#background bianca x fame

[artificialqueens]

Revelation Sunshine, Chapter 8 (Courtney/Vixen) - Veronica

A/N:  Look, sometimes a story has conflict and narrative tension. And sometimes you just want to write about characters you love wearing fancy clothes and having self-indulgent fun. Thanks as always to @theartificialdane for her help. Previous chapters are here.

Last chapter: Vixen got settled into her new life in LA, and Courtney enlisted Violet’s help for a Met Gala ensemble.

This chapter: A romantic weekend in Paris and a star-studded Gala both bring old friends back into Courtney’s life. 

***

The plan was for the Met Gala to be their first public appearance together. A sort of coming-out, as Adore put it.

But all of that went to shit in early April. Vixen had just wrapped up the last of her workshops in Chicago, her friends and family throwing her a huge going-away party, making her promise to visit often. Then, instead of flying to Los Angeles for the Spring term, she found herself sipping champagne on a flight to Paris, where she was meeting Courtney for a Met Gala fitting-turned-romantic-getaway.

And it would have all gone to plan, probably, if not for the crafty French paparazzi, who caught wind of Courtney being in Paris and began to tail them through the city.

It had been a gray, drizzly day, the clouds not breaking until early in the evening as the sun was setting, encouraging them to leave their little café and stroll across the Pont Neuf to Square du Vert Galant, hands clasped together, giggling about Courtney’s attempt to get oat milk in her coffee with broken French.

When Courtney caught Vixen’s face in the warm light, she couldn’t resist pulling her in for a kiss, hands stroking her cheekbones before brushing their lips together, tasting the perfection of the moment, overcome with joy and gratitude for her gorgeous, loving girlfriend.

The nearby paparazzi went nuts, and that’s when they both realized that they’d been followed.

“Oops,” Courtney whispered, biting her lip, still unable to let go of Vixen’s face, unable to tear herself away.

“Cat’s out of the bag, huh?” Vixen said. Fortunately, she didn’t seem too broken up about it.

“Yeah.”

“I guess there’s not much we can do about it now.” A smile played on her lips, and Courtney was overcome with the urge to kiss her again.

It wasn’t until they separated slowly that Courtney thought of a possible solution.

“We could beat them to it…”

She pulled out her phone, taking a series of photos, the setting sun and rain-washed buildings around them doing half the work of making the pictures glowingly beautiful. Vixen’s eyes were bright with happiness, and Courtney couldn’t help gazing at her with total adoration, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

She posted the pictures as they stood right there, captioned with a simple heart, and then put her phone away, taking Vixen’s hand and continuing on their walk like everything was business as usual.

***

Vixen wasn’t sure what to think when they finally arrived at Violet’s on Saturday morning, an ordinary-enough apartment building.

“You’re sure this is a legit designer?” she asked, and Courtney grinned at her, pulling her inside. She held a box of pastries and a Glimmer-branded reusable bag full of swag for Violet’s five-year-old daughter, Melati.

“One of the best I know!”

When Violet opened the door, Courtney greeted her like a long-lost sibling, pulling her into a fierce hug, kissing her cheeks. Violet seemed to tolerate this, but still let out a relieved sigh as Courtney let go.

“Violet, this is Vixen!” Courtney said excitedly.  

“Hello. Nice to meet you.” Violet stuck out her hand and shook Vixen’s, very formal and professional.

“Vix, Violet is basically a sorceress with fabric. I can’t wait for you to see her stuff in person,” Courtney told her, sliding off her shoes. She then let out a happy squeal, spotting a tiny face with big dark eyes poking around the corner bashfully. She bounded forward to greet Melati with a happy, “Bonjour, Melati!”

Melati’s eyes widened and she disappeared, hiding under a table.

“Sorry. She’s still processing that Princess Lucie is real, and knows her name. I’ve attempted to explain that you’re an actress, but Sutan keeps sabotaging my attempts,” Violet explained. “Something about keeping the magic alive.”

Courtney giggled, dropping to her knees and peeking at Melati under the table, singing, “Bonjooour, mon petit chou!”

Vixen had removed her shoes by this point, holding them awkwardly in her hands.

“You can put your shoes on the top shelf there,” Violet said kindly. “I’m afraid our dog can’t be trusted with anything. I’m still mourning the loss of a pair of Louboutins.”

Vixen chuckled, placing her shoes (and Courtney’s) carefully onto the shelf, and then followed Violet into the house.

Melati seemed to have gotten over her initial shyness, jumping into Courtney’s arms and laughing joyfully as Courtney swung her around.

“Courtney, not in the living room, please,” Violet said, then to her daughter, “Pas ici.” Melati obeyed, sliding down from Courtney’s arms and clinging to her side.

“Je suis désolé!” Courtney cried dramatically, and Melati giggled. She looked at Vixen and explained, “I know that from Madonna’s ‘Sorry.’”

“Impressive,” Vixen told her, while Violet rolled her eyes.

“Shall we get started?” Violet asked, guiding them quickly through the apartment and up a small flight of stairs.

“Where’s Sutan?”

“In London for the weekend. He sends his regrets.”

“Aww, bummer.”

Violet opened the door to her studio, then turned to them with a stern look on her face, addressing Courtney directly.

“Child rules apply in here. You may look, but don’t touch.”

“Oui madame!” Courtney said with a salute, then walked inside, immediately exclaiming over a bunch of intricate fabric flowers, picking one up to ask, “Did you make this?!”

“Courtney! What did I just say?” Violet snatched the flower out of her hand.

“Sorry. Can’t take her anywhere,” Vixen said.

“Ooh, I love this beading…” Courtney walked towards the wardrobe rack, Violet nearly diving in front of her to stop her from touching that, too.

She put her hands on her hips, making Courtney pout playfully, and then leaned down to tell Melati something in French.

“Viens,” said the little girl, pulling Courtney out of the room by the hand.

“Help, I’m being kidnapped by a tiny little person!”

“I told her to keep you out of trouble!” Violet called after them, then turned to Vixen with an apologetic look on her face. “I’m sorry about that.

“It’s fine,” Vixen laughed. “I live with her, so I’m pretty used to it.”

Violet chuckled under her breath, and walked to the wardrobe rack to unzip a few garment bags.

“If you’ll please disrobe, we can get started. I can give you some hangers for your things if you need.”

“Oh...that’s okay.” Vixen was wearing skinny jeans and a black t-shirt. Not really clothes she’d normally hang. She began to remove them slowly, feeling only slightly awkward.

“I’m sorry that we haven’t had a chance for more consultations, but with the distance, and my job, and my family…”

“Please don’t apologize! I’m so grateful for all the work you’re done.” Vixen turned around, down to her bra and panties.

“The top has a built in bustier, so no bra is needed.” Violet held it out, and Vixen nearly gasped.

The sketches had been lovely, but this was absolutely stunning, a flowing sleeveless top with gorgeous pearl and gold beading in cascading floral patterns. When you looked closer, it became apparent that the beads were in fact pearl buttons, gold cufflinks and other menswear elements.

“Given your desires, and my own aesthetic, it was a bit of a challenge to incorporate the menswear theme, but I did my best. I still have a bit of beading to do, but it’s mostly done.”

“It’s incredible,” Vixen said, unclasping her bra. “Really, so far beyond what I was expecting.”

Violet gave her a satisfied nod, hanging the top and lifting another garment from the rack.

“Shall we try on the trousers?”

‘Trousers’ wouldn’t exactly have been Vixen’s way of describing the bottoms: a pair of draped, beautifully moving pants, with a satin strip down the side reminiscent of a tuxedo. After showing her, Violet quickly turned them inside out and then held them out for Vixen to step into.

