Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum
A/N: Soo… Does it ever get cold in Los Angeles? People say it does, but I don't know if I believe them. I mean cold as in you'll get hypothermia and die cold if you go out wearing flip flops. Not 'it's a little bit chilly, better put a sweater on' type of cold. If anyone could shed any light on this situation, it would be most appreciated.
Also, I would like to thank you guys who have stuck with the story, or who have just discovered it and decided to give it a go! Merci beaucoup! And an especially big thank you to those of you who reviewed!
So parts of this chapter may border on M rating. Yep. Never tried M before, mainly because I am pretty sure that I'd be shite at it, but here I am attempting some soft M. M meaning Mustard. No, actually it means Mature, but, hey, it'd be pretty cool if it meant mustard right - "I rate this story M because I think it's the Mustard" said Colonel Mustard in the drawing room to nobody, ever.
Okay…
Chapter 11: Apudne te vel me?
2 weeks later
Arizona rubbed her eyes against the harsh sunlight. It had seemed like years since she'd felt the tingle of warmth from the sun on her skin, had had to squint away the glare of its brilliant rays. She guessed that was one of the hazards of living in one of the wettest places in the Continental US. Not that Arizona minded the rain too much, in fact, she quite liked it. There was nothing quite as homely as being wrapped up warm in bed whilst the wind is howling and rain lashes the windows on a chilly winter's night. Correction – there wasn't much that was more homely than being wrapped up warm in bed, but Arizona would bet her entire life savings on the fact that being wrapped up in a warm bed with a certain drop dead gorgeous orthopaedic surgeon would be one hundred and twenty seven times better.
The rain also let you think. You know how you get those epiphanies in the shower? The ones that you can never hold onto once you shut off the faucet and return to the real world? That's what the rain was like for Arizona. It centered her, allowed her to do all the emotional processing that her life had taught her to hide away - put on the back burner, had helped her get through her brother's death and was going to help her get through this now. Warm and sunny days just didn't allow for the same amount of emotional pathetic fallacy.
Inhaling deeply the freshness of the evening spring air, Arizona let herself get pushed slowly towards her unknown destination, closing her eyes at the sensation whilst reaffirming to herself that she in no way, shape, or form would ever be suited to a desk job. She just loved the feeling of being outdoors too much – the way the sun feels on your arms, the way the wind nips at your ears in the winter, your breath mimicking smoke rings as though you are Gandalf and are awesome. Which kinda sucked, seeing as having a desk job is probably all that Arizona was likely going to be able to do from here on out.
"No regrets." Arizona mumbled to herself as she felt the anger and the hurt seep back into her. It was a mantra that Arizona had adopted ever since Callie's little speech a couple of weeks ago, back in the pouring rain.
Callie… She'd been a pillar of strength throughout this whole thing, from the very beginning, to the shooter, to the discharge papers, when Arizona's world looked as though it was about to implode, there Callie was, guiding the way, a beacon of light in the ever increasing darkness.
"Hmm..?" Callie's voice mumbled from behind Arizona's head, "You say something?"
Arizona smiled lightly. She had no idea what Callie had planned for later, all Callie had told her was that they were going to get out of the hospital for a day, and Arizona couldn't much argue to that. She'd go trash collecting on the side of the highway if that meant she got a little bit of time out of that (extremely upmarket, well-mannered and groundbreaking) prison that Seattle Grace Mercy West had become to her. Usually, in Arizona's line of work, surprises were bad, surprises spelt danger, surprises were what ended you up… well… here, but for this surprise, Arizona couldn't wait.
"Nope." Arizona brushed the question off lightly, her tone soft and relaxed, hinting ever so slightly at her growing excitement. "Just enjoying the sunshine."
"Well take it while you can. I'm pretty sure we've already exceeded our quota of sunny days already this year." Callie chuckled lightly, her pace slowing until she brought Arizona and the wheelchair to a stop in front of the most beautiful 1957 raven black Ford Thunderbird Arizona had ever seen.
"Woah…" Arizona gaped, her voice laced with awe and longing.
