Act II<\/b><\/p>\n
\nScene 1<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Wesley and Gunn were waiting in Angel\u2019s office to deliver the bad news about Cordelia. At least Wesley was. Gunn was just there for the show. Telling a demon that his killer girlfriend was about to die promised to be a most entertaining afternoon. Yessiree. Bring on the justice. Bring on the pain.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got to be strong and united in this, Gunn. He\u2019s going to be extremely angry and in a great deal of denial. We can\u2019t back down.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley was pacing as usual. Doesn\u2019t he know how weak he looks?<\/i> Gunn was sitting behind Angel\u2019s desk in his chair, feeling right at home. \u201cYeah, yeah. I know the game plan, Wes. But if he even looks at me funny\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you saying? You\u2019ll put him down like a dog?\u201d Wes stopped pacing and looked at Gunn like he\u2019d never seen him before.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey, I\u2019m just saying I\u2019m not going to be the messenger that gets shot, man. He steps on my foot, I bite his leg off.\u201d Gunn rose to his full height and then some letting Wesley know whose territory Wes was trying to piss on.<\/p>\n
Wes didn\u2019t flinch at the aggressive posture, but he didn\u2019t advance either. \u201cWe\u2019re talking about Angel and we\u2019re talking about letting the woman he loves die. I suspect he will look at us very funny at first. But I hope he will eventually understand and accept the truth of what\u2019s best. Until then, we will need to be patient and tread carefully around his feelings.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not treading around anybody\u2019s feelings. If I see\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Suddenly the door burst open and a frenetic, wild-eyed Angel flew in.<\/p>\n
\u201cJesus, I\u2019ve been looking for you guys everywhere. Cordy spoke to me! She\u2019s back!\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley looked at Gunn bewildered and then looked back at the exuberant Angel. Gunn just looked disappointed.<\/p>\n
Scene 2<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Lorne and Fred were already standing outside Cordy\u2019s door when Angel, Wes and Gunn rounded the corner running.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre the doctors still in there?\u201d Angel asked worriedly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes. They said we should wait here until they can assess her condition.\u201d Fred looked at Angel with a mixture of apprehension and joy. A fair complement to his impatience and\u2026well\u2026more impatience.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s to assess? She spoke.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel what did she say exactly?\u201d So far Angel hadn\u2019t been very clear about what happened and Wesley feared Angel was delusional.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was showing her some clothes in a magazine and she said \u2018that shirt\u2019s nice\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUh-huh. Did she actually speak those words or did you just hear them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWell I heard them so she had to say them, right? I mean it was her voice.\u201d Wesley just stared at him with his disbelief apparent. \u201cWes, I know her voice! I didn\u2019t imagine it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel turned and towered over Fred as he made a move for the door handle. Wesley\u2019s hand shot forward and grabbed his wrist.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe should let them do their job, Angel. If you\u2019re right, then Cordelia has only just come back from a horrible ordeal. We can\u2019t be sure how much she remembers and how those memories are affecting her right now. They may need to sedate her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wes let go of his wrist as Angel\u2019s shoulders slumped. \u201cAngel, I know what you think you heard.\u201d Angel jerked his head up and was ready to argue, but Wesley cut him off. \u201cBut the fact is that her condition has, over the past weeks, deteriorated dramatically. I think you should be prepared for bad news. Or, at the very least, cautiously optimistic news.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you saying? She\u2019s back! She came back and she\u2019s not going anywhere ever again. I won\u2019t let her. Do you understand that? Do all of you understand that?\u201d<\/p>\n
The gang looked at each other uncomfortably and tried to avoid Angel\u2019s eyes, except Gunn who was quietly enjoying this. \u201cWe understand what you want to happen. But MRIs and blood tests don\u2019t lie. Cordy is dying and ain\u2019t nothin\u2019 you can do to stop it. So you can stand there and act like nothing\u2019s wrong from now \u2018til Roseanne wins an Oscar, but that ain\u2019t gonna change facts.\u201d<\/p>\n
