Roomies
A writing exercise.
Rated T for Potty Mouth and a little Blood.
Rei was an odd roommate, Diana mused. The older woman was so quiet, and secretive. Diana had been surprised when her Guardian, Samuel, had said he'd had an older daughter, as she'd assumed he'd only had the three deceased boys, and of course, Lacey.
The elder woman had driven up to the house that same evening, and at first, Di had thought she was someone else. No way was that punk, purple lipped, short spiky haired girl Sam's daughter. But then, she'd rung the doorbell and the ever flighty, excitable Lacey had raced to the door, thrown it open and practically tackled the newcomer to the ground. As Di and Sam had approached, she could be seen gingerly hugging the young teen, tensely watching their approach.
"Rei." Sam had said stiffly.
"Dad." She'd replied curtly. She had a nice voice, low and sweet and smokey like that roast of coffee Sam liked so much. Her green gaze, so much like her fathers, fell on Diana and looked her over like a specimen on a microscopic slide, before flicking up to meet the younger woman's gaze. Diana was surprised to see she was taller than Rei.
"This is Diana Rowl, Rei. She's been my charge the past few years. She's expressed an interest in moving out, and I recall you speaking to Lacey of wanting a roommate."
Rei looked at Di again. "Sure." She said as they made their way to the study. "Don't see why not, after all, I owe her Pops a favour."
The oddly dressed girl seemed so out of place in Sam's study, as she flopped onto the big arm chair next to the phonograph. Di noted in the light, there were scars on Rei's arms and a tattoo peering out from under her sleeve. Her cold eyes never left the younger woman, taking in her pretty gold curls, her soft light brown skin, her peculiar blue-gold eyes, her stiff posture and twiddling fingers. She was assessing her.
"I'm pleased to meet you, Rei." Diana said quietly.
The older girl stretched languidly, smirking. "The pleasures mine, Diana. Lacey talks about you constantly."
"Yet I haven't heard a word about you until today." Diana said, her voice so soft they almost didn't hear it.
The little family seemed very, formal around each other. Uncomfortable, even, before Rei sighed. "Haven't been getting along since the boys died, I guess." She shot a hostile glance at her father.
"So, Di. Lemme ask you. What do you think living with me's gonna be like?" Rei asked as they sat down.
"Rei, I just met you, how could you possibly expect me to make a judgement like that?"
The older woman's smirk turned into a grin, baring straight white teeth. "Dad, I'm disappointed. I can already tell you are a neat freak, Di. You desire control over your environment, and organize things frequently for fun. You also do not enjoy speaking to strangers, and would likely prefer to engage in your favorite hobby; reading. By the scent of medicinal herbs about the house, which I can safely blame on you, you're a little healer, too."
She paused, and grinned suddenly. "And I think Damarion Sanchez knows you, doesn't he?"
"Dia-Damarion's a friend. I've known him for years."
"Yeah, he and I go way back. Part of the reason I took Dad up on his offer in the first place is what Damarion has said about you. Calls you his little Dreamer. It's really cute, you're like the little sister he always wanted."
Di chuckled.
Sam seemed to relax, and Lacey smiled. The father had frowned a bit when they'd mentioned Diablo, but he supposed he was better than one of those others Rei had taken to spending time with.
After that night, Di had moved into Rei's apartment. She'd noticed it was surprisingly barren, and that Rei herself was likely the most colourful thing in it.
Rei was an enigma. She'd disappear at ungodly hours, and return home with bruises or scratches. She kept erratic sleeping hours, too. Di would go to bed at nine thirty, saying her good nights to her roommate, then have to get up at four AM and see the older woman perched on the edge of the couch arm reading something. Di would ask her questions, and Rei would shrug, and say something about her job.
One day, though, Damarion came over to watch movies with Di while Rei was out.
He sat, his considerable bulk dwarfing the room with his mere presence, his feet resting on the scarred, sad looking coffee table when suddenly he said; "So, how are you liking Ravage?"
"Who?" Diana asked, puzzled.
"Ravage is Rei's nickname. She's brutal, like her old man." Explained Damarion.
"Why are you called Diablo? Are you the like, the devil or something?" Di laughed.
"Only when I'm taking down a target, Dreamer." He said, with that lopsided grin she was so familiar with.
