The next two weeks passed quickly. Dawn got a job for below-minimum wage waiting tables in a sleazy diner. She'd taken it because she wanted to help chip in for things, and because it was the only thing she could find during the day that coincided with the hours Faith worked. Something that kept her at work during the night and away from Faith was out of the question, she had explained. Plus, the two of them had other work to do once the sun set.

Although that might not be the case for much longer. In the brief time since they had partnered up, they'd wiped out nearly all of Boston's vampire and demon populations (which hadn't been that large to begin with). Privately, Faith marveled at what a great team they made, and how D seemed to bring out more in her than she had even been aware she had.

With the added income from Dawn's job, they were able to upgrade to a new, slightly-less seedy motel, complete with a queen size bed, which made for more comfortable sleeping at night, and more room for their very frequent extracurricular activities. Faith didn't tell Dawn that the money from her waitress job wasn't quite enough to cover their new digs, and that she'd had to dip into some of the savings her construction job had helped her pile up. But she loved the look of happiness that always lit up Dawn's face every time they came through the door, knowing she had helped them get this place, and wouldn't have spoiled that feeling for the world. She had enough coin to pay for it for awhile longer, and suspected they would be chased out of town by the authorities long before she had to break that bad news to her new honey.

Speaking of which, it was getting to be time to start thinking seriously about that eventuality. Where should she go next? Portland, Maine was a candidate, but she'd been heading steadily northeast for awhile now, so she should probably switch up that pattern and head back west, or maybe south again. Denver, Dallas, New Orleans... It had been awhile since she'd been to any of those three, so it was likely that they would be safe for a time again.

All D's talk of her world travels even made Faith consider heading for another country, at least for awhile. Europe or South America, maybe. Or Japan. She'd always wanted to see Japan. Unfortunately, she knew she didn't have the money it would take to get to any of those places.

A bigger problem was what to do about D. Should she ask her to come with her? That first morning, two weeks ago, it had seemed like the natural thing to do. But if she agreed, wouldn't that make her a criminal for consorting with a known murderer and wanted fugitive? As much as she cared for Dawn and couldn't bear the thought of moving on without her, the idea of D being thrown in jail just because of her association with Faith horrified her. Was it worth risking that happening to D just because she'd miss her otherwise?

What was her alternative? Well, she could always pull the ol' 'Faith Bail & Fade.' After all, it was a classic, and she had it down by now. Which naturally led her to thoughts of New Orleans...

God, how stupid was she to even consider going back there? What was it even doing on her list? Okay, Denver or Dallas then, and fuck New Orleans.

Still, what was she going to do about D?

"Hey," a soft voice called from behind her.

"Huh?" she asked, startled, and looked around.

"Sorry to interrupt; looked like you were really concentrating there. I just wanted to ask if you felt like going out tonight?" Dawn looked at her hopefully. "It's just been so long since I've done anything like that. You know, go to a movie or a club or something."

"Oh, uh, sure," Faith agreed, standing up. She tried to bury her thoughts and worries about the future. "Let's, um, hit a club. A few hours of drinking and dancing sounds like exactly what I need right now."

"What were you doing?" Dawn asked, nodding toward the desk where she'd been sitting, engrossed in thought, when the younger woman came in.

"What? Oh! Uh, nothing important. Just, you know, thinkin' about new ways to kick some vamp ass." She smiled nervously.

"Uh-huh," Dawn said, a hint of skepticism in her voice. Faith prayed she wouldn't push it.

She didn't. "Alright, just let me get changed." Dawn turned and walked over to the closet.

"Yeah, me too," Faith agreed.

"Can I watch?"

"Of course." They laughed as clothes came off with frightening speed.

---

The bouncer had waved them through without even asking to see their IDs. They laughed about it once they got inside, commenting that the excessive amount of skin each was sporting, and particularly the impressive amount of cleavage, probably had something to do with their easy admittance.

The place was packed, and their senses were immediately assaulted by the crush of bodies pressing together, the smell of sweat, and the pounding of a bassline.

"Drink first, or dance first?" Faith yelled in Dawn's ear.

"Dance!" Dawn yelled back, grabbing her hand and pulling her out onto the floor.

---

Two hours later they'd worked up a pleasant sweat on the dance floor, and succeeded in getting just about every other woman in the club completely pissed off at them. By the time they had been there for a half-hour, nearly every guy in the place was spending all their time looking at the two of them, causing the rest of the females to begin to feel very neglected.

