Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or its characters, and I borrowed the "I'll kill you all!" line from "The Benders" because it was that good a line.

A/N: Thanks so much for all your patience. I have one more midterm, but things are settled down some. I will be going home for Spring Break in a week, for two weeks, and will not be updating then-so sorry, but I need to spend the time with my family and friends. I will try to get as much up as I can before I leave. Thanks so much for all the reviews!

As Sam skirted the landing, I followed close behind him. My warning to be quiet died on my lips as Sam pressed himself against a wall, listening carefully to the noises coming from the other room.

"I wonder if he'll try to run when they shoot him," a little girl's voice cooed grotesquely.

"Shut up!" Dean yelled, and Sam and I exchanged worried glances at the shakiness evident in Dean's voice.

"He must be important to you…" The little girl grew silent for a moment, as if waiting for Dean's answer.

"He's my baby brother." There was so much defeat in Dean's voice that it hurt to listen. "Please, just…you can do whatever you want to me, just don't hurt him." A shot was suddenly heard from the basement, followed by wild cackling.

"SAMMY!" Dean screamed, voice thick and heavy with tears, and I had to hold Sam back from running to his side.

"Those bastards," Sam hissed under his breath, his eyes shooting daggers in the direction of the basement. "They know I'm not down there. They're doing that just to torture Dean."

"I bet he's bleeding like a stuck pig right now," the little girl continued, her voice taking on an eerie sing-song. "I bet your brother's crying cause it hurts so much."

"If you hurt him, I will kill you!" Dean bellowed, a sob slipping out amongst his words. "I will kill you all!" Sam turned to me, tears prominent in his eyes, and I nodded.

"I think we can take a little girl," I said. "I'm going to draw her in here." Nodding, needing no explanation, Sam slipped behind a cabinet. I looked around for something to make noise with, nothing too heavy that would alert those in the basement we had made our way up here. Settling on a particularly nasty looking jar of teeth, I tipped it over onto the floor.

For a moment there was silence, then the patter of little footsteps entering the room. She saw me and her mouth opened wide, but before she could scream, I clamped a hand over her mouth, forcing her to drop the nasty looking knife she was holding. Throwing her none too gently into a nearby closet, I barred the door.

Turning around, I saw Sam was already on his way into the next room. Following behind him, I saw Dean with his head hung low, tears leaking from his eyes.

"Dean, I'm here," Sam said gently, urgently. He dropped to his knees beside his brother, laying a hand on his arm. Dean's head shot up, his teary eyes meeting Sam's with a look of the profoundest relief.

"Sammy?" Dean's voice was still shaky, and his bound hands were trembling.

"Dean, it's me, I'm fine." Sam smiled, quickly moving to untie Dean from the chair.

"I heard a shot…I thought-" Dean broke off, taking a deep breath, never taking his eyes off Sam's face.

"I know," Sam said, pausing to look up at Dean. "I wasn't even down there when they did that."

"Sons of bitches," Dean growled, the fire starting to come back into his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Dean," Sam said softly, finishing untying Dean's bonds. "I know they were doing all that to get to you."

"Yeah, well it worked, and now I'm going to kick their asses," Dean said angrily, slowly standing up. He swayed, grabbing at his arm without thinking.

"Dean, what's wrong?" Sam asked instantly, putting a hand gently on his brother's back to support him.

"Nothing, I'm fine." Shrugging, Dean took a deep breath and stood up straight. "How the hell did you get out of those cages?" I didn't miss the switch of topic, and I knew Sam didn't either, but Sam didn't press the issue.

"I had a vision, of you…I screamed, the cages flew open," Sam said softly, looking down at his hands.

"See, those visions are good for something," Dean joked, trying to keep the mood light. Growing serious, he put a hand on Sam's shoulder. "I'm fine, Sam. Nothing bad happened to me."

I could tell Sam didn't buy that Dean hadn't been hurt, but he smiled at him anyway, patting Dean's hand. So fast I almost missed it, Dean reached over and pulled Sam into a one-armed hug, holding his brother to him for a second, then quickly releasing him and looking away.

With an affectionate laugh, Sam poked Dean in the side. "You love me," he said sing-song.

"I'm just glad to see you're not dead, alright," Dean said, fighting to sound gruff, but ending up sounding surprisingly tender.

"Yeah, yeah, I love you too, jerk," Sam answered, lightly smacking the back of Dean's head. "Now let's get the hell out of here before the creepy cannibals get back upstairs." Moving slightly, Sam suddenly stopped and turned to Dean. "Dean, just…promise me you won't go in the woods."

"Sam, what-" Dean started, but Sam cut him off.

"Just promise me," Sam said again, his voice taking on a begging tone. "No matter what."

"Ok, Sam, I promise." Dean looked at Sam strangely, but sudden footsteps coming up the stairs put us all into action. Ducking behind the wall, I moved to grab the man running past us, but Dean beat me to it, grabbing the man by the throat and slamming him up against the wall.

His arm pressing into the man's Adam's apple, Dean's eyes burned hatred. "What did I tell you I would do if you hurt my brother?" Dean growled, his arm digging in tighter.

"Kill…kill us…" the man stammered out, the former bravado now gone from his eyes.

"That's right," Dean hissed, pressing his arm so hard against the man's throat I thought for sure he would shoot right through it. But suddenly Sam stepped up, putting a gentle hand on Dean's shoulder.

"Dean, I'm fine," Sam said quietly. "There's no need to kill this guy. He's only human."

Dean easily read the undertones of Sam's last words, and with another hard jab into the man's throat, Dean backed off, leaving the man doubled over, gasping for air. Fists clenched, Dean leaned his head up against the wall, but was quickly brought out of his furious state by the sound of Sam's fist solidly connecting with the man's jaw.

"I didn't get a chance to warn you, but no one hurts my brother," Sam said quietly, staring down at the now unconscious man sprawled on the floor. Dean let out an astonished laugh, then walked over to Sam, ruffling his hair.

Just as suddenly, Dean dropped to the ground, laying still. From around the corner came the last members of this psycho family, and before I could do anything, my head was also met with a hard metal object. Sliding to the ground, through my half-opened eyes, I was helpless to do anything as the men dragged Sam outside. My eyes closed and I lost consciousness just as Sam left the house, his screams for Dean ringing in my nightmares.