Chapter Eight: Faith, Hope & Magic Tricks Part 3

**Alley Between The Bronze and Silver Dragon**

Cordelia looked around the alleyway. "Where did you come from, anyway?"

'Oh, shit,' thought Harry. 'Gil will be pissed if I mention the Silver Dragon. And the cloak is in my pouch. Guess that leaves one thing…'

Harry continued looking bashful as he glanced between the Scoobies and Faith. "Okay. I was holding back on you guys, but I had good reason."

Buffy raised a questioning eyebrow. "Holding back on what?"

"This," Harry said before turning on the spot and vanishing in front of everyone.

Everyone remained shocked still. Finally, after a few drawn out, awkwardly silent seconds, Xander spoke. "Where'd he go?"

"Right behind you." Xander, Willow, and Cordelia each let out a scream as they spun around to a smirking Harry.

"Huh," Oz muttered in a tone that those close to him would recognize as his shocked tone.

"You can teleport?" Buffy managed to ask.

"Apparate, is what it's called. Takes a lot of focus, and can be kind of draining depending on number and length of hops." Harry's smile beamed at the amazed expressions on everyone's faces.

"Seems a pretty convenient way to avoid any 'Walk-of-shames' the next morning," Faith said, shooting Harry a flirty wink.

Harry nervously cleared his throat avoiding direct eye contact with anyone for a few seconds. "So… When I heard the fight from around the corner…" Harry shrugged, leaving the rest of the explanation to the Scoobies' imaginations.

Buffy raised her hand slightly to get Harry's attention. "And all wizards can do that?"

"Yep."

"What about into houses? Can you abberate—"

"Apparate," Harry corrected.

"Right. Can you apparate into, say, someone's home?"

"Yes," Harry cautiously answered.

"Without an invite?" Buffy finished.

The eyes of the Scoobies, except for Oz, went wide at the thought of a rogue wizard popping into their houses uninvited.

"Not that I don't trust you, Harry," Willow sputtered. "But, I kind of agree with Buffy's point." Xander and Cordelia nodded desperately in agreement. Harry decided to nip this in the bud, raising his hands calmingly.

"There are anti-apparition wards I can put up around your houses. They will keep wizards from popping in or out."

Cordelia gave an exaggerated sigh of relief to this news.

"Now, how about we all go inside, get comfy, and get to know our newest Slayer?"

Faith moved next to Harry, a predatory smile on her face. "Sounds good to me, Scar."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Could you not call me that? It brings back bad memories."

"You got it, Wiz," Faith tossed out, walking back inside the club. Harry paused a moment, suppressing a groan of annoyance.

"You can just call me Harry," he called out after her.

**The Bronze – Later**

The Bronze was buzzing with its usual energy, the dim lighting and pulsating music creating an atmosphere that was both exciting and slightly dangerous. Harry sat with the assembled group in a secluded corner of the club. Faith was the center of attention, regaling the group with a story that put one thought in Harry's head: 'I am not sharing this one with Ginny and Hermione.'

"So, it's the middle of the worst heat wave ever, right? It's like 118 degrees, and so I am camping out, sleeping without a stitch on. Suddenly, I start to hear screams, so I run out and see a church bus has broken down, and three vamps are chowin' down on half the Baptists in south Boston. I take them out, and the preacher comes up and just gives me this big-ole' hug, and I'm still just buck naked." Faith chuckled, taking a moment to catch her breath. "That's when the cops showed up and arrested us both."

"Wow," Xander says aloud. "They should film that story and show it every Christmas."

Cordelia glared at Xander in disgust before turning to Harry. "Are there any spells that can keep him from talking?"

"There's a silencing spell," Harry replied. "But, I don't think even magic could keep him from putting his foot in his mouth."

Faith laughed along with the group (save for Xander) as she leaned down to grab a brownie.

"God, I could eat a horse," Faith stated, before popping a piece of brownie. "Isn't it strange how slaying always makes you hungry and horny?"

Not even Harry could resist turning his attention to Buffy, waiting to hear her response. Buffy fought the urge to blush.

"Well… sometimes I have a craving for a non-fat yogurt afterwards."

Harry held in a laugh as the others decided to let it slide for now.

"I get it!" Cordelia exclaimed. Harry nearly lost it, though, at that. Cordelia caught the stunned expressions on everyone's faces. "Not the horny thing—gross—the two Slayers thing."

Cordelia gestured toward Buffy. "Buffy died for two minutes, which called Kendra. Then when she died, Faith was called."

Harry actually nodded, as Cordelia's explanation made sense.

"What called you to here?" Harry asked.

Faith shrugged. "Nothing really. My Watcher went on some retreat, and I thought it'd be a good time to skip. Figured I'd come here, share notes with B."

Harry wasn't quite sure why, but he got the sense there was more to Faith's reason than what she was letting on. 'That answer seemed so…timid.'

"So, B," Faith continued on, brightening noticeably. "Is it true you once used a rocket launcher?"

