Still not over! There's another chapter or two coming, at least, and I'm already planning a third installment. :) For now though, enjoy this chapter, and please do let me know what you think so I know ya'll are still reading. Thanks so much! Sorry this took so long; there was school work (ugh) and a church retreat, and I think I caught something out there...

Chapter 12

The fact that Dean Winchester had showed up on his doorstep unannounced was not unusual. After the death of his younger brother this old place had become as much his home as it was Bobby's.

What had Bobby staring in shock were the first words out of Dean's mouth.

"I'm getting married."

He had to blink a few times before he could answer that one. "Excuse me?"

"I'm getting married," Dean repeated. "To Lisa." he didn't seem to quite believe it himself.

"You're serious?"

"Oh yeah...I'm serious. I uh...I don't think I've ever been more serious in my life."

All right...so it wasn't completely unexpected. Bobby knew he'd been in Indiana with the Braedens this past several months, but this was still more than a bit sudden.

He moved aside to let Dean in, and closed the door behind him. "So...are you telling me you've already asked her, or that you're planning to?"

"I already asked her, she said yes...so here I am," he shrugged, tossing his arms out wide. "Go friggin' figure, right?"

"Just a little," Bobby snorted. He shook his head, "But this is good, Dean. Really. This is really good."

Dean grinned—something Bobby hadn't seen a lot of in the past three years. "Yeah, I know. It is." The smile faded. "I just wish..."

"I know."

The boy stared at the floor for a moment. "He said something about sorta being able to see what's going on down here...so I guess at least he'll know," he said quietly.

Silence fell, until Bobby cleared his throat. "So what the hell are you doing here? You should have just called me; I'd have come whenever you needed me there."'

Dean looked up again and shrugged. "You're really the only person I've got to tell, and I figured you deserved to hear it in person. Besides...that being the case, hangin' out here for a couple of days is really the only bachelor party I'm gonna get."

Bobby resolved then to make the best of this. No, Sam wasn't here, and he knew that was painful for them both. But it was the best thing that had happened in a long time, and he refused to let it pass without the fanfare it deserved.

"Are you kidding? Just because I'm all ya got and I ain't as young as I used to be doesn't mean we're just gonna sit around here like old geezers. You tell me the date, and we'll do it up right the night before."

"Well we don't exactly have a date...Lisa's parents are coming down from up-state as soon as they can, and she's got two or three close friends that apparently have to be there. As soon as we can get them all together we're just gonna head to the courthouse; that's all."

"That's it?"

Dean raised an eyebrow at him. "Bobby, do I look like the cute-little-church-wedding kinda guy?"

Bobby smirked a little. "I guess not."

"I'm just glad she went with that. If she'd really wanted a wedding I don't think I could have said no to her, but I'm definitely much happier this way."

"As long as you're happy."

"Bobby, I swear, if you get mushy on me I will be all over kicking your ass."

He chuckled. "Come on; I'll get you a drink."

Lisa had said her parents should arrive at the end of the week, so Dean figured they had two or three days before they should head back to Cicero. That day it was already late and Dean was tired from the drive, so after Bobby had grabbed him a beer and promised again that they were going to do this right over in Indiana before the big day, the older hunter retreated to let Dean crash.

He would have fallen asleep immediately, content, if it weren't for the fact that the dark clouds that had seemed to follow him the last fifty miles here quickly developed into a violent thunderstorm. He drifted in and out, but kept waking to the crashing thunder and bright cracks of lighting flashing in through the window of the room he used when he was here.

Sometime in the middle of the night he woke again, and the sounds of the storm seemed to be beginning to settle.

That, and the phone was ringing.

Dean stayed where he was, figuring Bobby would get it, but no-one did. Finally he dragged himself out of bed and across the living room, noticing even in through the darkness that Bobby had gotten up at some point to unplug everything because of the storm.

He reached the doorway to the kitchen and reached blindly around the corner to snatch up the shrilly ringing phone.

"What?" he muttered gruffly.

