Author: Apenamee
Title: The Reference of Dr. Sapien
Genre: Romance
Disclaimer(s): Based on Hellboy, by Mike Mignola and
Guillermo del Toro. Characters written were based on
the movie. Please do not use Wen for any fan fiction.
Summary: Dr. Sapien finds a novel way to organize his
books.
Archive: Here
Feedback: penamed@yahoo.com

The Reference of Dr. Sapien

Volume One

A Man, A Plan

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Soldiers-of-fortune and adventurers; I grew up with them. Mom met dad while she was translating intercepted messages from our countries enemies - or enemies at the time. Now, my brothers try to best each other with their next, more dangerous assignment. I don't want any part of it.

I've listened to the stories, but had none of my own. I'm strong and smart - and I've never accomplished much of anything at all.

My job is the farthest I could get, from danger, and from my family. I'm just the ' barista', wiping down the counter at the local coffee bar.

So, sit down with a cup and tell me your story.

I'd love to hear it.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

I came in from the back, sorting through tea boxes. The black-haired girl was at her favorite table, books carelessly spread around her. Many more books than usual, and they were very interesting ones, too. Usually, she had just one book, held rather tightly up to her face. I had to go over and see what she was involved in.

I wiped a few tables by her, then asked, "What are you reading today?". I find if I treat her nicely, I can get past her sometimes surly attitude.

"I have some studying to do before the wedding. My husband's a Catholic," she mumbled.

"Congratulations on the wedding. Are you a Believer?"

She looked up, and put in a bookmark to keep her place. "After the things I've seen, I don't have enough faith not to."

I tried to ignore the last comment. I've kept company with combat vets, and heard stories about what you see on the battlefield. Maybe she was a soldier. I didn't want to cause her any stress, it's bad for business.

I looked down at the books. "What a beautiful Bible. May I see it?" She nodded yes, and placed it in my hands. The bible had a delicate leather cover, very soft to the touch.

"It's made from fish skin", said the girl. From the way she smiled, I guessed this must have been some kind of joke.

I opened the pages and read its dedication. "To my dear friend, In this sad time, remember your Father's love. Abe" This was written in a delicate old-fashioned script. No young man would write like that, but an elderly man couldn't make strokes that skillfully. Was he an illustrator?

"Spenserian Method. This Abe must be an artist," I said.

"Kind of," she laughed.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

At dusk, the next day, I walked up to the bar to start my shift. I turned back to look at a van parked on the street. It had small silvered windows on its side. There was a sound coming from it - no, maybe not. But something... I felt a pull toward it, but I broke my gaze to turn, and push my way in the door.

I saw the black-haired girl sitting by the counter. She brightened and sat up, obviously waiting for me.

Oh-oh. "How are you today? Did you lose something the last time you were here? I don't recall seeing any stray ..." I spoke nervously. Usually no one really notices me unless I want them to. I wondered what I had done to gain attention.

But she had a smile on her face, in an attempt to relax me." My friend Abe wants to meet with you. He has a job proposal," she said, "if you are interested."

Oh, that was all.

"OK." I'm game, at least to talk, and she had seemed harmless so far. So, I'd meet the old guy with the strong penmanship.

"Aren't you going to ask me any questions?" she said.

"Umm, no."

She shook her head, as if in disgust. "Come outside, he's in the van."

Oh no, not good. "Maybe I should ask more - is this legal? It matters to me."

"Government work is always legal, isn't it?" She delicately smirked. I walked out with her to the van with the silver windows.

I just can't seem to get away from spooks.

"Please get in," said a voice. The two men in the front seats had that jolly company man look. They could tell I was about to run back into the bar. Before I could, he spoke again. "You don't have to worry, this really IS a job interview, and you may in fact find it quite worthwhile." The cultured voice came from the back, and I felt calmed. I was compelled to get in the van, to see this thing through. I gathered my courage.