Buffy grinned at having a story that could impress Faith. "Well, yeah. Bit of a funny story; it was actually Xander's idea. The books said that the Judge—this big, ugly demon that could burn the soul out of you with a touch—could not be beaten by a weapon forged by man. Xander got us into an army base, then we blew up the judge before he could kill a mall full of civilians."

Harry's mouth was agape. "You didn't mention the 'burning the soul out of someone' bit before. I think that might top my escape from goblins on the back of a dragon story."

Faith grinned while shaking her head. "Damn! I'm feeling out of my league here."

"Join the club," Xander responded sarcastically.

"So, H.P.," Faith said, breaking Harry and Buffy out of their side conversation.

'At least she's not calling me 'Scar' anymore,' Harry thought wearily to himself.

"What was your hardest slay?" Faith finished asking.

Visions of a demolished Great Hall, and a crowd surrounding Harry and Voldemort as they circled each other, entered Harry's mind. A flash as green impacted red, then people cheering as Voldemort fell. But past the crowds, accusing in their silence, the bodies of Lupin, Tonks, Fred, and so many others.

"What," Harry asked, still in a daze.

"Well, B's got the Judge, I got the vamp with the pet alligators; what slay was toughest for you?"

"I guess Lord Voldemort," Harry hesitantly answered. "I mostly fought to wound or capture the other wizards."

Before Harry could elaborate, Cordelia interjected, "The Judge wasn't Buffy's toughest. He was a cake walk compared to…" The collective glares of Oz, Willow, Xander, and Harry stopped Cordelia from finishing, but the damage was done.

"Compared to who?" Faith enquired anxiously.

Buffy fought to maintain a calm visage. She couldn't stop the flashes of Angel being sucked into the portal after she had run him through. Harry, remembering Giles' words about Buffy throwing up walls, wanted to give Buffy an out. He looked around for inspiration, when he spotted Oz.

"I just had a thought," Harry said quite loudly. "A question I think is important to everyone here. You're both Vampire Slayers, but what is your stance on werewolves, Faith?"

Willow perked up, wanting to hear her answer. "Oz is a werewolf."

Faith shrugged indifferently. "As long as you don't try to bite me, or hump my leg, we're five-by-five."

Buffy looked over at Harry while Faith was distracted. Harry could see her eyes were wet. She mouthed 'Thank you' to him.

Harry, in a flash of brilliance, realized a way to get Buffy out of the club without raising too much suspicion.

"Hey, Buffy, I can put up those apparition wards for you tonight, if you'd like? It shouldn't take more than an hour."

"Sounds good," Buffy replied, getting out of her seat.

"What about us?" Cordelia demanded hotly. "We just get left to the mercy of some teleporting perv?"

Harry kept a deadpan expression as he replied to Cordelia. "Xander can't apparate."

Faith and Willow were the first in the group to laugh. Xander simply grinned and bore the laughter.

**Revello Drive**

Harry and Buffy walked in a comfortable silence through the crisp autumnal evening. To Buffy, it was almost bizarre walking this long at night, not hearing any of the usual sounds that originated from a possible attack. To her, it was like the world was giving her the night off. This, of course, brought her thoughts back to Faith.

"How do you know Faith?" Buffy kept looking straight ahead, hoping to appear nonchalant. Harry wasn't exactly buying it.

"She moved into the motel room next to mine the other day."

"So, you're neighbors?"

"I suppose," Harry said, contemplating whether or not to goad Buffy. "Before tonight, I don't think I'd spoken to her more than five minutes."

"Long enough to pick up a nickname," Buffy snarked, cattily.

"She tends to do that pretty quickly, B," Harry glibly returned.

They continued in silence for a few paces more. "I barely know her, yet she just gets under my skin. 'Hardest slay'? Are you kidding me?"

Harry held back his response. He wanted to see where Buffy was going with this.

"Like this is all some game. Comparing resumes?"

'Isn't that what we did?' Harry thought, but did not say.

"How dare she ask that of me…us, I meant us." Buffy went silent at her slip-up.

'Now I think I should speak.' "The actual fight with Voldemort wasn't the hard part. It was what happened leading up to it." Harry paused, swallowing loudly. "The fight itself was actually pretty anti-climactic."

Buffy looked over at Harry, who now had a thousand-yard stare in his eyes.

"What happened before the fight?"

Harry turned to meet Buffy's gaze. "I'll tell you mine when you're ready to tell yours."

Buffy snapped her face frontward, refusing to continue eye contact with Harry. They were silent the rest of the way to Buffy's house.

**Buffy's House**

Joyce Summers stood on her front patio next to her daughter, drinking a cup of tea. She would have thought this a fairly mundane activity had it not been for the eighteen-year-old wizard currently circling her house, waving his wand, muttering an incantation.

"So there's another Slayer in town?" Joyce asked, a tinge of excitement in her voice.

"Yep. Just rolled into town yesterday."

"Is she staying with Mr. Giles?"

"No. She's actually staying in the room next to Harry's."

Joyce winced at that news. "Oh. Maybe we can invite her over to dinner tomorrow. Harry, too."

"Sure, I guess. Though, given our last attempt at a dinner, we should probably keep the guest list small."

