Breath of Life

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Supernatural characters as they are the property of the CW. I do, however, own Artemis, Kiki, Athena, and any other characters introduced within the story as they are sole property of my mind.


Summary: Zombies, ghosts, demons, and all other supernatural she could handle. The disappearance of her best friend and the confused feelings for Dean she wasn't sure she could handle. Drawn back into hunting after nearly a year, 24 year old Artemis Flora Summers sets out once again with the Winchester boys and her old friend, Athena, to figure out who is behind the kidnapping of Kiki and why they want her. However, things begin to take unexpected turns when Artemis finds herself facing more of her past as her connection to Sam becomes more apparent and strong. What happens when she realizes that she's destined to follow in the footsteps of her ancestors? Can she shed those icy layers again to allow Sam and Dean, especially Dean, back in? Or has she finally met her end?


Author's Note: Hello my readers! I know that it has been forever since I last updated this story and I am so sorry for that! My life has been a whirlwind for the last 3 or 4 years with graduating college, beginning my future as a teacher, and having a beautiful daughter a year ago. I loved writing this story, so I am definitely happy to be back to writing it. I have gone back through "Slightest Touch" and the several previous chapters for this story to get back into the groove of writing the next several chapters. I am not a fan of this particular episode but I used it to bring the relationship between Artemis and Dean to light and where they stand in their feelings. I am also using it to bring the relationship between Artemis and Sam forward as they continue to unravel Artemis' past and the kidnapping of Kiki. Remember that I have not written on this story in almost 4 years, so please do not be harsh as I get myself back into the groove of writing this story. Positive reviews and constructive criticism are always welcome! Enjoy!


Crossroad Blues

"I totally need a new outfit."

"You just bought one not long ago."

"I haven't bought anything new since right before the H.H. Holmes ghost. Remember how I felt so violated with him touching me in the other outfit? That would be the reason I haven't bought anything new yet. I figured since I am wanted for murder of some woman I don't even know, I might as well look good getting caught."

"I wouldn't go as far as saying you're wanted, Art. There is nothing in the database stating that you're wanted for murder or for anything along that nature, which is probably a good thing considering I don't really want to know what your mug shot would look like if we ever do get caught." I merely flipped Sam off as he looked up from his computer to give me a grin. I really wanted to throw my bowl of granola at him but it probably would be a waste of food that I wouldn't get to eat for a few more hours.

"While you may have a low profile, Art, Dean, you're not so lucky," Athena said, causing Dean to look up from his food with a raised eyebrow.

"You got a warrant in St. Louis, and now you're officially in the feds' database," Sam said with a slightly annoyed look.

"Dude, I'm like Dillinger or something," he said with a smirk as he sipped at his coffee. I merely rolled my eyes and tossed a piece of bread at his head, causing him to give me a glare. I just stuck my tongue out at him and went back to my sketching. Ever since I had been accused, and hopefully shown to be innocent, of murdering some woman named Silvia Green, I had taken to drawing in my sketch book as often as I could. It was mainly the same drawing of the cemetery, but it kept me sane and focused on what we were doing as we continued our search for Kiki.

"It's not funny, Dean. It makes the job a lot harder. We got to be more careful now," Sam said, shaking his head.

"Well, what do they have on you?" he asked, causing Athena to snort with laughter.

"Not much. The three of us really don't have much other than the usual bullshit that goes along with Kiki's disappearance. The police still want to question us but with you being in the database and not exactly proving very easy to find, they won't be able to get their hands on us for a while," she replied, causing me to nod in agreement.

"So in other words, Sam is jealous," he said, causing Sam to scoff and shake his head in disagreement. I merely smirked as Dean gave me a wink, in which I rolled my eyes and shook my head. He loved messing with Sam.

"Alright. So what do you have on the case there, you harmless, innocent young man?" he asked, causing Sam to give him a glare before picking up papers that he and Athena had been shuffling through earlier. It had been weeks since Kiki's disappearance and every case had been a cold trail to finding her. However, my visions and nightmares since being arrested had increased strongly but not enough to give me any details that I could piece together in hopes of finding my other best friend.

"Architect Sean Boyden plummeted to his death from the roof of his home – a condominium he designed," Sam said, causing me to come out of my thoughts as I looked over at him.

"Build a high-rise and jump off the top of it. That's classy," Dean said with as much sarcasm as he could muster.

"When did he call animal control?" Athena asked.

"Two days earlier," Sam replied, passing me the papers so that I could skim them for information he had missed.

"Did he actually say "black dog"?" Dean asked, causing Sam to nod.

"Yeah. Vicious, wild, black dog is how he described it. The authorities couldn't find it and no one else saw it. In fact, the authorities are a little confused as to how a wild dog could get past the doorman, take the elevator up, and start roaming the halls of the cushiest joint in town. After that, no more calls. He doesn't show up for work and two days later he takes a swan dive off the building," he replied.

"So you think we're dealing with an actual black dog?" Dean asked, causing Sam to shrug.

"Maybe," he replied.

"What's the lore on it?" Dean asked, causing Athena to shake her head.

"It's all pretty vague. There are spectral black dogs all over the world, but there are many things people say. Some say they're animal spirits while others say death omens. But in the end, whatever they are, they're big, nasty…"

"Hellhounds," I said, causing the three of them to look at me as I looked up from my drawing.

"What?" Sam asked.

"We could be dealing with a hellhound," I replied as I showed them the sketch that I had been recently working on. It was a picture of a large black dog's face, blood dripping from its mouth and a crazed look in its eyes. To tell you the truth, I had never believed in them until recently when I started seeing them sometimes in my dreams. Not that I would tell them that.

"What's a hellhound?" Athena asked as Dean took the picture and examined it carefully.

"It's almost like a death omen. I don't know much on them but I know enough that it could possibly fit this case. Some say it supposedly does a demon's dirty work. It hunts you down and can tear you apart within a few minutes, leaving your body a mangled mess. Maybe Sean Boyden saw a hellhound since it is a death omen," I replied, causing Dean to shake his head.

"Your knowledge scares me. I think we should take a closer look before we make any determinations on what the hell we are looking for," Sam said, causing me to shrug as I took back my sketch pad. I wasn't saying I was right but it could possibly be a hellhound that we were dealing with. And maybe it might bring me some clues to figuring out where Kiki was.


Dean's POV

"So, you and Sean Boyden were business partners for almost ten years, right?"

"That's right. Now, one more time, this is for…"

"A tribute for Mr. Boyden – Architectural Digest," I replied as the guy we were interviewing gave me a look before chuckling.

"Something funny?" Artemis asked as she looked up from examining the kitchen. The four of us had come to Sean Boyden's partner for any information we could, in the form of a tribute of course. Any information we could get from this guy would be helpful.

"No. It…It's just a tribute. See, Sean always got the tributes. He kills himself, leaves me and his family behind, but he gets another tribute," he replied, shaking his head.

"Any idea why he'd do such a thing?" Athena asked as the two girls moved to stand with us.

"I have no clue. He lived a charmed life," he replied.

"How so?" Sam asked.

"He was a flat-out genius. I mean, I'm capable, but next to him, uh…it wasn't always that way either," he replied, causing Artemis to raise an eyebrow in interest.

"No?" she asked, causing the guy to sigh.

"You want to know the truth? There was a time where he couldn't even design a pup tent. Hell, 10 years ago he was working as a bartender at this place called Lloyd's. It's a complete dive if you ask me," he replied.

"So what changed?" Sam asked.

"You got me. But overnight he gets this huge commission, and he starts designing…he starts designing the most ingenious buildings anyone has ever seen. It was like the level of Van Gogh and Mozart. It…it's funny. True geniuses…they seem to die young, don't they? To have that kind of talent, why…why just throw it away?" he asked as he looked at all of us. I looked to my brother and to the girls because his question was something I had been kind of thinking about, especially if this guy was a genius. Looking to Artemis, I could see wheels turning in her head with the information she had absorbed in this short period of time and I knew that I would have to ask her later about it. Ever since we had been caught and almost extradited, she had been a little more sassy and mouthy with me but little more quiet most days. It was like something was going on in that brain of hers. Something I would have to dig deeper into as we looked further into this case.

