Chapter 12 – Show Down.

Dixon's POV;

Selena was never the girl who would sit and take things on the chin without questioning it; even when we had been ordered to end our relationship she had been right in the jury's face demanding to know why we were being told to break up.

I had to admit that I was more of a follower; I wasn't ashamed of following the rules, because I strongly believed that they were in place for a reason. However, being with Selena had definitely clouded my beliefs for a long time. It wasn't hard to get confused around her – she was so powerful and she didn't even know it. It wasn't something that made her appear more than she was – there was that innocent humility about her.

When I had met her; I had fallen so hard and so fast that for the first time in my life; I truly hadn't been able to understand the way I felt about her. The way she smiled that beautiful genuine smile whenever she was around me, the way that she gave you all of herself no matter what was going on and the way she supported me with all that she was – there had never been any moment when she had questioned me, who I was or what I was doing. I had never had anything like that and it had made me want to be a better man. I had always been honest with her because I had never wanted her to look at me any differently.

We had most definitely risked a lot so that we could be together. We had put all of our friends and Family in danger because they knew and there was no way that they would have gone to the jury because they could see how good we were together.

My Mom had adored Selena; she was always on the phone to her, they went shopping together, Selena hung out with my Mom whenever I was off on business and they had both spoken so highly of one another. It had been hard on my Family and friends when Selena and I had been ordered to end our relationship because of the difference in races. Everyone in my life had loved her and accepted her as a part of my life from the minute that I had introduced them. I think that my Mom had, had plans about me settling down and marrying Selena, and eventually giving her Grandkids.

"How's your Mom doing?" Selena asked me as if she had been able to read my mind.

"She misses you!" I replied as I steered her towards my car.

I had heard her say that she was going to the jury to have it out with them – there was no way that I was allowing her to walk there. If she was intent on doing this then she was going to let me go with her and she was going to allow me to drive her there.

"Awe I miss her too. I used to have so much fun hanging out with her," she replied finally looking up at me as she realized where I was guiding her. "I'm walking Dix,"

"No you're not – you're emotional and after that surge of power you just showed; you are not walking anywhere," I argued.

If I was right in my thoughts; it wasn't wise to allow her to walk there by herself; because it looked to me that her powers were just on the very cusp of presenting themselves to her. It could happen at absolutely anytime; for Selena; it was around about the average age for them to show. Elemental powers were something that most Witches craved but were never blessed with – electricity was a strong power and one that couldn't be taken lightly.

I was worried that she wasn't seeing the responsibility that came with such power and I was worried that she would indeed do something wrong. In Witch law; written by the jury, it stated that new Witches were forgiven one mistake when it came to their powers bursting from them because they couldn't exactly control it – I just knew that the jury already had it in for her and she would need someone there to back her up.

"Awe come on Dix – give me a break," she argued remaining rooted to the spot and staring defiantly in my eyes.

Sometimes; she could be so frustrating; she was one of those women who had been raised to believe heavily in her own belief and power. I knew that it was because her Mother had been left to raise her alone; she had been left to ensure that Selena was raised correctly and knew her heritage.

"No you give me a break 'Lena; just this once; please let me do the right thing,"

I had always felt like I hadn't done enough to fight for us; I felt like I just caved in way too quickly. Maybe I could have fought a little harder, maybe I should have stood up for us more – maybe I had given up way too easily. For a long moment; she stood and just looked in to my eyes and I could see that she was trying to read me – she had always been so amazing at reading people's emotions and feelings.

"Fine! You can come with me," she finally said moving towards the passenger seat and climbed in to the car.

Standing in the parking lot for a few moments; I stared at the school and wondered what I really should do. I was supposed to be teaching a class; I was supposed to be taking this new job seriously but all I could think about was the fact that I had taken this job primarily so I could be near Selena. Pulling out my phone, I dialled Talia's number and waited for her to answer.

"What's going on? Is she ok?" she asked answering almost instantly.

"Yeah she's fine; we're going to the jury – can you wrap the class up and go to the office to tell them that I have been called away on an emergency?" I asked her.

"Emergency? Is she hurt?"

"I think her powers are ready to take over," I said looking down in to the car to see that Selena was just staring out the window in the opposite direction.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that she was outside – she was angry and she was – she uhm – you know what; it's best I don't say anything until we know for sure," I decided. "I just need you to pass on that message for me?"

"Ok I can do that – everyone is just sitting around chatting anyway," she informed me. "You better take care of my best friend Dix!"

"I will, I promise honey," I replied hanging up and stuffing my phone back in to my pocket.

That life; the one that I had with Selena; seemed like a whole lifetime away now. Talia was such a huge part of Selena's life that anyone getting involved with her was going to have to accept Talia too. I had always found Talia really easy to talk too and completely non judgmental which wasn't something that most Witches were very good at. All the times that I had dealt with Witches in the past; they had been smug and full of their own importance; they felt like they were better than the rest of the Supernatural world because of the power that they invoked – Selena and Talia and both of their Mothers were completely different to all that.

