DISCLAIMER: Blade: The Series and its characters are the property of Spike TV, New Line Cinema and Marvel Comics . No infringement intended.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Story takes place sometime during Monsters after Krista comes back to the building but before the Karcus office scene and Marcus creepily giving his dead wife's necklace to Krista.
ARCHIVING: Only with the permission of the author.
Inside and Out
By Janine
Krista sighed deeply as the door to her room opened and Chase strolled in like she owned the place ... as usual. The blonde was dressed in a red party dress and had put a slight curl into her hair which alarmed Krista for some reason though she suspected it had something to do with the fact that the only time she'd seen Chase done up the woman had attacked her on a roof at Marcus' reclamation gala.
"Well, at least you're not still in your PJs," Chase commented as she strode into the room looking Krista up and down as she walked. "However, this," she went on waving at the jeans and t-shirt Krista was wearing, "is not going to work. Go change into something nice," she finished pointing towards the closet.
"Why?" Krista asked somewhat wearily not moving an inch as she glared at Chase.
"Because we're going out, and it would embarrass me to be seen with you dressed like that," Chase responded holding Krista's gaze. "There's a nice cream strapless in there, change into that while I figure out what to do with your hair."
"First of all, you need to stop rummaging through my closet," Krista responded peevishly, annoyed and disturbed that Chase knew more about what was in there than she did. "Secondly, I'm not going out. And thirdly, I can't think of any scenario where I'd be the embarrassing one."
Chase looked at her, a frown coming to her face before her eyes hardened. "You're acting like this is a discussion. It's not. Get changed."
Krista considered Chase for a moment. The other woman didn't scare or intimidate her. She'd been on missions with Chase, she knew what she was capable of and that if it came down to a fight she could handle the blonde. She also believed that half of the things Chase ordered her to do were just Chase power-tripping instead of directives from Marcus, who seemed to have no idea how much time Chase forced her to spend with her. Still, she wasn't sure whether it was worth it to fight Chase on this one. She did want to get out the building for a while and she might be able to get some information out of Chase while they were out wherever it was they were going.
"Fine, whatever," Krista muttered irritably. "And you know you're not touching my hair, right?" she continued heading towards the closet.
Chase simply smirked and lowered herself onto the bed, crossing her legs delicately before posing herself artfully and turning her gaze on Krista, obviously intent on watching her change … and looking good while she did.
Entering the closet to search for the dress Chase had mentioned, Krista breathed in deeply knowing that it was going to be a long night.
Krista's eyes widened as they stepped into what she could now see was a night club. From the part of town they were in and the rather plain exterior of the building she hadn't been sure what she would find inside only that a very nice and expensive jazz lounge wasn't it.
"One of Detroit's best kept secrets," Chase murmured softly grabbing Krista's hand and leading her further inside taking advantage of Krista's distraction as she continued to look around. She knew that Krista was expecting her to take her on another hunting trip, or was perhaps expecting some kind of surveillance mission and she was feeling rather smug about having surprised her.
"I can see," Krista said glancing down realizing that Chase was holding her hand. "But what are we doing here?"
"Getting to know each other," Chase responded simply, her response in the realm of truth, before she looked away from Krista to speak with one of the establishment's hostess's.
"So this is like a girl's night out?" Krista asked dubiously as they were led to a secluded booth near the back of the club.
"Well, it's certainly not a day out on the town," Chase responded smirking at Krista as she slid into the booth and patted the space beside her, indicating that Krista should sit on the leather seat with her.
"Funny," Krista muttered not seeming terribly amused by Chase as she slid in next to her.
As she settled in next to the blonde Krista's face scrunched up in confusion as she saw a predatory look enter the blonde's eyes and naughty curl come to her lips. However, it wasn't the fact that Chase looked predatory and sensual that confused her so much as the fact the blonde seemed to be looking beyond her instead of at her. She'd only seen that look on the blonde's face directed at her, and she didn't know what to make of the small stab of jealousy that shot through her when she realized that Chase was looking at someone else when she was sitting right beside her.
Turning her head slightly Krista spotted a young woman approaching their table. There was a tray with a notepad pressed against it in her hand and Krista realized that she was their waitress. Turning back to look at Chase, Krista slumped back against the leather back of the booth and watched as the elder vampire bit her lip and let her eyes drop from the waitress's face down to her neck where they focused intently.
