Part 6<\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cHere we are,\u201d Clem announced, opening the large, oak-paneled door. \u201cThird floor sitting room. Pretty nice, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Buffy agreed, it was lovely. Tastefully decorated, everything about the room looked expensive, yet it somehow retained a comfortable, welcoming feel. The walls were pale lilac, lending the room an aura of cheerfulness despite the heavy plum curtains that hung on the windows, shutting out the suns rays.<\/p>\n
Purple, Xander noted, fighting the urge to groan. The color of royalty.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs there anything else you two need?\u201d Clem offered.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re fine,\u201d Buffy assured him. \u201cThanks for bringing us up.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo problem. Any friend of Cordelia\u2019s is a friend of mine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou met us first,\u201d Xander reminded him bluntly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I still can\u2019t believe you were that awful high school boyfriend Cordy told me about!\u201d Clem exclaimed. \u201cA love spell Xander? Come on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Xander clenched his teeth. \u201cI already told you that-\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThanks again Clem,\u201d Buffy said, grabbing Xander\u2019s arm and tugging him into the room. \u201cWe\u2019ll take it from here.\u201d The demon nodded, padding off down the hall.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, it\u2019s not like the spell even worked,\u201d Xander whined. \u201cAnd it actually brought us closer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGet over it. That was years ago.\u201d She let go of his shirt and began wandering around the room. There were white roses everywhere, all in beautiful crystal vases that had to be Waterford and probably cost more than her rent.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how come, whenever people find out, they act like I slipped roofies in her Diet Coke? How come no one understands that the spell was in fact very romantic?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, I don\u2019t get why more people don\u2019t see the brighter side to mind control,\u201d Buffy quipped.<\/p>\n
\u201cExactly!\u201d Xander completely missed the sarcasm.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re hopeless,\u201d she told him affectionately and went back to perusing the room. Xander glanced to the right and left, as if some form of entertainment was going to magically appear. Finally he just sat down on the couch.<\/p>\n
On the wall, in between two large windows, there was a beautiful painting hanging in an ornate silver frame. It was a woman sitting in a garden, drawn as if the artist had been looking down at her from high above. Buffy moved closer to get a better look. The woman\u2019s face was only slightly visible in profile, but Buffy could tell, by the softly curling hair, the delicate curve of her waist, that she was beautiful.<\/p>\n
A pretty girl in a pretty garden. It should be a happy little portrait. And yet\u2026it wasn\u2019t. The woman, she looked, well, she looked sad. The set of her shoulders, the way she held herself, the slight downturn of her lip. Not sad. She looked lost.<\/p>\n
Acting on a hunch, Buffy hooked a finger around the heavy window covering and tugged it aside, peeking out. The courtyard below was an exact replica of the garden depicted in the painting. Which would make the woman in the painting –<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you staring at?\u201d<\/p>\n
Buffy turned back to Xander, now leaning back on the couch, feet propped up on the coffee table. She shrugged. \u201cJust checking out the artwork.\u201d<\/p>\n
Xander half-heartedly eyed the picture behind her. \u201cWell, it\u2019s no \u2018Black Velvet Elvis\u2019 but yeah, it\u2019s all right I guess. If you like that sort of thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia obviously does.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia can afford to like that sort of thing,\u201d Xander remarked.<\/p>\n
Buffy simply nodded, even though she was almost positive that that particular painting hadn\u2019t cost Cordelia a dime. Instead of pointing that out, she opted to join Xander on the couch. For a few moments they sat in comfortable silence. \u201cDo you think she\u2019ll be different?\u201d Buffy finally asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho? Cordelia?\u201d She nodded and Xander shook his head. \u201cNaaah.\u201d After a minute. \u201cWhy? Do you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Buffy sighed. \u201cI\u2019m not sure. Last time I was here, which was admittedly a pretty bad day for me, she seemed\u2026I don\u2019t know. When I first saw her, she was smiling and laughing and Xan, I\u2019m not kidding you, I had never heard her laugh before.\u201d Xander gave her a disbelieving look. \u201cI\u2019m not talking about laughing at someone. Just laughing. Making with the happy happy joy joy. It was\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCreepy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Buffy snorted. \u201cYeah,\u201d she admitted. \u201cKinda.\u201d She paused, collecting her thoughts. \u201cWas she like that with you? When you two were -\u201d<\/p>\n
