Disclaimer - I don't own Supernatural that privilege belongs to the CW, Kripke and Co. I'm simply borrowing them for a while but I promise I'll give them back when I'm finished but all the rest is mine. Also I'm making no profit, its just for fun and all standard disclaimers apply.

Summary - Set early season 2, after Bloodlust but before CSPWDT. An emotional rift is now also physical as the brothers become separated during a seemingly simple hunt gone wrong, but nothing is what it seems and things go from bad to worse.

Thank You - I just wanted to give a quick shout out to blue peanut m and m, who has sent me the kindest and sweetest messages encouraging me to post this as well as offering help and support, so if you're reading, my heart felt thank you goes out to you, you have no idea how much your kind words helped me through this.

A/N - This is my first ever fanfic and I can't tell you how nervous I am right now, I feel sick, excited and scared to death all at the same time, its one hell of a ride! I've been reading all of your wonderful fics for many years now, anonymously reviewing and hiding behind my computer and I thought it was about time that I plucked up some some courage of my own to share this story with you all. I've been writing it on and off for nearly a year now, it's completed and is eleven chapters long (funny, it started out as a one shot but grew well beyond my control) and if all goes to plan (and if you all like it) I'll be posting weekly. I'm warning you now that it's been shared with no one, I don't have a beta, so all mistakes are mine but judging by the amount of times I've read the thing, I'm sure hoping that any mistakes are minimal and hopefully minor. It's a bit of a slow burner but it does pick up I promise, expect plenty of mystery, angst, action, hurt and eventually comfort. Also I guess that I should warn you that the boys are not the only ones to be separated, the first chapter is Sam based, the second belongs to Dean and so on, I wrote it this way and I stuck with it because it suits the storyline and highlights their emotional separation. I think that's it, I hope it is because I really don't want to bore you all with more notes, so I hope you enjoy and here we go...god I might need a change of underwear!!!!!

Bridging Distances

Chapter One

Crap.

It was simple enough and yet it explained everything Sam's mind could encompass, in this, the first thought that his brain had conjured in what felt like a millennia. He was sure it would describe his current situation and whatever it might entail, he was fairly certain that he was physically lying on his back in it and from what he could tell, his body definitely felt like it.

Sam wasn't exactly sure how long he'd let it go on for but for a while after that simple thought there was nothing as time slipped past, his consciousness fading and bleeding together with the darkness that greeted him. As the shadows cleared and awareness beckoned him for the second time, his mind re-awakened at a snails pace and it troubled him that even the simple task of remembering his name took a while to master and even though he didn't know much of anything right now, he knew that that was bad, probably really bad.

As his brain started to kick start its way back to reality Sam found that his eyes were beginning to open. At first all he could see was darkness but gradually the black became smudges of grey that made their way achingly slowly into blurry colours and outlines of shapes. He blinked several times hoping to clear his vision further but all it did was make him feel even more nauseous then he already did.

Opening his eyes was the worst idea he'd ever had, as directly after this seemingly straight forward action Sam felt a jabbing pain located both in and around his eye sockets before the stabbing sensation gradually made its way across his forehead and then, like a bolt of lightening, it shot to the back of his brain before settling to a dull constant ache on the right side of his head.

He didn't even realise he'd closed his eyes until they were open again and it took his toffee thick brain a while to register that that couldn't possibly be a good sign.

Movement seemed like it was something he should consider but if blinking turned out to be such a painful and semi traumatic experience then he really wasn't looking forward to that idea, so he decided to stay put for just a little longer, surely there was nothing wrong with that, right?

Just as he felt his body begin to relax the questions came and before he knew it he was being bombarded with a steady unorganised stream of them and he could feel the panic bubble in his gut when he realised he couldn't answer any of them. Trying to quell the sinking feeling of despair, Sam mentally separated the questions and organised them into a list of importance, he was good at lists, he knew at least that much.

With a heavy heart he realised he had no idea where he was, judging by the coldness he felt seeping into his bones and by the dampness of his clothes, he figured he was outside. His eyes confirmed what looked a lot like patches of blue sky and maybe the tops of trees but with his vision somewhat impaired that was about all he could see. There were no sounds of traffic or any other signs of civilisation so Sam figured he must be in some sort of park, forest or maybe even a very large garden.

