Title: Jaguar's Bloody Valentine: Sealed with a Kiss
Author: Izzychase
Posted: 02-17-2004
Email:
Rating: PG-14
Category:
Content: C/A...us
Summary: Angel gets an unhealthy obsession, and chaos follows.
Spoilers: AtS S3; Darla never reappeared.
Disclaimer: The characters in the Angelverse were created by Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.
Distribution:
Notes: Element - Secret Love Letter.
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Thanks/Dedication: To Jaguar, who writes wonderful fics that manage to be dark and twisted but sweet at the same time. I'm sorry that this is two days late, but I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed yours!It started two weeks before Valentine’s Day. It was difficult to ascertain when the obsession began. Maybe it was Fred’s happy ramblings complete with name-dropping of celebrating Valentine’s Day back in Texas, and how much she missed it when she was in Pylea. Maybe it was Lorne’s not-so-quiet bursts into song as he cheerily walked into the hotel. Maybe it was the magazines that Cordelia started bringing to the office with catchy headlines about Valentine’s Day tips for lovers. Maybe it was the soft look that Gunn got into his eyes as he gazed at Fred when he thought no one was looking. Maybe it was the quiet dejected sigh Wesley gave whenever Fred or Lorne mentioned the upcoming holiday.
Whatever it was, it triggered an awakening of a darkness that the souled vampire thought he had banished.
Like a player carefully contemplating his next move in a game of chess, the souled vampire began a relentless game with his Seer.
***
February 7th:
The day began like it normally did: First, Gunn and Fred came in through the door, happily chatting, obliviously unaware of the growing attraction between the two of them. Wesley came in next, his arms full of old tomes, greeting everyone somewhat absentmindedly before disappearing into the office, intent on working on the current case. Cordelia came in last, with her makeup flawless and not a single hair out of place.
The vampire began to watch her with closer scrutiny as she breezed through files and invoices, answered calls, and joked with her friends. Sometimes she would give him that special smile that made his undead heart soar with pride, while making his darker vampiric nature to whisper suggestions and thoughts of what he could do, only if he was willing to lose the pesky soul.
After a day of reading interrupted by Cordelia, Fred and Gunn’s talks of their past Valentine’s days and how they used to celebrate them, as well as Angelus’ constant taunts about ‘the good old days’ when Darla would devise new ways to torture humans that they had captured, the souled vampire was about to go insane.
He had wanted Cordelia for quite some time now. His soul loved her, but his demon longed to possess her, take her and turn her into a vampire of the night; and to make her his for eternity. Angelus taunted him with the idea, and made him see possibilities that he could never indulge in while his soul remained intact.
Desperate for a way to purge those feelings and to restrain himself from acting upon them, he began to sketch.
He closed the door to his room, got out one of his many sketch pads, and began to draw.
***
February 9th:
He woke up from another one of his dreams, sweating and shaking, gasping for air as he rose up from his bed, the cool air hitting his nude upper body immediately. Lately the dreams had been getting worse. At first the dreams had started out neutral and normal: he dreamed about working with his friends, chatting with Cordelia, and saving the people she saw in her vision, but then his dreams took a more erotic turn.
He started to see only her in his dreams. Cordelia kissing him for long periods of time, Cordelia in her shell bikini, Cordelia crawling on top of him, Cordelia underneath him as he brought her to ecstasy, and countless other images flooded his dreams, teasing and tormenting him with something that he could never have.
He got to the point where he was so disappointed every time he woke up that he started taking cold showers the minute he woke up.
Cordelia had raised her eyebrows when she saw him coming down the stairs toweling his hair dry that day, but she said nothing when confronted with the hard stare her best friend gave in return. He knew she suspected him of going beige on all of them again, but he chuckled quietly inside at the thought of how she would react if she found out that he was obsessed with her and not Darla.
The others had grown accustomed to his periods of withdrawal from the group, and this only gave him more time to brood, contemplate, and obsess over his Seer. It gave him time to commit the images from his dreams to paper. It gave him time to formulate a plan.
