Jekyll and Hyde
A/N: Thank you for all of the lovely reviews. This chapter is going to be a calmer one with more downtime for the team…though there will still be chaos and insanity and drama. Also, I am tweaking things in terms of continuity but oh well lol.
NESSAANCALIME6913: He is very much that lol.
Labinnacslove: I'm not going to argue that point lol. He's just a persistent little bugger who isn't used to hearing no.
Sitalia: Yes…very creepy lol. I've hated him since day 1 so I love making him the bad guy. Also, thank you. It's good to be back…mostly. I'm still busy and tired but I'm able to get some alone time once or twice a week now so it's better.
Animelvr23: As I've said…Wyatt creeps me out so…yeah always the bad guy to me lol. I've always loved the Shield and their brotherhood so I love writing about it, and adding Thea has been easy. Thea is basically how I'd be if I didn't have to filter what I say. I like Roman's wife and daughter, and I think it'd be interesting to have her basically mothering Seth as much as Roman does…though I get the feeling that wouldn't go over so well with Dean. Roman and Seth are kind of a non-sexual couple in this one…Roman gives Seth the discipline and structure he needs to function properly and Galina, when she's around, mothers the hell out of him. I agree completely on Kane and Taker, I've always thought that the tougher they are on TV the softer they are off-screen.
Chapter 9
After all of the stress the Shield had been put under in recent weeks, with sneak attacks and ambushes from the Wyatts and Wyatt taunting Thea and Dean as well as Evolution returning and going after the Shield, Vince decided his favorite team needed some downtime and gave them two weeks of free time. Amalthea decided to have a big get together at the end of those two weeks with all of their families and friends…much to Dean's grumbling protests. He was glaring at a long list of names and Roman was snickering in the back ground at the face Dean was making.
"I don't get why we need to have all these people there…"
"I want to meet all of your families and I think it'll be fun. Now…you can either help me or stay out of my way."
Roman and Dean ended up just trying to stay out of her way while Seth dove in head first to help prepare all of the details. The party would be held at the Undertakers ranch in Texas, he offered it when Thea explained what she was planning because his house had a lot of spare rooms and several large sofas. Amalthea and Seth were both so hyper that they barely sat still for the first week of their downtime, too busy rushing around and planning to remain in one place for long. When it came time to start setting everything up Thea turned into a little slave driver. She had Roman and Dean doing all the heavy lifting and bringing the various supplies into the house, while she directed Phil and Seth as to where to pin all the decorations. Taker and Kane were both assigned to setting up numerous tables on which Thea would be putting all of the food and drinks. She had one table for little finger foods, one for side dishes, one for meats, one for seafood, and one for drinks which had several large bowls with ladles. Every dish had a little label to tell people what it was and even Dean was impressed by the spread in front of him, though he kept getting his hand smacked every time he tried to touch anything.
"None of that is to be touched until the party starts…if you're that hungry make yourself a sandwich of something."
"You could make me one…"
"Not if you want to still be walking when everyone gets here."
The other men laughed at Dean's 'kicked puppy' look, which did nothing since Thea wasn't even looking at him. She and AJ were setting flameless color changing candles all over the main room of the house and setting floating ones in the large backyard pool. By the time they finished that task the first guests had arrived. Roman's wife Galina and their daughter Jolene, known as JoJo, came in and were greeted with a big hug and kiss from the large Samoan and a gentler hug from Seth. Galena almost immediately began mothering Seth, much to Dean's obvious amusement. She sat him down and started brushing out his hair and Thea was surprised when he didn't protest.
"He likes when she mothers him like that Babygirl…it makes him happy. His parents were less than pleased when he decided to go into wrestling and he was kind of a mess when Dean and I met him. Galena's mothering and my discipline has helped him to get to a better place. He feels more in control."
"As long as it works I have no problems with anything Ro. I've noticed that when things don't go according to plan Seth can get a bit…umm…"
"Bitchy?"
"Not the word I was going for Dean…but yes."
