.-.-.-. Primoris Filius.-.-.-.
Summary: Everything has a story - every scar, every tear, every weapon, every amulet... So when the boys come across a new hunt with a familiar M.O. a valuable piece of jewellery might be needed to protect an innocent life once again. Takes place in both the present and the past... Deancentric (when aren't my stories?)
Disclaimer: Already said it… :P
Warnings: Typical bad language that you expect from the Winchesters, particularly Dean… Decided to set this after Season 2 but before Season 3… guess I wanted that extra angst factor!!
One upon a time… there was a story… and it seemed like the story had been abandoned but it hadn't! :D Yep! I'm finally back with another chapter of Primoris Filius! The world is not coming to an end… Hell hasn't frozen over… I just finally managed to get my muse for this story to wake its lazy ass back up. It's been so long that a recap probably won't even do it… hell, I had to read the story right back from the beginning and I wrote the damn thing.
I can promise though that it won't take so long to update again. I want to get this story, along with my other current ones finished before I go back to college in September/October.
Right, quick recap:
Past: John took a hunt with a guy name Halloway who was hiding things from him… turns out the thing they were hunting killed first born sons and Halloway decided he wanted to use Dean as bait… Dean got hurt but it seems the thing isn't quite finished with him yet so John has to find some protection.
Present: Sam and Dean come across a series of murders bearing resemblance to case way back when and after researching it a little, Sam finally gets Dean to admit that they're hunting the same thing and that once attacked Dean. When checking out the possible hunting ground, they run into a boy named Stuart who is attacked by the thing they're hunting…
But they manage to save him and take him to the hospital where Dean gives him his amulet as protection. Back at the room, Sam asks how his brother and father managed to defeat it in the past but Dean reluctantly tells him that they just sent it to hell and now it seems to be back after the hell gate opened…
And I think that about covers it…
666
10. Next Contestant
666
August 1997
It hadn't taken long to gather lambs blood. He hadn't expected it to. Of course by the time he arrived back at the room, he also hadn't expected to see Halloway parked up and leaning against the side of his car waiting for him. John approached carefully, watching Halloway as he parked the car directly in front of the room.
Halloway just leaned there, tapping his foot against the side of his car as if in time to music that only he could hear. He didn't even acknowledge John as he pulled up and dragged himself from the car. The first time he even acted like he'd seen the eldest Winchester was when John was directly in front of him and Halloway had to admit that the guy was definitely intimidating.
"What are you doing here?" John demanded, letting his words fly out of his mouth along with the angry spittle that followed them.
"Thought I'd check up on things, keep an eye on your sons…" Halloway smiled… that snarky smile that made John want to pull every single one of the guy's teeth out, slowly and painfully.
"Maybe you didn't quite understand me when I said that I'm going to kill you."
"But you left the hospital so quickly… didn't even tell me you were checking him out." Halloway feigned a hurt look but smiled once more before carrying on, "See, I don't think you would kill me because you need me to help figure out a way to stop this thing… we've found out that silver is useless, rock salt pisses it off…"
"And you piss me off." John spat back, fist tightening as he fought the urge to start throwing punches, "I'm sure I'll do just fine without your help."
Halloway shrugged and pushed himself away from the car, the movement bringing his face so close to John's that he could feel the man's hot raging breath. He didn't back away; he wouldn't show that weakness… this was all business after all. "Let me know when you change your mind. Or when it comes for Dean… which ever comes first."
John didn't reply, just stood firm as Halloway bristled passed and to the front of his car where he climbed in and started the engine. But he just had to continue to provoke John before driving off, adding one last thing before letting his foot hit the gas peddle, "It might be sooner than you think Johnny boy."
Then he was gone. Driving off to God knows where and John watched, fists clenched, still steaming and wishing that he'd thrown that punch afterall.
666
Present Day
As wide as the hunting community was, the Winchesters didn't trust many people and from past experience no one could blame them. There were a few hunters that they'd met every now and then and had shared hunts with and gotten useful information from. Always a trustworthy and reliable source, Bobby Singer tended to pull through for the pair of them…
But not this time.
He had no idea where the boys could get their hands on a gold tipped bull horn. He had contacts who could be of help and at that moment in time, that was going to have to do.
"What about another amulet?" Sam asked conversationally after coming off the phone to Bobby.
"What about it?" Dean looked up from John's journal to stare at Sam; an eyebrow raised suggesting that he knew more than he was letting on.
"Well, there could be more, right? Yours doesn't have to be the only one out there."
"You know what, you're a genius Sam." Dean mocked, searching for Sam's laptop which was buried amongst the paperwork, "Let me just log onto Ebay…"
Sighing heavily, Sam put his hand on Dean's arm to stop his movements, "Instead of acting like a jerk, why don't you just tell me where you and Dad got yours from."
"Friend of a friend of Dad's." He proclaimed proudly, but didn't go into detail, instead waiting for the next inevitable question.
"Which friend?"
Bingo! Dean exclaimed in his mind before answering Sam, "Pastor Jim."
"But he's…"
"Dead. I know… and somehow I don't see him giving us answers from beyond the grave, even with what we know."
"Well that's just brilliant!" Sam threw himself back into his seat, sliding down a little in a sulking manner.
Shaking his head and looking back down at the journal, Dean found himself cursing and slamming it closed on the table, "Useless… all of it. I should have made a copy of that damn incantation or something. Damn it!"
"Dude, it's not like either of you figured it would come back."
Head low, Dean lifted his eyes and focused on the younger Winchester, staring hard. He wanted to believe what Sam had said but in truth, if he'd felt the need to wear the amulet then why hadn't he kept the incantation too. He felt bare without it, naked and unprotected but he knew he couldn't say anything to Sam.
