AN: I meant to get this up a while ago, but life has seen fit to throw a lot at me lately so more time passed than I had planned. We can't begin to thank all you guys enough for reading this! A HUGE thank you to our wonderful reviewers!!!! We love each and every bit of feedback we get!! Thanks again for taking the time to read through what our brains conjure up!! Hope you enjoy this next bit!!
"It's really not a good idea for me to get involved with someone," Sam insisted, trying to keep himself from falling over the dark edge that loomed in front of him.
"All I'm saying is that you only live once. Why not take advantage of every opportunity you get?" Mara whispered as she drew closer to him.
Meanwhile…
Dean followed Serena down to the weapons cache, trying in vain to get her attention.
"Hey come on Serena," he urged. "What's gotten you all worked up?"
She tossed a large black bag on the floor beneath the cabinet full of gleaming hand guns and turned to him. "You wanna know what's wrong? My cousin is just setting herself up to get hurt again and of course she won't listen to me. She never listens to me."
"Sam's a good guy, I think you would have noticed that by now," Dean pointed out as he made his way to stand beside her. "If anything happens, he wouldn't hurt her, I can promise you that. He's not that kind of guy."
"I know that," Serena said through clenched teeth. "It's Mara. She falls too hard, too fast. She always does, no matter what she tries to tell herself. And after…..oh never mind," she vented, throwing her hands up in frustration. Serena turned and began studying the cabinet in front of her, grabbing two guns and tucking them into the bag.
Dean stood there in silence, not knowing what to say. Instead, he opted to change the subject, hoping that would cause Serena so sheathe her claws. "Why the interest in guns?" he asked, picking up one from the bag and examining it.
"My grandfather was an avid gun collector. Half of these belonged to him," Serena said with a sigh as she made her way to the cabinet of shot guns. "His father taught him how to shoot, then he taught my father, and finally my father taught me. It's a MacKeltar family tradition I guess you could say. That's how Mara got into it as well. Her father and mine were brothers and to keep us from wrecking havoc when we were smaller, they channeled our enthusiasm into training. They didn't want their daughters to not be able to defend themselves." She actually cracked a smile as she lifted an antique rifle from its stand. "This was the first one I learned how to shoot. I could barely pick it up." She held it for a moment before carefully setting it back.
"So that's why you're an ace shot," Dean mused. "Been at it for years, just like me and Sam."
"Longer apparently by the way you shoot," Serena teased, tossing a case of bullets to him. "I'm the good shot but Mara's the one with the knife fetish. We still don't really know where that one came from," she added laughing.
"There's one in every family," Dean agreed, nodding his head. "Or rather in the case of mine, it's…well everyone really."
They laughed for a moment, glad the mood had been lifted and hurried to finish tossing what they would need into Serena's bag. Dean tossed it over his shoulder when they finished and watched as Serena removed a gleaming gunmetal grey Springfield 1911 semi-automatic .45 and tucked it into the waistband of her jeans.
Dean whistled as she walked towards him. "Nice choice."
"I know," she replied with a smile. He stepped back and gestured her forward with his hand and she led the way out and back up the stairs.
As they crossed the hallway back into the living room, Serena's hackles went back up and Dean saw her hand twitch toward the gun at her back.
"A-hem," he cleared his throat loudly, causing Sam and Mara to jump back from one another. It was pretty obvious that if they had walked in any later, the two would have been involved in some pretty intense lip lock.
Serena stared blankly for a moment before turning and thumping down the hallway. They heard the front door slam and Dean winced.
"I thought you were the temperamental one….geez," he grimaced, looking pointedly at Mara. "Anyway, let's go kids, everyone in the car. We've got a deviant to hunt down."
A few minutes later found them all piled in the Impala as Dean drove through the streets of Savannah. The sun was just beginning to set and its dying orange-pink rays illuminated the pools of water that were scattered along the asphalt. It was deathly silent in the car, the only sounds coming from the rumbling of the engine and the tires splashing through the puddles. Serena had usurped Sam from his customary position in the passenger seat-she had been sitting there staring straight ahead when the rest came out to join her.
