Disclaimer: Do not own Supernatural.
The door opened to see an African man standing there. He had dark skin and while his skin was wrinkled from age, his eyes had a young expression in them. "Can I help you?" He asked and Dean nodded, pulling out his badge and flipping it to reveal his name and agency. "You're feds?" The man asked in surprise. "What can I do to help you guys? I didn't realize I was doing anything that was worthy of you guys looking into."
"I'm Agent McKinley and this is my agent-in-training, Agent McLean," He told the man. "We're here to ask you a couple of questions about the case you were involved in a few years ago. The victim's name was Mary Worthington," He said. "What can you tell us about the case?"
The man stepped aside, allowing them to enter. "I was on the job for 35 years-detective for most of that. Now everybody packs it in with a few loose ends, but the Mary Worthington murder—that one still gets me."
Dean nodded. "What exactly happened? We know Mary was 19, lived by herself. We know she won a few local beauty contests, dreamt of getting out of Indiana, being an actress. And we know the night of March 29th someone broke into her apartment and murdered her, cut out her eyes with a knife."
The detective nodded. "That's right."
Athena spoke up. "See sir, when we asked you what happened, we wanted to know what you think happened." Dean glanced at her, quite impressed with the way she was presenting herself. She did play the part of an FBI agent very well.
The detective glanced around before going over to a filing cabinet and pulling out some papers in a manila folder. He handed it to Dean. "Technically I'm not supposed to have a copy of this." He motioned for Dean to open the folder to which he did. Inside was the same picture that he had printed out last night with Sam's help. "Now see that there? T-R-E?"
Dean nodded. "Yeah."
"I think Mary was trying to spell out the name of her killer," The detective told the two.
"You know who it was?" Athena asked.
"Not for sure. But there was a local man, a surgeon-Trevor Sampson." The detective pulled a paper out and it had a picture of a man on it. "And I think he cut her up good."
Dean took the picture and studied it. "Apart from the name, did you have any other reason to suspect him?" Dean asked.
"It's hard to say, but the way her eyes were cut out…it was almost professional," He said.
"But you could never prove it?" Dean asked.
The detective sat down. "No. No prints, no witnesses. He was meticulous."
"Is he still alive?" Dean asked.
"Nope." The detective sat down and sighed. "If you ask me, Mary spent her last living moments trying to expose this guy's secret. But she never could."
"Where's she buried?" Dean questioned.
The detective shook his head. "She wasn't. She was cremated."
"What about that mirror?" Dean asked. "It's not in some evidence lockup somewhere is it?"
Once again, the detective shook his head. "Ah, no. It was returned to Mary's family a long time ago."
"You have the names of her family by any chance?" Athena asked, speaking up again.
The detective nodded and walked over to the computer, printing out a list of the names of Mary Worthington's closest relatives. He handed it to Athena and Dean nodded at the detective. "Thank you for your help," He said before leading the way out to his car. "All right," He stated as he got in. "Let's head back to Adrie's apartment and see if they can help us figure anything out further."
While Dean and Athena sped back to Adriana's apartment, Sam had attempted to remove everything in the lounge and kitchen that was reflective in order to give Adriana a change of scenery. He had pulled down all her pictures, placing them in the garage and covered the windows with cloths. He led her out, holding her hand, enjoying the feeling of her fingers in his.
"Now Drie. If you see anything. ANYthing. You're to tell me. I don't care if you do it by screaming or what but you have to let me know." She nodded in understanding and lay down on the couch. The ringing of a cell phone broke the silence. Sam scrambled to find it, located it under a huge stack of research and answered it.
"Hello?" Adriana could hear the crackling of static on the other end, and the brief pauses as they replied. "Okay." Sam said and nodded, closing the phone. "That was Dean. They found something and they're on their way back now" he said in answer to Adriana's questioning look. She settled back on the couch rubbing her eyes. Sam looked over at her in concern. "You okay? They shouldn't be more than three hours."
"Yeah, my eyes are just sore, not sore like that, just generally sore. And I'm really tense."
Sam got up from his seat at the table. "Do you want a massage?" he asked.
Adriana's eyes lit up, a small fire returning to her usually burning sapphires. "Mmhmm." she murmured.
Sam crouched down behind her and placed his fingers on her shoulders, kneading gently. She closed her eyes, temporarily forgetting the dire situation she was in. "Maybe your eyes are sore because you're tired," He said quietly.
"I've been sleeping all day. That's about all I can do," She told him, her eyes still closed. "I don't wanna sleep anymore. I wanna do something. I wanna go out of this damn house and help you guys out on this case."
"Adrie. Right now you are the case. I'm not risking anything with you, okay."
Adriana's eyes met his. "Why do you care what happens to me so much?" she asked, curiosity in her voice.
Sam's jaw dropped as if she'd asked an incredibly stupid question. "Because. You're my best friend. You're family Drie! I would never leave you."
She smiled. "That's exactly how I feel about you."
"You understand me then?"
"Yes, I do. Sam... Do you still miss her?" She didn't need to say Jessica's name.
"Everyday. But you and Athena are the only woman I've been around for a long period of time since then." He smiled at her softly after a moment. "But you make it easier."
