7 years later

Dean was not 'introduced' into the world of the supernatural, so much as he was thrown into it. Up until then, he had no idea that monsters existed, neither did his family. They came across the supernatural on an otherwise normal day. Mike and Lucy had taken Dean and Jo out on a trip to the beach as a reward for their good behaviour. Mike and Lucy were sprawled out on their beach towels, enjoying the sun and making light conversation. Dean had taken joey to the water, which was freezing despite the burning heat of the sun. "Dean! Dean look!" Joey cried out, as he attempted to float on the water. When he was successful, Dean cheered along with him, then quickly splashed him with water. Joey flopped around in shock, accidentally submerging his body into the water. When he resurfaced, he latched onto dean, yelling "Dean! It's cold- why did you do that?!" as he began to splash dean with the chilly water. Dean laughed, grabbing joey in his arms and spinning him about.

"c'mon then squirt. If you don't like the cold, how about we make a sandcastle?" The two boys begun to do just that, collecting sand and handfuls of water when necessary to make a great castle.

"I want it to have a moat dean, with lots of water in it! And some people on the castle, and windows to see in, and maybe a drawbridge. Do you think we can- "Joey's enthusiasm was cut off by a loud scream. A scream they both recognised. Sitting up, they stared in shock as their mother was dragged by a stranger. Holding a fistful of Lucy's hair, he dragged her along the side. All the bystanders looked on in shocked, some even taking out their phones to record it.

"mom!" "mother!" Dean and joey cried out in unison, both quickly leaping up and running after their mother and the strange man who dragged their mother further away behind the large rocks. Dean ran fast, his body stimulated by fear. Who was the man? what did he want?

When they reached their mother, she was held in front of a man, his hand wrapped around her throat. Lucy was raised slightly off her feet, and was kicking out towards the hair, both hands wrapped around the man's large hand which was constricting her airflow.

"hey! Let her go!" Dean yelled. The man's gaze turned to Dean, cocking his head to the side.

"Hey Dean" he crooned, smiling.

"H-How do you know my name?" Dean asked, fear washing over his body.

"Oh Deano, I know a lot of stuff about you. Did you know my daddy killed your mommy?" he asked, giggling slightly.

"but- but she's" dean gasped, looking towards his mother who looked faintly confused.

"not her" the man rolled his eyes, "your real mommy. Gutted her real nice then burnt her alive. You really don't remember dean?" the man asked. He shut his eyes for a few moments, smiling silently. Then he opened his eyes. Dean gasped. His eyes were-

"black. Your eyes are black!" he gasped aloud. He grabbed joey and held him tighter.

"uh uh Deano, no protecting the little one." With a flick of his hand, dean was thrown in the air, his body slamming up against the hard stone.

"Now Deano, you're going to come with me"

"Li-like hell he is" Lucy gasped, her face already red and her breaths becoming shallow.

"What are you?" Dean asked slowly.

"Oh Dean, I'm a- "the black eyed man begun.

"-demon" the answer came from someone else. An old dark-haired man stood beside deans' father, a blade in his hand. "He's a demon, a being filled with death and darkness. I shall kill you now" the man declared, walking assuredly towards the black-eyed demon. The demon flicked his hand, then looked in shock as the man continued walking towards him.

"seems I'll be going. I'll see you around real soon Deano" he promised to Dean, "and you too" he promised to the stranger, his eyes narrowing in thought. Then he was gone. Lucy fell to the ground, gasping loudly as she sucked in as much air as possible. Mike ran towards his wife, grabbing her in his arms as she breathed loudly and rapidly. Dean was also released from his frozen position, instantly grabbing joey by the hand. The strange man with the blade walked towards Lucy, holding out two fingers. She recoiled, raising a hand to hit him away. "do not fear Lucy Smith, I will heal you" he intoned, before touching her head. She gasped slightly, and dean saw that her face returned to normal and the bruises on her neck were suddenly gone.

"who are you?" dean asked the man. the man turned to him, looking at him appraisingly. "I am of no concern, but know that I am here to protect you"

"From that- that thing. Who was that? What was that?" Mike asked, staring at the stranger. "and how did you know he was here? You came to me and told me that my family was in danger! How did you know?" Deans normally quiet and reserved father was growing louder and louder with every word he spoke.

"Please remain calm Michael Smith. He is a demon of hell, child of Azazel, the yellow eyed demon he spoke of. One with considerable power- "

"-you expect us to believe that he was a demon" Lucy stated blandly, snorting at the word demon.

"what explanation do you have for as to how he made Dean fly into a rock, on how he immobilised your body?" the man asked, raising an eyebrow. Dean's mother said nothing, going silent.

"He is a demon, one interested in Dean."

