False Claims

Chapter Twelve





A watcher’s instincts, while nowhere near comparable to a slayer’s, were still quite impressive. Honed by years of training and field work, their senses became adept at perceiving patterns outside the established norm.



It was that oft used ability that told Rupert Giles that something was out of place in the quiet library beyond his office. The hour was still early, the school day not set to begin for quite sometime. This fact heightened his apprehension to an even greater degree. Not that one’s awareness was ever completely relaxed when one worked directly on a rather loosely sealed mouth of Hell.



Reaching for the ever present crossbow from within his desk drawer and preparing for what would dare to intrude upon the territory of the slayer, Giles was truly caught off guard by what he saw.



There, in the crack of the barely opened door was the top of a silky brown head and a pair of deep hazel eyes peering at him in a silent quest for entry.



“Cordelia?” The surprise at the unexpected arrival could be heard clearly in the watcher’s voice. “It’s very early. Was there a meeting of which I was unaware?”



Taking that as permission to enter, Cordelia moved through the doorway and perched on the edge of the leather couch facing the desk as if preparing for flight should it prove necessary.



“Actually, Giles, I was hoping that I could talk to you before the others show up.”



Hearing the uncertainty in her voice, Giles felt the stirring of relief. As a watcher he knew better than most the trauma the supernatural could inflict even on those who were, sadly, somewhat accustomed to it. Obviously Cordelia had been more disturbed than she had let on by the incident with Angelus and the A’toreal demons.



Although he assumed that, if she were to open up, it would most likely be to Xander, he was somewhat honored that she would place such trust in him. After all, despite the fact that it seemed that Cordelia never had a thought that didn’t somehow find its way out of her mouth, he had begun to notice that her tactless words often hid what he sensed were deeper truths about herself.



“Of course, of course. I have to admit that I was hoping that you would seek out someone in whom to confide. The worst thing you can do is to hold these things inside. It’s alright, you know. Everyone understands how difficult it must have been for you caught between Angelus and a clan of hostile demons.”



“Yeah,” Cordelia muttered her agreement. “Last night was no picnic either.”



Hand frozen in the process of replacing the weapon in his desk, Giles could only stare in shock at the girl who had spoken words he must have surely misheard.



“Ex-excuse me?”



“Last night Giles. That’s kind of why I’m here.”



Even though she knew that it would be difficult to come to Giles with this, Cordelia was still saddened by the look of dismay on his face. Sure, Giles had been supportive about the necklace thingy, but if he found out how she’d acted, would he hate her? Damn Angelus for this, she thought as her eyes slid away from Giles’ still form.



Horrified at the idea that this child had been once again subjected to the viscous vampire with none of them the wiser, he was relieved as years of training pushed to the fore, tamping down emotions that would only upset the girl and prevent him from learning what had occurred. And how to make certain that it never occurred again.



“Cordelia, listen to me, you were right to come to me. Whatever Angelus has told you, whatever he has threatened you with to remain silent, know that we will let no harm come to you. You just have to tel-“



“No. God Giles, you don’t understand.” Cordelia rushed to interrupt the watcher who, while very sweet, definitely had the wrong idea. “Angelus doesn’t want me to stay quiet. In fact he told me that I had to come and tell you everything.”



“And he didn’t threaten me, Giles. He threatened you.”



All of Giles’ previous shock and horror came to an end as confusion swamped him, obliterating everything in its path.



“Why on earth would Angelus want me to know? Certainly if this was some kind of message he would have killed you and left....”



At the sudden pallor of Cordelia’s face, Giles rushed to cover his blunder.



“Good Lord, Cordelia, I’m being quite the fool. There’s no sense in looking at what might have been because you are, quite thankfully, sitting here safe and utterly alive and I personally intend that you stay that way. So whatever message Angelus gave you to pass on, rest assured that we shall endeavor to make sure that it will be addressed with no further involvement on your part.”



Giles’ reassuring smile and the fact that Angelus had let her go with no deception needed on her part, helped soothe her nerves and allowed her to collect her thoughts.



“Look, Giles. There isn’t really a message per se. But this is totally about Buffy. He wants to mess with her mind; make her weak. That’s why he told me that I had to tell you everything.”



Giles felt a sense of dread growing within his tightly clenched stomach as he wondered just what, exactly, “everything” might mean.



“That’s why I think it would be better if we didn’t share this info with Buffy. After all, Angelus didn’t say we had to.”



“Cordelia?”



“He just said that he’d know if I lied or left something out. He wouldn’t though, would he? I mean, how could he know.”



“Cordelia?!”



“Oh well, I still can’t take that kind of chance with your life, can I? And he knew it, bastard -”



“Cordelia!”



Giles’ shouting finally had the desired effect of quieting the ranting girl.



“Are you saying that Angelus specifically told you to tell me? He didn’t mention Buffy.”



Thinking about it a moment Cordelia, too found the omission disturbing. On reflection though, she realized that, of course, Angelus would expect the watcher to go right to his slayer with this.



“Just you, Giles. But hey, I’m sure that he figured that you’d go to Buffy with this so that she could protect me or herself or try harder to kill Angelus...or at all.”



“I, for one, vote that we don’t tell her. I mean, come on, we’ll just be playing right into his evil hands. Besides, Buffy isn’t exactly rational when it comes to the whole Angel/Angelus thing, and frankly, I’ve had enough pain for a while.”



Giles’ mind having been on the vampire’s intentions in making himself specifically, and not Buffy, aware of what transpired between him and Cordelia, he only half heard her ravings until the last sentence grabbed his attention.



“Pain? Cordelia, did Angelus hurt you?”



“Duh. Evil, mass murdering vampire, Giles. Of course he hurt me.”



With that, Cordelia pulled up the sleeves of her copper colored blouse. Falling well past her wrist, Giles could see the reason for her fashion choice as two rings of swollen, heavily bruised skin came into view, one adorning each wrist like macabre bracelets.



