Series: LoveOdyssey
Disclaimer and all other info in previous parts
**The Shirikke demon mentioned briefly is taken from a story by Gem called "Destiny's Not-So-Favorite Son." It's a very neat story, and I just thought the demon's description was cool and I hate thinking up weird demon names so I used that one. Just wanted to say that in case someone recognized it.**
-The Seer gets a vision-

"So, we've got one more case in the 'solved' file." Cordelia said with a smile as she filed the case under "R" because the Shirikke demon had a razorbacked-tail.

"Yup, we sure do." Wesley said, erasing the finished case from the dry-erase board and looking at the two cases that were still there.

"Now, if we could only find the green, Slimer demon then everything would be great."

"Slimer?" Wesley asked in confusion, not up on cartoons on the American 80's.

Cordelia was just about to explain it to him when the door opened and their boss walked over towards them.

"Got the nest of vamps." Angel said without preamble as he walked over, covered in vampire dust. "There were only five of them in it, I thought you said there were more." The last was said to Cordelia.

"I thought there were, but it's hard to tell sometimes. All I get is flashes of…" She suddenly trailed off as her hands flew to her face.

Angel was halfway across the room and at her side in a millisecond, catching her before she could fall to the ground.

"Flashes of what?" Angel asked wryly a moment later as Wesley handed her a glass of water and a couple of aspirin.

Cordelia just looked at him, her brown eyes huge in her face. "Um,"

"What?" Angel asked worriedly. The last time she had been hesitant to tell him what she saw in a vision had been at Thanksgiving….

"It's, well, it's," Cordelia stammered as him and Wesley helped her to a chair.

"Buffy." Angel answered for her.

"Yeah, um. She's in trouble." Cordelia finished. "It's kind of a the-world's-going-to-end trouble."

"That all?" Angel said sarcastically.

"Actually, no. I saw that, but it was almost secondary. The main focus of the vision seemed to be her and some blond-haired guy."

"Riley." Angel said through gritted teeth.

"How, oh right. Thanksgiving. He's her boyfriend?" Cordelia said it half as a question, half as a statement.

"He wasn't at the time, but Willow said things looked good for them." Angel replied, still feeling the pain of the red-head's carefully worded statements.

"Yeah, well, I'd say things are really good." Cordelia responded.

"Did you hear anything they were saying?"

"Yeah, for some strange reason I did. It was nothing." She answered too quickly.

"What were they saying?" Angel stared her down.

"Nothing." She repeated, slightly scared as his eyes had a hint of gold in them.

"Cordelia." He said menacingly.

"You don't need to know."

"Yes, I do." Angel glared even harder at her.

"Buffy was saying that she had the worst track record with guys. That they all said they loved her but they really didn't because they left her in the end. She was also telling Riley about you, about the last guy she loved. She said she's so over him and never really loved him anyway and all she wants is Riley." Cordelia said in one breath, trying to speak too quickly for Angel to catch it all.

He, unfortunately, caught every word.

~I thought she knew~
~My world revolved around her~
~My love light burned for her alone~

"How could she say that?" Angel sat down in shock, trying to hide the fact that his world had just fallen apart. But his poker face was starting to crack.

"Maybe because you dumped her and left her and told her to move on?" Cordelia snapped, immediately grasping her head as her own raised voice hurt her ears.

"I gave up everything for her."

"She doesn't know that." Cordelia replied, while Wesley looked at him in confusion.

"She doesn't know about that day, you know that. That's how you wanted it. All she knows is that you said you loved her, you promised her forever, and then you took it all away from her."

~But she couldn't see the flame~
~Only myself to blame~
~I should have known~

"How do you know all that?" Angel asked as a solitary tear ran down his cheek.

"The day we graduated, well, Buffy was running the whole plan to blow up the mayor. You knew that. She was just, like, go go go, you know? Like she couldn't stop and think about anything, she just had to keep moving. Then, around lunchtime, she was just gone. Everyone was looking for her because Giles wanted to ask her something. I found her in the bathroom, crying her eyes out." Cordelia remembered.

Angel looked pained but didn't comment.

~She was my once in a lifetime~
~Happy ending come true~
~Whoa, I guess I should have told her~

Cordelia continued, "I asked her what was wrong, you know. What happened to her that she was crying. She said she had just talked to you in Giles' office, and you said you were leaving right after we got the mayor. She looked at me, and she looked so much like a little girl, Angel. She said, 'When did forever end?' I didn't know what she meant and I told her that, and she told me that you had promised to be with her and love her forever. She didn't understand how you could break that promise."

"I had to, Cordy. If I had stayed, you know about the curse." Angel whispered.

"So did she, Angel. She knew better than anybody. And she didn't care."

"I thought she understood." Angel said softly, looking up at Cordelia, as if pleading with her to understand.

~But I thought she knew~

"She didn't." Cordelia responded just as softly. "But that's not the point right now. The point is that she needs you, needs our help."

"Back to the Hellmouth." Wesley said with a groan.

"It's only about two in the morning, we should make it to Sunnydale before sunrise." Angel said as the three of them went out the door.

"Oh, joy." Cordelia was the one who voiced what all three of them were thinking.

Go to the next story She Used to Be My Girl

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