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 very, very little 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. This story, especially the character of Wild Child, was inspired by Miss K's Windows to the Soul, even though she's very different.

The Only Thing She Knew
By Kristjan Brezovnik

Wild Child lay in a dingy motel room and stared at the ceiling. She was trying to clear her mind, but she was never good at that. She was an assassin, but she was having second thoughts lately. As far as she could remember, she had always been an assassin, it was her purpose in life. But lately, she had started to wonder about that. It had all started with a woman who wanted to know why she was supposed to die and the only answer she could provide was that her boss said so. She had asked her boss later why the woman had to die and he told her it was none of her business. She didn't contradict him, after all, he was her boss, her owner, the reason she was alive. But during the next few missions, she found herself wondering about the rightness of what she was doing and she started to wonder what other people's purpose in life was. She had asked a few and gotten remarkably similar answers. Everybody wanted to get an education, a good job and have a family. When she compared it to her purpose of killing people, she felt small, unimportant. She had talked to her boss about it, hoping he could help, but he punished her instead and forbade her to ever think about it again. She tried to obey, she really did, but the thoughts kept returning to her.

And then her skills suddenly became much better. She was already the best, but she became even faster, stronger and more accurate than before and she could take a huge amount of punishment easily and her wounds then healed overnight. She didn't understand it and she could feel that her boss didn't either. In fact, he seemed to be worried and as he sent her alone on missions that would usually require at least four assassins, she soon began to suspect that he wanted her dead. But she was loyal and her life belonged to her boss. It wasn't until her fellow assassins tried to kill her that she started to doubt. She ran away, her sense of survival overpowering her sense of absolute loyalty.

So she lay, feeling like the worst scum, like a traitor. Still, a part of her was telling her that it was her boss who had betrayed her, not the other way around. After all, she had served him successfully and loyally for years and now he wanted to get rid of her because she had become better. It puzzled her, but she decided it didn't matter. She was free now, she could do whatever she wanted to do, be whoever she wanted to be. But that, she realized, scared her. Before, she had a purpose in life, a place to sleep and food to eat. Now, she had nothing, no purpose, no place to sleep and no food to eat. And she didn't know what she wanted to do or who she wanted to be.

She really didn't have any experience in dealing with people, but at least she knew how to handle money. Not that she had that much money in the first place. Her boss never paid her, nor had she expected him to. She was his to do with as he pleased and he provided for her. And since she had decided not to kill people anymore, she was forced to kill demons to get the money for food and lodging, even though she sometimes felt they were harmless. It was barely enough, though, and sometimes she had to sleep on the street and starve, but that didn't bother her. What bothered her was that she had to kill her fellow assassins, who were pursuing her relentlessly.

So she ran, stopping only to sleep and eat.

And while her mind might have been wondering, her senses were sharp and they immediately detected danger. She got up, her guns ready, and peeked out the window. She quickly took in the situation. Three assassins, one bazooka. The man with the bazooka was ready to fire, so she ran across the room and jumped through the window on the back side. She didn't know how many assassins were on that side, but she didn't have the time to worry. The fact that the window was closed and that her apartment was on the second floor didn't bother her.

As she was clearing the glass shards, she took in the situation in mid flight, but before she could do anything about it, the bazooka missile hit her room and exploded, and the shock wave from the explosion disrupted her fall. She barely managed to turn, so she didn't crash to the ground at full force. As she rolled, she spotted one of the assassins, who was already tracking her. She aimed and killed him. She got out of the roll, did a back flip and shot the assassin behind her while she was in mid flip. As she landed, she did a spilt to avoid a bullet and then shot the remaining assassin. Then she got up and ran to the front side. She knew she didn't have much time.

She checked out the positions of the four assassins and ran. She killed the assassin with the bazooka and then fired on the other three, but they were already moving. She managed to hit one in the leg and another in the arm, but that was all. She quickly reassessed the situation and then shot at a car. It exploded and knocked down one of the assassins. The remaining two ran for cover. Wild Child looked around and then shot at a truck to create a diversion and a smoke screen. The truck blew up, taking with it several cars, but Wild Child was already on the run.

She ran along the road as fast as she could, hoping a car would come by soon.

And it did, five minutes later. She stopped and stepped in the middle of the road, her guns aimed directly at the driver, who hit the breaks hard. The car stopped and Wild Child carefully approached it. There were three people in it, a woman and two girls, the older in the front, the younger in the back. A family, she guessed. For a moment, she considered killing them, but she decided not to. Unless they tried to kill her. The woman and the younger girl were staring at her, scared, but the older daughter observed like a predator. Wild Child shivered, briefly considering letting them go, but she realized she didn't have the time. She quickly got in the back.

"Drive," she ordered, her guns aimed at the girls.

The woman immediately drove on.

"What do you want?" the older girl asked, only a trace of fear in her voice.

Wild Child guessed that the girl wasn't afraid for herself, she was afraid for her family. It puzzled her. And then there was the fact that she felt drawn to the older girl for some reason and she knew that the girl was dangerous. She was getting the same buzz as when there were demons present, but she was sure the girl wasn't a demon.

"I'll let you know," she said.

The older girl stared at her for a few moments and then looked at her body.

"What happened?" she asked.

Wild Child quickly looked at herself and noticed that she was badly wounded. She was slightly surprised that she hadn't noticed it before, but it didn't really matter. Since the older girl didn't move, Wild Child took another look at herself and quickly assessed the damage. Her hands were bleeding and they were full of glass shards. From the pain in her back she guessed that it was covered with debris and probably burned. She ran the back of her right hand across her face, but she didn't feel any pain, in spite of the fact that her hand was covered in blood. She figured the glass had probably cut her face.