"Corona," Krista said gruffly and immediately as the woman stopped in front of them speaking before Chase could, not at all liking the speculative gaze the blonde was still bestowing upon the waitress.
"A vodka tonic … please," Chase said a moment later smiling sweetly at the girl after she ordered. Krista sighed deeply at that and the waitress's responding smile. She'd thought that maybe they might be able to have a normal night out without killing, and blood and other unsavory vampire related business but it seemed like Chase was just working the crowd looking for a meal like the last time.
"Oh, don't be like that," Chase commented lightly when the waitress moved away from their table responding to Krista's irritated sigh. "I look at you like that all the time."
"Like what? Like you want to kill me?" Krista asked turning to glare at the woman beside her.
Chase ran a hand through her hair calmly, smoothing it off of her face before responding. "Kill, no," she said pausing, returning her gaze to Krista before she continued. "Eat … yes," she finished drawing out the last word, running her tongue over her lips before she smiled suggestively at the dark haired woman beside her.
"Whatever," Krista muttered leaning back against the booth and looking out at the crowd. She hoped their drinks arrived soon she was going to need it, and quite a few of its relatives, if she was going to make it through a night with Chase.
Krista looked up with relief a few minutes later as the waitress arrived with their drinks, however her relief soon turned to annoyance once more as Chase very obviously brushed her fingers against the waitress's as she reached out to accept her drink before looking down coyly as if embarrassed by the contact, seemingly forcing her head up a second later to softly say thank you before shyly turning her head away again.
'Great, just perfect', Krista thought to herself as the waitress rested her beer down before her wondering if Chase had just brought her along so that she would have a captive audience for her one woman show.
"Such a sourpuss," Chase drawled a few moments later once the waitress had left their table, making Krista jump slightly when her hand drifted over to Krista's face so that she could gently push a few strands of hair behind the brunette's ears. "If you want me to play with you all you have to do is say so."
Krista angled her head away from Chase's fingers. "I don't think so. I don't like games."
"Don't you?" Chase asked her expression and tone serious as she stared at Krista for a long moment, so long in fact that Krista had to fight the urge to shift under it.
The truth was her whole life was a game at the moment. Her existence was nothing but a series of calculated moves and deceptions designed to move her towards her ultimate goal. She hated being undercover, she really had never liked playing mind games or deceiving people but she was capable of it and was doing it even as she condemned it.
She was certain that Chase didn't know what she was really up to, because she would have been a pile of ash by Chase's boot instead of having a drink with her if Chase knew about Blade, but she was certain that Chase realized she was holding things back from them and that she was suspicious of her even if she didn't know what she was suspicious of. And that worried Krista because the harder Chase looked the more likely it was that she would find something.
However, Krista was saved from having to respond to Chase before her silence could become suspicious by a man walking up onto the stage and introducing the evening's entertainment.
"This is why we're here," Chase said as the man finished speaking, her voice hushed as the house lights went down and a gorgeous young mahogany skinned woman in a pale white evening gown walked across the stage, their previous conversation forgotten as she gazed at the stage.
"I think it's going to be hard to get her into an alley," Krista replied watching as the woman came to stop in front the microphone.
"We're not here to feed on her," Chase replied glancing over at Krista with a slightly exasperated look on her face, "we're here to listen to her."
Krista stared at Chase as the elder vampire turned her eyes towards the stage once more wondering if Chase was joking, but as the blonde focused on the stage with a look of anticipation and even excitement on her face Krista decided that she must have been telling the truth and shook her head wonderingly.
She couldn't figure Chase out. Just when she thought she was starting to get a read on the other woman Chase would go and do something that Krista never expected and throw her off all over again.
She thought that she knew why they were there, she thought that Chase was testing her again like last time to see if she would hunt, but the smile that came to Chase's lips when the woman on stage began to sing robbed her of that certainty. She had never seen Chase look that happy about anything that didn't involve death, blood or pain before. And she had never seen her face that open and soft and couldn't quite believe that she was seeing the softer side of Chase because of a song.
Krista continued to watch Chase as Chase watched the woman on stage, suddenly curious about what the woman had been like before she was turned. She had no idea how long Chase had been a vampire but she assumed that it had been a while, probably at least a hundred years. She tried to picture Chase as a Victorian lady, drinking tea with her pinky out and taking constitutionals around a garden at midday carrying a parasol before retiring to the parlor for a game of cards, but while she could picture the scene she couldn't really see Chase in it.
