Author's note: Hi, all! This chapter marks 1 million words that I've written. I'm not counting "Saving Katie" because that bit covers the author's notes so there is at least one million of just the story. This was my next milestone. I never thought I'd write this much but here I am. Also, TW for this chapter, if you do not like to read discipline scenes, I'll add a ((ETW))and you can scroll down to that and continue.
Dean's legs were a lot longer than Kate's. She was well aware of that fact as she had to scramble to keep up with him. His grip on her arm didn't give her the option not to. She was still thinking about the freak's reaction when Dean suddenly stopped walking. She looked up at him and winced because he looked pissed.
"Start talking," Dean said.
Kate blinked. She wasn't sure what to say. "It ran away."
Dean tucked her against his hip and landed two dozen stinging swats. He put her back on her feet and glared at her. "Show me your hand."
Kate held her hand out. She winced again. It was healing, just slowly.
Dean got a good look at her and pointed out the blood that had dripped down her arm, his hand and speckled the floor. "Why the fuck would you do that again? Did I not make myself clear last time?"
Kate bounced on her toes. "It is healing. I didn't want to hurt myself. I wasn't mad. I just wanted to test out a theory."
Dean's eyes burned her forehead. He growled and looked down the hallway. "Dad, I could use your assistance."
Kate hadn't thought about John up until that moment. She twisted her wrist in an attempt to break Dean's hold on her arm. "Dean, Dean. Don't overreact. It is a good thing."
"I am reacting just how I should, Katelyn." Dean ground out.
John approached them. He held up Kate's knife. "Is this why there is blood everywhere?"
Kate didn't remember dropping the knife. She tried to step around Dean but a hard swat made her jump.
"Answer," Dean said.
"Yes, but it isn't so bad. I figured something out." Kate tried.
"I told you to get back and you stuck your damn hand in the cage," Dean said.
Kate flicked her eyes between them. "I mean, I didn't stick my hand-"
Dean tucked her back against his hip and landed another dozen swats. He didn't let her up but spoke in a low tone. "You are in so much trouble right now. Once I'm through with you, I'm going to hand you over to dad. So, think before you speak because I am about to take my belt to your ass. Dad is already going to, I bet, do you want a double dose?"
Kate panicked. "No."
Dean cleared his throat. "You put your fingers through the cage because your hand wouldn't fit. I know damn well you would have put your whole arm through if you had the chance."
Kate didn't argue. She was still against his hip and the first dozen hand swats hurt enough to make her realize what she had gotten herself into.
"Those things move fast. It may not have liked your blood but it could have sliced your fingers off in a heartbeat. Did you think that feeding it would make it stronger?" Dean asked.
Kate had not considered that.
Dean let her stand again and looked to John. "If you have no objections, I think Kate and I need to talk about not only her cutting herself, again, but also not only ignoring me, but going a step further and testing out her assumption."
Kate noticed her heart rate was quite fast. Running didn't raise it but boy, Dean and John could.
John nodded. "Then she and I will talk about going behind our backs after I made it clear that all things freak related would be done by the rules."
Kate's eyes drifted. She should have known they'd be pissed. She kind of did know. She just needed to know if the freak would react to her blood. It was more than just a reaction in a petri dish. It was proof. They desperately needed that.
John was glad that he had kept the location of the facility away from Kate. She didn't know where it was or how to get there without Cas. It would stay that way.
They got back to Bobby's house and away from the facility. Dean hadn't let go of Kate, sure that if he did let go, she'd bolt. He'd save the warm fuzzy talk for after he busted her ass.
Taylor took one look at Dean's face and fled the scene. He ran into John outside.
"It would be wise for you to find something to do outside," John said. He paused as he realized Taylor was tense. "She put her hand in the cage after cutting it with a knife."
Taylor looked horrified. He looked around for something to do. "I'm just going to go organize some stuff."
John figured he had a few minutes and leaned against his truck. "How are things going with that girl?"
Taylor's face turned red. "She's my girlfriend."
John studied Taylor. "Is she?"
Taylor looked worried. "That is okay right? We won't go anywhere besides school or family events. It is just a term."
John chuckled. "It is fine, Taylor. Sam and Dean never asked."
"You know.. the whole... learning from your brothers' mistakes." Taylor said, sheepishly.
John nodded knowingly. Kate had a few mistakes that Taylor could learn from as well.
Dean made Kate sit down on her bed. He pulled her desk chair out so that he was sitting in front of her. "Kate, what the hell?"
Kate squirmed. "We needed to know. This could save lives."
