grenegome | Fic: The Active, Springing From Energy (The Mentalist: Patrick Jane, Red John)

Title: The Active, Springing From Energy.
Fandom: The Mentalist
Rating: R
Characters/Pairing: Patrick Jane, Red John
Genre: Creepy Gen
Warnings: Red John. Themes of obsession. Depiction of canonical deaths. Misuse of Blake. Unbeta'd, as it's fairly short.
Spoilers: 2:23 Red Sky in the Morning
Disclaimer: The characters of the Mentalist in no way belong to me.
Summary: Red John's thoughts on the events of Red Sky in the Morning.
Notes: This one is totally ladyofpride's fault. She set me off thinking about the season finale.
Concrit: Very welcome.
Word Count: 726

Guns are clumsy. Guns are crude. They are instruments of power, and death, and whilst he has a certain fondness for both, they are not instruments of art. They cannot reveal the true things lurking beneath the skin in the way a knife can, because these things are delicate, and they must be teased out.

So he does not concern himself with guns. Usually. But as ever, Patrick Jane has no respect for John’s sensibilities. Patrick Jane demands that he is pragmatic, and responsive.

John has honed certain methods for his craft. They are his, and his alone, and they are as close to perfection as can be expected in an imperfect world. Periodically, he is forced to abandon them for Jane. Delightful, wilful Jane, who should not be permitted to wander this world without a keeper.

Usually, the CBI are sufficient for his safety. He endangers his life with startling frequency, and in some truly surprising ways, but that team of his are protective and reassuringly competent. They have brought him home safely from any danger that Jane’s own powers have been unable to quell.

Tonight they are absent, Jane’s skills are not sufficient, and John holds a gun.

He had expected acolytes. They were his due. But the juvenile parasites with the video camera do not please him. Their souls are dull, their brains are heavy, and they ape their betters clumsily.

They have Patrick Jane, restrained, and a stooge with a knife before him. They would waste the most promising canvas they could hope for, under the blade of a terrified youth spewing cliched lines from his fearful mouth. Amateurs that they are, they have not even adapted these lines to exploit Jane’s relationship with John.

It could be anybody, wrapped up in that chair.

The wrapping displeases him also. It does too much to hide Jane, when he is so adept at hiding already.

He works it out, of course. John smiles his heartfelt admiration into his mask as Jane calls them forth, the ghouls with their camera. Jane’s own words are more beautiful, more artful than anything these fools could hope to compose.

But the stooge lacks courage, and Jane cannot quite tempt him to rebellion. A pity, but a heroic attempt nonetheless.

John is forced to use the gun. He sighs as he shoots, and the three of them are thrown to the floor.

Jane, in a panic, manages to throw himself down also in that monstrous chair. John mutes his own amusement as he extinguishes the ghouls. He takes the opportunity to wet his knife, but he knows this is not art. It is a necessity. He will not be signing his work.

Jane trembles on the floor, making wild noises. He has not seen John yet, but John knows he understands. Jane would not gift this terror to another.

He should leave now. He should leave Jane lying on the floor, secure in his bonds and his ignorance.

But John wants proof. John wants to see Jane truly does understand, that he knows why he has been rescued.

John is not above the occasional harmless indulgence. A brief touch will not betray him, a word or two will not loose his secrets.

The poetry surprises him. It is fitting, he supposes, because Jane’s grace is worth more than prose. And Blake...Blake is an old favourite, like Jane. Blake was not blinkered in his vision, he was not too frightened to see.

That the Tyger comes to mind...well. Jane is certainly feline in his grace. He is particular about his person, forever layered in suits. He is independent in his affections, occasionally demanding the attention of his team and occasionally slinking off on solitary pursuits. His tendency to curl up and sleep in the middle of the day, without seeking permission...yes. Feline.

He doesn’t indulge himself with the whole poem, but it resonates inside his head as he strides away. He has answers for Blake that he has never had before.

What the hand dare seize the fire? His. His hand, clenched in the inferno of Patrick Jane's wrathful intellect. His shoulder, and his art, twisting at the sinews of Jane’s heart, once and always.

Did he smile his work to see? Oh yes. Gladly.

He leaves with his answers. He leaves Jane with none.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

I absolutely adore how you turned the poetry clue around. Just about everyone figures Red John quoted Blake to give Jane a bit of insight into the nature of serial killer---I never would've expected anyone to propose that the poem was about Jane himself. That's just damn beautiful.

And this ---> "Delightful, wilful Jane, who should not be permitted to wander this world without a keeper." Too true. It's just so...*creepy* to imagine Red John keeping a close eye on Jane at all times. Delightfully chilling, in fact.

Wow, I just...this was such a treat. I don't know how I could ever express my gratitude. You really made my day. The way you write Red John is so fascinating. It's hard to imagine anyone else.

Marry me.

;)

I think I was working from the standpoint of RJ's ego with the poem...to me, it's about the creator of the Tyger rather than the tiger itself, and naturally RJ gets the starring role. And Jane is really freaking scary sometimes, so I can see him as the Tiger.

I swear, the finale made me think RJ spends his spare time randomly stalking Jane, to know what he did and turn up at the right time. Freaked me out.

