Faith's Hope
by Buckster
Rating: PG-13
When Faith and Buffy got to the living room, they noticed it was empty.
"Well at least they had the presence of mind to get to the bedroom first. Would have been way too embarrassing to walk in on them." Faith commented.
"Yeah. So not something I want to see right now."
Suddenly they heard Willow shouting from upstairs "Oh Goddess. Kennedy Yeah."
Faith and Buffy looked at each other for a minute, then started laughing. "Seems like your sister may be as skilled as you are." Buffy told Faith.
"Guess so."
Then they heard what sounded like loud growls coming from the room Kennedy and Willow shared.
"Ok I don't think that is supposed to happen. We need to get up there now Faith."
Both slayers took off running up the stairs to the bedroom. Once there, they found the door locked. It took Faith only a second to bust it open to find her sister on top of Willow. The older sibling didn't see or smell any blood, but she had a feeling her sister wasn't in total control of her wolf.
Kennedy had just finished marking her mate when she heard the door bust open. When she looked up at the intruder, all she could think about was protecting her mate. She didn't even stop to think before she was on the ground in front of the two slayers, growling in warning.
It took Buffy and Willow a few seconds to realize what Faith knew the minute she walked in the room. Kennedy wasn't in control, the wolf was. As soon as they realized this, both girls went to their respective mates, trying to calm them down. Neither of the sisters had started to transform yet, but their eyes were starting to glow yellow.
*Same time, elsewhere in the house*
Rona and Vi had decided, when Giles had announced that he was taking everyone out to the desert for another quest, (which was his cover story for getting everyone but Kennedy, Faith, Buffy and Willow out of the house for the night) that they didn't want to go. They went on the last one, and thought the whole idea was stupid. They also couldn't understand why Kennedy had gotten out of going again this time. Giles had said it was because she was injured, but neither of the potentials believed that. From the sounds they heard coming from the other bedroom, they knew the older potential was feeling perfectly fine now. They had been listening to the sounds of Willow and Kennedy for a while now, when suddenly they heard what sounded like a growl coming from the room. Then they heard Buffy and Faith running up the stairs, and the door getting broken in. That is when they decided to go see what was going on.
None of the other four in the house noticed the two standing in the hall. When they saw Kennedy jump at her sister, looking like she was going to attack her, they felt they had to do something. That is when Rona noticed Kennedy's eyes. When she saw that, she knew why the four had stayed behind. She quietly motioned to Vi to follow her downstairs.
Once down there, the two went to the weapons chest. Rona knew most of what was in there would be of no use to them that night. She motioned towards the two silver daggers that were strapped on the door. Vi didn't understand why Rona wanted those two weapons specifically.
"Why those two? Wouldn't a sword, or even a cross-bow be better? You know there is no way we can better Kennedy at close range."
"Didn't you notice anything different about Kennedy? She isn't normal. She's a werewolf, and the only protection against those is silver. The only silver weapons I see in here are those two daggers. Now, if you want to be ripped apart by an out of control wolf, be my guest. I plan on being able to defend myself should she try to attack."
"Why don't we just hide and let Buffy and Faith take care of it?"
"And what if she gets past them? I didn't see any weapons on them. Let's just get to the dining room and stand watch. Make sure she can't get out of the house."
Back upstairs, the stand off was still going on. Neither of the sisters backing off. Suddenly, they both dropped to the ground. When that happened, Buffy looked out the window and noticed that the sun had set while everything was going on. She looked over at Willow, who had noticed the same thing she did.
Suddenly, they heard what sounded like a howl coming from Faith. What they saw when they looked down shocked them both, even though Buffy had seen it the night before. Hair had started sprouting all over the two girls. The sounds of bones rearranging themselves filled the air. Then the sounds of jaws dislocating, while elongating and filling with fangs. As suddenly as it started, the change was complete. Now instead of two humans laying of the floor, it was two wolves.
Once the change was complete, the two wolves looked at each other as if communicating. Realizing there was no threat, Kennedy went over to her sister and licked the side of her face, as if to say sorry. Then she backed up. That was when Buffy noticed what looked like a bite mark on Willow, near where the neck meets the shoulder.
"Willow, did Kennedy bite you?"
"Yeah, but she didn't draw blood."
Suddenly Buffy remembered something like that happening the night her and Faith had in the alley. Her hand went to her neck, at about the same spot as Willow's mark, and found the scar she had there. She then drew the collar of her shirt down to show Willow.
"And here I thought it was just Faith being Faith. Even if she didn't know about the wolf then, some part of her did."
When the two wolves saw the marks on their mates, there was something like pride showing on thier faces. Buffy swore she could almost see a smirk on Kennedy's. Then before Buffy and Willow knew what was happening, Kennedy and Faith took off out the bedroom door and down the stairs.
By the time they realized the wolves had run off, they heard a loud yelp from the bottom of the stairs. They looked at each other, then took off after the other two. When they got down there, what they saw scared them. Kennedy was lying on the ground, with what looked like one of Buffy's daggers sticking out of where her front leg met the shoulder. Faith was standing over the other wolf, growling at the two potentials, who shouldn't have been there in the first place. Rona had blood on her, and Vi was standing against the door, holding out her dagger in case the other wolf decided to attack.
"What the hell are you two doing here? I thought Giles took everyone with him when he left today."
"Been there, done that. It was so boring the first time, we didn't want to go again."
"Did you ever think there was a reason we tried to get you all out of the house tonight?"
"How were we supposed to know the two of them were wolves? It's not like you kept us in the loop about it. We just planned on staying in Dawn's room, out of your way. When we heard the growls, we thought you might need help."
"Does it look like we needed any help? And why did you have to stab her? Did she attack you?"
"Didn't give it a chance to. I knew if I had waited, I wouldn't stand a chance, so I ambushed it."
When Rona said that, Willow snapped. "Kennedy is not an it. She can't help what she is. Her or Faith. You had no excuse. We had everything under control."
"Didn't look like it to me. Looked like they were about to go roaming the city, looking for victims."
Willow looked at Rona, her eyes starting to grow dark. "Kennedy has been in this house for months. None of us knew what she was going through month after month when the full moon came. She has control over her wolf. She was also the only one to help Faith control hers. If she dies because of your stupidity, you will wish you were never born. Now, get out of my sight, before I do something I will regret."
Both potentials started slowly backing away from the group. Once they were out of the room, they turned around and ran down into the basement. Buffy went over to try to calm Faith and Willow down. When she finally did, she turned to see how bad Rona had injured Kennedy.
"Oh Goddess Buffy, she isn't moving. Why isn't she moving?"
"She's hurt Will. We need to get that dagger out of her." Then she thought 'Damn, those two found the only silver weapons in the whole house. I knew I should have hid those today. Ok, need to focus. Need to help Kennedy first. Then I can deal with those two. First get that dagger out.'
Buffy reached over and grabbed the handle of the weapon. She then carefully pulled it out. Once done with that, she checked the wound to see how bad it was.
"Well we got a little lucky. Doesn't look like it hit anything vital. We just need to get her upstairs on to one of the beds."
She then bent down to try to pick Kennedy up. When she got close to her, Kennedy's eyes opened and she started to growl.
"Great, seems she won't let me by her and you can't lift her. How in the hell are we going to get her to a bed?"
The whole time Buffy and Willow were working on Kennedy, Faith was sitting back watching. She knew her mate and the red head wouldn't hurt her sister. When she heard what Buffy said last, something clicked in her head. She knew she had no choice but to try to change back so she could carry her sister upstairs. She laid down and concentrated, trying to find the way back.
When Buffy noticed Faith had laid down, she got concerned. She thought maybe she had been hurt also. That is when she noticed Faith starting to change. She then motioned to Willow so she could see.
When the change was complete, Faith looked like she was still in some pain. Concerned, Buffy went over to her to help her up.
"Why did you do that?"
"You need me like this, not wolf. Not much time. Can't hold it off for long. Get her upstairs."
Faith then went and picked up her sister. She slowly carried Kennedy upstairs. Once Faith got her into the room and on the bed, she turned to Willow.
"You help Kenn now. Heal her."