That was the truth. He didn't need to explain why because she didn't need an explanation. He stopped massaging her shoulders, but his hands remained where they had been as she leaned back against him. The door banged open and Sam jumped slightly, digging his hands into Adriana's shoulder. He quickly moved them to cover her eyes, regardless of what or who it might be.
"Relax, it's only me," Dean called as he walked in, dropping his car keys on the table. Athena followed him, still in her 'agent' outfit and quickly shut the door. Sam rolled his eyes, knowing Dean would've had something to do with her clothes, or rather, lack of. "Sorry for breaking up the deep moment," Dean said in a tone that indicated he wasn't sorry at all, when he saw Sam protectively leaning over Adriana.
"It was only as deep as your brain, Dean," Adriana retorted.
"In other words, not at all," Sam finished as he straightened up and stepped away from Adriana.
"Ouch. What's with all the animosity?" Dean asked, acting wounded. Athena crossed the room and adjusted a sheet that was beginning to fall down, giving Sam a small smile as she did so.
"So, what did you guys find out?" Adriana asked as she turned to face Dean and the others.
"Well, we found out that Mary Worthington was murdered in front of a mirror with her eyes cut out by a surgeon named Trevor Sampson," Dean stated, handing Sam a piece of paper. "That's the list of nearest family members."
Sam nodded and pulled out his cellphone. "So, we need to find out where that mirror went?" He asked.
Dean nodded. "Yep. That sounds about as much as we can do right now."
Sam gave a nod of his head before grabbing one of Adriana's phone books and looked up the first name on the list before dialing the number that was beside the name. "Hello? Hi. I'm Daniel Lynn and I heard you had a mirror that was very antique with you..." Sam described the mirror to the man then paused as he began to talk. "Oh really? Ah that's too bad Mr. Worthington. I would have paid a lot for that mirror. Okay, well maybe next time. All right, thanks." He hung up the phone and turned to Dean who was waiting for an explanation.
"So?" Dean pushed.
"So that was Mary's brother. The mirror was in the family for years, until he sold it one week ago to a store called Estate Antiques. A store in Toledo," Sam explained.
"So wherever the mirror goes, that's where Mary goes?" Adriana asked, looking between the two brothers and Sam turned to her.
"Her spirit's definitely tied up with it somehow," The younger hunter spoke.
"Isn't there an old superstition that says mirrors can capture spirits?" Dean asked and Athena nodded, feeling proud that she could help out with a bit of information.
"Yeah there is. Yeah, when someone would die in a house people would cover up the mirrors so the ghost wouldn't get trapped," She explained.
"So Mary dies in front of a mirror, and it draws in her spirit," Dean said.
"Yeah but how could she move through like a hundred different mirrors?" Adriana questioned and Athena glanced at her, wishing she knew what questions to ask so she could be more helpful like the blonde girl.
"I don't know, but if the mirror is the source, I say we find it and smash it," Dean told Adriana.
Sam shrugged, an unsure expression on his face. "Yeah... I don't know, maybe."
"So, the next step is, how do we find her?" Dean asked. The group fell silent, all considering ideas.
"We need to find the source mirror and summon her," Sam said quietly.
Dean turned on him. "Oh yeah? How do you propose on doing that. First of all, it has to be someone with guilt, and second, can you imagine the danger they'd be in."
"It's the only way," Sam replied grimly.
"I'll do it, she's already after me, all I'd need to do would be-" Adriana started.
"NO!" Both Sam and Dean cut her off.
Adriana looked at them both, glaring. "Look, I'm a hunter whether you like it or not."
Sam shook his head. "It's not happening, Drie. I'll do it. I'll summon her."
"Is this about Jessica, Sam?" Dean questioned. "You think that's your dirty little secret that you killed her somehow? Sam, this has got to stop, man. I mean, the nightmares and calling her name out in the middle of the night—it's gonna kill you. Now listen to me—It wasn't your fault. If you wanna blame something, then blame the thing that killed her. Or hell, why don't you take a swing at me? I mean I'm the one that dragged you away from her in the first place."
"I don't blame you," Sam said quietly.
"Well you shouldn't blame yourself, because there's nothing you could've done." Dean shook his head. He couldn't believe his brother was really wanting to summon Mary.
"I could've warned her."
"About what?" Adriana spoke up, quietly. "You didn't know what was gonna happen! And besides, all of this isn't a secret. It's not gonna work with Mary anyway."
Dean nodded his head. "I know all about it."
Sam shook his head. "No you don't."
Dean looked surprised. "I don't what?"
"You don't know all about it. I haven't told you everything," Sam replied quietly.
"What are you talking about?" Dean was clearly confused.
Sam smiled slightly, a teasing grin on his face. "Well it wouldn't really be a secret if I told you, would it?"
Dean shook his head. "No. I don't like it. It's not gonna happen, forget it."
Sam gave his older brother a determined look. "Dean, Adriana is gonna die unless we do something about it. And you know what? Who knows how many more people are gonna die after that? Now we're doing this. You've got to let me do this."
Dean knew his brother could be as stubborn as hell and the look in his eyes showed he wasn't backing down. "Fine. But I am going to be there Sam. And if you die, I swear to god I'll kill you."
Sam nodded but Adriana stood up angrily. "So what, it's okay for Sam to get hurt but not me? Why are you letting him do this Dean!" she said in a raised voice.
