Second Blessing: Part 4

Ta da!  As promised, the next episode is up for your consumption.  

I hope you enjoy.  And are intrigued enough to find out what happens next.

4

            Weddings, in general, weren’t Sean’s favorite thing.  But even he had to admit that this one had been particularly nice.  And blissfully short.  The bride and groom had exchanged personalized vows underneath the alder, said their I do’s, and then proceeded to move directly into the party.      

            Sean and Daniel had arrived early—Daniel wanted to give the alder one last burst of magic to make sure it was blooming beautifully—and had been pressed into service.  Sean didn’t mind.  After he made sure Daniel was okay from his magic use, he was happy to lift and carry, set up chairs, and be all around useful.

            With only the coven and family members in attendance, Mary had decided to have both the wedding ceremony and the reception at Kelly’s house.  A tent had been set up over part of the backyard, and guests moved back and forth between the yard and the house.  Sean tried to stay out of everyone’s way.  He was an outsider here; not part of the coven and not exactly invited either.  He was here, technically, as Daniel’s guest.  But still, he didn’t want to intrude in anyway on the celebration.

            “Having a good time?”

            Sean started at the sound of Jason’s voice.  He gave himself a mental shake and focused on the smaller man.  “It’s a nice party.  The ceremony was really, uh, nice.”

            Jason nodded.  “It was very Mary.  Hey, listen, um,” Jason paused for a moment and stepped in front of Sean, looking up into his face seriously.  “Is Daniel all right?”

            Sean squinted.  “Of course.  He’s fine.”

            Jason nodded again.  “It’s just that I’ve never seen him act quite like this.  I mean, he’s an easy going, laid back kind of guy.  But with you, for you, he’s actually kind of, I don’t know, submissive.  I know he’s been working hard and expending a lot of magic to heal the alder and I was worried that maybe something was wrong with him.”

            Sean heard all the words that Jason said, but for a moment, they didn’t make sense.  Then his brain started rapidly assimilating the information.  his mind whirled, a bit confused.  He understood Daniel on a deep level.  At least he thought he did.  And now Jason’s words were rocking that assumption to the core.  Had he been wrong?  Sean shook his head.  No, he knew what kind of man Daniel was.  Didn’t he?

            Off balance, the only thing Sean could do was once again assure Jason that Daniel was fine.  When the smaller man finally seemed reassured, he bounced off to enjoy the party and speak with other guests.  He would have dismissed Jason’s concern out of hand, except for the fact that he wasn’t the only one to check on Daniel’s welfare.  Before too long, he heard Jesse checking in with Daniel, asking after him and his odd behavior.  Again, Sean would have ignored it, but when he was at the refreshment table getting himself a drink of punch, Mary stopped to chat as well.  When the conversation turned to Daniel, Sean knew something was going on.

            “It’s just interesting to see him that way, is all I meant,” Mary was saying.  She paused for a moment to bat her veil out of the way and turned a smile to Sean.  “I worry about him.  He’s not exactly a shrinking violet but he does sometimes get overlooked because he’s so very go-with-the-flow.”

            “Did you ask him if he was all right?” Sean bit out, a little more tersely than he intended.  Mary didn’t seem to mind.  She gave him a brilliant smile that made her hazel eyes flash.

            “Of course I did.  And he said he was fine.  I just wanted to, you know, double check,” she said.  One more smile from the bride and then her attention was caught by another guest wanting to give good wishes.

Sean was relieved that he was out of the conversation.  His gaze swept the backyard, searching, until he finally spotted Daniel.  With a purposeful stride, he closed the distance between them.

            Daniel was talking with people Sean didn’t know, but the man’s body language spoke of a man relaxed and happy.  For a moment, Sean was taken in by Daniel’s happy smile and sparkling eyes.  There was no doubt he found Daniel attractive, had from the moment they had met even though the man had been wearing ridiculous overalls.  And that had only grown the more that Sean had gotten to know him.  For three weeks now they had shared their lives with each other.  Sean had settled in, feeling more like himself than he had since Koenig died.  It was in large part due to Daniel and the man’s reaction to him.  And now Sean was faced with the possibility that it had all been a lie. 

            Taking a deep breath, Sean stepped up to the group.  They all turned to face him with pleasant smiles.

            “Pardon me for interrupting,” Sean said with a calmness he didn’t feel.  “I need to borrow Daniel for a moment.”

            “Sean?” Daniel asked tentatively, his tone full of worry.  Sean did his best to smile.

            “I need to talk to you, please.”

            Daniel nodded, his features concerned.  He placed a hand on Sean’s arm and gently tugged him in the direction of the house. Sean followed only because he knew that Daniel would have some idea where they cold hold this conversation in private. In through the kitchen and down the hall, Daniel pushed open the last door on the left.  It was obviously a guest room.  When Sean closed the door behind them, the sounds of the party all but ceased.

            “What’s wrong?” Daniel asked.

            The part of Sean that had been conditioned to see to Daniel’s needs wanted to immediately soothe his worry.  But he couldn’t.  This was too important and they had to have this conversation.  He had to know if he had read the entire situation wrong.  In his experience with the man, Daniel was a brat in need of a firm hand to help guide him.  But from what Jason, Mary, and Jesse had said, that seemed to be far from the case.

            “I need you to tell me the absolute truth when I ask you this,” Sean said slowly, trying to put his thoughts in order.  Daniel was quick to nod his agreement.  Sean took a deep breath, gave Daniel a stern look, and asked, “Have you been playing games with me?”

            “What?” Daniel asked and Sean knew his shock was real.  “What are you talking about?”

            “Following my orders.  Deferring to me.  Acting up to get my attention.  Has it all been some kind of game to you?”

            “No!  Of  course not,” Daniel defended, his eyes dropping.

            “Are you sure about that?” Sean asked.  His anger was rising and he needed to get a handle on it.  “Because from what I hear, you aren’t normally like this.  You don’t usually take a submissive role.  So, what is it, Daniel?  A game you’ve been playing?  Or have you all of a sudden decided to change your core personality?”

            “It’s not like that,” Daniel protested weakly.

            “What is it like then?” Sean said, his voice low.

            “I just—it seems,” Daniel stopped.  Then he took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and looked Sean in the eye.  “You need it.  You do better, have more control over your magic, when you have control of me.”

            “So,” Sean knew he sounded skeptical, but there was nothing he could do about that.  “You’re pretending to be submissive, to be a brat, just for my well being?”

            “Not pretending.  Being.  It might not be how I usually am, but it’s not that far off.  I just…” Daniel trailed off for a moment and Sean saw him swallow hard.  “I really want to help you.”

            Sean sighed heavily.  He appreciated the sentiment.  But still.  “This was not the way to do it.  It’s a lie.  You being someone you’re not.  I’ve got enough crap in my life right now.  I don’t need to deal with this as well.”

            “Sean, no—“

            He interrupted and talked right over whatever Daniel was going to say.  “We volunteered for clean up duty.  Once that is done, I’ll pack my stuff up and get out of your house.”

            “Sean,” Daniel tried again, a note of pleading in his voice.

            But Sean was already out the door and striding down the hall.  He’d do his best to put on a happy face so as not to scare the rest of the guest.  But he was counting down the hours until he could get out of here.  He thought he’d found what he needed and wanted in Daniel, but he’d been wrong.  So very wrong.  He’d read the situation entirely incorrectly and now he was paying for it.

            Sean didn’t know why he was surprised.  Nothing in his life had been right for months. He shouldn’t have believed that things were suddenly changing.


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