Climbing in to the car behind the wheel and I looked at my ex girlfriend to see that she was lost in her thoughts as she remained faced away from me. So instead of saying something, I pushed the key in the ignition and started the car. If she needed her own personal head space then I could grant her that. It was the least that I owed her.

Back at the house;

Jeff's POV;

For the first time ever; I felt completely helpless – I wanted to be right there with Selena. I wanted to wrap her up into my arms and I wanted to whisper in to her ear that everything was going to be alright. Whatever had taken her by such surprise was still burning through her – she was angry, she was humiliated and ashamed. The anger was the most prominent of her emotions; whatever it was had really affected her badly.

I knew that she was holding her shield in place because as hard as I tried to talk to her; she wasn't hearing me. I knew the difference when she had heard me and was just ignoring me; this was different; she was blocked off from me but surely she knew that I would be going out of my mind right now. Of course I knew that meant that whatever it was, was really bad for her. Selena wasn't the type of girl who would have just allowed me to sit here going crazy if she wasn't preoccupied.

Had someone hurt her?

Had someone tried to hurt her?

Had the jury found out about us?

As if a sudden spark of lightening hit me, I reached in to my pocket and pulled out my cell phone and dialled her number and waited for her to answer.

"Hey," she sounded down, she was defeated and that scared me because I was so used to her just being this vibrant energy.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm really – I don't – no I'm not," she was definitely defeated.

Normally she would have bluffed her way through because of where I was and where I had to stay during the day. Selena didn't like it when I was stuck inside and completely out of the loop with no way to get to her.

"What's happened?"

"I can't – I will explain when I get home yeah?" she asked me and I could hear how much she needed me to listen to her right now.

"Ok," I replied not wanting to add more pressure on to her. "Just promise me that you are safe!"

"I'm – safe," she answered. "I promise,"

"Ok,"

We said our goodbyes and I ended the connection to her. My fear was slowing down somewhat but at the same time; I was worried that there was something seriously wrong with her.

What if she was ill?

What if someone had done something to her?

No she had said that she was safe, she had made sure to let me know that. I had to trust her and I had to be patient until she got home.

It had definitely been so long since I was concerned about a woman and the more that I thought about it, the more that I knew I was in love. As impossible as that sounded and because of the myths that surrounded my kind; it made it even more impossible to believe.

We weren't supposed to form relationships that were honest or based on love and respect. Maybe there was something wrong with me! Maybe I had been made wrong! The more I thought about it the more that I felt like I was completely out of my depth in this relationship but I just couldn't walk away.

Selena had tapped in to my humanity – she made me feel again. It was like a light coming on after years of living in the dark and in shadows. Everything that I felt was because of Selena, everything that I was becoming was because of the way she loved me and treated me. I had never met a Witch before who was not completely prejudice about other Species in the Supernatural world.

As I lay back down, I tried hard to centre myself and concentrate on me rather than on the emotions of my girlfriend who was God knows where alone with God knew who.

Was I feeling jealousy?

Was this why I felt so anxious?

Jealousy – it had always appeared to be a useless emotion to me. As a predator and a hunter; it didn't seem fallible that I could be jealous about anyone or anything because I far surpassed any other type of being on the planet. That wasn't me being cocky; that was me being assured and right about my place in the new world. I just hoped that Selena was ok and that she knew, whatever it was that she was about to do because I could feel that sudden rush of decisive and alert, I would support her and be there by her side.

The Supernatural Court; an Hour Later;

Selena's POV;

My anger was bubbling violently inside me – I could feel the rage getting ready to erupt out of me and there was nothing that I could do that would calm it down or make it go away. I had tried so hard to remain calm and in control but the more I thought about it the more that I wanted to just give in to it and let it control whatever I was going to do.

Standing in front of the jury – my eyes took them in one by one; Lorraine Kemp; a very bitter shapeshifter who had been elected on to the committee by her pack. There was something about this woman that made me want to vomit; I didn't know if it was because she was older than my Mother and still thought that it was appropriate to dress like she was 20 years old or maybe it was because she would throw herself at any shapeshifter that she could.

Next to Lorraine was Alexander Thorpe; a Vampire who from all accounts was older than time itself. No one knew exactly what time he had been made and I don't think that anyone ever will; even his second in command – a beady little Vampire by the name of Dexter Collins – had no idea what time his master came from. Alexander was a nice man and had been completely outvoted by the rest of the jury in allowing Dixon and I to remain together. Rumour had it that Alexander was all for the old days before the Supernatural community had come out to the rest of the world.

Next to Alexander was Draven Jones; a Werewolf who was a part of a pack that ran in the same town as Dixon's Werepanther pack. Draven was a very close minded wolf; she believed in the justice system that the community had set up and she had been unwilling to accept the fact that Dixon and I had fallen in love. I knew that in her eyes; I was a Witch and that meant to her that I was worthless. Rumour had it that she was gay and completely prejudice to different sex relationships.

Next along the table was Dreana Bailey; a Fairy who was friendly and sincere for the majority of the time but the minute that you tried to cross her or pull the wool over her eyes; she became vicious just like most Fairies are. Usually fairies were seen as serene creatures but in reality; they were about as vicious as Vampires especially when it came to culture and their believes.

