Title: Two Incomplete Under Heaven

Author: Alex Foster

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Category: General

Rating: PG-13

Summary: The night before their parting of ways in New Jersey, Claire tries to help Elle control her powers. Post ep for Eris Quod Sum. Minor femslash warning.

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by NBC. No money is being made and no infringement is intended.

Author’s Notes: This is my entry in the Taming the Muse writing challenge. The prompt was Hide and Seek. Thanks for reading.

...

Ability will never catch up with the demand for it

-Malcolm Stevenson Forbes

...

Claire could hear the muffled cries of pain coming from the room next door.

She rolled over and pressed a pillow to the side of her head to try and ignore the echoing sounds. The shouts had been going non stop for the past half hour and she was simultaneously curious and nauseated by them. Even through the crisp hotel pillow she could still hear Elle in pain.

Claire sighed and tossed the blanket and pillow aside. She glanced at the door separating her room from Elle’s. The lights were off in both rooms and she could see brief flashes of blue-white come underneath the door with each scream.

She wondered exactly how far the electrical disturbance could spread. They were still close to the airport after their flight from California and flickering runway lights might draw unwanted attention. A plane rumbled overhead and she realized a crashed airliner was also a possibility.

Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, Claire pushed to her feet and padded to the door to Elle’s room. Knocking once, she turned the knob and found it surprisingly unlocked. Claire carefully stepped into the room and wondered if the former Company assassin left the exit unsecured because she was rattled or because she didn’t see Claire as a threat.

“Elle? Are you okay?” The idea of playing hide and seek with a deadly Company trained killer was not high on Claire’s fun list.

Identical to the one next door, Elle’s room remained neatly made and unlived in with only a small travel bag thrown on a chair to mark its occupancy. Her bed untouched with sheets still pulled tight. The only sign of life was a dim light coming from the bathroom.

Another scream sounded, louder this close, and Claire flinched as the blue-white flash hit her sleep adjusted eyes. Habit made her pull back, waiting for the familiar sting she’d felt her whole life after going from dark to bright.

Nothing came.

Phantom pain, remembering hurt was all she had left now. A type of morbid fascination pulled at her as she crept toward the bathroom. A part of her recoiled at the realization that her interest wasn’t in what caused the suffering of another human being, but the idea of that pain itself.

It was two in the morning and she was in a hotel room in a strange city with a sociopath. On top of everything else she was a newly discovered pain voyeur. Perfect.

Pushing the bathroom door all the way open, Claire peered inside. Immediately she averted her eyes and mumbled, “I’m sorry.”

Elle sat on the counter next to a sink full of soapy water with her knees pulled up to her chin. She was naked and held a dripping wash cloth with both hands. Her knuckles were white as she gripped and twisted the fabric. The vanity bulbs above her head, already dimmer than normal, flickered.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Wet hair clung to her scalp like a cap.

Claire stared at the plastic shower curtain, noting the waxy smell of wrapped soap that filled the small room. She didn’t want to look at the other girl and her odd position and further embarrass her.

Far from chagrined, Elle sounded more frustrated than anything else. “I’m talking to you, Goldilocks. There are people in this world that don’t like me so much; you really shouldn’t sneak up on me.”

“I’m sorry,” she said again. “I heard you and wanted to help.”

Elle shifted on her narrow perch and dropped the wash cloth into the sink. Water spilled over the edge and dripped from her leg to the tiled floor. Claire couldn’t help but watch as blue underlit Elle’s pale skin causing the droplets of water to sizzle and evaporate.

“Yeah, well, long hot bubble baths have been off my calendar lately so unless you feel like sharing a long car ride with stale airplane odor this is a necessary evil.”

Claire forced her gaze to Elle’s eyes. “It hurts every time?”

“No.” She sounded calmer now. “It comes and goes. Usually waits until I’m soaked and then fires so I get the full charge everywhere.” As if to prove her point, Elle tentatively touched the water in the sink with her fingertips. Brushing the surface before harmlessly pulling them away.

“I’m fine, really. Now go back and get your eight hours of beauty sleep.”

Claire hesitated for a second before stepping deeper into the bathroom. She held out a hand. “Do it again. Like on the plane.”

Elle gave a little frown, the same one that made Claire think kindness was a foreign language to her. “Why? Afraid I’ll blackout the city?”

“Let me help and be good for something.” As the lights flickered again Claire felt a rush of unexpected pity for Elle. But for the grace of a different father this creature curled next to the bathroom sink was her. “One hand and one long tendril of power this time. It’ll…free your other hand to wash pain free.”

“Well look at you. From student to teacher in one day.”

“I—” Elle’s hand clamping down on hers cut Claire off. She fumbled for a moment—unaccustomed to holding hands with anyone, Claire assumed—before interlacing her fingers with Claire’s.

“One long charge?”

“Yeah.” The air around them crackled with released electricity and Claire felt the fine hairs on her arm stand on end. She watched with fascination as the muscles in her arm twitched uncontrollably. Phantom pain danced up to her shoulder as her body realized it should feel something, but that faded away leaving only emptiness behind.

