Avocation

Chapter 27

“Parting after parting,/Sore loss and gnawing pain:/Meeting grows half a sorrow/Because of parting again./When shall the day break/That these things shall not be?/When shall new earth be ours/Without a sea,/And time that is not time/But eternity?/To meet, worth living for;/Worth dying for, to meet;/To meet, worth parting for,/Bitter forgot in sweet:/To meet worth parting before,/Never to part more.” ~Christina Rossetti, “Parting”

They weren’t exactly speaking, but the job had to be done. Neither Buffy nor Faith were stupid. The deputy mayor had been in that alley for a reason, which was why they were in City Hall.

Funny how Spike’s presence wasn’t making it better.

The vampire had more experience breaking in, however, and he had a car for the getaway, so it only made sense that he would accompany them. It had been Spike who insisted on Faith’s presence. In explaining his reasoning to Giles and Buffy, he had said, “Best to keep an eye on the girl right now.”

Giles had been hesitant about breaking into City Hall, although he’d agreed that something was going on. He’d finally warned them to be careful and not to tell Wesley.

It was too bad that they had been forced to tell the young Watcher the truth about the deputy mayor’s death in the first place. Buffy didn’t trust him as far as she could throw him.

Since she could throw Wesley pretty far, maybe that analogy didn’t work very well.

It probably would have been better if there had actually been evidence for them to sift through, since that would have given all of them something to do other than not talk to each other but the files were empty. Someone had apparently anticipated their search. Finally, Faith threw up her hands. “There’s nothing here. This was a waste of time.”

Buffy shook her head. “I agree. There’s nothing here, but that’s not normal. Spike?”

“Have to agree with you, pet.” Spike looked around the office. “Somebody did a real thorough job of cleaning up.”

Faith was starting to get it. “Too thorough?”

“Maybe.” Spike allowed. He stopped, cocking his head. “Bloody hell.” He motioned them to be quiet. A moment later, the Mayor’s voice could be heard echoing down the hallway. All three of them recognized the voice of the vampire at his side.

They waited until the echoes had died away. “The Mayor is a Black Hat?” Faith asked quietly.

Buffy nodded. “Seems that way.” A fleeting look of sadness crossed her face as she glanced around the office. “The deputy mayor was probably looking for us.”

Faith shrugged. “Well, maybe he should have waited for a better time.”

“Enough.” Spike fixed her with a hard stare. “Wasn’t his fault, Slayer.”

Faith looked stung. “He came out of nowhere!” she hissed.

“I know, Faith,” Buffy said, throwing Spike a warning look.

The other Slayer wouldn’t meet their eyes. “Whatever. It’s done.”

After that, there was nothing further to say. After they had managed to make it out of City Hall, Faith insisted that she didn’t need a ride, and she took off on her own. Spike and Buffy let her go, knowing that there wasn’t much they could do to stop her.

“What are you going to tell the cops?” Spike asked as they pulled up in front of Buffy’s house.

Buffy gave him a sharp glance. “What are you talking about?”

“Buffy, they’ve found the body. There are always witnesses. You need to figure out what you’re going to tell the cops and then stick to it.”

The seriousness of Spike’s tone had Buffy pausing. “Do you have any ideas?”

“Tell them you were with me.”

Buffy blinked. “Spike, what about Faith? If I say I was with you…”

“She doesn’t seem to be real interested in anything but herself, luv,” Spike replied. “My main concern is keeping you out of this.”

Buffy was a little taken aback by the intensity of his gaze. He meant what he said. She was his focus. It was an overwhelming realization. For the first time, Buffy thought she understood what Spike meant when he said he was all in.