"I don't like spook work" ... the driver chuckled at this ... "but I think I'd like very much to talk to you," I said into the window.

The side door slid open. "Please sit quickly in the nearest seat. Don't turn around."

I did as asked. "I've seen a lot. If you look different, I won't care". The driver laughed out loud at my comment. He started the van and pulled away from the curb. "Hey, I've got to stay right by the bar!" I yelled. "Don't drive away!"

The black-haired girl tried to calm me. "I talked to your boss before you came in. They think you're going off with the police for awhile." The police come to pull me out of my job - well, that was amusing. It was almost worth a smile.

"Sit and talk with Abe, it could be just what you're looking for."

Was I looking for something?

The voice came again from behind me. "I need an assistant, to research, and help me with various, tasks. You would spend a great deal of time reading ... organizing a library of some very rare books. You would be living at our - offices, at least for a few months. But the job would last for as long as you wanted, your whole life, in fact."

Why so much secrecy for a clerk job? Who was this guy, and was his voice old or young?

"My age doesn't matter, as Miss Sherman can tell you."

I was caught short. Suddenly a hand was placed by my neck, and the back of my cheek. Cool, and a bit moist too.

"Close your eyes, and I can show you more." Strange thing to say, but well, OK. - and then thoughts came into my mind. The thoughts not from me. This was impossible.

"Here we are, back safe and sound," the driver said as he stopped the car. Everyone sat quietly as Abe Touched me. When he removed his hand, I silently opened the door next to me and got out. I went into work, without looking back.

"Do you want me to talk to her?" Liz asked Abe.

"No thank you Liz. She has already said yes." The van politely beeped until someone closed the door.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Visions were piled up in my head. Abe was just - fascinating. Whatever he looked like, heart, soul and mind, he was quite the man. I knew why the whole thing was so secret. And to actually find a job for life. "Then, that kind of job is always for life. Until they are done with you." I shook my head. The things he showed me... fighting for good against evil, it was as simple as black and white to them. The job was too interesting to pass up. I wondered how hard I'd have to work, how dangerous it might be. I didn't mind guns. They were a part of my life as I grew up. I was a fair shot, but I couldn't shoot anyone. I hoped that wouldn't be part of the job.

Abe had lived for so long, a legacy of his fish DNA. But such a fresh outlook on life, always gently amused. His touch was, more than simple. How much had he taken out of my mind, while we were connected? How much could I hide from him? I could see every time he Touched me, my mind would fall open, the contents spilling out before him.

My dreams were filled with the images he had given me.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

I gave my notice at both my apartment, and the coffee bar. I told everyone I had a real job offer, and that I would get in touch soon. My family was told I had been recruited for some secret-ops work." But if I tell you what it is, I'll have to kill you." My feeble joke didn't go over well. They checked up on me with friends at the agency, and were told nothing of value.

I rented a storage locker, paid the year in advance, and went back to my empty apartment to sit and wait. They had given me a beautiful cell phone, thankfully without any silly ring tones. I sat looking at it until it trilled.

"Yes?" I answered stress-fully. Sometimes your body is scared, even when you are not. I hoped the person on the other end of the line couldn't tell how chicken I was.

It was Abe. "Someone is coming to pick you up now. I have to tell you... you will need to be drugged before they can take you in, for security reasons. I'm sorry."

I bit the urge to back out. "I'll accept that. I'd still be free to leave if I wanted to?"

"Hence the security. But this really is not such a serious situation as you feel it to be. You have no need to be frightened." He knew that? Busted. " Thank you for telling me sir", I said. "You should call me Abe, Wen." he answered. "We will be working closely together. I will see you soon."

A knock came on the door. I swung it open rather hard.

"Please come in gentlemen. Here is my luggage. Do I get a pill, or a needle?"

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

I knew it was Abe's hand was on my forehead. My eyes were closed. There was the smell of history in the room. It was pleasant, expensive.

"Rest here on the couch until you feel steadied. The sedative should leave you quickly."

