Sam stepped into the shower, the feel of Ruby's lips still lingering on his. He turned on the water and moaned as the warm water trailed down his skin, slowly removing the smell of sex from his body. The last four months had been horrible, but everything with Ruby was kind of nice. Sure, the demon blood was a little weird, but it was nice having someone with him, having someone help him. And while he knew it was just a vessel, Sam really did enjoy Ruby's delicate body. There was definitely a part of him that wanted to call to Ruby and invite her to join him in the shower. She'd saved him from himself after Dean's death, she'd given him direction after his attempted crossroads deals fell through, and he knew he was steadily falling in love with the demon.

As Sam finished rinsing the soap out of his hair, he opened his eyes to see the Trickster standing in the shower with him.

Sam jumped and pulled the shower curtain around himself. "Dude, what the hell?" he said, exasperated.

The Trickster's usual grin was missing; his expression was deadly serious. Over the last four months, the Trickster had been around as well. He frequently soothed Sam's nightmares, and after a hard day of training with Ruby, his jokes and laughs were a godsend. He definitely considered the Trickster a friend, but that did not mean that the demigod could just show up in his shower!

"You need to answer the door," the Trickster said sternly.

"I didn't hear the door," Sam said, jumping out of the shower and speedily pulling on boxers.

The Trickster stepped out of the shower, the water shutting off on its own. He walked up to Sam and invaded his personal space in a way that reminded Sam of the Mystery Spot.

"There's someone at the door, Sam. Trust me," the Trickster said.

Sam pulled on jeans and a grey tshirt. "Ruby is fully capable of answering a door," he said.

The Trickster growled, "Sam!"

Before he could ask why his friend was being so weird, the Trickster was gone. Odd. He walked out of the bathroom with a towel in hand to dry his dripping hair.

Sam heard Ruby say, "So where is it?" Oh, Ruby did say something about ordering a pizza.

"Where's what?" came a gruff voice. Who the hell was at the door?

"The pizza," Ruby said to the visitor, "That takes two guys to deliver."

"I think we've got the wrong room," the voice said.

Sam walked down the hall and asked, "Hey, is-" The rest of his words died in his throat. Sam froze.

Dean. Dean was at the door. It was Dean. But Dean was dead. It couldn't be Dean. But it was Dean. He was right there. Bobby was there, too. How could Bobby be there? He didn't know where he was. But Dean. Dean really couldn't be there. What the hell was going on?

"Heya, Sammy," Dean said. It was Dean's voice. His voice was rough, deeper than the memory of Dean's voice in Sam's head. But it was definitely Dean's voice. Sam barely remembered how to breathe. He inhaled sharply. Dean had been completely shredded by the hellhound. How could he-

This had to be a trick. Dean walked past Ruby and stepped into the motel room with a small smile on his face. Like this was some sort of reunion. Except Dean was dead. And he wasn't ever coming back. This was an imposter. He'd seen monsters wear his brother's face before, but this was too far.

Sam quickly grabbed a blade from his back pocket and charged at the guy that could not be Dean. The Dean lookalike blocked Sam's attack, and Bobby quickly pulled Sam back.

Sam struggled against Bobby. That wasn't Dean. That couldn't be Dean. Dean was dead. Like everyone else.

"Who are you?!" Sam shouted at the imposter.

"Like you didn't do this?" Not Dean snapped.

"Do what?" Sam growled as he tried again to lunge at Not Dean.

Bobby held fast and said quickly, "It's him. It's him, Sam. I've been through this already. It's really him."

Sam's breath came in quick and sharp as he let Bobby's words slowly sink in. "But-" he tried.

"I know," Dean said. He gave Sam a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "I look fantastic, huh?" he said.

It was Dean. It was really Dean. Dean was alive. Holy shit.

Sam slowly stepped forward and caught his brother in a tight hug. Four months. It had been four freaking months. Feeling his brother alive and in his arms again made the pain of those four months come rushing back. Sam struggled not to cry. He had his brother back. No wonder the Trickster had been freaking out so badly. Slowly, Sam released Dean and took a step back. Holy crap, Dean was alive. He could barely process that information.

In the silence, Ruby asked innocently, "So...are you two, like, together?" Sam hardly understood what she said.

"What?" Sam said, "No, no." He looked at Ruby for a second. Why was she fucking with him? She knew who Dean was. Of course, Dean didn't know who she was. New meat suit and all.