It made her wonder what she had to offer Spike.

~~~~~

The silence in the library was thick and heavy. “So what now?” Xander asked, the first to break the silence as usual.

Willow already knew what had happened, but Xander hadn’t been told about Faith’s involvement in the murder yet. Neither of them were aware that the police knew that there was a good possibility that either Buffy or Faith were involved in the deputy mayor’s death.

They also needed to be informed that Faith was to be avoided for the time being, at least until they knew whether or not unpredictability was going to turn into danger.

Buffy slumped a little further in her chair. The interview with the detective earlier that day had not been fun. Even though her mom knew what had happened and had understood that accidents can happen, Joyce still wasn’t happy about having the police at the house. Buffy wondered how Faith had handled her interview with the cops.

She wondered if Faith had even stuck around, or if she’d decided to let Buffy take the heat.

“We wait,” Giles said quietly. “I believe that there is every possibility that Faith will come around on her own.”

Xander shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “Maybe I should talk to her.” When everyone turned to stare at him, the tips of his ears turned pink. “We have a connection.”

“Xander, you guys have talked maybe twice,” Buffy said. “Why would you think—” She stopped abruptly. “Oh.”

Giles frowned, realizing that he was missing something. “What?”

Willow, who had figured it out as soon as Xander had started fidgeting, looked down steadily at her hands. “Xander had sex with Faith.”

“Oh.” Giles paused and then decided to ignore that information. “I would suggest that you stay away from her, Xander. Faith is highly volatile right now. Her reaction is unpredictable.”

He stood. “Meanwhile, I want you all to go about your business.” As the others filed out, Giles glanced over at Buffy. “How are you?”

“Surviving,” Buffy replied. “I have no idea what Faith told the cops. She could have said anything.”

“What exactly did you say?” Giles asked.

Buffy gave a short little laugh. “I told him I was with my boyfriend, which was sort of true. Then he asked me for Spike’s name and number.”

Giles raised an eyebrow. “It will be interesting to see how Spike handles that.”

~~~~~

Spike handled the police with the same aplomb with which he’d been handling cops for years. Dealing with the law was not a new thing for him, and he had everything he needed to prove who he was.

His papers—that he’d paid top dollar for a few years ago—identified him as William Brighton, a British national who lived off his free-lance writing. Spike knew it was a cover story that seemed plausible. From the outside, his lifestyle appeared very modest, and he didn’t appear so old that his relationship with an eighteen-year-old girl would raise eyebrows too high.

The truth was always stranger than fiction.

From the hints that the cops had dropped, it appeared that while both Buffy and Faith were on their short-list of suspects, Faith was the one they were most concerned with. Buffy, after all, had an alibi, and a pretty good one. Faith’s was a little flimsier.

Spike had been thinking about the situation all day, since he couldn’t sleep, and he’d thought about a potential solution. Of course, it involved going behind both Watchers’ backs and going to Faith, but he thought the end result might be worth it.

When Faith opened the door, her expression suggested that she was ready to stake him if she didn’t like what he had to say. “You here to tell me how sorry I ought to be?”

Spike entered the room, brushing past her. “Would it do any good?”

“Look, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Faith retorted. “This is a war. You’ve got casualties in war.”

Spike regarded her with a steady gaze that Faith couldn’t hold. “You’re right,” he finally said. “There’s always going to be collateral damage, but there’s such a thing as remorse, Slayer.”

“What good is that going to do me or him?”

“None for him, but you’d be surprised what it’ll do for you.” Spike shrugged. “That’s your business. You feel what you feel. Nothing anyone says is going to change that.”

She tossed her head, still defiant. “That’s right.”

“Came to tell you to get out of town,” Spike continued. “The police are going to be looking at you pretty hard.”

Faith sneered. “So you’re ready to get rid of me, is that it?”

“Figured you’d want to be gone,” Spike replied. “We both know you don’t want to wind up in custody, Faith. And we both know they can’t keep you if you don’t want to be kept.”

“Damn straight,” Faith replied. Her eyes were still suspicious. “You want me to run so I take the heat off your precious Buffy, is that it?”

Spike stared at her. “I never made any secret of the fact that Buffy was my first priority,” he shot back. “I did what I could for you, Faith. If you’re going to be a bitch because I didn’t sleep with you, that’s your problem.”

The silence that fell was not pleasant, and Spike knew that the Slayer was fighting the urge to strike back. “You really don’t think that’s going to work, do you?” Faith asked finally. “This won’t last. It can’t.”

“Maybe,” Spike allowed. “But it doesn’t matter.”

“Doesn’t it?”

“Not to me.” Spike shrugged. “Never been all that smart about who I love.”

Their eyes met, and a glimmer of understanding hummed between them. If things had gone differently, that moment might have made all the difference in the world.

