A/N: Yes! Friday at last! Man, can't wait for tomorrow!
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Advent - December 16th
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Ash is tense, standing stiff in the middle of his throne room.
Sam has no idea what to do.
Well, technically, he doesn't really have to do anything, because he has no idea what's wrong. But it just doesn't feel right if he tries to let this one slide. Like he's not being a good friend.
He's not quite sure how, specifically, with the details.
But it's true.
Sam shifts and then edges around until he can look Ash in the eye, rather than stare at his profile.
"Ash?" He asks.
Ash twitches and then focuses his gaze on Sam.
"What did you give up?" He asks, and his voice comes out strangled.
Sam frowns and moves forward, "What?" he asks, knowing that this is important, but not knowing how important.
Ash opens and closes his mouth and then, to Sam's horror, his shoulders slump and he looks so helpless that Sam can't help but grip his arm.
Ash reaches up and lightly brushes his fingertips across Sam's throat. Heat curls low in Sam's belly when he realises what Ash is touching, and just who sucked the bruise there.
And what he looked like straddling Sam, half-cast in shadows and grinning.
It takes more than he thought he possessed to stand still under Ash's touch. Let Ash run his fingers across over-sensitised skin.
Eventually, though, it gets too much and Sam turns his head into the caress, knowing that his breath is brushing across Ash's exposed wrist.
Ash sucks in a shaky breath and cups his hand over the bruise. It's hot against Sam's skin, burning like a brand.
"Ash," Sam says, and then doesn't say anything else because he doesn't know what to say. How does he make this better? How does he explain?
"Tell me he didn't…" Ash says, his voice low and cracking, "tell me…"
Sam briefly closes his eyes. Thoughts of oh God running through his head. He takes a deep breath and opens his eyes to see Ash looking pained and jumping to all the wrong conclusions because-
Because Ash has been through something horrific and it's the only conclusion he can jump to first.
Anger and pain and helplessness rushes through Sam's body and he has to take another breath to prevent him grabbing a shotgun and going after whoever hurt Ash so badly. He doesn't even care if he has to summon a spirit to dole out punishment.
Once the roaring in his ears subsides, Sam leans forward and cups Ash's face and says, staring straight into his eyes, "Nothing happened to me."
Sam can see Ash beginning to frown and cuts him off.
"Nothing happened to me that I didn't…er…instigate. In the first place."
Sam can't help the flush as Ash's eyebrow slowly climbs his forehead. He coughs awkwardly.
"Sam?" Ash asks.
Sam really doesn't want to answer the unasked question, but figures that he pretty much has to.
"I," he says, clearing his throat and dropping his hands from Ash's face, "I…may have kissed him first."
Ash's eyes widen comically and yet, all Sam wants to do is sink through the floor.
"I…thought he was a demon…"
"I told you he wasn't." Ash points out.
Sam makes a strangled noise and fidgets, "Yeah. Yeah, but…but I forgot and his eyes were black and that's just demon, so…"
"So you kissed him?"
Sam glances to the ceiling and whispers a prayer. It isn't answered and he has to turn back to Ash's confused but amused eyes.
"Well I…that's what you do with a crossroad demon!" He protests, "You kiss them and it seals the deal and that's what I thought I had to do!"
Ash's tentative smile drops from his face at the reminder.
"What did you give him, Sam?"
Sam mumbles something under his breath. Ash just waits patiently until he repeats himself.
"Alright," Sam eventually says, "I agreed to work for him. As a member of the Hellchasers."
Ash presses his lips together hard enough that his mouth becomes a thin white line.
"It's not so bad," Sam says, "It's pretty much what I've been doing anyway. You know. Hunting demons. And it's not like Dean didn't sign on for a deal like it."
Sam can see Ash's jaw working for a few moments before he sighs.
Sam hates to see Ash so down and reaches down and tugs on his wrist, "Come on, it's not like I don't know what I'm doing here."
"Yeah," Ash says, but he doesn't sound so sure.
Sam lightly squeezes the wrist in his grasp, "Come on," he smiles, a slow curl of warmth that Ash mimics after a seconds pause, "trust me."
Ash glances down at his captured wrist and then back up at Sam.
"Yeah," he says again, warmer this time, "yeah, okay."
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Thorn's throne room is blessedly empty when he gets back.
Good, he can't really be bothered dealing with over-excitable minions right now. Handling Dean's soul is giving him a headache and he doesn't even want to add jittery sycophants to that cocktail.
