{"id":3978,"date":"2015-07-05T22:29:11","date_gmt":"2015-07-05T21:29:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/?p=3978"},"modified":"2015-07-06T00:53:03","modified_gmt":"2015-07-05T23:53:03","slug":"bad-timing-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/05\/bad-timing-8\/","title":{"rendered":"Bad Timing. 8"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 8<\/b>: Training Days<\/em><\/p>\n

By the time they got to the Hyperion it was after one and Cordelia\u2019s stomach was playing a symphony of some sorts. When they walked in the door, the scene was as expected.<\/p>\n

Gunn stood crouching next to the playpen, trying to get Connor to grip a mini-basketball, with a little cheerleading from Dawn. Wes and Fred were hunched over humungous books in Wesley\u2019s office. Xander and Willow were sitting on the round couch in the middle of the lobby, looking uncomfortable. And Angel and Buffy were nowhere to be seen.<\/p>\n

Everyone seemed to notice the new arrivals at the same time and there was a hushed silence.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, don\u2019t be so dramatic,\u201d Cordelia said as she brushed off the confusion and walked over to the playpen, waving at Spike to follow her. \u201cSpike, you know Willow and Xander\u2026and Dawn,\u201d Cordy said as Dawn ran to Spike and gave him a warm hug, much to the consternation of everyone else in the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry I lied to you. Buffy made me,\u201d Dawn whispered in Spike\u2019s ear.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo worries niblet I know you were just following the Slayer\u2019s orders,\u201d Spike told her with a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cOhhhh-kay. So you two are best friends now? Allright, I can accept that. No weirder than anything else around here,\u201d Cordy announced. \u201cAnyway, Spike, I know you remember Wesley, and that just leaves Gunn and Fred.\u201d Cordelia turned to the two people she had just named.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, before you ask, he is a vampire Fred, and no, Gunn, before you ask, you can\u2019t stake him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fred came forward, with not a whit of shyness or hesitation. \u201cHey I\u2019m Fred. I heard a little about you, and I came across your name in a couple of files.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spike turned to Cordelia. \u201cYou have files on me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat can I say, you\u2019re a legend,\u201d Cordy responded wryly. She really wanted to finish this whole get to know you deal and find out where Angel was.<\/p>\n

Because I\u2019m hungry. I can get Angel to cook for me. That\u2019s why I want to know where he is. Not because I\u2019m all jealous that he seems to have disappeared with Buffy, the love of his un-dead life.<\/i><\/p>\n

Fred was still talking to Spike about the snitches of info she had on him. \u201cYeah, so, the way I figure it, that scar on Cordy\u2019s stomach, that\u2019s really your fault. Cause weren\u2019t Xander and Willow doing a spell for you when Cordelia found them all\u2014you know\u2014and then she fell and hurt herself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fred was oblivious to the fact that Xander and Willow were turning incredible shades of red.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell that\u2019s one way to look at it. Sorry bout that Cor,\u201d Spike offered gamely.<\/p>\n

Unlike Fred, Cordy wasn\u2019t oblivious to the embarrassment Xander and Willow were suffering\u2014she was relishing it. She waved off Spike\u2019s apology. \u201cOh please, Spike, you might have done a little Scoob-napping but you didn\u2019t force them to start rolling all over each other. You didn\u2019t tell them it was mating season on the Hellmouth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cordy shot a glare over at the two in question, conveying a bitterness she really didn\u2019t even feel anymore. This was just too good to pass up.<\/p>\n

Xander didn\u2019t say anything, but Willow stood up and was half way through a stuttering apology before Cordelia\u2019s honorability got the better of her. \u201cWillow, stop. Please. I was kidding. I\u2019m way over that. No biggie. Got me over that whole crushing on Xander sickness. Hey, I should probably be thanking you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Willow didn\u2019t say anything. Cordelia joking around? Cordelia missing an opportunity to make someone suffer? Cordelia reaching into the playpen and scooping up the baby and looking incredibly natural doing it? Was this like a sign of yet another apocalypse?<\/p>\n

Cordelia brushed kisses over the baby\u2019s downy head and moved closer to Spike. \u201cAnd finally, this is the little guy you didn\u2019t get introduced to last night.\u201d She awkwardly positioned the baby in Spike\u2019s arms as the rest of the room nervously looked on. After a couple of seconds of watching an almost fearful Spike rock the baby like the novice he was, Gunn asked if Cordy didn\u2019t think Angel would object to this.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease,\u201d Cordy answered, \u201cAngel lets a Pylean demon baby-sit. He buys diapers next door to the butcher shop he buys PIGS BLOOD from. He\u2019s in no position to be so picky.\u201d Though Cordy did stage whisper to Dawn \u201cIf you see him smoking anywhere near that child, stake him.\u201d To which Dawn nodded with a giggle.<\/p>\n

