Title: For One Night Only?

Author Alan Hitchen

Email: darkmere2000@yahoo.co.uk

Disclaimer: BtVS belongs to Joss Whedon and others

Pairing: Buffy/Cordelia

Rating: PG-13 (mild smut)

Summary: Buffy visits Angel Investigations

"Oh, it's you," said Cordelia Chase, as she beheld the deceptively slight frame, blonde hair and pleasant features of Buffy Summers appearing above the pages of her fashion magazine.

"Oh, it's you? Is that any way to greet an old friend?" Buffy replied in a slightly hurt tone.

Cordelia raised an eyebrow. "Neither of us is old and we have never been friends," she said tartly. "If you're looking for Angel you've chosen the wrong day. He's out with the others on some assignment he didn't deign to tell me about."

"Oh," Buffy replied disappointedly. "I guess I'll have to wait then." She sat down facing Cordelia, who had returned her attention to the periodical, and said, "You're wrong you know, I am your friend." Cordelia snorted in reply. "No, really," Buffy went on. "I don't have that many friends and I do count you as one." Buffy's sincere tone struck a chord and a half-smile played across Cordelia's face, which she kept hidden with the magazine. "So," Buffy continued, "how have you been?"

Cordelia looked up from the glossy pages. "Oh, the usual, mind numbing tedium in between the excruciating visions of people in pain and need of help and the sheer terror of facing the nasty of the week. So I've been just peachy, what about you?" She noticed the concerned expression on Buffy's face and decided to come clean. "It's only now that I've got the vision thing that I realise how you must feel being the Slayer. To have this great burden thrust on you unbidden. To have to deal with it every day. I never quite realised what it meant before, I do now. It's terrible."

Buffy smiled at her. "Hey, it's not that bad. Well, yes, it is," she corrected herself, "but it's not all bad is it?"

Cordelia smiled in return. "Maybe not, it does feel good to help others. You want a coffee?" she asked nicely.

"That would be good," Buffy replied.

Morning became afternoon and afternoon became evening. The two women had fallen into a comfortable silence after the long day had exhausted their supply of small talk and gossip. Well, Cordelia's supply, Buffy scarcely spoke, she just sat and listened.

"Well," said Cordelia, yawning and looking at the clock on the wall. "I've had enough excitement for one day. I'm going home now. Would you like to come with me? I can't see much point in you waiting here. I'll leave Angel a note if he does come back so he can call you."

Buffy agreed. "Thanks Cordy, that's very kind of you."

"Well, here it is, home sweet home. With all mod cons and a live-in ghost," Cordelia announced. "Hello, Dennis, come and say hello to Buffy."

Buffy was surprised to see the tiles on a Scrabble board rearrange themselves to spell out HELLO BUFFY.

"Hello, Dennis," Buffy said to him and then turning to Cordelia asked, "You play Scrabble with a ghost?"

"Yes, is that a problem?"

"No." Buffy grinned. "It's just that it seems a bit... intellectual for you."

"Oh. My 'friend' thinks I'm an illiterate half-wit. Is that what you think, Dennis?" The Scrabble board spelt out NO.

"Sorry, Cordy, I guess I don't know you as well as I should do, but we can remedy that, can't we?"

Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Go set the table," she said, "I'll fix us something to eat."

It was only a couple of microwave meals, but somehow Cordelia made it seem like a mini-banquet. Buffy was impressed, but slightly puzzled why Cordelia was making such an effort. Or was she? Perhaps she was always like this with guests was Buffy's explanation.

Cordelia couldn't understand it either. Why was this so important to her? It wasn't as if they were on a date or anything. Then it hit her, that's exactly what it was, a date, with Buffy. But she wasn't, she couldn't be could she? No! Cordelia Chase was NOT gay. She was NOT a lesbian. She was sure of that, she'd never worn a pair of dungarees in her life. So why was she suddenly entranced by the blonde with the mist-green eyes sitting opposite?

"So, what about you and Riley?" Cordelia said quickly to cover her confusion.

"Not so good," Buffy replied. "We've hit a rough patch. So we're on a break from each other at the moment."

"What does that mean in practice?"

