Faithfully Dangerous

Author: enigmaticblue

Rating: PG-15

Disclaimer: These aren’t my characters, as you all know. If they were, they’d all be living happily ever after by now.

Summary: Set during my story Latter Days. Faith is sent to L.A. to get information out of Angel and recruit Wesley—if she can. What she discovers is a scheme by persons unknown to take advantage of the imbalance, and an unlikely friendship.

A/N: Although this takes place during Latter Days, there isn’t a direct 1-1 relationship between the chapters. So, you could say that time is moving at a slightly different pace, although they will intersect.

Chapter 19

The Orlon Window had to come first; Faith understood that. She glanced towards the closed office door and sighed. Still, Wesley had locked himself in there for the past twenty-four hours. The only reason he’d even stopped long enough to eat was because Ellen was helping him, and she understood the need to refuel.

Of course, that meant that she was stuck with Dana and the rest of the Slayers, as well as Connor. Ellen had done something to help him, to ease the pain and shock of seeing his parents killed before his very eyes. It was powerful mojo, as Ellen’s work with Dana could attest.

“What’s the plan?”

Faith looked at Gunn, who was dressed in a pair of well-worn jeans and a hoodie. “We wait for Wes to finish up his thing. We can’t do much until Angel manages to get in with the Black Thorn.”

With a quick, effortless move, Gunn lifted himself up to sit on the counter. “You think he’s going to manage it?”

“It’s Angel, so probably.” Faith felt a pang. They had said goodbye before he’d left to go back to the law office, and she’d known then that it really was goodbye. If they saw one another again—and it was a big if—it would be as enemies, or on a battlefield.

And Angel believed that he wasn’t going to walk away.

“And you?”

“What about me?”

“You think this is the end of the line?”

Although Gunn had tried to keep his voice carefully neutral, Faith caught the hint of an emotion that didn’t belong there. Unlike him, apparently, she wasn’t eager to die. “Look around you, Gunn.”

Puzzlement crossed his face, but he did as she ordered. Faith knew what he’d see: Leslie and Caridad patiently demonstrating how to use a crossbow to Abby, Phoebe and Uta good-naturedly debating the best Ben & Jerry’s flavor while Dana looked on, eating out of her own carton. Fred and Connor were doing their own thing, but the lobby was the gathering place.

Faith could sense the camaraderie; she wondered if Gunn could, too.

“What do you think I should see?” he asked quietly.

“Slayers.” Faith hated big speeches, but she’d heard a few, and she could give them if she was in the mood. “Every one of those girls would fight to the death to save your ass, or mine, but they don’t want to go out now. They’re not ready, and neither am I.”

Involuntarily, she looked towards the office door once again. “I’ve got too much to live for.”

“And me?”

“You get the newsflash, Gunn?” Faith raised an eyebrow. “Lawyers might be handy, but right now the Council needs experienced demon fighters a hell of a lot more.”

His expression didn’t change, and Faith wondered if she’d been able to get through, and whether it mattered, although she thought that it might.

~~~~~

Wesley sat back in his chair with a sense of satisfaction. The first Orlon Window had taken days to build; this one had been completed in a day’s time. Although Ellen had helped, he’d done most of the work himself.

“Well done,” Ellen murmured, staring into the brightly-lit box as though mesmerized. “That should do nicely.”

“Assuming that Connor does not go over the deep end when his memories are returned.” Wesley’s lips twisted up in a rueful smile. “It’s entirely possible.”

“Are you forgetting the fact that I’m here?” Ellen smiled. “I think I can take care of him, although I imagine that Dana is going to need to find a good fight tonight. Do you think you can dig one up?”

Wesley laughed grimly. “I don’t think that will be a problem. Trouble seems to find them as soon as the Slayers step out of doors, and I imagine that it won’t be long before trouble begins to seek us out.”

Ellen nodded. “You’d best call Rupert, because we’re going to need more Slayers here before the end.”

“What about Abby?” Wesley asked, wanting the older woman’s take on the girl. “Should we send her away?”

“Send her where?” Ellen shook her head. “A Hellmouth wouldn’t be much better, and she won’t be able to leave the country, not without a passport.”

“Giles—”

“Will have his hands full, although I do think that she might be best off in England eventually. I have a feeling that will end up being the main training center.”

Wesley gave her a sharp look. “And this?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know. You’d best call Rupert,” she repeated. “We don’t know how long it will take him to send help, nor do we know when we’ll need it.”

He picked up the phone reluctantly. Calling for reinforcements just drove home how quickly things were moving, and how likely it was that they wouldn’t come through this unscathed. Wesley felt much the same as he had right before he’d taken Connor; it was the dread of knowing that everything would change, and not feeling as though he had a choice.

“Giles? It’s Wesley. We seem to have a situation on our hands.”

