Middle of Nowhere, Texas, one year later...
Sam yawned widely for what had to have been the hundredth time in ten minutes as the Impala struggled over the rough dirt road he and Dean were currently driving over. What was supposed to be a quick drive down the road to investigate an apparent haunting had turned into a six-hour road trip landing them on a very old and rough dirt back road about a hundred miles from the highway. And to make matters worse, it was getting dark and huge, black storm clouds were gathering on the horizon with the promise of heavy rain. If they didn't find a place to stop for the night soon they were going to get caught smack-bang in the middle of it.
"Hey Dean, I think we should-"
"No," Dean cut him off.
Sam took a breath, mentally preparing himself for the argument he was sure was coming. "Look, Dean, I really think..."
"I said no, Sam," Dean cut him off again.
Sam huffed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Why did his brother have to be so damned stubborn? "Do you even know where we're supposed to be going?"
"I did about two hours ago," Dean muttered irritably.
"What?! Didn't you check the GPS?" Sam asked, shocked.
"Can't check it when the battery's dead," Dean answered as he snatched up his phone and waved it around before dumping it back on the seat next to him.
"How can your battery be flat? Didn't you charge it last night?" Sam asked disbelievingly.
"Yeah I charged it, but now it's dead," Dean bit back. "Check yours."
Sam immediately took his phone out of his pocket and tried to turn it on, but apparently his was dead, too. How could that be? He'd only had the phone for a month and the battery normally lasted for days without needing to be charged. How could it be dead now?
"When did you notice your phone had stopped working?" he turned to his brother worriedly.
"About three hours ago, while you were asleep," Dean admitted.
"Why the hell didn't you tell me?" Sam demanded.
"Because you woulda told me to stop and ask for directions," said Dean looking disgusted. "I mean, who stops and asks for directions these days? Seriously?"
"Dude, we should've stopped and asked for directions!" Sam pointed out. "Tell me you at least have a map in here somewhere?"
"I got rid of it ages ago, it was outta date," Dean shrugged. "And who uses maps when they've got GPS?"
Before Sam could say anything else a little red warning light on the dashboard started blinking. On closer inspection the brothers quickly determined that the Impala's battery was running low.
"Sonovabitch!" Dean cursed. "I just replaced the battery last week!"
"Wait a minute Dean, remember how Bobby told us about batteries suddenly losing power and electronics malfunctioning when ghosts are around?" asked Sam, suddenly seeing the pattern. "First our phones stop working and now the car battery's about to go."
Dean frowned a little as the penny dropped. "Then that means we must be getting close, right?" he thought out loud and began looking around outside, hoping to spot signs of civilisation. "What did Bobby say about the town losing power?"
"He said they keep having blackouts for no apparent reason," Sam answered, looking around as well. "They've had the electric company out here three times in three weeks and they haven't been able to figure out why they keep losing power."
Suddenly there was a rumble of thunder overhead and the heavens quite literally opened up, rain hammering down like bullets and turning the dirt road into a muddy bog in a matter of minutes. The sky became so dark that Dean had to switch on the Impala's headlights.
"Oh great, now it's raining," Dean growled in aggravation. "What else could go wrong?"
"Didn't Bobby say there was a woman who lived just outside of town who might have an idea of what's going on?" Sam asked as a flash of lightning lit up the sky.
"Yeah, he said her name's Starina," Dean nodded as he kept looking about for houses. "Keep an eye out for a white fencepost with a horseshoe nailed to it, he said it's at the end of her driveway."
"Is she a hunter? I've never heard of her," Sam remarked keeping an eye out for said fencepost.
"I dunno, apparently she hasn't lived there long," Dean shrugged. "Bobby just said that she's known for helping out people in town with herbal remedies and stuff. She better not be a witch, I hate witches."
"Still not seeing a white fencepost," Sam said as the sky darkened further and the rain became heavier.
"Dammit! I can't see a thing with this damned rain!" Dean cursed, and then the Impala's engine began to sputter. "Oh no no no, don't do this to me, Baby. Hang on a bit longer!"
But after a few minutes of more sputtering the engine finally stopped and the car came to a complete halt, the headlights showing nothing but deserted road ahead of them.
"Sonovabitch!" Dean banged his fist on the steering wheel.
"Dean, calm down," said Sam as he glanced out his window.