It was a very strange experience. This woman that she barely knew dressing her, something she hadn’t experienced since she was a small child and her mom helped her into her clothes for preschool. She tried not to be awkward about it, happy that she’d at least remembered to wear nude panties today.

Violet stepped back, examining her with a critical eye, before picking up a set of pins and kneeling. Vixen stood as still as possible, trying not to be self-conscious. This was Violet’s job; she probably dealt with people’s bodies on a daily basis. The fact that her tits were out surely didn’t faze her, so why should Vixen feel weird?

She worked quickly and carefully, getting up to examine the pants from multiple angles. Her long dark hair was pulled away from her face, into a high ponytail, and as Vixen studied her serious expression, she realized that what could be read as coldness was actually just deep concentration, a passion for her work that made Vixen feel right at home.

They tried on the top next, the heavy and intricate beading telling Vixen that it was by far the most expensive garment she’d even had on her body. It was amazing.

Vixen watched herself in the floor-length mirror, turning slightly, admiring how beautiful the whole ensemble looked. She started fantasizing about what she was gonna do with her hair, when Violet’s voice cut into her thoughts.

“Have you thought about shoes?”

“Oh, um...not really. What do you think?”

“I can give you some suggestions if you like,” Violet offered, and Vixen smiled at her.

“That would be great! Thank you.”

Violet was walking around the room, again examining the look from multiple angles, once in awhile stepping forward to place a pin here or mark something down on her notepad. At one point, she gave a thoughtful nod, then said, “You carry this look well. How do you feel about it?”

“Oh, um...it’s beautiful!” Vixen could tell by the thoughtful way she said it that a compliment like that from Violet must be rare and sincere. She felt comfortable enough to continue, admitting, “I’m a little nervous--not about the clothes! Just...I’ve never been to anything like the Met Gala in my life.”

“That’s understandable, but I wouldn’t worry,” Violet assured her. “The most nerve-wracking part is the red carpet, and you’ll be with Courtney, who I think might actually like it.”

“I know she likes it,” Vixen laughed.

“Right.” Violet shook her head. “I will never understand her.”

***

The rest of their time in Paris (well, the day and a half before they had to fly back to L.A.) was like a dream. Of course, their social media had been blowing up like crazy ever since posting those pictures, and Courtney did nothing to quell the wild speculation, posting more pictures, as well as tweeting mysterious, romantic things like “I get to wake up to her every morning. #gratitude” and “When she’s breathing beside me, I’m home.”

But for the most part, they ignored all of the messages, all of the questions, and simply enjoyed the fresh spring air and the beautiful city, doing their best to avoid the ever-present paparazzi until they realized that it was no use, and just rolled with it.

On Monday, Courtney woke up to clear, blue skies and sunlight filtering in through the gauzy curtains. She rolled over, brushing away a curl that had fallen across Vixen’s face, smiling at her eyes fluttered open.

“Good morning,” she said, placing a soft kiss on Vixen’s cheek.

“Morning…” Vixen rubbed her eyes, yawning, then snuggled against Courtney’s body, seeking out the warmth of her skin.

“You bummed to be going back home today?” Courtney asked, and Vixen shook her head.

“Mm-mm,” she said, voice slightly muffled against Courtney’s neck, then added. “How could I be bummed? I’m going back with you.”

Courtney inhaled sharply, caught off guard by her sleepy sweetness, and pulled her in tighter.

“I love you so much,” she whispered fiercely into her hair, and Vixen gave a small, adorable sigh.

***

There was really no reason to be this nervous, Vixen thought. It wasn’t like she was a real celebrity. The cameras and attention would be on Courtney and Honey, the actual movie stars, not on her.

Nevertheless, she couldn’t deny the rush of butterflies as she sat beside Courtney in the car. The ensemble Violet designed fit her perfectly, and upon her suggestion, she’d paired it with some Miu Miu stilettos, ruby lipstick and a jeweled hair clip in her brand new weave--long, rich, dark brown hair with chestnut highlights, styled in meticulous Marcel waves that made her feel like a goddess. She caught Courtney’s eyes, grinning at her.

Her girlfriend was stunning as usual, her black, high-necked, open-backed tuxedo gown just the right balance of revealing sexiness and teasing modesty. The full skirt had a slit almost the whole way up that you didn’t see until she was in motion, and her blonde hair was tucked under, giving her an almost masculine illusion. Her minimalist jewelry consisted of a simple diamond bracelet, the only splash of color her shiny, short, deep red nails.

“You look very classy,” Vixen commented.

“Yeah?” Courtney asked. “I don’t know how I feel about such an extreme lack of color.”

“No, it’s good.”

“Yeah,” Honey chimed in, from where she sat with her date across from them in the limo. “You need to give the rainbow explosion a break once in awhile.”

“Well...I do have pink and yellow panties on,” Courtney admitted, and they all laughed.

“Of course you do,” Vixen said.

“I mean no one will see them!” she exclaimed. “Probably. Unless the night gets real crazy.”

“Can we make bets?” asked Honey’s date, Michael, making Vixen giggle. She’d only met him a few minutes before, but she already liked him.

“Let’s not,” quipped a woman tersely from the front seat. She was a publicist from Disney whose name Vixen kept forgetting, instead just thinking of her as The Dragon.

“Oh, right,” Courtney said, reaching for Vixen’s hand as they approached the Met. “I guess since we’re here on Disney’s dime, I need to be on good behavior.”

“Only until we get back to the hotel, though, right?” Vixen asked, and Courtney shot her a naughty grin.

“We’ll see…”

Honey and Michael exited the car first, the photographers going nuts over her stunning white pinstripe suit, tailored to perfection.

“Ready?” Courtney asked, and Vixen nodded.

The Dragon was already shooting instructions at them. Well, mostly at Courtney, but it made her head spin a little.

Before they got out, Courtney leaned in and whispered, “If she pulls me away, stick with Michael. He’ll take care of you and make sure you guys stay close.”

Vixen laughed, steeling her nerves, feeling weirdly like she had back in junior high before a basketball game. Here we go...

***

Once Courtney was finally finished with her press obligations, she turned to Vixen with a happy, relieved sigh. She couldn’t help but once again think about just how gorgeous she looked: the cream and ivory ensemble Violet had designed made her dark skin glow, and she’d opted for an understated, barely-there look with her eye makeup--all lashes and just a hint of shimmer. Plus those lips. So red and full and kissable...Courtney could barely wait to get her alone later and just ruin it.

First, though, they had to get through this gala. Courtney took Vixen’s hand and led her inside, where they wandered around together. They looked through the exhibit, and exchanged pleasant, mundane small talk with a mind-boggling number of people. Vixen completely cracked Courtney up with her impression of one of the Vogue editors, and then for a little while, they played a game where they pretended to be museum docents, describing the various pieces to each other with the most pretentious language they could come up with.

While Vixen used the restroom, Courtney found one of the bars and got them a couple of drinks. Champagne always went straight to her head, but she figured that if there was ever a place to get a bit silly, this was it.

“Yes, you heard me. One champagne and a tequila sunrise,” said a familiar voice, and Courtney turned, a big smile on her face.

“Bianca!”

Bianca’s gruff expression melted into a grin as she reached forward to give Courtney a hug.

“Hey there! Nice dress!” she held Courtney by the waist to get a good look. “Siriano, right?”

“Yeah. And I see you really took the menswear theme to heart.”

Bianca was wearing one of her favorite silhouettes: a boat-necked, figure-hugging, floor length gown with a trumpet skirt. It was black and beaded and of course looked great on her, but had nothing whatsoever to do with the theme.

