BURKITTSVILLE
John gasped, his grip tightening on the phone as he heard his boys speak in perfect unison. "Omig-d," he choked out. "Boys..."
"Are you all right?" Complete, perfect unison. "Where are you?"
"Sammy..." John choked out. "I'm so sorry about your girlfriend."
And there was just Sam's voice, sad but strong. "Thanks, Dad. We - We think it was the same thing that killed Mom."
"Same M.O., at least." John took a breath. "I...I need you boys to stop looking for me."
"Just tell me you're okay."
John shivered. Unison. Again. They'd always been close - but this? "I'm fine, boys. Though, really, that should be my question to you."
"What?" Sam asked, sounding startled. "Yeah, of course we are! Why-" He broke off abruptly, and John heard them both sigh.
Then they spoke in unison. Again. "Gemini."
"Dad..." And damn, if Dean didn't sound almost like he was scolding him! "Gemini is not a threat to us."
John pressed, "How can you sound so certain? You know you can't fully trust-"
"Dad, do you trust us?" Sam barked, stunning John to silence.
"Of course I do!" he sputtered.
"Then," Sam finished firmly, "trust that we know what we're talking about, here!"
John sighed. "Tell you what, boys. I'll back off of this...Gemini... if you quit looking for me."
"Deal." In unison. Again.
...The hell? That had been way too easy...
"Just tell us where you are."
Of course Sam wouldn't let it go. But, if it got them to stop... "California." He could sense Dean's brain working, calculating driving times... "You promised."
"Yes, sir." Damn, was that freaky unison speak gonna happen every few sentences?
John shivered, then turned his eyes to his notes. "Dean, I need you to take down these names."
He heard scrambling, then Dean's "Okay. Shoot."
And John set aside his misgivings as - one by one - he read off the names on his list. Then he said softly:
"Boys? Be careful."
And with that, John hung up.
SPN GEMINI SPN
Sleep forgotten, they both showered and dressed. Dean hit the Internet while Sam went to a 24-hour diner close by to grab an extremely early breakfast. When Sam returned, it was to the hum of their portable printer. "Found a bit?"
"Oh, yeah," Dean nodded. "A lot. Tell you about it in the car. Whoa, that smells good!"
Sam laughed and passed over the food. He'd already eaten his share, so he sat down and monitored the printing until it stopped. "That all?"
"Thassaw," Dean slurred around a mouthful of sausage and eggs.
Nodding, Sam shut down and disconnected the printer. Then he shut down each laptop in turn, putting them away and starting to load their duffels.
It was only the work of a few moments to load the Impala. When Sam came back in, it was to see Dean putting his detritus into the trash can and going into the bathroom to wash up. "Got the research?" he asked.
"Yeah, it's in the front seat," Sam replied.
"Mind driving?" Dean asked. "I wanna look it over, see if I can find a pattern in those six names Dad gave me."
"No problem." Sam smiled as they left the room for the last time.
SPN GEMINI SPN
Dean studied the printouts by flashlight so the overhead light wouldn't interfere with Sam's night vision.
After about an hour and a half of driving, Sam smiled to hear Dean's soft, "Yahtzee."
"Found it, then?" Sam grinned.
"I think so. Man, the work Dad must have put into this..."
"And we're checking it out while he's in Sunny Calif-orn-I-A," Sam chuckled.
Dean laughed with him. Then he sobered. "Wonder what he's doing out there?"
Sam was quiet for a moment, watching the road Then he suggested, "I hope he's working on what killed Jess and Mom."
"Me, too," Dean admitted.
Sighing, Sam shifted position. "You know, part of me wants to chuck this job and go after him. Make him spit out what he knows.'
Dean put the papers down beside him, realising Sam's mood. "He thinks he's protecting us." He plowed quickly on, before Sam could say a word. "But the man takes 'need to know' to a whole new level."
Sam shot him a sideways smile. It was reassuring to know his brother now understood where Sam was coming from - even if he didn't always agree. "He does," Sam sighed. "And I'll give you that he thinks he's protecting us. But he's not, this time."
"It's hurting us," came out in unison. They glanced at each other and shared a quick smile.
"And add Gemini into the mix," Dean put in.
"And that makes everything that much harder," they chorused.
"Especially dealing with Dad," Sam finished, and Dean nodded.
"So what do you wanna do?" Dean asked. "You wanna go after Dad, or finish this hunt?"
