Dark Knight's Heir - Chapter fifteen

[mangacat201]

Dark Knight's Heir

Author: Mangacat

Pairing: Jared/Jensen, others

Rating: R - NC-17

Parts: 15/25+

Word Count: 3800/80k+

Disclaimer: I totally wanna own them... cough sadly that's not possible, nor is getting paid for this. I'll have fun and they're not going to get hurt … much. Promise.

Warnings: Erm, m/m sex, violence, language, gore (i.e. epic battle of the good against the bad), het sex (OMG), character death (minor).

Summary: Jared Padalecki lives a Joe Average life with his fiancee... until a handsome stranger with an unbelievable story and a mysterious tale of destiny breaks the peace to safe his life.

A/N: Guys, it's time again, and after the big bang ebb, I'd like to present to you the new chapter including another incredible piece of art by the incredible insane_songbird ... so be sure to have a look at the updated castlist too from time to time and have fun!

Masterpost

Castlist

Before Jared had processed what had just happened, he’d already been dragged halfway across the dance floor in exactly the opposite direction to which he’d been going. By the time he got his bearings again, his arm had been jerked around roughly, throwing him off track and into a dark corner with a few steps of space between the brightly lit dance floor and the brick wall. Jared wrenched his arm out of the other man’s grasp forcefully and shouted over the music at the still-turned back: “What the HELL is wrong with you?”

Immediately, Jensen rounded on him and, with a quick step, was right in his face. The smaller man splayed his hands out on Jared's chest, and, after a rough shove, he found himself with his back against the wall, and Jensen following his momentum until he was so close that their noses were almost touching. He could feel the hot puffs of air on his neck from Jensen’s agitated breath.

“Right to the point again it seems. Only it’s me asking: What the hell is wrong with you?”

“The f…”

“No, you listen to me,” Jensen grabbed the lapels of his coat and dragged him down another inch, so their eyes were level to each other. “Do you have any, I mean, ANY idea how fucking dangerous that thing was? I get it, really, I hadn’t anticipated your reaction, because I.didn’t.fucking.know either. But not only do you storm off like a child in a temper tantrum with no clue what you’re doing and where you’re going – you could have shot yourself into fricking pieces with the wrong move in there, you know? – NO, that’s not enough for Mr. High and Mighty I-know-what’s-best for everyone. No, you go off without me and leave me with almost zero chance of actually finding out where you ended up. I’m amazed you’re even still alive, given where you turned up again. I mean, you could’ve…”

“Are you quite done?” inquired Jared icily.

“No!” Jensen let go of him and took half a step back. “Don’t ever do that to me again!”

Jared was taken aback, since he could hear genuine distress in Jensen’s voice, as if the other man had really worried for his safety in a way that implied this was about more than just acquiring a priceless weapon in a struggle that seemed kind of futile anyway. Still, even though the open expression on the other man’s face had begun to move Jared in his favour, he couldn’t just disregard his anger about how the revelations about his family, and the disruption in his life had been handled. Jensen had saved his life and obviously cared for him in some way, so he owed him at least the courtesy of being lenient about his involvement in the whole thing, but that did nothing to change his feelings about playing the saviour here, no matter what the Fates had told him. Besides, he had much more pressing matters to attend to.

“Alright. Now is there any particular reason you’re keeping me from finding my fiancé in this madness to tell him that I’m alright and will do anything in my power to come back home soon?”

Suddenly, Jensen looked very alarmed and threw glances around, which was pretty much unnecessary, because they stood in almost complete darkness – save for the few strobes that occasionally flashed in their direction.

“What? Yes! No… I mean, what are you talking about, how is Tom here? Oh that’s just… great, just great. We’ve got to go, right now.”

Jensen took his arm again in attempt to drag him somewhere, but this time Jared was prepared and threw his height and considerable muscle against Jensen’s hold to stay put.

“Wait a minute, why would… no, I’m going to find Tom and talk to him right now.”

“No, Jared you can’t, please… you’ve got to trust me on this. He’s probably already looking for you, he can’t…”

“I won’t trust you. I’ve done that and look what happened! You know more about this, right? You STILL know more than you’re telling me!”

Jensen avoided his eyes and rubbed his hand over his mouth, the gesture displaying very obviously that Jared had caught him out on something. But additionally, he seemed upset in a way that was entirely too erratic for someone who’d just hidden something unpleasant. Jared began to feel a slight panic in the back of his mind and wondered what could be such bad news that Jensen couldn’t just tell him.