~~~~~

“You seem to be losing your friends.”

Angel didn’t bother looking up from his paperwork. “So?”

“I never thought I’d see the day.” Lilah took a seat across from him, crossing her long legs slowly and deliberately.

“If they can’t hack it, they shouldn’t be here.” Angel made sure to keep all emotion out of his voice.

Lilah raised an eyebrow. “Now, that’s an interesting change of tune.”

Angel smirked. “I’m here, right?”

“You’re toeing the party line, and that’s something of a surprise.”

“I got rid of Wes, didn’t I?” He leaned back in his chair. “What do you want, Lilah?”

“I’m wondering if you’re ready for the next level.”

“There’s another level?” He rose from his chair and nonchalantly wandered over to the window. Angel knew that he couldn’t afford to give away his strategy at this point; Lilah couldn’t know that he had a goal, that he wanted to get into the Black Thorn. Everything rode on how well he could channel Angelus.

Lilah snorted. “You can’t tell me that you didn’t know we had bigger plans for you. This is only the first level, Angel.”

“Your point?” He turned to face her again.

“There’s a lot more to this job than sitting in this office.” Lilah re-crossed her legs. She used her sex appeal like a weapon, and almost without thought. “You have a chance to be part of the new regime.”

“Oh?”

Lilah rose from her seat. “Think about it, Angel. We’re going to win this time, and you can either rule or be ruled. Those are your choices.”

“I don’t need to think about it.” Angel pasted a sneer on his face. “I’m tired of ending up on the bottom.”

“And your son?”

He shrugged. “He’s not my son anymore.”

“Very well. I’ll be in touch.”

As soon as Lilah was gone, Angel went up to his apartment, where Cordelia was waiting for him. She didn’t say anything, merely looked at him with a question in her eyes. He nodded, letting her know without words that they were moving in the right direction. From now on, they would have to be incredibly careful about what they said and where they said it.

Angel knew that he was being watched, and what they saw could mean the difference between success and failure.

And they couldn’t afford for him to fail.

~~~~~

Connor stared at the subtly shifting light inside the lantern. All he had to do was break it, and he’d remember everything—and not through the eyes of another.

He had no idea why he was hesitating.

“You don’t have to do this.”

He glanced over at Ellen, wondering once again why it was so easy to trust her, and to take these people at their word. A week ago, he’d been a normal college student, and now he was an orphan who was apparently some sort of demon fighter. Too bad he hadn’t been able to save his parents.

“Yes, I do.” Connor swallowed and went back to staring at the device. “All I have to do is break it?”

“That’s all.” Ellen laid a hand on his shoulder. “Whenever you’re ready.”

He picked it up, glancing around the room. The Slayers, other than Dana, had left them alone, and only Wesley and Faith remained. These were the people who claimed to know him, who said that they knew his past. What Connor wanted to know was whether they knew his future, too.

Connor set his jaw and dropped the Orlon Window to the floor, watching as it shattered. It was a lot more fragile than it looked, and he was surprised to see the pieces scatter. The memories washed over him like a wave, like the last vacation he’d taken with his parents. He’d gone surfing in Hawaii, and the waves had been huge.

That’s what it felt like now, the memories crashing over him in waves like water, leaving behind more and more information. Connor had believed that the memories would fill him in, would fill him out, and instead he felt as shattered as that weird lantern.

When they were all there, when all the memories were back in place, and he could see the layers for what they were—the Destroyer that had been overlaid by the good son—he stared at his hands.

They really were the hands of a killer.

“Connor?”

Ellen’s gentle voice broke his reverie. “Yeah?”

“Do you need anything?”

“I need to find the people who did this and kill them.” Connor spoke in a flat tone. Without his parents, and without his father, there was nothing else to live for. He would kill demons, and he would avenge the deaths of the two very kind, very normal people who had loved him.

Even if they’d been forced to do so.

“We’re working on that,” Wesley said. “Although we’re unaware as of yet who ordered or encouraged the attack on you and your parents, we’ll find out.”

“Great.” He took a deep breath. “Look, thanks for everything you’ve done, but I think I want to be alone for a while.”

“Take all the time you need, lad.” Ellen patted his cheek in a motherly gesture, then led Dana out of the room, speaking to her in a soft voice.

Faith put a hand on his shoulder. “Let me know if you want to go out, okay? Even if we can’t find the people responsible, we can still kill a few bad guys.”

Connor nodded. It was probably the best offer he’d had all day, but he still wanted some time to sort through it all.

