Winchester Reunion Take Two
He waited until breakfast was over to retreat to a back corner of the house and call Sam. He didn't want the boys to make this one -- this was something he had to do himself. It was his brother, after all, and they'd been through so much together that Dean owed it to Sam to make this call himself. After all, he had been the one who died in this case. He didn't want Sam to hear it second hand that he'd managed to have an angel rope him into bringing him back from the dead. That certainly wasn't fair. He wasn't sure as of yet why Sam wasn't here, with the family, either -- and he was starting to think that he didn't want to know -- but he wasn't going to press the issue quite yet. That was a subject for another time.
He borrowed Bobby's phone, before sitting down, pulling up the number and placing the phone to his ear. He had a feeling this was going to be a long conversation and he had a lot of things to explain and needed explaining. He also knew that there was a good chance Sam wouldn't believe it was him, but if Ruby was around, maybe she could convince him.
Leaning back against the wall behind him, he listened to the phone ring, begging for his brother to pick up on the other end of the line.
Sam was curled up in the blankets, arms wrapped around the almost-warm body next to him. When his phone rang, he groaned as his hand reached over to find it. Of course it was early - probably Alec wanting to open the presents and getting impatient as to why he hadn't come back yet. At least he hadn't shown up at the motel knocking yet.
He saw Bobby's number but he was too tired to acknowledge it as being there. Instead he yawned as he hit the button to connect them. "Yeah?"
It took a minute for Dean to get his voice to work, mostly because he didn't know what to say. 'Hey, Sam! I'm back from the dead and was recruited into spying on demons for a guy who claims to be an angel of the Lord' didn't exactly seem like the right way to say it. Instead, he just took a deep breath, swallowing heavily as the words refused to come. It was a pretty long silence, and he was sure that at this point, Sam probably should have hung up, but for some reason he didn't, and Dean finally swallowed the lump in his throat and decided to start at the beginning -- usually a good place to begin.
"Hey, Sammy."
That woke Sam up. The voice was one he would never forget because it was one of the first ones imprinted in his mind growing up. But that was impossible, because the owner of that voice had been dead for over four months now. And the two boys that wore his face didn't sound like him enough that he would mistake it.
It was impossible and he knew it, and it really pissed him off to hear it now. "Who is this?"
Dean should have seen this coming. He knew that his brother was too careful and too good a hunter to believe right off the back that it was really him. And while he knew that sucked given his current situation, he didn't mind explaining himself. At least not right now. He just didn't even know where to begin. It was another really long pause as he fought to find the words to try and explain, but there was just no easy way to do it, and that didn't necessarily leave him in the best position.
"Look, it's a really long story and you wouldn't believe the night I've had, but it's me, Sam. It's Dean."
Sam stiffened and sat up, staring at the phone. It was Bobby's phone number all right. But no one at that place would dare pull this kind of prank on him. And not on this holiday they all cared about. But this was impossible, and Sam wouldn't believe it. Demons could do things that he still couldn't explain.
So he did the only thing he could think of, and he just hung up. Then sat in the bed and stared at the phone. Because he knew it was going to ring again, and he needed to steel himself for this.
Dean listened to the click! of the phone disconnecting on the other end of the line, and took a deep breath, trying not to let it get to him. There was something about the sound of his brother hanging up on him that was similar to a punch to the gut, but he wasn't going to press the issue at the moment. He had seen it coming after all, and there's only so much you can do to prevent something like that. He let out the breath he'd been holding slowly, closing his eyes and giving Sam a minute to regroup, before hitting redial and placing the phone to his ear again. He was ready to ramble off anything he ever knew about that kid, hoping to find something that a demon wouldn't and maybe, just maybe, it would convince Sam that this was really happening.
The phone rang again, and Sam was pretty sure Ruby was awake at this point and playing possum. So Sam took a deep breath and answered the phone. Just in case it was really Bobby and he could explain what was going on. "Who is this?"
Ruby was in fact, awake at this point, but then again, she had been a wake for a while. Something a little rattling went down at the Singer house, and the fact that she had felt it from where she was with Sam was saying something. She didn't feel much -- it was more like a quick blip on the radar, but it was enough to keep her up for a while, and now Sam seemed to be having trouble with someone on the phone, and Ruby was starting to really not like this particular situation. Not a bit.
"It's me, Sam. It's Dean." He was starting to get desperate at this point. It was one thing to have the boys and Bobby really know it was him, but this was Sam. This was his brother, and he needed Sam to believe that this was really him. "You were born May 2, 1983 to John and Mary Winchester in Lawrence, Kansas. Six months later a demon killed our mom and set the house on fire and I carried you out the front door." He stopped, waiting for Sam to say something, or at least tried to before he started to get ahead of himself and the panic starting to cloud his senses. "Ask me anything, Sam. It's me."
"My brother's dead. And I don't appreciate this. You call back again and I will kill you." His voice was even and very deep. Dangerous. And pissed off beyond words.
