This one took me a while to find the right place to end it, so I just kept writing so as compensation for the extra long wait, it's extra long! My sister said she got a little teary reading this one so you may need tissues for this one. Enjoy!

A/N: Thank you again for everyone who followed, favourited and reviewed I truly appreciate each and every one! I hope you all are still enjoying this story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural or any of the wonderful characters that I am taking on this journey.

Chapter 17

When The Past Comes Back To Haunt Us

Sam sat in his wheel chair looking at his daughter, with the medallion piece and the spell in his lap. He was thinking about everything he had lost and everything he had gained in the last few years, one of the most painful was the loss of his wife and he was now facing the possibility of seeing her again, even if it was for a short period, he knew it was going to be painful.

He could remember the grief he had felt waking up in the hospital when realisation that she was gone had hit him like a tonne of bricks. It had taken him months to stop crying when ever he had thought about her, even longer to stop calling her name when he woke from a nightmare or when hope had woken him up in her own grief.

He watched his daughter sleeping and worried that maybe he should send her away to Stay with Jess' parents place for a few days. Then he thought about how much he would miss her and need her to get through the days and he changed his mind. He just wanted to keep her oblivious to the emotional pain he was sure they would all be in.

Minutes turned to hours when he finally decided to return to the main room to recite the spell. He had come to the conclusion that there was no way for this not to be painful but the sooner he started this, the sooner they could move on to the next medallion piece and finally say goodbye to their loved once and perhaps find some peace.

Sam wheels his way to the rest of his family who were in their own private worlds coming to peace with what was a bout to happen.

Sam found Dean who was sitting on the couch looking blankly at the TV. "Hey ah Dean? I think we should do this now, get it over with" Dean looked over to Sam and nodded his head, he had decided that whatever happened, he would try to enjoy it and not dwell on the fact that it couldn't last forever.

"Sure thing Sammy... Let me get the guys okay?" Dean replies gently, even though it will affect them all, Dean was adamant that it was Sam's decision about the when and where of this situation, it was for his daughter so why shouldn't he have the final say. John and Bobby had argued about it, John wanted to make the decision and Bobby, ever the papa bear had fought for his young charge and his daughter.

Caleb stayed out of the bickering, choosing to go along with what ever was decided because he knew it was going to be hard on everyone.

"Hey guys, Sammy wants to do this thing... In the living room" Dean had said, not wanting to get into another fight.

John and Bobby exchanged glances but walked into the main room to help the youngest Winchester anyway they could.

Sam was sitting in his wheelchair, head down, resting heavy in his hand, tears in his hazel eyes. He was not the strong, confident man, Dean had come to know but a sad, resigned widower he was just under the surface.

"Sammy?... Hey Sammy come on... What's all this?" Dean got down in front of his brother, and put his hand on the top of his head. "Sammy... I know this is hard, I know it's going to be the hardest thing you've had to do since jumping out of that burning apartment... I know man... But we have to do this... and when it's all done, we can finally rest and watch your beautiful daughter grow up... I know your not looking forward to this, neither am I but we have to do it if we want hope to be safe and protected"

"Sorry, I thought I was ready... As soon as you left the room, the whole idea of what we are about to do just... It just came over me" Sam was embarrassed and shameful that he was being so indecisive.

"Hey Sam, it's fine... Really, I'm not really looking forward to this either. I mean... Seeing your mum again isn't going to be fun in any sense of the word but... I may get to say some things that I have wished I had said before she was taken from us" John had knelt down beside his youngest son his eyes conveying the understanding of someone who had lost the love of his life.

"He's right Sam, son, my wife died when I had to shoot her, but the real kicker was that we had had a fight before it all happened... we hadn't had the chance to apologise and talk it through like we normally do... I dread it and hope that I do get to see her, beg her forgiveness and just spend time with her... I wish we didn't have to do this but you want to keep this family safe, and so do I, with all my heart" Bobby had moved closer to his surrogate son and tried to keep the tears from falling. He had tried to stay strong through everything for the young father in the wheelchair in front of him.

