Unnatural History, "Caught In-Between" ch.12, rated T
Fandom: Unnatural History
Title: Caught In-Between
Chapter Title: 12: Against the Odds
Author: Paynesgrey
Rating: R/M (subject to change)
Genre: Adventure/Romance
Characters/Pairings: Henry/Maggie, Jasper/Maggie, & Jasper/Henry
Warnings: polyamory, UST in later chapters.
Disclaimer: Cartoon Network owns Unnatural History. I only borrow and play.
Notes: In progress. OT3 fic, with mature situations to be added later. (Once completed I'll post to the UnH comm here at LJ.)
URLS: FFnet | AO3
Story Summary:As a strange heat wave hits DC, the gang becomes involved in a mystery that enhances their feelings for one another, with a new fertility artifact as a possible cause. Henry x Maggie x Jasper. In-progress.
Previous Chapter
Chapter Twelve: Against the Odds
"We need to talk," Henry demanded as he stopped abruptly in front of Jasper and Madison after his dash down the halls.
"I don't want to talk. Can't you see I'm busy?" Jasper snapped at him, and Henry saw Madison gape at them, both shocked and slightly amused.
"I think we should talk right now, and I don't care if you're busy, Jasper. This is important," Henry replied sternly, and Jasper turned around, rolled his eyes and exhaled heavily.
"Dude, not now. Seriously, I don't care what it is. I think I was pretty clear this morning that I'm pissed at you, so leave me alone and we can fight about this later," Jasper said, turning back to Madison.
Henry bit his lip, ready to slam his cousin against the lockers if he had to, but in front of Madison and the already circling onlookers, he thought perhaps it would be a bad idea. He didn't want to always seem like a brute anyway.
"Very well, we'll talk after school," Henry seethed, but then his tone softened as he controlled his emotions. "And I really don't want to fight."
"Yeah, whatever," Jasper said, and as soon as the bell rang, Jasper and Madison were both out of his sight, and by his attitude, Henry was pretty clear that Jasper was going to ignore him for the rest of the day. It also meant that he knew Jasper very well, and he'd most likely try to avoid Henry at any means possible.
So Henry had to be crafty; he'd catch his cousin and then they'd settle this whole business once and for all.
-x-
Jasper couldn't handle Henry's anxious glances anymore. He was sure he'd have to talk to him eventually today, considering they lived together and slept in the same room. He had tried that morning to keep his anger to himself, and not to project so much that Henry and Maggie would notice.
It was just that he was just so furious, and though he should have expected this, he didn't think it'd hurt this much.
Jasper knew Maggie hadn't been off-limits, even though Henry had professed that he would never hurt him by pursuing her. He knew it wasn't intentional anyway; it just wasn't in his cousin's nature. However, after what Jasper had heard Henry say in his sleep last night, he couldn't help but suspect something was going on between them and that they both were keeping it a secret. He didn't want to believe that either of them would keep something from him, but Jasper was trying to be realistic.
Henry was definitely a weird one, but Jasper was surprised on how much his cousin talked in his sleep. He's held whole conversations with him, and the next morning his cousin would never remember what they talked about. For the most part it was amusing. Sometimes it irritated Jasper when he didn't remember him telling him something, but when he found out that Henry had just been sleep-talking, it'd been more of a game. When Henry had found out that he talked in his sleep, he seemed annoyed Jasper tried to get him to agree to stuff when he never remembered. He made Jasper promise to never do that, though sometimes Jasper could never resist listening in on the things Henry had to say in his sleep.
Last night had been another night of Henry's unexpected sleep-talking, and when Jasper deciphered the things he'd said, it didn't seem like a funny game anymore.
"Henry, are you awake?" Jasper whispered. It was the night Henry had come back late after Jasper returned from band practice. Jasper remembered Henry coming in and telling him to go back to sleep, but after that his cousin had crashed, though he was still disturbed by his restless sleeping. Soon after that the sleep-talking began.
