TITLE: Apologies - Part 3
SERIES: The Unexpected Series
AUTHOR: Jana Kay
EMAIL: jana_kay17@yahoo.com.au
DISCLAIMER: All characters belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, the WB, and 20th Century Fox. No profit is being made.
RATING: R
CLASSIFICATION: K/F
SPOILERS: S1 up through to 'Sanctuary' in A:tS, and then breaks away from canon after that.
SUMMARY: Against her better judgment and detective instincts, Kate speaks to Faith while the Slayer is in prison. Their subsequent and completely unexpected friendship is sorely needed when Faith, to her anger and dismay, becomes the last resort in stopping a demon underlord. Just how far will Faith go to save a life and earn her redemption?
NOTES: Kate POV
*****
I run a nervous hand through my hair as I walk down the street and approach the doorway that leads up to Angel Investigations.
My talk with Faith earlier this morning opened my eyes a lot. She's known Angel for a while now, and the things she told me about him and her relationship with him and how he helped her, really made up my mind for me.
I have to apologise. For the way I treated him and for the way I shut him out. I had no right to, and then I got self righteous and stubborn and let it go on for too long. He was a good friend and colleague in the field before my father died, and I know that if I just apologise and give him time, maybe we can be friends again.
After talking with Faith, I got back home at around half past five this morning and went right to sleep. I didn't even bother to get out of my clothes and clean myself up. I really only let myself sleep for about two hours though, because I wanted to get up early so I could swing by Angel's before I have to be at work, and before he has any clients.
So that's why I'm here at eight in the morning, walking down to his office.
I push open the door and walk up the stairs, wondering if Cordelia and Wesley will be here, or if I'll find Angel by himself. Right now, I really don't know which is the better option, and before I have the chance to decide, I'm already at the door.
I push it open quietly and walk in, looking around the office as I do. Cordelia isn't at her desk and the computer isn't on, so I'm guessing she isn't here yet, and I can see no sign of Wesley, so I have to assume that he isn't here at the moment either. I take a deep breath and walk to Angel's office door, pausing a moment before I reach up and knock.
There's no answer.
I wait a moment, then turn the knob and stick my head inside to double check.
Nope, the office is empty.
I close it again as I take another deep breath. This means either Angel is in his apartment and sleeping, or he's in his apartment and not sleeping, or he's just not here. I've come this far. I can swallow my pride a bit more and go downstairs and see if he's lurking. If he is, then I'll apologise and hope for the best before heading off to work.
If he's not....well I'm just gonna have to come back another time and try this again.
I look between the elevator and the stairs, and try to decide which one I should take to get down there. Finally, I decide that the stairs is the most unobtrusive method, so I walk over to them.
I walk down quietly, trying not to be too noisy in case he *is* still sleeping. I don't want to wake him up by accident and then have him attack me thinking I'm an intruder. I get to the bottom of the stairs and look around.
I don't see any movement, but then again, the apartment's kind of dark, so he could be somewhere in the shadows. I take a deep breath. Here goes nothing.
I raise my hand and knock on part of the wall.
"Angel?"
I hear a door open somewhere in the darkened interior of the apartment, then footsteps coming towards me.
"Cordelia?"
I have to smile. I never thought anybody could mistake my voice for Cordelia's. We're just too different. Granted, I don't know the girl that well, but the differences are still obvious to any observer.
"No, it's....it's Kate."
He comes into view and stops short when he sees me.
"Oh."
We look at each other for a few moments before he suddenly seems to remember something. He shakes his head for a second.
"Come in."
He gestures with his hand and turns, walking back the way he came from, and I follow him quietly into his little kitchenette.
He turns to look at me.
"Coffee?"
I nod my head enthusiastically as I realise just how tired I am. Coffee sounds like a great idea. And Angel's coffee is much better than the stuff the espresso machine makes upstairs. The coffee up there, I don't touch. The coffee down here, is another story.