"Don't tell me to calm down!" shouted Dean. "We're stuck in the middle of nowhere, no phones, no car, it's pissin' down rain-"
"DEAN!"
"WHAT?!"
"Look!" Sam said, pointing.
Dean followed his brother's glance and standing there in the mist and rain was a white painted fencepost with a big iron horseshoe nailed to it. And about a hundred yards beyond that was a huge farmhouse, the front windows lit up and glowing softly, truly a welcome sight for tired travellers.
"Well I'll be damned," Dean muttered in amazement. "We were right near it the whole time!"
"Bit too much of a coincidence, don'tcha think?" asked Sam, voicing what his older brother was thinking.
"Yeah," Dean agreed. "C'mon, let's grab our stuff and check it out."
Both men immediately regretted leaving the dry warmth of the Impala as they exited the vehicle and were instantly soaked through by the pouring the rain. They quickly grabbed their duffle bags out of the trunk and hurried up the driveway, their shoes filling with water and mud as the wind suddenly picked up; leaving both of them shivering by the time they reached the house. As they climbed the stairs to the front porch they noticed more horseshoes nailed on the railing and the along the roof as well.
"Man, does this chick have a thing for horseshoes or what?" Dean asked as he saw yet another horseshoe nailed above the front door.
"Well they're supposed to be good luck," Sam shrugged, shaking his sopping wet chestnut hair out of his face. "Maybe she's superstitious or something."
"Yeah whatever," Dean said as he shook his hair as well. "Damn, I hope she's home, it's freezing out here!"
Sam raised his knuckles to knock but before he was anywhere near the door it slowly swung open, creaking rather loudly and making both brothers wince. Peering inside they were met with what had to be the living room, a wide, welcoming space with a large couch, two recliners and a beautiful woven rug covering the polished timber floor. A stone fireplace complete with a burning fire stood in one corner and an LCD screen TV was mounted on the wall above it.
"Uh, hello?" Sam called out as he and Dean stepped inside. "Anyone home?"
"Wow, nice place!" Dean commented as he took in the simple but rustic decor. "This Starina's got good taste. Think she's married?"
"Dean!" Sam frowned disapprovingly.
"What? No harm in askin'," Dean shrugged, turning to shut the door.
Sam rolled his eyes but said nothing else as he set his heavy duffle bag down. Looking up again he noticed several more horseshoes nailed to the beams in the ceiling. Glancing at the walls he spotted a bookshelf laden with old looking books and a few framed pictures, some containing horses while others were of who he assumed were Starina and her family. But before he could take a closer look he caught movement at the corner of his eye and the next thing he knew there was a roar and he was flat on his back on the floor, the air forced from his lungs as something huge and heavy landed on his chest.
"SAMMY!"
Whatever had been sitting on Sam's chest was suddenly gone and Dean let out a grunt of pain and Sam both heard and felt him hit the floor with a thud that seemed to shake the whole house. Rolling up, Sam's mouth fell open in astonishment when his eyes fell upon their attacker. Two huge, leathery bat-like wings almost hid Dean from view but it was frighteningly clear what they were dealing with.
"DRAGON!" Dean yelled as he wrestled with the snarling creature.
Sam swore under his breath and tried to dodge the dragon's wings and tail as he rushed to help his brother. When he got close enough to land a punch the creature's attention turned on him, big, golden eyes glaring right into his. The dragon forgot Dean for a second and lunged at Sam again, pinning him to the floor.
"Get off him you sonovabitch!" Dean roared as he struck the creature with a poker he'd grabbed from beside the fireplace.
But the dragon didn't even flinch at the blow and sent Dean flying across the room with a swing from its powerful tail. Dean could only grunt as he hit the wall and slid down to the floor, jaw clenched and pain coursing through his body. Sam was kicking and punching with all his might but the dragon barely seemed to notice as it shredded Sam's shirt with its razor sharp claws, wrenching a cry of pain from the younger Winchester. Still seeing stars, Dean got to his feet and launched himself on the dragon's back, wrapping one arm around its neck in an attempt at a choke-hold, but the dragon sent him flying again by spreading its wings.
"Donovan, no!"
Everyone in the room froze as a young woman with waist-length auburn hair suddenly rushed into the room and began trying to heave the angry dragon away from Sam. To the brothers' astonishment the dragon instantly stopped its attack and wrapped its arms and wings around her as though it were trying to hide her from view.