He slumps in his seat and eyes the soul in his hands with a margin of disgust.
Even through the gauntlets he can feel the memories. Dean has one strong soul to get past his armour like that. He'd feel impressed but he's just spent who knows how long being assaulted by mindless crap he did not need.
Thorn does not care about Dean.
He sighs and tips the soul until it is cradled in one palm, and then tries to extract his other hand so he has one free to call Ash.
It's easier said than done.
Dean's soul clings to his palm and fingers and Thorn has to shake his hand until it falls with a squelch, tendrils still clinging to his gauntlet.
"Urgh." Thorn pulls a disgusted face, wiping his hand on his cloak. "This is why I hate souls."
Hand now free and clean he reaches for his mobile. Only belatedly realising that he's still wearing his armour and he doesn't have pockets.
He rolls his eyes and clicks his fingers, his phone materialising in the air in front of him, allowing him to snatch it before it falls. He flicks it open and calls Ash who answers on the third ring.
"Got your soul." He says tersely, eyeing Dean's soul warily as it starts to jiggle about on its own, "You coming here or shall I come-"
He doesn't even get to finish his sentence when he's practically sucked into Ash's realm. He staggers, trying not to fall on his arse when the chair beneath him suddenly disappears.
And if he didn't know any better, then he'd say that Ash did that on purpose.
"Oi!" He says, straightening and thanking good genes for the strength in his thighs that allow him to do that without his arms, "What do you th-"
He cuts himself off when he looks up to see Ash and Sam practically plastered against one another. Ash has one hand curled possessively around Sam's throat and Sam is clinging to Ash's other wrist.
Rage makes Thorn's stomach clench hard and he has to grit his teeth to prevent blowing up at them, glaring at Ash who glares right back.
He keeps reminding himself that the deal is now complete and Sam belongs to him now. Not Ash. Not anyone.
Sam is the first to move. He makes a soft "oh" when he catches sight of the soul burning steadily in Thorn's palm and takes a step towards it, his hand outstretched like he wants to touch.
Thorn and Ash react at the same time. Thorn pulls the soul tight to his chest and Ash grabs Sam's wrist and stops him from getting any closer.
Sam looks at both of them with the most pathetically betrayed expression on his face.
"Sorry, Sam." Ash says, "But you can't touch it."
Sam pouts. "But that's my brother," he argues.
"Ash's right," Thorn forces himself to admit, even though it hurts on some level. "You can't touch it."
"But why?"
Ash tugs Sam's wrist to get his attention. "Sam," he says, "souls…well…"
"They burn." Thorn cuts in when it looks like Ash is having difficulty finding the right words. "They burn with an intensity that would char your flesh."
Sam blinks, and then looks at Dean's soul in disbelief.
Thorn doesn't blame him. The soul doesn't really look like it's on fire. It kind of looks like half melted putty that's glowing with a soft white light.
Nevertheless, that doesn't mean it isn't dangerous.
Humans were never meant to handle souls that weren't their own.
"If you touch it," Ash adds, "in its raw state. You'll most likely drop it and that would be…"
"Bad." Thorn finishes. "Very, very bad."
"Destroying Dean forever bad." Ash clarifies.
"Oh," says Sam. His voice wistful as he stares at his brother's soul. So close and yet so far.
There's a moment where everyone looks at the soul, happily wobbling away by itself, projecting images straight into Thorn's brain. Like he needs more of those. Though he seems to have progressed from random bar hopping to the one-night stands which…isn't much of an improvement.
Thorn stands by his first evaluation.
Dean Winchester is a bit of a man-slut.
Eventually Thorn has enough.
"Okay, so what now?" He asks.
Ash blinks and then grimaces. "Ah, right." He says and then clicks his fingers. Immediately there's a body lying on a marble alter between Thorn and Sam.
It can only be Dean.
Thorn rolls his eyes at the dramatics and strides over to stand next to the corpse. Sam mimics his actions, Ash following, until they're all clustered around Dean head and chest.
Thorn glances from the soul to Dean to Sam and says, "With this, the deal is complete. You ready for that?"
Sam swallows, once and then nods determinately.
Thorn shrugs and, without further ado, shoves the soul back into Dean's chest.
Dean's whole body arches up, his eyes and mouth opening. Bright white light streams from underneath his skin, bleaching him until Thorn can see almost every bone in Dean's body.
It's almost too bright, even for Thorn, and Ash grabs Sam and covers his eyes.
