Disclaimer - I own nothing, but if anyone is willing to sell at a reasonable price I am willing to negotiate.

This is another interlude from Rituals and Chocolate Cream Pie - and a kind of sequel to Burnin' in my Dream though this is sent 10 years after that story.

For anyone who hasn't read the other stories, those are crossovers with Supernatural, (Burnin' in my dreams is over in the Supernatural category). Sam and Dean found a little girl, a laptop and took them to Ellen. While there, Dean got an idea, and accidentally rose John from the dead and threw himself, his brother and Jo, 19 years into the future. When they got there, they found their dad was alive again, now married to Ellen and they had set up home in Seattle after raising the little girl that Dean and Sam had found, and there was the small matter of the guy who had Dean's face, who went by the name of Alec and all of his friends, enemies as well as the Demon that was still on their tale.

This is for the people that asked (well all four of you!) to see how John met Alec, with Max, Logan, and everybody else playing a little minor role. Although there is a little M/A on the side.

Special Thanks to Twinkiecat and Rospberry for looking over this for me.

Four days had gone by since the raising of the flag, four days of watching the tanks roll in, the politicians and TV crews standing near the fences decrying the state of the country and demanding for someone to blame for all of this. Four days of watching the ordinaries gather with their placards and signs – one side saying that they were an abomination to God and the other saying to leave them alone.

Four days of sitting and waiting for who would blink first, who would fire the first shot, as neither side could back down. Four days of them trying to get Cindy, Sketchy and Logan out safely, before they got sick, before their presence was used as an excuse for the guard to come rolling in, and most importantly so Logan could try and get the other side of the story out.

Normal had been on the TV constantly – as had all the other Jam Pony hostages – saying that they hadn't been hurt, telling anyone who would listen that the first shot had been fired by the cops and not the transgenics, explaining how they had been safe until the SWAT team had come bursting in. That the transgenics had just reacted to defend themselves.

Max had taken the lead, taken the place that everyone else had desperately needed to be filled; it had saddened her to do it, but she had no choice, and they had all fallen in behind her when she had announced that they weren't escaping and evading. They needed someone to give them orders, a purpose, a reason that explained their existence, one that had been lacking since the day that Manitcore had burned.

She hid it from everyone, apart from Logan and Cindy, that she cried herself to sleep – when she did sleep – because her kind still couldn't deal with being free. They needed to be told what to do; even Alec; he had stopped arguing with her.

He'd taken up position as her second without a thought, dealing with the few that had a problem with an '09er being in charge, but it was the way he had done it that had bothered her, though he hadn't meant to hurt her, it was just that they hadn't had time for a fight.

"She knows how to handle them better than us."

With that one sentence, he had separated her from her own kind and from the ordinary folk. She wasn't one or the other, and he'd apologized to her afterward in that way only Alec could, but it had worked – no one else had challenged her after that.

The transhumans, who had set up home in Terminal City, hadn't been fools; they had prepared for a fight, knew that one day someone would come for them, and it wasn't like they had somewhere else to go. They had stockpiled food, medicine, as well as enough weapons to take over a small South American country. Mole and the others just hadn't been willing to share with the X's up until that point, and the supplies wouldn't last long in a prolonged siege, especially with the numbers of transgenics that were coming to Seattle.

Four days of securing the perimeter, four days of Alec and Mole handing out guard duty as more and more members of the National Guard took up position outside, and four days of hymns. Four days of out-of-tune singing from the people who where crowded around the gates, some claiming that they were there to witness God's wrath on those who tampered with nature, others to lend their support for those poor creatures who didn't know any better. Truth was that even though one or two of them where there for both sides, most where there to see a bloodbath and they didn't care which side won.

"Can I shoot one of them, please?" Mole said.

"No," Max stated flatly as they sat round the table trying to work out what areas needed reinforcing. Unfortunately, the table was situated in a room close to the area where a group of protesters had been singing.

"Is it not getting to you guys, too?" he asked. "Come on, this is worse than the psychological torture practice they used to put us through."

Max didn't even bother to reply.

"Just one, just the one that doesn't know the words to 'Old Rugged Cross'; I'll wing him… please? I just don't think I can take another murdering of that song," Mole said. "I'll even give myself up to White afterward."

"If it's just him, then I say go for it – he ain't no Elvis," Alec replied, yawning. "What do you guys say?"

"Huh?" Logan looked up, taking out an earplug.

"Mole, you're not shooting anyone."

