Elixir

Chapter Two

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Supernatural, and I'm not making any money from this fic. Any character you don't recognise from the show, I probably own. Anything you recognise from another fandom, I probably don't own

Warning(s): Descriptions of violence; some swearing; spoilers for the entirety of season one and up to episode eight of season two; mental torture (does that even count as a warning…?)

Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who's read and reviewed this fic so far – you're all really great, and it's nice to know that people are enjoying this . Please feel free to tell me if you notice any mistakes/anything that could be better, and I'll do my best to change it.

Enjoy!

"You got any beer?" Dean asked as he took a seat on the couch, watching the Springer spaniel warily. The dog kept on trying to jump up at him, despite the fact that Dean really didn't like dogs.

Then again… Aren't animals supposed to be able to tell when someone doesn't like them, and play on that?

Sam glanced at Dean with a frown, and Dean raised his eyebrows. "What? Alcohol's good for the brain." He smirked, and leaned back slightly, trying not to let his mind dwell on the dream Sam had had. Whatever happens, I'm not gonna die… Sam seems to be worried that something might happen – he oughtta know me better by now.

"Sure," Jody said. She glanced at Sam. "Do you want anything?"

Sam shrugged. "Sure, if you're getting some anyway," he answered. "It might help with what we've got to tell you anyway."

"Given that, when I first met you, my friend had been killed because she got too close to what was going on at the hospital, and my uncle – who was involved – was killed by the ghost of said friend, I think I can handle whatever it is you're going to say." Jody bit her lip slightly, and then looked at the dog. "Come here, Brownie."

The dog barked – as if in acknowledgment – but stayed at Dean's feet. He looked up at the man, tongue hanging out of his mouth as he panted.

"All right… Stay there if you want to," Jody muttered. "I'll be right back." She then walked out of the living room.

Once she was gone, Dean looked at Sam. "So how do you think she's going to react once you tell her she's shacked up with someone who's gonna kill me?"

Sam shrugged slightly. "Probably not very well," he replied. "I have no idea how she reacted to finding out about the existence of demons – but most people don't handle that knowledge very well, at least not at first."

Dean nodded slowly. He then looked at the dog, who was staring disconcertingly at him. "That dog's really beginning to freak me out… Did Amber have this dog when you first met her?" he asked his brother.

"I wouldn't have thought so…" Sam answered, frowning. "She didn't mention having a dog – it was more like she had a pet ghost."

"A pet ghost," Dean repeated. "Because that's so much better and healthier." He shook his head slightly and sighed. "You know… when that dog jumped up at me, I had the strangest sense of déjà vu. Like that had happened to me before…" He stared at the dog, feeling just a little freaked out.

"I know what déjà vu is." Sam looked at Brownie, and then at Dean. "It's probably nothing – that sort of thing happens all the time."

"Hm…" Dean leaned back against the couch, and put his feet up on the coffee table, making himself at home. "Let's just wait and see what happens." I'm not planning on trusting anything supernatural right now – with the possible exception of Sam's visions… Even then, he didn't know much about the visions, or what caused them.

Only what their dad had told him…

Sam glanced up as Jody came into the room. She passed the brothers a can of beer each, and then sat down, hands clasped around a mug of what was probably tea or coffee. "So… are you gonna tell me what you're here for?"

Sam and Dean exchanged glances.

"Don't look at me," Dean said, opening the beer can and drinking some. "You're the one with the visions."

"I don't get it…" Jody frowned, glancing between the brothers. "What visions? Psychics don't really exist… Right?"

"What, you can believe in demons but not in psychics?" Dean asked. "Sammy here's the real deal. Some of his visions have come true, and others, we've been able to prevent from coming true."

"All right…" Jody said slowly. "What's this got to do with Amber?"

"You said that Amber disappeared a week ago," Sam said. "But, see, I had a vision of her. It wasn't of her actually disappearing, but I assume of what happened just before – when she wanted to go swimming."

Jody sighed, looking down a moment. "I did think it was a bad idea," she commented. "If she hadn't gone, she'd still be here and safe…"

"Or she would have just disappeared some other way," Dean replied. "There's no way you could know for sure what might or might not happen."

"Thanks…" Jody said, quietly but sincerely. She then looked at Sam. "So… What do you think the deal with that vision being too late might be?" she asked.

