Shades of Gray and Crimson: A post-SV fic
Author’s Note: This is a post-SV bunny that has been lurking in the corners of my brain for quite some time. And of course where there’s one, there’s more - so there are likely to be more chapters in this story arc. This chapter occurs a few months after the botched heist (May of Year 2), probably around late August or Early September of Year 2.
Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel, its characters, or the world they live in. I am only borrowing them for the sake of entertainment. The other “Sues” depicted or mentioned in this work are the property of their creators, my fellow Supervillianess, Inc. authors. Ruby is mine, for good or ill. We make no money from this work.
Chapter One: A Fistful of Coins
It felt good to be back. Ruby nearly hummed to herself as she carefully sorted books from the book return bin onto a cart. Each one was given a critical examination before being scanned into the library’s slightly antiquated system. It made a cheerful chirping sound each time it welcomed home a wayward friend. Now and then someone would come to the desk and she’d record each tome and give a gentle reminder that its time beyond the library’s walls was limited.
“There you go. Don’t forget to have them back by the seventeenth.” No doubt her cheerful smile was forgotten before they passed through the door on their way to wherever it was they were going next. Anonymity settled around her shoulders like a familiar blanket, comforting where it was once stifling. She pushed her glasses up her nose and sent her gaze wandering around the room, noting the patrons here and there.
Over there was the girl in black, hunched and huddled over her book. One pale hand twisted a strand of inexpertly dyed hair between fingernails covered in chipped black polish. Her brows were furrowed as she studied the page before her. Her very intensity was promising. The book held just a few of the secrets Ruby had learned over the years since she had been chosen. Secrets written in a script that showed itself only to those who had the right combination of need, talent, and desperation. Those like the girl she had once been.
And here came another potential, her arms laden with books. She was as pale as the other was dark, her hair a shade so colorless that it was neither brown nor blond. Her thin summer dress was limp and faded with too many washings. The girl would not meet Ruby’s eyes and so it was hard to say whether they were blue or green. Hazel, perhaps. Her hands were small thin and nervous as she passed her books over.
“Do you have your library card?” Ruby gave her a gentle smile as she began scanning the books. Under the cover of taking the girl’s card, she slipped a slim, clothbound volume between the two largest books. “Looks like you’ve got your weekend all planned.”
“I like to read.” The girl’s voice hovered between apologetic and defensive.
“I love to read.” Ruby slid the stack of books back over the counter. “Remember, they’re due back by the seventeenth. If you need longer, just bring them back and we’ll check them back out again for you.”
“I know. Thanks.” The girl clutched the stack against her chest almost as if she thought someone would snatch them from her. She visibly flinched to find someone standing just behind her. The man ignored her, stepping aside just enough to let her pass. But his eyes were all for Ruby.
He was short, stocky, and powerfully built. His blue eyes were piercing and his boots sounded loud as they moved across the worn parquet floor. Ruby shoved down the urge to run, and stuck stubbornly to her routine.
“Hello. Can I help you?” He didn’t answer her, his eyes just moved up and down, taking her in. She was dressed in a palette of grays. Her sweater was a soft, dove gray, her knee length skirt the shade of heather. Her sensible pumps were a gray so dark it was nearly black. Even the wire rims of her glasses were the color of pewter. Her hair was twisted into a no-nonsense bun at the back of her neck. The only hint of color about her was the tiny bit of red lace where her camisole peeked through the neck of her sweater. Even her nametag was gray plastic with white lettering. It read simply “Ruby.”
“Didn’t believe it was you until I smelled ya.” He rested his elbows on the counter and leaned farther over the wooden barrier than was polite.
“Would you like to check out a book, sir? We’ve got the best collection of westerns in the state.” She gave him her best professional smile.
“No I don’t want to check out a book.” He growled. “What’re ya playing at?”
“Do you have a library card, sir? If you need an application, I have one right here. It’s free of course.” She reached down below the desk for one. “We just need to see a picture ID and…”
“I said I don’t want ta check out a book.” His hand reached across the desk to grab her wrist like a striking snake. Her heart nearly stopped and for a moment, she couldn’t think of anything to say.
“Is there a problem Miss Fox?” It was Mr. Potts, a doddering old man who smelled of peppermints and the crumbling leather of old books. His pristine white shirt sported a single drop of crimson jelly. Mr. Potts enjoyed strawberry jelly in his donuts. His voice was trembling, but his gaze was steady as he stared at the man’s hand.
