More plot in this update: this time we get a bad guy! Spoiler: Currently the story is in Thursday day. Bethan hits hardcore Friday morning.
I love the community here, but I have a special soft spot for reviewers. Shout outs to:
MBAV fan66: Yup, I like to think that Rory has his own special intelligence. I'm glad you like the brother/sister part. Jane is really a bit character on the show, and I wanted to give her a bigger presence in this story.
TiredOfBeingNice: "Extra kick" wasn't so much a clue as something I thought Benny would say. The names of the potions are a clue. Though I didn't give enough information for the reader to know which potion he used. I'm glad you enjoy my version of Benny. I really enjoy writing him :-)
Bye Felicia: Your reviews are hilariously blunt and I love that. I'm glad you like it so far; hopefully you'll continue to like it. I know what it's like to be itchy for the romantic plot to more forward.
Ethan follows Benny down the hall towards their math class. With the reduced number of classes Whitechapel High could afford to offer the small student body, Benny and Ethan ended up sharing all but one class this year. A rare upside to living in Lucifractor ground zero.
Nearly at room 314, someone energetically taps Ethan on the shoulder from behind.
"Gah!" Ethan jumps splatting doctored coffee on himself. "Hi Jessica," Ethan smiles nervously, turning around to face the rather petite werewolf. Benny stops to wait for Ethan, not particularly concerned with being late for class. Ethan self-consciously wipes at the coffee stains on his shirt, knowing it will do no good.
"Hi Ethan. I was wondering if you could tell me if Dominic was going to ask me to the end of the year dance?" She looks very hopeful, her bouncy black curls only emphasizing her enthusiasm.
"It doesn't work like that Jessica," Ethan replies. While he'd had some varied success at triggering visions, he doesn't really want to expend the effort on small favors.
"Oh," Her whole form deflates, "Could you try anyways maybe?" She pleads with a head tilt and glossy lips in a pout.
"Fine." Ethan holds out his hand, realizing it will be quicker than arguing with her.
Jessica happily grabs Ethan's hand. Her werewolf grip is painfully strong. Surprisingly Ethan does get a vision off of Jessica.
A pack of silver-grey wolves are drinking from the lake's edge. One of the wolves is Jessica; she's petite as a wolf too. A heron lands in the reeds near the wolves, and they all back up. One of them howls. As a group they run off.
Ethan refocuses on the real world, and sees Jessica's expectant grin.
"Uh... well," Ethan hedges, "I don't know if Dominic will ask you out. Like I said it doesn't work like that. I didn't know you were a full wolf, that's cool." Ethan tries tempering the bad news with a smile.
Jessica's face does this weird acrobatics between letdown and polite. "Yeah. Thanks for trying I guess."
Benny edges into the conversation, physically leaning over Ethan's shoulder, and shoots his beaming smile at the pretty were, "So Jessica, if things don't work out with Dominic, I'm single."
Jessica giggles awkwardly, her shoulders hitching up, "Well, bye." She turns and quickly retreats.
"She totally wants me," Benny boasts, squeezing Ethan's shoulder before backing off.
"Sure," Ethan eyes his best friend in disbelief, "Let's get to class before-" But the final bell rings out as he's saying it. The boys bolt through the classroom door, and crash land noisily at the empty table near the and Ethan have an unspoken claim to the table in the back right corner.
The boys settle into class amongst the cacophony of zippers and rustling papers. Technically they're tardy, but Mr. Swets doesn't comment. Mr. Swets's leniency may just be him being nice, but it's equally likely that he's too preoccupied hunting for the attendance sheet mixed into the scattered piles of homework on his desk.
"Hey check this out," Benny says showing off an equation on his graphing calculator. It's the bat symbol, but it's a little pinched.
"You got that equation online?" Ethan asks to humor Benny while he pulls out his book and blank paper for notes.
"I modified it," Benny says defensively. "The formula I found wasn't accurate."
"Well that one isn't either," Ethan chides. He has a pencil in his backpack somewhere.
"Alright everyone settle down," Mr. Swets calls out as he shuts off the lights in the front half of the classroom-something he does everyday so it'll be easier to see the overhead projector. Another way the school had dealt with budget cuts-not upgrading equipment. Unfortunately the change in light level mercilessly renews Ethan's exhaustion.
