LEGENDS, BUGS, MONSTERS, OH MY

As much as Dean wanted to rest, the hunts just came at them one after another. He couldn't turn his back on any of them. It wasn't in his nature even if he had to crawl away from them. Which he seemed to be doing more often than not.

They took care of a hook man in a college town. The girl they saved took a liking to Sam and he floundered big time when she kissed him on the lips unexpectedly after they had saved her and her father's life.

It was funny how the other members of the team were invisible at times like that. This time it was Arandi that had to step in before her sister went primal on the girl, just trying to show her gratitude.

'Damn time it happened to someone else.' Dean thought. Hey, he only protected his little brother from the super bad. A little angst would give him character or something along those lines.

Jade made Sam sleep on the floor for a week for letting it go for longer than five seconds. It could have been worse. At least he was allowed to be in the same room.

Dean having been on the receiving end of that hornet's nest tried to sympathize with his brother but he couldn't help but poke. Also part of his nature so sue him.

The case of vengeful bugs had them on edge for another week while they checked out a housing project that was being plagued by untimely deaths. All of which in one shape or form led back to bugs.

Sam, ever the resourceful one, talked to the only son of the project leader and with Dean pieced the whole thing together.

The entire project had been built on an Indian massacre sight. The last surviving member cursing the land with his last breath.

Once they saved the business owners family they would have been fine without seeing even a fly for a long time.

Arandi ran out of a bathroom days later still lathered up and barely behind a towel when a spider appeared.

"You hunt ten foot ogres and things with fangs and claws every day." Dean muttered as he went none too happily to dispatch of the intruder.

"The things I hunt don't have eight legs and a million eyes. Just shut up and…" Arandi gave a full body shiver.

Dean was glad Arandi didn't see him shiver and cringe as he moved the spider to the open window and pushed it out.

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Caleb called them a few days after saying that John and Jonathan had been spotted in Chicago. That didn't help much without an exact location but they went anyway. They were hunters after all.

It took them half a day to find another motel room full of information about a deserted asylum up the road where teens had been found dead.

On further research they discovered that only the night before a cop that had been investigating the asylum had gone home and killed his wife and then himself.

Dean let the guilt flow over him like always but didn't peep a word. If he'd only been there a day earlier.

Sam's impatience blew up. "They leave all these clues for cases that they don't even try to take care of, they just do all this research and disappear again. Yet they can't call home or us to let us know what the hell."

"Dad has his reasons." Dean said as he flipped through all the articles trying to find the elusive connection.

"How can you still have such blind faith in the man after everything that he's done?"

Dean rolled his eyes but kept looking through the papers. "When dad is ready to let us know he will."

"Are you serious? Mom is worried sick. We're traipsing all over the place and you are fine with this now?"

"No, I'm not fine with it but flipping out isn't going to get us any closer to finding them."

Sam glared at his brother and walked out.

"We'll get all of this together." Arandi motioned for him to follow.

Sam was now pacing furiously in the parking lot.

"Arandi and I will take care of this. You and Jade take a night off." Dean didn't want Sam along if his head wasn't going to be in the hunt a hundred and ten percent.

"No, we all do this together. There is something powerful in that asylum if it can effect someone once they leave the property."

Dean eyed his brother. Ready to put his foot down but he just sighed. "Alright then we go in tonight."

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There was still sliver of daylight left when the four hunters jumped the fence that was supposed to deter trespassers. Signs everywhere in bold letters screamed 'do not enter', 'off limits' and every other warning out there and in different languages. Apparently no one knew how to read in any language.

Dean was sure most of the dead teens had dared one another to spend the night or whatever. The cops had been sent in there to find trespassers and Dean wondered how one officer could be affected and not the other?

They walked through aiming flashlights in every direction. Hair on the back of their necks standing up. They weren't alone that was for sure.

More than once there was movement just out of the line of sight, unexplained sounds.

"This place is orbing like a mother." Sam whispered while he held up the video camera he had brought along.

"Thanks for the insight, Haley Joel." Dean mocked.

"Shut up."

