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Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 01-02

By: ChaosRaven



Note to readers: this is my first submission and it's been my personal pleasure for 12+ years. This story is one I only write for my own enjoyment but I decided that others may find it similarly... entertaining *ahem*

Because it wasn't originally meant for outside eyes; it may not be to everyone's tastes. The storyline is freeform, so if you imagine the plotline for a soap opera – it's sort of like that. Before anyone says it, I'm aware that a lot is explained that would have been better shown, but as I say – it's been just for me for years and I get impatient. In other works I do try to have more self-control and dedicate more thought to story.

At some stage I might start uploading some of my other works. One step at a time! In the mean time, I hope you enjoy ;)

Much loves, ChaosRaven.

Chapter One

Perhaps Catsy Vere just wanted an excuse to pursue him. She wasn't accustomed to having conquests but it was a good a time as any to start with Scott Naughton. –She just had to go and pick the man who was hardest to attain. Scott wasn't your average man in any way. He had shortish blue-black hair; strikingly emerald eyes and everything about him was sensual. Every expression of his lips appeared erotic. Together with his narrowed eyes and strong, high cheek bones he was her idea of the ideal man. He was tall—his shoulders were at her eye level—he was broad and he had a distinctly well-toned body; but not too muscular. –Perfectly suited to her tastes. However, Scott had an impenetrable barrier that made him out of bounds to her or anyone else. It was the most frustrating thing about him. Catsy had known him ever since he took her on as his patient last month. She didn't know whether he had worked for the TLT Centre before he'd become her doctor but it seemed impossible to find out anything about him. He remained anonymous. However, what she wanted most was to destroy the wall he'd erected around himself. She wanted to get closer to him than anyone had.

'Catsy, would you mind undressing so we can start your physical?' –Not that he did it himself. He only jotted down the findings and directed someone else to tend to her physically. It was all highly aggravating.

Scott watched as her gaze sharpened to a point in his direction as was her habit when he suggested such things. He was really starting to wonder if she had hated him on sight. He idly tapped his pen on the clipboard in his hand and weathered her icy look. It was hard for him not to notice in at least a little way how appealing Catsy looked when she was throwing him daggers but just as she had her habits, he also had some of his own. Her full pink lips had drawn his attention away from matters at hand more times than he cared to admit and it made him grimace inwardly. He didn't know why and he had no wish to find out. He thrived on isolation. So much so that the mere touch of another person could raise his ire and turn an otherwise fine day sour. He'd never touched Catsy Vere either and that was the way he preferred it.

'Not with you in the room.' She bit out. It was getting to be a very old argument already. Catsy found the endless testing tedious and it was getting ever more so as the years went on but that was never her principle concern. Not when it involved Scott Naughton. She wasn't merely a patient but a captive of the TLT Centre. It stood for Timeless Life Technologies and though it was a centre built for the benefit of the population at large, it was barbaric to its test subjects and she was unfortunate enough to have been born into it.

With a sigh Scott eased himself into the chair opposite the bed she was currently sitting on. 'We've been through this. I don't get any sort of perverse pleasure out of you removing your clothes. I am only asking this in a professional capacity.' He sunk down into the back of the chair as deeply as he could. He was sinking equally as deep into his own lies. With his many other female patients he could say the same thing and mean it.

'And I still say- that isn't the point. I don't like being treated like a lab-rat. Even if you are telling the truth, I've been lied to before. I was told the tests would stop when I turned eighteen. Why are they starting up again? I'm twenty!' She swung her arms wide and was satisfied that she had communicated her feelings aptly when he flinched. Scott's reaction pleased her. He'd no doubt thought that one of her hands would connect with him. She could credit him with that much. He had always been careful not to touch her in the slightest way. She could appreciate the gesture seeing as every test subject of the centre was only capable of feelings ranging from basically nothing to intense pain unless they were being touched by their proper mate of the opposite sex. It was genetic. The amount of pain depended on how pure the genes were in the particular subject –most were decidedly impure and thus didn't feel much at all. The unwarranted pain was a severe but incurable side effect of their genetics.

Since every subject only had one mate it was close to impossible to make a perfect match. All of them would inevitably become part of the breeding program but most likely without their rightful match, which made the typically enjoyable task of mating them; a form of torture. As if it couldn't get any harder, mates also couldn't simply be tested at random for compatibility. They needed to naturally gravitate to their mate where possible when they were physically ready. It was practically nothing more than a daydream to hope for a life with the correct mate.

If Scott wanted to hurt her; he wouldn't need to do much more than make contact. Catsy didn't need more endless tests to make her future any bleaker than it already was, but she would make the best of the life she had.

'The tests are starting up again because you're about to be entered into the breeding line.' Even as he said it he began writing in a recommendation that Catsy be put with a gentle man for her first time. He didn't like seeing her face drain of colour when he looked up to meet her eyes. He hadn't had her as a patient for all that long but he already felt for her. She was spirited and it made him realise that he liked seeing that quality still pounding strong within the people who were brought up in the centre.

'No... No—I won't.' She frowned resolutely in the face of the man she intended on having instead. It was true enough that it would cause her great pain to do so but that wasn't the reason she wanted him. Catsy wanted so badly to pleasure him. To have him hard and ready for her and see the desire in his eyes – all directed at her – that was what she wanted. So far he'd already conveyed to her very plainly that he was averse to the idea of using her for his desires. He hadn't said so directly, but there had been sufficient evidence to prove he must feel that way. From what she could gather, Scott found something about her unappealing. Sometimes it felt to her like she made him almost uneasy. She'd seen the way the other male staff and doctors would leer at her. Perhaps he just lacked the confidence or bravado that the other men had in this area. –It was certainly peculiar for a man as attractive as he was, but not impossible. Although a problem like that couldn't develop out of nowhere. It occurred to Catsy that his childhood might have been as turbulent as her own. The thought of such a thing gave her a pang of empathy for him.

He broke the spell with a scowl in her vicinity. 'Catsy.'

'I can't. I'm not ready. You don't understand!'

'I do understand but it can't be avoided forever. Believe me.' He looked down at the notes in his lap and considered the recommendation he had put down for her a second ago. 'Tell me, do you trust me?' Once the words were out his stunning eyes flicked up to latch onto hers. '—and my opinion?' The eye contact held them for an anxious instant until she found her voice and cleared her throat.

'I suppose I do.' She allowed in a weak voice. It really wasn't the half of it. She trusted him more than she'd trusted the majority of the centre's employees and it was only the briefness of their acquaintance along with sensibility that gave her some hesitation in being entirely up front.

Scott frowned decisively at the clipboard as he made some change to it. The question that had preceded the action gave Catsy a cause to grow uneasy. Not to mention the distracted air with which his right leg was twitching. The quirk wasn't like him, not as far as she knew. He was usually so calm and collected that the sudden change in him unnerved her and birthed a frown of her own.

'You aren't going to advance me straight into the program to get it over with are you...?'

'No.' He paused momentarily. 'No, I'm effectively postponing it. –Nothing to be concerned over.' His head was still down. By now it seemed intentional as it stopped her from being able to pin him with her eyes.

'Dr. Naughton, is everything all right? Am I not having a physical today after all?'

'No, you still need a physical.' He threw the clipboard onto the coffee table next to him but his eyes went back to it. She couldn't work out whether he looked resolute or just plain distracted. He leant over and purposefully slipped his pen into the clip before flipping it over so she couldn't read a word of it. 'Please agree to remove your clothes. Otherwise I'll need to get someone in here to do it for you.' The request was not said unkindly. He in no way wanted to cause her undue pain just because she wasn't feeling all that cooperative.

She nodded amiably in his obvious consideration for her well-being. 'Okay, I will. You know I was just wondering... Have you worked here for very long? I don't think I saw you around before you became my doctor.' She remarked as she began stripping off items of clothing. She'd do anything to distract him from the blush staining her cheeks. No matter what he'd said, she didn't believe that he didn't like watching her undress.

'Not long –a few months.'

'Do you live close by?' She ventured.

'I live here.' He wished that he'd thought before answering so hastily. Still, it was too late to take the words back.

That comment was enough to bring her head around to face him. She almost couldn't trust her ears. If he took residence in the centre it would be a simple matter to sneak out of her dorm one night and find his quarters.

'You mean you live in the centre like us?' She watched him falter as if maybe he'd said too much. Maybe he had.

'Yes. It's insisted upon.' In a way what he said was true. He was definitely encouraged to stay within the TLT Centre boundaries. –He chose to spare her the why. He inadvertently slid her a tentative glance. What was intended as a glance; turned into something less fleeting. Disturbingly enough, he couldn't force his eyes from her. At least while she wasn't aware of the scrutiny. Irritation rippled over his features. Women—to his knowledge—didn't look as captivating as she was looking now. Catsy was lithe, pleasingly curvaceous and wrapped in pale skin that looked soft and touchable. He couldn't understand why this woman's body was affecting him so much after all the years of not succumbing to anything similar over a woman. Women had never held much interest. Scott tried to pull back on his self-induced restraints with sheer will. –He didn't have much luck. Every now and then his body still had the ability to bemuse him.

'Aren't you going to call someone in to conduct the examination? Don't tell me you're going to start doing it yourself...' She caught him wincing when at last she chose to look back at him.

'I'll send someone in to do your physical shortly.' He explained in clipped tones prior to grabbing his notes and leaving the room with haste. He was out of the door before she could ask him why. She didn't like seeing such a strained look on his handsome face. It made her feel oddly drawn to do something about it, which was strange for her. Catsy and the others who were raised in the centre were technically clones of people who had once existed. –Or they were initially. The difference was that their DNA had been changed to make them not entirely as human as the original person was. They were still labelled clones but in truth they were immortals. The public was willing to pay a lot of money to buy something that was immortal for a life partner. The result would be a future of humans with increasingly longer life spans. The problem had been the cost required to produce so many 'clones' and so the TLT Centre had fallen back on the breeding program. It took longer but plenty of people were willing to wait. It was a thriving industry for the future of the human species.

Sounded perfect if you didn't happen to be one of their specimens.

Because of how Catsy, and many like her, had been reared she had a general dislike of people unlike her. By and large she had found the people around her untrustworthy and growing up in such circumstances had left her immensely cynical. In retrospect she second-guessed her own judgement in attempting to be friendly toward Scott. The one person she was trying to be nice to was rejecting her, as she should have known he would. It made her furious and it was directed more outwards than inwards. What had made her take the chance on him in the first place?

Another doctor knocked and entered without waiting for her response. Catsy tried unsuccessfully to cover herself. 'Miss Vere. I'm here to continue conducting the exam. I'd like you to stand with your arms out to your sides at 90 degrees and your feet at shoulder width, if you could please.'

After the health check she was left to simply put her clothes back on and return to her residential area on the centre's property. She'd never been outside the company's walls; neither had any other person like her that she knew of. Right now for the first time, she couldn't care less. Scott was well within her reach. If he was going to reject her – she'd no longer give him a choice in the matter.

 

Chapter Two

Catsy was on the final leg of her plan to snare Scott. She had already searched through files to locate his room and obtain a key. It was easier than she'd thought it would be. She had also managed to pick up a little something from their medical supplies to knock him out for a few minutes while she tied him down. She wasn't fool enough to think that he would give in so easily and there was no way in hell that she could overpower him. Not even if he was half-asleep. Though she hated the thought of using chloroform on him, she knew it would do the trick rather nicely.

Standing outside his room with duct tape and lengths of rope at her feet; she poured a generous amount of chloroform onto her handkerchief and let herself into his room. She waited inside the door until her eyes grew used to the darkness and she was able to pick her way silently around the bed to his slumbering form. As her handkerchief connected with his mouth she saw his eyes open in shock and felt a tremor rack his body as he strived to take action and work out what exactly was happening to him at the same time. His lids fluttered closed again soon after and she was able to breathe again. She hadn't expected to feel such guilt when she'd seen the panic in his eyes flare upon seeing her shadow in the dark. He wouldn't have seen much more than a dark shape and she somehow wished otherwise.

She brought the ropes and tape in from the hallway and locked herself inside his bedroom. She took a fortifying breath. She could scarcely believe that she was really going to do this.

 

When Scott came around it was distinctly earlier than she had assumed it would be. It was no surprise to him. What was slightly more surprising was Catsy's face coming into focus as she hovered over him. He understood the situation quite clearly when he found he couldn't move his arms or legs. The woman had tied him to his own bed and put duct tape over his mouth. There were no complexities over why she had. His head reeled to find a solution but there was nothing he could do to stop her. He was in the grips of something resembling horror already and it made him angry. –A lot of things made him angry. He wasn't very good at coping with that emotion.

'Dr. Naughton?' She had an unwarranted look of concern and confusion on her pretty face. The reason eluded him. All he could do was narrow his eyes at her and express himself with a growl. He glanced up at the corner of the room that housed the surveillance camera. With a much harsher, more frustrated growl he realised that he could expect no help on that front. The centre staff wouldn't make a move to help him. It was all too convenient for them. Earlier that day when he'd met up with Catsy for her appointment he had amended his first recommendation with a second one.

He had suggested to management that he be paired with her when the inevitable time came to put her into the breeding program. He had already avoided it for so long that he was pushing his luck. It was only due to how perfect his DNA was that he'd managed to persuade the company to let him assist them in their duties in the interim. –Seeing as he was damn near uncontrollable physically, they would have done anything for his cooperation. Recently he'd decided that if he needed to do it, it may as well be with Catsy Vere. She had captured his attention when countless others had failed to.

With a jolt he recognised her expression must relate to that which he'd kept from her. By the time she had pulled back the tape covering his mouth, he was resigned to his fate. 'Isn't this a bit drastic? Untie me.' He still wasn't quite certain how she had figured it out to begin with. –He must have grunted with pain from her touch sometime while he'd been knocked out.

'Dr. Naughton—you're a...' She trailed off, still unable to come to terms with her findings. The only sound was their loud breathing.

'Yes. What of it?' His mind raced as he endeavoured to establish whether he could talk her out of what she intended. He admonished himself silently that even now he was attempting to waylay the unavoidable. Then he started to relax. If neither of them got anything out of it; why should she bother to seduce him in the first place?

'You don't understand.' She murmured, enraptured. She reached out with her shaking hands and saw him stiffen to brace himself for the inescapable stab of pain that would follow her touch. Both of her hands made contact with his bare chest and his breath hitched.

No pain followed. There was only the strange sensation of a harmless touch. Warmth developed where her hands rested. His insides tingled with the new feeling. –Someone was touching his skin; for once it wasn't a sensation he'd caused himself. It felt better. It sent shockwaves of pleasure radiating from her hands. At first he didn't trust it. He'd never felt anything similar in his life and hadn't expected to. Not even in his most lucid states had he been able to conjure up what the warmth of another person would feel like. His lids fell closed on a fractured sigh, pent up for too long. Scott was more aware than most of how unfair and cruel the life of an immortal was. He was the centre's most flawless specimen after all. With a jarring conviction he suddenly wanted her close. His senses leapt with the thought of having Catsy held crushed to his body so that the foreign sense of heat could envelope them. He knew she must feel it too but for some reason she was holding back. The anger he felt over that fact was irrational given the circumstances but he was beginning to see that what he wanted wasn't mere want. It was, in actuality, a need. He could feel it searing his nerves. His body began to ache in so many places. It wasn't painful, more like a delicious ache that left you wanting. He lifted his eyelids to focus on the woman leaning over him.


Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 03-04



Chapter Three

Scott woke to his bed-partner's scream. After failing to get to sleep for a seemingly endless two hours he had given up—so it seemed—and found solace in Catsy Vere's bed. What he recalled more was hatching the idea rather than the actual act itself at the moment. Still, his whereabouts in these early hours of the morning spoke for itself.

He already had her cradled in the circle of his arms. Surprisingly, she hadn't awoken when he'd dared to hold her. He gave her a small, reassuring squeeze and then her struggling began. He was at a loss for what to do to vanquish whatever demons plagued her. Since his holding her seemed to be the source of her heightened discomfort he had started to think about releasing her. He was reluctant but he'd just about managed to pull his body away from her when she spoke, shocking him back out of drowsiness.

