A/n: I just wanted to remind everyone that it's very highly likely that the Mary Winchester in my story is nothing like the show's version. When I had started to think up this story a few years ago, I had obviously no idea they'd be bringing her back.

Thank you so much to anyone who reads, reviews, follows, and/or favorites this story. Special thank you to MarbleWolf, hectatess, mckydstarlight, SparksFlyAngel, jojospn, and LilyBolt for your recent reviews.

Chapter 27

It had taken Mary well into the following day to arrive, and as far as Sam could tell, the car ride back from the airport had been an uncomfortable one for the hunter. The mother stomped into her youngest son's room and threw her arms around him. After the initial shock of her reaction, Sam returned the hug. When she pulled away, she wiped at her eyes.

"Are you ok? What's going on with Dean? What happened? How do you know that man that picked me up? I thought you were in Palo Alto."

"Calm down Mom, please," Sam responded trying not to snap at her. "I'm ok. Dean...he's not ok. Those damn doctors haven't told me anything new and they only allowed me to visit him once yesterday. It's like I said, we were in a car accident. It was the other driver's fault, he T-boned me. Robert's a friend. He's been helping with, well, a lot actually. We were in Palo Alto but...it's a long story Mom," Sam sighed.

"I've got time," she informed sternly crossing her arms.

Before anyone could say anything more, the doctor Sam had spoken with the day before entered. Mary was quick to greet him.

"Mary Winchester, I'm Sam and Dean's mother," she introduced herself shaking hands with the man.

"Oh, Nice to meet you Mrs. Winchester. I'm Dr. Martin," he replied.

"Do you have news on Dean?" Sam asked hopefully.

"I'm afraid nothing has changed in your brother's condition so far. But you on the other hand, are free to leave."

"Can we see him?" Mary injected.

"Normally we like to keep the number of visitors down to no more than two," the doctor stated.

"You two go on, I'll wait in the waiting room," Robert said.

Mary and Sam followed the doctor back down the same hallway the younger sibling had been led down the previous day until he came to a stop in front of Dean's room. The twenty two year old glanced at his brother before focusing his attention on their mother. She gasped at the sight of her eldest and tears began to well up in her eyes.

"Oh, Dean," She slowly approached his bed and continued to stare down at her eldest son as he lay exactly as Sam had last seen him.

Doctor Martin repeated everything he had told the younger man to the mother and then excused himself as he had before. Mary pulled up the same chair that Sam had when he first came to visit and sat down next to Dean's bed, placing her hand gently on top of his.

"Hi," she sniffed, "hi, Love. It's Mom," she spoke in a gentle tone, much like the one she used back when her boys had been younger and afraid or ill. "I need you to open your eyes for me Dean. Please."

Both Mary and Sam kept an eye out for signs of acknowledgement, but as before, there was no response. No twitch of his fingers, no opening of his eyes, no stirring of any kind from him. He lay still, his chest slowly rising and falling as he breathed into the mask. They watched silently for several minutes before Mary turned back to Sam.

"When was the last time you ate?" She questioned him. Her youngest shrugged and shook his head.

"Yesterday, I think."

"Let's get you something to eat then," she suggested. The mother didn't want to leave Dean anymore than her son did, but she needed answers and Dean's room was not the place to have this talk. Especially not with the prying eyes of a nurse whom Mary noticed kept peering in at them. Sam didn't say anything, only allowed his mother to coax him out of the room with her and back down the hall towards the waiting room where Robert had been sitting with a People magazine open on an article about Tori Spelling. He quickly discarded the reading material upon seeing the Winchester family enter, and rose to his feet to greet them.

"How's he doin'?" He asked eagerly.

"Same," Sam responded. Robert shook his head.

"Well, I suppose that's better 'n worse."

Sam half heartedly nodded.

"How're you doin'?"

The young man's only answer was a shake of his head.

"We're on our way to get some food, wanna join?" He asked, trying to change the subject to spare him from tearing up again.

"Sure, 's long as I'm not interrupting anythin' that is?" He turned his blue eyes to Mary.

"Of course. Maybe you can help fill in the many gaps my son's left about what's been going on," she responded throwing Sam a knowing look.

