she didn't reply beyond making an attempt to keep up the trail markers. She'd had to deal with a variety of names and nicknames when customers didn't remember her name, and 'doc' was remarkably benign, though there wasn't anything about her she'd think was doctorish.

Her instincts, though, proved good, as they came out of the jungle on the banks of a stream. Nothing deep enough here to really swim in, but the sound of a waterfall made her think there might be a pool upstream, and Maris grinned, sitting on the bank to take off her shoes.

"This is what I'm looking for, almost, anyway. Other than the blessed lack of people beyond the two of us, some water deep enough to swim, and no worries about running into someone who's ill."

[slayergal_faith]

"Well, let's hope that's the case. As much as I'd like to take a dip, well put my feet it, it's my turn to watch over you. Just don't get outta my sight."

[maris_ocean]

"There's a waterfall somewhere upstream, which will mean at least a small pool, and it's easier to get there walking through the stream," Maris pointed out, suiting her actions to her words, the water cool against her bare feet. "Though you can walk on the bank if you'd rather, but I'm going to find that pool. It'll be easier to swim in that."

Swim, and while she'll stay where she can see the surface, she can't promise that will mean where Faith will see her.