Unfortunately, the Spaces Between chapter was lost in a tragic, unscheduled restart of my computer. Yes, I am an idiot who didn't save for four hours and no I haven't started rewriting it. I will but it might take some time. Sorry. A gift of porn to tide you over is offered in the Bleach section as well as this. I should mention this is set soon after they join the team.

Eye of the Beholder

"Schuldig! I have told you time and again not to use all the hot water." The door slammed open, bouncing off the frame from the force of the blow. "And don't shower in the middle of the night." Well, early morning as it was almost four thirty but the brunet still had another hour and a half before he was due to get up; his temper was dangerously close to snapping this early without coffee.

The redhead was frozen, staring at his commander in shock. The towel at his waist was loose, barely clinging to his hips and the one in his hands was half wrapped around his hair; he could feel the dark eyes traveling over his body and shivered. Cool air was swirling into the room through the door, ruffling the drying red curls just under his belly button and freezing the rivers of water running down his chest and back from his hair.

A moment of, something, anger, fear perhaps, flashed across the handsome face, sharp features settling into a mocking grin almost instantly. "Why Crawford, I didn't know you swung that way!" A pale hand trailed over the scarred body. "See something you like?" A final tuck of the towel and the redhead nudged his way by, twisting through the door. Careful, careful, almost excruciatingly careful not to touch.

A dozen acid comments zipped through Brad's head, followed by the snap of a vision of teary green eyes and a knife in his stomach. His eyes narrowed as he watched the narrow back disappear into the telepath's room, hips swaying slightly.

Silver flashed to his right and he looked over to see Farfarello leaning on the wall behind the open door, knives shifting through his hands in a blur of motion. The single eye gleamed in the reflected light from the bathroom, calm but showing a promise of retribution. "What are you doing out here?" He'd sedated the blond and locked that door himself.

A slow, sly smile was his answer and the blond pushed off the wall. "Guilt does not like to be seen." He sauntered down the hall, fiddled with the door to the telepath's room for a second, and disappeared inside, leaving Brad standing alone in the hall. He could win against Farfarello, but it would be brutal and long and the sense that Death had grazed him with her elegant wings lingered.

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Schuldig was curled on his side, wet and naked on top of the bed spread; the towel from his hips was on the floor where it had been dropped and the damp one from his hair was on the pillow beside him. Water soaked into the blanket, long hair splayed out behind the slender body, and his partner reached out to brush a strand away from his face. A snuffle and long fingers closed around the pale wrist, yanking him down beside him.

Far. Go away. A hard shove sent the questing blond out of the redhead's mind, out of his sanctuary.

"No, Schu-Schu, I am bored." Calm words and a gentle hand slid over the damp shoulder, pushing moisture along to trickle over smooth sides. "Play with me."

"Go away!" And there it was, a hint of sniffle on the end of the whined word. Gentle hands rubbed the twitching back, soothing the shivers away while he pushed the sturdy shields out of the way and settled beside the small ball in the corner of his partner's mind. If he truly wasn't welcome, he would still be standing outside the room, unable to even get in. Or at least fighting the steady battle to overwhelm the currently fragile shields.

Guilt, come out. The thin back heaved, as small and frail as when they'd first met. Why are you crying? His whore rarely cried, only under extreme duress. Or when he wanted something badly enough, but that was different.

"Saw me." A miserable sniff but he rolled over and pressed his face into the curve of the blond's neck, arms coming around to cling tightly to the slender waist. He saw me, everything.

Of course he did, and Schuldig's body was as much a map of scars as his was. The only difference was, the redhead was sensitive about them, determined they were ugly. He took great care to be clothed before leaving his room and to remain so all day. The one time his shirt was ripped during a mission, he had a fit and ended up wearing Farfarello's home.

My beautiful whore, you were built to tempt angels and demons alike. Soft kisses pressed to the damp mouth, nibbling at the edges until they turned up in a faint smile.