"We've gotta run Starina, they're hunters!" the dragon growled in a deep, smooth baritone as he started to drag her from the room.
"Stop it, Donovan!" the woman, apparently Starina, pleaded. "I know they're hunters but they're not here for you!"
"What?"the dragon paused and frowned at her in confusion.
"I know they're hunters," Starina repeated, her voice surprisingly calm. "They're not after you; they're here to talk to me about the blackouts."
Donovan looked at the Winchester brothers who were still on the floor, mistrust evident in his gaze as he narrowed his eyes at them suspiciously. Neither of the young men dared to move as the still-angry dragon unfolded his wings and let Starina go. As one wing fell away both brothers' eyes widened at Starina's swollen abdomen.
"Holy crap, you're pregnant!" Dean blurted out.
"Oh well spotted, what was your first clue Einstein?" Starina asked sarcastically as she went over to Sam who was still on the floor bleeding and knelt beside him. With a flick of her wrist she tore open the ragged remnants of Sam's shirt and moved the fabric aside, wincing in sympathy at the sight of four huge slashes across his chest. Dean quickly got to his feet and knelt at Sam's other side.
"Oh God," he muttered as Sam grunted in pain and Dean shot a glare at Donovan. "You bastard, if he dies I swear I'll-"
"Shut it!" Starina snapped at him but then spoke gently to Sam, "You're gonna be alright. I need you to relax and keep still for a moment, okay? This might hurt a bit."
Before either of the brothers could say anything Starina held her hand over the wounds and began to chant something under her breath in a language that neither of them recognised. Suddenly a beam of bright blue light shone from her hand and the wounds slowly but surely began to close. Sam made a noise of discomfort but kept still as the wounds closed and finally vanished, leaving no evidence that there had ever been wounds there to begin with. Starina stopped chanting and drew her hand away.
"Can you stand up?" she asked, her emerald eyes full of concern.
Sam blinked and shook himself, rolling onto his side with a pained grunt. The wounds on his chest were gone but he was still very battered and bruised from fighting with Donovan. Dean stood and heaved his brother up, looking in disbelief at the place on his little brother's chest where the wounds had been. There wasn't even a scar! He glanced up at Starina as she was being helped to her feet by Donovan who was still hovering around her protectively.
"What are you?" Dean asked in a hushed tone. "Are you an angel?"
"Of course I'm not," Starina tutted irritably as she leant on Donovan for support. It was only now that Dean noticed she spoke with a British accent. "And I'm not a witch either, in case you're wondering."
Dean was taken aback. That had been what he was going to ask her next. "Okay, if you're not an angel and you're not a witch then what are you?"
Starina didn't answer right away but when she did she completely ignored his question. "You guys are soaking wet. Lemme guess, your car broke down?"
"Uh, yeah," Sam nodded, speaking for the first time in several minutes. "Broke down just outside your property, actually."
"I thought as much," Starina said grimly and Donovan visibly tensed. "Well, you're not gonna get a mechanic out here at this hour and you're still twenty miles outta town and in this weather you won't last two minutes on foot. You guys can kip here for the night and we'll see about your car in the morning."
"Thanks, but-" Dean started.
"You need to get out of those wet clothes," Starina cut him off as she stepped forward and made quick work of tugging his drenched jacket off. "I won't have you two getting pneumonia. There's a bathroom in the guestroom upstairs. One of you can use that and the other can use the one down the hall on the right. There'll be towels and whatnot already there."
"Look, I don't think-" Sam started.
"You'd best do what she asks," Donovan cut him off with a smirk. "Pregnancy has made her quite temperamental."
"You'd be temperamental too if you had two babies using your bladder as a trampoline at all hours of the night instead of one," Starina bit back as she took Sam's jacket off as well. "Now you two get yourselves in the bath, you need to get warm. Then we can discuss your business here."
"But-"
Starina silenced Dean with such a look that he immediately shut his mouth, grabbed both duffle bags and practically dragged Sam up the stairs. With Donovan's words still ringing in their ears they really didn't want to know what an angry Starina might decide to do to them if they pissed her off.
"Guestroom's the first door on the left!" Starina yelled up the stairs after them as they went. "Put your wet stuff in the hamper!"