A new image came to her a few seconds later of Chase working in a brothel that catered to gentlemen with a fetish for leather and whips that made her smile, but despite Chase's sadistic qualities at this point in time the image didn't seem to fit Chase either.
"She's very good," Krista said diplomatically looking out towards the stage as the song ended not wanting Chase to catch her looking. "I've never heard of her."
"I'm sure you have and you haven't," Chase replied slowly turning to look at Krista as the band took a moment to confer.
"And what's that suppose to mean?" Krista asked a bit irritably wondering if Chase had been given some handbook previous to meeting her dedicated to all of the different ways a person could piss her off, because she seemed to be able to do so effortlessly. Krista was sure that if such a handbook existed Chase would single-handedly add a few new chapters to it since she was so adept at finding buttons to push.
"Have you ever heard of Olivia Bloom?" Chase asked ignoring Krista's peevish tone. She had become extremely adroit at that since it was practically the only tone the brunette used with her. Though she supposed it didn't help that Krista getting pissy with her amused her greatly which only caused the brunette to become even more peevish.
Krista glanced away from Chase for a moment thinking. The name did sound familiar. It reminded her of her childhood though she couldn't immediately say why. Taking a sip of her beer she continued to think, repeating the name over and over again in her head until something clicked.
"She was a jazz singer from the 20s, she disappeared or something just as she was about to become big. They were calling her the next Bessie Smith," Krista said finally looking over at Chase for confirmation. Her father loved jazz and had owned the album but she hadn't heard it since he passed away and had almost forgotten it existed.
"Well … now you know what all the fuss was about," Chase replied smirking before glancing back over at the stage.
"Oh," Krista muttered glancing back up at the stage as the woman who had once been known as Olivia Bloom began to sing again. "I … uh, I didn't figure you for a jazz fan," Krista commented a moment later turning to look at Chase again.
By taking her to this club and speaking to her about a singer that she enjoyed and seemingly had enjoyed for around eighty years Chase had opened a door that could take them to a place where more they could talk about more personal topics and she wanted to keep that door open.
"There's more to me than is dreamt of in your philosophy Krista Starr," Chase replied enigmatically her tone surprisingly serious given her teasing words before she smiled rakishly as she tended to do and winked at the woman beside her.
"You were a flapper weren't you?" Krista asked leaning back in the booth once more though she kept her gaze on Chase. "I bet you can jitterbug," Krista continued her tone teasing as a small smile came to her face.
Chase turned to look at her, studying her relaxed pose and expression before speaking. "I became one," Chase began slowly, almost as if she was uncertain that she wanted to answer the question and was doing so against her better judgment. "And you better believe I could jitterbug. Not to mention I looked absolutely stunning with a bob," Chase finished her tone more relaxed as she smiled arrogantly.
Krista nodded smiling along with Chase. She could believe that, Chase looked stunning in pretty much anything, and having been on missions with the blonde she knew that she knew how to move her body.
Not that she would ever say that out loud.
"I thought you'd have been a trend setter, I'm surprised you were late to the bandwagon," Krista replied playfully referring to the first part of Chase's response. She was surprised Chase didn't claim to have invented the jitterbug and the bob.
Chase's eyes narrowed at that and her gaze became hard and cold as she stared at Krista.
Krista straightened up slightly at that placing her beer back down on the table but forced her gaze to remain on Chase. She had meant for the comment to be a joke and a slight compliment and was uncertain what she had said to earn the wrathful gaze Chase was giving her.
Chase looked away from Krista taking a deep breath when she realized that the woman obviously hadn't meant anything by the comment. She was being … overly sensitive and that irritated her beyond belief. She had moved beyond those petty concerns, she was not that person anymore and she shouldn't have had to be burdened by carrying around that other woman's shame.
"Frederick," Chase started slowly her eyes still on the table top, "didn't like anything beautiful or fun," she continued wanting to look over at Krista as she said it, to show the brunette that it meant nothing to her, but she couldn't force her face up.
"I find that hard to believe," Krista began slowly not entirely certain what to make of Chase's behavior. "He married you after all," went on surprised at how easily she was able to say something nice to the blonde considering that they mostly spent their time insulting each other. She supposed it helped that it was true. No one could argue that Chase wasn't attractive, and while her particular brand of fun made Krista slightly nauseous she couldn't picture Chase ever being a bore. Besides, despite the fact that she wasn't exactly sure what nerve she had hit with Chase, it was obvious that the blonde was being open with her to a degree she had never been before which made it easier for her to do the same, which could be a real asset for her. If she was able to be real with Chase for the night, talk about her past honestly instead of hiding the truth about her present it might ease Chase's reservations about her.
