Author's Note!!

This chapter is not work friendly… a lot of them haven't been, but this one REALLY isn't. That being said, it's rated mostly for Joey and Aster having potty mouths and a lot of nakedness.

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"Don't wander too far!" Tristan called as Ruby and Tori made the decision to spend some time together alone in the lake out back, Ruby reassuring him they'd be fine before taking Tori's hand and offering Tristan a wave. "Damn. How's a fine girl like her end up with a guy like him?" He muttered to himself, leaning back on the porch swing and smirking, shaking his head.

As they wound their way down to the lake, Ruby was quiet, giving Tori an uneasy feeling. He stopped at the edge of it and plunked himself down on a log, taking his hat off and shrugging out of his jacket. When he started taking off his boots, Ruby paused to look at him, smirking.

"What are you doing?"

"Going swimming." He rasped in return, kicking his boots off and standing again. As he reached down to remove his shirt, he looked over to see her doing the same thing, a flush creeping into his cheeks. He always thought, the longer they were locked in this apocalypse, the longer they were forced to share cramped safe rooms and single bathrooms, the less shame they would have.

He was wrong.

Ruby looked over at him as she prepared to remove her own shirt, smirking at him again and giving him a look that clearly asked "What are you waiting for?"

Tori stared at her for a long moment, then slid his shirt off, casting it aside and reaching down to unbutton his black jeans. Her hands on his arms stopped him, and he looked up, the smile on his face sliding away when he saw the look in her eyes.

"Ruby-" He began, her hand reaching up to cover his mouth as her pretty blue eyes took in all the scars on his chest. He could feel his heart hammering beneath her fingers, swallowing a few times as his amber eyes began to sting. He believed this was the first time anyone had ever seen what he looked like under his leather coat…

"Who did this to you?" She whispered, tracing her fingers gently over the long, neat, vertical scars covering one half of his torso. "Oh God, Tori…"

Tori reached up and pulled Ruby's hand from his mouth, catching her other hand as well and opening his mouth to speak. It hurt… his chest was burning and his eyes were stinging but he would be damned if he started crying now.

"Just scars." He finally choked. "Let's go swimming. I want some time with you, to smile… I want some time to forget, alright?"

Ruby nodded slowly, her pretty blue eyes swimming with tears, and together they finished disrobing, even helping one another before slipping into the cool water in nothing but their skin. Tori's hair was so beautiful when it was wet, shining under the light from the moon and stars above them. Ruby always thought she looked a little like a drowned rat when she was wet, and from the way Tori kept giggling at her, she figured he thought so too.

They swam around a bit, not going too deep as Ruby wasn't the best swimmer, then Tori took her hands again and started to draw her into deeper water.

"Tori, no… I'm not-" She protested, the Smoker hushing her softly.

"Trust me, Ruby." He whispered, pulling a little more firmly. "Trust me."

"I do." Ruby whimpered back, moving a bit closer to him. She was on tiptoes now, and Tori took another couple steps back, smiling reassuringly at her. "I really don't like going out over my head…"

"C'mon, it's alright." Tori pulled her closer still, reaching down to lift her by her hips and guiding her legs around his waist. He was much taller than she was, so it was easy for him to balance in the water with her wrapped around him, and she was so light that it didn't bother him much.

As their bare skin pressed together, Ruby's cheeks flushed, her arms wrapping loosely around his neck so she didn't fall backwards into the water. His rasping breath was almost comforting, his hands around her hips supporting her as they stood in the water, gazing at one another.

"I guess we can talk now." He whispered, Ruby's eyes widening. "Now that I have your full attention. But you have to promise me you're not going to overreact or yell or anything, alright? I don't want to attract the attention of the others."

"I can't promise anything, Tori." She whispered in return, shaking her head. "I have a feeling what you're about to say is going to upset me whether you want it to or not."

"You can get upset, just get upset quietly. Please. If anything spoils this night, if anyone interrupts us now, I might do something-"

"-you regret, yeah, I get it. You say that an awful lot… I've never seen you actually do-"

"That's because you're always here." Tori brushed his lips against hers and Ruby fell silent, looking at him expectantly and trying not to shift too much. "I'm pretty sure you can already guess who gave me these scars."

"I didn't want to assume." Ruby murmured. "But I figure it was her. Aster."

