Plunge

[Harlequin]

Ami and Tucker arrived at the cliffs in much less time than it had taken Ami last time – despite her changing, stopping to gather up the necessities for their trip (After her last meeting with Cicero, Ami had broken down and bought a box of nicotine patches – she needed something to take the edge off while she was with the vampire, and coffee sure as shit wasn't cutting it), and Tucker's nervous chatter. It didn't occur to her that he wouldn't know why they were headed to the cliffs, so she didn't provide that information unless it was specifically requested of her.

Once they arrived at the cliffs, she lead Tucker away from the parking lot – ditching her boots by her bike and advising her companion to do the same – and toward the place where the cliffs met the beach. If Tucker asked her no questions, they did so in silence. The surf pounded less fiercely here, and Ami knew that the rocks  lining the rest of the cliffs gave way to deep water below. There were gradients in the cliffs here, as well – jutting ledges, and places fit for climbing barehanded.

But for now she stopped them on the grassy lip of a cliff, and scanned the area for signs of the vampire who'd directed them here.

[Saccharin]

Tucker stood next to her, his hands shoved into the pouch of his black hoodie, and tried not to think too hard about how high up they were. He'd broken bones falling from much shorter distances (like when he'd fallen off his bed as a kid), and knew that hitting even a couple of the outcroppings on the way down would mean some time in the emergency room at best, and at a funeral parlor at worst.

"So... What exactly are we doing here?" he asked, looking where she did but seeing nothing. Cicero wasn't within sight, yet.

[Trillian]

Cicero rose up from the ledge beneath where they stood, but did so without the need for hand or footholds.  With his arms at his sides he looked peaceful.  The way the wind whipped his hair about his face looked less than calm, but he didn't mind, nor the way it tugged at and flapped his clothes.  It was the best way of communicating what he needed to, to Ami, without the need for any kind of speech.  He stepped forward and his foot felt solid ground, once he finished that step forward and his second foot touched, he felt his weight drop.  Levitation was always harder to make look graceful on the landing, but with as much practise as he'd had, it had looked gentle indeed.

He moved to Tucker, then, placing an arm around the youth's shoulders.  He'd heard the question asked of Ami and looked her way, expecting her to show Tucker rather than tell him.  Of course she might speak up and describe it, too.  Cicero watched her mind intently, while looking at her face, keeping Tucker close to him in a protective kind of hold.

[Harlequin]

Every human had dreams of unassisted flight, but here was Cicero, actually doing it. Thus far, Cicero's displays of power had made Ami feel a lot of things – angry, intimidated, afraid and occasionally annoyed – but watching him float out of the air like some kind of risen deity the first time she was legitimately dazzled by the vampire. The feeling was momentary though, and she snorted as his feet hit the earth.

He was just showing off for Tucker. Asshole.

But that sentiment too was gone in an instant as he looked at her, and a grin spread across her face – the first real expression Tucker would have seen her make. She punched him playfully in the arm in answer to his question and walked backward a few awkward steps, stripping off her holey tank top top as she went. She'd changed into the black, thin-strapped sports bra she wore without shame in front of the youth, but this was the first Cicero had seen of it.

Then she was running full tilt toward the lip of the cliff and flinging herself off of it, into the void.

Cicero wasn't the only one who was allowed to show off.

[Saccharin]

Tucker gaped at Cicero. Had he really just casually walked over and put an arm over his shoulder, as if floating up from beneath the cliffs hadn't been a big fucking deal? Before he could fully wrap his head around that, Ami had taken the stage and then flung herself off it.

His eyes grew as wide as they could and he stared at the empty space she'd once occupied, rubbing his arm where she'd punched it. He hadn't thought it possible that the tattooed woman would've been able to shock him more than she had earlier at her place, when she'd taken off her shirt without warning (he'd averted his eyes quickly and made a strangled noise that had seemed to amuse her), but she'd proven him wrong.

"That's not what we're doing here, is it? I mean, she jumped, but I don't I have to, right?" His expression turned pleading. He desperately wanted to please the vampire, but even thinking about following suit had him fighting to keep his stomach down.