"Good point," said Joyce between sips of tea. "So, what is Harry doing again?"

"He let us know about a trick wizards can do, and so he's putting up a shield to protect us."

"What kind of trick?"

"Oh, you know, teleport anywhere they can think of in the blink of an eye."

Joyce froze with her cup in midair. "Even into houses?"

"Even into houses," Buffy confirmed.

It was at this time that Harry came back from the opposite side of the house. Once he reached the spot he initially started, he made one more wave of his wand, and the Summers women saw a dome-like ripple form around their house before disappearing. Harry stowed his wand and wiped his hands.

"Okay. For the sake of optimizing the strength of the ward, I only covered the house, and about five feet of space surrounding it. Without a ward stone, it will block about six, maybe seven attempts before collapsing. I also hooked up an alarm. Anyone trips the ward, and you'll hear a deep gong sound."

Joyce tilted her head in confusion. "We don't have a gong."

Harry grinned, "That's how you'll know it's the alarm."

"Do we have to sign a work order?" Buffy chuckled at her mom's question.

"No, ma'am. But all 'Potter Wards' come with a 30-day satisfaction guarantee."

"Anything you can do about telemarketers?" Buffy asked sarcastically.

"I can unplug your phone."

Joyce chuckled before heading toward the door. "I'll sleep easier tonight. Buffy, if you're going on patrol, please be careful?"

"I'm going to call it an early night. I'll be inside in a sec."

Buffy turned back to Harry as Joyce went inside.

"I am thankful for your help."

"Least I could do," Harry said, waving his hand.

"If there's anything I can do in return—"

"Actually. Could you teach me to fight?"

Buffy's eyebrow shot up at that request. "Didn't you just fight a war?"

"A wizard war," Harry clarified. "You take the wand out of my hand, I'm as skilled a fighter as Xander. No offense to him, or anything."

Buffy nodded her head. She knew Xander's heart was in the right place and had been by her side since she arrived in Sunnydale. But she also recalled the night she returned and watched her four closest friends struggle with one vampire.

"Fight lessons with me, magic lessons with Willow… Are you trying to put us out of a job?" Buffy's grin disarmed any ill feelings in her question.

Harry smiled as he slid his hands in his pockets and looked off to the side. "Just trying to find my place in the world."

Again, Buffy could only nod her head. "Aren't we all?"

**September 2, 1998 – Sunnydale High – Library**

Harry had been in a few scrapes in his primary school days, and even after learning he was a wizard, he had thrown his fair share of punches; however, he was amazed just how quickly he got winded doing this training with Giles.

"I need a second," Harry gasped, doubled over, pulling in as much air as he could. His training outfit almost completely drenched in sweat.

Giles lowered the kick pad he was holding in order to wipe the lenses of his glasses.

"Harry, while I appreciate your desire to go through the training, I feel I'd be remiss if I didn't point out: that was the warm-up."

"I know, it's just—" Harry paused as a thought struck him. "You're using the same training regimen you give Buffy, aren't you?"

Giles grinned wickedly. "Well, yes."

Harry straightened himself up, glowering at Giles. "I believe Buffy mentioned Slayers have mystically enhanced strength and endurance, right?"

"I believe your words were, 'I want to fight like Buffy.'"

"You are evil," Harry said in mock anger.

The doors of the library swung open, allowing Buffy, Faith, Xander, and Willow to enter.

"And this is our library, complete with our very own Giles," Buffy announced, concluding what Harry assumed was the grand tour of Sunnydale High.

"You must be Faith." Giles stepped over, offering his hand.

"If I'd have known they offered Watchers this young and hot, I'd have put in for a transfer long ago," Faith smirked, giving Giles the once over as she shook his hand. "H.P., you're looking like crap."

"Fight training," was Harry's succinct reply before taking a deep drink from a water bottle.

"Well, if you ever want to go a few rounds…" Faith winked, flirting shamelessly with the wizard. Harry was thankful at that moment for his exhausted condition, as it hid his blush.

Buffy decided to steer the conversation back on track. "Giles, what's the sitch with this conference Faith's watcher went to?"

Giles got a strangely wistful expression on his face. "There's a Watchers' Retreat, every year, in the Cotswolds. It's a lovely spot; very serene." Giles was unaware of the looks being shared between the Scoobies at his reminiscing. "There's horse riding, hiking, punting. And lectures, and discussions… It's a great honor to be invited."

The cheery smile disappeared from the Watcher's face. "Or so I'm told."

"I meant to ask; are you at all related to the Grangers?" Xander and Buffy shared a knowing smile, recalling Harry's description of his friend being 'his Willow.'

"Possible familial relations aside, it would appear quite fortuitous that Faith is here," Giles said, crossing to the copier near his office.

"A-ha!" Willow exclaimed, drawing everyone's attention to her. "Sorry, I just meant, 'a-ha, there's big evil brewin'.' You'll never be bored here, Faith. Because this is Sunnydale, home of the big, brewin' evil."

"I don't know how 'big and evil' it is," Giles continued, handing a copy of the paper to Buffy. "But two people have disappeared from the Sunset Ridge district."

