Territorial

by Jane St. Clair and Te

Jane: Tabitha Smith for the sheer rage in both of them, and Tabby's sometime radical submission. Both of them with different nasty experiences of street life. Maybe because Cable and Dom were going to try to bring Sarah into X-Force, and there's Tabitha at the edge of the room, prowling like something thin and territorial.

Wondering what Marrow makes of Tabitha, who still walks like a cheap hooker. Tight-kneed *strut* that should permanently damage her hips. Anger and fire and trailer-trash *common*, just the cheapest form of pretty girl, living on the extreme outside of her skin.

This one's no match for the southern boy at all. He must see everything dirty on her, the rage that she projects at odd moments and that all of his understanding isn't going to ease.

Marrow knows what she needs. Knows just how to get it all wide open.

This is nothing to do with understanding. This is *pack*, and poor little Tabitha just needs to know her *place*.

Nothing she can do about it, though, while Cable and Domino are in the room. Not just because they could carve her up -- she knows they could, almost doesn't mind it. Less bullshit from them than from most of the X-freaks, and she gets the feeling they're capable of fighting any way they need to. Strange, suspicious feeling that she doesn't want them to hate her.

She feels Domino watching her, little prickle on the back of her neck, and turns to meet those eyes. Gets the feeling in that instant that Domino *knows* about this, that she isn't judging. Yet. Might not step in as long as they keep decent order about working out whatever they need to.

Marrow nods, gets up. Slinks outside with some kind of mutter about not needing to sit here like a freak show all day. She makes it halfway to the woods before she's sure Tabitha's following her.

Smiles on the inside and keeps on walking, branches brushing the top of her crown, green smell just making all the power well up in her, liquid and thinking.

Catches movement at the corner of her eye and knows Tabby-girl's flanking her, finding some spot where she can *spring* on Marrow like a stripper from a birthday cake. Marrow looks up into the trees as sneakily as she can and waits.

Easily. Comfortable, even, because for all Cable's training, Tabitha's *loud* when she moves. Scrape of her feet on the ground, little rustle of her hair and clothes. And Marrow can jump sideways long before the little bomb explodes where she was crouched, and twist and land facing. Small bone knife already in her hand, tracing the air.

Sideways again when Tabitha springs at her, almost laughing at the catfight spread of Tabby's fingers, thinking that they named this one right. Little hiss as she turns on Marrow, genuinely angry. Little, pointed heave of her breasts before she leaps, and this time Marrow lets the other girl catch her, and rolls with the force of it. Simple to end on top, straddling, careful of the bone-ache because she's after a lesson and not a vivisection here.

Surprised when Tabitha kicks up and knocks her loose. Hard down and Marrow hits the tree nearest them with the side of her head hard enough to set her staggering for a minute. By which time Tabitha's on her, kicking and hissing and fighting dirty enough that Marrow digs up a little respect even as she scrambles to find her feet again.

Twists and grabs and takes her down, and for a confused minute they're a tangle of hair-pulling, skin-gouging fury, whatever started this forgotten in the frenzy of need to *hurt*. Exactly one more instant in which Marrow's definitely on top and Tabitha on the bottom, and she takes advantage of it long enough to lock her mouth down against that bleached-pink one. Cheap strawberry-chemical smell-taste to her, and something darker and more distinctly feminine, and then Tabby cracks her upside the head and they're rolling again.

And fighting and still fighting until they knock loose from each other and when Marrow goes to roll back there's this *wall* between them. Marrow's still staggering from the crack to her head, but she's not stupid, and she drops down to a crouch and just waits. Sees Tabitha settle back with the look of someone who's got a better idea of what's going on than Marrow does. Turns her head and sees Cable coming down. Big strides moving big shoulders and Marrow can't tell if he's actually angry or just covering ground.

Stays in her crouch while he turns to Tabitha and says, "Hit the showers. Now."

And, surprisingly, she goes. Half-run that covers the ground in a way that you wouldn't think legs trained to spike-heels could manage and she doesn't look back.

Cable looks at Marrow. She wonders if he expects her to be ashamed or look away or something. Steady grey *something* in his human eye that she can't put a name to, but she remembers it from Callisto. He holds her there until Tabitha's gone into the house, then lets the wall go. Before she can get up, he growls, "Don't," and walks back to the house. Leaves her there.

