The Choice - Part 6
Title: The Choice - Part 6
Author: Xanfan
Rating: Mature
Pairing: various, including M/M Slash
Summary: Response to challenge found here http://beyondcanon.brain-insane.com/challenges.php?chalid=38. The Scoobies discover that Buffy’s resurrection has allowed the First to gain a foothold in this world. Xander is told that the balance must be restored, and the only way to do that is for a Slayer to die. Who does he choose? Buffy or Faith?
Spoilers: Up to season 7 of Buffy and 4 of Angel. Cordy never comes back from being a higher being, so, no beast master.
Warnings: SLASH, CHARACTER DEATH
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
____________________________________________
Last Time:
Lorne opened his eyes and straightened his clothing before he headed down stairs. Faith would be here soon, and he wanted to be there, ready to help however he could, when she arrived.
~~~~~~~
“They need to know what happened. They need to know what he did for you, for them, for the world. Besides, there are still big bads out there to fight, and Xander, he would never have run away to let everyone else deal with them. You want to honor him? Fight the fight, just as you are. It’s what he would've done. It’s what he's done for the better part of a decade.” Cordelia said, her voice brooking no argument.
“But I’m not Xander.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Faith took a deep breath and opened the door to the Hyperion.
The lobby was empty except for one individual. He was tall and green with horns. And he was singing an ABBA song.
She let the door close behind her and waited for him to notice her. When he didn’t acknowledge her after a few moments, she coughed.
He stopped singing and spun around to look at her. His eyes looked over Faith in Xander’s body and turned sad. “It’s done then, is it?”
Faith was stunned speechless, How did he know?
“You’re Faith, right? I’m Lorne. Xander sang for me earlier. He told me to take care of you.”
“That sounds like Xander. Do you hate me?” Faith asked.
“Oh sweety, no. Xander made his choice, and, if it happened the way I think it did, you didn’t have much of a chance to object.” Lorne said as he moved closer to her. He stopped about three feet away from her and just opened his arms.
Faith had never been one to accept comfort, period, much less from a demon. So she was surprised when she practically threw herself into his arms.
Lorne wrapped his arms around her and just held on.
“How could he….I’m not worth….Angel….Why?” Faith couldn’t seem to get out a complete sentence and wasn’t really surprised when she burst into tears.
“Let it out, it’s okay. He loved you. He loved her. Do you really want to know what it would have done to him to kill one of you? It would have destroyed him. You are worth it, Xander thought so and so do I. And as for Angel, well, that will take time. He is going to need both of us to help him get through this.” Lorne rubbed her back and continued to whisper comforting phrases until she slowly stopped crying.
Faith stepped back out of his arms and looked at the demon she had allowed to see her cry. “Xander really thought a lot of you, ya know. When he used ta tell me stories about you and the others... He loved you all.”
Lorne’s eyes filled with tears. “Thank you sweetie. I knew that, but it’s still nice to hear. Now, Xander told you about the singing thing?”
“Yeah. Why? Oh no, I can’t.” Faith began.
“Honey, we need to figure out where to go from here and this is the best way to figure that out. I don’t need much, just a few lines of any song you like.” Lorne said.
“Well, I am in Xander’s body now, so I guess I should sing somethin’ country.” Faith said, with an ironic smile.
Lorne wasn’t sure whether he was relieved or saddened to see that the smile, while similar to Xander’s, wasn’t exactly the same.
Faith took a deep breath, winked at Lorne, and started to sing.
“I go out walkin’ after midnight, out in the moonlight,
just like we used to do. I’m always walking’ after midnight, searchin’ for you.”
“Was that enough?” Faith asked.
Lorne chuckled a little. “Yeah Sweetcheeks, I just needed to confirm that you were you and see if I could tell you anything about what’s next for you.”
“And? What did you see?” Faith asked.
“You are definitely Faith, which you know. And, whatever else happens, Xander made the right choice. It wasn’t one that the Powers That Be were expecting, but it was the right one in the end. Xander had always been a bit of a wildcard in every situation. From what I hear, this is not the first time Xander came up with option C. You’re proof of that.” Lorne said.