"What happened to you calling her Hope?" Buffy asked Faith.
"Can't think of her like that when wolf. She's alpha. Need to lie down now. Help her please."
With that, Faith went and laid down next to her sister on the bed. She quit fighting her wolf and quickly changed back. Once she was a wolf again, she looked up to Willow, then down to her sister, as if telling her to fix her. She then laid down and fell asleep.
When she was sure Faith and Kennedy were settled for a bit, Buffy went to the bathroom to get something to clean out Kennedy's wound. Willow stayed with the two wolves, to make sure nothing happened. When Buffy came back, she had some bottles of alcohol, and one of the tranq guns with her.
"Why do you have the gun? They are both out cold." Willow asked.
"Because the minute this alcohol hits Kennedy's wound, she's going to wake up and try to attack. It's better to be safe than sorry." Buffy explained.
"Makes sense."
With that, Buffy shot one of the darts into Kennedy. She then waited a few minutes to make sure she wouldn't wake up. Once she was sure the tranq was working, she went over to the injured wolf and started to attempt to clean out the wound. After she poured the second bottle in, she was pretty sure that if anything was left in, she had gotten it out. She then went over to the wall that Willow had sat against when Buffy started this all.
"Ok, I think I got it all cleaned out."
"Wasn't that a bit of over-kill? Using two full bottles?"
"Will, you know as well as I do that silver is like a poison to werewolves. I wanted to be sure it was all out. I've done all I can for the night. They both should sleep till morning, so let's try to get some rest."
*The next morning-- right before dawn*
Buffy had decided to stay awake to make sure Faith or Kennedy didn't wake up during the night. Willow tried to, but she ended up falling asleep about an hour ago. Buffy didn't really want to wake up the witch, but she knew Willow would want to be awake to make sure Kennedy was still ok after the change. After making sure the witch was awake, the two went to the bed to stand watch over the two wolves.
Within a few moments, Faith woke up. She first checked out her sister, to make sure she was ok, then looked up at Willow and Buffy. When she realized they didn't look worried, she relaxed and let the change happen. After both wolves changed back to their human form, the two slayers and Willow noticed Kennedy didn't wake up.
"Ok, what did you two do to Hope? Why hasn't she woken up yet?" Faith asked, getting a little upset.
"Faith, calm down. The dagger went down to the bone. She lost a lot of blood last night, but she should be fine. The reason she hasn't woken up yet is because her body needs the rest." Buffy said to console her.
"It's just that I worry, ya know? This shouldn't have happened. If I was just a little faster last night...."
"It would be you lying there instead. Rona wasn't thinking last night. She just saw a threat and tried to eliminate it. That is what all of us are trained, or are training, to do. We can't blame her for that. What we can blame her for is her and Vi being here, and her actions after it happened. I'll deal with that later, after I have had a chance to cool down some. Now, are you tired? Do you need to get some more rest?"
"No, I feel just fine. I slept through the night, didn't I?"
"Yeah, well, most of it anyway. What do you remember about what happened last night?"
"Surprisingly, I remember all of it."
"So you remember changing back to help us get Kennedy upstairs? Do you also remember what you said about Kennedy being alpha wolf?" Willow asked.
"Yeah. I may be the stronger slayer, and older sister, but she has way more experience with the whole wolf thing. What I can't figure out is why she lost control last night. That really worries me."
"Me too. She hasn't had a problem since she got here. I mean, until the other night, we didn't even know she was a werewolf. So the question is, is something happening to make her lose control, or is it the result of the multiple injuries she has had lately?" Buffy piped in.
"I guess this means I get to start researching that. First though, I need some sleep. That one hour I got last night just didn't do a thing for me. Plus, I don't have the slayer stamina you two do," Willow said.
"Yeah, why don't you lie down with Hope. I'm going to go get something to eat, then I might go lay down in B's room. What are your plans, B?"
"I guess I should go down and talk to Rona and Vi. Let them know it is safe to come out of the basement. Willow, let us know if anything changes with Kennedy, ok?"
"Will do. Right now she looks like she is sleeping peacefully. Buffy, please let Rona know to steer clear of me for a few days. I am still really upset about last night. I mean, she could have killed her, and she didn't care. I just need some time to come to terms with that."
"I was planning on telling her to stay away from all three of you for a while. There was no call for how she acted last night. I just need to make her see the error of her ways."
Willow then went and laid down next to the sleeping woman on the bed. Faith and Buffy went downstairs. When they got to the bottom, Buffy stopped Faith and gave her a soft kiss on the lips, then rested her head on her shoulder.
"Not that I am complaining, but what was that for?" Faith asked.
"That really could be you lying up there. You scared me last night when you suddenly laid down so you could change back. I thought you were hurt too."
"B, I'm fine. I'm just worried about Hope. I can't sense her. You sure you got everything out of the wound, right?"
"As sure as I can be. I used two full bottles of alcohol on her. I guess we just need to keep an eye on her. If she doesn't wake up by noon, or if she gets worse, then we will take her to the hospital. Does that sound good to you?"
"I guess. I think I am going to go sit with her after I get something to eat. Just hope I don't scare Willow. She's got the major mojo going for her right now and the last thing I want is it directed at me."
"Yeah, she went through a lot this last year. That is why I'm so worried about your sister. She's the first person since Tara that Willow has been with. I'm not sure how Willow would react if something should happen to her."
"And it doesn't help that it seems my dear ol' sis seems to be accident prone lately. Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on her. I don't want to see anything happen either."
"Well, guess I put this off long enough. Better go down and talk to our two wayward potentials."
*About two hours later*
After Faith had eaten, showered and rested a little, she went in to check on her sister. When she got to the room, she noticed Kennedy was paler and was sweating. Worried, she ran over to the side of the bed and tried to wake her up.
"Hope, come on. You need to wake up now. You've slept long enough."
After a few minutes of Faith shaking her, Kennedy finally opened her eyes slightly.
"Faith, what.. what happened? I hurt all over."
"What do you remember, sweety?" Faith said, pushing some of Kennedy's hair off her face.
"Last thing I remember is coming up here with Willow. We made love, then everything went black. Faith, why does it hurt? What happened last night?"
"You don't remember me busting in here and you practically challenging me?"
"No, did I attack you? Did you have to fight me off?"
"No hun, you held yourself back, if only just. You lost control Hope. You had me scared."
"If we didn't fight, then why do I hurt?"
"We changed before they could restrain us, so we decided to take a little run. What we didn't know is that two of the potentials played hooky and stayed home. They saw you jump at me, so by the time we got downstairs, they thought we were going to attack someone else. One of them got the jump on you, and before I could stop her, she stabbed you."
"If she stabbed me, then why do I hurt all over? Shouldn't it just hurt where it happened?"
"It was with a silver dagger. The way you look right now, I'm thinking a part may still be in you. We need to get you to a doctor."
While the exchange was going on between the sisters, Willow woke up and slowly walked out of the room. She had noticed how hot Kennedy was and how pale she had become in the couple of hours since dawn. She had decided to go get Buffy and the dagger they had pulled out of her girlfriend the night before. She found the dagger first, where they had left it at the bottom of the stairs. When she examined it, she noticed a very small piece of the tip had broken off. Scared of what that meant, she ran downstairs to get Buffy. Then the two ran up to the bedroom to get Faith and Kennedy so they could run the younger woman to the hospital.
By the time they had arrived, Kennedy was out cold again. It had taken all her energy just to get dressed and to the car. Faith carried her in, with Buffy and Willow yelling for someone to help them. Once they found a doctor, he told Faith to place her on a gurney, then with a couple of nurses, the doctor took Kennedy back to be examined.
Once the group was out of eyesight, Faith collapsed.
"B, tell me she is going to be alright. I can't loose her."
Buffy went over and wrapped her arms around Faith. "They are going to take great care of her. Don't worry, she's tough."
"She doesn't remember changing last night. Why do I remember, and she doesn't? What's going on with my sister?"
"Hun, I don't know. We'll have to talk to Giles about this. Maybe he'll know what's going on. Now come on. Let's go sit down and wait to see what's going on."