“Giles, this has got to stop. Having to accessorize with all of this violence is hard even with my extensive wardrobe. I’ve been through my closet twice. I have nothing that goes with abuse!”



Adroitly avoiding the pitfalls of Cordelia logic, Giles examined what he knew and came to one solid conclusion.



“The account of the other night was highly edited, I assume.”



Hearing no condemnation, only the watcher’s seemingly endless curiosity, Cordelia admitted, “Maybe a little. But I hit all the highlights.”



Seeing her hesitancy, Giles understood that Cordelia was afraid of his reaction. It dawned on him that she absolutely did not want to do this and it seemed that only her genuine fear for his safety had convinced her to share this difficult tale with him. Moved by her for his concern well being, he attempted to comfort her.



“Cordelia, you must understand that nothing that happened while you were with Angelus was your fault. Anything that you did, anything, was justified because it kept you alive, and your life is definitely the most important thing. The amulet can be retrieved another day. Honestly, you should be extremely proud. You managed to survive the Scourge of Europe not once, but twice. There are thousands of people who can’t say the same.”



Acknowledging Giles’ unconditional support, Cordelia took a deep breath and began.



“It went just like I told you.”



“I had the necklace, ran, hid it, and stumbled into the demon’s house. Angelus grabbed me and took me into some kind of study.”



Giles listened patiently. So far this matched, exactly, everything that she had already told them. He was sure that he would have questions soon, but he had learned over time that most questions would be answered if one were just allowed enough time to speak.



“Angelus wanted his amulet back so he could give it to those demon guys. I told him that I hid it. He was...not happy. He threatened to torture me if I didn’t tell him where it was. You know how it goes - Blah, blah, blah kill you slowly. Yada, yada, yada rip off your skin. I swear, if he keeps that up Hallmark’s gonna sue him for copy write infringement.”



Knowing that her words were merely a cover for her discomfort, he silently waited for her to continue, bracing to hear of the young woman’s terror at the all too real threats from a monster that had instilled fear in an entire continent.



“So I told him if he killed me that he wouldn’t have his precious necklace. I also informed him that pretty soon those weirdo demons were going to come and see what our wacky behavior was about and that when they did I was going to tell them that he was really Angel, it was all a trap, and that the slayer was on her way.”



At this point, even had Giles wanted to question the girl, he knew that he would be incapable as he was literally struck dumb by the words spilling from Cordelia’s mouth. Of all the things he had conjectured that she might have done to survive, never in his wildest imaginings had threatening Angelus ever crossed his mind.



Oblivious to the stunned watcher who was staring, mouth slightly ajar in continuing shock, Cordelia let her momentum carry her forward.



“He threatened to kill me some more, but he was running out of time and we both knew it. That’s when we struck our deal.”



“I promised to give him his hideous amulet if he got me out of there safe and sound.”



A look of betrayal chased briefly across her face. “Of course the minute I believed him the bastard bit me!”



Seeing her building agitation, Giles felt it was prudent to interject, giving her a moment to calm herself.



“Ah, yes. Window dressing I believe you called it.”



The moment clearly wasn’t enough to allow a decrease in her irritation.



“Hmmph. Well that was way better than what he called it. Can you believe that jerk called me a pet?!”







Chapter Thirteen





In Rupert Giles’ time in Sunnydale unfortunate timing seemed to have made itself his constant companion. Today was, sadly, no exception as the librarian took a sip of his bracing Earl Gray tea just as the last sentence left Cordelia’s mouth. Spine snapping to attention in shock, Giles, never a true multi-tasker, nevertheless managed to choke on the slightly sweetened liquid, dump the cup and its remaining contents in his lap, and half eject himself from his chair.



This time it was Cordelia whose jaw dropped in shock as the normally unflappable watcher had, what appeared to be, some kind of fit.



Sure, she’d been enormously offended when Angelus had used that particular term in conjunction with herself, but she understood that, in the grand scheme of things, if that was the worst thing the vampire ever did to her (and it most certainly was not), then she would have been let off lightly. So what on earth was giving Giles the coronary?



Whipping off his jacket and using it to blot up some of the tea quickly soaking through his pants, Giles rattled off a number of seemingly nonsensical words which Cordelia was fairly certain would cause blushes if she had any idea what they meant. Why the heck couldn’t Giles speak the kind of English a person could understand?



Cordelia would have been surprised to learn that despite being covered in his beverage of choice, the watcher’s crass language was inspired by her revelation and not his graceless maneuverings.

Finding his voice for words not of a risqué nature, Giles hectically questioned the girl.



“A pet? He called you his pet?”



“Yeah, I know, Giles. I was upset, too. In fact, if he hadn’t just been talking about killing me I would’ve -”



“Cordelia!” Although he had planned to let her story flow naturally, Giles broke in before she could work herself up and delay the desperately important questions at hand. “A pet. Are you sure those were his exact words?”



“Of course I’m sure. I’d hardly forget being compared to Lassie.”



Realizing that this may be much worse than any of them had imagined, Giles noticed that Cordelia’s neck was once again hidden from view; this time by a light, earth toned, gauzy scarf.



Wanting to do anything other than ask Cordelia this favor, Giles had no choice but to request that she remove her scarf and allow him to view the bite.



“Alright, Giles, but haven’t you been a watcher for like...ever? Surely you’ve seen two red dots before.”



Cordelia’s minimalist words did nothing to prepare Giles for the transfixing sight on her neck. Far deeper than a mere feeding bite, yet lacking the damage of an actual attempt on her life, Giles had the sinking sensation that what he was now starring at was the mark of Angelus.



In fact, in light of the vampire’s words to the girl, Giles had the sneaking suspicion that things were much worse than that and that she had, in fact, actually been claimed by the monster in the familiar guise of Angel.