About an hour or so later, I pushed my way out of the Animal Protection Agency with papers that I could get off the lady at the agency that could possibly help us solve this case.

"So?" Sam asked as he gave me a look as I got into the Impala.

"The secretary's name is Carly. She's 23. She kayaks and they're real," I replied, causing Artemis to roll her eyes as she hit me with her sketch book. I gave her a dirty look but turned my attention back to Sam as he started speaking.

"You didn't happen to ask her if she's seen any black dogs, did you?" he asked, causing me to roll my eyes this time and nod as I handed him the paper I had gotten off the girl.

"Every complaint called in this week about anything big, black or dog-like. There are 19 calls in all, and I don't know what this thing is," I replied, tearing off a sticky note and handing it to my brother. He looked at it as I started the car and started to chuckle.

"You mean Carly's Myspace address?" he asked, causing both Artemis and Athena to chuckle as well. Well this wasn't good if the three of them knew what the hell was going on with the sticky note.

"What the hell is that? Is that like some sort of porn site?" I asked as Artemis to groan with a huff. Looking back at her, I watched as she gave me a dirty look. I knew the dirty look anywhere and it was her "You have got to be kidding me? Are you stupid?" dirty look. She had been giving me a lot of those lately too. It amazed me that she still had use of her eyeballs with giving me all those dirty looks.

"Sam, who made the calls as of recent about a black dog?" Athena asked, pulling me back into the case at hand as Sam scanned the list.

"A Dr. Sylvia Perlman. Called a few times actually. It's worth checking out seeing as it's the only thing that we've got to go on right now," he replied, looking at us. I shrugged and looked back to the girls, only to roll my eyes as I found Artemis not paying attention and her nose stuck in her damn sketch pad. Every day, no matter if we were on a hunt or not, she was drawing up a storm. Demons, shadows, graveyards, etc. Ever since our arrest and escape in Baltimore, she had been quiet and not quite herself. The news that she "murdered" some woman named Silvia Green in England had thrown her off her game just a bit. Sam had looked into it one night after she had gone to bed but came up with nothing. It was almost like it was planted to trip her up. And that's exactly what it was doing and it was getting underneath my skin that she was pushing us aside. Again.

"You and Athena go and check out this lead," I said, causing Sam to look over at me in confusion.

"What? You're not going?" he asked. I shook my head and handed Sam the keys to the Impala after I parked it outside the motel room we were staying at. He began to protest but I shut him up with a glare before getting out of the Impala and gestured for Artemis to follow.

"Dean, you can't be serious," Athena said, getting out of the car and gave me a look.

"I'm dead serious. Come on, princess! We don't have all day!" I yelled as she threw open the door with full force and gave me a glare. I winced at the roughness she was displaying toward my baby but I covered my expression pretty quick as she stormed toward me. She made to open her mouth in what was sure to be full of explicatives; however, I merely grabbed her by the arm and shoved her into the motel room, waving at Sam and Athena as they stared at the scene before them. Sam merely shook his head and the Impala roared back to life as they took off to speak with this doctor lady.

"Winchester, I swear…" The growl caused me to turn and look at the female sitting on the ground leveling a glare that could kill at me. I merely rolled my eyes and slammed the door shut. Turning to look at her, I wasn't surprised that she had sprung to her feet and threw everything she had on her across the room before stalking toward me.

"Want to explain what you're doing?" she asked.

"Drinking a beer," I replied as I grabbed a beer and cracked it open as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Sensing her move, I got two or three sips of my beer in before turning around to block the blow she was aiming at my head. She aimed again for the same spot with her other arm but I quickly moved back and placed my hands in front of me for defense. This was exactly what I was wanting her to do to let some of this frustration go and she took the bait without even thinking everything through first.

"I swear you are the most bloody awful asshole I have ever met! Do you seriously think you can just manhandle me like it's nothing and expect me to do nothing?" she asked, aiming a blow to my ribcage with her leg, missing by about an inch as I jumped out of the way.

"Wouldn't be the first time I manhandled you. Besides, you like things a little rough, remember?" I taunted as I grabbed onto her arm and twisted her enough to allow me to toss her toward the bed, softening the blow a bit in case she was to hit the floor also. She merely bounced on the bed before she was back up and delivering another toward my head. For whatever reason this girl loved hitting me in the head. If I ever went brain-dead, Sam would know where to start looking at least.

"You left me, remember? And you're not all that great in the sack to begin with," she seethed, causing me to stop what I was doing to look at her. Now that I was not expecting to flow out of her mouth at all. As I stared at her in shock, she used the opportunity to kick my feet out from underneath me and pin me with a glare as she heaved for air. Looking up at her, I saw a flash of emotions flood through her eyes before they iced over. I schooled my expression into a neutral look and stared up at her as she continued to fight for air.

"You left me, Dean. You left me to survive all of this on my own. You left me to build those walls again after you tore them down. I hate you. I hate you with a passion," she snapped, hands wrapping my biceps tight as I saw anger flash dark across her eyes.

"You undid what we…Ow! Dammit Artemis!" I yelped as her knees dug deep into my sides and her nails dug into my biceps. As much as I had wanted her to let her frustration go, this was not what I had in mind nor was it this far I wanted it to go.

"I did what I had to do to protect everyone involved. You just kept pushing and pushing until everything finally came crumbling down on top of me. I did what I had to in order to protect myself and to protect you. But you still left me. And look where I ended up. Halfway around the world learning that I am part demon spawn. My life is one freak show after another and it doesn't help when you keep pushing and pushing," she said, her voice starting to waver as she tried to keep back tears threatening to form. I used it as an opportunity to knee her hard in the back and flip us over, which caused her to aim for my head again but I was quick and pinned both arms above her head.

"You listen to me and you listen to me good. I don't care if you are demon spawn, half or whole. I don't care if you're supposed to lead an army of psychic children with the yellow-eyed demon. You're not built like that and you know it. I don't care if the authorities think you killed some chick named Silvia Green. Sam can't find one damn thing on this girl. Whoever is trying to frame you for her death is trying to draw you out to do something stupid for not playing by their rules. And you're falling for it. That's not like you. You're so much stronger than that, demon spawn or no demon spawn. You're killing yourself again and I've already lost you once to your family. I won't let you lose yourself again for the same people who left you to defend yourself and set you up to fail, no matter how hard you push me away. So I left. You weren't exactly innocent in that whole catastrophe," I said, gritting my teeth as her nails dug into my hands. But I was not letting up on this conversation. I needed her head clear and I wasn't backing down until I got it.

"You don't know anything about me anymore and I…"

"I know that the little bitch beneath the layer of skin you're wearing is still there," I snapped, gripping her wrists enough to make her wince slightly but not enough to bruise. Somewhere down the line I knew I was getting turned on by the sight of her beneath me, but I was just too preoccupied to notice at this very moment. Damn this girl.

"My family is out to drag me back to serve on that throne of hell or kill me. It's one or the other but I can guarantee you it will be that last one if that means saving Kiki from whatever hell she is enduring now," she snapped, causing me to roll my eyes. Leave it to her to always think of others before herself.

"What matters at this moment is you clearing your head and putting it right in order to save her. Kiki is good as dead if all of us are not clear headed and on the same page. I'm doing this for your own good because you're just lost and not all there. I want to see the old Artemis again. The snarky, sarcastic, sexy Artemis I knew way back when we first started hunting," I said.

"You want the old Artemis?" she asked, causing me to nod.

"Ye…Ow!" I yelped as I yanked my arm away from where she leant up and bit me. Hard. As I made to grab her arms again with a glare, she grasped the front of my shirt and yanked. I lost all train of thought as my hands entangled in her hair and my tongue battled for dominance against hers. I could feel the pent up energy in her body beginning to emerge and I had to stifle a groan as her hands traveled south quickly. Pulling back, I could see emotion after emotion run through them; however, the look on her face said everything I needed to know. Pulling her back into a heated kiss, the ringing of both cell phones went ignored as the world disappeared.


*Artemis' POV*

"So Sylvia Perlman was a very young chief doctor at the best hospital you can think of and has suddenly gone missing. All because of a big black dog? Does anyone else see something wrong with this picture?" I snorted with laughter and gave Dean a smirk as he glared at me through the rearview mirror. He made to make a retort but Athena cut him off pretty quick.