"He's my brother," Sam explained.

"Oh...got it, I guess. Look, I should probably go," Ruby said.

"Yeah, yeah, that's probably a good idea," Sam said, "Sorry."

Ruby went to go get dressed in the bathroom, and Sam turned around to face his brother. Both Dean and Bobby gave him approving looks regarding Ruby. If they knew who she was, he strongly doubted they'd be as understanding. If they knew what he'd been doing, this whole thing would go a lot differently.

Sam slipped on a white shirt to do something other than stare awkwardly at Dean and Bobby while they waited for Ruby. Ruby came out of the bathroom dressed and walked to the door. Sam opened the door for her. They'd meet up later. Everything would be fine.

"So, call me," Ruby said as she walked out into the hall.

Sam smiled and leaned against the doorframe. "Yeah, yeah, sure thing, Kathy," he said. Hopefully, Dean would hear the made up name and not ask questions about who the girl was.

"Kristy…" Ruby said, intentionally looking saddened. Why? Why was she fucking with him like this?

Sam gave her a tight smile and played along for appearance. "Right," he said. Ruby gave him a shy smile a walked away. Sam wanted to fucking kill her. Really? She knew how bad it would be if Dean knew who she was or what they'd been up to. She could've just played along. And that joke about Dean and Sam being together? What the hell? Sam just thanked his lucky stars that the Trickster had made himself scarce. If Ruby felt the need to mess with him, he could only guess what the demigod would've done.

Sam sighed and closed the door. He would have words with Ruby later. Oh, yes. There would be words.

He turned around to face his family. Dean stood there with his arms folded over his chest, judging Sam silently. Bobby watched him with a mixture of concern and sadness. Just because they thought he didn't know the girl's name? Considering Dean's track record, their reaction was just astounding. And incredibly hypocritical. Sam sat down to put on his shoes.

"So, tell me, what'd it cost?" Dean asked.

Sam looked up at his brother. Seriously? "The girl? I don't pay, Dean," he said.

Dean's grave attitude didn't lighten. "It's not funny, Sam. To bring me back," he said, "what'd it cost? Was it just your soul, or was it something worse?"

Sam asked, "You think I made a deal?"

Bobby said quickly, "That's exactly what we think."

"Well, I didn't," Sam said. He went back to tying his shoes without another word on the matter.

Dean said, "Don't lie to me."

Sam looked up at his brother. This was crazy. "I'm not lying," he said defensively.

"So, what? Now, I'm off the hook and you're on? Is that it? You're some demon's bitch boy? I didn't want to be saved like this," Dean snapped, stepping closer to Sam.

Sam stood up, angrily. "Look, Dean, I wish I had done it, alright?" he said. How many times had he prayed to save his brother? How many nights had he seen Dean's mauled corpse in his dreams? If it weren't for the Trickster's words and Ruby's lips, Sam would've gladly joined Dean in Hell.

Dean grabbed fistfuls of Sam's shirt and got right up in Sam's face. "There's no other way this could've gone down. Now, tell the truth," he snapped.

Sam knocked Dean's hands away. "I tried everything. That's the truth," he snapped, "I tried to open the Devil's Gate. Hell, I tried to bargain, Dean, but no demon would deal, alright." He took a deep breath and said more calmly, "You were rotting in Hell for months. For months. And I couldn't stop it. So, I'm sorry it wasn't me, alright. Dean, I'm sorry."

He was sorry. He was so sorry. If he had just killed Jake when he'd had the chance. If he hadn't let his guard down and died that day. None of this would've happened. The Trickster kept telling him that it wasn't his fault, that it had been Dean's choice to sell his soul. But Sam knew this was all on him. Dean had gone to Hell for him, and he hadn't been able to save him. Sam had failed his brother in the worst way imaginable. The Trickster had tried to ease Sam's guilt, but none of his words ever helped. Only Ruby's plan for vengeance on Lilith helped relieve some of the pain. It gave him something to focus on, something to work towards. But even though Dean was alive again, there would never come a day that Sam wouldn't be sorry that Dean went to Hell.

"It's okay, Sammy," Dean said quietly, "You don't have to apologize, I believe you."

Bobby said softly, "Don't get me wrong, I am glad that Sam's soul remains intact, but it does raise a sticky question."

