Sam ran quickly through the trees, instinctively moving so that he wouldn't actually run into any of them. He wasn't sure why he felt drawn to the area but he knew better than to ignore those instincts. At the last second he jumped, catching onto a branch and using it to pull himself into the tree. He peered down into the clearing, trying to work out what was going on and then the wind shifted and he felt like banging his head into the tree. Vampires...he hated vampires! He gathered himself, ready to attack and take them by surprise but then he stopped and just watched, trying to figure out what they were doing. Then he realised, they were in the process of changing the third figure. Poor guy was screaming, thrashing as one of the vampires bit into his wrist and drank form it for a bit before moving to another vein. The other vampire appeared to be standing watch. It was too late for the guy; no matter what Sam did the poor man would change, better for him to get as much venom into his system as possible to make the change quicker. Sam wasn't an indiscriminate hunter, he would only take out the new vampire if he started killing. Once they were done with their victim Sam moved, dropping from his tree and attacking instantly, they never had a chance.

Once done he set the parts alight and then crouched next to the slowly changing male. He looked a bit shorter than Sam, his blonde hair cut almost military short and he was pretty well built and tanned, not that the tan would survive past the change. The guy screamed and his eyes opened, revealing pain filled green orbs. Sam reached out to tap his cheek, trying to get him to focus and it was obvious he was trying.

"My name's Sam, I'm here to help you. Can you understand?" Sam asked and he got a nod even as the guy clenched his jaw to hold in another scream.
"What's your name?" Sam asked and the man shut his eyes, panting for air.

"D...De..an." Was ground out and Sam gently brushed his fingers through sweat damp hair.

"You're going to be okay Dean. You need to listen closely. I know it hurts, more than anything but the pain will eventually stop. It will last for a few days. You need to do something while this is happening. Dean you need to focus on reliving your memories, over and over. Keep them as clear as you can in your mind. Can you do that?" Sam asked and got another pained nod.
"Good, that's good. I've got to move you now and it'll hurt but we can't stay here. Try to sleep if you can." Sam told him as he scooped Dean up and then stood, Dean trying not to scream at the movement. Sam moved as quickly but gently as he could as he headed deeper into the woods, looking for somewhere to hide Dean for the next few days. An abandoned cabin was too much to hope for but he did find a nice dry, empty cave that'd fit them both. He sat beside Dean and took his hand, talking softly to him to try and help Dean cope with the pain.

Dean spent the next three days screaming and writhing in agony with Sam watching over him. He hoped Dean managed to keep most of his memories, especially of whether or not there were more vampires than the two who had been changing him. Sam held his hand as the venom reached Dean's heart, his green eyes wide with terror and pain.

"It's okay, it's almost over." Sam whispered as Dean's back arched and then he slumped, to all appearances dead. Sam gently stroked over Dean's face, hoping to keep him calm and now red eyes slowly flickered open and then Dean was moving. He scrambled to the back of the cave, eyes searching wildly as he crouched defensively.
"Just relax Dean, you're safe." Sam soothed and red eyes fixed on him.
"Do you remember what happened?" Sam asked and the vampire licked its lips, its eyes narrowing in confusion.

"Sam?" Was the hesitant reply and Sam smiled, nodding.

"Yeah, it's me." Sam held out a hand and Dean slowly edged closer until he could take the hand.
"There you go, it's alright. Hard to concentrate isn't it? Is your throat burning?" Sam asked and Dean's hand went to his throat.

"Yes." He answered, looking around.
"You smell funny." Dean commented and Sam laughed.

"Yeah, I bet I do. Lets you know not to try and eat me." Sam told him with a grin.

"Eat you... need something Sam, please."

"Okay, we'll go find you something." Sam tugged him to his feet and then out of the cave. There was no way he was going to let Dean hunt down a human to eat so he'd have to do with an animal of some sort. He ran with Dean, watching him carefully as he hunted for the first time. Thankfully Sam couldn't sense any humans around but there was a mountain lion nearby that he steered Dean towards and then he pulled back as Dean attacked it, burying his teeth into its throat and beginning to drink. Sam leant against a nearby tree to keep watch, smiling when Dean looked up at him. He knew Dean would be pretty much lost to his thirst for around a year and for some reason he found himself wanting to stick around and help him through it.

After Dean was done Sam led him to a nearby stream to clean up and then they headed back to the cave where Sam realised they had a problem. He needed sleep, Dean didn't. The last thing he wanted was for Dean to wander off and kill someone while he was asleep. He could go a long time without sleep but eventually... then he grinned, that would work. Sam lay down with his back against the wall and then held his arms out to Dean. The new vampire hesitantly crept closer and then let Sam tug him into his embrace. Sam held him, running gentle fingers through Dean's hair and he felt him slowly relax. Sam cradled the hard, cold body to his own and smiled when Dean burrowed closer to his warmth.

"It's okay Dean, I'm going to look after you." He promised softly and the vampire fixed crimson eyes onto him.

"What's happened to me?" Dean asked and Sam was happy that he realised something had happened to him. He'd seen newborns so lost to the thirst that they didn't even remember their own names let alone wonder why they wanted blood.

"You were attacked and bitten Dean. You're a vampire now. You'll need blood for as long as you're around but it doesn't have to be human. If you bite a human they will either die or become a vampire and I can't let you do that." Sam explained and then waited to see how much Dean understood.

"Vampire?" Dean frowned, swallowing hard.
"But...not real."

"Yeah they are, so are a lot of other things people think are myths. I hunt the ones that hurt people."

"Will you hunt me?"

"Don't want to, that's why I'm staying with you. I'm going to help you Dean." Sam told him and Dean nodded.

"I want to go home." Dean whispered softly and Sam closed his eyes in pain, knowing it could never happen.

"I know, I wish you could but you can't Dean. You don't look human anymore, not enough to fool anyone who knew you." Sam explained gently and Dean looked down but nodded.
"How much do you remember?" Sam asked but he saw Dean's attention beginning to wander...and then a pale hand went to his throat.
"Thirsty?"

"Yes." Dean answered and Sam stood, leading Dean out to hunt again.


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Sam watched Dean as he feasted on his dinner; thankfully Dean only needed the blood so Sam could cook the rest for his own dinner later. They'd easily fallen into a pattern and Dean was settling slowly but surely. He'd only had to pin Dean telekinetically once when some poor hikers had gotten a bit too close but after that it had taken weeks for Dean to stop being scared of him. Dean looked to him like he probably would the one who had changed him and it was a lot more responsibility than Sam was used to anymore but it felt nice to be the centre of someone's world for a change. He'd even gotten Dean used to lying quietly in his arms when Sam needed to sleep. He'd found Dean staring at him before he fell asleep and still doing it when he woke and often wondered what the vampire thought about during that time but he wouldn't ask.

Sam had only left Dean alone once and that had been to return to the Impala for his bag. Unlike Dean, Sam did sweat so wearing the one outfit for months on end? Not a good idea. He hadn't left again though, Dean had been panicked and almost violent when he'd returned, it had taken hours and a hunt to calm Dean down again and then he'd spent the night curled up in Sam's arms...the first time he'd initiated such a thing. Sam knew Dean was confused and scared...when he could concentrate past being thirsty. He hoped that would gradually go away, they couldn't live in the woods forever. Dean would eventually have to learn to ignore the lure of blood enough to move about in towns.

"Sam?" Dean called and Sam smiled at him before laughing at the site Dean made, tufts of fur stuck to his face by blood.

"You need to wash up Dean. I think we both could do with it actually." Sam said and he led the way back to the stream so they could clean up. They splashed around in the water for a while, the freezing water having no affect on Dean and taking a while to do so to Sam. They flopped down on the bank, content to lay and dry out in the sun, Dean staring at his sparkling skin as he always did when he was in the sun.

"I sparkle." Dean whispered and Sam chuckled, rolling to his side and leaning up on one elbow.

"Yep, all vampires do. That's why you need to stay out of the sun after we leave here." Sam explained, reaching out to run his fingers through Dean's hair and smiling when Dean moved closer.

"Leave?" Dean asked, looking up at him and Sam was interested to see that Dean's eyes were changing colour, the red slowly fading. He'd never seen a vampire with anything but red eyes, unless they were black from hunger. Maybe the animal blood was why his eyes were changing?

"We won't stay here forever Dean. Once I'm sure you can control yourself around people we'll hit the road, find a house to live in or something." Sam explained and Dean frowned but nodded.

"You won't leave me?" Dean asked quietly and Sam pulled Dean into his arms, rolling back onto his back so the vampire was cradled against his chest. Dean clung to him and Sam soothed him.

"Never Dean. You're all I have. I've been alone since my Dad and Uncle died and I thought I was fine till I found you." Sam whispered and Dean relaxed, smiling slightly at knowing Sam wouldn't leave him. He curled up on Sam's chest, knowing that his weight didn't bother Sam at all and he almost purred when Sam began running his fingers through his hair.


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Sam laughed as he chased Dean through the trees, letting the vampire stay ahead of him for the fun of it. It was great that Dean was laughing too as they ran, he hadn't heard Dean laugh at all before. Dean's eyes colour had finally settled too and Sam had to admit he liked the soft golden colour. Sam as hoping they'd be able to leave soon since Dean had settled down a lot recently, although he was still very clingy. His head seemed a lot clearer and he could go nearly a day without hunting so Sam figured another four months or so and they could try testing Dean's resistance. Of course as soon as he decided that he picked up a group of people headed their way and the wind shifted before he could call out to Dean.

Sam picked up the pace but then he saw Dean slam to a stop and freeze completely, hands fisted at his side and eyes slammed shut. Dean was growling slightly but was obviously doing his best to fight the temptation.

"Easy Dean, you're doing great. Give me your hand and we'll get further away." Sam said and Dean jerkily raised his arm. Sam grasped his hand and then tugged, making Dean move with him deeper into the woods and away from the humans. Sam stopped when they were well out of range and then wrapped his arms around Dean who buried his face in Sam's neck, inhaling his scent.
"It's okay now. You did great Dean, I'm so proud of you." He soothed and Dean slowly raised his head, revealing his eyes had gone black from hunger.

"It smelt so good." He whimpered and Sam nodded.

"It always is, the point is you didn't go after them." Sam assured him and Dean nodded.
"Come on, let's get some diner."

"It stinks when you cook it." Dean wrinkled his nose and Sam laughed.

"Yeah but I don't think I could stomach it raw." He took off and Dean followed quickly.

TBC...

Dean stared around nervously as they reached the edge of the trees. Sam held his hand, rubbing his fingers in comforting circles over the cold skin. Dean was practically plastered to Sam’s side as they left the forest for the first time since Dean had been changed.