The cafeteria was pretty standard for a hospital, mediocre food for a less than reasonable price. The choices consisted of a hamburger with fries, no doubt frozen and warmed in a microwave, a hotdog made similarly, a noodle dish, chicken strips with fries, a turkey sandwich wrapped up in saran wrap with no condiments, and a chicken Cesar salad with a couple of packets of dressing.

Mary and Robert both ordered the bowl of noodles, while Sam went with a salad. All three of them sat in silence for awhile, Mary taking a bite then eyeing her youngest, who wasn't eating his meal, but was instead staring at it and stabbing the lettuce with his plastic fork absently. She cleared her throat pulling him from his thoughts and bring his eyes to meet hers.

"So," she started abruptly, "let's hear it. And I mean ALL of it. I know there's more going on than what you've told me."

Sam looked over at Robert who had just shoved another heaping fork full of noodles into his mouth.

"I don't think you're going to believe me," he remarked.

"Try me."

"Ok," he cleared his throat nervously, "here goes."

Sam reported everything from his and Dean's reunion, to Jessica's death, to the interrogation, to everything that happened afterwards. By the time he was done, Mary had forgotten all about her meal and was staring in disbelief at her youngest son.

"Why didn't you tell me about any of this before?" She questioned.

"I just- I didn't want you to get involved. Plus I didn't know what you would say to all of it. I mean, do you really believe in ghosts? What about demons? What good would it have been for me to tell you if you wouldn't have believed me? Dean didn't. Not at first anyways. He was ready to take me to the nuthouse. Or twenty-four hour watch."

For the first time since her arrival at Sioux Falls General, Mary was speechless. Sam turned his attention to his friend.

"Robert, is there anything we can do to help Dean? Any spells or magic or something?" The hunter stared into Sam's hopeful hazel eyes.

"Sam, why don't you go and check on your brother again. I'll catch up in a moment." It wasn't a suggestion so much as it was a request. Her words caught both men off guard and left the elder of them silent.

"Yes Ma'am."

Sam looked from his friend to his mother before pushing his chair away from the table and getting to his feet. With one final glance back, the young man was gone. Mary watched him go, then turned to address Robert.

"Listen, I appreciate what you've done for my boys, truly I do, but I don't appreciate you informing them about the supernatural."

The hunter's eyes grew wide at the mention. "So, you do know about that then?"

"Oh I know alright. Hunting has been in family for multiple generations. And I hated every second of it. The sights, the sounds, the smells. They never leave you, they always haunt you. I didn't want that life, and I certainly didn't want that for my sons. I still don't. I left all that as soon as I could and vowed to never look back. Never raise Sam and Dean the way I was raised. They were going to have normal lives even if it killed me."

"They still do, don't they? I mean they've only taken down one ghost and it was Sam's wife. Which he helped put to rest usin' nothin' more than words. You didn't raise fools, Mary."

"It may have been 'one ghost,' but what about all of this with demons? I could see the hatred in my youngest's eyes when he spoke about them. Sam's a lot like his father in many ways. Not all of them favorable. When John's heart was set on something, he didn't stop. We had gophers in our front yard once and let me tell you, it was literally a war between them and my husband. I know that seems like a stupid example, but believe me when I say that those ambitious hot headed ways of his caused some pretty big bumps in his life. Now imagine Sam doing the exact same thing not with rodents, but demons. I don't want that for my son. I don't want my children to become casualties in a war that I have tried so desperately to keep them from. Already they've tried to claim Dean's life, and I will not let that happen. To either of them."

Robert nodded, "me neither," he agreed.

"Good. Then promise me you won't talk to my boys anymore about the supernatural. Promise me you won't let them become hunters."

"I'll do my best. If it makes you feel any better, I never liked the idea in the first place," the hunter admitted.

"Thank you Robert Singer, for taking care of my sons and allowing them somewhere safe to stay. Sam really thinks highly of you."

"And I do too. Of him I mean, and Dean. You 'n yer boys are welcome to the Singer Salvage anytime."

Mary smiled at the man, "oh and if I could ask you for one more thing?"

"You Winchesters have a thing about favors, don't you?" he teased lightly.

"Do you by any chance have any acacia, oil of Abrameli, a few candles, a bowl, and a knife I could borrow?"

"I may have some of that at home," Robert confirmed. "Mind if I ask what for?"

"I'm going to save Dean."

A/n: SparksFlyAngel: I'm glad you're still enjoying this story. Thank you as always for your time, dedication, interest, and review.