A/N: The next chapter will be longer promise! Much thanks to Poisinchick88! You're the greatest! If any readers want to a good read I suggest Girls Guide to Hunting and Fishing. It's proving to be a tasty morsel. But first plz R&R here. You have to finish what you start, hasn't John taught you anything young hunters?
.Chapter Five
"That would explain the bug zapper." Autumn said with a half hearted grin.
"Bug zapper?" Sam asked. Autumn nodded.
"Yea, I dreamed I was flying into this light and I knew that if I did I would die but at the same time I couldn't stop." she explained.
"Well, I'm glad you didn't get zapped then." Dean said rolling Autumn's breakfast tray up to her bed.
"I'm not completely broken you know." she teased as Dean unwrapped all her foods. "E Gads! This doesn't even look edible." she turned her nose up to the soupy oatmeal and orange juice.
"It's not that bad, Sis." Athena bounced onto the bed and put a spoonful of the oatmeal into her mouth. "Oh its shit! It's really truly shit." Athena said after spitting the food out into a napkin.
"That's so lady like." Sam teased.
"Oh bite me." Athena shot back. "This isn't food. Where's the cook?"
"Don't worry about it I'm not hungry." Autumn said pushing her tray away. "You can even have my orange juice. I don't like it pulpy and I see pulp… or floaters in it."
"You have to eat." Dean said taking his big brother tone.
"I'm not four. If I don't want to eat I'm not going to eat."
"You haven't eaten anything solid in four days. You have to eat Autumn." Dean pressed further.
"Do not."
"Do too."
"You can't make me." Autumn challenged.
"Do you really want to go there?" Dean asked. Sam and Athena were fighting off fits of laughter watching their older siblings argue like a couple of six year olds.
"Oh I'm going there." the sass in Autumn's voice was comical when taking in the fact that she was wrapped up like a mummy, wearing a paper thin hospital gown, had burnt copper hair that looked like a bad wig, and could barely speak above a whisper from having the breathing tube down her throat.
"Fine." Dean got a spoon full of the oatmeal and pinched Autumn's nose. It didn't take long before she opened her mouth and he shoved the spoon in. "See not so bad." Autumn spit it back in his face.
"You're right, Teen, it does taste like shit." Athena laughed.
"It's good to have you back, Naughty Autty. I'm going to the vending machine want anything?" Autumn considered the offer for a minute.
"Yea, Reese Cups please and thank you. Oh and did you bring me anything to wear that isn't… paper?"
"Yea." Athena hopped up and grabbed a small duffle bag. "You've got a few things in there. Mostly stuff that won't touch your burns." Autumn cocked an eye brow.
"Like what?"
"Shorty shorts, and little white tank tops."
"Is Deirks Bentley in there too?"
"You wish." Athena handed over the bag.
"Shucks. Just when you think you're going to get it all."
"He's married isn't he?" Autumn shrugged.
"Go get my candy, and take Puppy and Dad with you." Autumn ordered jokingly unzipping the bag and fishing out an outfit. "Oh I've never been so happy to see you before!" she exclaimed pulling out a pair of panties. "I'll never leave home with out you." she hugged the underwear.
"Lets get out of here before she starts making out with those." Athena said wandering off into the hall.
"Hey kiddo." Autumn looked up as John walked in. "You look better." after the others had left a nurse helped her into her black shorts and a white tank top, and then cut her hair to look semi normal. She felt a lot better too.
"That's what happens when you wake up from a coma."
"Well, they were right you're just like you were."
"Minus some skin?"
"And hair." John added.
"I'm not too worried about the hair. I don't have to shave for a while. That's a huge time saver." she was trying to sound happy and normal, but she was still reeling from Martha and Nick's deaths.
"I'll leave that to you. So, you hear about being released?" he asked.
"No, the nurse said she'd have a doctor into talk to me later." John nodded and sat down.
"You going to take time off?"
"Nope. He's not stopping so why should I?" she asked.
"Because it nearly killed you."
"And you don't want to see me die, in your war. Blah blah blah. John, this isn't your war. This is my war. This is Sam, Dean, and Athena's war. This is a war for every hunter everywhere. We're all involved. We all need to work together on this one. This demon is so much bigger than us. So much stronger than us. We will keep getting beat down unless we all work together."
"I know but, you don't need to be in the fighting."
"Why not? Isn't that what I've been saying from day one? That I wanted to be in this all the way?" John didn't answer her and for a long time neither of them said anything. "He said to tell you hi." she 'd dropped her head and wasn't looking up at anyone in the room.
"Who said?" she didn't have to look up to see that Dean had just stiffened up and Sam got his heartbreaking worried look in his puppy dog eyes.
"The demon." she answered John. The air in the room sizzled with energy.
"You talked to him?" Athena asked. Her sister's voice was soaked in fear and Autumn didn't want to confirm it. "Autumn?"
