Part 1<\/b><\/p>\n
Los Angeles to New York. Flight 1374, United Airlines.<\/i><\/p>\n
It was almost unfathomable that those simple, unassuming little words could hold such a mountain of uncertainty. Cordelia stared down at the airline ticket in her hand, the date, tomorrow\u2019s date, seeming to leap off the page and dance accusingly in her face. Okay, so she hadn\u2019t told anyone she was leaving. But would they really care? Somehow, she imagined that she\u2019d get an absentminded hug from Wesley and at best, a shrug and \u201cNice knowin\u2019 ya\u201d from Angel. Color her totally unexcited about sharing the news of her move with any of her supposed friends.<\/p>\n
Determined not to dwell on it, she set the ticket down on her gleaming mahogany desk and swiveled comfortably in the high-backed leather chair. She looked around at her office in distaste, still squeamish that she\u2019d even accepted so much as a square inch of space in the lion\u2019s den. But Angel had insisted, and she hadn\u2019t had the strength to refuse him. All the more reason to get the hell outta dodge while she still had the nerve.<\/p>\n
Leaning back and closing her eyes, she was almost prepared for the vision that suddenly came upon her. Relaxing, she let herself float off the chair, the images flashing before her eyes. She reviewed them clinically, noting pertinent information as if she were dictating a memo for her boss. As she drifted back into her seat, she jotted down what she\u2019d seen and placed a call.<\/p>\n
Usually, she left the fighting up to the flunkies or Angel and Wes. This time, though, she wanted to go along. It was her last chance to remember the good times, and it would feel really good to kill something today.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you said this isn\u2019t a normal slime demon, Cordelia?\u201d Wesley asked anxiously, his weapon poised as they stalked along a particularly nasty section of the sewers.<\/p>\n
The whole scene seemed hauntingly surreal. Cordelia, Angel, and Wesley were patrolling the underground tunnels in a way so eerily reminiscent of their first year together that it made her want to cry. The differences were subtle: Angel no longer tried to be funny or join in the conversation; Wesley was no longer over-eager, the boyish innocence he\u2019d had then destroyed by bad decisions and unforgiving friends.<\/p>\n
But the biggest difference was that both of them treated her like she had leprosy. They kept their distance both physically and emotionally. At least Wesley put up an effort, and for that she supposed she was thankful. A starving person didn\u2019t scoff at crumbs. But Angel acted like she was a window, looking right through her as if she were a nuisance, a barrier to what chance at happiness he had left.<\/p>\n
Her resolve to escape to New York strengthened as she answered Wesley\u2019s question. Her tone was light, totally masking her emotional trauma.<\/p>\n
\u201cYep. The vision didn\u2019t really say how it was different, but I saw a whole bunch of blue goo, and I know that slime demons aren\u2019t usually blue, right?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe slime can come in several colors, but blue isn\u2019t one of them,\u201d Angel said, his voice echoing in the corridor as he walked some ten feet ahead of them.<\/p>\n
Wesley\u2019s face grew grimmer. \u201cIf only we\u2019d had more time to research. . .\u201d he trailed off wistfully.<\/p>\n
\u201cLooks like we don\u2019t!\u201d Angel said, raising his sword above his head as a bluish-gray demon came barreling out of an access tunnel directly into his path.<\/p>\n
Weapons at the ready, Cordelia and Wesley hung back. The stench was awful; Cordelia wanted to retch. The beast stank of rotten fish and something that smelled suspiciously like wintergreen lifesavers, the resulting combination nauseating like nothing before it. Angel, even with his over-sensitive sense of smell, hacked away like there was no tomorrow. The beast was reduced to nothing but a quivering mass of jelly-like slime within a matter of minutes.<\/p>\n
Lowering his sword, Angel stepped back and straightened his coat. Amazingly, he had not one ounce of goo on him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHuh.\u201d Wesley\u2019s eyebrows where scrunched up together in the middle of his forehead, a look of confusion on his face. \u201cI thought you envisioned a major battle, Cordy, one with explosions and such.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was just as surprised. \u201cI did. There was blue goo everywhere<\/i>.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cautiously, she walked up close to the decapitated monster. Gingerly, she poked at it with her small sword, shuddering as the Windex-colored, jell-o like substance giggled. Shrugging, she turned her back on it and faced the two men.<\/p>\n
\u201cWouldn\u2019t be the first time the Powers sent us a message that was off. Remember that\u2014Ahhhh!!\u201d Cordelia\u2019s scream echoed off the walls as the mass of blue slime behind her suddenly erupted, covering the three fighters in the substance from head to toe. From the remains, a smaller demon emerged, lunging for Cordelia\u2019s unprotected back.<\/p>\n
That was just the last damn straw. Her life was hell already; she didn\u2019t need a slime demon to add to her misery. Whirling around violently, her eyes narrowing, Cordelia let the little devil have it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do not\u201d HACK \u201cappreciate\u201d HACK \u201cbeing covered\u201d HACK \u201cfrom head to toe\u201d HACK HACK \u201cin your freaky\u201d HACK \u201cnasty\u201d HACK \u201cslime!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUm, I think you killed it, Cordy,\u201d Angel understated, noting that the only remains of the demon were bite-sized pieces.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, it deserved it,\u201d Cordelia grumbled. She glared down at the mutilated remains, knowing that her companions wanted an explanation for her outburst.<\/p>\n