She didn't respond.

"Were you in that explosion back there?" the older girl asked when she didn't get an answer to her first question.

Wild Child considered her answer.

"Yes," she said.

"Who are you?"

That question caught Wild Child by surprise. The only name she'd ever had was Wild Child, but she knew it was a codename, not a real name. She really didn't know how to answer that question, so she didn't. But she knew that whoever she had been didn't exist anymore, she was somebody new.

"What are you?" the older girl asked, not getting an answer.

What was she? She had been an assassin, the best there was. Now, she was a fugitive. But what will she become? She had no idea. Then she remembered the buzz.

"What are you?" she asked the older girl.

"I'm Human," the girl said.

Human. Wild Child guessed that the girl knew about non-humans.

"Is she a vamp?" the younger girl asked her older sister quietly.

Vamp. Wild Child guessed that they all knew about vampires.

The older girl observed her for a few moments and then shook her head.

"No."

Wild Child wondered for a moment how she knew, but then she remembered that the sun wasn't quite down yet.

"Turn around," she ordered the woman.

"What?" the woman said, startled.

"Turn around, drive in the other direction." She looked at the older girl. "Face forward."

The woman started to turn the car and the older girl faced forward.

"Doesn't that hurt?" the younger girl asked.

Wild Child looked at her and then at her own body. It hurt, but she ignored the pain. She looked forward again, not answering.

They drove in silence for a few moments and then Wild Child suddenly slid off the backseat as a car approached them. She waited until it passed and then sat up again and looked out the back window. The car didn't show any signs of slowing down, so she relaxed a bit.

"There's another motel a few miles ahead," she said. "Stop there."

"And then?" the older girl asked.

"I'll tell you when we get there."

"Why can't you tell us now? I mean, what do you want from us?"

"Buffy," the woman warned her.

"What, Mom? I want to know."

Wild Child stared at her, wondering what kind of name Buffy was. She had no idea, but she decided it suited the girl.

"I'll let you go in the morning," she said.

The older girl, Buffy, raised an eyebrow, skeptically.

"Just like that?"

Wild Child just stared at her for a few moments.

"If I wanted to kill you, I would've done it when I stopped your car."

"Buffy," her mother chided her again.

Buffy sighed and faced forward. Wild Child stared at her for a few moments and then looked at the younger girl, who tensed.

"What's your name?" she asked, curious.

"Why?" the girl said, obviously scared.

"I'm curious."

The girl glanced at her older sister.

"Dawn."

"And your mother's?"

"Joyce."

Buffy, Dawn and Joyce. Interesting names, but none of them suited her.

After ten minutes of quite ride, they approached the next motel.

"You want me to stop here?" Joyce asked.

"Yes," Wild Child said. "Away from the crowd."

Joyce found them a spot as far away from the restaurant as she could.

"Go get a room as far away from the restaurant as possible. If the cops show up, your daughters die."

Joyce swallowed.

"For how long?"

"Just tonight."

Joyce got out and left and Wild Child looked at Buffy.

"Do you have additional clothes with you?"

"Yes. Why?"

"I need new clothes."

Buffy huffed and got out. Wild Child carefully watched her as she went to the back of the car to get her bag out. She glanced at Dawn.

"Is she always such a pest?" she asked, trying to get used to talking to people without giving anything away.

Dawn looked at her, surprised, and then grinned.

"Yeah."

"Oh great," Buffy said. "Now you're fraternizing with the enemy." She slammed the back door and went back to her seat. "Now what?" she asked, holding her bag.

"We wait for your mother," Wild Child said.

They waited quietly for a few moments until Wild Child saw Joyce returning. She got out and then looked at Dawn.

"This way," she said and motioned her with one of the guns.

Dawn closed the door and got out on Wild Child's side.

"I got us a room," Joyce said.

"Lock the car," Wild Child said.

She put away one of the guns and put her hand on Dawn's shoulder. Dawn tensed and looked at her.

"Just so you don't do anything stupid," Wild Child explained.

Joyce looked at the car and then looked at Wild Child.

"Lead the way," Wild Child said.

Joyce led the way and Wild Child motioned Buffy to follow. She wanted to keep Buffy at a distance, knowing she was dangerous.

When they got to the room, Joyce unlocked the door and got in. Buffy followed her and then Dawn with Wild Child right behind her. Wild Child closed the door and then looked around for something to tie them up with, but there was not much and she didn't want to destroy the room. She looked at Buffy.

"Get me some clothes," she said.

Buffy put the bag on the bed and opened it. Then she rummaged through it to find some appropriate clothes for Wild Child, some that she wouldn't miss.

"Here," she said when she finally got a pair of pants and a t-shirt.

"Put them on the bed, go to the bathroom and close the door," Wild Child said.

Buffy frowned.

"Why?"

"So I don't have to keep an eye on you. Just remember, if the cops show up, your sister and your mother die."

Buffy stared at her defiantly for a few moments and then dropped the clothes and went to the bathroom. After she closed the door, Wild Child looked at Joyce.

"Go to the window." She tapped Dawn on the shoulder. "You too."

Joyce and Dawn obeyed and Wild Child undressed to her underwear. Then she sat on the foot of the bed and looked at Dawn.

"Sit between my legs."

Dawn hesitated for a moment and then slowly approached her and sat between her legs. Wild Child pressed the gun to her head and looked at Joyce.

"Clean my back."