Finally, Cordelia couldn\u2019t hold back from asking. She had been here nearly ten minutes. Still no Angel. Wasn\u2019t he the tinsiest bit concerned about her? She had gone off into the night with Spike, who had spent years raping and pillaging, or whatever it was the Fabulous Four had done together.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince Gunn\u2019s here, I guess I better forget the idea of leftover pizza, huh. Well, where\u2019s Angel? I could go for an omelet a la vampire.\u201d<\/p>\n

All Cordelia got was a roomful of people who refused to meet her eye. The gang from Sunnydale wasn\u2019t looking because they were trying to imagine the idea of Angel as Emeril Lagasse. The Fang Gang, however, they seemed a little worried. \u201cYou guys? Hello? I asked where Angel is? Since it\u2019s a little bright outside, I\u2019m assuming he is in residence.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, yeah,\u201d Fred finally answered. She wasn\u2019t entirely sure why she thought telling Cordelia might be a bad idea, but judging from their hesitation, Wes and Gunn seemed to agree with her. \u201cHe\u2019s here. He\u2019s in the basement. I think he\u2019s training\u2026\u201d Cordelia was already heading down the stairs. She didn\u2019t catch the last part of what Fred mumbled.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Buffy,\u201d Fred trailed off. More awkward silence. It was becoming the theme of the day.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo anyone else having a mental picture of Angel in an apron adding blood to stuff and yelling Bam!\u201d Xander wondered. \u201cWhat, it\u2019s a valid question?\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Angel stood near the stairs to the basement, watching Buffy run through a series of exercises with a sword. She was graceful, her motions exhibiting a fluid strength that seemed innate. He knew she preferred crossbows to swordplay, but he had no problem imagining her as a more than worthy opponent. They had been down here for more than an hour now.<\/p>\n

They worked as well together as they always had\u2014their movements blended so well they seemed choreographed. She\u2019d even given him a few tips on a new spin-kick move. And yet, for some reason, Angel was disappointed.<\/p>\n

He had suggested her training with him as a way of getting her to open up. Regardless of what she said, he was positive Buffy had a real motive for coming to LA, other than simply missing him. She had missed him plenty before but that had never had her driving down the Pacific coast to see him. He figured a little time alone and she might allow herself to tell him what was wrong.<\/p>\n

So far it wasn\u2019t working. Angel didn\u2019t know why. When he and Cordy were training, it was an extension of everything else they did. They both remained focused, but they talked. Even when it was just double entendres about weapons or Angel making fun of how Cordelia sweated and he didn\u2019t; somehow so much more was communicated, in those quiet moments between lessons.<\/p>\n

Angel always emerged from the lessons feeling closer than ever to Cordelia. It wasn\u2019t like that with Buffy.<\/p>\n

There was no element of fun here. The air was charged differently. There had been a tenseness in each of their movements.<\/p>\n

With Cordy, the air is charged too, but not like this. Cordy and I get going and it\u2019s like this weird electricity buzzing around the room, these sparks that I keep thinking I\u2019ll see when we touch. It\u2019s almost, it Is arousing. Today the air tastes differently. Like anger and fear and barely restrained violence.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cYou ready for a little hand-to-hand combat,\u201d Buffy asked. \u201cI think we\u2019ve played enough with weapons for the day. Besides\u2026I\u2019m much better\u2026with my hands.\u201d<\/p>\n

That was the other thing that was a little off, Angel thought. Buffy had been saying things. Things that were pretty odd, considering their current relationship. And she\u2019d also been bringing up random Sunnydale memories at the strangest moments. She\u2019d talked about making out through her window the night she was grounded. She asked him if he remembered the song they danced to at her prom. That was three years ago!<\/p>\n

Angel walked over to her, so they stood facing each other on the mat. Her hair was shorter now, but still soft and feminine. She had on black tank top and blue yoga pants, the outfit highlighting her small body\u2019s muscled frame. She seemed so\u2026small. Not that she had been big before. Angel didn\u2019t know what it was. Buffy had an air of fragility. Despite his knowledge of her strength, she just seemed \u201cbreakable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s all those months being down here with Cordy. All that glowing skin, those long sleek limbs, those curves\u2026 Always that urge, just barely contained, to reach out and grab, caress, taste. Buffy just gives me the urge to feed her. Stuff her full of comfort food until she seems more stable.<\/i><\/p>\n

Angel had been having these thoughts while sparring with Buffy and now he paid for his distraction. She kicked him in the side so he was off balance, grabbed his arm and turned so that he was briefly facing her back. Then she flipped him. He hit the ground with an \u201cUmmph\u201d and was still.<\/p>\n

