Us Against the World

By January Lily


The devil's as he's talking with those angel's eyes.


Chapter 9: Babe I'm Gonna Leave You

Sam and Elle Winchester sat outside in the Impala, listening to music that wasn't Dean's favorite while their older brother was inside a bar hustling some guys at pool for money—you know, an honest living. Sam changed the station until Green Day's Boulevard of Broken Dreams started playing and the younger Winchester siblings began singing along to it quietly. By the end of the song, both Sam and Elle had found their jam and were singing at the top of their lungs. When the song finished, the siblings looked to each other and started laughing. They hadn't had a moment like that in a while—a moment shared only between the two of them. Elle leaned forward, resting her arms on the front seat while Sam turned toward his little sister before he ruffled her hair to which she responded by crinkling her nose at him.

"Green Day, really?" Sam asked.

"Hell yes, but Dean thinks they sold out," Elle responded.

"Dean just listens to Dad's music because—" Sam started, stopping short of finishing the sentence.

"It's his way to connect to him—yeah, I get that much. I tried that, but it doesn't really work for me."

"Dad's a stubborn son-of-a-bitch."

"You sounded like Dean for a minute there."

"Is that supposed to be a compliment or an insult?"

"Neither—just an observation that he's starting to rub off on you again."

"You're one to be talking."

Elle smiled and shook her head at her brother—this was the probably most light-hearted of a conversation that the siblings had in a while. She remembered what she missed about Sam—he was unfailingly kind—not to mention that he didn't tease her to death like Dean did. Granted, that was the nature of her relationship with Dean, while Sam and Elle would find something besides each other to make fun of together. Elle sighed before she plopped back on her pillow in the backseat. Sam pulled out his Palm Pilot and began playing a game on it. After a few minutes of silence, Sam turned back to his sister once more.

"How much do you think he's raking in?" Sam asked.

"Probably enough to pay for some better company—if you know what I mean," Elle snickered.

"Do you remember that one in time in Reno—"

"That wasn't a memory I needed seared back in my brain, you loser."

"Your face was priceless."

"Oh back in the days when I was young and naïve."

"Dean why are you hurting her? I can't believe you actually said that."

"Shut up! In my defense, nobody explained the concept to me."

Elle couldn't help but blush—remembering her thirteen year old dorky-self walking in on Dean when he was uh—busy. Speaking of her oldest brother, he walked out of a bar holding a giant wad of cash, waving it in the air like a goofball. Sam quickly changed the music back to something Dean would listen to. Dean grinned as he slipped into the driver's seat of the Impala before he tossed the money into Sam's lap. Elle gave Sam a look—which he somehow knew if Dean had made enough for a special someone—to which Sammy responded by nodding his head with a laugh. Dean looked to them confused before Sam, tried to cover.

"You know, we could get day jobs once in a while," Sam suggested.

"Hunting's our day job," Dean responded. "And the pay is crap.

"Besides, I don't think Dean could actually keep a job if he tried," Elle retorted.

"And you think you could do better?"

"Yes—but I suppose you might be able to handle asking if they wanted fries with that—Ding! Fries are done! Ding! Fries are done!"

"Would you like an apple pie with that?" Sam continued.

"I don't even want to know," Dean said shaking his head.

"Then I suppose you don't want to hear about the new gig Sam found?" Elle asked.

"Where is it?"

"Oasis Plains, Oklahoma—not far from here. A gas company employee, Dustin Burwash, supposedly died from Creutzfeldt-Jakob," Sam said.

"Bless you," Elle teased.

"Huh?" Dean asked in confusion.

"Human mad cow disease," Sam offered.

"Mad cow. Wasn't that on Oprah?"

"You watch Oprah?"

With an embarrassed look on his face, Dean fumbled to come up with anything coherent to say.

"And the truth comes out," Elle smirked. "We should get him tickets to her show."

"Screw you, Elle," Dean hissed. "So anyway, this guy eats a bad burger—and how is this our kind of thing?"

"Apparently, Oprah failed him."

"I'd shut up now if I were you. Unless you wanna walk to the new gig. Sammy, explain."

"Mad cow disease causes massive brain degeneration. It takes months, even years, for the damage to appear. But this guy, Dustin? Sounds like his brain disintegrated in about an hour. Maybe less," Sam explained.

"Yeah—that's weird."

"Yeah—now, it could be the disease. Or it could be something much nastier. I think we should check it out."

"All right, Oklahoma—man, work, work, work. No time to spend my money."

Sam and Elle both giggled, thinking of their earlier conversation to which Dean looked at them both before shaking his head. Dean turned on the tunes—playing some Led Zeppelin. With a sigh, Elle reached for her sketchbook once more and turned to the page with the lake and the wings. She still didn't have a clue what it meant. Knowing that she there wasn't much rest for the wicked—Elle decided to get some sleep while she still could. She kicked her shoes and socks off—absently rubbing at the burned ring scar around her ankle with her hand that was still in its soft cast before she picked up Tigger and cuddled close to him before drifting off to sleep.

Elle opened her eyes slowly and looked up at the night's sky. She did a double take. The night's sky? Last thing she knew, she had been sleeping in the back of the Impala with her brothers Sam and Dean as they headed to Oasis Plains, Oklahoma to check out a lead. By her surroundings, she knew that she wasn't in Oklahoma. Upon further examination, she realized that she was in the very place she came to in her dreams: a lake in the middle of the woods with the night's sky shining overhead and being reflected off the water. Elle gasped. How the hell had she gotten here? Was this some stupid prank of Dean's? She groaned before she stood to her feet—which were noticeably shoeless. They were quite bare—which caused Elle to cringe at the feeling of sand beneath her toes. She absolutely hated that feeling. She then took a few steps—but wasn't quite sure where to go in the dark.

"Dean, this isn't funny," Elle shouted.

There was no response. Not even a cricket chirped or a mosquito buzzed. Strange—quite strange.

"Sam—was this your idea? I swear I'm going to kill you two."

Elle pulled out her cellphone to give her a bit more light to see where she was going. She took a few steps before she tripped over a solid lump—causing her to fall to the ground. Only she fell on top of the lump which groaned beneath her. Elle screamed at the thought of company and quickly crawled off whatever it was before she used the light from her phone to examine it. She gasped at what she saw—probably the last thing she had been expecting: her father. This had to be a dream, right? But that fall had felt real—and so had he when she had tripped. She quickly deduced that it could be a shapeshifter; so she touched his skin with the silver bracelet on her wrist—nothing. After a few more ideas—she knew that it either had to be John Winchester or his doppelganger that was somehow immune to silver.

