After a long moment of uneasy silence, Lucy finally stood up and walked towards the living room. Sam followed her and caught up with her besides the stairway. He reached out for her and grabbed her arm. Lucy spun around with a frightening look in her eyes.

Sam let go of her arm immediately. "I'm sorry…" he whispered. "But we really need to talk…"

"I know…" she said monotonously without looking at him. "But I'm tired of talking. Everybody wants to talk…and in the end they hurt us…"

"I'm not going to hurt you!" Sam sounded offended.

"Sorry, Sam…" Lucy sighed. "I didn't mean to…" she fell quiet.

Sam knew what she meant. But still, he couldn't let go of it just now. "Let's talk, ok?

Lucy nodded and moved over to the settee by the window. "Then let's talk…what do you want to talk about?" She suddenly seemed to frail and tired.

"Lucy, they want to tear down the house. It was in yesterday's newspaper." Sam began quietly.

"I know…" Her words were nearly inaudible. "I know…"

"Why…I mean…it's obvious that the people here don't want you around…Please don't get me wrong here, Lucy, ok? But why haven't you already left? Why didn't you just pack up and leave?"

Lucy suddenly smiled. "Do you think I haven't tried? It's like we can't leave this place. Lauren doesn't want to leave and after all she's been through I just cannot make her. I just can't…" she sighed. "And I don't want to…"

"I understand that…" Sam said sympathetically but Lucy just shook her head.

"No, you don't. Nobody understands. And nobody can!" She stood up and took a few hesitant steps. Sam watched her and thought he could see tears in her eyes.

"Listen, I'm sorry, I truly am. I know how it feels, I honestly do. But right now, you have to trust me. There are some weird things going on. And I want to help!"

Lucy tilted her head and sighed. "You know, this is a little too much for me…I can't…go on any longer. I'm breaking down here…" Her voice was now coming in short ragged breaths. Sam stood up and walked over to her. He put one hand on her shoulder and she turned into his embrace. Sam put both arms around her and held her for a minute, then Lucy drew away. She didn't look into his eyes when she turned around but Sam could see the blush on her face. He was sure that the blush was on his own face, too.

It had felt a little awkward to hold her so close to him but after the first moment of agitation, the feeling had turned into a very nice one. One that Sam hadn't felt in a very long time. But when Lucy withdrew, she left a cold emptiness. Sam had to take in a deep breath, then he was able to focus again.

"Do you know what I write into my diary?" Lucy suddenly said.

Sam frowned at her words. What was she talking about?

"It's the same as every day since all this started." She laughed a little "Dear Diary, I have finally discovered Earth. I don't like it here. It's strange. The people are annoying. I'm frustrated. This planet sucks." She laughed again and Sam had to work hard to suppress a chuckle. This time, her smile was real and serene.

Sam wanted to keep her in this good mood. "You really write that in your diary?"

"Yeah, sure!" she said, giggling a little. It was a wonderful sound.

"You should be careful. The FBI would love to get their hands on a fully fledged alien like you."

"Yeah, just don't tell anyone…You're the only one who knows my secret."

"My mouth is sealed. Promise!" Both laughed but then they fell silent. The seriousness of the situation had come back like a blow to the stomach. Lucy turned around and sighed. Sam closed his eyes for a moment. Things were going so wrong here, he thought, and Lucy and her sister were caught in the middle. He wanted to help them so badly that it hurt but he was not sure how to do that.

Lucy now stood by the window and watched Dean play with Lauren in the backyard. Lauren sat on the swing and stared out onto the lake while Dean tried to talk to her. Lucy sighed.

"She hasn't been out there for years…the only place she goes to is the lake…

"Lucy?" Sam asked quietly. The girl turned and looked at him. "Can I ask you a question?"

She nodded and walked over to the sofa. Sam followed her and together, they sat down.

"You know, I was wondering…Why was Lauren so dirty this morning? I mean, she doesn't just go out, leave the house and play with other children? And it hasn't been raining…"

Lucy was silent for a moment. She bit her lower lip and looked down on her hands. After a second or two, she began to speak. "You're going to think that we're crazy, but well…Lucy was out by the lake, the whole night. She does that every now and then. I've been telling her that she shouldn't go but she doesn't listen."

Sam watched her moving around a little uneasy.

"Sam, she hears voices…she pretends she hears voices that tell her to go and lie down in the mud and listen." She laughed, almost a bit hysterical. "She's not crazy…"

"I know, Lucy. Please!" He took her hand and forced her to look at him. "Did she tell you what these voices said?"

"No, I told you that she didn't speak after they let her go. But sometimes she showed me things…pictures she drew or places she has seen. I don't know…"

"Lucy, I believe you, ok? I don't think you're crazy. Can you show me the pictures? The ones Lauren drew?"

Lucy nodded and got up. Sam watched her leave the room and waited. He heard her move up the stairs and it took only a few moments until he heard her come back again. She carried a few torn pieces of paper in her hands and handed them to Sam as soon as she was close enough. It seemed to him that she tried to avoid direct contact with it.

Sam carefully took them. He looked at Lucy.

"Sorry…" she whispered. "I couldn't stand Lauren drawing these…so I…tried to…"

Sam nodded and smiled at her politely. He could understand that she wanted to tear these pictures apart. The drawings all showed the same thing, the lake and the Stevenson's house. But on each picture, the house changed. There were some pictures that showed the house all boarded up with only one window in the basement open, on some there were no windows at all, only the one that was open on the others. There was one image where Sam thought he could see three figures behind that one window.

"Can I keep those?" Sam asked.

Lucy only nodded. She still looked out of the window. "You have to promise me, too!" she said now without facing him. "Promise!"

"What?"

"I can't protect her, I couldn't when they took her away from me. I let what was given to me to protect fall from my fingers…" Her eyes sparkled as she now looked at Sam. "But you can…She trusts you…she talked to you!" Her face was pale but the green darkness of her eyes showed him that she was serious. "You have to protect her if I can't anymore, ok?" She stood only a few paces away.

Sam swayed a little. He knew that he could not offer the kind of protection to any of them, he just couldn't. But the begging look Lucy gave him nearly tore his heart apart and even though he did not want to say it, the words came out on their own. "I will…"

Once those words were out, he regretted ever saying them. He knew that he couldn't protect either Lauren or Lucy even though he wished with all his heart he could. He suddenly couldn't fight the urge to reach out for her and pull her into his embrace again. He was scared that she might try to break free but she didn't even resist.

She fell into his arms like someone drowning and clang to him as if he was the only rescue. She breathed against this shoulder and for a moment, time stood still. All that mattered was that they both were here, feeling each other even though it was not only a strange situation but also a strange time and place.