"Will you two get your head in the job?" Arandi growled through gritted teeth. She was already on edge and she just wanted the hunt over and done with.

There was a loud scraping sound and a shadow moved into another room. They all exchanged looks. Sam put the camera up and pulled out his shotgun.

Dean motioned with his shotgun for the women to fall behind and Sam to open the door.

Sam slowly pushed the door back and Dean slid in aiming the gun to every corner.

Arandi tapped his back and pointed to an overturned bed. A blond head barely peeked over.

Dean motioned to Sam again as he took aim. Sam kicked the bed aside and aimed his own shotgun.

A teenage girl gasped and skittered back against the wall terrified.

Arandi moved forward. "It's ok we're not going to hurt you. I'm Arandi, this is Dean, Jade, and Sam."

"I'm Kat." The girl replied standing slowly. "Why do you have shotguns?"

"They don't have real bullets." Arandi explained. She pulled an extra cartridge to show the girl that it was only rock salt.

Kat looked at her confused.

"It helps with the things you saw."

Kat paled. "How did you know?"

"That's why we're here. Come on we'll get you out of here." Arandi motioned for Kat to follow.

"I can't go my stupid boyfriend is in here somewhere. I need to find him so I can break up with him for considering this a date maybe punch him in the face. How bad does that rock salt hurt?"

Arandi smiled. "Come on then let's find stupid."

"What's his real name?" Dean asked.

"Gavin."

They moved from room to room until Sam spotted some sneakers sticking out from behind a room divider.

"Gavin?" Kat called.

The sneakers moved and Gavin jumped to his feet wide eyed. "Where is it?"

"Where's what?" Kat asked.

"That thing that kissed me. Her face was all messed up."

"Why would you kiss it?"

"I thought it was you."

"Well, thanks for that." Kat glared.

"Ok can we do Dawson's Creek some other time? Arandi and Jade you get these two out of here. Sam and I will check a bit more."

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Sam stumbled onto a bundle of files. The same doctor's name kept popping up so he called a local newspaper to ask for information while Dean poked around some more.

"Dr. Ellicott." Sam called out. "It seems that the patients rioted one night and a bunch of people died and a bunch of bodies were never found. The doctor was one of them."

Dean popped back into the room. "Can you imagine what they did to those bodies for them not to be found?" He shivered.

Sam's phone sounded and he answered. Jade's screams came over the line. "It's coming, Sam, hurry!" There was lots of static and then the line went dead and Sam started to run.

"Sam!" Dean called out trying to follow his brother. The ended up split separated. "Son of a bitch."

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"So how did you get into this line of work?" Kat asked Arandi as they walked slowly back towards the entrance.

"Kind of the family business."

"Or lousy guidance counselors." Jade huffed. She was none too happy to be pushed aside again.

"Who would want to do this for a living?" Gavin snickered. He stopped walking and took two or three steps back when the sisters sent a glare his way. "What I meant was…..."

"You still want to fill him full of rock salt?" Arandi growled and passed a shot gun to Kat.

She took it.

"You don't even know how to use that." Gavin chuckled.

Kat cocked the gun with ease and aimed it at him. "My dad takes me skeet shooting every now and then. I didn't miss once last time I was there. Imagine the size difference."

Gavin fished mouthed for a minute shifting from one leg to the other unsure whether he should cut and run or beg for mercy.

He was never more relieved than when the three women burst into laughter.

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"Jade?" Sam called out as he came around a corner.

"Only I can help you now."

Sam turned and gasped. A man with a deformed face grabbed Sam's face and he felt like an electric current zapped through his head.

Sam saw the name tag. Dr. Ellicott before he felt like he was falling down a rabbit hole.

"I'll make you all better."

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Dean found Arandi and Jade and the kids. Jade nearly blew him away with the shotgun salt rounds. The cement wall where he had stood full of missing chunks.

"Jade, what the fuck?" Dean clamored from where he crouched on the floor.

"Sorry, it's just this place is super creepy. Where's Sam?"

"He took off hauling ass when you called him."

"I never called him."

