I really only like certain parts of this chapter, but I popped it out. Wasn't really sure how to fill this part, so I improvised. The more solid stuff should be coming. Should. Not certain how solid it will actually be.
Anywho, valkubus, Kenzi, and a lead in to the upcoming finale. Yay!
K. Enjoy. Baiiiii.
*PS: I didn't exactly comb through this, so forgive any errors and stuff. Especially towards the end. :P*
CHAPTER 20
The two women remained still, weapons discarded in the figure's corpse, gasping for air. "Well," Tamsin finally said, lifting her gaze to meet Bo's, "that was fun."
"Is that what you'd call it?" Bo asked, perking an eyebrow up.
"Yeah. Why? What would you call it?" Tamsin said, blindly stumbling backwards until the soft mattress of the bed met the back of her legs. She let herself fall onto the mattress, lying back with her feet dangling over the edge, reveling in the soft cushiony surface that rested beneath her back. Her eyes fluttered shut at the sensation and she let out a heavy breath, satisfied with the moment.
"Dangerous," the succubus answered.
"Isn't that the same thing?" The valkyrie murmured.
Bo smiled, striding over to the bed and collapsing into a seat beside Tamsin. "You okay?" She asked, her eyes scanning the blonde's partially bare torso, making note of the few fresh bruises. The sight of the familiar purple markings forced a frown onto her face.
"Are you?" Tamsin opened her eyes slowly, rolling her head a bit to cast her gaze upon the succubus, whose frown turned to a look of confusion before her hand moved to her jaw. She winced as her fingers gripped the bone. She had almost forgotten about the injury, sighing in response to its presence as she fell back onto the bed, turning her head to stare into the valkyrie's eyes.
"Better off than you are, blondie." Brown eyes searched cool green ones, catching the hint of vulnerability in them almost immediately. "What is it?" She asked.
"What is what?"
Bo sighed. "You look – I don't know – sad, or… hurt. Are you okay?"
A light smile crept its way up onto Tamsin's lips as she turned her head, her eyes now fixed on the ornate cloth that loosely hung in the space above the bed. "Someone's a tad observant today, I see."
"What's wrong?"
"Just nervous, I guess." There was a heaviness to her tone, of this she was aware. Within her was settled a fear that had haunted her for weeks, perhaps even months. She felt the light touch of fingers gliding across her collar, crossing its surface slowly and gingerly. Bo slid her hand up the blonde's neck, placing a soothing hand on her cheek as she gently pulled the blonde's face to the side, forcing their gazes to meet.
"I trust you," Bo spoke, her voice a whisper. Their faces were so close now, mere inches separating them, and the succubus couldn't help smile at the thought, despite the sadness in her eyes. Tamsin was afraid and that hurt her more than she would've expected. She rose up from her spot, lifting her legs onto the bed and scooting back until she felt the cool wood of the headboard against her. "Come here." She patted the spot beside her for Tamsin, a light, calming smile playing on her lips.
For a moment the valkyrie simply stared up at the brunette, watching her from her laid back position. And then she rose from her spot, wincing as pain shot through her muscles. She circled the bed, using the mattress as support for her own weight. Stopping at the side, she gazed at the succubus, a sigh pulling from her lips. She contemplated leaving then, turning away before the situation could get heated again, but a hand was on her wrist before the thought could truly register. She was lightly pulled onto the bed, Bo's other hand firmly pressed against the blonde's back to keep her from making any unnecessarily painful movements.
Tamsin, with Bo's guiding hands, crawled across the large bed. She settled herself against the succubus' chest, wrapped protectively in her arms. She was still weak, her body aching from head to toe, her lungs and muscles sore from the beating they'd taken in the past few days. The moment her head rested against Bo's chest, her lids began to droop with exhaustion, though she struggled to keep them open. "Don't worry about it, Tamsin."
"I can't help but worry," the valkyrie responded quietly. "He's dangerous, Bo." She pushed herself deeper into Bo's embrace, burying her head into the brunette's chest. She groaned at the movement, realizing then that the adrenaline the fight had provided her had since worn off. Bo had noticed this as well, careful to avoid contact with any bruises, though she found the task to be difficult.
"We'll manage." The succubus looked down at Tamsin, frowning at the lack of eye contact. She dropped her hand to the blonde's face, tracing the length of her cheek bone, moving down to her jaw, and then sliding her fingers beneath her chin, tilting her head up and forcing their gazes to meet. "We will makeit through this."
For a moment – the briefest moment – Bo saw in Tamsin's cool green eyes an emotion so great and powerful, its ferocity speaking to her on levels beyond the capability of simple words. In the valkyrie's eyes she could see the terror and the worry and the guilt all wrapped up together, tumbling over one another, clashing in heated collisions, one overtaking another over and over again. And then it was gone, replaced by the hard exterior of a trained valkyrie… by the walls of a broken shell. Tamsin let out a huff, the vulnerability she had just shown vanishing in an instant as she rolled away from Bo, lying on her back. "You're right," she said, her tone suddenly lifted. "We're gonna kick ass." The valkyrie stared up at the ceiling for a short period of time before speaking again. "I have no shirt on," she stated, bringing her hand over to rest on her bare stomach. She winced as the weight of her fingers pressed down onto her ribs.