You could almost feel the blood in Angel\u2019s veins boiling. The air got suddenly thick and humid. Angel snorted like a bull, took two steps and was nose to nose with this man he didn\u2019t know. A growl hung at the back of his throat and he heard Gunn growl in response.<\/p>\n
Angel was caught off-guard for an instant, but then the realization dawned on him. He had sensed something different about Gunn for a while now, but he couldn\u2019t put a name to it. He still wasn\u2019t sure what had happened to him or when, but he was sure now that Gunn was fundamentally changed. What he sensed about him was pure animal. Feral animal. Some part of Gunn was no longer human and that didn\u2019t bother him as much as it might have before. It made it easier.<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia will not die. I don\u2019t care what MRIs, blood tests or doctors say. She. Will. Not. Die. I won\u2019t let her. WE won\u2019t let her, and if you can\u2019t be a part of that, you can leave.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gunn wanted to stake this asshole right there. Arrogant demon. Thinks he has the power of life and death. Later, baby. We\u2019ll party claw to fang and hot damn, I\u2019ll have me some fun<\/i>. It killed him to back down, but he couldn\u2019t do anything yet. So for now he\u2019d better smooth things over if he could choke down the bile rising in his esophagus long enough to spit the words out. He broke the staring contest and looked down in an act of sublimation. \u201cNone of us want her to die.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel, Charles is just\u2026we all just want you to be prepared. You know. If something happens.\u201d Angel turned from Gunn to Fred fearing another traitor. Fred jumped and added quickly, \u201cBut, of course, nothin\u2019s gonna happen because Cordy\u2019s strong and brave. She\u2019s a fighter and we\u2019re all going to fight for her. Please, can\u2019t we just be happy right now? Please?\u201d Fred wanted so badly to calm the situation down. We\u2019re all going to be together again. Cordy will bring us all back together again. She has to.<\/i><\/p>\n
The tears were beginning to form in Fred\u2019s eyes and Angel knew her plea was genuine. The tenseness in his body gradually eased as he looked from Fred to Lorne. He looked as upset as Fred, and Angel began to feel guilty for his outburst.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry. I know you guys are only concerned for Cordy and me. I just don\u2019t think it\u2019s going to do her any good if we don\u2019t have faith in her. Ya know? I know she\u2019s got a long way to go to get back from this, but we can\u2019t be negative around her. She\u2019ll sense any doubt, and she doesn\u2019t need to deal with our worries on top of everything else she\u2019s got to deal with. Okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course. You\u2019re right. We should all be as positive as possible around her.\u201d Wesley relented for now. At least until the doctors came out and confirmed what he already knew to be true. The rest nodded and muttered in agreement.<\/p>\n
Angel turned to Gunn who stood motionless. \u201cGunn?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked up at the vampire and locked gazes. \u201cSure. Anything for the princess.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was something about the way he said \u201cprincess\u201d (was that sarcasm?)<\/i> that sent a chill up his spine. Angel would definitely not be turning his back on Gunn anytime soon.<\/p>\n
The tension only increased when somebody\u2019s pager started buzzing wildly.<\/p>\n
Scene 3<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
“Dammit, Dennis. Why isn’t it working? I was sure it would.”<\/p>\n
“I’m sorry, Cordelia. Maybe you should check to see what’s happening.”<\/p>\n
“What? Huh? Oh, for crap’s sake. I totally forgot I can do that. Must be your bound-to-one-home ghost ick rubbing off on me. Remind me to get you unbound as soon as I’m in my body again.”<\/p>\n
“No, please don\u2019t. I don’t want to be unbound. I want to stay with you.”<\/p>\n
“Silly, I meant unbound to this apartment. Of course, you’ll come with me. I couldn’t live without you.”<\/p>\n
She could feel his blush and surrounded him with her essence to hug him. It was weird, but it worked.<\/p>\n
“Don’t go anywhere. I’ll be right back.”<\/p>\n
Scene 4<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Buzzzzz. Buzzzzzz. Buzzzzzz.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cI’m sorry, but there’s been no change. At least not for the better.”<\/p>\n
Angel blinked in disbelief and then spoke through clenched teeth. “But, she spoke to me. I heard her!”<\/p>\n
The doctor was very intimidated by the boss, but more concerned about what that vamp would do if any harm came to his patient. So he straightened his shoulders and prayed he could make his case.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can’t say for sure she didn’t speak, but none of our tests can confirm it. Her condition has not improved and, in fact, there are some indications that she\u2019s worse. Her vitals have slipped to an alarming degree.” He fully expected the demon to break his neck and apparently the others did, too, since a few of them grabbed his arms in a timid attempt to rein him in.<\/p>\n
