Chapter Two – Wendigo
What is a monster? A being whose survival is incompatible with the existing order. – Denis Diderot
Dean watched as his brother Sam slept in the shotgun seat of the Impala. He was mumbling in his sleep; something about not liking roses. Dean sighed; he knew Sam was having another nightmare about Jess. Dean knew the signs. He'd taken care of their father for over twenty years when he'd woken from the same type of nightmares that had plagued him after their mother had died.
Dean had been six years old the first time he'd seen his father passed out on the couch of the rented apartment they'd managed to stay at for more than a week. John had come home from a bad hunt tired from lack of sleep and bone weary from tracking the vengeful spirit of a man who had been just as evil in life as he'd been in death.
Dean had watched as his father had lain there crying out for Mary, Dean's mother as he thrashed around. He'd watched his father fight the demon who took her in his nightmare. And Dean had watched his father wake up drenched in sweat with his hands shaking as he cried into them; mourning for the wife he'd lost.
Dean never let on that he'd witnessed his father's weaker moments during his nightmares that quickly became routine events for John Winchester. Eventually as Dean grew older, the nightmares came less frequently, but when they did, they were always intense. Dean tried his best to comfort his father and protect him from the bad dreams, but Dean couldn't always keep them at bay,
That was when Dean realized he would never be a normal child with a normal childhood; and that's also when he decided that it didn't matter to him anymore. He was going to protect his family the best he could. He was going to keep them all together and he had done that. He had taken care of his father and he had taken care of Sammy.
He'd learned to cook, to clean, to do all kinds of chores involved in raising a family; and while he learned the mundane things he also learned how to read and write, he learned that two plus two equaled four and he learned how to hunt, to take orders, to salt and burn, to kill all kinds of evil. He learned to take care of people and to protect his family; he learned how to be a good soldier.
Dean knew he'd given up a lot of things to do what needed to be done, but he didn't care. He'd never change that ever. Besides, he couldn't miss 'normal' if he'd never really experienced 'normal'.
He hated taking Sam from the life he'd tried to make normal, but he was not good at functioning all alone. All his life he'd taken care of others and being on his own left him feeling so alone; and confused. He needed Sam and their dad. He needed to take care of them; protect them; Dean needed to be needed.
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Ranger Floyd Wilkinson watched as the two young men left his ranger station with the copy of Tommy Collins' hiking/camping Blackwater Ridge permit. Those boys weren't college boys; well maybe the tall one was, but the other one, no way. He looked like the only courses he'd majored in were auto mechanics and how to charm the pants off just about anyone, while pulling the wool over their eyes at the same time.
Nope, not college boys. He didn't know what they were up to or how they'd gotten involved with Haley Collins, but he hoped they'd convince her to just wait for her brother to come back from his trip. The last thing he needed right now was a bunch of city folk traipsing out into his forest looking for trouble and get their fool selves lost or worse.
There were known bear attacks in his forest, and it was hard as hell to find a black bear and take it down without anyone getting hurt in the process. No, he really needed them to stay out of the forest without proper guidance. He knew Haley had hired that pain in the ass, Roy Tucker to lead them in, but he really wished they'd just stay out.
Not only was it dangerous, but Roy, while he was a competent guide, he didn't really have anyone's best interests at heart other than his own. Roy's agenda was always about number one. He'd take them in okay, but then most likely run them into trouble and leave 'em stranded somewhere.
He sighed as he remembered that bunch of hikers that got lost back in '83 and how none of them ever came out of the forest again. He was a young ranger just starting out back then and he had seen how hard it was to canvass the entire forest range of Blackwater Ridge back then. It wasn't much better now. The forest was untouched from the modern world and it would take someone with major experience to survive the further in you went. He always recommended to any hiker without enough experience to stay well within the Wildlife Services' guidelines and not go too deep into the forest.
Those two boys had their work cut out for them if they were going to convince Haley Collins to wait for her brother's return. Yep, those two had a real tough job ahead of them.
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Joseph Shaw watched from his bungalow's tiny front window as the two young men that had just visited with him got in their dark colored Chevy. The man had tried not to wish them gone the minute they'd come into his home asking about the time when he had been a young boy and he'd lost his parents.
The two men were claiming to be park rangers curious about Blackwater Ridge camper/hikers that had gone missing over the last century. He'd hated thinking back and remembering what he'd seen when he'd hidden from the thing that come into his family's cabin those many years ago. They'd wanted to know everything and so he'd told them the truth and he'd even shown them his scars.
Those boys hadn't even blinked at what he'd told them, so he knew they weren't really rangers. They were much more than that and he knew they would be going to those woods to find what had done this to him and his family. He just hoped they were as good as he felt they were, because this thing would be hard to kill. It terrified him today just as much as it had when he'd been nine years old. He never wanted to go back into those woods ever again, hell he didn't even want to think about it ever again, but they needed to know what they were facing.
He had hesitated naming what they would be up against in those woods, because he didn't want to be called a lunatic again, but he knew what it was. He'd done his own research and had spent countless hours going over everything he could find on similar beings in other parts of the world. He'd discovered that there were similar creatures called Wendigos, but they were mostly seen in upper northeastern states like Minnesota.
