Not The Sun - 12. Chapter Twelve: Revelations

12 ~Revelations~

The next week passed fairly uneventfully. Brandon found himself thinking of Keith with an unrelenting intensity that was beginning to piss him off. He hated the guy; he was glad to be rid of him, so why did he keep on stealing glances at him during class? Considering Keith was even in class... He seemed to be missing a lot of them recently, and Brandon wondered what was up with that. Sometimes he would catch himself staring at Keith's empty desk, like he was expecting to see him there. When Brandon was at home, growing bored and restless under the confines of his punishment, he found himself drawing him, over and over. The next Thursday, the last day of school before their "fall break", which was nothing more than a glorified four day weekend, Keith came into class late. He gave the teacher his note then went to his seat. On his way, he passed Brandon's desk and gave him a knowing smile and a wink. After Keith had taken his seat, Brandon unfolded the note Keith had given him underneath his desk and read it.

I have something that you want. But I'm not going to give it to you.

His face on fire, he crumpled the note up in his hand and intended to throw it away on his way out of the classroom. It found its way into his pocket instead.

He met up with Jordan right after school and went straight to the airport. Nikki and Dalaja's flight was due in at five, but they wanted to make sure they had enough time to get there, get a parking spot and be there in time for the two to arrive.

They were easily recognizable. Nikki, in addition to her pink hair, was also extremely tall, a fact that Brandon failed to notice since he had only seen her while she was seated. But she had to be at least six foot two. Next to her, the demure Dalaja appeared even smaller.

Jordan stood up and waved to them as they disembarked. Nikki came out first, in a black tank top and a tattered black skirt with combat boots, followed by Dalaja in a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt, her dark hair braided back and a pair of sunglasses on her face.

"Jordan," Nikki said, bending down to hug him. "How are you?"

"Doing well. And yourself?"

"God, I hate flying. And we were up there forever. How many time zones did we pass?" Nikki asked, rolling her eyes.

"Only one, you wimp," Dalaja said. "Try flying to America from New Delhi. That's jet lag. This is nothing." She turned to Brandon. "It's nice to meet you in person finally," she added. "I'm Dalaja Malhotra."

"Brandon Williams. Nice to meet you in person as well," Brandon replied. She smiled. Nikki glimpsed him and grinned. "Brandon!" She swiveled around Dalaja and approached him, giving him a bone crushing hug that reminded him of Sophie. "Nice to see you again. How are you?"

"Good," Brandon gasped out as Nikki released him. Nikki bent down to look him in the eyes. "I'm sorry about your friend," she said, her eyes turning gentle and sympathetic. "I can't imagine what you must be going through."

"Thanks," Brandon said, feeling touched. "It's been hard. Still is, but I'm dealing."

"Good." Nikki smiled, then straightened up. "I'm hungry," she announced. "Let's go eat."

Jordan drove everyone to the same bistro he had taken Brandon to on their first date. They talked briefly, getting Nikki and Dalaja up to date on what had been happening, and Brandon found himself watching the two of them with a kind of fascination. The two of them together were kind of like a unit, their movements containing a perfect synchronization, being able to finish each other's sentences and predict the other's movement without even putting that much effort into it. Brandon wondered if he and Jordan would be able to work together with that level of ease one day.

Nikki was a riot and kept Brandon laughing the entire night. Dalaja was more subdued, speaking gently and seldom. But when the subject of Creating and Enabling came up, they both became perfectly serious.

"I'll try to locate this Enabler myself tomorrow," Dalaja said. "I don't doubt Jordan's abilities at all, but since I've been doing this longer, I might be able to pick up on something you missed." She looked at Jordan a little anxiously. "Is that all right?"

"Yeah, that's fine," Jordan said. "I have no problem with it at all."

"I need a place that is near the center of town, population wise, where I can reach the most people at once. I'll do my best to find this person, and then we can go from there. I have a police contact in Arlington if things get really hairy, but for right now, I just want to be able to find these people; monitor them if nothing else."

"And then what?"

"Well, that depends," Nikki said. "Bringing over an unauthorized Creation is illegal, and the fact that it attacked a human being is even worse. But we can't prove anything since its victim has passed away. But we need to know who we are dealing with. If they've been in trouble with the Establishment before, that can strengthen the case against them."

"You make it sound like we're taking them to court or something," Brandon said.

"Brandon, these people are dangerous. The punishment is going to be harsh. You can't let stuff like this go. Can you imagine a world where anyone who can create and enable is allowed to just run rampant? Something needs to be done."