'No...! Please don't—it hurts! Please... I don't wanna be here... -please... I can't take it anymore...!' It was then he realised that she was breaking out in tears. That, as well as what she'd said, really made him angry. He had no idea that she felt that tortured in her life at the Centre. There had been many times in his younger years where he had fought his fate at every turn. Those events had diminished and their causes forgotten over time. He'd begun to accept his lot. Catsy obviously felt much worse than he ever did. He felt infuriatingly unable to help her in that area of her life. In light of that he was able to justify letting her roll away from him to the other side of the bed when she tried to push him off.

Without warning two doctors came into the room. One was brandishing a rather nasty-looking syringe. Scott eased himself up more out of bewilderment than for any other motive. They were an agitating interruption to his privacy with Catsy but as yet they posed no real threat. He could handle them and it was only a matter of time until they pissed him off enough to push him into action. Briefly, he wondered if they had been aware of his presence in Catsy's rooms before they entered.

'Naughton, we don't want any trouble from you.' This doctor was one that Scott instantly recalled as being harsh to patients so he was marginally glad this one wasn't the one holding the needle. He believed his name was 'Harrison' but his memory was exceedingly hazy at this hour of the morning and he couldn't be sure.

'Whether you're going to get trouble depends on why you've barged in here.'

'Catsy Vere experiences severe night terrors on a regular basis. Coming in to sedate her has become commonplace. She usually doesn't even wake up so she isn't troubled by any of this.' Dr Raleigh drawled as he readied the syringe. Now this was a doctor Scott was more familiar with, so he chose to address him over Harrison.

'You must already know that I won't be letting you stick that thing in her arm. It doesn't solve anything at all; it's just easier for you to shut her up and leave her with her problems. I am here now. I will handle it.' Scott still wasn't sure how just yet but he was sure as hell not going to let her be drugged.

'Harrison, restrain her. Scott you have got to understand that it gives her a much deeper and less fretful sleep. It does everyone involved a favour and we do need to act with consideration to the other patients living in this block.'

Scott moved closer to her as she continued her fitful slumber. It was a warning for Harrison to desist trying anything regarding her restraint. 'Don't think I'll be apprehensive about knocking you out; not even for a second, Harrison.'

Answering for Harrison, Dr Raleigh said, 'He has no choice but to attempt it. If we fail, we'll call for backup. Either way this needs to be done unless you can assure us you've got this under control.' Catsy let out another succession of screams interspersed with sobbing. Scott frowned and turned his attention to her sorry form beside him.

'Catsy... please—' at that moment Catsy chose to sit bolt upright. Tears streamed down her soft and gentle face and her crying became more pronounced. She was looking straight at Harrison when she made her plea for them not to hurt her. However Scott couldn't be too sure how awake she really was. He turned to Dr Raleigh, 'if you let me hold her down I might be willing to let you sedate her. Just get Harrison out of here or else I will.'

Dr Raleigh gave the barest of nods to Harrison for him to leave and though Harrison hesitated at first he knew he had to remove himself. Scott hadn't liked the reaction Dr Harrison had caused in Catsy nor the accompanying look on the vile man's face. For that reason alone Scott had been willing to compromise.

'You're going to have to hold her down firmly. Catsy hasn't been able to trust a soul here yet. And she's definitely not going to appreciate being held down by you. It's not going to help your cause.' Dr Raleigh made his way around the bed to where Catsy was sat shaking. Scott gently wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She was frantic and jerked her head around to look at him when she was pulled to his chest. Her panic did lessen noticeably. --Most likely because of the comforting warmth from Scott rather than him in particular. Catsy sniffed and cried quietly to herself, flinching when she was given the needle. 'It shouldn't take much longer than a minute. This lasts until morning.' With that Dr Raleigh took himself out and locked the door behind him. Catsy was still crying when Scott tried to pull her down onto the bed with him. She fought valiantly against both him and the effects of the sedative.

'Catsy... It's okay, lie down. Everything will be all right. I wouldn't let you get hurt.' He succeeded in getting her to lie down as the drugs took effect. Her struggling got weaker and weaker.

'I don't wanna be here...'

'Well I want you here.'

'No...! Get away from me...'

'I can't do that Catsy. Trust me, you're safe. It's just me --Dr Naughton.' This seemed to get her attention. She stared at him in wonder.

'Scott?' Scott smiled down into her glassy eyes, which were now backlit with recognition.

'Yes, it's Scott.' He'd never considered that she might not realise who he was. Now that Catsy knew he wasn't any threat she calmed down and stopped fighting the sleepiness. With what must have been no little effort for her at this stage, she lifted her hands up to rest on his shoulders and squeezed him delicately.

'Scott....' Seemingly at peace, she promptly nuzzled his neck and drifted back into the depths of sleep.

She left Scott aghast. He could very well be the only person in the world that Catsy Vere trusted at all. The very idea of it caused a smile to curve his lips. What was a first for her was also a first for him that had been a long time in coming.

Catsy was furious as she sat at one of the many breakfast tables the next morning. All of the people at her table were what she would loosely term 'friends' but with that said, they hadn't actually enquired as to why she was so visibly angered. She had to admit that at the moment it was a foible that worked for her. If she'd been forced to explain her ire it would only make things worse. Catsy didn't fool herself with thinking she'd be able to contain her temper. The resulting scene would have drawn attention to herself and she'd have been embarrassed beyond measure. It should have been a relief to be able to sulk in silence but she found herself incapable of feeling any sort of warm or positive emotion this morning.

She wanted to strangle him. That morning she had woken up groggy from a dreamless sleep to find trouble breathing. It had been due to the heavy arm lying across her chest that belonged to the large arrogant form of Scott sleeping beside her. --Without her permission to do so. Her feelings on the subject must have been misinterpreted, since he should have honoured her decision not to spend the night with him. Just because Catsy had said she wouldn't stay in his room that night, it didn't mean he must therefore go and share her room. Surely he must have misunderstood her for he couldn't be that high-handed, could he? With a frustrated growl she had answered her own question; of course he could! In her constant appraisal of him during the past month how had she missed such a jutting character flaw?

Summoning up all the strength she had in her bleary half-asleep state she had tried hefting his arm off of her. Nothing she did seemed enough to wake him. So deep it was he slept. At last it was Catsy sliding out from under his arm that had made his lids rise up ever so slightly and pin her leg down with his thigh. Scott had taken a deep languorous breath and chose to raise his brows indignantly before he even bothered to open his eyes fully.

The daft man had had the courage to smile briefly before opening his mouth. 'I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of sleeping so deeply or as soundly as I did last night. You had a similar experience, hmm?' Catsy found his sleep-roughened voice endearing that morning despite her anger at finding him in her bed. Indulgence for his behaviour had almost come to the fore until he'd dashed his chance for a reprieve by stroking his large hand across the curve of her breast. The sexual implication had been unmistakable and she had decided then that he must be the most presumptuous man in the whole complex.

'Dr Naughton—! I have been through nights like last night enough to know that the quality of my sleep last night would have been because of the drugs I was given and not, in any way, because of you.'

'Now that is a lie. --You've never spent a night quite like the one we've just been through. I can attest to that.' There had been an odd gleam in his eyes that he quickly banished before he continued. 'I take it you're upset at finding me here this morning?' Scott eyed her nightgown with distaste.

For a moment he was distracted by the thin silk that was covering her nipple from his view and he didn't notice how rigid she had become.

'Dr Naughton—'

'--Scott.'

'Dr Naughton, you had no right to enter my bedroom against my wishes. If you do this again I will...' To her, Scott had looked irritatingly amused by her lack of a threat.

'What...?'

'Well I'll...! I'll...' In the meantime she'd stalled by using the opening awarded her to get out of bed and search for clothes. Catsy was grimly aware that she wouldn't be able to stop him from making love to her seeing as in comparison to her, physically he was close to godlike in strength. TLT Centre staff was also an unlikely source of help now that they'd made it clear already that they wouldn't intervene. And she could only make guesses as to why. 'I'll stop being a willing bed partner!'

His eyes had narrowed for that was easily the only threat that would cause him concern. 'You can't mean that.'

'Really, I'm surprised that bothers you at all.' Came her cool reply while her head had been bent over an open drawer. When no cutting retort had floated back she turned to find Scott frowning absently down at where she had lain on the bed. He was still propped up on one elbow, hair in sleepy disarray, where she had left him. She began to question whether his age really was an issue because the man seemed awfully deaf.

'I'm not deaf.' He'd bit out before he could catch himself. Then, he tried to pretend he hadn't seen the startled look on her face. He raked his spare hand through the side of his hair. '—I was considering my weak nature. I wouldn't force myself upon you, even if your low expectations of me say otherwise. The horrible truth is that though we may reach such a stalemate, there are certain people that would take charge and make the decision for us. I can safely make the assumption that physical force isn't below them either.'

Catsy studied him critically, 'yes, why is that? All of a sudden the Centre seems to want us together. I realised after I came back to my room that they should have come in and put a stop to things since they would have been monitoring your room the whole time, but they didn't. They would have just let me rape you,'

Scott stifled a chuckle which drew her usual glare to him.

She continued, 'Nor did they do anything to remove you last night when they came in to sedate me.' He had winced bitterly at this stage but he'd no doubt known the question would come. There wasn't any point in dodging the issue.

'I handed in my formal request yesterday. --After you came to me for your physical,' he said; deadpan.

'Formal...' She'd started calmly. Her voice turned accusatory on the next word as revelation dawned. 'Request...? Y-you asked m-me if I trusted your opinion b-because you chose me as your...!' Her anger over the fact that he had done it behind her back without her being privy to his choice in the least over-shadowed the flicker of joy she'd felt at realising he had wanted her before she'd made her move for him.

Still blank-faced Scott finished her thought-line for her, '--mate. I chose you as my permanent partner. I've been putting it off for too long and I didn't think you'd be willing so I didn't bother asking. I made the stipulation that you weren't to be with anyone else so I knew I'd effectively saved you from the clutches of men who weren't going to be as gentle as I was. Naturally a lot of people would contradict that fact if you asked them but still—I did ask you if you trusted me. I found out by fluke after our appointment that they had planned to sell you to an aging man in America next year but of course; that's out of the question now because they wouldn't dare try to take you from m—'

'You didn't think I'd be... willing... so you -didn't ask?' The question had been put to him with a deathly calm that was deceptive. In one smooth movement he was off the bed and stood at her side. Catsy could feel his warm breath on her neck and with a feeling that she had been betrayed by her body she fought not to lean back into him. But fight it—she did. Catsy had spun round and confronted him. 'How dare you make assumptions like that about me! You—you made such an important decision about my life without even knowing what I wanted!' With that parting show of anger she had vacated the room. She'd been too angry to care about her lack of proper clothing and had changed into the ones she'd grabbed in the closest bathroom.

Her room was awfully quiet without her. Scott closed the two drawers of her tallboy that she had been remiss in closing before storming out. They were already down to making threats. Then again, he had to admit, what else could she do against him? As it was there was little she could use to threaten him. Perhaps he should make managing him a little easier for her... -Surrender some control? --He wasn't so sure that would be easy. Scott stretched his arms and shoulders, raising his eyes to the ceiling.

Looking around at what has been her home for the last two decades, he wondered if he could really come to know her. Her life hadn't been long but there was already so much he had yet to learn about dealing with her; so much of herself she had yet to share with him. By comparison he had to admit that he must be a daunting bedfellow. --In more ways than one.

There were very few trinkets lying about. People only had what they were given or what they made themselves. --And the Centre didn't give you much. There was a poor attempt at cross-stitch hung on the wall next to her door. A paddock filled with brightly coloured flowers. It looked so clumsy that he had to guess Catsy had made it while she was still a child. He also noticed a plush chicken in the corner -- or so he supposed -- with stitched features and extra material attached as little wings. It looked like the design had been chosen simply because it was an easier shape than a teddy would have been. He smiled imagining that all the other children had probably gone for bears or dogs while she had sat stuffing her chicken. There was nothing around that she'd made recently. The only other personal items were her clothing. Her jacket was slung over the back of her desk chair. A book he supposed was her diary was on the desk. She'd left her recreational hobbies with her childhood.

They had all gone through something resembling schooling from the ages of six to fifteen. It supplied them with the basics of what they needed to know to get by if they were to be sold into the real world. Not all of them would make it that far. All the prime specimens were kept for the breeding program. --At least for the foreseeable future.

Considering her compatibility with him, why had they been preparing to sell her?

Scott left for his own quarters and showered and dressed with the intention of heading to the cafeteria. He knew that's where Catsy had to have been headed. He'd just finished shaving when his doorbell buzzed. He opened the door to Dr Sparks, TLT's head of staff.

Sparks held up the clipboard in greeting, 'Naughton. --Big news amongst staff. In my office? There are a few things to go over.' Scott eyed the man impatiently as he buttoned his shirt and rolled up his sleeves.

He decided to relent, 'you can walk and talk. I'm on my way to the Caff.'

'The Caff?' Scott ignored Sparks' attempt at surreptitiously keying that into his beeper to forewarn the guards posted there. 'Any trouble?' Sparks reattached the beeper to his belt. Scott pushed past him and together they headed in the direction of the cafeteria.

'No. No trouble.'

'You know I wouldn't rush you, Naughton, but as soon as you submitted your recommendation last night the higher ups have been putting pressure on us to get you and Miss Vere settled in the breeding program. It's all they've been talking about! We've made the largest shared-accommodation room ready for the both of you to move into -- assuming that's the plan...?' When Scott said nothing, he continued, 'after last night, her cycle would have activated. You would have noticed how emotional she's been since then, yes? We are prepared to take action if you don't take steps to activate your own.' The look in Scott's eyes could have silenced a devil. They were stood outside the cafeteria doors. Scott had been ready to go in but he changed his mind and rounded on the man.

'Your priorities—the Centre's priorities—are not to be confused with my own. I understand how eager you must be to start accepting bids for our future offspring, but my relationship with her is more important. Not just more important than the breeding program; it supersedes your life.

I want to know why she was being health-checked for the breeding program while also being auctioned for selling. I get the impression all of you expected that she was a match-candidate for me and said nothing. I think TLT feared she'd be the wrong sort of influence on me and you were prepared to take her out of the picture just to continue this truce we've had these past years. You had all better watch yourselves if I find this to be true.'

Catsy had been surprised he hadn't followed after her or stopped her. Maybe he was smarter than she gave him credit for.

She didn't even realise she'd been frowning with a glazed look in her eyes in her companions' directions. The two of them were shifting uncomfortably under her gaze and nibbling their breakfast without much interest. Catsy caught herself and shook her head back to reality -- she was unsure why they hadn't just changed tables instead of sitting there bearing the brunt of her mood. She didn't bother to apologise. It was their fault after all... Although, she had to grudgingly accept that her lack of apology might be due to her sulking. --But why did she feel so open and vulnerable? Like her skin was being pinpricked all over... She focussed and scanned the room. Surely enough, Scott was over the far end at a table on his own and scowling at her. Catsy looked back down at her untouched food and reluctantly picked up her utensils. Why did he sit alone? Was he friendly with no one here? Furthermore, when did he start eating in the cafeteria with everyone else...?




Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 03-04



A pair of toned forearms with the shirtsleeves rolled up planted themselves either side of her on the table. Catsy refused to baulk or look up, instead glancing at the two girls sat at her table. They were sheet white, which confused Catsy enough to distract her until she felt the brush of his lips on her ear the moment before he spoke. It took her the space of a breath to snap out of the daze.

'You'd do well to see how I am thought of here. Now is as good a time as any.'

'I don't understand.' Catsy answered without turning. Her "friends" got up and fled as if running from a rabid wolf -- cautious at first and then as fast as their legs would allow.

