Alright everyone, here's what ya'll have been waiting for! The next story in the Gracie series! Enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing of Supernatural, not the characters (although I wish) or anything else familiar. I only own Gracie.
Dean stands in Bobby's basement, his arms folded and fingers tapping his opposite arm. Gracilynn is sitting on the bottom step of the stairs, staring off into space, absentmindedly tapping "Back in Black" on the stairs. The panic room door opens and Cas comes out as he rolls down his sleeves. Behind him, Sam is lying on the cot hooked up to an IV.
"Well?" Dean asks impatiently, causing Gracilynn to halt her tapping and look up at Cas.
"His soul is in place," Cas says simply.
"Is he ever gonna wake up?" Dean asks.
"I'm not a human doctor, Dean," Cas answers, annoyed.
"Well, could you take a guess?" Dean counters, just as annoyed.
"Okay. Probably not," Cas answers.
"What?" Gracilynn asks, fear in her eyes. Dean chances a glance in her direction before he looks back at Cas.
"Oh, well, don't sugarcoat it," Dean replies.
"I'm sorry, Dean, but I warned you not to put that thing back inside him," Cas says irritated.
"What was I supposed to do? Let T-1000 walk around, hope he doesn't open fire?" Dean counters defensively.
"Let me tell you what his soul felt like when I touched it. Like it had been skinned alive, Dean. If you wanted to kill your brother, you should have done it outright," Cas says angrily. Cas suddenly disappears and Dean looks around the basement, seeing Sam still sleeping and Gracilynn still sitting on the stairs. Only now, instead of zoning out she is very much paying attention.
"Uncle Sam'll wake up right? He's not gonna die right dad?" Gracilynn asks. Dean looks over at Sam, feeling his own emotions rising up. "Dad?"
"He'll wake up," Dean says, looking back at Gracilynn, hoping his voice sound more confident than he feels. "He'll be fine."
Dean walks into the library and sits down at the desk across from Bobby. Bobby pours him a drink and sets it down in front of him.
"Like my daddy always said, just 'cause it kills your liver don't mean it ain't medicine," Bobby says. "Gracilynn asleep?"
"Yeah, just," Dean says, picking up his glass.
"Sam still asleep?" Bobby asks. Dean takes a drink and so does Bobby.
"Yeah," Dean replies.
"He'll wake up," Bobby assures the elder brother.
"Yeah," Dean says again.
"Dean, he's been through how much? Somehow, he always bounces back," Bobby continues, knowing Dean doesn't quite believe Sam will get through this and is worrying himself sick.
"He's never been through this," Dean counters, worry evident in his voice. Dean notices the newspaper printout Bobby's looking at. "Job?"
"Might be," Bobby says, passing the printout over to Dean. It's from The Portland Chronicle, the headline saying SMALL PLANE CRASH KILLS TWO.
"Can I help? Send me to the library? Anything?" Dean asks, desperate for something to take his mind off his brother.
"Couple goes up in a light plane. Wreckage was just found in the woods," Bobby explains.
"Couple of Buddy Hollys?" Dean asks. "Doesn't really seem like News of the Weird."
"Pilot was found seventeen miles away, flambéed. Girl's just gone. No body, no nothing," Bobby says.
"Okay, I'm not changing the channel," Dean replies.
"Dean," Sam says from behind them. Dean sets down his glass hard on the desk and turns around, seeing Sam has entered the room. Dean stands up, not really believing his brother is standing in front of him.
"Sam?" Dean asks. Sam walks over and gives him a huge hug which Dean returns. Sam lets go and walks over, giving Bobby a hug as well.
"Good to see you," Bobby says as they pull away.
"Wait. I saw you…I…I felt Lucifer snap your neck," Sam says, trying to make sense of everything.
"Well, Cas kind of…" Bobby begins.
"Cas is alive?" Sam asks, interrupting.
"Yeah, Cas…Cas is fine," Dean says. He's about to say something but here's a thump from upstairs.
Gracilynn stirs in her sleep. She blinks her eyes open sleepily. She hadn't been asleep for very long, but something had caused her to wake up. She rolls over onto her back and stares at the ceiling, taking stock of everything. That's when she hears it.
"Wait. I saw you…I…I felt Lucifer snap your neck," she hears. Uncle Sammy? It…it can't be. He…he. Gracilynn listens to see if she hears him again.
"Well, Cas kind of…" she hears Bobby say.
"Cas is alive?" Sam asks. That was all the confirmation she needed. She heard his voice twice and that was good enough for her. She vaguely hears her dad answer her uncle but she's too busy whipping her blankets off and catapulting herself off her bed to figure out what he says. In her haste, though, she trips over her boots on the floor, crashing to the floor. How the hell'd they get there? Gracilynn shoves herself back up to her feet, not wanting to waste any more time. She rushes out the door and down the stairs, turning into the library and sliding to a stop when she sees her uncle standing in the middle of the room. She feels her emotions begin to rise up but tries her best to control them. The three men in front of her turn and look over at her, a grin spreading across Sam's face.
