[text]Where the **** are you?
<Osiris> Quietly steepling his fingers, he watched from the shadows as the first security guard made her round of the building, sweeping the corridor he was hiding in with a bored, unfocused swipe of her flashlight before she muttered into her radio. Curls the color of pale corn shrouded the small black box, muffling her voice as she reported in to the other guards. He smirked, watching as the second guard followed closely behind her, watching the sway of her hips and the way her uniform stretched tightly across her shapely legs.
Too easy. The second guard passed him, and he shifted behind him, lifting a small, heavy club and smashing him across the back of the head with the weapon. The guard went down like a sack of potatoes, slumping into the floor in silence. Osiris took the flashlight from the man’s limp hand and moved behind the woman now, closing the gap between them. As he lifted the light, his phone buzzed in his pocket. The blonde woman whirled around, hand fumbling for her weapon. The shadow moved with impossible speed and precision, and smashed the woman’s temple with the flashlight, sending her crumpling into the floor. He grimaced and nudged the woman with his boot until she began to breathe, before he took out his phone and responded.
Working. Why? Where are you? I’m about finished here.
<Rion> Her agitation increased with each second that passed, and her phone still hadn’t vibrated. He usually responded in a flash, and yet for some reason, he seemed to want to push her this evening. Clutching her hands into a fist, she pushed from the couch and stalked to the kitchen, her t-shirt hanging lazily about her thighs as she began to rummage around through the fridge. It was filled with the necessities, though not a single one of them she could consume. It was for appearance, and every single item made her stomach twist. Reaching past a month old package of eggs, she dipped her hand into the twenty-four pack labeled ‘Dr. Pepper’ and pulled out a can. They had managed to work it to where the liquid was replaced with blood, and as she snapped the tab, she took a sip from it and sighed.
Slamming the door shut, she dropped the plastic tab into the trash and narrowed her eyes on Salem as he rolled over onto his back, his paws outstretched with a howl as he smacked at Vera, causing the Foxbat to let out a high pitched screech as she dived for cover on the other side of the room. “Idiots,” she muttered, just as her phone vibrated. Grabbing it, she narrowed her eyes on the text before shaking her head and taking another sip from her can.
[text] I’m at home, you know, like you asked me to be two hours ago, asshole. You’ve got fifteen minutes before I leave again and find somewhere else to be.
<Osiris> Shaking his head, he pulled the key from the ring at the woman’s hip, lifting it away carefully, so as to keep from making a sound, before he put his arms beneath her shoulders and lifted her, dragging her limp body into a dark corner and dumping her in the shadows. He turned back, and did the same for the first guard he had taken out as he felt his phone vibrate again. He flipped on the screen and sighed, slapping his temple with the heel of his palm. “****.” he muttered beneath his breath. I forgot.
He tapped out a quick message, then, and moved quickly through the now silent halls. Everything seemed still in the darkness, so these were probably the only guards on the floor. He moved swiftly to the electronic lock he had seen on his way past, and began dismantling the keypad mechanism. A crossed wire and one short later, and the door sprang open without an alarm. He swiped the parts he had been after, and stuffed them into his bag, before he turned and bolted for the exit. He lifted his phone as he moved swiftly through the empty halls.
I’ll be there in a second. Just had a quick job, nothing big.
He dropped the phone into his pocket and slipped out the front door of the office building, melting into the crowd on the sidewalk before he all but vanished in the throng. Quickly, he cut across the street to head straight for the train station.
<Rion> “One, two, three, four,” she counted as she moved around the living room, idly picking up pieces of clothing as she went. She was far from a tidy person when she was in the sanctuary of her own home, something that her husband absolutely detested, and usually she didn’t bother catering to his whims. Tonight was no different, and the moment she had all of the clothing piled into her arms, she headed for the bedroom and flung them out. The articles of fabric flew every which way, some landing on Salem’s bed, the others stretching across the television and floor. Satisfied with her work, she headed back for the living room and collapsed on to the couch. “Three hundred and sixty,” she hummed, and finally, her phone lit up. “Asshole.”
[Text] You forget again, and I might just forget I’m wearing a wedding ring the next time Becca forces me to one of her many bar nights.
She didn’t even hesitate when she pressed send, and after the message left her outbox, she tossed the phone onto the floor and rested back, closing her eyes. Any sane woman wouldn’t push their violently jealous spouse, but she hadn’t a ******* care in the world about what he might do or say to her. He pushed her to her limits of acceptance, and of course, she was going to push back. Stretching out, she wiggled her toes in her Stitch knee-socks and began to hum along to In This Moment as it played quietly from the speakers.