Joyce quickly looked for the first aid kit, but she couldn't find one.

"I think the first aid kit is in the bathroom," she said.

"Tell Buffy to find it."

Joyce went to the door.

"Buffy, can you find the first aid kit?"

"Hold on," Buffy said.

A few moments passed and Buffy then opened the door and gave Joyce the first aid kit. Buffy then closed the door and Joyce crawled on the bed behind Wild Child. As she cleaned her wound, Wild Child didn't even flinch.

"Doesn't this hurt?" Joyce asked after she extracted a particularly nasty shard and Wild Child didn't even flinch.

"It does," Wild Child said.

"Oh," Joyce said and tried to be more careful.

"Get up," Wild Child told Dawn when Joyce was done a few minutes later, and got off the bed.

Dawn quickly got up and looked at Wild Child, who looked at Joyce.

"Go stand by the door," she ordered. Then she looked at Dawn. "Come here."

Joyce and Dawn obeyed.

"Buffy, come out!" Wild Child then called.

A moment later, Buffy came out of the bathroom and quickly looked at her mother and her sister to see if they were okay.

"Go stand by your mother," Wild Child ordered.

Buffy obeyed, but Wild Child didn't let her out of her sight. When Buffy was standing beside Joyce, Wild Child started backing toward the bathroom, taking Dawn with her.

"What do you want with Dawn?" Buffy asked, worried.

"She's my hostage," Wild Child said and went to the bathroom. "Close the door and lock it," she then told Dawn and Dawn did so. "Now go kneel in the corner facing the wall."

Dawn obeyed and Wild Child then undressed. Then she took a shower and let the water wash off the dirt. It felt so good, but she knew she had to stay alert.

She got out of shower and quickly dried. She was still bleeding and she knew Joyce would have to dress her wounds. She wrapped the towel around her.

"Dawn, let's go," she then said.

Dawn got up and they left the bathroom.

When they got to the main room, Wild Child was relieved to see that Joyce and Buffy hadn't moved.

"Go to the bathroom," she ordered Buffy.

Buffy rolled her eyes, but she did as she was told. After Buffy closed the door, Wild Child sat on the bed and motioned Dawn to sit between her legs. Wild Child then looked at Joyce.

"Bandage me," she ordered and unwrapped the towel.

Joyce picked up the first aid kit and kneeled behind Wild Child and started bandaging her.

When she was done a few minutes later, she quickly backed off and Wild Child got up. Dawn quickly scurried from under her legs and Wild Child dropped the towel and started dressing. Dawn and Joyce quickly turned around to give her some privacy. When she was dressed, Wild Child dried her hair with the towel.

"Dawn," she said when she was done.

Dawn and Joyce turned.

"Come here."

Wild Child sat in the corner and motioned to Dawn to sit between her legs. Then she looked at Joyce.

"You can go to bed now."

"What about Dawn and Buffy?" Joyce asked, worried.

"Dawn stays here and Buffy can sleep in the bathroom."

"Can I at least take her a pillow and a blanket?"

Wild Child thought about it and then nodded.

"Yes."

Joyce quickly got a pillow and a blanket and took them to Buffy.

"I suggest you sleep now," Wild Child told Dawn.

"It's kinda hard with a gun pressed under my chin," Dawn said.

Wild Child lowered it a bit.

"It's gonna stay like that, unless you try something stupid," she said.

"And we really can leave in the morning?" Joyce asked.

"Yes," Wild Child said.

Joyce sighed and went to bed.

Nobody fell asleep for a while, least of all Wild Child. Joyce was the first, soon followed by Dawn. Wild Child couldn't hear Buffy, but she guessed Buffy was waiting for a chance to strike.

She had just drifted off to sleep when something woke her up. She listened and heard the bathroom door move.

"Don't even think about it," she said quietly.

The movement stopped and a moment later Buffy closed the door.

As morning approached, Wild Child was tired. She hadn't slept all night and it was wearing her down. Fortunately, the truckers were starting to leave. She gently moved Dawn and got up. She stood still for a moment, listening, and then sneaked out.

She went to the road and watched the trucks leave. When she spotted one headed for the opposite direction from which she had come, she ran to it and jumped on between the cabin and the cargo container.

When Buffy woke up, she was confused for a moment, but then she remembered the previous night. She opened the door, making enough noise for their kidnapper to wake up, but then she saw that the girl was gone.

She went to the bed.

"Mom," she said and gently shook her.

Joyce moaned and opened her eyes.

"Buffy," she said, surprised. She sat up and looked in the corner, where Dawn was still sleeping. "Where is she?"

"I don't know, Mom, I think she left," Buffy said.

"Oh." She looked at Dawn. "Wake Dawn."

Buffy went to Dawn and gently shook her.

"Dawn, wake up."

Dawn gasped and then opened her eyes.

"Buffy?" she said, puzzled. Then she noticed that she was lying instead of sitting, and she looked around. "Where is she?"

"She left."

"Oh," Dawn said and sat.

Buffy looked at Joyce.

"What do we do now, Mom?"

Joyce thought for a moment.

"I don't know."

"Aren't we gonna call the cops?" Dawn asked.

"Oh great," Buffy murmured, not liking the idea.

"Well, she didn't harm us," Joyce said, "so I guess it's beside the point."

Dawn thought about it.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Can we go home now?" Buffy asked.

"Can we eat first?" Dawn asked.

Joyce smiled.

"We'll go get something to eat and then we'll go home."

