Bobby and John sped down the road as Bobby filled John in on what he knew, "But I've got the feeling there's something else there too. The boys can handle one monster." he spoke his thoughts aloud.

John merely grunted in response. He felt like such an idiot, believing that the boys would be safer on their own. Yes, they were weaker together thanks to that irreplaceable family bond, but nothing made a Winchester more determined to fight than the life of a loved one being in danger. John sighed, he was kicking himself. How, why... why did he assume that after rescuing Sam everything would be okay; that it was simply a small kerfuffle with a demon.

"John this isn't your fault." Bobby repeated over and over throughout the course of the journey but each time he said it John would reply with a comment full of self loathing and hatred for the thing that took his sons. The bastard would pay. . .

Dean and Azriel tumbled over the smooth rocks, slipping and sliding about as the force of the water threatened to drag them downstream. Both men growling and snarling, swinging punches and failing to hit anything. Sam groaned as he choked up water. His leg was killing him and the freezing cold water wasn't helping at all. He wanted more than anything to help Dean but he knew that in this state he would just cause chaos and end up making it even harder for Dean to gank Azriel. He wished Bobby would hurry the hell up. He grimaced, pain shot through his body as he weakly dragged himself up the opposite, mud covered, bank. Dean, upon seeing his brother looking as helpless as a drowned kitten, lost focus for a split second. It was only a second but it was enough time for Azriel to slip out from under Dean and send him flying across the water and back into the old mill. Suddenly the Leshy snapped back into reality having been entranced by the fight; it ploughed through the water towards the spot where Sam lay. He reached out a gnarled hand towards the unmoving form of the younger Winchester and scooped him up, flinging him over his shoulder in a fireman's lift.

Dean flew through the air, smashing through board after board of rotten wood. He bounced over something hard and metal and finally flopped to the ground with a thump.

"Dean!" he heard his name being screamed over and over by, no... it couldn't be, his father?

"Dad?" he asked groaning, everywhere hurt. Sam, where was he? "Sam?" Dean called out.

"Dean it's me." his father was now by his side, the door of the Impala hanging open and swinging on its hinges. "You alright son?"

Dean nodded, "Find Sam." he moaned and rolled onto his side. Bobby crouched down and put a hand on Dean's shoulder.

"Go John, I got him." he pulled Dean into an upright position leaning against the side door of the Impala.

John nodded and ran through the wreckage of the mill, leaping over the rubble towards the river. The Leshy stood tall with Azriel beside it. It dug its sharp nails into Sam's torso causing blood to seep into his sopping wet grey shirt. Sam's head hung limply, his floppy hair, dripping with blood and water, hung like a curtain – covering half his face. John wanted to yell, every fatherly instinct in him told him to go, run to his son. But as a hunter he knew better, to do so would only endanger Sam more. His grip tightened on the wooden shaft of the iron axe. He was going to kill those sons of bitches even if it was the last thing he did. He watched silently as Azriel slid out a knife from the inside pocket of his blazer and brought it towards Sam's neck. And in that moment something snapped inside him. The hunter inside him had made him wait to long. So fuck the usual procedure, fuck sacrificing one life to save a thousand, fuck catching the monster unawares. His son was going to die unless he moved now. He charged like a wild boar, nothing mattered any more except the wellbeing of his youngest son. Axe in hand he ran like a flash of lightning, swinging the axe over his shoulder and right through the neck of the Leshy before it even knew what hit it. It's shocked expression was left permanently glued to its face as its head tumbled into the cold water and it's body flopped backwards into the icy spray. Azriel snarled and threw an arm around Sam's neck, pulling him into a headlock.

"Come any closer and you what I'll do." he warned, his elegant composure was gone and had been replaced by a desperate look. His hair was messed up and the right side of his face was spattered with the Leshy's blood.

Azriel abruptly fell to the ground and Bobby swung for the second time and severed the last of the skin holding his neck on. John watched with a gaping mouth then came back to his senses and hauled Sam up and out of the mud.

"That wont keep him down for long. Dean's waiting in the car."

Together Bobby and John carried a limp Sam across the water and back to the Impala. Sam mumbled a few unintelligible sentences and fell into the blissful grasp of unconsciousness.

Black smoke erupted from the decapitated head and vanished off into the distance. The two men turned to watch it go.

"And stay gone." John muttered.

"SAM!" Dean yelled sitting up in back seat with a grimace, "Sammy!"

"Relax, he's just unconscious. He woke up a minute or so ago." Bobby reassured the panicked twenty year old. Dean's posture relaxed a little but his muscles were still fairly tense.


Authors Note: Sorry it's taken so long to upload, I've just had a few weeks of writer's block, yawn. Thanks for reading and please review because they're pretty much the only reason I carry on writing.