And fuck him if he thinks he's got something on her. She kept it out of his way. If he feels like playing babysitter, he can, but he isn't Callisto. Nobody she's met's been worth following since mother left. Angry thoughts that work out as much of the tension as anything else, and by the time she comes in through the basement door, she's only watchful.

Decides that maybe a shower's a good idea, though. She's dirty from the ground, and whatever people might think, Marrow's decided in the last couple of years that being clean is a luxury she'll take when she can get it. Checks the gym and finds a distinct absence of people and stalks into the women's locker room, peeling her shirt off as she goes. Socks off, bare feet to feel the tile under her, one of the prettier things the X-Men's last bout of re-building left them with. Something imported and smooth and close-fitted.

Throws her jeans and underwear on the bench and pads into the shower room. Big and open and usually just a little *too* communal for her tastes, but she likes the size of it when she's alone. Nothing like being locked up. And enough clearance that she can step back out of the spray until the water's hot enough. Chilled by that time, but it just makes the first smash of water against her feel better. Arching up into it like the best kind of sex, the best touch she's ever had. Breasts unashamedly out and even the external bones aching with the heat.

The liquid soap she likes has almost no smell to it, but it feels good even just sliding between her fingers. Soft on her calf when she bends to scrub it, trailing down her breasts when she straightens.

Turns into the water stream and lets it hit her face. Washes her breasts and belly almost absently, shakes her head and lets the loose water fly off her hair. And just luxuriates.

Brush of cool air against her ass that makes her spin, staggering to keep her balance, and Tabitha's there. Marrow's instant reaction drags an arm across her body to cover her breasts. Waiting for the next attack and fully aware that even naked they're both of them still the best of all possible weapons. Except that Tabitha just keeps the one hand extended towards her, absolutely ignoring her own nakedness and the shampoo bottle loose in her grip.

Moment to check them both, their stances, their abilities, and Marrow's just about to settle down when *both* her palms burst open with new and encrusted bone growth, sharp and rocky little mountain ranges that make her growl with frustration and pain.

Gives Tabitha a look she hopes says everything she wants, frustration and a sullenness she fucking *hates*. Water ignored like rain, like the times when the tunnels would crack open and stream fetid and green.

Tabitha returns the look with a little hiss of teeth to tongue, not sympathy so much as... something Marrow can't quite wrap her mind around yet.

"What?" Angry and low.

Tabitha shrugs, twists one slim and naked leg to show a ripple of unmistakable burn flesh on the inside of her thigh. Small, but not insignificant.

Marrow grunts with understanding and turns back to sluice herself as best she can. Not enough leverage with her fingers to break off the bone. She needs a good, stiff, brick wall for that. Maybe a sander. Maybe just wait until it crumbles off, good and dead, on its own.

Blood swirling down the tiles into the drain behind her.

Flesh-feeling of Tabitha, just beyond the heat of the water, if not the steam.

"You gonna freeze your skinny ass off out there or you gonna shower?"

Another shrug. "You've got grass in your hair." Soft little trashy accent, a little slurry and broad but still... subtle.

"Maybe I'll grow myself a nice little lawn."

"Whatever."

And Tabitha is close to Marrow without another word, making Marrow tense up before consciously relaxing, tracking out counter-attacks, imagining just grabbing the girl's face and rubbing it in. Making it meat.

Tenses again when Tabitha grabs a wet lock of her damned fucking patchy hair and tugs lightly.

"It's nice. Thick. This your real color?"

Marrow twists her mouth. "No. It's Kool-Aid."

Feels her hair hit her back with a little wet slap.

"Fine, be a bitch then. I was just gonna wash it."

Silence, and neither of them moving, even though that sulky little niceness was a good enough exit line for the girl. Emphasis on *exit*.

But her scalp is a little itchy. Just wet enough that she can feel the mud trying to slip and slide straight down to her ass. Tries and fails to curl her hands into fists, earning a dozen little fingercuts for being a dumbass. And what. So the girl wants to wash her hair. Apology? Power play? Whatever. Cable and Domino won't *always* be close enough to break it up.

