Chapter 16

Dean, Jana and Johnny hung out in the room all afternoon. Johnny was off in the corner under the window taking a nap. He was curled up with a pillow and blanket with his army men scattered about. Jana made herself comfortable in the chair next to Dean and the two of them were watching Jeopardy. Neither really paid attention. They knew that Dr. Stonewell would be returning in the evening after 5 and they could discuss what happened during the day. Dean was now hopeful that things were heading in the right direction.

They heard a knock on the door and Dr. Stonewell entered. She looked more rested than the day before, but still a little tired. Dean was elated to see her. "Hi Doc! You're early! We weren't expecting you for another hour or so."

She entered the room and looked around. "I see you have a new guest." She indicated to the sleeping boy on the floor. "I got the page around 1 about Sam being found in the bathroom. What the hell happened?"

Dean told her to sit down and he reenacted the whole story with interjections from Jana. They explained how the nurse tried to kill Dean and somehow Sam knew, again. Jana piped in that Sam was speaking foreign tongues and tossing people around. They told of their Mission Impossible experience getting the nurse into the hallway and using Johnny as a distraction. When they were done the doctor looked at them in awe.

"How the hell did you manage to do all that without hurting yourself? Let me see your stitches," she demanded. Dean sheepishly obeyed and let his robe open. Jana couldn't help but look on. Dr. Stonewell grabbed the scissors that had almost done him in earlier and cut the bandages from his ribs and pulled the one over the incision. He shuddered. It had blood on it. "THIS is what I'm talking about! You can't be doing things like this Dean. You aren't going to heal if you keep trying to be Superman!" She checked his ribcage for soreness. He tried his best to mask his pain, but she wasn't buying it. "I'll get you stronger pain medicine so you can relax." She could feel the heat coming out of his skin. "I bet you have a fever too. Why didn't you listen to me?"

He looked up at her. "Well, I didn't really have a choice when people started shooting at me and trying to stab me with scissors. I promise I'll be better." She grabbed the thermometer from the wall and stuck it in his mouth. It beeped and she looked at it. "103! That's it, no more activity for you AT ALL!" He looked at her to protest, but he knew it was a moot point. He put his robe back on and leaned into the bed.

Dr. Stonewell went over to Sam. She also took his temperature and found it was still 99. She took a look at the bandages on his face which also had some blood stains and gently removed them. Dean tried to look on, but she used her body to stop his attempts. She felt around and saw that the swelling had definitely gone down, which seemed amazing. The doctor glanced at the EEG monitor and noticed there was more brain activity than before. She turned to address Dean.

"There is definite improvement," she commented as she smiled at Dean. "I have no way to explain how it happened, but it did. I feel pretty confident that we can do the surgery." She walked over and retrieved his chart. "I'm going to order a CT scan now and if everything looks good, we'll do the procedure in the morning. Hopefully that will relieve the pressure and we'll be talking to Sam again – in English!"

Jana's eyes filled with tears at the thought of bringing Sam back from the dead. Dean was flabbergasted at the news and simply nodded back. Dr. Stonewell smiled at both of them and walked to the door. "Someone should be here in ½ an hour to come get him," she said as she winked at Dean and left the room.

"Half an hour!"

Chapter 17

The clock slowly rolled by. Jana and Dean were getting bored with the TV and Johnny decided to go around the corner to play in the chair area. He couldn't take much more of the silence in the room, so he thought he would make some new friends in the hallway. There were lots of passersby and a few people who stopped to say hello to the boy.

6:30 came and finally there was a knock on the door. It was the technicians ready to take Sam for the CT scan. They rolled the cart into the room and started to unhook the contraptions that were attached to Sam. Dean started to get anxious and Jana sensed his mood. The doctor made it clear that Dean was not to leave the room. He wanted to go with Sam, to be there for him, but he knew she would never agree.

"I'll go with him Dean. Johnny and I will. We can wait and if anything comes up ahead of time I'll send Johnny to come tell you." It's like she's reading my mind. They kept getting everything in place for the move as he looked at Jana.

"Ok. Thanks."