Harry scanned the newspaper over Buffy and Faith's shoulders as they read.

"I'm good for patrolling. It will have to be late-ish." Buffy handed the newspaper over to Xander before turning towards Faith and Harry. "Mom wants you guys to come over for dinner, if that's alright?"

"Dying to meet the fam'," Faith responded neutrally.

"What about us?" Xander asked.

"Didn't you guys bring a band, and half the school, last time you were invited to dinner?" Harry responded sarcastically.

"Yeah," Xander replied, "So?"

Giles once more cleaned his glasses. As he was putting them back, he glanced at his watch. "Buffy, I believe you have an exam in five minutes."

Buffy pulled Giles' hand closer, examining his watch. "You're right." Buffy quickly grabbed her books, shouting over her shoulder as she left, "Dinner's at seven, see you two later."

Xander hopped off the table. "Well, Faith, we can show you around some of the more interesting locations of school. And that's just with the near-death experiences," Willow quickly led the way.

"Cool," Faith replied. She turned to Giles. "We can talk weapons later. Later, H.P." Harry waved as Faith left to follow Xander and Willow.

Giles picked up the kick mat. "Shall we go again?"

Harry groaned as he set down his water bottle and got into position.

**Abandoned Warehouse**

Kakistos was not pleased at all. He had come to this town with one goal: Kill the Slayer that had slipped away from him. The one that had taken his eye. He had been patient, following her across this country, keeping right on that bitch's trail.

He had taken Mr. Trick into his inner circle because, as loath as he was to admit, Kakistos had no idea how to track someone in this "modern" world. Mr. Trick had been skilled in acquiring transport and supplies, but at the moment, he was going off on some tangent about the technology at hand. All Kakistos wanted was a simple answer to a simple question.

"…but we live Global. You want the blood of a fifteen-year-old Filipino? It's there, next day, express air," Mr. Trick said with a self-satisfied grin on his face.

"What I want," Kakistos growled in his gravelly voice, "is the blood of the Slayer."

Mr. Trick's shoulders slumped as his Master once more took the wind from his sails. "On that front, there's good news and bad. Rumor has it, this town already has a Slayer; which makes two. Not real sure how that happened."

Kakistos launched out of his chair, instantly closing the distance between himself and Mr. Trick.

"I don't care if there's a hundred slayers! I'll kill them all," Kakistos roared. "She's going to pay for what she did to me." Kakistos ran his clawed thumb along the deep gash over what used to be his right eye.

"Can you do that for me?" Kakistos asked threateningly.

Mr. Trick nodded solemnly. "I'm running a computer check on every hotel, boarding house, and youth hostel in town."

A knock came from the far entrance door. Mr. Trick moved backwards toward the door, maintaining eye contact with Kakistos as he continued speaking.

"Meanwhile, as soon as the sun goes down," Mr. Trick paused long enough to pull on a heat-insulated glove, "We're out in force."

Mr. Trick opened the door, careful to keep his exposed skin out of the sunlight as he grabbed the unfortunate delivery boy, hurling him into the room full of vampires.

"Food's here, boys," Mr. Trick announced, a sadistic smile on his face.

**Buffy's House – Evening**

"So, you're a Slayer, too? That is so interesting," Joyce mused as she dished more food onto Faith's plate. "Do you like it?"

A wide grin broke out on Faith's face. "Oh, I love it."

"Uh, Mom…"

"Just a second, Buffy."

Harry had to take a sip of his drink to hide his smile from Buffy's crestfallen face. He had attended enough Weasley family dinners to recognize that look. The look of a sibling jealous of another's receiving all the attention.

"You know, Buffy never talks about it like that," Joyce continued, placing a final spoonful of veggies on Faith's plate. "Why do you love it?"

"Well, when I'm fighting, it's like the whole world goes away, and I only know one thing: I'm gonna win, and they're gonna lose," Faith boasted, bringing a forkful of the greens to her lips. "I like that feeling."

Harry's smile actually faded at those words. He knew Faith was charismatic, and obviously very aggressive, but this attitude she just spouted set off alarm bells in his head.

"Sure. It's just that feeling when they win, and you lose, that's not so fun," Buffy replied, almost mirroring Harry's thoughts.

"I try not to let that kind of negative thinking in," Faith shot back.

"Right. That kind of thinking can you get you hurt," Joyce agreed emphatically with Faith. "Buffy can be awfully negative at times."

Harry knew well enough what Joyce was getting at, and he couldn't blame her. She wanted to get her daughter out of harm's way. He imagined a similar conversation could have happened if one day Molly Weasley had learned there was a second Boy-Who-Lived out there. 'You see, Harry, you don't have to fight You-Know-Who anymore. You can let this boy do it. He's pretty excited about the idea.'

"Actually, Mrs. Summers," Harry interjected, "Buffy's attitude is more one of constant vigilance. I had a Professor who stressed that as being key to any defense; never underestimate your opponent."

Buffy smiled at Harry, thankful for the assist. Joyce looked around the table, her eyes stopping on Faith's glass.

