_Chapter 18_
"Christmas Serenade"
_Authors Song Note_
Another one to enjoy:
"Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" by Jensen Ackles (Lyrics)
Trinity
I stood in awe. I couldn't believe my eyes and ears. The man I was in love with, completely and utterly, the man who we'd do anything for each other, the man whom I cared about most in this world, was singing… a Christmas song, on stage, in front of people, for me.
As I slowly neared the stage front, he was serenading everyone, everyone who once he got into the song started turning their heads and ending their conversations to listen and watch. People started clearing a path for me instead of me having to push through.
I finally reached the front and Dean's eyes had watched me the whole way, nervous, but happy. He would occasionally look up and around shyly, but then right back to me.
My vision was extremely blurred at this point. My emotions just ran rampant as Dean Winchester, badass-extraordinaire, killer of demons and monsters, stood up there, with a guitarist and one back-up singer, who when they would pop in, he'd act surprised each time, like he forgot they were there to help him out. As he sang he watched me with a smile. I returned it, but laughing softly in bliss, tears about to fall. My hand had been settled over my lips and the other right below it in a fist resting over my heart.
He kneeled down by the stage steps and extended his hand. I graciously took it and he pulled me up on stage with him. With the old-fashioned microphone still in one hand, his other one came up to brush a stray curl away from my face and then to wipe an escaped tear from my cheek with his thumb. We swayed slightly with the slow acoustic music and I let the happy tears fall.
People "awww"-ed and smiled, some women even wiped their own tears from their makeuped faces. But I blocked them out and focused on my Dean singing to me.
He kept singing as the song neared its end and he gave me a big grin and a wink, even though his own eyes became glassy. It's like he was speaking to me through the song with the lyrics.
If I wasn't already head-over-heals for this man, I was now completely enamored with love.
I swayed with him still as he never broke our eye contact, pure happiness seeping from our faces. I couldn't believe he was doing this. But, I was so glad he was.
The song ended and he sang the last note, closing it off with a kiss.
The crowd erupted in gleeful cheers again and this time I didn't mind. When our lips parted I let my hands cover my face as I fell straight forward into his chest, laughing, crying, giggling like a little schoolgirl. He put the mic back on the peg and hugged me tightly and I felt his chest heave with soft laughter as well and his cheek find its way on top of my head. We swayed a little longer together as people ended their applause.
"I love you, you dork!" I laughed-cried into his warm chest, muffling my voice.
He let a low laugh out himself and replied, "I love you too," and kissed the top of my head.
I looked up into those gleaming eyes and we were silent and then at the same time grinned and giggled again.
I looked right past the stage and Bobby and Jody were standing there smiling up at us.
"You knew about this… didn't you, Bobby Singer?!"
He smiled through his short beard, "Of course not," he gave me a wink. I giggled again.
But then, a scream pierced through the entire house, bloodcurdling. Everyone froze and gasped. Dean and I lifted our heads and turned them in the same direction, as I was still in his arms against his chest, my hands feeling his heartbeat through his shirt.
The big doors burst open with such force people were thrown backward away from it.
Penelope, well, what used to be Penelope, crashed in, dress torn, skin a patchy, scaly green, eyes like a reptile's, and mouth adorned with fangs. Her red hair had been replaced with hundreds of red snakes, hissing and snapping and underneath the shreds of her gown, a long reptilian tail, swishing and swatting in anger.
"You unfaithful little bitch!" she screeched across the ballroom to me.
"Balls," Bobby uttered below us.
"You're going to kill Dean Winchester! It is your destiny! And I hate," she hissed that word, "unfaithfulness!" Her neck rolled in a circle and her fangs extended, fang-like claws protruded from her fingers, and a forked tongue flicked out.
I looked up at Dean and we nodded looking into each other's eyes.
We had work to do.
Dean
Of course! Of course, a monster had to be the host of this party. Jody was wrong when she said it was haunted, but honestly, I would've rather dealt with a ghost than a gorgon. Their senses heightened to the level of a snake's.
And that's what Penelope was. A gorgon, the family of the legend of Medusa. Half woman, half snake, and hated unfaithfulness and killed for it. I didn't know what she was talking about with Trinity, but it looked like Trin didn't either.
Penelope started slithering at a rapid pace in our direction.
Trinity lifted the skirt of her dress and pulled out a dagger. I looked down at her surprised, yet unsurprised. She simply shrugged with an "oh well" face. She handed me the blade and took off her heels.
