DISCLAIMER AND AUTHOR'S NOTE: All Buffy The Vampire Slayer stuff belongs to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and Warner Brothers. No copyright infringement was intended in the writing of this fiction. All other characters that appear belong to me. This story cannot be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies may be made for private use only and must include this copyright notice and disclaimer. There is some subtext in this story. If this kind of stuff is not legal where you live, if you're under 18 or if you don't like the notion of two women being in love, then you should find something else to read. Set during the Buffy episode This Year's Girl. A snippet.

Instincts
By Kristjan Brezovnik

Buffy and Riley were patrolling and searching for Faith at the same time, but so far, they didn't have any success. It was as if Faith had been swallowed by earth and Buffy wondered what Faith was up to. She had told Riley about who Faith was, but she had kept out the details.

"Vamps at three o'clock," she suddenly said and Riley got ready for action.

A few moments later, six vamps attacked and Buffy immediately dusted one. Of the remaining vamps, three concentrated on Buffy and two on Riley. Buffy easily kept up with the vamps and she soon dispatched two, but Riley was having a hard time and he only managed to wound one, temporarily slowing him down. Then there was a flurry of motion and one of Riley's vamps was history. A moment later, so was Buffy's. The wounded vamp saw was outnumbered and turned to flee, but she ended up with a stake in her heart the moment she turned around.

Buffy and Riley looked at the newcomer and were surprised to see it was Faith.

"Faith," Buffy said.

Faith looked at her, her head cocked, and growled. Buffy then noticed her eyes and she got a bad feeling.

"Faith, it's me, Buffy."

Faith slowly approached her.

"Buf-fy," she said slowly.

Buffy got ready for a fight, but Faith merely sniffed at her.

"Buffy mine," she growled and turned around.

Riley, who had been trying to sneak up on her, froze and Faith quickly pushed him away with all her strength, knocking him out.

"Mine!"

"Riley!" Buffy screamed, worried, but then Faith tackled her and they crashed to the ground. "Faith!"

Faith lay on top of Buffy, pinning her arms to the ground. She stared at her for a few moments and then sniffed her.

"Buf-fy hurt," she said, worried, when she noticed a cut on Buffy's cheek.

She licked the blood and Buffy flinched, surprised.

"Faith…"

"Buf-fy mine," Faith said quietly as she stared into Buffy's eyes. Faith lowered her head and nuzzled against Buffy's neck. "Buf-fy smell good."

"Faith!" Buffy said, surprised, when she felt Faith's tongue on her neck.

Faith looked at her playfully.

"Buf-fy mine," she repeated firmly.

Buffy managed to free one hand and she tried to hit Faith, but Faith quickly caught her hand and pinned it down again.

"Bad Buf-fy," she said quietly as she gave Buffy a hurt look.

"Faith…" Buffy started but was interrupted by a demon, who approached them.

Faith immediately got into protective mode and she made sure that Buffy was safely behind her. She growled at the demon, who growled back and then attacked. Faith launched herself at it and fought like an animal. Buffy stared at her for a few moments, puzzled by Faith's behavior, and then went to help her.

"Go back!" Faith told her when she noticed her, but Buffy ignored her.

Faith tried to get herself between Buffy and the demon, but Buffy kept moving away from her. Then Buffy suddenly tripped and the demon kicked her in the head.

"Buf-fy!" Faith screamed, terrified.

Then she looked at the demon, growled angrily and attacked. The fight was brutal and Faith made the demon pay for hurting Buffy.

When the demon was finally dead, Faith stared at the demon for a few moments and then snorted at the corpse. Then she remembered Buffy and she quickly went to her.

"Buf-fy?" she asked, worried, a tear sliding down her cheek.

She thought for a few moments about what to do and then picked up Buffy and carried her to safety.

When they got to the mansion, Faith gently lay Buffy on the sofa and stared at her for a few moments, worried. Then she gently shook her.

"Buf-fy?" she said and whimpered, more tears running down her cheek.

She fetched a blanket and covered Buffy. Then she cuddled up to her and waited.

When Buffy woke up a few minutes later, she had a mild headache. She tried to move and noticed that she wasn't alone.