"Yes, he did, didn't he?" Chase replied darkly a long moment later. "And he took care of that soon enough," she continued finally turning to look at Krista a pained, twisted grimace that Krista suspected was an attempt at a smile painted on her lips.
Krista held her gaze for a moment as Chase's meaning sunk in with her, reaching for her beer to give herself a few seconds to think of how she should respond to Chase's revelation. She thought back to their last outing together at the AA meeting and the speech Chase had given about being a battered wife and not letting anyone take advantage of her again. She had thought that Chase was just bullshitting at the time, creating a story that would lure sketchy people to her that she could then in turn lure alleyway for dinner. And while things certainly worked out that way, it was clear that Chase hadn't actually been making all – if any of it – up.
Putting her beer down unable to put off replying any longer without it being an obvious stalling tactic she turned to look at Chase once more. The blonde's eyes were once again on the stage when she looked at her and if Krista had been with anyone else and had heard what she'd just heard she would've tried to offer some comfort to them, maybe a hug, or whispered words on how far they had come. But she wasn't with anyone else, she was with Chase and she knew that the blonde wouldn't appreciate anything like that. That she was probably actually cursing herself for revealing as much as she had.
"When did you first see her?" Krista asked looking out at the stage as well noticing Chase relax slightly out of the corner of her eye and knowing she had made the right decision not to pursue Chase's history with Frederick at the moment. She was still intensely curious about their marriage, and felt a curious need to comfort Chase a little, but the kindest thing she could do for her at the moment was ignore what she had said.
"1929," Chase replied glad to have moved onto another subject. For a moment there she was terrified that Krista would try to do something horrible like hug her and give her inspiration words of survival and love. "It was just before the crash. With Marcus," she tagged on to the end.
Krista nodded and they both sat quietly for a few minutes listening to the show. Krista had known that Chase had been was Marcus for a long time, but she hadn't realized that it had been that long and not for the first time she wondered what the deal was with the two of them.
"Are you and Marcus," Krista began before she could think better of it.
"No," Chase interjected before Krista could finish her eyes never leaving the stage.
"Were you," Krista began actually surprised by the answer.
"There's more than one type of love," Chase replied interrupting Krista yet again, her tone indicating that if Krista wanted to keep the night civil it was a topic she should drop.
Krista heard the verbal cue, but Chase's answer had roused her curiosity and she was seriously considering probing deeper when the waitress came by to check on them. She held up her half finished beer in response to the inquiry, but Chase very amiably ordered a vodka tonic hold the tonic before smiling winsomely at the waitress.
"Is it because," Krista began making a slight motion with her hand when the waitress had moved away picking up their previous conversation where it had left off. Chase simply stared at her as if waiting for the rest of the sentence and Krista sighed. "It is because you like women? That you're not with Marcus?" she elaborated finally.
Chase stared at her for a long moment after that and then just as Krista began to think that she wasn't going to respond, Chase began to laugh. And she continued to laugh, at one point she looked over at Krista, pointed a finger at her, and then laughed even harder. She laughed until tears began to leak from her eyes and she had to wipe them away.
Krista watched with surprise, alarm and irritation.
"You were flirting with that woman," Krista said a bit defensively when Chase began to calm down. "And you flirt with me all the time."
It was a perfectly reasonable question there was absolutely no reason for Chase to have reacted to it like that.
However, much to Krista's consternation and frustration her statement just made Chase giggle all over again. Slumping against the seat Krista picked up her beer. She was going to need another one by the time the waitress returned.
"I was serious," Krista commented a couple minutes later after Chase's drink had been delivered and she had ordered another.
"I know," Chase replied patronizingly. "It was adorable," she continued smirking. "So very earnest," she went on earning a glare from Krista. "I like everyone, darling. Boys, girls, it makes no difference to me," she elaborated as Krista's glare softened into merely a look. "Most vampires are at least slightly bisexual," she continued running her eyes over Krista speculatively. "It's in the blood. We tend not to ask or tell because nobody cares." She paused there and looked at Krista seriously. "This isn't like your last job."
Krista looked at Chase sharply, her expression surprised before she forced a more neutral expression onto her face. The blonde probably didn't mean what she thought she meant. Most likely she was just trying to be clever.