"They know that, Nik; that's why we are here," Dalaja said softly. "At least that's one reason. I also heard that the two of you are ready to forge a deeper bond level."

"Yeah," Brandon said. "I think it's something we should do."

"I know the basics," Jordan added. "But I still would feel better if there was someone there just to get us started. You've had experience with talking other pairs through it."

"I have," Dalaja said. "I wouldn't worry about you two. From what I've seen, the repertoire you have is quite excellent, but I will be there if it makes you feel more secure."

"Thank you, Dalaja," Jordan said. "We both appreciate it."

Brandon nodded his agreement and fingered the note from Keith in his pocket. He felt the most ridiculous urge to take it out and read it again, even though he knew what it said. What could Keith possibly have that he would want. Sex? He could get that anywhere. And he certainly didn't need Keith to give it to him. He didn't want Keith to give it to him. He didn't want Keith to give him anything.

He didn't miss him. He hardly thought of him at all.

Yeah right.

Dalaja and Nikki were staying at Jordan's house, since he had the extra room and a moderate amount of privacy. Brandon was up the next day at ten, like promised, although he felt it was almost offensive to waste a free morning from school by actually going out and doing stuff instead of sleeping in.

"We're going to the civic center," Jordan informed him once they had picked him up. "That's the closest to the geological center of the town, near most of the major business and residences downtown."

"Good choice," Brandon said. "Just make sure we're gone by this afternoon. WWE Smackdown is tonight, and this place is going to be packed."

"I love WWE!" Nikki said brightly from the front seat. She was slumped down in her seat, her knees up against the dashboard. "Jordan, your car is not very friendly towards tall women."

"Sorry. I didn't have you in mind when I bought it," Jordan said. "You're welcome to walk."

"Get up on the wrong side of the bed, sweetheart?" Nikki asked.

"Well, if someone hadn't kept me up half the night singing AC/DC songs..."

"You need to develop a healthy respect for the classics," Nikki said.

"You need to develop a healthy respect for letting your host get his sleep."

"Children, please," Dalaja exclaimed from the back seat, and Brandon grinned. Dalaja gave him an exasperated look and rolled her eyes. She had on a red T-shirt, jean shorts and sneakers. Brandon thought she looked rather cute and was slightly disappointed that she was married.

Nikki and Brandon hung out near the car while Dalaja paced the parking lot of the civic center, looking for a good place. Brandon didn't know what made one spot better than another one, but apparently something did, for she stopped once she found a spot she liked and stood there, her hands clasped together in front of her and her head down. Jordan was standing a few feet away, looking tense and worried, and Brandon wondered what was going on with him today. The bickering between him and Nikki had been harmless enough, but Jordan usually didn't let anyone ruffle his feathers like that.

Dalaja stood there for quite a long time; long enough for Nikki to get bored and go get a hot dog. She was still standing there when Nikki returned, hot dogs and Coca Cola in hand. She passed a hot dog to Brandon, who took it with a thanks and offered another one to Jordan, who took it a tad reluctantly. By the time they finished their hot dogs, Dalaja had apparently given up, shaking her head and approaching the car.

"No good," she said, looking discouraged. She folded her arms against the top of the car and rested her forehead on them. She was trembling and sweaty despite the cool weather. "I tried and there was nothing. I was really pushing it, too. Either they are not here, or they are doing a damn fine job of hiding themselves." She sighed and rubbed her forehead against her arm. "I can try a different area a little later, but if I can't find them from here..."

"That's enough, Dala; get into the car," Nikki said. Dalaja obediently sat in the backseat, flopping down onto her back, her knees bent and her feet still touching them pavement.

"What about you?" Brandon asked.

Nikki glanced at him from over her shoulder. "What about her?"

"No, what about you?" Brandon asked again. "If she can use her ability to track down Enablers, can't you use yours to track down a Creator?"

"I-I don't know. I don't have the same level of psychic power that she does."

"But you do have some."

"Just a little."

"Well, can you at least try it?"

"Look, Brandon, if Dalaja can't find an Enabler..."

"Have you tried to find a Creator before?"

"Yes."

"Did it work?"

"Yes."

"Then just give a shot."

Nikki sighed and shrugged. "Fine. But don't be disappointed if I can't do it." Nikki sat down on the pavement, then bowed her head and got very still. Brandon walked over to where Jordan was standing with his arms crossed.

"Do you think she can do it?" Jordan asked in a soft voice.

