Dark Leather

The next day was slow, Ilana was in pain most of the time whenever she moved her arms, and she\'d been charged with cleaning the house up. Randy stayed shut up in the basement, the lights off, with no food or water, Celest didn\'t even act like she remembered he was there and Ilana wasn\'t about to mention anything about him. Ilana was almost relieved when night came and it was time for bed, though for some reason she felt a little lost when Celest walked into her room and shut the door behind her, leaving Ilana to go to the room next to hers.

She tried for almost an hour to go to sleep but she wasn\'t able to, it wasn\'t even the throb of pain in her back, it was something else that she couldn\'t explain. And so without thinking about it Ilana gets up from bed, taking her teddy bear with her, and silently walks out of her room and over to Celest\'s. She doesn\'t even think to knock, the fact that Celest doesn\'t like to be disturbed when she\'s sleeping completely slips from her mind.

Celest was almost asleep when she heard her bedroom door open and heard the soft sounds of someone walking into the room. She sits up with full intentions to lay her full anger upon who ever dared enter her room but when she spies Ilana, illuminated by the partially opened door, she just looks at her for a moment. She knew Ilana knew better then to come in in the middle of the night, especially after the beating she\'d only recently received, which made Celest more curious then anything as to why she dared enter, and with that silly bear held close.

\"Yes?\"

Celest says, her voice none too pleasant. Ilana moves further into the room and Celest can almost see the expression on her face, she looks like a lost puppy, with the worn extra large shirt that goes to her knee\'s and the brightly colored teddy bear it only adds to the look, except for the fact that the light shinning in from the hall makes the shirt practically invisible on her, leaving nothing to the imagination.

\"C-could I sleep in here, with you, P-please...\"

Oh, this was too much, just too much. Celest laughs, shaking her head slightly, amazed beyond belief at Ilana\'s behavior. Ilana takes her shaking head to be a no and starts to turn around and leave.

\"Stop, where are you going?\"

Ilana turns around with a very puzzled expression on her face and before she can say anything Celest motions for her to come closer to the bed. Ilana obeys and moves closer, closer, until her legs touch the side, it wasn\'t until she was that close did she notice that Celest wasn\'t wearing anything, she had forgotten that Celest prefered sleeping nude. The sight of Celest sitting on the bed, the blanket pooled around her, naked from the waist up, makes Ilana blush and look away.

\"Aw, come now, don\'t tell me your suddenly becoming shy.\"

Celest reaches up and places a hand on Ilana\'s waist, then slides it along her stomach and down to rest on her groin, she can almost feel the warmth there. Ilana stops breathing the moment Celest touches her, she holds it for a long time before it comes out in a rush, as Celest\'s hand moves under her shirt to caress her. When Celest removes her hand Ilana opens eyes she didn\'t remember closing. \"Come, join me in bed if you wish, after all you did brave my anger to come in here.\"

Shakily, Ilana climbs onto the bed, Celest moves back a little to allow her room. Ilana lays down, still clutching the bear close, and realizes just what could of happen to her, she knew Celest didn\'t like being disturbed, after all she had beat Randy for waking her too early, she could very well of done to same thing to her. Celest moves over until she\'s sitting ontop of Ilana, straddling her body. Gently, and out of character for her, she pries the bear from her arms and sets him on the night stand.

\"He\'ll have to stay there for now.\"

She smiles, her hands moved down the front of Ilana\'s body, stopping only when she comes to the end of the shirt. With the flick of her wrist the shirt comes up, and with little struggling it comes off completely, leaving Ilana naked beneath Celest. Ilana winces a little from the pain in her back but Celest seems to ignore it.

\"Mm, Yes, it has been a long while, and if I remember correctly we\'ve not been able to finish what we started when Peter called. What do you say to continuing?\"

Ilana\'s breathing becomes heavier, more erratic, but she says nothing, does nothing, her arms resting at her side. Celest leans down and kisses her lip lightly, then her cheek, behind her ear.

