A.N. Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry! I am absolutely mortified that I haven't updated since May! To anyone following this story I am incredibly sorry, I had a very hectic Summer and every time I opened the document to write I couldn't come up with anything.
I'm afriad this isn't the longest chapter and I'm still not sure how I feel about it, but hopefully it will make up for the long break while I work on the next chapter. Again I'm so sorry and thank you to anyone who reads and reviews.
Sam lunged forwards and clamped his hand down on Dean's wrist. For a second they both seemed to hang there. Time slowed to a standstill and Sam managed to register the shock in his brother's eyes before Dean's body disappeared over the edge and Sam's arm was yanked forwards causing him to cry out in pain and he was dragged on his belly to the precipice. They finally managed to find some equilibrium and stopped moving.
For a several long seconds there was nothing but silence. Sam was frozen to the spot, his muscles straining with the effort of holding onto Dean's heavy weight.
Eventually a bewildered and angry voice drifted up to Sam.
"Sammy! What the hell is going on!"
Then time seemed to catch up, Sam became aware of the incredible effort it took to stop Dean from plummeting to the ground. He had started sliding steadily as well, until eventually he could peer over the outcrop. What he saw there nearly caused him to release his tenuous hold on his brother.
It wasn't too far to the ground, you might just survive if you fell, but you wouldn't survive for long. The inevitable broken bones would make it almost impossible to get to help from out here in the middle of nowhere and now Sam could clearly see how all those bodies had met their demise.
Because far below, there they all were. All the bodies that Sam had passed were scattered below the outcrop, he could see the eerie pathway that they created and that was just where Dean was going to end up if Sam couldn't save him.
"Shit! Sam! Pull me up!" Dean's voice was high with terror and he was jerking in Sam's grip from involuntarily kicking his legs.
"Dean, stay still." Sam grunted out, his brother was no lightweight.
Sam had managed to hook his toes onto a crack in the rock, (at least he thought he had, he still couldn't much of anything) and thankfully it had stopped the forward pull so that now they were just stuck. Sam's numb fingers could barely hold on and he didn't think he had the strength to do anything more than just keep Dean from falling.
"Is there...anything I can drop you onto?" Sam was sweating with the exertion now.
"No! No there's nothing, just a shit load of bodies! Sam pull me up now!"
"Dean I ca..." Sam rested his forehead on the cold ground, his free hand was freezing and soaking wet from where he was scrabbling for purchase on the frosty ground. Cautiously he reached his free hand over the edge to where he could just about see Dean's dripping wet hair suspended there.
"Reach up and grab my hand."
The muscles in Sam's arm were quivering with the effort from bearing all of the weight and Sam bit down on his lip in an effort to distract himself.
"Dean please you have to help."
He heard Dean's sharp intake of breath and the swinging increase as Dean attempted to reach for Sam's outstretched hand, no doubt tugging on his open wound. Sam wondered again how the hell Dean was still alive after all he'd been through.
One thing at a time Sam.
He felt Dean's fingertips brush his own and fall away again. He could feel his grip on Dean's wrist loosening, his hand was slippery with sweat and numb from the cold.
"Dean I can't hold on much longer, you have to grab my hand!" Sam yelled down.
"I'm trying Sam!" Dean snapped back before Sam heard him grunt in effort and then he felt he's brother's hand wrap around his own with surprising strength. Sam clamped his hand around Dean's with all his might.
Sam's shoulder's felt like they were going to pop right out of the sockets.
"Ok I'm going to pull you up." Sam positioned himself as best he could and started hauling Dean back to safety. He'd only pulled him a few inches when his protesting muscles gave out and Dean almost slipped from his grip, he managed to tighten his hold as Dean slid back out of sight and they both let out yells of pain when their shoulders wrenched at the sudden force.
"Dammit Sam!"
"I'm trying!"
Sam flexed his muscles again, his arms were screaming in pain and he could no longer feel his fingers but slowly he managed to drag his brother upwards, he shuffled back slightly and gingerly shifted his hold as Dean neared the top and together they managed to haul him back onto solid ground.
Xxx
For Dean, it was quite a rude awakening. One minute he'd been in a state of ecstasy, vaguely aware of his body but he didn't care what he was doing or saying, he just wanted to stay here.
Sam was there, he was pretty sure they were talking but he couldn't tell what they were saying and he wasn't really bothered. If Sam was here too then they had a pretty sweet deal going on.
Then it all went straight to hell, he crashed back into himself just after he stepped back over an immense nothingness. Sam was there and Sam was running, running towards him. Everything happened so slowly, in what could only have been milliseconds, he had time to process his body's desperate need for oxygen. Instinctively he inhaled an incredible blissful gasp of frigid winter air as the pain returned with a vengeance. At the same time he was falling backwards, his eyes locked on Sam's as he slipped back over the precipice.
