Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural.
Summary: An investigation leads to Dean being infused with the spirit of a tiger and the development of a few special abilities. A new friend joins the group and the three set off on hunting things that even the brother's didn't know existed. Contains Slash. Dean/OC
Chapter 1
Eye of the Tiger
Here I lie forever
Sorrow still remains
Will the water pull me down and wash it all away
Come and take me over
Welcome to the game
Will the current drag me down and carry me away
Suddenly the light begins to fade
HOPELESS
I'm falling down
FILTHY
I can't wake up
I can not hold on
I will not let go
WORTHLESS
It's over now
GUILTY
There's no way out
I can not hold on
I will not let go
Silent I go under
I am not afraid
I can see the daylight shine
And slowly drift away
Safe to say it's over
Sink into the grave
There is nothing left inside
But I am wide awake
I can hear the devil call my name
HOPELESS
I'm falling down
FILTHY
I can't wake up
I can not hold on
I will not let go
WORTHLESS
It's over now
GUILTY
There's no way out
I can not hold on
I will not let go
Hopeless – Breaking Benjamin
--- -- ---
In the beginning, before man created civilization; the earth mother granted a chosen group with the spirits of the animals. This group would protect humanity from the darkness that hid within the night, and if necessary, from themselves as well.
In each generation, a special man or woman was chosen, given the spirit of an animal that was thought to live only within legend.
And so the pages turned. Civilizations rose and fell. Wars were fought, and won or lost…and the chosen ones continued to hunt.
Each month, on the night of the full moon, the groups would gather. They would fight one another, raising the power that rested within them inside of a sacred circle. The strongest would be granted a wish.
That is where we are tonight, a forest deep within the state of Washington. There have been many mysterious deaths as of late. All of the victims appear to have been killed by some sort of wild animal. It is what drew them here; the Winchester brothers…and the earth mother's true chosen.
--- --- ---
The full moon was the only piece of sky not hidden by the storm clouds, though it was hidden from sight by the thick canopy. The brothers could hear grunting, and what sounded like a struggle before cheers erupted. They soon found themselves standing before a clearing. A strange glowing circle was drawn within the mud and a young man with hair such a dark red that it almost seemed black was standing within it. A rugged looking man stepped into the circle. He was so much larger than the young man.
"You have defeated all but me. You will not defeat me."
The crowd cheered and the glow around the circle grew, seeming to become an invisible wall, keeping the two men inside.
"Who the hell are you anyway? You were not here last month."
The young man looked down, dodging to the side as a fist was thrown at his head.
"I heard about the 'animal' attacks. I'm here to pull that animal from its vessel and plant it within a proper body, with a soul that will not take to raping and murdering innocent women. It's strange really. One of them survived long enough to give the police your description."
The man growled, his body beginning to change form so that he now stood as a large grizzly bear.
"Really now? You think transforming will save you? You don't even know what species the spirit that sleeps within me is."
Fire erupted around the young man and his eyes began to glow with it. In a flurry of movement, the bear had not only been thrown out of the circle, but had also transformed back into its human form. The body so broken that bones were sticking out in several spots.
"You know the laws. Fuck up, and one of the select chosen has to come and clean up the mess. This generation…that would be me."
The group looked confused. Had their leader really been the murderer? They had put a friend to death believing that he had killed the women. But it had been their leader all along. A woman began crying. Her son had been killed because their leader had set him up to fall for his crimes.
The young man within the circle kneeled to the ground and touched the earth before speaking lowly, but the brothers could still hear it.
"Mother. Take the spirit from this disgusting abomination and set a fresh one within a worthy soul. Our numbers are too low at this time; we must stay a strong force to fight the darkness that is to come."
The broken man began to cough and sputter as the ghostly image of a bear pulled itself from his chest before fading away into nothing.
Above the circle another form began to be created. A tiger hovered above the man before turning its head and looking directly at the brothers.
"Dean…I think we should run."
"I second that motion."
The brother's ran, but they couldn't run fast enough before the tiger plunged itself within Dean's body.
The man from the circle appeared before them just before Dean lost consciousness.
"It chose a hunter? Why the hell would it choose a hunter?"
---- ---- ----
"Christo!"
When the only reaction that Sam received was a raised eyebrow, he could only sigh.
"How is he?"
The figure looked down at Dean.
"The spirit has completely merged with his own. He should wake up soon. He'll be hungry. I'm not sure you brought enough food."
Sam had four fast food bags, all of them for when Dean woke up.
"You're right. Probably not." Sam sat on his brother's bed, looking at the strange figure before him.
