DISCLAIMER AND AUTHOR'S NOTE: All Buffy The Vampire Slayer stuff belongs to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and Warner Brothers. No copyright infringement was intended in the writing of this fiction. All other characters that appear belong to me. This story cannot be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies may be made for private use only and must include this copyright notice and disclaimer. There is some subtext in this story. If this kind of stuff is not legal where you live, if you're under 18 or if you don't like the notion of two women being in love, then you should read no further. The Haunted House show is from Jeff Mariotte's Angel novel Haunted. This story is a sequel to Home Sweet Home.

Up and Down
By Kristjan Brezovnik

Three weeks had passed and everyone was nervously awaiting what the judge would decide. Mrs Chase has gone with Ms Delfino, Ms O'Brien, Judy and Lucy in order to help them out.

"How was it, Mom?" Jasmine asked when Mrs Chase finally got home.

Mrs Chase smiled.

"We were successful."

"Yeah?" Jasmine said, excited.

"Yes. We were lucky that the judge was very liberal. Judy and Lucy were crying when the judge let Mr Delfino and Ms O'Brien become their legal guardians."

"I bet. I'm so glad it worked."

"Me too."

"Can't wait to tell Faith."

"Congratulations!" Sara said when she, Daisy and Faith visited Judy and Lucy in the afternoon.

Judy and Lucy flashed big smiles and they hugged them.

"We owe it all to you two," Judy said.

Sara and Daisy blushed, feeling a bit awkward.

"It's okay," Daisy said.

"Hello, girls," Ms Delfino said when she and Ms O'Brien came downstairs.

"Congratulations," Faith said.

The teachers smiled.

"Thank you."

"You know," Lucy said, "for a while things didn't look well, but then Mrs Chase made a speech and the social services guy didn't stand a chance."

Faith smiled.

"She can be pretty convincing."

"And she definitely loves you," Ms O'Brien said.

Faith's smile widened.

"I know." She looked at her friends. "Listen, I just dropped by to congratulate you. Why don't you come to the park later, everyone's gonna be there."

"Okay," Judy said. She looked at Ms O'Brien. "We can go, right?"

Ms O'Brien smiled.

"Yes, of course."

"Okay." She looked back at Faith. "We'll be there."

"Okay. See you later then." She looked at the teachers. "Congratulations again."

The teachers smiled.

"Thank you," Ms Delfino said.

"See you," Faith said and left.

"Hey, guys," Lucy said as she, Judy, Sara and Daisy came to the park.

"Hey," Renee said. "How does it feel to have a family?"

Judy and Lucy both smiled widely.

"Awesome," Judy said.

"Faith's mom helped a lot," Lucy added.

"Yeah, the social services guy didn't stand a chance."

"Yeah." She took a deep breath. "I'm still a bit… Wow! I mean, we have a real family."

Faith smiled.

"I know what you mean."

"Hey, let's go to the merry-go-round," Judy said.

Lucy looked at the merry-go-round and smiled.

"Okay," she agreed and they ran off.

Faith smiled.

"I'm glad they still have some innocence left," she said.

"Yes," Renee said.

As Petra was returning from patrol in the evening, she didn't notice that she was followed. Normally, she would notice anyone, even a Slayer, but her followers were masters of hiding and she wasn't really paying attention. When she got to the mansion, which was now her home, she stopped in the middle of the room and just stood there. She really didn't have anything to do and the only things she bought was food and clothes and those only when she needed them. She didn’t go out because she still didn't feel comfortable around people.

She threw back her head and closed her eyes, trying to clear her mind.

Suddenly she felt that she was not alone and she shifted into battle mode within a fraction of a second. She detected ten people in the room and she was surprised that she didn't hear them come in. But there was no time to dwell on the past, she was in danger.

The intruders moved and so did Petra. She had three attackers on the ground on her first pass and she was surprised to notice that they were obviously Human. Of course, they might've been vampires, but if they were, they hadn't changed their faces. Which meant that she couldn't kill them. So she decided to knock them out first and ask questions later.

It was all over in less than thirty seconds and the attackers were scattered around the room, moaning from pain. She went to the closest and grabbed her neck.

"Who sent you?" she asked.

The woman refused to answer, so she applied more pressure.

"I did," one of the attackers said and got up.

Petra let go of the woman and approached the leader. It was another woman.

"Why?"

The woman changed her face and the rest did the same. They were fallen angels.

"You killed half my family and you almost killed me," the woman said.

