Rei had never felt quite like this before. As an assassin and Shrine Maiden, she always prided herself on being in complete control of her mind, and in turn, her body. The mental discipline she exerted over her mortal form, and the connection she shared with the spirits around her, made Rei the perfect covert soldier.
Until the day she met Aino Minako. From the second she inhaled the idol's lusty perfume, the decay of her impenetrable walls began. And now, shortly after being at the receiving end of Venus' affections, Rei could not get her senses under control.
The Shrine Maiden stood beside the outdoor hot spring in a daze, watching Minako as she relaxed in the steamy water. The water's surface lapped at the swell of her breasts, which Rei struggled to tear her eyes from. Everything about the popstar's body was flawless, of course, from the golden hair piled on top of her head to her painted toenails.
Rei was absolutely smitten by this veritable love goddess. After losing herself in the Animus, then sacrificing herself for Minako, Rei couldn't deny she was head over heels for this talented, stubborn songstress.
"You gonna join me or what?" Minako asked without opening her eyes. Her head leaned against the smooth stones behind her, face soaking in the early morning sunlight.
Rei swallowed hard. Getting into the hot spring beside Minako wasn't the problem. But after what transpired between them before the sacred flames, Mina probably expected Rei to return the favor, so to speak.
The assassin knew everything there was to know about the human body. It came with the territory, after all. Pressure points and organs and veins and arteries; assassins were trained to manipulate the human body in almost every way imaginable. Rei knew all the technicalities behind the female orgasm, but she lacked the practice, and felt that could never match up to the dozens of lovers Minako already had in her lifetime.
Minako opened one eye and peered at Rei. A mischievous smile crossed her lips as she observed Rei's naked body. She reached her arms out and playfully curled her index fingers. "Oh Rei…. Come on!"
Her feet were bare, but Rei felt like she was wearing lead shoes. Step by step, she dragged her heavy feet down into the steaming water. The water tickled her clavicles until Minako's sudden movement caused it to splash her face.
"Hey!" Rei sputtered hot water out of her mouth. Before she could open her eyes, Minako's arms were around her neck, hugging her so hard Rei thought she was choking.
"Oh Rei!" Mina wailed with comical intonation. "I'm so happy you're alive!"
"M-Me too," Rei groaned through her constricted throat. "Too… tight."
"Oops!" Minako pulled back and sheepishly smiled. "Sorry, I looked at you and saw your dead body, and—"
"It's alright. I'm here now. Thanks to you."
Minako drew close as if reaching for a hug, but suddenly pulled back and gave Rei an unceremonious punch to the shoulder.
"Ow." Rei rubbed her shoulder and grimaced.
"And don't ever do that again!" Minako scolded and crossed her arms over her chest.
Rei opened her mouth to shout back, but stopped herself. She could say she had no other choice. She could say she would always do whatever it took to defeat the templars. She was a warrior, not some spoiled singer.
But none of those statements would take Minako's painful memories away. Rei reigned in her temper and took a deep breath. "I'll try not to."
Mina glared at her for a few seconds. Seeming to realize Rei wasn't going to make any empty promises, she mumbled under her breath. "I don't think I can handle losing you again."
Rei still couldn't bring herself to make a promise she had little control over. She wrapped her arms around the blonde, savoring the warmth of her body and the water surrounding them. Rei was beginning to come down from their earlier lovemaking, but her mind was still detached and fuzzy.
"Hey," she whispered. "Before you fell asleep, you said something about me being different. What did you mean?"
Minako nestled her face into the crook of her neck. Rei's skin prickled as her breath danced across it. "You are different. In a good way. Like… you seem less guarded. More at peace."
Rei nodded. She made a conscious decision not to fall back into old habits. To be honest with her feelings. To find meaning in her life outside of revenge and the sisterhood. Minako recognizing that change within her felt, well, good.
"I am. And that's in large part thanks to you." Rei hugged her closer. "I thought love was a weakness before."
"And what do you think now?"
"Love is strength." Rei cleared her throat. Even with the bath washing her skin clean, Minako still smelled of Venus perfume. "If it weren't for you, I never would have had the strength to do what needed to be done."