When the truck finally stopped, Wild Child hopped off and quickly left. It didn't take her long to figure out she was in Sunnydale. It was a small town, but she decided to lay low for a day or two and maybe find a demon or two to rob before she killed them.

When Buffy went on patrol that night, she was eager to kick some vampire ass. The previous night had scared her and he didn't like being scared, especially when her family was involved. And that girl worried her. The Council still hadn't found Kendra's successor and Buffy had a feeling that she had. The way that girl felt and the way she moved, Buffy knew she had to be a Slayer. Not to mention that she knew about vampires. And in spite of the fact that she wanted to kick her ass, Buffy felt drawn to Wild Child.

Of course, the last thing she expected was to find her in Sunnydale. So when she heard the sounds of a fight, she immediately ran to help, thinking someone might need her help, but when she reached the commotion, she saw that it was the girl she'd been thinking about. When Buffy saw how Wild Child was fighting off a group of vampires, she knew she was a Slayer. But then she noticed that Wild Child was badly wounded. Buffy didn't know how many vamps there were in the beginning, but there were still three left and Wild Child was losing.

"Hey!" she called to startle the vamps.

One of the vamps looked.

"It's the Slayer!" she called.

The other two looked as well, and Wild Child used the opportunity to behead one of the vamps with a knife.

Buffy came running and immediately engaged one of the remaining two vamps. She dusted him in no time and then looked at Wild Child, who was carving up the last vamp. She noticed that Wild Child had no stake, only a knife and a couple of guns, which now lay discarded on the ground. She quickly staked the vamp. Wild Child looked at her, startled, and then staggered. Buffy quickly caught her. Wild Child tried to stand up, but she passed out instead.

"Great," Buffy muttered.

"Mom!" Buffy called when she brought Wild Child home.

Joyce came immediately, hearing the urgency in Buffy's voice.

"Oh my, is that…" she started when she saw Wild Child.

"Yes. She was fighting a bunch of vamps. I think she's a Slayer."

"Really?" Joyce said, surprised.

"Yes. Can you help me bandage her?"

Joyce hesitated for a moment.

"Do you think it's safe to help her?"

Buffy thought for a moment.

"She had plenty of opportunities to kill us."

"Oh. I guess." She sighed. "Let's take her to the bathroom."

When Wild Child woke up the next day, she was surprised to find herself in a soft bed. She listened, her eyes closed, but there was no one in the room. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She saw that she was alone and that she apparently wasn't a prisoner. She uncovered herself and saw that she only had a pair of panties on and bandages.

Then she heard someone come up the stairs and she quickly covered herself and pretended she was asleep.

A few moments later someone came in and Wild Child guessed from the sound of footsteps that it was a woman. She waited until the woman was near the bed and then she moved. She grabbed the woman and had her laying on the bed, face down, before the woman had a chance to yelp. Then Wild Child recognized the woman.

"Joyce," she said, surprised.

Joyce mumbled something and Wild Child let go of her after a moment of hesitation. Joyce sat up and looked at Wild Child warily.

"Where am I?" Wild Child asked, not bothering to cover her naked breasts.

"My home."

"Why?"

"Buffy brought you home after you fought some vampires."

"How long have I been here?"

"Since last night."

Wild Child thought for a moment. The fact that she wasn't in jail meant that they hadn't called the police. Which meant nothing since she didn't know who they were. And she suspected that the assassins had plenty of time to catch up with her again.

"I need clothes," she said.

"You're leaving?" Joyce asked, surprised.

"Yes."

"But you've been hurt."

Wild Child was surprised that the woman cared, especially after she had taken her and her daughters hostage. But she didn't have the time to think about that.

"I've healed."

Joyce stared at her for a few moments and then sighed.

"Come," she said and got up.

Wild Child was immediately by her side, startling her. Joyce then led the way to Buffy's room.

"Sit on the bed," Wild Child ordered and Joyce obeyed.

Wild Child then quickly went through Buffy's wardrobe and picked up something comfortable to wear. She quickly dressed, except the t-shirt and the jacket, and then looked at Joyce.

"Where are Buffy and Dawn?"

"In school."

Wild Child considered for a moment whether or not to believe her and then decided to believe her.

"Examine my back," she then said.

Joyce frowned.

"Why?"

"There is a tracking device in my back. Find it."

Joyce got up and approached Wild Child.

"How?"

"Touch my back. Press hard with your fingers."

Joyce carefully covered every centimeter of Wild Child's body until she suddenly felt something hard.

"I think I have something."

Wild Child reached behind her and tried to feel. It was deep within and hard to reach, but she thought she could feel it.

"Where is the kitchen?"

Joyce frowned, startled.

"This way," she said and led the way downstairs.

When they got to the kitchen, Wild Child looked around the drawers until she found a suitable knife.

"Cut it out," she said and gave it to Joyce.

"What?" Joyce said, surprised.

"Cut the device out. Carefully. If you try to kill me, I will kill you," Wild Child said and raised another knife meaningfully.

Joyce gulped.

"Okay."

Wild Child leaned over the island and Joyce slowly approached her. She felt for the tracking device again and when she found it, she carefully cut into Wild Child's flesh. Wild Child didn't even acknowledge that she felt anything. Joyce cut deeper until she could feel the tracking device.

"I have it, but I'll need tweezers to get it out."

Wild Child thought for a moment.

"Go," she then allowed, deciding that she could trust Joyce.

Joyce quickly went upstairs to get the tweezers, a towel, and the first aid kit. Then she returned to the kitchen, where Wild Child wasn't moving. Joyce took the tweezers and disinfected them with alcohol. Then she inserted them into the cut and felt around for the device. She quickly found it and then carefully dragged it out.