Dean shook his head sadly. "There's no other way, Drie."
"Yeah there is. There's me! Why are you listening to him?"
"For one thing, I know Sam can handle himself and for another, neither of us want to lose you."
"That's a bit rich! Maybe I don't want to lose Sam! And I can bloody well handle myself better than you ever could, Dean Winchester!" she screamed at him before storming across the room and slamming the door.
There was a pause. "I'll go. If you try, she'll slap you or kill you or something, not that you don't deserve it," Sam said, following her path. The door closed softly behind him and Athena and Dean could hear murmured voices.
"Well. This is awkward," Athena said quietly as she glanced around the room. "Dean, as much as I don't get along with her, you know you can't treat her like she's a baby. I mean, I get that she's like your baby sister, but you can't protect her from everything-especially with what you guys do."
Dean sighed. He knew Athena had a point, but that didn't mean he was going to tell her she was right. He rarely ever told anyone that. He crossed the room and knocked on the closed door softly. "Sammy, we gotta go."
Sam appeared at the door. "Just gimme a friggin' second will you?" he snapped before closing it.
"So. Hows this all going to work?" Athena asked.
"You'll be staying here with Adriana, there's too much risk to let her come."
"Dean, you're doing it again. The protective thing. You know she'll want to be there... Have you ever asked her if she likes Sam for more than a friend?" she questioned.
Dean looked up sharply. "Of course not. Why?"
Athena sighed. "Just the way she reacted... It was overly protective."
Dean shook his head. "He's her best friend, always has been, since she was three and he was four, the two of them were inseparable," He said. A light laugh escaped his lips as he thought back to all the memories of them all as kids. "We didn't make very many friends because we travelled around so much, moving from motel to motel." He sighed. Maybe that was one of the reasons he didn't get close to people. He didn't know how to have normal friendships because of how he grew up.
"Maybe she's beginning to see him as more than just a best friend?" Athena suggested softly as she glanced at the closed door to the room where Sam and Adriana were.
"Surely not," Dean muttered following her gaze. "But Sam claims he's still in love with Jessica! That's why he doesn't bang random chicks," Dean said, looking down guiltily at the last sentence.
"I don't know. It's possible to be getting over a person and still love them and love someone else. I wouldn't know, I've never been in love."
Silence engulfed the kitchen again, until movement was heard in the bedroom. Sam swung the door open, a smug look on his face. "We're leaving, Drie's staying and so is Athena," he said.
Dean's jaw dropped. "Dude, how is that even possible? She was completely psycho."
Athena, however, looked less surprised at this news and rolled her eyes knowingly at Dean, giving him an 'I told you so' look. "So, I just need to make sure she doesn't see her reflection and if she does, smash it?" Athena questioned.
Sam nodded. "Yep. That about covers it," He stated as he grabbed his duffel bag from off of a table and walked over to a small closet in a hallway. He pulled out a couple of crowbars and tossed them to Dean who put them into the bag before zipping it up. Dean gathered up the papers off of the table and put them in a folder before handing it to Sam as he walked up to him. "We got everything?" The young hunter asked as he grabbed the folder.
Dean nodded. "I think we're good. I'm gonna let Drie know we're leaving," He said before crossing the room and quietly entering into the blonde's bedroom where she was curled up onto the bed once again. He knocked on the wall beside the door softly. "Hey." He waited for her to glance up before continuing. "Look, I wanted to let you know we were on our way, and that we'd be back as soon as possible." He wanted to say he was sorry, but those words just wouldn't form on his lips, but she knew what he meant to say. She had been living with him and his expressions for almost eighteen years.
"I'm sorry too, Dean. I know you're just trying to protect me, but you gotta understand, sometimes I don't need protecting." Dean nodded, unable to speak and pulled her in for a hug, holding her close. He got up to leave. "Hey Dean? I can handle myself better than you," she said with a wink. Dean laughed. Adriana always had to have the last word, didn't she?
He walked out into the living room with the others. "All right. Let's go," He said, nodding at Sam who led the way to the front door. Dean turned around to Athena. "Keep her away from her reflection," He reminded her before disappearing out the door after Athena nodded, watching the guys drive off and hoping they hurried.
A little ways into the car ride, Dean turned to Sam. "So, how exactly did you get Drie to calm down enough to let us leave her?" He asked his little brother. Maybe Athena was right, maybe she wasn't, but he was determined to figure it out.
"How did I calm her down? Well, I spoke to her as opposed to yelling at her and I just let her rage out. It's worked before. I listened to her Dean. You should try it some time."
Dean rolled his eyes. "Sam. Can I ask you an odd question?" Dean said in a strangely serious voice.
"You can ask, but doesn't mean you'll get an answer," Sam replied warily. He knew Dean too well, he'd twist whatever he agreed to.
"If you had to choose between saving Drie or saving Jess, who would you choose?"
Sam turned to Dean, shock plain on his face. He opened and closed his mouth a few times. He didn't know how to answer that. He wasn't sure. He had known Jessica for only a few years, but he had built an emotional connection with her and had fallen in love. With Adriana, she had always been his best friend, always been there for him when he needed someone to talk to. He was able to himself around her, and he didn't have to lie about his life with her. She was someone he didn't have to build a connection with because the connection was already there.