<Osiris> Hopping the fastest train home, Osiris sat mostly alone in a nearly empty car, his only company a human couple necking in the back of the seats. He ignored them, instead tapping out another message on his phone before he returned to playing a game to make the train ride go by with greater speed.
I might forget there’s a finger in that ring when I take it off of you, too, and use it to jab out whatever loser you pick up at the bar’s eyes. So why don’t you just do away with that nonsense and sit your *** back down? I won’t be another five minutes.
He tapped at his screen, idly playing his game as the train stopped, and he stepped off onto the platform without so much as glancing up. He walked through the thinning crowd of people, nearly vanished in this part of town by this hour, and walked straight into the hotel. He lifted a hand to wave at the girl at the front desk, ignoring whatever greeting she chirped at him tonight, and moved to the elevator. He was in their suite not minutes later, tucking his phone back into his pocket. His eyes swept over the apartment and he just let his gaze fall on her. He ignored the mess, for now, and let his smile slide easily across his features.
“It’s always good to see you after I’ve been out. You haven’t been too restless I hope?”
<Rion> His threat - though less violent than normal - was just as she expected. Instead of responding, she let the phone fall back to the floor as she watched Vera fly around, the flap of her wings soothing as she suddenly dived and picked a stuffed mouse off the floor. She had been wary of the bat at first, but soon, she had become an integral part of their family. That didn’t mean, however, that she liked the creature most of the time. She was always loud, always getting in her way, and lately - had been doing her best to annoy Salem to the point the poor, overweight cat was beginning to lose fur. Running her tongue over her lower lip, she narrowed her eyes on the bat as she dangled herself above her head.
“You’re a nuisance,” she grumbled, just as the door swung open to bathe them in light before shutting again. That split second was enough to agitate the bat, and she flew off and into the bedroom with another shrill sound that had her cringing. “If you didn’t run around the city like a whore every night, you’d see me a lot more often.” Her voice was sharp as she remained lazily stretched across the couch, her hands resting on her flat stomach. She was in another one of his t-shirts, having found the fabric softer than her own. He actually cared about that ****, the quality. She just bought whatever was convenient. They couldn’t be anymore mismatched if they tried. “You smell like cheap perfume. The **** have you been this time?”
<Osiris> Shrugging a shoulder, he moved to sit on the arm of the couch she was so nonchalantly draped across. He let his hand fall to her leg, fingers working the stiff muscles there as he glanced around the dark apartment. “I work most nights, you know that. It can’t be helped, besides. I have to keep this place paid up you know.” He chuckled, and pat her leg as he looked her over, shaking his head at her assessment of his scent.
“Security guard at work. She practically drowned herself in the stuff. Sort of makes the idea of stealth moot when an intruder can smell you before they even hear you.” He laughed, and dropped his bag into the floor, the take for the evening safe in its pouch as he gave her a smile. “I just got a little caught up in making an extra run through this industrial office complex on my way home. Lots of things ripe for the taking, and hardly a competent guard to speak of. So I’m sorry I’m late, but I’m here now.”
He squeezed her leg, then, and shifted to fall into the seat at her side, her legs draped lazily across his lap. “I hope you weren’t waiting too long.”
<Rion> When he began to work at her calf, she kicked her leg out, foot slamming roughly into his shoulder. She knew that he was simply trying to be affectionate, but something inside of her refused to allow it without a fight. You’re supposed to be working on that, she mentally scolded herself a second before she would have kicked him again. Instead, she forced herself to relax, though the anger was still evident in her eyes. Blowing a blue curl from her face, she stretched her arms above her head and scoffed. “You act like money is an issue, Osiris. We’re not that bad off. I still have everything from the morgue, plus a hefty sum from both my father and my loving ex-husband.” Her voice was tight as she spoke, as if the very memory of them caused her to choke up in anger.
It pleased her, however, to know that they were turning in their shallow graves at the thought of her having access to their cash. They had never wanted her to have a thing, and yet, because of their untimely demises, she was able to get her hands on everything they had. Granted, her father didn’t have much, but her ex-husband was loaded. A product of his scheming, she knew. Shrugging a shoulder, she stretched out again and wiggled her toes before crinkling her nose. “Why haven’t we considered moving?” The question was sudden, and she shrugged a shoulder before rolling her eyes. “I’m sure she was also hot enough that you let her live, right?” Fighting the urge to shove him off the couch once again, she gave him a dark glare at his question. “Two hours is pretty ******* long. I’m not going to listen to you next time, and just **** off because it’s obviously okay to do so.”