Dean touched his brothers face to get his attention. "See, Sammy... we're all in this together. Let's get this spell said and then we sooner we find the next piece, the sooner we can say goodbye and try to move on" Sam's eyes glistened and when he nodded his head, a tear escaped and dean was there to wipe it away. Not saying a word or tease his fori it, he just left his hand on his cheek and smiled at him.

"Okay Dean... As long as you're here with me... I should... be able to get through it" Sam looked earnestly at his big brother, who had always been able to make things better.

"We'll get each other through it Sammy" Dean said looking Sam right in the eyes, when Sam's eyes moved to their father and then to Bobby and Caleb.

Sam nodded his head then looked back to his brother and said "Alright Dean... Let's do this... quick before I change my mind"

All the men who had gathered around the youngest Winchester moved away and took their places. Bobby lite the candles which were strategically placed around the room. John mixed the pre prepared ingredients in a brass bowl and waited for Sam to recite the spell.

Sam held the hand written spell with shaky hands and took a deep breath and started reading. The latin words flowed clearly from Sam's mouth as the ancient language had always been something that Sam enjoyed and had used while studying for his law degree.

As Sam continued to read, the wind picked up in the room even though all the doors and windows were shut, the lights flickered, the candles that cast an orange glow around them started to change colours, blues, greens, yellows and reds swirled around the walls. The lights grew stronger and the wind blew around them at a gale, making books open, fluttering their pages, the curtains ruffled and windows rattled in their frames. The occupants of the lounge room, all moved to cover their eyes. Sam continued to read the spell much louder, holding onto the spell harder in his fingers.

The lights coming from the candles burst away and became small balls of light that swirled around each of the rooms occupants, then one of then hovered over each of them, then when Sam came to the last line, requesting guidance and support from much loved souls that are linked irrevocably to the souls left behind within this family, by blood, love and bones, the lights grew in size and started taking the ghostly shape of a person , and right before their eyes, the figures became more recognisable. On the last word of the spell 'amen' the figures were took on the shapes of the woman that the men in the room, had loved with all their hearts.

Sam sat in his wheelchair staring at the beautiful ghostly figure of his beloved wife. She moved forward and smiled at him, his eyes blurred with tears. "Jess... I I'm so sorry" he pushed out in a whisper as a sob broke through.

"Hush babe, you have nothing to be sorry about. I'm sorry... Sorry for what happened to you... that you lost so much" Jess put her ghostly had to his cheek, he couldn't feel it but a warmth spread through him, as if she was transferring her love and forgiveness to him so he could finally forgive himself.

Dean and John stood in shock at the ethereal figure in front of them. Dean had tears in his eyes but a smile on his face because his mother looked exactly how he had remembered, he had been worried that the face and how remembered her, had just been his four year old self creating almost angelic figure in his memories. But there she was, blond hair, blue eyes, soft motherly hands and smile that had helped him to fall asleep when he had woken up with nightmares for months after the fire. Johns pained face, had no tears on it but showed the soul deep pain he had felt for the last twenty plus years that he had been searching for his wife's killer. That pain never went away. His tears had long ago dried up and created the tough as nails exterior that he had always shown. Mary looked at them both and moved towards them, first to Dean who finally exhaled the breath he didn't realise he had been holding. Mary put her transparent hand on his chest near his heart, letting the same warmth that Sam had felt flow through him. "Sweety, look at you... My brave little boy... I'm so proud of you" Mary said and Deans face crumpled and he went down to the floor in one motion. Mary went with him, still touching his chest "it's alright sweety... I'm here now" she said to her eldest boy, crying on the floor.

