JustAnna

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Duke

Duke turned his head from Esme to look at his broken arm that was being worked on as she spoke up finally. He could tell that she didn’t really want to look at him, but that she was also lost in her own thoughts. Any other time, he would have hovered, but he wasn’t sure he had it in him, after everything he had done and dealt with that day. He couldn’t help the small smirk that lifted the right corner of his lips, barely raising his cheek when she mentioned that she felt the need to kick his ass, but was too worried about him to act on it.

Of course she wanted to take a bunch of that frustration out on him. He had put her through, what he could only assume was, hell that night. But then the conversation turned toward heavier things, like his bottling of his feelings, something that had always been a problem for him, and had always been a sore spot for Esme.

After a moment, he opened his mouth to speak, to defend himself, but the nurse was manhandling his arm, smoothing out the bandaging on the thick cast that was going to put him in a weird spot with hunting for the next six weeks, all because of his temper. He had no one to blame for that, but himself. He hissed in pain as she rolled his arm over without asking him, but then announced she was finished and left the room.

Duke reached down with his good arm and pushed at the lever to lower the bar on the bed he was tired of laying in. He then sat up and slung his legs off the side of the bed, placing his hands in his lap as Esme continued speaking, but not looking at him. He watched her face closely, his own calm and willing to listen, for once. He sighed, flexing his hands as she finally looked up at him, and her words sunk in. What was supposed to be a simple conversation with Dean had turned into the worst and most brutal fight they had ever had. He had physically hurt Esme in the process and then ran off, like always, as if putting himself in danger would somehow help the situation and make amends with Esme…as if she wanted him dead for making a mistake.

“I know…” He said quietly, frowning as he battled with the tears that he was too tired to fight back. He didn’t shift his gaze from hers just to keep her from seeing those tears, instead, he kept his gaze solid and fixed, with a lot of effort. “I um…I know things are out of control. They have been for a while. I don’t…I don’t know how to fight that, really. I never have. I quit tryin’ a long time ago, and maybe it’s my next step, you know?”

Duke paused, turning his eyes up to the ceiling, as he tried to find the next words he wanted to say. He wanted to push it all down again, to bottle it up and focus on her wellbeing, but as soon as the thought crossed his mind, he was reminded that she was hurt…because of him. Her nose was bruised, and probably broken because of him. So, he sighed and turned his eyes down toward hers again.

“I think I’ve always just tried to be whatever people needed me to be. I’ve never been anyone’s first choice. I always screw up. I always let people down and then? I have to rely on the people I let down to save me…from monsters, myself, judgement, life?…all of it. I don’t know how to break that cycle and with Mika…” Duke paused, taking a shaky breath as all those fresh emotions bubbled up in his chest and he felt overwhelmed and nauseated all over again, “I don’t know how to do this. I don’t know how to just move on, not from this. But you’re all I got left, Esme. I r-ran off because you’re all I got left and I can’t tell if you’re havin’ trouble lookin’ at me. I can’t tell if that nastier side of me is too much, and I’m gonna lose you all over again. I wouldn’t survive that, either…”

Anna

Anna shook her head as Sam apologized for taking a moment with Mika. Having him apologize wasn’t her intention, at all. She just wanted to make sure he was alright, and wasn’t off somewhere crying alone, for fear of showing that emotion to either of the girls…specifically the two that would support and love him through it. But she nodded her head at his explanation of why he was in the basement, not that he needed to explain. Anna frowned sadly as Sam leaned forward and kissed Mika’s forehead, her stomach cramping painfully at the thought of helping him wrap her body for the funeral. She knew she had to be tough for him, because it didn’t seem that anyone else had it in them, and the last time she had seen Bobby, he wasn’t even looking any of them in the eyes. He had buried himself in work.

Anna sighed as Sam wiped his tears, once again trying to hide them from her, but she reached her hand out and took his, letting him lead the way as they left the panic room and walked back up stairs. As they walked out the back door, Anna nearly gasped at the feeling of the cold damp air ruffling her hair and she pulled herself a little closer to Sam’s side, just staying close as he started to speak. Was he actually going to get this off his chest? Was he actually going to open up about how he was feeling about the way things happened? It was something Anna wasn’t sure he would ever be capable of.