“I’m right, aren’t I? Give me a good reason not to leave you standing here while I go and find my fiancé to make sure he’s alright. Every time I've tried to ask about him, you and your people evaded and told me he was fine, but I never actually got proof. So, now I’m going to go get proof myself.”

Jared made for the crowd again hoping to find Tom somewhere near, but Jensen stepped in his way immediately and kept him from leaving the shadows.

“NO!”

Exasperated, Jared stepped back, threw his hands up and demanded:

“Why? Tell me then.”

Jensen pressed his lips to a thin line and shuffled his feet, still stalling before he came out with: “BECAUSE, he’s a demon.”

Jared gaped at the nerve the other man showed. He’d never been strung along so thoroughly in his life.

“I don’t believe you!”

And he really didn’t. This was the most ridiculous excuse he’d ever heard. Not only was Tom one of the most up-standing, faithful, hard-working and… well, ordinary people he’d ever met, but this just fit too utterly into whatever scheme they had going on here to be the truth. His train of thought was cut short by Jensen’s reply.

“I know you don’t, who would? That’s why I didn’t want to tell you in the first place.”

“But to tell me NOW would make it even less likely for me to trust you – is that what you wanted to say? Well, guess what, either way you’re screwed. I really don’t get you people, all of you. What is it with everyone putting me up on this pedestal? I’m not a hero, and I do not have the means to save this city, no matter what you or Jeff or the damn Fates say!”

Jensen’s eyes widened comically, and he stood there speechless for a moment. Jared got the uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach that his hadn't been an ordinary welcome to the club. Even though they had talked about his singularity and duty, it hadn’t really had time to hit him fully yet.

“You’ve… you’ve been called up there? For real?”

“Yes… I mean, they chimed a bell – isn’t that the most ridiculous thing? – and Mary explained to me that I should go up, and I went – served me well, that one.”

“Mary? Who the…”

“She invited me for a drink, when I was wandering aimlessly. Apparently she’s a regular here and rather nice, though I guess normally she goes by Black Mamba.”

“The Black Ma… what, seriously?” exclaimed Jensen, while he started pacing and raking his hands through his hair. “Jared, I’ve got to say, you've really got a talent there… can we… can we at least go outside, so we can talk about this somewhere quiet? It’s important.”

“How could I be sure that you won’t just whiz me away through the portal, without so much as a blink?”

Jensen shook his head firmly.

“Not through the portal, the street exit. We just talk, you tell me what happened, and, afterwards, you can do whatever you decide.”

Jared pondered the offer, impatient with the nagging worry about Tom in the back of his mind, but he figured that Jensen would find a way to detain him no matter what, and he still owed the man for saving his life, even if he didn’t trust him anymore. Besides, he had no real clue what he had done in here, fumbling his way from one dangerous situation to the next. Jensen’s reaction told him enough to assume there had been plenty of those though. So he nodded and let the other man lead the way to an inconspicuous door at the side, that surprisingly opened without any magical fuss and let them out into the chilly night air surrounding the barren, ramshackle industrial area in which the club appeared to be situated.

Jensen grabbed his arm and led him alongside the wall to a corner where he pressed his back against the firm concrete and peeked around as if he expected to be the target of a sniper any moment. It caused an uneasy feeling to bubble from the pit of Jared’s stomach, but he squashed it with a quick gulp of air and followed the other man around the corner, once he’d cleared the perimeter. Jensen had told him that he just wanted to talk and nothing else, but he couldn’t help but notice the tautness in his stance and the poise of his hand, ready to unlatch his sword from its scabbard at any time. He looked back at Jared and opened his mouth as if to say something – the reflection of … something visible in the shine of his eyes – but then he turned away and shook his head slightly. Instead he stretched out his left hand palm down, and Jared had time to see the lines on the back of Jensen’s hand brighten to lightening blue for a moment, before he shook his hand and turned it with a graceful flick of the wrist. A sudden flutter sounded in the clinging emptiness of their surroundings, and Jared was shocked to see a living, pearl-white dove sitting on Jensen’s upturned palm. The other man swiped a finger delicately over her head once before he moved her up to his lips to whisper a few quiet words to her. The tiny bird cooed for a moment, and then Jensen swung his arm up in a wide arc, which the dove used for leverage to launch herself into the night air with great force. The flickering gleam of her white body, and the audible fluttering died out only seconds later, and there was no way to tell where she was going. Jensen watched the spot where she'd disappeared for a few moments more and then turned around to Jared looking at him expectantly.

“What was that, Cinderella’s wish?”

“Protective detail,” deadpanned Jensen with a serious air.

“Right, a dove.”

He shook his head and his features turned wary.