\"I\'ll take that as a yes.\"

At that moment Celest plunges her fingers inside Ilana who inturn cries out. Celest kisses her lips long and hard and before she knows it Ilana is returning the kiss, her hands at her side digging into the mattress. Celest\'s fingers play with her pussy, bringing her to the edge, but before Ilana reaches that peak she pulls her fingers away. She places her wet fingers on Ilana\'s mouth, tracing her lips, Ilana takes the fingers into her mouth and sucks on them, licking away the moisture with her tongue. Celest moves her fingers away again and kisses Ilana, her hands cup and caress her breasts, taunting and teasing the nipples on each one until their tight.

Celest kisses down her neck, between her breasts, then gives each breasts special attention before moving further down. She pauses a moment at her bellybutton, giving it some attention with her tongue, then moves her legs farther apart and kisses her hidden lips. Her tongue flicks inside and Ilana shudders, her eyes closed tightly. Celest explores her pussy completely with her tongue until Ilana is covered in sweat and goes from shuddering to moaning. Raising her butt up a little she puts more force into what she\'s doing until she feels Ilana give the final shudder and a plea for it all to end, warm liquid pours into her mouth. Celest sets her back down on the bed and looks up, into her eyes which are glazed over with pleasure.

Celest smiles and lays the length of her body against Ilana who draws a sharp breath of pain. Celest smiles and lips her hands between Ilana\'s back and the mattress and applies pressure. When Ilana starts to cry out in pain she kisses her gently, letting her taste herself on her lips.

\"That\'s what you taste like, like fresh strawberry\'s and whip cream, my pet.\"

Celest wraps her arms around Ilana and rolls onto her back, placing Ilana on top of herself. Applying more pressure to the wounds on her back and smiling up at Ilana.

\"Now, it\'s your turn to please me, my pet, let me taste myself upon your lips.\"

Ilana kisses her, as Celest had done only a few moments ago, Ilana leaves a trail of kisses behind, a wet trail that the cool air catches and sends shivers through Celest\'s body. Ilana kisses her pussy softly at first, almost as if afraid, then she becomes more confidant and allows herself to be more forceful, to do things she\'d never thought of doing before. Had this been why she\'d come in here tonight, braving even Celest\'s anger?

Ilana felt her body shudder almost violently as Celest climaxed, when it was over Ilana was good on her word and kissed Celest\'s lips, letting her taste herself. Celest pulls her closer, their lips connecting so hard that their teeth almost touch, Celest\'s hands on her back again, mixing pleasure with pain. Finally she ends the kiss and Ilana snuggles close to her, sighing softly. Celest chuckles and plays with her hair, slowly, though, they both drift off to sleep.


****


Celest had Randy tied and locked in the basement for a week, she would pay a visit to him once a day and \'talk\' to him, if she didn\'t like what he said, and she never did, then she would use the whip on him. It became so much that near the end of the week he was barely conscious for more then a few minutes, the pain too much to bear. Finally, on the last day, seven days after he had arrived, he did something so shocking that it left Celest quiet for a few minutes, he actually did what he was suppose to.

She could all but see the fight completely drained out of him, the night before he had barely uttered a word when she beat him, the sound of the whip hitting already damaged flesh had barely moved him, though she had taken pleasure in it. She didn\'t have to do much any more, their was hardly a place where their wasn\'t a red slash.

\"How are you doing this evening? Feeling better? Are you ready to do as told, are you ready to obey me?\"
He raised his head up, though only slightly, that little bit torture for him, driving pain throughout his body.
\"Yes, Mistress...\"

She had to almost strain to hear his words, but hear them she did, and they made her smile.
\"Very good. It wasn\'t so hard, now was it.\"

Laughing she moves to stand behind him, his whole body goes stiff, expecting a blow at any moment. Instead of a blow he finds his hands suddenly free and his body falling, his legs unable to support him. Celest yells for Ilana who appears within seconds and they both carry him out of the basement, up to the second floor and into the room beside her\'s, opposite side of Ilana\'s. Not that Ilana uses her room, it\'s more there as a symbol of what freedoms she\'s allow then anything else.

Their relationship, whatever it is, had changed from what it had been in the beginning. Ilana didn\'t seem to have the want to be away from Celest any more then necessary and Celest didn\'t argue, she wasn\'t even sure what to think about it all. What action is their to take when your uncertain about it.

