Meeting with the Crimson Eye (Phoebe and Seraphim)

Elena met Seraphim's gaze with smug amusement, too proud to show the sort of anger Phoebe could barely contain. Phoebe could even see some excitement in her eyes, as though she were barely biting back the urge to tell Seraphim to 'just try it.'

She continued to rub Phoebe's hair softly for a second, looking away from Seraphim after she finished, as if deigning her not even worthy of eye contact any more. "Weak dogs bark loudest," she spoke, "Of course, even a dog can understand when a gift is freely offered. Maybe calling you a dog is an overstatement." She turned back to flash Seraphim with a slight, forced smile before reaching down and patting Phoebe's cheek weakly. "Oh, Phoebe?" She called.

Phoebe stirred, groaning quietly. Her entire body was stiff and sore. The rest was welcome and much needed, but she still felt exhausted. "Seraphim?" She muttered as she leaned up, looking first at Seraphim and then noticing Elena. "Oh... Elena." She arched an eyebrow, "What are you doing here?"

Elena nodded toward Phoebe, "Welcome back to the land of the living, dear. I'm afraid duty calls. I... did not know you were spending time with such a... wonderful creature." She faced Seraphim again with a calculated smile, continuing to make eye contact with Seraphim as she spoke, as if daring her to lash out, "And under normal circumstances, I would try to take care of this myself, but... I just received word that this... has gotten a bit more serious. It has to do with our... mutual business." She turned back to Phoebe, offering her a hand to help her up.

Phoebe sighed, obviously annoyed as Elena helped her to her feet, "That urgent?" She grunted, clutching her hip and taking some deep breaths to try to work through the soreness.

Elena shook her head, "I'm afraid so."

Phoebe gave Seraphim an apologetic look. She'd have offered to help Seraphim up, but she didn't have the energy. "Forgive me." She took a deep breath, "Seraphim... if your offer still stands... I accept."

Seraphim was dead quiet at all she heard, taking in every insult and trying to let them go beyond her. Elena was a charismatic talker, and knew the right thing to say at the right time, but Seraphim was good at letting it blow past her, not allowing it to bother her since she knew that was exactly what Elena wanted. No, she wouldn't give Elena that satisfaction, she was better than that. Instead she just let this girl go on, in Seraphim's mind, she allowed it to become nothing but white noise, knowing all too well she couldn't let her get the better of Seraphim.

But then, Elena chose to awaken Phoebe, causing Serpahim to blink a few times as her hand slowly slid away from her, feeling uncertaintey now, and knowing she had to choose her words carefully. But before she could speak, they spoke about some sort of duty they needed to perform, a business that Seraphim was absolutely clueless about, and growing a strong curiousity about it. She wanted to know what Phoebe was doing. She wanted to know who Phoebe really is, so knowing she was doing some work, but not having any clue what it was, it left Seraphim worried, longing to know and find answers.

They were going to leave... and Seraphim could do nothing but remain on her knees and watch; she couldn't remember the last time she felt this helpless.

That look in Phoebe's violet orbs, the regretful apology she gave and the last words she said, Seraphim didn't know what else to say. There was only one that came to mind, coming strait from her heart, and she expressed it, not caring if Elena was around to hear it as she expressed what she had to say. "It's okay... just go... I.. I'll be waiting for you when you come back."

((A little self-indulgent, and a little retarded. I can't tell where I sit on the continuums of uninteresting chatter vs. character building banter or hilariously overwrought gambits vs. acceptably ludicrous Bond villain plans. Forgive me for this post in advance.))

Phoebe smiled and nodded warmly at Seraphim's comment. Elena threw her hands up and shook her head softly, more in amusement than frustration.

"Well... I suppose, so long as the runt here behaves..." Elena began, a hint of resignation in her voice, "She can drop by our dressing room as your guest, Phoebe. I've certainly had my share of kicking you out for MY guests... But for now, I'd like to take care of this nonsense. Coming?" She called out as made for the door.