But as he spoke, Anna stayed quiet, and held his hand a bit tighter, just letting him talk. She glanced down at the gravel as their shoes crunched against it, and sighed, thinking back to the first time she had ever met her little family, way back when she and Sam were kids. Mika had come to her full defense, as if she was the best thing Sam had ever found, even though they had just met. Mika seemed more worried than anyone about Anna running off, and it was something she always held close to her chest, especially when they met again.

“She always seemed to be the most reasonable of the two of them. Maybe that’s why they worked so well.” Anna spoke softly, the past tense hitting her in the chest as well as she thought about Dean, and the pain that she couldn’t even imagine. She could only assume it was a similar but more intense feeling to the one she was experiencing in the barn, when she wasn’t sure if Sam was coming for her, or if he was even alive. “I think that Dean will have to take his own time, maybe even alone, before he will process things. This is a shock to his system. I can tell by the way he was speaking to me…all of this is going to hit at once, and I don’t think it’s going to hit him in violence, like Duke. I think we’re going to have to worry about him just…sitting around, stewing, not eating, drinking himself to death.”

Anna stopped walking, and pulled herself to stand in front of Sam, reaching up to place both her hands on his cheeks. She scanned his eyes, brushing her thumb across his lower eyelid to remove a stray tear that refused to fall, “But you…you have to take care of yourself. You have to talk to me. Let me take care of you. You do so much to make sure everyone is safe, and that I’m okay, and that I am sane, at the very least. Let me? Let me take care of you. Don’t shut me out. If you just want to lay in bed and be? We can do that. You want to break something? I’m sure Bobby wouldn’t mind, but let me help you through this. I’ve got you.”

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean

Dean yawned, after the quiet of his room woke up the next morning. He had slept in. He could feel it. His body could feel it, and he was stiff and sore from sleeping in the same position too long. He turned onto his back and stretched his arms, moving his feet around until the quiet actually dawned on him, and he realized that Lexi wasn’t in bed. Glancing over to her side of the bed, he frowned with confusion, and reached over, picking up the note.

Not only was she up earlier than him, but she was in the gym. Dean scoffed at Lexi’s assumption that he would panic, but his calming racing heart actually just verified her suspicions, and it caused him to smirk to himself. She already knew him too well…

He reached over to the night stand and picked up his phone, checking for messages. There were several from Crowley, which he swiped off the screen, completely ignoring him as he scrolled through the rest of his notifications with a sigh. Eventually, he was going to have to bridge the conversation with Lexi and especially Cason, about Crowley. Eventually, he would have to answer Crowley back, or the dumbass would show up in the parking lot, basically strong arming himself into the bunker with some sort of bait. It wasn’t exactly easy to just ignore the King of Hell.

Dean groaned, dropping his phone on his chest for a moment, as he ran his fingers through his hair and then sat up in bed, swinging his legs over the edge. He was normally up three hours earlier, and so his entire morning routine was shot, but he also wanted to give Lexi a little space to get some frustration out of her system if she needed it. With all of the tension between her and Natalia, being back home would either be bliss (if Nat could be civil) or it was going to be Hell.

Dean quickly pulled on some sweats and a black t-shirt, and scratched the back of his head, opening his door and stepping out into the hall, on his way to the kitchen for coffee while he waited for Lexi.

Anna

Anna had slept soundly, after sitting in her room, staring at her bulletin board of pictures for what felt like hours. She was glad Anya was okay, and she was glad that Sam hadn’t lost her, but at the same time, she was still quietly grappling with the fact that she was home. She was in the bunker, and Sam wasn’t with her. It just seemed off, even if she knew it was how the future looked for them. If she was going to remain part of the family, she had to accept that Sam…wasn’t hers. As she woke up the next morning, she stared at her ceiling fan for a long few moments, trying to decide if she would be able to handle seeing Sam and Anya together, or if her mind was going to play ‘clingy’ all over again.

With a sigh, she shook her head, and spoke to the ceiling, “No. Remember what Duke said…Duke’s never wrong. You are allowed to move on. You’re allowed to acknowledge that no one will measure up to Sam Winchester. But you’re allowed to move on. C’mon. Up.”

