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"Mata Hari is the best in the world," Gunn grinned, "These guys are tight and you're gonna be tripping when you see them"
Angel arrived at the hotel and handed the tickets over to Gunn, who took them out of the envelope and grinned with glee. But then, the grin faded away
"This is not Mata Hari. This is tickets to a ballet"
"It's the production of Giselle," Angel said, "I saw this back in 1890 and I cried like a baby. And I was evil!"
"But…but…ballet? It's guys in tight clothing with their packages bouncing up and down. Oh man, this is just…the trust is gone," Gunn continued
"Gunn, these guys are tight and you're gonna be tripping when you see them"
"Don't be using my words when we've lost the trust"
"Do we get dressed up?" Cordelia asked from her desk, Ashleigh by her side
"Of course we do," Angel replied
"I'm in"
Gunn sighed and flopped onto the couch, resuming playing with his GameBoy, as Cordelia smirked at him and continued working away on the computer
"Did you get the tickets?" Wesley asked Angel, coming out of the office to pour himself some coffee
"He got them alright," Gunn replied sullenly, "To see 'Giselle'. A ballet"
"Excuse me? But what happened to Mata Hari"
"Isn't there anybody on my side?" Angel asked, "Ballet is like another world"
"I'm on your side here," Cordelia replied, "Simply because we get dressed up"
"I'm also on your side," Fred added, "I would love to see the ballet"
"Good, it's settled. Three to two, majority overrules"
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The next night…
The night of the ballet had arrived and Fred was busy trying to coax Gunn to come out from hiding in the office. She was dressed up nicely in a shimmering red dress
"You promise not to laugh?" he asked
"I promise. Now come out"
Gunn walked out, dressed in a tuxedo. Fred brought her hands to her mouth to stopped herself from laughing, then lowered them
"Wow, Charles, you look great"
He brightened up, as Wesley arrived, laying a shawl across Fred's shoulders
"You look stunning," he said to her
Fred blushed and smiled. Meanwhile, Angel was in his room, as Lorne tried in vain to remove the drool stain from the back of his jacket
"Little Ash burps like a champ," Lorne grinned, "I got most of it"
"Thanks, Lorne," Angel replied, before taking a small box out of his jacket
"For me, Angelwings? Oh really, you shouldn't have"
"It's not for you. It's for Cordelia"
He opened the box to reveal the engagement ring sitting inside
"Oh, that's definitely gonna knock her off her feet. And if that doesn't, what else will? So, when are you planning on the proposal? After the ballet?"
"Yeah. It'll be great. She'll love the ballet and afterwards, it happens"
"Well, you two have gone through a lot in the last few years," Lorne said, "And look at the outcome so far: two beautiful kids. She'll say yes for sure"
"What'll I say yes to?"
Angel hastily stuffed the box back into his coat, before turning around to face Cordelia, his jaw dropping when he saw her. Wearing a stunning magenta dress with a plunging V-neckline, Cordelia looked like a goddess, her hair piled up on top in a bunch of curls, gold eyeliner and dangling earrings completing the look. If Angel had a breath, he would have lost it when he saw her
"You look good yourself," Cordelia smiled
She crossed the room, as Lorne grinned and watched the two. Cordelia fixed up Angel's bowtie, his arms wrapping around her waist
"And how are our little ones?" she asked, "Asleep?"
"They're out like a light," Lorne replied, "And if one of them so much as peeps, I'll chloroform them"
Angel and Cordelia simply gave him a strange look
"Parents. Never with the humour," Lorne huffed, before leaving the room
"Well then, shall we?" Cordelia asked
"We shall," Angel replied
Arm in arm, the couple headed downstairs, joining the others, before leaving the hotel, as Lorne waved them off, then headed upstairs to the kids room. The gang arrived at the ballet and took their seats, as the lights started to dim
"This is a nice spot," Cordelia said, "See all the action"
"Back in the day, I had box seats," Angel said, "Or ate whoever had them"
The production started up and the first of the dancers came out on stage. Within minutes, Cordelia had fallen asleep, her head resting on Angel's shoulders, as Gunn leaned forward, a smile on his face, intrigued by the performance. Soon, the first act was over, as the lights came on and the applause rang out
"I loved it," Cordelia cried, snapping awake and clapping
"It's only intermission," Angel replied, "Come on"
The group filed out with the rest of the audience
"Man, that was so cool," Gunn said, "It was awesome," then off everybody's blank looks, "I was cool before I met you lot"
"Has much changed?" Wesley asked Angel
"No"
"Well, that's good then"
"No, I mean, nothing has changed. The actors are still the same ones from 1890. So why are we still seeing the actors who should have died sixty years ago?"
"Got me stumped there," Cordelia said
"You guys go back," Angel said, "I'm gonna snoop around backstage"
"I'm with snoopy," Cordelia offered, "Magic of ballet? Not getting to me"
"How will the dancers keep in time with your rhythmic snoring?" Wesley quipped
Cordelia glared at him, before following after Angel, as the trio returned to the ballet. Backstage, Angel knocked out the guard and entered, surprised at what they saw. The corridor stretched on endlessly. Looking back, Angel and Cordelia saw that the door had disappeared, the corridor stretching on endlessly behind them
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Cordelia asked, "Let's break this magic"
She led the way through the corridors, coming across a door and entering the room. Angel entered after her, looking around the place. They were in the room that belonged to the main actress and it was quite large
"Wow, look at this," Cordelia said
She headed to the vanity table and picked up a necklace with a cross on it. Angel stood behind her, as she rose up and faced him, suddenly kissing him on the lips
"He's too powerful for us," she said, "We can't escape him, Stefan"
"We can and we will. Just come with me," Angel said, "We'll be free forever"
They kissed again, as Cordelia brought her hand to Angel's cheek, the cross in her hand. He hissed in pain and jumped back, having regained his senses
"Let's get out of here," he said
The pair headed for the door in each other's arms. Cordelia had her back to Angel, her hand reaching up behind his head, while his hand rested against her stomach
"Open the door," she said breathlessly
"Kinda hard"
"Kinda noticed"
Angel opened the door and they fell back out into the corridor, both breathing heavily, even though Angel didn't have to
"Okay, that was strange. What the hell was all that?"
"We were possessed," Angel replied, "By lovers afraid of her master"
"Well, we gotta go back in there and stop it. It's the only way"
"You sure about that, Cordy?"
"Up to his ass in demon gore, fine, but ask him to mack on a hottie and he wigs. My champion, ladies and gents"
Cordelia went back into the room, as Angel followed after him, afraid of what could happen if they let themselves go on for too long. As if reading his mind, Cordelia held up her cross necklace
"No happies tonight. I've got the cross so nothing goes too bad"
Almost instantly, they were repossessed by the lovers and embraced, their lips locking together as they kissed passionately. And then, the cross dropped from Cordelia's hand, as the pair made their way to the couch, lost in the passion
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