Part Two
Los Angeles.
Three months earlier....
"Angel Investigations. We help when the rest run and hide " Cordelia sang sweetly into the phone as she swung around on her swivel chair. Rolling her eyes, she immediately pulled the receiver a good six inches away from her ear and wrinkled her nose.
"Hey buddy, maybe you could just lower that hysterical screaming by a decibel or two?" the sugary act was forgotten as the part time actress yelled back over the shrilling coming from the ear piece.
Cordelia continued to hold the receiver at a safe distance from her ear while the terrified caller rambled incoherently, she only brought it closer when four little words seemed to scream out clearer than any of the others.
"Money is no object" **Those were words she appreciated**
With a large smile, the dark haired woman turned her full attention on the potential *paying* client.
Cordelia Chase had a true gift when it came to deciphering hysterical, over the years she had got it down to a fine art, as long as it didn't burst her eardrum that was. When the noise became more bearable, she grabbed her notebook and, after muttering a few questions back, started scribbling down the details.
On the street outside, Wesley paid off the taxi and walked up to the large glass office door. Before entering, he took a quiet moment to stare fondly at the now familiar silver Angel that hung above the entrance.
Wesley remembered only too well the first time he had seen it. It had been almost four years ago now, the first time he had returned to Los Angeles after the *End of Days*. The funny little Angel had almost been the death of him; he had choked so hard. But, as time had gone by, Wesley had become accustomed to the tragic looking figure swinging over the doorway and nowadays when he thought of A.I, it was one of the few things that made him smile.
Looking in at the large bright office, Wesley found himself feeling strangely melancholic. Just for the briefest moment he longed for the good old/bad old days, when it had been just the three of them against the world.
** But, those days were gone forever, they had all moved on to different destinies and that's just how it had to be** he angrily reminded himself, bringing the self-pity he was feeling to an abrupt end.
His destiny had been seeing his friend reborn into his new life, helping Angel grow as a new person. The fight to clear up the demon stragglers had been left to the others.
When Cordelia and Gunn had returned after the end of days, a lot of decisions had to be made for the future and one of those decisions was continuing the work that Angel had started. As the Oracles had stated, there were still plenty of angry demons roaming the earth, looking for a fight.
After a lot of soul searching, what was left of the small band decided to go for a new office. If they were ever going to lay their ghosts to rest, they had to make a fresh start. When a suitable building was found, Cordelia had insisted on only one thing, that the new office held some kind of remembrance to their old friend. At the time the others had happily agreed, a small plaque on the wall sounded nice, but Cordelia had other ideas and when she arrived with the sliver painted Angel nobody had the heart to refuse her wish.
"It had three heads? That's unusual they normally only have two" Fully engrossed in the conversation, Cordelia continued to scribble as Wesley pushed open the office door and walked quietly inside. He observed in total silence as his one time colleague calmed the fears of the terrified client.
"No, that's not a problem. Believe me, we have dealt with far worse in our time" her beautiful dark eyes rolled at the thought. A three-headed gremlin was nothing compared to some of the horrors they had seen.
On noticing Wesley's arrival Cordelia's face beamed in delight, she held up her hand indicating the call was coming to an end and proceeded to wrap it up, promising that her colleague, Mr. Gunn, would be over straight away.
"When did you get in? Why didn't you tell me you were coming?" she launched herself from the desk and wrapped her arms around Wesley so tightly that he almost had trouble breathing.
"My, my. That's what I call a real warm greeting, just remind me to go away more often" he laughed as he hugged the soft warm body back, his hand gently caressing her shoulders.
Cordelia pulled back slightly as Wesley untangled their limbs and let his eyes sweep over the beauty in front of him, searching for any sign of change since their last meeting. If anything, she was even lovelier if that was at all possible. **A little tired around the eyes though** came an afterthought as Cordelia moved into a brighter light.
For a few moments the two old friends just stood smiling at each other, each waiting for the other to speak.
"So...How is he?" Cordelia eventually asked the one question that they agreed could be asked.
