Priss
Priss woke slowly, uncurling and stretching from her position on Faith's feet. Mmm. Nice. As she remembered some of her words from the night before, Priss sighed. Apologies were due. She would put it down to the magick exhaustion and her bad experiences. Perhaps that would help heal this rift she'd forced. Even after these many, many years, she let her temper escape her. Again. Priss dropped off the bed and padded over to the closet before shifting. She grabbed some of Faith's clothes and slipped them on. Her robes were a mess, and then again, Faith's scent was comforting. Clad in pants for the first time for a very long while, Priss headed downstairs. Food. Everybody liked food. A smile spread over Priss's face as she picked her way over the sleeping Potentials and headed towards the kitchen.
Soon, she was humming happily to herself as she explored the Slayer's kitchen. Flour, eggs, milk, butter...pancakes were a fine thing for breakfast. She deftly stirred the heavy misture, catalouging in her mind how many people there would be. She just hoped she'd made enough batter. Very quickly, the delicous smell of cooking pancakes accompanied by her quiet singing filled the air. She played the music also, a simple spell bringing the music to accompany her song. Oddly appropriate, really. Except for the dog part. A bit heavy for morning, but hey. "I am so weak, and I'm so tired. It's hard for me to find enough strength to feed the fire, to fuel my ego. Handcuffs go quickly on my pride and..." She flipped the pancake without missing a beat. "Been beat up, been broken down, nowhere but up when you're facedown on the ground. I'm in last place, if I place at all, but there's hope for this underdog. That's no way, uh huh, me like it. That's no way, uh huh, me like it. Call me the underdog..."
Faith
Faith awoke to the smell of food coming from downstairs. She opened her eyes slowly, saw that Priss was gone, and sat up. She looked to the open closet, saw some of her clothes were missing, and realised Priss must be wearing them. The thought made her smile. She stood up and grabbed some clothes, ran to the bathroom before anyone else could and showered. Once she was showered and dressed she went downstairs and into the kitchen, interrupting Priss while she was singing.
"Morning." Faith's voice was still raspy from sleep, so she poured herself a glass of orange juice and swallowed it in two big gulps.
Priss
"Morning, Faith." Priss smiled and poured a new dollop of batter into the skillet.
"Hey, what smells so good?" A dark skinned girl, one of the Potentials came into the room, rubbing sleep out if her eyes.
"Pancakes."
"Ooh, pancakes!" Priss grinned happily as her news was meet with such glee.
"Get a plate and have some. An apology, of a sorts."
"Can we get Buffy to fight with you more often if we wake up to this?" The girl quipped.
"I do not think she would be amenable to that." Priss shook her head as she slid some of the pancakes onto the plate held out to her. "I do not like to tiff like that often. I had stress, she was annoying, it all worked out." Priss quirked an eyebrow as the girl gaped. "I can talk like you, if I wanna. I just prefer the High English to the slang, sweet." More girls came in and Priss delegated the handing out of pancakes so she could concentrate on cooking. Priss started in on another song, her voice husky. Slow guitar started up and she began to sway. "What will you do when you be lonely? No one waiting by your side. You may run, I won't let you alone. You know it's just your foolish pride. Hey now, got me on my knees, baby. Begging darling please, baby..." She wasn't really concentrating on her surrondings, just basking in the contented nature of the people around her.
"Um. Well, this is a nice surprise." Priss looked up to see Willow standing at the entrance to the kitchen.
"Good morrow, Wicca. Hungry, Faith, Willow?" Priss noticed that Faith didn't have a plate and the music faded out as the cat stopped singing.
Faith
Faith and Willow both accepted their breakfasts and ate in silence. The potentials chatted away happily until Bufy walked into the room, causing silence from everyone. Buffy smiled weakly, accpeted the plate that was given to her, but sat the furthest away from everyone.
"So what's the game plan for today, B?"
"I go to work so as not to get fired. Xander's already at work, Giles still hasn't put in an appearance, I'm going to call Dawnie later today, and you guys are up for more training, I guess."
"You alright with that, Priss?" Willow turned to the cat-girl once more while Faith finished her breakfast before standing up and announcing she was going downstairs for some training.
Giles
Rupert Giles woke slowly to the smell of pancakes, and for a moment, he was back in London as a young boy, when his mum woild make pancakes for breakfast. The pancakes stopped when she died however, so he hadn't had fresh, homemade pancakes since he was 10.
