I should be writing my NaNoNovel. Or writing more for my other fanfics. But no. I accidentally came across my converted copy of Repo! (for my Zen) whilst cleaning up some documents. Then I read fanfic. Then I wrote fanfic....you know how it goes. So, here's some Repo! stuff for you.
Do not own, unfortunately. Oh, wait, Selene is mine, so is the plot. GRILO FTW!
"Hey you!"
The girl looked up from the corpse she was crouched over, expecting GeneCops and getting ready to run. It wasn't the cops, though. She squinted. It was a man....another graverobber, she thought, I can always tell. As he got closer she decided that she was now in a worse pickle than if it had been cops. It wasn't just another graverobber. It was the Graverobber, capital letter and everything.
"Shit," she muttered. There was no time to finish collecting the Zydrate from the corpse in front of her. The vial barely half full, she yanked it from the head with a sick crunch and leapt up. Shoving the vial into her bag she took off through the graveyard. Her fishnet clad legs prickled in the cold and she wished she'd worn a longer skirt. Or pants.
"Get back here, you poacher!"
'Poacher'. She snickered as she ran. As if all the bodies in this graveyard belonged to him. Although, it was considered his ground, she realised. Since that night at the opera, a whisper had circulated; the graveyard by the Wallace residence was off limits to all but him.
Apparently her thinking slowed her running and just as she was about to leap over a low gravestone she felt a heavy hand grab her shoulder. She toppled backwards with a yell. Her head smacked on the earth by Graverobber's boots.
"Aw, fuck," she muttered. "You caught me."
"So I did," he said with an angry smirk. "You know this place is off limits to you and your lot now. Hand it over."
She sat up and spat on the ground. A whole nights worth of harvesting gone to waste! She'd know it had been stupid to sneak in but the rumours of so many fresh corpses had been too hard to resist. It had taken weeks of careful watching and planning to get in and get as much done as she had. Weeks where she'd lived on dumpster food and drunk rainwater because she hadn't harvested anything to sell. She growled to herself as she pulled the vials of glowing blue from her bag. Almost twenty in total; worth a fortune. Graverobber whistled.
"You did pretty good, for a poacher," he said. He stuck out his hand. "Hand 'em over."
"Can't I even keep one?" she protested. He shook his head.
"Nope. You stole this lot from me, I caught you at it, you return it. That's how it works."
"Hmph." She placed the vials into his hand one by one. Each time his palm got full he dropped them into his bag. Hearing them clink together like that was maddening. Her nights work! Her harvest! Now she'd have to make do with the poorly stocked graveyards. It would take her months to win her clients back; they'd gone elsewhere in her one week of absence.
"Why don't you let anyone come here?" She asked once he had all the vials. He stopped, seemingly taken aback by the question.
"What do you mean?"
"Ever since the opera, you won't let anyone near the Wallace place. Even if we step one foot too close you're on us like a rabid badger."
His lips twitched at the comparison. Then his expression was serious again.
"It's really none of your business," he said, "And that is the end of our conversation." He turned and began to walk away.
"It's her, isn't it?" she said quietly. Graverobber froze.
"Her?" he asked.
"The Wallace girl," she said. Graverobber turned back around and looked at her.
"You couldn't leave her alone, could you?" she said, "Not after all that happened. I read the tabloids. Everyone knows she only knew five people in the world; her father, Rotti, Amber and Mag were the only ones mentioned. But she knew you too, didn't she?"
"How did you know?" He whispered.
"I was in the alley that night," she said, "When she came with you when you were dealing; when Amber came down. You ran off when the GeneCops arrived and got away on the back of a garbage truck. A very snazzy exit, in my opinion."
"Thanks." He was being sarcastic now.
"I'm Selene," she said, sticking out a hand, "You're Graverobber, so that's the niceties done."
"Well Selene, thanks for the attempt at empathy, but get out of my graveyard now."
"I'm not leaving until you explain. I want to know why you won't let the girl be. Surely you're the last person she'd want around; a scuzzy guy who sticks needles in corpses and sells the drugs he gets from that for a living."
"Charming," Graverobber chuckled. "But curiosity killed the cat, you know."
"Call me Kitty, then," Selene said, sticking out her tongue and putting her hands on top of her head like ears.
"Skedaddle," Graverobber growled.
"Nice word; been reading old books, have we?"
"Shut it and get lost. This little rapport is done."
You've got quite the vocabulary for a drug dealer. Have you been stealing books from the dead now?"
"Will you go away?" He was exasperated now. Selene grinned. Winding people up was her favourite hobby, but she knew she was treading on thin ice. Graverobber probably wouldn't hesitate to kill her and harvest her.
"Tell me."
"No."
"Pleeeeease?"
"No!"