Brandon shrugged. "Might as well try it while we're out here. But if you couldn't find the Enabler and neither could Dalaja..."

"Then they might both be gone," Jordan finished for him. "And we might never find out what happened with Leia."

"Stop doubting yourself," Brandon said softly.

"I'm not," Jordan said. "But I'm-"

Brandon held up a hand to quiet him and nodded towards Nikki, who was sitting perfectly still, her eyes wide open and blank. "Look."

"She's got someone," Jordan whispered. Brandon started towards her, but Jordan grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back. "No, don't go over there. Not yet. She'll lose the connection. Let her hold onto it as long as she needs to."

The change in Nikki was instantaneous. One second she was sitting there, perfectly still, the next she was slumping forward, grimacing in pain. Brandon dashed across the parking lot, catching her seconds before she would have hit the pavement. "Jesus, are you all right?"

Nikki shook her head and pushed away from Brandon. She crawled a few feet away and vomited. When she was done, Brandon approached and helped her to her feet. She winced and brought a hand up to her forehead, rubbing on it gently.

"C'mon, let's get you sitting down." Brandon led her to the car, helping her into the front seat. Nikki moaned and brought both hands up to her head.

"What happened?" Dalaja asked, propping herself up on her elbows. "Nikki?"

"I got caught snooping." She moaned and leaned forward. "Oh God, Bran-"

Brandon stepped back just in time to avoid having his boots splattered with vomit as Nikki leaned out the doorway and retched again.

"Do you need a hospital?" Jordan asked, kneeling down next to Brandon and lifting up Nikki's hanging head to see her face.

Nikki pulled out of his hands and shook her head. "No. No hospital. It's nothing that some extra strength Tylenol won't take care of." Nikki sat back on the seat, wiping at her mouth with the back of her hand. "Let's get out of here, okay?"

"Are you going to be all right?" Dalaja asked.

"Yeah. Let's just go. When we're back at the house, I'm going to have some news for you guys."

"I found him," Nikki said later. She was on her back on Jordan's couch, a washrag on her forehead and a bottle of Tylenol next to her on the table. "I wasn't expecting to, so I wasn't very subtle. He felt my intrusion and defended himself quite viciously. I'm afraid whoever you are dealing with is not new at this. He's young though, young but quite powerful. Dangerous."

"Do you have a name?" Jordan asked.

Nikki shook her head. "No, but I have a face. If I can get a sheet of paper and a pencil, I can draw it for you."

That, at least, was something Brandon could do. He got up and rummaged through his book bag and pulled out a sketchpad and a pencil.

"The bad news is that he knows someone nearby is looking for him, so we might have scared him off," Nikki said, removing the washcloth and pushing herself upright. She took the sketchpad and pencil from Brandon with a smile of thanks.

"So, what did this person do that hurt you so bad?" Brandon asked.

"Well, he felt me poking around... When I felt an energy pattern similar to mine, the kind that is unique to Creators, I zeroed in on it. I wasn't very careful, unfortunately. If I had been gentler, he might not have noticed. But he noticed, and what he did was basically 'forced' my energy back into myself. It's kinda like me extending my hand to touch Dalaja or you, Brandon, and then having you slap my hand away. Except he slapped it rather hard. Thus, the energy I was expending... my aura or chi or whatever you want to call it, snapped back like a rubber band. I wasn't prepared for it, so it all just came back at me full force. Like being hit with a psychic fist."

"Well, I take it from what happened he's not going to welcome us with open arms when we show up at his doorstep," Dalaja said.

"Probably not," Nikki agreed, moving the pencil in firm lines. "And I have no idea where his Enabler is. I find it quite inconceivable that I could find this Creator and Dalaja, whose psychic ability is more powerful and has a wider scope, couldn't find this person's Enabler. There's something going on there that is quite unusual. And whoever this person is... they used way too much aggression; I wasn't poking that hard. They could have given me a gentle push as a sign to back off, but they used far more force than was necessary. This person feels dangerous." She sketched a few more lines, frowning in concentration.

"So, it's definitely a he?" Brandon clarified.

"Of course. I saw him," Nikki said. "How are you doing, Dalaja?"

"Fine," Dalaja answered. "Do you think it's possible that the Creator was shielding his Enabler in some way?"

Nikki shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't know it was possible."

"Well, it's not possible for a Creator to exist on his own. And the only other explanation is a very wide degree of separation if I or Jordan, for that matter, couldn't find him. And that seems just as unlikely."