Minako tensed. She probably didn't like the idea of being the motivation behind Rei's sacrifice, but it was true. "I know what you mean… I would have done the same for you."
"So now you know why I can't promise I won't do it again."
"Yeah." Minako pulled away to wipe a tear from her eye. Soft fingertips brushed her bangs away from her face. "Can we just enjoy our bath before we get back to business?"
While basking in the afterglow, Rei experienced a brief span of time where she had forgotten about her responsibilities. They had to share their story with the other assassins. Minako needed to tell them she planned to switch sides. Then there was Sharanga, Rei's new bow, which she needed to do some target practice with. With Minako's naked body and warmth pressed against her, it was too easy to disregard everything going on outside of the onsen.
As if hearing the gears turning in Rei's head, Mina gently grabbed her face. Rei saw her supple lips part into that infectious smile before pressing them against hers. Minako's tongue tickled her teeth. Rei didn't know how she managed to be so seductive and confident and perfect. Everything Minako did turned her into a helpless puddle.
And it was a feeling Rei was beginning to enjoy.
Rei welcomed all of Minako's kisses and touches, until Mina's hand grasped hers and pressed it against her chest. Rei felt her erratic heartbeat. She felt Mina's yearning, coiling and tensing inside of her ribcage.
The anxiety Rei felt before stepping into the hot spring returned. Her entire body tensed. It was less than a second, but Minako noticed.
The blonde pulled back and tilted her head. "What's wrong?"
Good question. Rei had no idea how she was going to answer without sounding as foolish as she felt. She frowned upon feeling her cheeks burning. "Nothing."
Minako's hand caressed her hot cheek. "I doubt that. Come on, tell me. I promise I won't laugh or get mad."
Rei's throat seized, but she forced herself to speak. She owed Minako that much, at least. "It's just… I don't know what I'm doing, you know? I know you can tell."
Minako was biting her bottom lip, most likely in an effort to keep her promise not to laugh. "Performance anxiety? Oh, Rei!"
Minako wrapped her arms around Rei's neck and used the leverage to pull their faces close together. She rubbed the tip of her nose against Rei's, and the sweet gesture slightly improved her mood. "That's a silly thing to be worried about. Maybe I'm more experienced, and yeah, I've had several lovers in the past, but none of them were a mysterious, sexy miko."
Rei swallowed an embarrassed grunt.
"Besides… You seemed ready before I said I wanted to come out here. What changed your mind?"
That was true. Rei was reaching for Minako's center, eager to feel the slick moisture between her thighs, until Mina stopped her. The assassin shrugged. "I guess I'm overthinking it."
"Maybe you need another lesson." Minako giggled while walking her fingers down Rei's front. Her hand disappeared between Rei's breasts, beneath the water's surface.
Rei's breath hitched in her throat. She barely recovered from their lovemaking inside; her brain couldn't handle another round.
"I do still have a lot to learn," Rei agreed, despite her inner monologue.
"This may come as a surprise to you, but I'm easy to please," Minako crooned in a singsong tone.
Her sultry voice made Rei's legs wobble. "Is that so?"
"Mmhmm." Minako coaxed Rei back into her web with slow, languid kisses. Rei sank into her mouth. Their lips and bodies melded into each other so perfectly, how could she have doubted their compatibility?
The once stoic assassin fell under the popstar's spell almost instantaneously. It was impossible not to. Her moans. Her scent. Her skin coming to life as Rei's hands grew bolder. With each stroke and squeeze, Mina's panting became more pronounced.
Rei forgot her nervousness, entranced as she was by Minako's alluring pants and whispers.
"Yes, right there…" Mina happily sighed when Rei's hand pressed against the outside of her sex.
Rei touched her there. She touched her everywhere. Minako's skin was silk against the steaming water. Legs wrapped around Rei's waist. Insistent heat pressed against Rei's belly, bolder and more concentrated than the water they were submerged in. Lust filled her head and clouded her mind. Rei needed to be inside of her. She needed to feel Minako's passion clenching and catapulting in her name.