There was a garbled response to Jasper's question, so Jasper rose from his bed and headed over to Henry's side. He began to hear some things, mostly babbling, but there were other things he was sure he heard loud and clear.
"Maggie..." Henry said, and Jasper furrowed his brow. If there were ever a time to get some answers from Henry it was now when he really had no inhibitions. It wasn't fair to Henry; Jasper understood that, but it really wasn't fair of his cousin to keep things from him, especially if Maggie was involved.
"What about Maggie?" Jasper asked readily.
He heard Henry sigh in his sleep, and his face contorted in some pain before transforming into a serene smile.
"Maggie, Maggie, she's wonderful, beautiful...but I can't..." The rest was quiet and unintelligible, but Jasper could tell this his cousin's feelings were clear.
"...love her, but Jasper..." He heard him say in a breathy garble.
"What?"
"...Sorry," he said quickly, and then Jasper heard a loud snore and he knew there would be no more conversations with a sleep-talking Henry that night. Jasper didn't know what to ask him anyway without shaking him at the same time. He was hurt, but he was also mad.
Henry did love Maggie, even though he said he would try not to go for her. Jasper didn't know if his cousin had made his move yet, but Jasper didn't believe there was no reason not to. Unless...Henry had felt guilty enough that he held back. If that was the case, Jasper didn't know if he wanted his cousin to do that for him, out of pity or chivalry or whatever. Still, his cousin was hiding something, and Jasper suspected there could be more.
He bit his lip and crawled back into his bed, groaning that the cool air in the house was tepid again, and the heat was already causing him sweat.
As he glared up at the ceiling, Jasper's thoughts scrambled around in his head like his head like a hornet's nest, and he knew once he woke up and saw Henry's face that tomorrow would present an interesting morning.
-x-
Jasper was surprised. Henry didn't ambush him that afternoon when they both got home from school. He hadn't even hung around to ask for a ride home, and Jasper assumed rather heatedly that Henry probably got a ride home from Maggie. Instead of expecting Henry to dog him immediately, Jasper had to go find him, and of course, Henry was hiding away on the roof, melodiously beating on his drums. Jasper poked his head out of their bedroom, saw his cousin's lack of attention, and he cleared his throat.
Henry turned around and smiled cautiously at him.
"So you wanted to fight with me," Jasper said condescendingly.
"Talk, Jasper. I wanted to talk not fight," Henry said, trying to sound calm, and this time, it appeared that his temper had cooled. (Which was probably a good thing because Jasper didn't even want to think about the things Henry could probably do to him if he were mad.)
"If this is about Madison, dude, you gave her up," Jasper said and Henry was already shaking his head, so Jasper bluntly added, "You have Maggie so I think it's only fair I get Madison."
Henry's eyes went wide, and Jasper noticed he immediately looked guilty. "That's what I wanted to talk about." He paused, pursing his lips and taking a deep breath. "How did you know about us?"
Jasper felt an ache in the pit of his stomach. "Actually," he said in a very quiet tone, "I was bluffing a little bit. I didn't know...I assumed, and I heard you talking in your sleep last night."
Henry looked crestfallen, and he tore his eyes away from Jasper's gaze. "I admit, I didn't want things to get like this between us, and even though you said you didn't like her, I knew that you really did. I tried to hold back," he pleaded. Jasper watched him stand up and come back to the window. He moved out of the way, letting his cousin come back inside their room. Henry approached him rather closely, and Jasper could tell he was hurt and regretted a lot of things. Still, Henry's admission did nothing to quell his anger. Jasper frowned at him.
"Dude, really? I've liked her all this time, and you swoop in just like that, and you expect me to be okay with this? I thought we were friends!" Jasper yelled at him.
"We're more than friends, Jasper! We're family, and trust me I didn't want things to come to this. I tried resisting these feelings, and it would have been a lot easier if Maggie hadn't come to me."
