Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer applies, see previous chapters for all I don't own the SPN rights.

A/N: If I get too "out there", let me know.

Chapter 14

Lisa didn't want to be in the same room as Dean. They could see it in her eyes, the way she faced away from him. They drove her to their motel room where she curled up into a ball on the inside bed. She was facing the long counter framed by the vanity mirror. She could see the reflection of all three "men" if she cared to open her eyes. She kept them clenched shut.

Dean had a plan. He always has a plan. Sam told him he would stay and do some research. He looked at the recumbent form on his bed, curled up on the pastel floral bedspread. He didn't tell Dean the rationale behind remaining in the room, because he didn't need to say a word. Dean knew. Lisa couldn't bear to look at him and Dean knew it.

This was so much worse than watching Dean after finding out Castiel had betrayed them. Sam wondered how his brother managed not to break in half. He knew Dean was dealing with one betrayal after another and he couldn't imagine how seeing the look in Lisa's eyes... He couldn't imagine the feeling of guilt his brother must feel at losing Ben.

Sam watched Dean pack a duffel with weapons and spell components with the Re'em looking on. They had called Bobby; who, in turn, alerted the community and network of hunters. It was a supernatural "amber alert".

Dean gave one last regretful look at the figure lying on the bed. His hand twitched as though he would reach out to touch her. Then, he sighed and walked out the door, closing with a quiet click of the lock.

He acknowledged the giant with a brief look and walked with purpose to the waiting Impala. Seth had ridden in the CRV with Sam when they drove to the motel. He looked at the hunter in askance when Dean gestured for him to get in.

"What?" Dean asked. The frustration and aggravation was evident in his tone.

Seth was skeptical about whether or not he should admit to the hunter that he didn't feel comfortable with the idea of riding in the black car. He kept looking toward the CRV and back to Dean's unimpressed expression. He shifted from foot to foot, but made no attempt to open the passenger side door.

"Dude. Just get in." Dean told him.

"Maybe, I shouldn't just…" Seth looked about. His choices were limited. What couldn't he "just"?

Dean crossed his arms across the top of the Impala and leaned forward, his expression stern, his voice brooking no argument.

"Get. in. the. car."

Seth exhaled heavily and furrowed his brows and narrowed his eyes at the hunter. On further examination, Seth could tell that given the option, Dean would kill the re'em with his bare hands. Seth didn't feel fear or guilt and hadn't for centuries. The hunter didn't elicit anything close to those feelings in Seth, but there was a niggling scratching sensation near the back of his mind when he looked at the hunter, when he heard the hunter command him. He tried to recall the last time he felt it, but was sure it had been centuries.

He moved to the door and slid into the passenger seat. When he looked at Dean, he could tell the hunter was trying to rein in his anger before getting behind the wheel.

Dean looked at the giant who was bunching his legs up to his chest in order to fit in the front seat of the car and huffed. "Where are we going?"

The look of pure misery made Dean laugh. Seth just looked out the window and wrapped his arms around his knees. Dean continued to chuckle as he headed into town. The rumbling of the Impala and the music from a local rock station were the only company the hunter had besides his own fits of humor. Dean pulled up to a crossroad stop sign and looked at the giant seated (kind of) next to him.

Seth turned from his contemplation of his misery to regard the hunter. Dean narrowed his gaze as he studied the re'em's silver eyes, impassive, indifferent, ageless. Seth inhaled deeply closed his eyes and furrowed his brow in concentration. "East."

Dean turned the car left at the sign and asked, "What's east?"

Seth didn't open his eyes but continued to concentrate. His response came so low that Dean turned the volume down on the radio station currently playing in the background to hear him. "I didn't catch that."

"My grove, human. There are thin partings between worlds all over Creation. They were broken a very long time ago, around the time of the flood. I usually find one and protect the area around it as my grove."

Dean considered this for a while before asking his next question. "So, where does it go? I mean, if there's a place between worlds, what's the world on the other side?"

Seth opened his eyes and stared out the windshield. He didn't speak for many moments and Dean considered asking the question again. Then again, he thought, maybe I don't really want to know.

"The door can open to many different places, but the one here… opens to the Fae."

The squeal of rubber on asphalt as the car fishtailed back and forth across the highway threw Seth around inside the Impala. He had to hold on to the bench seat with both hands to keep from being thrust into the driver. He looked upon Dean with wide eyes and searched about the exterior for a cause of the erratic human behavior. His eyes landed back on Dean when he heard the tone of yet another bipolar mood swing from the human. Seriously, Seth thought, pick a mood and run with it.

