Sentinel fic - To Bond or Not to Bond, part 2

[dimity_blue]

Part 1.

Marc sat facing his cousin, his hands clasped in his lap to try to hide the shaking. He was almost overwhelmingly relieved to be looking at Jack instead of the other Sentinels, who had given the impression of being more than willing to rip him apart in order to extract the information they wanted, but Jack wasn't being the easy-going cousin he was used to.

"Marc, for God's sake, just tell me where Blair Sandburg is."

He glanced at the mirror behind Jack, knowing full well that the other Sentinels were behind it, staring at him.

"Marc!"

His attention snapped back to Jack.

"He's handled your jacket at some point, and it had to be recently - probably last night." Jack leaned forward, his eyes boring into Marc like gimlets. "Marc, you have got to tell them."

"I can't!" Marc leaned forward, swallowing nervously. "I won't!" He hoped he was imagining the growl that was jangling his nerves.

Jack leaned back, his eyes still fixed on Marc's face. "Why not? Is Blair a friend of yours? You've never mentioned him before so he's not an old friend."

Marc kept his eyes fixed on the table, mentally begging Jack to leave it alone.

"Maybe he's a friend of a friend."

He instinctively looked up for a micro-second at that, then yanked his gaze back to the table. He could feel his heart rate increasing as anxiety flooded through him and knew that Jack was bound to be picking up on it.

"Maybe he's a friend of someone you like." Jack leaned forward now, certainty on his face. "It's that teacher you like, isn't it? What's her name? Anne?"

Marc was on his feet. "God damn it, Jack - leave her out of this!"

"Marc!"

"He doesn't want to bond with you!" he shouted at the mirror. "There are plenty of Guides out there! Why can't you leave him alone?"

The door burst open. "Which school does she work at?" Ellison demanded.

Jack stood and turned. "The same one as Marc."

"No!" Marc grabbed for his shoulder, trying to shut Jack up, but instead found himself pinned face down on the table by his own cousin. "Jack!"

"Cascade Central High School - on Lincoln Way."

The door slammed shut and Marc stopped fighting, knowing the other Sentinels were gone. "Jack, please...go with them, don't let them hurt her."

"They won't hurt her. They just want to find Blair." Jack's hands were gentle now as he helped Marc stand up.

Marc thought quickly. He could still warn Anne and Blair, as long as he could get away from here. "Can I go now?"

"I think it would be better if you stayed here until after they've spoken to Anne."

Marc stared past Jack. "You can't stop me from leaving. You can't arrest me. I need to go, I need to see her, to explain." There was silence and he finally looked Jack in the face. "I need to let her know I didn't betray her."

Jack sighed, then put his arm around Marc's shoulders. "I'll drive you down there."

~'~

By the time Jack and Marc arrived at the school, the two Sentinels had been and gone, although the presence of a Sentinel and Guide in the staff room showed that they had been there.

Marc saw them, but ignored them, as he burst into the staff room. His attention was fixed on the white faced, shaking figure that had replaced the Anne he knew. He knelt quietly and took hold of her hands, afraid to make too much of a noise in case something inside of her shattered.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he murmured, trying to rub some warmth back into her hands.

She gasped for breath, then sobbed, "I didn't tell them where Blair is - they just knew, they knew!"

~'~

Blair sighed and stretched as he stared at the TV. He was bored, badly bored. He was used to being on the go all the time: things to do, places to go, people to see. And now he was hiding out in Anne's apartment faced with horrors of morning TV or with re-reading an anthropology journal that he knew off by heart and that, irony of ironies, had a large article about Sentinels in it.

If he hadn't been in such a hurry when he was packing, he would have made sure to pack enough books to keep him going. Then again, he had been travelling light for speed, so maybe more books wouldn't have been a good idea.

Hugging a cushion, he shut his eyes as his mind followed the same thoughts around in circles. Ellison...Bond...what on earth was he going to do? He took a deep breath to calm himself and opened his eyes, resolutely watching the saga unfolding on the TV. Would Dr. Wilson ever find his con woman of a daughter who had been posing as a Lithuanian princess? Would Nurse Carter realise her one true love was the window cleaner who was actually a multi-millionaire in disguise? Would the hospital administration resist the urge to sell off the hospital building to a contractor who planned to put a fast food restaurant next to Operating Room 1?

The journal was looking more attractive by the minute.

Finally he turned off the TV; there was only a certain amount of soapy angst he could take. He decided that making a cup of tea would keep him occupied for a few minutes at least and reached for his cup. It was full. He grimaced as he slopped cold tea over the coffee table. Well, at least it would give him something to do.

He emptied the cup and scrubbed the coffee table until it was pristine with no splashes of tea in sight, then stood back and admired his handiwork. Perfect, absolutely perfect. He lobbed the cloth in the direction of the sink and did a victory dance as it landed on the plughole. "He scores!"

A knock on the door interrupted him mid-jig and he approached the door carefully. Anne didn't say she was expecting anyone but her parents were famed for turning up unexpectedly - once arriving during a blizzard in the middle of the night. "Who is it?"

"U.P.S."

He didn't recognise the voice but he left the chain on anyway as he opened the door slightly, then slammed it shut as Sentinel Edwards' shy Guide looked blushingly back at him. Swearing loudly, he ran for the fire escape.

