"Bobby?" Dean called over. Behind him, Mack whimpered, clinging to his jacket as she peeked one eye out to look at Cas. By the wall, Bobby pulled himself into a sitting position and Dean went back to focusing on Cas. "How many of you ass-clowns are in there? A hundred? More?" More of the black goo was dripping from Cas. "Your vessel's gonna explode, ain't it? Wouldn't do anything too strenuous. In fact, I'd call it a day, head on home, huh?" The creature- Leviathan- looked at him for a long moment. "We'll be back. For you."
Dean pulled Mack to the side, getting out of Leviathan's way as he made his way out of the building. "No! Cas!" Mack suddenly cried, ripping out of his grasp and running after the former angel. "Mack! Mckinley!" Dean hurried after his daughter. Bobby hung back, pausing to grab Sam where he was hallucinating in a spare room. "Mckinley!" Dean called. "Cas!" she continued yelling. The Leviathan had headed over to the nearby water reservoir, and had begun to make his way into the water.
"M-Mckinley," Dean stuttered, not really needing to yell anymore, because like him, his daughter had just frozen, watching the creature submerge itself. They were joined by Sam and Bobby a moment later, just as he went under. A whirlpool appeared, black liquid radiating from it and disappearing right where he went down. "Aw, hell," Bobby muttered. They all looked over to see what was wrong. There, on the edge of the reserve, sat a sign: 'Public Water Supply. No swimming. No fishing. No boating.'
"Damn it," Dean breathed. "You said it. Those… whatever you call 'ems…" Bobby trailed off. "Leviathan," Sam supplied. "Right. If they're in the pipes, they got themselves a highway to anywhere." Dean swallowed, "Awesome." Just then, he spotted something familiar floating at the edge of the reservoir. Reaching down, he pulled it out; Cas' trench coat, still covered in black goo and ratty in places. The others watched as he carefully folded it up. "Okay. So he's gone…" he said quietly. "Yeah," Bobby agreed. "Rest in peace. If that's in the cards."
Dean just stared at the coat in his hands sadly. Mack walked over to him, reaching out and touching his arm. He gave her a sad smile. "Come on. We gotta git," Bobby said. Numbly, Dean followed behind Sam and Bobby, each step taking him further away from the reservoir, further away from where he lost the love of his life. Mack stayed right next to him every step of the way, holding the hand that wasn't carrying the trench coat.
What they didn't know was that on the opposite side of the reservoir, in the trees, a woman had paused her monthly nature retreat, because she had met the man of her dreams. Daphne Allen had been seeing visions of a man with wild black hair and crystal blue eyes for months, and today, she finally met him, in exactly the way the visions told her she would. He crawled from the water, completely naked, and staring around in bewilderment. "Oh," Daphne gasped in surprise, short brown hair bouncing around her shoulders and green eyes wide as she stared at the man.
"Um… H-hello," the man told her. "I… I don't know where I am. I can't remember anything." Daphne smiled, "You're in Bootback, Kansas. My name is Daphne." The man frowned, those stunning blue eyes studying her face intently. Something about her seemed so familiar, and yet so wrong at the same time. "I… I don't know my name," he shook his head. "That's alright. How about we get you dressed and somewhere you can dry off?" The man looked down at himself in surprise, seeming to realize his state of nudity. "Oh… Yes. I think that may be wise."
Daphne took his arm, leading him back down the trail toward the cabin where she was staying during her retreat. Every step they took away from the water made the man feel worse, like he was going the wrong way. But how could he be going the wrong way? This woman, Daphne, was helping him and he couldn't remember anything. So maybe he was going the right way and just didn't know it.
"Daddy, you gotta eat something." They were back at Bobby's house, and Bobby had made a simple dinner for everyone, but Dean was just sitting out on the porch, the folded trench coat on his lap. His stomach wouldn't stop doing somersaults. Mack had come out and joined him, a plate with an extra sandwich in her hands. "Daddy, please," she begged him. His eyes flickered from the coat in his lap over to his daughter. "Just a few bites." Numbly, he reached out, taking the plate from her. She watched him, chewing her lip as he forced himself to eat a little bit of the sandwich. He set it aside after bite number three. His stomach was churning too badly.
