Birthdays. A time to celebrate the day your parents brought you into the world. Charlie found it always vain in a sense, the way people would celebrate their own existence. But so it was, his brother was turning six years old and as par for the course, the Prince family were going out for a family dinner to celebrate the momentous occasion. The Prince family minus the eldest son. Apparently, he wasn't allowed to attend as it would interfere with his studies (that didn't exist) and would put him in danger (which was odd seeing as the actual Don had no qualms about it.). No, Charlie knew the truth, it was because this was a family occasion and he wasn't family. He didn't know why but at some point his parents decided to take him out of the whole family scenario. Instead he was an outsider, an observer who was allowed to watch but not touch.
He lay in his bed, trying to prevent the tears that just wanted to pour out. He grabbed his pillow and just tossed it angrily at the wall, trying to get out his grief. He wanted to smile again without being told off, to hold hands with Philip and run through the forests for adventure like before. He wanted to teach his little brother new words and draw in crayon. It wasn't fair! Charlie could see their images float in his mind already, laughing and smiling while Ferdinand unwrapped his presents, Philip smirking along as usual. They were allowed fun, happiness. Why was he denied it?
Outside his door he could hear the faint buzz of the television. It was his new bodyguard, her name was Josephine but she stubbornly introduced herself as Jo when they first met. Charlie doesn't like her much, she's lanky and gaunt and has that same expression his father wears but she talks to him sometimes too and it's...nice. He knows sleep won't coming to him, so he slowly pushed the door open and padded out into the livingroom, his bare feet barely making a noise against the marble floor.
"Jo." He says simple, toneless and bored, more like a statue than a twelve year old boy. But it was the way he was being taught. Anyway she was an employee in the end, she worked for him, there was little need to show her too much respect. "I can't sleep." he murmured simply, as if demanding her find a remedy for it.
Charles felt his father's cool blue eyes on him like a knife point, piercing with a boiling rage that he knew all too well. He'd heard the roaring thunder of his father's yells, the torment of his scoldings. But today was different, the look in the Don's eyes shimmered with a different light, a violent one, a man at the end of his tether who could not hold it anymore.
His mother stood there too, as silent and shadowy as always, her face stern and lacking of a certain love that Charles knew should be there. He'd seen other parents, in the playground, the way they hugged their ten year olds in a way he had never been. Even his brothers were given glances that he was not allowed to have, words that couldn't be uttered with his name. For he was the oldest and the oldest must be cold.
Even the lingering and everlasting presence of Jo behind him didn't bring any comfort. She was there to protect him, but not from his father's own wrath. If he wasn't petrified on the spot, he might of let out a small laugh at the situation he was in, the heavy irony. Philip had fallen out of a tree and sprained his ankle. Father as usual was furious that his precious yet rebellious son had come to harm and the first culprit was of course Charles. It was his duty apparently, to forever act like a hawk over his brothers, stopping them from their own stupidity and stopping them doing what they liked even though they never listened to him.
The still young Prince opened his mouth to speak but his father overrode him, taking a dangerous step closer. "SILENCE. I DON'T WANT A WORD." his voice was like that of a dragon, his face so tight that it was if Charles was his greatest enemy. A shiver escaped from Charles' will and he looked down. He knew what was to the come, he had sensed it from the start. "Turn around."
The order was simple but Charles for a moment was rooted on the stop, merely staring up at his father and then glancing at his mother pleadingly. But she didn't even offer a smile of comfort, just staring blankly into him. Was this what parenthood was like? Why was he so different from his brothers? Why wouldn't Philip listen? He wanted to fight it, argue his case but instead he merely turned around, his blue eyes seeking that of Jo's automatically. She was all he had and even then only because of his father's orders.
There was nothing left to say, the crack of his father's belt and buckle against Charles' back spoke out volumes in the silence as did the small whimpers that left his lips as he trembled and tried not to cry. But the tears came down regardless and so did the strikes, over and over till his father got tired. Then with a mere flick of his wrist, the Don Prince sent his wounded son and bodyguard away to the rooms.
After her meeting with the chief - the word 'joyous' was an understatement. She got her job back - true, she was still an intern, but still - she got her job back. She was so excited the for a moment she forgot about all her troubles for a minute, then she had to remember them as she made her way back to the apartment she used to live in. The place where she was supposed to spend the best days with her roommates, really. But then, the situation was just flipped - like she's just blinked and all her plans went down the trash. Now she had new plans. She was going to be a mother. The thought scared her, but she was going to do this right, hopefully.