The guestroom was better than any hotel room the brothers had ever stayed in. There were two double beds with several pillows on them and each was covered with a beautiful patchwork quilt. The walls were painted in a soft, minty green colour and the floor was covered with a soft, creamy coloured carpet (they both took their dirty and wet shoes and socks off before they entered the room lest they invoke Starina's wrath by dirtying her carpet). There was a small desk in the corner which would provide plenty of space for Sam's laptop and many books. Near the desk was a large window that looked out over what they assumed was the back yard (it was hard to tell right now because it was dark and raining outside.)
"Wow, the hotels oughta take a leaf outta Starina's book," Sam commented as he dumped his bag at the foot of the nearest bed.
Dean wrinkled his nose as he looked at the beds. "There's no chocolates on the pillows," he said dismissively as he dumped his bag down as well.
Sam rolled his eyes in annoyance but said nothing as he stripped off his torn shirt and tossed it into the trashcan under the desk. When Dean finished showering a short while later he saw signs that Sam had finished with his shower in other bathroom first and already gone back downstairs. When Dean came into the living room a few minutes later it was to find the mess from their struggle with Donovan had been cleaned up and Sam was sitting on the couch, a towel wrapped around his head like a turban and wearing a fluffy purple bath robe.
"Gee Sammy, this your day at the spa or something?" Dean snorted with laughter as he sat at the other end of the couch.
Sam glared at him. "Shaddup," he grumbled. "Starina made me put the robe on. There's one for you, too. She said we both need to keep warm."
Dean turned around and on the arm of the nearest recliner was a matching robe and he scoffed. "I ain't puttin' that thing on, no way!"
"You'd better do it Dean," Sam warned. "You don't know if she's controlling that dragon or not and we don't know what she's capable of. You saw the way she looked at us before."
"Nobody controls Donovan," Starina said as she suddenly walked into the living room, making both men jump. "He's a free spirit and he stays here because he wants to, not because I make him. And if you don't like the way I look at you then shut your eyes."
"Jeeze, give a little warning next time!" said Dean exasperatedly as his heart rate returned to normal. "And I thought Cas was bad!"
"Castiel?" Starina paused from where she was picking up the robe. "He's your angel friend, isn't he?"
"Uh, yeah," Sam answered before Dean could speak. "But he's not with us right now."
"I see," said Starina as she approached Dean with the robe and draped it around his shoulders. "Keep that on for a while; I want to make sure you don't get a chill."
"How do you know Castiel?" asked Dean, ignoring the robe for the moment.
"I don't know him," Starina answered simply as she straightened and observed him. "I just heard the name 'Cas' and picked up 'Castiel' and that he's an angel. He saved you from Perdition, yes?"
"How do you even know that?" Dean frowned. "You don't know us."
Starina left the room for a moment and came back with a carved wooden box which she set on the coffee table and opened. "I don't need to actually know someone to know them, Dean," she said mysteriously.
"Huh?" Sam asked, confused.
"I'm an Empath," Starina clarified as she took a bottle and some cotton swabs out of the box. "I can sense what other people feel and think. I see memories and hear thoughts."
"So what, you're some kinda mind reader or something?" Dean asked defensively.
Starina rolled her eyes. "The mind isn't something you read," she pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance. "It's not a book that you can open and look at whenever you want. The mind consists of images, memories, thoughts and emotions, and it's not accessible to the average human being."
"But you're not the average human being, are you?" Sam pointed out.
"And you'd be right," Starina nodded as she took another bottle out of the box. "Most people have empathy, but there're some who don't. My gift in particular is very powerful compared to that of normal people. I can sense their emotions without having to touch them or even see them. When Dean said 'Cas' I felt that he was thinking of the angel known as Castiel and I saw the memory in relation to the name."
"Wait, you actually saw that?" asked Dean, his cheeks reddening a little.
"Castiel appearing in the bathroom while you were in the shower singing to Metallica and using a comb as a microphone? Yeah," Starina smirked and Sam barely managed to stifle a laugh. "Not intentionally, of course. As a rule I don't intrude upon people's memories but I can't control what's shown to me in relation to a person or a situation."
Dean glared at Sam who was determinedly not looking at him but was clearly shaking with fits of suppressed laughter. Dean was about to punch him on the arm when Starina knelt in front of him with a cotton swab soaked in a brownish liquid.
