A Tale of Two Bunnies

Summary: What might Alice and Reim do together when no one else is around? First chapter is PG-13, and the rest is …not. Hence, M-rating. This was a kink meme challenge to see if anyone could pull off Alice x Reim.

Words: 2760

Writer's Note: Thanks to total_alias for beta reviewing!

(1)

Reim was sitting in his office at Pandora, filling out incident reports involving chains and illegal contractors. This sort of work always aggravated him, and if he had been the sort of man to drink large quantities of wine to lessen his misery, he would have. In this state, Reim was like a snake - coiled and ready to spring at any sign of danger. But unlike a snake, he would never attack anyone but simply pump the venom of his nervous tension back into himself, feeding his own paranoia.

Alice was wandering through Pandora headquarters looking for someone to hang out with, since Oz and Gil had gone off somewhere together, and she hated being alone. Being alone often meant nightmares and being haunted and taunted by the Will of Abyss, and that was a fate she preferred to avoid whenever possible. She heard someone crumpling up a piece of paper in one of the offices and ducked her head through the half-open door to see what was going on.

There's that glasses guy, she thought, and sauntered through the door. Reim saw her out of the corner of his eye, gasped and flew back in his seat in surprise.

Alice wrinkled her brow.

"You sure are wound up tight," she said, crossing her arms in front of her. "Got something there ya don't want me to see?" She walked over to his desk and looked over his shoulder.

Reim started to gather his papers protectively and then realized there was nothing confidential there, so he placed them back down on the desk. He removed his glasses and started cleaning them with a hanky – a nervous habit he'd never quite been able to break.

"Miss Alice, I'm sorry, but you surprised me," he said, trying to smile.

"Didja think I was going to attack you or something?" She flopped down in an easy chair and put her legs up over the arm of it.

Reim thought briefly of the huge black scythe-wielding rabbit that Alice was capable of transforming into, and lied through his teeth.

"Oh no! Not at all!" He smiled and wiped away a nervous drop of sweat.

"You should be grateful I've decided to grace your office with my presence!" Alice almost yelled, with a sneer on her face. "Hrrumph."

"Y-yes, thank you, Miss Alice." He put his glasses back on and tried to go back to his work, but had a hard time concentrating with the pretty young girl sprawled out on his easy chair, kicking her legs up and down in a fidgety manner.

Why can't she wear a long dress like a proper young lady? he thought. His concentration lost again, he crumpled up another piece of paper and pitched it in the garbage.

Alice looked over at the man she'd deigned to visit – he was leaning forward in his chair, hunched over his papers, pressing his lips together with quiet frustration - and her heart found room for a sliver of pity. She stood up and walked over to him purposefully, then leaned forward and placed her lips on his cheek.

Reim felt the kiss and jumped in his seat a little, then touched his cheek with his fingertips. Flustered, he looked at her standing there with her hands on her hips. She looks so calm and confident…as if what she just did was the most normal thing in the world.

"Sharon told me that I'm supposed to just use my lips, and not bite people. So was that okay?"

"W-why?" stammered the man, "Why did you kiss me?"

"That was supposed to make you feel better. Since obviously you're really stressed out about something." She scowled. "So I was being nice! Trying to help!" My kiss didn't make him feel better. What's up with this guy?

"Um…thanks?" Reim said, uncertainty and confusion clouding his face.

Alice's scowl softened. He's really stressed out. I hate being around stressed out people. I need to make him feel better so I can be happy.

"Since I'm in a magnanimous mood, how about if I rub your shoulders while you work?" Alice didn't wait for approval. She put her hands on the man's shoulders and started massaging. "This should help you calm down."

Reim tried to catch his halting breath and relax, but seeing as how he was not used to having a young lady – or anyone for that matter – press against his body this way, he found the massage did nothing to alleviate his tension.

"I'm tired of standing up," grumbled Alice, after a few moments, "and my thumbs hurt from doing this." She stopped and then dragged a chair over behind Reim's and sat down on it. She slipped off her boots, put her bare feet between the broad slats of the chair and started pushing against his back.

"Is that okay?" she asked. " 'Cos this is easier on me."

Knowing it was 'just' feet made the massage easier for Reim to deal with somehow. Perhaps it was because it seemed less intimate, or because he knew she couldn't see over his shoulder. Whatever it was, the rhythmic pressure of her feet was actually kind of a pleasant and calming sensation for him. Still, he had to remind himself not to turn around lest he catch a glimpse up her short skirt. Focusing on the work in front of him, he took a deep breath and finished up what he needed to do in fairly short order.

Daring to turn around, his eyes a lit upon young Alice, fast asleep in the chair behind him. Reim smiled and gently grasped her ankles as he stood up. He turned his chair around and placed her feet on it, then covered her with a blanket. For a few minutes he just looked at her sleeping face: long eyelashes, lips gently parted, smooth cheeks…and his mind began to wander, thinking of other young ladies he had known. There hadn't been many. In fact, he'd barely even gotten beyond the kissing stage with any of them. Maybe she could be… he didn't dare finish the thought.