As Close as Family

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Summary: see chapter 1

Warnings/Ratings: see Chapter 1

Author's Note: Thanks as ever to Rae Artemis for being a great beta and also for the title to this chapter.

Chapter 5 – Scooby Doo and Ancient History

When Sam came back about an hour later, he smiled when he saw us, 'Just like old times, Dean.' nodding towards Suzi, curled up asleep leaning against me with Scooby Doo playing on the TV.

'There was nothing else on, and when she fell asleep, I couldn't reach to turn it off or over.'

'Yeah, 'cos you never watch this stuff when you're on your own. She okay?'

I shrugged, 'she will be, but we need to do some stuff before we move on.'

'She coming with?'

'I'd like to take her back to Jason's but I don't know if she'll agree to go back and it's up to you too really?'

'Me?'

'Do you mind?' I had to ask the question, just to be sure. Not that I could leave her, but Sam had to have the choice whether to be involved, it was only right.

'I want to help. I'm sorry about before. I was a brat.'

Even I could feel the smirk on my face as I replied, 'She said just that earlier. I'm glad you want to help now though.' She began to stir restlessly until I stroked her hair and soothed her back to sleep.

'Funny! So she say anything? What can we do?'

'There's a demon.'

'The same one?'

'No can't be. Dad and I finished it, no way was it coming back, but this one 'found' her apparently, so it knows she was involved. We need to see if there's anything odd going on around here.'

'Okay, I'll load up the laptop and start looking.'

'Nah! Leave it till the morning, rest now. Once we know what we're up against I want to move quickly and get away straight after. If we wait until she wakes up, she should be able to tell us enough to get us started.'

'True. She staying the night?'

'For now. I'm not going to wake her yet.'

'You okay? Manage there?'

'Very funny, Sam. She's fine.'

'A thought occurs.'

'Hmm.'

'When we were kids, how often did you get through the night without at least one of us climbing in with you?'

'I had a secret.'

'Oh yeah.'

'The nights you both climbed in, I used to wait until you were both asleep, then go and sleep for a few hours in your bed, making sure I was back between you before you woke up.'

'Seriously!'

'Yeah.'

'We'd have been pissed if we found out.'

'I knew that and so did Dad but he figured it was worth the risk. It was his idea. There were a couple of weeks where every night both of you climbed in with me. I was getting next to no sleep between the two of you snuggling and kicking in your sleep. I was grouchy and Dad was annoyed because I wasn't on form when we were training – I was getting continually slower on my run, struggling to hit a barn wall, let alone a target pinned to one so he came up with a plan. We'd wait until the two of you were asleep, then he'd help me climb out from between you. I'd crash in your bed, then when he got up in the morning, he'd wake me first and we alternated between me climbing back between you and him 'waking' one of you first while I pretended to still be asleep and me having a shower and coming out to wake you both up as if I'd just got out from between you.

'I never knew! How long did that last?' I could hear the laughing astonishment in his voice.

'Until you stopped both climbing in. It was okay when it was just one of you there. There was enough room in a queen for me and one of you.'

'You never complained about either of us. Looking after us when Dad was gone can't have been easy.'

'I do remember wishing Dad had never taught her how to fight properly because I got more bruises trying to separate the two of you than I did from my own sparring. Mind you, it improved your skills no end.'

'Too right. I hated all that practise and sparring and everything. Then she came along and lapped it all up. Do you remember the day she first beat me?'

'Sam, I remember the month she first beat you. You totally lost it afterwards. You were absolutely unbearable for weeks after that. You practised a hell of a lot more though.'

'Yeah, sorry about that! I remember that I was foul and she did nothing but gloat.'

'True. It didn't help. But you were asking for it.'

'I'm sorry about that, I was a real bitch about it, Sammy, I mean Sam.'

'Hey, you're awake.' Sam smiled at her apology as he spoke.

'Yeah.'

'And no worries. I think Dean and I have already established I deserved it.'

'So kiddo,' I waited until she shifted position and looked at me. 'Are you going to tell us about what you've been up to and about this demon?'

Author's Note: Please review, let me know if it's okay, next chapter almost ready to go, in which Suzi tells us what's been happening... All being well, it will be up tomorrow.