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 read no further. This story is a sequel to Lunch Break.

Let the Games Begin
By Kristjan Brezovnik

A limo stopped in front of a warehouse and an older man came out. He stretched and looked around.

"Yes, this will do nicely," he muttered to himself.

The limo entered the warehouse and the man followed it.

"Julius, my friend!"

Julius looked at the man who had called his name and licked his lips.

"Frank," he said. "Is everything ready?"

"Most definitely. Come, let me show you."

Julius followed Frank to the next room, from where steps led down to the cells and up to Julius' apartment and the balcony over the arena.

"What do you think?" Frank asked when the tour was over.

"Excellent," Julius said. "And now it is time for your reward."

"What…" Frank said, surprised, when Julius changed into his game face.

Julius grabbed him and sank his fangs into his neck.

"Get rid of it," he said when he was done feeding, dropping Frank's corpse to the ground.

"Yes, Master," two vamp lackeys said in unison, grabbed the corpse and dragged it away.

Julius looked around the arena and grinned.

"Let the Games begin."

"Spike."

Spike turned and frowned.

"Faith. What do you want?"

"Spoil your good mood?" Faith asked, smirking.

"Well, it's not going to work."

"And why not?" Faith asked. "Somebody removed the chip?"

Spike glared at her.

"Very funny. The Games are in town and I got myself a ticket."

Faith frowned.

"The Games?"

"Yes. I would sure like to see you compete against Petra." He grinned. "And lose."

Faith raised an eyebrow.

"Who's Petra?"

"The champion. She's been undefeated for longer than I'm undead."

Faith thought for a moment.

"And where can I get a ticket?"

Spike laughed.

"The moment you show your face there, you're a contestant. And as much as I would like to see you lose, I don't want you to spoil the show."

"Hey, as long as demons are killing one another, I'm not complaining."

"It's not always demons. Humans can fight too."

"Great," Faith muttered.

Spike grinned.

"I'm glad I could spoil your mood," he said and left, ignoring Faith's glare.

Faith sighed and looked around the Bronze for Dawn. She spotted her and went closer. When Dawn noticed her, Faith pointed toward the hall and then went there.

Dawn came a minute later.

"What?"

Faith smirked.

"I need information."

"About?"

"The Games."

"The Games? They're in town?"

"Apparently. I need to know more about them."

Dawn thought.

"They're ran by a vampire named Julius. He's been running them for over two thousand years. I think. Rumor has it that he's a sorcerer."

"Great. Who's Petra?"

"The champion. I heard that she's been with Julius since the beginning."

"Who is she?"

Dawn shrugged.

"Nobody knows. She looks like a very young teenage girl."

"You've seen her?"

"Once. Paris, 1789."

"During the Revolution?"

"Yes. There was much food there."

"I bet. And who competes?"

"Whoever can afford to pay."

Faith frowned.

"You mean they have to pay if they want to fight?"

"Yes. Unless they're Julius' enemies. Then they can fight for free."

"And Humans fight too?"

"If they can pay the entry fee."

"To the death?"

"Yes."

"What's the prize?"

"The entire Julius' wealth."

"And that's a lot, I suppose."

"Over two thousand years worth of savings."

Faith whistled.

"He's probably the richest person in the world."

"Yes," Dawn agreed.

"Can you find out where they're held?"

"Yes."

"Good. Let me know, will you? I wanna check it out."

"That's not a good idea. Any Slayer that gets there is automatically a contestant. Last time, Julius said Petra had killed three."

"Oh. Let me know anyway."

"It's your life."

"Yep. I'll see you around."

Dawn left. Faith waited for a minute and then left as well.

"Faith?" Renee asked when Faith got to the table.

"Looks like we have the Games in town."

"Games? Raelee asked.

"Sort of like gladiator games. I'll have to ask Giles about it. Later."

"Hey, Giles," Faith said as she walked in the next afternoon.

"Hello, Faith."

"What do you know about the Games?"

"Games?" Giles said, frowning.

