 |
 ** Author’s note: Thanks again to my wonderful reviewers!! Lumberjak,
Rogue Fan, Harm Marie - I’m glad you stopped by to let me know what you
thought. I hope you keep on reading! Bitchy Little Pixie –
glad to see you’re as anxious to read as I am to write! I love the
Spike/Cordelia interaction as well. It’s a lot of fun to imagine and then
write. It’s taken the front seat since Spike is the only one that
Cordelia can talk to – for the moment… KellyC – I’m glad you liked
that line… I liked it too! I felt it was a good time for a little
interjected Lorne humor… Kim – Wow! Cult?
Statue? Cool! The many-stories-high statue might actually work to
scare people away, so depending on your purpose for it, you may want to think
that over! : ) But I am honored to have you say that. I appreciate
your support so much! So, the next part is here. I really hope that
everyone enjoys it!! ** Part IV ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ “Spike…” Cordelia started. “I don’t know what I can tell you…”
Spike crossed his arms. “All I want to know is what my deal is, luv. You say I’m involved… and
more than a supporting role type. I want to know what it is,” he said. “Spike, we’ve gone around this circle a few times already. There isn’t
much I can say,” she explained. Spike shook his head. “Not good enough, luv,” he said as he turned to leave. “What’s it to you anyways, Spike? You’re not going anywhere,” Cordelia
pointed out. Spike sighed before he turned back to look at her. “You have me there, but that doesn’t mean I’m willing to sacrifice myself
again,” he said. Cordelia’s heart ached at his bitterness. “Do you regret your decision?” she asked, a hidden motive in the seemingly
innocent question. “Do I regret that I did it? No. Not really. Do I regret why
I did it?” he paused for a second as he really thought over his answer.
“I don’t know.” Cordelia nodded, but didn’t press for more. He’d
answered her honestly, and she appreciated that. It only proved the
choice wise. After a quick internal debate, she decided to tell him what
he wanted to know. “Spike…” she started. Now, how could one put this? “I was
brought back to give you a gift.” Spike looked confused. “Well, you’d better tell me what it is, cuz it ain’t my birthday, luv -” he
paused to think about it for a second. “- or at least I don’t think
it is…” Cordelia shook her head, frustration evident in the way she
stood. “Spike, could you just stop your incessant smart ass comments for a
moment? I’m supposed to inform you that I’m here to bestow the damn
visions to you, okay?,” she asked bluntly. Spike chuckled – more like
almost giggled. “ ‘Incessant’. ‘Bestow’. You’ve been studying the word of the
day calendar again, haven’t you luv? What with all the high and mi -” he
stopped short when her words finally processed. He turned to her quickly,
all traces of humor gone. “What?!?!” ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Wesley stood in front of the newly acquired book. Gunn stood at his
side, pliers in hand. Wes himself held a crowbar. “What next, English?” Gunn asked his friend. Wesley looked over the
book from every angle. The two clasps that held the text together looked
quite ancient. There was no telling how complicated it was going to be to
get it open. “I’m not exactly sure, Gunn. This could prove to be quite difficult,”
Wes said as he placed the crowbar beneath one clasp. Using all of his
weight, he leaned against it, hoping to pry the metal grip open. Gunn
watched his friend’s struggle for a second or two before leaning in to add his
weight as well. After a minute or two of fierce tugging, pulling, jumping
and prying, the men gave up. Sitting back from the book, Wesley pushed
his glasses up on his nose. “I don’t think this thingy-me-bob is gonna open, Wes my man,” Gunn said,
sitting back as well. Wesley frowned in concentration. “There’s got to be a way we’re overlooking,” he said. Gunn shook his
head. “Maybe it ain’t all that important,” the black man hoped. Wes shook
his head. “I somehow doubt that,” he said. Gunn let out a huff. “Of course,” he said sarcastically. “Whatever is in there, it’s of some relevance or another. The way
Spike was acting earlier, there has to be a purpose for it. I just need
some time to read up on it,” Wes said. “Speaking of Spike, has anyone seen him?” Fred’s voice called out. Wes
and Gunn spun around to see the willowy woman descending the stairs, Lorne and
Angel following behind her. Lorne was holding an ice pack to his nose. “I haven’t seen him since he rushed out of my office hours ago,” Wes said as
Gunn shook his head. “Do you think… do you think he might have gone…” Fred stumbled out, biting
her lip in apprehension. “Well, here’s to hoping,” Angel said, causing his four friends to look over
at him. He shrugged at them. “What?” he asked in his typical, unconcerned way. Fred ambled over to
where the book sat. “Why do you think he was so concerned about this? It looks really
old,” Fred commented as she ran her fingers over the deceivingly
delicate-looking metal. Her fingers ran over a slight ridge in the
intricate settings. “Ooooh. What’s this?” When she pushed on
the spot, the metal clasps sprung open. Wes and Gunn looked at each other
for a split second before they stepped closer to inspect. “That was almost too easy,” Wes muttered. Gunn nodded in agreement. “You don’t think that there’s any of those… things… ya know?” Gunn asked,
using his hands to illustrate his words. Wesley looked over in
question. “You know… where you open something, everything looks fine, and
then BAM… all of a sudden you’re without a head?” Wes smirked. “A boobytrap? Like in the movies?” he asked his counterpart.
