A/N: I am so sorry it took me so long to update this blasted thing, but I have decided that I'm not a very good multi-tasker – but hey, I'll try. This fic, unfortunately, took a back seat to my LXG fic, "Invisibility." Never fear, though, "Invisibility" is complete, which means this one will be updated consistently… ish. "And there was much rejoicing… Yay." [Hehehe, Monty Python.] Now for the fun part – the author thank-you's!
elven-emma – So many questions! Hehehe! It's only fair, since I bombard you with them constantly. Besides, just because you ask them doesn't mean I have to answer them! ::evil-type laughter::
Imzadi – I know very well what you meant. [I'm not a big slash fan anyway – just not my forte.] Just trust me, you'll know when you see it! And, alas, I'm afraid if don't know the story of Quatermain and Ayesha. Sorry.
Linz005 – Hehehe, I'm glad you like my Dorian humor.
LotRseer3350 – Yeah, websites have a tendency to be stupid. XP
Lilo Greenleaf – Allow me to introduce you to one of my alter egos, Lady Kaimelar Istalindir Greenleaf, Princess of Mirkwood. ::awkward moment:: Hehehe, looks like dear old Legolas has got a bit of a problem… You've never watched Angel before? Prepare to get very confused!
Chasten-chan – Hooray for Spike indeed! XD
schizomaniax – Hello you! I was wondering what would happen in there was an Angel/LXG crossover, too, hence this fic. XP
Silver Bow – Have fun with your fic! I'm anxiously awaiting the first chapter!
TARilus – I'm glad ya like it.
Oh, yeah, I have just decided that this fic needs a time frame. [Why I didn't put this at the beginning of my first chapter is beyond me, but oh well.] Anyway, you all know this is post-movie for the League. For Angel and friends, this would be post-Lindsey-getting-sucked-up-by-the-Senior-Partners, and pre-Illyria. [Obviously, 'cause Fred's still there.] I just felt that this needed saying because it becomes relevant later on. All right, onward to chapter 4.
"This is simply amazing," Mina breathed. Fred's lab had taken her aback. It was full of state-of-the-art equipment – any chemist's dream. Nemo stood nearby, admiring the machinery in his own quiet, reverent way. Fred merely beamed as the two of them took in their surroundings with awe. When she had first seen the lab, her reaction had been very much like theirs. After a while, Nemo pulled one of the scientists aside and began an avid conversation about the machines and their functions.
Mina grinned. "The captain is very passionate about these sorts of things," she said, picking up a nearby beaker and examining its contents.
"Obviously," Fred replied. She seated herself in a nearby stool and began to look through the manila folder for the millionth time. She was convinced that there was something she missed, and perhaps the answer would present itself if she just kept re-reading the file.
"What are you reading?" Mina inquired, coming up beside Fred.
Fred sighed. "The file on the rift that brought you here."
"Would you like a hand?" Mina offered, finding a stool of her own to sit on.
"Sure…"
"So, doctor, this would be my office," Wesley said, opening his office doors. "Not much, I know."
"Nonsense," Jekyll said, making a beeline for the window. He surveyed the buildings Los Angeles, many far below him. "Quite a view," he remarked. "So, this is the future…"
"No, it's Los Angeles, you dolt." Both Wesley and Jekyll sighed at the horribly bad joke. Spike merely scoffed. "Can't take a joke, can they?" He asked.
"Apparently not," Skinner replied.
"Get out," Wesley and Jekyll chorused. Wesley, of course, was annoyed with Spike for being in his office, while Jekyll was annoyed with Skinner for just simply being Skinner.
Spike raised an eyebrow and threw a glance at Skinner. "Fine," Skinner and Spike chorused back. "We're going!" They both turned abruptly, their trench coats swishing as they did, and strode from the room.
In the silence that followed, Wes and Jekyll exchanged bemused, slightly frightened glances. "That was… odd," Wesley said at length.
"Yes," Jekyll concurred. "Very odd." He chuckled. "I guess that goes to show every group has a Skinner."
"Or a Spike," Wes said, seating himself behind his desk. "I guess that all depends on which group you're in."
"Ah, so this is what it's like to be the boss."
"Tom," Angel said shortly. "Get out of my chair."
Tom heaved a sigh and hauled himself out of Angel's plush leather chair. "So, is this what you do all day? Just sit in the chair and look important?" He started to chuckle, but Angel silenced him with a glance. Tom nervously cleared his throat and sought out another chair. "So," he said, flopping down in the chair. "What is there to do for fun in the year 2004?"
Angel raised an eyebrow. "Fun? What about getting you back to your time?"
"Well, I figure that if Jekyll's right, and we're here because we're needed, then there's no gettin' back till we're done being needed." He shrugged, "Might as well have some fun in the meantime."
At that moment, as if right on cue, Lorne came strolling in, file-folder in hand. "Did I hear someone say fun?"
"Yes," Tom replied, undaunted by Lorne's green skin or loud suit. After spending all these months with the stranger members of the League, he was pretty unshockable.
"Great," Lorne replied. "But first, we'd better find you and your friends some new clothes cause, no offense, but those threads are too old to even be retro."
Tom raised a brow and was about to ask Lorne what the heck he was talking about when Harmony's voice came over the speakerphone, "Um, Angel…?"
Angel sighed. "What is it Harmony?" He asked, a tinge of annoyance in his voice.
"There's two men out here," Harmony replied. "They say they're looking for the… um… what was it again?"