Too bad things didn’t go differently.

~~~~~

Buffy was getting worried. Spike was supposed to meet her more than an hour ago, and he still hadn’t shown up. They were going to patrol, and then had made a tentative agreement to go to the Bronze afterwards.

She wanted to have some fun with her boyfriend for a change.

It wasn’t like Spike to be this late, and Buffy wasn’t quite sure where she was supposed to find him. She had already tried calling his cell phone, but there was no answer, which just heightened her anxiety. Giles had finally retreated to his office to get away from her pacing.

“Buffy?”

She turned to see Wesley standing just inside the doors of the library. “What is it?”

He winced at her short tone, and Buffy noticed that his jaw was beginning to swell. “What happened?”

“I called the Council,” he admitted in a low tone.

Buffy stiffened. “I thought—” She stopped, remembering who it was she was speaking to. “Never mind. Where is she?”

“She got away,” Wesley replied. “I—she escaped.”

Giles emerged from his office. “What are you talking about?”

Wesley nearly flinched at the ice in the other Watcher’s tone. “I called the Council. They were going to take her back to England for rehabilitation, but she managed to escape.”

“Great,” Buffy muttered. “Where is Spike? We could split up and—”

“I know where Spike is.”

It was Wesley’s tone of voice that stopped her cold. “Did you hurt him?” she demanded. “Because if you did—”

“He’s unhurt,” Wesley hastened to assure her.

Buffy glared at him. “Where is he?”

“At Faith’s hotel room,” Wesley replied. “In order to apprehend Faith, we had to incapacitate him.”

“Dammit!” Buffy swore. She needed to find Faith, and fast. Buffy knew that the other Slayer was probably feeling betrayed right about now, and for good reason. She didn’t have time to make sure Spike was okay.

“Buffy.” Giles even voice calmed her. “I’ll find Spike, and we can start looking for Faith from there. Where do you think Faith will be?”

“The docks,” Buffy said immediately. “She’s talked about it before. I’ll head there, and then you guys can—”

“We’ll look,” Giles promised.

“What about me?” Wesley asked. “I want to help.”

Buffy glared at him as she walked out. “Do you still have your ticket back to the mother country?”

~~~~~

Mayor Wilkins was not a happy camper. Not only had there been two Slayers in the building, but that Spike character had been with them. They most certainly knew that he was up to some t hing, and he’d wanted to keep them in the dark up until the Ascension.

There were still a few key things that had to happen, and if the Slayers got in his way, well, that would certainly be unfortunate.

“Not one, but two Slayers,” the Mayor commented, rewinding the tape. “And a souled vampire. Do you know how unhappy this makes me, Mr. Trick?”

“We had a guard,” Trick protested, knowing it was a weak excuse.

The Mayor held up a hand for silence. “This is my favorite part. This is where they see that I’m a thief, and probably a whole lot more.” He leaned back in his chair. “What are we going to do about it?”

Trick frowned. “Well, they can’t do much from a jail cell.”

The Mayor waved his hand, dismissing that idea completely. “We don’t have nearly enough evidence for that. No, I think you need to do something a little more permanent. And I want that vampire taken care of. He’s worn out his welcome.”

~~~~~

Spike had never been so humiliated in his unlife. In his line of work he couldn’t afford to let anyone get the drop on him, and he’d let the Council wankers truss him up like a Christmas goose.

In his own defense, they’d hit him with a taser blast before he had even registered they were through the door. Still, it was humiliating.

It was worse not to be able to free himself.

“Spike!” Giles’ voice came from somewhere above him just before a pair of feet appeared before his eyes. “Are you alright?”

“Do I bloody look alright?” Spike demanded. “Those sodding bastards—” Now that he had an audience, Spike let loose all the creative profanity he’d been thinking up over the last few hours.

Giles knelt down beside him. “Do you have a knife?”

“Not on me,” Spike admitted sullenly.

Giles sighed. “Well, this might take a while then.”

It took longer than either of them wanted. When Spike was finally free of the ropes and netting, he stood. “Where’s Faith?”

“Buffy went after her,” Giles replied. “The Council didn’t manage to retain custody for long.”

Spike sneered. “Of course they didn’t. Bunch of idiots, that git Wesley in the fore. When I get my hands on him…”

Giles gave him a warning look. “Killing Wesley won’t do any good.”

“It’ll make me feel better,” Spike muttered, looking around the hotel room. “I wanted to help her, Rupert.”

Giles grimaced. “You did the best you could, Spike.”

“You do realize that this is going to send her over the edge, don’t you?”

“It might not,” Giles temporized. “Perhaps this will turn out.”

“You don’t believe that any more than I do,” Spike replied.

“What were you doing here, Spike?”

“Trying to convince Faith to leave town,” Spike admitted candidly. “Figured it might be best to get her out of here. She’s jealous of Buffy, and as long as she feels like she’s playing second fiddle, she won’t be happy.”

Giles frowned. “Do you really think it’s wise to send Faith out on her own?”

“Not now,” Spike replied. “I thought I was getting somewhere before the Council goons showed up. At this point, it’s hard to say what the girl will do.”