She sat up in bed and placed her feet on the floor, staring at the door for a long moment as Duke’s words and his reassuring bright smile flashed behind her eyes. Maybe this wasn’t home. Maybe…just maybe, Denver was home. Duke and Esme were home. The horses, the snow, and the creaky floorboards of the cabin were home. Maybe a run, like she took every morning on the farm would cool her off before the others woke up.

Anna walked over to her bag, grabbing a fresh t-shirt and a pair of shorts. She quickly changed and then pulled her sneakers, dropping them next to her bag. She stepped into them, and pulled the door open, all in one movement, walking quickly down the hall toward the gym. As she approached, she could hear someone punching a bag, and at first, she assumed it was Natalia. She and Nat had spent what felt like forever in that gym, just practicing strikes and holds.

“You’re feeling nice and spry this morning!” Anna called out, but then she noticed it was Lexi and her smile dropped momentarily, before turning into a softer smile, “Oh sorry. I assumed you were Natalia. I hope you don’t mind if I um…if I go for a jog? I don’t really like running the streets around here.”

Anna pointed toward one of the large treadmills Sam had installed when they had first moved into the bunker. She stepped toward it and then turned to Lexi and decided to strike up a bit of casual conversation with the woman she didn’t know, “Dean’s not up yet? He’s usually fully caffeinated by now.”

Anya

The night before had been full of a lot of hovering, and making Anya very aware of how scared everyone was of her being mute, in crisis situations. Sam had requested that she sleep in his room, not that she minded, because without her voice, she would have to physically get out of bed and walk to his room to wake him up, if she was in pain. Once she finally convinced him to rest, she was able to get some heavy sleep, partially due to the good meds that the doctors gave her.

As she stirred awake, she could already feel that Sam was looking at her, before she ever opened her eyes. If she had a voice, she would have made fun of him for the concern that she could almost hear in his eyes, but when she opened her eyes a bit, she smirked because he actually didn’t seem that worried. He seemed pleased. Her head was still swimming from the pain medication and the throbbing in her wrist made itself known the second she moved it from her stomach to her pillow.

She scanned Sam’s face, noticing how much closer his body was to her, than even the first night they had spent together. She had a feeling that if he wasn’t careful, he would mold into her like putty, before all of this was over. At that moment, she didn’t mind. Reaching under her pillow with her good hand, she pulled her phone, and quickly used her word bank that Cason had set up on her phone to type a simple message with a bit more ease.

“Please tell me you slept last night and didn’t just stare at me.”

As she pressed play, she raised her eyebrows in an accusatory way, her smile spreading a bit more. She then used her thumb to push a few more words, to put together another message.

“I do appreciate the attention, though. You’re a good nurse.”

Cason

Cason felt Natalia stir the next morning, and he sank himself back down onto the pillows behind him, pulling the blankets up around them a bit further as she turned to him and draped her leg over his. He smiled, a bit of relief flooding in through the burning worry in his mind about everything. Her eyes were puffy and she seemed to have slept pretty well, after they had their fun the night before, for what felt like the first time in ages. He brought a hand up to brush her hair away from her face and down the side of her head, before tracing the same hand around to her jaw, pinching her chin.

“Morning. You seem pretty rested.” He murmured, placing a soft kiss to her nose as he watched her eyes. He didn’t really care what time it was, most of the bunker occupants seemed to still be asleep. The only sound that he had heard coming from anywhere was Anna and Lexi moving around and ending up in the gym together, and Dean walking toward the kitchen, for what Cason assumed was coffee. “Your brother is getting coffee. His…Lexi is in the gym, and from what I heard, Anna is also there. Sam and Anya? I haven’t heard them at all yet. Anya’s pretty quiet.”

At his little joke, he chuckled, “And us? I need to…find more ways to get you to make things up to me. But seriously, we can stay here all day, if you want. Tough conversations need to be had, but what’s the rush?”