Cordy was surrounding all her family now and would have felt pure joy if not for the irritating little doctor man blowing snow out his ass. \u201cPlease, stop with the doom and gloom. I\u2019m right here you rheological retard.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
Angel wanted to kill him, but something in him snapped. It was the tether that he’d had bound around his hope that broke. He slumped and might have actually fallen if he hadn’t felt Lorne and Fred’s hands supporting him.<\/p>\n
Buzzzzzz. Buzzzzzzz. Buzzzzzz.<\/i><\/p>\n
“Who’s pager is that? Would somebody turn that bloody thing off!” Wesley whispered loudly. The sound didn’t seem to be affecting Angel, but it was driving him over the edge.<\/p>\n
After some panicked searching by the various members there, the offending object was finally found.<\/p>\n
“Sorry. That’s mine. I’ll turn it off. Sorry.”<\/p>\n
\u201cNoooo!! Don\u2019t turn it off. Answer it! Well, hell\u2019s bells. Has Wolfram & Hart mind fucked you people?\u201d When no one answered her simple question, she gave up Plan A. \u201cDennis, we\u2019re moron challenged here. Charge up Plan B.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
An interminable silence fell after all the fumbling about with pager checking. It all went completely unnoticed by Angel. Finally, Lorne quietly broached the impasse.<\/p>\n
“Doctor, can I go in?”<\/p>\n
The doctor looked at Lorne and then at Angel seeking his permission to allow it. “Well, I have no objections if\u2026”<\/p>\n
“Angel? Do you mind? I need to check something out. I’ll be just a minute.”<\/p>\n
Angel was still a bit dazed by the idea that Cordy might actually leave him, so he just automatically nodded his consent. The doctor stepped aside to let Lorne pass and Angel caught a glimpse of her chest falling as air left her body. He didn’t want that to be the last image of her that he saw.<\/p>\n
Scene 5<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Angel sat in his luxurious new pad just a short sewer hop from the W&H building. It felt strange here still, definitely not a home, and the only thing that made it feel normal was the sketchpad and pencil in his hands.<\/p>\n
He had only seen Connor with his new family that one time. He\u2019d wanted to go back every day, but he knew it would only make it more and more difficult to leave him there. As the days turned into weeks, it did get easier. But he never forgot. I don\u2019t even have a picture of him.<\/i> Which is why he drew sketches of him.<\/p>\n
He spent every waking hour at home sketching Connor and Cordelia. Not and<\/i> Cordelia. Not them together. A sketch of Connor separate from a sketch of Cordelia. Never in the same drawing.<\/p>\n
Damn. Why did I have to go there? Why do I have to have a photographic memory?<\/i> He knew logically what had happened. He didn\u2019t blame either one of them. Cordy wasn\u2019t Cordy and Connor was just a horny teenager who fell in love with a beautiful woman that showed him kindness. Hell, he had too, so he could see how it could happen. He wasn\u2019t angry or hurt by it anymore. It was just the picture of it in his mind that he couldn\u2019t let go of. Cordy with another man. It was the beast in him. That territorial, alpha male, macho crap that was in his blood, and he couldn\u2019t wash it out of him with transfusions.<\/p>\n
But now it didn\u2019t matter. Connor was gone and soon she would be, too. Just when he’d felt the most hope he\u2019d had in months, life showed him just how undeserving he was.<\/p>\n
“Angel, sweetums. I don’t know how to tell you, but\u2026she’s not there anymore. She’s gone.”<\/i><\/p>\n
Lorne was broken. Only a few hours ago he was Mr. Broadway and now he was just a weeping Pylean in hell with no music.<\/p>\n
The image he had glimpsed through the door was what he had drawn as soon as he sat down. It was too painful to keep locked in his mind. The lines defining her form on the page were dark and much too solid. She wasn’t solid any more. He needed to erase them. Make them wispy and barely there. She needed to fade into the negative space more.<\/p>\n
The sketch was just as still and lifeless as her body. Devoid of depth and strictly two-dimensional. And so was his thinking. All he thought about was his pain and loss.<\/p>\n
But, truly what had Cordy lost? A working body? Life? Her family? No, if he actually went deeper than the surface he knew in his heart she hadn’t lost anything. She was so much better off without him and certainly better off without all the fighting. The only thing of substance that was missing was the closeness of those who loved her and whom she loved. But she wouldn’t be without her family forever, and most would be joining her much sooner than later. But can I live without her until\u2026 Can I live without her?<\/i><\/p>\n
\n
