The Steel Rose

Chapter Five:
“My Body’s Longing to Hold You”

-- January 15th, 11:27 PM --

“Well, that’s it,” Ryoko said, ending the tour of her massive flagship in the main galley. “Any questions?”

Hitasa and Narika shook their heads tiredly. Dagegar had taken the Dagger II and headed back to the Fuer system before the tour, leaving the two girls in the capable hands of the space pirate.

“Nice ship,” Hitasa commented off-handedly. It was only the second ship she’d been inside. As far as she was concerned, this was the better of the two.

Narika grinned at her friend, embracing her from behind. “Yeah, I love it. All the little niches and coves to hide away in,” she added suggestively. Hitasa’s eyes brightened considerably at the comment.

Ryoko chuckled, also catching onto the innuendo. “Uhuh. I’ve found those very useful.”

Hitasa and Narika looked at the space pirate, caught off guard by the unexpected comment. She just grinned and turned, heading off to get in line.

“Help yourselves to some dinner,” she said casually.

“Uhh...” Hitasa just stood there for a moment, drinking in the general business of the whole place; the various scarred pirates walking around with trays laden with food, or parts of chickens in their hands; the wine that abounded more than water. She loved the whole concept. They all seemed so comfortable around each other. In some strange way, it brought a fluttery feeling to her heart.

“I like it,” Narika said, squeezing the warrioress’s waist tightly, still careful not to disturb her wound.

Hitasa turned around to face the other girl. “On that note: I’ve been meaning to talk to you for a few hours now. Are we or are we not together?”

“I’m not sure,” Narika answered truthfully. “Sometimes it feels like we are, and then something comes up and it’s like we’re not, you know?”

The redhead nodded. “Uhuh. I know what you mean.” She sighed. “I hope we are. I can’t stand this guessing game you’re putting me through. It’s agravating as hell.”

Narika giggled. “Oh, but you’re so cute when you’re frustrated!” she exclaimed.

“Really?” Hitasa flashed her trademark roguish grin at the girl. “I always thought I was... I dunno... kinda scary...”

“Only to stupid cowards who don’t know you,” Narika replied simply. She kissed the redhead quickly, then did it again, slightly slower, slightly more deliberately, with the promise of more to come.

The blonde pulled away, and was brought rather abruptly back to her senses at sight of the look on Hitasa’s face. The girl was barely holding back her laughter, as around her the room exploded in applause and cheers.

“Now, this I could get used to,” she said to Narika, turning to face her audience. Narika looked to the galley, in which every eye, including Ryoko’s, was trained on them, and apparently had been for the whole “show.”

“I’ll bet you could,” she said, smiling. “Personally, I’d prefer somewhere more... private...”

The warrioress’s attention was brought immediately back to the blonde still thoroughly wrapped in her arms. “Do you mean what I think you mean?”

When Narika nodded slyly, Hitasa could only stare at her. Suddenly, reality hit her like a freight train, as she remembered why they were heading to Earth.

“Aw, shit!” she said suddenly. “I never even asked about Tenchi!”

Narika looked at Hitasa, almost face-planting. “You dumbass,” she said, annoyed at Hitasa for breaking the mood. Waitaminute. I don’t... want her, do I? Tsunami, I’m confusing the Hell out of myself...

“I’ll be right back. Wait right here. Don’t move,” the warrioress commanded, then entered the throng of people who had just recently returned to their meals. Narika stood, staring at the redhead as her mind buzzed with thoughts she hoped would remain just that.

“Ryoko!” Hitasa called, approaching the cyan-haired pirate from behind. “Err... I mean... Mother...?” She slowed, walking up to her biological mother. “I need to know, where’s Tenchi?”

Ryoko took a moment to finish the conversation she had been holding with the first mate, then turned to Hitasa and frowned. “Tenchi? That worthless moron? He’s on Earth. Why do you ask?”

Ignoring the “worthless moron” comment, Hitasa said, “I need to talk to him. Please. It’s very important.”

