Hey Hey Hey Gorgeous SPN family! Here's Part 3! If you haven't read the first two parts, please go back and do so, otherwise this ain't gonna make any sense ;) Be warned- it's long (I actually cut 5 pages out this morning and it's still long, so sorry 'bout that). Special thanks to the best beta and cheerleader ever- Jenmm31.
Sending you all love and hand sanitizer. Be safe, please. You're too valuable not to be safe.
A/N- in this story, Natalie is 18. This is part 3 of a 3 part story. Please see profile page for disclaimers.
The girl threw her dark blonde hair behind her and glared defiantly at the three Winchesters. Natalie was still so stunned by this turn of events that she hadn't moved. She just stared at the young teenage girl who was now possessed by a demon.
"How'd you know to make a devil's trap?" Sam asked Dean curiously, keeping the girl in his sights as Dean walked around to join them.
Dean shrugged modestly. "Lucky hunch," he said, but they all knew it was anything but. Dean seemed to have a sixth sense for things like this, and right now, all of them were nothing but grateful for it. All the Winchesters, anyways. Abby scoffed and kicked the ground.
"Whatever," she growled in a tone that didn't seem to belong to her youthful face. "You're not going to be able to keep me here forever. I'm indestructible, bitch."
Sam and Dean furiously turned on the girl as one. "Really," Sam said dryly before a self assured smirk spread across his face. "Exorcizo te, immundissime spiritus-" he began. But to everyone's shock, Abby threw her head back and began to laugh.
"An exorcism. Wow. Yeah, sure- THAT'S gonna help you," she said, shifting her weight to her other hip and looking exceptionally bored.
"Can't hurt," Dean said snarkily back. "Well, can't hurt US, I mean." He glared at the demon, but all Natalie could see was the girl it was possessing. It shook her to the core, knowing that a young girl was being used by these dickhead demons this way. What had happened? How had she come to be like this? Was she the one murdering these people? She was only a kid, fifteen at the most.
In response to Dean's statement, Abby just shook her head, a smirk playing at the corners of her own mouth. "Something funny about that?" Sam asked, a touch of iron in his voice. Abby just shrugged as her smug smile got wider.
"Go ahead. Exorcise me. Gonna be worse for you if you do, so have fun with that," she said in a mock pleasant voice. Sam and Dean exchanged a quick look, instantly knowing each other's thoughts.
"So you wanna start talking? Tell us what the hell you mean by that?" Dean asked the demon bluntly. "Or if you'd like, we can just jump right to the torture. Save us all some time."
"No," Natalie whispered, so softly that no one could hear her. How could Dean think of torturing this girl?
Abby laughed wickedly again. "You think I give a shit for this meat suit? Her hide ain't worth me giving you Winchesters ANYTHING. Like I said, it'll just go worse for you. Bring it on."
Natalie suddenly came back to life, darting forward and grabbing Dean's sleeve. "NO!" she shouted, making both her father and uncle do a double take. Once he recovered, Dean jerked his head back in the direction of the car.
"This won't take long," he said to his daughter, completely oblivious to the problem. "Go get the holy water."
"Dad, you can't do this," she said firmly. At that, Dean latched onto his daughter's arm and pulled her over to the side, his face contorted with anger.
"You wanna tell me what the hell's gotten into you?" he hissed, his voice low and furious. "You know damn well that the only way this demon's gonna talk is to make him talk, and there's only one way to do that."
"But you're going to hurt the girl! You can't do that!"
"We'll patch her up as best as we can, and take her to the hospital. I ain't gonna do anything permanent. You know the drill here, this ain't your first rodeo. Don't get squeamish on me now. Now go get the holy water."
Natalie ripped her arm out of Dean's grip. "NO," she said furiously. Dean's eyes got wide. Natalie very rarely defied him, especially when they were on a case. "There has got to be another way," she said, the fire snapping and sparking in her eyes. "You need to give me a shot at this first. Please. I'm begging you." Her voice broke on her last sentence.
That made the red haze of anger that was creeping over Dean's vision receded enough to listen to what she was saying when he heard her voice crack like that. "What makes you so gung-ho to skip the easiest solution?" he asked, his barely contained fury just below the surface.
"Abby didn't choose this. She didn't choose to be possessed. She can't be made to pay for something that's happening to her."