"There are a hundred things wrong with this picture, including the very big black dog you are speaking of. But then again, there are a hundred things wrong with everything that we do for a living so I'm not at all surprised that this doctor suddenly went missing. And by the sounds of it, it might just very well be the same big black dog that Sean Boyden saw. Plus both of them seem to have one thing in common…Lloyd's," she said, causing her to nod toward a small building along the dirt path we were traveling on. Turning the Impala off, we got out of the car and started walking toward the bar in hopes to get some answers. As we walked, I slowed in my movement as I noticed some flowers planted alongside the road.

"What's the matter, Art?" Sam asked as he noticed I was not following.

"The flowers. I'm trying to figure out why and how there are flowers in the middle of a weed patch," I replied, causing the others to stop in their walking and look back where I was at. As I looked at them, I noticed there were more on the other side of the road as well as across the road. It was almost as if someone…

"Planted them?" Dean asked, looking toward me as if reading my mind. I merely nodded and continued to look around. These were not normal flowers that just grew in the middle of nowhere. Someone had to plant them for some special purpose. I could see it in the back of my mind but it wasn't coming forward at this moment.

"What kind of flowers are these?" Athena asked.

"Yarrow flowers," Sam replied.

"Used for certain rituals, aren't they?" Dean asked, causing me to nod.

"Most of the time they're used for summoning rituals," I replied as the pieces of what was happening were slowly starting to come together.

"So, two people become sudden successes about ten years ago, right around the time they were hanging out here at Lloyd's, which…"

"Just happens to be at a crossroads," Sam said as Dean gave him a look.

"You think?" Athena asked, causing me to snort as I drew my sketch pad out of my bag.

"Only one way to find out," I replied as I hoped up onto the hood of the Impala and began to draw. I could feel Dean's eyes on me, but I continued to ignore them as my hand flew over the paper. I knew that one look at Dean and my world would come undone. Shutting my eyes, I listened as Dean and Sam rummaged through the trunk and Athena start talking about the crossroads before my mind started to wander. Wander to exactly the one thing I did not want to think about.

*Flashback*

"Phones," I gasped, Dean's hands making their way underneath my shirt as my head fell backwards at the sensation, causing him to bite at my neck. The sound of our phones filled the room but my mind blanked as he bit down hard. I whimpered as my body lurched upward from the sensation traveling through my body like lightening.

"They can wait. It's not like they won't fill us in whenever they come pick us up," he said with a smirk as my shirt and bra flew across the room. I made to make a smart remark but I could only manage out a gasp as his mouth latched onto my nipple and swirled it in his mouth.

"Bloody fuck," I gasped as my back arched up off the floor. Every fiber in my body was screaming with every touch he made.

"You always were impatient. Nothing has changed I see," he said with a smirk, chucking his shirt and jeans before attacking my lips again. He hissed and gave me a glare as my nails dug down across his arms, causing me to smirk as I shimmied out of my skirt and pulled him to me.

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Take your pick. Either way you're going to give me what I want in the end. So you might just save yourself the trouble," I nipped against his ear, causing him to roughly pull me up into his lap with a dark glare.

"I really don't think you need to worry about me. You should be worrying about yourself," he said, causing me to gasp as an overwhelming sensation filled me head to toe. It had been forever since our last time together, but it was a feeling that was all too familiar and it was a feeling that felt so good that I would never admit out loud to him.

"Too much thinking will kill you." My head snapped up to lock with green eyes filled with concern. Those eyes that haunted me so many nights after he left me. Those eyes that haunted me day and night as I dug through my family's history for over a year. Shaking my head to clear my head, I moved against him, drawing out a deep throated moan that caused me to smirk. He glared at me and I winced as I felt my back slam into the floor with such force I knew I would regret it later.

"I'm sure you don't want me to toy with you and make you beg for what you want," he said, thrusting hard and deep, making me shudder and gasp for air as he did it again. I tried to match the pace and rhythm he was setting, but I was finding it hard as the pleasure cursed through my body and I could feel my orgasm building quickly. And yet, I still wasn't satisfied.

"Harder," I said, causing him to raise an eyebrow at my demand.

"Come again?" he asked, causing me to glare at him.

"Harder. And deeper," I demanded as I yanked him down into a scorching kiss. He responded by yanking my hips to his and slamming them together with such force that a scream of pleasure filled the room. He continued to pick up the pace as each thrust became harder and was driven deeper, causing my body to rack with tremors of pleasure as my orgasm neared.

"Let go," he whispered into my ear before biting down hard on my neck. I let out a string of curses, and maybe his name, as my body completely unraveled, my orgasm surging through my body. Another thrust and he followed, my name rolling off his lips as his head dropped into my neck. Heavy breathing filled the air as we came down for our high. I couldn't remember the last time I felt free, if only for a moment. I heaved in air as he rolled onto his back with a groan, wincing as he stretched out his legs.

"Bloody hell," I hissed, pain of the roughness of our activity beginning to take place of the pleasure as I started to slowly move my limbs and sit up. I couldn't remember the last time my body had felt so painful but full of pleasure.

"When I decided I wanted to clear your head this was definitely not what I had in mind." My head snapped toward Dean as he boosted himself up on his elbows and looked at me with a smirk. Reality hit me fast and hard, causing me to groan as I put my head in my lap. What the bloody hell just happened?

"Like I said before, thinking too much will kill you." I jumped as I felt one of his warm hands on my lower back, causing me to turn my head to lock with concerned green eyes. My mind was beginning to go in so many different directions that I was beginning to develop a migraine and the fact that I had just betrayed every fiber in my body of hating Dean really pissed me off.

*End of Flashback*

"Yahtzee." My eyes snapped open and I turned my head toward Dean as he pulled a metal container out of the middle of the road where he and Sam had been digging. Hopping off the Impala, I joined them as they began to examine the inside contents. I exhaled heavily as I saw many things I wished could just be burned. This was definitely no joke.

"I'd be willing to bet that's graveyard dirt," Sam said as he examined a bottle full of dirt.

"And a black cat bone," Athena added, causing me to shake my head as I began looking at the sketch I had drawn. It was the scene before us with the different pieces of the ritual drawn separately top the top of the page. But one thing scared me just a bit. A woman standing in the center of the page. In the center of the crossroads. Quickly closing my book, I stuffed it into my bag before any of the others could see it. I didn't know what it meant, but I knew now was not the time to bring them into my freaky drawing world.

"That's serious spell work. I mean, that's Deep South hoodoo stuff," Dean said.

"Used to summon a demon," Sam said, shaking his head.

"Not just summon one. Crossroads are where pacts are made. I'm willing to bet any amount of money that Sean Boyden and Sylvia Perlman made a deal with the crossroads demon and that's how they became an overnight success," Athena said, causing a light bulb to go off in my head. I chuckled dryly and pulled my sketch pad back out, opening up to the picture of the hellhound I had drawn a few days prior.

"They're seeing dogs all right, but they are not your average black dogs. Hell, they're not even black. They're seeing hellhounds – demonic pit bulls. They're here to collect on whatever deal was made with that crossroads demon. I guess they aren't lore like we thought," I said, causing Dean to shake his head.

"That doctor lady, wherever she's running, she isn't running fast enough," he said.

"So now what? Do we continue to let these "black dogs" run amuck?" I asked, sarcastically.

"We find out who else made those deals with this demon and try to save them," Athena replied, causing Sam to chuckle as I shook my head.

"Yeah, right. Like it's going to be that easy," I said.

"We're going to need to figure out where to start first," Dean said.

"Well, it's just like the Robert Johnson legend, right? I mean, "selling your soul at the crossroads" kind of deal?" Sam asked, causing Dean to shake his head.

"Except that wasn't a legend. You now his music," he said, causing Sam to throw him a blank look. I merely rolled my eyes.

"You don't know Robert Johnson songs? Sam, there's occult references all over his lyrics. I mean, "Crossroad Blues," "Me and the Devil Blues," "Hellhound on My Trail"?" he asked, causing Sam to shrug. I shook my head and stuck my sketch pad back into my bag before grabbing the materials for the ritual and tossing it back into the hole in the middle of the road.