~~~~~

He stifled a yawn, wondering when a vampire—one that had killed two Slayers and bedded a third—started yawning. What sort of a vampire yawned? It wasn’t scary at all.

Spike could admit that he wasn’t truly scary anymore, if only to himself. Of course, that didn’t mean he wasn’t dangerous, and that was why he found himself in Los Angeles.

“Spike!” Faith strode through the airport like a woman on a mission, a welcoming smile on her face. “Good to see you again.”

“You, too.” He adjusted the strap of his duffel bag on his shoulder. “Hope you weren’t waitin’ too long.”

“When are flights on time?” The question was rhetorical, and he didn’t respond. “How are you?”

“Fine.” Spike didn’t see the need to tell her the truth—that he was about as tired as he’d ever been. “You?”

“Busy,” she admitted. “We’ve actually got some time, though, if you want to catch a few hours of sleep.”

“God, yes.” The words slipped out before he could stop them. “Don’t know the last time I had a comfortable bed.”

“We’ve got a few extra at the hotel.” Faith shrugged. “We can’t really start on the plan until Angel does his thing. Things will start to go fast, then.”

“No offense, luv, but I’m still tryin’ to figure out what the hell I’m doin’ here.” Spike tossed his bag into the backseat of the SUV Faith had led him to, then slid into the passenger seat. “I get that you need help, an’ I got no problem with that, but Rupert seemed to indicate that you have plenty of Slayers and Watchers.”

She shook her head. “We’ve got a few. The problem is that we’ve got a secret organization that wants to end the world, and we need to take them all out at once. That means we need a little more than a small army.”

“You need a group of trained assassins.” Spike shook his head. “Dunno that I’m the one you want.”

Faith snorted. “You’re what we’ve got, according to Giles. Besides, I think you’ll do fine. It’s a matter of figuring out who’s going after which one, and matching up strengths and weaknesses. Wes’ll take care of that. Plus, you’re the one who was training Slayers, and we’ve got a few days for you to teach them everything you know about fighting dirty.”

“Me?” Spike chuckled. “Think you could teach them a few things, too.”

“You know what they say. Two heads are better than one.”

“That is what they say.” Faith gave him a sideways look. “How’s Buffy?”

“You tell me,” he said glumly. “We haven’t seen one another in weeks.”

Faith smirked. “I knew you two were getting it on in Sunnydale.”

“We weren’t, actually. That didn’t happen ‘til I got resurrected, but we’re alright.” Spike thought about what Nora had said, about her Slayer dream where he was there and gone in an instant, and he wondered how long that was going to be true.

Wanting to change the subject, and having no desire to emulate a certain broody relation of his, Spike asked, “Where’s Angel in all this?”

“Being Angelus. It’s the only way he can figure out who all the members of the Black Thorn are.”

Spike shifted in his seat so that he was facing her. “How bad is this, Faith?”

“No lie?” She met his eyes straight on. “It’s bad, maybe worse than Sunnydale at the end.”

And that’s what Spike had been afraid of.

~~~~~

Gunn wasn’t sure how he’d wound up at Fred’s, but the others hadn’t needed them around to jog Connor’s memory, and he had no desire to go back to an empty apartment. If he was with someone else, if he could successfully distract himself, he didn’t have to think about how many holes there were in his memory.

There were too many things he couldn’t remember anymore.

“What are you going to do when this is over?” Gunn asked idly, looking up from the knife he’d been honing.

Fred shrugged. “Well, I did find that anomaly with the Slayer’s blood that we could probably use to help the Council. Maybe I’ll figure out a way to use that in the spell, or something.”

“You’re not staying in L.A.?”

“Why should I?” She had been lying on the couch, and she rolled to her side to face him. “There’s nothing for us here, Gunn. Why shouldn’t we leave? At least after this is over.”

Gunn tried to imagine a life outside of Los Angeles and couldn’t. He was L.A. born and raised, and the thought of leaving him scared him more than anything else ever had.

“Yeah.”

“You wouldn’t have to.”

“What else have I got here?” He’d thought about looking up his old gang, trying to get them on board for this fight, but Gunn knew that he’d burned every bridge there. They had been his family, and he’d lost them—just as he’d lost his sister.

And now, just as he’d lost this family, too.

Fred reached out for him, her knuckles brushing his jaw line in a tender gesture that fell somewhere between romance and friendship. They were still trying to work that out, too, and Gunn wondered if they ever would.

“You’ve got me.”

He grasped her hand and held on, his eyes holding hers for a long, silent moment. “You think you could love a knucklehead like me?”

Fred just sighed. “You’re not a knucklehead, and when you figure that out, I think we’ll both be better off.”

She didn’t release his hand, though, and he kept holding on. There wasn’t much else for him to hold on to.