Disclaimer: Joss owns the characters. I'm just bored.
Distribution: Sure, take it. Send me an addy.
Timeline: s3, before Bad Girls.
Rating : Umm... PG? I don't know.
Summary: B/A romance (kinda), B/A/F (friendship - but read whatever subtext into it you want) fluff (well, sorta.). What are the things that make a home? (I still don't know how that song inspired this fic, but it did.)
Spoilers: Nothing specific.
Author's Notes: Yes, I've started the new Climb. Yes, it'll be out soon. I hope.
Feedback: Yes please! I appreciate anything you're willing to give me.

*^*^*^*

So here we feel sunrise, another breath
Been losing sleep cause i've foreseen my death
And all these times I dream and lose my place
So write it down, so write it down my friend

There's things i'd hate to read out to the world
There's things I love in all the same surrounds
But all these times I read it into space
She's not onto you yet, but she's getting close
My friend

I won't budge
But I won't blame you for trying
It's not easy to contain
I won't budge
But I won't blame you for trying
there's no reason to complain

So here we are sunrise, another call
Been losing touch with everyone I love
And all these lies you weave and call a face
They're not onto you yet
But they're getting close my friend

I won't budge
But I won't blame you for trying
It's not easy to contain
I won't budge
But I won't blame you for trying
There's no reason to complain
It won't budge
But I won't blame you for trying
It's not easy to explain

- Budge, by Motor Ace

*^*^*^*

I laugh, madly, gleefully, and pull them with me, looping through and over and under and around the jets of water that bounce like moonbeams through the night sky. At my side, one arm twisted around my neck, Faith lets out a whoop and dives to the ground, pulling me with her, and we slide in the water, slide in the fountain, slide, slide, slide, slide, slide. Through life and fear and loneliness and that persistent fear I have that they're both going to leave me.

Angel is still standing, smirking down at us, evading my grasp as I try to grab him and haul him down on the ground with me, and he lets out a chuckle as I manage to grab a fistful of wet silk and tug him to my level.

"What, you're too good for swimming?" I ask him playfully, swiping my fingers through the water and splashing him in the face.

"Just likes to play hard to get, B," Faith assures me, pouncing on Angel from the back, taking him by surprise. He lands with a splash, his big chest covering my stomach, and I feel the rumble of laughter as his eyes meet mine.

"Think you're right, Faith," I giggle, and slide further back in the water, tugging him with me, and we both roll under the streams of water.

"You're aware that this is war, right?" Angel informs us, and swings his arm out behind him, seemingly randomly, but he still manages to somehow catch Faith around the waist and toss her down beside me once more.

"You think you can take us?" Faith says, her eyes meeting his challenge. I glance at Angel, and change tactics.

Faith is going down.

In my experience, it's always best to go with the team with the cuter players. Faith's a fox, and all, but Angel trumps them all.

She shrieks as Angel and I move as one, and trap her under the spray.

"Think you can take *us*," Angel asks with a grin, and Faith howls with mock-rage, her chest shaking with laughter.

"Oh, how scary," she exclaims with zero sincerity. "The big bad vampire and Malibu Barbie! How ever shall I survive?"

I give her a tickle and collapse beside her, pulling Angel with me, against me, and holding him close. I can feel his fingers stroking my belly. If we were with anyone but Faith, he'd be nowhere near me. He'd be as far from touching me as he could possibly be. For some reason, with Faith... it's different.

She's family in a completely separate way from everyone else we've ever met.

I don't know what is up with us, tonight. We're acting all carefree, as if we're not superheroes, as if we're not constantly expecting a creepy-crawley bug-eyed dude to pop out of the shadows and kick our collective butt. We're acting as if we don't have a world of responsibility, and as if we're allowed to just be. We're acting like kids.

I like acting like kids. I don't know if I'd really like actually being one - and I know Angel would hate it, cos he just doesn't understand modern pop-culture - but it feels nice to pretend, for a while.

I snuggle up to Faith's side for a moment, completely unconcerned about the water that is currently ruining my suede boots.

Okay, maybe not *completely* unconcerned... but if Angel hasn't spoken up about his precious silk shirt, then I won't mention the boots.

"What you feel like doing tonight?" Faith asks, out of nowhere. I'd pretty much thought that *this* was what we are doing tonight, but hey. I suppose if we stay here much longer, we'll get colds. Or, two of us will. Angel will just get really wrinkly skin.

