Ok, so after recieving requests to keep on writing, I will expand on the story and add some more to it. This chapter is for everyone who has replied so far, and in particular for this chapter, Kari10 as she wanted me to put what Kerry's reaction to Dean's nightmares would be.

As stated before, I havent really seen season four, but I will try my best, and forgive me if I miss anything. Oh, and if you want me to put anything else in, like if you want to know more about Kerry, or put more Sam in etc, just let me know. I can't write a good story if I don't know what the readers want to read!!!

Yet again, Dean shot up, sweat running down his face as he tried to catch his breath. He hated this; every time he closed his eyes, images of his torture and torturing in Hell came flooding through his mind, slowly driving him to the point where he didn't want to sleep for fear of what he would see. Even though he was free, he knew that one slip up would have him sent straight back, and the thought terrified him. He was beginning to understand how Sam felt after Jess died, and was starting to feel guilty for the few times he teased his younger brother. Every memory of the screams, the pain, the terror, all of it flooded his mind when he tried to sleep. When he was awake, he could ignore it, and allowed himself to enjoy seeing his brother and Kerry smiling and laughing, but when he was asleep, he couldn't escape.

Kerry knew something was wrong with Dean. He smiled and joked around with them all, but she wasn't stupid. She could tell that there was something seriously wrong with him. She knew he wasn't sleeping, and on the odd occasion he did, he would wake up with terror in his eyes. This scared her. Dean who had never in his life shown fear, always had a look of it in his eyes and even the tiniest noise that was unusual made him jump, a wild look in his eyes. Sam hadn't noticed yet as Dean was very good at hiding it, but Kerry had always been good at picking these things up, and it was only a matter of time before Dean worried her so badly that she would have to say something.

The opportunity came later that week. Sam was out one night, probably with Ruby again, and Kerry had fallen asleep. For the first couple of hours, Dean sat on the couch and drank a few beers, but after a while he found himself falling asleep. Kerry woke about half an hour later and immediately heard the sounds of someone in distress. She looked over to the couch to see Dean thrashing around, crying out in pain. Kerry flew off the bed and raced over to him, shaking him. His eyes flew open and he grasped her arms in a vice-like grip, and as his eyes darted wildly across the room, his breath came out in short, sharp bursts.

"Dean, it's me. You're safe. I'm here." She soothed.

As his eyes and breath calmed, he focused on her and she gave him a warm smile, trying to hide the fact that his hands still held their vice like grip on her arms and they were hurting her badly. Dean finally calmed enough to realise the hold he had and quickly let her go.

"I'm sorry."

"It's nothing. Dean, stop pretending there's nothing wrong. I want you to tell me the truth."

Dean knew he couldn't hide it from her any longer. Sam knew and Bobby knew, but he should've realised that Kerry would have eventually noticed that something was wrong.

"I remember everything. The time in Hell is different to here. I was only gone for four months here, but in Hell, I was there for forty years. I was tortured for forty, but then they offered me a way out, but only if I tortured others. I hate myself for doing it, but I was so desperate."

Kerry could see the pain in his eyes, and so she moved over and wrapped her arms round him. Normally he would have commented about the chick flick moment, but this time he decided to just go with it, so he put his head on her shoulder and eventually drifted off into the first nightmare-free sleep he'd had since he'd come back. Kerry waited until she knew he was asleep before laying him down on the couch and covering him with a blanket, then ringing Sam and leaving a message on his phone to say that when or if he came back, he was to come in quietly to let Dean sleep. No longer tired, Kerry sat down on her bed and looked outside, remembering times when things weren't so messed up, such as the time Dean took her and Sam camping. Oh, wait, that was messed up in the end...

//Flashback//

"Daddy, please let me go too!"

"Ok Kerry, you can go, but Dean, you'd better take damn good care of her, you got that?"

Sixteen year old Dean looked up at Bobby with a serious expression on his face.

"Yes sir, I won't let any harm come to her unless it is something that can't possibly be avoided."