Scene 6<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
As soon as Fred reached her office she dropped into her chair, let her head fall into her crossed arms on the desk and bawled. Yes, she was officially the crybaby of the group, but somehow she\u2019d managed to keep it together in front of Angel. She didn\u2019t think he could sink any deeper, but then she witnessed him slide into the earth\u2019s core before her very eyes when Lorne told him the news.<\/p>\n
It really didn\u2019t matter any more. Nothing did. Their family was destroyed and Cordy wouldn\u2019t be able to put it back together again. Fred wanted to desperately, but they didn\u2019t listen to her like they did Cordy. Cordelia was intimidation personified and Fred knew she could never measure up like that.Hell, I\u2019d be lucky if they listened to me about the time of day. How can they think I\u2019m so smart and so stupid at the same time?<\/i><\/p>\n
The sound of the phone ringing so close to her ear was enough to stop her heart and self-flagellation. She pulled up quickly and swiped at her drenched cheeks. Sniffling, she tried to calm herself before answering. Well, isn\u2019t this just a fine pigs\u2019 sty you\u2019re wallowin\u2019 in, Missy? Cordy\u2019s dyin\u2019 and you\u2019re feelin\u2019 sorry for yourself. Stop it, this instant!<\/i> One more wipe of the eyes and then her hand lifted the handset from its cradle.<\/p>\n
\u201cWinifred Burkle speaking.\u201d When no one answered her, she tried again. \u201cHello. This is Winifred Burkle. Is anybody there?\u201d She was about to hang up in irritation when she heard the tones. She put the phone back to her ear and listened for a second. Just more tones. Like someone trying to dial another number.<\/p>\n
\u201cC\u2019mon Fred. You\u2019re the frickin\u2019 math genius. Puzzle girl extraordinaire. Get a clue.\u201d Cordy pleaded.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cHellooo? You\u2019ve got to hang up before you start dialing again. I\u2019m still on the line. Helllloooooo?\u201d The only response she got was more annoying tones from some dimwit trying to dial again. \u201cOkay. I\u2019m hanging up now. Goodbye.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t believe this. A little girl\u2019s life is in the balance and she\u2019s being polite to a wrong number. Dennis! Call again.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
When she hung up she noticed her message light was on. \u201cGreat. Probably some emergency in Computational Portal Advancements. Just what I need today. To get sucked into another swirling vortex to hell.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan\u2019t say I blame ya there. Had one of those today myself. Dennis!! Are you listening to me?\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
The phone rang again just as Fred was about to check her voice mail. \u201cHello, this is Winifred Burkle.\u201d Again, nothing but someone dialing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s my boy. Keep it up.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cOkay, this isn\u2019t funny whoever you are. I\u2019ve had a really bad day so far and I don\u2019t need this kinda grade school crap right now. If you don\u2019t stop calling, I\u2019m going to trace this call and use my considerable scientific and anatomical knowledge to ram a cattle prod right up your ass.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDammit, Fred! This isn\u2019t a prank. It\u2019s deadly serious. And thanks for the nice torture visual. Dennis, one more… Stop, wait a minute.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
Fred had picked up the phone to check her voice mail. The first message was from Knox. Something about a technical screw up with a hand-held dimensional sequencing thingamabob. Yada yada yada, who cares.<\/p>\n
The second was from Wesley telling her about a meeting in Angel\u2019s office in thirty minutes. Will this day never end? I don\u2019t think I can take another emotional meltdown.<\/i><\/p>\n
The third was another one from the pranky boys and when she heard the tones her last nerve sizzled. Those dialing digits were about the meet the sharp end of a Troilan Triblade. She slammed the phone down.<\/p>\n
\u201cFred, no!! Listen to the sounds. Please, please. It\u2019s the same every time. I know you can figure it out. Please, Fred.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
Fred picked up the phone again.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes! There ya go. Listen again.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
She dialed a few numbers and started barking orders. \u201cThis is Winifred Burkle, Head of the Science Division. I need a number traced ASAP. Two calls were made to this number within the last fifteen minutes…uh-huh…yeah, that\u2019s real sad. But I don\u2019t give a flying monkey\u2019s ass whose mother just died. I want to know exactly who made those calls, and I want to know now!\u201d She slammed down the phone and headed for the restroom knocking her chair over in her whirlwind exit.<\/p>\n