Mack didn't comment, just took a seat next to him and leaned her head on his arm. "It's okay, Daddy," she told him quietly. "I miss him, too." A few tears slipped down Dean's cheeks and he closed his eyes, resolving to push past this feeling for her. Because he couldn't check out of parenting again like he had at Lisa's. Mack needed her father, and that wasn't going to happen if he sat around wallowing. "Come on, bug. Time for bed."
They both stood, heading into the house and upstairs. Every moment felt robotic to Dean, like he was just going through the motions without really feeling anything. He remembered the way Mack had checked out when it got closer to the day he was going to Hell and the period after before he showed up in their lives. She had acted this same way. Like she was just following them around and doing things because she knew she was supposed to. That's how he felt now.
He mentally went through the checklist. Tuck Mack into bed and kiss her goodnight, because that's what they always did each night. Take a shower and get ready for bed because that's the routine. Pull back the covers. Lay in the bed. Hug the trench coat close, because that's all that's left of his love. No beer. No drinking. Because if he started now, he wouldn't stop, and he couldn't do that to Mack again. He buried his nose in the coat, breathing in the familiar scent of fabric softener and soap. He would allow himself this moment of vulnerability, and come morning, he would lock the coat away in the trunk of the Impala and he would help tackle this new Leviathan problem with Sam and Bobby. Because what else could he do?
The next morning, true to his vow, Dean locked the trench coat in the trunk and started helping Bobby put out an APB to any hunters they could about the new Leviathan threat. Bobby was suspicious at first of Dean's behavior after the way he had checked out last night, but he wasn't about to protest the help. Sam had passed out on the couch after dinner and was still sleeping like a log. They finished putting out all the feelers Bobby could think of, and then hit a dead end. There really wasn't much they could do until the Leviathan showed their faces.
When they finally woke Sam up, he explained to them how much worse the Hell visions had gotten. Apparently, he was hallucinating, seeing Lucifer everywhere and having trouble distinguishing between fiction and reality. After the conversation, Sam started taking apart his gun while Dean and Bobby watched from the kitchen, talking quietly. "Well, at least he's not curled up under the sink," Bobby muttered. "Yeah, no, he's just sitting there silently field-stripping his weapon," Dean returned sarcastically.
He took Sam's phone out of his jacket, which was hanging on one of the kitchen chairs. "What are you doing?" Bobby asked. "Turning on his GPS, case he decides to fly the cuckoo's nest." Bobby eyed him warily. "And you? How you doing?" Dean swallowed, having dreaded that question all morning. He could tell Bobby had been going back and forth, hesitating on asking him about it. After all, just last night he was a numb mess on the front porch and now he was up and at it like nothing had happened. "Seriously, Bobby, it ain't like he's hexed, you know? I mean, what if it's the kind of crazy you can't fix?"
"Yeah, I'm- I'm worried, too, but humor me for a second. How are you?" Dean glared over at Bobby. "Who cares? Don't you think our mailbox is a little full right now? I'm fine." Bobby nodded, "Right. And weren't you pissed at him when he said the same thing just a couple hours before he spilled his marbles on the floor?" Dean rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well," he poured himself a cup of coffee. "I'm not Sam, okay? I keep my marbles in a lead friggin' box. I'm fine. Really."
"Of course. Yeah. You just lost the man you love, your brother's in the bell jar, and Purgatory's most wanted are surfing the sewer lines, but yeah, yeah, I get it. You're- you're fine." Just then, Mack came in from the backyard holding a handful of wildflowers, which were really more like weeds, but Dean wasn't about to complain. "Here, Daddy," she offered him the little bouquet. Bobby's face immediately softened in understanding as Dean smiled down at his daughter. "Thanks, bug. I love them." He turned, rooting through the kitchen cupboard and found a small jar to fill with water to keep the flowers in. "Wanna go shopping with me, Mack?" he asked her once the jar was placed in the center of the kitchen table. "Okay!"
When Mack and Dean got back from the store, Sam and Bobby told Dean about a possible Leviathan thing they'd heard about over the wire. So, Dean and Mack headed back out, leaving Bobby to watch Sam while they checked out the possible lead. "Can I come in, Daddy?" Mack asked when they arrived. "Not this time, baby. I'll be fast, I promise," he told her. She nodded, settling into the passenger seat of the Impala as he grabbed one of his fake ID's and climbed out. He headed into the school to investigate the crime scene.