"Got it," she declared, relieved, when the device was out.

"Put it in the sink," Wild Child said and Joyce obeyed.

"I'll have to sew you up," Joyce then said.

"Do it."

Joyce took a deep breath and first cleaned the wound with alcohol.

"Doesn't it hurt?" she asked when Wild Child didn't even flinch.

Wild Child hesitated for a moment.

"It does," she then admitted.

Joyce didn't know what to say, so she continued to take care of the wound.

When she sewed it up, she cleaned the skin and then bandaged the wound.

"Okay, I'm done," she declared when she was done.

Wild Child straightened up and put on the t-shirt. Then she went to the sink, picked up the tracking device and examined it. She rinsed it and put it in her pocket.

"Aren't you going to destroy it?" Joyce asked, puzzled.

Wild Child looked at her.

"Wait here until I'm out," she ordered without answering the question, and headed for the backdoor. There she stopped and looked at Joyce. "Why did you help me?"

"You were wounded."

"You didn't call the cops."

Joyce smiled a bit.

"Well, Buffy doesn't like the police too much and she didn't think you were evil. Dangerous yes, evil no."

Wild Child stared at her for a few moments and then left.

"Hi, Mom, is she up yet?" Buffy asked when she came home.

"She's gone," Joyce said.

"What?" Buffy said, surprised.

"She woke up and left."

"Why didn't you stop her?"

Joyce gave her a look.

"Oh, well, I mean, you could ask her to stay."

"I don't think she would."

"Oh," Buffy said, disappointed.

"Oh, she took some of your clothes."

"Again?"

Joyce smiled.

"Yes. A pair of jeans, a t-shirt, a pair of panties, socks and sneakers. Oh, and a jacket."

Buffy sighed.

"Okay," she said and went upstairs.

After she had left Joyce, Wild Child went to the sewers and hid there. Then, after nightfall, she went to the piers and threw the tracking device on one of the cargo ships. Then she hid again for a while and finally went to the bus station to see when the next bus for LA was, deciding to take care of her boss once and for all.

It was early morning and Joyce was about to go to the bathroom after having woken up Buffy and Dawn when suddenly someone grabbed her from behind and put a gag into her mouth. While she was being tied up, she was turned just enough to see another masked person head for Dawn's room and yet another for Buffy's.

"Help!" Dawn screamed a moment later and she could hear the sounds of fight coming from Buffy's room.

Dawn didn't make anymore screams and Joyce became worried, but she relaxed a bit when Dawn was brought out of her room, tied up.

Then two attackers came flying out of Buffy's room, followed by Buffy.

"Mom! Dawn!" Buffy said, worried, when she saw them tied up.

"That's enough," one of the attackers holding Joyce said. "Stop fighting or your mother dies."

Buffy froze.

"What do you want?"

"Take you hostage."

"Why?"

The man hesitated for a moment.

"That is none of your concern."

"The hell it's not."

The man cocked his gun, which was pressed to Joyce's temple.

"Okay, okay," Buffy said, worried.

When the covers were finally removed from their heads, Buffy looked around. She was relieved when she saw her mother and her sister, both unharmed. Then she looked around the room. What she saw was an empty room with heavy steel door. It was a jail, she guessed. There were also three people with icy expressions. Two were women, one was a man and they were each pointing a gun at one of the prisoners. Buffy had a bad feeling that they were the ones who were after Faith.

A few moments later the door opened and a man came in. By the look of his clothes, Buffy guessed he was rich. She gave him a cold look, but the man merely smiled.

"Interesting," he said. He turned to the guards. "If they try to escape, kill them," he said and left.

Neither guard moved a muscle.

When Faith arrived to LA, she first stocked up on weapons. Then she went straight to her boss' house, knowing that he already knew she was coming.

When she got to the house, she first checked out where the guards were. When she saw that they were waiting for her, she quickly made a plan and then attacked.

As she walked across the front yard, she killed the guards and destroyed the security cameras. She moved quickly, knowing that the assassins were closing in on her.

When the boss found out Wild Child was there, he had the three hostages brought to his room. Then he watched her progress on the monitors.

"She's good, isn't she?" he said to the three hostages, who were also watching Wild Child as she closed in on their position, killing off everyone in her path and destroying the security cameras as she went.

Buffy had to admit that Wild Child was nothing if not efficient, a killing machine. And the way she moved, it was clear that she was a Slayer.

Wild Child mentally counted the people she'd killed. She assumed that everyone was there. When she ran out of her own ammo, she took weapons from the people she'd killed and moved on, not wasting even a moment.

When she was down to six, she assumed that they were with her boss, so she went there. She immediately encountered two assassins and she quickly disposed of them. Then she ran past the open door, looked in to assess the situation, and killed off another assassin. She was surprised when she saw Buffy, Joyce and Dawn there, being held as living shields. She felt guilty for a moment about endangering them, but then she moved on and made a plan.

She assumed that the only remaining assassin without a shield was coming to the door, so she moved. She entered the room, shot the assassin with one gun and Buffy with the other. Then she rolled and shot the remaining two assassins, which were tracking her with their guns. Buffy went down and the surprised boss suddenly found himself without a shield. He started pointing at Wild Child, and Wild Child shot him as she got up. Then she quickly looked around the room, making sure she didn't miss anyone. She didn't, so she put away the guns and pulled out a knife. She quickly untied Joyce, who immediately ran to Buffy.

"Buffy!" Joyce said, worried, as she kneeled beside her and removed her gag.

