“You want to WHAT?” Cordelia gaped, staring at the two men in astonishment.
Angel sat at the small café table holding Cordy’s hand while Riley hung back a bit further, leaning against the nearby wall. It had been a week since the fight in the quad. Half the campus had heard about it, which was annoying at best. Anyone who saw Cordy while her eye was still healing gave her sympathetic looks, which only seemed to piss off Buffy even further. To the blonde’s credit (and Cordelia’s immense relief) she’d not said a word to her about it since. Acting class would have been a nightmare except Buffy had skipped both classes this past week. And thankfully, the blonde’s absence gave Angel the chance to officially ask Cordelia out.
“This is ridiculous,” the fair-haired boy muttered, shaking his head.
Angel shot him a scowl before looking back to Cordy and smiling, “It’s totally going to work!”
Cordy snorted at the boy’s ignorance, “Newsflash, Cupid! Buffy doesn’t want to be set up with anyone. She’s this like, fortress of solitude and frigidness.”
“This guy’s a specialist,” Angel assured her with a brilliant smile.
Riley rolled his eyes but remained silent. It wasn’t that he completely disagreed with Angel’s opinion of the petite blonde; she definitely needed to chill out. But constructing an elaborate plan just to date Buffy’s stepsister? Riley thought it was absurd.
“A specialist, huh?” Cordy considered, “Has he done this sort of thing before?”
Angel laughed, “No. But he’s highly motivated.”
Cordelia pushed away from Angel and leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms knowingly. “How much are you paying him?”
Riley snickered at the girl’s perceptiveness. Cordelia was sharper than he gave her credit for.
“Enough that he’ll keep at it until she cracks,” Angel supplied. “Besides, even if he can’t seduce her, she’ll at least be so busy trying to avoid him she won’t even notice us.”
Cordy shook her head, “Hello? I live with her! How is she not going to notice?” Angel started to speak before Cordelia cut him off, “And don’t you dare suggest that I go to your place. Eww, you live in a frat house!”
Riley once again laughed at the girl’s insight as Angel sighed, and ran a hand over his face. The darker man was clearly getting frustrated. “Well then, what do you suggest?” Angel asked after a moment.
“A decoy,” Cordelia said proudly.
“A what?” Angel asked, unimpressed.
“You know, a decoy,” Cordy repeated, “Like a fake boyfriend to keep Buffy off our scent or whatever.”
“I know what a decoy is,” Angel ground out, “I just don’t know if—“
“I like it,” Riley chimed in, moving from the wall to join the couple at the table. Cordelia was beginning to make Riley enjoy this plan.
“You would,” Angel rolled his eyes, “Soldier boy,” he added under his breath.
“Who do you have in mind?” Riley wondered.
Angel sent his friend an evil look. He did not appreciate Riley’s sudden enthusiasm. “Why? You wanna do it?” Angel asked defensively.
Cordelia gave Angel a playful smack on the arm as Riley started laughing. “As fun as that sounds, I’m not really in the mood to deal with Buffy willingly.”
“Too bad, that would have been fun to watch,” Angel grumbled.
“Great,” Riley began calculating, “So we drop a bee in this guy’s bonnet that you’re into him, you two start hanging out, Buffy catches on, wails on the boy while you two sneak away and live happily ever after.”
Cordy tilted her head as if imagining Riley’s narrative in her head while Angel sat hunched over, shaking his own head in disagreement.
“I don’t like it,” Angel said.
Cordy placed her hand back onto Angel’s and sent him a smile, “Don’t worry, nothing will happen.”
“Oh I know that,” Angel dismissed her promise carelessly, “I mean I think the plan is stupid.”
Cordelia huffed and relinquished Angel’s hand once more, “Gee, thanks.”
“No!” Angel backpedaled, reaching for Cordy’s hand again, “I mean, he shouldn’t be a decoy boyfriend…he should be a decoy….tutor!”
“A what?” Cordy and Riley asked in unison.
“You know, like a study buddy or whatever,” Angel explained.
Riley nodded, “That’ll keep Buffy guessing without fully knowing what’s going on.”
Angel agreed, “Exactly and between the confusion and Spike—“
“Wait, what?” Cordelia interrupted.