"Yup." Callie replied smugly, keeping her tone level, attempting to keep a straight face despite Arizona's obvious and kinda hot reaction. Erica had never been into cars, neither had George. Erica had said it was a man's past-time, but Callie had scoffed at that. Some cars were just beautiful, the same with motorbikes, and if people said she was a petrol-head, then she made no apologies about it. There was nothing quite like the feeling of a strong engine throbbing between your thighs when you step onto a motor bike, the raw power beneath her. "This is my baby."
"This is yours?!" Arizona cried incredulously, her eyes widening in awe. Callie all on her own was one of the hottest things that Arizona could conjure up, but Callie driving the T-bird... Arizona thought she'd died and gone to heaven.
Never taking her eyes off Callie, Arizona wheeled herself towards the car, holding her hand out, gently stroking the hood, ever careful of the paintwork.
"You wanna take a spin?" Callie asked, already knowing the answer.
"Like heck do I!" Arizona responded eagerly, practically ripping the passenger side door of the car off before she deftly levered herself from her wheelchair into the passenger seat on strong, toned arms.
Callie chuckled as she made her way swiftly to the driver's side, nodding politely in gratitude at the porter who had made the trek to recover Arizona's now abandoned and forgotten wheelchair before sliding into the T-bird herself.
As soon as her butt hit the leather, Callie was assaulted by Arizona's warm, moist pink lips as they captured her own. Taking a moment to respond, Callie moaned greedily into the kiss before granting Arizona access into her mouth, Callie's strong hands getting lost in tangles of the marine's radiant blonde hair.
Gasping at a sudden coolness that eased the fever that had engulfed Callie's body since Arizona had begun her assault, Callie felt Arizona laugh into their kiss as Callie finally registered that the cool relief she'd felt was actually Arizona's hands – the marine had managed to sneak 2nd base from her without the Latina so much as noticing!
Callie broke the kiss, a wide grin on her face as Arizona groaned at the lack of contact between them. Callie wasn't sure how Arizona had done it, and she sure as hell didn't care how the marine's hands had managed to elude all her senses - it felt good… electrifying, but now really wasn't the time to get into this, because, around Arizona, Callie wasn't sure how long she could control herself for.
"I'm sorry…" Arizona panted, settling herself back down into the leather seat with a thud.
"No…" Callie replied, her words equally as laboured as she tried to regain some sort of brain function. "Apology… Necessary…"
A silence filled the air, only broken by the sound of the two women's heavy breathing permeating the atmosphere. After a few moments, Arizona broke the silence, suddenly nervous that she'd somehow overstepped by assaulting Callie like that, that Callie hadn't wanted that to happen – the surgeon was the one that had broken the kiss, after all.
"I'm sorry, Calliope… It's just you… And this car… And your scrubs… And…" Arizona rambled, her words quickly gathering momentum.
"My scrubs?" Callie interrupted, a small smile tugging at the sides on crimson, still slightly engorged lips.
Arizona nodded silently. She didn't trust herself to say anymore – loose lips sink ships after all.
"You think my scrubs are hot..?" Callie asked incredulously, completely surprised. She'd never found her scrubs in the least attractive. They were designed for men – hugged all the wrong places and made her arms look like they belonged to a creepy child body builder. Sexy wasn't a word she would have used to describe them. Not in a million years.
"Not exactly…" Arizona replied quietly, quickly backpedalling when she saw the look of disappointment spread across the Latina's stunning face. "It's you. In the scrubs. You in the scrubs look sexy, not the scrubs themselves, I'm pretty sure that a pair of unworn scrubs isn't sexy in the least and people who think that scrubs are sexy without a sexy person in them probably need some sort of help or something, because who is attracted to an unworn article of clothing like that? I mean…"
"Arizona." Callie interrupted forcefully.
"Yep…" Arizona replied quickly, pursing her lips before any more ramble could escape.
Callie laughed lightly at the sight of the blonde. Even Arizona's ramblings were infinitely sweet, endearing, where Callie usually couldn't stand people who rambled. In her line of work, it was something that could get people killed.
"Shut up and kiss me."
Guiding the T-bird expertly into her personal parking spot, Callie turned off the engine and hopped hurriedly out of the vehicle. They'd left Arizona's wheelchair at the hospital – there was no way that that thing was ever going to fit into the T-bird – so Callie was anxious to make sure that her blonde bombshell of a marine wasn't going to immediately faceplant out of the car on the crutches that Callie had 'appropriated' from the hospital. Not only would that ruin the day that Callie had planned, but it would also mean another trip to Mark, and Arizona still wasn't his biggest fan - but she was trying.
