Deuce and Damien
Chapter 8
Disclaimer: see chapter one

Caleb quickly stood, placing himself between Dean and the woman approaching, unlike Dean, Caleb wasn't willing to just believe it was Mary. "Stop right there." The teen ordered, not wanting a potential threat any closer to them, unsure how he could defend them, especially if he was actually inside Dean's mind.

"I'm no threat Caleb; I've come because my son needs me." If Caleb was surprised that Mary knew his name he tried not to show it. Smiling slightly at the flash of uncertainty in the older boy's eyes, Mary spoke again. "Yes, I know who you are and why you are here. My son needed help, you heard him, he feels safe with you, knows you will protect him."

Dean couldn't contain himself any longer as he jumped from the table and ran to his mother, easily evading Caleb's attempt to grab him, "Mommy!" Mary knelt down and soon found her arms full of her five-year old son, "Mommy…" Dean sobbed into her shoulder as he clung tight to her.

Mary's eyes filled with tears as she held the small boy, standing she felt his legs snake around her waist, "I've got you baby." She whispered, "I've missed you." Caleb noticed a tear slip from the woman's closed eyes.

"Why'd you go away mommy?" Dean's voice cracked as he pulled back and looked at mother, placing his small hands on either side of her face. The teen watching felt his throat clog with emotion as he remembered the image of his own mother in Bobby's junk yard; he knew exactly how Dean felt about his mother's absence in his life.

"Oh, baby, mommy didn't want to go, but I had to protect you and your brother." Mary said.

"From the Demon?" Caleb watched a shocked expression crossed Mary's face as she glanced at him, then back to her son.

"Dean, what made you think that?" Mary had prayed her son's would never know what was behind that terrible night; it was a secret she prayed would never come to light.

Dean looked down, not meeting his mother's gaze, "I heard daddy talking about it and that nice lady said it was something evil."

Again Mary sought out Caleb for a possible explanation. Shrugging his shoulders slightly the teen commented, "Apparently nobody realized he was within earshot when they were talking."

Nodding, Mary looked back at her son, "You were always good at sneaking into places you shouldn't weren't you?" The blond-haired woman looked up again, "He would always sneak into a room and hide in a corner, trying to figure out what was going on, made it hard to keep Christmas and birthday surprises a secret." she smiled sadly.

Looking toward Caleb then back to his mother, Dean asked her a question that Caleb hadn't answered for him, "Mommy, is Caleb evil?"

Mary watched the teen pale at the child's question. He had hoped that the small boy had forgotten that the teen had avoided the topic after his episode earlier. "Why would you think that baby?" Mary asked.

"His daddy and another man were arguing and they mentioned the word Demon and from what daddy said that's evil." Dean kept looking between his mother and Caleb who had sat back down on the table, again looking like he was gonna be sick. Dean squirmed to get out of his mother's arms as he ran back toward the older boy, Mary following. "Caleb?"

Looking at the small child before him, it tore at his heart to see such concern behind the moss-green eye's, especially when the child still seemed worried whether Caleb was evil or not. "I'm good Deuce."

Mary sat down beside the teen, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Are you sure?" Her warm touch reminded Caleb of the feel of his mother's hand on his cheek in the junkyard. He desperately wanted to lean into the touch, a mother's touch.

"I'm okay." Caleb straightened, taking a few deep breaths.

Dean climbed up into the small space between his mother and Caleb and looked up at Mary, "Mommy?"

Mary couldn't help but run her hand through the teen's hair, before placing her hand on her son's, "No honey, Caleb's not evil. Some bad things have happened in his life, taken those he loved away from him, but they were not his fault." She made a point to look the teen in the eye's, her green eye's looking so much like the small boy beside him, "No matter what his family history reveals, no matter what anyone say's. He is very special and can do many special things, many which he is only now learning about, but he's not and will never be evil." Mary held the teens gaze a moment longer before Dean's voice broke the spell.

"Good," Dean wrapped his arm around Caleb's and leaned into the teen, "Because I like him, he makes me feel safe," The small child looked up at his mom, "just like you did."

Caleb didn't know what to think, the intensity of which Mary had looked at him and had spoken those words made him want to believe what she said was true, then the declaration that Dean had just made, the feeling was like nothing he had ever felt. To know that Dean felt that way about him, it explained some of why the smaller child always followed him around, but the moment Dean looked up at him, as the words left his mouth, Caleb felt his breath hitch, the look of unwavering trust reflected in the moss-green gaze humbled the teen like nothing ever had.

Mary watched the emotions pass over the older boy's face, knew that for the first time in a long time Caleb didn't feel the overwhelming despair that had seemed to hang around the boys neck like a chain. She noticed that for the first time Caleb seemed to feel he was meant for something good, that he had a purpose. Again laying a hand on the teen's shoulder, Mary looked at the older boy as she commented on her son's revelation, "I'm glad you like him around baby, he's meant to be around you and your brother, to help take care of you."

Caleb nodded slightly as he seemed to understand what Mary was saying, just like his mother had commented, Dean was meant to come into his life, just as he was meant to be apart of Dean's. However Dean's next question perplexed the teen, especially with what Mary had just said, "Can I call you Damien?"

"What?" Caleb asked as he looked down at he small boy, "Where did that come from?"

Dean looked at the teen, a look like he was trying to sort something out, trying to understand what he had been told. "Like that movie you watched at Pastor Jim's." The confused look by Caleb prompted Dean to continue, "About the little boy that bad things happened around, that people thought it was his fault and somebody saved him when that guy tried to hurt him."

Understanding suddenly dawned on Caleb; a few weeks ago he had watched the movie in question. It had been late one night and the teen couldn't sleep so he had snuck downstairs at Jim's, while flipping channels he had found the movie. Apparently it was one of those times Dean had been around and the teen hadn't noticed. Of course Dean wouldn't have understood the movie, that the small boy in it had actually been evil. Dean only say terrible things happening to the people around the boy, but didn't see how the boy could have been connected and apparently Dean had heard the comments about Daniel Elkins trying to hurt Caleb and Mac saving him, so in the five-year olds mind the boy in the movie's life seemed to parallel Caleb's in a strange sort of way.

Looking up at Mary, it was her turn to shrug her shoulders, not sure how the teen should answer, but seeming to understand her son's child-like logic. Again looking into the eyes of the small boy, eye's so full of trust and if Caleb was reading them correctly, even love; he smiled at the little boy. "Whatever you want Deuce, whatever you want."

Quickly getting to his knees, Dean wrapped his arms around Caleb's neck; it took the teen a moment to react. Unsure at first Caleb finally wrapped his arms around the small boy, for the first time since coming into Mac's life; Caleb finally felt he had found his purpose. He finally felt like a big brother.

Dean released his hold and jumped down from the table, grabbing his mother's arm he started to pull her, "Mommy, come look at the horses." He pulled again then ran toward the corral, climbing up on the fence; the heavy conversation that had just transpired seemed to quickly fade into the background as the energetic five-year old again made his appearance.

Mary smiled as Dean took off, standing, she felt a hand on her arm. Turning she came face to face with a very worried looking Caleb, "Is Dean dying?" It had been a fear that had settled in the pit of his stomach the moment the small boy had asked if Caleb had a vision of him, then with Mary's appearance it had knotted tighter.

Mary looked toward her son, then sad eye's met the teens, "I'm not sure, it's going to be up to him." With that Mary started toward the corral, Caleb feeling the vice tightening on his heart just a little more.