John moved forward when Dean had fallen to the floor and put his hand on his shoulder in comfort. Mary looked up at him and smiled a sad smile at him and moved up as John straightened, she moved to be right in front of him, putting her hands on either side of his face. "John... I've watched you for so long... I've wanted to both slap you and kiss you at the same time. You did it tough and you tried really hard.. sometimes that wasn't enough... but you're here now, so you better make the most of it. I love you so much... I'm sorry you had to go through all this pain for me... I never wanted that for you, I'm sorry" Mary let a ghostly tear fall down her cheek, her husband had been so lost over the years, always searching for something and forgetting what he had right in front of him. She loved him with all her heart and wished things had been different.

Bobby smiled with teary eyes at the spector of his wife. "Karen... I've missed you... I'm so sorry" Bobby chocked of the last part as his guilt for killing his wife all those years ago.

"My darling husband... I know you did what you had to do, because of what was inside me... I don't blame you... I do wish you had looked after yourself better though... All that alcohol, 'n' not enough proper home cooked meals. I worry about you" Karen looked at him with the same worried and caring look she always had when he would leave to pick up parts for his customers.

"I'm just so sorry... I never wanted to hurt you, but I didn't know... please forgive me" Bobby was openly crying now, tears streaming down his face! not caring that the other men in the room could see him with his walls down. He had wanted to apologise to his wife for so many years but he thought if was only a dream.

Mary joined Jess beside her youngest son and just looked at him with wide eyes. "My baby boy... You grew up so..."

"Big!" Dean interrupted his mothers ghost with wet eyes, he was still on the floor but was wiping his face with his hand.

"Ha ha, funny man... Don't interrupt your mother" John said smirking at his eldest son.

"I was going to say he grew up so smart, strong and...brave. You also gave me my first grandchild. She's beautiful... I'm sorry for everything you lost. It's not fair, but you fought your way out of the darkness... You must keep fighting, for Hope" Mary smiled at Jess and touched Sam's face with her ghostly fingers. He smiled, then his face crumbled and tears came to his eyes, his mother was exactly how he had dreamt she would be. As a young child he would imagine his mother tucking him in, reading him stories and keeping the men of their family from being hard and cruel.

While the other men in the room, conferred with their lost loved ones Caleb stood just looking at the figure in front of him. He didn't think that he would actually get to see her again. The female figure floating in front of him was his long gone little sister. He had never told anyone about the death of his little sister.

She had been at the park on her sixteenth birthday and Caleb hadn't been fast enough and a werewolf had killed her right in front of him. Caleb had lived with the guilt that he had sensed something was following them, most specifically his sister for the last few days but decided to do nothing. Claire floated there smiling at him, the only feeling he was feeling from her was forgiveness and love. He shook his head, how could she forgive him when it was his fault she was gone. "Cal, I've missed you... But you have to forgive yourself... I know what happened to me wasn't your fault, now you need to believe it"

Caleb stared at his sister, he had almost forgotten how stubborn and mature she was for her age, he could never get away with anything because she was so smart. This was why he had become so close to the Winchester brothers, they reminded him of himself and his sister. When Sam had left for college, he had silently rejoiced, he knew hunting was not the life for someone so smart and so brave to leaving everything behind to reach for his dreams. Caleb admired that and thought his sister would had pave done the same, the only difference is, their parents would have supported her. Both Sam and Dean don't know that Caleb had sent a little money to Sam every few months so he could get by, small gifts at holidays, sometimes care packages with some favourite foods. Always unmarked boxes and envelopes so Sam would never know who had sent them, probably assumed it was his older brother which was he was more than happy with, because even if his older brother had never said it, he knew he had missed his little brother like crazy for that whole period. "Claire Bear... I don't know if I can... I've carried this guilt for so many these years"

"That is why you must forgive yourself, your guilt made you choose this life, saving innocent lives... All those people... any debts you think you need to pay, you have repaid them many times over... Cal, you are been redeemed, just by your selflessness. You and your friends have been freed from the shackles of guilt and shame" Caleb now too had tears in his eyes. All the men in the room had been brought to tears and were not ashamed.