"Where are we?" Arizona asked inquisitively once Callie had appeared at the passenger side door, crutches from the hospital in hand from the trunk.
"My apartment." Callie replied nonchalantly, trying her best to keep the smile from her face at Arizona's slack jawed expression. The slight tinge of pink that suddenly adorned her porcelain skin let Callie know exactly what the blonde was thinking. "Alright there missy. I'm just going to say this right here and now so that we have all the facts before we get into the apartment."
Arizona gulped involuntarily, nodding her head as Callie fiddled around with the sizings on the crutches to match Arizona's height.
"Nothing is going to happen today, or tonight, or whatever…"
"I wasn't… I didn't…" Arizona immediately protested, the pink hue ever rising on her soft cheeks.
Callie arched her eyebrow, obviously not believing for one second that Arizona didn't have a dirty mind, and handed the marine a crutch, which Arizona stuck forcefully under her own arm.
"Wait…" Arizona began, recovering quickly. "What do you mean, Calliope? NOTHING is going to happen? That would be a pretty boring date, I must say, and a little bit sadistic – getting a poor old war-wounded soldier's hopes up and all. The least you could do is…"
"You know what I mean!" Callie exclaimed, returning Arizona's mischievous smile. "Now get our cute butt up and out of my baby."
Callie cringed. She really should have thought through that sentence before she had said it.
"Well that just sounded wrong." Arizona stated, the smirk only growing on her face as she levered herself out of the T-bird awkwardly on the crutches. It was a beautiful car, but definitely wasn't the easiest thing to get out of whilst incapacitated.
"I got this."
Waving off Callie's proffered hand (as Callie had all but predicted Arizona would) Arizona finally managed to get herself upright, wobbling only slightly as she made it to her feet.
"Ta-da!" Arizona sang like a child hopped up on sugar and E-numbers. Callie was sure that if Arizona had had her hands free, there would have been jazz hands involved in there somewhere.
"Nice work marine. Now let's see how you handle actually walking…"
"Okay, so that was harder than I expected." Arizona admitted, slumping down in the nearest sofa with a thud, sweat shining off of her brow after following Callie into her apartment.
The place seemed nice. The decor wasn't exactly what Arizona would have personally chosen, but for Callie, it worked, it suited her. The high end finish was obvious, but the place didn't scream pretentiousness or money, it was practical, but homey, and the sofas were definitely some of the comfiest that Arizona had experienced in a long time.
"Mmhmm…" Callie replied, emerging from what Arizona assumed was the kitchen, a glass of ice cool water in hand.
Immediately seeing the water, Arizona licked her lips subconsciously.
"You are too good to me, Calliope Torres." Arizona smiled, holding her hands out expectantly for the glass, the sweet liquid that was going to revive her sweat soaked body.
" I know." Callie stated before placing the glass against her lips, taking a theatrically large gulp of the colourless liquid. Callie smacked her lips together, emphasising just how good the water tasted in her mouth.
"Hey! I thought that was for me!" Arizona cried in mock disgust. She knew full well the game Callie was playing, and she wasn't ready for this beautiful torture to end yet , even if it was somewhat masochistic on her part. Arizona just had to wait long enough for the surgeon's plan to backfire…
"Oh." Callie continued innocently, a playful glint in her chocolate eyes sending heat coursing through Arizona's body. "Sorry. You wanted this?"
Callie pointed towards the now half full glass, running her finger lightly over the condensation that had formed on the vessel before bringing that same finger to her lips, rubbing it gently across them, moaning lightly.
"Jesus…" Arizona whispered to herself, shaking her head slightly to try and regain some semblance of rational thought. This woman had her hotter than she could remember and she hadn't even touched a finger to Arizona's now heated skin yet.
"How much do you want it?" Callie asked, her voice was low and sultry, daring Arizona to make the next move, praying for the blonde marine to come undone right here and now, in front of her.
Taking another audible gulp of the water, Callie moaned contentedly, tilting her head back in pleasure.