“It’s okay Dean, we’re alone.” Sam soothed as they walked towards the black Impala parked nearby.
“Here’s the car.” Sam opened the trunk and put the one bag he had back in, seeing Dean’s eyes widen slightly at the sight of the weapons and various talismans in the hidden compartment. He guided Dean to the passenger side and watched as Dean slid in, looking around the interior.
“You like it?” Sam asked as he got into the driver’s side.

“An Impala?” Dean asked hesitantly, obviously searching his sometimes foggy memories.

“Yep, a ’67, my Dad got it for me for my sixteenth.” Sam told him with a smile as he started the engine.
“So I figured we’ll head north towards the border.” Sam told him as he pulled out onto the highway.

“Could we....could we go to Kansas?” Dean asked quietly and Sam glanced over at him.

“Dean...you can’t go home.” Sam told him sadly and Dean nodded.

“I know but.....my Mom. I was all she had. Please can’t we just sneak a look? Make sure she’s okay?” Dean pleaded and Sam sighed but then took the next turn that would take them east and Dean smiled, settling in to watch the scenery.

“So you’re from Kansas, how’d you end up in California?” Sam asked after a while and Dean frowned.

“I don’t remember.” Dean whispered and Sam nodded.

“That’s okay Dean, its normal for you to have gaps in your memory. Some lose all memory of their mortal lives. So where in Kansas are we heading?” Sam asked and Dean looked down.
“Check your pocket, I saved your wallet and slipped it back into your pocket before we got in the car. There should be something in there to give us a clue.” Sam told him and Dean reached into his pocket to pull it out. Sam watched him out of the corner of his eyes, seeing how carefully Dean opened it. Dean slowly pulled out the contents and then smiled, holding up a photo of Dean and a woman with blond hair standing in front of a nice house.
“Anything written on the back?”

“Mum and me, Lawrence Kansas, 1964.” Dean read and Sam grinned.

“Lawrence Kansas huh? Small world, I was born there.”

“Really? Um....how old are you?”

“Nineteen. You?” Sam asked back and Dean bit his lip.
“Well the photo says 64 and you look about fourteen....sixteen tops so you’re now between twenty and twenty two probably. Not a bad age to get stuck at, old enough to live independently but young enough to pass as late teens if you need to.” Sam told him and Dean nodded.
“So since I slept recently we can drive straight through we’ll be there early tomorrow morning and can find someplace to hole up for the day unless it’s going to be an overcast day. We can scout around, find the house and watch it. We will stop about half way to so we can both eat.”

````````````````````````````````````````````
Sam kept a hand on Dean’s shoulder as they watched a car drive up to the house from Dean’s photo. It parked and a woman looking like an older version of the one in the photo got out with a bag of groceries and headed for the front door.

“Mom.” Dean whispered, tensing under Sam’s hand. Sam stared at her and frowned, why did she look vaguely familiar?
“Can we get closer?” Dean pleaded and Sam sighed, closing his eyes to ‘see’ where in the house she was.

“She’s in the kitchen, there’s some cover near the window back there.” Sam said and they moved faster than the human eye could track. They hid themselves and watched as she put the groceries away, moving slowly as she worked. Dean watched her closely and then frowned when he saw something on the fridge.

“Oh Mom.” Dean whispered as he realised what it was, a missing poster with his picture on it.
“Can’t we do something? Even a death certificate would be better than not knowing.” Dean begged and Sam chewed on his lip. Could they fake a death report for her? At least give her some sort of closure. And then Sam noticed something, her bracelet was full of various protection charms and along the windowsills were salt lines.

“Your Mom’s a hunter?” He hissed and Dean just looked at him.

“What?” Dean stared at him in confusion.

“The salt, her bracelet....she knows the life Dean.”

“Does that mean I can see her?” Dean’s confusion turned to hope and Sam sighed.

“Some hunters....they’re not all like me Dean. A lot will kill anything not human.” Sam explained and Dean went back to staring at his mother.

“But can we try?”

“Alright, I’ll go talk to her. You don’t move unless I call you, understood?” Sam demanded and Dean nodded.
“Okay, just sit here and stay calm.” Sam soothed, seeing that his tone had been making Dean a bit agitated.
“Just relax and don’t eat the neighbours.” He changed to teasing and was relieved when Dean rolled his eyes. Thankfully he’d fed that morning so he wouldn’t be too tempted by the smells.

Sam moved around to the front of the house and rang the doorbell, running a hand through his hair in an effort to make himself look more presentable. He smiled when the door opened and Dean’s mother was standing there.

“Can I help you?” She asked.

“My name’s Sam Winchester and...”

“Winchester? Are you related to John?” She cut in and Sam stared at her in shock.

“My Dad was John Winchester.” He answered and she stepped back, silently inviting him in.

“Was?” She asked and Sam sighed.

“He died two years ago, um....” Sam made the point of noticing her bracelet and letting his eyes go wide.
“So did you know him through work?” Sam asked, looking back up at her as she fingered her bracelet.

“Christo.” She whispered and Sam smiled.

“Nope. So did you know Dad through hunting?” Sam shifted his shirt enough to show off the anti-possession tattoo over his heart and her eyes went wide.

“John hunted? How? Why?”

“Wait, Dad didn’t hunt when you knew him?”

“No, it’s why....it’s why I broke off our engagement.” She admitted and Sam gasped, realising why she looked familiar.

“You’re Mary, the one in the photo Dad always carried.” Sam whispered. And the world kept on getting smaller.

“He kept my photo?” She whispered, sitting down.

“Yeah, I’ve um, still got it actually. I thought you looked familiar when I saw another picture but it was only taken a few years ago and you do look different.”

“Older you mean.” She teased and Sam shrugged.
“So what brings you here?” She asked and Sam sighed.

“It’s....complicated. I was on this hunt in California and I found this guy.” Sam really didn’t know how to break it to her. She gasped, a hand covering her mouth.

“Dean, my son. Please.....was it Dean.” She asked and Sam nodded. She slumped back in her chair and Sam got up, kneeling beside her.

“Do you need some water?” Sam asked and she nodded so he went into the kitchen and got her a glass, shooting Dean a small smile as he did so. He gave her the glass and hovered nearby until he was sure she wasn’t going to drop it.

“Where is he? Is he alive, hurt?” Mary pleaded and Sam sat back down.

“He’s.....alive and nearby.”

“Where? Why isn’t he here?”

“Please, there’s a lot I need to explain first and then if you want you can see him.” Sam told her and Mary realised, something was wrong. What had Sam been hunting?

“What were you hunting?” She whispered and Sam sighed again.

“Vampires. I’m sorry but by the time I found them Dean had already been bitten.” Sam told her and she went white. Sam moved back to her side, lifting her hand to check her pulse.
“Take it easy, deep breaths.” He soothed and she looked at him.

“Vampires....how are you alive? No hunter has ever....”

“No normal hunter. I uh, I’m sort of.....psychic. Gives me an edge. I got Dean to a cave and managed to get his first name off him before the change became bad enough he couldn’t speak. That was just over a year ago.” Sam told her gently and she stared at him.

“Dean’s a....” She trailed off and Sam nodded.

“I know this is hard but he really wants to see you. I swear, he’s never even tasted human blood. He eats animal blood and he’s got pretty good control over his strength and speed. I kept him in the forest until I was sure he’d be able to mostly blend in again.” Sam explained and Mary just stared at him, trying to take it all in. Her son was something she would have tried to kill in the years before he’d been born. Could she accept that? Sam seemed so sure Dean was still her Dean and how would Sam be okay around him if he did drink human blood?

“Is he here?” She asked and then she got up, going to stare out the window before heading for the kitchen, realising out back had the best cover. She opened the door and stepped outside.
“Dean?” She called shakily and then he was standing a few feet away. She stared at her son, taking in the changes becoming a vampire had made. He was pale and his beautiful green eyes were gone, but they weren’t red like what she knew from when she’d hunted.

“Mom.” Dean whispered shakily and then he held out a hand to her.
“Please.” She took a step closer and then she was running towards her baby boy, wrapping her arms around him and ignoring the chill of his skin and its hardness. She felt his arms come up around her and they just stood there in silence for a while. She moved back when the cold got too much and just stared at him before reaching up to touch his face.

“Oh Dean, I missed you so much.” She said and Dean leant into her touch, both ignoring Sam who was leaning against the door, just in case.

“I’m so sorry Mom. I don’t...I don’t even remember what happened, just that it hurt.” Dean admitted and she nodded.

“I’ve heard....that the change can affect your memories.” She said and Dean nodded.

“I know there are a lot of gaps but Sam’s been great at trying to help me remember the things I’ve forgotten.” Dean told her, smiling at Sam and Mary turned to him, walking over to hug the surprised teenager.

“Thank you.” She whispered and Sam nodded.
“Let’s go inside and talk. You’re staying?” She asked and Dean looked at Sam who sighed and Mary wilted.
“It’s too dangerous, isn’t it?” She asked and Sam nodded.

“If anyone saw Dean...”

“I know. You will keep in contact.” She demanded and both boys nodded as they followed her inside.
“Can I get you anything Sam?”

“No thank you.” They sat down in the living room and Dean looked around.

“All your stuff’s still in your room. You can take whatever you want.” Mary told her son and he nodded.

“Thanks.” Dean said, smiling at his mother.

“What will you do now?” She asked and Sam shrugged.

“Introduce Dean back into civilisation, slowly. Don’t want to push him to fast and risk an accident. We’ll probably just travel around. Send you lots of postcards of course.” Sam said and Mary nodded.

“Will you keep hunting?”

“I...I don’t know. Hunting’s the only life I’ve ever known. But Dean didn’t seem to know.....you left?” Sam asked and Mary nodded.

“My parents were killed shortly after I broke things off with John and then I got pregnant. I couldn’t risk my baby.” Mary said, looking at her son sadly. Despite everything he had still ended up being dragged into the supernatural....as one of them.

“Um....this is gonna sound nuts but with what you just said.....who is Dean’s father?” Sam asked, heart in his throat and Mary looked down.
“Oh shit.” He whispered and Dean looked at him in confusion.

“Sam?”

“Apparently Dad and your Mom were engaged for a while. Are you saying....Dean’s a Winchester?” Sam asked and Mary nodded.

“John left and I had no way to find him, to tell him he had a son. Obviously he moved on eventually, you don’t look that much younger than Dean.” She answered.

“Wait....you’re saying Sam is my brother?” Dean demanded and then he stared at Sam.

“Half brother.” Mary told him but Sam shook his head.

“I.....I’m not a Winchester by birth.” Sam admitted softly and they both stared at him.
“He was the only parent I ever knew though. When did Dad leave here?” Sam asked, staring at the floor.

“48. Dean was born on January 24th 49.” Mary said, smiling at her son who was still in shock.

“Well he came back on a hunt in May of 51. He found a woman, nearly dead, but she....she had been using her body as a shield for her baby. She begged him to take the baby and he did.” Sam said and Mary reached out to put a hand on his knee.

“You were the baby.” She said gently and Sam nodded. Dean reached out and took his hand, getting a small smile from Sam.

“Turned out my mum was the reason for the hunt, there were demons after her and they killed her. Dad got there in time to keep them from getting me. If my Mum had just given me to them....she would still be alive.”

“No Mother would hand her baby over to demons Sam.” Mary told him and he stared at her for a bit before slowly nodding.
“Why did they want you?” She asked and Sam stood up, walking over to the window, shifting nervously.

“Because......my Mom was a powerful psychic herself from Dad managed to learn and by birth Dad.......” Sam trailed off, unable to say it. Mary may no longer hunt but he doubted she was completely retired, there was no such thing.

“Sam you saved my son, whatever it is it will be alright.” Mary tried to reassure him and Sam shrugged.

“Half psychic, half demon. Most hunters don’t think it gets much worse than that.” He stated bitterly and Mary’s eyes went wide.

“Demon?”

“Yeah. The ones that killed my Mom worked for my Dad, she tried to run with me but they caught up. It’s why I can take on vampires and win, why Dean was never attracted to my blood. Most of the usual stuff doesn’t affect me either, holy water tickles a bit.” Sam admitted, refusing to look at them. Dean looked at his Mom, not sure what the big deal was. Mary sighed and then stood up, walked over to Sam and placed her hands on his shoulders, feeling him go rigid under her touch.

“You’re not your parents Sam. John raised you, you saved and protected my son, you’re a good man.” Mary told him and then she hugged him again and Sam slowly relaxed in her arms. Dean stood up and then hugged Sam once his Mom had let him go.
“Do you know why John became a hunter?” She finally asked and Sam shrugged.

“Not really, he didn’t talk about it. I think he saw something and went looking, met Uncle Bobby. He used to watch me when I was little and a hunt was too dangerous to take me along on.”

“How did John die?” Mary asked softly as they all sat back down, Dean clutching Sam’s hand.

“Going after a demon......my father. It killed him and Uncle Bobby and I saw it and I just got so mad. I woke up and the building was trashed and the guy the demon had been using was there, dead.”

``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Are you sure you have to go so soon?” Mary asked as Sam put the last bag into the boot. He straightened up and smiled at her, hugging her. They’d been in town for a week, far longer than Sam had originally planned although he’d taken Dean out of town several times to hunt.

“I promise we’ll write all the time and you have the address for the post office I check every few months. We will come back and visit at least once a year too.” Sam said and she nodded, reaching up to ruffle his hair. He leant in to kiss her cheek even as Dean left the house with a small bag clutched in his hands; it had a few small things Mary had given him to remember the family by. Mary went to him, holding him close and Dean returned the hug being mindful of his strength.

“I love you Mom.” He whispered and she smiled.

“I love you too baby.” She told him and then moved away as Dean put the bag into the backseat.
“Drive carefully and be safe out there.”

“We will Mom.” Dean said as Sam closed the boot.

“Bye Ms. Campbell.” Sam said and then flushed at her mock glare.
“Bye Mom.” He changed it to. She’d been insisting all week that Sam call her Mom, after all if things had been a little different....

Mary watched as the two boys drove off, it was sad but at least now she knew her son was safe and alive, well as alive as a vampire could be. And she would see him again....or else she’d hunt them down herself.

TBC...

Sam grinned at Dean as they packed up their gear, another successful hunt done. With the abilities of a vampire Dean had taken to hunting like a duck to water, it was using his natural instincts in only a slightly different manner after all. They both sent postcards, birthday and Christmas cards to Mary regularly and Dean called her as often as he could but the best time was when they made their yearly visit to Lawrence to see her. Sam knew that soon that visit would start bringing grief to Dean; his vampiric senses wouldn’t be able to miss the subtle signs of aging that a mortal would miss. Eventually Mary would die, either of old age or illness and Dean would have to accept that. Sam knew that was not going to be easy for him. He still wasn’t over his Dad’s or Bobby’s deaths and he wasn’t even biologically related to them. While Dean had been a bit sad to find out his Dad was dead, it hadn’t been too bad since he’d never met him and only knew what his Mom and then Sam had told him. Mortals dying around him was something Dean would have to adapt to though, being immortal now himself. Sam didn’t know how mortal he was thanks to his parentage but he knew he was a lot harder to kill than any human and even many of the things he hunted plus he’d never even had a cold. So he could only hope he was immortal enough to stick around for Dean’s sake.