Willow watched the exchange between Faith and Buffy in confusion. She knew something had happened the night before between them. Kennedy's revelation had opened a door for the two of them to start again. She had some of the same questions as Faith did though. Plus she wanted to know why it suddenly seemed like someone was out to get rid of the younger girl. It seems like whenever she starts to fall for someone, someone or something happens to split them up. She was determined not to let it happen with Kennedy. This time, she did have some control over the situation. All they needed to do was to make it through this.
A little while later, a doctor came up to them in the waiting room. "Are you the family of Hope Kennedy?"
"Yeah, I'm her sister. Is everything ok, doc?" Faith asked.
"Well, the stab wound in her shoulder was deep. We also found something lodged in the joint on the X-ray. We need to do surgery to remove it, and to repair some of the damage done. Can you please sign this release form?"
"Yeah. Doc, what about the fever? Does that mean it's infected?"
"That is what is really puzzling us. There is no sign of infection, but her body is acting like there is. She isn't responding to the antibiotics either. If we could, we would wait to do the surgery, but the wound is still bleeding somewhat. We will do everything we can to make sure she is alright. Now that you have signed this form, I need to get back and get her upstairs to the OR."
Once the doctor was gone, Willow turned to Buffy. "I thought you got everything out."
"I thought I did too. It must be lodged in there good."
Suddenly, Faith jumped up and ran out of the hospital. Both of the other two girls watched her, worried about how she was reacting.
"Aren't you going to go after her?"
"She's just outside the doors. I think she needs some air and time to take all this in."
"I was meaning to ask you this, what is going on with the two of you? You finally start to work everything out?"
"Yeah. We talked last night. We decided to take it slow, for now. I just hope everything that is happening with her sister doesn't set her back. I know how I would feel if it was Dawn laying in there, and we didn't go through half of what Faith and Hope have. We need to be there for her this time, or at least I do. I think she will understand if you are more worried about Hope."
"You called her Hope."
"Yeah, I guess I did. She just seems more like Hope than Kennedy to me now."
"Why don't you go out and sit with Faith. I'll be fine here. I think she needs you right now."
"You sure you don't mind? I know this has got to be hard for you."
"I'm sure. There is nothing we can do right at the moment. I'm going to try and send positive thoughts to Kennedy. Other than that, it is in the doctor's hands."
"If you're sure. I'll be right outside if you need me."
Buffy then went out and found Faith sitting on the front steps of the hospital, smoking.
"I thought you quit that."
"Yeah well, some habits die hard." Faith said, stubbing out her cigarette. She then turned to Buffy, "I let her down again, B. It's like she's four all over again. Except this time, it isn't a few broken bones. I'm worried. I, I can't feel her, B. Why can't I feel her?"
"She's unconscience right now hun. Everything will be ok. The doctors are doing everything they can to help her."
"But what if it isn't enough. You heard them, they don't know what is causing the fever."
"You know as well as I do what is causing that. It's the little piece of the dagger that is in lodged in her shoulder. And you did not let her down, now or then. Shit Faith, you were only six back then. How were you supposed to protect her all the time?"
"Who else was gonna? Our father wasn't there enough to know what was going on. At least he got her out of there. I thought that meant she would be safe. Maybe I'm the reason she keeps getting hurt. It seems to only happen when I'm around."
"That is so untrue. She got injured before you got back."
"This bad?" Faith waited for a reaction from Buffy, when she didn't get one she added, "Didn't think so. I think I need to get out of her life again, to keep her safe."
"Don't you dare even start to think that way. I.... She just got you back. You can't leave again." Buffy yelled at Faith.
Faith noticed Buffy's slip, but chose to ignore it for the time being. "B, I can't be the reason she keeps getting hurt. If she makes it through this, I'm going to take off. I need you to watch out for her, make sure she is safe."
"I'm not letting you go. There is a reason everything is happening right now. Just give us some time to figure it out. Besides, Hope wouldn't want you to go. You know that."
"But.."
"No buts. All I'm asking for is a little time. I don't think that is too much to ask."
"Ok, but if it seems things are getting worse, I'm outta here. I will not be the cause for her getting hurt."
"Ok. Now, let's get back in there and see if there is any word."
When the two slayers got back to the waiting room, they noticed Willow talking to a doctor.
"Faith, Buffy, this is Dr. Stevens. He's the surgeon that worked on Kennedy's shoulder." Willow told the two as they approached.
"Doc, how is my sister doing?" Faith asked, looking worried.
"We got the object out and repaired the damage done to the muscles and tendons in the area with no problem. Her temperature is still a little high for my liking though. We are doing some tests to see what is causing it."
"Is she awake? Can we go see her?" Buffy asked.
"She's in recovery right now. Once we get her into her room, you can go visit. I'll have a nurse come get you. I would recommend that you keep the visit short. She lost a lot of blood and is really weak."
"But she will wake up soon, right?" Faith asked, thinking about her time in the hospital.
"We'll know more about that once the anesthesia wears off. We've done all we can for the time being."
"Thank you doctor." Buffy said.
At that the doctor turned and walked out of the waiting room. Buffy turned to Faith and Willow to see how they took the news.
"Guys, she will be fine. They got the tip out. She should wake up soon. For now, lets go get something to eat then go see if she is in her room."
"I just have this bad feeling. Like something isn't right."
"Well, there is nothing we can do till we can go see her. Besides, we all know how you feel about hospitals, Faith." Willow said.
"It's not just that. I've had this feeling since last night. Something is going on, I just don't know what. I really wish Giles was here."
"He should be back soon. If you want, I can go call the house and see if they've arrived." Buffy said.
"Would you please? While you do that, I can go get us some coffee or something. Faith, can you wait here for the nurse?" Willow asked.
"Sure. If I'm not here when you guys get back, I'll be in with Hope."
When Willow left to get the coffee, Buffy turned to Faith and asked, "Can you sense her yet, Faith?"
"No and it is really worrying me. Even when she was attacked by the bringers, there was still something of an echo there. This time, there is nothing. It's like something is blocking the connection. B, when I was in the coma, did you still feel our connection?"
Buffy had been waiting for Faith to ask about that. She dreaded telling her the answer, knowing how she would take it.
"No, I couldn't feel it, but I know it was still there. If it wasn't, how were you able to come to me in that dream so you could help us with the mayor?"
"But that only happened after Angel almost drained you dry. You know what this probably means, she's not going to be waking anytime soon."
"We don't know that, Faith. She's strong. You saw how quickly she healed from that stab wound she got the other day. She'll pull through this too."
"But that wasn't with a silver dagger. She's been through so much in such a short amount of time. Maybe this was just too much for her. All that on top of changing the last two nights. It's just too much. If I lose her, B, I don't know what I will do."
Buffy wrapped her arms around Faith's waist. "No talk like that. You are not going to lose her. You heard what the doctor said, the surgery went fine, even with her having a fever. Let's wait and see how she's doing before you start thinking like you are going to lose her."
Faith put her arms around Buffy's shoulders and sighed. "How do you know exactly what to say to calm me down?"
Placing her hand on her heart, Buffy replied, "Because I feel you, here. I don't like seeing you that upset, especially if we don't know if there is anything to worry about. It could just be the drugs they used during the surgery that is blocking her from you." Noticing a nurse coming towards them, she then said, "Here comes the nurse now. Why don't you go with her and see Hope. I'll go call the house to let them know what is going on and see if Giles is back yet, then I'll get Willow and join you up there. Ok?"
"I guess. Just don't take too long."
"I shouldn't. You just go. She'll be fine."
Buffy leaned up and gave Faith a peck on the cheek, then went to make her call. Faith went with the nurse to her sister's room. What she saw when she got there just made her worry even more. Kennedy was lying on the bed, looking even paler than when they brought her in. Her left shoulder was nothing but bandages, and she had machines and tubes running from almost everywhere Faith could see. It took a large amount of will power for Faith to not turn and run out of the room. Instead she slowly made her way to her sister's bedside and gently grasped her hand, making sure she didn't disrupt anything important.
"God Hope. This should be me lying here. You've been through so much lately, and it's all my fault. If I had never come back to Sunnydale, you'd be fine right now."