But that was it and it had been accomplished entirely by methods of deduction and a hint of common sense. What troubled him the most was that he had absolutely no memory of coming here, no recollection of ever having been here before, hell he didn't even know where here was!

So he waited patiently. But it didn't happen. He had been expecting everything to come back to him in a constant series of snapshot memories that hurtled towards him at full force. After all that's how it usually happened and how it had happened countless times before, this wasn't exactly the first time he had had memory loss but previously it had been temporary, for like a few minutes until everything settles down and the veil of clarity fills the gaps.

But apparently this time was different.

He moved swiftly to the next question that was nagging him, trying not to dwell too much on the fact that he was much pretty much screwed, hoping with everything that was at his disposal that maybe he could answer the next one, that maybe it would jump start a series of memories that would set his mind at rest and ease some of the dread that was running through his veins. Sadly it just made him feel more confused, his heart rate sped up and he could feel the pit of worry that had settled in his stomach suddenly get a whole lot bigger as he confirmed silently that he had no idea why he was here or even if he had come alone.

Dean.

And that was all it took for Sam to move. With a strained groan he shifted his head to the left and tried to focus his hazy vision. Nothing. Well no sign of his brother, just what he assumed was a wide selection of patchy green trees and other forest growth. Another groan and a hiss followed the shift to his right but all he gained was a tidal wave of nausea and pain that made him squeeze his eyes tightly together in the hope of riding it out. After several deep breaths he managed to pry open his eyes only to be rewarded by more trees and the absence of his older, seemingly MIA, brother.

"De..an" Sam mumbled, knowing that that was supposed to be a shout not a hushed whisper.

"Dean" he tried again, a little louder but all he received for his troubles was a pick axe of pain that hacked his way through the right side of his brain and he didn't really notice that it blanked his vision and cut off his hearing.

Disturbing thoughts started to invade his head. Where was Dean? He could be hurt or lost or in some sort of danger. He needed to know where his brother was. To make sure he was okay.

What he needed to do, Sam realised, was get up and find him.

But on the flip side maybe Dean was somewhere out here looking for him, if so it was best that he didn't move and wander around. What if he'd come out here alone for some reason? Maybe they'd had a fight, which was always a possibility, especially with things the way they were right now, since Dad. Maybe he'd gone on his own into this forest (or wherever the hell he was) to cool off, Sam could remember wanting to do that on several occasions and he noted with relief that at least he now knew he was only dealing with short term memory loss. At least something was going in his favour. But if they'd had a fight that would also mean that Dean wouldn't even be looking for him, well not yet anyway, he hadn't been out here for that long, had he?

It was then that Sam's muddled mind suddenly assessed that this was yet another vitally important question that he couldn't answer. He thought about lifting his arm to check the time but that would be pointless as he had no start point to count his missing time from. It could be minutes, hours or even days, he couldn't even hazard a guess. His clothes were damp so maybe he'd been gone for a while but then again he was lying on his back on the floor. Maybe it had rained. No, scratch that he was damp not wet.

The piercing pressure of too many questions and too many uncertainties caught Sam completely off guard as he felt them twist and writhe around in his head, he needed something, any answers at all, he really wasn't picky at this point in time. But right now the realisation of what a truly helpless and dangerous position he currently found himself in was threatening to push him over the edge.

Not only did he not know where he was, how long he'd been here, where Dean was, or why he was even here in the first place, but for the life of him Sam couldn't think of a solution of how to get out of it.

Forcing his eyes to close, Sam slowly blew out the air he had unconsciously been holding because now was not the time to freak out, all he needed was a plan, his father had drilled that into him at an early age, always have a plan, even if it was simple one. With that in mind he decided to take things one step at a time or else he was going to panic and that was not an option as it solved nothing.

The first step should be to assess and catalogue the injuries he suspected he had and his head seemed to be the best place to start, it had after all been trying to gain his attention ever since he had opened his eyes. The blurred vision, nausea, apparent short term memory loss and confusion were definite signs of a concussion and judging by the pain he felt on the right side of his head it was probably a bad one too.

Gingerly, Sam began to lift and bend his right arm hoping he wasn't going to be able to feel an exposed area of skull, when all of a sudden a pain so bright it left him temporarily blinded shot from his shoulder up into his head and then ricocheted around his already weakened body like a demonic pinball machine. He was so shocked by the pain that he couldn't even verbally respond to it. Everything was bright and burning and if Sam didn't know any better he would swear that he could feel the fire boil his blood, singe every muscle and scorch every tendon as they were rudely shocked into life and screaming with agony.