"If he didn't pull me out, then what did?" Dean supplied.

Sam looked at Dean with concern. Whatever had raised Dean from Hell had to be crazy strong and definitely supernatural. Whatever it was, Sam had a sickening feeling in his gut that Dean wasn't out of the woods yet. He needed a drink.

Sam walked over to the mini-bar and grabbed three beers. Handing one to Dean and one to Bobby, Sam sat down across from them with his own.

Dean started to open his beer as he asked, "So, what were you doing around here if you weren't digging me out of my grave?"

Sam popped his drink open and said, "Well, once I figured out I couldn't save you, I started hunting down Lilith trying to get some payback." He took a swig from his beer, swallowing any and all mentions of Ruby and the Trickster with it.

Bobby said, "All by yourself. Who do you think you are, your old man?"

As if Sam didn't feel guilty enough. He looked at his hands and said, "Uh, yeah, I'm sorry, Bobby. I should've called. I was pretty messed up."

Dean crossed over to where Sam sat on the bed and picked up Ruby's bra. "Oh, yeah," he said sarcastically, "I really feel your pain." Ruby just had to leave her bra, didn't she? Sam really was going to kill that demon. He brushed off Dean's comment as Dean sat down next to Sam.

"Anyways," Sam said, "I was checking these demons outta Tennessee, and out of nowhere, they took a hard left, booked up here."

"When?" Dean asked.

"Yesterday morning," Sam said.

"When I busted out," Dean said.

Bobby asked, "You think these demons are here because of you?"

Dean shrugged.

"But why?" Sam asked.

"I dunno," Dean said, "Some badass demon drags me out, and now this? It's gotta be connected somehow."

"How're you feeling anyway?" Bobby asked.

"I'm a little hungry," Dean said.

"No," Bobby said, "I mean, do you feel like yourself? Anything strange or different?"

"Or demonic?" Dean asked, defensively, "Bobby, how many times I gotta prove that I'm me?"

Bobby gave Dean a look and said, "Yeah, well, listen, no demons' letting you loose outta the goodness of their hearts. They gotta have something nasty planned."

"Well, I feel fine," Dean said.

Sam said, "Okay, look, we don't know what they're planning. We got a pile of questions and no shovel. We need help." As soon as the words left Sam's lips, he wondered why he made such a clunky metaphor. He didn't feel tired. Maybe he was just in so much shock over Dean's resurrection that his brain was short circuiting.

"I know a psychic a few hours from here. Something this big? Maybe she's heard the other side talking," Bobby said.

"Hell yeah. It's worth a shot," Dean said.

"Be right back," Bobby said.

As Bobby went to go call the psychic, Dean stood up.

"Hey, wait," Sam said, getting up, "Probably want this back." He reached into his shirt and pulled Dean's necklace out and over his head. He handed it to him, and the loss of the metal against his chest felt almost foreign.

Ruby thought it was nice that he wore Dean's necklace. She said it was nice to keep something of his brother around. The Trickster told Sam that, while he understood, wearing the necklace everyday probably wasn't very healthy. Somehow he knew that the necklace was serving as a reminder of Dean's death and Sam's failure. Sam deserved the painful reminder, though, so he kept wearing it.

Dean looked at the amulet in his hand and said a quiet, "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," Sam said.

Dean slipped the necklace over his head, putting it back where it belonged. God, Dean had been dead. He'd been in Hell.

Suddenly, Sam couldn't hold back the nagging worry at the back of his mind. "Hey, Dean, what was it like?" he asked.

Dean look up at Sam and asked, "What, Hell?"

Sam met Dean's eyes and knew he didn't have to say anything.

"I don't know, I-I must've blacked it out," Dean said quickly, "I don't remember a damn thing."

Sam said, "Thank God for that." He didn't know if he fully believed his brother, but either way, Sam figured it was best to leave it alone.

Dean went to use the bathroom, leaving Sam waiting on his family. Soon after, Bobby got off the phone, and they were off to meet the psychic.

"She's about four hours down the interstate," Bobby said, "Try to keep up."

"I assume you'll want to drive," Sam said, tossing Dean the keys to the Impala.

Dean caught the keys and laughed, "Oh, I almost forgot. Hey, sweetheart, you miss me?" Dean was smiling brightly as he walked up to his car.

