(Disclaimer: Don't own anything but this)
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The Crone.
Chapter Twenty-One.
Dean and Finn raced towards the outskirts of the property, the horse seeming to know which way to go.
"So how do we do this then?" yelled Dean into Finn's ear.
She laughed "The best way, we ride in and slaughter the bastards!"
Dean laughed "I'm liking you more and more, Finn!" and he kicked at the horses flanks. They galloped through the thick bush, not trying to mask the sound of their approach, this wasn't an ambush, this was a kill. Let the assholes hear 'em coming.
Finn let go of the horses mane and drew her swords "Get ready!"
Dean drew one sword, his other arm around her waist as they crashed through a dense thicket and sailed over a fallen log an into a clearing. Dean counted five men around the campsite…although they weren't really men anymore. They were becoming 'Wrong Ones'. They stood almost seven feet, the clothes they'd been wearing lay in tatters on the ground as they'd started to turn. Their muscles were lean and powerful and he could see that they were beginning to be covered with a soft grey fur. Long, sharp claws extended from their knuckles and their faces were taking on an almost…lupine appearance. These were the wolves Sam had told him about.
Picasso reared, striking at one of them and knocking him to the ground. Dean let go of Finn, drew his other sword and slid from the horse, Finn following him as the horse reared again, brining his hooves down hard on the hybrid's skull, the crack of it as it split echoing through the surroundings and eliciting howls from the other men.
"GO PICASSO!" yelled Finn and the horse reared again, smashing the man's head one more time before whinnying and galloping away.
The men started to circle Finn and Dean, snarling and snapping their jaws at them. Finn and Dean put their backs to one another, their eyes on the hybrids waiting for first charge.
"One's missing" said Dean.
"I'm guessing he's the one we really need to worry about"
One of the hybrids darted in, making a swipe at Dean with it's claws, he dropped to his knees and drove his sword up through the chest of the animal as another attacked from his left. Dean swung at the attacking hybrid, cutting him from hip to shoulder and it backed away as he turned and cut the head off the one in front of him.
The fight was on and the hybrids fought like the pack they were. Darting in and making quick attacks before retreating to wait for another opportunity, continuingly circling Dean and Finn.
"This is taking too fucking long" and Dean leapt forward as one of the jumped at him. He sliced through the hybrids mid-section, rolled, coming up behind it and decapitating it in one swift movement. He heard Finn fighting behind him and the growls and snarls of the other hybrids as they fought back. He turned in time to see Finn decapitate two simultaneously. He grinned as she turned to him but the smile died on both their faces as they heard a howl like never before and the crashing of undergrowth off to their right.
"I'm thinking this one is gonna be a lot bigger than the others" said Dean with a grin.
The bush broke apart in front of them "Fuck me…" they said in unison. The hybrid in front of them was something even a nightmare would shy away from. It stood over eight feet tall and almost as wide. It had the same almost lupine appearance as the others but instead of claws it had hooked talons and a some kind of barb on the end of its tail. It's jaws were enormous and the fangs that hung past it's chin were at least a foot long. It looked at the bodies that littered the ground and raised it's head to the sky and howled.
"Jesus Christ" said Dean as he turned to Finn "What the fuck is that?"
"I think it's a hybrid gone…wrong. DNA overload or something"
Dean grinned "Two against one though" and he jumped back as the tail of the animal speared into the ground in front of him. "Shit, okay...watch the tail then" he grinned as Finn sliced the tail of it.
The hybrid charged and Dean and Finn took off in different directions, making the animal choose a target. It chose Dean. It took a swipe at his head with it's talons and Dean threw himself to the ground, driving a sword up into the hybrids hand, it howled in rage and pain as Dean scrambled to his feet and raced around the clearing, ducking swipes at his head. He saw Finn dodge the tail and duck under the animal, slicing it's ankle tendon and causing the animal to roar in rage. It turned to her and Dean ran in and drove his swords into its abdomen, opening it wide. It knocked him to the ground and raised it's taloned hand and he rolled out of the way as it slammed down towards him.