“What?” Angel asked.
“His name is Spike?” Cordelia squawked, “You’re trying to bait Buffy with some special, magical guy named Spike?”
Riley looked to Angel for an answer to this one. Spike was really more Angel’s friend than Riley’s. In truth, Riley hated Spike. If he had to choose between Buffy’s wretchedness or Spike, he’d probably take his chances with Buffy, but that only proved why Spike was definitely the right choice for this crazy idea.
Cordelia pursed her lips and tapped her foot impatiently for an explanation before Angel finally spoke.
“So…what poor schmuck gets to be the tutor?”
* * * * * * * * * * *
“Xander!” Willow called out, seeing her friend across the courtyard.
The goofy boy turned and waved to the redhead walking toward him. Beside her was Tara, Willow’s girlfriend.
“Hey ladies,” Xander chirped. “How are my two favorite les—“
“Don’t finish that thought,” Willow warned him. Tara managed a small giggle in spite of the potentially immature nature of the boy’s comment. Tara knew he didn’t mean anything by it, and indeed Willow knew it too, but the redhead had been irked by everyone’s fascination with her sexuality since she’d come out. Had it really been that big of a surprise? Was it really that big of a deal?
“My bad,” Xander said, miming zipping his mouth shut.
“How have you been?” Tara asked the boy.
Xander shrugged, “It’s been a crazy year already.”
Tara laughed as Willow took a seat in the grass, the other two following suit.
“It’s only been a week!” Tara teased.
“School works in mysterious ways,” Xander sighed. “How are you girls holding up?”
Willow shook her head and began digging through her backpack to reveal the source of her concern. Tara smiled and started rubbing soothing circles over her girlfriend’s back.
“Willow’s acting class is tackling Shakespeare,” Tara informed the boy.
Willow shot Xander another painful look as she let the multiple scripts fall onto the ground.
Xander chuckled as he picked one up and read the title aloud, “Taming of the Shrew”, he mused, “That crazy ol’ Billy Shakes.”
Tara laughed as she gently took the script from him. Xander busied himself with perusing the other scripts while Willow took out her notebook.
“Ya hear about the catfight out on the quad last week?” Xander asked after a moment.
Tara, still flipping through the pages of the play, shook her head absently. Willow looked up with wide eyes, “Yeah, Buffy hit Cordelia?”
“Oh yeah,” Xander nodded, “Flattened her in one punch.”
Willow’s face contorted into something like dismay, “I can’t believe her!”
“So say we all,” Xander sighed.
Tara had looked up at the mention of someone getting hit and was searching between the two old friends for more information before finally speaking up, “Who’s Cordelia?”
“New girl,” Willow supplied, “She’s in my acting class…along with Buffy…” Willow added with a groan.
“A stone cold fox,” Xander chimed in.
Tara shook her head in amusement at the boy as Willow rolled her eyes, “Use your words like a big boy yet?” the redhead teased him.
Xander gave Willow a pointed look, “Nope,” he explained, “But just give it time.”
“Buffy hasn’t been in class all week,” Willow said suddenly, “I wonder if something happened.”
“Yeah, like back in prison,” Xander chuckled.
Tara furrowed her brow, “Buffy’s been in prison?”
Willow gave her girlfriend a sympathetic look and shook her head, much to the relief of Tara.
“M-m-maybe she dropped the class?” Tara considered, stuttering slightly.
“No, she’s still on the roster,” Willow explained, “I think she’s just avoiding Cordelia at all costs.”
“Good,” Xander huffed.
“Maybe she’s embarrassed?” Tara offered, “Y-you know, what with the h-h-hitting and all?”
Xander laughed ungracefully at the thought of Buffy being embarrassed by her behavior, though Willow considered her girlfriend’s words more thoughtfully.
“That’s unlikely, sweetie,” Willow said.
Tara gave a small shrug as Willow placed a chaste kiss on her cheek. Tara, was one of the blessed souls on campus who had never actually encountered Buffy or her wrath. It was almost refreshing; a naïve perspective on just how awful Buffy really was. Tara always saw the good in people, it was one of her greatest virtues. Xander adored Tara for how she loved Willow, and never seemed to judge him or his goofy antics. Willow of course loved Tara for all that and much more.
