DISCLAIMER: I summoned Castiel to take me to Kripke using his mojo, and also asked the angel to pose as my agent so I could look all professional-like when I made an offer to buy Supernatural. But my credibility was pretty much shot when Castiel presented his fake business card to Kripke upside-down, and then the rest of the time only stared blankly ahead without saying a word…good help is so hard to find.

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Bless the Broken Road

PREVIOUSLY: "Okay," Sam whispered in approval. "Good." And with that, he shut his eyes in preparation for the fatal shot as Dean raised his gun once more…and fired.

Chapter 4

Sam stiffened at the loud pop of the gun going off, expecting to briefly feel the searing burn of the bullet tearing through either his brain or his heart before he slipped into oblivion, or maybe even through his stomach if his assailant was especially cruel and wanted him to die in a slower, more painful way. A few seconds had passed, though, before it registered that he had felt…nothing. Nothing…what the hell…? Tentatively he opened his eyes to see what had happened, but immediately shut them again upon seeing that the green-eyed hunter still had the barrel of the gun in line with his chest, finger still on the trigger. Shit, man, get it over with already…don't play games with me! With his heart slamming against his ribcage with what was likely its final round of beats, Sam braced himself – again – for the kill shot.

Five seconds passed.

Ten seconds.

Fifteen.

It still hadn't come. What is this guy's deal?

Smoke still rose from the revolver that Dean Winchester had fired mere moments ago, the bullet having barely missed its intended target…just as Dean had planned for it to do. He now had all the proof that was necessary for him to make his final decision…and with that said proof in mind he lowered his gun, reengaged the safety, and stuffed the deadly weapon back into the waistband of his jeans. Bobby turned to look at him, pure bafflement on his face.

"Dean…what are you doing? How could ya miss a simple, straightforward shot like that with a stationary target no less, ya idjit?!"

"Actually, I didn't miss, per se…" the younger hunter shrugged. "My aim was perfect."

Bobby's eyes narrowed. "Come again?"

Dean sighed tiredly, and then turned earnest eyes to his friend. "I had to see, Bobby…I had to see if the kid was for real before I did him in…if his surrender was genuine or if it was all just an act. And now I know." An almost wistful look passed over his face – one that this time he wasn't so inclined to berate himself over – as he elaborated. "He didn't do it, Bobby…didn't even try."

"To what?"

"To save himself." Dean glanced over at the young man in question, who was now staring back at him with a guarded, somewhat distrustful look in his wide eyes. Dean imagined that he wore a very similar expression, but it didn't matter…it wasn't like he and the kid were planning on becoming best friends anyway. In fact, he hoped to never see Sam Murphy again, because Dean Winchester was a hunter first and foremost.

And he wasn't sure how many times he'd be willing to deliberately pull his shot at the last second.

Running a hand through his close-cropped dark blond hair, he uttered the words that he hoped he wouldn't end up regretting one day, unable to stop himself before they left his mouth. "Get out of here, kid."

"Wh-what?" Sam blinked in shock, fearing he had misheard the quietly spoken sentence. "What did you say?"

Dean turned an intense green gaze on the boy's anxious blue-green one. "I said get out of here." His voice took on a slightly harsher tone. "Before I change my mind."

Sam's mouth briefly fell open in disbelief. "You…you're letting me go?" he whispered, flinching when the green-eyed man slammed his fist onto a stack of wooden crates and shot him a heated glare in response.

"Yes, damn it! What part of go don't you understand, kid? Beat it!"

"Okay, okay!" Sam started to raise his hands in submission but almost instantly halted the movement, remembering the jarring reaction that the essentially innocuous gesture had elicited from the hunter a few minutes earlier. Cautiously, he stepped away from the now half-conscious woman he had exorcised and made his way toward the warehouse's exit, passing the pair of hunters on the way with no small amount of trepidation…but no small amount of gratitude, either. These two men had spared him…he wouldn't let his last exchange with them be a tense one. "Thank you…both of you," he intoned softly, looking at each of them with a meaningful gaze.

