A/N: Thank you all so much for reading. Please review and let me know what you think about it. Especially the ending.

Chapter 40: Echoes

But there will be suffering, in the healing?
Yes.
Only with a difference. You will know it then.
- Muriel Rukeyser, from The Collected Poems; "Body of Waking,"

Sam and I followed Kelly, who was walking ahead with Dean.

"This is in your top worst ideas," I said. "Only under entering the haunted house. Why do you have the worst ideas?"

"Hey!" she turned to me. "Who's idea was it that led to the escalator incident?"

"To be fair, no one expected that to happen."

"It was still your idea."

"I can't be held responsible for that!" I said.

"What's the escalator incident?" Sam asked.

"Don't ask!" Kelly and I said at the same time. Dean looked between us with raised eyebrows.

"Okay…" he muttered. "I don't understand you two. Look at the tombstones. Let's find this bitch."

We walked a little further and Dean slowed down so we caught up. He motioned for Kelly to walk with me. He and Sam spread out, covering more ground as we walked.

"Here! Found it!" Sam called out. We all headed over to him. Kelly and I stopped as he started digging.

"You girls wait there," Dean pointed to the side.

"No complaints here!" Kelly grabbed my hand and dragged me over. She sat on the tombstone.

"This is a little...disrespectful, no?" I asked, looking down and trying to see the name through her feet.

"I'm sure it's fine. Despite what people think, the dead don't really care about their graves. I didn't," she shrugged. If anyone knew, it would be her. I stood next to her. It was quiet outside of the men digging, which looked like a lot of work.

"Looking good boys!" Kelly called out. Dean shot her an unimpressed look.

"How long do you think this'll take?" I asked. I put the crowbar on my shoulder and looked around. The cemetery was empty and creepy.

"Don't know. They never really show that." Kelly glanced around. "Hopefully not long. This is boring."

"Rather boring than anything else." I couldn't stop myself from looking around. There was too much open empty space. It felt like anything could sneak up on us. "I hate cemeteries," I muttered.

"Me too," Kelly said softly. "I haven't been to one since...well since my funeral." I looked at her. She was staring off in the distance. Her funeral was awful in the sense that it finalized the fact that she was dead. Everyone cried. I cried. God, that whole month was awful. It felt like I couldn't function after losing my best friend. I could only imagine what it must have been like for her.

The two of us fell silent. I kept an eye out in case of trouble but didn't say anything. Despite our insistence in coming, neither of us prepared for the memories it would stir.

The old lady flickered to life before us.

"Shit!" Kelly swore, scrambling off the tombstone. I swung the crowbar through her instinctively. She dissipated. I stepped away from the grave. There wasn't as much space as I would have liked but I needed what I could get, just in case.

"You okay?" one of the men called out.

"Yeah!" Kelly called back. "Keep digging! We'll keep watch." She cocked the shotgun and looked around, ready to fire. The ghost appeared again, rushing towards us. Kelly shot and we watched it disappear.

I felt it behind me, like a cold chill running up my spine. I spun and swung the crowbar down. "Why is she coming after us?" I asked. "We're not the ones digging her grave!"

"Hurry up!" Kelly yelled at the men. "Maybe she's just pissed we got out of the house." She shot again.

"Well, she needs to get over it." I turned, keeping my back to Kelly's. It was the easiest way to make sure we were covered and she couldn't sneak up on us again. I glanced at the men to see them trying to dig faster. I suddenly went flying. Training took over and I felt myself roll into a landing. I was lucky she hadn't sent me into a tombstone. I got up and ran back to Kelly, picking up the crowbar I dropped on the way. She reloaded the shotgun before shooting the ghost again. I watched as Kelly ducked as a rock went flying at her.

"Okay, what's the deal? This woman needs to chill the fuck out!" Kelly yelled, glaring at the empty space where the ghost had been.

"No idea. She's more persistent than that one dude you went on the date on. Tyler?"

"What?" I heard Dean ask from somewhere behind us.

"Not now!" Kelly called back. I caught a flash of movement in the corner of my eye. I swung and hit the ghost. "You had to bring that up?"