The other men in the room had stopped and were looking at Caleb and his sister. They had been caught up in seeing and speaking to their loved ones and had not noticed that Caleb too had lost someone who he was now able to reconnect with. None of the other hunters had known what had brought Caleb into the life. It had been too painful for him and was something most hunters didn't like to talk about. The connection they all had felt before the spell was made stronger in their shared grief and supposed forgiveness and absolution.

"As amazing as this is, to see you all, there is a bigger picture here... We have to find the next piece of the medallion. And I have no idea where to start" John said, not really wanting to stop seeing or talking to his wife but knowing they had a job to do. John stole one more glance at his beautiful wife and walked towards Bobby, getting his head back in the game.

"We have a few leads on another piece of the medallion but nothing concrete" Bobby said, trying hard not to look at his wife again. It was such a bizarre situation and he just couldn't take his eyes of the woman he had loved since childhood and everyday since her passing. He shot a glance her way and found her talking to Mary Winchester, both women looking to Jessica and Claire who had been standing side by side since everyone got back to the serious talk of the medallion. Bobby smiled, even in death and a ghostly state, the women still looked to mother and protect the younger members of their group. Looking once again at his notes, he began conferring with John and Caleb about the best choice for the next piece.

Dean looked over at Sam who was wiping his face with the back of his hand looking all of fifteen years old instead of the twenty something he actually was. Dean decided to have a quick chat with his sibling and make sure this whole situation was messing him up anymore that they all had anticipated.

"Hey, Sammy, how you doin?" Dean asked as he got closer and knelt in front of him trying to get a better look at his face which could easily tell the older brother exactly what he was thinking and feeling.

"Oh, yeah you know... Pretty good. My dead mother and wife are back as ghosts and I have no idea what I'm going to do when Hope wakes up and sees her mum, grandma, Bobby's wife, or even Caleb's sister... She's pretty smart, she's going to realise they aren't normal... How do I tell a toddler that her mummy is a ghost?" Sam was truly uncertain what he was going to tell his daughter.

"Well Sammy, if she's as smart as you say she is, how about you try the truth. Say that they are ghosts come to visit us for a short time" Dean said hoping that it would help.

"What if she asks what a ghost is? I haven't told her about our lives, she's too young" Sam said, he wasn't against telling her the truth but how could he describe it all in a way she would understand.

"Maybe tell her that they are made up from our memories and that they are here to help us"Dean remembered telling Sam the same thing when he was little and they had the unfortunate luck of checking into a haunted motel.

Sam nodded his head oblivious to his brothers memories. "I guess I'll try to convince her of something like that.. Dean?... I just didn't... don't want her to be too upset by seeing her, any of them, it took her so long to move past having her mummy taken away, when she passed, but having her ghost here now... It could really mess her up" Sam was a little upset at the thoughts of his daughter going through all that heartache all over again.

"Sam, me being here isn't meant to be a bad thing... I'm here to help you... I could try to stay hidden, if that's what you want... But... I really want to see our baby" Jess was close to Sam, hand hovering over his cheek, transferring her love to him.

Sam looked into the ghostly eyes of his wife, even in this state her eyes still held all her emotions and feelings. He felt the love he had felt for his wife from the moment he met her flow through him. He smiled at her apparition and said "I know babe, but Hope is so sensitive to how we all feel, she's going to love you all and when we have to say goodbye, it's going to be hard for her" Sam said sadly.

To highlight the importance of the conversation, the little girl that had been the focus of conversation, started to wail from the other room, letting the inhabitants for the house that she was now awake. "I'll get her... Please just wait here until I speak to her"

Sam wheeled himself into his room and closed the door. The occupants of the main room looked at each other, having silent conversations, trying to listen to the youngest Winchesters in the bedroom. They could hear quiet talking and then clapping and a happy squeal, then some more quiet voices.