What the Hell had Angelus been thinking? Comprehension struck Giles as a blow as he realized that, of course, he’d been planning to kill the cheerleader until she’d pulled that little trick with the lock. He smirked at the thought of the great and feared Angelus being duped by a teenage girl.



The sly grin quickly left his face as it occurred to him that while he might have been fooled the first night, it would be beyond the realm of credibility to believe that Angelus had left himself open to such trickery again. And yet here Cordelia sat, which seemed to indicate that the vampire had let her walk away, relatively unharmed.



Supporting this hypothesis was the fact that the vampire had ordered Cordelia to recount both encounters, in their entirety. This actually disconcerted Giles more than the happy fact that Angelus had let her live.



While Cordelia may be correct in her assumption that this was a ploy to distract the slayer, Giles couldn’t shake the fact that he was missing a more direct explanation. It’s true that this news would upset Buffy, but Angelus had not specified that she be told. In fact, according to Cordelia, the vampire seemed only concerned that she engage in this act of honesty here with him.



Seeing that this was upsetting the girl, he decided to return to his original design of allowing her to travel at her own pace through this trying narrative. Helping her to find her place in the course of events he redirected Cordelia’s attention.



“At this point you met with the A’toreal demons?”



Grateful to be away from questions of a biting nature, Cordelia quickly replaced her scarf and picked up in the general area in which she had left off.



“Yeah. And what’s up with their freaky eyes?”



Not giving Giles a chance to answer, ‘cause Lord knew he’d have a long ass explanation, she continued.



“Anyway, I didn’t like that whole “pet” thing from them anymore than I liked it from Angelus, so I told them I was more of a business asset.”



Almost two years fighting demons on an active Hellmouth, shoulder to shoulder with the slayer, it was ironic, thought the lightheaded librarian that it might be this one, lovely, young woman that would cause him to loose consciousness in a fit of incredulity.



Shock leaving him no other recourse than to interrupt, Giles asked the most pressing question since...since...well, since he’d last interrupted to ask her an important question.



“You denied Angelus’ claim in front of the A’toreal clan?!”



The more he heard of this tale, the harder Giles found it to credit the fact that Cordelia was here, in one piece, still breathing.



“No, not really. I just pointed out that I was the one who got their precious amulet for them.”



Cordelia paused for a moment and looked up at Giles. The vulnerability he saw reflected in her face tore at his heart.



“You know Giles, despite what people may think of me, I’m not stupid.” Ignoring his halfhearted attempts at a denial, Cordelia plowed ahead. “I knew that no matter what deal I made with Angelus he was still planning on killing me at the end of the night.”



It had been disturbing enough for Giles to imagine the predicament in which Cordelia had found herself when he could believe that she had been somewhat blissfully unaware of the danger she had been in, thinking herself protected by her “deal” with Angelus.



Now, realizing the terror that she must have felt the entire time, Giles had an even greater appreciation for his young charge and her astonishing ability to survive.



“I knew there wasn’t really a point in trying to give him a reason not to kill me. Let’s face it, he’d kill me on the slightest whim and never look back. So I figured the best thing I could do was to wait for a chance to escape, and then give him an excuse to let me go.”



“An extremely sound plan.” Giles said with honest sincerity.



“That’s because you haven’t heard the rest.”



Seemingly drained of her normal self-assurance, Cordelia’s gaze drifted away from the watcher’s, finding the floor and remaining there. Still and somber, her downcast eyes gave her the appearance of one on the verge of confessing some great sin.



“Angelus told me that the amulet was to prove to the demons that he didn’t have a soul. He said he needed their support because he was staging some sort of Hellmouthy coup.”



“I kind of convinced them that he’d never had a soul. I told them it had all been an act to gain power. I said that he’d told Buffy that he had a soul so that he could seduce her into helping him thin the Aurelius ranks. I let them think that Angelus had orchestrated the killing of Darla and the Master by playing on Buffy’s love. And I implied that he faked the soul loss to break the slayer so that she couldn’t kill him because he still might be her true love.”



Giles looked at the young woman, still focused on the floor, in absolute wonder. He wasn’t sure which he found most amazing - That her agile mind had been able to weave such a complex and effective fabrication in the midst of what must have been heart-stopping terror. Or the fact that one of his students had not only listened to what he said, but absorbed it and then used it in an appropriate way at the appropriate time. With the exception of Willow, he hadn’t been sure that he’d ever see the day.



“I’m sorry, Giles. I know that I helped Angelus, but -”



Desperate to relieve some of her obviously overwhelming anxiety, Giles quickly broke into her unwarranted apology. “Cordelia, you have absolutely nothing to either regret or repent in this situation. We should never have gone after the amulet so unprepared. We let our own personal issues with Angelus color or judgment.”



“Please, if nothing else, believe this. The fact that you were able to think so quickly on your feet is a credit to you, and should be, in no way, a cause for self-recriminations.”



Giles’ unexpected words of support drew her lowered gaze back to his in surprise. Cordelia felt tears sting her eyes at the acceptance and warm regard she saw there in the face of the man she’d viewed a thousand times, but had never really seen until this moment. Far more accustomed to the disappointment and derision so often reflected in the eyes of her parents, the unbounded concern she saw now aimed at her was like a soothing balm to her troubled soul.



But as lovely as that feeling was, it made her unease concerning the events of last night even greater. Still, she had no choice. After the fatherly display of concern she had just experienced she was even more determined to give Angelus no reason to harm the man in front of her. And so the nightmare of humiliation continued.



“I figured since I gave him the damn amulet he would leave me alone. But no, of course I had to get caught up in demon politics.”



“Demon politics?” Giles queried, wondering if there was to be any end to the strangeness of this saga.



“Yeah. Apparently the black eyed, necklace wearing demons wanted to make a big ol’ party out of getting their amulet back. So they had some kind of dinner for Angelus because, with their support, he seemed to be the uncontested leader of the Hellmouth. Talk about a crappy job.”