"You really shouldn't be alarmed by your attraction to Marcus," Chase went on when Krista didn't respond. "He might not have been your flavor in the past, but everybody's palate expands once they've been embraced."
Krista turned her head away after Chase finished speaking to hide her surprise. She couldn't believe that Chase had known all that time and hadn't said anything. However, it did explain the blonde's constant flirting, despite her rather cold attitude, since Chase was aware that she was likely to respond eventually.
"Why are you so … hostile, then? If you knew that my inclinations, when not hoped up on O-, wouldn't lead me anywhere near Marcus and you don't even want him yourself, then why the jealous ex routine?" Krista asked eventually genuinely curious as to the answer. She had thought that Chase was so hot and cold with her because she was with Marcus and thought that she was moving in on her territory. But if Chase and Marcus weren't together and really never had been, and she had known from the beginning that she was attracted to women, she couldn't figure out why Chase was so territorial with her.
Chase looked at her, her expression closed. "Maybe I don't like you all that much," the blonde offered.
Krista stared at her for a moment and then smiled. Chase sounded serious but she'd spent enough time around her to know that she wasn't exactly telling the truth. "Then why'd you ask me out on a date?" Krista asked.
Chase didn't respond.
"What is it, Chase?" Krista asked wanting more than ever to get to the root of the blonde's hostility towards her.
Chase rounded on Krista piercing her with an intense look. Krista could sense strong emotions churning inside of Chase, and practically see the gears turning in her mind behind her eyes but she didn't understand what was going on inside of the other woman.
Chase looked away from Krista still undecided as to how to answer her question. She had told the brunette to come out with her in an attempt to at least become friendlier with her and there was a part of her that really hoped the brunette would finally accepted one of her overtures of friendship. She hadn't really held out much hope at the beginning of the night, but it seemed as if perhaps it was possible. If Krista had continued to be resistant to her she had planned on dropping unsavory information about Marcus' past to her, maybe even laying down some false flattery about how Krista was obviously a better person than her for forgiving Marcus for killing not only her brother but also her or something about how Krista was wise beyond her years to realize that when Marcus murdered her brother it wasn't personal, it was just a pragmatic business decision. She hoped that by poisoning Krista against Marcus, she could force the brunette to leave Chthon thereby securing her position on Marcus' right, and leaving his left empty as it had been before Krista had arrived.
However, since Krista seemed to be responding to her it didn't seem necessary or desirable to get rid of her all together anymore. If she could draw Krista to her while distancing her from Marcus it would be a far more pleasurable solution to the problem – for everyone but Marcus – than getting rid of Krista all together.
"The same reason I took you hunting with me weeks ago," Chase responded finally looking at Krista not needing to lie. "It's an overture of friendship. I've tried to help you," she continued a note of genuine frustration entering her voice. She wasn't used to being rejected and it really had bothered her that Krista had remained cold for so long. "But you … you," she began her tone an accusation though she stopped herself before actually making one. "Let's just say if there's hostility in our relationship I might not be the cause of it."
"That's bullshit, Chase," Krista declared automatically glaring at the blonde. Every time Marcus looked in her direction she could practically feel the seething jealousy and hatred coming from Chase like a physical force. So even if taking her hunting had been some strange attempt to bond with her, in the day to day reality of their lives Chase viewed her as an interloper and an enemy.
"Bullshit?" Chase repeated turning to look at Krista her irritation completely authentic. "Do you think this is fun for me? That it's a bloody fucking picnic for me to sit here talking to my goddamn replacement about how my husband used to beat me and that I was such a pathetic piece of …" Chase paused there, her eyes narrowing and her mouth becoming a thin line before she looked away from Krista. She had revealed too much already and wasn't about to let anymore slip.
"I'm sorry," Krista said softly her eyes on the table top as she spoke. While she still didn't agree with Chase that the blonde had been nothing but friendly to her, Chase had made an effort, and had certainly been more of a help in learning about the new world she found herself in than Marcus had ever been. And she had always remained distant and stand-offish because she didn't want to get close to these people, or gods forbid actually come to like them. "I thought you were playing me. Tonight, the last time we went out, they seemed like tests, like you were trying to determine if I was worthy. I don't know, maybe I have low self-esteem or something, but I didn't actually think that … I'm sorry, okay?"
Chase looked over at Krista who looked as sincere as she had ever seen her and sighed before tilting her head back to rest against the back of the booth.