Bo was in awe. She stared down at the valkyrie with the saddest eyes, her breath heavy at the rawness of what she had just witnessed. And as the realization of its absence hit her, she blinked, her eyes once again seeing the all-too-familiar hint of a smirk pulling at Tamsin's lips. The fortress had returned and it was almost enough to rid her of the light hearted moment. With a collecting inhale, she let a smile appear on her lips. "I know. I kinda like it that way," she said, sitting up. There was a thickness to the air in the few moments of silence that followed, but it melted away when Bo next spoke. "Stay." The word rushed off of her tongue as the thoughts whirred in her mind. "Please?"
The blonde felt compelled to smile, the idea of spending the night with the succubus oddly appealing. She wasn't truly sure why, but she didn't want to leave. She wanted to stay at Bo's side, to fight with her against whatever evil, to… well – just to be with her. What the hell… she thought, feeling the emotion within her. She'd tried so hard to build walls – barriers to combat exterior forces… but one look from the brown eyed succubus and they all crumbled – crumbled beneath the weight of Bo. Tamsin couldn't help bet let out a light laugh at the thought, succumbing to the desire. "Well, I'm already shirtless and in your bed, so…" she sighed.
Bo smiled, lowering herself down onto the bed beside Tamsin. Hesitantly, she rested a hand on the blonde's stomach, grimacing at the wince the action received from the valkyrie. "Sorry," she murmured, beginning to pull away, but before she could, Tamsin's hand was on her wrist, pulling it back.
"Stay," Tamsin murmured, turning her head to look at Bo. The succubus smiled, seeing a small fragment of the emotion she had seen before… but this time it was different – it wasn't sad or broken, just powerful. She felt it wash over her and then her lips were on Tamsin's, this kiss softer than any other they had shared. She raised her hand, resting it on Tamsin's cheek, lightly pulling her face closer.
"What is this?"
Tamsin sighed, shaking her head as she closed her eyes. "I don't know." Bo began to speak, but stopped when moments later the blonde's breathing evened out, her tense muscles easing – relaxing into the mattress. "Goodnight, Tamsin," Bo whispered, leaning forward and pressing her lips to the valkyrie's forehead.
She remained like that for perhaps another hour, simply watching the rise and all of Tamsin's chest, listening to the rhythmic sound of her breathing… memorizing every feature of her gentle face. She pondered the feelings that had been nagging at her for days, the emotion she felt upon seeing Tamsin. Everything was a mess. The woman she loved – Lauren – was under her father's spell, held in his grasp, and here she sat, the warmth of another against her body. What had she done?
The confusion and guilt within her, she closed her eyes and pulled herself closer to Tamsin. And then she slept, the thoughts falling away one by one until all that remained was darkness and the warmth of Tamsin's body pressed against her own.
The sound of glass shattering against the wooden floor filled the house in an instant, putting an aggressive halt to any of the peacefulness that had been present before. It tore Tamsin and Bo from their sleep, their bodies flying forward reaching for weapons that weren't there in a panicked frenzy. "What the hell!?" Bo yelled, and then her eyes lifted to the door frame and her expression went blank.
Tamsin followed the succubus' gaze, a light smirk pulling on her lips at the sight before her. "Kenzi!" she greeted, her smirk turning into a full on grin. The human's small form stood frozen and wide eyed in the doorway, a mug . Slowly her icy blue eyes raked the room until they rested on Tamsin and Bo… together… in bed.
"Holy shit-u-fuck, what the hell did you guys do last night!?"
Confused, Bo glanced around the room, surveying the large corpse on the ground, the blood splatters on the floor and the crack on her bed post, and then she remembered – Tamsin was beside her.
"I leave for one night and not only do you bang the valkyrie but you destroy your room doing it!?" Kenzi dropped her gaze to the ground again, her eyes widening in terror. "Is that Geraldine!?"
"It was kind of an emergency, Kenz," Bo managed to say, shaking her head to break from her daze.
"A sex-u-mergency?" Kenzi asked, yanking the sword from the brute's gut and raising it to point directly at Tamsin. "A sex-u-mergency with the valkyrie!?"
"There was no sex…u-anything, Kenz. We were… talking when he attacked."
"Yeah? Then where's her shirt?"
Tamsin languidly pointed to the other side of the room, the grin still plastered on her lips. "Check over there." She winced as the back of Bo's hand lightly slapped the side of her arm, pulling away with another wince. "Ouch…" she groaned, reaching a sore hand up to sooth the stinging sensation the slap had left her with. She registered a quick smile and wink before Bo's gaze shifted back to Kenzi.
"Look, we can talk about all of this later, we've got a meet-up at the Dal to get to. Right?"
Kenzi shrugged. "S'why I came in here, Bobo-dacious. Trick's calling for us."
Bo turned a saddened, knowing gaze to Tamsin. "You're ready, right?"
"To take you as my prisoner and hand you over to the deadliest man I know? Hell yeah." She glanced down at her bare, bruised, and battered torso, grimacing. "But I'll need a shirt first."