“Listen. Anna Wintour can’t fucking tell me what to wear!” she barked, and Courtney threw back her head with laughter.

“Never change, B.”

“Not much danger of that at this point,” Bianca said, accepting the drinks from the bartender. “I’m glad I ran into you. We found your date, but-”

“We?” Dread filled her stomach like a lead balloon as Bianca directed her gaze to where Vixen stood, talking to none other than Miss Fame herself. Seeing them, Courtney had a lightheaded rush of fear that she hadn’t experienced for almost ten years, and she inhaled sharply.

“What’s the matter?” Bianca asked. “You think Fame’s gonna eat her?”

“I…” Courtney couldn’t explain it. How the anxiety that she felt as a 21-year-old could still return in the presence of that woman. She knew that logically, everything was fine. In recent years, things between her and Fame had gotten downright friendly. And she appeared to be having a perfectly pleasant conversation with Vixen, clad in one of her signature 50-shades-of-white ensembles.

“Relax,” Bianca said, chuckling softly, forearm resting on Courtney’s shoulder. “Our brides are fine. They actually look cute together, don’t you think?”

A laugh bubbled up from Courtney’s chest; they did look awfully bridal, especially standing together. She turned to Bianca, a rush of gratitude coloring her cheeks, thrilled by her tacit approval. She pulled her in for a hug, saying, “They do.”

“Aww, look who else just arrived,” Bianca said, and Courtney turned again.

Raja and Raven, in complementary outfits of royal purple and gray, had joined the little group.

“Okay, now we really do have to save her,” Courtney said, rushing towards them, Bianca laughing behind her.

***

When they finally arrived back at their hotel, the first thing they did was kick off their hideously uncomfortable shoes and strip down. The hotel had sent up a huge basket of luxury bath products, and Courtney suggested filling the jacuzzi tub and dumping all of it in. The result was a fragrant tub with so much bath oil and moisturizing products that their skin immediately became slick and slippery.

Vixen relaxed against the side of the tub, one of the powerful jets aimed at her lower back, and another at her feet. Courtney leaned against her, eyes closed as Vixen’s fingers carded through her hair, slowly removing bobby pin after bobby pin until her hair hung down in stiff waves. She dunked her head under the water, scrubbing to remove the residual mousse and hairspray before coating her hair with a thick layer of conditioning mask and cuddling up once again.

“It was more fun than I thought it would be,” Vixen said, breaking the comfortable silence, fingers trailing up Courtney’s arm.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Less stuffy. Not that I’d want to do it often but, I had a pretty good time.”

Courtney smiled, leaning her head back to rest on Vixen’s shoulder.

“I did too…” she said, then added almost as an afterthought, “Bianca approves of you.”

“Oh yeah? Did you need her approval?” Vixen asked. It was a casual enough question, but it still seemed to make Courtney pause. Did she need Bianca’s approval? Vixen waited for her to respond, realizing that she’d be okay with any answer. After all, Bianca was an important person in her life.

“No...not exactly…but it was still nice.” Courtney smiled sheepishly, and twisted around slightly to tell Vixen, “I guess maybe I didn’t realize how much I didn’t need it until I got it.”

“Fair enough,” Vixen laughed, dropping a kiss to Courtney’s shoulder.

“So...I’m glad you liked it.”

“I did. Although I think I underestimated my ability to wear stilettos for that many hours without dying.”

“Aw, do your feet hurt, baby?” cooed Courtney. She slipped from Vixen’s arms to the opposite side of the tub, where her feet were.  

“They’re killing me…”

Courtney took Vixen’s feet into her lap, and began to give them a gentle massage. Vixen’s eyes fell closed blissfully, luxuriating in the warm water and tender caresses. Courtney began with her feet, but after awhile, moved up to her ankles and calves. Vixen nearly fell asleep three times, but finally blinked her eyes open, pulling Courtney towards her for a kiss.

“Can I do something for you now?” she murmured, and Courtney lifted her head to give her a heavy-lidded smirk.

“Let’s get out of here and see…”

“I was thinking like, helping you rinse this shit out of your hair, but...” Vixen touched her hair, still covered with that thick mask.

“Oh fuck,” Courtney giggled. “I guess we better do that first.”  

Vixen smiled at her, taking the handheld nozzle off the hook and turning it on. She tested the water with her hand, gesturing for Courtney to turn around, and then quickly rinsed her hair, fingertips scratching at her scalp. When she turned it off, she pressed a kiss to Courtney’s neck.

“Come on. Let’s go get bath oil all over those fancy sheets…”

“Sold!”

***

There was something different in Vixen’s eyes tonight as she hovered over Courtney on the bed. She was usually content to be pampered and guided--not submissive exactly, but certainly leaning in that direction. Tonight though, Courtney shivered in anticipation, looking up at her hungry brown eyes, shining dark in the dim light, every once in awhile catching a glint of gold.

They’d been at it for awhile, having tumbled into bed after their bath, Vixen’s mouth traveling all over Courtney’s heated skin. She’d lost track of time completely as Vixen made her tremble and whimper, getting her all worked up, only to tease her cruelly. Her fingertips now danced up Courtney’s thighs, light as a feather, making her breath catch in her throat. Courtney reached up towards her, one hand on her waist, another one her face, thumb stroking her cheek.

The corner of Vixen’s mouth twitched, becoming a smirk as she looked down at Courtney. One finger began to trace slow patterns along her collarbone, little circles getting bigger and loopier over her chest. Courtesy whimpered, back arching, trying unsuccessfully to pull her body down.

“Trying to tell me something, baby?” The pad of her finger circled one of Courtney’s nipples teasingly.

In response, Courtney arched up again.

“I want you,” she said, failing to suppress the pathetic need in her voice.

Vixen crawled forward slightly, pressing a thigh up against her pussy, giving her something to grind wetly against. It was good, so good that Courtney gasped in pleasure, Vixen’s thigh flexing against her as fingers continued toying with her tits. But soon, it wasn’t enough, and Courtney was pulling Vixen’s hips down, head falling back to expose her throat.

Vixen licked up her neck, layering kisses against her hammering pulse point. Courtney’s legs spread open, the gentle pressure of Vixen’s weight pressing her down into the mattress.

Courtney loved Vixen’s body. She had small tits that fit perfectly in Courtney’s hands, long slender limbs, and the most buttery soft skin she’d ever felt, especially fresh out of the bath. She loved to touch her, to feel her and taste her and kiss her all over.

She was painfully aware, though, that there were things she needed to be sensitive about when they were together. Even though she and Vixen had jumped into bed together on their first date, she’d spent a lot of their excruciating months apart asking gentle, probing questions about what she liked, what she didn’t, if there was anything that made her uncomfortable. Vixen was a bit shy at first, so Courtney didn’t push too hard, but every once in awhile, if she’d had enough wine, she would open up quite a bit, giving Courtney real insight into her fantasies.

And then of course, once they’d been able to really take their time and explore with each other, Courtney discovered a whole world of possibilities. Where she was most sensitive, how her fingers flexed and then curled slowly into fists when she liked something. How she was generally more interested in gentle, loving touches than hard, orgasm-focused penetration.

Courtney was careful to go slowly, and to follow her lead for anything below the waist. She didn’t want to make any assumptions about her body, or make her feel fetishized - but she also wanted to make sure to express how beautiful and sexy she found every part of her. It was a fine line, a balancing act that Courtney wasn’t sure she always got right.

