Disclaimers:
Summary:
Warnings:
Notes:
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by
Part 1
Blair Sandburg looked at Rainier University, which was now his home for the near future. Rainier was one of the most prestigious universities and research centers in the country. A little known fact about Rainier was that it was a sanctuary for those who had paranormal abilities, the people called Talents.
Blair's powers had manifested the day his mother died in a car crash. That was just over six months ago, since then he had been staying with his uncle but somehow people had discovered his abilities. In desperation, he had contacted an old friend of his mother.
The man, Kevin Jones was the founder of the Rainier Sanctuary created to help a Talent in trouble. That was how Blair found himself at one of the most expensive universities in the country when just 12 hours ago he had been on the run from the Talent Detection Squad (TDS).
Someone approaching him from the side brought Blair out his thoughts. Relying on the knowledge that he was probably safe within the school, he turned to face the stranger. The stranger was woman around 40 years old, with a warm and kind face. The woman seemed to radiate a feeling of peace and calm. Once he looked into her eyes Blair felt positive that everything would turn out okay.
Her voice soft and sincere the woman said, "Hi, my name is Sarah. You must be Naomi's boy...little Blair. Well, you have grown quite a lot; we haven't seen you since you were five years old, mind. Come, Kevin is waiting to meet you."
Walking behind her Blair replied, "It's nice to met you Ma'am. Thanks for accepting me to the Rainier Sanctuary. I'm sorry I'm a little late but I wanted to make sure I was safely away."
Within five minutes they stopped before a large wooden the door that was the entrance to the Principal's office. Blair knocked on the door twice and walked inside once he heard someone telling him to enter.
Kevin Jones seemed to radiate authority and power without him even having to speak. He was sitting behind a large oak desk that seemed to be perfect for him. As Blair took in all the information about the man before him he could tell that the principal was doing the same with him.
Kevin Jones smiled as he said, "I'm Kevin Jones, the Principal here at the Rainier Sanctuary. We are fairly relaxed here so you are to address all the staff by their first names. Our staff will help you with your abilities. You will be sharing a room with one of our students. He should be here soon."
At this point there was a loud knock door.
The door opened to reveal a man about 20 years old with short mousy blonde hair. The stranger moved closer and Blair could see that the other man was about five inches taller than himself. The tall stranger picked up his suitcase and motioned for him to follow. Blair half-ran to catch up with the retreating figure. Once he had caught up the two started speaking using telepathy.
\Hi. My name is Jim Ellison.\ The man said, his mind voice strong and confident.
Blair asked in confusion, \Nice to meet you Jim, I'm Blair. Can I ask why we are using telepathy instead of speaking? Is it some kind of rule or something?\
Jim laughed silently, \There isn't a rule. This way we won't be overheard and I wanted to see how good you are.\
\Let me guess I'm bad, right?\ Blair asked nervously.
Jim shrugged as he reassured the younger man, \Actually, you're pretty good. If I had to guess, I'd say that you're probably around a level 8 telepath. That's the same level as me and pretty rare in Rainier.\
Blair felt his confidence swell as he received the compliment. He smirked as he asked, \Why are you worried about being overheard? Have some secret that you just need to spill, James?\
Jim replied his voice full of sarcasm and amusement, \When I have some great secret, I promise you'll be the first to know. Don't call me James, or I'll find a horrible name for you.\
\Oh, I'm terrified (!)\ Blair said with a laugh. It felt good to joke around, something he hadn't done in a while.
Jim slowed down as they turned the corner; \We'll dump your case in our room before we go to the garden, okay Chief? I want to tell you some essential tricks to life here.\
Blair nodded in agreement and soon they stopped in front of a large oak door. The people who designed this place must have had a thing for wood he decided when he walked inside to see yet more wood.
The room was large; to him anyway as he had always had a small bedroom. A blind covered the large window in the middle of the room. The décor of the room was a mix of oriental and techno, which worked surprisingly well. Against each wall was one 3ft bed made from wood. Blair wondered about how safe it would be having someone who can create fire in a wooden room but then decided that it would be fun anyway.
Jim placed Blair's bag on the bed nearest to the door. Taking a moment to consider why the Staff Empath had decided to give him a roommate. He had said all along that he didn't want to share. Of course, no one listened, when they heard about Blair Simon had said that it would be a good idea for the two of them to share a room.
Jim was brought out of thoughts by the feeling of someone pulling at his mind. Tracing the source back, he wasn't surprised that it was Blair. The trick about using telepathy was not to let your subject know you were getting into their mind. For some reason most norms hated the idea, he could understand why but most telepaths never went too far even with permission.\
\Know how to ride, Chief?\ Jim said with a smile as they headed out.
Blair said thoughtfully, \Well, it depends what you mean. I can ride a motorbike but I can't ride horses.\
Jim smirked a plan forming in his mind, \That's good to hear. You need to improve your shielding. I could help you in exchange for a favour.\
Curious as to just what his new friend was planning Blair said absently, \Sure, I'll try anything once.\
The garden was actually in the middle of a forest. The garden was the perfect place to think or for a private moment. The garden was full of flowers of ever colour from radiant reds, to cornflower blue to white. The middle of the garden was home to a large willow tree that caused a gloomy shadow to fall over the pair as they sat.
Thinking over everything that was essential for the new guys to know Jim said, "So, the essentials for surviving. Avoid Kincaid; he gets kicks out of making life a complete misery for as many people as possible. We aren't supposed to go into town without permission but the Art professor is pretty easy going and normally signs everyone out."
A bell in the distance indicated that lunch had just started. Jim felt that he should help Blair adjust his shields or he would never be able to withstand the constant tide of minds in the cafeteria. Some of the other telepaths tried to get inside the minds of the newbies, as a joke not that it was very funny.
Smiling reassuring as he moved to touch the side of Blair's head Jim said, \Chief, I'm just going to go into your mind for a couple of minutes to help you adjust your shields. I'll avoid any of the parts that you've closed off.\
Although the two of them could easily communicate without being in direct contact, it was easier to go inside someone's mind when you had some kind of skin-to-skin contact. The process of going into someone's mind wasn't generally that difficult, as most of the Norms present no problems. The hardest people to get into were Talents because they tended to have more shielding. With permission, it was as simple as reaching out and searching for specific information.
