Another Sam, Charlie, Shamus update. Thanks for reading! Special thanks to my awesome beta JackFan2!

AAU 11 Fly away

Shamus rumbled around the cave mumbling beneath his breath. He was leaving. His little haven had gotten too blasted crowded. Turning the corner he stared at the two humans curled up in the sand. The runtling was a thorn in his side. Unlike the younger boy, he questioned everything when he should remain silent. He fought like a banshee. Shamus smiled at the thought. It gave the Clurichaun great pleasure to beat him into submission.

Too bad he needed him, needed him to carry his precious wine up the mountain to his new home. His magic could only do so much. The churlish runt would get him where he needed to go then… then the runt would be of no further use.

Shamus would never admit his magic was fading. Just like he wouldn't admit he was growing old. He was not immortal, but his lifespan was coming to an end. After a thousand years the power he coveted was deserting him. He blamed it on the humans. They had broken his barrels and angered the Gods. Growling beneath his breath he stepped into the cave

"Wake up ya lazy gob!" Shamus yelled at the top of his lungs and kicked Sam in the hip. "It's time to get me treasure on the road."

Shamus had grown fond of Charlie, at least as fond as the churlish Clurichaun could be. He merely threw his empty cup in Charlie's direction. "Get movin ya lazy sot, we've got work 'ta do."

Sam grimaced as the pain shot up his hip. He'd learned days ago not to antagonize the little creature. When he chose, Shamus could be vicious. Slowly, Sam rose to his feet, careful not to rise to his full height. Exasperated and sore, he stood hunched over to spare his back from scraping the rough rock surface of the roof as much as he could. Even at its highest point, the dank cave was barely four foot in height, not very comfortable for a man who stood six foot four. Shifting he grimaced in pain when he smacked the back of his head against the rocky ceiling. Grumbling he swore beneath his breath. Rubbing the injured spot he looked across at Charlie.

The boy beside him was moving slow. Charlie seemed depressed, at least more depressed than usual. Sam's heart bled for the kid, but there wasn't a thing he could do to cheer him up. Even bad jokes seemed beyond him this day.

Narrowing his eyes Sam's gaze followed the little creature as he strode across the cave. Shamus was up to something; the Clurichaun had been rattling around in the back of the cave for days.

'Well,' he groaned silently, 'this was one helluva rescue,' He only hoped Dean was ok. Half conscious at the time, he was pretty sure Shamus had done something magical. From his vantage point on the ground it looked like a massive wall of energy, but he couldn't be sure. It had been six days since he'd run afoul of the Clurichaun – Six days of the creatures' verbal and physical abuse and Dean had not come for him.

"Dean," he whispered quietly. "Where are you?"

Shamus walked by kicking him in the ankle, "Get movin runtling, time ya earned yer keep. Ya wanna get fed ya work." With a flick of his hand and a mumbled word, the chains rattled and disconnected from the wall. "Into the back with ya now and move me treasure afore I gets upset." Shamus saw the faraway look in his prisoner's eyes.

Hearing Sam's quiet words the Clurichaun chuckled maliciously. "Don't be lookin fer yer fiend, he ain't coming fer ya runt. He ain't coming fer ya, he ain't even breathin no more so get yer self movin afore I move ya," Shamus cackled angrily.

Sam shuffled toward the back of the cave. His eyes were hard and unflinching as he growled at the little creature. 'Dean isn't dead,' he screamed silently. He didn't care what the slimy little worm said. Dean was alive and coming for him. It was that thought that kept him moving. Dean wouldn't give up until he found him, of that Sam was certain.

Behind him he heard Charlie stumble and grunt in pain, but the young man quickly righted himself knowing Shamus would punish him if he didn't.

With a whispered word Shamus touched the rusted iron.

Sam heard the scraping twisting of metal as the chains were pulled from the wall.

Wrapped around their ankles the iron grated against rock as the young hunter and the weary Charlie moved to do Shamus's bidding. Stumbling through the cave the heavy metal caught on the rocky outcropping biting deep into the soft flesh around their ankles

Shamus didn't care about the comfort of his captives; he only cared about moving his precious wine from the overcrowded cave to his new home in the mountain. With a nearly constant stream of cackling, he berated his captives, mostly Sam, endlessly; this morning, however, even Charlie became an object of abuse.

With rocks and sticks he herded them toward his horde.

At the back of the cave two carts sat side by side, laden with the heavy barrels of wine.

Sam groaned. He knew what was coming when the chains flew through the air. The sound of screeching filled the cave as the rusted metal attached itself to the front of the cart.

Shamus chuckled and sipped from the cup that was constantly by his side. The look on the runts face was precious. Surprise, fear and defeat, maybe he could bring the runtling around after all. Two slaves to do his bidding would ease his life greatly.

For the first time in a hundred years Shamus doubted his magic. He was a Clurichaun, but his power had waned with the passing of time, the wine and ale doing as much as his age to mute the energy he needed. He knew his limits, snapping his fingers and moving his wine to the new location was impossible. What he could do was shield them from prying eyes. He would put a glamour around the carts and make them invisible to the world. His captives would do all the hard work and he could save his magic.

He sneered as he drove them out of the cave and up the hill. The whip in his hand snapping in the air close to their straining backs. They would pull the wagons carrying his precious cargo across the mountain. His new home waited.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Well another chapter down - Sam and Charlie are at the mercy of a cruel master. Will they survive the long trek to Shamus's new home??

Hey, thanks for reading and reviewing, !! Huggers