"Yes, with a capital G."

"Ah, yes. Hmm, let me see," Giles said, thinking. "They are violent events. Demons fight for a prize…"

Faith raised an eyebrow.

"That's it?"

"I'm afraid so. The Watchers' Council has tried to find out more about them, several times in fact, but all spies were killed, including four Slayers."

"Oh. Then I guess you're the lucky Watcher."

"Why?"

"Because I found out more."

"You have?" Giles asked, interested.

"Yep. From Spike and Dawn. They're in town, by the way."

Giles frowned.

"Spike and Dawn?"

"No, the Games."

"Oh. Em, what did you find out?"

"A lot more than the Council. They're ran by a vamp named Julius, who is rumored to be a sorcerer. Anyone who can afford to pay the entry fee can fight, including Humans. They fight the champ. Her name's Petra and she's been with the show since the beginning, which means she's more than two thousand years old. Nobody knows much about her, but Dawn says she looks like a very young teenage girl."

"Really?" Giles said, raising his eyebrows.

"Yes. Oh, and the prize is the entire Julius' wealth. And that's a lot."

"Fascinating," Giles said. "I will write this down."

"Okay."

Giles got a notebook and started to write.

"You said Dawn saw the champ?" he asked as he wrote.

"Yep. Paris, 1789."

Giles looked up.

"The Revolution."

"Yep. Lots of food."

Giles raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment.

"Tell her I'd like to talk to her."

"Gotcha. Oh, em, I'll try to get a closer look at the Games. I asked Lara along."

Giles nodded.

"Be careful."

"I will."

In the evening, Lara escorted Faith on patrol and they tried to find out the location of the Games.

"Over there," Lara finally said and pointed at a warehouse.

"Let's go check it out."

Faith led the way and Lara followed her.

"It's magically protected," Lara said when they got to the warehouse and she ran a hand across the wall.

"Damn," Faith said and looked around. "I don't suppose you know a spell with which we could break I, do you?"

Lara shook her head.

"No."

Faith thought for a moment.

"Let's see if we can get a look inside."

Lara nodded and followed Faith.

They quickly found several crates that reached up to the windows, but they were too high for Faith to jump on. She looked at Lara.

"Can you give me a boost?"

Lara glanced at the top of the crates and nodded.

"Yes."

"Okay. Ready?"

"Yes."

Faith jumped and Lara gave her a small boost. Faith quietly landed on top and then looked in.

"Damn," she murmured when she saw another wall. She looked down at Lara. "No luck." She glanced inside one last time and saw a bunch of demons approaching. "Oh crap." She looked at Lara. "We got company," she said and jumped down. "Let's get out of here."

They started to run, but another group of demons came from around the warehouse, blocking their way.

"Shit," Faith swore and looked behind them, where the demons she saw in the warehouse were coming after them.

Lara concentrated and the demons went flying. Unfortunately, more demons replaced them. Lara concentrated again, but this time nothing happened.

"Lara?" Faith asked, worried.

"Someone is blocking me. I think."

"Shit. Stay close to me."

Faith plowed into demons, sending them flying as she went. She killed a few when she got a chance, but she didn't stop. She made sure that Lara was near her all the time.

After the first spell failed, Lara tried a few others she'd learned and she managed to dispose of or incapacitate a few demons. But the fighting slowed them down and gave the demons behind them time to catch up.

"Can you open a portal to ghost roads?" Faith asked after a while.

"I'll try," Lara said, uncertain.

She concentrated and said the words.

"I did it," she said when a portal opened.

"Go."

Lara entered the portal and Faith wanted to follow her, but two demons launched themselves at her and knocked her down. She quickly shook them off and got up, but more stepped in her way. And then the portal closed.

"Shit."

On the ghost roads, Lara watched as the Faith was slowly subdued by the demons. Strangely, they didn't kill her. She wanted to go out and help her, but she knew she wasn't much of a fighter, not to mentione that the demons had a skilled sorcerer on their side. So she watched and tried to find out as much as she could.