"Son of a bitch." Dean groused. "Why are you still here anyway?"

"We're trapped in here. We haven't been able to find a way out." Arandi replied.

"I'm going back to find Sam you stay here."

Arandi made to protest.

"Please."

She rolled her eyes but leaned back against the wall with a huff.

"Thank you." Dean turned knowing that was going to cost him later and rushed back the way he had come.

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Dean poked and opened a million different drawers hoping to find a clue to where the bodies could be hidden. He couldn't afford to let anything slip by. It was the only way he could think to get Sam back.

He was about to walk out of the room he was presently in when he noticed a piece of missing panel on the wall. He reached for it and the whole thing came away. He found a journal and a pile of files.

He scanned over them as fast as he could. The things he read making his skin crawl.

"What you got there?"

Dean spun around shotgun aimed. "Damn it, Sam, what the hell? Where were you?"

"I got all turned around in this place. Hey we should really get out of here."

"Can't do that. Not until we find Ellicott's body."

"If the cops couldn't find it what makes you think we can?" Sam growled angrily.

"What's with you? You know damn well we are better at finding and hiding dead bodies than any cop will ever be."

Dean grabbed his duffle and started walking into the next room. "There's a secret room somewhere. The good doctor was performing secret experiments on his patients. He was trying to use their anger to help them but it back fired on him."

"I really think we should go." Sam said evenly behind Dean.

"Already told you we can't do that. The doors and windows are locked up tight." Dean leaned in when he saw the slightest stir of dust against the floor and he heard the slight whistle of a breeze. "Found it." He said triumphantly.

"Get away from the door, Dean."

"Sam, I don't know what you're…" Dean stopped as he turned to face his brother's shotgun pointed at him. He stiffened up. "I knew it."

"Knew what?"

"That Ellicott got to you."

"I'm thinking for myself for once."

"Put the gun down, Sam."

"Is that an order?"

"More like a friendly request."

Sam wiped blood dripping from his nose with the back of hand. "You don't know shit. If you're not being bossed around by dad or Arandi you're lost. Fucking mindless soldier is all you are."

"Sam…."

"For once just shut the fuck up."

"Or what, Sam, you're going to shoot me? You and I both know that rock salt won't kill me."

Dean really didn't expect Sam to pull the trigger. The blast of rock salt pellets tore into his chest even through the layers of shirts he wore. The impact sent him flying back through the wooden wall and hidden door. He felt the splinters tearing into his back and even his thighs. He hit the concrete floor the back of his head connecting soundly.

He kicked his legs trying to stay conscious but it was no use. As he slipped away he heard Sam's mocking voice. "No, but it will hurt like hell."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Dean gasped for air when he started to come around. His brother had shot him. Plain out shot him under a ghosts control or not it really did fucking hurt like hell.

"Fuck." He mumbled as his vision faded in and out. His chest had taken one beating after another and he'd barely begin to heal and now more damage.

He looked to see Sam hovering over him. The crazy look still in his eyes.

Still he tried to get through to his brother. "We got to find Ellicott's bones and burn them so you can go back to normal."

Sam huffed angrily. "I am normal. I'm just telling the truth for the first time. I mean why are we even here? You have to follow dad's trail like good little soldier. You're that desperate for his approval?"

"This isn't you talking, Sam."

"That's the difference between me and you. I've got a mind of my own I'm not pathetic like you."

"That's why you scurry like a beat dog when Jade says jump?" Dean knew better than to poke an angry grizzly but hey he wasn't exactly in a hugging mood at the moment.

Sam aimed the shotgun at his face.

Dean didn't flinch. He looked straight at Sam. "That's not going to do it." He pulled his silver Smith and Wesson from his jacket and handed it to his brother.

"If you think that you can kill your very own brother then do it pull the fucking trigger?" Dean yelled. "Do it!"

Dean watched the gun come up and he watched Sam's face begin to smile. He was really going to die at the hands of his brother.

He stared into Sam's eyes and watched the blood drip from his nose.

He heard the gun fire and waited to die.

TBC

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Thanks for reading!