"It was easier when we were fighting, wasn't it?" Chase asked finally smirking a little as she turned to look at Krista again.
"Yeah, a whole ten minutes ago. It seems like a lifetime away," Krista replied returning Chase's smirk with a little smile of her own.
"When Marcus turned you … without the council's permission and against my objections, he said that a lot of people started lower in life than you had. It was a dig at me, and it was true," Chase began fiddling with her drink. "You bother me because the place you are now has taken me literally decades to get to," she went on her voice turning monotone as she spoke, seemingly needing to distance herself from what she was saying in order to get it out. "You're strong Krista, you were strong as a human and you have no idea how rare that is. We're very different people, but when I see you with Marcus it reminds me of myself and I hate you for it."
"I …" Krista began watching Chase closely though the blonde was intent on watching the ice cubes in her glass clink against each other. "I don't understand."
"Frederick turned me. Once I was embraced I had power, strength, and probably most importantly bloodlust. I was never a wilting flower but the idea of deliberately inflicting pain on someone was not an idea I readily entertained. After being embraced I was not only capable of it, I desired it. But his blood was in me, it called to me and the one person who deserved my wrath was spared it … is still spared it," Chase said her voice tight and controlled in a way that was actually scarier than yelling would have been because of the hatred beneath it. "Everything should have changed but they remained the same between Frederick and I … until Marcus," she went on pausing there briefly. "He saved me, but he's doing the same thing to you that Frederick did to me. You used to hate him, do you even think about it anymore … what brought you to us that night? He killed your brother. He kidnapped, forced his blood into you and killed you. You still think of us as monsters and he turned you into one as well. And now … now you do what he says, he touches you and you welcome it. He destroyed your life and all you want to do is spread for him."
Krista said nothing in response to Chase's words, but the blonde could see out of the corner of her eye how tense Krista was and there was a troubled, faraway look in her eyes that let Chase know that not only had Krista heard her but was thinking very intently about what she was saying.
"Marcus made me realize that I needed to change. He gave me a purpose, someplace to belong, ambition. He gave me life," Chase continued finally ceasing to play with her glass and looking over at Krista. "I'm trying to do the same for you. If you can remember, even for a moment and hold on to that, you'll see the truth."
"What are you … why are you helping me? If Marcus," Krista began haltingly, Chase's words bringing uncomfortable emotions to the surface. "If Marcus knew you were … wouldn't he be upset?"
"Not everything is about Marcus," Chase responded a moment later shifting closer to Krista on the bench. "I owe him, but he doesn't own me. I'm helping you because I want to. Because … I like you," Chase continued slowly leaning towards Krista. "Most of the time," she added smiling slightly as she continued to move forwards giving Krista time to pull away if it was what she wanted.
Krista stayed where she was however, and a few seconds later Chase's lips brushed against Krista's for the first time. The contact was light and soft, and surprisingly sweet and Krista made a small sound of pleasure and pain in her throat because she never thought that she could feel anything that felt so innocent again and the remembrance of a time before she was what she was now was a painful as Chase's kiss was pleasing.
At the sound Chase began to pull back, needing to see Krista's expression since she couldn't quite determine what her vocalization signaled. However, before she could she felt Krista's hand come to the back of her neck holding her where she was. She waiting for a second to see if Krista would try to force her head forward, but the brunette simply held her there so Chase leaned forward under her own power and brought their lips back together, a soft sigh coming from Krista that she did understand a moment later as the brunette parted her lips allowing Chase to deepen the kiss.
Krista lost herself in the feelings of Chase's lips and tongue, so gently and skillfully caressing her own. Marcus had been right about one thing, vampirism did heighten ones senses and what was pleasurable before the change become exceptionally more so. Still, either Chase was some kind of narcotic in and of herself, or while vampirism made it possible to experiment she still had a clear preference for one particular flavor because being touched and kissed by Marcus had been no where near as satisfying as kissing Chase.
Chase slipped her leg over Krista's lap as they kissed, moving to straddle the brunette's waist without removing her lips from the other woman's for a moment, smiling into the contact when Krista immediately moved her hands to her waist and began to run them up and down her torso, clawing at the material of her dress as if she couldn't wait to rip it off.
"You SO can't do that here."
Chase flicked Krista's bottom lip with her tongue before pulling back at the sound of a voice. Turning her head to the side a deadly look in her blue eyes she leveled the waitress she had been flirting with and contemplating eating a look that could pierce steel, smiling wolfishly when the woman automatically took a step back upon seeing her expression.
