Disclaimer: I still don't own Supernatural or its characters. I and am not making any money on this…I'm just having fun filling in the time until September!

Double Trouble

Chapter 33 – The Way Home

"I asked what you did to my brother…tell me now or I swear to God I'll kill your sorry ass right here and now!"

Dean struggled against the invisible hand that was holding him against the wall. His ribs were screaming in agony as breathing became more difficult. He wished that just once, one of Sam's visions wouldn't come true. He watched as Sam fell to his knees, but continued to hold him in place. He had to get through to Sam before he hurt himself even more.

"Sammy, damn it, let me down from here. You're going to hurt yourself if you keep this up!"

"No, Dean wouldn't try to take my powers…I heard you…you want to control my powers!" Sam panted, the sweat rolling down his face as his body began to tremble.

"Samuel Winchester, you put your brother down this instant!" Missouri stepped in front of Sam, her hands on her hips daring him to disobey.

Sam blinked in confusion. "But Missouri, he's the shape shifter…you need to get out of here before I…before he hurts you again" Sam's head began to sink to his chest, the burst of adrenaline beginning to leave his system as quickly as it came.

"Sam, how many times do I have to tell you…take a deep breath. That's it, now reach out with your feelings, do you really sense anyone other than us here?" Missouri watched as Sam slowly sank the rest of the way to the floor, his eyes filled with confusion and fear.

"No, Oh God, Dean…I've hurt him again!" Sam sat with his back up against the wall, his knees pulled into his chest. "The demon was right; I can't keep the evil inside anymore…you all need to leave me before it's too late!" Sam ducked his head, letting the tears roll down his cheeks as he realized that he had lost the battle.

Dean felt himself gently lowered to the ground; he was amazed that his brother had the sense not to drop him. He took a moment to get his breathing under control as he moved to sit beside his brother on the floor. His heart breaking at the sight of the broken figure rocking in front of him; he looked at Missouri, wondering what to do, afraid that he would make things worse if he tried to do too much.

"Just follow your instincts Dean, they will tell you what you need to do. Remember, we will have your back if things get too bad." Missouri and Bobby took up positions to help if needed.

Dean closed his eyes and did what he did best. He reached out to his brother offering comfort. He placed his good arm around his brother's shaking shoulders and spoke quietly to Sam. "Sammy, I know you're confused and scared right now. But I'm here…I will never leave you."

Sam heard his brother's soft voice and wanted to give in, but he felt too dirty to accept what his brother offered. "Go away Dean, you can't help me. No one can…it's too late." Sam closed his eyes, allowing himself to sink into the well of despair that seemed to be ready to drown him.

Dean shook his head and closed his eyes. He wasn't going to let his brother go without a fight. He knew that Sam was still in there somewhere and he would find him or die trying. He reached into the pocket of his coat and pulled out the crystal that Missouri had given him. He concentrated on reaching Sam.

Sam was in darkness and he was scared. He hated being alone and truth be told, he had always been a little afraid of the dark. He couldn't understand how he had gotten here, but he knew that he had to find a way out before it was too late. But the harder he struggled, the darker it seemed to get. In a moment of panic, Sam called for the one person who was always there for him. "Dean, help me!"

Suddenly, a bright light shown through the darkness as if a doorway had been opened. In the doorway, Sam could make out the familiar outline of his brother. "Dean?" Sam was afraid it was another trick…there had been so many lately from the shape shifter and the demon.

"Sammy, walk towards me…it's ok, I'll help you."

"Dean, I'm afraid. All I do is hurt people; I don't want to hurt anyone anymore."

"Sam, you don't hurt people, you couldn't hurt someone if you tried. Remember what you told Charlie, sometimes bad things happen and there is nothing you can do to prevent them from happening. Bad things happen and will continue to happen…but what about the good things we have been able to do?"

"But are they enough Dean? How many people will have to suffer to protect something I don't even want. You said it yourself, I'm a magnet to the supernatural world. What if I can't stop them from finding us?"

"Sammy, listen to me…you and I can fix this together. You need to believe that you can block things from getting to you…you've done it before and you can do it again. Now walk towards me, you need to leave this dark place behind."

Sam took a few steps, but stopped as the demon's words echoed in the darkness around him. "Dean, I can't…the demon told me that my powers came from the fire demon…the more I use them, the greater the chance that I will become evil…just like Max."