'Do you never wonder why you haven't seen me before last month when I started assisting the staff? Look at the guards posted around the room. They just called for back-up and asked for tranquilisers to be on stand-by.'

'How did you hear that? You can't know that. I don't understand. Why do they fear you?' Catsy finally turned her innocent eyes up to him; her confusion evident in every inch of her face.

'You really don't know?' He almost laughed. 'I am their masterpiece -- a miracle of science and I am more powerful than anything they can handle so they take precautions. They do anything in order for me to cooperate with them and—they fear me. --What I can do. What I have done, in the past.' Scott held her eyes in stony resolution and Catsy understood that he was warning her -- that he wanted her to know everything. Or -- perhaps he was trying to scare her. Catsy was quiet for a moment and Scott thought she might not say anything.

'I see that they've been guarded and wary since you came in... Do they have a reason to be?' Catsy finished her question with a searching look back in his direction. Scott straightened from the table with a frown.

'No. I suppose they don't. My reason for coming here wasn't to cause trouble. --For them.' He added. There was a trace of a smile in his eyes. Catsy could barely bring herself to form a coherent sentence. When she opened her mouth, no sound came out.

She tried again. 'Well— I'm going for a walk. I don't like any of the staff, much less with tranquilisers. I have questions for you and I don't want them aiming guns at us.' Scott said nothing as she got up from the table. His eyes were fixed above her head at the guards and a muscle tightened in his jaw.

'You don't want me to do something about them, do you?'

Faced with the object of her previous anger and a question bound to prod her forward, Catsy slapped him as hard as she could across his left cheek. The blow took him by surprise enough for his head to snap to the right. A stunned hush had fallen on the cafeteria. Catsy had thought it was quiet before but the absence of so much as a whisper made the silence abounding. Catsy looked around at the dozens of horrified people sat in the cafeteria, not understanding what would warrant such expressions. When her eyes came back to Scott, he had the most peculiar smile on his face. Everyone started to look confused now. The fact that everyone in the cafeteria was acting scared of him made her angry. With that in mind, Catsy took his face in her hands and kissed him full on the lips. He was speechless once she'd finished with him. --He temporarily looked as if his mind had gone elsewhere.

When Scott took the time to check the responses to Catsy's stunt, he found he was oddly pleased. They were still confused, if not more so, but they were also amused. Furthermore, her actions spoke of protectiveness -- and he liked that even more.

His eyes landed on a particular woman in the crowd who had no trace of confusion. In fact, she looked intrigued and that bothered him somehow. He had to wonder why she was curiously lacking of any real fear of him. Mentally, he shrugged it off. Times were changing.

'Scott, take a walk through the courtyards with me.' Scott nodded and led the way out.

The day outside was already quite warm. They stuck to walking under the shade of the veranda and where the trees crossed over the path. Scott seemed quite content to walk in silence. Whenever she glanced over his attention was always somewhere else. His hands were in his trouser pockets. She looped her arm around his and felt him squeeze her a little tighter to his side in response.

He tried not to let her contact distract him, 'did you really have things to ask me, or did you just want to get me away from everyone else?'

Catsy mentally stumbled. 'I... No, I do have questions. But first, I'm sorry I got so angry at you this morning.' She had Scott's attention. 'I did sleep well and I couldn't really have expected you to be able to sleep last night after what happened—not alone.'

'You don't need to apologise. Changes are difficult; I know.' For a while they went quiet again.

'...Do you ever think of leaving the Centre...?' Catsy's question made him stop. The intensity of his look made her want to look anywhere but his face. She looked down to avoid it but only found herself looking at his crotch and so she blushed and had to look elsewhere.

'I used to think about leaving. Actually I have left on a number of occasions... but I've always come back. The outside world—we're not prepared for it being brought up in here—it's not something any of us should do on a whim. It has different rules and you have to fend for yourself -- make a living. Not to mention it's physically painful.' At that, Scott could have sworn her eyes were filling with tears. But he had to be wrong; Catsy wouldn't show such a weakness to him knowingly. It was a trick of the light.

'It's just... that I was hoping you'd take me away from here...!' Catsy wouldn't look up so he could see the tears; she turned towards the doors at the end of the courtyard that led back through to the dorm hallways. 'I think I might lie down for a little while, I have a headache.' Scott almost let her go. He didn't know what to do with a crying woman but he badly wanted her to lean on him if she would. The sight of her eyes tearing up gave him an weird sensation; as if part of his world was crumbling. He grabbed her arm before she got out of reach.

'Wait. Don't get the wrong idea. If you still want to go after we've talked and I've told you what I know; then all you have to do is ask—I'll take you away.'

'Do you mean it?' Catsy asked, wiping her eyes on her free sleeve.

'I would do almost anything if you asked it of me, Catsy.' She cheered a little at that and chuckled.

'Well shucks!' She laughed, 'sounds almost like you care about me when you say it like that.'

'I do.' When Catsy turned to him, the muscle was twitching in his jaw again. 'Do you think I missed you looking down at my—'

'Yes! YES! I know. It wasn't intentional...' She shook her head, 'don't change the subject.' He distracted her by taking her hand in his and turning them down the path leading back to her room.

'I'd rather we did change the subject. We have more interesting things to talk about,'

Scott not wishing to talk about caring for her left her feeling awkward. In the end, she shrugged it off. 'Yes, we do, but we have plenty of time for that. We don't have to talk about any of that just yet—' Catsy left the sentence hanging somewhat but stopped. She felt him glance at her profile. Scott opened the door at the end of the courtyard for her and followed after. When she came to her dorm door she let herself in and dropped down onto her bed, exhaling heavily. Scott still stood in her doorway. 'Thank you for bringing me back to my rooms.' She saw him nod once in her peripheral vision, his hands were back in his trouser pockets.

'I felt as if you were going to say something rather important back there.'

'Did you want to elaborate on what you meant when you said you care for me?'

'Do you really have a headache?' --Stalemate.

'...Yes... I think I do.' Catsy hunched her shoulders and slipped her feet out of her shoes.

Scott rubbed his eyes and rested his elbow high on the doorjamb. 'Look. Can I close the door?'

'Well naturally, of course you c— hey!' She wasn't sure why she expected him to leave. He softly closed the door and came to stand by her side. She refused to look up at him from her position. Instead, he knelt down in front of her and she had no choice but to meet him face to face.

'I won't play your games. That sort of relationship is not what I want.' It was the first time he had called their association a relationship. His whole body communicated his determination, like an aura it spun off him to pull her in. Her lips parted and she found herself staring at his mouth. She wanted him close. In that moment it stunned her how easily he could make her feel the pull of his heat. She couldn't think. Instead she acted. Catsy took a fistful of his jacket in each hand and guided him to follow her backwards onto the bed. He willingly obliged and shifted her further across the bed without her even realising. She closed her eyes once she was flush to his body beneath him. She sighed into his shoulder and felt his member pulse in response to the sound.

'If you had a headache you wouldn't have felt inclined towards anything physical with me just now.'

Her eyes snapped open to look disdainfully up at him. 'I thought you weren't going to play games.' Scott felt her muscles twitch to fight him. He quickly cupped her check and put his forehead to hers in an effort to calm her.

'No, wait. I only wanted to stop you from playing yours.' Catsy was unsatisfied with his answer and unnerved by how close his lips were to hers. Not wanting to be distracted, she pushed her hands against his chest between them and tried to turn away. 'You don't have to tell me anything you aren't ready to tell me. It won't change anything between us. And I do care about you a lot -- more than anyone -- but I don't think just telling you proves anything. Just wait and stay with me and you'll know -- you'll see it.' The plea made him feel open and vulnerable and that grated. Scott clenched his eyes and reached out with his mind; trying in desperation to read her thoughts -- hear her reaction -- but there was nothing, only a void he couldn't penetrate. Again.

Her soft lips fleetingly pressed against his and broke his mind loose. She had him wrapped in her arms, firmly steadying him, anchoring him in the darkness. He opened his eyes.

'I feel that I can depend on you when I need you most. --Like you can make everything okay.' Catsy swallowed hard, 'And that scares me Scott.' She could scarcely believe that she'd told him the source of her worries.

'I knew it was important.' Scott sat back on his knees and pulled her upright to sit astride his thighs. He could see she was side-tracked by their new position. There had already been a flush to her cheeks but they were becoming rosier now.

It was a moment or two before she focussed on him enough to notice he was smiling. She didn't know why but it made her eyes well with tears. It was happening far too much recently. Scott started to frown.

'Now what have I done?' When she wiped her tears on her sleeves his hands were right with hers, brushing the wetness from her cheeks. She sniffled and hid her face in his shoulder. His arms engulfed her slender back as he held her to him.

'Something about your smile just made me so happy.'

'Ah. Well, I liked your honesty. And what you said... it makes me very happy.' Scott was slowly stroking her back with his large hands. The air had become emotionally charged and she started to register the sensual undercurrent in his caress. '--Not that I was happy you're scared. I meant—'

She laughed, 'I know,' His hands continued and she hoped they'd never stop. '...When did I start calling you Scott...?'

She could hear the humour in his voice when he responded, 'I think you've been calling me 'Scott' in your thoughts for a while now. But the answer to your question is really -- you started doing it in the cafeteria.'

'So I suppose it's too late to go back to calling you Dr Naughton?'

'Please don't... Hey weren't we in the middle of something before all this talk of games...?'

Catsy ground her hips against the ridge she felt in his lap. She was rewarded with a groan and his hands stilled. He tried to curb her movements though he had to admit his heart wasn't in it. When she replied her voice was a little faint, 'I thought that was just your tactic to get the truth out of me.'

'No, the intention had been to let you have your way with me. As soon as you showed me you wanted me; I was yours,' inexorably turned on further by the truth in his own words, he closed his eyes and sucked air through his clenched teeth. In the next instant Scott was kissing her; quickly; deeply. The rush he got from delving his tongue into her mouth and feeling her respond was heating his blood fast. He could reach where he knew the remote was for her air-conditioning and he switched it on without pulling back from her. She didn't even notice when he was unbuttoning her shirt and unhooking her bra until he freed her breasts. His warm hands reached for them; cupped them. They were heavier than he expected. Catsy flinched. He couldn't fathom why the weight and feel of them made the ache in him that much stronger. He broke from the kiss to suck a hardened nipple into his mouth.

Catsy felt the edge of his teeth and failed to rein a moan back. Had her breasts always been so sensitive? She kept undulating in his lap. --Loved the feel of him against her. --Wanted to feel him naked there. --Needed his cock to slide inside her. Frustratingly, it seemed like he was in no rush. He moved to taste her other breast and gently squeezed the one he'd left. A thumb circled the peak; pinched it. Her hands were threaded in his hair of their own volition, it seemed. It hadn't been a conscious thought. Bit by bit, she was losing control.

His hand was suddenly between them. A shuddering breath escaped her as she heard his zipper and felt his erection spring out against her crotch. Even though she still wore her pants she could feel the scorching heat of it. Her hands were fisting his jacket again. --Pulling at him. She didn't fully comprehend what she was about.

'Tell me,' he breathed. She got up from his lap and stood, undoing her pants to take them off. 'No don't, you'll—' Scott didn't have to finish. Her legs were so weak she almost fell but she ended sat on the edge of the bed instead. Ordinarily she would have laughed but humour didn't surface. She was drowning in something far deeper. The tide of her own desire had already swept her away. From there she removed her pants. She was about to lift herself to remove her underwear as well but Scott grabbed her wrists. Something similarly strong had him in its grip as well. He placed them on the bed either side of her and drew her hips toward him.

'Put your knees on the bed and lean forward.' She almost didn't recognise his voice. It was deeper and harsher than she'd ever heard it. She did as he asked without question -- let him move her into position as he wished. The bed moved and she knew he was removing his clothes, and then she felt his hot skin against her back. He kissed her shoulder and pulled her panties to the side prior to placing his engorged shaft beneath her pussy. For a few moments he just kept her there in sweet torment as he stroked it back and forth over her slick opening. She was near whimpering as it was but it was as delectable as it was unbearable.

Without warning, he changed direction and the head of him went in. He continued to withdraw and push back only enough for little more than the tip to enter her. Catsy shivered with anticipation. She tried to push back and down but he would never allow her to take all of him.

'You're... so cruel...!'

She felt his presence move away. In comparison the air was chilly. She chanced a look back at him. Scott was sat in the position they'd been in before she'd gotten up to remove her pants. What she expected was to see a teasing light in his eyes but she saw none -- what she saw was far more primal. Her eyes were drawn to his cock twitching with lust. It was glistening with something misty white. She knew it was because of her and she felt an odd sense of it being proof that she'd staked a claim on him. So when he reached for her hand and pulled her to him it felt like her due. For a moment, with her hand in his, she was trapped in his green-fire eyes. She got a sharp pang of something unfamiliar. --Something ominously sentimental. It flickered and was gone. She forced it from her mind.

Scott was now paying an awful lot of attention to what she had let show by her expression. He blinked twice. Instead of saying something as she'd expected, he made his decision and lifted her onto him. He didn't appease her hunger. He left her sitting on his thighs and leant back.

Catsy understood. She braced one hand on his chest and leant forward to direct his throbbing penis into her. Feeling the cold wetness from earlier as it touched her swollen vulva and slid past it was almost too erotic for her delicate nerves. She sunk down on the length of him using her thighs to lower herself. His chest expanded beneath her hands until she'd taken all of him. However, she quickly realised that she wasn't able to move fast enough to satisfy her own needs. She switched into a crouching position, where she had more leverage to move. Scott's breaths were coming in short bursts just as her own were. When she started to tire, he placed his hands beneath her buttocks to manoeuvre her. Eventually she had to stop. Her legs were burning from the strain.

Scott got her to rest her weight on her right leg while he moved her left and spread her legs a bit wider. She was still catching her breath when he angled his hips so he could penetrate her from below. She soon forgot about breathing all over again. He was hitting somewhere delicious. --Repeatedly. She didn't understand why she felt it so deeply or what would happen if he kept doing it.

'Don't stop.' Finally it burst and shattered over her like fireworks. --Nerves firing everywhere. Her whole body was quivering. It felt different from the last time. This climax didn't make her so sensitive that she couldn't take more -- it shook her to the core and kept her wanting more. She hungered for it even as she continued to take it -- not daring to move lest the spell be broken.

When Scott could take no more of her quaking and tightening around him, he slackened the hold he'd had on his control and allowed the mindless pleasure to take him. With a final hard thrust he spent himself deep inside her. Catsy fell forward onto her knees and gave him a drugging kiss while the last of his seed was drained from him.

She rolled her hips one last time. Scott clenched his teeth and clutched his fist in her hair. She laughed and he growled.

Catsy awoke shivering shortly after midday. They'd been so hot and exhausted afterward that they'd fallen asleep swiftly; content to their bones. But now she was just plain cold! Wide awake, she sat up and wrapped her arms around herself. Scott was still very much asleep. It was a fact that their kind was highly susceptible to low temperatures thanks to the oddities in their nerve endings. Because he'd lived with the condition for such a long time she supposed it wasn't strange for him to sleep through it. He'd probably wake up if he was in any danger of hypothermia. She located the remote and switched off the air-con.

His teeth were chattering. She shifted over. With cold hands of her own, she reached out and felt his cheek. He was colder than she was. The two of them generated a unique heat of their own because they were matched so it woke him up. --Or she thought it had. His eyes looked shuttered. They were open and looking right at her but she felt as if he didn't see her at all. It worried her enough to get up and press the call button that would send for staff.




Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 03-04



When they knocked Catsy had gotten dressed. She let them in. The idea of summoning members of staff was loathsome but she found she was concerned enough about Scott to resort to it. The men in white checked his vitals while she looked on. When they realised she was still there watching them, she was dragged out and the door slammed in her face. The lock clicked from the inside.

A few moments later, the white-coated men came out and just vanished without a word. They offered her no explanation about how he was, what they'd done or what happened. Mentally, she huffed.