“And honestly Giles, what sort of self-respecting demons give banquets for other demons? I mean what kind of lame ass behavior is that for evil doing fiends? What’s next, satanic Tupperware parties? Not that I’m complaining, but we have to be on the most pathetic Hellmouth in history.”



Unsure how to answer that bit of utter nonsense, Giles wisely kept his own counsel.



“Well, I guess I’d made quite an impression on the Miss Manners demons; which actually is the only part of this whole thing that makes sense,” Cordelia interjected with a return of her natural self-confidence. “‘Cause they requested my presence at their little soiree.”



Still a bit unsure of how to respond, Giles managed a hesitant, “Are you saying that Angelus took you on a date?”



Cordelia remembered Angelus similar statement and her face tightened in vexation. Forcing the words out through clenched jaws, she corrected his erroneous assumption.



“It was not a date!”



“What? Oh, no. No, of course it wasn’t.” Giles hurriedly backtracked, seeing the girl’s understandable distress at the comparison of her time at the mercy of the Scourge of Europe to dinner and a movie with Xander. Although Giles himself had to wonder which of those alternatives would be the most disturbing. At least with Angelus one could hope for death.



Cursing himself silently for his insensitivity, he asked Cordelia to continue.



“Well, I was on my way into The Bronze. Of course he had to harass me when I finally get to do something non death inducing. He grabbed me and it was weird, because he was all flirty, and his face was waaaay to close to my neck for my liking.”



“He told me about the evil shindig, and made it clear that I had two choices - Go with him or death. Which really wasn’t much of a surprise since his options always seem to be something ultra-hideous and death. So I really didn’t have any choice. You see that, right?”



Giles could see that recounting the previous night’s events was becoming increasingly uncomfortable for Cordelia. Although he shuddered inwardly at what the next revelation would be, outwardly he rushed to reassure the agitated young woman.



“Of course you didn’t, Cordelia. You were right to go along with what he wanted and the proof of that is your presence here now.”



Despite the constant comfort of Giles’ positive affirmations, Cordelia still feared the repercussions of her full disclosure.



As she considered and discarded several ideas on how to ease into the subject she concluded that there was really no delicate way to say that she’d made out with a Buffy’s boyfriend’s power hungry, psycho alter ego in a dressing room.



Her teeth pressed into the smooth surface of her lower lip anxiously as she decided that, much like with cold water, it was best just to dive in. Sure, the shock hurt, but at least you got it over with all at once.



“I guess Angelus, the Joan Rivers of the Underworld, didn’t think I was dressed appropriately for a demon gala. Personally, I’m taking that as a compliment to my wardrobe. I mean, my outfit that night was so today it was almost tomorrow. Well, except that I have to keep adding these damn scarves to everything ‘cause some dead guys wont keep their pokey teeth to themselves.”



Giles cleared his throat to interrupt the coming diatribe on proper Hellmouth attire. “Yes, well, I’m sure that Angelus was quite callous in his lack of appreciation for your fashion sense, but if we might continue before the others arrive.”



The reminder of the impending arrival of the Scoobies was all Cordelia needed to steer her back on course.



“Anyway, he dragged me down to that leather store; you know the one on Forth and Palm? And of course you don’t know. You and leather - yeah, not so much.”



“So, he picked out this dress. Well, not really a dress, more like two leather handkerchiefs and some chains.”



Giles’ irritation at Cordelia’s allusions to tweed clothing dissipated instantly at the picture her words created in his head. Despite what his students might choose to believe, Giles was very much a normal male, and as such, the young cheerleader’s evocative words produced an automatic response that could only be described as truly disconcerting. Shaking the disturbing image out of his head, and remembering that, for all intents and purposes, Cordelia was much like any other victim of violent crime, he regained his focus on her words.



Said focus, however, promptly deserted him as he tuned in for the last bit of her sentence.



“...and then we may have kissed.”







Chapter Fourteen





Cordelia’s mortification seemed boundless, and crimson stained her cheeks as she wished with all of her might that, for once, the Hellmouth under the library floor would open at an opportune moment, instead of with it’s usual crappy timing, and swallow her whole before she had to expand on her previous statement.



“I’m sorry Cordelia. What was that?”



Damn worthless Hellmouth!



As Cordelia was cursing her rotten luck at not being immediately sucked into Hell, Giles was, for the first time since this conversation started, relaxed. Certain that there was no way that Cordelia could have said what his brain had obviously mistakenly heard; he sat back and waited for her to repeat her sentence so that his brain could process it correctly.



“I couldn’t help it, Giles. I swear. I just opened the dressing room door and he was all over me. He had his face in my neck again, and his hands - well, let’s just say they were wandering.”



“I told him not to bite me, but he said it was part of the last deal, so it was part of this one, too. And then he bit me, and his hands were...and his mouth...and oh, it was...”



While Cordelia lost herself in the apparently vivid memory of the moment, Giles quietly observed. He certainly didn’t need vampiric senses to see that she was clearly aroused by the mere recollection.



As the desire on Cordelia’s face was chased away by embarrassment at her behavior both of that night and here in this office, Giles was struck by the sudden realization that the girl had no idea of the bond she now shared with Angelus. She believed her actions to be merely wanton, not understanding that the more she was in the vampire’s company the more she would be compelled to touch and be touched by him.



That son of a bitch. It was becoming all to clear why Angelus was forcing Cordelia to engage in this intimate recitation. It wasn’t that he necessarily wanted the slayer or even himself, as Buffy’s watcher, to know about the ramifications of his claiming of the girl. No, the vampire clearly wanted Cordelia to be made aware of the, quite possibly dire consequences.



Whether Angelus was leaving the task of explaining this to the unsuspecting girl because he didn’t want to do it, or because the insensitive bastard wanted him to know, Giles was unsure. But whatever the demon’s reasoning, the fact remained that Cordelia had to be made aware of the grave circumstance in which she now found herself.



