A/N: Song is Pink Floyd, but all the cool people reading this probably already know that. And look, I updated fairly quickly, too! Aren't I awesome? (Yeah, I know. I'm alright)

Chapter Eleven: Comfortably Numb

Hello.
Is there anybody in there?
Just nod if you can hear me.
Is there anyone home?

Come on, now.
I hear you're feeling down.
Well I can ease your pain,
Get you on your feet again.

Relax.
I need some information first.
Just the basic facts:
Can you show me where it hurts?

There is no pain, you are receding.
A distant ships smoke on the horizon.
You are only coming through in waves.
Your lips move but I can't hear what you're saying.
When I was a child I had a fever.
My hands felt just like two balloons.
Now I got that feeling once again.
I can't explain, you would not understand.
This is not how I am.
I have become comfortably numb.

Ty's body collapsed onto the concrete. The rain was letting up a little bit and the wind had certainly died down, but intermittent drops struck her face. Dean stared at her helplessly for a moment. Fear coursed through him for a moment as he thought that maybe the battle with the demon had actually killed her, that the demon's hold had been so strong that it had yanked her spirit out with it. How could he have let this happen?

A soft moan escaped Ty's lips, causing Dean to exhale in relief, finally releasing the breath he'd been holding unconsciously. He hastily moved off of Ty, fearing that his weight holding her down might be hurting her now.

"Is she okay?"

Dean glanced up at Alex's quiet question. Now that he knew what was motivating him, Dean felt bad about being such a jerk to him these past few days.

Ty groaned again, drawing Dean's attention back to her before he could respond. She was stirring a little bit now, too. Dean waiting expectantly for her to open her eyes.

"Dean?" Ty asked as her eyelids fluttered, finally exposing the bright blue irises that Dean had been waiting for.

"Right here." Dean responded quickly, grabbing her hand and helping her sit up. When that seemed to go okay, Dean slowly helped her back to her feet. Ty looked around at the three men standing around her, shivering slightly. Dean suspected it was from a combination of shock and the cold. He stepped closer to her, moving to draw her into an embrace to try and warm her up a little. Ty's eyes snapped to his face and she stepped back, pulling her hand free from his. Dean's brow furrowed in confusion, but Ty didn't offer any explanation and he had no idea what to say.

Ty backed up a few more steps, then turned and latched onto Sam. Surprised, Sam had to take a step back before he regained his balance. He looked at Dean over Ty's head before he slowly enfolded her in a loose hug.

"Sam?" Ty asked softly against the material of Sam's jacket.

"Yeah, Ty?"

"Can we go inside, please?"

"Yeah. Of course." Sam nodded quickly, "Come on."

Sam shot his brother another look before he guided Ty back towards the hotel. Dean just shrugged. He'd just saved the day, but apparently he'd done something wrong in the process because she didn't want to be anywhere near him. It was kind of infuriating really. Where was the gratitude? Whatever. Figuring out what went on in Ty's head was beyond him.

Sam and Ty moved slowly past Alex, who hadn't moved since the exorcism. Ty paused, reaching out and grabbing Alex's sleeve with one hand. Alex looked from her hand, up her arm to her face. He looked devastated, but he managed to raise an eyebrow questioningly.

"Alex," Ty said slowly, locking eyes with him, "it was her."

Alex stiffened, yanking his sleeve out of Ty's hand and stepping back, "What? How do you know?"

"Sometimes, when she wasn't paying attention to me, I could see what she was doing. And sometimes, I could kind of tell what she was thinking. When she was taunting you, I could tell. She...she thought about it." Ty said, looking away.

Alex stared at Ty incredulously, a multitude of emotions flashing across his face. Ty tried to think of something comforting to say, but she had no words. The demon's thoughts about Alex's parents hadn't been totally coherent, but Ty had gotten an impression about what had happened to them. She couldn't imagine what it was like to be Alex now, knowing that the thing responsible for that had just escaped him, sent back to hell until it could manage to crawl back out again.