Petra gasped as she recognized the face and her hand went to her face, her fingers brushing the three tears on her face that were different from the rest. She swallowed.

"I'm sorry," she said.

The fallen angel was surprised.

"What?"

"I'm sorry," Petra repeated and avoided looking into her eyes.

The fallen angel stared at her, surprised, an apology was not what she had expected.

"And this is supposed to make everything alright?" she demanded.

Petra shook her head.

"No," she croaked.

"Everything okay?"

Everyone turned at the sound of new voice. It was Faith.

A fallen angel snarled at her and Faith blinked at him.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" she asked.

A fallen angel blinked.

"Yes."

Faith shook her head.

"That's no way to scare people. I can do better." She grinned. "Wanna know how?"

The fallen angel looked around for some support, confused.

"How?"

"Simply. I'm a Slayer."

The fallen angel immediately backed off. Faith chuckled and then went to Petra.

"You okay?" she asked, noticing how pale the girl was.

Petra didn't move or respond, so Faith looked at the fallen angel who seemed to be in charge.

"And you are?" she asked the woman.

"Margaret," the woman said.

"Aha." She looked around. "You're fallen angels. Now, as I recall, Mrs Stewart said that you would not cause problems. So, why are you here? All beaten up, I might add."

"She killed my father, my brother and my son and she nearly killed me as well."

Faith looked at Petra.

"That true?"

Petra nodded and Faith took a deep breath. She looked at Margaret again.

"I suppose you want revenge," she said.

"Yes."

Faith shook her head.

"You've been among us for too long," she said and sighed. "Look, I'm not exactly impartial here since I'm her friend and I've killed people myself, but I can tell you what happened to me. I've killed three people and the granddaughter of the last victim came to town this year. She liked me and she even asked me on a date. I was sick when I found out who she was and I felt guilty all over again. I still do." She paused. "Then she caught me bringing flowers to her grandfather's grave and I confessed everything, even though I could probably get away with an excuse. But I didn't want to lie to her, I couldn't. She wanted to know why and I told her my life story. I don't know if she believed it, but she decided to think about it. She secretly followed me around when I went on patrol and then decided not to turn me in. She even saved my life." She paused again. "I know she didn't do it because of me, she did it because of the people I might save." She glanced at Petra. "Petra here was kidnapped by a vamp when she was young and someone cursed her with immortality. She was forced to fight for millennia, killing anyone who could afford to pay the entry fee. Or whoever her master forced to fight her. Losing was not an option, not because she was afraid of death but because she knew her master would punish her. And believe me, I know what it's like to be afraid of someone, because my mom, my birth mom, used to beat me." She paused for a moment. "When her master was killed, she was surprised that he could be killed. And when he died, the spell was broken and she was free." She paused again. "She tried to kill herself, but she couldn't." She nodded at Petra. "See those tattooed tears on her face? She put them there to remind herself of the humans and fallen angels she had killed. Even under the spell she still felt guilty." She sighed. "Give her a chance. If not for her sake, do it for the sake of the people she could save."

Margaret stared at Faith and then looked at Petra, who was standing still as a statue, staring at the floor, tears wetting her cheeks. She was confused, her resolve to kill Petra not so firm anymore. And tears were the last thing she had expected. Not to mention that the Slayer's story didn't help. Her kind were not prone to senseless violence, but they had long memories, photographic in fact, and she could still see her father, brother and son being slaughtered and she also remembered how close to death at Petra's hands she was. But then another detail came to mind, Petra's eyes. Margaret was confused, not sure what to make of them at first, but then she realized what it was. Petra's eyes weren't completely devoid of emotion, there was one emotion there, well hidden. Fear. Of what, Margaret wasn't sure, but Petra had been afraid, in spite of the fact that she was clearly winning against her.

And of course, the Slayer had a point. If Petra had indeed been a slave and was now free, she could help a lot of people and that was basically what her kind did as well, in spite of the fact that they had been banished from Heaven. They had made a mistake, but they had made it believing that they were doing what was right. They were paying for their mistake now, but they were still on the side of good. And it seemed Petra was as well, they had seen her fight to protect people. She sighed and nodded.

"I will," she said and Petra looked at her, surprised.

They stared at one another for a few moments and then Margaret changed back to her Human face and left. The other fallen angels did the same.

Petra stared after them until they were gone and then her shoulders slouched and she sobbed.

Faith hesitated for a moment and then stepped closer, wanting to hug her and comfort her, but Petra stepped back.

"I want to be alone," she said.

"Are you sure?" Faith asked.