\u201cOoookkkkaaayyyy. Again with the nice visual. Not what I had planned, but this could work just as well. As long as she recognizes the address and as long as the phone trace guy is as scared of her as I am right now.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
\n
Scene 7<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Gunn had left the wake outside Cordelia\u2019s tomb and trotted straight to his fortress for some rejuvenation. No matter how long between visits, the sensation was as strong as the first time he stared into those eyes. Clarity born of purity. The pure white of the room and the pure black of the panther. All colors of the spectrum create white, and black is born of the absence of all light. All consciousness creates life and lack of consciousness marks death.<\/p>\n
There is no gray as long as the white and black never mix. The white thinks. The black feels. As long as you don\u2019t mix feelings with thinking, everything remains pure. Pure hunger. Pure vision. Pure power. Pure purpose. Pure white. Pure black. Pure right. Pure wrong. Man that was deep. Guess the homeboy\u2019s got depths after all.<\/i><\/p>\n
Ever since he fell into the eyes of the cat (or whatever the fuck happened)<\/i>, Gunn was the man he wanted to be. A cat? Whaddup with that? Shoulda been a dog, ya know? But, hey. Cats are cool. All independent and strong. Sleek and fast. Quiet and patient. They know what\u2019s food and what\u2019s not. What lives and what dies. A cat is the king of the jungle. King Gunn<\/i>. \u201cKinda feels good on the tongue. King Gunn.\u201d A sly grin scampered across his face and just a hint of cold yellow crept in behind his normally warm brown eyes.<\/p>\n
Yeah, I got it goin\u2019 on. No more pansy-ass ‘if it’s got a soul, it’s okay’ crap. Because it ain\u2019t okay. If it\u2019s demon, it\u2019s dead. If it kills, I kill it. The mission is all there is and all there should be. I am King and I rule.<\/i> \u201cNow who dies first your majesty?\u201d<\/p>\n
The eyes have it.<\/p>\n
Scene 8<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Nasulo was taking his time. Killing the girl was going to take some finesse. She wasn\u2019t his ordinary victim. No timid tea set toting, house-playing Barbie wannabe her. This child was unique and was forewarned. He knew of her gifts and imagined she knew he was coming for her.<\/p>\n
Would she also know how he was going to kill her when he didn\u2019t even know himself? And once he did decide his strategy was it already doomed to fail because she\u2019d see it coming? For once in is eternal life he thought he might have to wing it. Surprise himself and in the process leave her no time to form her defense. I didn\u2019t know I could get headaches. She\u2019ll pay for that in many vile ways.<\/i><\/p>\n
Fala had already seen her death, and it didn\u2019t bother her. She\u2019d also seen her rescue, not that she really needed it. She was perfectly capable of taking care of the Nasulo or dying by its hands.<\/p>\n
Whatever. There was no death for her. Of course there could be death for this body, but another would take its place. The only reasons for her to avoid Nasulo\u2019s claws were her mother and the tormented one. Her mother was a kind and precious soul, but incomplete. And the one who was to save her could help her mother\u2019s soul reach the next level.<\/p>\n
And there was that secondary benefit. The joining. It didn\u2019t need to happen in this lifetime, but it couldn\u2019t hurt. She just couldn\u2019t decide.<\/p>\n
\u201cMommy, can I have a Klondike bar?\u201d She decided to put off that conundrum until later. Maybe the crunchy and smooth confection would tip the scale.<\/p>\n
Scene 9<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Everyone was in Angel\u2019s office except Gunn. They\u2019d already waited 10 minutes for him, and Wesley\u2019s patience was worn.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel, I think we should start without Gunn. He wasn\u2019t in his office, so I\u2019m not sure if he got the message. He\u2019s already well aware of the situation and…\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFine.\u201d Angel just stared out the window with his back to them.<\/p>\n
Fred and Lorne looked to each other for support. Wesley saw the two exchange glances and wished he was on their team right now. He did not want to be the one putting the knife in Angel\u2019s heart. Why do I always have to be the mature one? If only I could hold someone\u2019s hands and cry when I felt it. Like right now.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cWesley, why did you want to meet? What situation are you talking about?\u201d Was Angel really so out of it that he didn\u2019t know why they were here? Oh, God, take this cup from me.<\/i> When God failed him yet again, he spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe situation is Cordelia.\u201d Wesley heard the tone in his own voice and was shocked by its businesslike cool. He took a deep breath and tried to let the weight of what he was about to say reflect in his voice. \u201cAngel, it\u2019s time. We need to let her go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel slowly turned his chair and faced them. He forced himself to move his chest out and in to simulate breathing because he didn\u2019t want any one of them thinking he didn\u2019t care. That he was just a dead, unfeeling corpse that had given up. He wanted them to know that life mattered to him and that her life was still precious to him.<\/p>\n