Well, that hurt, Jasper thought. Henry wasn't the only guilty party in this. Maggie had liked him too, which Jasper had initially feared. Maggie liked Henry more than she liked him, and she was giving Henry the kinds of feelings he'd always wanted. Jasper wanted to jump off a bridge right about now.
"Look," Henry said, coming closer to him. Jasper could feel the heat rolling off Henry's body as his hands rested on his shoulders. Jasper froze, and idly, he remembered the dream about them, of the intimacy and love that the three of them had found together. He felt his blood turn cold, and then Henry tried to draw him into an embrace. "I'll stop this if you want it. I won't let things with Maggie continue any further."
Jasper couldn't let Henry embrace him. He was sure he'd cave after that. He'd give into Henry's loving touch and let him say anything, and then they both would be miserable; he'd lose Maggie and Jasper would too, in a way, and things would still never be the same. They had already changed this much.
"No!" Jasper snapped, pushing him away. He didn't dare look into Henry's eyes; he didn't think he could handle his pain from the rejection. "Just...just forget it. Do what you want," he said, and he turned away, storming out of their room and presumably, as Henry heard him scoop up and jangle his car keys, leaving their house for an angry drive.
-x-
Henry stared at the sidewalk, watching his feet as he walked onward to no real destination. For some reason, unconsciously his feet brought him across town and in front of the National Museum Complex and his school. He looked up at the building. Maybe a quick scaling of the walls would make him feel better?
He sighed. He knew right away that it wouldn't.
"Henry, is that you?" He spun around to a familiar voice and met the eyes of the one person caught in the middle of this whole mess.
"Maggie," he said, only slightly surprised. "What are you doing here?"
Maggie tilted her head, and he could feel her gauging his emotions. She came closer, her lips turning into a frown. "I was in the library doing research on Mrs. Farah's artifacts and the history of all her exhibits. It appears that some of her stones had been stolen recently, so she had right to be suspicious; however, none of those stones were as high profile as the Inanna stone." She paused, and Henry closed his eyes as her hand reached out, tracing a soft line down his arm. "What's wrong?"
"Jasper and I had a fight," Henry answered. "About you and me."
Chapter Thirteen
Title: Caught In-Between
Chapter Title: 12: Against the Odds
Author: Paynesgrey
Rating: R/M (subject to change)
Genre: Adventure/Romance
Characters/Pairings: Henry/Maggie, Jasper/Maggie, & Jasper/Henry
Warnings: polyamory, UST in later chapters.
Disclaimer: Cartoon Network owns Unnatural History. I only borrow and play.
Notes: In progress. OT3 fic, with mature situations to be added later. (Once completed I'll post to the UnH comm here at LJ.)
URLS: FFnet | AO3
Story Summary:As a strange heat wave hits DC, the gang becomes involved in a mystery that enhances their feelings for one another, with a new fertility artifact as a possible cause. Henry x Maggie x Jasper. In-progress.
Previous Chapter
Chapter Twelve: Against the Odds
"We need to talk," Henry demanded as he stopped abruptly in front of Jasper and Madison after his dash down the halls.
"I don't want to talk. Can't you see I'm busy?" Jasper snapped at him, and Henry saw Madison gape at them, both shocked and slightly amused.
"I think we should talk right now, and I don't care if you're busy, Jasper. This is important," Henry replied sternly, and Jasper turned around, rolled his eyes and exhaled heavily.
"Dude, not now. Seriously, I don't care what it is. I think I was pretty clear this morning that I'm pissed at you, so leave me alone and we can fight about this later," Jasper said, turning back to Madison.
Henry bit his lip, ready to slam his cousin against the lockers if he had to, but in front of Madison and the already circling onlookers, he thought perhaps it would be a bad idea. He didn't want to always seem like a brute anyway.
"Very well, we'll talk after school," Henry seethed, but then his tone softened as he controlled his emotions. "And I really don't want to fight."
"Yeah, whatever," Jasper said, and as soon as the bell rang, Jasper and Madison were both out of his sight, and by his attitude, Henry was pretty clear that Jasper was going to ignore him for the rest of the day. It also meant that he knew Jasper very well, and he'd most likely try to avoid Henry at any means possible.
