Disclaimer: If Angel and the characters used here were mine, you'd be seeing this story on your TV screen instead of on your computer screen, get it?
Feedback: Thanks to all you guys who have reviewed so far, and know that you rock. I look forward to reading your reactions to every chapter, and I love to see how you think the story is developing. I'm glad you liked the last one, it was hard to write. It was also hard to live up to, which is why this one has taken so long. I hope it doesn't disappoint!
Okay, so I lied, Buffy and co did appear in this fic last time, but that's as far as it goes. I'm being honest this time. Anyway, read on and enjoy! :)
CHAPTER 6.
As much as Cordelia had needed the chance to describe what had happened to someone, she found that she couldn't bring herself to be entirely truthful for fear of the consequences. Experiencing someone else's most intimate and private memories seemed to her to be invasive at best, and she was loath to reopen old wounds and cause needless embarrassment for her friends. These things she had seen had never before been discussed in the open, with her at least, so if each felt it important to keep them to themselves, she would leave it that way. Besides, she didn't think she would be able to bare the awkwardness.
Wesley had been patient with her, sitting beside her in silence whilst she slowly explained the situation, in her own time and in her own words. She told him that she had seen visions of many children and their suffering, and that it had left her shaky. When he asked with concern if this was like any other vision, if the Powers wanted them to do something to help, she simply said that the incidents had already taken place; they were in the past. He had seemed disappointed at that, commenting that it was too late, and she couldn't help but silently add that it was never too late.
An indeterminable amount of time had passed, and still, they remained where they had been since she had begun her account. To his credit, Wesley seemed to know when he was needed, and stayed with her whilst she composed herself, drawing comfort from his presence. She realised that Angel was probably worrying about what they were doing up there, and he probably wouldn't take much longer before he came to break up the intense argument he imagined they were having right now.
Sniffing back the last of her sobs and drying the tears with her sleeve, she found the strength to shuffle back upright, suddenly feeling a little silly after crying into Wesley's shirt. He seemed to understand, though, and didn't comment.
"I think I'm alright now", she informed him, a touch of red colouring her cheeks at the thought of what she must look like to him, all snively and running mascara.
"Are you sure?" he asked, his way of telling her he didn't mind staying longer if she wasn't up to it. She didn't have to put on a brave face for him, and he hoped she knew that.
"I'm gonna go clean up."
She dejectedly picked herself up from the bed and shuffled into the en suite bathroom with a meek air about her that worried Wes more than the story she had told him. He only let his frown show when she clicked the door shut, the sound of running water masking her movements. She was more shaken than he thought he had ever seen her before, and he got the feeling she was hiding something. It wasn't like she was new to the emotions that came with the visions, she'd seen pain and suffering before. But she kept insisting that this was nothing like anything before it, and he too had doubts about the visions origin. There was more to it than was meeting the eye.
He sat on the bed mulling over everything Cordelia had said, eventually losing himself in his thoughts.
Cordelia let the misty steam of the hot water fill the little room as she took deep, calming breaths. She regarded the face in the mirror looking back at her with pity, and wondered how the poor girl was going to be able to pull of the usual Cordelia indifference in front of the others when she went back downstairs. She didn't want them to fuss over her, but this face just cried 'mother me'. It was a good thing she knew the magic of make up.
Washing away the anguished teary look with the rest of the mess, she began carefully reapplying the odd bit her everyday 'unrockable' face with the odd couple of tools she always carried around with her. She may have grown as a person, but when it came to appearance, good old Cordelia Chase could still be as shallow as ever. Only now did she realise the advantages.
However much she scrubbed and painted, though, she could do nothing about her eyes. They were haunted. They were the same eyes that stared back at her after her run in with Vocah, when she had been put in a never ending vision and Wesley had been blown away with their old office block. They reflected the pain she had seen in both instances, something that she could learn to hide. She had adjusted last time, and she could do it again, it was just that this particular episode hit a little too close to home.
She sighed. This was going to be harder than she thought. Still, she couldn't cower in here forever, and she needed closure. The guys were there to help, and they'd get to the bottom of this together. She hoped.
Giving her hands one more wring in the soothingly hot suds in the basin, she emptied it out and listened to the gurgle of the plug hole whilst she gathered her wits. Feeling at least semi-capable of facing the group, she looked back up at her reflection for a last check. This time, two pairs of eyes stared back at her.
She jumped but suppressed a screech, recognising the little blue-eyed boy that stared back at her with those damnably expressive blue eyes of his. Silent tears ran down his cheeks as he watched her, pleading and longing clear on his face. She saw the reflection flinch as she whirled round to face him, only to be greeted by empty space. Figures.
She blew out an exploding breath and sagged against the sink, turning her eyes up. She could feel the hot tears threatening again, but she refused them release, letting her anger strengthen her instead. If whatever this was thought it could keep teasing her like this and get to her, she was going to show it a thing or two. She didn't need reminding, she had gotten enough insight into everyone's past to last her a lifetime. This was going to end. Now.