Arcs of power jumped from Elle's fingers to her. The smell of burning skin quickly overwhelmed the smell of soap. Her hand curled unnaturally in Elle’s as skin blacked and flaked away. Spasms shook Claire as the electrocution continued.

Unfeeling through all of it, she was aware of Elle as she calmly twisted the wash cloth clean and gave herself a quick sponge bath. Standing this close, Claire gave up trying to offer Elle a chance of modesty. The other girl pressed the cloth to the flat of her stomach and pulled it along her ribs. Suds sluiced from her skin and pooled on the counter. She dipped the cloth again and began rinsing. Water dripped down her face in long rivers from the hair plastered to her forehead.

Claire’s entire arm was blackened now. Burns stretched up past the sleeve of her thin t-shirt and she could feel her organs cooking. Wishing for the agony that was missing, she simply felt pulsating heat invading her chest and a rapidly beating heart.

Electricity followed the path of least resistance set by Elle’s mind right into Claire. Her whole body shook with the power of it. The edge of the counter rushed to meet her hips as her legs suddenly gave out. Claire tightened her hold on Elle and nearly jerked the other woman’s arm from its socket.

She gripped the counter with her other hand, careful to avoid spilled water, and struggled to remain on her feet. Spots danced in her vision and she wondered detachedly if that meant her eyeballs were boiling. An evil thought sprung unbidden to her mind and she realized that if she closed the circuit she could potentially kill Elle with her own power. At the very least she could cripple her and make her suffer.

Just past the boundary of her consciousness she began to feel…something. Not pain. More akin to a rush completeness. Something missing from her for so very long now.

And then it was gone.

The rush of power, the uncontrollable twitching, was over. Already the sinew and skin were regrowing over her body. It used to hurt, the healing, but now she watched it as though it happened to someone else. Within seconds she was unmarred again. The same emptiness inside also returned like a faint echo in her chest.

Claire saw Elle staring at her with wide eyes and she figured the damage must have been bad before vanishing without a trace. People reacted that way even when they knew she would return to normal. The water gurgled in the sink as it whirlpooled down the drain. The wash rag hung over the faucet and bled bubbles.

She was still holding the other girl’s hand in a viselike grip. Claire released her, smiled, and stepped back. “See, no harm done.”

Elle slid from the counter, seemingly unconcerned at her state of undress, and followed her. “That was…thank you.”

A decidedly predatory look flashed in Elle’s eyes and Claire felt suddenly uncomfortable. That look was the last thing those she assassinated saw. “I—”

“People don’t do nice things for me.”

Before Claire could stop her, Elle grabbed the back of her neck and kissed her. Not at all like the charming clumsiness of the kisses West gave her, this was hard and demanding and shocking in its ferocity. Lightning crackled from Elle’s fingers and Claire smelled burning hair. Heat inundated her and without comprehending why she found herself kissing back just as deeply.

Elle crushed against her, their teeth grating together, and hooked a leg around hers. Moisture from Elle’s damp skin soaked through her clothes. The demanding need took Claire’s breath away, and her gasp only pulled air from Elle’s lungs and drew her closer. Electricity coursed through her again, reaching and frying and burning.

Unsure what was happening to her, Claire wanted it to stop. Excited by the surge of power, she desperately didn’t want it to stop.

That same feeling of phantom pain that wasn’t and sense of linking with her ability flirted with her awareness again. She reached for it but found only Elle.

Two of the vanity bulbs over the sink exploded; Claire barely registered the loud pop and the hot glass raining down around them.

As she was about to lose consciousness, Elle broke the kiss and pulled back slightly. Sparks jumped from her lips and scorched Claire’s. She could taste blood from the already healing gashes.

Elle still held Claire’s hair in tight fists, and Claire found herself holding on to Elle just as tight. She was dizzy and struggled to stay steady. Tears ran down Elle’s face, just inches from her own, and pain mixed with insanity in her eyes.

“I’ve never seen someone take that much and live,” Elle whispered intimately. “You really are something else.”

Somewhere inside a switch flipped.

Claire released Elle and jerked back as if burned. Cold realization prickled her skin. She just kissed a madwoman and really was something else. Something less than human.

Backpedaling, Claire hit the bathroom door and sent it wide. The knob banged against the wall and the noise was enough to return her senses. The bathroom was small, and Elle was naked, and she was something not normal.

She heard herself speaking excuses but didn’t really understand the words. Without giving Elle an opening to raise protest Claire backed out and fled to her adjacent room. Once there she threw the lock and sank down to the floor. She drew her knees to her chin and pressed against the door.

Beyond she could hear Elle moving around the room for several minutes before finally growing silent. Her heart pounded at the thought of Elle knocking. But she never did.

Less than human.

Alone and surrounded by quiet, Claire pinned her bottom lip between her teeth and bit down. Sawing her jaw back and forth, she tore through skin until the taste of blood filled her mouth.

End