"I'm fine," Buffy said, even though she was bleeding from the shoulder.

Faith quickly untied Dawn, who also ran to Buffy.

"Why did you shoot her?" Joyce said, surprised.

"It was necessary," Wild Child said and fetched a first aid kit from one of the lockers.

Then she cut Buffy's shirt and quickly bandaged her wound.

"Take her out now," she then said.

"Are you sure it's safe?" Joyce asked.

"Yes," Wild Child said. "Everyone's dead."

Joyce stared at Wild Child for a moment, shocked by the casualness with which she had said those words. Then she looked at Dawn.

"Help me carry her out."

Dawn nodded and helped Joyce get Buffy to her feet.

"What about you?" Buffy asked.

"I need to destroy the evidence," Wild Child said.

"Oh."

"Come on," Joyce said, "we have to get you to the hospital."

"Wait!" Wild Child suddenly remembered. She quickly went to her boss, took out his wallet, and then his money. "Here," she said as she gave the money to Joyce. "You'll need it to get back home," she explained.

"Oh, right," Joyce said as she realized that they didn't have any money on them. Then she looked at the money. "Wow, that's a lot."

"How much is it?" Dawn asked, curious.

"At least a thousand dollars, I think."

Dawn's eyes went wide.

"Wow."

Joyce put the money away.

"Okay, let's go now."

Wild Child watched them leave, feeling bad for having to shoot Buffy.

Then she ran to the armory. There she took a bag and stuffed it with some weapons and ammo. In another bag she put some plastic explosives.

After she set all the plastic explosives, Wild Child went to boss' room and first broke into the safe. She took out the money and put it in her bag, next to the weapons. Then she set the explosives there as well, making sure that one was right on top of the computer.

When she was done, she looked at her boss one last time, a part of her regretting that she had to kill him. Then she got over it and left.

She was barely in her hiding place when the house blew up in a violent explosion. The people in the street all stopped and looked, surprised. Wild Child looked as well, but only for a few moments, then she looked back at Buffy, Joyce and Dawn, who were waiting for an ambulance.

After the police came and secured the premises, Wild Child relaxed a bit in her hiding place and thought about what to do next. She had no one to fear now, but she still didn't know what to do. She could survive, but she wanted more than just that. She wanted a life, not just an existence. She decided to go check up on Buffy, who, for some reason, she felt drawn to.

When she got to the hospital, she noticed the cops. She decided not to go in, not sure what Buffy and her family had told them. So she found herself a bench, sat down and watched the cops, unsure of what to do.

An hour later, she suddenly noticed Buffy and her family, who were heading straight for her. She quickly got up and looked around, hands on her guns. But there didn't seem to be any danger and the cops at the hospital were minding their own business, so she relaxed a bit.

"Hey," Buffy said when they came close.

Wild Child just stared at her for a few moments and then looked at Buffy's shoulder.

Buffy glanced at it as well.

"It's healing," she said and looked back at Wild Child. "Thanks for saving us." She nodded at her wound. "I know you had to shoot me. If he thought I was dead, he wouldn't shoot at me and if his friends thought that Mom and Dawn were useless as a cover, they wouldn't point their guns at them.

Wild Child was surprised that Buffy had understood her reasoning. She nodded in agreement.

"We didn't tell the cops about you," Dawn said, and Wild Child looked at her. "We told them that our kidnappers were attacked by some people and that Buffy got shot in the crossfire."

Wild Child nodded, relieved.

"Em, he called you Wild Child," Joyce said and Wild Child looked at her. "Is that your name?"

Wild Child stared at her for a moment, not used to giving away information about herself.

"My codename."

"Oh,"

"And what's your name?" Buffy asked.

Wild Child hesitated again, suddenly feeling vulnerable.

"I don't have any."

"You don't?" Dawn said, surprised. "Everyone has a name."

Wild Child just stared at her.

"So what do we call you?" Joyce asked. "Wild Child?"

Wild Child hesitated for a moment.

"Wild Child is dead."

"What then?"

Wild Child thought for a moment and then shrugged.

"I don't know."

"I know," Buffy said and everyone looked at her. "How about Faith? I mean, you were an assassin all your life, but you've changed. That kinda restores my faith in mankind."

Wild Child considered it. It was good reasoning and it happened to be the name of the woman who had started to make her doubt. She nodded.

"I'm Faith. Faith Spencer," she added, deciding to take the name of that woman.

"Spencer?" Buffy asked, curious.

"Yes," Faith said, not explaining.

"Oh. So what are you gonna do now?"

Faith thought about it for a moment, but she still had no idea.

"I don't know."

"You could go to Sunnydale with us," Buffy suggested.

"Why?"

"Well, you're a Slayer and I could use your help."

"What's a Slayer?"

"Well, we're faster, stronger, more accurate than normal people and we heal faster. When one dies, another is called. I'm also a Slayer."

"How many Slayers are there?"

"Just two, you and me. There used to be only one, but, well, it's a long story," Buffy said, glancing at Joyce.

Faith thought about it.

"Do you have any education?" Joyce asked.

Faith hesitated.

"Weapons, explosives, computers, human anatomy and survival in the wild."

"That's not exactly useful for everyday life," Buffy said. "Well, you could be a mechanic or something, but that's not much of a job. And you know anatomy, which means you could be a nurse or something, but that takes a lot of study and…"

"A doctor," Faith suddenly said, finally deciding on what she wanted to do.

"What?" Buffy said, startled.

"I want be a doctor."

"Uh, you sure?" Buffy asked skeptically.