He wasn't too sure what happened next but suddenly his arm was yanked brutally and he found himself suspended above the ground, dangling in mid-air.
He struggled to register what exactly was happening, how had he ended up suspended over a massive drop? A massive drop with a shit load of bodies at the bottom nonetheless. Instinctively he started kicking out. His heart was thundering in his chest and he was pretty sure he'd left his stomach about six feet above him.
"Sammy! What the hell is going on?"
There was silence from above, the only clue Dean had that Sam was even conscious was the intense death grip on his wrist. He realised that he was steadily slipping further, the grip on his wrist remained the same which meant that they were both sliding, and if Sam didn't do something soon then they'd both join the grisly display below.
"Shit! Sam! Pull me up!"
"Dean, stay still." Finally Sam's voice grated out to him, he sounded pained and exhausted. Finally they stopped moving and Dean put all his energy into staying as still as possible.
"Is there...anything I can drop you onto?"
Dean tentatively glanced down, swallowing down the nausea at the macabre scene.
"No! No there's nothing, just a shit load of bodies! Sam, pull me up now!"
"Dean I ca..."
Dean waited with bated breath, Sam couldn't fall apart.
"Reach up and grab my hand."
He couldn't move, he was frozen, scared that if he did something to disturb the uneasy equilibrium they were caught in then they'd both fall to their deaths.
"Dean please you have to help."
Dean mentally instructed himself to get a grip and reached up to grab Sam's hand. He gasped sharply as he felt pain jolt across his abdomen at the movement. On the next swing he only brushed Sam's fingertips. He let his arm fall down again; he was shivering and sweating with the exertion.
"Dean I can't hold on much longer, you have to grab my hand!" Sam sounded frantic.
"I'm trying Sam!" Dammit it wasn't like he was working at full capacity here. But still, the corpses down below seemed like they were reaching out to him, promising them both a place in their army of the dead and Dean was not ready to die yet, not after this suck fest of a night. With his waning strength he made a last ditch attempt and lunged for his brother's hand, clinging to it with all his might.
"Ok I'm going to pull you up."
Sam didn't waste much time before Dean felt himself moving up. The pain in his arms was excruciating but soon he'd be safe on solid ground. He was promising himself that he'd never put himself near a plane or a sharp drop ever again when he heard Sam gasp and he suddenly dropped. His heart was in his throat and the only way his panicked brain could tell he'd stopped falling was the brutal yanking of his arms.
"Dammit Sam!" He couldn't help yelling, he didn't do well with heights at the best of times.
"I'm trying!"
With agonizing slowness, Sam began dragging him back to safety. Dean's arms were screaming in pain, his hands were slick and he was trembling with the exertion of holding on. It must be ten times harder for Sam, having to haul up his sorry ass. After what seemed like an eternity, Sam managed to get him high enough that he could help clamber back over the edge.
Once his butt hit solid rock, he used the last of his strength to scuttle back from the edge and then collapsed in an ungraceful heap. Breathing heavily and trying to get his heart to stop kicking up such a fuss.
He stared up at the sky; the slightest promise of dawn was beginning to creep onto the horizon. The adrenaline coursing through his veins heightened his senses. He was hyper aware of the birds beginning the dawn chorus, the sound of his heart beating, of Sam's laboured breathing, everything.
After what seemed like hours but was more likely a minute at most, he heard Sam shift.
"What the hell was that?" Sam's anger was practically radiating off him and all Dean could do was lie there and absorb everything.
"Damn it Dean answer me!" Sam was on his feet now, worried and angry and freaked all at the same time.
"I don't know." There was no point in shouting, no need for raised voices; Dean could see that, he could see everything.
"You don't know! Dean you threw yourself off a cliff and you don't know? Were you trying to kill yourself?"
"It wasn't me Sam. Well it was me but I was somewhere else." Was he making sense? He knew what he meant; Sam just needed to chill a bit. He watched the sky, watched his breath make smoky tendrils.
Sam was reeling off his list of questions, demanding to know every detail; he was always so picky about the details. Dean answered them quietly and simply, no he didn't remember what had happened, no he didn't remember getting there, no he had no idea what had dragged him through the woods and no he didn't remember anything since being snatched from the church. Ok well that last part was technically a lie, but Sam seemed have experienced something similar himself from the way he was ranting on and it was just easier to play dumb.
Finally Sam stopped his barrage of questions, mumbled "Shit" and dropped to his knees next to Dean and started poking and prodding at him again.
At least Dean couldn't feel the sharp stabbing pain when Sam jabbed at his open wound, the numbness was setting in again, but his mind was sharp. Sam was still talking at him, muttering pointless words of comfort with the occasional swear word thrown in.