"Lift your shirt, Dean," she ordered gently as she started tugging at the hem. "You have bruises from fighting with Donovan."
"I'm fine, you don't have to-"
But Starina gave him that look again and Dean quickly did as he was told. Sure enough when he pulled his shirt up he was black, blue and purple all over. Starina's look immediately softened as she dabbed the liquid onto the bruises, apologizing whenever Dean flinched.
"Can't you heal us the same way you healed me before?" Sam asked while she was tending to his bruises as well.
"My healing powers are limited," Starina explained. "Healing a wound like that takes a great deal of energy. If I tried to heal both of you I could've passed out for several hours, maybe days. Given my current condition that was a risk I didn't wanna take. I knew I could heal you Sam," she added as Sam went to say something. "I wouldn't have done it unless I was absolutely sure I could."
"You still took a pretty big risk though," Dean remarked as Starina finished with Sam's injuries. "You sure you're not gonna pass out on us before we've talked about why we're here?"
"Dean..." Sam said warningly.
Starina frowned at the older Winchester but said nothing as she packed away her things and went to heave herself up but had to stop because the extra weight of her pregnancy threw off her balance. Sam quickly moved to help her up and she took his hand gratefully as she stood and moved over to the recliner.
"Thank you. Now, you two had questions about the power failures," she stated as she sat, her hand resting on her distended belly.
"Uh yeah, we've heard a few stories about the power going out for no reason," Sam started. "We were wondering if you might have any ideas as to why or if you've noticed anything strange or out of the ordinary."
"Well, the blackouts started around six months ago," Starina answered, scratching her chin thoughtfully. "At first it was just the lights flickering every now and then and I thought nothing of it, put it down to bad weather. But then it went from the lights flickering to them going out completely and the electrics not working. I had an electrician come out but he couldn't find anything wrong."
"So you didn't pick up anything with your weird hoodoo powers?" Dean asked sceptically.
Starina sent him an impatient look. "Actually I did," she said curtly. "When the lights started going out and neighbours told me they were having the same problem I did sense something strange that made me feel uneasy, but I haven't been able to pinpoint who or what could be causing it."
"Have you noticed anything else? Noises, strange smells?" Sam asked.
"Nothing out of the ordinary," Starina shrugged. "I know what you're referring to but there's never been a smell of sulphur around here. And the only noises I've heard are the house creaking and the animals outside."
"What's with all the horseshoes?" Dean asked suddenly as he pointed to the wooden beams above their heads. "Don't get me wrong, I know some people think they're good luck and all but this is overkill."
Starina smiled at this. "Are you familiar with the legend of Saint Dunstan?" she asked and both men shook their heads. "Funny, one would think you hunters would be up to scratch on such things. In ancient times Saint Dunstan was a blacksmith famous for his skills as a farrier-"
"A what?" Dean interrupted.
"A farrier, someone who looks after horses' feet and teeth," Starina explained. "The story goes that Saint Dunstan was visited by a man who said he needed a shoe for his horse, but Saint Dunstan knew that that the man was actually the Devil in disguise. He bound him to the wall of his forge and nailed a shoe onto the bottom of his cloven hoof. This caused so much pain that the Devil begged for mercy and eventually Dunstan agreed to release him, but only if he swore never to enter any dwelling where a horseshoe was displayed. That's why it's said that horseshoes are lucky, especially if they're displayed with the bars facing upwards so the luck never runs out."
"Horseshoes are made of iron," Sam thought out loud, catching on. "And spirits don't like iron."
"That's right," Starina nodded. "There're many creatures and spirits that can sense my energy and are drawn to it, so my home is covered with horseshoes to keep them away."
"Why would they be drawn to you?" Dean asked with suspicion in his tone.
"Because I'm an Empath," Starina sounded as though she was getting tired of Dean's attitude now. "Many beings can sense that. Some seek me out intending to use my powers to cause harm, while others simply need help to heal or find peace so they can pass over. I've helped many spirits to go into the Light."
Just then Donovan stepped into the room and paused, glancing suspiciously at Sam and Dean and narrowing his golden eyes at them. Now that they weren't in a life-or-death struggle the Winchesters could take in the creature in his full form. He was easily head and shoulders taller than Sam, very muscular and his scales were a beautiful, deep sapphire blue while his underside and goat-like horns were shimmering silver. Come to think of it, he closely resembled a character from a TV show called Gargoyles that they used to watch when they were kids. He even folded his wings around his shoulders like the Gargoyles did in the show.
