Angel

Scene opens with Lorne walking the hallways in Wolfram & Hart, talking on his cell phone with his lackey following him, hanging on every word. Lorne is planning the big annual Halloween party for the firm and is busy lining up an impressive guest list. He stops at Harmony's desk and asks to see Angel and Harmony tells him that Angel is on a field mission but is likely in "a mood". This turns out to be true, as Angel walks up covered in some kind of demon snot. He is not a happy camper. The gadget he was to use on the demon misfired as he tells Wesley, who comes running up to him. He hands over the defective mechanism as Lorne attempts to get Angel to discuss the party preparations. Angel responds he's been out all night, exhausted, needs a shower and gives Lorne the brush-off. Lorne moves off down the hall with his lackey following close behind.

Lorne stops at his own office and it's apparent from all the sticky-notes on his door that he has been very busy employee. He sends his lackey on an errand and enters, exhausted. As he sits in front of his mirror, his image starts egging him on until Lorne breaks the mirror in anger. However, something did the trick, because he is soon out the door, with a spring in his step and the cell phone back to his ear.

The next scene opens in Angel's apartment, with a long shot showing a naked Angel getting out of the shower and grabbing a towel. In walks Eve, unannounced, first saying that the door was unlocked, but as Angel turns to face her and makes no effort to cover himself, she admits she had a key. Angel remains silent, holding out his hand for the key. Eve is in a playful mood and as she hands over the key, makes several sexually risqué comments about Angel taking a really long shower. Angel responds non-committently, wraps the towel around himself and brings the conversation back to business. Eve tells him that he missed their 7:30 business meeting. Angel looks frustrated and turns to get dressed.

Angel and Eve have a discussion in the elevator concerning his being overworked, "bottling up stuff", and needing a release. Angel argues he doesn't "bottle", but when the elevator door opens, instinctively punches the party mask of some poor soul waiting at the elevator door. Lorne is in the midst of party preparations and begs Angel to help get the "A" list to attend. Angel is so not interested, but Lorne insists and Angel agrees to meet him in the office in 20 minutes to discuss the event. Eve watches the exchange with some amusement.

Fred and Wesley are discussing the defective mechanism in the lab. "Was Angel Mad?" asks Fred. "Shouldn't he be?" replies Wesley. Soon Knox steps in to trade barbs with Wesley as to who screwed up the gadget. Enter Lorne, who has only the party on his mind and works hard to get the group to take it more seriously. Fred indicates she probably won't go, though Knox attempts to talk her into it. Only when Knox indicates he will work on the gadget does it look like Fred and Wesley will relent. Lorne is pleased and tells them he will see them in Angel's office in 15 minutes.

Lorne's next stop is Gunn. He tells Gunn he needs his help to get Angel to warm to this whole party idea, essentially telling Gunn to step up to the plate. "I want you to spread out your wings, stake out your territory…" he tells Gunn. "Angel's office. 10 minutes." And he's out the door again.

In Angel's office Team Angel are all waiting on Lorne. Even Spike is there, making snarky remarks about how in his day no respectable creature of the night went out on All Hallows Eve. That was left to the posers who had to dress up to be scary… Lorne finally walks in late, and starts the discussion on the importance of this party. Gunn backs him up with the thought that image-wise it is good for the firm. But Angel worries about the possibility of a bloodbath should the evil attendees have grudges to act out. Lorne assures him that having run Caritas he could handle that. In the end Angel agrees to accompany Lorne to pay a visit to one of the demon world's biggest trend setters, the Archduke Sebassis.

In the limo, on the way to visit the Archduke, Lorne explains to Angel how important this event is to him, that this is something that he, as a non-fighter, can do to contribute to the team. He begs Angel to let him do the talking: "You just kind of smile and try not to rip anybody apart, okay?"

At the Sebassis's residence, the Archduke is less than cordial to Angel, indicating his distain of vampires but that he preferred the tales of Angelus. Angel watches in disgusted horror as the Archduke has a slave open his wrist vein and pour some blue life's blood into a glass. Angel passes on the drink, but at the Archdukes insistence, Lorne accepts, trying hard to keep control of the tense situation. The Archduke is mollified and agrees, based on his respect for Lorne, to attend the Halloween Party. After Angel and Lorne leave, the Archduke's lieutenant offers his belief this party is a trap; the Archduke agrees it may be, but that he is in the mood for some intrigue, as he reveals the weapons they will take with them.

On the lobby floor Lorne is extorting party goers to "mingle". Fred and Wesley are stationed at the d'oeuvres table discussing their mutual discomfort at attending parties as Lorne walks up, accusing them of being wall flowers, way too sober and suggesting they need to get three sheets to the wind. "Try to get into the spirit of things, okay?" he says, before walking off.