'Hopefully my notes will make sense later.' Ethan hears himself say.
'What the hell?' 'Can other people hear that?' Two identical sets of Ethan say simultaneously.
Cautiously Ethan pokes Benny's shoulder with the crumbly pink eraser of his pencil, "Hey B, did I just say something?"
"No..." Benny looks at Ethan with startled saucer eyes, and then around the classroom to see if anything is obviously amiss. After four years, the one things the boys have definitely learned was to not ignore something weird.
'So much for that,' Ethan tells himself.
"Okay well I'm apparently holding a conversation with myself in my head," Ethan informs Benny quietly. Seeing Benny's suddenly guilty grin, he adds, "This is your fault, isn't it?"
Tapping the table with both hands, the spell master explains, "It might possibly be the Ducerebra potion. The book really made it sound like it would help you think faster, but the name literally means 'two minds.' So..." Benny gestures helplessly.
Ethan is about to retort but Mr. Swets turns on the projector and instructs the class to open their textbooks to page 497. At this late point in the school year, he cared less about enforcing rules in their senior classes, which was evidenced by him giving up on taking attendance, but Mr. Swets drew the line at anything that would distract other students. If you don't want to learn, that's your choice, but don't take that choice away from your classmates.
'Hello me?' Ethan think-says hesitantly, while obediently opening his book to 497. Most of the class seems to be copying something out of the book.
'I guess I-we're like this for a while... Are you really me? I can hear myself think, and I can hear you talk, but I can't hear you think.' Other Ethan responds.
'Your guess is as good as mine,' he informs himself. 'Possibly in the most literal sense.'
Ethan scratches the side of this head while considering the current situation, and he feels a slight resistance that makes him aware of the habit. Like his hand is lagging behind the signals his brain is sending. The sensation is disconcerting, though painless.
While pulling the hand away from his scalp for inspection, Ethan's gaze catches across the historical political cartoon in his math book. Also startling out of place. And the conflict of interest materializes in his body as immobility. His head freezes mid-turn, mouth agape in confusion and curled fingers hovering awkwardly near his face. Wearily determined, Ethan pours his force into twisting his body.
'Are you…?' Ethan hears moments before the hold on his body dissolves, leaving the built-up force to fling him into his rowmate, Rose, sitting at the next table over.
Rose's serpentine reflexes redirect Ethan's fall onto the floor. Rose hisses above him, her snake tongue angrily flicking out from between scaly green lips. Dazed Ethan watches the delicate pink blur, trying to comprehend what just happened. Rose seems to expect an apology so Ethan gives her a weak smile. His greatest weapon.
'What just happened?' Ethan rubs the spot where his head hit the metal leg of Rose's chair. 'I was trying to figure out why my math book has a political cartoon in it, and suddenly I couldn't move. Well until we ended up on the floor obviously.' Ethan explains.
'Our math book has a political cartoon in it?' Other Ethan asks sincerely surprised. Apparently Other Ethan hadn't processed the images when their eyes had passed over the page.
'Not important,' Other Ethan refocuses, and Ethan feels a twitch in his neck like his head wants to shake. 'I realized we were fighting for control of our body. So I tried playing dead and that seemed to let you move. I'll just keep doing that. Playing dead.' Other Ethan proposes. Ethan appreciates that he can be so pragmatic in this situation.
'Well I guess that settles it, we're the same person—same body at least…' Ethan concedes finally struggling up to sitting.
"Oh shit!" Benny exclaims in a hushed tone, as if only just noticing Ethan piled on the floor. He scoots Ethan's empty chair back so he can offer his hand palm up.
'Benny is so thoughtful,' Other Ethan responds automatically as he lets Ethan haul their body to standing. Ethan chooses to ignore Benny's assistance.
Benny withdraws his offered hand, but his calculating gaze stays on Ethan until the seer gives his friend a reassuring half-smile.
'Yeah... I guess I do.' It was weird to hear the sentiment out loud. Bizarrely saccharine. Ethan's pretty sure Other Ethan coughs awkwardly.
'Um, so you have to play dead for me to move?' Ethan asks nervously as he resettles in his seat. 'Why didn't we immediately have that issue?'