"I think now might be the best time for me to step in since this would kind of be my knowledge. Story goes that he died choking on his own blood. He was hallucinating and muttering about big, evil dogs," I said as Athena shook her head.

"And now it's happening all over again," she said, causing me to nod.

"Athena's right. We got to find out if anyone else struck any bargains around here," Sam said. I chuckled dryly and they all looked at me.

"Right. Like someone is going to actually tell us that they made a deal with a demon. I'm sure they're just walking all around here waiting to offer us a nice cup of bloody tea and spill their guts so we can go clean up their mess for them. Right," I said with as much sarcasm as I could muster, causing Sam to look at me with disbelief.

"You…"

"Whatever, Sam. It's… whatever," I said, rubbing a hand over my face. I was starting to get a migraine and this case was doing me no justice at the moment. He looked at me in concern but I merely gave him a glare, causing his own eyes to narrow. I knew that my mind was elsewhere but I was not about to have Sam trample over my brain any more than it already was.

"Alright! Look, these rituals, you got to put your own photo into the mix, right?" Dean asked, trying to buffer the atmosphere that was beginning to grow between Sam and myself. I merely shrugged. I wasn't sure. I didn't know too much about rituals in general.

"This guy probably summoned the thing. Let's see if anyone inside knows him. If he's still alive," he said with as much sarcasm as he could muster before walking toward the bar. Athena gave me a "What the hell is going on?" look before following him. I was not in the mood to deal with anymore of this and my giant migraine was proof. Shaking my head, I headed toward the Impala to look through my bag for Advil to see if it would lighten the pain I was having.

"What the hell is going on with you?" I cursed as my head hit the top of the inside of the Impala, and I pulled back to see Sam standing behind me with his arms crossed and a pissed off look on his face. I scoffed and rubbed the top of my head as I took three Advil to try and subside the large ball of pain that was cursing through my brain thanks to him.

"I swear to bloody hell, Sam, that if you don't back off me, I will stab you in your bloody fucking sleep," I snapped.

"I'd back off you if you were acting yourself," he snapped, causing me to roll my eyes.

"I haven't been myself for a very long time, Sam. Where the hell have you been?" I asked.

"You know what I'm talking about, Artemis. You and Dean. What the hell happened between you two this afternoon? You're avoiding him and won't look at him; however, you're not making any sarcastic remarks or snapping at him like you normally do. What the hell happened?" he asked, causing my eyes to narrow and shove him away from me.

"Who the bloody hell do you think you are, Sam? What gives you the right to think you can just talk to me the way you bloody are? We've got more to worry about with this god damn bloody deal making demon than you worrying about me sleeping with your brother," I snapped, causing him to scoff with disbelief.

"You slept with my brother?" he asked, causing me to roll my eyes.

"Really, Sam? You're really going to do this now?" I asked.

"Artemis, you have been swearing up and down that you don't feel anything for my brother but yet you're willing to just jump right into bed with him," he replied, causing me to swear as I slammed the door to the Impala shut.

"It was a heat of the moment thing, Sam! We were arguing and I took a few swings at him. It ended up turning into a heated discussion and before I knew it, we were having sex on the motel floor. End of story," I said, causing him to grimace.

"That is not exactly a picture I wanted to imagine," he said, causing me to shrug.

"You asked," I said.

"You know something? This Silvia Green bullshit has got you so fucking twisted that you don't know what you want yet alone who you even are anymore. This just takes the cake. You're twisting back into your old self and building those god damn icy walls and shutting us out. You're shutting me out and I'm the last person you should be shutting out and you know it," he said, causing me to cover my face with my hands and let out a scream. I tried to count to 10 but I managed to get to 3 before I exploded.

"I have every right to shut you out! Dean out! Athena out! Everyone out! I never wanted to let any of you into my hell in the first place, but you….you of all people just kept pushing at that wall! I built that bloody wall for a reason, Sam! And look what happened when it came tumbling the bloody fuck down! Kiki was kidnapped by a bunch of psycho demons and I'm wanted for murder of some woman I don't even know! Not to mention Dean left me for trying to save him! He left me, Sam! And look at the mess I'm in! You don't understand anything that has happened or is happening and you never will! Stop putting your god damn bloody nose where it doesn't fucking belong!" I yelled, shoving him away from me as hard as I could. I was bloody pissed. I was so done with Sam stepping in and putting himself where he shouldn't when it came to me or me and Dean for that matter. I couldn't do this anymore.

"You seriously…" I didn't even listen to him as I swung and connected with his head. He was stunned for a second but it didn't last long as his arms went up quickly to block the next blow I aimed at him. Unlike my fight with Dean, I was more clear-headed and anticipated him blocking my moves, causing me to kick him hard in the ribs.

"Artemis!"

"Let me go!" I yelled as I felt Dean swing me away from Sam, my legs nearly colliding with Sam's head as I struggled to hit him again.

"Jesus! I leave you two alone for two seconds and you're throwing punches again," Dean snapped, tightening his grip around me as I struggled more to get out of his grip and launch myself at Sam.

"Let me go, Dean, or I swear I'll rip your bloody balls off and cast them into the fiery pit of hell," I growled, wincing as he spun me around and slammed me against the Impala. His hands gripped my arms tightly and I glared at him as he settled his weight between my legs, effectively trapping me from going anywhere.

"You attacking Sam is not going to make us find Kiki any faster. Glad to see you're returning to your normal, bitchy self; however, you have to tone it down. We need everyone if we're going to figure out this case and hopefully get closer to finding Kiki. That includes you," he said, causing me to shut my eyes and lean my head back. I took in a deep breath and counted to ten before lifting my head to stare into those green eyes that had haunted me for nights. There was a flicker of emotion and then it was gone. I swear this job was fucking with my mind more and more the more I dug myself into it.

"Now, if you're going to be a good girl and not attack Sam again, I'll let you go. I might even reward you for good behavior." I snorted with laughter as Dean smirked at me.

"Oh really? An extra cookie? Extra sugar in my soda? A new set of handcuffs?" I asked sarcastically, a smirk rolling off my lips as he groaned and took a step back from me with a glare. Two could play at this game.

"Alright you two. Enough! Sam, Artemis, enough with the both of you too. I don't care how pissed off you are with each other but we have a case to work on and neither of you are helping verbally, and physically, attacking each other. Now this guy is going to die unless we do something to help him," Athena said, stepping between the three of us and leveling us each with a heated glare. I winced and backed away. I knew that look anywhere and it was never anything good, especially because she was pissed.

"That's what I thought. Now we need to find this guy and figure out how to help him before those god damn dogs tear him apart like they're meant too. If he has little time, he isn't running far enough and fast enough just like that doctor," she said.

"Where do we start?" Sam asked, causing me to sigh. This was not going to be easy.
_

"What's this guy's name again?"

"George Darrow. Apparently quite the regular at Lloyd's. This house probably ain't up next on "MTV Cribs is it?" I snorted with laughter and smirked as Dean smirked back at me.

"Whatever kind of deal he made…."

"It definitely wasn't for cash," I said with another snort.

"Who knows. Maybe his place is full of babes in Princess Leia bikinis," Dean said with a click of his tongue toward me. I merely rolled my eyes and flipped him off. I wasn't in the mood to deal with his pervertive mood after the encounter I had with Sam and Athena still being pissed off with us.

"I'm just saying. This guy's got one epic bill come due. Hope he at least asked for something fun," he said as we rounded the corner to apartment 4C, where apparently this George Darrow guy lived. As Athena raised her fist to knock, I stopped her as I noticed dirt on the ground at the front of the door.

"What the hell is that?" I asked, kneeling to touch it. It looked like pepper but felt like much like dirt. Only it was certainly not dirt. As I looked up at the other three, the door opened rather quickly to reveal an older looking black man.

"Who the hell are you?" he asked, looking at all of us as I brushed my hands off on my pants and stood up.

"George Darrow?" I asked, causing his eyes to narrow.

"I'm not buying anything," he snapped, causing me to scoff and cross my arms across my chest.