She wasn\u2019t about to tell them the real reason.<\/p>\n
\u201cI haven\u2019t bought anything new in ages, and I decide to buy new clothes, white tennis shoes no less, and I get covered in this icky, goopy crap.\u201d Finally looking up at them, Cordelia glared at Angel as this whole escapade was his fault. \u201cIt\u2019s dead. I\u2019m filthy, and I\u2019m going home.\u201d<\/p>\n
With that, she stalked off, leaving Wesley and Angel behind. She knew she was being a coward, using the slime as an excuse to postpone her news, but she didn\u2019t care. She felt awful, she smelled awful, and she looked like blue shit. She deserved a break here. A big break.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
\u201cIt won\u2019t. come. OFF!!\u201d Cordelia\u2019s cries of frustration went unheard, except by Dennis, as she furiously tried to remove the sticky substance from her new white tennis shoes. Growling in frustration, she threw the shoes violently back into her sink, one bouncing off the edge and hurtling towards the tiled floor. Frustrated and emotionally fried, she braced both hands on the edges of the sink and hung her head, staring into the goo-spattered basin, her eyes blurring with tears.<\/p>\n
Tired of crying, Cordelia sniffled and collected herself, raising her head and catching a glimpse of herself in the bathroom mirror. It only served to highlight her misery. What had she done to deserve this? A life where no one wanted her and she spent her hours wondering how she could\u2019ve prevented it all. Despite her best efforts, her eyes slowly filled with tears, finally spilling over and coursing a track through the blue globs on her face. She let them come, enjoying the hot liquid, the pain itself almost soothing in its intensity.<\/p>\n
She only let herself wallow for a moment.<\/p>\n
Straightening her back, she sniffed and quickly dried her eyes. Bending over, she grabbed up the shoe on the floor with a jerky motion, suddenly anxious to escape. She swayed a bit as she came back up, dizzy from bending over so quickly, and her knuckles scraped hard on the exposed pipe under her sink, breaking the skin.<\/p>\n
\u201cFigures,\u201d she muttered, shaking her head. She scrutinized her bloody knuckles and frowned.<\/p>\n
Life down the drain. Check.<\/p>\n
Covered in blue slime. Check.<\/p>\n
Injuring oneself repeatedly. Check. Check.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I wouldn\u2019t give for this day, this year, never to have happened,\u201d she whispered to herself.<\/p>\n
Grabbing up her tennis shoes from the sink in preparation to throw them away, her knuckles brushed some of the blue substance that now clung to the side of the basin. Immediately, she felt dizzy, but blinked and shrugged it off. She didn\u2019t notice the air wavering behind her, didn\u2019t notice her surroundings blurring as the dizziness overpowered her and she slumped to the floor, unconscious.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia.\u201d The male voice seemed to come from far away, as if through a fog. It sounded familiar, but she couldn\u2019t place it. All she wanted to do was sleep, anyway, so she ignored it.<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia!\u201d<\/p>\n
This time, the voice was more insistent, almost an annoyed hiss, and was accompanied by a shove on her elbow.<\/p>\n
\u201cGo \u2018way,\u201d she muttered tiredly, raising her hand up and batting against the air. \u201cI\u2019m sleeping,\u201d she whined.<\/p>\n
\u201cGuess what, Folks? Contrary to popular belief, she does have a brain!\u201d The snide comment was accompanied by a rude jerk to her elbow, pulling her arm out from under her head, her forehead slamming on the table. \u201cWake up, Cordelia! Class is OVER!\u201d<\/p>\n
Annoyed, Cordelia groaned and pried her eyes open, only to find herself centimeters away from what looked suspiciously like a school desk. And ewww. There was drool, right under her mouth. Slowly, she raised her pounding head in confusion, totally disoriented, and her eyes nearly popped out of her sockets as she recognized the gangly teen standing in front of her.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, God! Xander?\u201d<\/p>\n
He just glared at her in annoyance. \u201cI think you need to get that air in your head replaced.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes narrowed. \u201cWhat the hell are YOU doing here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHello? Earth to May Queen. I\u2019m here for the same reason you are. The government-sanctioned form of hideous torture that adults give the catchy name of \u2018school,\u2019\u201d he said, looking at her like she was nuts.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell is going on?\u201d she yelled, glaring at him as if he were responsible for this. One minute, she was in her bathroom in L.A., and the next, she\u2019s in her science classroom at the now destroyed Sunnydale High??<\/p>\n
Xander rolled his eyes and threw up his hands in exasperation. \u201cGeez! Try to save a drooling ex-girlfriend from total humiliation, and this is the thanks I get? See if I help you next time, Cor.\u201d<\/p>\n
With that, he stalked off, leaving her to an empty classroom. Still totally confused, she looked around, gathered up what she assumed were her belongings and rushed after him.<\/p>\n
She had to figure out what the hell had happened to her, and so far, her time-warped ex-boyfriend seemed to have the answers.<\/p>\n