Chapter 7 - The Gray Stone
With her arms wrapped tightly around Angel's shoulders, Cordelia worked hard on catching her breath, and marvelled in the comfort of his embrace and in the knowledge that she was still alive. She buried her face in his sweater as he stroked her hair gently, unable and unwilling to let her go.
Kneeling on the floor, Angel felt her heavy breathing against his cold skin and it sent a shiver down his spine. He closed his eyes and swallowed back the fear that had inhabited him until that moment. Relief covered his face as he finally gathered enough strength to pull away slightly from her.
His eyes bore into hers and he frantically looked her up and down, wanting to make sure that she was alright. He reached out to cup her face with both of his hands and emotionally stared into her eyes.
« Are you okay? » He let out, gently caressing the side of her face.
His worries shone through each of his word, and Cordelia had to think a little before she could form an answer.
« I.yes.I'm okay. » She whispered, still obviously on shock. « I'm fine. » she repeated and reached up to lovingly grab his wrists with her fingers.
Angel felt the human warmth of her touch against his wrists and he swallowed difficultly. The intensity in their eyes was palpable. Neither could take their eyes away from one another and Angel sensed her rapidly beating heart pounding in her chest, nearly distracting him from her face.
« You're hurt. » Angel whispered, noticing the cut on her forehead.
Off the concerned look in his eyes, Cordy reached to touch her own forehead and flinched when her fingers brushed against the cut she had almost forgotten she had in the first place. She closed her eyes, caught her breath and looked back up to him.
« I'm not hurt.I'm. » She began. « I'm not hurt. » she then paused momentarily, looking at his questioning face. « Well, not much. » she admitted, trying to sound as genuine and honest as possible. « I just.I- I.. » she stumbled, obviously still reeling from the whole experience.
Angel noticed her shivering and the look of complete loss in her eyes, so he pulled her back to him, enveloping her in his strong arms. He brushed the wet hair away from her face as he held her close to him, berating himself for letting her go even for one second.
The hug was as much for him as it was for her, and Cordy realized it quickly when she sensed him bury his face in her hair. The fear was mutual. The concern and sense of danger had invaded them both, and at that specific moment in time, they both needed something to hold onto. Someone.
Each other.
This time around, it was Cordelia who pulled away from the hug slightly enough so that she could look into his relieved face. As she did so, she felt the side of her cheek brush against his in a slow, emotional brush. She pressed her lips lightly against his giving him a few repetitive light kisses that mirrored her newfound relief and affection for the vampire. Slowly, the kiss deepened into one long, breathless kiss.
One emotion-filled kiss.
After a little while, Cordy gently lifted her lips from his - not because she wanted to but more out of necessity. She caught her breath and looked into his caring eyes, then frowned as if she'd suddenly realized something utterly relevant to the situation.
« What are you doing here? » she questioned with wide hazel eyes.
She didn't necessarily wait for him to answer, since the look in his eyes seemed to convey everything he was feeling at the moment.
« Why - How did you get here? Are you okay? Where is 'here'? And please tell me we're not actually inside my head because that would be very disturbing. » she asked in one quick breath before inhaling deeply. « Are you alright?? » she then added, gently touching the side of his chin.
Angel took a few seconds to register all of her questions, struggling to remember what the first of them all had been.
« Huh.To save you. Emily. And yes, this is very disturbing. » he then spoke, taking one of her hands into his in a very reassuring way.
« huh? » Cordy was now the one who had lost track of his train of thought.
« Emily.She's the one who helped us get to you. » Angel then proceeded to explain to her, the two of them never parting completely. « Do you remember anything that happened? You had a vision. » he then added.
Cordelia found herself nodding as she remembered the whole thing vividly.
« I remember. » she breathed out. « And the next thing I know, I was waking up in here and. »
Cordy stopped herself as she saw the way he looked back at her.
« I didn't wake up, did I? » She said with a slight nod, and Angel silently confirmed her new realization.
He then proceeded in explaining to her what had happened, and where they were. It's not like she hadn't figured it out already, but he she needed the confirmation to make it real.