"And how exactly do you know that she didn't choose this?"
"Because the girl that I saw earlier today was haunted by something. Something she couldn't control or do anything about. Something is tormenting her, torturing her. That girl deserves a chance before this demon lets her get sliced to shreds. Please! Please, Dad." Dean breathed slowly again, his green eyes narrowed at his daughter's pleading. Finally, after a very tense silence, he nodded once, jerkily, then held up one finger.
"You got one chance at this, kid," Dean said, his commanding voice making her insides turn to ice a bit. "One. And if it don't work, I'm stepping in and you're waiting in the car. Got it?"
"Yes, sir," she replied fervently, nodding and holding his gaze. He clenched his teeth together and stepped out of her way. Natalie rolled her shoulders back and walked up to the edge of the circle with a lot more confidence than she felt. She knew Dean was probably going to rip her a new one when this was over, but she couldn't think about that now. She had to focus on Abby. Out of her periphery, she saw Sam exchange an incredulous look with Dean. Dean must have gestured for Sam to fall back, because his eyes darted once to his niece, and then he too stepped away.
Casually slipping her hands into her pockets, Natalie addressed the girl. "Hey Abby," she said calmly, as if they were running into each other at the mall or something. The demon laughed incredulously, then walked back towards Natalie. Natalie fought the urge to back up, knowing that the demon couldn't get outside the edge of the painted circle.
"Like I said, Abby's not here right now," the demon said tauntingly. "And like hell I'm going to let her talk to you."
"Oh, I know that," Natalie said, a steely determination forming in her eyes.
"So do you wanna stop wasting my time, or just let me get along with my business?"
"I don't give a shit about your time. I give a shit about Abby's life."
"Give it up, you wannabe. You don't give a shit about human life. You've killed plenty of people- I would know. Like hell you give two craps about this girl."
Natalie shrugged nonchalantly. "Whatever helps you sleep at night. But underestimating that girl might be…hazardous to your health."
"You really think I have something to worry about from this little girl?"
"I think you need her more than you're letting on."
"Plenty of other meat suits in this town that I can jump into."
"Then why this one?" Natalie pressed. "What makes this one so special?"
"Convenience."
"You suck at lying. You know that?"
"What makes you think that's a lie?"
"Because you obviously know who we are. And you KNOW that we saw this girl earlier if you're in her head. So you would realize that by choosing this meat suit, you're basically flashing a neon sign at the WINCHESTERS that says 'Come and get me!'" Natalie waited for a response, but there was none. The demon fell silent. Natalie leaned forward, making a falsely apologetic face. "See, that's where you screwed up," she said in a mocking whisper.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that most demons don't target fifteen year old girls unless they have no other option. Most demons choose someone stronger, older, more…suited to their needs. It means that something or someone is making you choose her as a vessel."
"That's crazy."
"Exorcizo te-"
"Wait, wait," the demon said suddenly, holding up her hands towards Natalie. "Okay. So maybe, yeah, there's a reason I'm in her. But like I said, it'll be worse for you if you make me leave. So trust me- you really don't want to do this."
"Trust you. Yeah, sure. I'll get right on that," Natalie said snarkily, before readjusting her tone. "Abby, if you can hear me, you gotta push this demon out of you. Take a hold of him and get him out. You can do it." Natalie knew it was important that Abby push this demon out herself. She didn't know why, but her gut was telling her to follow this path.
The demon snorted derisively. "She can't hear you, bitch," she snarled. Natalie heard a slight scuffle behind her. Dean had taken a step forward at hearing the demon call his daughter a bitch, but Sam had stopped him by throwing his arm across his brother's chest. Natalie didn't see any of that, though. Her eyes weren't leaving the girl. The demon smiled evilly. "I've got her buried so deep inside her happy place that she ain't coming out. She doesn't want to."
Natalie chewed the inside of her lip. If it was true, then it was going to be harder to get to Abby than she thought. But she had to try. The memory of Abby's haunted expression was burning in her brain. She had to try. If for no other reason than erasing that look from her own memory.
"Abby," Natalie called again, a little more loudly this time. The demon laughed, rolling its weight back as if preparing to watch this circus unfolding. "Abby, my name is Natalie. You don't know me, but you saw me earlier today. You need to listen to me now."
