Hyperion, Friday late afternoon
So Buffy had died in this universe, which left Angel feeling a lot of things. The highest on the list was uncomfortable, since feeling things wasn't exactly Angel's style. Except in the case of brooding, but strangely the thought of an alternate universe Buffy dying didn't hit him in quite the same way as if the one from his universe died. But then again it wasn't like he'd talked with his Buffy recently, which was probably good since Angel was with Logan now and Buffy's job description meant that by definition she could kill Angel as easily as blinking, so that was a conversation Angel was happy to avoid.
Another item on the list of things that made Angel feel uncomfortable was the hotel. It was similar, and yet not. The layout was the same, much of the furniture was the same. Even some of the weapons were the same. But the smells were different. It was more than the obvious change of different people being in the building. After walking the hallways on his second day in this version of Los Angeles Angel realized what it was. There was a lack of people living in the building.
No pun intended as far as the vampire who owned the place went, of course.
Though even that, in and of itself, was part of the problem. Angel's room - the room of the vampire who was supposed to be here and the room Angel had claimed for himself since hey, who not? - was empty. Even for him. Only Angel's possessions were there. And while Angel recognized some of the clothes and - thank goodness - the hair care products there wasn't anything else to really indicate that anyone had made themselves at home. It was a place for someone to sleep, shower, drink pig's blood, and repeat. No more.
Finding himself missing these little signs of life - much though he normally tried to avoid them - Angel sought out the one other person living in the hotel and knocked on her door.
"Oh!" Eyes as wide as saucers stared at him from behind glasses that kept slipping down a nose. Coltish arms clutched a book with one hand and the door with the other. "Oh! You're home! It's good that you're home. I'm glad that you're home! Home is a very good please for people to be. I mean - I know you're not people but you do have a home so it's good to be there. Unless you wanted to be elsewhere. Did you have a nice vacation?"
Angel let all of that wash over him. He was glad that he was versed in babble. "Fred, right?"
"That's right!" Fred's face lit up in a smile as bright as sunlight. Then, just as quickly, it grew shuttered again. "Don't - don't you remember me? No, of course you wouldn't remember me. A handsome man like you probably has plenty of people that he needs to remember. You have better things to do. I'm sorry. I'll go now."
"Wait!" Angel said before she could vanish back into her room. "I wanted to talk to you."
"You did?" Fred paused where she was. "Oh. All right. That's nice. I suppose we could talk about the news but I haven't watched TV in quite some time and I haven't seen a newspaper in forever. There's work but I don't have a job and you just came back from vacation. I suppose we could talk about the weather but it's Los Angeles so - " she pushed her glasses up towards her eyes again " - lots of sunshine. Which is nice. Unless you're a vampire I suppose."
"I wanted to talk to you about you," Angel clarified.
"I don't mind the sunshine?" Fred offered. "Or - or rain. Rain can be nice too. Especially now that I don't have to try to weather-proof a cave."
"You lived in a cave before," Angel said, to see if he was getting this right, "and here now?"
"That's right." Fred smiled brightly again. "Here's much better. I mean you have to jiggle the handle sometimes on the toilet but that's nothing that can't be fixed and I probably shouldn't be talking about my toilet needs with you anyway. Do - do you have toilet needs? Did you need to use mine?"
"No," Angel said. "Thank you. I was wondering why you lived here."
"Do you need me to move?" Fred's heart beat faster as nerves overtook her. "I didn't mean to be a bother. I can live with the toilet handle, honest! It's no trouble at all! Jiggling it is good exercise anyway. I'll be fine!"
"Breathe," Angel suggested, since one of them should. "You don't have to move. At least I don't think so. I meant are you here because of me? Do we have a relationship?"
"You saved me," Fred said. She stared at him in wonder. "From the monsters. Don't you remember?"
"I'm not the Angel you remember," Angel told her.
"I didn't know vacation could make new people," Fred said.
"It can't," Angel said. "At least, I don't think so. There was a thing. I don't know where your Angel is but I'm here."
"And you're not Angel," Fred said, carefully.
"I'm a different Angel," Angel confirmed.
"You seem so similar."
"That'll happen."
"So you're Angel but you're not Angel and you're different from Angel but also the same?" Fred asked.
Angel ran that over in his mind then said "Yeah."
"That's actually not any less confusing."
"Sorry." Angel gave her an apologetic look. "If it was up to me I'd be home."
Fred thought about it, then hesitantly said, "You could - I mean the hotel is your home... or isn't. But if you wanted to sit and talk more - "
"I can't," Angel said, seeing where this was going.
"Right." Fred's face fell again. "Dumb idea. I'm sorry."
"No, not that," Angel assured her. "I mean I can't. You live here. I can't get in without an invitation."
"Oh!" Fred stepped back and started to gesture. "Well then by all means - "
"Don't." Angel shook his head, cutting her off. "It's better to have the protection. Don't invite me in. Either version of me."
"But..." Fred tilted her head curiously. "You saved me."
"Consider this my way of doing it again," Angel said. He figured someone as nervous as Fred didn't need the full explanation of how Angel could go evil, so he decided to leave it at that. "Thanks for the conversation. I'll let you get back to what you were doing."