Pausing a moment to gather his thoughts, Giles removed his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose, and sighing as if the weight of the world was suddenly thrust upon him.



“Giles, it was just a little making out. I mean, true, it was with the undead, so major yuckage; but it certainly can’t merit a removal of the glasses and a sigh.”



Cordelia’s attempt at levity sailed past the watcher as he tried to marshal his thoughts and find the words to explain to her that her life had changed on a very basic, fundamental level.



“Cordelia, we, in this little group we’ve managed to form, fight the evils of vampires everyday. And yet, there are so many things regarding these demons of which you children remain unaware.”



Leaning back into the cushions of the sofa, Cordelia settled in, sensing a patented Giles lecture coming on.



“Creatures of evil, there is much that is still unknown, even to the Council, about these eternal beasts of darkness. Delineated as supernatural beings, they exist outside of the boundaries and restrictions of humanity.”



“Sustained by the blood they take from others and convert to their own, it is by this very blood that bonds are created within their community. These ties are of a mystical nature, and thus often beyond our understanding, but they seem to govern the instinctual behavior of those under their sway.”



“A sire bond, for instance links both childer and minions to their sire. As with all vampiric bonds it affects the weakest individual the greatest. Therefore between a sire and a childe, the childe would feel the stronger instinctual pull, and thus be at the mercy of the less affected sire.”



“Giles, look, I really do appreciate the how-to-win-friends-and-influence-vampires lesson, but-”



“Cordelia, the bonding works with humans, too.”



“Okay, I get it, lots of bondage. Eww, I mean -”



“Cordelia!” Giles hadn’t realized how loud he’d spoken until he saw the startled look on the brunette’s face. Although angry at himself for further traumatizing the girl, he knew of no other way of regaining her attention. Once Cordelia started on a given topic there was no stopping her.



Cordelia was slightly put out. Not that Giles had raised his voice, but because her no so subtle ploy of bringing the lecture to an early close had failed. She couldn’t help but wonder if she was ever going to get out of that office. ‘Cause really, once Giles started going on about something there was no stopping him.



“Cordelia, please try to pay attention. I know that this all seems dreadfully boring to you children, but it’s not without purpose. I believe that Angelus may have done more than just bite you. What you have alluded to as “window dressing”, I believe may actually be a mark of Angelus.”



Trying without much success to control her apprehension at the watcher’s words, Cordelia settled for merely camouflaging her doubts.



“Well, duh, Giles. Of course it’s a mark of Angelus; he’s the undead jerk who bit me.”



“When I say “mark”, I don’t mean an area that is altered to stand out from its surroundings. I mean it more in terms of a brand.”



Even though Giles had done things such as call forth demons in his misspent youth, nothing had ever seemed as scary as Cordelia Chase did in that moment as a killing rage swept across her face in response to, what he was fast becoming convinced were his very poorly chosen words.



At Cordelia’s terse, “Excuse me?” Giles jerked as if he’d been shot with his own crossbow, which he was starting to wish he’d left out.



“Ah, yes well, what I meant was... I mean to say... Dammit all Cordelia, this isn’t the time for delicacy. Vampires are possessive demons by nature and when they consider something to be theirs the mark it to warn off other demons who would seek to encroach on their territory.”



“While childer and minions are marked at the time of their turning, humans can also be marked. These marks are used to identify the human as either a servant or a...pet.”



Cordelia’s uneasiness which had been expanding with each word from Giles’ mouth, reached critical mass as that last, all too familiar phrase tumbled forth.



“Giles, I don’t care what kind of weird dental rituals vampires engage in. I’m no one’s pet and I haven’t gotten all bindy with Angelus. I would know if we had some kind of mystical thingamabob. If my instincts were all catawampus then I’d see it. Believe me, I know who Cordelia Chase is and if I started acting differently...”



The diminishing of Cordelia’s voice seemed to be in direct proportion to the widening of her eyes as she recognized just how out of character her behavior had been the night before. Hadn’t she spent the entire evening trying to figure out what the Hell was wrong with her? Well now she knew - That sneaky, underhanded bastard had worked some kind of bizarre, mystical mojo on her. God, just when you thought you couldn’t hate undead bloodsuckers any more one of them goes and tries to turn you into some kind of pervy love slave.



Giles watched understanding wash over Cordelia and waited for the hysteria - or the anger. After today he couldn’t be sure which emotion would burst forth from the unpredictable young woman.



“Well, this certainly explains the rest of the night.”



Hmmm. Of all the sentiments Giles might have expected, tears and fury being his first choices, thoughtful acceptance hadn’t even rated a mental mention.



“The rest of the night?”



Jerked out of her quiet reflection, Cordelia remembered her original purpose here and resigned herself to finishing her recital of the tragic farce which was her life.



“Yeah. I mean, I got all the touching. Guys are always about looking like they’re getting some in front of their friends. I doubt death changes them that much. Besides, hello! Major hottie here. If I was an evil dead guy I’d certainly want to spend an evening feeling me up. And isn’t that the disturbing thought of the day?”



“What I didn’t really get was all the bossiness afterwards. All the “do this” and “don’t do that”. Geez, who knew vampires had so many rules. Aren’t they supposed to be all devil-may-care?”



Not wanting to dwell on the specifics of “all the touching”, Giles instead focused on the bossiness. “What specific requests did Angelus make of you, Cordelia?”



“Ha!” Cordelia snorted at Giles’ suggestion. “I don’t remember any requests. But boy did the orders keep a comin’.”



“First he bought me that stupid dress and then told me I couldn’t ever wear it around other people, like the whole entire evil population hadn’t just seen me in it.”



“Then he tells me that I can’t be demon bait anymore. And it’s not like that’s my favorite thing to do or anything, but it’s still my job and we sort of got into it about that. ‘Cause sure, I know he’s got his reputation to protect and me getting eaten by some random demon might be an issue, but how much can it really affect anything. We haven’t even spent an entire day together, and I told him that he could avenge my death and come off looking like a major bad ass.”