"Yeah…he used to be a lot worse. He and Dean have a brotherly relationship, I'm kind of the dad of our group and Galena is definitely the mother…although Dean refuses to let her mother him most of the time…unless he's hurt. If he gets hurt he milks it for all he's worth."
"So where do I fit in then?"
They could tell she was teasing them but their answers were all immediate and so heartfelt that she felt tears sting her eyes as she gathered her boys into a big group hug.
"You're my Babygirl, the one I rely on and confide in when these two get to be a handful. You help me keep them in line and reduce the amount of stress I feel."
"You're my sister Thea…the one I can count on to help me tease Dean when he's being an ass, the one I can lean on when I need comfort, the one that helps me plan things out."
"You know what you are to me Darlin', you're my everything. You're the woman I love, the one I turn to when I'm upset or pissed off, the one that calms me and keeps me sane. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you and I really don't want to find out because I'm positive it wouldn't be pretty."
"You three…are so much to me now. It used to be just me and Phil against the world…and then he fell in love with AJ and, despite how much I adore her, I felt like I was losing him. Then I met you three and I slowly came to need you guys as much as my brother. You guys are part of my family now and I'm not going anywhere."
Galina and AJ just watched with big smiles on their faces, and although Phil grumbled a bit about being replaced by the Shield he quickly shut up when AJ gave him the 'crazy eyes'. The rest of their guests began showing up in little groups; the Bellas with Daniel and John Cena, Paige with her fellow brit Wade Barrett, several superstars that hadn't really been invited but were welcomed to stay regardless, and then Seth's parents showed up. Amalthea was the first one to notice the distressed look on Seth's face and the stiff posture of his body as an unknown couple seemed to be hissing things at him. She immediately went to Seth's side and wrapped her arms around him while glaring at the offending couple.
"Who are you people and why are you upsetting Seth?"
"His name is Colby and its past time he gave up this foolishness and came home where he belongs. Let's go Colby."
"No. I told you Mother. This is my dream. Wrestling isn't a hobby, it's my life. It's part of who I am and I'm not giving it up until I'm too injured to keep fighting."
"I am your father young man and you will do as I say and come home right now."
When Seth refused, yet again, the man backhanded him and Thea snapped. She shrieked in anger at the man and his wife and gave them such a fierce glare that they both stepped back from her.
"ENOUGH!"
Thea's sudden shriek of anger had every person in the room frozen in place, they all knew that shriek meant that Vixen was pissed off and none of them wanted to have that anger turned onto them. Dean, Roman and Galena were the only ones willing to approach Thea. Dean slid his arms around Thea while Roman and Galena pulled a shaking Seth into their arms. AJ and Phil took Roman's daughter into another room and distracted her so she wouldn't hear anything a little girl shouldn't. Thea and Vixen kept switching places rapidly as they both wanted to scream at Seth's parents for hurting him.
"How DARE you hit him like that!? Just because he doesn't want to follow the dreams you had for him? That is no reason to hit him, or yell at him, or insult him. He's following his dream and he's damned good at it. Have you even watched what he can do? Of course you haven't. If you had you would see how good he is, how much the fans adore him. He's made something of himself, become an international superstar, and you can't even see how much he's worth. You should be ashamed to call yourselves parents. I will never know the joy of raising my own child but I know that I would never…ever…treat them the way you treat Seth. A parent is supposed to love and support their child no matter what, even if they don't agree with their child's choices. It's his life and his choice of how to live it. As long as he's happy you should be happy FOR him."
She was panting for breath by the time she was finished ranting and had tears falling down her cheeks. As soon as she'd finished she turned to Seth and pulled him to her in a tight hug, Roman and Galena surrounding them both in a protective circle. Dean stepped in front of them when Seth's father dared to step towards them and growled at the man, the sound more animal than man as Moxley took over for a split second before letting Dean back in control.
"Touch my girl and it'll be the last thing you ever do. We're a family…all of us…and Seth is just as important as the rest of us. He's my little brother and our strategist. I had a horrible childhood so I never really knew what a good parent looked like…until I met Roman and Galena…and I see how they treat their daughter…how they love her, support her dreams, never discourage anything she says she wants to do when she grows up, and they let her take whatever lessons she wants to learn. That's a good parent…I know that now. Seeing how you treat Seth…I'm not surprised he was reluctant to invite you two. Thea talked him into it because she wanted to meet you and she thought that maybe…just maybe…you'd be able to see how good Seth is at his chosen career and want to support him…clearly that's too much to expect."
