Disclaimer:- I don't own Tom Sawyer, Mina Hawker, Skinner, Captain Nemo, Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde or anything else used in the fic, except Smith and Mr. Big. Okay, clearly I was wrong about the last part being bad, as everyone else seemed to like it. So, here's the next part, which has quite a nasty cliffhanger *grins* But first, the Shout outs;

Clez:- Maniacal genius eh? Glad you liked it and Tom was supposed to creep everyone out! That's the point of his little giggle. Now, now, don't shake the American *Removes Tom from your grasp* Why don't you just read this part and see what he does. Oh and what happens to Mina ;)

Angharad:- Meanly in a good way? Ah, my work here is done... *Scampers off*

Funyun:- Crazy, Deranged, Maniacal Tom? Yeah, that sounds about right.

Crystal Nox:- To you, everything Skinner does is cute ;) You know after I read your review I couldn't get the image of Tom saying; Here's.... Tommy!" out of my head. *Pouts* But he doesn't say that in this, don't worry. And killing Skinner? Would I kill him?

Capt.Cow:- You really should expect cliffhangers from me by now. ;)

Leigh S. Durron:- No Leigh, it wasn't a nice place to leave you at all. Some people might say that where I end it in this part isn't a nice place to leave it either. Meh, what do they know =)

Silent Bob 546:- Yeah Skinner has the best lines... what's wrong with Tom's eyes? There a lovely green... *goes off into her own little world* What? Yes, what? ;) Anyway, glad you like it!

LotRseer3350:- Oh Seer, Seer, Tom as a homicidal maniac, that would be amazing. *tries to ignore the chapter below her* I wanna read part three of your LXG story!! *pouts* Come on, write, write!

Niani:- Yeah, Skinner pretty much sums it up. To find out what happens... read this chapter!

Steffi-333:- *Tries to hide behind Anubis* Wait... why am I scared? I'm the writer! *clicks fingers and 'Ammut repellent' appears* Yeah, multiple cliffys all round. I love Tom too! (Bet you couldn't have guessed that one.)

Freedomfighter82:- Chill Freedom, just chillllllllll. *Wards off evil eye again* Will I kill Tom? Will I make him do something he will regret later? Possibly. *smiles angelically* Thanks for the lovely review!

Graymoon74:- Glad you enjoyed it and wow, that's a long review you left me! Well, of course Clez and I have to put them under strain! It makes good Angst! Yeah, I cringed when I came up with the blood thing but I had to start that spell somehow... and I don't think Skinner's going to be fooled by Sawyer somehow ;) Here's the next part and look out! Behind you! A well!

Anyhow, moving on, here is the next part of...

The Bodyguard.

~~~

Part Twenty:- The Ties That Bind Us

~~~

Tom moved swiftly through the dimly lit paths of the maze, the robed man behind him carrying a lit torch. The flickering light of the fire enabled him to see a few feet ahead of him, his Winchester rifle armed and ready.

"Skinner? Skinner, where are you? I just wanna talk..." Tom called out, another shrill little manic giggle escaping his mouth. He covered his mouth with his hand to stop the laughter his eyes darting around the corridor he was in, searching for any sign of Rodeny Skinner.

"I'll find you, you know..." Tom whispered, letting his hand drop back to his side as he began to creep, hugging the right hand wall as he did so. Deep inside he felt something stirring, a half formed thought coming to the front of his mind.

//This is wrong...\\

Tom Sawyer shook his head, forcing the unwanted thought deep down and squashing the feelings he could feel. It was almost as if something inside of him was trying to come free, something or someone - which was nonsense, there was only him in his body. The feeling faded from him and he focused back on the hunt for Skinner, already forgetting the odd longing in his heart.

