SUMMARY: Angel goes to bring Faith home after she is released from prison and is shocked when Buffy accompanies him. Wes makes a discovery that relates to Angel's shanshu. NOTES: Ok, after this story, I'm gonna start the new saga but I needed to set the table a bit better for myself. This series will continue but it will roughly coincide with the new one. This takes place after Peaceful Easy Feeling and Lean on Me. MUSIC NOTES: The Title is from CCR. DEDICATION: To Nate for keeping up the fight, for Cim for adding the sanity to both of us, for Trin because she's so damn dedicated that we never see her and for all the B/Aers because we KNOW it's far from over.

"Wake up," she said, her voice piercing through his skull and drilling into his brain. It wasn't necessarily that the sound was obnoxious. Just really really unwanted.

He rolled towards his pillow and dug his face into it, scratching his light stubble against the pillow case. One of his arms shot out and grabbed at the blankets to pull them over and across his torso.

"Angel, wake up," she instructed him, this time, more firmly. Cordelia Chase paced his room, picking up his overcoat and placing it across the arm of the plush leather chair sitting in the corner. He wasn't usually so messy but he and Gunn had been out late tracking some human eating monster down in Watts and according to Gunn, they'd ended up in the sewers.

But of course. After all, that was how Team Bat Pack worked.

Typically at least. Things were about to change.

They were about to get one member larger; Angel was bringing Faith home. He'd run it by them all but pretty much let it be known that the rogue slayer had done her time and was now working with a fresh chalkboard.

Wes had agreed but the look in his eyes said that the hours of torture he had suffered at Faith's hands were not likely to be forgotten anytime soon. Cor could certainly understand that.

"Angel, you're supposed to be there in one hour. It's a twenty minute drive," Cor reminded him, sighing as she continued to pick up the muddy clothes strewn around the room. She wondered idly when she had become the den mother for two grown men, a slightly loopy academic and a vampire.

Finally, reluctantly, he rolled over and faced her. He rubbed sleep away from his eyes with his balled fist. She could see light coloured bruises on his face. Gunn looked worse; they'd gotten their asses kicked.

She tossed a towel at him,"Go shower." Then she frowned. "I'm not your mother. I'm going shopping."

He blinked, desperately trying to understand how she'd gotten from one point to the next but failing miserably. He opened his mouth to ask her to explain the blatant nonsequitar but was swayed not to by the annoyed look on her face.

"Up? Good." Cor said, grabbing the armload of dirty clothes and then vanishing from the room. He shook his head, watched her a moment and then sighed.

Pushing himself out of his bed, he groaned. There wasn't an inch of him that didn't hurt. His entire body ached from head to foot. He glanced down at his chest and saw a patchwork of fading lightly coloured bruises. He could only imagine what Gunn looked like.

Dragging himself towards the shower, he turned the knob to the left. He stepped in and rested his forehead against the cool shower tiles.

***

He stepped out of the bathroom, fidgeting at the buttons of his dark blue shirt. His head was down so he didn't see her approach from the side.

"Here, let me help," she offered, lightly touching his hand. He blinked and looked up at her, a smile crossing his face.

"Hi, what..what are you doing here?" Angel asked, barely able to keep the joy out of his voice. He reached down and gently ran his fingers over her cheek, enjoying the softness.

"You're going to spring Faith, right?" Buffy asked, still concentrating on his button. She finally pressed it through the loop and then looked up at him. Grinning, she moved to her toes and kissed his lips.

"Yeah, I am..I..I didn't think..Buffy, love..Faith..she.."

"Easy, lover, I'm not here to start trouble. Promise."

"Then?"

"Time to bury things, right?"

He studied her for a moment and then said softly,"What made you come to this decision?"

She paused and then muttered,"Xander."

"Excuse me?"

"Did you know he went and visited her last week? When you and I were out on our date? He went to see her."

"No, I didn't know that. What happened?"

"He asked her to be in his wedding. She said yes."

"Interesting," he noted. Then he looked at her. "So why are you here?"

"I want to come with you. I want to see her.."