« So, you mean my head has been invaded by the likes of you and me because of some dead woman who got a bit too pissed?!? » Cordy exclaimed after Angel's quick explanation.
« no » Angel replied, lowering his eyes.
« What? What do you mean 'no'? You just said. » she spoke with the slightest confusion.
« It's not just you and me. » He told her as a deep and intense silence followed his words.
Cordelia's eyes travelled to the wall where Wesley had been killed and she felt her heart sink inside of her.
« They're all in here, aren't they? » she then whispered, staring at the ground, as it suddenly dawned upon her just how many lives rested in her hands now - or in her head to be more literal.
Angel's silence once again contributed to her own answer. He reached out to take her hands into his when he saw the grave expression that invaded every line on her face. She pondered the situation for a little while before staring at the floor, tears welling up in her otherwise invincible eyes.
« I don't know the way out. » she whispered in true confession. « I don't know how, Angel. I don't. » she regretfully admitted.
Angel took her fearful face into his hands and whispered her name with reassurance. Just as he was about to say something else, he abruptly stopped and his head snapped up.
« What? » Cordy raised an eyebrow at the sudden and strange expression on his face.
« Shh. » Angel motioned to her, holding her shoulders.
Angel seemed to listen, and as if struck by lightening, he abruptly pulled Cordy to her feet.
« Out, out, out! » He hurried her as he pushed her towards the door.
They both ran out of the door just in time to avoid the the large rhino- like demons that came bursting through an exploding wall.
Angel grabbed Cordy by the hand and led her into the corridor, making sure she was staying close to him. Then, without any warning, Cordy stopped in her tracks and pulled on Angel's arm with protest.
« No, wait! » She exclaimed, frantically. « We have to go back! »
Angel turned to face her quickly, and his demeanor prompted Cordy to explain further more.
« Emily. » Her words were self-explanatory. « We can't just leave her there. »
« Cordy, we don't have time. » Angel reminded her as the demons appeared around the corner at the other end of the long tunnel.
« Angel, I'm not leaving her again! » Cordelia argued with determination. « Not again.I can't. » she said in a lower voice that went straight to Angel's core.
He eyed the demons for a second and then grabbed Cordy's hand as they headed into another direction.
« Come on. » he urged her as they went back by the means of another tunnel.
They ran for what seemed like forever until they stopped hearing the beasts behind them. At that point, Angel had figured out that the demons in Cordelia's head were harder to defeat than those of reality. Probably because of the power of the mind, and the power of their fears. Ironic, for a vampire who had so often claimed to fear very little.
Empowered by panic and determination, Angel and Cordelia finally managed to make their way back to Emily's room. They both burst through the door, closing it behind them and making sure that no one had followed them.
When Cordy saw Emily through the grillage, her heart skipped an important beat.
« Emily! » she called out and the girl turned her head around to face her.
Angel approached the cage wall and saw the straps around emily's wrists and the bruises on her arms. She had clearly been roughed up and the simple thought of such atrocities enraged him.
« Get back. » he warned Cordelia as she took a few steps backwards.
Angel savagely threw his foot on the cage and managed to break it open after a few trials. He and Cordelia pulled the side of the cage apart and got in through the ripped cage. Cordy rushed to her cousin's side and saw the tears welling up in Emily's eyes.
« Cordy. » the young girl whispered.
When Cordelia's hand felt Emily's shoulder, a gasp nearly escaped her throat. She could touch her. Emily's wasn't invisible, or untouchable.
She was human.
As human as any of them.
« Oh my God. » she whispered to herself while Angel joined her and they both tugged at the straps holding Emily down.
They seemed to struggled with the black things for a moment, causing Angel to curse under his breath.
« Come on. » Cordy lashed out at herself when she fumbled with the straps as well.
After a few seconds, they managed to free Emily, but the physical state in which the young teenager found herself was just as worse. Emily could barely sit on her own, much less stand on her own two feet. Angel helped her up in a seating position while Cordelia proceeded to untie her legs.
Such strength, yet despair in Emily's eyes. It was heartening.
« Let's get out of here. » Angel proposed as he and Cordelia put their arms around Emily's waist and helped her down the bed.