"Wash it. If you want."

"Oh, *thank* you, Lady Marrow. How *evah* can I repay my debt to you."

Makes Marrow flush. Grind her teeth. "I'd. Appreciate it."

"Hmmf. Right." Squirt-sound of shampoo into bare, unmarked palm. "Bend down a little?"

And she does, acutely aware of how vulnerable she is. Not only naked but *submissive*, head and shoulders tilted back, knees bent, throat exposed. It keeps the water and soap out of her eyes, but all Tabitha'd need to do is drive her fist in, just once, and no more Marrow. Ever.

Everything in her screams to move. But Tabitha's hands in her hair are oddly gentle. Soaping and working the mud and grass loose, using her odd, long nails to rub at Marrow's scalp. Something almost professional about it, like a hairdresser, except Marrow doesn't remember ever going to one.

But something like that -- professional and comfortable and comforting. She bends Marrow's head back forward into the spray to rinse the first shampoo out, strokes a little hand across her eyes to get the soap out, and starts again. Competent and careful.

Except that Marrow's knees are aching from this constant crouch, and at some point it becomes easier to swallow her pride and just kneel. While Tabitha works dirt out from her scalp and eases the knots loose.

It's been a while since she stopped to brush it, and it doesn't seem to bother anyone, exactly, if she walks around looking like a mop, so why bother? Nothing like this pleasure, almost a massage. Tabitha's hand stays on the back of her neck the next time she gets tilted forward into the spray and stays there, stroking.

And when she straightens, the hand slides in over her shoulder and rests on her collarbone for a minute before dropping to just skim over the top of her breast. So quick she almost can't believe it.

Hand in question sliding back up into her hair, pulling it into long, straight strands, ghosting over the bare places where different lengths of stubble grow in. Marrow's trying to come up with something to say here, complicated mess of gratitude she owes along with something snarky enough for the situation.

Groped in the showers. Jesus. Some old pulp book cliche, the ones with titles like Her Woman and Lesbian! in screaming psychedelic print. Callisto's joke gift one year, with no return address. Decides to just open her mouth to see what comes out when Tabitha starts *kneading* the third shampooing in, shocking a moan out of her that makes the girl pause for just a heartbeat before doing it harder.

Moving Marrow's head with it, pressing at the scars, lifting and shifting Marrow's hair to get at the top of her spine. Tension she didn't even know was there suddenly falling off in waves and Marrow shudders at it, but this time Tabitha doesn't even pause.

Hears the small thump of the girl's knees hitting the tile. More even now than they would be standing up. Jean told her once that she had a short waist, some obscure rule of fashion demanding a certain *kind* of clothes to shred. Stuck in her mind, though. Beaming through loud and clear and ridiculous here, with Tabitha making her arch farther.

Soapy slap of a length of her hair against Tabitha's skin, little gasp as the strands maybe run over something important.

Jesus. Fuck. Sex *now*?

The rinse, finally, Tabitha stroking and rubbing away all the soap, before her hands finally settle on Marrow's shoulders.

"We don't have to fight."

Marrow snorts. "You seemed pretty into it out in the woods."

"I'm into a lot of things..." One hand moving down past her collarbone, slipping under Marrow's breast, holding it a little up and running her thumb in small circles over her nipple.

Marrow thinks about throwing her off. At this angle, it wouldn't even be hard, and she could win the resulting fight in about three moves. But it's been a *long* time since anybody touched her like this.

Little intimacy of it. And it feels good. The focus of the touch so small that she can't help but focus her whole body around that spot. Wanting to *beg* for it for a split second, before she gets her brain back.

And even then she just holds still. Breathes through the wet pleasure of it, just like she's not dripping down her legs with more than water. Thinking halfway that she'd like to touch back, if she could. Worse than being cuffed, even, because she has to be so aware of where her hands are so that she doesn't hurt one or both of them. No protection at all while they're naked.

She should be careful, but the body-contact between her and Tabitha is ecstatic. Small, tight-nippled breasts stroke over Marrow's shoulderblades every time one of them moves, and when Tabitha reaches around to fondle her with both hands, Marrow's suddenly held in a way nobody's dared to in years. So utterly dangerous, and her own heavy breasts are out of proportion to the hands on them. Tiny fingers lift her and press against the ribcage exposed, catching the warmth and lingering body-smell there.