"That's right. I'm afraid of her, Ruby. That's why we're still here. I'm afraid of her, more afraid than I ever have been of ANYTHING before." Tori shivered, and she was pretty sure it had nothing to do with how cool the air was getting. "She tortured me, she controlled me, she made me do things that I probably might have never done if it weren't for her influence. She would push me to the point of no return and I would… I had to…" Tori began coughing, Ruby stroking his hair and hushing him gently.

"It's alright, you don't have to say it. Let me think of all those horrible things so I can turn my hate to her…" She whispered, rubbing a spot of moisture off his cheek that had nothing to do with swimming in the lake.

"You said I had been distant. I have been. I'm so terrified, Ruby, I don't know how to function." Tori sobbed, wrapping his arms around her a little more tightly. Ruby hushed him again and kissed the side of his neck, hugging him.

"It's alright. You're going to be fine and I'm not going to let that oversexed bitch get either of us, Tori." She said softly to him. "In fact… if you were to kill her, I promise I'd turn and look away. I'd stare straight ahead and not watch what you were doing… just like with Ashley."

The words hurt her to say them, and she felt a strange churning in her stomach, but everything she said was true.

If Tori were to lose it and kill Aster, she wouldn't miss her. Ruby would be surprised if a soul in the world would miss that girl.

"No… not like Ashley. Ashley's death was quick, clean… Aster doesn't get that luxury." Tori's voice was more hoarse, and his eyes were dark when Ruby looked up at him again.

"Don't get yourself too worked up… I can't swim, remember?" Ruby shifted uncomfortably and Tori made a soft noise, nodding. He waded closer to the shore, still carrying her, settling them both down on the sandy bottom of the lake.

"I'm glad I'm sitting on you. I have no desire to get sand in all my sensitive bits." Ruby grimaced and Tori laughed, shaking his head. When he looked back at her, his eyes were still dark, but he didn't seem to be losing control.

"Thank you for reminding me about what's really important, Ruby." Tori murmured, pulling her a little closer before leaning down to kiss her.

…

Joey's cheeks turned red and he turned his head to gaze in anger at Aster after her long arms snaked over his shoulders, her breasts pressing into his back and hands sliding down his chest. He had been sitting, attempting to fix the broken radio though he had no experience doing so… he didn't need this distraction and certainly didn't want it from Aster.

"Please don't do that?" Joey hoped his voice didn't sound as thick to her as it did to him.

"Why not? I'm just being… friendly." Aster purred, grinning at him. Joey stood, making her arms fall away (considering he was much taller than she was) and turning to face her.

"You're just being you." Joey muttered, exhaling slowly, his nostrils flaring. "What do you want?"

"Tori is fucking Ruby in the lake." Aster's grin turned maniacal and Joey only flushed a little more darkly. "I don't think they care that anyone can see them."

"Why are you telling me this, Aster? Damn you, you're the weirdest person I've ever met. Why don't you go hang yourself for awhile?" Joey pushed past her and moved into the kitchen, bristling when Aster followed him, her boots making a hollow sound on the floor. "Quit following me, I'm not in the mood."

"Well, I am." Aster murmured, sitting on the table in front of him when he sat down on one of the kitchen chairs.

"I don't fucking care, leave me alone! You have this habit of filling a room when you come into one, and it's suffocating!" Joey cried, Aster throwing her head back and laughing.

"See? You say you're not in the mood and you play right into it anyway." She hissed, crossing her long legs and leaning back on one hand. Her other hand reached out to stroke his cheek, one of his huge hands grabbing it firmly. He stood again and twisted her wrist, making her gasp quietly in pain. His face had surpassed red and moved to purple, his chest heaving.

"Don't think I won't break your fucking arm just because you're a girl, Aster. Hell, you're more monster than woman, aren't you? People don't need to be afraid of zombies when people like you exist." He hissed, Aster looking up at him with a strange gleam in her eyes.

"I like pain, Joey, so you'd be doing me a favor. Aah… you're doing a good job right now." She breathed. "And I'm flattered you find me so frightening. It means I'm doing my job right."

"I'm not gonna ask again, Aster." Joey whispered. "What. Do. You. Want?"