"Well, well," Julius said as he approached Faith, who was just waking up from being unconscious. "It's been a while since we last had a Slayer here. She put on a great show, the audience loved her."

"You'll excuse me if I'm not too happy about it."

Julius grinned.

"Of course. But I must say that little witch surprised me. I wonder if she'll try to save you. I could use an apprentice."

Faith wanted to talk back, but she decided to be quiet, she didn't want Julius to grow cautious.

"I'll kill that champ of yours," she said, trying to get a sense of what she was up against.

Julius laughed.

"Honey, she's fought demons that would pound you to dust in seconds. You're not exactly a threat."

"We'll see."

Julius grinned.

"Oh yes," he said, chuckling, and left.

"Mr Giles," Lara said as she barged into his house. "Oh, em, sorry," she said when she realized she didn't knock.

"What is it?" Giles asked, worried, when he saw that she was alone.

"They got Faith."

"What? What happened?"

Lara closed the door and stepped closer.

"We found the warehouse, but it was protected with magic. We tried to get a look inside, but they spotted us. We ran, but there were a lot of demons. And they had a sorcerer. I tried using magic, but he was blocking me."

"And how did you escape?"

"I opened a portal to the ghost roads. Faith tried to follow me, but they stopped her. And then the portal closed."

"I see."

"They took her inside. I tried to follow her through the ghost roads, but they have a spell protecting the warehouse and I couldn't get in."

"I see. I better tell Mrs Chase."

"What do we do?"

Giles thought for a moment.

"We need to make a plan. I believe we will find from Cordelia what is going on and how much time we have."

"So we meet tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"Hey," Faith said when she and Cordelia met in their dreams.

"Faith! Are you alright?" Cordelia asked as she hugged her.

"I'm full of bruises, but otherwise I'm okay."

"They're not treating you badly?"

"No, they just chained me up. And Julius put some sort of spell on me so I can barely move."

"When do you fight?"

"Tomorrow night."

"We'll get you out."

Faith smiled.

"I know."

"Show me."

The next day Cordelia could barely wait for classes to end so that they could make a plan. She had gone to Giles and told him what Faith had shown her and Giles had started to look things up. She had tried to help, but she was too distracted.

Then finally Faith's classmates came and finally Buffy, Riley, Willow and Tara. Xander and Anya came a bit later, but by then they mostly had all the information they needed.

"Are you okay, Cordelia?" Xander asked.

"Do I look okay?" Cordelia snapped. "That son of a bitch kidnapped Faith. If I get my hands on him, he'll wish he was dead."

"Eh, he is dead," Xander pointed out and earned himself a glare.

"He's undead," Cordelia said. "And he should've stayed dead instead of coming back to life and kidnap Faith. I mean, doesn't he have anything better to do?"

"He's making money," Anya pointed out and Cordelia looked at her.

"Oh," she said after she thought about it. "But I'm still staking him."

When Faith entered the arena, the mostly demon audience started to cheer, but Faith knew they weren't cheering her, they were cheering her demise. She looked around and saw Julius introducing her to the crowd. Like she needed introducing. She considered attacking him, but he was too high and she knew now that he was a sorcerer. Which meant killing the champ was her only option. She hadn't seen her yet, but she had heard that she had won seventeen fights in just three days.

And then the champ came in and the crowd roared again. Faith stared at her, shocked. Dawn had told her that she looked like a teenage girl, but seeing her in person just scared Faith. She was supposed to kill this child? Sure, she was a two-thousand-year-old child who had killed more demons than she herself had ever seen, but she was still a child. And she was sure the girl was Human. She gulped. She didn't want to kill another Human. Ever again.

The girl came closer and they stared at one another. The first thing Faith noticed were the two streams of tattooed tears which ran from her eyes, down her cheeks and stopped near the collar bones. She also noticed that four of them were bigger and that another four had another tear inside. She didn't know what they represented since she knew the girl must've killed many more opponents than she had tears on her face.

