It's Friday and as promised we have the next chapter. I know the last chapter was mostly filler but if I had joined that with this chapter it would have been a bit too long. After this chapter I am back to my original draft so updates will be pretty quick. Slight nod to Ivy here for those who catch the reference.
Next chapter really moves the story forward as we enter another 'act'. I'm really looking forward to sharing it with you all. Please let me know what you think of this, it was a lot of fun to write.
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Knowing both her mates would be watching she took her time stripping out of her yoga pants and t-shirt before sliding on some scandalously sheer lingerie, a black silken top that was low cut both front and back then finally some skin tight leather pants and heeled boots.
A flit to the mirror and lipstick was applied and a short debate before she slipped her contacts in.
"Ready?" Victoria and Bella gaped when confronted with the perfection that was Rosalie Hale, blonde bombshell.
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"Yes?" Victoria squeaked, very un-ancient vampire-like as she took in the blue of her mate's human eye colour.
"Good," Rose smirked, pleased with the effect she was having on her mates. "Stay out of trouble," a kiss to the lips and a light smack to Bella's cheek was her good-bye to the newborn before she was out the window.
"Farewell," Victoria nodded cordially to the brunette, after placing a chaste kiss on her lips before she too left.
"Join us, Bella," Tanya called and knowing there was no point moping around by herself Bella went to seek out the sisters, Storm hot on her heels.
Rose ran, destination in mind but pausing before they reached the outer limits of the city.
"I have things I wish to do with you but if at any time you feel uncomfortable please tell me?"
"I will, but admit I am curious," Victoria replied with a smile.
"Ok, I've really been looking forward to this," Rose beamed at her mate. "I'm very curious to get to know more about you as well. But first, we need to talk. Will you follow me?"
"Of course," Victoria was intrigued but not concerned, sensing through their bond that Rose was mostly calm, only light flutters of nervousness appearing now and then. The blonde led them into the heart of the city and then up on the rooftops, up and up, it was an older part of the city and soon she came to rest on the roof of an old church, its copper dome greened with age.
"I need to explain some things to you," Rose sighed as they came to rest at the top of the building, the blonde taking a seat on the very edge of the old stonework that rimmed the dome, from below she would appear to be just another shadowy gargoyle. "I think then you may understand why I am the way I am."
Victoria hesitated before taking a seat next to Rose, legs swinging free above the fifteen storey drop to the ground below, wondering what was to come. Rose smiled as a tentative hand snuck over her own where it rested on the stone and she leaned against her mate, taking comfort from the contact. It was quiet as they sat side by side, watching the lights over the city and listening to the murmurs of the human existence going on below them.
"I never wanted to be a vampire, it took me years and Emmett's patience and friendship to show me that it was a life worth living. Then of course many years later Bella came along, and you," a soft smile was turned on the ancient before Rose continued.
"I had no knowledge of vampires when I was a human and I wasn't given a choice whether I was turned or not. Carlisle Cullen found me, dying in the street and thought I'd be a good mate for his perfect Edward, a beautiful obedient mate, so he turned me." The words were bitter and Victoria watched as the blonde's face curled in a sneer, fangs now fully exposed and the nomad hissed her own disapproval. The thought of the boy ever touching her mate disgusted her.
"It's Ok, he is arrogant but he never tried to form any relationship with me, I wasn't good enough. Soiled from my human life, beneath him," Rose spat.
"Who were you? As a human?" Victoria questioned, squeezing the hand under hers but she received no answer. "I am sorry, I do no care who you were. Only that you are here now." A hand reached out to cup the younger vampire's cheek, turning her head and brought their lips together. Rose sighed into the kiss and let her mate's soft lips calm her, feeling Victoria's love for her flow through their bond.
"Thank you," she pulled back and returned her gaze to the city lights. She found it strangely calming, the constant noise lulling to her acute senses rather than the more sporadic and therefore noticeable sounds of nature.
"I was a banker's daughter, from a wealthy family who treated me well. Better than most women of the time were treated. I was being educated to join my father's business and he taught me everything he knew. I had a sister, a baby nephew. A good life." Rose paused for a moment but forced herself to continue before she lost her nerve.
"I was betrothed to a man, a handsome successful man who I trusted. Whom my father trusted." A sigh. "A man who gang-raped me with his friends and left me, breaths from death in a stinking alleyway."
That was too much for Victoria who whimpered and before she knew what was going on Rose found herself cradled in the ancient's lap, head tucked under her strong chin.