"Pretty please with a vial of Zydrate on top?"
He ignored her and started walking away.
"Aw, c'mon! Who am I gonna tell who'll believe me, anyway?"
"The press. The rest of your 'colleagues'. Any scalpel slut you happen to gossip with. Get out before I throw you out."
She stared at his back. His coat was heavy but not that heavy, she thought, his shoulders should be set much higher. She had known him, briefly, before the opera. He'd given her a leg up over a fence when they'd gotten caught in the same graveyard by the cops. He had been more light-hearted then. Lived life as though he really didn't care; running from GeneCops was a game to him. Now....
"What happened?" she called. He didn't stop walking. She jogged to catch up with him, the jangle of decorative chains on her boots echoing in the silent graveyard.
"What happened?" she asked again.
"'What happened?'" he said mockingly. "'What happened?' she says. Since you won't leave until I tell you, I guess I'll have to tell you. Sit down."
Selene sat. The grave was uncomfy and cold but she kept her mouth shut.
"After the opera, I came out here, to this graveyard," he said. "I knew what had happened; the damn thing was broadcast on huge screens everywhere. Poor kid; no-one should have that much grief shown to the world. Losing the only people she'd known all in one night? Her father?" he spat. "Damn GeneCo and their opera. Attention whores, the whole Largo family."
"What happened then?"
"She came back to the house, like I'd known she would," Graverobber said. "She came out here and sat by the door. She was talking to her mother. Saying things....that I shouldn't have heard. I couldn't do nothing; believe it or not, I do have a heart, as black as it may be. I know what it's like to have no-one."
Selene bit her lip. Maybe she shouldn't have asked. Should have just left when she'd meant to. The Graverobber carried on speaking.
"The reason this graveyard is off limits to everyone is because it's hers. It belongs to the house, which belongs to her. And I won't have anyone taking anything from her any more. She's lost enough."
"You love her," Selene said. Graverobber looked up at her angrily.
"I what?" he hissed.
"You love her," she said simply. "I can tell. You wouldn't guard a whole graveyard for just anyone. You're the freest person in the world but you haven't been outside of this houses grounds for months now."
Graverobber hung his head.
"I guess you got me," he sighed. "I might just love her at that. Who wouldn't? No surgery but she looks more beautiful than any scalpel slut. Is there anything more...seductive in the world than purity?"
"No," Selene said. "And you'd better let her know what you're doing for her and why soon or she'll never know and you'll die in this graveyard. Then I will personally come and harvest from you and hang a sign around your corpse saying 'Moron'.
"Thanks," he laughed. "How do propose I do that, though? I can't waltz into her house and say 'Hi Shilo, remember me? I introduced you to the wonderful world of back alley Zydrate selling that one time. Oh, by the way, I'm totally in love with you, how 'bout a kiss?"
"Okay then." Graverobber whirled around. His jaw dropped and his eyes went wide. Shilo was standing right behind him, barefoot and wearing just a black dress. She had a half smile on her face as she stretched up on tiptoes to kiss his cheek.
"Shilo...what....how....I don't...." he stammered.
Shilo turned to Selene.
"Thank you," she said, "It's taken him three freaking months."
"You set me up!" Graverobber cried in anger, rounding on Selene. She giggled and tucked a lock of hair behind her ears.
"I might have. I'd do anything for a friend."
"How?" he growled.
"I met Selene by accident," Shilo explained. She snuck into the house once, looking for stuff to steal. We got talking and well, things happened and she told me that you'd been obsessively guarding the graveyard since the opera. I've been watching you for three months."
"Three months....Christ..." Graverobber ran a hand through his hair. "I've been had....by a couple of teenage girls at that! I'll be a complete laughing stock!"
"Relax," Selene said, waving a hand. "No-one's gonna know. I'm not gonna tell and neither's Shilo. Now go do your thing." She hopped off of the gravestone and sauntered towards the exit. "And use protection, you scuzz-bag!" she called over her shoulder.
"Why you!" Graverobber shouted back. Shilo put a hand over his mouth.
"Shut up and come inside, you idiot," she said. "Come and have some real food and let's talk. I don't think either of us wants to be alone anymore, do you?"
Graverobber shook his head with a smile. Shilo slipped her tiny hand into his as they walked back towards her house. Conned by a couple of teenagers, he thought as Shilo closed the door behind them, what an idiot. But then, he realised when they got into the house and Shilo led him upstairs instead of into the kitchen, maybe it's not such a bad thing to be an idiot once in a while.
Hopefully that was somewhat amusing. I've never written either Graverobber or Shilo before, so forgive me if the characterisation is bad. Now I'm gonna write my novel. Yes. Like I should have anyway. I blame my muse for having a gigantic crush on Graverobber and his sexy voice.