Listening
by CJ
Rating: NC-17

Lorne

I knew she was back on our side way before Gun-Ho Wes went to get her out of that jail she was staying at. Oh and I do mean staying, because as most of us know a slayer who doesn't want to be somewhere can't be contained by any form of means. She chose to be there and what kept her there you may wonder, well it weren't the bars or bricks or even the guards. None of that all, what kept her in were her feelings of Guilt and of Love.

But I digress, though it did need to be said that I knew before anyone else did. I'll tell you how I already knew that our little Faith had found her way again. Angel had at one point decided he wanted to find out for sure how far along Faith was in her rehabilitation process. So he asked me if I could read someone from a recording, because no way in Pylea < my own personal hell home > would it have been possible for my green cheeks to make a 'big' house call.

I could own a well established club, I could be a main attraction in Las Vegas but I couldn't go and visit a young girl who was locked up in the State of California Penn. Now having done only a few long distance readings I told Mr Broody I'd give it a try but that I wouldn't be as accurate as I was on my normal readings. Because having my noggin drained by Wolfram & Hart hadn't helped either but I was starting to get some semblance of the former me again.

Now I had myself settled in for the night; reclined on one of Hyperion's comfy chairs, with a sea-breeze in one hand and a mug-shot from the police record of the brunette slayer in the other. Glancing over the photo in my hand I had to admit that Angel-cakes hadn't been exaggerating when he had described this little beauty to me. Absentmindedly I tapped the play button on the small cassette player on the table next to me, as it started to play I only heard the sound of silence. Well that wasn't gonna help me a whole lot, perhaps the little firecracker hadn't felt up to singing right away or perhaps the volume was turned down low. Finagling with the volume button only gave me some background garble until a loud voice almost made me drop the tape player. I quickly turned down the volume to a more tolerable level for my delicate eardrums and started to listen what was being said.

".....Yeah well I don't rightly know what to say here but I figured saying Hey to you first would be an appropriate thing to do. So 'Hey Lorne'.... Angel didn't explain this too well, and I ain't got no real idea what I gotta sing so I figure any old thing will do... I do hope however that someone is gonna give me a heads up about what this thing is all about on a later date, maybe during next months visit or so....."

As I listened to the girl chatter on I already started to get a good feeling about her. I'd heard about what went on in her past I knew she was dealt a raw deal and would have done better if given a fair chance. This young woman I was listening to now though had already moved way passed all that. Then the low hum of her voice started on a song I wasn't familiar with and I started to pay extra attention; as it takes me a lot more concentration to read someone from a recording than in real life.

The images that hit my inner eye .... Well how do I describe it besides WOW. All I can say is if my orientation pointed that way I'd have been one very, very happy Lorne. However I can honestly say I don't go for the soft cuties, my flavour for this month is a little more rugged and knows how to mix my favourite cocktail. But Geeze Louise I was blushing a dark crimson on my cheeks to match my demony little horns. I'd been ready for a lot but this I hadn't expected in a million years. I almost wanted to ring up the cable company to hook me up with an X-rated filter for my brain.

Flashes of dark and light hair intermingling were interchanged with images of naked female bodies rubbing against each other. Hands sliding down towards yearning flesh, fingers dipping deeper as backs arched up from crisp white sheets. All I could do for a good minute there was mentally blink and take a big gulp from my sea-breeze, almost emptying the glass. My ears were burning from the intensity of the vision, even if the voice that was singing was almost nothing more than a timid whisper. More pictures fought for dominance inside of my head among them a huge battle scene, a jail fight and some images of study-books laid-out on a bunk bed. But those were quickly chased away before I had a real chance to see any details. It was replaced by an image of lips, gorgeous lips that were being kissed and teased until suddenly all faded to black leaving me gasping for air and needing something stronger than my last drink.

Faith had stopped singing though she still hummed a couple of bars to the song. I'd had a techno coloured straight guy's fantasy without the accompanying sound effects. What to tell Angel, H E L L what to tell Faith. At least I knew she had a future and a good one for sure, from what I could make out she had been fighting with those other girls not against them. As for the raunchier parts, I figured I'd let that one go by. The girl was known to be a hottie with an H&H motto, sex was bound to be in her future somewhere. Now why tell the coach of her soul and break his un-beating heart even more. Those girls were almost destined to come together, and as we all know broody boy lives for destinies.

Carefully I wrote down the essentials of what I'd seen on a note pad, Faith living in the future, fighting a good fight and enjoying herself to the best of her abilities. It would give Angel what he needed to know, and it would give Faith an extra moral boost the next time she'd get a visit from him. I'd give it to him tomorrow...

...continued in Telling...