[Forward-dated to Grab Bag virus] [RL with Radu]

[delilahs_reaper]

Considering that the members of Delilah weren't exactly strict day-dwellers, he was surprised he hadn't gotten caught yet. Not that most would care, but Cassian certainly hadn't said anything, nor had the Cardmaster smugly asked what activities Jezebel might be up to every evening exactly at sunset. He wasn't sure his good fortune could last forever, but he was grateful it had held out as long as it had.

The room where Radu was attached by a staircase to Jezebel's laboratory at Delilah; he'd previously used it for storage but had cleared it out to make room for him. No one seemed to question why he was spending so much time at Delilah's headquarters when he'd had a separate hideout for keeping Meridiana, thankfully.

After locking the door to the laboratory and checking to see that no one else was there, he descended the stairs with a lantern in hand. "Radu?" he asked in a low voice.

Comments

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

It was rather boring living in a basement, but Radu didn't mind too much. He slept most of the day anyway, and his husband had provided him with mounds of books to read by lamp light. And Radu couldn't really be ungrateful. Thanks to Jezebel, he was alive - even if he didn't deserve to be. And he was safe, even if that safety was likely to be fleeting in the end.

He looked up as he heard the footsteps on the staircase, identifying it from the sound as Jezebel's, and put his book aside. He rose, smoothing his jacket and running a hand through his hair.

Lord he wanted a cigarette, but he didn't dare smoke when someone might smell it and wonder where it came from.

"I'm here, Iubitul," he murmured.

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel did feel a twinge of regret that he could not afford Radu more freedom than a basement room, but he didn't really have much choice, as it were. Unfortunately, he was afforded little enough privacy as it was, and finding new places to move him was a tricky proposition.

He carried with him a few more books under his arm to add to the growing stack he'd given him. When he spotted Radu, he placed the lantern on the ground, letting the glow faintly light the room.

"Hello," he said. "I brought you a few more things to entertain yourself with for now," he said, placing the books on the pile.

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

"Thank you," Radu said, smiling faintly up at his lover. "Did you have a good day?"

He stepped closer to Jezebel and slipped an arm around his waist, leaning in to kiss him. If he'd been told he would one day fall in love with a human, he'd have probably murdered the one who told him.

But there were perks. He nipped Jezebel's lip as he kissed him, then licked away the drop of blood with a soft shiver of delight.

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel's own expression turned into a barely-concealed smile. "Fine. Better now," he answered before letting one arm slide around Radu's back, letting himself sink into his lover's kiss.

He smiled the tiniest bit at small bead of blood rising on his lip; he wouldn't have imagined being this comfortable with another being ever, nor as used to the taste of his own blood. But he certainly wasn't complaining.

As Radu lapped his lip, Jezebel let his fingers slide through Radu's hair, slipping through the strands and resting on the back of his head.

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Radu had to stop when the tiny cut clotted. He looked up, licking his lips and tilting his head back into the hand resting there, his eyes half-lidding.

It was a temptation he toyed with deliberately, but he didn't want to drink from Jezebel too often and hurt his lover. Thankfully Jezebel's job afforded him opportunities to provide Radu with enough human blood to sate him.

"Tell me," he murmured, pressing a little closer. "I'm lonely in here, Jezebel. I want to hear your voice."

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel toyed with the strands of Radu's hair, enjoying the feel of his lover's body pressed to his. He didn't mind when Radu drank from him -- he rather liked the pleased noises he made at the taste of his blood -- but he knew that letting him indulge too often would be medically unwise. "There's talk that Delilah might be building a new headquarters," he said in a low voice. "It'll take a while, but if members start to vacate, it might be a chance to give you more space to roam, or at least a larger room to stay in."

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Radu shifted close and rested his head on Jezebel's shoulder, closing his eyes. It was hard being locked in here all alone every day, and his moments with his lover were precious. He often feared that he would be forgotten, even though he knew that was impossible.

