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NOT ALL AS IT SEEMS

Chapter 11

Sam sat in the silent car, Jake asleep on his lap. He still didn't agree with Dean's plan, and he really didn't agree with the fact that Kerri had gone to the house in his place. What he had said before was true, it was the lesser of two evils, but that didn't make matters any less dangerous. He wished there was some way to keep her safe, to keep her out of harm's way completely. But if the Korrigan could get through the defenses around her house, then it could get to her anywhere. Tom Harrison had gone to great lengths to ensure that his house was a place safe from monsters and demons, and, while both the Watcher and the Korrigan had managed to manipulate the minds of those inside, nothing else had made it past the perimeter.

But Tom Harrison wasn't around anymore. Yes, the protection he had laid during his life was still there, still keeping his daughter safe as she slept, but Kerri was far from fine. She was sick and hurt, and the youngest Winchester could see her slowly beginning to fade. He needed to take care of her, to keep her safe, to step in where her father had left off. For so long Tom had taken them in, had sheltered the small Winchester family, and he never once asked for anything in return. But he had left so much behind in his absence.

Tom had been lost to his grief the night he died, Sam knew that, but he still couldn't accept the fact that the senior Harrison had chosen one daughter over another. Had had still stayed behind, had still burned to death along with Evelyn, had still left Kerri completely alone. And now, Sam wanted nothing more than to keep her safe, to keep the darkness from swallowing her whole. Her father may have laid the ground work for her protection, but Sam was going to see to it that those barriers held firm.

At that moment, though, he couldn't have felt like more of a failure. It was painfully obvious the Kerri was sick, her body injured and aging because of him. He'd promised Dean he would be able to look after her, had promised to not let her out of his sight, and then he had gone and lost her in a matter of minutes. And now, instead of leaving her be, hidden from the world, they were dragging her out into the danger, bringing her along on yet another hunt. Kerri needed to rest, needed to be at home, not sneaking into someone's house to steal what a set of parents believed to be their child. Yes, Sam thought bitterly, looking back down at Jake, their lives were definitely screwed up.

He couldn't believe the child in his arms was like him, that his family had been hunted by the Demon. Even though it hadn't killed Candice Robinson like it had his and Kerri's mothers, it had still been there, watching them, waiting for who knew what. Sam felt a deep anger burning within him, filling up his entire being, wrapping itself around him like a blanket. He needed to stop this, needed to put an end to it. It had killed so many, had taken away the people he loved, sending both his family and the Harrisons down their current paths of darkness.

Mary, Elizabeth, Jessica, and Evelyn. They had all been stolen away by the Demon, had all had their lived cut short because of the bastard's master plan. Four women, all lost so young, leaving behind nothing but shattered bits of what could have been. He could feel his heart beat increasing as he thought about them, his mind drifting back to Jessica, pinned to the ceiling, and to Evelyn, the little girl he had left behind twelve years before. It wasn't right. They all had so much, could have been so much, but one single, solitary hell spawn had destroyed it all.

Sam was brought back by Jake, the little boy squirming in his arms, tears leaking down his face. The young hunter could feel the anger running through his veins, rushing through his ears with a deafening roar. But this wasn't Jake's doing, and that fact shook Sam to his very core. It was his anger, his soul, his lack on control. It was everything the Demon had told him he would become. He shook himself, rubbing soothing circles around the toddler's back as he worked to even out his breathing.

All the other 'special' kids had turned into killer, turned into monsters, and Sam could feel that reality breathing down his neck. Hell, even Evelyn had begun to turn. He still couldn't believe Kerri's words on the day of their return. He hadn't remembered her at that moment, but once he did, he realized how wrong that entire conversation had been. Evelyn had been a joy, that was the only way Sam could ever really describe her. She worshiped the ground Kerri walked on, and he knew that Kerri loved the dark haired little girl dearly.