"Yeah, kid," Dean murmured, averting his emerald orbs.

Sam stared for a moment longer, then pushed open the heavy steel door and stepped out into the sunlight, instantly squinting at the intense flood of brightness that assaulted his ill-prepared eyes…and his head. Swaying, he latched one hand onto the frame of the still-open door while bringing the other up to massage the area just above his brow as a second sudden jolt of sharp pain assaulted him. Oh God…hurts. A deep, guttural groan emanated from his lips…one that caught the attention of the two men still inside of the building.

"Hey, kid…you okay?"

Even through the haze of pain, Sam registered the unfamiliarity of the voice that had spoken to him. Must've been the older hunter…didn't think he was ever gon—oh, oh God! Without warning, Sam's knees buckled as the lingering ache escalated into a dizzying, vicious throbbing that sapped his strength with lightning speed. His stomach roiled, nausea overtaking him swiftly and within seconds causing him to expel the contents of his stomach onto the pavement. Moaning, he wrapped a shaky arm around his violently heaving belly as he began to list to the side, absentmindedly hoping that he wouldn't land in the pile of his own sickness...

But he was taken completely by surprise when a pair of strong arms caught him, preventing that very thing from happening.

"Whoa, kid, gotcha…I gotcha."

Sam recognized the voice of the green-eyed man and tensed for a brief moment before an unexpected, and rather perplexing sense of safety washed over him as his back came to rest against the hunter's solid chest. Safe…what the hell? This guy was holding a freakin' gun on me a few minutes ago! The younger boy couldn't explain it…but the feeling was there nonetheless.

"Dean…any idea what this is about?" Bobby inquired quietly, in deference for the kid's obviously serious migraine.

The equally subdued tone of the green-eyed hunter – 'Dean' – met Sam's ears as he gave a negative reply to the older man before passing the question along to the drained psychic in his arms.

"What's goin' on with you, kid?"

Sam slumped further into the secure grasp as another shockwave of pain burst through his skull. "Side effects…exorcism," he managed to get out between panting breaths. "Happens…some…times."

"Do you need a hospital or anything?"

"No…just need to…lie down…get some…rest. Take…agh, m-mm…medicine for th...the pain."

"Where do you live?"

"Nnn-nowhere…no home, live in muhh…motels."

"Where are you staying now?"

"M'not…not anywhere…checked out two days ago…was guhh…gonna find 'nother one later tod—GAAH!"

Dean's eyes widened as the boy arched in what was clearly excruciating pain of some sort, only to have a loud gasp forced from his lips seconds later when the lanky but still heavy body fell back against him limply, the shaggy head dropping forward, chin resting on the boy's own chest. Oh, shit! "Kid?" Dean called nervously, giving the boy a slight shake that got no response. "Kid, hey…Sam?" he tried again…still nothing. Damn it!

Carefully Dean shifted the position of the young psychic's pliant form until the boy's head rested in the crook of his elbow, providing the lolling neck with much-needed support…and Dean with better access to the carotid artery that it housed. Questing fingertips were met with a beat – thank God there is one – that was strong, if a little faster than normal, and Dean moved his focus from pressing lightly against Sam's pulse point to tapping lightly on his cheek. "Sam…hey, Sam…you with us?" He barely noticed Bobby's shadow falling over him as he continued his prodding.

"He okay?"

"Does he look okay, Bobby?!" Dean snapped, then instantly regretted the harshness. "Sorry…m'sorry…kid's just got me worried, s'all."

The older hunter cocked a brow. "Worried?"

"Yeah," Dean snorted with a bitter smile. "How freakin' messed up is that?" The Winchester shook his head. He wanted the answer to that question to be 'very'…God how he wanted it to be messed up, for it to feel so utterly wrong that he'd be compelled to leave the kid there for the paramedics to pick up along with the ex-possessed woman he had saved and never lay eyes on him again.