Sam was on the cart getting ready to roll when Dr. Stonewell entered the room. She looked at the apprehensive Dean and smiled. "Don't worry, we'll take good care of him. This test shouldn't take too long. He'll be back up here with you…"

"Don't say it," Dean interjected.

"I was going to say in no time at all." She chuckled and their new inside joke. "I couldn't say 30 minutes because in hospital lingo that means 4 hours!" She went to Dean and looked him over. "He's going to be ok. I have a good feeling about this. This is the next step of your journey." The doctor took Dean's temperature quickly, to solidify his staying in the room. "101.5. Better, but not good enough." The technician wheeled Sam into the hallway where Johnny met them.

"We'll be back as soon as we can. Hang in there, ok?" Jana looked at him with concern.

"Yeah, hanging," he said as he reached for the remote and starting flipping channels. Her gaze stayed on him a minute more. They left the room and closed the door to a small crack.

Dean was not a patient man, especially when it came to his brother. What the hell is doing this to him? I know he was injured, but why is he channeling things now? This is so hard to believe. It just doesn't make sense.

"Maybe it's because you don't want to believe it could happen to him," called a voice from the door.

Dean's face lit up at the entrance of his guest. Through the door walked Missouri Mosely, a friend of their father's, and now of Sam and Dean, from way back. Missouri was a psychic / mind reader and could sense energies. She helped to cleanse their childhood home from the evil that was residing there. The satchels that the boys carried and used to get the spirits out of Julie Davis' house were the result of Missouri's teaching.

"Boy, what happened to you! You look like you been run over by a train!" She entered the room and came to his side. She touched his face and he suddenly felt comforted. He knew he made the right call. She smiled at him and grabbed the chair along side his bed. "Did you eat? You look like hell." Her way of caring for Dean seemed to come in little jibes. She loved him as her own and wouldn't trade him for the world. Neither of the boys.

"Thanks for coming Missouri, I just don't…" he couldn't go on.

"I know baby. It's going to be alright though. Good thing you weren't too far away or I wouldn't have made it. I got here in 45 minutes, so that was pretty good time," she said as she made herself comfortable. " We are going to work through this together and figure out what's happening to your brother."

The truth was she knew this day was coming, or at least something like this. Missouri could sense Sam's powers back in Lawrence. Sam pleaded with her for answers and she kept her mouth shut. She also hid the fact that their father was just steps away from them. How could I do that to them? There was still guilt about lying to the boys. She would help them figure this out.

Dean had filled Missouri in on the goings on at the house. He explained how the dream brought them there and the possession of little Johnny, also how Sam was lured to the evil in the dining room and what it did to him. Dean wanted to know if Johnny was 100 cured. Missouri would be able to clear that up with her skills. The question that nagged Dean the most was why they chose to heal Sam only to try and kill him again. What was the 'test' they must endure, and why?

Their conversation continued with the details that Dean forgot to tell her on the phone, including the incantation that Sam chanted and the general craziness of the day. Missouri listened intently and felt the anguish that Dean did. She saw in his soul a man with power of his own right, with the weakness of his love for his family. It was ripping him apart, and she needed to make the pain go away.

Missouri sighed and looked at his weary face. She struggled with the pleasantries of the conversation. Finally she let everything go. "Dean, I can't take it any longer," she said suddenly and got up from her chair. She began to pace around the room, unable to start her sentence. Then it came. "There are things I know, and I have to tell you."

Dean looked at her awestruck at the change in behavior from their conversation. "Tell me what?" He was intrigued by her mood swing.

"Back in Lawrence, Sam confided in me that he didn't understand what was happening to him. We talked about how he could sense the other spirit when I couldn't," she paused to look at Dean. "He was scared, Dean. Really scared, and I knew that something else was happening to him, but I didn't feel it was my place," she trailed off. It felt like she was at a confessional telling Dean the sins of her past in regards to his family. "There was an energy in him that I've never felt before. I couldn't really explain it to him, so I used it as my out. What's worse was that I lied to both of you." She continued her pace and headed toward the window. The sky was dark but the lights from the parking lot lit up the visitors coming to and fro. All sorts of people were entering the facility; families, people in suits and trench coats, nurses and doctors. She got lost following one person through the doors, but shook it off. Missouri turned back to Dean.