Alex stumbled back a few more steps, still staring at Ty, before he finally turned and ran off into the night. Neither of the Winchesters nor Ty bothered to try and stop him. They all knew that nothing they could do or say would help him. Sam resumed their walk back to the hotel and Dean followed sullenly after them. He really should have known that exorcising the demon wasn't going to result in a perfectly, happy ending. There were still all kinds of complicated issues floating around, the very kind that Dean usually preferred to avoid by leaving town at high speeds with his radio blasting. Glancing over his shoulder in the direction Alex had gone, Dean wondered if the kid wasn't about to do the same thing. He wouldn't be surprised, nor would he blame him. Shaking his head and wishing for a beer, Dean paused before following Ty and Sam into the hotel building. His gaze latched onto his car, the street light still laying across the hood. Cursing again at the injustice of it, Dean debated whether he should bring it up with the hotel management. On the one hand, he might be able to get their rooms for free, but on the other he didn't really want to draw attention to the fact that a '67 Chevy Impala had been here. No sense in leaving any clues for the FBI. Besides, the jerks at the hotel would probably think he ran into the stupid pole anyway. Dean walked over to the Impala, carefully brushing some of the broken glass from the light bulb off of her. They'd have to stop by Bobby's so he could pound out the dent and fix up the paint.

"Don't worry, baby. You won't even have a scar, I promise." Dean soothed as he got in the car and carefully began backing out from under the pole.

He hadn't noticed before, but he was greatly irritated to find that the motorcycle Ty had lifted stood unscathed in the spot next to where the Impala had been parked. They were going to need to leave sooner rather than later if they wanted to avoid questions about the light pole and the motorcycle. He knew that Ty wouldn't be too happy about piling back into the car and getting back on the road right away, but it really couldn't be helped.

Dean re-parked the Impala on the other side of the lot, giving her a parting pat on the roof before he went inside. Sam and Ty were nowhere to be seen in the lobby, so Dean headed upstairs to their rooms, shaking some of the water out of his hair as he went. He could really use a hot shower and a good night's sleep, but he knew it was pointless to even think about it. They could maybe afford to take a quick shower and change their clothes before they left town.

Dean paused in the hallway outside of Sam and Alex's room. He could hear his brother and Ty talking inside. He debated whether he should leave them alone, join them or just eavesdrop, but decided he was too tired to dance around the problem at the moment. He might as well cut to the chase. So, without bothering to knock, he opened the door and strolled inside.

Conversation abruptly stopped when Dean walked in. Ty was sitting cross-legged on the bed next to Sam, a towel wrapped around her shoulders. Her eyes were glistening, like she was fighting back tears. When Dean entered, she glanced at him, then quickly looked away. That subtle reaction caused Dean to stiffen, halting in his tracks.

"Dean..." Sam began, standing up.

Dean cut him off before he could try to explain, try to give him some reason why he should just let them talk for a bit, "Don't 'Dean' me. What'd I do?"

Ty coughed as if she was startled by the question. Dean leaned to his right, cocking his head to try and catch her eyes, "Ty? Obviously something's wrong and it's got something to do with me. You've never had a problem yelling at me before, so out with it."

"Dude!" Sam protested, stepping over to Dean, attempting to pull him aside and talk some sense into him.

Dean shrugged him off, moving closer to Ty. Ty finally looked up at him, anger shining through her barely constrained tears. Dean held her gaze, settling his weight between his feet as if he were squaring off for a fight. The only difference being that in this case he was prepared to take whatever blows she intended to throw without trying to dodge or fight back. He probably had it coming.

"How could you not know?" she demanded in a furious whisper, "Couldn't you tell it wasn't me?"

And there it was. He'd been right. He did have it coming. He should have known. He'd sensed that something wasn't right, but had been too distracted by his own desires. Even though they hadn't spent an amazing amount of time together, he knew Ty. He should have been able to tell.

Rather than give her some excuse, Dean just shrugged. He knew it would just piss her off more, but he'd rather she decked him than try to justify his mistake.

Ty dropped the towel and stood up, holding Dean's gaze. He held his ground, waiting for the physical blow, but she made no move to hit him. She still looked angry, but he could almost feel the pain radiating off of her and knew that the anger was just a front.

"I know what I said before, but you know, I actually thought you cared about me." Ty said with a bitter, self-deprecating laugh.

Sam stared wide-eyed at his brother, willing him to say something, to reassure Ty that he did care. It was like witnessing a car crash; he was watching helplessly as his brother's chance for a real relationship crumbled before his eyes. It was really heartbreaking for him because Dean spent so much of his life trying to make it possible for other people to be happy. Sam just wished that Dean could experience some of that himself. No matter what Dean might say to the contrary, he knew that his brother really wanted more for himself than one-night stands. And yet, he knew that there was nothing he could do to help him. Dean had to do this himself or he'd never really solve anything. Unfortunately, Sam wasn't sure that Dean was ready to make that leap even if it meant losing Ty.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Ty demanded, when Dean remained silent.

"What do you want me to say?" Dean asked in reply.