It was then that he saw the flash of lightning out the back window, and Dean only had a split second to wonder why Bobby hadn't unplugged the phone as well, and why the hell he'd answered it in the middle of a thunderstorm—especially with Bobby's old wiring.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! Should have known...

It was like being cracked over the head from out of nowhere, and everything was white, and the floor was coming up to meet him.

He didn't remember hitting it.

Dean didn't remember hitting the floor, he figured later, because mentally, at least, he was elsewhere by then.

It was that damn motel room again.

"Oh, come on! Cas, what the hell?" he yelled, twisting to find the angel.

He found Castiel all right, but he also found Sam.

He blinked. "Sammy?"

"Hey, Dean," his brother smiled.

Dean looked back and forth between his brother and the angel. "What now?"

"There is nothing to fear. We bring only good news," Cas answered.

"Like what?"

"We saved the world, Dean. Did you think there wouldn't be some kind of consequence?" Sam asked.

He snorted. "Saved plenty before and didn't get squat; why would I be expecting anything this time?"

His brother shrugged as if he didn't quite understand the answer himself. "I don't know...but we're getting something."

"Our Lord wishes to reward the both of you for what you have done," Cas said.

Dean let out a breath and swallowed. "Look...if Sam has to stay up there and all...I don't want anything. I have Bobby and Lisa and Ben and my job. That's all I need."

Sam grinned unexpectedly. "We know that. Apparently that's why this is happening now, and not before—you needed to learn to be all right without me."

He scowled. "Huh?"

His brother glanced at Castiel, and the angel gave a slight nod of his head for him to go on.

"I'm getting a second chance, Dean. I'm coming back."

Dean stared. "What?" It was barely audible.

"I'm coming back."

"Y-Yeah, I got th—Cas? What...?"

"It was the plan from the beginning. Not even I knew it until now, but it was always the Father's intention to return Sam's life at the right time."

"The right...?"

"Sam learned what he needed to learn when he changed his past and sacrificed his life for you and for this world, but you still had your own lessons to grasp. Now you understand them. Now you are ready."

He was trying to wrap his mind around it, trying to be happy, but he couldn't quite catch on. "So...what do you mean by come back? Please don't tell me this is some cheesy rebirth thing, because I will walk out of here right now. Not sure I know how I'd get out, but you get the idea..." Sarcasm, his old fall-back—always a close friend.

"No, Dean," Sam shook his head, grinning now. "I'm coming back just like this; I'm picking up where I left off—or where I'd be now if I hadn't left off, I guess you could say. The age difference will be the same..."

Dean's hands came up in defense of his aching brain. "Whoa, slow down. I'm still absorbing the you're-coming-back part." This had to be a dream. He wanted more than anything for Sam to be there when he got married, and he was imagining it all. That was it. He'd never gotten up, and he'd never answered the phone, and he hadn't been shocked lighting through that same damn phone. It was too friggin' cliché.

But even in his mind he'd never been able to conjure that smile he missed as well as he wanted to—the one he was looking at now. Maybe his subconscious did remember better than his conscious mind did, but could even his subconscious—a dream?—make the joy in his brother's eyes so real?

"So you're serious?" he asked incredulously, leaning on the table behind him. "You're coming back? Like...now?" He couldn't quite accept that this was real just yet, but the question couldn't hurt.

"I'll be there when you get back."

Cas stepped up to him, and the corner of his mouth quirked up a little as he looked at both brothers. "I wish both of you happiness in the time you will have." Then his hand came up, and Dean realized what he was about to do.

"Wait—!"

But the angel's palm touched his forehead, and everything went dark.

"Dean! Dean, are you all right, boy? Answer me. Dean!"

His eyes snapped open, and slowly he realized that he was on the floor, sprawled in the doorway between the living room and kitchen. "What...?"

Bobby was leaning over him. "Dean?"

"Yeah..."
"What happened to you?"

He glanced to his right and saw the handset of the phone still in his hand, the cord the of the old thing trailing up to the counter. "I answered the phone, and there was lighting..." He started to sit up, and Bobby helped him. He expected to be sore, feel fried, something...but he felt fine. Maybe a little dizzy, disoriented, but fine.

