Snow's hands fumbled in her jacket pocket for her keys. Her apartment door was ill lit, something she had been meaning to complain about but hadn't had the time or the energy for. Finally pulling the keys free, they promptly slipped through her fingers and fell on the wooden floor with a metallic clash. God damn it.
It had been a regular day, but the monotony was exhausting in itself. Her actions seemed even more pointless lately. The heightening tension within the political climate of the mundy world seemed to be leaking into Fabletown as of late. Everyone seemed rather on edge and Snow felt more like a secretary than usual.
She bent down at the knee and picked up her keys with a single curled finger through the metal loop. With a sigh, Snow pushed the heavy door open at last.
Immediately, she could tell something was off. The room was warmer than she kept it during the day, and the light from the kitchen glowed through to the foyer.
"Hello?" Snow took a few small steps forward before pulling her purse over her head and tossing it on top of the table along the wall. She peeked into her kitchen, raising her eyebrows before parting her lips and calling out again.
A hand landed on her shoulder from the darkness and Snow jumped into the kitchen, nearly tripping on her heels as she flailed her arms behind her. She very nearly reached for the knife set sitting on the counter before her eyes focused on the lanky figure silhouetted in front of her. She was clad in all black, with men's slacks and slicked back hair. Her teeth peeked at Snow over her curling lips.
"Jesus Christ, Mary."
"What? You knew I was here. I left the light on for you."
Snow leaned against her marble countertop and shook her head. "It's not about that, it's the sneaking, which I know you must enjoy."
Mary had a wide smile before she realized that Snow's annoyance was an opportunity. With an exaggerated, pouting frown, Mary put her hands behind her back and took a few dragging steps towards Snow.
"I'm sorry, Snow. Can't you forgive me? I mean, can you really blame a girl?"
Snow's eyes narrowed and she leaned further back. Mary took a few more steps forward, and they both watched as the toes of her worn leather boots met with Snow's navy heels. Mary's teasing face softened. She seemed to think for a moment before placing her rough hand on Snow's powdered cheek.
"I didn't mean to just drop in. You know how it is. Sometimes I have to…get away for a few days."
Snow shook her head and turned her cheek away from Mary, "I know that. I know what I signed up for…" Her tired voice trailed off and they shared silence for a few moments as Snow thought. "Did anyone see you come here?"
"Who do you think I am?"
Snow gave a small half-smile before she shrugged. She avoided Mary's gaze purposefully, but the corners of her lips started to crinkle upwards and betray her true feelings. The woman in black leaned forward, placing her cool forehead on Snow's.
"How was your day?"
Snow started to laugh as Mary's nimble hands found her waist and her mouth found her neck. "Shitty," Her voice spoke with little emotion.
Mary's wide hands clasped around Snow's waist before she hoisted her up onto the kitchen counter. Snow's pencil skirt was forced up around her thighs as Mary stepped between them, exposing the top of her stockings and her garter belts. Snow raised her head and exposed more of her porcelain neck to Mary, who began to greedily suck on her throat and collarbone.
"Why're you here? Did you have a bad day, too?"
Mary stopped her lips for a moment, her gruff voice responding, "I don't want to talk about that."
Snow frowned and the gnawing worry that had been hiding in the back of her mind returned. Why didn't she stop this? Why was it so hard?
Snow's thoughts dissipated as Mary's hands began to gently pluck the buttons of her blouse open. You should ask her why she's here, something must have gone wrong. Her mind lost the battle when Mary's mouth met hers and her solid arms wrapped around her and pulled hungrily at the zipper of her skirt.
It was always so breathless and fast. It was nothing Snow could prepare for. With other people, with men specifically, Snow exercised so much control. She approved every action and maintained the power in every interaction, physical or not. But with Mary, things were quite different. She didn't so much lose her control as much as she lost her thirst for power. Mary rendered her into a passive form that only sought to soak up attention and touch and adoration. As much as that was different for Snow, it was incredibly cathartic. It was Mary's hands that pulled Snow off the counter and carried her body swiftly to the wall, meshing their two bodies at the hips. It was Mary's unthinking motions and force that melted Snow's need for control.
Her supposedly passive hands made their way to Mary's neck and hair, pawing at her taut skin. Her crimson nails scratched at Mary's flesh and Snow relished her slight tremble from her touch.