A crash from behind him told him that the door was now open but he didn't bother looking back to see which Sentinel was after him. There was a sharp stinging on his backside followed by a loud buzzing in his ears, which led his rapidly fuzzing mind to deduce he'd been stung by a bee. His legs, flailing wildly as he fled, suddenly became uncoordinated. He half-fell, half-collapsed over the easy chair and, as the floor came up to meet him, his vision blurred and he tumbled into the darkness that swamped him.

~'~

Jim swore as Sandburg fell over the chair, his face heading towards the floor at far too fast a rate. Throwing himself forward, he managed to grab one arm and yank his Guide back, catching him before he hit the floor on this side of the chair. The kid was out cold.

He grabbed the tranquilliser dart and pulled it free, throwing it contemptuously to one side, before carrying his Guide over to the couch and lying him down. The Dark Sentinel took a moment to check him over then stood and glared at the smirking Sentinel who had shot his Guide.

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" he snarled, forcing the words past the ball of anger in his throat.

"He was going to escape. Far better to stop him now before he got to the fire escape, don't you think?"

"Far better to give him a concussion, you mean!" the Sentinel roared, stalking around the couch to grab the gun from Bond's hand.

"I had no idea he was going to fall over that blasted chair!" Bond retorted.

Jim glanced at the tranquilliser gun he was holding in his hand, then looked again. "M.I.5!"

"M.I.5?" Edwards echoed from the doorway.

"I recognise the make of gun," Jim snapped, staring at the supposed businessman. "It's favoured by M.I.5 agents for its ability to be broken down into various parts and smuggled through customs. So, unless you have a permit for this, Mr. Bond, you're under arrest."

"Now, wait a minute!"

"Edwards, escort Mr. Bond to the P.D. It looks as though he'll have some questions to answer."

Bond pulled out his I.D. "Diplomatic immunity, old man."

"So you do work for M.I.5." The Dark Sentinel's anger stirred anew, "And you were going to recruit Sandburg?"

"Not at all! Well, naturally as my Guide," Jim growled loudly but Bond continued, "he'll also be working for M.I.5 but only by default."

"When you mentioned broadening his horizons, you failed to mention the morgue."

"My dear chap, naturally I'd keep him safe!"

"Oh?" Jim managed to sound politely interested as opposed to seething. "And do all your sidekicks survive your missions?"

An annoyed look appeared in Bond's eyes although it quickly disappeared again. "Once we're bonded, I'll make sure that he's safe."

"You'll bond over my dead body."

"That, old man, can be arranged."

~'~

By the time Blair was left to sleep off his sedative in the main bonding suite at the City Hall, word had spread, and all those Clan members who could, had made their way there to witness their Senior Sentinel Prime take on the contender for his Guide.

The Dark Sentinel smiled ferally as he looked around the room. Even if, by some bizarre mischance, he lost, Bond would never make it to the bonding suite - his Clan would see to that. Of course, it would be a fair fight but, win or lose, Bond would not be bonding with Jim's Guide.

~'~

Bond faced his rival with a raised eyebrow and a calm face. Since they had both stripped down to their shirt sleeves for the fight, Bond knew that he was going to have to win the fight fairly, or lose the Guide. His natural detachment reasserted itself. If he did lose the Guide - which was looking quite possible given the Senior Sentinel Prime's Dark status - it would not be the end of the world; there were other Guides available. Some of them were already trained M.I.5 operatives and quite a few of them were beautiful ladies.

Putting the distracting thoughts from him, he circled Ellison, looking for an opening. Fighting off Oddjob seemed easy in comparison to this.

Finally, he made a move. As he'd expected, Ellison feinted to the right but came back with a sudden jab to Bond's ribs as he danced out of range.

Bond grunted at the impact. Ellison packed one hell of a punch! Rallying himself, he shook off the effects and managed to land a couple of blows himself.

~'~

Jim slammed a fist into Bond's side again, aiming for the same spot as before, and felt at least two ribs crack under the impact. He grinned in spite of the pain from his bruised mouth, and moved back out of range quickly. If the other Sentinel was sensible, he'd yield the fight now; the fractured ribs would force him to defend that side far more, leaving his other side vulnerable to attack.

Keeping his distance to allow Bond to get his breath, Jim kept his fists up, ready for any sudden moves. "Well?"

Bond grinned in reply. "Very well, thank you," he replied, slightly breathlessly. "How are you?"

"I'm just fine, Bond." Jim danced on the spot, keeping his adrenaline flowing. "Your ribs are cracked."

"Yes, I had noticed." Bond approached him, ready to continue, but Jim backed off out of reach.

"You could yield now. I hardly think your superiors would be pleased if I sent you back in pieces."

"Well, I could, but I do hate to leave a fight unfinished."

Jim shrugged, respecting the other Sentinel's refusal to back down. "Your choice."

"You're too kind."

The Dark Sentinel circled around, manoeuvring the other Sentinel into the spot he wanted. He flicked a warning glance at Edwards then moved in for the kill. Jim made a quick feint towards Bond's uncracked ribs then slammed his fist up underneath Bond's jaw. Bond's chin snapped up, his eyes glazed at the blow, and he collapsed into Edwards' waiting arms.

"He's out." Edwards' voice was exceptionally dispassionate and extremely unsurprised.

The Dark Sentinel was triumphant as Dr. Harvey moved forward to examine her newly acquired patient. "I'll be in the showers." He strode from the room as the Sentinels and Guides present bowed their heads. The Guide was his.