"Buf-fy?"

Buffy opened her eyes and saw Faith stare at her, teary-eyed. She looked around and saw that they were at the mansion.

"Buf-fy o-kay?" Faith asked.

"I'm fine," Buffy said, noticing the tears in Faith's eyes.

She tried to sit up.

"Rest," Faith said and gently but firmly restrained her.

Buffy looked at her.

"Faith, you're drunk," she said. "And I know exactly which beer you got drunk on."

Faith didn't seem to comprehend as she quietly stared at her. Then Faith caressed her and Buffy jerked, surprised.

"Buf-fy safe now," Faith declared. "Buf-fy rest, Faith watch."

Buffy thought about fighting Faith, but she knew that Faith wasn't very rational at the moment and that she would probably lose the fight. She decided to wait till morning and try to talk to Faith then.

When Faith saw that Buffy wasn't going to fight her, she cuddled up to her.

"Buf-fy safe," she whispered. "Faith safe too," she added a few moments later.

Buffy frowned, surprised. She was confused by Faith's behavior. She knew Faith was drunk on the beer that turned her into a cave person temporarily, but what surprised her were Faith's feelings toward her. She thought Faith hated her. Sure, she remembered the innuendoes, but she had always thought Faith just wanted a quick fuck. To find that Faith actually loved her and that she felt safe around her was something she hadn't considered before.

She thought back to when they'd first met. There was some antagonism between them because she resented the fact that Faith was immediately so popular with her friends. Not that it lasted long, she realized, Faith was always an outsider. Now that she understood Faith a bit better, she knew that Faith wanted to be a part of the group, but she never was, she was always just the backup they called when Buffy couldn't deal with the monster of the week. She also remembered that every time Faith was hurt, she wanted to reach out to her, but she was never there, always preoccupied by something else, mostly Angel. She had wanted to be there for Faith, but she always gave up when Faith said she was okay. She also realized that they shouldn't have treated Faith the way they did after she killed Finch, it only drove Faith further away. No wonder the Mayor could so easily influence her.

She slowly fell asleep, thinking about how things might have turned out differently if she had been there for Faith.

During the night, Buffy was often awoken by Faith's whimpering, which was the result of nightmares. The nightmares became more and more coherent as morning approached and the effect of the beer ran out. Buffy quietly listened to each nightmare for a while to see what it was about. Most nightmares were about her killing Finch, some were about killing Professor Wirth and some were about her childhood. Buffy realized that she barely knew Faith, that Faith had never opened up to her, though now she was pretty sure that Faith had wanted to open up several times, but she was never there.

After she knew what the nightmare was about, Buffy would gently nudge Faith. Faith's eyes would fluttered open for a few moments and then she would cuddle up even closer to Buffy. Buffy couldn't help but cry over Faith's fate.

Finally morning came and Buffy was the first to wake up. She looked at Faith, who was still cuddled up to her. She stared at her, considering what to do once she woke up. She wanted Faith to be her friend again. She frowned as she realized that perhaps she wanted them to be more than just friends, but she pushed the thought aside. She was with Riley at the moment and even though things were less than stellar between them, she didn't want to hurt Riley. And besides, she first had to gain Faith's trust and she needed to trust Faith again before they could be anything more.

When Faith opened her eyes a few minutes later and found herself staring straight into Buffy's eyes, she immediately tried to back off, but she fell off the couch.

"Shit," she said as she landed on the floor.

"Faith," Buffy said as she sat up.

Faith looked at her and backed off. She looked around, puzzled.

"What the fuck happened?" she demanded.

"You got drunk on the wrong beer."

"Huh?" Faith said, puzzled.

"There's some guy who makes his own beer and then sells it to those he considers… I don't know, assholes. I got drunk on it as well," she quickly added when Faith glared at her.

Faith then frowned as she started to remember what had happened the night before. She was obviously confused by her own actions and probably by Buffy's as well. Buffy let her think for a few moments and then she got up and slowly approached her. Faith noticed that and was immediately on her feet, ready to fight.

"I don't want to fight you, Faith," Buffy quickly said and stopped.