Rei licked a spot on Mina's smooth neck, intending to leave a mark of conquest. She followed the rhythm set by the blonde's hips. Her hand rubbed against Minako's clitoris; slowly at first, but bucking hips incited her to move faster and harder.
Rei's fingers curled beneath, just enough to stroke Mina's outer labia. They felt cool against her unnaturally hot skin, but Rei knew that by normal standards they were exceptionally warm.
"Mmm…. Inside me…" Minako ordered, but it came out as a plea.
A devious thought came to the assassin. "Not until you say it."
"Say… what?"
Apparently Minako was too far gone to recall the merciless teasing she incurred upon Rei earlier. "Say 'Rei, please finish me.'"
Minako whined as if Rei giving her a taste of her own medicine was the cruelest thing in the world.
"Say it," Rei growled before sinking her teeth into the crook of Mina's neck. Her flesh was sweeter than candy, but not as sweet as the moans that followed.
"Rei, please—"
A cacophony of animal sounds interrupted their steamy bath session. There was no mistaking the cawing of her crows, or the howling of Minako's cat. Stuck in a lustful daze, Rei's limbs went lax. Minako released a frustrated groan and disentangled herself from Rei's grasp.
"Seriously, you guys?" Mina crossed her arms like a child being punished. Rei turned a sheepish look to the pets, who stopped a safe, dry distance from the hot springs.
Deimos and Phobos kept turning their beady eyes towards the entrance. Taking a deep breath, the assassin forced herself to hone her senses.
Approaching footsteps, as sure as the heartbeat in her own chest. "Someone's coming."
"Huh? Who?"
"Setsuna," Rei answered with utmost certainty. Minako rolled her eyes, but did not question how Rei knew the identity of their pending visitor. There was no mistaking the pace of her gait, or the clicking of her modest heels.
The assassin in question burst through the changing room. She stood just beside the animals, her garnet eyes burning with determination.
Something happened.
"We're having a meeting. Now."
—-
"Nothing is true; everything is permitted."
After reciting the line of their creed in unison, the assassins began the meeting.
"She can't be here," Setsuna stated while glaring at Minako.
Rei studied each assassin cramped into Setsuna's makeshift office. She and Minako were standing, propped against the Animus, while Setsuna, Makoto, and Haruka all beset the pair with curious glances. Haruka seemed amused, while Setsuna couldn't have been further from entertained by Minako's presence.
If anything, Makoto was starstruck. She stared at Mina with big, googly green eyes. Enjoying the attention, Minako threw her damp hair over her shoulder.
Rei matched Setsuna's conviction. "She stays."
"I'm done with the templars. I want to be one of you," Mina pleaded.
"Until you recite the creed, you are still a templar," Setsuna insisted. She crossed her legs in her seated position at her desk.
Haruka, who was leaning against Setsuna's desk, cast Rei and Mina an understanding glance. "Let her stay, Setsuna. She's gonna have to come with us, anyway. If the templars give us a hard time, well… she'll be a good bargaining chip, wouldn't you say?"
Minako huffed at the thought of being used as some kind of high profile ransom. Rei couldn't argue with Haruka's reasoning; it was a clever counterpoint that had Setsuna second guessing her stance.
"Where are we going?" Makoto decided to skip over this debate to get to the heart of the matter.
Setsuna leveled her gaze at Minako, but dropped the subject of her attendance. She directed her attention to her smartphone, using her thumbprint and a ten digit password to unlock it.
The meeting attendees waiting patiently as Setsuna navigated the apps on her phone. When she was ready, she began, "I received this encrypted email half an hour ago. I haven't been able to track it's source yet. It says 'Bring your Pieces of Eden and their wielders to the location marked in the image below at midnight."
"So… We're assuming a templar sent you that email?" Makoto asked.
"That's right," Setsuna plainly stated.
"But how do you know?" Rei insisted.
Setsuna released a pensive, weighted sigh, as if predicting the effect her following statement would have. "Because tt is signed by the Augur."