“That’s about the time he started with the bruise making and told me I had to come drop all this stupidity in your lap.”



And with Cordelia’s words came clarity. A rare moment of enlightenment in this otherwise bewildering morning. Unlike Angelus’ most recent intrusions into their lives, this wasn’t even remotely about Buffy. The vampire wasn’t making sure that Cordelia told him everything so that the slayer would eventually find out and be rendered less effective. No, Angelus was making sure that he was aware of these events because the bastard wanted him to validate his claim and enforce his rules. And honestly, Giles could see no other choice.



“Well, as much as I hate to agree with Angelus in any matter, I do have to admit to some relief at the thought of you ceasing activities as “bait”.”



“What?!” The pain inducing quality of Cordelia’s screech was apparently not limited to vampires. “No way Giles. There is absolutely no way that I’m letting that idiotic corpse run my life. See, I don’t even want to do what he says, so maybe there is no stupid bond thing.”



“Cordelia, the claim doesn’t just scream “I’m a mystical bond” like a neon sign. It’s an instinctual tie that grows the more time you spend in each other’s presence.”



“While it’s not extremely rare for a vampire to claim a human, it is unheard of for the vampire to leave the human their independence. Therefore the bond tends to grow at an alarming rate. However, given the situation involved in the inception of this alliance, your bond should remain minimal do to a lack of exposure.”



“See, that just proves that this was all just for show. He doesn’t want any binding crap anymore than I do. After all, he’s only bugged me when he needed my help.”



“That may be true. Lord knows I pray that’s the case. But this in no way means that the bond will remain dormant. If Angelus decides to press the issue he can impel your connection to strengthen by his merely forcing prolonged contact between the two of you. This is to be avoided at all costs.”



“Cordelia, this is a gauntlet that Angelus has thrown down before us. We need not pick it up. In this case I think that compliance is our best course of action.”



“Giles, you don’t get it. Even if this bond is almost non-existent, if I just do everything he says then it might as well be in full force. My life is just that, my life. I can’t give that up. I won’t. And if I want I can wander around in any one of Sunnydale’s oh so many graveyards, slayer or no.”



The desperation in Cordelia’s voice was not lost on the watcher. Giles could clearly see that she was struggling to hold onto the control that she felt she might be losing as the ramification of Angelus’ “window dressing” sunk in. As much as he longed to help her hold on to that sense of self-mastery, he didn’t have that luxury and neither did she.



Hating to play on her tender emotions in no way deterred Giles from doing just that. This was too important to Buffy, to the safety of the Hellmouth, but most of all to the frightened yet brave girl in front of him.



“For some reason that is as yet unknown to us, Angelus has given us this brief respite that we are now enjoying. From what you’ve said today it probably has a great deal to do with his consolidation of power and position. But whatever his motive, this is the only chance we are likely to have to regroup and fortify our own defenses.”



“Your defiance of Angelus’ seemingly arbitrary orders is most certainly your right. But you must consider that rebellion in this matter will bring down the vampire’s wrath on us all. Any opportunity we have to prepare for the horrors to come at his hands will be lost.”



“Cordelia, I may not know you as well as I know the other children yet, but I do know that despite your need for independence I won’t soon find you wandering in any of Sunnydale’s cemeteries.”



Cordelia’s shoulders slumped as the weight of so many lives pressed down on her shoulders. Was this what it felt like to be Buffy, she wondered? She sympathized with the slayer, but still felt gypped on the superpowers deal. She made one last, whispered grab for her independence.



“How do you know?”



A small, sad smile touched Giles’ lips at the quiet question.



“Because no matter what the others may think, no matter what impression you may try to give, I know that you’re a good person who wants only to help. Otherwise, this matter wouldn’t have been worth arguing about with a demon who has no ends to the way he could have killed you.”



As her eyes met his Giles felt a pang of sorrow to see his own sad smile mirrored in her expression. Standing slowly as if her years had multiplied tenfold, she turned as she reached the door.



“Giles?”



“Yes, Cordelia?”



“You know that stuff about me being a good person who wants to help?”



“Yes, Cordelia?”



“Don’t let that get around.



“Yes, Cordelia.”







Chapter Fifteen





Rupert Giles was having one of those days. It was the kind of day that creeps in through your bleary eyes, stands behind them and slightly to the left, and stabs at your brain, repeatedly, with a rusty nail.



And those were the good parts.



After a grueling morning spent with Cordelia, navigating the mine field that Angelus had left in his wake, the afternoon had seen no improvement as the children gathered for the daily rundown of suspicious happenings in Sunnydale.



One would think that Giles would feel some measure of guilt, no matter how small, at the information he was now withholding from his slayer. These past few years had certainly expanded his capacity for that particular emotion. And yet, there was none to be found.



Although he believed that Cordelia was incorrect in her assessment of Angelus’ motives in regards to his ultimatum that she share her terrifying experiences with him, Giles did know that the young woman was accurate in her predictions of Buffy’s reaction to what had happened.



For as fearless as Buffy was as a slayer, she was still a teenage girl. More than that, she was a teenage girl suffering through her first heartbreak. As difficult as it would be for him to help guide Buffy through this situation under normal circumstance, the fact that her boyfriend was a vampire who lost his curse induced soul after sleeping with her on her birthday made any rational attempt at handling this on his part an impossibility.



But finally he was home. Back to his quiet, back to his journals, back to his scotch.



It was nights like these that Giles found that he missed Jenny the greatest. No matter how weary he was or how ancient he felt, her youthful presence invigorated him, pulling him out of old, established patterns and thrusting him into the new and unknown. It was, at times scary, but always a joyous challenge.



The worst part was that it wasn’t his anger that was keeping them apart. Of course, when he had first learned of her true identity his sense of betrayal had been fierce. But as time passed he found the he could sympathize more and more with her plight.



