Long Lost Family (Faith)

[Lucky Hudson]

    After quite the road trip, from Springfield, Massachusetts to Cleveland, Ohio, Lucky pulled up in front of the estate in his beat up and rusted 1985 El Camino, it was rough but it got the job done. He looked out the car window at the building. It definitely wasn't too shabby. Not that he had seen much better in comparison throughout his life other than in passing. It was surprising considering what he had found in his long lost sister's background, which he had discovered through vigorous google searching and numerous phone calls that she wasn't particularly the type to live in such a place. Unless she married rich. Apparently she had been to jail for alleged murder and escaped and has quite the rap sheet, so at least they had some things in common, sans killing someone and busting out of lock up. Lucky really didn't know what to expect upon meeting Faith, but he assumed he could handle his own if she was totally insane and tried to shank him. Nevertheless, he wanted to attempt to see if he could form some sort of version of a familial relationship with her, and also somehow tell her about being part demon without her freaking out, not believing him, or passing judgement, but he would cross that shaky bridge when he came to it.


    He got out of the car and smoothed out his Black Flag t-shirt and pulled up his jeans, tightening the belt on his waist. Lucky looked up at the sky, it was cloudy, it may rain soon. He hoped the gloomy weather wasn't foreshadowing how this encounter would go down. He took a few steps and stopped himself. 

"You got this" He told himself before taking steps towards the door again.

"Hi, Faith, I'm your brother." He said aloud to himself, just rehearsing a little, then shaking his head realizing how stupid he sounded.

He wasn't always the best at interacting with other people, but this was the most important moment in his life thus far. He just didn't know how exactly to go about it and what the right thing to say would be.

    Lucky took the final few steps and knocked on the door a few times, noticing there was a doorbell and wondering if he should of gave it a ring instead. God, he was so nervous he thought he might puke. All this time he had a sister, all this time wasted not knowing her and feeling so alone. This was the moment of truth. He inhaled and exhaled a few times as he waited for someone to answer the door. 

    He went ahead and pressed the doorbell for good measure as he quickly shook his hands trying to rid the remaining nerves.

"Here goes nothing." He said to himself before taking a deep breath in preparation.

[Faith Lehane]

Faith sat at the kitchen table, whittling a pile of wood into sharp stakes. She had the tv on, but the sound was muted. Instead, captions were turned on, and text struggled to keep up with the unheard words coming out of the reporter's mouth. A kitchen speaker loudly played an old school Led Zeppelin song. The slayer bobbed her head to the music, and her ponytail bounced right along with her. She wore a plain, grey sleeveless tank over black jeans, and since she wasn't planning on leaving the house until the sun went down, she was barefoot. Her brown eyes occasionally stole glances at the television, attempting to decipher the important stuff from the fluff.

It had been a while since she'd build up her cache of stakes, and honestly they were all looking a bit worse for wear. She occasionally would leave one out, hoping that Wesley find it and take the hint by helping a girl out with a little whittling of his own. Sadly he either hadn't gotten the message or was too preoccupied with his own drama to help a slayer out, so the brown haired girl was left to her own devices. Wasn't that bad, though. Helped pass the time a bit.

The Led Zeppelin song finished, and Aerosmith's "Cryin'" started up. Faith smiled and sang along. She didn't think Wesley was home, but she figured if he was, he'd definitely let her know. Heck, maybe he was even an Aerosmith fan.

Faith was mid-chorus, when the first few knocks came from the front door. She attempted to yell out a "Just a minute!" but was drowned out by Steven Tyler's raspy crooning. She stood, ran to the kitchen, turned down the music a little bit, and jogged over to the front door. As she got there the doorbell rang out.

"Coming!" she yelled, a bit annoyed. Then, thinking that this could possibly be a mini-me slayer, she added, "I mean, just a minute!" in her best Buffy impression. She unlocked the deadbolt and twisted the lock on the knob before pulling the door open.

A young guy stood before her. Remembering her previous encounter with another mysterious guy who just showed up to her door, Faith fought the urge to roll her eyes. If this was another guy with another crazy party trick to show her, she was going to immediately turn him away. Wouldn't wanna get Wes's panties back in a bunch like when Donne stopped by. She immediately thought back to that day a few weeks ago, and internally chided herself for never talking to Wesley about it.