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean

Dean calmed just a bit as Lexi spoke to him, trying his best to be the strong leader he used to be. His detachment ability was a lot lower than it was when he was younger, and he knew that. What he was feeling, was likely helplessness toward someone that he barely knew, but that his brother was so attached to, he could only hope that she came out of this basically unharmed…other than the obvious broken arm.

“Alright. So, if she can come back to the bunker, we can have those hard discussions then. No need to worry.” Dean reassured himself using some of Lexi’s own words. As he finished the words, he glanced up to see Nat returning with drinks and his shoulders relaxed even more. She seemed to be doing her best at diplomacy, but he could tell from the way that Cason furrowed his eyebrow at the cup of coffee being given to Lexi, that the cup wasn’t originally meant for her. So, it was definitely diplomacy.

Dean reached his hand out and patted Nat on the arm, subtly telling her thanks for trying to be nice to Lexi. Cason on the other hand stepped back and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms as they waited for Anya to be released.

“Cason, you wanna go grab something for yourself? I can come along.” Dean offered, but Cason chuckled and shook his head.

“Nah. I will be alright. I don’t sleep, remember?” He reached out and grabbed the back of Nat’s jacket, pulling her close to his chest and then wrapped his arm around her like a stuffed animal. Dean smirked and shrugged his shoulders, turning back to Lexi. He wasn’t sure what to say that wouldn’t just sound like insane anxiety. So, he nudged her knee with his and sighed.

“Are you good? Everything’s good?” Dean asked, but then Sam’s message came through and Dean’s shoulders dropped a tiny bit as he read the quick message. He dropped his phone back onto his leg and wiped a hand down his face, “She’s gonna be alright. She’ll be out when they finish wrapping up her arm.”

Anya

Anya watched Sam’s face as he smiled, and confirmed that she was coming home with him. She was going to stay. He wanted her, even after everything that had obviously happened with Anna, to stay. He wanted her to stay. Her smile widened and she leaned into the kiss to the side of her head, keeping herself as close to Sam as possible. This was how things should be. No matter how much her arm hurt or how heartbroken she was deep down that things had gone so badly, she was safe.

She noticed that Sam was thinking about something, and although she wished she could see inside his mind, she had a feeling it was something to do with the hunt, and the fact that she wouldn’t get her voice. But then he texted Dean, and Anya remembered that Sam had said everyone else was still there. The fact that they were all worried about her, despite barely knowing her warmed her heart and made her eyes well up with tears a bit.

She turned her eyes back up to meet Sam’s scanning them, before nodding as a tear slipped down her throat. The family cared.

“Alright little lady! You’re wrapped up and as soon as that hardens, you’ll be good to go. Why don’t you let the nurses get that pick out of your arm. I will give your partner the papers for home care, and you’ll be out of here.” The doctor suddenly spoke up, squeezing at the hardening cast as he stood up from his stool and then removed his gloves. He nodded toward a nurse and she took off toward the printer. The other nurse that had been hovering stepped over and gently removed the needle from Anya’s arm, shoving the IV pole to the side.

“Home…sounds…good…” Anya signed slowly, the cast on her arm making it a bit harder for her to get the words out, but she hoped that Sam would at least understand the basics of what she was saying. A bit quicker than expected, the other nurse came over and handed the folder of information to Sam, and then touched her cast.

“You are pretty much good to go. Don’t get the cast wet for at least twelve hours. Get that medication filled, or you won’t be feeling so hot in a few hours. Keep an eye on her?” The nurse turned to Sam, and then nodded her head expectantly.

“Let’s go.” Anya signed quickly, sliding off the side of the bed and against Sam’s chest. She wrapped her arm around him, finally able to hug him.

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Anna

Anna pinched the wound on Dean’s forehead together and she placed the two butterfly bandages that she had stuck to her fingers across it, basically stitching him up. She brushed his hair away from his face, as his mouth fell slightly open and he began to snore, the exhaustion and upset obviously knocking him out cold. For the first time in days, he seemed relaxed and at peace, but she couldn’t imagine what he might see inside his mind while dreaming. She was honestly afraid he would startle awake at any moment, but as she brushed her fingers through his hair, he continued to sleep and she let her shoulders drop with a sigh.

