CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE: Separate Ways
The words had barely left Meg's lips before Sam had her pinned to the wall, his forearm pressed against her neck.
"I'll take that as a no?" She asked, the brunette's words strained although she still managed to maintain her cocky demeanor.
"You've got a lot of nerve showing back up here." Sam growled, his eyes becoming enveloped with black as he pressed harder on the demon's throat.
Dean stepped forward, putting a forceful hand on his brother's shoulder. "Sam." The youngest demon moved his head slightly towards him, confused by Dean's authoritative tone. "Let her go."
The group was all stunned to silence, not sure what to make of what the eldest demon had said. All but Jo, she had a look of sympathy about her. She figured that Dean felt like he and Meg were the in the same boat; both were scared about going back to Hell.
With obvious reluctance, the youngest Winchester backed up, allowing Meg to stand on her own.
"You're such a gentleman, Moose." The brunette quipped before turning her attention to Dean.
"One minute." He started, pointing a threatening finger at the short demon. "You have one minute to explain why the hell you're here before I kick your ass myself."
"Jeez, you Winchester's sure know how to treat a woman." Meg observed, sounding offended. Noting the serious tone of the room, she exhaled deeply. "You guys want Azazel dead, I want Crowley dead, which I'm sure is a common goal between the two of us." Dean narrowed his eyes slightly, not positive where she was going with this. "Look, you want out of your deal and I want Crowley's head on a stake. So, I'll help you kill Azazel and then we can all track down Crowley." She ended, looking at the middle Winchester expectantly.
"How do we know this isn't some trap?" John piped in, standing up to appear more threatening.
Meg rolled her eyes. "Because I've found a cause, I plan on serving it."
Dean considered her for a moment before deciding that that wasn't enough. "Everybody out." He demanded, his gaze never leaving Meg's.
Sam scoffed in disbelief, eyes shifting to his brother. "You're kidding."
"I can take care of myself. Get out." The middle Winchester ordered, his tone taking on an icy edge. Not wanting to get caught in the crossfire, the group shuffled out of the kitchen to the living room. With one last warning glare towards the brunette, Sam followed after them and shut the doors.
"What's your end game here Meg?" Dean asked, his tone quiet and curious as he studied the demon before him.
The snarky demon shrugged, trying to sound casual. "I already told you."
"Yeah, and that's the bullshit answer you gave because they were all in here." He accused, taking a step forward. "Just admit that you're fucking scared and need help."
"Could tell you the same thing." She retorted, satisfied by the way Dean clenched his fists. "You don't want to go downstairs because you know exactly what's going to happen and you're not sure you can handle it this time." She finished, her voice gaining volume.
Dean could feel his resolve starting to crumble. He figured they could use all the help they could get and if someone from the inside was willing to offer their services, he'd be stupid to decline.
"If you try anything, and Meg I swear anything." He spat, taking a step towards the brunette and towering over her. "I'll take the colt and kill you myself."
….
"You're serious about trusting her? Dean, what about all she's done to us!" Sam yelled, looking at his brother with bewilderment.
The eldest demon groaned from his position on the bed, throwing an arm over his face to try and block out Sam's constant bitching. Feeling his brother's prying eyes on him, he exhaled deeply and sat up. "I'm not saying we trust her, I'm saying we use her to get to Yellow Eyes." Dean stated as if he was talking to a small child.
"None of them like this either." Sam tried to reason. He knew Dean and Meg had some history but this was getting ridiculous.
"I don't really give a rat's ass about what they think. If they don't like, I'll leave and hunt down the bastard myself." That stopped Sam. He could hear the sincerity of his brother's tone and knew that if he kept trying this, Dean would do exactly what he said.
….
The group was growing restless. It had been four months since Dean's proclamation of killing Azazel and they had hit nothing but dead ends.
Plus, having three demons and four hunters all shoved into one house together really wasn't the best course of action.
"Bobby, this is such a fucking waste of time." Dean complained, slamming down an old leather bound book on the kitchen table.
