Author's note: Sorry for the delay. I've trying to post this for days but haven't had much luck uploading it until now.
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At first there was no reaction as Bobby read the Latin text. Meg continued with her threats and vulgarities as John and Missouri watched indifferent to her rants. Then the lights began to flicker wildly and the howling intensified around the house. Windows and doors rattled as the encircling demons tried to rescue their leader but gratefully the salt and Missouri's spells continued to repel them. John grasped his gun tighter as the Latin text began to take effect against the demon. Meg began to moan and cry even more as the struggle intensified within her.
"You're killing me. You're killing me, why?" she suddenly called out in a small voice. Bobby looked over at John eyes wide.
"Ignore her, you know what's she's trying to do." John commanded, sensing his friend's hesitation. Bobby nodded and continued with the exorcism.
"I don't want to die" she cried out again. Once more Bobby shot John a look but kept speaking.
"Nice try but it won't work." John said as he began pacing around her. Suddenly Meg began thrashing wildly, screaming in agony, as the demon inside her began to lose control. Even John was momentarily sorry for the girl as he watched her face contort in pain.
"John…Winchester…you…will…be…sorry." The demon spat out one last evil threat before dissipating in an explosion of smoke and dust. Meg's body collapsed in the chair unmoving. John leaned in to examine her as Missouri began to pray behind him. Feeling for a pulse he drew his hand away and stood up to face the others.
"She's dead." He said solemnly. He wasn't sure how he should feel at this moment as part of him felt victorious and part of him was feeling strangely regretful.
"Now untie that poor girl and give her some dignity." Missouri ordered them. John and Bobby quickly moved to gently untie and lay Meg on Missouri's sofa. Leaving momentary, she came back with a sheet and covered Meg up. John watched as the sheet fell over her body still not believing she was dead. Bobby started to clean up around them as Missouri moved next to John.
"We had to do it" John said still trying to convince his friend.
"I know you believe that John and maybe part of me does too. She was responsible for the suffering in a lot of people's lives including your own and for that the demon had to be stopped. But that little girl paid the price and now she's dead on my sofa under a sheet. What about her life John?" John looked at Missouri, eyes stricken as he felt her accusation.
"It's not my fault." He answered back. "Missouri, you know we never had a chance to save her, not once she was dead."
"I know John…I just want you to remember she was a human being and not the monster you still feel justified in killing." Missouri put her arm on John's gently before turning around and leaving him looking down at Meg's body.
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Upstairs Sam paced back and forth across the bedroom, his gun held tightly in his grip. It took all his strength not to run down stairs to his father's side as he heard the commotion in the parlor. He marveled that the noise from the demons attack did nothing to awaken his brother. Several times Sam thought he heard Dean sigh or move, and went over to check on him, but his brother was still unresponsive. Standing behind the door he could hear the demon and its threats against his father and the others. At one point he had his hand on the knob, ready to fly down and assist them, but then he remembered his first concern was protecting Dean at all costs.
Dean.
He moved back over to the bed and felt the slight heat radiating off his brothers forehead. One glance at the bandages told him the shoulder had not developed an infection which eased Sam's worries somewhat but he was still concerned. It made him sick when he thought about what the demon had done to his brother. He felt Dean's pain during that attack, and knew how terrible it was. Perhaps it was the stress of all that Dean had been through that was causing the slight fever. Sam was going to have to let his father know if it got any higher.
Hearing Meg's demonic voice intensify diverted Sam's attention once again to the battle downstairs. The demon's voice, suddenly stronger, echoed up the staircase, making the hair stand up on the back of his neck. Bobby's voice did as well and Sam knew the demon was struggling to stay alive at any cost. The howling outside the house also grew louder as did the shaking of the windows and doors.
Then he heard a strange female's voice. He listened as it begged for her life and realized that was Meg's true voice. It gave him shivers when he realized how low the demon was willing to go to be released. Luckily his father and Bobby knew it was a ruse and continued with the exorcism. Still for a split second Sam almost believed that Meg was still alive trapped by the demon possessing her. He was about to feel sorry for her when he heard the demons final threat and then silence. Finally he couldn't stand it any longer. He threw open the door and slowly made his way to the top of the stairs.
Sam heard his father announce that Meg was dead and his heart stopped for a brief second. He let go the breath he had been holding for what seem like forever. He felt a thousand emotions as he began to process that it finally was over. He took another deep breath before calling down to his father.
"Dad?" he asked looking down the staircase. John walked over to the stairs, looked up at his son, and nodded.
"It's ok Sammy you can come down now." John smiled to himself as he saw the look of relief on his sons face.
As Sammy came down the stairs and into the parlor the first thing he noticed was Meg's body under the sheet. Eyes wide he looked back over at his father, who returned the look before turning and walking away.
John walked into the kitchen and sat next to Bobby who was at the table nursing a cup of coffee, visibly shaken. Missouri looked over as John sat down and brought him over a cup as well. When she turned back towards the coffee pot, Bobby reached over and dumped a large amount of liquid from his flask into their cups.
"Robert, I know you don't believe I don't know you just poured whiskey into those coffee cups." She said with her back still turned against the two men.
"Sorry Missouri but I think this calls for something a little stronger than Columbian." Bobby said sheepishly before he started to smile at being caught. John laughed at him and Missouri turned and shot him an evil look.