She wasn't sure what to do in this situation. Normally most people would be excited at the prospect of seeing their father—but she wasn't exactly sure how she felt about it. She longed so much for her father's love—approval—hell, even a gesture that he at least cared for her more than the drunk down the road. Then again—she was also pretty pissed at him for everything he had put her through. She could just leave him here—passed out. It was then that she spotted her bag. She reached for it and pulled out a bottle the bottle of water she had placed in it. She unscrewed the cap before she stood directly above John's face and dumped the water on him. He spluttered and flailed about, knocking Elle back to the ground. He then growled an obscenity at her before he reached for the knife in his boot and brought it to his daughter's throat.

"Really? This is how you react when you see your only daughter again? You're going to kill me? Why am I not surprised," Elle muttered with the knife pressed against her throat.

"You're not my daughter," John hissed. "You're a—"

"Shifter? Then I wouldn't be able to wear my silver bracelet. Try again."

"Then you're using the girl as a meat suit."

"There's holy water in my bag—might as well get the salt too. Just like you taught me. Well more—just like Dean taught me, but you taught him—so in a way I suppose you could claim it."

John reached for Elle's bag and pulled out the holy water and the salt. He doused the whole bottle of water on her before dumping some salt on her wet hair. What an ass, Elle thought as she spluttered to get the her salty, wet hair out of her mouth. Both John and Elle stood up—hesitantly eyeing each other for a moment before she angrily attempted to get some of the salt out of her hair—knowing that it was a losing battle she was fighting.

"Happy, Father?" Elle growled.

"Campbell?" John questioned.

"Last time I checked."

"What the hell did you do?"

"Me? I was about to ask you that very question."

"I mean—I always knew you were desperate, but being this desperate is just pathetic."

"And why exactly are you implying?"

"You made a deal with a Crossroad's demon, didn't you?"

"First of all, I'm not that stupid to make a deal to see you. Second of all, I didn't get a witch to do anything either. So however the hell we ended up here—it wasn't me. Get a new suspect. Maybe you messed something up. Wouldn't be the first time."

"Try saying that to my face, girl."

"I believe I just did."

"You ungrateful girl—after everything I've done for you and this is how you—" John growled.

John raised his hand to strike Elle; but the blow to her face never came. Instead they both went flying through the air—just like the tall trees in the intense wind. Wait, trees were flying? The lights in the lone cabin across the lake exploded and the house went dark. A voice that didn't belong to John or Elle resounded through the night's sky telling them to cease. Elle looked to her father with fear easily read on her face—and she was surprised to see the same emotion on his face. Although, a strange and foreign emotion ran through her as her heart fluttered at the sound of the voice—as if her heart knew something that her head didn't. Elle held her chest for a moment as John stood up, cursing underneath his breath.

"Who's there?" John shouted.

"This is not the first time we've encountered each other, John Winchester," the voice echoed.

"You know this guy?" Elle called to her father.

"Not exactly," John scoffed.

"Your fabrications and deceptions must end. You have not behaved as advised, forcing me to take matters into my own phalanges."

"Which one of us is he talking to?" Elle whispered.

"You can have her back!" John shouted. "I never asked for this. There's gotta be some sort of return policy on what never should have been."

"I told you on June 19, 1984 that Campbell Mary Winchester would be of great import one day and you have done nothing to heed me or assist your daughter."

"Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on?" Elle screamed.

"Ask and it shall be given, Campbell Winchester."

Things went black and when Elle awoke again she was in almost the same spot she had been in before—only now, the sun was beginning to set. But something else seemed off about the place; but she couldn't quite put a finger on it. But her confusion didn't last long as John Winchester came walking out of the lake, completely drenched from head to toe with weeds, reeds, and mud clinging to him. If she wasn't so confused about their situation she might have laughed—but her father clearly wasn't in the laughing mood.

"What happened?" Elle asked. "Who the hell was that?"

"I don't have to explain anything to you," John growled.

"You sure as hell do. For starters, where the hell are we?"

"Wisconsin. I hate Wisconsin."

"Why do you hate Wisconsin?"

"You want the truth, Campbell? Fine, here's the truth—the God's honest truth. It's where I got saddled with you."

"Harsh. But I suppose this is probably the most honest conversation we've ever had. Hey! Where are you going?"

"Getting out of this god-forsaken state."

John Winchester stormed across the fresh grass, leaving Elle standing there with her arms folded across her chest. Her stubborn-self wanted to just stand there and let him walk away—but she had absolutely no idea where she was nor how to get back to her brothers. She had two options—follow her father or wait for the possibility of someone else to come around. Her best bet was to follow her dad—so she ran after him. She ran after him on the trail when she suddenly lost him. Damn him. He would make things difficult. She decided to just continue down the train when a hand covered her mouth and another wrapped around her waist. Elle wanted to scream and get away, but the person had a tight grip.

"Don't scream," John hissed.

With a pissed-off expression on her face, Elle stuck her tongue out and licked John's hand. His hand immediately flew off his daughter's face.

"What the hell did you do that for?" John sneered.

"Dean taught me that," Elle responded.

"Of course he did."

"Now, can we please just get out of here? I promise I'll leave you alone and forget about you."

"No."

"No? No you won't help me?"

"No, I can't help you."

"John Winchester hunter extraordinaire can't find his way out of the woods? That's a new excuse. Pathetic one for you actually."

"Well, Campbell, the problem isn't where—it's when."

"What? Is it too light outside or something?"

"Shut up. You're going to give us away."

"To who? The local bear? Oh, how terrifying."

"Girl—do you know how to do anything else but frustrate me?"

"Fine, I'll just leave then."

Elle took a few steps away from her father stubbornly. She kept her head held high as she walked away from him when his hand's grip tightened around her arm. She looked to him but he only pointed straight ahead down the trail. Elle's eyes widened. It couldn't be.

"Is that—" Elle started.

"Yeah—it's me," John responded.

"What the hell is going on? How can you be in two places at once?"

"I don't know but the last time I was here was 1984. I made a point to never come back—which means—"

"We went back in time? How the hell is that possible? Wait a minute, should we be worried about the time-space continuum?"
"He can't see you." The random voice was back.