"Again, by shady methods. We would have gotten there." Dean watched her mannerisms. "This is exactly why you've been kept away from this stuff. Did you think that there could be negative results to that thing having your blood?"
Kate looked down at her hands. The injured hand was practically healed. "I knew it would avoid it."
"How?" Dean asked.
Kate slumped and mumbled.
Dean barely heard her. "You have been deep diving instead of sleeping?"
Kate just sighed.
Dean made her stand up before she had time to adjust he had her over his knees. "What happened to honesty?"
Kate wiggled. "I didn't lie."
"Hiding that you aren't sleeping is a lie when it has caused issues more than once. Is that what you were doing when I asked you?" Dean asked.
"I told you I was doing research," Kate said.
Dean closed his eyes and counted to ten. He opened them and tugged her jeans down.
Kate threw her hand back. "Dean, please."
"No, you lied to me. You broke the few rules that I have for you to stay safe." He continued shimming her jeans down, accidentally pulling her underwear with them. He chose to leave them that way. He was sick of repeating himself and she was not going to get herself killed over something like that.
Kate felt his palm connect with her skin and tried to right herself. "Dean, you can't. Please, you promised."
"No. You cannot keep doing this crap. If treating you like a four year old is how I get through to you, so be it." Dean said, bringing his hand down again. He kept that up until she had no white patches left.
Kate stopped caring about her underwear as the sting set in. She was annoyed at first but she could tell he had been scared. She thought about his voice cracking when he told her to get back. "Ow, I'm sorry!"
Dean paused. "Are you? Kate, you sliced your hand again. Is this another mood thing? Are you that stressed?"
Kate grabbed the bottom hem of Dean's pants leg. "No. I promise. I only did it to get the blood."
Dean smacked her thigh. "I told you to get back. You did the opposite."
Kate wilted. "I was so focused. I'm sorry."
"I want to wear you out for all of that but dad is going to," Dean said. He rested his hand on Kate's back. "How can you slice into yourself like that."
Kate couldn't answer.
Dean could continue lighting her up but figured John would do that plus he gave her a preview at the faciity. He tugged her pants and underwear back up and let her stand up. He caught her and pulled her into his lap.
Kate melted.
Once she calmed down he patted her thigh. "You scared the hell out of me."
Kate sniffled. "I'm sorry."
"I'm going to let dad know he can come in here." Dean said.
Kate's eyes widened in horror. "Dean, please. This was bad enough."
Dean made her stand up so that he could look her in the eye. "No, it wasn't. I have enough sympathy to leave some hide for dad to tan. Look at me."
Kate met his eyes.
"If you ever do something like this again, especially if it is freak related, I will take a belt to your bare ass," Dean said.
Kate's stomach twisted. "You can't."
"Like hell, I can't. Do you want me to do this again?"
Kate shook her head.
"Then maybe you think about that next time you think about pulling something," Dean said.
Kate blushed. "I'm really sorry."
"If you survive dad, I'll come up and make sure you are okay before you go to bed," Dean said. He gave her a sympathetic smile and stood up.
"Dean, wait. Please don't tell him you..." Kate pleaded.
"I won't mention it. Look, I didn't plan on taking your underwear down but it seemed to leave a mark. I hated it as a kid so I swore I wouldn't do it to anyone else. I'm not going to leave real marks on you, no matter how pissed I am. So, me smacking your bare butt had better leave an impact." Dean said. "Find a corner."
Kate whimpered but found a corner to stand in. That wasn't the most painful spanking she had gotten but it was embarrassing and humbling. She just wanted to redo things. Why did she always mess things up? The information was invaluable but she went about it the wrong way.
Dean went outside to cool off. He was torn. He loved Kate but she drove him crazy. He couldn't stand the thought of her being hurt but she was determined to hurt herself. He found John and Taylor and told John he was done.
Taylor eyed Dean.
Dean shook his hand out. "You wouldn't feel like healing this would you?"
Taylor acted like he was thinking about it. "I mean, I could. I don't know though. I can't side with you until I'm an adult."
Dean cuffed the side of his head. "Why don't you do stupid things more often?"
Taylor looked at him like he was crazy. "Because you guys are not as easy on me as you are on Kate."
Dean snorted. "You are treated fairly."
"You didn't see dad's reaction to the qareen incident. Taylor said.
Dean laughed. "You didn't see his reaction to any of the shit I pulled when I was younger."
"I'm saving my screw-ups for when I'm taller than all of you guys," Taylor said as he sorted through a bucket of chain links.
"Do you think dad would see you differently?"