The guest room door opened and Sam wheeled himself out with hope snuggled sideways on his lap with her thumb in her mouth, looking with big eyes at everyone in the her eyes cast over the unusual female figures and smiled, Sam leant down and whispered in her ear and she turned at looked up at him, putting her hand on his cheek, as if to say 'it's okay Daddy, I understand' then she looked back the the ghostly figures and smiled again and said shyly "Hi" everyone smiled at her soft voice. "Momma" she said looking right at Jess. It surprised Sam that every though the figure was unusual looking she was knew that it was her mummy. She had always been sensitive to people and their feelings.

"She's a remarkable little girl Sam, so happy, so open" Mary said from the other side of Jess and Sam looked up at her, h mother was so beautiful, the old photos he had held onto for all these years did not do her justice, much like the photos of Jess.

"She's always been very aware of everyone's emotions, she watches everything" Sam said fondly, smiling at his little girl with pride.

"As long as she doesn't watch Dean too closely I think she'll be fine" Caleb piped up, trying to break the somer mood.

"Ha ha Caleb, your not much of a role model either, I have some stories to tell" Dean said teasingly back to Caleb, who started to looking warningly at him, moving his hand across his neck as if to say 'cut it out'.

John and Bobby started laughing, Sam started chuckling and looked down at his daughter on his lap, still sucking her thumb but her eyes were wide awake.

Once the laughter had died down, everyone started looking at the books that were strewn out on the small table. Bobby explained what he had found and what their options were.

One possible piece was located in a museum, a puzzle box was found were the curators of the museum were yet to crack the code. After X-rays and scans were made, a half moon shaped to piece was found to be inside.

The other piece was supposedly in a private collection, owned by a collector of oddities and unusual items. The owner himself was wrapped in a mysterious past were his fortune came to him seemingly overnight.

There was also rumours that a piece could have been incorporated into a piece of jewellery that has had its owners become sick or die under mysterious circumstances.

Sam was interested in all possibilities so to choose one to look into first was not something he could do.

"I say we just start from the top and work outer way down" John said, much like his youngest son, he saw the possibilities in all the options.

"The puzzle box is an interesting anomaly, quite a few cryptologists and leaders in linguistics have looked at the box and have been unable to decipher it. But they don't know what we do, so..." Bobby said with a smile at Sam. Having someone as smart at Sam living with him, he had been able to nourish his love of learning. Sam was as good, if not better at research than Bobby himself. They had studied, the history, origin and defensive capabilities of all things supernatural and mythological.

"Pa, do you have any pictures or a description of the box, so I can have a crack at what's stumped these so talked experts?" Sam said smirking at Bobby, the two men were going to have fun with one.

Karen nudged Bobby, stopping him from speaking. "And you said you didn't want kids... You adopted one anyway. It's not so bad is it?" Making Bobby pause and reflect on their relationship. Sam was the son he never had, who thrived on his knowledge and companionship.

Looking at Sam then glancing at his wife, Bobby said "Yeah... It's not so bad. I didn't do it all on my own" he looked at John and Dean and nodded in acknowledgement.

Clearing his throat hobby got back down to business. "I have a grainy picture, it doesn't show the details but you can get an idea" Bobby said, flipping to the page and passing it to Sam.

Sam looked at the picture closely, Bobby had been right, the pictures were extremely grainy. The details of the unusual ancient writing on the front and sides were nonexistent. Sam started mumbling to himself, some of the symbols were familiar and similar to ones from other ancient languages. As he started writing on a note pad Bobby had given him, he felt a presents beside him, when he looked up he noticed Mary floating beside him, looking at the symbols. "That one that looks like a funny fish, I think that's 'School' of fish, which could mean 'lesson', so maybe you have to learn a lesson, or you'll learn something" Sam gave his mothers ghost a questioning look with a raised eyebrow, he had no idea that his mother knew about these types of things. Not that he knew all that much about her and her life before she had been killed.

"I was a phycology major and I dabbled in some latin and linguistics. Shocker I know!" Mary laughed, John looked at her fondly.

