AN: Ok, so we've reached the end of another one... but don't panic... I've already named the sequel... In the light of the day... hope to see you there. ;)
Dawn had broken to a clear day, not that it mattered to the occupants of the small cabin. While the youngest one slept through the night with the occasional movement and moan, the other two had tried to sleep only to find it elusive until they both realized that they were more tired from trying to sleep and they were better off getting up and starting the day. Each one set out to accomplish a task, neither one moving too far from their young charge. It wasn't until they both saw a pair of eyes open to successfully stare blankly at the mantle over the fireplace that they both new that while it was a new day, their nightmare was still in full swing.
"Sammy, how about some coffee this morning?" John asked as he poured some of the hot liquid into a ceramic mug he'd found and washed earlier. He remembered how his baby brother always wanted whatever he was drinking and often would find creative ways to get some. It had often been annoying then, but now he'd give anything for their Sammy to give even the slightest of nods to let them know he was still there.
Dean knew what John was up to and had to agree silently that if anything was going to snap Sammy out of it, it would be the change to be one of the big guys. Seeing no change though made him let out a heavy breath before he began to find his little brother's clothes in hopes that an effort at normal would help him to feel more comfortable at least.
Somehow between the two of them, John and Dean had managed to get a small amount of coffee down their brother and dressed before he once again drifted off to sleep, making the remaining Winchesters worry even more.
"What do you think happened?" Dean asked John, hoping that at least one of them had figured out by now why their little brother still wasn't responding to them.
Shaking his head, John had to admit that he didn't really have a clue. Sure, he had some theories, but they were more than a little farfetched and even the ones that weren't had been proven false just by the fact that Sammy was still alive. No, at the moment he really didn't have an idea about what happened or what he should be looking for. Right now he could only hope and pray that he didn't mess up either of his brothers more than what he had already.
As Dean took up his spot on the couch with Sammy, trying to coax the younger boy awake, John was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of a large engine bearing down on their location. He knew he didn't need to tell Dean, that the kid had already heard it himself and probably had an idea of who it was just by the sounds it was making, but their parents had taught them not to take things for granted, to assume that someone is a friend is asking to get hurt. Sparing a glance at his brothers, he was happy to see Sammy tracking his movements, if only slightly – it wasn't much, but it was more than what they had before.
Dean saw how John seemed to lighten up when he looked at Sammy and he had to wonder why he ever thought their big brother was going to leave them behind. Now though wasn't the time to think about it, now was the time to prepare for whoever or whatever it was that had found them. He knew what Bobby's truck sounded like, but that was the problem… Bobby didn't know where they were. Giving Sammy another half hug, he tucked his brother behind him as much as possible and turned to aim his gun at the door. If they were friends they'd be forgiven for this, if they were enemies, they'd be dead before they hit the ground.
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Mackenzie sat in his Land Cruiser and thought about the conversation he just had. It had been very enlightening if true, but that was the problem, you couldn't trust demons. Now he had a decision to make; either believe that little Sammy Winchester was next in line to lead an armada from hell, or chalk all this up to a very bad joke and hope to run into the bitch that started the rumor in the first place.
Taking a deep breath, he leaned his head back and reached for his med kit that he always kept close in case of a sudden migraine. Now though all he wanted was a little stress relief and the time to sort the good information from the lousy intel. However that just made him feel worse because the more he found out about the Winchester's, the more he was inclined to believe the demoness who somehow had a direct line out of hell.
He'd spent all night finding another source and then another to try and deny what he had been told at the bar, only to find unanimous agreement – Sammy Winchester was one of those freaks… Sammy Winchester had to die.
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Bobby was the first one to recover from the sight of two guns pointing straight as him and the others. "What the hell boy? First you want our help, then you try to shoot us for it?" he snapped out, noticing that his words were more than a little wobbly due to the sight of Dean trying to keep Sammy's blank stare hidden but failing miserably. "Damn it."
"Sorry Bobby, but we can't be too careful… not after what happened earlier." John stated with a shrug as he motioned around the room to the obvious disarray of furniture.
Jim rushed to Sammy and began to look the boy over in hopes of snapping the boy out of his stupor. "How long has he been like this?"
Dean pulled the blanket up a bit further and gently removed his brother's face from the older man's hand. "Since last night. The… the demon was here and…"
"and Sammy saved our asses. He's been like that ever since, although we think he's starting to come out of it." Seeing the others questioning glances, John shrugged, "Not sure how he did it exactly, but it wasn't pleasant, that's for sure."
Nodding, Bobby and Caleb both agreed that Sammy had to have tapped into his deepest reserves to dispatch the demon, and with that much power there was always a price to pay.
"Alright, I think it's time to get all of you back home, anything else can wait." Jim said as he reached down to pick up the youngest among them, only to be stopped by Dean.
"Sorry Jim, but I don't think we're going back." John said firmly, catching on to what his little brother was trying to do. "We can't go back there and still stay together, or at least not while the people who sold themselves to that demon is still around. Dean, why don't you go warm up the Impala and make a bed for our little brother?"
Shocked, the older hunters watched Dean obey his brother's request and wondered just what they had missed. Caleb didn't like where this was going and made his unease known. "Look kid, I know you think you can face what's out there, but you're forgetting that we're here and we're not going anywhere."
John smiled and walked towards the couch before he picked up Sammy's journal and placed it in his lap. "Hey little brother, nice to see you back with us. How are you feeling?" Seeing his little brother blink slowly, he smiled. "Yeah, alright… you're not sure yet." He continued to ignore the others while Sammy began to sketch out something on a blank page of his journal. This was something that he and Dean had wondered about, if Sammy would stay in his silent world and continue to deteriorate even once the evil that caused it was gone. Now it looked like it was slowly being reversed, and that was something he and Dean could live with. Seeing that Sammy was done and worn out in the effort to get his message across, John stroked his brother's hair until he slipped slowly back to sleep before he pulled the journal from under the smaller boy's hands and sighed heavily as he looked at the message drawn on the page. "Looks like someone's been talking."
Confused, the others looked at the page and saw it was divided into two drawings. The first was of a possessed woman talking to a hunter in a roadhouse, the second was the same man holding a gun on both John and Dean while Sammy lay bleeding off to the side. Confusion gave way to concern as each hunter knew what it meant; this was just the beginning and now they had a whole other complication – hunters were involved.
"If you want to help, then get out there and do damage control. Dean and I can take care of Sammy as long as we know there aren't any vigilantes out there. Mom and Dad always knew that this was a possibility, that some people wouldn't see Sammy's abilities as gifts." John watched the door as Dean walked back in and nodded that everything was ready. Picking up his baby brother, he took the time to whisper assurances in his ear before turning back to their friends. "A moving target is harder to catch, so that's what we're going to do. You take care of the misinformation that's being spread, and we'll take care of Sammy."
None of the other men liked it, but they also knew that there was no way they were going to be able to stop them… not without using actual force. Sighing, Bobby stepped to the side and nodded while the others still battled inwardly at what they were thinking was a betrayal to their friends' memories.
At the doorway, both John and Dean turned, "We'll be in touch, don't worry," Dean said before following his brothers out the door and back into the Impala. It didn't take long to get Sammy settled and the car heading back the way they came, the sounds of Led Zeppelin's Ramble On playing through the stereo, leaving their friends to wonder if they hadn't just made the biggest mistake of their lives letting the younger Winchester's to leave.
"Damn fool idjits," Bobby murmured while at the same time the others swore they'd do whatever was needed to make sure no one turned the boys into the hunted.
"Come on, we got work to do."
