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Author's Chapter Notes:
*Warning* When I posted this originally I was told the graphic nature of the pet store scene may have been too much. This is a warnign to those that may be offended my the mutilation involved. So be advised, although I think it is relevent to the story it may be too much.

No animals were hamed in the making of this chapter.

Some excellent guesses on the big bads. I never wrote the previous chapter in a way that would make it a big secret, I just thought it would be fun to see how I could make such an odd couple work.
Old and New

Faith's fists pummeled the raw face of the vampire she straddled on the ground. Her quick, decisive punches were a familiar sight to Buffy. This was Faith the Slayer in every way.

She was all attitude and brute force.

If she could keep the person she was in this fierce moment under wraps during the light of day, and then fight like this when the dangers of night came up to attack the unknowing humans, she just might make it.

Buffy leaned against the familiar angelic statue and watched her sister Slayer fight the lone vampire that had jumped at them.

This had been the routine since the moment they'd stepped out of the door. Earlier that night, just after the pair turned the corner off of Revello, a vampire ran right at the strolling pair of seemingly helpless females. Obviously an early rising fledgling in his idiotic attack. Buffy held herself back and let Faith make the kill.

She was out of practice, but the style hadn't changed. Her plan of attack was always the same, although carried out differently each time. She went for the first hint of a weakness, and, with quick and powerful hits, she incapacitated, trapped, or disabled the vampire into a position from which there would be no way out.

Buffy watched as Faith brought up her arm, stake in hand, and made the final blow. The vampire lying on the wet grass underneath the dark hared Slayer faded into dust.

Faith stood herself up and dusted off the front of her jacket. "That's what I'm talkin' about," She said as she faced Buffy. "I needed to get a good staking. None of that fledgling stuff."

Buffy smiled and walked over to stand with her. "Let me guess. You needed the 'Uhhh'."

She did her impression of Faith's famous grunting while her hands were formed into fists, punching the air just a bit. The noise she used, strangely enough, to describe both a fight and sex.

"Absolutely. It's not like I got the opportunity much in the last few years." Faith placed the stake in her inside jacket pocket and the two continued their walk through the cemetery.

Buffy hadn't pried; in fact, she'd avoided any questions about Faith's stint behind bars. But she wanted to know what had happened to Faith. What might have caused her to change, if she truly had, "What kind of stuff did you do? I mean, without the vamps, you had to be bored."

Faith smiled as they walked. "Bored doesn't even begin to describe it." She slowed her pace. "Mostly I thought. I don't think I've spent that much time thinkin' in my whole life. But that's what I did." She looked over at Buffy. "We had chores, daily activities. Wasn't much, but enough to keep me from losing it." She paused. "Got my high school equivalency."

Buffy stopped. The surprise on her face was evident. "You did?"

"Yeah. Don't look so shocked. I can read and write, you know."

Buffy shook her head, realizing how rude she sounded. "Oh, I didn't mean… you just seemed so put off with the idea of school before."

"Yeah, well, like I said. Lots of spare time for thinking. Figured since my brain insisted on thought, it might as well be about Math and English."

Buffy nodded. "Angel put you up to it, huh?"

"Oh, yeah." Faith nodded emphatically. "The guy's persistent, I'll give him that."

Buffy didn't agree wholeheartedly. She knew well enough that Angel had given up on their relationship. It was not generally considered persistent when one left town, but when it came to doing what he thought was best, he was persistent. Even pushy. "So what are you going to do with your shiny new diploma?"

They walked out of the cemetery and headed towards Main Street. "I don't know. There wasn‘t much I could do with it before yesterday."

They scanned the streets and alleys as they walked on. Senses tuned into the world around them as they strode through Sunnydale. Faith took note of the small changes in the town. They entered Main Street and Buffy slowed.

"What is it?" Faith asked as she scanned the area more carefully.

"Blood," Buffy said, then picked up her pace again, following the scent.

Faith kept herself a step behind, letting Buffy lead the way. They stopped just outside of a pet shop that Faith remembered as a clothing store.

Buffy pulled on the handle of the door, but, as the sign read, it was closed. Faith was about to suggest a large rock when Buffy pulled out two small metal picks. She crouched down on the ground and went to work on the lock. "Never figured you for the 'breaking and entering type', B. Where'd you pick up that talent?"

Buffy maneuvered the metal in the small space patiently, taking notice of each sound it made against the wrong, or right, area for pressure. "Spike. Where else?"

Faith shook her head. She was going to have to learn more about this ex- vamp and what the two had been up to.

The lock clicked and Buffy gave the door a push. It opened easily.

"Very cool," Faith said to Buffy and walked into the store.

No lights were needed to see the disaster area inside.

