AUTHOR'S NOTE: Holy Writer's Block, Batman, it's been 4 months since I updated this fic! Yes, I've had writer's block for a while, but I think it's passed now. I've re-written this chapter FOUR TIMES because of it! I have the whole 'sending the old woman's spirit into the afterlife' story arc planned out, and even partially written, but getting to the point where that action starts happening just...wasn't happening for me! So I apologize if this chapter seems disjointed or hurried, it's because of the writer's block and because I did just want to hurry up and get to the next part! And I promise I'm not going to let 4 months go by before the next update!

Guest, stacey40, Lexie Lou, GuestG, The Black Pearrl, wandamarie, Elliesamdeangirl, Emily-AnnMcGarrettWinchester, Auphepet, NoilyPrat, sueturpen, Claire, sjwmaw, Fanclaire, MariaKata, AshtynnAlba, CherryFran, Ponygirlrunner25, thanks for leaving reviews! It makes my day, and I get a kick out of those of you who are doing a re-read and leaving more comments!

To the Guest who asked me to write a fic about Ralph Dibny- I'm flattered that you asked me to write a fic, but I don't even know who that character is, I had to look him up. I've never seen any episodes of The Flash, so I feel like I wouldn't be able to do justice to the character.

Beta'ed by edge_of_clairvoyance. Thanks to edge, CrzedPanda, and Tamilyn313 for letting me bounce ideas off of you and giving me advice!

From now on it's back to Charlie's POV unless otherwise specified.

~ ~ spn ~ ~ spn ~ ~

"We figure out a way to help her cross the veil," Imani said.

Everyone was quiet for a long moment, and they all looked at each other like they were deciding what to say. Uncle Sam cleared his throat. "What do you think, seance? We've done that at Bobby's before, and he's got all the right equipment."

"I've not done a seance before, I have my own-ritual for that, and it's been with people who are close to passing. I can try my way and see how it works." Imani said.

Daddy stood up. "Well, I'd rather do something that we know is gonna work. A seance is something we've all had experience with."

Uncle Sam glanced at Imani, and then spoke. "But this is a different situation, Dean. This isn't a ghost that's passed on, or that's randomly haunting people, this is a spirit who is earth-bound."

Imani came over and sat down next to me. "The first thing I'd like to do is ask you about your dreams, what you've seen."

I looked down at my Hello Kitty that was laying on the sofa next to my leg. "I don't-I can't really-uh, remember it." I felt my face get hot- I did remember, but I didn't want to talk about it.

"Charlie." Daddy said in a serious voice. I looked up at him, and he was looking at me sternly. "I've asked you more than once if you want to talk about your dreams and you've said no, and you refused when it was suggested you talk to Missouri. You've been able to remember some of it every time you've had one, so are you not telling the truth?" He raised his eyebrows, and I gulped. Lying was a bare-bottom spanking, and I didn't want that!

I looked down at my lap again. "I-I just-I don't-" I felt nervous about talking about the dreams, and nervous about possibly getting in trouble for lying.

Imani reached out and put her hand on mine. "Charlie, talking about it will help release the energy you've been holding in."

"What d'you mean?" I asked, looking up at her.

Her eyes were kind, and she gave me a small smile. "I know you're holding something back. You don't have to be scared of it, or worry that it will be too much for someone else to hear."

"What-how'd you know that?" I blurted. How was she able to see inside of me like that? I did remember what I dreamed, and it was terrifying, and I didn't want to think about it any more than I had to or talk about it with anyone.

"The Sight has other gifts as well, I can sometimes pick up on the living's feelings, not just the dead." She squeezed my hand and then let go. "It's all right, sweetheart, you can tell us."

"You start out saying 'It's so hot', and then you say something about needing to get your babies." Daddy prompted.

Tears filled my eyes and I blinked to keep them from falling. I tried so hard not to think about the dreams when I was awake, because it was so scary. Hearing Daddy say the words that I heard in the dreams brought it all back. I grabbed my Hello Kitty and hugged her. "In the dream, I, uh, I wake up, and it's real hot all around me." I glanced up at all of them. "I mean, it's not me, it's her, but it feels like it's me, y'know?"

Uncle Sam nodded. "It's her point of view, not yours, and you experience it that way."