Petra nodded. Faith stared at her for a few moments, realizing that in spite of her biological age Petra's emotional age was that of a teenage girl, of one with a badly scared soul.

"You're not a bad person," she said and Petra looked at her, surprised. "And I don't blame you for trying to kill me." She smiled softly. "Everything will be okay, you'll see."

Petra just stared at her and didn't respond. Faith sighed and left, hoping that everything would indeed be alright. When she was gone, Petra slowly looked around the room. It was a mess. She briefly considered cleaning up but then discarded the idea, she had way too much on her mind. She sighed and went to the sofa. She sat down and thought.

Faith was on her way home when Dawn Ashcroft approached her.

"Faith."

"Hey," Faith said.

"I got news for you."

"Yeah?"

"There are some new vampires in town. People pay them to suck their blood."

Faith chuckled.

"Talk about irony." Then her face became serious. "But not till death, right?"

"No. It's like a brothel, killing the customers is bad for business."

Faith grinned.

"Right. Show me."

When they got to the place, Dawn waited outside. Faith entered and looked around.

"This place is a dump," she told the nearest vampire. "Who's in charge?"

"What do you care?" the vamp said.

"I'm the Slayer, it's my job to make sure people are safe," she said and the vamp backed off, eyes wide. "And in this place they're not. I mean, look, there's a mouse."

The vamps stared at her for a few moments and then looked at the mouse.

"Eh, yeah?" he said, confused because Faith was worried about a mouse instead of the Humans.

"That's not very hygienic, is it?"

"Eh, no," the vamp said, nervous and confused.

"Thought so. Now, you get all your friends down here. Now."

She tapped her foot meaningfully and the vamp ran away. Then she looked around, thinking about wiping out the vamps, but she decided not to, after all, they were harmless and could be potentially useful.

The vamps quickly lined up and Faith saw that they were nervous.

"Okay, who's in charge?"

The vamps hesitated and finally one of them stepped forward.

"I am."

Faith looked at her.

"Okay. What's your name?"

"Nancy."

"Okay, Nancy, I need to know a few things before I make up my mind about you. First, do you bleed your customers dry?"

"No," Nancy said, nervous.

"Do you turn them?"

"No."

Faith thought for a few moments.

"Ever killed a Human?"

Nancy hesitated.

"Eh, yeah."

"Ever turned one?"

"Eh, no."

"Neither of you?"

Nancy thought for a moment.

"No."

"Okay. I'm guessing here that you don't particularly care about being evil, am I right?"

Nancy glanced at the rest.

"Eh, yeah."

"Okay."

"And you have no desire of letting the Old Ones rule the Earth?"

"No," Nancy said and shuddered at the thought.

Faith grinned.

"Okay, here's the deal. You guys can run this brothel, but there are a few rules. You break them, you're history."

"What rules?" Nancy asked, less nervous now that she believed that Faith wouldn't kill them.

"Well, first and foremost, you don't kill or turn Humans."

"Okay," Nancy quickly agreed.

"I want you to clean up this dump, it's not hygienic. Also, I want you to get a couple of first aid kits, in case you bleed someone too much. And if you do, I want you to take him or her to the hospital and I want to be told about it."

"Okay," Nancy said and glanced at the other vamps, who were nodding eagerly.

"Good. I'll come around in a few days to see if you've cleaned up. Oh yeah, I want a list of all of you working here."

"Sharon," Nancy quickly one of the vamps.

Sharon ran away to get a piece of paper and something to write with.

"Keep quiet about this deal," Faith said. "And don't accept any new members, this deal only goes for you here."

"Okay," Nancy said.

"Good. Oh yeah, and if you hear about anyone trying to cause an apocalypse or just plain old kill me or any of my friends, I'd appreciate it if you let me know."

"We will," Nancy said eagerly.

"Good."

Nancy hesitated for a moment

"Eh, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Why didn't you just kill us? I mean, you're a Slayer."

Faith shrugged.

"I've been a Slayer long enough to know that not all demons are evil. Sure, it takes extreme measures with vamps, but it's possible. And if you behave, I don't mind you sucking off people who want to be sucked off. I mean, better that than doing drugs or something."

"Oh."

"Here," Sharon said and gave the list to Nancy.

Nancy glanced at it to make sure it was complete and then gave it to Faith.

"Okay," Faith said, glancing at it. "I'll tell my friends about you. They may not be very happy about it, especially Buffy, so I suggest you keep a low profile. And if one of my friends comes across you and wants to stake you, just tell them you have a license."

