CHAPTER 3

"Sam, why don't you help me with the dishes?" Izzy announced after a suitable time had passed, the food consumed and the kids excused to go play. He immediately jumped up and began gathering dishes, knowing she was about to unleash twenty-questions and not sure if he could answer them effectively.

"You can dry." she said, handing him the dish towel. Then impulsively she pulled him into a hug, her head barely reaching his shoulder. He hugged her back, so thankful for this amazing woman and her family that had effectively adopted them. Releasing Sam after a final squeeze she looked at him pointedly.

"So that's what's referred to as a speaking glance?" Sam laughed at her. She swatted at his arm then started washing dishes and handing the rinsed ones to him. He wiped the first several off carefully, trying to order his thoughts before finally starting his story.

"Have you ever heard of a djinn?"

"You mean like 'I Dream of Genie'? Or the genie in Aladdin?" Izzy questioned, wrinkling her nose as she considered the question.

"Not exactly, although that is where some of the mythology stems from, I suppose." he said, his mind running through the lore, "They're actually pretty awful creatures. They feed on people. We originally thought they could grant wishes, but what they actually do is create your dream world in your mind. So while you are living the 'good life' in your dream, your body is slowly being drained, until you die."

"That's awful!" Izzy said, shuddering and fearing what was coming next.

"Yeah." Sam agreed. He broke off and focused on his drying duties as Travis and Jake wandered into the kitchen.

"Please, don't stop on our account." Travis said smiling. "I know she is giving you the third degree."

"I am doing no such thing!" exclaimed Izzy defensively, "I merely…" All three men were smirking at her, so she broke off with a huff. "Well Sam, do continue. Your audience is waiting!" She gave Travis a pointed look, but he looked unrepentant. Jake grabbed another washcloth and started to wipe the counters down, while glancing obliquely at Sam.

"Um, ok." Feeling a bit uncomfortable by the audience, Sam first asked hesitantly, "Will we be having any other visitors…?"

"Juliette is entertaining the kids." Jake replied. "I shared with her about what happened when I first met you, so she has some general idea of what you guys do, but not tons."

Sam nodded, thankful that at least the adults all were in the know and they didn't have to watch their words around them. "Ok…well, I was explaining what a djinn is to Izzy. It's like a kind of genie, but instead of granting wishes, it gives you a dream world in your head while feeding off your body fluids, draining you dry in a few days." He gave that a moment to sink in before continuing. "Dean was looking for its lair and ended up having a run-in with one." Izzy drew a sharp breath in as he paused again, the unwanted images of finding Dean replaying in vivid color.

"Obviously you saved him." Travis remarked calmly, pulling him back from the slide deck in his mind, "but there's fallout."

"There's always fallout." Sam said quietly, and perhaps a touch bitterly. "This…this time it's particularly bad. Physically he's fine, the djinn didn't have enough time to drain him all that much, so he bounced back pretty quickly. I'm thankful for that, truly. But mentally…"

When Sam didn't keep going Jake spoke up. "You said it's a dream that seems like a wish come true. What…" he trailed off, realizing he was about to ask something extremely personal of someone he'd only really met once.

"It's ok Jake. I think Dean would rather I told you all everything, so he didn't have to." He paused, then took a breath and blew it out quickly. "He wished Mom had never died."

"Oh sweetheart." Izzy cried, her heart aching. "So she was alive in his dream world?"

Sam nodded. "Mom lived. Dad had died, but of a stroke or something peacefully in his sleep. Jess - my girlfriend who died a while back the same way my Mom did - " he explained for Jake's benefit, "she was alive, I was still in law school, and he apparently had this amazing girlfriend."

"I was engaged, which we apparently shared with him, his girlfriend, and Mom over her birthday dinner…" The pain of what might have been flared suddenly. He had nearly bought a ring for Jess…that was a lifetime ago though. Even though he hadn't experienced it in technicolor like Dean had, the pain of loss was still sharp in that moment as if it was yesterday.