"Yeah. The room is hot, and I'm all confused. It's like I know the room but I also don't know it. Sometimes- it goes in and out, like, like I know where I am and sometimes it's like I'm seeing a different room. And then I see smoke coming out of the vent in the wall, and realize that there must be a fire. But then I'm tryin' to remember what you're s'posed to do in a fire, and it's confusing. And then I start to feel scared about my kids, and I wanna save them but I don't know what to do, and it gets more scary 'cause-" this part the the dream always made me sad- "I see- it feels like a memory- I see her memory of a baby that-that died." A wave of sadness rose up in me and my eyes filled with tears again and spilled over. I wiped my cheek with the back of my hand. "Even though it's a memory it still makes me really scared, an' all the thought that's there is 'I have to save my babies'. So she goes to the door, and tries to open it, but the doorknob is really hot and it burns her." I looked down at my hands- my palm didn't hurt right now, but there was some sort of weird memory in it, like a ghost from the dream-pain.

It was quiet for a moment. Imani shifted next to me. "Is that all?"

"Um, well, I start feelin' like I have trouble breathing, an' I'm coughing and all. And then- everything goes dark." I didn't want to talk about the rest of it, the last time I'd had the dream.

I dropped my eyes again and played with the hem of Hello Kitty's dress.

"Do you remember anything beyond that?" Imani's voice was quiet. It felt like everyone was waiting for me to say something else.

"I-I-" Suddenly it was like two pieces of a puzzle clicked together in my mind, and I realized why what I had seen had upset me- "I was breathing slow, my chest hurt and felt like, a lot of pressing-here-" I touched the middle of my chest. "I couldn't get deep breaths and it made me feel dizzy, and I could hear-my breath-it sounded weird, like, rattling kinda, and it felt like-like everything was-was goin' away. Like everything was far far away from me. And then I thought- it reminded me, me me, not 'dream me', of when-when my mommy was real sick one time after her treatments an' her breathing sounded all wheezy and rattle-y like that an' an' it was so-I-I thought-I was scared she was gonna die!" I burst into tears and curled in on myself, wrapping my arms around my middle.

"Oh, Charlie," I heard Imani say.

Then I felt hands picking me up, and I was swung up into Daddy's arms. He pulled me into his chest, his hand on my upper back. "Oh, kiddo, I'm so sorry." He said sympathetically. He hugged me tightly, and I felt him kiss the side of my head. I wrapped my arms and legs around him and sobbed into his flannel chest. "It's all right, baby, shh," Daddy soothed as he rubbed my back. It took me a few minutes to calm down, because of all the feelings I'd been holding in.

Finally I sat up. "M'sor-ry, I just didn't wanna-talk about-it 'cause it w-was so s-scary," my chest hitched as I tried to talk. "An' I didn't know it reminded me of- of before until j-just now." I looked over at Imani, who had stood up and was next to Uncle Sam. "D-do you think it w-was-I mean, I was seeing wh-when the old lady-when she-died?"

Imani came over to us and put her hand on my cheek. "Yes, you were, and I think you know that you were experiencing that. It can be a very frightening experience, and I'm surprised that you didn't tell anyone. The fact that you kept it to yourself and went through it on your own shows how strong you are." She smiled at me and squeezed my shoulder, then went back to stand next to Uncle Sam, who put his arm around her shoulders. She reached up and took his hand, linking their fingers together.

"I think we all know what a strong girl Charlie is." Grandpa John said with a smile.

Daddy's phone rang, and he set me down and pulled it out of his pocket. "Winchester. Hey, what's up?" He listened for a moment. "Yeah, I'll be in tomorrow." He put his hand on my forehead. "She seems to be doing better, thanks. That's no problem. Okay then...yeah. Bye." He disconnected the call and slipped his phone back in his pocket. "That was my boss, wanted to make sure I'd be in tomorrow, one of the other guys is out sick." He looked down at me. "How are you feeling?"

"I don't feel bad anymore, like I did."

He nodded. "Good. It's about time for bed, kiddo."

"Yes, Daddy." I gathered up my stuffed animals.

"Charlie, I'd like to take your bracelet with me, if I may." Imani said. "I'll cleanse it before I give it back to you."

I nodded. "Okay."

Daddy picked up my blanket and folded it, tucking it under his arm. "I'll walk you up."

I hugged Grandpa John. "G'night." He leaned down to drop a kiss on top of my head as he squeezed me back. "Good night, little one."

I hugged Uncle Sam next. He picked me up and kissed my cheek. "Good night, honey. Sleep well."

Then I went to Imani. "Thanks for braiding my hair, and rubbing my back. It made me feel better." She leaned down to hug me. "It was my pleasure. Thank you for telling me about your dream." She patted my back. "I hope you get some good rest tonight."