Dean took the opportunity to study Jody's face. While the young woman seemed calm enough, Dean had the feeling that she was just trying to put on a brave face. Huh… Sam should be careful with this, he thought. It probably won't take a lot to get her to snap… He frowned to himself, considering – just for a moment – what the vision Sam had to mean. If the second part comes true, it means that Amber will have snapped somehow…

Sam shrugged. "To be honest, I have no clue," he answered. "These visions don't seem to be like e-mails or letters – that can get lost in the post or whatever. They shouldn't be coming to me too late for us to do anything about them." His voice rose slightly as the frustration apparently got to him.

"Hey…" Dean immediately put a hand on his brother's shoulder, doing his best to offer Sam support, to make Sam realise that his brother was there for him.

I guess I'm not the only one suffering right now… I almost realised this too late. Guess I'm not such a good big brother after all. At that moment, though, Dean made a silent vow to be a better brother – and to help Sam deal with his pain and grief…

Jody sat in silence, apparently waiting for Sam to be ready to continue. She glanced between the brothers, frowning and biting her lip slightly.

Dean kept his hand on Sam's shoulder, feeling his brother tremble slightly under his touch. "It's all right, Sammy," he said softly. "This isn't your fault." As he said it, he prayed that Sam would believe him, would listen to him. I hope Sam can still trust me to take care of him – this isn't easy… But I'm going to do my best to help him. For the first time in a long while, Dean really looked at his brother, and took note of the suffering he was going through.

"Would it help if I left the room…?" Jody asked, a little hesitantly.

Sam took a deep breath, and closed his eyes for a moment. "No, it's all right…" he replied. "There was actually more to the visions…" he added.

Dean squeezed his brother's shoulder, and then let go, although he stayed close to Sam's side. He watched Sam closely, ready to step in and help his brother should Sam need it at all. I want to make up for punching Sammy and taking my pain out on him, Dean thought. I need to start being his big brother again…

"What do you mean?" Jody asked. "What else was there to the vision?"

Sam glanced at Dean, and then looked back at Jody. "I saw Dean get shot," he explained, looking quite reluctant. "By Amber…"

Jody stared at them both for a moment, her mouth open. "That's impossible," she said finally. "Amber wouldn't do something like that. I know she wouldn't." Her tone was insistent, but it also sounded like she was trying to convince herself as much as the brothers.

"Actually, under the right circumstances, it's possible for someone to be made to do anything," Sam replied, his voice soft. "As difficult as it is to accept – if we can't stop it from happening, Amber might resort to becoming a murderer."

Jody shook her head. "She wouldn't," she repeated. "I know Amber, and I know that she's not a murderer."

"Did you know about your uncle helping to kill all of those people in the hospital?" Dean questioned, not caring that he sounded harsh. Naivety really gets on my nerves sometimes… I have nothing against innocence – but sometimes people have to let go of their view of the world being filled with sunshine and roses…

Jody looked stricken, and opened her mouth. However, the doorbell went, and she glanced towards the living room door. "I'll get it…" She straightened up, and then walked out of the room.

Once she was gone, Sam looked at Dean. "Was that really necessary?" he asked.

Dean shrugged. "I just told her the truth," he answered. "And the truth is, you can't fully know someone – no matter how close you are to them."

"What, the only person you can trust is yourself?" Sam shook his head. "That's bullshit, Dean."

"No, the only people you can trust are your family," Dean corrected. "Other people just let you down."

"So does family, sometimes," Sam muttered, turning away.

Yeah, Sammy… Dean couldn't help giving a slight sigh. You don't have to rub salt in the wound – I'm aware that I haven't been a good brother to you since dad's death. Dean was determined to do a better job – but he'd prefer not to have to admit his mistakes to Sam.

Before Sam or Dean could say anything else, Jody came back into the living room, followed closely by a young dark-haired, dark-skinned man. "Um, hey…" she said. "This is Pedro. He's a friend of Amber's – I thought you might like to talk to him. Pedro, this is Dean and Sam," she continued to the man. "They're…"

"… Detectives," Dean cut in, standing up and offering a hand to Pedro. They shook, and Dean returned to his seat next to Sam. "So… Were you and Amber dating?" Dean asked. Stick with the 'routine' questions – otherwise, he could become suspicious. And he probably doesn't know the truth about what we do…

"No… We were just friends," Pedro said slowly. "Have you found out what might have happened to her?"