And then he hung up again. He then turned his phone off so the next call would go to voicemail and he just sat in bed a moment, trying not to throw the phone across the room. "Get up," he told Ruby, putting the phone down and getting out of bed, looking for his jeans. "We're going to Bobby's."
"What's going on?" Ruby frowned, but doing as she was told. She wasn't about start questioning orders, especially when Sam had just delivered that particular line to whoever was on the phone, but she had to admit, she was a little curious. This was Christmas after all, so whoever had decided to do this was either a sadistic bastard or really had no sense of tact. "Who was that?"
Sam looked at Ruby, his jaw set. "I don't know. But they were claiming to be Dean, and sounded just like him."
At that, Ruby's fingers automatically went for her knife, sliding it back into the holster on her hip. "You're thinking demon."
"Only thing that can explain why it's coming from Bobby's phone number." Sam took a deep breath. "That or a shapeshifter. He didn't say come to me, so we're safe on that one, but I'm not liking this. Alec and Ben wouldn't know how to move past their emotions, and I have a feeling they are in trouble."
Ruby knew that Bobby was a bit smarter than that, but she wasn't going to push it. Sam had the right to be worried, and if he needed to confirm whatever the hell this was, than she would be right there along with him. That was her job after all. "Let's go, then. If it really is a demon, they're not going to be waiting around all that long."
If Bobby was still alive. But Sam didn't say that. He could never imagine a world without Bobby in it. "Give me five minutes. Check out weapons." With that he stepped into the bathroom to get the rest of his clothes that had been hung up to dry. Plus, he felt like he was going to throw up, and he needed something to bite back the headache that was creeping up from trying not to get emotional.
Ruby just nodded and waited, leaning back against the bed with a sigh. Well, merry fucking Christmas. What a way to wake up in the morning.
***
Dean listened to the click! again on the other end of the line and tried to do the exact same thing. Normally he wouldn't have cared, but this wasn't his phone, and he didn't know if Bobby had the means of getting a new one if he broke it. Instead, he just placed the phone to the side and leaned forward, resting his head in his hands and his elbows on his thighs. It shouldn't hurt that much, because he knew that Sam was right in not believing it was him, but it still hurt nonetheless.
Taking a deep breath, he pushed himself to his feet before making his way back out into the kitchen again. "Bobby, where's Sam staying again?"
Bobby raised an eyebrow. He had a feeling that was who Dean was going to be calling, and from the look on the boy's face, it hadn't gone well. "Route 1 Motel. Make a left out of the yard, and it's five minutes on your right."
"Thanks, Bobby," he said, starting to walk away again, before turning back around. "And can I borrow a car?" He didn't know where the Impala was at the moment, nor who had custody of her, but he would deal with that later. Right now he had Sam to worry about, and that was his main concern.
"Can I stop you?" Bobby knew Dean would find the keys. "Just be careful. Ruby's there and she won't ask questions when it comes to Sam's well being. You've probably given the boy a fright as it is."
"If I give Sam the chance to come here, he's going to come in shooting," Dean said with a sigh as he went to find a set of keys. "And I don't want him shooting at me around the boys. Better to deal with this up there than down here. Besides -- Ruby'll figure out I'm human. Demons -- they're supposed to know their own, right?" At least he was hoping that much. Then again, Ruby had tended to be the type to kill first, ask questions later when it came to Sam. But Dean was also pretty sure he could handle Ruby. He found the keys he was looking for, before giving Bobby a small smile. "I'll be careful. And I'll be back as soon as I can." Hopefully with his brother, as opposed to without.
"Keep yourself safe, Dean. Sam's been acting weird these last few months, so don't think you can predict him." He waved Dean on to go, because Sam would be moving fast as well, and if Dean planned on beating him, he had to move faster.
Dean didn't say anything to that, just nodded, before grabbing the keys and practically running to the car. Bobby was right about him beating Sam to the punch, and he had to, otherwise this was going to blow up into a whole mess of trouble. He hit the gas, finding the motel with relative ease and pulling into the parking lot, scanning the lot for Sam's car and wondering exactly where his brother was hiding.
The car was still parked outside the room as Sam was in the bathroom, splashing cold water on his face. He was mostly dressed now except for his shoes.
He pulled in the car he was driving next to Sam's, before making his way to the door and knocking. He could hear voices and bodies on the other side of the door, but he didn't know who it was or what they were doing. Ruby glanced up from where she was sitting in the room, and sighed heavily, closing her eyes to pick up and see if it was any kind of threat. "Sam, there's a non-demon entity at the door." The salt lines were up -- there was no way she could open it.
Sam came out of the bathroom, his eyes looking at her a moment before grabbing a silver knife off the table. Non-demon still didn't mean trouble. So he reached for the door and opened it. And then he froze, his fingers tightening around the handle of the knife in pure fear.
Dean.