Inside, Scott was sat on the bed. He wore a frown, but otherwise appeared fine. Judging by the way he was holding a cotton bud to his arm, she guessed the doctors had given him an injection.

'Scott?'

That brought her a glance, 'I should have told you -- I take longer to wake up when the temperature is lower. Don't ever call them when I'm out like that again.' She closed the door and said nothing at first. Rather than going to him she looked out of her bay window.

'You were okay then. Did they give you adrenaline?'

'Of sorts,' he said dismissively. 'You were worried.' --Matter of fact. Scott swivelled on the bed so he could see her but her back was to him.

'I didn't know what else to do.'

Scott smiled a little to himself. Getting up, he threw the cotton bud in the waste bin beside Catsy's bed. 'Look, I need to get going. I usually help out teaching classes Thursday afternoons. But I've been thinking... they want to give us the largest shared accommodation in the complex. Will you go and check it out?' He asked while he dressed.

Catsy turned to him. Suspicion was in the tilt of her brow and the way she stood as if to face-off with him. 'I'm hoping it'll change your mind about our living arrangements.' He saw her chin come up a fraction. She was going to be stubborn about this. 'Catsy, now we're together it's more dangerous for you to be out of my reach. Just give it some thought.' Scott rubbed her back and kissed her shoulder before he went.

It left her feeling oddly bereft.

Chapter Four

What Scott found when he reached his own quarters did nothing for the frustrated fire of an anger he had already been trying to dampen. He'd been on his way to find the only Doctor in the Centre he'd known he could trust over the years. Dr Irving was the saving grace of TLT. It wasn't clear why he'd come to work for such a corrupt multi-national company in the first place. Scott hadn't felt he'd had any right to ask when his understanding of the world and the people who lived out in it was so skewed. He'd been too thankful that Irving was around to question the man's motives.

But that would have the wait.

The woman he'd seen looking at him with such unguarded curiosity in the cafeteria was stood waiting for him outside his door. When she felt his eyes on her she looked up and smiled at him.

Catsy got the keys from head office. She'd never been in the east wing before. Most of the paired couples lived there as well as the oldest of their kind. In her circle, they'd been called Primaries. Very few were left around with their sanity intact. The ones that were confined themselves to their rooms and never ventured farther than their own wing. The idea that she could be living with them was a little frightening. The stories about them had run rife for years.

The carpet in the east wing halls was different; plusher. There were scenic paintings lining the walls. She could have sworn she'd never been in this wing before but the paintings and purple patterned carpet tolled a bell somewhere. She put it down to a simple case of déjà vu and stopped in front of a dark wood door with the number 1010 emblazoned in silver above the peephole. The name plates on the wall beside it were blank. This was it. She unlocked the door and swung it inward.

She'd never imagined that some of them lived like this. There were polished hard wood floors throughout. It had its own kitchenette and furniture. --Not just a desk and chair like she had at home, but a three-piece set of soft leather sofas and a television with a glass coffee table. It was a real apartment.

Catsy couldn't help but picture a life here with Scott. She wanted it, damn him. Perhaps she was fighting for no reason? She'd been afraid she'd lose herself and her freedom being with him. So far, yes, there had been changes but they weren't bad. She liked the closeness they had. --The attention; the feeling of being needed and wanted by someone. Thinking about it now, she didn't know if she could keep away from him if she tried. She didn't want to.

By the time she'd looked through the three other rooms and come to the bedroom, with its raised dais and four-poster bed, she was decided.

She left the apartment happy and resigned. She knew he'd be so happy when she admitted defeat and agreed to move in with him. She pocketed the keys and turned to leave but an oil painting further up the hallway caught her eye. It was of an open field covered with colourful flowers in the shade of trees. By the time she got to the painting she was certain she'd been here before. She thought she'd dreamed that painting. Behind where she stood in front of it was an apartment door. The name listed next to it was 'Matthew Harrison'. Was it relation of Dr Harrison...?

'You could only be Miss Vere. --Naughton's mate?' A man the same height as Scott was standing in the doorway next door with his arms crossed over his chest. He wore glasses.

Catsy found him to be a bit intimidating. She looked between him and the name on the door once more before finding her voice, 'y-yes. My name is Catsy.' He appeared to be sizing her up. His eyes scanned her face as if it wasn't the most awkward silence she'd ever endured. After a moment he straightened and put out his hand to shake hers. She blinked blankly down at it. --Looked back up to frown at him. The man moved forward as she tried to step back and took her hand from her side to shake it regardless.

Catsy had been braced for pain -- had been just about to scream -- but though his touch zapped at first, it was hardly painful at all. He smiled at her confusion.

'--Theo Jacques. I'm a multi-compat. I'm compatible with mostly everyone. I'm also the oldest guy in here. I get used as the Centre's slut when they get desperate for a breeder.' There was laughter in his voice but the idea that TLT would use one of them in such a way brought another frown to Catsy's face. Theo shrugged and gave a lop-sided smile in response.

'Sorry, I had no idea multi-compatibles existed...'

'It's kept under wraps for obvious reasons.' He relinquished her hand.

'I grew up with rumours about Primaries. People say you have special powers, but you seem pretty... normal.'

He laughed at that. He stepped out of the doorway and shut the door. The inside of his quarters was darkened but before it closed, the sliver of light shining in from the hallway revealed a woman sleeping in his bed. Theo had found his matched partner as well, it seemed.

'No more 'powers' than your boyfriend, I assure you. He isn't much younger than I am but TLT had learnt plenty of new tricks in the intervening time.'

This sparked Catsy's curiosity. 'I wasn't aware Scott had any.' At this, Theo's eyes slid away from her. He was looking distinctly trapped.

'Tell me.'

'Trust me, I'm not against you knowing -- I feel you have a right to. But it is not my place.' Catsy thought he wouldn't tell her, then; 'I'll only say this -- have you noticed that sometimes he seems to know things he shouldn't? Considering who you are though, you would have blocked him for the most part without even trying.' Theo tipped his head to her. 'I'll be getting back to my room, but it was nice to meet you Catsy. We'd be happy to have you move into east wing.'

He took her hand and shook it again. It made her jump. She wasn't used to touching people so frequently. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice Theo going back into his apartment. Since he'd drawn attention to it, there were a few instances she could think of when Scott had said or acted a little... thoughtful. --Changes in his mood or thinking without any justifiable reason. And in her room this morning he had even mentioned something she'd just been thinking. She didn't know why it hadn't been obvious to her at the time.

Was it really possible that he had been reading her mind?

Scott fully intended to walk past the woman and find Irving whether she'd been standing outside his room or breaking into it. He hadn't expected her hand to shoot out as he passed and grab him by the arm. The pain burned. He flinched and tugged his arm out of her grasp. The pain had been mild; he'd felt worse. She couldn't be one of the lowest specimens.

'Scott? I'm Della. It's been a while since I've seen you in the Caff. It was good to see you again. Catsy has worked wonders on you.'

'--Naughton.'

'Sorry?'

'What are you doing here?' It occurred to him that perhaps instead of bothering to question her, he should just go ahead and leave. He shook his head without waiting for her to respond and continued down the hallway.

'I heard the call alarm earlier. They were headed in this direction. They injected you didn't they?' This stopped him. The look on her face was beyond innocent despite the words that fell from her mouth, 'soon the urge is going to get to be too much. Not even you will be able to control it. When it takes you over you will force yourself on her and you will get her pregnant. If you don't want that to happen perhaps you should expend your lust on me? --Save her from being just another victim. I'm in room 407.'

Scott walked away, ignoring her. He had no time to waste if anything could be done about what he'd been given. If there was -- only Irving would be able to help him. --Help save Catsy from him. 



Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 05



Hi all! Is there a way to respond to comments that I've missed...? It would be nice to be able to answer some questions directly that have been put to me about the story ... Oh well - it'll have to go here for now! 

I'm not too surprised that the premise of this story seems a little 'out there' (to put it nicely) or just plain unbelievable as the barebones of it was conceived when I was in my early teens. Yes, I have always been a pervert, but you get used to it after a while. 

The world of S.E.T is based on a corrupt future ruled by Industry as evidenced so far by the mistreatment of 'clones' by TLT. In this theoretical future the powers that be don't consider clones to be "real" people and that is why they are able to experiment on them and alter their DNA. Sorry, I believe I haven't explained that in the story yet. 

Thank you for reading - I'm happy to hear some of you are really enjoying it so far. Reading your comments made me very happy - and laugh some too. I enjoy hearing what people think of it and please do tell me if I've created any issues in the plot; it's very helpful because I don't often see the problems until much further down the track. 

(By the way, sorry it has been so long since I updated! I quite enjoy pursuing my other hobby, that is; anime art as well. These two pastimes of mine happen in phases, but I do try to interchange between the two where possible.) 

This chapter is story-heavy! 

-Love, 

ChaosRaven 

***** 

Chapter Five 

He hadn't touched her in almost two weeks. -Though Scott still kissed her every now and then and held her at night. Catsy wasn't sure whether there was really something wrong or whether this was normal for a "relationship". 

She pretended not to notice at night when he would wait until he thought she was asleep and then place a pillow between them to hug her. In the dead of night he would do things to her in his sleep. Catsy would awaken to his hand pressed between her legs and his hot breath on her ear. He would angle his hips as if to enter her with the pillow flattened between them. The feel of his body curved around hers as he fondled her sleepy body was usually enough to bring her to climax. She could only speculate as to how he managed to sate his own desires. 

He did spend a lot of time in the bathroom. 

Together they'd moved all of their belongings and furniture into the new apartment. After the first few days they had basically settled in. Scott had brought the surprisingly extensive library he'd stored in his rooms, and Catsy had been immersed in it ever since. 

Catsy was curled up in the armchair with one of his books when he came home. Although she heard him come in and felt his momentary assessment of her, his gaze slid away. There definitely had to be something wrong if he could hardly look at her. Instead of confusing her it just made her angry. Out of stubbornness she refused to put down the book to greet him even though she could no longer concentrate on the words in front of her. 

'I've been at the gym. You should come with me some time and boil away some steam.' 

He had no idea. Catsy schooled her features behind the tome so that when she finally pretended to finish the page and lower her shield; she only looked vaguely interested, but looking at him proved unwise. He was sparsely dressed in his thin tank and sweatpants, both of which clung to his broad frame with sweat. All of the muscles that she could see were pumped and glistening from his recent exertions. Every time he moved even a little, she found she paid far too much attention to how his muscles would shift beneath his skin. His arms were the hardest to ignore for her. She kept thinking of them around her; locking her to him. Or supporting his upper body as he strained above her - using his arms are leverage to— 

'You look hot.' She found she was unable to break the eye contact they currently had. Scott was paused midway through mopping his neck with the towel he'd taken with him. 'I mean you look a bit warm,' Catsy blushed. 

Scott appeared pensive. 'Mmm.' He broke the rigid air by taking a hefty swig from his water bottle. 'I think I'll shower.' With that parting explanation, he made for the bathroom. 

Catsy dropped the book in her lap and let her head fall back against the cushioned top of the chair. Sometimes she had to wonder if he desired her as much as she did him. No matter how she took that exchange, it was hard to interpret his reaction as one that bespoke desire. 

Though the state of their relationship was the biggest drain on her mentally, there were other troubling thoughts battling for precedence in her head. It was what had led her to escape into Scott's library in the first place. It did a halfway decent job of distracting her. But every time she left their apartment she would gaze down the hall at the door she knew was there. -The one which she remembered yet could not have known of in the first place. The memories were as if from a dream. Snippets of being led down bright hallways to dark rooms. Dappled colours in a painting that she felt could - and had - taken her far away. The name beside the door had tolled no resounding memories but the painting had been something altogether different. It gave her the oddest feeling. -Complex, to say the least. It gave her the impression of being a haven from danger but the feeling was years old and outdated. With her more experienced adult mind - it reeked of something more sinister. Time brought with it the distance that allowed objectivity. 

Scott emerged from the bathroom wetter and more naked than when he'd gone in. She barely noticed. Her attention drawn inwards rather than on the frustrating topic of him as it had been moments before. 

She must have been frowning up at the ceiling in a way that would cause concern, because she got a whiff of a fresh, spicy cologne just before Scott's face appeared above her. He was braced with his hands on the arms of the couch. The steam still sweeping off him in warm waves. Jeez, his forearms were distracting. 

'Catsy? Are you okay? You're awfully distant,' His eyes searched hers. She gave him more of the same back before answering. 

'I was okay. Now you're dripping water on my face; not so much.' She squinted comically and coiled her arms up to umbrella herself. A mischievous glint entered his eyes, making her suspicious. Scott began to shake his head like a dog all over her. Her limbs did little to protect her. Laughter trickled out despite her efforts to keep it in. After grappling with each other for dominance on the sofa; she wasn't sure whether it was by accident or on purpose, but they ended up on the floor. Scott laughed, pressing his wet hair to her stomach and dampening her clothes. Catsy's shrieking and tugging seemed to delight him rather than remove him. 

The phone rang and cut through the moment with its high-pitched trill. His expression sobered as he got up to answer it. Catsy thought he looked surprised at his own playfulness. It had taken her unawares as well so she couldn't keep the smile from her face when she reclaimed her seat and once again raised the book to her eyes. 

Scott raised a quizzical brow at the sight of her giggling over H.P Lovecraft as he picked up the receiver. 'Naughton.' He quickly moved into the kitchen upon hearing who it was. 'Irving. Good news I hope?' 

Catsy stayed half tuned in to his half of the conversation but it didn't make much sense to her. She heard him tell this "Irving" that he'd be right over and hung up the phone whilst simultaneously donning a shirt and jeans. Her pride stopped her from inquiring into the reason for the phone call or why he was rushing to see this person. She thought she'd known herself well enough to know she wouldn't be a clingy partner but lately she'd begun feeling somewhat insecure for obvious reasons and her sense of identity was fraying at the edges. With disappointment in herself beckoning to her from the shadows below, she wasn't likely to risk lowering herself further. 

'I'll be back before tea, Catsy.' He affectionately ruffled her hair on his way out the door. Catsy barely restrained herself from pulling him back by the front of his shirt and devouring him. Instead she dug her nails into the hard cover of her book. 

'Seeya.' No sooner than the door shut behind him, she gave up on reading. The book landed with a dusty thud on the coffee table. The noise it made on the glass top made her wince. She really had to be more careful, she wasn't used to such fine furniture. The bathroom door ajar in front of her was expelling the steam from Scott's hot shower and the enticing smell of him along with it. She couldn't stay in the apartment any longer. 

Since the day Scott had first sought Irving's expertise, nothing much had changed. Scott remained very much affected by the jack-up he'd been given. The injection was named as such not just because it forcefully started an immortal's reproductive cycle - it also multiplied their libido. It would have been okay if he'd activated it himself but they'd forgone giving him that choice after his confrontation with Sparks. 

Due to having such a potentially long lifespan, immortals had been forced to develop the ability to manipulate their reproductive organs in order to continue being a breeder for as long as possible. 

There were two weeks left before Scott's body would automatically reset the cycle. 

As soon as the electric doors admitted him to the main building, Della was there to intercept him. He didn't have the time, he had to be back soon as he'd promised Catsy - he'd have to make it quick. With a cursory check that the coast was clear in each direction, he ushered her quickly down a darkened hallway. Once they were out of earshot of anyone nearby he pinned her to the wall. -Trying to keep the pain from showing on his face took some effort. 

'Were you looking for me darling?' Della lightly traced his jaw. It tensed. 'Relax. The ache will go away soon. Let's go back to my room.' She took his hand to lead him away. He wouldn't budge. When she looked askance at him he only smiled and shrugged. 

'What's wrong with this storage cupboard?' She relented and stepped in when he opened the door for her, dragging her nails across his chest as she did. 'I've warned you not to do that sort of thing in public.' Scott's quelling look did nothing to vanquish Della's smile. She simply backed into the dark confines of the cupboard and pulled him with her. 