Ty growled in frustration and turned away, moving past Dean. Dean noticed as she moved by him that a bruise had risen on her neck, evidence of the earlier demonic battle in the church. He impulsively wanted to go to her, push her hair out of the way and examine the damage so that he could make sure she was okay, but he restrained himself.

"Shouldn't we be leaving or something?" Ty asked impatiently, crossing her arms over her chest, her back to Dean.

"Yeah," Dean nodded, "soon as we can."

"Fine." Ty agreed, heading for the bathroom, "I'll meet you at the car in a half hour."

Dean knew a dismissal when he heard one, but he waited until Ty shut the door firmly behind her before he turned to leave the room.

Sam fell in step with his brother, quickly following him down the hall. Dean glanced at him questioningly, but didn't say anything or stop his progress towards his room.

"Why won't you tell her?" Sam asked without any preamble.

"Tell her what?" Dean asked, pulling the key out of his pocket and opening the door to his room.

"How you feel about her." Sam elaborated, following Dean into the room.

"What good would that do?" Dean asked, shoving his clothes back into his bag.

Sam frowned, not pleased with Dean's more pessimistic than usual attitude. Grabbing the bag out of Dean's hand, Sam held it out of his brother's reach in order to command his attention, "A lot of good, Dean. She cares about you, Dean. But she needs to know that you care about her, too, before anything else can happen. You have to tell her, Dean, or you'll lose her."

Dean moved to grab the bag back, but Sam yanked it out of his reach again, using his superior height to his advantage. Dean glared at his brother, not amused in the least bit. He made another unsuccessful grab for his bag before he growled a frustrated response, "What's the point, Sam? What's the goddamn point?"

Sam lowered his arm, confusion crossing his features, "What do you mean, what's the point?"

"She's either gonna leave or she's gonna die, Sam!" Dean snapped.

Sam shook his head, his brow furrowed in concern, "The demon's gone, Dean. What makes me you think..."

"It doesn't matter." Dean denied, pacing back and forth with his anxiety, "I can't protect her. Being with me will always put her in danger. Hell, Sam. The yellow-eyed demon's gone and I still got her possessed."

"It's not your fault..." Sam began.

"Like hell it isn't." Dean interrupted, "The demon told me. She said that I made her vulnerable. I hurt her and it made her easy pickings for that evil bitch."

Sam stared at Dean, slightly dumbfounded at the conclusion his brother had reached, "Dean, it ever occur to you that maybe you hurt her by not talking to her?"

Dean snatched up his bag and resumed his packing, ignoring his brother. Sam sighed and gathered up a few of Ty's belongings to bring to her in case she wanted to change into some dry clothes. Sam hoped that maybe his words would make it through Dean's thick skull. Before Dean came in, Ty had managed to wrench some of her own feelings out into the open. She cared deeply about his brother. Sam knew that. Just as he knew that Dean cared deeply about her. The problem was, she couldn't see that like he could. Not after everything that had happened. She was convinced that Dean hadn't picked up on the demon sooner because he didn't really care about her, that the harsh words the demon had spewed about Dean preferring Ty possessed might be true. Nothing Sam could say would change her mind, either. She had to hear it from Dean.

"Brought you some clothes." Sam announced as he walked back in and heard that the water was no longer running.

"Just drop them inside the door please." Ty called back from inside the bathroom.

Sam complied, opening the bathroom door just enough to push the clothes through the opening before closing it again. Sam hoped that Ty and his brother could work things out, but he mentally prepared himself for the worst. He'd be sad to see Ty go. He really did like her. It was like having a sister around, especially when she took his side against Dean. And although Sam loved his brother, it was nice to have someone else to talk to. Sam frowned as he packed up his stuff, leaving out a change of clothes for himself. They couldn't go on like this forever, just the two of them against the world. Dean had to know that. Mentally, Sam added Ty to his list of covert contacts so that when Dean finally changed his mind, he could contact her.

Ty emerged from the bathroom a few moments later, toweling dry her hair. She paused when she saw Sam, taking in the sad, resigned look on his face. Ty knew what that look meant. They were taking her home.

Ty crossed the room and hugged Sam tightly. She would miss him. She wished that he didn't have to be a casualty caught in the crossfire of her self-destructing relationship with Dean, but there was no way around it. Nevertheless, she tried to express her regret in her embrace and hoped that Sam would get the message. A moment later, Ty pulled away, feeling a little embarrassed by her sentimentality. Not looking up, she forced a weak laugh.