There was a sigh and Quatermain's unmistakable accented voice stated, "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen." At the sound of his voice, Tom practically leapt out of the chair and bolted from the room, nearly mowing Lorne over in the process. Quatermain was leaning on Harmony's desk, looking very annoyed with her. Dorian had wandered off to inspect the room.
"Allan!" Tom was elated, to say the least.
Quatermain grinned at the young American. "Hello Sawyer," he said simply.
Dorian came meandering up beside Tom. "Don't I get a hello?" He asked with a slight hint of sarcasm.
Tom jumped back in surprise. "What are you doing here?" He demanded.
"Well, that's a fine how do you do," Dorian said dryly.
"Don't worry yourself boy," Quatermain said. "He's on our side… for the moment."
"And what, pray tell, is that supposed to mean?" Dorian asked indignantly.
"You know very well what that is supposed to mean," Quatermain replied sternly.
"Ahem…"
Tom and Dorian looked over their shoulders. Angel was standing behind them, hands in his pockets and a bemused expression on his face. "Tom, would you and your… 'guests' join me in my office?"
Mina looked up from the file she'd been reading. "Do I hear something ringing?" She asked.
"Ringing?" Fred said distractedly. She, too, looked up from her file and listened. "Oh! The phone!" Fred got up and dashed into her office. Mina chuckled. Fred was a little scatterbrained at times, but very bright and very nice. They were finding out just how much they had in common aside from their love of science. Fred soon reemerged from her office with a few new pieces of paper in hand. She was looking at them with a puzzled expression on her face.
"What is it?" Mina asked.
"Hmm…" Fred appeared to not have heard her. "A rift that brings people back from the dead…"
Mina stared. Back from the dead? To her, that could only mean one of two people… Fred noticed Mina staring and said, "Someone named Allan Quatermain…" Mina was in mid-sigh of relief when Fred continued, "And somebody named Dorian Gray." At the mention of Dorian, Mina froze.
"Old boyfriend?" Fred inquired, taking note of Mina's expression.
"Something like that," Mina said dryly. "It's a long story."
Fred reclaimed her seat next to Mina. "I'm not going anywhere."
Everyone, save Fred and Mina, had gathered in Angel's office. While they were waiting for the women to arrive, Dorian had discovered his reflection in Angel's windows and had taken to primping himself.
"Huh," Spike scoffed as he watched the immortal smooth his dark eyebrows. "That's why I'm glad I don't have a reflection."
"Do shut up," Dorian said haughtily. "Honestly, you are worse than Skinner."
"You have no idea," Wesley said.
Spike glared at him and thrust his hands into his coat pockets. A sudden look of confusion crossed his face as he withdrew a wad of bills from his pocket. He sifted through them, the look of confusion changing to one of delight as he unfolded the two tens, a twenty and two fives. "Hey! Fifty dollars!" He declared.
"Fifty dollars?" Wesley echoed. "That's mine!"
"Finders keepers," Spike said and thrust the cash back into his pocket. Wesley looked absolutely indignant. While in the corner of the room, Skinner was trying with all his might not to crack up laughing. He was the one who'd put Wesley's money in Spike's pocket. It was one of his favorite things to do; he'd often raid Mina's drawers and stick the pilfered items in Sawyer's coat pockets, or under Jekyll's pillows, just to get a rise out of them. Needless to say, Mina had taken to locking her door – not that that stopped Skinner.
Quatermain eyed Skinner. "Always causing mischief, aren't you?"
Skinner put on a look of absolute innocence, "Who? Me? Never."
"Never mind," Wesley said, staring a Skinner in dislike. "Not even Spike could be worse than Skinner."
"Hey," Skinner said indignantly. "I take offense to that remark."
"Shut up Skinner."
The entire group turned to the door. Mina was standing there, looking as annoyed with Skinner as ever, with Fred at her side. Each carried no less than three manila folders.
"Hello you two," Skinner said brightly. "Come to join the living, eh?" He paused and took a look at his present company. "Well, living dead, actually…"
"Shut up!" At least five of those present chorused.
Skinner raised his eyebrows. "All right," he said. "Don't bite my head off."
Dorian chuckled. "Hello Mina," he said saccharinely. "Nice to see you still have your old… bite."
"Dorian," Mina said shortly. "My bite is none of your business."
"My, my," Dorian said. "Testy, aren't we?"
"Just consider yourself lucky I'm not going to kill you… again," Mina said darkly.
"Ooh, feisty," Spike commented.
"You have no idea," Dorian said, leaving the window to find a chair.
Mina rolled her eyes. "If you are quite done," she said irritably, then she turned her attention to Quatermain – the one of the two previously deceased League members she'd rather talk to. "How ever did you find us?"
Quatermain chuckled. "You are not a very hard group to track down," he said simply and left it at that.
Fred smirked at the simplicity of his answer and handed Anger her folders. "We've found a few more rifts."
"But we still have no clue as to what is causing them," Mina said, handing her folders over as well. "Should we keep on it?"
Angel looked up from the files at Tom. "Did you want to share your idea with everyone else?"
Tom shrugged. "Sure. If we're here to help, I doubt we'll get back until we're done helping. In the meantime, I think it's time for a well deserved vacation." He looked around at his fellow League members. "What do you say?"
"I'm all for it!" Skinner said happily. The rest of the League was not as boisterous with their replies, but eventually, everyone agreed.
"Good!" Lorne chortled. "It's shopping time!"
A/N: Hopefully it won't take me as long to update next time! Hehehe – the League going shopping has "disaster" written all over it! This is about to get interesting!