Two
Seduction (cont'd)
The porch light was on when the house came into view, and Mary sighed softly, knowing Adam was waiting up and hoping he didn’t go crazy when he saw her face or her neck. The possibility was low, but she still hoped.
Adam came out the front door before Mary and Keiran were inside the safety of light shining from the enclosed porch, and he looked more worried than she’d seen in nearly four years. Keiran lowered her to the ground, and Mary stepped closer to the front steps as Adam opened the screen door.
“It’s almost ten o’clock,” Adam reminded her.
“I know,” Mary admitted, the right side of her face throbbing as a new abrasion had already begun to form. Adam noticed and pulled her into the house. Keiran followed silently.
“What happened?” Adam demanded, guiding Mary into the kitchen and packing ice into a wash cloth.
“Someone attacked us on the way home,” Mary informed Adam, grimacing as he laid the ice over her cheek and turning her eyes to Keiran. “My date fought him off.”
Adam glanced at Keiran, finally noticing the cut above his eyebrow and motioning to a chair. “Sit down. I’ll get you something to put on that.”
Keiran didn’t argue, keeping his eyes on Mary as he sat at the table calmly.
Nothing else was said as Adam tended to Mary’s cuts and bruises and her shoulder, and when he finished with her, he helped Keiran clean the cut above his eyebrow before applying a set of butterfly strips to it and rubbing a salve on to keep it from hurting.
“Thanks,” Keiran said as Adam finished.
“No problem,” Adam nodded. “I should probably be thanking you. Mary might be dead now if it wasn’t for you. Or gone. Just be careful. I’ll be keeping an eye on you.”
Mary exhaled loudly from where she was sitting, and Adam rose to face her before he left without saying anything. As soon as he was gone, she moved to sit at the table with Keiran. He grinned sympathetically, and she laughed softly.
“He’s warming up to you nicely,” she commented, and he laughed.
“I guess that’s what we’ll call it.”
She scooted closer to him until she was next to him, lifting her fingers to his cut and feeling his skin burning as the salve worked to keep him from feeling the pain probably shooting through his skin. “Thank you,” she whispered. “For saving my life.”
He took her hand from his forehead, keeping it in his and leaning closer to her. “I just had to get to you,” he admitted. “I couldn’t bear the thought of not seeing you again. I like you, Mary.”
She blushed, lowering her eyes to their hands. “I like you too,” she confessed.
He laughed softly once, leaning in a few centimeters closer. “I mean, I really like you, Mary.”
His face was only an inch from hers, and he squeezed her hand in his as his warm breath caressed her lips. He rubbed the tip of her nose with his, leaning in the last little bit and whispering softly. “I shouldn’t,” he warned, “but I do,” he promised, allowing his lips to touch hers gently.
Mary had never been kissed before, but it seemed like Keiran had kissed before. And he wasn’t deterred by her apparent inexperience. In fact, it spurred him on to kiss her more, cradling her lower lip and then closing his upper lip on hers until he was absently licking her lip gently. He linked his fingers between hers as their hands remained connected on the table, and he lowered his other hand to her waist only a few seconds before easing his tongue inside her mouth. Chills slipped up Mary’s back, and she leaned back, breathless as she laid her forehead over the bridge of his nose.
“I should go,” he whispered sadly. He leaned back and looked at her. “But I’ll see you tomorrow?”
Mary felt a swell in her chest as she smiled at him. “Of course you will.”
They sat silently for almost a minute before he stood up slowly and pulled her with him. They walked to the front door together, stepping out into the cold Wyoming air and pausing at the front steps of the porch.
“I feel like I should walk you home,” she teased.
He lifted his hands to her cheeks, leaning closer and kissing her again. “I’ll be fine,” he swore. “You’ll see me tomorrow. I promise.”
“Sleep tight then,” she giggled, releasing him and watching him leave before she walked back into the house as Adam revealed himself from under the staircase.
“Did you see him fight your attacker?” he asked her, moving closer and handing her the potion they kept for her from Bobby.
“Sort of,” she admitted, drinking a small amount and feeling her head clear from the events of the night. “I hit my head, and it gets fuzzy after that. He carried me to the road, and then here. He put my shoulder back in its socket. Honestly, Adam, if he was going to hurt me, why would he allow himself to get hurt by an attacker?”
“To get on your good side,” Adam suggested. “To be your savior. To fool you into thinking he wasn’t going to hurt you. There are a hundred different reasons.”
“And if we suspect every person who shows me the slightest bit of friendship, we’ll alienate everyone we ever meet. He passed all of your tests at dinner. He’s not a demon or a ghoul or a vampire or . . . a revenant! He’s just a boy, and I like him. And I know how to take care of myself. Please just trust me.”
“I do trust you,” Adam promised. “But you can be swayed. Cas said so. We have to be careful, and until he passes The Test, I’ll still be suspicious of him. Because you’re all I have, and I’m all you have. I don’t want anything to happen to you because we both got careless.”
At that, Mary leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Adam — her brother, her protector, her conscience. “I know,” she whispered to him. “I love you too.”