"You are safe. You are safe," the ancient chanted as Rose struggled to regain her composure.
"I know, and now I am strong," the blonde eventually managed to utter, pulling back and looking her mate in the eye. "I hunted each and every one of those bastards down and ripped them apart as they screamed but I did not ever want their tainted blood inside me. This is why I can condone Bella's kills despite not ever having taken human blood myself," the blonde explained and her mate's motivations became much clearer to the nomad.
"This is why I ask you to respect Emmett," Rose continued. "I found him after he had been attacked by a bear. I felt an immediate connection, he made me feel strangely safe so I demanded Carlisle turn him, he owed me that at least. A companion I could love and trust. If it hadn't been for his friendship and understanding I would have left this life many years ago."
"I understand. I owe him a great debt and I will thank him," Victoria promised. "I am sorry for disrespecting him but I was confused. Threatened," the nomad apologised. "If I had known who he was to you I would not have hurt him." she hung her head an avoided eye contact with the blonde.
"I know," Rose smiled and reached up to run her fingers through thick, silky hair. "And I wanted you to know about -, me because it still bothers me. I remember everything and I really wish I had come to this life with no memories, or only the knowledge that they were bad so I wouldn't feel the need to find out who I had been."
"I understand," Victoria nodded and placed another kiss on her mate's lips, this time Rose was more relaxed and indulged herself exploring the ancient's mouth, tongue taking teasing swipes at sensitive fangs. Every time she did Victoria would whimper delightfully and a pulse of arousal would surge through their bond.
"I wanted to tell you that you make me feel safe and with Bella the safest I have ever felt," the blonde murmured trough their kisses. "But Bella, she's -,"
"She is truly unique and I know this worries you," Victoria added. "I will keep you both safe. There is no greater warrior alive, or dead, than I" Rose have a slightly hysterical bark of laughter but chose to believe her mate's claim.
"Thank you, for understanding. I'm totally fucked up," another harsh chime of laughter from the blonde.
"No, your life has been hard. So many do not appreciate what they have but I know that you do," Victoria reassured her mate who seemed to be calming down now, her chi less volatile. "But this is why Irina and her sisters favour you so, they see your strength and they admire it. They admire you, covet you even," the ancient growled at the thought of another laying hands on her mate, her Rosalie.
"Maybe once but now I am mated they are my friends, nothing more," Rose replied, shifting so she was straddling the red-head's lap, still suspended over nothing more than thin air but she had no fear.
"I have questions?" Victoria interrupted another kiss.
"Sure, ask me anything you want. I have nothing to hide," Rose smiled, now totally relaxed.
"I -," the ancient paused, no quite sure of the words to phrase her question. "When we first met in Brasil, I recognised you, your scent, your mark as I have encountered it on others. Not a great number but some of the most powerful females of our kind." Rose tensed as her mate spoke, she was wondering how long it would be before this came up. "I know that only Emmett has marked you, and then not a many times as I would have expected given your time together." Rose delved into their bond and sensed her mate was calm and it was simply an innocent question, no jealousy existed.
"Emmett and I travelled a lot, it was safer to be affiliated with the Cullen coven given their good standing with the Volturi than to stand alone, it is the only reason I stayed as long as I did. And Alice -," a growl interrupted the blonde.
"Alice," Rose growled back with a slightly less than playful glare, the look enough to cause Victoria to snap her jaw shut, eyes wide in apology. "Alice was a good friend until she rejected Bella. Even though it probably wouldn't have affected our eventual bonding it put Bella through hell -."
"But if not for Alice completing her change Bella could have been lost to us," Victoria finished. "A debt owed but a sin unforgiven." Both vampires were quiet after the words were spoken, foreheads resting against one another, unable to comprehend a world where their mate did not exist as a vampire.
"As for the others that I've marked," Rose broke the silence and continued the original topic, "they were more than willing to give themselves over to me in exchange for pleasure." Victoria moaned as the blonde ground her hips down onto the nomad's sex.
"Indeed, and not a thing traded lightly by them," Victoria conceded but very curious to discover for herself why Rose was so sought after. Their mating had been primal and instinctual, a sealing of their bond but there had been no room for finesse despite the satisfaction they had all gained from it.
"Do you still feel like spending more time with me?" Rose eventually asked. "I'm sorry that was all so heavy."
"No, yes. It was a weighty conversation but one I am glad we had. I understand now, I mean I understand so much more about you now, my Rosalie," Victoria struggled for the words she needed, frowning in frustration as she did. Long conversations were not her forte but Rose understood and appreciated the effort. A peck on the ancient's cheek enough of a reward for Victoria.