\"Draw some water, make it hot, I wish for his body to be clean before touching anything.\"

Ilana acts without hesitation, running to the bathroom to turn on the water, making certain that it\'s on hot, though not hot enough to scald. She had learned a long time ago that Celest liked things kept clean, if it wasn\'t clean it had damn well get that way or she\'d throw it out. When the tub was filled they carried him in and laid him in the hot water. Celest stood off to the side as Ilana cleaned him, scrubbing away all the dried blood and dirt. What color their was in his face drained away completely and his breathing came in ragged bursts, the water was like salt in the wounds on his back, it had turned the ever present throb into knives at his back.

When Celest was satisfied they carried him back into the bedroom and laid him on the bed, on his stomach. Celest disappeared then reappeared just as quickly with a first aid kit, then left again, leaving Ilana alone to treat the wounds on his back. It made Ilana sick to the stomach to see his back, she had never been that bad, not even the last time when Celest had gone after her in a rage, not even then. Celest had a personal vendetta against Randy and Ilana only knew a small portion of it, not enough to paint a full picture but enough to give her an idea or two. The fact alone that he had killed Peter was enough to condemn him in Celest\'s eyes.

Ilana did her best to treat the wounds on his back but no matter what she did they still looked horrible. Some places had started to look infected but most of the wounds were clean. It was the mere fact that his back was covered in red welts that wouldn\'t completely stop bleeding that made her feel sick. Celest had come close to killing him...

When she left the room he was still laying on his stomach, unconscious. He had lost consciousness while she was bandaging him up, the pain had been too much. She had wanted to cry so bad that the urge itself hurt, and she still felt it. She knew that it would leave him with physical and mental scars far worse then her own.

She spent the rest of the day in a daze, checking in on Randy every so often to make sure that he was still alive and doing well. Celest noticed the change in her mood, the almost haunting look in her eyes. She knew what had put it there, knew the sight of what she\'d done to Randy caused the look in her. The last time that Celest had seen that look was the last time she had truly looked in a mirror, she had sworn that day never to look into another mirror again.

She didn\'t care about Randy, she still didn\'t care if she\'d beaten him to death. But Ilana did matter, she did care about her. Celest wasn\'t sure when it happened, or how, but she cared. And, with startling realization, she would do what was needed to take back the look of horror from Ilana\'s eyes, the pain. She knew just what she could do to take most of it away.


****


Celest and Ilana worked quickly through the day, each missing the other, knowing that sooner or later they would find themselves alone together. That time came when the sun set and it was time to go to bed. Even after everything Ilana still went to Celest\'s room, a mere reaction or a conscious effort, Ilana wasn\'t sure. Ilana was going through the motions of getting ready for bed when Celest\'s walks infront of her and lifts her head to look into her eyes.

\"I\'ll leave him be for awhile, let him rest. You\'ll have to take care of him, I\'ll be too busy with my work to have the time.\" Ilana nodded her head, she knew what Celest was doing and thanked her for it. She wasn\'t sure why she was doing it but she wasn\'t about to question good fortune.

\"Yes, Mistress. I shall do as you wish.\"

Celest smiles and kisses her, her hand caressing Ilana\'s face.

\"Yes...\"

The kiss became more urgent, more demanding, and Ilana responded equally.


****


Time became a blur as they worked through each day, never without something to do. Celest had decided at the end of Randy\'s week of rest to redecorate the entire house, spending a fortune, though mere pocket change, while doing it. So Ilana and Randy were charged with making certain everything was spotless, and ensuring that the old pieces of furniture made it outside, where they were taken away and donated to different charities, and that the new furniture found it\'s rightful place. During this time Celest noticed that Randy wasn\'t very good at listening and didn\'t seem to know the meaning of \'fast\'.
Celest hated to repeat herself and Randy made her do so several times a day, and then when he did get around to doing what she told him to he would. She had come across Ilana warning him to listen, his answers had been breezy. Once she\'d taken him aside and given him a good beating, but it didn\'t seem to help anything, he didn\'t improve and she didn\'t know what she could do to make him behave.

Summer had come and gone and fall was under way, lending a cool bite to the air. Celest hadn\'t started the heater up yet, allowing the cool air to seep inside the house. It wasn\'t cold enough to warrant wasting electric. She was the last to get up, having been a little lazy and stayed in bed longer then normal, and it was only the smell of sausage that had gotten her up and out of bed that and the loud growl in her stomach. Still feeling lazy she\'d thrown her Burgundy robe on and walked down stairs bare footed.