[Trillian]

You don't have to, Cicero replied, hugging Tucker a little tighter to him before shifting in order to kiss him deeply.  You can wait here for us.

Us, he said, and he demonstrated why he said it by stepping away from Tucker and following Ami in the same manner, disappearing over the edge and plummeting to the water below, twisting in the air so he would land feet first.

[Harlequin]

Much too airborne to catch any of the conversation above, Ami entered the dark sea headfirst, arms stretched out above her to break the surface of the water. The impact of a second body rocked her slightly as she kicked upward, and when she surfaced (all slick black hair and smudged eye makeup) she was surprised to find that it was Cicero that had joined her – still fully clothed – as opposed to their other human companion.

But there was smile on her face – an expression borne of pure adrenaline – and on a wild impulse, she shoved a spray of water at the vampire, splashing him as she called up to the unseen cliff's edge "C'mon, wuss!"

[Saccharin]

In his response to her goading - and against his better judgement - Tucker inched closer to the cliff's edge so he could peer down at the pair of them. When he squinted, he could see them bobbing in the surf below. Far below. He gulped and took a hasty step back, but one of his feet hit loose pebbles and slid from under him.

Time seemed to slow, and later, when he reflected on what happened, he would swear he'd been able to feel each and every rotation of his shoulder joints as his arms windmilled in an instinctual attempt to maintain his balance. It was a successful one, and he was able to throw himself backwards, so that he landed on his ass with a majority of his body on solid ground. Only his feet dangled off the edge, but he used his heels to push himself farther onto the rocks with assistance from his hands.

When he felt he'd moved the entirety of his body to safety, he flopped onto his side, hugging the ground with one arm and giggling breathily into the crook of his elbow.

"I'm okay!" he yelled out when his giggles subsided. "Think I'm gonna stay up here!"

[Trillian]

The splash had him sending amusement her way, along with a grin.  When she yelled her insult upward, he wasn't sure if Tucker would even hear it, and looked up while paddling in the water, exhilirated by how difficult it was, and using his mental talents whenever he sank a little too far.

Even Cicero hadn't heard Tucker's yell, for the wind tore them away from them, not swooping them down.  The vampire had seen some of the display above him though - from the peer down, which he knew would only cause the boy to lose the last bit of nerve he might still have had - to the awkward pinwheeling of arms and eventual disappearance.  He could guess what had happened, but didn't know the youth's state of mind.

Hold me tightly, Cicero sent to Ami, swimming closer to her and attempting to grip her around the waist.

[Harlequin]

Unlike Cicero, Ami could barely see what was going on above them in the dark. She saw the pale circle of what may have been Tucker's face over the cliff's edge, but that was it. Pussy. She snorted, and let her head sink below the surface, resting her legs for a moment.

It was odd, hearing Cicero's voice  in such perfect clarity over the muted, amniotic rumble of the sea surrounding her. But she kicked back toward the surface again once he was done...speaking. It took her only a moment's hesitation to reason that hanging onto him would be no different from riding bitch on a bike, so she complied, allowing him to grasp her about the waist. Once he had ahold of her, she wrapped her arms around his chest – tight, as he'd asked. All too aware of their proximity, she avoided his eyes, looking over his shoulder instead, out to sea.

[Saccharin]

By the time Cicero started levitating with Ami to the top of the cliff, Tucker had rolled onto his back and began contemplating the sky. Living in the city, he'd grown used to only being able to see a few of the brightest stars, but out where there wasn't so much light pollution, he felt like he could see the entire galaxy. Or, at least, the arm their solar system was on. Funny, that a band of dust and gas could be so beautiful.

He lifted his hips so he could pull his iPhone from his pocket, and with a few clicks, started a program that would turn his camera lens into a telescope of sorts. Finn turned the thin device so he could hold it horizontally and aimed it at the sky. The screen loaded a map of the sky, then spun and wobbled, finally centering on his position and labeling all the stars he pointed it at.