~'~

Blair blinked and rolled onto his back as the fuzziness faded from his mind. Looking around, he realised he'd been lying in the classic recovery position on a bonding platform in a room he'd never seen before. This did not seem like a good thing to him.

He scrambled off the platform and wiped the drool from his mouth. "Great." He had no idea where he was, apart from a bonding suite which could be pretty much anywhere in the world, but he'd been dribbling like Quasimodo. On the plus side, it might put any prospective bonding Sentinels off, although he doubted it.

Prowling around the room, he made sure to check the door. After all, he reasoned, you never know your luck! However, his luck wasn't good and the door was locked. Naturally there were no handy windows for him to climb out of either so he started searching the material covered walls for ventilation shafts or something - air had to get in somehow and where air could get in, surely he could get out?

As he searched, his mind drifted back to his last available memory and his hands flew up to his face. The last thing he remembered was imitating a damaged Spitfire and dive-bombing the floor, however his nose wasn't broken and he didn't think he had a concussion. Before that, the buzzing and stinging. Realising that it had not, in fact, been a bee that got him, he rubbed his backside as the fact sank in that the residual pain in his right butt cheek was not from how he'd been lying; those Sentinels had sedated him.

A deeper, darker anger than any he'd ever known was rising in him. How dared they trick him like that? Bad enough that they'd been hunting him down, they'd had to sedate him in order to win. He continued searching, trying to force his mind to focus on finding a ventilation duct hidden somewhere but his movements grew more agitated by the second. There wasn't just his anger about being sedated, tricked, to deal with - he had no idea what they'd done to Anne and Marc. He knew that they must have done something to get them to talk; Anne would never have betrayed him and Marc liked Anne far too much to risk losing her. How dared they hurt his friends?

Blair turned as the door opened and one Sentinel entered, carefully shutting the door behind him.

He heard the lock click into place but ignored it in his fury. "You sedated me!" He almost didn't recognise his own voice; the livid tone made him sound far harsher than ever before.

No guilt appeared on the Sentinel's face but Blair wasn't surprised. People who could go around kidnapping and imprisoning innocent Guides were obviously beyond feeling guilty about a little sedation.

"No, I didn't," Ellison replied emphatically, "Bond did."

That didn't stop Blair for a second. "What difference does it make? One of you sedated me!"

"Well, it wasn't me," the Sentinel snapped in return. "I just stopped you from hitting the floor."

Dimly, Blair realised that he had Ellison to thank for his lack of concussion and his unbroken nose, however, his anger remained, "You kidnapped me!"

Jim took a second to think about that then, "Yes."

"You had no right to do that!"

The Sentinel's face tightened in anger, "You're my Guide!"

"I'm no one's Guide!" Blair snarled. He was shaking with anger, longing to attack the Sentinel, punish him, drive him from his sight, but knowing that he would almost certainly lose any physical fight. He watched the Sentinel lean against the door, his arms folded, his gaze intent, and his entire posture broadcasting his intention to remain there all day until the bonding was done. It fanned his fury. "And how dared you hurt my friends?"

"Your friends weren't harmed."

"They would never have betrayed me!"

"They didn't have to." The Sentinel showed his teeth in a feral smile. "If you knew anything about Sentinels, Guide," the title was given with a hint of contempt, "you'd know that we just need to ask the right questions to find out the truth."

Despite his realisation that Anne and Marc had almost undoubtedly not been harmed, his fury remained, although he was trying to rein it in. He had never been the type of person to give way to his anger, preferring instead to talk his way through and out of situations but right now he felt he had no control.

'Damn!' The Sentinel was smiling again as though he could feel the fury that was searing its way through Blair. Wrapping his arms around himself and leaning against the back wall, Blair reflected that the Sentinel could undoubtedly smell his anger - yet another reason for controlling himself. He shook with the effort and tightened his hold on himself, feeling as if he were trying to wrap a hug around his emotions and smother them. But he was failing and he knew it.

"Let it out, Guide." The Sentinel's voice was alluring as he started prowling on the other side of the room, making no attempt to approach the bonding platform or Blair, instead just walking, with a measured slow pace, back and forth in front of the door.

Each step provoked Blair, making him feel like it was another turn of the screw that was tightening his control to snapping point. He clenched his fists and hugged himself harder. He'd always believed in Karma, always believed in 'letting it go' and now there seemed to be something inside of him that was driving him to 'let go' in an entirely different way.

"What are you waiting for, Guide? Are you afraid? Afraid that I'll win?"

Blair took a deep breath, attempting to release his anger with his exhalation. In a deliberately calm tone he replied, "Leave me alone."

"Make me."

The tone was taunting and he snapped. With a scream he launched himself at the Sentinel, wanting, needing, to make the Sentinel leave before this darkness inside him overwhelmed him completely.

His attack was met with equal force as he was caught and thrown back onto the bonding platform, the Sentinel following him down to pin him in place with his arms above his head. He bucked, trying to force the Dark Sentinel away from him, screaming in fury as his control was lost beyond reclaiming.

"Submit." The word was growled at him.

"Never!" he spat back.

The Sentinel's teeth were bared in a feral smile that fanned the flames of his anger but he seemed content to merely hold the Guide in place, letting him wear himself out by battering himself against an immovable wall.