I shrugged. "Just saying." The ghost appeared again and both of us turned. Kelly cocked the shotgun only to have the old lady suddenly burn up, screaming. I looked over to the grave to see the boys standing over it. They were lit up by the bones burning.

I sighed and bent over, trying to calm myself down before I was sick. The ghost was gone. For good. Whatever happened next, at least she couldn't hurt anyone else. We had gone looking for trouble, but whoever the vessel was didn't. They were just unlucky in their choice of shelter.

"Wait," I looked over at Kelly. "Who was the vessel?"

"Oh, right, I never told you. It was Ross. From Friends."

"Huh." Why did he come now when Joey had arrived with Voldemort? The timing was confusing.

"You guys okay?" Dean asked as he and Sam walked up to us.

"Yeah, we're good, right?" Kelly asked me. I nodded. "See? Told you. No problem." He gave her a look like he didn't fully believe her. She grinned up at him though.

"Alright, let's get out of here." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and balanced the shovel on his shoulder that wasn't next to her. "Come on, Sammy, Ninja."

"Ninja?" I asked. Sam stepped up to me and grabbed my hand.

"Yeah! I saw that move when she threw you, rolled right back up to standing. Like a freakin' ninja!"

I couldn't stop myself from smiling at the exuberance. "Wasn't that impressive," I muttered.

"It was pretty cool," Sam whispered.

I looked up at him. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." He looked down at me and there was something soft in his expression. I smiled back and squeezed his hand for a moment.

"Are we going home now?" I asked.

"Uh, not yet. We gotta take care of one more thing."

One more thing ended up being the body of the vessel in the house. Kelly and I waited outside, just in case there was something else lurking. I still held the crowbar. It wasn't much, but the weight of it was comfortable and I was pretty certain I could do enough damage with it if I needed to. The boys came out holding the body wrapped in some kind of fabric. We needed to take it out somewhere slightly more secluded before we burnt it. I was not looking forward to it. Logically, I understood the need. It would keep Ross from getting trapped as a ghost if he felt like he needed to settle any unfinished business, and knowing the character, I wouldn't be surprised if he did. I just didn't want to see it.

The boys figured out a spot and set up a small pyre. It was weird how easily they had done it. Kelly and I went closer once it was ready.

"Do you, uh, do you want to say something?" Sam asked.

I shrugged and looked at Kelly. She stared back for a moment before she sighed.

"I don't know," she said.

"Um, well, we're sorry you died. Hopefully, you'll see some dinosaurs in the afterlife?" I shrugged again, unsure of what I was saying. It was enough. Dean lit the fire. Sam's arm wrapped around my waist as we watched it burn. Slowly, the smell of burning wood turned to flesh. I felt my stomach turn and saliva build up in my mouth. I tried to stop myself from heaving. I pushed Sam off and ran back to the car. I somehow managed to make it without throwing up. The smell took me instantly back to the diner. I tried to shove the thought away. I wasn't there. The demon was gone and I was safe. I dug my fingers into my palms.

"Hey, are you okay?" I looked up as Sam walked towards me. I could see the fire through the trees behind him.

"Yeah, sorry, just...the smell."

He made a face. "I should have warned you."

"It's okay, I should have known," I let out a small huff. What else was I supposed to expect when we were burning a body?

"Come here," Sam reached for me. I let him pull me into his embrace. I settled in against him, wrapping my arms around his waist. I buried my nose in his chest, letting the smell of him wash away the smell of the fire. Holding me, he felt like he surrounded me, like nothing would break through. I didn't know how to tell him that.

We stayed like that for what felt like hours. Sam's presence grounded me in a way I hadn't ever expected it to. I slowly pulled back, surprising myself with the reluctance I felt to move away.

"Thanks," I gave him a small smile.

