"Okay, I got one," Alicia said as she sat on the cot in the center of Bobby's panic room. "There is no way you're gonna get it."
"Just like we haven't gotten the past ten you've described," Dean smirked from his spot, sitting backwards in one of the desk chairs, while Sam sat at the other desk, leaning back. The trio had been 'camping' out in the panic room the past three nights, waiting for the lunar cycle to be over to see if the ritual had been successful. It had been nerve-racking for all of them, Alicia especially, so they had been distracting themselves each night with board games, card games, trivia games, even talking about their various hunts.
Alicia stuck out her tongue playfully before clearing her throat. "I am created by many people concentrating on and believing in one thing while looking at a specific symbol, but once I'm created I can take on a life of my own and no longer need people to believe in me."
"Tulpa," both Dean and Sam answered at the same time without hesitating.
"How in the hell do you know that?" Alicia asked incredulously. "Those things aren't pretty rare, especially around here."
"Well, we actually dealt with one a few months ago in Texas," Sam explained.
"Yeah, no thanks to those moronic idiots," Dean added. Alicia raised an eyebrow, curious. "Called themselves professional paranormal hunters, but they were just professional douchebags. Ran a website called Hell Hounds Lair." He turned to Sam, grinning. "I wonder how long it took them to find the dead fish."
Sam laughed out loud. "Or realized the call from the producer was fake." Both brothers laughed, remembering their pranks, then glanced at Alicia, who appeared amused.
"I definitely want to hear that story, but I want to finish this game, and I believe it's your turn, Sam."
Sam pondered for a moment, pursing his lips. "Okay, I got one. I appear human until I attack, then I reveal sharp teeth and blue, snake-like eyes. I have enhanced strength and senses, paralyzing venom, and I'm invulnerable except for being stabbed with a silver knife. What am I?"
"Vetala," Alicia replied quickly and smugly.
"Ooh, I hate those things," Dean added. "They look hot, but cranky little bitches."
"Sorta like me before my first cup, right, Dean?" Alicia teased.
"Cranky, yes," Dean replied. "Sam's the bitchy one without his morning java." Sam just raised an eyebrow, giving him a 'really?' expression. Dean just grinned at him—right before the bed pillow slammed him right in the face. Dean appeared shocked as he stared at his brother as Sam simply smiled smugly. The older Winchester's face grew a little pouty as he crossed his arms. "Bitch."
"Jerk," Sam replied, smiling.
A loud creaking interrupted the brotherly moment, and the trio looked over to see the entrance to the panic room open, and Bobby and John entered, who looked serious. The trio looked a little worried as they stood up. Alicia felt her stomach knotting up as her heart pounded in her chest. "What is it? What's wrong?"
"Nothing," John replied. "Just figured you'd like to know the sun's rising, and since there were no problems down here, that only means one thing." He glanced at Bobby, who looked as if he was about to burst from joy, his eyes showing nothing but pure elation as he looked right at his niece.
"The nightmare's over, baby girl," Bobby replied.
Alicia felt the strength leave her legs, and she slowly sank down onto the cot, closing her eyes as she buried her head in her hands. Her entire body shuddered, and the four men heard her take a ragged breath.
"Alicia?" Sam asked, concerned as he sat beside her. "You okay?"
Alicia looked up, her eyes bright with tears, a big smile across her face. "I feel great," she replied. "I'm not a monster anymore."
"You never were," Bobby replied as he walked over and sat on her other side, putting his arm around her. Alicia didn't appear convinced. "Look, it's morning. Why don't I make breakfast, and we can celebrate?"
"Actually," Alicia said as she gently extracted herself and stood up, "can I take a raincheck? I'm just…I guess the adrenaline's wearing off, and I just want to get some sleep. I haven't done much of that in three days, and I'm exhausted." She glanced around and saw their concerned expressions, but didn't say anything as she walked out of the panic room. She quickly made her way up the basement stairs, then climbed the stairs to the second floor, heading down the hall to her room.
