1. [Holo] Arrival

[greenballadeer]

The Sea Breeze cocktail is cool in Lorne's hand. Oh, sweet mama, he needs this. Needs the taste of cranberry, grapefruit, and vodka doing a tango on his tongue. He lifts the glass to his lips and -

It's gone?! Oh, somebody is going to pay for this, big time -

Wait a second. He's not in that crappy karaoke bar off Route 66 anymore. "What is

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[ visual ]

[glowingseer]

For several moments, Cordelia can only gape at the tablet. No, it can't be... can it? But, that's--

"Lorne! Oh my god, Lorne!"

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[greenballadeer]

It's not as if Lorne hasn't seen Cordelia miraculously revived from what seemed like certain death. But that had only lasted a day, and a lifetime would be too short a time to spend with such a remarkable woman.

"Cordy! Oh, Cordy, I take back everything I said about this being a Senior Partners hell dimension, anyplace where you're alive is just - just - are you sure there aren't little cherubs with harps or something?" He's grinning from ear to ear.

[ visual ]

[glowingseer]

Alive? Well, that can only mean one thing - this Lorne is from a time when she's already dead and everything.

But, so not the time to dwell on that sour note. "Yes - I'm alive, kicking, and gorgeous as usual." She grins right back at him. "And, no! No cherubs with harps - only invisible aliens who make a habit of screwing with us every once in a while. But enough about them. I'm so glad to see you!"

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[greenballadeer]

"It's definitely gonna take me some time to get used to this whole aliens thing, but if Queen C says it, it must be so. Too bad about the cherubs, though I'd probably get sick of the harps after a while. You can't exactly sing Sinatra with a harp."

She really does look gorgeous, just as confident and fresh-faced as she was before Jasmine crawled into her brain - but Lorne's just as willing as she is to lay that subject aside for now. "Glad to see you too, sweetie. If you've really been stuck here, then I've got months of fashion trends to get you caught up on. You won't believe what Alexander McQueen did for his fall collection. Do you have a place in this town? The aliens or whatever, they let you have a house, right?"

[ visual ]

[glowingseer]

"I do say so. And, well, while cherubs are out of the picture, we still have an Angel to deal with," Cordelia tells him. "Yep. Head Honcho's here in Taxon as well. And Fred, too!"

Oh god. Everyone's coming together! There's not enough words to convey her glee right now.

"I have two, actually," she says with relish. "I brought my snazzy apartment with me, while Angel has the hotel with him. The aliens are cool like that - they let you bring something from home. I have no idea what you brought with you, but you're always welcome to stay with us. And I can't wait for the latest scoop on everything in good ol' LA!"

Because really, things do have a tendency to get boring in Taxon.

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[greenballadeer]

"Oh. Angel." Lorne tries not to give anything away, but his distinct lack of enthusiasm is enough to speak volumes. Then his face lights up again. "And Fred? Princess, we are going to have some first-class fun - unless there's a weekly apocalypse here too." Although he'll never admit it, the idea of actually averting an apocalypse with Cordy and Fred instead of creating one with Angel sounds...not so bad.

"The Hyperion's here? Never thought I'd miss that old place, but right now it sounds better than the Ritz."

[ visual ]

[glowingseer]

Better than the Ritz? Well, Cordelia hasn't really thought about it that way, but... yes. It very well is.

"Not so much apocalypses as searing boredom - although that's something not new, right? And you just arrived on time... we're about to reopen the agency here in Taxon. Angel Investigations is up and sputtering again!"

And because she has noticed Lorne's lack of enthusiasm where the vampire is concerned, "Is everything all right between the two of you?"

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[greenballadeer]

Lorne gets a shuttered look behind his eyes, and looks down. "Me and Angel? We're not even in the same dimension as 'all right.'" When he looks back up, there's a raw, desperate expression on his face. "I'm not ready to see him, Cordy. I don't know if I'll ever be ready to see him." He fiddles around with the tablet a little. "How about we talk about this later, sweetie, when I've figured out where to get a decent drink around here. Not to mention how to keep conversations on these gizmos private from the Aliens That Be."

[ visual ]

[glowingseer]

Cordelia frowns. Angel hasn't mentioned anything that will tell her about what the deal is with this sudden rift he has with Lorne, so here she is, completely clueless about this thing.

"Okay," she says softly. "Okay. If you want, I won't tell him you're here? You can... I don't know. Stay at my place. My couch is big and homey and yours, for the time being. We can talk there, and I can buy you a drink or two from The Bronze." Cordelia pauses for a while. "Is someone coming to get you already? Because I can volunteer, you know. Not like I have something better to do."

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[greenballadeer]

"Thanks, princess. I'm not ready to talk to Angel yet. I don't if I'll ever be ready. And I appreciate the offer, but - " He smiles. "Looks like I brought Caritas with me. There's a bedroom in the back, remember? I'm about to go meet Freddles there. Why don't you join us? It's a stone's throw away from the place where I got zapped."

[ visual ]

[glowingseer]

Oh she'll definitely get to the bottom of this fiasco - even if it's the last thing she does.

"...you brought Caritas?" Cordelia repeats. "That's fantastic! I feel like I haven't been there in ages." At the invitation, Cordelia stands up and grabs a light sweater. "I'm on my way. I have your little dots on the tablet, so I'll just meet you two there. And I revoke my offer on the drinks, by the way. You'll be the one to buy me a round or three hundred."