She knew, for example, that Vixen preferred the term “girldick” and was partial to having it treated more like a clit - kissed and licked and rubbed and gently sucked. And Courtney was happy to oblige, loving the feel and the taste of her, how her cum had a faint sweetness to it. But recently, she’d surprised Courtney with a whispered confession in the dark that she wasn’t expecting.

“I’ve been thinking that maybe I want to try...topping,” Vixen said, hiding her face in Courtney’s hair, adorably bashful. “I mean, it’s so hot when you do it, and it doesn’t make me think of you as any less of a woman, and so…”

“You’re 100% woman. Every bit of you,” Courtney whispered back, but she’d also been a tiny bit nervous. After all, the last time anyone had tried penetrating her had been a bit of a disaster, and ever since then, she hadn’t wanted to revisit it. But on the other hand, she loved Vixen so much, and trusted her, and so maybe it was time to rethink her own boundaries.

“I don’t know if I can, though,” Vixen then added. “I mean, it doesn’t get hard the way it used to…”

“We can figure it out,” Courtney had said, kissing her, wrapping her up into a sleepy embrace. But the conversation never went any farther. Vixen hadn’t brought it up again, and Courtney didn’t really think any more about it. Until right now.

And tonight, there was something so fucking sexy about the way Vixen rutted against her, soft little sighs leaving her as she rolled her hips. Courtney grew wetter and wetter, fingers digging into her firm ass, pulling her closer. Vixen lifted her head, interrupting a deep, messy kiss to look into Courtney’s glazed eyes.

“Is this okay? Are you…”

“It’s perfect…You’re perfect.” Courtney could feel the soft tip of her girldick pushing against her, and she arched up, welcomed it deeper with her hand, loving the feel of Vixen getting closer and closer with every thrust.

It was so different from anything Courtney had ever experienced; so flexible and warm. It was a gentle kind of fullness, nothing rigid or demanding or painful like it had been for Courtney in the past. Courtney hugged Vixen’s hips with her thighs, hands sliding up her back, raking over her shoulder blades and back down to her waist.

“Baby, this is so hot,” Courtney whimpered, and then Vixen angled forward so that she was rubbing vigorously against Courtney’s clit, making her moan. “Fuuuck…”

Courtney could feel herself getting close, right on the verge. She captured Vixen’s lips in another kiss, sucking hard on her bottom lip and then tangling their tongues together. She panted into her mouth, snaking one hand down between her ass cheeks to stroke her, eliciting a little gasp from Vixen’s thoat, a familiar sound that told Courtney she was close too.

As Vixen’s hips pumped faster and faster, Courtney tried to hang on, but knuckles brushing over her stiff nipples was the last straw, and suddenly she was racked with ecstatic pleasure, wave after wave hitting her. By the end, she was barely moving, just clinging to Vixen’s body as her muscles convulsed, ankles locked together to keep her as close as possible.

The intense, messy kisses soon turned slow and gentle again as Courtney slowly caught her breath, bodies still sandwiched together.

“Wow…”

“Uh-huh...”

“That was different,” Vixen said, lips brushing against Courtney’s temple.

“Did you like it?” Courtney asked, fingers dancing up Vixen’s spine.

“...that might be an understatement.”

“Yeah, it was pretty...amazing,” Courtney giggled, nodding, catching her gaze. Her brown eyes shone softly in the dim light. “I love you so much.”

“Me too, baby.”

[artificialqueens]

In Bloom {Biadore} Chapter 1 - Taurus's Splattered C*nt

SO YA’ll WANTED A TWIST EH? COME ON AQ LET’S GET SICKENING!!! Author’s note: Hello everyone! You may have been wondering where on earth Splatt, Taurus and C*nt have gone? Well we’ve formed a super trio, Taurus’s Splattered C*nt. We hope you enjoy this first chapter of our little soulmate AU, it’s been super fun to write and collaborate (across 3 different timezones) and we’re dying to hear your thoughts! We hope you all love this as much as we do! Also we hope this story works your pussy out x

Every single person was destined to have a soulmate. That’s what Danny Noriega believed, anyway. He knew some people never found theirs, but he was determined to meet his as soon as possible. He had always thought that the first person he loved would be it, his one and only soulmate. But, when his ex boyfriend’s mark- a little bird- came up on his arm in black with no color to differentiate him from the other marks showing his love for family and friends, he realized it wasn’t going to be so easy finding whoever was destined to be his one and only.

His mom, Bonnie, had always said to exercise caution when it came to romance. She had her heart broken many times throughout her life, mainly because she was a sensitive spirit just like Danny, and it showed in the faded (and fading) black marks that painted her body like seemingly near-permanent reminders, as it could take days or years for a person to get over a lost love completely enough for the mark to disappear. He had always been one to love fiercely and passionately, unlike his mom who had guarded her heart instead. Already in his short 23 years, his body was littered with little black pictures representing the people he loved, and a few faded and nearly invisible ones of people he had grown apart from.

She was a supportive mother though, always encouraging Danny to be himself, whoever that person may be. In high school, he had started wearing makeup and growing his hair out; blurring the lines of gender before it was in the mainstream media. He had even made it on such a public well loved show as American Idol, which he auditioned for twice and the second time made it to the top thirteen with his mother’s support. He was a unique, artistic person. Wearing makeup and experimenting with his hair color and style thus resulted in creating his drag persona, Adore Delano.

Danny was known for being more shy, self doubting, and sad, while Adore was known for being outgoing, a party animal, and an overall loveable queen. Adore had decided to audition for RuPaul’s Drag Race, hoping her charismatic and bubbly video would land her a spot on the coveted show. Thankfully, a few months later she had gotten the call and was then whisked off to West Hollywood to begin filming.

- On the other side of the country lived Roy Haylock, a comedian and an extremely talented seamstress for some of Broadway’s biggest productions. After Hurricane Katrina had devastated his hometown of New Orleans, he had made the bold move to New York City a lot more successfully than most people. At night, he would emerge in the gay bars and clubs as the hateful comedy queen, Bianca Del Rio. Often, she would host the premiere parties for RuPaul’s Drag Race, where Michelle Visage would appear as well, and often tell her to audition for the show. It was after Season 4 and 5, and seeing the unique talents of Jinkx Monsoon and Sharon Needles, that she had decided to audition for the show as well. Lady Bunny had encouraged her for years to do it, and was elated to see her finally go on her way to the west coast.

Roy’s parents had been madly in love for years, and they had the matching colored soulmate marks over their hearts to prove it. His mom had described finding his dad as the most amazing experience of her life. However Roy had been through multiple relationships in his life, and at 37 years old he believed he would be one of the very few people to never find their soulmate. This was what he based his drag persona on, the grim reality of his love life and the more realistic (and often hilariously hateful) approach to everything that was thrown at him.

He had gotten on the plane from New York to Los Angeles and obsessed anxiously the whole 6 hours of the flight. Would he be stylish enough for the runway? Would he get read for wearing the same silhouette all the time, oe would they love that Bianca had her own “brand” as her friend Fame from back home in NYC would say? Would it all be young queens? Would he end up the odd one out, as the other queens alienated him for not being “fishy” enough? Or maybe they would love the fact that he was different, unlike so many of the beautiful young pageant queens who were all looks and no talent. Bianca was known for a more butch, almost cartoonish look to go along with her gravelly man voice, which usually didn’t bother her however, she had always thought of Drag Race as a show for younger queens, so this might go against her.