Instinctively Sam's eyes clamped shut, his eyelids screwed tightly as the pain overwhelmed his fragile frame and he could feel his teeth start to sink into his tongue and the inside of his cheeks, coating his mouth with the faint taste of iron which caused him to gag. He inhaled deeply intending to fill his lungs to capacity in the hope of overriding the assault, but to his dismay, all the action did was bring to life a new injury as almost immediately Sam felt the tightness and strangled discomfort of bruising on and around his ribcage.

"Damn it", he cursed breathlessly as the oxygen level seemed to plummet unexpectedly and it became ever clearer that he was injured far worse than he had originally expected or wished to be.

Sam knew that he needed to check out his shoulder and get a good look at the damage and in order to do that properly, he loathed to admit that he would have to get up off the damp ground. But at this point in time, all that his mind could focus on was pain and it was clouding everything, so he did the next best thing, he faced it head on.

As he tried to organise and catalogue the ranging levels of pain he was enduring, hoping that this wouldn't uncover another injury but suspecting it might, Sam realised pretty quickly that it was actually a lot easier said than done. The pain definitely peaked in his head and right shoulder, that much he knew for a fact, his ribs and chest ached with each heartbeat and breath but that was manageable with controlled breathing and besides he'd had worse, his right hip felt sore but he could deal with that, but yes there it was another pain, a new one to add to his ever growing collection but for the life of him he couldn't locate it.

At first he could have sworn it was his stomach but the more he concentrated on it and tried to separate it from everything else the more it seemed to shift to his back. It wasn't a screaming sharp pain or even a quiet dull ache. No, it was just different to everything else he was feeling and that's probably why it stood out but no matter how hard he tried Sam just couldn't quite find the words to describe how it felt, he just knew it was there and that would have to be enough for now.

With the list of injuries safely filed away for later, he needed to occupy himself with something other than the pain he was currently feeling. It seemed that now he had discovered he was injured the pain levels seemed to have risen accordingly and they were refusing to be switched off.

It was time for another step.

But it was hard to think of one. All his thoughts were thin and grainy, and like sugar through a sieve they seemed to slip past him effortlessly before he even had a chance to grasp and examine them properly. The harder he concentrated the worse it got and when thinking began to hurt, the pain forced him into a decision.

It was time to begin the arduous task of moving. To where Sam wasn't sure but if he sat up hopefully then he could find somewhere to move to, somewhere that offered a little shelter and could also provide something he could lean against so that he could revisit his injuries and maybe do a little emergency first aid.

He suddenly felt slightly pathetic and embarrassed when he realised that he didn't exactly know how he was going to get up and for a split second he was glad his brother wasn't here to see him struggle with such a simple task. That thought was soon regretted though because if Dean was here he was sure, no positive, that he wouldn't even be in this situation, well maybe that wasn't entirely true, they did have bad luck when it came to just about anything and everything in life. But as least if his brother was here he could have helped to get him up off the floor, even if it was accompanied with a smart ass remark and some harmless but entirely irritating teasing.

Sam prepared himself for the pain as he rolled onto his left side and started to sit himself up. His head felt ridiculously heavy as he lifted it slightly off the floor but it was the action of trying to push himself up that destroyed his plan. His chest was re-awakened and the pain erupted, spewing red hot molten lava throughout his ribcage and his right shoulder before drowning the rest of his body. He collapsed back down to the mossy carpeted floor heaving for air, there was no way he could sit up and there was also now the distinct possibility that he had underestimated the amount of bruising he had sustained as well as its severity.

He would not allow this new revelation to get in his way, he still needed to move but now he just needed to figure out a new way of going about it. With his mind made up, Sam decided that instead of sitting up he would just have to shift his body slightly to one side, lift his head and see what he could see. The roll wasn't too bad but lifting his head was an entirely different matter, it hammered and pounded its disapproval at the action but somehow he managed it, not without pain but with a more manageable amount than before. He looked in front and then behind of where he was currently lying and found himself in the centre of a small clearing surrounded by what he could only guess were trees, he squinted and tried to decide with spinning vision which trees were closer.