As Dean slid into the driver's seat, it almost felt like old times. Sam almost felt normal again. Sam got in the passenger seat to see Dean staring confused and betrayed at the radio.

"What the hell is that?" Dean asked, tone accusing.

"It's an iPod jack," Sam said.

"You were supposed to take care of her, not douche her up," Dean said.

Sam laughed and said, "Dean, I thought it was my car."

Dean hit Sam with a grade A bitchface and turned the key in the ignition. The last song Sam had been listening to blasted through the Impala.

Dean stared at Sam, expression full of judgment and irritation. "Really?" he said.

Sam shrugged innocently. There was nothing wrong with Jason Manns' music. The guy had a good voice, his guitar skills were great. Just because it wasn't Led Zeppelin didn't mean that it wasn't worth listening to.

Dean rolled his eyes and yanked the iPod out of the radio, tossing it into the backseat.

About ten minutes into the drive, Dean started asking about Lilith and Ruby and what happened after he died. Sam dodged most of Dean's questions with half answers and half truths. There were moments where he had to flat out lie, but it was better that way. Dean had just come back from the dead. No need to worry him or get him upset. He just wanted a peaceful drive with his brother, not start a fight with him. And a fight was the only thing the truth would achieve with Dean.

After a while, Dean put on the radio, and Sam settled in for the long, classic rock fueled drive. He wasn't sure when he fell asleep, but when he found himself sitting next to the Trickster on a shoreline overlooking a sunlit beach, he knew he must be dreaming.

"Why are we on a beach?" Sam asked.

The Trickster grinned and said, "This is your subconscious, Samsquatch. Maybe you wanted to go to the beach with me."

Sam rolled his eyes. He decided to cut to the chase since he had the Trickster's attention. "You knew Dean was back," he said.

The Trickster's smile faltered slightly. "I did," he said cautiously.

"And do you know how he got out of Hell?" Sam asked.

"Why are you lying to Dean?" the Trickster asked.

"That doesn't answer my question."

"I don't want to answer your question. Why are you lying to your brother?"

"Is there any point in time that you're not spying on me?" Sam asked.

The Trickster laughed and said, "I don't want to answer that question either."

"I can't tell Dean what's going on with Ruby or my abilities. He'd freak out. You know that," Sam said.

"Well, if you had listened to me about the demon, maybe you wouldn't have to lie," the Trickster said evenly.

"Ruby was trying to help me. She is trying to help me," Sam defended.

The Trickster rolled his eyes. "Oh, yeah. Help you. Right. That's what she was doing when she started feeding you her blood. Gosh, I keep forgetting that," he said.

Sam sighed and said, "It's a means to an end."

The Trickster said, "No. Killing your brother over and over to get you to wake up and take care of yourself is a means to an end. What you've been doing is just stupid and reckless."

"What would you have had me do, huh? Just let it lie?" Sam snapped.

"Yes!" the Trickster said, standing up in the sand and looking down at Sam, "Yes! If you recall, I advised you to live a normal life. Remember the life you wanted before Dean showed up at Stanford? I told you to go live your life, not start hooking up with some no good, black-eyed-"

Sam stood up and stared at the Trickster. "Are you...jealous?" he asked slowly.

The Trickster laughed, but Sam knew that laugh. It was the laugh that masked something else. He'd seen Dean use it countless times. Hell, he'd seen the Trickster use it quite a bit, too.

"Jealous? Of a demon? Sam, c'mon," the Trickster said, trying to brush it off.

"Holy shit," Sam said, "You're jealous of Ruby. Why? Why would a demigod be jealous of demon?"

"That's a damn good question, Sammy. It makes no sense. Why would I be jealous of that bitch? It's ridiculous, it's preposterous. Which is why I am not at all jealous of her," the Trickster insisted.

Sam said, "Except you are. I can see it."

The Trickster's smile stayed plastered on his face. "That's a good one, Sam. But you're seeing things," he said.

"I don't think you've ever been in the same room with Ruby. She certainly doesn't know who you are, anyway. The only thing you'd have to be jealous of her over is...me," Sam said. As he said it, he stared at the Trickster, confused. He remembered the nights when his nightmares got so bad that the Trickster would stay the night to make sure he slept soundly. He remembered how the Trickster had been there the night that Dean died.

The Trickster's smile faded, and he faced Sam with a strong gaze. "Leave it alone, Sam," he said sternly.

