Sunday, when I was meant to be putting the final touches to this chapter I was chanel surfing. Until I heard two very familiar voices. Turns out they've started showing Supernatural on tv again, so I got a little distracted. We've started season 3 now, which means only 2 or 3 more years until we make it to season 5, yeah I know. But I've finished it now, so enjoy!
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'Oh come on, only for a few hours, and we won't leave the yard, I promise' The Winchesters had been at Bobby's for three days now and Sam found himself once again begging his family to be allowed off the sofa he had been inhabiting for the last few days. Right now he was trying to get his brother to agree to him taking James out to play in the yard whilst Dean worked on a car with Bobby and their father was out researching something.
He needed to get out of the house for a while, though not as antsy as his brother, Sam hated being stuck inside the house for a length of time with a passion as well.
'James will look after me, so there's no need to worry' Sam tried, Dean quirked his eyebrows. The boy was smart, getting James involved in this. He knew as well as Dean himself did that there was nothing he could deny the boy, the soft spot for him even bigger than the one for his little brother.
As if on cue James turned his pleading eyes on his father. He liked the idea of getting to look after his uncle, and playing with him in the yard. Denying him this would make the boy feel like his father didn't trust him and that was the last thing Dean wanted to happen. So sure enough he found himself agreeing to the plan.
'On one condition though, and that's that you'll stay where we I can see you, don't go running off. Look after each other, don't do anything stupid. And please Sam, take it easy, you're still not completely up to par so no wild games or anything.' Dean lectured the two youngest Winchesters.
'That's three conditions actually Dean' Sam shot back, letting it follow immediately by a 'I promise Dean' when he saw his older brother's face. James nodded obediently before getting up and grabbing Sam by his uninjured hand, pulling him towards the yard. Dean watched them go with a smile on his face, glad that his brother looked much better than he had a couple of days before. He waited a few minutes before he followed them outside to join Bobby.
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Bobby had gone through the shed and dug up a few of the toys Sam and Dean had used when they were little. He had kept them all that time, which Sam didn't really understand, but it came in handy now because Dean hadn't had the time, or the money, to provide a lot of toys for his son.
Sam was holding the football, feeling his older brother's eyes burning in his back, he thought back of the times they had used it together, before he knew the truth about what their father did, before he got dragged into a world he didn't like at all.
A sound somewhere to the right of him pulled him from his trip down memory lane. His head snapping into the direction the sound had come from he surveyed the area. He could've sworn he heard something, but there was nothing there. Sam tried to convince himself it was the recent attack that, having him on edge, made him hear things that weren't really there.
'UNCA SAM, COME ON' James was getting impatient, waving his arms wildly at his uncle in an attempt to get him to throw the ball to him. Sam grinned, forgetting about his worries for a second, and tossed him the ball, which bounced of the hands of the little boy who was desperately trying to catch it and disappeared somewhere behind a car. Without a second though James wondered after the ball, disappearing from sight as well.
'James!' Sam hissed, willing the boy to come back, but getting no response. Sam glanced over his shoulder at his brother, who didn't seem to be paying much attention to them at that very moment, before going after his nephew.
Rounding the corner, Sam found nothing 'James, where are you?' He spoke softly, hoping not to attract Dean's attention because he knew this was going to be the last time in a very long time, that he was being allowed outside to play with his nephew if Dean knew he had let him out of his sight. When he still didn't receive any reaction, and didn't spot the tiny boy anywhere he crept onwards, his senses on full alert. The sound he had heard earlier heightening his raising panic.
'James, come on, this is no time to play hide and seek. I promise if you come now we can play any game you want to' He called out softly. He would search for just one more minute before he would call Dean and Bobby in to help. He tried to convince himself that that wouldn't hurt, but he knew deep down that if something was seriously wrong one minute could be the difference between James coming back to them safely or something terrible happening to the little boy.
He cursed softly when the stab wound in his side gave him a hard time, he pressed his hand against the injury, trying to relieve the pressure, but didn't stop moving.
A soft cry made him stop and turn around, listening out for a repetition of the sound and at the same time trying to determine where it had come from. Quietly Sam made his way in the direction he decided would lead him to the source of the cry. He quickened his pace when he found James sitting on his knees, hands covering his face and his body shuddering with sobs.
'James! What's wrong?' He knelt down beside the boy, looking him over for injuries, thinking scraped knees or hands were the cause of the tears.
Sam had expected the sobbing to quiet down a little now that he was here, but instead it only got louder.
'You hurt anywhere?' Maybe yes or no questions would be answered. Without taking his hands from his face James shook his head. That and the fact he couldn't find any injury on his body convinced Sam that something else was going on.
'You scared?' This time James nodded.
'Were you lost?' Another nod 'Well you don't have to be afraid anymore, I'm here now. I'll take you home, to your daddy. Okay?' Sam didn't wait for an answer, lifted the toddler in his arms, forgetting about his own injuries for a while and started back towards the house.
'I think your grandfather might be home by now as well' Sam tried to make some conversation to make James feel a little more comfortable. James' eyes widened at the mention of his grandfather and started squirming to get out of his uncle's arms.
'No!' He practically yelled, and when he, because of Sam's broken hand, succeeded in his fight for freedom, he took off again.
'James!' For a second Sam stood frozen, his brain processing what just happened, before sighing loudly and hurrying after the three year old.
The boy was much faster than his little legs suggested, but Sam didn't stop to appreciate that. Right now he was just cursing the boy for taking them further and further away from the house. Surely Dean and Bobby had realized something was wrong by now and that meant there was no way Dean would let him out of his sight any time soon.