"Sam," Izzy said softly, laying a hand on his shoulder, "I'm so sorry." He nodded, even as Travis spoke up.

"It sounds like an amazing life. How hard it would be to let go of that…I can't imagine."

"He dug himself out." Sam said proudly, "He realized that as idyllic as it was, there were parts that just didn't sit right. There was another victim, who we rescued thankfully, but who kept haunting his dream and reminding him everything wasn't quite copacetic. Plus he discovered that all the people we saved all these years, in the dream world they all died. Oh, and he and I had nothing in common, which meant we never were close. I guess I even kind of thought he was a loser." He threw the last bit out nonchalantly, as if the thought of not being as thick as thieves with his brother wasn't completely devastating. Travis and Izzy saw right through his act though, and both reached out to lay a consoling hand on him. He smiled his thanks.

"You said he dug himself out?" Jake asked, still processing everything.

"Yeah, I found him, right as he was coming awake. Apparently he'd decided to try the old adage that if you die in a dream you'll wake up…" His audience looked slightly shocked as they realized the ramifications of Dean's actions. "Yeah. Anyway, I started to rescue him, but the djinn jumped me, and he ended up saving me." He became contemplative again, realizing how much he relied on Dean to have his back, and to be able to be there for his brother too.

"So now there's some residual emotional fallout." Travis concluded, "I suspect the loss of the good parts is heartbreaking, and even more so because he mentally knows he never really had those moments, but it still hurts…"

"Yeah, he just tried to power through, like Dean does." Sam agreed, "Except I've found him staring into space a lot lately, trying to reconcile that world and this one I think. That's what prompted our visit. I wanted him to see we have family -"

Izzy beamed at him when he said that, and he couldn't help but smile back, "you know - other people who care for him besides just me, and hopefully fill some of the aching hole he's got in his heart right now. However, I don't know…"

"Well, that was absolutely the right choice, Sam." Izzy affirmed quickly. "Because we do love you boys, and you are our family. Give him time to process. Loss is a fickle thing. One day you're fine, and the next it rears its head and swallows you whole. The dream may not have been real, but the might-have-been can still leave you reeling." He nodded, thankful for the understanding and advice.

"I should go check on him."

"Leave him be, Sam." counseled Travis. "You remember when you were here last? You had some things to work through and needed the space to do it. Let's give him the same." He paused and perused Sam's lanky frame, noting the tension he was holding in his body. These boys were so deeply connected, when one was hurting the other was a mess too. Dean had decided to step away for a bit, so while they were waiting on him, he could spend some time investing in the younger brother. "I was going to take Luke up on the mountain and see if he could find some cool leaves and rocks, which he likes to collect. Would you come and help me keep an eye on him? He's faster than these old legs sometimes."

Sam snorted, knowing Travis was as fit and spry as anyone, but appreciated his care nonetheless. He would rather track down his missing brother and hover, but knew Travis was right about giving Dean his space, so he tried to inject some enthusiasm into his reply, "Sounds like fun!"

Which is how, just a short time later, Sam found himself in the truck bouncing up the same mountain road the brothers had originally been walking down when they first met Travis. It seemed like a lifetime ago, but really hadn't been all that long. So much had happened since that first meeting though. He thanked the stars that Travis had found them and brought them home, and that somewhere along the way he and Izzy became family. Sam was pulled from his reminiscing as they drew over to the shoulder and parked. A dirt trail led enticingly off into the distance, and he willingly hopped out and gave Luke a hand down from the big truck.

Luke was shy and quiet, but kept shooting glances over at this tall stranger that was accompanying them. Sam smiled when he caught him looking and addressed him. "Luke, what exactly are we looking for today? Give me a task."

