Suffering Together

who: lily and vera
where: babylon
when: a while back

Vera winced visibly as she moved around her room. At this point she probably should have learned that being a stubborn bitch in the general direction of even the lowliest O’Malley man would get her in trouble, but she refused to. No one just got to make demands for what she did with her body, her lifestyle, not without a fight.

And a fight he’d had. He’d wrenched her arm so bad she had handprints up and down it, forcing her back onto her bed and taking her in ways that left her peppered with more bruises, already darkening just an hour later. The small silk robe hide some of the damage as she rummaged through her vanity, trying to find something to rub on the bruises to ease her pain. Submitting was one thing, that was fun and interesting, but fighting for her dignity hurt. She’d have to wait at least a day before she took another client and even then the lights would need to be low. She hated when the lights were low, hated hiding her perfect form. Damn that man. Damn him straight to hell.

Lily’s room was the one next door to Vera’s and even through the thick wall she had heard the fight; raised voices, banging, the unsettling quiet that followed afterwards. It was hardly a rare occurrence these days, since Eris had died things had gone from bad to worse and her friend refused to make things easy for the thugs that had taken over their home, not that she had gotten off easy herself, the sickly yellow still lingering around her left eye was testament to that. Ear pressed against the wall, when she heard Vera’s door open and close followed by footsteps retreating down the hall, she quickly donned her own robe and made her way down to the kitchen. Getting some ice and wrapping it in a towel, she dashed back upstairs before she could be seen and knocked on her friend’s door; three short taps then two long ones so Vera would know it was her.

Vera found the small tub of salve, opening it and frowning to find less in it than she’d expected. Figured. She’d have to convince that old lady in Chinatown to make more. The first knock stiffened her spine, hoping that O’Malley bastard hadn’t sent someone else to teach her another lesson, but it continued and she crossed the room before Lilly finished, pulling the door open on the last knock. “Come on,” she said softly, ushering the other woman in and closing the door behind her.

The door being opened early than she expected caught Lily a little by surprise and she almost lost her grip on the little bundle of cloth and ice. Thankfully only a couple of cubes escaped and she quickly made her way inside. Even if the softly lit room, she could see the bruises forming on Vera’s arms and anger joined the concern that had already crossed her features. “Vera...” she whispered, her small voice seeming to echo in the quiet room, as she reached out to touch her friend.

That concern in Lily’s voice and eyes was what Vera wanted right now, someone to cater to her and make her feel better. Lily was always so good for just that. “It’s nothing,” she said, trying to wave Lily away but ensuring that the robe dropped from her shoulder, exposing a large expanse of shoulder, peppered with marks across her collarbone and back. She turned a little, knowing what Lily would see as she made her way back toward the bed, opening up the salve again and taking some to smooth against her thighs.

“That sure as hell doesn’t look like nothing,” Lily retorted, voice cracking before she could get out the whole sentence, her grip on the cloth now so tight her hand was shaking. Following Vera across to the bed, she recognised the smell of the salve as soon as it was opened, it being a far too frequent presence in their lives these days. The sight of Vera applying it to her legs made Lily’s breath catch in her throat for a moment but the bruises dotting the pale skin were quick to dissuade her mind from that particularly train of thought though her hand of it’s own accord came to rest on Vera’s shoulder. “Do you want me to do your back for you?” she asked, dropping to rest one knee on the edge of the bed.

Vera winced a touch more than necessary when Lilly touched her shoulder and wound up nodding a little, biting at her lip and looking over her shoulder. “Would you?” she asked offering up the small tub to Lily then letting the other shoulder of the robe drop, draping low on her back while she held the front up with one hand.

Feeling a stab of guilt as Vera winced, Lily accepted the tub wordlessly and, setting down the ice on the floor next to them, shifted her weight so she was sat behind the other girl and, as delicately as she could, began to apply the salve.

Vera let her eyes drift close as Lily worked on her back, reaching up to pull her dark locks forward across her shoulders and out of the way. A small, soft noise escaped, something almost relieved at the gentle touches in comparison to the rough manhandling she’d just lived through. “You’re so good with your hands,” she murmured lightly, knowing the compliment would ease some of the girl’s concern as well as make her pay even more attention to what she was doing. It was an easy compliment to give anyway, given just how good Lily was with her hands, both from what Vera heard about her skills and what she’d seen when the girl played her cello.

The noise was distracting as hell and Lily was glad to be sat behind Vera as her face began to flush, shaking her head in a vain attempt to concentrate on the task in front of her. The compliment she couldn’t ignore however and a smile joined the deepening blush on her cheeks. “I practice a lot,” she replied, notes of both pride yet at the same time shyness in her voice, her hair brushing against Vera’s shoulders as she moved her attention to the girl’s lower back.