This time Xander was the one who snorted. \u201cAre you kidding me? It was all whine, fight, make out, whine, fight, make out. A vicious, but entertaining cycle.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHmmm,\u201d Buffy said noncommittally. After all, who was she to judge anyone\u2019s high school relationships. Thinking about what she was like then, about Angel, about everything made her a little queasy. Although not as queasy as thinking about Xander and Cordelia together. It must have showed in her face.<\/p>\n
Xander put his arm around her and hauled her up against his side. \u201cDon\u2019t let it bother you too much Buf.\u201d Her mouth fell open. Noting her expression, he dropped a quick kiss on the side of her temple. \u201cThey\u2019ve been divorced for, like, ever. Queen C is no competition for the Super Slayer. And if Angel can\u2019t see just how amazing you are, then he\u2019s completely clueless and doesn\u2019t deserve you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Buffy smiled weakly and leaned her head on the shoulder of the only man more clueless than Angel.<\/p>\n
* * *<\/p>\n
Angel had no clue where everybody was. He could see that they were not, in fact, in Cordelia\u2019s office like Clem had said. Despite all the renovations the hotel had undergone after they got married, Cordy had chosen to use the same space where the office had always been. His, then Wesley\u2019s, and finally, rightfully, hers.<\/p>\n
She still had those same glass windows. He\u2019d tried to talk her out of those.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like them,\u201d she said, leaning back against his solid frame, sighing happily when he wrapped his arms around her from behind. One hand gripped her just under her breasts, the other palming her stomach, that soft little belly that always jutted out slightly, no matter how many sit-ups she whined her way through.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t,\u201d he grumbled. \u201cHow am I supposed to molest my wife in her office when the entire world can see in?\u201d The construction workers had left for the day; they were finally, finally alone.<\/em><\/p>\n Cordelia craned her head back to see his face, eyes sparkling. \u201cYou have a hundred other rooms here to molest me in,\u201d she reminded him.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cTrue.\u201d Angel nuzzled her cheek. \u201cBut I had plans for that office,\u201d he whispered gruffly in her ear. He took the lobe in between his teeth and gave it a gentle nip, smiling at the resulting tremor that ran through her.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cShades!\u201d Cordy squeaked out, as Angel shifted his attention to her neck. \u201cI\u2019ll call the decorator tomorrow.\u201d He pulled her tighter against him, rolling his hips so she could feel all of him. \u201cBig\u2026big\u2026shades,\u201d she stuttered.<\/em><\/p>\n The shades were up now, the office obviously empty. Angel didn\u2019t feel an ounce of compunction at walking right in.<\/p>\n It was like walking back in time. Papers piled messily on the desk. Invoices slipped between the pages of In Style. The muted sounds of Sam Cooke coming from an unseen CD player.<\/p>\n Angel closed the door behind him and leaned against it, inhaling deeply. Lemon scented pledge. Old coffee and fresh flowers. The remnants of a spicy perfume. She\u2019d switched scents, Angel noted. His chest felt oddly tight and he rubbed his hand over it absently as he ambled over to her desk.<\/p>\n She\u2019d gotten herself a new perfume to go with her new life, her new man. Playing a hunch, Angel tugged on the handle of the middle drawer. He gave an empty chuckle when he took note of the blue and gold bottle and a familiar scent drifted up. He recognized it immediately. Dior\u2019s Addict. He\u2019d bought her that. Handed it to Cordy, made some stupid joke about being addicted to her.<\/p>\n Angel abruptly shut the drawer, wondering what other reminders of him Cordelia had stashed away. Out of sight, but never out of reach.<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n Cordelia suddenly shivered, nearly smearing OPI Bogota Blackberry all over her pinkie finger. \u201cIs it cold in here?\u201d she asked Fred, wiping at the tiny smudge.<\/p>\n Fred held up her finger, signaling \u2018one second.\u2019 \u201cI know what I told you last night,\u201d she shouted into the phone. \u201cNow I\u2019m telling you 102.\u201d She paused briefly, offering Cordy an apologetic smile that was in direct contrast to her harsh tone.<\/p>\n \u201cI refuse to believe that, with the money I\u2019m paying, you can\u2019t figure out how to feed an additional three people. Find a way!\u201d Fred flipped her cell shut and flopped down next to Cordelia.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat were you asking? It\u2019s not cold. Why? Are you cold?\u201d Fred\u2019s words came out in an endearing jumble.<\/p>\n Double-checking to make sure her nails were perfect, Cordy slid the cap onto the bottle. \u201cI don\u2019t know. All of the sudden I got this chill, out of nowhere.