So here's chapter 15. I'm guessing there will be about three or four more, but I can't say for sure yet. Anyways, let's see what I have in store for you guys today (evil laugh). As usual, thanks for your ongoing interest and support :)

There are several references to past episodes as well as two blink and you'll miss them hints about events from my previous stories. (you don't need to have read them before, though.)

Chapter 15

The three fairies stood for a long time looking at the unexpected intruders. Then, the tallest – Lily's mother – smirked.

"Ceridwen's little pets, I assume?"

The one to her left scowled shaking her head.

"Ceridwen is getting out of hand."

Dean found his voice.

"Yeah, tell me about it. So what are you going to do about her?"

The three fairies stared at him. Lily's mother took a step forward and reached out. She stopped before she could touch Dean's shoulder and Dean was immensely grateful for that. Her hand was had only four fingers and they ended in bird's claws. He did not want that anywhere near him.

"You don't speak to us," the fairy said. "You certainly don't address us as equals."

Dean held her gaze.

"Well, that's strange," he said pointedly. "Seeing that you used to have a thing for mortals and all."

Lily's mother turned to her two companions.

"You can go on," she said. "Allow me to deal with them."

"Are you sure?" one of them asked, a hint of worry in her voice.

Lily's mother smiled. Or, at least, her lips imitated the motion. The smile did not reach her eyes.

"Of course I'm sure," she said. "This won't take long."

"Don't be too hard on them," the other warned. "Ceridwen doesn't like sharing her toys."

"She's my mom, isn't she?" Lily asked Dean while the three fairies were still talking. "She really is. You can't tell me otherwise."

Dean shook his head heavily.

"You know I'd give anything to tell you otherwise. But no. You're right"

Lily's face did not soften.

"And she was always like this. She wasn't taken by the fairies, she just decided to come back home."

Dean did not answer. Lily was not looking for answers she already had anyway.

"Have you always known this?" Lily asked in a small voice.

Dean jerked his head. He had always half-suspected something was up with Lily, but he was not going to tell her that.

"Ceridwen told me last night. I'm sorry."

Lily avoided his gaze.

"You weren't going to tell me, were you?"

Dean would have flinched at her accusing tone if he could have moved. In fact, if he could have moved he would have been long gone from there, dragging Lily with him.

"I'm sorry," he repeated. "I thought you were better off not knowing."

Lily rolled her eyes.

"Lot of good that did to me."

Lily's mother turned to them. The two other fairies were gone. Dean tensed. He knew he was not going to like whatever happened next.

"Listen," Lily said before she could stop herself. "You're my mom. You've got to remember that. Your name is Kathy and you're my mom."

The fairy shook her head.

"My name is not Kathy," she said.

"Maybe not now," Dean told her. "But it was once. And Lily is right. She is your daughter."

Kathy looked at Lily blankly.

"We don't have daughters. Not in the sense you speak of them, at least."

"Well, you have one," Dean corrected. "You went to our world and you became one of us, remember? You fell in love. You got married. You had a kid. And then you just walked away from that."

He could not stop the accusation in his last words. Dean had his own version of the seven deadly sins and betraying and abandoning family was at the top of his list. Apparently, Kathy did not seem to think so.

"I don't remember any of that," she said blankly.

Lily's small horrified gasp had Dean's hackles rising.

"Of course you don't," he said tightly. "Because apparently you weren't just content with just abandoning your husband and your daughter and flying off to parts unknown. No, you were too much of a coward and you wanted to forget them as well. Ceridwen told me, by the way. She said it was so you could have it easy."

Kathy nodded slowly.

"Forgetting is indeed easy. If I did love them, why would I want to remember?"

"What are you saying?" Lily asked tearfully.

Dean scowled.

"What about your daughter? She doesn't have the luxury to forget you."

Kathy watched Lily impassively.

"She might. Here, even mortals forget. How long do you think she'll remember her old life?"

Lily shook her head.

"You're wrong. Dad'll find me. He'll do the tests and pass them. And if not – Dean will think of something to get us out."

Dean was surprised to hear Lily's unwavering faith in him – rather unexpected, since he was just as trapped as she was and was embarrassingly waiting to be rescued himself. More than that, he had expected Lily to resent him from hiding the truth about her mother.

Kathy actually laughed.

"My, my, Dean," she said. "What notions have you planted in my daughter's head?"

"You don't see her as a daughter, though, do you?" Dean pointed out. "She's just Ceridwen's pet to you."

Kathy shrugged.

"The union between a fairy and a mortal is not exactly encouraged. Having a child…that's inconceivable. I don't understand what went through my head at the time. I shouldn't have done it. Lily is dangerous to us."

"Why?" Dean asked tightly.

Kathy took a few steps towards them. Dean tensed. He still could not move.

"Hey, do you mind cutting me loose? I'm not really into bondage."

Kathy snorted.

"Oh, I'll cut you loose, Dean. It turns out, it's not you I want."