"She's got her metaphorical ear buds in, you loser. She's blasting the music as loud as she can, chasing away all the bad things. She's not listening."
Natalie didn't give up. "Abby, I don't know if you know this, but there is a demon inside of you. And it's hurting people. Abby, I need you to force its way out of you. It could hurt you if you don't get it out."
"Wow. She has crappy taste in music. Eh, what can you expect from a teenager."
"Abby, don't let this demon use you anymore. I can help you. I'm here for you." At that, the demon gave a spasmodic little twitch. It was very subtle, but Natalie knew she was getting through. She spoke louder. "Abby, listen to me- I will help you. We've got the demon trapped, but it's still in you. I need you to force it out so we don't hurt you."
The demon rolled her neck around, then looked at Natalie; there was a hint of fear in its eyes. "Alright, knock it off," it said bitterly. "Trust me. If you force me out, the one waiting to take my place is ten times worse."
"What does that mean?" Natalie spat back harshly. When the demon laughed instead of answering, Natalie began to see red.
"ABBY!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "DO THIS!" Suddenly, the girl shook violently. Natalie looked at her- the haunted look was back. Abby was back. But before Natalie could do much more than extend a hand in her direction, her eyes glazed over black again.
"There is more at stake than just getting me out of this meat suit!" the demon shrieked at Natalie as she quickly withdrew her hand.
"What's at stake?" Natalie said in a rush. The demon panted hard, still unwilling to give up the secret. Natalie's eyes narrowed, suddenly furious.
"C'mon Abby," she hissed, done with all of this. "I've got you. I'll help you. Get that bastard out. Don't let it hurt anyone else." The girl's body suddenly twisted and spasmed. Natalie automatically took a step back, even though she was still outside the circle. Just as suddenly as it started, Abby's twitching stopped. Natalie could tell the demon was in control again, but just barely.
"Alright! Alright," it whimpered. "I'll tell you. Just…don't let her do that again."
Natalie wasn't making any promises. "Talk, you fucker."
"I'm part of a deal. Someone sold their soul in order to have control over a demon."
At that, Sam and Dean flanked Natalie, coming right up to the edge of the trap with her. "You trying to tell me that the kid sold her soul?!" Dean snarled in disbelief.
"No, it wasn't her," Natalie said definitively, trying to figure it out. The demon looked at Natalie, confused.
"How did you know that?" it asked. When Natalie turned her death glare on it again, it held up its hands. "Okay, never mind. But…look, I'm just doing what I'm told to do. I don't even know who actually holds the contract. I'm just following orders from my higher ups, if you know what I mean." Natalie gritted her teeth together. A tiny part of her hoped that Crowley was involved in this deal, just so she'd get an opportunity to shoot him.
"So that's the deal then?" Sam spat at the demon. "You do the bidding of whoever sold their soul, and if you get taken out, then someone else takes your place. For as long as the deal is good for." Sam shook his head as the pieces came together. The demon shifted uncomfortably- Sam had nailed it.
"Hold on," Dean said, his tone rough and grating. "Who sold their soul? And how the hell did they get the kid to become your freakin' vessel?"
The demon closed its eyes as if it was in pain. "You're not gonna believe me," it said, panting as it nervously looked at the three Winchesters. "I'm telling the truth, so don't make her try to jump ship again. But part of the deal is that I can't speak their name. In case something like this happened. Still can't freakin' believe I got caught by the Winchesters."
Before anyone else could even move, Natalie rattled off an exorcism so fast that Sam didn't even have a chance to finish saying "Natalie, no!" before the demon was smoking out, hurtling out of Abby's mouth in a heap. Ignoring her uncle, Natalie closed the gap between herself and the girl as fast as she could. Abby collapsed into Natalie's arms, but not being very big herself, Natalie almost dropped her. Cursing under his breath, Dean shot forward and grabbed the girl, glaring at his daughter.
"What the hell was that?" he yelled at her. She was still looking at him defiantly. It was a look he didn't like.
"We got what we needed. I had to get him out of Abby," she said, her posture growing ridged as she took in Dean's anger and tone.
