A/N: This one is quite short I'm afraid, but I though I'd best put something on to keep all you regulars at bay, considering my defences are down at the moment. I will put up a longer chapter when I next get the oppurtunity, but this one is just... how should I put it? A filler?
panzergal: Wow... I feel blessed that you've decided to read mine then, considering you're not a Tom fan. Thanks! Much appreciated!
Naitriab: Don't worry, my friend, the League were only so few and far between in the first few chapters cuz I wanted to get the story set up nicely. They should definitely feature a lot more frequently now.
Fayra: Should I be taking that as compliment...? I'm not so sure... I know you meant it that way, lol. It's just, when you read it out loud, if someone else hears you :-/ Ooh er. Thank you, anyway, I do try...
drowchild: Thank you for your kind words. And I believe you and Fayra are on the same track. The first segment should satisfy... that's the aim anyway.
Graymoon74: Please don't die! Then I'll never know what happens in your story! *begs* I'm glad I've got you so... agitated? Not sure about that actually, hehehehe. I honestly don't want you in your grave. Glad you hate Juliana, that was my aim to get you to despise the $£%^&. Did I say that out loud...?
Sethoz: I personally would never dream of accusing you of copying me, dear friend. But, I am going to poke you mentally until you update both your fics, you evil cliffhanger writer. Arggh... I hope this keeps you happy for a while ;)
* * *
He saw through his own eyes, seeing but blind. He heard everything, the clatters in the alleys and the distant cheers of drunken groups loitering, the hissing of cats as he passed... he heard all of this, but muffled, as though through a closed door. It was as though he was watching himself... from the inside. Wanting to reach out and stop himself from walking, he knew he was powerless.
Tom Sawyer, or what could be in some cases called Tom Sawyer's consciousness and spirit, had been overpowered, and was being forced down, piece by piece into nothingness, forced to watch helplessly as his body moved, seemingly, quite of its own accord.
But he knew what was going on here. He had figured it out, even though he had tried to fight it with every ounce of strength he had had left in him after Wright's torture, and Juliana's mental abuse. Amelia Kendrick had taken over his body, and was using it for her own purposes. Every now and then he would clearly hear an internal whispered command in a harsh feminine voice, and could do nothing to prevent his body from doing so, stop his mouth from saying what would be said.
Tom knew where his body was headed, and he was trying with everything he had to get it to stop anyway he could. Nothing was working, not that he had many options to choose from. He was simply just trying to win back his own mind, though he secretly knew it too weak to accept him at the moment. It seemed quite content to be under the command of that woman.
It was a most unpleasant sensation... much like being submerged in water, held under against your will, except without the threat of drowning, or the equivalent.
At least... he hoped so.
* * *
Skinner stood on the dock with Jekyll, Nemo and Mina Harker and whistled a jaunty tune to himself, trying to help pass the time. It was getting close to the prearranged rendezvous time, and Skinner noticed the good doctor beside him check his trusty pocket watch every couple of minutes.
Skinner was dressed and painted for the 'occasion', just waiting patiently with his companions for the lone American to emerge from the shadows of the surrounding New York area. It was taking too long... Sawyer was taking his sweet time in getting here.
That was when he caught a sound off to the left in front of them, and Mina stepped forward slightly, chin lifted as if she were trying to pick out smells on the almost non-existent breeze. A soft smile on her lips told Skinner it was friend, not foe.
A form dissolved out of the shadows and strode confidently but slowly towards them, blonde locks of hair in their face, green eyes visible even in the wan light. Dressed as ever in black, grey and white, Tom Sawyer hadn't changed a bit in the short space of time since they had last seen him.
"'Ello, Sawyer, did you miss us?" Skinner quipped, and smiled at his friend.
It was a moment before Sawyer returned the gesture, and he nodded. "Good to see you all again. Am I late?"
Jekyll was, in fact, checking his watch at that precise moment, and he stumbled over his words for just a second before saying, "No, not at all. Right on time, in fact." He laughed nervously.
Mina stepped forward to greet Sawyer, and she smiled at him, a haunting expression ghosting her features for a brief moment, one that confused Skinner, and the American too it seemed.
"Something wrong?" Sawyer asked of the vampire woman, and she shook her head, laughing, touching her temple with a gloved hand. She opened her blue eyes and met his gaze.
"No, not at all," she replied. "It must just be these streets. All the smells bleeding together."
There always seemed to be a special emphasis on a word such as 'blood' or 'bleeding' with Mina Harker, and Skinner didn't have to use much of his brain power to figure that one out. It was pretty self-explanatory.
"It is good to see you well, Agent Sawyer," Nemo greeted in his usual distant, yet warm manner. He shook his hand. "Tell me, is there anywhere in particular you would care for us to visit now that you have returned to the League? No one else can seem to make up their mind." There was a soft chuckle from the regal man, one that the thief almost missed.
Skinner raised an eyebrow, and listened to Sawyer as he replied, "Actually, would it be too much trouble to stay in the area for a while? Some friends of mine have come into town for a visit, and they want me to... show them around."
Skinner, Jekyll, Nemo and Mina exchanged glances, before they all either nodded or mumbled their acknowledgements.
"Not a problem," Jekyll muttered with a smile.
"Of course, Mr. Sawyer," Nemo said to him, and half-bowed, disappearing into the ship to inform his crew they would be staying in New York for a while.
"Will we be seeing these mates of yours then, Sawyer?" Skinner inquired eagerly, itching to go out for a bit of exploring in this rather vast landscape that stretched all around him. Sawyer looked to him.
"Actually..." Sawyer began slowly, "they're not really the social type. I don't think they'd take your... condition much in stride." Sawyer smiled with a light, almost inaudible laugh.
Skinner nodded. "Fair enough. I'm not everyone's cup of tea, I can understand. Looks like it's just us lot then," he said to his two remaining companions.
Mina sighed delicately, and smiled at Sawyer. "Are these old friends of yours?"
Sawyer shrugged. "You could say that. It seems like forever since we've seen one another."
"I see," Mina agreed light-heartedly with a nod, her hands knitted in front of her. "Well, I would like the oppurtunity to meet them personally, if there is a chance in the near future."
"Oh, I'm sure you'll get to see them at one point or another." Sawyer smiled again, and tucked his hands in his pockets gently.
"Here, Sawyer," Skinner began, finally placing in his mind what was wrong about him. Something had been bothering him since he'd set eyes on the young man, and he'd finally realised what was missing. "Where's that gun of yours?" Skinner laughed, and Jekyll smiled. "Never thought I'd see the day where you where without it."
There was a moment of stillness and silence between them, and Skinner glanced between the faces of his company, before Sawyer finally said, "It's in my room. I'll have to pick it up later. Guess I forgot all about it."
Skinner grinned, and nodded. "Comin' inside for a 'welcome back' drink, Sawyer?"
The other man nodded and followed him, trailed by Mina and Jekyll, back into the Nautilus.