Mary's response to Snow's aggression was without pause. She bent down at the knees and sat down on the tile, giving Snow one last frenzied gaze before she pulled Snow's thighs on top of her shoulders. Her hands wrapped around her legs and Snow's garter belts were unclasped and pulled quickly aside. Snow held her breath, relaxing her back against the wall while her weight shifted on top of Mary. She bit her lip as nimble fingers pulled away her underwear and a soft, indescribable warmth and texture acted upon her. It was slow moving but so effective. Snow's head swung back and hit the wall behind her, her hands desperately clawing at the wallpaper and pulling at Mary's short, soft hair.
All the worrying, all the tension, all the anger Snow felt, began to melt away. Her voice cracked and her eyes watered. Mary helped hold Snow up by caressing her chest and holding a steady hand against the wall. Having someone else hold her so steadily and worship her with such persistence was mind-numbingly blissful for Snow White.
Her moaning and Mary's hard work reached a crescendo some time later. Snow nearly had to pull Mary off of her tingling body. Her back slid against the wall down to the floor where the heap of her clothes and Mary's pleased smirk waited for her.
"Goddammit. Goddammit."
Mary began to laugh, her hands reaching out to caress Snow's flushed cheeks. She was still hunched over on her knees, still smiling with satisfaction as she wiped her mouth with a wink. She hardly gave Snow time to rest before she pulled her along back to the bedroom.
Snow's eyes opened, blinking as they processed the grey morning light streaming through her window. She was in bed, with someone wrapped around her back. She was peaceful and warm, and wasn't lonely, like most mornings were for her.
Her morning bliss was interrupted by her glance at the golden clock sitting on her nightstand. Her eyes narrowed before she sat straight up in cold realization.
"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"
She pulled the white bedding off of her legs and stood up, exposing a nude Mary beside her. Nonplussed, Mary held a single eye open as she glanced down Snow's body and grinned.
"What's the rush, Princess?"
"I have a meeting today with the Mayor, the goddamn Mayor. Or I had one."
Mary sat up on her elbows and shrugged apathetically, "Who gives a fuck? He's an asshole."
Snow didn't stop her frantic rushing around her room as she continued, pulling on her bra and stumbling for her stockings, "I give a fuck, Mary. It's through him that I get promoted one day and then maybe people will finally give a shit about my opinions and my plans for this city."
Mary snickered and Snow stopped for a moment. Her voice was incredulous as she asked, "What?"
"Snow, no one will ever give a shit about your plans. They don't care. Your passion in that office is a nuisance to everyone. Give it a rest and get back into bed." Mary's face drifted back down to the pillows and her eyes closed once more.
Snow's brows furrowed and her hands rested on her hips. Her mouth opened to say something, but it just cracked under the weight of her nerves. In the light of day, with Mary here now and Snow's day ruined, she found her sense of control again, after nearly having it extinguished.
"Get out my bed and out of my house."
Mary's eyes didn't open, and the grin that seemed ever-present flashed once more.
Snow grabbed a handful of the comforter and pulled it off of the bed in a single motion. Mary's eyes opened and rolled, her lips pursed. She sat up slowly, giving Snow a haughty look.
"You're kicking me out? Really?"
"I have a life beyond you. You show up once every few months and expect me to just bend over for you—"
"Which you do, without fail-"
"I don't want this, I don't want this anymore. You come here and you throw my life back in my face. You make fun of me."
Mary's face finally lost its smirk. She leaned forward, and with a poisonous look, she spoke, "Your life is everything that's keeping us apart. You could work for that office for the next millennia and Crane would still be there to hold you down, keeping you there as some glorified secretary. It's all bullshit, Snow. Those men in there will never treat you as an equal. Stop driving your life in the ground over it."
The room was painfully silent. Snow's breath was heavy and quick. The numbing pit in her stomach returned and she had to bite her lip to keep it from quivering.
But she was Snow White. She was always quick to recollect herself, and in a moment, Snow's slender fingers were buttoning her blouse and pulling on her navy heels once more.
"It's my life, Mary. It's everything to me, and you're not part of it. And don't act like you're helping me. You're the one who crashes in the city because you're worried shit has finally hit the fan. You need me and this apartment and my connections. If you're not going to respect that, then I want you to go." Snow's voice was stern but her knees were weak. She pulled on her blazer and turned to the doorway. Without looking back, she added, "I have to go. And when I come back, you better not be here."
Snow walked out into her hallway, her throat tight. Few people in the world could get away with saying that to Bloody Mary, but Snow had no concern over it. She wasn't completely powerless.