"Thank you, love," he murmured. "But I don't need a larger room. So long as you're nearby, and the people from my world aren't able to find me, I need little else."

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel tilted his head, lightly kissing the side of his husband's neck. He wasn't sure how Radu was able to stay in one room for as long as he did. The whole concept seemed so painfully claustrophobic, even thought it was necessary.

"I'll trust you if you say so," he said, letting his lips linger near Radu's ear. "I dislike having to keep you down here, though. I feel as though I'm keeping you prisoner, even though that's not the case."

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Radu shivered a little. His lover was so seductive. It seemed every move was designed to make him want him more.

"We both know I could leave if I wanted to," he murmured. "It's not your fault that I was so foolish that I need to hide now. Besides, I'm sure it won't be forever."

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

"That is true," Jezebel said; if Radu truly wanted, he could hide in a thousand different places throughout London, with much more freedom to roam. But he stayed close to Jezebel, and for that he was grateful.

He let his loose hand run along Radu's side and onto his hip. With a small grin, he said, "For now, though, I can't say I mind having you only a stone's throw away every sunset."

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

This city was foreign to him. Though he knew it was equivalent to the Albion of his world, that meant little in terms of his comfort level in roaming the streets here. Besides, Jezebel could provide him with fresh blood - not to mention more conventional meals, since he needed regular food as well. And he was safe from the burning sun.

Even if he wasn't grateful to Jezebel for rescuing him from certain death. Even if he weren't in love with the man. He would still remain here with him. It was the most rational choice. The safest option.

"Though I'm not your prisoner, sometimes I wonder if all you want is my body," he purred teasingly, letting his own hand slide down Jezebel's back to his waist.

This is probably the only time I will be able to use this icon in-context xD

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel let out a small chuckle before pressing another kiss to Radu's neck. Murmuring against his skin, he answered, "Well, I can't deny that your body is rather appealing." He shifted so that he was pressed against his lover closer, the hand entwined in Radu's hair sliding onto the skin of his neck.

LOL!

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Radu gave a soft moan and buried one hand in Jezebel's long hair. He ached for this man during the hours when he was alone. Those lonely hours. He generally spent that time wishing to see him again. Perhaps it was the months without any other contact that had made him nearly obsess over Jezebel, he didn't know.

"I'm so glad you find it so, my dear," he purred. "Not like one of your playthings, I hope?" He drew back, catching Jezebel's hand and pulling him towards the sofa where he'd been reading.

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel let himself be pulled to the sofa easily; before Radu, he'd certainly been intimate with others, but it had never been something he particularly cared much about. But now he found he couldn't ever get enough, that being away from his lover for too long left him craving for more of his touch.

"I like my playthings' bodies for dissections and little else," he said, sinking onto the sofa. "Yours I find appealing for so much better reasons."

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Radu hummed and slipped his arms around Jezebel's neck, nipping lightly at his earlobe. "I should hope so. I've had enough of your operating table for one lifetime, anyway."

He kissed Jezebel softly, this time slipping his tongue inside to explore rather than indulging in a bite.

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel let out a low, pleased noise as the kiss deepened, his own tongue slipping over Radu's, tasting him slowly. His hand slid up from his lover's waist, moving under his shirt to feel the skin of his stomach, tracing over his flesh. He sunk back further so that was nearly lying down, gently pulling Radu with him as he did.

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Radu sprawled over the human bonelessly, his Methuselah body long-limbed and graceful. Though his body had been horrifically damaged before, there were no scars remaining from his ordeal, and his skin was smooth and flawless. He shifted so he could kiss him deeply, pressing close and cradling his body between Jezebel's parted legs.

His own hands grew more busy, sliding up under the other man's shirt in turn and rubbing over a nipple.

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

A moan rose from Jezebel's throat at Radu's ministrations, his nipple perking under the touch. Having his body so close, warm and sensuous, made it so very easy for him to feel the start of arousal and the need for more. Especially when his lover lay in between his legs, pressing him into the sofa cushions.