"Dean, can you walk? I need you to get up man." It wasn't like Sam was giving him much choice in the matter; he'd already positioned himself behind him and had hooked him under his arms. Dean supposed he should try and help but his feet slipped on the icy snow, (which was quickly turning to slush with all Sam's thrashing about) and Dean figured it would just be easier to let Sam haul him up.
Once on his feet, Sam was there in his face, one steadying hand gripping his bicep firmly, the other snapping his fingers in front of Dean's eyes. Dean was already plenty focused damn it! He'd just rather conserve most of his energy on staying alive rather than inane conversation.
Sam's lips pursed in annoyance when he didn't get the response he wanted. Unwilling to waste any more time he slung Dean's arm over his shoulders and Dean found himself being dragged along on alien feet listening to Sam mutter about shock and getting out of there, and how they'd find their way back through the woods and before they knew it they'd be at the car.
Dean didn't say anything, it seemed like Sam was trying to convince himself that they'd just saunter out of the woods ok. Dean knew differently, he could tell from the sensation of eyes burning into his back, from the way his sharpened hearing picked up the softest footfalls from the trees. He wouldn't say anything to Sam yet though; there was nothing he could do, no point in giving him more to worry about.
Dean wasn't so sure that they'd make it out of the woods at all. Yeti wounds, hypothermia, and being lost in the middle of fricking nowhere were huge odds stacked against them. Not to mention the fact that they were being followed.
Xxx
They were not going nearly as fast as Sam would like. Dean was almost a dead weight at his side, his breathing was laboured and he was horrifically pale. He'd been coherent and responsive before but now he was growing increasingly sluggish again, Sam figured it was either shock or just his body shutting down that explained his unusual behaviour. Sam couldn't give up on him though, the fact that Dean was depending on him was the only thing preventing him from curling up on a ball on the ground and going to sleep.
He was starting to hear things as well. Repeatedly he had whipped round when he thought his name was whispered in the darkness, or when he heard the crunch of footsteps on the frigid ground or when he felt the soft tickle of breath on the back of his neck. He was making himself paranoid; he was so weary he could no longer tell what was hunter's instinct and what was just his stressed mind playing tricks on him. Nevertheless he continued to peer into the grey darkness, the faintest hints of dawn were more suffocated under the thick canopy of trees and the light teased him with imagined figures that danced swiftly out of his line of sight. He went on like this for some time, until Dean dragged his lolling head up with what looked like considerable effort and fixed him with sunken eyes.
"Save your energy Sam. S'nothing we can do about it yet. If you're scared of him it's easier for him to take you." They had reached the pathway of the dead and Sam watched Dean's eyes scan over the carcases, he stared back at Sam from under his lashes, his face dark and Sam once again got the feeling his brother knew something he didn't. Dean flashed him a sinister half smile "And you really don't want him to take you Sam." He let his head roll back down as if the strain of holding it up was too much.
Sam winced as he felt a bone snap under his foot "What does that mean Dean?"
Dean's gravelly voice rose up without him raising his head this time. "Just don't be scared Sammy."
Instead of pushing Dean for more answers, Sam bit back the questions on his tongue and forced himself to put all his energy into getting them out of the woods. He ignored the sensation of long fingernails being traced over his back, the powerful feeling of someone walking right behind him, the figure he caught sight of in the trees, watching them silently on the edge of his peripheral vision and the way the wind seemed to whisper his name, oh so invitingly.
Xxx
"We're lost."
"No...shit...Sherlock."
"Don't you think you should save your energy for something useful like breathing instead of using it up on cheap shots?"
"...Bite...me..."
Sam tried not to dwell on how much it irritated him that despite having to take deep, painful sounding breaths just to get his words out, Dean insisted on having the last word. Stubborn bastard.
"I'm serious Dean. What the hell are we going to do?"
"Ask it...nicely...to let us go?"
"Brilliant." Sam felt a small flare of embarrassment that Dean somehow knew about his plea to be let out of the church. He pushed the thought aside, amazed that it had only been a few hours ago.
"You got any better suggestions Dean? Because by rights you shouldn't even be breathing right now!"
"Good...to know you have such faith... in my ability to survive...Sa-"
"Oh shut up."
They trudged through the snow, Dean leaning heavily on Sam, wheezing painfully, using what little strength he had to wrap his arm around his midsection. Although the wound had pretty much stopped bleeding. Probably to do with the cold slowing his heart rate down, Sam though bitterly.