``````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Merry Christmas Mom.” Dean said and his Mom jumped but then spun around and hugged him. Sam laughed form where he was standing behind Dean but then moved forward to accept his own hug.

“You two live to surprise me, don’t you?” Mary asked as she moved to the fridge to get out Sam’s favourite juice for him. She always kept a bottle in the fridge since she never knew when the boys would drop by.
“I got your Christmas cards, thank you boys.”

“Weren’t sure we’d make it so we sent them.” Dean told her, watching her move about the kitchen.

“I’m glad you did make it. Why don’t you take your things upstairs, get settled in. Anything you want especially for dinner Sam?”

“Whatever you have is fine Mom.” Sam answered as he followed Dean upstairs to his old room. Since Dean didn’t need to sleep and it was a double bed they used his room whenever they stayed. Mary hadn’t said anything and Dean was still more comfortable resting with Sam holding him, even if Dean didn’t sleep himself.

They put their things away and then dug out the small gifts they’d gotten for Mary before heading back downstairs for dinner. The food may not smell good to Dean but he still liked watching them eat all the while wishing he could too. Sure he could eat human food but he’d just have to bring it up later and it tasted like dirt. If it still tasted like food should then he wouldn’t mind having to bring it up just so he could taste it again.

“So you’ve been keeping pretty busy from all the postcards I’ve been getting.” Mary said and Dean nodded.

“Sam’s great at research and finding hunts. He puts things together that just seem totally random to me.” Dean’s praise made Sam blush and Mary smiled at him.

“That’s amazing Sam. You boys are doing things other than hunting though, aren’t you?” She asked and both boys nodded.

“Sam’s going over all the schooling stuff with me, seeing what I remember and reteaching what I forgot.” Dean told her nervously and she smiled, taking his hand in hers.

“That’s wonderful Dean. Do you remember a lot?” Mary asked and Dean looked down.

“Since school is pretty impersonal.....it’s pretty easily forgotten. But he’s picking it back up incredibly fast.” Sam praised, knowing Dean needed it. Dean hated finding gaps in his memory, always taking it to mean he’d failed while Sam knew how amazing it was that Dean had kept as much as he had.

“Sam’s been going over college work.” Dean said and Sam shrugged.

“Maybe one day college can be done without actually attending and I can get a degree. Don’t think I could stay in one place long enough to actually attend.” Sam admitted and Mary nodded.

“Could you two settle down somewhere if you wanted to? Would people notice...” She trailed off and Sam grinned.

“There are plenty of towns in mountains and areas like that so they don’t get a lot of sunlight during the year so Dean could go out regularly. To stay any length of time we’d have to start out as young as possible and without ‘adults’ around that would raise questions. Maybe in the future it won’t be as odd and we can give it a go.” Sam told her and she nodded, happy that they wouldn’t always have to live on the road, even if they had to move every several years. She knew her boys would outlive her, Dean at least by centuries, and it made her happy to know they had options beyond hunting all the time.

Secretly Mary had been happy to learn Sam wasn’t biologically related to Dean. After what Sam had done for her son and the way she’d seen Dean react to him....she knew what her boys both seemed blind to, they were in love with each other. Dean had been since she’d first seen them together, Sam she wasn’t so sure about when he’d fallen. Their first meeting he’d been part parent/part best friend to her son. But it had changed since then, she could see it in even the smallest body movement when they were together. She knew vampires had a single mate and Sam would never hurt Dean, she knew that. But if Sam wasn’t immortal, would his demonic heritage allow him to be changed to keep them together? Or was it possible her baby boy would one day lose his mate?

```````````````````````````````````````````````
“Did you see that?” Dean exclaimed, fighting not to laugh and Sam grinned at him. So using his powers to amuse Dean probably wasn’t the most ethical of uses but ever since Mary had been admitted to hospital Dean had been pretty depressed. It had been almost impossible to even get him to hunt! Sam was praying hard that Mary would be okay and they were staying in Kansas until she was either released or the worst happened. But even in the last ten years leaps had been made medically so Mary’s chances were a lot better than they would have been even when Sam had first met her. Cancer wasn’t the automatic death sentence it once was but the treatments were harsh and people did still die. So Sam was doing everything he could to keep Dean’s mind off his mother’s condition.
“Sam?”

“Yeah Dean?” Sam turned to him and instantly sobered when he saw the serious expression on Dean’s face.

“Is Mom going to die?” Dean whispered and Sam moved without thinking, pulling Dean into a hug.

“I don’t know Dean. I wish healing others was one of my powers but it’s not. All we can do is wait and hope they caught it in time.” Sam told him gently and Dean nodded. Sam could see the venom clouding Dean’s eyes, taking the place of tears Dean was no longer able to cry.
“She’s strong Dean, I know she won’t stop fighting.” Dean nodded but didn’t move away from Sam’s embrace and Sam was quite content to hold him. Other than their yearly visits to Mary they were the only constants in each other’s lives and it meant that casual touches and embraces were common. Sam was the only one so far that Dean could regularly touch without risk after all but even if he wasn’t Dean was happy with things being just the two of them.

``````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Don’t even think of moving, I’ll get it.” Dean ordered and then he was gone so fast Mary couldn’t see him move though she could tell Sam was watching him. Feeling her eyes on him Sam turned to her and they shared amused smiles. Dean was back and placing a tray of food in her lap in no time at all. She smiled at her son and began to eat. Dean had been hovering over her ever since she’d been released from hospital and she accepted it since she was getting to see a lot more of the boys than she ever did in a single year and she was still tired from all the treatments. The idea of a vampire cooking would have seemed ridiculous when she was younger, now it was normal. Sam had informed her that Dean was a better cook than he was and actually enjoyed cooking for Sam, despite the fact he hated the smell. She was very happy Dean had kept those skills since she’d been the one to teach him how to cook all through his childhood.

She knew she’d given both boys a good scare although Sam seemed to be handling things better than Dean. She’d taken up old research again, learning as much as she could about demons and vampires as well as psychics in the effort to understand her children, because she considered Sam hers now as well. So she knew that vampires, being frozen in time as they were, did not react well to change. And the death or serious illness of a loved one was a very big change. So if her sitting around while Dean did everything for her helped him cope then she’d let him.

Mary smiled as Sam sat beside her, both of them watching in amusement as Dean went about cleaning the house up.