"Who are you?" Elle shouted.

"That is not of import. The truth is almost upon us."

"What's that supposed to mean?" but the voice didn't respond. Elle then turned to her father. "Do you know why we're here?" John also didn't respond. "You do know, don't you?"

"It's not that hard to figure out what happened on June 19, 1984, is it?"

Elle's heart began to race. The answers she had wanted for years lay in the past—with her father. Was she finally about to get what she had been longing for for so long? For a split second, she wondered if maybe she didn't want to know—but something told her that she needed to know. Besides, whatever this thing was had brought her back here for a reason.

"Dad?" Elle asked timidly.

"What now, Campbell?" John groaned.

"Do you know what we're dealing with?"

"I've only ran into this thing one other time and that was years ago."

"Twenty-one years ago?"

"What do you think?"

"Well—why did you meet it?"

"It wasn't a meeting. It was an ambush. One that I'm not about to relive again."

"Yes, you are." The voice said.

Suddenly, they were back by the lake as the stars began to appear. Elle could see a younger version of her father sitting on a boulder carving into a large stick with his knife maybe about ten feet from her. He had beer on the ground beside him. Elle wanted to ask her present day father what he had been hunting and where Sam and Dean were, but he was still seething with anger from whatever was messing with them. Younger John took a swig of his beer bottle when the wind began to pick up. The lights in the cabin across the lake burst and the house went dark. This scene seemed oddly familiar.

"Who's there you son-of-a-bitch?" younger John shouted. "I've been waiting for you. Show your face you bastard."

"You are mistaken when you assume that I am illegitimate."

"You killed my wife!"

"Again, you are mistaken, John Winchester."

"I will kill you."

"The probability is highly unlikely."

"What the hell do you want? If you're going to kill me, I swear to God that I will find a way to come back and get my revenge."

"If I had wanted to kill you I would have already done so and you shouldn't take such an oath lightly."

"I'll ask one last time. What the hell do you want with me?"

"I have come to return something to your possession."

"Mary?"

"Mary Winchester's death was a necessary casualty. Her daughter's however, was not. Campbell Winchester's time of grace must be fulfilled. She will be of great importance one day."

"Daughter?"

"The daughter that was lost in the womb."

"What the hell are you trying to say?"

"Your daughter is being returned to you on the day that should have been for her birth."

"I don't have a daughter. I have two sons."

"It was prophesied that there would be a Winchester daughter born to John and Mary Winchester. He keeps his promises."

"Who are you?"

"That is not of import."

"Then I say no."

"No?"

"If I can't have Mary back then I don't want our daughter. Keep her."

"You don't have a choice. You will take her."

"No, I will not."

"You should show me a little respect."

"Show the voice in my head some respect? I'm drunk, but at least you have a sense of humor."

Lightning flashed, causing younger John to fall to the ground. Elle couldn't help but try to hide herself behind a tree. Surprisingly, she saw the present day version of her father standing watching the entire scene with his arms folded across his chest with no expression on his face. Elle looked back to the younger version of her father once more as he scrambled to get back onto the rock.

"What the hell was that for?" younger John shouted to the sky.

"You must swear an oath, John Winchester. You must swear that you will protect Campbell Winchester with your life. That she will know no harm while under your protection."

"What do I get in return?"

"Is your own flesh and blood not enough for you?"

"If it's not Mary or seeing her death avenged—then no."

"You will take your daughter and you will raise her. What has been written has been written."

There was a blinding flash of light and John fell off the rock again—only this time when he shouted to the sky, it didn't respond back. But there was another noise that began to fill the air—the cries of a child. Elle looked around and gasped at the sight of a newborn baby, naked on the grass beside the younger version of her father. Was that her? Had she just appeared out of nowhere? John leaned over the crying baby. His first instinct was to silence the crying thing—but his hands stopped just short of touching the baby. He shook his head and angrily wiped at his eyes before he stood up and walked away—leaving the baby there on the grass. Present day Elle looked to her present day father who was leaning against a tree watching his younger self.

"Did you just leave me?" Elle questioned.

"Since we don't really have a choice—watch and see," older John responded.

Elle watched as younger John stumbled down a path.

"You son-of-a-bitch, you left me!" Elle hissed.

Things seemed to swirl around her and next thing Elle knew—she was standing by her father at the entrance to Almon Park. The Impala was parked in the furthest parking lot underneath a streetlight. Elle ran toward the car to find a young version of Dean asleep in the backseat holding a baby version of Sam. Younger John Winchester began to walk across the parking lot toward the car. He sighed when he finally reached the car—surprisingly, his eyes were puffy and red; but Elle didn't see a baby anywhere. Then, the streetlight exploded and John fell to the asphalt for cover.

"Goodbye, Campbell Winchester. We shall meet again."

The backdoor passenger's door of the Impala opened and slammed shut. Little Dean walked around the car with a shotgun in his hands, but he began to lower it, and then dropped it completely. He rushed over to where the baby lay on the trunk of the Impala and picked her up before John could stop him.

"Put it down," John commanded. "Right now. We don't know what that thing is."

"She's my lost sister," little Dean responded. "Where did you find her?"

How he knew that must have baffled John, given the look on his face. That thing must have done something to Dean. Dean opened the back door of the car before putting one of his t-shirts over the baby. He was good with the new baby—already having had practice with Sam. Baby Elle seemed to smile in Dean's arms which made Dean grin.

"What's her name, Daddy?" Dean asked.

"Campbell," John said before muttering "after the family who got us in this mess in the first place."

Baby Sam seemed to coo "Elle" from inside the car almost as if he were trying to repeat John. Baby Elle kicked a bit—and present day Elle could see the burn ring of two fingers and a thumb around the baby's ankle—the mark she still had around her ankle today. She had always assumed that that her father had given it to her—but apparently, she had always had it. Present day Elle, shook her head as she focused back on Dean who was bouncing a giggling baby.

"Sammy's right. I think Elle works better." Dean said.

"We can't keep it," John responded.

He snatched Baby Elle from little Dean's arms and for a moment, John cradled Elle close to him—almost like he was never going to let her go. For a second, the baby was the most precious thing to him—he could picture himself loving her more with every day, see himself walking her down the aisle—seeing Mary in her. All those feelings a father feels for his little girl rushed through him-but then Dean's next thought ruined it all for John.

"Daddy, do you think you can find my lost mommy too?"