Tiny pink lips open and mouth along her jaw.

And yes, sex now. Only she wants to touch and she *can't*. Growl in her throat that makes Tabitha drop away for a second, then scoot around to kneel in front of her.

Washed-out blue eyes hold Marrow's for a second, then she glances down and says, "Oh." Little pause while she thinks about that. "Is there anything you can do about it?"

"Not here." A growl that's missing the edge she wants it to have.

"Will it hurt?"

Shrug.

"Cause if it wouldn't, I could... " She cups her hands and produces a tiny, glittering ball. Lets it dissipate and cocks her head at Marrow.

And it's way too much like charity, but she needs this. Says, "Do it," and holds both calcified palms out. Takes the next globe Tabitha produces and holds it as best she can. Tiny as a marble, like one of the handful she used to have when she was little, because sometimes, movie cliche though it is, kids lost them into the sewers. She got really, really good at looking for shiny objects in the sludge.

The globe cracks open and for a second there are bone shards everywhere. Not enough pain, though, and when she looks down only the outer layer's gone. Hisses and wants to scream at her hands, but Tabitha just drops another glittering ball into her stiffened grip and counts "Three, two, one."

*Crack*

And the bone gives, and her bloody, aching hands are loose. Blood everywhere in that second, and she sees Tabitha's horror. Almost stops to explain that blood always looks worse in the shower. You get water in it and it looks like so *much*, and it isn't, really. But she's too busy just flexing and half-whispering grateful noises at her regained ability to touch.

Tabitha reaches in and catches one of her wrists and pulls the hand up to look at. Gets an eyeful of shredded skin and a too-deep sense of the tendon and muscle underneath. And then bends and kisses, carefully, the less-damaged skin at the hand's heel, and when she looks up again there's a red smear on the side of her face.

"Twisted Mutant Lesbians meets Psycho. Do you make everyone's life this interesting?"

Marrow smiles, hiding her lack of a decent comeback by licking a stripe from the corner of Tabitha's mouth up through the watered down blood, making the girl snicker.

"I'll take that as a yes."

And then she's being pulled into just the right angle for a kiss, a practiced move from a girl who's obviously used to taking charge, or at least taking just enough charge to get things *moving*. Marrow goes with it, drinking shower water and spit from the girl's mouth as she licks before finally allowing herself to touch.

Breasts some idiot would likely call perky but Marrow just thinks of as *mmm*. Soft enough to knead, nipples pink and bright between her fingers, left one slightly scarred. Probably used to be a ring there, and Marrow wants it. Metal cool and bright to tug on with her teeth, but settles for leaning in to bite her there.

Marrow liked the old game better. Made more sense. If you were the new kid in the territory you didn't make waves so much as claim position. Establish a beachhead on every inch of pale, smooth skin in sight.

Pictures herself in uniform, the two of them in uniform. Tooth and nail and the butt of a gun and Tabitha's making little gasping sounds.

Sneaky little noises perfect for fucking behind some trailer.

Perfect *girl* for it. Pulls up on her heels and pushes the girl into an arch, ribs showing clear. Thrusts a thumb into her navel and fucks her like that, making Tabitha laugh and squirm and gasp whenever Marrow hits something just right. Nasty little tug somewhere deep behind all the skin, that tangle of sex nerve energy in Tabby's gut that Marrow just wants to punch in and *twist*.

Settles for letting the girl settle on her back, spray hitting just below her neck, but it's steamy enough in here to stay nice and warm even as Marrow air-dries.

"Use your mouth."

"Fuck you."

"Yeah, that too, long, tall and gruesome."

Slams a finger into her pussy instead, wet and slick and not, water and come, and the girl's big enough for more but she likes starting this way. Wants to see Tabitha bitch and fight for more and isn't disappointed. Slim legs coming up around her neck and *squeezing* and Tabitha bends up and grabs Marrow's clean, clean hair.

"I'm not in this for a tease."