Finally, the Guide quietened. His fury was still in place but he was going nowhere, and the dim corner of his mind that was still fully Blair realised the sense of biding his time until he had the ability to fight back.

"Submit, Guide!"

His teeth were bared in defiance as he stared up at the grinning Dark Sentinel. The emotions were filtering through his barriers despite his efforts and he knew that the Sentinel was enjoying his anger. With a strangled cry, he tried to rip his wrists free as he twisted to one side. Surprisingly, the Sentinel allowed part of the movement and Blair realised he'd made a mistake. His wrists were still trapped but the Sentinel's face was buried in the crook of his briefly exposed neck, and he could feel the air moving as he was scented there.

Teeth scraped across his jugular and he cried out again, furious at the need that was pooling in his mind and clouding his thoughts even more. He wriggled and writhed, his desperation growing as strong teeth nipped gently at the vein without breaking the skin.

His barriers were fracturing though, and more and more emotions were seeping into his mind. First among them was a determination to bond that would not be denied. His defences fell even as the Dark Sentinel, obviously tiring of his struggles, bit harder than before.

His outraged cry changed into a moan as endorphins flooded through him, and the Dark Guide capitulated at last.

~'~

The Dark Sentinel smiled as his Guide's defences collapsed and their minds became one. He had enjoyed every minute of provoking Sandburg until the Dark Guide had broken through, and now the Dark Guide was his.

He relaxed as his mind sank into the warmth of the bond, and he inhaled his Guide's scent, noticing the difference from before. From now on, any Sentinel his Guide met would know that he was already claimed and was, therefore, off-limits to them. His smile grew as he rejoiced that that included Sentinel Bond.

~'~

This time when Blair awoke, he was not alone. His head was resting on his Sentinel's shoulder and one strong arm was curved around his back, holding him closely.

"Welcome back."

He sighed. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what? Bond with you?"

The Sentinel's voice was filled with amusement, and Blair felt even more annoyed, although the deep anger that had driven him before had gone. He rolled away, or tried to. Although he managed to lie on his back, the Sentinel followed him and leaned over him, trapping him in place.

"You're my Guide, Blair. I knew that from the first moment I saw you."

He glanced up at that. The amusement had gone; the Sentinel was serious. "Look, Sentinel Ellison -"

"Jim. My name's Jim. You might as well use it."

Blair sighed. He didn't want to use it - he didn't want to be bonded! But he guessed it was too late to waste time thinking about that. "Why me? What did I do to make you choose me?" He pushed the Sentinel back and sat up, ignoring the frown that was directed at him. "There's got to be a thousand Guides out there who would love to be your Guide - you're the Senior Sentinel Prime, for God's sake! If you waved your title at 'em, they'd follow you anywhere."

Jim moved back a little but didn't go far. "That's not how it works, Chief."

"So how does it work? C'mon, man, explain it to me." Blair knew he was harping on about a moot point - he was bonded and nothing was going to change that, no matter what Jim did or didn't say.

"You're my Guide. That's all it comes down to."

"That's no kind of answer, man! Didn't anyone teach you how to argue?"

A smile lit up Jim's face and, in spite of himself, Blair grinned back for a second before continuing, serious once more, "You've gotta have a reason," he insisted. "So tell me."

Jim shook his head, his eyes staring at the bit of bonding platform between them. "It's... hard to explain, Chief."

"Well, you're gonna have to try, man, 'cause, I'm telling you, I need to understand this if I'm gonna accept it!" The Sentinel's head snapped up at that and the Guide gulped at the determinedly possessive look in his eyes. Recovering, Blair continued, "C'mon, Jim... you're gonna have to tell me something."

Finally, Jim shrugged, his gaze fixed on the bonding platform once more. "I'd heard other Sentinels talking about when they met their Guides and they knew, just knew, that that was it. No doubts, no second thoughts...nothing." His face reddened as he talked. Obviously talking about his feelings was not something Jim Ellison indulged in often. "I never assumed it would be like that. I thought I'd meet a Guide I liked, someone I'd have a lot in common with. I used to be in the Rangers. I met military Guides all the time, we had a lot of things in common, but," he paused then continued, "I couldn't have bonded with them if I'd tried."

"But if you had so much in common with them -"

Jim's gaze snapped up and held Blair's, his eyes boring into him, his tone harsh. "It doesn't work that way! As soon as I saw you at the Clan gathering I knew, and that was it." He relaxed slightly and leaned back, a ghost of a smile playing about his mouth. "It doesn't matter who or what you are, Chief, you're my Guide. Call it fate, destiny...whatever you want. It's not going to change a thing."

"So that's it then?"

He got a shrug in return. "That's it."

It was Blair's turn to stare down at the bonding platform between them. He didn't know what he'd wanted Jim to say, what argument he'd hoped the Sentinel would come up with, but destiny didn't cut it for him. His mind wandered back over their bonding and memory returned of that other personality who had taken control of him - a much darker personality than his normal one. He had hated the Sentinel so much in those furious moments before their bonding but, once he'd given in, he had almost gloried in the Sentinel's strength, in his Sentinel's ability to defeat him. He shook his head. That was kind of warped, even for him.

"You okay, Chief?"

There was a note of sympathy in Jim's voice and Blair pulled his mind back to the present moment hurriedly. "Yeah." He repeated himself, his voice stronger, "Yeah. I'm okay. Just confused, you know?"

