Katie sat comfortably in the back of the impala listening to Dean hum along with the radio. It had been a week since target practice at Bobby's and they had just come off of a hunt for an angry spirt and were now on their way to Ohio. She had done very well on the hunt. She had good instincts and was quick on her feet.
"What are we hunting exactly?" Katie asked Sam.
"Demon possession." Sam answered, "Three people dead in the last week, police are classifying them as suicides."
Huh, she thought, this could be a dangerous one.
"And, you." Dean said pointing at her, "Are going to be extremely careful. You hear me?"
"I hear ya Dean." She sighed, "No need to go all paternal."
Dean grumbled to himself and Sam smiled at his disgruntled expression. Dean mumbled something about not being paternal and they lapsed back into companionable silence.
They had been on the road for a couple more hours when they pulled into a small shipping town motel parking lot. "Wake up. We're here." Dean said to Katie and Sam who had fallen asleep not long before.
Katie and Sam gathered their duffle bags together while Dean went to go get them a room. "You need to tell him." Sam said to her while she reached into the backseat to get her phone.
"Not now Sam." She said shortly.
"No, you need to tell him." Sam persisted.
"Drop it." She snapped as Dean came into sight with a motel key card.
She dropped her bags onto the armchair next to the table. "Who you sharing with?" Dean asked her over his shoulder talking about where she was going to sleep.
"You" she replied, she wasn't going to share with Sam if he was going to keep insisting she tell Dean about college. "I'm taking a shower."
Sam and Dean mumbled their consent while they pulled their things out of their bags.
She stepped out of the bathroom an hour later her hair dried and in her pajamas. Sam had all his research spread out over the table and he and Dean were looking it over. Dean looked up from the laptop, "Finally." he said and walked past her into the bathroom. She heard the water turn on a few seconds later.
She avoided Sam's eyes as she sat down in front of the computer. She tapped away at it for a minute before Sam sighed.
"You're going to be 18 in a month, squirt." Sam said to her.
She looked up at him and smiled, "Yeah."
"You want to do anything special? You know maybe go back to Bobby's and call a couple of other Hunters for a little party?" He asked her.
God no, she thought. "Naw I'd rather just spend it with my brothers."
"Kay." Sam said.
She sighed, they would be looking for the demon early tomorrow after breakfast. "Goodnight Sam."
"Night." She laid down on her side of the bed unable to close her eyes and sleep, she had a bad feeling about this hunt but she wasn't about to mention it to her brothers. She stared at the comforter that she pulled over her head long after Dean had laid down next to her. Late into the night she had finally fallen into a fitful sleep.
She woke when Dean got out of bed and started talking to Sam. She grunted, pulled the covers back and sat up yawning. Sam looked at her with concern, "You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, just tired. I didn't sleep well." She said groggily rubbing her eyes. Her long straight hair tickled her face and brushed it back angrily.
"I know. You kept tossing and turning all night." Dean said sarcastically.
Katie got dressed quickly trying to shake the ominous feeling that had crept up on her the night before. She and her brothers sat in a diner a half hour later. "Where are we looking first?" She asked Dean with a mouthful of eggs.
"Attractive." He commented, "Old fishing warehouse down by the dock. One of the bodies was found there."
She groaned internally, great the smell of rotten fish and demons, lovely.
Dean pulled the car over in a dirt lot in front of the warehouse. The trio got out of the car and came around to the trunk. Sam and Dean grabbed their guns, salt and holy water. Sam handed Katie a flashlight and Dean gave her a serious look before he held out a gun to her. She took in carefully and slipped into the back of her jeans. Dean closed the trunk and started off towards the warehouse with Katie and Sam trailing behind.
Dean broke the lock on the front door easily and he slipped inside. Katie followed after Sam and pulled her gun out keeping it ready in her hand. They searched a few hallways and Sam and Dean walked through the doorway into the main warehouse room. Katie was a few feet behind them. She paused for a moment and then lifted her arm pointing her gun at the back of Dean's head a few feet in front of her.
"Dean." She called.
"What?" He asked and turned around. He looked at her warily and he lifted his hands in the air, with his gun in one hand. Sam turned around and gasped.
"Katie what are you doing?" he asked in shock.
"Don't be stupid Sam, what does it look like I'm doing." She laughed arrogantly. She looked down and closed her eyes for a moment. She raised her head and opened her eyes revealing yellow irises.
"No." Dean groaned as Sam said, "Not you."
"Let her go you bastard." Dean said angrily letting his arms drop down.
"Now Dean is that really how you talk to your baby sister." Yellow eyes said in a tauntingly in their sister's voice.
"Let her go, or I swear Ill kill you." Sam growled.
"If you kill me you kill Katie." The demon said.
"She would rather be dead then let you live in her body." Dean yelled.
"Would she? You don't know her very well Dean." Dean glowered at the demon as it ket talking, "You don't even know that Daddy's favorite kid isn't going to college, because of you."
"Bastard." Sam yelled tears running down his cheeks. "Just let her go."
"Why would I do that Sammy boy? You're just angry that Daddy loved me more than you big brother." Katie's voice said.
"You're not our sister." Dean yelled.
"Oh yeah?" The demon raised Katie's arms in an inviting gesture, "Then use that colt in your hand and kill me."
"Don't tempt me." Dean growled aiming the gun at his sister's possessed body.