"So," Rose vaulted forward and landed behind where Victoria still sat. "Then come with me." A finger beckoned as the blonde stepped off the rooftop and dropped to the alley far below, Victoria following a spilt second later, smiling at how utterly arousing she found everything Rosalie did.
The two vampires walked as humans through the busy night-time streets, keeping to the shadows but easily blending in with the throngs lining the side-walks outside various bars and clubs. Victoria scented the air, curious as to their destination but not feeling overwhelmed by the experience, she had superior control as Rosalie knew.
"We are not hunting today, Ok?" Rose said as she stopped suddenly, pulling the nomad into an alley and pressing her against the wall. Victoria could only nod as she enjoyed the curves of her mate rubbing against her. "Good, please, please let me know if this is too much but it's something I really want to do with you,"
"I swear on my honour I will inform you ," Victoria pledged solemnly.
"Good, thank you," Rose took another opportunity to kiss her mate, this time letting her hands roam under Victoria's shirt, fingertips teasing, enough to rouse small moans but when the ancient raised her own hands to touch the blonde grabbed her wrists and forced them back against the brick of the wall. "No," Rose inflected the command with her alpha which Victoria felt pulse through their bond, she had no compulsion to obey but found the blonde's dominance enough to make her not want question it. "I don't want you too excited, yet!" She pulled away with a wink and stepped back towards the side-walk, hips swaying in invitation for her mate to follow. A step and the nomad was by her side and they continued their journey.
"There," Rose stopped and pointed to a club in an old warehouse across the road from where they were standing. Loud music was playing inside and there was a steady stream of humans entering.
"What is there?" Victoria screwed her nose up in confusion.
"I want to go in there," Rose explained, slightly nervous about her mate's response.
"You do?" Victoria was intrigued.
"I do," the blonde replied.
"Then we will go," Victoria took the initiative and led the way across the street but around the back of the building where they easily forced a security door and entered.
"Good plan," she murmured as she slipped past the nomad and took the lead, quickly working their way through to the main area. Sensitive hearing was bombarded by a cacophony of sound but with a little focus it was dimmed to a bearable level.
"Why here if we are not to hunt?" Victoria questioned as she allowed Rose to take her hand.
"You'll see," Rose smiled as she pulled her mate behind her, noting the way Victoria was unconsciously bobbing her head to the music. When they slipped into the bar area Victoria blinked, what the -.
"I want to dance with you," Rose purred in her mate's ear and Victoria jumped when she felt the blonde's fangs graze her neck, spinning to see her black eyed and fangs fully elongated, pale skin highlighted by the lights of the club. Victoria stepped forward, panicked that Rose had lost control so easily. "Look," Rose gestured and Victoria rapidly assessed their surroundings, her own fangs dropping as she stepped in front of her mate and a subsonic growl rumbled from her chest. "Smell," Rose rested her hand on the ancient's shoulder and Victoria did as requested, inhaling the mixed scent of the club, frowning as she did.
"Humans, only humans," Rose chuckled at her mate's confusion, the nomad's eyes darting around suspiciously at the numerous sets of fangs on display, all seeming realistic at first glance.
"What is this place?" Victoria murmured as she craned her neck to see as much as possible from their current position. "Do they worship vampyre?" Blackened eyes were turned to her mate's.
"In a way, it's what is called a goth club, the humans romanticise our kind and celebrate death," Rose explained as a young human female brushed past them without giving the vamped out genuine vampires a second glance. "Plus the music is pretty awesome," she winked as a deep bass-line began to play. "I like to dance and as I was not coming alone I figured this would be the safest place if I got a little excited," she purred, "and it's nice not to have to be completely in control."
A nod was all Victoria could muster before she was tugged towards the heaving mass of dancing humans, their scent tolerable if she didn't inhale.
"Kiss me," Rose demanded as she pressed up against her mate, arms snaking around the red-head's neck. One look at the beauty before her and Victoria didn't hesitate, bringing her hands to the blonde's hips as they began to gyrate in time to the music. Rose loved to dance and as they kissed she really allowed herself to let go, pulling back and throwing her arms in the air as the speed of the music increased, blonde hair flying as she tossed her head back. Victoria easily matched her movements, finding the pulsing drum beats pleasing to her ear and her mate utterly intoxicating as she danced.
After a glance around Victoria lowered her mouth to her mate's neck, seeing many other couples in similar positions, even sensing some taking blood from each other which seemed just plain strange but who was she to argue when her mate pulsed with vigour right before her?
