Chapter 2: Reliving the Past
FlashbackA 22 year old Kate lay awake in her bed. She knew what was happening the next day and had convinced herself that maybe if she stayed awake then tomorrow couldn't come. Her younger brother and her father had been involved in a huge fight about Stanford and Sam was moving out the next day. She turned over as the door opened and a tall lanky figure crept in, quickly put on their pyjamas and got into bed. Dean was fast asleep next to her, sprawled out and drooling slightly. She slipped out of her bed and into Sam's.
"hey Kate" he said softly and she sniffled. He wrapped his arms around her and she breathed in his scent. "I don't want you to go to college, Sammy. I'll miss you too much!" she exclaimed quietly and buried her head into his chest. "I have to. I have to get away from this life" he retorted and she gripped his shirt a little tighter, "no you don't! there are plenty of things here that are normal!"
he snorted, "like what?" she shrugged and thought about it, "the toaster. That's normal and you don't really want to part with our perfectly normal toaster, do you?" he chuckled, "I think the toaster can live without me bashing it silly every morning to try and get the toast out."
Kate wiped away the tear that fell down her cheek, "don't leave me here. You're the only one who understands me. Dean's so tied up with dad and the demon now that he hasn't got any time for his twin anymore. I hardly take part in any gigs now because they've always got it covered" he rubbed her back soothingly, "you know, you could always leave as well. No one says you have to stay with them." Sam said and Kate shook her head, "as much as they don't need me, they somehow do need me too. It's a strange state of affairs around here"
He laughed again. "there we go with the word strange again! you see how easy it is to call our family strange or abnormal?" he sighed and Kate felt the conversation was over. "I'm gonna go back to bed now. think about what I said." She kissed him on the forehead and crept back into her own bed. Dean had slipped over even further into her space and she shoved him backwards just a little too hard. He fell off the bed, taking the covers with him. Sam leant over and turned on the light. Both Sam and Kate laughed at the now pouting man sitting on the floor, "haha, very funny." He said sarcastically and stood up, then threw the covers over the bad and settled down again. "goodnight Sammy" Kate said softly. "night Katie" he replied and turned out the light.
End flashback"Katie?" her father asked and shook her. She stirred and opened an eye, "morning Daddy. Did I fall asleep here?" she asked groggily and pried herself off of the hard chair she lay on. "yeah you did. There's someone here to see you" he stepped back and she saw Sam standing in the doorway. He didn't look a day over 23. "morning Kate" he said softly and leant down to hug her. She joined in on the hug and kissed him lightly on the cheek, "morning Babe. What are you doing here?" he pulled away and glanced at their father,
"Dad told me you'd be here" he stated and Kate felt betrayed, "Dad, I thought we were going to ring Sam about it together!" she said angrily and Sam took her by the arm, "come on, we'll go walk in the garden" he said quietly and Kate gave in to his pleading tone. "I could never say no to you when we were younger" she said, defeated and trailed Sam out to the gardens. "Dean misses you" he said vaguely, "I've been asked several times if I know where you are. I hate lying to him"
Kate patted his shoulder, "I know it's hard but I just can't face him. I don't know what he'll say or do or think. It scares me to think about it. If we can just keep these meetings private and you don't tell him that you know where I am then it'll work out fine" she changed the subject, "so, do I have a sister in law yet? Do I have a niece or nephew running around too?"
He smiled, "you've got both. Mel's my wife and we have 2 daughters, Deanna and Kaitlin. Deanna's 2 next week, you should come to her birthday party. Dad'll be there." He rambled on and Kate didn't notice the tear that ran down her own cheek. Sam looked over and stopped, "what's wrong?" he asked and she laughed, "I'm just so happy for you! You've got a loving wife, beautiful kids and a great house. I'm just wondering why you'd want your sister back in your life"
He took her by the shoulders and waited until she looked him in the eye, "why wouldn't I? You're my sister, my wife wants to meet you so badly, my kids need another female influence other than Mel and the house seems empty without your beautiful golden aura in it" she snorted, "my aura's golden? The only thing I could teach your kids is how to defend themselves and how rock salt repels spirits" she said
"come on. The house next to us is for sale. We'll buy it for you and you can move in." Sam offered and Kate scoffed, "I couldn't let you buy me a house! You are not going to spend that much money on this plan!" he shrugged, "we'll pay rent then. I just want you and Elle in that house by the end of the month" he turned and walked back to the hospital. She sighed. She wasn't going to get out of this one.