Five years ago the whole group had agreed that Wesley should never disclose what had become of Angel. That way the temptation to peek at his new life wouldn't become too strong. Each one knew they could never be apart of that life and it was for the best that it never be talked about. Still, saying that, Cordelia always asked and Wesley always replied with the same.
"Last time I saw him he was doing just fine." The reply as always, was quick, to the point and then finished with. Satisfied with the only answer she was ever going to receive, Cordelia accepted it and turned away from the sadness that still touched her heart. Even after all this time, she still mourned the loss of her *family*.
Wesley hated seeing that sadness in her eyes but, he truly believed that keeping Angel's identity unknown was best for all those concerned. After five years the last thing they needed was boat rocking.
Turning his head away, Wesley was more than happy to change the subject
"Is she in?" he asked looking towards the closed door behind Cordelia's desk that lead to a second room.
Oh yeah, she got back about an hour ago, not a pretty sight" Cordelia nodded and winced slightly.
Wesley took a step towards the office door
"Just a little warning, large brooding going down in there at the moment" Cordelia offered helpfully as Wesley reached for the door handle. He then stopped and rapped his knuckles softly on the light wooden door, waiting for an answer.
"I guess something's never change around here" he replied as a quiet voice, from the other side of the door, called for him to come in. Cordelia rolled her eyes as the door closed behind him and picked up the phone, after dialing a few numbers she waited for the other end to be picked up and grabbed her note book.
"It's me, we just got a new client. There's a three headed gremlin in the West Side sewer system and I told the guy you were already on your way" Cordelia couldn't resist smiling at the deep groaning noise coming from the other end of the line.
**Gunn was not a happy man** But, for once Cordelia Chase didn't care.
Wesley was home for a few months, they had a new client and for a change she wasn't the one getting covered in the demon yuck.
**Maybe life wasn't that bad after all**
*****
As Wesley closed the door behind him he noticed that the light in this office was a lot dimmer than the one outside. Across the room an enormous leather chair spun around and the inhabitant greeted him with a gasp of surprise.
"Wesley, I didn't know you were in town" Large hazel eyes sparkled at her visitor.
"Hello Buffy" Wesley smiled back in awe at the beautiful woman the Slayer had grown into. No longer a skinny child, the woman now facing him had matured and grown more beautiful than anybody could have imagined possible. Wrapped in only a large fluffy bathrobe and with a head full of damp golden curls, Buffy Summers looked amazing but also very tired.
"You look exhausted, you and Cordelia have both been working far too hard" Wesley's kind face smiled but there was real concern behind his troubled eyes. He made himself a silent promise to talk to Gunn as soon as possible.
Buffy ran her fingers through her damp hair, shaking the water droplets from the ends, the soft curls framed her perfect face giving it an almost angelic glow in the dim light.
"I took out a whole vampire nest tonight, and a couple of slaaiinm demons. Boy, are they disgusting, when you cut off their heads they......"
"They spray you from head to toe with a foul blue grunge " Wesley finished the sentence for her with a large beaming grin.
**That explained the bathrobe and the desperate need for a shower**
Wesley had once had the misfortune of coming face to face with one of those demons, and the smell, if not disposed of right away, would linger for weeks.
He could tell, even across the office, that Buffy had made it to the shower on time, the sweet smell of soap and shampoo was all that filled the air.
"Once a Watcher always a Watcher" the Slayer laughed at the depth of Wesley's knowledge. After Giles, there was nobody around that knew as much as Wesley when it came to demonology. Although, saying that, Cordelia came in a very close third these days.
"So, how long do we have your company for this time?" Buffy stood from behind the desk and walked across the office. Wesley looked up and he could see from the expression in her eyes that she was dying to ask a multitude of questions just like Cordelia always did. The only difference with Buffy was he knew she wouldn't ask them, she carried the pain of her decision silently. It was only on moments like this, when the pain shone from her eyes, that she allowed her guard to drop down; even then, she would never ask that one question she was dying to know. **What had become of the love of her life**
"I have two months here in LA and then I have to see Mr. Giles about a very important council matter. Come on, tell me everything that's happened in the last few months, spill all the gossip" Wesley smiled relieved that their meeting had once again passed without Angel questions getting in the way.