Jim quickly reached out and felt his mind caressing Blair's, the touch of another mind to his own was light someone touching your shoulder, light and fleet. Once he was inside Jim started to look at the shields in place. Jim found all he had to do was form an image inside Blair's mind of how to increase his shield strength and Blair quickly copied and made the shields a lot stronger. Seeing that he had succeeded Jim quickly left Blair's mind.
"Is there anyone else with our level of telepathy or higher here?" Blair said wanting to know what the chances were of someone breaking through his shields.
Understanding Blair's motives Jim said honestly, "The art professor is a level 11 everyone else is a lower level. You don't have to worry about someone getting in your shields are strong. If someone tries to get in, you'll feel it in time to stop them anyway."
Keeping the link between the two of them open Jim said, \Let's go inside and get lunch. You can eat with me; follow my lead. Is that all right with you, Chief?\
At that moment Jim didn't know if he wanted the link open for Blair or for his own reasons. He pushed the thought away before he could examine it, knowing it could take a while. He knew that Blair was becoming important to him and that there was some sort of bond between them but was afraid to question their relationship further.
As they walked towards the cafeteria Blair replied, \ That's great, thanks James. I'll fill you in on my life as we walk.\
Blair told Jim everything that had happened to him so far, glossing over the worst parts of his life, not wanting to ruin the happiness he felt. It felt freeing to share his feelings about what had happened, he had kept them bottle up not trusting those around him not to use his feelings for their own advantage. Blair knew instinctively that Jim would never do something like that to him, he trusted the other man as strange as it was given their situation. ******* The cafeteria was a large room that was full of long rectangular tables arranged in straight lines. There was a large queue waiting for their food, served by the patient lunch staff. The staff seemed to be on good terms with the students many were laughing and talking. >From what he could see Blair guessed that there was no sitting order, people just sat with their friends.
The pair took a plate and joined the line in what appeared to be silence. In truth the pair were talking using mind-speak, both finding it surprisingly easy to talk to each other.
Jim groaned as he looked at the food, \I suggest the vegetarian meal, Chief. It's normally the only thing edible.\
Blair grinned wondering just how alike they were, \I was going to anyway. Any good at pranks James? In every school I go to, I play a prank during the first week.\
Jim smirked at the thought of having someone around, who liked causing trouble as much as he, \I'm the god of practical jokes. Between the two of us we'll come up with something that everyone will remember for years to come.\
At this point, the two stopped the conversation while they chose their food. They both decided to get the vegetarian casserole with a bottle of mineral water. Blair decided to wait before going anywhere to sit down. For all he knew Jim might be weird about were he sat for every meal.
Moving through the crowd of starving students Jim said, \Come this way, Chief. Just follow me. You can sit with the guys and me. I'll make the introductions.\
An angry looking man stopped Blair as he started to follow Jim. Blair could tell that the stranger wouldn't just move politely out the way.
"Could you move out of the way, please?" Blair asked the stranger politely.
The stranger sneered, "The name's Kincaid and no, I will not move. Why don't you try and make me?"
A crowd quickly formed at the sight of the school bully terrorising another newbie. Blair remembered what Jim had said but he didn't like the idea of getting into a fight on the first day. Blair felt a sense of peace flood his link with Jim as his friend approached.
As he moved over to his new friend Jim's said to Blair's mind, \Cool it, Chief! I'll handle him, ok? I always look out for my friends.\
Jim said his voice cold and unfeeling, "Kincaid, you got a problem with my friend here? Because any problem you have with him you have with me."
Kincaid said sneering at them, "Why don't you just take your boyfriend to lunch and I'll see you two later?"
Walking away from Kincaid and his group of thugs Jim allowed the anger he felt to show. He knew that everyone would have heard what happened and by the end of the afternoon, everyone would think that he and Blair were gay. He could tell that Kincaid would be on their case for the next term.
As they walked towards an almost full table Blair said quickly, \ James calm down? We're out of danger and your emotions are beginning to flood our link. Are you angry with me?\
Jim sighed and tried to explain, \I'm just angry with Kincaid. You know, everyone will be saying that we're a couple by the end of the day. I don't think its fair on you, Chief.\
On one hand Blair was used to the hate because he was gay but on the other he wasn't used to everyone knowing his sexuality. He knew he would have to tell Jim that he was gay eventually but he didn't know how his friend would react. A lot of people he had thought would be okay with the news hadn't – like his mom whom Blair hadn't seen him since coming out. His mom didn't even see him after he lost his dad and brother.
Sighing Blair said, \Don't worry, Jim. I'm not bothered. Are you? If you want, I'll keep out of your way until the rumours die down\
\NO!\ Jim shouted before continuing at a quieter tone of voice, \Sorry. I like you and I'm not going to let idiots like Kincaid choose my friends for me. We'll face the rumours; they'll die down eventually.\
Jim grinned as he said, "Guys this is Blair Sandburg. The guy with the designer clothes is Rafe. Henri is the opposite you; he's the brain of the group! The weirdo sitting next to you is Colin, don't worry he doesn't bite…too much."
Blair smiled at each one as he sat down, wondering just how to start up a conversation. The last thing he wanted was to sound like an idiot in front of Jim's friends.
"See you've already met Kincaid," Henri commented with a grin.
Blair said sarcastically, "Oh, we're old friends (!)"
Colin winked, "How old are you? Let me guess you're about 20?"
"You're close, I turned 19 a couple of weeks ago. How old are y'all?" Blair answered, grinning at the irritation on Jim's face.
Rafe said grinning, "I'm 20, and a Taurus."
"I'm the oldest of the group. I'm 22 although I know I don't look it," Henri said with a smirk, as Jim messed up his hair.
"I'm as old as I feel." Colin answered, laughing at the exasperated look they all gave him, he continued, "Okay, I'm 21 and a Capricorn."
