Lineage
Disclaimer: Joss owns anything and everything Angel.
Author's Note: Another really random thing. Takes place in the third season pre-"Offspring".
Prologue
Cordelia Chase sat at her usual position behind the desk at the Hyperion Hotel. The Chinese take-out she had delivered for lunch was spread out in front of her. She smiled happily, grateful for a slow day, and reached for the chopsticks.
"Ooh, something smells good," Charles Gunn announced as he walked into the hotel from the back entrance. He quickly walked over behind the desk and reached over Cordelia's thin shoulder for a bite.
"Hey, hey," Cordelia said defensively as she slapped at Gunn's hands. "This is mine. I waited forty-five minutes for this."
Gunn shrugged. "You know it's cheaper and faster if you go there to pick it up, right?" he asked her.
Cordelia nodded. "Yes, but it was early back then. Besides, what if a client was to call?" She smiled slightly as she turned back around and began eating her Chinese food.
"Well then the machine would get in," Gunn said plainly.
"What if one walked in?" Cordelia asked through a mouthful of rice. She frowned, swallowing before repeating her question.
"Like one is now," Gunn said as he pushed the Chinese back so it was out of sight from the other side of the desk.
The potential client looked a bit confused, but also very business-like. She was dressed in a black Armani suit with a green shirt underneath. Her curly red was pulled back into a bun. She looked over at Cordelia and Gunn. "Is one of you Cordelia Chase?" she asked in a rushed voice.
Gunn chuckled. "Yes," he answered plainly. Upon the woman's silence and blank looks, he added, "That's all the hints we're giving you."
Cordelia rolled her eyes as she stood up. "I'm Cordelia Chase," she said. "Do I know you from somewhere?"
The woman did not answer. Instead she pulled out a cell phone and dialed a number. Seconds later she said something into the phone. Her voice was too soft that neither Cordelia nor Gunn could tell what she had said.
"Ma'am?" Cordelia tried again. "Is there something we can help you with?" she asked as she stepped out from behind the desk.
"You don't recognize me?" the woman asked. Her gaze was focused solely on Cordelia.
Cordelia shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. I can't honestly say I know who you are."
The woman shrugged as she glanced back at the main doors. A young little girl, around the age of six or seven, came running in happily. She was dressed in a pink and white sundress and white sandals. Her brown hair was pulled up into two pigtails.
"Maybe this will refresh your memory," the woman stated. She looked down at the little girl. "That's Cordelia," she said as she pointed at Cordelia.
The girl's eyes widened with anticipation as she ran over to Cordelia. "Mommy!" she exclaimed happily as she threw her arms around Cordelia's knees.