And at that moment, John realized that this baby would never be his Mary. She would only be a reminder of what he lost. He practically dropped the baby back into Dean's arms. Present day Elle looked at the younger version of her father and her heart broke. For a moment she had been loved—loved the way she had wanted to be loved. And then it was over. At that moment both baby Elle and present day Elle began to cry; but present day Elle was the only one who attempted to hide her tears from her father. Things began to swirl once more and Elle found herself trying to control her tears back by the lake under the stars once more. In her peripheral vision she could see John almost glaring at her.

"I'm almost done acting like a friggin baby if that's what you're thinking," Elle sniffled.

After a few minutes, Elle slowly exhaled. She could see her breath in the air. She slowly stood up before she walked over to her father.

"This makes everything make more sense," Elle commented.

"All I wanted was Mary alive. You were never supposed to exist, Campbell," John said not looking at her.

"But I do and yet you act like I don't."

Elle could have sworn she heard him whisper "It's easier that way," but her father's lips didn't move. Maybe she was just hearing things.

"Do you know what that thing was?"

"No. I've been busy searching for Mary's killer—not something as useless as that."

"What I don't get is that you willingly took me in without being sure first—especially when you had no idea what the thing that brought me to you was."

"I waited until Dean was asleep before I did all the usual tests."

"Of course you did." Elle said absently rubbing the scar on her arm which she had assumed had been from her father.

"And even then I still didn't believe you were mine."

"Am—am I actually your daughter?" Elle asked.

"Biologically you're mine and Mary's if that's what you're asking."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I had blood tests run when you were a kid."

"When?"

"Does it matter?"

"When?"

"You were eight or something like that."

~*~Flashback~*~

John Winchester walked into the motel room they had called home for the last week somewhere in Nebraska. He found Dean standing near the door with the shotgun aimed at him. It almost brought a smile to his face that Dean did exactly as he was supposed to—not trust anybody or anything when protecting his siblings. Speaking of siblings—John turned to see Sam sitting on one of the beds with a concerned expression on his face as he looked to his younger sister Elle. Elle's face looked quite flushed as she held her stomach. The young girl, about eight, attempted to stifle her tears when she noticed her father. When Sam realized that it was John he practically jumped off the bed and ran to his father.

"Dad, Elle's really sick," Sam said. "I think she—"

"Campbell's fine," John responded. "She'll get over it. Besides, she's probably just faking it."

"She's been this way for a while, Dad," Dean added.

"What do you want me to do about it? I forgot my magic wand in the car."

"She needs to see a doctor," Sam said, standing a little taller.

"I'm not taking her to a goddamn hospital, Sam. They ask too many questions."

"But I think she has—"

"The flu. If she was stronger she wouldn't be like this right now."

"But Dad—"

"No buts, Sammy. I have a job to get back to. I just left something in the safe."

John walked over to the safe and entered the combination before he pulled something out. Sam and Dean both tried to sneak a peek as to what it was, but their father shoved it in his inside jacket pocket before either of them could see. Sam asked his father one more time to help Elle, but John brushed him aside and told him to listen to Dean. And just like that, John Winchester had left his children alone once more. Elle's cries became more audible once John was outside. Sam quickly rushed over to his little sister's side as she vomited all over the pillow her head had been resting on. He pulled Elle away from the mess she had made and pushed her hair out of her mouth. She was so hot to the touch.

"Dean what do we do?" Sam asked.

"I—I maybe she needs some water," Dean responded.

Dean quickly ran over to the motel room sink and filled up one of the complimentary coffee mugs with cool water. He then ran it back to his sick little sister. He told Sam to hold Elle, tipping her head back so that he could get some water into her. Dean tried to pour the water into Elle's mouth, but she kept her lips tightly clamped.

"Elle-Belle, stop being stubborn," Dean chided.

With tears streaming down her face, she shook her head before she allowed a blood-curdling scream to escape her lips. She then fell away from Sam, tightly clutching her stomach area.

"Dean we gotta do something."

"I know—but Dad—"

"This is Elle we're talking about."

"You're right. You grab a trashcan and the emergency money. I got her. I think I saw a bus stop on the corner."

Sam looked to Dean for a second before his older brother told him to hurry up. Dean told Elle to get on his back, so that he could give her a piggyback. That was probably going to be the easiest way to get her to the hospital. Although, they really didn't have a clue how to get there—Dean just hoped that someone would be willing to give them a few directions. Elle wrapped her warm arms around Dean's neck.

"If you puke one me, I'll—"Dean stopped for a second to think about what he was going to say. "I'll—uh—not be very happy."

"That's not what you were going to say," Elle muttered.

"You can't read my mind, Elle- Belle, so you have no idea what I was going to say."

Dean tried to keep things light with his sister. He didn't want to let on how worried he really was about her; but Elle didn't respond any more. She was too tired to. With Elle on his back, Sam by his side with the trashcan and a wad of cash, Dean headed out of the motel. He had been right about the bus stop being on the corner. They waited about ten minutes before a bus pulled up. He motioned for Sam to pay the guy before he asked him how to get to the nearest hospital. Much to his relief, the driver said that it was a few miles down the road. They weren't going to have to change busses. Dean set Elle down on the seat beside Sam. She rested her head on Sam's lap and tried to get to sleep; but Dean could tell that there was something wrong with her stomach because she continued to hold on to it. When the bus finally came to a stop outside the hospital, Elle was once again on Dean's back as he carried her into the emergency room. The nurses looked quite shocked as three children came inside, the two boys asking that their sister be seen.

"Where's your mother?" one of the nurses asked.

"She's—she's dead," Dean said.

"And your father?"

"He's—he's—" Sam started.

"Working. He's out of town on a job. Sammy and I were supposed to be watching her," Dean finished. "You gotta do something."

"Unless it's an emergency, we need a parent," the nurse explained

Elle began screaming which caused Dean to drop his little sister and for her to collapse onto the floor in a heap. Without hesitation the nurse quickly ran out from behind the desk and knelt beside Elle, who was now clenching her teeth to keep from screaming, with tears continuing to stream down her cheeks and arms wrapped around her stomach. The nurse must have had some inclination as to what was wrong with Elle, because she began to ask her questions most of which Elle responded to with a shaky nod of her head. The nurse quickly picked Elle up into her arms and rushed the little girl to the back. Sam and Dean tried to follow behind her, but they weren't allowed to go any farther. Dean attempted to argue, saying that it was his job to look after his sister; but that got him nowhere. He and Sammy had to sit and wait. Well, Sam left for a bit to make a phone call. This turned out to be a good thing because a little over an hour later, Bobby Singer, family friend and fellow hunter burst through the doors to the emergency room. Both Sam and Dean and ran up to him, quite frantic. Bobby's eyes widened as he looked to both boys who both had puffy, red eyes—like they had been crying. He patted the boys on the shoulders.