Kennedy knew her sister was there, but it was too much of an effort to open her eyes. So instead, she squeezed her hand, trying to let Faith know she would be ok. When Faith felt that, she looked up to see if the younger girl was awake. Noticing her eyes were still closed, she tried the connection again. When she felt the weak echoes coming through, she almost yelled with joy. The only thing keeping her from doing so was remembering where they were. So instead, she gave her sister's hand a light squeeze back, and placed a soft kiss on her cheek.
"You had me so worried. You rest now. I'll be right here when you wake up."
When Faith was sure Hope was asleep, she quietly made her way to the hall, to wait for Buffy and Willow so she could tell them the good news. By the time the other two made it up to the room, Faith was about to go look for them. The three then decided to let Willow go in and sit with her girlfriend for a bit so Faith could go get some air. When the two slayers got outside, everything finally hit Faith and she practically collapsed on the stairs in front of the hospital.
"She's going to be ok. You were right."
"She woke up?"
"Yes and no. She didn't open her eyes, but I felt her through the connection."
"Can you still feel her?"
"Yeah, she's sleeping now, but she knows Willow is in there with her. They really love each other. I wish you could feel this."
"I can, through you. Plus, I know what we have, and if what they feel for each other is close to how we feel, then wow."
"I know." Suddenly Faith's head shot up and she looked up towards Kennedy's room. "Something's wrong. We need to get back up there."
"What happened? I thought everything was fine."
"She's scared. Come on, let's go."
When they got back to the room, they noticed Kennedy sitting in a corner, rocking back and forth. She had ripped the tubes out, and took off the bandage from her shoulders. There were a couple of nurses in the room, trying to get her back into the bed, all without success. Willow was trying to make her way over, but was being held back by a security guard.
"What happened in here? What did you people do to scare her? Let go of Willow, she'll have a better chance of calming Hope down than any of you."
One of the nurses turned from trying to get to Kennedy, to address Faith. "All we were trying to do was check her shoulder. The minute I got the bandage off and she saw it, she panicked."
The minute the security guard let go of Willow, she ran to the corner where Kennedy had holed up in. "Kenn, hun, what's wrong? They are just checking to make sure everything is ok. These are good people. They aren't going to hurt you."
Kennedy looked up at her girlfriend. "You sure? They won't hurt me?"
"I'm sure hun. They are only here to help you. Come on, let's get you back into bed."
"Ok." Then she looked up at her sister, "Fai, when did you get here? I thought you were in Boston."
"Huh? What are you talking about? Hope..."
"No, no Hope. Hope's gone. No Hope here. Kennedy now."
"Hope, what are you talking about?" Faith asked, scared by what she thought her sister meant. What happened next scared everyone. Kennedy jumped up and ran at her sister.
"I told you Hope is gone." Kennedy yelled at Faith, eyes briefly flashing yellow.
When Faith saw that, she backed off a little. She then turned to the nurses in the room, then to Buffy. Under her breath she asked, "B, think you can get these people out of the room. We have a really big problem here. Then, if Giles is back, get his ass up here. Willow and I should be able to handle this till then."
"You sure? You don't look like her favorite person right now."
"I'm sure. She's right. Hope isn't here right now. I just hope I don't have to hurt her too badly to get her calmed down."
"That doesn't sound good Faith."
"I know, but it's my only choice at the moment. I can't risk anyone else. Willow is her mate, she won't hurt her. Right now, she thinks I am challenging her. I may have to fight her. I don't need an audience for that, if you know what I mean." Faith told Buffy, letting her see her eyes flash to yellow briefly.
"Oh God, not that. But the full moon is over. She should have control back."
"That is why we need Giles here. I have no idea what is going on. All I know is what you are seeing is the wolf, not my sister. Just get these people out of here, before she hurts someone."
Willow watched the exchange between Faith and Buffy, noticing how scared the two looked. She then looked at Kennedy. The first thing she noticed was her eyes. 'Oh Goddess. She isn't in control.' She slowly walked over to the younger girl, trying to seem calm. When Kennedy saw Willow, she relaxed slightly, till she noticed the bruises on Willows arms from where the security guards were holding her. The thought that someone had hurt her mate enraged her and she attempted to attack the guards.
Faith had been watching her from the corner of her eye. When she saw her going to attack the guards, she intercepted, only to have Kennedy hit her with a hand that started to change into a claw. When Kennedy saw the blood start to flow from where she hit Faith, something snapped and she gained some control.
"Oh God, Faith. I am so sorry. I don't know what happened."
"Hope, is it you?"
"Yeah, I'm back. I think we need to get me out of here and back home."
"I think that is an excellent idea." Turning to the nurses that Buffy hadn't had time to get out of the room, she asked, "What do we have to do to get Hope released?"
"I can't recommend that. She just got out of surgery. She needs to stay here so we can keep an eye on her."
"You're doing such a fine job of that. You can't even get close enough to her to change her bandages. Now, I am taking her home with me. If any of you try to stop me, you will regret it."
"If you refuse to listen to reason, then you will have to sign a form so the hospital cannot be held liable if anything should happen."
"Fine, get me the form. Willow, can you help her get dressed while I fill out the paperwork? Buffy, bring the car around to the front. I want to get her out and home as soon as possible."
Once they got home, Faith attempted to carry Hope up to her room.
"I'm not crippled, ya know. It was my arm that was hurt, not my legs."
"I know that, but you are still weak. The last thing we need is you falling down the stairs and hurting yourself even more. Come on, just indulge me this once."
"Just seems like all you do anymore is carry me up and down the stairs. Ok, but this is the last time I let you do it."
"Man Faith, she is just like you. Wonder why I never saw it before." Willow said.
Faith turned to Willow with something just short of fear in her eyes, "Hope is nothing like me. She's too smart to do some of the things I have done."
"Relax, I meant that in a good way. She has your stubbornness."
Embarrassed by thinking the worst of what Willow said, Faith replied, "Sorry. I'm still a little jumpy about what is going on." Turning to Hope she said, "Ok, let's get you upstairs and settled in."
They got Kennedy upstairs and in bed with little trouble, only trouble they had was getting her changed into some night wear without hurting her further. Once she was settled, Willow told the two slayers she would sit with her and watch over her so they could go talk to Giles. So Faith told her sister good night, and kissed her gently on the forehead, then the two slayers went downstairs to find the ex-watcher.
Once the three were settled in the living room, Giles sitting in the arm chair and Faith and Buffy together on the couch, Faith let some of the worry she was holding back come out.
"Giles, what is going on? I know I am kinda new to this wolf thing, but I don't think she should be losing control like that. Especially it being after the full moon, and daytime. What's going on? Should we be worried about it happening again? When I got back to the room, it was almost like she forgot the past few days, but if that was true, she would have been shocked to see me, not thinking I should be in Boston. It's almost like her memories are all scrambled."
"I believe it might have been the shock that caused her reaction. Slayers seem to have bad responses to hospitals."
"But she isn't a slayer yet, and if I have my way, she never will be."
"That is where you are wrong, Faith. True she may not be as strong as you or Buffy, or heal as quickly, but she may have other strengths the two of you don't. She is a slayer though."
"No, I won't accept that. I didn't die Giles. I was just in a coma. She is not a slayer, just a potential. And I wish she wasn't even that."
"There is nothing you can do to change the situation, Faith. The only explanation I can come up with is your heart must have stopped when you hit the truck long enough for her to be called. We all know by now it only takes a short amount of time for that to happen. Then it started back before you were found and taken to the hospital. There have been other cases where a slayer has been in a coma and the next in line did not receive any of the calling."
When he finished, Buffy turned to Faith, shame filling her eyes, "That means I did kill you that day. All of this is my fault. I'm the reason Hope is sitting in that bed right now."
Faith grabbed Buffy's hands, trying to calm her down, "No, B. You didn't throw me off that balcony, I jumped. Besides, you did what you had to do. I had to be stopped. I see that now, I just wish you would let go of this guilt. Plus you are not the reason Hope got hurt. Besides, even if that didn't happen, Hope would still be here, because The First is after her. It's after all of us. And she got hurt because Rona thought we might hurt someone when we changed last night. You did nothing wrong. It's no one's fault. I can't even bring myself to blame Rona anymore. She was just doing what all of us were trained to do. Try to protect the innocent. Something I lost sight of for a while. Do you understand? This is not your fault."