Marrow pushes her back easily, leans into the spray to nuzzle that slippery neck and bite down *hard*. Instacontusion, baby, just what they both needed, hands tightening in her hair, legs tightening around her throat and then everything relaxes as Tabitha laughs and bucks up on Marrow's finger.

"Bitch."

"Trash."

"Sure thing, baby, anything you want... "

Marrow bites the other side of her neck just as hard and adds another finger, nuzzles up to Tabitha's mouth and tonguefucks her, steady and hard as her fingers. Faster then slower, twisting and she's making unh unh unh noises around Marrow's tongue which is just perfect and so dirty, slip and scrape of skin on tile, light squeak of it under the patter of spray.

Rain. Their very own storm, building up and cutting loose right with them and Marrow wants her to scream.

Shakes loose and pushes Tabitha's knees right up to her chest before diving in, tongue inside to taste, but Tabitha doesn't jerk until Marrow starts biting and sucking at her clit, so that's where she focuses her attention.

Vicious and much too hard for anyone *but* Tabitha, she thinks, but the girl is writhing and *loud* now, cries echoing off the tile, hands in Marrow's hair again, yanking and gripping like rains, *pulling* her face in further until she has to gasp in a deep breath and just *work*.

No taste of blood, but Marrow doesn't really wanna go there yet, rather torture that salty little button as much as she can until one of them screams, claws, punches, *something*.

Tabitha fucking her face and drumming her fists on the floor, water maybe starting to cool or maybe it's just that Marrow's fucking *hot* with it, sweating in the steam, feverish and plain and ruthless until Tabitha bucks hard enough to make Marrow's nose hurt and comes.

Actually comes, a little spurt of fluid that Marrow won't let herself get to until after she bites just one. More. Time.

And then sucks it all up with a nasty smirk.

Waits to see what happens next.

Tabitha's stretched out so far that if she arches even one more time her head'll hit the wall tiles. Pushed back from her heels and still panting. Pink prettiness of her at hard odds with the smile on her face. There's another small smear of blood on one skinny thigh from the press of Marrow's hand, and that seems more appropriate.

She stares up, gauging Marrow's mood. Obviously takes in Marrow's gargoyle hunch and the curve of new bones pressing outward from her skull, but then rakes down towards her breasts and the in-curve of her belly and the red hair that doesn't quite hide her cunt from this angle. And then mirrors Marrow's mouth-lick, using just the point of her tongue.

She doesn't immediately reach out, though. Just pulls her knees in and gets her feet under her and crouches opposite like some pretty, impossibly delicate mirror-image. Forearms on her thighs, hands between her knees. Strange, battle-like posture for anyone so slender, but she holds to it, just little after-sex trembles shaking it up.

The smile that cracks Tabitha's face is unreal. Animal and feral and somehow *bloody*, like she's bitten through her lip for the sole purpose of showing red-tracked teeth. An entirely Marrow smile. And she jumps.

Cat-arches upward and comes *down* on Marrow, hands and feet forward and body safely back, throwing Marrow down onto her back under the water. *Smashes* Marrow's hands down on the tile above her head and holds them there, straddling with Marrow's breasts contained between her thighs. Grins down. Somewhere between *gotcha* and *fuck me now*. All that wet blonde hair falling in her eyes, and when she shakes it back, it's like some bizarre, jiggling, strip-club *tease*.

She lets go of Marrow's wrists, but with this sharp *stay there* look that keeps her still for the moment. Scoots back and brings her mouth down to Marrow's breasts and *bites*. Not even the nipple at first, just the inner curve. Makes her hiss and *want* and when Tabitha's mouth does close on the nipple, she's waiting for it. Sharp little teeth on the dark flesh bruising and digging and scraping and making it the focus of Marrow's whole body.

"*Fuck.*"

"In a sec." Delicate little tongue-stroke across the raw flesh that makes Marrow hiss and twist.

The knee comes up to press against her cunt a few seconds later. Rolls pale and slick against it, hard on the soft flesh folds and low. Ignoring her clit, just pushing *in*, making her almost believe that it could go, if she strained enough. Good and intense and *aching*.

