Faith pushed me back and I was too stunned to react. Guess the training was starting to pay off already. She had her backbone again. I watched as she reset her own shoulder. Usually I had to shove it back into place, and I was never nice about it. Loved to hear her scream, but she managed to keep herself quiet. I didn't always win, she had knocked me to the floor once, but I won most of the fights, and that's what counted.
I was hot, tired, and fucking starving. Needed a shower and some food, but food sounded really good now. I rubbed my fingers over my sore ribs and started towards the door. "You did one hell of a job, Faith. I'm proud of you. All you needed was a push in the right direction. Keep this up and you'll be back to your old self in no time." That's when she would kill me, or at least try to do it.
Started down the hall towards the kitchen and I heard her slowly walking behind me. "Going to make some food. I cook a hell of a lot better than he does. He burns water." I laughed. "Pancakes sound good to me." I'd discovered I had a sweet tooth, and loved that maple syrup junk. "Could make you something else if you want. You've earned it."
His gaze was glowing down at me and I had to fight to keep the permanant scowl in place. Like a mother hen all proud of her little chicklets. What the fuck? Did he know he was more confusing than listening to Willow talk about Quantum Physics? Make up your mind for fuck's sake. At least he was bein' sorta nice, which was better than when he was kickin' my ass, so I was gonna be happy about that. Psycho. I'd learned two modes with him. Screaming in terror and wanting to kill him. I couldn't remember anything else. Even if I didn't actually execute either of them.
Following him into the kitchen slowly, I sat down at the table as he glanced through the fridge and the cabinets. "Pancakes sound good." And they did. Been a long time I had anything but prison slop, besides the little bits and pieces he'd been feeing me here and there. I earned it? How exactly did I do that? I'd been fightin' him all fucking week until I finally just stopped. Why was it the wrong thing to do then and the right thing to do now?
I fiddled with the napkins on the table while he went to work gettin' the batter out and pouring it in the pan. Whatever he was doin', looked wicked complicated. I was more a microwave kinda girl.
"Where are we?" I asked him conversationally. Knew we were in the desert, but I wondered where specifically we were....and more importantly, where we were goin'.
I pulled ingredients from the fridge and got the mix out of a cupboard. Grabbing a bowl, I quickly whipped it up while the butter in the frying pan began to sizzle. As I poured batter into the pan, I heard her question but didn't answer until my hands were no longer full. Rather not burn this shit before I have a chance to eat any of it.
"New Mexico." That probably wasn't a good enogh answer for her. I pulled a plate out and set it next to the stove before finding a spatula. Managed to flip the thing without making a mess, and I was a little proud of myself. This whole cooking and eating thing still took a little getting used to. "We're roughly one hundred miles north of Santa Fe. This place belongs to a demon friend of mine that I knew way back."
I got the first one out of the pan and poured in more batter. Pulled out the syrup, carrying it and the plate over to Faith. I set it down in front of her and got back to the stove in time to flip the next one. "I told him I needed to find a place in the middle of nowhere so no one could disturb me while I was working on something. All I had to do was kill a guy, and here we are. Not a bad place for a demon."
Quickly used up all of the batter and brought the entire stack to the table along with a plate and silerware for myself. I sat down across from her, smothering my food in syrup. She gave me a look that I ignored. "I love how this stuff tastes." Took a big bite. "Fucking heavenly." Faith snorted at me. "You have any idea how long it's been since I had food that wasn't blood? Everything tastes new again."
I nodded at him seriously. New Mexico, one hundred miles north of Santa Fe. I was gonna have to remember all this shit, because it was good to know. Still had forty bucks layin' in a pair of pants too. Not alot, but it was something. Something was better than nothin'. If I was gonna make it outta this one alive I was gonna have to be way smarter than I usually was.
Did he have to keep talkin' about blood while I was tryin' to eat? Got kinda good at tunin' him out somewhere a while back too, so I just did it again. Using my fork I took a few pancakes off the plate and poured some syrup on them.