Chase began to lift herself off of Krista.
"We were just going," Krista said helping Chase off of her and into the position she had been in before which would trap her in the booth until Krista moved. The last thing she wanted was Chase scaring the poor woman even more. Chase slumped against the back of the booth with a slight pout on her lips that distracted Krista for a moment until she remembered where they were and reached for Chase's purse rifling through it until she found enough bills to cover their tab and leave a generous tip.
"That's mine," Chase drawled looking over at Krista as the brunette dumped her purse back in her lap, the words were lazy and amused as Krista shoved the money at the waitress, and Chase smiled as Krista jumped a little after handing the bills over when she slipped her hand under Krista's dress and raked her nails down her upper thigh.
"Let's go," Krista stated firmly slipping out of the booth, holding her hand out to Chase a moment later.
"Yes sir, Sergeant Ma'am," Chase replied holding her hand out to Krista allowing her to pull her to her feet and lead her towards the exit an amused smile on her face the whole way to the door.
"We can't do this," Krista moaned pushing on Chase's shoulders as the blonde nipped at her neck teasingly, her hand under Krista's dress resting against a very damp pair of panties.
"I promise I'll still respect you in the morning," Chase whispered against Krista's neck flicking her tongue against the skin there, driving herself into a frenzy as she built up both of their anticipation.
Krista chuckled at that and relaxed slightly but kept her hands on Chase's shoulders and continued to push. "I mean not here," she said. "I don't want to do this in a car."
Chase backed away from Krista's neck until she could see her face. Her skin was flushed and her lips slightly bruised and her eyes were slightly glassy with desire.
She brushed her fingers between Krista's legs again and the brunette's hips bucked as she sucked in a deep breath.
"You're ready," Chase breathed out leaning forward again capturing Krista's lips again.
"I know," Krista replied sounding a bit surprised. "But not here."
Chase pulled back again removing her hand from under Krista's dress this time. She could smell the other woman's scent already and really wanted nothing more than to slide down Krista's body and taste her, but as sexually frustrated as she was at the moment she was also charmed by Krista's request that they go someplace classier. It was almost as if Krista wanted their first time to be special and that was a pleasing change of pace. She wasn't sure that any of her other lovers would have stopped her if she was about to go down on them just so that they could make it to a bed.
"Such a gentleman," Chase murmured hovering over the brunette, leaning forward to place a soft kiss on her lips showing that she appreciated the thought despite her sarcastic words. "I suppose you're going to want to drive too," she continued smiling as she pulled back from Krista completely and slipped into the passenger seat.
Four Hours Later …
Krista's tongue bathed the red trail of blood near Chase's collarbone as the blonde ran her hand lazily up and down her back occasionally dragging her nails up and down though not hard enough to draw blood as she had done before while they were making love.
"Chase," Krista breathed out softly, kissing her way up to Chase's neck as she waited for the blonde to respond.
"Mm," Chase murmured arching up into Krista's body a little as the brunette nipped at her neck before kissing the skin she had abused a moment before.
"I think you're still my flavor," Krista whispered before sinking her fangs into Chase's neck, growling as Chase tipped her head back allowing the blood to flow more freely while raking her nails over her ass and the backs of her thighs.
"Yes, I'm magically delicious," Chase breathed out as Krista pulled out of her a few minutes later. She'd had to stop the brunette while she had been feeding off of her a few times while they'd been making love, but as the night wore on Krista seemed to get a better grasp of how much she could take before needing to give Chase time to recuperate.
Krista laughed at that. "Somehow that doesn't sound right with an Australian accent," she commented a moment later a picture of a cartoon Leprechaun in her mind.
"What doesn't?" Chase asked not really caring as she turned Krista over onto her stomach, shifting down the brunette's body so that she could press her lips against a firm rounded globe, nipping at the soft flesh a moment later.
"It's magically delicious," Krista mumbled distractedly as Chase's mouth moved over her ass. "It was always an Irish accent on the commercials … and you have no idea what I'm talking about do you?" Krista asked remembering that while Chase looked her age she wasn't and probably didn't pay attention to jingles for children's cereal since she was over a century old and not ten like Krista was when she had loved Lucky Charms.
"I haven't the faintest," Chase murmured nudging Krista's legs apart. "However, I'm committed to the idea of making you babble nonsensically some more," she added before lowering her head between Krista's spread thighs.
