The Sacking of Rome

"And do me a favor," Rome said, riding a wave of assertiveness that was as foreign to her as possible, "don't make decisions for me, okay? I get enough of that at work."

Daphne still had her hand on the key, not having moved, but she was looking at her.

"Don't rule things out because you think I won't like them. We don't know each other that well yet." Then she sat up a little straighter, shrugged her shoulders, and added, "Shit, turns out there's some things I had no idea about myself. Okay?"

"Okay," Daphne said, in what might have been a meek tone except that Rome was kind of on a roll and only just barely listening.

"I mean, relationship?"

"Okay," Daphne repeated, dragging out each of the vowel sounds. Ooo-kaaay

"I don't even know if I like you that much."

This made Daphne snort convulsively, and after a moment Rome started smiling too.

"Now, if you don't mind, I was promised strip club."

Daphne went through a series of arm and leg movements, perhaps shifting gears, and they started rolling down the street again. She was shaking her head, lips moving like she was talking to herself in her head, but whatever it was she didn't say it out loud. Rome just watched her for another minute, and then turned to sit straight ahead in her chair. Every time she shifted her eyes just a little, so she could watch Daphne with her peripheral vision, Daphne was doing the same.

Rome cleared her throat and said, "So what's a battle buddy?"

"It's a buddy system," Daphne said, "for recruits. Helps with keeping an eye on each other. Mostly for mental reasons. Suicide prevention. That kind of thing."

"I've never heard of that but it sounds cool. Yours liked hedgehogs?"

Daphne nodded. "He was an army brat. Grew up mostly in Germany I think, when his dad was stationed at Ramstein. He had a couple hedgehogs as pets."

"I've never heard of anyone who had a hedgehog as a pet!"

"Well they're not native to North America."

"Huh," Rome said, staring down.

"Where'd you get Ouchmouse from?"

"Crane game at the boardwalk."

"Those things are rigged," Daphne said, giving her a sly look.

"I was very motivated. Spent, like, fifteen bucks or something, and it was less than a dollar a play at the time. Might have been fifty cents?"

"You really wanted a hedgehog?"

Rome shrugged a little. "I thought it was a bear, actually, and then when I saw that it wasn't I got embarrassed. My friends knew I was lying when I said it was what I wanted, but I spent so long defending it that at this point I'm never getting rid of him."

"A principled stance."

"Exactly," Rome said. Her cheeks were doing that warmed up thing again. "So... your battle buddy. Did you just have the one?"

Daphne shook her head. "I had a different one at Bagram."

"You went on tour?"

Daphne snorted again, which was an amazing response that Rome wanted to see a lot more of. "You don't call it going on tour. It's a combat tour."

"Potayto, potahto." Then, after thinking about it for a second, she added, "I thought basic was the hard part. Is suicide still a big risk the whole time you're in?"

The other woman made a sound in her throat. "No. I mean, yeah. There were some guys over there on their third or fourth tour that were... I dunno, a little detached from reality, but... no. Out there, the battle buddy system was so that we didn't get raped in the shower. On our way to DFAC."

Rome just kind of froze.

"Didn't matter that I walked around all day with a loaded M4, or that we're on the same team." Then, almost under her breath, she added, "Whatever that means."

The only thing she could get out was, "That sounds horrible."

Daphne just kind of shrugged. "I mean, I signed up to go over there and fight. I just didn't think that'd mean sometimes pulling guard duty on the showers so a few of my privates could stop looking over their shoulders for a little while." After a minute, she added, "By that point, late 2017, early 2018, we weren't doing much fighting there anyway. Mostly it was training the Afghan forces." Then she rolled her eyes.

"What," Rome asked, meekly, "do you think about... that?"

"Withdrawing? They didn't pay me to think then, and I try not to do it now." Then, after a beat, she gave Rome a sidelong glance. "I don't know what to think, honestly. It's complicated."

I need to change the subject, Rome thought. She filed away the acronym DFAC, to ask later, but wracked her brain for a way to change the subject. "What kind of car is Holden?"

This made Daphne laugh, loudly. "It's from Australia. I bought one and had it shipped over with the bonus I got from the Army. That's how much of an asshole I am. I had to get a car no one else would have."