"I guess, but if I had only tried harder back then."
"Then Hope would still be suffering from a concussion, and a stab wound to her stomach on top of her shoulder. Everything happens for a reason, B. Now we just have to find out what that reason is."
Giles watched all this with growing admiration for the younger slayer. 'When did she get to be so insightful?' he wondered. Then snapping out of his thoughts, he said, "I may have an explanation for all of this. While I was out last night, I took some books with me so I could do a little research. I found something that may be of importance to what is happening. There was a prophesy."
"Great, another prophesy. Just what we need." Buffy interrupted.
"And this has to do with Hope, how?" Faith asked.
"Actually, it has to do with the two of you. It tells of two sisters, who are both slayers and wolves. One will be the stronger slayer, the other the stronger wolf. When the final fight draws near, the stronger wolf will lose start to lose control, till the next full moon when she will become change completely for one cycle."
Jumping up, Faith cried out, "Wait, you are telling me I am going to lose Hope to the wolf? No I can't let that happen G. I won't lose her."
"Faith, calm down. It will only be for a month." Buffy said, then turned to Giles, "Is that all? And are you sure you translated it right?"
"Quite sure, and no that isn't all. It seems the two of them are the ones to fight the First. They are our last hope."
"You have to be wrong. There is no way we can fight him ourselves. Plus, do you really think I will let Hope do something that will most likely get her killed. Nope, try again."
"Faith..." Buffy tried again.
"No B. I am not going to endanger Hope like that. I will do everything in my power to prevent her from getting hurt again."
"While this is admirable, you don't have a choice. From what Buffy has told me of the past few days, the prophesy has already started. We all need to be there for Kennedy during this month. Plus the two of you will need to work on strengthing your bond so you will be better able to communicate while she is in wolf form. Faith, for what it's worth, I am very sorry about all this. I know you two just found each other again, but I have every confidence in you two."
"I do have a question. How are we supposed to fight something we can't even touch?"
"That maybe where Kennedy comes into play here. The two of you are wolves naturally, meaning you were born with it, not cursed. That could mean that while changed, she will be able to inflict harm on The First. I still need to do more research into all of this."
Sitting down, Faith put her head in her hands and sighed. "How am I going to tell Hope?"
"Why not let me worry about that Faith. I'm more than willing to tell her."
"No, she's my sister. I should be the one to break the bad news to her. Besides, we can't risk her hurting one of you. Even though we were born like this, doesn't mean we can't infect others. I'll tell her when she wakes up. Right now she needs her rest."
"Giles, should we be worried about her losing control? Should we lock her up?"
"No, I think we will be safe for the time being. Her body needs rest to heal and rid itself of the poison. We shouldn't need to really worry till closer to the next full moon. As it nears, she will begin to lose control more and more. Till then, we need to be there for her. Make sure she knows we are on her side."
"When do we tell the others? I mean, I think they have a right to know so they can be prepared."
"Later. Right now we all need some rest. Why don't the two of you go lie down. I am going to do a little more research into this. Tomorrow should be soon enough to inform the others."
"Ok, Giles. Don't stay up too late. With what you told us tonight, I'm guessing we have a little time to figure all this out."
"Yes, I imagine we do. Now off to bed you two. You look like death warmed over."
"Good night G. Sorry about flipping on ya before. I just, I worry about her, ya know."
"That is all well and good, but you have to remember, she was chosen for a reason. Don't let your worry cloud your judgment. She can take care of herself."
Chuckling, Faith replied, "So she keeps telling me. Come on B, let's get going."
The next morning, Faith woke up alone in her bed for the first time since she returned to Sunnydale. Deciding it would be better to get up and moving, she got up and did her morning rituals. After she finished eating, she made up a tray for her sister and Willow and took it up to their room. Once up there, she noticed the red-headed wicca was the only person up in the room.
"I brought you guys something to eat. How did it go last night?" Faith said quietly, so she didn't wake Kennedy.
"She slept the whole night. Her fever broke sometime early this morning and she hasn't moved since."
"That's good then, right?"
"Yes, that is very good. That means her body can now concentrate on healing her shoulder. So, what did Giles have to say about what is going on?"
"To be honest, I'd really rather tell Hope first."
"Why do I have a feeling it wasn't good?"
"I do have a favor to ask of you. Can you look into my hospital file from when I was in the coma and see if my heart stopped at anytime during that time. Especially near the beginning?"
"If you're asking me to check this, does that mean what I think it means?"
"I'm not sure. Giles is convinced that Hope is a slayer now, just because when previous slayers were in comas, none of the powers were passed along. The thing though is when that happened, it was also about the time Hope started changing. I'm wondering if that has anything to do with what we thought would be her slayer powers emerging. If it is just the wolf, then we may have a problem."
"What do you mean, we may have a problem?"
"Well, he found a prophesy, and with everything that is going on, he thinks it already started."
"And this has to do with you dying, how?"
"I should really wait till Hope wakes up and tell her first."
From the bed they hear, "Just tell her already, so I can go back to sleep."
'Shit. I forgot how lightly she sleeps. Ok guess I shouldn't put this off any longer.' Faith thought. "Hope, if you are going to listen in, you better sit up for this."
"Just spill already. I'm sure it isn't as bad as you think."
"Well, last night Giles told B and me he found a prophesy." Faith said, hesitating at a little at the end.
"And this has to do with you dying, how?" Kennedy asked her sister, looking a little worried.
"It tells of two sisters, who are both slayers and wolves."
"Well we have half of that."
"That we are sure of anyway. You heard the favor I asked Willow, right?"
"To find out if you flat-lined. So what if you did?"
"All it takes is a minute or two for the next in line to be called. Look what happened with Buffy when she fought the Master."
"Stupid question here, but is it possible I received the calling when Buffy died the second time?"
"No, the line runs through me now, or you, not sure which yet."
"If it's a prophesy, couldn't you both have been called at the same time?" Willow asked.
"I don't think so. Hope didn't start to feel the bond till the time I was in the coma."
"That's not all that has you worried though, is it? That I may be a slayer, not just a potential. There's something more to the prophesy, isn't there?"
Faith looked down at her feet. 'How am I going to tell her the rest of it. It may just be what it takes to push her over the edge for good. Yet I have no choice but to tell her. Oh God, what has she ever done to deserve this. If anyone deserves it, it's me.'
"Faith, you still with us? Is it that bad? Oh God, one of us is going to die. That's it, isn't it?"
Faith's head snapped up when Kennedy started panicking. "No, at least not if I get my way. Hope, there is really no easy way to tell you the next part. So if I do this wrong, I'm sorry."
"Faith, you are really starting to worry me. Just tell me already."
Faith looked at Hope, with tears starting to form in her eyes. "You know how you have been losing control for the last few days. Well according to the prophesy, you will continue to lose control, till the next full moon. At that time, the wolf will take over."
When she finished, Kennedy looked shell-shocked. It felt like she couldn't get enough oxygen into her lungs and she was getting light- headed.
"So you mean, when my life is somehow falling into place, I will lose my fight with my wolf? I just found my mate, and got my sister back, only to find out, in less than a month, I will lose everything? This, this can't be happening. Will, is there anything you can do?"
Willow was shocked as well. That was the last thing she expected Faith to say. All she could think was, 'At least I get some sort of warning this time before I lose her.' When Kennedy spoke to her, she was shocked out of her thoughts.
"I... I don't know. I was never able to help Oz with his problem. That's why he left. Plus this is a prophesy. One thing we have learned over the last six years or so is you can't stop one once it starts."
Buffy had been out in the hall, listening to the three talk. When Willow said that, she decided to let them know she was there.
"First, Faith didn't tell you everything. The wolf will only be in charge for one cycle. That's the good news, the bad news is, you and Faith are our last hope in the fight against the First. We think because of the fact that you were born with lycanthropy, and not cursed, that you will be able to fight it."