"It'll be fine, Chief. Just give it a bit of time."

"Yeah." He'd do some research - maybe it all came down to the Dark Sentinel/Dark Guide issue. He'd find the answers. Shaking his head again, he dismissed the thoughts for now and looked around, suddenly realising that he hadn't even seen the other Sentinel who'd been so determined to claim him. "Where's Bond?"

Jim grinned; a full strength smile that betrayed his underlying happiness. "He's probably conscious by now. I didn't hit him that hard." The tone was almost reassuring, but the words were not.

"You hit him?!"

The Sentinel lay back, his arms crossed behind his head. "I had to end the fight somehow."

"Fight? You mean you actually went ahead with that?!"

A lazy smirk settled on Jim's face. "Sure, Sandburg. How else do you think we decided who got to bond with you?"

Blair sat back, his mouth open in astonishment and his stunned gaze fixed on the smug Sentinel by his side. It looked like he had a bit to learn about Jim Ellison too.

~'~

His first lesson in Jim Ellison 101 occurred when he attempted to return to his home, such as it was. Blair would and did readily admit that the draughty warehouse he paid rent on was not a home that would feature in Homestyle Weekly or any other magazine extolling the beauty and comfort of people's homes. However, it was his and it was where he lived.

Jim, of course, had other ideas and Blair found them out when Jim drove him home - as he thought. As it turned out, in Jim's eyes, they were driving over there to collect his stuff in order to move him into the Sentinel's spare room.

"It's a warehouse."

Blair nodded. He was glad to see that Jim's Sentinel sight was working well. "Yep."

"It's a cold and draughty warehouse."

Okay, Jim's sense of touch was working as well. "Yeah, although I have these space heaters right he -"

"There are rats in here, Sandburg," Jim interrupted, his tone decisive. "Big ones. And don't try to deny it because I saw the size of them!"

"Look, Jim, just becau -"

"You're not going to live here."

Blair ground his teeth - a habit which he suspected he'd already picked up from his irritating Sentinel - and reminded himself that Guides were supposed to have a calming effect upon their Sentinels. He mentally threw the rulebook out of the window and opened his mouth to continue arguing.

"And we're not discussing it any more!"

He stared at his Sentinel's back as that individual stalked off towards the front door of Blair's much-discussed abode and disappeared out of sight.

Curiosity got the better of him and he followed Jim out to the truck. "You brought boxes?!"

"We need boxes to pack your things, Chief." Jim sounded very matter-of-fact about his sneaky planning.

"When did you get boxes?"

"I asked Edwards to pick some up for me before the fight."

Blair gasped. "You didn't even know you were gonna win."

The Sentinel turned and looked at him.

"Okay, but you couldn't be sure!"

One eyebrow was raised.

"Well, you couldn't be!"

Both eyebrows were raised.

"God, Jim, you're so annoying!" Blair stamped off into the warehouse ignoring the grin that he knew was on his Sentinel's face.

~'~

Once he was moved into Jim's spare room, he had to admit, although only to himself, that it was a definite step up from the warehouse. And while Jim was rather 'me in charge' most of the time, he also seemed willing to accept that Blair would not want to be his shadow twenty four hours a day. Therefore, the next day saw Blair heading for some downtime at Rainier's library. Alone. Of course, he hadn't told Jim that his aim was to do some research on Dark Sentinels and Guides - there were some things that his Sentinel did not need to know. And he definitely did not want Jim to find out that he needed to do the research in order to try to accept the changes in his life...admitting that would be a sure fire way to drive his Sentinel to dog his footsteps no matter where he went.

Blair made a detour on the way and visited Anne. He needed to see for himself that she and Marc were all right and that no harm had come to them. Anne was fine although she admitted that Sentinels were not Marc's favourite people at the moment - to the extent that his cousin from the P.D. had called to see if Marc was there as he wouldn't return the Sentinel's phone calls at all. Looking around her apartment, the only sign of what had happened there was the lingering smell of fresh paint from the door frame - Anne admitted she'd been surprised to find her door fixed and nicely repainted after the Sentinels had been and gone. Blair sighed to himself and wished that all the repercussions from that day could be as easily dealt with.

Half an hour in the library turned into one hour, then three. It wasn't until his cell phone started ringing that Blair came back to reality and noticed the time. With a sense of dread, he answered his phone.

"Sandburg?!"

"Hey, Jim, I just noticed the time. I'll head home now."

"Where are you?"

"I'm still at the library, but I'm packing up now," he tucked his phone under his ear and started piling up the books he'd been reading, "I'll be home as soon as I can be."

"Stay where you are. I'll come and collect you."

"No need for that, man, I've got my car."

"I'll be there in fifteen minutes. Don't move."

Blair looked at his phone as it went dead, then looked at the books he'd been stockpiling. There really wasn't a lot of information on Dark Sentinels; for some reason, no one seemed willing to get close enough to them to write about them - Blair wondered why. After all, Dark Sentinels were, in his experience, an overbearing, over-protective, take charge whether you like or not, pain in ass type of guy. Of course, he admitted, he could be biased. And, to his dismay, there was even less information on Dark Guides.

He didn't even want to think about why no one wanted to write about them.

All he had managed to glean from the smattering of comments scattered in among the essays on non-Dark (and therefore far easier to manage) Sentinels, was that Dark Sentinels and Dark Guides were perfectly matched, tended to argue a lot and that Dark Sentinels and Guides were very possessive of their bond mates.