“No, sir. I was just getting the gentleman an application for a library card. He’s new here.” She willed the elderly librarian to move on. He waited until Ruby fished out both an application and a pen before leaving them alone, returning to his office. Though the door remained pointedly open.
“What’re ya doing here?“
“I’m working.” She frowned at him and glanced around. The library was mostly empty, even the girl in black had vanished.
“Pretending to be a librarian?” He snorted derisively and doodled carelessly on the application she’d given him.
“I am a librarian.” She made no effort to hide the anger in her tone. She could feel the flush spreading across her cheeks. Blue eyes studied her as a hint of smug amusement tugged at his lips. Watching the curve of them brought on visceral a rush of memory so strong that she could nearly taste those lips, salty and laced with the bitterness of beer. The scent of sex and sweat. The sheer solidity of the body beneath the tight black t-shirt and faded blue jeans. The stamina that was at once so amazing and terrifying… His nostrils flared as he scented her body’s response. “And this is a library.” The last fell flat, less than convincing in her own ears.
“Sure you are, sweetheart.” He snorted in dry amusement. “And you're just here ta what? Hand out library cards and read to the kiddies?”
“Among other things.” Ruby swallowed hard, shoving back the rising tide of lust. “I do enjoy story time.”
“Humph.” He crumpled up the application, then seemed to think the better of it and smoothed the paper out with excessive care. He picked up the pen again and seemed to be filling the form out in earnest. But now that her power had awakened to his presence, she could taste his need on the back of her tongue, thick and bitter with frustration.
“What do you want, Logan?” He hadn’t caught her doing anything illegal or even immoral. It seemed to puzzle him.
“Been lookin’ for ya.” He looked her up and down again and shook his head. “Never thought I’d find ya here.”
“Why? We’ve left you alone.” And they had. All of them, at least as far as she knew.
“Ya ain’t left him alone. He goes off and comes back smellin’ of ya.”
“And?”
“And I don’t like it.” The paper crumpled up again. “Him lying and sneakin’ around.”
“Miss Fox? Are you quite sure this young man isn’t bothering you?” Mr. Potts’ querulous voice interrupted them. A glance over her shoulder showed her that the old man held his cane in one hand and a cell phone in the other. “Should I call Security?”
“No. No, Mr. Potts. That won’t be necessary.” Why the old dear looked ready to try to defend her honor! How charming. “Mr. Logan here was just trying to ask me out.”
The other man’s mouth opened, half in protest. But she ignored it, grabbing another blank form and quickly scribbling an address down. She gave both men a nervous smile as she folded the paper neatly into fourths before offering it to her supposed suitor. “I get off at seven. Meet me by eight and we’ll talk.”
“Eight.” Blue eyes flicked over the old man, taking in the white-knuckled grip on the handle of the cane and his determined expression. A toothy grin broke out over Logan’s face and he tucked the paper into a pocket. “I’ll be there.”
“I’ll be waiting.” They watched Logan leave, not speaking until the door shut behind him.
“You be careful, now, Miss Fox. I’m not sure I like the look of that young man.”
“I’m always careful.” Ruby retrieved the crumpled application and spread it out next to the computer. Her hands hesitated over the keys. Then on an impulse she turned and leaned close to give the old fellow a kiss on the cheek. He looked startled and reached up to touch his face.
“Now, Miss Fox…”
“I will be careful, sir. But it’s nice to know that someone cares enough to worry.” She turned back to the computer and Logan’s discarded application. Behind her the old man cleared his throat and shuffled nervously before leaving her alone. She began keying in Logan’s application, wondering how he would react when he received his bright, shiny new card in five to seven business days…
~*~
He’d probably been watching the door for her arrival since well before seven thirty, Ruby mused as she padded to the door. She’d had just enough time to drop the bag of takeout on the kitchen counter and slip out of her heels before the doorbell chimed. The tangy scent of sweet and sour chicken wafted through the air, making her stomach rumble. It was now five minutes until eight.
She stopped just long enough to check the security monitor before opening the door to her visitor. “You’re right on time. Come in.” He didn’t speak at first; simply let her wave him inside. He made no attempt to hide his curiosity as he took in the interior of her condo.