Dean looked up into the rearview mirror to see Mara and Sam staring out opposite windows, mouths clenched. By angling it down he saw that it was merely an act as their fingers were lightly entwined, resting on the cracked leather seats.
"Pull over here," Serena instructed, finally breaking the silence.
Dean glanced over at her, but did as she asked him to. They were across from a large park that ran along the river and Dean could just see the fading light glinting off the metal of a jungle gym.
"All of the kids we've gotten information on came to this park at some point around the time they claimed their parent started acting strange. Sam and I checked it out the other day but didn't come across anything. I'm guessing that if it's in the area and has come back out of hiding, there's a chance it'll show its ugly face here," Serena explained in a monotone voice. Her gaze met Dean's, the sun changing them from ocean's blue to fiery orange. He could take a hint.
"Sammy, let's go check over this way," he suggested, undoing his seat belt and tossing the door open.
Sam looked over to Mara before climbing out and following his brother. Neither looked back over their shoulder as they quickly crossed the street and disappeared into the lengthening shadows. Serena sighed loudly and likewise climbed out of the car. Mara quickly followed and the two stood on the sidewalk, pointedly not looking at one another.
Mara finally broke the silence, looking down at her cousin with flashing eyes. "What the hell is wrong with you Serena?"
Serena's eyes immediately flashed up to Mara's. She hardly ever called her by her actual name. "You know what's wrong Mara. Here you go…heading straight off a cliff again. You don't even know this guy and you've been making goo-goo eyes at him since whatever it was that happened that first night."
"Hey!" Mara said, raising a finger to point in Serena's face. "I know you're just trying to look out for me but you can't dictate my love life. You should be more concerned with actually getting a love life of your own. Ever since all that stuff with Benjamin you haven't even let a man get anywhere near you!"
"You know how much that hurt me Mara," Serena hissed.
"Yeah I do Laney," Mara soothed, placing her hand on her cousin's shoulder. "But you can't let that make you keep everyone else out forever. You've got to bring down those walls at some point. I mean, Dean's a nice guy and he's a hell of a lot better looking than Benjamin was. Why not just give it a try?"
"No," Serena murmured quietly. "I'm not going there. And you shouldn't either! You're just going to fall for the wrong guy again and then what'll happen? Mara it hasn't been that long since Bristol…"
"I know how long it's been since Bristol. And speaking of how much things hurt…if I can start moving past that then it's high time you did. I'm not going to let a chance at something slip by me just because it could turn out badly. Yeah sure it probably won't work out. I'm sure that pretty soon they'll take off and we won't see them again. But I'm too young to worry about all that so much," Mara explained with a steely edge to her voice.
A few tense moments passed as they stared one another down, each refusing to back down.
"God Serena you can be so stubborn…I don't know why people think I'm the pain in the ass," Mara said in exasperation, throwing her hands up into the air.
"I'm just tired of you getting hurt!" Serena insisted.
"And I'm tired of you living like a nun!" Mara retorted. "You wanna settle this the old fashioned way?"
"Fine by me," Serena agreed. "If I win, you've got to back off with Sam."
Mara winced slightly but tried not to let Serena see it. "Oh so it's a high stakes game is it? Okay. Well if I win then you have to get the icicle out of your ass and actually give Dean a chance. I mean really give him a chance."
"Agreed. When we get back to the house, we'll settle this thing," Serena said matter-of-factly.
"Settle what?" Sam asked as he and Dean jogged back to the car.
Neither woman would answer. They simply stood there staring off at the setting sun.
"Well we didn't pick up on anything, just in case you wanted to know," Dean offered, shrugging. "Not like you're listening to me anyway," he mumbled as he climbed back into the driver's seat. Once everyone was back inside the car, he cranked the engine and sat there for a moment.
"There are a few other places I'd like to check out before we head back," Sam suggested, leaning forward.
"All right well then let's go," Mara said finally speaking up. "That okay with you Serena?"
"That's perfectly fine," Serena answered flatly.
"Looks like it's just you and me Sammy," Dean said. "You know, for once, I pity this thing if we do find it tonight."
