Just a little something I wrote to get rid of writer's block. It's a little dark, but then, Rei and Jade can be a very dark couple :D
Quick explanations: this story takes place in the first season. Jadeite is most definitely evil. And Thetis is a youma with a particularly ardent crush on our darling Jadey.
Sailormoon doesn't belong to me. The song "Change" belongs to Deftones. Listen to it while you're reading! It totally adds to the atmosphere :D
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Change
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Everybody knew S H E B A didn't really come alive until about four in the morning, but a sizable crowd occupied the club by midnight anyway.
Red-filtered strobes confused the eye, flashed in time with the music. Far above the dance floor, harlots decked in their crass finery twisted in their dancing cages, suspended languidly in spider's gossamer.
The heat of the crowd bounced from the floor back up to the high ceiling, sweat and perfume and smoke mingling. A petulant voice cut through the feverish air, emerging from the pierced and punked blonde riding the microphone onstage. The bearded, shirtless men behind her bent their heads over guitars and drums, bizarre sages lost in their private philosophy.
Across the crammed expanse, a woman waited by the bar, drinking something blue and only vaguely recognizable.
"Come on, Rei! Aren't you dancing?"
Hino Rei eyed the sweatily packed dance floor with palpable disdain. Sighing, she closed her eyes, leaning back and resting her elbows over the counter.
The bartender swallowed noisily as a few strands of her glossy mane fell into his lap. Rei didn't notice. She spoke flatly and without any coquetry, her eyes still shut.
"I'll have some more of whatever you just gave me. Please," the last being an afterthought.
"Um. Coming right up." He didn't attempt to follow it up with a wink, as he usually did.
"And no, I don't want to dance. This isn't my kind of music," Rei eventually answered her friends. Naturally, they didn't give up.
Laughing, her classmates grabbed at her hands, her clothes, trying to pull her into the thump-thump of the bass, the sweetly sullen song still discernible.
Rei, the acknowledged queen for the night, didn't have to say a word.
After a few awkward moments, the girls pulling at her, Rei unresponsive, they left her alone. Lola and Setsu followed Mia and Shisa who followed Rika and Nori and on and on they trooped, an implacable army determined to spend the night in someone else's bed, or at least someone else's Ferrari.
They wouldn't find any men here, just boys. She knew without bothering to watch that they were flailing their girlish hips, their meager chests at anybody who might respond with interest.
Those sluts, she thought fondly.
Rei also knew that there were plenty of covetous eyes on her – there should be, after all – even though she didn't care enough to quell any stares. The buckled skirt rode high on her fishnetted thighs, a ripped mens' T-shirt skimming the arch of her breasts and belly.
She didn't give a damn about impressing the boys, not with their slippery-sweet kisses and grasping fingers. Like puppies, the dark-eyed girl reflected. It was the last thing Rei wanted anywhere near her – their unclean hands, wet with nervous perspiration.
Nah. She just liked that they'd crawl for her.
Anyway, she was only here because Lala and Rika had all but tied her up and shoved her in Shisa's car, giving her sad kitty eyes when she'd told them she didn't have time for uninteresting bullshit. Contrary to her frosty reputation, Hino Rei occasionally did indulge her school friends with a rare show of magnanimity. But she was regretting it now, because she'd never been so bored in her life. There were no thrills to be had here.
Her musings done with, Rei finally opened her eyes, surveying the dancers for Shisa or any familiar face.
Her gaze lighted tenderly on someone's bare back, one of many in the sweltering space, and Rei couldn't help but admire the way his muscles stirred beneath his bronzed skin, the angelwings tattoo over his shoulders contracting-releasing in flight. Tawny curls twined over his nape like a halo, and for a moment Rei thought she was seeing an angel in blue jeans.
She shook herself from her reverie. It was definitely time to go, and if she had to drag Shisa out to the car herself…
Rei froze, her drink hovering at her parted lips.
Scratch that bit about no thrills.
Her angel had turned in her direction. Jadeite was staring directly back at her, a peculiar smile curving up – one that she'd never quite seen gracing her enemy's lips before.
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He was already starting towards her, his movements leonine. So he knew who she was. She didn't have time to ponder how he'd figured that one out. Rei began edging towards the exit conveniently located behind the bar, fingers already grasping for her transformation wand.
She certainly couldn't fight him here, not in this cramped space with so many opportunities for accidental casualties. Accidental on her part, anyway. Obviously, Jadeite didn't give a fuck about collateral damage – reveled in it, really, just so long as his objective was completed.
Rei hadn't made it past the coat check when her eyes widened with dismay, fixing not on Jadeite but just behind him. The music surrounding them seemed to dwindle into silence.
Shit.
Lola and Nori followed him eagerly, their eyes bright with longing. It seemed that he favored Setsu; his hand wrapped possessively around her slim throat, fingers slowly working at her curls. He smiled at Rei, intimately.
A few bobby pins fell to the floor, and Setsu's head fell back easily, sudden fear coalescing with desire in her eyes as Jadeite oh-so-slowly drained her energy away.
