Title: Senior Prom
Author: Misha
Posted: 10-09-2004
Email:
Rating: NC-17
Category: BtVS3
Content: A/C, A/B romance in beginning, A/C/B angst
Summary: It's Senior Prom and Angel and Buffy are fighting, again, and break up. Penn finds Angel in Sunnydale and is after Cor, because he saved her, and has to protect her, bringing on some C/A events. Nothing better.
Spoilers: Up to season three of BtVS
Spoilers:
Disclaimer: The characters in the Angelverse were created by Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.
Distribution: You want it? Take it. Just let me know, though, all right?
Notes: During BtVS years. Penn (From Somnambulist) comes to Sunnydale, looking for Angel. He attacks Cordelia, Angel saves her and Buffy freaks out that Angel made Penn. This is before Prom, Angel doesn't break up with Buffy to leave town. He's still not very comfortable since his vacation from hell, and Cordy and Xander have broken up. Willow is still with Oz. And I made Cordelia's parents act like actual, concerned parents because it's never been stated their bad, just implied. They couldn't have been all that bad. You know, outside of the tax fraud and all.
Feedback:
Thanks/Dedication: To all the people who actually read my stories. Thanks for all the support. Sorry it took me so long to post.
Part 1
It was Thursday at the Bronze as Angel and Buffy walked out of the club, Xander, Willow and Oz behind them. Angel didn't pay too much attention to them. They were discussing some school activity. Some dance or something. It seemed important to them, but he couldn't find the interest.
"So, Buffy? Are you and Angel doing the matching dress and shirt thing or are you..." Willow stopped when she saw her friend shaking her head.
"Actually Willow, Angel hasn't asked me yet." She looked at her boyfriend, who seemed to be lost. "Angel?"
"Oh, huh?" Off her look. "I'm sorry I just, I'm out of it. What were you saying?" She frowned.
"Nothing really. Just talking about Prom and how you haven't asked me to it yet."
"How can I ask you to it if I don't even know what it is?"
"Oh yeah. I guess they really didn't have Prom back in your day, did they? What kind of dancing did they do back then anyway?" Willow asked innocently. He grinned at her, then turned to his frowning girlfriend.
"Buffy. I'm not big on public places. I mean...all those people. As it is, I can barely stand being around Xander."
"Hey!"
"Angel, it's like a rule to have your boyfriend take you to prom."
"Buffy, I..." He trailed off, body tense. His step faultered as he felt something pull at him from deep within.
"What's wrong?" Buffy asked, placing a hand to his face. He held it there, then looked at her.
"I, I felt something. Come on." He said, grabbing her hand and taking off at a sprint in the direction they had just come. They made their way to an alley, Xander, Willow and Oz breathing heavily as they came up behind the two.
"Get off me!" They followed the voice deep into the alley and saw Cordelia, being grabbed forcefully by someone they couldn't recognize and being shoved against the wall. Tears were starting to form in her eyes as she realized what this guy was doing. "Stop!" She screamed, smacking him as hard as she could. He slapped her, silencing her and started to push her dress up, hands bruising her thighs, riping flesh.
Buffy and Angel went into action. He pulled the potential rapist off of her and pushed him to Buffy, who was ready to fight. Angel went to the hystercial Cordelia, trying to calm her. Buffy went to hit the guy, whose face had transformed by now. She expected to dust him quick, but this vampire was different. He was skilled in fighting, with moves that reminded her of her battles with Angelus. He got in a good kick and sent Buffy flying into a wall, then hopped up the building, taking off.
"I need to go after him." Angel watched the vampire go, a painful knot in his gut.
"You won't catch him." Angel told her and she looked at him.
"I need to try." She said, then looked at the shaking Cordelia. "Take her home?" Angel nodded as Buffy took off in the direction the vampire had gone. He and the rest of the group looked at Cordelia, who was staring straight ahead of her, eyes focused on something none of them could see.
"Cordelia?" He called her name gently. She didn't look at him. He glanced back at the three teenagers behind him.
"Cordy?" Xander asked gently, feelings for his ex coming to the surface as the thought of anyone trying to harm her filled him with anger. Angel was knelt in front of her and leaned closer, placing a hand on either shoulder. She reacted immediately, starting to scream and cry, trying to fight him off.
"No! Get off me!"
"Cordelia!" Angel held her tighter as she yelled, hands flying, hitting him in the face a few times. He took it as he finally gripped her tight enough to keep her from moving.