In the kitchen she found Randy sitting on the table and Ilana setting the last of the three plates. Celest\'s plate sat at the head of the table with Randy\'s on her left and Ilana\'s to her right, sometimes they changed where they sat but Celest always sat at the head. When Celest sat down Ilana ran over to the fridge and pulled out the jug of milk and setting it on the counter, she then took two glasses out of the cabinet and poured the milk into it, returning the milk to the fridge when she\'s done. Ilana didn\'t offer to get Randy anything, she\'d been told by Celest that if he doesn\'t want to pull his own weight he can very well do everything himself, which means no help whatsoever. Ilana sets her glass of milk down first then leans over Celest\'s shoulder to set her glass down on the table. Celest stops her a moment with a kiss, hand caressing her cheek. When Celest ends the kiss and sits back she spies the expression on Randy\'s face and a bit of hope slithers inside her. His face closes up into it\'s blank mask but not before she memorized the look on his face, one of desperation, need, and deprivation.

She remembered all the stories that she\'d heard about him, how the women would throw themselves at him, how he always had at least one with him. He hadn\'t always had women around him, least ways not around her all except for one occasion. She\'d been walking toward and he had stepped out of a store, she had quickly hidden from view, not wanting to deal with him, and behind him two women had appeared. On the sidewalk they had wrapped their arms around him and walked with him. They had clung to him as if he were their lifeline and all three sensed of sex. He had thrived on their attention and now he had nothing, except to watch her and Ilana. That must be torture for him, to watch what he once had. She would store this bit of information away for later use, if he decided to cause her more trouble she\'d know exactly what to do.


****


The job had been a rough one, not necessarily the foot work itself but the researching for over a week that had taken up most of her time. That\'s what had been most exhausting about the whole thing, because she had done more on smaller jobs and felt rejuvenated. She told herself that she just wasn\'t use to all the paper time, and she did have Randy to deal with. He had been posing a problem for some time now, one she\'d have to deal with, or else it would get out of hand.

She sits down on the couch after depositing her jacket in the closet, it wasn\'t winter yet but the cool fall winds cut like knives if you weren\'t prepared. She motions for Ilana to come over and she does so, immediately taking her shoes off. Celest liked to get out of her shoes as quickly as she can when she comes home, she\'s always hated wearing shoes, they confine the feet too much. But, that also left Randy standing in the center of the room, both of them had come into the room when she\'d opened the door.
\"Go make me a sandwich, I\'m hungry.\"

He hesitated far too long, was too slow to move, and her pleasant mood vanished completely, her eyes narrowed.

\"So, this is how it\'s going to be. I\'ve grown tired of this, you don\'t listen, you take your time to complete an order when you do decide to obey.\"

She stands up and walks over to him, Ilana stands up but doesn\'t move from the couch, she doesn\'t plan on interfering. After all, the last time she had interfered between them she had received a beating.

\"I\'ve got one more thing to try before I lock you up in the basement for the rest of your life.\"

He felt his blood run cold at her words, he had spent almost a week locked up in the basement, she had appeared almost every night and he would receive a beating before she had left. But it wasn\'t just the beatings that had him afraid of the basement, it was the dark silence that remained when it was just him in there. His father had loved to lock him up in small, dark, places, it had been his punishment for being bad. Things like that stick with you, even long after childhood, and his even now haunted him.
Celest moves closer to him, invading his personal space.

\"I know your weaknesses, Randy. Your like an open book to me, on that I can mold as I wish.\"

She whispers in his ear, close enough that one hard breath would bring physical contact. But he didn\'t move, barely even breathed. She knew his weakness, he had no doubt, and he knew she planned to use it against him. He had gone too far this time. She moves his head so that he\'s looking directly at Ilana who is watching them with a guarded expression, afraid that the wrong look would inspire retaliation from Celest.