Agent Sawyer was a hunter - and he always got his pray.

~~~

Her body was twitching, completely out of her control as Mina bit back a cry of pain. Smith was twisted the blades lodged inside her body, enjoying the anguish he could see on the She-Vamp's face. Mina gasped, panting slightly, her arms moving wildly around. The Egyptian paused in what he was doing, and for a second seemed to be thinking about pulling the blades out of her sides. He lent forward, leaning closer to Mina's face, and at the same time, placing all of his weight on the blades, digging them deeper into the injured Vampire's flesh.

"Hello Mina..." Smith said. Only it wasn't Smith's voice or Smith's face looking at her. Instead the youthful image of Tom was standing in front of her, his long arms lazily resting against her body, his hands gripping the curved blades. The American Agent smiled at her and moved his mouth closer, until it was right next to her ear.

"You know you want to bite me..." Tom whispered. "You must have thought about, every time I was injured and all you could hear was my young heart beating rapidly, like a drum." Tom blew gently on her ear, causing Mina to give a slight shudder and to swallow, trying to ignore the vampire in her that stirred, begging for the young blood that must be under his skin... even though she couldn't smell any. Even though she knew he wasn't really Tom.

"Give in to your demons She-Vamp... bite me and let the memory stay with you forever..." Tom whispered, slowly drawing his head back from her ear and giving her a mocking smile. Mina's eyes narrowed as she stared at him, before closing her eyes.

"Stop it." She said in her low husky tone. "I know you are not Agent Sawyer - do you think me a fool Smith? I know all about your ability to cast a false image of someone." 'Tom' shrugged his shoulders, a resigned expression on his face. Then the features melted away and Smith was looking at her again.

"It was worth a try. To rub salt in your wounds, my dear little defeated lady, would have been fun... for you to think in your last few moments of your life that you really had bitten your precious little Yank." Smith said with a laugh, giving one of the blade a vicious twist, turning it at almost ninety degrees. Mina screamed, unable to stop the sound.

"Mina... Mina, help me!" Smith said, making his voice sound like Tom's own. A few tears came to Mina's eyes as Smith laughed. "No... please... no..." Smith begged, his voice still perfectly like Tom's. Mina shook her head, trying to blank out the voice.

//It's not him... It's just a trick...\\

She had dropped her silver dagger when Smith had first stabbed her, leaving her weapon-less. Mina glanced about wildly, as if hoping that some miracle would happen, giving her a weapon. Her eyes fell on the dagger that was still sticking out of Smith's side. The Egyptian pushed upwards, making Mina's gasp, her hand reaching out blindly for her dagger, her eyes unable to focus on it.

Mina's groping fingers touched the cool handle and she pulled, feeling it slip away from Smith. She tightened her grip on the weapon, ignoring the nagging feeling that... something was wrong with her weapon. With a little yell she slashed down at Smith, cutting him along his arm. To her amazement Smith gave a scream of pain and backed away, letting her go. She dropped to the ground, her wounds now able to heal, still holding her dagger in her hand - only it wasn't her dagger.

The dagger in her hand had a curved blade and some form of writing on it. It was smaller than her own and more ornate. Mina's head snapped towards Smith who had staggered backwards, pressing one of his hands over the cut she had inflicted... It hadn't healed...

"You're own dagger can hurt you..." She breathed, realization dawning on her. She must be holding the Dagger of the Well, it was the only answer.

"Only the dead can use that weapon." Smith hissed, still shocked at this new sensation in his arm. The last time he had felt pain... he had still been alive. Mina rose gracefully to her feet, her strength flowing back into her, her energy returning at this new found hope. With a hiss Mina leapt forward, using her skill to fly over Smith, so she was facing his back.

"It's a good thing I'm not alive then..." Mina snarled before plunging the dagger in between two of Smith's ribs. The dagger slid inside without a sound.

Smith made a few chocking and gagging sounds, his mouth open, his face - if Mina could see it - had an expression of the utmost surprise. Mina pulled her hand back, removing the dagger from Smith's back. He dropped to the ground without any other sound, hitting it with a dull thud. Mina collapsed at the same time, panting hard, on all fours. She took a few deep breaths then reached over to Smith's dead form.

She pulled out her own dagger, slipping it away. For a second she toyed with the idea of throwing the Dagger away but instead, she slipped it into her coat - she never knew, it might hold the key to saving Agent Tom. As Mina turned to leave a wind sprang up, blowing past her. She looked down at Smith, dreading what she might see. The flesh was slowly decaying away, then turning into dust. Smith was returning to the sand. Mina turned her body wholly and ran towards the maze, suddenly worried. Now that Smith was dead, who knew what would happen? She stumbled into the entrance - still feeling weak after her recent battle, the grand doors still open, not even looking at the carved figures of the writing above them as she moved past. Using her Vampiric senses to track the League, she plunged into the maze, leaving the still form of Smith behind her.

