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Triumphant Surprise
by Pirate Turner
She kept her head held high and a radiant smile upon her full lips as she stepped out onto the top of the staircase. Her hazel eyes seemed to barely touch upon the guests who were gathered below, giving off the air that they were insignificant, which, indeed, they were. Her pale fingers barely touched the banister as she slowly descended in what she hoped was a wispy, silvery cloud of awe striking elegance and breathtaking beauty, which, from the thumbs up sign Lorne gave her behind the blonde's back, she knew must be working.
She could feel all eyes riveting on her as she slowly walked down to join the foray, but she ignored them all, opting instead to keep her own gaze focused on the one thing that she felt, more than all else, was hers and hers alone. Her smile grew as she saw the amazed look on his face. It warmed her to know that, even after all these years together, which were far from being enough for a thousand lifetimes in his arms would never be enough, she could still rock his world with only her appearance.
She stepped off the winding staircase and glanced briefly at Gunn and Wesley, a silent acknowledgment to two of the brave men who had appointed themselves her guards. They stood straight and tall, flanking her like Knights would a Queen and giving her nemesis twin glares in silent warning of what they would do to her if she tried to harm even one of her luxurious, raven hairs. She perfectly hid a smirk at that thought; she knew her hair had never shone more brightly than it did this night, thanks to Fred's latest concoction.
Having given Wesley and Gunn their secret sign, she continued her walk of seduction. She glided across the floor, her eyes never leaving Angel's even as her foe tried her best to get Angel to answer whatever silly question she'd asked him. Angel only continued to stare so transfixed was he by her beauty, and the blonde beside him fumed until her face started to turn red.
Cordelia took her time moving to Angel as she sashayed, one hip at a time, though a cloud of graceful sensuality that tightened the throat and loins of every male present, and when she finally reached his side, she still didn't bother to even so much as glance at their visitors. Instead she wrapped her arms around her Vampire and kissed him. His lips parted eagerly underneath hers, and her tongue snaked into his mouth. She leaned into him as her tongue explored deep within his hot, familiar mouth.
She kissed him with ever growing passion while Willow's face turned as red as her hair. She leaned closer into his warm embrace when Xander called her name, one heeled foot raising in ecstasy. She kissed him still deeper when Giles harrumphed and Faith's smirking tone called, "Go for it, girl!" She kissed him until Buffy stamped her foot and squealed like a pig.
Then, with an air of complete innocence and while licking her lips in savoring Angel's sweet taste, Cordelia turned around to face the woman who had been her greatest rival throughout the years. She leaned against Angel as she pouted seductively. "Oops, didn't see you there."
Her hazel eyes bespoke another message, however, and that was that, by no means, was the Slayer and her little bag of tricks welcome nor would they be tolerated. To make her threat ever clearer, she let her upper lip pull back in the instinctive need to snarl that burned low in her belly, revealing to Buffy the greatest change in her since the last time they had laid eyes upon each other.
Buffy's mouth fell open in shock. Her jaw moved gradually, telling Cordy that she was trying to talk but could not get her big mouth to work well enough to form any actual words. Cordelia grinned a triumphant, fang-filled smile. She had at last managed to do the impossible: She had shut up the Slayer!
The End