She also noticed the way the girl moved. She was a predator, ready for the kill. She looked her in the eyes and frowned, surprised. She wasn't quite sure what she expected to see in them, maybe nothing or a cold emptiness or maybe bloodthirsty rage, but she most certainly didn't expect sadness and fear. A two-thousand-year-old undefeated champion was afraid? Of her? She was confused.

"Help me get out of here," she said. "I know you're not evil."

Petra opened her mouth to respond, but she closed it again and looked away for a moment, hiding what Faith thought was shame.

"I'll be quick," Petra said quietly when she looked back.

Faith gulped.

"Begin!" Julius' voice boomed from the balcony.

Petra moved and Faith barely had time to move out of the way. Petra didn't stop and she quickly connected with Faith, knocking her down. Faith was surprised that it didn't hurt as much as it should. She looked at Petra, who was staring at her, obviously expecting something. Faith didn't know what it was. She quickly got up and attacked Petra, but the girl easily moved out of the way. Faith continued her attack and was surprised when she managed to hit Petra. She frowned as she started to guess what was going on. But she didn't have the time to think about it as Petra attacked her again with a long series of hits and kicks, most of which connected. Faith was surprised again that her body wasn't screaming in pain as it should. She looked at Petra, who was staring at her again.

It finally dawned on Faith what was going on. Petra had to entertain the audience, but she obviously didn't want to kill her or even hurt her. But since she had to, she was being easy on her until it was time for the kill. Faith gulped as she realized Petra wasn't afraid of her but of something else. Or someone else. Probably Julius. She wondered why.

She didn't have much time to wonder as Petra attacked again. This time Faith noticed that Petra was being deliberately slow. She decided to play along and give the audience a show. And buy herself some time. She also didn't want Petra to get punished for giving a lousy show. She also knew now that there was no way she could kill Petra, even if she wanted to, because the girl was just too fast and too experienced. Still, she didn't hate her and she decided not to hit her too strongly when Petra allowed her to hit her again.

She smiled when Petra looked at her, surprised, after she hit her and it didn't hurt as much as it should. Neither noticed that Julius was suddenly worried.

Outside, the Scoobs were ready to break in.

"Too bad I'm not a witch instead of a Seer," Cordelia muttered angrily as she waited for Willow and Tara to break the first protection spell. "That's one vamp I'd love to pulverize with that… Ouch!"

"What's wrong?" Xander asked.

"She's fighting."

"Oh." He looked at Willow and Tara. "Hurry up, guys."

"Is it bad?" Jasmine asked, worried.

Cordelia concentrated for a moment.

"No, not really," she then said, confused. "I mean, she gets hit a lot, but it doesn't hurt as much as it should. I think."

"Oh."

"We're through," Willow finally announced.

"I think he knows we're here," Tara said.

"Time to kill some demons," Jasmine said and spun the stake in her hand.

"How fast can you do that demon killing spell?" Xander asked Tara.

"About one minute."

"Okay. Let's go," Jasmine said. "Lara."

Lara nodded and concentrated. A moment later the main gate was thrown off the hinges and it flew into the warehouse, killing a couple of demons. Lara entered and started throwing the demons toward the Scoobs, who then killed them.

"Any other spells?" Giles asked.

"One," Tara said and pointed at the wall behind which the arena lay.

"Then let's do it," Jasmine said. "Buffy, you finish them off and I'll watch their back."

"Okay," Buffy said and staked a vamp.

Jasmine followed Willow and Tara as they made their way to the wall. Several demons tried to stop them, but Jasmine disposed of them.

Willow and Tara were just in the middle of the spell when Julius came through the door. Jasmine was on him in a moment and he looked at her, surprised.

"That's impossible. How can you be here?"

Jasmine was confused for a moment, but then she grinned.

"Magic," she said and resumed her attack.

Julius was a bit rusty, but where his fighting skills failed, his magic didn't. Jasmine was suddenly thrown across the room, but fortunately Lara caught her and gently put her down.

