A/N: Happy Easter to those who celebrate it. As a special treat I am posting this chapter early. NC

Chapter 5

Dean adjusted straps, checked zippers, and quickly went over a mental list to see if he forgot anything. He looked at Sam who was doing the same before shouldering his pack and wiggling it around and fastening it around his waist. He already had a machete fastened to his belt like Dean.

"Here Ice, let me help you with that," Dean told him as Ice looked at his pack trying to figure it out. He looked at Sam to see what he did and tried to copy him.

"Thanks," Ice replied happy for the help. He watched Dean as he adjusted a few places and then had him slip the pack on his shoulders. Once it felt good, Dean snapped it around his waist and stepped back.

"How's that feel?"

"It's good."

"Okay Cas, wanna take us back to where Ice came over," Dean addressed the angel who was standing nearby.

"You boys be careful over there," Bobby told the brothers not liking he wasn't going too but knew he wouldn't be that much use to them. There would be no research to do, and he wasn't as young as he used to be. Fighting monsters here was one thing, but in another realm was a different story.

"We will Bobby," Dean replied accepting a quick hug from him.

"You take care of each other over there."

"We will Bobby," Sam answered getting his hug too.

"You watch out for my boys, understand me?" Bobby told Ice as he shook his hand.

"I will sir. I'll do my best," Ice replied solemnly.

"We're ready Cas," Dean told him as he grabbed Sam's shoulder when Cas stepped between him and Ice and placed his hands on their shoulders.

The brothers and Ice all stumbled when they appeared outside the cave and worked on not throwing up. Angel transportation didn't get any better no matter how many times it was used.

"Never gonna get used to that," Dean huffed as he straightened up and drew in some short breaths. "You okay Ice?" he asked when he saw how pale his friend looked.

"Give me a second," Ice grunted swallowing hard and squinting his eyes tightly shut to stop the world from spinning. Their way of travelling here was strange and unsettling.

"Yeah, angel zapping isn't all that fun," Sam huffed as he got his body working again.

"Before we do this, Sammy had a concern that I wanted to verify Ice," Dean directed to him before looking to Sam.

"Okay, what can I help with?" Ice asked.

"Is there going to be any upset rulers or queens that we need to be aware of? I don't think Queen Moa would be super happy that I showed up in her kingdom and brought a friend. She doesn't seem like someone you want to cross. If you get my drift."

"There is no need to worry. We will not be anywhere near her kingdom. And I don't think we will need to venture that way," Ice explained to them.

"Good to know. You okay with that Sammy?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Sam nodded.

"Okay, Ice you want to do the honors and lead us into your realm?"

"Of course. When the portal opens you need to follow quickly. It will only stay open for several minutes."

"How are you able to do this anyway?" Dean asked as they walked into the cave and to the cavern where the portal had been made before.

"With the help of the Moon Wizard. He showed me how to do it and gave me the things I needed."

Ice stopped at the wall and pulled out a vial from his side pouch. He shook a red-colored powder into his hand and blew it onto the wall. The brothers were surprised when it stuck to the rocks. Ice began to recite the spell and with the last word, the wall seemed to shimmer and glow before the rocks suddenly dissolved and a gray mist appeared in front of them.

"Quickly now, follow me," Ice commanded as he quickly stepped into the mist and disappeared.

"Here goes nothing," Dean stated grabbing his brother's arm to be sure they both made it through. "Watch out for Bobby," he called over his shoulder to the angel as he stepped into the mist.

Sam bristled slightly as Dean grabbed his arm to be dragged into what looked like a cloud. As soon as they stepped into the mist, Sam felt the pressure change and his ear stopped up. He couldn't see ahead of them and was glad to feel Dean's strong grip guiding him. It was hard to breathe until suddenly they were out of the mist and standing in a shallow cave. Sunlight could be seen at the end of the short tunnel.

"This way," Ice called to them as he walked toward the opening.

"C'mon Sammy, you get your first look at this realm," Dean encouraged his brother.

Sam followed them toward the light and blinked rapidly as he covered his eyes when he stepped from the cave. Stretched out before him was a mesa full of flowers, bushes, shrubs, that bordered a forest, and a stream that ran at one side. He had never seen such vivid colors in the flowers and so many different kinds. It took his breath away for a moment as he tried to take it all in at once. Even the air seemed different here with a scent that he couldn't place. Sam fumbled for a disposable camera and snapped several pictures of the landscape in front of him.

"Welcome to my world," Ice spoke, breaking the silence surrounding them.

"Wow," Sam whispered as he started wide eyed, trying to look at everything at once. He took one of Dean and Ice before putting the camera away.

"Okay bro, you can look and snap photos as we hike," Dean told him. "Lead the way Ice."

Ice started walking across the mesa toward a trail that couldn't be seen until you were right on it. Sam walked slowly along behind them, his head moving from side to side studying the unusual shapes, smells, and texture of the flowers, shrubs, and trees. He faltered when something moved through the grass, but he couldn't tell what it was.

"Sammy, no lagging behind," Dean called to him when he realized he had stopped walking. "We need to stay together."

"Coming," Sam answered giving the spot one more look before hurrying to catch up with them.

Spn

The trail wound around the forest and along the outer edge giving them some relief from the sun. Dean kept fussing at Sam because he wanted to stop to investigate everything that was new to him. He could hear chattering among the trees and saw some small creatures jumping around in the branches, thinking they looked like squirrels but not quite.

Ice called a quick break when they came to a stream to cross. There were large rocks scattered along the bank and the travelers shed their packs so they could sit down.