"That doesn't make you an asshole," Rome said. Then, having a big brain moment she was quite proud of, she said, "Don't they drive on the left in Australia?"

Daphne gave her a brief look of respectful appraisal. "I converted it from left drive to right drive when it got here. A bunch of parts are, like, converted from an old Nova I found in a junkyard, but it all had to be customized."

"You did all that?" Rome said, incredulously.

"It was a good project to throw myself at when I got back. I spent a couple months taking this thing apart, putting it back together, drinking heavily, and getting certified to do tattoos."

The car shifted under her, rocking her in her seat as they turned off the road and into the parking lot, and she was almost sad that they'd arrived. She had more questions she wanted to ask. On the other hand, she wasn't sure how much Daphne wanted to keep talking, because the other woman seemed eager at their arrival.

Daphne parked, and then gave Rome a smirk as she reached for the glove box. "Brace yourself."

"For what?"

The other woman didn't respond. She just kept smirking as the thing she'd grabbed turned into fingerless black leather gloves. She pulled them on with care, tugging here and there, and as she watched Rome started to realize that the sound of creaking leather did something to her. Maybe Daphne was her type too?

I really wanna try those on, she thought, staring at the gloves. "What are those for?"

Daphne turned, and made very direct eye contact as she said, "Effect."

Rome missed that completely, focused as she was on the way Daphne's teeth interacted with her lip to make the fff sound.

"I think it's working," Daphne said, as she climbed out of the car.

"What's working?"

They met at the front of the car. Having seen her out of it, Rome realized that Daphne's leather jacket had less padding than she'd first thought. The woman had a thickness to her that made Rome's spine curl. Daphne was laughing, and it wasn't until she was reaching for the buttons on Rome's shirt that Rome remembered how disheveled she'd looked on her way out of the bathroom.

"That cleaning guy saw me with lipstick on my neck," she said, looking up at Daphne.

The other woman just smiled as she methodically undid and rebuttoned Rome's shirt, pausing at the end to give a crisp tug to the collar. "Do you care if it looks like you might have some of my lipstick on your neck?"

Instead of asking Is it visible, like she might have done with just about any other stain or mark, she just shook her head. Once she was conscious of it, she kept moving her shoulders to shift how the collar sat against her neck. No amount of feeling like it was okay for there to be a little bit of evidence of necking was enough to overcome her introverted, don't look at me instincts.

She tried though.

Daphne made another minute adjustment to her shirt, and just when they started to move Rome realized that Daphne had been staring at her for a good few seconds longer than necessary. She didn't think Daphne had much of a strong blush reaction, not like she herself did, but the way her eyes lingered on Rome were definitely a sign of something. Decoding skills she'd developed in high school, reading into the every word and actions of others, were asserting that Daphne really might be into her.

They were walking side by side as they approached the door, and Rome did something she'd always wanted to do when she was working on a theory that someone was into her; she laid a hand on Daphne's arm, and when Daphne turned to look Rome rose up on her toes and kissed the other woman.

There was no mistaking the way Daphne leaned into it, even if she looked surprised. Daphne was a soft kisser, which Rome decided was incredibly cute. It only lasted for a second, and then Rome was walking again. When she looked back, Daphne was still standing in the same spot, and giving her a wary-but-amused look.

"What?" she said, as she reached for the door handle. Nevermind that her stomach was doing somersaults.

Wonder of wonders, though; as Daphne strode past her into the foyer of Double Visions, there was a little bit of color in her cheek.

All of Rome's cavalier bravery was gone by the time she followed Daphne inside the strip club. She'd never seen so many mirrors, strobing and neon lights. She was surprised to see that most of the women inside were wearing bathing suits, bikinis, lingerie, or some sort of costume, and couldn't figure out where she'd gotten a mental image of wall-to-wall nudity. Only the girl on the pole in the center of the stage was currently topless, and it was her that most of the patrons were focused on. Daphne angled to her right once she got inside the door, and Rome moved to follow in her wake.

Not all of it was mirrors, she realized. A lot of surfaces just had a chrome, reflective finish that tricked and disoriented the eye. She didn't realize she was just staring at everything until Daphne nudged her arm and handed her a drink, which meant she'd been gawking for long enough for a bartender to take Daphne's order.

"What is this?" she asked.