Catsy let herself out and flattened her back to the door. Thankfully, the hall was empty. For some reason lately she had been more desperate for touch - and attention - than she would deem normal. Not getting it was making her frustrated and irritable. They had been having their share of tiffs in the last two weeks. Though she had to admit it was usually her that caused the fights and she always felt huffy and guilty afterwards. Today they'd had been a rare moment of light-heartedness. And somewhere in her mind; the need for him made sense. She hadn't felt such a desire for a person before but she knew she had been taught that it would be normal after intercourse to feel the way she was feeling. She was obviously forming an addiction to Scott's touch since she'd lived almost a lifetime without physical affection. It still grated that she was dependant on someone else for her own wellbeing. 

She sighed. 

Standing in the hall as she was, the painting was almost in sight. It beckoned. Her eyes went in its direction and her body automatically followed. When she came to stand in front of it, it was as familiar as ever though no memories surfaced. The longer she stood scrutinising it - the further away any recollection of it would slip. 

The eerily even-toned voice behind her fit so snugly into the sense of déjà vu that at first she didn't realise it existed outside her head. 

'It could never be you - Catsy? Come to keep me company?' 

Her body chilled at the voice. She didn't want it to sound so familiar. 

'I'd like to say it's good to see you but you're so horrendously old now... I've lost all interest... -Unless you came to persuade me... Let me have a good look at you.' 

Catsy didn't want to see him but the nearness of his voice made her turn in the fear that he might be too close. His door was shut firmly between them. Only his thin slash of a mouth was visible through a hole suspiciously like a cuff port just above hip level. Whoever this guy was, he was put in handcuffs enough to necessitate such an opening in the door. 

The mouth twisted. She realised it was meant to be a smile. She'd seen one just like it often enough to recognise it. -Recently too. 

'I'll come closer if you tell me... what your relation is to Dr Harrison.' There was silence for a while. She'd turned her back on him again. -Rather that than give him the "good look" he wanted. 

He scoffed behind her, 'pfft. What has that got to do with you?' Then, 'have you developed an interest in me, sweet-thing? Dreaming of my roving hands in the night?' 

'What do you mean...?' The question spilled from her lips negligibly. Terrible curiosity mixed with the denial she had ready to pounce on whatever he said. -A toxic-tasting brew. She turned to face him without intending to. Catsy found herself pinned to the spot by a pair of black eyes peering through the cuff port. They were unblinking; fixed on her face. For the longest moment neither moved. She thought the eyes couldn't be real. -Blank as they were. They could almost be glass. 

His harsh laughter made her jump. He'd vanished from the cuff port but the laughter continued around his cell. Its volume increased and became nearly manic. Catsy was already fleeing the building. She had to get as far away from Matthew Harrison as possible. She couldn't stomach anymore of his laughter. 

Catsy almost knocked the coffee out of Dr Harrison's hand as she passed him headed in the opposite direction. The coffee sloshed over the rim of his mug onto his shirt. It was burning hot if his grimace was any clue. His face went red. He took a quick glance back at where the cameras were. Catsy was shaken. Mid-way through her garbled apology he blocked the closest camera with his body and back-handed her quickly across her right cheek, dropping his files to do so. Afterwards he bent to pick them up. The anger hadn't left his face. Presumably, he wished to take it further but the surveillance cameras prevented him. 

Harrison then strode away as if she'd been a fly he swatted, leaving Catsy holding her cheek. The blow had made her nerve endings spark painfully in affront to the contact. She wanted to believe he had forgotten that a mere touch to her skin would have been unbearable from him. Of course given who it was; she could be reasonably sure he had forgotten nothing. The only good thing about being slapped instead was that the contact was comparatively brief. 

The lingering burn sobered the part of her that had been fighting to outrun demons. However, this demon wasn't pursuing her at all; lying in wait was more his style. -Like a snake. 

She felt dizzy. What did she think Matthew Harrison had done? He hadn't actually said that anything had transpired between them and yet she had jumped to the conclusion that something had. The man could be teasing. She allowed that it felt as if she had met him before. In the interests of her sanity, she wasn't prepared to go further than that. As for his sanity; it was clear that he need not be concerned at the loss of it any longer. Evidently that was a path he'd strayed from long enough ago to be lost in the woods by now. 

Catsy was sure there would be nightmares in store for her tonight that would require her sedation. Those black eyes alone were giving her shivers. The thought of Dr Harrison being the one with the syringe made it worse. Would Scott let them this time? More to that point - would he ever consent to take her away from the Centre? They hadn't spoken on the subject so far but she'd thought about it plenty. The new apartment did have its small part in distracting her from that final goal. If the two of them hadn't been fighting—tainting the peace she'd found with him—she may have been tempted to drop the idea altogether. -At least temporarily. As things were, even if it didn't work out between them they could always part ways. -But he needed to get her out of there first. 

On reflection, she felt foolish to have expected more dedication from him after he'd admitted caring for her. What did she want from him? It was a question that looped over endlessly in her head. 

Catsy didn't want to go back to the apartment with Dr Harrison headed that way so she just continued in the direction she'd run. She didn't really have a destination in mind as she went into the main building. Taking a moment to consider where she might be headed, she forced herself to smile back at the receptionist who had looked at her inquiringly. 

It was quiet. The slamming of a door made her look down the hallway to her right. Scott emerged from its depths looking flustered. 

'Has something happened?' Instead of answering her, Scott reached for her cheek. At the remembered pain she had to stop herself from flinching back. 

'How about you? I sensed something a second ago. -Your cheek is red.' 

She faltered. She was unsure how much to tell him. There was no way of knowing how much he'd "sensed". Why was he able to "sense" things about her all of a sudden? Was there nothing sacred between them? 

'I was resting on my cheek while I was reading, that's probably why it's red...' He rearranged himself, dragging her thoughts away momentarily. 'I... um... but on my way I bumped into someone and I caught skin so it hurt.' In the following instant of silence she thought he wouldn't accept her excuse. 

'Were you looking for me?' 

'No, I just felt like a walk, I suppose.' 

'Tell me? I still have to go see someone but I can hurry back,' 

He knew something was wrong. She decided a couple of centuries was plenty of time for him to have mastered reading people; even women. 'What can you tell me about Matthew Harrison?' Nothing about Scott's expression seemed to change; however, his eyes were distinctly darker than usual. They appeared to change with his mood. At the moment they resembled moss in colour though they were as hard as the stone it grows on. 

'He is confined in our wing. Did you have a run-in with him?' Catsy nodded once - no elaboration. 'Stay away from him. He's not that old but he's a nutcase. Apparently he's only interested in adolescents, but I'd still rather you weren't on his radar.' 

'Is he related to Dr Harrison?' 

Rather than answering her he studied the way the light played on her dark tresses. Scott sighed. He was displeased with her—going by his expression. 'Since you don't intend to volunteer the information - which one of them slapped you?' 

'Neither!' 

It had been a while since she'd given him her daggers. Scott relented, 'okay. -At least tell me you'll be going back to the apartment after this?' 

Both of her brows shot up. 'I haven't decided yet.' 

'Mmm... Well I'll meet you back at home.' Scott turned to leave. 

'You said he's a nutcase - but has he ever hurt anyone?' 

Scott laughed humourlessly, 'I know he has the longest psych record in the history of TLT. -It spans three volumes.' Looking back at her frowning off into space; he couldn't stop himself. There was only so much he could take. Scott closed the distance between them and angled his face to hers. Catsy was still distracted though she knew he was there. She looked him in the eyes without believing he would really kiss her - it happened so rarely. Scott put his hands around hers to put an end to their fidgeting. And then he kissed her. 




Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 05



Ignition fuel on a banked fire. Before long her fingers were dug into the muscle of his shoulders like claws. It was all heat, heartbeats and breathlessness. She didn't know how long it lasted but she hadn't wanted it to end, despite standing out in the open where people would see. 

None of the passion she felt in his kiss showed on his face when he pulled away. He said nothing afterwards, just smiled and went on his way. It was as if she imagined the whole thing. She almost wished he hadn't bothered to kiss her at all. Now she was frustrated again. 

It made her more determined to make her mind up one way or the other about her past. Dithering wasn't settling either issue. If she wasn't prepared to know the worst of what happened then she knew she should let it go and concentrate on her relationship instead. If she was prepared; she should dive straight into the mess and get it over with quickly. -Like ripping off a band-aid. 

What Scott said gave her a lead if the inclination to investigate took her. 

In the end, she had to be honest with herself and admit she'd intended to give curiosity free reign from the beginning. 

Catsy waited around the corner from the records room. Unfortunately, the room was in a high foot-traffic area. There were too many staff members in the hallway to risk trying to slip in. People were going back and forth from their offices to a coffee room not much further down the hall. Most of them carried papers as well, which made her think there must be a photocopier or shredder in the same room. She didn't know most of them. They weren't doctors so they had no reason to have any direct contact with patients. A few she recognised in passing. Some things you never question if they've always been there growing up. They were background noise. 

If she wanted to get out of there one day, perhaps paying more attention to the smaller details of the Centre and its inner workings would help. No wonder getting out had been such a pipedream for her. -She knew nothing. -Noticed nothing. Scott probably had every staff member's schedule memorised. 

The hall eventually emptied. Catsy stepped out from the corner but as she did, another staff member stopped in someone's doorway. They sounded like they were having a leisurely chat about office gossip. At this rate she'd have to wait until they went home for the day. Office workers were amongst the only ones who didn't live onsite. She supposed it wouldn't be too much longer before they finished. However, she needed to be back before then if she didn't want Scott searching for her. 

Back behind her corner she went. The longer she stood there; the more suspicious she looked. There were people going past her as well. The looks she got ranged from basic curiosity through to downright disapproval. This was harder than she thought. She obviously hadn't thought it through very well. Her loitering would draw the attention of the guards soon and she would be dragged away. There was no time to wait around longer than she absolutely had to. She peeked around the corner again as the final straggler disappeared into his office. 

Catsy pounced on the opportunity and sped to the door of the records room. About the same time as she realised, to her dismay, that it was locked - a guard at the far end of the hall started towards her. He hadn't been in her line of view from the corner. If she tried to charm him, would he have a key for the door that she could swipe? The beeper on the guard's belt went off and he stopped to check it. Catsy didn't move. He turned away to get his phone out. He was making a call now? What happened to apprehending the trespasser? Catsy almost felt inclined to pout over being cast as insignificant. The guard kept looking back at her as if she was the topic of his phone conversation. -Not entirely overlooked then. 

The call ended. The guard looked chagrined by what he'd been told. He emptied his pocket; apparently looking for gum. Slipping it in his mouth, he acted as if he'd been called away and left. -Leaving the contents of his pocket on the ground. Catsy was astonished - had he done what she thought he had? It could be a trick or maybe someone was on her side. Either way, she didn't want to dally in the hallway longer than she had to. Another worker would surely come out soon. No more time for hesitation. Catsy dove for the rubbish the guard had left. -Ticket stubs, gum wrappers and a ring of keys. 

'Thank you!' Catsy whispered. 

Shutting the door behind her, the task ahead suddenly seemed daunting. The records room was cluttered. There were filing cabinets lining the wall on her left and along the back. Four rows of metal shelving and boxes stood in the space in between. There were also large boxes stacked in the closest corner which made getting to the filing cabinets difficult. She really hoped there was a filing system. Whether or not she'd be able to understand it was the next matter. On inspection, the dusty boxes in the middle held mostly personal items. Everything was bagged and labelled with numbers for referencing. She guessed there would be corresponding numbers in the patient files. Everything was catalogued. Despite their lollygagging; the office workers apparently did their jobs sometimes. 

She dropped the items she'd pulled out of the boxes and dusted her hands. It really was a bother to get to the cabinets from the door. Getting to the old psych files must not have been high on anyone's priority list. There was a small gap between one of the higher boxes and the shelving that she was able to scrape through by climbing up a ways. She almost fell out of the other side. The disturbed dust made her cough her way back to normal breathing. Once there, it didn't take her too long to find Matthew Harrison's file. It was indeed three volumes. You could only fit so much in a manila folder and the third looked fit to burst as it was. Matthew was well on his way to volume number four. The size was daunting. She thought it might be simpler to read her own file but gave up when she couldn't find it anywhere. They must have more than one records room. 

She opened the first volume to start at the beginning. As a child, Matthew read as being fairly normal - for their kind at least. His summary listed him as a multi-compat. From his creation date she worked out that he was little more than ten years older than her. Clones reached physical maturity quickly. That was what made the breeding program viable. It usually took twelve to fifteen years for males to reach their prime; women took a little less. Matthew also only had one doctor listed as overseeing his education and welfare - where usually two were assigned to each clone. In a way the doctors assigned to a patient's care were meant to be "parent" figures. Catsy's suspicion about the relationship between Matthew and Dr Harrison was starting to carry more weight. Dr Harrison, along with Dr Raleigh, had been her carers growing up. She reluctantly had to feel some pity for Matthew for having only Dr Harrison. Dr Raleigh had been a source of light for her in this dark place. 

There was no mention of Dr Harrison being Matthew's father in the first volume that she could see -which is what she suspected he was. Why someone—even Dr Harrison—would clone and incarcerate their own son; she could not fathom. Towards the end of the file, it reported Matthew growing out of his mild manner and starting to act out. He was stealing peoples' things - favouring anything with a sharp edge or pointy end. What followed in volume two were injury reports from staff. A lot of people quit as a result and that led to Matthew's eventual imprisonment in east wing. There seemed to be a lot of reports detailing experimentation on him. She couldn't be sure if his acting out was the cause or the result; the file was so jumbled. That was, until she read the experiment findings. After that she was quite sure Matthew's acting out was because of what was being done to him. The experiments involved operations where organs were removed and then the connecting tissue either side was reattached minus whatever organ had been taken out. The reports said that Matthew's body had to be kept partially open for days to observe the regrowth of the organ. The process was monitored to keep track of how long each organ took to regenerate. For some reason Matthew had the capability to regrow missing organs. Catsy had to wonder if that had been the purpose of his creation. TLT was harvesting his organs. The file didn't expound on where they were bound or why. If his body had been kept open for days, Matthew might have been awake for some of that. No one could have stayed sane after being put through that process repeatedly. There was no care spared for Matthew's state of mind, not even from Dr Harrison. -Though Matthew did undergo regular and comprehensive psych evaluations which took up a large portion of the file. 

Hundreds of operation and injury reports later, Catsy began reading reports written by Dr Harrison on Matthew's compatibility with other female clones. Matthew had rejected the idea of going anywhere near females that had reached maturity, despite being biologically an adult himself. Trying to force him had caused panic attacks. He had lashed out at more than half of those presented to him. A couple of the first ones had lost their lives due to Dr Harrison's lack of proper supervision. That's when children had been taken to him instead in the hopes that he would bond with them enough to carry that connection into their adulthood. Catsy knew she must have been one of them before she got to her own report. She got as far as reading her age before she threw the file down. She had been seven years old. 

It was stuffy and warm and Catsy had a driving need for fresh air. She pressed her back against the comparatively cold steel filing cabinets behind her. She rubbed the dampness from her forehead with the back of her hand. There was a strange kind of melancholy to be found in reading a file like Matthew Harrison's. She thought her own childhood had been bad enough but others had experienced worse here. Her perception of TLT was somehow distorting into something even more darkly twisted. 

She took a deep breath and bent over the file to finish reading. It wasn't very informative, but she'd known it wouldn't be from the other reports she'd read thus far. Dr Harrison had thought she would be a good match because her genes were fairly good and he believed she'd grow into an attractive woman. He'd wanted to pair her with Matthew. Luckily, for whatever the reason; that had never come about. The report said she was unharmed after her visit with Matthew, though she was in tears. It didn't say why. Perhaps she would never find out. At seven she would have appeared about fourteen - just the age that Scott said Matthew liked. She started crying not knowing why. She put the files back where she found them. It was time to go. 

