Title: Family Matters
Author: Sweetdoggie (stirling_summer@yahoo.com)
Disclaimer: No permission has been granted to use the characters. They are owned by their creator, Joss Whedon, Twentieth Century Fox, UPN, WB, and Mutant Enemy. This story is non-profit and is intended solely as entertainment. No copyright infringement is intended.

The Council threw a fit over Buffy giving up Slaying. At first, they flat out refused to discuss the matter, but when it became evident that she would not be swayed, they became more reasonable. They even offered her a rather nice stipend if she would continue on the Hellmouth.

“You guys aren't getting it. I have a family to raise. You need to get Faith out of prison and rehabilitated or something. I don't want to do this anymore.”

“But Ms. Summers...”

“It's Mrs. Giles now, Travers. You need to understand this. I can't be the Slayer anymore.”

There was a few moments of silence. “If it were possible to free Faith, to rehabilitate her, as it were, we still would not like to do without your services. Would you consider moving to England with Mr. Giles and, perhaps, taking up a post as a teacher for our Watchers?”

Buffy nearly reeled at being offered something so promising. “Well, I don't know...would it be possible for Giles to get his old job back at the museum? He really liked that job.”

“Consider it done.”

“Then, yes, I think that I would like to help teach future Watchers.” She hung up the phone. “Do you think they're on the level?”

Giles thought about it. “Yes, I believe so. They certainly can't argue that you haven't done your bit. And it would definitely be a boon to Watcher training if there were a Slayer actually on hand to show them...how things are.”

“It all depends on getting Faith out.”

“That shouldn't be a problem. Not for the Council.”

“Will she have a Watcher?”

“I don't know. Wesley was her Watcher. She tortured him. Yes, she was mad at the time, but I really couldn't say that he would wish to take that chore on again. At the same time, I can't imagine that the Council would leave her unsupervised.”

“She needs some place to live.”

“It will be up to the Council.”

“They need to provide for her. It wasn't right that she had to live in that fleabag motel.”

“She will live with her Watcher, I imagine.” He thought about it. “Yes, she will need constant supervision. I shouldn't wonder if she were assigned a team.”

“As long as the guys are already in England when she gets out. I don't trust her.”

“We will start working on that right away.” He leaned over and kissed her neck.

~*~

Surprisingly, the Council was as good as its word. Wesley called them three days later to say that Faith's case had come up for review and that the evidence against her was not as cut and dried as had originally been supposed. In all likelihood, she would be released before the end of the month. The Council had asked him if he was willing to be her Watcher again, a position he had accepted with some stipulations. Firstly, he and Faith would live together at Council expense, secondly, the Council would send a psychologist to deal with Faith's very real emotional difficulties.

Faith, herself, was busy looking for the catch. She had no objection to being the Slayer again, but realized that she was dangerous. Wesley told her that Buffy and her friends were leaving Sunnydale and why. She was stunned. Buffy's mom dead? Buffy raising her sister and brother? Buffy, married to Giles of all people? How weird was that? After pondering the entire situation for several days, she finally decided that it was just very Hellmouthy and dismissed it from her mind. She wished she could talk to Buffy...maybe apologize, maybe try to explain, but knew that was impossible. Buffy would never want to speak with her again and rightly so. She sighed. So many bad choices, so many wrong turns. Buffy was her sister in ways much deeper than blood. She wished they could start again.

A few days later, Faith had an idea. Maybe Buffy wouldn't speak to her in person, but she might read a letter. She got permission to go to the prison library and write.

Dear Buffy,

I know I'm not your favorite person in the world. I'm not even my favorite person. I did a lot of bad, stupid, and wrong stuff when I lived in Sunnydale. I am writing this letter to help both of us understand why that stuff happened.

I know you think it was that business with the Deputy Mayor that set me off, but when I think back on how things were for me, I see that I was an accident waiting to happen.

I've always thought it was a total cop out to blame your parents for your problems. I mean, sure, when you're a kid it's OK, but once you become a grown up, you should be able to handle it, right? My folks were drunks: mean drunks and junkies. It was the best day of my life when my Watcher came and took me away from them. I loved her so much. She was strict and I'd never had a rule before. It felt really weird to get up and go to school, eat lunch every day, do homework...all that stuff that you take for granted was new to me. And the best part is, she never once beat me. It took me a long time to stop waiting for the blow that never came. Maybe I never did get over waiting for that. When I got into trouble in Sunnydale, I knew what was coming. People would hurt me again.

When Kykistos killed her it was the most awful thing I had ever experienced. The woman who saved me murdered by that thing—and I wasn't strong or brave enough to save her. There was nobody there for me, nobody I could trust. I had heard so much about you, I thought maybe in Sunnydale I'd be safe. I'd be with somebody who could love me again.