\u201d<\/p>\n Fred sprang back up and raced over to the thermostat. \u201cBut it\u2019s 76 degrees in here. And you\u2019re chilly? Oh my god, what if you\u2019re coming down with something. This wasn\u2019t in any of the bridal manuals. Should we call a doctor? No, that will take too long. I know. An ambulance. Connor! Clem!\u201d<\/p>\n Cordelia laughed. \u201cFred. Relax. I\u2019m fine. It was just a weird feeling. I\u2019m perfectly fine now.\u201d She patted the seat on the couch next to her. \u201cSeriously. Sit down. You\u2019re the one who\u2019s not looking all that hot at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d Connor yelled from the room next door.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing,\u201d Cordy shouted back, thankful that the walls were thin enough that they could communicate without actually moving. \u201cFred\u2019s just crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re both crazy,\u201d Connor responded. \u201cNow shut up, I\u2019m trying to kill something.\u201d<\/p>\n Fred shot a perplexed look at her friend. Cordelia shrugged. \u201cI told him he could set up his X-Box in the den.\u201d Fred gasped. \u201cGeeze Fred, he\u2019s just taking a break.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, not that. It\u2019s just\u2026what if that chill was a premonition.\u201d Fred reached for Cordelia\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n Cordy smacked her on the arm. \u201cWatch the nails! And you know I don\u2019t get visions anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot a vision. A premonition.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n Fred made a tiny frustrated sound. \u201cYou said you had a weird feeling. How was it weird?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo weirder than you\u2019re being right now,\u201d Cordy mumbled.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, was it scary?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo scarier than you\u2019re being right now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCordy!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know, it was just a feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWould you call it foreboding?\u201d<\/p>\n Cordelia nibbled her lip. \u201cMaybe?\u201d Hoping that was the answer Fred was looking for.<\/p>\n \u201cOh God.\u201d Fred put her head in her hands. \u201cSomething horrible is going to happen. I just know it.\u201d<\/p>\n Cordy reached out to wrap her arm around the young woman before remembering her wet nails. Grimacing, she rubbed small soothing circles on Fred\u2019s back, using just the flat of her palm. \u201cNothing is going to happen. This wedding will be perfect. You know why?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause you\u2019ve planned this thing down to the smallest detail. We\u2019ve got extra security. Lorne already cast the non-violence spell. And we\u2019ve got back up plans in case of rain – both the normal kind and the firey kind. I know you Fred. Nothing\u2019s going to happen that we are not fully prepared for.\u201d<\/p>\n Fred looked up. \u201cYou think?\u201d<\/p>\n Cordy grinned. \u201cHey. I don\u2019t think, I know.\u201d<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n \u201cSo what do we actually know?\u201d<\/p>\n Buffy frowned. \u201cNot much.\u201d<\/p>\n Xander got up and started making with the pacing. \u201cCordelia currently lives here with Angel\u2019s son -\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cConnor. And he doesn\u2019t live here,\u201d Buffy corrected. \u201cHe\u2019s got his own apartment, I think he\u2019s just staying here for the wedding.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRight,\u201d Xander started ticking them off. \u201cCordelia, Connor, and that friend of hers-\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFred.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFred. Who used to be married to some guy real high up on the Wolfram and Hart Tower of Power.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAccording to the file, Fred still is. Married that is.\u201d<\/p>\n Xander froze mid-pace. \u201cWhat file?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe giant black file on Lilah\u2019s desk that I was reading while she was outside talking to Angel and you were picking your nose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cScratching! I was just scratching!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever you say.\u201d Buffy rolled her eyes. \u201cI was skimming the file. Part diary, part evil plan to rule the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Xander sat back down. \u201cYou\u2019re good. You are very very good.\u201d His voice was full of admiration.<\/p>\n Buffy shrugged and resumed leaning on his shoulder. \u201cI\u2019m the Slayer Xander. It\u2019s my job.\u201d Xander smelled nice, she noticed. Like the aftershave Dawn had bought him for Christmas and the fabric softener she always liked. Xander smelled like home.<\/p>\n Experimentally, Buffy shifted her head slightly so that her nose was nuzzling his neck. Xander didn\u2019t appear to notice. \u201cSo. The file?\u201d he prompted.<\/p>\n She sighed. \u201cIt was chock full of all sorts of interesting information.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLike what?