It was understandable, however; Faith and Dawn were very possibly the most striking couple to come into this particular establishment in months. Long dark hair; incredibly fit, lean, muscular bodies; short, tight skirts; similarly tight halters with plunging necklines that cut off just below their breasts, revealing their flat, toned stomachs; that faint scar on the younger one that somehow added an air of danger, making her just that much sexier... And the way they danced... They moved with such grace, coupled with such passion at the same time. Their bodies seemed locked together for long periods, sliding along and rubbing up against one another, hands roaming freely, not seeming to care who was watching.

The dance floor began to empty out before long, as more and more of the guys watching them decided it might be a good idea to sit down at a table and enjoy a few drinks. It seemed many of them had developed an embarrassing problem in their pants.

So similar did they look, with their long dark hair and nearly-identical builds, that whispers began circulating among the crowd that they were actually sisters. This rumor caused the dance floor to empty even further, as more of the males began noticing the bulges developing below their waists.

Eventually, it was almost midnight, and only four other couples were left on the floor besides Faith and Dawn, and one of these was another pair of women, who's gazes hadn't left the dark-haired beauties for over an hour. Luckily for them, they didn't have to worry about the situation that had caused many of the men to run for the nearby tables.

Even though they remained outwardly oblivious, the two young women were fully aware of the stir they had created, and were loving it. It just pushed them even further. Whenever they looked in the other's eyes, they saw the laughter bubbling up inside, and had to struggle to contain their own hysterics, which would've ruined the atmosphere and broken the spell they had so obviously cast on the place.

"This has been more fun than I've had in forever," Dawn said into Faith's ear, just loudly enough for her to hear. "But I don't have your stamina, and I'm getting kinda worn out. Plus, we should probably do a patrol before we turn in," she pointed out.

Faith sighed, knowing D was right. "Okay, as soon as this song's over, we'll split. Good enough?"

"Yeah."

"Thanks for an awesome night, D." Faith grinned.

"You too, Faith." Dawn smiled back.

"Hello, ladies," a new voice said. They turned and saw three guys, probably mid-to-late twenties, approaching. The one in front was about six-two, dark blonde hair, well-built. Pretty good-looking, actually, but the smirk on his face instantly put both women on guard, and their dancing slowed almost to a stop. "So can we cut in on this action or what?"

"Sorry," Faith told him with an insincere smile. The two of them stopped dancing completely, and both suppressed a laugh as they heard the loud groan go up from most of the men still in attendance. "Me and my friend were just about to leave," she explained.

"Aww, come on, babies, just once dance," the second one said. He was less good-looking; shorter, dark hair, with a trace of what had probably once been a truly terrible case of teenage acne.

"She just said that we're leaving," Dawn repeated, a stony expression on her face as she crossed her arms over her chest. Faith mirrored this pose.

"Whassamatter? Fuckin' dykes too good to dance with some real men?" Asshole #2 asked. Assholes #1 and 3 laughed.

Then Asshole #2 did it. A little thing, really, but even so it was enough to start the chain-reaction that led to--among other things--an almost-cross-country train ride, a burglary, an attempted rape, and a mixture of both state and federal arrest warrants being issued for Dawn Summers on over a half-dozen felony charges.

Asshole #2 reached out and grabbed Dawn, pulling her toward him and grabbing her breast roughly. "Ooh, nice!" he told her, leering. "See how good us guys can be at this?"

An instant later his head rocked back, blood flying, glittering in the glaring lights before splattering to the ground, forming interesting patterns on the dance floor. Faith followed up the blow that had broken his nose with a kick to the balls. She put every ounce of her slayer strength behind it, and would've been extremely gratified to know that they would be swollen up to the size of oranges for nearly a month afterwards.

"I think she'll stick with the girls, asshole. Thanks anyway." He lay kneeling on the ground, bent over, hands held to his crotch. Unable to resist, Faith threw another kick--she pulled this one a bit, not landing it all-out--that connected with his mouth, knocking out seven teeth.

His two friends just stood there in shock for a minute, unable to believe the ease and viciousness with which Faith had dealt with #2. After her kick to his face, however, they snapped into action. #1 threw a punch at Faith's head that she ducked easily, and Dawn got in before he could deliver another, hitting him with a shot in the stomach that knocked the wind out of him, following it with one to the jaw that produced an audible 'thunk' sound. His eyes rolled up to show all whites, and he collapsed like a sack of wheat.

Dawn turned instantly to check on Faith, and saw she was doing just fine. She'd somehow gotten #3's right arm twisted up behind his back, and if she took it much further, she was going to pull it right out of the socket.