"No need to bloody nasty. Apparently you went for the wrong bloody shaker along the door. Usually you go with salt to keep something evil out," I said, causing him to look at me with shock before going blank face. Oh yes. He knew we knew and he wasn't going to readily admit it.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

"We're talking about this. Tell me something. You seen that hellhound yet?" Dean asked, holding up the photo of a young George Darrow that had been in the container at the crossroads.

"Look. We want to help," Sam said.

"Please. Just five minutes," Athena added. Mr. Darrow stared at us for a few seconds before sighing and pushing his door open, gesturing us inside. Stepping inside I noticed it wasn't any better than the outside and it made me really wonder what kind of deal this guy had made with the crossroads demon. Taking a look around the room at all of the grotesque things on the walls and shelves and the paintings that sat collecting dust, I settled on he wanted to be some kind of artist. I guess the demon didn't see it fit to grant everyone their dream.

"So what is that stuff out front?" I snorted with laughter. Leave it to Sam to break the ice.

"Goofer dust," Mr. Darrow replied, causing me to raise an eyebrow at him like he was crazy. Goofer dust? In all the time I had been a hunter, I had seen and heard some crazy things, most of which were true, but never in my time had I heard of goofer dust. And judging by the looks of everyone else, neither had they.

What? You boys and girls think you know something about something but not goofer dust?" he asked, causing us all to look at one another. He snorted with disbelief and tossed Dean a brown leather poach.

"Well, we know a little about a lot of things. Just enough to make us dangerous," Dean replied as he looked between the poach and Mr. Darrow.

"I think I'll ask the question that is on everyone's bloody mind since they seem to be cutting around the bloody bush. What is it?" I asked, snatching the bag from Dean's hand and peering inside it. Like the ground outside the apartment, black dust of some sort sat in the bag. It looked like pepper but smelled and felt like the earth beneath us.

"Hoodoo. My grandma taught me. Keeps out demons," he replied.

"Demons we know," Dean said with a scoff as I tossed the bag to Athena to look at.

"Well then, keep it. Maybe it'll do you some good. Four minutes left," Mr. Darrow said as he poured himself a drink and made his way over to a recliner. Looking at each other, we knew we had to cut to the chase before he threw us out. And I was not about to stick my foot in my mouth.

"Mr. Darrow, we know you're in trouble…"

"Yeah, that you got yourself into." Dean glared at me as I smacked him in the head for his insensitivity.

"But it's not hopeless, all right?" I finished for Sam before sticking my tongue out at Dean. He merely glared at me before turning his attention back to the conversation we had going.

"Listen, I get that you guys want to help, but sometimes a person makes their bed and they just got to lie down in it. I'm the one that called the demon in the first place," he said.

"What did you do it for?" Athena asked.

"I was weak. I mean, who don't want to be great? Who don't want their life to mean something? I just…I just never thought about the price," he replied.

"Was it worth it?" Dean asked, causing me to snort in disbelief.

"You really want to ask the man that question? I'm sure you can get the answer just by bloody looking around," I replied, sarcastically.

"Both of you stop right now," Athena snapped, glaring at the both of us as he made to retort. I merely have him a glare and flipped Athena off before returning my attention back to Mr. Darrow.

"Your girl is right. Course I asked for talent. Should have gone for fame. I'm still broke…and lonely. Just now I got a pile of paintings don't nobody want. That wasn't the worst though. Demon didn't leave," he said, causing my eyebrow to rise. A crossroad demon making a deal but not leaving after the deal was made? This was highly unusual.

"What do you mean the demon didn't leave?" Athena asked, confusion speaking for all of us.

"It didn't leave. I never counted on that. After I was done, the damn thing stayed at Lloyd's for a week, just chatting and making more deals. I tried to warn folks, but who gonna listen to an old drunk?" he asked. I bloody swore as I realized the countless people who probably made deals that night, and probably week, and were being chased after by these bloody demonic dogs from hell. Most of which were going to die within the next several hours to days time.

"How many others were there?" Sam asked.

"Uh…this architect. A doctor lady…"

"Both of who have already bit the deal," I said, causing him to look at me.

"I kept up with them. They been in the papers. At least they got famous," he said as he took a drink.

"Who else was there, George? You need to think real bloody hard," I said, causing him to sigh.

"Uh…one more. Uh…nice guy, too. Hudson…Evan, I think. I don't know what he asked for. Don't matter now. We done for," he said with a sarcastic laugh as he started to drink more.

"No. No, there has to be a way," Sam said as he shook his head.

"You don't get it. I don't want a way," he said, causing my head to snap in his direction. He didn't want a way to be saved? Didn't see that one coming.

"Look, I called that thing! I brought it on myself! I brought it on them. I'm going to hell, one way or another. All I want to do is finish my last painting. Day or two, I'm done. I'm just trying to hold him off until then. Buy a little time. Now, it's time you guys went. Go help someone that wants to be helped," he said, causing me to turn around and walk out of the apartment before anyone else could have a chance to say something. Stepping out into the fresh air, I let out a breath I didn't even know I had been holding.

Taking another deep breath, I began thinking about the conversation we just had with George Darrow. He wanted to die. He didn't want to live. Probably not like the others that were trying to run and hid from the hellhounds. He was blaming himself for everything that was happening, all the people the hellhounds were going after because he had called the demon to the bar and it stayed and collected on more bloody deals. That was highly unusual for a crossroads demon to remain, but it didn't really seem all that far-fetched to begin with. In more ways than anything, I saw myself in that guy's words. I don't know how many times I had said the same thing. If it came down to it, did I really want to die? For Kiki? Athena? Sam? Dean? Was I really willing to put myself through bloody shit again to make their lives better and not bring them into my own personal hell? I mean, I had already done it once before, but was I really willing to take that second chance and honestly let myself be killed for them?

"You alright?" I snapped out of my thoughts and my eyes quickly narrowed as Sam looked at me in concern.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Too many people, too small of a bloody space," I replied as I moved toward the Impala.

"You sure?" Athena asked, causing me to stop and give her a glare.

"I'm just bloody peachy. Anything you could get out of this guy about who else might have put their picture into the bloody container at the crossroads that night? Or even week for that matter?" I asked, quickly shutting down the conversation and redirecting it to the situation at hand. I was getting irritated and really irritated fast. Sensing my mood change, Sam immediately nodded, knowing full well I was ready to blow my bloody top if they didn't back off of me.

"Evan Hudson," he said, causing me to nod.

"I remember Mr. Darrow saying something like that. Do we know what he wanted?" I asked, causing Athena to shake her head.

"We're just going to have to go to him and see if we can help him," she replied.

"Yeah. If he hasn't already been torn apart," I said, sarcastically as I shook my head.

"Well it's a start, Art. The best we can do is try and get to him before these dogs come ripping him to shreds," Sam said, causing me to shake my head.

"Alright. Let's figure out where he lives. At least if he is still living," I said as I got into the Impala, the others following closely behind. I knew it was a matter of time before these dogs came for him, but I wasn't giving much hope in finding this guy alive. Slipping my ear phones into my ear, I shut my eyes as I let out a sigh. God I hated this case.


*Dean's POV*

"So any ideas of how we're going to convince him to listen to us?"

"How about you just keep your trap shut on this one, princess. You might scare him," I said, causing me to duck as Artemis aimed for my head.

"Enough you two. God I swear you act like children more than the adults you're supposed to be. This is serious. Let's act like it." I snorted with laughter as Artemis rolled her eyes, but both of us kept our mouths shut as Athena glared at us. She had been doing that a lot lately and the more it happened, the less it fazed either one of us in our gripes against each other. We figured it was the best way to just get her off our backs.

As we made our way up the stairs of the house Evan Hudson lived in, the sound of a dog howling in the background caused Artemis to stop and turning, surveying the area for the source and direction of the howling.

"It ain't after you, princess. Besides, you're not going to be able to see it if it does show up," I said, causing her to turn and give me a glare as Sam knocked on the door.

"Not the point, Dean," she snapped. I made to retort but the door swung open before I could and I saw a middle aged man looking at the four of us in confusion.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Evan Hudson?" Sam asked, causing the guy to nod.

"You ever been to a bar called Lloyd's? Would have been about ten years ago," I said, causing him to stare at us before slamming the door shut.