Gunn looked a little sheepish, but nodded. “Hey,” he defended. “We work in the world of the mystical… it could
happen…” Wesley chuckled before he lifted the cover page and let his eyes
run quickly over the front-page writing. After expelling a breath, he
straightened up. “Oh my…” he said before turning to encounter four pairs of expectant eyes. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ “You’re here to what?” a now-pacing ghost said. Cordelia
watched him with a smile on her face. “I’m here to give you a choice,” she said. Spike let out a snort. “So this is that all-important ‘decision’ you told me about earlier,” he
stated. The brunette shrugged. “It’s one of them,” she said. Spike stopped pacing to look at her. “You’d better explain, luv. And no going off on tangents. I want
it straight,” he said. Cordelia sighed. “I know. You deserve it,” she said. “Okay, the thing is, The
Powers That Be sent me back to give you the visions. That is why you were
brought back. You, a lower being, sacrificed yourself for the
world. You gave up immortality to save a world that most are willing to
destroy. Let’s just say that it gave you a gold star from the Powers.” “Great… do I get a cookie, too?” Spike asked sarcastically, causing Cordelia
to smile. “No, no cookie. But when you take the visions, there are certain
benefits for you,” she continued. This got Spike’s full attention. “Benefits? What?” he asked. “Well, for one, you won’t be stuck here. You’ll be unbound from
Wolfram & Hart. And the biggie… no fear of Hell…” Spike stepped
closer to her, disbelief in his eyes. “Excuse me? Did you just say what I thought you said?” Cordelia
nodded. “No Hell, Spike. You won’t have the fear of fire and brimstone,” she
said. Spike was silent as he pondered her revelation. “What if I don’t want the visions?” he asked. Cordelia looked startled
for a second, but she recovered quickly. “You have every right to refuse them, Spike. They won’t be forced on
you. But you are the perfect candidate for this. You are not a
human, or a demon. Your status as non-corporeal gives you the ability to
handle the visions in their purest form,” Cordelia said. Spike nodded. “Okay, tell me what will happen if I don’t take them…” “Whether or not you take the visions, the prophecy will come to pass.
There will be an apocalyptic battle with you there or not. But if you
don’t take the visions, you will… you’ll pass on to where you are supposed to
go.” Spike nodded. “Hell,” he said what Cordelia didn’t. Her lack of response confirmed
it. He sighed sadly. “I guess it would be deserved.” “Spike, whatever you decide, it is your prerogative. You were brought
back to make the choice. But if you take these visions, you will be able
to help… save people that are marked for death…” she said. “This is what you meant by all that destiny crap,” he muttered.