"why? Why me?" dean asked forlornly, fear once again resurging in his body. "you mean, you mean the reason he hurt my mother was because of me?" he asked shocked.

"No Dean" his mother and father shouted together, as the stranger said "yes."
"You must understand that he will hurt anyone you are with. As to why, I cannot reveal that just yet. But know, I will protect you"

"how? How are you going to protect me? Protect us? You got here too late, he was already- already hurting" dean broke off, looking down in furiousness. His family got hurt because of him. Because the demon wanted him.

"I will tell you how to protect yourself from all supernatural creatures"

"all?" Lucy repeated. "you mean to say that demons aren't the only things that exist?"

"No. vampires, werewolves, ghosts, wendigos, shapeshifters- "

"I suppose you're going to tell us Angels also exist" Lucy snorted, raising an eyebrow.

"you do not believe angels exist? why, if you believe demons do?" the man cocked his head to the side in genuine confusion and interest.

"Well if they do, where are they? Why haven't they stopped all the evil, fought the demons. Why are demons just walking around? Better yet? Where is god, the one who created all this?" she asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"You have little faith" the stranger surmised.

"yes"

"it is of no consequence. You will protect dean"

"of course, I will. It's what I've done for the past seven years, and what I'll continue to do for as long as I can." Lucy replied angrily, almost offended by the man's command of what she must do. Dean was her son, perhaps not in blood but certainly in blood and spirit. She was not going to let anyone, demon or not, harm her son or the rest of her family.

"good" the man responded emotionlessly, eyes flickering to Dean's narrowed gaze before turning back to Lucy who had taken charge of the conversation, standing there almost ferocious in her stance.

"now, you're going to come with us and tell us all about these creatures and how we defeat them" Lucy commanded the stranger, who merely nodded in acquiescence.

"I know where you are staying. I will meet you there" he intoned, before disappearing completely.

In shock, the family of four took their belongings and left the beach, returning to the room they had rented in the b&b. they returned in silence, everyone considering the events that occurred. Whilst joey was not entirely sure as to what that happened, dean was plagued by guilt. The demon was there for him – he was therefore a danger to his family. He should leave – leave them to protect them. Meanwhile, his father and mother were concerned with only protecting their family. Whilst mike was determined to keep dean and joey safe from all threats, Lucy was hellbent on finding the black-eyed demon who threatened her, the yellow eyed demon who was after Dean and killing them both. She would not let anyone hurt her family, she would fight to the death to protect those she loved.

When they reached the b&b, they entered to find the stranger standing in the centre of the room. He nodded his head in welcome to them, as the family flooded the room. Dean nudged joey towards the tv. "go on joey, go watch some tv" he said encouragingly, giving a small smile to Joey who slowly walked towards the couch, before turning on the tv and become enamoured in the latest cartoon.

Dean walked to where the stranger stood, raising an eyebrow at Mike who looked as though he was going to stop dean from speaking to the stranger.

"What?" dean asked, getting offended.

"son, you're a bit young. Are you sure you want to hear everything he has to say?"

"yes, I am. Everything is because of me – don't say it isn't" he said quickly, seeing his father about to interrupt. "I'm old enough, so I'm here. I want to learn". Dean said resolutely, standing firm and looking towards the stranger. "Very well" the stranger said. "you may wish to take notes"

Mike nodded, taking out a notebook and pen, sitting down at the table ready to record anything of valuableness. "first, are demons. Identified by the colour of their eyes which can turn red, black, white or yellow. The smell of sulphur, rotten eggs, often accompanies them. With some demons, the word "Christo" will cause them to reveal their true nature – however, this doesn't work for all. Similarly, holy water will harm them. Some symbols will either trap demons, or block them completely. If you place salt at windows and doors it will stop them from entering. Demons have the ability to possess a person, without needing consent. They have superhuman strength and stamina, for this reason it is difficult to harm them. Most damage done to the human vessel will not affect them. Stronger demons can perform telekinesis, pyrokenesis, smiting. Crossroad demons can also grant you a wish, however in return they take your soul and you are sentenced to hell for eternity. Killing demons is difficult. No human can do it, unless they have a supernatural weapon which has been made with that purpose. Otherwise, you can use the standard exorcism to exorcise the demon from the human host"

"and the one after me? Yellow eyes. How strong is he?"

"he is exceedingly strong. Not a standard demon by any means, but an ancient demon with a wealth of power. You must beware him, especially if he is determined to find Dean. I can place a sigil on all of you which will stop demon possession if you so wish."

"in what form does this protection take place?" Lucy asked with trepidation.