"HEY!" he heard Finn yell.
The hybrid turned and Finn's sword was flying through the air, tumbling end over end, taking the animal in the throat. Dean got quickly to his feet and as the animal stumbled, he jumped, crossed his swords and decapitated it, the scream of the hybrid cut short as it fell to the ground.
He looked up at Finn and grinned "You reckon that counts as a dragon? I mean look at the tail"
She laughed and whistled for Picasso "Yeah, come on Dragon Slayer, lets go back and finish this bitch off"
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Baba Yaga lay in Sam's arms, her mind working overtime as Sam stroked her hair, kissing her head softly. That bitch had played her. Had wanted her to go into the cabin, knowing once she went in, she'd be the only one who could let her out. Well if she wanted to play like that, then so be it. Time to turn Sam against her. She sighed heavily.
"What is it, baby?" asked Sam.
She sat up "Nothing" she swung her legs out of bed and got dressed, refusing to answer any of Sam's questions as she walked from the bedroom. She was at the table reading the Book of Prophecies when Sam came out, buttoning his jeans.
"What's wrong?" he asked when he saw the look on her face.
She shook her head as she looked at the book "No…no…she wouldn't do that!" She slammed the book shut and started to pace "No, no, no…" she kept muttering.
"Hannah, you're starting to scare me…what's wrong?" Sam saw another flash of the shield and shook his head. He stopped when he heard what he thought was a roar of some kind and the clashing of swords.
Baba Yaga didn't notice any of this as she paced the cabin. "Well there's only one way to find out"
"Find out what?" Sam finally asked.
She turned to Sam "Whether Finn is trying to kill me" and she walked to the cabin door, pulled it open and tried to walk through. She couldn't do it. "No. no…" she slumped to the floor.
Sam went to her "Hannah" he took her in his arms "What are you talking about? Finn doesn't want to kill you" he kissed her softly.
"She does, Sam! She's trapped me here! Look!" she got up and tried to leave but couldn't get past the barrier Finn had placed around the cabin "You go out"
Sam got up and walked out the door and came back in and looked at her quizzically "I can do it. Try again"
"It's no use see?" she tried and couldn't get through.
Sam walked out and tried to pull her through but he couldn't even get her hand past the doorway. He went back inside "I don't understand"
"I thought she meant it when she said she forgave me, but she's hasn't. She's always hated me. She and Mom were close and Dad…had an affair and I was born, named me after Finn's Mom...don't know why. But Finn always said she'd kill me and now she WILL!"
Sam took her in his arms "Shhh, no one is going to kill you, Hannah. I promise"
"You don't understand, Sam! In the Book of Prophecies, it says she WILL, one day she WILL and the only one who can stop her is …" she shook her head.
"Who, Hannah?"
She shook her head again "You'll think it's stupid…"
He smiled at her "Tell me anyway"
She smiled at him and his heart skipped a beat "Don't laugh at me but…it says the only one that will stop her is the one that bears the Phoenix" she laughed "Doesn't make sense does it?" and she buried her face in his chest.
Sam held her tight as the shield flashed again, the shield he'd been seeing since Mickey put the protection over him…the shield that held the Phoenix. He was the one who would save her. He was the Phoenix and when he acknowledged that truth, the Phoenix flashed brightly in his mind and screamed, it's wings beating loudly in his ears. He smiled, that this was the sign that they were meant to be together. He closed his eyes and smiled and saw a flash of the Phoenix shield…he frowned as he saw it smash against a shield that held a dragon on it. The shields clashed again and again. The Phoenix was fighting the Dragon. The Dragon must be Finn, he had to kill Finn to save Hannah.
They looked up as they heard the sound of a horse approaching at speed,
"Oh, no…no, no, no…she's coming…"
"Calm down, Hannah. I won't let her hurt you"
"You don't understand, Sam! She's the best warrior we have! If I fight her, there's no way I'll win!" she started to cry.