Faith managed a smile before speaking to the guy. "Umm, hi," she began, "Can I help you?"

[Lucky Hudson]

Lucky heard the voice on the other side of the door immediately after he rang the bell, and could sense that he had annoyed whomever was on the other side, even when the female voice had corrected it to a more polite tone. He attempted to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat made out of pure nerves. He knew he should've just left it alone after the knocking. Lucky mentally kicked himself for being impatient. When the door opened he looked up at the woman and could immediately tell that it was his long lost sister. His nerves increased, he was at least hoping someone else could answer the door so he could at least have a buffering period to calm himself down. She was definitely Faith from what he had gathered. Not that he had much to go by, during his excessive web searches he had only seen a mugshot, but the woman standing in front of him did not seem like the murdering type. Based on first impressions so far anyways.

He searched his mind for the right thing to say.

"Hi" He said simply. Well it's a start.

"You must be Faith Lehane." He continued, trying not to seem like a nervous wreck, since he didn't want to weird out his new found sister upon first meeting her.

"I'm Lucky Hudson, and I kind of have some news that may be quite shocking to you." He stated with a nod, not entirely sure where to take the conversation from here.

Lucky really didn't know what to make of Faith quite yet, still worried that this interaction could go south if he worded something wrong or if she was actually what the internet told him and in fact was a dangerous psycho killer, but he didn't really trust what he read on the internet when it came to the news so he figured he'd give her the benefit of the doubt for the sake of potential family.

He waited patiently for her response as he quickly checked his pocket to make sure that he had the documents on him that his social worker had given him.

[Faith Lehane]

"You must be Faith Lehane."

Upon hearing her name Faith opened the door a bit more. Truth be told, she was getting realll tired of people showing up at her door, knowing who she was. It was like a bulletin went out to anyone within a 30 mile radius. She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes at the guy.

"In the flesh," she answered, not willing to offer up anything more.

"I'm Lucky Hudson, and I kind of have some news that may be quite shocking to you."

Hmm. Lucky Hudson. The name didn't really ring a bell. By the looks of things, the kid didn't look too "lucky" either. Kinda reminded her of her own name a bit. There were times in her life that she had zero "faith" in anything. She let out a light sigh.

And the shocking news? Kinda rules out a watcher sent from Team Buffy. Something in his eyes looked a bit familiar, but she knew she'd never met him before so it was doubtful that he was coming to tell her something shocking about the team in Sunny D. And while she was quite shocked at Donne's "presentation," this guy's nervous demeanor seemed to rule out any type of show.

She let go of the door and crossed her hands over her chest.

"I'm listening," she said, trying to hide that she was a bit hesitant.

She immediately spotted his hand reaching in his pocket and tensed up. Where had she left her stake? The table? Probably. And while it wasn't sharp, she had confidence that with enough force she could still kill with it, if it came to that.

[Lucky Hudson]

He could tell by Faith's stance that she was probably put off by him coming to her door like this with said shocking news. Which he could understand because he was just as skeptical when his social worker told him she had a surprise for him on his 18th birthday, considering she never did much for him before he aged out of the system. So of course he could understand why Faith crossed her arms as she waited for him to speak.

"I'm listening," She stated. Lucky could sense the hesitation though. Which again he could understand, shocking news and surprises usually didn't end well in most cases in his life. He got the feeling that it was probably the same in Faith's life as well.

Lucky pulled the papers out of his pocket and looked down at them folded in his hands as he took a big inhale of air and then letting it out. His long lost sister was somewhat intimidating to him.

"Well there is no easy or uncomplicated way to say this," He told her as he unfolded the papers.

"But it turns out that I'm your little brother." He finished his sentence smirking as he said the word little since he had a few inches on her. Lucky let his eyes meet hers as he extended his arm offering the documents containing his birth certificate with their mother's name on it (and no father's name), and the paper with his two known relatives which had Faith and their mother's names listed, to her with a small smile and hope in his heart that she wouldn't totally slam the door in his face, eliminating his chance at ever knowing what having a family feels like.

"So yeah, shocking right?" He asked rhetorically with a chuckle, hoping to ease the tension of the interaction.