Then it goes and for a second she's alone in the shower's steam and *furious*, abandoned and she's *lost* this she lost somehow. Rage that makes her pull in on herself. Balanced on the round of her hips when Tabitha's hand reaches out and clamps around her wrist and pulls her forward, back up to her knees.

"Turn around."

Marrow glares for a minute, then turns. Lets her weight fall against her healing palms, against the wall tiles. Cooler than the air, rough enough to grip on some. Feels Tabitha's hands curl in around where her hips and thighs meet and pull her ass out. More weight on the hands now, and it hurts, but just barely, an extra edge keeping her sharply awake.

Tabitha comes up behind her again. Curls in and lays the slight weight of her torso on top of Marrow's, then pulls back and scrapes her upper teeth across her from shoulders to spine. *Chews* her way down her body. Worries at the flesh where her ass swells. Sweeps open-mouthed, licking up shower water and sweat and kissing hard at the base of Marrow's spine.

"Oh *fuck* yes." Fingers between her legs, teasing at her lips and the twists of hair at their edges. Little rub at her clit, then a long, deep swipe of Tabitha's thumb into her cunt.

And gone. Angry and bucking at the tease until she's answered with a tender little kiss that transforms to a bite halfway through, and she feels the thumb again, pressing in and up to tease at her asshole. Slick with her.

"Twisted fuck."

"Like you don't want this, gruesome." Laughing thumb flick and then she's *in*.

Something Marrow's tried maybe once or twice before getting frustrated with the angle and random wrist-bone growth. Not even close to a problem. Vulnerable to everyone but herself like this, one little trash-girl hand teasing and scratching at her pussy, the other fucking *plumbing* her.

Pushing up into her guts and twisting everything around and Marrow's sweating again. That nastygood wrong feeling that she's only ever gotten a taste of before and she's pushing back on it. Wanting more and dripping come down her thighs.

*Fuck* clean, this is too *good*.

"Just one sec --"

But she still growls when Tabitha pulls out again. Holds Marrow open with the teasing hand and pushes in two fingers from the other, thumb held carefully out of the way. Mostly unexpected attention to fucking *hygiene* making her laugh, and then Tabitha pushes *those* in.

Upright like Tabitha's making a gun and that short thumbnail tickling and flicking at her stretched hole, other hand back to dabbling at her and making her shake.

Pushing in now, thrusting and twisting and opening Marrow up wide, right here against the *wall*, and who had dared? Who would even *think* of daring but this flash-bright girl. Fights like an animal, fucks like one, too and Marrow doesn't bother to hold back her wild little grunts. Doesn't even *try* to deny that it's good to her, that it's raw, that it's exactly what she needs.

What she *deserves*.

Head whipping back and forth, hair on her face, between her teeth. Chewing on it when Tabitha starts the double-fuck that makes her flow so hard she thinks she's pissing.

Thinks that'd be just fine, too, Tabitha on her back while Marrow stands. Positions her hands just right and lets fly. Drink it up suck it up it's all yours, all yours...

Not lost on her that she's being *taken* here, put in her place, but not even close to once and for all. No way, fuck that, Marrow's got *plans*, Marrow's got the fucking moves to turn the tables just. As soon. As she.

Comes like a shotgun to the belly, yelling and growling and bucking back and forth, up and down, wild and shaken with it as her cunt throbs and her ass clenches and Tabitha rides her right through it, right through the white out and every aftershock making her knees shake and want to knock together.

"Oh, fuck, *yeah*..."

And Tabitha is giggling, biting at her where she can reach. Crunch and spit as she bites off the tip of a bone. Still laughing when Marrow turns shakily, braces herself against the wall and yanks Tabitha close. Blood and spit and water and come and Tabitha's sweet and dirty fingers playing all over her body.

It's damned suspicious that they don't get Nathan's psi-call for their talking-to until the cold re-showering degenerates to splashing and careful wrestling, but Marrow feels too good to question.

"Yeah, you're grinning now. Just better hope it's Nathan who goes after us, 'cause Domino..." A shudder that looks ridiculously femme on the girl who just fucked her every way mutual biology would allow and Marrow just laughs some more.

Until they're mostly dry, mostly dressed, and face to face with Domino.

And she can *feel* the smile curdle on her face.

Next time, though...

End

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