"Please. Please, no...please...stop..." She started to cry and he placed a hand on each side of her face, thumbs gently wiping the tears away.
"Cordelia. Cordelia, look at me. It's Angel." He whispered softly to her and finally, much to everyone's relief, she looked up at him, finally seeing him.
"Angel?" He felt something tug on his heart as he saw the hopeful expression on the young woman's face, hazel eyes blurred by tears.
"Yeah. It's me." He said with a lazy, small smile. Cordelia looked at her surroundings and choked on her tears as she realized everything really did happen.
"Oh God." She said and started to cry again. Angel, unsure of what to do, held her to him and let her cry into his chest. She wrapped her arms around him and slowly, he wrapped his around her, giving her enough time to protest. He looked to Xander, Willow and Oz for help. None of them knew what to do.
"Come on." He said, standing up and taking her with him. Oz wrapped an arm around Willow, sensing her discomfort. She held his other hand tightly. "Do you want to go to the police station and file a report?" Cordelia shook her head at him.
"I just, I want to go home." She said in a small voice. Her fellow classmates watched her. Cordelia Chase never looked like this. She was never vulnerable, never scared. And here she was, letting Angel hold her as she limped her way to her car.
"All right." He looked at the other people. "You guys can head out. I'll take her home." Oz nodded and turned to his girlfriend.
"I'll take you home." Willow nodded and turned to Cordelia.
"Cordy, I'm...I'm so sorry. There isn't anything I can say-" She looked at the other girl and shook her head, staring at the ground.
"Yeah. If there's anything we can do." Oz said. Cordelia nodded at the two.
"Thanks." She said, voice still small. They nodded and left. Xander stayed. "You can leave." Cordelia said, tone returning to her regular voice for just a second. She was still hurt from their break up.
"I want to go with you." She nodded and held onto Angel. He frowned.
"Cordelia. You're bleeding." She looked at him.
"How can you tell?"
"I-I can smell it." She scrunched up her face and managed a small,
"Yuck much?" The three stood in front of the car. Cordelia handed Angel the keys to her car and got in the passanger's side. She couldn't stop shaking and knew she was in no condition to drive. Xander hopped in the back seat and Angel started the car. The drive to her house was a silent one, Cordelia muttering a right or a left when they came to an important intersection.
The house was amazing. Angel and Xander stared at it as they pulled up to the security gate. Cordelia leaned over Angel, body reacting when she felt her skin press against his. She punched in a few numbers and the gate opened.
"I knew you were rich Cordy, but my God." She nodded her head in response, then turned to the quiet vampire.
"You like big houses Angel?"
"Yeah."
"But you live alone. Don't you get lonely in that big mansion, all by yourself?" His facial expression didn't change as his eyes stayed focused on what was in front of him.
"Sometimes it's better to be alone. Besides, I like my privacy." She nodded and the silence returned. Xander whistled as they drove up the drive way and parked in front of the house.
"How many rooms you got in there Cor?" She shrugged.
"Only five."
"Only? It's just the three of you, right? Why the two extra?" She sighed saddly.
"Xander." Angel said sharply, shaking his head. The young man got the hint. They got out of the car, Angel opening the door for Cordelia. She stood, legs wobbley and he held her. Any other day, Cordelia would've been more than delighted to have Angel's arms around her. To have all his attention focused on her and only her. But today, it was a different occassion and she could barely stand it.
They walked up to the double doors and Cordelia opened it, silently inviting Angel in. The butler who stood at the door looked at her with a shocked expression.
"Miss Chase? What on earth happened to you?"
"Are my parents home?"
"Yes. I believe they're in the den Miss Chase."
"Thank you." She said and walked towards the den, all the time using Angel as her hot, strong crutch. She entered the room with Angel next to her and Xander behind her. She looked around for her parents.
"Cordelia!" Her mother cried as she saw her daughter's state. "Oh God! What happened to you? You look aweful and, oh, you're bleeding! Darling!" She went to her daughter and wrapped her arms around her.
"It's fine, really, it's...it's okay and, and, and I'm...I'm fine and..." Cordelia started to cry as the memories of the night filled her head and she finally broke down. Her mother held her as she cried.
"John!" She called to her husband. "John, get down here!"
"What is it, Margaret? I'm busy."
"Jonathan Chase! Get down here this instant!"
"I'm coming." He said, entering the room. "What's all the commotion abo-Oh Lord." He saw Cordelia. He went to his daughter and placed a hand on her shoulder. She screamed and backed away from her parents, then started to cry harder. They moved to her, and she let her father embrace her for a moment.