"What's wrong with Ellie?" Bobby asked.

"They won't tell us anything. She's been back there a long time," Dean said.

"Where's your dad?"

"Working."

"Idjit. I'll got see what's going on."

Bobby walked up to the desk as Sam and Dean followed behind him. The nurse must have taken notice to the fact that the boys had greeted him, because her expression immediately soured.

"It's about time you got here," the woman reprimanded as she pulled out a clipboard with a bunch of papers on it. "You should be ashamed of yourself, leaving your sons to bring in a sick kid like that."

"I—uh—I," Bobby started, faltering. "It won't happen again. Now what's wrong with Ellie?"

"Her appendix burst. If your boys wouldn't have gotten her in when they did, she probably wouldn't be here right now," the woman said tossing the clipboard at Bobby.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Bobby asked as he began to flip through the paperwork.

"She should be just getting out of surgery. She's going to be in the hospital for a few days to make sure that infection doesn't spread."

"Can we see her?" Sam asked, his head barely poking above the top of the desk.

"I'll have the doctor come get you boys and your dad."

"He's not—" Sam started before Dean stepped on Sam's foot.

"He's not gonna want to wait long," Dean finished. "We wanna see her."

"Well, your sister was really sick, so you're just gonna have to be patient and wait until the doctor gives you the all clear. Besides, there's paperwork to be filled out."

Bobby shook his head and gritted through the snarky comment that he wanted to make about making it to the damn hospital in almost the half the time it should have taken him because he sped so fast to come check on the little girl he had grown to care for over the year. Of course, as Bobby filled out the paperwork, he couldn't help but let his anger toward John Winchester show. According to what the boys had told him, the man had seen his daughter in pain and did nothing—brushed it off like she was simply faking it. Faking a burst appendix? Idjit.

When Elle awoke, she felt rather groggy. She really didn't remember much after she collapsed in pain on the floor. Of course she knew that a doctor had seen her and then next thing she knew she was being rushed to surgery. And now here she was in a dark hospital room with Sam and Dean sleeping in chairs in the corner of the room. She hadn't meant to scare them so much. Honestly, she had believed her father—that it was nothing and she'd get over it. But apparently they both had been wrong if she was lying in a hospital bed in hospital clothes. She itched her face—noticing a plastic bracelet on her wrist. She examined the hospital bracelet on her wrist when she was done itching. She was surprised to see the name "Ellie Singer" on it. Singer? As in—

"How're you feeling, Ellie?" a voice came from the door.

"Thirsty," Elle mumbled. "Bobby why are you here?"

"Sam called me."

Elle's eyes widened. Her dad was going to be so pissed off when he found out. She tried to move to get up, but Bobby must have known what she was trying to do because he quickly rushed over and forced her to stay down. The commotion must have woken Sam and Dean up because they were soon over by Elle's bedside. Sam took his sister's hand and Dean stood behind him looking over Sam's shoulder at Elle.

"Don't you ever scare us like that again," Dean said. "I mean it."

"I didn't mean to," Elle said hoarsely.

"Yeah I know—well, I suppose if it's any consolation, you're gonna have a pretty badass scar."

"It itches."

"Don't touch it. That's what the doctor said," Sam added.

"Can we go back to the motel?"

"In a few days, Ellie," Bobby said. "Just let the doctors do their job."

"But my dad…" Elle started.

"You let me worry about your daddy, Ellie. I need to give that idjit a piece of my damn mind."

Elle sighed as she tried to make herself comfortable on the bed. The nurse noticed that she had woken up, so she brought in a cup of ice chips for Elle to suck on. Of course many of them ended up on her bed and pillow because Dean stole the cup and insisted on tossing them into her mouth to see if she could catch them—well, until Bobby head-slapped him. Then she fed herself her own ice chips before falling asleep again. When she woke up again, Dean had moved his chair beside her and was singing "Hey Jude" terribly off key. Elle waking up startled him—and then he quickly rushed to his own defense of why he was singing the song and it was because that's what Mom used to sing to him. Elle managed to give him a smile to which he responded by throwing the empty ice chip cup at Sam who was also sleeping. Sam quickly awoke and gave Dean a disgruntled look.

"Go on and give it to her," Dean commanded.

Sam stretched before he stood up with something behind his back. He walked closer, silently.

"Sammy got you something," Dean said.

"I can tell her myself, Dean," Sam groaned.

"By all means—go ahead then."

"I—I got you this, Elle-Belle."

Sam pulled out a stuffed Tigger animal out from behind his back and set it in Elle's arms. Elle hugged the thing tightly and thanked her brother. Sam then jumped up on the bed beside Elle and she snuggled close to her brother with Tigger in her arms. Then to her surprise, Dean jumped on her other side, leaving her sandwiched between her big brothers. This wasn't something normal for them—but even at the young age of eight, Elle had a suspicion it because they figured if she was closer to them—nothing more would happen to her. Dean began singing Mom's favorite Beatles' song off-key again as the three Winchesters refused to be parted.

John had been on the hunt for a pack of ghouls when he left Campbell with Sam and Dean. To say he was surprised when Bobby Singer showed up on his hunt would have been an understatement. While he and Bobby didn't always see eye to eye—the man did care for his kids. Although, he wished that the man didn't care for Campbell; if it meant that Sam and Dean got a somewhat normal existence, he would live with it.

"Bobby, you know that I'm more of a lone wolf on these hunts."

"That's not what this is about, John, and I think deep down you know it."

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

"Ellie, I'm here about Ellie."

"Don't tell me that Sam and Dean roped you into her games too."

"It wasn't a game, John. Ellie's in the hospital. Her appendix ruptured. She could have died if Sam and Dean wouldn't have gotten her there when they did."

"They know better than to take her there. Too many questions."

"You idjit. You're more concerned about questions being asked than your own flesh and blood. That's messed up."

"She's not mine, Bobby, not really."