"And we didn't get a chance to get anything ELSE out of him, Nat," Sam said harshly. Swallowing hard, Natalie turned to look at her uncle. The use of 'Nat' instead of 'Bug' didn't go unnoticed. He was pissed at her too, and she knew it. She glared defensively at the both of them for a moment, until she just couldn't keep the bravado up any longer.
"I couldn't take it," she said quietly. "I know what it's like to have a demon trapped in you," she mumbled. Both Sam and Dean tensed at the remembrance of her time travel stunt when she'd been briefly possessed. "I knew what was causing that look in her eye. And I couldn't live with it, knowing that I had the power to stop that," she finished quietly.
Dean wanted to do a million things in that moment- rip her to pieces, hug her as tight as he could, shake her until her teeth rattled, cuddle her like she was a frightened toddler. But they had bigger fish to fry.
"C'mon," he said gruffly, hoisting the unconscious Abby in his arms. "We're going back to the motel."
*SPN SPN SPN*
Twenty minutes later, they had finally gotten Abby to wake up at the motel. After the initial confusion and terror, the Winchesters had explained the situation to the young girl, who was more than a little shocked to learn that she had been possessed by a demon.
"Look, Abby, we have to try to catch this thing before it starts hurting anyone again. We need to ask you a few questions, and I need you to answer as best as you can, okay?"
Abby shrugged half heartedly. "I'll do what I can," she said quietly. "But I don't remember anything about…being possessed." She looked terrified again for a moment. "Is that…normal?" she whispered. Natalie nodded.
"Sometimes people don't remember being possessed," she said carefully. "But a lot of times, those memories are locked in the subconscious somewhere, and it just takes a little digging to get them out."
Abby rolled her eyes. "Wow, someone digging around in my brain. I wonder what that's like," she muttered sarcastically. She caught Natalie's eye and explained. "I've been going to therapy every week for three years now. I'm USED to my brain being dug through, if you know what I mean."
"When we found you, you were leaving the psychiatrist's office. Do you remember going there?" Natalie asked.
"Wait- I was at Dr. Cancio's office?" Abby questioned. When Natalie nodded in response, Abby looked confused. "I mean, I remember being there earlier today, but…you mean, I was there just now?"
"Yeah. And you don't remember going there?"
"No. The last thing I remember was going to bed. I put my earbuds in to listen…" Abby trailed off, her eyes glazing over. The Winchesters watched as she gently lifted a hand and touched her ear, as if afraid of what she might find there.
"What were you listening to?" Natalie asked quietly, when Abby didn't speak. The girl swallowed hard, and then turned her unhappy eyes towards the hunters.
"They were…it was a sleep hypnosis thing," Abby said quietly. "I've been having trouble sleeping lately. Dr. Cancio gave me these tracks to listen to that were supposed to help me sleep without nightmares." She folded her arms tightly across her chest, the haunted look returning to her eyes.
Sam and Dean exchanged a quick, panicked look. Both of them realized in a horrible instant what these audio tracks could actually lead to- if indeed they had somehow tricked this kid into being possessed, and the doctor was treating half the town… "Alright, you two stay here," Dean ordered, pointing at both girls. "Abby, where's your house? We need to get a hold of those tracks and see what's actually on them."
Abby's eyebrows knit together in confusion. "Why would you need to go to my house?" she asked a bit sullenly.
Dean bit his lips together, summoning his patience. "To get your ear…thingies. That the tracks play on," he said, a little harsher than intended. Abby dug into her pocket and produced her phone instead.
"Or I can just email them to you," she said, the sarcasm in her teenage voice unmistakable. Sam had to stifle a chuckle at the surprised and confused look on his brother's face. Dean had never exactly 'taken' to technology, so these moments were always amusing to him.
"Shuddup," Dean said darkly to his brother. Sam, still failing to hide his grin, gave Abby his own email address, and in a moment, Sam's phone buzzed. Still needing to feel in control of the situation, Dean ordered the girls to stay there while he and Sam listened to the tracks outside.
Once they were gone, Natalie got up to get an unopened water bottle. Handing it to Abby, she sat back down on the bed.
"So…" Natalie began awkwardly.
"So my shrink might be an asshole," Abby said simply. Natalie couldn't help it- she snorted, trying to cover her laugh. When she looked back up, Abby was openly grinning at her. "It's okay. Not the first time I've had an asshole shrink. But definitely the first time I've been demon possessed by one. Well, at least that I can remember," the girl said dryly.