As I followed Daddy upstairs, I remembered why he had gone out earlier. "Did you talk to those boys?" I asked as we walked into my room. "What did their parents say?" I tossed my stuffed animals onto my pillow.

He spread the blanket out on my bed. "Well, it's just their mom, and I think she's kinda overwhelmed. We talked to them about helping their mom out and not getting into trouble like they have been. They did apologize for what happened."

"That's good." I said.

He looked at me. "I want you to tell me if they do anything else, or bother you in any way, understand?"

I nodded. "Yes, Daddy."

He ruffled my hair. "All right, go brush your teeth."

When I came back into the bedroom he had arranged all my animals next to my pillow and pulled the covers down.

I climbed into bed. Daddy put his palm on my forehead. "You're not warm. Maybe your body is finished having a reaction to the shot. Let me know if you start feeling bad again, all right?"

"Okay." I held my arms up and he leaned down to hug me. He kissed my forehead as he stood up. "Good night, Charlie."

"Good night, Daddy." I laid down in bed and he pulled the covers up and tucked them around me.

~ ~ spn ~ ~ spn ~ ~

Sarah needed ⅓ cup of flour to make the dough for 1 apple pie. If she made 9 apple pies, how many cups of flour would she need?

I set the touchpad down on my desk. Reading about pie made me think of Daddy, and I missed him. I had woken up feeling heavy inside because of what we'd talked about last night, and hadn't been able to concentrate on my schoolwork.

"Uncle Sam, can I have a snack?" I called. He was in the living room, working on his laptop.

"You've barely done any work, Charlie." He sounded distracted.

Just then the doorbell rang. He stood up and went to answer it. "Oh, hi, how are you? Sure, come in." He opened the door further and then turned to me. "Charlie, someone's here to see you."

I got up and walked over to him, as Addison and her mom came into the living room. Addison was holding a piece of paper.

"How are you doing, Charlie? We heard that you had a reaction to your shot." Miss Darlene said.

"M'okay now." I looked at Addi, who smiled at me.

"Well, we wanted to stop by and bring you something." Miss Darlene gestured to Addi, who pulled something out of her jacket pocket. "I made you a get-well card!" Addi said. "And we got you this!" She held out a small box, and I took it. It was a package of fancy chocolates. I took the box, and she handed me the paper. There was a handmade drawing of what looked like Hello Kitty wearing roller skates. Across the top of the paper was written. "Hope you get well soon. Love, Addi." At the bottom of the page was a small scrawl.

"Thanks!" I said, smiling at Ms. Darlene and Addi.

"Would you like a cup of coffee?" Uncle Sam asked.

"Sure," Ms. Darlene followed him into the kitchen.

"I copied the Hello Kitty off the computer," Addi explained. "Well, I mean, I didn't print it, I looked at a picture and tried to draw it myself, 'cause I'm not good at it."

"I like it. I can tell it's her." I said.

She glanced around. "Did the shot hurt? I hate gettin' shots."

"Me too. I don't really remember, they had to give me medicine to make me calm down. It can make you not remember things, and I don't remember much about bein' at the hospital." I looked down at the drawing. "I like the skates."

"That was my idea." Addi beamed at me. She pointed to the scrawl. "That's Aubrey's signature, she didn't want- I mean-" Her face got red. "Sorry, Mom told me not to tell you that." She glanced towards the kitchen and leaned close to me, her eyes widening. "Daddy spanked Aubrey with his belt." She whispered. "He said if she didn't shape up, that his belt was gonna be coming off a lot more." She straightened up. "She's been a lot gooder since then." She looked me in the eyes. "Mom said she thinks Aubrey might be a little jealous of me 'n you, and that's why she's been so-so mean and all."

"Oh." I hadn't even thought about that. I frowned. "But- didn't you say she's been mean for a long time?"

Addi made a face. "Yeah, but it's been mostly with school and stuff."

I realized something- "How come you're home now?" I asked.

"It's a teacher work day." She played with the zipper of her jacket. "Do you want to come outside and play later, like after lunch?"

I looked down. "I'm, um, I'm grounded this week, I can't go outside."

She made a face. "Okay. Maybe when you get off grounding."

Uncle Sam and Ms. Darlene came into the room just then. "Thank you for the coffee." She said to him.

"Thanks for stopping by." Uncle Sam responded.

"Thanks for the card and the chocolate." I said to Addi, and we smiled at each other.

Addi and her mom left. I turned to Uncle Sam, holding up the box of chocolates. "Can I have one?" He hesitated. "You can have one too!" I offered.