The space pirate set down the turkey leg she had been eating, turning her full attention over to the warrioress. “What is it?”

“I need to go to Earth to find Tenchi and bring him to Jurai. It’s been invaded by Asridians!” Hitasa said breathlessly.

“Asridians,” Ryoko repeated, her eyes narrowing. “Well, that is a problem.” She grinned suddenly. “But don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it. Whyever would you want to talk to Tenchi, though? He’s useless. Only good thing he ever did was bring you into this world.”

“You’ll take care of it?” Hitasa parroted back. “Right. Whatever.” Pausing, she asked, “How do you figure he’s useless?”

Ryoko closed her eyes, allowing a wash of painful memory to engulf her. Finally she spoke, “Back when we all lived on Earth--we all being Ayeka, Sasami, Mihoshi, Kiyone, Washuu, and myself--we all wanted him, and he couldn’t for the life of him decide between us all, so he decided that he wanted to marry each of us. The collective response to that was a resounding ‘Hell no!’ Everyone left the bastard, except my foolish self. I stuck around until he tired of me, and commanded me to leave, five months pregnant with you. The heartless bastard... I swore I’d never go near him again. It’s a wonder I’m even in his solar system. But if it’s so important to you, then I guess I’ll take you to see him.”

Hitasa stared, open mouthed, at her mother. “My father’s a jackass?!” she exclaimed. “But that’s not possible! The legends all portray him as so regal and loyal and brave! Although, Azaka did seem to dislike him quite a bit... Oh forget it.” Giving up, she yawned. “Me and Narika are gonna head to bed, okay?”

Ryoko glanced up at her daughter for a second, then back to her plate of food. She couldn’t help but feel a slight pang of maternal protectiveness, even a spot of guilt at leaving the girl with Azaka and Sasami. But she didn’t have any other choice! She would have lived the life of a hunted woman, on the wrong side of the law, if Ryoko hadn’t done what she did. The pirate nodded to Hitasa distractedly and muttered, “Yeah. Have fun.”

Hitasa ignored the comment and bid her mother goodnight, then went back to Narika, who was waiting patiently for her at the entrance to the galley.

The warrioress smiled warmly at the other girl, draping her arm around the blonde’s shoulders as behind her several wolf whistles could be heard. “So,” she whispered lustily, “your place or mine?”

Narika was caught completely off-guard by the suggestive question, and for a moment couldn’t even think. Then life came rushing back into her with a sort of ripple-effect. She shivered, unable to believe this was actually happening. They’d barely known each other for three days. Weren’t they moving a little too fast? Most couples didn’t go this fast. Most gave each other a few days to get closer, they didn’t hook up in one day and go off and have sex. This was almost too much for her to handle at one time.

“Narika?” Hitasa asked the blonde. “You okay? We don’t have to, you know. We could just go to our separate rooms.”

The other girl shook her head. “I’d get less sleep there, thinking about you,” she told the redhead.

“All right then. What do you want to do?”

Narika looked disbelievingly at the other girl. “That’s it then? You’d just let me go to my room?”

“Well, yeah, why not?”

The blonde shook her head, amazed. “You’re crazy, Hitasa. Honest, kind, and honorable, but crazy.”

Hitasa grinned, nodding. “I’ve been told.”

Narika latched onto the other girl, pulling her into the shadows, out of the well-lit corridor. She kissed the warrioress hotly, and felt Hitasa push her up against the wall. Her mind was buzzing. Her earlier thoughts returned to plague her desire-driven mind. She shoved them aside for the moment, concentrating instead on Hitasa and all the feelings the other girl was instilling in her. She felt the warrioress lift her up in her strong arms, still kissing her passionately. She walked to the elevator, which thankfully was already on their floor.