“He was really worried about you, we both were.” Sam admitted softly, not that it would keep Dean from hearing him.

“I know. Sam I want you to promise me something.” She stated firmly and he turned to stare at her. Sitting so close and staring directly into his eyes she noticed something she had never seen before, either because she hadn’t been looking for it or because it was new, but there was a feint ring of colour around Sam’s pupil’s. And it was not a normal, human colour. Was this then a sign of his supernatural parentage? She didn’t know but it gave her more hope that Sam would always be there for Dean.

“What is it?” Sam finally asked and she blinked, pushing those thoughts aside. She knew her son, pre and post transformation and she had to admit human Dean would have dealt with certain things better than he did as a vampire. That’s why she had to make Sam agree because only Sam could stop Dean if it came to it.

“We both know that no matter what happens you boys will outlive me. No matter my manner of death do not let Dean try to change me. Swear to me.” She told him and Sam stared at her in shock before nodding, obviously he hadn’t really considered the fact that in order not to lose her Dean may bite her. But she didn’t want that, it was natural that her boys outlive her and there were a lot of people waiting for her on the other side that she wanted to see again. She could see that apart of Sam wanted to say no, he’d never known his own mother and so she was the closest he’d ever had, and it was natural to want her to always be there for them. But she knew Sam was a hunter and would never subject a fellow hunter, even a long retired one, to the life of a supernatural creature unless the person was willing.

“I swear.” He finally whispered and she smiled, reaching out to pull him into a gentle hug. The house was silent around them, Dean obviously having heard them and then stopped what he was doing.

Upstairs in his childhood bedroom Dean was sitting on his bed, clutching a photo taken when he was ten, his mother holding him close and laughing at something out of the photographers view. Despite everything he hadn’t really accepted the fact that one day his Mom would be gone and it would be just him and Sam. He didn’t know if he would try and turn her to save her but now he knew it would never happen, Sam would never break his word to her.

TBC...

“Hey Mom.” Dean greeted her and she smiled at him, accepting the mug of coffee. She reached out and took his hand and Dean smiled at her, perching on the edge of her seat.
“How do you feel?” He asked and she sighed.

“Dean, it’s been three years. I’m still in remission sweety, I’m okay.” She assured him and Dean looked down. She tugged at his hand and Dean moved around to kneel in front of her chair.
“We need to talk Dean.” She whispered, gently stoking his cheek.

“Mom.” Dean choked and she knew he’d be crying if it was physically possible for him. She was glad Sam had gone to the store for her; she needed to talk to Dean alone.

“Dean....” She trailed off; unsure exactly what to say and Dean looked down.

“Is this about that promise you made Sam make?” he whispered and she nodded.
“But you said you’re okay!” He trembled and she put her mug down, wrapping her arms around him.

“I am, but we both know that even if the cancer never comes back I’m not getting any younger Dean. You have to accept the fact that one day I will die and there is nothing you can do about that. I love you baby so much and if I could stay with you forever I would but I can’t.”

“You could.” Dean whispered and she kissed his forehead, ignoring the cold hardness of her sons’ skin.

“No Dean, I could not live the life you do. I miss my parents and your father and I know I will be with them again. I know it’ll be hard and that you will miss me but not forever, human memories will fade with time.” Mary told him gently and Dean shook his head.
“Ex-hunter remember Dean? I know that given enough time I’ll be a vague memory and you will move on. Sam will help you.” She whispered, holding him close.

“I don’t want to forget you.”

“It’s natural Dean.” She told him and Dean eventually nodded.

“I love you Mom.” Dean whispered and Mary nodded.

“I know, I love you too.” She told him.

````````````````````````````````````````
“How’d it go?” Dean asked and Sam grinned, holding up a handful of bills. So it was cheating for Sam to use his powers while playing Pool, they needed the money and neither was going to accept Mary’s. They knew her cancer treatment had eaten up a large chunk of her savings so despite her many offers they stuck to things like hustling and Sam working a few days when they were in a town long enough.

“Think I found us a hunt to, heard some people talking about it. Sam showed him the paper. “Oasis Plains, Oklahoma – not far from here. A gas company employee, Dustin Burwash, supposedly died from Creutzfeldt-Jakob.” He explained as Dean read the article.
“Huh?”

“Human mad cow disease.” Sam explained and Dean wrinkled his nose.

“Mad cow? So this guy eats a bad burger. Why is it our kind of thing?” Dean asked.

“Mad cow disease causes massive brain degeneration. It takes months, even years, for the damage to appear. But this guy, Dustin? Sounds like his brain disintegrated in about an hour. Maybe less.” Sam explained.

“Okay, that’s weird.” The vampire admitted.

“Yeah. Now, it could be a disease. Or it could be somethin’ much nastier.”

“All right. Oasis Plains it is.” They got in the car, Dean in the driver’s seat. Since he’d remembered how to drive he did most of the driving since he enjoyed it and need less sleep than Sam.

`````````````````````````````````````````
“Huh. What do you think?” Dean grumbled, still upset that it had been too sunny earlier for him to help Sam interviewing Travis. He hated how much the sun ruled his life but there was nothing they could do unless Sam suddenly developed a new power like illusions or something.

“I don’t know. But if that guy, Travis, was right, it happened pretty damn fast.” Sam said as they ducked under the police tape.

“So, what? Some sort of creature chewed on his brain?” Dean asked, looking around and seeing clearly despite the time of night.

“No, there’d be an entry wound. Sounds like this thing worked from the inside.”

“Huh. Looks like there’s only room for one. You wanna flip a coin?” Dean offered as they looked down the hole.

“Dean, we have no idea what’s down there.” Dean just looked at him and Sam shrugged.

“All right, I’ll go if you’re scared. You scared?” Dean offered and Sam glared at him.

“Flip the damn coin.” Sam snapped and Dean chuckled, taking out a coin.

“All right, call it in the air…chicken.” He flipped the coin and Sam caught it mid air.

“I’m going.” Sam stated.

“I said I’d go. Pretty much invulnerable after all.” Dean said and Sam shook his head.

“I’m going.” He stated, picking up the rope.

“All right.” Dean said, grabbing the other end of the rope.

“Don’t drop me.” Sam said before vanishing over the edge of the hole.

“You okay down there?” Dean called and Sam smiled at the worry in the vampires voice.

“I’m fine!” Sam called up.

````````````````````````````````````````````
“Welcome.” The man greeted after Dean knocked on the door.

“This the barbeque?” Dean asked and the man nodded.

“Yeah, not the best weather, but…I’m Larry Pike, the developer here. And you are…?”

“Dean. This is Sam.” Sam shook Larry’s hand but Dean just smiled.

“Sam, Dean, good to meet you. So, you two are interested in Oasis Plains?”

“Yes, sir.” Dean answered.

“Let me just say –- we accept homeowners of any race, religion, color, or…sexual orientation.” Larry offered and the two young men realised what he was trying to say.

“We’re brothers.” Sam answered, it was close enough to the truth after all and Larry seemed a bit embarrassed.

Our mother is getting on in years, and we’re just lookin’ for a place for her.” Sam explained.

“Great, great. Well, seniors are welcome, too. Come on in.” Larry led them outside to the backyard where they found plenty of people eating and talking.

“You said you were the developer?” Sam asked.

“Eighteen months ago, I was walking this valley with my survey team. There was nothing here but scrub brush and squirrels. And you know what, we built such a nice place to live that I actually bought into it myself. This is our house. We’re the first family in Oasis Plains.” They walked over to a woman.
“This is my wife, Joanie.” Larry introduced them

“Hi, nice to meet you.” She said.

“Sam and Dean.” Larry told her and Sam shook her hand.

“Sam.” He told her.

“Pleasure.” She answered.

“Tell them how much you love the place, honey. And lie if you have to because I need to sell some houses.” Larry told her and they laughed.

“Right.”

“Boys, will you excuse me?” Larry asked and then left.

“Don’t let his salesman routine scare you. This really is a great place to live.” She told thme as they were joined by another woman.

“Hi, I’m Lynda Bloome, head of sales.” She introduced herself.

“And Lynda was second to move in. She’s a very noisy neighbor, though.” Joanie told them before she left.

“She’s kidding, of course. I take it you two are interested in becoming homeowners.”

“Well…” Sam said.

“Y-yeah, well…” Dean tried.

“Well, let me just say that we accept homeowners of any race, religion, color, or…sexual orientation.” She said and Dean chuckled.

“Right. Um…I’m gonna go talk to Larry.” Dean said and then grinned at Sam.
“Okay, honey?” he walked away after lightly smacking Sam on the ass. Sam and Lydia stood in awkward silence, Sam trying not to blush.

````````````````````````````````````````
“You’ve got three choices –- carpet, hardwood, and tile.” Larry told Dean as they walked back downstairs. Dena looked around and spotted a jar full of bugs on a table.

“Whoa. Someone likes bugs.” He commented and Larry shrugged.

“My son - he’s into insects. He’s very…inquisitive.” Larry answered and Dean nodded before hiding a grin as he heard Lydia talking to Sam outside.

“Who can say “no” to a steam shower? I use mine everyday.” She gushed to the poor hunter.

“Sounds great.” Sam answered absently and Dean almost felt sorry for leaving him with her. “Excuse me.” Sam suddenly said, moving past Lydia to pick up a spider and then take it over to a teenager.
“Is this yours?”

“You gonna tell my dad?” the kid asked and Sam shrugged.

“I don’t know. Who’s your dad?”

“Yeah, Larry usually skips me in the family introductions.” The kid answered and Sam winced.

“Ouch. First name basis with the old man –- sounds pretty grim.” Sam said and the kid shrugged.

“Well, I’m not exactly brochure material. I’m Matt.”

“Sam. Well, hang in there. It gets better, all right? I promise.” Sam told him and the kid just stared at him.

“When?” Matt asked as Dean and Larry joined them.

“Matthew. I am so sorry about my son and his…pet.” Larry apologised and Sam smiled.

“It’s no bother.” Sam said, happy that he at least no longer looked like a teenager, made it easier to talk to adults. A few years ago Larry probably wouldn’t have been so eager to keep Sam happy as a potential customer.

“Excuse us.” Larry said, leading Matt away.

“How was your tour?” Sam asked and Dean grinned.

“Oh, it was excellent. I’m ready to buy.” He answered and Sam laughed.
“So you might be onto somethin’. Looks like Dustin Burwash wasn’t the first strange death around here.”

“What happened?” Sam asked, grabbing a burger.

“About a year ago, before they broke ground, one of Larry’s surveyors dropped dead while on the job. Get this—severe allergic reaction to bee stings.”

“More bugs.”

“More Bugs.” Dean agreed and they decided to leave, the sun looked like it might decide to emerge and they didn’t want to risk Dean being exposed. They got into the Impala, Sam driving and Dean leafed through John’s journal.
“You know, I’ve heard of killer bees, but killer beetles? What is it that could make different bugs attack?”