She knew going into this competition that she would have to make sure she was a more “universal” queen, especially with her humor and theater background. On stage, she was notorious for her cut throat humor: not limited to making fun of everyone and calling other gays faggots, dykes, and everything in between, which mainstream America and the rest of the world would probably not understand. Or they would, and just not like it. Bianca wasn’t going to take the chance of being handed a bad “edit”, she planned on staying professional the entire time and not letting the other queens see her sweat. She was ready. And she was only moderately terrified.

- When Adore walked into that bright pink workroom for the first time, she immediately felt overwhelmed with a nervous excitement. She was disappointed to see that she was the first one in, but nonetheless she smiled for the cameras and picked a seat. Adore took a second to glance around the room before the next person came in. Then another. And another.

She was relieved when Laganja Estranja walked in, and laughed in relief that she knew at least one of the other queens. Maybe having one of the queens Adore had started out with would help her, and give her someone to talk to who already knew her. It helped her feel less nervous.

Her relief, however, was short lived, because only seven queens had entered the workroom when the TV sounded. Seven queens? It seemed like a really small cast, and Adore thought it was weird. Maybe this thing would be over quicker than she thought.

“You’ve got shemail!” bellowed across the room, grabbing their attention.

The queens joyfully clapped and cheered when Ru walked in for the first time, and suddenly the first mini-challenge had started. It was a baptism of fire - she knew the competition would be tough, but she wasn’t expecting to be leaping off a platform to her death on the first day. She tried to give the best face she could, but with her legs flying everywhere, she was pretty sure she hadn’t won.

Adore sat looking curiously at all of the queens as they de-dragged, wondering who would get the advantage in the main challenge, and of course she was glad when it was announced that her old friend Ganja won. But something struck her the wrong way about the energy she felt coming from the blonde queen in a way that she hadn’t noticed before in the outside world. Sure enough, that feeling ended up with her narrowly avoiding being in the bottom in her very first main challenge after Ganja stitched her up with the Honey Boo Boo box,even though she had told her she wanted Golden Girls. According to Ganja, she ‘didn’t hear her’ whispering that she wanted it, and gave it to BenDelaCreme. Of course the Golden Girls garment won, and she was convinced that that would have been her if Laganja had just listened to her muttering what show she wanted.

She just hoped Laganja’s energy was just nerves, and that it would change once they met the other queens a few days later.

~._.-._.~ Bianca sauntered into the workroom, hit her mark, and grinned. When she realized no one else was in the room yet, she groaned.

“A drag queen who’s early? That never happens.” she muttered and took a seat to wait for the rest of the girls.

A blonde queen walked in, and Bianca’s interest was piqued. She had always had a thing for twinks, and this bitch couldn’t have fit the bill of Bianca’s usual trade better if she had picked the queen’s genes herself. She had heard of Courtney Act before, but Bianca didn’t think she had any reason to really be nervous about the pretty girl competing against her. Still, she definitely made it all more interesting especially since she was an aussie import. Bianca had always had a thing for foreign trade.

Bianca was confused about the mess left in the workroom from whatever had happened the night before, but she had seen the past seasons of Drag Race, and she knew not to question anything Ru wanted. She was more concerned with deciding which queens would be trouble, first, anyways.

After a pillow fight with some pretty hot guys, the winner of the mini challenge was announced, and Bianca was genuinely surprised that Courtney didn’t come out at the head of the pack in a challenge about being sexy. She was impressed by Trinity’s picture when it came up on the screen. Trinity had seemed more shy and quiet, but she definitely knew how to take a sexy picture.

There was a commotion in the corner that caught Bianca’s attention when everyone was de-dragging. A bubbly giggle rang out and Courtney squealed happily.

“What’s it like? Being with your soulmate?” The blonde asked.

The other pretty little queen with the great ass, Joslyn, smiled widely. “It’s great. We’re engaged, and I couldn’t be happier. See? His mark really stands out from the others because it’s bright blue, and of course it’s right over my heart. This pretty little flower right here? That’s his favorite flower. I get them for him whenever he has a bad day. My half of the mark is the pink paw print and a pink diamond.” She told them all excitedly. “We found the marks a few months into dating, and it all just made sense. It kinda feels wrong to be away from him, you know?”

Courtney nodded along. “That’s so sweet. I bet my soulmate will be a sweet man who’ll bring me flowers when I have a bad day, too.”

Bianca laughed. “Yeah right. He’ll hear your whiny voice and turn tail.” She went back to her sewing, determined to win her first main challenge. This wasn’t the time for her to be talking about soulmates, but if the others wanted to waste their time, that was fine by her.

And win she did, but her elation was short lived as she led the group back into the workroom to find the other seven queens waiting there for them.

The other group of queens were sitting at the workroom tables, trying too hard to look like hot shit, if Bianca thought so herself. Especially the one with the bright neon green hair, flicking her much too long nails at the other queens. That one immediately put a sour taste in Bianca’s mouth. She couldn’t help but think that the bright green baby queen looked like the human personification of a migraine.

However, there was a particularly pretty one sitting next to the green haired girl. She had curly strawberry blonde hair and was twisting the ringlets around her finger as she tried her hardest to look “bad”. Bianca couldn’t help but think it just made her look ditsy. Bianca raised an eyebrow at the sight of her. That queen had to be one of the youngest ones here. She’d probably go home next, Bianca noted as she scanned her cheap looking outfit. Especially if she kept hanging around that bright green headache.

Courtney shifted around nervously feeling incredibly awkward, and decided to finally break the silence.

“Hi everyone!” Courtney exclaimed, walking towards the 6 other queens. She embraced the nearest one to her in a tight hug. The groups took that as their cue to mold together, and Bianca approached the green haired queen first, curiously.

“Hi, I’m Bianca.” Bianca outstretched her hand.

“Oh hey girl! My name is Laganja Estranja honey darling! Oh come on natch!” Laganja exclaimed, jumping up from her seat and embracing the older queen in a hug. Bianca cringed as she awkwardly hugged the younger queen back. Oh god, she already knew this one was going to be trouble.

She met the rest of the queens, recognising Vivacious from New York. She also met a queen called BenDeLaCreme, who seemed a little hyper and had a strange voice that Bianca sincerely hoped the queen was just putting on for her character. Bianca wasn’t sure what to make of her just yet, but made a mental note to watch out for her when she heard one of the other queens say BenDeLaCreme had won the first challenge in their group. The rest of the group seemed to have a lot of young queens around Laganja’s age, and they all worked their way around, introducing themselves to everyone. She thought April was pretty, quieter than the other younger queens in the group, less annoying. The latina queen seemed to be having a bit of a hard time with the rapid fire English coming from the other queens, though, and Bianca wondered if that would end up hurting her in the long run. It wasn’t long before the petite Japanese queen - was her name Gia? - was reading their entire group. Or trying to, anyways. Bianca was quick to take her down with an insult; she had no time for that kind of arrogant bullshit. And then there was Adore, the girl with the curly hair. She was beautiful, but didn’t say much to begin with, although she did fall backwards off her stool like a dumbass. Bianca briefly wondered if that was on purpose or if her first instinct was right and the young queen really was just that ditsy. She had watchful eyes, and seemed to take her time sussing everybody out. As Bianca spoke to Vivacious, she noticed Adore and Courtney speaking to each other, and overheard something about idols, which seemed weird. Then again, Bianca knew Courtney was kind of a big deal in Australia. Adore could be admiring the older queen for that. There was something strange about Adore, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it yet. After Courtney started speaking to BenDeLaCreme, Bianca finally caught eyes with Adore, who smiled and walked over.