Exhaustion was making Sam sluggish, his mind kept wandering off, thinking about anything else to keep from thinking about what was lurking in the shadows. He'd thought about taking a shot at it but it moved too fast and he was too weak. He was envisioning an enormous mug of cocoa. Proper cocoa, made with milk not hot water, it wasn't the same if it wasn't made with milk. A huge mug of hot chocolatey bliss, with those mini marshmallows floating on top. During his childhood, when it snowed was one of those rare occasions when he and Dean got to behave like children. They'd play outside for hours until their fingers were tingling with the cold, their cheeks pink and Dad would call them in to warm up. They'd change into warm clothes and Dad would fix the three of them a mug of hot cocoa, complete with marshmallows. He'd usually head to the store to stock up while they were playing.
Sam was imagining that he was one of those mini marshmallows, bobbing contentedly on a sea of warm chocolate, occasionally bumping gently into another marshmallow, exchanging pleasantries, the way mini marshmallows do. He didn't notice that they'd stopped walking, or that Dean was trying to get his attention.
"Sam? Damn it Sammy, snap out of it! Wipe that dopey look off your face!"
Sam looked down at his brother with a contented smile "Are you enjoying the chocolate Dean?"
Bewildered concern flashed across Dean's face. "One problem at a time yeah Sam? You wanna snap out of it? We have a slightly more pressing issue."
Sam blinked and focused on his brother's face, a bit too disappointed that he wasn't actually a marshmallow with no care for issues such as his brother's.
"That's it. Sam, look at me. Don't freak out, but up ahead there are two things that look very much like us."
"Huh?"
Dean looked exasperated, it was the first time since Sam had dragged him back over the cliff edge that he'd seen some life in his brother, instead of the disturbing sense that he knew something he was keeping from Sam.
"Our freaking doppelganger's are stood over there staring right at us Sam!" Dean winced as if the strain of talking was causing him physical pain. With his injuries, it probably was, Sam though philosophically.
Frustrated that Sam didn't seem to be reacting; Dean grabbed his chin and turned his head so that his eyes settled on the apparitions in front of them.
Dean and Sam this time. They stood there, thirty feet in front of them, bloodied and haggard, cheerfully smiling and waving.
"Oh them." Sam chuckled "Don't worry they'll kill themselves in a minute." He chuckled again at the expression on his brother's face. "Just watch Dean."
"Sam, shoot them!"
"I told you Dean, they'll be dead in a minute." Sam calmly turned his attention back to the apparitions, huddling closer to his brother to try and keep him warm while they stood still, slightly irritated that he'd given Dean all his clothes, but he'd let it go, he was a good brother like that. Dean was still cold; he tightened his grip even more, all the while never taking his eyes off the Sam and Dean in front of them. He felt Dean start to squirm a bit under his grip, poor Dean couldn't tell how cold he was, but Sam wouldn't let him go again.
Up ahead, their clones were still waving and grinning, then satisfied they had their attention, seemed to launch into a sketch that would have been more at home on the Three Stooges, Sam pulled out a gun and shot Dean in the chest and Dean, annoyed at this, stabbed Sam through the throat. They then both collapsed to the ground while their blood painted the white snow a sinister shade of red.
"What the hell was that?" Dean whispered
"Don't worry, we'll keep going and they'll disappear. They'll do something different next time."
"Sam you're seriously starting to freak me out. Can you snap out of it?"
"Everything's fine Dean. You're just cold." Sam pulled Dean even closer until his brother grunted with discomfort.
"Sam, you want to loosen up a bit, if we ever make it out of here, I'd rather my ribs weren't crushed as well."
"Don't be frightened." Sam craned his neck to look at his brother and Dean didn't like the shadows he saw in his eyes, "Remember you told me not to be frightened Dean?"
Xxx
Dean stumbled blindly through the trees, he was moving too slowly but he couldn't help it. Every step sent pain tearing across his abdomen and he was running on fumes. The footsteps behind him were getting closer now, but they were calm, unhurried. He knew Dean was injured, knew there was no reason to rush; it chilled Dean how sure the footsteps were.
"Shit!" He stumbled and crashed to his knees. He pushed himself to his feet, there wasn't time to stop. He had to keep moving and think. His mind was working too slowly, it wouldn't come up with a coherent plan now and it had been too late to react before. He could have kicked himself that he'd been that slow off the mark.
"Come on Dean, stop running. You're just dragging this out you know." If Dean could feel his body enough to shiver, he would have. The voice that floated through the trees was haunting, repulsive and yet enticing at the same time.
His eyelids ached with the need to close. The pull of the voice was so strong that he could easily give in and succumb to the darkness. But he knew what lay beyond that darkness, he could remember now. It wasn't death, it was something far far worse, something he'd glimpsed when he'd been under its thrall. There was no way he was going back there.
"Deeeean. Come out come out wherever you are." And there was no way in hell that he was going to leave Sam there.
Tbc.
Thanks to any readers and all reviews are greatly appreciated.