« Cordy. » Emily whispered in a weak and painful tone. « I can't. » she then breathed out.
« Don't talk like that. We're getting you out of here, somewhere safe. » Cordelia promised, not listening to the warning tone in her cousin's voice.
They took a few steps before Emily's body crumbled to the floor in pain. She clearly could not stand the weight of her own body. Cordelia threw herself on the floor beside her, encouraging her to get back up, but the young girl simply looked up into Angel's eyes with tears.
« You guys need to get out of here. » she warned them, selflessly.
« Don't be ridiculous! » Cordy argued with frustration.
« Cordy, I'm only slowing you down. » Emily said as her eyes locked with the young seer.
There was a very short pause between the three of them before Cordy and Angel decided to ignore Emily's plea. They grabbed her by the arms, trying to will her to life again.
A loud, resounding noise comming from the corridor made them jump a little and Emily freed herself from Cordelia and Angel's grip, leaning against the wall behind her.
« Cordy.don't let her mess up with you. » emily breathed out.
« Shut up, Em! I'm not leaving you. » Cordy stubbornly retorted in a heartbreaking voice.
« You don't understand. » Emily let herself slide down the wall and sat on the floor. « Cordy, you need to get out. »
« Not without you. »
« I'm only slowing you down. » Emily painfully told her and Angel. « If you don't get out of here, they will kill you. Cordy, listen to me. »
« No. » cordelia's eyes were quickly welling up with tears as Angel looked on, equally fearful.
« You're the only one who can find the way out Cordy. You're the only one who knows. You need to save yourself. »
Angel knelt down before her and grabbed her shoulders in a pleading motion.
« Emily, we're not leaving you here. »
« You have to! » Emily then yelled at him with enough rage to startle him.
« Em. » Cordy began in a rushed tone but Emily stopped her.
«Don't you see what they're doing? Cordelia, if you save me, she'll have won! They are playing with your mind here.I'm not strong enough Cor.I can't. » the young girl was now tearfully speaking. « You need to go!! » she shouted through her teeth.
« What, do you want to die? » Cordelia barely managed to let the words out of her mouth.
There was a painfully short pause between the three of them before Emily finally answered anything. Emily looked deep into her cousin's eyes and she held her breath for a moment, swallowing difficultly.
« No, I don't want to die. I don't want to die alright! Been there, done that. Remember? Of course you remember.that's why I'm here.» she whispered in a shaky voice. « I don't want to die, but you can't save me. Cordelia, you're not supposed to be saving me! I know what you're doing.and that's exactly what they want you to do. She wants you to feel this way. She is playing on your guilt and on your fears. Don't let her! » Emily begged of them both. « Cordy. » she said and then took a deep breath that seemed to make her entire body ache. « You're playing right into her hands.but you can overpower her. Listen to me.You can win. You can do it. »
« I can't.I don't know how. » Cordy said as a small tear rolled down her cheek.
« Yes you do. You just need to remember. » she replied. « Just remember. »
« Remember what? » Angel asked in a trembling voice.
« Just look within. » Emily whispered in a heartbreaking tone as she addressed a very emotional Cordelia. « Look within. »
They all heard footsteps approaching and a sudden panic invaded them all. Cordelia looked over her shoulder frantically and then back to Emily, who was curled up against the wall.
« I'm not letting you die.Not again. I can't watch you die in my arms again.Emily. » she begged between heavy breaths. « I will get you out of here, even if I have to force you to come with me. »
Cordelia's voice was a mixture of pleading and fearing. Her tone was breaking and tearfully emotional. Emily looked into her cousin's eyes and saw the guilt and the pain, and she looked over to Angel, who seemed to mirror Cordelia's determination. Emily knew those looks. The looks of the two most stubborn people she'd ever met. And she knew there was nothing she could say to change their minds.
Nothing.
Without saying a word, she grabbed Cordy's hand, and let her pull her up to her feet. A groan of pain escaped Emily's throat as they wrapped her arms around their shoulders.
Then, that's when it all happened.