"I'm sorry, I just." She took a deep breath. "I was so scared and, and I didn't expect, then I didn't see you and I thought-"
"Shh. Princess, it's fine." He told her, then he finally noticed the other two men standing in his home. "What's going on here? Who are you?" He addressed Angel. He knew Xander from Cordelia's pictures.
"Mr. Chase, I pressume?" Angel said.
"Yes. I know my name though, who are you?"
"I'm Angel."
"Well, Mr. Angel-"
"Just Angel."
"Well, you mind telling me what's going on?"
"Sir, you're daughter faced a potential rapist tonight." Seeing his expression. "We were fortunate to get there in time."
"Interesting coincidence."
"Right place at the right time."
"That's it?"
"Dad. Lay off. Angel saved me. If it weren't for him...who knows what would've happened." He looked Angel up and down.
"You saved my little girl?"
"Yeah, Dad. He did." Cordelia said, the tears finally stopping as she went to Angel. "And he didn't have to drive me home either, or offer to take me to the police station, but he did." Mr. Chase nodded and extended a hand to Angel.
"I owe you my daughter's life." Angel took the hand in a firm handshake.
"It was no problem." Angel looked at his watch. "Now, if you all will excuse me, I have to be heading out now." He said, looking at Cordelia. She nodded then gave him a quick hug. It made him tense and he stood still until she let go.
"Thank you for saving me Angel. And for driving me home. You didn't have to."
"No problem Cordelia. If you need anything, Buffy has my number, okay? And so does Giles for some odd reason."
"Okay."
"It was a nice meeting you Mr. Chase. Mrs. Chase." They nodded. "Xander." The two left and Cordelia watched them go. Vampire or not, Angel was the sweetest guy she had ever met. She breathed in a shakey sigh.
"I'm going to bed."
"You sure you don't want anything honey?" Her mother asked.
"No. I just need some sleep right now."
"All right. We'll call our lawyer tomorrow."
"Okay. I'm going to bed." They nodded and she went upstairs. She locked her door and sat on her bed, the tears coming again as she layed down.
Part 2
Buffy, Willow and Xander walked out of their last classes and met up in the hall way, on their way to the library.
"Xander, was she in your last two classes?"
"No. I figured she might be in her last few classes too, but she wasn't there."
"Considering what she went through, it makes sense." Willow said.
"Yeah. I can't imagine." Buffy said. Xander nodded, speaking up.
"She was really messed up. Her dad put a hand on her and she flipped. She was crying and apoligizing, it was really un-Queen like. And you know how's she always all hugged up on Angel?" They nodded. "When she gave him the hug good-bye, it was one of those little ones, like she was afraid to touch him, with her whole body away from him."
"How sad." Seeing Buffy's look. "I mean, what happened to her."
"Yeah. He said you had his number if he needed it."
"Why didn't he just give it to her?"
"I don't think she had a pen with her, Will."
"Oh. Guess not."
"Well, I'm gonna go by her place later. You guys wanna come with?" Buffy asked.
"Yeah. Sure. I think Cordy could use some company."
"We're not exactly her favorite company, Will. After what we did and all."
"Xander, she could use a friend right now."
"Yeah. I guess."
"Cool." Buffy said. "I'm gonna tell Giles I got to skip training today and we'll head out, kay?" They nodded and met her outside when they were done.
"We have to walk all the way over to her house?" Xander asked. "It's far. And how are we going to get passed the security gate?"
"Security gate?"
"Yup. You think Angel's house is big?" He shook his head. "It don't compare."
"Well, I'll get some cardio in then." Buffy said.
"Oz." Willow said as her boyfriend walked up to them, giving her a quick peck on the check.
"Hey."
"We're going to see Cordelia. Want to come?"
"Sure."
"Yes! We have wheels!" Xander said as they walked to his van and to the house. As they got there, they looked at the home.
"Wow." Buffy said.
"Yup, wow." Willow repeated.
"How do we get in? I mean, I can jump over. But you guys..."
"Watch and learn." The red head smiled as she pressed a button on the little monitor thing with numbers.
"Yes?" The voice answered. Xander recognized it as the man who opened the door the other night.
"Hi. Um, we're friends of Cordelia's and want to know if we could see her."
"I'm not sure Miss Chase is up for visitors."
"Please. It's very important."
"Fine." In a few seconds the door opened with a soft creak and they walked up to the house and knocked on the door. The butler answered and let the four in. They met up with the Chase's in the main room.
