Chapter Fourteen – The Calling
It didn't feel like Christmas Eve when Dean awoke. He knew what day it was – the twenty-fourth – but to him it was just another day to be grateful to be alive.
He was so exhausted. The pain that had come with his bitten hand was suddenly in his chest. Heartburn? Dean slowly placed a hand over his chest. It was a slight pressure. Stress…Dean thought. I just need to go back to sleep. His eyes remained closed and Dean shifted in bed. He rolled onto his side and sighed as he felt more relaxed. Great, go back to sleep Dean…the tiredness hadn't left him. It would be easy to go back asleep. He pulled the covers off of him a bit, feeling warm, and his eyes could feel the warmth and bright glow of the fireplace. Grunting, Dean blinked his eyes and forced his worn eyelids to open.
Sam had the fireplace on and knelt down on the floor beside it. He had apparently gotten up early – he had showers and his hair was still wet – he was dressed as well: baggy blue jeans and a black T-shirt that fit perfectly along his body structure.
The room was still pretty dark beside the fire. Dean groaned and rolled onto his opposite side. "Sam," Dean whined, "why are you up so friggan early?"
Standing up, Sam stared oddly at his brother and made his way across the large hotel room. He came to the large window and spread apart the great, thick curtain.
So much light streamed in, it was a surprise to Dean. His eyes grew wide and a part of him was suddenly awake.
"It's two in the afternoon," Sam exclaimed, giving his brother a wry look.
"Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" Dean yawned, knowing that the three had decided to do the Calling today as early as possible.
He gave his brother a half smile and Sam replied, "We tried. You kept groaning and whining so we just let you sleep. Amy's been at the conference for the last three hours…she wanted to make sure she could do as much today and try and impress the dean at Northwestern."
Dean nodded slowly as his he seemed to be drifting away again.
"Don't tell me you're falling asleep!" Sam laughed.
"I'm just resting my eyes," Dean mumbled. "They're irritated…"
His softer breathing pattern was a sign to Sam that his brother was half-way asleep again. Sam shook his head and came around to Dean's bed.
"Dean…" Sam whispered.
"Dammit, Sam," Dean grumbled. "I was about to be back on the beach with Pamela Anderson and all the other Baywatch girls…"
"You know what day it is, right?" Sam rolled his eyes.
"Christmas Eve…" Dean grumbled silently.
Sam bobbed his head in agreement and said, "Yeah…and tomorrow is Christmas…I was thinking after we go and do the Calling…we could possibly go out and get Christmas stuff – like presents – especially for Amy…she paid for the spare hotel room for us and she's been paying for our food…and the new clothes…"
"Hmmm…" Dean thought. "Lets see…we can use our thirty-dollar-gas-money and-"
"Dean," Sam complained. "Hey, maybe we are too old to be doing the whole present-exchange thing…but we could at least make it a nice Christmas for her. She gave up spending time with her family and friends just so she could come here and investigate the wolf attacks."
There was finally enough strength in Dean to sit up. It took him a minute, but he was able to sit up and sit against the headboard of the bed.
He sighed and Dean nodded. "Yeah. Well…we can do the whole happy-Christmas thing after the Calling…when is Amy getting back?"
Apparently now – Amy's hotel room was heard slamming close.
She came into their room wearing denim jeans and a white tank top, her black zip-up was found in her arms.
"No more stupid conference – no more whiny old people – and no more getting the whole 'oh my gosh! You're the youngest professor I've ever met'…" Amy sighed happily as she put the zip-up hoodie on the table.
Dean smiled up at Amy and the young woman merely laughed at him. "Wow…he's awake…"
Sam laughed and said, "Yeah…just waking up."
Amy came over and sat down on the edge of the bed. Dean smiled at her cockily and Amy gave him a playful smile.
"I'm going to go downstairs," Sam announced loudly, causing Amy and Dean to look up at him, "see if there are any more complimentary doughnuts. I'll bring up coffee."
"Ooh, thanks kiddo," Amy grinned.
