Still reeling from the conversation he'd just had with his brother, Sam was quiet as he carried Dean back into the living room.
"Sam," Bobby said as the boys entered the room, "Over there." He nodded toward the white circle that was drawn on the center of the floor. Layers of symbols radiated from the outline.
Sam nodded and gently laid his brother down in the center of the chalk ring. He caught the pillow Bobby tossed him, slipped it beneath Dean's head, readjusted his legs so they were bent at the knee.
"You okay?" He asked softly.
"Good as I'm gonna be," Dean replied. "Let's get this party started."
Sam looked over at Bobby. "So how exactly do we do this?"
"First part you know," Bobby began. "Dean takes the poison, draws out the reaper. That's when things get tricky." He moved over to where Sam knelt on the floor and placed the book in front of them. "We can't just call a reaper and cross our fingers...we'll need to perform this incantation first." He pointed to one of the pages. "And we'll need to do it quick."
Sam's brow furrowed as he scanned the text. "A visibility spell?"
"Reapers can only be seen by those they're after," Bobby explained. "And Dean ain't exactly up for playin' Lookout right now."
Dean just grunted in response.
"The spell makes it visible to others," Bobby continued. "Makes it vulnerable. We can see it… we can stop it."
"Stop it…but not kill it," Sam said cautiously.
Bobby shrugged. "Can't kill death."
"Perfect." Dean muttered.
"Alright. So we make it visible," Sam said, ignoring the remark. "Then what?"
Bobby flipped the page. "We break the link."
"Doesn't sound so hard," Dean piped in.
Bobby raised an eyebrow. "Well, not to piss on your parade, but once that reaper shows its face we're not exactly gonna have a helluva lotta time."
"How much time we talkin'?" Sam asked.
Bobby kept his eyes on the book. "A minute. Maybe two."
Sam's eyes widened. "There's pages of text here, Bobby."
"Told you boys it was risky," Bobby replied. "But...it's all we got."
"Well, then what the hell are we waitin for?" Dean asked. "Let's do this already."
"This stuff isn't exactly easy reading, Dean," Sam said quietly. "If even one word's wrong..." He paused. "Maybe we should think about this."
Dean raised himself up on one elbow. "Uh, I don't know about you…. but personally, I'm not too keen on findin' out which 'piece' of me is next on the shopping list. We're doin' this."
Sam chewed his lip. He thought about the conversation he'd just had with his brother, how Dean couldn't afford to lose anything else. About how he couldn't afford to lose Dean. Any number of things could go wrong, but Bobby was right. This was their only chance.
They had to take it.
Bobby held out a small, silver knife to Sam. "I got the incantations covered, but the second calls for a blood sacrifice. I get to that last line, you're gonna need to cut Dean's palm and touch it to the circle."
Sam nodded as he took the weapon.
"And stay sharp," Bobby warned, as he took the vial of poison from his pocket. "We're messin' with some powerful forces here, and well…they're gonna be pissed." He handed Sam the vial then positioned himself on the couch, laying the book out on the coffee table amidst an arrangement of candles and herbs.
Sam settled himself by Dean, careful to get as close to his brother as possible without actually entering the circle. He uncapped the tiny container. "You ready?"
"Does it matter?"
Sam grimaced and placed a hand under his brother's neck, lifting his head slightly as he brought the vial up..
Dean put a halting hand on his. He cleared his throat. "Look Sam...," he began awkwardly. "This thing doesn't... I mean, uh, somethin' goes wrong, I..."
"Hey," Sam interrupted. "We can save the heart to heart for later, alright?" He squeezed his brother's arm. "After we've saved your sorry ass."
"My ass is not sorry," Dean muttered. "'s fuckin' beautiful..."
Sam mouth twitched. Taking a breath, he once again brought the vial up to Dean's lips, unconsciously looking away as his brother drained the deadly liquid. He slowly lowered Dean back down.
"Well?" Sam asked.
"Not bad," Dean replied, smacking his lips. "Kinda fruity."
Sam pursed his lips "I meant, do you feel anything?"
"Oh. Nah, nothin' yet."
"Alright," Sam said quietly. "Well, first step's down. Bobby, what now?"
"Now…we wait," Bobby answered simply. " Shouldn't be long."
Sam sat back on his heels, watching the clock. Watching Dean.
After a few minutes he heard his brother gasp, saw his breathing quicken.