"So, how screwed up am I, huh? Two demonic possessions in under a year. First, the yellow-eyed demon and now his daughter."

"You know, I was possessed by a demon since we saw you last." Sam revealed. He didn't like to talk about it, didn't like the half-formed memories it brought back to the surface, but he felt it was important to share with Ty. Judging from the wide-eyed look of surprise on her face, he was probably right, "Sister of this one, I guess. She called herself Meg when we first met her. Dean and I exorcised her, but she came back and possessed me. She made me do things...used me to get to other hunters. Thankfully, our friend Bobby caught on to her. He and Dean managed to exorcise her again."

"How did..." Ty began to ask, stunned by this new information.

Sam gave her a sad smile, "How did she get to me? Demons look for insecurities. They use our fears to worm their way in. I was afraid of what the yellow-eyed demon had planned for me, why he picked me and what it meant. Even though he's gone, it doesn't necessarily mean that my destiny's changed. Especially since I don't even know what it is. She used that to get to me."

Ty thought over Sam's words. Something he'd said had triggered a memory that was floating just below the surface and she struggled to reclaim it.

Sam misread her expression as doubt and tried to press his point home, "It's not your fault, Ty. None of this is your fault, okay?"

Ty shook her head, then held up a hand quickly before Sam could say anymore, "No, it's not that. The demon knew something about you. She said that everyone thinks your special except her. I think...I think you're supposed to lead them."

Sam shook his head, "To do what?"

Ty looked up apologetically, "I don't know. She didn't really think about that. She was just thinking that she's not following you."

Sam and Ty both fell silent as they digested this information, trying to unravel what it meant. Sam's frown deepened when he realized he still didn't have enough pieces of the puzzle to figure it out. Before he could press Ty any further, a loud knock sounded on the door.

"Hurry it up!" Dean called through the barrier.

"Fifteen minutes!" Sam called back. He turned back to Ty, "I don't know what this means, but it doesn't change anything."

Ty nodded her agreement, although she was sure that Sam had something else in mind when he said that, "No, it doesn't."

Ty caught Sam glance longingly towards the bathroom and smiled slightly, "Go ahead, Sam. I'll head downstairs and meet you at the car."

Sam studied Ty's face for a second before he accepted her proposal. He knew that she would have to face his brother again sooner or later, but he wasn't sure that she was ready for it just yet. However, her emotions were locked away, making it impossible for him to determine anything. Still, he couldn't really protect her from his own brother and whatever pain might accompany him, nor was it really his place to get any more involved than he already was. So, he nodded and headed to the bathroom for a quick shower of his own.

Ty watched him go, similar thoughts running through her mind. She couldn't use Sam as a shield any longer. As much as it might hurt and as raw as her wounds were still, she needed to face Dean.

Ty took a deep breath and mentally prepared herself. She found that she was psyching herself up for a fight and had to force herself to stop. She didn't want to fight. That would just make things worse.

"Come on, Ty. Just get it over with." she muttered, making herself take that first step out of the hotel room and then the next one down the hall. After those first few steps, she found the rest were much easier and all of a sudden she was outside again, standing in the predawn light that the retreating storm clouds had left behind, staring at the cause of everything as he leaned against his car. He hadn't noticed her yet or if he had, he hadn't acknowledged her. He was staring up at the sky, the lighter gray of the coming day washing over his face. Ty's breath hitched in her chest at the sight of him. The demon's voice echoed in her ears, repeating her insecurities back to her. Ty shook her head to be rid of the reminder and the movement caused Dean to look over at her.

'It's tragic, really,' Ty thought to herself as she found herself looking into his hazel eyes, feeling lost in them even though they were still some distance apart, 'you really do love him.'

She'd told herself not to, told herself that it would only lead to heartbreak, but in the end, she just couldn't help it. It hadn't even taken that long. Maybe it had been pointless fighting it. Maybe she'd loved him all along and just hadn't known it, hadn't let herself believe it until the demon had made lying to herself impossible.

'No!' Ty silently yelled at herself, 'Stop this! It doesn't matter.'

"Hey." Dean said quietly, drawing her attention away from her own inner turmoil.

He pushed away from the car, spreading his weight between his feet, shoving his hands in his pockets. Ty could see the tension in his posture, feel it between them like an invisible wall. It kept her from moving any closer to him and in the grander scheme of things, she supposed that was probably for the best.

"Hey." she replied for lack of anything better to say.