Just as Emily was ready to let them help her, she found herself immobilized against the wall. Her feet refused to move. She struggled with fierce but it's like she was stuck on the ground. Then, Angel looked at the wall and noticed some green slime rolling down the wall and wrapping itself around Emily's feet.
« Emily! » he exclaimed, trying to pull on her arm, as Cordy did.
But Emily would still not move. She couldn't. She simply physically could not.
Emily tried to push Angel and Cordelia away from her and from the slime, but neither of them would back off. Angel, not caring about the tattoos in Emily's palms, grabbed one of her hands and began pulling towards him. He felt the painful burn against his skin as the rosary and cross inside Emily's hands pressed against him. But he didn't care. He and Cordelia frantically tried to pull Emily away from the wall, but in vain.
The slime around Emily's feet only crept up her legs at a frightening pace. Then, after a few seconds, the slime began to turn into stone, trapping Emily against the wall.
Cordelia called out for Emily, whose face had now turned a verious shades of pale. She screamed at them both to get away from her but they wouldn't listen. She grabbed something from around her neck and handed it to Angel, as tears filled her eyes. Angel stared at the object hanging from a chain.
A key.
A small key.
He didn't have time to register what it meant until Emily began begging them to let her go.
« I'm not real Cordelia. » she finally said out loud.
« Stop it! » Cordelia argued. « I'm not letting you die. » she said pulling on the girl's legs.
« I'm an image! » Emily then admitted painfully. « I'm just an image inside your head, Cordy! I'm not real! » she said and saw her tears mirrored in Cordelia and Angel's eyes. « You made me up. You made me appear. You made me human.but I'm not real. I'm an image you conjured up, an image you can't let go of. Cordelia. » she breathed as the stone began to creep up her legs and reach her waist. « I'm just a memory. » she cried openly now. « You can't save me from your own memory, Cordy.I'm a memory that's holding you back, and you need to go.You need to let go.You never let me die Cordy. It was never your fault.Just let go. » Emily's tears were running freely now, like an unwanted waterfall. « I'm just an image inside your head.I'm not real. »
Cordelia felt her heart break into millions of tiny pieces as she stared into her cousin's face, still holding her hands into hers.
« It's always real if you believe it, right.? » she whispered in a trembling voice.
Both girls paused and stared at one another. A small, last tear rolled down Cordelia's face before Emily opened her mouth to speak.
« Look within. » she whispered.
Just as the words left her mouth, Emily shoved both Cordy and Angel away with a strength that was unknown to her. A strength that wasn't human.
Angel and Cordelia went flying across the room and landed violently on the ground. Angel protected Cordelia from the fall with his body and quickly wrapped an arm around her. When the both looked up, they saw the last of Emily's head being covered with slime and then turning to stone.
Cordelia stared, mouth slightly agape and eyes wide, at the remains of her cousin.
Stone.
Grey stone.
The statue of Emily was stil reaching her arms in front of her, just as they remembered.
Just then, the earth began to shake and Angel had just enough time to cover Cordy's body with his before the wall exploded and Emily's remains went flying into the room. The tiny pieces of stone settled on the ground slowly and Cordelia tightened her grip around Angel's sweater.
As they both lay on the ground, Angel slightly covering Cordelia's body protectively, Dennis' mother came walking through the hole in the wall.
A small smirk on her face, she finally took the hood of her monk outfit off, revealing her deadly head. Cordy, now both enraged and emotional, stared at her with the coldest expression on her face.
« Oh Great, you again. » Cordy muttered under her breath.
« What did you do to her! » Angel yelled at the ghostly demon.
« Poor Emily. » Dennis' mom laughed bitterly. « She didn't fare too well in the family department as i can see.I guess you ARE meant to let her die at ever chance you get. » she proudly smiled under Cordelia's icy stare.
The hurt, the pain, the loss.it was nothing compared to what both Angel and Cordelia felt at that instant. Cordy's fists tightened around Angel's arm, as they both stared up at the nightmare that stood in front of them.
SNEAK PREVIEW : It's Christmas Eve and they are all still stuck inside Cordelia's head. What will Cordy and Angel find behind the secret door, and will it strengthen their newfound relationship or drive a wedge in it? Meanwhile, Gunn and Fred must find the right password to save themselves.