"Bronze?" I suggest half-heartedly. I mean, there's only so many times you can Bronze it before you want to try something new. Plus... the guys are always there, and as much as I love them, tonight... I just feel at peace, with Angel, and with Faith.

I feel like they understand me in a way that the others never can. Like, they see the darkness in me, and accept it, whereas Will and Xand just sort of ignore it.

"Drag," Faith replies automatically.

"Patrol?" Angel asks. I should have known he'd be the one still thinking about duty.

"Not tonight," I tell him. Not til later, anyway.

"Bar crawling?" Faith suggests, and I don't even dignify that with an answer.

Angel sighs and stands up, taking our hands and pulling us to our feet. I immediately nestle against his side again, and the three of us walk out of the fountain, giggling a little. Well, I giggle. Angel and Faith mostly just smirk. There might be a little chuckling going on there.

"I'm cold," I complain loudly as Angel leans down to pick up his jacket. Obvious? Moi?

He sighs and drapes the leather coat over my shoulders, muttering, "Remind me whose idea it was to go into the fountain again?"

"Aww, c'mon," I grin at him, and poke him playfully in the stomach, "You had fun and you know it, brood boy."

"Admitting to the fun takes away his hard earned cool," Faith says, and I reach out to loop my arm through hers. She's sorta stand-offish sometimes, but I'm very much a contact girl. She's gonna have to live with it.

"Ahh, that's right," I murmur, "There's nothing enigmatic about sitting around in the dark wearing a party hat."

"I can make anything enigmatic," Angel corrects me with a smirk, then says, "Head back to the mansion? I wouldn't mind changing."

"Either would we," I protest, "How come you get first dibs on the changing thing?"

"As I recall," Angel tells me dryly, "You both keep leaving your sparring gear lying around my bathroom because you know I'll give in and wash it for you."

I have to giggle, "Yeah. You wash my blue sweater yet?"

"How 'bout my black tights?" Faith adds, and then rolls her eyes when he glares at us. "What? It's not like you've got anything better to do in the daytime."

I stretch up to kiss his cheek happily. "Besides, you love us."

"If I made you do my laundry, you'd get up on your soapbox about women's rights," Angel reminds us.

"Fuck the soapbox, I'd just kick your ass," Faith smirks.

I lean into Angel more, feeling the slop-slop-slop of my shoes as we wander through the streets, and up the long drive of the mansion.

Faith strips off as soon as we walk through the front door - I swear, the girl has got no shame - and I hear the dull 'slap' of her soaked tank top hitting Angel's floor. She disappears into the laundry to change with a final wink in my direction.

I, of course, shameful prude that I am, am still standing here in my soaking clothes, and I shiver. Peeling off my sweater, I choose to rummage through Angel's closet and steal *his* clothes rather than wear my own. There's something really comforting about way too big clothes when you're cold, don't you think?

Satisfied, I shuffle out of his room - away from his bed, which looks way tempting in too many ways to even mention - and flop onto the couch next to Faith.

She's wearing her black tights and a massive woolen sweater, and she stares at Angel as he lights a fire in his huge stone fireplace.

Angel's still in his wet things. He looks kinda sexy wet. Faith looks at me and smirks, waggling her eyebrows. She wants him bad, but I can't find it within myself to be jealous. What's up with that? If it was Cordelia, there'd be like, a massive Cordelia-sized hole in the floor.

I trust Faith.

Well, mostly. I can't help but hit her when she cocks her head to the side in order to stare at my lover's delectable ass.

My lover. Mine. As in 'belonging to me'. 'If found, please return to Buffy Summers, c/o the Hellmouth, CA.'. Mine.

Hee! Now I've got this nice little mental image of Angel wandering around a desert somewhere without a shirt. Ahh, the wonders of the imagination.

Faith chuckles and grins at me. "Just playin' with ya, B."

I smile back easily at her, and when Angel passes me, I reach up to his wet collar to yank him down for a kiss. He grins at me for a split second when he pulls away, and then he is gone, vanished into the halls of the mansion.

I sigh and lean my head against Faith's shoulder, and I wonder : Is there anywhere that could feel more like home than right here, right now, with them? I feel like we're one - part of a whole, or a team, but still unique and free and just who we're allowed to be.

I wonder, if I could survive without them.

Let's hope I never know.

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