Story rating:
R
Disclaimer:
I
didn't invent Buffy, I didn't invent Spike…. I'm sure you get the picture.
A/N: Decided to change the rating here to M just to be safe. Not that it gets really raunchy later but I don't want to offend anyone. A big thanks for the great reviews I've gotten. You wouldn't believe how much of an
ego booster those are for me! I hope you'll keep liking what I write.
Chapter 4
"Can we get out of here for a while?" Cordy whispered to Angel.
"Please."
They made some excuses and left without anyone objecting, or no one noticing. Xander was presenting inspired arguments to Anya about why some of his relatives should absolutely be expelled from the wedding reception. Willow was still fiddling around with some decorations for the wedding but mostly just stalling the time hoping she could keep Tara, who had come over to help, there a little longer. Dawn was up in her room and Spike and Buffy had hardly been seen or heard since their big revelation, except for Spike furiously banging on Dawns door commanding her to stop playing that horrible, idiotic and unhealthy music and singing along, or she would have to look up spare body parts on e-bay and have a very good doctor on stand-by. That threat had managed to silence the music for almost an hour now, which was the current record.
As soon as they were out of the door Angel passed Cordelia a stake. "Home sweet Hellmouth," she replied.
They walked away from the house and just walked without any special direction. "This sucks," Cordelia pouted. "I was just trying to be nice. I don't do that often. But it really sucks when it doesn't work."
They had gone out earlier on Cordy's suggestion of getting some dinner. No one had had any formed opinion on what to eat so she had figured the Double Meat Palace would be a safe bet. Greasy but effective. That really had blown up in her face.
"Don't worry about it Cordy. How are we supposed to know that Buffy works there and everyone hates that stuff now? It was a nice thought."
"I know. But it still sucks. Do you think she also wears that cow-hat?"
Angel chuckled.
They just kept walking. Cordelia broke the silence: "I'm really sorry I dragged you into this, Angel. That you had to find out about them and all this crap, flower arrangements etc. If I had any idea all this was going on here this weekend I would have just left the stuff."
"It's not your fault," he replied. "Plus. It's probably better to know than not to know. Even if it is a little strange."
Cordy looked down, skeptical of weather to ask the question in her mind. "Are you jealous?" There was a hint of hurt in her voice.
"It don't like it," he said. "But if you're asking if I still love her, that's a no, not that way… and Xander said she's been getting better…so maybe he's actually good for her." The last words were said with noticeable pain and so low that they were barely audible. "When I went to see her, just after she came back, she was in really bad shape and I couldn't do anything to help her, no matter how much I wanted to. I guess I have to be glad she found someone who could."
"Why don't we find some other more casual and happy topic?" Cordy said upbeat after a few minutes in rather gloomy silence.
"Okay. Anything particular you had in mind?" He smiled back at her.
"No. I don't know. We're back in Sunnydale. We both used to live here. Don't we have any pleasant memories from here?… That don't have to do with our exes, that is."
There was another long silence.
"Apparently the good memories don't come back as easily as the bad ones," Angel finally supplied.
"Yeah." Cordy answered. "I so don't miss this place. Wanna see how the Bronze looks after it's last catastrophically caused remodeling? I heard something about a troll."
"Sure. There really isn't anything else to do. Doesn't even seem to be much vampire activity tonight."
"Maybe they sensed you were here and fled," she suggested with a grin.
"That would be a first. Maybe there are some on the prowl at the Bronze. Some things just never change."
---
"Hello, I'm back," Anya yelled coming through the front door loaded with bags and parcels.
"This is all for just one night?" Willow asked wide-eyed coming down the stairs.
"Willow, this is the night before the most important night of my life. All the magazines say so," the blonde said sounding frustrated at the stupid question and handed the things she currently had in her hands to Willow who proceeded without argument in getting them up the stairs.
"Halfrek!" Anya started yelling again as it seemed to herself, as she was standing alone in the small foyer. "Halfrek!"
Suddenly a woman appeared out of nowhere in front of her. Anya squealed from joy and hugged her friend.
"So this is it," Halfrek stated. "You are really going to go through with this?"
"Halfrek, we've already been over this. I love him. I want to be with him forever."
"Fine," the redhead with the curls said in defeat. "I will support your choice even if I don't think I will ever understand how you could possible bring yourself to do this after all these years of offering vengeance to scorned women."
"Oh, you better support me. I'm not finding a new maid of honor the night before the wedding."
"No worries honey. Now where's that dress I was supposed to pick up. I'm in a bit of a hurry."
"You're working? Tonight?" Anya was royally offended.