I opened my eyes. There were several agents in the room, along with Abe. Although he had shown me what he looked like, this was my first chance to see him with my eyes. Yeah, this could be a very hard job not to mess up. I looked past him, and saw the room was as expensive as it smelled.

"This, is my library." he waved his hand with a flourish.

It was also a mess. Books and scrolls were stacked one upon another, without care, and in piles along the floor. "Au weh!" I muttered.

I put my arms on the chair, and managed to stand up.

"I'll show you your quarters, miss." an agent gestured to show me the way.

Abe gestured the same. "When you return, I will be in my tank." A tank? I turned around to see it. So that was Abe's living quarters. He didn't have much privacy.

"I don't care much for privacy, Wen."

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

It was a storage room. A bed had been placed in it. My luggage was piled on the bed, and some of it had been opened, and searched. I must have been appalled because the agent coughed back a snort.

"Do I get to sleep with the cleaning supplies?" I started to laugh, so that he could too. I looked around. At least there was a sink, but I needed a mirror, and...

"Umm, the bathroom, a shower?" I asked.

"I'll show you. It's down the hall."

The bathroom and shower were large, clean - and unisex. "Is this the only...?"

The agent's head shot down for a second, and then he glanced up at me. "We usually don't have a problem with that. Of course, we're mostly guys here. I suppose you could take a bath in the tank."

I looked for a smirk, but his face was carefully neutral.

"This will be fine. Will you excuse me?" I stared at him. He shifted his feet, then turned his head away when I started to unbuckle my belt. Don't ever call a girl's bluff, I thought. You never know hat we'll do.

"You know your way back?" He asked as he left the bathroom, never looking back.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

As soon as I crossed the threshold of the library, Abe motioned me over to the tank. "Was everything satisfactory? Do you have any special needs?"

Well, I really don't want to take a shower in the boy's bathroom.

"There is a bathroom and shower in my infirmary. As my assistant, you may use it anytime. I'll give you the key." he replied.

"Do I need to talk, or will you listen to my thoughts?"

"I'm sorry. Does that disturb you? You may talk if you wish."

"I'll try talking for now." I honestly didn't know if it disturbed me or not, however there was no way I could completely censor my thoughts. He must have been prepared for that.

No answer from him. "What do you want me to do first?" I scanned the room.

"Do you see those eggs on the table? Please be so kind as to put a few through the pneumatic tube." I came up to the table. Half a dozen olive green eggs were lying in a bowl, tongs next to them. I gritted my teeth against the smell. I put in three eggs, and secured it. A second later, they appeared in the tank with Abe.

"You eat them?" I wondered a bit about his humanity. Of course, some of my family's foods would make outsiders think the same thing.

Abe laughed. "If you come up to the tank, I can show you how they taste, to me." He swam close to the glass, and put up his hand. I stepped up, and knew to place my hand on the other side. He Thought to me. They tasted like olives, and fermented bean curd. Alright, but ... Our hands remained on the glass together. His face was like a child's, no, like an elderly gentleman's. I stared into his eyes - shadows moving in the ocean.

He pulled away and I started. There was a siren call deep in his thoughts.

"Please pull out four books and place them on the stands. I will ask you to turn the pages frequently. Take a book for yourself. You must know all of them."

I turned away and looked at the teetering piles. "Any books, or am I to look for certain ones?"

"Any books will do." He slowly swam around.

I picked one up, then grabbed three more, and placed them on the stands. I picked up another, and opened it to find a presidential journal. I didn't recognize the name.

I'm not good with history, but I would have guessed this president had never been known even by most history professors. Well maybe a few. Spells, blood sacrifice, it read like a horror novel! Awful.

"Ah! 'The Secret President's Journal'. That is not a fictional book." said Abe.

"It's appalling. You showed me what you deal with, but this is..."

"This is the enemy we fight. You won't always find evil appealing, and it's better for your survival when you don't. Please, come open the books for me."