"Dean?" Sam asked slowly, moving closer to his brother.
Dean didn't answer, just shut his eyes. His hands clenched, fingers scraping against the wooden flooring.
"Bobby…" Sam said, turning toward the elder hunter in alarm.
"Easy, kid," Bobby said quietly. "Trust me… it's gonna get a helluva lot worse before it gets better."
Sam turned back to Dean, his own hands clenched nearly as tight as he watched his brother's body fight against the poison.
He wanted to reach out, to give some measure of support to Dean but he knew he couldn't interfere. Instead he had to watch once again, helpless as his brother lay dying.
Dean let out a groan. He clutched his stomach, eyes squeezed tight against the pain.
"Bobby…"
"Not yet, Sam." Bobby said softly.
Dean's body arched. His eyes shot open, blank and unseeing. Sam's fingernails dug into his palms as he watched his brother struggle.
Suddenly, Dean stilled, drew in a harsh breath. Sam could see his brother's skin begin to gray, his eyes start to dull. He had seen that same thing once before.
In Nebraska.
"Bobby!" Sam shouted.
But Bobby had already begun chanting, running through the first incantation as fast as he could form the words.
"Get away from him you bastard," Sam growled at the reaper...or where he assumed it was. He couldn't see it until Bobby finished the spell, but he could at least try to hold it off. He reached behind him, grasped the iron fire poker leaning against the wall and swung at the air above his brother.
Dean let out a gasp as color flooded back into his face.
"Dean!" Sam exclaimed, once again kneeling by his brother's side. "You okay?"
" It's still here…," Dean said weakly. "I can…I can still feel it."
"…VISIO!" Bobby finished.
Sam's eyes widened as the likeness of a withered old man shimmered into view to the left of the circle.
"Gotcha," Sam whispered.
"Sam, we still need to break the connection. You keep that thing away from your brother until I'm finished y'hear me?" Bobby called.
"Yeah," Sam said quietly. He gripped the poker tighter. "I hear you."
As Bobby started on the second spell, Sam stepped around the circle, placing himself between the reaper and his brother. "You're not getting him," he said coldly.
The reaper just smiled, lips curling around yellowed teeth.
It raised one withered hand and slowly formed a fist.
Sam gasped as invisible bands seemed to squeeze him from the inside out.
"Sam?" Dean called frantically. "Sammy??"
Sam went down on his knees, breath locked in a silent scream. He couldn't answer his brother.
Couldn't take a breath.
"SAM!" Dean yelled again. He pushed himself to a sitting position, frantically searching for some sound that his brother was okay.
The fire poker clattered to the floor as Sam clutched frantically at his chest
Bobby broke off. "Dean, you stay put!"
But Dean was already moving, dragging himself toward the sound.
"Dammit DEAN!" Bobby barked.
"Come on you fugly bastard!" Dean taunted. "You wanna piece of me??" He paused. "Well. Another one? Come and get it!"
The reaper turned, focus once again turned toward Dean.
Sam took in a shuddering breath as it released its hold on him.
Bobby hesitated, flipping ahead to see how much was left of the incantation. If he didn't finish soon, they were all dead. Cursing, he tore his eyes from the circle and continued reading.
Pushing himself to his feet, Sam looked over at his brother. Dean's lips were blue, his body strained as the reaper once again attacked.
"Sam!" Bobby yelled. "The knife...Now!"
Pulling the weapon, Sam lunged towards his brother. He grasped Dean's palm and made a long slice, pressing the wound to the chalk line. The circle immediately glowed a bright blue.
The reaper howled.
"….iunctio vadum exsisto infractus!" Bobby yelled over the noise.
At the final line, a flash erupted from the center of the room. The hunters scrambled to cover their ears as the reaper let out a scream.
And then it was silent.
Bobby rushed over to Dean. He took a small bottle from his pocket and lifted the younger man up so he was leaning on his chest. "Dean. Come on kid. Drink it."
Dean did as he was told, the simple effort of swallowing the antidote leaving him drained.
"...the fun...over now?" He asked breathlessly.
"Think so." Bobby answered. "You boys alright?"
Dean did a mental inventory. "Still breathing. So I guess that would be a yes."
"Yeah." Sam said slowly, surveying the room. "I'm alright."
And he was.
Right up until the point he saw Jessica standing in the doorway.
Duhn...duhn...DUUUUHN! :P
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