"So this is only for a month? Well two if you count this time before the next full moon."
"Yes. That is how Giles explained it last night to Faith and me."
"And there is no chance he read it wrong? He's sure it's only for one cycle?"
"Hope, what are you thinking? I won't let you get hurt. You are not going to go up against the First alone."
"You're right. I'll have you, Buffy, Willow, and all the others by my side. That is, if I don't kill everyone first. These last few days, when I've changed, I've had no control. No way to protect the people around me. So, when this big change occurs, are you just going to keep me on a leash until it's time to fight, then hope I go after the right thing?"
"Remember, Faith has the bond with you, even in your wolf form. You two need to work on that this month. Strengthen it somehow so you will be able to communicate."
Faith went over and sat on the bed next to her sister. She picked up Kennedy's hand and said "I won't let anything happen to you. Say the word, and I will get you out of here. You and Willow both. I'll send you back to dad to keep you safe."
"No, I can't run. I'm a slayer. I need to be here. I need to do this. Somehow, this feels right." Kennedy looked her sister in the eye, then said, "We are going to fight, and we are going to win, together. Can't you feel it?"
"Right now, all I feel is the fear of losing you. I left Boston to keep you safe. I let everyone there think I was dead, so nothing would come after you. If there was a way I could stop this now, I would." She stood up and wrapped her arms around herself. To herself she said, "You are supposed to be safe. I'm the fuck up. Why is this happening to you and not me. Dammit I'm the bad seed, not you. You don't deserve this. I do."
Kennedy heard every word her sister said. Each one tore a little more at her soul. She knew nothing she could say would make Faith believe that she wasn't one of the bad guys. That Kennedy never thought she was. Finally, the feelings she was receiving through the link got to be too much. She got out of bed and stormed over to her sister. When she got to her, she balled up the hand of her good arm and threw a punch to Faith's head. While Faith stood looking at her shocked, she said, "Dammit, how many times do I have to tell you, you are one of the good guys. So you made a few mistakes, who doesn't. You are making up for them now. What is happening to me is NOT your fault. Hell, you are just much a victim of fate as I am. You need to be strong. We need to be. All of us need to be together in this. We will win this, but not alone. Fai, I need you to not blame yourself. Can you do that, for me?"
Faith stood watching her sister, knowing the only thing keeping her on her feet right then was pure adrenaline. Seeing the determination in Kennedy's face, she knew her younger sister was going to be fine. But she did blame herself. If she hadn't thrown herself off the balcony that night, Kennedy wouldn't have received her calling. Then the prophesy wouldn't be able to play itself out. But she also knew blaming herself would get them no where. She needed to think, and needed to be alone to do it. So when Kennedy stopped talking, Faith's reaction was to turn on her heel and run.
"I can't believe you guys just let her run out like that, anything could happen to her." Willow said to Buffy and Kennedy.
"She's a big girl, Willow. If I want her to start looking at me like one, then I have to treat her the same way." Kennedy said to Willow. "Besides, do you really think we can make her do anything she didn't want to do? She did what she does best, she ran. She'll be back when she is ready."
"How can you be so sure? Last time she ran off, she ended up in LA asking Angel to kill her."
"Last time, she wasn't part of a prophesy. She may not like it, but she will do what she has to do. She feels her redemption is based on it."
"Willow may be right, Kennedy. I'm going to go look for her. Maybe I can talk to her." Buffy told the younger woman.
"Whatever. I'm going to try to get some more sleep." Kennedy said as she was lying back down.
"Do you need anything? A pain pill, more pillows?" Willow asked, being concerned about Kennedy's sudden attitude towards her sister.
"All I need is to get some sleep. So if you two are going to talk, could please do it somewhere else?"
"What has gotten into you? Shit Kennedy, your sister is hurting and all you care about is going back to sleep." Buffy said.
"Apparently you guys either didn't hear or didn't realize what she said. She let everyone think she was dead. She told me it was my dad who did that."
"She did what she did to keep you safe. Do you know why she had to run from Boston?" Willow asked.
"Something about some old vamp was after her. Big deal. She ended up killing it, didn't she?"
"Only with Buffy's help."
"Kakistos scared her, Hope. I have only seen her that scared one other time since I met her and that was yesterday when you were in the hospital. You have to believe me when I say she cares about you. I think if you weren't here, she would still trying to be the hard- ass she thinks she needs to be around us." Buffy interjected.
"Look, that's all fine and well, but there is nothing I can do for her right now. She has to work this out on her own." Looking at her girlfriend she asked, "Can you please go look up what she asked you to? Maybe if we prove to her that she didn't die back then, she will calm down. Maybe then we can get her to feel like we have a chance against the First. At the moment, I am just worn out. I need some good, not drug-induced sleep. That may help me to try to keep control over my wolf, at least for the time being. So I'm sorry if it seems like I don't care about what is happening with Faith right now, but I am thinking about the bigger picture here. If what the prophesy says is to believed, then we have time. I think we all need time to let everything sink in."
"Ok, that makes sense, somewhat. Listen, I'm still worried about Faith, so I am going to go looking for her. Besides, I think I know where I might find her. I'll take my cell-phone if you guys need me for anything." Buffy said.
"I'll be just downstairs if you need anything Kennedy, just yell if you need me, for any reason. OK?" Willow said.
"Yeah hun. I am sorry if I sound cold, but right now I am just really tired. Everything is really catching up to me. Love ya." Kennedy told the red-head.
"Love ya too. You just rest." She replied, then leaned down and gave the younger girl a soft kiss.
Once Buffy and Willow left the room, Kennedy lay still for a bit, making sure they really left to do what they said they were going to. When she was sure they were truly gone, she slowly got up and started to get changed. The fact she could barely use her left arm slowed her a bit, but soon she was ready to go out and try to find her sister. She then grabbed one of the tranquilizer pistols that was left in the room from the past two nights, and set off. It took some doing to get past Willow in the living room, without the older girl noticing she was sneaking out of the house. Once outside, she opened up the link she had with her sister, to see if that would aid in finding her, but didn't feel anything from the other side, so she tried slightly changing to her wolf form to see if Faith changed over to get away quicker. When she started the change, however, she couldn't stop.
Willow had been working hacking into the hospital records when she heard the front door open, then close. When she looked towards it, she didn't notice any movement near it. Decided she was just jumpy about everything going on, she was putting it out of her mind. About a minute later, she heard what sounded like a wounded animal on the front porch. Running out there, thinking Faith was there hurt, she was shocked to see Kennedy out there in the process of changing into her wolf form. Not knowing what to do, she suddenly saw the pistol the other girl had thought to grab and picked it up. She then took aim and was about to shoot Kennedy with it when the wolf noticed she was there. The look of pain on the wolf's face tore at Willow's heart. Thinking the wound to Kennedy's shoulder making the change more painful than normal for the young woman, she used the gun to try to help reverse the change. What she didn't realize was, Kennedy was in such pain because she was fighting it with everything she had in her. When hit with the dart, it ended all control she had and the change progressed even faster than normal. Within a minute, any trace of Kennedy was gone and the wolf had shaken off the tranq's effects and had taken off.
It's been about a week since that morning. Faith returned two days later, ready to appoligize to everyone for running away. When she found out her sister was missing, she was ready to take off again, the only thing stopping her was Buffy letting her know everything they were doing to find the wayward wolf.
Willow had called Buffy as soon as Kennedy had taken off and as soon as Buffy returned to the house, the two had gone to the woods to look for her. They searched until it became too dark, and therefore too dangerous, to look anymore. They returned to the house and tried to get some sleep, but both women were too worried about their respective mates to get much rest.
The next day, Willow attempted to do a locater spell to find Kennedy and Faith, but was unsuccessful. It seemed that something was hiding the two wolves so they couldn't be found. Buffy went searching everywhere she thought Faith would be, her old apartment, the hotel, even the Mayor's old office at City Hall. It seemed the dark slayer had just disappeared into thin air.