Faint struggling, for form really, and the blond pinned slender hands in his, holding them above the long damp hair, ignoring the heaving and kicking. Quick kisses followed each arm to the fingertips and back, stopping to linger on each scar. The ring of his teenage mouth, a cut where he'd gotten to his partner before he was dragged off during one of many drug experiments, the bite an inch above the right nipple where he'd fed, a gunshot wound on the left shoulder, the lash marks over the older stomach and thighs, spiderweb thin marks from too many scrapes and tiny cuts to count, each one was kissed and savored, physical signs of their history.

By the time he wandered back up to kiss at full lips, the redhead was whimpering and arching into his touch. Breathless pleas were ignored and he released the reaching hands to grab the towel. Silver flashed and he ripped along the beginner cuts, shredding the thick cloth into strips and capturing the wandering hands again.

A quick twist of bright blue cloth and the slender wrists were trapped no matter how hard his captive tugged. "Far, no, let me go!" That made him laugh and he rolled to stand by the bed, pulling the resisting man to the edge and easing him to the floor. Pale fingers twisted the piece of cloth tightly, pulling slim arms over the wild hair and pinning them at the base of the delicate neck while the other hand undid his pants, buttons popping in a rush of fabric; the hand under the long hair pulled forward, brushing the head of his cock to protesting lips.

The telepath tried to wriggle away, turning his head quickly from side to side and got his nose flicked. He jolted back against the restraining hand and a slim finger forced its way into his mouth, prying his teeth open. Whining vibrated over hard flesh and the yellow eye closed at the rush of warmth and wet that surrounded him. His head rolled back and his hips moved forward a little, pushing against that hot mouth and quick little tongue.

The telepathic bond was deliberately closed down, leaving the redhead alone and whimpering around the base of the blond's erection as he thrust lightly. A leather clad leg shifted forward to brush between the tense thighs, finding the hardness he'd known would be there. His shin pressed firmly, eliciting more cries and wiggling, the older man still fighting him.

A tug of dark hair and he was released with a soft pop, a thick strand of saliva trailing from full lips to the swollen head. "Good boy." A faint snarl and white teeth snapped at him, eliciting a squeeze of the neck. "Come." Long fingers twisted viciously, short nails digging into his hand, gouging little crescents along the back of his hand and wrist and he laughed, head back, short pale hair gleaming in the bright glare of the lights.

Annoyed growling and a long leg shifted enough to swing out, trying to knock the blond over. The blatant erection was pressed firmly back and up by a hard leg to rub against the pale stomach. A choked moan, almost a sob and the redhead relaxed to hang by the back of his neck, panting heavily. "If you just do as I tell you, everything is so much easier."

Another whimpered moan and he took a step back, leaving the swaying body kneeling; firm pressure lifted the redhead to his feet and shoved him forward then down to kneel again, facing the mirror. "Nnnooo, Far, no." A push at sturdy shields and the younger man sent a little pulse back, just enough to discourage misbehavior. More struggling, slender legs kicking fruitlessly, slim arms bunched with effort, and the blond settled to kneel behind him.

A long lick down a heaving side had the more delicate man writhing against the restraining hands, trying to turn and get free, eyes tightly closed. "Open your eyes, Schu-Schu." Still damp hair shook frantically, thin skin pulled tight on his throat and Farfarello nipped sharply. "Guilt."

Green eyes flew open at the unexpected pain and he stared at himself in the mirror, unable to look away even as tears started to fall. "Please, Far, please."

"Beautiful, beautiful, mine alone to touch and torture." Uneven whimpering and the wet gaze shifted to gold. The blond thrust lightly against the firm ass, groaning against smooth skin and bright hair tipped to the side, giving him more access. The shields were lowered slowly, cautious of a sneak attack but there was just acquiescence. Quick kisses pressed close to lap at a perfect little ear, the light scrape of teeth and slick swipe of tongue sent shivers down both backs.

Two fingers pushed at panting lips and were sucked in immediately and lapped at until they dripped. The trail down the arched back shone faintly and slightly chapped lips followed, kissing and nipping tense muscle as his fingers worked quickly to stretch.