She sat back a bit, wiping her hands on her jeans and then turned to glance at Sam. He was a mess, and there wasn’t much she could do to help him, either. At the moment, all of them were barely hanging on by a thread and supporting each other came in waves of strength…then breaking down…then more strength. She nodded at Nat’s words, having just had the same thoughts herself, “Yeah. I think his body just kinda…gave up. I’m hoping this is a turning point for him. And I really really hope Duke is okay. I can’t even imagine what’s going through his head after all of this mess and then hitting Esme?”

As Nat entered the bathroom and then came back into the room, Anna could feel that Sam was thinking about leaving the room, for one reason or another. She was a bit worried for him to be alone, even just for a few moments, but she also knew that pushing him too much could cause him to run, just as fast as Duke did. Ruby was still out there, after all. So, when he mentioned that he was going to get a drink, Anna turned and she watched him closely for a moment, but then she nodded, “Okay. Come right back, though, okay?”

As Sam left the room, Anna sighed and brought a hand up to her forehead, leaning over and just breathing. The tension was still high in the house, and until Mika was laid to rest, she couldn’t see any other way for them to coexist. She sat in silence for a bit, just listening to Dean’s labored breathing and her own heart thumping wildly in her head from the demon blood that seemed to be roaring like the wind.

But then Nat spoke up and Anna snapped back to reality and turned to look at her, before glancing toward the door.

“He is taking a while…” She remarked back, before standing carefully from the bed. She stopped in the center of the room, pushing her hair back from the sides of her face before turning to Nat and holding a hand out to her to make sure Nat heard her, “Can you um…can you watch him for a bit? I think he’s gonna be out for a while, but I’m also a little worried he’s going to wake up scared half to death, if he’s dreaming. I’m going to go check on Sam…”

After a moment, she turned and walked out of the room, jogging down the stairs. She turned and glanced through the kitchen, not seeing Sam there, and her stomach dropped. She knew exactly where he was. He was in the panic room. He was with Mika. That could either be a point of closure for him, or it could be the thing that ripped him apart. She slowly approached the basement door, taking each step to the basement with care so she didn’t potentially startle him. As she turned to step into the open panic room, she stood against the door and sighed. He was sitting there, in that chair that Dean had sat in for days, and he mirrored his brother’s pose, nearly identical. He was quiet, and he seemed to be trying to come to his own terms, but Anna could tell from his body language that he was absolutely defeated.

“Sam?” She whispered, the quiet of the panic room causing even her quiet call to echo a bit, “Do um…do you wanna take a walk? Maybe get some air? I can um…I can help you get her ready in a bit, if you want. Let me help.”

Cason and Duke

Cason winced as Esme came into view. He had warned her that he couldn’t help her out there, but seeing her looking a bit worse for wear all over again did bring a sear of burning guilt into his mind. He shook the feeling off, as they had more pressing matters to attend to in that moment, and he nodded as she gave him the look of thanks that he never would have asked for. He was bringing Duke back mostly out of a sense of pride toward the women of the group, especially Esme and Natalia. Any other time, he wouldn’t have cared what happened to the cowboy.

Duke shook his head at first, refusing to look Esme in the eyes as Cason held him, but after a moment, he sobbed softly and he nodded his head at the proposition of going to the hospital first, before anything else was addressed. Duke was exhausted. He was spent. All he wanted to do was sleep, or die…he wasn’t sure which. Cason scooted him a little closer to Esme, “I’m sorry I couldn’t be out there with you. But we’re bringing him home, and from the sounds of things, you don’t sound….that hurt. But we do need to talk.”

“I thought you said you didn’t bring her…” Duke barely managed to get out of his mouth as he took a staggered step forward, and leaned his bodyweight completely against Cason. Cason lifted him a bit as Esme stepped under his other arm and Cason moved his arm up, giving her room to help carry the poor guy.

“I gave you a look that said she wasn’t inside. She wasn’t inside. She was outside. Whatever happened out there isn’t technically my fault.” Cason quipped to Duke, as he started walking toward the door. Duke tilted his head weakly and he smirked. “I’m a demon remember?”

