Sam led the way down the beaten path, following Faith's trail back towards the diner.
"Are you sure she was just going t get the food?" Dean asked.
"Haven't you been wondering where your pie is?" Sam asked him incredulously, stopping to shine his flashlight around.
"Well yeah," Dean agreed, "but really, it's not like something's happened to her. You of all people should know."
"She's not invincible Dean," Sam rolled his eyes.
They came to the bridge, Dean stopping to look down the edge of the water as Sam walked straight across.
"Maybe someone contacted her, or she ran into some fangs?" Dean suggested as Sam made it to the other side.
"She would have at least called," Sam frowned, stopping at the other end of the bridge and turning back.
Dean shone his light over the bridge, stopping it on something near the centre.
"What's that?"
Sam jogged up to it as Dean walked up the other side, then stooped to pick it up.
"It's one of Bobby's necklaces," Sam looked up at Dean.
"What's that doing out here?" Dean frowned.
"I gave it to her to ward off posession," Sam stood again, dropping the necklace - which Faith wore as a bracelet - and taking off his jacket.
"What are you doing?" Dean demanded.
But before he could get another word in, Sam dived off the bridge.
"Sammy?!" Dean stood on the edge, shining his flashlight into the water.
Apart from the ripples his brother had made, he saw nothing but dark water. Cursing himself for not grabing his brother in time - who knew what other damage he'd do to himself down there? - he waited for him to come back up. And just when he thought it was getting to be a bit too long, Sam broke the surface.
"Dean help me!" he said between painful yelps, holding Faith's body out of the water as far as he could.
Dean dropped the light and dashed to the water's edge, waiting for his brother to make it to the side. Walking into the water up to his knees, he reached over to grab Faith's shoulders and pull her from Sam. Once back on the grass, he lay her down and started CPR.
Sam was shaking, both from the cold, the pain and the shock, as he watched on.
"I think it's been too long Dean, we don't know when she went over," he shook his head.
"Shut up Sammy!" Dean shouted at him, still pumping.
Sam looked up at the bridge, seeing their flashlights shining over the edge. That had been a long fall. And there was no way it could have been an accident, unless Faith had been balancing on the beam at the time.
"COME ON, DAMNIT!" Dean was shouting as Sam just had to sit by and watch.
He cntinued compressing her chest and breathing into her mouth for a good five minutes or so. Five minutes that felt like five hours. And just when Sam was about to resigningly ask Dean to stop, she took a breath.
"Dean?" Sam crawled forward, the pain from his wound barely registering.
"Stay back Sammy," Dean instructed as she coughed up water, "I'm not sure she's conscious.
"But-"
"It's an unconscious reaction dude."
Sam fidgetted for a moment before pulling out his phone.
"What are you doing?" Dean frowned as he checked for a pulse.
"She needs help Dean," Sam scowled, putting the phone to his ear.
Angel
"Sam," Angel said, as soon as he'd picked up the phone.
He set his pen down on top of the document he'd been reading through.
Sam & Dean
"Angel!" Sam was glad to hear his voice, but Dean looked up at the name.
"It's Faith. She's hurt. We need help."
Angel
Angel's finger immediately pressed another button on his intercom.
"Where are you?"
Sam
"Mississippi. South point of the Trottgate Bridge. Dean was doing CPR and we got her back but she's not responding at all," Sam gulped worriedly, trying to keep his voice steady.
Angel
"Alright."
Angel rubbed his temples.
"I'm sending Tom to come and get you. He's a teleporter. Just remember the phrase 'inspired by your beauty, effulgent'. Don't ask, just remember it."
Sam & Dean
"Can he carry all three of us?" Sam asked.
"Two," Dean amended, "I'm not leaving my car."
Angel
"Yes, he's on his way."
Angel hung up, then informed Tom of what he was meant to do, then got up to start preparing the medical department.
Tom 'ported, landing a few metres away from the group.
Dean & Sam
"Jesus!" Dean jumped a few inches, covering his eyes with his hand.
Sam would have stood to greet him if he could actually stand.
"Tom I take it?" Dean looked up from where he still knelt over Faith.