Schuldig writhed, confined by a hard hand and trapped under the assault on his senses; the slight burn of entry and stretching, the scrape of sharp teeth that could draw blood anytime, the strain on his arms from being held back so tightly and for so long. His head snapped back when a hand wrapped around his cock, stroking firmly but not enough, nowhere near enough. He tried to bring his arms down and had them jerked firmly back into place, making his eyes roll up to the ceiling.

His partner laughed around the edge of towel in his mouth, strong teeth holding the trembling arms easily as he fitted himself to the slick hole, nudging in slowly. The familiar burn was one of his favorite parts, the way the slender body jolted and bucked against his, the soft cries of protest. His nose tucked into orange-red hair and he breathed deeply, the vanilla scent of shampoo mixing with the cinnamon of soap and the darker undertone that was male, dangerous, Schuldig.

'Hurts, hurts, hurts.' And there was nothing he could do about it, contained between hard hands and strong teeth. A shudder ran though his body and he accidentally looked back at the mirror. A heavy gold eye watched him over a shoulder, slender arms still held over and behind his head, chest heaving as he moved against the firm strokes and invading flesh, scars standing out harshly in the cruel light, every flaw visible.

Scarred hands a shade of deathly white against his own pearl skin skimmed his ribs, circling and plucking at flushed nipples. Brilliant green, darkened to emerald by lust, followed greedily, watching as slim hands played his body, sweat gleaming on his skin and he bucked harder, the burn fading to a pleasant hum throbbing through his senses. A brush at his shields, warning of entrance, and he leaned back, relaxing into strong arms that wouldn't let him fall.

Beautiful. Even if he didn't believe, there was faith in Farfarello's voice, that ironclad belief that he, Schuldig, was beautiful and it could only be true because Farfarello didn't believe in lies.

The cat's eye was watching him as trim hips moved against him, pushing deep and he closed his eyes briefly, letting his body rule, the temporary silence Far always brought rushing over his mind. "Schu-Schu." Slightly muffled but clearly his name, a long groan of affection and both hands were between his thighs now, one cradling his balls, rolling them warmly as the other stroked quickly, short nails trailing occasionally. Come for me.

Helpless, he was completely helpless before that voice and it felt so good, so sweet to let go and fly under the smooth tone. Convulsive arches sent thick white spattering on his reflection, covering the mirror with long stripes as the ripples of Farfarello's release raced up his spine. Teeth dug into the back of his neck and he screamed, orgasm shuddering over him again while a deep groan vibrated through his shoulder and down his chest.

Dark hair lolled back, relaxing against the firm shoulder, his arms released and lifted around slowly while strong fingers rubbed away the worst of the tingling. The bite on his neck was kissed and licked gently while he whined a bit about his arms and the bruising he was sure to have on his hips. "You're so rough, you should be gentle with delicate guys like me." A loud snort blew wisps of hair forward into his eyes. "Hey, I'm a fragile flower over here."

"You could never be anything but the Devil." Soft cloth rubbed the redhead's stomach then dipped between his legs to clean him off. "My tempting Devil, too pretty for jealous angels to stand." Schuldig laughed softly at the blatant flattery and pushed away, wincing on his way to his feet; quick arms lifted him as he stumbled and carried him to bed.

The toss left him bouncing in place, a pained expression on his face and a pillow was used to beat his partner severely over the head. Until a blade shredded it and they were covered in feathers. "Hey! That was my good pillow!" A careless shrug from the blond and long fingers wrapped around a pale wrist, pulling firmly. "That's it, you have to stay and be my pillow tonight as repayment." The heavy body flopped gracelessly on his and they rolled until he was settled, hair spread around them. "Hey, brush my hair it the morning?"

One of the few things Far took care with was his partner's hair, picking knots out with his fingers and a comb, gently parting each strand from the others. "Ok. Trim time." Agreement was mumbled against a hard shoulder and sleep drifted over them.

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So, I hope you enjoyed it. It was started as a future piece for Spaces Between and I didn't think it fit as well as it should have. So I pulled it out of the file, stashed it and forgot about it. But, it has been rescued! I need to clean my folders more often. Please review and let me know what you thought. And don't forget to sign in so I can reply to you!