"Come on, Max, it could be your one and only chance to get rid of him," Alec said.

"How long have you been up?" Max asked, looking at Alec's pale face.

He shrugged, he honestly couldn't tell her. Granted, he didn't have her vaunted shark DNA, but he still had a couple of good hours in him.

Logan looked at the other man. "Alec, you look like shit."

"Well, it was the look I was going for," Alec said with a smile on his face.

"And when was the last time you got your arm looked at?" Max asked, knowing fine well that Alec probably hadn't had the bullet wound – that he had gotten at Jam Pony – seen to in a couple of days.

"I'm fine," Alec said. "Can we get back to this before they start polluting the airwaves again?"

"Alec, go get that bandage changed," Max said. "And while you're at it, get a couple of hours sleep. That's an order; we need you on your feet."

He stared at her for a second and then got to his feet, nodding his acknowledgement, before he turned and left to go to the small corner of Terminal City that he had claimed as his own.

Logan watched him go before turning to Max.

"He didn't even argue."

"It was an order – he wouldn't," Mole replied as Max studied the crudely drawn map of Terminal City.

"Hey, Joshua," Alec said as he came back to the curtained-off area that was serving as his, Joshua's and Sketchy's sleeping quarters. Sketchy was out for the count in the corner after spending the day with one of the work details.

"Hello, Alec, good meeting?" Joshua asked, handing his friend his food allocation for the day.

"So-so, big fella," Alec replied. "How was your day?"

"Baby burp and Joshua watch," Joshua said, smiling; he'd spent a lot of his time with Gem since getting there. The big guy may be as scary as hell to look at but he was no soldier, instead he'd been stuck on babysitting duty, spending time with those females with babies and the transgenics who were in no condition to fight.

"What about sleeping beauty?" Alec nodded in Sketchy's direction. "How's he doing today?"

"Sketchy doing okay – no coughs and sneezes. Tired though, working hard – any way to get him and Cindy out, yet?"

Alec shook his head. "No, not without risking someone taking a shot at them."

"Alec, tired then," Joshua said. "Little fella kick you out."

"Ordered me to get a couple of hours."

"Then Joshua won't disturb you," Joshua said, getting up and leaving him.

Alec was just settling into one of his really nice dreams, one of the ones involving him and half of the Dallas Cowboy cheerleading squad, when he was jerked back to reality.

"What are you?"

Alec blinked, focusing on the barrel of the shotgun that was inches away from his face; the old bearded guy on the other end seemed to be waiting for a response.

"I asked you a question – what are you?"

Alec didn't know how to answer that question.

"In what way do you mean?" Alec said, pushing himself up on his elbows.

"What the hell?" Sketchy asked, half awake and seeing someone pointing a gun at his friend.

"Sketch, it's okay – no sudden movements," Alec said on seeing Sketchy's face.

Alec turned to the man. "Look, if you want to take a shot, fine – I'm one, but he's not, so your problem's with me, all right?"

"Look, dude, we're all the same under the skin, you know; what is it they say, 'If you prick us, do we not bleed?'" Sketchy said, trying to get the other guy's attention.

"That Shakespeare?" Alec asked.

Sketchy nodded. "One of the guys down in the basement had a copy of the complete works, was asking me about it."

"You get very far with it?" Alec asked, lightly.

"Not really," Sketchy replied, his eyes firmly fixed on the pump-action shotgun that was currently pointed at Alec.

"What are you?" the man with the gun asked again.

"I told you, I'm one of them. I'm one of the big, bad, evil transgenics," Alec replied.

The man hovered for a second; it was like he hadn't expected that as an answer, as if he had expected something else.

"Cristo."

Both Alec and Sketchy looked at the man. "What?"

"You're not possessed?" He took a step back.

"Possessed?" Sketchy replied.

Alec sat up, taking a better look at his assailant; he was dishevelled, unshaven, looking as if he had slept in his clothes – though they where in better condition than most of the homeless who had previously called Terminal City 'home'.

"Then why do you have his face?"

"Whose face?" Alec replied as two of Alec's fellow transgenics jumped the guy from behind, forcing Alec's attacker to the ground as they wrestled the gun from him. Alec and Sketchy sat there and watched as they proceeded to drag the guy out the area.

Alec got to his feet quickly, pulling back the curtain to see the watch the figure being taken away.

Alec called out "WHOSE FACE?"

Hope this an okay start for this - also just to let the people who might want to know another chapter of Rituals should be winging it way here soon.