"Go," she nodded behind me. We looked across the room and Penelope was only fifty yards away and coming fast. Good thing this was a big room.
I knew what Trinity was thinking. She'd distract her while I go in for the kill, in this case using this dinky little knife to slice off her head. Good. This was definitely going to go well.
But I jumped off the side of the stage and the monster didn't even seem to care, her eyesight was focused on Trinity.
She chucked on of her heels at the beast, pointy end hitting Penelope in the eye, "I didn't even like these, you slimy skank!" She's just about as good as insults as I am. The heel to the eye made the creature stop and scream in pain. She yanked the protruding shoe out and when she looked back up, she had a bleeding, empty eye socket and a hand holding a shiny heel with an eyeball stuck on the end.
Trinity stood there, still in after-throw position with a shocked expression, "I can't believe that worked."
I ducked behind people, keeping both of them in sight and ran into Bobby and Jody.
"Hey, I need you to keep a watch on these people and Trinity. I need to go get weapons from Baby," I glanced back up over heads, Trinity threw her other shoe, but this time Penelope's tail swatted it away, hitting a partygoer in the face. Trinity backed up as the monster slowed down and her tail swirled, getting ready to pounce. "Sorry 'bout that!" She yelled to the lady on the ground, keeping her eyes on the gorgon.
"I don't think you have time for that, boy," Bobby warned me.
"Then what?!"
Trinity yelled, "Woah!" I looked up in time to see her jump out of the way of the striking monster. She leaped over Penelope and landed behind her on the dance floor, falling and rolling, ripping her dress, but recovering in one swift move. I was proud. She grabbed the mic stand and twisted, unexpectedly in a graceful manner (I swear she was only graceful while fighting, any other time she runs into walls and corners and trips on nothing, but I suppose a fight is the best place to be not-clumsy), whacking the monster square in the face with the heavy end of it. The gorgon swirled around and fell, but started to stir quickly.
"Dean! New plan! Get your butt over here!" She yelled behind her as she started running towards the door.
Bobby finally replied to me, "Improvise. I'll look after these people. Now go!"
I nodded and ran after Trin.
She paused momentarily in front of the grand staircase checking to make sure I was following. Then she ran up the steps, ripping her dress some more, and as I got to the top, she pulled me by my coat jacket with both hands around the corner and against the wall.
"What do we do?" She asked in a hushed tone.
"We need to find something sharp enough and," I held up the dagger, "big enough, to cut her head off."
"Oh good. I'm sure every gorgon has a sword lying around waiting to kill them," she said sassily. Penelope screeched and I looked down at the girl in front of me.
"We should stick together."
"No, as much as I want to, we need to find a weapon fast. I'll go that way, you go that way," she pointed at the opposite hallways to our sides. "There has to be a connection point besides here. We'll meet back up if we find something and don't get caught first. We'll call out if we need help, okay?"
Before I could reply, the big doors downstairs burst open with force and smacked the wall behind them, shaking the house, joining with a loud scream for the gorgon below.
Trinity put her small hands on the side of my face and gave me a quick kiss before running off to the right.
I tried to stop her, but I heard Penelope start up the steps. So I ran to the left in search of a sword of something to cut this damned thing's head off.
Trinity
I knew Dean didn't want me to go, but it was the only option I saw that could get the job done quickly. Plus, she wanted me, not Dean.
I heard the monster climbing the stairs and flipped my head around to see that Dean had finally taken off in the direction opposite of me. I kept running and looking and passed a mounted sword. I backtracked.
"You've gotta be kidding me," I sighed, catching my breath. This was almost too easy. I yanked the long katana-style sword down. Quickly, scenes of my visions flashed through my mind. I shook my head and clutched the blade.
I was about to call Dean's name, but in place of my voice was that of Penelope's mutated one. "I smell you, Trinity Scarborough!" It became closer and I saw her shadow coming fast. I turned and saw a corner to my left, I went down the hallway, stopping just around the corner, sword in battle position.
The hissing, rattling voice was so close now, and she had to know it because she dropped to a creepy whisper, "I sense you have something different inside you, child. I'd like a taste," she laughed maniacally. Her shadow slowly approached the corner of my hallway's intersection with the main one. She was stalking me like prey.
Her reptilian body appeared around the corner and as soon as she was just far enough, I swung out towards her neck with the sword. But she sensed me too soon and whipped her head around like a snake, moving just out of reach, so my blade cut off two of her hair-snakes. She squealed in agony and rage. Her eyes looked to the floor to where the heads fell, to me, to the sword, then back to me.