“Well, hauntings sometimes include bug manifestations.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t see any evidence of ghost activity.” Dean argued.

“Yeah, me neither.”

“Maybe they’re being controlled somehow. You know, by something or someone.” Dean offered.

“There are cases of psychic connections between people and animals – elementals, telepaths.”

“Yeah, that whole Timmy-Lassie thing.” Dean paused to think.
“Larry’s kid – he’s got bugs for pets.”

“Matt?” Sam asked and Dean nodded.

“Yeah.”

“He did try to scare the realtor with a tarantula.” Sam told him.

“You think he’s our psychic?” Dean asked.

“I don’t know. Anything’s possible, I guess.” Sam answered and then Dean perked up.

“Ooh, hey. Pull over here.” Dean said and Sam pulled into the empty driveway.

“What are we doing here?” He asked as Dean got out of the car.

“It’s too late to talk to anybody else.” Dean answered.

“We’re gonna squat in an empty house?” Sam asked and Dean shrugged.

“I wanna try the steam shower. Come on.” Dean said and Sam didn’t move.
“Come on! Please?” He asked and Sam sighed but pulled the Impala into the garage, Dean closing it behind him.

``````````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Damn it!! I hate this!” Dean growled, staring out the window at the brightly shining sun.

“Hey. Calm down Dean. Stay here and monitor the police bands, I’ll find Matt and question him. I’ll be back soon.” Sam soothed and Dean sagged but nodded. Sam smiled at him and then headed for the Impala, waving at Dean when he saw Dean at the window. He drove down the street and then grinned when he saw Matt disappear into the trees. He parked and followed him, finding the teen looking at insects.

“Hey, Matt. Remember me?” Sam called out.

“What are you doin’ out here?” Matt asked, looking around warily.

“Well, I want talk to you.” Sam said.

“You’re not here to buy a house, are you?” Matt asked and Sam shook his head.
W-wait. You’re not a serial killer?” Matt demanded and Sam laughed, shaking his head.

“No, no. No, I think you’re safe. So, Matt…you sure know a lot about insects.”

“So?”

“Did you hear what happened to Lynda, the realtor?”

“I hear she died this morning.”

“Mm, that’s right. Spider bites. Matt…you tried to scare her with a spider.” Sam stated flatly.

“Wait. You think I had something to do with that?” Matt asked, eyes wide.

“You tell me.”

“That tarantula was a joke. Anyway, that wouldn’t explain the bee attack or the gas company guy.”

“You know about those?” Sam asked, surprised and Matt nodded.

There is somethin’ going on here. I don’t know what…but something’s happening with the insects. Let me show you something.” Matt said, picking up his backpack and leading Sam further into the trees.

“So, if you knew about all this bug stuff, why not tell your dad? Maybe he could clear everybody out.”

“Believe me, I’ve tried. But, uh, Larry doesn’t listen to me.”

“Why not?”

“Mostly? He’s too disappointed in his freak son.” Matt told him bitterly.

“I hear you. Matt, how old are you?”

“Sixteen.”

“Well, don’t sweat it, because in two years, something great’s gonna happen.”

“What?” Matt grumbled and Sam smiled at him.

“College. You’ll be able to get out of that house and away from your dad.” Sam told him and Matt stared at him before smiling slightly.
“How much further, Matt?”

“We’re close.” Matt said and a few moments later they reached a large clearing. Sam could hear hundreds, maybe thousands, of different insects amongst the trees.
“I’ve been keeping track of insect populations. It’s, um, part of an AP science class.”

“What’s been happening?”

“A lot. I mean, from bees to earthworms, beetles…you name it. It’s like they’re congregating here.”

“Why?” Sam asked, frowning.

“I don’t know.”

“What’s that?” Sam pointed to a dark patch of grass and they walked over, finding hundreds of worms. Sam stepped on some and they fell in, revealing a hole. He crouched down and used a stick to poke around
“There’s somethin’ down there.” He tossed the stick aside and reached in. Sam grimaced in disgust and then brought his hand up, both of them staring in horror. Covered in dirt and worms was a human skull.

`````````````````````````````````````````````
As they left the diner Dean seemed to hunch in on himself and Sam reached out to put a hand on his shoulder.

“How did he....” Dean whispered and Sam shrugged.

“It’s okay Dean.” Sam offered and Dean glared.

“You heard what he said!”

“And he was wrong! He doesn’t know you Dean, you’re not a killer. He saw a vampire and assumed without taking into account you’re with me and the colour of your eyes. We know the truth, Mom knows the truth. That’s all that matters. So let’s solve this case and move on, okay?”

“Okay.” Dean said as they got into the Impala.

“When did the gas company man die?” Sam asked and Dean took a deep breath before looking through the notes.

“Uh, let’s see, we got here Tuesday, so, Friday the twentieth.”

“March twentieth?” Sam asked and Dean nodded.
“That’s the spring equinox.”

“The night the sun and the moon share the sky as equals.”


So, every year about this time, anybody in Oasis Plains is in danger. Larry built this neighbourhood on cursed land.” Sam shook his head.

“And on the sixth night – that’s tonight.”

“If we don’t do something, Larry’s family will be dead by sunrise. So how do we break the curse?” Sam thought out loud but even Dean knew the answer to that after over a decade of hunting with Sam.

“You don’t break a curse. You get out of its way. We’ve gotta get those people out now.” Dean said and Sam pulled over at the first pay phone they say. Sam waited by the car as Dean called the Pike’s.

“Yes, Mr. Pike, there’s a mainline gas leak in your neighborhood.” Dean explained.

“God, really? And how big?” Larry asked.

“Well, it’s fairly extensive. I don’t want to alarm you, but we need your family out of the vicinity for at least twelve hours or so, just to be safe.”

“And who is this, again?”

“Travis Weaver. I work for Oklahoma Gas and Power.” Dean lied.

“Uh-huh. Well, the problem is, I know Travis. He’s worked with us for a year, so who is this?”

“Uh…” Panicked he hung up.

“Give me the phone.” Sam called, walking over and dialling.

“Hello?” Matt asked and Sam grinned.

“Matt, it’s Sam.”

“Sam, my backyard is crawling with cockroaches.”

“Matt, just listen. You have to get your family out of that house right now, okay?”

“What, why?”

“Because something’s coming.” Sam told him.

“More bugs?”

“Yeah, a lot more.”

“My dad doesn’t listen in the best of circumstances, what am I supposed to tell him?”

“You’ve gotta make him listen, okay?” Sam argued and Dean rolled his eyes.

“Give me the phone, give me the phone.” Dean grumbled, taking it from Sam, squishing them both into the booth.
“Matt, under no circumstances are you to tell the truth, they’ll just think you’re nuts.”

“But he’s my—“

“Tell him you have a sharp pain in your right side and you’ve gotta go to the hospital, okay?” Dean asked.

“Yeah. Yeah, okay.” Matt hung up and so did Dean.

“Make him listen? What are you thinkin’?” Dean asked Sam who shrugged. They got back in the car and headed for the Pike’s place. Sam floored it and they were soon at the house.
“Damn it, they’re still here. Come on.” They got out of the car and Matt ran towards them.

“Get off my property before I call the cops.” Larry yelled as he came outside.

“Mr. Pike, listen.” Sam tried.

“Dad, they’re just tryin’ to help.” Matt argued and Larry glared at him.

“Get in the house!”

“I’m sorry. I told him the truth.” Matt muttered and Sam smiled at him.

“We had a plan, Matt, what happened to the plan?” Dean grumbled and the kid shrugged.

“Look, it’s 12:00 AM. They are coming any minute now. You need to get your family and go, before it’s too late.” Sam told Larry.

“Yeah, you mean before the biblical swarm.”

“Larry, what do you think really happened to that realtor, huh? And the gas company guy? You don’t think somethin’ weird’s goin’ on here?” Dean tried and Larry glared at them.

“Look, I don’t know who you are, but you’re crazy. You come near my boy or my family again, and we’re gonna have a problem.”

“Well, I hate to be a downer, but we’ve got a problem right now.” Dean snapped, eyes darkening a little.

“Dad, they’re right, okay? We’re in danger.”

“Matt, get inside! Now!”

“No! Why won’t you listen to me?!” Matt yelled.

“Because this is crazy! It doesn’t make any sense!”

“Look, this land is cursed! People have died here. Now, are you gonna really take that risk with your family?”

“Wait.” Dean growled and they all fell silent.
“You hear it?” he asked and only Sam nodded, straining his hearing. A few seconds later they could all hear it, buzzing that was only getting louder.

“What the hell?” Larry looked around as the bug light on the porch began to overheat form all the bugs.

“All right, it’s time to go. Larry, get your wife.” Dean ordered.

“Guys.” Matt called and they all looked up to see millions of bugs flying towards the house.

“Oh my God.” Larry whispered.

“We’ll never make it.” Sam said and Dean nodded.

“Everybody in the house. Everybody in the house, go!” Dean called and they rushed inside, locking the door.

“Okay, is there anybody else in the neighborhood?” Sam asked.

“No, it’s just us.”

“Honey, what’s happening? What’s that noise?” Joanie asked as she joined them.

“Call 911.” Larry told her but she didn’t move.
“Joanie!”

“Okay.” She picked up the phone and dialled.

“I need towels.” Dean called.

“Uh, in the closet.” Larry told him and Sam turned to Matt.

“Okay, we’ve gotta lock this place up, come on –- doors, windows, fireplace, everything, okay?”

“Phones are dead.” Joanie called out.

“They must have chewed through the phone lines.” Dean said, putting towels around all the gaps he could find. Then the lights went out.
“And the power lines.” He muttered, eyes instantly adjusting.
“They’re blanketing the house.

“So what do we do now?” Larry asked as Sam helped Matt down the stairs.

“We try to outlast it. Hopefully, the curse will end at sunrise.” Sam told him.

“Hopefully?”

Dean walked out of the kitchen with a can of bug spray and received funny looks for it.

“Bug spray?” Joanie asked and Dean grinned.

“Trust me.” He said, tossing it to Sam who nodded. Of course that was when the fireplace started creaking ominously.

“What is that?” matt whispered fearfully.

“The flue.” Sam answered.

“All right, I think everybody needs to get upstairs.” Dean said just as the bugs got in through the fireplace, swarming them. Dean grabbed Joanie and Matt, using his body to shelter them as Sam did the same to Larry. Sam held up the can and then it flared up thanks to his powers, the flames keeping some of the bugs away.
“All right, everybody upstairs! Now! Go, go, go!” Dean ordered and they herded the family upstairs, into the attic. A few moments later sawdust began to fall from the ceiling.