John walked up to his eldest from behind and ruffled his hair affectionately. Dean grinned as he pushed his dad's arm away, then turned to tell both Sam and Kerry to get ready. As a treat, John had allowed the boys to go camping up at the ridge about twenty miles away, but after eight year old Kerry begged her dad, Bobby decided to let his daughter go too. Kerry made sure she took everything she needed, including a big jumper and a flashlight, as even though she was only eight, she already knew that it got really dark and really cold out there. Once she was ready she bounced down the stairs and after saying goodbye to her dad, she hopped into the Impala and began to bounce up and down with excitement. Dean laughed to see how happy she looked, then he called for Sam, who came bouncing out with just as much enthusiasm as Kerry.

Once they were set up and ready, Dean made a fire and the three of them sat round it as Dean cooked dinner (well, beans and sausages). They ate quickly, and afterwards Kerry watched the two boys playing football for a while, and she took the time to listen to all the birds chirping in the background. Except there were no birds, which she found strange. A gust of wind ripped through the site and Kerry shivered, almost screaming when she heard a scream mixed in with it. She moved over to stand by Dean, who looked down at her softly.

"What's up kiddo?"

Not wanting to appear weak, Kerry shook her head and told him everything was fine. She then joined in playing football until it started getting dark and Dean decided to calm down a bit. He opted for telling the kids a ghost story. A little scaring didn't do any harm did it? Plus it would be fun to talk about a ghost without actually hunting one. Kerry clung to Sam, and as the details became more gruesome, she whimpered and hd her face in his jacket.

"There is a story that out here on this very ridge, a young woman was murdered after she ran away to marry her lover. He convinced her to meet him here wearing her wedding dress, and it's said that that night, he crept up behind her and raped her then brutally murdered her. There is a rumour that anybody that sleeps near where she was killed hear her scream even now in the wind, and she terrorises them before finally killing them"

Kerry started to cry and shiver, and Dean finally realised that she was only eight years old, and so by telling her this story he'd probably scared her more than he intended, but he shook it off. That night as they went to sleep, Dean was in one section of the tent and Sam and Kerry had the other section. Sam fell asleep easily, but not Kerry. She knew she heard a scream earlier, and hearing Dean's story had put her on edge. The wind ripped through again and again she heard the scream, which caused her to scream, effectively waking Sam. She told Sam what she heard and his eyes immediately widened in fear. They moved over to wake Dean up, but he wasn't there. Suddenly, the tent started shaking, and Kerry screamed and burst out crying. Dean came bursting into the tent laughing, and Kerry continued to cry. Dean's smile faded at the look of her crying and the terror on Sam's face, and he moved forward to pull them both into a one armed hug. Afterwards, Dean had to squeeze in with the kids as they were both too scared to be on their own.

Dean didn't know what woke him, but one look at Kerry and he found what it was. Kerry was sitting wide eyed staring at the outside of the tent. She was badly shivering and looked terrified. Dean also looked and froze. A woman was standing outside in a ripped wedding dress. She turned to face them and smiled.

"I do not appreciate light hearted comments about me."

She screamed and lunged forward. Sam woke at the scream and as he saw her approach, he yelled and ran, Kerry following him. Dean rolled his eyes and shot the spirit but missed. He cursed and looked to see her following Kerry. Just as she was about to grab the child, Kerry suddenly fell out of view, which gave Dean a clear shot to kill the spirit. This time he didn't miss and the spirit screamed as she was destroyed. Dean ran over to where Kerry dropped and saw she had fallen down a small ravine. He jumped down and saw she was holding her ankle, and after a closer inspection, he could see that it was sprained, but she also had quite a large and deep cut just above it too. He picked her up and after calling for Sam, he took the kids back to the car and once he had packed everything away, they headed back home.

// End Flashback //

Kerry smiled at the memory. It had taken her nearly a month to get over that, and even now, she still sometimes felt a chill when the wind blew as in her mind she could still hear that scream. She had a small scar on her leg from that and as she thought about it, her hand unconsciously stroked it. She smiled even more as Dean snorted slightly as he turned, and she almost giggled as he came close to rolling straight off the sofa.

She had missed him so much, and it was almost unbelieveable that he was back. However, it was real. He was home, he was safe.