It took longer than he expected, but eventually after what felt like years, Sam concluded that the trees to the north of his current position looked the best option. A moment later he had pinpointed the largest tree with the bulkiest trunk as his target but judging by how the world was tilting off kilter and from his earlier experience, there was no way in hell he could walk to it. Grudgingly Sam accepted that he would have to half drag half shuffle his way there.

With all his weight on his left side he hoped to minimise the pain this was inevitably going to cause because seemingly, whatever had happened to his battered body, had almost entirely happened to the right half of it. But as Sam straightened and moved his arm forward and used it to lever his body off the ground he realised that this was going to be a moot plan and that no matter what he did or how he did it, this was really going to hurt. However, focusing on the pain did not get him any closer to his target and so with his fathers voice echoing in his head he sucked it up and heaved his body forward until it joined the location of his arm.

Repetitive actions had never really bothered him before. In fact when he thought about it he was kind of skilled in them what with the continuous research, the weapons, the hunts, dodgy motels, crappy diners and endless car rides, his life seemed to dictate his expertise in the matter. But this, this constant pain and endless movement was proving to be the end of him.

After what felt like hours of movement Sam was exhausted and also fairly sure that he couldn't take any more. Not only was his already impaired vision beginning to darken around the edges, threatening a head first dive into unconsciousness but his body was quivering with fatigue and yelling at him to just stop and quit.

So that's exactly what he did and almost immediately he wished he hadn't as he began to doubt his capability of ever moving again.

Sam dared to lift his head slightly, hoping and even praying that he was at least close to the tree that he'd spotted earlier, but after all his hard work, all the time he had invested in this simple action and after all that he had put his body through, he had only made it half way.

Everything began to deflate. He let his body collapse to the floor and felt his face sink slightly into the grassy mud carpet, relishing at the coolness of the dirt below and had it not been for the nagging sense of failure and disappointment in himself, that for the moment he couldn't seem the shake off, Sam would have willingly allowed his mind to be engulfed in the darkness that threatened to overwhelm his consciousness.

He wasn't going to make it and that thought hurt him more than all the agony his body was currently enduring.

No, he had to get to the tree. He couldn't pass out now. He wouldn't allow it. He needed shelter and he couldn't remain here in the open even though he felt more comfortable and at home than he had felt in a long time. No, he needed to move. Hell you know what, his brother needed him to move.

With more effort than it should normally take, Sam lifted himself off the damp ground and continued his arduous journey. Needless to say, it wasn't a pleasant experience. As hard as it had been to gather strength at his first attempt, this was much harder. Half his body and mind wanted to make it to the tree but also half of it didn't and he began to feel like he had somehow been separated into two distinctive personalities, one good and one bad and both of them were playing a relentless and violent game of tug of war with his emotions.

But he soldiered on, he needed to.

After a while Sam noticed that his arm was moving forward and his body was automatically following almost like it was set on autopilot, but the pain remained and at this point in time it felt like it would never recede. He couldn't force his head up to look at how far he had travelled, fearing desperately that it wasn't far enough and he knew deep in his gut that he couldn't overcome another disappointment.

The pain was omnipresent and a distraction that Sam could do without but he was so determined that he was going to make it that he didn't allow it to slow or stop him and that was one advantage of the Winchester stubbornness gene, that for the moment, he was thankful for.

And before he knew it his hand connected with the rough bark of a tree trunk.

XoXoX

Relief was his first thought because he was certain he couldn't have gone much further before he collapsed and this was followed rather too quickly with the inseparable couple of pain and exhaustion. To say that he was glad this little trip was over would be the biggest understatement of the year, maybe even his life.

Sam sensed that now would be the time to haul his body up into a slouched position against the tree because if he stayed on the floor for too much longer he knew he'd end up staying there in some sort semi unconscious state and there was still things that needed to be done.

This was going to get really bad, really quickly and so there was really only one course of action as far as Sam was concerned. Do it now and do it fast. God, he was sounding more and more like his brother and with a sad smile, that cracked his already dry lips he realised that he also sounded a lot like his Dad.

He could feel the various emotions that that one thought triggered and they hit him with the force of a speeding bullet and it hurt in every way imaginable. The guilt, the grief, the fear, the regrets, everything. It was all too much. But he couldn't let himself feel it, not now, not when he had so much to do. So he pushed it all down and away, promising himself that one day he would face it, would deal with it all and then with stern features set in place, brows furrowed and lips thinned, he focused all his energy on the task ahead.