Rei could see Setsu visibly weakening, and felt rage begin to build, sure and certain. He still didn't look away, apparently not in the least alarmed by the flames literally licking from her gaze as she summoned her element. Fucking piece of shit! Obviously, Rei couldn't transform in here and he had no intention of exposing himself to her assault by taking the fight outside. She'd never felt so vulnerable; as Mars, she could always hide behind the mystique of her identity.
Rei didn't have that option now.
What the hell does he want from me?
"So come here and find out," he drawled as if on cue, his voice incredibly familiar – and too soft for someone standing a good ten feet away. It didn't matter; somehow, Rei heard Jadeite loud and clear. She schooled her expression.
"Let her go."
"I won't repeat myself, little miko."
His grip on Setsu tightened, and she whimpered, whether in pain or pleasure Rei couldn't say. She took a step closer, experimentally.
Another.
Another.
Jadeite dropped Setsu to the floor, watching Rei intently. Setsu took the hint and picked herself up, running for the exit, but he seemed to have Lola and Nori in a thrall still.
"Fight me, asshole," she snarled, halfway between the bar and him. "Or is this how you get your sick little rocks off, you – ?"
Jadeite's smile twisted cruelly, and behind him, Nori dropped to the floor, deadweight. Her head thudded against the concrete with a sickening crack, and the strobes illuminated darkly gleaming blood, pooling out on the chalky floor.
As she drew a panicked breath, another quicker step brought Rei directly in front of him, and she took yet another, recklessly pressing herself against him.
She shoved at his chest, digging long nails into his sweat-kissed skin. As he hissed in annoyance, Rei twisted around him to see Lola's eyes blink sleepily, then widen. Jadeite's thrall was broken.
"Lola, get her and run – "
She was promptly cut off by Jadeite's forearm, pressing hard into her throat as he spun her around, back pressed firmly to his broad chest. His hand reached up to loosely cover her mouth.
Behind them, Rei heard Lola's groan as she pulled Nori up, and then her quick, light footsteps toward the exit. Thank God, she's got some brains at least. Now that she knew her classmates were relatively safe, she could fight without distraction.
Rei opened her mouth and bit down on his hand, hard. She tasted the copper tang of his blood on her tongue. So Beryl's bitches do bleed red, after all. She could feel some more of that redness, moistening the back of her shirtwhere it pressed against his scratched-up chest.
Jadeite didn't make a sound in complaint; not a muscle that she could feel even twitched in release. Letmegoletmegoletmego!
Instead, Jadeite's lock around her throat tightened ominously. And then, Rei couldn't breathe.
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Anyone watching might have thought they were lovers, his golden head bent adoringly over her dark one, his laughing mouth brushing the ticklish shell of her ear.
"You know, little miko, you've made me bleed more today than in any fight with you and your precious Senshi," Jadeite breathed, his curls tickling her cheek.
Rei clawed at his arm over her throat, trying to loosen his chokehold so that she could inhale. He seemed impervious to her efforts.
Unfortunately, the same was not true for her. The moment his lips touched her earlobe, every nerve ending beneath her skin seized, and Rei twisted her head away from him, an outraged noise rising from her throat.
Chuckling, Jadeite relaxed his grip. Immediately, Rei began to squirm, before he bent his head close again, stilling her movement.
"Some of your friends are still in this club. I've been watching you; I know exactly who they are. Behave," his harsh whisper grated.
"Behave?" Rei spat, twisting to look up at him. "What exactly do you want from me, Jadeite?"
Nonetheless, she deliberately relaxed her tensed muscles, though his overwhelmingly corrupt aura automatically conjured Mars – and every self-preserving instinct she had – to the surface.
Jadeite laughed loudly, head tossed back, his skin glowing copper in the dim lights. Rei felt a sudden, inexplicable urge to apply her teeth to the tiny hollow between his collarbones…
What the fuck?
"What do I want?" Jadeite mused aloud, dragging her into the thronging crowd.
Rei loathed this perpetual state of amusement – he had to have some trick up his sleeve, but she hadn't the foggiest clue of what it could be. Wouldn't he have used it by now?
She winced as Jadeite spun her to face him, one hand resting possessively at the small of her back, the other bruising the nape of her neck. One hard thigh pressed insistently between hers, hauling her up to his height, so that Rei straddled him. He tugged her head back by the hair, forcing her to look directly into his eyes, now black with something Rei could not recognize.
"Let's dance."
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The new singer's low, pleading growl barely penetrated Rei's consciousness. Jadeite's hands rested securely on her slowly undulating hips, his thumbs branding tiny circles on the bone.
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I watched you change
Into a fly
I looked away
You were on fire
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She observed how their bodies moved in leisurely synchrony, her eyelashes downcast in an effort to avoid – that look, that strange look she'd seen in his eyes before he'd slid her down the length of his thigh and they'd begun the age-old dance. Startled, Rei's first instinct was to fight his touch, but then she'd caught a glimpse of Mia at the bar…
Even now, Rei could feel him watching her. Loosen up. If he feels how nervous you are, he'll never let down his guard. Tentatively, Rei flattened her palms on his bare chest, exploring the broad planes. She wasn't sure, but she thought she heard him make a noise, deep in his throat.