He chuckled. "No thanks, Charlie. You can have one. But just one, understand?" He raised his eyebrows at me.

"Thanks, Uncle Sam!" I hugged him, and he chuckled again. "I'll make lunch in a little while. We're going to go over to Bobby's tonight, we'll have dinner and meet Imani there. She's going to guide the spirit of the old woman into the veil."

I opened the box and pulled out one of the chocolates- it was wrapped in blue and silver foil. "How come we're going to Uncle Bobby's?" I unwrapped the chocolate and popped it into my mouth.

"He's got a Panic Room in his house, it's protected, and it'll be safe for her to work in." He patted my back. "Get some more school work done." He held out his hand. "I'll throw that away for you."

I handed him the foil. "Thanks." I turned and went back to my desk, turning the touchpad on again with a sigh. I didn't like math, but word problems weren't quite as bad.

~ ~ spn ~ ~ spn ~ ~

Uncle Bobby walked into the kitchen, followed by Imani and Uncle Sam. "-never seen somethin' like that before, it's fascinating." He was saying.

Imani was holding a small wooden box in her hand. "These are my Auntie's things, she handed them down to me. She's the one who recognized my gifts and worked with me when I was a child." She set the box on the counter.

"We've got everything set up downstairs, whenever y'all are ready." Uncle Bobby said.

Daddy was sitting next to me, finishing a slice of pizza. "You about done, Charlie?"

"Yes, Daddy." I set my crust on the plate.

Uncle Sam came over and opened his laptop. He spent a few minutes typing and then turned the laptop towards me. "I've set up a couple of movies for you. I also added a messaging app on here, so that you can message one of us on our cell phones if you need anything." He clicked on a page and the messaging app popped up with a list of contacts.

"How long is it gonna take?" I asked, looking around at them.

"It should take less than an hour." Imani said. "I'm not anticipating any issues that would draw things out."

Daddy picked up my crust and took a big bite, then he stood up. He stacked our plates, and carried them over to the sink. "Okay, we ready to do this thing?"

Everyone looked at each other and nodded. Daddy came over and dropped a kiss on top of my head. "Behave yourself. We'll be right downstairs."

"Okay. Good luck!" I said as they left to go down to the basement. Uncle Sam had downloaded 'Frozen' for me, so I started watching that.

Anna and Hans were singing about 'love is an open door' when I heard footsteps and talking.

I paused the movie and turned as everyone came into the kitchen. "What happened?" I asked. "Is the old lady gone? Can I have my bracelet back?"

Imani looked tired. Uncle Sam put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him for a quick hug. Uncle Bobby got a pot out and filled it with water, setting it on the stove.

"She wouldn't- go with me, she was confused. I think because of her mental state when she passed, she is still- suffering from dementia. She refused my help." Imani opened the box she had set on the counter and removed a couple of small glass bottles. Uncle Bobby got a mug out of the cabinet and she opened the bottles and poured something from each of them into the mug.

"What're you gonna do, then?" I asked.

Imani leaned against the counter and rubbed her forehead. "She asked for the little girl. She kept repeating it, 'The little girl, where's the little girl?' and she wouldn't respond to me." She looked at me. "She wants you to help her, Charlie."

Daddy shook his head. "Uh-uh, no way. I don't want Charlie involved in- in this at all."

"She already is," Imani said in a quiet voice. "This spirit attached itself to her, for whatever reason, so she's already involved."

Daddy sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I-don't-want-her-involved." He ground out.

Uncle Bobby spoke up. "Let's just think about this for a moment. If this was a case, we would have the person it was happening to be a part of it."

"This is NOT a case! My daughter is not going to be part of a hunt!" Daddy shouted. His face got red.

"What do you suggest we do, Dean?" Grandpa John asked in a calm voice.

Daddy sighed heavily. "I don't know, lemme think about it. There's got to be some other way to-to escort this spirit to the other side." He looked at Uncle Bobby. "Let's find every book you got about seances and rituals dealing with spirits and the afterlife, and see if we can find anything."

"How about we call Missouri, get her take on it?" Grandpa John asked. "She and Imani can put their heads together, maybe they can come up with something."

"Well-" Daddy scrubbed his hand over his face. "I guess we can do that, see what she says."

"All right, let me call her, and then I'll ask if we can set up a video call on the laptop, so we can all talk to her." Grandpa John pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and left the room.

I looked around at everyone, wondering what was going to happen. Would Daddy let me help? It had been a while since I'd talked to Missouri, and I felt excited about it. Would she agree with Imani about letting me be involved, or would she take Daddy's side?