“Oh, God, what’s that?” Joanie moaned.

“Something’s eating through the wood.” Larry whispered.

“Termites.” Matt stated.

“All right, everybody get back. Get back, get back, get back!” Dean ordered and the three Pikes huddled together in a corner as Sam and Dean got in front of them. Dean used himself as a vampiric shield while Sam used the can as a flamethrower. It wasn’t a good defence as more holes opened up. Dean snarled in rage as they started getting past him and attacking the Pikes. Sam winced as he received several bites, his demonic healing kicking in gradually. Sam looked at Dean, knowing they wouldn’t be able to save the family and then suddenly it was quiet and they stared in awe as the sun rose. Dean quickly moved into the shadows to avoid freaking them out by sparkling.
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Dean gently checked the few remaining bites on Sam’s arms, happy that they were healing. He hated seeing Sam hurt, not that it happened often with Sam’s reflexes and powers on top of a lifetime of training as a hunter but it did happen.

“I’m fine Dean. Everyone got out safe.” Sam whispered and Dean nodded slowly.

“I thought....” Dean stammered and Sam reached out, cupping Dean’s face in his hands.

“We’re okay Dean.” Sam whispered again and Dean stared at him, seeing how Sam had changed since they’d first met. He hadn’t really aged but matured, features losing any trace of childhood and becoming more refined. For a thirty two year old Sam didn’t look over twenty three tops and that made Dean happy, especially since Sam hadn’t physically changed at all in the last ten years. It gave Dean hope that he wouldn’t one day have to bury Sam or beg him to try being changed.

“Sammy.” Dean whispered and then he closed the distance between them, gently pressing his lips to Sam’s. He pulled back, staring at Sam fearfully but Sam just smiled and leant in to kiss him.
“I...I love you Sam.” Dean whispered and Sam’s smile widened.

“Love you too Dean.”

TBC...

“Hey Sammy, take a look at this.” Dean called and Sam walked across the room to look at the article, odd sightings at an abandoned asylum.

“What about it?” Sam asked, leaning against Dean who smiled at him.

“It’s in Dad’s journal as a place to keep an eye on. Apparently there was a riot that led to several deaths before the place closed.” Dean explained. He’d gotten used to calling John Dad after Sam and his Mom had both told him it was fine. Sure he’d never met the man and only knew him through Sam’s and his Mom’s stories but calling him Dad made Dean feel closer to him.

“We’re not that far away, do you want to check it out?” Sam asked and Dean looked at him, Sam was the one to decide what was a hunt, not Dean. Sam just smiled and kissed him briefly.
“You’re a hunter too Dean, you know enough to spot a hunt. This is up to you.” Sam’s explanation had Dean grinning in glee; he’d finally graduated from Sam’s training and was an actual hunter.

“Like you said, it’s not far. Better to check it out now then to have to come back in a few years because someone dies.” Dean decided and Sam grinned, moving to pack their gear. Dean stood up and went to take a quick shower; he could still smell the blood from his last hunt even if humans couldn’t.

`````````````````````````````````````````
Sam got them a motel room and Dean slipped quickly inside, staying out of the sunlight as much as he could and moving too fast for the human eye to see. Sam followed with the bags and smiled at seeing Dean lay out on the sole bed. He dumped Dean’s bag on him and Dean made a mock sound of pain even as Sam dropped down to join him, Dean immediately curling in to enjoy the warmth of Sam’s body. Sam smiled and wrapped his arms around him, happy to lie on the bed and just hold Dean close. They hadn’t gone any further than kisses and the occasional touching yet, Dean was scared he wouldn’t be able to control his strength or the urge to bite despite not being attracted to Sam’s blood and Sam understood the worry. Yes, he could kill vampires but to keep himself safe while being with the vampire he loved? Yeah, they’d wait as long as it took for Dean to be confident of his control.

Sam grinned as he spotted the paper left on the room’s table, raising his hand and it flew into his grip. He opened it up and laughed as he found just what they needed, an article on the Roosevelt Asylum. And then all amusement fled as he read.

“Sammy?” Dean murmured, feeling him tense.

“Looks like we’re too late to stop anyone dying. Back in 72, three kids went in, only one came out. Looks like those are the only deaths since the riot though. According to this several of the bodies were never recovered so it could be multiple spirits.” Sam explained and Dean nodded.

“But there’s no way the bodies could be anywhere else right?” Dean asked and Sam nodded.

“So easy, we just torch the place.” Dean offered and Sam grinned but couldn’t see any problems with that.

“Sounds good to me. We’ll wait till tonight. That gives us all day to do nothing.” Sam told him and Dean grinned moving to lean over Sam.

“Nothing?” The vampire asked and Sam smiled up at him, reaching up to tangle his fingers in Dean’s hair.

“Well I’m sure we can come up with something.” Sam finally said, tugging Dean down so that their lips connected. When they parted so Sam could breathe they were both smiling.

```````````````````````````````````
They watched as emergency services converged on the burning building, leaning against the Impala far enough away that they wouldn’t be detected. Sam’s eyes were shut, his hands balled into fists as he leant against Dean’s comforting form. Dean had his arms wrapped around Sam’s waist, supporting him as Sam focused on making sure the building was destroyed completely. Dean watched as the firemen fought to bring the blaze under control but failed. If there was one thing a hunter knew how to do it was to make a good fire and with Sam helping it the poor firemen had no chance of stopping it. Sam finally slumped in Dean’s arms, the job done and Dean got him into the car, driving away from the scene. Dean watched as Sam drifted off to sleep, smiling at the sight of Sam’s head pillowed in his lap, he knew it couldn’t be the most comfortable place for Sam to lie, yes Sam could handle more temperature extremes than a normal human but Dean was practically freezing cold. He took a hand off the wheel and reached into the back, snagging a jacket which he managed to slip onto his lap under Sam to help him stay warm. This was one of those times he really wished he had body heat to share, wished that for Sam he could be human. But then Sam would outlive him and be alone and he didn’t want that either.

```````````````````````````````````````````````
“Happy Birthday Mom.” Dean hugged her and she smiled, kissing his cheek. When Dean stepped back Sam moved in to hug her as well.

“Happy Birthday Mom, are you sure you’re fifty five? I think you lied to me about your age.” Sam teased and Mary laughed, cuffing him upside the head gently.

“Very funny Mr. ‘I’m thirty three but barely look like I’m in my twenties’.” She said and Sam shrugged. Mentioning her age had made Dean slump a little and she hugged her son again.
“So you came all the way form New York just for my birthday?” She asked and they both nodded.

“We finished the hunt and sort of….drove straight through to get here in time.” Dean admitted and Mary laughed, walking into the living room. She sat down on the couch and her boys sat on either side of her, wrapped packages appearing in their hands. She opened them, thanking the boys for the souvenirs of the places they’d been. Then Dean vanished and when he came back he held a cake in his hands, candles already lit. She blew the candles out and cut the cake, her and Sam eating some and Dean pulling grossed out faces when Sam smeared some icing on Dean’s lips.

Mary got up and went to get herself a cup of coffee as the boys messed around only for the mug to slip through her fingers. She gasped and Dean was there, catching the mug before it could shatter on the floor and then Sam was gently lifting her into his arms, carrying her back to the couch. Dean reappeared, a cool cloth in his hands and then he gently placed it on her forehead.

“Mom?” Dean called shakily and she took his hand.

“I’m okay.” She told him and Sam frowned, checking her pulse.

“Dean call an ambulance.” Sam told him and Dean got up to make the call.

“Sam I’m fine.” She argued and Sam shook his head, hazel eyes wide with fear he wouldn’t show, not when one of them had to remain calm.

“You’re pulse is racing, your hands are shaking, your temperature’s too high….better safe then sorry Mom.” Sam argued and she sighed but went when the ambulance arrived.

``````````````````````````````````````````
Dean stared at his Mom as she lay in the hospital bed, distantly aware of Sam’s arms around him, offering comfort. As far as the staff were concerned Sam was his half-brother so nothing would be said about Sam hugging him. There was no way they’d admit to being together; it would bring too much attention to them and might even get them kicked out. He wanted to go into the room, see her, but he was scared to.

Sam held Dean, offering what comfort he could as they looked at their Mom through the window. She looked so frail hooked up to the machines, nothing like the strong woman Sam had come to see as his mother. They’d all known the cancer could come back, or even cause other problems. But Mary had seemed so strong.

“Sammy.” Dean whispered too quietly for anyone but Sam to hear.

“It’ll be okay Dean, I’m here.” Sam whispered, rubbing Dean’s back.
“She won’t leave us without a fight.” He assured Dean who turned and buried his face in Sam’s shirt, hiding the tears that could never fall.

````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Dean looked around the room, hating that his Mom would have to live in it. She shouldn’t have to give up the house but the doctors said she couldn’t live alone anymore and they couldn’t stay. Sam joined him, having stayed in reception to finish the paperwork for him.

“It’s not too bad.” Sam offered and Dean nodded tersely.
“Dean…I know you hate this, I do too. But this is best for Mom, she can’t come on the road with us and we can’t stay.” Sam told him.

“I can’t stay, you could.” Dean answered bitterly and Sam sighed.

“Could I? In case you haven’t noticed Dean I’m not aging anymore. It wouldn’t take that long for someone to realise. And there’s no way I’m leaving you.” Sam told him and Dean nodded, slumping.

“I just want her to be better.” Dean choked out and Sam hugged him, smiling as Mary was wheeled into the room.

“Hey Mom, the trip okay?” Sam asked, moving to help her instead of letting the orderly do it. She smiled at her youngest and let him help her to the bed.

“It was fine Sam. Come give me a hug Dean.” She called and Dean moved over to the bed, bending down to hug her gently.
“I’m not that breakable sweetie.” She scolded and Dean shrugged as her bag was brought in.
“Thank you.” She said and the staff left to let her get settled. Sam busied himself with getting her things put away even as Dean sat beside her, unwilling to leave her side.
“Sam sit down, we need to discuss some things.” Mary called and Sam left the dresser, moving to sit on her other side.
“First of all, the house. We have to be realistic; I won’t be going back there to live again. So the two of you need to decide wether or not you want to keep it or sell it.” She started and Dean jerked away, shaking his head in denial.
“Dean baby, it’s okay.” She called out; reaching for him but Dean simply jumped out the window and was gone.
“Dean?” She called and then Sam was holding her gently.
“Sam?” She asked and he smiled at her.

“I’ll go after him, it’ll be okay Mom.” He told her and then she was alone in the room that would be her home for the rest of her life. Stupid doctors deciding it was too dangerous for her to live alone, couldn’t they see how much it was hurting her children?

