Tuath Dé ocus Andé

***

A leader is one who, out of madness or goodness, volunteers to take upon himself the woe of the people. There are few men so foolish, hence the erratic quality of leadership in the world. 

John Updike

***

Mab's insane.

Literally.

Figuratively.

Absolutely.

Mad.

Mab/Marlowe has lost her mind. 

If she ever had one, to begin with.

She's the oldest thing alive, aside from the planet itself and maybe a handful of trees, and she has her own magical kingdom to rule as she pleases. There's literally no one there that would ever argue with her. It bends and forms itself to her will.

So why she has this weird obsession with the human world is beyond the understanding of most of her people.

Those that don't share it anyway.

Carlton doesn't understand, but he's trying because figuring out why she's here is the best way to figure out how to get rid of her.

It could be as simple as the grass is always greener, but Mab abhors simple. 

She wants something, and Carlton's not sure if he wants to let her get it or not.

He had forgotten, though, the pull of her.

He knows who she is despite the fact that she's blond and awkward now. 

There's a calculation to it all: the stumbling, the shyness, and the sheer power in her blood that draws Carlton in like a moth to a flame.

They're playing a game no one else is aware of as they run into one another again and again. 

Turns out the poor kid with the blood disorder is one of Mab's experiments, and she's fond enough of him to find a way to get him care even though she's bored of him now.

Carlton wouldn't play along, except she starts asking questions about Juliet and Spencer and Guster, enough that all Carlton's carefully honed instincts start screaming like a fire alarm.

He plays along, which is easy to do. Mab is intoxicating when Carlton doesn't obsess over how dangerous she is. Their blood calls to one another, the attraction of power and if he can just keep her occupied long enough to get one step ahead, well, locking her up will help with that.

Carlton tries not to look too smug when they load her into the prison bus, and he imagines Mab's trying very hard not to look amused by it all.

There's no danger in prison for her other than the fact that she won't be able to walk out whenever she pleases, and no one's going to pay attention to anyone she fucks with in there.

Carlton imagines that's why no one shows up to kill him over the next few days.

Carlton coasts along on his victory for a few weeks, Malcolm and Hewett amused and patient as they watch from the shadows. 

Through their own power, they've managed to line their schedules up with his, and as they "work" (i.e. follow Carlton around), they get front-row tickets to the show that is Spencer, Guster, and now Juliet, who has progressed to the point of taking Shawn's word for gospel over Carlton's (that doesn't sting at all, he insists) and take to texting him hilarious observations at inappropriate times.

Carlton's hates them both, but not really.

He's just going to retire and become a hermit one of these days.

But not yet, because Mab keeps sending him love letters and calls from prison and is slowly, slowly giving him hints about what she really wants. he thinks he has enough to put the pieces together, but he's not ready to actually think about what it means.

Because Spencer, genius that he is, finds Juliet's father and oh boy, is that a whole new issue.

Frank O'Hara is a changeling. 

He's also not Juliet's biological father, but that's of a far less pressing concern right now.

Frank O'Hara is a changeling. Charming, clever, so unassuming that you get sucked right in.

Unfortunately, Carlton likes him.

Fortunately, Frank loves Juliet, and his desire to protect her is true, so when he returns one night and finds Carlton waiting in the shadow of his hotel room, he doesn't bother with the token protests of not knowing what he's talking about and gets right to explaining.

He's not Juliet's biological father. That Frank O'Hara ran afoul of a fae during a con, and since the Changeling needed a new face and a place to hide around the same time, he just took Frank's.

And stuck around. 

At least on and off.

As much as Carlton wants children of his own, he's starting to notice that changelings don't make great parents.

Fae, in general, don't make great parents, he realizes as he thinks back to his own father and the fact that Carlton still doesn't know his name and the many he's had to kill over the years. They spread their blood with no thought to its well-being, and Carlton can't imagine caring so little for something that is made from you.

Frank loves Juliet. 

At least as much as he's capable of. 

It's just…

It's painful because Carlton can see how it hurts Juliet. Her vibrant colors explode when she remembers the times he was there and then fade dramatically when she thinks about him leaving. She is simultaneously sure of her father's love for her and desperate to know why she wasn't enough.

If Carlton didn't like him so much, he'd shoot him.

