Chapter 10- May the festivities begin
(Night Club/Catering Hall)
Buffy got into the party easily enough. She followed a small group of employees through the front door, smiling and laughing with them as they passed the bouncer. They had obviously began the party a bit early, showing up already slightly hammered.
Buffy walked through the dark corridor and then through another set of doors, one of which was slightly ajar.
She stopped above a small staircase leading down to the main hall. The place was must larger inside than it would appear to the casual passerby. It was romantically dark, lit by small electric sconces evenly lined against the walls, giving the illusion candlelight, only without any actual flames. There were small votive candles, however, at every table.
The interior was bathed in a dreamy glow that was simply astonishing. The walls, covered in mirrors, only helped to enhance the trancelike atmosphere.
Tables were set up to seat 10 at a table, and there were hundreds of tables spanning a large area of the club. The tables were draped in red cloths, with hints of gold in the votive holders and small flower vases. The aura was a mix of goth and sex that was perfect for a romantic evening, but seemed somewhat inappropriate for a company meeting.
There were 3 bars that Buffy could see- one at the right end, one at the left, and one on the second level off to the right that looked something like a mezzanine seating area, obviously there for the big wigs. That was the only thing visible on that level, the lights above the bar illuminating a small corner. Everything else up there was dark.
At the far end of the room was a small stage with an orchestra pit below and to the front of it, sectioned off by red ropes. The orchestra was playing slow music that seemed to be recognizable, yet Buffy couldn't figure out any of the songs.
"Excuse me." A woman asked, nearly knocking Buffy over accidentally as she walked down the stairs.
"I'm sorry…I was a little bit dazed….this is…it's beautiful!"
"It is, isn't it? This is where I wanted my wedding party to be, but it was just too expensive at the time…but when Mr. Angel was looking for a place I thought this would be perfect."
"Oh…you work for Ang…er…Mr. Angel?"
"I'm sorry, how terribly rude of me. That's what this is about right? Meeting your fellow co-workers. I'm Grace." She reached over to shake Buffy's hand before continuing on, "Personal assistant to Mr. Angel."
"Hi, I'm Bu…Betty…I'm….new."
"Well Betty, it's very nice to meet you. Unfortunately I have to help Mr. Angel prepare for his speech right now…if I can find him that is. Maybe I'll see you later…or in the office."
"Uh, yeah…that would be great. It was nice meeting you too."
Buffy walked all the way in towards the bar on the left, wanting to get a better view of the mezzanine and the people sitting up there, without being in plain view of the stage.
She was so transfixed, trying to adjust to the darkness atop the mezzanine that she didn't notice that she was being spoken to. "I'm sorry….what?"
"I said…Can I get you something?" The bartender responded, getting a good look at the girl before him now that she turned to face him.
"No…I'm….sorry…in a daze, I seem to be doing that a lot lately. Can I have a glass of water please.
The bartender turned and opened a fresh bottle of Evian, pouring the liquid into a large wine glass and placing it on a coaster before her.
"Trying to scope out the big shots huh?" He smiled, giving her a knowing wink. Funny thing about the whole lot of them. They throw these huge events to 'get to know' the people who work for them better, but then they always section themselves off somewhere unreachable. Never fails."
"I guess so." Buffy answered looking up again. It didn't look as though there was anyone up there yet. None of the table votives where lit, and it seemed just so dark. She considered walking up there to see if everything was alright when suddenly the place erupted in applause.
The front stage was suddenly lit up, back lighted in red tones, as all the wall lights were turned down even more, making the place so dark you could hardly see the person beside you. And there, on the stage, was Angel.
He looked good. Handsome still, broody, and looking a little uncomfortable in front of the audience. He was a little heavier then the last time she saw him, still…he looked good in his tux…well, no-one ever really looks bad in a tux, do they?
He began to speak when the microphone squealed. He waited a moment for the feed back to die out before starting again.
"Hello everyone. Thank you for joining us this evening…"
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(Serendipity)
Giles was bent over the coffee table when Xander came home from work that night, he was shuffling through some books while frantically talking into the phone.
"Yes, I understand that there are no phones…no…yes sister…I understand that you have no way…of course…" Giles through himself back on the couch, ripping his glasses from his face in a frenzied gesture. "Please, if you could just leave word…if you hear from her at all…thank you, I assure you that it is much appreciated.
"Still now luck on the Willow front?"
Giles jumped back unexpectedly, "Oh, Xander…I didn't hear you come in. Unfortunately…no. They claim to have had no contact with her in several months. We may need to go about this another way."
"You thinking of messing with the magic's, cause that's not usually a good thing…not trying to be funny here Giles, but you are a little bit rusty on that front."
"Yes, well…there may be no other alternative if we can't reach her in the course of the next couple o days.
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(Night Club/Catering Hall)
"…I know that there have been quite a few changes in the last year, changes in initiative, and in company vision, in addition to staffing, but I know that we can make Wolfram and Hart into something much greater than a law firm with a shady past. We have a chance to do something really great for humanity, and for the city of Los Angeles.
The crowd erupted into a wave of applause that that.
Buffy couldn't help but grin a little bit. Imagine Angel- broody, moody, I don't like to be around people-Angel, giving pep speeches. It was such a change from the man she once knew.
"At this time I would like to open up a forum for the next half hour to take any questions you may have, then dinner will be served and I would like you all to relax, and have a good time…yes, you- please state your name and your department…."
Buffy allowed the voices to drift off, noticing a small flicker up on the mezzanine as two candles were lit. She could see the outlines of two figures walking over to the table overlooking the balcony and sitting at the outer edge. Then another two followed, one of them a woman- only recognizable by a bit of sequence in her gown.
Buffy strained her neck a bit, trying to get a good look at who was up there on the balcony.
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(Night Club/Catering Hall- Balcony)
"I thought you said this was a party?" Spike asked, as he sat down on the ledge looking down at the poof giving his speech down on the stage, "this looks like a bloody conference meeting."
"Spike, please…I realize that this may not be your kind of fun, but what other option did I have, both Gunn and Freddie needed to be here tonight, and I wasn't going to very well stay home watching over you. Relax, and attempt to enjoy yourself…besides, there's going to be plenty of food and liquor flowing..I'm sure you'll not object to that?"
"Pft…you better believe it. I think I'll walk over to that bar over there and see if I can't make the night a little bit more interesting."
Spike stood abruptly and headed in the direction of the small bar, obviously intended to serve only those lucky enough to be seated at the mezzanine. Freddie looked at Wesley and offered a forced smile, she looked like she might say something when Gunn spoke up.
"Tell me why we're watching this guy? He's alive…not a vampire any more, and doesn't really seem like he can hurt anyone…unless you count being a pain in the ass. What's the deal?"
"Charles," Freddie interjected, "Angel just wants to be sure that he's not up to something. I'm sure we'll all figure it out soon. Just try to have a good time."
At the bar Spike was chatting it up with the woman behind the counter, offering her a smirk in response to her obvious flirtation. "Scotch please, neat."
She leaned over suggestively as she placed the drink in front of him, "Can I get you anything else with that, sir?"
Spike cocked his head to the side, getting a good look down her blouse, now that she had given him such prime positioning, "I'll get back to you on that one pet, in the meantime…" He gulped down the drink, "…why don't you give me another…and make it a double this time."
TBC
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Okay, okay, okay…I took forever getting this posted…I realize that, but it totally was not my fault. I couldn't get onto ff.net all of last week! I swear! Please, tell me what you think…some reviews might motivate me to create a chance meeting of some sort in the next chapter!
-E