"So what's his story?" Dean sneered a bit. "He your pet or something?"
Donovan immediately bore his teeth and snarled, his wings springing out in a display of pure anger, making everyone in the room flinch. "Do not insult me, puny runt," he growled. "If I chose I could snap you like a twig!"
"Dean, stop it!" Sam punched his brother on the arm.
"Donovan, don't," Starina ordered gently. "Ignore him."
Donovan glanced at her and immediately folded his wings down but still glared at the oldest Winchester from the corner of his eye as he crossed the room and stood beside Starina's chair, watching both brothers warily as though he were guarding her.
"I used to live in the mountains in California," Donovan explained, anger and disdain in his tone. "I fled when hunters massacred my clan when I was very young. Over the years I found my way here and then last year I encountered hunters again. I was captured and tortured before I escaped and hid in Starina's barn and she found me."
"I knew the hunters would kill him if they found him," Starina added. "He was exhausted and nearly dead. So I led the hunters away and kept him hidden until he healed."
"Why keep him hidden?" Dean couldn't help himself. "You shoulda let the hunters have him."
"Cut it out, Dean!" Sam hissed.
Starina glared at him. "Because I knew he wasn't evil. The clan Donovan was from was very different from the dragons you've encountered. They hated taking virgins and disguising themselves as humans. They lived in the mountains to avoid encounters with people; it was the hunters who sought them out, not the other way around."
"But dragons are supposed to be very rare," Sam pointed out. "In fact Bobby told us they're not even real. Why would a bunch of hunters randomly go looking for them?"
Donovan sighed sadly and glanced at the floor. "Some youngsters strayed too far from our home and accidentally revealed themselves to some hikers," he explained, the growl gone from his voice now. "They panicked and a man was injured, almost killed. We planned to leave right away but somehow a hunter caught wind of the incident and rallied a bunch of other hunters. They ambushed us while our guard was down. Somehow they obtained weapons forged with dragon's blood and they outnumbered us, we never stood a chance."
"Did anyone else survive?" Dean found himself asking.
"If they did I never got word of it," Donovan glanced up again, grief evident in his voice and sadness in his gaze. "As your brother mentioned before, my kind are very rare so clans are few and far between. If there were survivors their chances of finding sanctuary in the territory of another clan were slim at best. It's likely they're all dead by now."
Sam and Dean glanced at each other as Starina took Donovan's clawed hand and squeezed it caringly. So that explained why Donovan had attacked them and why he was so wary and distrusting.
"I'm sorry," Sam said sympathetically.
"It doesn't matter anymore," Donovan said dismissively as he looked up. "That was then, my only concern is now."
"So how does your husband feel about having a dragon as a housemate?" asked Dean with a slight smirk. "Betcha it must be kinda awkward when you guys want privacy."
At this Starina blushed and cleared her throat and Donovan shifted uncomfortably and looked at the floor again. That was when Sam noticed they were still holding hands and Donovan was standing very close to Starina's recliner.
"Uh, I- I'm not married," Starina muttered just loud enough for the brothers to hear.
"Oh, okay, sorry. Your boyfriend then?" Dean asked.
"Um, no," Starina blushed even more, looking as though she wanted the floor to open up and swallow her.
Then the penny dropped and Sam's eyes widened. "Wait, so you mean Donovan's-?"
Dean frowned in confusion as Starina, if it was even possible, blushed even further and nodded and Donovan shifted closer to her. "Huh? Donovan's what?"
Finally Starina huffed impatiently. "He's my mate," she blurted as she placed a hand protectively on her belly and Donovan knelt down to cover her hand with his. "And he's the father of my babies."
"Wait, what?" Dean still looked confused. "Just a damned minute, you mean you two-" he gestured between the two and they both nodded. "Are you serious?"
"Come on Dean, surely you're not that blind?" said Sam in exasperation. Dean could be really thick at times.
Suddenly it all began to fall into place. Donovan's protectiveness, the way Starina was able to calm the dragon in tense situations and their overall closeness to one another. How the hell did he miss that?!
"How in God's name did that even happen?!"
"It's really none of your business but if you must know, after I found Donovan in the barn I protected him and nursed him back to health," Starina explained. "His injuries were so severe he nearly didn't make it."