"What're you talking about? Ellie's got plenty of you in her—including her stubbornness."

"She shouldn't be alive. I've told you this."

"Yet she is and you're wasting your second-chance with her because you're scared."

"I'm a lot of things, but you're going senile if you think I'm scared."

"Oh you're scared all right. Scared that she's gonna leave you just like Mary did. Do you know what I'd give to have a second chance?"

"What the hell do you want from me Bobby?"

"You get down to that hospital and you see your little girl and you treat her like the princess she deserves to be treated like. You're going to regret it someday—treating her the way you do. So are you coming with me or not?"

"I'll come, but don't expect any miracles."

"That's the right answer."

"But I have one condition. I'm assuming that you had to sign the paperwork to admit her. I want you to request a blood test and get hers compared to Deans."

"You have got to be shitting me."

"Then we'll know once and for all."

"And when you find out that Ellie is yours and Mary's, I want to see a change, Winchester. You got that?"

John must have agreed because it wasn't too long until he was standing outside the door to Campbell's hospital room. The scene before them was of her snuggled with her brother's in the hospital bed while Disney's Beauty and the Beast played on the television. She looked so pale and fragile—and so much like her mother. He made a mistake—but he would never admit that. Bobby was right about one thing, he was stubborn, and there was no way in hell he was going to admit that he was wrong. John walked away from the room and Bobby followed after him.

"You idjit."

"I said I'd do it when the test was done. I'm waiting on that test."

"That could take weeks."

"Not when you pay the lab tech."

"You didn't."

"Well, I didn't. Jesvin Rajan did. But I told the guy it was a matter of life or death. Should only be a few days."

"You're running scared."

John didn't respond, instead he just walked away. While he did stay at the hospital, he refused to go into Elle's room. He would just meet Sam or Dean in the vending machine room; but he refused to see her. Six days later, when Elle was finally released from the hospital, the tests John had been waiting for finally came. They confirmed that Elle biologically was his and Mary's—which wasn't really what he had been expecting.

"You're getting a third chance here John, take it. They're rare and don't come around often. She's been asking to see you. Why don't you go see her before we take off?"

"No."

"No? What do you mean no?"

"None of this changes the fact that Mary's dead. Campbell is nothing but a reminder of that."

"Quit being an idjit and get in there and see your little girl who wants you to love her."

"I can't. I have a ghoul to go find."

"John don't you walk out that door."

"Try and stop me, Bobby."

"I'll do better than that."

John turned around toward Bobby as the older man decked him square in the face, causing him to fall to the floor. Bobby shook his fist before finishing things.

"That little girl deserves better than a poor excuse like you for a father. She's coming home with me so that she can finish getting better and I'm damn sure that the boys will be coming with me. So you hunt that ghoul and when you come to your senses, you know where we'll be."

Bobby walked away from John Winchester taking Dean, Sam, and Elle back to South Dakota with him in his truck, where they stayed for a couple of weeks, despite John never coming to his senses.

~*~End Flashback~*~

After they had discussed the details about that hospital visit, Elle sat on the very same rock she had seen a younger version of her father sit on. Her father stood with his arms folded across his chest watching the waves crashed upon the shore. Elle looked up to him—he appeared deep in thought. It was now or never.

"Do you love me?" Elle asked timidly.

"You don't know what love is," John responded.

"Answer the question."

"You already know the answer to that."

"Do you love Sam?"

"I think you already know that that answer as well."

"And Dean?"

"Campbell."

"Damnit, Dad. I've tried so hard—trying to be someone that I'm not for you and it will never be enough, will it?"

"Campbell."

"Will I ever be enough for you? Will you ever love me like you love them?"

John didn't say anything.

"It's Elle, by the way," Elle said tearfully. "Those who love me call me Elle."

"Campbell," John sighed

"You don't have to say any more. That's all I needed to hear."

Elle looked up to the stars and sighed. For some reason, the stars seemed to be shining brighter—or maybe it was all in her head. She had expected to feel much worse after her father's declaration. She still obviously felt terrible, but there was something about looking into the night's sky and knowing that somehow she wasn't alone or unloved. That there was something in the stars telling her otherwise. Maybe Sam and Dean could see these stars right now and were thinking about her. She picked up her cellphone; but she still had no bars all the way out here; but at least the thing worked. They were in the right time—but she was curious why her father hadn't left her yet.

"So now what?" Elle asked.

"We get the hell out of Dodge," John said.

"I just need to find some service and then I'll be out of your hair."

"You don't tell your brothers about any of this."

"Tell them what?"

"Exactly."

"Yeah, I'm not sure I can do that. You see, I know that they love me, so I try not to keep things from them."

"You just said—"

"It lasted a moment, kind of like your love for me and then I changed my mind, just like you, because there are people more important to me than you."

She grabbed her bag which was laying in the middle of the grass and slung it over her shoulder and began to head toward the path through the woods.

"Campbell, where are you going?" John called after her.

"I think you already know the answer to that," Elle retorted not even bothering to turn around and face him.

Elle used her cellphone as a light to guide her through the woods. She stumbled to the ground a few times, tearing her jeans and bloodying up her bare feet; but she refused to go to John Winchester for help. He was the last person she wanted help from after what had transpired—although, she knew that Sam and Dean would disagree with her. She would let them have the father who loved them—but to her John Winchester was a good as dead—or at least someone to avoid at all costs. After nearly forty-five minutes of wandering through the woods, she finally made it to the parking lot she had seen back in 1985. The lot had been expanded and repaved since them and the light that burst was repaired—or at least it had been because as Elle walked under the light it exploded again. She threw her hands over her head and flung herself to the hard ground; but nothing happened to her—at least not physically. The voice just repeated the exact same thing that it had many years ago; which made Elle's heart race for a moment—but she was too pissed off to notice.

"Goodbye, Campbell Winchester. We shall meet again."

"It's Elle!" Elle shouted at the sky. "If you're gonna stalk someone at least get their name right!"

