Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight
…
Seth was walking in a daydream-like way. He knew he wasn't as alert as he should be, and that annoyed him somewhat, but he couldn't help it. James had—they had—Seth could still feel where James had been. Thanks to Seth's superior healing factor the pain had quickly ended, but there was a slight pressure there, his body still remembering where James had been. Just the thought made him semi-hard but he fought that, because, well, sure, all his doubts at how gay sex might be - and his position in it - had been answered in an amazing way - but this wasn't the beginning of a relationship.
They'd rutted. Like animals. And it was great, but rutting wasn't the only thing Seth's wolf wanted. So while it was sated right at this moment he knew it would rear its head again, and soon.
The fact that they were going to some sort of supernatural brothel, one where James had been to before and obviously enjoyed with someone else, well, that was already making the afterglow disappear quickly. What if James' old partner was there? What would happen if he saw her? Sure, Seth was supposed to be going there as James' current partner, but he didn't trust someone to try and get in between that. How was he supposed to act? Because magic or not, he wasn't going to let James touch anyone in there!
The closer they got to the top of the hill, the more Seth could feel this magic affecting him. He was lulled, less tense, and he wasn't the only one. He could see James fighting the effects of the magic, and yet, when the vampire reached out and curled a finger around one of Seth's belt buckles, Seth realized he was being swayed a little as well. The wolf didn't mind though, allowing himself to be pulled in closer to the cool body.
And then they crested the hill and saw the establishment. It was large and looked like a closed-in carnival, but the scent in the air was strong and let Seth know exactly what was going on in there. Even if James hadn't warned him about the place they were going to he'd have known just from the mixture of scents.
James' grip shifted so that he now clutched the belt buckle opposite his body, so his arm now hung around Jacob's hips. This was probably just the vampire's way of blending in, there were probably eyes on them, and they needed to portray themselves as lovers - but Seth couldn't help but shiver in delight at the proprietary touch. He'd thought his inner wolf would fight the obvious dominance James radiated, and yet, so far at least, his wolf seemed more than content with how things were progressing. That was both a relief and kind of confusing.
As they drew closer, the doors creaked open, and a woman stepped forth, a smirk on her face. "James, now this is a surprise." She eyed Seth over before she held up a stamp in her hand. "Companion?"
"Partner." James smiled as he held out his hand, letting the woman stamp it, all the while his other hand curled Seth tighter into his side.
The woman, who smelt like something Seth had never smelt before, smirked darker as she stamped Seth's as well. "This is going to be interesting." And with that she motioned them to enter.
The second they did, the scent (which Seth had thought strong before) was almost overwhelming. He took a step back but James' grip on him kept him in place while he tried to accustom himself to the stench of sex that filled the place.
"Find my scent," James whispered into Seth's ear as he led him through a long hallway. "Search for it, find it, and concentrate on it. Use it to block everything else out."
Seth was having serious problems with that. He was usually better at tracking than this, and James was right next to him, but the scents were just so overpowering! How in the world was he supposed to pick up one scent in the midst of this—-?
The vampire must've noticed Seth's rising hysteria before he yanked Seth into his body, wrapping his jacket closed around him.
Blinking, Seth found himself with James' arms around him, his jacket surrounding him. James' scent was really strong right now, surrounding him, and Seth found his own hands gripping James' waist, anchoring himself against the blonde as he pressed his nose against James' skin, taking in deep breaths of his scent. A little choked sound escaped James' lips as Seth continued to trail his nose against the exposed skin at the vee of James' shirt.
Wanting more of that scent, Seth's hands found their way under James' shirt, his calloused fingers brushing hard against that milky white skin… and somehow… James' scent got thicker, stronger. The wolf inhaled it desperately until the burn of everything else slowly disappeared, completely dominated by the scent of smoked honey he associated with James.
All other leeches were way too sweet for his nose, but not James. James was just the right amount of sweet, mixed with a smoky, earthy scent that balanced out the usual sugary overload that leeches emitted. Seth liked this scent. He had from the first time he'd smelt it - before he'd ever laid his eyes on James. It was a scent that had nearly driven him wild back then, and was doing a number on him now.