Jenny had felt that she had no choice but to remain silent regarding her true purpose in Sunnydale; that she was bound by duty and loyalty to her family. When her deceit had come to light, Giles had been upset that she had not come to him, chosen him over her other responsibilities.



But now Giles knew that, if he were simply librarian, without the burden of his watcher’s duties, he would forgive Jenny her deception in an instant and welcome her back with open arms.



But there was Buffy.



His young slayer had difficulty with the mere mention of the computer teacher’s name. A good hearted girl, Buffy was strong both inside and out. Yet Giles would be a rather poor watcher if he were unaware of Buffy’s slightly self-oriented outlook. It was fed by circumstances which conspired to place her consistently at the center of universally important events and a support system that looked to her constantly for guidance. But in a young woman who would most likely not live to see 20, this small flaw was easily forgiven.



And so he’d given up his budding relationship. Sacrificing it on the altar of duty, Giles now found that he knew exactly what had motivated Jenny’s decision...too late.



But he knew that even if he had understood immediately, it wouldn’t have made a difference. Buffy needed him and she needed to be away from Jenny. And so there would be no grand romance.



Somehow that truth was harder to swallow at night. However he could definitely wash it down with some of that scotch if he could just - find - those - damn - keys.



Finally locating them in his inner coat pocket, he sorted through them, trying to find the house key amidst those to various storage lockers for weapons and books.



Any progress he had made was impeded as a shadow fell across him, obscuring his sight.



“Hello, Rupert.”



The dark, melodic voice rippled over Giles’ frayed nerves with a timbre that would have been soothing had the watcher not been all too aware of the tortuous death that lay hidden in those dulcet tones.



Raising his eyes to meet the slightly smirking face of Angelus, Giles felt a certain amount of fear at the knowledge of what the vampire was capable, but he held himself in check, refusing to let terror overtake him.



“My, my. Aren’t you the brave watcher?”



Irritation rushed through Giles, pushing the fear back even further. Although there was always a risk of death when one stood mere feet from a demon, Giles knew that his demise was not Angelus’ intention this night. Obviously the vampire had come concerning Cordelia, and although that fact worried Giles in some part of his mind, the majority of his brain was too exhausted to work up a commensurate amount of distress.



“What do you want, Angelus?”



The watcher’s tired, resigned question pleased the vampire, knowing that he was responsible for wearing down this man’s soul. It was enough to make a demon proud, breaking a watcher and his slayer. But that was for another night. This night was about understandings.



Knowing that both Cordelia and Giles understood that the edicts he had laid down concerning the girl were to be followed in their entirety would allow him to finally leave this mess behind him. His position almost assured, he would soon be able to give his whole attention to crushing Buffy. But first this matter had to be settled.



“You know what I want, Rupert.”



“I know she came to you. I know she told you everything. She’d never take a chance with your life; that’s what made it such an effective threat.”



Angelus slowly started to circle the watcher. Knowing that he was no match for the heightened vampiric abilities of his opponent, Giles chose to remain still. That prudent strategy did not, however, calm the chill that crawled down his spine as the smooth words continued behind him.



“She must have told you how I bit her...more than once. Did she tell you about the dressing room? How her tight, perfect body was writhing, nearly coming apart in my arms?”



“Did she tell you that I claimed her?”



Having completed his circle, Angelus was once again looking down into the watcher’s eyes. The look of wicked satisfaction shining in the brown depths left Giles slightly breathless.



“No, of course she didn’t tell you that. She didn’t know. But you did, didn’t you, Rup?”



“So how’d you break it to her? How’d you tell her that I own her, that she’s my property, my pet?”



Giles ignored Angelus’ questions in favor of his own.



“That’s what this was all about, wasn’t it? Cordelia was wrong. It wasn’t Buffy. Oh, I’m sure you’d see it as a happy bonus if it hurt Buffy, but this was never about her. No, this was about having me do your dirty work - inform Cordelia of her new status, validate your claim.”



“What kind of vampire needs a watcher’s help to explain being claimed to a teenage girl? Apparently when your soul left it took your balls with it.”



Almost before the words left his mouth, Giles found himself thrown against his front door, pinned there by a very angry vampire whose amber eyes blazed hatred into his own.



“You would do well to choose your words with care, Watcher. Unless all of Sunnydale has invested in electric locks, you’re in a vulnerable position right now. If you think I won’t kill you, Rupert, you’re sadly mistaken.”



As he stared into the face of a demon who could end his life in a heartbeat, Giles found himself filled with the conflicting emotions of anger and bone-weariness. Having spent the day watching two confident, capable young women struggle to deal with the wreckage this vampire was making of their lives, Giles was too disgusted to be cautious.



“Actually, Angelus, I don’t think you’ll kill me. Oh, I’m sure you’ll try eventually, but not tonight. After all, if you kill me who will enforce your rules with Cordelia?”



“That’s why you had her tell me, right? So that I would moderate her behavior, make sure that she adhered to your commands?”



“She says that this was all about circumstance, not desire, and that may be true, but in your mind she’s still yours, still bound by your decrees, even if you don’t want her.”



Angelus’ features returned to their more palatable state, and he slowly released Giles, large hands smoothing the creases he had created in the watcher’s shirt. A smile touched his lips as he considered what he’d heard.



“I doubt that any action concerning Cordelia Chase is ever truly absent of desire. I mean, you see her everyday. In those skin tight pants, those short flirty skirts, that snug little cheerleading outfit. I bet you’re a walking hard on most days, eh Rupert? Did it make you all hot and bothered when she described my hands all over her, my fingers and fangs buried deep inside her?”



As anger and disgust warred for supremacy on Giles face and his mouth opened to unleash a tirade upon the vampire in front of him, Angelus swiftly cut him off.



“You know what, watcher, it’s probably best you don’t answer that. You’re right about a lot of things. You always were smart. Dull, but smart.”