"No, you need to explain to me why you would possibly be jealous of Ruby over me," Sam said.

"I don't know," the Trickster said.

Sam asked, "What do you mean you don't know?"

The Trickster turned away from Sam for a second and raised his hand to snap his fingers like he always did before leaving Sam's dreams.

Sam quickly grabbed the Trickster's hand. "My brother just came back from the dead, something really bad could be going on. The last thing I need is for you to just disappear," he said.

The Trickster pulled his hand away from Sam and stared out over the water. "I don't know, okay?" he said, "I don't know why I care so much. I don't know why I'm here. I don't know why I keep coming back. I just…" He turned back to Sam and looked him in the eye. He said, "Here's what I do know. I know that Ruby is poisonous. I know that the demon blood is a terrible idea. I know you won't listen to me, but I know I won't stop trying to get you to see reason about this. Because I know that I care about you way more than I should."

What?

"You care about me?" Sam asked, "I mean, I guess that makes sense since we're friends and all, but-"

"That's not what I mean. I can't-I don't know how to-"

"Are you...are you trying to say that you like me?" Sam asked. He was in shock. Again. Did the Trickster actually have some sort of feelings for him? It was strange enough that a demon could be affectionate towards him, but a demigod? Having feelings for Sam? What?

The Trickster rolled his eyes and said, "I'm saying that you have me off balance in the worst way, and I am not having this conversation with you right now. You have more important things to do, like deal with what's going on with Dean."

Sam clung onto the small bastion of sanity in the Trickster's words and ignored the fact that his friend basically admitted to having a crush on him. "And what exactly is going on with Dean?" he asked.

The Trickster's bravado and knowing smirk was back. "You're going to find out soon," he said.

Sam said, "That's really clear and insightful."

"I'm here to please," the Trickster said with a grin.

"You want to tell me what pulled Dean out of Hell?" Sam asked.

The Trickster smiled and gave Sam an eyebrow bounce. "Nope," he said with a shit eating grin, "I do have to talk to you about something, though. I'm going to-"

Sam bolted awake in the Impala.

"Good morning, sunshine," Dean said with a laugh. Music was blasting from the radio. Sam blinked and looked around, slowly adjusting to being awake. It was beginning to be light out.

"How long was I out?" Sam asked.

"Nearly the whole way. Bobby said about four hours about four hours ago. We should be there any minute," Dean said.

Sam tried to shake the feelings of confusion and irritation from his conversation with the Trickster as they followed Bobby to the psychic's house. Turned out, the trip to the psychic's house was pointless. Pamela Barnes didn't know anything. All the visit managed to do was land Pam in the hospital with burnt out eyes, give Sam a horrible sinking feeling about that hand print on Dean's shoulder, and give them a name that Sam would be glad never to hear again, Castiel.

After a small run in with some demons at a diner, Sam realized that Dean was much more eager to meet this Castiel thing than he was comfortable with. Sam figured it would be smarter to just take care of the demons in the diner, so they didn't wreak more havoc, but Dean wasn't having it. All Dean wanted to do was summon Castiel and get a good look at this thing in person.

That night, Dean fell asleep in their hotel room, and Sam decided he was going to go with his gut. He'd been making decisions without Dean for four months. He'd been hunting without Dean for four months. He could take care of some demons and be back before Dean even woke up.

Sam watched his brother carefully to make sure he didn't wake up. He silently slipped out of the room and out to the Impala. It was just a few demons. Someone had to take care of them. It'd be fine. Once Sam parked outside the diner where the demons had been, he sat for a moment. Maybe he should've been more adamant with Dean. It was weird having him back. It was nice, more than nice, but it was weird. He'd been more or less independent over the last few months. It felt weird sneaking around behind Dean's back just to gank demons.

Just then, his phone rang. It was Dean. Shit.

"Hey," Sam answered.

"What're you doing?" Dean asked.

Sam fought a sigh. "Couldn't sleep. Went to get a burger," he said. The lie rolled off his tongue with ease that should've alarmed him. But the lie was necessary. Dean would just lose it on him otherwise.

"In my car?" Dean asked.

"Force of habit, sorry," Sam said, "What're you doing up?"

Dean said, "Well, uhh, Bobby's back. Goin' to grab a beer." Sam didn't quite believe him. Then again, if Dean was lying, it would make his lie much easier.