With her arms wrapped tightly around Angel's shoulders, Cordelia worked hard on catching her breath, and marvelled in the comfort of his embrace and in the knowledge that she was still alive. She buried her face in his sweater as he stroked her hair gently, unable and unwilling to let her go.
Kneeling on the floor, Angel felt her heavy breathing against his cold skin and it sent a shiver down his spine. He closed his eyes and swallowed back the fear that had inhabited him until that moment. Relief covered his face as he finally gathered enough strength to pull away slightly from her.
His eyes bore into hers and he frantically looked her up and down, wanting to make sure that she was alright. He reached out to cup her face with both of his hands and emotionally stared into her eyes.
« Are you okay? » He let out, gently caressing the side of her face.
His worries shone through each of his word, and Cordelia had to think a little before she could form an answer.
« I.yes.I'm okay. » She whispered, still obviously on shock. « I'm fine. » she repeated and reached up to lovingly grab his wrists with her fingers.
Angel felt the human warmth of her touch against his wrists and he swallowed difficultly. The intensity in their eyes was palpable. Neither could take their eyes away from one another and Angel sensed her rapidly beating heart pounding in her chest, nearly distracting him from her face.
« You're hurt. » Angel whispered, noticing the cut on her forehead.
Off the concerned look in his eyes, Cordy reached to touch her own forehead and flinched when her fingers brushed against the cut she had almost forgotten she had in the first place. She closed her eyes, caught her breath and looked back up to him.
« I'm not hurt.I'm. » She began. « I'm not hurt. » she then paused momentarily, looking at his questioning face. « Well, not much. » she admitted, trying to sound as genuine and honest as possible. « I just.I- I.. » she stumbled, obviously still reeling from the whole experience.
Angel noticed her shivering and the look of complete loss in her eyes, so he pulled her back to him, enveloping her in his strong arms. He brushed the wet hair away from her face as he held her close to him, berating himself for letting her go even for one second.
The hug was as much for him as it was for her, and Cordy realized it quickly when she sensed him bury his face in her hair. The fear was mutual. The concern and sense of danger had invaded them both, and at that specific moment in time, they both needed something to hold onto. Someone.
Each other.
This time around, it was Cordelia who pulled away from the hug slightly enough so that she could look into his relieved face. As she did so, she felt the side of her cheek brush against his in a slow, emotional brush. She pressed her lips lightly against his giving him a few repetitive light kisses that mirrored her newfound relief and affection for the vampire. Slowly, the kiss deepened into one long, breathless kiss.
One emotion-filled kiss.
After a little while, Cordy gently lifted her lips from his - not because she wanted to but more out of necessity. She caught her breath and looked into his caring eyes, then frowned as if she'd suddenly realized something utterly relevant to the situation.
« What are you doing here? » she questioned with wide hazel eyes.
She didn't necessarily wait for him to answer, since the look in his eyes seemed to convey everything he was feeling at the moment.
« Why - How did you get here? Are you okay? Where is 'here'? And please tell me we're not actually inside my head because that would be very disturbing. » she asked in one quick breath before inhaling deeply. « Are you alright?? » she then added, gently touching the side of his chin.
Angel took a few seconds to register all of her questions, struggling to remember what the first of them all had been.
« Huh.To save you. Emily. And yes, this is very disturbing. » he then spoke, taking one of her hands into his in a very reassuring way.
« huh? » Cordy was now the one who had lost track of his train of thought.
« Emily.She's the one who helped us get to you. » Angel then proceeded to explain to her, the two of them never parting completely. « Do you remember anything that happened? You had a vision. » he then added.
Cordelia found herself nodding as she remembered the whole thing vividly.
« I remember. » she breathed out. « And the next thing I know, I was waking up in here and. »
Cordy stopped herself as she saw the way he looked back at her.
« I didn't wake up, did I? » She said with a slight nod, and Angel silently confirmed her new realization.
He then proceeded in explaining to her what had happened, and where they were. It's not like she hadn't figured it out already, but he she needed the confirmation to make it real.
