The Varos Triad 

Part 7

Disclaimers:-  See Part One


Pairing:  Faith/Cordelia predominantly

Rating: PG-13   I think - but if anyone thinks it should be higher
let me know.

Feedback:  yes please.

Archive:  All welcome - but ask first!

Summary:- Faith returns to Sunnydale in pursuit of a demon, but is
not well received by Buffy and the Scoobs.  However, it appears they
have to join forces with Faith and the LA gang when they discover the
history of the artefacts.  While celebrating Cordelia's birthday at
the Bronze, Faith is attacked by a shape shifter...

______________________________________________________


Angel paced nervously in the waiting area, his long strides taking
him across the room in just a few steps before he had to swing around
and retrace his path.  Buffy watched his movement, irritated by his
constant fidgeting yet reluctant to ask him to stop.  She had never
seen the dark vampire display his frame of mind so openly.  Waiting
to hear from the surgeons was beginning to take its toll on him.  The
blonde slayer switched her attention to the woman sitting opposite
her.  Superficially, Cordelia appeared to be reacting in completely
the opposite way to Angel.  She sat unmoving in the hard plastic
waiting room chair, gazing steadily at some far away spot, not even
acknowledging the presence of the other occupants.  As Buffy looked
closer however, she could see the tension across the Seer's face and
the rigidity of her shoulders and neck muscles gave indication of how
the ex-cheerleader was really reacting.  The blonde girl rubbed the
back of her neck, trying to relieve some of the stress that had
manifested itself there as the enforced wait continued and wondered
how Faith had managed to inspire such devotion from Angel and
Cordelia.  Was she really wrong to be so dogmatic in her damnation of
the girl?  Could Faith be really so far removed from the psychotic
girl who had rampaged through Sunnydale? 

Her thoughts were interrupted and she looked up as she heard
footsteps indicating someone's arrival.

"Coffee?" Offered Giles, handing the girl a nondescript paper cup of
steaming dark brown fluid.  "I can't vouch for the quality as I got
it from a vending machine, but at least it's hot," the Englishman
continued as Buffy took the receptacle gratefully.  He approached the
tall ex-cheerleader and held out another cup, gently breaking the
girl from her reverie.

"Any news?" Cordelia's hands shook as she took the coffee and she
rested the cup in her lap, forgetting it's presence almost
immediately.

"Not yet.  But they did say it would take time," Giles replied
softly.  Cordelia nodded at his manner before looking up at the clock
on the wall and returning to her introspection.

"Have you spoken to the others?" Angel asked, stopping his pacing now
that the watcher had returned and had given him a distraction.

Giles blew into his cup, in an attempt to cool the boiling liquid
before hesitantly taking a sip.  "Yes, surprisingly.  Gunn was still
awake.  'Keeping guard', he said.  They're all at the Magic Box now. 
Considering that the shape shifter knew that the artefacts were there
and now knows who is involved, Wesley and Gunn decided to keep
everyone else together under a protection spell."

"Good idea," agreed Buffy.  She winced as she tasted the scalding
coffee but forced herself to take another sip in the hope that she
would get used to the bitter flavour.  "Have they had any trouble?"

"Gunn didn't mention anything.  I would think that the protection
spell would be enough, considering that the shape shifter was trying
to use Faith to obtain the artefacts.  Varos himself might be very
powerful, but it appears his minions have limited magickal abilities,
thankfully."

Buffy swallowed another mouthful of coffee.  "Now that we have all
three statues, we're all going to be targets.  I wonder how long it
will take Will and Tara to figure out..."

"Miss Chase?" A deep voice interrupted them from the doorway. 

Cordelia looked up immediately.  "Yes?"

"Faith is out of surgery now and in Recovery."  The surgeon rubbed
his eyes tiredly, the dark ring of sweat covering the top of his
green scrubs giving testimony to how hard he had been working.

Buffy got to her feet immediately and took a step towards the door
along with Angel and Giles. 

However, the Seer remained where she was and continued to stare at
the doctor, not yet willing to feel anything until she knew more
about Faith's condition.  "And?" She prompted.