"Well, well, what have…" Julius started when he saw Lara.

He trailed off when the second protection spell was broken.

"Got it!" Willow reported.

Julius looked at her and Tara.

"More witches," he said and prepared to attacked them, but Lara broke his concentration by throwing him into the wall.

Willow helped her out with distracting Julius and Tara concentrated on her demon killing spell.

"I'm ready," Raelee whispered as she hugged Lara from behind.

Lara nodded and concentrated again.

In the arena, Faith and Petra were fighting with swords. Faith was covered with cuts, which bled a lot, but were not deep and merely itched. She knew that the fight was about to end and she was scared, because she didn't believe that she had atoned for the three murders yet. Then, suddenly, all the demons in the audience dropped dead. The few Humans looked around, scared, and decided it was time to abandon ship. Faith and Petra both looked at the balcony, but Julius was gone.

"He… He's dead?" Petra said after a few moments, confused.

"Dead as a rock," Faith said, keeping her eyes on Petra.

Petra stared at the balcony for a while and Faith noticed that she was beginning to tremble. She thought Petra would freak out and attack her, but then Petra fell on he knees and started to vomit. Or she would have if she'd had any food in her stomach. Faith was surprised for a moment, but then she realized what was going on. Just before she heard the demons drop dead, she had noticed the way Petra jerked and slowed down, as if she had felt Julius die. Or rather as if a spell Julius held over her was suddenly broken. And now Petra's conscience was working overtime.

She was about to approach her when Cordelia came running into the arena, followed by the others.

"Faith," she said and threw herself around Faith.

"I'm dirty!" Faith tried to warn her, but it was too late.

Cordelia showered her with kisses.

"Are you okay? I was worried sick."

"I'm fine, Cordelia," Faith said, smiling softly, and caressed her. "I'm fine."

"You're all bloody!" Cordelia said, finally noticing Faith's condition. She looked at herself. "And I'm a mess. This will never wash out."

Faith smirked.

"I tried to warn you."

Cordelia looked at her again and forgot about her ruined clothes.

"You're hurt."

"It's just surface cuts. She was easy on me."

"She?" Cordelia looked at Petra, who was still fighting her stomach. "That's the champ?"

"Yes. But she's not evil. She was as much a victim as I was."

Cordelia frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"I think she was under a spell. I'll explain later." She looked at Giles. "Giles, you might wanna check out the place, see if he left anything useful."

Giles nodded.

"A good idea."

"You go too, Cordelia, I want to talk to Petra."

"Are you sure it's safe?" Cordelia asked, worried.

"Yes," Faith said and kissed her. "Go. All of you."

"Be careful," Cordelia said.

Faith smiled.

"I will."

They kissed again and then the gang left, leaving Faith alone with Petra. Faith kneeled beside her and put her hand on her shoulder.

Petra jerked and crawled away from Faith. She noticed that she still had her sword and she lifted it. Faith had a bad feeling and she backed off, but Petra turned the sword toward herself and then ran it through her heart, gasping. Faith stared at her, shocked.

Petra stared at the sword for a few moments and then looked at Faith.

"Why am I not dead?" she asked, confused.

"I… I don't know," Faith said. She hesitated for a moment and then approached Petra again. "Em, could you pull it out?"

Petra looked at the sword and then pulled it out and dropped it. Some blood came from the wound, but it quickly stopped.

"Do with me what you will," Petra then said quietly and bowed her head.

Faith stared at her, surprised.

"Em, I could use your help."

Petra looked at her, confused.

"My help?"

"Sure. You're the best demon killer in the world. We could use your help."

Petra stared at her, surprised. Then she glanced at her sword and shuddered.

"I… I don't think I can…"

"When you're ready," Faith said. "And you can also tell us how to kill various demons. You can help us and we'll help you."

Petra stared at her, surprised.

"Why?" she asked after a couple of moments. "I'm a monster," she said and touched her tattooed tears.

Faith then understood what they represented.

"These tears, they represent the people you've killed. The Humans."