James groaned, his voice low. "You, uh, okay now, pup?"
Suddenly remembering why they were in that position, Seth's eyes flew open and he nodded, fighting the flush he could feel climbing up his neck. He eased out from James' hold, and while the scents assaulted him once more he was able to now keep James' scent in his nostrils, to fill himself with it. A breath of relief escaped his lips. "It worked."
James stared at him in silence before he cleared his throat and smirked. "I forgot to warn you about that, sorry."
"S'okay."
James' gaze lowered from Seth's face to his body, resting on his hips. "You okay?"
Seth gulped, still able to feel the ghost of James within him. "Y-yeah. Of course. I heal quickly."
A moment passed with James just staring at him, before the vampire suddenly nodded and motioned with his head for Seth to follow him despite already grabbing hold of one of Seth's belt buckles, pulling him along with him. The vampire seemed to be searching for someone intently, ignoring the open doors down each side of the hallway. Seth wasn't so focused though, his eyes widening as he lay witness to each and every act happening in each and every room.
He'd never seen—not even in porn!
Seth's wide gaze tore away from the sights to stare at James' back as the vampire pulled him through the hallway with determined strides. This wasn't affecting the vampire. Was he used to this sort of stuff to the point where it wasn't enticing anymore? Fuck! That was terrifying! Seth had always known he'd been overprotected by his parents and sister, and that he might be a little more pure than other guys his age, and yet never before did James' 'puppy' names seem to make sense!
How in the world could Seth compete with whatever James could get in a place like this with people like this?
James glanced back at him and then frowned, seeming to notice something about his expression before he backed up a step and peered into the room Seth was now staring into. The vampire tilted his head, taking in the sight, before he suddenly groaned and turned to Seth, clearly second-guessing his bringing the wolf here. "C'mon, it's a little further ahead."
Allowing himself to be pulled along, Seth noticed the white door up ahead. They seemed to be heading there. What was behind the one white door? Who was behind it?
He didn't have long to wait, as James didn't even knock, instead he kicked the door open, surprising the wolf as James strolled into the large room, yanked Seth in, and then slammed the door shut behind them. They were now in a… natural pool area. They were also alone.
James turned and leaned back hard against the door. "You can turn back, you know. You don't have to go through this. But any further than this and it's going to get too strong." He motioned around him. "This is a kid's show compared to what will be happening further on. The spell's stronger than I remember it being."
He was treating Seth like a kid again. After what they'd done, after everything, he was still going to pull this shit?
"You said so yourself, didn't you?" Seth raised his chin. "I'm your partner."
James tilted his head. "Not exactly the way I was using it."
"I know." Seth cleared his throat before meeting James' eyes head-on. "But I'm in this with you and I'm not going back - you just have to lead me through this. So let's do what we came here to do."
There was a moment's silence as James eyed him, before he finally nodded and pulled off his jacket and shirt. "Take your clothes off."
Seth's eyes widened. They were going to do it again? Here? In the water? He gulped and turned to eye the water, wondering how that would change the feeling.
James kicked off his boots and reached for the buttons of his pants. "We've got to swim through."
"Swim…?" Only now did Seth realize that the pool led through a wall and was the only way out of the room. "Oh. Right. Of course." He lowered his gaze and tried to pretend his mind hadn't gone to a naughty place. "Do we take our clothes and things with us or—-?"
"Leave them, they'll be fine. This is a no fighting - no theft zone." James shoved down his pants, stepping out of it to leave himself completely bare, wearing nothing but Jacob's damned totem necklace, which Seth hated with a passion.
But damn it, despite that totem still being there, Seth froze. And stared. A lot. That… that had been inside of him. He gulped and only barely managed to lower his gaze and work on his own clothes before James could catch on. Seth avoided James' gaze by focusing on his hair once he was naked, gathering it up in a messy bun on top of his head.
The sound of James jumping into the water caught his attention, and he glanced up in time for James to surface, flinging his own shoulder-length hair backwards while wiping the water from his face.