"You, bitch" she hissed in rage.
"Oops," I cursed myself and Penelope used her tail to knock the blade out of my hands and then she picked me up and threw me down the hall, smacking against the wall and sliding down to the carpet. I grunted as I attempted to get back up, but before I could, two scaly, green, bony hands pinned my wrists down with long, black talons.
"Where did you get that sword!?" She flicked her forked tongue across my face, a burning sensation, like salt, sizzled on my cheek. My eyes flicked up to the empty mount, she twitched her head to the side and saw, her jaw dropped and confusion set on her face, as well as seething anger.
She dug her claws into my wrists and it began to burn and I let out a small scream. I looked up at the single snake eye left, looking down at me, the other just a black, bloody void, and the sadistic smile plastered on the beast's face.
She chuckled, with an undertone of rage, and flinched her head to the side, "Salt?" her scaly eyebrows lifted, "Ah," she had an epiphany. Her head twitched down next to my ear as I squirmed in pain, trying to free myself from her grasp. "You have demon in you, don't you? Good thing I originate from the sea," She cackled, "I was right then, what else is there in you?" I watched as she lifted her head and opened her mouth, letting two long, curved fangs unsheath themselves, like a snake would, saliva stringing. She hissed and lunged at my exposed neck.
Her sharp fangs pierced my skin making me scream. But it dulled as she started to drink my blood quickly. It was incredible how fast she began to drain me. In the distance I heard Dean yell my name. My eyes rolled around lazily and I tried to breathe. I blinked trying to focus my vision and saw the sword out of reach.
But suddenly, she retracted, falling back in surprise, her mouth slightly steaming from inside, dripping my blood. Her face was covered in shock and terror.
"What, are, you…?"
I let my hand fall and reach to the side, and sighed, partially from blood deprivation and partially from annoyance, "You know how tired I am of hearing that?" I flicked my wrist and the blade just a few feet away, came flying into my grip, like Mjolnir does with Thor. I didn't want to use my abilities, but, desperate times call for desperate measures. Seriously, did you really just think that?
With as much power and energy I could, I swung the katana up and it collided with the soft part of Penelope's shiny neck. Slicing right through, blood began to flood out, falling out onto me and I threw my arms up to cover my face, but it didn't help very much. Her snake covered head rolled onto the floor, the snakes dying one by one. Her headless body fell on top of me and more blood flowed out onto my green dress, making it red, just like I didn't want. I made a loud, disgusted noise and huffed as the weight of the gorgon rested on my abdomen that her claws had cut the sides of when she threw me. My arms fell out to the sides and the sword clanked on the ground. I sighed, still deprived of blood and energy, and I was also covered in nasty gorgon-face-guts, yeah, that probably had something to do with it.
"Trinity!" I heard fast, heavy footsteps and flipped my head to the right to see Dean sprinting to me.
"Little help?" I breathed out, barely getting a syllable out from the pressure on my body.
Dean pulled the corpse of and it rolled over. I tried to sit up, but my pale arms gave out. Dean crouched down and helped me up.
He cradled my face in his big hands, "How much did she drink?" his eyes scouring my body in search of injuries.
"Enough," I groaned. "Sides, wrists, neck, face." We'd done this before, just said what was hurting if we were able to.
He nodded, "Okay, doesn't look too bad. You just lost a lot of blood."
"I know, dearheart," I tried to chuckle but it came out in a cough.
"C'mon," he hoisted me up into his arms and I threw one arm around his neck, the other rested on my stomach. "I gotcha, I gotcha."
"Thanks, love," my head fell against his chest. I was getting blood on him, and neither of us even cared.
He walked us down the hallway and we reached the stairs. People were looking around frantically and Bobby looked up to see us. He whispered something to Jody and snuck past people, starting up the steps, waving us to get out of sight.
So Dean looked over behind the corner and saw a bench. Sitting me down on it, "Stay here," he turned and took a few steps. Then twisting back around, "Never mind, that was stupid to say."
I chuckled again and another cough ensued.
Dean waited just out of the sight of the partygoers as Bobby met him. They had a quiet conversation that included gestures pointing down the hallway as well as the ballroom. I could tell they so badly wanted to yell, but they kept it to a whisper. At the same time they both both slapped their mouths shut and huffed. I heard Bobby say, "Fine."
They nodded and Dean walked back over to me.
"So, what was that about?" I asked, still finding it hard to breath from the lack of blood.