"Yes please."
He nods and starts getting things ready, then turns his head back towards me and nods again towards the table.
"Have a seat."
I slide gratefully into a chair and rest my elbows on the table.
"Thanks."
As he lets the coffee finish getting ready, he comes back over to the table and sits in the chair opposite me. I can't bring myself to look at him, so I tap the fingers of my right hand on the table until he finally says something.
"Is this about a case?"
I wince slightly as I realise that's all he probably expects of me now. It's not exactly like we were buddy buddy before we fell out, but at least we could talk about other things and find some common ground together.
I shake my head as I finally look up at him.
"No Angel, it's not."
He looks at me carefully as he asks his next question.
"Is this about Faith?"
I smile slightly in memory of my midnight conversation with Faith, then shake my head again.
"No."
"Oh. Well that's....that's good."
I nod my head. "Yes it is."
I'm about to start apologising when the kettle whistles and he gets up again to fix my coffee.
"Sugar?"
"One please."
"Anything else?"
"No thanks."
He finishes fixing it and comes back to the table, sitting down again as he slides the mug across to me. I take it and wrap my hands around it, as I wait for it to cool a little so I can have a sip. I look up at Angel and find he's watching me. Well of course he should. Here I am, turning up uninvited in his apartment, then I sit here at his kitchen table and so far I've barely said two words to him.
I should really start talking before he throws me out.
"Angel I....I want to apologise."
He blinks, then shakes his head.
"What?"
"I want to apologise."
He looks perplexed and I have no idea why.
"What for, Kate?"
I stare at him a little funny. Has he not noticed the way I've treated him for the past two months? Has he not noticed any changes in my behaviour and most of all, the way I cuffed him and dragged him to the station less than a week ago? He can't be that oblivious to think that nothing's wrong and that the friendship between us is just fine and dandy.
"For the way I treated you Angel."
He smiles slightly.
"Kate, I understand. I was harboring a criminal and I didn't turn her in. You had every right to treat me the way you did."
I shake my head as I realise he's talking about what happened with Faith, and while that's part of this, it certainly isn't all of it.
"I didn't just mean about that Angel. I meant about everything."
He looks at me and waits for me to continue, his head tilted slightly to the side as he watches me swirl the coffee around in my mug. I blow on the steam for a second, then raise the mug to my lips and take a sip.
Yep. Angel makes great coffee. This is just what I need.
I take a deep breath as I try to mentally structure what I want to say to him. In the end, I just dive right in.
"Ever since my father died Angel, I've been treating you unfairly. At that warehouse, you were trying to comfort me, and I was rude and pushed you away because....because in a way, I thought that maybe his death was your fault. But then I came to my senses and realised that that wasn't true at all. You just happened to be there. And that doesn't make you responsible. It just makes you a good friend to me because you were trying to look out for him. The fact that he didn't let you in was....unfortunate....but that doesn't mean it's your fault, and I had no right to treat you as if it was."
I pause to take a breath and look at him. He's looking down at the table and he's drawing patterns on it with his hands. He doesn't look like he's about to say anything, so I keep going.
"For a while now I've been wanting to apologise, but I didn't really know how. I've always been stubborn and never really good at expressing my feelings, but after last night, I felt like I really owed you this, and also, I *wanted* to give you this. You have enough on your mind without my forcing guilt on you too. And, I want to go back to being friends. I want you to be able to come and talk to me about a case, or call me to help you out with information or back up if you need it, or just be able to call me to talk if you want. I miss the friendship that we had before my father's....death....and I hope there's still something left here to salvage."
I pause to take another breath, then I go on again.
"I really am sorry Angel. I hope you can forgive me."
He looks up then and his hands stop moving.
"What happened last night?"
I blink.
"What do you mean?"
"You said after last night, so I'm wondering what happened last night."
"Oh."
