Title: Comparing Notes

Author: Jedi Buttercup

Disclaimer: All your Buffy and Angel are belong to Joss Whedon.

Rating: PG-13

Summary: B:tVS S7. Buffy talks to Faith about Wesley. 400 words.

Spoilers: Post A:tS 4.15, "Orpheus" and B:tVS 7.18, "Dirty Girls"

"So, you never got around to explaining that magic mind-walk thing," Buffy said, leaning against the kitchen counter. They'd finally managed to catch another moment together while the rest of the household was busy elsewhere.

"It was a thing," Faith shrugged in reply. "Knocked back some Orpheus, got bit by Angelus, we both went down for the count until Willow re-souled him. Do you really need all the details?"

"Orpheus?" Buffy stiffened. She'd heard of it; hard not to, with all the demon contacts she had now. "Do you know how dangerous that is?"

Faith snorted. "Not like I much cared. Quickest means to an end, you know? Besides, Wes is the one that got it for me." She paused. "Never thought I'd say this, but he's pretty scary these days."

"Who, Wes?" That was almost more of a surprise than the Orpheus. Buffy remembered meeting him that time she'd found Angel sheltering Faith. That look he'd given her, blue eyes deep and brimming with something unspoken-- he'd definitely changed, but she wouldn't have called him scary.

Faith chuckled a little, darkly. "I already knew he wasn't a pansy anymore, kinda proved that before I went to jail. Now, though..." She shook her head. "He got mad at me for saving him instead of stopping Angelus, stabbed a girl for information, said a bunch of really vicious things to get me back on my game. And that's not even the half of it."

Involuntarily, Buffy's thoughts flew back to the meeting she'd held after Chloe's suicide, all the harsh things she'd said to the Potentials. She'd nearly drowned in her own darkness after her resurrection, and though she'd recovered, sometimes it seemed like all the softness had been burned out of her. Had something like that happened to Wesley? Like her, had he been broken and put back together sharper and harder than before?

"Whatever gets it done," she said softly, summarizing her thoughts.

Faith raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, that's pretty much what he said-- that he was doing what he had to."

"Been there, done that," Buffy said, lips curving in an ironic smile.

"Starting to get that vibe here," Faith agreed, looking a little disturbed.

When all this was over, Buffy really was going to have to give him a call, compare notes. It would be nice to have someone to talk to-- someone human-- who truly understood.

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© 2006 Jedi Buttercup.