“Hi, I’m Adore.” she said, holding out her hand for Bianca to shake. Bianca looked her up and down. Her outfit looked a little cheap and messy, Bianca guessed she was probably either poor, new to drag or both. She was tall though, and had a gorgeous face. Bianca wondered briefly if that was the girl’s paint making her look so beautiful or if she just had a pretty face to work with. Bianca shook her hand, and gave her a quick smile. “Bianca.” she said in return. “And I’ll be fucked if I remember all these names.” she said, dismissing Adore and walking back over to Courtney. Adore’s face visibly fell behind Bianca, as she left her in her dust. There was no point getting to know this bitch, she might be pretty but she had “filler” written all over her. Bianca saw her walk over to that loud green-haired bitch Laganja and Gia, and it all made sense. She was part of that posse of young harpies. They were going to get on her nerves, she could tell. She’d just have to make sure she got rid of them early before they all really did give her a headache.

Adore walked away from Bianca a little weirded out and confusingly disappointed. It was like Bianca took one look at her and dismissed her for some reason, and Adore wanted to know why. Adore prided herself at being great at reading people’s energy, and something about Bianca’s energy was off. She could immediately tell Bianca didn’t think much of her. She hardly bothered speaking to her, and she didn’t seem friendly at all. Adore figured that was just how it would be with the older queens looking down on the younger girls. For some reason, there was a tingling kind of want in the back of her mind for Bianca to at least not hate her. Bianca’s face was unique in a theatrical, draggy kind of way, definitely a signature, and that was interesting, but overall she just reminded Adore of bitchy queens from her home bar who thought she was worthless. Adore didn’t like her energy at all, and had a feeling that they were going to clash throughout the competition.

The next morning in the workroom, Adore took a look around to see the other group’s queens out of drag. Some of them were unrecognisable. Considering Courtney in drag was so fishy, Adore was surprised to see that she was pretty masculine-looking out of drag, if a little twinky. She recognised Milk mainly due to that unmistakeable height. Milk was hot, Adore realised, and Trinity looked like Adore had pictured out of drag. She didn’t recognise Bianca at all, and only realised that this tanned, dimpled, admittedly cute guy was the same bitchy queen who’d read the whole first group by process of elimination.

When Ru arrived and asked them to pair up with someone from the opposite team, Adore chose Milk straight away, partly because they were already standing beside each other and partly because, well, Milk was pretty. One bizarre yet exciting mini-challenge (involving sitting on top of Milk!) later, and Adore and Milk were winners and team captains.

The groups split into their groups from the first challenge, which was surprising to no one, and Adore was looking over the script anxiously. She knew that they would have very limited time to rehearse and memorize lines, so she started glancing at the characters and assigning them randomly. They needed to get to work quickly, and in her mind it really didn’t matter who got which part. She told her group to focus on memorizing their lines and tried to do so herself, as well.

On the other side of the room, Bianca watched as the young queen just randomly threw out parts instead of assigning them according to who fit the roles best. Bianca continued to scan the room and noticed that the other group of queens were pretty much what she expected out of drag, except for BenDeLaCreme who was completely unclockable. The only reason she even realized who the dark haired man with the pale skin was, was because she had heard his distinctive voice from across the room.

However, Adore was also not what she was expecting to see out of drag. Adore had shiny dark brown hair that rested on her forehead. Her green eyes stood out against her porcelain skin, and her tattoos and punk rock choice in attire had completely thrown Bianca off. She thought for sure that Adore would be wearing something preppy and obnoxious like Laganja. She was actually pretty good looking as a boy, Bianca thought. She wondered what her boy name was briefly before Adore started talking to her team again. She didn’t seem to know what the fuck she was doing, and she was all over the place. Bianca rolled her eyes. This kid may be good looking, but she didn’t seem to know her ass from her elbow as far as preparedness and leadership was concerned. She was clearly a young, arrogant queen who thought she could charm her way through without doing anything productive, and Bianca had no time for that. Anyway, judging by the way she seemed to be trying to run her team she was probably going to go home either this episode or next, and even if Adore stayed longer than that, she wasn’t anything of a threat to Bianca if she kept up this erratic nonsense.

The challenge came, and Adore was feeling pretty confident. She loved 80s horror movies, and knew she had a knack for comedy, so she thought she’d do pretty well. They hadn’t really rehearsed, but rehearsing didn’t really line up with Adore’s work style, she was more comfortable on the fly. Once filming started, however, the group started to fall apart. People didn’t suit their parts, the timing was off, and Adore was forgetting lines. Admittedly, she had only really glanced at the script, usually she learned things pretty quickly so she didn’t think it was going to be an issue. Boy, was she wrong. She was genuinely worried she may go home early. She still thought she had managed to be pretty funny, though, and hoped they wouldn’t go too hard on her as leader. How was she supposed to know that memorizing lines would be so hard? She really had thought that she would pick them up as easily as she did song lyrics.

Bianca was paired with Courtney for filming, and they had great fun working together. She really liked Courtney, she was funny, dry-humoured and professional. She didn’t fuck around, and they went in and got the job done easily. It also didn’t hurt that Courtney was attractive, so while filming they had natural chemistry from the get go. They did well, and Bianca was feeling confident. She was slightly reluctant to admit it, but she liked being flirty and close to Courtney in their scene.

The judges went in on Adore for not leading properly, and she felt like shit knowing that it was partially her fault that someone in her group would be going home. She was used to only working for herself, and she hadn’t really thought about the trouble the group would have meshing together. She had assumed everyone would be able to work on the fly and get the material the way she knew she naturally would, and that hadn’t happened.To make matters worse, she barely even got through her lines on set. She felt like an idiot, and she was worried this would land her in the bottom and maybe even send her home before she could really even prove to the judges that she really did have the talent to stay to the end.

As the queens walked backstage during deliberation, Bianca was starting to feel more than a little bit irritated with Adore. She wasn’t prepared, didn’t lead her team, and then started crying on stage? Please. Bianca never understood how all these young queens could audition for this show that they’ve obviously seen before, and expect to do well right out the gate. Especially when they don’t know how to sew, learn lines for a script or dance and sing, and then they have the audacity to complain about it! Adore just seemed like one of those queens that relied on their charisma to Bianca. She doubted the queen had any discernable talents other than being an annoying whore.

Then back in the lounge, once the two groups joined together for the last bit of untucked, the young queen even had the audacity to say she didn’t want to work with Bianca! Not that she particularly disagreed, but Bianca still thought Adore was a cunt for saying it.

“I just wouldn’t want to work with you.” Adore’s bitchy comment kept ringing through her head. Usually it took a lot more than a shady read from a clearly inexperienced queen to get to her like that, but she just didn’t understand why she wouldn’t want to work with her. She definitely had some nerve. It really got under her skin, and why the hell that upset Bianca so much, the older queen did not know.

Adore was already feeling like shit about the way she performed in the challenge, and having drama with one of the older queens was the last thing she needed. It really bugged her that Laganja had grinned as Bianca dismissed her as a nobody filler queen. Laganja was supposed to back her up and be her friend, not be against her because they had started out in drag together. Ganja should automatically have her back based on that alone. For some reason, that wasn’t the only thing that was bothering her. The fact that Bianca had just brushed her off like she was scum and so much less than her so easily was really getting to her. Usually, when the older queens back home would read her “trashy” aesthetic she would just brush it off. But this time, it just really irritated her for some reason. She didn’t even know Bianca that well, so she was surprised she had managed to get under her skin in the way that she did.

On the way back to the shuttle, the queens filed in one by one. Of course, Bianca was with Courtney, and they got in first and scurried to the back of the van. Adore and Ben had followed closely after, taking the seats directly in front of them. Soon the van was full and the queens were on their way back to the hotel.