"Sammy, it's me." Dean was trying his best not to smile. He really was. His brother was alive and in one piece, and he really hadn't asked for much more than that. But he knew that this was far from over, and he wasn't about to push anything before it's time. He just held up his hands at the knife, giving his brother the most pleading look in his arsenal before, glancing over his shoulder to where Ruby was standing. "Tell him -- you can tell I'm human, right? Tell him it's really me."
Ruby just stared from the shock for a moment, wondering exactly what it was she was supposed to do. Because as far as she could tell? He was human. Inside and out. And true there were some things that a demon couldn't really pick up on, but there was something about him that wasn't settling right inside her. Something that was scaring the holy hell out of her and had her backing away from the doorway and back towards the bed. "Sam -- "
Ruby's fear was all Sam needed. He trusted Ruby's instincts, and if something was wrong, it was written plain on her face. He snarled, grabbing "Dean" by his shirt and pulling him inside, kicking the door closed as he pressed him against the wall, silver knife in hand. "I've seen some stupid things in my time, but no one has dared try to do this to me. How dare you take on this form, or are you really that eager to die?" His eyes were very dangerous.
The one downfall of having Alec's blood in him was the day or two after, his emotional responses tended to go to extremes at times as the damages in his nervous system were fixed.
"Sam!" Dean struggled back against his brother, trying to get his hand on Sam's wrist to get the knife away from him. Desperation for Sam to believe him had quickly given way to fear and he really didn't want to die again -- not at his brother's hands anyway. He tried to send a desperate look back to Ruby, trying to get her to fucking snap out of it but she didn't seem to be moving, and he was on his own. "Sam, it's me. Please."
The slam! of Dean's back hitting the wall seemed to snap Ruby out of whatever stupor she happened to be in, and she ran over to try and wedge herself between them without touching Dean. If Sam actually followed through with this, he would never forgive himself for killing his brother, and then they would all really be screwed. She placed one hand against the wall, before shoving against Sam with her shoulders, forcing the brother's apart and placing herself between them, sending a hard but worried look back at Sam. "It's him, Sam. It's really him -- it's not some kind of shapeshifter."
Sam backed away, panting as his fingers gripped the knife tighter. There was confusion now in his eyes, not understanding how it was possible. He would reach out with his mind to find out himself, but he had been told that the more he uses it, the faster he will die. So he kept himself from that temptation and let Ruby's instincts be the guide.
Still, he needed an answer. "How can it be you? I watched Ben kill you."
"As I said before," Dean said with a slight laugh as he relaxed against the wall, feeling slightly better now that Sam wasn't trying to kill him. "You wouldn't believe the night I had."
"Well, start explaining," Ruby replied, turning to face him this time, now that Sam was backing off. "Because something inside of me is telling me to stay far, far away from you, Dean, and it's not just because your a jackass." She crossed her arms in front of her chest and studied him carefully. There was only one thing that came to mind that could do this kind of thing for Dean and Sam, and they didn't exactly pull people out of Hell because they were the good guys -- and, technically, they really were.
Sam put the knife down as his sign of giving Dean a chance to explain. But with Ruby saying she felt the need to stay away, he kept his distance, even if he wanted to hug the hell out of his brother. "What happened?"
Dean ran a hand over his face as he tried to figure out where to begin. "Apparently, I've been recruited by God to spy on some kind of elite breed of demon. So he sent an angel to pull me out of the pit and put me back on Earth." He caught he look that crossed Ruby's face at the mention of the angels, and his eyes widened slightly. "Maybe you've heard of them, Ruby. The 'Fallen'?"
Ruby's eyes rolled up slightly at that, fixing him with a glare, before straightening and responding. "Amy's a Fallen. So was Azazel. They're basically angels who chose to side with Lucifer and were cast out of Heaven when God decided that that wasn't such a great game plan." She bit her lip slightly, before looking back at Sam. "If angels are pulling people out of Hell, that's not a good sign, Sam." In fact, she knew exactly what it was a sign of, but she still didn't have all the details, and she wasn't going to share until she did. Not having all the information tended to lead to Winchesters running in half-cocked and that never turns out well.
"Azazel?" Images from his last few visions came back to him and he looked at her. "Do they all have yellow eyes?"
He would question the recruiting by God bit in a moment. He needed to know this first.
"Amy doesn't," Dean pointed out. He'd seen her go from human to demon and back again, but he was pretty sure they eyes were red on that one. Ruby just nodded before she continued.
"No -- that's the benefit of being a Fallen -- since you were the first, you get all the bonus features. The eye colors vary, based on who they are, or in some instances who they work for, what they do. But they're bad news, Sam. The Council, that Amy mentioned? All Fallen. And some of them are really twisted bastards."
"I have a feeling they are the ones in my visions lately." Sam looked at his brother, the confusion moving to worry. "And you're saying an angel plucked you out of Hell to fight them?"
"Not fight -- spy," Dean said with a eye roll, knowing that one inevitably lead to the other, no matter how you looked at it. "Apparently the big guy upstairs thinks that the Fallen are up to something, and since I have such great demonic connections, they picked me to be the guy to find out what exactly that is." He then turned on Ruby again, giving her a look. "You wouldn't happen to be able to make this 'job' of mine easier by knowing exactly what's going on, do you?"