Inside the locker room where the boys swim team had been attacked, a forensics officer was examining a blood-spattered wall. Dean flashed his badge for the officer to see. "Special Agent Anderson. Ian," he introduced himself. "Yeah, okay. Our point cop's out on a donut. Forensics," the officer gestured to himself. "I can show you the layout. And step lightly. We got a whole bunch of NC17 shiznickel right over here." Dean nodded, "Right."
As he followed the officer, he noticed some black goo on the wall. "Dammit," he muttered. After getting the tour and asking a few questions, he headed back out to the car with Mack and called Sam. "Yeah," Sam answered. "Well, we're positive for ick. Same kind of stuff that came out of… out of Cas, and, uh, two of the swim kids are missing- they stole one of their parents' cars," Dean informed him, Cas' name sticking in his throat briefly. "So you think these, um, these Leviathan things just jump into people? Like Eve did?"
"I don't know, it makes sense, right?" Dean suggested. "Anyway, uh, state trooper's got surveillance cam on the kids about six hours old of them gassing up just south of the Dakota line, so Mack and I are headed back your way. We'll just track 'em from Bobby's."
"Yeah, sounds good," Sam replied. "Hey. How are you doing?" Dean asked him. "You know, uh, okay," Sam told him. "Okay. Well, hang in there, alright?" Dean hung up, glancing over at his daughter as they drove. "How you doin', bug?"
"Good… How are we gonna stop the Leviathans, Daddy?" Dean swallowed, unsure how to answer. "We'll figure something out, bug." Mack chewed her lip, staring out the window at the passing scenery. "Is Uncle Sammy gonna be okay?" she asked. "I don't know, Mack." She fell silent for a moment longer. "Do you think Cas will come back?" That question was like a stab to the chest. "I don't think so, sweetheart."
When they got back to Bobby's it was to find an empty house. Which was bad because Bobby had called Dean to tell him he'd left Sam alone while he followed another Leviathan lead. "Come on, Mack," Dean said. They headed back out, Dean using the GPS on his phone to track Sam. It led them to an abandoned warehouse. "Oh, this can't be good," Dean muttered. "Stay here." Mack nodded nervously, watching him head inside the building. "Sam? Sam!" Dean called, finding his brother in the main part of the warehouse with his gun drawn. "Sam, what are you doing?"
Sam pointed his gun at Dean, who held up his hands. "Whoa, whoa!" he protested. "I was with you, Dean!" Sam told him desperately. "Okay. Well, here I am," Dean replied gently. "No. No, I don't, I…" Sam looked at the spot beside Dean and then back at him. "I can't know that for sure. You understand me?" Dean nodded, "Okay, now we're gonna have to start small."
"I don't remember driving here," Sam furrowed his brow. He seemed to listen to something, and then shot at the spot beside Dean. "Whoa, whoa! Sam! This discussion does not require a weapons discharge!" the elder Winchester yelled. Sam was breathing heavily as he lowered his gun. "Look at me," Dean ordered. "Come on. You don't know this is real? Look man, I've been to Hell. Okay, I know a thing or two about torture. Enough to know that it feels different. Than the pain of this- this regular, stupid, crappy this."
Sam shook his head. "No, no. How can I know for sure?" Dean swallowed, "Let me see your hand." He reached out and Sam offered his right hand. "No, no. The- the gimp hand! Let me see it." Sam looked over at the empty space beside him again, and Dean grabbed his bandaged hand. "Hey," he shook the hand. "This is real. Not a year ago, not in Hell, now. I was with you when you cut it, I sewed it up! Look!" Dean squeezed Sam's bandaged hand and grabbed the barrel of Sam's gun with his other hand. Sam inhaled sharply. "This is different. Right? Than the crap that's tearing at your walnut. I'm different. Right?"
Sam took his hand away, Dean keeping his gun. "Yeah, I think so," he muttered. He was staring at the empty space beside Dean still. "Sam? Sam." Sam pushed his right thumb against his wound, which started to bleed through the bandage. "Hey," Dean continued to try and keep his attention. "I am your flesh-and-blood brother, okay? I'm the only one who can legitimately kick your ass in real time. And out in the car is your niece. She's real worried about you, Sammy. You got away. We got you out, Sammy." Sam continued to push hard against his wound. "Believe in that! Believe me, okay? You gotta believe me. You gotta make it stone number one and build on it. You understand?"