Natalie's eyes went wide in appreciation of the girl's humor, but there was also something rather unsettling about how cavalier she seemed. "Abby, no offense, but…how are you not freaking out right now?" Natalie asked, unable to help herself. "You've just woken up in a strange motel room with three weirdos who tell you you've been a meat suit for hell spawn at the hands of your doctor, and you're just…" Natalie didn't know how to finish that statement, but Abby understood the unspoken words.
"Because nothing like this surprises me."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean when you've dealt with the crap that's in my mind on a daily basis, you just learn to expect the worst so it doesn't hurt as bad when it actually comes."
Natalie felt frozen in place. She understood- to an extent. You don't hunt monsters for a living and come out thinking that everything is going to be all roses, but this girl didn't hunt monsters. So what was in her head? As if she could read Natalie's mind, Abby continued.
"I've had depression and anxiety for as long as I can remember. I used to freak out in first grade when the teacher called on me, even though I really wanted to answer her questions. Couldn't go to birthday parties, because it was just too much. So kids stopped inviting me. Which eventually grew into me not having any friends, which made me feel like a loser, escalating the anxiety and depression, you get the idea. And as I've gotten older, it's only gotten worse." She smiled ironically at Natalie. "You say you hunt monsters for a living. Can you tell me how to defeat the monsters that only exist in my head?"
"I wish I could," Natalie replied softly.
"I wish you could too," Abby answered, looking away and folding her arms. The haunted look crossed her face again. "That's the part that I just can't wrap my head around. Like I KNOW that these thoughts and feelings aren't real. I can tell you every freaking chemical that's out of whack in my head, where it's housed in my brain, and how it misfires and makes me feel this way. But I can't FIX it. The meds, the therapy, the sleep hypnosis- it only dulls the pain. Or shoves it to the side. But it always returns. It never gives up. Just when I think I'm over it, I wake up right back at the bottom of the mountain all over again. It's exhausting to constantly fight a battle that only exists in your head. And it makes me so freaking mad. Because I KNOW it's only in my head, therefore, I should be able to control it, right? But all I need is for one little trigger- one little thing to go wrong, my brain takes off, and it's off to war again."
"That…that has to suck so bad," Natalie said faintly. Abby nodded, huffing out a little laugh.
"You're damn right it sucks," Abby said, the haunted look momentarily receding, a fire taking its place. "People seem to think I can 'snap' out of it. My dad just doesn't get it, even though it runs rampant in our family. I've been to see every shrink, done every type of therapy, and there's no doubt that it helps. But it doesn't kill the monster. And then," she said, her tone turning bitter. "Then you find out that the person that you trust enough to show your monster to is turning you into something that serves them. Something that doesn't help you at all. And it's like the monster wins, because the monster's voice is constantly telling you that people only want you around for what they can get out of you. That you only matter to people when you're of use, and the second you're dried up no one cares anymore. It's crap like this…that makes the monsters more real."
Natalie scooted closer to the girl, taking her hands in her own. "I can't imagine what it's like in your head, Abby. I can only speak from my own experience. I…I don't often talk about this, and I've never told my family, but…I have monsters in my head, too. They tell me I'm not good enough, that if I don't prove myself I'll end up alone because everyone will abandon me." She gripped the girl's hands tighter. "So I fight in the way I know how to. I battle the monsters on the outside, and it helps me deal with the monsters inside."
Abby smiled wanly. "Maybe I should become a hunter. That's a form of therapy I haven't tried yet." Both girls laughed as the door opened. Sam and Dean entered, matching grimaces on their faces.
"What is it?" Natalie asked, worried. Dean took a deep breath and spoke to Abby, keeping his face as stoic as possible.
"Abby, the doctor was using these tapes to hypnotize you into coming back to his office while you…well, while you were sleeping, kid. He mentioned something in the tapes about…and I know this is gonna sound all kinds of crazy but…something about the lightning being okay? And safe? That ringing any bells?"
Abby's face grew hard and rigid. "Yeah, it does," she said stoically.
