thank you all so much for the great reviews, i am so glad you all like this story, i am having alot of fun writing it. thanks for telling me that i got the wee!chesters right :). it's hard to write the children that will become Sam and Dean.
this chapter is very light on action, but dont worry, it will be there soon enough. it's the calm before the storm i guess you could say.
for anyone who doesnt know what smores are (you have to get one becuase they are the best foor ever!) it's a toasted marshmallow made into a sandwhich with gram crackers and a chocolate bar.
D: as always, i dont own anything.
TWILIGHT
Chapter 5
The ball rolled slowly towards the spirit's feet, the center of her forest dark and silent as the storm raged on all around her. She smiled down at the toy, her song filling the air around her, reaching out across the fields, following the children as the struggled against the gale. She would have them, soon. Sammy had been mere steps away, mere moments from her grasp before she had lost him. And she knew now what she had to do.
The older boy was the problem, the barrier keeping her from the two younger children. He needed to be don't away with, needed to be stopped. Only then would she have what she wanted. She watched the ball bounce a few times before rolling away, her eyes growing darker, song fainter as the children neared the big old house. Yes, if she wanted Sammy then she would have to get him away from his brother, and she knew exactly how to do it.
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Sam, Dean stumbled up the basement steps, the younger boy still holding onto his brother as though his very world depended on it. He had never been so scared in all of his young life, never been so afraid that his big brother wouldn't find him, wouldn't save him. Even though he had only been out in the storm for a few minutes, Sam would have sworn that he had been out there forever, his entire life falling down around him and he sat in the mud crying, calling out for Dean. And all the while he could still here that creepy voice, still feel the shadows slinking out of the dark forest. And now that his brother had found him, there was no way he was going to let him go.
"Sammy? You ok, dude?" Dean asked quietly, trying to pry his little brother off of him while Kerri gently closed the door behind them. The house was bright and warm compared to the nightmare raging outside, but that did little to lessen the fears that had firmly placed themselves in his heart. He had almost lost him and, to Dean, there was nothing that was going to make that better. He didn't deserve warmth, didn't deserve comfort, he had left Sammy alone in the storm, and he knew that there was no forgiveness for that.
"No."
"What's wrong?"
"I'm scared."
"Well, you gotta let me go, ok."
"No."
"I gotta get you some dry clothes. Wanna start a fire? We can have marshmallows."
"No." Sam continued to hug Dean tightly, his little body shaking with sobs. The warmth of the house was doing nothing for him, his mind still trapped in the forest, eyes still seeing nothing but shadows. He was scared, and he just didn't want to let Dean go, because he was afraid that he would fall back into that forest if he did.
"Kerri." Evelyn's small and shaky voice floated into the room, the little girl standing by the living room, dark eye wide. "Is, Sam, ok?"
"Yeah, honey, he's fine. Just a little shaken up." Kerri began softly as she pulled her trembling little sister into a hug. She looked over the little girls head, blue eyes fixed on Dean. She could see in his eyes that something wasn't right, that something was bothering him.
"You don't have to be scared of the storm, Sam." Evelyn smiled, as she looked over to Sam, the little boy still holding on to Dean.
"It's not the storm."
"Then what?"
"I'm scared of the woods."
Kerri could feel Evelyn stiffen against her, the little girl turning quickly towards the back window, as though expecting something to be there waiting for her. It was obvious to the older girl that her sister was afraid of the forest as well, or more precisely, afraid of something they were both associating with the forest.
"There's nothing out there to be scared of, Ev. We've lived here all our lives."
"I know."
"Can you do me a favor?"
"Yeah." Evelyn looked up at her sister with large, adoring eyes, wondering what it was that the older girl had faith in her to do.
"Can you go get some towels for us?"
"Yeah."
"Thank you."
"Sammy." Dean tried again, he too needing to get warm and try. "You think you can let go now?"
"There's something out there, Dean. It was making the ball roll away."
"It was probably just the wind, buddy."
"You sure?"
"Yeah, I'm sure. You wanna get warmed up now?"
"Yeah." Sam sniffled, releasing is grip only slightly. Evelyn came back into the room a moment later, the little girl balancing three large towels in her arms.
Dean finally managed to pull Sam from him, wrapping the little boy in the large towel and tackling him to the ground. Sam screamed with laugher as he rolled, arms tangled in the fabric as Dean tickled him, his little legs kicking as he laughed, all previous fears gone in an instant.
"No fair, Dean, no fair."
"What's no fair?"
"My arms as stuck, no tickling."
"Oh well, let me help you get those arms free." Dean smiled, tackling his brother again, Sam screaming and laughing as he struggled with the towel. "That better?"
"No. No. You're still tickling!"
"I'll save you, Sam." Evelyn yelled before launching herself at Dean's back. Dean nearly fell forward on top of his brother, the little girl hitting him like a ton of bricks, but he regained quickly pulling Evelyn to the floor as he tickled both.
Sam rolled and twisted till he was free of his brother, Evelyn now laughing and screaming, the tickle monster's newest victim. Sam immediately jumped to his feet and ran to Kerri jumping into her lap, his face all business.
