Chapter Text
FERAL DEMEANOR (1/3)
by desertdragon
~1~
"Well. Say something, dammit."
Edward made no attempt to keep the smile from his eyes as they traveled over her body. Pale skin. Black leather. And was that a flush to her cheeks? Was the Executioner blushing? This was almost worth having to be deep inside the Circus. He was finding it increasingly odd how much more fun he was having watching her back than hunting her, just as he was enjoying stretching out the silence, and her self consciousness, right this very minute.
She stood there, in front of all of them, daring him to respond her - to the Outfit - yet not really wanting him to. It was clear that the outfit, with all it's dozens leather straps and sheaths, was made to order. But she was obviously taking no pride in the fact that it fit her so damn well. Was he making a personal observation? He supposed he was.
He made it a habit of studying her, a habit she was either blind to or pretended to be. But now she couldn't ignore it as he took in the sight of her; knife sheaths on her narrow arms, soft, tight leather bra that showcased her pale, full breasts, undiminished by the fact that her cross was taped between them just so.
Finally, he allowed her a reply. "I would say it isn't you, but, in a way, it is."
She sighed heavily, agreeing, her perplexed gaze hovering over Harley beside him. She was right to be afraid of his choice of backup; a scarier extension of himself.
Distracting her, he made mention of the long black coat on the bed behind him; something to cover her embarrassment with, perhaps.
He was rewarded with her best-disgruntled expression as she said, "You're enjoying this aren't you?"
Was he? He supposed he was. He could go through a dozen cataloged moments when he'd enjoyed being around her immensely. All strictly guarded moments. And all beside the point.
Although "guarding" was the key word, wasn't it? It was what he'd spent the last 72 hours doing - watching out for her when she couldn't watch out for herself.
And now she was about to walk away from him - out of the Circus and into the woods - and he wouldn't he able to follow her into the lion's den.
Make that 'wolves' den, and he had a distilled vision of the night ahead.
Yes. He was enjoying himself. He could feel the blood move in his veins despite the lack of heart in his chest. The Job could make him feel this way sometimes. But not this violently. And not at the expense of her life.
Another revelation?
He watched as she shifted from foot to foot, the leather crackling, waiting for his response.
"I'd feel better if I could guard your back."
Her face changed then, as if caught by slight surprise. She watched him with fresh eyes. Had he let his shields slip? A moment later she accused him, a second time, of being worried over her welfare, so maybe something had slipped. Could she really see glimpses of him so well?
He doubted it. She knew very well that he was worried. That was no damn secret. He'd let her see that if only to scare her. He'd already let her down once this go around - in the restroom of Dance Macabre.
That incident, in itself, made him uncomfortable. So much so that he startled her by shrugging it off - if her blood were spilled, it would sully his rep and all that.
Once she realized he was kidding, she composed herself, her face a perfection of stone as she sauntered the rest of the distance to him, her leather once again making that lovely sound, until she was mere inches from his spread legs.
He found himself bantering back and forth with her, his fingertips finding a leather strap and stroking it lightly, when a dead cold calm befell him and he turned serious on her, closing the window she was using to crawl into him.
"I'm a fine actor when I have to be."
So good an actor, in fact, she seemed to loose sight of him just then, mistaking his sudden feral demeanor for nothing but the killer inside. Good. That was good.
It meant she couldn't see all the other raw, invisible things that were deeper still.
And yet she still trusted him. Her life was in his hands.
Interesting, he thought, even as she moved wordlessly away from him and toward her waiting werewolf.
Interesting because he didn't think she'd ever be so trusting with her monsters.
~~