"Hey, Smalls," Sam says quietly. Dean smiles softly at the nickname. Gracilynn feels her wall break and a tear fall down her face even as a grin spread on her face as well. She runs over and plows into her uncle, giving him a bear hug, which he returns. She clings onto him as if she lets go he'll disappear.
"I missed ya, Sasquatch," Gracilynn whispers loud enough for Sam to hear. Sam feels his own tear fall, but doesn't care. Dean clears his throat, quickly wiping away a tear and looks over at Bobby and sees him wiping away a tear too. Gracilynn reluctantly pulls away, but doesn't leave Sam's side.
"So, um…" Dean clears his throat, hearing it full of emotion. He looks over at Sam. "Sam, are you okay?"
"Actually, um...I'm starving," Sam replies.
Sam is sitting at the table with Dean across from him and Gracilynn next to him as he eats a sandwich. Dean and Sam have beers in front of them and Bobby is leaning up against the counter.
"So, Sam…" Dean begins. Sam looks over at his brother.
"Yeah?" he asks.
"What's the last thing you remember?" Dean asks. Gracilynn watches as her uncle thinks about it.
"The field. And then I fell," Sam answers.
"Okay. And then?" Dean asks.
"I woke up in the panic room," Sam replies.
"That's it? You really don't remember…" Bobby begins but Dean cuts in.
"Let's be glad. Who wants to remember all that hell?" Dean says. Gracilynn gives her dad a look but shrugs it off at her uncles' question.
"Well, how long was I gone?" Sam asks nonchalantly.
"About a year and a half," Dean answers. Sam looks surprised.
"What? I was downstairs f… I don't remember anything. So, how'd I get back? Was it Cas?" Sam asks, getting into the conversation more and forgetting his sandwich for a moment.
"Not exactly," Dean answers hesitantly.
"Dean, what did you do?" Sam asks, then, turns to Gracilynn. "What'd he do?"
Gracilynn doesn't know what to say so she just looks over at her dad.
"Me and Death…" Dean begins.
"Death?! The horseman?" Sam asks, interrupting.
"I had leverage. It's done," Dean says firmly.
"You sure?" Sam asks, knowing nothing in their lives is this simple.
"It's over. Slate's wiped," Dean assures, tone still firm.
"Well, isn't this just neat and clean?" Bobby asks.
"Yes, it is…for once," Dean says, giving Bobby a look.
"Is there anything else I should know?" Sam asks, having a feeling there's more to the story than what his brother is letting on. Dean hesitates a moment.
"No. Another beer?" Dean says. Gracilynn's eyes dart to her dad's.
"Uh, yeah," Sam answers. Dean gets up and heads over to the fridge.
"Well, I'm gonna go work on a car that needs to get done," Bobby says with a forced smile.
"Uh, okay," Dean says, watching as Bobby leaves the kitchen. Dean walks over and hands Sam a beer before setting his own down on the table. "Eat Sam."
Sam rolls his eyes but picks up his sandwich and begins eating nonetheless.
"Hey." Gracilynn up from her laptop to see her dad walk into her room. Gracilynn glances behind him but doesn't see anyone else.
"He's taking a shower," Dean says, knowing exactly who she was looking for. Dean walks over to the bed and sits down, facing his daughter. "Listen…"
"Why didn't you tell him about the past six months?" Gracilynn asks, cutting her dad off. Dean sighs. Truthfully, this was exactly why he had come up here.
"I actually wanted to talk to you about that," Dean says. Gracilynn raises an eyebrow as if to say 'go on'. "If Sam knows everything that happened, he'll never forgive himself. And it wasn't really him, you and I both know that. He'll start digging around for answers and if he does that…"
"The wall will break," Gracilynn finishes. Dean nods his head.
"Yeah," Dean says. "So, just…you know."
"Don't tell my uncle he was a crazed, soulless, douchebag for the better part of six months?" Gracilynn asks. Dean smirks and chuckles.
"Yeah, that," he replies.
"I think I can manage that," Gracilynn says.
"Figured you could," Dean says, rustling her hair and causing an annoyed groan from Gracilynn before he leaves her room.
Gracilynn looks up when she hears a knock on her doorframe. Her dad went out in the yard to talk to Bobby so she knew it wasn't him. Which means it could only be one other person. She looks towards the door and sees Sam standing in it. Gracilynn grins.
"Hey," she says, taking a seat at the end of her bed. Sam takes it as approval for him to come in and walks in, sitting down next to his niece.