He surveys the room. Besides Benny and Rose, the class in general hasn't reacted to Ethan's tumble. Tyler is asking Mr. Swets about question 13. Mr. Swets nods his head a couple of times before answering, uncapping the vis-a-vis pen with a snap.
'Maybe our psyches are drifting further apart the longer we exist as separate entities.' Other Ethan suggests helpfully.
'Yeah I was thinking the same thing-so we aren't that far off yet,' Ethan agrees.
Ethan nods to give the conversation some finality. Mr. Swets announces a new topic in big sloppy letters on the overhead:
"intermed-
iate value
THEOREM"
He picks up his pencil, it's a good time to start paying attention. Maybe today won't be a total wast-
The door slams open, banging against the wall like a gun shot.
The surprise knocks the pencil from Ethan's hand. Benny momentarily takes a defensive stance, which for Benny is loosely pointing his fingers in a general direction, reminiscent of getting a manicure.
And in struts an unfamiliar face. Pale skin tinged slightly red from sunburn phases into lanky strawberry hair. A hooked nose provides visual focus in an otherwise unremarkable visage. He's tall with abnormally long legs and arms-something his dark clothes can't quite handle, revealing strips of that too white skin at his ankles and wrists. He's done something complicated and vain with his hair, slicking it back in a way that still looks wet.
The newcomer hands a crinkled slip of paper to Mr. Swets, whom seems too taken aback by his abrupt and unexplained entrance to do more than silently accept the note.
"This must be the new guy," Benny whispers. "I'm way hotter than him!"
Ethan shoots his friend an incredulous glare. Admittedly he agrees with Benny-the new guy comes off as awkward trying for bad boy-but Benny's insistence still prickles.
'How can Benny still be hung up over Trisha?' Ethan scoffs.
'Right? Like did he forgot all of the relationship advice we gave him this morning? Competing with some guy isn't going to help him build an actual rapport with a girl,' Other Ethan agrees emphatically.
'And not to be mean, but why does he always brag about things he's terrible at? Like he's not actually that good at getting a date-girls are only interested because he's in the Coven,' Ethan goes on.
'And as soon as I call him on his BS he gets all quiet and shuts down,' Other Ethan adds but regret is creeping into his voice. 'I mean if he's so insecure why does he act like so braggy?'
'Right,' Ethan barrels on, 'Like I don't care that he's playing the field and making terrible decisions. But then he acts like it's not his fault or his choice. And you know if he was just honest about himself, I would support him.'
Mr. Swets shoves the note into his pocket. His voice breaks Ethan out of his internal rant, "Okay class please welcome Sean. He's new to Whitechapel. Sean, why don't you take the empty seat in the front row."
'Benny's our best friend… That's kinda harsh. Maybe we aren't really as nice as we think we are?' Other Ethan asks himself.
'No. Of course we are,' Ethan replies, 'We're just practical and honest. Someone has to be after all.'
'Yeah. Okay... But it does kinda sound like you're justifying us being a jerk,' Other Ethan says, and Ethan can't help but feel like this is his own tendency to play devil's advocate biting him in the ass.
Ethan hasn't written a word in his notes despite Mr. Swets being well into the lecture. 'If being a jerk means not trusting a potential enemy, or wanting Benny to face the truth then maybe it's not so bad.' Ethan is actually gritting his teeth. Shouldn't another copy of himself get his point?
'I'm not sure I like you-me,' Other Ethan throws back. Ethan feels his body stiffen up; Other Ethan is fighting for control again. It doesn't matter, Ethan wasn't going to get anything out of this class anyway.
'Do I have to explain myself to you? To me?' Ethan fires out.
'Maybe you should,' Other Ethan replies.
'Fine. How about I remind you of all the shit I have to deal with. Like the fact that we only see Dad on weekends because the insurance company can't operate in Whitechapel anymore. Or how about six months ago when our house got attacked and we had to move in with the Weirs-'
'We like sharing a room with Benny,' Other Ethan inserts.
The class at large is oblivious to his internal struggle, with Mr. Swets droning on in even tones. Ethan speaks more calmly than he feels spacing the words out at an even pace, 'Right, but I don't like sleeping on a lumpy trundle bed, or not having space for my stuff or my clothes, or feeling like it's not our house. And not having anywhere to be alone with Sarah, the one weekend a month at most she flies back-'
'She's busy with college. We can't be mad about that,' Other Ethan argues.