Dean was waiting for an answer and Sam found he had one he could quite easily say in his head, but had trouble forming the words. He opted for a third option.
"Neither, I'd save you Dean. After all, we all know you can't 'handle yourself' and that's why you bring me along," he said, smirking slightly.
Dean glared at him, not happy that he had avoided his question and insulted him in one breath. "You keep telling yourself that, Sammy, the next time I save your sorry, sorry ass." The phone rang and Dean drove with on hand, skillfully maneuvering the Impala. "Y'ello?". With only the hum of the engine, Sam could strain to hear the words on the other end.
"Hey, how far are you?" It was Adriana's voice, and she asked it in merely a questioning tone, no concern.
Dean looked at his speedometer. "I reckon another half hour. We'll ring you when we get there Drie."
A heavy sigh on the other end caused the phone's speaker to vibrate with static. "You better. Bye Deanie."
Dean tossed his phone down with a little more force than was needed. "I hate that name!"
Sam laughed at his older brother. "Now you know how it feels. Maybe you'll stop calling me Sammy." He watched his brother's lips form a smirk.
"No. I'll still call you Sammy, Sammy." He grinned innocently as his brother who shook his head before turning his attention back to the road in front of them. It was getting late, and the sky was already beginning to go from light to dark.
Athena had decided that it would probably be best to talk and befriend Adriana since they were stuck in the apartment together for the next few hours. She walked into the blonde's bedroom and sat down beside her on the bed. "So, how'd you get mixed up in this life?"
Adriana shrugged. "I kinda grew up in it. It's all I've ever really known."
"But you didn't want it?"
"No, not at all. Neither Sam or I did. We were kids and we were raised as warriors." She looked down. "But I can't help that think maybe if I had of been a hunter, I could've saved Dad."
"Wasn't he killed by a demon?" Athena asked.
"Yeah," she said sadly.
"Well, aren't they really hard to kill?"
"What would you know about the supernatural?" Adriana asked, not accusing, just curious. Athena shrugged.
"I was talking to Dean, he kinda caught me up on the evil creatures in the dark side of it,"
Adriana seemed surprised but not unhappy. "You find all this interesting and fascinating, don't you?" She asked her and the dark-haired girl nodded.
"Are you going to start travelling with Sam and Dean again after this?" Athena asked the blonde, but she shook her head.
"I told you. I didn't want this life. I'm not gonna go back into it unless I absolutely have to," She said. "The boys can handle it on their own. They don't need me in the way."
"So you're just not going to see them again for six years or so?"
"How did you know that's how long I hadn't seen him for?" Adriana asked mildly.
Athena blushed slightly. "Oh, Dean and I were talking."
Adriana smirked. "Talking? Is that what they call it now days?" she said, jokingly.
Athena gave her a slight glare. "Very funny. We were talking!"
Adriana nodded. "Yeah. I believe you," She said, but her tone indicated she did anything, but believe what she said.
"Why didn't you like this life?" Athena asked. "I mean, it seems so cool!"
Adriana shrugged. "It can be exciting when you first start out... but if you're raised into this life... it's not fun. I was three when I started. Where most girls got a Barbie doll for their thirteenth birthday, I got a Colt 1911. Thirteen year olds should not be allowed to carry a firearm." She sighed, glancing down. "Sammy, Dean and I, we were raised as soldiers. We never got to live the life normal kids were allowed. The only friends we had were each other because we moved around so much."
"Well, then it's a good thing you're such good friends with Sam then" Athena said, probing subtly. "May I ask you a question" she continued.
"Sure thing" Adriana said.
"Did you ever... like Dean? As in likelike?" Athena asked, blushing slightly again. Adriana looked up, not exactly surprised.
"I did. I had a hell of a crush on him when I was about thirteen. But alas, he never saw me as anything other than 'Drie', his little sister. Which probably worked out well..." she said, trailing off cryptically. "Athena. I know you like him". Athena didn't respond, neither confirming nor denying.
Athena shook her head. "I just find him very attractive is all," She told the blonde who nodded her head in understanding. Dean was very attractive-there was no denying that.
Adriana smiled at her, and Athena found it rare that the blonde would grace her with a real smile that wasn't sarcastic. "If you stay around him long enough, you'll find yourself falling for him. It's impossible not to."
Athena blushed some more. "Right... I'll keep that in mind," She said quietly. She was already falling for him, for his looks and charms at least.
The phone broke the companionable silence and Adriana flipped it open with ease. "Hey Sam," she said after he spoke. There was a few minutes pause. "You better be careful. Because if you die, I'll kill you." Pause. "Oh believe me Sam, I'd make it possible," She said into the phone, deadly serious. "Okay, ring us as soon as I can look in a mirror without it cracking," she said before flipping the phone closed. "They found the antique shop with the mirror," she told Athena, who'd gathered this much fro eavesdropping on the phone call.
"So, what now we just sit here and wait? That's a bit unfair." Athena asked.
Adriana nodded in agreement. "I know. But Sam's stubborn and Dean's controlling and to be honest, I don't want to die just yet."