He looked Wesley in the eye and said, \u201cI agree.\u201d Once he spoke the words, he stopped breathing.<\/p>\n
The shock went through each of them differently. Wesley was sure he had not heard correctly. Fred was simply devastated but somehow knew he was ready. Lorne was merely accepting as always of the way of things, but still amazed that he had not seen it in his aura. There was still so much conflict apparent in him, surrender definitely wasn\u2019t on the top of the charts.<\/p>\n
When no one said anything, Angel decided to let his friends off the hook and himself, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love Cordelia. I wanted to say that to her before anybody else heard it, but I\u2019ve accepted that it\u2019s not going to happen. I hope she knew. It took me so long to realize it, and then too long to get the courage to tell her, but I hope she felt it from me. Maybe some day I\u2019ll find out.\u201d The tears that had pooled just at the precipice now spilled over at the thought of seeing her again…smiling and happy.<\/p>\n
He choked back the hard knot in his throat and willed the tears to retreat so he could continue.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut one thing I\u2019m sure of is that she loved us. And she would never want any of us to be in this much pain. Cordy loved life and didn\u2019t fear living it. We have to honor her and do the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
He pondered who was left of his family in the room. A scruffy yet impeccably dressed rogue demon hunter, a terminally insane but totally guileless physicist, and a green-skinned, red-horned anagogic diva demon. Their hearts were breaking but he couldn\u2019t let their lives be ripped apart now. If Cordelia had done one thing for him, it was to show him he still possessed a heart. He wouldn\u2019t let her life be in vain. If he couldn’t save her, he could do that much for the love of his life.<\/p>\n
He would have to be the heart of their family now. As soon as he did what he had to do and put the shredded pieces of it back together. Please, Cordy, help me.<\/i><\/p>\n
\n
Scene 10<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Tomorrow was going to be the worst day of her life so far. And that was saying something coming from a woman who\u2019d been trapped in a hell dimension for five years. Fred shuffled into her office after \u201cthe meeting.\u201d That\u2019s what it would forever be to her now. The day they had \u201cthe meeting\u201d that killed Cordy. She never wanted to meet with anyone ever again. But there was one more to attend at 9:00 am sharp. The \u201cgoodbye meeting.\u201d Wasn\u2019t tonight just going to be chock full of restful non-sleep of the tossing and turning variety?<\/p>\n
What do you wear to a plug pulling?<\/i> She couldn\u2019t help but smile at the Cordy in her. \u201cOh, God, I\u2019m going to miss you so much.\u201d<\/p>\n
She plopped into her chair and picked up the phone to call Charles. She didn\u2019t know why he hadn\u2019t been there, but she wanted to be the one to tell him the decision. She got his voice mail and wasn\u2019t sure what to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cUmm…Charles….this is Fred. Well, of course you know it\u2019s me. How stupid of me. Anyway we had the meeting about Cordy just a little while ago and… Gosh, I really wanted to talk to you. I wish you were there. I….uh…miss you, ya know?\u201d<\/p>\n
Fred\u2019s eye wandered from the phone cord she was twisting in her finger to the message that had been placed on her desk while she was gone. She stared at the words not immediately grasping what she was seeing. But something tickled her brain about it. Something was familiar.<\/p>\n
\u201cUh…oh! Sorry. Uh, maybe you should give me a call when you get this because I don\u2019t want….\u201d<\/p>\n
The address. That\u2019s what was bugging her. She knew that address. It was Cordy\u2019s old apartment. What the hell? Who would be placing prank calls from there? And to her private line?<\/p>\n
\u201c…uh…to…tell….you….\u201d It hit her like Ernst Angley\u2019s healing hand. \u201cHoly shit! My mother\u2019s Aunt Rosie\u2019s girdle! Oh, my god!\u201d She suddenly realized she still had the phone in her hand. \u201cOh, Jesus. Sorry, Charles. I\u2019ve gotta go!\u201d<\/p>\n
She slammed down the receiver and pulled it off again when she tried to grab her purse with the phone cord wrapped around her arm. The cord was evil and wouldn\u2019t let her go, so she snatched her purse anyway and pulled the phone from the wall as she flew out her office and out of her mind.<\/p>\n