Narika and Hitasa parted breathlessly. The doors of the elevator opened with a hiss, and Hitasa carried her inside the empty room, freeing a hand momentarily to hit the button for the third floor. While they waited the short eternity for the elevator to get to the dormitory floor, the warrioress and her blonde soon-to-be-lover continued kissing each other hungrily.

The doors opened with a quiet bing! and the two stepped out, oblivious to the group of mean-looking pirates waiting to get on the elevator. Hitasa hurriedly carried Narika to her room, the strength of passion searing through her veins. She punched the access number into the small metal panel and stepped inside the instant the door opened. The door swished shut behind the pair and Hitasa carried Narika across the room to the bed, still kissing the blonde in her arms.

Hitasa set the blonde down on the bed’s silk sheets and fur covers. Their separation was short-lived as Narika pulled Hitasa down on top of her, sensuously running her hands over the leather armor.

“Hey, this is a pretty cool set-up you’ve got here, Hitasa,” Narika said, teasing the redhead by not taking it off.

“Want me to take it off so you can get a closer look?” the warrioress returned, a wicked gleam to her eyes.

Narika let her eyes lock with the older girls, an entirely too seductive look casting itself over he face. “No, I think I’ll take care of that,” she said, her voice a caress all its own.

The tone of the blonde’s voice was enough to make Hitasa seriously consider the difference between verbal and physical bondage. Right then, she was more under Narika’s control that any sort of actual chain could cause her to be.

The blonde laughed a little at the effect of her own charms, then set to the task of undoing the warrioress’ armor. She smacked away Hitasa hands, which were trying to speed up the process. “Don’t help me. I can figure this out. Somehow...” To Hitasa, it was an extremely simple system, but to Narika it was something she had never seen before. And it was a challenge that she would answer.

It didn’t take long for the blonde to undo the catches on the armor, despite her complete lack of understanding of the whole asortment. Carelessly, she chucked the breastplate off to her left.

“Hey now, watch where you throw this stuff. It’s leather, it catches fire easy,” Hitasa said defensively. “Wait, where did all those candles come from?” Indeed, their were candles lining every available surface: the tables, shelves, there were even a few on stands set on the floor.

“Ryoko did this,” Narika said knowingly.

Hitasa nodded, then turned back to the blonde. “Thanks for finally getting me out of that stuffy armor. It was so hot.” She grinned, nuzzling Narika’s soft throat. “Though my current situation’s no different.” They began kissing again, their lips hungering for more each time. Hitasa allowed her hands to roam over the contours of Narika’s perfect body, slipping under her shirt for a moment, then sliding back down to caress her sides, neck, arms, anything she could touch. Her tongue entered Narika’s mouth without pretense, pulling the girl that much farther into true bliss.

<><><><>
Ahem... LEMON WARNING!!!! GET OUT WHILE THERE’S STILL TIME!!!! This scene is of no relevance to the fic in general. If you are under 18 and/or feel uncomfortable reading about two women gettin’ it on, it is advised that you skip this part and pick up at the next chapter.
<><><><>

Finally she tired of the hindrance of clothing and ended the kiss just long enough to pull Narika’s shirt over her head, as the blonde relieved her of her own black tee, revealing the clean, white bandages. With a pang of guilt, Narika looked up into the warrioress’s eyes, conveying her concern.

“I’ll be fine. If I’m with you, I can’t possibly get hurt,” Hitasa said, answering her silent question. She locked lips with the girl again, this time running her hands over the smooth stomach, soft skin, round breasts. She allowed her mouth to follow her hands, leaving Narika’s lips as her own traversed down the side of the blonde’s throat. The blonde girl moaned quietly, tilting her head back into the pillow as Hitasa neared the swell of her breast. She stoped her delicious torture there, staring perplexedly at the lace bra, the only thing keeping her from fulfilling her love’s desires.

