AN: I know it's been awhile, but here's the next chapter. I hope you all like it, don't forget to let me know, ok?
Dan stared at the man sitting in the backseat waiting for whatever reasoning he or the others came up with to explain the events that brought them to this moment. He knew that Sam was a puzzle, and the only one close enough to figure him out was now dead, so facing these men was something he felt he needed to do if he was ever going to get the full story of Sam Singer.
"Look, you don't know me, and I get that. But you need to understand something; I'm not going to hurt Sam." John said while ignoring his friends and focusing solely on the sheriff. Seeing the other man's doubt, he nodded. "Ok, so I haven't been the best father in the world – to either of my boys and probably… no, definitely worse to Sammy, but you need to understand something; what I did, I did because I thought it was best for everyone involved."
Nodding, the sheriff looked at the others and saw just uncomfortable they were with this situation – sure they hid it well, but he could tell; something else was going on. "Ok, so tell me – why is Sam so sure you're going to kill him, and why should I even let you in the same county as him?"
John hated being put in this position, but he really needed to get to his boys. "Because if you don't, Sam's going to die and you could have stopped it."
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Dean watched his brother sleep while completely ignoring the coffee that Bobby had brought him. It had taken close to an hour to calm Sammy down enough to gently guide him to the bed and tuck him in like the little boy they all wished he still was. Thinking about how many years that had been wasted was hard, but something he needed to do to fully understand exactly what it was that they were dealing with.
Sammy had always been the one to look at the brighter side of everything, and it didn't take a genius to figure out that he was usually the one who got his heart broken more often as well. Now though, he was a man, who had made his own way in the world, but had paid a heavy price in order to do it. Sighing, he leaned back in the wooden chair and tried not to think about how things could have played out if they had just stuck together. No matter how many times he wanted to see a happy family that fought evil together and stood up for each other in the face of death and adversity, he knew it was just a fairytale that he'd allowed himself to hope for, for much too long. The truth of the matter was, Dad would have turned on Sammy as soon as he started to develop his powers, probably believing that his youngest son was turning evil, or was possessed, or hell… just doing it to spite him. So no… it had been just a matter of time before there were a parting of ways, but the timing and the fact that he had no say so in is what was haunting him at the moment.
"You know, your face'll freeze like that." Bobby said as he walked into the room. He wasn't surprised that Sam was still asleep; the kid had had a rough patch to get over. No, it was how suddenly the old Big Brother Dean was there, and it was more than a little unnerving.
Smirking, Dean sat his chair back down to all four legs on the floor and looked at the older man before cocking a halfhearted grin. "I really screwed this up, didn't I?"
Bobby wasn't going to pretend he didn't know what Dean was talking about; he liked the kid better than that. "Well, seems to me it's not too late to fix it."
Nodding, Dean looked back at his brother and knew that he was lucky, he did have another chance and this time he'd take better care of this opportunity – this time, he'd take better care of his brother.
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John sat and watched as the sheriff stared at him as if wondering if he were insane. 'Good,' he thought, 'maybe it'll keep him a little off balanced so I can think of a way to get us out of this mess, maybe even get Dean and Sammy on the road sooner than I thought.'
Dan narrowed his eyes before he looked at the other men in the car. He knew they were just as surprised as he was and wondered just how much truth he'd actually be able to get out of this man. Finally he motioned for the other three to follow him out of the car.
"Alright, spill it. Don't give me the crap version either. You three are supposed to be Sam's uncles and I have to tell you, after some of the things I've heard in town, you all are lucky I ever let you near him. Now either start explaining what's going on, or I pull your friend out of my cruiser and I leave all of you on the side of the road." Dan said, barely taking a breath before he finished his tirade. Something wasn't right, and he was determined to figure out if these men were in on it.
Jim nodded slightly before looking at the others. "We know you have tried your best to keep Sam safe, and we appreciate it. John, the man in the backseat, is Sam and Dean's father. I have to admit, there for awhile we haven't seen eye to eye with him, especially lately, but he's not one to tell you that Sam's in danger and not mean it. You know about Jess, Sam's girlfriend, and how he's never gotten over losing her. Well, the same goes with John and his Mary. Mary was killed in Sam's nursery when he was a baby. John spent years in search of the monster that did it, but along the way he forgot something important – how to be their dad. When Sam was sixteen, John got it in his head that some rumors he'd been hearing was true and instead of coming to us with it, abandoned Sam and took off with Dean. Now, years later, we think he's starting to realize what he's done and is ready to face the consequences. I can guess why Sam thinks that John is going to kill him, but I don't want to speculate. If John says that something's after his son, then I'm inclined to believe him. I do want you to know, that while we're here, there's no way we'll allow anything to happen to that boy."
