A/N: Well, I promised that Dean would be back, didn't I? About to find out how I kept that promise. Thanks to LittleSilence, Kas3y, Sharllissa, Leandra Falconwing, and Jenna for reviewing! I am SO SORRY that I wasn't able to get back to you guys in regards to your reviews- life is a bit hectic right now and I've barely had time to write. I hope you enjoy this fourth chapter!
-Jaq
Dean woke up in a familiar room. Grouchily. He quickly determined that while he was not dead any more, he was still female.
It was Victorian, with a floor-to-celing mirror and a buffet table down the center that held hundreds of hamburgers. Dean scowled.
"Zachariah."
It was a statement, not a question. An older man appeared, wearing a manicured suit and carrying a glass of Scotch. "Dean." He smirked. "A thank-you would be nice."
"What the hell?"
"Heaven, actually. Sorry, Dean. Fun as it would be, we really can't have you dying so soon in the game." He gestured with his free hand.
Dean rolled his eyes. "No. Not that. I meant the whole waking up with a different body thing!" He glared pointedly at the angel.
"That wasn't me. Although it's quite funny, it really isn't my concern. You still have Dean Winchester's DNA, minus a Y chromosome. You're still Michael's vessel, and your brother is still Lucifer's," he said nonchalantly. "My advice? Get a sports bra."
Dean opened his mouth, but his brain didn't supply a retort. The only thing he could think was "I just got friggin' bra advice from Zachariah the winged dick," and that was pretty tough to take in.
"How do you even-nevermind. I don't want to know. Alright. Thanks for bringing me back, I guess. Now, can I leave? I've got things to do."
"Such as rescuing your brother?"
Dean glared again. "Yes. I take it you know where he is?"
Zachariah shrugged. "If it concerned me, I could find out. It's much more amusing watching you try, however."
"I'll kill you if you even think of touching-"
"Relax. Sam is needed, remember?" The angel took a sip of his drink. "And so are you. You pledged yourself to our service, remember?"
Dean gritted his teeth, remembering that terrible night. "I swore allegiance to help kill Lilith. And she's dead," he bluffed, trying to find a way out. He couldn't. Well, maybe...he found the little knife tucked into his waistband and cut his fingers, showing no outward sign that it hurt.
"No, you pledged allegiance to the flag. My flag. And now we need you. The devil's got Sam, we've got you- and thanks to your brand-new bodies, those pesky Enochian sigils on your ribs are gone, too. Everything's pretty perfect, wouldn't you say? Now all we need is your consent."
Dean backed up against the countertop and began smearing his blood around behind his back. "Well, you can forget that," he spat out. "I'll never say 'yes.'"
"Please, Dean. Enough with the tough guy act. We have unlimited resources; you're trapped in a box with no friends. Who do you really think has the upper hand?"
"Me," Dean grunted as he swiveled and placed his hand on the center of the sigil. He shielded his eyes as Zachariah was blasted away.
-:-
Sam was manhandled out of the box. As soon as he was, he fell over, his limbs on fire. Being cramped so long, all of his blood circulation had stopped, and returning was not only painful but made it impossible to stand.
He groaned as two demons knelt on either side of him and yanked him roughly to his feet. Sam raised his eyes.
And saw Lucifer. His eyes widened, and Sam struggled, pointlessly. Still, it was an instinct.
"Sam," the devil breathed. "Sam, Sam, Sam. Gotta say, love the new body. Especially since you're back on the map with new ribs." He raised his eyebrows. "So, what's it going to be?"
"Never," Sam spat.
"I was afraid of that answer. Just think, though, I could bring them all back for you. Jessica, your mother, anyone you want. Dean."
Sam froze. "Dean's not dead," he said, his voice almost hitching. He managed to keep it steady, however. The unsaid 'is he?' hung in the air.
"Show him."
The demon on Sam's right left the room and came back with a simple camera.
"Watch, Sam..."
Sam couldn't take his eyes off of the tiny screen. He watched as it opened with Dean, crumpled under a tree with a knife shoved through his chest. The camera panned out and you could see its holder, a young man in his thirties with blond hair and black eyes.