“Jared, if you’d just… if you’d grown up in my world, you’d know that things are rarely exactly what they seem. You’d better not only trust your eyes…” then he hesitated a moment, “well, actually you of all people would be able to trust your eyes. If you were able to control your Sight.”

Jared scoffed and balled a fist at his side.

“Well, I’m not, alright? And you know, I’m kind of tired of getting thrown into situations that go way over my head, with everyone expecting me to find a miracle cure for every single one of their goddamned problems.”

Jensen opened his mouth, and for a moment Jared wondered if the other man was going to admonish him again, but Jensen caught himself in time and let out a futile breath without words.

“I’m sorry, you know, this wasn’t…” Jensen crossed his arms over his chest and leaned his shoulders against the wall, “this is not exactly how I pictured doing this, either, alright?”

“Tell me about it.”

“You are a hero, you know?” Before Jared could object heavily again, Jensen held up his hand. “I know, I know, but… for us, all these people that have their lives invested in fighting against the dark forces, the Helsings are… they are more than icons. They went on when everyone else was on the brink of giving up, made themselves targets and examples of courage, and spirit and perseverance that you can’t imagine. We grew up with stories and tales about Abram, and Gabe and Rachel, so to meet someone like you, being at your side, for real, it’s just…”

Jared watched Jensen shrug helplessly with one shoulder and felt a surge of irritation rising up inside him.

“What? Disappointing? Unimpressive? Boringly ordinary?”

“I can’t seem to find words for you that work out the way I want them to. I didn’t mean it in any… deprecating way. It’s just… Jared, you’ve got such a big chance to actually move something here, don’t you see? If you put your mind to it, you could…”

“Move something? Save the world? I’m sorry, but I really don’t see it. I’m an office clerk in an insurance call centre! No matter whose heir I’m supposed to be, or what my family tree says doesn’t change that one bit. I can’t be a hero just like that.”

“You’re a good man, aren’t you? You try to be a good person, helping people whenever it’s possible… helping a woman get her stroller off the bus, or doing the grocery shopping for your neighbour, so she doesn’t have to go out onto the icy streets on her crutches. It’s not so different from saving more people at once, just a question of the means at your disposal.”

This threw Jared into a loop, since he hadn’t ever thought about it like that. Of course people talked about everyday heroes, guys that jumped down onto the tracks to drag someone who’d stumbled up and away from in front of a train, or mothers that managed to dig their kids out from under the rubble of a fallen building or that kind of thing. But those were knee-jerk reactions to dangerous situations. It was different to consciously insert himself into the ever-raging war between good and bad just like that. Once in, you didn’t get out of that again.

“I get what you mean, you know? Still, I… I can’t, I have to think about my life and my fiancé.”

“Someone talk about me?”

The voice had sounded behind him before Jensen could utter another word, and Jared turned around so fast that he was sure he must have given himself a whiplash. Leaning at the corner of the building behind him, in much the same fashion as Jensen, was Tom, looking completely relaxed and fine. A surge of relief flowed through Jared seeing the other man unharmed and apparently unafraid. He blinked a couple of seconds in utter shock – he hadn’t been completely certain as to whom he had seen inside the club – before his legs propelled him forward of their own accord, closing the distance hastily and wrapping his arms around his fiancé tightly.

“You can’t imagine how glad I am that you’re all right. I was so scared that something might have happened to you. And you’re not going to believe what a crazy couple of days I’ve had!”

Tom wrapped his hands around his shoulders in a slight caress and then pulled away a little

.

“I can imagine, I’ve been worried sick since you disappeared just like that, and we’ve pulled out all the stops trying to find you, be sure of that. And I’m no less overjoyed to see you in one piece, believe me. You have to tell all about what happened to you! Why don’t you start with introducing your new friend there?”

Jared suddenly remembered Jensen standing there right behind him, and the things he had said inside the club, completely ridiculous accusations of course, but he couldn’t be sure what the other man would do, now that Tom had found them. So he turned around in Tom’s arms warily and faced Jensen’s stone-cold expression for a moment, before averting his eyes.

“I… this is the man who saved my life yesterday when I was attacked. Tom, this is Jensen.”

Before Tom could reply, Jensen surprised Jared by snarling:

“Believe me, he knows.”

Jared was puzzled by that statement, but he didn’t overlook the tension in Jensen’s stance, coiled strength ready to strike at any time.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I’m very glad that you protected Jared if his account is correct. I’d like to thank you too of course, for keeping my fiancé safe, but I'd rather we got going now, and sorted out the strange incidents of the last few days together at home.”

