Dream Evil
"Hey Sam, you feeling okay?" Dean's voice cut through the haze in his brother's mind and the younger man lifted his head at his sibling.
"Just tired," Sam mumbled, his gaze dropping to his untouched bowl of cereal.
Dean said nothing, bringing a large spoonful of cereal to his mouth and chewing thoughtfully.
"Are you sleeping all right?" the older brother asked after some time.
Sam shrugged, "Yeah… no…. not really."
"What's going on?" It had been two days since Sam had found that strange hidden room beneath the stairs to the dungeon and in that short time his demeanor had changed dramatically.
"I've been having nightmares," Sam told his brother.
Dean's concern deepened, "About what?"
His sibling raised his hazel eyes to his face and for one horrible moment Dean thought his brother was going to say 'Hell' but instead almost whispered, "Mom… and Cas… dying… Lucifer winning…"
The older Winchester let out a breath; his brother's bad dreams weren't much different from the ones he was having- not that he'd ever tell Sam he was also having nightmares- and he relaxed somewhat.
"You know that's not going to happen, right?" Dean said, "The Devil is not going to win. Not now, not ever. And Mom, she knows how to take care of herself. She's been doing that since before we were born."
Sam nodded tiredly.
"I know Dean," he agreed, "But that doesn't stop them."
The older sibling nodded in sympathy, "I know."
"Are you going to finish eating?" he asked Sam in order to change the subject.
"Nah," the younger man replied and Dean took his bowl when he'd finished his own breakfast, dumping the uneaten cereal into the kitchen sink and turning on the garborator.
SPN
The Lidérc watched the older hunter carefully from over Sam's shoulder.
The other human knew something was wrong. But before he realized what was going on, if he ever did, it would be too late.
The hunter the monster was attached to was strong and would give it more than enough energy to escape the confines of the Bunker soon.
SPN
"You wanna-" Dean began, exiting the kitchen, but stopped when he spied his brother with his head resting on the table in the main room, eyes closed.
Sighing, Dean reached out and shook his brother's shoulder. The younger man woke slowly.
"Sam, what's wrong with you? I was gone five minutes," Dean asked, trying not to sound too concerned.
"I'm fine," Sam assured him, brushing his bangs away from his forehead.
Not believing him, Dean pressed his palm to his sibling's brow but Sam wasn't running a temperature.
"You know what you need?" Dean asked and Sam peered at him, one eyebrow raised.
"What?"
"Iron," Dean commented, "Tonight I'll cook us up some big, juicy steaks and you're going to eat some red meat."
His brother made a face but Dean ignored it, "Just humour me, okay?"
Sam nodded distractedly, "I think I'm going to go for a walk, get some fresh air."
"Okay," Dean said, "Don't go too far."
His brother waved a hand at him in response as he headed towards the metal staircase that led out of the Bunker.
SPN
Outside for the first time in many years, the Lidérc raised its bat-like wings and flapped them, feeling the air pass through the thin membrane of skin between its fingers.
Although it was not yet strong enough to leave its current victim, the monster was content to wait until it had completely drained the hunter before moving on.
Despite the forest that surrounded the Bunker, the scent of humans pervaded the area, telling the Lidérc that it would not have to wait long before finding another victim.
SPN
Sam shielded his eyes from the sunlight with one hand as he walked to the edge of the wooded area that surrounded and hid the Bunker from all but the occasional hiker or camper.
Sitting heavily on an old fallen tree at the edge of the forest, the hunter sighed and shook his head, trying and failing to dislodge the fatigue that enveloped him.
Maybe Dean's right and I just need some steak, he thought, though he had never seemed to be iron deficient before. He was careful to eat a balanced diet that would keep him strong and healthy.
He knew it was more likely the lack of sleep he'd had for the past two days, the rest he did get plagued by nightmares the likes of which he had not experienced since Cas had destroyed the wall in his mind and memories of Hell had surged through unchecked.
He would eat Dean's steak though, if only to put his brother's fears to rest and decided that he would take a sleep aide before going to bed that night.
Resolved to stop this before it got worse- they did not need him getting sick right now- Sam stood and stretched, slowly making his way back to the Bunker.
SPN
"MOM! NO!" Sam cried out helplessly as he watched Mary die right before his eyes, unable to save her.
A strange laughing invaded his nightmare, sounding oddly like the clucking like a chicken…
Sitting up in bed, drenched in cold sweat, the hunter peered around his room, breathing hard.
"Damn," the hunter muttered and raked his damp bangs away from his forehead.
Author's Note:
Chapter title comes from a song by Dio.
Thanks to jensensgirl3, Sallyannerenee, reannablue, Idreamofivan, Trucklady53, Kas3y, and ThisNimo for reviewing.
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