"I'm sorry honey. It's a deal I've been waiting for ages to come through. But I promise it will go down tonight. I'll be here again tomorrow."
"Don't you dare to be late, Halfrek, or I will never speak to you again."
The two women were so wrapped up in their conversation neither of them had noticed the blond and unusually pale vampire standing still mid way down the stairs. Anya was first to realize that they were being watched.
"Spike, what are you doing there?"
He stood still and didn't answer with his eyes fixed on Halfrek with a look of amazement and confusion on his face. "You…? You two know each other?" he stammered.
"Yes Spike." Anya wasn't sure if to be confused or angry at the strange behavior of the normally cocky vampire. "This is my friend Halfrek. She's my maid of honor and just came by to get her dress. You know, the pretty one, that wasn't on sale."
Spike seemed to be in deep thought but kept his stare fixed on Halfrek. "You're a demon?" His face turned angry and in a split second he was down the stairs and had tackled Halfrek to the ground and was now shaking her and yelling furiously at her. "You're a vengeance demon? You stupid bint. Bloody vengeance demon. I spilled my heart out to you. You drove me out to her…." He was yelling incoherently to everyone around.
Anya tried to get him of her friend but with only human strength Spike didn't even notice her fists pounding on his shoulders.
"I handed you my heart, for Gods sake but no, you just had to stomp right over it, did you? Beneath you! Sodding vengeance demon. I was human! And they say I'm evil. Not compared to you…. Cecily!" Spike got up and stormed of through the kitchen slamming the back door behind him.
Buffy had only caught the very end of the show and now helped Anya helping Halfrek to her feet. "What happened?" she asked the two women.
"Who was that?" Halfrek asked in return turning back into her human face.
"Are you okay?" Anya asked her.
"Yeah. No big thing. He was just a little hysteric, not very accurate in his punches."
"What the hell happened" Buffy tried again but no one responding to her.
"That was Spike." Anya explained. "Apparently he's Buffy's new boyfriend. He's a vampire. Was he crying when he left?"
"Spike? The Spike? William the bloody Spike?"
"Yeah. You know him? He certainly seemed to know you?"
"No I never met him. I would have remembered that. I've always admired his work."
Buffy felt the jealousy rise up in her at the dreamy eyes Halfrek was making. "He called you Cecily," she tried once more to get in to the conversation.
"It was a name I used when I used to work undercover. I haven't used it in ages… not since the late nineteenth century maybe."
"Oh, God," Buffy whispered when the bit's and pieces of things Spike had told her fell in to place. "Where did he go?"
Anya pointed towards the back door but Buffy was already instinctively heading that way.
"That was strange." Anya stated. "And they are always telling me to be more normal. Maybe they need to work on it as well."
"You know humans, honey. Or vampires. Now where's that dress? I really have to get going."
---
"If you say one word about this to Wesley or Gunn you know I will have to kill you… or worse: lower your pay," Angel threatened seriously.
"Don't worry," Cordelia said while putting on her jacket as they were walking out of the Bronze. "Not that they would believe me anyway if I told them that you managed to slip up from your natural broody-ness and dance with me." Their eyes met both bearing evidence of the joking between them. "But thank you! I had a nice time – which is something I really didn't expect here in Sunnyhell."
"I also enjoyed myself."
"Yeah. Thank God you found these three vampires."
"I wasn't just talking about that." Angel's eyes lowered to look at Cordelia who this time didn't return his look.
"Let's get back to our damp cellar with a whole bunch of crazy people above us," she sighed. "You know. This Anya is really something. I thought I could handle anything having managed to drag Wesley to the mall that one time…. But she made me realize I have things to learn"
"You really managed to drag Wesley with you?"
"Of course I did. But I won't be doing that again I tell you. I wish you'd come with me some time. You have good taste."
"Won't be happening, Cordy!"
"We'll see."
"I'm not paying, that's for sure. Hey, you wanna sit down for a minute?" he asked as they past a bench.
"Sure."
"I guess I'm not ready to face all those people again." Instinctively Angel started looking around scanning their environment for dangers. Strangely enough the only thing that caught his attention was a small purple flower growing right beside the bench. It looked just like a normal violet there was a beautiful shade of red in the middle where the yellow would have normally been. He picked it up and without thinking about it raises it to his knows and smells it taking in a deep unnecessary breath. "hmmm… smells nice. Here smell it."
He raises the flower to Cordy's nose who also inhaled deeply. "Yes it does."
His eyes finally left the flower under Cordelia's nose and wandered up her face to meet her eyes. Their fingers touched and within seconds their lips were locked together in a deep and passionate kiss.