It was after midnight when Mary finally got into her bathroom to take a shower. Her room was consequently the largest in the house with a bathroom attached to it, and she still thought it was too big. Adam had insisted on her being in here since she was the girl and needed the space despite not having any more things than he did. She had clothes from the last year that still fit her, and she had little trinkets from Sam and Dean strewn around. After Dean had detailed the Impala for the fifth time, he’d found an old Indian nickel in the back seat along with three empty bullet casings from when the Colt had still been a thirteen-bullet gun. All those things were now in Mary’s possession.
Her bathroom was fitted with all the things a girl her age needed, and when she stepped inside to take a shower, she stopped by the mirror to look at her face. Her right cheek was already bruised, and the cut on her neck was still oozing from ointment Adam had applied. Her brown hair was mussed in places where she’d gotten knocked against a tree, and there was dirt on her forehead and on her chin. It was good that it had been dark when she’d said good night to Keiran. She looked horrible. She gazed at her own green eyes in the mirror, wondering exactly where the night had gone wrong. If they hadn’t been attacked, she wondered if Keiran would have wanted to kiss her.
“No,” she said to herself.
With that, she began to undress, stepping back to turn the shower on and then easing inside with regards to her scrapes and bruises. She thought about Keiran while she showered, and she hoped she saw him the next day.
It was dark when he appeared in the main cavern of their under-dwelling, and upon his arrival, a half dozen candles lit up, illuminating the immediate ritual area as his oldest brother appeared from the shadows alone. The smile on his oldest brother’s face told him it had worked to their liking, and even though he was a little disappointed, he did nothing to show it, moving to the center of the circle to face his brother.
“You did well,” his oldest brother told him. “This is good news for our cause. Did you advance your pacing?”
“I think I’ve gained her trust,” he informed his oldest brother. “She defended me to her brother, and I think it will be easier to have her alone now.”
“Then you’ll be tested soon,” his oldest brother assured him. “We should prepare for this. Have you made plans?”
He nodded. “For tomorrow.”
“Then we should begin tonight.”
His oldest brother moved outside the circle, and he looked to the floor, discovering himself in the middle of a pentacle. Inside the five spaces, he saw the symbols of his birthright, and beneath his feet was a new symbol — fire. As was part of the ritual to disassociate himself from his brothers and to prevent being discovered a traitor and infiltrator, he removed his clothes and laid within the circle. His oldest brother chanted the incantation softly, and though he knew every word, he found himself drifting back to her.
He thought of her eyes and her smile and the way her lips felt when he kissed her. He wasn’t supposed to think of her, but he couldn’t stop himself. He didn’t want to. Finally he understood what had happened to Eleanor.
Seduction (cont'd)
The porch light was on when the house came into view, and Mary sighed softly, knowing Adam was waiting up and hoping he didn’t go crazy when he saw her face or her neck. The possibility was low, but she still hoped.
Adam came out the front door before Mary and Keiran were inside the safety of light shining from the enclosed porch, and he looked more worried than she’d seen in nearly four years. Keiran lowered her to the ground, and Mary stepped closer to the front steps as Adam opened the screen door.
“It’s almost ten o’clock,” Adam reminded her.
“I know,” Mary admitted, the right side of her face throbbing as a new abrasion had already begun to form. Adam noticed and pulled her into the house. Keiran followed silently.
“What happened?” Adam demanded, guiding Mary into the kitchen and packing ice into a wash cloth.
“Someone attacked us on the way home,” Mary informed Adam, grimacing as he laid the ice over her cheek and turning her eyes to Keiran. “My date fought him off.”
Adam glanced at Keiran, finally noticing the cut above his eyebrow and motioning to a chair. “Sit down. I’ll get you something to put on that.”
Keiran didn’t argue, keeping his eyes on Mary as he sat at the table calmly.
Nothing else was said as Adam tended to Mary’s cuts and bruises and her shoulder, and when he finished with her, he helped Keiran clean the cut above his eyebrow before applying a set of butterfly strips to it and rubbing a salve on to keep it from hurting.
“Thanks,” Keiran said as Adam finished.
“No problem,” Adam nodded. “I should probably be thanking you. Mary might be dead now if it wasn’t for you. Or gone. Just be careful. I’ll be keeping an eye on you.”
Mary exhaled loudly from where she was sitting, and Adam rose to face her before he left without saying anything. As soon as he was gone, she moved to sit at the table with Keiran. He grinned sympathetically, and she laughed softly.
“He’s warming up to you nicely,” she commented, and he laughed.
“I guess that’s what we’ll call it.”
She scooted closer to him until she was next to him, lifting her fingers to his cut and feeling his skin burning as the salve worked to keep him from feeling the pain probably shooting through his skin. “Thank you,” she whispered. “For saving my life.”
He took her hand from his forehead, keeping it in his and leaning closer to her. “I just had to get to you,” he admitted. “I couldn’t bear the thought of not seeing you again. I like you, Mary.”
She blushed, lowering her eyes to their hands. “I like you too,” she confessed.
He laughed softly once, leaning in a few centimeters closer. “I mean, I really like you, Mary.”