“I don’t want to kill you tonight. I may not necessarily want Cordelia as a pet, but she still bares my mark, she’s still a possession of the Master of the Order of Aurelius. She can hardly go wandering around at night asking for demons to attack her. How would that look, letting a bunch of filthy animals endanger what’s mine and then leaving her to the protection of the slayer? No. Whether by chance or design, Cordelia is mine and she needs to act accordingly. And for that, you’re right; I do require your help.”



“Of course, if you don’t want to extend it I would understand. I could always just kill the girl and you. That would solve my problem, too. The choice is yours, Rup.”



Giles wondered at Angelus’ threat. While he could understand the postponement of his own death as the vampire’s desire to slowly break Buffy, he could not see the reasoning behind letting Cordelia live.



Although Giles was pleased that the girl seemed relatively safe for the moment, he knew that the expedient solution to Angelus’ unwanted claim would be merely to kill the young woman. That he was instead willing to go to these lengths to let her live caused no small amount of concern in the watcher’s mind.



“As you know, I have spoken at length with Cordelia today. She has agreed to cease patrolling with the others. She fully understands the consequences of such acts to both herself and others. Believe me, I explained the nature of the bond you now share, and she was in no way eager to strengthen it, even slightly, by her defiance and thus having to deal with you once more.”



Angelus’ pleased smile at Cordelia’s compliance turned into a scowl of irritation as the full import of the watcher’s words hit him.



Yes, Cordelia was going to be a good girl and follow orders, but only so she wouldn’t have to see him anymore. This was yet another attempt by the girl to avoid him, to avoid what he was to her. First his touches, then his orders, now his very presence - how far did this girl think she could push her denial of him.



If Giles was troubled by the growls accompanying the waves of gold flashing through Angelus’ eyes, it was nothing compared to the cold hand that gripped his heart at the vampire’s words.



“You know the girl’s not right, don’t you? Even accounting for the soul time, I spent a good 150 years as one of the most vicious vampires in history. I’ve marked humans before, had servants, pets. They’ve all been compelled to be near me, they’ve all needed me, craved my approval. But Cordelia she’s just a big wad of obstinance. Do you know she told me to find some dead women to be with so I would leave her alone? I’m telling you, she’s broken.”



The honest confusion on Angelus’ face was proof to Giles of the assertions that both the demon and the girl had made that the vampire’s intention was not to make Cordelia into his pet. Yet underneath the confusion Giles could sense the one idea that would be more dangerous to the young woman than any other - a sense of challenge.



Angelus truly didn’t understand why his claim was not having its usual potent effect. Right now he was satisfied with the idea that Cordelia was in some way faulty. Because the claim was not initiated under the usual circumstances of desire and bloodlust, Angelus was dealing with this in a fairly rational manner. At this time the situation lacked the emotional components and the physical proximity necessary to send either of them out of control. And so, except for setting a few guidelines, Angelus seemed willing to let the matter drop.



However, vampires were not notorious for the stability of their feelings. Were his puzzlement to drift more towards the obsessiveness inherent to his demon’s nature, Angelus could, indeed, present a dire threat to Cordelia. If he, even briefly, ceased viewing the girl as an anomaly and began envisioning her as an opponent over whom to prevail or a prize to be won, then they were all in serious trouble. For there was no way that they could allow Angelus to have the girl, and if he chose to exert his claim there was no way he would ever let her go.



Determined to solve at least part of this mystery in hopes of preventing or at least deferring the seemingly imminent peril to Cordelia, Giles pointedly questioned the vampire.



“Why? Why are you willing to let this go? Why did you allow Cordelia to live?”



“I didn’t know you were so anxious to see her dead, Rupert. Aren’t you guys supposed to protect people from vampires, not point out the flaws in letting them live?”



Giles chose not to rise to the bait. Waiting patiently for an answer, he was rewarded as Angelus continued.



“If Cordelia did her job correctly, then you know that the first night I didn’t “let” her go, she escaped. As for the second night, well honestly, the girl had done me a world of good in the demon community. She cleared up my pesky soul problem, explained away the still living slayer, and helped me secure a ruling position here in our hellish corner of the world. So I owed her. I’ve liked humans in my times, just not that many. But Cordelia, she’s...interesting. She’s a perfect body housing an endless array of fascinating contradictions.”



“When you’ve been around a while you begin to appreciate things that lie outside of the norm, things with depth that capture the attention and create a sense of intrigue. Those things are too few and far between to simply cast them aside.”



“Not that I wouldn’t kill her in an instant if I felt like it.” Angelus finished with a sharp smile.



Despite his last words, Giles was not comforted. Leaving aside the oddness he felt that a direct death threat against Cordelia would have actually been comforting, he focused instead on the already developing enthrallment Angelus seemed to have for the girl. Fortunately, he was either in complete denial or completely unaware of these, apparently, growing feelings.



This would work in their favor as Angelus would most likely cease seeking the girl out and the bond would fade. Giles hated to think what might happen with even a few more fleeting exposures.



During their discussion this morning Giles could see that Cordelia was far from unaffected by the bond between herself and Angelus. And while his admiration for her soared to new heights at her ability to conceal this fact from the vampire, he was increasingly worried about the outcome should further resistance be required.



Seeing the wisdom in bringing this discussion to a speedy end, Giles resumed his search for the correct key.



“Is that everything, Angelus?”



Angelus smiled in amusement at the watcher’s dismissal. It was like watching a zebra trying to stare down a lion. Cute, but ineffectual.



“Remember watcher, no matter the reasons, Cordelia Chase is mine. As such, she either does as I bid her or she gets punished. And actually, the punishment would be terribly pleasurable for one of us. I’m sure as smart as she is, Cordelia can figure out just which one of us that would be.”



And with that, the vampire faded into the night’s shadows and disappeared, leaving only his disquieting threats in his wake.





tbc – The Balcony