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Prologue
In a void of blackness, there sits a cell of stone. Inside a creature, only half human. He has been picked once again to help a member of the living dead.
"You will be his guide. As long as he lives, you will remain." The young man looked up.
"Why me? Why me?" The ground shook and the cell filled with light.
"You know his nature. Now go."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Where am I?" He looked around the room. This looks like my old flat. Why am I her.. He was cut off by a mind splitting vision. Flashes of three men and a woman in an old hotel. "Angel?" He was confused. "Cordy?" He knew there two but who were the others? A young black man with a shaved head and baggy cloths and a nerdy looking Englishman with glasses.
"Made some new friends while I was gone. Well I hope you still have room for.."
"Chocolate cake." Cordy walked into the dining room with a huge chocolate mint caramel cake.
"Wow that looks splendid. Did you make it?" Wesley, who had just then developed a sweet tooth, eyed the cake hungrily. Cordy thought about her response.
"Honest answer? No I bought it at Nicoles desserts."
Angel stared at the cake. He could have a piece, but it would take three painful days of digestion. What the hell. How often do you get cake around here? "Let me help you." Gunn took the knife from Cordy and cut out four big slices.
"One for Wes, one for Cordy, one for me, and.." He looked at Angel.
"And one for me." Angel took his piece of cake. Wesley was about to compliment Cordelia on a wonderful choice when she fell forward with the force of her vision. "No." She slowly sat up with Wesleys help.
"What did you see?"
"Doyle," she said, looking depressed and overjoyed," he's alive. And he took the visions back." Angel stood up.
"Where can we find him?"
"His old apartment or a bar. He looked drunk to me."
Throwing his coat on, Angel turned to Gunn. "You and Cordy check his apartment. Wes, you and I will search the local bars. We'll meet back here in two hours."
"Wait..."
Where can I go where they will find me, Doyle thought. There are a lot of bars in this town. Which one will be on the top of the list? The Rum Bum, of course. Let's go there and wait...
"A minute." Wesley stopped walking. "Whenever we look for anything, it's always at the last place we look. Write down all the bars around his apartment. We'll go to the last one first."
The first bar they wrote down was The Rum Bum.
*~*~*~*~*~*
One Hour Later
Doyle sat drinking his bourbon waiting, drunk as could be, for Angel to find him. What taking so long, he thought. After four more drinks he could do nothing more than raise his hand for more. He didn't even notice when...
Angel and Wesley walked into the bar. "If he's here we never make a list again." They walked up to the bartender and showed her a picture of Doyle. She pointed to a young man at a table filled with empty glasses and bottles.
"Doyle." He lifted his head as Angel and Wes made their way over to him.
"Angle?" Wesley gave a small laugh.
"I know you've been drinking, but how? It's Angel, like heaven? Halos? Is it really that hard to say?"
"Angel I think there are more important thing to figure out then why he can't say your name."
"Yeah, I guess." Angel paid Doyles bill and they took him back to the hotel.
He felt the cool air hit his face as Angel and Wes carried him out of the bar. He opened his eyes to see the same black convertible Angel had when.. When he was still part human. Doyle closed his eyes and fell back into darkness.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Doyles seemingly lifeless body lay on a bed two rooms from Angels. Downstairs Angel and the others were discussing what they were going to do.
"With Doyle back I guess you really don't need me anymore."
"Cordy, how can you say that? You are a very important part of my... I mean Wesleys team, even without the visions." Cordelia slumped down onto the circular couch.
"Besides," Angel continued, "Doyle needs familiar faces. You can't just leave." Cordy glared at him.
"Why not? If I leave I won't have to go through another heartbreaking goodbye." She burst into tears. "I can't face him If I know there is a chance I might lose him again."
"What do you mean?" Angel looked puzzled.
"In my vision I saw Doyle come back." She wiped her eyes. "But he's not human, not even half anymore. He's...He's a..."
"Vampire." Doyle looked towards the great light in front of him. "Why a vampire? I was half demon. Couldn't you have used that?"
"No. The demon was mortal, like your human half. You must remain with Angel until he fulfills his destiny. This was the way we saw fit to do so." Doyle still had a few questions to ask but he never got the chance before...
He woke up and went out of the room to do as The Powers said. How do I tell Angel I'm a vampire without being staked? Moreover how can I keep him safe and souled through all of this? How long will it take? As he neared the stairs he heard someone say "I'll go check on him." Cordelia. I'll tell her first. Maybe she can help. He went back to his room and waited.
"I'll go check on him." Cordelia got up and was halfway up the stairs when Angel stopped her.
"Remember, he's not human anymore."