"I want you to distract Ruby. I want you to get her away from Tori long enough for me to finish what I started." Aster smiled at him as she spoke frankly, letting out a soft breath and shivering when Joey finally released his grip on her.

"Give me one good reason why I should?"

"If you don't, you're going to find yourself strapped to a chair, helpless, while I prove that behind those quivering muscles… you're a scared, weeping little boy. I'm sure you don't like pain, do you Joey?" Aster's tone was strange, Joey feeling a chill run up his spine.

Big as he was, he had no doubt in his mind she wasn't bluffing.

"I have it in my mind to start driving you mad, Joey. Coming so close to giving you what your body desires, craves… then taking it all away. Taking you to the brink so you won't think twice before doing exactly what I ask. And I'm very good at it… Just ask Tori." Aster whispered, a wicked smile blossoming on her face again.

"If you're so good at it," Joey began, Aster's eyebrow arching. "Why is he out there, fucking someone else?"

He pushed away from the table, moving back to the radio, leaving Aster sitting on the table, stunned. She slowly slid off the table and onto her feet, staring after him for a long moment.

"… never, ever do that to me." She whispered. "I really don't like being proven wrong." Looking around the kitchen, Aster clenched and unclenched her hands into fists, looking for something heavy to hit Joey with. Anger was boiling through her so fiercely right now, she thought she might spontaneously combust. Between Tori and Ruby, and now Joey's boldness, she was ready to kill someone.

Her eyes fell on the fire detector above the stove, widening as a smile returned to her face again.

"Spoil my fun? I don't think so… I think I'll invite a few friends over." She purred, striding over to the fire detector and pulling her lighter out of her pocket. "It's time to party…"

…

When the high pitched noise reached his ears, Tori jerked, head snapping in the direction of it. Ruby looked up at him in alarm, then looked over at the house, a groan of regret escaping her when Tori lifted himself off of her and stood, hurrying to the shore. He stood incredibly still for a long moment, then began to let out bubbling growls and strange choking coughs, turning to look over his shoulder at Ruby.

"Horde's coming. To be continued, I promise." He rasped, scooping up his clothing and beginning to get dressed. Ruby stared at him, then looked towards the tree line, pulling herself out of the water and moving to pick up her own clothing.

"This… is not cool." She hissed, cheeks flushed and frustration swimming through her veins. "Not exactly how I envisioned this sort of thing happening."

"What sort of thing?" Tori asked as he slipped his shirt on.

"This… well… my first time." Ruby's cheeks blazed as she dressed hurriedly and moved towards the house again, leaving Tori to stare after her in shock. He recovered when the first of the infected screamed over the hill, moving after her to make sure she didn't get hurt.

In the house, the fire alarm continued beeping loudly, and shouting voices could easily be heard. Tristan was hollering something at Aster and Joey was bellowing in anger. Gunshots rang out from the house at the top of the hill, Tori silently hoping that Darren would be alright up there on his own.

There was no time to go and rescue him.

Tristan came out on the porch as they moved up the stairs, exchanging a glance with Tori after handing Ruby a gun.

"Ready?" He drawled, Tori nodding. "Joey's watchin' the roof, we should head up and man that big gun on the deck and keep an eye out for anythin' nastier than lessers."

"Roger." Tori gasped. "Was it Aster?"

"Yeah. She and Joey had a row, I guess, an' she lit up a cigarette in the kitchen, conveniently placed in front o' the smoke detector. We'll deal with her when this is done."

"I'll deal with her." Tori said, eyes narrowing. He moved into the house and pounded up the stairs, nodding at Joey as he exited the house once more and stepped onto the upper deck.

Down below, Ruby was still in the kitchen, making sure she had enough ammo before heading back up the stairs. She heard the sound of the battle beginning, the heavy whine of the mini gun, and she glanced at the room where Joey had barricaded Aster in, mouth twisting.

"I'm probably gonna regret this." She murmured, moving to the desk shoved in front of the door and grabbing the edge of it. "But you're not getting away with doing nothing when you made this mess in the first place."

Aster looked at her in surprise when she opened the door, one eyebrow arching and a smirk touching her lips.

"Well well well." She purred. "I don't remember inviting you to the party."

"Shut up and grab your gun. There's a battle to fight." Ruby hissed, moving away from the room and heading up the stairs to help in the fight.