They hit a few more spots that Serena and Sam had labeled as possible places the creature liked to frequent but to no avail. Apparently after its appearance that afternoon it had gone back into hiding. It had gotten fairly dark by the time they returned to Serena's house and a chill spiked the air. The temperature wasn't helped any by the cold shoulders Serena and Mara were still giving off. After Serena unlocked the house, they both disappeared up the stairs into their respective rooms as Sam and Dean could hear two doors slamming closed.
"Up for some poker?" Dean suggested as he and Sam found themselves standing alone in the hallway.
"Sure," Sam agreed. "Hey Dean?"
"Yeah?"
"If you were in my position, what would you do? I don't want to be the reason they're not speaking."
"Hell if I were you I would have already progressed the relationship way past the point you're at," Dean answered with a laugh. "Don't worry about it so much. We've been there before and we made it out without missing any major body parts. They'll settle this their own way. Now let's go play some cards."
About halfway through the first hand, they were interrupted by a loud yell, punctuated by the first few beats of a song that was turned up to an abnormal volume. Scrambling to their feet and knocking over the stools they were perched on in the kitchen, they raced towards the source of the sound. They skidded to a stop at the open door of the workout room and were faced with Serena and Mara, dressed in sports bras and form-fitting work out shorts clashing with….
"Wait a minute…are they fighting with Japanese katanas?" Sam wondered in amazement.
"Well you're the encyclopedia of weirdness so you tell me," Dean was forced to yell back as "Supermassive Black Hole" by Muse was being blasted at a level that made his ears ring. "Good music though and dammit…you gotta admit this is freaking HOT!"
Sam pinned his brother with a scathing look but was forced to admit to himself that the sight of the two women slashing and parrying at one another as sweat beaded up on their skin was fairly enticing.
"You think we should stop them?" he asked Dean loudly over the music.
"You kidding me?" Dean yelled back. "I wanna see who wins!"
Serena and Mara seemed to be almost dancing as they moved in synchronization back and forth across the padded floor, their gleaming, sleek blades weaving back and forth. Both women's faces were crinkled in concentration as they tried to read each other's moves and anticipate what would happen next.
Serena ducked under Mara's blade as it whistled towards her head and spun on her heel, kicking her free leg out to knock Mara's legs out from under her. Mara tucked and neatly rolled back up to her feet, popping back up into an automatic fighting stance. With one hand around the hilt of her blade, she feigned a cross cut which distracted Serena enough for Mara to grab hold of her upper right arm. Serena twisted, tossing her katana to the ground and quickly flipped Mara over her left shoulder. Lightning quick, she scooped the blade back into her grip and whipped around just in time to block Mara's downward slashing arc.
Sam and Dean watched all of this in fascination. The clashing of the steel blades seemed to be emphasized by the driving bass of the song playing and every now and then, one of them would yell or grunt in frustration or effort as Serena and Mara pushed each other to their limits.
The strikes became more intense as each woman gripped her hilt with both hands, and they darted back and forth across the room. Mara tried to use her height to her advantage by utilizing strong downward arcs but Serena was a little quicker and managed to twist out of the way each time. Finally, their blades locked as they pressed them together, straining against the strength of the other. Green eyes bore into blue over the crossed blades, neither willing to back down.
Just when Sam thought he was going to have to intervene before one broke the blade of the other and cut through something important, Serena and Mara backed up simultaneously just as the last beats of the song faded out. Something unspoken passed between them and Serena held out her hand.
"Call it a draw?" she asked, her voice ragged from her heavy breathing.
"It's a draw. It's always a draw when we fight with these!" Mara laughed in between gasping breaths as she took her cousin's outstretched hand.
"I know," Serena laughed as well. "Hey, I'm sorry. I'm really okay with it I swear. I know you can take care of yourself."
"I'm sorry too Laney," Mara said, moving to wrap her cousin in a bear hug. "And I will be careful. I promise. Think you'll take my other words of advice into consideration as well?" She waggled her eyebrows playfully.
"I'll think about it," Serena agreed quietly, smiling.
"Wow, I think the seventh hell just froze over…"Mara whooped, finally looking up to see a stunned Sam and Dean still frozen in the doorway. "Well boys, you can come out now. We won't bite you…hard anyways," she finished with a grin and a wink as she walked towards Sam.