The more Other Ethan interrupts, the more Ethan seethes, 'I still miss her! I get stuck with these god-awful vision dreams more often than I get to see her!'
'The Coven relies on the information we give them with our prophecies. We're saving lives!' Other Ethan's volume is similarly increasing.
'That would be great, except I'm pretty sure I'm getting the weirdest type of PTSD where I can't actually remember what's haunting me.' Ethan says bitterly.
'Nightmares and stress is a far cry from a psychological trauma. Besides knowing that we are the only thing keeping us from all of those horrible possible futures... It makes being a seer, even with the suffering, sound pretty good,' Other Ethan reasons. It's a winning argument-better to be tormented by something that never happens than actually live with tragic consequences.
Cowed, but not willing to give in that easily, Ethan weakly adds, 'And all this stupid purple haze all over Whitechapel gives me a headache when I'm outside too long...'
Seemingly unsatisfied, Other Ethan continues his argument, 'I'm not saying we don't have it hard. But everyone has it hard. I think even Rory has problems. Maybe just... sometimes we can just be nicer? Tell Benny his bat symbol is cool?'
When Ethan bangs his head on the desk, he realizes Other Ethan has released control of the body again. Rose hisses at him again, irritated by the scare. Benny pats his shoulder. He responds with a thumbs up so Benny won't worry.
'I thought I was nice. I feel like I always act in the best interest of my friends,' Ethan laments.
'Those are two different things. But maybe we are? People are always hardest on themselves right?' Other Ethan says, finally relenting.
'Yeah... Maybe I just... Am I crazy to say that sometimes it feels like it's all on me to make things work out happily ever after and no one helps me with my problems?' Ethan admits.
'No, obviously I feel that way too.' Other Ethan says reassuringly, 'Remember what Jane said this morning? That we could count on her. Or how Benny does basically anything we ask? If we asked for help, we'd get it.'
'But all that stuff I said earlier... I can put up with it. That isn't the problem... I don't even know what's wrong with me! I just feel hurt all the time.' Ethan feels dangerously like a hormonal teenage girl at the moment.
'I don't want to say this, even to you, so I know you don't want to hear it... But what if you actually asked to sleep with Benny? Or If you asked for hugs more often just after seeing Jane die?' Other Ethan suggests tentatively.
'I didn't want to hear that.' Ethan opens an eye to make sure he can still get away with not paying attention. Math, pencils scribbling, mostly quiet focus. Okay good.
'Either you ask for things or you ask for emotional support. I mean those are the options, right? You have to admit we aren't doing that great on our own.' Other Ethan says with a touch of apology in his voice.
Ethan doesn't immediately acknowledge his other self, letting all his weight rest against the table... pliable.
'I trust Benny and end up putting myself through therapy,' Ethan remarks dryly into the silence in his head. The words could come across bitter, but he figures Other Ethan will recognize his defeated humor.
'Speaking of therapy, let's do those breathing exercises Grandma Weir gave us. If we fall asleep, Benny will wake us up.' Other Ethan suggests.
'Go for it.' Ethan tells himself. After all Other Ethan currently has control.
'Do it with me,' Other Ethan insists. 'You need it too.'
'Fine,' Ethan concedes.
Other Ethan inhales through their nose breathing into their belly, where he has placed one of their hands to feel his diaphragm push down. As Ethan echos the motion, it feels like his brain is lagging behind his body.
Other Ethan counts out loud to him, '1… 2… 3…" Reaching full lung capacity he pauses. Ethan joins in on the exhale, breathing out through their mouth. '1… 2… 3...' Together, they begin another inhale through the noise.
"E, are you okay?" Benny asks suddenly, bending his head down to try to meet Ethan's eye level.
'Uh... Were we breathing loud?' Other Ethan asks.
'Ask Benny,' Ethan replies.
"Was I being loud?" Ethan hears himself ask quietly.
"No, but dude I can tell you're doing those Vader breathing exercises." Benny whispers back, and this time Ethan catches a tinge of guilt in Benny's voice.
