Wesficathon
Sep. 14th, 2003 04:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gilascaveWritten for the Wesficthon, for ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
onetwomany. Many thanks to mpoetess for the hand-holding betaing.
Character: Lilah
Genre: Drama, preferably dark
Season: Open
Rating: No restrictions.
Optional:
Restrictions: Only one - no fluff.
Desires: A touch of caustic humour would be cool, but only if it fits
with the story.
Love Potion #9
Lilah paused outside Files and Records and put on a smile. It only took a second for it to become genuine -- as genuine as her smiles ever were. The only thing that really amused her was winning. But if she played this right, she would.
She pushed open the door and walked in. As she'd been told, Wesley was sitting at the desk, going through records. They'd offered him an assistant to replace the Files and Records who had been destroyed with the others. Wesley had accepted, but often as not could be found down here anyway, reading for himself.
He glanced up as she walked in, then returned to his work. Barely a hint of recognition and she considered, for a moment, giving him grief about his lack of warm welcome. Amusing, but not as amusing as what she had in mind.
She walked over to his desk and sat on the edge, lifting her leg so her skirt rode high. Wesley didn't even look at her. She smiled, enjoying the anticipation of getting a rise out of him eventually.
"Working hard?" she asked, in a not-quite sultry voice that nonetheless gave double meaning to her words. When he glanced up, face still impassive, she ran her tongue over her top lip -- the same look on her face as when she'd knelt down to suck his cock into her mouth.
She saw the corners of his eyes tighten, slightly, and her smile widened.
"What do you want, Lilah?" He made it sound like he could care less, but Lilah considered it the first point -- in her favor.
"I can't just stop by to see how you are?" she asked, eyes wide and voice bright with guilelessness. It wasn't meant to convince him she wasn't up to something. She'd never been able to convince him she was up to *nothing*, only distract him from at least one of the things she really wanted.
Wesley leaned back in his chair, regarding her with that deep, measuring gaze that -- though she would never admit it -- unsettled her. "What do you want?" he asked again. Patient, and she knew that if she kept deflecting, he would continue to sit there and ask the same question. Only a few times, then he would dismiss her from his attention and return to work.
Or try to. She'd done this before, with him. Knew how to get his attention after the first, second, even third time he'd turned away.
She gave him another 'who, me?' look, lifting her hand to her chest and her the not-completely buttoned blouse and the powder blue lace bra that could be seen beneath it. "I can't drop in and see how you're settling in?"
"No. You can either tell me what you want, or you can play coquettish seductress until you're satisfied, then you either tell me or you leave."
Lilah smiled, and leaned forward, both hands on the desk. "Until I'm satisfied? Why, Wesley. You do remember I'm dead, don't you? Otherwise I'd say that was an invitation."
She saw his eyes go dark, but otherwise there was no change in his expression. "Really. That would explain the lack of a pulse. Oh, I forget -- you didn't have that before, either."
She laughed; a lame attempt, but at least he was playing now. She moved her hand to her hair, brushed a strand behind her ear and titled her head just so. Confide in me, her posture said. Listen to my secrets.
Wesley raised an eyebrow. "You're just here because you're bored?"
It wasn't even possible to take that tone as an innuendo. She thought about trying, and just shrugged her shoulder. "If I were bored, I'd be upstairs harassing the secretaries. Or shopping, although trying to find a pair of shoes that fit when you're dead is just as difficult as it is when you're alive." She shook her head. "Can you believe it?"
"What do you want, Lilah?" The stone had gone out of his tone, and he almost sounded interested.
Almost sounded like they were just two friends, taking time out from their day to catch up. If she'd cared about such things she might have-- She derailed that train of thought and went back to her original intentions for coming down here.
"And what if I really just want to know how you're doing? Settling in -- new office, new job, new purpose in life." She smiled as she said the last, emphasising the words as though they were important.
"You were bored, and decided to come down here and try to -- do what? Make me feel woeful about my lot in life?" Wesley's sarcasm told her he wasn't going to fall for simple tricks. He'd long since been inured to easy insults; she knew it hadn't been her who'd done it.
She sat back, and let her tone fall back to normal. Dropping the game and going for honesty. As if. "I hadn't seen you for a few days. Didn't know if you'd, you know. Changed your mind. Regretted...this." She vaguely waved a hand at the room around them.
"Aw, you missed me?" he said with clear sarcasm. He didn't believe her. That was all right, he wasn't meant to.
She glanced at him. "I think the work suits you."