"A license?" Nancy asked, confused.

"To operate a brothel."

"Oh."

"I'll come around in a couple of days to see what you've done with this place."

Faith left and the vamps stared after her, surprised and relieved.

"She didn't kill us," Sharon said, surprised.

"Okay, you heard her," Nancy said. "Those of you that have customers, go back to them, the rest of you start cleaning up. Oh," she added before they left, "and if anyone breaks the rules, I'll personally kill him. Slowly. Now go."

"How'd it go?" Dawn asked when Faith came out.

"Fine. They're not very evil, I guess, and they agreed to my rules."

"So you're gonna let them live and operate this… whore house?"

Faith grinned.

"Yeah. You can join them, if you want."

Dawn thought for a moment.

"I don't think so."

Faith raised an eyebrow, surprised.

"They can drink Human blood," she pointed out.

"I know. But I'm afraid that if I taste it, I'll start killing Humans again."

"Oh. Your choice. Keep an eye on them, okay?"

Dawn nodded.

"I will."

"Good."

"Hey," Faith said when she and Cordelia met in their dreams.

Cordelia smiled.

"Hey," she said as they hugged.

"You okay?" Faith asked and let go of her.

"Yes."

"I could feel your pain and I was so worried. I felt like I was just a distant observer of your dreams."

"I know."

"You know, you're just too stubborn sometimes."

Cordelia smiled again.

"I know. And a good thing I was."

"Yes."

Cordelia shook her head.

"Still, with my experience, I should've known that if something is called the Haunted House, it's going to end up a haunted house."

Faith grinned.

"Yeah." She sighed. "I was this close to coming to LA and tearing that house apart. Especially when Doyle visited you on Thursday."

Cordelia smiled again and caressed her.

"I know. Still, it was nice. Doyle's visit, I mean."

"Yeah, I guess." She shook her head. "That wife-swapping business kinda freaked me out. I mean, hello? The wife's dead, get over it." She hugged Cordelia around the waist. "You're irreplaceable," she said and kissed her briefly on the lips.

Cordelia smiled.

"You're irreplaceable too, Faith," she said and caressed her. "I can't imagine sleeping with another girl wearing your face."

Faith grinned.

"Not even Jasmine?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Faith!" Cordelia said and swatted her on the arm.

Faith smiled.

"Just kidding." She thought for a moment. "Would you have left Angel Investigations if you'd won?"

Cordelia frowned, thinking.

"I don't know." She sighed. "Still, it would be nice to have a shit load of money."

Faith grinned.

"I bet." She thought for a moment. "Anyway, I made a deal with a couple of vamps today."

"What?"

"Remember how Riley let vamps suck his blood?"

"Unfortunately."

"Well, there's a new group of vamps in town and they run a sort of brothel. They suck people's blood for money."

"Eww."

Faith grinned.

"I know. Still, it's harmless. I made a deal with them, so I expect them to keep their ears open."

"You're letting them drink people's blood?"

"As long as people are willing to let vampires suck their blood it's really none of my business. And I have an extra pair of ears and eyes out there."

Cordelia thought about them.

"I suppose." She sighed. "And how's Alice?"

Faith smiled.

"She's okay. She's looking forward to going to kindergarten."

Cordelia smiled.

"Good. Now let's meld."

The next day, Faith went to Petra to check up on her.

"Hey," she said when Petra opened the door.

"Hi," Petra said, nervous.

"How are you?"

Petra sighed.

"Better."

Faith nodded.

"If you want to talk, you can come to me, any time."

Petra stared at her for a few moments and then nodded.

"And you should come to the park more often, hang out with children, be a kid again."

Petra thought about it.

"I'm not exactly a child."

"I know. But in spite of your age, you still haven't grown up. Psychologically, I mean. Give yourself some time to heal."

Petra nodded.

"I'll try."

Faith smiled.

"Okay." She thought for a moment. "And don't be afraid to care again, no matter how afraid you are of getting hurt or of hurting the people you care about. Trust me, I know."

Petra stared at her for a moment and then nodded.

Faith smiled.

"Well, em, if you don't want to talk about it right now, I'll, em, go."

Petra nodded.

"Okay."

Faith left and Petra stared after her for a while before closing the door.

A couple of hours of thinking later, Petra decided to go to a church. She had never been to one, only to a synagogue, before Julius took her. But she didn't know if there was a synagogue in Sunnydale, so she decided to go to one of the churches, which she had seen plenty of. It didn't bother her that she had been born a Jew, she no longer cared about religion. She believed that there was a god, or Goddess, as she heard Faith say, but she didn't pray anymore. She didn't go to church to pray, she went there to see what it was like and maybe ask for forgiveness.