Daphne winked at her, and said, "It's just Coke." Then she leaned in closer, because it was very loud, and talked in a low voice that made her spine do that thing again. "I was all fired up to come in here and order for both of us, and then I realized I don't know what you drink."

"This is probably better," she said, wrapping her lips around the tiny straw. "I mean, we're not gonna be here for very long, right?"

"Just need to blend in for a bit."

"White Russian."

Daphne, who had just started to look around the room a bit more openly, whirled her head back around to stare at her. "Really?"

Rome just shrugged, sipped at her Coke, and tried to look around without being too obvious about it. Some of the other customers had noticed that there were non-employee women in the building, and they were getting looked at. "Did we come here with a plan?"

Daphne gestured to an open booth against the wall. "We did indeed."

"Well that's good," Rome said, babbling nervously. "I'm glad we have a plan. That's—"

"Howdy ya'll," came a woman's voice. "Welcome to Double Visions. Can I get you anything? I see you already have some drinks."

Daphne said, "Is Bella here tonight?"

This got a warm response from the girl, who was a tiny blonde thing with a mass of wavy hair. "She's in back, and she should be on stage in a little bit."

Rome turned, smiling politely, and lifted her glass. "Oh my god," she said, quite unexpectedly. "I love your top."

It was a cutoff, a button down shirt like her own that was more stylish than functional. The pockets and the buttons were too large, proportionately, and the sleeves were clearly just barely long enough to roll up and stay put above the elbow, to say nothing of the way it tied off just below the bust. Rome was fascinated.

"Really? Thank you!"

"Oh my god, I love it," Rome said. "Where did you get it?"

"Marshall's," the girl said, leaning in. "It was on display as part of a layered beachwear thing, but... yeah!"

"I would definitely need to layer it," Rome said. "I couldn't pull that off, but holy cow."

"Of course you could," the girl said, encouragingly. "You would look adorable."

Rome balked, making a sound sort of like ah-ah-ah.

"I only got it, like, three weeks ago," the girl said, brushing Rome's elbow with a gentle touch of encouragement. "I bet they still have it."

Rome nodded, a little uncertainly, and repeated, "Marshall's."

"Can I get ya'll a menu? Are you fixin' to stay for a bit?"

"Not right now," Daphne said, cutting in, "but maybe in a little bit? What was your name?"

"Kat," the girl said, smiling a very bright and white smile.

"I'll look for you if we do, Kat."

Kat flashed them another smile and whirled around.

"You would look better in that," Daphne said, as they slid into their booth.

"Than her?" Rome asked, incredulous.

Daphne just smirked and shrugged. "I'm not that into blondes."

"I thought she was cute," Rome said. "Oh my god, do you hear me? I get kissed by one girl, and suddenly I'm chatting up strippers and complimenting their outfits."

"See?" Daphne said, leaning in and smiling. "This is why shy office cuties are the way to go. You might be a little introverted, but you've always got something interesting going on beneath the surface that no one else sees."

"No one but you," Rome said, surprising herself with her insight.

They shared a look, both of them peeking sideways at each other. Just for a moment though. Daphne broke first, reaching into her jacket. Rome watched eagerly as the other woman put the cigarette between her lips, fished out her lighter, and set the end on fire. The end glowed, bright orange bordering on yellow, as Daphne inhaled, and when she pulled her hand away Rome continued to watch the cigarette. There was a shadow of red on the filter, where a little more lipstick had come off.

"I hope you don't mind if I..."

Rome looked up when Daphne cut off. Daphne was looking at her again, with that amused-but-confused look again. She'd seen Rome being weird and staring. This time, she twisted her hand at the wrist, holding the cigarette toward her. Rome broke eye contact only long enough to make sure she didn't burn her finger taking it.

don't cough don't cough don't cough don't cough

She managed to take a drag, hold it in her lungs for a few seconds, and blow it out before she felt that old, familiar tickle in her chest. She handed it back, and hated the way Daphne snickered when she finally coughed.

"You used to smoke?"

"Quit in college," Rome said. "I was never much of a smoker. Couldn't afford it. I'd bum one here or there, though."

"See?" Daphne said, putting the cigarette back between her lips, where it hung seductively. "Always something interesting going on beneath the surface."