<Osiris> Shaking his head at her hostility, he just took a quiet breath and gave her a smile. “You know I’d rather not ever touch that money, even if we were penniless otherwise. And the guard I had to let live. Dead guards are bad for business, Rion, you know that. Bad for business, and bad for me. The big lout would have my head if he caught me killing them, just because you didn’t like them. They’d all die, and I’d have a pretty penny on my head.” He shook his head again and returned to squeezing her leg, in spite of her kicking.
“I didn’t even get a look at her. It’s dark when I’m working, you know that too. Besides, even if she were some supermodel running security for my target, she wouldn’t be you.” He shrugged, and worked his thumb into her calf as he rested back against the couch. He watched as Vera flitted through the darkness, to come rest on his outstretched arm, clutching at him lovingly as he smiled. “Thanks for taking care of her while I was out. I know she can be a handful. And because I’m late one time doesn’t mean you can just **** off, Rion. Let’s just forget that early on. At any rate, did you have anything else planned for the rest of the night?”
<Rion> After a moment, she could no longer control the urge to keep her feet in check, and she gave him another swift kick before prying her legs free. “He’s dead, Osiris. It’s not like us using his money means anything,” she muttered as she rubbed at her face with her free hand. Twisting, then, she placed her head in his lap and closed her eyes. It was guilt that made her give in, guilt that caused her to show affection, as brief and subtle as it was. She hadn’t lied, and he knew for a fact the man had died, but she hadn’t told the complete truth, either. He was dead in body, but his spirit still lingered, still haunted her - and she hadn’t told anyone, especially her husband. He couldn’t handle it.
Shaking her head, she gave a muttered curse before turning her gaze to the bat. “Don’t make a habit of it. Next time, I’ll let Salem eat her,” she snapped, though there was underlying current of affection for the damned creature. As if sensing this, Vera swung over and slammed her face into her head, before going back to staring up at Osiris with a loving gleam in her eyes. “It means whatever I want it to mean, actually, and no. You told me to be here, so here I am.”
<Osiris> Shaking his head, he let her heel slam into his ribs with little to no effect. He grunted, mostly for her benefit, as she shifted against his side, flipping herself head to heels before she rested her head into his lap. He shook his head, holding out his hand as the giant Foxbat lighted on his wrist. He smirked, and lifted a hand to let the creature dip her head, rubbing her scalp against his open palm. He chuckled, and ran his thumb along the silky soft coat between her tall, leathery ears as he watched the thing enjoy the attention.
“You wouldn’t. You couldn’t. I doubt that cat could catch old Vera here. She’s quick, and a little crafty. That cat can hardly hop onto the couch.” He chuckled again and nodded his head to the soft, fluffy creature as it pawed at the face of the couch, not finding purchase to even try to lift itself up, with Rion’s legs spanning the length of the seat. He doubted that Salem would have put much more effort than that even into a completely empty couch, all for himself. He was most likely to find a soft, quiet place on the rug and sleep all day. He lifted a shoulder and gave the bat’s head another stroke of his finger. “Well, since you haven’t any plans for the night, then maybe you can come with me someplace tonight.”
<Rion> “You’d be surprised what that fat *** could do if he set his mind to it,” she muttered, even as her gaze dropped to the beast in question. He wasn’t helping his case by trying to climb up onto her lap, and she gave a resigned sigh as he finally sat back on his haunches and gave a mournful howl. “For fucksake, you’re pathetic.” Leaning down, she grabbed him around his rotund stomach and hefted him up, allowing his weight to sink into her form. Before, she’d barely been able to handle him without struggling for breath, but now she rested easily. As he stretched out on her, his claws kneading into whatever surface he could find on her, she rolled her gaze back to her husband. “At least you’ve got one female to love you,” she smirked, dropping her hand to run her fingers through the cat’s silken fur. At his request, she found her brow arching as her vibrant eyes narrowed in a spiteful glare. “You all but stand me up and still expect me to go somewhere with you? What’s in it for me?”
<Osiris> Smirking, he ran a hand along her flat abdomen, until his fingertips met with the rotund form of her blob of a cat. His nails worked idly against his coat as the lean, muscle-bound shadow shrugged a shoulder at her question, his thumb lifting to run a long line down the cat’s spine, earning a low and pleased purr. He was sure the thing hadn’t realized it was him petting him yet. “What’s in it for you is that I don’t have to drag you out of here unwillingly. You get to choose, walking or sliding. I’ll say the night will go much better for the both of us if you just came along.”