I suddenly don't know what to tell him. Should I tell him about my talk with Faith or not? I decide to tell him. After all, he knows Faith, he likes her, I saw the looks that passed between them at the station. He won't be upset about my talking to her. He'll understand, even though part of me doesn't even understand myself.
"I talked to Faith last night."
He looks surprised.
"Really."
I nod as I look back down at my mug.
"Yeah. We talked for awhile actually. And I'd been meaning to apologise to you before I spoke to her, but after I did, I just realised you deserve an apology even more, so I came by first thing this morning. I didn't want to put this off anymore than I already have."
He nods his head again.
"So you spoke to Faith."
"Mm-hmm."
He still looks a bit surprised.
"Why?"
His question catches me off guard. I sputter a little as I look down into my mug, then look around the room for a second before looking back down at the mug clutched tightly in my hands again.
"I....I....really don't....know Angel. I just did."
For some reason, this answer seems to satisfy him, and he lowers his gaze back down to the table. His fingers start drawing patterns again.
"How's she doing?"
I smile a little.
"She's doing fine."
He looks up quickly.
"She's not giving you a hard time is she?"
I smile a little wider.
"She's a model prisoner."
He looks back down again, deep in thought.
"Well that's good." He nods to himself. "I knew she could do it."
I think back over what Faith spoke about this morning, and I nod my head.
"I think she can too."
He looks back up at me.
"You don't hate her?"
He sounds surprised.
I shake my head slightly as I watch him.
"No, I don't. Don't ask me why because I don't know, but for some reason, I just don't. When I spoke to her last night, I realised that, deep down inside, she's a good person. She got lost somewhere along the way, but she's doing penance now. She's done the crimes, now she's doing the time, and she wants to do it. She's reforming herself. And you were right about her needing to be treated carefully. I really should have listened to you, not that idiot from Wolfram & Hart."
His eyes harden as he watches me carefully.
"Wolfram & Hart?"
I nod my head.
"Yeah. One of the lawyers, Lindsey I think his name is, well he came and told me about how you were watching out for Faith. And before I could do anything, my colleagues had found out about it, and so I ended up having to arrest you, because there was no way I could get around it."
"So what you were saying about my cell facing east....what was that about?"
I wince again as I listen to his tone.
"I was....angry I guess....that you hadn't told me about her. Supernatural things that are going on and involve the police in some way can be dangerous for us. If we'd caught Faith on our own without her coming in herself, she would have probably taken out a lot of my men before we even managed to get close to her. You knew we were looking for her. If you'd just called and told me and explained, a lot of trouble could have been avoided on our part, you never would have had to have been arrested, and I could have thrown that idiotic lawyer out on his ear."
He smiles slightly at me.
"You don't like Wolfram & Hart?"
"You don't remember the man they were representing who tried to kill me? I despise them and everything they stand for."
He chuckles quietly.
"Well, you're not alone there."
"I kind of figured."
He's quiet for a bit longer, and I drink some more coffee before I finally speak again.
"I really am sorry Angel. I had no right. I just hope you can forgive me."
He's quiet for a little longer, then he chuckles again and looks up at me.
"Do you have any idea how strange it is, for you to be apologising to me?"
"No. Why?"
He looks at me intently.
"Because of what I am Kate. I'm a vampire. And on the whole, vampires are dangerous demons who kill humans for food, sport, and fun. I used to do all of those things. I did them for over a hundred years before my soul was restored in Romania, and when I lost it again two years ago, I was right back into my old habits again. I've done a lot of really bad things that your treatment of me can't even come close to. You shouldn't have apologised. You didn't need to. I don't deserve apologies."
"But--"
"No buts Kate. I've killed and tortured thousands of people. I enjoyed every minute of it, and sometimes, I still find myself enjoying the memories of what I used to do. Before I was cursed, I was one of the most feared vampires in Europe. I was a Master Vampire who did what I could to make as much trouble as possible, and I loved it. I once even tried to suck the world into Hell, but I was beaten, and I ended up going to Hell instead. Take all the things I've done, then take the worst thing you've ever done."