And lastly; my eyes settled on the one woman who had made my Mother's life hell and seemed intent on doing the very same to me; Margo Lang – a Witch who had been to school with my Mom and had from all accounts that my Mother had told me about; tried to undermine my Mom at every given opportunity and apparently from what I knew; she had been trying to split my Mom and my Dad; Elias from the get go. I watched as this woman's suspicious eyes met mine and I felt a sliver of anger rising again.

It was mainly down to this woman that I had lost Dixon in the first place – it had been her voice that was the loudest when we had been sentenced and if she had, had her way; I would be rotting in a jail cell right now. Keeping my focus squarely on her and the anger that she was feeling was evident in the way she couldn't keep her eyes on me. Smiling a small grin in victory of getting the better of her at the moment, I waited to be addressed by the jury.

"What can we do for you Selena?" Alexander asked me; clearly he was foreman today – I knew that they took it in turns to be leader of the pack.

It sometimes freaked me out to think of all these different creatures cooperating with one another. Before the real world had heard about us; it had been very much a war. None of the Supernatural species were able to tolerate one another – although Witches were mostly used by all of them for protection and amulets.

"I want to know why this jury feels it is acceptable to further torture me?" I asked holding my head high even though I could see the little smirk coming from Margo's face.

"I'm not sure I know what you mean," he replied keeping hold of the meeting for the time being.

"I mean that why has my ex Dixon been appointed the new Species Relations class in the school in Cameron?"

"We didn't have very many applicants and as you know; Species Relations is a mandatory subject. When Dixon came to us; we knew that he would be perfect for the job -!" he started to tell me.

"Alexander we don't need to be explaining our decisions to this little girl," Margo announced happy to stick the knife in.

I took a deep breath and tried to remain calm and focused but as I watched the snide smirk gleaming on her face, I shot my hands up in pure frustration and before I even knew what was happening; fire was flowing from my palms and the court stenographer blew up before turning to ash in her chair.

Suddenly the court erupted in to chaos; I was handcuffed and I was being yelled at until Dixon had stood up from where he had been sitting and demanded the attention of the room. My eyes met his and I could see the pain he felt for me shining there – what had I done?

I had just killed someone; I had burned another being in to ash. That most definitely wasn't what I was about. I had never fought in my life, I always liked to try and keep the peace. I guess that was why I had given up on Dixon and I so easily – I hadn't wanted to cause more waves. I had let them take him from me and I had made the biggest mistake of my life in letting them think that I was going to cooperate with all their stupid laws and rules.

"Please let Miss Carmichaels go," Dixon stated stepping up next to me. I watched as the court looked to him as if he had lost his mind in telling them what to do with someone who had blatantly disrespected the court. "As you are all aware – a new Witch is granted one mistake when she comes in to her new powers and clearly this is what has just happened,"

Everyone in the court stared at me – I knew that it was a huge deal that I had been gifted with fire; it had been from my understanding, at least a decade since someone had been gifted with such power. Nyx; our Goddess had given me ultimate power and I could see the frustration on Margo's face as she glared at me.

After Dixon had explained what he felt and what had happened at the school when I had stormed out – it was like I was suddenly this huge deal. The majority of the jury were actually being nice to me and talking to me instead of talking down to me. The only person who remained away from me was Margo, but I truly hadn't expected anything less than that. I knew that I wasn't her favourite person and she knew that she wasn't mine – I guessed we were even. It didn't matter how many times I told them not to make a big deal out of it, the more they seemed intent on actually doing so. Supernatural law was strict about Witches and when they came in to their power; we had to basically register when we found out what our powers were and who had been witness to it. My own declaration was slightly different; I had all members of the jury present with me and they each had to write their own account of what had happened.

Finally 3 hours later – I was back in Dixon's car and driving home. I didn't want to go back to school and Dixon had said that he would get Talia to bring my things home for me. Of course he wanted to stay but I told him I would be fine and locked the house up behind me. Leaning against the door for a few moments, thinking about the past few hours and wondering how different my life was going to be now – my mind turned to Jeff and remembering how panicked he had appeared to be when he called me. I moved quickly until I was descending the basement stairs and staring at him as he paced.

In what could only be described as a flash; he was in front of me, his arms claiming me and burying his head in my hair; breathing me in until he was coughing and spluttering. Standing back I lifted my arms to make sure that I didn't smell of BO.

"You smell like a were," he said calmly wiping his hand over his tongue; obviously trying to get rid of the smell that he had detected on me.

And just like that, I was laughing – it had been one of those days that had tried my patience and just being back with Jeff, watching him dramatically try to remove the taste on his taste buds, he had broken through my barrier of frustration and I was laughing louder than I had thought I would be able to.

R/N - THANK YOU guys for the feedback, if you want more please be sure to leave me a little review and/or comment - you guys really are the best and I can't thank you enough for reading and letting me know that you are enjoy it - if it weren't for you I wouldn't be sharing my work, so THANK YOU once again. Love you guys :D

Harley
xoxox