Angel
"That's me... uh... inspired by your beauty, effulgent."
Tom moved a little closer.
"Which of you am I taking?"
~*~*~*~
Angel had the medical staff on red alert.
Dean & Sam
Dean gave him an odd look, then stood up.
"These two," he pointed between them.
"Be careful with her," Sam insisted, crawling closer.
He looked up at Dean.
"You be ok?"
"Yeah, I'll hit the road when I get back and sort things out. See you in a day or two," Dean nodded, "good luck."
"You too," Sam nodded.
Sam
"I don't know," Sam shook his hand in answer to both questions, hand already plastered at his - once again - open wound.
"She just went out to get us dinner from this place on the other side of the bridge, and didn't come back. We went to find her and I found her at the bottom of the river."
He gulped, hanging his head in pain for a moment.
Angel
"Right, I need a bed and a room for Mr Winchester," Angel ordered the closest nurse. She nodded and rushed off to prepare everything for him.
Angel nodded at Sam.
"Well lets get you patched up and then we can piece it all together."
Sam
"Ok," Sam nodded in agreement, not about to argue.
"I'm sorry I didn't get to her sooner."
Angel
"No, no," Angel shook his head. "I know you did all you could."
He paused.
"Hey Marie? Change that to healer."
"Yes, sir."
Sam
Sam debated with himself whether or not to pull his shirt from the wound, thinking it might be easier for the healer if he could get to the wound.
Crawling to the nearest wall, he sat back against it and began carefully peeling the drenched flannel from the bloody wound. He clenched is teeth in an effort not to make too much sound, but let out a small cry when it came off.
He unbuttoned it quickly and slipped his right arm through so it wouldn't get stuck again, then pulled a face when he saw at least three leeches poking out from under the sagging bandage.
Angel
The healer came towards Sam and bent down next to him. She smiled reassuringly.
"Let's just take care of those first," she said, turning to the nurse. "A lighter."
"Right away."
Angel watched for a second, then left to go see how they were doing with Faith.
Sam
"Thanks," Sam nodded, hoping he wouldn't pass out.
He carefully started removing the bandage, biting into his lip as he did so.
Angel and Faith
"Ok, hold still."
The healer flicked the lighter on and when the bandage was off, she held it against the first leeches back. She followed suit with the remaining two, putting them into the bowl the nurse had set next to them.
"Alright, not so bad, was it?"
~*~*~*~
"She's unresponsive," the doctor said, barely noticing Angel. "Charge to 250?"
Sam
"Just hurry, please," Sam begged, "I'd like to keep my insides on the inside and I don't know how much longer they'll stay there."
Angel
"Ok."
She held her hand over Sam's wound and a light seemed to shine from her hands.
She removed them and then wiped the blood away with a piece of gauze.
"How's that feel?"
~*~*~*~
Angel watched, stoic at the doorway.
"Still nothing," the nurse said.
"Try again," Angel said.
"Charge to 300. Push some more atrephine."
Sam
Sam took a moment to get his breathing back to normal, then nodded.
"Great, thankyou," he smiled at her.
He took another moment to gather himself, then leant on the wall to pick himself up.
Angel and Faith
"No change," the nurse said again.
"Try again!" Angel shouted.
The doctor looked at him, then nodded. "Charge them again."
~*~*~*~
Faith was aware of noise around her, but she couldn't quite make her way to the surface.
~*~*~*~
The monitor let out a long beep, flatline.
"Do something!"
Sam
Sam appeared in the doorway in time to hear the flatline.
He kept behind Angel, having no authority here, suddenly wishing he'd picked up Scott's power at some point...
Angel and Faith
"How long was she down there?" the doctor asked, turning to Angel and Sam.
"I'm not sure," Angel replied. He looked at Sam, then nodded to the nurse, who was coming with a blanket. "Sam, you should get into a bed, get warm."
"Charge again, push another," the doctor said to the nearest nurse.
Faith's chest lifted from the electrical charge, but the monitor remained the same.
Sam
"No, no," Sam insisted, everything including his voice still shaking and dripping wet.
"We can't lose her now. We had her on the shore!"