Watching Spencer's painful attempts to convince the Changeling to change his ways is frustrating. Carlton can understand his reasoning. Spencer may not be psychic, but he's smart and well-trained and cares enough about Juliet to learn her. He knows she's hurt, though he probably doesn't understand the nuances of it. Spencer has the opposite issue with his father, and as much as he complains about him, Carlton knows he's never going to leave him behind. Henry Spencer is as entwined in his son's life as they both pretend he doesn't want to be, and the constant denial is driving Carlton to drink whenever he has to be in a room with them.

Spencer's determination is admirable, but in the face of fae blood, it means nothing. Frank plays the part well, making sure there's nothing left behind to stand between Spencer and Juliet and even some hope with his daughter before he scampers off to the next shiny object that's caught his interest.

Malcolm offers to kill him and just let him be missing for the rest of the time, but the way Carlton's luck is going, Spencer will dig him up again and open the whole can of worms without even realizing it.

Carlton does not need anyone else reappearing out of the ether, thank you.

Carlton deliberately stops paying attention for a while when he caches flashes of Spencer in a ring store and only tunes back in when he recognizes the scent of Despereaux's blood on the wind.

For fuck's sake.

Carlton's abilities to see into Changeling's is much weaker compared to what he can do with humans or even full blood fae. For some reason, the mixing of blood is another layer of protection that blurs his sight, but he gathers enough to know that, of course, Despereaux is lying and that he's somehow moved up a level from what he was before.

Some kind of new authority-

Oh.

That fucker.

Interpol.

Despereaux's glee makes Carlton's eye twitch, and he shoots him just to make a point.

Non-fatal, of course.

But painful enough to ensure he remembers what happens the next time he messes around in Santa Barbara.

Not that Despereaux's ever going to come back. The ripple of fear Carlton had felt when he'd mentioned Mab was in prison nearby had been so strong he'd nearly keeled over. 

Carlton doesn't think she's worth that much, but he also doesn't know the depth of Despereaux's history with her.

Nor does he care, too. 

He should have known better.

Despereaux skips town almost immediately after he finds out, and less than an hour after that, Carlton has a phone call from the jail.

Turns out Despereaux has legitimate reasons for being so scared because Mab isn't pleased to find out Carlton had him and let him go.

He took something that wasn't his to take, she says, and Carlton really, really doesn't want to know.

Knowledge is power.

And power is responsibility.

So, the less Carlton knows, the less he's responsible for. 

Whatever it was, Mab is still sore about it and lets him know at length. Though Carlton does laugh in her face when she says she expected him to think of her first.

You're not that important, he tells her.

You are one of mine, she hisses. I am your only concern.

We are not under the hill, Carlton hisses back, you have no power here.

I have power everywhere, she warns. There is no realm that is not mine if I wish it.

Expect mine, Carlton warns her, because Santa Barbara is his, and it will stay that way, and his refusal to back down is the first time he thinks he's seen something like respect in her eyes.

Carlton doesn't want much in life (that's a lie; he wants a lot, but he's not yet to the point where he can admit any of that out loud), but he does want his little corner of the world safe and secure, and he will fight even Mab herself for it.

It kind of sinks in after that.

While he's twitching from lack of sleep and his nut job neighbor and the two delusional fools that he loves and is exasperated by in equal measure.

And haunting, really?

It sinks in that some things are just not meant for Carlton.

Re: Shawn Spencer.

It doesn't matter how bright Spencer is.

How much he manages to light up the dark corners of Carlton's world. 

It doesn't matter how good Carlton could be for him or how good Shawn could be for Carlton.

Spencer doesn't choose him, and Carlton isn't willing to pick between Spencer and Juliet because that's what he'd have to do. One of them would never forgive him.

And Carlton would rather be the awkward third (fourth?) wheel but still in their orbit than have just one of them.

Huh….

Maybe he is too possessive?

Just a little.

Karen's been giving him the side eye more than usual lately. 

He knows why, but he's not saying shit unless Juliet asks him directly. He knew the week before that she'd found out and made a decision, though it takes her a few days to actually say anything to Spencer.

The devastation he dreams about lays him flat, and it's only Hewett rolling him out of bed that gets him to work on time, and he has to tiptoe around Spencer and Guster and Juliet for days until she finally tells Spencer her decision.

Henry getting shot is just…

The mint icing on the peppermint cake that is this year.

This is why people should just be alone.

***

Burton Guster is, contrary to all appearances, not a fool. He knows how to sell things, drugs, Shawn, common sense, and fake psychic visions. He knows how to dress well. He knows the best places to eat and what wine goes with what. 

