Usual disclaimer: All belongs to Kripke & Co. and I'm just having fun.
Just want to add that the whole Oktoberfest/Lederhosen gag was something that I wrote months before Monster Movie was even filmed and posted back in July on Supernatural TV's fiction board. Absolutely no spoiler was intended. Who knew the writers would dream up something that bizarre!!
Dean glanced down at his sleeping brother and shifted restlessly in his seat. The route through the mountains was slow going. He'd been driving four hours straight and the silence was getting to him. He'd turned the music off shortly after leaving Spokane in the hope that the engine noise would lull Sam off to some much-needed sleep. His little brother had finally drifted off and Dean didn't want anything to disturb him. He looked longingly at his cassette player. Dean really hated silence. It always led to thoughts and memories he'd just as soon not revisit. He slowed the Impala as he approached the outskirts of Seattle, but became distracted as Sam started to twitch and mutter in his sleep. Dean became increasingly anxious as he watched his brother become more and more agitated.
"Come on Sammy," he groaned. "Not now Dude!"
Sam yelled out and doubled over, clutching his head. He then shot back, cracking the side of his head against the car window. Dean threw his right arm out to try to hold Sam back as he braked sharply and pulled onto the side of the road. He leapt out and raced around to Sam's side of the car, but wasn't in time to catch his brother as he tumbled out into the dirt. Dean reached down to help Sam sit up but his brother twisted away and was violently sick.
"Oh come on man, that's just gross!" chided Dean. "Don't you get anything on my baby."
Sam didn't respond. He slumped down with his head on his knees and waited for the nausea to subside. Dean rested a hand on the back of his brother's neck in a gesture of comfort and waited patiently for Sam to settle.
"What did you see Sammy?"
"Man, you don't want to know!"
"True enough," sighed Dean, "but you're gonna tell me anyway, so lets have it."
"They were just little kids Dean, and she slashed them to pieces. They were screaming for their Mom's and she kept hacking…."
"Shhh Sam. Settle down. Just breathe."
Sam dropped his head and raked his hands through his hair. He swallowed compulsively in an obvious attempt to avoid vomiting again. Dean grasped both his brother's wrists and pulled his arms down.
"Sammy! Talk to me. Can we stop it? D'you think it's happened already?"
"I don't think so. It would have been all over the news if it had."
"Okay, up you come." Dean reached down and offered Sam a hand. Let's get you back in the car Sam." Once he had his brother settled, Dean got back behind the wheel. "Okay. Where we heading? Please don't say East Coast because I'm so wasted I'd even let you drive."
Sam closed his eyes and pictured the banner he'd seem in the classroom. "Mount Angel Elementary. Hang on." He leaned back and pulling a book of maps from under the seat, flicked through looking for the shortest route. "Head for Portland. It's only 30 odd miles from there."
"That's doable," assured Dean, trying not to wince at the thought of another three hours driving. "We could be there before school ends."
Sam nodded briefly before closing his eyes and leaning his head against the side of the car. He pulled away again with a grunt and ruefully rubbed the side of his head.
"Yeah you cracked it pretty hard earlier. It's not like you've got that many brains cells left to waste geek boy."
Sam didn't respond. He just looked straight ahead and willed Dean to move faster. Dean's attention alternated between the road and his wiped out little brother. He stopped only once to fill the car and grab some food as they headed out towards Oregon.
Mount Angel was an attractive small tourist town nestled between farmland and foothills, on Highway 214. Some of the shop fronts had an old world flavour and Dean spotted a banner advertising Oktoberfest, the yearly celebration of the town's German heritage. "Hope you packed your leather shorts Sammy!"
"Lederhosen."
"Right back at you." grinned Dean.
"Not now Dean," snapped Sam. He was in no mood to fool around. "Lets find the school and get this done."
They arrived just as the school day was ending and parked in front of a strip mall across the street. Sam sat with his eyes glued to the rear view mirror watching the parents start to arrive to collect their offspring. Dean fell into an exhausted sleep.
Sam remained rigid with tension until he saw the children start to tumble out into the playground. He lurched forward and swung his arm out, hitting a sleeping Dean across the chest. "That's her."
Dean grunted irritably and adjusted the rear view mirror to study her discreetly.
"What? That pretty little thing? You sure Dude?"
"Trust me Dean. That face is seared into my memory."
Dean studied their quarry. She was petite and slender, with thick glossy brown hair. He wasn't close enough to see her face clearly, but she looked young and carefree. She was handing her pupils out to parents and seemed to have a smile and a friendly greeting for everyone. The playground emptied quickly and the other teachers drifted back into the school. The young woman was left with one little boy who started to become anxious. She dropped down on one knee and gave the child a quick reassuring hug before leading him over to the jungle gym. Dean was amused by the unselfconscious way she played with the little boy until his harassed looking mother pulled up and hurried across the playground.