Embarrassed Ethan covers his head with his arms, pushing past the initial reluctance in the movement.
"I'll explain later," his voice mutters to Benny. Feeling his vocal cords constrict without his conscious effort is moderately unsettling.
Conversely when Other Ethan glances around the room from under their arm fort, the unbidden visuals feel more like watching a video than losing control of his body. The new guy, Sean, is looking back at Ethan from the front row with an aggressive half-snarl.
Ethan starts. Regaining the facade of composure, Ethan grins back nervously-does Sean already know that Ethan works for the Coven? While Benny benefited socially from his association with the Coven, many students feared that Ethan, as a seer, would discover and report their secrets.
Sean's face shimmers; the features morph. His eyes grow into dark, round pits, and his smile becomes a wide lipless tear in his face. Ethan blinks and the illusion blinks off too. Sean's brows furrow in consternation, prompting Ethan to avert his eyes to avoid further infuriating the obviously hostile student.
'That can't be good,' Ethan sighs.
Other Ethan must share his overwhelmed apathy as he lets their body slump further in their chair. Ethan rag dolls along with him. Either Sean is the cause of last night's seer dream, which means Jane's death could occur far quicker than Ethan feared, or he's an unrelated problem that Ethan will have to split his attention to deal with. Sean is an uninspiring essay topic that's worth a letter grade.
When Other Ethan begins counting again, Ethan just closes his eyes. Theoretically the breathing exercises should make time pass faster. Grandma Weir claims the meditative practice cultivates an expansive awareness beyond the concept of time. In practice Ethan continually wonders how many minutes have passed. Checking the clock is guaranteed to be disappointing.
Sean isn't helping. Or rather Ethan's gaze is repeatedly drawn to the slick reddish mane that promises supernatural trouble.
Ethan finds himself disproportionately grateful when Benny jabs him in the ribs at the end of class, "We should go talk to the new guy. Show him who's boss around here."
"Right… yeah." Ethan agrees, leaving his stuff out to follow Benny's rush to the front of the classroom.
"Sean!" Benny calls out, trying to head the taller boy off before he can leave. Benny fails to notice when he knocks Tamara over.
Her friend Katie helps her up as Ethan edges by. "Sorry about that," Ethan apologizes for his best friend as he edges by.
Sean watches the boys approach slightly agitated, but he's complacent enough in waiting.
"So, Sean, welcome to Whitechapel," Benny begins with cheeriness that seems sincere. Ethan suspects it's more about Benny enjoying his role than any actual feelings of kinship. At least he hopes. "My name is Benny I'm a spell caster. And this is Ethan, he's your friendly neighborhood seer."
"Hi," Ethan says, extending his hand to shake Sean's. The other boy squints his watery blue eyes suspiciously at the offered hand as he takes a step back and shoves his fists into pockets. Ethan scratches his nose nervously with his abandoned hand.
'He's onto us,' Other Ethan remarks consideringly.
'Benny did give it away,' Ethan responds. 'Although Benny didn't see Sean's face morph.'
"Right..." Benny continues. "The White Light Coven of Whitechapel, that we're a part of," Benny adds smugly, "has alliances with the Greater Rainy River District Vampire Council and the Crescent Forest Were-Confederate. We don't require that you align yourself with any of the authorities in this area, but if you don't choose one then by default you'll be under the jurisdiction of the Coven."
Sean wordlessly stares at Benny, plotting murder with his eyes. Benny does have a tendency to get carried away with his explanations.
"The Coven wouldn't ask much of you," Ethan promises cutting off Benny's longer explanation of how law enforcement works with three authorities claiming rights over the same piece of land.
"Right, the Coven is super easy," Benny agrees. "We just need to know what you are, what you can do, and where you live. In exchange we'll give you a shiny protection amulet."
Said amulet also acts as a signal amplifier in case the Coven needs Jane to track miscreants. An ability they hadn't had to use yet, and were keeping under wraps.
"No," Sean says thickly, and bolts headlong out the door.
"That went well," Benny decides, heading back to their table at a more leisurely pace.
Ethan opens his mouth to respond- 'Nicer. Remember we're being nicer,' Other Ethan interjects.
Ethan swallows the sarcastic quip. "Yeah, totally Benny."
Join me next time as things get bloody