He raised an eyebrow. "Research? Or do you mean 'serving evil'?"
"Don't be that way, Wesley. You've served evil all your life. Now, you get paid better."
"Angel is not evil."
The expected rejoinder. Lilah smiled. "Are you so sure about that? I can list the number of things Angel -- not Angelus, in case you were going to make that your next rebuttal -- has done. I could even keep the list down to the things he's done since you started working for him."
"I'm aware that the means don't always appear justified. But the ultimate goal--"
"Has always been 'the good'." Lilah nodded, earnestly. "Or at least 'the Angel'. I could point out that Angel's been on the records as a sort of 'evil-grey' for a long time." She waved it off, as though it was an irrelevant detail.
But she knew Wesley knew what she meant. And she knew he agreed with her. He'd never say so, but she didn't need him to.
Wesley brushed her off. "I don't serve Angel. Not anymore -- I've long since given up my more quixotic devotions."
"Who do you serve, Wesley?" she asked, as though she didn't know the answer.
He gave her a flat look, that said he wasn't going to play her game.
"I know it isn't the Powers; you don't trust them any more than the last one you all killed thereby saving the world from peace, love, and harmony." She gave him a thoughtful look. "Not the Watchers either, though for a long time you had a good -- excuse me, evil -- thing going there." She tapped her finger against her chin. "I know you don't serve yourself, or you'd be living in Paris right now with what's her name. Charlene? Chelsea? You know she's a millionaire now, right?"
Wesley sighed. "You are bored, aren't you? Come to play This Was Your Life."
Lilah just gave him a smile. "You forget one thing, Wesley." She leaned forward, and said in a quiet voice, "I know what you still keep by your bed. And I know whose name you don't quite scream when you use it."
Wesley met her gaze, now, with a dark, direct stare.
She moved closer. "I know who you serve, Wesley. And I know, as well as you, that he serves only himself."
"That's not true."
She looked at him. He didn't know why Angel had accepted their deal. Knew nothing about Conner. She smiled. "Then why did he bring you all to us?"
He didn't answer. After a moment, Wesley dropped his gaze.
Lilah stood up and stepped away from the desk. "I have to go upstairs for a meeting. Will I see you at lunch?" She tilted her head, smiled inquiringly.
Wesley didn't look at her, and didn't say a word as she left.
In the elevator, Lilah laughed.
the end
onetwomany. Many thanks to mpoetess for the Character: Lilah
Genre: Drama, preferably dark
Season: Open
Rating: No restrictions.
Optional:
Restrictions: Only one - no fluff.
Desires: A touch of caustic humour would be cool, but only if it fits
with the story.
Love Potion #9
Lilah paused outside Files and Records and put on a smile. It only took a second for it to become genuine -- as genuine as her smiles ever were. The only thing that really amused her was winning. But if she played this right, she would.
She pushed open the door and walked in. As she'd been told, Wesley was sitting at the desk, going through records. They'd offered him an assistant to replace the Files and Records who had been destroyed with the others. Wesley had accepted, but often as not could be found down here anyway, reading for himself.
He glanced up as she walked in, then returned to his work. Barely a hint of recognition and she considered, for a moment, giving him grief about his lack of warm welcome. Amusing, but not as amusing as what she had in mind.
She walked over to his desk and sat on the edge, lifting her leg so her skirt rode high. Wesley didn't even look at her. She smiled, enjoying the anticipation of getting a rise out of him eventually.
"Working hard?" she asked, in a not-quite sultry voice that nonetheless gave double meaning to her words. When he glanced up, face still impassive, she ran her tongue over her top lip -- the same look on her face as when she'd knelt down to suck his cock into her mouth.
She saw the corners of his eyes tighten, slightly, and her smile widened.
"What do you want, Lilah?" He made it sound like he could care less, but Lilah considered it the first point -- in her favor.
"I can't just stop by to see how you are?" she asked, eyes wide and voice bright with guilelessness. It wasn't meant to convince him she wasn't up to something. She'd never been able to convince him she was up to *nothing*, only distract him from at least one of the things she really wanted.
Wesley leaned back in his chair, regarding her with that deep, measuring gaze that -- though she would never admit it -- unsettled her. "What do you want?" he asked again. Patient, and she knew that if she kept deflecting, he would continue to sit there and ask the same question. Only a few times, then he would dismiss her from his attention and return to work.
Or try to. She'd done this before, with him. Knew how to get his attention after the first, second, even third time he'd turned away.