"The wounds she received were serious and she lost a lot of blood. 
However, the attacker missed her liver, spleen and kidneys.  The
damage to her intestines has been repaired and she already appears to
be recovering.  I wouldn't have thought it possible but I remember
when she was here last time.  I wrote her off then.  I'm not going to
make the same mistake twice.  If it wasn't for the fact that no one
would believe me, I'd write a paper on her powers of survival.  She
is a remarkable young woman."

"I couldn't agree more," Cordelia responded, finally getting to her
feet, though finding herself wobble slightly at the sudden movement
after so many hours of inactivity.  She twisted down to place her
untouched coffee on the vacated chair before straightening and
looking at the surgeon again.  "Can I see her?"

"I'm sorry, she's restricted to relatives only."  The reply was
automatic.

"She hasn't got any relatives Doctor," Cordelia told him, feeling a
mixture of sadness at how alone Faith must have felt for most of her
life along with a nagging curiosity about the veracity of her
words.   "I'm..." she hesitated at how to describe herself.  "I'm her
best friend."

The doctor looked carefully at the tall brunette, holding her stare
for a moment before looking at the other occupants of the waiting
room and sighing heavily.  "She's heavily sedated.  I doubt you'll
get any response from her, but I'll allow one visitor," he acquiesced.

Cordelia looked round at the others expectantly,  and her eyes rested
on Angel.  "Did you want to see her?" She asked quietly, knowing that
he must have been suffering the same way she had.

Angel looked at his secretary with wonder.  Once again she had
managed to amaze him with an act of generosity and selflessness and
he noted the look of surprise on Buffy's face.  The ex-cheerleader
had matured and changed since leaving Sunnydale, particularly since
the dubious 'gift' of Sight that the Powers That Be had bestowed upon
her.  Buffy had just seen the perfect example of that change.  If
only she could see the changes in Faith as well.  "No, you go," he
told her gently.  "Tell her I'm here though," he requested as
Cordelia smiled at him gratefully.

"When can she go home?"  Surprisingly, it was Giles who asked the
question.

The surgeon frowned at the question, his thick brows almost meeting
above his broad nose.  "She's suffered major traumatic injury to her
abdomen and just spent two hours in surgery.  She won't be going home
for some time," he told the Englishman.

"Tomorrow or the day after then," translated Buffy, knowing how
slayer healing worked.

The doctor laughed incredulously before recognising the blonde girl
and recalling that she too had an amazing ability to
recuperate.  "Are you related to Faith?"

Buffy snorted derisively.  "Definitely not."

"I don't understand.  Last time Faith was stabbed it took her months
to come out of the coma," Angel objected to the rapid recovery time
Buffy was suggesting.

The blonde girl blanched at the memory.  "She was in a coma due to
the head injury she got when she fell from the balcony," she
explained.

Cordelia interrupted before the conversation could continue.  "Where
do I go?" She asked.

"Oh, sorry, come with me."  The surgeon instantly forgot his train of
thought and led the tall brunette out of the door.

The doctor held a door open for Cordelia and she stepped into the
small side room.  She glanced back at him as he spoke.  "I know
you're upset and want to be with her, and, believe me, I do
sympathise, but she really does need to rest.  Please be
considerate," he told her quietly before leaving the Seer in the room
alone.

She turned around and looked up the bed.  The bed covers were drawn
up as far as Faith's shoulders, with her arms resting on top of the
sheets by her sides.  Cordelia noticed the drip taped to the slayer's
right arm, the various monitoring devices attached to her finger and
upper arm and the oxygen tubing laced over her ears and under her
nose.  As she gazed at Faith's face, Cordelia almost gasped at how
pale the girl looked and, with her face scrubbed of make up, how
young she really was.   The white pillow her head rested on and the
fawn hospital gown served only to wash out her complexion even more. 
She approached the bed hesitantly, unwilling to disturb Faith, yet
desperate for the girl to open her eyes and reassure her that she
really was all right.  Spying a chair tucked away in a corner,
Cordelia picked it up and placed it by the side of the bed.  She sat
down quietly and took Faith's left hand with both of hers and
squeezed it gently, trying to silently indicate her presence and
support.  The ex-cheerleader was relieved to feel how warm Faith's
hand felt, and she lifted the slayer's arm gently and pressed her
lips to the girl's knuckles before returning their entwined hands
back to the bed.  "God, you gave me a scare," she whispered.  "I
thought I was going to lose you before I really found you."  Her own
voice sounded alien to her.  It shook with barely contained emotion.

