This will be a oneshot, k? Kay. No commitment on this one guys :p

Tori's POV

Jade West.

That name means danger and competition, beauty and horror, rebellion and fire to everyone in Hollywood Arts, including teachers. To me it means love and heartache.

Jade West is the dark angel with the pale skin and bright green eyes that can burn you to the ground in less than a second. Her nails are daggers, the rest of her body also a weapon as well as a temptation. It's so easy for her to goad you in with that small smile that doesn't show her teeth, a simple roll of her hips, an arch of her back. If she wants to toy with you that is. If she doesn't want to toy with you she'll cut you down with her sharp-edged tongue or bring you down with the words of a song, get everyone applauding for her and she'll sneer at you while she basks in the glory.

I know both of her ways very well; she's done them both to me before. She seems to prefer the former, though. I think she enjoys seeing me work myself to the bone to prove to her that I can do what she says I can't. But I'm sweating heavily behind the curtains after every performance, drawing in desperate breaths and cramming my mind before a play. I've seen her after performing; just a thin film of sweat and her breathing barely affected. Beck tells me she never rehearses for a play, only at school and only because the teachers require her to. She simply reads over the script a few times every night, perfecting her memory then pulling it off flawlessly the next day.

Sikowitz even refuses to let Jade take leads because he says he wants his lead to be someone that will work ceaselessly to put on a perfect performance. So he'll put me as the lead, sometimes using the excuse that I still need experience and Jade will see it as a choice of preference, then set out to sabotage. I'm sure that one of the reasons that Jade is so opposed to me sometimes is that it was by pure coincidence I got into Hollywood Arts. I was nervous when I first set foot on stage, but quickly realized I needed to kick it up and notch, so that was what I did. And now I'm at Hollywood Arts, probably the most amazing school to ever be created anywhere. It's nothing but following your dreams.

I was quickly focused on the road to mine, but found myself always diverted by a cold hand on my shoulder. Jade was always watching with the calculation of hunting tigress and being in the line of sight isn't the most comfortable feeling I've ever known. There was a play that I was once again given the lead for and the day after the part was given to me Jade managed to corner me in the far end of the parking lot against the brick wall. She was cool and collected, in her way that made everyone nervous and it didn't fail to do the same to me. She asked me how bad I had wanted the part, head tilting to the side, green eyes slitting. Her hair fell in tangled waves of black and blue, arms crossing slowly.

I managed to stutter out that I hadn't even asked, but I was going to do my best to do the school justice. I saw the orbs of her eyes flicker with pleasure.

"So you don't want it?"

"I-I-no, not really. Sikowitz just told me I still needed more work on darker characters." I do my best not to squirm as her eyes pin me to the wall with scrutiny.

"But that Sikowitz's opinion, isn't it? Surely Miss Tori Vega thinks that she's perfect enough."

"Well...I didn't really think my last performance with this kind of character worked out so well so-" My words cut off with a yelp as Jade's body pushes mine into the rough surface behind me.

"You listen to me, Vega. I want that damn part, got it?" I nod vigorously. "And you're going to give it to me." My mouth opens in protest; Sikowitz will never let me live down giving up a part, but when Jade raises her brows threateningly I clamp my jaw shut. I feel her hand dive roughly into my bag at my side. She pulls out the script triumphantly, leafing through it with one hand, the other next to my head. I'm doing my best to control my breathing because I'm sure it's not supposed to feel like it might get hot and heavy to me.

After Jade slaps the script closed with a flick of her wrist she looks back over to contemplate me. I see another flicker in her eyes, apprehension, this time. She realizes that she's probably get in trouble if I say something about this. With the amount of trouble she causes, stealing a part by force will probably get her expelled.

"Hey." I jerk my eyes up to meet hers. "We'll keep this as our little secret, alright, Vega?" Naturally, one of my flaws seeming to be stupidity, I pause. Jade growls and I jump at the noise. I expect her to rip me to minuscule shreds, but instead she uses her hips to press me more firmly against the wall. Her free hand plants itself it my chest and I wonder if she can feel my heart pounding. "C'mon, Vega." She drawls teasingly. "Don't you want to try something at least a little bad?"

"I-I-"

Her hand flies up my shirt, squeezing hard and I gasp loudly. "It's not that hard to at least bend the rules a little, Vega." Her lips peck mine, my body freezing in shock and suddenly she's walking back to the Asphalt Cafe, waving my script at me lazily. "And you did fine in that last play."

I later realized she did all that touching to stun me into simply forgetting about telling anybody anything.

That was the first time that the tigress had put her teeth against my throat and then walked away, flicking her tail across my face as she went. I'd stayed against that wall for almost half an hour, too stunned to do anything.

I wanted Jade to like me a long time ago. Not like me, but like me as a friend. Beck must be the smuggest guy in the world to be able to have the most perfect person in the world by his side. ...okay, so maybe I already gave it away. But at first I wanted to be her friend so she could teach me; I wanted to know how everything she did was so flawless, all her performances, movements, rehearsals. Her voice is deep and soothing, and flows like honey when she sings slowly. When she speeds it up it's like she's injecting doses of adrenaline into your veins. And when she's done its just some force that makes you give her a standing ovation because you're so hypnotized. You're hypnotized by the tigress and her stripes, her watching green eyes, her grace.

And I've willingly walked right into the claws of the most dangerous predator; just to see if I can stroke the soft fur and maybe the tigress will stop laying her ears flat, bare her teeth. I've always strived for her approval no matter how much she's snarled and clawed at me. I want the huntress for myself. I just don't want her appraisal anymore; I need it. I want her eyes on no one but me, her touch only for myself, her voice to whisper in my ear at night.

And I'm catching my breath again, bottle of water in hand when that velvet voice makes me jump.

"Nice to see you work yourself so hard again for me, Vega."

Did I impress her this time?