Chapter 2:
Everyone had been researching all day, attempting to get as much information together as possible to pass on to John, but the Triad didn't seem to know as much as Sam and Dean originally thought. They knew about Yellow Eyes, and about Caleb and Sam's connection to him, but John had kept most of the information he knew a secret from the rest of the Triad and his sons. Dean and Caleb were sitting in the Hunter's Tomb with Jim and Mackland going through old hunters journals, and books trying to find any new information, while Sam, easily the best researcher they had, had fallen asleep at the table, but nobody had the heart to wake him. It was hard for the men at the table to see Sam in such pain, and they wished for the days before Sam's teenaged years where he was a happy and talkative kid.
Even after their years apart Dean was attuned to his brother, and his head snapped up the instant Sam began to shift in his sleep. Dean frowned as Sam's movement became more erratic, but he didn't wake up. The rest of the men in the room watched as Dean stood up and shook Sam's arm.
"Sammy?" Dean said gently. Sam awoke with a gasp, and held his breath until his eyes settled on Dean. "You okay?" Sam nodded, and then blushed as he realized there were others in the room.
"Sorry…" He whispered. Sam felt weak; Caleb could feel the shame leaking off the other man.
"Don't apologize kiddo, we've all had them at one point or another." Caleb said.
"Did you find anything?" Sam asked.
"Nothing we didn't already know… your father wasn't too open about the demon after he found out about…" Mackland didn't finish the sentence but everyone knew what he was saying.
"Guess I know why he didn't want me to go away to school…" Sam mumbled. Dean sighed.
"You father was scared Samuel, I may not agree with his course of action, but he only wanted you to be safe." Jim reasoned.
"My father wanted to keep me under his thumb… he was afraid of what I was going to become. Why else would he become so distant? He didn't want you to know what I was." Mackland stood and walked over to stand between Caleb and Sam.
"You know Samuel, if you really believe that, we failed you somewhere along the way, so for that I am sorry." Sam frowned and looked up at Mackland.
"What are you talking about Mac?"
"Well, if you honestly believe that any of us, who raised you and protected you, would have turned our backs on you because you were different, or because you were psychic, or because of a demonic connection you may or may not have, we have obviously failed you in a terrible way. We were all brought together because evil touched our lives, some more then others, and I thought that through all of that, you would have learned that we do not care where you come from, or what had happened to you. I mean, after all that has happened to Caleb, the things that he has been accused of, is he still your family?"
"Of course."
"With his supposed connection to Yellow Eyes do you still trust him?" Sam met Caleb's eyes.
"With my life." Sam answered honestly.
"So does your father, he trusts Caleb with you and your brothers lives, and he treats Caleb as one of his own, even with all the evil that has touched him, so what makes you think that us or your father would think anything different about you?" Sam swallowed and rubbed a hand over his face.
"You wouldn't." Sam whispered. Mackland smiled softly at the youngest boy.
"Exactly, we wouldn't. We would never turn our back on you Samuel; you are family, and whatever is coming we will help you fight it, if you just let us. But you need to let this anger go, it will not help you in the long run."
"Okay Mac."
"Good man, now me and Jim are going to go find something to make for dinner, you boys clean up in here and then come join us." Jim and Mac went back into the kitchen leaving the three younger hunters in the Tomb. Sam closed the book in front of him, and looked up to see Dean and Caleb watching him.
"What?"
"Nothing… just you okay Sammy?" Dean asked. Sam swallowed and held back his typical 'I'm fine' retort, he was so tired of being angry, sad, and depressed about what his life had become.
"I'm dealing…" Dean looked surprised, that was the closest he had gotten Sam to really talking about how he was feeling.
"Well… we are here if you want to unload or anything." Dean said, Caleb nodded from behind him.
"Wouldn't that count as a chick flick moment?" Sam asked.
"Hey look the Runt is finally catching on." Caleb said, sitting down across from the brothers. "But anything that happens in the Hunters Tomb, stays in the Hunters Tomb, so it doesn't count." Sam laughed softly.
"I'm sorry I've been such a dick lately." Sam said. "I'm just tired and frustrated but that isn't your fault, so I shouldn't be taking out on you."
"Your life had been uprooted, we don't blame you for being on edge… I just don't want you to be over taken by revenge… and that anger you got burning beneath the surface is scaring the crap out of me. You are gonna get yourself hurt."
"I know… I just I can still see her… I dream about her, and I can still smell smoke, and I saw her in Toledo… I'm having a tough time getting past this…"
"You aren't weak because you are struggling with this kiddo…" Caleb said. "Hell, I still have nightmares about the shit I saw, I never got over it."
"Me neither Sam." Dean said. "I can still smell the smoke too sometimes… it doesn't go away, but I swear you are going to get a handle on this." Sam smiled sadly at his brother.
"Just cause you say I will get a handle on this, doesn't mean it's true Dean."
"Sure it does, I'm the older which means I am always right."
"You're an idiot." Sam laughed. "C'mon, let's go eat something, I'm starving." Sam left the Hunters Tomb, and Dean smiled at his best friend.
"He's gonna be okay." Dean said.
"Well, you sound much more certain today then you did yesterday Deuce."
"That's because I just saw a glimpse of Sammy, he is still in there."
"Of course he is, we'll take care of him, just like we always do."