[Faith Lehane]

Faith stared at the guy's hand as he pulled something out of his pocket.

"Well there is no easy or uncomplicated way to say this, but it turns out that I'm your little brother."

Faith's eyes widened. Surely she hadn't heard what she'd heard come out of the guy's mouth. Brother? Her mind reeled as she struggled to piece together what the guy was saying. How on Earth could this be true? Sure, her forever-drunk mother had always been one to welcome anyone with a pulse into her bedroom so getting pregnant was clearly an option. But while she wasn't getting any "Mother of the Year" trophies anytime soon, Faith was fairly certain that her mother would have expended the effort to at least call her and let her know that she had a brother. Then again, it wasn't like she kept in touch with the woman, or even let her know how to even call her. Truth be told, Faith wasn't even sure the last time she'd heard from the woman who'd given birth to her.

She took the papers, without even meaning to. She was on auto-pilot as her mind struggled to catch up to the events unfolding. Her eyes scanned the page. There it was in black and white. "Mother: Angela Lehane." She searched for her dad's name, but found the "Father" blank empty. She was pulled from her thoughts by the guy's voice.

"So yeah, shocking right?"

She looked at him, hoping that he didn't spot the fact that her eyes that were beginnning to swell up. She felt like she'd been ran over by an 18-wheeler. She attempted to speak, but no words came out. Instead, the slayer dropped the papers and hugged the kid tight.

Fact was, this guy could be lying to her, but in that moment she didn't care. She could play the "tough-guy" card later. Right now she was simply content with pretending that the kid in front of her was her brother.

[Lucky Hudson]

Lucky stood there awkwardly as Faith looked over the documents, running a hand over his buzzed head as he waited for a response. Instead she had pulled him into a hug, at first he flinched and tensed up a little, since he never had really been hugged, he may have been affection starved throughout his life, but he wasn't sure if she was attacking him or embracing him. Upon realizing it was an actual hug he relaxed and wrapped his arms around her tightly. He tried to swallow the lump forming in his throat so he wouldn't cry around his newfound sister and embarrass himself.

Though a few tears fell as he spoke.

"So I didn't know if you ever met me when I was born, but I've been in the foster system my whole life and I didn't know anything about you or our family, or if we even have the same father, and I'm just so glad I found you." Lucky rambled on as the tears fell freely now as they stood there still embracing one another. He wasn't sure what the etiquette of hugging was, so he just stood there holding onto his sister as if she'd float away if he let go.

"I just turned 18 a few weeks ago and my social worker gave me these papers, and that's how I found out about you." He explained to Faith as he sniffled a bit, the last few tears from his overwhelming happiness rolling down his face.

[Faith Lehane]

As Faith leaned in, she could feel his slight hesitation, but she didn't care. It wasn't everyday that she hugged someone. Heck, she couldn't really remember the last time she'd been this close to another person.

A few stray tears escaped Faith's eyes, as she held the guy close while listening to his rambling, and she quickly swiped them away with her hand before carefully placing it back on the kid's back. When he paused, she took the opportunity to speak.

"Nah," she began, "I didn't know you existed until now, but I'm so glad that you do."

The thought of her kid brother in foster care made more tears form and roll down her cheeks. The pain of her own experiences with "the system" as their mom constantly yo-yo'ed between sober and drunk with an emphasis on the later rose to the forefront of her mind. She added, "If I would have known about you, I would have done..." she paused, searching for the words before finally finding them, "anything to help you. You have to know that."

"I just turned 18 a few weeks ago and my social worker gave me these papers, and that's how I found out about you."

So, the kid was 18. Means she would have been 9 when he was born. That pretty much explains why she was left with her mom's friend Pam for the majority of her third and fourth grade years. Faith had simply assumed her mother had gotten with another Random Joe who didn't want kids, and that it hadn't worked out so her she stopped back by Pam's house to pick up her consolation prize, forcing Faith into living with her again. Also explained why her drinking and drug use seemed to get worse after, forcing Faith herself into foster care for a bit. She in no way forgave her mother for her actions, but for the first time in a long time, she felt a little sorry for the woman who'd given birth to her.

Faith had managed to swipe a couple more stray tears from her face before releasing the guy, and while anyone could easily tell she'd been crying, she was content with simply hiding the evidence.