He knows that as exasperating as Shawn Spencer is, it comes from a good place.

IT COMES FROM A GOOD PLACE!

It's become his affirmation on the days when Shawn is especially trying.

Regardless, Gus would never leave him behind.

Not even when he spends four straight days in Gus' apartment moping and then disappears for a week because he never stops to think about giving anyone a heads-up when the urge to run hits.

Shawn is, Gus thinks, a coward first and foremost.

The bravery comes after he's gotten that initial burst out.

His big heart makes up for it. 

But lately, Shawn's heart is taking a spectacular beating and Gus doesn't know how much more it can take before he just leaves and doesn't come back.

Gus doesn't want him to leave.

He likes Santa Barbara and his life, but both are infinitely improved when Shawn is there to drag him around into his nonsense.

The breakup with Juliet and Henry getting shot and his mother's return, and Gus is a sympathetic crier. 

Everyone knows this.

He's going to be seriously dehydrated soon.

Even when it looks like Juliet is coming around and she and Shawn are going to fix things, Gus is wary.

They love each other. Enough to make a life together that's happy and works for them both.

It's just….

It's too easy. Which is stupid because the only person with a more drama-filled relationship with Shawn than Juliet is Detective Lassiter.

And it's worth pointing out that Juliet's is nowhere near as bad as Lassiter's.

He sighs; that's not a train of thought he wants to dwell on right now. Or ever. Shawn's always been terribly flexible when it comes to his tastes and his issues and his desires and Gus has long since stopped trying to keep track. That way lies madness and all that.

That way is also littered with all the little things Gus has noticed that Shawn has logic'd his way out of thinking about.

For all that Shawn is creative and abhors rules and common sense, he's remarkably unwilling to believe in anything that isn't easily explainable. Gus is the one who follows all the supernatural blogs and the keeps track of the weird events that sometimes happen around Santa Barbara. Shawn loves to investigate, loves to follow his curiosity until it's sated, and he has an answer, and he's never doubted that that answer is going to be something simple. Something normal. 

Case in point: Bigfoot.

Gus is far more terrified of the possibility that Bigfoot is real than he is by what actually happens, not that that's not terrifying in its own right, because it is, but it's not as scary as an unknown race going completely undiscovered right next door.

Who knows how many of them there are!

And what they eat!

Gus is not comfortable with something being higher on the food chain than he is. He's low enough already!

But Shawn never really considered it possible, even if he played that he did to appease the kids.

Shawn likes puzzles to the point that the picture revealed at the end is inconsequential.

Gus is…..concerned that Shawn's going to solve the Juliet puzzle, and that'll be it. Because she's just as wrapped up in figuring out if this thing is possible after wondering for so long, and Gus just worries, alright. He's a worrier. It's one of his strengths.

And he's certainly exercising it lately, as Shawn and Juliet find their way back together, and this weird thing with Lassiter and his girlfriend turns into marriage.

Gus worries because he kind of likes Lassiter, even though he is absolutely convinced the man will kill them someday. Knowing Shawn, it'll be because they finally make him too angry to hold back.

The fact that it hasn't happened yet is impressive.

So, Gus worries, and he keeps worrying. Something doesn't sit right with Lassiter and his now wife, and it takes him a little while to figure out why. 

They fit together to well. Like they took notes on what would look best and are sticking to it now. But they watch one another out of the corner of their eyes whenever they think no one else is watching and not in the romantic, lovely-dovey, can't take my eyes off their way.

In the watching for a knife to the back kind of way.

But maybe that's just what they like? They are weird that way.

Everyone else is so distracted by Lassiter finally being in a stable relationship and Shawn and Juliet figuring things out that they miss it.

But Gus has spent so long watching Shawn's back that he doesn't.

He sees it.

And he's kind of worried about Lassy.

There's not many people that can keep up with Shawn, let alone keep him safe, and Lassiter has always occupied that weird grey area in between.

Gus needs him alive and sane enough to protect Shawn, if nothing else, and the more days go by, the more he thinks Marlow might be a threat to that.

Their kid is cute, though.

ooo000ooo

He's right, as it turns out, but it's still a bit before he finds that out.

And realizes exactly how right.

ooo000ooo

It all comes to a head very quickly.

Much more quickly than Gus is used to or ready for.

Trout is….well, he's an asshole.

