Title: Fever
Author: victoriamartynne
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Spoilers: None, I think!
Summary: When Cordelia's life is threatened by a fever is it medical or mystical?
"Hey." Angel said as he sat down next to the frail Cordelia.
"Hey, what's going on?" She said as soon as she saw him. She could see from his face that there was something he wasn't saying.
He took her hand. "Wes thinks that this fever is some sort of test that you have to pass, like a rite of passage, to show your loyalty to your warrior and the mission." He didn't mention the good/evil thing.
"So this is like, a powers thing?" She asked, looking utterly confused.
"Shush, don't get worked up." He urged and stroked her hand. "Nothing's for sure yet."
She nodded. "Where'd you leave Buffy?"
He smiled at her choice of words. "She went shopping."
Cordelia made a big show of rolling her eyes. "It's about time, I mean, did you see those outfits she wore back in Sunnydale?"
Angel smirked. "You sound like you're feeling well enough to eat. Do you want eggs?"
"On one condition." She held up a finger weakly and he waited patiently. "Let me go downstairs, I can rest on the couch."
He was about to argue but he noticed the stubborn look on her face. "Okay." He relented. "But only until you've eaten and then you're back up here."
She nodded happily and then looked surprised when he picked her up. "Hey, buster, I am quite capable of walking!"
He growled. "Grab the blanket."
She grabbed the blanket.
Once she was settled on the couch he set about making her eggs.
"So." Buffy said and sauntered across to her, having just come back from the shops. "Angel cooks for you."
Cordelia nodded, her head just visible above the think blanket Angel had wrapped her up in. "He buys me clothes too."
She watched as Buffy's face clouded over. "So? He gave me a silver ring." She flounced off as Cordelia started coughing again. "Yeah, then you sent his to hell as a thank you."
The coughing brought on a head ache. "Fred, honey, could you bring me a couple of painkillers?"
Fred nodded and smiled.
Cordelia accepted the tablets and swallowed three in one go.
"Should you be taking three at once?" Fred asked, concerned at the way Cordelia swallowed the powerful tablets.
"I used to take five at once but I managed to limit them."
Fred just frowned and sat back down at her desk.
"Here you go." Angel said and handed her a plate of eggs.
She shuffled up so the couch so she could eat properly.
Wes came to sit next to her. "Cordelia, we really need to talk later on. My research keeps coming up against the fact that this fever could be supernatural. I believe that it will turn out to be some sort of test that you have to pass in order to continue being a seer and continue having Angel as your warrior." He too didn't mention the good/evil thing, Angel had made him promise.
"Which one?" Cordelia asked in between bites.
"As of yet I don't know." He admitted. "The probability is to show that you are faithful to your warrior, seen as though you've already had two chances to give up your visions and not be a seer anymore."
She nodded. "So, what do I have to do?"
"Unfortunately, none of the books seem to tell me anything about the actual test. It could be anything."
Cordelia rolled her eyes and gave Wesley the nearly empty plate. "Great."
He smiled.
"Do me a favour Wes?" She asked and shuffled down again. "Let me sleep a bit here? Don't let Angel take me upstairs."
He smiled again and nodded, taking the plate into the kitchen.
Cordelia was drowning. The world was spinning as she was sucked under the water. Her lungs were burning and her eyes were stinging from the salt water. She floundered unsuccessfully, trying to reach the surface, wasting useful energy. She screamed and got a mouthful of water. She choked as it entered her lungs and cut off her air supply. She kicked out with her legs trying desperately to kick her way up to where she could see the sun. She looked down and saw a young boy. His face was contorted in pain. Red was swirling around him. The sight of him closing his eyes finally stuck in her mind as her own eyes closed finally, leaving her in darkness.
She woke with a start. Angel had hold of one of her arms, Gunn the other. Buffy, Wes and Fred were crowded around looking concerned. Even Buffy looked a little worried.
"What happened?" She asked groggily. "Why are you holding onto me?"
Her memories began to return and she started to cry softly. Angel let go of her arm and came to sit next to her. Gunn kept hold in order to keep her on the couch and not end up on the floor.
"What did you see?" Angel asked her gently stoking her now wet cheek.
"There's a little boy in the sea and he's bleeding and drowning." She replied, through tears. "I don't know anything else so don't ask."
"I won't." He promised and looked at Wes who immediately went back to his office indicating for Fred to follow, which she did.