Trying to side-step more of the mushy, Faith extended a hand out at her side, gesturing towards the inside of the house. "Wanna come in?" she asked him.

[Lucky Hudson]

"Nah, I didn't know you existed until now, but I'm so glad that you do." He heard his sister say to him. It warmed his heart, the feeling of comfort washed over him as he wiped his eyes, while still embracing Faith. He felt her tears hit his shoulder, he could predict that she probably had a similar upbringing as him, neglected, abused, coming from a broken home or no home at all. His presence probably provided the a sense of family that she may have longed for just as much as he had over the years.

"If I would have known about you, I would have done... anything to help you. You have to know that." She told him, he could tell in the way she paused, that she wasn't the type to usually open up like this, to show emotional vulnerability, but neither was Lucky. He nodded in agreement to her statement, he had never had anyone have his back throughout his life. He always had to fend for himself growing up. Again he could tell Faith had that similarity in common with him.

"I know that now, and likewise." He told her with a smile forming on his face as he finally felt like he'd found a home. Not a physical home, but the feeling that only family can provide.

When she released him from the hug, his smile faltered a little bit in the process, until he made eye contact with his sister and his smile returned just a little wider. He could see the moisture around her eyes as he wiped his a little bit, glad to know he wasn't the only one getting emotional about this intensely joyous occasion. 

"Wanna come in?" Faith asked him as she gestured inside. He nodded emphatically, a little embarrassed by his own excitement.

"Yeah, definitely. He told her as he took a moment to pick up the documents Faith had dropped before hugging him. Lucky crossed the threshold and entered the very impressive house. He looked around the rather large home.

"Nice place." Lucky stated, simply amazed by the size of it, his eyes surveying the house, just taking in the level of luxury his sister was living. His eyes then landed on the pile of stakes on the table in the kitchen and he raised an inquisitive eyebrow as he turned around and faced Faith.

"So you uh know about vampires and stuff, huh?" He asked her, pointing at the small mountain of the sharp and pokey wooden weapons.

[Faith Lehane]

"Nice place," he said to her.

She smiled, eager to be talking about something other than life.

"It's not too shabby," she began, shutting the door behind him as he entered. "Most times I'm content with four walls in a ceiling, but I got kinda lucky I guess."

When she said the word "lucky" it seemed to echo around her brain. There was something sad about her living in the nicest place she'd ever lived in and considering herself "lucky," all while her brother named Lucky had been living someplace that was probably far, far different from this. She instantly felt like she didn't deserve the house or the life she'd fallen into as of late.

"...vampires and stuff, huh?"

The word "vampires" pulled her attention back to her brother, and she noticed him pointing towards the stakes, splayed out on the kitchen counter. Her cheeks flushed as she rushed to them. She gathered a handful up in her arms.

"Uhhh... these are," she paused, searching for a lie that didn't come. Hell, the kid knew about vampires. Figure there's no time like the present to find out about big sister's extra-curriculars.

"These are obviously stakes," she said, dropping the wooden weapons back to the table. A couple rolled off the table causing a dull "clank" when they connected with the floor. She left them there.

"You clearly know about vampires and stuff," she said, putting an emphasis on "stuff." "Not really sure how much you know, but I'm pretty much a straight shooter so I'm going to give it to ya straight while trying not to blow your mind in the process."

She picked up a stake, flipping it around in her hand in a nervous habit while she explained. "I was picked to fight evil, be it vampires, demons, or anything else the forces of darkness throw at the world. I am the Slayer. The chosen one," she said, but quickly corrected herself, "Well, one of the many chosen ones. Only one girl was supposed to be called by the Powers That Be every generation. When that girl kicked it, another girl was called and given the powers of the Slayer. She's supposed to keep the world safe from bad guys and gals alike."

Faith then added, "There's this whole thing with a spell that activated all of the girls who were in the running for Slayer, so now there are many more of us all over the world."

She dropped the stake back to the table and walked a few steps over to the kitchen, pulling out a bar stool from the kitchen island, twisting it to face him, and taking a seat on it. She hoped she wasn't shattering this guy's reality, but something about his nature told her he'd seen a bit worse than the things that go bump in the night.