"That can definitely be arranged," Kenzi replied abruptly, dropping her arm, the tip of the sword slamming into the hardwood floor. With a quick pivot, she twisted around and exited the room, dramatically dragging the sword behind her.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Bo called after. "I know it's not much but this place is home, you know! Stop scratching up my floors."
Kenzi stopped momentarily, expressively lifting the tip of the sword from the hardwood surface, raising it into the air. "Dal. Thirty minutes," she says, disappearing down the stairs. With her exit came peacefulness, allowing Bo the chance to fully register the situation. She smiled with realization, turning her head to cast her gaze upon Tamsin, who had let herself fall back onto the bed, arms outstretched across the large mattress. She still wore her signature smirk, which somehow managed to both kill and make the moment for the succubus, who simply grinned back. "C'mon. Let's get you that shirt," she said after a few long seconds of simply staring. She moved to slide off of the bed, pausing as the sight of Tamsin slowly sitting up caught her eye. She turned back, a frown now firmly plastered on her face.
"What is it?" Tamsin asked, wrapping an arm around her sore stomach, forcing back a wince.
"You sure you'll be able to… perform today? You seem a bit—"
"I'll be fine, Bo," the valkyrie interrupted, sliding off the bed in one swift movement, landing on her feet with a slight sway. She caught herself on the side of the bed, taking a steadying breath before turning back to face the succubus. "If I show up looking untouched, he'll see right through me."
"I just worry—"
"Don't worry succulette. We're good, 'kay?"
"Okay," Bo sighed, jumping to her feet and crossing the room over to her closet. She threw the wooden doors open and reached inside, pulling out a somewhat large black t-shirt. "Will this do?"
The sound of bickering filled the quiet space of the Dal, stirring the small bunch that sat within from their gloomy thoughts. Kenzi couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips as she nudged Dyson lightly to wake him from his own daze.
"I can't believe you fucking forgot my truck!" Came Tamsin's clearly distressed voice. She trailed into the room behind Bo, a hint of upset evident on her features behind the anger, which took a dominant stance as she spoke. "That's my truck! It's my home—"
Bo threw her hands up into the air with exasperation. "Oh, I'm so sorry that I forgot your truck in the midst of saving your ass. Forgive me—"
"I will not! Anything could have happened to it, bitch!"
"It's been a pretty damn hectic past few days, Tamsin!" Bo responded, continuing with a low mumble, "no thanks to you."
"I heard that, and if you—"
"Ladies, ladies!" Bo and Tamsin ceased their argumentive conversing, lifting their frustrated gazes to Trick, who stood with a stern expression behind the bar. "I do believe we have more important matters to attend to."
Tamsin muttered a few quiet curses beneath her breath, casting a glaring glance at Bo, who responded by childishly sticking her tongue out as a sign of victory. "Bitch…" Tamsin breathed.
"Now," Trick said, glancing between Bo and Tamsin, "if you're quite finished… Tamsin, how does this work?"
"Well, I have to get their attention first," the blonde replied, her expression going hard instantly.
Bo snapped her eyes up. "Wait, what? Whose attention?"
"You know who, Bo. The assassins are his arms and legs, his connections to this world—"
"How did you contact him before?"
"I didn't. He'd send someone to come meet me."
"Send who?"
"The man that manages all of your father's activities. I never got a name, but I know well what he looks like." Tamsin frowned a bit at the thought of him. She'd made a grand attempt to avoid him during most of her jobs for The Wanderer, finding smaller connections to use in delivering the targets to him instead. There was no avoiding him this time, though. She couldn't help but feel a bit afraid, but pushed the emotion aside, letting the sternness return to her eyes. "I figure he's the guy pulling the strings on all of these coordinated attacks, and the best way to get to him is to find us an assassin." Tamsin scanned the expressions of each person in the room, frowning at the response she'd gathered. "It's all we've got, guys. Our other option is to… well, let them kill me. They'll take Bo right to him afterwards."
Bo moved as if she wanted to say something, an angered look in her eyes, but the opportunity was lost when Dyson spoke up, clearing the silence from the room with his sturdy, deep voice. "I still don't get why they had to get you out of the way first…" he said, his baritone voice filling the entirety of the open room. Bo's gaze maintained its angered and frustrated glare as her eyes bored into the side of Tamsin's head.
"Because they know that she'd never let them take me… not while she's alive," Bo answered. Somehow her words managed to still the rest of the group as Tamsin turned her gaze to meet Bo's.
"Yeah… what she said," the valkyrie murmured moments later – slowly – her attention still fixed on the succubus. It was then that Bo could see through the wall Tamsin had built back up, watching it slowly crumble beneath the weight of her stare. She couldn't quite tell if Tamsin was sad or happy but the emotion was there and that was all that really seemed to matter in the moment.
"Let's do this, then," Bo said, a light smirk on her lips as confidence swelled within her. She wasn't quite sure what it was about the glint in Tamsin's eye, but it ignited something inside of her, and suddenly nothing seemed more certain than their success. Nothing seemed more fitting than His death.