He reflected that that probably explained why he hadn't seen Sentinel Bond at all since he'd bonded with Jim.

By the time he'd put all of his books back, his fifteen minutes were practically up and, as expected, Jim had arrived. He didn't bother protesting as Jim checked him over. A couple of days of living with a Dark Sentinel had already taught him that when a Dark Sentinel wanted to make sure his Guide was unharmed, nothing, but nothing, would stop him.

~'~

As Jim had insisted on driving him home the night before, the next morning saw Blair in the truck again on the way back to Rainier. His car was just where he'd left it and he hoped, fervently, that the brief lack of use wouldn't persuade the engine to give up completely. He had no wish to push Jim further into Blessed Protector mode by phoning him from the roadside because his car had died.

Blair waited until Jim had gone then hurried over to his car and tried the ignition. The engine sputtered and coughed but revved into life with only a small amount of coaxing. Breathing a sigh of relief, Blair turned it off, locked the car and headed for his first class. At least he should be able to get home by himself.

He got home all right, and was ensconced in his room reading a book that promised to expose all the myths and mysteries of the Dark Sentinel/Guide partnership when Jim arrived back. Hurriedly hiding the book under his pillow, he went out to the kitchen and gave his Sentinel a hand making dinner. His mind was still on the book though and he barely noticed Jim's attempts to talk to him, just nodded absently every time Jim waited for an answer. Blair would have preferred to read a textbook on Dark Sentinels and Guides, but there didn't seem to be one out there, and this lurid 'exposé' type book was the only one he could find. Unfortunately, it was becoming more and more obvious page by page that the guy had no idea what he was talking about and had written the book in an attempt to make a quick buck.

"Sandburg!"

Blair jumped and dropped the spoon he'd been aimlessly moving around in the sauce. "What?"

"Have you been listening to a word I said?"

"Uh..." Blair looked around the kitchen in search of inspiration and found none. "No."

"I didn't think so. What's up?"

He shook his head. He really didn't want to tell Jim about the book under his pillow. "Nothing. I was just...miles away."

Jim gave him a disbelieving look but was apparently ready to let it go. "Okay."

"Sorry, Jim. What were you saying?"

"I was saying that there's a Clan gathering this weekend."

"Oh no!" Blair remembered the last Clan gathering he'd been to - he was still living with the repercussions from it.

"Oh yes." Jim put an arm around his shoulders and escorted him to the couch. "This is to introduce the new Senior Guide Prime to his Clan."

Blair stared up at him, horrified. "Tell me you're joking."

"Sorry, Chief."

He slumped back on the couch and stared at the rug.

"It's just for one night, Chief. We'll go, we'll have a few drinks, eat some weird little puffy things that you never eat at any other time, and you can flirt with all the female Guides."

"Well, at least that'll pass the evening." He got up, went back to the kitchen, and started stirring the sauce again, his mind half on the last gathering he'd gone to, and half on the upcoming one. "And at least I won't have to worry about what I'm wearing this time." The sudden stillness behind him caught his attention and he turned, "Jim?" There was a guilty look on his Sentinel's face that made his eyes narrow with suspicion. "What have you done?"

"Nothing."

Abandoning the sauce, Blair headed for his room and for his wardrobe. He knew he'd put that tuxedo in there. There had been no point in returning it to Sentinel Bond as it was definitely the wrong size for him, although Blair had made sure to get rid of the cufflinks once Jim had told him about their transmitting abilities.

The tuxedo was still where he'd left it...or was it? His suspicions thoroughly aroused by the Guilty-As-Hell Sentinel lurking in the kitchen, Blair pulled the pristine suit out and looked it over. He didn't have Sentinel eyesight but he could tell a spotlessly clean, brand new suit when he saw it and this was it. "Where's my tuxedo?"

Jim didn't even turn around. "Isn't it in your wardrobe?"

"No. There's a tuxedo in my wardrobe but it's not the one I was wearing last time."

He did turn at that. The tuxedo received a glance, then Jim shrugged. "Looks the same to me."

"Yeah, it looks the same. It probably is the same - make, that is. However, I climbed out of a toilet window in my tuxedo and I ripped the knee slightly." Blair waved 'his' tuxedo in the air. "No holes in this knee at all. So, I repeat...where's my tuxedo?"

"Maybe the Knee Fairy replaced it, Chief. After all, you can't go to a Clan gathering with holey knees."

"You replaced my tuxedo - don't lie about it! You replaced it because Sentinel Bond bought it."

Jim stirred the pasta into the sauce. "If you know, why ask?"

Blair practically danced on the spot. "You could at least act embarrassed about it, Jim. You stole my tuxedo - a perfectly good tuxedo - and replaced it with another one."

There was a bang as the pot was dumped into the sink. "It wasn't your tuxedo, Sandburg, it was his tuxedo. And my Guide is not going to any Clan Gathering in another Sentinel's tuxedo."

Blair couldn't believe this. Jim was acting territorial over a suit? "It's a suit, Jim! It doesn't matter who bought it!"

The second pot joined the first with an even louder bang. "Yes. It does."

"Fine!" Blair stalked back into his room and shoved the ill-treated tuxedo to the back of his wardrobe. "It'll look lovely with my flamingo tie!"

