Chapter Four

Cordelia lay on her sofa and sniffed back more tears; Wesley was sitting beside her while Dennis covered her with a blanket. Wesley felt useless but all he could do was wait until Cordelia had recovered from her obviously painful vision. He had rushed her home as soon as she had recovered on the floor of the Hyperion; she had only just stopped crying.

"How are you now?" he asked, leaning forward and touching her hand.

"Better, thanks for bringing me home," she sighed, rubbing at her nose with a damp tissue. Wesley didn't want to push her but he needed answers.

"Are you ready to talk about it?"

"I guess, I was just a bit shocked. I saw Fred with Angel, they were together in this dark alley and they attacked these two tramps. I'd never seen Angel like that before, he looked possessed, he looked… evil,"

Wesley sat back with the news before answering, if what Cordelia had seen was true then it would appear that Angelus would return to join his new vampire child. The strong pull of a sire and his child could certainly help tip Angel over the edge into his darkness but surely not with a soul.

"Are you sure Angel was attacking those men with Fred, maybe he was there hunting her down,"

"I don't think so, Wes. God, I feel so stupid,"

"Why?" frowned Wesley. Cordelia sat up and looked at him, she had to tell him, she had to tell someone.

"When I went up to talk to him, Angel kissed me," she murmured. Wesley's face fell with shock. "It was only for a second but I kissed him back. Do you think the Powers sent me the vision to warn me about Angel? Y'know, to tell me to stop or something?"

"I don't know, Cordelia. It was very irresponsible; you know you and Angel could never have a real relationship,"

"It was a kiss Wesley. It wasn't the start of some love affair, I cut it off and that was it. But Evil Angel would never have kissed me; he'd have just eaten me, right? I'm sure it was just a warning," she sighed.

"I need to get back to the hotel and research the curse. If you really did see Angelus with Fred then we need to find out how to stop him coming forward," said Wesley, he stood up authoritatively and walked out of the house. A mug of hot sweet tea floated across the room and set itself down on the coffee table next to the sofa.

"Thanks Dennis," sniffed Cordelia and pulled the blanket up to her neck.

Wesley parked the car outside the Hyperion and looked up at the light in Angel's bedroom window. The thought of Angelus returning was not something he wanted to entertain; he switched off the engine and locked the car door. As he entered the courtyard at the back of the hotel, a strong arm grabbed him and threw him through the plate glass of the doors. Wesley landed on his arm and prayed that the crack he had heard was not a bone; he turned himself over with a lot of exertion and saw Fred towering above him. She was smiling strangely as she looked around the reception area, Wesley wondered if Angel would come down to investigate the noise but realised that he may have already left the building to look for Fred.

"Fred, you don't want to hurt me," gasped Wesley, trying to sit up. Fred placed her foot on his chest and kicked him back down with such force that he slid across the floor and hit the circular sofa in the centre of the room.

"You know what's weird?" she asked, her Southern accent lilting playfully. "I never knew being a vampire would be so much fun. Y'know, Angel always plays it like its some big burden but it's not. I've got this strength and all; it's been very entertaining,"

"We've been looking for you," coughed Wesley through a mouthful of blood. She had kicked him harder than he'd realised, he wouldn't be surprised if a few ribs were broken.

"I know," she stated matter-of-factly. "I've been watching you, well, watching Angel anyway. He's not really the kind of father I could hope for but I suppose he'll have to do,"

"What do you want, Fred?" he said. Fred grinned and practically skipped over to the sofa, she lay down on it with her head hanging over the edge next to Wesley's. She was close enough to kiss him.

"Remind you of anything?" she laughed, closing her eyes and laying still. "I cannot believe that Charles made him do it. He must have been crazy but hey, I don't mind. Okay, you stay here for a minute while I go check if Daddy's home!"

Wesley couldn't have moved if he wanted to, every breath was a stabbing pain to his lungs. Fred ran up the staircase, laughing and Wesley hoped that Angel was waiting for her, stake in hand. Wesley knew that he would never have the courage to do it, he just trusted Angel had. He lay still for what seemed like an eternity, breathing was getting easier and he could definitely say that his ribs were intact. He heard footsteps on the staircase behind him but didn't turn to face her. Fred jumped down next to him, sitting close and picking at her jeans, she looked up at him.

"Well, it would seem that Daddy has sneaked out. Could you do me a favour? Could you tell him that I popped round for a chat, there really is something we need to discuss," she sighed. "Maybe I should just tell him myself, I'm feeling quite peckish. I haven't eaten anything all day,"

Fred's pale and beautiful face suddenly switched to vamp mode and Wesley felt a stab of pain in his heart. The girl he had once loved was nothing more than a monster now, a monster that was about to murder him for nothing more than a bout of bloodlust. She smiled, baring her fangs and leaned over him, Wesley winced in anticipation but it was then that an arrow came hurtling across the room and hit Fred in the back. She growled and pushed Wesley aside, standing up and spinning around to face her assailant. She grabbed the arrow and pulled it out of her back, throwing it to the floor. Standing in the doorway, holding a crossbow was Gunn. Fred growled again and flew across the room at him, knocking the crossbow from his hands and punching him out into the courtyard. Wesley struggled to stand but Gunn rushed in and helped him to his feet.

"She took off," he explained, Wesley frowned. He had a million questions to ask but there was nobody in the world to answer them for him. He allowed himself to lean on Gunn as he walked him out to the car and drove him to the hospital.

Fred walked up the crowded L.A. streets; she was annoyed that Gunn has interrupted her and Wesley. It was obviously jealousy, she knew they had both loved her at one time. She headed for Caritas; she needed another drink and preferably one with a little alcohol this time. She wiped her mouth, the teenager she had just drained had been nothing special but it had satisfied her thirst for now. She walked down the staircase and through the weapons detector, perching herself on a barstool and ordering a double whisky. She sat watching the various demons sing and didn't even notice The Host walking across the room to meet her.

"Well hello there. How can I help you this evening, little Miss Brand New?"

"Leave me alone. I don't want anything from you; I just came in for a drink,"

"Mmmm, I don't think that's true. Don't need you to sing to know you're looking for something," he smiled. Fred looked up at him, her eyes were twinkling and The Host couldn't help thinking that she looked even more stunning now she was a vamp. She flicked her hair back over her shoulder and stared at him, waiting for him to carry on. "I think you'll find what you're looking for tonight,"

"Really? How do you know?" she said excitedly, he was glad that she hadn't lost that child-like wonder at the world even though she now had eternity to see it.

"Because Mr Hunk-a-licious is walking down those steps right now," said The Host, looking over at the weapons detector. Angel was walking through it as Fred looked over at him, a beam crept over her face and she downed her whisky and stood up. He walked over to her and The Host, keeping his eyes on Fred.

"Fred," he said, his voice low and full of menace. The Host flashed a warning glare at him, Caritas was a safe haven – no violence allowed.

"Well, look at you, all paternal and all. You been looking for me?" she cooed, Angel nodded and Fred smiled again. She threw her arms around Angel's neck and The Host looked on as Angel hugged her back.