You must only think of me…
The two cars left the motel parking and the brothers slowly followed them. Darkness was falling and the headlights showed up very well in the rearview mirrors of the cars they were following. But since they knew where the demons were headed Sam directed a change of route after a few miles. It was a slightly longer, bumpier road but at least the demons wouldn't know for certain that they were being followed. After a little while Dean, something obviously preying on his mind, asked:
"Are we calling Bobby in on this or not? It feels as though this is mostly our problem."
"I don't think we are, Sam replied slowly. I know he expects us to but… what if he got hurt or died? He isn't a young man anymore."
Reflective silence followed the exchange. Then Dean grinned and said:
"And if we said that to his face we'd be in BIG trouble. Maybe the man is getting on in years but he is certainly getting more cunning as well."
The brothers grinned at the thought of telling Bobby that they thought he was too old to go demon hunting with them. But in the end they decided that they would put him in harm's way when they couldn't help it and not a minute sooner. After all, they were going after something closely linked to their own blood and if blood was to be spilled they preferred it to be theirs. Or rather the enemies'. Bobby would have to wait this one out on the sideline. Dean stepped on the gas a little more. After some time Sam asked:
"So, what's the plan?"
"Besides killing everything in sight and making sure they don't get whatever is in that grave?
"Yes, Dean, besides that", Sam said patiently.
"Well, I suppose we'll have to see what measures grand-grand has taken. But if he thinks like we do I bet there'll be a surprise. And we just have to hope that whatever it is it doesn't harm humans."
A couple of minutes of busy silence followed as they both formulated a game plan each. This was something they had recently begun doing. Before it had always been their father who had decided how they would take something on but after they had started hunting themselves they both felt equally responsible. When both were done they started talking and usually they wove their respective ideas together as a whole, the resulting idea stronger and better than any one of them. It also gave them valuable insights in what improvised actions each brother would fall back to if their original idea didn't work out. This was their way of using their differences to their advantege. When they found the turn that lead them onto the gravel road they had formulated a good plan. Well, it was a plan anyway.
They parked in a deep depression to be out of sight, no other cars within view yet. It was to be expected with Dean beind the wheel. Then they put in one last phone call to Bobby and told him what they were about to do, listened to him scolding them for not having called earlier, accepted his advice on improving their plan and hung up. Sam looked thoughtfully out the window and said:
"Bobby was worried. Do you think he is right? Are we the risks we are taking too great?"
"Of course not, we have a plan. Don't worry Sammy, your big brother is here to take care of you."
Sam rolled his eyes and bit back the answer and they went out to investigate the area.
Soon after their arrival two other cars drove up the gravel road but they didn't head for the depression to hide. They weren't expecting anyone else to be here. Dean and Sam lay waiting near a mound on which a large, chipped stone precariously leaned. It was an old hunter's trick, if there was something close to you that was likely to draw attention it would probably be a good hiding place as people's eyes would be constantly drawn to that feature. Now they only hoped it would throw off demons as well because, even if they hadn't known it, it was obvious that the people arriving at the scene weren't human. If they had been there would have been more glancing around, more drawing together as a group. Instead they immediately spread out in the dark, silent, searching, looking worringly intent…