His face was only an inch from hers, and he squeezed her hand in his as his warm breath caressed her lips. He rubbed the tip of her nose with his, leaning in the last little bit and whispering softly. “I shouldn’t,” he warned, “but I do,” he promised, allowing his lips to touch hers gently.
Mary had never been kissed before, but it seemed like Keiran had kissed before. And he wasn’t deterred by her apparent inexperience. In fact, it spurred him on to kiss her more, cradling her lower lip and then closing his upper lip on hers until he was absently licking her lip gently. He linked his fingers between hers as their hands remained connected on the table, and he lowered his other hand to her waist only a few seconds before easing his tongue inside her mouth. Chills slipped up Mary’s back, and she leaned back, breathless as she laid her forehead over the bridge of his nose.
“I should go,” he whispered sadly. He leaned back and looked at her. “But I’ll see you tomorrow?”
Mary felt a swell in her chest as she smiled at him. “Of course you will.”
They sat silently for almost a minute before he stood up slowly and pulled her with him. They walked to the front door together, stepping out into the cold Wyoming air and pausing at the front steps of the porch.
“I feel like I should walk you home,” she teased.
He lifted his hands to her cheeks, leaning closer and kissing her again. “I’ll be fine,” he swore. “You’ll see me tomorrow. I promise.”
“Sleep tight then,” she giggled, releasing him and watching him leave before she walked back into the house as Adam revealed himself from under the staircase.
“Did you see him fight your attacker?” he asked her, moving closer and handing her the potion they kept for her from Bobby.
“Sort of,” she admitted, drinking a small amount and feeling her head clear from the events of the night. “I hit my head, and it gets fuzzy after that. He carried me to the road, and then here. He put my shoulder back in its socket. Honestly, Adam, if he was going to hurt me, why would he allow himself to get hurt by an attacker?”
“To get on your good side,” Adam suggested. “To be your savior. To fool you into thinking he wasn’t going to hurt you. There are a hundred different reasons.”
“And if we suspect every person who shows me the slightest bit of friendship, we’ll alienate everyone we ever meet. He passed all of your tests at dinner. He’s not a demon or a ghoul or a vampire or . . . a revenant! He’s just a boy, and I like him. And I know how to take care of myself. Please just trust me.”
“I do trust you,” Adam promised. “But you can be swayed. Cas said so. We have to be careful, and until he passes The Test, I’ll still be suspicious of him. Because you’re all I have, and I’m all you have. I don’t want anything to happen to you because we both got careless.”
At that, Mary leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Adam — her brother, her protector, her conscience. “I know,” she whispered to him. “I love you too.”
It was after midnight when Mary finally got into her bathroom to take a shower. Her room was consequently the largest in the house with a bathroom attached to it, and she still thought it was too big. Adam had insisted on her being in here since she was the girl and needed the space despite not having any more things than he did. She had clothes from the last year that still fit her, and she had little trinkets from Sam and Dean strewn around. After Dean had detailed the Impala for the fifth time, he’d found an old Indian nickel in the back seat along with three empty bullet casings from when the Colt had still been a thirteen-bullet gun. All those things were now in Mary’s possession.
Her bathroom was fitted with all the things a girl her age needed, and when she stepped inside to take a shower, she stopped by the mirror to look at her face. Her right cheek was already bruised, and the cut on her neck was still oozing from ointment Adam had applied. Her brown hair was mussed in places where she’d gotten knocked against a tree, and there was dirt on her forehead and on her chin. It was good that it had been dark when she’d said good night to Keiran. She looked horrible. She gazed at her own green eyes in the mirror, wondering exactly where the night had gone wrong. If they hadn’t been attacked, she wondered if Keiran would have wanted to kiss her.
“No,” she said to herself.
With that, she began to undress, stepping back to turn the shower on and then easing inside with regards to her scrapes and bruises. She thought about Keiran while she showered, and she hoped she saw him the next day.
It was dark when he appeared in the main cavern of their under-dwelling, and upon his arrival, a half dozen candles lit up, illuminating the immediate ritual area as his oldest brother appeared from the shadows alone. The smile on his oldest brother’s face told him it had worked to their liking, and even though he was a little disappointed, he did nothing to show it, moving to the center of the circle to face his brother.
“You did well,” his oldest brother told him. “This is good news for our cause. Did you advance your pacing?”
“I think I’ve gained her trust,” he informed his oldest brother. “She defended me to her brother, and I think it will be easier to have her alone now.”
“Then you’ll be tested soon,” his oldest brother assured him. “We should prepare for this. Have you made plans?”
He nodded. “For tomorrow.”
“Then we should begin tonight.”
His oldest brother moved outside the circle, and he looked to the floor, discovering himself in the middle of a pentacle. Inside the five spaces, he saw the symbols of his birthright, and beneath his feet was a new symbol — fire. As was part of the ritual to disassociate himself from his brothers and to prevent being discovered a traitor and infiltrator, he removed his clothes and laid within the circle. His oldest brother chanted the incantation softly, and though he knew every word, he found himself drifting back to her.
He thought of her eyes and her smile and the way her lips felt when he kissed her. He wasn’t supposed to think of her, but he couldn’t stop himself. He didn’t want to. Finally he understood what had happened to Eleanor.