Sam lifted her chin "Then I'll fight her…me and Dean will stop her, I promise" and he leaned down and kissed her "Dean will listen to me...he's my brother, he'll listen to me"
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Finn and Dean galloped back onto the property, Picasso coming to an easy stop near the cars. They slid of the horse, patting him as he nuzzled them.
"You kicked arse, Picasso" said Finn, smiling.
"Kicked head more like it" Dean patted the horse "Good boy" Picasso snorted and trotted off "Okay, so let's get this over with then"
They walked towards the cabin and Sam stepped out, he had a sword in each hand and a pissed off expression on his face.
Dean frowned "You alright, Sammy?"
"No. I'm not fucking alright!" he glared at Finn "You want to kill Hannah, you go through me"
"I don't want to kill Hannah, Sam. I want to kill Baba Yaga" said Finn.
"You want to kill Hannah!" he yelled.
"Aaah, well technically…yeah. You see, Sam….Hannah is Baba Yaga"
Sam laughed nastily "Yeah, she said you'd say that"
"It's true, Sam" said Dean as he walked slowly towards his brother "She tricked you"
"She said you'd side with that bitch. She used magic on you, Dean. You're not thinking straight, it's you that's been tricked"
Dean shook his head and said softly "No, Sam. Hannah is Baba Yaga, dude. Me and Finn just killed some of her…'Wrong Ones' she left at the edge of the property. She's tricking you, Sam. She wants to turn you into one of them"
"NO! She loves me!"
"Sammy, you've known her less than a day…she doesn't love you, she's using you. Using you to get to Finn"
Sam raised his swords as Dean got to the porch steps "Don't come any closer, Dean. I'm not letting you or that bitch near Hannah"
"The Phoenix, Sam. You been seeing a shield with a Phoenix keep popping up in your head?" he glared at her "I know you have. Mickey helped you, he put that there to help you. You've been seeing it because she's here, Sam. That's Baba Yaga in there…not Hannah. Hannah doesn't exist, the only Hannah Jacobs there is, was my mother and Baba Yaga killed her over 1400 years ago"
Sam shook his head "No. She said you'd try and trick me…use your magic on me like you have Dean" he looked at his brother "Dean, you have to trust me…Finn's lying to you"
Dean shook his head "No, Sam. She isn't. I know that's Baba Yaga in there because …shit, dude…you gotta trust me on this. You have the Phoenix and I have the Dragon. It's hard to explain…but…it told me that's Baba Yaga…"
Sam stared at Dean, shaking his head "No…you can't be the Dragon…no…."
"Aaah, sorry, dude…I am. Well Dragon Slayer to be exact but…"
"Listen to yourself, Sam. Go deep inside and listen…the truth is in there…I promise you" said Finn.
"Don't listen to them, baby!" yelled Baba Yaga from the door "They want to kill me!"
"Shut the fuck up, bitch!" yelled Dean.
Sam struck quickly at Dean but Dean's sword was in his hand in an instant and he blocked the blow at him.
He stepped back "No, Sammy. Don't you do this"
"YOU'RE THE ONE THAT KILLS HER!" yelled Sam at his brother "I WON'T LET YOU!" he followed Dean down the steps, pure rage on his face.
"NO, SAMMY! NO, BABY!" yelled Baba Yaga, a smile spreading slowly across her lips. If Dean wouldn't come over to her then the next best thing would be Sam killing his brother. That would be the final act to bring Sam well and truly into her evil.
"STAY THERE, HANNAH!" yelled Sam "I WON'T LET THEM HURT YOU!" he struck at his brother.
"Sammy, please…don't do this…" he blocked another strike "Finn…"
Finn drew her swords "It's time, Dean. You need to get through to him before he turns completely"
"While you do what exactly?" asked Dean as he parried another strike from his brother.
"Fulfil my prophecy" and she whispered the incantation that removed the barrier around the cabin.
To be continued…