« So, you mean my head has been invaded by the likes of you and me because of some dead woman who got a bit too pissed?!? » Cordy exclaimed after Angel's quick explanation.
« no » Angel replied, lowering his eyes.
« What? What do you mean 'no'? You just said. » she spoke with the slightest confusion.
« It's not just you and me. » He told her as a deep and intense silence followed his words.
Cordelia's eyes travelled to the wall where Wesley had been killed and she felt her heart sink inside of her.
« They're all in here, aren't they? » she then whispered, staring at the ground, as it suddenly dawned upon her just how many lives rested in her hands now - or in her head to be more literal.
Angel's silence once again contributed to her own answer. He reached out to take her hands into his when he saw the grave expression that invaded every line on her face. She pondered the situation for a little while before staring at the floor, tears welling up in her otherwise invincible eyes.
« I don't know the way out. » she whispered in true confession. « I don't know how, Angel. I don't. » she regretfully admitted.
Angel took her fearful face into his hands and whispered her name with reassurance. Just as he was about to say something else, he abruptly stopped and his head snapped up.
« What? » Cordy raised an eyebrow at the sudden and strange expression on his face.
« Shh. » Angel motioned to her, holding her shoulders.
Angel seemed to listen, and as if struck by lightening, he abruptly pulled Cordy to her feet.
« Out, out, out! » He hurried her as he pushed her towards the door.
They both ran out of the door just in time to avoid the the large rhino- like demons that came bursting through an exploding wall.
Angel grabbed Cordy by the hand and led her into the corridor, making sure she was staying close to him. Then, without any warning, Cordy stopped in her tracks and pulled on Angel's arm with protest.
« No, wait! » She exclaimed, frantically. « We have to go back! »
Angel turned to face her quickly, and his demeanor prompted Cordy to explain further more.
« Emily. » Her words were self-explanatory. « We can't just leave her there. »
« Cordy, we don't have time. » Angel reminded her as the demons appeared around the corner at the other end of the long tunnel.
« Angel, I'm not leaving her again! » Cordelia argued with determination. « Not again.I can't. » she said in a lower voice that went straight to Angel's core.
He eyed the demons for a second and then grabbed Cordy's hand as they headed into another direction.
« Come on. » he urged her as they went back by the means of another tunnel.
They ran for what seemed like forever until they stopped hearing the beasts behind them. At that point, Angel had figured out that the demons in Cordelia's head were harder to defeat than those of reality. Probably because of the power of the mind, and the power of their fears. Ironic, for a vampire who had so often claimed to fear very little.
Empowered by panic and determination, Angel and Cordelia finally managed to make their way back to Emily's room. They both burst through the door, closing it behind them and making sure that no one had followed them.
When Cordy saw Emily through the grillage, her heart skipped an important beat.
« Emily! » she called out and the girl turned her head around to face her.
Angel approached the cage wall and saw the straps around emily's wrists and the bruises on her arms. She had clearly been roughed up and the simple thought of such atrocities enraged him.
« Get back. » he warned Cordelia as she took a few steps backwards.
Angel savagely threw his foot on the cage and managed to break it open after a few trials. He and Cordelia pulled the side of the cage apart and got in through the ripped cage. Cordy rushed to her cousin's side and saw the tears welling up in Emily's eyes.
« Cordy. » the young girl whispered.
When Cordelia's hand felt Emily's shoulder, a gasp nearly escaped her throat. She could touch her. Emily's wasn't invisible, or untouchable.
She was human.
As human as any of them.
« Oh my God. » she whispered to herself while Angel joined her and they both tugged at the straps holding Emily down.
They seemed to struggled with the black things for a moment, causing Angel to curse under his breath.
« Come on. » Cordy lashed out at herself when she fumbled with the straps as well.
After a few seconds, they managed to free Emily, but the physical state in which the young teenager found herself was just as worse. Emily could barely sit on her own, much less stand on her own two feet. Angel helped her up in a seating position while Cordelia proceeded to untie her legs.
Such strength, yet despair in Emily's eyes. It was heartening.
« Let's get out of here. » Angel proposed as he and Cordelia put their arms around Emily's waist and helped her down the bed.