"Sammy, I think I've died and gone to heaven," Dean mumbled as he stared, fixated on Serena's form as she whipped her gleaming katana around a few times, spinning it in her hands for fun.
Mara caught this as she reached them and a big grin broke out on her face. "Well then handsome, I've just done you a huge favor. Come Dean, walk with me, talk with me…"
"Are you going to make me an offer I can't refuse?" Dean quipped, grinning as she tugged him along with her out into the hallway.
"You bet your sweet bottom I am," Mara said innocently. "And that deal would be that I won't rip your balls out through your throat if you play your cards right."
Dean instantly went pale at the thought and he swallowed hard. "Well you sure know how to sweet talk a guy now don't you?"
"Listen here Romeo…she needs somebody right now. I think you could be just the right person to help get her out of this funk she's been in for the past two years or so. My advice is…just be yourself. Don't use your smooth talking charmer act on her-trust me it won't work," Mara said as she stared Dean down. "Things go smoothly, hey everyone gets to have a little fun and Laney gets out of her rut. Things go south and well…I think you already know what happens then."
"Yeah, balls through throat…got it."
"Good boy. Now I'm starving!" Mara exclaimed as her stomach rumbled. "Hey Laney…calling in a pizza sound good to you?"
"Sounds good to me," Serena agreed, sliding her katana back into its sheath and making her way to the door. "Tell me what you guys want and I'll just go pick it up. They can never find this place anyway."
A few minutes later, Serena had thrown on an oversized hooded sweatshirt over her workout clothes and was rifling through her purse through her keys as Mara called in the order for three large pizzas. Dean had claimed he could eat an entire one by himself, and no one dared to argue with him.
"There you are," Serena exclaimed as her fingers closed around the cold metal.
"Want some company?" Dean asked, coming up behind her in the hallway.
"Thanks, but I think I just really need some time to clear out my head right now," Serena said with a smile.
"Okay well, ya know, be careful. This thing's still out there," he cautioned.
"I will be," she promised. "See you in a bit," she called as she closed the front door behind her.
Dean stood there for a few moments, listening to her car drive away.
What's so different about this girl? Why do I get this feeling whenever she's around? he asked himself. Better yet, what the hell's wrong with me? Focus Dean…FOCUS!
"Hey Sam," Mara called out as she leaned her head into the hallway, spotting Dean. "I think someone's got it pretty bad. Check this out-puppy's waiting by the door for his mistress to come back home."
As Dean whipped around at the sound of her voice, he saw Sam's head pop around the corner above Mara's.
"Awwww….idn't he adorable??" Sam cooed, batting his eyelashes.
"Dude….so not funny," Dean growled as he stalked towards them.
"Shit!" Mara shrieked. "Run!"
Mara and Sam took off running, laughing hysterically, skidding around the island with Dean chasing them threatening to beat them six ways to Sunday. They kept circling the island until Dean finally turned the opposite way and waited. Mara was so busy laughing and trying not to fall that she ran smack into him. She gave a playful shriek when he put her into a headlock and started giving her "noogies". At that point, Sam decided to get in on the fun too, tickling Mara's sides, making her laugh and scream for them to let her go. They finally released her when she threatened to pee in her pants from laughing too hard.
"So that's what it's like to have a brother," Mara said in between laughs.
"Yeah…well…just remember. You started this," Dean replied with a grin as he pointed a finger at her.
"Oh…is that so? Well how about I finish it then, too?" Mara said with a grin, as she stood up and started for Dean. Sam pulled her to a stop, while they all laughed.
Serena retracted the convertible top of her car and turned up the music as she made her way to her favorite late-night pizza parlor. She had needed this time to herself to sort through the jumble of thoughts tumbling around in her head. Not only had she been thrown into the middle of Mara's world containing monsters and hunters, she had the Winchesters to deal with as well. She felt like she had been spinning out of control since they first walked into her office that first day and if she was anything, Serena was a person who craved order and control. It was her life and she liked to know which way it was going, but lately, she had no clue what was around the next corner.
She had no idea why she had acted so vehemently towards Mara and Sam's burgeoning relationship-well okay she was lying to herself about that one. She was jealous. Jealous that Mara could open herself to someone she barely knew in that way. Sure she kept her secrets but she was still able to hope, to dive off a cliff and just enjoy the fall. Even if it got her into trouble some times, she was still living her life with no regrets and Serena found herself desiring that ability with each passing hour.