"Hi, Sam," the demon said. "I've just killed your brother-sister? Not sure what you two've got going on here-and I'm under orders to record this, so I am. Dean, any last words? We've got your brother. You couldn't save him, Dean. You failed." The demon smiled.
Dean was struggling to breathe, blood gurgling in his mouth. "'M sorry, Sammy," he gasped, looking straight into the camera.
Sam clenched his jaw, tears pricking his vision. No. No. Not Dean.
"M...so...sor..." Dean didn't even finish the word before he exhaled one final time and his muscles slumped. His head tilted to one side, and the camera zoomed in on his inert, clearly dead face. It stayed like that for a few seconds, then turned back to the grinning demon before going blank.
Sam surged against his captors, rage boiling inside him.
"You bastard! Bring him back, you son of a bitch! Bring him back!" Sam shouted, tears that he refused to shed marring his vision.
"All it takes is one word and he's good as new."
Sam finally let the tears fall. "No," he said, almost to himself. "He wouldn't want that." Anger flared up, and he glared.
"So much anger. So much. You'll need that, Sam. Especially now that there's nobody to save you."
Sam swallowed hard and spat on Lucifer's shoes. The fallen angel looked affronted. "Sammy, Sammy, Sammy. We can't have that. Nigel?"
The demon holding Sam looked up. "Yes?"
"Use your imagination. I won't let him die."
The demom grinned, and pulled Sam after him down a flight of stairs.
-:-
Dean hottailed it back to Bobby's, hotwiring an old blue Comet. Distinguishable, yes, but Dean was pissed and mad and the Impala was in Pennsylvania and did he mention just how pissed beyond rational thought he was?
"Can it, Bobby," he said as soon as he arrived. "Long story short, I died but the angels brought me back because apparently they don't want me dead. Sam thinks I'm dead, I think. Lucifer's got him God knows where- but it isn't Pennsylvamia, let me tell you- and is trying to get him to say yes. We need to find out where he is and stop him. I'm thinking Ellen, Jo, Rufus, Tony...anyone else we can trust that you know?"
"Woah there. Slow down, son. Step inside the damned house and sit down, would ya?"
Dean obliged, taking the beer Bobby handed him.
He explained what had occured in more detail, noticing how Bobby kept stealing glances at him. When confronted, Bobby just shook his head. "I've seen a lot of strange stuff in my day, but I think this takes the cake."
"Right, yes, I know. Can we call Ellen and Jo?"
"There's a cellphone in your damn pocket, you don't need my permission."
Dean nodded and pulled out his phone. Within seconds, he was on the phone with Jo.
"Hey, Jo, it's Dean-"
"Who the hell are you and what have you done with Dean?" Jo spat through the phone almost immediately.
Bobby took the phone then. "Jo, it's Dean. For some reason he's got a girl's body now, but it's him. I've checked."
"...Oh. Sorry. Well, why'd you call?"
Dean took a deep breath. "The devil has Sammy," he said, his voice steady.
"Oh, God," Jo said, her voice laden with fear all of a sudden. "Um, let me put you on speaker. My mom and me are at a hotel right now, we just finished a case in Iowa."
There was a slight pause, and then Ellen's voice came through the tiny speaker. "Dean? Bobby?"
"Still here."
"So the bad guys got Sam?" Her voice sounded grim, but steely.
Dean nodded, then realized they couldn't see him. "Yeah. He could be anywhere. Well, except Cook Forest in Pennsylvania."
"We're in a little town outside of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. We can be there in a little over five hours if you need us."
"Please," Dean said.
"Alright. Call us if you find anything new."
"I will," Dean promised.
A/N 2: Well, what do you think? Sam thinks Dean's dead, Dean doesn't know where Sam is...but Ellen and Jo, yay! I plan on making them be pretty big characters in this story. Please review! I'll try to get a chapter up tomorrow, but if not, then definitely Sunday. Have a great day and thanks for reading!
-Jaq