Gus isn't sure if there's a way to work around him and his weird little vendetta (because that's what it is, no matter what the other man insists).

The run around with Interpol is a nice little break, as weird as it is to have to re-categorize Despereaux as a good guy, although he gets a weird little tick whenever they mention Lassiter that he won't explain.

But the return to Santa Barbara, the news of Lassiter's child, and Shawn's sudden, obsessive belief that Lassiter is dying sends them right back into the spiral.

That's when Gus notices that things are…weird between Vick and Lassiter. 

Neither of them seems all that keen on actually helping one another. Sure, they say the right things and play it up when the group is together and brainstorming, but…there's little to no follow-through. Lassiter doesn't brief Vick on certain things, and Vick doesn't make any calls on his behalf, and he catches them eyeing one another the way Lassiter and Marlow do when they think no one is looking.

Shawn is under the delusional belief that it will all right itself if they can just solve enough cases, right up until Vick announces that she's taking the job in the Bay Area and her assurances that she's put Carlton up for her job ring false. 

And here's the thing, Gus likes the Bay Area, aside from how stupidly expensive it is, it's not a bad place to go, not a bad career path for Juliet or a new start for Shawn and Juliet and Gus.

It's just not…Santa Barbara. 

And it's odd, but Gus has gotten to the point that he can't think about their weird little life group without Lassiter, who fawns over his new baby girl while her mother is absent more and more.

Something is weird there.

He tries asking Vick, utterly failing to be subtle to the point that she stops pretending to.

There are things you don't know, Mr. Guster. Dangerous things. You shouldn't trust Lassiter. You don't know what he is.

But…

But…

But Carlton calls them back in for cases once he finally makes Chief.

But Carlton bought Shawn's childhood home.

But Carlton invited them to visit whenever they wanted and let them hold Lily and only seemed amused when they talked baby talk and made funny faces.

He trusts them to watch her alone when he gets called in at the last minute, and Marlow is god knows where.

They have to call Henry for help because they don't want Carlton to find out that they don't know how to mix formula, and the googling just leads to more questions.

And it turns out Three Men and a Baby was a more accurate movie than any of them realized, but it's a comedy of errors that leads to happy, well-fed Lily reaching for her dad when he gets home and Carlton inviting them all to stay for dinner.

And Henry seems oddly comfortable in what's now Lassiter's house? 

And Lassiter stocks his favorite beer which is making Shawn twitch as it sinks in that Henry and Carlton stayed friends after they both told Shawn they wouldn't.

Gus has to excuse himself to laugh hysterically in the bathroom at Shawn's utter bewilderment.

Juliet calls frequently from the Bay, and Shawn starts making plans to move, which means Gus is moving too if he can't figure out a way to stop this train that's going off the rails.

The idea, when it comes to him, is so simple it's genius.

And he finds out, one terrifying night, that he returns to his half-packed apartment and finds two SBPD officers waiting for him in the dark, that he has allies.

Malcolm and Hewett are two of Lassiter's true friends, and Gus likes them, at least until they scare the shit out of him, and they all have the same goal.

Keep Lassiter, Juliet, Shawn, and Gus TOGETHER.

And they have the same weird eeriness to them in the half-light and the darkness that Lassiter has.

The strange too sharp, too-long edges make people wary even though they don't know what it is exactly.

They're fae, they explain. Changelings. Twisted half-blooded children of humans and those from beneath the hill, where magic reigns supreme under a Queen as cruel as she is merciful.

In this world, that rotten blood re-makes them into the monsters of lore, myths and rumors and scary stories made flesh.

Lassiter is one of them.

And like them all, he is incredibly possessive of those he considers his, and luckily for Gus' plans, he considers all of them his.

The fact that Lassiter is, in fact, psychic, after all this time, well, Gus passes out, and Malcolm and Hewett are kind enough not to tease him.

They look on, amused and quiet, as Gus celebrates that he was right all along and Shawn was wrong, wrong, wrong, and then they laugh as Gus realizes exactly what this means and promptly freaks out.

Just get Juliet and Spencer back here, they say, and we'll take care of the rest.

***

Six days later, Shawn and Juliet are back and horrified as they watch Lassiter go down with six rounds in his chest.

The first time in either of their lives, Gus and Henry's, that is, that they see Shawn Spencer stunned into silence is when Lassiter gets back up again.

Gus really should have asked what the plan was before he agreed.

~tbc~