She took a deep breath as she stepped out of the car, glancing around hesitantly. True, she's been out of the house on her own after all this more than once, but the idea of being in this neighborhood just raised goosebumps on her skin. She shrugged it off, nothing out of the norm was going to happen. Nothing, any more. She strode slowly into the apartment building and found the apartment in no time. She tapped her knuckles against the door thrice, the folded her hands over her slightly-there bump. It was more like a bloat, but really, it had grown a little from the past week, and she had a few days till the last day of her first trimester.
Notes: Dean and Jo get paired up in the search party to find Frizzy. While searching, the two discuss hunting, and what's been causing the tension between them.
The search had began to find the missing girl, half the town was out here –probably many people that barely knew the girl. Sure Jo had never met her, but technically it was her job to protect people who couldn’t defend themselves. Of course the great townsfolk want to protect the citizens that are still living, they paired up each of the volunteers. And of course she got stuck with Dean, any other time she would be estatic to be with him. But lately, he had been treating her more and more like a child. And quite frankly, she was getting real damn tired of it. She had feelings for Dean yes, but she wasn’t going to treat her like some teenager who just picked up a gun for the first time. The mud from the wooded area were Jo and Dean had been assigned to search was practically a dead end. The woods went on for miles and the girl could be anywhere. Jo ran her slender fingers through her now messy blonde hair, when they got to a stopping point. Jo turned her head sharply and narrowed her eyebrows, “ What’s the plan?”
Dean sighed and readjusted the duffel bag on his shoulder. A flashlight hung loosely from one hand and he cast it over the wooded area. Frizzy. His heart picked up and he swallowed thickly. Frizzy was missing, and while he knew she was strong-willed and stubborn, he figured that whomever, or whatever, had taken her was far beyond her level. Out of the corner of his eye, he kept an eye on Jo. Jo was capable, yes he understood that. What he didn't care for was the guns blazing method she seemed to have adopted. Dean opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off as she did so. He blinked, tilting his head to look at her. "We look for the missing girl. If we see something that's our sort of gig, we handle it a different time," he stated, knowing it probably wouldn't sit well with her. "Listen, Jo. I get it. I do, but if we start hunting tonight, in these woods, people are gonna start asking questions."
Jo watched him carefully as he spoke, playing with one of the knifes from her collection that she had decided to bring out tonight – just in case. She rolled her eyes quickly, hoping he wouldn’t catch a glimpse of it. She had her back turned to him as he spoke, she took a small breathe as she turned her body around to face him. She understood that he was a hell of a hunter, and that he liked to do things his way but it just got under her skin thinking about another girl being sacrificed. She waited till he was finished and replied in a polite but heightened tone. “ Well I get it too. I am not saying we should go all Buffy the werewolf slayer on them, I am just thinking that if this turns out to be more than just a missing girl that we have our shit together” Knowing that he didn’t exactly like to be questioned, but if they were partners they sure needed to act like it. She wasn’t Sam – and she knew that .. but she still wanted to be heard and appreciated . She took a look around the woods, almost completely quiet minus the faint yelling’s of another search group – and the forest animals. She let out a soft sigh “Since nothing seems out of the ordinary, we can stick to your idea..”
"If it helps, the thought of another person being sacrificed irritates the hell out of me," Dean stated, adjusting his stance as the two continued on. For a while, they walked in silence, calling out Frizzy's name every so often. The woods were pretty quiet, something that would usually set him on edge, but he pushed forward regardless. "Frizzy!?" He called out, voice cutting through the air. Dean shook his head, grumbling a bit. "These woods are fuckin' huge. They really think we're gonna be able to find her?" While he was a hunter, and was surveying the surroundings like a hawk, he knew that the span of possible places she could be were exponential. Far too many for just one small search party to accomplish. Drawing his lip between his teeth, he noticed the tension lingering in the air between him and Jo, and he fought the urge to roll his eyes. This wasn't about who was a better hunter, or getting recognition, it was about a missing girl and a whole lot of points that just didn't add up. Halting, Dean turned and rested his back against a tree. If they were going to be searching together, they'd get this shit cleared up right here, right now. "Can we talk?"