"Faith, would you like another soft drink?"

"That'd be great, Mrs. S."

Joyce picked up Faith's glass and headed for the kitchen.

"Your mom's the best, B."

"Yeah. Greatest mom in the world," Buffy replied with the barest enthusiasm. "Excuse me." Buffy followed her mother into the kitchen.

Faith continued nibbling on her dinner, and sneaking fries off Buffy's plate. Meanwhile casting glances across the table at Harry.

"Who was this professor you were talking about?" Faith asked, leaning forward, resting her cheek on her hand.

"Mad-Eye Moody," Harry smiled at something Moody had said to him the summer before fifth year. "Technically, he never taught at Hogwarts, but that's a long story for another day." Faith smiled at Harry's aside.

"He was the most famous Auror of the last twenty years. Um, a dark wizard catcher," Harry elaborated for a confused Faith. "He retired after losing a leg and an eye in the line of duty. The eye he replaced with a magical one that would spin all over the place, and could see through solid objects."

"He sounds pretty badass," Faith exclaimed. "He still around?"

"He died," Harry answered softly. "He was killed by the dark wizard chasing me while escorting me to a safe house."

Faith got a hollow look in her eyes as she reached across the table, gently patting Harry's hand. She suddenly stopped when she felt something there. "Are those scars?"

Harry pulled his hand away but left his hand on the table. Faith looked down but saw nothing there. "I know I felt something, H.P."

Harry closed his eyes, trying to reign in his thoughts. "A small glamour spell. It prevents the scars from being seen, but not from being felt. I just didn't want to overly concern people. I don't like being pitied."

Faith nodded slowly. "I get that."

There was a silence at the table. Harry could imagine some new understanding had been reached between them. A part of him knew Faith was being sincere about resenting 'being pitied.' What was definite to him, there was something painful hidden under Faith's bravado; something calling out to him.

"You going patrolling with Buffy?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. You going to be in your room when I get back?" Faith's face once more took on the appearance of a predator.

'Maybe it's buried deeper than I thought,' Harry mentally gulped. "I'll likely be asleep. Giles' training really took it out of me."

Faith brushed it off casually. "Your loss."

**September 3, 1998 – Sunnydale High – Library**

"Right-left combo," Giles called out from behind the kick mat. Harry delivered a quick one-two combo to the center of the pad.

"Right-right-left combo." Again, Harry delivered the prescribed punch combo.

'This isn't too bad,' Harry thought to himself. A feeling of satisfaction with each landed punch. 'No wonder Dudley liked this so much.'

The library door swung open, Buffy marching directly toward Giles. "Went patrolling with Faith last night," Buffy began, barely containing a sound of annoyance in her voice.

"Right-left-right uppercut," Giles called out to Harry before turning his attention to Buffy. "And?"

"Things were going fine, until we got jumped by three vampires, and she left me struggling with two while she went 'Raging Bull' on the third."

Harry finished the combo with an uppercut to the lower section of the pad. "Alternating three-hit combos until I say stop," Giles said over the top of the mat. "Buffy, I'm sure Faith just has a little more exuberance in a fight than you do."

"No, Giles, this was more than that," Buffy firmly stated. "This wasn't getting distracted by an adrenaline rush, this was tunnel vision to the extreme. She didn't want to just slay that vamp, she wanted to hurt it. She wanted to make it pay."

The sounds of Harry's punches died immediately. Buffy looked over to the sweat-soaked wizard and saw an expression of dawning fear on his face.

"Giles, you need to get a hold of her Watcher, immediately." Harry tore the boxing gloves off his hands as he quickly crossed to his towel and bag. Harry pulled his wand out of his bag, pointed it at himself and with a quick 'Scourgify,' his clothes were clean.

"I'll head back to the motel, make sure she doesn't leave town." Harry put his remaining belongings in his bag before stepping back into the middle of the room.

"Why do you think she'd leave town?" Buffy asked, confused by Harry's reactions.

Harry looked deeply into Buffy's eyes, saying at half-volume, "Because that's what we did."

Harry quickly turned on the spot, vanishing from the library with a soft crack. Giles slowly removed his glasses, staring at the spot Harry used to be. Buffy's worried expression deepened at the suggestion of Harry's words.

"I'll call the retreat right now. They're eight hours ahead of us; they'll probably be settling in for a nightcap," Giles drifted back to his wistful tone again.

"Giles," Buffy said, drawing

the Watcher from his thoughts. "Focus, please?"

"Of course," Giles agreed, moving toward the counter, setting the pad down as he went.

"Did the vampires say anything or have any kind of distinguishing marks?"

Buffy's brow furled in thought. "One of them said something about 'living for Kissing Toast.' Does that mean something I'm not aware of?"

Giles paused, the phone in hand. "Kakistos?"

Buffy pointed excitedly. "That was it. You've heard of it?"

Giles frowned slightly as he went into lecture mode. "Kakistos is Greek; it means 'worst of the worst.' It's also the name of a vampire who's so old, his hands and feet are cloven."

"Sooooo… Bad?" Buffy stated.