When Faith returned the next day, Buffy was torn between being elated that nothing had happened to her, and being furious Faith was gone for so long without a word. She was also worried how Faith would take the news that her sister was missing. After the initial blow-up, she took it basically well. Faith decided to give it one more day, then she would go out to the woods and look for her sister herself, using the connection they shared.
The night of Faith's return, after all the potentials had gone to bed, Buffy and Faith stayed up with Willow. The wicca told Faith what she had learned when she had looked up her medical files.
"Well, it seems you were right Faith. You didn't die that day, or at any time during your coma. Maybe the passage about being slayers and wolves could mean that Kennedy is a potential."
"And her extra abilities?" Faith asked.
"Could be because of the wolf in her. They do heal faster and are a bit stronger." Willow answered.
"Why was she outside anyway? She knew I was going to look for Faith. Plus she told us she wanted to get some sleep." Buffy inquired.
"I think she wanted to find Faith on her own. She probably told us she was just going to sleep to get us to leave her alone so she could get away on her own. She knew we wouldn't let her out in the shape she was in. I mean, you saw her, she could barely stand that day." Willow said.
"So this is my fault she is missing. B, I told you I should just leave. I am doing nothing but causing harm to her by being here." Faith said, distraught.
"She is missing because you ran. If you would have just stayed, she would still be here. Don't blame yourself. She is just as stubborn as you are." Buffy told her.
As the week went on, there was still no trace of Kennedy to be had. Faith couldn't even get any response though the link. That morning, one week after the disappearance, Faith was getting ready to go out looking for her sister again. When she had everything ready, she went to go out the front door. What she saw there made her jump and run back into the house.
"Buffy, Willow, come quick. She's back and it looks like she needs some help." Faith yelled back into the house.
Kennedy was laying, naked and out cold on the porch. She had cuts and bruises all over her body. She was in human form, but she still had claws on her hands and feet, and her ears were a little more pointed than usual. It looked like she was stuck in between forms.
Once they got her upstairs and dressed, Buffy and Faith decided to leave Willow to look after her and the two slayers went to the living room to talk to Giles about what they thought happened.
"It looks like everything has been speeded up. The wolf is still in control, at least partially." Giles said.
"So is it safe to leave her upstair like that? Should we have her chained in the basement in case she wakes up in a rage?" Buffy asked, being concerned for the rest of the household.
"I believe we should wait and see how she is when she wakes up. She won't harm Willow so there is no worry there."
"But I thought we had a month before the wolf took over. What happened that it took control now?" Faith asked.
"I'm not sure. We will have to wait till Kennedy wakes up before we get any answers."
It was two days until Kennedy woke up. While she was out, Willow and Faith took turns sitting with her so she wouldn't be alone when she woke up. Giles, Buffy, and the rest of the scoobies and potentials used that time to research why it seemed Kennedy was stuck between forms. Also, they were looking into why the prophesy seemed to be sped up. There was still a few passages they couldn't decipher. They were written in a language Giles had never seen before.
When Kennedy did finally wake up, it was the middle of the night and Willow was sleeping next to her. The first thing she noticed was, even though it was dark in the room, she was able to see clearly. Then she noticed the claws on her hands and feet. Finally, feeling around her mouth with her tongue, she realized she also had fangs. Scared that the wolf in her was trying to take control again, she got up, careful not to wake the witch sleeping next to her. She then made her way to the door of the room. As she opened the door, she found her sister standing there, getting ready to come in to check on the sleeping couple in the room.
Quietly Faith said, "Hope, you'rr awake. I was just coming to check on you."
Kennedy just grunted and tried to make her way past Faith.
"Where do you think you are going?" Faith asked, grabbing the other girl's arm.
"I don't think I should be around people. I mean, look at me. I'm changing again." Kennedy said, showing Faith her wolf-like features.
"No you aren't. You've been like that since we found you. The gang has been researching, trying to figure out what this means. Why don't we go downstairs so we can talk to Giles about this?"
"Better idea, why don't we go to the basement and lock me up?"
"No. You aren't dangerous. I do think we should take this somewhere else. This is the first time in over a week I have seen Willow sleep."
"Because of me, right? All I've done is hurt her since she found out about me. Maybe I shouldn't have come back."
By this time, the sisters were half-way down the stairs, Faith in the lead. When Kennedy said what she did, Faith's head snapped around so fast, she almost lost her balance.
"Do you realize you being gone hurt her more than I have seen her hurt in a long time? You are helping her so much."
"No I'm not helping. She still isn't over Tara and now she has to deal with my messed up life."
"She's opening up to you in a way she couldn't before. She knew what you were, and what the repercussions were before you guys slept together. You mated with her, and now you are talking about leaving her?"
"Like you're one to talk. You mated with Buffy and then turned on her."
"That's different."
"How?"
"I didn't know about being a wolf then."
"So she didn't mean anything to you then? Just another roll in the hay?"
"No, she was, is, more than that. I.... I l... I care about her deeply."
"You can't say it can you? At least I can admit it. I love Willow with all my heart. That is why I need to either leave or be locked up. I don't want to hurt her."
Everyone in the house could hear the argument between the sisters. Some were shocked to learn that not only Kennedy but Faith as well was a wolf. They were only told about Kennedy so they could be prepared for the upcoming month. Only Giles, Buffy, Willow, Vi, and Rona knew about Faith. Everyone was shocked about the possible relationship between the two slayers. The only shock to Willow was the thought of Kennedy leaving to protect her.
"Who said I needed protecting from you, Hope?" everyone heard from the top of the stairs. Willow slowly made it down to where the two were still standing in the middle of the staircase. "I love you, Hope, all of you. Because of that, I am here for you. I believe in you, trust in you. I know you won't hurt me. I have enough faith in that for both of us."
"But look at me. I can't even touch you right now without risking hurting you. And we can forget kissing." Kennedy said, showing off the fangs.
"Oh honey, that doesn't matter to me. I can wait for that till this is all over," Willow said, carresing Kennedy's cheek.
"Will, what if this is it? What if this is the most human I will ever be again?"
"Then we learn to work around it."
"Well, maybe I don't want to work around it. Maybe I just want to be normal again."
Faith piped in at that, "Hope, you'll never be normal. You never were. Same with me and B. Even if you weren't a wolf, being a slayer means never being like everyone else."
"At least you look normal. I look like a monster. I can't go out in public like this. People will run away screaming."
"Who will run away scared? We are living in a ghost town right now. And even if there were people out there, we could cover up the claws with shoes and gloves, you could wear sunglasses to cover your eyes, and try not to smile that much."
"Oh is that all. I still think everyone would be better off if I am locked up."
"Why? You've been arguing with Faith for awhile now, and you didn't get all wolfy on her. It seems like your human brain is in control. Let's not worry till there is something to worry about, ok?"
"I'm still going to worry. I want Buffy, Faith and you to carry a tranq gun at all times. I'm not sure what is happening, but I want to be prepared, just in case."
"That sounds like a plan. Let's go down and see what the gang has found." Faith conceded.
"Faith, can we meet you down there? I want to talk to your sister alone for a bit." Willow asked.
"Sure, Red. See you two down there when you get done." Faith said, then left to go join the rest in the living room.
"Come on you, let's go back to the room for a minute."
"You sure you will be safe alone in a room with me?"
"Didn't seem to bother me for the last two days, why would it now?"
"Because I was sleeping then. Now I am awake."
"Quit arguing. I am more safe now with you than then. We didn't know how you would be when you woke up. Now we know. You are you again, which I am eternally grateful for."
"But for how long? It was supposed to take a month for this to happen. Yet it only took a week. What the hell is happening to me?" Kennedy said, collapsing on the stair she was standing on.
Willow sat behind Kennedy and pulled her back so the younger girl was resting between her legs. She then started to stroke Kennedy's hair back, in an effort to calm her. She had never seen her girlfriend this upset before, and it was starting to scare her.
"I don't know hun. We are looking into it, but there are parts of the prophesy we don't know. Parts we can't read. Until we can, we are as much in the dark as you are. But I promise you this, you are not alone. You have the potentials, Buffy, Dawn, Faith and me by your side all the way in this. We are not giving up on you. Even Rona has decided you are one of the good guys again. She feels really bad about what happened that night."