"How many schools we go to Sam?"
"Never counted. Why?"
"Any of your teachers that hot?" he sighed.
Sam appeared to give this some serious consideration before turning to Dean with a grin. "Miss Edwards."
Dean chuckled. "Damn, I'd forgotten about her. I must have picked you up from school every day for two months straight."
The child's mother led him past the Impala, on their way into one of the stores. Dean's amusement died when he glanced over at his brother. Sam had his eyes squeezed shut and he was swallowing compulsively.
"That little boy Dean…"
"What?" queried Dean. He was pretty sure he didn't want to know the answer.
"She takes his head clean off."
"Then we take her out Sammy." growled Dean, all attraction forgotten in an instant. "Now if we have too."
"It's Friday Dean. Schools done and we've got a day or two to figure it out. Let's do this thing right."
About an hour later the girl walked out into the parking lot. She was hurrying towards her car when another woman called after her, "Emma! You're on for Zach's right? You know where it is?
"Yeah, I do. Academy Street opposite the diner.
"See you there."
The boys followed her at a distance. Her house was situated in an older, slightly run down looking part of town. An elderly couple were working on their yard next door as the girl waved and hurried on into her house. The neighbours stopped work and watched her until she disappeared through her door, before turning their attention to the Impala. Dean drove on past and headed back towards the centre of town.
"What's the betting those two never sleep?" sighed Sam. "This is a small town man. We can't afford to get caught dragging her off."
"How about I get her to come back with me to a motel?"
"Small town school teacher? Doubt she's one of your usual quick lays."
"Not looking to screw her dude, come on! A little roofie, quick trip to the woods, sorted."
"You're not killing this girl Dean!" Sam stopped short and turned towards his brother. "You have Rohypnol?"
"Do I look like I need to drug chicks?" Dean retorted indignantly before heading off to find a motel.
Dean pulled into a rundown looking establishment and dropped Sam outside the office. While he waited, he ran through their first aid kit, looking for something he could use to subdue their target. They were running low on essentials and Dean made a mental note to contact their supplier. Sam returned with the key and Dean grabbed their bags and followed him into the room.
Dean picked up a leaflet on the dresser advertising the upcoming four-day event.
"Sammy, look at this. They've got Wiener dog races and a Cruz 'N Car show. Maybe after we gank your girl we can stick around for a couple of days. What do you say?"
"Murder a local school teacher, then stick around for the festivities? This might just be your best plan ever Dean."
"You need to lighten up a little Sam." Catching his brother's incredulous expression, Dean thought he'd better start thinking about the job in hand. "Okay, where do we start? We'll have to separate her from the herd and deal with her elsewhere. All we have is morphine, which I don't want to waste and very little Halidol. He turned around to look at his brother with a smile.
"Hey Sammy. Remember that sleeper hold thing Dad taught us?"
"Yeah, but we've never used it and I'm not sure how safe it'd be on a girl. She's kind of little and…I don't know man. You even remember what to do?"
"OK. Turn around Sam."
"What? No way Dude! Come on!"
"Just relax Francis. You won't feel a thing. I'm not gonna choke you, Ok? I just need to cut the blood supply to your brain."
"That's all? No problem Dean. Have at it!"
"Come on dude. I need to get this right first time and I don't want to hurt her…well not right away."
"But you'll take that chance with me?" huffed Sam.
"Big difference between you and her Sasquatch," smirked Dean. "Now kneel down 'coz I'm not gonna catch your gargantuan ass." Sam rolled his eyes and dropping down on one knee, turned his back on Dean.
"If you kill me Dean, I swear to God..."
His words were cut off by Dean's powerful forearm pushing up under his chin and exposing his throat. He didn't apply any pressure to Sam's windpipe but used the fingers and thumb of his other hand to press against his carotid arteries. Within seconds Sam began to feel light-headed. The moment Dean felt his brother relax, he released him, lowering his body the rest of the way to the floor.
Sam felt his consciousness return in a rush, along with the sting from a sharp slap to his cheek. He blinked up into Dean's smug face.
"Hey there Sammy. How was that for you?"
"Get off me man!" snapped Sam as he pushed his brother back. "I feel like shit. How long was I out for?"
"Not nearly long enough. We can probably extend it if I keep the pressure on just a bit longer."
"No! It's not worth the risk. We only do this if there's no other option."
"I can't believe we've never used it before. You know...for civilians who get in our way. It's non lethal and relatively painless, right?"