"Demon?" I asked curiously, he'd caught my attention with that. How were there still demons if there was no slayer, and he was human? Or maybe it was just us, but that didn't make any sense at all. "There are still demons and stuff?" I wanted to know why mostly. Why the hell I had to go and lose my superpowers right before my ass was about to get busted outta prison? I wondered if B lost her slayer powers too. She'd be pissed as hell right about now, but had anyone even bothered to notice I was gone? It'd been a week so maybe Angel noticed. If Angel wasn't sittin' across from me wolfin' down pancakes that is.
Why would there be two when there'd only ever been one? Angel was gone, and I wanted to cry again cause he'd been my only ally ever. Only one who never gave up on me. Looked like he still hadn't given up.
Had another big bite of food, rolling it around on my tongue, enjoying the way it tasted. "He was three-quarters human, I think that's why he didn't go poof like the rest of his clan. Has to suck, being the last of something. Fully human now, weak. That's why I did the job for him." He wasn't strong like I was, like Faith soon would be.
Finished my pancake and grabbed another one. My ribs were bugging the shit out of me from where she'd whacked me with the kendo stick, but I knew the difference between bruised bones and broken ones. We only had six days and we'd have to be out of here. Would that be enough time to make her back into what she used to be? If she was given the chance, would she kill me? She didn't do it earlier, she hesitated, and that had to mean something, I just wasn't sure of what it was.
I sat back in my chair and looked at her for a moment. "After I take a shower, I'm going back into that room and working on improving ym skills some more. You're welcome to join me if you think you can keep up. But if you need to take a little nap, I'll understand." With a snicker, I went back to work on finishing my food.
Human and weak? Didn't he understand that's what we were? I wanted to scream at him that he was gonna get old and probably fat and then he'd die. No more comfy immortality and it didn't seem to phase him one bit. If I lived through this I was gonna get old and die too. Sure, I never had the comfort of immortality, but bein' a slayer meant a short and brutal life. Not many slayers even made it past the age of eighteen. I figured the only reason I managed to make it nineteen was cause I was sittin' pretty behind bars for so long.
Glaring at him, I wished I had some kinda telekinesis cause I'd make him choke on those fucking pancakes. Let him feel that sting of mortality. Cause I didn't think it was sinkin' in with him despite the nasty stab wound I'd given him on his thigh. Shoulda gone for the jugular, gettin' all soft in my old age.
He was baiting me, tryin' to get me to feel all lame cause I was tired already. Not my fault. I wasn't the one who'd kept me tied up and half starved in the trunk for seven days. Also wasn't the one who beat the fuck outta my feet so it hurt to walk. Fuck him. Almost wanted to tell him that I'd keep up but we both knew I wouldn't be able to. My shoulder still ached with the force of him slamming it out of joint.
"We both know I can't keep up. Stop tryin' to get under my skin. Never gonna let you in there." I was bein' wicked stupid but I didn't give a fuck. Go ahead, beat the shit out of me again. It wasn't like it was something new, I'd been treated this way since I was old enough to talk back.
I ate the last bite and didn't look up at her while she bitched at me. Naughty girl, talking back. Faith couldn't keep up, but she could at least make the effort. That's why I had her here, to rebuild her body. But it was a difficult task, since she kept pissing me right the fuck off and I had to break her all over again. Could feel that rage building up again as I licked the last of the syrup off the tines of the fork.
Waited until she was stupid enough to put her hand down on the table and then I lunged, shoving the fork as hard as I could through the flesh, pinning her there. Knew I hadn't hit anything vital, or it wouldn't have gone through to the wood. I came around the table behind her, wrapping my hand in her hair and yanking her head back.
Bending down, I put my mouth next to her ear. "What did I say about pissing me off? How the fuck can you heal if I have to keep hurting you?" I twisted my hand tighter, making her gasp. "You want to go into that little box while I train for the rest of the afternoon?" She shook her head as much as my fingers would allow. "The next time you piss me off, you're in there."
I let go of her hair, grabbed the fork, and pulled it out, throwing it into the sink. "Get yourself cleaned up, and stay the fuck out of my way." Stupid little bitch, always making me hurt her. I turned around and headed for the bathroom. Wanted to shower and get back to work. Had to be stronger if I was going to go back and kill him.