Dean held a flashlight over Sam's head as he slowly began to pick the lock to the antique mirror shop where the mirror they needed was. After a few more moments, Sam finally managed to get the door opened and he walked inside, shining his own flashlight around. Inside, there were more than a hundred mirrors lining the room. Some were hanging up and others were simply propped up against the walls. Dean stepped in behind Sam and groaned as he shone his flashlight around the room as well, silently hating his life.
"Well, that's just great," The older brother stated. He pulled the picture of Mary Worthington's dead body out so he could examine the mirror. He showed it to Sam before glancing back up at the mirrors. "All right, let's start looking."
The two brothers split up, each taking a different side of the store and began to look for the mirror they had just seen in the picture. As they searched, a light from an alarm flashed throughout the room as they walked around. Dean turned around, facing the direction Sam had gone and shone his flashlight on his brother's back, trying to get his attention. Sam, a few moments, turned around to face Dean, shielding his face with hands from the bright light.
"Maybe they've already sold it?" Dean suggested and Sam shrugged as he turned back around, shining his flashlight into a corner of the room, illuminating the exact replica of the mirror from the picture.
"I don't think so." He sighed as Dean walked over beside him and pulled out the picture to reveal it was the mirror they were looking for.
He nodded. "That's it." He sighed as he glanced up at Sam. "You sure about this?"
"As sure as I'll ever be" Sam said. He took a deep breath in and faced the mirror, preparing himself. "Bloody Mary. Bloody Mary". He paused and looked at Dean, determined. Dean had to mentally stop himself from dragging Sam away, from saving him "Bloody Mary". The words echoed away into silence, and both Sam and Dean stared into the mirror in trepidation. Nothing happened. Sam didn't relax, still tense. Bright white lights flashed across the antique store, making Dean and Sam spin quickly.
"I'll go check it out," Dean said as he began to step away, before turning back and handing his brother the crow bar. "Smash anything that moves, got it?"
Sam nodded grimly and clenched his fingers around the metal as Dean walked over to the door and peered out of the small window in it. "Crap." He groaned as he saw a cop car sitting out in front of the store. He set his crowbar down against the wall and stepped outside towards the police, holding his hands up slightly to show he wasn't dangerous.
"Hold it," One of the officers said as he studied Dean.
"Whoa, guys, false alarm. I tripped the system," Dean told the cops, hoping to lie well enough that they would just leave him alone so he could get back inside to Sammy.
"Who are you?" The other one asked.
"I'm the boss' kid," Dean told them.
The first police officer gave Dean a strange look. "You're Mister Yamashiro's kid?" He asked, obviously surprised.
Dean groaned inwardly. Crap. "Yeah. I'm adopted."
The second officer shook his head, not believing him. "You don't look like him," He said as he walked behind Dean.
"Like I said, I'm adopted."
The first officer shook his head. "Yeah." He didn't believe and Dean knew he was running out of time.
Dean glanced at the one in front of him, then behind him. "You know, I just—I really don't have time for this right now." He punched the cop in front of him first, then as the second one moved to grab him, he backhanded him then punched the first officer again. Both men fell to the floor and Dean didn't give them a second thought as he raced back inside to make sure Sam was still okay. He didn't know if he had broken the mirror or if Mary had even appeared, but he had to make sure his little brother was all right.
Sam had kept his focus on the mirror. Nothing. Nothing for seconds. Minutes. Something flickered in a mirror beside the big one and Sam flicked out and smashed it without thinking. He returned his gaze to the mirror with his heart pounding. Something in his reflection seemed off. He looked closer to see something trickling out of the corner of his eyes. He reached up to his eye and brought his hand away to find blood. Reflection Sam was wearing a demonic expression as it spoke.
"You killed her," it said as blood continued to pour out of its eyes, the flow untouched, the only difference from real sad.
"No," Sam said in a cracked voice.
"Yes you did. You killed her, you didn't warn her. You'd been having those dreams for months before she died," it continued and Sam's knees buckled, falling to the ground, his grip on the crowbar loosening. "You were so desperate to ignore them, to believe they were just dreams. How could you ignore them like that? How could you leave her alone to die? You dreamt it would happen!" Before it could continue with the guilt trip, Dean came in and smashed his crowbar through the mirror, shards flying everywhere.
He bent down beside Sam. "Sam? Sammy?" He asked as he held Sam's head in his hands, wiping some of the blood away.
Sam smiled weakly. "It's Sam."
Dean rolled his eyes then wiped some more blood away. "God, are you okay?"
Sam nodded. "Uh, yeah." He spoke weakly but Dean took that as a good sign that he was at least speaking.
He pulled Sam up to his feet and Sam's arm over his neck, and they began to walk out towards the front door. However, a noise behind them caused Dean to turn around, and they both say Mary slowly coming out of the frame of the mirror. She began to crawl over the broken glass that was laying on the floor from when Dean had smashed her mirror and a force unknown to the brothers, knocked them both onto the ground. They both began to feel blood trickle down their faces from their eyes, but before Mary could reach them, Dean reached over and grabbed a mirror, holding it so that it was in front of Mary, forcing her to see her own reflection.
Her reflection began to speak to her. "You killed them! All those people, you killed them!" It screeched to her. The guilt began to wash over herself, and she started to choke before melting into a pile of blood.
Dean slammed the mirror he was holding in his hands against the floorboards and it shattered, glass flying everywhere. He groaned, leaning back against the wood. "Hey, Sam?"