The old drunk lifted his gaze to the fidgeting demon, losing his patience. "What do you suppose we do then?" He questioned, ready to hear utter bullshit come as a response.
Dean leaned forward, looking like he had rehearsed this as he began. "I can get a helluva lot more accomplished if I went out and did some of my own recon." He said smugly, waiting for Bobby to jump on the idea.
The baseball capped hunter laughed and returned his attention to his own book. "No way we're letting you off by yourself."
"I'll go with him." Meg offered from her seat on the couch, doing the same thing she had been doing for months; nothing.
Bobby snorted and turned slightly in his chair so he could address them both. "I'd sooner send him out alone than with just you." He quipped, giving her a sarcastic smile.
The brunette rolled her eyes and stood up to get closer to them. "One of you hunters can come with us." She offered, glancing at Dean for confirmation.
Dean nodded enthusiastically, brilliant green eyes fastening on Bobby.
The old hunter shook his head. "John and Ellen are off on a hunt and I gotta stay here and man the phones-"
Bobby had barely finished his sentence before the eldest demon was taking off upstairs.
"Jo!"
….
"I can't believe I let you talk me into this." Jo grumbled from her spot in between the two demons. They had to take Bobby's truck because John had taken the Impala to go on his hunt with Ellen, therefore squishing two demons and one hunter all in the front seat of the truck.
Dean smiled crookedly as he nudged her with his elbow. "It's not so bad, come on we've been cooped up in that house for months, try to have some fun."
"I just don't get why Sam couldn't have come instead of her." Jo spat, her voice dripping with venom.
Meg glared at the blonde, obviously just as unhappy about the situation as she was.
"Alright, untwist the panties. Sam didn't want to go with Meg either and he's more of the research kid anyways. Plus, he won't approve of my… methods." Dean said vaguely, causing a pit to form in Jo's gut. Something about the eldest demon's tone told her that no one would approve of his 'methods'.
She shook her head, rubbing at her temples where she could feel a headache start to form. "Where the hell are we even going?"
Dean glanced over at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes and a cocky grin. "We're going hunting."
….
"What do you mean they left?" John asked, his hands clenched at his sides as Sam came down the stairs with heavy footsteps.
"What's going on?" The youngest demon asked, running a hand through his hair as he approached his father who was fuming over Bobby who was sitting relaxed in a kitchen chair.
John groaned, turning his intense gaze on Sam. "You let your brother, Meg, and Jo go off alone to try and get some information?" He asked harshly, not missing how Sam's body stiffened at the lecturing tone of the old hunter.
"I don't really let my brother do anything. He wanted to go and Jo said she'd keep the two under control. I trust her and Dean." Sam paused, waiting for some type of argument to take place. Instead, he raised her brows in shock when he saw John exhale slowly.
Running a rough hand down his face, John clapped Sam on the shoulder. "I'm gonna go try to find my own information. That way, they can come back sooner." He went to grab the Impala's keys only to have Sam snatch them before he could. "What?" The hunter demanded, confused.
"If you're going, I'm going with you." The demon stated, his tone daring his father to tell him otherwise.
With obvious reluctance, John told Bobby goodbye and walked out the door with his son on his heels.
The whiskey drenched man shook his head in amusement, returning to his book before muttering under his breath. "Idjits."
….
"So what's Dean's deal with Meg?" John questioned abruptly, disturbing the absolute silence they had been riding in for the past hour. He glanced quickly over at his son, meeting Sam's puzzled gaze.
Straightening in his seat, the demon cleared his throat. "It's… complicated." He said, earning an eye roll from his father. "It's a long story." He trailed off, hoping his father would just drop it.
John smirked, not willing to accept the lame answer. "It's a good thing we've got plenty of road to cover." Continuing on a more serious note, the hunter's voice was gruff. "Sam, if I'm gonna trust your brother I need to know everything."
