{"id":3588,"date":"2015-07-04T17:57:40","date_gmt":"2015-07-04T16:57:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/?p=3588"},"modified":"2015-07-04T18:24:14","modified_gmt":"2015-07-04T17:24:14","slug":"shades-of-gray-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/04\/shades-of-gray-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Shades of Gray. 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Title: Shades of Gray<\/b>
\nAuthor: <\/b>Frazi
\nPosted: <\/b>04\/04
\nEmail<\/b><\/a>
\nRating: <\/b>R
\nCategory: <\/b>Smut, Humour, S1
\nContent: <\/b>C\/A
\nSummary: <\/b>Male ego on independent women. Nuff said.
\nSpoilers: <\/b>Season one.
\nDisclaimer: <\/b>The characters in the Angelverse were created by Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.
\nDistribution: <\/b>AA, GT, Just Fic is fine with me anywhere else just ask.
\nNotes: <\/b>Well this is all Califi’s<\/b> fault. if she hadn’t been all ooooh think of this… oooh how about this. I might never have gotten into this mess in the first place. Thanks a lot Cali<\/b> \ud83d\ude09 Lurve ya! Here’s what she said: (At bottom of page).
\nThanks\/Dedication: <\/b>
\nFeedback: <\/b>Pweeeze?<\/p>\n

\n

The woman marched into the office without greeting, her blue eyes etched with weariness and lack of enthusiasm.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t be here if I had another option.\u201d The vampire wondered why the hell his help was asked with such reluctance.<\/p>\n

Maybe he\u2019d have to put a sign on the door that said, \u2018FREE\u2019 along with \u2018Helping the hopeless.\u2019 Did they not know he was doing this for a good unselfish cause? His redemption.<\/p>\n

Kate. Detective. Another working woman in men\u2019s clothes. As if the fact that she wore jeans and a leather jacket suddenly made her a tough cookie on the street. Bullshit.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch enthusiasm.\u201d He couldn\u2019t hold the deadpan sarcasm as he leaned back in his chair, his easy sprawl unaffected by the abrupt arrival of the woman. \u201cWhat can I do for you Kate?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not human.\u201d She pulled a slightly rumpled photograph from her seat pocket and slapped it onto the table in front of him. Planting her hands on her hips, her blue eyes narrowed and regarded him with suspicion.<\/p>\n

He had half a mind to kick her legs out from under her. Just for fun. But then he was being a good boy. He had to play by the rules. So what if his girlfriend left him because he was a vampire and she was a slayer and went hay-romping a little boy with a pulse?<\/p>\n

He wasn\u2019t bitter. Not a bit. So what if he was blood sucking creature of the night because he had a responsibility to a family he\u2019d just started rebuilding. He wasn\u2019t resentful. Not a bit.<\/p>\n

Now he realized why his father was such a slaver driver.<\/p>\n

His gaze dropped without making a motion to pick it up and looked at the grizzly face of the demon he recognized all too well. \u201cTuslah Demon.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s at the old theater near the boardwalk. Kill it.\u201dAn eyebrow arched up and he regarded her with stoic complacency.<\/p>\n

Maybe Cordelia was right. Maybe the bleach did soak into their heads to make them think they could order him about. First Darla, then Buffy; and now this seemingly tough woman. What; did he have a post-it on his forehead saying \u2018If blonde, make fun of the incredibly old vampire\u2019?<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you going to or not?\u201d She glared at him.<\/p>\n

For an instant he wanted her to actually ask him instead of telling him. And he bit back the retort burning on his tongue. What was with women these days anyway? First Cordelia is all emancipated with her clothes and well placed jibes and now he was being pushed about by a slip of a woman with a badge that meant nothing to a vampire of two centuries of age.<\/p>\n

There was no respect left in this world.<\/p>\n

He picked up the picture and stretched his legs, drawing to his full height as he towered over the woman from across the desk. \u201cMy contract with the powers say I have to.\u201d<\/p>\n

She blinked slightly at the sardonic twitch of his chocolate eyes and stepped away from his shadow. And the uneasiness settled in her stomach as she watched the lithe form of the vampire now at his full height and her bravado caved. For a minute she regretted the ice in her voice and her rude entrance. She figured she really should be nice to the man.<\/p>\n

Even if he wasn\u2019t really human. \u201cThanks. Page me.\u201d She fidgeted for moment under his attentive scrutiny then looked up bravely into the creature\u2019s eyes. \u201cI\u2019ll see you.\u201d Turning on her heel, she swept her eyes away and walked out of the little office, her nerves on edge.<\/p>\n

The vampire gave her the creeps.<\/p>\n

Cordelia stood next to Doyle outside Angel\u2019s office and watched the retreating woman with an amused curve of her lips.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother one bites the dust.\u201d The snicker came from Doyle and Angel paused in the doorway waiting for yet another argument over his taste in women.<\/p>\n

He could almost hear the roll of Cordelia\u2019s eyes as she went about stuffing a folder with invoices. \u201cFigures she\u2019d be a blonde.\u201d<\/p>\n

