This is a request from Favrite of Chaos, who asked for a Reno/Chaos romance. I doubt this is what she had in mind, but it's what my srange little mind came up with. I blame my anthropology class, in which I had nothing better to do than write, and backstagesins, who continues to find the time to prod me in strange and unexpected directions whenever he gets the chance. I'll have to talk to his girlfriend about taking up more of his time next semester.
At any rate, here we are. Also, there are new additions to the fanart section. Three pages have been done for Tseng's debut in Daddy Dearest. Backstagesins has hosted them on photobucket, and you are welcome to go have a look.
I want out.
Vincent yawned and put his book down.
"What ever for?"
Does it matter?
"It does."
I want to have a little fun.
"Your definition of fun and mine differ greatly."
I want to get laid, Chaos snapped. You haven't had anyone in so long.
"Something like you ought to be above base desires."
I'm not above them! I want sex, and I want it now!
"No."
Is it so much to ask that you let me out for a single night? I'll bring the body back here afterwards!
Vincent sighed. He was very comfortable in the hammock and had no desire to move, but he knew Chaos would complain until he got what he wanted.
"One night," he said finally. "And choose your partner wisely, please."
Will do.
Vincent allowed Chaos to take hold of his body and retreated to the relative safety in the back of his mind.
Free, Chaos pulled Vincent's shape over his own, climbed carefully out of the hammock- he'd never trusted the things- and went to shower. Sundown was in less than an hour, and he wanted to be gone by the time true dark fell.
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By dark, Chaos was showered, dressed, and on the prowl. Without Vincent's voluminous cloak to conceal his lean body, he was catching many appreciative looks. He went through his options, discarding one after another. Too small. Too soft. Not enough backbone. Too sweet. Not enough muscle.
He saw just what he wanted strolling out of a bar near downtown. Long, lean body. Long legs. Thick hair. Smooth skin. Fluid, graceful walk. Nice, rounded ass in sinfully tight jeans. Long, nimble looking hands. Yum.
Chaos smiled and caught up with his target. They fell into step.
"Can I help you?"
"I think so," Chaos purred softly.
"What makes you think I want you?"
"I don't think you want me. I know you do."
He was treated to a hungry smile and a sudden, brutal kiss.
"I'm game. Your place or mine?"
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Chaos waited until they were in the apartment with the door closed before he pounced. Grabbing his prey by the shoulders, he turned to slam him against the door, letting Vincent's shape fall away.
"I knew it," Reno said softly. "Vincent'd never be so forward."
"Are you afraid of me?" Chaos demanded.
"Nah."
"Really?"
"Really, yo. Show me what you've got."
Chaos did. He clawed the clothes off Reno's body and dragged him into the bedroom. Foreplay was a whirl of teeth, claws, wings, and curses gasped on ragged breath. Reno fought for and failed to gain dominance, settling to writhe and claw at Chaos' back when the demon mounted him.
The night ended with Reno and Chaos tangled up in the remains of the sheets. Content and exhausted, Reno fell asleep. Sated, Chaos slipped off the bed and returned to 7th Heaven. Vincent woke in the morning with stinging scratches all down his back and bite marks in his shoulder, wondering just what Chaos had slept with.
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Vincent sat alone in a booth at a bar across town. 7th Heaven was fine when he wanted company, but all he wanted tonight was to drink in peace.
You aren't getting depressed on me, are you?
He ignored Chaos, focusing on the glass in front of him.
It was raining outside, the sort of cold, penetrating rain typical of mid-October.
"Happy birthday to me," he muttered.
Without warning, a hand snaked under his cloak and groped him. Vincent yelped and whirled, coming face to face with Reno.
"Hey," Reno said quietly. "Can you let him out?"
"Let who out?" Vincent asked, still trying to get past the unexpected grope.
Reno smiled.
"Chaos."
"No."
"I need him."
"What for?"
"What else? Another night like the last one."
Vincent stared at Reno, standing there with his hands in his pockets and his face wreathed in a fog of his breath.
"What night."
"When you let him out," Reno growled gently. It was a raw, sensual sound that promised much, and it roused Chaos from his doze. "He came home with me."
"I don't release him for no reason."
Let me out, Chaos said. Let me have another night with him.
I woke up covered in scratches last time. Not again.
I'll let him top this time. Then I can do the scratching.
I don't think so.
Don't make me fight my way free. I want this. He came to find me.
You've already had your fun.
You don't know what it's like, Chaos whispered. You haven't slept with him.
I'm not in the mood for this.
Then sleep. I'll get you home later.
Fine.
Thank you.
Vincent blinked, then opened glowing gold eyes. Reno grinned.
"Your place or mine?" he chuckled.
"Yours."