Well, I really screwed that up, didn't I? I didn't mean for it to become a competition, but I was just so jealous. I can admit that now. You had everything and I had nothing and I wanted what you had—no, I wanted to be you. Except, maybe not quite so good. You had the cool mom who actually cared about you. You had the friends who put themselves in harm's way to fight by your side. You had the hunky boyfriend who lost his soul when he boffed you. You lived in a nice house, you had nice clothes—though I have to admit, not my style. Your Watcher loved you more than anything. To the Council, you were THE SLAYER. I was just some girl who had some abilities they admired. Anyhow, you see where I'm going with this.

I was so scared when the Council came for me. They would have put me down like a dog. I didn't know where to turn. Then I thought about the Mayor. We'd taken out Trick. I knew he had an opening. I needed help and I couldn't get it from our side. What was I going to do? In looking back, I see that going to the Mayor was dumb. But he really did care about me—me, Faith, not just because I was a Slayer but just for me. He gave me stuff—the first gifts anybody had ever given me. And it was fun stuff too. Comics, games, a TV and stereo, a clean place to live, all the music I wanted, new clothes, any weapon that caught my eye. It was everything a girl could want. And if I had to do things that I knew were wrong, well, what difference did it make by that time? I was so dirty, a little more wasn't going to change anything.

Angel helped me. I knew what he'd been, what he'd done. He came back from that. I wasn't nearly as bad. If he could do it, so could I. I'm here in prison working on my payback. Now, the Council tells me that I have another chance. They made it pretty plain that one screw up and I'm toast. That's OK. I understand. I'm glad about it, sort of. It means I can't ever quit watching myself. I'm going to be stationed at the Hellmouth. Just like you were for so many years. Wesley has said he'll be my Watcher again. I have some serious payback to do there too. I'm going to get psychiatric counseling. Not so crazy about that. Hah, hah. Those guys always think that you wanted to kill your mom and bang your dad and other weird shit. Wes says the guy he's getting for me will know all about me. I hope this works.

I guess I want to say one other thing. I'm sorry. I hurt you and your friends and your Watcher and so many other people and I'm sorry. I'm sorry about your mom too. She was a very together lady. Take care, B.

Your sister,

Faith

She addressed the letter to Buffy Summers-Giles and sent it care of Angel Investigations. She wanted to make sure that Buffy actually got the thing.

Six days later, Buffy went to her mailbox and pulled out the letter from Angel Investigations. What on earth did they want, she wondered? Walking back into the house, she contemplated the envelope.

Giles walked into the room carrying the baby. “Anything interesting in the mail?”

“Couple of bills, a flyer for a new gym, and a letter from Angel Investigations.”

He frowned. “What does he want?”

“Dunno. I'm almost afraid to open it.”

He put his hand over hers. “I'm with you. Surely if it were bad news, they'd have called.”

She shrugged. “Hard to say, isn't it?” She tore the envelope open and was surprised when another, smaller packet fell out. Picking it up, she glanced at it curiously. “I don't recognize the handwriting.”

“Open it. I find I'm quite curious.” He sat down on the couch and pulled her down next to him.

Buffy opened it. Her eyes grew wide as she read the single page. When she was done, she passed it to Giles who read it with surprise.

“Well. Huh.”

“Your reply is strangely apropos. I find myself astonished.”

“Yeah.” Buffy rubbed her eyes in a manner reminiscent of her Watcher. “Should I write her back?”

“How do you feel about her?”

Buffy was silent while she thought about it. “I guess, I dunno. I mean, I'm sorry I tried to kill her to save Angel, but she needed to be taken out, even if my reason was sucky. We might not have beaten the Mayor if she'd have fought on Graduation day. I know she had a tough life. We did try to include her, but I wonder if maybe we didn't try enough. We offered her a second chance when she woke up, but she stole my body, tried to kill me, tortured Wesley...I just don't know. Yeah, she says she's sorry now, and she writes a pretty good letter. I'd like to forgive her, but I've been burned by her so very much, I'm afraid to trust in her good intentions. On the other hand, if she really has reformed, I don't want to kick her when she's trying to get up. I'm going to have to think about this—a lot.”

“Take the night off from patrol. Your mind is too diverted to keep you at your most alert.”

“Thanks. I need to think.”

“Why don't you go lie down for a little while? I'll be glad to watch the baby.”

She leaned up and kissed him, very gently cupping his cheek. “I love you so much, Rupert.” She ran her hand over the fuzz on the baby's head. “You too, little brother.”

She slowly walked out of the room and upstairs, thinking about her options. An hour later, she still wasn't sure, but had come to a few conclusions. She went down to find Rupert and talk to him.

He looked up from playing with the baby when she came downstairs. “Hello, love. Did you get things worked out?”

“Some. I wanted to run my ideas by you and see if you think I'm totally off base.”

“All right, but I reserve the right to disagree with you, should I feel it appropriate.”

She smiled. “Like you need to.”

He smiled back at her. “Go ahead.”