"What do I look like, an encyclopedia on all things demonic?" Ruby snorted, before shaking her head. "I'm as clueless as the two of you. I've heard things, but I'm usually not allowed to go anywhere near it. That's above my pay grade."
Sam sat on the edge of the table, taking a deep breath. The throbbing in his head just wasn't going to go away, was it? "Are you SURE it was an angel, Dean, and not some kind of demon trying to fuck with you?"
"It was an angel, Sam," Ruby replied, cutting Dean off before he even had the chance to speak. "No one else would have the power to do something like this. I do know at least that much." She did arch an eyebrow at that point, before studying Dean closely. "They do tend to leave a mark, however. Wind up with a birthmark that wasn't already there before?"
Dean just raised an eyebrow at her, matching her stony look with one of his own. "Haven't really had the chance to look, thanks. As I said -- I've had a bit of a crazy night."
Sam nodded. He looked back at his brother, then just stood up and walked over, pulling his brother into one of those rare Winchester brother hug moments. He held Dean tightly, letting himself finally believe and just be thankful to God - literally - for bringing Dean back to him. It wasn't until Dean was really gone that Sam realized just how much he still needed him, even if it was from afar.
Dean was surprised again, not expecting that to be the move Sam made, but it wasn't unwelcome either. His arms tightened around his brother, pulling him closer and just relaxing into the embrace. Now, this was actually starting to feel real. Now it was starting to feel a little less like some kind of fancy Hell trick. Then again, Hell would have had him walking in on something like Sam and Ruby going at it, and really -- that wasn't a sight he ever wanted to see.
It was a sight that Sam really wasn't wanting Dean to walk in on either. Though if Dean looked in the room, it was a single bed. They had stopped pretending with double bed rooms for awhile now.
Finally he just patted Dean on the back and pulled back. "And you're the one who didn't believe in angels," he scoffed lightly.
Yeah, Dean was blissfully ignoring the fact that there was only one bed in the room. In fact, he was sort of hoping that Sam had finally grown some sense and was making Ruby sleep on the floor. He just snorted back at his brother before running a hand on over his face. "Yeah, don't remind me. But I don't think they're the angels you're thinking of, Sam. This guy was bad news -- I don't like the way things sounded at all." He wasn't sure if that was the skepticism or the fact that everything about the guy made his hair stand on end -- Jinx's too. And the fact that he came around talking about how a bunch of people were going to die.
"Well, angels aren't the soft and fluffy beings that television makes them out to be, that's for sure." He paused a moment. "How are the boys taking this?"
Dean shook his head at that, before moving away from Sam, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "They don't know. I haven't told them yet, and I'm not going to. Ben's freaked out enough by this whole mess as it is, and I'm not going to drag him out to be made a target by anyone -- angel or demon."
"They're going to notice eventually, Dean," Ruby said with a look. "And they're stronger and smarter than you think. Eventually they're going to figure things out. A 'mission from God' isn't exactly something you can brush under the rug."
"Ben's been having a hard time these last four months. Alec too, but at least he's willing to admit his pain. Ben only talks to Anna, and she's gone home for the holidays. And if Amy is one of these Fallen, I don't think it's a good idea to have her around." Sam ran a hand through his hair. "Together they are strong, but separate they aren't."
"Amy's not a threat," Dean sighed. He couldn't believe he was sticking up for the woman, but he didn't want Ben losing some friend in perception of some kind of threat. "At least not as far as the angel was concerned. Plus she knows more than we do, and she hasn't exactly been one to hide it. I don't see why you don't see her as an asset to have around."
"He's right, she's not. At least not right now," Ruby nodded. "She's bound to Anna -- she's not exactly in any shape to be making some kind of stand against the angels, and most of the demonic community thinks she's dead. And he's also right on the sense that she knows a lot. After all -- she is one of them. I trust Amy. I've known her for a long time." Hopefully Ruby's instincts would count for something, because she didn't want Ben losing a friend either. "I can understand keeping it from them for the time being, but Dean -- you're going to have to tell him eventually."
He held up his hands defensively. If they were willing to vouch for Anna and Amy, then he wouldn't say it again. He just hoped that their feelings would prevent them from having it bite them back.
"I agree with Ruby. The longer you hide it from them, the more questions that are going to come up."
"And I'll tell them. Just -- not now," Dean sighed. He was worried about Ben. Alec, he was pretty sure could handle it, but if Ben heard that the angels wanted him for what, as far as he was concerned was a suicide mission, it would tear the kid apart. And Dean wanted him put back together completely first.
"Well, until then we'll figure this out." The unspoken 'together' was there in Sam's eyes. Especially since Sam knew he was on limited time and if Dean was back - Sam wanted to spend it with his brother.