When she entered the first church she came across, she looked around, curious. But then she saw the Stations of the Cross and the numerous crucifixes and she felt sick.

"Are you okay, child?"

Petra turned around, startled, and saw it was a priest.

"I thought this place was supposed to celebrate life."

"Yes," the priest said, confused.

"Then why is it so full of death?" Petra asked and ran out, leaving the startled priest behind.

"Nice do," Faith said when she and Cordelia met in their dreams.

Cordelia smiled.

"It wasn't my idea."

Faith smiled.

"I know. How's your stomach?"

"Better."

"Kinda spoiled the celebration, huh?"

"Yes."

"So, how's the shoot?"

Cordelia sighed.

"It sucks. The director is a real bastard."

"Want me to come over and kick some sense into him?"

"No, thank you, Angel already did enough damage."

Faith grinned.

"Go, Angel. By the way, nice bikini."

Cordelia rolled her eyes.

"It's stupid."

"I think you looked sexy in it." Faith licked her lips seductively. "Then again, you look sexy in anything."

Cordelia smiled.

"You sure know how to make a girl feel appreciated."

Faith flashed her a big smile.

"That's my job," she said and kissed her.

The next night, Faith was at the Bronze with her friends when she suddenly felt that something was wrong. She tensed and clenched her fists.

"Faith?" Jasmine asked, worried.

"Cordelia," Faith whispered. "Something happened to her."

"Yeah?"

Faith took a deep breath.

"She's not on Earth anymore."

Jasmine raised an eyebrow.

"Really? Was she called in the past like us?"

Faith swallowed hard.

"I don't know. I gotta call Angel."

Faith got up and ran out.

"I'll go with her," Jasmine said and got up. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay," Raelee said, worried.

Faith was half way through dialing Angel Investigations when Mrs Chase came downstairs.

"Faith."

Faith looked at her.

"Hi, Mom," she said and continued dialing.

"Angel just called."

Faith stopped and looked at her again.

"What? What did he say?"

Mrs Chase thought for a moment.

"Well, it was a bit confusing. He said that Cordelia has accidentally been sucked into another dimension."

"What?" Faith said, worried.

"He said they're going after her."

"I'm going with them," she said and finished dialing.

"Angel said they'll probably be gone by the time you get there."

Faith hesitated for a moment and then hung up, tense.

"I'm going to LA tomorrow."

Mrs Chase nodded.

"Okay." She hesitated for a moment. "Can you feel if she is alright?" she asked anxiously.

Faith concentrated for a moment.

"I don't know," she said. "I think she's okay. I mean, I can still feel her, but it's like a distant hum."

"What's it like normally?" Jasmine asked.

Faith thought for a moment.

"Like a… a sheet or a blanket. Like she's just behind my back. It gets stronger if she's near me. But the feeling is still much stronger when she's in LA than it is now."

"Oh."

Faith shuddered.

"I hate this feeling."

"Is it like when we were in the past?"

Faith thought about it.

"Yeah. At least it wasn't a shock this time."

Jasmine grinned.

"Yeah, and at least you two weren't…"

She trailed off, smirking, when Faith glared at her.

"I'll be in my room," Faith said and left.

Mrs Chase shook her head.

"Do you know anything about other dimensions?" she asked Jasmine when Faith was gone.

Jasmine shrugged.

"They're there and they contains aliens and demons. That's about it."

"Oh."

Jasmine smiled.

"That's for the scientists to explain, Mom."

Mrs Chase smiled.

"I'm not trying to explain it, just accept it."

The next morning, Mrs Chase took Faith to the bus station. As they drove, Faith stared out the window, worried about Cordelia. She could feel that Cordelia wasn't worried, but the fact that she was in another dimension worried Faith. Then she suddenly noticed one of Glory's minions. The minion quickly vanished, but it made Faith think. She couldn’t do anything to help Cordelia, but she could protect Dawn. She sighed.

"I've changed my mind, Mom," she said. "I'm going to school."

Mrs Chase looked at her.

"Everything okay?"

Faith sighed.

"I can't do anything to help Cordelia, but I can fight Glory."

Mrs Chase smiled.

"Okay," she said and looked for a place to turn around.

Faith took a deep breath and looked out the window, hoping that Cordelia would be okay.

The End