Cason glanced up and over at Esme, smirking at her to try and lighten a bit of the mood, now that the worst of the danger was over. It was what Duke would need, and if Cason knew anything about the idiot in his arms, bringing back his nature was going to be the most important part of keeping him sane and around until they could say goodbye to Mika.

“I’m going to willingly ride in that stupid truck.” Cason said as they walked through the door and out onto the lot. “In fact, I’m going to drive that stupid truck. Lucky for me, you left it running.”

“I had…I hot-wired it.” Duke muttered with a soft scoff, Cason quickly bringing his free hand to Duke’s chest as Duke stumbled between them. He nodded with his own chuckle and shrugged.

“Well, that gives you something to fix while you’re moping around the house.”

At the hospital

Cason sat in a chair in the corner as the team of doctors and nurses in the tiny town hospital worked on both Esme and Duke. He tried his best to brush off the nurses, but had to deal with their looks of disbelief when they realized that all of the wounds on his body that showed in his ripped clothing were healed. Not a scratch existed, outside of some smeared blood from the initial stabbing. As Duke lay there, the nurse next to him wrapping his wrist in a cast, he glanced over at Esme and he sighed.

“So, how long are you gonna hate me?” He asked her bluntly, his tired voice hoarse and weak. He still wasn’t sure he was in his right mind, as everything in him wanted to resist going back to the house. But he did know that he had messed things up with Esme, at least on some front…and judging by her nose? He had really…really messed up. "I didn't know...I didn't know it was you that grabbed me. I didn't. I would never lay a hand on you."

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean

Dean’s shoulders dropped as soon as Sam stepped away from them, and went to be with Anya. He couldn’t even describe the relief he was feeling in that moment, but he brought a hand up and wiped it down his face, doing his best to calm the rest of his nerves. Anya was okay, which meant that, for the most part, they had all come back unscathed. They would just have to baby her arm, while she worked. That was something Sam could help her with. It wasn’t like the Winchesters were strangers to injuries or broken bones.

Dean turned and walked back over to Lexi, and took his seat again, leaning into her shoulder for some needed physical contact as he sighed, “Well, she’s alright. You heard the nurse. She’s alright. We still have a lot to talk about, but she’s alright.”

As he rationalized the entire situation, his leg bounced and he glanced around for Nat and Cason, wondering when they could get out of the hospital. He frowned and then turned back to Lexi, “If she doesn’t have any head problems, they should be able to let her go, right?”

Cason

Cason sat with Nat in the waiting room, just letting her lean on him as he watched the people file in and out of the hallway. He could tell that everyone in the waiting room was on edge. Half of him had expected the Winchesters to drop Anya off, and call in to check on her, now that her case was pretty much closed. It seemed to be Dean’s way of doing things, and preventing strays from getting killed, after all these years. Yet, both brothers were still in the waiting room, and neither of them seemed to be budging.

As Sam began to pace, Cason could feel Nat tense even more, and he was tempted to ask her if she wanted to take a walk, when she called Sam out for it. Cason wrapped an arm around hers, pulling her toward him a bit more for a moment, but then Nat suddenly decided to go for drinks and Cason, as always, went limp and allowed her to pull him with her. If it would get her out of all of the anxiety in the room, he was willing to take her wherever she wanted to go…even if it meant disappearing, her least favorite method of traveling.

As they walked, Cason shrugged at her words, “I mean, he’s just going through it right now. It wasn’t THAT long ago that Anna…died.”

But he did agree with her. Sam’s anxiety toward people being injured or killed had gotten much much worse since the situation went down in Colorado. It was almost as if the poor guy shouldered ever life on his giant shoulders, all alone. As they reached the cafe in the large hospital, Cason opened the door for Nat and stepped in behind her, before leaning in close to her ear, “I bet he’ll calm down a lot once he finds out she’s fine. I’ve been listening. Chances are, we’re leaving here sooner rather than later.”

Anya

Anya winced as the doctor continued wrapping her arm, seemingly manhandling her as he tried to get it done as quickly as he could. She looked around the room, chewing at her lips nervously as tears pooled in her eyes. She just had a bad feeling that the nurse would go out into the hallway, and that there would be no one waiting. Anya relaxed against the bed, and her lip quivered at the idea that any of them would just discard her because the case was over.

