Nightmares

Chapter 4: Guilty Illusions

Sam stared at Dean, his eyes were bloodshot and surrounded by dark rings, his sandy brown hair was a mess, and judging from the large amount of peach fuzz all over his face he looked like he hadn't bothered to shave in days. It was very possible that Dean had finally gone over the deep end. Time spent in hell being tortured and then torturing others would no doubt have a detrimental effect on an individual's sanity. Of course on some level, Sam did suspect that Dean was telling the truth; after all in their line of work ANYTHING was possible. But for now, Sam was still skeptical about Dean's claims. "So…you say Bela was here…" said Sam slowly, his eyebrow was raised in a quizzical manner. Presently the two were headed to a local florist. Dean had a hunch that the types of flowers that were found at the crime scenes were somehow connected to the Saico Faangurl. Whatever it was, Sam was more than ready to cut the head off of the psycho bitch and be done with her.

Dean rolled his eyes in frustration. "Yes, I told you. She was in our backseat one minute and then she's suddenly gone the next." At the moment the two were driving through a suburban road of some sort, engines rumbling and ACDC's Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution was ironically blasting at a soothing a million decibels through the car's dusty old speakers. All in all, it was a typical day in the life of the Winchesters.

"Dean, if I had to guess, Bela's in hell." said Sam as he reached over to turn down the music. "Remember? She apparently made a deal with a crossroads demon."

"I know." Replied Dean looking away from Sam, his expression of shame was revealing more than he wanted Sam to know. "Trust me, I know."

"How?" asked Sam, a pause, one second it took him exactly one second to figure it out. "You didn't…"

Dean was silent. "Dean, tell me you didn't torture her in Hell." Still no reply. "Dean!"

"One day, Alister came up to me. Said he had a new…plaything for me." Said Dean, his voice was filled with self loathing and guilt, each word threatening to crack from the pain. "It was Bela. I can still remember the way she came to me; all bruised, swollen and cut up. Oh God Sammy, the things I did to her. She screamed and cried and every time I ignored her. It only made me want to keep going, to see just how far I could take it. Just how much she could take until she broke. I broke her, Sammy, I broke her will and her hope." Tears were beginning to well up in his eyes

Sam had never seen his older brother so torn up before. "Dean, it wasn't your fault."

"She even begged me to stop, you know? She apologized for all the shit that she had done to you and me when we were alive. Said she would do anything if I stopped" Said Dean his voice scruffy and torn up. "I ignored her. I just…..wanted to hear her scream."

"But Dean, shouldn't that mean that Bela's still in Hell?" asked Sam.

"Sam, you're just going to have to go with my gut on this one." Replied Dean as he debated on whether or not he should tell Sam about the other things he did to Bela while they were in Hell. Probably best not to, he wouldn't hear the end of it.

Sam took a deep breath of frustration. "Alright Dean, let's just pretend that you're right, let's pretend that it was Bela. That she had become a demon and somehow managed to escape from Hell, how did you know it was her?"

"Because I know how she looks like Sam, that's how I know." Snapped Dean. "You're just going to have to trust me on this one!"

Sam raised an eyebrow. "You mean there was something in her eyes?"

"No, I knew it was her as in it looked like her."

"You mean she was in her original body?"

Dean nodded.

"Dean, Bela sold her soul to a Crossroads Demon in exchange for killing her parents. Her contract came to deadline and the demon collected. She was dragged down to hell by Hellhounds. You and I have both seen how Hellhounds operate. Her body should be in shreds, hamburger meat, there's no way she could return it." Now Sam was worried, Dean may have been acting a little off but his memories and personality were still intact so he couldn't have been possessed. Cursing Dean with memories of Hell was pointless, especially when worse curses were available. Hexes that could make a person's teeth fall out or have their blood leak out of every pore in their body or even hexes that caused a person's flesh to slowly cook in even the coldest temperatures existed. Hallucinations seemed to be nothing compared to how vicious other curses could get. So it couldn't possibly have been a witch with a grudge.

Dean really didn't have a counter argument to that. Sam had made a good point. Even now, Dean still shuddered at the very thought of his experience of being dragged to the pit by Hellhounds. The memory still haunted him; four hellhounds, each locking their jaws onto one of his limbs, tearing through skin, flesh and bone, dragging him down to hell despite his screams of agony. His body was nothing more than jerky after the hellhounds were done with him. Bela's body should have been no different; there was no way she could return to it. "Sam, anything's possible." Dean said quietly, not believing his own words for a single second, but he knew that he was right. Something in his gut screamed that Bela had escaped the pit, that she was out and she had plans for him. Big plans.

"Whatever Dean," Replied Sam nonchalantly. "So where are we heading off to?"

"Wife of the deceased said that her husband started acting weird after he bought some weird flower from a local florist. Hopefully we can find some answers there." Said Dean, "Hopefully we can find this thing, kill it and get on with our lives. We've got bigger fish to fry."