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

I went to bed late that night, laying down on the bare mattress, not even caring if there were any sheets. My mind hurt with the images I had read. I would rather have eaten a green egg than to touch those books. How these people must have been battle-scarred by what they dealt with. They kept us safe, and we never even knew. I couldn't help but cry.

I soon fell asleep. Thankfully my dreams were much more pleasant.

I was busy serving steaming drinks at the coffee bar. A soft melody, an ambient trance was floating in a mist through the air. People were having a good time, softly talking. Couples were stroking each other, kissing. Someone pressed up against my back, touched my neck. A blue hand reached around to caress me.

I woke up. And I knew, in his tank, Abe woke up too.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

The next few weeks, I learned more - food preparation, cleaning the tanks, where to take my laundry. Thank goodness I could use my own bedclothes. I wasn't the homey type, but the room needed a human touch.

I took many of the cleaning supplies outside and stacked them up in the hall so that I didn't have to look at them. This did not go over well. Abe had to reprimand me. "Your position as my assistant does come with certain privileges, but we are very cramped for space. Please put the supplies back in your room." I could tell he was secretly amused, by the sly half smile that crossed his face momentarily. I hung sheets over the shelves.

Abe ate what was prepared for him, and was always gracious, but I could tell he didn't like much of it. What a gentleman. I sent out for food from various ethnic markets, and ate it first to make sure it was palatable to him. He tried looking into my mind for things that tasted good to him, but we found that our likes/dislikes merged, blurring his ability to discriminate. Some foods he had to spit out quickly.

I liked almost every food I tried, but I wouldn't eat bugs. If they were next on the menu, Abe was on his own.

Abe Showed me the other agents working for the department, normal and "freaks", as he so affectionately called them. I learned why Liz was so sad. I found out about her husband.

"Red", as he was known, was just plain funny. I would not have been surprised to see him in fatigues, dog tag hanging from his neck. He was almost as scary as my brother's friends. Abe was very fond of him.

Was he a fallen angel? But fallen angels have no redemption. Was he part human?

And how to catalog the books? Non-demonic and demonic? Ordered by century? Alphabetically? If I ordered them that way, what would I do with the ones not written in any known alphabet? Abe soon told me I was to become his 'reference catalog'. He would then be in my mind, all the time.

He had me look at everything, turning page by page and staring, even when I couldn't understand the words. The pictures were either beautiful, or more often, disgusting and depraved, the worst I had ever seen.

Most of them were collected by a man I had been led to believe was quiet and mild. What could have the Professor have been made of, inside, to keep these books so close to him?

Abe was quite a talker, sometimes going on for hours. I would have thought someone able to enter another person's mind wouldn't need so many words. He sounded as though no one had ever taken the time to listen to him.

He began to read less and less, taking pictures from my mind instead. Sometimes I felt as if he was rearranging my head. I could sit and rest my eyes, while his hand hovered inches from my forehead. I tried hard to control my thoughts.

I thought what he heard, he chose to ignore, but I was wrong.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Another late night, and I was only a little way past the first piles of books; so much hard work ahead of me. My arms were getting sore from turning pages, my eyes reddening, neck stiff. I leaned upward, stretching my arms to rub the back of my neck. Should I ask my boss for a back rub?

"Wen, please take a rest". Abe was out from his tank, fully clothed in his wetsuit and respirator, gloves in hand. He was an arm's length from me.

I've got to stop those stray thoughts. I turned away and closed my eyes. "Yes, Abe."

As I was sitting, he reached out to touch my hair. He lightly stroked it. "I would not have known a person's hair was so, sensitive". Abe mirrored the sensation back to me. It was overwhelming, warming down my body. Suddenly his hand shot back. I blushed deeply.

Abe was genuinely flustered. "I'm so sorry! I had no intention of such an intimate thing! I ..."

I was surprised at his naivety.