"Can we help you?" Mr. Chase asked.
"We're here to see Cordelia." Buffy said. Immediately, Mrs. Chase looked up in a panic.
"Oh, thank God. We tried to get her to come downstairs, to eat, to talk to the lawyer, the police, anything. We offered to take her shopping, to max out the gold car, to invite those annoying, expensive friends of hers over for the night. We offerend to buy her a new outfit for that club she loves, anything. She just shook her head and stared into space. I haven't seen her smile since that nice young man left last night."
"Young man?"
"Yes. The one that came with him." She addressed Xander.
"Angel?"
"Yes. That was it. He was quite the charmer. Are they dating?"
"No." Buffy nearly choked on the words.
"Well, why in the world not?" She wondered aloud and Buffy figured that was where Cordelia inherited her lack of tact.
"May we go see her?" Willow broke in. Mr. Chase nodded.
"Second door on the left." He said and they walked up, Buffy a bit shocked, but reminding herself why they were here. They knocked on the door.
"Cordelia?" Buffy asked gently. No answer. "Cordelia, it's Buffy. Can we come in?" Still nothing. She looked at her friends and turned the knob gently. It wasn't locked and they entered. The only light in the room was from a lamp in the corner. Cordelia was on her bed, still in her pajamas, in a sitting position. She hugged her knees to her body and was staring in front of her the way she had the previous night.
Tear streaks stained her face, a fresh set of salty drops ready to spill from her glossed over eyes again. She looked like she hadn't slept a wink all night. Her face was bruised and puffy where the vampire had slapped her, the shorts showed her thighs, covered in purple and black blotches from where he had grabbed her. Buffy winced as she looked at her friends and walked towards the other girl.
"Cordelia?" She put a hand on her shoulder. Cordelia jumped back and stared at her.
"Buffy?" She looked at all of them "What are you guys doing here?" Her voice was rough from crying all night.
"We just came to see how you were doing. You weren' in school. We were worried."
"I wasn't up to it." She looked at them. "You were worried about me?"
"Of course. When something happens to one of our friends-"
"We're not friends, Buffy." She said, voice flat. They realized she wasn't trying to be mean, wasn't trying to break them down like she usually did, she was just stated what she knew as a truth.
"What?"
"We're not friends. We've never been friends and you know it."
"Cordelia. We hung out for months."
"Yeah. But I was never part of your group. I was there because I was dating Xander. And, wow, look where that got me."
"Cordelia, we all think of you as our friend." She looked at Willow, then at the rest of them.
"You're the good guys, remember? You're not supposed to lie, and you really aren't good at it." Buffy was about to say something, when she thought better of it.
"You're right Cordelia. We never made you feel like one of us. You were always the bait. We never made you feel like part of the team. And I'm sorry for that." Cordelia looked at her with dull, uncaring eyes.
"It doesn't matter anymore Buffy. Nothing matters." The statement was cold enough to send a shiver down all their spines.
"Um, I guess we should be going." Buffy said.
"Yeah. I guess so." They walked out silently, leaving Cordelia to stare back in space. After saying their good-bye's to the Chase's, they made their way back to the van.
"She's right, you know?" Willow said, interrupting the silence.
"How do you figure?"
"Xander, the only reason we accepted her was because she dated you. And even then, we were still pretty cold to her. She was always the bait, or the car watcher, or whatever."
"Yeah, but she was always mean to us."
"Two wrongs don't make a right. And when you guys dated, she was a lot nicer. She even accepted being the donut and coffee getter, and she came out of her own pocket to pay for it. Not to mention the break up. I guess I can understand where she's coming from." More silence fell upon them as they thought about everything.
"But she could use a friend right now."
"Yeah, but after what we did, we're not the friends she wants."
"So, who's going to help her?"
"I don't think anyone can right now."
Part 3
With a deep sigh, Cordelia got up from her bed. Her body was sore and she was walking with a soft limp. She walked into the bathroom and turned on the water. Pouring some bubble bath in, she let it feel and looked at her face.
"Jesus. I look like hell." Her fingers gently touched her swollen skin and she flinched. "Ow." She groaned, then turned off the water and slipped into it with a hiss. The hot water stung her sore flesh. She let her head rest against the back of the tub, letting the scent of raspberries calm her and the water soothe away her aches and pains.
* * *
Angel didn't know what it was that had him heading in the direction on Cordelia's home, but it was the same thing that had him hoping over the gate.