He sat down next to me and instinctively put his hand on my exposed thigh. If I had any desire to keep this dress, there was no such wish now. "Bobby told them it was just a show and that the party's over now. I told him he has to explain more, think of something I suppose, to find a way to make them believe that Penelope was never a person," he looked down at my doubtful face, "He's been doing this a long time, he'll think a' somethin'."
I sighed and fell against his shoulder. "It was fun though," I smiled at the recent happenings before I went all Perseus on this monster, and the beginning-to-dry blood crackled on my face. "What were you doing singing, Mr?" I chuckle-coughed again. I pulled away from him shoulder, my blood-soaked skin sticking to his suit jacket.
He let out a low laugh, "I don't even know," he glanced at me, "I guess I was just trying to woo a girl. I'm a sad,lonely person, ya know."
I flinched my shoulder, shoving him slightly, because that's all I could muster right now, giggling.
Down below, we heard Bobby's voice, "It's okay, folks. We hope you enjoyed the show and Jody here is gonna show you all out. Thanks for coming! Merry Christmas everyone."
Then Jody's voice sounded, "Okay, follow me, ladies and gents. Have a good night!" Then a bunch of 'thank you's and 'goodnight's as heels clicked against the marble floor and out the door.
A little bit later they both showed up at the top of the staircase. Jody gasped at the sight of me.
"My God, what happened?"
"I pulled a Queen of Hearts on a gorgon. That's all," I gave her a tight-lipped smile.
"Ah," she made a face of disgust, along the lines of eating something sour.
"Well, by the time you guys get down there, everyone should be gone. I'm gonna help Jody clean up some and think of, something, to do about this place and the late Penelope," Bobby grumbled.
"Thanks you guys," I looked at them.
"No thank you. I was just kidding about the whole haunted thing, ya know."
"We know," both Dean and I said that the same time.
"Oh! Here, found this, didn't want you to forget it," Bobby handed me my leather jacket. I brought it close to my chest, it smelled like me, but also Dean. I smiled, "Thanks, Bobby."
Dean lifted me back into his arms, my still pale legs dangling and my arms wrapped around his neck and shoulders.
"We'll meet you out there in a bit. Go get her fixed up ya idjit."
Dean
I held Trinity in my arms as I made my way down the stairs. She let her head lean against my chest in exhaustion.
"You sure you're okay though?" I asked her.
"I think so. I mean, once I get some blood back, these other things should heal right?"
"Yeah. They should. You know you amaze me sometimes?"
"Oh yeah?" She tried at a soft giggle, but just like the other ones, turned into a cough.
"Yup," I backed against the door, walking out into the cold air. "I think you're one of the toughest people outside the Winchester bloodline."
"I thought you were gonna say family."
"Why would I do that? You are part of the family now," I smiled, "I hope to actually make that official one day, ya know."
She couldn't contain her smile. But then as we neared Baby, her expression turned dark. But when she saw me looking with worry, she smiled again. She put her face in my neck and softly kissed it, whispering, "I love you Dean Winchester."
"I love you too. Come on, let's get you cleaned up some, 'till we can get you home to Doctor Sammy," I chuckled. I sat Trin in the Impala and closing the door, walked around to the other side getting the first aid kit from the front and hopping in the back with her.
I started wiping her wrists with cleaning clothes, even through her wincing. I'd shush her softly, letting her know it'd be okay, even though I knew she knew and trusted me. I bandaged her small wrists and then got out some wipes to start wiping the blood off of her face and arms and chest. There was a lot and it was either sticky or dried, so it took a little while to get most of the gore off of her olive skin that was now pale without its normal blood-flow and out of her jet-black curls.
I had my one hand on the back of her neck and the other, with a wipe, on her cheek. Her eyes were closed and her hand came up to overlay mine. A single tear fell down from her opposite eye. I watched her for a moment in awe. The woman who could be so strong one moment, acting as if having a gorgon on top of you draining your blood and then beheading it, not even an hour ago was fine and so was she, could also be the woman to need someone to confide in so fotene. She had such a strong facade, sometime she made even me forget how vulnerable she really was on the inside. I sat forward and kissed the tear. The saltiness of it, tasted on my lips, the softness of her cheek leaning into my touch.
I let my lips stay on her face for a moment as she pressed against me. I leaned my forehead against her temple and her other hand came up to caress the side of my face. She pet it softly and under my hand I felt her chin quiver. So I pulled her into me and embraced her small body.