He stared at me hard.
"They can't even compare can they. You didn't have to apologise. I don't deserve to hear it."
I swallow hard as I listen to the things he's telling me. Finally, I find my voice again.
"I'm still sorry."
His expression softens and he smiles slightly at me.
"Well if you still want to be sorry after all that, I guess I can forgive you."
I smile back at him, then look down at my mug.
"So are we....okay now? Are we friends?"
He nods his head as he looks up from the table.
"Yeah Kate. We're friends."
Suddenly, a loud bang sounds upstairs, and we turn our heads up to the ceiling as we hear a rapid set of footsteps on the floor above, followed by another set of footsteps coming in more slowly behind the first.
"ANGEL?"
Angel's head drops back down again from looking at the ceiling as he looks at me.
"Cordelia and Wesley."
I smile at him.
"She's pretty loud isn't she."
He shakes his head as he gets up from the table.
"Believe me, I know."
"ANGEL, WHERE ARE YOU?"
He goes to the bottom of the stairs as he calls, "I'll be right up Cordelia!"
"GOT IT."
I get up from the table as I finish off my coffee, and Angel walks back towards me. A quick look at my watch tells me I have another fifteen minutes before I'm due at work at nine. Great. That gives me just enough time to grab some breakfast.
"I think I'm needed upstairs. Sorry about this."
I shake my head quickly.
"Don't be. I really had to be on my way anyway."
"Well, thanks for stopping by Kate."
"No problem Angel. And hey, even if you think I shouldn't have apologised, it was just something I had to do for myself. I wouldn't have felt right otherwise. I hope you understand."
He looks at me for a moment, then he nods.
"Yeah. I do understand."
I start to head towards the stairs as he follows behind me. As I get to the bottom, I turn back around again.
"If you need me for anything--"
"I won't hesitate to call."
I nod my head.
"Good."
I stand there for a moment longer, then I say one more thing.
"You're more than welcome to visit Faith if you want Angel. She's allowed to have visitors. Granted, I don't know if you can come by during normal hours because of the sun but, if you want to see her, I have the authority to arrange another time for you so daytime hours won't be a problem."
He seems pleased about this, and he nods his head again.
"I think I might take you up on that."
Suddenly, a loud thump sounds from upstairs and I hear a voice I assume is Cordelia's cry out in pain.
Angel and I quickly run upstairs to see what the problem is, and we find Cordelia sprawled out on the floor, clutching her head in pain. Wesley is crouching beside her, supporting her, and he smiles at me quickly before looking at Angel with a chagrined expression on his face.
"She had a vision, and I didn't catch her in time when she fell."
I look at him strangely.
"A vision?"
Angel looks at me quickly, then says, "I'll explain later."
I nod my head.
"I'd better get going myself. Tell Cordelia I hope she feels okay."
Angel, who by now had moved over to Cordelia's other side, looks up at me one more time and smiles again.
"We will. Have a nice day Kate."
"You too."
Then I turn and walk out the door, closing it carefully behind me before I make my way down the outer stairs again that lead to the street. I look at my watch as I push the outer door open. I've now got ten minutes to grab breakfast and be at work.
I start walking as I think over what just happened.
I hadn't expected Angel to forgive me so quickly, especially after I'd been such a bitch to him, but he did.
Yep. He's got a big soul alright.
I stop off at the bakery as I pass it, and go in to pick up some things. After I finish ordering and they hand me the bag, I pay and say goodbye to the man behind the counter.
I walk out again, as I uncharacteristically start to swing the bakery bag in my hand around a little.
It feels good to have my friendship with Angel back on track again. And maybe this time, I can get to know Cordelia and Wesley a little better too.
You know, maybe I have more in my life than just work after all.
I look down at the bag in my hand.
I hope Faith's hungry.
