Hey guys! Hope life is treating you all better than it's treating Sammy right now. :) Sometimes I think I write this stuff because it makes me feel better about my own life. I can always say, "Hey I failed this test, I suck, but at least I'm not a vessel for Lucifer like poor Sam on the show." or I can say, "I just got in another fight with my roommate, but at least I don't get strangled or drowned every other day." Life is all about the silver lining. :)

Okay. I'm in a weird mood. Moving on.

Thanks for the reviews and I hope you enjoy the story!


Dean didn't want to do it.

He had to. He knew that. He needed help and he needed support and he needed someone to tell him what the heck to do. His dad was dead. He could only think of one other person to trust.

He knew all that, but he still didn't want to.

To say it was to admit that it wasn't just going away.

Not like I can deny what's going on anyway.

With that thought, Dean dialed Bobby.

"Hey, idjit! You haven't called me in a long time! What the heck is going on? It's the darn apocalypse, boy, what do you think I'm going to assume when I don't hear from you?"

Bobby's growl was one of the best sounds Dean had heard in a long time.

"B-Bobby."

Dean's strained word brought silence from the other end.

"What's wrong, Dean? What happened?" Bobby's voice was much softer now. He obviously could tell something really bad had happened.

Dean didn't mean to let it all come spilling out, but the stress was too much and he knew Bobby would listen and together it was enough. Within ten minutes he had spilled the whole horrible story to Bobby, who had listened without saying a word.

"He...he doesn't smile, he doesn't talk, he doesn't...crap, he doesn't do anything except cry and shiver and shake. He has nightmares and screams all the time. He has flashbacks that leave him an empty shell for hours. It's killing me, Bobby, and worse I think it's killing him too."

Dean didn't think he had hid his stress well at all.

Bobby's words a second later confirmed that. "Just take a deep breath, son. We'll figure this out. That brother of yours has been through some pretty bad crap and come out okay. This is just going to take a little longer. He'll come back, you'll see."

Dean took a deep breath, let it out, and nodded, even though Bobby couldn't see him. "You're right. Yeah. Everything'll be fine."

"Come on up to my place. Maybe being somewhere familiar will help. I can help out for awhile since you haven't heard from that darn angel of yours for a while now."

Almost as if summoned by the words, Castiel appeared right in front of Dean, pulling a startled cry from Dean.

"Dean? Dean, what's wrong?"

"Bobby, I'm fine! Sorry, man, Castiel just doesn't understand the idea of knocking. Scared the living crap out of me. I gotta go, man. Call you back soon."

Dean hung up on his friend and looked at the angel. Castiel was apprising him, looking concerned.

All the commotion had woken Sam up. It seemed to be a better day for his brother, Sam willingly looking at the two of them.

"Where the heck have you been?" Dean asked, his stress bleeding out into his voice.

"I am very sorry, Dean, but there were a few complications. They are no longer a problem. Everything is prepared and we are getting ready for battle. It is time. If there are any hunters that want to be there for the battle, it would be wise to call them now. I am going to remain here and escort you all to where Lucifer is when you are ready."

Dean took a deep breath, glancing at Sam.

"Are you ready, Sammy?"

Sam glanced at him briefly, terror flashing in his eyes, then he nodded.

Dean flipped his phone open. "I have a few calls to make then."

...

Sam felt like the world was shifting in and out of focus. Sometimes he was in that horrible place with Lucifer, seeing scene after scene that left him screaming and shaking, unable to think properly.

Sometimes he felt a little more aware, hearing Dean talking to him, aware of his brother's worry. His own panic and the fear that seemed so a part of him now kept him from trying to ease his brother's worry.

It felt worse if he tried to talk.

He understood that something was different now though. Cas was here. The angel looked brighter than normal to his hell-scarred eyes, invisible scars that ran much deeper than any physical wound could.

Something told him that he was going to have to face his nightmares, but for real this time.

The thought terrified him, but then he remembered why he was doing all of this in the first place. Even through all of the pain and fear, he remembered that.

He could never forget Dean.

...

Pastor Jim and Bobby arrived at the same time, Ellen and Jo arriving an hour later.

Bobby had filled everyone in on what to expect when it came to Sam, and Dean couldn't have been more grateful.

He wasn't sure he would have been able to say it all again.

...

Pastor Jim froze for a moment as he walked into the motel room, his heart stopping as he laid eyes on one of the young men who had become family to him.

Sam was visibly different. He carried himself differently. The spark of life was gone from his eyes. He shied away from all of them, shaking like he was frightened of them. Dean offered them a half-hearted smile, but was staying by Sam's side, hoping to keep his baby brother calm.

Oh heaven. What did this young boy do to deserve this? Please help him.

...

"So, we are seriously facing the army of the devil with one angel, one powered up kid, and five hunters?" Jo's skepticism was clear in her voice.

Castiel raised an eyebrow in her direction and she stepped back, uncomfortable at the angel's serious but intimidating gaze.

"We are prepared. More angels will be joining us the moment we appear in the field where Lucifer has gathered. Besides, I believe Samuel to be older than you, is he not? 'Kid' refers to a young human."