He looked thoughtfully up at Sam, clearly trying to decide if he was being pandered to, but finally coming to a decision. "I collect rocks and leaves and interesting things," he said softly. "Not just any old rock or leaf though, they need to be unique. Grandpa has shown me the river bank that is down this trail before, and it's got some really, really cool stuff."

"Well, great! Lead the way then!" Sam replied, falling in behind as Luke took off at a quick walking pace down the trail. Travis smiled and followed after at a slightly slower pace.

The forest was beautiful and the day was turning out to be a lovely one. Sam had already pulled off one layer as the walk warmed him. They didn't really talk as they walked, except to occasionally point out a bird or interesting plant. It felt good to be out stretching his legs with no hunt on the docket for once. Rounding a bend the trail began to climb, and then just as Sam was starting to feel the burn of the slope, he looked up to see Luke disappear suddenly.

"Luke!" he called sharply, suddenly anxious. The boy immediately popped his head up around the tree that framed a turn in the path. He grinned back at the grown-ups, then disappeared again. Sam picked up his pace, finding that with the turn in the trail it dipped sharply and led down and through some foliage before opening up to a river bank. Upstream he could just barely hear the sounds of splashing water, indicating some kind of rapids or waterfall, but here the river was peacefully meandering its way down the mountainside.

"Look!" whispered Luke, suddenly at his elbow, pointing across the stream to where a deer was delicately sipping at the water. They stilled and watched her until her head came up abruptly and she bounded away, moments before Travis hove into view.

"Grampa, you scared the deer off!" Luke objected.

"Oh deer." joked Travis. Both older and younger boys groaned at his terrible pun. "Found anything interesting yet?"

"Not yet." Redirected, Luke set about hunting across the river bank, picking up and discarding a rock here and there.

"What am I supposed to be looking for?" Sam asked out of the corner of his mouth. "I hunt monsters, not rocks."

"Are rock monsters…nevermind, don't answer that." laughed Travis, "If you see something unusual, mention it to Luke. He's eight, so what's precious and unique to his enquiring mind might be common and boring to a grown-up."

"Good thing I'm not one of those then." joked Sam, picking his way down closer to the water. He could tell as he approached the river's edge that the section they were at was fairly shallow and relatively clear, and found himself enjoying the peacefulness of the area. Calling Luke over he asked about a white rock he'd spotted, but apparently the boy already had 'lots and lots of those.' He dutifully admired the flat smooth rock offered as an example of what they were looking for, and went back to perusing the ground.

The light glinted off something along the riverbank, and a closer inspection showed it was a piece of colored glass, worn smooth by its trip in the stream. Sam tucked it in his pocket to show Luke, then wandered upstream along the water's edge, pausing when he noticed the trail turning back into the forest. He hesitated, wondering if he should continue when Luke came running up and said, "C'mon, there's a waterfall and big lake up ahead!" and took off down the trail.

"Luke, wait up!" called Travis, coming up behind Sam, laughing lightly and shaking his head. "That boy gets so excited about the outdoors. I can't wait to see what he'll be when he grows up." That statement struck Sam and he mulled it over as he followed Travis up the trail. Did my parents ever wonder what Dean and I would be when we grew up? His Mom never really had the time to, he supposed. And Dad…well, he had already had his boys' lives planned out for them the minute Mom died, and in his mind there were no other options. What would it be like to have a family that dreamed big, wonderful dreams for you?

Shaking his head to remove the melancholy, Sam came around a bend in the path and paused, just taking in the view. The waterfall wasn't huge, but it was still beautiful. There was a beaver dam that had cut off a portion of the river and created what appeared to be a good sized lake, out of which the smaller river they had originally encountered flowed. Mesmerized momentarily by the powerful cascading water, flowing in tumultuous white down over a jumble of rocks, his attention was suddenly drawn to Luke, waving from a perch about halfway up the rock face next to the falls. He waved back, about to question Travis about whether the kid should be up there when he saw him lose his footing on the slippery, wet rocks and tumble right off the edge and down into the pool of water below.