When Dean's gaze finally lifted so that he could rest his head against the table in thought, Sam ran a hand through his hair and across his mouth, trying to stifle the yawn that just kept trying to escape. The attempt was not lost on Dean who looked up once more.
"It's nearly six in the morning Sam, you're obviously tired…"
"Am not." Sam pouted like a petulant child, fighting back another yawn. But his brother just carried on as if he hadn't heard him.
"Sleep Sam. You'll be better off for it. We've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow and the earlier we start the better."
"I only woke up a few hours ago, I'm fine."
"Not if I send you out on a five mile run you won't be."
Grunting something about never being fine after a five mile run, Sam couldn't help but noticed the red rings around his brother's eyes, "Make you a deal…"
Eying Sam suspiciously, Dean nodded, "Okay, I'm listening."
"You've been up longer than me so if you sleep, then I'll sleep."
"What? No way. You're just being ridiculous now."
"Then an all nighter it is then."
It took another half hour and the words blurring on the page for Dean to finally accept the deal, reluctantly climbing into bed for just a couple of hours extra sleep.
666
August 1997
By the time John had finished with the lamb's blood, he walked into room to find his eldest fast asleep on his bed and the no longer little Sammy curled up at the bottom of the bed with a book, but also lost in dreamland. Setting the paper bag on the table, John gathered Sam up as best he could and laid him in his own bed, covering him with the blanket before doing the same to Dean.
They looked so peaceful.
He could feel his eyes burning with the unspent tears as he watched them and thought about all they had been through and all they had coming. It wasn't the first time he'd regretted bringing them into this fight.
Fighting back the self-hatred and anger, John pushed himself onto the matter at hand and pulled his phone from his pocket, grabbing a seat at the table whilst dialling an old friend. It wasn't long before the Pastor picked up, voice light and eager like it always was… no matter the time, no matter the circumstances… always ready to be there.
"God it's good to hear your voice Jim."
"John?" Jim laughed gently down the phone, "What's a devil like yourself doing calling at this hour?"
"How about asking for forgiveness?" He said it light heartedly, but that didn't stop his friend from picking up on the broken man's dejected words.
"Ask away." The two words meant more than what they said, they meant 'You can tell me anything' and 'I won't judge you' among other things.
"Screwed up…" John started, pausing as he got his head around what exactly he wanted to say and how he wanted to say it, "I got suckered into this hunt with a guy called Halloway. I thought maybe I could trust him…"
He explained everything that had happened, from his initial suspicions and how stupid he'd been not to trust his gut to Dean getting hurt because the guy had used him as bait, and Jim let him. It wasn't until John had explained everything and had gone onto how he'd thought of maybe dropping the boys off at Jim's place so he could just focus on hunting the thing that Jim stopped him.
"Any other circumstances I'd have said yes right away John… but if this thing really does have its heart set on Dean, then there's no telling that it won't follow him. You could end up putting him in more danger taking him away from a protected area." Jim sighed sympathetically.
"I shouldn't have taken him with me in the first place. It was stupid and reckless."
"You weren't to know."
"I should have figured it out, I shouldn't have trusted Halloway… hell, if this had been my gig from the beginning I'd have covered every base… I should have just treated it the same way instead of actually believing that some stranger would fill me in on everything."
"He intentionally lied to you John. He set you and Dean up. Get over it before it eats you up. We'll figure something out."
666
Present Day
It was early afternoon before either of the brothers awoke. The deep annoying vibrating sound that came from Dean's phone waking the pair of them. Dean rolled over in a half sleep and felt across the cabinet for the offending object with every intention of turning it off but allowed his eyes to focus on the unknown number.
Curiosity getting the better of him, he flipped the phone open, brows pulling together, "Hello?"
"Mr Winchester?" The timid voice asked, the name grabbing his attention.
He pulled himself up in bed, grabbing a pillow from behind him to throw at Sam in order to wake the younger sibling up, "Who is this?"
"We met at the hospital… you and your friend saved my son…"
"Stuart right? You're Stuarts mom?" He saw Sam grumbling and pulling himself up on the other bed, listening to the one sided conversation.
"Yeah, Joanne… Joanna Grant."
"I don't mean to be… rude… but why are you calling?" He closed his eyes, cringing at the reproachful look he saw Sam shoot at him. He could already hear Sam telling him off for being abrupt but he couldn't help it… he hated being woken up from the middle of a dream… especially good ones.
"Stuart's missing. I didn't know who else to call… I tried the police but they said that he hasn't been missing long enough; they said he's probably just out showing his scars off to his friends. But he would have told me where he was… unless…"
"Unless what?"
"Unless he'd gone back to where you found him."
"And why would he do that?" Dean asked, growing more and more tempted to pass the phone over to his brother. Who did this woman think they were? Private eyes? "I told him this thing was dangerous… I'm pretty sure I made it clear that it's pretty deadly."
For a moment Joanna was silent and Dean wondered whether she was going to hang up, but then she answered. "Last night a man showed up at the house. He said he was gonna hunt the thing that hurt Stu… but he wanted his help. I told him he was being stupid but he left his number and now I can't find it…"
"And you think your son went with him?"
"He made it sound like an adventure. Look, I'm sorry. I just thought you and your friend could help… you seemed like you could but I guess I was wrong…"
"Wait… Joanna, wait. What did this guy look like?"
"He was just a normal guy."
"No tats? Piercings? Scars?"
A thoughtful pause and then, "Yeah actually… he had this scar on his face, went all the way down his neck too…"