Sam slipped on his shoes quickly and walked over to the door. He opened it and stepped out, before he closed the door behind him Sam shot a quick grin at Dean.
Amy turned to Dean oddly and asked, "What was that about?"
"Oh, Sam? Nothing. He's just an idiot, kid brother."
"Dean," Amy slapped him on the arm. "Be nice."
"So, you're all done with the conference?" Dean asked.
Amy smiled in joy and lied back on the bed. Her head crashed with Dean's other pillow. She smiled and said, "Yep…I accomplished more than ten hours…" She sighed. "I still have to get back on the twenty-eight."
"At least you've had an exciting vacation…" Dean muttered with a cocky smile.
She shrugged and said, "It's been decent. An unforgettable holiday…at least I didn't die momentarily…and no evil wind…and after the Calling today, everything should be okay."
"Yeah," Dean agreed, he wiped his eyes for a moment. He grumbled as he continued to rub his fingers against his eyelids. That odd, tight feeling in his chest came back again.
"Gosh, you're still tired?" Amy laughed. She sat up in Dean's bed and said, "Go take a shower, Winchester. It'll help…I'm going to my room and I'm gonna call the parents in Australia – wish them happy holidays."
"'Kay," Dean smiled as he watched the young woman get up from the bed and she left to go to her own room. He couldn't help but stare after her ass. She looks good in those jeans…Dean thought. He blinked several more times and thought Wait…I'm thinking about Amy like that? Stop staring after her…
Luckily she left the room before Dean had more time to fantasize about her. This was weird. Yes, he admitted to himself, he had thought about her on occasion…but he never lusted after her…
A cold shower will help…Dean sighed and got up from bed quickly. A nice, cold shower…and some damn eye drops…
O.O.O.O.O.
Dean wore his regular jeans and a white T-shirt that was covered by one of his maroon shirts. Over all that he wore his leather jacket. He sat in the passenger seat of his Impala drinking coffee while Sam took care of the driving.
They were half-way down Olive Road and close to the manor. Amy sat in the backseat flipping through John Winchester's journal. It was a slight reminder that made Amy feel sorry that John would possibly be spending the holidays alone. She flipped through his entries and odd pictures and articles.
She came to the section Dean and Sam had read to her about demonic infections. Her eyes went over the small passages and tried to understand most of it. John wrote in odd styles and mostly sentence fragments. But all of his jumbled words made sense somehow.
"Sam, Dean?" Amy asked.
"Hmm?" Sam asked, carefully driving on the lonely, windy road.
"I just read what your dad wrote in his journal about demonic infections…" Amy read down further. "And according to him…even if the demon has been destroyed…there is a possibility that the infection can still exist."
"It's a minor possibility," Sam explained. "If the demon is not completely destroyed…yes, the infection can still exist…" He sighed and turned his head slightly back. "But don't worry…we did the exorcism last night. And we're going to do the Calling to make sure that Billy and Ana Maria can work out whatever issues they have…"
"And plus it would mean I have six days to attack my imaginary girlfriend," Dean said after taking a sip of his girlfriend. "Right now the only woman possibly in danger is my car."
"Your dad also says…" Amy read further. "Okay, here…he says that if the demon has not been completely exorcised and destroyed…the infection can be aware of its own destruction…so it grows faster and works faster…to fulfill its purpose…"
"Don't worry Hun," Dean patted the dashboard of the car. "I won't hurt you." He laughed after that and Sam chuckled with him.
Amy rolled her eyes and closed the journal. "I'm just concerned."
"You're paranoid," Dean called back. "Don't worry…there will never be any more attacks…I promise."
He drank his coffee more quickly now. He still felt tired. The caffeine was making him more energized – he felt stronger too – but the tiredness hadn't left him. Dean continued to drink as his eyes started to blink more frequently again. He rubbed his eyes quickly and then relaxed as he stared out the window.
O.O.O.O.O.
Amy carried the brown bag of the séance materials while Sam hauled the garbage bag from the back of the Impala. The wolf's body was stiff and a smell was starting to grow.
O.O.O.O.O.