Faith stared at her, suspiciously.

"Then what do you want?"

"Talk to you."

"What's there to talk, B? I think all's been said."

"Has it?" Buffy countered. "You never told me you loved me."

Faith tensed for a moment, surprised, but then she snorted.

"You're delusional, B."

"No, I'm not. I've been a cave person, I know what it's like. And while I may have been an idiot intellectually, I also followed my instincts and so did you. And your instincts weren't to kill me, they were to protect me. You cried when I was knocked out, you were scared you were going to lose me." She thought for a moment. "And you felt safe with me."

Faith stared at Buffy for a few moments, feeling uncomfortable. Then she started to walk out.

"Please don't go, Faith," Buffy said. "I don't want to lose you again."

Faith stopped and slowly turned.

"You never had me in the first place, B."

"Well, not like that, but we were friends. I want us to be friends again, Faith." She hesitated for a moment. "I don't know what's gonna happen after that, but I at least want us to be friends, to be able to trust one another." She thought for a moment. "I missed you."

Faith stared at her, surprised.

"And that's supposed to make it all better?" she asked after a few moments.

"No, but it's a start. We need to talk, Faith. I know you wanted to open up to me a few times, but I was never there before. I want to change that." She sighed. "And there are things I have to tell you."

"About your new boy toy?"

Buffy nodded.

"That too." She hesitated for a moment. "Talk to me, Faith. Please."

Faith stared at Buffy for a few moments, uncertain.

"And then?"

Buffy shrugged.

"I don't know, we'll see." She noticed that Faith was hesitating. "I'm not saying it will be an easy conversation or that it will go without a fight or something, but we need to have it. I want to know more about you and I want you to know more about me. I want you to explain your actions and I want to explain mine."

Faith stared at Buffy, uncertain about the whole thing, so Buffy went back to the sofa and sat down. Faith hesitated for a moment, but she realized she didn't have anything to lose but a whole lot to gain, now that Buffy was offering her a second chance. Or something, she wasn't quite sure. So she slowly walked to the sofa and sat at the other end, wary of a trap.

"Do you want me to start?" Buffy asked after a few moments of tense silence.

Faith looked at her, wondering if perhaps her life might finally be turning for the better.

"Nah, I'll start," she said quietly, realizing that she had to be the one to put the cards on the table first.

"And don't hold back," Buffy said. "If you feel I did something wrong, say so, okay?"

Faith stared at her, surprised, and then nodded.

"Okay," she agreed and thought.

After everything was said, asked and explained, Buffy and Faith sat still for a while, both thinking about what they'd learned from one another about where they'd gone wrong. Buffy had to admit that perhaps if she'd been a better friend, Faith might not have gone to the Mayor, and Faith had to admit that if she had opened up to Buffy and not been so impulsive, she might not have sank as low as she had.

"Now what?" Faith asked after a while, when she noticed that Buffy was staring at her.

"I want you to stay and face the guys."

Faith snorted.

"They've probably gone to the cops and told them I kidnapped you."

"I doubt it," Buffy said. "Anyway, I've given you a second chance, Faith, and I'm on your side. And you gave me a second chance. Give the guys a chance."

Faith thought for a moment.

"Does that mean I'm gonna have to have this conversation all over again?" she then asked, not really looking forward to it.

"Probably, but this time you won't be alone."

Faith stared at Buffy, desperately wanting to trust her, yet at the same time afraid to.

"I hope this is not a game to you, B," she said after a few moments. "Because if it is, you better stab me when I'm not looking or I'll…"

She trailed off, shuddering.

"I'm serious, Faith," Buffy said, realizing just how fragile Faith was and how hard it was for her to trust anyone, especially her.

She reached out with her hand and Faith stared at it for a few moments before slowly reaching out with her own. Their hands met and Buffy gently squeezed Faith's.

"How about we go home now," Buffy then said. "I'm starving and I need a shower and I bet you do too."

"Yeah," Faith agreed and wanted to pull her hand out of Buffy's, but Buffy didn't let go.

"Then let's go," Buffy said and got up.

Faith got up as well and Buffy led them home.

The End