Tayor groaned. "No. It is just a fairy tale I like to tell myself. Why did you stop doing stupid stuff?"
Dean leaned against the table. "I realized Sam was watching me. I mean, that didn't stop me when I was a teenager. Kate was around a lot more often when she was 8 and I think trying to keep her out of trouble made me see things differently. Oh, god, I am lame now."
Kate heard John as soon as he set foot on the porch. She could handle a scolding from Dean more easily than she could from John. Dean had a way of seeing her side of things even if he disagreed with her choices. John was harsher and made her feel like a two year old.
John didn't knock before opening her door. He just walked in and told her to sit on her bed. He could read the indecision on her face. He knew she was going to snap but he was prepared for that. "What did Dean discuss with you?"
Kate sighed. "Cutting my hand and ignoring him when he told me to get back, mainly."
John nodded. "So what do you and I need to discuss?"
Kate didn't look at him.
"Did I involve you in this research? Did I allow you to go with me to the facility? Did I do my best to let you take part while asking very little of you?" John asked.
Kate gritted her teeth. "It recoiled. It ran away when it smelled my blood. That is huge."
"There were a dozen different ways to do that that didn't involve you shoving your fingers into the cage," John said.
Kate didn't want to sit on the stupid bed. She wanted to curl up and ignore people.
"Your older self is on my last nerve because you still have the same attitude. I am trying to prevent the same thing from happening to you. You just have to go against everything that I say. It is clear that you cannot be involved with these things without going off the deep end. So, you are off the case."
Kate jumped up. "Dad! You can't be serious."
"I am dead serious, Katelyn. You are not going to be involved in any hunting or supernatural related research for a very long time." John said. "One day, if you can show me that you can listen to an order, you will be allowed to help on normal cases. If you have any lingering ideas about the freaks, you can give them to me and Marty will handle the testing."
Kate's heart broke. "No. That isn't fair. You aren't making any progress without me. You can't take this away from me."
"I can because you have shown me, again, that you cannot be trusted," John said, firmly.
Kate glared at him. She couldn't believe how harsh he was being. Sure, she messed up but this was important. "I should have just let it bite me."
John had her over his knee, applying his belt to her backside in the blink of an eye. That is exactly what he was trying to prevent and she was defiant.
Kate tried to ignore the licks but the pain started to seep deeper into her muscles and it stung like hell since Dean had made his point abundantly clear. She gave in and asked him to stop but he didn't.
"This is the same thing that happened with the hell hounds and Hellen. You almost died, Katelyn." John said.
Kate tried to push herself back. "I got results while you all sat on your thumbs." That was so not the thing to say. She lost all will to argue and just wanted it to end.
John was calm but methodical. He made absolutely certain she would feel it for a few days but didn't go too far. He dropped his belt and rested his elbow on her back. "I tried to work with you. I gave you way more slack than I should have."
Kate pushed herself up and used her shirt to wipe her eyes. She was still angry but felt guilty too. She didn't want to cuddle or be held. She felt like her whole body was on fire and wanted to sleep so that she could forget about everything for a little while.
((ETW))
John studied her. He knew she hadn't given up. "Kate, I love you. I want you to stay safe. This is for your own good." He sighed when she just go under her blanket and curled up on her side. That was how Sam was as a kid. He'd sulk and pout for a while. He picked up his belt and put it back on. "One of us will check on you.
Kate didn't say anything. She rolled over and buried her face in her pillow once he left. She berated herself for being stupid. She cried because she lost something that was truly important to her. As she had time alone, her mind started to twist. How dare he take that away from her? Sure, she deserved the spanking but the freak research wasn't something he could take away.
John went to find Dean. He shared the hunting ban with him and tried to ease some of the tension in his neck.
"How did she take it?" Dean asked.
"Not good," John said.
Dean was facing the house and thought he saw a blue flash. He smacked Taylor's arm to get his attention.
Taylor took off running because he could feel her emotions.
Dean stopped John from going. "I'll be good cop. If she sees you right now, she may blow."
John didn't disagree. He wouldn't let her throw a tantrum but with those abilities, it was best that he not provoke her.
Taylor ran up the stairs and swung the door open. "Kate, you've got to calm down."
Kate was standing on her bed, looking at her palms. She heard Taylor but his voice irritated her. "Go away."
Taylor approached her. "You are glowing."
Kate could feel her anger seeping through her skin.
Dean slid into the room as blue flames engulfed her. "Oh, shit."
Taylor reached through the flames and absorbed some of it so that he could get her outside. He sat her down in the middle of the driveway, unsure if the flames would burn anything.