"you can have protection in jewellery, such as a bracelet or necklace. However, if this is removed from your body then you are vulnerable. Additionally, you can have a tattoo placed on your body, or even it branded into your bones which means it cannot be removed"

"what other types of creatures are there?" Mike asked, looking up from the notebook which was slowly filling up with supernatural facts.

"I will begin with ghosts" the stranger said.

Dean felt like he had been sitting and listening for hours. He was both mentally and physically exhausted by the day and all that he had learnt. Supernatural creatures were real, they fit in like any other human. Who could he trust? Was the person down the road a werewolf? Did flickering lights mean that a ghost was nearby? His view on life had changed drastically in just one day, and he wasn't exactly sure on how to tackle that.

"that is all the information I can give on supernatural creatures you are most likely to accompany. I shall depart now"

"Wait wait! Dean cried out, jumping out of the chair and waving his arms.

"yes dean?"

"I have a few more questions" dean said, rather hesitantly as he met the man's eyes.

"you may ask them"

"what's your name? who are you? What are you? Why are you telling us this? Why do you want to protect me? Why did Azazel kill my mother? - did he? Is that even true? Who are my biological family?"

"that is more than a few questions" the man replied. Seeing deans exasperated look, he nodded. "my name is – you may call me castile. As to what I am, I shall not yet reveal that. Just know that I am telling you this and protecting you because you are important. he killed your mother because she interfered in plans, plans we do not yet know of. Your biological family are – are inconsequential of this point. The smith family will protect you more than your other family can. It is prudent you remain away from them"

"why?" dean asked brokenly. Why couldn't he see his family? Didn't they want him?

Castiel's eyes, seeing dean's sadness, softened slightly. "they care about you, but believe you dead. If they believe you dead, it is much safer for you. Azazel does not yet know you are alive, which is good. I will find his child and kill it before it can tell Azazel you still live"

"will you, will you do something for me?" dean asked.

"what is it?"

"protect my family. Joey, mother, father. Protect them the best you can"

"I promise"

"put their lives before mine". Castiel said nothing.

"put their lives before mine" Dean repeated with a colder tone and harsher voice. Castiel simply blinked at him.

"my first priority is to protect you, that is what I shall too. But I shall also protect your family. I must leave now to track down the demon. I will come if you need help, simply call me." The man pulled himself, rearranging his clothing. Holding a hand out to dean, he touched him on the chest. Dean felt a searing pain in his ribs, hot and scalding enough to send him to his knees.

"What was that?" he vaguely heard his mother shouting. "what have you done?!"

"I have seared protective runes onto his body, I shall do the same to you". With both hands, he touched Lucy and mike who both gave similar yelps of pain, clutching their sides. "I shall not do it to your younger son, since he is too young. However, I recommend you get a protection bracelet and keep it on him always. Goodbye, Smith family" he intoned, before once again disappearing.

And with that strange encounter, the smith family were plunged into the supernatural. Deans parents had taken to hunting with dedicated fervour, learning all they could. They often left joey with family, whilst they took dean on hunts with them. They all began slow, each of them beginners. It started with ghosts, simple salt and burns. It then progressed to werewolves and vampires, each of them getting acquainted, and then learning mastery, over guns and knives. With their dedication and the frequency of their hunts, they all became skilled hunters. Dean and Lucy were the best, considering they had more time to hunt, whilst mike continued his job as a doctor. Due to their growing on-the-road lifestyle, Mike was severely reducing his hours and becoming more of a freelancer, as they travelled up and down of America. When joey reached ten, they began to teach him the lifestyle. Joey was taught fighting techniques from his mother, shooting and slicing from dean, and medical expertise from his father. The family was thrown into the hunter lifestyle, but none of them seemed to care about the path their life had taken. Whilst dean was occasionally scared that he had ruined his family's life, they reassured him that they loved him and would do all they could to protect him. And so, they did.

Over the years, they built up connections across America, becoming acquainted with veteran hunters who taught them new tricks. They knew hunters, psychics and even civilians who were aware of the hunter lifestyle. They were dubbed as the 'hunter family', for their well-known penchant of hunting with their children.

For eleven years they became great hunters, each of them occasionally branching out and hunting alone. Whilst dean and joey became a solid team, with joey now 18, their parents did their own hunting in similar regions. Dean never gave much thought to his old family, until their parents called them, telling them to come to 'The Roadhouse', as they had a lead on the yellow eyed demon they had been hunting for years.

"Joey" Dean barked, slamming the door on his car shut.

"yeah Dee?" Joey asked, exiting the diner with a bag full of pie for the brothers to share.

"parents said to go to the roadhouse, got a lead on yellow eyes." Joey nodded, his lips thinning in determination just thinking of the demon, "let's go then."

Getting in the car, they drove. Drove towards their family, and slowly towards the truth.