\"She\'s quite breathtaking, isn\'t she? With her full breasts, perfectly carved body, a firm ass. Their\'s not one part of her body that\'s fat, not one tiny bit, just pure perfection.\"

Suddenly it became hard to breath as her words made him notice the long shapely legs covered only by small, tight, shorts which accented her ass. Made him notice that Ilana\'s shirt isn\'t completely buttoned and that their\'s just enough of an opening to show a little cleavage. And the shirt was just tight enough that it outlined the parts of her breasts that the cloth covered. When she saw the glazed over look in his eyes and the way he stared at Ilana she smiled. Still smiling, watching him closely, she takes several steps back. A shiver of cold runs down the length of his spine, and back up again. She knew, she truely knew...

\"I want you to strip, the faster the better.\"

Her tone was harsh and he obeyed immediately, no hesitation this time. When he\'s fully naked she takes the cloths from him and moves over to the couch. She tosses his cloths on the couch and turns around to face him again.

\"You\'ll stay there until I tell you to move, disobedience will incur my full wrath. As it is, you still have a chance for mercy.\"

Roughly she pulls Ilana to her, she kisses her on the lips bruisingly hard, her hands moves to rest at the end of her shirt and slowly start to work their way under. Randy watched, as he was suppose to watch, unable to move. He cursed his luck, Celest knew his weakness and is at the moment using it against him. He had never known such despair in all his life. Not even when his father had beat his mother to death, or when he\'d been beaten and left for dead. He found that suddenly he didn\'t want to fight any more, he just didn\'t have the will to.

Celest cups Ilana\'s breasts in her hands, kneading and caressing them, then leans down and kisses each dark center, tongue darting out and leaving a moist trail. Ilana sucks in her breath, her hands move to Celest\'s head, soon lost in the flood of her hair. Reluctantly Ilana lets Celest move back, her hands sliding from her head, eyes closed.

Celest turns to look at Randy, the look in her eyes describable only as evil satisfaction, her gaze moves from his face down to his obvious erection then back to his face, the smile still in place.

\"Ilana, I want you to go into the kitchen and retrieved me a bucket full of soap water and a toothbrush.\"

Ilana stood there for a moment before her eyes opened and she moved to obey, not bothered in the least that she\'s naked from the waist up. Sounds of Ilana\'s search can be heard in the room, Celest and Randy never once breaking eye contact. The sound of water pouring then moments later Ilana walks back in the room, holding a bucket in one hand and a toothbrush in the other, with no shirt on. He felt bits and pieces of himself dying, falling at Celest\'s feet, and could almost hear her satisfactory laughter in his mind. Celest takes the items from Ilana and, still not breaking eye contact, walks over to Randy and hands the items to him. Without hesitation he takes them from her, too scared to do otherwise.

\"You\'ll take these and go to the basement where you\'ll scrub the floors and the walls until they sparkle. You\'ll stay locked up in there until morning. If I don\'t like what I find in the morning you won\'t be coming out.\"

She motions for him to move and when he does she walks behind him, following him to the basement door. She makes certain that he goes down the stairs into the basement. Celest adjusts the lighting in the room, making it a little dim, light enough to still see by but just dark enough that shadows lerk now in the corners. The look on his face as she shuts the door, telling him to get to work, almost makes her want to take it all back and tell him to come back up. But she can\'t, if she\'s to gain any kind of obedience from him this has to be done.

A little darker in her soul she returns to the living room where Ilana is gathering up the discarded clothing, she still hasn\'t taken the time to put her shirt back on.

\"Throw the cloths in to be washed in the morning. I want to go to bed now and get some rest, it\'s been a hard day.\"

That said, she turns and walks away, going upstairs to her room. Ilana follows behind her after disposing of the cloths, eager to see her mood changed to lighter tones.


****


Celest wanted to stay in bed, to never have to get up again, never have to worry about anything again. She had always been the strong one, always been in charge. That fact would never change.

She turns around in bed and looks at Ilana, the slight rise and fall letting her know that she\'s still sleeping, though the sun shone brightly through the curtained window. Ilana looked so peaceful when she slept, so content and happy. She felt a strange urge to touch her, but she didn\'t, didn\'t want to wake her. Instead of giving into the impulse she rolls off the bed and stands, thinking about how she needs thicker, darker, curtains to block the daylight. She grabs some cloths and goes into the bathroom for a quick shower.
The shower took longer then she\'d planned because for some reason she didn\'t want it to end, didn\'t want to open the door to the basement for fear of what she\'d find. She had done something that bordered on cruel, she had taken everything she\'d learned from her time around Randy and used it against him. She knew he feared the basement, knew he hated shadows and darkness, and then she\'d learned that he was going through sex withdrawal problems. Last night she\'d used them all against them, had stood there and closed the door on a man who looked no more then a hurt and lost little boy. She had been a hurt and lost little girl once, had never really been anything else though her masks hid it well, so she knew what it felt like.