Xander leaned back and sprawled out onto the lawn, using his backpack as a pillow as the two girlfriends sat quietly reading their respective books. It was a companionable silence, and the trio appreciated the calm downtime. Unfortunately, it didn’t last long.
A menacing shadow suddenly loomed over Xander’s resting frame, blocking the sun. The two girls looked up to see the lumbering figure of Angel peering down at the smaller boy.
“Hey Liam—“ Willow started before correcting herself, “I mean, Angel.”
“Hey Willow, I need a favor,” the tall man started, “Could I speak to you?”
Willow shared a questioning look with her friends before shrugging, “Sure what’s up?”
“Umm, could we speak in private?” Angel asked again. Willow nodded and stood, moving away from her resting spot to talk with the young man.
Xander sat up at this, shooting the guy a suspicious look as Tara studied his body language in her quiet, observant way.
“So…what’s going on?” Willow wondered again.
“You’re not a big fan of Buffy Summers either so I’m gonna be totally honest with you, okay?”
Willow gave him a skeptical look but encouraged him to continue with a nod. Angel took a deep breath and sighed. He had altered the plan slightly, deciding he didn't quite like the idea of a male tutor. When he racked his brain long enough, he'd come up with Willow. It was perfect. And though this particular female liked women, the point was that Cordelia liked men, hence why male tutor equaled badness.
“Cordelia and I have sort of started seeing each other and we want to keep seeing each other but it’s nearly impossible with Buffy in the way so, I need you to pretend to be like, a tutor for Cordelia.”
Willow’s eyes widened as she took in Angel’s elaborate news, “Umm, well…Cordy’s already asked me about helping her with understanding Shakespeare so I guess I could—“
“Oh no,” Angel cut her off, “Your tutoring Cordy is just a cover.”
Willow mouth gaped for a moment before shutting again abruptly. Willow wasn’t entirely keen on getting tangled in this mess, until another thought suddenly occurred to her. “Okay,” she said with a friendly smile.
Angel laughed with relief and hugged the girl before grabbing her hands and shaking them both, “Awesome. Just give me a call or slide me a note during class if you and Cordy ever decide to study at her place. That way I can sneak over undetected.”
Willow furrowed her brow in obvious disapproval but quickly recovered and nodded to the boy, “You got it.”
“Awesome,” Angel repeated giddily as he started to walk away before stopping and turning back abruptly, “Oh, and don’t worry about Buffy. I’ve got an insurance policy!” he added with a wink before exiting for good this time.
Willow stood in her spot for a moment longer, contemplating the strangeness of this whole ordeal before finally returning to her friends, still lounging on the grass.
Tara looked up at her girlfriend with a concerned expression, “Everything okay, honey?”
Willow nodded absently as Xander piped up, “What’d that oaf want?”
Willow wasn’t quite sure how to begin, until her previous thought returned to her once again. “He wants me to pretend to tutor Cordelia so she and he can date without Buffy realizing it.”
Tara remained pensive while Xander looked outraged, “What?” the boy shrieked, “Him and Cordy?”
“But not to worry, Xan,” Willow assured him, “I have a great idea.”
“Willow,” Tara softly chided. She didn’t know all that the redhead was conjuring in her mind, but it didn’t matter. Tara didn’t like meddling in other people’s affairs. Especially when it came to matters of the heart. It was just too dangerous, and cruel.
“No, this is great!” Willow whined, “Xander, why don’t you show up instead?”
Xander gave Willow a confused look, “But isn’t that ya know, of the bad what the whole Buffy part of the equation?”
Willow shook her head, ‘No, no. I’ll just tell Cordelia to meet me somewhere to study, you show up instead, Buffy never finds out and I’ll give Angel the wrong location!” Willow beamed proudly, “ See? It’s perfect!”
Xander didn’t fully grasp the basics, but he was pretty sure it all worked in his favor.
“Willow, I like the way you think,” he said with a grin.
Tara clutched Willow’s arm protectively, “Sweetie, are you sure this is a good idea? Getting involved? Getting Xander involved?”
Willow dismissed her concern with a wave of her hand, “It’s fine, Tara! Besides, Angel said he has a Buffy-proof insurance policy.”