The warrioress brought her lips back up to meet Narika’s as her hands slipped behind the girl to undo the clasp of her bra. She tossed the limp lace garment aside, allowing her lips to once again trace a path down to Narika’s chest, this time at a much slower, far more cruel pace. She licked the blonde’s collar bone, her fingers toying with a few strands of golden hair. The redhead allowed her tongue to slide down to Narika’s chest, grinning at the girl before licking experimentally at the swell of one breast.

The blonde gasped, fisting her hands at her sides. Her eyes were shut tight, and she was lost in her own world. A few moments of gentle suckling found the blonde at what she thought must be the peak of physical pleasure, static tinting the edges of her vision as she threaded her hands in the other girl’s fiery hair. She felt like she was going to faint, when suddenly Hitasa stopped, bringing her lips up to meet Narika’s before the girl could protest.

“Are you sure you want me to continue? I’ll stop, you need only say the word.”

Narika stared at Hitasa for a few short, breathless moments, disbelief apparent in her eyes. Her eariler concerns were not to be found in those watery depths as the blonde propped herself up on her elbows, still staring at the warrioress with that same honest incredulousness. She shook her head, allowing her blonde hair to spill over the contours of her smooth body, chuckling at Hitasa’s reluctance.

“I can’t believe you sometimes,” she said finally. “Yes, of course I’m sure!” She pounced cat-like onto the other girl, forcing her to lay back on the bed as Narika suddenly found herself on top. She grinned ferally at her lover, pinning her to the bed with a surprisingly strong grasp.

Hitasa barely had time to gasp before she found herself laying comfortably on the bed, a soft weight holding her down as blonde hair spread like a curtain around her. Their shadows danced on the walls, giving the warrioress the immpression that they knew exactly what Narika had in store for her.

Suddenly, Hitasa laughed. “Well, what d’you know? Hitasa, the mightly warrioress, bested by the woman she saved only days before!” She laughed again at the turn of events. “Oh, what irony!”

Narika joined the warrioress in her good humor, allowing herself to lay down atop the girl, just enjoying the feel of her hard, muscled body molding to her own softer frame. She sighed contentedly, running her hands over the solid muscles covering every inch of Hitasa’s form. Every now and then, she would move to plant a few kisses on miscellaneous parts of the girl’s body: face, shoulder, arm, neck, etc.

After a few moments of general contentment, the blonde began kissing down Hitasa’s neck, eliciting a few quiet moans from the redhead. She skipped over the bandages, and took up her delicious torture at the warrioress’s hard-as-rock stomach, and contiued down to where her black sweat pants began. After looking up at the girl evilly, Narika slid her fingers just under the band of elastic, pushing her pants down, inch by inch, until she reached the girl’s still-booted feet. She shook her head, tsking loudly before unlacing the shoes and tossing them aside. Hitasa kicked her pants off and away, to join the various articles of clothing strewn about the candlelit room.

Narika slid slowly back up the redhead’s thighs, and the warrioress’s muscles abrubtly tensed. Before she could protest, Narika said, “I know I don’t have to do this. But I want to. It’s my turn anyway.” She grinned up at Hitasa before slipping the girl’s panties off and throwing them somewhere to her left. Suddenly she noticed the furry tail-like apendage twitching about mid-air, seemingly inspecting the blonde. Narika looked at it, blinking, then shifted her gaze back to Hitasa.

“You have a... tail?” she asked incredulously.

Hitasa laughed nervously. “Ah... heh heh... Yeah...”

Narika’s previous devious smile returned ten-fold. “This could get interesting,” she said with a light giggle.

Hitasa looked at her, almost not believing what the blonde had just said. She shook her head, propping herself up on her elbows, but before she could get a semi-decent hold on the current situation, she felt a pair of long, elegant fingers slide gently inside her, scattering any words she might have said to the four winds, as her arms gave out and she fell back on the bed. She cried out in surprise and extreme pleasure, not caring who might hear, only knowing this moment, absolutely loving every second.