Later that night, Wesley and Cordelia found themselves sitting in a small restaurant a few blocks down from the office, quietly rehashing old dreams. After the good old days had been re-written and re-lived the conversation eventually turned to Buffy
"She looks amazingly well, despite the fatigue" Wesley deliberated as he lifted his fork to his mouth.
"She never sleeps" Cordelia replied honestly as she stirred her own half-eaten pasta. She moved the food slowly around the plate but paid little interest to its content.
The restaurant they had chosen was almost empty at that time of night and although the food was delicious, after a long day and an almost equally long night, Cordelia's appetite had known better days.
Wesley didn't have the same problem, he was ravenous. The food on his plate was a hundred times better than anything offered on the long flight over and he was enjoying every mouthful.
" Bad Dreams?" he finally asked as he laid his cutlery next to his empty plate. It made sense that the Slayer would suffer with nightmares, he had had his fair share of those over the last five years. There were some images that no matter how hard you tried, never quite faded from sight.
Wesley looked across the table at his companion and watched as she carefully considered the question.
"I don't know, she wouldn't tell me even if she was" Cordelia admitted sadly and pushed her plate away. Within seconds a hovering waiter swept down and cleared the dirty dishes.
Declining desert and accepting the offer of coffee, the waiter disappeared leaving them to continue the conversation.
"I thought you two were close now" Wesley reached across the table and filled Cordelia's empty wine glass
"We are on most things but the Angel subject is still taboo, we never speak of him. It makes me so angry sometimes because dammit I want to talk about him; I need to talk about him. He was my friend not just her lover" Cordelia lowered her voice realising that in the almost empty room, it had travelled a lot further than she would have wanted it too.
"Perhaps the whole issue is still too painful for her" Wesley replied as sympathetically as he could without appearing to take sides. Playing pig in the middle was never his idea of fun.
Cordelia wasn't having any of it.
"Please! If it was only that simple." Her dark eyes suddenly flashed releasing a pent up bitterness that had no other outlet
"Oh no, that's not it at all. Willow's name is always popping up in conversation and I've even heard the odd *Spike would have said that* on occasion, but if I utter the *A* word it's like... hello the lights are on but there's nobody home" Cordelia lifted her wineglass and angrily gulped at the liquid. Placing the empty glass back on the table she lifted her tired eyes apologetically towards her companion.
"Sorry, it's been a long week, and that really wasn't fair" her voice softened as she reflected on the outburst. Cordelia knew that if she really thought about it, it wasn't Buffy she was angry with, it was just fate in general.
If she was really honest with herself, she was desperately worried about her friend. She had already lost Angel and it seemed these days Buffy was slipping away from her as well
"Wesley nodded that he understood her frustrations only too well, but human beings were all different and some took longer to recover than others.
"Maybe taking Angel's place here wasn't such a good idea after all." He offered with a sad smile.
Five years earlier it had seemed the perfect solution to all their problems, what with the hellmouth closed and Buffy needing to fill a gap as wide as the Grand Canyon in her life. The Slayer had eagerly accepted the offer to work with Cordelia and Gunn and run Angel investigations as a team. But with hindsight, they should have known that Buffy would struggle.
**How was she supposed to let go of the past when she was still walking in his footsteps? **
Reaching across the table he lifted Cordelia's slender hand and cradled it lovingly between his fingers. As he gazed at the woman he loved with a deep passion, an icy chill covered his heart. Cordelia felt him tremble and reached out her other hand, softly caressing his face.
"What's wrong?" her eyes imitated the same deep unspoken feelings.
Wesley sighed deeply unable to hide the frustration that left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"They both gave up the world to make the other happy and yet here we are five years later and they're both as lonely as hell. It just seems so wrong, it's such a dreadful waste of love"
Cordelia nodded, that was the problem in a nutshell. **Buffy was desperately lonely and from what Wesley had just dropped, so was the new Angel**
"So...What do we do about it?" her beautiful dark eyes flashed with mischief.
Wesley shrugged his shoulders in complete ignorance
"I wish I knew"
TBC
Los Angeles.