Really happy you like it, and marriage proposals are always a welcome response to fic :-D

ok, first of all, creepy gen is my new favorite category. I love that he says why he doesn't use guns--and then shoots up the copycats--like proving how much he despised them and their 'art'...what's a serial killer to do to get some good copycat killers? your JOhn voice is fantastic. I love John's obsessive stalkerness--I can totally see him following Jane for just this reason. I wonder how many times John has stepped in on Jane's behalf before...has he? I bet. thanks for sharing, this was just wonderful

"...the finale made me think RJ spends his spare time randomly stalking Jane, to know what he did and turn up at the right time." You know, I think that's exactly it. In fact, I've honestly been wondering whether or not that crazy, red-haired, Kristina Frye woman is somehow one of his accomplices...

Which reminds me, do you have any theories on who Red John might be? I firmly stand behind the idea that he's someone we have yet to meet (or have maybe seen at only a passing glance in one of the previous episodes). I'm starting to get a headache from the two prevalent camps: Kristina Frye or that forensics guy (Brett Partridge?). Partridge just seems like such an obvious choice for a show this clever (and I've only seen a handle of the episodes) and there's already too much evidence supporting the idea that he's a *man* to even suggest Kristina is the killer... Keep in mind, though, if you are leaning toward either of the two suspects, I won't make fun of you. I just think there's more to this than what the audience is seeing.

PS: I'm still very much in love with your work. I plan on stalking you for the next couple of months *coughcoughyears* until you post more of your wonderful Red John/Jane musings.

;)

I really hope it's not Kristina, I like her as a character in that she can give Jane a run for his money (and I find it reassuring that that's what piques his interest - he can be so irritatingly paternalistic at times and I like the idea that this might not be something he carries through to romantic relationships) plus, I can't remember what the blind lady from the end of S1 told the CBI, but I presume it was enough to confirm he was male. And I'm hoping not Brett as well, just because he's, well - anticlimatic? Jane slaps him down so easily.

So, having said who I think it isn't...I have no idea! These kind of storylines do usually result in a shocking revelation of the bad guy being close to the hero, to the extent that we've now come to expect it. It'd be interesting if show doesn't go down that route at all, if they eventually manage to catch him and it's a total stranger that they have to try and figure out.

Hehe, I put "Gen" and then thought RJ's weird possessive obsession might be edging it into slash but the story wasn't quite supposed to go there, so I settled for creepy gen.

Yeah, RJ finds shooting copycats to save Jane's life so *tiresome*. It's a scary thought, that he could've been playing guardian angel in the background without Jane even realising.

Thanks for commenting!

God, this whole fic put a big dumb grin on my face. Like, I squealed out loud and frightened the cats.

JANE. FELINE. Irreverent, independent, frustrating but still lovable somehow...LITHE.

because these things are delicate, and they must be teased out.

Chilling, this attention to the intricacies of butchery.

Jane would not gift this terror to another

lksajdflkdlflasd;fasd okay I lost my shit there. Both of these guys are so SELF-centered in how they view the other, like, there's no room for independent thought here. It's all "he does this for me."

YOUR WORDS HOW I LOVE THEM

My coleagues at work are all cat people, I hadn't made the Jane=Feline connection until I overheared them ranting about the behaviour of their pets and I was like...this sounds familiar?

Lithe. Oh yum, good word!

Amen to the terrifying self-centred mutual obsession.

And oh my God that episode.

Hee, very happy you liked it!

*I* am a cat person. Always have been. So yes, believe me I've noticed how much Jane is feline (especially the persnickety and quasi-bitchy attention whoring...the midday naps too).

BUY A CAT. NAME IT JANE. SEE WHAT HAPPENS. This could only end well XD;

terrifying self-centred mutual obsession

Can this be the subtitle for season three? BECAUSE REALLY.

That episode spawned a pretty damn good fic or three. I really need to keep my finger on the pulse of fandom this summer and not wholly retreat into roleplay >__________>i

"BUY A CAT. NAME IT JANE. SEE WHAT HAPPENS" ...I would be emotionally manipulated into fighting crime in an unorthodox fashion? It would end in disaster :-D

It kind of felt like fic to me as an episode. So much narrative-kink fulfillment!

You know, I never got the chance to read anything by William Blake until you supplied more lines from his poem, in which case I hunted down an online version and quickly skimmed it *hides face in shame*. Somehow, I didn't understand this... "I think I was working from the standpoint of RJ's ego with the poem...to me, it's about the creator of the Tyger rather than the tiger itself, and naturally RJ gets the starring role. And Jane is really freaking scary sometimes, so I can see him as the Tiger" ...until the second time I read through it, and then I finally understood the poem itself. Thank you.

In any case, I'm still enjoying your Dresden fics. :) I'm very glad you're not a lazy writer like me.

I only really know the Songs of Innocence and Experience by Blake, and the Marriage of Heaven and Hell (required reading, but I'm fond of them :-D), I never really worked up the courage to dive into the longer stuff! But I figure all that stuff about Blake seeing himself as a prophet, and challenging established views (for example, Innoncence isn't necessariy a desirable state in the Songs, depending on how you read them, Experience has its own value)would be something John might be quite drawn to.

Uh. I will stop rambling about Romantic poetry at you now. Former English student :-D

This made me incredibly happy.

Glad you enjoyed it! Also, your icon is awesome :-)

Hee, yeah :D
I can't take the credit, though, I'm still looking for whoever made it.

Fic: The Active, Springing From Energy (The Mentalist: Patrick Jane, Red John)

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I ALWAYS love your writing, omg

Re: I ALWAYS love your writing, omg

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