"Your mother had a high IQ, like you Sam. Top in all her classes, loved reading, loved crosswords... You were cut from the same cloth, son... The only thing you got from me was your height..." John had always wondered what he had in common with his youngest son, they had always seemed to fight, about anything and everything. He had heard his eldest tell Sam on numerous occasions that he and Sam were actually a lot alike.. Determined, self righteous and stubborn, not exactly things he could be proud of.

"Okay... So do you recognise any of these other symbols?" Sam thought what a wonderful memory to have, working with his mother. Even if it was a once in a lifetime opportunity.

They huddled together for an hour or so, going over all the symbols they could make out from the terrible photo. Jess, Karen and Claire assisted the other men by looking through the information gathered on the other possibilities and made some notes that took them in a very promising direction.

Sam had fallen asleep with his head on the desk, Hope was asleep on Deans chest on the couch, he had taken her from Sam's lap when he started to nod off and had taken the spot on the couch incase Sam woke up from any nightmares and to just stay close.

John looked at both of them, contemplated moving them but decided against it when he considered that they all had to get up early. He was not sure about how the ghostly sidekicks were going to accompany them on the medallion finding mission but as the spell had said that they would be joined to them until they found the next piece and the spell was recited, John thought against waking them up to move them to an actual bed, even though they would have to deal with sore necks and cramped muscles but they seemed happy enough.

The first morning light came through the thin curtains and Dean blinked his tired eyes open and when he noticed the small weight on his chest, he realised that it was Hope, not the weight of guilt or shame.

Groaning as he sat up, still holding Hope on his chest and and looked over at Sam who was still snoring with his face plastered to the book as he had been reading, Dean chuckled softly and stood up smoothly, with Hope sighing and sucking her thumb. He walked slowly to Sam and touched his little brothers shoulder and said quietly "Sammy, buddy, it's time to get up" Dean shook us shoulder a little to get his attention when suddenly Sam woke up with a start yelling "NO!".

Dean looked at Sam's startled face and his fear filled hazel eyes. "Hey, Sammy... You alright?" Worried about his little brothers panting which could easily become hyperventilation. "Sammy? Come on... It's okay... It was just a nightmare" Dean said reassuringly.

"Hhmmm... Yeah I'm alright... Oh man" Sam sat up in his wheelchair, rubbing his neck, as cramps shot down his back. "That was not the best idea... Ow... Why did you let me sleep like that? I'm going to need a massage now, otherwise I'm going to be useless..." Dean glared at Sam for using that word, he was not happy with his brothers low self esteem.

"Your not useless, Sam... But... I'll give you a massage after your shower, because I'm a wonderful big brother" smirking at Sam who glared at him without any heat, he pushed his way to his room, gathering a change of clothes and went to shower and get ready for the day. He left Hope with Dean who had become quite skilled at feeding, bathing and entertaining his niece which made his the hole in his heart fill up with warmth and gratitude.

Once Sam had come out in his wheelchair, dressed in only his boxer shorts, with damp hair and a tube of deep heat. With Hope in her bouncy chair, Dean motioned for him to lay down and once he had transferred to the bed and laid down on his stomach he massaged his little brothers lower back and legs and rubbed cream into the muscles so that Sam could function for the day. "Woah..." Sam groaned as he went to roll over when his brother had finished and had moved to the bathroom to wash the strong smelling cream of his hands.

"What? What's wrong?" Dean asked scared that perhaps he had pressed too hard or had hurt his little brother unknowingly.

"No... Nothing's wrong, just... I went to roll over and... My left big toe moved, I think...?" Sam said shocked and a little giddy if it was true... If he wasn't fooling himself.

"What? Let me see..." Dean was as excited as his little brother. He moved over to the end of the bed and knelt down in front of Sam's feet "Okay, try to move it now" he watched as Sam scrunched up his face in concentration as his big toe twitched then moved back and forth a little bit. A huge smile came over Deans face as he watched the toe move. This was a fantastic sign that his little brother was gaining feeling and movement back in his legs and that one day, he would be able to walk again.