"We really don't know much just yet," Sam replied. "Right now, we're just going through some routine questions with anyone who might have known her. Do you happen to know if Amber was dating anyone?"

Dean noticed that, although Jody had looked surprised at his comment about being detectives, she wasn't arguing the fact. Smart girl, he thought approvingly, before turning his attention back to Pedro.

"Um…" Pedro glanced at Jody, and then at the brothers. "Not as far as I know," he replied. "Jody spent more time with Amber than I did; she'd know better than me, I think…"

"If Amber did have a boyfriend, she kept him a secret from me," Jody answered.

"What about enemies?" Dean spoke up. "You know… people who might have borne a grudge against her?" It could just be a normal kidnapping case. All right, I don't really believe that – but it's possible…

Pedro shrugged, looking quite confused. "Not any enemies that I knew about…" he replied. "I'm sorry – I wasn't expecting an interrogation when I came round here…"

"Oh, it's all right." Dean smiled. "Everything's off the record here. You probably won't be brought in for questioning. Oh, by the way – why did you come round here?" He raised his eyebrows.

"I came to see how Jody was holding up," Pedro answered. "If there are no problems, though – and you guys don't need to ask me any more questions – I need to get to work."

"If Jody has a number where you can be reached, then you can leave, of course," Dean replied. "But we may need to ask you further questions at a later stage."

"I have no problem with that," Pedro replied. "Jody knows where I can be reached. If you need to get hold of me, just let her know." He glanced at the woman. "I can show myself out," he told her. Without waiting for any kind of response, he headed out of the room, all but slamming the door behind him.

"Think we might have offended him?" Dean asked.

"What was all that about?" Jody asked, staring at Sam and Dean. "You lied to Pedro – why did you say you were detectives?"

"Usually, people will tell us things if they think we're part of the relevant authorities or companies," Sam explained. "Yes, it's fraud – but firstly, it works. Secondly, it's for a good cause."

Dean frowned; something about what Sam was saying resonated inside his mind. It was the part about people being more likely to tell them things… Amber was missing for a week, right…? So how come the administrator didn't tell me about that?

Amber had no idea of just how much time had passed between being given the potion and now, but she became aware of someone removing something from her eyes, and felt what seemed to be sharp nails ghosting over her cheek. But even without the covering over her eyes, she couldn't make out more than indistinct shapes.

Amber swallowed, trying to moisten her mouth and her lips enough to speak. However, she couldn't make more than a gurgling sound.

"Oh… I forget that humans need to eat and drink," the voice from before commented, as Amber felt her hair being stroked from her face. "I'll get you something in a moment… But first…"

Amber gave a soft whimper as she felt the glass being pressed against her lips again, and struggled to turn her head away. She felt too weak to fight against it, though. The glass was tipped up, and the liquid burned down her throat.

Amber started coughing as the pain in her stomach worsened. That pain was joined by one in her forehead, and black spots began dancing in front of her eyes. She tried to scream, but nothing would come out.

"I've been told that they're looking for you," the person murmured against her ear. "I didn't think it would take them this long – but it doesn't have any effect on what my plans are."

Who? Amber wanted to ask, but it hurt too much to concentrate.

FLASH. A man with sharp teeth holding her, tearing into her throat. Unimaginable pain…

FLASH. The silver blade of a dagger glinting, slicing her neck open.

FLASH. The touch of lips on hers as she held a glass in her hand.

FLASH. A snake being thrown at her by a man in a clearing.

A whole myriad of images that Amber didn't even understand whirled around inside her mind. She felt an intense agony as she once again had the sensation of her throat being sliced open. She tried to scream, but no sound came out of her mouth.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, the images stopped going through her mind, and Amber collapsed, gasping and exhausted. As she felt something cool pressed to her lips again, she swallowed the water eagerly, ignoring the voice telling her to take it slow and easy. As the glass was taken away again, she made a protesting sound, but it was returned a moment later with more water.

Amber kept her eyes closed as she felt a hand lightly touching her forehead a moment. She didn't want to open her eyes – but she had to at least get a good look at whoever was holding her captive.

Slowly, she forced her eyes open. Then, as she saw who was leaning over her, Amber's eyes widened, and she couldn't hold back a gasp.

"D-dean…?"