But then he and his brother had left, and everything had gone to hell. Sam could still hear Kerri's weak voice in his head, the words stabbing at him, ripping into him with a pain he hadn't felt since Jessica died.

'Over time, I don't know, she just changed. She scared me a little, honestly.'

In all the time he had known her, Sam had never though of Evelyn as anything other than caring and inquisitive. She loved everything; well, everything except the 'Sad men'. So, to hear Kerri say that she had been afraid of her own sister, of Evelyn, was like having the sky crash down on top of him. And it only made Sam fear his own destiny even more. Because, if a girl like Evelyn could fall to the Demon's power, then Sam was sure as hell next.

He looked back down at Jake when he felt the little boy slowly begin to still, the child drifting back off into a peaceful sleep, his tiny hands wrapped around the fabric of Sam's shirt. He had to fight this, had to be better than the Demon, had to kill it. Because he would be damned if he was going to let Jake turn into him.

Sam was brought out of his inner thoughts a moment later, his heartbeat quickening when he saw Kerri and Dean. He didn't really know what he had expected upon their return, but the sight that greeted him was definitely not it. The pair was walking quickly down the dark sidewalk, sirens echoing from somewhere in the distance. But, the thing that worried Sam most wasn't the police that were quickly converging on the area. No, what worried him most was the little kid Dean held tightly in his arms.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sam asked exasperated as the pair climbed into the car.

"What's it look like I'm doing?" Dean shot back, handing the new Jake to Sam as Kerri took the other one.

"It looks like you're bringing a Changeling into the car. And, by the sound of it, people know the baby's missing."

"Way to go, Mr. Obvious. You tell me, Sam, does that kid look like a monster to you?"

Sam opened his mouth to answer, but closed it again just as quickly. He looked down at the little boy asleep in his arms, the toddler laying quietly against his chest in exactly the same position the other Jake had been mere moments before. In all honesty, he couldn't see a difference at all, but that didn't mean it wasn't a Changeling.

"Maybe it's faking?"

"Sam, faking or not, it was gonna ape out and eat the parents if we left it there."

"Great, so you brought it with you so it could ape out and eat us."

"It was Kerri's idea."

"Hey. It was a suggestion, you could have come up with something better." Kerri broke in from the back seat, the original Jake sleeping soundly on her lap.

"Look, Changeling, psychic baby, or something else all together, we need to get out of here." Dean's voice left no room for argument, and Sam knew he was right. They now had duplicates of a baby boy just reported stolen from his house, and the fact that Dean was on the FBI's most wanted list was definitely not going to play in their favor.

They needed to get back to the motel, and needed to figure out what the hell was going on. He still wasn't at all convinced that the baby Dean and Kerri had taken from the Robinson's house wasn't a Changeling; after all, they were supposed to be smart. After seeing the thing, though, he understood the pair's reservations. The Changeling was so much like a regular kid, exactly like Jake in every way, and the idea of stabbing it wasn't something that was going to come easily to any of them. And Sam had a sneaky suspicion that the Changeling knew that.

The ride back to the motel had been quiet, all three lost to their own minds, the two toddlers asleep as though they didn't have a care in the world. Forget the fact that one wasn't a baby at all, and the other was hounded by a demon-- no, in that quiet car, they were nothing more than sleeping children. It was just another sign of how truly screwed up their lives were, a testament to the warped reality Sam had fallen into at six months old.

They made their way back to the motel as quickly as they could. The city was more than likely crawling with police at that point, and Sam for one didn't want to be out in public any longer than necessary. Both Jakes remained asleep as they moved into the room, Kerri laying her boy on the farthest bed, while Sam placed his on the other. Now that they were more or less side by side, they looked even more identical. Sam had to hand it to the creature, it was doing a really good job of impersonating the boy.

"So." Dean began, double checking all Sam's added protection before settling down on Kerri and 'original' Jake's bed. "What do you think it is?"