Three months earlier....
"Angel Investigations. We help when the rest run and hide " Cordelia sang sweetly into the phone as she swung around on her swivel chair. Rolling her eyes, she immediately pulled the receiver a good six inches away from her ear and wrinkled her nose.
"Hey buddy, maybe you could just lower that hysterical screaming by a decibel or two?" the sugary act was forgotten as the part time actress yelled back over the shrilling coming from the ear piece.
Cordelia continued to hold the receiver at a safe distance from her ear while the terrified caller rambled incoherently, she only brought it closer when four little words seemed to scream out clearer than any of the others.
"Money is no object" **Those were words she appreciated**
With a large smile, the dark haired woman turned her full attention on the potential *paying* client.
Cordelia Chase had a true gift when it came to deciphering hysterical, over the years she had got it down to a fine art, as long as it didn't burst her eardrum that was. When the noise became more bearable, she grabbed her notebook and, after muttering a few questions back, started scribbling down the details.
On the street outside, Wesley paid off the taxi and walked up to the large glass office door. Before entering, he took a quiet moment to stare fondly at the now familiar silver Angel that hung above the entrance.
Wesley remembered only too well the first time he had seen it. It had been almost four years ago now, the first time he had returned to Los Angeles after the *End of Days*. The funny little Angel had almost been the death of him; he had choked so hard. But, as time had gone by, Wesley had become accustomed to the tragic looking figure swinging over the doorway and nowadays when he thought of A.I, it was one of the few things that made him smile.
Looking in at the large bright office, Wesley found himself feeling strangely melancholic. Just for the briefest moment he longed for the good old/bad old days, when it had been just the three of them against the world.
** But, those days were gone forever, they had all moved on to different destinies and that's just how it had to be** he angrily reminded himself, bringing the self-pity he was feeling to an abrupt end.
His destiny had been seeing his friend reborn into his new life, helping Angel grow as a new person. The fight to clear up the demon stragglers had been left to the others.
When Cordelia and Gunn had returned after the end of days, a lot of decisions had to be made for the future and one of those decisions was continuing the work that Angel had started. As the Oracles had stated, there were still plenty of angry demons roaming the earth, looking for a fight.
After a lot of soul searching, what was left of the small band decided to go for a new office. If they were ever going to lay their ghosts to rest, they had to make a fresh start. When a suitable building was found, Cordelia had insisted on only one thing, that the new office held some kind of remembrance to their old friend. At the time the others had happily agreed, a small plaque on the wall sounded nice, but Cordelia had other ideas and when she arrived with the sliver painted Angel nobody had the heart to refuse her wish.
"It had three heads? That's unusual they normally only have two" Fully engrossed in the conversation, Cordelia continued to scribble as Wesley pushed open the office door and walked quietly inside. He observed in total silence as his one time colleague calmed the fears of the terrified client.
"No, that's not a problem. Believe me, we have dealt with far worse in our time" her beautiful dark eyes rolled at the thought. A three-headed gremlin was nothing compared to some of the horrors they had seen.
On noticing Wesley's arrival Cordelia's face beamed in delight, she held up her hand indicating the call was coming to an end and proceeded to wrap it up, promising that her colleague, Mr. Gunn, would be over straight away.
"When did you get in? Why didn't you tell me you were coming?" she launched herself from the desk and wrapped her arms around Wesley so tightly that he almost had trouble breathing.
"My, my. That's what I call a real warm greeting, just remind me to go away more often" he laughed as he hugged the soft warm body back, his hand gently caressing her shoulders.
Cordelia pulled back slightly as Wesley untangled their limbs and let his eyes sweep over the beauty in front of him, searching for any sign of change since their last meeting. If anything, she was even lovelier if that was at all possible. **A little tired around the eyes though** came an afterthought as Cordelia moved into a brighter light.
For a few moments the two old friends just stood smiling at each other, each waiting for the other to speak.
"So...How is he?" Cordelia eventually asked the one question that they agreed could be asked.