Taker stepped forward with a thunderous look on his face, Kane standing beside him looking equally frightening. Taker's deep bass voice rumbled through the silent room.
"You two are no longer welcome on this property. Leave immediately or I will call my friend, the local sheriff, and have you removed by force."
The two gave one last glare to Seth and his friends before leaving the house and driving away. Thea motioned towards the back of the house and the group moved to a back room away from the rest of their friends in order to let everyone settle down. Taker and Kane stood at the entrance of that hall to make sure no one disturbed them until they were ready. The party slowly got back into the wing of things as everyone tried to put the incident out of their minds and enjoy their day off.
In the back room Thea sat on a spare bed and pulled Seth over to lay on her lap, her fingers combing through his hair as he sniffled softly. Dean curled up behind Thea, just holding her close and letting her scent calm him. Galena sat on the floor in front of Seth and spoke softly to him while rubbing his back and Roman sat behind her and kept one large hand on Seth's thigh to reassure him that he was there as well. The group stayed like that for a good fifteen to twenty minutes until everyone was calm and ready to return to the party, though Thea and Seth had to wash their faces first as both had been crying. Dean made a mental note to find out later that night why Thea had reacted so badly to Seth's father hitting him because he didn't want to upset her again so soon after getting her calm.
When they came back out the rest of their friends immediately pulled them all out to the dance floor with the Bellas grabbing Seth and sandwiching him between them. The poor guy looked completely dazed and the two women's respective males were just watching and laughing at the poor guy. Thea and Dean quickly ended up back with each other, as if they were drawn together by magnets, while Roman and Galena danced with JoJo and kept glancing at the other members of their family to keep an eye on them. The party went on for hours and didn't end until the sun was starting to rise. Everyone went out by the pool to watch the sun come up and then drifted off into the various bedrooms. Thea and Dean had one to themselves because no one wanted to share with them for obvious reasons. Roman, Galena, Seth, and JoJo shared another and all curled up in one bed together with Seth and JoJo curled up together in the middle like actual siblings. Taker and Kane had their own rooms with their families, and each of the other couples had their own rooms for the night. Those who were single just camped out on the various plush sofas, or in a couple of cases just passed out on the floor.
Thea was laying mostly on top of Dean, not that he was complaining of course, and he had his arms wrapped firmly around her as he held her close.
"Darlin'?"
"Hmm?"
"I want to ask you something…you don't have to answer if you're not ready but…why did Seth's dad hitting him set you off so badly?"
"It's not really anything bad Dean…I promise. When I worked in the indies I used to volunteer a lot with DCF…the ones that help kids in troubled homes. I helped with calming the kids, distracting them, playing with them, anything to keep their minds off of what was happening to them at the time. Some of them were neglected, others were abused…some were really hurt bad Dean. Anytime I see someone hits their child, even if that child is grown, I just get so angry. No parent should ever resort to using violence against their child. Those who are lucky enough to have a child should love them…no matter what."
Dean just pulled her closer and tucked her head under his chin, rubbing her back and letting her slowly relax until she fell asleep. He remained awake for a long time just watching her sleep and hoping that he would never lose her because he knew it would break him.
The next morning Thea was the second person in the house to wake up, the first being Taker who had already started a massive pot of coffee. Thea smiled at him and put a large bottle of Tylenol on the counter before pulling out the breakfast items she'd had the guys bring in the day before. She soon had a massive bowl of eggs, an enormous tray of bacon, and an impressively large stack of pancakes. The smell of food soon had people waking up and making their way into the kitchen like the walking dead. As each person came through she handed them a glass of water and two Tylenol to take first, and once that was done she handed them a plate and silverware before letting them go get food. Dean leaned against the wall for a moment and just watched her take care of everyone and couldn't help but think that she'd make an excellent mother, even if the child wasn't hers by birth.