Dean didn't say anything to that, just gave his brother a small smile, before Ruby rolled her eyes and pushed herself up from the bed. "Great, fantastic -- Dean's alive and all is right with the world. Can we go have a happy Christmas with the family now?"
Dean just glared at her. "Since when are you invited?"
Sam just laughed, and smiled. Because for once, he'd actually admit that this might be a happy Christmas after all.
He borrowed Bobby's phone, before sitting down, pulling up the number and placing the phone to his ear. He had a feeling this was going to be a long conversation and he had a lot of things to explain and needed explaining. He also knew that there was a good chance Sam wouldn't believe it was him, but if Ruby was around, maybe she could convince him.
Leaning back against the wall behind him, he listened to the phone ring, begging for his brother to pick up on the other end of the line.
Sam was curled up in the blankets, arms wrapped around the almost-warm body next to him. When his phone rang, he groaned as his hand reached over to find it. Of course it was early - probably Alec wanting to open the presents and getting impatient as to why he hadn't come back yet. At least he hadn't shown up at the motel knocking yet.
He saw Bobby's number but he was too tired to acknowledge it as being there. Instead he yawned as he hit the button to connect them. "Yeah?"
It took a minute for Dean to get his voice to work, mostly because he didn't know what to say. 'Hey, Sam! I'm back from the dead and was recruited into spying on demons for a guy who claims to be an angel of the Lord' didn't exactly seem like the right way to say it. Instead, he just took a deep breath, swallowing heavily as the words refused to come. It was a pretty long silence, and he was sure that at this point, Sam probably should have hung up, but for some reason he didn't, and Dean finally swallowed the lump in his throat and decided to start at the beginning -- usually a good place to begin.
"Hey, Sammy."
That woke Sam up. The voice was one he would never forget because it was one of the first ones imprinted in his mind growing up. But that was impossible, because the owner of that voice had been dead for over four months now. And the two boys that wore his face didn't sound like him enough that he would mistake it.
It was impossible and he knew it, and it really pissed him off to hear it now. "Who is this?"
Dean should have seen this coming. He knew that his brother was too careful and too good a hunter to believe right off the back that it was really him. And while he knew that sucked given his current situation, he didn't mind explaining himself. At least not right now. He just didn't even know where to begin. It was another really long pause as he fought to find the words to try and explain, but there was just no easy way to do it, and that didn't necessarily leave him in the best position.
"Look, it's a really long story and you wouldn't believe the night I've had, but it's me, Sam. It's Dean."
Sam stiffened and sat up, staring at the phone. It was Bobby's phone number all right. But no one at that place would dare pull this kind of prank on him. And not on this holiday they all cared about. But this was impossible, and Sam wouldn't believe it. Demons could do things that he still couldn't explain.
So he did the only thing he could think of, and he just hung up. Then sat in the bed and stared at the phone. Because he knew it was going to ring again, and he needed to steel himself for this.
Dean listened to the click! of the phone disconnecting on the other end of the line, and took a deep breath, trying not to let it get to him. There was something about the sound of his brother hanging up on him that was similar to a punch to the gut, but he wasn't going to press the issue at the moment. He had seen it coming after all, and there's only so much you can do to prevent something like that. He let out the breath he'd been holding slowly, closing his eyes and giving Sam a minute to regroup, before hitting redial and placing the phone to his ear again. He was ready to ramble off anything he ever knew about that kid, hoping to find something that a demon wouldn't and maybe, just maybe, it would convince Sam that this was really happening.
The phone rang again, and Sam was pretty sure Ruby was awake at this point and playing possum. So Sam took a deep breath and answered the phone. Just in case it was really Bobby and he could explain what was going on. "Who is this?"
Ruby was in fact, awake at this point, but then again, she had been a wake for a while. Something a little rattling went down at the Singer house, and the fact that she had felt it from where she was with Sam was saying something. She didn't feel much -- it was more like a quick blip on the radar, but it was enough to keep her up for a while, and now Sam seemed to be having trouble with someone on the phone, and Ruby was starting to really not like this particular situation. Not a bit.
"It's me, Sam. It's Dean." He was starting to get desperate at this point. It was one thing to have the boys and Bobby really know it was him, but this was Sam. This was his brother, and he needed Sam to believe that this was really him. "You were born May 2, 1983 to John and Mary Winchester in Lawrence, Kansas. Six months later a demon killed our mom and set the house on fire and I carried you out the front door." He stopped, waiting for Sam to say something, or at least tried to before he started to get ahead of himself and the panic starting to cloud his senses. "Ask me anything, Sam. It's me."
"My brother's dead. And I don't appreciate this. You call back again and I will kill you." His voice was even and very deep. Dangerous. And pissed off beyond words.
And then he hung up again. He then turned his phone off so the next call would go to voicemail and he just sat in bed a moment, trying not to throw the phone across the room. "Get up," he told Ruby, putting the phone down and getting out of bed, looking for his jeans. "We're going to Bobby's."