She sighed. "Rei's alright. She, scares me sometimes, but she seems to respect my space and she pays her share of the rent. Scares me half to death with her weird midnight haunting, and sometimes there's blood on the bathroom sink and she wrecked one of my towels, it used to be white." She sighed again, the hand resting on her thigh beginning to flutter from frustration. "I mean what does she even-"
The apartment door opened, and the subject of conversation came teetering in, leaving a smear of crimson first on the door and then on the wall, then again on the door as she shut it.
Rei looked up at the two stunned friends. Then she pointed at Diablo. "Fucking call Nate this time or I swear to Christ I will kill you, Marion." She growled, before collapsing on the floor.
Diana yelped as Damarion zipped past her, scooping Rei up carefully and racing to the older woman's bedroom. By the time Di caught up, he was already on the phone, Rei sprawled out on the sheets.
Di approached the bed, and the wounded woman laying there. She looked around the room, helplessly.
"Rei, are you alright?" Di whispered, kneeling beside her roommate.
The older woman nodded, clutching her stomach. "Fine, Dreamer, so long as Marion calls Dr. Nox rather than my father this time. Ugh, can you grab some towels, please?"
Dreamer nodded, and raced off.
Once she was gone, Damarion knelt down beside the bed, gently running a rough, calloused hand through her short, messy hair. "I called Ethan."
"Thank fuck." Rei pressed her head into the pillow, groaning.
"Which one got you?"
"Your little bitch girlfriend." She snapped. "Who else has it out for me enough to-" her voice trailed off helplessly as she bit her lip, stifling a moan.
"Do you need some pain killers?"
She shook her head. "Go help Di, I'll be fine."
Marion sighed, exasperated but understanding. He and the other freelancer held similar attitudes about injuries, but He was always concerned about Ravage. She didn't have the bulk and strength to handle the same types of injuries he could.
He found Di going through the closet, ripping out towels. The kettle hissed on the stove, and there were herbs out on the table. He sighed.
"Don't feed her anything, Dreamer. Doc Nox gets uppity when you medicate his patients without his orders." Marion said.
The blonde was shaking. She looked at her friend, her lower lip trembling.
"What happened to Rei, Marion?" She whispered.
"She got caught by a target. She'll be okay. Ethan's a good doctor, even with shit conditions like this. You know what to do?"
She nodded.
"Does Sam know about this?" She asked.
Damarion's eyes darkened. "Who do you think got her into it in the first place, Diana?"
Di shuddered. She'd known Sam had been involved in some dangerous stuff before retreating into his home, but to drag his own kid into it seemed wrong.
The towels pressed into Rei's wounds, and blood was on Diana's fingers. It was hot and sticky, filling the air with the scent of iron. Rei herself was still, her only movement those ever watching, cold yellow green eyes.
"Are you crying?" Rei said quietly.
Di blinked a little, realising yes, she was, and she laughed awkwardly. "Um, sorry, Rei. I didn't realize."
"S'kay." The older woman said. "I was scared the first time Dad came home like this, too. Shoulda told you, it could happen." She said . "Why don't you go wait for Doctor Nox? Marion can look after me."
Di nodded, as suddenly the mans shadow loomed over her shoulder, relieving her of her chore and gently nudging her out of Rei's room. She went to stand by the entry door, shaking a little as she looked at the blood. She should clean that up.
But she didn't move.
When the first polite knock hit the door, she lunged for the blood covered lump of metal, yanking the door open to stare at a tall, lanky man with pale blue eyes and lightly greying hair. His pristine suit and old fashioned medical bag were a welcome sight, as he returned her gaze with mild surprise.
"The roommate, I presume?" He said in a smooth, refined voice.
She nodded, gaze drawn to the one crack in his icy facade, a long scar from under his eye to the curve of his jaw. It looked like a knife had caused it.
"You're Doctor Nox?" She said.
"I am indeed." He said, sweeping past with a covert glance down the hall. "I suggest cleaning up the blood on the exterior of the door, my dear. It's not a good idea to attract police to our dear Rei's abode."
He acted like he was intimately familiar with the apartment, striding with ease to Rei's room without so much as a pause to catch his bearings.
"Bleach should work for now, until Damarion can work his magic." The Doctor called, before stepping into the forbidden room and leaving a very surprised Diana standing at the front door.
When Doctor Nox emerged almost two hours later, his jacket was removed and his shirt sleeves rolled up. His hands were bloody, but he had a satisfied smile ghosting on his lips.