"You want to see if you can forgive her?"

She looked down at her hands and then mumbled, "Yeah, stupid, huh?"

"Not stupid." He lifted her chin and looked into her blue-green eyes. "But whether you can or not, I have."

She nodded slowly, deliberately. "I get that. I can still be jealous, right?"

He shook his head and grinned,"No, you can't. She's no threat to you." He dropped a kiss onto her head and then brought her close. He mumbled something in another language but just smiled at her when she looked at him with curiosity.

"You're not gonna tell me what you just said, are you?"

"Not today," he replied, biting her ear gently. She moaned and arched a bit but was held somewhat in place by his hands. "One day, I promise."

"I'm holding you to that, buddy," she said, stroking his face.

He kissed her ear again and then finally, reluctantly pulled away. "I want to be there when she sees the first moments of sunlight outside of stone walls. It'll be something. Believe me, you'll see everything you'll need to see in her eyes right there."

She looked up at him and studied his eyes. So deep and full of pain. "You know, don't you?"

He nodded. Slowly. He kissed her hair. "I do."

****

"I want to buy a book," he informed her as they stepped into the store. He immediately brushed dust away from his nose, fighting not to sneeze.

She, of course, was not quite as tactful. She sneezed four times in rapid succession and then loudly declared that this place needed maid service. Stat.

"Thank you, Cordelia," Wesley muttered, leading the way towards several stacks of books. He started lifting them, examining their spines. "Yes, thank you for helping. It's very appreciated."

She glared at him and waved her hand in dismissal. "You didn't bother telling me what we were looking for. You remember that?"

He looked up at her, eyebrows knit in concentration. Finally he admitted, "Yes..it's called the Dayton Manifesto."

"And that is?"

"A Watchers Diary from the 4th century."

"So why isn't it called the Dayton Diary?"

Because Kristian Dayton wasn't like most Watchers. He was seduced to darkness."

"How Vaderesque. Why are we looking for this?"

"Hmm? Oh..I've been reading parts of the scroll.."

"Oh, the scroll.." Cor said dryly. He tossed a look at her but she ignored it. "Go on..inform me of what kind of monster is gonna kick Angel and Gunn's ass next."

Wesley chuckled, "That was pretty funny."

Cord laughed. "Yeah, it was. It really was."

"Anyways..I'm not sure what it was but a passage near the one speaking of Angel's shanshu makes mention of this book so I figured I should investigate it."

Cord sighed, "Solid call but it better not cause me to break a nail." She looked down at her hands, examined them carefully and then said softly, "Again."

****

She stepped out beyond the gate and looked around her, studying her surroundings. Things looked different than they had on the way in. She looked up at the sky, gazing with half closed eyelids up at the sun.

"Faith," a voice said. Not male. She turned, blinking.

"Buffy.." she said, softly, a bit shakily. "Hi..what are you doing here?" Involuntarily, she took a step back. Her mind raced; wondering where Angel was. Had he set her up?

"I'm..I'm not here..I'm here to bring you home, Faith."

"Where's home?" Faith queried, suddenly scared. Her mind raced with thoughts of the Watchers Council and what they would do to her. They would put her on trial and there would be a conviction and then an execution..

"With him," Buffy said, turning to point towards the parking garage across the street. Faith squinted and then saw him standing there, leaning on his car.

Faith turned to look at her fellow slayer,"You're taking me to be with Angel?"

Buffy bristled a bit,"Not be with.."

"No..not that..I mean live with.."

"Yes, right..in separate rooms..way down the hall from each other.."

Faith chuckled, "Yes. Yes. Why are you really here, B?"

Buffy looked down at her hands and swallowed, "I died."

"I know, I heard. You're making a habit of it."

Buffy laughed dryly, "I am..I really am. I don't remember what I saw anymore..everything is getting real foggy but I know..I didn't like what I saw in regards to you. I hated it." She took a deep breath. "And it was my fault."

"No," Faith said shaking her head. "What I did..it was my fault..my actions.."