Jo swung her arms as she walked, calling out the girls name every other minute. She looked in the ditches, where it would be a easy dump site for a dead body. Even thought the last thing she wanted to see was this poor girl with her throat slit- or worse. It seemed like it would never end, and every damn twist and turn looked the same. Trees looking completely and utterly the same, no difference they could be at the exact same place they started for all she knew. “ I swear we have walked around the same area 20 times. “ her voice was harsh and slightly irritated. She wasn’t sure if it was the tension between her and Dean or just the fact that there was a missing girl, it was really building up some anger inside of her small body. Jo held the flashlight in her hand as she scanned the forest grounds, she let out a few grunts now and then for the sake of the investigation she wanted to remain civil. He probably didn’t know it, mostly because she tried to keep it a secret but – she would do anything for him. If any other guy tried to overpower her or trump her, they would end up on the ground in positions that a yoga instructor couldn’t get them out of. Jo was a little farther behind then Dean, she raised a eyebrow when she heard his voice. She nodded, and gave off a casual shrug “ Why not, about what.?”
Dean shrugged, setting the bag on the forest floor as she looked at him. "This," he gestured between them. "Both of us have been a bit on edge with each other. Figured it'd be better to talk about it, get things civil, so we don't end up killin' each other trying to find Frizzy." Dean stated, voice rough as he rubbed his face. "You know I think you can handle yourself, right? You've proven that countless times. "I'm just...on edge. There's werewolves I can't deal with, there's this killer out there that we don't know the species of. So, yeah. Sorry. It's nothing against you."
Jo stood still for a few moments, with a blank expression. It wasn’t like Dean to make the first step in a apology, no matter how half ass it was – it was sweetish. Her mind too busy thinking about what he said to put out some words, other then a huff of air. “ Dean – I know that this stressing you out. It’s definitely putting me on edge too. “ she crossed her arm to position herself as she walked closer to him, so they weren’t so far apart. “ Thank you .. and you know I think you’re a fantastic hunter and that I think you can kill anything..You do know that right? I just feel like I always have to be on top of my game, and I know I have too. I know that your just trying to do whats best, in your own way. “ Jo let out a small breathy laugh “ Hell- These sons of bitches are pretty hardcore, but we can take them .. they have a weakness are goal is just figuring out what the hell it is.“
Dean nodded, pursing his lips slightly. He was glad they were on the same page. "Yeah, they are. Just gonna have to be another time though. Right now, I just wanna find Frizzy. That alright?" Dean reasoned, picking the duffel bag back up and cursing under his breath. "She's a sweet girl. Smart. I'm gonna be pissed if she's not found soon," he stated and moved forward. The woods were thick, a portion that hadn't been burnt to a crisp. His mind wandered to the murders, and the whole story behind him. Right now, he only knew bits and pieces, and he was trying to piece together what it would have to do with Frizzy, if, in fact, her disappearance had any correlation to the prior ones. Werewolves could wait, he figured, at least until after the druid thing was sorted out. "What do you think happened?"
Jo tracked through the mud, her hair now up in ponytail to keep it from getting in her way. She was glad that the mood was lighter, its hard to be stuck with someone wanting to claw each others eyes out. " Frizzy" her voice was growing husky from the large amount of yelling she had been doing. The nights humid air was causing her to sweat, and the stress didn't help very much either. When Dean asked her a question, she turned her head to face him. " I'm thinking wrong place wrong time - she could just be stuck somewhere like under a tree branch or something like that from the storm." Jo let out a sigh and shook her head " Or - she could be one of the next sacrifices, I don't know enough about her to tie her to any specific category though. What about you?"
"God I hope not," Dean replied, carding his hand through his hair. Frizzy being a sacrifice crossed his mind, but he tried to push it as far back as possible. "Wrong place, wrong time, I'm hoping," he murmured, shaking his head with a sigh. He hated not knowing, not having an idea. Sure, he did his research, but it all seemed to come to the same spot; not knowing. As horrible as it sounded, he hoped they'd find her pinned under a branch and still alive than throat slit and tied around a tree. Dean ducked under a low-hanging branch, calling out Frizzy's name again.