Petra bowed her head.

"Yes," she said quietly.

"Why are those three double?"

Petra's hand automatically went to the three tears.

"They represent the fallen angels."

"And those four that are bigger?"

Petra's hand went to the appropriate tears again and Faith had a feeling that she probably remembered which tear stood for which victim. This time Petra hesitated with the answer.

"Slayers," she finally said.

"Oh."

A tear slid down Petra's cheek. She wiped it and then stared at the wetness on her fingertips, surprised.

"It's okay," Faith said softly, "you're safe now. You're free."

Petra sobbed for a few moments, but she quickly stopped and looked at Faith, frightened.

"It's okay to cry," Faith said, understanding. She hesitated for a moment. "I cried too," she then added.

Petra stared at her for a few moments and then tears started to run down her cheek. She sobbed for a while and Faith patiently waited for Petra to calm down.

When Petra finally calmed down, she wiped her tears and looked at Faith, who smiled softly.

"Why didn't I die?" she then asked.

"I thought you were immortal," Faith said, puzzled.

"I am, but I thought I could be killed."

Faith frowned.

"Have you never been hurt?"

"I have."

They were quiet for a while.

"Why didn't you kill Julius?" Faith then asked.

Petra tensed.

"I… I was too scared. He… He told me that he would punish me if I ever lost or if I displeased me." She paused. "He showed me how," she then quietly finished.

Faith decided not to ask Petra to explain.

"How did you become his… slave?"

Petra sighed.

"He chose me," she said quietly, looking away.

"Did he make you immortal?"

Petra nodded.

"And he made me remember everyone I killed."

Faith swallowed hard. She remembered the three people she had killed and it was hard, she couldn't imagine what Petra must be going through.

"Will you help us?" Faith asked after a while.

Petra looked at her and nodded.

"Yes."

Faith smiled.

"Thank you."

Petra stared at her for a few moments, surprised.

"I…"

"You can live with Giles," Faith interrupted her, saving her from answering.

Petra shook her head.

"No. I… I want to be alone."

"Are you sure?" Faith asked, her face serious.

Petra nodded.

"Yes."

Faith thought for a moment.

"There is an empty mansion, you could live there."

"Okay."

They were quiet for a while and then Faith got up.

"Come," she said and offered Petra her hand.

Petra stared at it for a few moment and then got up without accepting it.

"Why are you so nice to me?" she then asked quietly.

"Because you are a victim. And I know you're a good person."

Petra stared at her for a few moments.

"Thank you," she then said quietly and looked away.

Faith smiled softly.

"Come, follow me."

Petra followed Faith out of the arena. It didn't take them long to locate the gang.

"Anything?" Faith asked when she saw Willow checking out a computer.

"Are you kidding?" Willow said, staring at the screen. "He's so rich there isn't an adjective to describe it. He's the richest man ever." She looked at Petra. "And it's all yours now."

Petra frowned, confused.

"What?"

"Everything. The money, the estates, apartments, planes, cars, boats, you name it."

"He probably earned it by charging admission fees and stuff," Faith said. She looked at Petra. "At least you won't have to worry about money."

Petra shook her head.

"I don't want it."

"Why not?" Xander asked with a frown.

"It's blood money," Petra said quietly.

"Oh."

"But you will need some money for clothes and stuff," Faith said.

Petra looked at her, thinking.

"Okay," she then agreed.

"I'll set her up with an account and she can withdraw the money through an ATM machine," Willow said.

"That's a good idea," Giles agreed.

"Look, why don't Cordelia and me take Petra to the mansion," Faith said.

"The mansion?" Giles asked.

"Yeah, she wanted to be alone."

"Oh." He looked at the girl. "If you change your mind, you're welcome to move in with me."

Petra stared at him, surprised.

"Thank you," she then said quietly.

"I'll come by later to tell you about ATM machines," Willow said.

"We'll see you later," Cordelia said. She looked at Petra. "Come."