« Cordy. » Emily whispered in a weak and painful tone. « I can't. » she then breathed out.
« Don't talk like that. We're getting you out of here, somewhere safe. » Cordelia promised, not listening to the warning tone in her cousin's voice.
They took a few steps before Emily's body crumbled to the floor in pain. She clearly could not stand the weight of her own body. Cordelia threw herself on the floor beside her, encouraging her to get back up, but the young girl simply looked up into Angel's eyes with tears.
« You guys need to get out of here. » she warned them, selflessly.
« Don't be ridiculous! » Cordy argued with frustration.
« Cordy, I'm only slowing you down. » Emily said as her eyes locked with the young seer.
There was a very short pause between the three of them before Cordy and Angel decided to ignore Emily's plea. They grabbed her by the arms, trying to will her to life again.
A loud, resounding noise comming from the corridor made them jump a little and Emily freed herself from Cordelia and Angel's grip, leaning against the wall behind her.
« Cordy.don't let her mess up with you. » emily breathed out.
« Shut up, Em! I'm not leaving you. » Cordy stubbornly retorted in a heartbreaking voice.
« You don't understand. » Emily let herself slide down the wall and sat on the floor. « Cordy, you need to get out. »
« Not without you. »
« I'm only slowing you down. » Emily painfully told her and Angel. « If you don't get out of here, they will kill you. Cordy, listen to me. »
« No. » cordelia's eyes were quickly welling up with tears as Angel looked on, equally fearful.
« You're the only one who can find the way out Cordy. You're the only one who knows. You need to save yourself. »
Angel knelt down before her and grabbed her shoulders in a pleading motion.
« Emily, we're not leaving you here. »
« You have to! » Emily then yelled at him with enough rage to startle him.
« Em. » Cordy began in a rushed tone but Emily stopped her.
«Don't you see what they're doing? Cordelia, if you save me, she'll have won! They are playing with your mind here.I'm not strong enough Cor.I can't. » the young girl was now tearfully speaking. « You need to go!! » she shouted through her teeth.
« What, do you want to die? » Cordelia barely managed to let the words out of her mouth.
There was a painfully short pause between the three of them before Emily finally answered anything. Emily looked deep into her cousin's eyes and she held her breath for a moment, swallowing difficultly.
« No, I don't want to die. I don't want to die alright! Been there, done that. Remember? Of course you remember.that's why I'm here.» she whispered in a shaky voice. « I don't want to die, but you can't save me. Cordelia, you're not supposed to be saving me! I know what you're doing.and that's exactly what they want you to do. She wants you to feel this way. She is playing on your guilt and on your fears. Don't let her! » Emily begged of them both. « Cordy. » she said and then took a deep breath that seemed to make her entire body ache. « You're playing right into her hands.but you can overpower her. Listen to me.You can win. You can do it. »
« I can't.I don't know how. » Cordy said as a small tear rolled down her cheek.
« Yes you do. You just need to remember. » she replied. « Just remember. »
« Remember what? » Angel asked in a trembling voice.
« Just look within. » Emily whispered in a heartbreaking tone as she addressed a very emotional Cordelia. « Look within. »
They all heard footsteps approaching and a sudden panic invaded them all. Cordelia looked over her shoulder frantically and then back to Emily, who was curled up against the wall.
« I'm not letting you die.Not again. I can't watch you die in my arms again.Emily. » she begged between heavy breaths. « I will get you out of here, even if I have to force you to come with me. »
Cordelia's voice was a mixture of pleading and fearing. Her tone was breaking and tearfully emotional. Emily looked into her cousin's eyes and saw the guilt and the pain, and she looked over to Angel, who seemed to mirror Cordelia's determination. Emily knew those looks. The looks of the two most stubborn people she'd ever met. And she knew there was nothing she could say to change their minds.
Nothing.
Without saying a word, she grabbed Cordy's hand, and let her pull her up to her feet. A groan of pain escaped Emily's throat as they wrapped her arms around their shoulders.
Then, that's when it all happened.
Just as Emily was ready to let them help her, she found herself immobilized against the wall. Her feet refused to move. She struggled with fierce but it's like she was stuck on the ground. Then, Angel looked at the wall and noticed some green slime rolling down the wall and wrapping itself around Emily's feet.