The Next Day …
Chase nodded to Sabine before stopping in front of Marcus' office and taking a deep breath. She knew that Krista was in there and that despite what had happened between them the night before that it might not have been enough to break the bond that had formed between Marcus' and Krista when he turned her and that she might find herself in the same unfavorable position that she had been in 24 hours before.
Pushing the doors open Chase strode into the office with her head held high, taking in what she hoped was a discrete breath, a little of her unease dissipating when she didn't detect the scent of sex in the air.
Turning to survey the room she saw Marcus seated behind his desk looking less than pleased and Krista on the other side of the room near the bar eyeing a bottle of whiskey longingly.
Chase had to control the urge to smile.
"You summoned?" Chase asked moving over towards Marcus though her gaze lingered on Krista for a moment before she moved.
"Take her to Toronto with you," Marcus said dismissively without looking up. "I need everything to go smoothly and I think an extra pair of hands should help."
"What about you?" Chase asked pleased that she managed to keep any hint of her actual feelings out of her voice.
"Sabine will help me here," Marcus said finally glancing up at Chase. "That's all," he added before looking back down at the papers he had been holding before.
Lifting an eyebrow Chase turned to face Krista before sweeping her hand towards the door indicating that Krista should go first, and then fell in step behind her a few seconds later.
"I need to pack," Krista said once Chase had closed the doors behind her. "You know more about what's in that closet than I do. I could use the help," she continued thrown by the idea that she was actually happy to see Chase, and wasn't cringing at the idea of having to spend more time with her.
"You're actually inviting me to rifle through your unmentionables?" Chase asked smiling over at Krista as they made their way to the elevators.
"Those aren't unmentionables. What you did to me last night was unmentionable," Krista responded as the elevator doors opened, surprising herself by smirking at the look the young man who had been riding in it gave them upon hearing her comment.
"Well really," Chase drawled a few seconds later, moving in behind Krista as the brunette punched the floor to her room in. "All of the best things are," she continued brushing Krista's hair off of her shoulders before pressing her lips against her neck.
"Then I guess we're not going to have a lot to talk about on this trip," Krista replied tilting her neck slightly, relaxing for the first time in almost an hour.
Her meeting with Marcus had not been at all pleasant and it had left her feeling very tense. The things Chase had said to her had been very fresh in her mind when she had made her way to his office, and when she had seen him for the first time she was shocked and pleased to feel the same burning hatred and desire to punch him in the face that she had felt when she had met him for the first time at the gallery re-opening.
She had every intention of fulfilling her mission for Blade, but she wasn't that dedicated to the cause anymore and resolutely rebuffed his attempts to touch her. When he called her on it, she told him she'd had a dream the night before about going to a Maverick's game with her brother and that she'd woken up excited about beer and nachos reaching for the phone to call him until she remembered that she wasn't at home and that Zach was dead and who it was that was responsible for that.
He'd stared at her long and hard for a moment after that and then turned his back to her moving over to his desk where he placed a line black box into one of the drawers and rang for Sabine to send for Chase.
"Actually, if actions truly do speak louder than words, we might have quite the conversation," Chase responded playfully before stepping back and taking Krista's hand into her own.
Krista looked down at their joined hands, staring at them for a moment before looking over at Chase and forcing what she hoped to be a carefree smile on her face. She didn't mind the contact she didn't mind it at all, which was the problem. She had been attracted to Chase since they had met, but she hadn't been attached to her. After the night they shared however, she could no longer say that, and knowing what she had to do, she had to admit that she was nervous about the prospect of spending even more time alone with the blonde, because the closer they got the harder it would be for her to help Blade bring the hammer down.
However, as Chase followed her out of the elevator, her hand moving to rest on the small of her back as they walked towards her room, Krista knew that she didn't really have a choice anymore. She had decided to follow her feelings last night, and she would have to see through the consequences of that action. In the meantime however, she would enjoy whatever it was that she and Chase were doing together, because despite the supposed immortality of the hominus nocturna she had learned as much about mortality and the fragility of life in the few months she had been with Chthon as she had in her entire time in the service. She didn't know what kind of hell was going to be rained down at the conclave, she hoped that it would pass without her involvement with Blade being discovered and that once Marcus had taken care of the purebloods Blade would finally turn his attention to taking care of Marcus. But she didn't know that was going to happen, she didn't know anything other than things were going to change in a few days so she could as been enjoy the time she had left before the blood splattered.
The End