~~~~~

Faith had saved Buffy from getting eaten by Trick, although she wasn’t quite sure she’d actually wanted to. It had been reflex more than anything else. After all, if Buffy died, it would leave Faith the Chosen One.

The way things were at the moment, Faith knew that she would always be in Buffy’s shadow. They were all Buffy’s friends, Buffy’s mom, Buffy’s Watcher.

Buffy’s boyfriend.

Even though Faith didn’t typically think much of guys in general, she knew Spike’s type. She’d seen a few, but they generally didn’t go for girls like her. They wanted somebody like Buffy.

Everybody wanted somebody like Buffy. Faith was the troublemaker, the rabble-rouser. Her kind wasn’t wanted.

Except on the rare occasion when she was.

Faith figured that the Mayor might just be her shot at doing something that was only about her, where she was valued for her unique skill-set. She recognized in the Mayor the same values that she’d grown up with—want, take, have. That was the only way you could get ahead in this world. Do-gooders like Buffy and Spike would eventually get screwed over and probably killed. Faith was determined not to let that happen to her.

If the Mayor was the major player in town, Faith wanted to be on his team.

She figured it was only right. She’d killed a man, and you didn’t go back from something like that. It was time she joined the side she’d always been meant for.

After all, Faith had always been bad.

~~~~~

“So is everything okay with Faith?” Willow asked.

Buffy shrugged. “The police haven’t been calling. Spike said they probably didn’t have enough evidence to make an arrest.”

Willow tried to appear positive. “Well, that’s good.”

“You don’t sound all that approving.”

“I just don’t think it would have hurt if Faith left town,” Willow replied. “She killed somebody, Buffy. If you hadn’t told Spike, I don’t think she would have told anybody.”

Buffy looked uncomfortable. “Well, maybe things will be better now. It’s all out in the open.”

“What about you and Spike?”

“What about us?” Buffy asked, frowning. They had taken their discussion outside to the school lawn, and Buffy was trying to get some crunches done. Wesley had pulled out his tests, probably trying to figure out how to make sure that one of his Slayers didn’t kill somebody again. Buffy wanted to make sure she was just as good as Faith.

Competition was healthy. At least, that’s what she kept telling herself.

“How’s the dating thing?” Willow asked.

“What dating thing?” Buffy asked. “If it’s not one thing, it’s another. Spike is completely focused on the slaying, too. I mean, we patrol together, but I just want to spend time with him, without having to worry about a monster jumping out of the bushes.” She saw the floating pencil doing a slow spin. “Hey, that’s great!”

“It’s all about the control,” Willow said, grinning. “Why don’t you go out tonight? There’s nothing going on, right?”

Buffy huffed. “Mandatory dinner with Mom. After the thing with the police, she’s insisting on lots of bonding time.”

Willow frowned. “Ask her to ask Spike,” she suggested. “She likes him, so it won’t be that big of a deal.”

Buffy flopped back on the grass. “I guess that’s better than nothing. I thought dating Spike was going to be easier, since he knew about me being the Slayer. Instead, it’s harder, because we’re always doing Slayer things. I’m tired of having to mix business with pleasure. I want my pleasure unadulterated.”

“I hear you,” Willow agreed, thinking of Oz. If she didn’t get regular Oz-time, she was one cranky witch. It was no wonder that Buffy wasn’t a happy camper.

Buffy pushed herself up off the ground. “I’ll see you later, Wills. I’m going to go do some laps in the pool.”

Willow watched her go, turning her focus back on her pencil. Maybe she should go talk to Spike, let him know that he should try doing something special with Buffy. It couldn’t hurt to give him a heads up.