Fic: Dead Souls (6/7)
Title: Dead Souls (6/7)
Faith & Xander
It assumes that the Hellmouth was never opened, and that Orpheus ended differently. This takes place a couple of days after Dead Souls (5)
"You are not paying attention," Anya said. "You haven't been paying attention since she's been here."
"Yes, I have," Xander said.
"Not real attention," Anya said. She shrugged. "I don't think this is going to work."
"It's not the best repair, but it'll do," Xander said, sliding the cabinet drawer back and forth. He didn't look up. "You're not talking about the drawer."
"No, I'm talking about Faith," Anya said, "and how she's all you think about. Do you think Faith is sleeping with Angel, Anya? I've never heard her say she loved anyone. Do you think she's had a fight with him? Really."
"I don't say it in a squeaky voice," Xander said. "And it's speculating! Gossip! You and I gossip all the time!"
"This is different," Anya said. "You've never been the same since she was here, the last time."
"Well, she came back as a vampire," Xander said, packing up his toolbox. "That always upsets me."
"She chose to be a vampire," Anya said. "She told us."
"What?" Xander asked, sharply.
::
"Yeah," Faith said, around the cigarette in her mouth. She was stretched out, bent over her toes, painting the nails with a red so dark it was nearly black. "I was in the Narrows. It's a place your soul goes when the Orpheus drug is taking you over. Down to the deep deep dark, all nice an' numb and warm. And then there's one sharp uncomfortable turn, back to life. You know it's back to life because it's hard and painful and you don't wanna do it." She blew on her toes, then shifted weight and bent over the other foot.
Xander didn't want to break her concentration. He'd hardly ever heard her talk in this tone of voice: not flippant.
"There was too much magic floating around, though. One spell to take away Angel's soul; whatever Angelus had been doing; whatever the demon had been making Cordelia cast, to keep me from life and Angel's soul unattached; stuff Wesley and Fred had been trying; and then Willow calling down the big stuff." She glanced up. "I told you that was one wicked voodoo night."
"Yeah, you did," Xander said. He picked up the bottle of acetone and handed it to her. "You have a smudge."
"Shit," Faith said. She opened the bottle and poured some out onto a cotton swab. "Anyway, Angelus hadn't made me drink, but there was something that locked me into two choices: dead for good or just, undead. So I figured, why the hell not?"
"You became a vampire by a spell?" Xander asked, stupefied.
"Xander," Faith said, patiently, "it's all a spell." She turned her head to look up at him, sideways. "It's all a spell."
"Then it can be reversed," he said.
"We thought of that," she said, carefully applying polish to her pinky toe. "It's the first thing we thought about. After Cordy stopped screaming about having another demon pregnancy and---" she tried not to grin and failed---"we all came back from your little crisis here." She capped the bottles of polish and acetone.
She was still far from sounding breezy, and Xander couldn't been more surprised to hear himself ask, "Is that when you hooked up with Angel?"
"No, I---what?" Faith stood up. "Did you just ask me if I was fuckin' Angel?" And even with the vampire rage roiling off her, she was still Faith, angry Faith.
"Yeah, I guess I did," Xander said.
"Well, fuck you," Faith said. "And fuck Sunnydale. I guess I'll go back to the old man in LA. Tell B. that she's back being Number One." She walked around Xander, snatching her black jacket from the pommel horse as she flung herself downstairs and to Angel's car in the alley.
Faith & Xander
It assumes that the Hellmouth was never opened, and that Orpheus ended differently. This takes place a couple of days after Dead Souls (5)
"You are not paying attention," Anya said. "You haven't been paying attention since she's been here."
"Yes, I have," Xander said.
"Not real attention," Anya said. She shrugged. "I don't think this is going to work."
"It's not the best repair, but it'll do," Xander said, sliding the cabinet drawer back and forth. He didn't look up. "You're not talking about the drawer."
"No, I'm talking about Faith," Anya said, "and how she's all you think about. Do you think Faith is sleeping with Angel, Anya? I've never heard her say she loved anyone. Do you think she's had a fight with him? Really."
"I don't say it in a squeaky voice," Xander said. "And it's speculating! Gossip! You and I gossip all the time!"
"This is different," Anya said. "You've never been the same since she was here, the last time."
"Well, she came back as a vampire," Xander said, packing up his toolbox. "That always upsets me."
"She chose to be a vampire," Anya said. "She told us."
"What?" Xander asked, sharply.
::
"Yeah," Faith said, around the cigarette in her mouth. She was stretched out, bent over her toes, painting the nails with a red so dark it was nearly black. "I was in the Narrows. It's a place your soul goes when the Orpheus drug is taking you over. Down to the deep deep dark, all nice an' numb and warm. And then there's one sharp uncomfortable turn, back to life. You know it's back to life because it's hard and painful and you don't wanna do it." She blew on her toes, then shifted weight and bent over the other foot.
Xander didn't want to break her concentration. He'd hardly ever heard her talk in this tone of voice: not flippant.
"There was too much magic floating around, though. One spell to take away Angel's soul; whatever Angelus had been doing; whatever the demon had been making Cordelia cast, to keep me from life and Angel's soul unattached; stuff Wesley and Fred had been trying; and then Willow calling down the big stuff." She glanced up. "I told you that was one wicked voodoo night."
"Yeah, you did," Xander said. He picked up the bottle of acetone and handed it to her. "You have a smudge."
"Shit," Faith said. She opened the bottle and poured some out onto a cotton swab. "Anyway, Angelus hadn't made me drink, but there was something that locked me into two choices: dead for good or just, undead. So I figured, why the hell not?"
"You became a vampire by a spell?" Xander asked, stupefied.
"Xander," Faith said, patiently, "it's all a spell." She turned her head to look up at him, sideways. "It's all a spell."
"Then it can be reversed," he said.
"We thought of that," she said, carefully applying polish to her pinky toe. "It's the first thing we thought about. After Cordy stopped screaming about having another demon pregnancy and---" she tried not to grin and failed---"we all came back from your little crisis here." She capped the bottles of polish and acetone.
She was still far from sounding breezy, and Xander couldn't been more surprised to hear himself ask, "Is that when you hooked up with Angel?"
"No, I---what?" Faith stood up. "Did you just ask me if I was fuckin' Angel?" And even with the vampire rage roiling off her, she was still Faith, angry Faith.
"Yeah, I guess I did," Xander said.
"Well, fuck you," Faith said. "And fuck Sunnydale. I guess I'll go back to the old man in LA. Tell B. that she's back being Number One." She walked around Xander, snatching her black jacket from the pommel horse as she flung herself downstairs and to Angel's car in the alley.