Cordelia nodded. “Spike, I know it’s not an easy choice by any means. The visions means
responsibility, self-sacrifice and more problems than you will ever want to
know about. But considering the alternative, I think it’s pretty much a
no-brainer,” Cordelia said. Spike nodded. “I know, luv.” he said, warming up to the proposition. “But what about
you?” Cordelia looked down at her hands. “What about me?” she asked. “Where is this going to leave you? You had the visions… and now you’re
lying comatose in the Wolfram & Hart basement,” Spike said. Cordelia
smiled. “Hey, who said you were the only one that had to make decisions?” she
scolded. “So I was right before, about the you wanting to come back,” he said. “Yes and no,” Cordelia evaded. “Come on, luv. Which is it?” “Do I have to make a decision about coming back? Yes. But I’m
not the only one involved in this equation. The Powers have decisions to
make as well,” she said. Spike looked a little confused. “Spike…
the Powers giving you my visions is part of my punishment.” “Punishment for what, Cordelia?” Spike asked with a frown. “As far as
I’ve heard, you’ve done nothing but sacrifice yourself over and over for these
visions and the helpless souls of L.A.” Cordelia shook her head. “Spike, I’ve said repeatedly that it is none of your business. I told
you what you needed to know, and then some. It’s time for you to leave it
alone. Now, we need to get back to the firm. Knowing Wesley’s
curiosity, he’s probably locked himself in a room with that book. With
his brains, we could possibly stop this before it gets too terrible,” Cordelia
changed the topic as she headed out of the warehouse. Spike just shook
his head as he followed her. The woman answered some questions – for
which he was grateful – but she just brought to mind thousands more. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ “You know, English, I like it better when you say ‘Eureka’,” Gunn
observed as he watched Wesley bend closer to the text. “Me too,” Lorne said as he shifted the cold pack over his tender nose.
Those demons had walloped him a good one. And if Wesley’s aura had
anything to say about it, things were about to get a little bit worse. “What is it, Wesley?” Angel asked. Wesley ran his finger over the
writing. “Well… this isn’t a language I know. I’m familiar with most human and
demon languages – but this one is new to me,” he said. Gunn groaned. “That means I have to go into research mode, doesn’t it?” he asked.
Wesley looked up with a small smile. “Since you so nicely volunteered…” he said, causing the black man to glare
at him. Gunn was about to turn to go find a computer to make himself
comfortable at, but Fred held his arm. “I’ll do it, Charles. I’m familiar with the Wolfram & Hart
language database. I’ll see if I can come up with something,” she
offered. Gunn smiled at her in appreciation. He caught Wes’ look as
he turned back to the group. “What? She knows I do better with the chop and drop,” he explained
with a shrug. Fred’s clearing of her throat made the men turn back to
her. “May I ask what happened to the computer in here?” she asked. Everyone
looked at each other in question, except Angel, who looked almost ashamed. “Ummm…. oops?” he supplied. Wes rolled his eyes. “What did you do to it this time?” Wes asked, knowing full well the extend
of Angel’s computer illiteracy. “Didn’t Cor… er… Haven’t you learned a thing
about it over the years?” A slip of the tongue almost brought out a name
everyone knew that could not be said. It brought too much pain for
everyone. Silence fell as each tried to push the memories away. “The computer got… ummm… kicked…” Angel explained. Gunn frowned. “What, did it kick you?” he asked. Angel rolled his eyes. “No… I had a little run-in… I took my anger out on it…” he said. Lorne
shook his head sadly. “Poor defenseless computer. Never saw it coming,” he lamented.
Wesley smirked at the observation. “Run-in? The only person that seems to make you go all homicidal on
inanimate objects is a certain spook…” Gunn said. “Got that bloody right, mate. I’ve always had an effect over Granddad
there,” Spike’s voice spoke out. Everyone looked around but could not see
him. “Spike? Where are you?” Fred asked. her eyes searching. “Behind you, luv,” he said. When Fred turned, she let out a little
shriek when he suddenly appeared. “Neat trick, isn’t it?” he grinned at her before making his way down to
where everyone else was. “Have you been here this whole time?” Angel asked, eyes narrowing in
suspicion. “Of course not! You all are a boring lot, why would I want to
eavesdrop on all of you?” he said with another grin. “Then where have you been?” Fred asked. Spike looked up to her. “Around and about…” he said, his eyes on Cordelia as she entered the room. “Holy kickin’ kyerumption, Batman!” Lorne suddenly cried, his eyes focused
on where Cordelia was located. Everyone looked at him suddenly. “In
other words, holy shit!” “What Lorne?” Angel asked, his eyes finding nothing where Lorne seemed to be
focused. Spike began to get a little uncomfortable. “There’s something here!” the green demon exclaimed. Cordelia’s eyes
went wide at his yell. “I don’t know what, but it’s a mixture of white
and blue. It’s like it’s a soul or something. I can almost read it,
but it’s really fuzzy…” Spike looked to Cordelia and watched her
concentrate, a frown coming over his face. The green demon stood up and
approached what he was seeing, trying to get a reading off of it. As he
reached out to try and touch it, his shoulders slumped. “What is it?” Gunn asked, watching Lorne closely. “I lost it,” Lorne said. “It went black. It’s not here
anymore.” Spike’s frown deepened as he watched Cordelia let out a breath. “Well, Krevlornswath of the Deathwok clan… you were seconds away from
causing some holy Hell…” she muttered. She looked up to see Spike watching
her. “I’m going to leave, Spike. I can’t have Lorne spilling the
beans. It’s not time yet. Plus, I have some things to take care
of,” she said. And before Spike could say anything, she was gone.