[Trillian]

Once Ami was firmly in his grasp, Cicero rose out of the water.  He waited for a few seconds, the pair of them only a few feet above the surface of the ever-moving ocean.  He allowed her a moment to appreciate it before slowly rising upward.  If Ami had ever gone on a helicopter ride, she would find this strangely reminiscent - only without the bubble of protection.  A motorcycle-helicopter cross, perhaps?  There was wind whipping at them once again, and Cicero was aware that Ami would be cold thanks to her wet skin and clothing - but it wasn't a chilly night.

He admired her, as well as enjoyed the vision of her mind.  He thought he even loved her, a little bit.  Halfway up he took advantage of the fact she couldn't push him away and zoomed towards the cliff face, pressing her against it and him against her, in order to look at her with heated want.  This was rearing itself up again, but he didn't have the excuse of making art this time.  She was so tough and so frail at the same time; her body could've been pulverised by the ocean if she'd landed in the waves wrong, or drowned if she'd hit a submerged rock in just the wrong place, or one day jump off something high without a watery landing below.  She'd been beautiful, in that single suspended moment, before gravity had grabbed her with its sticky fingers.  He wasn't a slave to such a thing, but his constant use of his powers (even at his ancient level) required more necessity for feeding.

I want to feed(fuck)from you

He realised he was sending her mingled, confused messages, but hey, that's just what went on his mind sometimes.

[Harlequin]

As they rose the bassist titled her head up to watch the stars, laughing even as the wind cut cold to her bones. If someone had asked her how it felt, she would've shrugged and said nothing -- but she felt like they were falling into the sky.

But the laughter was cut short as her back was pressed against the jagged rock of the cliff. Her smile vanished just as quickly, and her grip on him tightened -- wondering if something had gone wrong until she looked into his face.

Before the thought he spoke into her mind was fully finished, she pressed her lips against his in answer. Her kiss was savage, still, and laced with adrenaline -- but without the edge of mindless heat that had colored it on the beach. This was a risk she'd calculated (and deemed too high)  -- but he was here and touching her and beautiful and fuck the consequences.

Archer had hurt her worse than anything, but Archer was dead, and Ami had never felt more alive.

[Trillian]

Just as well Tucker was busy with the space app on his phone, for Cicero was consumed well below him, subtly blackmailing Ami into a response he wanted from her.  If she'd protested, he would've forced a kiss and flown back up to the top of the cliff with her, but there were no protests, only consent.  He knew feeding from her could have dire consequences, because his concentration would likely break as he fed, so sex would be the better option.  Unfortunately, he was very busy holding onto her for him to easily unfasten and free himself - he knew this without needing to try.  Her clothes would be difficult as well, wet as they were.  It wasn't impossible, but it would need a lot of work and he wasn't in the mood for that.  Frustrated and angry that yet another sexual interlude was interrupted by inconvenience, he broke the kiss and turned his head in order to scream a single word into the wind.

"FUUUUCK!"

He looked back at her, petulant and horny and primal.  He kissed her again, pressed against her more firmly against the rock face, realised he was only taunting himself, and grunted his dismay.  Adjusting his hold a little so that he was holding her more firmly, he levitated them both back from the cliff-face into the open air, and propelled upward at great speed, slowing and stopping very quickly once they shot past the edge, then lowered himself and her slowly to the ground.  He was quite a bit rougher in his landing this time, stumbling a little but managing to stay on his feet, almost tripping her over with him - but then they were stable and he gave her one last lingering glare of desire before he turned it onto Tucker.

[Saccharin]

Tucker had continued looking at his phone on the ground, murmuring about this and that constellation when Cicero had screamed. He sat up abruptly and had just finished clambering to his feet when they crested the cliff's edge.

He'd realized the vampire only spoke out loud under duress, and Cicero screaming made him think he'd nearly dropped Ami or collided with the cliff or something equally terrible, but Ami was there and didn't look hurt. Tucker looked between them, puzzled. Ami's expression wasn't one he knew how to interpret, but Cicero was looking at him like he had before he'd taken him up to one of Risk's VIP rooms, and that was unexpected.   

"Did I... miss something?" he asked, shoving his phone into his side pocket without taking his eyes off the vampire.