Instead, Faith reached out with her right foot, hooking one of #3's feet out from under him and knocking him off-balance. He fell forward with Faith behind him, riding him down, holding both of his arms and not allowing him to reach out and break his fall. He struck the ground ribs-first, and there was a loud cracking sound. A split-second later his jaw connected with the hard floor, breaking it in three places and knocking him out cold.

"I think we'd better get out of here," Dawn said unnecessarily.

"Yeah, I think you're right," Faith agreed. They headed for the exit.

"What the fuck is going on in here?" the bouncer demanded, pushing through the onlookers from his place at the door. He was about six-five, looked to push three hundred pounds, and his large earring and shaved head both reflected the flashing lights.

"Those two chicks!" someone yelled from the middle of the crowd. "They just took those three assholes apart! Funniest damn thing I ever saw in my life, dude!" Laughs and murmurs.

"Look," Faith told the bouncer calmly, holding her hands out in a placating gesture. "Those guys hassled us, and we defended ourselves. We were planning on leaving anyway, so if you'll just let us by, we'll be gone, and you'll never have to see us again. Swear to God."

"Sorry, ladies, but I think you'll have to wait for the cops to sort this out," he replied, taking another step towards them.

That was the last thing they could let happen, Faith knew. She'd be headed back to prison before she could even blink, and D would probably be in deep shit too, since honestly, they had used a hell of a lot more violence on those three than they'd really needed to.

"We can't do that," she explained reasonably. "We've got someplace we really need to be. Just let us by and you'll never have any trouble from us again."

"Sorry," he repeated simply, growing more businesslike. "Why don't you two go have a seat at the bar and we'll all just wait for the police, okay?"

"We don't want to hurt you," she told him in a low, threatening voice. He looked at the size of them compared to himself and started to chuckle. A quick look over their shoulders at the three wrecks still lying on the dance floor, however, caused the chuckle to cut off, mid-chuck.

"Just doing my job," he protested, taking another cautious step forward.

"I know," Faith sympathized. Simultaneously--almost as if they had communicated telepathically--the two girls broke and ran at him. He made a grab for them, and before he even knew how it had happened, found himself flying through the air, then crashing down into the mountain of glass stacked behind the bar. Police would later put it down to unreliable testimony due to the effects of alcohol when several eyewitness claimed the pair of hundred-and-fifteen-pound girls had thrown the three-hundred-and-ten pound bouncer twenty-five feet through the air.

As if by magic, the pair disappeared into the night.

---

Faith's instincts had been well-honed over the past five years, and as she suspected, the net had been tightening on her again. The Boston police were in fact already actively looking for her.

So naturally, when the report of a disturbance at a nightclub had come in, with one of the suspects matching her description, they had descended en masse, complete with photos of her. And of course, nearly everyone in the place was able to positively identify her as one of those involved. She and Dawn had made quite the impression on the night's crowd.

Patrols fanned out, combing the streets in the surrounding area. Officers began visiting nearby motels and boarding houses. The clerk at the one where the two women were currently staying told them that yes, she and the other broad were renting #19. He collected the spare key and led them off in that direction.

Dozens of fingerprints were lifted from the room's belongings. One set was immediately confirmed as belonging to Faith. It took several hours for an ID to come back on the second set, but when it did, they had a name for suspect number two: Dawn Summers.

---

It didn't take Faith long to figure it out: the Boston cops had ID'ed her, and they were going to tear this neighborhood apart looking for them, then work outward as necessary.

They had tried in vain several times to get back to their place, collect their things, and change into something a little less conspicuous and better designed for desperately fleeing from government authorities. It was no good. Every time they got near, a squad car would come by, forcing them onto another street and away from their destination.

"That's it; we can't keep this up anymore. There's just more and more of 'em showing up. They're going to pinch us for sure if we don't get off the streets," Faith sighed. She spotted a nearby manhole and pulled off the cover, motioning for Dawn to climb down ahead of her.

"But we can't yet; we still have to get our stuff," Dawn pointed out.

"D, our stuff is gone. There's no way we're gettin' back there. And chances are pretty good they've found our place by now. Our stuff's probably already on the way to the state crime lab."

"Well, I don't care; I'm not leaving without my stuff," Dawn said adamantly.

"D, you hardly have any stuff," Faith reminded her. "You've got a backpack full of clothes, and some personal crap that fits into a small purse with plenty of room left over." Christ, what was wrong with her? They were both about five seconds away from being picked up by the cops, and D was standing here whining about losing her hairbrush and a couple of pairs of jeans!

"My jacket is back there, Faith!" Dawn cried loudly. To Faith's eyes, she looked on the verge of tears.