"Well that's a way to start off a conversation," Artemis said, shaking her head.

"Come on! We're not demons," I snapped, causing Sam to scoff.

"Any other bright ideas?" he asked, causing me to glare at him before kicking in the door. Looking around the first floor for any sign of Evan, Artemis stormed down the hall toward the left and we quickly followed her. As we round the corner, I heard a noise come from the doorway on the left hand side, causing me to go to kick it in. However, Sam stopped me from doing so with a glare.

"Let's try subtle for the time being," Athena said as she turned the knob and pushed open the door. Inside was an office but Evan was nowhere to be found.

"Evan?" Sam asked, causing him to appear from behind a wall with a panicked look on his face.

"Please! Don't hurt me," he said as he held his hands in the air, showing us that he wasn't armed. Not that it would matter because we would be able to overpower him anyway. And four to one just wasn't a fair fight.

"We're not going to hurt you, all right? We're here to help you," Sam said, causing Artemis to snort with laughter.

"We know all about the genius deal you made," she said as Evan looked at her confused.

"What? How?" he asked.

"Doesn't matter. All that matters is we're trying to stop it," Athena said, which caused Evan to scoff.

"How do I know you're not lying?" he asked.

"Well, you don't, but you're kind of running low on options, there, buddy boy," I replied, sarcastically. He looked at the four of us before sighing and running his hands through his hair.

"C…Can you stop it?" he asked, causing Artemis to shrug.

"Don't know. We'll try but there are no guarantees," she replied as he sighed and put his head in his hands.

"I don't want to die," he said, causing me to snort with disbelief.

"Of course you don't. Not now," I asked.

"Dean, stop," Athena said as she glared at me, but I merely glared back at her and continued.

"What did you ask for anyway, Ev? Huh? Never need Viagra? Bowl a perfect game? What?" I asked. He stared at me for a second before sighing.

"My wife," he replied, causing me to laugh and shake my head.

"Right. Getting the girl. That's worth a trip to hell for," I said.

"Dean, Athena's right. Stop," Sam said as he glared at me.

"No. He's right. I made the deal. Nobody twisted my arm. That…uh…woman, or whatever she was, at the bar…she said I could have anything I wanted. I thought she was nuts at first, but…I don't know. I was…I was desperate," he said.

"Desperate? What could have made you so bloody desperate to call for a demon to make deals with?" Artemis asked as she scoffed. He shook his head and sighed.

"Julie was dying," he said, causing me to shake my head to make sure I heard right. Looking to the others, I could tell that they weren't sure if they had heard right either. He summoned the demon to…

"You did it to save her?" Artemis asked as she looked at him. I noticed the look in her eyes and I could tell the wheels in her head were turning. It was almost as if she could understand what he had done. Almost as if…

"She had cancer. They had stopped treatment. They were moving her into hospice. They kept saying " matter of days." So, yeah, I made the deal. And I'd do it again. I'd have died for her on the spot," he said as he turned to look at us. I could tell he was very much in love with his wife and that he'd do anything for her. Including dying just to save her. Looking to Artemis, I could tell that she was shaking her head and muttering obscenities under her breath. It was almost as if she could tell the feelings he was having. Almost as if she had done this herself.

And she had. For me.

"Did you ever think about her in all of this?" I snapped, causing Artemis to snap her head toward me as my eyes bore into hers before looking to Evan.

"I did this for her," he said, causing me to shake my head.

"You sure about that? I think you did it for yourself so you wouldn't have to live without her. But guess what? She going to have to live without YOU now. What if she knew how much it cost? What if she knew it cost your soul? How do you think she'd feel?" I asked.

"Dean, that's enough," Artemis snapped, causing me to glare over at her as her own eyes narrowed at me. She knew I was talking about her and what had happened to us. I could tell she was beyond pissed but I didn't care. I had finally figured out what the hell was chewing at me for over the past year or so and I could seriously put myself in this man's wife's shoes. I was beyond pissed off with Artemis and what she had done to me the last time we were together. It had taken time but it finally all made sense and the feelings that I was feeling were coming to a head.

"Evan, sit tight, all right? We're going to figure this out," Sam said, causing me to snapped out of my thoughts. I merely scoffed and headed out of the room, Artemis not far behind. However, before she could get anything out of her mouth, Athena intervened.

"Dean, you all right?" she asked, causing me to nod.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" I asked, causing Artemis to snort in disbelief. I merely glared at her.

"You sure?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. I've got an idea. You throw George's hoodoo at that hellhound. Keep it away from Evan as long as you can. I'm going to go to the crossroads and summon the demon," I replied as I tossed him the goofer dust.

"Summon…are you nuts, Dean?" Athena asked as she looked at me in shock.

"Maybe a little. But I can trap it. I can exorcise it, and I can buy us time to figure out something more permanent," I replied.

"Yeah, but how much time?" Sam asked, causing me to shrug.

"I don't know. A while. It's not easy for those suckers to claw their way back from hell and into the sunshine," I replied, causing Athena to shake her head.

"No. No way. It's too dangerous," she said.

"Not allowed to say no unless you got a better idea," I said.

"Dean, you can forget it, all right? I'm not letting you summon that demon," Sam said, causing me to scoff.

"Why not?" I asked.

"Because I don't like where your head is at right now. You've been on edge since we found that crossroads, Dean, and I think I know why," he said, causing me to scoff again and move past him.

"We don't have time for this," I snapped.

"It's because of dad. You think maybe dad made one of these deals, huh? I've been thinking it. I'm sure you've been thinking it, too," he said, causing me to stop and look at him. That hadn't crossed my head in a while, especially with everything going on, but I guess I could roll with it.

"It fits, doesn't it? I'm alive, dad's dead. Yellow-eyed demon was involved. What if he did? What if he struck a deal? My life for his soul? But that isn't exactly what I'm really pissed off about," I snapped, causing Artemis to scoff.

"No, it's not. I could tell you what it is that you're pissed off about," she said, causing me to round on her.

"You would, wouldn't you, princess? Tell me. How pissed off do you think I…"

"Hey, guys, I think I hear it! It's outside!" I looked to Sam as Evan's voice called out before turning back toward the door.

"You three just keep him alive, okay?" I asked before storming toward the Impala. As I started the car, the passenger door opened and Artemis slid inside.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I asked, causing her to give me a glare.

"Did you really think I would let you do this on your own?" she asked, causing me to return the glare.

"Go back inside. I don't need you helping me on this," I snapped.

"Make me," she said, getting into my face. Her icy blue-green eyes bore into mine in challenge and I narrowed my eyes as I knew she wasn't going anywhere. Scowling, I slammed on the gas and we tore from the Hudson home toward the crossroads.

"Thought so. Any bright ideas for how to get Evan out of this?" she asked as she settled into the passenger seat, turning her eyes toward the streets as we flew through them.

"I've got a few. Tell me. What ideas did you have getting away from the reaper?" I asked, causing her to snap her head toward me and her eyes to narrow. Got her.

"So that's what this whole thing is about. Me sacrificing for you to save your life," she said, causing me to laugh bitterly.

"Well you sure know how to nail things on the head, don't you, princess?" I asked with sarcasm.

"I did what I had to in order to save your life from that curse. I couldn't live with myself if something were to happen to you," she snapped, causing me to shake my head with a scoff.

"Really now? Did you happen to think about what it would do to Sam? Kiki? Athena?" I asked.

"They didn't make me fall in love! You did!" she yelled as I slammed on the breaks and got out of the Impala. We had reached our destination at the crossroads but I didn't care. I was too pissed off at this point to care.

"I did what I had to do in order to save you. I wasn't going to allow my past to ruin your life," she snapped as she shoved me backwards.

"You did what you had to do without thinking about anyone else in your life. You were being selfish. Just like Evan Hudson. Not thinking about the consequences or what it was going to do to anyone else that cared for you," I snapped, blocking the blow she aimed at my head. What she got out of nailing people in the head I would never know.