~~~

Tom was getting closer to Skinner by now. He could feel it, somehow he just knew that the other man was almost within his grasp. Humming a few bars of 'You Are my Sunshine' under his breath, Tom sidestepped a corner, his weapon aimed into the darkness. Nothing moved, there was no sound or light... yet Tom was more sure than ever that Skinner was near. He passed a wooden door, giving it only a quick glance as he did so. Something about the door though, made him stop and look again.

"Bring that torch closer." Tom said, peering at the wood. The man did as he asked and Tom smiled as he looked at the lock. It had been forced. Tom gently rested his palm on the wood and pushed, the door opening soundlessly. The room inside was well lit by a few torches and lying on the floor, just inside the door was a black coat. Tom dropped to the ground and picked up the coat, rising to his feet slowly and staring round the room, his whole body alert.

"I know you're here Skinner..." Tom called out, passing the coat to the man behind him. He took a few steps into the room, his boots crunching on the sand under his feet. Without looking at the robed figure, Tom waved his hand, pointing at the door. The other man understood the message and stepped inside, pushing the door shut behind him, then standing in front of it.

"No way out 'mate'." Tom said, trying to put on a cockney accent, as he scanned the room, his rifle held lightly in his hands. A faint sound could be heard to his right and he spun, peering down the sight of his gun. After a few seconds he lowered the gun again and continued his search of the room. The sound of footsteps behind Tom made him tense, not enough for anyone to notice but enough for Tom to act. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the robed man had not left the door. Which meant only one thing.

With a snarl Tom spun, using the butt end of his rifle as a bat. It collided with something invisible, hitting it was a loud slap. With one rapid movement, Tom rammed his gun into Skinner's gut.

"Nighty Night." He said with a smirk, hearing Skinner's body fall to the ground. Tom turned to the robed figure and took Skinner's coat from him before turning back and dropping it on top of Skinner. Instantly the crumpled form of the man could be seen and Tom bent down, struggling to place Skinner's arms into the coat sleeves, while singing lightly under his breath.

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy..."

~~~

The scent Mina was following was getting fresher and stronger, which meant that she was getting closer. She had passed a turn off a few meters back, where she was sure she could smell Tom Sawyer's scent but had, after sniffing the air hard, dismissed it. Why would he be going away from the maze? She couldn't even be sure if it was Tom, there had been a second scent, mingling with the familiar scent of her friend which was enough to make her doubt. So she had passed the scent by and concentrated on Nemo's scent, one she could follow.

Ahead she could make out an opening, a faint light emitting from it. Slowing down, Mina reached the stone archway and carefully peered around the side. The room in front of her was huge - and there, in the center was a lit area, where Mr. Big was standing. He was talking to some men in red robes, but Mina's attention was taken up by the slumped forms of the rest of the League, sans Skinner, a fact that passed Mina by. One of the robed men bent his head towards Mr. Big and whispered something in his ear. The English man turned his face towards the entrance.

"Mrs. Harker... I can see you." Mr. Big called out in a lazy tone. Mina stepped boldly out from the shadows, moving a few meters down the narrow path. Then she paused, staring at Big.

"Smith is dead." She said at last, a smile on her face.

"What?" Mr. Big gasped in shock. Mina moved closer, her fury building. If she had been her normal cool and calm self she might have noticed that Mr. Big did not smell of fear, as he should have done when faced with a very angry Vampire who had just killed someone who was supposed to be un-killable. If she had been more balanced she would have been more careful, suspecting some new trick. Instead, Mina was so taken up by the fact that she had defeated Smith that she didn't notice the odd reaction by Mr. Big.

"If what you say is true... come and get me before I kill your friends." Mr. Big said, dashing towards the slumped form of Dr. Jekyll - his potion must have worn off, Mina realized. She almost flew down the path, her form becoming blurry. With a grow she entered the platform.

"Stop..." Mr. Big said softly and Mina did so, her hands still extended, her fangs bared. "Sit down with the rest." Big commanded, smiling as Mina was compelled to do so.

"Did you take the Dagger of the Well from Smith?" Mr. Big asked hopefully, his smile growing as Mina gave a jerky nod.

"Give it to me." He hissed, pulling out a handkerchief and wrapping the Dagger in it. "Thank you Mrs. Harker. Thank you for bringing just what I wanted. The only thing I needed to complete the ritual. Just think, if you had left it in the sand... your little friend may have lived." Mr. Big taunted.

