A Happy Ending?
NINA
Nina allowed her eyes to slowly close, shutting out all the amplified noises that were pushing for space in her mind. She only had a hour or so before the sunset and she was already feeling the effects of the change in it preliminary stages. Nina felt Angel's hand casually stroking her hair, his fingers idly interweaving themselves with her blonde locks while his other hand held up the book he was reading.
They always tried to keep the days quiet and peaceful during the full moon. It actually seemed to calm Nina down when she was in wolf form, so in a bid to help Nina in any way he could, Angel would turn the phone off, lock the doors and choose to stay with her during the days and watch over her during the night.
Nina shifted her weight, slightly adjusting the position of her head in his lap so that she could look up at him from where she was lying. He smiled down at her, carefully moving a small strand of hair that had fallen across her face before glancing towards his watch.
"Are you ready?"
Nina sighed as she slowly sat herself up.
"As I'll ever be." Angel leant over and gently kissed her as he took her hand. They walked in silence, moving through the hotel towards the basement. Nina knew Angel hated this part. The both did, but this was the last night of the full moon so this was the last time they would be doing the dreaded long walk downstairs until next month.
As they stepped down the stairs towards the large, steel cage, Nina felt Angel squeeze her hand reassuringly. He knew her completely and knew exactly how to tend to her nerves before the transformation.
They had been living together for ten months now, ever since she'd fallen… quite literally into his arms whilst using the sewer as an escape route. It had been difficult and incredibly awkward at first… Angel had been a broken man, his friends were gone along with the hope that once shone brightly in his eyes. Nina had had to fight to be part of his life again, he had been so scared to let anyone else in for fear of losing or hurting them, but somehow she'd found a way to be there for him, and slowly he allowed himself to open up his heart to her.
Together, Angel and Nina had re-opened Angel Investigations and while business was not exactly worth coming, it was slowly building. Nina had put her art degree to use and had come up with some new flyers and calling cards, and now the word was out… Angel Investigations was back in business, helping the helpless.
As Angel slowly closed the cage door behind Nina, she turned to him and managed a small, but somewhat unconvincing smile.
"Go on back up. I'm fine, plus the idea of you seeing me transform always gives me the jitters." Nina smirked at Angel as she watched him roll his eyes.
"I know, I know. It's a girl thing. Now go. I'll be fine… and you never know there might be some evil a brewing… besides me that is."
ANGEL
He didn't leave immediately. He never did.
The constant thought that there might be something he could do haunted him at these times. He had made the full inspection earlier while she was in the shower. He never did it in front of her for fear that his anxiety for her might be contagious...but he did it regularly just the same. Checked the room, checked the cage, checked it all out over and over to be sure that she would be safe. No sharp corners, no way to escape.
Her control over the wolf had increased. At least, that was his hope. She attributed her more peaceful wolf states more to Angel and to their carefully calm routine before her change. Angel felt sure that the safe haven they had created for themselves helped, but the fact that she seemed to enjoy and need the safety so much had begun to cause him more worry. Worry that he had to carry alone.
For he knew better than anyone, that he was not safe.
When their eyes met, he felt his eyes soften, the unasked question so clearly hung between them that he may as well have said it out loud. She knew the look and knew the thoughts that accompanied it. Her answer was a patented Nina crooked smile as she turned her back and began to get comfortable. Her way of telling him she would be fine. The two of them had developed a language of their own during the past 10 months, a language built upon body language, subtle facial expressions that others would miss, and, interestingly enough, on scent. He was hyper-aware of her breathing, her moods, of everything about her. He felt responsible for her - for her safety, yes, but so much more than that. Her smile had become like sunshine to him. He had never known how bright it could be, never appreciated it enough when he was living. Now he had another chance and he wanted the days to be full of sunshine. She had taken a chance on him when he had nothing. He would do his best to keep her from seeing that it had all been a mistake.
He wasn't the man she thought he was.
The stairs creaked underfoot as Angel ascended, leaving Nina behind in the confines of her cage. As he made his way upstairs, the thoughts he had kept hidden began to make their way to the surface. As the sun began to sink below the horizon, Angel left his happiness and hope behind him, temporarily locked away in a sturdy cage. Now came the full moon. The time for monsters to come out.
The main lobby was quiet and dark. For a moment, he thought he saw a brief flicker of white. It caught his eye briefly, then was gone. He moved cautiously further into the lobby, his senses on red alert for any sign on foul play. Some scattered paperwork flitted playfully across the room, making tiny circles like a child-sized tornado. The door to the garden was slightly ajar and the breeze must have found the paperwork he had left stacked up, waiting to file.
Once the door was shut firmly, he began picking up the scattered sheets of paper. He felt his expression harden as he noticed a certain theme to the papers that had found their way out into the open. All the paperwork had been locked securely in his office. Only he knew the combination for the small safe...and he was almost certain that he hadn't opened it all weekend. But here they were - the bills and warning notices that he had kept locked away. Now was the time to deal with them, now - while Nina was otherwise occupied.
Once the papers were gathered, he stooped down once more and looked at his safe with a frown. There it stood, just as he remembered it. Shut tight. Locked. He dialed the combination quickly and opened it too fast, sending the black heavy door banging into his desk. That would surely scar the wood. He was acting as if he expected something to jump out of the safe and attack him.
To be honest, he had expected just that. The dreams were taking their toll. Dreams...and other things, he thought with a sigh as he stuffed the bills back into the safe. A howl echoed through the hotel and he jumped slightly, the motion knocking him off-balance just enough that his hand slid deeper into the darkest recesses of his desk safe, until he brushed up against something.
A VHS tape marked only, "Audition," and a plain manilla envelope that felt mostly empty. He blew the dust off the tape and tossed it on his desk, he'd open the envelope first before deciding if he needed to use Connor's old television set to view the tape.
If it had stayed in here this long, how important could it be?
The envelope held only a small contact sheet of photos... photos of a smiling brunette in slightly different poses. Head shots of Cordelia. The VHS was tucked safely under his arm and he was halfway to Connor's room before the echo of Nina's howl faded into the darkness of the still hotel.