"I'm okay, I'm okay..." Bobby let go when he waved him off, and the older hunter stood to look on the counter.

"I was sure I unplugged this thing. I heard it ring and came out here just now figuring I'd forgotten about it—but I don't understand; I remember disconnecting it."

Dean blinked up in confusion, starting to remember what had happened while he was out. "Hey...did you see the lighting?"

"I saw it, all right. I guess that's what laid you out. You're lucky you're okay; scared the shit out of me when I saw you go down. It looked like a pretty nasty shock.

He looked down at his hands, his arms, and felt the side of his face. There was no trace of any burns, or of anything. "Bobby...where'd it hit?"

"Out back. I think it was just the other side of the trees."

"Other side of the trees?" he echoed, pulling himself to his feet. He leaned on the counter for a moment, and everything else filled in and became clear.

Cas. Sam.

"Sam!" he breathed.

"What?"

Dean didn't take the time to answer as he bolted for the back door.

"Dean, hold on! We should get you to a hospital, just in case!"

"I'm fine, Bobby!"

"How the hell would you know?"

"I just do, okay!" The screen door slapped behind him, and slapped again when Bobby followed him.

Dean didn't know what he expected to find. He wasn't sure he believed what he remembered himself—until he came around the trees.

The rain itself had long since stopped, and what was left of the clouds only emitted weak flashes of lighting as they rolled away. The line of trees where Dean stopped was still in the reach of the street lights that lined the salvage yard, but the grave sight was not. In the near-darkness there all he could make out at first was a silhouette where the grave had been.

Had been. There was nothing there now but charred ground and the scorched pieces of the wooden cross that had stood there, and the figure there now was staring down at the spot, oblivious to anything else.

Bobby stopped beside him. "What the—"

"Sam..."

His friend looked at him like he'd lost his senses. "What?"

"That's what happened when I blacked out just now...it was Cas. And Sam. Th-they said said he was...coming back..."

"You're not serious."

"No, I didn't think so; I thought I was crazy, but..."

They both looked again, and finally the figure turned and Dean realized he would recognize that freakishly tall shape anywhere—the one that started toward him immediately.

Bobby stayed rooted where he was, but Dean was moving before he realized he'd told his legs to work, and even though neither of them really ran (because that just would have been cheesy) it was still like being hit by a car when they met—maybe because they didn't pause, or maybe because he was still in shock, or maybe just because the relief took his breath away.

All he knew was that his little brother was in his arms returning his embrace just as tightly, and for several long minutes he couldn't breathe.

"Sammy..." he gasped finally.

His brother pulled back just enough to look him, still gripping Dean's arms. There were no tears on his face, but they were in his eyes, and he grimaced to hold them back as he coughed out one sob. "God, it feels good not to have to work to be able to do that," Sam swallowed, squeezing his brother's shoulders again.

Dean echoed the single sob and clapped his brother's cheek once before pulled Sam into his arms again. "You're here..."

"Thank you, captain obvious," Sam chuckled quietly.

"So I'm not crazy."

Sam squirmed his way back enough to see his brother's face again, but he couldn't escape Dean's grip entirely. He didn't seem to want to, which was perfectly fine with Dean. He didn't want to let go yet.

"No, you're not crazy."

"So...you're staying? For good?"

"I'm here for good, Dean."

He had to tighten his grip on Sam's arms to keep from doing a face plant.

This was real? Sam was here? Alive? No strings...no trick?

Dean didn't realize he was breathing too hard and staring out of focus at the ground until Sam shook him. "Dean, hey! You okay?" he asked anxiously.

He swallowed and looked up, smirking. "Please tell me this threw you for as much of a loop as it's throwing me."

Sam grinned then, that boyish grin that had always made it impossible to be angry with the kid, no matter what he'd done—the one he'd nearly sold his soul three years ago to see one more time.

The one he had back now because he hadn't.

"The first time Castiel came to me about it, yeah, it did," Sam laughed.

Dean just grinned back and tugged his brother into another embrace.