Fight Fire With Fire
Dean carefully carried an unconscious Sam into Bobby's house, placing him on one of the beds in the spare room. Bobby had wisely made himself scarce once they'd entered the house. He could sense Dean's anger over what'd happened rather than visibly see it. He knew he would eventually have to talk to Dean about how he planned on dealing with his anger because Bobby didn't want him doing something rash that could end up hurting either himself or Sam even worse.
Dean pulled up a chair next to Sam's bed and sat down, wordlessly watching his comatose younger brother. Without warning the floodgates opened and Dean was crying brokenly, hiccupped sobs escaping his throat as he wiped furiously at his eyes with the back of his hand. With his eyes brightly red-rimmed and a few stray tears slowly making their way down his cheeks, Dean dared another look at Sam. Feeling a lump rise to his throat, he coughed violently, focusing on his anger to pull himself together.
"Dammit, Sammy. Is this how you felt after the accident watching out for me? 'Cause I gotta say man, payback's a bitch." His eyes flitted over Sam's still form, gently grabbing a hold of his hand without thinking. "I know Dad told me to keep you safe, but this is a pretty crappy way to repay him, don't you think? Come on, dude. Open those eyes. Give me those puppy dog eyes of yours. A scowl. Something. Just…" he trailed off, frustrated. Scrubbing a hand over his face, he got to his feet, slowly walking over to the window. That evil yellow-eyed son of a bitch had taken away everyone he cared about, and he didn't even know why. First his mom. Then his dad. And now… now Sam.
"No!" he yelled, immediately regretting the thought. Glancing over at Sam for a moment he went over to his duffel, grabbing everything he could think of that he might need.
"Dean, what're you doing?" Bobby asked, standing in the doorway. He'd heard the older Winchester yell and come running.
"Taking care of what's left of my family," Dean replied gruffly.
"If you go after that thing now you'll be playing right into its hands."
"How the hell do you know that!?" Dean growled. Didn't Bobby realize he'd made a promise to John about keeping Sam safe? It was either that or Dean would have to kill him. And as far as Dean saw it the second option wasn't an option at all. He had to keep Sam safe or die trying.
"You're weak. Emotionally vulnerable. It'd kill you then go after Sam in an instant." Dean sighed heavily, putting away the weaponry he'd pulled from his duffel for the time being. He sat next to Sam again, closing his eyes briefly. When he opened them again he saw things more clearly. Even if he was scared, terrified really, his fears didn't matter. Sam's safety, his life was the only thing Dean needed to concern himself with now.
"Let it come," he growled, glaring intensely at the wall across from Sam's bed.
"What!?" Bobby exclaimed in surprise.
"Please, Bobby. I'm not in the mood to argue," Dean said wearily. Bobby nodded.
"All right. Just be careful. If you fight fire with fire you tend to get burned."
"Yeah, well, I've got a responsibility here in looking out for Sam. Keep him safe. He's all I've got left. There's no way in hell I'm losing him now. Even if that means dancing with the devil."
Bobby nodded his understanding again before leaving the boys alone. Dean sighed heavily, once again focused on Sam.
"You hear that, Sammy? I won't lose you. I'm gonna take it down, you hear me? That evil son of a bitch messed with the wrong family when it decided to tangle with the Winchesters, huh, dude?" And just like that he felt another lump rise to his throat. He buried his face in his hands as he felt the tears return. Several minutes later, gasping for breath, he managed to pull himself away from a grieving state. Sam needed him more than ever now. That meant Dean needed to be strong for his little brother.
The end of this long, arduous fight was rapidly approaching. Dean could feel it in his bones. And he was going to make sure the Winchesters won this time around.
THE END