***
February 13th:
“Angel’s ignoring me.” Cordelia announced flatly to the group as she flopped down on the couch in the lobby beside Fred. “He’s locked the door to his room and only told me to go away. Nothing worked. I’ll bet you anything he’s brooding about Valentine’s Day.”
“Given Angelus’ rather colourful past, I’m not surprised that Angel would be filled with remorse whenever he’s reminded of Valentine’s Day.” Wesley remarked, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes.
“It’s not the usual kind of brooding, though. It’s not ‘let’s alphabetize my sins and go through the list feeling guilty for each one.’ It’s something different.” Cordelia paused to describe her best friend’s mood. “It’s like that time he went all beige over Darla.”
Wesley and Gunn finally looked up, one looking concerned and the other looking annoyed.
“If that boy goes anywhere near being like Angelus again, I’m gonna smack him down.”
Gunn declared, his eyes narrowing for a moment.
“That is indeed serious news.” Wesley walked briskly over to the weapons closet. “In that case, perhaps we need to make some serious preparations.”
Above the group, hidden in the shadows, the vampire heard all as he deposited an envelope in the inner pocket of his leather coat and snuck downstairs, using an unexplored staircase, intent on delivering his letter precisely to its recipient.
***
11:30 pm, February 13th
Cordelia walked trudged up the stairs to her apartment, weary from four hours of research and worrying about Angel. It seemed as if every single time the two of them became best friends again, or started getting really close, something had to ruin it. Last year, before Angel went all beige on the group, the two of them had started to get really close.
Not romantically close, Cor. Remember the B-Word. She thought to herself as she walked down the hall.
You like him, Cordelia. You always do fall for the clueless ones. Another voice popped into her head.
“All right! I do have a teensy-weensy crush on my best friend, because when’s he not broody he can be a great friend.” Cordelia admitted out loud, fishing her keys out of her purse as she walked down the hall. “After all, he’s only saved my life a couple dozen times and even jumped into a hell dimension to rescue me. But I am –not- getting any ideas. I’m the last person who wants to release an evil, scary vampire into the unsuspecting world.”
With that thought, she walked up to her door, intent on opening it when she noticed an envelope lying on the ground. Curious, she picked it up and saw that it was addressed to her. Her name was written in bold and fancy calligraphy. She tore it open, and read the contents.
Before she had time to ponder on the letter, a voice interrupted her.
“Happy Valentine’s Day, Cordelia.” The seductive yet dark voice said.
Cordelia whirled around to find Angel standing there, dressed in a red silk shirt and black leather pants, complete with the black leather jacket.
“Who gave you a happy?” Cordelia demanded, alarmed at the fact that Angel was dressed like Angelus. She started fishing in her purse for the stake that she kept there, but Angel stepped forward and put both his hands to either side of her face. The vampire leaned in, and sniffed her hair.
“No brilliant smile to greet your best friend?” He murmured, muzzling her neck. Alarm bells rang off in Cordelia’s head, but she was too mesmerized to move.
“Ok, Angel, creepy much?” Her words were meant to come off as flippant and confident, but she found herself whispering the words as the vampire’s hands caressed her face and neck.
“I just want one kiss, Cordelia.” The vampire whispered, gazing into the brunette’s beautiful hazel eyes. “Just as friends; just for Valentine’s Day.”
Cordelia couldn’t find the will to say no, so she just leaned back against the door, and let Angel initiate the kiss. It was a kiss full of passion, full of released tensions that had been built up over the last year; it was a kiss full of chemistry and unrequited longing on both parts. Cordelia had closed her eyes as the kiss began, so she missed the sudden glowing of Angel’s eyes as he experienced that one complete moment of happiness.
“Thanks for releasing me, sweetheart.” The seductive voice returned, as Cordelia’s eyes snapped open to stare into the dark, bottomless orbs of Angelus.
“No, I’m dreaming or something.” She whispered. “This isn’t real.”
“It’s very real, Cordelia.” The vampire replied as he continued to muzzle along her neck, preparing for the fatal claim.
End.