DISCLAIMER: Not Mine… but let's raid a sandbox! Actually THE SANDBOX! Winchester owned... Yeah! Take a right at the tie dye sandbox and circle around the red and blue striped one three times and then hang a left and there will be the Winchester sandbox (shaped like a '67 impala)… really, really. LOL

NOTE#1: Posting early. Will be out of town Wednesday through Sunday. I got so much packing to do, ugh! Anyway, here's your Thursday chapter! Hugs, enjoy! See I didn't forget ya!

Chapter 9

Bobby and Pace ran up to the hole and Bobby gasped out, "You boys okay?"

Pace said softly, "Sorry about that… didn't think to warn you about the holes."

"Why do you have holes in your field?" Dean snapped, pissed off that he hadn't been paying attention and Sammy had gotten hurt.

"Zombies of course." Pace told them, he started to blink innocently when Dean glared at him, then a few seconds later he snickered, holding up his hands he said, "No… no. Sorry. Not really. Just joking."

Dean glared at him as he snapped, "Not fucking funny, man."

Pace sobored instantly as he agreed, "You're right. It's for the survivalist rally we have every spring. Hunters from all over come for it."

"I thought only an elite few knew about the library?" Dean stated with a frown.

"Only a few do. Our cover is a survivalist training center… ya know in case you get lost in the woods… fall in a hole… " He shrugged with a small grin.

Bobby looked at Sammy as he winced while trying to stand causing Bobby to repeat his question, "Sammy, you okay?"

Sam glanced quickly at Dean before he said, "Yeah, just winded."

Dean snapped, "Yeah that's why you have a goose egg on your forehead and blood running down the side of your face." he then latched onto Sam and helped his stand.

As Sam swayed on his feet, Dean wrapped an arm around him and held him upright.

"It's nothing D. I'm fine. Really… I'm just a clutz. You know that." Sam insisted.

"Sam. Don't lie to me. Especially when I can clearly see you aren't." Dean stated sternly.

"But wouldn't you do the same thing?" Sam questioned before huffing out, "Besides, It's not a big deal."

"That's different. I'm the big brother." Dean declared. "And it is a big deal, Sammy."

Pace let out a bellowing laugh and when all eyes turned to him, he declared, "Man, John couldn't deny these two were his even if he wanted to."

Bobby smiled as he nodded in agreement.

A little grin played on Dean's lips until he looked at Sam and his eyes were closing, "No you don't little brother… no sleeping just yet."

"D… I just realized how… " He yawned as he finished, "I'm tired." Sam mumbled his head falling forward and his weight shifting slightly towards Dean.

"Sammy?" Dean was asking as he took his already going down little brother down to the bottom of the hole once again. "Come on… what did I just tell you?" Dean sighed, Sam was out for the count. He checked on breathing and pulse and then looked up at Bobby who was kneeling above them.

"I'm going to lift him up to you and then you take him… he's not light so don't drop him back in here on me." Dean said as he watched Bobby shake his head as he muttered, "idgits."

Dean smiled as he stood bringing Sam up with him, cradling him a second before lifting him like an offering to the gods. He shook his head… not going there. He was grateful that they took him quickly and gently.

Once Bobby and Pace had taken Sam he stood on the log on the bottom and jumped up, bracing his hands on the ground and pushing himself up and out of the hole.

Bobby was holding Sam as he waited for Dean. Dean quickly placed himself in front of Bobby and brushed Sam's bangs back before he stretched out his arms as he said, "I'll take him."

"Dean I got him." Bobby argued.

"He's my brother. I'll take him." Dean said sternly, staring Bobby down.

Bobby nodded as he said softly, "okay boy." and gently placed Sam into Dean's arms.

Once they finally made it back down to the little apartment and had Sam laid out on the bed, Dean looked wearily at Bobby. "I gotta wake him up and check for a concussion."

"But he sounded okay when we came up he was talking to you." Bobby reasoned.

"And what the kid suddenly developed…" Dean stopped and ran a hand through his hair as he said softly, "kid hasn't been sleeping, he's eat up with guilt and I haven't made that any easier on him."

"Dean don't… he knows you love him and he loves you. You both have fucked up in the past… no let's just work on fixing this mess without either of you dying this time if you don't mind." Bobby growled.

Dean swallowed hard, blinking back tears as he admitted tiredly, "I'm not ready to lose him… I just can't… I won't." He said stubbornly jutting his chin out in such a young Dean pose that Bobby had to swallow back tears himself.

