Chapter 5

Hushabye Mountain

The table was littered with papers, laptops and beer bottles, the dim light of the floor lamp casting an orange tinge across it. After an hour of squinting at papers and computer screens they had found nothing, which wasn't surprising as Dean had spent most of the time watching Haley, checking she was still there every few minutes, he knew he was being ridiculous but he couldn't help it.

"Dean, she said she's fine, she just needs to sleep it off." Sam whispered as he watched his brother look at the her for the millionth time since she had fallen asleep.

"Yeah but what she says and what she means are two completely different things Sammy." He whispered back, watching her, making sure she was ok yet again. Sam didn't know what to say to that, she had always kept things close to her chest but he thought she was getting better with that but Dean suggested otherwise.

"Is she dreaming?" Sam asked when her breathing became quicker and heavier, he looked up to see her face scrunched up and her legs twitching under the blanket.

"Yeah, she does that when she's having a nightmare," Dean said looking over at her again, understanding; nightmares were a hunters curse, he didn't know any hunter who didn't have nightmares. "She'll pull out of it in a second." And just like that, her face relaxed and her legs stopped moving. "See." Dean watched her for a few seconds more, making sure that she had indeed pulled herself out of whatever nightmare situation she had got herself into and turned back to the computer.

Someone was stroking her hair and humming lightly. Haley recognised the tune instantly, Hushabye Mountain. Her mom used to sing it to her when she was small to help her fall asleep. Haley's eyes fluttered open and as she looked around she realised she was in her bedroom back in Nashville when she was eleven. She looked up at the person that was stroking her hair, it was her mom.

"A gentle breeze, from Hushabye Mountain

Softly blows on Lullabye Bay

It fills the sails of boats that are waiting

Waiting to sail your worries away

It isn't far to Hushabye Mountain,

And your boat waits down by the quay

The winds of night so softly are sighing

Soon they will fly your troubles to sea,"

Haley smiled up at her mom, who continued to stroke her hair as she sang softly, she could feel her eyes beginning to droop as she concentrated on her mom's voice, enveloping around her like a soft blanket.

"So close your eyes, on Hushabye Mountain

Wave goodbye to cares of the day

And watch your boat from Hushabye Mountain,

Sail far away from Lullabye Bay"

"Night night, Momma loves you, very much." Her mom whispered, much like in the film, Haley loved when she did this, she smiled sleepily as her voice sounded more distant the further into sleep she got.

"So close on your eyes on Hushabye Mountain,

Wave goodbye to cares of the day

And watch your boat from Hushabye Mountain

Sail far away from Lullabye Bay."

Her mom placed a gentle kiss on the top of her head, and tucked the covers up around her chin as Haley snuggled further down under the thick blankets.

She was awoken by a loud crash from downstairs and what sounded like her mom's strangled cries. Quickly getting out of bed, she tiptoed to the door peeking through to see if she could see anything but the hallway was pitch black. Creeping back to her nightstand, she pulled out a gun loaded with silver bullets; her dad had told her to keep it by the bed while he was gone, in case she ever needed it. Grabbing it, she hurried down the stairs as quietly as she could, pointing the gun in front of her as she rounded the kitchen door.

Standing in the middle of the kitchen was her dad, or was it? He had her mom pinned to the wall by her neck. Haley looked at her mom, whose face was slowly beginning to take on a purple tinge.

"Daddy?" She asked, lowering her gun.

"Shifter." Her mom, choked out, her breathing becoming raspy. Haley raised her gun once again, her finger hovering over the trigger but she couldn't do it, he looked too much like her dad. What if it was her dad?

"He killed my family, now I'm gonna kill his!" The shifter said, before Haley could fire a shot, the shifter snapped her mom's neck and she hit the floor with a loud thud, that echoed around the tiled kitchen. Haley looked from her mom to the shifter, who was now running towards her. She backed herself into a corner and fired off a shot; aiming for his heart. But her hands were shaking so badly that she missed and the bullet hit his shoulder. It knocked him back for a second but not enough for her to have the opportunity to scramble away. The shifter grabbed her arm dragging her back to him.