It wasn’t particularly large, but it had two bedrooms, two full baths, and a small but serviceable kitchen. Nearly every wall in the living and dining spaces was lined with floor to ceiling shelves. And every shelf was filled with books. A modest loveseat and a few comfortable chairs were scattered about the living room and half the dining space was devoted to a home office. Ruby rarely ate anywhere but at the small breakfast bar, just big enough for a pair of stools.
Ruby let him gawk, padding back into the kitchen where she started puttering around, setting out plates and pouring glasses of wine. “I hope Chinese is fine with you. I’ve been craving it all day.”
“So this is your place.” It wasn’t really a question.
“One of them.” She began opening cartons and dishing out food for herself.
“No one’s been here fer weeks.” She could hear him sniffing deeply. “Maybe longer.”
“I don’t bring casual lovers here.” Satisfied with what was on her plate, she sat down and tapped the edge of one plate with her fork. “Come and get it while it’s hot.”
He didn’t come right away. Instead he studied the rows of books for several long moments, reaching out to run his fingers across the titles of a few. “Humph.”
“What ‘humph’?” Ruby asked and took a sip of her wine. She watched as he stalked through her living room to join her. He really was fascinating to watch, all that muscle moving with the liquid motion of a predator on the prowl.
“Mebbe you are a librarian.” He sat down at the bar and took up one of the pairs of cheap chopsticks that had come with the meal and began filling his own plate with brisk efficiency.
“Really? How could you tell?”
“Ain’t never seen anyone keep books like that. All straight lines and alphabetical order.”
“Oh.” Ruby shrugged. “I like order.”
“Humph.” They were quiet while they ate. He studied her while he wielded his chopsticks with casual expertise. Ruby studied him right back, comparing the calm façade in front of her with the roiling mass of lust and desire her powers revealed to her. It whetted an appetite that wasn’t going to be satisfied by a few egg rolls and some fried rice. But she waited patiently until her visitor pushed away his plate and set his chopsticks aside.
“This ain’t what I was expecting.” He said at last while he wiped his mouth with a paper napkin.
“What were you expecting?”
“Not this.” He shrugged, the gesture seeming to include everything from her demeanor to the tiny bits of lo mein dotting his plate.
“So why did you come looking for me, Logan?” She rose from her seat and began clearing away the debris. There wasn’t much in the way of leftovers. It seemed Logan’s appetite was just as hearty as ever.
“Told ya. Don’t like seeing Kurt sneaking around.”
“It’s safer this way.”
“For you.”
“For him.” Ruby tossed the last of the trash in the can and reached for the bottle of wine again. “For both of us, maybe.”
Logan snorted, his disbelief evident. “Whatever that shit was you girls used on us, it wore off a long time ago. Ain’t buying that line.”
“And I’m not buying yours.” She sighed and leaned against the bar, twirling the goblet of wine between her fingers, watching the red liquid move in concentric circles. “Which one of us is it? Who has been haunting your dreams? What perfume do you imagine clinging to your pillow at night? Whose voice is it you hear on the night air?”
“What book did ya get that out of?” He reached for the bottle and filled his own goblet to the rim. “Like I said. That shit wore off a long time ago.”
“Is it just one of us? Or more than one? All of us?”
“I said it wasn’t anything like that.” He growled and took a hefty swallow, as if it were something harder than wine in his glass.
“No.” Ruby took a sip of her own wine, her green eyes glittering above the rim. “You didn’t.” She rested a hand on bar and tapped one manicured nail thoughtfully on the surface. “I can taste your lust, just like this wine. Only stronger. More bitter.”
“Yer lyin’.”
“No. I don’t think it’s so much for me in particular. I’m just the most…approachable?”
“I came ta stop ya.”
“From doing what? Handing out library books? Or seeing Kurt?” Logan set the glass down and scowled at her fiercely. “The only way to stop me from doing that is to kill me, Logan. Is that what you came here to do?”
“He deserves better than to be played with. He deserves someone that’s gonna treat him right.”
“And I don’t treat him right.”
“You treat him like a dirty secret.”
“That’s funny. I thought I was the dirty secret.” Ruby pushed her glass away and stood. She walked away from him into the living room. He followed her, his anger finding voice in the way his boots thudded across the hardwood floors. “I can’t imagine his friends welcoming me with open arms.”
“Then leave him alone.” The man growled. She ignored him, instead reaching up to take a jar full of glittering coins from a shelf above her head. The soft clinking of metal against glass sounded as she lifted it down.