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As before, Chaos dropped Vincent's shape as soon as they were out of the public eye. Reno shoved him against the nearest wall and set his mouth the Chaos' wings, making the demon moan and paw at him, his free wing fluttering desperately.
"Sensitive," Reno asked.
"Nnh!"
True to his word, Chaos did the clawing that night.
Reno volunteered to walk him back to 7th Heaven after, which turned into frantic stripping in an alley in the rain, with more clawing and desperate moans.
The following morning, Vincent woke up stiff, sore, and tired. Two days later, the chill from the rain had turned into a chest cold. Thoroughly irritated, he gave Chaos a furious scolding and holed up in his room until he felt better.
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In December, Chaos grew quiet and sulky. He refrained from his usual poking and prodding attempts at getting Vincent to participate in the holiday season. Vincent welcomed the quiet, but couldn't keep from worrying a little.
Chaos?
Mmm?
What's wrong with you?
Nothing. Why do you ask?
It's December 20 and you aren't singing carols, asking that I decorate, or demanding egg nog. You've been awfully quiet lately.
I want to sleep with Reno again.
Vincent sighed and leaned back in his chair, irritated.
I really do.
What on earth for?
For- Chaos stopped. For completion. For belonging. For sensation and warmth. For being me without wearing your skin. For someone to hold me. Is that enough for you? Can I go find him?
Vincent sat still and silent for a little while, utterly stunned.
"Yes," he said finally, too shocked to put the effort into solely mental communication. "Go ahead."
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Chaos found Reno alone in his apartment, decorating a desk-sized Christmas tree to the sound of a rock and roll Christmas disk. He tapped on the window. Reno looked up sharply, eyes widening then he saw the demon hovering outside. He rushed to open the window and pull the screen away.
"What are you doing?" he hissed, helping Chaos squeeze through the too-small window.
"He let me out again."
"What for?"
Chaos went faintly pink, his wings lifting and titling slightly forward as if he wanted to hide behind them.
"For you."
Reno shrugged and returned to his tree.
"I'm not in the mood to be screwed into a wall," he said, picking up a little glass ball and hanging it. "Come back some other day."
"I'm not here for that."
"Oh?"
"Mmhmm." Chaos moved behind Reno and buried his face in the messy red hair. One arm wrapped around his middle- not his waist, like the times before- and the other braced against the desk. "I just wanted to be here. I like the way you smell."
"The way I smell?"
"Yes."
"What about my smell?"
Chaos sighed, ruffling Reno's hair.
"It's safe," he murmured. "Safe and warm. I can sleep with it on me."
"You live in a guy who can shoot the hell out of anything alive and you have power nobody can match. What the hell do you need to be kept safe from?"
"From myself. From my crumbling stance on sanity."
Reno twisted in Chaos' hold, turning to look at him.
"And I can do that?"
"That and more." Chaos wrapped his wings around them. "Not exactly what I had planned."
"What did you have planned?"
"What else? A hot, sweaty night with a sexy body and back into Vincent's mind until he decides I've been a good boy and can come out again. I didn't plan for…..attachment, or for a need to come find you again."
Reno grinned, running his fingers up Chaos' chest.
"Aww, is the big scary demon turning into a fluffy little kitty cat?" he teased.
Chaos growled.
"I am not," he complained.
"Sure you're not, yo," Reno laughed, sliding a hand up Chaos's neck and behind his ear, scratching the delicate skin there. Chaos' eyes shuttered blissfully. Reno snickered and drew back. The gold eyes snapped open.
"Don't stop."
"I have to finish this, yo," Reno said, nodding at the tree on the desk. "It's the only decorating I do, but I always do it."
"Can I help? Vincent doesn't celebrate."
"Sure."
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Vincent woke up on an unfamiliar couch. He blinked sleepily, taking in the extensive DVD collection, the half-eaten pumpkin pie on the coffee table, the empty carton of egg nog, and the long arm draped over his shoulder. Reno was jammed between his side and the back of the couch, smiling blissfully in his sleep, they were both still completely clothed. When Vincent shifted, Reno mumbled and his hand moved, closing around a handful of Vincent's hair.
Did I go back?" Chaos asked sleepily, shifting in his space.
You did.
Must've been when I fell asleep. Can I come back out?
No.
Why not?
You've had more than enough run time.
Just until he wakes up?
No.
You're such a scrooge!
My body, my rules.
No!
Vincent ignored Chaos' complaints, which escalated into a yelling, ranting fit as Vincent put his boots on and left the apartment. He kept it up all the way back to 7th Heaven and inside, where Vincent apologized to Tifa for vanishing. Chaos clamed a little when Vincent shut the bedroom door.
Why won't you let me stay with him?
