Author: Restive Nature
Genre: Crossover
Type: WiP
Shows: Dark Angel and Supernatural
Disclaimer: Neither show represented in this fiction belongs to me. Dark Angel is the product of Cameron/Eglee and Fox, whereas Supernatural is the product of Kripke and The CW. No profits are made from this fiction and it is intended for private enjoyment only.
Story Rating: PG-13
Timeline/ Spoilers: This story is a companion piece to “When It Changes”.
Setting: Takes place between Chapter 23 & 24
Pairing: None
Summary: A series of vignettes. A collection of hunting trips.
The Diary of John Winchester
Name: Lorraine Guardipee
Classification: skin walker/ shape shifter
Description: person with the power to change into the form of an animal (in this case, a bear)
Lore Reference: nearly every culture has shape shifter lore. Many Indian tribes believed that some shamans could become the animal if they wore an unblemished whole skin.
Encountered At: Mobridge, South Dakota
Specific Attacks: animal, bear- claws, teeth and crushing blows
Kill By: legend suggested that damaging the hide of the skin walker when not being worn, would destroy the power. Burning was extremely effective.
Personal Notes: We weren’t sure at first that this was our kind of job. The only thing we had to go on was the complete absence of the animal supposedly committing the attacks. The tracks would get to a certain point and then completely disappear. Because one of the attacks occurred in the week leading up to the full moon, we suspected for a time that it could be a werewolf, but not all the attacks lined up that way.
Upon searching the forest, we found markings indicating as official reports did, a bear. Not wanting to risk an attack, we tried to return to town. Unfortunately the bear found us first. Dean and I managed to get off a few shots when it attacked unprovoked. Wounded, the bear backed off and we got the hell out of there.
Back in town, we got a list of addresses and the kids worked their charm and got the complete list of witnesses. (Apparently some had asked to remain anonymous.) Matching up these lists, we found several candidates who own summer cabins just in and at the edge of the forest. Those we put at the top of our list. With that done, we headed of to the first name, L. Guardipee. She was wary of talking to us, posing as (Max’s idea) an animal behaviorist accompanied by South Dakota Fish & Wildlife officers. All we were able to discover was that Ms. Guardipee was a year round resident and that she’d seen nothing. But as we were leaving, Max caught site of a bearskin rug in the woman’s bedroom. She commented on the texture and pristine condition. Ms. Guardipee was very happy to tell us that it had been in her family for several generations. According to family history, when her mother’s people were down at the river, fishing and washing a bear came to the river to drink. It was apparently a young male just coming into its prime. It was not bothered by the number of people there. After it had drunk its fill, it turned to Ms. Guardipee’s great-grandmother. The bear came towards her and then with no warning, fell at her feet, dead. The shock of this huge animal approaching her caused the woman to go into labor. After her son was born, her mate returned with the bear skin. Their shaman had announced that their child must carry enormous magic and this was the tribe’s first gift to the child. The skin had been in the family ever since.
As she told us this story, Max was looking over the bearskin. I knew she looked upset over something, but she said nothing about it. She simply complimented Ms. Guardipee for keeping it in good shape. Ms. Guardipee then revealed that it wasn’t always a sure thing. There had been an incident when she had laid the skin before the fireplace. As will happen, an ember rolled loose and landed on the fur. Ms. Guardipee thought that she wasn’t quick enough to get the ember back to the stone hearth. She soaked down the rug to prevent any smoldering, and then took it outside to hang dry. But the next morning, when she was preparing to rework the skin, she could find no evidence of the ember. Ever since she has kept it in her bedroom, or as colder nights call for, on her bed, to prevent further mishaps. We all agreed that it was a lucky break and took our leave.
Back at the car, Max told us that she suspected that Ms. Guardipee was the skin walker. She found 4 holes at the outer edges of the skin and 1 in the arm. But when Ms. Guardipee had finished her story, Max could only see 2 holes and they had diminished slightly in size. She believed that these holes corresponded with the rock salt wounds that Dean and I made previously on the bear. On the pretext of having dropped his keys somewhere, Dean returned to the cabin to ask Ms. Guardipee if he could look around for them. When he returned, he showed us the readings he took, which indicated that the skin was indeed infused with something. Dean pretended to find his keys by the car and we left.
Back at town we loaded up for bear and headed back out. We kept in mind that Ms. Guardipee might not be aware that on colder nights, by sleeping under the skin that she could be joining with it to become the creature. On the other hand, she may have been fully aware. But when we arrived at her cabin at dusk, she and the rug were gone. We were reluctant to confront the bear again, but human screams compelled us. We found the bear, towering over another woman. Knowing that the animal retreated when wounded, we shot to wound first. Thankfully the animal backed off immediately and we were able to get the woman to safety.
We tracked the bear back to Ms. Guardipee’s cabin. Sure enough they were one and the same. As we watched the bear was clawing at its chest and after a few minutes’ struggles, the seam bringing the edges together came apart and Ms. Guardipee emerged. She appeared exhausted and disoriented. She was startled when we made ourselves known. Max and Dean actually had the presence of mind to use Max’s cell phones to record the transformation. (That never would have occurred to me. I didn’t even know that phone could DO that!) Presented with this evidence and seeing for herself the self-healing wounds on the bear skin, Ms. Guardipee had little choice but to accept the truth. She asked us to get rid of the skin. We burned it in her trash barrel immediately, then scattered the ashes in several clearings.
Add. – While we were able to bring this case to a close, we found that there is still ample evidence that people just can’t accept the truth that’s out there. Seeing Ms. Guardipee in town, the next day, we were completely ignored. Dean griped about how she didn’t even thank us. Max just laughed and said that it was human nature for people to bury their heads in the sand or find some way of rationalizing what they saw or simply just forgetting it.
I had the feeling that she wasn’t just talking about Ms. Guardipee.
Entry: Gillette, WY
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