"I did what I had to do to save everyone involved. I didn't ask for everything to fall the way it did. I never asked to fall in love with you nor did I ever ask you to walk away. I never asked for you to help me and I most certainly never asked you to bloody love me back. George Darrow doesn't care if he dies because he feels this is his fault. I get it. Evan Hudson made the deal with the demon for his wife and he would do it again if he had the chance. He did it for HER. I made the deal with the reaper for YOU. As much as I hate you right now, as much as I can't decide what the bloody hell to do with you, I would do everything again. I would sacrifice my life to save YOU," she snapped, slamming her foot against my chest. I let out a grunt at the pain, but twisted her body and slammed her against the ground as she made to kick me again.

"You think YOU are the only one that should be making those choices? These things shouldn't be just yours to make," I snapped as I forced her to look at me. I could see emotion after emotion swirling in those eyes, tears threatening but I knew she wouldn't let them fall.

"I made that choice because that's what people do for love. I made that choice because I loved you," she snapped as she shoved me away from her and stood up. I stared at her before snorting with laughter and made my way toward the middle of the crossroads.

"If that's what you call love, you have a shitty way of showing it," I said over my shoulder as I began digging for the box within the middle of the crossroads. I didn't even need to look at her to see the anger, sadness, confusion and other emotions rolling off of her. As much as I didn't want to admit it, she was right. She was right about what had transpired that fateful day; however, I was never going to admit that she was right. Where we were at, I just didn't know how to figure it out. I don't know if I would ever figure her out. Or us for that matter.

"So, what brings a guy like you to a place like this?" I whirled around and stared at a sweet, petite woman with a smile so sinister it would be hard to think she was anything but sweet. Artemis, I noticed, was nowhere to be found.

"You called me?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at my staring.

"I'm just glad it worked," I said with a shrug.

"First time?" she asked with a smirk, causing me to snort with laughter.

"You could say that," I said.

"Oh, come on, now. Don't sell yourself short. I know all about you, Dean Winchester," she said as her eyes turned red. Well this was new for the demons.

"So you know who I am," I said as I quickly covered my facial expression.

"I get the newsletter," she said with a soft laugh.

"Well, don't keep me in suspense. What have you heard?" I asked as I made my way toward her.

"Well, I heard you were handsome. Looking at you, you're just edible. So, what can I do for you, Dean?" she asked as she circled me.

"Maybe we should do this in my car. Nice and private," I replied as I gave her a smirk.

"Sounds good to me," she said, turning and leading the way toward the Impala. Looking around, I made a sweep of the area but I could find not one trace of Artemis anywhere. Where she had gone, and before this demon bitch had shown up, was beyond me. I just hoped she knew what she was doing.

"Wait. Now is not the time for that," I thought as I shook my head clear of any thought or concern I might have for Artemis.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I snapped out of my thoughts and looked to the demon as she looked at me with a smirk.

"I was hoping we could strike a deal," I replied, causing her to smile.

"That's what I do," she said, a cocky arrogance to her.

"I want Evan Hudson released from his contract," I said, causing her to laugh and shake her head.

"So sorry, darling. That's not negotiable," she said as she looked at me.

"I'll make it worth your while," I said.

"Oh really? What are you offering?" she asked with a smirk.

"Me," I replied, causing her to drop the smirk and look at me in shock. While I clearly hadn't through this all the way out, I wasn't going to back down. I had not other ideas to go off of anyways.

"Well, well, well. You'd sacrifice your life for someone else's. Like father, like son," she said, causing me to snort with laughter. Now was not the time for this bitch to be stirring the pot. My father's death had been over almost a year and a half ago and she just wanted to stir the pot.

"You did know about your dad's deal, right? His life for yours. Or maybe your girlfriend's deal with the reaper? Her life for yours too," she said, a smirk growing on her face as I tried to keep my temper in check. My feelings for Artemis were already way out of whack and I didn't need this psycho twisting it even more.

"Oh, I didn't make either deal myself, although Artemis' was the highlight of our days for days on end. Especially being the grandchild of very powerful demons. But your daddy's was even more exciting. Boy, I wish I had made that deal," she said, the smirk widening as she could tell she had hit a nerve.

"After you," I said, my voice hard as stone as I opened the passenger door to the Impala.

"Such a gentleman," she said, light laughter in her voice that died as she stopped from getting in the car. Glancing down where she was looking, a pissed off look growing on her face, I noticed white paint underneath the car.

"A devil's trap? You've got to be kidding me," she said, her eyes snapping angrily toward me.

"Way to make her pissed off at me, Artemis," I thought, knowing full well at that point Artemis had been a busy little bee as I made talk with this demon bitch. Whatever Artemis had up her sleeve had better be good because I didn't want to die at this exact moment.

"You stupid, stupid…I should rip you limb from limb," she snapped, causing me to smirk.

"Take your best shot," I said.

"No, I don't think so. I'm not going to put you out of you misery," she said.

"Yeah? Why not?" I asked as she scoffed.

"Because your misery is the whole point. It's too much fun to watch. Knowing how your daddy died for you. How he sold his soul. Knowing how your girlfriend jerked you around for months before finally revealing she made a deal to take her life instead of yours. All because she loved you. Although, surprisingly she's still standing. I mean, that's got to hurt. Knowing she's still standing on this earth ready to jump at any moment to die for you. For those around you. It's got to hurt knowing all of this that you wake up and the first thing that you think about is "I can't do this anymore." You're all lit up with pain. I mean, both of these people you loved so much. They both have to hurt so much losing them. One you even hid behind until they disappeared right out of your reach for a while. And to think it's all your fault," she said with a chuckle, causing me to grit my teeth as the laughter rang through my ears. I really wanted to strangle this bitch. My father hadn't been brought up in almost a year until recently when these cases started grinding more toward death and coming back to life. It was true that everything had been locked away because of Artemis but I was really starting to hate this bitch.

"You blew it, Dean. I could have given you what you wanted," she said.

"And what do I need?" I asked.

"You father. I could have brought him back. Or your girlfriend. I could have given you anything you needed to win her back over or for her to fall back in love with you. It would have been your pick. But your loss. See ya, Dean. I wish you a nice, long life," she replied, a smirk dancing across her face as she turned and started walking away. I stared at her as everything she said started to sink in. Could she be right?

"Hold on," I said, causing the demon bitch to stop walking and turn to look at me. I stepped underneath the water tower to get a better look at her as she slowly started walking back toward me.

"You're lucky I've got a soft spot for lost puppies and long faces. I just can't leave you like this. Besides, you didn't call me here to bargain for Evan. Not really," she said as that damn smirk danced across her face like it was nothing.

"Can you do what you say you can do? Anything that I ask for?" I asked. I knew where this was leading but I was curious. Could it really be worth everything?

"Of course I can. If you're talking about your dad, I can bring him back just the way he was. He would live a long, natural life like he was meant to. If you're talking about Artemis, well, that would be up to you on the life that you choose with her. But I'm sure it would be full of love and children. That's a promise," she replied.

"What about me?" I asked.

"I could give you ten years. Ten long, good years with either of them. That's a lifetime. The family could be together again. Or you could have your own family. Little Dean Junior making his daddy so proud. It's your choice. You're supposed to be dead either way you look at the situations, so we'll just put things back in their natural order, and you get ten extra years on top. That's a bonus," she said, causing me to look at her and scoff slightly as I took in everything she said. She was hitting some nerves and while I hated hearing everything that was spewing out of her mouth, I couldn't help but wonder. Was what she was saying really worth everything?

"Do you think you could throw in a set of steak knives with your offer there?" My head snapped up as Artemis leaned against the other side of the water tower, an irritated look crossing her face. The demon bitch looked between me and Artemis and scoffed.

"Artemis Summers, how nice of you to join us. Come to make a deal yourself? Or are you here to make smartass jokes to save your boyfriend from sealing such a deal?" she said as she slowly started toward her. Artemis made no motion to move and as I made to step forward to stop the demon bitch, she stopped and tilted her head upwards and scoffed. Looking up, I noticed a large devil's trap, courtesy of none other than Artemis herself.

"Dean…" I stepped out from underneath the water tower as the demon bitch looked to me in accusation.

"Don't be blaming him for you now being bloody trapped. By a demon spawn nonetheless," Artemis said as she circled the water tower until she was next to me.

"Let me out now," she snapped, causing me to look over at Artemis. I really didn't have much of a plan but I'm sure that this was going to be much easier getting my way than before.