An awkward silence settled between them. Dean wanted to say a lot of things to her, most of them apologies for the millions of things he'd done wrong since he'd met her, but the words wouldn't come. Disgusted with his own shortcomings, he settled for, "Ready to go?"

Ty nodded mutely. She debated it for a moment, but decided to go ahead and ask, "Where are we going?"

If he said that they were heading back to Phoenix to take her home, she'd accept that as the end of it. And she knew that was probably what he was going to say, but she couldn't help but ask, just in case there was some slight chance that he might say something else.

"Figured we'd stop by Bobby's so I can fix up the car." Dean shrugged.

Ty mulled that answer over. He hadn't said he was taking her home, but he hadn't said they were going somewhere else, either. They were just stopping by at someone named Bobby's place. Where they were stopping on the way to, he hadn't said and she didn't want to press him. It wasn't a good answer, but it was one she could live with for the moment.

"I...uh...got all your stuff in the car." Dean said, glancing back at the Impala. He continued to avoid eye contact as he continued, "Bobby's place isn't too far, but we can stop somewhere on the way if you're hungry. I'll probably need to stop for gas anyway so..."

"Dean." Ty interrupted, "I'm fine."

Dean nodded, his eyes drifting down to rest on the pavement. He shifted his weight a bit before he said anything else and when he did speak, it was hesitant, "Maybe when we get there we could...I don't know...talk?"

Ty didn't want to agree to anything. She'd already reverted into self-defense mode and was unwilling to put herself in a position that vulnerable. Still, she wasn't yet able to deny him outright, so she settled for a noncommittal shrug. Where was Sam already? Hadn't it been fifteen minutes yet?

Ty picked at her sleeves and fiddled with the buttons on her cuffs, pretending she couldn't feel the weight of Dean's gaze on her until Sam finally emerged from the hotel. Neither noticed, but they both heaved small sighs of relief and moved to get in the car as Sam walked over. Sam noticed, but their similar reactions didn't amuse him like they normally did. In fact, this had to be one of the emptiest victories the Winchesters had ever had.

Alex's truck had been gone when Dean had gone down to the Impala, so they decided not to wait for him, but headed out for Bobby's. The drive was quiet. No one argued about the music, no one offered up any embarrassing stories, no one started name calling contests to pass the time. The silence made Ty want to cry, which frustrated her because she hated crying more than almost anything. Each passing minute devoid of conversation was another minute in which her bond with the boys died a little more. Besides that, the less distraction the boys provided, the more time Ty could spend thinking about what had just happened. As a result, Ty was immensely relieved when she felt exhaustion washing over her. She welcomed sweet sleep as it pulled down her eyelids, a sigh escaping her as she let it lead her away from her problems for just a little while.

That soft sound made Dean glance back at her. He, too, felt some measure of relief at seeing her curled up in the backseat, sleeping peacefully. Not only did the fact that she was asleep relieve some of the tension in the car, but Dean was glad that she was getting some rest. She definitely could use it after everything they'd been through.

He really wasn't sure what he should do about her now. Sure, there were some things that he had figured out pretty well. Did he care about her more than he probably should? Yes. More than all the other girls that he'd basically just used as distractions? Definitely. Did he want this life for her? Big resounding no. And it was more than just the hunting thing. Sure, he wished that she hadn't decided that this life of danger and tragedy was for her, but it was also him, specifically, that he felt had been a bad decision on her part. He wasn't the guy for her. Seriously. She'd pretty much said so herself back when she'd told him why Sam got girlfriends and he just got girls. And even if he wanted to be more for her, he just didn't know how. The damn demon had been right about that much, at least.

He could explain things to her. He could tell her that he'd known something was wrong the whole time she'd been possessed, but that he'd been denying it because he hadn't wanted to accept the possibility that he might end up like Sam and Madison. He'd already caused Ty's death once. That was bad enough. He didn't know if he could do it again, especially not if he had to be the one holding the gun. So, he'd ignored his instincts, justifying the discrepancies in her character as results of all the emotional trauma she'd been through rather than something more sinister. But why tell her any of that? What was the point when she was probably better off without him and this was a convenient means of driving her away? Dean's hands tightened on the steering wheel and he tensed a little in his seat as he thought about how this would probably play out. Ty would most likely end up hating him and Sam would harass him for months about it no doubt, but it had to be done.

Dean put a tight lid on his own emotions, locking down his own feelings so that they wouldn't get in the way of what he had to do. He'd do it once they got to Bobby's. That would give him enough time to push down his feelings for Ty so that he could look her in the face when he ended it. Frowning, Dean wished that he could fight another demon instead.