[JP] Marshall, Sienelis & Josett - The Labyrinth's Scream (Part IV)
Quinn Reynolds
((Corridors, Labyrinth’s Scream))
::Once the doors had closed behind them, Lena set off down the corridor. The halls were quieter than a Starfleet ship, and they passed only a handful of the ship's crew, none of whom gave them so much as a second glance. While they walked, the hybrid glanced to each of the Starfleet pair in turn, a sly grin curling her lips.::
Josett: So I'm guessing you two don't want to share a room.
::Valesha's answer came in the sound of a small, disgusted noise through a wrinkled nose, though the statement drew a chuckle from the human.::
O. Marshall: And we thought we were concealing it so well, darling.
::The Romulan's expression immediately closed in on itself; narrowed eyes full of venom, lips thin and taut, jaw set. He'd jabbed a sore spot, one still far too raw and tender for idle jokes.::
Sienelis: You don't get to joke about that.
O. Marshall: Point taken.
::The sentiment he’d meant to convey — the apology he’d intended to give when frothy vodka was still in his veins before the Romulan hijacking — still simmered. Despite the false front, beneath it, the guilt fermented. Self-destruction was his own cross to bear, and he was slowly dragging her down with him. Deflect. A need to lose himself in something else.
::Switching momentarily to walk backwards, a sly hint of a grin cracking through on his features, his eyebrow flicked upward at Lena.::
O. Marshall: How about it? I can’t promise I don’t snore.
::Lena looked at him, mirth sparkling in her amber eyes as she looked him up and down. It was much the same shameless, appreciative way she had looked at him when they first met, and it was no less brazen for its repetition.::
Josett: What makes you think I'd give you time enough to sleep?
::Beside the hybrid, Valesha rolled her eyes. Bear, however, gazed at the dark-curled woman deliberately slowly, from head to toe, then back to her eyes as his lips twitched.::
O. Marshall: Do I look like someone who sleeps?
::Lena pulled in a deep breath, still grinning back at the blond, exhaling a low sound of satisfaction and approval.::
Josett: Then let's not get any sleep together.
::His teeth gripped the corner of his lips, challenge brimming in his eyes. Losing his mind and body in someone else for a while had an appeal, capable of turning distraction into an art form, and there she was — a taste he couldn’t resist, slipping naturally and sweetly down his throat — like watching rum aflame.::
O. Marshall: Are you asking or telling?
::The hybrid was making no effort to hide how much she was enjoying their back-and-forth. Her smile dimpled her cheek, and she lifted a shoulder in a playful shrug.::
Josett: Why don't you choose whichever version you prefer.
O. Marshall: You did say you like a man who knows how to give an order.
::She paused by a door, tapping a few commands into the side panel until it slid open. The lights flickered on, revealing a comfortable common room filled with art and soft furnishings. A dining table and chairs were stationed near a replicator, plush chairs and a sofa arranged around a low table. On opposite sides of the room were a pair of doors; two bedrooms only, explaining the question that had started the flirtation.::
Josett: I did, didn't I?
::With a grin, she set off toward one of the rooms. Bear shrugged off his jacket and chucked it over the back of a dining chair. The past hour had seemed almost surreal in its pace, in the revelation of their purpose there, and he gripped onto the back of the chair, eyes following Lena until she disappeared out of view, then dropped to Valesha.::
O. Marshall: That was harrowing. You alright?
::Her thoughts elsewhere, the question caught the Romulan by surprise. She looked away from the windows, away from the turbulent clouds of honeyed fire that hid her beloved stars, and toward him. For just a moment, wounded annoyance bled through her expression, and then she deliberately turned her jade eyes toward the doors Lena had vanished behind.::
Sienelis: Don't you have a date?
::He frowned, pinching the bridge of his nose, before dropping his hands to his hips and turning to face her.::
O. Marshall: Is it such a bad thing that I want to know you’re alright? After that, especially.
::Uncertainty joined the mismatched parade of emotions marching over her sculpted features. The Romulan was never entirely certain if his care and concern were genuine — and if they were, whether it was for himself and the promises he'd made to secure his own freedom, rather than an authentic regard for her wellbeing. A person or a package, that was the definition in question.::
Sienelis: I'm fine. No worse than before, at least.
::Nodding, he exhaled and followed her previous look to the closed doors. Whether he liked it or not, an internal struggle raged, until he pushed it down, as far down as it could go. Inelegant, heavy-handed maybe, but their chances of seeing the Gorkon again and not being on the receiving end of a length brig sentence was slim at best. However, on the other side of that door was someone who made those feelings recede, as brief as it was, with a spark of a thrill that trailed up his spine like a fingertip.
::He stepped towards the door and turned back to her before they parted.::
O. Marshall: I am sorry, you know. About Chris. ::The door behind his swished open, sensing his proximity.:: Shout if you need me.
::Valesha was left staring at him the moment the apology left his lips, unexpected as it was, hurt laid bare in her eyes at his inadvertent addition of salt to the wound. Then she recoiled, a flush of emerald blood rushed up from underneath her collar and onto her cheeks, suddenly aware of how obviously she was telegraphing her feelings. She swallowed, and in an attempt to hide it all, summoned a glare while jerking her chin toward the doors behind him.::
Sienelis: Just go.
::And he did. The glower burning like nothing else, Bear waited until the door shut behind him before he let out the breath he'd been holding onto in a rush, and ran a hand through his short hair. Hands dropping to his hips, he closed his eyes and exhaled again. Guilt felt heavier than he expected it to. He heard movement behind him, prompting a brief quirk of a smile.::
O. Marshall: Where’s the disruptor?
Josett: Which one?
::That drew a laugh out of him and he turned around to look at her, laugh turning to a grin. She grinned back, mischief dancing in her amber eyes.::
O. Marshall: I shouldn’t have asked.
Josett: You're the one who didn't want to unravel too many mysteries. ::She extended a hand toward him, a coquettish smile playing on her lips.:: But I feel like forgetting them all for a little while.
::Exhaling a laugh, Bear took her hand and pulled Lena into him as he stepped forward, meeting somewhere in the middle. Hit with the sudden sensation of her so close, his heart beat a little faster as he took a moment to look at her again; dark curls, warm olive skin, softened Cardassian features and Bajoran ridges, elegant bronze eyes looking up at him painted with an ever-present spark.
::He brought her hand up to his face and kissed the inside of her wrist, tracing his fingers down the underneath of her arm. Slipping his hand into her waistband below the small of her back, he pulled free the small phaser concealed therein, before tossing it to the floor. She laughed, sliding her fingers up and across the plains of his stomach and chest, easing the phaser out of the holster by his arm and casting it aside.::
Josett: Is it really foreplay if nobody's being disarmed?
::Without hesitation, he slid his hands to the back of her thighs and lifted up, wrapping her legs around his waist. A low noise from the base of his throat accompanied the slip of his hand down to her boot, and grinned when he pulled out the knife. Throwing that down, it embedded itself in the floor at an angle.::
O. Marshall: Experience tells me no.
Josett: Good. Between the two of us, ::she dangled another blade between the tips of her fingers for a moment, then dropped it with a coy smile,:: we're going to be at this for some time.
::His response was a kiss captured from her lips as he pushed her up against the sealed door, desire and sensation building a temporary refuge for them both.::
fin
--
Orson Marshall
Fugitive
G239304JM0
&
Fugitive
T238401QR0
&
Scallywag
Orion Syndicate