Sam finally focused on him instead of the empty space. "Yeah. Yeah, okay." Dean smiled, "Come on. Let's go see Mack." As they headed out of the warehouse, Sam's phone rang. "Bobby, hey," he answered. Dean watched his brother carefully as they got into the Impala with Mack. "Leviathan here?" Sam asked. Dean's eyebrows shot up as Sam hung up a moment later. "Bobby's got a live one," Sam informed him. "Okay, let's go." Dean started the car, glancing in the rearview at Mack briefly before taking off back to Bobby's. Mack curled up and fell asleep as they drove. "Look, when we get back to Bobby's-" Dean started.
"It's okay, Dean, I'm good. No white rabbits," Sam laughed briefly. "I'm not seeing anything." Dean nodded a little. "Okay. Baby steps." The brothers exchanged small smiles. Dean's fell as they pulled into the yard at Bobby's. "Oh, no." The whole house had been burned to a crisp. Sam and Dean climbed out, looking at the charred remains. "Oh, no," Dean repeated. He went inside to search while Sam stayed out in the yard. "Any sign of him?" Sam asked when they reunited outside a few minutes later. Dean held up a blackened journal, tossing it behind him. "That place was torched. Somebody knew what they were doing."
"You think Bobby was back there?" Sam asked. "I don't know." Dean indicated Sam go off to the right to keep searching. As soon as his brother was out of earshot, he pulled out his phone, dialing Bobby. "This is Bobby Singer's direct hotline. You should not have this number," the voicemail spoke, followed by a beep. "You cannot be in that crater back there. I can't… If you're gone, I swear, I'm going to strap my Beautiful Mind brother and my daughter into the car and I'm gonna drive us off the pier. You asked me how I was doing? Well, not good! Now, you said you'd be here. Where are you?"
"D-Daddy?" Dean's heart sank as he turned to see Mack climbing sleepily out of the Impala, rubbing her eyes. "What happened?" Dean bit his lip, "I don't know, bug." Mack stared past him at the burnt remains of Bobby's house. "Where's Grandpa Bobby?"
"We're trying to find him, baby. Stay close to me, alright?" She nodded, coming over and taking his hand as they headed through the scrapyard, searching for Bobby. "Bobby! Bobby!" They rounded a corner, finding Sam standing a few feet from a hispanic man. "Winchesters," the man sneered. "Congratulations. Apparently you two are competent enough to warrant annihilating. I'd take it as a compliment." Dean shot the man in the side of the head and he bled black goo- a Leviathan.
The Leviathan straightened up, looking at the black goo on his hand, and then his face transformed. His mouth enlarged, his teeth became long and jagged, and a long, two-pronged tongue unfurled. Mack whimpered, moving closer to her father. "Mack, run." She looked up at him. "But-" she started. "Run!" he ordered. She let go of his hand, running off in the opposite direction. She didn't stop, even when she heard more fighting happening back with the Leviathan and Sam and Dean. She finally skidded to a stop, looking from the burnt shell of Bobby's home to the Impala and back, wondering what to do.
She could hear her father and uncle yelling as they fought the creature. "Okay. Okay," she whispered, swallowing hard. She ran over to the Impala, but instead of hiding inside, she got on the ground and crawled underneath it. She stayed there, shaking, as she waited for her father to come find her. Instead, a few minutes later, she heard sirens getting close and an ambulance pulled into the scrapyard. Paramedics hurried through the maze with stretchers and she watched them carry her father and uncle back into the ambulance.
"My- my daughter," she heard Dean saying to one of the paramedics carrying him. "Where's my daughter?" She couldn't hear the response, because the ambulance doors were getting closed and the vehicle pulled out of the scrapyard moments later. She didn't dare move, wondering what she should do. As she was watching from under the Impala, she saw the Leviathan guy emerge from the scrapyard maze, limping toward the entrance where the ambulance went. Mack held her breath, waiting until he was gone, and then crawled out from her hiding place.