"Oh my God, Arizona…" Callie moaned, her eyes closing slightly at the sensation. "Oh my God, it's so good… Arizona…"
"Calliope…" Arizona whispered, her body not allowing her to make a noise any louder. Clamping her eyes shut and legs together desperately trying to find some sort of friction to ease the throbbing that was growing between the two limbs.
"Calliope… please…" Arizona begged, no longer being able to withstand the torture of being so far away from the surgeon, when all she wanted was…
"What Arizona..?" Callie asked, her breathing ragged as she turned her gaze upon the blonde.
What Callie saw made her breath hitch. Arizona's face was flushed, hands gripping the sides of her leather sofa until her knuckles were white, her bright blue eyes no longer bright, but rather resembling the darkness of the ocean at night.
"How much do you want it..?" Callie breathed almost silently.
The atmosphere in the room was palpable, thick and suffocating, but neither party wanted to move, wanted to break the trance that had overcome them.
"It's not the water that I want…" Arizona finally growled, her voice predatory and primal, as a hunter about to finally tackle their elusive prey, the eye contact never faltering between the two women.
Before she could process anything, Callie's body was on top of hers, the feeling of the sofa tipping under the force the last thing Arizona could remember before hitting the ground, cushions from the sofa flying haphazardly across the room. Arizona wasn't the only one who had come undone at Callie's game, it seemed.
Laughing heartily, Arizona grabbed Callie's hips, pulling them infinitely closer to her own, wanting to feel the warmth of Callie's body across her own, the electric feel of Callie's olive skin on hers.
Callie moaned wantonly into the hungry kisses Arizona was placing across her jaw line, the blonde nipping lightly at the Latina's ear lobe and sending jolts of electricity through Callie's body that she was sure she shouldn't be feeling when they were only making out…
Callie moaned once again, burying her head into the shoulder of the blonde, running her hands sensually into Arizona's tresses, trying to find some leverage to deepen their kiss, despite their bodies already being flush together.
Reading Callie's desire to get closer, Arizona flipped the two of them over expertly, her body now on top of the Latina's as she immediately thrust her thigh between Callie's legs, using her arms to keep most of the weight off her injured limbs, but still allowing her to apply the necessary amount of pressure, moving her leg in a slow kneading motion.
Callie gasped, her eyes widening in shock and pleasant surprise. Her body was aching for friction to ease the throbbing between her thighs, the wetness that had pooled there growing by the second. Somehow, Arizona had already known what she had needed, and it only served to turn the surgeon on more.
This time it was Callie's turn to mark her territory, sucking ravenously on Arizona's neck. There was something primal about staking claim, marking your territory, and Callie wanted everybody to know that Arizona was hers. The shiver of Arizona's body as Callie blew gently on her artwork was mirrored by Callie's own body as Arizona sent another meaningful thrust into her core with a strong leg.
Moaning as another shockwave passed through her body, it was all Callie could do to beg Arizona to end her torture. She needed release now, it seemed, more than she'd ever needed it in her life.
"Arizona, please…"
Resisting the urge to torment her lover, the way Calliope had tormented her earlier, Arizona got quickly to work, understanding the need in her partner's voice.
Speeding up her movements, Arizona managed to balance her weight on one hand, using the other to slip beneath the waistband of Callie's scrubs and beneath her panties.
Callie gasped at the change in sensation, the juxtaposition of cool fingers against her heated core only increasing her need.
Easing the pressure with her knee, Arizona began to rub small but quick circles across the brunette's throbbing clit, broadening the strokes as she felt the surgeon's hips begin to buck against her, the marine taking this as her cue to take matters one step further, thrusting two fingers deep within the Latina, meeting Callie's body thrust for thrust.
Wasting no time, Arizona quickly put her fingers to work in fast, deep thrusting pumps, curling her fingers on every other thrust as Callie's breathing became deeper, more erratic, her hips bucking more and more violently.
"Arizona…" Callie moaned, her voice laced with sex.
Callie breathing her name like that was all the impetus that Arizona required to bring the brunette, metaphorically, to her knees, giving one last thrust with curled fingers, Arizona nipped gently at the hardened nipple visible beneath the surgeon's scrub top, spiking intense pleasure with sweet pain to send the Latina toppling over the edge.