Sam exhaled deeply, really not prepared to tell his father his whole life story. Thankfully, he was able to tell Dean's. "After mom died, Dean really went down a dark path. He would disappear for an hour or two, telling me to stay put and not to damn anybody while he was gone." The demon paused, shaking his head at the memories of being left so many times. "Although, he never really left me by myself. He would call a lot while he was gone and I could always count on him to be back after two hours." John nodded, letting his son know he was listening.
"Dean he, he became really close with Meg. Somehow she just was able to tap into whatever the hell was going through his head. It took me awhile before I realized what was going on." Sam's voice got quiet almost embarrassed as he recalled one night in particular.
"Maybe a little to the left."
A cold shiver ran down Sam's back after hearing Meg's tone of voice as he slowly made his way along the warehouse wall, making sure to not let his brother become aware of his presence. He tried to ignore the broken cries of anguish that he could hear a few feet in front of him. Just a little more…
The youngest Winchester had to bite his tongue to keep from crying out in surprise when he saw the scene before him. His brother was towering over some poor bastard with Meg right by his side looking as smug as ever. But what really caught Sam's eye was the way his crimson stained brother seemed to be enjoying what he was doing. The man was on his knees, stuck in place by Dean's power as he watched helplessly as the elder demon stabbed and carved at him, quietly wishing for death.
The youngest demon stopped suddenly, the crash of a pipe that he had accidentally knocked rang through the room.
All noise stopped as Sam held his breath, sending up a silent prayer to whoever the hell would listen that Dean ignored it.
"Sammy?" His voice echoed against the walls. His obsidian orbs landed on Sam, his shoulders visibly slumping when he saw the look of horror on his face. Dean's eyes switched to the brilliant green, shame and grief evident in his gaze.
"That's-" John tried to respond, but nothing that popped into his head seemed appropriate.
"The thing is, I don't think Dean was ashamed of what he did, he was ashamed that I caught him." Sam clarified, shaking his head slightly. The young demon glanced over at his father, noting the way John was clenching the steering wheel with white knuckles. Instant panic burst through Sam. "Hey, I didn't tell you this so you could judge Dean. It was about a year after mom died and… It was a dark time for both of us." He explained, wishing he hadn't trusted his father with this.
The eldest Winchester relaxed his hands and tried to seem calm and understanding. "I know." He said eventually. "Just different to think of you boys as anything but human."
Sam gave him a thin-lipped smile. The young demon wondered why his father had such a hard time wrapping his head around this. But then again, maybe denial is just easier.
After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, John cleared his throat. "Your mom's death was really hard on you boys?" He asked, stating the obvious.
Sam just nodded, not sure how to respond as unshed emotion clogged his throat.
"I wish…" The old hunter started, trying to find the words. "I wish I could've been there for you boys. Helped you through it." He admitted, feeling guilty for how his kids grew up.
"It can't be helped. It's in the past." The youngest Winchester tried to help his father. He knew the path John was going down; he had helped Dean off of it so many times before.
John leaned his head so he could see out the window, checking their current location.
"We should be in Greenwood, Mississippi by tomorrow. A friend of mine said there were a lot of deals going down there." The eldest Winchester stated, checking for a motel on the upcoming signs.
"Alright." Sam said hesitantly, hoping that the demon they'd meet wasn't a familiar face.
….
TBC
Please continue to read and review. You guys blow my mind on how well you respond to this and I can't tell you how much it means to me. Thanks specifically to Babyreaper (I guess you'll have to form your own opinion on if Meg is genuine or not. We will see how it turns out.), kasey123 (I'll try to update quicker!), LeeMarieJack (Yeah, they were hardcore sexual athletes, and sorry about the mental image, hopefully it won't come back.), ncsupnatfan (I may be a little obvious with my 'surprises/cliffhangers' I'm not that creative.) Souless666 (I tried to make this one a little longer! And yeah, Meg was totally one of my favorites.), and xScreamingFromBehindTheVeilx (Nope, not yet haha) for reviewing! You guys are the !