"Putting yourself into my mind and taking things out is really quite intimate by itself. But it's up to you, whatever else you think is proper."I waited for him to reply, still sitting in the chair.

He reached out his hands and took my hair, stroking it up from the nape of my neck. His mind amplified my feelings, flashing them back into me. They came back to me with more intensity. He took them, and passed them back to me again. Again. Like a wave, with more power in them. Again.

He was caught in the wave, his own feelings suddenly flooding into me, a strangeness so powerful. "Too much, too much..." I whispered. How could he not know? It ignited me.

He turned abruptly and left. I was alone in the library, with no way to stop what was happening inside.

It's so unfair, I thought to myself. But, he only really touched my hair. We didn't... Well, what do you call it then? I never got the chance to say yes or no; I was so easy. He had me from his first Touch. Of course he hadn't known THAT would happen. Or was that why he left...

And then, I knew without a doubt he'd never been with a woman before. Naive or not though, sex was sex. If that was where he wanted to take us, I would need to be married.

I got up with shaky legs, and looked at the tank, but he wasn't there. No, this had to have an ending one way or another. If that was the way he felt inside, I couldn't stop either, but I wouldn't be able to have a casual affair. I'd already been heartbroken by that sort of thing, and I didn't care to go through that again.

I picked up a pen and paper from the desk. I went up to the tank opening and tacked the paper to the wall. "I WANT TO KEEP WORKING FOR YOU" I wrote. Then I said out loud,"Cross out the 'KEEP WORKING FOR' ".

No wait. "And cross out the, 'TO' ".

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

"Red, do you have a moment? I need some, advice." Abe appeared at his door.

"Come on in." Advice? From me? Red was already stumped. "Sit down." He gestured at a chair full of dishes.

Abe cleared the chair and sat down, narrowly missing a cat."I just overstepped the boundaries, with Wen".

"And what's the problem?". Red hoped she hadn't hurt Abe's feelings.

"It happened too fast. I made a pass at her. Then I made a bigger one. Then I left."

Red dropped, then fumbled for his cigar.

"What did you do?''

"I touched her hair, maybe a bit more."

"Did you put your hands in the wrong place?"

"No, not my hands... no! I didn't really touch her."

Poor guy. He was even more old-fashioned than I thought, Red said to himself. "What did she do?" Did she know how Abe was put together?

Abe ducked his chin. "She enjoyed it VERY much."

"How about you?" Red leaned forward. He hoped Wen wasn't being patronizing. "I know you made a beeline for her after you touched my bible. Do you think she feels the same way?"

"Yes, I know she does, but, I wanted to give it more time. My physiology is such that, well there are changes that happen very quickly. They may be hard to control."

Red wasn't sure what he meant. Was Abe darker than normal?

Hmm. "Hey pal, que sera, sera." he spread his hands out, then stuck his cigar back in his mouth. Red reached around behind him. "Here's your wedding present." He handed a kitten to Abe.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Abe walked back to his tank. On the floor lay the note. Abe crouched, his hand floating down like a leaf to touch it. His head shot up. He rose and walked to Wen's room.

She was sleeping on her side. Abe came closer, and slid into her dreams.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

I walked along the dark sidewalk near work. It was evening, and light rain coated my face. Pedestrians glided around me, black beetles in raincoats.

I saw the man standing at the door, staring at me through the mist. His eyes had the ocean's shadows - they pulled at me. We were in the hall, the door closing behind me. He turned to face me. His black slicker was wet with rain. Shadows reached toward me, hidden by the brim of his hat.

We were in my room. I slid my hands inside his coat, wet, revealing his brilliant tiger stripes; gold, black, deep blue. Orange spots, three of them, on either side of his stomach muscles. I stretched up against them and kissed him as hard as I could.

He put his lips to my ear. "I can feel you sing."

I woke up. A dim blue light filled the room. I looked next to me, and saw Abe. He was brilliantly colored, as I had just seen him. "You were in my dream! We..."