"What's going on?" Ruby frowned, but doing as she was told. She wasn't about start questioning orders, especially when Sam had just delivered that particular line to whoever was on the phone, but she had to admit, she was a little curious. This was Christmas after all, so whoever had decided to do this was either a sadistic bastard or really had no sense of tact. "Who was that?"
Sam looked at Ruby, his jaw set. "I don't know. But they were claiming to be Dean, and sounded just like him."
At that, Ruby's fingers automatically went for her knife, sliding it back into the holster on her hip. "You're thinking demon."
"Only thing that can explain why it's coming from Bobby's phone number." Sam took a deep breath. "That or a shapeshifter. He didn't say come to me, so we're safe on that one, but I'm not liking this. Alec and Ben wouldn't know how to move past their emotions, and I have a feeling they are in trouble."
Ruby knew that Bobby was a bit smarter than that, but she wasn't going to push it. Sam had the right to be worried, and if he needed to confirm whatever the hell this was, than she would be right there along with him. That was her job after all. "Let's go, then. If it really is a demon, they're not going to be waiting around all that long."
If Bobby was still alive. But Sam didn't say that. He could never imagine a world without Bobby in it. "Give me five minutes. Check out weapons." With that he stepped into the bathroom to get the rest of his clothes that had been hung up to dry. Plus, he felt like he was going to throw up, and he needed something to bite back the headache that was creeping up from trying not to get emotional.
Ruby just nodded and waited, leaning back against the bed with a sigh. Well, merry fucking Christmas. What a way to wake up in the morning.
***
Dean listened to the click! again on the other end of the line and tried to do the exact same thing. Normally he wouldn't have cared, but this wasn't his phone, and he didn't know if Bobby had the means of getting a new one if he broke it. Instead, he just placed the phone to the side and leaned forward, resting his head in his hands and his elbows on his thighs. It shouldn't hurt that much, because he knew that Sam was right in not believing it was him, but it still hurt nonetheless.
Taking a deep breath, he pushed himself to his feet before making his way back out into the kitchen again. "Bobby, where's Sam staying again?"
Bobby raised an eyebrow. He had a feeling that was who Dean was going to be calling, and from the look on the boy's face, it hadn't gone well. "Route 1 Motel. Make a left out of the yard, and it's five minutes on your right."
"Thanks, Bobby," he said, starting to walk away again, before turning back around. "And can I borrow a car?" He didn't know where the Impala was at the moment, nor who had custody of her, but he would deal with that later. Right now he had Sam to worry about, and that was his main concern.
"Can I stop you?" Bobby knew Dean would find the keys. "Just be careful. Ruby's there and she won't ask questions when it comes to Sam's well being. You've probably given the boy a fright as it is."
"If I give Sam the chance to come here, he's going to come in shooting," Dean said with a sigh as he went to find a set of keys. "And I don't want him shooting at me around the boys. Better to deal with this up there than down here. Besides -- Ruby'll figure out I'm human. Demons -- they're supposed to know their own, right?" At least he was hoping that much. Then again, Ruby had tended to be the type to kill first, ask questions later when it came to Sam. But Dean was also pretty sure he could handle Ruby. He found the keys he was looking for, before giving Bobby a small smile. "I'll be careful. And I'll be back as soon as I can." Hopefully with his brother, as opposed to without.
"Keep yourself safe, Dean. Sam's been acting weird these last few months, so don't think you can predict him." He waved Dean on to go, because Sam would be moving fast as well, and if Dean planned on beating him, he had to move faster.
Dean didn't say anything to that, just nodded, before grabbing the keys and practically running to the car. Bobby was right about him beating Sam to the punch, and he had to, otherwise this was going to blow up into a whole mess of trouble. He hit the gas, finding the motel with relative ease and pulling into the parking lot, scanning the lot for Sam's car and wondering exactly where his brother was hiding.
The car was still parked outside the room as Sam was in the bathroom, splashing cold water on his face. He was mostly dressed now except for his shoes.
He pulled in the car he was driving next to Sam's, before making his way to the door and knocking. He could hear voices and bodies on the other side of the door, but he didn't know who it was or what they were doing. Ruby glanced up from where she was sitting in the room, and sighed heavily, closing her eyes to pick up and see if it was any kind of threat. "Sam, there's a non-demon entity at the door." The salt lines were up -- there was no way she could open it.
Sam came out of the bathroom, his eyes looking at her a moment before grabbing a silver knife off the table. Non-demon still didn't mean trouble. So he reached for the door and opened it. And then he froze, his fingers tightening around the handle of the knife in pure fear.
Dean.
"Sammy, it's me." Dean was trying his best not to smile. He really was. His brother was alive and in one piece, and he really hadn't asked for much more than that. But he knew that this was far from over, and he wasn't about to push anything before it's time. He just held up his hands at the knife, giving his brother the most pleading look in his arsenal before, glancing over his shoulder to where Ruby was standing. "Tell him -- you can tell I'm human, right? Tell him it's really me."