But instead, he felt compelled to do the exact opposite. To stay sat there cradling the kid, to keep trying to rouse him, to…protect him. There. That was the word. If Dean had to pinpoint the one feeling toward Sam that seemed to have inundated his entire being all at once – in that moment as the kid lay there in his hold, pain lines evident on his young face even in unconsciousness, dark hair spilling across his closed eyes and Dean's own arm – it was definitely a strong, hell, practically overwhelming protective sense. Dean had no idea where it came from…but he could hardly ignore it.

Just like he was struggling to ignore the fact that, despite the extra three inches of height the kid had on him, Sam seemed to fit against him perfectly.

Whoa…the hell? Focus…get a grip, here. Pushing the foreign thoughts out of his head for the time being, Dean resumed the gentle tapping that he had briefly halted. "Sam! C'mon, wake up, kid." The hunter's efforts were finally met with success as the boy began to moan softly, dark lashes fluttering halfway open to reveal a pair of unfocused blue-green orbs.

"Wuhhhh…wh't hap'nd…wh'rm I?" Sam asked the blurry flesh-colored blobs hovering over him.

"You're still outside the warehouse, kid," Dean answered softly. "And according to you, the side effects of that exorcism happened."

"Oh…m'kay." Sam blinked once, before his eyes slid shut once more.

"Oh no ya don't…Sam, hey! Stay awake," Dean beckoned, patting the boy's face once more.

"Mmm, can't. M'tired…comfy." The young psychic sighed contentedly, breathing out one last word before his muscles slackened in rest. "Safe…"

'Safe...'

Safe. The single-syllable word echoed through Dean's head relentlessly before Bobby's voice interrupted, bordering on urgent.

"Dean, you know I called for an ambulance a couple'a minutes ago while you were talkin' to Sam, don't ya? They'll be here any minute." The older hunter glanced down at the deeply sleeping boy, then back to his young friend and hunting partner. "What're we gonna do with the kid?"

Silence reigned for several seconds as the debate raged between Dean's logic and his heart. The former screamed at him to leave the kid to the professionals…but the latter gently coaxed him to believe that abandoning Sam Murphy would be a far worse decision than for he and Bobby to take him with them.

And finally, the latter won out.

"He's comin' with us." At Bobby's disbelieving look, Dean threw out the first practical reason for the decision that he could think of. "I mean…we can't let him go to a hospital or anything, 'cause no matter how what we saw in there turned out, the kid's still got unpredictable powers and a shady past and we don't wanna put any innocents at risk like that."

A brief knowing expression flitted across Bobby's face before he nodded in approval. "Good thinkin'…let's git goin', then."

"Wait," Dean paused, unzipping and digging in all of Sam's jacket pockets until he found and extracted a key. "Take this…go find his car and get his stuff out of it, he's gotta have at least a few belongings."

Bobby caught the key as it was tossed to him, giving Dean an incredulous stare. "And just how'm I supposed to know which car is his, genius?"

Dean smirked. "Well, let's see, there's a Toyota logo on the key, and once you find one of those you can look inside and see if the driver's seat's pushed back far enough for these mile-long legs of his, but if all else fails…just push the unlock button there on the key and see which car lights up."

Bobby glared at Dean's smug wink. "Damn modern technology…bunch'a lazy asses is what it leads to…friggin' car remote controls, hell…" The older hunter's grumble faded as he made his way to the parking lot just behind the warehouse, and Dean returned his attention to the unconscious boy in his arms.

"So, kid…don't know what it is about you, but…guess you're gonna get a second chance, here. And believe me," Dean grunted as he hoisted Sam over his shoulder in a fireman's carry, "I don't give second chances too often, so you're damn lucky…and damn heavy, too."

After staggering across the empty street under the young man's dead weight, Dean gently lowered him to the ground to rest against the driver's side of the Impala as he fished out his own keys. "No remote control for this old girl, kid," he muttered, keeping up the trivial commentary until he had the door open and the bench seat tilted forward, providing better access to the backseat. "Okay, Sam, up and in you go…if I can fit your Gigantor body back there, that is." Scooting across the backseat and then leaning out the open door to grab the boy under his armpits, Dean gave a mighty heave and slid him as gingerly as possible into the car until he was stretched out along the cushion, head resting at the edge and long legs bent at the knees. It looked mildly uncomfortable, but it was the best the hunter could do for him at the moment.