Watching the brunette's face contort as Callie let out a series of guttural moans brought a smile to the blonde's lips as she extricated her previously occupied fingers. Gently kissing Callie's cheeks, forehead and every inch of exposed skin she could get to as the Latina came down off her high, Arizona collapsed in a heap atop of Calliope, her breathing ragged and uneven, mirroring the Latina's own breaths, her arms no longer willing to bear her weight.
"Dios Mios." Callie breathed heavily beneath Arizona, the feeling of her chest rising up and down beneath the blonde doing nothing to quell that amazing, yet painful feeling of anticipation that had gnawed its way into her lower stomach.
"Yeah…" Was all Arizona managed to reply, the burning in her legs and arms definitely worth the look that had overcome Calliope just as she was on the brink… "Definitely…"
"So much for nothing happening..."
"Where'd you learn to cook like that Calliope?! It was delicious!" Arizona mumbled happily into the brunette's legs, the marine laying on the sofa to take weight off her legs, with her head cradled upon Callie's comfortable lap.
Once Callie had recovered from their earlier... Escapades... Callie had returned to the kitchen to heat up the beef bourguignon that she had prepared a day earlier, much to her relief. She wasn't sure that she would have been capable of putting together even the simplest meal after what had happened earlier.
"Thank you." Callie blushed, slightly embarrassed by Arizona's compliment, despite the fact that people had raved about her cooking multiple times - Mark chief among them.
"Just what the doctor ordered!" Arizona exclaimed, rubbing small circles in the brunette's long legs, yawning slightly.
Callie shook her head and smiled, placing a soft kiss in Arizona's blonde tresses. Arizona was such a goof sometimes.
"Thank you." Arizona said quietly, her quiet words carrying a weight that was oddly juxtaposed by her tiredness.
"Anytime, babe." Calliope smiled, looking down happily at the blonde in her lap. "Anytime. I enjoy cooking, especially for people that say it's delicious, so…"
"No, Calliope." Arizona lifted her head from Callie's lap, locking her sapphire eyes with Callie's chocolate ones in order to convey all the feelings, the gratitude, the happiness that Callie made her feel.
The love…
"Thank you." Arizona repeated, wanting to reinforce her gratitude yet again, because in all honesty, Arizona knew that even 1 million thank yous wouldn't be enough.
"Oh." Callie whispered, the blush only increasing across her tanned cheeks.
"For… For everything, Calliope. Thank you." Arizona brought her hand up to Callie's face, cupping her cheek gently before dropping a short but sweet kiss upon enticing lips.
Pulling away, Arizona smiled contentedly at the surgeon above her, her eyes drinking in every facet of Callie's face to take with her into her fastly approaching dreams. Leaning up once again to capture the Latina's lips before sleep overtook her, Arizona ran her hand gently across Callie's neck, the feel of the marine's hands ghosting across her skin giving Callie the most magnificent goose bumps.
Sliding her tongue gently into Arizona's waiting mouth, Callie took her time with the kiss, nothing needing to be rushed, nothing but pure contentment oozing from every pore of her being.
Arizona smiled as the kiss broke, her eyes drooping slightly as tiredness threatened to overcome her. Pecking Calliope's lips one last time, taking one last hit of the drug that had her so sweetly and so absolutely addicted before resting her head comfortably in the surgeon's lap, her eyes fluttering closed.
'Damn…'Callie thought as she touched her lips to the marine's forehead. There was no way that she could resist Arizona, no way that – when the marine smiled at her with those dimples, with those eyes – Callie could deny her anything. She was in deeper than she thought, and strangely enough, Callie thought, a smile playing on her lips, she didn't mind at all.
A/N 2: A little bit more LOTR in there. Sorry, couldn't help myself! I love motorbikes. Love 'em. I know they can be dangerous and all, but damn. If I had enough money, I know exactly what bike I'd get… So if anyone would like to donate me, let's say… around $15000, I'd be much obliged ;)
I wrote this chapter instead of studying for finals. I've also been to the gym 4 times in 3 days, all in the name of procrastination. I am an amazing and dedicated student. Probably also explains my earlier A/N…
Have a good day guys, and if you have finals, or another exam of any kind, then good luck!