"So, how did you end up here?" Henri asked, knowing that the Ellison family tended to take in strays.
Feeling Jim's concern through their link Blair answered, "I was living with my uncle but the government found out about me, so I asked Mr Ellison for help. He told me to stay here."
"How come you were staying with your uncle?" Colin asked, stopping at the look Jim gave him.
"My mom died six months ago, he was the only family I had left." Blair answered, feeling the sadness building up he looked away.
\Blair, don't be afraid to show your feelings. I'm always here for you.\ Jim said as he hugged the younger man.
The display of affection shocked the friends, as Jim was never touchy- feely with anyone. As the two hugged, they failed to notice they had caught the attention of everyone in the cafeteria.
\Thanks for being here, James. I'm sorry for being so stupid.\ Blair said tightly holding onto his friend, a few tears falling onto the older man's top.
\You're not stupid! Want to get out of here?\ Jim said hotly wondering who had made Blair so insecure.
Before Blair could reply, Colin said apologetically, "I'm sorry for asking you that Blair. I didn't mean to touch a nerve."
"That's alright; it's just been a rough day. Want to go and play some b-ball?" Blair said with a grin, still in Jim's arms.
Colin said eagerly, "Yeah, I rule at basketball!"
Blair asked, "You're a little hyper, how much sugar have ya had?"
"It's not a sugar rush; he's like this all the time." Henri said with a laugh at the amazed look Blair gave him.
"Remind me to never give him chocolate." Blair said as the new group of friends walked out the room. ******* "What's the deal with Kincaid?" Blair asked as they got outside, not wanting to use mind speech without permission.
Colin said with a grin, "He's just doesn't like anyone much, apart from Rafe."
Rafe blushed as he said, "Can you forget about that already? It's not my fault he hit on me."
"He hit on you, when?" Blair asked figuring it would be a good way to see how everyone felt about gay people.
Rafe said with a laugh, "About a month ago, at a party. I don't think it was his fault though, everyone was pretty much drunk or stoned."
"What happened when Kincaid sobered up?" Blair asked, he got the feeling Kincaid wasn't that open minded.
"Nothing, he just avoids me." Rafe shrugged as he threw Jim the ball.
Blair asked as they played, "So is he gay then?"
"Kincaid? Don't know, maybe bi. It's possible he was just totally out of it," Colin said as he intercepted Jim's throw.
Henri drawled lazily, "So we playing with our talents or not?"
"I'm game if you are." Blair said with a shrug.
Rafe said with a shrug, "Okay, Jim, Blair against Henri, Colin and me." He got clear vibes that Jim was feeling intensely protective of Blair and didn't want to do anything that could upset his friend.
The friends soon agreed and the battle was on, as they played Jim and Blair used their link to exchange strategies. Henri simply moved his hand and the ball went towards the hoop. Blair didn't think his own gifts would be too useful here but that didn't mean he was going to just let the others win!
"How come you're not using your talents?" Rafe asked as he used an air current to give him the extra lift so that he could get a slam- dunk.
"James and I can beat you easy without our talents," Blair answered as he looked around for Colin who had disappeared.
\He's just out of phase\ Jim sent the thought to Blair feeling the other man's concern.
The five friends played for an hour only stopping when the bell for class sounded. Blair turned towards the main building only to bang into a solid form. He watched as Colin appeared with his nose bleeding. Blair sighed, unable to believe he had hurt someone so soon after arriving.
"Colin, sit down." Blair ordered as he walked over to his friend.
Placing his hand on the older man's bleeding nose Blair reached out and identified the injured cells. He worked quickly, sending healing energy into his friend, grinning when it was completely healed in about thirty seconds.
"Thanks Blair. I guess you're a healer then," Colin said as Henri helped him stand.
Blair answered with a shrug, "Healer, empath and telepath. An unusual combination but they go together quite well."
"We'll have to hurry guys. Banks will kill us if we're late again." Rafe said as they walked towards the classrooms.
"What's he like?" Blair hoped that the professor would be okay, he had always had an interest in martial arts but didn't think he could cope with another annoying professor.
Henri answered honestly, "Simon's cool although he can get a little annoying if we're late."
\You okay, James? You're quiet.\ Blair couldn't help but feel worried, had he done something to upset his friend?
\I'm just thinking. Why didn't you tell me you could do that?\ Jim said angry that Blair had kept it a secret.
Looking Jim in the eyes Blair said, \I was going to tell you when we were alone. I didn't mean to upset you.\
The world seemed to stop as the pair just stared into each other's eyes not needing to speak all their thoughts and feelings exchanged in an instant. Blair brought up a hand to touch Jim's face, and gasped at the strong feelings of disgust and hate directed towards them from the people nearby.
\I'm here, everything will be okay.\ Jim said softly even as the younger man moved closer, causing Jim to increase his shielding of Blair as much as possible from the emotional onslaught.
The world faded away as the pair merged, they were no longer two minds, or two people. They were as they always should have been. One mind, one soul.
Looking at the pair Henri said, "Jim, you and Blair are blocking the way into the classroom."
Alarmed at the lack of reaction from the pair and the way they were standing immobile Henri shouted panicked, "Get Simon! It looks like the pair are stuck in a mind-link." ******* \Jim, let me in.\ A demanding yet soothing voice said trying to get into their mind.
Angry and afraid at their intrusion the pair did the only thing they could think of and, drawing on some unknown instinct to protect each other to the death, strengthened their shields ready to harm anyone that tried to get in. The intruder was thrown out with ease.
"What's wrong with them?" Kevin Jones asked alarmed at seeing the pair, holding onto each other tightly as if afraid that they would lose each other. Jim had his hand on Blair's left cheek, and Blair had his hand on Jim's right cheek.
"I don't know. They won't let me in. Their shields are far stronger than they should be able to create." Liam Pierce replied looking at the pair worriedly.
"Can you sense anything, Simon?" Sarah Carter asked still a little unnerved at the stillness of the pair.