"This is it," Faith said when they got to the mansion. "I know, it looks like a heap of junk, but it's solid and nobody lives here." She opened the door. "You'll have to get the locks and stuff, but for now it should do. There's some stuff left from when Angel lived here, so you'll be okay for a now."

"She'll have to get food," Cordelia said.

"Yeah."

"I don't need to eat much," Petra said.

"So there's no hurry?" Faith asked.

Petra shook her head.

"No."

"Good." Faith looked around and then back at Petra. "Look, I have to go home now, my family's worried about me. Willow will come by later and help you out, okay?"

Petra nodded.

"Okay."

"Will you be okay?" Cordelia asked.

Petra looked at her.

"Yes."

"Are you sure? I can stay for a while," she offered.

Petra shook her head.

"I'll be okay."

Cordelia nodded.

"Okay."

"We'll see you tomorrow then," Faith said.

Petra nodded and then Faith and Cordelia left.

Petra then looked around her new home. It was big and old and empty and cold, but she didn't mind, she had lived in worse. The only thing that mattered was that it was hers and that she was free now. She suddenly realized that she was scared. Before, Julius told her what to do and when and there was a certain order. The only things she feared were Julius and killing Humans. Now, she had to make all the choices by herself and it scared her. She knew Faith and her friends would help her, but she was still scared, there was so much she didn't know about this world.

She sighed and decided that since she couldn't do anything about it at the moment, she should stop worrying for now and examine her new home.

"Mom! I'm home!" Faith called when she and Cordelia arrived home.

"Faith!" Mrs Chase said as she came from the living room. "Oh my god! Are you alright!"

"I'm fine," Faith said." Mom, I'm dirty!" she warned, her, but Mrs Chase didn't listen and hugged her. "I warned you," Faith said as she hugged her back.

"Are you alright?" Mrs Chase asked when she let go of Faith.

"I'm fine, Mom," Faith said, feeling strange when she noticed tears in Mrs Chase's eyes.

"I was so worried," Mrs Chase said and looked at Cordelia. "Cordelia!" she said, her eyes wide, when she noticed the blood.

"I'm fine, Mom, it's Faith's blood."

Mrs Chase looked at Faith and then at herself.

"Oh," she said, relieved. She looked back at Faith. "Are you sure you're alright, honey?" she asked, worried. "You look hurt."

"I'm fine, Mom," Faith repeated. "It's just cuts."

"And Jasmine and your friends?"

"Everyone's fine, Mom. We killed the bad guys and saved the champ."

"Who?" Mrs Chase asked, startled.

"Petra. She was a slave of this vamp and she was forced to fight. She lives in the mansion now."

"Oh."

"Jasmine should be home soon."

"Mom, we need a shower first," Cordelia said.

Mrs Chase nodded.

"Okay. And take care of those cuts."

Cordelia nodded.

"I will."

"Oh. When you're done, report to Alice. She's asleep, but she said she wants to be awakened when you come home, Faith."

Faith nodded, smiling.

"We will."

Mrs Chase smiled.

"Good night then," she said, relieved.

"Night, Mom," Faith said.

"Night, Mom," Cordelia said.

After the shower, Cordelia took care of Faith's cuts and then they cleaned up. When they were done in the bathroom, they went to Alice's room.

"Alice," Faith called and gently shook the girl.

Alice moaned and opened her eyes.

"Mommy?" she asked, sleepily.

"No, it's me, Faith," Faith said and sat on the bed.

Alice was awake in a moment.

"Faith?" She sat up and hugged her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Faith said, hugging her back. "And Cordy and Jessie are okay too." She let go of Alice. "Why don't you go back to sleep," she said softly. "Cordy and I will stay here until you fall asleep."

"Okay," Alice said and yawned.

Faith smiled and caressed her.

"Good night," she said and kissed her on the forehead.

She tucked her in and then moved aside.

"Good night, Alice," Cordelia said and also kissed her on the forehead.

"Night," Alice said sleepily.

Cordelia smiled and sat beside Faith, who took Alice's hand.