Past the first few rows of pet items for sale, the view that most had from the outside, was a mess. A disgustingly bloody mess. Animals, or to be more precise, parts of animals, were everywhere. A kitten had struggled away from something, or someone, chewing off part of its foot. Several birds whose feathers had once been white were drenched in red that dripped from their twisted wings.

They made their way through the chaos of the store, back to the register. There they found the man who'd been working that day. One of his legs had been viciously removed. Buffy recognized him as the manager, and part owner of the store.

She knew him because the store's previous location was next door to her mother's old gallery. He was always sweet to Dawn when they were growing up, letting her pet the kittens or play with one of the puppies. He'd only relocated a few months ago. "Better traffic on Main," had been his reason.

Now he lay in a bundle, a dead kitten in his hands. Blood seeped from the gaping hole over his jugular covered his neck and face. "Vampires," both women said.

Faith turned to Buffy. "Look like the work of anyone you know?"

Buffy carefully scanned the dark store again, this time yellow eyed. She walked through the store, taking in the scents of animals. She noted the footprints made in blood, but little else held a clue to who had done this.

"I'm not sure." She sniffed lightly and nearly scared Faith out of her Docs when she faced her with eyes of a different hue.

"Jeez, B." Faith stood in a defensive stance, stake held ready to thrust forward. She studied the unchanged face that held the golden orbs staring back at her.

Buffy looked at her wondering if Faith had been lying all along. Slowly her arms came up, matching Faith's readiness to fight. "What's going on?" Buffy asked, trying to give Faith time to explain.

"You do know you're all… well… your eyes are yellow."

"What?" Buffy cocked her head. "I mean… what?"

"Seriously. You have vamp eyes."

Buffy let her vision return to normal and shook her head. "Sorry. I guess someone forgot to tell me." She planned a brutal fight with Spike.

Faith let herself relax and dropped her fists. "Don't worry about it. What did you see? Anything?"

"I can smell some perfume, but that's not a general vampire thing. And it's definitely vampire, but at least two of them. One is probably a young one."

"Wow," Faith said. "You can smell all of that?"

Buffy shifted her eyes back to hazel. "Nah. See here." She pointed to the floor near the register. "Two sets of prints, and those heels look just like the imprint of my favorite pumps. Just out last season. Plus, the perfume I smell is something Dawn would wear. Young Vamps still act like the age they were turned. As far as being Vampire at all… well, you saw the guy's neck.

"My best guess… old Vamp, with a Childe following her. Proves some power, too," Buffy stated simply shrugging. "Probably nothing we can't handle."

Faith nodded. "Two of them, two of us."

"Hardly seems fair, does it?" Buffy said as they headed for the front door.

~~`~~

Harmony giggled like a child when the puppy came back to them. Turning it had been Dru's idea, and, with all that she owed the vampiress, the younger vampire couldn't turn her down. Besides, the idea of having a puppy forever seemed like fun.

He was immediately hungry and given the raw leg of the store manager as his first meal.

Dru had led them to a place she knew would be empty. One of the few places she was guaranteed to be alone. The crypt. She felt its emptiness when they arrived at sunset.

Harmony was more than distraught to find it abandoned, but was soothed with her adopted sire's assurances that Spike was alive.

"It's just weird," Harmony whined. "He was so proud of this place." She looked around the crypt's lower level. It had been stripped of almost everything. The remnants of a vampire's life in the crypt's depths were an empty bar and a bed with a mattress but no bedding or linens. The rug was gone, the feel of Spike was gone, and, most importantly, Spike was gone.

The dark hared vampiress moved smoothly over the rough dirt floor left behind. "He's trying to get back what William ran from. Not at all right for our Spike."

Harmony's hand held the puppy close. "You mean my Spike," she stated.

Dru moved to her. "He's lost. Didn't want me to save him." She leaned down and stroked the panting puppy, old instinct taking over his actions. "Don't fret, lovely. You have no contest with me. It's that naughty Slayer, taking your prince." She looked into the eyes of the young vampire. "You get your sweet." She stood back up and looked to the dilapidated stone ceiling. "We'll have Spike, and I'll have my prize."

Harmony still didn't understand exactly what Dru was going on about. The pixies she spoken to her, told her to come back. Something in Sunnydale would give her power, but her words were never coherent enough to decipher meaning from. All the blonde knew was that Dru would help her to get Spike back. That was what mattered.

"So." Harmony stood up and let the puppy run off to play. "Where should we go shopping for furniture?" She smiled at the thought of redecorating the home for themselves and Spike.

Dru glided to Harmony. "We need to make some playmates."

Harmony hopped and clapped her hands a quick moment. "Oh, minions!" Then she remembered her last group. "You know, maybe you should choose who to turn."