While she was on the subject of desires, she forced herself to finally face the subject of Dean Winchester. Sure he was fantastically good looking…and funny. And smart. And charming…and a hell of a good shot. And…
Oh who am I kidding? she thought. I'm already attracted to the man, cockiness and all. Her words to Mara came roaring back into her ears at that moment. I guess I've thought about it then…dammit. I hate when she's right. She laughed and pressed down on the accelerator a little more, feeling her car respond smoothly as it sped down the dimly lit highway.
No time like the present to let go of the past….and to hope for the future.
The next morning, Dean walked downstairs to see Sam and Serena sitting at the kitchen island going over notes. A small pang of jealously went through Dean as he realized he wasn't the type of man who was content with research. He was a man of action, he couldn't help it. But as Serena looked up and smiled at him, his jealously quickly evaporated.
"Morning. Want some coffee?" Serena asked as she got up to refill her own cup.
"Morning….and coffee would be amazing. I'm still trying to wake up," Dean said as he twisted from side to side, stretching his back. Their hands brushed as Serena handed him his coffee and he was stunned momentarily, just staring at her. She wasn't looking at him, but down at their hands, and her face was turning slightly pink. As she moved back to her seat, Dean was left wondering again what it was about her that drew him. Shaking his head at the thought, he pulled out a stool and sat down.
"So…what's up? Got a plan yet?" Dean asked as he took a slow sip of his coffee.
Sam shuffled around some papers and looked up. "We have an issue." When Dean only raised an eyebrow at that, Sam plunged on. "Serena and I just finished going over everything we have again, and we finally noticed a pattern. We have a really good chance to actually pin this thing down today, but that's where our problem comes in. I completely agree with Mara on the idea of this being an incubus, succubus or whichever. With all the information we've compiled, it is the best fit. There's just nothing we can find on how to kill the thing. I think we need to call Bobby."
As Dean nodded, Serena spoke up. "Who's Bobby?"
Sam got up and pulled out his cell phone to make the call, so Dean was left to explain. "He's kind of like our uncle. We're not blood related but we grew up around him. He's always been there to help us and whatnot. We call him whenever we can't figure something out."
"Ah. Mara's got a friend like that," Serena said, nodding.
"So…where is the Cousin of Doom?" Dean asked with a smirk.
"What time is it?" Serena asked, not looking up from her papers.
Dean frowned and looked at his watch. "It's 9AM. Why?"
"Well there's your answer," Serena answered with a laugh. She looked up to see a confused look on Dean's face so she explained what she meant. "If it's before 10AM…then Mara's still in bed. She's a bit of a night owl."
"Oh. Well…we might have to go wake her up. Depending on what Sam finds out from Bobby anyways," Dean said with a laugh.
"Well…I vote we send your brother to the slaughter. I'm not waking her up," Serena said as she grinned wickedly.
"Fine by me," Dean agreed, although he wasn't exactly sure what she meant by that.
Meanwhile, Sam was pacing through the living room as he dialed Bobby's number.
"This better be good to be waking me up this early," Bobby grunted as soon as he answered, making Sam laugh.
"Hiya, Bobby. It's Sam. I need to see if you know how to kill something," Sam said, trying not to laugh at Bobby's grumpiness.
"I know how to kill lots of things, you idjit, so you're gonna have to be a little more specific than that," Bobby said with a small chuckle.
"We've been hunting an incubus/succubus. We've gone through all the lore we can find, but we can't find anything that says specifically how to kill them. I think we've got a good shot at flushing this thing out today so please tell me you've got something for me Bobby," Sam pleaded as he ran a frustrated hand through his hair.
"You're kidding me right? Didn't you look through your dad's journal?" Bobby asked incredulously.
"Yea…and there's nothing that we can make heads or tails of in it. Do you know how to kill it? Have you ever run across one before?" Sam asked.
"It's been a while since I had to hunt one but you should know how to kill it, Sam. It's just like killing a shape shifter. Silver through the heart or the head. I'd recommend both, just to be sure you've done your job," Bobby replied.