Seth gulped as he watched him, his hands lowering his cover himself when he felt himself reacting to the sight. It was a good thing he was close to the edge himself, because he was able to jump in before James opened his eyes, hiding his reaction in time. For now.
"Ready?" James asked as he finally opened his eyes.
Nodding, Seth smiled shakily and watched as James took the lead, swimming down towards the entrance through the wall. The wolf just stared for a couple of seconds, head tilted in appreciation, before he shook his head and followed after. He'd never seen anything like this before - a pool which led you to another part of the building, and the dimmer lights on the other side of the wall were only a hint of what was going to happen on the other side.
Groans and moans rose around him, and Seth dog paddled for a second, eyes growing used to the dark to realize that the pool continued through to the other wall, and onwards and onwards. James was still swimming towards the other wall, paying no mind to the people in the room, or the ones who hadn't made it out of the pool and were pressed against the side with their, uh, lovers.
"Hey, cutie," a voice purred a little above him.
Seth glanced up to see a tall, rangy vampire with eager ruby eyes and sandy hair kept back with a leather thong. A girl hung on his shoulders, massaging them while rubbing against him from behind, while a guy was kneeling in front of him… Seth's eyes widened an his blush darkened rapidly as his gaze rose to the guy who'd spoken to him.
"Why don't you join us?" The guy asked as he held a hand out towards Seth.
Nope. No way.
"Fuck off, Garrett!" James was suddenly by Seth's side, he must've returned when he'd realized Seth wasn't next to him. "This one's mine."
The man's sleek, come-hither expression completely collapsed as he noticed James. "Jamie?" He shoved the girl from him, and pushed the guy away as well. "I thought you were dead!" And then in seconds he was in the water, and had James tightly gripped, not seeming at all conscious of the fact that they were both naked and pressed up against each other. "I can't believe you're here!"
Seth snarled, moving and separating both of them rapidly before turning to snap at this Garrett guy. He couldn't summon his wolf, couldn't transform, but he could feel his eyes shifting enough to reveal the wolf as he snapped his teeth at him in warning.
Garrett's eyes were wide. Ridiculously so. "A wolf." Those eyes turned to James. "You're with a wolf? And a guy on top of that? Since when were either a possibility? Wolf in particular and guy in general?"
James' mouth opened and closed a couple of times before he sighed and surprised Seth by yanking him back, wrapping his arms around his body, resting his chin on the top of Seth's head. "It just is. And sorry about his behavior, Garrett, he's a jealous lover."
Seth was in a very uncomfortable situation right now. Every instinct in him wanted to hurt this Garrett guy, but his wolf was very content right now with James all over him, and he was also incredibly distracted with the feeling of that body behind him.
"Let's put a pin in this right now," Garrett announced, looking confused yet intrigued. "By the time Riley got to me and brought me—they said you were dead, that Laurent had killed you—and Victoria had fled. We tried searching for her, but with her ability to hide we—you're alive."
"Riley looked for you?" James went still behind Seth, his grip on the wolf tightened. "Why?"
"He'd overheard Laurent and the others talking, said you'd never listen to him so he came to find me so I'd talk to you about it. But by the time we arrived it was done." Garrett ran his fingers through his hair as he eyed James and Seth. "He and I have been traveling together ever since, came when we heard news that Laurent and his goonies—. I never thought—can't believe you're okay, brother." He eyed Seth. "And with a wolf." He then grinned at James. "You're going to have to tell me how you managed that!"
"Maybe some other time," James muttered, clearly rattled by what he'd just learnt, although he was doing his best not to show it. "Seth and I have some business with Murdock."
"You're going after Laurent and the rest of those scumbags too, aren't you?" Garrett's eyes widened, as did his smile. "We're on the same hunt! Oh! Just like the past! This will be so much fun!"
"This isn't your—-."
"Come now, boy, wait till Riley finds out you're alive." Garrett eyed Seth meaningfully. "This will be interesting indeed."