“There are only two reasons I can think of for you to be here.” She cradled the jar carefully against her chest and found him standing much too close. She sidestepped him, but he reached out to grab one arm. “You’re either here to kill me or to fuck me.”
“I should cart ya off to jail.” His grip was tight, almost painful. But it sent a thrill up her spine all the same. “Kidnapping’s still a crime.”
“You don’t hate me enough for that.” Ruby spoke with complete confidence. “You have to know what that would do to me.”
“Maybe I do.” His eyes were steely, but his grip loosened just a little. “Maybe I don’t care.
“If I don’t use the power, it’ll use me, Logan.”
“Like you used us.” His eyes narrowed, but he let her go, giving her a little push in the process. “Like you're using him.”
“To what purpose?” She shook her head and turned away from him. This time he made no move to stop her as she returned to the breakfast bar and sat the jar on the marble surface. “No. I’m not using him. But you’re going to believe what you want to believe.” She shrugged.
“Shoulda never trusted you as much as I did.”
“Which wasn’t all that much as I recall.” Ruby reached into the jar and lifted a handful of gold. She raised it until it was nearly eye level, then let it slide through her fingers and back into the jar. She did it again and again as she gathered her thoughts. Each coin was made of gold, newly minted and stamped with the visage of her patron goddess. All of them were faithful copies of the coin that had played such an important role in her destiny. Only where that one had been worn and tarnished with age, these were shiny and new.
“What’re you doing?” He approached, his eyes following the glittering stream of gold. “You’re not gonna buy yer way out of this.”
“Before I became the Crimson Siren, I really was a librarian.” Her tone was soft with nostalgia. “I was a nobody. Practically invisible.”
“Don’t care about yer sob stories.”
“Don’t interrupt. Maybe it isn’t a great story, but it’s the only one I’ve got to tell.” Ruby shot him a glare. She snatched up a fistful of coins and squeezed it so hard that it felt as if the metal itself was slicing into her flesh. “I wasn’t just invisible, Logan. I was cursed. Like Cassandra who was cursed to know the future, but never to be believed. I was cursed to see love but never to know it.”
She opened her hand and tossed the coins in a glittering rain. Time seemed to slow as the coins spun in the air. They hung there, each turning on it’s own axis.
“The love of a mother for her child, a brother for his sister, a man for his wife. New love bright and shiny as a penny. Old love as comfortable and soft as a favorite sweater. Love lost to death or absence. Love turned sour and ugly by abuse. Love treasured and love ignored. Love…”
The coins began to glow with a soft light, and images coalesced within the light. Faces drawn in miniature on each tiny golden disk. A sudden intake of breath told her that the faces were familiar ones to him.
“I can show you the face of every woman you’ve ever loved.” The images shimmered and changed. “And the faces of every woman who’s ever loved you in return.”
“Stop it.” He growled, his voice thick. There were so many faces. How long had he lived? How many women had there been? How many of them still lived and how many had passed on? “I don’t need no magic tricks. Stop it.”
“So many loves, Logan. So many.” The light bled from the coins and they fell to the floor in a clatter of metal on wood. A single coin remained spinning in the air, the face on it indistinct. She walked around the bar and drew closer to it. As she moved, the face grew more distinct, recognizable. A deep blue so dark that it would have seemed black if not for the mass of black curls that crowned it. A smile that stood out starkly white against all that darkness. A pair of golden eyes that gleamed from within.
Just the image was enough to bring a smile to her face. She reached out a hand, her palm cupped to cradle the spinning coin. At her touch the image winked out and the coin fell to her palm. It rested on her skin, feeling warm and almost alive. No longer was it newly minted and fresh, it was once again the familiar age-worn coin with its golden chain. She stifled the gasp of surprise that came to her lips. She traced the image with a reverent fingertip before sliding the chain over her head so that the coin slipped between her breasts.
“You don’t love him.” The denial lacked conviction. “Doubt you ever loved anyone but yerself.”
“Whatever.” Ruby knelt and began to gather up the scattered coins.
“That’s it? You ain’t going to argue it?” Logan stepped forward, pressing one booted foot down over the coin she was reaching for. Ruby frowned up at him and reached for another coin.
“What would be the point? You’ve made up your mind.” She did her best to ignore him, moving around to scoop up the wayward coins, shoving each one into the pocket of her skirt, ignoring the line-spoiling bulge it made.