End.
SERIES: The Unexpected Series
AUTHOR: Jana Kay
EMAIL: jana_kay17@yahoo.com.au
DISCLAIMER: All characters belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, the WB, and 20th Century Fox. No profit is being made.
RATING: R
CLASSIFICATION: K/F
SPOILERS: S1 up through to 'Sanctuary' in A:tS, and then breaks away from canon after that.
SUMMARY: Against her better judgment and detective instincts, Kate speaks to Faith while the Slayer is in prison. Their subsequent and completely unexpected friendship is sorely needed when Faith, to her anger and dismay, becomes the last resort in stopping a demon underlord. Just how far will Faith go to save a life and earn her redemption?
NOTES: Kate POV
*****
I run a nervous hand through my hair as I walk down the street and approach the doorway that leads up to Angel Investigations.
My talk with Faith earlier this morning opened my eyes a lot. She's known Angel for a while now, and the things she told me about him and her relationship with him and how he helped her, really made up my mind for me.
I have to apologise. For the way I treated him and for the way I shut him out. I had no right to, and then I got self righteous and stubborn and let it go on for too long. He was a good friend and colleague in the field before my father died, and I know that if I just apologise and give him time, maybe we can be friends again.
After talking with Faith, I got back home at around half past five this morning and went right to sleep. I didn't even bother to get out of my clothes and clean myself up. I really only let myself sleep for about two hours though, because I wanted to get up early so I could swing by Angel's before I have to be at work, and before he has any clients.
So that's why I'm here at eight in the morning, walking down to his office.
I push open the door and walk up the stairs, wondering if Cordelia and Wesley will be here, or if I'll find Angel by himself. Right now, I really don't know which is the better option, and before I have the chance to decide, I'm already at the door.
I push it open quietly and walk in, looking around the office as I do. Cordelia isn't at her desk and the computer isn't on, so I'm guessing she isn't here yet, and I can see no sign of Wesley, so I have to assume that he isn't here at the moment either. I take a deep breath and walk to Angel's office door, pausing a moment before I reach up and knock.
There's no answer.
I wait a moment, then turn the knob and stick my head inside to double check.
Nope, the office is empty.
I close it again as I take another deep breath. This means either Angel is in his apartment and sleeping, or he's in his apartment and not sleeping, or he's just not here. I've come this far. I can swallow my pride a bit more and go downstairs and see if he's lurking. If he is, then I'll apologise and hope for the best before heading off to work.
If he's not....well I'm just gonna have to come back another time and try this again.
I look between the elevator and the stairs, and try to decide which one I should take to get down there. Finally, I decide that the stairs is the most unobtrusive method, so I walk over to them.
I walk down quietly, trying not to be too noisy in case he *is* still sleeping. I don't want to wake him up by accident and then have him attack me thinking I'm an intruder. I get to the bottom of the stairs and look around.
I don't see any movement, but then again, the apartment's kind of dark, so he could be somewhere in the shadows. I take a deep breath. Here goes nothing.
I raise my hand and knock on part of the wall.
"Angel?"
I hear a door open somewhere in the darkened interior of the apartment, then footsteps coming towards me.
"Cordelia?"
I have to smile. I never thought anybody could mistake my voice for Cordelia's. We're just too different. Granted, I don't know the girl that well, but the differences are still obvious to any observer.
"No, it's....it's Kate."
He comes into view and stops short when he sees me.
"Oh."
We look at each other for a few moments before he suddenly seems to remember something. He shakes his head for a second.
"Come in."
He gestures with his hand and turns, walking back the way he came from, and I follow him quietly into his little kitchenette.
He turns to look at me.
"Coffee?"
I nod my head enthusiastically as I realise just how tired I am. Coffee sounds like a great idea. And Angel's coffee is much better than the stuff the espresso machine makes upstairs. The coffee up there, I don't touch. The coffee down here, is another story.