"You mean faeries?" Dean questioned the giant sitting accordion-style in his passenger seat.

Seth nodded as though he thought Dean had lost his mind. Maybe he had. Dean clenched his eyes shut as he gritted his teeth and pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. The half-formed vulgarities and complaints were unintelligible to Seth so he contented himself with simply waiting out the storm. Finally, he turned to Seth and pointed a finger right in the re'em's face. His eyes held a glint of the anger his voice confirmed and he barely contained the proverbial fumes from escaping his ears and nose. "I am not going to any place where there are fairies!"

Seth shook his head, but in agreement. "No, you should not. If ever you were to go, you should refrain from asking questions, accepting anything including food or water, or saying thank you. It's really the only way to be sure."

"So is nuking from orbit." Dean replied nearly under his breath as he turned back to the console to put the car into gear once more. "What's the plan then? You just gonna do this ritual summoning thing, the fairies are gonna tell you where Ben is and we go get him?"

Seth looked sidelong at the hunter. He heaved a deep sigh before responding. "Not… exactly."

"Well, how… exactly?" Dean looked to Seth when they came upon another sign blocking their way. Seth pointed to the left, toward the winding road leading up the mountain. Dean turned the car in the indicated direction.

"I will call forth the messenger from the Queen of the Seelie and ask for the location of the child. She will give it to me and then provide me a Way to him."

Dean looked skeptical. "Just like that?"

Seth looked out of the window again. "You know, I hated being beholden to her for centuries." Dean thought maybe the giant had gotten off topic. Seth continued. "I hated being farmed out to others like some chattel, a common beast of burden." Seth turned to face the hunter. "If the demons find a way to break the boy… if Ben commands me to do their bidding… they will have a powerful tool at their disposal. I have managed to kill the Infernals that come across my path indiscriminately, but they have gotten more and more clever as time has marched on." Seth turned again to become lost in his own reflection.

"Seth." Dean prompted. When he didn't get a reply he shouted to him. "Seth! Come on, Man. Tell me what the plan is. 'Cause I'm thinking that it'll take nothing at all to bring you down if you go out there to where they got him and Ben tells you to fall down on your knees and do what Crowley tells you. How's that get him back to his mother?"

Seth remained quiet for a long time as Dean navigated the winding path. The area started to become familiar. "Wait. You said you killed demons indiscriminately?" Seth nodded. "Did you crucify them as well?"

"Those were humans." Seth stated simply. Dean fumed once more as he slammed his hand onto the top of the steering wheel. "What the Fuck?" He shouted into the cabin of the car.

"I told you, Dean. I have to protect the Grove. Can you imagine the repercussions of building a fancy resort out there on top of a two-way door into the Fae? Not only would the Queens of the Faeries feel okay with sending their minions through the Way, but humans might find their way in by accident. They are unaware of the consequences of that action and might find they don't like what happens the first time they say 'How you doin'?' to the wrong faerie."

Dean looked at the re'em for a long hard moment before turning back to the road. A smile played at his lips. "Really? Friends?"

Seth smiled. "I spend a lot of time in a café in town. They have a television that the older women like to watch their stories on and they really like the re-runs of old episodes. They particularly like that Joey character."

Dean chuckles at this. "How do you spend time there? I mean, you're fricken huge! People don't stare?"

Seth watched as Dean wound the car with expert care up the mountainside at a speed one might find dangerous. He frowned as he answered. "I keep myself well shrouded. Two people could look at me at the same time and not see my true appearance. Even now, Sam sees me differently than you do and Ben sees me as something else entirely."

Dean had nothing to say in response. Seth indicated he should turn on to the fire road and they both became more alert as the Impala made its way up the dirt road.

The grove appeared just as Seth had left it. It took a great deal of effort on Dean's part to not just leave the Impala on the fire road and hike in, but Seth assured him that if he followed instructions down to the turn by turn, the car would be able to make it to where the opening in the veil would be. Dean didn't notice any difference between the place where they parked the car and through the shimmering protections. Only Seth was able to see through the spell that marked the way into the Unicorn Grove. As soon as they passed the barrier, though, Seth began to feel the pressure behind his eyes that indicated a massive presence on the other side of the veil between the realm of the Fae and the Earthly one.

"Human… Dean." The volume, timbre and tone of Seth's voice warned Dean there was danger. "There is … something… coming through."