Phoebe nodded, glancing back once more at Seraphim before she limped out the door.

The two remained silent as they walked through the halls to the AFW garage and entered Elena's car, Phoebe driving, Elena in the passenger seat. "You okay to drive?" Elena asked, eying Phoebe's slow, deliberate pace. Phoebe replied with a nod. A few seconds silence passed as Phoebe started the engine and began to maneuver the car out of the parking lot. Elena knew there were things on Phoebe's mind other than where they were going, so she held back that information for the moment.

"Your possum act is unconvincing, dear, how much of that did you hear?" Elena finally spoke.

Phoebe didn't react, "I was in and out. We fought to both our limits."

"Wow. Now I see what you see in her..." Elena cooed.

Phoebe continued as she turned another corner, finally onto an expressway, "But I heard enough. 'She kills little girls like you...' That's a clever line. Mind if I steal it?" She began to roll down both car windows.

Elena smiled, bracing herself inwardly, "Oh, be my guest, sister."

With a sudden lurch of the wheel and a roar of the engine, Phoebe turned the car off the road, accelerating furiously as the car soared through an empty parking lot toward the building at its center. As suddenly as she started, Phoebe hit the brakes and turned the car to its side, now it slid perpendicularly, lurching to a sudden halt with imposing corner of the building just an inch away from Elena's door. Elena casually glanced out of the window, as though this sudden flight was nothing unusual to her. Her arms were folded, her fingertips digging into her sides with a rush of nervous adrenalin. She glanced back toward Phoebe, awaiting her explanation for this stunt.

Turning toward Elena with a fierce look, Phoebe would growl, "If you ever try to sabotage one of my relationships outside of your little circle again, I will kill a little girl like you. Do you understand?"

Elena let out a loud scoff, "Wow... Is this the OLD Phoebe I'm finally seeing? Amazing... you must really have it bad for this girl."

Phoebe turned back toward the wheel, "It isn't like that. She... would be a valuable partner. We... are not that different."

"You and I were almost complete opposites, and we used to call each other valuable partners... but... times change." Elena sighed, leaning back, "By the way, your door sticks."

Phoebe raised an eyebrow at Elena.

"The driver side door of this car sticks. That's intentional." Elena faced Phoebe with a dark smile, her voice barely disguising her excitement at describing this, "You're the best wheelman I've ever seen. You could put this car through the eye of a needle given just a few seconds of prep time. I've seen how you can use it as a weapon. You always drive like your life depends on it... and I've made sure that, so long as I'm in here with you, it always does. If you wreck this car with me in it... you will die. The door will lock, and the anti-personnel mine in your seat will fill you with so much shrapnel that the cops'll need dental records to identify you."

Phoebe pursed her lips, her grip on the wheel tightening. Elena continued, somewhat softer now, "Phoebe... you won't get in a wreck in this car. Nobody is ever going to outdo you at the wheel, not while you're behind the wheel. There are only two ways you're going to get in a wreck. One, you're trying to kill me with this car. I can't have that." She put her hand on Phoebe's squeezing it softly, "The second is if... well... the only people who WOULD send enough people after us to outdo you. I damn well don't want to see what they try to do to us, Phoebe. My seat has one too."

She pulled her hand back and faced ahead, "Besides, you're perfectly capable of facing me. If one of us is going to die at the other's hands, then it damn well better be on even ground."

Silence for a few seconds, both of them stared ahead, not willing to look the other in the eye. Suddenly, Elena tossed her cell phone into Phoebe's lap, startling Phoebe out of her stupor. It lay open to a text message. After reading it, Phoebe hissed, "Seriously?!"

Elena nodded, "I told you it was urgent... Are you sure you can trust that Seraphim girl? She's got... that look about her. I think the three of us are cut from similar cloths, and I damn sure wouldn't trust me if I were you."

Phoebe started the car once more, easing it away from the building edge, "I don't. Not you, not her. I don't trust anyone... But I'd definitely rather have her on my side. She is the one who asked first."