*SPN SPN SPN*
Behind the door marked "Private", the four of them stared at the chair and the thousands of wires and electrodes in and around it. The second they had gotten back into the doctor's office and into the locked room, Abby remembered the burst of electricity, the flash of lightning, the burning in her mind, and put two and two together. She had been hypnotized into doing electro-shock therapy.
Natalie finally spoke in a thick, uncomfortable voice. "What I don't understand is where the demon stuff came in," she said.
"I would have thought that would be clear, Natalie."
The rich, velvet voice took them all by surprise. Dr. Cancio stepped casually around the corner. Instantly, all three Winchesters were on alert, hands reaching for guns, but the doctor was unarmed. He smiled calmly at all of them.
"How do you know my name?" Natalie finally asked, subtly positioning herself between Abby and the doctor. She could feel both Sam and Dean tense up at the fact that she had engaged the doctor first, but he had been speaking to her.
"Well, as my demon said, you're famous. All of you Winchesters are," Dr. Cancio said in a friendly, even tone.
"YOUR demon?" Dean growled. "What the hell does that mean, Doc?"
"It means that I own a demon. And it does what I bid it to," the doctor explained simply, as if he was explaining that the sky was blue. All three Winchesters were in shock.
"You…own a demon," Natalie finally got out. Dr. Cancio chuckled a bit in a kind way.
"I know, I know, it sounds crazy-" he began.
"Don't use that word," Abby suddenly interrupted him in a harsh tone, her arms crossed firmly over her midsection, like she had a stomach ache. Dr. Cancio's facial expression change to a serious one.
"You're right, I'm so sorry, Abby," he began, but was again interrupted.
"That ain't all you gotta apologize to the kid for, Doc," Dean snarled at him. Dr. Cancio took a deep breath, holding up his hands in a conciliatory gesture.
"Well, I think that you'll find you might feel differently after you hear the story," he said in a superior tone. That made Natalie so angry that she nearly charged the man, but Dean caught her eye. With a glance, he told her to stay put. She obeyed, but barely. The doctor watched the father-daughter exchange with a raised eyebrow. A glance from Dean told him that he had the floor.
"As I was saying earlier, I own a demon," Dr. Cancio began to explain.
"You made the deal," Sam said softly, the pieces coming together. "You made a crossroads deal to control a demon."
"To OWN a demon," Dr. Cancio corrected. "I know it sounds bizarre, but I was very careful about how the contract was worded."
"Well, if you really did read the fine print, as you're suggesting," Sam said. "Then you must know that this is going to end badly for you." To everyone's surprise, the doctor smiled benignly.
"Not necessarily," he said, his rich, deep voice intriguing. "See, what I'm doing- well, it means the demons have a good thing going for themselves."
All three of the Winchesters couldn't have looked more perplexed. Finally, Dean spoke out of sheer frustration. "Alright. You got thirty seconds to explain what the hell you're talking about or I shoot you between the eyes," he growled, pulling his .45 out and pointing it at the doctor. Dr. Cancio held up his hands, his eyes going wide.
"Okay, no problem," he said in his calm, even tone. Natalie finally realized what was shaking her about the whole thing. The man seemed so…normal. He was talking about owning a demon, yet had a perfectly logical reaction to Dean pointing a gun at his head. He was too rational, too calm to be hiding a mad man, which he would have had to be in order to make a demon deal in the first place. It wasn't adding up, and that set her on edge.
"I made a deal three years ago," the doctor continued in a soft tone. "A crossroads demon came to me and offered me anything I wanted. I told her that I wanted a way to truly help my patients that seemed to be unreachable. And she gave me unilateral control over a demon that would do anything I told it to."
"And you told it to possess a teenager and kill people?!" Sam roared at the man. Dr. Cancio shook his head admonishingly.
"No, it wasn't like that," he said. "I…I really am working to help people. The right people, the good ones."
"Explain that."
"I knew that the demon would need a vessel, but it couldn't be me. I couldn't be the one who might risk being seen or caught. I asked the demon to possess me once, just so I could know what it was like. So that I could know how to treat those who it was possessing. And then, once I realized that there was potential to possess someone without them having memory of it, I began screening my patients to see if I could find the perfect candidate. It was almost a medical experiment, if you will."
"And I happened to be the one that fit the bill," Abby said dully. Natalie's guts twisted, hearing the pain in the girl's voice, but she didn't let her eyes leave the doctor.