He smirked at the cat, and looked down to where she lay in his lap. His hand moved from the cat’s fur to the smooth skin of her cheek. “You won’t regret it. I have something for you, but I can’t tell you. That would ruin the surprise.” He smiled then, and shifted beneath her to lift Vera from his shoulder, gently settling her on the arm of the couch as he stroked one of her ears with the pad of his thumb. Watching her, a question came to his mind. “How did she manage to get out of her cage?” he asked, turning to watch her warily. “I left her locked up when I left, I was going to let her off the balcony when I got back. Exactly for this reason, actually. I know she pesters the cat.”
<Rion> Trembling beneath his touch, she tried to fight the disappointment when she felt his fingers slide to Salem’s fur. Lucky cat, she thought dryly, before working her expression into its usual mask of indifference. “You can pull all you want, babe, doesn’t mean I’ll move.” Coming from the small woman, it was nothing more than an idle threat, but they both knew that she could - and would get her way. If she didn’t want to do something, there wasn’t a ******* force in the world that could make her. Lifting her hands, she ran them through her hair before attempting an innocent smile. “I’m sure I’ll regret every moment of it,” she teased, though her blue eyes lit up briefly.
For all of the bitterness and fronts she put up, she knew that she loved the man to her very core. He was what she needed - even if she would die before ever admitting as much out-loud. She suspected that he knew, despite even her best attempts to deter him. Casting a brief glance towards the creature in question, she gave a subtle shrug of her shoulder. “I have no idea. Maybe she’s learned to escape on her own.” Offering him a grin, she shoved the fat cat off of her and laughed as he rolled to the floor before sitting up straight. “If you’re forcing me into the open, I guess I have to get dressed. Unless you want them all seeing me in my underwear,” she smirked.
<Osiris> Pushing his hand through his hair as she sat up, rising from his lap with a graceful ease, he gave her a twisted smirk at her attempt at being coy. He ran his tongue along the inside of his cheek before he dropped his hand to his empty lap. “I wouldn’t recommend it. You’re bound to get looks, walking in the cold without any clothes. And I’m sure I’ll attract attention ripping out some loser’s throat for looking at you. You know. Tuesday night.”
He chuckled, and lifted a shoulder as he lifted a hand toward the bedroom and gave her a wry smile of adoration. “So get your *** in there and put some clothes on. I swear, I can’t take you anywhere.” He laughed, then, and brushed off the lap of his jeans as he moved to stand, eyes moving over the room in a quick sweep before he moved into the bathroom, his fresh change of clothes still hanging on the wall by the door, waiting. He pulled his shirt over his head, exposing his ink-laden torso as he tossed the tight cotton fabric into the hamper and pulled the fresh shirt from the hook on the wall. He turned and called over his shoulder as he aired out the fresh cotton. “When was the last time you just went out? Without doing something for work, or for, you know. Food?”
<Rion> Stepping over the clothes she had strewn about the bedroom, she headed for the closet, her eyes nearly closed. She was exhausted - she had hidden it well from him, but now it was written clear across her face. It was getting harder to fight the madness of her own mind - and the demons that haunted her. Even now, her ex-husband’s spirit lingered in the corner, his face a mask of anger and his eyes hollow pits of hell. Keeping her back to him, she pulled her shirt over her head and reached blindly into the closet, fingers grabbing the first article of clothing they touched. Stepping back, she pulled the black lace dress over her head, the hem ending just barely past her *** and the plunging neckline showing off her heart and barbed wire tattoo perfectly. She knew the moment it fell into place he was going to hate it - but god, was he going to love it.
Without missing a beat, she grabbed her combat boots and moved for the dresser, where she pulled out a pair of black cat stockings, the ears and eye designs ending just above her knees. Her entire wardrobe was chaotic, not one thing the same as the last, and she found it fit her personality perfectly. There was no label for her, no rhyme or reason to half the **** she did, and it was proving to be the charm that she needed. Slipping her feet into the boots, she laced them up and raised a brow as his voice carried from the bathroom. “I don’t just do things. You know that,” she replied, ignoring her ex-husband’s snort as she ran her fingers through her hair. “I’m not exactly a people person. I can’t stand public, and it only got worse when I married you. You damn near kill anyone that stands within fifty feet of me.” Despite the words, there was admiration to her tone as she pulled her loose blue hair over her shoulders and stepped back into the living room to wait.