"Really now?... Well, both of you have excellent taste then."

((Don't say that. xP I love these kinds of posts~ Makes me feel like there's a big plot behind it all. >:3 Oh wait, there is. ;xD Besides, now I feel obligated to do one in return, lolz))

There was nothing but a long, thoughtful silence from Seraphim when she heard what was said be Elena. Personally, she absolutely hated that woman, and she didn't even feel like she should take her word for it in what was said, wanting to beleive her so she could see Phoebe again, but deciding not to hold her breath on it since she didn't trust the woman. Instead, Seraphim just stood there in the ring, still sitting upright as she slowly allowed all of the feeling to return to her body, not even watching as the two left.

Phoebe Porter... Seraphim did not know what to truly make of the woman. She had to admit, her feelings for her had grown more rapidly than anyone else she had encountered here in the League, and she could safely say she wanted to be with Phoebe. But what were all of these secrets that Elena was trying to explain? And that warning too... could she really trust Phoebe? The beautiful, violet-haired woman was someone that Seraphim wanted to be with, already seeing things go to something more than just a partnership with them, and telling herself that she would wait and dedicate herself only to Phoebe for whom she liked in that kind of way. But still... she worried.

Overtime, Seraphim had managed to get herself out of the ring, tired and ragged, but still in enough shape to call a cab. She would get a ride home, finding that once again, she coated herself in silence as she sorted out her thoughts, watching the slums of the city pass her by as she had one hand rest upon her chin, gazing out of the window with a dull look in her crimson eye, never finding it possible to shake her thoughts off from Phoebe. And then, as she finally arrived and paid the fee, getting a small discount since she knew the driver, Seraphim walked over to the five story apartment, entering the second floor and into her room. And as she did...

"Seraphy-chaaaaan~!" With a loud and rambunctious welcome, Seraphim hadnâ€t even taken two steps inside the apartment or had the time to kick off her shoes when she felt felt two thin arms wrap about her waist in a flying, tackle-glomp, nearly getting the wind knocked out of her when her roommate hugged her.

The girl was about Seraphimâ€s height, but terribly thin and a lot more optimistic than Seraphim tended to be. She was garbed in colors of grey, wearing a pair of darker grey jeans, a custom made leather belt with black and yellow triangles going across it, and along it like a sheath, she had five yellow highlighters in it, one even taken in hand already. Loosely thrown in, she wore a sleeveless grey shirt, also marked with yellow highlighter marks, even going along her skin as well. Her face carried a big smile behind her square, black framed glasses as her brown eyes looked up at Seraphim and she giggled. Even her black hair had yellow marks in it, not blond, but clearly a bright, neon yellow dye streaking her locks.

"H-Hey there, Alison-chan. Please… not so rough today, okay? Just settle down." Seraphim had gotten so used to this greeting from Alison, the innocent girl never letting up from her very clingy and loving nature, but today, Seraphim just wanted to settle down and sleep.

Alison blinked those soft, brown orbs of hers as she tilted her head, letting go of Seraphim as she asked innocently. "Awww, why? Did you get into another fight? Seraphy-chan promised she wouldnâ€t fight anymore!" Her words half serious, half childish, it was hard to take her seriously, but Seraphim had gotten used to it all. She had watched this girl grow along side her, the two being the only left out of the original ten street rat kids who ran through the streets, living in alleys and stealing to just get a half-decent meal.

"No I… I met someone."

"Met someone?" Clearly confused, and slowly returning over to her bed now as she calmed down, she couldnâ€t help but ask. Seraphim never got along with others. But first she started bringing Tracy along to the apartment at times, and now this? "Who?"

"…Someone really special to me. Someone who understands me and… I want to be with for a very long time."

(End~)

((Picture of Alison- [url=http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e28/ShadowOfIce/Color%20art/Alison/Alison.png:300kw3pm](click)[/url:300kw3pm]
(Note, Alison belongs to a friend of mine who is always seen with Seraphim in all our RPs, so credit isn't mine. xP)