Catching Up
Chapter 15 – Route 666

Dean snatched the case from his brother, knowing exactly what would be in this episode. "No…"

"What's the matter sweetheart?" Mary leaned over to peek. "Dean is contacted by his first love, Cassie, a girl who asks him to come to Mississippi to investigate a string of racially motivated murders. Well then -" Mary worked to keep a smile off her face, finally she'd see some level normalcy with her boys even the midst of the usual chaos. "Shall we begin?"

"I'm pretty sure we can skip this," Dean attempted.

"No we can't," Sam denied easily, pressing play.

"Can."

"Can't."

"Bitch."

"Shhhh it's starting," Sam winked and Dean fell silent, crossing his arms petulantly. Here you go, drinks on me. Sam looked around before reaching for his abandoned beer bottle from earlier only to find that it was full. He took a long sip and sat back to watch the opening sequence. The show began on a car driving through Cape Girardeau, Missouri. The driver was having trouble with his radio just before a truck appears behind him.

"This is Cassie's dad I guess," Dean murmured.

"Never met him?" Cas asked.

"Nah, Cassie was in school at the time. She wasn't at home." The truck continued to stalk Cassie's dad before attacking, forcing him off the road and causing him to flip his car, then disappearing.

"Ghost truck," Mary commented. "That's a new one."

On the show, TV!Dean tells TV!Sam that they aren't going to Pennsylvania like they had planned but were heading to see an 'old friend' about her father's death. Old friend eh? "Oh wait for it," Sam whispered. Sure enough, it's revealed that far from being an old friend, Dean was involved with Cassie and told her their family secret.

Mary combed her fingers through Dean's hair, "You must have really liked her. I'm sorry it didn't work out for you baby."

Dean caught the hand and squeezed it, "Probably for the best it didn't." Cassie came onscreen as she and two men were arguing about what the newspaper reported on. All eyes subtly cut to Dean who had a soft smile on his face. Cassie and TV!Dean reunited and they went to her home to discuss what had happened to her father and his friend/business partner. She explained that her father had been afraid of being stalked by a truck and even though his car was damaged, there was only evidence of one car on the road the night of the crash. Then Cassie's mom came in and Cassie introduced her to TV!Sam and TV!Dean.

What is it with them and calling each other friends? "What is it with you guys and the word 'friends'?" Sam asked aloud.

"Got any better words Mr. Stanford?" Dean asked rhetorically.

"She knows something," Mary determined, judging Cassie's mom behaviour. "That truck is more than just a random apparition but what?" Suddenly the show jumped to the site of another accident and the truck ominously revving in the background. The man Cassie had been with earlier was dead. "That's just horrifying." The next morning, Cassie was arguing with the mayor when TV!Dean and TV!Sam arrived. "For a car to be that mangled, it couldn't be simple accident."

"It was the only explanation," Sam said. "No proof to support the idea of another vehicle being there, no matter how bad the wreck was."

Onscreen, Cassie bluntly asks the mayor if he would be more concerned if the victims were white. "Oh I like her," Mary softly applauded. "But at least I was right about the mother knowing something although whatever the mayor was talking about could be completely unrelated."

"It wasn't," Dean assured her. "And Cassie was a force of nature."

"You know, in an observationally interesting way," Sam smirked.

"Look, one of you being brat is more than enough," Dean moved a finger between the two Sams. "Now listen to me while I crack this case." Sure enough, TV!Sam and TV!Dean talk to two men, one of whom tells them about a string of deaths back in the 60's where black men would disappear in a big truck.

"The comparison to the Flying Dutchman is quite fitting Dean," Cas commented during the TV!Winchesters analysis.

"Thanks Cas," Dean smiled at his friend only to have it slide off his face as the TV!Winchesters discuss what really happened between him and Cassie.

"I really am sorry Dean," Mary murmured to her son.

"Yeah me too," Sam added sincerely.

"No pity parties okay," Dean brushed it off. "Just do me a favour and skip this part." In the show, TV!Dean had gone to see Cassie.

"Why?" Sam inquired, the humour growing again. "What's the matter?"

"It's personal you ass, just skip ahead," Dean ordered but Sam childishly sat on the remote.

"Nope." Dean growled but he knew he couldn't move his sasquatch of a little brother so tried to think another way of avoiding the next part. The argument with Cassie was winding down and as soon as the music started, Dean lunged for the DVD player but Sam scrambled to stop him. The pair wrestled and Dean almost got there but it was too late, the horror had begun. Castiel, the indomitable angel of the Lord, snickered while Mary had her hand over her mouth to hide her amusement and awkwardness.

"Dude," Sam rolled with laughter. "They even gave you an alternative-rock soundtrack."

"Son of a bitch," Dean broke away to snatch up the remote only to find that the skip button wouldn't work.

Sam had a sneaking suspicion who was behind that and looked to the ceiling, "You can really be evil you know that?" The scene was over a few seconds later but Dean was still grumbling. "Ah come on Dean, it wasn't that bad. Besides, it was quick." Sam innocently met Dean's glare. You were saying something about evil kiddo. Sam shrugged.

"Our mother is sitting right here," Dean mumbled but trailed off as they watched the mayor also get attacked by the truck, this time outside his car.

"I wasn't looking," Mary whispered, patting his knee. TV!Dean and Cassie appear to patch things up just in time for TV!Sam to call his brother about the mayor. TV!Dean went to the newspaper office to look up the murders in the 60's and if it was related to what was happening. TV!Sam had apparently gone to the courthouse and they found a connection through the Dorian family, particularly Cyrus Dorian. After the mayor bulldozed the old Dorian home, the killings began the next day.

Coincidence? I think not! The voice imitated some sort of accent that Sam couldn't place. "What?" It's from Polka Dot Shorts, Canadian kids show, look it up.

The next scene showed Cassie home alone when the lights began to flicker and the truck appeared outside of her house. "It's attacking a home now," Cas tilted his head. "That is a major change in the methodology besides what did Cassie have to do with anything?"

"You'll see," Dean intoned and motioned for them to pay attention to their discussion with Cassie and her mother as she began to tell her story and what Dorian had done.

"It was a terrible time back then," Mary shook her head listening to Cyrus's terror on the town. "The hate ran deep."

"Cyrus got what was coming to him," Dean bobbed his head. "And Cas here knocked out the KKK."

"You really did that?" Mary looked over at the angel.

"Trust me Mary, you will not be as impressed once you hear the whole story," Cas grimaced. "Although I do take some pride from that."

"Nowadays I really miss conversations that start with 'this killer truck'," Sam commented.

"Not to mention this Cassie seems to be the only one who can wrest a 'please' out of Dean," Cas added. Onscreen, TV!Sam and TV!Dean dredge and burn Cyrus's body but that only angers the killer truck. TV!Dean elects to lead it off while TV!Sam attempts to figure out a way to destroy it. TV!Sam calls in Cassie and instructs TV!Dean to go to a specific spot where the truck attempts to run him down only for it to disappear. TV!Sam explains that he led him to the hallowed ground of the old church on the chance that it might get rid of the spirit.

"I'll still kill you for that," Dean glared at his little brother but got distracted by his and Cassie's goodbye. Maybe he ought to look for her but then the image of Lisa lashed against his memory like a stinging slap. It was probably for the best he didn't.

Sam didn't even have the heart to take shots at his brother, already knowing where his mind was. Great now I actually feel sympathy for your brother. "You could always get out of my head." No thanks, it's really comfy in here. Sam rolled his eyes and got to his feet, "Let's take a break."