"You lied? About what," he tried to sit up in bed without hurting himself. He turned the TV off to have full attention.

"Your father," she started. "I had been in contact with your father. He was at my house when you were in Lawrence. He made me swear not to tell you." Her eyes were filled with tears and she could hear the angry thoughts coming from Dean. "I can hear what your thinking Dean, please don't be angry with me. John said it was for your protection." She tried to make the mood a little lighter. "He was so proud of you the day you saved Jenny and her children. He wanted to see you, but he said he needed to learn the truth first."

"The truth? You mean after I called him and begged him to come and help, he sat by and did nothing?" Dean was getting flush under his shirt and he could feel the anger rising in him. "We almost died in our old house! If it wouldn't have been for mom, Sam would be…. who knows what they had in mind for him! We risked our lives for strangers and he did nothing!"

"Dean, you have to understand. This has been your father's quest for 22 years. He felt that he was close to finding answers." She came back from the window, sat next to him and grabbed his hand. "In his travels, he has learned it is you two that this revolves around. That's why he left you the journal. You are the answer; Sam and Dean - together." He looked at her dumbfounded. He tried to answer but she put her finger to his lips. "Look at what you have done. You have faced death and cheated it so many times. Triumphed in the face of adversity. Why do you think that is Dean? Because you were chosen." She squeezed his hand and he felt a jolt go through him. "Lawrence was a test. Your father knew that the house was acting up again. And if Sam…..well if Sam was really coming into his powers that the house would call back to him, through his dreams. And it did."

"What powers? What are you talking about?" Dean was getting distressed and a little scared at this prospect. "Sam has nightmares that come true. Now you're telling me he can sense spirits, well crap, and channel them too now I guess. What the hell else can he do?" Dean didn't like any of this stuff hitting this close to home.

"Your father didn't tell me, but it also appears that he can create force fields for protection, according to you. Maybe he has telekinesis? I honestly don't know." Missouri knew how disturbing this information was to Dean. The boys went around and took care of things that had powers like this. Now Sam was becoming one of them.

"I don't know if I can handle this. I was just getting a grip on the whole nightmare thing, now I have to deal with all this other crap? Why? Why is this happening," Dean struggled with his thoughts. How would this affect their work?

"Dean, we all have our paths that we must follow, and yours leads to evil and its destruction." She turned to look at the door, then back to Dean. "All I know is that something has awakened, and it is after you. I think Sam was injured the way he was for a reason. That this coma is pulling out the latent powers that he has. It's the only thing that makes sense." She got up and looked out into the hallway. Nothing. Dean looked quizzically at her and she shook him off. "They must want Sam to develop his powers or they would have let him die. They know that you are the headstrong of the two and that this bond with your brother, this heartache you have, is what drives you. That means you are in more danger than you know."

"But don't I get any superpowers? That doesn't seem fair does it?" Dean tried to make light of the situation, but Missouri wanted nothing to do with it.

"Boy, you're the one who gets freaked out by people with powers, now you want them? Geez! Power is not about having premonitions or being able to move things, it's about who you are. What you believe." She came in and sat next to him on the bed. "Your power is your strength, your reliability, your love for humankind. Not to mention your stubbornness. You are street smart and have your own true instincts that tell you what is right and wrong. Your superpower is what is here." She reached and touched his heart. "This is your strongest ally, and you will have to make hard choices in the next weeks and months. Follow what you know, and what you believe and you will succeed."

The door creaked open and they rolled Sam back in on the cart. Jana and Johnny followed behind. They saw the stranger in the room and Jana instinctively knew this was someone from the leather journal. They said nothing and went off to the corner of the room, letting the two of them be. Missouri looked to Sam and watched him come in. She opened her mind to see if she could reach him. That was Dean's plan all along, why he called her. Her back was to Dean as she continued to focus on Sam. It seemed like an eternity as he looked to Missouri for any signs. She turned slowly to Dean and shook her head. She heard nothing from Sam.