He nodded.

Desire and fear welled up in me. If he did more than touch my hair this time, well, how much farther could a girl go without damage?

"Wen, I won't hurt you." He leaned over me to kiss me. His mouth tasted of fresh water. His hand slid over my breasts, then down my stomach, resting there.

Let my mind into yours. Open up, Wen.

Suddenly, pleasure stabbed through me; I couldn't breathe. His alien thoughts poured in too quickly, and overwhelmed me. Blue lights darted across the ceiling. Next to me Abe strained, head thrown back, mouth open as if in a silent scream. He was affected as dramatically as I was.

Finally, I could move again, and tried to sit up. Abe groaned weakly, and pulled his hand off my stomach. I felt under my tank top, finding small circular welts starting to rise. His suckers had adhered right through the fabric. My face was wet. I put my hand up to wipe away the sweat, but it wasn't sweat. It was blood.

Abe felt my shock, and took my face in his hand. "Your nose is bleeding!" He got up. "I'll take you to the infirmary".

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

"You have hemorrhaged a bit. It's not serious though." Concern crossed his face, and flashed out from his mind to me whenever he touched me, to clean me up. He could not have been more sorry.

I was sitting on the exam table, still stunned."I have a headache - my goodness, did you know it would happen like that?" I wanted to touch him. I was afraid, not of pain, but of not being able to withstand his intensity. He was so much tougher than me.

"I have never done this, with anyone." He said.

We sat in silence, staring at nothing.

Am I still your assistant? I had to say it. "Abe, I can't do this unless we are married, and you are more careful. Next time I won't hold back."

He almost laughed, then handed me a painkiller and a glass of water. "No courtship, I'm afraid. It needs to be done quickly." He sounded a bit desperate. Abe felt the same as me - I had read him correctly, or it had leaked out of his mind? He put a hand on either side of the table next to my legs, and Read me.

Can I kiss you? I asked,"without the mind thing." He leaned forward, and I kissed him like I had in my dreams.

He knew I would.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Abe's brilliant skin tones had remained. Those at the bureau who were serious fishermen knew why. I could tell how curious everyone was about the intimate details of the 'new couple', but no one guessed what sort of things could really happen between us.

Liz had an inkling, but didn't ask. Sometimes I saw the question on her lips. She had gotten plenty of grief in that area because of her union with Red, and so let me off the hook.

While Abe was in spawn, I kept my distance. We married the next day, only Red and Liz in attendance. My wedding present was not a kitten, but a light blue wetsuit.

Immediately after, the team was called away on a mission, without Abe and I even being able to spend a wedding night. That at least gave me time to heal. When my mind was properly formatted, I would join them as Abe's Reference.

I was apprehensive about Abe's field work; I had already lost one husband to combat. As much As I hated doing anything dangerous, I'd rather be there with him, in case...

I busied myself in the library to pass the time. I decided to use various kinds of music to organize the books in my mind. Obscure history books I tagged with bollywood tunes. Books on relics and catholic matters I of course used Gregorian chants. His most important books I tagged with sambas, as it seemed to match the sway of a wave.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

When the team came back, Abe busied himself in the infirmary, removing Red's bandages where his kneecap had been chewed. The bite marks had all but disappeared. The Doctor cleaned him up efficiently to hurry him out the door.

Red kept trying to bring something up, but couldn't find the proper words. He finally just said, "good luck, pal", and left.

I came into the room and locked the door. "Abe, I'm going to take a shower." I crossed the room, just out of reach, and went into the bathroom.

As soon as I heard the door open, I turned the temperature down. Soon I was drowning, shivering in the lukewarm rain. It was wonderful.

We took it very, very slow, just to be safe.

I slept at times in my room. Most often however, I would carry my pillow and comforter to the library, and sleep next to the tank. Abe went into spawn about four times a year. At other times, well, I'm easy to please.

All it takes is a Touch.

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