"Yes," Buffy admitted. "But me turning my back on you because I got scared of going that way..that was my fault.."

"It's the past," Faith said easily.

Buffy studied her for a moment and then nodded, "Yeah..yeah it is. Welcome home."

Faith smiled, for the first time in a very long time feeling calm swim through her. She followed Buffy to the car and smiled up at Angel. "Hey."

He grinned, "Hey kid." Leaning across her gave her a huge hug and then whispered into her ear,"I'm so proud of you."

She smiled, feeling a bit awkward. "Uh..thanks..can we skip the rest of this moment. I mean..I think you're making your girl nervous."

"She has nothing to be nervous about," Angel said, giving Buffy a look.

"Then can we not call me kid? I'm twenty-one." She paused for a moment and then lit up. "Hey, I'm also legal to drink. Wicked."

Buffy laughed and put an arm around Faith's shoulder. "Same Faith."

Faith shook her head. "Different." She locked eyes with Buffy. "I promise."

"I believe you..but you don't have to not be Faith..just don't be.."

"Homicidal?"

"Yeah, that works. Okay, I want food."

Faith's eyes lit up. "Philadelphia cheese-steak?"

"Eww..greasy," Buffy replied. Then she sighed, "Fine..but if Angel eventually leaves me because you blimped me up..I'm kicking your ass."

Faith, for her part, just grinned.

*****

It was just after seven at night when Angel stepped into the Hyperion, flanked by two Slayers. Faith had an overnight bag slung over her shoulder and her dark hair was cascading down around her back. Buffy was in overalls with her hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. The threesome provided an awesome visual of power and grace.

"Hello?" Angel called out.

"Hey," Charles Gunn said, entering the room. Angel grimaced when he saw his friends dark face covered in bruises.

"Where is everyone?"

"Wes and Cord are in your office with some manifesto...Fred is upstairs sleeping. You must be Faith."

"I must be," Faith acknowledged, taking the offered hand. Gunn looked her over, clearly appreciating what he saw.

"Cool. We got Chinese in the back."

"Sweet," Faith said.

Buffy blinked. "You couldn't possibly be hungry..you ate two sandwiches."

"I'm not hungry, I'm famished..you eat prison food for two years." She took Gunn's arm, "Lead me to the eats.."

"It's my honour," Gunn grinned, disappearing into the office with her.

Angel flinched a bit. "Ooh, that's not how I wanted to bring Faith in. Wesley is still.."

"Resistant. And Cordy as well?" Buffy queried

"Yeah." Angel admitted. "You think they'll come around?"

She reached up to stroke his cheek, 'I think they will. They're good folk. But you know it won't be easy. You didn't exactly give them an option."

"I know..but she needed someone to believe in her..to give her a second chance."

"And that's why I love you. And why they love you. Doesn't mean it's logically going to be easy."

"Yeah, I imagine not, huh?"

She leaned up and kissed him. Pulling away she looked at him. "Things will be okay. It will just take time."

He nodded slowly. "Okay, I can handle that." He hugged her tight, enjoying the feel of her against his body. Then he startled, almost abruptly.

"Angel?" Buffy queried, alarm in her voice.

"Come with me," he said urgently, grabbing her hand.

"Baby, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, come with me." He pulled her towards the stairs, his urgency causing him to accidentally miss as he tried to grab her hand and instead he landed a palm on her butt.

Buffy shook her head and then in a teasing voice said, "Oh I get it..vampire or not..you're just like other guys.."

*****

"You guys know Faith?" Gunn said, entering the room while still arm in arm with the brunette slayer.

Both Wes and Cord moved quickly to their feet, their faces not quite cold but not exactly welcoming either.

"Faith," Wesley said, coolly.

"Wes," she nodded, shifting her feet a bit. "Look..I..I know this sucks..and I'm sorry and if there was anywhere else for me to go.."

"Angel still wouldn't have let you," Cordelia inserted.

"Right." She looked down at the ground and then finally looked up. "Wesley, I'm sorry."

"I know you say that and Angel believes it," Wes informed her. "I guess you'll have the opportunity to prove it."