When she got to the door she turned back. With thoughts of Scott and the past on her mind it was hard not to think of reading Scott's file while she was there. She didn't have much faith that she would gain admittance to a records room again anytime soon -not without help. She got as far as opening the filing cabinet for "N" -she could see his thick file sitting there in plain sight- but she stopped herself from pulling it out. His past was his own business. If there was anything she needed to know, she wanted to have faith that he would tell her. As tempting as it was, she slid the drawer closed. What he'd done in the past didn't change the man he was now. -And the man he was belonged to her. 

Someone was waiting for Catsy outside the apartment. It only took a moment for her to recognise Theo's partner. The woman had her hands on her hips and looked about ready to start pacing until she saw Catsy coming. 

Charlie bore down on her brandishing the angriest look her face could manage. 'You're late! Where have you been? And why are you so dusty...?' 

Catsy had forgotten that she'd asked Charlie to teach her how to cook. It was part of her plan to educate herself in preparation for life outside the Centre. 'Sorry, I lost track of the time. We can get started now,' she said as she dusted herself off. 

Charlie's moods tended to change as if triggered by a switch. 'Great! I thought we could make enough for all four of us. -Saves me cooking again later for Teo.' Catsy unlocked the door and Charlie twittered on behind her. -Looked like Scott wasn't home yet. 'We don't have to eat together, but I wouldn't mind doing that one night next week. What do you think?' Catsy hadn't had many cooking lessons so far. She barely knew Charlie since the woman didn't reveal much of herself at any one time, but it was already so easy for Catsy to see herself in Charlie. She found that she was closer to calling Charlie a friend than any of the women she'd known before her. Besides, Charlie had such a way about her that she could make you forget what was worrying you even with the most ordinary subjects. It was a gift all her own - her commitment to the mundane. 

'That sounds good. I'll tell Scott when he gets home. What day do you reckon - Thursday? He doesn't get back until late that day so we could take all the time we want.' 

'Lovely! Your place it is.' Charlie was always inviting herself over. It was pushy, yes, but Catsy was okay with that. As Catsy opened the door to invite her in, Charlie made an odd high-pitched noise, making Catsy jump. 'Oh! I need the ingredients for the curry don't I.' 

With the ingredients for a chicken curry in Charlie's arms piled as high as her chin, Catsy had to smile. Charlie dumped it all on the kitchen counter. Several containers and cans rolled away from her but she managed to steady all of them before they fell. Catsy picked up the onion that Charlie had unwittingly dropped on the way. With her hands on her hips again and a grin on her face, Charlie looked fairly proud of herself. 

'You'll want to put that in your freezer for a good half hour before tackling it. -Unless you like crying for no good reason.' 

Catsy turned and placed the onion in the freezer, along with a second one that Charlie passed to her. 

There were many things that could make a child cry; they were innumerable. So rationally speaking, it might have been nothing more than a raised voice that had set her seven year-old self off. -That almost quieted her emotions. 

Of course, she'd also had the mental capacity of a teenager at the time. -And she'd blocked out all memory of both the man and the building. There had to be a reason for that. 

For a moment that thought paralysed her. She needed Charlie to keep talking. 

'Did you know you were paired with Theo as soon as you met him?' 

Charlie's laughter tinkled out of her. She'd already found cutting boards and knives and was crushing garlic cloves with the back of a cleaver. She motioned for Catsy to start on the chillies. 'I'd leave the seeds out unless you want it super-hot. -Don't rub your eyes either.' She sighed and slid Catsy a sober look, 'what makes you think we're paired?' 

Catsy was surprised. 'I just... It's so obvious you love each other... I thought you must be.' 

'Multi-compats can't be paired, as far as we know. Besides, a pairing doesn't guarantee a love-bond. It doesn't even guarantee that they'll treat each other well.' 

'Doesn't that mean you feel some pain when you touch Theo?' Though Catsy never thought she'd see the day—Charlie blushed. 

'I believe he feels it a little more than I, though the pain isn't constant. That's how multi-compats differ - their pain varies only with the quality of the genes in whoever they're touching. I feel a little to begin with due to "what" he is. But... we love each other very much and we don't let that get in our way. After so many years, it feels quite normal.' Charlie glanced at Catsy frowning down at her thinly sliced green chillies. 'You shouldn't pity us. I would explain further... but perhaps not yet. It would only embarrass you, I think!' 

Catsy hummed thoughtfully and emptied the chilli seeds into the waste bin. 

'That's really given you a case of the DTs.' 

'Huh?' 

'-Deep Thoughts. Don't let it bother you, Cat.' Charlie flipped the chopping board, 'can you put two cups of rice on to boil while I dice the chicken?' 

If a multi-compats' pain was only based on the genes of whomever touched them - no wonder Theo had wanted to shake Catsy's hand - it would have been less painful than touching his own partner. Catsy was quite sure that if it were her in Charlie's position, she wouldn't be able to help feeling jealous. Catsy wouldn't blame her if she did. 

Scott returned just as they were adding the final ingredients to the chicken and vegetables cooking in the pan. What Catsy could see of his face as he bypassed them to disappear into the bedroom; was a forbidding mask indeed. 

'Are you getting hungry yet?' Catsy called after him. 

There was a delay, 'not especially.' 

Catsy turned to Charlie, 'he didn't have to say anything to me, but he could have at least acknowledged your presence.' 

'I think he nodded...? Don't worry about it. He's never been very friendly. I didn't expect that to change.' 

Once they finished cooking the meal they served it up into bowls. Nothing much was said after that. Charlie took her two bowls and left Catsy with the recipe before taking her leave. Catsy didn't feel hungry anymore. She left her own bowl to cool on the bench. She could re-heat it later. 

Catsy found Scott in the ensuite. His arms were braced on the sides of the sink and his face was dripping wet. 

'What's wrong? I take it the meeting you had didn't go well.' 

'No. I don't think it did.' From his tone she knew he didn't wish to talk about it. He wasn't saying much at all to her these days about what was bothering him. -Not that he had before, but she'd hoped it would change. 

'Dinner is on the counter if you want to eat it while it's hot. -Chicken curry. Charlie tells me it's only a very simple, quick way to make it but it did smell appetising.' 

'Yes... I might do that.' Scott straightened from the vanity. He gave his face a quick rub with the face cloth beside the sink. 'It does smell great, thank you.' He managed a smile, brushing his knuckles against her cheek. Catsy felt her face flush. 

Scott chose not to see how she'd awakened at his barest touch. She was too responsive and he felt dangerously tempted. He left her there - he could almost hear her heart thudding in response to him - but knew it could just as easily be his own. 

He ate his dinner alone in the lounge. By the end of it he felt a little better; more at ease, after he'd had a moment to calm down. Irving had concocted another serum to try and counteract the jack-up but judging by the mind-numbing impulse he'd felt even as he'd walked in the door and seen Catsy cooking with Charlie; it was yet another failure. He'd been waiting - hoping - for it to pass and be replaced by the degree of arousal he deemed normal, but it had never come. Then she had stepped into that cramped bathroom with him and he'd known that there was no chance of his affliction abating yet. 

Catsy hadn't emerged from the bedroom. He deduced that she must be napping. The idea of napping with her was an attractive one - safe. He would never attempt anything while she slept. He'd made sure of that by dulling their body contact through a pillow. It had been safe so far. But when Scott entered the bedroom and saw her hands on her breasts and between her legs, he abruptly shut the door. -A little harder than he'd intended. 

His body was suddenly screaming. He felt light-headed. 




Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 05



Catsy knew he had seen her. Her face grew hot. She pulled the blankets up around herself though she was still wearing most of her clothes. She was in the middle of deciding whether it was best to say something light-hearted about what he'd seen or to hide in the bathroom when he swung the door open and breezed in as if nothing had happened. 

'I thought you might be sleeping. I was going to join you.' Scott faced her without the slightest sign he'd seen anything strange the moment before. He slowly, warily approached the bed and took his pillow from beside her. 'I can do it elsewhere.' 

'You...' She was mortified. He was already backing away with the pillow between them like a shield. He looked ready to accept punishment and she was in a mind to oblige him. 

The muscles in his jaw were flexing. 'I didn't mean to... interrupt you.' His face didn't change. Scott felt his mind fog with thoughts of her desire. She'd been enjoying her body without him. 

'You're going to sleep in the other room?' 

Scott cleared his throat, 'I could stay here to nap, certainly. But... do you need a moment?' 

Catsy cracked. She charged at him, taking him unawares and pinning him to the wall. It stunned him. His lips parted but he made no move to push her away. 

'I need a moment of you.' Even this statement summoned no reaction from Scott. She dropped to her knees before him and unbuckled his pants to pull it out. His breaths were loud to her ears. 

It couldn't be that he wanted her after all this abstinence - surely. He'd been using every exit at his disposal. 

She looked up to him for clarification but he wasn't looking at her. His eyes were unfocussed, his face; partially averted. When she grasped his cock through his underwear and made to pull it out, she found it swollen and steely-hard already. As she cradled his erection in her palm his right arm shot out to brace himself on the doorframe beside him. Though she expected a rebuke, he said nothing. All this time and all she'd needed to do was attack him head-on? 

She turned her attention back to what was throbbing feverishly in her hand. Now that she noticed how engorged and unnaturally empurpled it was, she had to wonder how long he'd been suffering this way. Her brow furrowed even as she lost the ability to think of anything but the tower of a man in front of her. She felt small knelt in front of him as she was, but she was in charge - for now. 

Catsy took it into her mouth and suckled. She sank so deeply into her task that she didn't hear the wood creaking until the doorframe splintered and came free. It made Catsy jump and pull away but Scott's hands were there in an instant. He took her face in his hands and came down to her level. Before he kissed her she saw his face and understood - he had the expression of a man that knew what he was doing but was powerless to stop. 

His kiss was drugging and undeniable. If Catsy hadn't forcefully pushed him away so she could get up and go to the bed he would have taken her on the floor; she was sure. She removed her clothes as he looked on, slowly getting to his feet and prowling after her. She let out a small sound of surprise when he pushed her onto the bed and dipped his head between her thighs. He feasted on her. -His tongue, lips and teeth lightly exploring as if he really had been starving for her sweet womanhood. Again, she quickly lost the presence of mind to consider what reasons he could have had to neglect her all this time. 

The taste of her seemed to fire him anew. He emitted something between a groan and a growl and readjusted her; shifting his arms beneath her hips and lifting her from the bed. Catsy reached down and rifled her hand through his midnight hair. 

'Scott...' She felt a hard heaviness press on her pubic bone and then he was grinding against her softness. The velvet skin of his penis coaxing and caressing her delicate labia. Every time the blunt of his dick ran over her clit she arced beneath him in clutching desperation. It really had been too long. The breath hissed out of his clenched teeth. He sucked her full bottom lip into his mouth and kissed her deep as if he were drinking in the desire she showed for his body. 

He straightened between her legs and used his hand to massage her with his cock. Catsy couldn't take her eyes from the broken doorframe, having only now risen above the sensual mist between them. 

When two faces she didn't expect to see suddenly appeared in that same doorway they were so out of place that she didn't understand immediately. They took stock of the situation and quickly moved to remedy it. 

Theo yelled Scott's name as he came around the bed and hooked his arms under Scott's to forcibly remove him. As Charlie wasn't able to touch Catsy she located clothes for her instead and laid them over Catsy for decency - late as it was. 

'Why are you here? What is happening?' 

'That was close,' this from Theo; barely managing to keep hold of Scott. Catsy sat up and started donning clothes but Scott hadn't been deterred. He was pulling with all his might to try and get back to her. -Oblivious to the two spectators. Is this what happens when we don't have sex? 

Scott's behaviour was so unlike what she knew of him so far that she felt uneasy staying in the room. She had to wonder if he would have continued whether she was willing or not. It gave her a shiver. 

Catsy got dressed in the lounge. Charlie just smiled at her when their eyes met. They left dealing with Scott to Theo. 

'Will Theo hurt him...?' Catsy's red-stained cheeks hadn't lessened. 

'Only if he needs to... Actually we were sent to fetch you.' 

Catsy was confused, and she was sure it wasn't all to do with the disorientation that came with being torn away from satisfying her arousal. 

Charlie led her to a surveillance room. Catsy thought that Charlie would follow her in, but she was shut inside before she'd had the time to turn her head and check. 

'It wasn't a coincidence that I interrupted you. Sorry, Scott asked me to personally monitor your room after we discovered your air-conditioner had been tampered with. -But don't worry, no one else in TLT is aware of the camera I set up.' 

There were so many questions filling her head after those loaded words that she wasn't sure where to start with it. Catsy opened her mouth - frowned. 

'Horatio Irving,' the older man held out his hand to her before realising his mistake and withdrawing it with a cough. 'Sorry, I forget sometimes.' His face turned a little red beneath his grey stubble. Irving? The person Scott had met with today? 

'Let's pretend I was able to shake your hand.' Catsy decided that Scott's association with Irving was not a bad thing. 'Nice to meet you.' She didn't know what to say after that. She hadn't gathered her thoughts. It had occurred to her that Irving may have information on Scott that she wanted. The business with Matthew had thoroughly diverted her attention. 

Irving proved to be an awkward man. Rather than inserting an explanation into the silence, he nodded towards the bank of screens along the wall. 'I uh—' 

'You work in here...?' 

He coughed again. 'I do. I observe—make observations about all of you—I'm a behavioural psychologist.' 

'Why did you have me brought here, Dr Irving?' 

Irving pulled out a chair for her to sit at the desk and she obliged. 'Please—just Irving. I've decided I must step in where he can't...' 

'Scott? What d...' 

Irving sat down beside her and pressed a button on the keyboard in front of him. A screen that had been black lit up. She watched the footage of herself breaking into the records room quietly until Irving paused it. She looked at him blankly. 

'Was it you who made the guard drop his keys?' Irving shook his head slowly. 'Then... am I in trouble?' 

Irving laughed abruptly, 'no! Who do you think has been helping Scott get in and out of TLT for the past thirty years?' 

Catsy reclassified the relationship between Irving and Scott; they weren't just confidants, they were obviously friends. It made her feel a little jealous. She'd never had a friend for that long. -Much less one who would stick their neck out for her as much as Irving had for Scott. 

'I hadn't really thought of him as the type to need help,' 

'True. I begged him to let me help. His way would have been... Well! That's another story. Someone let you into the records room - I think you should be cautious from here on in. Whoever it is; they had something to gain by allowing you to find the information you sought.' 

Catsy debated brushing the topic aside. The matter of her suppressed memories was a private issue. She hadn't said a word to Scott about it and it wasn't part of her plans to either. Though, if Scott had been the one to find out about her foray into medical records she wouldn't have lied. She scrutinised Irving's face for sincerity before opting to place a tentative trust in the man who called Scott a friend. 'There are things I need to know about my childhood. I can't just stop.' 

'Is it worth risking what you have now?' Irving picked up one of the coffee cups beside him and tipped it to his mouth. He grimaced at the smell and replaced it with the cup that had been beside it. '-Because I don't think that will be last of it, if you continue.' 

Irving got up then to refresh his coffee. He shook the cup in question to Catsy but she declined. After the events of that morning she couldn't feel much less like having a coffee. -But that went double after seeing Irving turn his nose up at the smell of the only other mug in sight. 

'How did you and Scott end up being friends?' 

'He came rushing in here one day. I can only assume he intended to disable the Centre's surveillance because he was on his way out, that's for sure. -Or he was just giving some guards the slip; or both. I hadn't been working here very long. We got talking and he realised I was useful. Somewhere along the line I suppose it became friendship.' Catsy frowned at his assessment but Irving waved it off, continuing, 'we each understood the situation of the other. It was lucky that I had been here at the right time. Scott had only stayed put till then because TLT had kept waving the carrot of finding a mate in front of him. When I met him, he had lost hope. He was angry. My terms for helping him were that he had to come back periodically for testing whenever a group of girls had come of age. -Waiting for him to come back that first time... I was worried I would lose my job and possibly more.' Irving sat down again, 'and then, five years ago—' He clicked through the files on the screen in front of him and brought another video up on one of the screens. 