`````````````````````````````````````````````
Sam ran fast enough to be a blur to anyone who might glimpse hi, tracking Dean through the town and out into the countryside. He knew things were changing too fast for the still young vampire but he’d hoped being involved would help Dean deal with things. He finally found Dean and felt his heart break at the sight. Dean was huddled on the ground, knees up to his chin, golden eyes screwed shut as his breath stuttered out of him. He was obviously crying, as much as a vampire could cry, and hadn’t noticed Sam’s presence. He walked over, making no effort to hide his presence but Dean still jumped when Sam gently pulled him into his arms. Dean tensed for a second before melting into Sam’s embrace, clinging to his jacket as he dry sobbed. Sam just sat there, holding him close and letting him grieve. And if he cried a bit himself, the rain that had finally begun to fall hid his tears well enough.

TBC…

Mary sighed as she watched Dean sit huddled near the window. Sam glanced at her and shrugged, he didn’t know what else to do either.

“You two should go, find a hunt somewhere.” She said and they both looked at her.

“Mom.” Dean whispered and she smiled at him.

“It’s not doing anyone any good you two just hanging around here. Go on, you can call me all the time.” She ordered and Dean shook his head frantically.
“Dean come here sweaty.” She held out a hand and he slowly moved over to the chair she was sitting in. She gently tugged until he was in her arms, hugging her.
“Dean please, this isn’t good for you. I’ll be fine here.” Mary promised him and golden eyes stared at her solemnly before he finally nodded.

``````````````````````````````````````````````
“Dude, this is sweet. We’ve never worked a job like this.” Dean grinned as he got out of the car and Sam smiled in amusement.

“Like what?”

“Old school haunted houses, you know? Fog, and secret passageways, sissy British accents. Might even run into Fred and Daphne while we're inside.” Dean grinned and Sam laughed as they headed up the stairs, but he stopped as he noticed an urn on the side of the porch.

“I'm not so sure haunted's the problem.” Sam commented and Dean joined him.

“What do you mean?”

“You see this pattern here?” he tapped a five-point symbol engraved in the urn.
“That's a quincunx, that's a five-spot.”

“Five-spot?” Dean asked curiously, studying it and knowing he’d never forget it, had to love vampire memory.

“Yeah.” Sam looked at him and Dean thought about what it could be.

“That's used for hoodoo spell work, isn't it?” Dean asked and Sam nodded proudly.

“Right, yeah. You fill this thing with bloodweed and you've got a powerful charm to ward off enemies.”

“Okay, except I don't see any bloodweed. Don't you think this place is a little too, uh, white meat for hoodoo?” Dean asked and Sam shrugged.

“Maybe. Lets go check in.” Sam said and they headed inside.

“May I help you?” Susan asked as they walked towards the desk.

“Hi, yeah, we'd like a room for a couple of nights.” Dean answered even as Tyler and Maggie darted in front of Sam who dodged backwards.

“Hey!” Susan called out in annoyance before turning to Sam apologetically.
“ Sorry about that.”

“No problem.” He told her.

“Well, congratulations, you could be some of our final guests.”

“Well. Sounds vaguely ominous.” Dean answered and Susan sighed.

“No, I'm sorry, I mean we're closing at the end of the month. Well, let me guess. You guys are here antiquing?” She asked and Dean shared a look with Sam who shrugged.

“How'd you know?”

“Oh, you just look the type.” She told him, making Dean uncomfortable.
“So, uh, king-sized bed?”

“That’d be great thanks.” Sam told her, surprised that she seemed perfectly fine with it. Was that what she’d meant by them ‘antiquing’?
“You know, speaking of antiques, you have a really, really interesting urn on the front porch. Where did you get that?”

“Oh, I have no idea, it's been there forever.” She answered, handing Dean a key.
“Here you go, Mr. Mahagov.”

“Thanks.” Dean said, taking the key and fake card back. Susan smiled and rang the bell.

“You'll be staying in room 237. Sherwin, could you show these gentlemen to their rooms?” Susan asked and they turned to see an older man coming towards them.

“Let me guess. Antiquers?” Sherwin asked before grabbing Dean’s duffle and heading for the stairs.

“I could give you a hand with that bag.” Dean offered, not liking the way the man’s heart sounded.

“I got it.”

“Okay.” Dean said, keeping an eye on him anyway.

“So the hotel's closing up, huh?” Sam asked and Sherwin nodded.

“Yep. Miss Susan tried to make a go of it, but the guests just don't come like they used to. Still, it's a damn shame.”

“Oh yeah?”

“It may not look it anymore, but this place was a palace. Two different vice presidents laid their heads on our pillows. My parents worked here, I practically grew up here. Gonna miss it. Here's your room.” He slipped the key in the lock and opened the door. Sam took the key and smiled as he went inside. Dean followed and went to shut the door to find Sherwin standing there, hand out.
“You're not gonna cheap on me, are you, boy?” Dean smirked and took out his wallet, handing over a few bills. Sherwin left and Dean shut the door, moving to lie on the bed.

“Funny old man.” He mumbled and Sam laughed as he joined Dean on the bed. Dean curled into the taller males’ side, content to just lie still for a while. It was hard to focus on why they were there and not his Mom but he forced himself to, lives could depend on it. Sam waved his hand and the phone floated up and over, making Dean smile. Sam wasn’t telepathic or anything, he just knew Dean that well now. Sam just held him while Dean chatted with Mary, throwing in a comment here and there.

`````````````````````````````````````````````
“What happened?” Sam asked when they found Susan watching an ambulance drive away.

“Oh, the maid went in to turn down the sheets and he was just... hanging there.” She answered and they exchanged a look behind her back.

“That's awful. He was a guest?” Dean asked but she shook her head.

“He worked for the company that bought the place.”

“Hmm.” Dean looked at Sam who frowned.

“I don't understand.” Susan whispered.

“What?” Sam asked gently and she finally looked at them.

“Had a lot of bad luck around here. Look, if you'd like to check out I'll give you a full refund.” She offered and Dean grinned.

“No thanks. I don't scare that easy.” He told her and she nodded, walking away.
“We need to solve this before anyone else dies.”

“Yeah. Notice they all seem to have something to do with the family moving out? Something or someone doesn’t want them to leave.” Sam commented, watching Tyler as she played outside.

```````````````````````````````````````
Sam laughed as they ran through the trees, letting Dean take the lead as he hunted for blood. It was nice to take a few hours away from the hotel, clear their heads and make sure Dean wasn’t tempted to snack on the staff. Sam watched as Dean took down a deer, drinking it dry quickly before taking off after another one. Sam knelt by the carcass and tool out his knife, messing the wound up more, just in case someone found it before the local predators did.

`````````````````````````````````````
“Find any good antiques?” Sherwin asked as Dean sat at the bar.

“Um, no! No, I got distracted.” Dean answered, having forgotten their cover story.

“Have a drink.” Sherwin grabbed a glass and went for a bottle.

“Yeah, thanks.” Dean hid a grimace as the man poured him some. He’d have to drink it but bringing it up later was going to be a pain.
“So, poor guy, huh? Killing himself?”

“That kind of thing seems to be going around lately.”

“Yeah, yeah, I heard about the other ones. It's almost like this hotel is cursed or something.” Dean offered, taking a mouthful and fighting the urge to spit it back out.

“Every hotel has its spilled blood. If people only knew what's gone on in some of those rooms they've checked into.” Sherwin reminisced and Dean looked at him.

“You know a lot about the place, don't you?” The vampire asked and Sherwin nodded.

“Down to the last nail.”

“I'd love to hear some stories.”

“Boy, you should never say that to an old man.” Sherwin grinned at Dean settled in for what he was sure to be the next several hours.

`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Mrs. Thompson? Mrs. Thompson?” Sam called gently as they made their way into the room. She was trembling in her chair, staring at nothing.
“Rose? Hi, Mrs. Thompson, we're not here to hurt you, its okay.” He soothed, moving closer.
“Rose?” He asked but she just started to tremble more.
“Dean.” He whispered, pulling him aside.
“This woman's had a stroke.” He pointed out and Dean nodded.

“Yeah, but hoodoo's hands-on, I mean, you've got to mix herbs, and chant, and build an altar.” Dean murmured and Sam nodded.

“Yeah. So it can't be Rose. Hey, maybe it's not even hoodoo.”

“Or she could be faking.” Dean offered.

“Yeah, what are you gonna do, poke her with a stick?” Sam asked and Dean nodded, frowning and Sam’s eyes went wide.
“No! You're not gonna poke her with a stick!” Sam ordered and Dean rolled his eyes. Hearing footsteps coming they exchanged looks and then Dean opened the window, picked up Sam and leapt out.
“That was close. Thanks for the lift.” Sam gave him a quick peck on the lips and Dean grinned.

`````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Whisky. “ Susan demanded as Dean helped her sit down and Sam grinned, going behind the bar to grab the bottle.

“Sure. I know the feeling.” He told her as he poured her a glass, handing it over.

“What the hell happened out there?” She demanded after she’d taken several mouthfuls.

“You want the truth?” Dean asked.

“Of course.” She snapped back and he nodded.

“Well, at first we thought it was some sort of hoodoo curse, but that out there? That was definitely a spirit.” Dean explained and she stared at them.

“You're insane.”

“Yeah, it's been said.” Sam mumbled before sighing and sitting opposite her.
“Look, I'm sorry, Susan. We don't exactly have time to ease you into this, but we need to know when your mother had the stroke.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Susan demanded.

“Just answer the question.” Dean told her and Susan sighed.

“About a month ago.”

“Right before the killings began.” Sam stated and then looked at Dean excitedly.
“See? So what if Rose was working hoodoo, but not to hurt anyone. To protect them.” Sam worked it out and Dean nodded.

“She was using the five spot urns to ward off the spirit.”

“Right, until she had a stroke and she couldn't anymore.”

“I don't believe this.” Susan mumbled, pouring herself another glass and Sam quickly took the bottle away, last thing they needed was her getting drunk.

“Listen, sister, that car didn't try to run you down by itself, okay? I mean, I guess it did, technically, but, but the spirit can….forget it.” Dean gave up and Sam faced her, staring her in the eyes.

“Look, believe what you want. But the fact is you and your family are in danger, all right? So you need to clear everybody out of here: your employees, your mother, your daughters, everyone.”

“Um, I only have one daughter.” She interrupted and Sam frowned.

“One?”

“I thought Tyler had a sister named Maggie.” Dean pointed out though he hadn’t smelt another kid around.

“Maggie's imaginary.” Susan stated and Sam paled.

“Where's Tyler?” He demanded and Susan stared at him.

`````````````````````````````````````````
“She's going to stay here with me. And you can't stop me. There's nothing you can do about it.” Maggie taunted Rose. She looked over as Tyler entered the room.

“Maggie, don't! You're not supposed to bother grandma.”

“I know. Come on. Let's play.” Maggies said, grinning and Tyler nodded.