Faith nodded.

"Yes."

"Okay, but first you have to pass the GED and then go to college."

Faith nodded again.

"Yes."

"Okay," Buffy said. "I'll have Willow make you an ID."

"Who's Willow?"

"My best friend. She's good with computers."

"Where is she going to live?" Dawn asked and everyone looked at her.

Before Faith could respond, Buffy looked at Joyce.

"Can she stay with us?"

"With us?" Joyce said, surprised, and then looked at Faith, thinking. "Okay," she then decided. "But you follow my rules."

"What rules?" Faith asked.

"The same as Buffy. You don't do anything she or Dawn wouldn't do. If you're in doubt, ask."

Faith stared at her for a few moments and then looked at Buffy and Dawn.

"Why are you helping me?"

Buffy shrugged.

"It's what I do," she said. "And besides, you're a Slayer, you saved our lives and I like you," she said, blushing at the end.

Faith stared at her for a few moments, feeling the butterflies in her stomach, and then looked at Joyce, who smiled.

"Buffy's right."

Faith thought for a few moments. Trust really wasn't an issue here, she knew, but it was still hard for her to trust people, especially after her boss had tried to kill her. And their desire to help her completely baffled her, it was so different from anything she knew. But at least she knew what she wanted to do and these women were willing to help her achieve it. She decided to give it a try.

"Okay," she said and all three women smiled.

"Can we go home now?" Dawn asked.

"Yes, of course," Joyce said.

"I'll tell you about Slayers and stuff on the way," Buffy told Faith. Then she looked at her mother. "I need a new shirt first."

When they got to Sunnydale, Giles was already waiting for them at the bus station.

"Buffy!" he called as he approached them. "Is everyone alright?"

"Yes, Giles, we're fine," Buffy assured him.

"Thank god."

Buffy looked back and noticed that Faith was observing Giles and trying to stay inconspicuous. She waved at her to come closer.

"Giles, this is Faith, the other Slayer," she introduced Faith as she approached. "Faith, this is Giles, my Watcher."

Faith and Giles stared at one another for a few moments.

"Eh, hello," Giles finally said.

"Hello," Faith responded.

They stared some more and then Giles looked at Joyce.

"Shall we go now? Willow and Xander are waiting at your house. We've cleaned I up, by the way."

Joyce smiled.

"Thank you."

"This way."

"Buffy!" Willow called, excited, when Buffy got out of Giles' car.

Buffy smiled.

"Hey, Willow."

"Are you okay?" Willow asked as they hugged.

Buffy groaned.

"Yeah."

"What's wrong?" Willow asked and let go of Buffy.

"Nothing, I got shot," Buffy said, gently rubbing her shoulder.

Willow's eyes went wide.

"What?"

"I'm fine, Willow," Buffy assured her. "The doctors took care of the wound and it's healing."

"Oh."

"Is that…" Xander started, staring at Faith.

"That's Faith, the other Slayer," Buffy confirmed.

"Hi," Willow said.

"Hi," Faith responded.

"Faith, this is Willow and that's Xander," Buffy introduced them.

Faith nodded.

"Hi," Xander said.

"Let's go inside," Buffy said.

"Oh, we cleaned up," Willow said as they walked to the house.

"Thanks."

"So, what happened?"

Buffy glanced at Faith.

"Well, you know we helped Faith when she was wounded."

"Yes," Willow said with a nod.

"Well, her boss kidnapped us so he could get to her."

"Oh," Willow said as they entered.

"But Faith saved us."

"Really?

"Yes."

"She's staying with us," Dawn said.

"Who?" Willow said with a frown. "Faith?"

She looked at Faith, but Faith just stared back at her.

"Yes," Dawn said. "She wants to be a doctor."

Faith gave Dawn a disapproving look.

"Really?" Willow said, surprised.

"Yes," Buffy said. "You'll have to make her an ID, she doesn't have one."

"Oh. Okay. I can fake the data, but she'll have to go to City Hall to get the card."

"Okay."

"Mom, I'm hungry," Dawn said.

"We'll order pizzas, okay?"

Dawn smiled.

"Okay."

Giles looked at Faith.

"Faith, the Council doesn't know yet about you, but they might find out."

"Can you be her Watcher?" Buffy asked.

Giles thought for a moment.

"I don't know. If I ask now, I'll have to tell them about Faith, and if I don't, they might be reluctant to let me be Faith's Watcher. Not that they'd be very fond of the idea of two Slayers and only one Watcher anyway." He frowned. "You'll have to make up a cover story for Faith, I don't think the Council would look positively on a Slayer being an ex-assassin."

"We will," Buffy said.

"Good. We'll see you later then."

"Okay."

"Bye, Buffy," Willow said. "I'll bring my computer."

"See you, guys."

Giles, Willow and Xander left and Buffy looked at Faith.

"Come, let me show you to your room."

"I'll order the pizzas," Joyce said.

"Okay, Mom," Dawn said as she followed the two Slayers.

They went upstairs to the guestroom, where Faith had lain while she was recovering two days ago.

"This is it," Buffy said. "But it needs some decorating, I guess."

Faith looked around.

"I need to go shopping," she said.

Buffy smiled.

"We'll go after we eat the pizzas."

"I need to put this someplace safe," Faith said and nodded at her bag.

"What's in it?"

Faith hesitated for a moment.

"Weapons and some money."

"Oh." Buffy thought for a moment. "You can lock the door."

Faith glanced at the lock. It could easily be picked and she knew Buffy could easily break down the door, but she knew she wouldn't. And besides, she just didn't want anyone snooping around her bag, she wasn't worried about it being stolen.