"Look how crystal clear that water is," Sam commented looking into the flowing water and seeing tiny yellow and blue fish swimming close to the edge. He leaned down to get a better look and a small rock landed in front of him splashing water in his face. "Hey!" he complained looking back at Dean who was looking around acting all innocent. He looked at Ice who just shrugged trying not to laugh. "Is the water drinkable?"

"It should be. It flows from an unground reservoir through layers of sand and rock that filters it."

Sam squatted and scooped up a hand of cold water and sipped a small amount. He found it refreshing and tried more letting it cool him off. After pulling out his bandana, Sam dunked it in the water and wiped his face and folded it to drape around his neck.

"We should fill our water containers while we can," Sam noted getting his water bottles and bladder from his pack.

"How much farther are we going today?" Dean questioned. "Here Sammy, catch," Dean called to his brother as he tossed his container to him to fill.

Sam gave him a sour look but filled his container too and tossed it back to him. He snickered when Dean almost dropped it because it was wet and slick.

"Another couple of hours and we'll need to find a place to stay for the night. There should be some small groves of trees we can camp under."

"Sounds good to me. Five more minutes and let's get back at it."

"Alright," Ice followed Sam's actions and scooped some water into his hands to drink. He sighed thinking it tasted good and was refreshing after their hiking.

It wasn't long before they moved on, walking down the bank a short distance so they could cross the stream without soaking their boots. Ice led them through stands of trees and deeper into the realm. Sam saw what looked like a cross between a deer and a gazelle grazing on clumps of grass and saw several more a short distance from the first. He quietly moved a step closer and snapped a couple of pictures before hurrying after the others.

The trail led up and down several hills before leveling off again and bending toward the river. A few hours later as the sun was sinking toward the horizon, Ice found a place for them to set up camp. It was near the river, so they'd have water and several of the trees formed a protective covering over the ground.

"I'll get some water to fix us something to eat," Dean told them opening his pack for a coffee pot and cooking pot.

"I'll get a fire pit made for a fire," Sam decided setting his pack against a tree.

"I'll gather some wood," Ice said leaving his pack beside Sam's. He headed toward a downed tree to see if the wood was dry enough to use. Once his arms were full, Ice brought the branches and bark back to Sam. "I'll get some pinecones to help start the fire."

"Sounds good. I'll have this dug out and ready in about ten minutes."

"Here we go, water to heat so I can fix one of our freeze-dried meals."

Sam used the pinecones and broke up some small twigs and bark so he could get a fire going. Once they were burning, he added larger pieces being sure not to smother the flames. He moved out of the way so Dean could put the water on to heat. Sam walked around stretching his shoulders and working the soreness from his body. He wasn't tired, more excited than anything.

Once Sam cleared a space, he put down a tarp and then positioned their light sleeping bags on top of it. He looked for Ice and saw him down near the river in some bushes and decided to see what he was doing.

"Hey," Sam said realizing he was picking berries from the bush. "Are those good to eat?"

"Yes, sweet and tart at the same time. Here, try a couple," Ice offered holding out his hand. "But don't eat any that are not this color, they have a bitter taste."

"Thanks." Sam took the berries and popped them in his mouth. He thought they tasted almost like blueberries.

"I thought we could have them with our meal."

"I'll help, Dean can do the meal without any help." Sam began to pick the deep purple berries, being sure to get the ripe ones. He used his bandana to hold the berries like Ice. When they had picked enough to go with their meal, they walked back to camp to find Dean dishing out rice and chicken onto metal plates.

"Okay kiddies, food is ready." Dean passed the plates to his companions and took one for himself.

Sam added the berries to each plate before sitting down and leaning against a tree to eat. He listened to Ice and Dean talk about their journey tomorrow as they ate. He was happy to just listen for now. When they had finished their meal, Sam took the dirty dishes to the river's edge and used sand to wash them and then poured hot water over them to rinse before drying and putting them away.

Since they didn't need the fire, they let it die down as darkness descended across the land. It wasn't long before stars began to dot the sky and a warm breeze blew gently through the trees.

"What's that?" Sam whispered when soft glowing dots of light began to appear in the grass around their camp. He wondered if there were fireflies here.

"That's forest sprites," Dean told him. "They won't hurt you."

Sam watched in wonder as the lights moved closer and he could make tiny bodies with wings that crept closer, curious about these large beings. He was reclining against his pack on his sleeping bag and eased his hand to the ground, palm up. A smile broke out on Sam's face when one curious sprite climbed onto his hand and looked up at him. Very carefully, Sam raised his hand closer to his face to get a better look and could just make out the little being's curious, oval face. She was dressed in a sky blue colored short dress that cinched at the waist and had on soft, leather sandals on her tiny feet. She jumped to his shoulder and began to play in his hair, making Sam laugh because it tickled.

"This is amazing," Sam mumbled as others joined this one. He saw Dean had a couple on his stomach and others climbing over his legs. He didn't know if there was enough light, but Sam took a couple of pictures of Dean and the sprites.

"They are friendly and just curious about us," Ice told them. "They will guard tonight and warn us if any danger is around."

"Yeah, I've seen similar ones before," Dean chuckled as several played with his fingers, their wings caressing his skin.

"Are they singing?" Sam asked when soft voices reached his ears. He couldn't understand them, but the melody was alluring and soothing. He tried to keep his eyes open, but sleep won out and he drifted away to the sprite's lullaby.

Dean and Ice settled and relaxed as the sprites took up positions around the three travelers to watch over them as they slept. They would be gone with morning's first light and the travelers would have a quick meal and be on their way.

A/N: Sam has his first look at the realm and meets some curious creatures. Thank you for taking this ride with me. I do like reviews/comments. NC