So Henry had to be crafty; he'd catch his cousin and then they'd settle this whole business once and for all.
-x-
Jasper couldn't handle Henry's anxious glances anymore. He was sure he'd have to talk to him eventually today, considering they lived together and slept in the same room. He had tried that morning to keep his anger to himself, and not to project so much that Henry and Maggie would notice.
It was just that he was just so furious, and though he should have expected this, he didn't think it'd hurt this much.
Jasper knew Maggie hadn't been off-limits, even though Henry had professed that he would never hurt him by pursuing her. He knew it wasn't intentional anyway; it just wasn't in his cousin's nature. However, after what Jasper had heard Henry say in his sleep last night, he couldn't help but suspect something was going on between them and that they both were keeping it a secret. He didn't want to believe that either of them would keep something from him, but Jasper was trying to be realistic.
Henry was definitely a weird one, but Jasper was surprised on how much his cousin talked in his sleep. He's held whole conversations with him, and the next morning his cousin would never remember what they talked about. For the most part it was amusing. Sometimes it irritated Jasper when he didn't remember him telling him something, but when he found out that Henry had just been sleep-talking, it'd been more of a game. When Henry had found out that he talked in his sleep, he seemed annoyed Jasper tried to get him to agree to stuff when he never remembered. He made Jasper promise to never do that, though sometimes Jasper could never resist listening in on the things Henry had to say in his sleep.
Last night had been another night of Henry's unexpected sleep-talking, and when Jasper deciphered the things he'd said, it didn't seem like a funny game anymore.
"Henry, are you awake?" Jasper whispered. It was the night Henry had come back late after Jasper returned from band practice. Jasper remembered Henry coming in and telling him to go back to sleep, but after that his cousin had crashed, though he was still disturbed by his restless sleeping. Soon after that the sleep-talking began.
There was a garbled response to Jasper's question, so Jasper rose from his bed and headed over to Henry's side. He began to hear some things, mostly babbling, but there were other things he was sure he heard loud and clear.
"Maggie..." Henry said, and Jasper furrowed his brow. If there were ever a time to get some answers from Henry it was now when he really had no inhibitions. It wasn't fair to Henry; Jasper understood that, but it really wasn't fair of his cousin to keep things from him, especially if Maggie was involved.
"What about Maggie?" Jasper asked readily.
He heard Henry sigh in his sleep, and his face contorted in some pain before transforming into a serene smile.
"Maggie, Maggie, she's wonderful, beautiful...but I can't..." The rest was quiet and unintelligible, but Jasper could tell this his cousin's feelings were clear.
"...love her, but Jasper..." He heard him say in a breathy garble.
"What?"
"...Sorry," he said quickly, and then Jasper heard a loud snore and he knew there would be no more conversations with a sleep-talking Henry that night. Jasper didn't know what to ask him anyway without shaking him at the same time. He was hurt, but he was also mad.
Henry did love Maggie, even though he said he would try not to go for her. Jasper didn't know if his cousin had made his move yet, but Jasper didn't believe there was no reason not to. Unless...Henry had felt guilty enough that he held back. If that was the case, Jasper didn't know if he wanted his cousin to do that for him, out of pity or chivalry or whatever. Still, his cousin was hiding something, and Jasper suspected there could be more.
He bit his lip and crawled back into his bed, groaning that the cool air in the house was tepid again, and the heat was already causing him sweat.
As he glared up at the ceiling, Jasper's thoughts scrambled around in his head like his head like a hornet's nest, and he knew once he woke up and saw Henry's face that tomorrow would present an interesting morning.
-x-
Jasper was surprised. Henry didn't ambush him that afternoon when they both got home from school. He hadn't even hung around to ask for a ride home, and Jasper assumed rather heatedly that Henry probably got a ride home from Maggie. Instead of expecting Henry to dog him immediately, Jasper had to go find him, and of course, Henry was hiding away on the roof, melodiously beating on his drums. Jasper poked his head out of their bedroom, saw his cousin's lack of attention, and he cleared his throat.