"Yeah?" Sam called back as he also laid back.
"This has got to be like…what? 600 years of bad luck?" He asked and Sam chuckled to himself, still laying on the ground, the blood on both of their faces slowly beginning to dry. Leave it to Dean to make a joke after almost dying. "Right then," Dean said, rolling over and hauling himself up, before giving Sam his hand and walking out of the store. The cops were still lying on the ground and Sam raised his eyebrows. Dean shrugged in reply.
"Better get home to our dear little Princess," he said, smiling.
"First, we have dear little princesses and second, you better call her right now. Knowing Adrie, she'll be out the door in a second." Dean tossed his phone at Sam, who fumbled and caught it before looking at Dean in confusion. "She'll want to hear from you that you're okay. I can give you a couple of minutes if you like, then we are OUTTA here" he said, swinging the door of his beloved Impala open. Sam hesitantly dialed the number and put the phone to his ear, listening to the dial tone.
After Sam had called to let the girls know they had reached the antique store, Adriana put the phone down with a groan. "I'm going to go insane! I just want something to do!" She exclaimed, throwing herself back against the bed. She was going to go insane if she had to keep herself locked up in her room with everything covered so she couldn't see her own reflection. She groaned again, just wanting to get out and help. But, she was useless in this case and that's what bothered her the most. She could have helped out, but Sam and Dean refused.
"They'll be done soon enough," Athena told the blonde who sat up suddenly.
"I need coffee. I'll be back," She said, pushing herself off of the bed.
Athena stood up as well. "I don't think that's a good idea," She said, but Adriana waved her off, heading for the kitchen.
"Sam already covered everything in here. I'll be fine, I promise," She said as she made her way into the kitchen and Athena came out to sit in the living room.
She sat on the couch and grabbed a bottle on nail polish, a deep dark red, the colour of blood. Adriana hummed to herself as she pulled the cups down and got the coffee out. She reached forward to flick on the kettle when she noticed some sort of mark on it. She tried to use her fingernail to chip it off, peering closer to see what it was. Her reflection looked warped in the silver metal of the jug. Too late, she realized she could see her reflection and found herself unable to pull away as her eyes began to tingle. The jug showed two long streams of red liquid, exiting the corners of her eyes. The speaking began, the terrible screeching voice, except this time, Athena seemed not to notice. She wondered if the voice was actually there or all in her head as she collapsed to the floor, her knee's smashing into the tile.
"You killed him. You weren't there. Selfish little girl, YOU KILLED HIM!" Once again, Adriana brought her hands to her eyes, feeling the blood pour out more. A short gasp escaped her, and Athena turned at the sound, seeing a red liquid over her hands.
"Do you want some nail polish remover?" she asked, not realizing the situation. Then she saw the blood all down her arms, pooling on the floor and shot up.
"Adriana. Adriana! Can you hear me?" she said as Adriana continued to stare at the kettle, her breathing becoming labored as she continued to be entranced by her reflection. Athena tried to haul her away but Adriana couldn't be moved.
Athena stared at the girl, not knowing what to do. The blonde was going to die, and it was all going to be her fault. She grabbed the coffee pot and smashed it to the ground, but it had already started and couldn't be stopped. She watched as Adriana began to choke and cough, then as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. Adriana began to gasp for air as if there wasn't enough of it for her to breathe. She coughed, trying to breathe faster. Athena started to say something, but the blonde's cellphone went off.
Athena stood up and grabbed it, trying not to sound freaked out after what she had just witnessed. "Hello?" Her voice was shaky.
"Hey, it's Sam... Is everything all right?"
"Well. Kinda. Not really. Adriana had another episode," she said as she kept a watchful eye on the girl, lying on the floor. There was a pause as Sam tried to comprehend what she just said.
"How is that possible? Is she okay?" he asked, his questions coming out in a frantic rush.
"She was making coffee, it was the kettle's reflection. I can assure you, it's entirely possible, I tried pulling her away, smashing the jug, nothing stopped it. But about a few minutes ago, it just... stopped. It was weird." Their breathing could be heard on both ends of the line.
"We just destroyed her. So maybe that's why it stopped," he said shortly.
"Oh. Adriana wants to speak to you," Athena said when she caught her motioning from the floor. She tossed the phone over to Adriana, who deftly caught it, ignoring the blood everywhere.
"Sammy?" she said, and on the other end, Sam heaved a sigh of relief, giving Dean a nod. That one word soothed his worries.
"Drie. You better be okay, because if you're hurt, I will haunt you when I die," he said, trying to put a light teasing tone into his voice to calm his racing heart.
"Sam. Don't worry about me. Are you okay?" she questioned, seeming afraid to hear the answer. The logical side of her told her to listen to Sam, and that he wouldn't be able to speak to her if he wasn't okay. But the irrational, logical side of her told her that Sam would not be okay to her until she could see him standing in front of her, undamaged.
Sam chuckled over the receiver. "Yes, I'm fine."
"Well, you hurry up and get back here so I know you're not lying to me," She told him and heard him chuckle once again.
"Yes, ma'am." Sam paused for moment and Adriana could faintly hear Dean in the background before Sam spoke again. "Dean said we're about ten minutes away, all right? Be there soon." And then he hung up the phone.