Forcing herself to be brave she finishes the shower and pulls her cloths on. As quiet as she can she leaves the room, leaving Ilana to sleep. Whatever happens downstairs in the basement she doesn\'t want Ilana there. No, she wants it to be on her own terms. Her soul seems to darken with each step that took her closer to the basement.

She hesitated at the basement door, her hand resting lightly on the knob. She wasn\'t sure what she\'d find, but she hoped that it would be good. She hoped that he had finally decided to listen. She didn\'t want to have her bluff called, but if push came to shove she would do exactly as she said and lock him up in that basement until he died. She would do what is necessary
to keep order in her house. Even if it meant killing her soul, flooding it with the darkness that already threatened it\'s existence.
Building up the courage she turns the knob and walks down the stairs, brightening the lights as she does so, she had left him with only a small amounts of light. Just enough to see by, but not enough to destroy the shadows. She knew that besides being sex starved, he had a fear of the basement, especially when their were no lights. It seemed ironic that the man she had onced hated, even feared, is afraid of the dark. At the bottom of the stairs he stands, waiting for her, his head bowed in defeat.

\"Doesn\'t look too bad...\"

She says, coming to a stop at the bottom of the stairs, her gaze taking in everything. And, indeed, it wasn\'t too bad at all, especially considering that all he\'d had was a toothbrush and the whole night to himself. He\'d done amazingly well, it\'s surprising what a little fear can do. She moves up to him, placing her hand on his bare chest as she does so, his sharp intake of breath makes her smile. Her lesson had been well received.

He didn\'t know what to think, or do, he only wanted to please her, to leave the dark basement. He had scrubbed with the small toothbrush nonstop all night and his arms ached, his legs screamed. He felt so humiliated, in a way used, he felt so lost and hardly anything like the man he\'d once been. Not that he could remember any more the man that he had been, everything about that life had fled from memory. \"You did a very good job indeed, and so for that you\'ll receive a reward.\"

She leans up on tip toe and kisses him, for a moment he just stands there, stunned, but it doesn\'t take long for him to answer back, though his hands remain at his side, she had not give him permission to do anything more then kiss. After what seemed like a mere second she pulls away and gives him a horribly sinister grin.

\"Very good. Now, pick up your things, you\'ll need to take a shower before you start preparing breakfast. You\'ve become dirty crawling around on the floor. But, you\'ve not got permission yet to dress, so when you come back down from your shower I want to see you as you are now, with no cloths on. I wish to make sure that the nights lessons are fully ingrained into your mind.\"

She turns and makes her way back up the stairs, the moment her back is turned he hurriedly grabs the bucket of soap water and the toothbrush and rushes up after her, not wanting to take too long just in case she changes her mind. When he steps out of the basement he lets out a breath he hadn\'t realized he was holding and moves to put his things up then go to his room for a shower. He was more then happy to wash off the grim of the basement, even though he\'d have to go back out there and face her again, naked both physically and emotionally, his soul out there for the taking.


****


After letting Randy out Celest returns to her room. She expected to see Ilana up and about but instead found her still asleep, their nights love making must of tired her out more then she thought. She moves closer to the bed, watching Ilana intently. Ilana had kicked the blanket down until it just barely covered her groin, leaving everything else exposed, including the very breasts that she had pointed out to Randy last night.

Crawling onto the bed she lays down next to Ilana, outlining her lips with a finger, then trailing the finger down her neck, between her breasts, over her stomach and beneath the blanket. Ilana gasps and her eyes fly open when Celest\'s finger touches her, moves inside her, it doesn\'t take long for her to become wet and ready for her. Celest smiles and kisses her, her fingers caressing and teasing her pussy, her clit. Ilana answers the kiss, her arms encircling and drawing her closer. Celest builds up a rhythm for Ilana, their lips are locked together when Ilana climaxes, screaming into her mouth. Celest draws her hand away, warm liquid covers her fingers and she brings them to Ilana\'s lips, who inturn licks them dry.