She brushed the dirt from her jeans and hands before she continued to follow the path until she got to the highway. At the highway, she had a couple of bars on her cellphone—hopefully enough to make a call if she stood very still. Her first call was to Dean to let him know that she was alive; but they appeared to have their hands full in Oklahoma. So Elle made another phone call to the man who was more of a father than her own father: Bobby Singer. Bobby was quite surprised to get a phone call from her, but he said that in a little over eight hours he would be in the abysmally small town of Rhinelander, Wisconsin to pick her up. Elle walked the four miles, bare foot, until she came upon some sort of civilization. She walked around the tiny town until she found the local grocery store Trig's which was open 24 hours. She hung out in the empty deli seating, watching the Weather Channel, until she fell asleep at the table only to be awoken by a deli worker poking her awake several hours later. Thankfully it was only a few hours until Bobby showed up. He parked his truck and walked out to meet her with a hug, which made Elle's eyes get misty.

"How're you doing, Ellie?" Bobby asked.

"I've been better," Elle said with a sigh before she ran her fingers through her greasy hair.

"I know that look—you've seen your daddy, haven't you?"

"Yeah—I saw him; but I don't really wanna talk about him right now. I just wanna get the hell out of this place."

Elle climbed into Bobby's truck and buckled the seatbelt before Bobby even got back in the truck. The beginning of the ride was rather silent. Bobby filled the truck up with gas and then they had the long ride back to Bobby's place. Apparently, Sam and Dean were going to pick her up in South Dakota. Elle fell asleep for a little bit of the ride, but she woke up during before they got to Wisconsin's border with Minnesota. Elle yawned and sat up, focusing on the road.

"Sam and Dean were worried about you. They called me to see if you ran away from them over something stupid that they did," Bobby said.

"They do stupid things, quite frequently, but not anything to make me run," Elle sighed.

"So how did you end up all the way up here?"

"Honestly, I have no friggin clue. One second I was asleep in the back of the Impala dreaming about that lake and then next thing I know when I wake up I'm actually there and he was there."

"Your daddy?"

"Yeah, him—and then some sort of supernatural being or something. It took us back in time and I got to see the night I finally came into being."

"You sure you didn't hit your head?"

"I'm serious, Bobby. I'd say you could ask him, but he told me to just forget about the whole thing and not tell Sam and Dean."

"Not that I want to side with him, but it might be for the best if you don't tell them."

"You want me to lie to my brothers?"

"Not lie—just withhold information. Let me do a little more research, Ellie. You know how those brothers of yours get."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. Have you ever heard of anything that can do that? I mean—go back in time and weird stuff like that."

"Can't think of anything off the top of my head."

"I mean, it just doesn't make sense."

"Ellie, nothing in this life does."

"It has to be a demon, right?"

"Kiddo—why don't you go back to sleep. I think you could use it."

"Is that supposed to be an insult?"

"I'm not Dean."

With a chuckle, Elle nodded her head before she snuggled back up against the window. When she woke back up, they were in South Dakota and only a few miles from Bobby's place. Elle texted Sam—expecting him to be prompt with his response, but she didn't get one. Weird. Normally, he was so quick with his responses. Maybe he and Dean were undercover doing something or another; either way, she was going to be stuck at Bobby's until they were done with their case. She practically jumped out of Bobby's truck before she walked into the house. Almost as if on instinct, Elle walked to the fridge and pulled out the last beer. After how things had been going for her—she could use a drink. She managed to get the cap off the bottle, despite having a cast on her wrist, when Bobby came and snatched the adult beverage from her hands and took a swig of the drink.

"Bobby, what the hell?"

"Drinking's not gonna help your daddy issues, Ellie."

"No, but it will help my thirst issues."

"There's water in the faucet."

"You've got to be kidding. I'm twenty-one."

"Must've slipped my mind."

"Yeah—sure."

Bobby winked at Elle before she shook her head and wandered around the house. She couldn't help but smile at the dusty collection of Disney movies in a corner. Obviously, Bobby had no use for them—but he had gotten them for her when she spent a few weeks in South Dakota after her hospital visit. Elle took a finger and wiped some of the dust from her movie collection before she wiped the dust on her jeans. She examined what she could of her appearance—noting that that she probably smelled a bit ripe too. She walked upstairs to where she remembered the bathroom being and took a quick shower. As she let the warm water wash over her and refresh her, she heard the bathroom door creak open. Her first instinct was to poke her head out of the shower curtain; but she sheepishly blushed when she noticed Bobby setting some clothes on the sink. He nodded at her before looking away and walking out of the bathroom. When she was finished showering, Elle noticed the clothes on the sink had a feminine look to them which caused her to sigh. Elle knew these had once belonged to Karen, Bobby's wife. They were a bit outdated and bigger than Elle's petite 5'2" frame, but she knew that it meant something that Bobby was letting her borrow them. Of course, he could have done a little better with the matching—but she wasn't going to fault him, he probably just picked out whatever was on top of the place where he stored Karen's things.

Elle put the flowery button-up blouse on, leaving the sleeves unbuttoned and rolling them, so the left sleeve was above her cast. She slightly shuddered at the turquoise stirrup pants that didn't look good on anyone, but they were at least clean—besides, it wasn't like she had to dress to impress anyone. She let her damp hair hang down as it began to dry curly before she walked down the hallway. She saw Bobby's bedroom—with clothes scattered on the floor. She saw the room Sam and Dean shared whenever they came to Bobby's—which wasn't frequently and then she saw the room she stayed in when they came when they were younger. She knew that it was decorated by Karen with all the soft feminine touches. Bobby probably left it decorated as it was to preserve her memory. After tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Elle walked downstairs to find Bobby opening the fridge.

"Wasn't expecting company," Bobby grumbled.

"So you have no food?" Elle asked.

"Well, I have my kind of food."

"You forget that my brothers have polar opposites in food taste. I can stomach almost anything—although, I do prefer Dean's end of the food spectrum."

"We should probably go into town and get something."

"I'd be perfectly content with a pizza. Do they deliver all the way out here?"

"Costs an arm and a leg."

"Give the bill to Dean when he gets here. He made out like a bandit in a recent uh—gig."

Bobby gave in and ordered a pizza. For the next few days, while Sam and Dean continued to work their job in Oklahoma, Elle scoured through any of Bobby's books—hoping to find something—anything on what kind of being could do what happened in Wisconsin. She came up with absolutely nothing. Elle was pointlessly looking through another one of Bobby's books when Sam and Dean finally showed up. She could see them through the window she sat beside. Elle practically ran outside to meet her brothers. She hugged each one of them and gave them kisses on the cheek—which surprised them. Elle wasn't normally so affectionate—which threw both Sam and Dean for a bit of a loop. Elle left her head resting on Dean, in a half-hug when he started to question her.

"What the hell happened to you?" Dean asked.