She set her jaw and opened the door, snapping Wesley out of his muse. He rose to greet her, and reassuring smile on his face.
"It just happened again", she said, a cold edge to her voice that she didn't mean to let out.
His smile dropped.
"We'd better find Angel", was all he said, putting out an arm to beckon her towards the door. He was expecting her to come out of there with a huge smile for him, putting in that tough exterior that would shield her from the world. But to instead find her shaken from yet another episode and with her tone like it was, it was clear that she was scared. And so was he.
A light scratching sound at the door made Wesley stop, and Cordelia looked at him.
"You hear it too?" she asked, sounding relieved.
He moved forward and snatched the door open, only to find the creature sat on the threshold, a look of agitation in its eyes. A moment later, Angel ran round the corner, slowing to a stop when he saw Wesley and Cordelia's head looking towards him accusingly.
"I thought you were going to watch it!" Wesley chided, the irritation in his voice not really heartfelt.
Angel straightened up to his full height, a defensive attitude in his stance.
"I tried, but it wouldn't stay put. As soon as you left it started squeaking and running around, so I shut it away. But then it got out…"
Wesley rolled his eyes, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He looked down at the creature with a raised eyebrow, and it chirped at him sheepishly, tugging at his leg for reassurance. Pricking its ears, it turned slightly to give Cordelia a suspicious once over, and she returned it with a wary glare. Seeming to come to a mutual understanding, the pair disengaged and Cordelia stepped past, the creature occupying itself with Wesley's shoelaces.
"What's been going on up here, anyway?" Angel asked them, "You've been up here for ages. Is everything sorted out?"
"There never was anything to sort out, Angel", Cordelia returned with a pointed glance, "but there's something I think you need to hear…"
* * *
Angel had heard some whoppers in his time, but this one just about took the biscuit. As far as unexplained, irrational and downright creepy went, Cordelia's experience was the reigning champion, and he was immediately both thankful that it wasn't him and sorry that Cordelia had to go through it. Of course, if he had known the whole truth…
Having found Cordelia's hand still in need of a bandage, he and Wesley had got to work taking care of it for her, all the time chiding her for not taking care of herself properly. The wound was now inflamed and angry, and in danger of infection. After a suggestion that she take a brief visit to the emergency room, and after a heated refusal on Cordelia's part, Wesley had made a suggestion.
It seemed so obvious now, but something that Cordelia hadn't considered before. Angel had wanted her to go to the hospital to get it checked out, since it was an animal bite. And she had refused, saying that whatever they found might be unexplainable, as in the strange pattern of puncture wounds and mystical germs and such. The real reason she hadn't wanted to go, of course, was that she didn't want to be left alone in case of yet another repeated performance, but she wouldn't admit to that. Anyway, from her argument, Wesley had made the connection, suggesting that they might also find some kind of undiscovered poison in her system, which could also be causing the visions.
He'd apologised for the slow uptake on account of his lack of sleep, but gotten straight to work looking up the symptoms and their possible sources, hoping for a connection to the creature and then, an answer. Oh, and an antidote wouldn't have been too bad, either.
Gunn still wasn't picking up his phone, so Angel left a message asking him to make a trip to the rare bookstore for more information that would hopefully help considerably. As expected, the books were proving useless, again, and failing to live up to their reputation. Right now, they weren't worth the paper they were written on, and Cordelia wondered why they had all had such faith in them anyway.
They'd spent the best part of the afternoon reading, all of them crammed in the office on Cordelia's insistence that the creature would be better hidden that way, it being unwilling to leave Wesley's side. That, and she didn't want to be left alone in the lobby.
So, with them all sat around the desk, books spread out before them, they researched, and researched…and researched, until Cordelia thought her brain would shrivel. After a while, she forgot to pretend to turn her pages, instead dwelling on what she had seen. After a while, she noticed that the creature, sat comfortably on Angel's shoulders to get the best view, was watching her intently. Its black eyes sparkled at her, the occasional whisker twitch the only indication that it was alive at all. The guys remained unconcerned, absorbed in their books.
Then a movement caught her eye. In the corner of the room, a small figure moved, coming forward out of the shadows and passing behind Angel's chair. The mischievous little boy had a bruise on his face now, spreading around his left eye and stealing all of the mirth from his countenance. He watched her as he walked by, a solemn look in his brown eyes, and then disappeared from view.
Cordelia remained frozen, eyes wide and breath hitched, as though she dare not look around further. Deciding to remain quiet and hope for the best, she looked at the others, hoping that they hadn't noticed her sudden shock. If Angel could smell her fear, he didn't show it, and both men remained completely oblivious of what had just happened. She switched her gaze to Angel again, finding her eyes inexplicably drawn to the creature. It was still watching her ominously, its endearing face hardened by concentration. She swallowed.
Wesley moved, closing his book with a sigh and glancing at his watch before reaching for another.
"Gunn not called yet?" he asked, a tired pinch to his words.