Five years ago the whole group had agreed that Wesley should never disclose what had become of Angel. That way the temptation to peek at his new life wouldn't become too strong. Each one knew they could never be apart of that life and it was for the best that it never be talked about. Still, saying that, Cordelia always asked and Wesley always replied with the same.
"Last time I saw him he was doing just fine." The reply as always, was quick, to the point and then finished with. Satisfied with the only answer she was ever going to receive, Cordelia accepted it and turned away from the sadness that still touched her heart. Even after all this time, she still mourned the loss of her *family*.
Wesley hated seeing that sadness in her eyes but, he truly believed that keeping Angel's identity unknown was best for all those concerned. After five years the last thing they needed was boat rocking.
Turning his head away, Wesley was more than happy to change the subject
"Is she in?" he asked looking towards the closed door behind Cordelia's desk that lead to a second room.
Oh yeah, she got back about an hour ago, not a pretty sight" Cordelia nodded and winced slightly.
Wesley took a step towards the office door
"Just a little warning, large brooding going down in there at the moment" Cordelia offered helpfully as Wesley reached for the door handle. He then stopped and rapped his knuckles softly on the light wooden door, waiting for an answer.
"I guess something's never change around here" he replied as a quiet voice, from the other side of the door, called for him to come in. Cordelia rolled her eyes as the door closed behind him and picked up the phone, after dialing a few numbers she waited for the other end to be picked up and grabbed her note book.
"It's me, we just got a new client. There's a three headed gremlin in the West Side sewer system and I told the guy you were already on your way" Cordelia couldn't resist smiling at the deep groaning noise coming from the other end of the line.
**Gunn was not a happy man** But, for once Cordelia Chase didn't care.
Wesley was home for a few months, they had a new client and for a change she wasn't the one getting covered in the demon yuck.
**Maybe life wasn't that bad after all**
*****
As Wesley closed the door behind him he noticed that the light in this office was a lot dimmer than the one outside. Across the room an enormous leather chair spun around and the inhabitant greeted him with a gasp of surprise.
"Wesley, I didn't know you were in town" Large hazel eyes sparkled at her visitor.
"Hello Buffy" Wesley smiled back in awe at the beautiful woman the Slayer had grown into. No longer a skinny child, the woman now facing him had matured and grown more beautiful than anybody could have imagined possible. Wrapped in only a large fluffy bathrobe and with a head full of damp golden curls, Buffy Summers looked amazing but also very tired.
"You look exhausted, you and Cordelia have both been working far too hard" Wesley's kind face smiled but there was real concern behind his troubled eyes. He made himself a silent promise to talk to Gunn as soon as possible.
Buffy ran her fingers through her damp hair, shaking the water droplets from the ends, the soft curls framed her perfect face giving it an almost angelic glow in the dim light.
"I took out a whole vampire nest tonight, and a couple of slaaiinm demons. Boy, are they disgusting, when you cut off their heads they......"
"They spray you from head to toe with a foul blue grunge " Wesley finished the sentence for her with a large beaming grin.
**That explained the bathrobe and the desperate need for a shower**
Wesley had once had the misfortune of coming face to face with one of those demons, and the smell, if not disposed of right away, would linger for weeks.
He could tell, even across the office, that Buffy had made it to the shower on time, the sweet smell of soap and shampoo was all that filled the air.
"Once a Watcher always a Watcher" the Slayer laughed at the depth of Wesley's knowledge. After Giles, there was nobody around that knew as much as Wesley when it came to demonology. Although, saying that, Cordelia came in a very close third these days.
"So, how long do we have your company for this time?" Buffy stood from behind the desk and walked across the office. Wesley looked up and he could see from the expression in her eyes that she was dying to ask a multitude of questions just like Cordelia always did. The only difference with Buffy was he knew she wouldn't ask them, she carried the pain of her decision silently. It was only on moments like this, when the pain shone from her eyes, that she allowed her guard to drop down; even then, she would never ask that one question she was dying to know. **What had become of the love of her life**
"I have two months here in LA and then I have to see Mr. Giles about a very important council matter. Come on, tell me everything that's happened in the last few months, spill all the gossip" Wesley smiled relieved that their meeting had once again passed without Angel questions getting in the way.