"Not a clue," Elle responded. "I wish I knew. All I know is that I have never been so grateful in my life to see you two."

"What makes you say that?" Sam asked.

"Nothing, can't I just be glad to see you both?"

"Not that happy," Dean said. "You're not telling us something."

"Dean, you guys must be tired. Let's go inside. Bobby just went grocery shopping so we actually have some beer and—"

"You're rambling."

"No, I'm not."

"Elle—"

"Dean, why do you assume that I'm lying?"

"Because I know you and you're lying straight to my face."

"Well, even you don't know everything about me."

Dean sighed, not wanting to get into things with Elle, especially since he was friggin exhausted having just dealt with a crap ton of bugs in Oklahoma. The Winchester siblings walked into Bobby's house, while Bobby was busy on the phone. Elle took three beers out of the fridge and handed one to each other her brothers before they all sat down at the kitchen table.

"So you ended up all the way in Wisconsin?" Sam asked.

"Yeah—it was weird," Elle responded.

"Maybe this would be a good thing to tell Dad about."

"No!"

Dean cocked his head suspiciously at his sister—noting how quick her response was. Damnit. Elle realized her mistake and now Dean was on to her. She had to do anything she could to back-peddle and get him off her case.

"I mean—Dad wouldn't want to bother himself with anything having to do with me," Elle said.

"You saw Dad, didn't you?" Dean questioned.

"No—no, I didn't."

"Don't lie to me."

Elle looked to Dean—whose eyes were practically flaming. She was caught and she knew it. There was no reason to continue to deny it. She sighed before she looked to her oldest brother.

"I don't want to talk about him."

"Did you or did you not see him?"

"Dean—"

"Answer the question."

"Yes."

"And you were plannin' on hiding that for how long?"

"Until I could process what happened. Dean, none of it makes any sense."

"I don't friggin' care if it doesn't make sense. We're family—and you don't do this to family. I thought that meant something to you."

"It does—I just—"

"Then tell us what happened."

"I can't."

"Can't or won't?"

"Dean—"

"Son-of-a-bitch, Elle—You know, I thought you were different, I thought you understood what we were doing here. But I guess that's all blown to hell."

Dean slammed his beer bottle against the table before he stood up and walked out of the kitchen. Elle called after her brother, but he flipped her off. Sam told her to give him some space and let him cool off; but Elle wasn't so sure that Dean would just get over this. She hardly ever intentionally lied to Dean. Hell, Dean was the one person she was honest with—but she knew she couldn't ever fully explain what happened to her in Wisconsin. It was too complicated—even for her own brain to process.

"Are you pissed?" Elle asked Sam.

"Pissed? No. Confused as hell? Yes." Sam offered.

"You have to understand—I can't explain anything."

"I get that."

"I'm sensing a but—"

"Not really. I can't really justify being mad at you when I'm keeping my own secret."

"Then why is Dean doing this?"

"Because we've been looking for Dad for months—and then you see him and decide that it's not important enough to tell him. I mean really—the whole reason we're all even doing this is to find Dad."

"That's not it and you know it."

"I'm just saying how Dean's seeing things. Why don't you let me go and try and smooth things over?"

"You'd do that?"

"I can't say I agree with what you did—but you're my sister."

Elle sighed as Sam walked outside to go talk with Dean. Bobby finally got off the phone and walked over to her when she was about ready to burst into tears. As if this week hadn't been emotional enough—and here she was at odds with Dean—over as stupid of a thing as their father. Bobby didn't say anything, he just rested a hand on her shoulder. And to top things off—neither she nor Bobby had found anything about whatever that supernatural being was the caused this entire mess. Is this what the thing was hoping to do? Get her at odds with her brother? Well if it was—it succeeded. The front door slammed and Elle saw Dean walk through the door.

"Dean, I'm sorry—I—" Elle stared.

"I don't wanna hear it. I don't really even wanna work with you—but Sammy's convinced that we need you."

"Dean—"

"No, you listen. I've continually stuck my neck out for you and I thought that street went both ways. But I guess things have changed—so don't expect me to be looking to save your ass. You seem to think that you can handle things without me—so here you go."

"That's not what this is about—"

"As far as I'm concerned, this conversation is over. Get in the car—don't get in the car—I don't friggin care and don't expect me to."

"But the fact that you're acting like this says otherwise."

"Don't push me. I can always leave your ass here."

"You know what? Let me do you a favor—"

Elle stomped away to the staircase where she sat down, practically seething in anger.

"Fine!" Dean shouted. "Sammy, I'm leaving now. Either you're coming with me or staying with her."

Sam opened the front door and looked to Elle in confusion.

"What the hell? How the hell did you two escalate this even further?" Sam asked.

"He's being stupid," Elle said. "And stubborn."

"You both are."

"I'm younger and more immature; I'm supposed to be that way."

"Are you really staying?"

"Yeah—I am so don't try and change my mind."

"It's not really fair the position you both are putting me in."

"Now you know how I feel."

"Elle—"

"I won't hold it against you if you go with him. I swear."

"Why don't I believe that?"

"Just give me a call when he stops being an ass."

The engine from the Impala roared and Sam looked to Elle.

"Go on," Elle sighed.

Sam placed a kiss on the top of his little sister's head before he rushed outside and barely made it in the car before Dean took off. Bobby was startled to see Elle still sitting on the steps. She told him that she didn't want to talk about it—instead, she walked upstairs to the room that she had been staying in and plopped onto the bed in frustration. Why was it that things got bad they always got worse? She could hardly believe the crappy situation she was in—and it wasn't even her fault. Knowing that no one was there to judge her—Elle let her sobs over take her until she had softly cried herself to sleep.


Author's note: Wasn't that just a roller coaster of emotions? Ugh—you have no idea the turmoil I as an author went through for this chapter. Now, Elle still doesn't fully understand things—but you the readers should have a much better understanding of what's going on. So, what'd you think? Introduced 3 characters in one chapter! Sheesh! But they all played together so nicely—not literally, I mean that as an expression of how they were woven in. Haha. Also, what did'd you think of an almost entirely original chapter? Just curious. I'm really flattered by all the response I've been getting—thanks. :)


So, I started a Tumblr if anyone's interested. I'm trying my best to post things—but I'm not entirely sure what you as readers would like on there—so if you have suggestions—feel free to lemme know. :) Hope you enjoyed this chapter!