Diana sat bolt upright from her position on the couch, where only hours earlier she'd been sitting with one of her closest friends ready for a quiet night. "Is she alright, Doctor Nox?" She asked.
He nodded. "A few days of bed rest and she'll be right as reign. And please, Diana, call me Ethan."
"Okay, Ethan." She said. Her hands were trembling, but she attempted a smile. He noted the herbs on the counter and sniffed.
"Were you going to administer those to my patient?" He asked, the tone in his voice making it apparent that Damarion had been right earlier.
"Yeah, but I was advised against it." Diana replied. "I'm guessing our resident devil has experience doing that in the past."
"Yes." Ethan said stiffly. "But very rarely do culprits ever repeat their offences with me."
She nodded. "I am concerned, though. Rei will need painkillers."
"I have left her with the usual. I'd advise against using your home remedies in mixture with her medication, and you need to insure she takes the damn things as directed and stays in bed, please." He emphasized the last bit, looking at Diana with a pleading expression. "Rei does not do bed rest well, and unfortunately Damarion, Jason and I have jobs that take us far away from our sweet miss Wallace. It is up to you to insure she doesn't decide to go gallivanting about the city on one of her fool's errands designed to piss off her father, as per fucking usual."
Ethan's polished tones were heated, and Diana sighed, understanding. Rei could be a handful.
Regaining some of her composure, Di stood. "Would you care to clean up and have some tea, Ethan? I'd like to discuss some strategies for the care of Rei, and I'd like her doctor's opinion."
"Of course, Diana." He replied, calming his ruffled feathers with the ease of a professional.
Water ran in the bathroom as he cleaned off Rei's blood. Diana sighed as she refilled the kettle, wondering what Rei did exactly that resulted in her getting injured so often. Damarion often mentioned Freelancers, Automen, Cons, and offhandedly Diana had assumed that it was with these strange words that Rei associated. She'd heard similar phrases in her former home with the ever present enigma that was Samuel Wallace, when he had spoken of his life at all. She knew it was dangerous, and was very aware whenever the little war popped up in the news, usually involving a body.
She sighed, getting the tea cups down and digging about the cupboard for her special tea for visitors, the imported black tea Sam had given her for Christmas.
As Nox scrubbed the blood from himself, and the tea began to steep, Diana snuck into Rei's room, pausing when she saw Marion holding the purple haired weirdo upright against his chest much like he would hold Di when she was sick.
"Um, hey. How do you feel?"
Rei looked up at her roommate and sighed. "I'll live. No thanks to that Auto Whore."
"Language, Ravage." Marion said irritably.
"She fucking stabbed and shot me!" Snapped the woman, wincing a little. "I'm being nice for you because you're crushing on the little bitch."
Diana was confused, as she looked at Marion.
The man sighed. "Don't mind Rei, Diana. Is Ethan still here?"
"Yes." Said Di. "He and I are discussing how best to care for our invalid."
Rei seemed to bristle a little. "Like fuck you are. I've paid the quack, he can go home and play goody two shoes now and leave me in peace."
Her hostile green eyes bored through the wall as though trying to kill the doctor.
Diana rolled her eyes. "Rei, be nice. We're doing this because we want you to live."
Rei growled, obviously wishing for one of her precious blades if Damarion was any expert.
"Diana?" Ethan called.
Unapologetically, Di turned around, but not before tossing a glare towards Rei.
"Get some rest, Ravage." She warned. "Ethan and I expect complete cooperation from our patients."
As she vanished, Damarion whistled low. "Yeesh, that was a bit ominous. Is it just me, or was Dreamer just scary?"
Rei was chuckling. "She's going to have to be to survive around our bunch."
Rei Wallace- Ravage. In this version, she's sort of left the Decepticons.
Samuel Wallace- Soundwave. Still works for the Con's but has become a bit of a recluse.
Lacey Wallace- Laserbeak. Still weird.
Diana Rowl- OC Dreamseek. She's a nurse in this one.
Damarion Sanchez- OC Diablo. He's still a big tough softie.
Dr. Ethan Nox- OC Equinox. Still a doctor, just kind of one that works for the Mob, if you know what I'm saying.
The war in this one is kind of a turf war. I wrote this mainly as an 'Cause I could," kind of thing, because I liked the idea.