"Very bad," Giles agreed, dialing the phone.

**Sunnydale Motel – Later**

Harry stepped out of the shower, feeling refreshed. His time on the run with Ron and Hermione had taught him that 'Scourgify' would clean clothes and mop up perspiration; nothing got rid of the grimy feeling like a hot shower. But stopping for a shower did not make Harry any less focused on his goal.

He grabbed his wand off the sink and with a quick 'Point-Me' spell confirmed Faith was still next-door. No change since he checked ten minutes ago when apparated back to the motel room.

As he got dressed, his mind kept coming back to Buffy's words. "…this was tunnel vision to the extreme. She didn't want to just slay that vamp, she wanted to hurt it. She wanted to make it pay."

Harry could only think of one time he had gotten that lost in a fight. Two years ago, in the Department of Mysteries, chasing the madwoman, Bellatrix Lestrange.

"I killed Sirius Black!"

Watching her skipping away, chanting in a singsong voice, he ignored everything, even his wounded friends. He was focused on getting the bitch. Making her pay. He wanted her blood. He had wanted revenge because his grief was too terrible to face.

He sat on the mattress, tying his shoes. When he finished, he did one more 'Point-Me'; again, she was still there.

He had seen it in her eyes last night; he just didn't consciously connect the dots. When he mentioned Moody dying while protecting him, her mask slipped. He assumed it was just sympathy from her. Now he knew what it really was. It was empathy. She had felt his pain before.

In all his life, he had never before wished so hard to be wrong. But all the evidence was there, and he would help Faith, just as swore to help Buffy.

Harry knocked on Faith's door. He wasn't sure what he was going to say, all he knew was he had to get her to open up. That's what his friends would do. 'Luna made it seem so easy,' he thought, annoyed at his difficulty to think of something to say. Harry pulled himself from his inner monologue when the door opened.

"H.P.! Good to see you." Faith stepped to the side without saying a word. The move is a force-of-habit for anyone who has dealt with vampires. 'But useless in public lodgings,' Harry recalled from his conversations with Buffy.

"What brings you 'round?" Faith asked conversationally.

"Well," Harry awkwardly started. "I thought I'd drop by, get to know you better."

"Why, H.P., I'm surprised you decided to take me up on my offer. Not disappointed, mind you, just surprised." Faith winked saucily at Harry.

"Do you just make a habit of trying to make people blush, Miss…" Harry paused briefly in thought. "I can't seem to recall you mentioning your last name."

Faith grinned, shutting the door behind her. "Oh, no. No one uses my last name."

A pang shot through Harry's chest as he was reminded of a pink-haired Auror who never let anyone use her first name. Harry cleared his throat to disguise his sudden inability to speak.

"I'm sure your last name can't be that bad. Especially compared to some of the wizards and witches I've met."

"Try me," Faith challenged playfully.

"Well, there was Dedalus Diggle, Elphias Doge, Bathilda Bagshot…"

Faith laughed at the parade of names Harry was listing. "Okay. My name doesn't seem so bad compared to those. Still not sure I want to share mine with you, though."

Faith plopped down on her bed, leaving the chair for Harry to ease into. "Why not?"

"A girl's got to keep some mystery about herself," Faith teased.

"You make it seem like your name is your only secret."

"I'm an open book, H.P. Try me," Faith challenged.

'Well, now or never,' Harry decided. He leaned forward, maintaining eye contact. "Who was it you lost?"

Faith's cocky grin dissolved before him. She maintained eye contact, but the rest of her body language screamed her wish to escape the room.

"What…what do you mean?" Faith hesitantly asked.

"You hide it well, but last night, at dinner, I saw something in your eyes. Then, this afternoon, Buffy tells me about the vampire you pummeled in the alley, and it clicked in my head. You wanted payback. For something you feel is your fault."

Faith wrung her hands as she stood up. She moved to retreat to the other room, but Harry spoke up again.

"I know how it feels, Faith. I watched my godfather die rescuing me from a trap that I should have seen coming." Faith paused in the doorway. "I felt so much shame, and anger, and grief. I was hurting so much, the only thing I could do was chase after the woman who killed him. I wanted her to suffer, like I was suffering."

Harry wiped the frustrated tears from his eyes. Faith's arms were wrapped around her torso, her gaze fixed on the floor.

"I nearly died that night." Harry's voice dropped to just above a whisper, but the room was silent enough for Faith to hear it. "Part of me wanted to give up because I was hurting so much. And it was only because of my friends that I pulled myself together."

Faith and Harry stood in silence, neither moving from their spots. Harry was resolved to stand there all night, waiting for Faith to talk. It was only a few minutes later that he heard her voice.

"Her name was Helen," Faith softly said. "She was my Watcher. But she was more than that, you know?" Faith was now fighting her own tears, but she couldn't bring herself to move her hands from around her waist.

"My parents didn't exactly provide the greatest home environment. Mom was in and out of rehab, Dad was a drunk; so when Helen came along, told me about my potential destiny, and offered to take me in, I jumped at the chance.