"It means we're being miserable on our own instead of being miserable together."

"Oh." Cordelia tried, and failed, to to think of something more sympathetic to say.

Buffy suddenly leaned forward to clasp Cordelia's hand across the table. "Boyfriends come and go, but girlfriends are forever, right?" Buffy beamed at her.

The touch and smile were too much for the brunette, who leapt up to make more coffee so she could get a better grip on her churning emotions before Buffy noticed.

Cordelia hoped that a spot of television would take her mind off the problem now that the meal was over. 'Ally McBeal' was her favourite show, but the episode in question turned out to be the one in which, after a great deal of simmering sexual tension, Ally kissed Ling. Buffy loved it, but Cordelia just stared at it as if it was a car wreck, horrible but fascinating at the same time.

"Isn't that funny, Ally has kissed just about all the women in that office, but she still doesn't see herself as being gay. I think she ought to get off the fence, settle down with Georgia, and to hell with Billy. What do you think, Cordy?"

Cordelia gulped. What could she say? The subject had been raised. Here was the perfect opportunity. Dare she say what was on her mind? She slowly dragged her eyes away from the television to face Buffy.

"I... I..." Her nerve failed her. "I think that's a perfectly awful suggestion. Just because she's kissed a few women doesn't mean she's gay." She fervently hoped that thinking about kissing women, or in her case, kissing Buffy, meant she was gay either.

"Okay, Cordy." Buffy laughed. "You win, Ally McBeal is not gay." She yawned. "Well, it's funny how doing nothing all day makes you tired. I'm ready to turn in. I'll sleep here on the sofa, if that's okay with you?"

"I wouldn't hear of it. You can share my bed." Cordelia inwardly screamed, had she really just said that? What was she going to do now?

A little later, after saying goodnight to Dennis, she was sitting up in bed waiting for Buffy to emerge from the bathroom. Wearing her borrowed nightdress, Buffy slinked across to the bed and slipped beneath the sheets next to Cordelia.

She leaned across and kissed Cordelia lightly on the cheek. "Night, night, Cordy," she said.

"Night, night," Cordelia replied, turning to Buffy in order to return the kiss. But try as she might, the temptation was too great to ignore, and so her lips met Buffy's, and remained there for far longer than a friendly peck warranted.

Buffy looked at her curiously. "What's up, Cordy, or should I say, Ally?"

Cordelia didn't know how to reply in words, so her body did it for her with a deep flush of embarassment.

"Well, if I'm playing the part of Ling, then I'd better kiss you back," Buffy declared unexpectedly before returning the kiss with passion. Cordelia was surprised but also very aroused and kissed back hard.

"Wow, Cordy, you sure know how to kiss a girl," Buffy said teasingly, after the need for oxygen forced them to stop. "Have you done this sort of thing before?"

"No," Cordelia said quietly, and I don't know why I just did. I just wanted to, okay!" she suddenly exploded.

Buffy put her fingers to Cordelia's lips to stop any further outburst. "It's okay," she said gently, "In fact it's more than okay. I liked it.. a lot! We can kiss some more if you'd like, or just go to sleep and forget it ever happened, but whatever you decide it's all right with me."

Cordelia couldn't quite take it all in, what was happening to her tonight? Her mind told her to do one thing, but her body told her another. Her body won the argument and she moved to take the delighted Buffy into her arms. I can be gay for one night only she thought to herself, and shivered in anticipation of the pleasure that was soon to come.

...

Faith watched her girlfriend with rapt attention. Cordelia was lost in a world of her own, eyes tight shut, inviting lips parted sensually, emitting breathy moans of delight as she pleasured herself. The increasing pace of her probing fingers indicated that she was near bliss. It would be just plain cruel to interrupt at this point, so Faith, fighting off the urgent need to touch herself, stood and watched as Cordelia crested the peak alone. Her eyes fluttered open to see Faith's lust darkened orbs just inches away.

"Thinking of me, were you?" Faith asked in her sexiest voice.

Cordelia's orgasmic flush deepened. "Of course, darling," she purred back at Faith. "It's not as if I'd be thinking of Buffy Summers is it?

Faith laughed. Cordelia too.