Hyperion, Thursday night
Angel had been coming up into the basement when the portal hit.
Sadly this was not something that was hugely unusual for him, given that he lived in Los Angeles and all. What was unusual was that when the portal closed it left Angel right where he was, in the basement of the Hyperion hotel.
It was anticlimactic to say the least, but Angel decided to chalk it up to some new Halliwell spell that hadn't been perfected yet. Or Logan touching something he shouldn't. Possibly a Halliwell. Either way Angel figured he could deal with this problem with a stern and in no way pouty or grumpy scowl and then go on about his business.
That was when he opened the door to the lobby and found himself confronted with a scream, a hug, and a cry of "You're back!"
Sadly this reaction was not the norm, much though Angel's fantasies involved Logan greeting him this way with or without clothes. Also this person, though familiar, wasn't exactly someone Angel was used to seeing when he came home.
"Cordelia?" he asked. Then, as long as he was focusing on important matters, he added, "What happened to your hair?"
"Angel," a British voice said this time. "You've returned early. Is everything all right?"
Angel took a second longer to put a name to a face. "Wesley?" Pause. "What happened to your hair?"
Wesley drew himself up rather stiffly. "I've been growing it out. Though I don't see how that's germaine to the discussion."
"You should stop," Angel advised him. He looked around. "Where is everybody?"
"Gunn's getting food and - big shocker - Fred's up in her room and refuses to come out," Cordelia said. She frowned and grew thoughtful. "Good thing she's got an attached bathroom."
Angel stared at her. Then Wesley. Then back at Cordelia again. "Who?"
"Winnifred Burkle?" Wesley said. There was a slight note of testiness to his voice but that was possibly due to him still being British. Which was to say that it made a very small difference compared to Wesley's normal voice. "The girl you - we rescued from Pylea?"
Angel was going to ask what a Pylea was, then decided he'd skip ahead to the more cruical information. "Where's Logan?"
"Who?" Wesley asked.
"Logan," Angel repeated. Off of their blank looks he said, "Echolls? Lives here? Just turned 21 even though with the fake IDs it was mostly a formality? For that matter where's Veronica and Bel?"
"Since when do you know girls named Veronica and Belle?" Cordelia asked.
"So you went to Vegas like I told you to," Gunn said as he came into the lobby with bags of takeout in his hands. "Told you strippers fix everything."
"They're not strippers!" Angel snapped.
"Oh God." Cordelia covered her face with her hands. "Please tell me you didn't fall for the line about them being 'exotic dancers'. As skanky as your other you is, don't you know better than that? And since when are you hanging out with hot girls?"
"Bel is not a hot girl!" Angel said.
"But Veronica is?" Gunn asked, hopefully.
"Yes," Angel said, then caught himself. "I'm not hanging out with her."
"Belle then?" Gunn asked.
"No, Logan," Angel said, and then it was his turn to facepalm. He could feel the wave of "WHAT?" coming towards him, so he head it off by saying, "We work together. Angel Investigations. That's why you guys are here, right?"
The three of them exchanged a look, then Wesley spoke. "Angel, did something happen while you were away?"
"I didn't go anywhere!" Angel said. He gestured towards the basement to prove it. "I went out, I killed some vampires, I came back to the hotel, went through that portal and here I am."
It was Wesley's turn to stare for a long moment. Finally he said, "Pardon me, but what was that second to last part again?"
***
"I must say this is rather unusual," Wesley said, after Angel finished telling them his story.
"No kidding." Cordelia looked at Angel incredulously. "You went to high school? On purpose?"
"I was referring to Angel's appearance here," Wesley said. He sat back in his chair. Which was really Angel's chair since it was behind his desk and all but Angel was in more of a standing mood anyway. "I wonder if our - that is to say, the Angel we are familiar with, has been placed in your world?"
Angel tried to imagine another version of himself with Logan and the others. He tried to imagine Logan knowing the difference before physical contact was made. He then wondered if staking your alternate universe self counted as suicide. "Not if he knows what's good for him."
"Think Angel did it?" Gunn suggested. He stretched his hand out to indicate someone going far, far away. "Maybe when he went on his retreat he really retreated. Like to another dimension."
"So soon after Pylea?" Wesley replied. "That doesn't seem likely."
"Call him," Angel suggested.
"Right, because you're so known for picking up a phone even when you have a cell with you," Cordelia replied.
"He might if he's in my dimension," Angel said.
"We get inter-dimensional long distance with our calling plan?" Gunn asked, looking at Wesley.
"Not that," Angel said, meaning his landline. "My phone. Normally it's in my - "
And then Angel shut up because the next words were "coat pocket" and Angel, who never liked talking to begin with, liked it even less when talking only proved how stupid he was currently being. Instead he quickly patted down his coat and pulled out his Blackberry.