"Hey Ro…I just had an idea…"
"Why does that not sound like a good thing?"
"I think it is…maybe…I'm thinking I might ask Thea to marry me soon. She's perfect for me…she's everything I could ever hope for in a woman and I know I'll never find anyone better than her. I just really want to make sure that no one else can ever take her from me."
"Dean…you love her, and she loves you. Same with Mox and Vix…you four all love each other so if you think you're ready for marriage then go for it brother. I'd love to help you and I'm sure Galena and Seth would love to help as well."
"I was also thinking…I know she can't carry a child…but maybe…she and I could adopt one or two in the future…I mean…look at her…she was born to be a mother…fate just decided to be a bitch to her."
"Maybe she's meant to adopt kids who otherwise wouldn't have a family…kids who could use that kind of mothering."
"Maybe Bro…maybe."
Soon it was their turn for food and Dean waved off the Tylenol because he didn't need it. He wasn't hung-over and he didn't have a headache from staying up late because he was used to running on little sleep. Phil actually accepted the Tylenol, not from drinking because he hadn't but because his head hurt from staying up late with loud music and even louder people. AJ was cooing over him and petting him which made Thea laugh at her brother and got her a middle finger from him, which earned him a smack from AJ and more laughter from Thea. Eventually everyone had food in front of them and the Tylenol was taking effect so everyone was slowly getting back to normal. More than one set of eyes kept watching how Thea was interacting with little JoJo, playing Barbie with her and getting involved in the little girl's wild imagination, nor the fond look on Dean's face as he watched the little scene. Roman and Galena were just happy to sit back and let someone they trusted take care of their little girl for a while as they pampered poor Seth who was still a bit out of it but much better than he'd been the night before. All it took was a pleading look from Thea and JoJo combined and Dean was soon on the floor with them, playing the role of Ken to Thea's Barbie while JoJo played their doll's daughter. A few of the men in the room snickered at Dean but quickly shut up when AJ's 'crazy eyes' looked in their direction. Eventually JoJo got tired and let Thea take her into a spare room for a nap, Dean stood in the doorway and watched as Thea tucked the little girl in a sang her to sleep. The song was soft and lilting and he knew he'd heard her hum it often but this was the first time he'd heard the words. Once the little girl was asleep they left the room and Dean gently pinned her to the wall across from the door.
"What song is that darlin'? I've heard you humming it often enough…"
"It's called Mordred's Lullaby by Heather Dale. It's such a pretty song and I've loved it for years. It's supposed to be Morgana singing to Mordred as she raises him and grooms him to be the downfall of her brother Arthur because she feels that he betrayed her. Most people find it a bit sad but I don't…not really. To me it's just a mother singing her child to sleep and telling them not to fear the darkness."
"It suits you Darlin'. Let's go rejoin the rest of these people before they get loud again."
"I don't think any of them would risk Roman's wrath for waking his daughter up."
"Good point…"
"Seth and I need to have a Merlin marathon soon…"
"Oh god…why? Why me?"
"Oh hush…you were yelling at the screen as much as we were."
Dean just pouted at her and let her lead him back to the main room. Some of their guests left before lunch, some stayed through lunch and then left, and some remained until the next day. Phil and AJ remained until the next day because Phil wanted to spend as much time with his sister as possible before she had to go back to work. At one point he took her outside for a sibling talk.
"Thea…I know I was against the Shield, and especially Dean, in the beginning. I've seen how he is with you now though and I've changed my mind. He's attentive, loving, gentle...he loves you so much Thea. Everyone can see it when he looks at you. I approve of him…completely and without reserve…but if he ever does hurt you I'll make his life hell."
"I know Phil. I love you my overprotective big brother. I always will no matter where life takes us."
All too soon it was time to go back to work and face the Wyatt family and Evolution once again. Thea was getting tired of Wyatt's antics but she and Seth had taken their time off to come up with a new plan of action, one that Dean and Roman were all too happy to set in motion. Their plan would deal with both Evolution and the Wyatt family…at least that was what they hoped.