Sam was stunned, he was actually able to move his big toe. He was shocked and elated at the same time. "Try the other foot Sammy" Dean said amazed and his little brother scrunched his face up again as he tried to get his other big toe to move. The right toe twitched but he was unable to move it. The two brothers would still take it as a win and hoped it was a prelude to the rest of the day.

Bobby stood at the doorway of the guest room, watching the brothers smiling. "Hey! What's got you too all happy go lucky this morning?" He asked in his gruff voice, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Well, Sam just moved his big toe! Show him Sammy" Dean said excitedly.

"What?" Bobby said slightly high pitched.

"I moved my left big toe" Sam rolled himself onto his stomach and again concentrated hard and the toe moved slightly again, back and forth.

"You did it Sam! I'm... I am so proud of you!" Bobby rushed over to the young man and put one of his hands on the young fathers shoulder and the other on his cheek. Eyes glistening slightly, he leaned forward giving him a sideways hug and said softly "It's happening son... I knew you could do it..." he smiled as he leant back, looking at him, not removing his hands from were they lay. The two men just looked at each for a few seconds, then they looked at the older brother who had his hand over his mouth, as if to stop the emotions from bubbling up.

"Don't get too excited... It's just my big toe... I mean, I still can't feel or move my legs so... " Sam cut off by Deans hand.

"Don't say it... You have to stop being so negative" Dean said through the lump in his throat.

"Just don't go getting everyone's hopes up... Yet... There is still a long way to go" Sam said being realistic, he didn't want to get his hopes up like he had so many times.

"I'm a glass half full kind of guy... Your one step... 'Pun intended'... Closer to walking again Sam... It's amazing, don't burst my bubble man" Dean said to his brother happy to see the small smile creep over his face.

The three men were interrupted by John, barging in, like a bull in a china shop. "What's going on?" John asked completely oblivious to them revelation that had occurred in the room not two minutes earlier. Sam, Dean and Bobby, glanced at each other and silently agreed to not comment on Sam's small triumph.

"Nothing... Dean was just giving Sam a massage. They're all done... Let's go" bobby said for everyone, moving toward John and guiding him back out to the main room, where he had placed his bag ready for the trip.

Dean helped Sam back into his wheelchair. "You ready little brother?" Dean asked, watching Sam move towards the door and move toward the door with his and his daughters packed bags on his lap.

Dean followed behind and as he to picked up his bag, his sister in laws apparition appeared beside him. "Dean?... You must keep an eye on Sam... He is trying really hard to be strong for you and Bobby but... He feels inadequate... Please, he doesn't see how strong and amazing he is" Dean already liked the woman his brother had loved and now he liked her even more.

"Your right Jess... Thanks for watching out for him, I promise I won't let him stay down for long" Dean vowed to the woman who had made his brother happy for a short while.

Piling into two cars the man and little girl made their way to the museum, two states over, the trip was predicted to take approximately 2 days. Thousands of kilometres, hours and hours of music, a mountain of junk food and gallons of sugary drinks. It was a unique life but not one that Sam missed. Not the danger, blood and pain anyway. But the time spent with his brother in the impala, nestled in her warm leather seats and calmed by her throaty grumble. He glanced at his brother quickly then looked back out the window at the dull, flat scenery zooming by.

Dean looked at his brother in his peripheral vision and noticed him look at him quickly, he was working up to a conversation he knew was going to be in the chick flick arena. Since getting back together with his brother and reconnecting in a way he had thought impossible, he had become more open to talking about his feelings and being a shoulder for his brother when he was ready to talk. He found that it was easier now than it had been before their separation.

Sam cast another glance at his brother, this time catching, his eyes and quickly looking away. "Okay, talk... What's going on in that big brain of yours Sammy?" Dean asked, at the end of his patience.

