Puck gripped the flamethrower in his hand, gesturing to Sam to follow him when he spotted the deep gouges etched into the side of the bark. It had been fifteen minutes since Dean and Rachel had been taken by that ugly son of a bitch and Puck was itching to watch that shriveled up thing barbeque itself.

The younger Winchester was quiet at his side. Puck noticed that every few minutes Sam would reach for the bracelet on his left wrist, his fingers sliding against the beads as if to center himself.

'You think they're alive?' Sam asked and Puck glanced at him out of the corner of his eye.

'That thing iced Tanaka because he shot at it,' was all he offered in response before spotting something colourful on the ground. 'Huh. Looks like your brother left us a trail.'

'Better than bread crumbs,' Sam agreed, his pace picking up as they pushed through the forest.

'I don't understand. These things aren't supposed to be real,' Rachel told him, voice shrill towards the end. 'These…creatures are simply stories told to frighten young children-'

Sam tossed the branch he had been using to etch the Anasazi symbols, wandered over to place a hand on Rachel's shoulder. Puck narrowed his eyes at the contact but told himself to relax when Dean nodded at him.

'Look Rachel I know this is a lot to take in right now-'

'A lot? I am currently at the mercy of three unverified and attractive men in the middle of a forest with a supposedly bloodthirsty carnivorous frontiersman intent on devouring me!'

'Shit babe, speak louder because I think the wendigo wants to know what's on the menu,' Puck remarked which earned him a withering glare from Rachel and a more muted one from Sam.

'This is what we do Rachel and I'm sorry we had to lie to you. But your brother and Puck's sister are out there and we do want to help you find them. Okay?' Sam told her softly and Puck watched as Rachel's shoulders slumped, her head brushing against his shoulder.

'But we're safe now right? Because Ken…' Rachel shuddered, burying her face further into Sam's shoulder.

'These symbols won't allow it to cross over. We're safe for now,' Dean reassured her.

'How do you know about this…about all of this?' Rachel asked, sweeping her gaze over all three men. Puck shrugged, averting his own eyes away from her.

'It kind of runs in the family,' Dean told her, smiling. 'We've got half a chance of ganking this thing in daylight. Who wants to help me make a Molotov cocktail?'

Shaking his head, Puck stopped when he saw the structure up ahead. It looked like an abandoned mine. The wood someone had used to board up the entrance was old and moldy, the concrete covered in a carpet of thick moss. Silently they loosened one of the panels, slipped inside to encounter a damp tunnel with barely any light. It was enough, though, for Puck to fist Sam's shirt and slam him up against one of the walls. A low growl echoed off the ceiling and Puck leaned his head around.

The wendigo stood in a shaft of silver. The skin on its face looked like melted wax, its mouth and slit eyes carved out of a dark mould. As it came closer Puck saw the long, tapered claws on both sides and the gaunt, pulled ribcage protruding out of its stretched epidermis. Sam nudged his shoulder and indicated a narrow corridor a few feet away. Holding his breath Puck followed after the taller man, the loud thud of his boots making him wince. Sam poked his head out after a few minutes, signaled that the wendigo had gone in the opposite direction.

Puck had just barely taken a step before there was a loud creaking sound, before the floor underneath them both crumbled. His shoulder slammed heavily onto the floor and this made him grunt in pain. Sam sprawled out beside him, one hand clutching his stomach.

'You good?' Puck wheezed out.

'Yeah,' Sam choked out, climbing to his feet and giving Puck a hand. 'Holy shit. Dean!'

Whipping his head around Puck saw Dean and Rachel suspended from the beams crisscrossing above, their wrists bound tight with heavy rope. As Sam headed towards his brother, Puck rolled his shoulder before grasping Rachel by the chin.

'Berry. Berry wake the fuck up!' He hissed harshly though his fingers gently tapped the smooth skin underneath. To his relief her eyes fluttered open slowly, her features confused.

'Noah?'

'I got you babe,' he said softly, deftly undoing the knots and holding her tight as her body buckled. 'I got you.'