Adriana placed the cell phone beside her on the tile of her kitchen floor and leaned against a cabinet. Sam was okay, and the Winchesters had yet again saved the day. Everything was as it should be. The only downside to having everything fixed and back to normal? She knew the two boys would be leaving very soon to get onto the next case involving supernatural creatures, and that was something she didn't want to do. She didn't want them to leave because then it would be another six years until she saw them again. But she didn't want this life. She was going to have to make a decision.
Athena was on the floor in the kitchen, wiping up the blood on the floor. She wasn't overly bothered with blood or injuries, obviously she didn't love it, but it didn't upset her. It was natural. She thought about the events of the past week. The brothers had shown up, done their thing, and from what she'd gathered, they were going to leave very soon. She dumped a dirty cloth in the laundry, grabbing a broom to sweep up the shards of glass from the mirror that had lain untouched for three days.
"It's a good thing your room-mate didn't come home," she called to Adriana from the bathroom. Adriana came in, looking at her destroyed mirror.
"Yeah, I know, she went to California to see her brother," she said. "I'm gonna be paranoid about looking into a mirror for the rest of my life!"
"You just have to move on. Mary's gone," Athena told her logically. Adriana knew it made sense, but then again, Athena wasn't haunted by memories of the voice, the feeling in her eyes. She thought back to the night at the bar, when Athena had said it.
"Listen, Thena, I'm sorry for what I said about your dad in the bar." Athena stood up and looked down at her, utterly surprised and caught off guard. "I mean, obviously everyone here knows his story, but that was too far, I shouldn't have said it."
Athena blinked slowly and looked at the other girl. "Thanks. And it's okay. I overreacted. My whole life people have been making remarks like that and you just happened to do it on the day I was already pissed off," she said, smiling weakly.
Adriana nodded. "I really am sorry." But before Athena could say anything else, the door opened and Sam and Dean walked in, clearly tired. The blonde girl hopped up and rushed over to them. "You guys are all right? Right?"
Dean chuckled. "Yes, we're fine, Princess. Calm down."
"What's that?" Adriana asked, pointing to the dried blood on his face.
"Oh this?" Dean asked. "Blood." He shrugged as if it was nothing.
Adriana stared at him wide-eyed before turning to Sam. "What happened?"
"Basically what happened to you. Except the creepy lady actually came outof her mirror," he said, shuddering at the memory. Adriana hugged him.
"So how did you stop her?" Athena asked, interestedly. Dean glanced over at her
"Gave her a taste of her own medicine, so to speak. Pulled the mirror down in front of her and the curse hit her. She kinda just dissolved. Damn I'm good," he finished, smirking. Adriana leaned over, still holding Sam and smacked him around the back of his head.
"Yeah, because it was all you, and Sam didn't hugely risk his life, did he?"
"Not that I can recall," Dean said.
Adriana pulled away from Sam, glaring at Dean. "You never learn, do you?"
"I can only learn if I'm taught well, my dear."
Adriana stormed outside. "I need to see daylight for the first time in three days"
Dean shook his head. "She is sucha live wire."
Sam shook his head, chuckling. "Because you don't like to get her started?" He raised an eyebrow at his older brother who shrugged.
"It's just so much fun," Dean replied with a cheeky grin and Sam rolled his eyes. Dean sighed as he too rolled his eyes after he realized his brother was waiting. "Fine. Should I go talk to her or should you?" He questioned his little brother.
"You can go and get your head bitten off for once," Sam said nobly. Dean stomped out in the same fashion Adriana had left the room with. Sam turned to Athena. "So..." he began. He was curious as to how Athena handled the situation. It didn't seem like she could've done anything to stop it. She smiled at him.
"Thanks. For stopping her. I don't know if I could have saved her... she was too far gone," Athena said, lowering her eyes.
"These things happen. Adriana is too stubborn to do exactly what she's told. I've said to her before one day it'll get her killed and it almost has several times. One time, we were on a hunt and I gave her a gun and told her to stay by this tree, right? She saw a butterfly and went to chase it. Admittedly, she was seven but still!" He became animated talking about memories of them
"What were you hunting that time?" Athena asked.
Sam racked his brains. "I think it was a Lycan."
Athena raised her eyebrows. "As in, a werewolf?"
"No, as in a Lycan, or Lycanthrope as they are properly called," Sam replied.
"There's a difference?"
Sam laughed. "You know, for someone who didn't know about the supernatural a week ago, you seem pretty informed."
Athena shrugged at him. "I read a lot. Only I thought it was fiction. But c'mon, tell me the differences."
"Okay," Sam began, counting the points off his fingers. "Lycans are created through a hereditary disease, whereas werewolves are bitten. They change when they want to and silver has no effect on them. Werewolves however, are forced to change at a full moon and it's very painful and they barely have conscious thoughts. And of course, werewolves are greatly affected by silver bullets. Because of all these flaws, Lycans are usually more dangerous," he finished, Athena nodding as she listened intently to his words.
"Wow. So, how'd you know all this? Study and research?" She asked.
"Some research, but my dad taught us a lot," He told her with a shrug. "Gotta know all you can about these creatures before you go out hunting them."
She nodded. She didn't realize there was so much to know about creatures. "That's a lot of information," She told him and he scoffed.
