Title: Nightmares

Author: WesFan (I hate this name. I'm gonna change it soon. One of those things where the muse was not there that day to make up a kooky name.)

Summary: Sequel to "Dreams". Faith and Wesley have escaped hell. Now why are they going back in?

Pairings: Wesley/Faith, Connor/Dawn, don't know down the road yet, so there may be others.

Rating: R for strong language (it's Faith's fault, along with her buddy, good ole' Wes), some sexual situations, and violence (those Americans, too much violence)

Disclaimer: I'm only borrowing them from the genius that is Joss. I only own the baby slayers that I have created.

Note: This is the sequel to "Dreams". So you have to read the story to know what's happening. Total AU story taking place right after Connor killed Jasmine in "Peace Out". So no Lilah making her offer, no taking Cordy hostage. Connor runs off to find himself and LA goes to pieces, making the demon war possible. So I changed "Peace Out". Sue me. I hated the fifth season not because of the acting, which by the way was the best ever, but the amount of people that died. I never wanted Cordy, Fred and Wes to die. And Spike is still dead, so he's not going to appear. Thanks to all that read before. You guys are great reviewers. So here's my version of the future for them. Please review any time. I need feedback!!!

Chapter One -- Same Old Faith

"Same old Faith," Wesley thought as he helped strap her in. They were riding in a helicopter in the middle of a war zone.

He just thought it ironic that they weren't enemies in this situation. They had worked together as a team and it had gotten them out of a very tough situation. Connor and Dawn had also survived the ordeal intact. Wounded, but intact. The two would heal in time. Both had survived worse.

He had survived worse. Faith had survived worse. This counted as right up there in challenging situations in his book.

Looking over at Faith, he wondered what on earth he saw in her. Stubborn, angry, unreasonable, didn't care for authority, and oh that thing about killing people. Had she paid for all that she had done?

Good question was had he paid for all the heartache he had caused? Part of the evidence sat not two feet from him in the form of Connor. Angel's son. The child who should not be, but is. Child of two vampires. Child that he stole from his father to be taken away viciously.

The wound on his neck would never heal in his mind.

So, Faith and he were two of a kind. They sought redemption from the horrendous things they had done.

But what was the score? Faith had gone to jail, willingly, had not caused so much as a ruckus until Wesley had broken her out. To fix another one of his mistakes.

Bringing out Angelus had been his idea and his responsibility. He handed it over to Faith when the situation had gotten out of control and she solved his problem. Cage the beast to make him whole. To restore his soul. There was no way to fix it otherwise. So Faith saved the world from an unspeakable evil, again.

Then she helped Buffy rid the world of the First and his minions, without hesitation. Faith, a big whooping 2, Wesley 0.

Angelus did kill the Beast though, which maybe helped their cause. Can't really score any points for that. Wesley couldn't think of any instances where he had saved the world or any significant part of it. A few people here and there. He guessed that was something.

Was he jealous of Faith? Yes, only for the fact that she had found a way to start redeeming herself while he was still searching.

Fight the good fight. Don't get killed. Stay alive to fight another day. Things he had heard Buffy and Angel say. Was he better off alive than dead? Would he gladly trade places with Angel? Might have done more good, he thought. He might know what to do in this situation.

But Wesley had muddled through the best he could and they were all alive on his watch. But something had gone significantly wrong with the picture.

Faith had become linked with him somehow through unknown forces. At first, it was subtle, then became amusing, then a mystery, and then downright scary.

Faith had said something to him in her mind not more than an hour ago that she was becoming him and he was becoming her. She didn't mean it in the sense that they were switching bodies. Their personalities were changing, melding together. Even sitting there on the helicopter after the most recent battle, Wesley still felt the urge to hit something.

Faith had talked HIM down several times, not the other way around. He was supposed to be the wise, old leader. Not the cocky, brash kid who couldn't get enough violence.