'Hello? Is somebody there?' A familiar voice called out and Puck tensed. Rachel gripped his bicep as he deposited her next to Dean. He barely hears Rachel telling him to go before he's bursting through the darkness, his heart in his throat when he takes in the sight of his baby sister and best friend alive.

'Puck?' Finn's voice is weak.

'Bro is that you?' Bekah's question quivers and Puck doesn't trust himself to speak as he works at her bindings, Sam coming up from behind and doing the same with Finn.

'Fuck. Don't you ever scare the shit out of me again, you understand?' Puck murmured into Bekah's ear, chest clenching when he takes in the dried blood on her temple and matted in her hair. His sister snaked her arms around his waist and Finn punched his shoulder, asked why it took him so long.

'Where's Blaine?' Sam wondered and Puck felt his stomach drop when he saw the pool of blood on the floor next to Bekah.

'He…' Bekah started but finally shook her head, pressed herself tighter to Puck as if he would protect her from everything. Slowly leading Bekah and Finn back towards the other two, Puck found he couldn't meet the hopeful look plastered on Rachel's face.

'Where's…where's my brother?' Rachel demanded.

'I'm sorry Rachel-'

'What? No. He's alive. Your sister and this abnormally tall man are, there's no reason why Blaine isn't-'

'He's fucking dead Berry,' Puck ground out, feeling like an asshole when Rachel flinched at his words. If they had time he would maybe stroke her arm or something. But right now there was a creature that liked human appetizers stalking around. As if hearing his thoughts the wendigo lets out another snarl.

'You thinking what I'm thinking?' Dean asked, the flare gun Puck had dropped now in his hand. The older Winchester smiled through the blood, a smile that was almost feral.

'Alright listen up. You three come with me while these two take care of business,' Puck announced reluctantly. He thought of telling Sam to follow them out but stopped when his sister trembled at his side. Dean stumbled to his feet, grasping Rachel by the wrists and hauling her up.

'Let's go Sammy,' Dean winked at them, waving at his brother. 'Hey you son of a bitch! It's chow time! You want some white meat you freaky bastard? Yeah that's right baby I taste good.'

'We'll distract it but…'

'Yeah don't worry. We'll haul ass and wait for you outside,' Puck assured Sam, opening the side Bekah wasn't up against to reveal the gun tucked into his jeans. 'Hudson, grab Berry and let's fucking go.'

Rachel let out a strangled sob but didn't resist when Finn tugged at her shoulder. The four of them stumbled through the uneven surface, Bekah grasping his hand halfway through. The loud report of a gunshot reached their ears but Puck spotted the wooden planks barring the entrance, urged them to walk faster even as he kept one hand poised on the butt of his gun.

A primal, terrifying shriek cut through the tension and the smell of burning flesh filled his nose, making Puck want to gag. Something scuffed the ground behind them and Puck twisted his head around as Finn pushed Rachel through the gap Sam and him had made before, spotted the Winchesters hurrying towards them.

'Fucker's dead then?' Puck asked once they were outside, clean air filling their lungs.

Dean nodded grimly before looking over at Rachel, who had her head between her legs while her hands gripped the sides of her knee tightly. Seeing Bekah and Finn wrapped up in each other, Puck cautiously bent down next to Rachel.

'Rachel?' He said her name uneasily. He felt her stiffen before her head angled up to look at him. Her eyes were glassy and wet, and Puck could make out the tracks on her cheeks. He didn't know what to say, couldn't formulate the words to comfort someone who had just lost family. So he swept his thumb just above her ear, the rest of his fingers tangling in her hair. Her face crumpled at the touch and suddenly she was in his arms, the sobs wracking her body loud and painful.

'Shh,' Puck whispered over and over, letting her cry into his shoulder. Bekah turned away from Rachel into Finn's chest, Sam and Dean bowing their heads.

'I got you,' he repeated, smoothing a hand over her head. This seemed to make Rachel mourn harder.

Under the clear blue sky, Noah Puckerman comforted Rachel Berry, and he didn't know what to make of that.