“I think I need to see her before she gets released. I don't want to be in town when she comes here, but I also don't want to take the chance of screwing up her reform by not talking to her. I have to say, I don't trust her. She's a born liar and a user and she hurt me really bad, but if she's sincere, I'm willing to offer her my forgiveness. I made mistakes too. People forgave me. But does it make me a bad person that I want an ocean between us once she's out?”

“Not at all. The fact that you are willing to speak to her at all is incredibly generous.”

“I think I'd like you to come with me, if you can bear to talk to her. And, if you don't mind, I'd like to take James along. I want to show her that I'm still fighting for something, even if it's just a decent life for my family.”

“She didn't injure me nearly as grievously as she did you, Buffy. I'm certainly not one to throw stones. You know about my past. How can I not forgive her? However, I concur in your desire to be elsewhere when she is released. When do you want to go?”

“Tomorrow? I don't want to have this sitting over my head for a long time.”

“Very well. Will you tell the others?”

Buffy looked surprised. “I don't know. Should I? Maybe we all need to forgive her. Do you think they'd go along?”

“Why don't you call a Scooby meeting?”

She nodded and reached for the phone.

~*~

“What! You want us to talk to Faith? Miss-I'm-working-for-all-things-bad-now.” Xander paced around the room. “Maybe I'm out of line, but didn't she try to turn Angel, kill you, kill him, torture her own Watcher, beat up your mom, steal your body, have sex with your boyfriend in said body, and try to feed all of us to a giant snake?”

Buffy nodded. “Yeah, she did. I'm not saying I trust her. I want us all out of town before she's released from prison. But, I sort of wonder if we don't owe her another chance.”

Willow, usually counted as the voice of moderation and reason, spoke up. “Um, Buffy? We gave her tons of chances. I don't mind admitting that I don't like her. I'm afraid of her. I don't want to be anywhere around her, ever again.”

“I know, Will. I understand that. I don't want to talk to her either, but I think we need closure. We can't keep holding a grudge. I don't think it's good for us to keep this inside us. Faith hurt us, I'm not denying that. I think, maybe, we hurt her too.”

“Yeah. We hurt her. That's good. How? By trusting her? By trying to stand up for her when she was trying to kill us?” Xander snorted. “I don't want to see her again, Buffy. I just don't.”

“Me either,” Willow said softly. “I know I'm guilty of lots of bad stuff, but I'm scared of Faith. She betrayed us in the worst way she could find and I'm just not willing to let that go.”

Buffy nodded at both of them. “OK, I understand your feelings. I won't force you because Faith could tell if you were lying about it. But I want you to know, I'm going. I need to talk to her. I'm going to show you the letter she sent me and let you make your final decision. We'll be in England before she's out of jail. We won't need to see her ever again. Read this and let me know what you think. I won't hold your decision against you, either way.” She set the letter down on the table.

Willow was the first one to pick it up. She read it quickly once, then one more time, slowly. Buffy could see she was thinking about it, weighing the dark Slayer's words against the hurt she had caused. Passing the note to Xander, she rubbed her eyes wearily.

Surprisingly, Xander was the first to speak. “Well, shoot.”

“Yeah. That's kind of how I felt,” Buffy told him. “She sounds sincere.”

“I guess it wouldn't hurt to just talk to her,” Willow finally conceded.

Xander sighed. “Yeah. I guess we sort of have to.”

“We're leaving at eight for LA. Can you be here by seven-thirty?”

Willow nodded and Xander rubbed his forehead before agreeing. “Yeah. I guess I can be. I still don't know what I'm going to say to her though.”

Buffy shrugged. “We're making a gesture of goodwill, that's all it has to be.”

“The Council has agreed not to expedite her release until we have all left the country,” Giles mentioned. “We will be well away by the time she is actually free again.”

Buffy nodded. “I think that's just as well. She needs her own support team. She needs the knowledge that she's the Slayer and everything rests on her shoulders. I think that was part of it, last time. There's only been one, forever. And then suddenly, there were two. Kendra and I were far enough apart in temperament and distance that we didn't have much of a problem. Besides her not being a psycho and everything. Faith was balanced on a pretty thin line even when she first got here. I wish I'd have had the experience to see it. I think I could have made a difference.”

“I should have seen it,” Giles said glumly. “I'd been through most of that, myself. But I was angry at being dismissed by the Council and frightened that you would turn to Wesley to be your Watcher.”

Buffy turned to give him a look. “Never, in a million years, Giles.”

He glanced at her gratefully. “I understand that, now, love. But when you were eighteen, it seemed likely that you would turn from me after the Cruciamentum. You would have had every right to do so.”

She rolled her eyes. “I might have had every right, or not, but I have never been suicidal. Without you as my Watcher...as my friend, I wouldn't have lasted a week on the Hellmouth.”

He cleared his throat. “Well, that is, um, well, no need to go into that now, I suppose.”

She grinned. “No need at all, Rupert.”

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