Nikki shrugged again. "Well, here, now you can ask him. Recognize him?" She held the sketchpad out to Dalaja. Dalaja took it, frowned and shook her head. "Nope. Jordan?"

She held the sketchpad out and Jordan took it, stared at it for a while. "Recognize him?" Dalaja asked.

Jordan's eyes were very still and fixed on the page. "I think so," he said. "Brandon, come on over here."

Brandon got up from the chair he was lounging on and Jordan held up the sketchpad for him to see. He stopped dead in his tracks, feeling the world stop around him.

Nikki was a fantastic sketch artist. She got every detail down perfectly, from the close set eyes to the pock marked face to the arrogant smirk twisted across those lips Brandon had felt against his skin far too many times. "Keith." Brandon's head swam and he quickly sat down right there on the floor before his legs could give out on him.

"Are you all right?" Jordan asked.

"No," Brandon answered honestly.

"What's wrong?"

"I know that guy," Brandon said.

"You said Keith," Nikki noted. She was kneeling next to Jordan, looking concerned. "Is that his name?"

"Yeah."

"We go to school with this guy, don't we?" Jordan asked. "I mean, I recognize him. Not well enough to know his name, but I think I have a class with him."

Brandon rested his head in his hands for a brief moment. Now that the shock of seeing his face penned by Nikki's hand had faded away, it was like a light bulb going off over his head. It was the epiphany of fucking epiphanies. It all came together in his mind neatly, clearly and completely and Brandon felt like an absolute moron for not seeing it earlier. The drawings all over his walls and the way Brandon had been outside at Alexis' rave at just the right time to help him. The way that Brandon just couldn't stay away from him, no matter how much he hated Keith, no matter how much he was disgusted with himself, how he would always go back. Because Creators attracted Creators the same way Enablers attracted Enablers and how he and Jordan had attracted each other. Of course it was Keith.

"Brandon?" Dalaja asked. "I take it you recognize this person."

"Yeah," Brandon said, feeling weak and dizzy. He hoped he didn't pass out. "Jordan's right, he's a student at the school."

"Can you tell us a little bit more about him?" Nikki asked, and Dalaja held up her hand.

"Hold on. Brandon, why did you have such a reaction when we showed you his picture?" Dalaja asked.

"I was just--I wasn't expecting it. I know him."

"How well?" Dalaja asked, and Brandon could tell by the tone of her voice that she knew; somehow she knew the truth.

"Intimately," Brandon said. He sighed and stared at the floor, feeling defeated. What did it matter that they knew? What did it matter that he knew; that Jordan knew? He would have to admit it anyway, if they were going to confront Keith. Because if Keith thought he would be able to use their past as a weapon against them, he would, and Brandon wasn't keen on giving him the ammunition.

"Well then, Brandon," Nikki said. Brandon glanced up at her. She raised her eyebrows at him. "Can you let us know what kind of person we'll be going up against?"

"Well... he's kind of a loner," Brandon said. "Arrogant, immature, charismatic. Smart, manipulative. If he wants something, he goes and takes it, and if he has to use others, hurt others, he probably will. Determined, always has to be in control. Isn't afraid to be aggressive or forceful."

Nikki and Dalaja glanced at each other. "Do you know his medium, Brandon?" Nikki asked.

"Not really. I know he draws, I've seen some of his work, but I don't know if he does that exclusively or not."

"What about his Enabler?" Dalaja pressed. "You said that Keith was a loner... Is there anyone that you saw him spending time with? Someone at school, another student, a teacher maybe?"

Brandon shook his head. "No. No, the only person I ever saw him with was--that woman. Shit."

"A woman?" Dalaja asked.

"Yeah. There was a woman at his house one time. Older, taller, kinda strange looking. I remember her very well."

"What did she look like?'

Brandon got up and grabbed his sketchpad up from the floor. He flipped through it to one of his earlier drawings that he had done several weeks ago... the same day that Keith dumped him. He found the one of the woman and held it up.

Jordan took it and shook his head. “I don’t know her.”

Dalaja took it and her and Nikki looked it over. “Nik?” Dalaja asked. She shook her head. Dalaja sighed. “Can’t help you there. We don’t recognize her either.” Dalaja looked down at the picture again. “Did you see him with anyone else? Anyone?”

Brandon shrugged. “I saw him at a party with some other guy, but they weren’t very friendly. Aside from that-” Brandon shrugged.

Dalaja looked down at the picture again. “This woman, did you talk to her?”

“No, not really.”

“What was your impression of her?”