"Shoot me Dean, shoot the little angel girl. She'll be joining mommy and daddy soon enough anyway." The demon laughed.
Dean fired and the bullet hit Katie's body in the stomach knocking her onto the floor.
Sam and Dean watched in horror as Katie's eyes switched back and forth from yellow to blue. They settled on blue and Katie cried out, "Dammit Dean, shoot!"
Dean held the gun out staring at her in horror.
"Hurry up! Kill it! I can't hold it much longer." She yelled in pain. he teeth clenching with the effort of holding Yellow Eyes in.
"Don't do it Dean." Sam yelled.
"Ahhhh." Katie screamed as black smoke poured out of her mouth. When the demon was gone she fell back weakly onto the ground. Dean ran to her side and landed on his knees.
"She's still alive." He yelled. He gathered her into his arms and started for the door at a run Sam following behind him. They both had tears running down their faces.
Sam got into the drivers seat and they peeled out heading for the nearest hospital.
On the road Dean was holding his hands to her bleeding wound when she opened her eyes blindly. "Dean." She whispered.
Sam looked over in shock and Dean said, "I'm here, kid you're going to be ok."
She mumbled something unintelligible.
"What?" Dean asked desperately.
"You idiot." She said weakly.
Dean laughed halfheartedly tasting salt water on his tongue.
"You should have shot it..." She trailed off.
Dean leaned his ear to her mouth, she wasn't breathing. "Sam!" He shouted.
Sam slammed his foot on the gas and spun into the ER parking lot. Dean threw open the door and climbed out. Sam ran ahead inside and started yelling. Dean came in with his sister's lifeless body in his arms. "She's not breathing!"
An ER doctor came running over as Dean laid her onto an available gurney. "I need a crash cart!" He shouted over his shoulder.
Sam and Dean were held back by a nurse as the doctor shocked their sister with the paddles. "Charge to 300. Damn, 360."
The monitor stayed flat and Sam crouched down and held his face in his hands in anguish. Dean was sobbing practically ripping his hair out with his fingers.
Beep Beep. To Sam and Dean it was the most beautiful sound in the world. A nurse came over to the hysterical brothers. "We are taking your sister into to surgery now. I'll have another nurse give you some paperwork and escort you to the waiting room.
The numb brothers let themselves be ushered into a room filled with chairs. they were unable to answer the questions asked to them and were left alone to worry about their baby sister.
After an hour of tense silence Dean let out a surprised gasp.
"What?" Sam asked him in a dull voice.
Dean was staring down at his pocket where his cell phone was pushing itself out of his pocket. he and Sam watched it in shocked silence as it flipped open and settled into his hand. The screen changed to a blank text message and letters began appearing on the screen.
I still think you're an idiot. it read
Sam and Dean looked at each other wearing identical expressions of horror.
"Katie?" Dean asked weakly.
Duh.
"What.. How.. Are you..?" Sam questioned.
Don't worry, I'm not dead... at least not yet.
"Then how?" Dean said confused.
No idea I'm still in surgery though.
"Oh god, Katie this is my fault, I'm so sorry." Dean choked.
I forgive you :]
"I don't forgive me." Dean said darkly.
"Listen to her Dean she'll be fine." Sam encouraged.
Yeah Dean lighten up. I'll be fine.
"You don't know that."
No, I guess I don't but I'm more curious why Yellow Eyes called me little angel girl.
"Yeah what the hell was that about." Sam cut in with a frown.
"I don't know." Dean said honestly.
Huh well I guess we can talk abo
"Katie?" Sam asked after a few seconds went by and nothing more had been typed.
Dean looked at Sam with fear in his eyes. The sat in silence until a scrub nurse came out of the OR. "Family of Katie Young." She called.
"Young?" Sam asked Quietly while the nurse hurried over to them. Dean shrugged and looked at the nurse expectantly.
"Hi, we just got your sister out of surgery and she's stable." She said with a smile.
"thank God." Sam said quietly.
"there were some complications. The doctor stopped the bleeding from her wound but her heart stopped. We were able to restart it but we will have to monitor her closely for the next 24 hours." The nurse explained.
"When can we see her?" Dean cut in eagerly.
"You can follow me. She won't be awake for a few hours but you can sit with her." the nurse led them into a room in the ICU.
Katie lay on the bed with an IV in her arm, monitors on her chest and an oxygen line in her nose. Her dark hair contrasted sharply with her ghostly white pale face. Dean took the seat closest to her and held her hand lightly in both of his. He sniffed his nose and whispered, "God what did I do?"
Sam put his hand on Dean's shoulder, "It's not your fault Dean."
Dean looked at him angrily, "How can you even say that? I shot her."
Sam shook his head sadly, "You shot Yellow Eyes."
"Doesn't make a difference, she still got hurt."
Sam had no reply to that. They sat until the room started to get dark as night fell.
A light groan made them both leap to their feet. Dean reached out and cupped her face with his palm. She scrunched her nose and opened her eyes slowly.
"God, you're awake." Sam said in a relieved voice.
She looked around in confusion and her eyes settled on Dean's anxious face. "How do you feel?"
"Weird." She whispered, "Water?"
"Here." Sam said quietly and handed her the cup of water on the nightstand.
"Tired." She whispered and closed her eyes.
"Sleep,kid. we'll be here." Dean said quietly and kissed her forehead.