Ilana snuggles up against Celest, a small smile on her lips. She doesn\'t know when, or not, it happened but Ilana had become a very important part of Celest\'s life. She had never let anyone as close as she had allowed Ilana to be with her, hadn\'t even allowed her mother when she was but a small child. And yet, somehow Ilana had become important, an emotional tie, a foreign feeling all together. Celest had never felt love or compassion, she couldn\'t really tell you what it is, all she had ever known growing up was anger and hatred and fear, she had never known anything else. Ilana made so much more possible.

\"You\'ve gotten lazy, my pet. It\'s time to get up, the clock says it\'s lunch time and we haven\'t even eaten breakfast.\"

Ilana looks up at her, worry showing for a moment when Celest calls her lazy. She didn\'t wish to do anything to invoke Celest\'s wrath. \"I\'m sorry...\"

She makes to get up but Celest stops her, cutting any protests short with a kiss.

\"Don\'t be, I didn\'t mean it in a bad way, their\'s not much here for you to do anyway.\"

Ilana\'s eyes become bright once more and she allows herself to touch Celest\'s arm with her hand, just a short and gentle contact. Celest lets her go and she climbs out of bed, heading for the shower. As she\'s going Celest lays a gentle slap on her butt as she goes and gets the added pleasure of watching Ilana swing her ass as she disappears into the bathroom, the door closing behind her.

Celest sighs and lays down, one hand holding her head up, her eyes staring blankly at the closed bathroom door, not really seeing anything at all except what plays out within her mind. It had been nearly a year since the life altering change had happened, since Randy, Ilana, and herself had come to live in Peter\'s home. It seemed like only yesterday yet a hundred years away. She had changed alot in that time, not much is left of the highschool girl, all the people she had known then are completely gone from her mind, even Michelle she couldn\'t remember. She didn\'t regret any of it, even her mother\'s death. She wished in a way that her mother could of gone out better, but she had spent most of her life as a junkie, a user, so it seemed only natural that that should be what killed her. Celest had no illusions that her mother now dwelled in heaven, no, she hadn\'t done anything to allow her entrance. Giving birth to Celest alone had to of been the ultimate sin.

So lost in her own thoughts she hadn\'t noticed when Ilana came out until she was standing infront of the closet looking for something to wear. They hadn\'t gone shopping together since the first time, when Ilana had gotten the teddy bear, so she had to come to Celest\'s closet for cloths, not owning any of her own. Celest watches her go through the cloths for awhile, content just to lie there, but before long she stands and walks up behind Ilana, wrapping her arms around her and kissing her neck.

\"See anything good?\"

\"No...\"

\"Their\'s not much in there is their. I really should do some cloths shopping, we all need it.\"

Even Randy didn\'t own any piece of clothing, what he wore he got from Peter\'s closet, both had been about the same size. Ilana leans up against Celest, her hands covering the other\'s.

\"Why don\'t you choose, I\'ve never been good at picking out cloths.\"

Celest knew she was lying but she didn\'t complain she just grabbed the two closet things and pulled them out. She ended up with a mens shirt, one of those dark grey long sleeved types that fall to the knee\'s, and black spandex pants.

\"Perfect.\"

Ilana smiles and takes the pants from her, pulling them on, she didn\'t bother with any under clothing, what she had had when she first came there were messed up, her bra had been destroyed during her last beating, and you can only wear one pair of underwear for so long. So she slipped the spandex pants on without panties, then the large shirt with no bra underneath. Celest didn\'t mind but Ilana always felt uncomfortable that way. If their\'s going to be no bra, why bother with a shirt, Ilana liked to say.
Celest slips an arm around her waist and starts leading her out of the room.

\"Come, breakfast awaits us downstairs.\"

Randy behaved all through breakfast, he cooked and served them, allowing himself to eat only when they were finished and then cleaned up after himself. It felt nice to have him listen and not argue with his eyes, but then it was the look in his eyes that ate away at her soul, the void that now existed in him. That month went by well, Celest felt that for the first time things were going good, ignoring all the while the coldness she felt deep inside. Soon, she knew, something would happen that that coldness would take over. And after a point, she wasn\'t sure if she cared.