"And Sam is a hunter, Jo, don't you forget that. He's the only reason this is possible at all." Dean's voice was cold, his ire not hidden.

Jo held up her hands, defensively, but was cut off by her mother. "Okay, then. Is this everyone?"

"Yeah." Dean turned to Sam. He gently grabbed his younger brother's arms. "Sammy. It's time. Are you ready? You remember what to do?"

Sam stared at him a moment, then nodded.

"No, Sammy, I need to hear you say it. I'm not going into this unless I'm sure you're ready." Dean's voice was gentle but firm.

Sam closed his eyes for a moment, then began to speak, his whole form shivering like it was physically painful to do so. "I have to hold him still with my powers. Cas is going to say the spell."

"That's good, Sammy. Good."

Dean was about to turn back to Cas and give the go ahead, when he suddenly felt Sam turn him again. To his surprise, his baby brother pulled him into a hug. It was the most contact Sam had allowed since it had happened.

"Sammy?" Dean inquired, though was quick to hug him back.

"I'm scared, Dean."

It was the most Sam had sounded like his old self in well over two weeks and it broke Dean's heart.

"It'll be okay, Sammy. As long as we're together, it'll be okay." Dean whispered, hoarsely.

Suddenly aware of the watching hunters, Dean pulled away a little, patting Sam on the shoulder, swiping across his eyes quickly. "We're ready. Let's go."

...

Sam blinked as the view under them suddenly changed.

He had no idea where they were.

A huge field surrounded them. Sam could feel the evil swirling around them, offset by the hunters and angel, and he shivered with a small whimper.

He's here.

Sam stood at the front of the group, facing the army of demons ahead of them, trying to clear his mind and focus.

Suddenly, the band of hunters were flanked by hundreds of angels, swords drawn.

The influx of light brought Sam hope and he felt more like himself than he had in ages.

Almost as if at unspoken command, the angels and demons charged forward, suddenly locked in deadly combat.

The hunters joined them.

The chaos swirled around Sam and he was upset to realize that somehow he had been separated from his brother.

Dean! DEAN! DEAN I NEED YOU HERE! I can't do this alone.

That's when he spoke.

The one from his nightmares.

"Well, well. If it isn't Sam Winchester. I'm impressed, Samuel. After our last meeting, I wasn't sure you'd have the guts to show up."

Lucifer stood, facing him, a cocky smirk on his face, gazing at Sam in contempt and amusement.

Sam simply glared at him, gathering his powers, determined to fight his fear. He could do this. He had to.

Please. Please help me. If You really want me to do this, don't let me do it alone.

Sam lashed out with his powers at Lucifer, testing their effectiveness with a violent push.

His enemy staggered back, taken by surprise.

"Surely you can do better than that, Samuel." Lucifer scoffed.

Sam dropped to one knee, dodging the flow of power, dangerously fatal power, that Lucifer had sent him, using his own powers to reflect what he couldn't dodge.

Okay. It's time.

Gathering his powers, focusing harder than he ever had before, pouring his whole being, every fiber of strength he had, Sam reached out and grasped Lucifer with a firm grip.

"NOW, CAS!" Sam screamed.

The young Winchester suddenly heard the angel's voice nearby, shouting with power and authority words in an ancient tongue that hadn't been spoken or heard for millenia.

Lucifer let out a scream of anger, pushing against his prison violently.

Demons, angels, and hunters alike froze to watch the battle as Sam and the devil faced off.

Lucifer raged against Sam's hold, yelling incoherently.

Sam's body shook with the strain, tears streamed down his face.

He let out a scream as a gash suddenly opened, a wound created by the devil's attacks against him.

He refused to let go.

Another gash, longer and bloodier, opened.

Another.

Another.

Still, Sam refused to release him.

Sam gathered even more power, feeling the strain on his mind as he did so, fortifying his hold on Lucifer.

The amount of power the youngest Winchester was using was literally tearing him apart, gashes beginning to open more rapidly, Sam's cries making hunters and angels alike wince in sympathy and horror.

Long gashes opened, one by one.

Sam almost lost his hold when he felt something tear inside of him. Blood welled in his mouth and for a moment he thought he was done.

That's when he felt Dean's arms wrap around him.

"You're not alone, Sammy. I'm here."

Sam could hear the tears in his older brother's voice, but took strength simply from his presence.

"You're not alone."

Pain in his chest.

"I'm right here, Sammy."

He could barely breathe.

"You can do this."

Blood filled his throat and mouth, his own blood.

"I have faith in you."

Lucifer screamed.

Something in his mind was near snapping point.

"I love you, Sammy. You hear me, little brother? Always."

Dean's teary voice, strong yet vulnerable, determined but frightened, was the last thing Sam heard as Cas yelled out the last part of the spell, the angel looking exhausted from the power the spell was draining from him.

Lucifer let out a shrill shriek, then he was gone in a burst of flame.

Sam slumped bonelessly in Dean's arms.

Gasping.

Bleeding.

Dying.

"Sammy?"