Jared clasped his hand with Tom’s, fingers interlaced, but he was reluctant to just leave Jensen standing there without their loose ends tied up the way they should have been. He wanted make sure that the other man knew he would be forever grateful, but he had to go back to his own life and leave this dream-world behind, no matter what kind of legacy waited for him.

“Jensen, I… I really need to go, I’m sorry.”

He looked into the other man’s exasperated face. Jensen looked as though he couldn’t believe it, as if Jared was supposed to trust a stranger over his long-term boyfriend and fiancé. He let Tom drag him away a few steps before he stopped again abruptly, watching as Jensen’s expression turned to anger with an underlying hint of desperation. He took a few steps forward as well, but seemed to stop at an invisible line, hovering, coiled tight, while he all but shouted: “Jared, you’ve got to… remember what I told you inside?”

“I know, and I told you how completely ridiculous it is, too.”

“What did he tell you, Jared? Something about me? Only good things I hope… anyway, we should be going, I mean, this is not exactly the most hospitable night-time environment, and I don’t want to run into trouble, sweetheart.”

Jared let his eyes wander between Tom and Jensen for a few seconds and noticed that he was now standing between the two men as if they were facing off against each other… about him. How was it that he only now got the feeling that there was something going on here that totally wasn't making it into conversation? It confused him and gave Jensen another opening to drop a rather unexpected fact on him.

“I mean, think about it. If he is whoever you think he might be, how come he found you in this establishment – it caters to a very special clientele, remember?”

It made Jared start for a moment and think his brain into an even bigger muddle than it already was. He shook his head slightly and tried to reconcile some loose ends that wouldn’t quite add up. In the meantime, he noticed Tom getting very impatient and tugging lightly on his arm to move him away.

“My office has its resources, you know? I’ve spend a great deal, trying to find Jared, but really that’s none of your business, is it? If you’re going to try and hold us up here all night, I’ll have you know that it won’t work. Come on, Jared, let’s get going.”

A sharp tug at his arm made him stumble a step back, had him almost barrelling into Tom’s shoulder, but he didn’t have time to process it, for what happened next came so fast that it overtook his mind, and he could do nothing but react, until it was all over. The very second Tom pulled him in one direction, Jensen grabbed his wrist in a fast countermove and from there it all went to hell. Jared only heard the other man’s furious whisper: “For once in your life, open your fucking eyes!”

And suddenly the marked skin under Jensen’s finger flared to life with a cold burning fire of blue and green visible only for the blink of an eye, before a shockwave rippled up his arm right into his head, where something clicked. He was vaguely aware that Jensen had let go of his hand instantly, but it was overpowered by random sensations surged through him, his heartbeat booming in his ears – he even felt the pulse in his eyes – and then his vision tilted again in the all too familiar way. He instantly felt dizzy, and his breath turned fast and laboured, though he could make out Jensen’s icy glow out of the corner of his eyes, which, curiously enough, calmed him down a bit,.

“What are you… Jared, are you alright?”

In the back of his mind, he wondered vaguely what normal people might look like with this strange vision mojo thing, before he looked up to tell Tom that he would be alright in a minute. The words instantly stuck in his throat as he beheld the sight of his fiancé.

“No, nononononono…”

Rationally he knew that there was no one else standing there, couldn’t be since he still held Tom's hand, but what he saw didn’t want to register, because of what he knew it would mean. Instead of a familiar and loved face, he something so completely foreign in front of him that he didn’t know what to do with it. The skin was cracked and splintered in places, forming a pattern like scorched desert earth, with a smouldering heat like lava shining through the cracks. In the middle of it, two evil eyes glowed like embers, black voids that shone with malice from within to wash away in a heartbeat every fond memory he had of them gazing into his face. He knew with a blistering lack of doubt that what Jensen had told him was the truth, but his mind persistently denied believing even a shred of it. His body operated without his help to stay one step ahead of him and promptly disentangled his fingers from Tom’s to sever the connection to the other man's heinous flesh. Jared realized instantly that Tom had noticed that his ploy had been uncovered, from the narrowed, beady eyes, and he felt the insatiable need to retaliate for the obvious betrayal that stood behind it. Foolishly, he took a swing at the other man, running more on instinct than reason. He heard a shout from behind that might have been Jensen, when Tom stepped out of the way to let him barrel past in a near miss before grabbing his arm like a vice, turning his own momentum against him, to wrench his arm up his back and pulling them both around in a full circle, so that Jared suddenly faced Jensen with Tom crowded into his back, and a fierce, cold blade that had come out of nowhere, biting into the soft skin of his throat with a razor-sharp edge.

Chapter sixteen