****


Celest rolls over onto her back and stares up at the ceiling. Things had been going good as of late, Randy had been listening and doing as told, he had become almost likable. Business had been more then good. Not that she needed the money, between what she\'d saved over the years and what Peter had given her, she had enough money to live a million lives.

And then their\'s Ilana. Celest wasn\'t sure what to think about that. She couldn\'t honestly call it love, long ago that ability had been burned away. But it was something that warranted further investigation, or maybe it was better left alone, maybe delving further would ruin it.

A scream breaks the silence of the night suddenly, it\'s origins coming from downstairs, and causes Celest to jump up out of bed. Hurriedly she throws something on and grabs her whip then rushes out of her room into the hall. For a moment she wonders if Randy had done something but when she see\'s him coming out of his room right after her she knows it couldn\'t be him. But what is it? Before she can question it further another scream pierces the night. They waste no time, running down the stairs taking two steps at a time, following the sounds of the scream into the kitchen.

Celest was the first to enter the kitchen and what she saw made her blood boil and her eyes to darken. For a moment all that could be seen was a man leaning up against the island in the center of the room but when he turned to look at her, some how sensing her presence, Ilana slips away, slidding under his arms, and rushes over to Celest. Ilana whimpers and moves behind Celest, her hands touching Celest\'s waist. The man turns around fully and she\'s able to get a good look at him. He\'s dark in color like herself, black eyes, dark brown hair that touches his shoulders, skin more of burnt toast then her dark olive. Something about him was familiar but not in the \'I know you from somewhere\' familiar, more the \'I think I\'m looking into a mirror\' familiar. But why?

He leans up against the island and stares at her long and hard. Randy moves closer inside, removing Ilana from her grip on Celest, not wanting Ilana to get in the middle of anything. Ilana turns to Randy, clings to him as one injured. The man who\'d had the nerve to break into her home pushed away from the island and started walking towards her.

\"Don\'t even think about it.\"

Celest didn\'t like the way the stranger was looking at her, and she definitely didn\'t like that someone had found their way into her home and had tried to attack Ilana. Because their had been no doubt whatsoever as to what he had intended to do had they not come when they did. Her hand twitched and the whip almost vibrated, both Randy and Ilana knew that she was getting mad and moved further away.

The intruder laughed and his laughter had an odd tone to it.

\"You needn\'t worry about yourself, little one, after all the evil things I\'ve done in my life I do not desire to fuck my sister, even though your only my half sister.\"

This perks Celests interest, though she is still on guard, she had never known her real father. Her mother had always refused to speak of him as if it were some horrible thing to be shoved away and forgotten.

\"Sister?\"

\"Indeed, my youngest, their is another before you. I have come by command of my father to bring you home, he has decided to step down and one of his three children shall take his place. Ah, but that\'s right, you don\'t know who your father is, do you. You, Celest, are the offspring of Lusipher, the devil himself.\"

\"Why should I believe you? After all, you invaded my home without invitation and attacked my servant, and you have not introduced yourself to me.\"

He grins and bows his head slightly.

\"You have fire. Very well, my name is Sirius, I am the oldest of Lusipher\'s children. I find it interesting that you have two in your collection, it took me some time before I was able to find any for mine... I am also most curious to find out your purpose, I know of mine and Ravita\'s, our mothers were warriors, powerful and strong, servants of our father, and we were raised in hell. And yet, your mother was weak, a mortal human, and you were allowed to be reared in this world, far away from your true roots. It will take time but I will know it all. Come, our father isn\'t a patient one and we\'re expected soon.\"

He motions behind him and a hole opens, full of color, widening enough for a single person at a time to walk through, the image in the hole clears and reveals a long hall. Sirius steps through the hole and Celest moves closer, she can see him motioning her to go. Ilana and Randy move closer, both are afraid of what\'s happening.

Celest wasn\'t sure what to think. Could this be a dream? It wasn\'t possible for someone to just open a portal to another realm, and yet as she thought it she wasn\'t certain of her conviction. Alone the fact that she knew it was a portal to another realm scared her. Could what Sirius had said be true, could she really be the daughter of Lusipher? Should she walk through the portal and take a chance. Should she enter hell?