"What's that?" Cordelia asked, sitting up so she could see.
"A phone," Angel said. He tried pushing the buttons to call Logan, then Veronica, then the office line. He had no luck with any of them. "Damn."
"Well, you are seriously out of range," Gunn pointed out.
"It shouldn't matter," Angel said. He tried a few more numbers - even Parker's on the odd chance that Fate felt like being particularly mean - and still had no luck. "Bridge did something to it."
"Your mobile has been affected by a bridge?" Wesley asked, with the sort of tone that indicated he felt that perhaps Angel's brain had been affected by a bridge. Possibly by being hit by one.
"No, Bridge," Angel said. He whacked his Blackberry on the side in case it would help. It didn't. "Xander's boyfriend. He can fix electronic stuff."
"Oh I knew he was gay!" Cordelia said, half annoyed, half triumphant. She caught all of them looking at her. "What? Like I wasn't going to have an opinion?"
"It's supposed to be able to call home," Angel said. He gave up in frustration. "If I could call home Bel could come get me, or Phoebe and Piper could do some kind of spell."
"Three hot girls?" Gunn asked.
"Two hot girls," Angel corrected. Then, catching Cordelia's glare, he added, "Not that I - you know it's none of your - they're witches."
"You keep three witches on staff?" Wesley asked.
"Two witches," Angel corrected him. "Bel's a demon. Half demon."
"Which half?" Gunn asked.
"Doyle's named Belle in your world?" Cordelia asked.
"I need to go home," Angel said, to nobody in particular.
"We'll do some research," Wesley said. "Though we do not have witches on staff to open portals at whim, it is still possible that we might arrange something."
"Don't do like the last one," Gunn said. "One trip to Pylea is about ten too many."
"Can't we just - " Angel circled his hand in a vague gesture, since normally he wasn't the one to make these arrangements " - call Portalocity and get me a ticket?"
"Call who?" Gunn asked.
"I'm afraid I've never heard of such a thing," Wesley told him. "And given the research that I did in our attempt to rescue Fred and Cordelia, I'm certain I would've come across it if it was available in our world."
"Alternate universes are so weird," Cordelia said. "Willow's a vampire, people are cows - oh, hey! Is Buffy dead on your world too?"
Angel felt his world tilt in ways that had nothing to do with portals. "Is Buffy what?"
***
[ooc: establishy!]
Sadly this was not something that was hugely unusual for him, given that he lived in Los Angeles and all. What was unusual was that when the portal closed it left Angel right where he was, in the basement of the Hyperion hotel.
It was anticlimactic to say the least, but Angel decided to chalk it up to some new Halliwell spell that hadn't been perfected yet. Or Logan touching something he shouldn't. Possibly a Halliwell. Either way Angel figured he could deal with this problem with a stern and in no way pouty or grumpy scowl and then go on about his business.
That was when he opened the door to the lobby and found himself confronted with a scream, a hug, and a cry of "You're back!"
Sadly this reaction was not the norm, much though Angel's fantasies involved Logan greeting him this way with or without clothes. Also this person, though familiar, wasn't exactly someone Angel was used to seeing when he came home.
"Cordelia?" he asked. Then, as long as he was focusing on important matters, he added, "What happened to your hair?"
"Angel," a British voice said this time. "You've returned early. Is everything all right?"
Angel took a second longer to put a name to a face. "Wesley?" Pause. "What happened to your hair?"
Wesley drew himself up rather stiffly. "I've been growing it out. Though I don't see how that's germaine to the discussion."
"You should stop," Angel advised him. He looked around. "Where is everybody?"
"Gunn's getting food and - big shocker - Fred's up in her room and refuses to come out," Cordelia said. She frowned and grew thoughtful. "Good thing she's got an attached bathroom."
Angel stared at her. Then Wesley. Then back at Cordelia again. "Who?"
"Winnifred Burkle?" Wesley said. There was a slight note of testiness to his voice but that was possibly due to him still being British. Which was to say that it made a very small difference compared to Wesley's normal voice. "The girl you - we rescued from Pylea?"
Angel was going to ask what a Pylea was, then decided he'd skip ahead to the more cruical information. "Where's Logan?"
"Who?" Wesley asked.
"Logan," Angel repeated. Off of their blank looks he said, "Echolls? Lives here? Just turned 21 even though with the fake IDs it was mostly a formality? For that matter where's Veronica and Bel?"
"Since when do you know girls named Veronica and Belle?" Cordelia asked.
"So you went to Vegas like I told you to," Gunn said as he came into the lobby with bags of takeout in his hands. "Told you strippers fix everything."
"They're not strippers!" Angel snapped.