"Well…enjoy the ride," Dean quipped as he patted the younger man's shoulder before exiting out the passenger side and then walking around to deposit himself into the driver's seat. He settled in and shut the door, with Bobby appearing only seconds later as if sensing Dean was ready to go, Sam's meager belongings in hand.

"So what're we gonna do with the kid's car?" the elder hunter inquired after tossing Sam's duffel in the trunk, closing the lid, and climbing into the passenger seat.

"Eh…we'll keep the key. He can come back for it later if he wants. Should be safe there till then." The Winchester snickered at his old friend with a teasing glance at the high-tech key in his hand. "Did you lock it?"

Bobby snorted indignantly. "Yeah…the manual way, thank ya.

Dean smirked. "Fuddy-duddy."

"Lazy ass."

The two men fell into companionable quiet for a while, driving for around half an hour until Dean broke both the silence and his steady speed upon seeing a sign for a motel up ahead. "The Come On Inn…you've gotta be kiddin' me." Dean rolled his eyes. "I almost wanna pass it up on principle of good taste alone."

"I hear ya," Bobby replied after a long yawn. "But that Sam kid back there really needs a comfortable place to rest as soon as possible, I'd say…and I'm actually pretty beat myself." The younger hunter's mouth opened, but the elder man cut him off before he could even begin. "And if I hear another crack about my age outta ya, I'll be the one drivin' an' you'll be in the trunk!"

"Hmph…would like to see ya try. My car, my rules…grumpy old man." The last part was muttered under Dean's breath as he exited the freeway…right before Bobby whapped him up the side of his head with his hat. "Guess you heard that, then," he said louder with a falsely sheepish grin.

"Guess so."

But the soft sigh and moan that they both heard next had come from neither of them, and amidst their banter they had almost forgotten they had a guest. Cloth rustled against leather as the young man in the backseat shifted his body, finally coming back to the land of the living…and Dean and Bobby prepared themselves for a possibly unfavorable reaction to unfamiliar surroundings.

Dark lashes fluttered open to reveal slits of color as Sam Murphy came to, the dazed blue-green orbs eventually widening as further awareness set in…along with a fair amount of alarm. Where the hell am I…? He didn't realize he'd spoken the question aloud until a voice reached his ears in response.

"You're with us, kid…me and my older friend."

Sam instantly recognized the voice of the green-eyed man – Dean, if he remembered correctly – and involuntarily tensed, visions of a cold glare and the gun pointed at his chest flashing through his mind…Dean was a hunter. And that likely meant that Sam was in deep crap. "Wh-where you taking me…what're you gonna do t'me?" he stammered, confusion and uncertainty overriding the pride that would've normally not allowed him to display such naked vulnerability and fear.

"Down, boy." This time it was the older hunter that spoke, the one in the trucker's cap. "We're gonna take care of ya." The words were meant to be reassuring…but Sam misinterpreted them entirely.

"N-no…thought you…you said…"

"Said what, kid?" Dean's eyes narrowed.

"Th-that you were…g-gonna let me go."

"Changed our minds," came the Winchester's clipped answer.

Sam swallowed thickly…were they taking him to be tortured? Kept prisoner? Why hadn't they just killed him at the warehouse when they'd had the chance? He summoned strength back into his lax muscles, pushing himself up on shaky arms with the door handle in his sights. He would make a break for it if he had to…and it looked like that was going to be the case. Bracing himself for a fight, he lunged for the passenger side door and sure enough found himself struggling desperately when the older man intercepted his move.

"Whoa, kid!" Bobby exclaimed as he tried to pin down the boy's long arms. "No, no, calm down." He caught a glimpse of eyes wide with panic before a large hand managed to sock him in the jaw. "Damn it! Dean, pull over!"

