Title: Chained To You
Author: Tracy G
Email: sissa_003@yahoo.com
Summary: Buffy and Willow visit Cordelia in LA.
Spoilers: None that I know of.
Disclaimer: Joss owns everything Buffy, I own the plot.
Notes: Doyle's in this. He's too cool not to be.
Notes 2: This takes place during a different time line. Everything that has happened on Buffy or Angel hasn't happened in this. Also I got the idea for this while I was watching an episode of Hercules.

Part Four


Cordelia and Willow walked into Angel Investigations at around ten o'clock the next morning. Cordelia immediately started looking chairs, desks, and rugs. "No signs of struggle." She dropped the corner the of the rug. "No dust piles. I'd say they never killed each other, but we haven't check the apartment yet."

Cordelia went downstairs to find Buffy and Angel. Willow stayed upstairs to straighten up the mess Cordelia had left behind, then went down stairs to find Cordelia.

"What are you doing?" Willow asked when she found her peeking into Angel's bedroom.

"Shh!" she hissed, motioning for Willow to come take a look. "I think our plan is working."

Buffy was laying on her side, with her head on Angel's chest and her arm draped over his stomach. Angel had his free arm around her waist holding her close.

Willow beamed. "Finally one of my spells is working out for the best."

"Should we wake them?" Cordelia asked.

"No, let's just let them sleep," Willow said as she turned and headed for the stairs.

"Where's Doyle?" Willow asked, looking up from the filing cabinet. She had spent the last hour and a half sorting through the mess Cordelia had made of the filing. "Shouldn't he be here by now?"

"Yeah, usually," Cordelia mumbled, not bothering to look up from the fashion magazine open in front of her on the desk. "Unless he's hung-over or something. I told him he drinks to much but he never listens."

"So, what's the deal with you two? It's obvious you like each other."

"We do," Cordelia answered.

"Then why aren't you dating?"

"I'm waiting for him to ask me out."

Willow laughed. "You can't ask him out?"

"I like watching him squirm when he's trying to work up the nerve."

Willow chuckled and shut the drawer of the filing cabinet. "I'm done here."

"Thanks," Cordelia said. "I'm horrible with the filing."

"Yeah," Willow agreed. "I've noticed. Considering you had Mr. Benson filed under 'J'."

"J. Jerk."

Willow laughed and looked at the clock on the wall above Cordelia's desk. "It's almost 11. Maybe you should give Doyle a call. Maybe something happened."

"I doubt it," Cordelia said picking up the phone, "but I'll call anyway." She punched in Doyle's number and listened to it ring.

His answering machine picked up after the fifth ring, but instead of Doyle's usual message there was another one:

"Listen up, Angel. I've got your friend, Doyle, isn't it? If you want him back alive, you'll be at the docks alone with the gem."

Cordelia dropped the phone back on it's cradle. "It's Spike. He's got Doyle."

"Come on, you guys, wake up," Willow said shaking Buffy's shoulder.

Buffy just mumbled something intelligible, and tightened her hold on Angel.

"Look out," Cordelia ordered, coming into the room with a glass of water. "I know about Buffy, but Angel sleeps like the dead. This always wakes him up."

"Cordelia, he *is* dead. And are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Yep. I do it all the time." Cordelia smirked as she tossed the glass of ice cold water on the two sleeping forms.

"What the..." Buffy screeched as she and Angel bolted upright.

"Hell!?!" Angel finished for her.

"Works every time," Cordelia told Willow.

"What do you want, Cordelia?" Angel growled.

"Yeah, and did you really have to throw water on us to get it?" Buffy complained, pushing her wet hair out of her face.

"It's Doyle," she told them. "He was late so I called hm." She handed Angel a piece paper. "This was on his machine. It's from our dear friend Spike. He must have tricked Doyle into inviting him in."

Angel's eyes scanned over the paper. Buffy leaned over his shoulder and read it too.

"Damn it!!" Angel yelled, crumbling the paper and throwing it acrossed the room.

"What are we going to do?" Buffy asked.

"Give him what he wants."

"How? I mean, it says to come alone. You can't exactly do that," Buffy said indicating to the cuffs. "What if he gets mad and.... does something bad?"

"He won't," Cordelia answered, "because we're giving you two until sundown tonight to work out your problems and get rid of the cuffs."

"And if we don't," Buffy challenged.

"Well, I'll go instead."

"No, you won't."

"Yes, I will."

"Yeah, she will," Angel said glancing over his shoulder at Buffy. "It's no use arguing with her. She won't listen. It's a waste of time and energy."




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