"Allie."
Alicia stopped just outside her bedroom door and sighed before turning around as Dean walked toward her. "Yeah?"
"You okay?"
"I'm fine," Alicia replied a little too quickly. Dean raised an eyebrow, and the young woman sighed as she leaned against the wall, folding her arms. "Look, we both know this cure doesn't change what I became or what happened to my father."
"You're right, it doesn't, but it doesn't make you a monster." He tilted his head. "You're also not the only one in your family who's killed their father, remember?"
"Yeah, well Grandpa was an abusive asshole," Alicia retorted. "He deserved to die, and Bobby chose to stop him in order to protect Dad and Grandma. I lost control and ripped my father's heart out."
"Exactly. You didn't have a choice, so it wasn't your fault. Look, you wanna blame anyone for what happened, blame Yellow Eyes. He's the one who infected you."
"In control or not, it wasn't the demon's hands that killed him, Dean." Alicia sighed, frustrated. "Look, I'm trying, I really am, but five years of guilt isn't something that's gonna magically go away overnight." She shook her head. "I don't even know if I'm gonna be able to get any sleep, honestly."
"Nightmares?" Dean asked.
"Nightmares," Alicia answered, "too much stuff on my mind right now."
"Anything you wanna get off your chest?" Dean asked.
"I thought you weren't into the chick-flick moments," Alicia replied with an amused smile.
"I'm not," Dean agreed, "but I'll make an exception for you."
Alicia chuckled. "Thanks, but I'm okay right now. Really. I just wanna try to get some rest. I'm exhausted."
"You want some company?" Dean offered. "I could work out those aching muscles of yours, get you to relax." He smiled playfully. "You know I'm good with my hands."
Alicia smiled. "Thanks," she replied, "but I just need some time to myself." She leaned over and softly kissed him. "Raincheck?"
Dean looked a little disappointed but quickly hid it with a smile. "Yeah," he casually replied, "sure." He cleared his throat. "You know, while you're doing that, I can finish up a few things in the car. We can take it out for a test drive later."
"I'd like that," Alicia replied. She kissed him again. "Now, go get some breakfast." She opened her bedroom door and walked in, closing it behind her. Dean waited a few seconds, then his smile faltered as he turned and headed off down the hall.
In the darkness on the other side, Alicia leaned against the door, her hand on her chest as it rapidly rose and fell. The young woman had been hoping this past month would have tempered some of her feelings toward Dean—especially since she no longer had that animalistic, primal urges from being infected anymore—but being around him every day only did the complete opposite. It was becoming increasingly more and more difficult to even carry on a normal conversation with him without mentally undressing him at the same time—and it was starting to drive her crazy. She glanced at her desk, wondering if she could make something that would suppress those feelings, but she quickly shook her head.
"Yeah, and that never causes any problems," she said sarcastically. She resigned herself that the solution to her situation was simply going to be more of the same: lots of cold showers. She sighed as she trudged over to the bed and flopped down on her bed on her stomach, absent-mindedly kicking off her shoes as she grabbed a pillow and shoved it under her head. She took in a deep breath, closing her eyes, trying to clear her mind, hoping she could have a restful nap as the exhaustion overtook her and she drifted off to sleep.
A soft flutter echoed briefly in the room, and suddenly there was an unknown man standing next to the young woman's bed. He was average height, in his thirties, with dark hair. He sported a pair of dress shoes, a black suit, a buttoned white-striped dress shirt, and loosened blue necktie accentuated by a beige trench coat. His expression was calm and serene as he stared down at Alicia with vivid blue eyes.
After a few moments, he carefully extracted the purple throw blanket from under her legs and unfolded it before gently covering her with it. He knelt down beside the bed, resting his head on his arms as he watched the young woman, seeing her eyes dart around under closed eyelids, whimpering softly as her body shifted restlessly.