The fingers around the rumpled photograph tightened. Did they purposefully forget Dru?<\/p>\n

\u201cWell it works well in me favor Princess.\u201d Angel\u2019s eyes watched the wall, hearing the smirk in Doyle\u2019s voice on the other side and shift of cloth as he propped his elbow on Cordelia\u2019s shoulder flirtatiously.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile Angel reels in his blondes, I can work on this scrumptious brunette.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPffft! Angel? And ME! Are you kidding me!\u201d He bit hard against his teeth, his jaw hardening.<\/p>\n

Did she just imply he was beneath her? HER! The FORMER boy-slayer of SunnyHell, stranded in a big ol\u2019 city penniless without a champion until Angel had come, was suddenly being prissy about her preferences where he was concerned?<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on Princess; tell me ye weren\u2019t just a little jealous of the illustrious Buffy Summers?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGAH! You are NOT serious! Eyow! I do not need to reach for a bottle of peroxide to attract a man!\u201d Oh that was just it dammit! He\u2019d get some respect out of this contemptuous young woman if it was the last thing he did!<\/p>\n

She had to realize the absolute sacrifice he was making for them.<\/p>\n

He figured bestowing his good company and a chance to do some good would be enough to make her realize that he was paragon in his time. Now it just seemed he\u2019d have to convince her more forcefully.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t care why, but he felt this need to possess her. Call it ego or the lust for power, but he couldn\u2019t stand the fact that she could have one over him. Him; the vampire with a soul. Savior of helpless and Champion of the Powers that do all shit!<\/p>\n

He was determined to see her fall flat on her annoyingly perfect face and break that sleek arrogant nose. Yes, he realized. She was perfect in her totality.<\/p>\n

Not that she didn\u2019t have flaws.<\/p>\n

If only Angel had another couple of hours of doing nothing to just count them. She was pinnacle for the ideal working woman. Something Angel\u2019s mid 18th Century mind could not ever come to grips with.<\/p>\n

Even the damned slayer had the sensibility to be slightly afraid of him, but Cordelia; she strutted around in her new age clothes, donned to perfection, lethal and on the prowl with her wide witty mouth and sensual come-hither glances.<\/p>\n

This one woman had more flaws in her than a scratchy first day plan for a construction building, he concluded. She was stubborn. She was selfish. She was entirely too apathetic when it came to Angel and she was cold and devious.<\/p>\n

And worst of all yet! Independent and liberated! Everything a woman shouldn’t be, he growled inwardly.<\/p>\n

She turns me off with her perfection of the woman of the nineties.<\/i><\/p>\n

Everything about her, from the perfect little skirts and tight hugging blouses to the three inch heels with the fairly curvy figure, reeked of modernism.<\/p>\n

He couldn\u2019t stand it. He had to bring the queen to her knees or he knew he wouldn\u2019t sleep for the rest of his nights. She had to know this was his damned sitcom. He was the star of the show and she was his secretary!<\/p>\n

Fetching for him and making him coffee was all she needed to do. She needed to know that he was a man and she a mere woman.<\/p>\n

Marching out of the office Angel looked up at his two snickering coworkers. \u201cIt\u2019s nice to see we\u2019re spending company time discussing my private life.\u201d<\/p>\n

They both froze at his untimely entrance. Doyle straightened and grinned up at the vampire.<\/p>\n

\u201cPopularity has its burden.\u201d Cordelia shifted out from under Doyle\u2019s arm and gave their vampire boss a wide, innocent smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the word Boss-man?\u201d And there she did it again, he fumed silently. Disregarding his obvious sarcasm over their topic of discussion, she goes about fixing him with that irritatingly brightening smile that made him wish he could reach out and kiss it off her face.<\/p>\n

Just to put himself out of its glamour.<\/p>\n

Angel held up the picture between his fingers. \u201cNight patrol. You and me. Cordelia can watch the car.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWHAT!\u201d She bristled at the obvious disrespect of her abilities as a part of Angel Investigations. \u201cI can do more than watch your dumb old car, Broody!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever you say Cordelia.\u201d He did his best to keep the exasperation at her suggestion at a minimum, but the bait had been given.<\/p>\n

His ego would not rest till she bowed and she could never resist a challenge.<\/p>\n

Continue<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

What C said:<\/em><\/p>\n

(1) Kate pops round for one of her ‘i need help’ things.
\n(2) When the PTB turned him back to a vamp, they put in the soul w\/o the curse, cos that wasn’t important to them, they didnt want the worry of Aus ruining their plans for their warrior of the light.
\n(3) IWRY didn\u2019t play out like that. Buff was there, but to tell him she had riley in her life, he became human again, but buff went to see her dad. she came back to say goodbye just after A went to fight the demon. she killed the demon and they both decided it was best if they left things as they were, he took it back b\/c he couldn\u2019t fight demons like he once could and he was concerned for his LA friends.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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