"Not my daughter you bastard," She heard her dad say and then BANG.

Haley awoke with a jolt, the gunshot still ringing in her ears. With her back to Dean, who was still seated at the table, she allowed herself a few minutes to cry silently. It never got any easier every time she had that nightmare, never any different, always that moment, forever playing over and over in her mind like the replaying a scene in a movie. Deciding she had better get up, she gently pulled the blanket back, sensing movement, Dean turned to look at her.

"Morning sunshine." He smiled, following her with his eyes as she padded over to him.

"How long was I out?" She yawned.

"Couple hours," he replied, looking up at her face, the dim light reflecting off the tear trails that still adorned her cheeks. "What's wrong?" He asked as she clambered into his lap, and curled up against his chest like a child; her small stature making it easy to do so.

"Nightmare." She mumbled, as Dean wrapped his arms around her cradling her to him. "My mom." Haley had never told them about her mom, they just knew that she was killed but not how, it was just too hard, even after all these years.

"Want to talk about it?" He asked. He always asked her this question every time she had a nightmare about her mom but he had never managed to get her to talk. He wasn't going to force her; she would tell him when she was ready.

"No. I just want to sit here." She mumbled, snuggling deeper into his warmth. He nodded and kissed the top of her head. "Have you figured it out yet?" She asked, lifting her head up to look at the computer screen.

"So far it could be a Hippogriff or a Griffin, neither one of those actually exists," Dean chuckled and it reverberated through his chest and into her ear.

"That you know of," She pointed out sitting up, Dean shook his head, giving her an apologetic look. "Where's Sam?" She looked around the room realising he wasn't there.

"He went to get dinner." He said shuffling through some papers.

"Dinner? You said I'd been asleep a couple hours!" She exclaimed, looking at the clock in the corner of the screen. "Dean it's after 6, why didn't you wake me?" She moaned.

"Because you needed to rest." He said trying to calm her down. The door knob jiggled and in walked Sam, carrying beer and tacos.

"Hey." He said as he saw her smiling face "How you feeling?" He dropped the bags on the table.

"Better." She smiled, getting off Dean's lap and plonking down in the chair next to him. She was feeling much better now that she'd had some much needed sleep and was ready and raring to get started on this case.

"Good." Sam handed out the tacos and they researched while they ate, determined to figure out what the hell this creature was. Sitting on the bed, after hours of sitting in the uncomfortable chair at the table, Haley twirled the coin back and forth between her fingers, trying to picture the book she had dreamt about.

She pictured herself turning every page; she had read that book cover to cover millions of times when she was a girl so if she tried hard enough she could remember every page. If only she had it with her; it was sitting on the bookshelf in her room back at the bunker, with all the other books her dad had given her from his trips.

She started to remember the pages in order: Kronos, Zeus, Poseidon, Aphrodite, Hades – Hades: that was it. She closed her eyes and pictured the page in her head, scanning through all of the writing until she remembered what was written on the bottom of the page.

'The River Styx was believed to be guarded by a ferryman, anyone who wanted to visit the underworld needed to pay the ferryman one gold Dracma for safe passage.' Images flooded into Haley's brain, all the Greek mythology she knew came flooding back to her.

"Dracma." She exclaimed, jumping up off the bed.

"Huh?" Dean looked at her confused as she came towards him.

"The coin. I know what it is." Turning Dean's laptop towards herself she typed the coin into the search engine and clicked on an image. "It's gold Dracma. The ancient Greek's used to bury their dead with a gold Dracma so that they would have safe passage through the underworld." Sam came around the table to stand behind her and Dean. "Guys I know what it is." She turned to look at them, their eyebrows raised.

"So what is it?" Dean asked, still confused by her outburst.

"Erinyes." She said, leaning down to find some information to help the boys out.