Angel and Faith
Angel took the blanket from the nurse and seeing Sam wasn't being very responsive, he threw it over the taller man's shoulders.
"It's ok," he said, more to himself than to Sam.
"Push another mill," the doctor ordered. "Clear!"
"Clear."
Faith's chest lifted again, no change.
~*~*~*~
She could hear beeping and a lot of noise, but it almost felt like she was listening to the radio. Disconnected.
Sam
Sam glanced at Angel, looking like he was having trouble holding himself back from running to her bedside.
Still, the vampire was intimidating. And there wasn't anything he knew he could do.
Angel
Angel closed his eyes for a second.
"She's hypothermic and dropping," the nurse said.
"No, we had her at 88 before, push another mill."
"I'm not doing this," Angel muttered, turning to leave.
Sam
Sam wathed him leave with a frown, not believing he was just... giving up.
"Keep going," he stepped further into the room, but still keeping out of the doctors' way.
Angel and Gunn
"Some do come back from this," Gunn said to Angel quietly.
"I know the science here," Angel replied steadily. "I'm not watching this."
"You have a responsibility to Faith."
~*~*~*~
"What's the temp?" the doctor asked.
"We're up to 90."
"Good. Charge again."
Sam
Sam allowed himself to take a small breath of relief, but he remained stoic.
Placing his palms together he kissed his thumbs, praying silently.
Angel and Faith
"I can't," Angel said to Gunn, shaking his head. "I just can't go back and watch her."
"Listen to me. This is about you and the woman you call your person. And you do know the science here. And if she dies, and you aren't in there when that happens, I can't see you coming back from that," Gunn replied.
~*~*~*~
"It's been twenty minutes, doctor," the nurse said quietly. "No change."
"I've seen some patients come back from this an hour later," the doctor replied. "We keep trying."
"Clear."
Faith's body lifted, and one arm fell off the table, hanging lifelessly.
Sam
Tears were running down Sam's face, but he finally managed to pluck the courage to say the one thing he never thought he'd have to.
"Leave her," he breathed, using all his energy to keep his voice steady.
He stepped around to the end of the bed.
"You've done all you can."
Gunn and Angel
"She will survive this, Angel," Gunn said firmly. "She's stronger than this."
Angel looked at the ground.
~*~*~*~
The doctor nodded, and the staff quickly cleared the room, in order to give Sam some privacy.
"I'm very sorry," he said to Sam as he left, patting his shoulder.
Faith lay motionless on the bed, her face pale, wet hair falling in ropes on the pillow.
Sam
Sam nodded in reply to the doctor, then hung his head as they left the room.
After a good few minutes he stepped around to the side and pulled up a chair.
Gunn, Angel and Faith
"Come on," Gunn said softly. "You have to see her. Otherwise, you know she's gonna go all Casper on your ass."
Angel didn't smile, but he stood from his desk.
~*~*~*~
"You can't stay here, Faith."
Faith turned around and furrowed her eyebrows at the new arrival.
"I don't want to!"
"Yeah, you do," Buffy told her, shrugging. "It's easier, but you can't. Because Gunn's sister died, because Angel lost me, because Tru just lost Lia, and the boys, they lost their dad... and when Sam was in college - "
"Stop!" Faith protested.
"They are barely breathing, this will break them, and none of them deserve that," Buffy told her gently, but firmly. "And this? This is the big one, so pay attention. Do you know what kind of a miracle it is that Sammy is who he is?"
Faith looked at her feet.
"Do you know how rare it is that someone like him even exists? He still believes in the good. He still believes in true love and magic and soulmates. He's waiting for you, and if you don't come back from this... you will change who he is," she continued.
Sam
Sam took Faith's hand in his and squeezed it tightly, breaking down into full on tears.
He held her hand to his forehead, hating that if felt so cold already.
~*~
"Who he is, can't be changed," a new face stepped forward into the Faith and Buffy conversation.
"It was ingrained when he was six months old."
Angel, Gunn and Faith
"Mr Winchester is in with her," the nurse said to Angel in a tone that suggested they were not in there having a chat.