Bobby nodded, He'd known for sometime the world was broken but he also knew that as long as the boys were together there wasn't nothing they couldn't do… despite all the angels and demons trying to convince them otherwise. He knew now was the time to give Dean something he'd carried around for a long time.

He reached into his front jean pocket and pulled out the valued object that Sam had intrusted into his care and dangled it in front of Dean.

The stubborn lilt of Dean's face fell away, first the stubborness was replaced by confusion. He seemed to have frozen to the spot as he looked at Bobby and then back to the slowly swinging object as he breathily asked, "Where did you get that?"

Bobby stood there watching Dean.

Dean stood rooted to the spot in front of Bobby as he swallowed and repeated his question, "Where did you get it?"

Bobby glanced toward the bed and then back to Dean's face.

Dean's gaze followed Bobby's. He finally managed to whisper, "Sammy?"

Bobby gave a hint of a smile.

Confusion was once again the main contender for the emotion of the moment as he mumbled, "But… but when? I mean he… he never…"

Bobby told him gently, "He dug it out of the trash and brought it to me."

"Why?" Dean asked as he sat down gently on the bed still watching the amulet swing back and forth. The amulet he'd thrown away in anger… anger at dead beat dads and little brothers.

"Because he wasn't ready to give up on you and him. Haven't you figured that out yet? He wanted his brother back and if the only thing he could have of him was the part he'd given up on… thrown away… he was willing to take that." Bobby told him frankly without any sugar coating.

Dean tried to contain a sob but only managed to sound even more like a strangled cat.

"Dean… he's not holding a grudge and you don't need to either. If I was a betting man, I'd say that angels played a part in that whole heaven fiasco. Come on… think about… even the ones chosen for you were wonky except for the whole 4th of July one. Tell me honestly, you'd have picked your mom and dad fighting? Or Sam wouldn't have had you or his Jess… he was going to marry her… and you… wouldn't it have had your dad or Sam more than once…. It was a puppet show meant to drive a wedge between you two. AND if I had to guess it's been going on a lot longer than we've been thinking. So… are you going to take this or not?" He gave it a shake causing it to swing wildly.

Dean bowed his head.

"Seriously? Dean you could lose…" Bobby started, confused at Dean's reluctance at taking his amulet.

Dean's head shot up as he stood and stepped angrily towards Bobby as he snarled, "I fucking know exactly what's at stake Bobby." He glanced over his shoulder, once again little brother's head was on the chopping block.

Bobby nudged Dean's chest with his fist. He knew it was like pushing a bear but he needed everyone on the same page and he was tired of all the pussy footin' around.

Dean's hand shot up and he snatched the amulet out of Bobby's hand as he snarled, "I regretted throwing the damn thing away within the hour of doing it but we were so fucked up that I… I just left it alone." His hands dropped to his side and he held on to the amulet as he felt it tap his leg as it swung back and forth. His head dropped once again as he tried to get his emotions under control.

"Boy." Bobby said softly.

Dean shifted his shoulders as he slowly raised his head to look at Bobby.

"I think it will help you both to have it back where it belongs."

"What did he tell you to do with it?" Dean asked softly as he felt oddly comforted by the weight of the amulet dangling from his hand.

"Does it matter?" Bobby asked quickly.

Dean growled in frustration at Bobby.

Bobby chuckled before he sobered, "He wanted me to keep it so nothing would happen to it… he said one day… one day you would need it back and I would know when."

"He left it up to you to decide?" Dean asked oddly saddened by that.

"He said that both of you were so fucked up that he wanted someone not being fucked with by either angel or demon to keep it safe." Bobby told him.

Dean nodded before he asked, "Can I keep it?" He swallowed before continuing, "Wear it?"

Bobby asked him frankly, "Do you want it? How do you feel about you… about him?"

Dean looked once again to Sammy before he turned to face Bobby again, "I know that sacrificing ourselves to bring the other back… hurts the one left behind… so I won't do any more deals."

Bobby looked upset but Dean held up his hand, "But that doesn't mean I'm going to let him fight alone. I'm doing this with him. Win or loose. It's got to be us… together."

"Dean put it on." Bobby told him with a smile. "You both need that part of you back."

Dean smiled eyes glistening as he looked down as he raised his hand up and stared at the black cord for several seconds.

TBC