"You doing alright?" Sam asks, looking over at his niece. A small smile appears on her face and she nods.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she replies looking over at her uncle. "Why?"
"I don't know, cause you've been really quiet since you came flying into the library earlier," Sam says. Before Gracilynn realizes it, she feels a tear fall down her cheek. She quickly wipes it away, cursing herself for letting her emotions get the better of her, but not before Sam notices. He furrows his eyebrows.
"Hey, what's wrong?" he asks, concern lacing his voice. Gracilynn laughs in relief and she sniffs, feeling the tears begin to well up more. "Smalls?"
"God, you need to stop," Gracilynn says with no real anger in her voice as she stands up and walks a few steps away, her back to her uncle. Sam is utterly confused, not real sure what to say or think.
"Gracilynn, what's going on?" Sam asks, standing up from the bed. Gracilynn closes her eyes and gets control of her emotions.
"Nothing, just…it's good to have you back," Gracilynn says, turning to face her uncle.
"Nothing?" Sam asks, not believing a word she says.
"I'm fine," Gracilynn says, earning another look from her uncle. "Listen, you were gone for a year and a half. I didn't have your jumbo size to my fun size that whole time. As much as I love dad, it wasn't the same without you around. I just…I just miss you is all."
"I missed you too kiddo," Sam says, pulling Gracilynn in for a hug. He knew there was a lot more to her outburst but she obviously wasn't going to talk about it. And, like Dean, he would have to wait for her. Of course, he wasn't going to wait forever.
Dean walks down the hall towards the stairs, only to see Gracilynn appear from her bedroom. She and Sam had fallen asleep after their little heart to heart and Dean didn't want to wake either one of them. Gracilynn notices the bag slung over her dad's shoulder and she crosses her arms, giving him a look. Dean sighs and walks past her, grabbing her arm and leading her down the stairs.
"Come on," he says. Dean stops by the door and turns to face his daughter.
"You going on a hunt?" she asks.
"Uh…yeah. Bobby found one out in Oregon," Dean says, sheepishly.
"And you were just gonna leave me. Leave me without letting me know," Gracilynn says, slightly perturbed.
"You were asleep. I was gonna call you later and let you know. Didn't want to wake either one of you up," Dean explains. Gracilynn narrows her eyes. Dean sighs, hating the fact his daughter was getting so good at reading him. "Sam just woke up. It's best he stays here and rest for a few more days. It'd be nice to have you stay and keep an eye on him. Make sure he's doing okay."
"All you had to do was ask. You didn't have to sneak out," Gracilynn says.
"Like I said. You were sleeping," Dean replies.
"All right. I'll stay behind. Uncle Bobby's going though right?" Gracilynn asks.
"Yeah, he's going. I'll be fine. Stay outta trouble and keep an eye on Sammy," Dean says before walking out the door. Gracilynn sighs and turns around, taking in the house.
"This is gonna be three very boring days," she grumbles. She walks into the library and turns on the TV. Before she can even get into the show, she hears a noise and looks up to see her uncle walk into the room. "Hey."
"Hey," Sam says, looking around. "Where's Dean?"
"Huh? Oh, uh, outside," Gracilynn answers. Sam nods his head and walks towards the front door. Gracilynn jumps up and follows after him, the two of them walking outside to the Impala. Dean's by the trunk and Bobby's next to the open passenger door.
"Yeah, let him rest. Gracie's staying. We'll call him later," Dean says to something Bobby had said before they got out there.
"Call me from where?" Sam asks.
"Oh. Uh, there's this thing in Oregon," Dean says.
"Great. I'm in," Sam says.
"Whoa, whoa. You just got vertical," Dean says, starting to worry.
"Exactly. I'm up. I'm good," Sam replies.
"Well, a few more days of crap cable couldn't hurt," Dean argues.
"Right. Because that's what you did when you got back from hell," Sam counters.
"All right. You, me, Gracie, and Bobby," Dean says, knowing Sam has a point.
"Oh, you two go on ahead. You got this covered. I, uh, forgot I promised that idjit Rufus I'd work the phones for him, so..." Bobby says, grabbing his bag and shutting the passenger door.
"You sure?" Dean asks him.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You two enjoy catching up, okay?" Bobby assures before he leaves. The three Winchesters look after him.
"What was that?" Sam asks, turning back to Dean.
"One part age, three parts liquor," Dean says. Dean and Sam head to their respective door and Gracilynn heads to the back drivers' door. She gives her dad a look, knowing something's up, but he gives her a look that tells her to drop it. Gracilynn bites her tongue and climbs into the Impala, glad they're hunting together again.
Nice long chapter for ya'll! Please review and let me know what ya'll thought! Can't wait to take the Winchesters on a new journey!