She started as she saw Faith's head move, turning to face the seated
girl.  Her eyelids fluttered open, revealing chocolate brown irises,
impossibly dark against her almost alabaster skin.  Cordelia noticed
that her eyes were slightly unfocused, yet undeniably alluring and
the Seer was mesmerised by them. 

"Hey."  Faith's voice was cracked and weak.  She coughed and
swallowed in an effort to make it stronger.  "You're wearing that
dress," she remarked with a small smile, registering Cordelia's
apparel.

Cordelia pulled herself back from the depths of Faith's eyes and
almost sobbed with relief as she smiled back at the rogue
slayer.  "You really have a thing for this dress, don't you," she
replied, wondering if the younger girl had heard her earlier words.

"No, I don't," Faith contradicted her softly, prompting Cordelia to
frown at her in confusion.  "I have a thing for the wearer of the
dress."  She closed her eyes and turned away from Cordelia.  In a
voice that was hoarse and raw with emotion she continued.  "It also
means that I haven't just wasted another eight months in a coma. 
You'd never wear the same dress to visit me."  As she spoke the
words, Faith was suddenly overwhelmed by how scared she had been by
that thought.  She had heard Cordelia entering the room and had kept
her eyes shut, drawing up enough courage to face her, wondering how
long she had been unconscious this time.  A solitary tear slipped
down her face, much to her chagrin.  Faith had never been one to hug
and share and learn and grow, and even now thought that crying
indicated weakness.  She rolled her eyes and blinked rapidly in an
effort to stop any more tears from falling and tensed, waiting for
Cordelia to comment on her lapse.

Cordelia was rocked by Faith's words and how heartfelt they were. 
She also realised how sensitive Faith was at the moment and was
certain that the renegade slayer did not want to have  her feelings
dissected.  Instead, she continued the banter.  "Well, I might wear
the same dress in LA but not here in Sunny Hell.  What would people
think?"  She  let out a short stab of laughter.  "Oh my God Faith,
you really *do* know me," she commented.

"Not as well as I'd like to," responded the younger girl, still with
her eyes closed.  Her voice was gruff but it was under control now.

A voice in her head told her that it was perhaps unfair to pursue the
topic while Faith was so exposed but the Seer couldn't help wanting
to carry the subject on.  Cordelia drew a shaky breath, wondering at
how nervous she felt, yet determined to continue.  "I meant what I
said at the Bronze," she told Faith quietly.

Faith opened her eyes once more and turned to look at Cordelia
carefully.  "Cor,..." She began hesitantly but the tall Seer,
emboldened by her own words hushed the slayer.

"Shhhh, Faith.  Don't say anything," she told the prone woman, and
she got up out of the chair slowly and leant forward to press her
lips gently onto Faith's.  The kiss was chaste but held the promise
of so much more to come and Cordelia broke the contact reluctantly
after a few seconds.  Her breath hitched as she drew away and was
relieved to hear a similar gasp from the recumbent slayer.  She got
her breathing under control so that she could speak again.  "Let's
just take things as they come, huh?"  The Seer sat back down and
removed one of her hands from around Faith's and touched her own
lips, marvelling at the sensation she had just experienced, and
suddenly aware of how rapidly her pulse was beating in her neck.  The
tall brunette glanced up to one of the monitors surrounding Faith and
noticed that her pulse had quickened too.

"Wow?" Faith suggested as she looked at Cordelia tentatively.

"Oh, definitely wow," the Seer agreed emphatically, unwilling to take
her hand away from her lips in case the sensation faded.

Faith grinned sleepily, having shaken off her earlier fears and now
basked in a much more welcome emotion.  "Never thought I'd have a
kiss like that while lying down, and not be able to do anything
more," she mumbled, trying to fight the effects of the anaesthetic.

"Hey, Miss Gutter Mind!"  Cordelia protested good-naturedly.