~'~

As the gathering was being held at rather short notice, Jim had chosen to have it in the Sentinel Suite at the City Hall. The fact that that was also the scene of Sentinel Bond's resounding defeat had, of course, no bearing on the matter.

If it bothered Sentinel Bond, he refused to allow any sign of it to show - he had his pride, after all. He shook hands with the Sentinel who had defeated him and congratulated the newly bonded pair with an air that led anyone watching to assume that he was quite pleased to have lost the fight.

James could not flatter himself that he was fooling the Senior Sentinel Prime though. There was a gleam of triumph in the other Sentinel's eyes that showed that he knew what a prize he had won.

To James' amusement, but not to his surprise, the Senior Guide Prime was wearing a brand new tuxedo that looked identical to the one he'd spent a lot of money on. The cufflinks too were definitely not his, although that was another non-surprise. The last signal he'd had from them showed that they were currently travelling around the sewer system, leading him to suspect that Blair had flushed them down the toilet.

After a few minutes' polite conversation, Blair was escorted away to meet more Sentinels and Guides, and, his duty done, James gave into pleasure and went to flirt with Sentinel Pais. He ignored the looks of fury that were being cast his way by Lisa's Guide. After all, it wasn't his fault if Karl was too slow on the uptake.

~'~

Blair sighed with relief as they left Sentinel Bond. Jim's air of triumph was rather wearing and he had a very strong urge to tell the Senior Sentinel Prime to knock it the hell off. No one likes a smug Sentinel and Jim's smugness factor had been working overtime lately.

Escorted by Jim around the room, he was introduced to Sentinel after Sentinel and Guide after Guide until the names and faces began to blur together. Blair had met a few Sentinels and Guides while working with Jim at the P.D., but the majority of them were total strangers to him. Sighing, he wondered how long it would take him to sort them all out in his mind. He spotted a Guide he did know sitting forlornly at a table watching Sentinel Bond flirt up a storm with Sentinel Pais, and made his way over there, leaving Jim poking the hors d'oeuvre with a dubious look on his face.

"Hey, Karl."

Karl promptly rose to his feet and bowed his head, "Senior Guide Prime."

"Blair's fine, honestly," Blair said, hastily. "So what's up?"

"Nothing, Sen...Blair."

"Okay." Blair sat down and looked over to where Sentinel Bond was whispering in Sentinel Pais' ear. He didn't need Sentinel hearing to listen to Karl grinding his teeth. "You know, if it bothers you that much, why don't you cut in?"

The look of surprise on Karl's face was worth the entire evening. "I can't just - can I?"

Blair shrugged. "She's your Sentinel."

"Well, yes...but...."

"Faint heart never won fair Sentinel." Blair grinned, a hint of devilry on his face. "I'm quite sure Sentinels use a variation on that excuse all the time when they're claiming Guides."

"Yeah, they do." Karl sat up straighter, a smile spreading across his face and a gleam of determination in his eyes. "And...turnabout is fair play."

"Sauce for the goose."

"Thanks, Blair." Karl got up and stalked over to his Sentinel.

"Any time." Blair grinned even more as he watched him go. It looked like Sentinel Bond wasn't having any luck at all lately. He returned to his own Sentinel's side, and tried to persuade him to stop poking the hors d'oeuvres. "People do have to eat those, you know."

"I know, Chief, it's just..." Jim poked another pastry. "Why do people serve these up at buffets all the time?"

"Tradition, I guess." Blair shrugged. "And some people must like them."

Jim finally abandoned the tray and turned his back on the food. "And what were you up to urging Karl to cut in like that?"

Blair looked at him. "I thought you were busy with the hors d'oeuvres?"

He shrugged. "I couldn't help overhearing."

"Jim! I was the other side of the room!"

Another shrug. "So you have a loud voice. Is that my fault?"

"Jesus, Jim! Go back to the hors d'oeuvres!" With that he stalked off to circulate some more. He kept a smile on his face but inside he was fuming. It had not been his idea to bond and now he was stuck with a Sentinel who was going to eavesdrop on any conversation he felt like. It was infuriating - and that wasn't even taking into account the other bad habits Sentinels had, like checking over their Guides at the drop of a hat and nagging about thick winter coats when the weather turned cold.

He managed a genuine smile when he noticed Karl and Sentinel Pais dancing together and, curious as to the whereabouts of Sentinel Bond, he glanced around the room and found him flirting with Tina, Sentinel Niven's Guide. Blair could tell that Tina wasn't bothered, but she seemed rather surprised when Jim moved in and cut Sentinel Bond out. What the hell did his Sentinel think he was doing? It was not Jim's place to go protecting Tina from another Sentinel - a fact that Sentinel Niven seemed to be well aware of as he was looking like a thundercloud.

Blair was totally unaware of his own thundercloud impersonation as he made his way across the floor back to his Sentinel's side. Stuff the fact that he'd never wanted to bond, his Sentinel had no right to go wandering about protecting any Guide he happened across - especially as that Guide had her own Sentinel to look after her.

"Sandburg," Jim seemed to be totally unaware of his faux pas, "did you know that Tina likes hors d'oeuvres?"

"No." Blair glowered at Tina, who should have known better than to go discussing hors d'oeuvres with his Sentinel. "But I'd like to talk to you. For a minute. Jim. If you don't mind. Now."

Jim frowned. "Something wrong?"

