Chapter Seven: Lightning Strikes Twice

"The school", State Unknown-1999

Samuel heard familiar voices around him as he slowly drifted up towards consciousness

"… believe LeGraine found him…"

"The nerve…."

"…punish him…"

"Why would he…"

Samuel's eyes slid open, his vision blurred and unfocused at first.

"Hey! He's waking up!" a voice cried and Samuel gasped as someone grabbed his hair and pulled his head up.

The boy squinted at his tormentor and gasped when Ansen's face came into focus.

"Samuel," he sneered and shoved the teen's head back roughly against the wall, "Welcome back."

"A-Ansen, let me go," Samuel exclaimed, lifting his hands to fend off the other boy but stopped when he saw that there were shackles around his wrists.

"Why'd you leave us?" Charlene asked, her expression mournful.

Samuel stared at the children surrounding him; Ansen and Charlene, Ava, Jacob, Max, Ian, Brianne and Lucas. Not all of them, but those that Samuel knew best.

"Where's Scott and Lilian?" Samuel asked, fear tingling in his belly.

"They weren't strong enough," Ansen scoffed, "Answer the question!"

Samuel cried out when the other boy punched him in the chest.

"L-LeGraine is evil!" Samuel exclaimed as he tried to catch his breath, "He killed Andrew."

"Liar!" Ansen snapped and punched Samuel again.

Wincing in pain, Samuel shook his head, "I'm… not lying. I saw it. LeGraine killed him, Ansen."

"But LeGraine said they were sent away," Brianne argued, her expression unsure.

The other children nodded in agreement, "They weren't strong enough so LeGraine so Truefold sent them to live with new families."

Samuel shook his head, "You really believe that?"

"We have to," Max said but he didn't look like he did.

Samuel stared at Ansen, "You're brother's dead and you don't care."

The other boy punched him in the face, splitting his lip.

"That's enough!" a male voice called out and Ansen released Samuel. The boy wiped blood from his mouth with the back of his hand and watched as LeGraine stepped forwards, the children moving out of his way like a parting sea.

"You thought you could escape?" the man asked, his eyes flashing entirely black for a second, so quickly that Samuel wasn't sure he'd actually seen it happen, that he thought it was a trick of the light.

"Why did you kill Andrew?" Samuel asked through his rapidly swelling mouth.

"You're mistaken," LeGraine said sadly, "I took him to a new family. His powers were not strong enough to help fight for the greater good and he would have been unhappy here. He is in a better place now."

"I saw you kill him! I watched you!" Samuel cried out, "He didn't do anything and you murdered him!"

LeGraine frowned, "That's quite enough out of you."

Samuel cringed back when the man bent down and grabbed his throat. The boy raised his shackled hands, trying to pry LeGraine's hands away from his neck.

The man only released the boy when Samuel's eyes rolled up into his head and he went limp in his grasp.

Standing up again, LeGraine turned away from the unconscious child and stared at the small group behind him.

"What's going to happen to him?" Jacob asked, curious. This was the first time any of the children had left the school and he was sure that Samuel was going to be punished severely.

"I will have to talk to him," LeGraine said, "Make sure he hasn't told anyone about this place."

Jacob frowned, that didn't seem like much. He'd been beaten for much less than that.

LeGraine smiled, "You've never had a chance to really use your powers on a person, have you?"

Jacob and the others shook their heads. They were not allowed to use their powers against each other, only inanimate objects because they were not sure if the powers would be deadly.

"After I finish speaking with Samuel," LeGraine said, "You can test out your powers for the first time on a person."

Mr. Lane- Azazel to LeGraine and Truefold- had said that Samuel would surprise them and indeed he had, though not the way they had expected. LeGraine didn't care if Azazel liked Samuel, the boy was trouble. For all they knew, a battalion of hunters were on their way to the farmhouse right now, ready to exorcise them.

Although LeGraine would have preferred to snap the boy's neck right then and there, he wanted to teach Samuel a lesson that would last a long time.

W

Samuel coughed weakly and opened his eyes. He startled at the sight of LeGraine crouching before him.

The boy shoved himself into a sitting position and gulped, his throat throbbing with pain as he swallowed.

"What did you tell them?" the man asked.

"Who?" Samuel asked; his voice scratchy and hoarse.

"Don't play dumb with me, boy!" LeGraine snapped, "The Winchesters! How much did you say?"

"I didn't tell them anything," Samuel answered. He looked around himself and saw that he was in the cellar of the basement, where disobedient children were often locked as punishment.

LeGraine stared at Samuel as though trying to decide if he was telling the truth or not.

"You didn't hurt them, did you?" the boy asked. He didn't know if LeGraine would harm Dean or his father but he already knew that he would kill without so much as blinking an eye.

LeGraine smiled, "They're alive for now. But how long they remain alive depends on what you told them."

"I didn't say anything," Samuel repeated, "They don't know anything." He hoped that LeGraine believed him. He didn't want to be responsible for the Winchesters' deaths. He already felt guilty enough for Andrew's murder.

"Are you going to kill me?" he asked, unable to hide the fear in his voice.

"No," LeGraine said, "Lucky for you, I believe you're telling the truth."

Samuel slumped with relief. He wondered if LeGraine was just going to beat him for running away.

The man leaned forward and fiddled with the collar of Samuel's t-shirt for a moment, "Such nice new clothes. It's a shame they'll get blood on them."

Bangor, Maine-1999

"I think you're right, Dean," John confessed as they headed back towards the motel through the forest.

"About what?" his son asked, confused.

"About Samuel," John said, "I think he is Sammy. Really."

Dean's eyebrows rose in shock, "What made you change your mind?"

Not wanting to tell Dean about the strange dream, John simply said, "I thought about what you said and I think you're right. It all fits."

Dean let out a breath. Sammy. Having John believe it as well somehow made everything even more real. His father didn't think he was just trying to find some sort of surrogate for his lost baby brother.

Dean clenched his hands into fists. Demons again! What the hell did they want with Sammy?

They had to find him. They just had to!

But memories of Sam's first kidnapping made Dean's heart ache and a lump form in his throat; the fruitless months of searching before John finally took Dean to one side and explained that his baby brother- his four-year old brother- was almost certainly dead and that there was no use in looking for him anymore.

Dean shook his head to try and dislodge the horrible recollection. If Sam had managed to escape the demons once he could do it again.

Besides, now John was sure that his youngest was alive he would stop at nothing to get him back.

"We'll go to Bobby's," John said from behind Dean, planning out loud, "Track demon signs and get Sam back."

Dean didn't say anything; John might not have realized it but they were repeating the actions of the past- the long, silent drive to Sioux Falls and the months of searching- and something told the younger man that the outcome would be exactly the same.

Author's Note:

1. Chapter title comes from an Iron Maiden song of the same name.

2. Thanks to Dobby'sPolkaDottedSocks, Demon2Angel, Sivadkristal1447, cold kagome, MysteryMachen, L.A.H.H, anon, mb64, SamDeanLover28, Leia96, BranchSuper, babyreaper, sarah, Samstruck, doyleshuny, SPN Mum, Allen92909, Souless666, Sammygirl12312 for reviewing.

3. Thanks to everyone who alerted, followed or favourited.

4. The other 'special' children I mentioned- Ian, Brianne, and Lucas- are not in the show but I added them so that there wouldn't be so few kids at the school.

5. Please leave a comment!