Angel had never felt comfortable behind a desk. Even at the Hyperion, the desk had never felt right. He'd always felt a lot more productive when he was out fighting one bad guy at a time. It was what he knew. Sitting around made it seem like he wasn't doing anything. When Lilah had first escorted him to this new office, he had no idea what to do with it. Not really, not in any way that mattered.
He understood the desk now. He understood the big office and the kowtowing staff and even the garage full of really cool cars. He got it.
It was all part of doing business.
Running a business wasn't a mystery to him anymore. Cordy would have been proud of that alone. Could be that she'd added in some of what she'd soaked in from her father with her final vision. If he remembered right, her father was a businessman until he was caught for tax evasion. Caught trying to increase his own personal bottom line.
Those catchphrases all clicked for him now. Focus on the bottom line. Empower employees. Push the envelope. Optimize resources. Build effective partnerships. Think outside the box. Maximize opportunities. Achieve the largest possible net profit.
Mix all of these catchy business phrases together, add in Cordy's vision and what he already knew about the Senior Partners of Wolfram & Hart, and Angel had a workable plan.
Fred's death was the key. One of the newest catchphrases floating around the office was, "There are no problems. There are no challenges. There are only opportunities." Her death cost them all, but there was still profit to be gained here. Losing Fred created an opportunity. Angel took advantage of that. Maximized it.
Angel glanced that the copy of "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" that Hamilton had given him. More than anything else, this new liaison was a businessman, and he was more than happy to share his viewpoint. He had counted on Hamilton's willingness to act as a mentor in business matters, and Angel had taken full advantage of his advice. Angel couldn't have done this without him.
After that, it all fell into place. The powers of this dimension began to reveal themselves. He built up partnerships with them. Exceeded their expectations. Examined his resources and determined their optimal use. Even Harmony was going to be useful. Human Resources had a sign on their wall that read, "Employees are this company's best resource." Angel could optimize that resource as well. This was business. This was what he did now.
In business, the goal isn't "to win." The goal is "to make a profit."
This wasn't about winning. He'd never beat Wolfram & Hart in the once-and-for-all way he used to like. Winning was never the point. Not even for the other side. Holland Manners had shown him that - it just took a while for it to soak in. Even the Senior Partners didn't care about winning. They just cared about doing. Winning wasn't a part of their business plan. It didn't have to be. They would continue to exist no matter what he did.
He couldn't beat them, but he could hurt them. THAT was his profit.
This dimension was the right place to hurt them. This was their Home Office. He understood the fact that evil flourished here because of free will, but people still had a choice. This was why he had fought Jasmine: so people would still have the ability to choose. They could choose to fight. Even if there would never be any chance of winning, fighting was not futile. Fighting didn't have to be unprofitable.
Wes would understand what he was doing. He knew about making sacrifices for the greater good. Wes just about lived by it. Considering past history, Wes had probably written a few essays on the topic when he was studying to be a Watcher. The Greater Good concept wasn't all that different from what he was doing. If Wes knew what Angel knew, and if he was fully present mentally, he would've not only caught on by now, but agreed with him. But Wes was still the guy who had the best shot of finding the pattern. Angel had already set the clue for him. "YOU'RE LOOKING IN THE WRONG PLACE." Wes was the one who could lead the rest of the team - his partners - to the place Angel needed them to be. To the Circle of the Black Thorn and, just as importantly, against him.
Then, like any good businessman, he had to sell this plan. He had to convince his partners that this was a worthwhile investment. He'd better, because he was asking them to invest their entire existence in this.
All of the key players needed to agree to this. Wesley. Gunn. Lorne. Spike, much as he hated to admit it. And Lindsey, but he was a special case. It wouldn't hurt if Illyria joined the team for this, but she was still a wild card. But they all had to agree knowing the stakes. They had to buy into this plan 100%, because, if they pulled this off, this would be it for them.
Until the big sell, it was business as usual. He kept acting as if he was focused on the other side's bottom line. He was walking the walk and talking the talk. Gotta love those catchphrases.
When the time was right, they would do this. They would be investing their lives and their futures, but the results would make it all worth it. They'd be taking a chunk out of the Senior Partners. Hurting them. Angel couldn't think of a better type of profit.
Profit minus cost equals net profit. Crippling the Senior Partners, just for one moment, would make the cost worth it.
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