Rei smiled inside, her confidence returning. Just a different way of fighting, is all.
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I watched a change in you
It's like you never had wings
Now you feel so alive
I've watched you change
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Her fingertips mapped out Jadeite's skin from nipple to collarbone, finally resting on the wings tapestrying his shoulders. Everywhere she touched, the sinew beneath his skin shuddered, like leaves beneath water. That time, she knew she heard something.
As if reminding Rei who was in control here, Jadeite tugged at her hips, flattening her breasts against his ribcage. Rei drew a sharp breath and made the mistake of looking up, directly into his eyes.
Their breath mingled for a moment, and Rei felt the dormant fighter within her recede in defeat. Seemingly in a last plea for self-preservation, her fingertips heated suddenly, and Rei smelled smoke and burnt flesh. Hissing in pain, Jadeite jerked away from her hands on his back, so briefly wreathed in flame, and now Rei was closer to her enemy than she had ever been before.
Her black eyelashes brushed his, his blond stubble scratching her cheek. So close up, she could see nothing but those eyes. And as simply as that, Rei was an insect caught in amber.
"Oh, God." She'd never heard herself sound so broken.
He kissed the corner of her mouth first, almost uncertain. His forehead rested on hers as he bent her slightly backward, their hips moving imperceptibly to the languid rhythm.
Jadeite's eyes shut trustingly, his golden eyelashes fanning out. Rei's eyes remained wide open as his mouth found hers, pushing for acceptance. She parted her lips, unthinking, and they kissed hungrily, his hands coming up to cup her face, callused thumbs caressing her high cheekbones. His blood painted her face, trickling from where she had bitten him.
He tastes of caramel, Rei thought, intrigued, as she drew out his bottom lip, savoring him. He bit in quick retaliation, drawing blood.
"You've already tasted mine," was all the excuse Jadeite growled out.
A little twisted, but Rei didn't care. She was too dizzy, his smell and taste like bubbling champagne – each little pop-pop-pop stung, but oh, it felt so good.
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I took you home
Set you on the glass
I pulled off your wings
Then I laughed
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I can't feel my feet, Rei mused clinically. Too much of that blue shit, I guess…
No matter. Jadeite supported her weight easily, seemingly intoxicated with the ambrosia of her skin. She felt her fingers slip nervelessly from his shoulders, her spine loosen. Rei was floating.
I feel like a rag doll, Rei marveled, and suddenly there was the tang of fear in her mouth. Need some air.
She pushed at his chest, but her hands fluttered helplessly, impotent, as though she were half-asleep. Suddenly, the breath Rei had taken from his lips didn't feel like enough, her lungs compressed and struggling. Now she saw the trap, the trump card he hid. He was stealing her life force – ambrosia, indeed.
"Stop," Rei begged weakly into his mouth, but it emerged as a moan, the wind knocked from her rattling ribs. Whether her eyes opened or closed, the room remained the same carnal shade of red.
I'm dying.
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I watched a change in you
It's like you never had wings
Now you feel so alive
I've watched you change
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She let her bones fall loosely, her limbs slacken.
God, I'm so sleepy…her eyelids fluttered to the slowing throb of her pulse, and he dropped her to the floor.
Rei's eyes shot open. Jadeite stared down at her, his eyes black and wild. His breath was ragged, bloody hands clenched into fists. The lazy ripple of his muscles had become a fine tremor. Even his ever-present smile shook.
"What do I want?" she heard him say mockingly or despairingly from very, very, very far away. He backed away from her prone form, finally vanishing through the fogged back exit.
She closed her eyes, curling up on the floor, oblivious to the dancers above. A few bruises marked her throat, a trail of scarlet leaking from her mouth.
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Jadeite stumbled blindly through the dank, humid halls, throwing open the door to his chambers. Thetis rose from a disheveled pile of pillows and sheets immediately, casual in her nudity.
"You're back, my lord?"
He crossed the chamber without a word, collapsing on the immense bed. Silently, Thetis dropped to the floor, pulling off his boots. Her observant gaze caught the bleeding scratches on his chest, the fingertip-shaped burns on his shoulders.
Jadeite lay back slowly, his eyes unblinking. Thetis couldn't help asking; she was curious.
"My lord, did you – ?"
"Shut up."
She'd never seen her brazen, laughing master so upset. "Y-yes, my lord."
Thetis waited a moment before crawling onto the bed. She straddled his hips, tugging at the fly of his jeans. His hands came up absently to cup her behind, and she ran her hands over his chest, careful to avoid the deep scrapes. As Thetis worked his jeans off, Jadeite stared blankly at the high ceiling.
In his unseeing sight, there was only a pair of blazing violet eyes.
You change.
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