"Air in ye what now?" Dean asked, miss pronouncing everything.

"Furies Dean. Greek mythology?" Dean shook his head still not understanding, she looked over at Sam for help but she could tell by his face he didn't know either, she sighed. "Goddesses of justice, vengeance and punishment, wings like a bat, black leather like skin, talons like an eagle and hair entwined with snakes, they sprang from the blood of Ouranos when his son Kronos, castrated him." The boys winced. "They go after murderers and seek revenge and justice, that's why they went after those college kids, they got away with the murder of that man so they're punishing them. That's what they do punish them by sending them mad to the point that they kill themselves." Everything was flooding back to Haley now all information she had retained from all those years ago. "The lore says that they mark their victims by giving them a gold Dracma, so when they move on to the underworld they use it for safe passage where the Furies would be waiting on them to torture them further!" Haley pulled up a page from a website that basically detailed what she had just said. Sam returned to his laptop, searching for something.

"So how do we kill these hags?" Dean asked reading through the information Haley had placed in front of him. That Haley didn't know.

"Knife to the heart or fire." Sam said, looking up from his laptop.

"Simple enough, we just got to find 'em." Dean said plonking his hand down on the table.

"I think I can help with that." Sam and Dean looked up at her intrigued. She took a deep breath and sat on the edge of the bed, sinking into it slightly. "They're after me." They almost didn't hear her, as she looked down at her hands.

"What do you mean they're after you?" Dean stood up from the table, anger beginning to bubble up inside him.

"I found this in my backpack at the diner." She held out the coin to Dean, he took it from her, inspecting it.

"It's probably one of the ones that you picked up from one of the vics," Dean said sceptically.

"No Dean, I put them all back, you saw me." She whispered, looking up into his face. Dean still didn't believe her. He started pacing back and forth across the small expanse of space that he had between the table and the bed.

"The whispering and the headache?" Sam asked, he hadn't moved, just gave her a look of concern and sorrow.

"I've been having nightmares too, they've been trying to affect me but I think I'm stronger than they think and can resist them more than the others could." Haley looked between the brothers; Dean still pacing, running his hands through his hair, trying to think of some way he could get her out of this. "If you use me as bait -"

"No!" Dean cut her off before she could say anymore. "We are not using you as bait!" He was angry now, he was not going to let her do this, he would not put her danger.

"And how else are you gonna find them Dean?" Haley stood up, getting angry herself now.

"We'll find another way, you're not doing this." Dean told her flat out.

"They're gonna come for me anyway! I have this," she stood up and brandished the coin he had dropped on the table in his face. "I'm marked Dean, whether you like it or not. What you gonna do if they come for me while you're not here?" She stood with her hands on her hips, breathing heavily.

"She has a point Dean," Sam agreed, looking at his brother apologetically, he hated disagreeing with him, especially where Haley's safety was concerned but he couldn't see any other way.

"Why should I let you offer yourself up as bait when I don't know why I'm doing it in the first place? Why are they after you?" Dean was getting angrier by the second, he wanted answers and he wanted them now.

"I don't want to talk about it." She looked down at her feet nervously.

"I promised your dad I wouldn't let anything happen to you and I don't intend on breaking that promise!" Haley's breath hitched in her throat at the sheer mention of her father, heat spread up her neck and across her face as her blood boiled with anger.

"Don't you dare bring my father into this!" She seethed, gritting her teeth, biting back the anger that was fighting its way out of her.

"I'm trying to protect you and I can't do that until I know what I'm protecting you from!" His voice got deeper and his face became redder and redder.

"I can look after myself Dean, I'm not a child!" She said fighting the urge to scream at him.

"Then stop acting like one and tell me why they are after you!" Dean had fully lost his cool now; he forgot to keep his emotions in check. A flicker of hurt crossed her face.

"I told you I didn't want to talk about it!" She shouted again, the hurt she felt spurring her on more and more.