The three stood in the center of the foray. The manor suddenly more peaceful and Amy wasn't having another cold fit like she had before.
Dean and Sam had put the dead animal in an old wooden crate found at the basement. Dean finished the last nail on the top and left the crate in the center between all of them.
Amy took out several different crystals and rocks of different sizes out of the bag. The small black pebbles in her hand were spread out on the floor along the wooden crate. She took out a very large white crystal – an-almost-diamond – and she quickly skipped around the floor and placed the crystal in front of the door. She came back to Dean and Sam and reached in the back for a dark red crystal and placed it on the wooden box's top.
"This is?" Amy asked.
Sam nodded and Amy pulled out two final objects from the brown bag: a cross that hung from black leather thread and another crystal – a blue orb the size of a baseball.
"You ready?" Dean asked, taking the gun from out of his pocket; Sam followed his lead, taking his own gun from his pocket – it was for protection.
"Yeah…" Amy took a deep breath. She held the orb in one hand and held the cross in the other. She remembered what Dean had told her and she took in another deep breath.
"I place a balance in this house…" Amy called out loud. "I have released the demon…I have set the devil free…and now I call upon the spirits that remain in this house…!"
Amy felt cold…Sam too. Dean looked around the main room. All three of them felt something…
People began to appear…Amy, Dean and Sam watched slowly as people, all dressed in fancy clothing, were dancing in the room. They were all around the three. The dancing couples were all transparent and porous and they continued to dance and waltz to the silent music in the background.
"It's just an echo," Sam assured. "Keep going Amy."
"I c-call upon William Walker and Ana Maria Delacroix…!" Amy called out...seeing a dancing couple dance right through her. She gulped and continued, "I've ended this terrible curse…Wendy Falls shall be a peaceful place again…no more horrible memories…I call upon you now…I call onto you to meet…to fully understand…to crossover…!"
Amy's hand was gripped tightly around the cross.
"I call on thee…come forth!" Amy shouted the final words.
The echo of the party taking place disappeared like dust being swept off the floor. The dancing couples blew again against the odd wind that had come.
Amy's hair blew against the mysterious wind. Dean and Sam stared all around them with their weapons carefully placed at their sides. Sam's shaggy hair brushed against his forehead and Dean's jacket was whipping behind him. The wind began to grow more fierce and powerful. Amy felt as if she could no longer stand…the blue orb dropped from her hand and it rolled across the floor.
She watched as the blue crystal moved across the wooden floor and it slowly made contact with the steps of the staircase.
Her eyes looked upward to the top of the staircase.
Dean and Sam came to her side, following her gaze.
Coming from the left side of the second floor hall was a man slowly walking toward the center. From the side, it was seen he had dark hair and he wore an old war uniform.
From the right side came Ana Maria Delacroix, in her beautiful pink dress, stained with blood. She slowly made her way to the same destination.
Billy Walker had reached the very top of the stairs. He waited as Ana Maria came slowly toward him. The two remained several feet apart. They continued to look at each other.
"Tell me you see them…" Amy whispered. Her eyes were staring at the woman covered in claw marks and blood and she saw the man whose face was pale and his neck was red.
"Yes," Dean and Sam whispered in unison.
O.O.O.O.O.
Amy, Dean and Sam came out of the manor quickly. Sam closed the door behind him and gestured Dean and Amy to go down the bottom of the steps and into the grassy yard.
"Why'd we leave?" Amy asked.
"Well…better to leave those two to figure it out on their own…" Dean sighed. He stuck his gun into his pocket. "It's usually never good for people to hang around after a Calling has been done…it could get ugly in there…"
"So, wait," Amy asked in disbelief, "it's over now?"
Sam nodded and stuck his hands into the pockets of his brown jacket. "Yep…"
"I think I'm underestimating how easy your job can be at times," Amy sighed, sticking her hands in the pockets of her black zip-up.
Dean nodded and his eyes went back to the manor. The three continued to look at the great house. The ominous feeling the three had felt when they first met the house was now gone. It was just an old, abandoned house to them.
O.O.O.O.O.