"There's a monster over there. Ev, saved me from it, but unfortunately, she didn't make it."
"Help me! Save me!"
"Well, you see, Sammy." Dean began, still playing with Evelyn. "All good monsters always have a back up plan."
"What's a back up plan?"
"Well, that mean's there's usually two monsters. One's just in disguise."
Sam looked quickly up at Kerri, his mind processing what Dean had just said, a huge smile on his face.
"Ha, ha. I've gotten, Sam." Kerri smiled as she rolled onto the floor, Sam struggling and laughing in her arms.
"Aaahhhhh!!!!"
"Sam, quick. The monsters can't see us in the blankets. We'll be invisible." Evelyn tried to whisper, as she pulled one of the towels up over her head, Dean immediately letting go.
"Kerri, I lost her."
"I've lost this one, too." Kerri and Dean pretended to look around the room while Sam and Evelyn, both covered by the towels crawled over to the steps.
"Ha ha!" Sam exclaimed, throwing the towel from his shoulder, Evelyn mimicking him. "We're free to fight another day!" And with that the two charged up the steps to get changed into dry clothes.
"Oh man, out smarted again." Kerri smiled, mopping the now soaking floor with the remaining towel.
"Yeah, if only we could have kept them away from the invisible towels."
"We have to remember that for next time." Kerri and Dean both smiled as they began to clean up the kitchen, Evelyn and Sam's laughter still audible even amidst the ever growing storm.
Kerri looked out the window again, the forest beyond swaying innocently in the violent winds, the sky dark save for the lightning. She didn't know if it was the storm, the fact that their dads would be gone for so long, or everyone's imaginations running wild, but she suddenly felt very afraid, suddenly felt like she was being watched. And wished for nothing more then to have their dads back at home.
"Dean?" Kerri began after a few moments, throwing the towel into the washer.
"Yeah?"
"What, Sam, said about the ball. You do just think it was the wind, right?"
"I don't know. I heard something out there."
"Like what?"
"I heard singing."
"Are you sure it wasn't the wind?"
"I don't know. Look, I don't want to mention this around Ev and Sam. They're already freaked out because of the storm."
"Ok. Just, promise me that, if there is something, you'll tell me. I don't really want to have to do any of this alone."
"Deal." Dean smiled, grateful the Kerri was willing to shoulder the responsibility of the kids with him. The truth of the matter was that he was downright terrified. He kept telling himself that there was nothing out there, that it was just the wind, but something in the back of his mind just wouldn't let him believe that. And having Kerri by his side was a true blessing.
"Dean, Kerri." Sam and Ev's voices rang out in unison as they charged down the stairs, books in hand. "Can you read us a story?"
"Yeah, sure, but we gotta get changed first."
"Hurry up!" Evelyn shouted as she pushed them both towards the stairs. "Sam and I are gonna get the marshmallow stuff."
"Ok, but no fires till we get back downstairs. Dad said only the big kids, remember."
"Yes, Kerri, I remember."
"Good, because I know you like to forget stuff like that sometimes."
"I promise I remember. We'll just get the pillows and marshmallow stuff, no fire."
"All right." Dean smiled as he and Kerri went to change into some drier clothes.
Ten minutes later all four kids were huddled around the large fire place, the floor before it strewn with nearly every blanket and pillow the house possessed. Dean couldn't help but smile at Sam and Evelyn, both children bouncing on their knees as he lit the fire, their marshmallows already on sticks and ready to go.
Their dads had taught both Dean and Kerri the proper way to light a fire the previous winter. And both had been cleared to do it without their parents around, after much more supervision then Dean though necessary. But then, Mr. Harrison had insisted that they light it ten times each while either he or John was home and both children had complied.
The fire cracked slowly to life as Dean lit the kindling beneath, the air outside uncharacteristically cold for a late summer day. It had been warmer then normal before the storms rolled in, but the instant the rain began to fall the air took on a bone rattling chill. Dean looked once more out the back window, the forest looming out beyond the fields, before turning back to his brother, Kerri trying desperately to save his fire engulfed marshmallow.
"Why do you keep doing that, Sam?"
"Because that's how, Dean, said you were s'posed to do it."
"But do you really want it all charcoaly like that?"
"That's how, Dean, does it."
"Ok."
"Kerri, can you cook mine so it doesn't get all burned up?"
"Sure, Ev."
"Which story did you guys want to hear?" Dean asked as he watched his marshmallow turn a lovely shade of black, smirking at Kerri before stuffing the whole thing in his mouth.
"This one." Evelyn jumped forward, pointing to the already open book.
Dean gave the page a once over before looking up at the two little kids, Sam's face and hands already covered in a mixture of melted marshmallow, chocolate, and gram crackers.
"You guys really wanna hear this one?"
"Yeah. I like that one." Sam smiled as he picked up a napkin, now adding paper to the gooey mess that was his face.
"It's really creepy though."
"No, it's not, we like that one."
"Ok." Dean began as Kerri made her way back from the kitchen, smothering Sam's face in a wet dishtowel. Dean settled himself back with his own smore and began reading the chosen story: The Pied Piper.