"Just peace and completeness. What were they doing before this happened?" Simon Banks replied knowing that it was unusual for Jim to link with anyone.
Colin said quickly, "We played B-ball and Blair knocked into me. He healed my nose, before that we had lunch."
"Has anything strange happened?" Liam asked praying it wasn't what he thought it was.
Rafe said thoughtfully looking at the pair, "They had a little run in with Kincaid who accused them of being a couple. When Blair got upset Jim hugged him, which was weird."
"Damn, tell me this isn't happening!" Simon said knowing everything was going to get really bad now.
"So you know what has happened to them?" Henri said staring at the worried empath.
Liam laughed unable to believe they had missed something so simple, "Yeah, they bonded."
Kevin Jones said confused, "That's impossible, they don't have the genetics for a bonding."
"I know but they have bonded." Simon said with a perplexed shrug. ******* Blair thought worriedly, \Jim, why do I get the feeling that something important has happened?\
\I don't know, we need to get back. People are looking for us, that's why someone tried to get in earlier.\ Jim replied, revelling in the feeling of utter contentment.
\You're not going to leave me, are you?\ Blair said not knowing why it was important Jim make this promise.
Jim said honestly, \Never. You're part of me, as I am part of you\
Blair simply smiled knowing that there was no way Jim could lie to him now. They were one, and that was all that mattered. Blair hoped that now he had let Jim know he was gay, the other man wouldn't hate him.
\I could never hate you. It doesn't matter that you're gay,\ Jim said reading the thought with ease.
\Ready to go back?\ Blair asked not wanting to separate from the merge, the feeling of utter harmony.
Jim said with a mental sigh,\No, but we probably should. They'll be worried that we're hurt.\
On the count of three, the two slowly pulled themselves out of their mental trace. They kept their link open, the idea of closing it never entered their minds. They needed this, to feel this connection between their minds and their hearts.
"Blair?" Jim said his voice sounding like he hadn't spoken for weeks.
"James? Where are you?" Blair said at the same time, the pain of separation burning through his body.
"I'm here." Jim said quickly moving from the bed he had been placed on. Vowing to hurt whoever had separated him from Blair, they should never had touched HIS bond-mate.
Blair said softly, "It hurts so much."
Blair didn't react when Jim got onto his bed, pulling the younger man onto his lap. He only sighed in contentment when Jim started brushing his hands through his curly hair.
Jim sighed, "It feels weird to be alone again."
"Not alone, never alone." Blair vowed seriously taking Jim's hand in his.
Jim said with a solemn smile, "I know. It just feels wrong to be two bodies, two minds."
\I'm tired. Can we go to sleep now?\ Blair thought to Jim while wrapping his hands around Jim's body.
\I'll keep watch.\ Jim replied looking around the room wanting to know if there was any chance of someone hurting the man in his arms.
Blair said logically, \I don't think there's any need for that. We'll know if someone tries to get in.\
\Night.\ Jim said closing his eyes smiling as he felt Blair do the same. ******* Worried that they still hadn't heart anything Colin said, "I'm going to check on them."
"I'll come with you. Do you think we can get in to see them?" Rafe said from the other side of the room where he had been pacing.
"That would be great!" Henri exclaimed stretching slightly.
The three walked through the now silent corridors quickly, knowing everyone had already been informed of the situation and were waiting to see just what would happen once the pair regained consciousness.
"Fuck!" Rafe said as the looked through the window at the infirmary to find Blair and Jim curled up together, both smiling.
Wondering why no one had told them that the pair had regained consciousness Henri said, "This might sound stupid but how did they get in the same bed? Simon put them in separate beds."
"I guess they were awake earlier." Colin replied looking at them.
All of a sudden Blair started whimpering and crying, the three quickly walked into the room unable to cope with the anguish Blair was broadcasting to the academy. Henri started forward to help Blair calm down only to be stopped by Jim's glare.
Blair shouted lost and afraid, "James? Don't leave, come back!"
"Mon Coeur, there's nothing to fear. I'm here, you're safe." Jim whispered both verbally and mentally trying to help Blair.
Blair said hopefully, "James? You really here?"
"Of course, where else would I be?" Jim said with a small laugh.
"I thought you had left," Blair explained simply, snuggling into Jim's chest.
Jim said softly, "Don't be ridiculous, I'll never leave you."
"What are they doing here?" Blair asked confused when he spotted the three men standing close to the wall.
"They're here to make sure you're okay." Jim said glaring at his three confused friends.
"James, stop it!" Blair said feeling the older man's anger.
Jim said with a small grin, "Sorry."
"Just don't do it again, or warn me first!" Blair said with a laugh.
"Hi guys. Are you okay now?" Rafe asked nervously, having caught Jim's anger.
Blair said seriously, "We're fine. Sorry for worrying you."
"You scared the life out of me when I saw what had happened," Henri said moving closer to the bed.
"Erm…what did happen?" Jim said wanting to know why everyone was so worried.
Colin took a seat on the bed next to the one the two younger men were using saying, "You were stuck in a mind-link. You've been out of it for the last eleven hours."
"It didn't feel that long." Blair commented half to himself.
Wanting to know just who to take his anger out on Jim asked, "Who moved us in here?"
"Simon and Liam. They had a look at you, your das was here earlier." Rafe answered tiredly.
"Who are they?" Blair asked a little lost.
Jim explained quickly, "Liam is Liam Pierce, the shrink and art professor. Simon Banks is the self defence teacher, whose class we were late for earlier, he's also the Staff Empath."
"Please don't kill me, but why are you acting so…so…affectionate?" Rafe asked knowing he was risking his life, asking when the pair were clearly still feeling protective and defensive.
"How else would I act towards my bond-mate?" Blair retorted his voice dangerously low, unlike most when Blair got really mad he got quieter not louder.
Jim snarled quickly, "Get out of here now or you'll have to be carried out!"
"We'll see you later," Blair finished closing his empathic barriers in case any of his new friends had a negative reaction.
"We'll come and see you in the morning," Henri said with a smile as the three walked out the room.