Later that night, Wesley and Cordelia found themselves sitting in a small restaurant a few blocks down from the office, quietly rehashing old dreams. After the good old days had been re-written and re-lived the conversation eventually turned to Buffy
"She looks amazingly well, despite the fatigue" Wesley deliberated as he lifted his fork to his mouth.
"She never sleeps" Cordelia replied honestly as she stirred her own half-eaten pasta. She moved the food slowly around the plate but paid little interest to its content.
The restaurant they had chosen was almost empty at that time of night and although the food was delicious, after a long day and an almost equally long night, Cordelia's appetite had known better days.
Wesley didn't have the same problem, he was ravenous. The food on his plate was a hundred times better than anything offered on the long flight over and he was enjoying every mouthful.
" Bad Dreams?" he finally asked as he laid his cutlery next to his empty plate. It made sense that the Slayer would suffer with nightmares, he had had his fair share of those over the last five years. There were some images that no matter how hard you tried, never quite faded from sight.
Wesley looked across the table at his companion and watched as she carefully considered the question.
"I don't know, she wouldn't tell me even if she was" Cordelia admitted sadly and pushed her plate away. Within seconds a hovering waiter swept down and cleared the dirty dishes.
Declining desert and accepting the offer of coffee, the waiter disappeared leaving them to continue the conversation.
"I thought you two were close now" Wesley reached across the table and filled Cordelia's empty wine glass
"We are on most things but the Angel subject is still taboo, we never speak of him. It makes me so angry sometimes because dammit I want to talk about him; I need to talk about him. He was my friend not just her lover" Cordelia lowered her voice realising that in the almost empty room, it had travelled a lot further than she would have wanted it too.
"Perhaps the whole issue is still too painful for her" Wesley replied as sympathetically as he could without appearing to take sides. Playing pig in the middle was never his idea of fun.
Cordelia wasn't having any of it.
"Please! If it was only that simple." Her dark eyes suddenly flashed releasing a pent up bitterness that had no other outlet
"Oh no, that's not it at all. Willow's name is always popping up in conversation and I've even heard the odd *Spike would have said that* on occasion, but if I utter the *A* word it's like... hello the lights are on but there's nobody home" Cordelia lifted her wineglass and angrily gulped at the liquid. Placing the empty glass back on the table she lifted her tired eyes apologetically towards her companion.
"Sorry, it's been a long week, and that really wasn't fair" her voice softened as she reflected on the outburst. Cordelia knew that if she really thought about it, it wasn't Buffy she was angry with, it was just fate in general.
If she was really honest with herself, she was desperately worried about her friend. She had already lost Angel and it seemed these days Buffy was slipping away from her as well
"Wesley nodded that he understood her frustrations only too well, but human beings were all different and some took longer to recover than others.
"Maybe taking Angel's place here wasn't such a good idea after all." He offered with a sad smile.
Five years earlier it had seemed the perfect solution to all their problems, what with the hellmouth closed and Buffy needing to fill a gap as wide as the Grand Canyon in her life. The Slayer had eagerly accepted the offer to work with Cordelia and Gunn and run Angel investigations as a team. But with hindsight, they should have known that Buffy would struggle.
**How was she supposed to let go of the past when she was still walking in his footsteps? **
Reaching across the table he lifted Cordelia's slender hand and cradled it lovingly between his fingers. As he gazed at the woman he loved with a deep passion, an icy chill covered his heart. Cordelia felt him tremble and reached out her other hand, softly caressing his face.
"What's wrong?" her eyes imitated the same deep unspoken feelings.
Wesley sighed deeply unable to hide the frustration that left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"They both gave up the world to make the other happy and yet here we are five years later and they're both as lonely as hell. It just seems so wrong, it's such a dreadful waste of love"
Cordelia nodded, that was the problem in a nutshell. **Buffy was desperately lonely and from what Wesley had just dropped, so was the new Angel**
"So...What do we do about it?" her beautiful dark eyes flashed with mischief.
Wesley shrugged his shoulders in complete ignorance
"I wish I knew"
TBC