"Oh God." Cordelia covered her face with her hands. "Please tell me you didn't fall for the line about them being 'exotic dancers'. As skanky as your other you is, don't you know better than that? And since when are you hanging out with hot girls?"
"Bel is not a hot girl!" Angel said.
"But Veronica is?" Gunn asked, hopefully.
"Yes," Angel said, then caught himself. "I'm not hanging out with her."
"Belle then?" Gunn asked.
"No, Logan," Angel said, and then it was his turn to facepalm. He could feel the wave of "WHAT?" coming towards him, so he head it off by saying, "We work together. Angel Investigations. That's why you guys are here, right?"
The three of them exchanged a look, then Wesley spoke. "Angel, did something happen while you were away?"
"I didn't go anywhere!" Angel said. He gestured towards the basement to prove it. "I went out, I killed some vampires, I came back to the hotel, went through that portal and here I am."
It was Wesley's turn to stare for a long moment. Finally he said, "Pardon me, but what was that second to last part again?"
***
"I must say this is rather unusual," Wesley said, after Angel finished telling them his story.
"No kidding." Cordelia looked at Angel incredulously. "You went to high school? On purpose?"
"I was referring to Angel's appearance here," Wesley said. He sat back in his chair. Which was really Angel's chair since it was behind his desk and all but Angel was in more of a standing mood anyway. "I wonder if our - that is to say, the Angel we are familiar with, has been placed in your world?"
Angel tried to imagine another version of himself with Logan and the others. He tried to imagine Logan knowing the difference before physical contact was made. He then wondered if staking your alternate universe self counted as suicide. "Not if he knows what's good for him."
"Think Angel did it?" Gunn suggested. He stretched his hand out to indicate someone going far, far away. "Maybe when he went on his retreat he really retreated. Like to another dimension."
"So soon after Pylea?" Wesley replied. "That doesn't seem likely."
"Call him," Angel suggested.
"Right, because you're so known for picking up a phone even when you have a cell with you," Cordelia replied.
"He might if he's in my dimension," Angel said.
"We get inter-dimensional long distance with our calling plan?" Gunn asked, looking at Wesley.
"Not that," Angel said, meaning his landline. "My phone. Normally it's in my - "
And then Angel shut up because the next words were "coat pocket" and Angel, who never liked talking to begin with, liked it even less when talking only proved how stupid he was currently being. Instead he quickly patted down his coat and pulled out his Blackberry.
"What's that?" Cordelia asked, sitting up so she could see.
"A phone," Angel said. He tried pushing the buttons to call Logan, then Veronica, then the office line. He had no luck with any of them. "Damn."
"Well, you are seriously out of range," Gunn pointed out.
"It shouldn't matter," Angel said. He tried a few more numbers - even Parker's on the odd chance that Fate felt like being particularly mean - and still had no luck. "Bridge did something to it."
"Your mobile has been affected by a bridge?" Wesley asked, with the sort of tone that indicated he felt that perhaps Angel's brain had been affected by a bridge. Possibly by being hit by one.
"No, Bridge," Angel said. He whacked his Blackberry on the side in case it would help. It didn't. "Xander's boyfriend. He can fix electronic stuff."
"Oh I knew he was gay!" Cordelia said, half annoyed, half triumphant. She caught all of them looking at her. "What? Like I wasn't going to have an opinion?"
"It's supposed to be able to call home," Angel said. He gave up in frustration. "If I could call home Bel could come get me, or Phoebe and Piper could do some kind of spell."
"Three hot girls?" Gunn asked.
"Two hot girls," Angel corrected. Then, catching Cordelia's glare, he added, "Not that I - you know it's none of your - they're witches."
"You keep three witches on staff?" Wesley asked.
"Two witches," Angel corrected him. "Bel's a demon. Half demon."
"Which half?" Gunn asked.
"Doyle's named Belle in your world?" Cordelia asked.
"I need to go home," Angel said, to nobody in particular.
"We'll do some research," Wesley said. "Though we do not have witches on staff to open portals at whim, it is still possible that we might arrange something."
"Don't do like the last one," Gunn said. "One trip to Pylea is about ten too many."
"Can't we just - " Angel circled his hand in a vague gesture, since normally he wasn't the one to make these arrangements " - call Portalocity and get me a ticket?"
"Call who?" Gunn asked.
"I'm afraid I've never heard of such a thing," Wesley told him. "And given the research that I did in our attempt to rescue Fred and Cordelia, I'm certain I would've come across it if it was available in our world."
"Alternate universes are so weird," Cordelia said. "Willow's a vampire, people are cows - oh, hey! Is Buffy dead on your world too?"
Angel felt his world tilt in ways that had nothing to do with portals. "Is Buffy what?"
***
[ooc: establishy!]