What the hell? she wondered.

"I'm not leaving without that jacket!" Dawn told her, and this time tears did begin to leak out of the corners of her eyes.

"Look, it's a nice jacket, D, I admit, but it's not worth--"

"Kait bought me that jacket!" The tears were flowing freely now. "She knew I'd always wanted one like that, and she couldn't get one for me because we were broke. But she started saving part of her pay any time we got work, even when we were still in Oz. It took her two... fucking... years... but she saved up and found this beautiful one for me in this little used-clothing store. It's the only thing I have left to remember her by, Faith. I don't even have a picture of her; just that jacket!"

"D," Faith stood up, walked over, and put her hands on the younger woman's shoulders, "I'm sorry. I really am. If there was any way in the entire world I could get it back for you, please believe I would. I hate seeing you cry more than just about anything." She reached up with one hand and wiped the tears from first one cheek, then the other. "But we can't go back there. We'd be arrested a hundred yards from the door.

"Now, we need to get out of sight for a few hours, because honestly, we look wicked conspicuous like this." She gestured at their revealing outfits. "I promise you, we'll get out of this city, and wherever we end up, I'll buy you the best damn leather jacket in the whole fuckin' state. How 'bout it?" She smiled at her hopefully.

"How are you going to do that, Faith? You're as broke as I am."

"I'll get a job as a stripper." She grinned broadly. "Now come on, let's get underground."

"Okay," Dawn agreed. Her tears had slowed to a trickle, and she had pretty much gotten herself back under control. "I'm sorry, Faith, I'm not usually like this. I mean, not anymore. Not since--"

"It's okay, D," Faith said, gently interrupting her. She leaned forward and gave her a tender kiss on the lips. "Never apologize to me for being you."

Dawn smiled, then started descending the ladder into the sewer. When just her head remained visible, she looked up at Faith and asked, "You wouldn't really get a job as a stripper, would you?"

"Hey, if that's what I had to do to keep a promise to you, I'd do it." She smiled and winked down at her, privately laughing at the shocked expression on her face at Faith's answer.

---

They had been wandering around the city's sewer system for over twenty-four hours. At one point, they'd found a dry, flat, reasonably clean spot, and had taken turns getting a couple of hours of sleep while the other kept watch.

It was now past three in the morning, and they were going to do something about their current wardrobes, in preparation for getting out of the city. They clothes they'd had on the previous night that had opened so many mouths and hardened so many dicks were dirty, torn, and generally a complete mess. And even if they had still been perfect, they were hardly the types of things you'd wear to blend in and disappear in a crowd. They needed to be a lot more inconspicuous.

"How much money you got?" Faith had asked that afternoon, after a quick peek into her wallet.

Dawn pulled hers out and checked. "Six bucks," she confessed.

"Well, you've got me beat; I've only got four," Faith said glumly. She sighed. All her savings--a couple hundred bucks--were back at the motel. "Guess it's back to the good ol' days," she mumbled.

"Meaning what?" Dawn inquired.

"You'll find out tonight," Faith answered, and refused to say any more. She didn't look happy about it.

Now, Dawn stood at the bottom of a ladder, while Faith popped the manhole cover up an inch or two and looked around. "Looks clear," she called down softly. She raised the cover higher, still looking around. "Okay, it's safe. Let's go, move your ass," she whispered.

Dawn hustled up the ladder, appearing out of it barely an instant after Faith. The slayer slid the cover back into place, and they dashed for the shadows provided by a nearby darkened building. "You know where we're going?" Dawn whispered.

"Yeah, I had a few places in mind. We're going to the one that's closest. Don't worry, this is my old neighborhood; I know where everything is." She turned her head for a moment and offered the younger woman a brief smile.

"I trust you," Dawn muttered.

A minute later, they were there. 'Jerry's Used Threads' the sign over the darkened door read. Faith noticed it and barked a short laugh. "This place used to be 'Tom's Secondhand Clothes,'" she told Dawn. "Either someone's got a wicked retarded sense of humor, or..." She trailed off, letting this sentence go unfinished. When she turned and began walking down the alley on the right side of the building, Dawn followed.

Faith examined the lock on the shop's side entrance for a moment. "I don't know if this place has an alarm or not, so better safe than sorry: get in, grab the first few things you can find, and get out." Dawn's eyes were wide at this prospect--the worst she'd ever done was petty larceny, back when she was fifteen--but she nodded her understanding. "This is the way we used to do it back in the good ol' days, D: want, take, have." Faith sighed and leveled a kick at the door's center, sending it slamming back in it's frame. Sure enough, an alarm began blaring.