"Find a way for this to end, please!" She begged.
"We will." Angel promised. "We will."
Cordelia lay once more in Angel's bed. This time he lay beside her.
"Am I going crazy?" She asked him. "Maybe Wes's wrong and this isn't a test. Maybe the visions are just expanding because of my demon-ness. Maybe it's just something that I'm going to have to put up with now."
Angel sighed and took her hand. "Look, there's something we haven't told you."
She looked up at him, her eyes wide.
"Lorne has seen something like this before. He thinks that this test you have to pass is something to do with your new demon-ness so in a way you were right. The visions are expanding. But the test is to prove whether you are going to play a part of good or a part of bad."
He let the news sink in. "So I could become evil?"
He shook his head. "I won't let you."
"But what if I fail this test? Then I become evil." She said, a note of desperation in her voice. Her two greatest fears in life were her becoming evil or Angel becoming evil again. "I don't want to be evil!"
He pulled her gently into his arms. "Cordelia, I know you. You don't fail. You're a winner in life. You survived apocalypses that you shouldn't have had to. You survived the visions that were killing you. You have survived so much in your short life that you shouldn't have had to. But you never complained and you fought for your life. You can do it again."
She sniffed. "Maybe I complained a little."
He smiled and kissed her forehead. "Maybe a little."
She looked up, feeling him kiss her. Her lips ended up about an inch from his. She looked into his eyes and then slowly reached up to touch his lips with hers. Electricity tingled through both of their faces at the intimate contact.
"I can't do this now." He said when they parted.
She looked worried. "You don't think of me like that, I know, I'm sorry. I know you'd rather be with Buffy and you can go, really I'll be fine."
He put a finger to her lips to quieten her. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded. I do think of you in that way. I think of you like that a lot. But I can't do this right now. Take advantage of you while you're sick. When you're better and the test is over then we'll talk about this. I don't want you to do anything you might regret later."
She smiled. "I won't regret anything."
He smiled and then froze.
"Angel?" Cordelia sat up a little, unsure of why he had stopped. She touched his face gently. "Angel?"
She sat up completely and waved a hand in front of his face. His eyes didn't move. He was frozen.
Author: victoriamartynne
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Spoilers: None, I think!
Summary: When Cordelia's life is threatened by a fever is it medical or mystical?
"Hey." Angel said as he sat down next to the frail Cordelia.
"Hey, what's going on?" She said as soon as she saw him. She could see from his face that there was something he wasn't saying.
He took her hand. "Wes thinks that this fever is some sort of test that you have to pass, like a rite of passage, to show your loyalty to your warrior and the mission." He didn't mention the good/evil thing.
"So this is like, a powers thing?" She asked, looking utterly confused.
"Shush, don't get worked up." He urged and stroked her hand. "Nothing's for sure yet."
She nodded. "Where'd you leave Buffy?"
He smiled at her choice of words. "She went shopping."
Cordelia made a big show of rolling her eyes. "It's about time, I mean, did you see those outfits she wore back in Sunnydale?"
Angel smirked. "You sound like you're feeling well enough to eat. Do you want eggs?"
"On one condition." She held up a finger weakly and he waited patiently. "Let me go downstairs, I can rest on the couch."
He was about to argue but he noticed the stubborn look on her face. "Okay." He relented. "But only until you've eaten and then you're back up here."
She nodded happily and then looked surprised when he picked her up. "Hey, buster, I am quite capable of walking!"
He growled. "Grab the blanket."
She grabbed the blanket.
Once she was settled on the couch he set about making her eggs.
"So." Buffy said and sauntered across to her, having just come back from the shops. "Angel cooks for you."
Cordelia nodded, her head just visible above the think blanket Angel had wrapped her up in. "He buys me clothes too."
She watched as Buffy's face clouded over. "So? He gave me a silver ring." She flounced off as Cordelia started coughing again. "Yeah, then you sent his to hell as a thank you."
The coughing brought on a head ache. "Fred, honey, could you bring me a couple of painkillers?"
Fred nodded and smiled.
Cordelia accepted the tablets and swallowed three in one go.
"Should you be taking three at once?" Fred asked, concerned at the way Cordelia swallowed the powerful tablets.
"I used to take five at once but I managed to limit them."
Fred just frowned and sat back down at her desk.