After a long silence, Sam guided the Impala to the side of the road. He turned off the headlights, turned on the dome lights, and turned to face Dean.
"Going after Dad now - with him still gung-ho about getting rid of Gemini - feels wrong. Feels like an incredibly bad idea. So." He tapped the stack of papers. "Fill me in. What's so important about this list of names?"
Dean smiled and squeezed Sam's arm before he picked up the papers. "Okay, six names. Three couples. All vanished around Burkittsville, Indiana, on the second week of April."
Sam frowned slightly. "At the same time, or ever so often?"
"Every two years. Their cars are found in random areas, but the couples themselves are never seen again."
"Huh," Sam said. "Male-female couples?"
"Always. Always young couples. No one date in common - just a general time and the town." He tapped the papers. "And these names Dad gave us? I think they are just the last three."
Sam hissed. "How far back does this two year cycle go?"
"I don't know. I didn't check beyond Dad's list. And I didn't put it together till just now."
Sam turned the engine back on and slid the Impala back onto the road. "What do you wanna bet that we'll find it goes back to the founding? If there's papers that far back?"
"Why do you say that?" Dean asked, frowning slightly at him.
"It's just a hunch," Sam said. "No vision this time."
Dean smiled at him and they drove on toward Burkittsville.
They were so wrapped up in the case and their banter that neither of them noticed the blonde woman hitchhiking and drove right past her and her outstretched thumb.
She lowered her thumb and just gaped at the retreating tail lights. "That...That hadn't been in the plan."
SPN GEMINI SPN
A quick check-in at the local motel, and Sam and Dean split up. Sam went to the library to check out the newspaper archives, and Dean went to talk to the local law enforcement.
Because he was going as a friend of the missing instead of a fellow lawman, Dean didn't bother to change out of his jeans.
The icy reception he encountered made him wish that he had.
After about fifteen minutes of enduring the Great Freeze-Out, Dean joined Sam at the library. "Anything?"
"In the local paper? No. In the papers around Burkittsville? Yeah. I looked back ten years. Every other second week of April, a couple vanishes in this area. No common denominator."
"Except their time of disappearance." Dean blew the air out of his cheeks.
"There's something else," Sam said, sliding a stack over to Dean. "Photographs of the last six victims."
Dean tapped one. "That's a pretty distinctive tattoo. Maybe someone's seen that and can point us down the right road."
"Maybe," Sam agreed. "Hey, I'm hungry. You wanna catch some lunch?"
"Yeah. Take a break, let our brains rest." He smiled and helped Sam pack up his bag. "Man, you research all sprawled out."
Sam chuckled. "Yeah. I tend to take after Dad that way."
The brothers shared a laugh as they walked out into the bright sunshine, unaware that the sheriff's eyes were following their every move.
SPN GEMINI SPN
The case invaded their lunch. They found themselves sitting at a table next to a young couple.
The brothers looked at each other, feeling a chill slide down their spines. Sam struck up a conversation, and found they were young honeymooners whose car had broken down just inside the city limits.
Realising that they were potentially looking at the next victims, the brothers kept the conversation light until they were done eating. Then Dean offered to fix their car for them and get them underway in less time.
The offer was politely declined, so Dean offered again. When it was declined this time, the sheriff approached the brothers' table.
Upon threat of being arrested for disrupting the peace, the brothers were given an hour to pack up, check out, and leave town.
The sheriff even escorted them to make certain they left.
"That's gotta be some kind of a record," Dean groused as they drove.
"Park over past the next rise," Sam said. "I've got an idea."
SPN GEMINI SPN
Some two hours after the Winchester brothers had been escorted out of town, a young man drifted in. With his nondescript jeans and navy hoodie and a plain black backpack carelessly slung over his shoulder, he appeared small and unthreatening, despite his tall frame.
Paying cash for one night's stay, he signed the register "Frank Michaels" and dropped his backpack off into his room. Then he bee-lined to the diner and got a drink to go. He sat on the park bench and sipped his soda while his slanted hazel eyes watched the town go by.
The sheriff approached him. "This is a no loitering area, son."
The young man smiled up at him and brushed long bright red bangs off his forehead. "But I ain't loiterin', sir," he drawled, the lazy vowels speaking of a Southern origin. "I'm drinkin' my Coke. Once I'm done, I'll be on m'way."