“Whad’ya mean?” Faith asked.
“Well, Buffy was supposed to die facing the Master right? Well, the prophecy didn’t say anything about her being brought back and the slayer line being twinned. Xander never played by anyone’s rules. I think maybe the reason he was given this task was because they wanted to see what he would do.”
Faith thought about that. Xander was the reason she was a slayer and not some crackwhore statistic: becoming a slayer and gaining her first Watcher, the woman who was the first person to actually give a fuck about her, had saved her life. Then he had tried to save her from herself back in Sunnydale, even after she had used him and thrown him away. Despite the fact that she had tried to kill him, he had made an effort to befriend her while she was in jail. He had been her lifeline, her friend, confidant, and cheerleader. He had saved her from despair and hopelessness. Now, he had saved her again. He was and would always be her hero.
“So, the PTBs, they think this was the right thing to do?” Faith asked. How could they settle for me instead of him?
“Xander saw potential in you and so do they. The PTBs have accepted his choice and see that it was the only one he could make, not just for you and Buffy, but for him. Killing one of you would have destroyed him. We're talking downward-spiral-soul-in-jeopardy destroyed. He saved not just you and Buffy, but also himself. If nothing else, take comfort in that.” Lorne said with a small, sad smile. It still hurt to remember that this body in front of him no longer held the boy he had known.
“I’m gonna do my best to make this life mean something, I swear.” Faith said fervently.
Lorne took her in his arms and said, “I know you will precious, I know you will.”
They stayed like that for a few moments, taking comfort in each other.
Lorne pulled back, “Now, Angel is left on some out of town business and won’t be back for a day or two, but the others will be here shortly. Are you ready to meet them, to tell them what has happened?”
“They’re gonna hate me.” Faith whispered.
“I’m not going to lie to you, this will be tough. But it has to be done and the sooner the better.”
“I know.” Faith said sadly, “Oh, Xander left letters for you guys in his pocket. Maybe that’ll help?”
“Maybe Honeybuns.” Lorne said. “Well, I guess we’re going to find out.”
They both turned as the door to the lobby opened.
Previous Chapters
Author: Xanfan
Rating: Mature
Pairing: various, including M/M Slash
Summary: Response to challenge found here http://beyondcanon.brain-insane.com/challenges.php?chalid=38. The Scoobies discover that Buffy’s resurrection has allowed the First to gain a foothold in this world. Xander is told that the balance must be restored, and the only way to do that is for a Slayer to die. Who does he choose? Buffy or Faith?
Spoilers: Up to season 7 of Buffy and 4 of Angel. Cordy never comes back from being a higher being, so, no beast master.
Warnings: SLASH, CHARACTER DEATH
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
____________________________________________
Last Time:
Lorne opened his eyes and straightened his clothing before he headed down stairs. Faith would be here soon, and he wanted to be there, ready to help however he could, when she arrived.
~~~~~~~
“They need to know what happened. They need to know what he did for you, for them, for the world. Besides, there are still big bads out there to fight, and Xander, he would never have run away to let everyone else deal with them. You want to honor him? Fight the fight, just as you are. It’s what he would've done. It’s what he's done for the better part of a decade.” Cordelia said, her voice brooking no argument.
“But I’m not Xander.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Faith took a deep breath and opened the door to the Hyperion.
The lobby was empty except for one individual. He was tall and green with horns. And he was singing an ABBA song.
She let the door close behind her and waited for him to notice her. When he didn’t acknowledge her after a few moments, she coughed.
He stopped singing and spun around to look at her. His eyes looked over Faith in Xander’s body and turned sad. “It’s done then, is it?”
Faith was stunned speechless, How did he know?
“You’re Faith, right? I’m Lorne. Xander sang for me earlier. He told me to take care of you.”
“That sounds like Xander. Do you hate me?” Faith asked.
“Oh sweety, no. Xander made his choice, and, if it happened the way I think it did, you didn’t have much of a chance to object.” Lorne said as he moved closer to her. He stopped about three feet away from her and just opened his arms.
Faith had never been one to accept comfort, period, much less from a demon. So she was surprised when she practically threw herself into his arms.