Funny how I don\u2019t need to breathe but I can still get the wind knocked out of me. <\/i>Suddenly Buffy was straddling him. Neither spoke. She was panting and her eyes, they looked so determined. She moved her hands to his chest. Though the thin cotton of his black tee shirt, he felt the burning heat of her body.<\/p>\n

Buffy lowered her head slightly, a tiny movement but it seemed to speak volumes to Angel. He noticed the slight hitch in her breath, the way her fingers gripped his shirt. He mouth opened and she took a breath, like she was getting ready to say something important, but than they both heard feet bounding down the stairs and looked to the left, even though Angel didn\u2019t need to.<\/p>\n

He knew who it was.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

I have no right to be mad. We use the basement to train. It\u2019s not like some VIP, invitation only room. Anyone can train down here. Even barely covered way-too-toned looking blond slayers. <\/i><\/p>\n

Still, it was hard. Cordelia had practically run down the stairs, to her own chagrin, run down like a 12-year-old excited to see her crush, and had walked into a scene from a late-night Skinamax movie. The part immediately before the two leads ripped each other\u2019s clothes off and had sweaty sex allover the floor.<\/p>\n

Ewww, don\u2019t think like that, don\u2019t think like that. Come on Cordy, pull it together.<\/i><\/p>\n

So, while she could feel a painful vise grip her heart, all Cordy said was, \u201cWow, nice to see you two getting so much training done.\u201d She added a raised eyebrow, hoping for a blas\u00e9, \u201cyou two crazy kids\u201d attitude.<\/p>\n

Buffy didn\u2019t make any move to get off Angel. It was like a twisted repeat of the scene she and the Scoobies had walked in on the day before. Except Cordelia wasn\u2019t enjoying this one nearly as much.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey Cordy,\u201d Angel said nervously. He looked at Buffy, waiting for her to climb off of him. He wanted her off of him. This had felt wrong before Cordelia came downstairs, now it felt worse. When Buffy missed the signals, Angel finally just removed her himself.<\/p>\n

He sprang up and dusted himself off, surreptitiously glancing at his Seer to gauge her reaction. She just nodded and tapped her foot on the floor. God she has cute toes. And that skirt. Does she wear that red skirt on purpose? She must know what the color does to men, even non-blood-sucking men.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cDid you want something Cordelia,\u201d Buffy asked in a sickly-sweet voice. Buffy didn\u2019t know why everyone was acting so funny. Cordelia looked like she had just swallowed a lemon and Angel looked apologetic, like he had been doing something wrong.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want so many things Buffy. Those shoes Sarah Jessica Parker wore in that last episode of \u2018Sex in the City.\u2019 A nice looking stock portfolio. A copy of \u2018Say Anything\u2019 on DVD.\u201d<\/p>\n

She seems jealous. Or like she\u2019s trying to hide the fact that she\u2019s jealous. No, she couldn\u2019t be jealous. Not from seeing me with Buffy. I mean, for her to be jealous of that, she would have to\u2026want me. Okay, so that\u2019s not it. <\/i>No matter the cause of her anger, Angel wanted it gone, SOON.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs for right now,\u201d Cordelia continued with a glare at Angel, \u201cwhat I want is\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now you want lunch. Of course you do,\u201d he said, soothingly. He walked over to the stairs and placed his hands on her shoulders. \u201cYou\u2019re probably starving. It\u2019s not like Spike cooks. And I bet Gunn ate all the leftover pizza.\u201d Ahh, that got a glimpse of a smile. <\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cLets go get you some food,\u201d he said. Then her turned her around and followed her upstairs. Neither glanced back at Buffy, who stood in the middle of the mat looking perplexed.<\/p>\n

Angel got to the top of the stairs before he yelled down to ask if Buffy was coming. Am I coming? Am I coming? What just happened here?<\/i> \u201cIn a minute,\u201d she yelled back and the door shut. Alone now, Buffy looked around the room. She had been trying so hard. Trying to put Angel, and herself, in the mood. She had been so close.<\/p>\n

This, this just has to work. Angel is going to kiss me and everything will be okay again. I\u2019ll stop licking my lips and missing the taste of Spike. I\u2019ll stop. I\u2019ll stop.<\/i> Buffy looked down at her clenched hands and then at the punching bag in the corner.<\/p>\n

What the hell.<\/i><\/p>\n

Part 9<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Part 8: Training Days By the time they got to the Hyperion it was after one and Cordelia\u2019s stomach was playing a symphony…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3978","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-completed-fics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3978","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3978"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3978\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3978"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}