It showed Scott being sat in a chair inside a viewing room with one-way glass. He was wired up to machines and doctors took readings of his brain activity while female clones were paraded in front of him. Catsy watched as she herself was marched into the room for him to see. She wanted to look to Irving and ask why he was showing her, but she couldn't bring herself to tear her eyes from the screen. Scott looked bored, agitated even. -She couldn't interpret the brain activity that had appeared on the monitor they had hooked up to him. The doctors in the video made no comment either. Catsy wasn't sure what she'd expected to see. -Perhaps a side of him that he wouldn't show her knowingly? It was novel to have a way of observing him before they had met. 

'His brain showed signs of attraction only with you. We knew five years ago that you were matched but the higher-ups were still deciding what their next move was. You also hadn't gravitated to him yet. No one was sure when you would.' 

Catsy wouldn't take her eyes from the screen. This was a Scott she didn't know. -Before she existed to him. 'He's known for five years...?' 

'No. It was subconscious at that stage. -Watch; we tested the two of you further.' Irving located another file to show her. 

In this one Scott was lead to a room with one-way glass on all sides. There was no furniture in the room, just white walls and tile. The camera was positioned in whichever viewing room Catsy was in. She was blindfolded so she couldn't see Scott in the middle and was just switched from room to room over a few hours. Although the video skipped sections with no activity, she still wasn't sure what the point of the test was. She didn't think anything of note was happening - it was just doctors moving her from room to room while Scott waited in the middle room. Eventually a pattern became more obvious; Scott would move around the room while he waited but once he got to the wall that was closest to Catsy, he was less likely to move away from it. -At least she assumed that was what the test showed. She wasn't sure if she was just being egotistical. However, time and again Scott seemed to drift to whatever side of the room was closest to her. They even had her taken to the floor above him and it stopped him from sitting down. -Or rather, he sat down but seemed uncomfortable and stood. A few times, he would glace at the ceiling. Catsy was sure then; she really was the reason he was drawn to a certain place in the room. He had felt that she was there and instinctively wanted to be nearer. Afterwards he was questioned but found the very idea that there was significance in where he waited, to be ludicrous. To him it had been a pointless test - a waste of time. He'd had no idea what he was doing. 

'It's surprising that he didn't notice, given the mental abilities he has. It was probably because your bond was a one-way street at this stage - made it weaker.' 

'Why are you telling me this? Does Scott know how long TLT has known...?' 

Irving stopped the video and eased backwards into his chair. He slurped his coffee. 'No, I haven't shown him this footage. I'm sure he has suspicions though. His trust in the Centre has never been headed in a positive direction. -For good reason. What I've been trying to show you is that he has shared a connection with you longer than you know and it's taken a long time for the two of you to get where you are; he won't let anyone sabotage what you now have. I'm not able to tell you any details but it would do him a favour if you steered clear of him as much as possible for a while. The Centre has threatened to harm you if he tries to make you aware of the situation he finds himself in.' 

Catsy opened her mouth to demand he tell her but knew he wouldn't. Then she couldn't help but smile to herself as the pieces fell into place. Scott was avoiding her, yes, but there was a purpose to it. For now, it didn't matter what the reason was; so long as there was one. 'Do you have any more videos you can show me of Scott?' 

Irving grinned, relieved that she understood and wasn't going to ask questions he couldn't answer. 'I can set you up in a viewing room with hours upon hours of footage if you want. I could keep it free for you to use whenever you want.' 

'Sounds great!' 

Charlie sat, quietly introspective for more than an hour with scuffling and grunting going on, on the other side of the bedroom door. She was curious but knew better than to go in. 

Theo escaped quicker than she expected. Charlie went to get up from the couch but stopped when she saw how swollen his left cheek was. Blood was pumping freely from his eyebrow on the same side. It stunned her for a moment until she saw him trying to swat the blood away. He didn't seem to realise how much he was bleeding. He'd already smeared it across his face. Theo tripped over nothing and caught the edge of the sofa. Charlie grabbed a bunch of tissues and pressed it to his head. She removed his glasses. One of the arms was bent but neither of the lenses were cracked. 

He smiled, 'you know I can't see without those.' 

'How is he?' 

'He's fine. Irving gave me something to knock him out but I wasn't sure it would for a while there.' Theo makes to move but Charlie stills his head with both hands and shakes her head; he's still bleeding. He stands still for her. 'After walking in on what we did... -Are you okay?' 

'I'm fine. I feel sorry for Cat. Dealing with him when she gets home is not going to be easy.' 

'I don't think he'll still be uhh... "rape-y" when she gets back.' Briefly speechless at his wording, Charlie pushed the wad of tissues into his head a bit harder, making him wince. 'I'm sorry. I was trying to lessen the heavy atmosphere.' 

'Sometimes it shouldn't be lessened - least of all like that. Have a bit more tact, she's our friend.' 

Theo studied her face critically as she tried to stem the flow of blood from his head. 'We have things like that?' 

Charlie never knew when he was testing her. He said awfully daft things when the whim took him. 'What are you talking about? -Of course we do! I suppose that includes Scott... somehow.' She couldn't tell what he was thinking but he looked happy about her answer. She really wished she was capable of reading minds like Theo and Scott. He had promised years ago that he would never invade her privacy like that again and to her knowledge; he hadn't. But it resulted in weird questions every now and again. She had known about his eccentric nature from the very start. -She couldn't very well complain. 

Knowing there was likely a lot of adrenaline and testosterone thrumming in his body after fighting with Scott, Charlie reached up on her toes to Theo's height and licked his bottom lip. Anyone who didn't know him as well as she did would have thought he suddenly looked angry. Charlie knew better.



Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 01-02



With a startlingly fierce intensity, he knew beyond a doubt that he loved the woman gazing down at him. He knew it wasn't entirely a new revelation. He had known in part, yet denied it for longer than he cared admitting to. He'd loved Catsy as soon as he'd met her—officially—though he had steadfastly refused to accept that he could have feelings for her. But if they were meant to be together surely he could...

'Dr. Naughton... I'm sorry—I know you don't approve of this sort of thing... I just couldn't help it. I wanted...' She sounded breathless. Her eye contact with him was erratic. She was nervous.

The bonds holding him back were multiplying his frustration. He needed to reassure her and pull her close. His own firm conviction on the matter stunned him. It was completely out of character for him to want anyone even remotely close. She obviously wasn't sure what he wanted and that was what held her back from doing anything further. –Easily resolved. Scott fought to locate his voice.

'Come down here, Catsy.' If she had come to him she had to have thought he was a normal man. In which case, she'd wanted to pleasure him for whatever the reason. He saw no use in disabusing her of her mission now that both of them could find satisfaction. He lifted himself to her as far as the ropes allowed and strived to stretch far enough to get his face close to hers. 'It's alright. I'm not annoyed.' His voice was a rough placation. He wasn't naïve enough to think she mirrored his feelings for her but this was a start. He was able to give her the pleasure she must crave and they were in the ideal setting to go ahead with what they wanted. Even if she wasn't capable of caring for him, he could still give her this. He knew what the female half of those like him tended to be like. For the most part they were emotionally evasive. –That wasn't at all unlike the males either, for that matter.

She saw him hesitate and inch back when she didn't immediately obey him. He must've thought she was insane for wanting to do this to him and then apparently changing her mind. She nervously moved well within his reach. She searched his eyes and held her breath as he came forward again. His gaze being on her lips as he neared made her tense until his mouth caught hers. All of a sudden she was the one who was pushing him back onto the bed. She came down along with him and eased on top of him. A deep groan resounded in his chest in response to her sudden closeness. It tugged at her composure. She hadn't intended on pleasing herself; only him and thankfully she still could even though he hadn't turned out to be who she thought he was. The truth was something she was still digesting. If Scott Naughton was an immortal like she was and they could take pleasure from each other's touch, that meant—

'You belong to me...' He was whispering in her ear with no little awe. 'You are mine. I never dreamed I'd find you. You are everything I'd imagined I could want.' The claim uttered with such certainty made her shiver. She started to see with unwavering clarity that he wouldn't be letting this matter drop. Not in the foreseeable future. He may be the one tied to the bed but he sounded determined and in control. She began to wonder what she had gotten herself into.

'That doesn't mean I'm your's.'

He could beg to differ that detail from where he was laying. She was all but clinging to him with only her nightgown and underwear separating them. 'Either you take what you came here to get or you untie me and let me do it to you myself.' To his dismay she didn't remove all of her clothes. She stood up and slid off her panties. It was then that she paid attention to how erect he really was. He heard her gasp and read where her thoughts were going. 'You can take your time. –As long as you take me, I don't care.' He had seriously changed his tune from the persona he'd adopted for the past month.

'I didn't think you felt that way about me. You've been saying—'

'Forget what I've said.'

She knelt on the bed between his thighs and considered him. 'On second thoughts... I don't think I will do that.' She successfully smothered anything he had to say about it by resealing the tape over his mouth. 'It's all right—I'll still make sure you're seen to.' There was a very disapproving look in his eyes. However, he didn't attempt to say anything or grumble about it. She took his throbbing cock in her hand. The soft velvety skin encasing something so rigid made her head spin. Her desire to bury it deep within her made her feel curiously hot and empty between her legs. It wasn't a feeling she appreciated. Neither was she all that familiar with it but it was better than the alternative. Scott had acquired a dangerous look in his eyes and she wasn't about to take her chances by leaving herself so vulnerable. The resulting adrenaline rush could be exactly what he needed to break free of the ropes holding him. He didn't need that extra provocation. She wasn't at all sure that she'd be able to control him after this as things were. She could sense there were some unsafe emotions simmering deep inside him somewhere. Emotions she daren't lift the lid on for fear of being scalded. If she let things get too far; she knew there may be no end to it. –No light at the end that she could escape through. He would never let her leave if he got it into his head that he needed her.

The hand that was gliding up and down his rigid length stilled. He raised his head from the pillow to discern what she was doing and instantly regretted it. Catsy knew he was watching as she lowered her head to press her soft lips to the head of his staff. The view was his undoing. He gasped sharply and it shattered into a groan. He couldn't help himself. The sensation was intense and mind-numbing in its magnitude. It was a burning pleasure to feel her tongue slide about him. His whole body burned to the touch but his attention was focussed in one area and on the woman that was undoing him. She was simply giving. She had no intention of receiving. By coincidence, the one thing he desired now was to have the one thing she wasn't offering him. He longed for it but it was being denied him.

Her mouth closed evocatively around his swollen appendage. Scott's head fell back on another telling groan. The sound reverberated through every sensitive part of her. –Replying to a question his body had asked. She hadn't known how much it would tease her to appease his hunger. It didn't escape her notice that she was the only one in the world capable of giving him this. He hadn't experienced a thing like it in all his life. A lifetime was a long time to live not knowing what life had to offer and that was only the least of it. It was possible that he'd lived far longer than one lifetime already.

Scott visibly appeared to have reached some conclusion. He lifted and to her horror began pulling at his right arm, trying his utmost to free himself. Straining, he got the arm free and looked into her nervous face. His first order of business was to rip the duct tape from his mouth.

'There is no reason to be frightened of me. You couldn't have held me down during this, not even with chains. You had to know that Catsy.'

Inwardly she had to grudgingly accept that she understood his need. She hadn't been willing to offer all of herself yet but she couldn't avoid it now. –Admitting that much was easy. She didn't have a choice. She was no match for this form of persuasion and she wouldn't have wanted to refuse him anyway. She just couldn't. –Not him. Scott was too desirable to every sense she owned. What wasn't easy to admit was why she wanted to alleviate his mental anguish too. She longed to mollify him even on an entirely emotional level, though she couldn't yet comprehend the full reasons why. 

He untied his other hand while she sat between his legs helplessly awaiting him. When he was free to sit up he did so and hauled her into his arms. He'd wanted to do that ever since she had fondled his chest. Not being able to had been killing him. He held her hard and gloried at her slight frame and soft body. He was oddly honoured when her arms slipped around his bare waist to hug him back. Doing his best to ignore her startled gasp, he released her enough to kiss her. He immediately plundered the inside of her mouth with his tongue and she returned the caresses as eagerly as he gave them. Catsy moaned delicately and leaned into him further. Truthfully, her reaction took him unawares. He didn't expect such ready passion to ignite in response to him.

He juggled her while simultaneously undoing the ropes that kept his feet anchored. The only sound she made once she'd realised her predicament was a little noise of surprise. He was awarded a louder one when he moved to pick her up. Her eyes were wide with curiosity by the time he laid her down in the middle of the bed. He broke out in a smile only for it to melt away as she reached up to stroke her fingertips down the side of his face. The amusement he had derived from her had been forgotten and passion took over his features. She really seemed to be in awe of him. It was so unfamiliar and unnatural that anyone could feel this way about him that it was disconcerting. As much as he didn't like to admit it, it was a confusing experience to have someone take such a personal interest.

'Are you happy?' Catsy asked innocently. Under her fingers she felt rather than saw his jaw clench.

'There's only one way I will answer that question. If you would open your legs?'

'Can't I have the verbal translation?'

He raised an eyebrow. 'The verbal translation would simply be like subtitles for the action.'

Her brow furrowed and she folded her arms across her chest between them. Scott took unfounded offence at the action and frowned straight back at her. He was obscenely close to pinning her arms to her sides.

'I don't see why this question is so tricky to answer in a straightforward way. Does that mean you are happy?'

'What do you think?'

'I think you're being difficult on purpose because you don't want to explain your hesitation in answering.'

She knew that part of him was angry, but there was something else. She could swear there was sadness there in his eyes. There was a tangle of other emotions running through him. She could feel them as if they were her own. Why hadn't he just lied to her to satisfy her compulsion to ask questions? It seemed more like his response sprung from an inability to lie to her rather than an active choice not to on his part.

Catsy started to wonder where this sixth sense for Scott was arising from.

He contemplated her in a strange way before answering. 'Right enough. You didn't come for a prolonged discussion.' He paused as if he were reconsidering her question. 'But the short answer is yes, if it honestly matters to you.' She had no idea how much of a big deal it was just now to have him explain a part of himself to her. She just smiled.

–It was good to see her smile, he decided. She nodded and her look of contentment stayed in place up until he had settled himself by her side and he began lifting her thin gown up to her waist. Her smile faltered. Anticipation thrummed through every nerve he possessed.

He watched her closely to gauge her reaction as he opened her and slid one long finger into her slick entrance. She tensed at the intrusion and then relaxed, though still visibly nervous. Catsy was very wet for him and infinitely soft and warm. His whole body hardened in reaction to her change in expression. It went from openly curious to a delicate frown and he knew she was struggling to cope with all of these new sensations. Her eyes were closed so he felt much more comfortable watching and experiencing her than when her eyes were on him. He felt less questioned and more trusted, for it indeed took trust for a woman in her position to close her eyes in his presence. He reasoned that it wasn't likely she had heard about his reputation. Nevertheless she was being unquestionably welcoming of his needs. She bit her lip when he made a stroking movement with his finger. That telling sign of how she was enjoying the myriad feelings provoked him to push things that one bit further. He withdrew and sank a second finger in alongside the first. Her hands instantly flew to grab him. One landed on his upper arm and the other had a firm grip on the wrist between her thighs. Scott couldn't work out whether she was trying to stop him or guide him but she was failing regardless.

She couldn't stop him—couldn't draw his hand away from its purpose. Her breaths were coming in short bursts and she only partially managed to contain a sob. His thumb was gently teasing the overly sensitive bud that was her clitoris in conjunction with sliding his fingers back and forth into her. Her own vulnerability to this virtual stranger was causing a bitter distress to well inside her and she urged him closer with the hand she had up on his arm in a silent plea. She wanted his compassion however small the amount that he possessed may be.

Her hand slipped up to hold the back of his neck as he conceded and lowered his torso to her. He planted a feather-light kiss on her neck in experimentation. Her skin was as soft as he thought it would be beneath his lips. The feelings were so divine that it felt forbidden.