Angel shook his head but didn't look up, continuing with the reading as though his life depended on it. Wesley spared a disappointed frown, and then got back to his research. Cordelia just sat there, feeling increasingly uncomfortable under the creature's scrutiny. As she stared back, it flicked its eyes quickly to the window in the doorway, and Cordelia turned slightly to follow its gaze.
With a sharp chill of understanding, she saw the little black boy walk past behind the counter, the little girl trailing behind with her hand in his. They both stared at her as they went, the flinty determination of the boy boring into her soul. When they were gone, she snapped her attention back to the creature, and it gave her a knowing look.
That was the last straw. She was freaked. She was going to say something before she went crazy. As it turned out, she didn't have to.
Wesley had looked up from his book and seen the exchange, anxious concern settling on his features.
"Cordelia", he half whispered, "is it happening again?"
She nodded fearfully and swallowed. "And just now…"
Angel looked up when she looked in his direction, moving forward to reassure her. The creature slid from its perch and jumped onto the desk, moving to Wesley's side.
"It saw it too", Cordelia informed them, and all eyes were turned to the creature. Seemingly done with the creepy thing, the creature gazed at them all innocently and chirped, somewhat less enthusiastically than it usually did. Then it sneezed. Looking back up, it went quiet, seeking comfort in Wesley's lap.
Everyone looked at each other, and then Wesley shook his head.
"This just gets more and more complicated", he said with a sigh, rubbing at the bridge of his nose, frustration and exhaustion taking their toll.
Cordelia stared at her hands for a moment, trying to make the trembling stop. She didn't know why this was affecting her so much. It wasn't like she was scared, just…horrified. Touched didn't seem to cover it, nor did sympathetic. The fact that she couldn't help annoyed her, as did the way in which this was happening. It had no purpose. Maybe she was supposed to see a message in all this, but was the scaring and the heart wrenching really necessary? She guessed she was just having a hard time dealing with the fact that there was such hurt in the world where there shouldn't be, and that her friends were not exceptions.
"Can we go outside? I need some fresh air, and this reading stuff is driving me nuts."
Her suggestion seemed to go down well, and even though they were all anxious to help find an ending to Cordelia's visions, they were pleased to be able to escape the seemingly futile search for a little while.
Stepping out into the courtyard, the crisp evening air revived her, a slight breeze ruffling through her sticky hair and cooling her clammy skin. She felt a hundred times better, as though the movement of the air was enough to keep the ghostly apparitions at bay. Sitting down on the bench next to Wesley, she watched Angel as he paced around, kicking distractedly at the crunchy dead leaves that stirred past, on their way to join the ever growing gathering of their fellows piled up in the corners.
The slowly dimming dusk light had encouraged the jasmine blooms to open, their sweet scent hanging heavily in the air and lulling the senses. Silvery grey moths fluttered gently around their heads, tragically drawn to the promise of better things emitted by the soft glow of the outdoor lighting. They hung around like suspended snow flakes, miniature showers of dust sprinkling through the rays of light every time they collided with the plastic bulb guard in a misguided attempt to reach the source within.
The creature seemed fascinated by them, but unlike its earlier attempts, seemed uninterested in trying to eat the shrubbery, simply scampering under the bench and sitting there. Cordelia figured it had probably just eaten too much already.
Cordelia breathed the air in deeply, finding the perfume smell of the flowers soothing. In fact, it was probably a little too relaxing, and Cordelia soon wondered if bringing everyone out here to revive them was the genius plan it had first seemed. Having finally surrendered his mind to its drowsy whims, Wesley began to sag next to her, his head dipping repeatedly as he struggled with the need to sleep and the need to balance.
Smiling to herself but not having the heart to snark at him for leaning on her, Cordelia guided his head to her shoulder and sighed. Just a little while longer, and then she'd shake him, and they'd all go back inside to the books…
* * *
In the steadily falling darkness of the lobby, a slim, dark figure dropped the rope down from the ceiling, listening for the quiet * click * it made as the strengthened end connected with the marble of the floor. Not too loud, no one will have heard.
Only a hushed * zziiippp * told of the figure's descent, sliding with graceful ease down the makeshift ladder to a poised cat-like position on the floor. Gloved hands and the thick black cat suit meant that rope burn was not an issue, as well as providing adequate camouflage if the situation required it. And no disguise would be complete without the mask, just in case.
Flinging a loose cotton bag over a shoulder, the figure straightened, scanning for a sign or a clue, and expertly pinpointing the three people in question, just visible through the courtyard doors. They seemed unaware. Just how it should be, for now.
Then, the perfectly executed plan was spoiled.
The phone rang.
The vampire made a move for the door, and the figure back flipped away, using the darkness as an advantage. Hopefully, the scent would be hidden just long enough, masked by previous exposure. Crouching in the shadows behind the furniture, the figure watched as the three emerged, the vampire heading for the phone, and waited.
It was almost time.
To be continued…