He finds Angel in his office sitting at his desk watching a hockey game on TV. In the midst of criticizing his boss for opting out of the party, he groans and holds his head. Angel is concerned, but with a plea that his boss get out there and boogie, Lorne leaves.

On the dance floor Harmony is attempting unsuccessfully to interest a somber Spike in dancing, and as Angel and Lorne look on, the Archduke Sebassis enters with his entourage. At Lorne's appeal, Angel greets the Archduke, but with flamboyant insincerity. Lorne quickly pulls Angel away into the crowd.

Fred, and Wesley with a bottle in his hand, are mingling, but they are now obviously drunk. Their conversations are slurred as they pass through the crowd coming to a halt before one on the monster decorations where, as Harmony warns them, someone has peed all over the floor. "Revolting." is all that Fred can say.

Lorne comes upon Gunn, who admits the party looks like a success. He tells Lorne he wished he had a tenth of Lorne's energy and wonders how he does it. Lorne confesses he had his "sleep" removed some time ago, a procedure available at Wolfman & Hart. Lorne hasn't slept in about a month. Gunn is impressed.

Cut to the Archduke who expects "the vampire" will spring a trap on them. His instructions to his lieutenant is to kill them all should that happen. They are confident their weapons have not been detected.

Eve walks up to Angel and tells him she was impressed by his greeting act for the Archduke, and that he was banging it out to the cheap seats. Lorne overhears Angel's response to Eve that he thought the same thing about her dress. At that, an impatient Lorne comments the sexual tension between them can be cut with a knife and walks away with the suggestion they "get a room."

Cut to next scene of Eve and Angel lip-locked and attempting strip off their clothing as they enter Angels office.
Cut to the Archdukes lieutenant in a bathroom stall. Someone enters and blood is splattered all over the wall.

The party is now in full swing: loud, raucous, with a conga line winding through the crowd. Fred and Wesley are thoroughly drunk. The Archduke however is cold sober as he directs a minion to find his lieutenant.

Wesley notices, even in his drunken state that he has only had a few sips of beer, far less than his level of inebriation would dictate. Fred drags him over to Gunn for advice, and while they ask his opinion, Gunn pees on Wesley's shoes. He zips up his pants and says in a tone of surprise, "That's weird". Enter Spike jumping to the music and obviously enjoying himself, where before he could only barely stomach the idea of a Halloween party. The three stare at Spike and Fred declares that something is definitely wrong with that picture. Wesley sobers, and agrees they seem to be on the effect of something…a spell. The answers he gets from the group convinces him that somehow Lorne is source.

They grab Lorne and the group bursts into Angel's office to inform their boss of this phenomenon, only to find Angel and Eve in a tryst behind the office couch. A still somewhat drunk Wesley declares they're all under a spell: "Spike's thinking positive. Gunn is peeing all over the office. We're a bit drunk, but not because we drank. And Angel…"
During a discussion it comes out that Lorne had suggested to each of them to take the actions they did: he told Gunn to stake out his territory, Fred and Wesley to be drunk, Spike to live it up, Angel to get a room with Eve. It's decided that having his sleep removed increased Lorne's empath powers in the wrong direction. Angel orders Wesley to find Lorne's sleep and get it restored.

The Archduke has found the mangled body of his lieutenant the bathroom, while in the archives Fred and Wesley look for the container with Lorne's "sleep".

The Archduke and his henchmen burst into Angel's office with weapons drawn. Angel is still behind the couch with Eve. The Archduke believes Angel had his man killed and informs him that he will now attend an execution. But a woman's scream brings the entire group running out of the office into the lobby. One of the guests is lying dead across the d'oeuvres table. As the guests gather around, the Archduke accuses Angel of this murder as well. Though Lorne attempts to calm the situation, weapons click.

Fred and Wesley are still in the archives, where Fred has found Lorne's sleep. Wesley confirms from some literature that depriving an Empath Demon from sleep can have disastrous results, releasing the demons sub-conscious.

Meantime in the lobby, the crowd is now having to deal with a green monster, Lorne's sub-conscious which has been released due to the lack of sleep. Not even Angel is strong enough to take on this monster, but fortunately for all, Fred arrives to shoot Lorne with a gun containing his "sleep". The monster goes up in a puff of blue smoke.

Next day guests are still leaving as the lobby is being cleaned up. Everyone is agreed it was the best party ever. All's well that ends well for it turns out Sebassis's people enjoy a little blood sport at their social functions. Eve tells an apologetic Angel that the sex they had together meant nothing since it wasn't the first time she'd done that under a mystical influence. Wesley walks out dejected, as Knox and Fred have a good time together over drinks.

In the end scene Angel declares to Gunn that while there were no bad consequences to the party, things were not okay. "The place is trying to change us, Gunn", he says, "We can't ever forget that." Gunn leaves and Angel tells Spike to get out. Angel is left with a sleeping Lorne. The Host mumbles his apologies to Angel and sleeps on.
End credits.