\That wasn't very nice,| Blair commented to Jim with a grin as the pair watched their friends leave..
\They upset you.\ Jim replied gently turning them over so that his head was on Blair's chest, so he could hear the younger man's heartbeat.
\Night Jim,\ Blair said with a yawn as he closed his eyes. He was half asleep when he heard Jim reply, \Night Blair, love you.\ ******* "Liam? Babe, I need to go and check on Blair and Jim." Simon said with a smile at his lover who was sprawled over him.
"You know, our lives are going to get a lot more difficult now that we've got a bonded pair. You do realise that they could be un guerrier et magicien accouple?"
Simon said as he dressed quickly, "The chances of such a pair appearing in the American bloodline are a thousand to one. You know as well as I do they're normally French or Canadian."
"I'll come with you," Liam said knowing that the experience of bonding couple be difficult o deal with, especially if you had recently come into your powers like Blair.
Simon sighed, "That's a good idea, Blair was the source of the wave we received earlier."
Liam couldn't help but feel worried at that knowledge, "Its unusual for a bonded to feel such pain when with their bond-mate. I wonder what happened?"
"Jim could have rejected the bonding or it could be about his mom," Simon said as they approached the infirmary.
"So we could be dealing with an unwanted bonding or a pair of unstable really good telepaths? The things I do for this place," Liam said with a flippant grin. ******* In their dreamscape Jim and Blair sat together quietly. They were in the middle of a forest with a waterfall nearby. Their destination had been a combination of their thoughts and experiences, they wanted a place they could relax and talk.
"Today has been more than a little confusing," Blair commented with a laugh as he gently ran his fingers through Jim's hair.
"I know what you mean, but it's been good as well." Jim said not wanting Blair to think that he didn't want their bonding. With a smile he continued, "You think we should explain everything when we wake up?"
Blair gave Jim an incredulous look, "Explain what? I don't know about you but I'm still not too sure what happened. I just know that we are as we were always meant to be."
"One mind, one soul." Jim finished with a solemn smile.
"Exactly, I don't even know why or how it happened," Blair said with a sigh.
"We can ask Simon and Liam when we wake up." Jim said with a shrug not wanting to destroy the sense of peace.
Blair said worriedly, "Do you feel that?"
"Someone is spying on us. Wait a sec…its Simon and Liam." Jim said his voice changing from angry to soothing as he received information from his senses.
"You think we should wake up and talk to them?" Blair asked concerned.
"Not yet. You're tired, don't even try to hide it." Jim said grinning at Blair's chagrined look.
"Okay, can you try to control your temper this time? We'll find out more if you don't alienate the people with the information," Blair laughed at Jim's disappointed pout.
Jim said with a sigh, "I guess, everyone is going to be really weird for a while. There aren't a lot of bonded pairs."
"You want to tell me why you've been hiding your senses?" Blair said his blue eyes pinning the other man in place.
Jim defended himself, "I haven't been hiding them they aren't really online properly. Anyway dad said it would be easier that way, the last thing we need is for the TDS to find out about me."
"I can help you. I have some experience with Sentinels, a shaman in Peru who taught me a little." Blair said soothingly, not wanting to upset the older man.
"Sentinels? What are they?" Jim asked in confusion he had never heard that term before.
Blair said with a laugh at the look on Jim's face, "People with heightened senses like you have. I lived in Peru with the Chopec for two years; they had a sentinel called Enqueri who was guided by the shaman. Every sentinel has someone to ground them; a guide who helps the sentinel to control their senses. I can be, I want to be your guide."
"Oh. So I'm not a freak?" Jim whispered looking at the ground.
Blair growled in anger, how he wished he could kill William Ellison for hurting the beautiful man in front of him. Maybe he couldn't kill William Ellison now but he could be patient until his Sentinel could be avenged. No one was allowed to hurt his mate and Sentinel.
"No, you're not a freak. You're wonderful and natural." Blair whispered as he gently ran one hand over Jim's cheek forcing the other man to look him in the eyes.
Jim gently nuzzled Blair's hand, "You're the first person to say so."
END Part 1
Simon Banks was startled at the sudden feelings he was receiving from the still sleeping pair. There was a strange mix of aggression, anger and love coming from Blair and he wondered just who the young empath was so angry at, he pitied whoever it was.
"You think we should wake them up?" Liam asked in a whisper as he sat down opposite the bed housing the newly bonded pair.
"Jim knows we're here." Simon replied in a hushed tone not wanting to explain about the man's heightened senses.
Jim said making the two whispering men jump. "He's right. Can we get this over fast? Blair's still tired."
"I'm not that tired," Blair valiantly protested but the attempt was ruined when he gave a large yawn.
"We just wanted to make sure you were okay," Simon said quickly not wanting to upset any of them.
"Never better," Jim and Blair replied in unison with a small grin.
Liam asked soothingly, "Blair, can I talk to you about what happened to your mother later? I'm a little worried that you haven't dealt with what happened."
"I may as well tell you now," Blair sighed.
Leaning back against Jim he continued, "You know my half brother and dad died a month before Naomi, right? They were shot trying to stop a woman being raped. I was living with them after Naomi disowned me. I had told her I was gay the year before and that I was dating a guy called Luc who was in the military."
"What happened after they died?" Simon asked gently noticing that Jim was not at all surprised by Blair's revelations.
Blair ignored the tears falling from his eyes, "Naomi sent me a letter saying she was sorry about their deaths and asking me to meet her. She was killed on the way to that meeting. I went to stay with my uncle who gave me a videotape Naomi had left. She apologised for not talking to me and revealed that she knew one of us where going to die that day on that road. She decided to take that route so that it would be her that died and not me."
"Your mother was a Talent?" Simon asked in confusion, that wasn't in any of the files they had on Blair Sandburg.
Blair laughed bitterly, "She was from the day I was born. The weird thing is that all her visions were about me. When I was five she told me that I had to stay away from the military. I had forgotten by the time I got involved with Luc, I think that's why she was so mad. She really hated the military and was sure they were going to ruin the world."