I gasped loudly as the fork stabbed right into my hand, pinning me to the table beneath it. Fuck! I had to bite on my tongue to hold back a scream, because it hurt so much but if I screamed it'd only make him wanna hurt me more. His fingers wrapped in my hair, his voice dark in my ear as he made with the threats again. Always the threats. Always the fear of bein' trapped into some small box for a few hours. Claustrophobia was a bitch, and I'd been fightin' it my whole life.
He finally let go of my hair and pulled the fork out of my hand before throwin' it in the sink. Fighting painful tears I watched blood leak from my hand, trickling down the table. Every nerve was on fire, and I wanted to stab him to death. Son of a bitch already threw the fork back in the sink though. I wanted to stab him in the throat with it. See how fast he'd recover from that. See if he could still tie me down and throw me in anything with a gaping neck wound. Kind've appropriate.
I watched him carefully, still holding back tears as he walked into the bathroom. Clean myself up, right. Getting up I hobbled over to the sink and ran some warm water through the tap. I watched with mild fascination as my blood ran down the drain, before I turned the water off and wrapped a rag around my hand. It hurt, wicked bad even. Everything did though, and now I was gettin' used to the pain. Used to it so I could rise above it. Was that what he wanted from me?
My eyes strayed down to the fork, and I thought about sneakin' up on him in the shower and stabbin' him to death with it. Could do it. Would do it. But maybe I should wait. For what? Him to get bored and finally kill me? If I came at him with a fork I better hope to fucking God that I finished the job right then and there. Because if I didn't, I knew I was totally fucked.
Nothing. No one to rescue me. Nothin' but him and me. I was still a fugitive, killed that guard. Wasn't my fault, but I killed him anyway. Angel was the only one who gave a fuck about me, and now he was trapped inside, all evil and psychotic. Had no one. Not even Buffy in the back of my mind anymore. Holding my wounded hand to my chest I remembered what he said. Stay out of his way. Fine. I'd stay out of his way. I'd find a way to get my ass out of this situation. Only had one hope left, hope with shiny green eyes and bright blonde hair.
There had to be a phone in this cabin somewhere. Somewhere, and I'd find it.
I swear, if she even comes near me while I'm in the shower, I am going to break Faith's fucking kneecaps and stick her ass in that box for the rest of the day. Not in the mood to deal with her again. She just pisses me off so much that I can't even see straight. Should have just left her pinned to the table, but oh no, I had to be nice and pull the fork back out.
Walked to the shower and stripped down, turning the water on as hot as I could stand. My muscles burned and ached, which wasn't something I was used to. Made me feel weak, and I knew I wasn't. I wasn't like the regular people, I was more. I'd lived for over two hundred years, even if I'd only been breathing for a handful of them. I don't have any plans to die soon.
Kept expecting her to come creeping in and stab me like that nutjob from Psycho. Faith had better finish me off if she tried something like that though, because I'd make damn sure she paid for it. I knew how to keep people alive for weeks, and if she thought what I'd done before was bad, she had no idea how much worse it could be. I might be insane, but I was very good at what I did.
Turning the water off, I got out and stood in front of the mirror, looking at my reflection. It amazed the hell out of me that I could see myself now after so long. Ran my fingers through my hair. Could use a trim, but no way would I let her get anything sharp around my head. Needed to get some shorts on and go back to work. I was strong, but it wasn't enough. As long as he was still alive and out in the world, I wasn't safe. They wouldn't be shoving me back inside of him again, not without a fight.
I was hot, tired, and fucking starving. Needed a shower and some food, but food sounded really good now. I rubbed my fingers over my sore ribs and started towards the door. "You did one hell of a job, Faith. I'm proud of you. All you needed was a push in the right direction. Keep this up and you'll be back to your old self in no time." That's when she would kill me, or at least try to do it.