Dean got as close as he could. "Kate, I know you're mad. I need you to stop the fire."
Kate clenched her fist. She didn't want to stop the fire. It didn't burn. It was almost cold. What kid hadn't wished they had laser eyes or flame throwing abilities when they were angry?
Dean couldn't get close to her. She was fading in and out and he was afraid that she was about to teleport. "Katie, listen to my voice. You have to stop."
Kate started to lose control of what she was doing. She felt she was a bunch of individual atoms, not one solid human. She looked up at the sky and held her hands up above her head.
Dean turned as a searing blue light shot to the sky and dispersed. A loud snap caused several car alarms to go off. He was disoriented.
Taylor grabbed Kate in a forced hug. "What was that?"
Kate was shakey. "I can't control it."
Taylor told her to close her eyes and let him take some of the energy. It was a new type of energy that he had not felt before. It was almost painful.
Dean tapped Taylor and took over with Kate.
"You have to get back. I can't control it." Kate said.
"You aren't going to hurt me. We are going to go down to the panic room. I'm not going to leave your side. That will help you manage some of this." Dean said.
Kate let him pick her up. She was dizzy and started crying.
Dean yelled for Bobby to open the panic room door and got Kate inside. He shut the door behind them and let her sit on the cot.
Kate was still glitching and couldn't make it stop.
"You've got to stay here. Listen to my voice." Dean said.
Kate jumped back into his arms. "I'm not trying to leave."
The door opened slightly and Millie was gently tossed into the room. She jumped into Kate's lap and rubbed her head against Kate's chin.
Kate started to calm slightly. She couldn't let herself be angry. She couldn't think about that. Even though she was pissed off, she would not hurt someone.
Dean gave Taylor several orders but kept his promise not to leave Kate's side.
Kate leaned her head on Dean and stared at the wall. Her eyes burned.
Taylor returned with bedding, pillows, and water. He also had a bottle of holy oil and a lighter.
Dean told him to bring it into the room. "I am not going to light that unless I have to. I am not threatening you. I don't think we can drug you and get you to pass out. If you ask me to, I will light it long enough to shift your abilities. I'm right here and I'm not leaving."
Kate slumped onto the cot and let Dean cover her with a blanket. She felt surges course through her body and did her best to contain them.
John got an update from Taylor. He didn't regret grounding her from the freaks but he didn't like seeing her out of control.
Kate continued to glitch for the next hour. She was exhausted and wanted to stop feeling anything at all.
Dean sat in a chair beside the cot and ran his fingers through her hair. He had a list of tricks to calm her down and he was using all of them.
Taylor went outside with John to talk about the light and the loud snap. "That sounded like she broke the sound barrier."
"It did." John said, looking up at the night sky. "How did she do that?"
Taylor had only felt what she had. "It wasn't like our normal surge of energy. I could feel it in my veins and it made my mouth taste like metal. I pulled as much as I could but I barely touched it. I think if she had not sent that upwards, it would have caused massive damage."
John rubbed his face. "She had the sense not to hurt anyone."
Taylor wasn't sure what to say.
"She can't be involved with the freaks," John stated.
"I understand. She's going to be upset for a while." Taylor said.
John looked toward the house. He sighed and decided to go inside. He'd give Kate space until she had a handle on the abilities. Emitting blue flames was a new one, not to mention the burst that hit the sky.
Dean noticed Kate wasn't glitching as much. He rubbed her back. "Can Taylor do something so you can stay in your head? You desperately need sleep."
Kate nodded.
"Okay, let's do that," Dean said.
Taylor rejoined them when he heard his name being called. He followed Kate's instructions so that she would not dream about or have visions about why she was angry. They needed to make it through the night so that her body could manage the rest of the energy.
Dean kept his hand on Kate's back as she drifted off to sleep. He was feeling her heartbeat. It was slow but strong. He looked at Millie. "Excellent work." He held out his fist without thinking and was surprised when Millie touched her paw to his hand as though she was fist bumping him. Okay, that was cool. He wouldn't tell anyone he thought that though.
(The next morning)
They did make it through the night. Taylor had to go to school but was on standby just in case she flipped.
Dean was stiff from sleeping on the floor overnight. He got her to wake up, use the restroom and go to her own bed. He offered her food but she refused. He promised to stay with her or check in frequently although she didn't seem to notice if anyone was in the room.
John sipped his coffee. "How is she?"
"She is solid," Dean said. "I mean, she isn't glitching." He shook his head. "At first, last night, she was angry and that is where the flames came from. She started to panic though."