Rose gasped as Victoria bit her, not expecting the ancient to be so unreserved in the situation but not minding one bit as the pleasure hit right between her legs. As they both became more excited the club became more frenetic in unconscious reaction to the pheromones the aroused vampires were releasing. As they danced, Victoria took things one step further and slipped her hand down the back of Rose's pants and massaged her ass, the action earning her a growl of appreciation. The blonde upping the ante and forcing her leg between her mate's thighs and pressing up, earning a low but savage growl from the ancient.
"You tease me, mate," Victoria pulled back, licking the wounds made by her teeth until they healed.
"It's only teasing if I'm not going to follow through, mate," Rose replied, pressing her thigh up against the nomad's sex as she did, Victoria whimpering in response as strong hands grasped her hips and began thrusting them against the leg between her own in time to the beat of the music, their hips grinding together and the contact on their sexes arousing them both as they continued to dance and rut. It was too dark by human standards for them to attract much attention, simply lustful or envious gazes as two beautiful women made out with each other, other actions hidden by the darkness and pressing mass of human bodies.
The ancient was totally lost when slender fingers slid down the front of her pants and into her already wet folds. It was her turn to throw her head back as Rose entered her with both her fingers and fangs, the pull of the blood being taken matching the thrust of her digits inside her mate. An almost inaudible stream of guttural Scandinavian began as Rose fucked her mate, talented fingers knowing how to bring the nomad to the edge and keep her there, only relenting when fingers tightened in blonde curls.
"Do not test my control, young one," Victoria growled in her mate's ear. Rose, realising that this was neither the time nor place to be playing that kind of game.
"I apologise," the blonde murmured, pressing down inside her mate and also on the red-head's clit. The response was instant, sex clenching around her fingers as Victoria climaxed violently, head falling forward, fangs sinking into Rose's shoulder as her body shuddered. Rose gasped as she experienced an unexpected sympathetic orgasm, so unexpected that she stumbled only for strong arms to steady her and a gentle hand grabbed her wrist, easing the blonde's fingers from inside Victoria's pants.
"The bond is strong, yes?" The ancient panted as she recovered, both vampires supporting each other as the humans danced on around them.
"Indeed," Rose murmured, only now noting the number of couples engaged in sexual activity around them, the burst of pheromones expelled when the vampires climaxed had hit them hard.
"Time to go?" Victoria questioned.
"We should," Rose agreed, noting the security staff beginning to pay attention to the horny couples. "Let's slip out the back." Soon they were free of the club and the busy streets, Rose squeaked as she found herself suddenly scooped over the nomad's shoulder, helpless as Victoria scaled a nearby building and onto its roof where she knew they could not be seen.
"That was an interesting experience," Victoria was the first to speak.
"One you enjoyed?" Rose asked, nervously.
"Oh, very much. I admire the way you dance and being amongst the humans but ourselves. It was extremely arousing," the ancient confirmed with a smirk, remembering how beautiful her mate had looked, lost in the blood and music. "Next time Bella must come," a firm nod as she decided the fact.
"She's not sure if her control is strong enough yet. That's the only reason I didn't suggest that she came with us. The humans yes, but throw in a little ungh," Rose thrust her hips forward much to Victoria's delight, "and she's not certain she could hold it together and I trust her to know her limits."
"As do I," Victoria added with a nod. "I miss her. Shall we return?" Red eyes looked to the golden ones of her mate, the blonde having removed her contacts in the club.
Bella felt them coming, waiting on the balcony for Rose, more than surprised when it was only Victoria appeared, standing on the railing before stepping off and into the newborn's personal space.
"Isabella," she purred as the ancient pressed the young vampire against the stonework of the house.
"Victoria," Bella used her full strength to push the ancient away from her and the nomad humoured her. "Where's Rose? I can smell her all over you." The newborn could smell the scent of their recent mating and it made her fangs pop and her chest rumble.
"She comes," Victoria smiled as she blew a lock of hair out of her face. "May I stay with you?" Bella could only nod at the request as Rose appeared behind the red-head, also covered in the combined scent.
"You two smell delicious!" Bella purred, taking both their hands and pulling them into the house behind her. "Inside, now!" She added as Rose kicked the door shut behind them.
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Next on Crimson Bonds
What's that?" Tanya jerked to attention and her sisters were a vampire second behind.
There was someone in the house.
"Bella!" a voice called out, they had reached the stairs, "Bella!