She pulled back a minute later and looked into my eyes. I went back to wiping off the blood and kept glancing back at her mesmerizing eyes trained on mine. I wiped the last of the blood off and met her gaze. Her small hand still grasping my forearm, my hands on her cheek and neck. Our breathing intensified.
I softly pulled her to me and our lips merged. Her hand whipped to the back of my head, clutching a tuft of my hair, the other resting on my bicep. My hand stayed on her cheek while the other travelled to the small her her back. I gently brought her back down the the bench-seat and the hand that was on her cheek slid down to her side. She winced under the pressure of my touch. I pulled my hand up and there was more blood.
"Oh," there were blood stains on both sides of her ribs.
"Just take it off," she plainly stated. So I gingerly lifted her ruined dress up and over her chest and head. There were three big, long cuts on each side, along with a small one closer to the back and another small one towards her bellybutton. Penelope must have picked her up, maybe tossed her?
I felt my eyebrows furrow and Trinity put her hand on my face, "It's fine, those don't even hurt that much."
Liar. I gave her as warm smile and pulled out the wipes and cleaning meds. I wiped off the excess blood and more was still coming fro the wounds so I cleaned them, and she clenched my shirt and the seat and suppressed a small scream, "Sonovabitch!"
"I'm sorry, but you know I have to."
"I know, it just hurts like a mother."
I got out the gauze and bandages and covered them. The wraps went all the way around her ribs cage like a corset. I gently put my hand on it and hers atop mine. I looked back to her eyes. They said 'thank you', without her even speaking.
I leaned back down overtop of her and kissed her softly, her lips, neck, shoulders, clavicle. With weak, shaking hands she attempted to unbuckle my black belt with heavy, frustrated breaths. I laughed, "Now?" shocked because of her physical state.
"Now," she assured me. She assisted me in removing my suit jacket and shirt. And it was her turn to sit and look, and she took that opportunity. Her hands caressed my chest and arms. Her right hand rested on my left bicep. Softly touching the handprint Cas left me when he pulled me out of Hell all those years ago. She stared at it for a minute and slightly squeezed. It was as if she was trying to embed the image in her mind.
I held her hand and leaned back down to her body. Amidst our kissing, I undid my pants and she pulled her halter that she had held the dagger in earlier off, followed by her underwear. I pressed against her and she gasped in my ear. Her skin was clammy from a fever and blood-loss, her lips a light shade of blue and dark circles under her eyes. She was strangely ethereal.
Her freezing fingers found their way to the small of my back and curved down to meet my backside. She tugged on my hair and I couldn't help the groan that escaped my vocal chords. She planted varying kisses on my mouth, cheeks, neck, and shoulders, occasionally letting a small noise out herself.
Mid-thrust I heard a door close a few hundred yards from where we were parked. We both froze where we were. We flipped out heads to face each other, breathless and wide-eyed.
I snuck a peak over the front seat and saw Bobby and Jody walking away from the mansion.
"Son of a bitch…" I mumbled.
"Bobby?" She asked, worry plastered on her face.
I nodded frantically and pulled away from her threw a shirt that I found on the floor of Baby all balled up on, it smelled, but not as much as my suit now did, plus it wasn't covered in blood. I pulled a pair of jeans on and look down at the naked-except-for-bandages-and-a-bra Trinity. I looked from her bare body to her eyes, and back and forth. She hiked her knees up and put her tiny feet on my chest, "Just go!" she giggle-coughed, "I got this!" I was pushed against the door, so I reached behind me and opened it. I tumbled out but caught myself, somewhat recovering, and closed the door. I stood up straight as Bobby and Jody stopped a few yards away from my car.
"Hey guys," I dusted off my shirt, even though there wasn't any dust.
Jody smirked and Bobby just rolled his eyes.
Jody's coming back with us, so if you guys could get yourselves together, and clothed, that'd be nice.
I let my jaw fall open, but I realized, I wasn't the most subtle person. I looked over into the Impala and saw Trinity underneath a blanket she dug out from under the driver's seat. She dusted off some crumbs showing it obviously hadn't been used in quite some time. She looked at me asking 'now what?'.
I pulled at my shirt and pointed at her. She rolled her eyes and made a face showing she sighed. I smiled and saw her reach for her bra and jacket and leaned down to pull up a pair of sweatpants she had hiding back there. I let out a small laugh and heard Bobby clear his throat.
"Ready?"
I glanced back over at my girlfriend. She had everything on and zipped up her leather jacket. "Yeah, we're ready," I shook my head with a smirk.