Author's note- I'm so sorry this took so long to update, but I've been on vacation since Thursday and only got back today. Thank you to everyone who took the time to review, all the positive feedback has been great motivation to write. This chapter has less action than the one before it, but I felt that some background information needed to be given. I had meant for this to be a shorter chapter, but scenes I had meant to pretty much skim over somehow developed a life of their own. Well, enough of my ranting, here's chapter two! -Mary

Three Days Earlier

Tuesday, July 3, 1995, 1:35 P.M.

"Boys, this is Aaron Nielson. These are my sons, Dean and Sammy."

Aaron held out his hand to the older of the two boys, offering a hospitable grin. Dean nodded politely as he shook Aaron's hand. Though he spoke to John Winchester often since meeting the man seven years before, he had never gotten the chance to meet the hunter's children. He was immediately impressed with what he saw; he could tell, even having just met them, that the two boys were strong, good kids.

Aaron Nielson, at age fifty-seven, had been a hunter all his life. He knew he was past his prime, but he would never show it. The man had a rough exterior, but once a person got to know him he put down a few of his defenses. Many things about him were apparent by just looking at him. His gray hair and beard indicated his age, but it was also clear that the man kept in shape. He was strong and muscular. Few people were on Aaron's bad side, but those who tried to mess with him were completely out of their league.

Accepting Aaron's handshake after his brother, Sammy offered an animated "Nice to meet you!" Aaron couldn't help but chuckle at Sammy's enthusiasm. The boy reminded Aaron of his own son.

The four people walked into Aaron's house. Aaron had called for help on an upcoming hunt. Once they were inside, John began speaking. "So, what is it about this hunt that makes you think you'll need help?"

"It's just a poltergeist. I'd normally be able to handle it on my own," Aaron began, "but a friend of mine, Peter Moore, have you heard of him?" hearing John's affirmative answer, Aaron continued, "was telling me about a new method to take the 'geist out. Problem is, Pete isn't exactly the most reliable source for information. I figured if I was going to try it out, I should probably have backup in case Pete's method falls through. Again."

John laughed quietly to himself. He'd heard of Peter Moore before, and the man was undeniably creative, if not a bit eccentric. "Mind if I bring the boys along? Dean especially has been itching to go up against a poltergeist and this seems like as good a time as any."

"Sure, we need to get some new blood into the trade, don't we?"

Dean and Sammy were used to older hunters trying to push them aside because of their age, so this man's eagerness to work with them made both of the boys like Aaron immediately. Hunting wasn't Sammy's favorite thing to do, but he still liked being accepted by his elders despite his age.

Aaron looked at John's boys, already noticing a change in their demeanors towards him. He was glad that they seemed to be letting their guard down around him, especially Dean. Sammy appeared to be the kind of child who opened up to others relatively quickly, despite the lifestyle that had been thrown on him, but Dean seemed like more of a loner. 'You're doing it again,' Aaron thought to himself, 'psychoanalyzing everyone. You need to stop that.' At one point Aaron had been dead set on becoming a psychiatrist and even majored in psychology for awhile, until he'd realized that he didn't like people, people didn't like him, and a job in accounting was much more "his thing".

Dean and Sammy were directed to do whatever they wanted, as long as they stayed out of the way of the two older men. Not having anything better to do, they went into the room where Aaron told them they would be staying. Dean tried to get some sleep after the long, uncomfortable drive, leaving Sammy to be bored out of his mind. Sammy listened to his portable CD player, putting in a Nirvana disc.

Downstairs, Aaron and John caught up on lost time over a few beers and worked out the particulars of the hunt. They decided they would stay there for the night and take care of the poltergeist the next day, Wednesday.

"Honestly, John, what's the hurry? The house is abandoned, and no one will be hurt if we put off the hunt until Thursday."

John shook his head. "There's a malevolent spirit about thirty miles from here that I want to take out. It can't wait an extra day, the thing is sadistic."

It surprised Aaron that there could be a malevolent spirit so close by that he knew nothing about. He usually was up to date on any supernatural beings nearby. He usually took care of any supernatural beings nearby. But then again, John always had seemed to be one step ahead of his fellow hunters. One thing was certain; whatever spirit John was after wouldn't be around much longer.