"When I was at my worst she sat with me all night," Donovan added. "I thought for sure I was going to die but she refused to give up on me. Even after I'd recovered she said I could stay as long as I wanted."
"And you fell in love," Sam stated.
Starina nodded. "It wasn't supposed to happen, but as time went by and Donovan began to trust me more we realised that we had feelings for each other. And then one day I was busy clearing out the stables and I must've been ovulating because Donovan said my scent had changed and... well I can imagine you guys can guess what happened next."
"But how can you be pregnant with his offspring?" Sam asked, ignoring Dean's slightly disgusted look. "You're two different species."
"You're right, it shouldn't have been biologically possible," Starina agreed. "I didn't believe it at first when I missed a period and started experiencing morning sickness, but then I took three tests and all of them were positive. For all intents and purposes it shouldn't have happened. But then it occurred to us that when it comes to matters of magic and the supernatural biology doesn't even come into the equation"
Sam nodded to show he understood, after everything he and Dean had experienced in their years of hunting it didn't really come as a surprise that something like this could happen. And the fact that magic played a part did make sense. With magic even biology was hardly more than a mere suggestion.
"So wait a minute, does this make you Mother of Dragons?" Dean snorted at his own joke and didn't notice that no one else laughed. Suddenly his snickering was cut off as a pillow flew off the unoccupied chair and hit him square in the face. "What the hell?!"
"It's not wise to make Starina angry," Donovan smirked as Sam burst out laughing at his brother. "Since she's been pregnant she's developed quite a temper."
"Consider yourself lucky it wasn't a skillet or a knife," Starina added as Dean threw the pillow at Sam. "Pregnancy has made it difficult to control my abilities as well."
"Point taken," Dean said through gritted teeth as Sam kept giggling.
Suddenly there was particularly loud crack of thunder, a flash of lightning and the house was plunged into almost complete darkness, the only light coming from the fire in the fireplace. Sam and Dean had forgotten all about the storm until now.
"Here we go again," Starina sighed as she stood up with Donovan's help. "Get that lantern down off the sideboard, would you Donovan? I'll get the candles."
"Do you want one of us to check the fuse box?" Sam asked as the two went into the kitchen.
"You can if you want, it's down in the basement," Starina called back. "Not sure what you can do, though."
Sure enough when Sam and Dean checked the fuse box nothing seemed to be blown or damaged. In fact it looked brand new, as though the entire house had very recently been rewired. There were barely any cobwebs on it and almost no dust or dirt at all.
"Well, I can't see any reason why the power keeps going out," Dean remarked as he shone a torch on the dozens of little switches and wires. "But on the other hand I'm not an electrician, either."
"So what're you thinking?" Sam asked. "A ghost? Poltergeist?"
"Right now I think it's the storm," said Dean as he swung the fuse box's door closed. "But as for the other blackouts, I dunno. You see anything she could use to drain power?"
Sam looked around. The basement was completely empty except for a washing machine, a dryer, an old table and a few rows of shelves full of glass bottles along one wall, but there was absolutely nothing, no clue that indicated what could be causing the power failures.
"Unless the dryer's draining all the power, then no," Sam answered. "Maybe the problem's somewhere else?"
"Could be," Dean agreed. "We should talk to her some more and ask her some more questions. She might let something slip."
"We don't even know that she's causing the blackouts," Sam pointed out as they started climbing back up the stairs. "She probably knows as much as we do."
"One way to find out," Dean shrugged.
As they came back into the kitchen they saw a kerosene lamp sitting on the kitchen counter while the table had some lit candles on it, providing plenty of light as Starina bustled around in the kitchen.
"Thank the Goddess for gas stoves," she grinned as she set a box of matches on the counter as well. "So, any luck with the fuse box?"
"Uh, no, we couldn't find anything wrong," Dean answered. "Listen, you said before that you had a sense of something causing the blackouts. What exactly did you mean?"
Starina paused as she took a bottle of cooking out of the pantry. "Like I said, I haven't been able to put my finger on it," she said evasively. "I know that it's putting me and Donovan on edge and sometimes the animals start acting up before a blackout. That's why I keep them, as well. They're natural paranormal detectors."
"So you haven't actually seen anything?" Dean pressed.
"No I haven't," Starina answered pointedly, sounding as though she were tiring of all the questions. "I suggest talking the neighbours tomorrow, they might know more."
