Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural, or the characters. sigh

Thanks for all your wonderful reviews, please keep them coming.

I know this chapter is short, but I just couldn't think of what to write; hopefully the next one will be better.

Enjoy!

"What am I supposed to do?"

"I don't know. Just get them up here as soon as possible." Jim thinks for a moment. "Did you get the demon?"

"Yeah, we did, stabbed it with some of that holy wood you gave me, worked like a charm. And I'll make sure to get them back to your place as soon as they can travel, but what are you going to do until then?"

"I have no idea, but I'll work something out." Jim sees Teresa walking towards him. "I've gotta go Caleb, I'll call you tomorrow."

"Yeah, okay."

Without further pause Jim disconnects the call, and walks over to Teresa. "Ms Fielding, what can I do for you?"

"Maybe we could speak in your study?" Teresa suggests.

"Alright." Jim agrees, and leads her into his study. "So, what can I do for you?"

"It's about Dean's condition... I've never seen, or heard of for that matter anyone who has hung in there as long as he is. We need to talk about how to proceed. As I'm sure you're aware we can't continue like this."

"Definitely not, but what can we do? I thought you said he couldn't have more pain medications."

"I said that more pain medications would decrease his respiratory function too far, but if this continues much longer depending completely on Dean's, and your family's wishes he could be put onto a ventilator, then we could give him adequate pain relief without compromising his breathing. Normally I wouldn't even suggest this, it goes almost completely against the idea of palliative care, but this situation is anything but normal, and he shouldn't have to suffer like this." Teresa finally stops to take a breath, beginning to regret suggesting it. "I'm sorry Pastor, forget I-" She backpedals before Jim interrupts.

"Do it."

Teresa looks at him, slightly surprised. "Are you sure?"

"Definitely, and before you ask, you won't be going against Dean or his father's wishes."

"I'll order the equipment, and call his doctor out here to intubate him." As an afterthought she adds. "You do know that this won't save his life, it'll just hopefully ease the pain."

"I know, just do it."

Caleb walks into the hospital room where John and Bobby are currently residing, neither looking happy about it, at all. "Hey guys, how's it going?"

Ignoring Caleb's question John demands. "How's Dean?"

"He's not good, but he won't be dying before we can get up there."

"What the hell are you talking about Reeves?" Bobby questions, pulling himself upright in his bed.

"Um...er...It's like this.." Caleb mumbles, wishing he'd never opened his big mouth.

"What. Is. Going. On. With. Dean?" John yells demandingly at Caleb, ignoring the pain shooting through his abused body.

"Before I tell you, let me remind you that I had no part in it, and therefore shouldn't be the one you direct your anger towards." After taking a deep breath and a precautionary glance around the room, looking for escape paths, even with John on a dozen medications, and in a full leg cast, Caleb doesn't doubt that he could still inflict damage if he gets pissed off; that done he continues. "Sam did something..." Caleb's confidence waivers.

"Spit it out Reeves!" Bobby orders, seemingly debating if you can strangle someone with one arm in an immobilizer; in other words, almost as angry and worried as John.

"Don't ask me how, but Sam found a binding spell, and he used it on a reaper-"

"WHAT!!" Bobby and John scream at the same moment, both look about ready to ignore their current condition, and drive up to Jim's, and kill Sam for his stupidity.

Stepping closer to the doorway Caleb continues. "I am betting you can guess how the story goes from here, but here it is; what Jim told me anyway. Dean now can't die, but he hasn't gotten any better, Jim said it's pretty bad."

"What do you mean 'pretty bad' Reeves?" John grinds out, cursing himself for not predicting that Sam would do something like this.

"Jim said that he's in a lot of pain, suffering." Caleb admits, backing closer to the door, more than a little nervous that the men in front of him won't think twice about shooting the messenger.

"Damn it!" John yells as he slams his fist down on the bed in frustration, wishing he was with his boys, on the road, not thinking about his eldest son in pain, and his younger son using witchcraft to keep him alive until a physic healer turned werewolf can heal him; everything is so broken, so wrong.

The next morning Sam is sitting on the edge of Dean's bed, talking softly to him when Jim walks in, followed by Teresa and Dr Yates, Dean's oncologist since their move to Blue Earth. "Sam." Jim goes to Sam's side, and gently leads a very reluctant Sam away from Dean, but not out of the room, just out of the way. Everyone in the room knew that for the boys were inseparable, in the past few days more than ever.

They stand together silently in the corner of the room, watching as Teresa and Dr Yates work efficiently to sedate Dean, insert the breathing tube, and attach it to a ventilator. "Alright Sam, Pastor, you can come back over and sit with him." Teresa says as she finishes repositioning Dean in the bed, making sure he's as comfortable as possible.

Sam silently walks to Dean's side, and returns to his previous position, gently holding Dean's hand whilst murmuring a constant stream of comforting words. Dean would be so pissed if he knew what was going on, way too many 'chick flick moments'. Sam reflects as the others leave the room, allowing him some time alone with his brother. It was almost too much for Sam to bear, seeing Dean lying so still in the bed, connected to so many tubes and machines, looking so just... not like Dean, too pale, too thin, and much too weak. "You've gotta get through this Dean, I can't do this alone. Please hang in there just a bit longer." I love you brother, please be alright.

TBC.

Hope you like the chick flick moment I threw in there at the end, I thought it was about time for one.

So, what do you think?

How long will it take for someone to realise the problem with their planned arrival at Jim's? And when someone does, who will it be? Should I just leave them to work it out the hard way, maybe turn at least one of them into a werewolf? Did you approve of the latest thing I've done to Dean? And finally, will Dean live? And everyone else for that matter?

Please review, it helps me write faster.