FlashbackKate sat on her bed and listened to the amplified voices outside the room. Her father and Sam were fighting about college again and it looked like Sam had gone too far this time. Dean entered the room quickly and shut the door behind him softly, "it's like a battlefield out there!" he exclaimed and then noticed the tears that welled up in Kate's eyes. "what are you crying about?" he asked and she shushed him. Outside they could hear Sam yelling even louder, "I hate you! Every day I wish that you weren't my father and I had a normal family instead of this fucked up thing we've got going here!" they heard heavy breathing and then John calmly talking, "out." Sam snorted, "what do you mean, out?" John spoke again in the scarily calm voice he possessed, "you know what I mean. I want you out by tomorrow morning. You want to go to college so much? Then go. I don't ever want to see your face again"
Kate listened intently to the pair of footsteps. 1 headed for the bedroom next door and the other headed for the front door. She gripped Dean's arm tighter than before and sobbed into his shoulder. Dean rubbed her back and soothed her in a comforting way. after a while it occurred that Sam might not have gone anywhere. She tore out of the bedroom and the front door to see her dear little brother sitting on the lawn, crying softly. She stood there for a while and cried too, trying not to get noticed by him. Kate went back into the bedroom and lay down on the bed. She'd barely been there 5 seconds before her eyes welled up again and the pillow was soaked with salty tears.
End FlashbackKate danced around the huge entrance of number 43 Heysen Avenue with Elle in her arms. Her new home. The movers finished putting the last of the boxes down and she heard the huge truck drive away. The house was massive, she didn't know what to do with all of the space. It was all planned. In approximately 5 minutes Sam and Mel would bring Dean and the girls over to 'meet the new neighbour'. She decided that she'd try moving a little bit of furniture into place before then. Kate dragged the armchairs and couch over into the largest room in the house, trying not to scratch the wooden floors. Elle uncooperatively jumped on the couches as Kate tried to move them.
"Honey, do you have to do that while mummy's trying to move the seats?" she asked the little girl and Elle giggled madly. She lifted the girl up and blew a raspberry on her stomach, "you're my little Elle Bell, aren't you? Yeah!" she said and settled the girl on her hip. Elle herself was gorgeous. She looked like an angel with rich brown hair, bright green eyes and a round full face. There was a knock on the door and Kate looked at her watch. Sam was right on time.
She opened the door and was met by a small group of people. There was Sam, someone she presumed was Mel, two little girls and Dean. Kate shook hands with all of them and set Elle down. Elle immediately hit it off with Deanna and they ran off. "I'm Ainslie McManus and this is my daughter, Elle" she introduced herself under a fake name and invited them into the not yet unpacked kitchen. Mel set down a dish of something sweet smelling, "just a little something for dessert" she said excitedly and giggled.
Mel reminded Kate of a schoolgirl. She was reasonably young and petite. She wore a pair of jeans with a tight jumper and a huge belt buckle around her waist. Kate glanced at Dean. He was looking down at the floor hazily and he didn't seem to have noticed it was his sister standing in front of him. Deanna ran into the kitchen and tugged at Dean's leg, demanding to be picked up. He smiled warmly at his niece and sat her on his thigh.
Elle came in soon afterwards and also demanded to be picked up. "how olds Deanna?" Kate asked and Sam shifted Kaitlin a little, "she'll be 2 next week. What about Elle?" he asked and Kate sat Elle on the island in the middle of the room. "Elle was 3 a few months ago." Mel gasped, "you should bring Elle to Deanna's birthday party tomorrow! It'll be great and you can get to know the rest of the neighbourhood!" she exclaimed eagerly.
Kate smiled, "that'd be great! I'd love for Elle to meet some other kids around her age. The last place we lived at was an apartment and there were no other children in the building" Mel cleared her throat, "so does Elle's dad live with you or…' she trailed off and Kate covered Elle's ears, "I adopted Elle in England about 2 years ago. I don't like to say it around her in case it sticks and she remembers it later in life. I want Elle to have the best possible life here. something better than my childhood anyway"
She glanced at Sam, who glared at her and she realised she'd taken the conversation too far. "yeah…" she said and put the dessert in the newly connected fridge. "so, how long have you guys been married?" she motioned at Sam and Mel. "almost 3 years now. never been happier"
Before they knew it, almost 4 hours had passed and Mel said it was time they were getting home now. She and Elle waved goodbye from the doorway and then closed the heavy oak door. Elle was soon asleep on her shoulder and Kate set her down in her bed, then kissed her on the forehead and turned on the nightlight. Elle never slept without it and Kate would always leave her bedroom door open so she could find her way to her adoptive mother's bed. Kate slept in her room, surrounded by moving boxes. Tomorrow she'd unpack them and then they'd attend Deanna's party. She'd see her father and her brothers and nieces. It was a good start to her new life.
Kate awoke early the next morning to Elle jumping on the bed. The clock next to her read 6.45. she groaned and then swiftly grabbed Elle, pulling her down onto the bed next to her. Elle squealed with delight and giggled loudly. Kate blew a raspberry on her stomach and tickled her. After a while Kate decided that she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep with Elle around so she decided that the best thing to do would be to get the little girl dressed and fed for the party that started at 10.