"All right." Fred stared after him as he left, looking as though she wasn't any less confused than before.
Angel was okay with that. Confusion was better than taking a chance on danger.
[ooc: as before, establishy!]
Another item on the list of things that made Angel feel uncomfortable was the hotel. It was similar, and yet not. The layout was the same, much of the furniture was the same. Even some of the weapons were the same. But the smells were different. It was more than the obvious change of different people being in the building. After walking the hallways on his second day in this version of Los Angeles Angel realized what it was. There was a lack of people living in the building.
No pun intended as far as the vampire who owned the place went, of course.
Though even that, in and of itself, was part of the problem. Angel's room - the room of the vampire who was supposed to be here and the room Angel had claimed for himself since hey, who not? - was empty. Even for him. Only Angel's possessions were there. And while Angel recognized some of the clothes and - thank goodness - the hair care products there wasn't anything else to really indicate that anyone had made themselves at home. It was a place for someone to sleep, shower, drink pig's blood, and repeat. No more.
Finding himself missing these little signs of life - much though he normally tried to avoid them - Angel sought out the one other person living in the hotel and knocked on her door.
"Oh!" Eyes as wide as saucers stared at him from behind glasses that kept slipping down a nose. Coltish arms clutched a book with one hand and the door with the other. "Oh! You're home! It's good that you're home. I'm glad that you're home! Home is a very good please for people to be. I mean - I know you're not people but you do have a home so it's good to be there. Unless you wanted to be elsewhere. Did you have a nice vacation?"
Angel let all of that wash over him. He was glad that he was versed in babble. "Fred, right?"
"That's right!" Fred's face lit up in a smile as bright as sunlight. Then, just as quickly, it grew shuttered again. "Don't - don't you remember me? No, of course you wouldn't remember me. A handsome man like you probably has plenty of people that he needs to remember. You have better things to do. I'm sorry. I'll go now."
"Wait!" Angel said before she could vanish back into her room. "I wanted to talk to you."
"You did?" Fred paused where she was. "Oh. All right. That's nice. I suppose we could talk about the news but I haven't watched TV in quite some time and I haven't seen a newspaper in forever. There's work but I don't have a job and you just came back from vacation. I suppose we could talk about the weather but it's Los Angeles so - " she pushed her glasses up towards her eyes again " - lots of sunshine. Which is nice. Unless you're a vampire I suppose."
"I wanted to talk to you about you," Angel clarified.
"I don't mind the sunshine?" Fred offered. "Or - or rain. Rain can be nice too. Especially now that I don't have to try to weather-proof a cave."
"You lived in a cave before," Angel said, to see if he was getting this right, "and here now?"
"That's right." Fred smiled brightly again. "Here's much better. I mean you have to jiggle the handle sometimes on the toilet but that's nothing that can't be fixed and I probably shouldn't be talking about my toilet needs with you anyway. Do - do you have toilet needs? Did you need to use mine?"
"No," Angel said. "Thank you. I was wondering why you lived here."
"Do you need me to move?" Fred's heart beat faster as nerves overtook her. "I didn't mean to be a bother. I can live with the toilet handle, honest! It's no trouble at all! Jiggling it is good exercise anyway. I'll be fine!"
"Breathe," Angel suggested, since one of them should. "You don't have to move. At least I don't think so. I meant are you here because of me? Do we have a relationship?"
"You saved me," Fred said. She stared at him in wonder. "From the monsters. Don't you remember?"
"I'm not the Angel you remember," Angel told her.
"I didn't know vacation could make new people," Fred said.
"It can't," Angel said. "At least, I don't think so. There was a thing. I don't know where your Angel is but I'm here."
"And you're not Angel," Fred said, carefully.
"I'm a different Angel," Angel confirmed.
"You seem so similar."
"That'll happen."
"So you're Angel but you're not Angel and you're different from Angel but also the same?" Fred asked.
Angel ran that over in his mind then said "Yeah."
"That's actually not any less confusing."
"Sorry." Angel gave her an apologetic look. "If it was up to me I'd be home."
Fred thought about it, then hesitantly said, "You could - I mean the hotel is your home... or isn't. But if you wanted to sit and talk more - "
"I can't," Angel said, seeing where this was going.
"Right." Fred's face fell again. "Dumb idea. I'm sorry."
"No, not that," Angel assured her. "I mean I can't. You live here. I can't get in without an invitation."
"Oh!" Fred stepped back and started to gesture. "Well then by all means - "
"Don't." Angel shook his head, cutting her off. "It's better to have the protection. Don't invite me in. Either version of me."
"But..." Fred tilted her head curiously. "You saved me."
"Consider this my way of doing it again," Angel said. He figured someone as nervous as Fred didn't need the full explanation of how Angel could go evil, so he decided to leave it at that. "Thanks for the conversation. I'll let you get back to what you were doing."
"All right." Fred stared after him as he left, looking as though she wasn't any less confused than before.
Angel was okay with that. Confusion was better than taking a chance on danger.
[ooc: as before, establishy!]