"Yes please."
He nods and starts getting things ready, then turns his head back towards me and nods again towards the table.
"Have a seat."
I slide gratefully into a chair and rest my elbows on the table.
"Thanks."
As he lets the coffee finish getting ready, he comes back over to the table and sits in the chair opposite me. I can't bring myself to look at him, so I tap the fingers of my right hand on the table until he finally says something.
"Is this about a case?"
I wince slightly as I realise that's all he probably expects of me now. It's not exactly like we were buddy buddy before we fell out, but at least we could talk about other things and find some common ground together.
I shake my head as I finally look up at him.
"No Angel, it's not."
He looks at me carefully as he asks his next question.
"Is this about Faith?"
I smile slightly in memory of my midnight conversation with Faith, then shake my head again.
"No."
"Oh. Well that's....that's good."
I nod my head. "Yes it is."
I'm about to start apologising when the kettle whistles and he gets up again to fix my coffee.
"Sugar?"
"One please."
"Anything else?"
"No thanks."
He finishes fixing it and comes back to the table, sitting down again as he slides the mug across to me. I take it and wrap my hands around it, as I wait for it to cool a little so I can have a sip. I look up at Angel and find he's watching me. Well of course he should. Here I am, turning up uninvited in his apartment, then I sit here at his kitchen table and so far I've barely said two words to him.
I should really start talking before he throws me out.
"Angel I....I want to apologise."
He blinks, then shakes his head.
"What?"
"I want to apologise."
He looks perplexed and I have no idea why.
"What for, Kate?"
I stare at him a little funny. Has he not noticed the way I've treated him for the past two months? Has he not noticed any changes in my behaviour and most of all, the way I cuffed him and dragged him to the station less than a week ago? He can't be that oblivious to think that nothing's wrong and that the friendship between us is just fine and dandy.
"For the way I treated you Angel."
He smiles slightly.
"Kate, I understand. I was harboring a criminal and I didn't turn her in. You had every right to treat me the way you did."
I shake my head as I realise he's talking about what happened with Faith, and while that's part of this, it certainly isn't all of it.
"I didn't just mean about that Angel. I meant about everything."
He looks at me and waits for me to continue, his head tilted slightly to the side as he watches me swirl the coffee around in my mug. I blow on the steam for a second, then raise the mug to my lips and take a sip.
Yep. Angel makes great coffee. This is just what I need.
I take a deep breath as I try to mentally structure what I want to say to him. In the end, I just dive right in.
"Ever since my father died Angel, I've been treating you unfairly. At that warehouse, you were trying to comfort me, and I was rude and pushed you away because....because in a way, I thought that maybe his death was your fault. But then I came to my senses and realised that that wasn't true at all. You just happened to be there. And that doesn't make you responsible. It just makes you a good friend to me because you were trying to look out for him. The fact that he didn't let you in was....unfortunate....but that doesn't mean it's your fault, and I had no right to treat you as if it was."
I pause to take a breath and look at him. He's looking down at the table and he's drawing patterns on it with his hands. He doesn't look like he's about to say anything, so I keep going.
"For a while now I've been wanting to apologise, but I didn't really know how. I've always been stubborn and never really good at expressing my feelings, but after last night, I felt like I really owed you this, and also, I *wanted* to give you this. You have enough on your mind without my forcing guilt on you too. And, I want to go back to being friends. I want you to be able to come and talk to me about a case, or call me to help you out with information or back up if you need it, or just be able to call me to talk if you want. I miss the friendship that we had before my father's....death....and I hope there's still something left here to salvage."
I pause to take another breath, then I go on again.
"I really am sorry Angel. I hope you can forgive me."
He looks up then and his hands stop moving.
"What happened last night?"
I blink.
"What do you mean?"
"You said after last night, so I'm wondering what happened last night."
"Oh."