"He wasn't to begin with. I'll be fine. Now don't you three have a Ne K-lors demon to find. Well? Shoo." She watched the men run out the door before turning back to the task at hand. "Now, lets' see Doyle."
"Doyle? Can I come in?" Cordy knocked on his door. There was a small answer. Cordy opened the door and saw Doyle sitting on a chair in the sunlight.
"Hello Princess," Doyle said, turning to give her a smile.
"How are you feeling today Doyle?" Doyle frowned.
"A little disorientated and a little scared."
"Angel thinks you'll hurt me because you're not human anymore." As soon as the words passed her lips Cordy wished she could take them back.
"Did you love me Cordy?" She took a step forward.
"Do you even have to ask to know?"
"Yes. Before I died, I kissed you. I felt something there, but it was gone all too soon."
Cordy put her hand on his shoulder. Electricity ran through him. "Yes, I loved you."
"Do you still love me?"
"It took me till after you died to confess my feelings out loud. I cried and stayed in my house for two weeks. All I did was think of you and how badly I had treated you. You liked me and I was mean and shut you out. But all the time I was trying to stop you from loving me I was falling in love with you. When you kissed me that last day, I wanted to kiss you back but you pulled away and left me alone. Now that you're back I'll never leave you. I love you."
Doyle smiled a little. "Would you love me no matter what I was?"
He doesn't know I know, Cordy thought. "Nothing you could be would take my love away." She smiled at him.
"Ok," he said, "remember you said that," as he turned to face her, his eyes and teeth changing. His eyes turned golden.
"You're a vampire," She said, trying to sound surprised. Doyle read her tone wrong and turned away.
"I knew you'd be repulsed. You've always hated demons." Cordelia put a hand on his face and turned him towards her. She held him there and looked into his eyes.
"I'm not repulsed. I told you I love you. It doesn't matter what you are."
Doyle looked into her eyes. "You still don't care for this face, do you? I'll change it back."
Cordy lifted her hand to his brow and traced the ridges. Doyle closed his eyes as her hand moved down to the side of his face and touched his lips.
"Can I see your teeth?"
Doyle cracked his mouth so Cordy could see his fangs. Her next move took him completely by surprise. She leaned forward and kissed him, tracing his teeth with her tongue. He moaned into her mouth and pulled her closer so she straddled him on the chair. Cordy's tongue spared and caressed Doyles as she ran her hands through his hair. Doyles mind was running wild. All the nights he had dreamed of this, all the pent up passion, exploded. No more cold showers, he thought. Unless Cordy and I run out of hot water. Doyle lifted Cordy up and lay her on the bed under him. They kicked their shoes off and Doyle took off his shirt to reveal a slightly hairy chest. then he helped Cordelia remove her shirt. Shirts throw aside Doyle lowered himself and kissed Cordy deeply. With one hand in his hair Cordy moved her free hand along Doyles back and sides. Doyle moved his right hand down to caress her inner thighs. Cordelia took her hand from his hair and moved it to the growing bulge in his pants. Doyle broke the kiss to take in a sharp breath.
"Cordelia." He could barley get her name out. Doyle sat up and started to undo her pants as she slipped her hand into his. Doyle groaned. Once their pants were removed Doyle returned to lay on Cordy, grinding his hips down on hers. Cordy reached down and Doyle felt like he could cum right then, but he held back. They readjusted themselves.
"Last chance. Do you want the demon or the man?"
Cordelia kissed him and ran her fingers over bumpy ridges of his forehead. "I love you, no matter the face. Wait. You don't have that 'happiness' clause like Angel, do you?"
"God I hope not," he said as he slid inside he, hissing. Cordy cried out, no virgin, but it had been a while. Soon he had a steady rhythm going that slowly got faster until Cordelia was screaming his name. Doyle kept going for a few frantic moments, then froze, spilling deep inside her.
"Cordelia," he whispered as he lay down, pulling her on top of him. "I love you with all that I al."
She kissed him. "I'll love you until I die."
"You know, Princess, you don't have to die." She shot him a look. "What? Why not?"
"When I had my last vision, as they were going back to you, I saw the two of us at the hospital. I was giving birth."
"But how?"
"I don't know. Maybe it's like how you can be in the sun."
"What was it?" He asked, wrapping his arms around her.
"A boy."
"What should we name him?"
She sat up and traced along his face. "I was thinking Allen Francis Doyle, jr."
"You mean it?"
"I do. Though now that I really think of it, one name does have to change."
"Which one?"
"Mine of course." She smiled as his face relaxed and smoothed out. He smiled back up at her. "And maybe after he's born I'll take you up on eternity." She pulled the blankets up over them and settled back into his chest.
"Shouldn't we go tell the others?"
"They can wait until tomorrow. Just let me hold you." Holding each other close, they fell asleep.