“That fight was crazy.” Courtney whispered. Bianca rolled her eyes and shrugged.

“Not really. She’s a fucking mess, do you really think she’s going to make it far?” Bianca started. “Besides, she’ll probably only be here for another day, two tops.”

“Agreed. Did you see what she was wearing?” Courtney asked disgusted.

“You guys act like I can’t hear you.” Adore snapped, eyes boring into Bianca’s. Despite them being brown, they were actually quite pretty and had some sort of warmth to them. Adore shook that thought out of her mind as she glared at the two of them. She was sure they could see plainly written across her face how hurt she was, but it had been a long few days and she was too tired to try to hide it.

Adore’s eyes shooting daggers into Bianca’s really felt uncomfortable to her. Bianca had gotten a lot of glares shot at her in her lifetime, but the fact that this queens in particular was bothering her so much was odd. She could feel her chest tighten as she saw the anger and disappointment in her eyes.

“Well I wasn’t trying to be discreet, queen. You should be giving it your all every challenge, and clearly you’re not in it to win it with the way that you lead your group.”

“Whatever, bitch. I don’t even know you like that. You don’t know me like that, either. You should be more concerned with the way you perform.”

Adore turned back and faced the front of the van and sighed heavily. She was tired of arguing with people who just didn’t want to understand the way she worked. She would just have to try harder next challenge, and apply herself to it a little bit more. “I’m sure you’re not good at everything, bitch.” she grumbled.

Bianca glared at her. “Maybe not, but at least I work at it and try instead of just pointing to people and saying ‘do this’ without even rehearsing.”

The queens in the van heard that comment. Adore heard someone go “Oh shit.” before she responded.

“Okay Bianca, you just know it all, don’t you? You’re the wisest queen here. You win.” Adore said with spite. Suddenly the van stopped and they were finally at their hotel.

“Thank God.” Courtney muttered as the queens started exiting the shuttle. She followed the pack out, and then turned to Bianca once everyone was out of earshot. “God, she just doesn’t know when to quit!”

Bianca sighed in relief when she saw Adore get out of the van and go straight to her hotel room. The last thing she wanted was for her to wait for her so they could argue more.

“She really doesn’t. It’s so annoying. Here I was thinking I’d be more annoyed by her hippie friend, but nope, this bitch takes the cake.” Bianca chuckled. “I don’t know why, but she’s really getting under my skin.”

“Don’t let her get to you. By the way, good job today by the way. I think we make a pretty dynamic duo.” Courtney grinned as they made their way to their hotel rooms.

“Yeah, we did good didn’t we?” Bianca grinned. She pushed the button on the elevator to go up to the second floor.

“I’d say so. God, your dimples are so cute!” Courtney exclaimed, reaching out to squeeze Bianca’s cheeks. Bianca could feel her cheeks turning red as she grabbed them, smiling to herself.

“I didn’t know you could see my ass.” Bianca joked.

Courtney glanced down and craned her neck to see Bianca’s ass. “I can’t, but maybe I should.” she laughed.

“There’s not much to look at sadly.” Bianca joked as they slowed to a stop right in front of Bianca’s room. “Then again, my ass isn’t what needs to be big. I’m a top.” she hinted. “Well this is me. I’ll see you tomorrow Courtney.”

“Yes you will.” Courtney bit her lip seductively giving Bianca a good up and down look before going to her room.

“Goodnight Courtney.” Bianca laughed awkwardly. She didn’t find herself “sexy” per se, so it was weird when someone like Courtney Act was making it clear that she was attracted to her. She was definitely not bad to look at, that was for sure.

The next morning, the queens made their way back into the workroom again for their next challenge. The groups were starting to mesh together to become more like one solid unit, except for Adore and Bianca who avoided each other like the plague and set their vanities as far away from each other as possible.

After the mini challenge, Adore and Ben won again much to Bianca’s disdain. Ru announced that they would be doing a musical theatre challenge. Adore and Ben were team captains, and not surprisingly, Adore picked everyone she could except Bianca. For some reason that annoyed her, but she was on the better team if she could say so herself. Courtney, Trinity, Darienne, Gia, herself and Ben were a pretty well rounded team. She had seen how well Ben had acted in the last challenge, and she knew Courtney could sing well so the only people she was worried about were Darienne and Trinity, and even with them, Darienne had already proven to be almost as hateful and funny as Bianca.

Suddenly, she heard a beautiful melodic voice coming from the other side of the room. The group all looked up at once and saw Adore singing her heart out as Bad Penny, and she was killing it. Bianca felt chills go down her spine as she listened to the voice. Her mind went blank save for one word. Wow. What the hell was wrong with her?

“Team Courtney!” Bianca yelled and the group laughed in unison.

Adore stopped singing mid sentence and glared over at the other group. Bianca was really starting to get on her nerves.

“Let her feel her fantasy girl. We all know you’re going to win.” Laganja said to Adore, encouragingly.

The two groups finished rehearsing and getting ready for the live performance, and finally Adore was waiting backstage anxiously. She could hear Courtney tearing the house down with her vocals, which just meant she had to outshine her. She would put her whole soul into that performance, and at this point she really really wanted to win, if only to shove it in Bianca’s face later. She knew Bad Penny was the best role she could possibly have in the performance, and she hoped beyond hope that she could prove she belonged here just as much as the older, more seasoned queens.

Finally, their act was finished and Bianca sighed in relief. She loved musical theatre, but being in a competition where every line and every moment counted was stressful, since she knew she most definitely was not a singer. Especially next to Courtney, and now apparently Adore. They scurried backstage where then, the other group made their way onto the mainstage.

“This should be interesting.” Courtney smirked triumphantly, elbowing Bianca.

The performance began and the minute Adore started singing, Bianca was hooked. She had no idea such a soulful voice was trapped inside that irritating young ball of energy. She could feel every emotion as Adore sang, and for a second she almost wanted her to win.

“Wow, she’s actually really good.” Ben commented.

Bianca nodded. It was true, as much as she hated to admit it. Would it be enough for her to win though?

The critiques and the judging went well for Adore for the most part, other than Michelle reading her for not wearing a proper waist cincher. She was happy when she was considered a contender for the win, but then crushed when it was Courtney that had won. She knew she’d never hear the end of it back in the workroom.

When Adore’s face dropped at the announcement of the winner, Bianca actually felt the slightest bit disappointed. There was a brief, fleeting second where the older queen wanted to go pat Adore on the back and tell her she should have won, but she shoved that feeling down as soon as it bubbled up. Still, she could see how much it hurt Adore to lose at something she so obviously wanted to be the best at, and she could reluctantly admit that she felt bad for the queen. Not that she would admit that she had been wrong in saying the night before that Adore had no talent.

The queens gushed over Courtney’s performance back in the work room, leaving Adore to roll her eyes and de-drag in silence.

“Adore, I didn’t know you had it in you! Your voice was amazing.” Ben exclaimed from across the room.

“It was.” Bianca admitted. “But not amazing enough to win.” She cackled, but was one of the only ones laughing.

“Dude, what’s your damage?” Adore asked angrily. This shit needed to stop, and now.

“My damage? My ‘damage’ is that you’re not listening to critiques, wearing a dress that’s clearly meant for a corset without one, and apparently you’re lazy because you have talent that no one in this room expected, given your past performances. If you can perform like that, why the fuck did you do so badly yesterday? You obviously don’t care.”