As he approached the kitchen, he heard Priss singing. He stood against the door frame just looking at her. He heard somebody come in, and he quickly hid. For the next ten minutes he just listened, feeling content. It was good that Faith was making a friend. When she was here the first time, she tried to become a part of Buffy's group, of the Scoobies, and it never worked out. She and Buffy were too much alike, so that they just didn't get along, and because her friends were so loyal, if Buffy didn't like Faith, they wouldn't either. He was so deep in thought, that he hadn't noticed that Priss had been speaking about him, in a way that was meant for his ears. SHe was so beautiful, so full of life. And she looked like one of his children, but maybe it was his sorcery, but he could feel the truth when he looked at her. He could feel her wisdom and her age, and he was living in awe of her. He hadn't felt a soul so rich in mysticism since Ethan, but that hurt too much to think about.
Priss
"I needs must sleep again. My head still be healing," Priss said calmly, and Willow winced. "Mayhap later I wilt join thee, Slayer. Buffy, needs must I talk with thee." Priss watched Buffy calmly, and she sighed and then stood up. "Leave the plates, I will clean up the kitchen before I rest." Priss waited for Buffy to leave the house first and then followed her. "Slayer, I must apologise to thee. My behaviour last night was inexusable."
Buffy blinked. She hadn't been expecting an apology. "Um, ok."
"My comments about Angelus were particularily detestable. Angelus and thee deserve better." Priss sighed and looked away. "I am not human, thee must understand this. I may mimic human behaviour and human ethics, but I am *not* human. Despite this, I should not have allowed my pain to get the better of me. An animal in pain often bites the hand that seeks to tend it. I would not have bad blood between us, Slayer. Dost thee accept my apology?"
"Yeah. Um. Thanks for breakfast, it was great." Buffy and Priss shared a smile. "And some of the stuff you said was true too. Like the stuff about Faith. And Angel does like to brood."
"Then I had best let thee go." Priss dipped a curtsey and then headed back inside. "Faith? I wilt help thee train the Potentials later today, if that be aright with thee?"
Priss watched the Potentials file down to the training room, Faith nodded to her question and heading down with them. She started to run hot water into the sink, humming quietly. Her ears pricked up and she spun around, one soapy hand to her mouth as she heard a heart beating that she didn't know about. She'd missed it in the crowded room, but Willow was upstairs, Buffy was getting ready to go and the others were downstairs. So, who was this? "Show thyself, or needst I must call thee out? Thee would not like it, I must assure thee. If thee be one of the Slayer's allies or friends, then I give thee welcome. If not..." Priss trailed away suggestively. "Then thou will see what a godling can do."
Faith
"Cool. Well, I'll be downstairs, if anyone needs me, give me a yell." Faith opened the basement door and ran down the stairs, and began to punch the punching bag. Buffy's words still rung inside her ears and pierced her heart. She knew that these people probably would never trust her again and she had no right to expect that. But it still stung when Buffy spoke about her that way. It would take some time for those wounds of the past to heal completely. Maybe it was the lack of a strong authority figure in her life. Faith shook her head suddenly, trying to clear away her thoughts. She couldn't afford to be so distracted, or to feel so sorry for herself. Besides, she was happy the way she was.
The potentials had gathered on the stairs to watch her. Faith felt the eyes on her and she turned. "I want you all to pair up. Then... you, come here for a second." The girl stepped towards her nervously. "What's your name?"
"Rona."
"Ok Rona, I want you to try and punch me. I'll block it. Watch carefully guys."
Rona did as she was told and Faith blocked her punch swiftly.
"Now, I want you all to have a turn of attacking and defending, then switch. Go!" Faith instructed them, feeling almost proud of herself, before resuming her assault on the punching bag.
Sabre
"Sounds fine t' me. Shall we be goin'then?" Faith led him to the car and he hopped in. They were soon driving through Sunnydale and pulled up at the house. Sabre bounded up the steps, whistling cheerfully.
Priss hadn't known Sabre was coming so was caught quite by surprise when he picked her up from behind and whirled her around. "Put me down, thou great lummox!" She hit his arms with her fists.
"Ah now, that's no greetin fer ye brother, then is it, Priss me girl?" Sabre laughed, and kissed her cheek before putting her down.
"Sabre, pockets." Priss tapped her foot and eyed him. He looked woeful.
"Aw, Priss."
"I know thee, Sabre. Turn out thy pockets. I be sure the Slayer dost *not* want thee introducing her girls to the many substances thou carries with thee. I can smell them." Sabre sighed and then started digging through his pockets, unearthing twists of paper, plastic ziplock bags with *stuff* in them, a hipflask, packets of cigarettes and so forth onto the hall table. Priss sorted through them, clicking her tongue in disgust.