The blonde continued slowly caressing her lover’s most sensitive areas, enjoying the low cries of passion and pleasure, absolutely loving the control she had over the seemingly all-powerful Hitasa. She grinned, quickening her pace, the redhead’s shouts increasing in cressendo as she did. Her thumb moved to trace small circles over a tight bundle of nerves at the crest of her warrioress’s center.

I’m gonna explode! Hitasa yelled mentally. I feel like I’m gonna fuckin’ explode! She couldn’t voice her thoughts, as she couldn’t hold onto them long enought to form words. Finally the incredible pleasure came to a magnificent crescendo, and Hitasa was spiraling down into infinity. Her breathing slowed as she hauled Narika up to face her.

“Tsunami...” Hitasa sighed appreciatively. “Damn, that was good...”

Narika smiled deviously at her lover, kissing her slowly, happy to have returned the favor. There was a rustle of sheets as Hitasa eased her over, lips still locked with hers.

Breaking the contact, the warrioress brought her mouth on a level with Narika’s ear, and spoke in a husky, low voice, “I want to make you feel that. I want to be inside you, all over you. Please, Narika, let me do that.”

It was all she could do not to orgasm on the spot. That she didn’t surprised her immensly. A nod was the most she could manage for a reply through the sudden muteness brought on by the desire she felt.

Hitasa’s grin was a statement in and of itself, insinuating far crueller, more demonic things than the most hardened of sadists could imagine. When the girl’s lips travelled a fiery path down her throat, then her chest, and over the contours of her stomach, she suddenly realized what evil torture she was to be subjected to. In some cultures, pleasure was a sin. Jurai was no exception. Oh well, there would be time for punishment later. Perhaps she could have Hitasa administer it... No, that would defeat the purpose.

The warrior’s tongue danced playfully over her abs, outlining them lazily. “Well, this is interesting,” she murmured, using her teeth to grasp the ring Narika had pierced her naval with. She tugged at it lightly, surprising the blonde. “Just when you think you know someone,” she joked, laughing huskily against Narika’s skin. Hitasa’s breath drifted across her lover’s body, almost tickling her and drawing a noticible shiver from the smaller girl. Narika’s hands tightened their grip on the warrior’s hair, but not to the point of being painful. Nipping and licking, Hitasa made her way down the blonde’s lithe body. She took a moment to admire the other girl’s body, muttering, “Damn, you’re beautiful,” and then diving in for the kill before her lover could comment.

With a yelp, every muscle in Narika’s body leapt to rigid attention. “My God...” she whimpered.

Hitasa grinned against her prey, wielding her skillful tongue like some sort of weapon, bound to be the blonde’s undoing. “I’m suddenly very glad I decided to save you,” Hitasa said, the movements of her lips elicting a few panting moans from her lover. Slowly, drawing it out, she settled down to the task of bringing the other girl to an orgasm unlike any she had ever experienced before.

“Holy shit...” the blonde gasped, threading her hands deeper into Hitasa’s fiery hair. “Mmm...” her words trailed off into heavy breathing, as almost too soon she found herself in the midst of mindshattering pleasure.

Once she’d recovered, Narika, gasping and panting, hauled Hitasa up to meet her trembling lips. “You talk entirely too much,” she breathed. Hitasa nodded solemnly. “How did you manage to glorify sex?” she demanded of her lover.

“Glorification comes naturally to me when I’m in your company,” Hitasa said truthfully. “Just yesterday I was looking at the most beautiful young woman, asleep in my own arms, would you believe. Her eyes were closed but I knew their color. The act of embracing her felt somehow holy, and I basked in it.”

Narika blushed, then rolled onto her side to stare at Hitasa, who had moved to lay beside her. She met her eyes and smiled, bringing a hand up to caress her lover’s cheek. “That was beautiful,” she admitted.

“You’re beautiful,” the warrior corrected.

“And you’re gorgeous,” Narika returned. They kissed, long and slow, then melted into each other’s arms, Hitasa wrapping her poorly neglected tail around the other girl’s waist. Together, they journeyed into the uncharted land of dreams.