***

After a very…enjoyable night with Sam and two very interesting talks with two very different angels, Ruby felt more lost than ever before. Yet there was no time for soul searching, she needed answers and she needed a spell to tell her what she needed to know. But in all honesty, what good would that do? Not even the angels knew what she was, neither demon nor human, what good would any spell do for her at this point. Probably better to save the materials, besides you never know when a dried rat's tail, three ginseng roots and an owl's talon would come in handy. At the moment, Ruby was trying her best to enjoy her cup of coffee, despite the long forgotten memories swimming in her head. One in particular repeated itself over and over again within the confines of her psyche refusing to quiet down and die away. She could still hear his words echo thorough her ears as if they were just spoken to her minutes ago.

"Dear maiden, not even death can sever my love for you. No matter how, I shall find a way back to you. For our souls are forever joined as one"

Like any bad memory of a long broken vow, she had forgotten his promise and she had forgotten his words, burying them as deep within her memories as she possibly could. Ruby's cellphone rang, vibrating itself within the confines of her leather jacket sending shivers through her body which brought her mind back to reality. It was Sam. "Hey Sam, what's up?" she said trying her best to keep the tumultuous state of her emotions from affecting her tone of voice.

"Hey, I was wondering is it possible for a person to escape from hell and go back into their original body?" asked Sam from the other end of the line. He didn't seem to take notice.

"Depends on the state of the body, if it's just dead and not worm food then yeah it should be possible." Replied Ruby

"What if it was torn apart by Hellhounds?"

"Then, unless they're your brother, there's no way in hell they can return to it." Said Ruby, wondering how the Saico Faangurl case was going. "Hellhounds are viscous and savage and don't show mercy to anyone. Sam, is everything alright?"

"I'm not sure, Dean's convinced an old 'acquaintance' of ours is back from hell."

"You mean as a demon?"

"Yeah, at least Dean thinks so anyways."

Ruby took a deep breath. "OK….well if that 'acquaintance' escaped from Hell, there's no possible way she could return to her body."

No reply on the other line, Sam was probably lost in thought. "Thanks Ruby." Replied Sam from the other line, his voice sounded worried. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Yeah," replied Ruby, not bothering to listen to his request. Sam was a good hunter, and he had his reasons for asking for help. At this point, Ruby doubted she could even say 'no' to him. A sign of how deep her feelings for him had grown. As her thought swirled around through her head she realized that she had unwittingly, unmistakenly, and undeniably fallen in love with Samuel Winchester and until a few hours ago, she had always believed such love to be forbidden and would never come to fruition. Recent events now had her hoping for a happy ending. She would now continue to hope even when all seemed lost.

A light was still burning for her and she would continue to walk towards the light. No matter how far away it may seem.

****

"Thanks again, Ruby. I'll see you there then." Said Sam before he hung up, it was a long shot penny but it was probably the only shot that they had at finding the demon and killing it.

She was a demon and every hunter instinct within his mind screamed for him not to trust her, for him to shove a gallon of holy water down her throat or to pump her stomach full of iron and rock salt. But there was something about her that kept him from doing so, she had given him hope and a purpose. Yet she still carried an air of mystery around her. Her past, who she was when she was still human, was still kept in the dark; locked away in the deepest recesses of her heart.

He still couldn't fully trust her, just like he couldn't trust the powers which slept within his body. The apocalypse inched closer with every broken seal, he could not afford to be hesitant, to be in doubt. Yet Castiel's warning still echoed through his head, continued use of his powers would soon result in the demon blood, which surged through his body, to devour him whole. Yet how could he possibly stop Lilith without his powers, she was far too closely guarded to get close enough to use the knife. For now he would rely on the tricks and tools of the hunter trade, and he needed to be careful.

Sam took a deep breath and allowed his mind to calm itself. Dean was already inside the flower shop, probably charming his way into the pants of any available female who was willing to listen to him. He would join his brother soon enough, but for now he needed the break from the insanity that was his life.

Dark times were coming, even Sam knew that. The future was unsure.

****

If the florist was a demon, she had definitely found the best meat suit to conduct her business in. A short wrinkly old lady with ghostly white hair, wrinkly leather skin, her gray eyes carried within them a twinkle of wisdom and experience which naturally came with age. She insisted that the boys call her Inna instead of Mrs. Freedman. There was no way that she could be a demon, but then again they were wrong before. Dean scanned the room, a typical florist shop, a large variety of flowers filled the room but not the flower that Dean was looking for. "So tell me, what kind of flowers you are looking to buy for your wife?" asked Mrs. Freedman.

Dean scratched his head in frustration. There was no point in telling her that he was a FBI agent, there wasn't much evidence that pointed to her being responsible for the murders. "Well, it's a strange flower, red and looks a bit like a rose."

Mrs. Freedman took a pause. "Oh! You mean the Bloody Rose!"

"Bloody Rose?"

Mrs. Freedman nodded. "Yes, it's a seasonal flower, very rare and very beautiful. They're named for their deep red color and are supposed to be a symbol of eternal love. Unfortunately I think we're out of stock at the moment, I could always ask my assistant where we got the roses from."