"She took care of me. Helped me feel strong. She was so proud when I got called. She was to me, what Giles is to B." The tears started falling down her cheek, but she took no notice. "And then, a few weeks ago, this vamp and his goons cornered us. She told me to run. She put herself between me and him, and told me to run."

Faith broke down sobbing as she continued her story. "I was so scared! He butchered her, and the best I could do was cut his face."

Harry grabbed her, wrapping her in a tight hug. "It's okay, Faith. It's not your fault."

"Why?" Faith continued sobbing. "I'm the Slayer! I'm the one whose supposed to die fighting! Why did she do that?"

Harry gently stroked her hair and squeezed tighter. "Because she loved you, Faith. And love is one of the strongest forces on Earth. But, you need to remember: the ones who truly love us, never really leave us."

Faith's arms wrapped around Harry, returning the hug. The two stood there, holding each other, Faith softly crying into Harry's shoulder. Neither was sure how long they stood there. Finally, Faith softly said, "Thanks, Harry."

Harry smiled into her hair. He wanted to make mention of the fact she had actually used his name, but he knew that would spoil the moment.

It was then there was a knock at the door. Faith released Harry, stepping into the bathroom, wiping her eyes. Harry went to the door and peered through the peephole. He opened the door, allowing Buffy to enter.

He was mildly surprised it was already after sunset. 'Guess she was crying longer than I thought.'

"Is she here?" Buffy asked forcefully.

Harry held up his hands, gesturing for her to calm down. "She is, and I got her to tell me about what happened to her Watcher."

Buffy nodded and released some of the tension from her shoulders. "Did she also tell you the guy who did it followed her here?"

"What?" Faith dashed into the room, wide-eyed at Buffy's news.

"Kakistos," Buffy declared. "Those guys we fought last night worked for him."

"Oh, shit," Faith muttered, grabbing her bag from the floor.

Buffy was stunned at Faith's actions. "You're leaving? Just gonna drop your mess on us and skip town, that's your plan?"

Harry stepped between the two. "Buffy, you're not helping."

"I just need to get a bit of a head start," Faith replied weakly.

Harry spun around to her, squeezing her shoulders. "Faith, you have to be strong. For Helen."

Faith tore away from Harry's grip when a knock came from the door. Faith looked through the peephole and saw the slack face of the motel manager.

"What does this asshole want?" Faith asked aloud as she opened the door.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Out in the walkway, the manager's body fell to the floor. Faith froze at the sight of the scarred and smirking Kakistos, with at least four other vampires behind him. Harry leapt to the door, slamming it in the disfigured faces of the vampires. His wand was out in a flash, as he cast a locking spell on the door.

He turned around to Buffy who was tugging on Faith's arm trying to break her from her stupor.

"We have to get out of here," Harry yelled. A cloven fist broke through the door, trying in vain to turn the magically locked handle.

Buffy threw the chair through the bathroom window. "Move!"

**Streets of Sunnydale**

Harry cast a cushioning charm at the ground as the three of them jumped out the window. When they were all back on their feet, he lifted the charm. 'No sense making the fall easy on them.'

They had reached the end of the alley when they heard the vampires giving chase. They took blind turn after blind turn, avoiding the vampires that seemed to be coming from all sides.

Buffy pointed at a window not too far off the ground. Harry sent a blasting hex, breaking the glass.

**Abandoned Warehouse**

Once the trio was inside the building, Harry used Reparo to fix the window. They huddled together, all breathing heavily.

"That should give us time to regroup," Buffy said.

"We've got to face them, Faith," Harry agreed.

Faith looked around, her gaze stopping on the wall behind Harry and Buffy.

"No, no, no." Faith pointed. "This is their place. They led us here."

Harry and Buffy turned and saw several dead bodies piled against the wall. Several vampires entered from the entrance in front of them. From behind, Kakistos led Mr. Trick and three others through another door.

"Faith, we have to fight now," Buffy said as she dropped into a ready stance.

Harry looked over his shoulder. Faith was once again frozen in fear as Kakistos closed in. Harry turned back to the three vampires in front of him, who were also closing in.

Two of Kakistos' minions rushed at Buffy as Kakistos strode right up to Faith. Faith weakly raised her fists, but Kakistos struck her, sending her sideways through a wooden pole.

"Bombarda!" Harry called out, striking the center vampire in front of him in the chest. The force of the spell disintegrated him and threw the other two back.

Mr. Trick and a female vampire froze at the sight of their compatriots being thrown by the dark-haired young man.

"If we don't help the Master, he'll die," Mr. Trick stated, looking at the female vampire next to him. "Our thoughts and prayers are with him."

Mr. Trick and the other vampire strolled back out the door. "That's the problem with these old-school blood feuds. They ignore the big picture."

Harry apparated behind the taller of the remaining vampires, and cast a non-verbal Incendio, turning him to ash. He looked up in time to see the third of his vampires rushing him. With a flick of his wand, the vampire was hanging upside down in the air by his ankle, as though caught in an invisible snare. Harry stowed his wand, picked up a broken piece of wood, and staked the vampire in the heart.