Amazingly, 10.00 rolled around fairly quickly and Kate found herself locking the door to her new home. She felt kind of stupid doing it because she was only going next door. Elle had uncovered a seemingly hyperactive mood and she was over the other side of the fence in the blink of an eye. Kate made her way over and saw Sam standing on the balcony, trying to tie balloons around the poles. "morning Sam!" she yelled cheerfully and scared the living shit out of him. She saw him physically shake and cower, then peer over to see who it was. "morning Ainslie" he replied and continued to tie the balloons.
Deanna screamed out of the house like a race car with a trail of little friends. Elle followed them and in no time they were all running around the garden. She moved around to the back of the house and saw an array of parents and friends. Mel took her by the arm and started to introduce her to people. soon Kate was laughing and talking with people her own age, something that hadn't happened in a long time. she went inside to get herself a drink and found her dad and Sam talking, John with a bottle of water in his hand.
Dean chose that moment to enter the kitchen and Sam loudly introduced John and Kate, "Ainslie this is my Dad, John. Dad this is Ainslie, our new neighbour" he motioned to both of them and they shook hands. As soon as Dean left John put down his bottle and wrapped his arms around Kate. "how's it going Katie? You haven't been ratted out yet?" he asked and Kate shook her head, "no, thank god. It still doesn't feel right though. Have you seen Elle?" she asked him in return and he shook his head, "I think it's best that she doesn't see me in case she recognises me"
Kate nodded in agreement, "that's a good idea" she winked at him, "I have to go mingle now, excuse me" she left with her drink and John turned back to Sam. "how long do you reckon it'll last?' he asked his son and Sam shrugged, "it depends on how long she can keep it going. Kate's a Winchester, she's built to last" he said and John nodded, "she is. My baby inherited her father's cunning mind and her mother's silence. It'll be a long time before Dean even gets a whiff of secrecy"
Meanwhile Kate was outside again, still laughing with other women about amusing things their children had done or said. The hours passed quickly and soon everyone was saying their goodbyes. Kate had Elle asleep on her shoulder and said bye to the family, then headed over to her house. She got inside and immediately realised something wasn't right. It was…cold. She'd left the heater on so it shouldn't have been that chilly. She stood in the entrance for a while, then felt a familiar whoosh behind her. "oh no" she said quietly and put Elle down on the armchair in the lounge room.
No matter where she went, Kate always kept salt with her. She placed a circle of it around the armchair, and then around where she was standing. Something flickered in the corner of her eye and she spun around. A young girl stood there. Kate's head started to thump with extreme pain and she collapsed onto the floor.
FlashbackKate stood in the middle of the deserted room, wondering where her father could be. She was only 7 and her dad had left her there, telling her not to move. Someone pushed past her and she turned around. Nothing there. Another cold feeling rushed through her body and she twirled around on the spot. She wanted so badly to run away but she couldn't disobey her father. A small child her age ran out of the shadows and beckoned to her silently. Kate felt herself being dragged out of the salt circle around her and pushed towards the other little girl.
The girl had a hollow, echoing giggle that rebounded off of the white walls and surrounded them. Then the girl disappeared and her laugh was all that was left behind. She was about to step back inside the circle her father had created for her when she was picked up off of her feet and twirled around the room violently. A loud crack sounded as John Winchester stood underneath her, trying to shoot the demon holding his daughter with rock salt. He hit it finally and as Kate hurtled toward the laminate he danced around, trying to figure out the best place to stand so he could catch her.
She landed heavily in his arms and immediately latched onto his leather jacket. He hushed her and hugged her small body to his, stroking her hair and telling her it was going to be alright.
End FlashbackKate woke the next morning lying on the hardwood floors. She immediately rubbed her eyes and checked the armchair close by. Elle still lay there her head to the side, resting on the top of the armrest. She breathed a sigh of relief and stood up. instantly she started a checklist in her head. Today she had to go shopping for food, a new microwave and superglue for the vase that had broken while it was in the moving van.
Elle stirred as Kate was doing this and after a few minutes of grogginess she seemed to rediscover her hyperactive streak. After getting dressed she searched through her unpacked boxes and found her Barbie ball, then dragged Kate outside to play with her. Kate had no objections of course. They threw around the ball for a while until Kate stopped suddenly to listen to scuffling over the other side of the fence. She held the ball under her arm and stood on one of the planter boxes to see Dean wrestling with the clothes line while tying to keep baby Kaitlin from falling on her head.
Kate put her head back over the fence, "Elle Baby, can you stay here? Mummy's got to help someone. I'll be back soon" she expertly jumped the fence and took Kaitlin from Dean's arms. He breathed a sigh of relief and then unpegged the piece of clothing from the clothes line. Kate giggled and once Dean was finished, handed the infant over again. "how would you like to come over for a cup of coffee?" she asked and he nodded while settling Kaitlin, "that'd be great. Mind if I bring the girls over too?"
A/N: so there's chapter 2 up and running. I could have made this 3 different chapters but somehow it seemed better as just 1. next chapter, Dean and Kate talk over a cup of coffee.