"Whatever you need, Michelle." His hand touched my cheek and he tilted my face up. I pushed myself up to my toes as he leaned down and kissed me. I broke it first, letting myself fall back on my heels. The diner was still in the back of my mind. Despite knowing that it was over and that I was safe, it didn't stop the regret and guilt bubbling up. The demon had murdered everyone in there and part of it was due to wanting to reach me. I leaned my head on Sam's chest. I just wanted this all to stop. I felt him sigh but his arms wrapped around me again and he kept me there.

When the fire was done, Kelly and Dean came back. We drove back to the hotel. It was late enough that we still had the rest of the night. It was Kelly's idea to sleep before we drove home. I was pretty sure she just wanted more time with Dean in an actual bed.

I showered again after rolling in the dirt in the graveyard. I didn't want anything clinging to me, as superstitious as that felt. I was sitting up in the bed when Sam came out of the bathroom. He looked unsure, like he didn't want to presume his place next to me since there were two beds in the room. I pulled back the cover on the empty side. He grinned at me and got in.

I laid down as he turned off the light. It felt weird again. This was the first time we were in a bed together to sleep since we broke up. Sam didn't seem to have any of the same hesitations. He lay on his back before pulling me close. My head rested on his shoulder as I lay facing him, my arm over his stomach.

"This okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," I smiled, despite the fact that he couldn't see me. "We're good."

"Good."

I couldn't stop myself from yawning. "Sorry."

"Let's get some sleep. You too, Michelle. I'm here. Sleep."

I nodded and tried to push myself closer. I wasn't sure if he could chase away the nightmares, but I was hopeful. I hadn't had any the other times I passed out on him. "Night, Sam."

"Goodnight, Michelle."

"There you are! We thought you got lost!"

I looked up to see my sister at the top of the stairs. She was grinning as she walked down towards me. I was standing in the middle of the hallway of Helen's house. This felt real. It was exactly how I remembered it. "Michelle? You alright?" I snapped out of it.

"Yeah," I took off the sweater I was wearing and hung it in the side closet. "Sorry, lost in thought."

She laughed. "Tell me something new. Come on, everyone's in the kitchen." She led the way. I followed slowly, unsure of it. This didn't feel like a dream. There were too many details, like the markings on the wall where they measured height. The smell of turkey greeted me as we got to the kitchen. I looked around. Everyone was here. My mother smiled at me from where she was sitting at the table and I tried not to frown. This didn't make sense. My uncle called out from where he stood at the counter, making some sort of salad. The noise settled around me, drowning anything else out. This was home. My heart ached. This was my home and I missed this.

"Auntie!" I turned and caught my niece as she barrelled into me. I grinned, held her tightly and swung her around. Her laugh echoed in my ears. My other niece clung to my leg as I stopped. I put her down and knelt on the floor to face them.

"You made it!" I looked up at my sister, Kelly, who entered the room.

"Auntie!" My youngest niece, Abby, demanded my attention. I focused on the two of them.

"How are you?" I asked. The eldest, Jessica, started talking quickly about a doll and a movie. Abby tried to follow, talking at the same time and repeating her sister. I laughed as they continued, trying to say the same thing at the same time. "Really?" I asked, prompting them to continue.

A smell caught my attention. Something was burning. I stood up, looking for the source since no one was running for the stove. They usually made sure everything was perfect at these gatherings. An attempt for standard normalcy.

There was fire and white light. The smell of burning flesh choked me. Someone was screaming. I turned, trying to get my nieces away. I didn't know what was happening, but they needed to be safe. My arms went through them. They screamed and cried and I watched them burn in front of me.

I shot up. I vaguely registered shoving my elbow into something as I ran for the bathroom. The smell felt like it was burned into my nostrils, etched into my very skin. I threw up. I started crying, tears streamed down my face as the dream replayed itself in my mind. I threw up again. My hair was pulled away from my face and I felt a hand on my back. I remembered that day. It had been the last Thanksgiving we had had, days before I ended up in Tennessee, ended up here.

I pushed myself away from the toilet and curled up as tight as I could. My body wracked with sobs.

"It's okay," I heard Sam's voice. "You're safe, Michelle, you're safe." He pulled me into his lap.

I cried harder. I didn't care that I was safe. They were gone.

[tbc]