Started down the hall towards the kitchen and I heard her slowly walking behind me. "Going to make some food. I cook a hell of a lot better than he does. He burns water." I laughed. "Pancakes sound good to me." I'd discovered I had a sweet tooth, and loved that maple syrup junk. "Could make you something else if you want. You've earned it."
Reply
Following him into the kitchen slowly, I sat down at the table as he glanced through the fridge and the cabinets. "Pancakes sound good." And they did. Been a long time I had anything but prison slop, besides the little bits and pieces he'd been feeing me here and there. I earned it? How exactly did I do that? I'd been fightin' him all fucking week until I finally just stopped. Why was it the wrong thing to do then and the right thing to do now?
I fiddled with the napkins on the table while he went to work gettin' the batter out and pouring it in the pan. Whatever he was doin', looked wicked complicated. I was more a microwave kinda girl.
"Where are we?" I asked him conversationally. Knew we were in the desert, but I wondered where specifically we were....and more importantly, where we were goin'.
Reply
"New Mexico." That probably wasn't a good enogh answer for her. I pulled a plate out and set it next to the stove before finding a spatula. Managed to flip the thing without making a mess, and I was a little proud of myself. This whole cooking and eating thing still took a little getting used to. "We're roughly one hundred miles north of Santa Fe. This place belongs to a demon friend of mine that I knew way back."
I got the first one out of the pan and poured in more batter. Pulled out the syrup, carrying it and the plate over to Faith. I set it down in front of her and got back to the stove in time to flip the next one. "I told him I needed to find a place in the middle of nowhere so no one could disturb me while I was working on something. All I had to do was kill a guy, and here we are. Not a bad place for a demon."
Quickly used up all of the batter and brought the entire stack to the table along with a plate and silerware for myself. I sat down across from her, smothering my food in syrup. She gave me a look that I ignored. "I love how this stuff tastes." Took a big bite. "Fucking heavenly." Faith snorted at me. "You have any idea how long it's been since I had food that wasn't blood? Everything tastes new again."
Reply
Did he have to keep talkin' about blood while I was tryin' to eat? Got kinda good at tunin' him out somewhere a while back too, so I just did it again. Using my fork I took a few pancakes off the plate and poured some syrup on them.
"Demon?" I asked curiously, he'd caught my attention with that. How were there still demons if there was no slayer, and he was human? Or maybe it was just us, but that didn't make any sense at all. "There are still demons and stuff?" I wanted to know why mostly. Why the hell I had to go and lose my superpowers right before my ass was about to get busted outta prison? I wondered if B lost her slayer powers too. She'd be pissed as hell right about now, but had anyone even bothered to notice I was gone? It'd been a week so maybe Angel noticed. If Angel wasn't sittin' across from me wolfin' down pancakes that is.
Why would there be two when there'd only ever been one? Angel was gone, and I wanted to cry again cause he'd been my only ally ever. Only one who never gave up on me. Looked like he still hadn't given up.
Reply
Finished my pancake and grabbed another one. My ribs were bugging the shit out of me from where she'd whacked me with the kendo stick, but I knew the difference between bruised bones and broken ones. We only had six days and we'd have to be out of here. Would that be enough time to make her back into what she used to be? If she was given the chance, would she kill me? She didn't do it earlier, she hesitated, and that had to mean something, I just wasn't sure of what it was.
I sat back in my chair and looked at her for a moment. "After I take a shower, I'm going back into that room and working on improving ym skills some more. You're welcome to join me if you think you can keep up. But if you need to take a little nap, I'll understand." With a snicker, I went back to work on finishing my food.
Reply
Glaring at him, I wished I had some kinda telekinesis cause I'd make him choke on those fucking pancakes. Let him feel that sting of mortality. Cause I didn't think it was sinkin' in with him despite the nasty stab wound I'd given him on his thigh. Shoulda gone for the jugular, gettin' all soft in my old age.
He was baiting me, tryin' to get me to feel all lame cause I was tired already. Not my fault. I wasn't the one who'd kept me tied up and half starved in the trunk for seven days. Also wasn't the one who beat the fuck outta my feet so it hurt to walk. Fuck him. Almost wanted to tell him that I'd keep up but we both knew I wouldn't be able to. My shoulder still ached with the force of him slamming it out of joint.