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEverything. It went back at least 5 years. Copies of emails, transcripts of meetings. There was a memo from a private detective informing her that Fred still hadn\u2019t filed for divorce. IQ test results on a guy named Charles Gunn.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCharles Gunn? Yeah, like that\u2019s his real name,\u201d Xander mumbled.<\/p>\n \u201cShe even had Cordelia\u2019s credit card statement from last month.\u201d Buffy made a face. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to know how much she spent on shoes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re right, I don\u2019t. So what else was in there?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know. Documentation of all the hundreds of ways the firm has tried to bring Angel down.\u201d<\/p>\n She could feel Xander smile. \u201cOoooh, stories about bad things happening to Angel? Tell me more!\u201d<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n MORE INSIDER DETAILS ON CORDY\u2019S WEDDING!<\/b>\u00a0Angel couldn\u2019t help but grin at the lurid headline. Connor had mentioned in an email the tabloids\u2019 fascination with Cordelia, and her increasing displeasure.<\/p>\n He wasn\u2019t entirely sure why he was casually flipping through \u201cPeople\u201d Magazine. Only a few floors separated him from the family he hadn\u2019t seen in years and instead of searching for them, here he was hiding in the office.<\/p>\n It had taken so long to decide to come back. Even longer to prepare himself. Maybe that\u2019s why Angel was hesitating. So much was riding on this weekend.<\/p>\n Those first few months in Argentina had been a blur. All he had done was work. Work and grieve. Trying to come to terms with the life he had lost. Trying to get over all that had happened to him.<\/p>\n And then one night, it hit him. An epiphany, minus the chest pains of last time. He\u2019d spent years trying to get over things that were lost to him, without ever really trying to find them. So many times he\u2019d accepted the things that happened to him, instead of actively choosing a different path.<\/p>\n Angel was a fighter. That\u2019s what he did, who he was. He\u2019d fought to save the world. Fought to save innocents. Fought for Wolfram and Hart.<\/p>\n Had it just never occurred to him to fight for himself? For his own happiness? That night, outside looking up at the stars, Angel had come to the startling realization that it hadn\u2019t. She\u2019d told him to leave and he had. It had never occurred to him to stay. To fight.<\/p>\n He\u2019d given up on Cordelia. Just as he had when Groo had shown up the night of the ballet, or when Skip had taken her from them, or when she came back and he\u2019d known something was wrong. He\u2019d given up again, just like he had when they told him she would never wake up\u2026<\/p>\n The call came early in the morning, right as he was drifting off to sleep.<\/i><\/p>\n \u201cMr. Angel? Sorry to bother you sir, but we thought you would like to know. She\u2019s awake Mr. Angel. Cordelia Chase woke up.”<\/em><\/p>\n She was down in the sub-basement of the building, in a high-tech hospital room the firm had retro-fitted just for her. In the four months that she\u2019d been there, Angel had visited only once. Alone, in the elevator, he cringed, wondering how he would explain that one to her.<\/em><\/p>\n There was so much to explain.<\/em><\/p>\n The doors opened and Angel didn\u2019t move. How would he explain everything? What could he say, what could she say, that would make everything okay? And then he heard it, bouncing off the walls of the long empty corridor. The tinny echoes of someone screaming out in pain. Cordelia.<\/em><\/p>\n He started to run. He instinctively remembered the way, navigating the maze-like halls with inhuman speed.<\/em><\/p>\n Angel burst into the reception area of her suite panting like a wild man. Her screams were louder now and Angel was assailed by an overpowering sense of d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu. They\u2019d played this scene before.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cMr. Angel!\u201d The nurse ran around her desk and grabbed him by the arm. \u201cSir, you can\u2019t go in there. She\u2019s with the doctors right now.\u201d Angel looked at her brokenly. \u201cYou can\u2019t go in there,\u201d the nurse repeated gently.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI, I have to,\u201d he whispered, flinching when Cordelia\u2019s shouting increased in volume.<\/em><\/p>\n The older woman edged him into a chair. \u201cYou can see her as soon as the doctors are done.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cBut she-\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI assure you Mr. Angel, Miss Chase is in no physical pain right now.\u201d Angel gave her a doubtful look and the nurse bit her lip hesitantly. \u201cIt seems that, upon waking, all of her memories of the previous year returned, all at once.\u201d She smiled grimly. \u201cthe doctors\u2019 are sedating her now,\u201d she added quietly.<\/em><\/p>\n So Angel waited. Long, interminable minutes. Staring at the wall. Listening as her screams faded to soft cries. He didn\u2019t notice anyone had entered the room until Wesley sat down next to him.