"And don't you go giving him any ideas about spiking my tea, John Winchester. I don't need any help to relax, my tea will work just fine, thank you." She turned around with a frustrated look at both of them.
"Damn it Missouri, you know I hate it when you do that crap." John said a little pissed at his friend. This time it was Bobby's turn to laugh. Hearing laughter coming from the kitchen Sam strolled in to find the trio sitting down with their cups.
"Pull up a chair son." John said motioning to the empty seat at the table. Seeing Missouri's still somewhat disgusted look on her face Sam immediately guess his father and Bobby weren't just drinking coffee.
"Yes Sam, sit down and let me fix you a cup of coffee." Missouri said as she started to get up.
"It's okay Missouri I can get my own." Sam said as he headed over and poured his own cup. After adding about 6 spoonfuls of sugar Sam turned around looking for the creamer when something caught the corner of his eye. So lost in their conversation they never heard Dean make his way down stairs and now he was in the parlor standing in front of Meg's uncovered body on the sofa.
"Dean!" Sam cried out dropping the coffee cup as he ran into the parlor. Shocked the others ran right in behind him.
"Dean!" Sam called out again as he stopped only a few feet away from his brother.
Dean stood over the body with a mixture of terror, horror, and sadness, on his face. His body shaking, he was having trouble controlling his breath when he heard his name called out.
"Who did it? Who killed my sister?" he asked with a shaky voice as he slowly turned to face the others. The minute he saw John, he pulled up the unnoticed gun he had in his right hand and pointed at him.
"You son of a bitch, you killed my sister didn't you?" he said as he cocked the gun and prepared to shoot it.
"Dean stop, put down the gun." Sam begged still standing in front of his brother.
"Sammy back away." John commanded moving up closer to the two boys. Dean's eyes never left John's. Sam stood still and continued to look at his brother holding the gun.
"Dean please put down the gun, you don't want to do this." Sam continued to plead.
"Do what, kill the man who killed my father? Kill the man who killed my sister." His voice trailed away as he remembered Meg lying on the sofa. "Why? What has my family ever done to you to deserve this?"
"They're not your family, son." John slowly spoke moving up next to Sam.
"Don't say that! Don't say that!" Dean shouted, the gun shaking in his hand as he began to almost hyperventilate. "I saw you….you killed my father at the warehouse and then you shot me." he stopped remembering the 2nd shooting at the motel only a few hours ago.
"Why are you trying to kill me, I don't even know you?"
"Dean listen to me, you were kidnapped. They messed with your head. They wanted you to believe they were your real family but they're not, we are." John said pointing to Sam and himself. Dean continued to point the gun not believing John.
"No you're lying. Why would they do that?" Dean's eyes darted between Sam and John.
"They were trying to get back at me, at our family. That thing I killed at the warehouse, it wasn't human, it was a demon. A demon that killed my wife, your mother, when you were 4 years old. You were there Dean. I put your brother into your arms and you carried him out of the house as it was burning. I've spent the last 22 years hunting it down and I finally succeeded that night in getting my revenge. Our revenge, son. The demon's followers didn't like what I did to their master, so they took you hostage, and made it look like you were killed in a car accident. For days we thought you were dead but you weren't. After they captured you they hid you somewhere, I'm not sure where. There they tortured you Dean, we think they gave you shock treatments and then…." At that point John stopped, not sure if he could carry on, remembering the pain he felt coming from his son.
"We think they used a memory demon to take the last of your memories of us away from you. That's why you don't remember us Dean." Sam finished.
"Ask him about the dream about the woman on fire." Missouri suddenly spoke up.
"Shut up, shut up!" Dean yelled now pointing the gun at Missouri.
"You know the one with the woman on the ceiling, blood dripping from her body as she suddenly goes up in flames." Missouri continued unafraid of the weapon pointed in her direction.
"No No! How could you know that?" he asked looking at her horrified. Sam spun around and looked at Missouri as well. She saw his expression and answered his unspoken question.
"He thinks it was a nightmare but really it was your memory Sammy, your memory of Jessica dying. When the two of you were connected he must have tapped in somehow and retain some of your memories." She explained.
"Get out of my head! Dean screamed at the psychic as he grabbed his head.
"Missouri is that possible, part of Dean is still in there?" John asked still staring at his oldest son.
"Yes John. What he thinks are nightmares are really memories trying to return. Somewhere deep inside his subconscious he must have been able to save a part of himself away from the memory demon."
"No stop it, you're lying. You're trying to trick me, I know you are." Dean said trying to stop the visions that were now flooding his head. Visions of various hunts with John and Sam. Visions of seeing John and Sam killed by the demon at the warehouse. That vision being the one that was planted by the demon before he was taken by Meg.
"Dean listen, I'm your brother, you've got to let us help you." Moving closer, Sam pleaded with Dean as he watched his brothers face contort in pain.
"No you're not my brother….I don't have a brother." He looked at Sam still not believing. Turning back towards the sofa, he looked down at Meg again as tears flowed down his face. "I'm not a brother any more….I'm not a son anymore…"
Suddenly Missouri called out as she felt Dean's desperation.
"No Dean, don't do it."
Unable to reach him in time, Sam could only scream out his brother's name as Dean put the gun to his head and pulled the trigger.
Tbc.
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Authors note. I only have one more chapter to go and then this story will finally be finished. I'm sorry I had to leave it where I did but I am an evil bitch and I love cliffhangers. Go ahead and give it to me good. Thanks for reading.