/She loved you and she wasn't angry with you,/ Jim said quickly feeling the emotions running through the younger man's mind.
Blair replied wearily, /I know but that doesn't help ease the pain./
"Can we talk about the rest of this tomorrow? It's almost 2 a.m. and Blair was up early." Jim asked seeing Blair was exhausted.
Liam said thoughtfully, "Yeah. Blair, William Ellison came by earlier to make sure you're settling in okay."
Blair said distractedly, "Oh, I heard mom talk about him and his wife once. She said something about helping them about fifteen years ago."
Unsure as to how the pair would react to his news Simon said slowly, "William Ellison is the one who approves all entrants to Rainer. He's paying for your board here, Blair."
"Jim, I told him you two were in a meld and he told me to call if you're injured." Liam said noticing that the young man looked both angry and resigned.
/That bastard! How dare he treat you like that!/ Blair was already making plans to get revenge.
Jim said gently, /Calm down, Blair. I'm used to it./
/You shouldn't have to get used to it!/ Blair snarled absently noticing that there was this annoying buzz when he was trying to talk.
Jim commented with a wide grin, /Simon's talking to you, Chief!/
"Sorry, Simon. I'm still a little out of it." Blair apologised seriously.
Simon said quickly, "That's okay. It's perfectly understandable in the situation."
Liam smiled, "You can go back to your room tonight. You both have tomorrow off but we would like to talk to you both about what happened."
"Sure, man. What time?" Blair said sighing when he spied Jim trying to use his senses and mentally nudged the man.
"About an hour after you wake up," Simon said with a small smile.
"Thanks," Jim said for both of them as he led the way out of the room. ******* "Are you going to tell them?" Liam asked his voice not judging only curious.
Simon sighed, "They deserve to know. If they are what we think then everything is going to get really complicated for them and for us."
Liam nodded and smiled, "I guess so. They may not be too happy when we tell them though."
"Any idea just what level their bonding is?" Simon said suddenly realising that there might be no need to tell the pair that they could be a warrior and magician pairing.
Liam said pensively, "Not really. They have good shields, higher than they should be able to create seeing how they are level eights. I could get in but it would make them insane or vegetables for the rest of their lives. Their minds are like a fortress, how are their emotions?"
Simon said in a confused tone, "Blair was feeling anger, love and hate. Jim was feeling safe and loving which could just be their friendship. A true bonding would explain their feelings but they shouldn't have such a bonding. They don't have the French genes that 95% of all the other bonded pairs have. They could be one of the rare American bondings and knowing my luck they probably are."
"I'll call William Ellison and tell him that both Jim and Blair are okay," Liam smirked knowing his lover didn't think much of the man.
"The less you tell him the better. He just sets off all my alarms." Simon said knowing that Liam was used to this discussion.
Liam smiled softly, "You know I'll follow your feelings about him. I always do." ******* /What's wrong? Your aggression has gone though the roof, man!/ Blair said as Jim pulled the smaller man slightly behind him.
Jim tired to explain his feelings, /I know that there's danger nearby, someone is watching us./
/It's okay. No one is going to attack us here,/ Blair said soothingly as he tried to think of some way to identify the threat. He knew that if Jim thought there was danger than there was.
/I don't think it's me they're after Blair,/ Jim said slowly. He couldn't stand not being able to see and remove the threat to his guide.
/Let's get to our room,/ Blair replied ignoring the shakes that statement caused in his body.
Jim just smiled and pulled the man closer with Blair holding onto the other man's top. Opening the door to the bedroom, Jim quickly scanned it for possible danger before gently escorting Blair inside. He noticed that Rafe had unpacked Blair's belongings and made a mental note to thank the man.
"I'll be five minutes," Blair said as he walked into the bathroom thinking how weird it was to actually use verbal communication.
"If you need me, call!" Jim said quickly as he set about making the room as secure as possible. He quickly moved the desk over to block the door before locking the door and all the windows.
"What do we do now?" Blair asked softly as he walked out the bathroom, knowing the sentinel would hear him.
Jim smiled at the younger man as Blair walked out of the bedroom dressed in a pair of blue silk boxers. With a yawn Blair said, "We go to bed and talk about everything else tomorrow. To be honest, I'm too tired to deal with everything right now."
"Okay," Blair replied as he headed towards Jim's bed, never even considering sleeping in his own bed. He felt a strong need to stay as close to Jim as long as possible, maybe it was because of the sentinel-guide relationship?
"We can ask Simon tomorrow, if you want." Jim whispered as he got into bed, placing his hands on the other man's chest so he could feel Blair's heartbeat.
Blair muttered as he closed his eyes, "That sounds good. Night again, James." ******* "It's happened," William Ellison said looking over at the two people watching him closely.
Steven sighed knowing that Jim would be angry once he discovered the secret they had kept from him for years.
Looking at the powerful man Sally said, "So Naomi's prophecy has come true. What are you going to do?"
William Ellison walked over to the bar and poured himself a triple whiskey, "Nothing. My debt has been repaid even if it meant I had to help that pervert Sandburg."
"I wouldn't call him that when Jim comes back," Steven commented with a wry grin.
William Ellison smiled cruelly, "Leave Jim to me." ******* Rafe walked towards the bedroom of the newly bonded pair. He knew that he had to talk to them before they got out among the rest of the students. There were some unpleasant rumours about the exact nature of the relationship and he wasn't too sure how they would react. He suspected the principal might not be too happy if Jim started killing everyone that upset Blair, or if the Blair started attacking people who hurt Jim. For some reason Rafe was sure the young empath could be that violent to protect Jim, even if it went against his normal nature.
Opening the door silently, the smartly dressed man walked inside and stopped at the sight before him. Jim and Blair were asleep in the same bed, but that wasn't what shocked him. What shocked him was the fact that they were shirtless, Jim was spooning Blair and they both had wide smiles on their faces.
"Are you going to stand there all day?" Blair asked in amusement as he opened one eye. He absently ran a hand across Jim's chest trying to relax the still sleeping man, to stop Jim from waking.