"You know, it's funny," Cordelia said when they met in their dreams.

"What?" Faith said, puzzled.

"Well, we're together and yet we're talking in our dreams."

Faith smiled.

"At least we can rest at the same time."

Cordelia thought about it.

"I guess."

Faith snuggled closer to Cordelia.

"I was so scared," she said quietly.

Cordelia caressed her.

"I know, I could feel it."

Faith sighed.

"Will I ever make up for what I've done?"

Cordelia kissed her on the temple.

"You will," she assured her. "You will."

The first thing Faith and Cordelia did the next day was go to Petra.

"Hi," Faith said after Petra opened the door.

Petra stared at the for a few moments, uncertain.

"Hello," she then said.

"Em, we were going to Giles, my Watcher. Can you come with us?"

Petra looked from Faith to Cordelia and back.

"Okay," she said, stepped out and closed the door.

Faith looked at Cordelia startled.

"Eh, come."

"Hey, guys," Faith said as she and Cordelia and Petra came to Giles' house.

"Hey," Buffy said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

Everybody stared at Petra, who was a bit nervous.

"Why don't you sit down," Cordelia said.

Petra looked at her and then around the room. She saw that the sofa was more or less empty and she sat on one end.

Cordelia sat next to her and Faith sat in Cordelia's lap.

"So, Giles, anything you want to know?"

"Eh, yes," Giles said as he took off the glasses to clean them. "I'd like to know what happened after you've been captured."

Faith thought for a moment.

"Nothing much. Julius was making fun of me and stuff and he had me chained up. He left me alone. Hell, he didn't even give me any food. I only saw him once. Oh! He could do that thing that Rosha did." She frowned, searching for the word. "That projection thing. Astral projection!"

"Really?"

"Yeah. And he could do other magic stuff too."

"Yes, I know."

"Anyway, Petra told me he chose her and made her immortal." She frowned. "And I think he had some sort of spell over her."

"Do you know what kind?"

Faith shrugged.

"I think he controlled her or something."

"Oh."

"Petra," Willow said from her laptop, and looked at the girl.

"Yes?" Petra said, still nervous about being among so many people.

"Will you live at the mansion?"

Petra thought for a moment.

"Can I?"

"Sure. Do you want me to buy it for you?"

Petra nodded.

"Yes."

Willow hesitated for a moment.

"Do you want me to manage your money and your estates and stuff?"

Petra thought about it for a moment and then nodded.

"Yes."

"Okay. I'll prepare the reports, since it's your money. I'll buy the mansion, the old Sunnydale High estate and Dracula's castle. And I'm gonna hire out your houses, boats, planes and cars."

"Okay," Petra agreed, not having the slightest clue as to what Willow was talking about.

"Eh, Petra," Giles said and Petra looked at him. "If you want, I can… tutor you, get you up to, eh, speed on… modern world."

Petra thought about it.

"Okay."

"And you can, eh, tell me about the demons you've killed."

Petra shuddered.

"You don't have to," Giles quickly said.

Petra took a deep breath.

"I will."

"Well, if you're ready."

"Oh, we gotta tell her about Spike and Dawn," Renee remembered.

"And Angel," Cordelia added.

"Yeah," Faith said and looked at Petra. "Anyway, Spike is a vamp with a chip in his head and he can't kill. He sort of helps us occasionally. Dawn is a vamp, but I have a deal with her. As long as she gives us tips and stuff and doesn't kill people, she stays alive. And she occasionally helps us. She was at the Games in 1789, you might have seen her. And Angel is a vamp with a soul. He's in LA, he's a detective."

"He's my boss," Cordelia said.

"Just so you know," Faith said. "We'll show you Spike and Dawn tonight, so you won't accidentally stake them."

"Okay," Petra said.

"So, em, you want us to show you around Sunnydale?"

Petra thought for a moment and then nodded.

"Okay."

Faith got up.

"Then come on," she said and reached out to help Cordelia up. "We'll see you around, guys."

The End