Spike turned his attention back to the group to find Wesley engrossed in
studying the book and Lorne, Angel and Gunn deep in discussion. Taking
the opportunity, Spike stepped up to Wesley. “Watcher, I need to talk to you… and bring the book,” he said before Wes
could say anything. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Angel watched as Wesley followed Spike out of the room. Things were
going on, and they were beyond his comprehension. All Angel knew was that
Spike was in on it… and from the looks of it, Wesley soon was going to be as
well. It was frustrating that with all that had happened in the past
year, everyone was still keeping secrets – especially Wesley. He knew,
firsthand, the price to be paid. He sighed loudly, causing Lorne and Gunn
to look at him. “Looks like you could use a walk, crumb cake,” Lorne said. Angel shook
his head. “I’m fine, Lorne,” he assured. This time Lorne shook his head. “No, no, no. It looks…” Lorne stated, emphasizing
his point by circling a finger around Angel, indicating his aura. “… like you
could use a walk.” Angel closed his eyes and took a calming breath. “Fine,” he said. Lorne nodded happily. “Good. While you take a breather, Mr. Clean and I will go help
Fredilicious,” he said, taking Gunn’s arm and leading him out. Angel
shook his head. He knew he wasn’t easy to be around these days. And
he knew very well that Lorne was on ‘Beige Watch’… constantly watching to make
sure Angel didn’t slip. It was understandable considering his
history. So… Angel took a walk. As he walked, he thought. Everyone
knew that losing Connor and Cordy at the same time was driving him
insane. It was no secret. But they didn’t understand why.
They had loved Connor and Cordy, but not in the same way. Hell, they
didn’t even know Connor was gone – wiped clean from their memories. It
took a deal with the devil to make the world a better place for everyone…
everyone except Angel. He was the one stuck with the memories. At
least his son was happy. Living in a world free of the demons that had
haunted him. At least someone was free of them… Cordelia walked silently next to the vampire. She didn’t know what he
was thinking, but she could take a 50-50 stab at it. Especially with the
direction they were heading. He was stuck in his guilt-ridden brood
mode. Surprise, surprise. “It’s really no surprise that Lorne’s worried, you know? Look at you…
pretty soon, that scowl is going to be permanent. And Lorne’s not the
only one that’s worried. There are rumblings with the Powers. They
don’t know what to do with you. But then, they’re hoping I can fix some
things. Except they don’t realize some things have changed, do they?”
Cordelia said to an unhearing vampire. Her frown mirrored his as they
both turned a corner. “God only knows what’s going to happen when everything starts. We’re
all going to have important choices in the future. Spike, me, you… I
can’t help you just as I can’t help Spike. I can’t even help
myself. And all of this is my doing. I set this in motion.
You have no idea how sorry I am, Angel. My mistakes have cost you Connor,
cost you the mission, your shanshu. I love you, and this is what I’ve
done to you,” she choked out, tears blurring her vision. She blinked them
away and focused on the hallway ahead of them. Cordelia recognized it and
felt an ache in her heart. She stopped and let him walk ahead of
her. It was the medical wing. Angel was going to see
her. “Oh Angel…” she said softly as she watched him go through her door.
She was about to go join him in watching over her comatose form when all of a
sudden he burst through the door and ran past her. There was panic
written all over his face. Frowning, Cordelia ran into the vacated
room. A gasp emerged from her as she covered her mouth. The bed was
empty. Her body was gone. “Oh God, no…” she rasped. Tears now ran unabashedly down her
cheeks. “… no.” There was only one thought running through her head
as she sat herself down on the floor. She raised her face and beseeched
the only people that could help her. If you’ve let something take my body again, I will make my decision here and
now and screw your plans into the ground! Don’t do this to them again! ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ **Author’s note: So, this is where my mind has decided to take me.
What do you think? I’ve got lots more planned with a few quests popping
in here and there… Stay tuned! ** |