They ran inside, grabbed several pairs of jeans, a few t-shirts, sweatshirts, a couple of backpacks, and an assortment of sneakers and boots, shoving everything into a couple of the large cloth bags they found just after entering. The entire thing took less than two minutes.

When the first patrol car finally showed up over five minutes later--this wasn't a high-priority neighborhood--the two intruders were long gone.

One of the improvements Jerry had made after purchasing the shop from Tom had been to have a cheap but effective surveillance camera installed. Before the sun had come up, Dawn Summers was now wanted for burglary in addition to assault.

---

They went back underground to get clear of the area, then came back up two or three miles away, when they felt they had moved out of the "hot zone."

Luckily, most of the clothes they had nabbed fit, more or less. When they emerged above ground, they were each attired in boots, jeans, t-shirts, and hooded sweatshirts, despite the warm late-September night; Faith's was navy, Dawn's gray. One thing they hadn't been able to get at the store was underwear, which they would have to correct soon. Somehow.

They found an all-nite minimart, and Dawn went in, bought some gum, and exchanged half of their ten bucks in bills for quarters. Faith waited outside, just in case word had gotten out that the cops were looking for two girls matching their description. Hopefully, if they tried to avoid being seen together, people wouldn't even notice them, since they'd likely be looking for a pair.

Dawn came back out, handed Faith half the change, and they headed for the nearest bus stop, walking with almost a full block separating them.

Thankfully, the bus stop wasn't empty, even at nearly four-thirty in the morning. Three young black guys, along with two girls--one black, one white--stood talking loudly with one another, occasionally laughing or giving a playful shove. Faith moved over to the far side of the group and waited, and a minute later, Dawn arrived, staying on the near side. Both kept to the shadows.

When the bus arrived, Faith dashed on board before anyone else, dropping her quarters into the slot. The five young people followed her, and appearing out of the darkness and climbing on just as the driver was about to slide the door shut, was Dawn. They sat as far apart from one another as they could.

The two fugitives tried not to be too conspicuous as they both got off at the same stop. Faith exited from the front doors, and Dawn used the ones near the back. Neither sensed anyone paying any particular attention to them, which was good.

They had reached the nearby city of Framingham, and now found themselves on a business street that was slowly coming to life, the traffic picking up as the sky began to lighten.

What they were about to try was risky, and they had to hope that the two of them hadn't become front-page, headline news yet, or they could be in deep shit. But every day they stayed here increased the danger that much more; Faith told Dawn that they couldn't risk waiting another day. They would still have to do something like this, and the risks tomorrow would be greater than the ones today.

Dawn found a narrow gap between two stores that couldn't even properly be called an alley, and wedged herself into it as best she could. Faith stood by the sidewalk, watching cars pass and looking for a likely candidate. After about three or four minutes, she found one she liked.

"Excuse me!" she called, waving furiously to the driver. He slowed, and then pulled over to the curb, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Help you?" he asked, rolling the window down halfway. He was a young black guy, maybe thirty, well-dressed and driving a Toyota that was several years old, but looked well-maintained.

"Hi," Faith said, putting on her biggest, sweetest smile. "I'd like to ask you a huge favor. You see," she explained, her expression now turning sad, and a little desperate, "my friend and I were supposed to meet my two brothers, who are driving in from Iowa, and they were going to follow us home in our car. Neither one of 'em is all that great at following directions," she confided with a smile. The driver smiled back, and she noticed how his eyes dropped to her chest for a second, even concealed as it was under the hooded sweatshirt. She knew she had him.

"But the thing is, our car broke down a couple of miles back," she continued, growing sad again and looking back in the direction this guy's car had come from. "We can have it towed later today, no problem, but we still have to get to where we're supposed to meet my brothers, or they're not gonna know what to do, where to go, or even what happened to us." Her voice cracked at the end and her lip trembled, as she struggled to hold back tears.

"Where are you supposed to meet?" he asked, his face full of sympathy and understanding.

"The McDonalds at the rest stop just past Wessonville, out on the Pike," she told him. "It's like ten miles from here, right?"

"'Bout that," he agreed. He pressed a button on his armrest, unlocking the two doors on the right side. Faith grabbed the front one and pulled it open, sporting a huge smile of gratitude.

"Thanks so much!" she gushed. She turned and motioned to Dawn, gesturing her to come over. "He'll help us," she said in a tone of obvious relief. "We'll get there; we won't miss 'em after all."

She stifled a laugh as she saw D had no idea what the hell she was talking about.