A different performer came up on stage, but Daphne's reaction said this wasn't the woman they were waiting for. However, as she danced (which was beautiful), the song that played kept catching her attention. There was a line in it about chasing a feeling that seemed to encapsulate her entire night, and she sat there trying to parse lyrics she could only just barely understand over the background chatter and constant noise.

"So how do you know Bella?" Rome asked, leaning in closer to keep her voice low.

"She comes into my shop. I do all her ink."

"You work as a tattoo artist?"

"I own a tattoo shop," Daphne said.

"Oh."

"Have you ever thought about getting a tattoo?"

Rome, feigning insult, turned and said, "How do you know I don't already have a couple?"

Daphne was not fooled.

"Sometimes," Rome said. "A few of my friends get, like, a little thing here or a little thing there. The last time someone got me to think about it, I got paralysed worrying about getting a symbol of something I might not like a few years down the line."

"Band tattoos," Daphne said, nodding. "Those are some of the ones I most commonly draw over. That and the names of exes. Guy yesterday had a 311 tat on his arm that he wanted to move on from. Guess his days of loud and proud marijuana activism were behind him."

"What did you turn it into?"

Daphne half turned, gave her a glance, and then turned more toward her. Rome knew she'd been caught paying too much attention again. Too obviously hanging on every word.

Chasing that feeling.

"Flowers. A branch in a bush. Some kind of bird too, but he wanted one in, like, a cartoon-kind of style, so I don't think it was any particular bird."

"You did all that in one sitting?"

"No, no," Daphne said. "Just the linework this time. I'll fill in the color in a month or two."

"Do you do your own designs, or do you have those huge books of styles?"

"Oh, you've always got books of references," Daphne said, taking another long drag from her cigarette. "I have a couple shelves full of 'em. That's pretty standard. Most of what makes it on skin is my design, though."

"Cool," Rome said. Chasing that feeling.

"Not all of Bella's are mine, but the best ones are." A very brief pause, before she added, "I think."

The music changed again, and after a few seconds of build-up an absolutely stunning woman came through the curtains. Daphne's nodding was good confirmation, but the MC was announcing her at almost the same time. Bella was round in the way that Daphne was thick; different, but comparable, though the similarities ended there. Bella had gotten lip fillers recently. Her tattoos were a smattering of small, unrelated phrases and images. Her hair was extremely curly, naturally form ringlets.

"Whoa," Rome said, head tilting to the side, as she watched Bella start to work her way up the pole. "How is she doing that?"

Daphne, smirking, said, "It's an art form."

There was a staggering kind of beauty to what Bella was doing. The use of the pole as a stand-in for something phallic limited Rome's appreciation to something sensible, like watching a gifted basketball player from another team, in a game she was not betting on in an office pool. That being said, it was impossible not to watch her writhing and not feel something. Rome kept finding herself swallowing more than necessary, or twitching in her seat. She felt something, which was new. She'd never watched porn in her life, never felt like voyeurism was a factor in her sexuality, but it was hard to deny that the raw sensuality in front of her had appeal.

In her head, as an unconscious distraction, Rome began to form a whole catastrophe of complications, that all of their efforts would come to naught for one reason or another, but Daphne seemed very upbeat and sure of herself. It was easy to sublimate her fears beneath Daphne's raised chin, easy posture, and calm demeanor.

During a moment of sustained focus and attention in one direction, Daphne raised her hand from the back and gave a little wave. Bella didn't seem to react in any way, but Daphne folded her arms confidently all the same. After the song was over, Bella disappeared backstage only to reappear moments later from a side door next to the bar. When Daphne stood, Rome stood with her.

"Well this is a surprise," Bella said, coming right over, still tugging a bikini top properly into place. "Hey Daph."

"You looked good up there," Daphne said, giving her a side hug while using the other arm to gesture to Rome. "This is my new friend, Jennifer."

"A new friend, huh?" Bella smirked at both of them in turn, and then shook her head. "Did she tell you about the last new friend?"

"Come on," Daphne started, but she was interrupted by Rome, excitedly, saying, "No she did not!"

"You really don't need to—"

"Thirstiest woman in three counties, I swear. Came into her shop while I was getting my calf touched up"— she raised a foot behind her, and reached back slightly to point at a mermaid twining around her leg —"and spent the whole time making innuendo and hand gestures like she was clever. Bitch, please."