"That's just it Hales, you never want to talk about it!"

"Dean." Sam warned, seeing that he was pushing her too far. Dean ignored him. Haley didn't say a word, she just stared up at the man she loved with every inch of her heart, feeling hurt.

"You know what? Screw this and screw you." She spat, pushing past him and heading for the door.

"Where are you going?" He turned and watched her as she wrenched open the door, rain blowing in and blurring her vision. Or were they tears?

"For a walk. Or am I too much of a child to go out on my own now?" She turned and headed out of the door and across the parking lot, she was drenched in seconds, but she didn't care.

"Haley!" He called after her as he watched her back fading into the darkness. "Son of a bitch." He punched the door frame and grabbed his jacket and ran after her. Haley could hear Dean's boots splashing in the puddles as he ran after her, it was no use trying to out run him she never could, he reached for her arm and grabbed hold of her but she shoved him off. "Don't walk away from me Haley," he had to shout to be heard over the wind that was battering around them, standing there in just jeans and a t-shirt, she shivered, her hoodie forgotten on the back of a chair.

"What do you want from me Dean?" She called, keeping her back to him; she couldn't look at him right now.

"I want to know why you won't talk to me!" He stepped closer to her so they were only steps apart.

"Because I killed her!" She screamed, whipping around to face him, her emotions finally exploding inside of her. Dean didn't move. "I am the reason my mom is dead, Dean!" She sobbed; he pulled her close, holding her to him tightly as she pounded her fists against his chest, screaming in anger: at him, at herself, at everything. Eventually, after several minutes, she gave in and she bunched her fists up in his soaked t-shirt, loud wails taking over her body. "I could have saved her, but I didn't and it's all my fault." She whispered, her legs giving way underneath her, her body too weak to keep her upright any longer. Dean scooped her up and lowered the both of them to the ground, no longer having the energy himself. He cradled her, smoothing her waterlogged hair back against her head.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, almost on the edge of tears himself. "I'm sorry I got mad, I don't want you to get hurt Hales, you're the best thing that has ever happened to me. To us. I love you so much and I don't ever want to lose you." His voice wavered as he continued to stroke her hair.

"It's all my fault." She whispered again.

"Don't you dare blame yourself!" Dean rocked her, her sobs now subsiding into whimpers.

"Ok." She agreed after a few minutes of whimpering. She still blamed herself, it didn't matter what Dean said, it was her fault, she should have killed the shifter when she had the chance but she didn't. For now she wasn't going to think about it, she couldn't fight these things like this. "Let's go kill these bitches." She laughed slightly through her tears. Dean stood, his arm supporting the backs of her knees, carrying her back to their room.

"We're not going anywhere until you get some rest; you need to be strong to fight off those Batman wannabes." Dean told her, she nodded against his shoulder, knowing he was right. Sam saw the two of them approach and pulled the door open for them, blankets and towels in hand to help keep her warm. Dean placed her on the edge of the bed and Sam draped a towel and blanket around her shoulders attempting to keep her as warm as possible and handed a towel to Dean.

"You need to get out of those wet clothes." Dean told her, already peeling off his shirt, plastered to his chest.

"If you wanted to see me naked Winchester, you should have just asked." She teased as her teeth began to chatter.

"Ew, brother in the room!" Sam went to cover his ears but still gave a chuckle. Dean just smiled widely, if she was teasing him, it meant she was getting back to her old self. He threw her pyjamas at her and a pair of his thick socks to keep her feet warm.

"Just go change!" He laughed and she did as she was told, disappearing into the bathroom.

So now you guys know what happened to Haley's mom! After this I have one more chapter that I've already written up and just need to be edited, which will end the Erinyes/Fury portion of the story. I'm still undecided on what direction the story should take after that so let me know on what you guys would like to see from this story!

Thank you for all your support it means a lot. As always reviews, favourites, follows and constructive criticism are always welcome.

See you next Sunday!

~Alice