"See that you are." The sheriff's eyes narrowed. "You look slightly familiar. What's your name, son?"
"Frank Michaels, sir," came the polite answer. "Just passin' through."
With a hum, the sheriff wandered off, leaving the redhead to drink his Coke in peace.
As soon as he was out of sight, Gemini blew the air out of his cheeks. "That was too damn close," he whispered.
Worked, though. Our features combined look JUST different enough that he didn't recognise us.
"Yeah, this was a real good idea you had," Gemini whispered. He watched as, across the street and two doors down, the couple from the diner collected their car and drove off.
Gemini finished his soda and threw the cup into a nearby trash can. He strolled lazily down the street and turned casually into an alleyway.
Then he took to the air, swiftly following the car without being seen.
SPN GEMINI SPN
Sam had hypothesised that the thing that was taking people had some form of mind control. When the cars had been located, each and every one showed no sigh of being broken and fixed. So Sam had figured something was controlling the minds of the victims.
The hypothesis was confirmed when the car rolled to a stop and two perfectly sensible people got out for no reason at all and just walked into a field surrounding an orchard, arguing with each other about why they were doing this.
As they entered a clearing, still bickering, they saw an ugly old scarecrow standing in place. Suddenly, the scarecrow pulled itself down and began to move toward them.
They both screamed, but found themselves oddly paralysed. The scarecrow raised a wickedly sharp sickle.
A bolt of flame knocked the sickle from the scarecrow's hand. A red-haired man in jeans and a hoodie landed on his feet between the couple and the scarecrow. Looking over his shoulder, he bellowed out, "Go! Get out of here!"
They didn't have to be told twice.
Gemini turned back to face the scarecrow, which was looking at its empty hand with something approaching confusion.
Gemini's lip curled. "Dude," he half-growled. "You're fugly." Dean, is it really necessary to antagonise the creature?
"What antagonise? I'm telling the truth."
Well... yeah. Then Sam's mental voice grew very soft. Look at its arm.
Gemini did, and drew in a sharp breath. "The tattoo - that's the one the missing man had. This thing is... is..."
It's wearing its victim's skins.
Abruptly, the scarecrow jerked into motion. A sickle shimmered into its hand, and it lunged toward Gemini.
Yelling, Gemini threw his hands forward, firing jet after jet of flame at the scarecrow.
It twisted and crackled, eventually collapsing to its knees and then pitching forward onto its face as it burned to ash.
I wonder what it really was.
"Well, it had to be something very powerful to be able to affect minds like it seemed to."
But why the male and female...
"Uh-oh. I hate when you go silent like that."
Dean - tribute. Sacrifice.
Gemini froze. "Human sacrifice? Why would a town in modern Indiana - midwest America - practice human sacrifice?"
"You're about to find out, boy," a familiar voice snarled behind him.
Before Gemini could turn to face the sheriff, a sharp jolt of pain seared itself into his head and the world melted into dark silence to the accompaniment of Sam's incoherent roars of rage.
SPN GEMINI SPN
...hear me? Dean, c'mon!
"...Sammy?" It was like trying to think through mud.
Yes! Don't reply out loud!
"...wha..." Then he realised he wasn't hearing Sam with his ears. He shook his head to clear it, and the action caused bangs to flop across his forehead.
We're still Gemini - seems we don't separate when we're cold-cocked! I've been trying to wake you up!
A woman's sobs pierced through the veil, and Gemini opened his eyes. He saw a young woman struggling as she was shoved against a pole next to Gemini and locked into cuffs. "Please! I love you like you were mine! Why are you doing this?"
The older woman answered her calmly while the older man checked the cuffs Gemini was in. That was the first inkling he'd had that he was restrained. "The god needs two sacrifices - male and female - or our town will die. He drove away the chosen, so he has to take his place. You drew the short straw - so you take hers. I'm sorry, honey - but it truly is for the greater good."
The couple left, leaving a sobbing young woman behind.
"What... what's your name, honey?" Gemini asked.
"Emily. What's yours?"
"Frank Michaels." He tested his bonds and smiled slightly to hear in his head, I just realised - you used both our middle names! Francis and Michael! "M-hm. What were they talking about? What 'god'?"
Emily sniffled. "It... It wasn't supposed to be true... It was just rumours..."
"Emily, please."
"When the town was founded - it was by people who'd come over for their own religious freedom. Supposedly they brought their god with them - the First Tree."