« Emily! » he exclaimed, trying to pull on her arm, as Cordy did.
But Emily would still not move. She couldn't. She simply physically could not.
Emily tried to push Angel and Cordelia away from her and from the slime, but neither of them would back off. Angel, not caring about the tattoos in Emily's palms, grabbed one of her hands and began pulling towards him. He felt the painful burn against his skin as the rosary and cross inside Emily's hands pressed against him. But he didn't care. He and Cordelia frantically tried to pull Emily away from the wall, but in vain.
The slime around Emily's feet only crept up her legs at a frightening pace. Then, after a few seconds, the slime began to turn into stone, trapping Emily against the wall.
Cordelia called out for Emily, whose face had now turned a verious shades of pale. She screamed at them both to get away from her but they wouldn't listen. She grabbed something from around her neck and handed it to Angel, as tears filled her eyes. Angel stared at the object hanging from a chain.
A key.
A small key.
He didn't have time to register what it meant until Emily began begging them to let her go.
« I'm not real Cordelia. » she finally said out loud.
« Stop it! » Cordelia argued. « I'm not letting you die. » she said pulling on the girl's legs.
« I'm an image! » Emily then admitted painfully. « I'm just an image inside your head, Cordy! I'm not real! » she said and saw her tears mirrored in Cordelia and Angel's eyes. « You made me up. You made me appear. You made me human.but I'm not real. I'm an image you conjured up, an image you can't let go of. Cordelia. » she breathed as the stone began to creep up her legs and reach her waist. « I'm just a memory. » she cried openly now. « You can't save me from your own memory, Cordy.I'm a memory that's holding you back, and you need to go.You need to let go.You never let me die Cordy. It was never your fault.Just let go. » Emily's tears were running freely now, like an unwanted waterfall. « I'm just an image inside your head.I'm not real. »
Cordelia felt her heart break into millions of tiny pieces as she stared into her cousin's face, still holding her hands into hers.
« It's always real if you believe it, right.? » she whispered in a trembling voice.
Both girls paused and stared at one another. A small, last tear rolled down Cordelia's face before Emily opened her mouth to speak.
« Look within. » she whispered.
Just as the words left her mouth, Emily shoved both Cordy and Angel away with a strength that was unknown to her. A strength that wasn't human.
Angel and Cordelia went flying across the room and landed violently on the ground. Angel protected Cordelia from the fall with his body and quickly wrapped an arm around her. When the both looked up, they saw the last of Emily's head being covered with slime and then turning to stone.
Cordelia stared, mouth slightly agape and eyes wide, at the remains of her cousin.
Stone.
Grey stone.
The statue of Emily was stil reaching her arms in front of her, just as they remembered.
Just then, the earth began to shake and Angel had just enough time to cover Cordy's body with his before the wall exploded and Emily's remains went flying into the room. The tiny pieces of stone settled on the ground slowly and Cordelia tightened her grip around Angel's sweater.
As they both lay on the ground, Angel slightly covering Cordelia's body protectively, Dennis' mother came walking through the hole in the wall.
A small smirk on her face, she finally took the hood of her monk outfit off, revealing her deadly head. Cordy, now both enraged and emotional, stared at her with the coldest expression on her face.
« Oh Great, you again. » Cordy muttered under her breath.
« What did you do to her! » Angel yelled at the ghostly demon.
« Poor Emily. » Dennis' mom laughed bitterly. « She didn't fare too well in the family department as i can see.I guess you ARE meant to let her die at ever chance you get. » she proudly smiled under Cordelia's icy stare.
The hurt, the pain, the loss.it was nothing compared to what both Angel and Cordelia felt at that instant. Cordy's fists tightened around Angel's arm, as they both stared up at the nightmare that stood in front of them.
SNEAK PREVIEW : It's Christmas Eve and they are all still stuck inside Cordelia's head. What will Cordy and Angel find behind the secret door, and will it strengthen their newfound relationship or drive a wedge in it? Meanwhile, Gunn and Fred must find the right password to save themselves.