"Yea, sort of. I guess."
"What did he say?" John asked gruffly.
"To tell you hi, and that what I was doing wasn't going to work. He told me before this was over we and anyone else who tried to stand in his way would burn in hell. There was a whole monologue. Basically, he did the demon mind reading thing made me feel like a ditz then used that make me piss myself." she lied. So much more happened. So much more was said. But the Winchesters and Athena were her family now. They were what mattered. They couldn't take the truth.
"You didn't believe him did you?" Dean asked. She shook her head though tears brimmed at her eyes.
"Maybe. But it's hard not to. The things he said. It makes sense." Damn him! Damn Dean. He had to make her remember what was said. The things she shouldn't believe.
"Autumn, honey, no no no." her sister climbed into her bed wrapping her pale arms around her. Athena tried to comfort her sister but failed miserably.
"What make sense?" she heard in Sam's voice the tentative fear that came from knowing what she'd been through.
"Just the things he said. The things about me being the reason this was happening to them. That it was my fault the girls weren't going to have a mother and were going to be left with an abusive father. He told me Billy-Jack would just move on to another woman. Just make someone else his victim, until his girls were old enough to take the abuse themselves."
"No!" Athena said firmly. She grabbed for the phone and started dialing the extention. "You have to talk to him. He… He's different." Dean was swift. He had the phone out of her hand and slammed back down in the time it took her to blink.
"Don't bring him in here." he said behind clenched teeth eyes locked on Athena's steel blue eyes.
"Dean!" John used his name in that warning only a parent could pull off.
"He don't need to be here. He'll only upset her." Dean said turning towards his father. Autumn brushed away her tears and forced the new ones back down. Her hand still soaked in the salty sweet tears she reached out for Dean's arm.
"Don't. I'll deal, you relax." she softened her voice barely managing to hide the raw emotions she was feeling. Dean slunk back to his chair.
"What's our next move then?" Sam asked. Autumn released a laugh and Athena echoed it.
"We only have one plan. Right?" Athena asked her gaze falling on John.
"Just the colt." John confirmed.
"There are other ways." Autumn announced. All eyes fell on her.
"What ways?" Dean asked skeptical of any so called 'way' to kill the demon.
"Ways, Dean. I don't know them but I know where to find them."
"Where?" Sam asked.
"Hello! You would be Miss Demon." A young doctor came in, his dark eyes sparkled with anticipation.
"Daemon." Autumn corrected. "It means demon, but I was raised to believe in the things so I"
"I completely understand." the doctor cut her off. "Now, I understand you want released?" he didn't seem to notice that the group had been in the middle of an important conversation.
"Yes, I hate hospitals." Autumn nodded.
"Well, that's not healthy. Why don't you like them?" she read his badge, Dr. Morgan.
"Our mom died of cancer when we were kids." Athena informed the man. "Every time we came to these places the whole mess just got worse." Dr. Morgan nodded sadly.
"Yes, that does happen. But, Miss Daemon, I can assure you you're not going to die on my watch." he was too cheerful. Autumn wanted to knock him silly for how quickly he bounced from his false sadness to his grotesque cheer. How could anyone be so arrogant?
"Yes, but you're not on call 24/7 are you?" she asked him. She caught the Winchester men's proud faces from the corner of her eye.
"No, I'm not. But you're not dying." she'd brought him to a screeching halt.
"Then release me." she demanded. Athena shifted uncomfortably between the clean shaven, barer of the white coat and her sister.
"It's not that simple." he argued.
"I'm not dying?" Autumn asked.
"No."
"I'm not a danger to myself?"
"No."
"Others?" Athena moved to sit on the arm of Sam's chair.
"Well, no."
"Am I in any immediate danger than can be prevented by the good people of this hospital?"
"Not that I'm aware of, but"
"But there isn't any further reason I can think of to hold me here." the doctor flushed. She doubted he'd encountered such a persistent patient in his time wearing that ridiculous lab coat.
"Observation. You're on 48 hour observation." Dr. Morgan stammered.
"Am I?" he nodded. "Why?"
"Because your lungs collapsed, when your body reacted negatively to the medications you were given."
"You mean, wet doctor didn't look at my chart. A chart that clear states that I am allergic to most agnostics and pain killers. Anything stronger than children's Tylenol makes me see little cartoon characters."
"Your chart wasn't yet available and your sister was being treated."
"The Morton's were my legal guardians for a long while, they were in the waiting room and there was nothing wrong with my sister to prevent her from talking."
"No, there wasn't but"
"What is it with you and buts? Doctors shouldn't use that word so much. Spice it up. Use however or something."
"I don't have anything with buts." Dr. Morgan protested.
"Could have fooled me. You are aware that my treatment here gives me grounds for a lawsuit?" She was starting to enjoy this too much. She needed to back down. There wasn't call for any of this.
"I'll go get the papers drawn up."