Looking at each man, Dan wasn't sure what to believe. Finally though, he walked away and pulled his phone out of his pocket and searched for the last call that came in then pressed redial. It didn't take long for a quiet, tired voice to answer.
"So, I have a car full of guys insisting that they're here to help, and a guy who insists he's Sam's dad and that something horrible is about to happen – how do you want me to handle it?"
It took less than two minutes to finish the conversation and get back on the road. The car was quiet, giving each man a chance to think about what they knew about the situation at hand. As the Sheriff continued to drive, he wondered what possessed him to listen to a two bit hustler and a handful of misfits. The answer didn't surprise him when it came – Sam.
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Dean stood waiting on the porch for Dan to pull up to the house. He knew that something was going on, but he'd be damned if anyone was going to walk inside and start trouble. The call he received from Dan told him more than he really wanted to know – his dad was up to something, and that didn't sit well with him.
"So I figure we better get some things straight," he said before he walked down the steps to meet the men getting out of the cruiser. "First off, no one walks in there with a weapon of any type. Don't worry Dan, you can keep your gun, I'm not that much of a hardass. Second, anyone starts anything and I'll personally toss you on your ass; and yeah Dad, that means you too. Third, the only way anyone is staying here is if Sammy says so, and that doesn't mean guilting him into it either. So, any questions? No? Good!" he said quickly, ignoring the questions and protests being tossed his way, as he turned and made his way into the house, he'd left his little brother too long as it was.
"Dean! We need to talk son, now!" John yelled, hoping to get a few moments alone with Dean before he disappeared in the house where he'd undoubtedly stick to Sammy like glue. "Five minutes son, that's all I'm asking for."
Knowing that he was going to regret it, Dean turned around and walked back down the steps. When he reached his dad he impatiently waited for someone to say something. Finally having enough, he gritted out, "Clocks ticking."
John knew he couldn't talk freely with the others close by, especially Dan, so he pulled Dean further towards the back of the car. Feeling Dean pull away from him, he knew he needed to act fast if he had any chance of convincing his son of what needed to be done.
"Son, your brother's in trouble. I know I'm not his favorite person right now, but you have to believe me when I tell you that I don't want anything to happen to him." John said quickly, knowing that Dean's internal clock was counting down the time before he walked away and this time didn't turn back. Seeing Dean's incredulous look he lowered his voice even more. "I know you don't believe me, and that's fine, but you need to know that if I wanted to hurt him, even kill him, I could have already and there's nothing that you could have done about it."
"Great Dad, way to go to making me feel better about you being here." Dean said as he started to turn back to the house. He didn't care if his dad still had time on the clock, he wouldn't stand there and listen to his ramblings anymore. What he heard next though stopped him cold and it took everything he had to turn back around.
"I have the Colt!" John hissed harshly. He looked over to make sure no one else heard, but was satisfied when Dean turned around in shock. "I have the Colt and I was planning on using it if I thought that Sam was… affected by the demon." He knew he needed to hurry, because Dean's fish impression wasn't going to last too much longer. "You have to understand that the buzz with the demons is that your brother is supposed to be Azazel's second in command. I needed to make sure that it didn't happen; that your brother wasn't being influenced by the same demon that killed your mother. I have my answer Dean, and I believe you, all of you, that Sammy's still the same sweet kid. That's why we need to go. I want you to go inside, get whatever he needs and bring him out to the Impala. I figure if we go now maybe we can…"
"Wait…what!?! You barge in here, treat my little brother like crap, and now what… suddenly expect to pick up where you left off – dragging him everywhere? You are crazy!" Dean yelled as he shoved his dad back away from him. Disgusted by the sight of his once hero, he turned once again to the house, all the while hoping that Sammy was still sleeping and wasn't hearing any of this.
Not to be dissuaded, John rushed to Dean's side. "Damn it Dean, the demon's close and the only way we can protect Sammy is to get him away from here and someplace safe!"
Dan had been willing to let the argument between father and son continue as long as it didn't get too physical or somehow drag Sam into it, now though he heard something that he could only construe as mental instability and wasn't about to allow this man any closer to Sam than what he already was. In fact he knew the county judge would be more than willing to issue a restraining order against the man upon hearing that he thought demons were after his son.
"All right, that's enough." Dan yelled as he pushed his way in between the two Winchester men. "I don't know what the hell you two are really fighting about, but I know one thing right now – Sam's staying put until he's better, then he can make up his own mind."
John hated being told what to do, and especially if it had to do with one of his boys, today was no exception. "Look, you have no idea what you're dealing with. I'm Sam's father and…"
"If you think I'm in danger then take it up with my dads or my brother, otherwise I think you better leave." Sam said from the doorway with Bobby on one side and Joshua on the other. Seeing Dean's shock he could only shrug a shoulder before answering the unasked question. "You've always been my brother; it's just taken you awhile to see it."