"Will, I can feel it inside me, trying to get out. I'm not sure how long I can hold it in. It seems to be calm right now, but who knows how it will be five minutes from now. I'm scared."
"I know baby, I know. Just know I am here for you, no matter what. You're my Hope. Just like your sister is Buffy's Faith. Never doubt what I feel for you, ok?"
"Yeah." Turning so she could look Willow in the eye she asked, "Would you really stand by me if this is how I'll be for the rest of my life?"
"Yes. I meant it when I said I love you. We can get past this. I'm sure of it."
"Well, if you're sure, that's all the encouragement I need." Wiping her eyes and standing up, she says, "Now, let's go look at this mystery passage. Maybe a fresh set of eyes is what is needed."
After spending all day researching and not finding anything new, everyone was getting a little antsy. When dusk approached, Buffy decided it was a good idea to take some of the more advanced potentials out on patrol. After a short discussion, it was decided Faith would stay home with Kennedy, and Willow would go out to help Buffy. Once the group was gone, Faith decided to go see how her sister was doing. She found the younger girl out on the porch, looking up at the moon.
"It really is beautiful, isn't it. I never really take the time to just stand and look at it." Kennedy said, still looking up.
"Is that the only thing you are doing out here? Not planning on following the others?"
"No, but I was thinking about taking a walk. Beginning to feel a little caged in being in the house."
"I don't think that is such a good idea. You just woke up this morning after being unconscious for two days."
"I wasn't planning on going alone. I just thought it would be a good way for us to be alone for a bit, so we could talk. Plus I need to get rid of this extra energy."
"Ok, I'll go with you. Just let me let Giles know what we're doing, and grab a couple of stakes. I don't plan on using them, but this is Sunnydale, so you never know."
While they were out walking, the two sisters talked about what had happened in the time they had been separated. Before they knew it, they were at the edge of the woods, close to where the vineyard was located.
"Hey, aren't we near that place you and Buffy were supposed to check out a while ago?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Did you ever get around to doing that?"
"No, we've been a little busy trying to figure out where you were, then when you returned, what was going on. Where were you anyways?"
"Out running with a wolf pack, trying to fight my wolf at the same time. I thought I had won, now I'm not so sure."
"Hope, you will beat this. Right now we just have to trust in Giles' translation of the prophecy and hope he can get the rest of it translated soon."
"Oh, he doesn't need to do that. I already know what it says. Besides, I've known about the prophecy for a while now."
Turning to look at Kennedy, Faith almost shouted, "What?!? You knew and didn't think it was important to tell me, or anyone about? God Hope, a little warning would have been nice."
"Well geez Faith, I thought you were dead for close to four years now. I kinda forgot about it." With that, Kennedy started to storm away.
"Where do you think you are going?"
"Away, I need to be by myself for a bit."
"Oh I don't think so. We are so going back to the house so you can tell Giles what the rest of the translation."
"I can't. There are no way to say the rest in a way anyone would understand. Only the two of us will know what it says."
"And why is that, oh wise one?"
"Because it is written in a language, it's written in a way, dammit, only wolves can understand what it says. That's why. And to tell you the truth, I'm sorry I told you that, 'cause now you are going to go back and read it, and I really didn't want you to know the rest. So can we just drop it?"
"No I can't drop it. We are talking about your life here."
"Right, MY life. Not yours, not Buffy's nor anyone else's, MINE, and if I just want one night where I don't have to think about it, then I will take it."
While the two were arguing, Caleb and a group of bringers had started to circle the two sisters. Since Faith and Kennedy were so wrapped up in what the other was saying, neither noticed the group till it was too late. Four bringers surrounded Kennedy, knocking her out. Caleb took care of Faith himself, knowing she was another slayer. When both sisters were taken care of, he instructed the bringers to pick them up and take them to the basement of the vineyard where he could secure them.
*About an hour later*
Buffy, Willow, and the group of potentials that went out patrolling arrived back at the house. As soon as Buffy finished her post-patrol speech, she went in search of Faith. When she couldn't find her, she decided to ask Giles what had happened.
"Giles, do you know where Faith is?"
"Oh you mean they haven't gotten back yet?"
"Back? What do you mean back? And who is they?"
"Faith and Kennedy went for a walk not long after you left. I thought they should be back by now."
"And you just let them go? Hope is in no condition to be out there. What was Faith thinking?"
"Maybe she was thinking that cooping up a frustrated wolf wasn't the smartest thing in the world." Giles replied, getting a little upset at Buffy.
"Ok, maybe you are right. Do you know where they planned on walking?"
"I believe they were going to go in the direction of the woods."
"Alright, why don't I just head down that way and make sure nothing happened."
"Sounds like a plan. Are you going to take Willow with you?"
"Yeah, and maybe Rona and Vi, just in case we run into any nasties."
"Just be careful and don't be too hard on them. I'm sure you must realize how frustrating this must be to the two of them."
"I just don't want anything to happen to them."
"Understandable. Now go and bring them home."
*At the vineyard*
Faith was starting to wake up. She could sense how upset and frustrated her sister felt. She opened her eyes and tried to look around, but it was totally pitch black.
"Hope, where are you? I know you are near, but it's too dark, I can't see anything."
Hope ran over to the corner where the bringers had thrown her sister when they were brought down. Carefully, she checked Faith's head to see how the wound she had received from Caleb was doing.
"What do you mean it's too dark to see? There must be about a hundred torches going in this place."
"Huh? It might seem that way to you, but all I see is black. I mean, my eyes are open right?"
That's when Kennedy noticed her sister's eyes. There was a lost look to them. She had a sinking suspicion that Faith had taken one too many hits to the head that night, that some damage had been done that she could see from her inspection of the wounds.
"Faith, what happened out there. We were arguing, then next thing I knew, I woke up down here."
"I guess we were closer to that vineyard than I thought. They must have heard us and decided it would be a good idea to capture instead of killing us. Where are we anyways?"
"It looks to be some kind of dungeon or basement. Not too sure since there is only so far I can go before I hit some kind of force field." She looked over and noticed Faith trying to stand. "Are you sure you should be up right now. You took some nasty blows to the head. Maybe you should rest."
"We need to get out of here. There is no telling what they plan for us. Plus I'm willing to bet the others are done with their patrol and are worried cause we aren't at home."
"That's good then. That means they are probably out looking for us. Just sit tight. I bet any minute now, Buffy and the gang will be down here to rescue us."
"But they have no idea where to look. I told Giles we were going by the woods, but that won't be much of a help."
"Between that, and your bond with Buffy, it should be more than enough. Hey, maybe we can find out what that preacher dude has of Buffy's while we're here. Worth a shot anyway."
"OK, I'll try to relax a little, but if they don't show up soon, I'm going to try to bust us out of here."
"Oh I don't think you will be doing that, Slayer," the two girls heard from the shadows. Kennedy's head shot up, then she ran to where the barrier was, trying to get at the thing that had hurt her sister.
"What have you done to her?" Kennedy growled to the figure.
"Me? All I did was give her a tap to the head to knock her out. Is it my fault her fragile little slayer head couldn't take it?"
"No, it takes more than a 'little tap' to do that to a slayer and you know it. What in the hell did you do?"
While Kennedy was arguing with the figure in the shadows, Faith was attempting to stand. When she finally got to her feet, she followed the sound of her sister's voice to get to the barrier. Once she got there, she took a moment to use her other senses to feel out what was going on. That's when she noticed the fear coming off her sister. It wasn't because they were trapped, but because of something that happened. That's when she noticed the smell of what had to be a dozen oil lamps. Her sister was right, it was well lit where ever they were. That only meant one thing. Somehow, the blows she took that night were too much. She was now blind.
Kennedy felt her sister coming to stand beside her. She tried to block the fear she was feeling at what she had figured out once her sister woke up. When she heard Faith hit the ground a moment later, she realized she was unsuccessful.
"Faith, are you ok? What's wrong?"
As she got to her sister, she heard a loud crash come from above. When she looked up, she saw Caleb running up the stairs, trying to stop whoever just broke in from making it down to where they were.
...continued in chapter 21...