“Can we have a tea party?” She asked and Maggie nodded, walking away from Rose who was shaking badly.

“We can have lots of tea parties. Forever and ever and ever.” Maggie promised.

```````````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Tyler!” Susan called as they went into the playroom to find it littered with broken dolls.
“Oh my god. Tyler. Tyler! She's not here!”

“Susan. Tell us what you know about Maggie.” Sam demanded, trying to get her to think past her panic.

“Uh, not much. Um, Tyler's been talking about her since Mom got sick.”

“Okay, did you ever know anyone by that name?” Dean tried and she shook her head.

“Uh, no...”

“Think, think, I mean, somebody that could have lived here, might have passed away?” Dean tried again and Susan paled.

“Oh my god. My mom. My mom had a sister named Margaret. She barely spoke about her.”

“Did Margaret happen to die here when she was a kid?” Sam asked, sensing something was about to happen, something bad.

“She drowned in the pool.” Susan whispered.

“Come on.” Dean yelled. Grabbing Susan and taking the quick route, out the window. Sam rolled his eyes but followed, using his powers to slow his fall. Susan clung to Dean, terrified by the speed at which the two men were running but he put her down when they reached the pool house. Dean slammed into the door but it was being held shut by something so they started trying the glass.

“Tyler!” Susan called and the girl looked over from where she was clinging to the rail.

“Mommy!” She screamed even as Maggie grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward, sending her into the pool with a scream.

“Is there another entrance?” Dean demanded and Susan nodded.

“Around back.”

“All right, let's go. Keep working.” He told Sam who moved to another window. Sam could see Tyler floundering, her head being held under.
“Stand back.” Dean warned as he kicked the back door but it didn’t budge.
“Son of a bitch!”

“Margaret. Margaret!” A soft voice called out to Maggie as she held Tyler down. Sam finally managed to break through the glass and wriggled through the opening. He didn’t even pause before hurling himself over the rail and into the pool. Sam shoved through the plastic cover, fighting to reach her before it was too late. He grabbed her, lifting her in his arms but Tyler laid limp, unconscious. As he struggled out of the pool Dean finally got through the back door with Susan. Sam began CPR and after a few seconds Tyler coughed out some water and slowly woke up.

“Thank god!” Susan whispered as Tyler turned to her.

“Mommy!”

“Yeah, baby, I'm here.”

“Tyler, do you see Maggie anywhere?” Sam asked, pretty sure she was gone.

“No, she's gone. Mommy.”

``````````````````````````````````````````````````
“You'd really do that for me?” Maggie asked Rose.
“Yes. If you did, I'd let them go. But I don't understand. You kept me away for so long. I thought you didn't love me anymore. Okay. Little sister.”

````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Don't worry, honey, we're leaving in two minutes, we've just got to get Grandma.” Susan promised as they ran to Rose’s room, the boys following them.

“I don't get it, did Maggie just stop?” Dean asked and Sam shrugged.

“Seems like it.”

“Well, where the hell did she go?” Dean asked, frowning as he realised something was wrong. They ran as they heard Susan scream. They burst into the room to find Rose slumped in her chair, dead.

```````````````````````````````````````````````````
“Paramedics said it was another stroke. Do you think Margaret could have had something to do with it?”

“We don't know.” Dean answered and Sam sighed.

“But it's possible, yeah. Susan, I'm sorry.” He whispered and she smiled shakily.

“You have nothing to apologize for. You've given me everything. Ready to go, kiddo?” Susan asked as Tyler joined them.

“Yeah.”

“Now Tyler, you're sure Maggie's not around anymore?” Dean asked again.

“I'm sure. I'd see her.”

“I guess whatever's going on must be over.” Dean stated as Sam held the taxi door for Susan.

“You two take care of yourselves, all right?” He said and she hugged him before getting in.

“Thank you. Both of you.” She said and then they cab pulled out.

“Think they’re both in there?” Dean asked, staring at the house.

“Yeah.” Sam answered, able to hear the distant sound of children laughing.

TBC….

Disclaimer: Not mine.
BTW – read the story Glitch by SkeksisGirl on ffnet, I’m helping with it and it’s good.
Starts one year after the last chapter.

Chapter 7

Sam stayed downwind, despite the urge to check on Dean but he trusted him to be able to look after himself after sixteen years together but he still worried about him. Dean was still young for a vampire after all and he’d shown no signs of having a ‘gift’. But he had to trust Dean to take care of himself……despite the burning desire to run in and make sure none of the vampires got within fifty feet of him. He forced himself to stay in place and wait for Dean’s signal. When it came Sam reacted instantly, moving in fast and taking his first victim by complete surprise. Dean grinned at him and Sam nodded as they ended up back to back, fighting against the small group of three vampires. Sam went down once but was up again almost instantly. Before long they were burning what was left, Sam panting a little and Dean had a crack in his arm that was healing itself. Dean looked over at him and laughed, reaching out to yank some dead leaves from Sam’s hair, making Sam shake his head to try and dislodge the rest. Dean grinned and wrapped his arms around Sam’s waist, pulling him in. Sam smiled and leant down to kiss him softly.

``````````````````````````````````````````
“Surprise Mom!” They called and Mary smiled at them, reaching out to her boys. They took turns hugging her and handing over the souvenirs they’d collected for her. She smiled as she looked through them and the pictures the boys had taken for her.

“These are wonderful.” She told them. Dean perched on the edge of her bed and chatted away with her while Sam sat on the windowsill, content to listen. But then Dean frowned and Sam tensed, not sure what was wrong.

“Mom?” Dean called, sounding panicking and Sam reached out, hitting the alarm telekinetically as he moved to the bed. He looked her over, noticing how pale she’d gone and the way she was breathing.

“What is it?” The nurse asked as she hurried inside.

“Something’s wrong.” Dean stated and Sam tugged him out of the way as the nurse checked Mary and then hit another alarm.
“What is it?”

“Gentlemen I need to ask you to leave.” She said as more medical staff arrived.

“But…..Mom.” Dean whispered. Sam nodded and gently pulled Dean out into the hallway to wait, both of them keeping watch on Mary as well as they could. Neither of them needed to hear the heart monitor to know when they lost her. Dean crumpled to the floor and Sam grabbed him, holding him close. When the nurse came out he just nodded at her, letting her know they already knew. Sam leant against the wall, holding Dean in his arms and wishing Dean could still cry, he settled for rocking him gently and ignoring the staff who let them be.

```````````````````````````````````
Sam sat in a back pew, wishing he wasn’t alone but there were too many people in the church who had known Dean before his transformation. Sam hated funerals, he felt like he’d been to way too many over the years. He wished Dean could be there for some sort of closure and then he wouldn’t have to be alone. As it was Sam was trying to stay out of sight, he didn’t want people asking him who he was or why he was there, he figured they’d been spotted occasionally coming and going form Mary’s place and there was a chance someone would recognise him and wonder why he hadn’t aged. There was less chance of anyone recognising him then Dean though.

He followed the procession to the gravesite at a distance. He watched as the coffin was slowly lowered into the ground and then the soil replaced over it. He smiled as he saw the gravestone. He’d bought it anonymously for her and no one had asked too many questions. When the others had left Sam walked over and placed the bouquet down. He smiled as he read the inscription.

Mary Campbell
1929 – 1986
Beloved Mother and friend

````````````````````````````````````````
Sam parked the Impala and then got out, walking over to the passenger side to gently tug Dean from the car. Dean had pretty much just shut down since she’d died and it was really scaring Sam. He couldn’t lose Dean. So he’d driven north, figuring a change of scenery would be good for them both and now they were in Alaska of all places but it was one of the few American states Sam had never been too. He gently tugged Dean out into the snow covered trees and Dean moved with him, not fighting him but not really helping either. When Sam sensed a herd of deer he tried to encourage Dean to hunt but he didn’t react and Sam sighed. They came to a clearing and he sat down, holding Dean in his arms. He was dressed very warmly so the snow didn’t bother him at all. He gently rocked Dean, dropping the occasional kiss on his lips and forehead.

“Come on Dean, you need to hunt.” Sam whispered and then his head snapped up as he realised they weren’t alone.

Dean moved sluggishly and then was suddenly crouched defensively in front of Sam to protect him. Sam reached out and gently stroked his back, trying to calm him down a little even as he studied the stranger. The man moved closer and Sam gasped as he saw his eyes, they weren’t red. The man looked between them and then moved, pulling Sam away from Dean and Sam blinked before reacting and slipping from his grasp, surprising the vampire who Dean was snarling at.

“It’s okay Dean, I’m fine.” Sam assured him as he moved back to Dean’s side. Dean straightened and pulled Sam into his arms, nuzzling his throat.
“Shh, I’m here.” Sam whispered, warily watching the strange, shocked looking, vampire.
“Who are you?” Sam asked.

“My name is Eleazar. You are on my families land; I caught your scent and was worried about a nomad killing here.” The vampire explained warily and Sam nodded.

“I’m Sam, this is Dean. I’m sorry to trespass but we didn’t realise we were on private property and Dean really needs to hunt.” Sam explained calmly, for some reason he didn’t feel any threat around this vampire, perhaps because his eyes were the same colour Dean’s usually were.

“What would he be hunting?” Eleazer asked and Sam realised why, since Dean’s eyes were black he didn’t realise what Dean’s diet was.

“Well I was trying to get him interested in some nearby deer but someone doesn’t want to hunt.” Sam answered, teasing Dean gently.

“I’m not hungry Sam.” Dean snapped and Sam rolled his eyes, gently grasping Dean’s chin.

“Dean your eyes are blacker than most demons I’ve hunted, you need to feed, and it’s been almost a month.” Sam told him and Eleazer raised an eyebrow.

“A month? Impressive. I have to ask what you are, you’re not a vampire.” He stated and Sam nodded.

“Half human but I don’t tell people I’ve just met what the other half is. I’m a hunter, Dean is too. As long as you don’t harm humans we have no problem with you if you’ll let us leave in peace.” Sam answered calmly, his powers readied just in case.

“Dean may hunt here; there is plenty of wildlife around. If you would like to meet the rest of the Coven? You seemed rather shocked to find another vegetarian. We were unaware of any vampires outside our Coven and the Cullen family who prefer that diet. We could exchange information?” He offered and Sam looked at Dean who had calmed down and was wrapped around Sam.

“Dean? You want to stay and learn? There’s probably stuff you should know.” Sam whispered and Dean frowned but nodded slowly.

“Our house is nearby; Dean can track my scent back once he’s eaten. Unless you need to come now?” He asked and Sam shook his head, taking Dean’s hand so Eleazer left them.

TBC….
Sorry if Eleazer is totally AU or anything but don’t remember him real well from the books. Figured its very clichéd if the first veggie vamps they meet are the Cullens.