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m shocked to see you here,\u201d the other man said. Wesley\u2019s tone was censorious and Angel wasn\u2019t surprised. They all knew just how rarely he\u2019d been down here. He was aware what they thought of him. He\u2019d always told himself he didn\u2019t owe them any explanations.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cYears ago, before Jasmine, even before Pylea,\u201d Angel began abruptly, surprising both Wes and himself. \u201cBack when I first noticed that she, that I had these\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cFeelings?\u201d Wesley suggested.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cStirrings. When those first feelings started, I wondered why. What gave her that power over me? Why her?\u201d Angel paused, running a hand through his sleep-mussed hair.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIt wasn\u2019t beauty; or at least it wasn\u2019t just beauty. I\u2019ve had beautiful women before.\u201d Wes snorted but Angel ignored it and continued. \u201cIt certainly wasn\u2019t her singing voice or her secretarial skills or-\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cOr her utter disregard for subtlety?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cExactly.\u201d Angel nodded. \u201cShe had nothing in common with the other women I loved. Darla was a, a temptress. Everything was a seduction with her. And Buffy, she had this, I mean, despite who she is, she had this fragileness. This very desolate, innate vulnerability. It, I don\u2019t know, it called to me.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cCordelia never had that,\u201d Wesley commented.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cNo. So I couldn\u2019t figure out why. I couldn\u2019t figure out why it was so important that I got her back. I mean, I wanted to win you and Gunn back too but\u2026\u201d Angel trailed off.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIt was different with Cordelia,\u201d Wes filled in succinctly. \u201cIt always has been.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cAnd then she had a vision and I caught her and I knew. I knew why. Wesley, being near her, feeling the pressure of her hand, catching her scent right before she walked in the door, even just watching her across a crowded room. It was the closest I ever got to feeling alive.\u201d Angel sucked in an unnecessary breath and exhaled slowly.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cShe does have a certain vitality,\u201d Wesley said after a while.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cNot in there she didn\u2019t,\u201d Angel gestured to the closed door across from them. \u201cIn that box,\u201d he hissed. Wolfram and Hart had the most expensive medical technology available to them. Instead of hooking her up to a bunch of uncomfortable tubes, they had put Cordelia in a glass incubator of sorts.<\/em><\/p>\n Like Snow White, Fred had once told him, and she was right. In that room, incased in glass, Cordy was his pale, untouchable fairy tale princess.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI couldn\u2019t go back again, not after I saw her like that,\u201d Angel told Wesley. \u201cThat wasn\u2019t her in there, in that coffin. That wasn\u2019t the woman I-\u201d He abruptly stopped. He still hadn\u2019t said it. He\u2019d never let himself say it aloud.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cYes Angel? Wes stared at him intently. \u201cThe woman you what?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n He could hear her in there, whimpering like a wounded animal. His heart, the heart that she had owned for years, broke for her and the answer came easily. \u201cLove,\u201d Angel blurted out and Wesley grinned.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWell, that wasn\u2019t so hard, now was it?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Angel shook his head. \u201cI love her.\u201d Not only did it come naturally, he found he liked saying it.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cTo quote our girl, \u2018well duh\u2019.\u201d Wesley had the good graces to look sheepish. \u201cI\u2019m sorry, but your feelings have been quite apparent for some time now.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI love her Wes,\u201d Angel repeated. \u201cAnd now she\u2019s back. Now that I\u2019ve got her back, I\u2019m never letting her leave me again.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cSorry to interrupt,\u201d the nurse said timidly. \u201cYou can see her now. Mr. Angel?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cMr. Angel?\u201d Angel\u2019s head whipped around, startled to see Clem standing just outside the office. \u201cSorry sir, I was almost positive they were back here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t worry about it.\u201d Angel put down the magazine and straightened his shoulders. Preparing for battle.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re on the second floor,\u201d Clem said. \u201cCordelia and Fred are in the living room and I\u2019m pretty sure you\u2019ll find Connor playing video games. You want me to show you the-\u201d<\/p>\n Angel was already walking out the door. \u201cI know the way.\u201d<\/p>\n