"Do you really think this is something we should be discussing right in front of it?" Kerri chimed in, her eyes drifting to the 'baby' on the other bed.

Sam knew she was right. If the child was indeed a Changeling, discussing their plans right in front of it probably wasn't the best idea. It already knew they were up to something, already knew that they were onto its charade, and he for one didn't want the thing knowing anymore. And if it wasn't a Changeling-- well that they could deal with later.

"Well then what do you suggest?" Dean asked, his voice sharp. "It's not like we can leave the babies here alone."

"I'll stay inside with them." Sam decided, earning a glare from Dean.

"Then how the hell are we supposed to discuss our next move?"

"Look, we can't walk around with either of them, and we can't sit here and talk about it. And, since I'm the only one the Korrigan can't mind meld, I think I should be the one to stay."

"That's all very fine and logical, Sammy, but it doesn't answer my question."

"We can call him on the phone."

"Ker, stop helping."

"We don't have that many options, Dean."

"So a conference call is your bright solution."

"I didn't say anything about it being a good idea, I said it was an idea."

"And right now it's our only one." Sam broke in, stopping the fight he knew was coming. In Dean's defense, the plan pretty much sucked, but that seemed to be a theme with them lately, and Sam knew there was no use fighting it. The Changeling would still hear half the conversation; he just hoped that it wouldn't be enough for them to get caught.

"I'm not gonna let you two hangout together anymore if you're just gonna gang up on me each time." Dean crumbled, heading towards the door.

Sam watched as Kerri and Dean climbed into the impala, the pair still arguing about something. He couldn't help but smile. For the first time in a long time, he felt whole again, and he knew that Kerri had a lot to do with that. They had all lost so much, had so much taken away from them, but now, for the first time, something was given back, and Sam was going to hold onto her with all the strength he could find.

He frowned a little when they continued to argue, neither going for their phones. He just shook his head, pulling out his own phone.

"What!" Dean answered after a few rings.

"Now who'd being a girl?"

"Shut up, Sam."

"Are you two ready, or do you want a few more minutes alone. Because, you know, it's not like I have a massive problem in here or anything."

"I'm not the one that told you to stay in there with the diaper brigade."

"Dean, give me the phone." Sam heard Kerri's voice, and watched through the window as she tried to reach for it.

"Get your own."

"I'm gonna put it on speaker phone."

"Oh."

Sam moved away from the window, shaking his head; they really were a pair. After a few seconds of silence, Kerri's voice broke through again.

"Sam?"

"Yeah, I'm here. All good on your end?'

"Peachy." Dean mumbled.

"Yeah, we're good."

"Alright."

"Are the babies sleeping?"

"Don't you mean, possible homicidal creatures." Dean chimed in again.

"Yes, the babies are sleeping."

"Where are you?"

"Bathroom."

"Ew, Sam."

"I'm not using it, Dean, I'm standing here so neither hears me."

"Oh."

"Anyone have any ideas yet?"

"I thought you were the idea guru, Kerri."

"You're not helping matters, grumpy."

"We need to get the Changeling to show itself." Sam broke in, closing his eyes and praying for patients. Their earlier fight had been a result of Jake, but Sam knew that this fight was caused by nothing more than frayed nerves.

"I've got an acorn, anyone got any hops?"

"Dean, I was being serious." Sam sighed, grateful that he wasn't in the car with his brother at the moment.

"So was I."

"We could leave it in the room and set up a camera." Kerri began and Sam just knew that his brother was glaring at her.

"What's it gonna do, wait till we leave and get up and write a book?"

"Well, it's a better plan then getting tossed around by it."

"Guys." Sam broke in, his voice barely more than a whisper.

"Sam? What?" Dean answered, the sound of the car door opening accompanying his voice.

"I don't think we have a problem anymore." Sam moved slowly across the small bathroom, his back hitting the tiles when he reached the opposite wall, his eyes never leaving the sight before him. It was Jake, and he looked hungry.