Finally he caught up with his nephew, scooping him up he was about to scold the boy for his rash actions when a crashing noise from behind them startled the pair. If it hadn't been followed by footsteps coming their way Sam would've been willing to believe it was nothing. As it was it seemed like they were in danger. If it had been Bobby or Dean or even his father, they would've called out to them, letting him know who was coming, with the way they were trained warnings like that were necessary in order not to get killed by friendly fire. Sam immediately went into protection mode, holding James close to his chest and breaking off into a run. The footsteps behind him sped up as well. Knowing that he wasn't going to be able to cover this one up anyway he screamed for his older brother at the top of his lungs and changed direction to get whoever it was that was following them off their trail.
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'Dean, they're not going to vanish if you look away' Dean glared at Bobby, who just grinned and turned his attention back to the car they were both working on. Dean looked up at his brother and son one more time before doing the same thing.
He couldn't stop himself from looking up a few minutes later to check on the two boys. But this time when he did, there was nobody there. He straightened up and looked again, taking a few steps in the direction he had last seen them.
'Sam? James?' He called when he didn't see them. Bobby looked up from what he was doing as well.
'Come on Dean, they probably just went to play hide and seek or something, or the ball got away and they've gone to fetch it'
'They promised me they would stay where I can see them, Sam knows better than to wander off just like that' Dean felt the panic in his chest rise, thinking about the recent events. He knew he shouldn't have let the two of them alone, even in the yard.
'Oh come on Dean, Sam's 15 years old, cut the boy some slack. You've been watching him like a hawk for the last three days, add to that the fact he hasn't been allowed outside and you and I both know we'd be going stir crazy' Bobby stuck up for Sam.
'That can be, but that doesn't mean he can take off with my three year old son. Especially not after what happened a few days ago' Dean didn't even want to think about any other possibilities of what could have happened, he was sure they had wandered off, followed a butterfly or something, like Sammy used to do when he was little, and didn't even think about what it would do to his nerves. After all, Sam's the dreamer type, it would fit right into his alley.
'Dean, calm down, would ya? I'm sure…' Bobby didn't get to finish his sentence, because at that moment Sam's voice sounded out.
'DEAN!' The older hunters sprung into action, going after the two youngest members or the family.
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Sam knew his way around the yard, he had played here often enough with his brother when they were much younger. Though everything had looked much bigger and impressive back then, not much had changed. So he wasn't going to get lost, but he didn't want to lead the…person chasing them, definitely not a ghost or a monster, there wouldn't be any footsteps to be heard if it was, straight to the house. He still heard him behind him, and he wasn't really getting further away either. He just hoped his brother and Bobby would come to his aide quickly so he could get James to safety.
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'Sam, where are you?!' Dean yelled once more.
'Over here!' Came the reply after a short while. Sam seemed pretty close by and sure enough within a minute he bumped into his younger brother who was carrying his son. His eyes were wide and he was continuously looking over his shoulder.
'Thank god Dean' He whispered, trusting James into Dean's arms before he had a chance to react. 'We gotta go, trust me' Was all Sam said before sprinting past him. Dean stood still a little longer, looking over at the crying boy in his arms, wondering for the second time in about a week what the hell had happened and how it could have happened on his watch.
'Dean' Sam hissed, he had stopped running and stood waiting for his brother and nephew, Bobby by his side, looking just as confused as Dean felt. But when he heard the footsteps, first coming closer and then stopping he put his arms protectively around his three year old, and followed after Sam and Bobby back to the house. They could deal with whoever was out there once they got Sam and James somewhere safe.
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'What the hell happened Sam?' They were barely inside, Bobby was still busy blocking the door and he hadn't even laid out the saltlines, but Dean couldn't wait any longer.
'We were just tossing a ball and James dropped it and went after it and before I knew it he was gone. And there was someone there, and I don't know how that was, but when I found James he was crying and he calmed down a little but then all of a sudden he just flipped and took off again'
'Breathe Sam' Dean interrupted his brother. Sam looked up at him and Dean recognized the fear in his eyes. He was about to cry, but tried to put on a brave face for the older hunters and his nephew.
'Did you see the guy, have any idea who it could have been?' Dean pressed for information, he knew that if he wanted to get anything out of his brother now would be the time. If he gave the adrenaline the time to completely leave his body, there was no way to know if Sam would remember anything, his mind blocking the experience one again.
Sam shook his head barely noticeable.
Bobby put the curtains he had been holding up while looking for any potential danger, back down and turned from the window.
'Dean, let's just wait for yer daddy to come back before we try to figure this one out, Sammy, let's get you upstairs and in bed, okay? I think whoever it was, he's gone now and probably won't be coming back for a while.' The oldest hunter spoke up, grabbing Sam by the elbow, not giving him a chance to reply, and started stirring him upstairs.
'Yeah well, just to be sure you are not going anywhere alone until we find out who's doing this. And when we do, I swear I'm going to kill the bastard' Dean grumbled, ignored the look Bobby was throwing him and followed the pair up the stairs. He was still holding James, who had laid his head down on his father's shoulder and the deep breathing told Dean he had fallen asleep. Putting James down in the bed with Sam, his little brother immediately slipping his arm around the toddler.
'You go to sleep now, me and Bobby will keep you guys safe' Dean whispered in Sam's ear, gently wiping the hair from his eyes. Sam mumbled something Dean didn't understand, closed his eyes and soon enough his breaths evened out.
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So much for chapter 7. There's a reason I keep putting James and Sam in these situations, you'll find out soon enough. Or well, that's the plan. I'd like to thank each and every single one of you who has read this chapter and especially the people who have reviewed, favorited or put it on alert. You guys are awesome!