"Alright, well, uhh, spill some for me, huh?" Sam said.

Dean replied, "Done. Yeah, I'll catch you later."

Dean hung up, and Sam pocketed his phone, looking across the street at the diner. This would be easier with Dean, but at least Dean wasn't going to try and stop him. Plus, without Dean, he'd be able to practice the skills he and Ruby had been working on.

Sam got out of the car and walked across the dark street to the diner's front door. He pulled it open quietly, surprised to find it unlocked. Soft music played from the juke box, giving the darkened diner an incredibly eerie feeling. Looking around, the place seemed to be empty. Then, he saw it.

Behind the bar, one of the diner workers lie face down on the ground. Something was definitely amiss here. Sam approached the body cautiously, kneeling down to inspect closer. Blood was caked around the man's knuckles. Turning the body over, he saw the man's eyes were burnt out of his skull. It looked exactly like the type of injury Pamela had suffered. Whatever that Castiel thing was must have come through here. Sam recognized the dead man as one of the demons from earlier. Was Castiel a demon? A demon killing other demons? None of this added up.

Sam slowly stood up, staring at the body, when something attacked him, tackling into him from the right. The demon punched him across the face repeatedly, straddling his chest and wailing away at his head. Sam grabbed the demon's head and headbutted her until he was able to throw her off and get back to his feet. Right away, the demon lunged at Sam, punching him in the face again. Sam shook it off quickly, grabbing his assailant and landing his knee in her solar plexus multiple times.

He shoved her away and braced himself to fend her off again. But she paused. And he saw why. The demon had no eyes. Just like the guy behind the bar. Just like Pam. Shit.

"Your eyes," Sam said.

"I can still smell your soul a mile away," the demon said defensively.

Sam said, "It was here. You saw it."

The demon's voice broke as she confirmed that Sam was right. "I saw it," she said.

"What was it?" Sam asked.

She shuddered and said, "It's the end. We're dead. We're all dead."

"What'd you see?" Sam pressed.

The demon said softly, "Go to Hell."

Sam bristled. Hell was the last thing he wanted to think about now that Dean was back. "Funny," he seethed, "I was going to say the same thing to you."

He raised his hand towards the demon and focused. He reached out with his mind and slowly, piece by piece, ripped the demon out of its host. It was easier this time. No bleeding, no headache.

But the host hadn't survived. She would've been blind, but still.

"Damn it," he said under his breath.

Just then, Ruby stepped out from the kitchen. When she got back there, Sam had no idea, but she was here now. "Getting pretty slick there, Sam. Better all the time," she said.

Sam smiled at her, trying to show appreciation for the praise, but there were more important things going on.

"What the hell's going on around here, Ruby?" Sam asked.

"I wish I knew," Ruby said softly.

Sam said, "We were thinking some high level demon pulled Dean out."

"No way," Ruby said, "Sam, human souls don't just walk outta Hell and back into their bodies easy. This guy bleeds, the ground quakes. It's cosmic. No demon can swing that. Not Lilith. Not anybody."

"Then what can?" Sam asked. There had to be answers. It had to be something. If not a demon, then what?

Ruby said, "Nothing I've ever seen before." Sam didn't like the sound of that. Ruby had been around for a long time. If she didn't know…

"Great, you don't know. The Trickster knows, but he's being all cryptic, so that's not gonna lead anywhere," Sam said with a sigh. He sat down at a table with all the enthusiasm of a dog going to the vet.

Ruby put her hands on her hips and asked, "Who's the Trickster?"

"He's a friend," Sam said, "And so far, he seems like the only one who's got an idea of what's going on, but he won't say."

"Why don't you make him?" Ruby suggested.

Sam shook his head and said, "Like I said, he's a friend. And it's not that simple. He's a Trickster God. You can't exactly make him do anything."

Ruby stared at the ceiling in exasperation. She said, "A Trickster God, Sam? Really?"

"Oh, like you can judge who I'm friends with," Sam said.

Ruby flashed her eyes black with a smile curling across her face. Looking at Sam with human eyes again, she said, "Point made. Just careful with him, okay?"

Sam rolled his eyes, and Ruby sat down across from him. She changed the subject. "So, million dollar question," she said, "You gonna tell Dean about what we're doing?"

"Yeah, I just got figure out the right way to say it," Sam said.