Dean smiled as Sam came through the door after finishing up his phone call. "Yeah, that would be great."

"Anita!" yelled Mrs. Freedman, Anita came out after a few seconds, a young lady, couldn't have been more than 13 years old. "Do we have anymore Bloody Roses?"

"Yeah, we do." Replied Anita before she walked into the back and returned with a single red rose.

The smell drafted into Dean's nostrils, a fresh sweet innocent fragrance which carried within it a hint of sin, Jasmine flowers with the slightest whiff of brimstone, it smelled just like Bela. The sensation of invisible arms wrapped around Dean surprising him, "What's wrong Dean?" asked an all too familiar voice. "Were you unable to forget me?"

Dean could feel her fingers running up themselves up his spine. 'She's not here.' He told himself repeatedly trying to resist the sensations that were undertaking his body praying that he could keep his composure, hoping that Sam wouldn't be able

"Silly Dean, of course I'm here darling." Said an all too familiar female voice with a gentle brush up his chest. "Haven't you realized it yet? You're mine."

'She's not here.' Thought Dean repeatedly, yet the sensations only grew stronger, her warm breath splashed itself onto his neck with every syllable she uttered.

"Quit lying to yourself Dean." She whispered as she gently ran her hands up and down his hest. "you can't escape me." Her voice was like a gentle tingling sensation which softly danced at the back of his head, yet the other sensation which he was feeling were far too intense to be fake. She was here. Bela was here.

"Dean, are you ok?" asked Sam .

"If you want we can help you special order some of those roses you want."

"So can I ask what these roses are for?"

"Sam, she's here. Muttered Dean as he pulled his brother to the side.

"Who's here?" asked Sam raising a quizzical eyebrow, as far as he could tell there wasn't anyone there. Dean looked insane.

"Bela! Bela's here!" snapped Dean.

"Oh Darling, don't be silly he can't see me." Whispered Bela into his ear. "Only you can."

"Dean, there's nobody there." Said Sam, his voice sounded like a distant echo, everything sounded distorted, like sounds desperately trying to reach a drowning man. He was drowning.

"If you want we can help you special order some of those roses you want."

"So can I ask what these roses are for?"

The voices were everywhere, they were overwhelming him, and with a single, surprisingly, loud THUD, the elder Winchester collapsed onto the pinewood floor of the flower shop.

***

Sam was worried out of his mind, Dean's behavior was getting more and more erratic. It had taken him an hour to drag Dean back to the motel room before going out and getting some aspirin, beer and alcaseltzer. Sam was no doctor but hopefully that would help take the edge off of things.

He was seriously worried, so worried that he had to give Bobby a call. "Yeah Bobby, he thinks Bela's here. He's hallucinating." Said Sam, with his head and ear supporting his phone, one hand fumbling for the motel room's key and the other holding a plastic bag, which clanked with the sound of vodka bottles knocking against each other.

"He thinks that Bela's back and haunting him. Thinks that he's seeing him when I don't."

"He's hallucinating?!"

"Seems like it." Replied Sam nonchalantly.

"Sam, you gidget!"

"Wha?"

"Saico Faangurls begin their feeding by invading a victim's dream for two days, on the third day, the victim's delusions begin to manifest themselves outside of their dreams. The delusions manifest themselves to the point where the victim is drawn to the Saico Faangurl. It's a "

Sam's eyes widened. "Don't tell me…"

"Dean's been infected." Said Sam

"You need to get to him…NOW" growled Bobby, his voice stern and urgent a signal of just hos serious

Sam opened the door to the motel room. Empty. Shit. Fuck. Where was he? Couldn't have gone far. Sam told himself, the room was still a bit of a mess, an unmade bed, beer all over the place, a broken lamp. Did he leave to get some fresh air? Sam took a look at his watch, 6:43 PM, late, other than a bar, but Sam had told Dean that he was coming back with booze, so where else could he have gone?

A phone call, which vibrated within the confines of Sam's coat, brought his state of mind back to reality. "Hello?" asked Sam.

"Mr. Winchester?" asked a chirpy female voice on the other end of the line.

"Yes? Who is this?" asked Sam

"This is Anita from the flower shop. I was calling to tell you about the Bloody Rose."

"Uh huh."

"Well I called your brother earlier, and told him that we actually got our supply from a women named: Beatrix Sinclaie, he freaked out and hung up."

Sam pondered for a second. Where had he heard that name before? His blood froze in his veins, it was the name of the coroner. She was it. She was the Saico Faangurl.

To be concluded

A/N: Schools' been taking it's toll on me and this chapter took longer than expected to finish. Hopefully the final chapter will come sooner. Looking back, I realized that this story was much more than a Sam/Ruby story, it's more of a Dean-is-guilty fic. Hopefully the next story will be more geared towards Sam/Ruby.

Leave a review folks, it's great that you favor my story and all, but it's the reviews that really motivate me into writing.