Dean froze.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He suddenly found that he could move. He dashed towards Lilly to get her out of there. Kathy was suddenly beside him. She placed a hand on his chest. Dean felt a searing pain in his heart, worse even than that time years back when he had damaged his heart after getting electrocuted. And suddenly, he was no longer there.

xxXXXxxx

Kathy took Dean on a ride through his life – past and future. The images were too quick for Dean to recognize more than passing glimpses, the chapters of his life moving in quick succession:

-He was four, looking at the new addition to their family. Mary Winchester, radiant as ever, was talking about how his friends would envy him now. The status of a big brother made you "almost grown up". John was talking about responsibility for his little brother but also about how fun it was going to be when the three of them would be playing catch in the park every Sunday. But Dean only had eyes for Sammy, and Sammy only had eyes for him, as if each had recognized something in the other, as if both had been waiting for that moment, when they finally met, as if Dean had finally found something he had not even known he was missing.

-He was six and his father had come home bleeding and Dean was trying to patch him up, hoping Sam did not wake up, because even though Sam would have no idea what was happening and would probably not even remember it when he grew up, no two-year-old should have to see his older brother cleaning their father's blood. The thought that no six-year-old should be cleaning their father's blood either had not crossed Dean's mind at the time.

-He was eight and he had just broken Jimmy Banbridge's nose, and did not care that Jimmy was three years older than him and had a mean gang that could tear him apart with their bare hands, not to mention that he was the mayor's son and could run them out of town without effort. All Dean cared was that Jimmy Banbridge and his gang had been bullying Sam and making him cry ever since they had got into town, and Dean had seen red when he had found out.

-He was sixteen, returning after a long period spend in a Boys' Home where he had finally learned to stop looking over his shoulder and to be responsible only for himself. He and Sam were at Pastor Jim's and Sam was haltingly telling him about being left alone and afraid and he was secretly vowing never to leave Sam again.

-It was a few years later and he had to break this vow the first time. Of course, it was Sam's fault, he was the one leaving for college, but for a moment Dean had the impression from the look in Sam's eyes, that Sam had been expecting Dean to follow him there.

-He had gotten Sam back and had lost their Dad in the process. They were at the Roadhouse and Sam was being targeted by something that fed on nightmares and Dean was afraid there was a reason Sam had been the one targeted, and their father's final ultimatum beat against his skull.

-He was holding Sam dead in his arms, wondering why the hell time was still flowing and the world was still turning when his own world had shattered into a million irreparable pieces. He had tried to repair them nonetheless and when Sam, alive and relatively unharmed, realized what he had done Dean wondered briefly what kind of person deflected such overwhelming sorrow over to the one he was supposed to love the most.

-He was freshly out of Hell, watching his brother, changed and strong, and he was too out of it to recognize a desperate attempt to survive alone. He had failed to see that Sam was shut down emotionally not because of Ruby and her schemes but because any emotion would have broken him beyond repair.

-It was several nights ago, and a concussed Sam was talking about their damaged relationship and how he was afraid they would never be the same again and how he had to prove himself to Dean and all Dean wanted was to yell at Sam and shake him until Sam finally understood there would never be anything he did that Dean couldn't forgive – it was just that at the moment Dean couldn't forgive himself either and often took it out on Sam…

Then the events shifted and Dean no longer recognized them. Possible futures in quick succession: Zachariah's apocalypse world, a future where he said yes to Michael, a future where Sam went along with Lucifer. Blood and fire and sorrow in all its forms.

They all overwhelmed Dean, taking him further and further into a dark pit. Before it was over, Dean was sure Kathy knew more about who he was than he ever had.

xxxxXXXxxx

Dean gasped his way back to the present. He felt weak. Whatever trip Kathy had taken him on had exhausted all his energy. He shut his eyes tight trying to fight off the dizziness.

He did not know how long he sat there. His head was pounding. When he finally opened his eyes again, he noticed he was not in the forest anymore. He was in some kind of tunnel. He got up staggering.

"Lily?" he called uncertainly.

There was no answer. If she had been there, she would have answered back immediately.

"Lily!" he shouted more urgently.

But she was not there. Kathy had taken her. And Dean was alone.

xxxXXxx

Sam lay on the ground trying to get his breath back. He shifted a little until his fingers were nearly touching the hilt of the dagger, then allowed himself to go limp. If he could only fool the dragon into thinking he had lost consciousness, maybe he could get it to approach him. Whatever was to happen needed to be soon, though. Sam did not know how much longer he could stay conscious. He felt battered and bruised, his shoulder was killing him and he had also managed to reopen the gunshot wound. He could feel the warmth of the blood and knew it was not good. On top of that there was whatever gas came from the dragon's fire. It burned his lungs and made him lightheaded. Sam did not know how long he could keep thinking rationally. He was finding it increasingly hard to focus.

He did not know how long he lay there. At one point he was sure he must have really passed out. But then he felt the hot breath on the back of his neck and knew the dragon had gotten close to check on him. Sam's fingers closed around the hilt of his dagger. Unexpectedly, he twisted round, narrowly avoiding the dragon's sharp teeth. He did not waste any time. At that distance, if the dragon used fire, Sam would be killed instantly.

Sam plunged the knife in the dragon's throat. The beast roared out in pain and anger. It fell to the side, beating with its one heathy wing, the other hanging uselessly. Sam managed to crawl out of the way just as the dragon collapsed next to him.