"Here you go." Angel said and handed her a plate of eggs.
She shuffled up so the couch so she could eat properly.
Wes came to sit next to her. "Cordelia, we really need to talk later on. My research keeps coming up against the fact that this fever could be supernatural. I believe that it will turn out to be some sort of test that you have to pass in order to continue being a seer and continue having Angel as your warrior." He too didn't mention the good/evil thing, Angel had made him promise.
"Which one?" Cordelia asked in between bites.
"As of yet I don't know." He admitted. "The probability is to show that you are faithful to your warrior, seen as though you've already had two chances to give up your visions and not be a seer anymore."
She nodded. "So, what do I have to do?"
"Unfortunately, none of the books seem to tell me anything about the actual test. It could be anything."
Cordelia rolled her eyes and gave Wesley the nearly empty plate. "Great."
He smiled.
"Do me a favour Wes?" She asked and shuffled down again. "Let me sleep a bit here? Don't let Angel take me upstairs."
He smiled again and nodded, taking the plate into the kitchen.
Cordelia was drowning. The world was spinning as she was sucked under the water. Her lungs were burning and her eyes were stinging from the salt water. She floundered unsuccessfully, trying to reach the surface, wasting useful energy. She screamed and got a mouthful of water. She choked as it entered her lungs and cut off her air supply. She kicked out with her legs trying desperately to kick her way up to where she could see the sun. She looked down and saw a young boy. His face was contorted in pain. Red was swirling around him. The sight of him closing his eyes finally stuck in her mind as her own eyes closed finally, leaving her in darkness.
She woke with a start. Angel had hold of one of her arms, Gunn the other. Buffy, Wes and Fred were crowded around looking concerned. Even Buffy looked a little worried.
"What happened?" She asked groggily. "Why are you holding onto me?"
Her memories began to return and she started to cry softly. Angel let go of her arm and came to sit next to her. Gunn kept hold in order to keep her on the couch and not end up on the floor.
"What did you see?" Angel asked her gently stoking her now wet cheek.
"There's a little boy in the sea and he's bleeding and drowning." She replied, through tears. "I don't know anything else so don't ask."
"I won't." He promised and looked at Wes who immediately went back to his office indicating for Fred to follow, which she did.
"Find a way for this to end, please!" She begged.
"We will." Angel promised. "We will."
Cordelia lay once more in Angel's bed. This time he lay beside her.
"Am I going crazy?" She asked him. "Maybe Wes's wrong and this isn't a test. Maybe the visions are just expanding because of my demon-ness. Maybe it's just something that I'm going to have to put up with now."
Angel sighed and took her hand. "Look, there's something we haven't told you."
She looked up at him, her eyes wide.
"Lorne has seen something like this before. He thinks that this test you have to pass is something to do with your new demon-ness so in a way you were right. The visions are expanding. But the test is to prove whether you are going to play a part of good or a part of bad."
He let the news sink in. "So I could become evil?"
He shook his head. "I won't let you."
"But what if I fail this test? Then I become evil." She said, a note of desperation in her voice. Her two greatest fears in life were her becoming evil or Angel becoming evil again. "I don't want to be evil!"
He pulled her gently into his arms. "Cordelia, I know you. You don't fail. You're a winner in life. You survived apocalypses that you shouldn't have had to. You survived the visions that were killing you. You have survived so much in your short life that you shouldn't have had to. But you never complained and you fought for your life. You can do it again."
She sniffed. "Maybe I complained a little."
He smiled and kissed her forehead. "Maybe a little."
She looked up, feeling him kiss her. Her lips ended up about an inch from his. She looked into his eyes and then slowly reached up to touch his lips with hers. Electricity tingled through both of their faces at the intimate contact.
"I can't do this now." He said when they parted.
She looked worried. "You don't think of me like that, I know, I'm sorry. I know you'd rather be with Buffy and you can go, really I'll be fine."
He put a finger to her lips to quieten her. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded. I do think of you in that way. I think of you like that a lot. But I can't do this right now. Take advantage of you while you're sick. When you're better and the test is over then we'll talk about this. I don't want you to do anything you might regret later."
She smiled. "I won't regret anything."
He smiled and then froze.
"Angel?" Cordelia sat up a little, unsure of why he had stopped. She touched his face gently. "Angel?"
She sat up completely and waved a hand in front of his face. His eyes didn't move. He was frozen.