Disclaimer: None of these characters are mine lalalala
Author Note: This is a big AU from the show's storyline. I had an idea I wanted to try out. I stared writing it and well this is not what I had in mind but…. It fits sort of . This fic is just short burst into an AU there will be about 8 parts in all.
Mary didn't die but someone did. The Winchesters are still a hunter family. AU Dean/Sam later
Burn
Someone else died protecting her baby boys. She would at times feel the tinge of regret, usually when she thought of the girl's family and the loss they must feel. Than she would watch Sammy huddle up on the sofa curled into Dean side, fighting his older brother for the remote. She knew she would trade any life for theirs. At times she thought that made her a bad person but in the face of what she knew was out there she thought most of the time it made her a good mother.
Going out that night had been her older sister's idea. Ruth thought John and Mary needed to get out more. Being locked up in the house with two young kids wasn't healthy for such a young couple. Ruth bought the movie tickets, set up the dinner reservation, and even sent over her babysitter, a tall bouncing dark skinned girl of 17, with a wide happy smile, to watch the boys. Mary and John went out and came home to the poor girl pined to the ceiling and something dark and evil reaching into the crib.
The minute they stepped into the house Mary knew something was wrong. She took off for the steps at a run, John followed close behind. Dean's room was empty and the door to the nursery was closed. John shoved it open. Dean was in the crib curled around Sammy. The darkness in the veiled shape of a human stood over the crib. John screamed the darkness turned to face them. Mary stood frozen in the door way a deep cold feeling filed her, kept her unmoving . John move to stand in front the crib. Something thick and heavy landed on his shoulder. His eyes moved upward, Mary followed his gaze, the babysitter was pinned to the ceiling, eyes wide an odd look of acceptance on her young pretty face. Time stood still.
The girl on the ceiling explode into flames. The darkness stood in the corner and watched them. Mary had the feeling it was laughing, she took of at a ran for the fire extinguisher. When she got back John was lifting Dean out the crib, Sammy clutched to Dean's chest., the room was ablaze in dance orange flames, the ones close to the ruined body of the girl blared a ferocious red. Dean clung to his brother, eyes wide body shacking. Mary traded John the fire extinguisher for the boys. She lifted Dean close to her and ran out the house.
John followed a few moments later face cover in soot a fire extinguisher clutched in his hand. The fire department arrived soon after. When it was all over the Winchester settled into a motel not far from their burnt bright yellow house. They attended the funeral at the request of the girl's mother. Dean stood apart from them, eyes focused on the closed casket, small hand clinched into a fist at his side, he said not a word.
They spent the next four weeks in the motel waiting for answers. The ruling came back faulty wireing. John laughed for an hour after he got off the phone with the police chief. Faulty wireing didn't cast moving darkness did not explain the shadow reaching for their boys. The bleeding burning girl stuck to the ceiling.
Mary took up smoking again, John took up drinking. Dean took up Sammy watching, he never let his brother out of his site. Sam would only sleep with Dean curled around him. John told Mary to let it be and she did the best way she could. She let Dean feed Sammy his bottle, let him calm his brother when he cried, help change his dippers, she sat on the tub and watched Dean given Sammy his nighttime baths. She watched Dean watching Sammy instead of playing with his toy or begging for TV time.
She sat a little away from where the boys sat, Sam half sitting, half leaning against Dean, mouth opened as he drooled all over Dean's bright blue tee shirt. Dean looked up and across the room at Mary. She gave him a soft smile. He looked at her hard for a few moments before returning his gaze to his sleeping brother. He didn't say a word, he never did anymore.
Five weeks after everything. John came back his face straight and serious. Hands empty of the usual brown bag, heavy glass bottle. He didn't drink before dinner or after. After dinner he sat down by the window next to where Mary sat smoking, her eyes forced on their boys. The next morning he pilled them in to the big black car and drove them to a physic named Missouri. She looked at them, a stretched look on her round brown face. After a few moments she nodded twice. Leading them into her house, she sat them down and told them what she knew.
John wanted to do the hunting alone. Mary laughed in his face and took the shot gun from his hand. They would do nothing alone, from here on out the Winchesters stuck together. They packed up what little had survived the fire, leaving some with Ruth, the rest they stored in the trunk of the impala. The boys where settle in the back seat. Dean half leaning into the car seat to cheek on a sleeping Sammy. Mary slumped low in the passenger side a map opened in her lap, John behind the wheel eyes hidden behind dark glasses. As they crossed the Kansas state line Mary knew they would not be back at less not to stay it wasn't home anymore.