"Almost, Abby," the doctor said, as if he was delivering a schoolroom lecture on an interesting subject. "Almost. See, what I discovered was that it was possible that you'd remember the possession, unless I hid it, deep in your brain. And there's only one medical treatment that I can give that has the potential to do that."
"Electroshock therapy," Abby whispered, her lips going white as the blood drained from her face. "But I told you I didn't want to do that."
"And so I had you listen to the hypnosis tapes at night to get you over here and do that."
"You knew I didn't want to do that!"
"But don't you see? How much easier it's been to deal with everything since I forced you into it? Remember about two months ago, that first session after you started hypnosis? You told me that it was like someone had 'drained your brain' of all the junk, of all the voices, of the concrete. You told me you were finding peace. Don't you remember? That's what the electroshock therapy did."
"But…but…"Abby struggled with her words. Natalie couldn't help but turn to look at the girl. There was a mixture of fury, confusion, and extreme sadness on her face. Her eyes were taking on that hollow, dead look again. And Natalie couldn't take that.
Almost without conscious thought, Natalie drew her gun, pointing it at the doctor. "You forced a patient into a treatment that she didn't want, you monster," Natalie spat at the man.
"But don't you see the beauty of it?" Dr. Cancio said in an almost pleading voice, turning his attention to Natalie. "Abby gets the help she desperately wanted, even though it's different from the WAY she wanted it. Doesn't the end justify the means?"
"The END?!" Abby said, fire in her voice as she stepped forward. Natalie moved to get out of her way, but kept her gun trained on the doctor. "The end is that you forced me into literally zapping memories out of my brain, during which you tricked me into saying yes to a demon that used my body to kill people. That's the end you're saying is justified?!"
Dr. Cancio's eyes suddenly became sharp and unfeeling. "Abby, you can look at it that way- or think about it like this. You remember Joshua?"
"The one who…" Abby suddenly cut herself off with a gasp as the memory came to her. Dr. Cancio nodded encouragingly. "He was the kid who planned to shoot up the school."
"YOU'RE the one who told me about his plan. That you had overheard him talking about how he was going to bring his gun to school and open fire. YOU are the one that stopped it."
"But…but when I said that, you should have called the police," Abby said faintly.
"I've seen that boy off and on, Abby. I know what he's capable of, and he was too far gone. The only thing that could have stopped it was the demon, who needed YOU. Don't you see? Don't you see how many lives you spared by letting the demon do what it did?"
"What about Mrs. Bernstein?" Abby said, her eyes darting to the ground. Natalie was furious and appalled. This guy was trying to convince this young girl that he was taking advantage of her for the greater good, and it looked like she was believing it.
"Mary Ellen was having an affair," the doctor said simply. Both girls gasped at the revelation, and Natalie suddenly remembered what she had read in Mary Ellen's file earlier. The notes hinted at something like this, but didn't go into detail. "She wasn't going to give it up. She wanted to drag Pastor Bernstein through the mud, for no other reason that her own vindictiveness. I'd been treating her for so long, and I just couldn't make a dent in her resolve. Pastor Bernstein didn't deserve that- he didn't deserve any of that. So I did what I had to do."
"No," Dean snarled, stepping back into the picture. "You forced someone else to be used to kill someone, Doc. Big difference."
"It's not! The ends justify the means!" the doctor yelled right back, seeming to double in size and ferocity as a wild glint formed in his eye. Natalie finally saw it. The spark of the mad man that the doctor was so carefully hiding. She redoubled her grip on the gun. The doctor must have sensed it, because he turned to face her.
"Natalie, I know that you think I'm a monster," he said, in a soothing, conciliatory voice. She swallowed hard, her finger itching to pull the trigger- but for some reason, she just couldn't. The doctor saw this and continued. "Think about all the good I can do. I know all the secrets of this town. I know Abby better than she knows herself. I promise, she won't get hurt. And the only people who will die are the bad guys. See, here's the other thing I don't think you've realized yet. If you kill my demon, another one simply takes its place. You can kill Abby-" Natalie felt the girl flinch, but didn't say a word. "-but I'll just find another vessel. And I've made a deal. Your father and your uncle know that killing the crossroad demon that holds the deal won't break it."