Shaking his head Rafe asked, "Morning Blair. Are you okay?"
"I'm great. I'll come to breakfast with you. Jim's still tired after last night," Blair said as he gently detached Jim's hand from his curls.
Rafe said with an easy grin, "I'll wait outside so I don't wake him up."
With that the he walked outside, still wondering what was going on between Jim and Blair. Had Blair's statement that Jim was still tired after last night mean that the pair had sex? It wouldn't be too much of a stretch of imagination to believe that the pair were in a relationship. They were already a lot closer than most married couples, Rafe thought with a snort. ******* "Okay, I'm ready." Blair said with a grin as he walked outside to find Rafe staring into space, lost in his thoughts.
"Are you and Jim alright now?" Rafe said walking side by side with the hyper guide.
Blair laughed, "Yeah. It took a lot out of us but it was great."
Rafe said suddenly remembering the message he had to give, "Did Simon catch up with you? He said he had to talk to you."
"Yeah, he wants to meet with us today. Are we meeting the others?" Blair said as they entered the cafeteria.
As soon as the pair walked inside silence descended for a few seconds before the whispers began. Blair felt a little unnerved by all the attention but held his head high as he ordered breakfast.
"Come on Hairboy, there's the guys!" Rafe said one arm around the younger man's shoulders in an attempt to relax the man.
Sitting down Blair said, "Sorry about being a little sharp with you last night."
"That's alright, it was a weird day." Joel said only to be interrupted by Colin.
Colin said thoughtfully, "Where's Jim? He's normally the first one awake."
Blair grinned, "Still in bed, at least he was when I left."
"Did Rafe tell you the rumours about you and Jim?" Joel was worried about how the pair might react.
"What rumours?" Blair was confused, although it did explain the nervousness he had sensed from Rafe.
Colin took a deep breath, "The rumours about you and Jim being a couple. We felt you should know about them."
Blair said with a shrug, "We had already figured something like that would happen…" He was about to continue when Jim's voice entered his mind sounding panicked.
/Blair, where are you?/ Jim asked his friend in a mix of worry and anger.
Blair sighed unable to understand why his friend was so angry, /In the cafeteria with the guys. You want me to bring you something back?/
/Nah, I'll join you./ Jim said as he walked into the bathroom.
"Blair…you okay?" Joel asked wondering if it was a little too early for the younger man to be moving about. Could the link have caused more damage than they had realised?
Blair said self-consciously, "Yeah, sorry about fading out on you. I was just talking to Jim."
"Oh, I thought the link had been broken." Colin said thinking aloud.
Blair hoped they would take his news okay, "No, we're bonded apparently. At least that's what Simon said."
"So what did Jim want?" Rafe said the three friends weren't bothered by the latest development. As Talents they had learnt to accept a lot of things most considered unnatural.
Blair grinned his eyes gleaming with humour, "To check up on me. You know, he's really turning into a mother hen."
"Only because you need someone to look after you," Jim said quickly taking a seat next to Blair.
"How did you get away from the TDS?" Colin asked curious as few ever got away once the TDS was on their tail.
Jim smirked, "There was a little explosion that destroyed all their files on Blair."
With a guilty grin Blair said, "Set fire to one little lab and no one ever forgets!"
"What lab?" Rafe asked getting caught up in the story
"The TDS research lab in Chicago. I made a little detour on the way here." Blair said looking at them and innocently batting his eyelashes.
Jim laughed, "I think they've learnt not to mess with you, Chief! You rigged the C4 to detonate if they accessed your file, that was very clever."
Looking at the table Blair said embarrassed, "It was only supposed to destroy the computer system. It's not my fault they had so much flammable material inside and I gave everyone time to get out!"
Jim nodded seriously, "I know, Chief. It was very kind of you to give them a five-minute warning. They wouldn't have done that for any of us." ******* Simon grinned as he spotted the pair laughing with their friends and apparently none the worse for what they had experienced. He couldn't help but feel happy as he saw Jim smile, something the young man hadn't really done a lot of. Jim had friends, but no one he was really close to apart from Simon himself.
Jim's father had virtually cut all ties with the teen ever since Jim had arrived at Rainer a little over six months ago. William Ellison was the Chairman of the Rainer Board of Trustees but he only appeared when it gave him good publicity. In private the man had made it quite clear that he was embarrassed to have a Talent for a son.
Stopping at their table Simon said, "It's good to see you are feeling a little better. Can I meet you two in your room, in say ten minutes?"
"Sure. Is everything okay?" Blair asked getting the feeling that something was wrong with the teacher.
Skirting around the issue Simon replied, "Just thinking. I'll see you later."
"Bye, Simon." Jim said as the man started walking away wondering just how he was going to break the news to them.
"What's wrong with Simon?" Blair asked worried knowing that it had something to do with him and Jim.
Joel just looked at him confused, "What do you mean? He's fine."
"He's upset about something. I guess we'll find out about it later," Jim replied signalling the subject was out of bounds.
Rafe pouted, "So you two get to spend the whole day doing nothing? Man, that's like so unfair!"
"Yeah, ain't life cruel." Jim said with a laugh.
"Ready, big guy?" Blair said picking up his tray as the bell sounded.
Jim copied Blair smiling goodbye at their friends, "Yeah. So what did you think of the oatmeal?"
Blair said with an exaggerated shudder, "It was horrible. I had it in England once and it was nice, not at all like the bland mush they served here." ******* Simon walked into Jim and Blair's room and grinned at the state of the room. The pair had obviously slept in the same bed. Blair's bed was covered in books and Jim's bed was still unmade not at all like Jim.
"Oh, hi Simon. Sorry we're a little late," Blair said as he walked in the room Jim right behind.
Jim smiled at his teacher before taking a seat on the bed, moving so that Blair could sit between his legs. Blair just rolled his eyes slightly before sitting down, relaxing against Jim with a contented sigh.
