A/N Since a reviewer has insisted that Cordelia was not abused, but most likely neglected, I have changed the last chapter around a bit, to suggest that Cordelia was never hit, but neglected and yelled at, and once pushed into a wall after making Jaquard angry. So you may want to check it out.

::::: Forward Rewind ::::: Chapter Five ::::: Nothing But A Grin :::::

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"Shopping?" Angel asked incredulously, staring at the woman in front of him.

"You know, pieces of paper or plastic used in the getting of clothing. Cordy and Allen have nothing. Theres only so many times we can wash the clothes we found them in before they fall apart." Harmony took her usual hands-on-hips stance and watch as she won her boss over.

Angel never thought he would ever think it, but his secretary was completely right. Thanks to Doyle's over-eager eating habits and Cordelia's weak stomach, the all-white outfits they had been found in were beyond the help of bleach. Although he knew he would most likely regret it, Angel slowly pulled the card to his business account out of his wallet and handed it to Harmony, who squealed at the site of plastic."Thanks Bossy! You won't even recognize the kids when I get done with them."

"Which," Angel said calmly "is why I'm sending Wesley with you."

"Him!?"/"Me!?" Harmony and Wes, who was working nearby, said in unison.

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Although there were dozens of malls only seconds away from W&H, Harmony, while sitting in the passenger seat of Wesley's car, insisted on a certain one almost an hour away. And with a certain twosome in the backseat, it was destined to be an interesting hour.

"Everyone. I am Princess Cordelia Lynn Chase." Cordy announced from behind Harmony."And I like toast. Which is why I have written the coolest royal song ever. Called 'Toast'. It's about toast." Wes groaned while Harmony and Allen Doyle cheered her on. A very interesting hour, indeed.

Cordy bounced her head back and forth to a rhythm no one else could hear, swishing her chocolate hair back and forth. "Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, Toast! It's the most. I like toast. Toast toast toast. Everybody loves toast, 'cause it's not gross." The tiny girl stopped to take a big breath, before singing the next piece of song without pausing. "SceptSpikeDon'tKnowIfHeLikesToastCauseHeHasn'tHadItButWhenHeTriesItHe'llLikeItBecauseItsTOOOOOOOOOOOOAST!" Exhaling, Cordelia looked like she was gonna pass out from lack of air.

"My Turn!" Allen said with a huge smile, as he clapped his hands together. "I'm a sodding liquor leprechaun!" The curly hair boy laughed, pulling together words from a certain bleached babysitter."And my song, its called 'Muddy Hell Toast Whiskey'."

Wes checked his watch. They has only been on the highway for 10 minutes.

"Good lord."

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After 45 minutes of 'Muddy Hell Toast Whiskey', which turned out to be very similar to 'Toast' in tune, with three new main words thrown in besides toast, Wesley was very pleased to be in the mall, where the sounds of everyone else was drowning out the two four year olds. Cordelia was sitting in Harmony's arms, happily chatting about how shiny the blonde vampire's hair was. While Allen, on the other hand, was in Wesley's vice grip hold, after finding out that just because a lady's skirt looks like a tent, doesn't mean its for him to play under.

"Gap Kids?" Wes asked hopefully, pointing to the first store he saw.

"Gap Kids?" Harmony repeated. "How community playground."

"Which," Wesley began, already having the urge to clean his glasses in a very Giles-like fashion, "I assume is a bad thing." Harmony just gave the former watcher a looked that said Duh. But, since Wesley had reminded her that it was not their money they were spending, Bloomingdale's was out of the question. So, with a mopey Harmony in tow, he made his way to his store of choice.

"I, Princess Cordy, have a few requests." Cordelia explained as soon as Harmony had set her back on the ground." No green, unless it's really aqua, no brown, or red, or black. And no blue darker than sky blue. Unless it's denim, which doesn't count."

"Sounds fair." Harmony said thoughtfully, before Wes got a chance to tell the little 'royal' that clothes were clothes.

Twenty minutes later, each with a pile bigger than themselves, the two kids went into separate dressing rooms. While Harmony went in with Cordelia, Allen Doyle insisted on going in by himself. So as he stood pushing through a rack of pants, Wes listened as Harmony critiqued every outfit that little Cordy pulled on, But he didn't hear anything coming from the stall that he had sent the green-eyed hellion into. Not a single sound.

"Allen?" He yelled, worried. He began to make his way to the door of Allen's dressing room, but before he got there, he heard a scream from the center of the store. Running in the direction of the cry, he half expected to find a blood sucking demon on the rampage. What he didn't expect, was to see a curly haired four year old run past him, wearing nothing but a grin. "Allen Doyle!" He hollered, chasing the ball of naked energy. Allen, attempting to get the better of his pursuer, ducked and ran under a display of winter jackets (why they have winter jackets in L.A., Wesley had no clue). But when he emerged on the other side, he ran right into the British man's grasp.

"Allen Francis Doyle," Wesley scolded, in a tone that was a deadly calm,"if you ever pull a stunt like that, may god help you." As the little child began to pout, Wes was hit with a horrible thought. 'I sound just like my father.' "I'm sorry Allen." He said quickly, not even believing that he had gotten so angry, that he could be so ill tempered with a child as small as this. He had heard the lung capacity that Allen Doyle had in the car, and silently Wesley prayed that the child he was just scolding didn't cry easily. But his prayer went unanswered.

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As they were mere feet from the exit to the mall, with a sulky Allen and a bag laden Wesley, Cordelia decided that she wasn't ready to leave quite yet.

"As Queen Princess Cordy of PrettyfulestCordeliaChaseland, I demand that I get a tiara." As Harmony laughed it off, Wesley told her 'Maybe Later', and everyone began walking away. Except Cordelia.

"I.Want.My.Queen.Princess.TIARA!" she screamed, catching the attention of everyone she was with as well as a considerable amount of bystanders.

"Cordelia Lynn, now is certainly not the time. We've had enough public outbursts for quite awhile." Wes shifted into a lighter version of father mode.

"Now.NOW.NOOWWW!!!" she wailed even louder, jumping up and down in place.

An hour or so later, Queen Princess Cordy sat happily in her half of the backseat. On her head say a shiny tiara, complete with matching scepter, shoes, and feathery boa.

A/N - Next Chapter, we see the Kids interact with Angel, and find out a bit about why they were sent to W&H