In his current position, lying on his side with his left arm stretched in front of him, moving his weary body up into a sitting position and then shuffling back towards the sturdy support of the tree was going to require several separate movements and he intended to do them all as succinctly as possible. But Sam also knew that his previous attempt at sitting had been a failure and so careful thinking was required, not to mention pain management.

He carefully planned it all out in his head because he wanted this whole movement escapade to be over and he wanted it done with as little drama and additional pain as possible. The task had been more difficult than he remembered, some ideas had been lost, others had slipped away and at one point he completely forgot what he was supposed to planning but eventually it was done. It had taken a long time, too long, which was something Sam hadn't been prepared for as he had always been a planner and part of it had always been instinctive, it was supposed to easy and this wasn't, not by a long shot. He blamed the concussion and he hoped that's all it was because as much as he liked to deny it, being the planner, the thinker, the researcher was his job, was what he was good at and without that, what was left?

My plans for you, Sammy. You... and all the children like you.

The Demon's words spoken with his father's voice vibrated throughout his body, dredging up a lead like feeling of dread and despair and he couldn't stop himself from wondering what it could mean. Was he destined to be evil, was he already shrouded with darkness? Mentally shaking away that potentially soul destroying thought, he ran over his plan, every individual move, the order and timing until he had it all memorised. Use his left arm to lever his body up, shift and swivel his midsection then shuffle back until his back met the tree.

It definitely sounded easy.

However, the reality of the simple movement was an entirely different matter.

Just moving his left arm into position was painful enough but by the time he had settled his weight onto it Sam could feel the strained muscles tighten and begin to seize. So as quickly as he could he twisted and tried to straighten his body so that he was facing forward.

Several things happened at this point and they happened in unison.

He felt vomit rise in his throat, could feel himself listing sideways and everything went dark. And all Sam could think was that there was no way he could let himself fall.

Instinctively, he threw out his left arm just in the nick of time as it stopped his rapid unplanned descent, while simultaneously swallowing deeply to clear his airway, thus preventing the untimely arrival of the contents of his stomach from spilling down his plaid shirt and tanned jacket. Sam remained still in the rather uncomfortable position that he found himself in, head drooped down as tendrils of dark and matted hair tickled his forehead and cheek, hoping that the darkness would clear, which it did a few moments later.

All he needed to do was to shuffle back a few feet so that he could let himself fall back against the tree. The thought of being able to stop moving was all the motivation he needed and with a surprisingly vocal grunt Sam began to move his body rather awkwardly backwards, the movement alone sent pockets of agony shooting around his body which seemed to burn brighter around his ribcage and shoulder not to mention his head.

Then he felt his back come into contact with the tree and it was so heavenly he wouldn't be surprised if he shed a tear or two and immediately Sam let himself fall back into its welcome embrace.

He sensed that his eyelids were falling and he didn't even try to halt their descent, instead choosing to bask in the velvet darkness that the action provided, letting himself drift off for a few blissful moments as he floated listlessly somewhere in-between sleep and awareness.

But he was interrupted by something and it wasn't a good something. Sam felt a shift in the air and a bad feeling began to settle in his gut. Something felt off and he knew from past experience never to ignore his instincts and it was that thought that made him heave open his unwilling eyes.

Although his eyesight wasn't in the best condition at the moment, he knew what he could see and he knew that he didn't like it.

Now that he had moved to the perimeter of the clearing Sam had a much better overview of it. There were trees surrounding it, tall and overbearing but there were also several large angular boulders all of approximately the same size and shape placed rather purposely around the outline of the perfect and immaculate circular shape of the not so natural clearing.

The more Sam stared the more the unease grew.

His eyes were now darting around the clearing finding more and more anomalies. The circular clearing was unnaturally absent of any variety of flora or fauna, all it consisted of was some sort of mossy grass. He also noticed that at least one of the larger trees had a symbol carved deeply into the bark but his swimming vision wouldn't allow him any more details than that. And then there was the silence. He hadn't detected it before but now that we was concentrating on it there were no bird songs, no animal calls, he couldn't even hear the tree tops swaying in the gentle breeze.

The sight that troubled him the most, the sight that made Sam want to shout his brothers name, was the one he couldn't tear his eyes from. In the centre of the large clearing there was a small perfect circle, a shallow hole and it was filled to the brim with a thick, deep red substance and it was located exactly where he had first awoken, exactly where he had just been lying.