Simon just watched the domestic scene with a grin, Jim would never live this down. On campus Jim was always considered to be the original Iceman, cold and unapproachable. `Not anymore if today was anything to go by,' Simon thought with a wry smile.
"So what do you want to talk to us about?" Jim asked causing Simon to force his mind back to the present.
Simon smiled, "I just wanted to make sure you aren't feeling any negative effects as a result of your bonding. You do both know what a bonding is, right?"
"Yeah, but our bonding seems to be a little strange. Most bondings don't go this deep," Blair said thoughtfully.
"What do you mean by this deep?" Simon asked with a mental groan, it looked like the pair were another warrior-magician pairing just what he didn't need.
Blair started to explain, "We've lived each other's lives, we can read each other's emotions, thoughts."
"We share each other's dreams, I know that's not normal." Jim said absently running his hands through Blair's curls.
/Yeah, but normal is overrated./ Blair laughed trying to ease his bond-mate's pain. He knew that Jim's father had often hurt him by calling him an unnatural freak.
Jim thought to Blair with a wide grin, /I guess. Think we should explain to Simon about the Sentinel/Guide thing, Chief? He knows about my senses and has helped keep everything secret./
Blair replied quickly, /Sure, if you think we can trust him. I trust you and he's a good man./
`God these two are going to give me a headache, I just know it!' Simon thought with a groan. Would the pair keep disappearing to have mental conversations all the time? He realised then just how annoying it must be to people when he did the same thing with Liam.
"Er…Simon. You know my senses are heightened?" Jim said when Simon nodded he continued, "Blair explained everything to me! I'm a Sentinel and he's my Guide."
"What do you mean?" Simon said confused, he had never heard those terms before.
Blair adopted storytelling mode, "Sentinels are people with heightened senses because of a genetic advantage. A sentinel is a watchman, who protects the tribe. Now each sentinel has a partner called a guide. The job of the guide is to help stop the sentinel from focusing on one sense and having a zone out. That's when the sentinel becomes unresponsive to everything apart from the guide. The guide also protects the sentinel from everything. For each sentinel there can only be one guide."
/What do you mean by that, Chief?/ Jim asked worried at the aggression Blair was feeling.
/If something hurts you, I destroy it. I protect you with my life, when one of us dies so does the other./ Blair said his tone making it clear that he thought it was obvious.
The conversation with Jim had only taken seconds so Simon didn't notice. Blair continued aloud, "I have done some research and normally Sentinel Guides pairings are called un guerrier et magicien accouple. Most people think that these pairings are just normally bonded pairs who have a deeper level of boding but they are so much more than that. I am a guide and James is my sentinel, we are one."
Simon said slowly, "Okay. I trust you know what you are talking about, Sandburg. I guess that answers my question about how deep your bond is."
"Yeah. Anything else?" Blair said with a friendly smile.
Simon said sadly, "No. Just be careful, there are some people who won't look too kindly on your relationship."
"Thanks for the warning. We'll be okay, won't we Chief?" Jim said flashing a grin at Blair who just nodded.
"I'll see you later. If you ever want to talk you can always come to me or Liam." Simon said before leaving the room. ******* /What did you think he meant by our relationship?/ Blair enquired absently as he lay down on the bed.
/He's probably heard all the rumours. There are a few here who are really homophobic. Don't worry, we can handle them./
/Who exactly will we have to watch out for?/ Blair wanted to know just who the potential threats were, so he would know who to watch. He wanted to make sure that he removed the correct people if the need arose, he wouldn't let anyone hurt Jim.
Jim considered everyone on campus before saying, /Let's see Kincaid maybe. I think he just doesn't like me but you never know. Cassie of course, she is kind of crazy. Oh, I almost left out Paul Lewis. He's the Philosophy teacher and a religious nut. Rainier can't get rid of him because he has so much tenure./ ******* "Can we go to bed now?" Blair asked with a large yawn turning his head to look at Jim.
Jim grinned, "Sure. Want me to set the alarm?"
"Nah. Remind me to tell you about the dials when we wake up later." Blair said as he stood up, quickly undressing to his boxers and throwing the clothes on his cluttered bed.
Jim quickly changed joining Blair in bed with little more than a raised eyebrow at the way Blair snuggled up against him. As he held Blair, Jim slowly turned each sense up imprinting his Guide using instinct to guide him through the process.
Jim quickly moved through to Blair's neck breathing deeply, dismissing each scent on Blair's body until he identified the spicy yet musky scent that was pure Blair. Next he combed every inch of Blair with his eyesight, automatically zooming in to identify any possible injuries. Jim grinned widely as the sound of Blair's heartbeat filled his ears, thundering in his head.
Shaking his head, Jim quickly changed gears running one hand through Blair's hair while the other gently touched the man's cheek committing the touch to memory. It was amazing, Blair's hair each stand had its own individual texture and colour Jim realised as he focused on the dark curls.
"Jim! Wake up, man! This is *so* not the time to zone." Blair said unable to move simply because of one Jim's hands was wrapped up in Blair's curls while the other cupped his face.
"Let's see…you were imprinting me? The only sense you haven't done is taste, right? You better not freak at me for this!" Blair said as he gently ran his tongue over Jim's parted lips.
Jim shuddered, and slowly opened his eyes to find his worried guide merely millimetres away from him. He offered a nervous smile and wondered how long he had been out of it.
"Sorry about that, Blair. I didn't hurt you, did I?" Jim said in a panic as he realised what a tight grip he had on Blair's hair.
Blair smiled reassuringly "Nah. Now you've finished imprinting me, can we get some sleep? We didn't get much sleep last night. Rafe woke me up at 8 a.m. doesn't that man know the meaning of the words sleep in?"
"Just go to sleep, Blair. I'll be here when you wake up." Jim said with a tolerant smile.
Blair sighed, "Sure man. You better go to sleep as well, I do not want to deal with a grouchy partner."
"Okay. Love you, Blair." Jim said absently as he closed his eyes.
"Love you too, Jim. Now be a good sentinel and sleep!" Blair said falling into the land of dreams, seconds later Jim joined him.
End part 2
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