Vera was right in her compliment and another noise slipped as Lily moved her hands lower. “Lucky me then,” she said softly, glancing over her shoulder enough to see the pink cheeks Lily was sporting. Vera knew about the crush, it was hard to miss it and though she did little to cultivate it, she certainly maintained it. She liked that Lily wanted her, wanted her more than the men who begged for her, than the other woman who wanted to be her. Vera wasn’t about to lose Lily’s affection even if she didn’t do anything about it directly.

With the close proximity and the sounds Vera kept making, Lily was grateful she had her task to concentrate on; the small, repeated movements enough to keep pretty much all other thoughts at bay as her hands moved back and forth, occasionally dipping into the tub when needed until every bruise had received her careful attention. Partly relieved and partly disappointed her task was finished, she pulled back and surveyed her handy work - Vera’s skin now holding a slight sheen as the light bounced off it.

Vera herself was slightly disappointed when Lily finished, having let herself get caught up in the feeling of someone else catering towards her. She was tempted to let Lily explore more, to take care of the bruises on her legs and chest as well, but she knew better than that. Giving Lily that chance would only push things too far and the night tightrope they were walking was the safest way to keep Lily with her, but not lead her on. Lifting the robe gently, she secured it back into place, though it still dropped low on her sternum and turned to look at her friend. “How’s your eye?” she asked gently, turning her head towards the light to see what the damage was. They left Vera’s face alone, probably out of spite, but the hadn’t been so generous with Lily.

“It looks worse than it is now,” the red-head replied, eyes fluttering shut for a moment as Vera touched her face. Lily knew why they had hit her face; there was no hiding a black eye under clothes and with skin as pale as hers, make-up had barely touched it either and that was the point, she’d been made an example of. A deterrent for the other girls to not question their new bosses.

Vera took a small bit of the salve, the traced it along the lingering bruise on Lily’s face. She hated that they’d used her as their example. It made sense, but Vera hated it. Lily was hers, and she had a say in who touched her and how. Beating her to make the others doubt themselves was not acceptable. “It should fade soon, at this rate at least.”

The gentle touch was as soothing as the salve itself and a small sigh of contentment escaped Lily’s lips as she lent over so slightly into the contact. It was all too fleeting however and reluctantly she opened her eyes again. “I hope so, I need to get some clients in before they get given to the other girls,” she said, a tinge of annoyance in her tone that wasn’t directed at anyone in particular but rather her frustration at the situation.

“They’ll come back to you. If they don’t you can have your pick of mine.” Vera wouldn’t let Lily go without and risk her position at Babylon. She needed Lily at her side. “But they will come back. Especially with those hands of yours. The rumor is you work wonders.” A rumor Vera was again tempted to try out, but let fall away. She didn’t want Lily, just the act and Lily wouldn’t understand.

Vera’s reassuring words dissipated some of the tension that had been building in Lily’s shoulders and the praise brought a smile to her face - she had worked hard to get good at what she did and having Vera acknowledge that was high praise indeed. “Well, I do have a wonderful teacher,” she said, reaching forward to push some hair back from the older girl’s face.

The praise was taken with a smile and the slightest of tilts into Lily’s hand as she touched Vera. “I tried, but I think you picked up much of it on your own. You’ve always been my best student.” And the only one Vera hadn’t wound up scorning in the end.

It was true that Lily had received the bulk of her ‘education’ during her time as a streetwalker but from Vera she’d learnt poise and finesse, how to dress the acts up and make them something more. The compliment had her blushing again and this time she didn’t have the security of being behind her friend so she ducked her head, letting a curtain of red waves obscure her features.

“Ah, ah, don’t do that,” Vera corrected, leaning forward and tilting Lily’s chin up so that her face showed even if it was tinged pink. “Blushes shouldn’t be hidden so completely. They’re a sign of innocence that men love so much but don’t actually want. Just avert your eyes, but don’t hide.”

Lily didn’t point out that men never made her blush in the way Vera did though her cheeks flushed a little darker at the contact, gentle as it was, and her heart felt as though it was pounding in her chest. Instead she gave the barest of nods, her hands coming to her waist and balling in the fabric there.

That, that was what Vera loved. The reaction that people had to hers and Lily’s was always so beautiful. Like fire exploding across her skin. “Just breathe dearest,” she said softly, thumb grazing Lily’s chin before pulling away. It was a shame things had changed like they did. Lily was so very good at what she did, she could be so much more out of the control of those thugs. Vera could be so much more. Sometimes she wanted to just burn the building to the ground out of spite.

Doing as she was told, Lily took in a sharp breath and the rush of oxygen that accompanied it was almost enough to distract her from the loss of Vera’s touch. Almost. Head swimming a little her eyes fell on a bruise on Vera’s collarbone and she abruptly remembered what had brought her girl’s room in the first place. “Is there anything else I can do?” she asked, her hand raising slightly as if to rest next to the bruise but stalling part way there, hovering inches away from the bared skin.