"I'm allowed to now, C," Faith replied with a slow wink.

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really." 

Faith's voice was becoming more distant by the second, but Cordelia
didn't mind.  She knew now that the girl was going to be all right,
and that she had at last been able to express her feelings, even if
the demonstration was all too brief.  "I'm going to let you rest
now.  Angel's outside.  I want to tell him you're all right."

"You comin' back?"  Faith could barely get the words out now.  She
felt like she had a mouth full of cotton wool and her eyelids seemed
determined to close, despite her best efforts to keep them open.

"Wild horses couldn't drag me away," Cordelia reassured the girl,
before gently squeezing her hand once more and rising from her seat.

Faith frowned, remembering the circumstances that had brought her to
the hospital in the first place.  She struggled to get another
sentence out.  "Go back to the mansion and stay with the others. 
You'll be safe with them."

"They're at the Magic Box," Cordelia replied.  "I want to stay with
you," she continued.

Faith shook her head slightly, battling the somnolence that was
flooding through her.  "I need to know that you're safe.  Please,
Cordelia." 

Despite being unable to raise her voice above a whisper, Faith's
words conveyed a pleading urgency that Cordelia was unable to
ignore.  The Seer nodded unhappily and she knew that the younger girl
was deadly serious simply because she had bothered to use her entire
name.  "I'll be back soon," she vowed. 

The ex-cheerleader smiled at the slayer fondly when she got no
response.  Faith had finally succumbed to the sedative.  She bent
over and kissed the slayer's forehead, unknowingly copying the
actions of Buffy when she found Faith in the hospital after stabbing
her.

Closing the door quietly behind her, the tall Seer returned to the
waiting area.  "I spoke with her.  She's okay," she told the room's
occupants generally but focused her attention on Angel.

The dark vampire closed his eyes for a moment before nodding at
Cordelia.  "Do you want to stay?" He asked, already knowing the
answer.

"Yes," replied the ex-cheerleader honestly.  Before she was able to
continue, the sometime actress was interrupted by an incredulous
blonde slayer.

"It's not safe here, Cordelia," Buffy objected.  "You should be back
at the Magic Box."

"I know," the Seer agreed with the  girl's logic, prompting a look of
confusion from her.  "Nor do I want to leave Faith alone in a place
she despises," she continued.  "However, Faith insisted that I go
back to the Magic Box.  I have a feeling she'll know if I go against
her wishes, so I'm going."

"I'll stay till just before sunrise," Angel offered.  "We'll have to
keep some sort of guard up for her."

Buffy nodded.  "I'll go back to the Magic Box with you Cordy.  I need
to get some rest.  We'll come back in the morning and I'll take over."

Cordelia's eyebrows shot up at Buffy's gesture.  She had been certain
that the older slayer would leave Faith to her own devices.

"I'll talk to Tara and Willow.  They may be able to put a protection
spell on Faith's room while she's here," Giles added.  "Although I
rather suspect that Faith will be left alone for the time being."

"What makes you say that?"  Cordelia's voice rose an octave, not able
to follow Giles' reasoning.  "Surely she's a prime target now that
she's injured."

"With the wounds the shape shifter inflicted on her, I think that
they will assume that she's dead," Giles explained.  "And even if
they have already found out that she's alive, they will be extremely
hesitant to cross her again.  Not only has she taken out four demons,
she survived a shape shifter attack.  She's proven to them that she's
a formidable opponent.  They will want to plan their next attack far
more carefully.  Particularly as we now have all three artefacts."

Angel nodded at the Englishman's logic.  "Makes sense.  But it also
means that they are more likely to go for one of us now.  They'll be
looking for a weaker target."

"Which means that we all have to be extra careful until we figure out
how to destroy the artefacts," Buffy supplied.  "Right, let's go,"
she told Cordelia.  "We'll be back in a few hours," she assured Angel.

Taking one last look at the door that led to Faith's bed, Cordelia
reluctantly followed the blonde slayer out of the hospital, consoling
herself with the thought that Faith would probably be unconscious or
at the very least deeply asleep during the short period that she was
not at her side.

To be continued...