That night the four men went out to a restaurant to eat since none of them had any cooking abilities (except for Dean occasionally, but eating his food was still a health hazard). The next afternoon they headed out in Aaron's car to deal with the poltergeist. On the way to the house, Aaron went over the plan for the hunt.

"Pete says that if I circle the house with this..." Aaron held up a bad full of some kind of dust and dirt, "and say this incantation from inside the circle..." he gestured over to an open book, "then the 'geist should be taken care of."

"Well, Peter's an idiot." John answered.

"So when his plan fails," Aaron continued, "you three will finish the job."

"If this Peter guy is such an idiot, then why are we even trying his idea?" Sammy finally asked.

John was obviously annoyed at Sammy questioning the plan, but Aaron was impressed that the boy was willing to speak his mind to John. "Because dealing with poltergeists is a bitch," Aaron explained, "and if this method works, taking them out would be a hell of a lot easier. We might as well try it." Catching Sammy's eye in the rear view mirror, he finished, "and Peter Moore promised me a beer if the plan falls through."

Once they reached the house, Sammy and Dean poured the dust/dirt in a circle around the house. Aaron had his book out, ready to begin the incantation once they finished. The poltergeist, from inside the house, seemed to sense that something was going on and began throwing things around, though nothing could reach the four people outside the house.

When Aaron finished the incantation, the four waited. The house became silent. "Well I'll be damned," Aaron said to himself.

John shook his head. "You have to be kidding me. It's never that easy."

A huge bang sounded, followed by Aaron's sarcastic, "You just had to say it, didn't you?"

The poltergeist began throwing things around again, and Aaron, John and the boys grabbed their equipment and went inside. It was like walking into a hurricane. Everything was flying through the air, crashing into walls, other objects, and any unfortunate person who happened to be in its way.

"Damn it!" John yelled when an entire set of encyclopedias flew through the air towards him. He managed to dodge most of them, but X hit him in the gut and Z nailed him in the back of the knee, causing his leg to buckle.

Aaron dodged a few items flying towards him, shooting rock salt, attempting to weaken the poltergeist, while Dean and Sammy tried to distract it by running around and making themselves targets. In summary, the scene was complete and total chaos.

Accepting that the group was not prepared to handle the poltergeist's sudden burst of power, Aaron called for a retreat. "Pull back!" He yelled, and the Winchesters followed his order, even though John obviously wasn't pleased to be doing so.

The four regrouped outside. Dean, Sammy, and John were a little bruised, but no one had any serious injuries, and Aaron had managed to get out completely without a scratch. John turned to Aaron, irritated. "Why did we pull out? We had plenty of time to take the damn thing out..."

Raising his eyebrows, Aaron argued, "Come on Johnny, be reasonable. Whatever Moore told us to do must have strengthened the 'geist somehow, it was chaos in there. We aren't prepared to handle this, we'll come back tomorrow."

"No," John quickly interrupted, "This needs to be finished tonight."

"I know you have another hunt to move onto, but we need to wait. We aren't equipped to deal with this right now."

Finally, Aaron won the argument and the four went back to Aaron's house to get more guns and supplies. They decided to wait until the next day so nobody in the neighborhood would see them and become suspicious.

Thursday night the group went back to the house to try again. They had taken both Aaron and John's cars so John and his sons would be able to leave as soon as the hunt was finished. Upon entering, this time with more firepower, the four were immediately bombarded with objects that had been left all over the room from the night before. Aaron went about his typical methods of weakening and destroying the poltergeist while John, Dean and Sammy alternated between helping Aaron and distracting the poltergeist.

With a bright flash of light and some overdramatic shaking of the house, the poltergeist was gone and the foursome was alone in the old home.

Aaron sighed as a silence took over the room. "I swear, it's almost anticlimactic when those things die."

John chuckled, agreeing. He looked at his boys across the room, checking to make sure they hadn't been injured at all. After seeing that they both looked fine, he turned to Aaron. "We should probably be going," he began.

Aaron nodded, understanding. John Winchester never was one to stay in the same place for a long time. "Well I hope I'll be seeing you again soon," he answered, knowing it was unlikely. Aaron turned to Dean and Sammy, shaking their hands once again. "And that goes for both of you, also. And I know how stubborn he can be," Aaron said, nodding his head towards John, who raised his eyebrows in response. "So I'll need you two to annoy him until he agrees to come back, alright?"