Ruby just stared from the shock for a moment, wondering exactly what it was she was supposed to do. Because as far as she could tell? He was human. Inside and out. And true there were some things that a demon couldn't really pick up on, but there was something about him that wasn't settling right inside her. Something that was scaring the holy hell out of her and had her backing away from the doorway and back towards the bed. "Sam -- "
Ruby's fear was all Sam needed. He trusted Ruby's instincts, and if something was wrong, it was written plain on her face. He snarled, grabbing "Dean" by his shirt and pulling him inside, kicking the door closed as he pressed him against the wall, silver knife in hand. "I've seen some stupid things in my time, but no one has dared try to do this to me. How dare you take on this form, or are you really that eager to die?" His eyes were very dangerous.
The one downfall of having Alec's blood in him was the day or two after, his emotional responses tended to go to extremes at times as the damages in his nervous system were fixed.
"Sam!" Dean struggled back against his brother, trying to get his hand on Sam's wrist to get the knife away from him. Desperation for Sam to believe him had quickly given way to fear and he really didn't want to die again -- not at his brother's hands anyway. He tried to send a desperate look back to Ruby, trying to get her to fucking snap out of it but she didn't seem to be moving, and he was on his own. "Sam, it's me. Please."
The slam! of Dean's back hitting the wall seemed to snap Ruby out of whatever stupor she happened to be in, and she ran over to try and wedge herself between them without touching Dean. If Sam actually followed through with this, he would never forgive himself for killing his brother, and then they would all really be screwed. She placed one hand against the wall, before shoving against Sam with her shoulders, forcing the brother's apart and placing herself between them, sending a hard but worried look back at Sam. "It's him, Sam. It's really him -- it's not some kind of shapeshifter."
Sam backed away, panting as his fingers gripped the knife tighter. There was confusion now in his eyes, not understanding how it was possible. He would reach out with his mind to find out himself, but he had been told that the more he uses it, the faster he will die. So he kept himself from that temptation and let Ruby's instincts be the guide.
Still, he needed an answer. "How can it be you? I watched Ben kill you."
"As I said before," Dean said with a slight laugh as he relaxed against the wall, feeling slightly better now that Sam wasn't trying to kill him. "You wouldn't believe the night I had."
"Well, start explaining," Ruby replied, turning to face him this time, now that Sam was backing off. "Because something inside of me is telling me to stay far, far away from you, Dean, and it's not just because your a jackass." She crossed her arms in front of her chest and studied him carefully. There was only one thing that came to mind that could do this kind of thing for Dean and Sam, and they didn't exactly pull people out of Hell because they were the good guys -- and, technically, they really were.
Sam put the knife down as his sign of giving Dean a chance to explain. But with Ruby saying she felt the need to stay away, he kept his distance, even if he wanted to hug the hell out of his brother. "What happened?"
Dean ran a hand over his face as he tried to figure out where to begin. "Apparently, I've been recruited by God to spy on some kind of elite breed of demon. So he sent an angel to pull me out of the pit and put me back on Earth." He caught he look that crossed Ruby's face at the mention of the angels, and his eyes widened slightly. "Maybe you've heard of them, Ruby. The 'Fallen'?"
Ruby's eyes rolled up slightly at that, fixing him with a glare, before straightening and responding. "Amy's a Fallen. So was Azazel. They're basically angels who chose to side with Lucifer and were cast out of Heaven when God decided that that wasn't such a great game plan." She bit her lip slightly, before looking back at Sam. "If angels are pulling people out of Hell, that's not a good sign, Sam." In fact, she knew exactly what it was a sign of, but she still didn't have all the details, and she wasn't going to share until she did. Not having all the information tended to lead to Winchesters running in half-cocked and that never turns out well.
"Azazel?" Images from his last few visions came back to him and he looked at her. "Do they all have yellow eyes?"
He would question the recruiting by God bit in a moment. He needed to know this first.
"Amy doesn't," Dean pointed out. He'd seen her go from human to demon and back again, but he was pretty sure they eyes were red on that one. Ruby just nodded before she continued.
"No -- that's the benefit of being a Fallen -- since you were the first, you get all the bonus features. The eye colors vary, based on who they are, or in some instances who they work for, what they do. But they're bad news, Sam. The Council, that Amy mentioned? All Fallen. And some of them are really twisted bastards."
"I have a feeling they are the ones in my visions lately." Sam looked at his brother, the confusion moving to worry. "And you're saying an angel plucked you out of Hell to fight them?"
"Not fight -- spy," Dean said with a eye roll, knowing that one inevitably lead to the other, no matter how you looked at it. "Apparently the big guy upstairs thinks that the Fallen are up to something, and since I have such great demonic connections, they picked me to be the guy to find out what exactly that is." He then turned on Ruby again, giving her a look. "You wouldn't happen to be able to make this 'job' of mine easier by knowing exactly what's going on, do you?"
"What do I look like, an encyclopedia on all things demonic?" Ruby snorted, before shaking her head. "I'm as clueless as the two of you. I've heard things, but I'm usually not allowed to go anywhere near it. That's above my pay grade."