"Yeah. Tell me about it," He said as the door opened and Dean and Adriana came back in, this time Adriana was smiling and not trying to kill Dean.
"Right. Sammy. We're off," Dean said. His abrupt words killed the laid back mood in the room.
"Just like that?" Sam asked, once again hating his brother's ability to sever ties with anyone and everyone.
Dean nodded, although there was some sadness in his eyes. "Yep. Just like that."
Sam turned to Adriana and noticed that she'd lowered her head. "You're not coming, are you?" he asked, sadness in his voice.
Adriana kept her gaze on the ground. "No Sam. It's been great to see you but... I hate hunting. And who knows, I'd probably screw up something even when I washunting," she said, trying to make light of the situation.
"I understand," he said, his hazel eyes meeting her clear blue one's. She sighed and looked away.
Athene glanced between the two brothers. "I wanna come with you."
Dean laughed as he turned to her. "No. You're staying here. You're not coming with."
Athena crossed her arms over her chest. "I know what's out there. I was just a part of her," She stated. "I can handle myself."
"This was one case!" Dean exclaimed. "This was child's play compared to what's out there! No. No way," He said shaking his head. "You're not coming with. I'm not gonna waste my time training and teaching you when we have to find our dad."
Athena put her hands on her hips. "So I'll follow you," she said, and Dean stood open-mouthed, hardly believing she was serious.
"You wouldn't be able to," he said.
"You wanna try me Dean? My dad and I evaded the government for five years! I got pretty good at spotting things. I want to come with you," she said. Dean looked at Sam who just shook his head.
"Why! You didn't even know any of this existed!" Dean exclaimed, becoming exasperated, but also wanting to know her answer.
"Why? Well. Here's the thing. I've lived most of my life in this town. It's a mundane existence. Okay, this stuff may be dangerous but it's cool as hell. If you teach me, I will learn. It would give you guys more cover to have a female, no-one suspects us useless looking types, I can pick up on things, and basically, I'll just follow you till you give in," she told him.
"I don't think you're useless looking," Dean offered, that having been the only thing he picked up on. Athena threw her hands in the air in frustration and turned to Sam.
"Okay look. I know why you do this. You're saving people. I want to save people, because I couldn't save my dad, okay? I don't want to be stuck doing nothing!" she said, pleading with Sam, her grey eyes whirling with emotion. At her words, Dean listened intently, cocking his head slightly.
Dean sighed. "You really want to come with us?"
Athena turned to him and nodded. "Yes. I want to help," She told him and he sighed, shaking his head. He couldn't believe he was about to say this.
"If you really want to help and come with us, and you promise you won't get in the way... then..." He sighed before speaking. "I guess... you can come." He closed his eyes briefly before speaking against quickly. "But I'm not babysitting. The first time you get in the way, you're going back home."
Athena stopped for a minute, then basically attacked Dean in a hug. He stumbled back from the onslaught of the tall girl but hugged her back, moving a hand to her ass, this noticed by Sam. She pulled away, smiling. Then she turned to Sam and hugged him too, just not with quite so much enthusiasm.
"Hell yeah!" she called and Sam couldn't help but smile at her. She took a deep breath and calmed herself.
"Okay, now what?"
"Nowwe leave," Dean offered, shaking his head at her crazy antics. This would either be his biggest regret or best idea. Adriana was staring at him, a mixture of expressions on her face; disbelief; jealousy; happiness. He inclined her head slightly, as if to say, this is it.
"I'll go get my stuff and meet you here in half an hour?" Athena suggested. Sam nodded to her and she sauntered out the door.
"Dean! Are you drunk or something? WHY?" Adriana yelled at her as soon as the door closed.
"I dunno, man, I just feel like it might be time for a change."
"A CHANGE? This is too far."
Sam laughed at her, as did Dean as they collected all their stuff up. "See you in six years, Drie," Dean said, giving her a warm hug as he made his way to the door. He kicked it open, leaning against the frame. "You coming Sammy boy?" he called.
"You go get Athena, I'll meet you there," he said, not taking his eyes off Adriana.
"I don't take orders from you Sam," Dean said as he obeyed him. They heard the Impala roar away.
"I wish you would come with us, Drie," He said softly and she nodded, a longing look in her blue eyes.
"I do, too, Sam. But, I just... I can't. I've built a new life here. I have friends and a job... and I have classes. I can't just up and go." She glanced down. "It was good seeing you and Dean again, but... this is my life now. Here."
"You know we don't stay out of the hunting life for long," Sam said quietly.
She gave a weak laugh. "I know, but I can try, can't I?"
"And you'd be the most likely person I know who would succeed. Goodbye Adrie," he said, kissing her gently on the cheek, before he walked out the door. Adriana watched him go, before closing the door, on her past. Sam began walking to the bar, ignoring the light drizzle, when he heard the familiar throaty hum of an engine. Dean pulled up with Athena riding shotgun.
"You are kidding right? I always ride shotgun," he said, sulking as he opened the back door and climbed in.
"Not anymore apparently. Now. Educate her while we drive."
"What, no 'please'? Just "educate her"? Maybe I don't want to."
"Yeah well, maybe you don't get a choice in the matter," Dean said as he turned the music up and drove off.