Lorne wrapped his arms around her and just held on.
“How could he….I’m not worth….Angel….Why?” Faith couldn’t seem to get out a complete sentence and wasn’t really surprised when she burst into tears.
“Let it out, it’s okay. He loved you. He loved her. Do you really want to know what it would have done to him to kill one of you? It would have destroyed him. You are worth it, Xander thought so and so do I. And as for Angel, well, that will take time. He is going to need both of us to help him get through this.” Lorne rubbed her back and continued to whisper comforting phrases until she slowly stopped crying.
Faith stepped back out of his arms and looked at the demon she had allowed to see her cry. “Xander really thought a lot of you, ya know. When he used ta tell me stories about you and the others... He loved you all.”
Lorne’s eyes filled with tears. “Thank you sweetie. I knew that, but it’s still nice to hear. Now, Xander told you about the singing thing?”
“Yeah. Why? Oh no, I can’t.” Faith began.
“Honey, we need to figure out where to go from here and this is the best way to figure that out. I don’t need much, just a few lines of any song you like.” Lorne said.
“Well, I am in Xander’s body now, so I guess I should sing somethin’ country.” Faith said, with an ironic smile.
Lorne wasn’t sure whether he was relieved or saddened to see that the smile, while similar to Xander’s, wasn’t exactly the same.
Faith took a deep breath, winked at Lorne, and started to sing.
“I go out walkin’ after midnight, out in the moonlight,
just like we used to do. I’m always walking’ after midnight, searchin’ for you.”
“Was that enough?” Faith asked.
Lorne chuckled a little. “Yeah Sweetcheeks, I just needed to confirm that you were you and see if I could tell you anything about what’s next for you.”
“And? What did you see?” Faith asked.
“You are definitely Faith, which you know. And, whatever else happens, Xander made the right choice. It wasn’t one that the Powers That Be were expecting, but it was the right one in the end. Xander had always been a bit of a wildcard in every situation. From what I hear, this is not the first time Xander came up with option C. You’re proof of that.” Lorne said.
“Whad’ya mean?” Faith asked.
“Well, Buffy was supposed to die facing the Master right? Well, the prophecy didn’t say anything about her being brought back and the slayer line being twinned. Xander never played by anyone’s rules. I think maybe the reason he was given this task was because they wanted to see what he would do.”
Faith thought about that. Xander was the reason she was a slayer and not some crackwhore statistic: becoming a slayer and gaining her first Watcher, the woman who was the first person to actually give a fuck about her, had saved her life. Then he had tried to save her from herself back in Sunnydale, even after she had used him and thrown him away. Despite the fact that she had tried to kill him, he had made an effort to befriend her while she was in jail. He had been her lifeline, her friend, confidant, and cheerleader. He had saved her from despair and hopelessness. Now, he had saved her again. He was and would always be her hero.
“So, the PTBs, they think this was the right thing to do?” Faith asked. How could they settle for me instead of him?
“Xander saw potential in you and so do they. The PTBs have accepted his choice and see that it was the only one he could make, not just for you and Buffy, but for him. Killing one of you would have destroyed him. We're talking downward-spiral-soul-in-jeopardy destroyed. He saved not just you and Buffy, but also himself. If nothing else, take comfort in that.” Lorne said with a small, sad smile. It still hurt to remember that this body in front of him no longer held the boy he had known.
“I’m gonna do my best to make this life mean something, I swear.” Faith said fervently.
Lorne took her in his arms and said, “I know you will precious, I know you will.”
They stayed like that for a few moments, taking comfort in each other.
Lorne pulled back, “Now, Angel is left on some out of town business and won’t be back for a day or two, but the others will be here shortly. Are you ready to meet them, to tell them what has happened?”
“They’re gonna hate me.” Faith whispered.
“I’m not going to lie to you, this will be tough. But it has to be done and the sooner the better.”
“I know.” Faith said sadly, “Oh, Xander left letters for you guys in his pocket. Maybe that’ll help?”
“Maybe Honeybuns.” Lorne said. “Well, I guess we’re going to find out.”
They both turned as the door to the lobby opened.
Previous Chapters