"I can do that!" Sammy responded, only half joking. He had become quite talented when it came to annoying his father. John opened his mouth to respond, but decided against it.

"I'm sure you can," Aaron agreed. He turned back to John, shaking his hand. "It's been good seeing you, John," Aaron said.

"Good seeing you too," John responded.

With that the Winchesters left, leaving Aaron at the once-haunted house. He climbed back into his car, knowing he probably wouldn't be seeing the family again anytime soon.

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Friday, July 6, 1995, 2:53 A.M.

John banged on the door to Aaron's house, holding Sammy in his arms. Sammy had lost consciousness about five minutes before they reached the house, probably from shock due to the blood loss.

Aaron opened the door and was immediately taken aback by the bloody sight before him, but he quickly shoved his thoughts aside and pulled the door farther open. "Come on," he said, leading the way to his house's study, which he had transformed into a makeshift operation room. Clearing room on the crude operation table, he instructed John, "Lay him here." Aaron had been in the marines at the same time John had been enlisted, though the two never crossed paths until they began hunting. Though the marines did not train their own medical personnel, (combat medics were usually a part of the army or navy) Aaron had always specialized in medical treatment. Because of his medical experience, it was not uncommon for injured hunters to seek him out when a hunt went wrong and an emergency room visit would have resulted in too many questions.

Aaron began checking over Sammy, while John and Dean waited anxiously beside him. "What happened?" he asked, growing weary of the two hanging over him and hoping a distraction would divert their attention somewhat.

"Spirit got him," John said simply. After a pause he added, "This shouldn't have happened." He was still pissed at Dean, even though he knew he shouldn't have been.

Aaron noticed how Dean visibly tensed beside him and decided not to pursue the comment, though he still needed to know what had happened. "I'm gonna need a little more than that."

Calming himself down, John began, "The spirit was able to grab him. I'm not sure exactly what happened."

Aaron nodded, knowing it wasn't likely he'd get anything else out of his friend. John was too distracted and too worried. He also saw how Dean flinched when John spoke of the spirit getting a hold of Sam.

"He's lost a lot of blood," Aaron deduced, trying to speak calmly so the two would not panic, "and his body's gone into shock." Aaron waited to see John and Dean's reactions but continued before either had a chance to interrupt. "What's his blood type?"

"A negative," John and Dean answered.

'Of course, he has a rare one', Aaron thought to himself. "He'll need a transfusion."

"I can do it, we're the same type." Dean quickly said. John nodded his agreement.

Aaron looked Dean over, trying to figure out if he'd be able to get enough blood from the child to make a difference. "Alright." He began preparing for the procedure, hoping he still had time before the effects of shock became too much on the small boy.

Dean let out a breath of relief that he hadn't known he was holding. He was thankful there was something he could do to help Sammy, especially since the entire episode had been his fault to begin with. 'He'll be okay, he'll be okay,' Dean kept telling himself, but a voice in his head that sounded just like his father kept telling him the same thing.

'This is all your fault.'

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Author's note- Here's chapter two! Please review and let me know what you think! I'm not as happy with it as I was with the first chapter, but the next one is coming up and I promise it will be better! Special thanks to my friend Lindsay, my amazing beta.

Also, here's a shout out for H.T. Marie, who explained how to upload chapters when Document Manager isn't working. These are the instructions on what to do-

Log In

Go to a story you already have uploaded, click edit, then, Content/Chapters. Then pick any random chapter and hit Exp, to export it to the document manager.

Once it's in document manager, Highlight the content and cut it out. This will not hurt the story you took the chapter from, because the original version of the chapter is still posted, and once it's in document manager you can use it for anything and even change the name to anything. Save the changes.

Paste in the content you want to upload. You'll have to manually add bold face and italics.

Then go to edit for the story you're trying to upload, click edit/chapters, go to Add Chapter...Do NOT hit replace chapter, and add the newly created chapter just like you would if you'd loaded it from your Comp.

You can also try saving your file as a .txt file and uploading that. Again, you'll have to add the boldface and italics manually.