Vincent didn't answer. He dropped onto the bed and lay there, sulking. He'd given up all hopes of having another relationship years ago- Lucrecia had been the only one for him. Why should Chaos have Reno? All he was was a bodiless demon bound to him by science and magic. Reno was human. Wrong species, wrong sex….there was no reason for it. Why should he allow it? He wouldn't allow it.
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Three days later, Chaos was at it again. He poked and prodded Vincent's consciousness, demanding to be allowed to visit Reno. Vincent gritted his teeth and waited for it to end.
"Vincent! Phone!"
He picked up in Cloud's office- Cloud was out building a snow fort with the kids.
"Hello?"
"It's me, yo. If you're not doing' anything…wanna come over again? Y'know, for dinner and a movie. 6 o'clock?"
Vincent said nothing. Chaos was being asked out on a date. Not Vincent, but the demon who shared his head. On a date.
Please," Chaos said softly. It's Christmas.
But….
He'd take you, too, if you gave him a chance to see past the cloak and the gun.
"He'll be there," Vincent said finally. On the line, Reno whooped delightedly.
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Chaos spent his Christmas Eve cuddling with Reno on Reno's couch and trading sweet, playful kisses while a sappy Christmas film played in the background. In an attempt to placate Vincent, Chaos returned to 7th Heaven before midnight.
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Christmas morning came with Denzel and Marlene tearing through the house and waking every guest within. Everyone gathered in the living room- which was a little small for five adults, two children, a teenager, and a large feline- to exchange gifts. Chaos kept back, humming carols, and let Vincent pretend to enjoy himself.
There was an extra box for Vincent. He took it, confused.
"Someone left it on the stoop," Tifa explained.
The box contained two smaller packages, one labeled VINCENT and the other CHAOS.
Vincent opened his package first. It held a bottle of very good wine, a dark green scarf, and a book of classic poetry, plus a short note.
Vincent,
I know this whole thing with Chaos really bothers you. I'm sorry. The only thing I can think of to fox it is to try and get to know you, too. Merry Christmas.
Reno
Chaos' package contained a spiked leather collar, a box of chocolates, and a set of cards for some kinky sex game.
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Vincent showed up at Reno's door on December 27 with the wine. Chaos was sounds asleep, willing to stay quiet and out of the way for the sake of his tentative relationship with Reno.
"I thought you might like to share this with me," Vincent said shyly, holding up the bottle.
"Yeah, okay."
They ended up on the couch together, each with a juice glass of wine, listening to the awkward silence.
"So," Reno began." You…were a Turk?"
"I was."
"Tell me about it?"
The evening did not end in passion, but both of them left feeling more comfortable with each other.
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Their second meeting, two days later, ended with a livid bite mark on Reno's neck and an impressive hickey on Vincent's collarbone.
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Chaos reigned supreme on the sexual side of things for some time. His relationship with Reno had, after all, begun with raw lust rather than anything remotely intellectual or emotional. In the meantime, Reno and Vincent talked shop, comparing weaponry, technique, and body counts.
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In April, Vincent arrived on the scene in a rush of red and black, dragging Reno onto the couch with a feral growl and treating the redhead to a round of tough sex that left him limp and blissful afterwards.
Chaos took over then, nibbling and nuzzling the back of Reno's beck and playing with his hair.
"Sorry about that," he purred. "Vincent gets a little…..weird in the spring. Kind of….enthusiastic."
"That was him?"
"I had absolutely nothing to do with it."
"Wow."
"Reno!"
"Uh-oh."
Tseng banged on the door.
"Explain yourself!" he roared. Anyone who spent much time with him knew that if he raised his voice, it was time to run for cover. Reno made to answer the door, but Chaos stopped him. He got up and padded across the break room, shedding his shape and becoming Vincent as he went.
"Yes?" When he answered the door, it was all Vincent, tall and lean and terribly, gloriously naked, smelling of sex and Reno.
"Valentine?"
"Can I help you, Tseng?"
There was some incoherent spluttering outside the door.
Vincent smiled.
"I did just screw your second-in-command into the couch. And I plan on doing it again very soon. You're a Turk- you've seen stranger. Go have some coffee and pretend you didn't see anything."
"I-I…"
"I'm not sharing!" Reno called.
The door closed rather quickly.
Vincent slunk back to the couch exuding an air of satisfaction. He settled down beside Reno as though he'd been doing it for years.
"Who says I'm gonna let you do it again?' Reno asked playfully.
"I say," Vincent growled softly. "And what I say goes."
Reno shivered as long hands ghosted over his hip.
"Which one are you?"
The grin was Chaos, but the smoky chuckle behind it was certainly not.
"Does it matter?"