Henry turned around and smiled cautiously at him.
"So you wanted to fight with me," Jasper said condescendingly.
"Talk, Jasper. I wanted to talk not fight," Henry said, trying to sound calm, and this time, it appeared that his temper had cooled. (Which was probably a good thing because Jasper didn't even want to think about the things Henry could probably do to him if he were mad.)
"If this is about Madison, dude, you gave her up," Jasper said and Henry was already shaking his head, so Jasper bluntly added, "You have Maggie so I think it's only fair I get Madison."
Henry's eyes went wide, and Jasper noticed he immediately looked guilty. "That's what I wanted to talk about." He paused, pursing his lips and taking a deep breath. "How did you know about us?"
Jasper felt an ache in the pit of his stomach. "Actually," he said in a very quiet tone, "I was bluffing a little bit. I didn't know...I assumed, and I heard you talking in your sleep last night."
Henry looked crestfallen, and he tore his eyes away from Jasper's gaze. "I admit, I didn't want things to get like this between us, and even though you said you didn't like her, I knew that you really did. I tried to hold back," he pleaded. Jasper watched him stand up and come back to the window. He moved out of the way, letting his cousin come back inside their room. Henry approached him rather closely, and Jasper could tell he was hurt and regretted a lot of things. Still, Henry's admission did nothing to quell his anger. Jasper frowned at him.
"Dude, really? I've liked her all this time, and you swoop in just like that, and you expect me to be okay with this? I thought we were friends!" Jasper yelled at him.
"We're more than friends, Jasper! We're family, and trust me I didn't want things to come to this. I tried resisting these feelings, and it would have been a lot easier if Maggie hadn't come to me."
Well, that hurt, Jasper thought. Henry wasn't the only guilty party in this. Maggie had liked him too, which Jasper had initially feared. Maggie liked Henry more than she liked him, and she was giving Henry the kinds of feelings he'd always wanted. Jasper wanted to jump off a bridge right about now.
"Look," Henry said, coming closer to him. Jasper could feel the heat rolling off Henry's body as his hands rested on his shoulders. Jasper froze, and idly, he remembered the dream about them, of the intimacy and love that the three of them had found together. He felt his blood turn cold, and then Henry tried to draw him into an embrace. "I'll stop this if you want it. I won't let things with Maggie continue any further."
Jasper couldn't let Henry embrace him. He was sure he'd cave after that. He'd give into Henry's loving touch and let him say anything, and then they both would be miserable; he'd lose Maggie and Jasper would too, in a way, and things would still never be the same. They had already changed this much.
"No!" Jasper snapped, pushing him away. He didn't dare look into Henry's eyes; he didn't think he could handle his pain from the rejection. "Just...just forget it. Do what you want," he said, and he turned away, storming out of their room and presumably, as Henry heard him scoop up and jangle his car keys, leaving their house for an angry drive.
-x-
Henry stared at the sidewalk, watching his feet as he walked onward to no real destination. For some reason, unconsciously his feet brought him across town and in front of the National Museum Complex and his school. He looked up at the building. Maybe a quick scaling of the walls would make him feel better?
He sighed. He knew right away that it wouldn't.
"Henry, is that you?" He spun around to a familiar voice and met the eyes of the one person caught in the middle of this whole mess.
"Maggie," he said, only slightly surprised. "What are you doing here?"
Maggie tilted her head, and he could feel her gauging his emotions. She came closer, her lips turning into a frown. "I was in the library doing research on Mrs. Farah's artifacts and the history of all her exhibits. It appears that some of her stones had been stolen recently, so she had right to be suspicious; however, none of those stones were as high profile as the Inanna stone." She paused, and Henry closed his eyes as her hand reached out, tracing a soft line down his arm. "What's wrong?"
"Jasper and I had a fight," Henry answered. "About you and me."
Chapter Thirteen