"I just... I never thought this would be my life... You know?... I mean I LOVE Hope... And I loved Jess, but my life now... It's not exactly how I pictured it" Sam said pensively, he had been thinking a lot about his life and where it was going and where he thought it would go, especially since he had the opportunity to see his wife again. "In some aspects... It's better than it was before" Sam said shyly, looking back out the window, avoiding a brothers eyes. He knew how much his brother hated the mushy stuff but Sam had truly been thinking about his life, past, present, future and he people in it, now and then. He was extremely grateful and relieved that he had his brother back in his life, he had missed him so much in the time they had been apart, he had felt like something was missing and now he knew what it was. Having his father back in his life, was another matter, he woke up every morning wonder what mood he would be in and was pleasantly surprised when the older man was in a good one. He wondered if he had actually given up the booze that he had become quite fond of when they were growing up.

Dean looked at his brother for a long moment, then shot his eyes back to the road as the car had started to drift. He shook his head at the sentimentality but smiled at his brothers words. He too felt that his life was now so much better, fuller, sweeter now that his little brighter and his niece were in his life. He didn't want to even contemplate loosing either of them and knew he would do anything to protect them. At that moment he knew exactly what to say.

"Yeah Sammy... It's a lot better than it was before... There's just more of it now" Dean smirked at his brothers hitched breath. His little brother had become so much more sensitive since... Well pretty much everything that happened to him... happened.

Sam smiled through the sudden wave of emotion, he watched his brother as he put his hand out laid it on his shoulder, allowing the warmth from his palm to seep through his brothers shirt, pride and love in each motion back and forth. The big brother trying to speak without words that he was glad and grateful that he had him back in his life.

Taking a deep breath, Sam put his hand on top Deans on his shoulder, just for a minute, to give that affection right back to his big brother.

From the back seat, Mary glowed, her ghostly hand hovering over the brothers hands, thanking god that her boys had each other.

Five hours later two cars stopped at the Holiday Inn, booking to three interlinking rooms and settled in for the night. Bobby and Caleb had gone off to buy dinner and John had gone into the boys room to speak to them, knowing that the brothers would be bunking together with Hope. He knocked on the door joining their rooms and walked in when he heard Deans voice from the other side.

Sam was on the bed furthest from the door feeding Hope some mashed concoction and Dean was at the small table looking at the laptop in front of him. "Hey boys... I have something I need to tell you about this museum tomorrow" John said nervously. "I didn't mention it earlier because... Well I was scared to tell you" josh was now looking out the front window of the room, anywhere but at his sons.

"What are you talking about? You're kind if freaking me out here dad" Dean said standing up from his chair and moving towards Sam and his niece.

Sam looked up at his father, worried yet again that what ever secret he was hiding, it was going to do more harm than good.

"It was years ago... and I was new to hunting, you boys were so young, but I had to find the evil that took your mother, I had a one track mind back then..."

"Back then?..." Dean interrupted his father, during he hadn't forgotten the twenty something years since then that his one track mind had never wavered.

"Okay, so ever since your mother was taken, I was pretty focused... But back then, I went on a hunt and I left you boys in use car while I went in to this museum that had been haunted... Anyway things went to shit pretty quickly and the curator got injured... Neither of us noticed when he picked up a cane, that just happened to belong to the poltergeist that had been haunting the place... He took it home with him and unfortunately, his wife and baby got caught in the cross fire. His wife survived but his little boy couldn't be saved... Anyway his son was the same age as you were Sam and when I left, he noticed you in the back seat with Dean. He quite angry and he was bitter... He started asking why... Why did you get to live and his son didn't... I felt so guilty that I just got in my car and left. I haven't seen him since, but I think this museum is the same place, owned by the same person. We might have some issues tomorrow and I just wanted to warn you, and maybe it might be a good idea if you stick together" John finally looked up and saw the two shocked faces of his sons.

"Well... I think your right... Somehow I don't think he's going to be laying out the red carpet for us... Thanks for the heads up" Dean said sarcastically, this was not going to be easy.