Outside, the infected were swarming everywhere, screaming and clawing at one another as they attempted to reach the survivors assembled on the deck. Tori was manning the min-gun, seeing as it would probably be too dangerous for him to wade into a horde this side equipped with only his axe. The wind generated by the barrel of the gun spinning swept his hair out behind him and made his coat billow. His eyes were as black as the night sky but there was a grin on his face, giving Ruby a bit of comfort.

"Up on the roof!" Joey shouted to her, reaching down a hand to pull her up with him. "You've got pretty good aim and a big gun, stay up here with me!"

There was something unspoken in his words, and when Joey saw Aster exit onto the deck as well, he smirked and took aim with his rifle again. Perched carefully, Ruby took aim herself, firing at any of the zombies that escaped the spray of the mini-gun and Tristan's shot gun, keeping her ears open for any noise not made by a lesser.

The hacking cough of a Smoker came from the distance, and the growling of a Hunter was almost lost in the uproar from the growing horde. The Hunter came up from behind them, on the roof, but Joey was quick enough to bat it backwards when it attempted to swipe at Ruby with its claws, knocking it off the roof and into the water.

The Smoker exploded with a gasp when Tori hit it with the mini-gun, the infected man letting out a shout as he spotted a massive rock flying through the air nearby. The roar froze them in their tracks, the horde slowing to turn and look in the Tank's direction.

Hopping off the mini-gun, Tori looked up towards Ruby and Joey, gesturing for Joey to jump down with them.

"Stay up there!" The Smoker shouted to Ruby, who frowned but nodded, knowing this was probably the best spot to be during a Tank attack. If she was careful, it wouldn't spot her. If it did, she could jump down quicker than it could and escape.

As she moved around to try and get a good vantage point, Ruby kept her ears open for the Hunter that had fallen into the water. They couldn't pounce in the water, but she was pretty sure they could still swim, so she had to be very careful in case it found its way back to the house.

Turning to move to the other side of the house as the Tank charged after Tristan, who was yelling and whooping and waving about his gun, Ruby found herself face to face with Aster, a startled cry escaping her throat.

The taller girl was silent, weaponless, her arms hanging at her sides and her face mostly hidden by both the darkness and her purple hair. Ruby tensed, gripping her gun a little harder, then Aster chuckled.

"You're the bane of my existence." Aster murmured, Ruby growling softly.

"Listen, we don't have time for this right now!" She cried, Aster chuckling again and taking a step forward.

"Oh?" She purred. Ruby brought the gun up to level with her. "Oh, go right ahead. Shoot me… I'm sure no one will miss me, Ruby. They might consider it as doing them a favor."

"I'm not afraid of you." Ruby said, Aster tilting her head to the side and stepping forward again.

"That's why you've still got your gun, right? Why it's pointed at me? You're not afraid at all."

"Tori hates you. He's afraid of you!" Ruby shouted. "Why bother even trying to get me out of the way? It'll only make him hate you more! He doesn't want you, Aster! You're delusional!"

"That's right. Shout your pretty lungs out." Aster's voice was soft, and she stepped forward so that the barrel of Ruby's gun pressed into her chest. "Scream and let the whole horde know you're here. Scream until you can't scream anymore, Ruby."

"If you hurt me, they'll kill you." Ruby whispered, her heart pounding so hard, she thought it would beat its way out of her chest.

"Not if I give them something else to focus on." Aster said, tilting her head to the side. "Don't you think it's time they knew the truth about Tori?"

When Ruby lowered her gun and blinked in shock, opening her mouth to speak, Aster pushed her.

Aster pushed her hard.

Hard enough that she fell backwards, legs and arms flailing, towards the horde waiting below. She vaguely heard someone shout that the Tank was dead, heard someone cry her name, all of it passing her by as if in slow motion.

Just before she fell into reach of the horde, she felt something wrap around her leg tightly, making her jerk to a stop and knocking the breath out of her. She swung towards the railing, lucky that she only hit her shoulders on it and not her head, the blood rushing to her face when she realized what Aster had meant.

Aster wasn't trying to hurt her specifically.

Aster was trying to hurt Tori. And Tori had just saved Ruby's life, sacrificing his secret and his safety to save her. This had been what Aster wanted.

"If I can't have it all…" Aster called from the roof. "Nobody will."