Sam knew he had to check and see if the dragon was really dead, but he did not have any strength left. He was suddenly too dizzy to keep his eyes open. He collapsed next to the dragon and closed his eyes. A few minutes, he told himself. He would just rest for a few minutes. Then he would be ready to face Ceridwen again.

xxxXXXxxx

"Sam? Hey, Sammy, open your eyes?"

Sam frowned. He knew that voice. He would have recognized it anywhere, its pitch, its inflections. But something was wrong.

"Dean," he muttered.

His brain felt heavy and sluggish. His thoughts chased each other in a confused circle. He knew he had been hurt, probably hurt badly judging from how he felt, so he should not have been surprised that Dean was there. but something told him Dean could not have been there.

"Dean?" he repeated puzzled.

A hand on his shoulder shook him slightly.

"Hey, open your eyes, man."

Sam did. He met Dean's steady gaze and for a moment he thought he was going to burst into tears. He had missed Dean.

Dean smiled at him, patting his shoulders.

"Good to see you conscious and making sense."

Something didn't make sense, though, not to Sam. The last thing he remembered had been killing the dragon. He still had one task left to face. So, how come Dean was there? What had happened? He tried to put the missing pieces together, but he kept coming up empty.

"I thought I had one more left," he said.

Dean raised his eyebrows.

"OK," he said and he sounded disappointed. "Scratch the part about you making sense. One more what, Sam?"

He shook his head. The pillow beneath felt scratchy and damp with his sweat. What had happened to him?

"One more task. Before I could get to you."

Dean drew back the hand on his shoulder. Sam could not form the words to tell him not to let go.

"What are you talking about, Sam?"

Sam closed his eyes.

"Ceridwen said I needed to do seven tasks to get you out. But I only dd six."

"Who the hell is Ceridwen anyway? And get me out from where?"

Sam's head was pounding. He could not understand why his brother did not remember anything – or why he himself had apparently lost some time as well.

"When you crossed the fairy ring, Dean. After the Hunt. You drew their attention."

"Uh-huh."

Dean's approval was not a confirmation, though. It sounded more as if he was humoring Sam.

"I was on the sixth task. I just killed a dragon. There was only one task left."

He heard Dean snort and opened his eyes. He saw Dean through the fog and noticed that his brother did not look pleased.

"Sam, there was no dragon. There were no tasks. There was only you, dosed out of your head with demon blood."

It was then that am realized where they were. Bobby's panic room. He was tied to the bed in Bobby's panic room, like he had been back there. He swallowed and thought he was going to be sick.

"No…" he said. "No…"

Dean got up and started pacing through the room. Sam had trouble focusing on him. His mind was reeling. Had everything been just a fever-induced hallucination? But it could not have been. Something was wrong.

"I remember..." he began when the look on Dean's face cut him short.

"I don't know what you remember, Sam. You were tripping on demon blood after your genius free-Satan act, so I got you here and put you on lockdown. I was just checking on you to see if you're back on this plane of existence and can be released. Which – obviously not. I mean – fairies? Dragons? Really, Sam?"

Sam struggled with the bonds.

"No, Dean, you don't understand. This is…this has to be one of Ceridwen's tricks. One of her illusions. Maybe even the seventh task. You have to untie me so I can get you out of here."

Dean tensed.

"And then what?"

Sam frowned, confused.

"What do you mean, then what?"

Dean shrugged.

"Let's say you do get me out. Just for the sake of argument, let's imagine I've really been kidnapped by a fairy and you're trying to get me out – which, God help me, by the way."

Sam flinched at the words, Dean's lack of faith in him cutting into him and breaking his heart.

"I'm trying, Dean," he said. "I'm trying so hard…"

"Oh, I'm sure you are," Dean snarked. "Just like you tried to get me out of the deal or free me from Hell or not to become evil."

The truth was, Sam had indeed tried all those things. His failures were something he was never going to forgive himself for. He had thought Dean knew that.

The thought stirred something in him. He watched Dean closely and noticed that something was not quite right. Sam knew his brother. He knew the way Dean held himself, the way Dean's eyes narrowed when he was angry, knew all his tells and expressions better than he knew his own. And this…it looked like Dean, a near perfect copy good enough to fool even Sam – but only for a short while. Sam shook his head.

"You're not Dean," he declared confidently.

For a moment, the Dean-figure looked about to argue. Then, he smirked and shrugged his shoulders.

"Caught on quicker than I thought you would, Sammy," he said and his voice was completely different.

Sam knew that voice. He had not heard it in a long time, not since the second task. He had thought he had one thing less to worry about. He should have known better.

"Lucifer," he snarled.

He was unnerved when Dean morphed into Lucifer. The image was probably going to give Sam nightmares for the rest of his life.

"Hello, Sam. We need to talk."

I promise I'll have Sam and Dean hug it out after they get out of this mess…or, at least I think I promise…You also haven't heard the last of Lily, you'll see both her and the rest of her family again in the next chapters.

Did you catch the references to the flashbacks from Once upon a Memory and to The Thing in the Dark ;) I like tying my stories together like that.