"Oh. You're kidding. That's all it takes?" Sam asked, flabbergasted that it was so simple.
"Yep. Now…is that all? Because it's still early and I'd like to go back to sleep," Bobby said dryly.
"Yeah. Wow. That's it. Sorry to wake you up, Bobby. Thanks," Sam said as he started walking back towards the kitchen.
As Sam was getting off the phone with Bobby, Dean looked up. "So…did he know?"
"Yeah…and you'll never believe it," Sam said with a small laugh.
"What?" Dean asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Silver. Just like taking out a shape shifter," Sam said as he sat down.
"You're kiddin' me! That's it? WOW!" Dean said as he shook his head. "Well that makes it easy, don't it?"
"Yep. Now all we gotta do is hope we're right about this timing thing," Sam said as he moved to sit down.
Serena spoke up and pointed at Sam. "Don't sit down. You need to go wake Mara up."
Serena and Dean grinned as Sam's jaw dropped. "What? Why me?"
"Because she'll take a swing at Dean…and I don't feel like trying to wake her up this morning," Serena replied calmly. "Just watch out for the Twins and you'll be fine," Serena cautioned, shooing him out of the room.
"The Twins?" Both of the boys asked in unison.
"Yep. She'll show you when she wakes up. Now go, Sam. We're wasting time here," Serena said with a laugh as she shuffled him out of the kitchen.
As Sam walked up the stairs, he wondered which reaction he would get from Mara. Would she be affectionate like the other morning? Or would she pull a blade on him? He wasn't sure he liked being this attracted to a woman that was just as likely to hurt him as not. But as it seemed that everything was pretty much already out in the open, he decided he just might as well go with it. As he slowly opened the door to her room, he looked around the cluttered space, letting his gaze slowly wander to the bed. Mara was sprawled out on her stomach with the covers tangled around her body, barely halfway covering her. Sam swallowed hard as he realized she was wearing what seemed to be her standard underclothes, a low cut tank top and skimpy panties. How was he supposed to think straight and remember that they had a job to do when he couldn't stop staring at the body laid out before him? He cursed at himself when he realized the panties didn't even cover her whole bottom. Good LORD, he was in trouble. He slowly made his way over to the bed and then remembered the warning Serena had given him.
As he reached under the pillow, he realized that Mara's hand was resting on a blade. Shit. He kept his hand around hers and slowly bent down, kissing her softly on the cheek. She shifted slowly and he waited, with his face still close to hers, for her to wake up. When she didn't move again, he called her name softly and was immediately confronted with bright green eyes. Thankfully, he had her hand pinned down, but he had forgotten that Serena had mentioned The Twins, as in plural. Mara quickly shifted and brought a second blade to his throat. He stayed as still as possible while he waited for her to wake up completely and recognize him. He watched as the light of recognition hit her eyes and he couldn't stop himself, he kissed her full on with all the repressed passion he'd been keeping in since he first had that dream. He felt the blade move from his throat and clatter to the floor, and felt her other hand release the blade and grab onto his hand instead. She kissed him back with just as much passion and pulled at his shoulders, making him tumble onto the bed on top of her. As he tumbled he was forced to relinquish her enticing mouth to catch his balance. As he caught his balance, he looked up to see Mara barely holding in her laughter, and he started laughing himself. She rubbed his back lightly and kissed him on the cheek.
"Well…that was a damn nice wakeup call!" Mara said as she wriggled underneath him.
"I'm glad you think so…but we need to get a move on," Sam said as he brushed the hair from her face and kissed her cheek in return.
Mara gave a dramatic sigh and said, "Fine. Ugh. Let me get dressed."
Sam moved off of the bed and walked to the door, turning to see her sliding on jeans and buttoning a shirt over her tank top. She looked up and smiled at him, and his heart clenched in his chest. He watched as she put on socks and grabbed her boots and walked over to him. She gave him a tender kiss on the lips and smiled at him. He turned and opened the door for her and as they walked down the stairs he wondered how much longer he and his brother were going to be able to stay after they hunted this thing down. He hoped they'd be able to stay for at least a little while. He didn't want to leave Mara, but he knew at some point he would have to for her own safety.