'Oh Catsy... I—' Scott stopped and swallowed the words he had intended to say. Mentally, he tried to shake his head free of whatever it was that seemed to entangle his emotions.

'What?' The tone of his voice had startled her. He'd sounded uncharacteristically emotional, which didn't suit him at all. Scott Naughton could be distant and unfeeling without being unkind. For as long as she'd been associated with him he had been detached from others. –Up until now.

'I—I think you're beautiful. I always have, I just couldn't say it before.' Catsy couldn't bear the strain she heard in his voice. He was fighting his self over this and she didn't like it. For their kind it didn't bode well to hold back because it invited frustration and anger. The men especially, were notorious for bottling up volatile emotions that needed venting. Some got so bad that they turned detrimental towards others and themselves.

She knew he needed a release and she wasn't willing to let him put it off any longer. 'I want you.' She pleaded into his shoulder.

An open-mouthed kiss placed on her bare skin diverted her attention from the hand that was causing tingling waves of raw excitement through her body. She knew the repeated motion of his fingers must be making him crazy with need. His roughened breathing was loud in her ear. It made her want him so badly that turning her head to meet his parted lips was automatic. He didn't expect it and buckled under her kiss until he couldn't do anything but sink into the passion she provoked. Scott was the one to pull free. He avoided looking into her stormy eyes.

She supposed it may not have been expected of her to continue such an intimacy. It implied a depth of feeling that wasn't part of the bargain they had struck.

'I... I like it when you kiss me... It makes me feel like you care...' She said by ways of an explanation. Too much of her was being revealed to him but she felt she needed to share the insight with him. Maybe it was the shock of such an intense shared intimacy that frightened her into, ironically, trying to close the emotional gap between them.

Scott wanted to say it. He wanted to tell her he cared. He had been about to tell her far more than that a minute earlier before he'd stopped himself. He cared about her in a ludicrously deep way that teetered on the edge of foolishness. He didn't want to risk her pushing him away. He didn't know her all that well but he'd always cared about what happened to her and how she was coping with her life at TLT. It hadn't been any of his business, but he had still cared ever since he'd first taken notice of her almost five years ago. Thinking about it now, the fact that she had stood out to him at all had been a sign that she wasn't just 'anybody' to him. Evidently, she had missed his compulsion to keep tabs on her. The thought made him wonder if she could in fact sense it through his kiss without realising it for what it was.

He couldn't say the words so he left it unsaid and traced his lips up the side of her neck instead. When he reached her lips he locked them with his tenderly and hoped she could distinguish the truth of his feelings without him needing to say it aloud. He had never said the words to anyone. He couldn't.

She licked her bottom lip, 'could you... maybe use your tongue like before...?' It took determination for him not to laugh at her request.

She didn't realise that she had opened her legs and before she could close them he was resting inside them; his slender hips cradled by her inner thighs. 'Didn't you also want this...?' He was kissing her and he gave her no opportunity to ask what he meant. He could smell the heavy aroma of her need; he could feel her damp, burning heat on the thick throbbing head of his cock. He couldn't handle resisting anymore. He flexed his muscles hard and pushed into her. The feeling was reality-rocking. Scott felt her body give way around his unforgiving intrusion and she yelped as it did. He continued to massage her clit with his slick fingers; thrusting as slowly as he could bear.

For a while all she felt was the pain. She was used to far worse but it receded until a definite pleasure began building to a height she had no way of knowing existed. She could hardly believe that she could have ended up ignorant of this feeling for her whole life if not for Scott. 'Harder.' –She found herself whimpering to him. Scott sighed with all the sweet relief he felt at her permission.

'Yes...! Deeper...' In response he lifted Catsy's legs and spread then wide open. He pushed the entire length of him in—pushed it so far inside that she squealed.

His hips forcefully rocking into her pushed her beyond the pleasure she'd marvelled at. He felt her climax squeeze him. Her shuddering body closing around him almost broke his control. She gasped and sobbed her pleasure with a broken exclamation of his name on her lips. Once he'd kissed her senseless—drunk in as much as he could of the woman who had finally let down her defences against him—Catsy arched her hips into him and he lost himself within her, trembling through an experience that shattered his view of the world. She clutched his waist and held him through it. Once he was spent he couldn't find words adequate enough to relate the moment as he saw it. He was sated and content but troubled that one experience with this woman could change so much of his life.

For a long time they were peacefully quiet, save the sound of their laboured breathing.

'...Are you okay? Was that—?'

'I'm better than okay,' She assured him, closing her eyes. Though to herself she had to admit that she'd be fooling herself if she thought there was anything more to having sex with him than what there really was. She knew she had to be grateful that she had found him in the first place. It would certainly make her life a lot easier and less painful. However, she was single-minded about trying to limit her contact with him in future. She wouldn't torment herself by disillusioning her mind in that way. She knew he didn't care about her, even if it seemed as though he did while they shared a bed.

'I'm sorry for not realising you were mine before. If I had known... I would have claimed you much sooner and you wouldn't have had to sink this far to get to me. I want you to stay in my quarters from now on. We've already wasted time.' He came to rest partly to one side of her. He brushed the backs of his knuckles across one of her flushed cheeks. She reluctantly lifted her eyes to his. The green in them was too piercing at the moment for comfort. She had to look away.




Sweet Eternal Torment Ch. 01-02



To him she was one of life's few unexpected wonders. How had he lived without her in the past? He had all but given up the idea of finding the woman he needed. The chances had been miniscule from the beginning and the long years had worn away his expectations, leaving barren land in their wake. Hope had been lost and in this one night everything had changed because of her.

'Wasted time? We don't have expiry dates you know. Time is one thing we have plenty of. Besides, I don't think I want to live with you... There's no need to do that.' She felt a subtle change in his demeanour upon her refusal. –A change not dissimilar to the onset of disappointment. 'And in no way am I yours.' She added firmly.

'We can still perish, Catsy. I won't take no for an answer –I want you here.'

'But— Wait. If you're an immortal... How old are you?'

Her sudden interest in knowing something more about him made his lips quirk. Sure, she had asked her fair share of personal questions during the past month that he had acted as her 'Doctor' but now they meant far more. He found himself wanting to intrigue her. 'If I remember correctly the number will be two-hundred in four more years.' He stated his answer in a tone that held no inflection. To his satisfaction, her mouth opened in surprise.

'You're that old?'

Astounding her, he mused, could be a newfound entertainment for him. She truly had no idea what she had gotten herself into by setting her sights on him of all people. 'Yes I am that old. Is that okay?'

It wasn't okay but not for the reasons he would have supposed. The fact that he was several times her age was hardly blink-worthy. His age in comparison to hers only made him more mysterious to her inquisitive mind. The real concern to her eyes was the quality of the long life he had lived up until now. What with enduring such a long existence fraught with pain, boredom and the everlasting cold that plagued their kind relentlessly—Scott had to have gone mad along the way somewhere. Catsy knew she wouldn't have coped had it been her. She was only just scraping by already. It was no wonder he felt as if time had been wasted. The real question was; how far was she willing to indulge someone so potentially dangerous?

When tears welled in her eyes at thinking of his past she was thankful the room was so dim. The loneliness in him was a palpable thing. 'No, your age doesn't bother me but—' She wasn't sure how she could feel two such conflicting responses while near him. On one hand she feared him and bucked under his influence, and on the other she wanted to submit to his wishes. '—but you certainly do bother me all on your own.' She mentally cursed. She couldn't bring herself to say a kind word to him. –Even after that.

'Why? You can't have everything your way and you did come here.'

Taking up the opportunity, she rounded on him, 'because you're high-handed and already showing signs of being possessive without any good reason to be. Hell, that's after the idea has been in your head less than an hour! It would be unbearable to be in such close proximity to you all of the time. Imagine what you'll turn into,'

'Unbearable, huh?' He swung his legs over the side of the bed and rubbed the red marks on his wrists where the ropes had been.

'Well... you know I don't mean unbearable exactly. I just mean that I probably wouldn't like it. –Not only that but there's a good possibility that you'd end up hating it too.' She sat up and kept track of Scott lurking in the shadows beyond the bed. He was pacing and though she couldn't be sure, she thought she could hear the faint sound of him grinding his back teeth.

'Yes. –Of course. Each of us is used to having our own space. I would drive you insane.' He had been rubbing the back of his neck but now he stopped and opened the door for her to leave. 'You can leave. If you want to see me or talk about anything, management can give you a copy of my weekly schedule.'

She finished putting her underwear back on and faced him, sitting back on the edge of the bed. 'And if you want to see me?'

'I'll find you.'

Her reply to the idea had hurt him. It was more than half obvious that it had, but he had to know that didn't mean she was opposed to being around him –not completely. He had to know. Except she was getting the inkling he was blinded to the fact by his own self-doubt. 'I'm sure you will. I can start spending more time in my quarters if you want. It'll make it easier for you to get to me when you need me.' She offered, standing. Her considerate proposal had him looking dumbfounded.

'I don't get why you'd—' He paused mid-sentence before going on with a different tack, 'Catsy, I don't want your pity.'

'It's not so much pity as it is an 'understanding'. I intend on being as accommodating as I can.'

'It's pity.' He maintained. She couldn't see his face due to the thick darkness that covered the edges of the room. The lamp on his bedside table didn't permeate the room much outside of a three-metre radius. It left over half the room blanketed by shadows. Therein lay the parallel to their short relationship thus far. She was always in the light- in plain sight for him to see, while he was forever veiled in the unknown dark. In truth, she was actually far more transparent to his eyes than she was yet aware of. As the knowledge would only make her feel more vulnerable to him he thought it wise to keep that information hidden for the moment.

'Of course, yes, part of it is. I won't deny that.' She also had to admit that she couldn't begin to understand what sorts of things he had been through in his life. Every estimate she made was based on her own experiences and she knew already that she was a very different person to him. For starters, he was a lot more patient and tolerant than she could ever be but she wasn't about to voice what she'd noticed out loud. That would be admitting she was going on assumptions alone and may well be wrong. –Being wrong was something she despised. 'If you have been through even a fraction of what I think you must have; growing up and living here at the centre, then it would be cruel and callous of me to deny what little I can do to help you. Not that I'm being selfless in all of this, mind you. I'm being quite selfish as well.'

'Oh yes?' His sceptical tone made her smile as she rounded the bed towards him and the bedroom door. She was pleased that she could lessen his foul mood so quickly and without much effort.

'Well I know you get mighty busy around here. And while I understand your need for uh... companionship, I know that isn't enough to make me worthwhile company for you on any other level. I'm sure I'd be a complete bore! I know how you tried to avoid me where possible while you were posing as a Doctor. Fortunately enough for you, I could never be a clingy woman so I have that going for me.' She chuckled. What she was talking about was only one of many issues to her mind. The thought of spending a lot of time with this man in the future was giving her a prickly, wary premonition of what was to come.

Scott didn't know what to say to that. She really didn't know? He had certainly tried to deny his attraction, which was why he'd stayed away where possible, but he had looked forward to their run-ins all the same. He wasn't sure if he was thankful or irked that she still hadn't seen through his actions to how much he prized the time he spent with her. With most other people he would scarcely make eye contact let alone respond to what they were saying. He only dealt with those around him in the most necessary ways and to keep himself occupied. The idea of her or anyone else being clingy was yet another alien concept. It was ironic to his mind that he now sensed that she'd rather not be around him.

But she was increasingly hiding parts of herself away from him somehow. She was foggy to him; shrouded in a protective mist. How was that possible? He could read most people with flawless accuracy.

Before continuing on out of the doorway and into the hall she paused and turned to him. Leaning up on the tips of her toes she kissed him lightly. His arms closed and tightened like vices around her when she made to pull away. His eyes closed on a sigh as though he was a dehydrated man getting relief from the summer sun. His hunger was already fast replenishing itself. He kissed her with a great deal more passion than she had bestowed upon him with her kiss. The new rampant thudding beat of her heart satisfied him—made him feel proud that he could summon it with a mere kiss.

'Stay.' He asked firmly. He hadn't meant it to sound like an order but in that instant it had seemed vital that she not leave him tonight. He knew the chances of being able to get back to sleep without her beside him were minimal. He would have regretted not trying to keep her close.

'Haven't you had enough for one night?'

'No. I don't think that's possible.' She felt daft for asking what now seemed like a rhetorical question. The difficulty came in reacting to such an emphatic answer. She found herself unable to take it lightly. Her eyes had grown as used to the dimness as they were going to get but Scott's expression was inscrutable and it told her nothing. Instead of being a casual statement it was beginning to come off as vaguely threatening. It was a promise. He wouldn't be letting her avoid him as was her wont to do.

When she didn't reply straightaway he spoke again, 'does that bother you...?'

'Does what bother me?' She'd been sidetracked by the intent behind his words.

'–How much—and how often—I want you. Catsy, I want you to stay with me tonight.' He gripped her arm as he said the words. She flinched under his touch. What he'd said must have done more damage to her than what was outwardly visible because now she seemed jumpy. Half turning, she put her free hand on the door handle to pull it closed behind her. There was a not-so-subtle message contained in the way he tightened his hold on her rather than releasing her. 'How will you get used to me if you start running away every time I pull you close?'

'You're over-dramatising this Dr. Naughton.' His lips kicked up at the ends at what she had called him. He allowed her to pull her arm away.

'You still insist upon calling me by such a formal title after sleeping with me? I thought you were over it.'

'I don't know what gave you that idea. I haven't known you long enough to be so relaxed with you.'

'You were more than happy to call out my first name when you came apart in my arms, love.' He smirked at how profusely she blushed. Catsy obviously didn't recall what she had said at the time but he wasn't likely to forget. That moment was forever carved vividly into memory. After all, he had never experienced anything quite like it in his life. –Seeing and feeling this most precious woman as she found the ultimate pleasure and gave herself so fully to him. Feeling that only once simply wasn't enough. And next time he wanted to feel her shatter several times before he surrendered himself. His eyes glazed. The very idea of it made his blood pound as he recalled the addictiveness of it all. He proceeded to grimace at how early on in the game he had been snared. In the past he'd been cautioned on how immortals could so easily become obsessed with the physical side of their existence once it was unearthed. Naturally, Scott had been in denial about being susceptible to the same pitfalls as his lower-rated comrades.

But he was no idiot. He could already view himself objectively and he knew the addiction had set in, even though the obsession side of things hadn't assailed him. Not yet—but if he could help it, he wouldn't ever let that happen.

'Oh, uh—I didn't mean to... Sorry Dr. Naughton but it is getting late and I still need to shower. If I stayed here I don't think I'd be getting much sleep at all.' Catsy didn't stay for any longer than the time it took for him to incline his head stiffly. With a flourish, she left.

 

Left to her own devices, Catsy gave in to the tears when the water hit her. A shower was precisely what she had needed to bring her back down to earth and now that she was back, she was awake to the devastation Scott would be sure to reap upon her ordered life. The thought of him carrying out a relentless pursuit of her; terrified her. Everything that was her would be lost to him, she just knew it. And it was all her fault. She never should have done something that invited such danger. The truth of it was exposed now that Scott wasn't around to bog down her thoughts. The revealing light of hindsight and rational thought was illuminating the horror of reality quite nicely.

Catsy's entire life would be different from here on in regardless of the different perspectives she tried. –All seemed hopeless. Perhaps she was exaggerating the extent of her dire circumstances but it didn't feel that way; not to her. Emotionally she was a wreck. Lately she had been noticing with increasing clarity that she could trust no one. Having to add just one more person to the list of people who would take every opportunity to use her to their own ends would be the last straw. The worst part was that this man could use her in a wholly new way she had never been used in before.

What was she supposed to do about that? The truth was; she could do nothing because she could be forced against her will in the instance of her refusal to comply. The best she could hope to do would be to accept her fate with passable grace. –She just wasn't sure who she would turn into if she did.