Ruby stared at him, and Sam sighed. It was a lot of pressure to have to tell Dean something that he definitely wouldn't want to hear.

Sam said, "Look, I just need time, that's all."

"Sam, he's gonna find out, and if it's not from you, he's gonna be pissed."

"He's gonna be pissed anyway. He's so hardheaded about this psychic stuff, he'll just try and stop me."

"Look, maybe I'll just take a step back for a while," Ruby said.

"Ruby," Sam protested.

Ruby ignored him, "I mean, I'm not exactly in your brother's fan club. But he is your brother. And I'm not gonna come between you."

Sam took a breath and said, "I don't know if what I'm doing is right. Hell, I don't even know if I trust you."

"Thanks," Ruby said as if she were offended.

"What I do know is that I'm saving people," Sam said, "And stopping demons. And that feels good. I want to keep going."

Ruby smiled. "Good," she said, "We can keep going. Just make sure you know what you're doing with Dean."

"I can handle my brother," Sam said.

"Speaking of which, shouldn't you be with him instead of sitting in a diner full of corpses with me?" Ruby asked.

Sam looked at the dead waitstaff. She was probably right. Dean was out with Bobby, or so he said, but Sam and Ruby should probably not wait around for the bodies to start smelling. "Yeah, we should get out of here. I'll keep you posted," he said.

Ruby nodded and got up. "See you around, Sam," she said, giving him a coy smile.

She walked out the front door.

Sam was about to do the same when a hand landed on his shoulder and spun him around. He got ready to fight again when he realized it was the Trickster. Something dark was playing in his eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Sam asked, confused.

"I still need to talk to you," the Trickster said urgently, "I'm gonna lay low for a while."

"Why? What's going on?" Sam asked. He just got his brother back, he definitely didn't want to lose anyone else for a long, long time.

The Trickster said, "It's too dangerous for me to be around right now. I don't know what's going on, but when I do, I'll come back, I promise."

"Is this about what pulled Dean out of Hell?" Sam asked.

The Trickster said, "Yes, yes. It is entirely about that. I need to get out of dodge."

"If you could just tell me what the thing is, maybe I'd be able to help," Sam said.

"There's no point," the Trickster said, "I just-I need to go. I just wanted to say goodbye first."

Sam grabbed his friend's wrist and caught his gaze with a sharp stare. "Let me help," he said.

The Trickster looked back at him with a twinge of excitement and fear in his eyes. It was the kind of look that Sam had only seen once, the look he'd only seen when he'd first asked out Jess. Holy shit, the Trickster really did have feelings for him. Sam almost let his friend go out of shock. Almost.

"It's an angel, Sam," the Trickster said. That caused Sam to drop the Trickster's arm.

"What?" Sam asked. He couldn't have heard that right.

"Castiel is an angel," the Trickster said, "And I need to get as far away from him as possible right now. You know how to call for me, right?"

Sam just stared at the Trickster. An angel? An angel saved Dean? What?

"Umm, no," Sam said as he realized his friend wanted an answer, "You just sort of show up."

The Trickster sighed and said, "Just call for me. It's kind of like praying. I'll hear you, and I'll come running."

"How does that-" Sam started.

The Trickster smiled up at Sam and said, "See you around, kiddo." With that, he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

Before Sam could even blink, his phone rang. Would he ever be able to leave this fucking diner?

It was Dean.

Sam answered the phone. "Hey, where are you?" he asked.

Dean said, "I'll text you the address. I need your help with Bobby."

"What's wrong with Bobby?" Sam asked, alarmed.

"Nothing, he's just unconscious. I can't quite get him into the car, so if you could hurry your ass over here-"

"He's unconscious?" Sam asked, rushing to the Impala and fishing the keys out of his pocket, "What the hell happened?"

"Castiel put him to sleep," Dean said, "It's a long story."

"Castiel? You met it?! You summoned the damn thing didn't you," Sam said.

Dean said, "This is not what I called to talk about. Just get here."

Dean hung up, and Sam sighed frustratedly. His brother had just come back to life. Why was he so intent on being so goddamn reckless?

Sam worried about the Trickster and why he felt the need to hide from an angel. He worried about Ruby and telling Dean about their work. Mostly, he worried about Dean.

The second Dean's text reached his phone, Sam tore off towards the highway.