I suddenly don't know what to tell him. Should I tell him about my talk with Faith or not? I decide to tell him. After all, he knows Faith, he likes her, I saw the looks that passed between them at the station. He won't be upset about my talking to her. He'll understand, even though part of me doesn't even understand myself.
"I talked to Faith last night."
He looks surprised.
"Really."
I nod as I look back down at my mug.
"Yeah. We talked for awhile actually. And I'd been meaning to apologise to you before I spoke to her, but after I did, I just realised you deserve an apology even more, so I came by first thing this morning. I didn't want to put this off anymore than I already have."
He nods his head again.
"So you spoke to Faith."
"Mm-hmm."
He still looks a bit surprised.
"Why?"
His question catches me off guard. I sputter a little as I look down into my mug, then look around the room for a second before looking back down at the mug clutched tightly in my hands again.
"I....I....really don't....know Angel. I just did."
For some reason, this answer seems to satisfy him, and he lowers his gaze back down to the table. His fingers start drawing patterns again.
"How's she doing?"
I smile a little.
"She's doing fine."
He looks up quickly.
"She's not giving you a hard time is she?"
I smile a little wider.
"She's a model prisoner."
He looks back down again, deep in thought.
"Well that's good." He nods to himself. "I knew she could do it."
I think back over what Faith spoke about this morning, and I nod my head.
"I think she can too."
He looks back up at me.
"You don't hate her?"
He sounds surprised.
I shake my head slightly as I watch him.
"No, I don't. Don't ask me why because I don't know, but for some reason, I just don't. When I spoke to her last night, I realised that, deep down inside, she's a good person. She got lost somewhere along the way, but she's doing penance now. She's done the crimes, now she's doing the time, and she wants to do it. She's reforming herself. And you were right about her needing to be treated carefully. I really should have listened to you, not that idiot from Wolfram & Hart."
His eyes harden as he watches me carefully.
"Wolfram & Hart?"
I nod my head.
"Yeah. One of the lawyers, Lindsey I think his name is, well he came and told me about how you were watching out for Faith. And before I could do anything, my colleagues had found out about it, and so I ended up having to arrest you, because there was no way I could get around it."
"So what you were saying about my cell facing east....what was that about?"
I wince again as I listen to his tone.
"I was....angry I guess....that you hadn't told me about her. Supernatural things that are going on and involve the police in some way can be dangerous for us. If we'd caught Faith on our own without her coming in herself, she would have probably taken out a lot of my men before we even managed to get close to her. You knew we were looking for her. If you'd just called and told me and explained, a lot of trouble could have been avoided on our part, you never would have had to have been arrested, and I could have thrown that idiotic lawyer out on his ear."
He smiles slightly at me.
"You don't like Wolfram & Hart?"
"You don't remember the man they were representing who tried to kill me? I despise them and everything they stand for."
He chuckles quietly.
"Well, you're not alone there."
"I kind of figured."
He's quiet for a bit longer, and I drink some more coffee before I finally speak again.
"I really am sorry Angel. I had no right. I just hope you can forgive me."
He's quiet for a little longer, then he chuckles again and looks up at me.
"Do you have any idea how strange it is, for you to be apologising to me?"
"No. Why?"
He looks at me intently.
"Because of what I am Kate. I'm a vampire. And on the whole, vampires are dangerous demons who kill humans for food, sport, and fun. I used to do all of those things. I did them for over a hundred years before my soul was restored in Romania, and when I lost it again two years ago, I was right back into my old habits again. I've done a lot of really bad things that your treatment of me can't even come close to. You shouldn't have apologised. You didn't need to. I don't deserve apologies."
"But--"
"No buts Kate. I've killed and tortured thousands of people. I enjoyed every minute of it, and sometimes, I still find myself enjoying the memories of what I used to do. Before I was cursed, I was one of the most feared vampires in Europe. I was a Master Vampire who did what I could to make as much trouble as possible, and I loved it. I once even tried to suck the world into Hell, but I was beaten, and I ended up going to Hell instead. Take all the things I've done, then take the worst thing you've ever done."