The younger hunter was already way ahead of his mentor. After screeching onto the shoulder of the road and slamming the gear into park he launched himself into the fray, ducking under another blow and wrenching the kid back into submission by his right bicep, eliciting a pained cry from trembling lips. Emerald eyes glared into impossibly round blue-greens, and Dean felt his stern exterior falter and soften against his will at the helplessness within the expressive orbs. The boy was still too weakened from the exorcism to fight back and knew it…and clearly was back to thinking Dean meant him harm. Shit… "Hey, kid…Sam." He could feel the boy flinch at the fact that Dean knew his name…apparently Sam didn't remember anything past the first time he had collapsed outside the warehouse. "You're alright, okay? We're not gonna do anything to ya…'cept take you to a motel. You're really out of it and I honestly don't think you could bust your way out of a wet paper bag right now, so…me and my friend Bobby are gonna stay with ya until you're back on your feet, deal?"

Even through his disorientation, Sam could detect the sincerity bleeding into the green gaze and then more memories came rushing back…these memories causing all the former tension to quickly melt from his body. The feel of sturdy arms catching him before he hit the ground, the sound of a deep voice murmuring soothing words…and an inexplicable sense of being safe. Dean. The green-eyed man had helped him in the end…not hurt him.

Dean watched as the panic in Sam's eyes began to recede all at once, letting out a breath of relief of his own when the boy finally nodded. "Good. Well, we're almost to the motel, so you can lie back down if you want…you've got nothin' to fear from us, alright?" Sam nodded again, and the hunter couldn't help but feel a small measure of guilt. Because his statement wasn't entirely true…he still didn't fully trust the young psychic, and if push ever came to shove within the next few days, well…Dean would do what he had to do. It was what he'd been taught, and by only the best in the business. But he nonetheless felt the broad shoulders in his grasp relax in apparent acceptance and belief of his words, prompting him to give them a brief squeeze – not even knowing why he had done so with such foreign casualness – before he settled back behind the wheel.

"Nice work," Bobby quietly praised as he nursed his slightly bruised jaw.

Dean shrugged. "What can I say…I've got the touch."

"You sure do…when you let yourself," the older man couldn't help but add. "You should do it more often…it suits ya." It was you…before Gordon caught ya in his tangled web, anyway… Bobby kept the latter thought to himself, though. He turned to the young man in the back. "You okay there, kid? Sorry about the scare I gave ya, but…it's never a good idea to jump outta movin' vehicles, just so ya know."

One corner of Sam's mouth briefly lifted in response, revealing the shadow of a dimple in his cheek. "Yeah," he rasped. "Sorry I hit you."

Bobby waved it off. "Think nothin' of it, boy. Dean over here hits harder than that, and he hits like a girl!" Both the eldest and youngest occupant of the car cracked smiles at Dean's indignant 'Hey!' that followed the jibe, bringing Sam's other dimple out of hiding to create a matching pair and brightening the young face. It was becoming increasingly harder to believe that the kid now under his and Dean's care and watch could be as evil as the research had suggested…hell, could be evil period.

Of course though, if Sam turned out to be just that after all, well then Bobby too was prepared and resolved to protect what was his…and that now included John Winchester's boy. His student…his friend…and practically his own son.

But, God help him, there was just something about that Sam Murphy kid that was inadvertently starting to make Bobby care for him as well…and he knew it was the same for Dean.

And that was liable to ultimately mean trouble for them both.

TBC…

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A/N: Well, as all of you were hoping would happen, Dean's reasonable side won out…and now, not only has Dean spared Sam, but he's also decided against leaving him behind and alone for the time being. And that choice, of course, will bring out some further and much more in-depth revelations on both sides…so for those of you with questions as to just what's gone on in both boys' lives and when/if certain things will come to light? Trust me, the answers are coming…

…starting with the next chapter! We'll be delving into Sam's past a good deal in it, as he remains under the tenuous supervision of Bobby and Dean…who will naturally continue to struggle with their ingrained prejudices against all things supernatural, Sam included. Many thanks to my LLS for the beta and to all of my readers and reviewers; I do so love hearing from y'all and am so glad you're enjoying…hope to see you back here Tuesday for the next installment! :-D