"Where?" Dean asked, his voice was terse and strained.

Seth didn't answer, but closed his eyes to mere slits and began chanting, a low sub-sonic rumble that was felt more than heard. Suddenly, lights like fireflies lit the grove, zinging past the two figures standing next to the Impala. They seemed to rush near the men but slowed and zoomed away before approaching too close.

"What the….?" Dean exclaimed.

"Pixies." Seth replied in curt response.

"Shit." Dean clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes.

Seth walked a short distance into the grove. Dean saw a glimmer of light, larger than the pixies, near the ground to his left. He turned to look and it was gone. When he returned his scrutiny to Seth, he realized the Re'em was speaking to a giant cat-like creature that seemed to glow with a bright green aura. The intelligence in the large eyes of the creature was evident as it regarded the towering silver-white form in front of her. Her eyes narrowed in thought at some statement the Re'em had made and her tail flicked from side to side in agitation. Her grey-green fur fluffed and then slicked close to her body as she turned her tapered head toward Seth. She considered the information imparted unto her, nodded and in a blink, she was gone along with all of the pixies—much to Dean's relief.

"Well?" Dean asked finally.

Seth walked to Dean's side and leaned against the side of the car.

"We wait. I think the Queen will consider my proposal quickly." He shrugged. "But, quickly for her may have a different meaning here."

"What did you propose?" Dean asked.

Seth flinched as Dean posed the question. He turned a pained expression to Dean. "It is considered impolite to ask questions of one of the Fae, Dean. But, bargains… they understand the giving and receiving of information and favors. Just… don't YOU do it. You are much too young to pull it off."

Dean scoffed. "Yeah, well… Me and Faeries really aren't on speaking terms, really." He smiled. Seth tilted his head in askance. Dean smirked as he responded. "I opened fire after being abducted. I don't think they appreciated that all that much. We parted ways fairly quickly after that."

Seth laughed a genuine and hearty guffaw and nearly doubled over in mirth. By the time he was able to wipe the tears from his eyes and control his breathing again. Dean was becoming impatient.

"So, I'm curious as to the nature of your proposed arrangement with the Queen of the Faeries." It took a bit of thought to frame his question in the form of a statement.

Seth thought with his face toward the sun for a moment before explaining. "The Queen of the Seeley was a clever thing. After she enslaved me all those hundreds of years, she needed something from me that necessitated a 'renegotiation' of my contract. I had had a lot of time to formulate the words with which I would manage to use if the opportunity ever presented itself. I have to say, reading human books and watching humans made it a little easier." Seth looked at the Hunter with a smile. "You people are tremendously rude, but you also are terribly manipulative." Seth nearly laughed again at the affronted expression Dean displayed. "I managed to win my freedom with a loop-hole. I think her majesty was slightly distracted at the time of our renegotiation." Seth smirked then sobered. "She's been trying to get my back into her employ since I escaped. I think it appeals to her to have me come to her as a willing servant."

"This doesn't sound like a terribly good idea." Dean added with caution.

Seth shook his head. "It's not. But, she has ways to find the boy… Old magic… True Magic. She also has a Way to reach him once she finds him. You have to make a promise to me…" Seth sounded urgent.

Dean remembered what Seth had said as well as what was told him when he and Sam found out after his close encounter with the faerie-kind. "I can't help but think this is a deal. I shouldn't make a deal with any more supernatural creatures."

Smart man.

"If you would, then, tell the boy to release me when we find him. He will do as you ask and then I can fulfill my part of the deal with the Queen."

"Your part of the bargain requires you to be free of Ben's influence, but if she decides that all the effort to find him and retrieve him was inconvenient, she will be able to command you to kill us all. I don't see the incentive here, Seth."

Seth looked shocked. He chuckled with soft and short exhalations. "You are too clever by half, Human." His look turned speculative. "Perhaps you are what they think you are destined to be. I don't believe in Destiny, but that may be because I don't like the idea of someone holding my leash but me."

Dean nodded. He could appreciate that. "It doesn't seem reasonable that she won't see that you're messing around with the little details."

Seth shrugged. "It's possible she will. She always knows, Dean. But, we will play our little game and in the end, she will have the last living unicorn and I…" Seth bowed his head, his silvery mane of hair covering his face. "I will have a purpose again. Maybe this has been all part of her game all along." Seth looked off into the distance once again lost in his thoughts.

"That's one hell of a long con." Dean speculated.

"There is little else to amuse immortal beings."