Xander chuckled at the thought, “Wonder what that looks like…”
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Intense blue eyes studied the reflection in the glass. The newly bleached head of hair glowing in the sun. It wasn’t what he’d normally do with his hair; platinum blonde and slicked back, but it wasn’t a half bad look on him, the man decided. He turned to each side, striking a pose as he examined his physique in his new wardrobe as well. Tight black t-shirt, tight black jeans and beaten, black combat boots. Yeah, he looked tough. And more to the point, he looked scary.
“Something’s still missing…” he thought to himself as he simply continued to stare at his image, waiting for his lumbering employer to show.
When Angel had called him and told him the deal, he thought the ponce was off his nut; asking him to deal with some feisty bird so he could date the chit’s stepsister? What a load of bollocks. But the git was paying him, and any girl that could strike terror into the heart of Liam “Angel” O’Connor couldn’t be all that bad.
A car door shutting alerted him to Angel’s sudden presence. He spun around and fixed his mouth into a knowing smirk as the larger man approached him, rolling his eyes at his friend’s new appearance.
“Spike, what the hell is this?”
Spike chuckled and moved to pinch Angel’s cheek, “Hello to you, Peaches.”
Angel swatted the man’s hand away and stepped back to observe him once more, “I told you to look intimidating!”
Spike clicked his tongue and looked down at his attire, nodding, “Yeah, still needs something, doesn’t it?”
Angel clenched his fists in frustration, “You look like Billy Idol!”
Spike pursed his lips in confusion, “So you’re saying, what? Too sexy?”
Angel paced in a short circle for a moment before grabbing Spike by the arm and pulling him toward the car, “Just—Let’s go.”
Spike ripped himself out of Angel’s grasp and shoved the taller man with a pointed finger to the chest, “Don’t get pissy with me, Peaches. Remember who needs who here,” Spike warned.
Angel sighed, “You’re such a pain in the ass.”
Spike laughed, “Yeah, but that’s exactly why you’re paying me, innit?
Angel managed a dry chuckle, “Just keep Buffy out the way.”
Spike nodded and mock saluted him, “Ay yi, Captain Forehead!”
Angel rolled his eyes and started for the driver’s side of the car once again. “You’re coming to my class today, right?”
Spike waved him off, “Yeah, yeah. Don’t get your knickers in a twist…I’ll be there…” he dismissed the man’s panic as he made for the passenger side.
Suddenly, Spike noticed something in the store across the street. Angel noticed and looked over his shoulder in hopes of seeing what had caught Spike’s attention.
“What?” Angel wondered, “What is it?”
“Something,” Spike muttered before looking back at Angel. “I’m gonna need an advance.”
Angel’s eyes widened, “What? What the hell for?”
“Just give me the cash, would ya?”
Angel grumbled as he aggressively reached for his wallet and threw it at Spike.
The blonde started laughing as Angel opened the car door and slumped into his seat petulantly.
“Be right quic—“
“Just shut up and hurry,” Angel pouted without looking at the other man.
Spike smirked and sauntered off across the street, happy to burn the cash inside Angel’s stuffed wallet.
Twenty minutes later, Angel was snapped out of his daze by his wallet being thrown into his lap. His significantly much lighter wallet. He glanced down to scrutinize the slim remains as Spike slid into the passenger seat and shut the door.
Angel looked back up to see the cause of his nearly empty billfold, grinning like the cat who ate the canary and now sporting a floor length leather duster.
“That’s what you bought?” Angel fumed.
Spike held out his arms to inspect his new purchase, “Beautiful innit?’ He cooed, “A pretty penny she was but, all’s fair…”
Angel’s face felt warm, he was having trouble breathing. If he didn’t calm himself down soon, his frustration with his insufferable conspirator would give way to rage and then Spike would be dead…and that didn’t bode well for his plan.
Angel stuck the keys into the ignition and shifted into drive.
“You better do your job or I’m gonna use that coat to suffocate you.”
Spike just chuckled as they headed back to campus.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Here's the third chapter! Updates are happening quickly at the moment! Super inspired! Spuffy action is right around the corner, so stick with me! Thank you again to everyone who has reviewed so far!
Chapter End Notes:
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