"What do you say, Art? Should we let her go?" I asked, causing Artemis to snort.

"I'm right on it," she replied with sarcasm.

"Let me out now," the demon bitch snapped again, causing me to chuckle as I started circling the water tower.

"Sure. We just got to make a little deal here first. You call off your hellhound and let Evan go. Then I'll let you go," I said, causing her to chuckle just slightly.

"I can't break a binding contract," she said, causing Artemis to scoff as she hopped up onto the hood of the Impala and looked over at me.

"And by "can't," she means she "doesn't want to." Sounds like she doesn't want to be let go. Too bad. It would be the easiest deal you could make with the two of us," Artemis said as her eyes leveled to the demon. If I didn't know any better, she was starting to scare me a little bit with how easy she was handling all of this, especially because she had been on the receiving end of a deal. But I shook my head to clear it as I looked to the demon.

"Last chance. Evan and his wife get to live to a ripe old age. Going…going…"

"Let's talk about this," the demon bitch said, causing Artemis to snort with laughter as she hopped off the Impala and pulled a book out of the back of her jeans. I snorted with laughter as well as I got a glance at what she had in her hand. She had planned an exorcism. Sneaky bitch she was.

"Gone," she said with a smirk as she cracked open the book.

"What are you doing?" the demon asked, slight panic rising in her voice as Artemis began to turn some of the pages.

"By the looks of it, Art is looking to send you on a little trip. Way down south," I replied.

"Look! Forget Evan. Think of your dad. And your girlfriend," she said, causing Artemis to look across at me as I looked to the demon and then to her. This demon bitch was really messing with my head and the flicker of emotion flashing through Artemis' eyes were just screwing with it even more. As quick as it was to be there, it was gone and her eyes had narrowed into slits, causing me to frown before giving her a nod.

"I don't take kindly to being called a possession. Especially Dean's," Artemis said as she began reciting Latin. I stepped to the edge of the circle as the demon began to twitch. She was trying to contain her cool but I could tell that she was getting really pissed off and the further Artemis went into the ritual, the more violent I could see her becoming. As Artemis came close to finishing, I watched as the demon gave a screech.

"Release!" she screamed before lunging forward and yanking me into a hard kiss.

"What the hell was that for?" I asked, jerking back and looking at her in bewilderment at what had just taken place.

"Sealing the deal," she replied, causing me to shudder just slightly.

"I usually like to be warned before I'm violated with demon tongue," I said as she gave me a glare.

"Evan Hudson is free. He and his wife will live long lives," she said.

"How do we know you're not lying?" Artemis asked, causing the demon bitch to scoff.

"My word is my bond," she replied.

"Oh really?" I asked sarcastically.

"It is when I make a deal. It's the rules. You got what you wanted. Now let me go," she replied with a glare, causing me to look over at Artemis as she swung the beads back and forth in her hands. I could tell that wheels were turning in her head and I definitely was sure I was not going to like what she had in store, if anything from the glare she was giving me.

"You're going to double-cross me? Funny how I'm the trustworthy one compared to the two of you. You know, you renege, send me to hell, sooner or later I'm going to climb out and skinning Evan Hudson will be the first thing that I do," she said with a sneer. I looked to Artemis again for what she wanted to do, but all she gave me was a shrug. I glanced to the demon bitch again, shrugged and broke a piece of the devil's trap above her, causing her to exhale the breath she had been holding as she exited from beneath the water tower.

"I got to tell you. You would have never pulled that stunt if you knew," she said as she turned to look at me.

"He didn't pull the stunt. I did. And I'm not afraid of you," Artemis said as she stood in front of me with her arms crossed.

"Oh I'm not afraid of you either sweetheart. But if only you knew where his father is. He should have made that deal. Or the deal with you. You have a whole other thing coming to you that you can't even begin to imagine," she said as she glanced at us with a smirk.

"Shut your bloody mouth," Artemis snapped, the smirk on the demon's face growing.

"See, people talk about hell, but it's just a word. If you could just see…"

"How about if I send you back there?" I asked as I quickly moved Artemis behind me and went to grab that demon bitch by the throat to keep her from talking anymore. But before I could even grab her, she tilted back her head and let out a roar, black smoke pouring from her mouth at rapid speed. The woman who housed the demon's soul fell forward and jumped in fright as she took in the two of us.

"What? How did I get here?" she asked as she frantically looked around. Looking back to Artemis, I saw her looking at me.

"What?" I asked, causing her to shake her head.

"Nothing. Let's get this woman back to where she belongs and back to Sam and Athena. Hopefully they were able to keep Evan Hudson alive long enough to break that deal," she replied, moving toward the woman to make sure she was alright. Watching her go, I had to shake my head at what just really happened. Had I really offered up myself? Was I nuts? Was I slowly losing my mind? What had Artemis and I just done?


"Demons lie all the time, right? Maybe she was lying." I scoffed and glared at Sam through the rearview mirror where he and Athena were stretched out, ready to pass out after today's case. As much as it was a good case saving someone's neck, it was nowhere near bringing us closer to finding Kiki. Glancing over to Artemis in the passenger seat, she was staring out the window with an emotionless expression. I could tell her mind was racing but I couldn't tell whether she was pissed off or upset. Either way, it didn't really look good from my viewpoint.

"Come on. Is that really what you think? How could he do it?" I asked as I put my eyes back on the road. The topic of my dad hadn't really been talked about in over a year until some of these recent cases, but it was hitting a sore spot as it kept coming up.

"He did it for you," Athena replied.

"Exactly. How am I supposed to live with that? You know, the thought of him, wherever he is right now…I mean, he spent his whole life chasing that yellow-eyed son of a bitch. He should have gone out fighting. That was supposed to be his legacy, you know? Not bargaining with the damn thing. Not this," I said, shaking my head.

"How many people do you think dad saved total?" Sam asked, causing me to shake my head again.

"That's not the point, Sam," I said.

"Evan Hudson is safe because of what dad taught us. That's his legacy, Dean. Now, we're still here, man, over a year later. So we got to keep going. For him. Just as we have been. For Kiki. Kiki isn't going to find herself," he said. I merely just looked at him.

"When you were trapping that demon, it was all a trick, right? You never considered actually making that deal, right?" he asked, causing me to look at Artemis through my peripheral vision before turning up the music. I didn't want to talk about this anymore. Sam seemed to get the point and frowned; however, he backed off and settled into his seat as we flew down the highway.

As I settled into my seat, the music blasting through me, I nearly jumped out of my skin as I felt a warm hand on my thigh. Glancing to my right, Artemis was now sitting in the middle of the front seat with her eyes staring straight forward and her left hand on my thigh, tapping her fingers to the beat of the music. No words needed to be exchanged because the silence said it all. This whole case didn't have anything to do with my feelings for my father. Yeah it had been a thought and something that ate away at me since his death; however, there was always something stronger on my mind.

Artemis.

Glancing back at her, she seemed away of my look and glanced back at me. Her eyes said everything that I needed to know. Tonight's actions had nothing to do with my father. I knew the demon bitch was trying to bait me because it was a sore subject for me; however, tonight had everything to do with this girl that sat next to me. Everything. I couldn't see how she could sacrifice herself for anybody, but yet, I could. Almost without thinking, I could have made a deal to save Evan Hudson. To save my father.

To have a life with Artemis.

As much as I didn't want to admit it, everything was beginning to fall apart. But yet, it seemed to stay together. Laying my hand across hers, I gave it a squeeze and looked at her. She gave me a small smile before turning her eyes back to the road ahead of us.

As much as I hated to admit it, I couldn't live without her. Deal or no deal. I was falling back in love with Artemis.


*Author's Note*

So while I am thrilled to have started writing this story again, I'm not sure if I want to be happy about the way this chapter went. Like I said, I didn't really care for this episode, but I did want to focus in on Artemis and Dean's relationship and where I wanted them to. Also I wanted to focus a little bit on Artemis and Sam's relationship and how things are heating up between the two with the connection of her family to Kiki's kidnapping. I'm actually excited to continue writing the next several chapters for this. As always, positive reviews and constructive criticism are always welcome! I'm so happy to be back!