And then everything cuts out and Dean slumps back onto the table. Looking exactly like he did before he tried to emulate a disco ball.
No one moves.
"Dean?" Sam says tentatively, but there's no answer.
Huh.
Well that's…weird.
Something is supposed to be happening.
Ash glances at Thorn. "Maybe you put it in wrong?"
"It's not a fucking battery!" Thorn snaps, "You can't just put it in backwards!"
Ash looks like he's going to snap back when Dean gives a huge gasp and arches again, his eyes wide.
"Dean!" Sam calls, leaning over his brother, hands hovering, obviously wanting to touch but being unsure whether it would hurt Dean or not. "Dean."
Dean rolls over towards Sam, curling up on his side and begins to cough.
Sam gets over whatever reservations he's had and grips his brother's shoulder.
Dean's too busy coughing to say anything that will reassure Sam, but he reaches up and grips Sam's hand.
"Dean." Sam says again and, against all odds, Thorn feels something soften in his chest.
###
Despite everything, Dean is not happy when he finds out what Sam has done to save his soul.
Thorn would almost be amused by the brothers spat if not for one thing. Dean is trying to talk Sam out of going with Thorn.
"I can't believe you did this!" Dean says, waving his arms above his head.
It's about the fifth time they've gone through this argument and they both get more dramatic with each run through.
"It's not like I've sold my soul, Dean!" Sam points out.
"That's not the point!" Dean waves his arms a bit more.
"I think that's exactly the point, Dean!"
Thorn cannot help but notice that Sam flushes an interesting shade of pink when he's angry and or frustrated.
"Sammy-" Dean says, but Sam has obviously had enough because he makes a slashing motion with his hand and cuts him off.
"Dean. You sold your soul to Artemis." He says, jaw clenched, "All I've done is agreed to work for someone who has a group that hunts demons. Please explain to me how that is any different to what we've been doing for the past how many years?"
Dean's jaw works in frustration as his hands drop back down to his sides. His shoulders are still tense and Thorn can see he wants to carry on trying to shout sense into his brother but has been thwarted by Sam's reasonable question.
Thorn leans closer to Ash, his arms crossed over his chest, and murmurs "It's almost as good as TV."
He totally deserves the dirty look Ash shoots at him.
Thorn grins and straightens, waiting to see where this argument will go next. He might not be happy with Dean right now, but he's secure in the knowledge that Sam knows he now belongs to him.
And Thorn knows that Sam will uphold his word.
"I'm not going to be there."
Dean's admission takes all of them by surprise.
Sam looks torn, frozen between hanging back and wanting to hug his brother who has hunched in on himself. "Dean…that's…"
Dean clears his throat and straightens, "Yeah, well…its true isn't it?"
Sam swallows and shoves his hands into his pockets, hunching his shoulders.
"You're going to be gone, Sam." Dean says quietly, "Working with these guys I know nothing about and I'm not going to be there because, in case it's escaped your notice, I'm human again. No more snazzy powers for me to help me keep up with you."
"That didn't stop you before-" Sam says but Dean interrupts him with a sigh.
"It's different, Sam." He says seriously, "You've sold yourself to him and…damn it, I'm not going to be there."
Sam just stares at his brother helplessly, then he turns that gaze on Thorn who is completely unprepared to deal with it. He fakes it pretty well though, if he does say so himself, by raising an eyebrow at Sam and saying, "Dean's human. There's nothing that interests me about him."
Dean flinches but pushes himself through it saying "See, Sammy? I'm not going to be allowed to be there for you now. That's what's different."
Sam bites his lip and looks like he's rethinking the whole deal.
Oh no. Thorn cannot let him get away with this. Even though there's no way out he still doesn't want this sort of negativity from him.
He takes an abortive step forward and rubs a hand over his head. Damn it, how the fuck is this his life now? When had he actually started to care about this type of crap?
Normally he'd just steamroll over anything that he didn't like and not care! But oh no, not anymore!
He sighs and reluctantly says, "Well, it's not like I'm going to be keeping him locked away in my mansion all the time. He's going to need-" he has to swallow a few times to get the rest of the sentence out "-someplace to stay in the mortal realm."
Sam's answering smile does not make up for that.
At all.
And Ash nudging him makes Thorn want to punch him in the face.
"Really?" Sam asks and oh man is he screwed.
Thorn glares sullenly off to the side. "Yeah."
Dean's glancing between them, suspiciously, but he just nods and says "Alright then, let's go home. We should probably update Bobby."