Sam sat on the edge of the table, taking a deep breath. The throbbing in his head just wasn't going to go away, was it? "Are you SURE it was an angel, Dean, and not some kind of demon trying to fuck with you?"
"It was an angel, Sam," Ruby replied, cutting Dean off before he even had the chance to speak. "No one else would have the power to do something like this. I do know at least that much." She did arch an eyebrow at that point, before studying Dean closely. "They do tend to leave a mark, however. Wind up with a birthmark that wasn't already there before?"
Dean just raised an eyebrow at her, matching her stony look with one of his own. "Haven't really had the chance to look, thanks. As I said -- I've had a bit of a crazy night."
Sam nodded. He looked back at his brother, then just stood up and walked over, pulling his brother into one of those rare Winchester brother hug moments. He held Dean tightly, letting himself finally believe and just be thankful to God - literally - for bringing Dean back to him. It wasn't until Dean was really gone that Sam realized just how much he still needed him, even if it was from afar.
Dean was surprised again, not expecting that to be the move Sam made, but it wasn't unwelcome either. His arms tightened around his brother, pulling him closer and just relaxing into the embrace. Now, this was actually starting to feel real. Now it was starting to feel a little less like some kind of fancy Hell trick. Then again, Hell would have had him walking in on something like Sam and Ruby going at it, and really -- that wasn't a sight he ever wanted to see.
It was a sight that Sam really wasn't wanting Dean to walk in on either. Though if Dean looked in the room, it was a single bed. They had stopped pretending with double bed rooms for awhile now.
Finally he just patted Dean on the back and pulled back. "And you're the one who didn't believe in angels," he scoffed lightly.
Yeah, Dean was blissfully ignoring the fact that there was only one bed in the room. In fact, he was sort of hoping that Sam had finally grown some sense and was making Ruby sleep on the floor. He just snorted back at his brother before running a hand on over his face. "Yeah, don't remind me. But I don't think they're the angels you're thinking of, Sam. This guy was bad news -- I don't like the way things sounded at all." He wasn't sure if that was the skepticism or the fact that everything about the guy made his hair stand on end -- Jinx's too. And the fact that he came around talking about how a bunch of people were going to die.
"Well, angels aren't the soft and fluffy beings that television makes them out to be, that's for sure." He paused a moment. "How are the boys taking this?"
Dean shook his head at that, before moving away from Sam, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "They don't know. I haven't told them yet, and I'm not going to. Ben's freaked out enough by this whole mess as it is, and I'm not going to drag him out to be made a target by anyone -- angel or demon."
"They're going to notice eventually, Dean," Ruby said with a look. "And they're stronger and smarter than you think. Eventually they're going to figure things out. A 'mission from God' isn't exactly something you can brush under the rug."
"Ben's been having a hard time these last four months. Alec too, but at least he's willing to admit his pain. Ben only talks to Anna, and she's gone home for the holidays. And if Amy is one of these Fallen, I don't think it's a good idea to have her around." Sam ran a hand through his hair. "Together they are strong, but separate they aren't."
"Amy's not a threat," Dean sighed. He couldn't believe he was sticking up for the woman, but he didn't want Ben losing some friend in perception of some kind of threat. "At least not as far as the angel was concerned. Plus she knows more than we do, and she hasn't exactly been one to hide it. I don't see why you don't see her as an asset to have around."
"He's right, she's not. At least not right now," Ruby nodded. "She's bound to Anna -- she's not exactly in any shape to be making some kind of stand against the angels, and most of the demonic community thinks she's dead. And he's also right on the sense that she knows a lot. After all -- she is one of them. I trust Amy. I've known her for a long time." Hopefully Ruby's instincts would count for something, because she didn't want Ben losing a friend either. "I can understand keeping it from them for the time being, but Dean -- you're going to have to tell him eventually."
He held up his hands defensively. If they were willing to vouch for Anna and Amy, then he wouldn't say it again. He just hoped that their feelings would prevent them from having it bite them back.
"I agree with Ruby. The longer you hide it from them, the more questions that are going to come up."
"And I'll tell them. Just -- not now," Dean sighed. He was worried about Ben. Alec, he was pretty sure could handle it, but if Ben heard that the angels wanted him for what, as far as he was concerned was a suicide mission, it would tear the kid apart. And Dean wanted him put back together completely first.
"Well, until then we'll figure this out." The unspoken 'together' was there in Sam's eyes. Especially since Sam knew he was on limited time and if Dean was back - Sam wanted to spend it with his brother.
Dean didn't say anything to that, just gave his brother a small smile, before Ruby rolled her eyes and pushed herself up from the bed. "Great, fantastic -- Dean's alive and all is right with the world. Can we go have a happy Christmas with the family now?"
Dean just glared at her. "Since when are you invited?"
Sam just laughed, and smiled. Because for once, he'd actually admit that this might be a happy Christmas after all.