Whoever had put them in this situation obviously did not see the consequences. Faith still maintained her slayer abilities, but with his skills being added every day. Would he lose his and maybe gain some of hers? He'd test her abilities and his the first opportunity he had.

But it was the negative personality traits that troubled him. His planning skills were shot, his reactions to things emotional not at all characteristic, his violent tendencies unchecked, all appearing at the forefront. These were things that he had prided himself in doing, controlling. Have a plan, be detached from that plan and only use force if necessary.

He wasn't acting like the watcher he was trained to be, the man his father trained him to be. He was acting a hell of a lot like Faith. And she like him. That's what scared him the most. Would she be able to control him if he went over that edge? She had been able to so far.

And why would he want her to in the first place. Let her be the logical, rational one for once in her life. It would be nice for a change for everyone to look at him as the muscle instead of the brain or "the man with the plan", as Gunn had so aptly put it once. So when the plan failed, no blame could be thrown his way.

So, there he sat, flying off in a helicopter to God knew where, trying to figure out again where he fit in. It would be nice to be that Rogue Demon Hunter he once was instead of Book Man or Research Guy. Let Faith research the demon and he'd put a bullet in its brain and leave it at that.

Their personal relationship. Another one of his responsibilities. He had the ability to stop whatever it was that they were doing, but he hadn't. Because it felt good, right for the moment. He'd been her watcher at one time, so those things were inappropriate to say the least. No watching going on by him now. He didn't even know if she had one. Pity the person who was.

People would probably look at their so-called relationship and call it twisted. She'd tortured him for goodness sake and acted like she had fun while doing it. Until he saw her break down in that alley. She had tortured herself mentally, he just was the instrument.

He'd forgiven her when she'd said she was sorry. But it was not forgotten. Those four hours was the lowest of the low in her life and his. He had experienced that with her, which had created a sort of bond between them.

They had exchanged a few letters while she was in prison. She was getting the help she so desperately needed in the form of doctors and prison walls while he sat and drank his. Sometimes he wondered if she had gotten the better deal.

But through it all, she had come to realize what she had done to him and the others was wrong. For that, he was extremely proud of her. Why should she be held back? She deserved to be praised for coming so far. Languishing in self-pity was his reward.

So the question about their so-called relationship was did he deserve her? He wanted to think that there was something other than physical attraction. He'd always thought of her as quite striking from the first time he saw her. The way her mind worked fascinated him, even after she had turned to the dark side. She had never been a simple person.

Unfortunately, all of his relationships with women though had boiled down to a simple fact of not. Cordelia liked him in Sunnydale because he was not Xander, Virginia had liked him because he was not her father, and Lilah had liked him because he was not Angel. Second place was not a fun place to be.

He couldn't think of a reason why Faith would actually like him. She used to despise him, loathe him. They had gotten off on the wrong foot and never regained said footing.

If they had stayed in the watcher/slayer relationship, would they have ended up at the same place as today? He certainly should confide to Giles that all new watchers be over the age of fifty. It's just too difficult to watch a young body with all that energy and zest for life without feeling something.

Without their connection, would they be where they were today? Maybe. Could the connection have been a byproduct of the things they did together in LA? Unlikely. But he was the one to initiate that searing kiss in the hallway of the Hyperion just before Faith left for Sunnydale. She could have refused.

Just pent up sexual desire? Her eyes had flashed fire when she first saw him right before breaking out of prison. His outward appearance had appealed to her. She had even said so one or two times. So all he had to do was change his mode of dress, grow a little facial hair and adopt a somewhat surly attitude and Faith was his? He wasn't so sure about that.

He was sure about one thing though. Whenever he touched Faith intimately, it made everything bad go away. Adrenaline rush, hormones, something made it right. A sick, twisted sort of right, but right nonetheless.

They were two of a kind, a matched set. Different as night and day, yet so similar underneath it was uncanny. Layers upon layers yet to explore. He'd love to peel them back and see more.

TBC

Lots of narrative in this chapter. Please review. I want reviews!!