"There's one way to break a deal," Natalie said back evenly, staring into the doctor's mad eyes. She took a step towards him, her gun pointing directly at his forehead, her intentions clear. His eyes tightened. It was the only warning she got.
Suddenly, Abby's eyes glazed over black. The demon threw Abby's body between Natalie and the gun.
"You shoot at the doctor, and I'll make damn sure that pretty girl here takes a fatal hit," the demon snarled at Natalie. It wasn't the same demon as before, that much was apparent immediately. The previous demon had been right- when Natalie banished it back to hell, the one that took its place was already worse. It obviously didn't care about the vessel one bit. Natalie was willing to bet that the demon would snap Abby in half before she even got three words into an exorcism. She fought the bile that rose in her throat. She was a good shot. She knew that there was a chance she could take the demon by surprise and still hit the doctor. She had just about worked it out, when she was suddenly forced to stop.
A loud shot rang out, causing Natalie to jump. It hadn't come from her gun. The doctor jumped as well, but for a completely different reason. The bullet went through his right temple, splattering blood on the wall as he collapsed to the ground. In the same instant the deal broke, the demon possessing Abby smoked out with a hellacious roar of wind. Natalie just managed to catch the girl as she pitched forward, unconscious.
To the side of the room, Dean stood stock still, his gun still smoking, his eyes as hard as steel.
*SPN SPN SPN*
An hour later, Natalie walked Abby up to her front door. Natalie kept her arm around the girl, checking her face every now and then. They had removed her, unconscious, from the room before she had seen what was left of Dr. Cancio, but they had told her what happened. Natalie hadn't let go of her hand, climbing into the back seat of the Impala together. The four of them had gotten their stories straight, and Natalie had made sure to program her number into Abby's phone. That was when the girl had looked up, and Natalie was relieved to see that the haunted, hunted look was gone from her eyes. She still had a lot to deal with, but at least she didn't have the look of someone being burned alive any longer.
Sam and Dean watched from the front seat as Abby and Natalie spoke at the front door, too far away to make out what the girls were saying. "Wow, that poor kid has been dealt a shit hand of cards," Sam said, his agitation clear in his choice of words as he looked at Abby.
"Yeah, no kidding," Dean muttered back. "She'll be okay. I don't know if she'll trust a therapist ever again, but she's got Natalie now. That's the best friend anyone could ever have."
Sam nodded and shrugged. "We're going to have to make sure that Nat's okay too, you know," he said hesitantly.
"I know," Dean said heavily. "This was all kinds of fucked up. The thing that she's gonna have the hardest time with is that the ultimate villain here wasn't the demon. It was the doctor."
"I can't believe that someone could possibly delude themselves into believing that a deal like that was for the greater good."
"Think about it, Sammy. That Joshua kid dying meant that all the other kids he was planning on shooting up didn't die."
"Yeah, but that doesn't justify it. There were other ways."
"Not saying it DID justify it. I'm just explaining how Dr. Crazy thought. You can make anything make sense if you're willing to twist it enough. And that asshole was definitely twisted," Dean muttered. "I don't care why he thought it was good. I'm glad I blew him away."
Sam shifted slightly towards his brother, seeing his opening for the real question he wanted to ask. "About that," he said. "You knew Natalie had the shot on him, didn't you?"
After a moment of quiet, Dean responded. "Yeah, I knew," he said in a heavy tone.
"Why didn't you let her take it?"
Dean chewed on his lip for a moment. He watched his beloved daughter, his pride and joy, as she wrapped her arms around the shaking girl at the front door, just holding her and comforting her. "Because of that," he said quietly, pointing. Sam turned to look and saw Natalie hugging the girl. "Because she's still got humanity left in her, Sam."
"So do you, Dean," Sam responded quietly. Dean shook his head.
"No, not like she does. I've seen too much…done too much…" he said, his voice trailing off. Sam knew he was remembering his time in hell. Finally, with a little shake of his head, Dean spoke again. "I might have some left, but it's dark and tainted. The kid is still human. She's got such a clear sense of right and wrong. I knew that she would lose some of that if she pulled the trigger on that guy, because as warped as he was, there's no denying that he saved lives. And that would eat at her." Dean watched his little girl for another moment longer, his heart aching for her.
"And I'll be damned all over again if I let her become a monster."