“That’s it. Ya tell me some fairy tale then clam up as soon as I question it?” He snorted and moved his foot so that she could take the last coin.
“It’s not a fairy tale.”
“Curses and magic tricks…”
“Not a literal curse.” She gave a long-suffering sigh and stood. “No one curses non-entities like I was. People have to notice you to hate you that much.” She turned world-weary green eyes on him. “So which is it, Logan? Why did you come here? Kill me or fuck me?”
“Ya think I’d come in here and eat your food, then kill ya for dessert?”
“I think you came here without telling anyone where you went.” Ruby walked away, her finger in her pocket absently stirring the coins as she thought. “If you came to take me to jail, you’d have dragged me out of the library and we wouldn’t be here now.”
“He loves ya. An you're gonna stand there and ask one of his friends to fuck you?”
“Once I became the Siren, monogamy was no longer an option.” Her steps had drawn her to the far end of the room where a sliding glass door led out to her small balcony. She stepped outside into the late summer warmth, raising her eyes to the stars and turning her back on her visitor. “And I didn’t ask you to fuck me. I asked you if that’s why you came here.”
The skin between her shoulder blades crawled with the weight of his glare while her insides churned with a queasy mix of lust and fear. She’d been on short rations here, choosing to keep a low profile, choosing to keep her encounters brief and far between, choosing to be…as close to celibate as her powers permitted. Choosing to be so far away from him. To see for herself if she could do it.
And the truth was, she couldn’t. But she would try anyway, if only for a few moments longer. She drew the handful of coins from her pocket and began pitching them over the railing, tossing them sideways into the night air like a child skipping stones on a lake. One coin for each potential she’d found. One coin for each, just in case it turned out he was here to kill her after all. A fistful of coins tossed into the night air.
She could feel him so close, could feel the heat of his hand as he reached for her.
“Don’t, Logan. Don’t. Don’t touch me.”
“Why? You seemed all fire eager for me to touch you before.” He was puzzled, but still angry in there somewhere.
“I don’t want you saying I tricked you into anything, Logan. I want you to remember that it was your choice. No powers, no drugs, no pheromones, no threats, not even a come-hither look. Because once you touch me… It’s been too long. My control is shot.”
She could feel him hesitating. He was so close that if she leaned back she’d brush against some part of him. Instead, she flung the last coin into the night and leaned forward to rest her elbows on the railing.
“I don’t believe you.” He finally spoke. But he didn’t touch her. Not yet.
“Kurt loves me. Really loves me. He knows what I am and he still loves me.” She let her gaze drop to the street below where spots of light marked the constant ebb and flow of cars and people. “You don’t get it. Neither do I, really. But I can’t give him up. As long as he wants me, I’m his.”
“You saying you love him?” He leaned on the railing beside her, so close that she could feel his breath on her cheek.
“Yes.” The word hurt. It seemed to carve it’s way from deep in her chest to spill from her mouth like a splash of blood. “But if you touch me, I’ll fuck you. I’ll fuck his friend of years. His teammate. I’ll fuck somebody who thinks I’m scum. You’ll call me a whore and say I tricked you. You’ll probably even believe it. And I can’t fucking stop myself.” Tears, hot and heavy burned their way down her cheeks.
“What if I leave now?”
“I’ll…I’ll find someone else. Someone not so close. I have people I can turn to.” She swallowed hard. “I’ll…take care of it.”
“Why’s it like this now? You weren’t like this before.” There was a trace of suspicion in his voice. “Been watching you fer days and ain’t seen nobody.”
“The power knows you. Likes you. Likes the way you taste. Wants you.” She gripped the iron railing until her fingers cramped.
“Tell me to leave.”
“I can’t.”
“Tell me to stay, then.”
“Why?”
“Didn’t come here ta kill you. Thought I was coming ta warn you off, but don’t think that’s gonna work.”
“Logan…” Desperate thoughts tangled in her head, fighting one another for supremacy. Where could she go, who could she go to on such short notice that wouldn’t make an even worse mess?
“Tell me to stay or I’ll go.” She turned to look at him and found his blue gaze too piercing for words.
“Stay.”
“All right.” He finally touched her then, pulling her into the circle of his arms for a kiss. For a brief moment, the kiss was gentle and almost sweet. Then her power burst over them both in a snarling tide of need and lust and swept them away.