"We both know I can't keep up. Stop tryin' to get under my skin. Never gonna let you in there." I was bein' wicked stupid but I didn't give a fuck. Go ahead, beat the shit out of me again. It wasn't like it was something new, I'd been treated this way since I was old enough to talk back.
Reply
Waited until she was stupid enough to put her hand down on the table and then I lunged, shoving the fork as hard as I could through the flesh, pinning her there. Knew I hadn't hit anything vital, or it wouldn't have gone through to the wood. I came around the table behind her, wrapping my hand in her hair and yanking her head back.
Bending down, I put my mouth next to her ear. "What did I say about pissing me off? How the fuck can you heal if I have to keep hurting you?" I twisted my hand tighter, making her gasp. "You want to go into that little box while I train for the rest of the afternoon?" She shook her head as much as my fingers would allow. "The next time you piss me off, you're in there."
I let go of her hair, grabbed the fork, and pulled it out, throwing it into the sink. "Get yourself cleaned up, and stay the fuck out of my way." Stupid little bitch, always making me hurt her. I turned around and headed for the bathroom. Wanted to shower and get back to work. Had to be stronger if I was going to go back and kill him.
Reply
He finally let go of my hair and pulled the fork out of my hand before throwin' it in the sink. Fighting painful tears I watched blood leak from my hand, trickling down the table. Every nerve was on fire, and I wanted to stab him to death. Son of a bitch already threw the fork back in the sink though. I wanted to stab him in the throat with it. See how fast he'd recover from that. See if he could still tie me down and throw me in anything with a gaping neck wound. Kind've appropriate.
I watched him carefully, still holding back tears as he walked into the bathroom. Clean myself up, right. Getting up I hobbled over to the sink and ran some warm water through the tap. I watched with mild fascination as my blood ran down the drain, before I turned the water off and wrapped a rag around my hand. It hurt, wicked bad even. Everything did though, and now I was gettin' used to the pain. Used to it so I could rise above it. Was that what he wanted from me?
My eyes strayed down to the fork, and I thought about sneakin' up on him in the shower and stabbin' him to death with it. Could do it. Would do it. But maybe I should wait. For what? Him to get bored and finally kill me? If I came at him with a fork I better hope to fucking God that I finished the job right then and there. Because if I didn't, I knew I was totally fucked.
Nothing. No one to rescue me. Nothin' but him and me. I was still a fugitive, killed that guard. Wasn't my fault, but I killed him anyway. Angel was the only one who gave a fuck about me, and now he was trapped inside, all evil and psychotic. Had no one. Not even Buffy in the back of my mind anymore. Holding my wounded hand to my chest I remembered what he said. Stay out of his way. Fine. I'd stay out of his way. I'd find a way to get my ass out of this situation. Only had one hope left, hope with shiny green eyes and bright blonde hair.
There had to be a phone in this cabin somewhere. Somewhere, and I'd find it.
Reply
Walked to the shower and stripped down, turning the water on as hot as I could stand. My muscles burned and ached, which wasn't something I was used to. Made me feel weak, and I knew I wasn't. I wasn't like the regular people, I was more. I'd lived for over two hundred years, even if I'd only been breathing for a handful of them. I don't have any plans to die soon.
Kept expecting her to come creeping in and stab me like that nutjob from Psycho. Faith had better finish me off if she tried something like that though, because I'd make damn sure she paid for it. I knew how to keep people alive for weeks, and if she thought what I'd done before was bad, she had no idea how much worse it could be. I might be insane, but I was very good at what I did.
Turning the water off, I got out and stood in front of the mirror, looking at my reflection. It amazed the hell out of me that I could see myself now after so long. Ran my fingers through my hair. Could use a trim, but no way would I let her get anything sharp around my head. Needed to get some shorts on and go back to work. I was strong, but it wasn't enough. As long as he was still alive and out in the world, I wasn't safe. They wouldn't be shoving me back inside of him again, not without a fight.
Reply
Leave a comment