“I don’t have a fucking traditional lace up corset. Not everyone works on Broadway and has access to fancy garments. I’m from a poor ass Mexican family, yeah I went out and bought shit before I came here, did I know the difference between a cincher from Ross and a traditional one? No, otherwise I wouldn’t be getting this critique! I’m not lazy and I care so fucking much, so don’t fucking talk bullshit to me, and to be told that ‘oh, you’re so talented your voice is amazing, but you aren’t the winner’ is hard. Music is my fucking life man. It’s all I care about, and all I have, and you don’t fuck with my music.” Adore huffed, storming off.

For the first time in a long time, Bianca was speechless. She had no idea what the younger queens financial struggles were like, and she didn’t realize she literally had no help preparing for the competition before she came here. She felt bad now, and it took a lot for her to feel that way.

Courtney pushed her chair out noisily and made her way over to console Adore, who seemed pissed off and sad. Even though she didn’t know her that well, she felt bad that Bianca had made her that upset. She stood next to Adore silently for a second waiting for her to acknowledge her.

“What?” Adore snapped. “Do you want to rub it in more?”

Courtney smiled sadly and pulled the younger girl in for a crushing hug. It took a while for Adore to respond, but she eventually wrapped her arms around Courtney and rested her head on the blonde’s shoulder with a sigh.

Courtney rubbed her back soothingly. “You did great. You have a great voice, and we’re all proud of you for doing well.” she said quietly and let go to walk back to her station, sending a quick warning glance to Bianca before pretending nothing was wrong.

When they got into the van once again, Courtney and Bianca once again sat in the far back so they could talk.

“You went too far.” Courtney casually told her.

Bianca nodded, and that was that. The conversation was over.

The next day, the mood in the room was more excited than usual. The queens were slowly getting closer to the crown, so it would be interesting to see how everyone started behaving.

Ru came into the room after the shemail buzzer went off, and announced that the next challenge was going to be Snatch Game!

Bianca and Adore were both excited, they had planned out their snatch game characters as soon as they had found out they were on the show. Bianca was surprised to learn that Judge Judy was Ru’s favorite show ever, thus making her incredibly nervous for the first time in the competition. It didn’t help that Courtney was taunting her being in the bottom 2 if she fucked up, and for the first time she was the last person in the competition who she wanted to talk to.

Adore was going to play her favorite icon, Anna Nicole Smith. She had been impersonating her casually since her death in 2007. She knew she had this one in the bag for sure. So when Ru came over to check on her, she gladly jumped into her character.

Bianca heard the young queen doing an impersonation across the room for Ru and looked up confused. Was she really going to do Anna Nicole? She was already naturally loud and obnoxious, a perfect fit really. Ru was doubled over in laughter, so it must’ve been a good impression. Interesting, she wouldn’t have taken her to be a comedy queen. She’d have to keep an eye on that one. Maybe it wouldn’t be as easy as she thought to get rid of her.

Soon, the queens finished getting ready and done up to look like their favorite celebrities. They were escorted to the room and to Adore’s dismay, she was seated right next to Bianca. Fucking great. She readied herself for a day full of berating and hateful comments.

“The producers really hate us don’t they?” Bianca muttered to Adore as they sat down.

“I’d say so.” Adore admitted as she cracked a reluctant smile.

Snatch Game began shortly after that, and Bianca was thoroughly impressed with Adore’s performance. So much so, she had to bite her lip to stop herself from cackling so many times that it was starting to feel numb.

Adore knew she was killing the performance when she looked over at Bianca who looked like she was trying not to piss herself laughing. Bianca’s Judge Judy was very funny too, she kept going after the other queens and even had an Officer Byrd puppet. This was the first time Adore had really enjoyed herself with Bianca, and her heart felt lighter because of it.

They had split the runway and the challenge into two days, so the next day when the queens arrived back in the workroom Adore pulled out her long purple dress. The runway theme tonight was “Night Of A Thousand Ru’s”, and that was the most RuPaul dress she could find. She sighed internally as she realized Michelle would most likely read her again for not cinching her waist, since this dress was form fitting.

She decided to start her makeup and not worry about it too much. She saw the other girls pull out their dresses and it made her feel even more self conscious. Her dress didn’t even compare to the likes of some of these other queens gowns. Gia’s in particular, was basically a carbon copy of one of Ru’s gowns. She frowned as she felt like a small fish in a big pond.

“Adore!” Bianca called from her table. She was still doing her makeup at a work room table, with her makeup and other accessories spread out on top of it.

Adore snapped her head around to the voice.

“Yes baby?” Adore asked automatically, without even thinking. Yes baby? Why the fuck would she call Bianca baby? Adore cursed herself in her head.

“I know Michelle has read you the last few challenges for not cinching your waist. Well, I have an extra cincher if you want to borrow it. I can lace you up in it if you’d like.” Bianca smiled as she spoke. Her heart fluttered as she saw the younger queens frown spread to a wide grin.

“I’m down!” Adore exclaimed, feeling her heart burst with a warm happiness that she had very much not been expecting. Bianca smiled widely back at her and nodded her head.

“Great. Let me finish getting ready and then I’ll lace you up.”

After about an hour, Adore came back over to Bianca’s side of the work room. Bianca felt her eyes resting on the younger queens body, far longer than she planned to. It was nice, not too skinny but not fat either. She was covered in soul marks from friends. She clearly had a friendly heart.

“You ready to get rid of your hog body?” Bianca joked.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Adore laughed.

She put the corset over the younger queen’s head and started fitting it to her mid section. She felt a jolt of electricity when her fingers made contact with her skin, and felt what could only be described as calmness spread through her body. Almost as if she was comfortable with this person, even though it hadn’t been that long since they had met. Maybe they had just gotten off on the wrong foot? Bianca let her fingertips linger for just a half a second and hoped that Adore didn’t notice.

“That should do it.” Bianca said, tying the laces in a bow.

“Thanks. I can’t breathe but this is what they want so I have to give it to them.” Adore laughed.

“Beauty is pain, beauty is pain. I’m glad to see you’re willing to take direction, bitch.” Bianca stated as she went to her corner of the room to change.

Adore hadn’t noticed before, but Bianca had a rocking body. It was slender but tan, and she had really nice long legs.

Before anyone saw her gawking, she started putting her dress and wig on for the runway. Weirdly, she was starting to actually like Bianca, even though she’d been a complete asshole up until now.

After they had walked the runway, they awaited their critiques. Adore thought she had won the challenge, but realized she had been outdone by Ben yet again. She saw Bianca make a disgusted face out of the corner of her eye at the win and smiled, glad to know she wasn’t the only one feeling that way.

“Adore, you have finally given me the silhouette I’ve been waiting for! You need to do this everytime you walk on this runway, it changes everything. You look great.” Michelle gushed.

Adore thanked Michelle and then smiled over at Bianca who returned the gesture. Bianca was happy that she was able to help Adore get a good critique, but for some reason she was filled with much more happiness than she expected. Maybe helping the younger queen was just really rewarding.

On the ride back to the hotel, Courtney and Bianca claimed their seats in the back again.

“You and Adore seemed to be getting along well today. Did you kiss and make up?” the blonde asked.

Bianca snorted and rolled her eyes. “I just felt bad about putting her down the other day, so I thought I’d help her out with the corset.”

Courtney grinned. “Yeah, and you two cackling over in your corner in the Snatch Game? Admit it. You were having fun with her. She did really well today. You both did.”

Bianca relented. “Yeah, the kid did good. We had a good time.”

“You like her.” Courtney teased. “You want to be the baby queen’s friend.”

“Shut the fuck up, cunt. All I’m saying is that the past couple days she really started proving she deserves to be here.” Bianca admitted.

In the seat in front of them, Adore smiled to herself.