Jo watched Deans expression change at the thought that girl might be the next victim, she studied him from afar he was so different - so intuitive and kind. Most people wouldn't exactly describe Dean Winchester that way but he was, he just wasn't a mushy bitch about it. " I do too, God knows I don't want to find a dead girl." Jo swallowed and then screamed the girls name into a group of crowded trees " How do we even know that this is the right spot, she could be somewhere no where near the words right now and we would just be standing here taking a fucking nature walk"
Dean grumbled, nodding in agreement. "I know." She could literally be anywhere, and the fact that everyone was in one general spot seemed off to him. Regardless, this seemed to be a better course of action; combing the largest area in town before breaking off and searching other parts. He walked forward, narrowly avoiding stepping in a pit of mud. The rain had stopped, but the ground was still saturated with the aftermath. Everything was still sopping wet, and the scent of wet grass and damp wood filled his senses. Dean turned around, peering through the forest. They had searched this area, thoroughly, he concluded. "She's not in these parts. We've been over this area a bit." Dean pointed out, calling our Frizzy's name again. And again. And again. He peered into a nearby dip in land to nothing but grass and ferns. "Jesus," he scowled.
"Hey - hey relax" Jo made her way closer to Dean and put her hand down on his shoulder, she could tell how worried he was. Sure, Jo wanted to find this girl . But Dean, he really really wanted to find her. When she moved her foot, it landed in a puddle of mud the remains also scattering to her jeans and t-shirt. " Shit, god damn mud. God damn woods" She took a breathe and relaxed, focus on finding the girl - that was the goal. When she got back to the motel she could change. After jo managed to scrape off a bit of mud on a large fallen tree branch she paused. She looked a bit farther over by a clearing " Dean... where was the last victim found.."
Dean glanced down at Jo's hand and let his gaze wander to her face. He could see the concern lacing her features and he swallowed thickly, nodding. It'd be best he relaxed, and he tried to will the tension from his shoulders as followed Jo's gaze as it landed on the clearing. He shook his head, though, knowing that she was thinking. "Old factory, I think. Why?" Mud caked his boots and the bottoms of his jeans and he had suffered worse before.
"Well if they were found in a factory - we shouldn't be looking in the woods we should be in a looking in a ware house or something like that. The first three were found in the woods.. Do you get the pattern? Or am I just loosing my mind" Jo raised a eyebrow, she was down to every last thought trying to find this poor girl. It was clear that she wasn't in the woods, and that they were getting no where looking
"The last victim was the last in a set of three. Besides, this is the most dense area in town." Dean shrugged. They had combed through their designated area several times, turning over every stone and rock. Still, nothing. No sign, no torn fabric, no blood that he could see-thank goodness-and he was beginning to get down to his last nerve. As a hunter, he was good at tracking. He was damn good at finding things, finding people, killing monsters...he was good at it, why wasn't he more helpful now? "She's not in this area. We should probably just swing back round and try finding other groups. See if they found anythin'." He proposed the notion, looking to see Jo's reaction.
Jo turned back around to face Dean, and hugged him. " I am sorry that I can be such a handle sometimes, I can be like a little brat" she pulled away taking a small breathe " But don't ever except another apology from me, because it's not going to happen again." Sure, this had been a bust. The girl was still missing, the werewolfs were still out there. But they were just another step closer to finding out how to stop it.
Dean startled at the sudden embrace, but let his hand rest on her back. "S'alright," he murmured, eyebrow raised as she pulled away. He smirked, ruffling her hair as she turned away. "Let's call it a night, Jo." Swinging the duffel bag further over his shoulder he made the motion to walk ahead of her. A low, unresolved tension still sat in his stomach, and there wasn't a doubt he'd be on edge. The fact that Frizzy hadn't been found yet, and that he felt he could've done more, was nagging at him. "Wouldn't want ya to get snagged by a bear," he smirked, nudging her gently to show he meant good humor. "First dibs on the shower."
As much as she didn't want to show it, she had failed tonight. She didn't find the girl, or have a slight idea where she was would be with her all night. She let out a sigh, on the bright side her and Dean were no longer at each others necks. Jo shook her head playfully and it him on the shoulder, as she rolled her eyes at him. " Oh come on, I could so take a bear - it would be bitching like a cub after I'm through with him" she smirked " That is not fair- I am the girl, and I am covered in mud I should so get the shower first" she rolled her eyes, and let out another laugh. " Let's like run, because these woods are freaking me out."
Dean laughed at her jab about the bear, falling into step beside her. "Yeah, but I'm older, so I get the shower first," he stated, rolling his eyes slightly at her. He picked up his pace a bit at her mention of running. "Run all you want, Jo, but I still got the keys." Dean taunted her with them before quickly making his way back to the Impala. Getting in, he glanced at her and grinned, turning on the radio. "House rules, Jo. Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts her cake hole," he cast her a playful wink before pulling back out on the street.