"First Tree - fertility god?" At her nod, Gemini growled softly. "Blood or sex sacrifices, and it seems this one is blood."
And we burned the scarecrow.
"We need to get out of here and burn the First Tree."
Yeah.
"How?" Emily asked. "We're manacled and guarded."
Gemini smirked. "Both easy obstacles. Emily, things are about to get very strange. Can I trust you not to scream and to trust me?"
Emily nodded. "Considering the alternative is to die as a sacrifice? I trust you and I won't scream."
Gemini nodded. "Okay, then. Go for it, Sammy."
"'Sammy'? Who-" True to her promise, Emily didn't scream. She did, however, gasp as a tall man unfolded himself from Gemini, who suddenly looked very different. "You - You're the brothers from the diner! You're one person?"
"Sometimes." The tall man stood, rubbing his freed wrists."You ready?"
His brother nodded, pulling on the cuffs. "Do it."
The tall man raised his left hand and snapped his fingers. There was a soft flare of light, and Gemini stood there - free. The cuffs dangled ludicrously from the pole for a second before sliding to the ground.
Following his orders, Emily leaned forward and Gemini worked on heating one link in the cuffs so it would overextend and free her. "How are we gonna get past the guards?"
Gemini's smile was audible. "Trust me."
SPN GEMINI SPN
"I'm tellin' you, Marty, somethin' just ain't right, here!"
The other guard snorted. "And i'm tellin you, you just didn't check everywhere!"
"Dammit, Marty, I looked everywhere! He had no matches! No lighter! Nothing that could have made fire!"
Another scoffing snort. "And yet, he burned the straw man."
"Yeah! Almost like he could generate fire all on his lonesome!" There was a moment, then the guard whispered, "Hey, Marty? D'you think ... May-Maybe he's one of them meta-humans?"
Marty laughed out loud. "Like was rumoured starting in the '60s? Jer, if those things were real, don't you think we'd have one close by here by now?"
Jer waved him to silence. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"Movement..." Jer bent over the cellar door. "I th... I thought I heard -"
The doors suddenly blew outward. One of them clipped Jer across the chin and he crumpled, hitting his head on the ground and knocking himself out.
Marty brought up his gun, but the male figure surging from the cellar struck him with the power of two men in one blow. It was lights-out before he could even blink.
Gemini scooped Emily into his arms, and they were off.
SPN GEMINI SPN
Once it was located, destroying the First Tree was a simple thing for a fire elemental. Gemini voiced the brothers' worry about the town, but Emily sealed it with two words.
"Burn it."
For Emily's protection, the brothers didn't take her home for her things. They got the Impala and drove her to the closest bus terminal.
While Dean waited with Emily for the bus, Sam went to use the restroom. When he came out, he narrowly missed colliding with a blonde woman. As it was, he had to grab her to keep her from toppling over.
"Sorry!" she apologised with a laugh. "Wasn't paying attention!"
"That's all right," Sam smiled at her as she got her feet under her. "No harm done."
She smiled into his eyes. "My hero," she purred. "I'm Meg. Meg Masters."
"Sam," he nodded.
"So...Sam. Where are you headed?"
"Uh," he chuckled. "Just over there. I'm with my brother, seeing a friend off."
"Oh." She sounded disappointed. "I was thinking maybe, if you were going somewhere, we could ride together awhile. I'd... I'd really like to see you again."
Sam looked over to see Dean gesturing at him to 'go on'. He shook his head. "Look... my girlfriend died about six months ago. It's really too soon.."
"Okay, I get it. I'm sorry." She smiled again. "Let's exchange numbers, at least?"
"I...I don't think so. Sorry, Meg." With a slight smile, he made his way over to Dean.
"What was that about?" Dean asked.
Sam shook his head. "Real pushy lady."
Dean frowned. "You okay?"
"Yeah. It's just..." He shook his head. "I just had a really bad feeling about her." They got into the Impala and Sam pulled out his phone, firing off a message.
"Texting Dad?" Dean asked as he turned the engine on.
Sam nodded. "Telling him we're done in Burkittsville. Let's put some miles between us and that place."
"With pleasure."
Meg stood in the bus terminal and watched the Impala drive away. A cold smile touched her lips and her eyes shimmered black from corner to corner.
"Soon, John Winchester," she snarled. "Very, very soon - you're dead and your precious Sammy is ours."
END