At last Dean understood what was holding his brother back, it was the fear of becoming like Max. He knew that it had bothered Sam, but he never realized how badly until now. "Sammy, you know that demons lie…they twist the truth. If the demon gave you these powers, why would he be afraid of you? The demon was trying to keep you from using the powers that have been given to you Sam."

"But what if I'm not strong enough Dean…I mean, I can't even control them."

"Missouri will help you Sam, just like she helped me come to you now. All you have to do is trust me…can you do that Sammy?" Dean held his breath as he saw his brother look into his eyes. He could feel some of his energy flowing to his brother, helping him cross the gap from darkness into light. "That's it Sammy, just take my hand and we'll get this all sorted out."

Sam felt himself getting stronger the closer he got to his brother. The darkness was fading and he felt a strange sense of peace. "Dean, how are you here?"

"Well little brother, you're not the only one with super psychic powers. It seems that I can bond with you, provide you with some of my strength to help you when you need it."

"Wait, won't that hurt you Dean?" Sam remembered that Dean had gotten weaker when they were fighting the demon.

"No Sam, but I can't stay here much longer as my body can only do this for short periods of time. Look I told you once that I wouldn't let anything bad happen to you…I meant it. This ability of mine means you won't have to fight alone anymore Sam…I'll always be here to help you when you need it."

Sam smiled as he realized that part of what had bothered him about his abilities was that he always felt alone. Somehow Dean had managed to give him the extra strength he had needed, he hadn't had to fight the demon alone. "Ok Dean, I'll be ok now. You need to go, I can feel you getting weaker."

"About time Sammy, you know I really hate these chick flick moments in the real world, but in your mind…it's just wrong Dude!" Dean grinned as he felt himself withdrawing from Sam's mind. He could have sworn he heard his brother giggle.

Dean opened his eyes and looked at Missouri. God he was tired again, but he felt better than he had in a while. He looked over at the unconscious form of his brother and saw the smile on his brother's lips. He didn't care how tired it made him…that smile was worth it.

"You did real good Dean honey. I can feel Sam beginning to heal. You should be proud of yourself!" Missouri knew that Dean didn't get praise very often and smiled at the blush she saw forming on the young man's face.

"Bobby, help me get Sam back into bed. I swear, we're going to have to tie him in there if this keeps up!"

Bobby just smiled as he gently lifted Sam and carried him back to the bedroom. Missouri and Dean followed closely behind. Bobby placed Sam on the bed and went to get more ice for the ice bags. He had felt Sam's fever as he carried him and knew that they weren't totally out of the woods yet.

Missouri pulled a jar of salve out of her pocket. "Dean, help me take off these bandages, I want to clean his wounds one more time and then place this healing salve on them to stop any further infection. Then we need to try to get more fever reducer into the boy. Hopefully by morning, his body and mind will be well on their way to mending."

Dean did as Missouri ask, not wanting to get too far away from Sam. He sensed that Sam still needed him close. Once Sam had been taken care of, Missouri left the room and returned with a small package.

"I know that you won't leave your brother any more tonight Dean. But you also need to get some sleep. I had a friend of mine make these for both of you boys. It won't keep away Sam's visions and may not keep all the nightmares at bay. But it will help keep any psychic intruders from invading your sleep."

"What are they?" Dean asked as he turned the purple crystals in his hand. He noticed that they had some sort of symbols imbedded in the stone.

"They are amethyst crystals. Amethyst has the ability to fend off psychic attacks on the mind while sleeping. You simply need to place them near each of you before going to sleep at night. It will also prevent you from being drawn into Sam's mind without either of you realizing what is happening."

"Ah…well, these are kinda cool…but purple? Couldn't you come up with something a little less…girly?" Dean ducked as Missouri took aim.

"Boy, I swear…just do what I say. Place one of these stones under each of your pillows or else you will have to leave…I don't need to be taking care of both of you!"

Dean held up his hand in surrender as he carefully placed each crystal under the pillows as instructed. "Don't worry Missouri…and thanks, really"

"You can thank me by getting some sleep yourself…I best not find you sitting in that chair in the morning or you'll regret it!" Missouri hid her smile as she left the room. She knew that Dean wouldn't sleep until he knew that Sam was sleeping peacefully. Luckily, she felt that for the first time in a while, both brothers would be able to get a good night's sleep.

TBC

Raven524: Ok, I think one more chapter in this one…then on to the next. And yes, I'm actually going to let the good guys get a decent night's sleep…for now anyway!