What did that mean? Who was this Riley guy? He was obviously another vampire who'd been a part of James' old coven, but it somehow felt a bit more than that. Maybe it was in the way James had reacted to the news that Riley hadn't been a part of the mutiny, or maybe the way Garrett kept smirking at Seth when he mentioned Riley. Did this Riley guy like James?
The wolf inside of him snarled.
No.
Nope.
A part of him could handle James' feelings for Jacob considering Jacob and Edward were so clearly perfect together and everyone knew it, but what about this Riley guy?
"Last one's a rotten egg!" Garrett laughed before beginning to swim towards the next entrance.
James groaned into Seth's hair. "Things just got overly complicated." He seemed to lean heavily into Seth.
"Is he not a friend?" Seth asked in confusion, glad the lights were dim, and the water high, so it hid his situation down there as James continued to lean his naked body against his.
"Yes, he is." James let out a deep sigh nonetheless. "A pain in my ass though. I don't need him coming along. He's going to ask questions I'm not sure he should get answers to."
"You mean - the pack." Seth frowned as that brought up many questions of his own. "Are you ashamed of belonging to a wolf-pack?"
"No." James shook his head. "But you don't get it, Garrett and Riley, they don't know the me you guys do."
That sparked another set of questions. "Was the person you were before very different from the person you are now?"
"I used to hunt humans like Bella for fun, Seth," James whispered into his hair, voice incredibly low. "Don't you remember what happened in Forks when Victoria and I were there last? We killed people. We turned people. We—-we weren't people you, Bellsy or Jacob would like. I'm still unable to understand why Jacob helped us, why he accepted us. If I had been in his position I would've have. I'd have left us to die, or be killed. I was an actual monster, Seth, not like the me after Jacob."
Jacob.
Again, this was all about Jacob.
"COME ON YOU TWO!" Garrett waved from the next entrance before diving through.
James groaned loudly. "Just—-don't tell Jacob anything you might find out about the old me, okay?"
So he cared what Jacob thought about him, but not what Seth would. Great. Just freaking great.
…
James knew he was asking a lot of Seth, but he couldn't keep himself from doing so. He hadn't been lying when he'd said he'd been a veritable monster before his near death. The person he'd become while weak and dependent on Jacob's mercy was a far cry from the ruthless killer he'd once reveled in being. The vampire he was now was much closer to the human he'd once been, and that was something he'd always have the shifter Alpha to be grateful for.
This was why he'd wanted to come alone. He didn't want anyone from his present day life to intermingle with anyone from the life he'd once led. He didn't want to risk tainting their view of him, and Seth was just all wide-eyes and purity - and James had already ruined part of that already. He'd been unable to stop himself and had taken a part of that purity away, had lost control and taken advantage of the pup's trusting nature. And yet he couldn't help but feel depressed at the realization that by the time this mission was over, Seth was going to see the real James, and he didn't think the wolf would ever look at him again without that look of disgust James knew he deserved.
He wanted desperately to send the pup away, send him back home, before that happened. But he couldn't, he'd promised, and that promise would come back to bite his ass.
They needed to find Murdock, get what they needed from him, and then end Laurent and the rest of his mutineers - before this mission destroyed what James was trying to protect - his chance of having an actual home and family back home in Forks.
"James?"
Emerging from the other side, James treaded water as he sought that voice, finally catching sight of Riley. Apparently he'd been in the next section but Garrett had found and brought him over, having grown impatient of waiting for Seth and James to catch up.
Riley Biers. James' last turn. Still very much his fledgling all things considered. James wasn't sure why he'd chosen to turn Riley instead of letting the rest of his coven eat him, like they had the friends Riley was camping with in Forks. All James had known was that the boy intrigued him, and he'd held Laurent off, instead giving Riley his venom. Three days later Riley had awaken as a vampire, one with surprising self-control when it came to thirst. He'd seen something in the kid, and had believed that his absence during the mutiny had meant he'd either been killed, or been a part of it.
And yet Riley was smiling hugely, and James suddenly had an armful of his fledgling.