"Hmmm.." Dru hummed an agreement gently, then raised her hand and stroked the flighty vampiress' cheek. "First we sleep."

Harmony stacked up what was left of Spike's clothing and hers to make bedding on the mattress. They shared the bed and soon the older female was sleep.

As she listened to the death that came with a vampire's sleep just a foot from her, Harmony tried to remember how all of this had started.

After Spike's obvious attachment to the Slayer, namely Buffy Summers (a.k.a. that freak from high school), came to light, Harmony was ready to ditch the small town. She'd only met up with Dru as they both walked out of the cemetery that night. The dark vampire had stopped at the sounds of the younger's crying. "Li'le sister. Don't let him hurt you. He’s lost now. To her." She stood there, waiting for an acknowledgement from Harmony who sat, leaning against a tombstone.

When Harmony finally looked at her, she said very simply, "I don't know what to do. My sire's gone, I tried to have a gang, but they went and turned on me. I have no idea how to do this!" she ranted and confessed.

Dru gave the girl some consideration. "'Have you eaten?"

Harmony wiped her eyes with the back of her hand as she stood. "Yeah. That I can do. Just before I came here." She motioned at the cemetery.

Drusilla took in the vision of Harmony's tear-covered face before the dark woman slit her wrist in one quick sweep of her fingernail. "I will be you sire, sweet." She leaned down beside the saddened blonde and offered her a taste.

At the same time Dru pulled Harmony’s hand near her own mouth. Dru changed to her demon visage then bit. She moved her wrist closer to Harmony's mouth encouraging her to do the same.

Harmony wasn't sure if this was the same as being sired. Couldn't be, because she'd already been changed. But something in her told her it would be similar. Without another thought, Harmony brought Dru's dripping wrist to her now-changed face, and drank.

Dru smiled around her fangs and brought her lips from the freely given blood. "That's it. Drink for mummy." When her statement ended she went back to the ritual.

Harmony felt her blood being pulled from her body as quickly as she took Dru‘s. Her head spun, and she felt as though she was floating over the grass instead of sitting on it.

It lasted for moments, or even years. Time moved quickly, yet stood still. Her body burned and was frozen. She could have sworn her heart was beating right through her chest, and that it was as still as it had been for the last couple of years. She was killed and born again. The only other time she'd felt anything like this was the day she'd risen, but even this seemed more intense.

Then all at once it stopped.

She was lying down, Dru's face peering at her. "Welcome back."

Harmony's senses were everywhere. She couldn't remember where she was or how she'd gotten there. They were moving. A train, maybe. She couldn't tell. They were in a small cabin with pale walls. The room had only one window, the shade pulled down. Outside it was day, which was all she knew. "How did I get here? What happened?"

"We're taking a trip, dear. Mummy's going to show you." She was handed a cup filled with warm red liquid. It was human. She drank it hungrily.

When the cup was empty she felt the rocking of the train. She was scared for what would be next. "What are we going to do?"

Dru looked at the white ceiling. "Watch the stars."

The next year was spent learning, then trying to branch out on her own only to come back time and again. She learned the hard way that this was where she needed to be. With the only sire she’s ever had.

~~`~~

"B, pick a direction already. We're burning moonlight here." Faith complained. Buffy had been trying to sniff out the vampires, literally. The lingering stench of fresh blood should have been easy to follow, especially with the animals' blood mixed with a human's. The scent was unique. Unfortunately, it seemed to be everywhere.

When Buffy first stepped out of the store, the trail led her to the left, further down the street in the direction they'd been heading originally. But instead of having a distinct path to follow, the smell went in all directions as though after killing the creatures in the store, they'd decided to have a walk around town, going back to take second looks. Like window shopping. It was weird.

"I would, if they had," Buffy said, again frustrated with the one real clue they had. "I don't know what these guys were up to, but going straight home wasn't it."

They were still in downtown Sunnydale, only a block from where they'd started out, although they'd covered a few miles to get back to square one. 'Frustrated' was an understatement.

After Buffy realized where they were, so close to the store again, she stopped. "This is ridiculous. What the heck are these guys doing?"

"Probably sleeping by now." Faith swung her arm in the direction of the red hue spreading across the horizon.

With a heavy sigh, Buffy had to admit defeat, at least for tonight. "Might as well head on home. The police are gonna be all over this place in a while."

"And, strangely enough, I'd really like to avoid cops for awhile," Faith said, faking a serious look quite badly.

Buffy half-smiled at her. "C'mon."

They headed back to Buffy's house in silence.


Chapter End Notes:
I'm set in a schedule for the next few months so look for updates to my fics on Tuesdays and some Fridays. Thanks for the reviews guys. I love the comments and critisism. Keeps me on my toes.



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