Gunn tilted his head to look into the room, and slowly, raised his arm to put it on Angel's shoulder.
~*~*~*~
Faith looked over at the new arrival, eyes flicking over his face. His eyes caught her attention. Something about them was strangely familiar.
"Guess this is my cue to leave," Buffy said, turning back to Faith. She leant over and kissed Faith's forehead. "Go back. There's work to be done there."
Buffy stepped back, slowly disappearing into shadows.
"You're..." Faith looked over at John. "You're their Dad, aren't you?"
Sam
Sam could feel them behind him, but just ignored them.
Instead he kissed her hand again and placed it across her chest, before putting his hand on her forehead and massaging it with his thumb.
~~
John nodded, sullenly.
"Faith, you have to stop him."
Gunn, Angel and Faith
Gunn watched Angel make his way to the doorway.
The vampire's head drooped and he turned away.
~*~*~*~
"I'm trying," Faith said to John, her eyes meeting his. "I tried."
Sam
Sam took a few deep breaths, absently glancing at the clock. It had been ten minutes or so with just him in the room.
~*~
"That's not what I mean," John blinked slowly.
"When the time came, Dean couldn't do it. I need you to be able to. You're the only other person he trusts to do the right thing."
Angel and Faith
Angel turned away, unable to say anything, and he swiftly left.
~*~*~*~
Faith nodded.
"Alright."
Sam
Sam took a deep breath and closed his eyes, hanging his head. Slowly, his sadness was turning to ange.
~*~
John nodded.
"You can't let him become the end," he said, before turning to walk into the distance, "go back and finish it."
~*~
Without Sam even noticing it, small blue sparks suddenly left his fingertips and sunk deep into Faith's brain and central nervous system.
Gunn, Angel and Faith
"Angel!" Gunn called after him, before following his boss.
Angel punched the elevator buttons.
~*~*~*~
"I will."
Faith glanced at the ground for a second.
~*~*~*~
Her eyes fluttered slightly.
"O... ow."
Sam
Sam gasped in shock, eyes wide as he pulled his hands back.
"Faith?!"
Angel, Gunn and Faith
Angel's head snapped up, suddenly feeling a few connection form. He ran back towards the room.
Gunn sighed slightly, then followed after him.
~*~*~*~
"Tell Dean I got his freaking pie," Faith said, her eyes still closed.
Sam
Sam grinned, choking a little on his tears, then laughed.
"Faith you're ok!" he exclaimed, putting his hand on her cheek and kissing her on the lips.
Faith, Angel and Gunn
Faith smiled, her eyes opening slowly.
"Told you I'd always come back, didn't I?"
"Should've known this wouldn't stop you," Angel said, from the doorway, eyes damp with his own tears.
"Yeah, we really gotta learn to have more faith," Gunn quipped.
"I was wondering how long it would take you to make that lame joke," Faith said tiredly.
Angel stepped forward to the bed. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Glad you're back."
Sam
"You were flatlined for over half an hour," Sam stared at her incredulously.
"I don't know what happened!"
Faith, Angel and Gunn
"It's because I'm awesome," Faith replied.
Angel smiled and touched her cheek. "I'll come back later, give you two some time."
He stepped away, patting Sam's shoulder as he and Gunn left the room.
Sam
Sam watched over his shoulder as they left, before turning back to face Faith.
"What do you remember?" he asked, sniffing a little as he took her hand in his again.
Faith
"Dean telling me to get pie."
Faith squeezed his hand as best she could.
"Then... I don't know. I'm here."
Sam
Sam frowned.
"You mean you don't remember anything?" he asked.
Faith
"Hey, I just died. My brain is a little fuzzy right now."
Faith pouted slightly.
"But no. I don't remember anything. What happened to me? Oh, and why are you wet?"
Sam
Sam smirked.
"You're wet too Faith, you drowned," he pointed out.
Faith
"Really?" Faith raised an eyebrow, then winced.
"Ow, my head hurts. It feels big. Is it big?"
Sam
"Not yet," Sam shrugged, putting his hand over her forehead like he had earlier, careful to avoid the big welt forming there.