He probably should have told those young men what all he knew, but he hadn't. He'd told them everything he could about what had happened and hopefully they would put it together for themselves. His memories were all he had to offer as proof anyway. Now that he'd told them to those two men, it was time to put them to rest once and for all. He prayed for those boys as he reached for the whiskey bottle and poured himself another drink. He watched them drive away and hoped they found whatever was out there and they took it down permanently.
Only then did he think he'd be able to have one night of peace without the constant nightmares he'd had nightly since he'd crawled out of that forest over forty-five years ago. Yes, only then could he finally and truly rest.
Good luck boys and more power to ya, he thought as he began his nightly ritual of drinking himself into a barely there drunken stupor. Good luck.
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Ben Collins watched as his sister Haley gripped their brother, Tommy's hand. "Do you think we'll ever see them again?" He asked her.
Haley could see Dean toss Sam the keys to their car just before the ambulance door was completely closed. She couldn't help smiling at the guy and his biker boots and jeans. He was one fine looking fake forest ranger.
"I don't know. I kind of hope not, if you know what I mean." She replied meeting Ben's eyes.
Ben nodded in agreement. "But what if we have another problem?"
"Another problem?" Tommy asked, looking at the female EMT watching over him. "Please tell me we won't be having any more problems."
Haley followed his look and understood. "I don't think we'll be having anymore bear attacks like this one for a long long time." She answered as she squeezed Tommy's hand. And if we do, we'll know who to call."
Ben smiled. "Yeah, you're right." He paused as he thought of something. "Hey Haley, think we can pick up some M and M's later? I've got a sudden craving." He chuckled.
Haley laughed with him. "Yeah, me too."
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Sam leaned against the hood of the Impala next to Dean as the ambulance with the Collins' inside pulled away and headed into town.
"Sam, you know we're gonna find Dad, right?" Dean asked as he looked at Sam.
Sam paused as he thought about that. "Yeah, I know." He really hated the thought that their father was still out there avoiding them for whatever reasons he had. "But in the meantime? I'm driving." He said looking at Dean.
He smiled inwardly as he waited a beat for Dean who tossed the Impala's keys to him. He caught them easily as both boys then moved around the car and got in. Sam smiled as he peeled out of the ranger station's parking area and back onto the two-lane blacktop highway. He liked driving the Impala even if he'd never admit that to Dean. The car was everything it had always been to both his brother and himself.
The car had always been their transportation; their home; and more than once she'd been their savior. Dean loved this car and not just because it had once been their dad's, but because this car was full of memories. This car was a Winchester just as much as Sam and Dean were; this car had gone through hell with these boys.
Sam looked over after about twenty minutes to see that Dean had snuggled down in the passenger seat to get comfortable and he had his eyes closed. Sam knew that Dean wasn't asleep though; he knew his brother. Dean rarely slept soundlessly in the Impala unless he was bone weary tired or he'd been injured. Right now, Sam knew Dean was just dozing and listening to the car's rumble and how the sounds of his car made his body feel. Sam knew that feeling when he rode shotgun.
The feel of the Impala's engine gave Sam the feeling of security; he knew he was safe in this car and he was sure that's how Dean felt too. There were only two things in this world that Sam knew he would always be able to count on. One was this car and his feeling that everything was fine as long as he was in this car. The other was Dean and for pretty much the same reason. As long as Dean was there, Sam knew he'd be alright.
Dean had always promised Sam that he would take care of him not matter what and that everything would always be fine as long as they were together. And Dean had always been there for Sam; even when Sam was at school; Dean had always been there.
Growing up, Sam had always looked up to Dean. Growing up; Sam thought now. Dean was only four years older than him, yet Sam had never really thought that while he was growing up, Dean had been just a kid too. Dean had always been there, and he did everything, the cooking, cleaning, and even the laundry. Dean had been more like Sam's father than John was. Dean was the one who answered all of Sam's questions the best he could no matter how hard or how dumb the question may have been for Dean.
Hell, it was Dean who'd taught him how to tie his shows, ride a bike, drive a car – this car, shave, and even how to kiss a girl. Dean had taught Sam everything he knew, and he couldn't remember their father teaching him anything that didn't involve being a hunter.
Dean had been brother, father, teacher, friend and mentor for Sam; and he'd left him to go to school. He'd never really thought about what Dean had done while he'd been away at school. He'd never asked and that was when Sam realized that Dean had never had a normal childhood.
Dean had given that up to make Sam's childhood normal for as long as he possibly could. It was an epiphany for Sam. Dean was the one constant in his life; not their dad, not running away to school, hell not even Jess. No matter how much Sam had loved Jess, she had not been the one person in Sam's life that had been there no matter what went down. Sam now knew no matter what he did, no matter what he said, no matter who he hurt; Dean would always be there for him.
And that's when Sam realized something else. It had been Dean who had cared for him, protected him, fought for him and he'd left Dean to go to school, to get away from hunting, to get away from John Winchester. It may have hurt his father for Sam to leave, but Sam knew he'd hurt Dean a lot more.
Damn, Sam thought to himself. Damn.