The unknown man shifted, laying a hand softly on her head. "Sleep peacefully, little one," he said in a soft, gravelly voice. "You've more than earned it." His blue eyes suddenly glowed white, and a white light emanated from his palm, briefly illuminating the room before returning the room back to darkness. The man instantly disappeared as another soft flutter echoed in the room, but Alicia remained asleep on the bed, resting peacefully, totally unaware of her visitor.
The next morning, Alicia stepped out the front porch, dressed in fresh clothes, her hair pulled back, and smiled. It was a gorgeous day, the sun shining in the clear blue sky. She took in a deep breath and exhaled, feeling refreshed, before bounding down the porch steps and walking briskly through the salvage yard, turning the corner near the repair area. The Impala, glossy black and in perfect condition sat there with her hood up. Dean was leaning over, working on the engine, while Sam sat on a nearby chair. The younger Winchester glanced over and saw Alicia, and his face brightened.
"You're up," he said, smiling as he stood up. He walked over and gave her a hug, which she returned just as enthusiastically before pulling away. "You look rested."
"Well, sleeping for twenty-six hours helps," Alicia replied. She glanced over at Dean, who had stopped his work, facing them with a box wrench in his hands and a couple of smudges of grease on his forehead—turning her on a bit—but she simply smiled. "Hey."
"Hey," Dean replied. "So, I take it no nightmares?"
Alicia shook her head. "Best sleep I've had in years." She nodded at the Impala. "So, how did the inaugural ride go?"
"It didn't," Dean replied. Alicia looked confused. "You were totally passed out, so I decided to hold off on the test drive until you could join us."
"Thanks," Alicia replied. Dean smiled and nodded before turning and going back to work on the engine.
"You get something to eat?" Sam asked.
Alicia nodded. "Bobby heated up some leftovers, and I've had my coffee, so I'm ready whenever you guys are. Oh, and Bobby said he and John are going to look over some research, so we pretty much have the day to ourselves."
"Well, gimme a few seconds to finish this," Dean replied, "then we can take Baby out for a spin."
Alicia slowly walked around the vehicle, admiring the work as she ran her fingers softly over the body. "She looks really good, Dean. So much better since the first time I saw her."
Dean felt his chest puffing a bit as he smiled proudly. "See, that, Sammy?" he replied. "A chick who appreciates good taste."
"At least in cars," Sam retorted.
Dean gave a mock laugh. "Bitch."
"Jerk," Sam replied, smiling before glancing at Alicia, who had made her way completely around the vehicle just as Dean finished screwing in the last bolt. Satisfied, he dropped the wrench in a nearby toolbox and reached for a cleaning rag, but Alicia stopped him.
"Here," she replied, wiping her hand downward in front of his face and hands. The smudges on his face and hands shimmered slightly before disappearing, as well as any stains on his clothes, leaving everything appearing as if it'd been freshly washed.
Dean examined his hands, impressed. "Okay, she is definitely going to come in handy," he replied to his brother.
"So, you only like me for my magic," Alicia joked.
"Of course not," Dean replied with a smirk. "I like you for more than just your magic, sweetheart, trust me." He leaned over and kissed her, wrapping his arms around her waist, while Alicia wrapped her arms around his neck as she gladly returned the kiss. Grinning, Sam looks away for a few seconds, then he glanced back over and saw them still making out. He cleared his throat loudly, and Dean held a finger back at Sam to wait. A few more seconds passed before the two finally pulled apart.
"You two finally finished or you wanna get a room?" Sam asked, amused as he walked over to the front passenger's side.
"Shut up," Dean responded as he and Alicia headed to the driver's side. Alicia took the back while Dean and Sam sat in the front. Dean started the engine, grinning at the sound of his baby coming to life again. He waited a few moments, revving her engine, getting her warmed up, before pulling out and heading for the salvage yard's entrance. Once at the entrance, Dean turned onto the main road, and the Impala sped down the asphalt road.
(End of Chapter 1)