“I just really wanted to draw her. I thought she had a fabulous face and was fascinating. That’s it.”

“I’m betting on this woman,” Dalaja said, looking at Nikki and tapping the paper. Nikki nodded. “Brandon, can I keep this?” Dalaja asked, holding up the drawing.

“Sure thing. And call me Bran, okay?”

Dalaja smiled. “Okay. You can call me Dala if you want, but not in public, okay?”

“All right.”

“Brandon.” That was Jordan.

“Yeah.”

“Come on, let’s talk,” Jordan said. He led Brandon away from Nikki and Dalaja into the back of the house. He took Brandon through a door he had never seen before that lead out into the backyard and they sat on a bench outside. “Are you all right?” Jordan asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Listen. I need to ask you about Keith. I am well aware you probably don’t want to talk about this, but Nikki and Dalaja are probably going to go after him and I, as your Enabler, need to have a good idea of what is going on. You said you knew him... pretty well?”

“Yeah.”

“Like in a... a carnal way?”

Brandon burst into laughter. Jordan looked a little surprised at first, but then he smiled. “I can’t remember the last time I heard someone use the term carnal,” Brandon said. “But if you’re asking if we had sex, yes. A handful of times. When I came over that one day and told you that I had gotten dumped, it was him I was referring to.”

“So...” Jordan looked concerned and troubled. “You two were dating?”

“No, not really. We didn’t like each other... I don’t think. When we met, it was just for sex.”

“Did he know you are a Creator?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think so; I never told him.”

“Okay.” Jordan just stared at him for a moment, then lifted a strand of Brandon’s hair up from where it was hanging near his eye and pulled it back. Brandon thought that he might lean forward and kiss him, but he didn’t.

"Was he the one that hurt you?" Jordan asked.

Brandon gave him what he hoped was a puzzled look. "Hurt me?"

"Yes." Jordan leaned forward, captured his wrist and pushed the sleeve of his shirt up, revealing the pale white scars he still held. "Who hurt you? Who is responsible for those marks? Is it him?"

"Dude, I already told you that I did those myself," Brandon said, sounding worried.

"Yes, but who caused you to do that? I know you didn't just come home one day and decide that you wanted to cut up your skin. Something happened. Someone hurt you, and whatever they did made you want to hurt yourself."

Great, he's going into Oprah mode, Brandon thought with a mental eye roll. Well fuck, if Jordan was going to continue to push the issue, he might as well confess and get it over with. Besides, he didn't care about it as much as he used to. Leia's death had dampened the importance of a lot of things. "It was him. It's just--the first time I got involved in him--I didn't want it."

Jordan's eyes got wide. "Christ, Brandon, you were raped?"

"No! I mean..." Brandon stood up and ran his hands through his hair. "I'm not--it's complicated. I was at this party and I met Keith, okay? I saved him from getting his ass kicked. He said he didn't want to be in debt to me. I told him to forget about it, but he wouldn't let me. He dragged me to this secluded spot and just basically gave me oral. I told him not to and I tried to stop him, but there’s only so much struggling you can do when you have your dick in close proximity to someone’s teeth. He did it and I couldn’t stop him.” Brandon swallowed hard and looked away. “I went home and I was pretty torn up. I wasn’t ready to admit to the fact that I was gay, and I was freaked from what happened and... that was just how I dealt with it.” He sighed and laced his fingers together. “That’s how me and Keith started seeing each other. I would meet him, we would have sex and that would be it. I didn’t like him, hated him quite a lot as a matter of fact, but I couldn’t make myself stop. It was like... like I was drawn to him.”

“You were,” Jordan said. “He is another Creator. You’ll feel a pull whenever there is one nearby, like a moth to a flame. You just need to recognize what it feels like. That’s something I should have let you know about and I failed. I’m sorry.”

“No way, man, don’t start blaming yourself for this shit. I’m old enough to make my own goddamn choices and I should have known better than to go and see him, Creator or no. Speaking of which, are we going to go see him? I’ve been to his house; I know where he lives.”

“I don’t know. Let’s go see what Nikki and Dalaja think we should do.”

“Okay.” Brandon got up from the bench. Jordan got up behind him, then grabbed one of his hands and pulled. “Hey Bran.”

Brandon turned around, and before he could say anything, Jordan kissed him. Brandon kissed him back, pulling Jordan into his arms. After they broke apart, Brandon smiled slightly. “What was that for?”

Jordan shrugged. “Just because.”

Brandon kissed him again, thinking “just because” was a very good reason indeed.