"Do you know how hard it is to get some of that stuff? The Fleteristac for example comes from an alternate dimension. Has no shrimp, which is odd. Oi! Now thet you are no' getting your hands on!" Sabre held a packet protectively to his chest. Priss glared at him.
"Sabre..."
"Oh, no ye don't, ye minx. This be mine. And ye can give me back my smokes and me whisky too. And the pot. I'm sure they've smoked pot, at least once." Sabre glared back.
Faith
Faith watched the exchange between the two cats in amusement. She felt a longing that she had not felt in awhile. She wished she'd had a brother or a sister, someone to play with when she was growing up. Oh well. It did not do to dwell on thoughts.
"Faith, go train the potentials. I'd like a word with Sabre and Priss." Buffy stepped out from the living room, and Faith shot her an evil look, resenting that Buffy was telling her what to do. Never the less, Faith turned around and went down to train the potentials.
"Now... Sabre, is it? How long do you think you two will be staying here?" Buffy fixed him with a steely gaze. She was trying to be considerate, but it was hard when her house was already overflowing with people.
Priss
Priss frowned as the heartbeat sped up, and her nostrils flared. Human male, older, and just a hint of Chaos magick overlaid with books. "Show thyself, watcher in the shadows." Priss fudged on the fact that there weren't really any shadows. "I be growing impatient. And an impatient cat is not a pleasant thing."
Giles
Rupert walked into the room. "I don't think we've officially met yet. Priscilla, daughter of Bastet, I'm Rupert Giles, all that's left of the Watcher's Council. The smell of your pancakes woke me up. I haven't had pancakes since I was a small child in London."
Priss
Priss watched the older man as he walked forward. Rupert Giles. That was the name given to her in loss and pain. "I be glad that my humble talents brought such pleasent nostalgia for thee. I had heard of the Council's demise, and be glad that at least one Watcher survived. I have a message for thee. I think the Wicca would not have told thee yet. I was captured most foolishly by a band of humans who called themselves the Iniative." Priss put up a hand to forestall his speech. "They put an object fo metla in my head that punished my magick using with pain. I was not the first. There was a man there, and he asked me to find you because he would not escape with me. He suffered so because the Chaos was denied him, and he thought that he would never be able to see thee again without regret. His name was Ethan Rayne, and he wept that he had lost your love." Priss could feel the tears building in her eyes. "He hurt, so much. Death was a merciful release." The tears spilled down her cheeks as she remembered the broken man she had comforted in the cells as she recovered from her operation.
Giles
Giles felt his voice quiver. "My Ethan, he. . . he is dead?" His eyes started to fill with tears and he had to sit down quickly. "I. . . uh, I hated him, and yet. . . " He could not finish that scentence. Ethan had been his first lover, his first love. As much as their paths differed in the end, the had started their self-discovedry together. It was because of Ethan that chaos was in his veins, and he had as much compassion as he did. Without Ethan in his life. . . no, he couldn't even bear to think it.
Priss
Priss came forward and wrapped her arms around him. "Shh, love, shh. I know what it is, to love and hate and love again. All snarled and tangled together, mixed with regrets." She leant her head against his shoulder, letting her tears join his. "I regret that I only knew him for such a short time. But those who did that unto him...they are quite bloodily, violently, painfully dead. My sibs burnt that obscene base to the ground...the flames crowded through the halls, and Ethan went out in Chaos, as he would have wished to. They cut his connection with the Chaos...and he pined for it. Weep for him, but do not forget him. He loved thee, and at the end all he wished is that he could see you, apologise for wrongs he had done."
Giles
Trying to stop his tears, Rupert swallowed. "Thank you, Priscilla, for bringing me this message. Ethan was my world once. We allowed Janusz to separate us, but now I see we are only the twofaces, always together. Your mother is a Power, do you have a connection with Janusz, or is Chaos not your true magick?"
Priss
"I be Light. I forswore the Middle Path an age ago. I take the Higher Path now, and hard and lonesome it do be. My sister, Nyx, be quite of the Chaos line though. I belong to the Earth." Priss breathed in his scent. Nice. Comforting. She started to purr.
Giles
"You truly are a cat, in so many ways." Giles let Priss nuzzle up against him, and breathed in her warm scent. She smelt of spices and of beauty and of magick and strength. He just held her, for several minutes, as his tears faded away.
"Forgive me Priss," he finally spoke, "But as their Watcher, I must go help the girls train."
Priss
"Duty calls, as it ever does." Priss breathed in his scent for a moment, and then licked at his tear tracks delicately before moving away. "I will help later. I needs must rest, I still be weak. Till later, Watcher."
Giles
Embracing once more, the two headed down to the training room.