"Yeah," Faith muttered.

"Oh..and if you ever hit me again..I'll kick your ass," Cordy put in.

Faith lifted an eyebrow. "No offense, princess and I'll take a lot cuz I deserve it but I could still take you."

Gunn chuckled. "Ooh..one point for the slayer." Cord tossed him a dirty look but he just smirked at her. Then he looked towards Faith. "Chinese?"

"No..I'm Greek," she replied with a devilish grin. "But I'll take Chinese."

Gunn laughed, "Then saddle up and help us with the book learning.."

Faith groaned and was about to protest when Wes tossed her a look. "Am I allowed to still think book learning sucks?"

Cord looked at her, "Oh yeah..that's normal. Research is evil."

"Yep," Gunn confirmed. "After every research session, we dump the books into vats of holy water and watch them go up into smoke."

"Oh bloody hell," Wes said suddenly.

Cord looked up in alarm, "I hate when he says that."

***

"So, why did we drag me up two flights of stairs?" Buffy demanded, stopping to catch her breath.

"I have a present for you.."

"Angel, baby, you're getting really perverse.."

"What?" he asked, obviously confused. "I have a gift for you."

"In your bedroom..uh huh."

"In the box.." Angel replied, forehead creased.

Now it was her turn to be confused, "In the box?" Then it hit her and she squealed. "Ooh..a present for me?"

"No..a present for Xander.."

"You bought Xander a present? Is there something.."

"For you," he interrupted, lifting a silk cloth out of a small wooden box. He unfolded it to reveal a pure silver cross in the Gaelic tradition. It was studded with blood red rubies.

"Oh my God," she breathed.

"This was my sisters. She never wore it because it was too heavy but it was always passed down through my family. I don't have a family anymore in the typical blood sense but you..you're more than my family..you're my beginning and my end.."

"Oh my God, Angel..I'm gonna cry.."

"Don't..honey..don't do that.." he said, suddenly worried. "You don't like it?"

"Oh Angel..how have you been among people for 200 years and not understand when a woman is unbelievably happy?"

"Oh, so this is happiness," Angel grinned, relieved.

She reached up and kissed him, pulling him into a heated embrace and wrapping her arms around him. When she broke away, she dropped her head onto his chest. "Put it on."

"Okay," he replied. Using the cloth to protect his fingers, he draped it around her next, loving the way the rubies seemed to glow against her neck. She smiled when he was done and gently fingered the cross.

"How did you manage to save it?"

"It's a bit of a gruesome story..are you sure you want to hear it?"

She laughed, "I'm used to it."

"I..Angelus..took it from my sister as a trophy. She always carried it in her pocket. He wrapped in the skin of a priest he killed."

"Eww. It..it has been washed, right?"

He laughed. "Yes. After I was resouled...I washed it on holy water."

"Oh," she said. "So, what's the occasion?"

"I just needed you to know."

"Know what?"

"That it's a circle and I'm not letting you go again."

She grinned. Ear to ear. "Oh, I like that..I like.."

"Angel!" Wes called from downstairs.

Angel looked up at, they exchanged looks and then they both made a break for the door.

*****

"Wes?" Angel said, entering the office with Buffy right behind him. "What's wrong?"

"There's something you need to see." Wesley said, moving papers on the desk to the side.

"Have you ever heard of the Dayton Manifesto?"

"Yeah, it the watchers' diary of Kristian Dayton, the watcher who started the Insurrection," Angel replied, picking up the book off the desk.

"Insurrection?" Buffy queried.

"It was during the 4th Century..many of the watchers were seduced towards the dark magicks...one was even taken down to the underworld to serve in Hell.."

"Yikes. Giles never mentioned this."

"No real reason to. The watchers were overthrown and the balance restored. What's going on?"

"The scroll..Angel..if my translation is correct..it's saying that we're standing on the edge of the second Insurrection..and this one could topple everything."

There was a long silence in the room as everyone took Wesley's words in. It was Faith who broke it. "So, business as usual then?"

Buffy nodded, "Pretty much."

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