~~~

When Skinner woke up the first thing he was aware of was rough rope digging into his wrists. Other facts presented themselves, one after the other. His arms were behind his back. He was wearing his duster again. He had one hell of a headache. He could see Tom Sawyer standing in front of him, a cocky smile on his face. He came to the conclusion that Tom could be an annoying little git when he had been brain washed. All this passed through Skinner's mind like lightning. Somehow Tom seemed to sense that Skinner had woken up. The American moved his head and clicked his fingers, causing the other figure in the room - who Skinner had forgotten about - moved behind the thief and gripped him roughly by the arms, forcing him to his feet.

"Sawyer, come on, snap out of this. It me, it's Skinner, your mate." Skinner pleaded. Tom stared at where he thought Skinner's face was, confusion in his green eyes.

"What are you talking about. We're not 'mates' or friends. I only met you a day or two ago." Tom snapped. "Let's go." He added to the other man. The robed figure pushed Skinner forward and he began to struggle at once.

"No, Sawyer, listen to me! We are friends, we've known each other for months! Don't you remember?" Skinner said, trying to get through to his friend.

"Ignore him Agent Sawyer." The second man said. Tom raised the barrel of his Winchester, pointing it in the direction of both of the other men in the room.

"You, shut up." Tom spat. "You, Skinner, what are you trying to do here? I've worked for my Master for years, I grew up working for him."

"No, no, you didn't! Think Sawyer, think!" Skinner shouted. Tom blinked, the gun still held steady, pointed right at Skinner's heart. Skinner fished around in his mind, desperate to think of something to crack the fake memories Tom seemed to have.

"You're Agent Sawyer right?" He said suddenly. Tom frowned and nodded. "How?" Skinner asked. "How can you be an Agent if you grew up working for Mr. Big? What are you an Agent of?"

"I..." Tom took a step back, his eye's now wide with confusion, his whole body shaking. A dull presser was building up in the back of his head while he tried to think.

//What am I an Agent of...?\\ The presser began to increase in his head.

"Come on Sawyer! Let's just get back to Mr. Big, I'm sure he will be able to explain everything. This... thing is just trying to trick you." The man shouted.

"Tom! Tom, don't listen to him, I want to help you." Skinner yelled, trying to be heard above the other man.

"Shut up! Both of you, just shut up!" Tom screamed. He was panting hard now, the tip of the barrel of his Winchester lowering slightly. Tom stared at the two men in the room, his gaze darted to one then to the other. One had to go, Tom had to get rid of one of them, he had to make the pain in his head stop. He had to do something...

"Tom..." Skinner whispered. Tom snapped his rifle back up, took aim and without allowing himself to think about it, pulled the trigger. As the single bullet hit it's intended mark there was a loud agonized death scream. At the same time a second scream echoed round the room, the two voice's mingling together until it was impossible to tell them apart.

TBC...

There you have it, we are now two thirds of the way through this story and it's all moving towards the climax! So, please, please leave a review, you amazing people you!

~Sethoz