Blair managed to keep a lid on his simmering resentment and pasted a fake smile on his face. There was, he decided, no point making a scene in public. "Not at all. Let's go."

"Oookay, Chief, if you insist."

~'~

Sandburg did insist, and he determinedly led the way to the bonding suite. Jim followed along, ignoring the surprised looks cast at the pair of them. Once inside, he waited as Blair very quietly shut and locked the door behind them.

"All right, Chief. What's up?" He could smell his Guide's anger and knew that his ploy had worked. Jim was tired of Sandburg's quiet attempts to rationalise their bond and the Dark Guide persona that lurked within him, and if provoking the Dark Guide was the only way to bring the issue out into the open, well, he was more than ready to play on the Dark Guide's jealous nature. He'd have to apologise to Sentinel Niven in the morning but, considering Sandburg's jealous little display out there, he was pretty sure the other Sentinel would understand his motives.

"What the HELL did you think you were doing?"

Yep, his Guide was jealous all right. Now all he had to do was fan the flames. "When?"

"When you were protecting Tina from Bond!" Sandburg stalked forward and poked Jim in the chest. "It's not your place to protect Tina at all! She's got her own Sentinel!"

"Oh, I see!" Jim couldn't help it, he smiled as he leaned forward and looked into Blair's eyes. "Jealous, are you?"

"Jealous?! I am not jealous!"

Jim shrugged. "If you say so, Chief."

"Why would I be jealous?"

"Perhaps because I was protecting another Guide. But," Jim shrugged again, "if you say you're not, then you're not. Shall we get back to the party?"

"No, we shall not!" There was a growl of pure fury, then the Dark Guide put his hands on Jim's chest and shoved.

The bonding platform was directly behind Jim and he was unable to regain his balance before he fell. He landed flat on his back on the bonding platform and seconds later, received a chestful of Dark Guide in full bonding mode.

The Sentinel growled as he struggled to take control of their bonding, then roared as his blasted Guide bit him on the throat. With a snarl of near fury, he grabbed his Guide by the hair and by the throat and threw him onto his back, rolling with him to pin him into place. A shriek of outrage made him grin as his Guide bucked beneath him, trying to throw him off, but his hold was secure and he held his Guide in place as he lowered his head to do his own biting.

The smell of Blair's anger faded as the bonding heat took over, and the Sentinel growled with pleasure as his Guide tilted his head back, submissively giving him full access to his throat before dropping his barriers completely. With a roar of triumph, the Sentinel bent his head and claimed his Guide.

~'~

"Chief? Sandburg?"

Blair opened his eyes slowly then shut them again, then opened them wide as he stared at the dark bruise on Jim's neck. "I bit you!" He guessed that text had been right when it claimed that Dark Sentinels and Guides were possessive of their bond mates. What on earth had got into him? Well, he knew what had got into him. His Sentinel had been protecting Sentinel Niven's Guide and he, Blair, hadn't liked that one bit.

Jim grinned. "Yeah, you did. Now are you going to wake up so we can rejoin the party before it finishes or are you planning on sleeping the rest of the night away in here?"

"What? Oh, yeah." Blair sat up, looking around. Amazingly, the bonding suite looked exactly the same as it had before he went a little...berserk. Somehow, he'd expected it to look as if a cyclone had hit it. He couldn't believe he'd bitten his Sentinel. Then again... He looked at the bruise which showed that his Sentinel was a claimed Sentinel and smiled. Let Tina go bite her own Sentinel. "How long was I asleep?"

"About half an hour." Jim sounded as smug as Blair felt. "You feeling all right now?"

He grinned. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's go before they eat all the hors d'oeuvres." And before any of the guests left. He had a claimed and marked Sentinel to show off.

His first port of call, as it were, was Sentinel Bond. As soon as they left the bonding suite, he made a beeline for the oblivious Sentinel, dragging his Sentinel along with him. He waited until they'd got Bond's attention and then grinned widely as the Sentinel stared at the bite mark in full view on Jim's neck.

"You bit him?!"

It was one of those freak moments when a room is quiet and a comment is heard, loud and clear. For a second no one spoke and no one moved, then a ripple of conversation spread from their corner. From what Blair could hear, it all involved Jim's bite mark. His own, naturally, didn't attract any attention at all.

Blair grinned at the shocked Sentinel in front of him. "Yep." He turned and surveyed his handiwork happily. "I think it suits him."

"Careful, Chief." There was a warning in the glance Jim threw at him but, judging from the feelings of smugness and lazy contentment Blair was picking up, Jim really didn't mind at all.

"Well, I uh..." Sentinel Bond drained his glass and set it down on the table. "I'm afraid I have to be going now. I have an early flight in the morning. Blair, it's been a pleasure. Sentinel Ellison," his eyes flicked to the livid bruise before a pale version of his normally charming smile appeared, "my heartiest congratulations to you on your bonding. You seem to be perfect for each other."

"You know, Sandburg," an arm was laid across Blair's shoulders and he was tucked tightly into his Sentinel's side as Bond disappeared through the exit, "if anything happens to me, I don't think he's going to come back and offer to bond with you."

Blair grinned. "Then I'll just have to make sure I keep you around for a long time then, won't I?"

"You certainly will." The arm tightened briefly, then relaxed. "C'mon, Chief, I have a hankering for hors d'oeuvres."

The End.
20th February 2005.