"So…let me see if I got this straight. The earth goddess cast animal spirits into humans before recorded history began and set these people out to fight demons and monsters." At the beings nod, Sam continued. "And in each generation there is someone given the spirit of an animal that is supposedly only from legends." Another nod. "You're granted the spirit of a phoenix. And you killed that man early and to make up the difference in your numbers you cast a tiger spirit into Dean?"
The man coughed lightly and looked down.
"No. Not by choice. The goddess chooses her children. She also chooses the form the spirit would take. She chose your brother. I was simply the one to awaken her from her slumber."
Sam nodded slowly and took a deep breath.
"What does this mean for Dean? He's not going to start craving human flesh is he?"
The young man groaned and allowed his head to fall against the small motel room table.
"For god sakes, Winchester. We kill the bad things just like hunters do. You guys are just to fucking stubborn to notice that we are on the same side. You think that just because someone is blessed…or cursed…with a bit of power, that they are automatically the bad guy. My kind were fighting the darkness before humanity even moved out of caves!"
Sam held up his hands in a defensive gesture and turned quickly when Dean began to wake up.
"What abilities will he have?"
"He'll get accelerated healing. He'll be stronger, faster, and his senses will mimic those of the tiger not living within him. Eventually he'll learn how to take the tiger's form completely. I'll be sticking around until he's gotten a handle on things. Otherwise…he might end up accidently hurting someone."
Dean groaned and slowly sat up, causing Sam to look at him worried.
"How do you feel Dean?"
Dean looked at Sam as if that was the stupidest question that anyone could have ever asked.
"Like I was run over by a fucking train. How the hell do you think I feel!? Bitch!"
"Jerk"
The other man in the room couldn't help but laugh softly.
"Do the two of you always act like an old married couple?"
Sam had the decency to blush, but Dean could only look at the other man with anger. He was on his feet in an instant and had the other man pinned to the wall.
"Who are you, and what the hell did you do to me!?"
The man did nothing to push Dean away. He simply looked into the other's eyes, knowing that Dean would be able to sense the truth this way.
"My name is Draven and I didn't do it to you intentionally. Usually an infant is chosen by the spirit. One that has yet to be born. For some reason the spirit chose you."
"What spirit!?"
Draven closed his eyes.
"There are those of us who were chosen by the earth herself to protect humanity from the darkness that's hidden within the night. I'm one of those. I'm…a bit different than the others though. Still. Other than that ass I killed last night, the majority of us are good. You are good Dean. You're just a bit enhanced now. You'll find it easier to hunt than it was before. You're stronger and your body can take more damage. You'll heal faster."
Sam rested a hand on his brother's shoulder.
"It's true Dean. What happened isn't bad. It's a gift, not a curse."
Draven knew it was going to be a bit hard for Dean to get used to the idea. Perhaps it was a good thing that he had his own car. He had a feeling that Dean wasn't going to like him much. Not at first anyway.
Dean pulled away and seemed as if he was going to let things drop, until a fist connected with Draven nose.
Dean was further aggravated when it seemed as if Draven was in no pain at all. The man simply fixed his nose and it began to heal. It hadn't even had a chance to bleed.
"Well fuck! I can't even hurt you!"
Draven snorted.
"You can, just not with such a pansy ass punch. You're body is still weak from the merging of your soul with the tiger's"
A loud growl caused Dean to stop any retort he may have had about having his punch be insulted. In response to the growl, Draven grabbed a bag and handed it to him.
"Eat. You need it."
--- ---- -----
Sam had the worst headache that he had ever experienced. Ever since they had got into the car, Dean had been humming 'Eye of the Tiger'. They had been in the car for three straight hours, following behind Draven as the man led them to his cabin so that Dean could train.
Sam was surprised how oddly calm Dean was about everything. Dean had just accepted it and hadn't even tried to hit Draven again.
Sam sighed in relief when Dean stopped humming.
"So…a cabin. I'm not sleeping on the couch if there is only one guest bed."
They had been driving on a dirt road for a while now, and when they broke through a clearing in the woods, Sam could only gape for a moment before speaking. "I don't think that will be a problem Dean. Something tells me that this place has a few guest rooms."
Dean gave a low whistle as they looked up at the 'cabin'. The only reasons he could see for calling it a cabin were derived from the fact that it was in the forest, and that it was built to look like a cabin. However, the place was more of a mansion than anything else. Dean stopped the car and stepped out, looking up at the place as Draven stepped out of his car and stretched.
"I'll lead the two of you to your rooms. Then…We'll start your training."
Dean's stomach growled. It had been doing that a lot lately.
"Can't we eat first?"
Draven smirked. "I figure that you'll be faster at learning if I reward you with food."
"Bitch!"
Draven snorted, "Whore."