"Do you have a wallet?" she then asked.

"A what?" Buffy asked, startled by the change of subject. "Yes, sure. Why?"

"I need to borrow it while I go shopping."

"Oh. Sure," she said and left.

Faith then put her bag on the bed and opened it. Dawn tried to peek, but Faith was effectively between her and the bag. Faith took out a bunch of banknotes and put them in her pocket. She hesitated for a moment and then took off the jacket. Dawn gasped when she saw that Faith was wearing two guns. Faith took them off and put them in the bag. Then she closed the bag and put it under the bed. She put the jacket back on and headed out, Dawn hurrying after her. Faith then locked the door and put the key in her pocket.

"Here," Buffy said as she returned with a wallet.

Faith took it, took the money from her pocket and put it in the wallet, which she then put in the pocket.

"Do you have a driver's license?" she then asked Buffy.

"Eh, yes," Buffy said, startled.

"I'll need the car."

"Oh. Yeah, I'll tell Mom."

Faith nodded and headed downstairs.

Buffy and Dawn looked at one another and then followed her.

"Is the room okay?" Joyce asked when they came downstairs.

"Yes," Faith said. She thought for a moment. "Thank you."

Joyce smiled.

"You're welcome."

"Mom, we're going shopping later and we'll need the car," Buffy said.

"Okay," Joyce said and looked at Faith. "How much money do you need?"

Faith was startled, not having expected the offer.

"I have money."

"Oh. Well, if you need some, let me know."

Faith nodded.

"Can I come?" Dawn asked.

Faith looked at her and shrugged.

"If you want."

Dawn smiled.

"Great."

Faith looked at Buffy.

"Do you have a wooden stake?"

"Yes. Why?" Buffy said, puzzled.

"I'm not used to walking around without a weapon and I don't want to carry a gun or a knife. And I'll need it for slaying."

"Oh. Yes, I have several. Come."

As Faith did the shopping, Buffy and Dawn followed her around and marveled at the purposefulness with which Faith walked from shop to shop and quickly picked the things she needed. They were also surprised how Faith had enough money for everything.

"Okay, what do you need that for?" Buffy asked as they were waiting for a heavy metal box to be custom fitted.

"A safe."

"Oh." Buffy frowned. "Why do you need a safe?"

"For the weapons and the money."

"Why don't you buy a real safe then?"

"They're more expensive and not very efficient."

"Oh." Buffy frowned again. "Why don't you take the money to the bank?"

"Credit cards can be traced."

"I know, but no one is after you. And Willow can open fake accounts for you and spread the money."

Faith thought about it for a moment.

"I need to think about it."

"My, that's a lot of things," Joyce said when she saw how many bags were in the car. She frowned when she saw the metal box. "What's that?"

"A makeshift safe," Buffy said. "For Faith's weapons."

"Oh."

"I'd like to install it in the basement," Faith said.

"Yes, of course."

"I'll need to drill holes in the walls and the floor."

Joyce frowned.

"Why?"

"So it can't be simply carried away."

"Oh. Okay."

Not long after the makeshift safe was installed and filled with weapons and money, and Faith's clothes put away, Willow, Xander and Giles came over again. While Willow was creating an identity for Faith, Faith answered Giles' questions and occasionally raised an eyebrow at Xander, who was ogling her.

"You'll have to pick your ID card first," Willow said when Buffy mentioned Faith's monetary situation. "Then you can deposit all the money on one account and I can spread it among other accounts."

Faith nodded.

Then the bell rang and Willow looked out the window.

"That's probably Angel," she said when she saw it was dark. "He said he'd come over."

Joyce went to the door and returned with Angel a few moments later.

"Buffy."

Faith was immediately on her feet, stake ready.

"No, Faith, it's okay," Buffy said.

"He's a vampire," Faith pointed out.

"I know, but he has a soul."

Faith glanced at her, puzzled.

"So?"

"Vampires don't have souls, that's kinda why they're evil. Angel has a soul and he's on our side. Trust me."

Faith looked at her for a moment and then decided to trust Buffy. She put the stake away and sat.

Angel looked around, confused.

"Angel, that's Faith," Buffy introduced her. "She's Kendra's successor."

"A Slayer?"

"Yes,"

Angel stared at Faith for a few moments and noticed she was evaluating him. It made him feel uncomfortable and not many things could do that.

"Are you alright?" he then asked Buffy.

"Yes. Faith saved us."

"Oh," Angel said, glancing at Faith.

"She lives here now."

"Really?" Angel said, surprised.

"Yes."

There was a tense silence.

"Faith, come to the Sunnydale High library tomorrow and we'll see about the books you'll need for the GED."

Faith nodded.

"I will."

"And I can give you some books on the supernatural."

Faith nodded again.

"Okay."

"And we'll go to the Town Hall in the afternoon," Joyce said. "And the bank."

"Okay," Faith agreed, amazed by how quickly this group of people have taken her for one of their own.

As she lay in bed that night, Faith thought about her life. She had been an assassin all her life, her boss' property, never questioning his orders. But now, she had a home, a family. And she had not one but two things to do, she was a Slayer and she was going to be a doctor. And there were the strange emotions she felt for Buffy. She felt a bond between them, the Slayer bond, but those feelings had nothing to do with them being Slayers. It was different, exciting, and she couldn't wait to find out what they were. She wasn't worried about the future anymore and she realized she was happy. She smiled and slowly drifted off to sleep, hardly waiting for a new day to begin.

The End