"Sire." Riley held on tightly, his whole body trembling. "When Garrett—-I couldn't believe—-how are you alive?" He pulled away and stared up at him with wide eyes. "Is Victoria safe?" When James nodded, Riley let out a deep breath of relief before suddenly frowning, his gaze going behind them. "Who are you?"
"If you don't remove him from you, James, magic or not, I'll tear him apart," Seth whispered softly, warningly.
James stared at him in silent surprise before he remembered their cover story. Right! They were lovers! Seth was following this story much better than James was, and he couldn't help but admire how well Seth was handling the situation. Maybe he'd underestimated the pup's ability to get into character.
"I don't know who—-," Riley stuttered when James eased him away and took a step back. "Sire?"
Clearing his throat, James sent an apologetic smile Riley's way before pulling Seth in close, very similar to how he had with Garrett. With his arms around the wolf, his body looming behind him, covering him, he knew his message would be read quickly, easily, especially once Riley suddenly searched—-and smelt him in Seth.
His fledgling's eyes narrowed, darkened, but he didn't say anything, knowing it wasn't his place. The other James would've never allowed anyone in his coven to question his relationships, and for once he was glad that Garrett and Riley still thought of him as that James. Sure, Garrett hadn't been in his coven, but he'd known the other James long enough to—-.
"They are searching for Laurent as well," Garrett announced, proving he knew James well enough to swift the subject. "We can have a hunting party, like the olden days."
Riley was silent, his gaze dark and displeased on Seth.
Seth returned that look without flinching, seriously impressing James.
"I don't remember inviting either one of you to the hunt," James muttered, ignoring their surprised looks. "I'm glad you're both okay, but stay out of our way."
Garrett's eyebrow raised curiously.
Riley's eyes narrowed on Seth.
Seth smirked back at Riley, the action clearly provocative.
"C'mon," James muttered as he slid his hand down between his and Seth's bodies to smack Seth's ass, surprising the wolf into a forwards jolt. "We've got to go." He followed behind. "I haven't shown you the Hall of Mirrors yet."
Seth eyes him curiously before glancing behind James and smirking. "Lead the way."
…
Garrett fought the amusement swelling inside of him as he watched James and the wolf shifter disappear from sight. His old friend was playing some game, was trying to push them away because he didn't want them knowing something, and the realization made Garrett all the more curious. The James he knew would've taken any and all help he'd needed to defeat enemies, and the change was fun. Something else was going on here, and it had something to do with James suddenly doing the impossible and rutting a guy, a werewolf, sure, but a guy werewolf.
"He just… left." Riley stared behind as well, his hands clenched at his sides. "After all I—-he just—he can't—-he's my sire!" His eyes were pitch-black in fury. "He just abandoned me! Again! He—-!"
Garrett rested a hand on Riley's shoulder. "Our Jamie-boy is hiding something."
Riley looked up at him immediately. "What do you mean?"
"The boy? He's a wolf."
Riley went paler than usual. "Vampires and wolves do not rut."
"That vampire and that wolf do, and very recently if the scent is anything to go by," Garrett replied with a chuckle. "Makes you wonder what else is going on in Jamie-boy's life that's changed since his supposed death. He's changed. Did you not see his eyes? They are gold."
Riley brought a hand to his head, his own scarlet eyes widening. "I hadn't thought—I hadn't noticed—-."
"Jamie's gone and become a vegetarian," Garrett chuckled as he eyed where James and Seth had disappeared to. "We heard about Laurent and his group returning to Forks for some reason before getting halved by wolves. Did we not? And I know of a group of golden eyed vampires in Forks. It is said they also have a truce of sorts with the wolf shifters near them." Garrett smiled as the pieces of the puzzle began to fall all around him. "I believe the Olympic Coven have answers for us as to what has happened to James."
"We can't let him fight Laurent on his own," Riley announced with a frown, clearly this was the topic that worried him the most - everything else second. Despite his hurt on being abandoned without a thought a second time by his sire, his fledgling loyalty (the same loyalty which had had him going to Garrett for help in the first place) was quickly asserting itself once more.
"We won't," Garrett assured his friend and protege. "But for now, it's best that we let Jamie and his little wolf think we are."
…
TBC