Vera didn’t drop her eyes to see what Lily was looking at. There was no need and not being drawn to it was a sign of confidence. “Just being here helps,” she promised, shifting her shoulder as if Lily had touched her even if she hadn’t.

The red-head smiled again. “Then I’ll stay a while,” she replied warmly, gently pulling Vera’s robe closed a little to cover the bruises there. Eyes falling on the dressing table behind the other girl, she saw the hair brush sitting there and her smile grew. Slowly climbing off the bed so not to disturb Vera too much, she collected the brush and came back. “May I?” she asked, her hand already seeking out Vera’s long dark tresses, her love for doing the act already well known to the older girl.

It was something that even though Lily knew that Vera loved for her to brush her hair, that she still asked for permission. That was a testament to the devotion, which was what Vera craved so. Shifting so that she was seated comfortably with her back to Lily she nodded. “Of course.”

Lily couldn’t explain why such a simple thing was so soothing to them but as she careful teased free the knots in Vera’s hair, focused on that singular task it was easy to forget what had brought her to her friend’s room for the time being. Soon the brush moved unhindered and the sound of the bristles sliding through long hair filled the room.

Vera let herself settle into the rhythm, sighing happily as Lily worked on her hair. She lived for this, someone wanting to cater to her, to give her whatever she needed to stay calm or relaxed. “Do you think we should have left?” she asked, voice half dreamy, eyes half closed.

Stalling mid-stroke, Lily closed her eyes. She had wanted to leave as soon as word had reached them of Eris’ death but Vera had wanted to stay and Lily hadn’t been willing to go out alone having just lost someone so important. By the time she had worked up the nerve to, the O’Malley’s grip on the place had become too strong and when she’d tried to leave, she had earned the ire of their new ‘employers’. “You know I wanted to,” she said, voice quiet even for her as she resumed brushing, trying to keep herself calm. She didn’t blame Vera for their predicament but hearing her talk like that was frustrating.

That annoyed Vera. She wanted to hear she was right in staying in trying to stand up to the O’Malleys though she was likely not to try something like tonight again. The last thing she needed was them breaking her and throwing her out the door without her things. “We wouldn’t be any better off if we were out there. At least here we have a roof over our heads.” She was defending her own decision against the girl who’d stayed with her. That shouldn’t need to happen.

“Maybe, maybe not,” Lily said levelly, concentrating hard on every stroke. The prospect of being on the street wasn’t as scary for her as it might have been for Vera and unlike the older girl, she didn’t have the same attachment to things. At least there, they would’ve had the control. She didn’t say any of that though, a lifetime of having little voice her ally for once as she stayed silent.

“They killed her. We should be killing them ourselves.” Vera’s voice took on a dark tone, something more malicious than she normally showed. “It’s only fair to Eris.” Eris who’d taken her in and was the closest thing to someone she trusted and respected.

Grip tightening on the brush, Lily bit her lip, trying to keep her composure. Vera wasn’t the only one who wanted revenge but Lily couldn’t see how they had any chance of ever doing that. Even one at a time, the O’Malley’s were no match for them, her friend’s newly acquired bruises were more than testament to that, and there were far more of them than that. The O’Malley family was huge and even if, by some miracle, they managed to take out one of them there would be another to take their place and dish out retribution.

That she didn’t get anything in response didn’t phase Vera. She was already on the idea of revenge and in these moments it was hard to derail her. “We’ll see to it that they suffer. I’ll start planning. We can take them down from the inside out.”

Lily didn’t doubt Vera was capable of doing something like that but that didn’t mean she’d be able to pull it off. “I don’t want to see you get hurt again,” she said, hoping that her concern might bring Vera back down to earth a little.

Vera was quiet for a moment, letting her hand run along Lily’s leg absently. “I’ll be fine. I always am.” Though she would wait until her bruises healed. And then she’d be indirectly involved, out of the reach of those goons when they suffered.

Despite the evidence to the contrary, the touch to her leg had Lily nodding in agreement and she gently slid her arms around Vera’s shoulders. “And you know I’ll be here if you need me,” she murmured, taking comfort in their closeness even if it didn’t entirely abate her worries.

Of course she would be. Vera wouldn’t let her be any other way. “I know you will dearest,” she said softly, sweet tone to her voice. She gave Lily’s leg a light reassuring squeeze as she leaned into the hug. “I know you will.”

Whether it was the touch, the words or the way Vera lent into her, it didn’t matter as Lily let out a sigh of relief. Times were bad, there was no escaping that fact, but together she felt like they would be able to make it through to the other side.