His fingernails dragged lightly over the skin of Radu's back, not too deeply, but enough for the marks to linger at least for a few minutes. There was always some possessive instinct in him that wanted to leave some mark, something that would linger on his lover's skin.

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, Jezebel's fingernail marks healed in an instant, no matter how deeply he scored Radu's flesh. But the Methuselah shivered and moaned at the scratches, unbothered by the small pain and aroused by it instead.

He rocked forward, pinching the nipple harder, though he was cautious. His strength was such that he could easily hurt his human lover if he wasn't careful, break a limb or bruise his skin deeply.

"I miss you," Radu moaned softly, as he did nearly every day. He nuzzled closer, and spoke words he hadn't voice before, an idea he'd nursed, uncertain of its reception or its wisdom. "Do you think...perhaps you could reveal me to Delilah? That I could join? Then I could be with you."

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel considered what Radu was saying; part of him liked the idea but he was also concerned. He knew Radu would handle himself well, that Delilah would be willing to accept him on the merits of his superior strength alone. What he was more concerned for was what the Cardmaster would do if he discovered Radu's relationship with himself; with the Cardmaster's love of psychological mindgames, it would be handing him something to exploit, something Jezebel was not eager to do.

"Would you tell them you were Methuselah?" he murmured, rubbing slow circle into the skin of Radu's back. "They might want to study you if you revealed yourself to be, but I'm not sure if you could hide it from them for long."

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

That was exactly what Radu was afraid of, and he sighed softly, tucking his head under Jezebel's chin and drawing patterns on his lover's chest in return.

"I don't think I could hide it long," he agreed. "It's hard for our kind to hide amongst humans, even if they aren't expecting us. Sooner or later someone will notice that I can't go out in sunlight, and put that together with the fangs and come to a conclusion."

He sighed. "I wouldn't want to make things even more complicated."

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Jezebel lay there, thinking it over, still absentmindedly rubbing his husband's back. "If you truly want to join, I'll support you in your endeavor. Lord knows I wouldn't mind the chance to see you more and let you be free from this room," he murmured.

"But I don't know what the reaction would be if it was discovered that you were Methuselah," he said with a small sigh. "Some members are more inquisitive than they ought to be. And the Cardmaster...he is not a kind taskmaster to anyone."

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

Radu closed his eyes, gently dropping kisses on the underside of Jezebel's jaw. He nuzzled and kissed as Jezebel thought, distracting himself from his knowledge that after this night was over, he would return to his isolation.

"I'm not very frightened of your colleagues," Radu admitted. "They're all humans, aren't they? I doubt any of them could manage to do me any real harm, especially with you by my side."

He sighed. "But I don't want to cause friction or turn you against your friends."

[delilahs-reaper.livejournal.com]

Calling the other members of Delilah his friends -- that was a bizarre, discomfiting notion. But considering Radu had been staying in one single room since he'd arrived, so it wasn't as though he would know of Jezebel's distaste for many of his coworkers.

"Don't worry about that," he said. "You mean far more to me than every single person in Delilah put together. And I imagine you could take them all on yourself, as well."

Smiling a tiny bit, he said, "Perhaps I could introduce you to the Cardmaster as...I suppose a helper for my work with Meridiana? Then we would have more time together, and I would be able to help conceal that you are a Methuselah from the rest of Delilah."

[il-tovaras.livejournal.com]

His lover's words were sweet, and the Methuselah nuzzled his throat, inhaling his scent and planting a kiss. Was he really that important to him? It was a cute thing for Jezebel to say, either way.

But at his next words, Radu lifted his head, surprised hope in his eyes. "You really think that would work?"

He tried to conceal his uncertainty about the nature of Jezebel's work. He wasn't really clear on exactly what Jezebel did all day, but he was determined to do his best to help him, even if it was a bit...morally grey.