He stared at me hard.
"They can't even compare can they. You didn't have to apologise. I don't deserve to hear it."
I swallow hard as I listen to the things he's telling me. Finally, I find my voice again.
"I'm still sorry."
His expression softens and he smiles slightly at me.
"Well if you still want to be sorry after all that, I guess I can forgive you."
I smile back at him, then look down at my mug.
"So are we....okay now? Are we friends?"
He nods his head as he looks up from the table.
"Yeah Kate. We're friends."
Suddenly, a loud bang sounds upstairs, and we turn our heads up to the ceiling as we hear a rapid set of footsteps on the floor above, followed by another set of footsteps coming in more slowly behind the first.
"ANGEL?"
Angel's head drops back down again from looking at the ceiling as he looks at me.
"Cordelia and Wesley."
I smile at him.
"She's pretty loud isn't she."
He shakes his head as he gets up from the table.
"Believe me, I know."
"ANGEL, WHERE ARE YOU?"
He goes to the bottom of the stairs as he calls, "I'll be right up Cordelia!"
"GOT IT."
I get up from the table as I finish off my coffee, and Angel walks back towards me. A quick look at my watch tells me I have another fifteen minutes before I'm due at work at nine. Great. That gives me just enough time to grab some breakfast.
"I think I'm needed upstairs. Sorry about this."
I shake my head quickly.
"Don't be. I really had to be on my way anyway."
"Well, thanks for stopping by Kate."
"No problem Angel. And hey, even if you think I shouldn't have apologised, it was just something I had to do for myself. I wouldn't have felt right otherwise. I hope you understand."
He looks at me for a moment, then he nods.
"Yeah. I do understand."
I start to head towards the stairs as he follows behind me. As I get to the bottom, I turn back around again.
"If you need me for anything--"
"I won't hesitate to call."
I nod my head.
"Good."
I stand there for a moment longer, then I say one more thing.
"You're more than welcome to visit Faith if you want Angel. She's allowed to have visitors. Granted, I don't know if you can come by during normal hours because of the sun but, if you want to see her, I have the authority to arrange another time for you so daytime hours won't be a problem."
He seems pleased about this, and he nods his head again.
"I think I might take you up on that."
Suddenly, a loud thump sounds from upstairs and I hear a voice I assume is Cordelia's cry out in pain.
Angel and I quickly run upstairs to see what the problem is, and we find Cordelia sprawled out on the floor, clutching her head in pain. Wesley is crouching beside her, supporting her, and he smiles at me quickly before looking at Angel with a chagrined expression on his face.
"She had a vision, and I didn't catch her in time when she fell."
I look at him strangely.
"A vision?"
Angel looks at me quickly, then says, "I'll explain later."
I nod my head.
"I'd better get going myself. Tell Cordelia I hope she feels okay."
Angel, who by now had moved over to Cordelia's other side, looks up at me one more time and smiles again.
"We will. Have a nice day Kate."
"You too."
Then I turn and walk out the door, closing it carefully behind me before I make my way down the outer stairs again that lead to the street. I look at my watch as I push the outer door open. I've now got ten minutes to grab breakfast and be at work.
I start walking as I think over what just happened.
I hadn't expected Angel to forgive me so quickly, especially after I'd been such a bitch to him, but he did.
Yep. He's got a big soul alright.
I stop off at the bakery as I pass it, and go in to pick up some things. After I finish ordering and they hand me the bag, I pay and say goodbye to the man behind the counter.
I walk out again, as I uncharacteristically start to swing the bakery bag in my hand around a little.
It feels good to have my friendship with Angel back on track again. And maybe this time, I can get to know Cordelia and Wesley a little better too.
You know, maybe I have more in my life than just work after all.
I look down at the bag in my hand.
I hope Faith's hungry.
End.