She gave him another 'who, me?' look, lifting her hand to her chest and her the not-completely buttoned blouse and the powder blue lace bra that could be seen beneath it. "I can't drop in and see how you're settling in?"
"No. You can either tell me what you want, or you can play coquettish seductress until you're satisfied, then you either tell me or you leave."
Lilah smiled, and leaned forward, both hands on the desk. "Until I'm satisfied? Why, Wesley. You do remember I'm dead, don't you? Otherwise I'd say that was an invitation."
She saw his eyes go dark, but otherwise there was no change in his expression. "Really. That would explain the lack of a pulse. Oh, I forget -- you didn't have that before, either."
She laughed; a lame attempt, but at least he was playing now. She moved her hand to her hair, brushed a strand behind her ear and titled her head just so. Confide in me, her posture said. Listen to my secrets.
Wesley raised an eyebrow. "You're just here because you're bored?"
It wasn't even possible to take that tone as an innuendo. She thought about trying, and just shrugged her shoulder. "If I were bored, I'd be upstairs harassing the secretaries. Or shopping, although trying to find a pair of shoes that fit when you're dead is just as difficult as it is when you're alive." She shook her head. "Can you believe it?"
"What do you want, Lilah?" The stone had gone out of his tone, and he almost sounded interested.
Almost sounded like they were just two friends, taking time out from their day to catch up. If she'd cared about such things she might have-- She derailed that train of thought and went back to her original intentions for coming down here.
"And what if I really just want to know how you're doing? Settling in -- new office, new job, new purpose in life." She smiled as she said the last, emphasising the words as though they were important.
"You were bored, and decided to come down here and try to -- do what? Make me feel woeful about my lot in life?" Wesley's sarcasm told her he wasn't going to fall for simple tricks. He'd long since been inured to easy insults; she knew it hadn't been her who'd done it.
She sat back, and let her tone fall back to normal. Dropping the game and going for honesty. As if. "I hadn't seen you for a few days. Didn't know if you'd, you know. Changed your mind. Regretted...this." She vaguely waved a hand at the room around them.
"Aw, you missed me?" he said with clear sarcasm. He didn't believe her. That was all right, he wasn't meant to.
She glanced at him. "I think the work suits you."
He raised an eyebrow. "Research? Or do you mean 'serving evil'?"
"Don't be that way, Wesley. You've served evil all your life. Now, you get paid better."
"Angel is not evil."
The expected rejoinder. Lilah smiled. "Are you so sure about that? I can list the number of things Angel -- not Angelus, in case you were going to make that your next rebuttal -- has done. I could even keep the list down to the things he's done since you started working for him."
"I'm aware that the means don't always appear justified. But the ultimate goal--"
"Has always been 'the good'." Lilah nodded, earnestly. "Or at least 'the Angel'. I could point out that Angel's been on the records as a sort of 'evil-grey' for a long time." She waved it off, as though it was an irrelevant detail.
But she knew Wesley knew what she meant. And she knew he agreed with her. He'd never say so, but she didn't need him to.
Wesley brushed her off. "I don't serve Angel. Not anymore -- I've long since given up my more quixotic devotions."
"Who do you serve, Wesley?" she asked, as though she didn't know the answer.
He gave her a flat look, that said he wasn't going to play her game.
"I know it isn't the Powers; you don't trust them any more than the last one you all killed thereby saving the world from peace, love, and harmony." She gave him a thoughtful look. "Not the Watchers either, though for a long time you had a good -- excuse me, evil -- thing going there." She tapped her finger against her chin. "I know you don't serve yourself, or you'd be living in Paris right now with what's her name. Charlene? Chelsea? You know she's a millionaire now, right?"
Wesley sighed. "You are bored, aren't you? Come to play This Was Your Life."
Lilah just gave him a smile. "You forget one thing, Wesley." She leaned forward, and said in a quiet voice, "I know what you still keep by your bed. And I know whose name you don't quite scream when you use it."
Wesley met her gaze, now, with a dark, direct stare.
She moved closer. "I know who you serve, Wesley. And I know, as well as you, that he serves only himself."
"That's not true."
She looked at him. He didn't know why Angel had accepted their deal. Knew nothing about Conner. She smiled. "Then why did he bring you all to us?"
He didn't answer. After a moment, Wesley dropped his gaze.
Lilah stood up and stepped away from the desk. "I have to go upstairs for a meeting. Will I see you at lunch?" She tilted her head, smiled inquiringly.
Wesley didn't look at her, and didn't say a word as she left.
In the elevator, Lilah laughed.
the end