'Not bad, if I say so myself.' Harry looked over to the Slayers in time to see Buffy jam a stake into Kakistos' chest, only the vampire didn't turn to dust. He just laughed and struck Buffy.

"I guess you need a bigger stake, Slayer!" Kakistos taunted.

Faith then leapt to her feet, grabbed the broken beam she had been tossed through, and ran it clear through Kakistos' chest.

'Okay, that was impressive,' Harry admitted to himself.

Buffy and Faith stood side by side, catching their breath after the battle as Harry walked up to them.

"You two all right?" Harry asked gently.

Faith's trademark grin returned to her face. "Five by five."

Buffy nodded quietly. "You guys hungry?"

Faith chuckled lightly. "I could eat."

**Sunnydale Motel**

Faith numbly sorted through her trashed room, collecting her clothes and personal effects from the splintered furniture. Her mind was still thinking about everything that had happened a few hours ago. She had faced the beast that had killed the woman she thought of as a second mother. She had faced her fear, but her damn hands wouldn't stop shaking.

A knock on the frame of the door brought her attention to the raven-haired wizard that helped her face her pain. His deep emerald eyes offering comfort and solace.

"Thought I'd offer an official invitation for you to crash in my room tonight. I can literally whip up a second bed, so there's no need for awkwardness." He smiled brightly.

"I'd appreciate that, Harry," Faith responded.

Harry shook his head in amusement. "I wasn't going to mention it, but how come you've stopped using nicknames for me?"

Faith tore her eyes away from his, her bravado depleted at the moment. "You're too good for any of the ones I can think of. So, I think I'll call you just 'Harry.'"

Harry broke out in a big, toothy smile at those words. "That's all I ever wanted to be."

Faith zipped up her bag and took one last look around the room. "That's everything."

Harry pulled out a phial of purple liquid and held it up for Faith. "I wanted to offer you this. It's dreamless sleep potion. It does just what the name says; at least six hours of restful sleep with no nightmares. It's used to alleviate trauma. And it's the last dose I have." He held the phial out to her. "I think you might need it more."

Faith gently accepted it. "Why are you doing all of this for me?"

"Because I was in the same pit you are. Still sort of am, if I'm honest. And I know how much I would have appreciated someone to just understand what I was going through. No pity. No lectures."

"Lehane," Faith uttered beneath her breath.

"What?"

"My name," Faith said louder, "is Faith Lehane."

Harry offered his arm to her. "To me, you're just 'Faith.'"

Faith grabbed her bag, and took his arm. As they walked out the door, Harry turned to her.

"You know, I was thinking of moving into an apartment here soon. I could probably use a roommate."

"Do all wizards work this fast?" Faith sarcastically asked.

"Thought you might want to stay somewhere vampires can't kick down your door."

Faith thought a moment. "Can we get a PlayStation?"

**September 4, 1998 – Sunnydale High – Library**

Harry sat at the table with Faith, Oz, Xander, and Cordelia. Across the room, Buffy, Willow, and Giles were talking. Buffy wasn't speaking loudly as though she was telling the whole room, but everyone was able to make out what she was saying.

"Angel was cured," she blurted out, drawing stunned gazes from Willow and Xander. "Your spell worked, Willow. But it was too late.

"The portal was open, we were fighting; then, his eyes glowed, and he was Angel again. He didn't remember what happened. He held me, and then I kissed him. And then I stabbed him." Buffy wiped her eyes, gathering herself up. "I hope that helps with your spell."

Giles nodded solemnly. "Yes, I think it will. Thank you."

Harry rose as Buffy headed to the door. She turned around, signaling him not to follow her.

Willow pleaded with Giles. "Giles, I know I'm pretty new to the witchcraft stuff, but I know I can help you with the spell."

"There is no spell," Giles glumly admitted.

Harry looked around the room, at the contemplative faces of all those present. There was no scorn, no pity, just worry. 'They understand. They know what it's like.'

"Could you guys stay put?" Harry asked. "I'm going to bring Buffy back."

Harry ran out the library doors. The Scoobies looked amongst themselves in confusion.

"What do you think he's doing?" Cordelia asked the room in general.

"I think, he's got something to get off his chest as well," Faith stated.

A few seconds later, Harry returned with Buffy. He guided her to a seat, as he stood before them all. He glanced at them, one by one. 'All like me. Older than their years, facing horrors no one should have to,' he thought.

"I want to tell you all this because of a promise I made to Buffy the other night; that I would share my scars if she shared hers." Harry paused, attempting to steel his resolve. He looked to Buffy and Faith, their silent nods letting him know they understood the weight of what he was doing.

"I've told Buffy a lot of what I'm about to tell you, and some of it you probably picked up while talking to me. There was a war, back home, in the Wizarding world. I've mentioned that I ended it, but I never told you how the final battle started. How I triggered the final battle. Why I hold myself accountable for all those who died."

Over the next few hours, Harry told the Scoobies all about his hunt for the Horcruxes, the race for the Deathly Hallows, the Final Battle of Hogwarts, and how he sacrificed himself. This was the first time he talked about the battle to anyone who wasn't there.