"It's dangerous is what it is Dean," muttered Sam. "Do it wrong and you can stop someone's heart."
"You might have mentioned that before you agreed Dude! Now quit whining Princess," Dean grinned. "You're still here aren't you?"
Sam reached into his duffle and dug out a clean shirt. He shook it out and picking up his wash bag, headed for the bathroom.
Sam, make it quick. We'd better go find that bar.
"Just need a shave."
"Give it up Dude. You'll never be as pretty as me!"
The bar was situated in a busy street surrounded by small shops and restaurants. The boys chose a diner across the street from the entrance and settled down to wait for her to arrive. They watched her pull up in her car. She looked around for her friends, checked the doors were locked and settled down to wait. When a friend arrived she jumped out and they entered the bar together.
"Smart girl," sighed Sam. "She not gonna make this easy." They dropped some notes on the table and wandered across the road.
Zach's was packed out and loud, but the atmosphere appeared laid-back and welcoming. Dean spotted her almost immediately sitting at a table with four friends. He wandered slowly past her and leaned on the bar. Sam disappeared towards the men's room to check alternative exits while Dean got the beers. He listened in for a few minutes as the girls bantered back and forth.
One of the women spotted him and started whispering to her friends. Emma looked up and caught his eye. When he flashed her a cocky grin she felt herself flush and looked away quickly. He was one of the most beautiful men she'd ever seen. The man exuded self-confidence. He also screamed trouble! He kept glancing over at her. Her friends noticed his interest and started trying to encourage her to make a move. Emma kept her head down and watched him out of the corner of her eye. After a couple of minutes another equally handsome man joined him at the bar.
"Oh my," muttered one of the girls. "Right there are two of the hottest looking men in this town since….ever. Ladies, we can't let them go to waste."
Dean heard Emma squeak, "Holly, don't you dare!" He smiled and turned to face Holly as she approached. She introduced herself, accepted Dean's offer of a drink and after a few minutes of small talk, invited them to join their table. The boys agreed and Dean pulled up a chair alongside Emma. She looked up when he introduced himself. His handsome face was angular and hard, but saved from toughness by the mischievous spark in his very beautiful almond shaped eyes. Another feature, which caught her eye, was the light sprinkling of freckles across his nose. They looked somehow out of place when teamed up with the stubble on his chin, but added a boyish charm to an otherwise world weary and cynical face. Emma prided herself on her ability to read peoples characters. While Sam seemed slightly embarrassed and out of his element, she still sensed his underlying kindness, Dean on the other hand, despite his outward charm, seemed slightly hostile and somehow threatening.
All his attempts at drawing her out were met with polite but abrupt responses. Dean really wasn't a particularly vain man. He took his extraordinary good looks for granted and regarded his handsome face as a weapon of sorts, just another tool of the trade and usually something he could rely on as a shortcut to achieving his goals. He started to feel irritated by her aloof attitude. It didn't help that Sam was clearly enjoying watching him flounder in such unfamiliar territory.
Emma, meanwhile, was dying inside. This stunning man was definitely showing an interest and here she was, like a rabbit in the headlights. The girls were going to kill her when she bogged this up.
After a few more minutes Dean gave up. He turned to one of the other girls and flirted half-heartedly for a few minutes before catching Sam's eye and jerking his head towards the exit. After they'd excused themselves, they returned to the bar to pay their tab.
"She's clearly frigid Sammy, nothing I can do."
"Maybe she's just got standards," grinned Sam.
As they turned to leave, one of the girls could be heard to hiss, "For Christ's sake Emma, you planning on being a virgin your whole life?"
"See Sam?" smirked Dean. "Frigid."
He glanced back at her in irritation and was startled to see the look of abject misery and embarrassment on her face. He felt a stab of pity that he couldn't explain, and then strode out into the car park. Sam rolled his eyes and followed him out.
Dean already had the engine running as Sam dropped himself into the passenger seat. He barely got the door shut before Dean was on the move.
"Where we headed?"
"Her place. I want to check it out before we tackle her."
"She wasn't what I was expecting."
"Why because she's hot? How many butt-ugly demons have you met Sam? They like the pretty meat."
"No, it's not just her looks. She was kind of sweet and awkward and," grinned Sam, "not at all into you." Dean just snorted, but didn't comment. "I'm not sure what to make of her," continued Sam. "She's either very, very good or she hasn't any idea what's happening to her. Do you think...?"
"Don't know," dismissed Dean. "Don't much care. I do know that any one of those chicks could pick our fine asses out of a line-up so we need to get this done. I'm telling you now, there's no way we're letting her set foot back in that school. Let's just grab her and beat it."