"I hope their's not an alar...shit." He cursed as the alarm sounded. The door opened, two big security guards coming out, and he stayed in the shadows. He raced to the back of the house and found what he assumed, and hoped, was Cordelia's room. He climbed up the tree, holding perfectly still as he heard a guard approaching. With his back against the dark, thick branches, and leaves covering him, he was undetectable. The guard stared at the tree, and figured the movement was from the wind.
When he left, Angel climbed the rest of the way up and onto the balcony. Looking through the thin curtains, he was certain it was Cordelia's room. He knocked on the window softly, not wanting to startle her.
* * *
Cordelia heard knocking on her window and jumped. She looked out her open bathroom door, fear creeping in to every fiber of her body. She got out and pulled on her robe, looking around the room for a weapon. She grabbed a hair dryer, ready to hit whoever it was over the head with it.
"Cordelia. It's Angel." As soon as she heard his silky voice, she could breathe again. She put the hair dryer down, then walked out of the bathroom.
"Angel." She said in an annoyed tone of voice. She opened her window and faced him. "What are you doing here?" Her voice was a whisper, but that didn't take away her tone. He was realived to hear some emotion in her voice though.
"I came to see how you were." He said, entering the room. Standing in front of her, he took in her appearence. She had on a cotton robe, which clung to her wet body. Her hair was wet and had yet to be combed out, leaving water spots on the robe.
"Oh. Why?"
"Why do you think Cordelia? I was worried about you."
"Pfft. Right." She sat down on her bed, motioning to the couch in her room. He sat down and she grabbed her brush, combing out her hair. "And this has nothing to do with what happened between me and your little girlfriend, does it?" He looked at her, confused. She smiled softly to herself. God, he was cute.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Buffy doesn't even know I'm here."
"Oh."
"What happened between you two?"
"She came over to see me. Brought all her friends with her. They were playing the concerned friend bit."
"What?"
"You know. Pretending we were all best of buds. Yeah. Like that'll happen. They all feel bad because of what happened the other night and because of Xander cheating on me. With Willow of all people."
"I dont' know. I think Willow's cute." Cordelia shot a glance at him.
"I'm gonna tell Buffy." Angel looked at her.
"Why did you date him? I mean, honestly. I didn't get it. You're too good for him."
"Oh, believe me, I so know that. It was just all those sexy situations. And to think, I gave up my friends for him. I don't know what I was thinking." Angel nodded and then there was that quiet again. That deafening quiet that made her want to scream.
"What happened the other night Cordelia?" His voice was so low she almost didn't hear him.
"What?"
"What happened? Why were you in the alley with that vampire anyway?"
"Oh. That. Well, I saw him looking at me when I was hanging with the girls. He asked me if I wanted to dance. And, he was pretty cute, so I said yeah. We were dancing for a while and things got a little heated. We went outside, I figured, hey, what the hell? Score some mackage with a hottie."
"Mackage?"
"Yeah. Mackage." Seeing his look. "You know? Spit swapping?" Nothing. "Toungue tangling, teeth tasting, mouth mashing, lip locking?"
"I get it."
"Anyway, so we go outside. Things get a little heated and his hands start to wander. I told him to slow it down. Things were cool, then he started getting rough. I told him to stop. Next thing I know, he's pushing me against the wall. Well, you guys came in from there."
"I'm sorry Cordelia."
"Yeah, well. You can't look this good and not expect guys to try something, right?"
"I should've killed him when I had the chance."
"Angel, you were helping me. There was nothing you could do."
"No, that's not what I meant." He looked at her, with so much regret and pain in his eyes it scared her. "Cordelia, I made Penn."
"Who's Penn?"
"The vampire who attacked you the other night. I made him."
"When you say made..."
"I turned him into what he is. I taught him everything he knows."
"When?"
"When I was Angelus?"
"Last year!"
"No, before that. Over a hundred years ago. I'm so, so sorry. If it weren't for me, he wouldn't be here." She stared at him, shocked.
"I um, maybe you should go." He looked up at her with a look of deep regret on his face and it hurt her.
"Yeah. I should." He went to the window, hands shoved deep in his pockets, head down, shoulders slumped.
"Angel?" He turned to her. "It wasn't you." He was shocked and looked at her. "I don't blame you. And you souldn't blame yourself eaither."
"Thank you Cordelia."
"No. Thanks for being honest with me. And thanks for coming to see me." He nodded and in a second, was gone. She drew in a breath, feeling better after his visit and layed down, tired.