John sat his mug down. "You don't have to defend her. I will not chastise her for this because she did calm herself down."
Dean was thankful for that. He plopped down in a chair and rubbed his neck. "This is going to come in waves."
Karen wanted to check on Kate but was asked not to because they didn't want her to accidentally get hurt.
Knowing that Kate was on a spiral, John decided that they needed to remind people not to help her if she was trying to plot. That included calling Charlie and Jo. Hannah was a different story.
Dean spoke up. "I can talk to her parents."
"No," John said. "I will go. Kate needs you."
The day wore on and Kate stayed in her room, staring at the wall. She did sleep some but mostly, she stayed very still and didn't speak. She didn't eat or drink no matter how many times she was asked to.
John stopped by Hannah's house before school ended and talked to her mom and dad. Luckily, they were on board.
Hannah got off the bus and was surprised to see John at their house.
"Hannah, you need to sit down," Mandy said.
Her dad got her siblings out of the house by giving them money to go get whatever they wanted.
"Kate got herself into trouble. She is banned from research of any kind right now. You cannot help her if she tries to get you to." Mandy said.
Hannah pulled a face.
"Has she shown you what the freaks are?" John asked.
Hannah shrugged.
John opened a laptop and turned it so that Hannah could see. He showed her a video of one of the freaks going insane in its cage.
Hannah gasped and turned away from the computer.
"They are incredibly deadly. They can take out a whole nest of vampires. Kate sliced her hand open and stuck it into the cage." John said.
Hannah's eyes widened. "Wh-why?"
"She had a theory and this isn't the first time that she has gone off the deep end with supernatural things," John said.
Hannah blushed, knowing that she helped Kate do that the first time.
"Me taking a belt to her ass is not enough to get it through her head. She is going to be angry and will want to be defiant. You cannot, CANNOT help her." John said, firmly.
Hannah glared at him. She couldn't believe he'd hit Kate.
Hannah's dad got her attention. "I've never so much as swatted you, but if you help her hide anything or help her go behind their backs, you will find out what a belt feels like."
"Daddy!" Hannah yelped in disbelief.
"No. You saw that video. You will tell someone if she is trying to do anything. You will not help her."
Hannah looked at her mom, hoping that she wouldn't think that it was okay. That hope was quickly crushed.
"You are a good friend to her," John said. "She needs a voice of reason, not a partner in crime."
Hannah nodded her head and squeaked. "Okay."
Kate's refusal to eat or drink continued for three days. They couldn't force her to eat because she was still unstable.
Karen did take her a little bit of food. She sat beside Kate's bed. "Sweetie, you are worrying me. I know you are mad at your dad. If you eat a few bites of food, I won't tell them. You can continue with your hunger strike as far as they are concerned."
Kate ate a few small bites. She didn't care if they knew that she ate something. She didn't have the energy to argue. She was locked so deeply inside herself so that she didn't burst into flames again. She had plenty of time to talk to herself. She went from angry to sad a thousand times and never settled on one emotion.
Dean went to check on Kate and knocked gently on the door frame. She was sitting up. That was a good thing. That was progress. She looked pale and thin. She couldn't have lost that much weight in three days but it broke his heart. He traded places with Karen. "Do you think you would want to walk around?"
Kate shook her head and laid back down on her side.
Dean sighed heavily. "Do I need to get an IV set up so you don't starve to death?" He reached and grabbed her ankle and knee, making a stepping motion with her leg. "I will sit here and do this. I'm not letting you waste away."
Kate stiffened her leg.
Dean patted her thigh. "That is progress."
Bobby watched the sun sink behind the trees. They were on their fourth night since Kate burst into flames. He felt for John because he couldn't do anything. He felt for Kate too. He heard a clicking noise and looked over the side of the porch. "What are you doing cat?"
Liam was looking at something and making the noise that cats make when they are hunting something.
Bobby always thought it sounded alien-like. "It had better not be a ghost."
Millie ran over and joined Liam. They were looking at the same thing.
Bobby walked off the porch and tried to see what they were seeing. There was nothing there. "Damn cats. Go on inside." He had to nudge them to get them to move.
There was something there though. It was too small for Bobby to see, or any normal human for that matter. The noise is what drew the cats to it. Right outside Kate's bedroom window was what looked like a strand of hair, softly glowing. Four nights ago, it was the length of a pinky nail. That night, it was the length of someone's palm. Over time, it would grow and more light would seep through. The tiny crack would run like a loose thread on stockings. One day they'd find out that it wasn't the sound barrier that Kate broke. It was the veil.