| Faith Lehane | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Portrayed By | Eliza Dushku |
| Gender | Female |
| Species | Human |
| Date of Birth | December 14, 1982 |
| Age | 21 |
| Zodiac Sign | Sagittarius |
| Aliases | None. |
| Place of Birth | Boston, MA, USA |
| Current Location | Los Angeles, CA, USA |
| Occupation | Slayer |
| Known Relatives | Deborah Lehane (mother; deceased), George Patrick Lehane (father; in prison) |
| Significant Other | None. |
| Special Powers | Slaying and all that comes with it. |
| Distinguishing Feathres | Tribal tattoo on her right upper arm. |
| First Appearance | Faith, Hope and Trick |
Prolific rogue Slayer turned murderer who turned herself into the Los Angeles Police Department some time ago and has, since then, been serving her time in jail.
History
I never really had a mother. Sure, there's a name on my birth certificate, and most nights when I came home from school there was a woman passed out on the couch, but she didn't exactly raise me. The most she did for me was make sure there was some stale food in the cupboard for me to eat and take me with her every time she got evicted. I learned how to fend for myself pretty quickly.
There isn't much I can say about my childhood. I went to school (sometimes), got in trouble (often), went through the motions of having a "family" when she remembered a holiday, but there was nothing ground-shaking. Not at first, anyway. My mother brought home a new guy every few days. Sometimes they'd be gone in the morning, sometimes they'd stay for a week or two, but they always left. They mostly left me alone - until one guy got it into his head that I'd be a good replacement for my mother when she passed out early. I was twelve and scrawny, but I put up a good fight.
He broke my arm. I broke a bottle over his head. When the dust settled and Child Protection Services got a hold of me, he was long gone. I never even knew his name. Next thing I knew, some woman named Diana Dormer was taking me home with her. She let me settle in for a few weeks before dropping the "you might be a superhero" bomb on me. Made sense; if she'd told me right away, I probably would have taken her for crazy and gotten the hell out of dodge. I still took off for a couple days, but she didn't say anything when I showed up again. We had an understanding.
I was sixteen when we found out that I was THE Slayer. Not just maybe; this was it. My life was training and patrol. I didn't have friends, didn't go out for fun - and I didn't need to. Slaying was my fun. We had a pretty sweet deal, Diana and me… until Kakistos. Can't say that I ever want to go through that again. I panicked, took off, chasing a story about another Slayer in California.
I used to wish I'd never met Buffy Summers, back when things started to go really wrong. Used to tell myself that I hated her, that she deserved what I did to her. Deep down, I wanted to BE her, with her loving mother and loyal friends. Started with her friends, trying to make them think I was cool. Piece of cake. I had my own messed up reasons for doing what I did. She had everything I never did, and if I couldn't have it, I figured she shouldn't, either. I was a stupid kid.
It's just that "stupid" means something different when you're a Slayer. Especially one like me. I was trouble all my life.
Allan Finch changed a lot of things. I can't say he changed everything; I'd already convinced myself that I hated Buffy and what she stood for. But the look on her face when she saw him, saw the blood on his shirt, on my hands - that was it. I couldn't take it any more. Couldn't take the way she looked at me.
Richard was different. I knew the second I walked into his office that he didn't think I was bad news. Maybe he did and he hid it. Maybe he was looking for bad news. All I know is, when I walked in and saw him sitting there, it was the first time in a long time that I felt like someone WANTED me.
I'm not dumb. I know he used me. Maybe I didn't know at the time, but I can see it now, how he twisted everything around. At the time, it felt like he was the only one who really understood me. So I did what he asked, every single thing, not wanting to lose that feeling. Part of me knew we weren't going to win, but I did it all anyway, fighting right to the end.
I was so sure, SO sure, that I was dead when I jumped off that roof. Wasn't expecting to wake up, either, but then Buffy never did feel right about killing humans. When I found out that Richard was gone, that we'd lost and Buffy was the big town hero, I hated her all over again. Worse, since she really had taken everything I had. So I tried to do the same to her, tried to trade lives, and all it did was bring me face to face with reality.
So I panicked. Again. Par for the course with me, when you think about it. Starting to see who you really are? Time to do something stupid. I booked it to Los Angeles, looking for the only person who might actually kill me, hoping he'd see me for the monster that I was and put me down. The thing is, no matter how bad it got, no matter what I did to his crew, Angel wouldn't kill me.
Bastard.
I owe him my life. I owe him a lot more than that. He was the only one who didn't look at me like I was rotten to the core. He knows what it's like to do things you can never escape, to want to die just to make it right… only death doesn't make it right. Death isn't a way out. Making it right takes a whole lot more than that. So I turned myself in, let them lock me up, even though I know I could walk out of here any time I want.
I'm in here for him.
I guess I'm in here for me, too.
Timeline
- December 7, 2001 - Lane pays Faith a visit in prison, attempting to lead the Slayer down a new path towards redemption.
Quotes
Trivia
- Though her father is alive and in prison, she was raised thinking that he was dead.
- Like Buffy, she occasionally has what could be called "prophetic dreams."
- She was convicted of murder-two and sentenced to twenty-five to life.
- She has had four different Watchers responsible for her: Diana Dormer, Rupert Giles (more or less), Gwendolyn Post, and Wesley Wyndam-Pryce.
- She has a habit of coming up with nicknames for people.
- She also has a habit of using slang from the '20s and '30s and colourful turns of phrase.