"Looks like you took a hard hit. Maybe from the fall. You fell off the bridge, I found your bracelet there and you underwater."
Faith
"I was on a bridge?"
Faith reached for Sam's other hand.
"Wow, my memory coming back would be nice."
Sam
"You remember getting Dean's pie, but you don't remember crossing the bridge to get it?" Sam raised an eyebrow.
Faith
"Vaguely."
Faith looked thoughtful.
"I remember crossing it to get there. Not coming back though."
Sam
"That must be when it happened," Sam said thoughtfully.
He felt his fingers tingling suddenly, and quickly pulled them away from Faith's forehead. Not able to help himself, he chuckled a little when he saw static holding some of her hair up.
Faith
"You're a weirdo," Faith mumbled.
She lifted a hand to rub her eye.
"Wait... weren't we in Mississippi? How did we get here? Where's Dean?"
Sam
"It was static," Sam explained himself, "they pumped you with a lot of electricity when they tried to revive you, I guess it's still in there."
He cleared his throat and wiped his eyes.
"I caled Angel and he got us a teleporter. Dean hit the road last night, he should be here tomorrow sometime."
Faith
Faith grinned slightly.
"Let me guess... inspired by your beauty, effulgent?"
She chuckled.
Sam
"Yeah that," Sam looked confused.
"That was... creative."
Faith
Faith snickered.
"Back before Spike was a vampire, he used to write these terrible love poems. That's a line from one of them."
Sam
"Oh," Sam's eyebrows rose.
"Ok then. That explains it."
Faith
"Rule One of Team Angel. Annoy Spike as often as you can."
Faith smiled tiredly.
"How'd you find me, if I was all with the drowning?"
Sam
"Like I said, your bracelet."
Sam fetched it from his jeans pocket and handed it over.
"It must have fallen off if you fought back whoever threw you over."
Faith
"Oh."
Faith fingered the necklace for a second, flashes of a memory coming back to her.
"Ugh."
Sam
"What is it?" Sam asked, almost hopefully.
Faith
"Nothing useful," Faith said softly.
She turned her head to the side, flashes of water all around her.
Sam
Sam sighed.
"Nevermind. If it comes back, it comes back. I'm sure there's other ways to find out what happened."
Faith
"Sorry."
Faith looked over at him.
"Hey, how's your stomach?"
Sam
"Don't worry," Sam smied a little.
He looked down at his bloodstained shirt, then pulled it aside so that she could see.
Faith
"Oh. Oh!"
Faith reached out to touch his stomach lightly.
"Well, that's good. Guess the fun stuff is back on the menu."
Sam
"Not quite," Sam mused.
"We have to get you better now."
Faith
Faith smiled faintly.
"Eh, I heal pretty quickly. I'll be right as rain in a few days."
Sam
"I hope so," Sam teased a little, twirling some of her hair around his finger.
"Because we have a lot to catch up on. If you know what I mean."
Faith
"I... don't know what you're talking about," Faith replied, her tongue sticking out a little.
"Is this your quiet way of seducing me, Pip?"
Sam
"No," Sam shook his head innocently.
"It's just my way of telling you to prepare for lots of sex. I mean, if you can handle it. If it's not too much..." he teased.
Faith
Faith grinned, and pulled him by the collar down for a kiss.
"Oh, I think I can handle it. I mean, you gotta get back on the horse, right?"
Sam
"Eventually," Sam agreed, kissing her again before standing up.
"For now, you need your rest."
Faith
Faith reached for his hand.
"Stay until I sleep?"
Sam
Sam looked down at her and sighed.
"If I stay, you won't sleep," his eyebows rose.
"But I think Angel wanted to see you anyway."
Faith
"Actually," Faith said, nodding. "Yeah... I want to see him too."
She rubbed her nose.
Sam
"I'll go get him," Sam nodded, giving her hand one final squeeze before letting go.
"And I'll be back later."
Faith
"Ok," Faith said tiredly.
"And Sam? Go have a shower. Put something warm on."
Sam
"Yeah ok," Sam nodded, turning to leave the room.
He might have a shower, but these were the only clothes he had. He made a left turn and went to find Angel.