"So who's the Goddess?" Sam asked curiously.
"Ériu," Starina smiled wistfully, apparently pleased for a change of subject. "The Goddess of Ireland, my family's homeland," she added as she took a packet of what looked like steak out of the fridge.
"You're Irish?" Dean asked and Starina nodded. "But you have a British accent."
"I'm third generation British," Starina explained. "But I'm of Irish descent. There's a bit of Scottish thrown in there somewhere but my family lines can be traced back well over 800 years if one cared to look."
"Wow, you have one hell of a family tree," Dean remarked as he leaned on the counter.
"Family is everything to us," said Starina as she took the steaks out of the packet and laid them out on a paper towel. "Our heritage plays a very important part in our lives. Our past is also our future, passed down from generation to generation for many centuries."
"So are the rest of your family Empaths too?" asked Sam pulling up a chair to sit down.
"Actually no, it's not a common gift," Starina shook her head, sprinkling seasoning on the steaks. "We all have our own special abilities and have done for hundreds of years. It's not widely known so I'd appreciate it if you didn't go announcing it on social media."
"Pfft, you don't have to worry about that," Dean chuckled. "We don't have any of that stuff."
"And who'd believe us, anyway?" Sam added.
Starina smiled warmly. "I appreciate that," she said earnestly. "I can sense that keeping secrets is nothing new to you. In your line of work secrecy is perhaps the strongest protection you have, for both yourselves and others. Stronger even than your anti-possession tattoos."
Both Sam and Dean blinked in bewilderment. "How did you-?"
"I don't need to see them to know they're there," Starina smirked a little. "I'm an Empath, remember? You'd be surprised how much I've learned about you in the two hours since you've been here."
"You can't have picked up that much," Dean scoffed and Sam winced, sensing what was coming.
"Wanna bet?" Starina challenged, pausing in her food preparation for a moment. "How many people know that you skinny-dipped with a stripper you picked up at a club the last time you guys stayed at a hotel that had a pool? And did I mention that you got caught on the hotel's CCTV cameras?"
Dean went very white and Sam nearly fell off his chair laughing. "Those cameras were actually working?!"
"Yep," Starina flashed a wicked grin. "The only reason the manager at the hotel didn't confront you about it was because you two had checked out before the office opened the next morning. And he wasn't able to track you down at all because you used fake credit cards."
"Shut up, Sam!" Dean shouted as Sam laughed even harder.
"Don't you laugh, Samuel," Starina said in a tone that made Sam stop laughing. "Did you tell Dean that you got drunk one night and a waitress you were flirting with tricked you into getting a tattoo on your bum?"
Sam blushed as Dean snorted and burst out laughing himself. "You actually got a tattoo on your ass?!" he asked breathlessly. "Of what?"
"A unicorn," Starina said innocently as Sam put his head in his hands.
"Someone kill me now," Sam groaned under his breath as Dean laughed even more.
"Don't laugh Dean, the manager at that hotel took the CCTV footage and put it on YouTube," Starina warned.
Dean stopped laughing immediately only for Sam to burst out laughing all over again. Then he glared at Starina who was grinning at them like a Cheshire Cat.
"Need I continue?" she asked.
"No!" shouted Dean.
Starina chuckled and went back to preparing the food. "If you guys want something to do you can give me a hand here. I need to know how you like your steaks."
While the three worked in the kitchen, outside the storm raged on. A short way from the house in a small, wooded area near the property line, there was a humungous crack of thunder as lightning struck a large tree, the timber snapping and groaning as the tree fell to the ground. Hidden in the shadows, completely and utterly unphased by the wildness of the storm, a cloaked figure stooped in the insides of a dead, hollow tree that had strange markings carved into the bark. As lightning flashed once again, a pale, skull-like face looked up at the blackened sky above, grinning with horrible crooked and broken teeth.
"Yessss," a voice hissed sinisterly as lightning flashed again. "Ssssoooon I will be free...and the heir of Clan Rose will be dead! And there'll be no one to help her!"
Had anyone been unfortunate enough to be nearby at that moment, above the wind and pouring rain, they would have heard a wild, manic laugh that would have frozen their blood in their veins...
-TBC-
Wow, that took longer than I expected. I didn't drag it out? Please R/R and let me know what you think!