But then the nurse that went to retrieve came back and behind her was that familiar curl of sweaty hair. As Sam came to Anya’s side, she sighed, her breath shaky, allowing the thoughts of him leaving her behind to leave her mind as she heard his voice. Her anxiety fell even more as she felt the familiar squeeze of Sam’s hand in hers, and she squeezed his hand back, never taking her eyes off his face, even as he turned to talk to the nurses.

“Since she didn’t seem to have any head trauma or any…life altering injuries, we can send her home as soon as the doctor is finished and has her care instructions typed up. We’re going to give her some pain medication and she’s going to need to limit activities until the bruising on her back begins to fade, just to be sure that she doesn’t have any injuries to her spine.” The nurse explained bluntly to Sam, and Anya sighed once again, wishing that she could talk for herself. She could only really answer ‘yes’ and ‘no’ questions in that moment.

“Long story short. If she’s careful and she agrees to rest, you can leave in an hour or two.”

Anya pulled her hand from Sam’s carefully as the nurse went to begin typing up her care instructions, and she brought the free hand up in front of her face, happy that she could sign to someone who could at the very least read letters. She spelled out the word, and tilted her eyebrows up with a small smile teasing at the corners of her lips, “Home?”

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean

Dean stayed still for a moment as Sam scooped Anya up and began to walk back to the vehicles. He could tell that Sam wasn’t running on some sort of anger at any of the rest of them. He was just upset that Anya was hurt, in general. Dean nodded, and he almost reached out to pat his brother on the back, but instead, he stood there and watched as Lexi reached down and picked up Ruby’s knife, handing it to him. He wiped the demon blood off the knife, onto his jeans and then slipped the knife into the internal pocket of his jacket.

“I think that’s a good idea. If it’s just a broken arm, she’ll be in and out within an hour, and hopefully, she takes all of it pretty well. She’s tough…” Dean admitted, turning to watch Sam walk back to the car. Dean then turned his eyes to Cason and Nat, and he sighed, dropping his shoulders a bit. “I think the deflation is coming from how much we all underestimated this little piss ant. We know what demons are capable of, and we thought it would be too easy. That doesn’t fall on anyone…it’s all of us.”

Dean nodded his head toward the cars, and he began to walk back, letting Nat get ahold of Cason’s emotions so that they could get Anya some help. Anna walked up next to Dean, linking arms with him on his opposite side, seemingly calm and okay with the situation with Sam. Any tension and jealousy that Dean had expected was gone, and she seemed very work oriented. Dean tightened his arm around her hand, and he kept walking until he reached the Impala and pulled his cellphone out of his pocket to try and find the closest hospital.

Cason

As much as Cason didn’t want a pep talk out of his guilt, as soon as Natalia’s hand reached his cheek, he sighed and listened to her. He always did. Cason tilted his head, realizing that things definitely could have gone worse for Anya, if the demon hadn’t arrived alone. He had to agree. Cason wiped his hands on his pants, slipping his angel blade up his jacket sleeve, and then watched Sam walk back to the car with a soft sigh.

“Alright. We get her to the hospital. I figure there’s one on the way back to the bunker. But I don’t think there is much of a drawing board to go back to. Outside of angels and literally Crowley…which I won’t even get started on, her voice has never existed. I don’t think there’s a way to get it back. But she’s safe.” Cason shrugged, and reached down for Nat’s hand. He tugged and began pulling her toward the cars as she voiced the same concern he had about Sam. Sam had heard Anya’s non existent voice. That was something he would likely never get out of his head.

“Hopefully we can break through to him that it wasn’t real. It’s a pretty dream, sure, but not real.” Cason explained, keeping his eyes on the cars as they walked.

Anya - A bit later as they pulled into the hospital

Anya jolted awake with a gasp as the doctor working on her arm reset the bone and held it still. A nurse reached forward and placed an arm across Anya’s chest as she raised up from the mattress and quickly began scanning the room for Sam or any of the others. She didn’t even remember them making it to the cars, or driving to a hospital. For all she knew, they had dropped her off. She wanted to believe that Sam wouldn’t allow Dean to basically drop her off like a puppy at the pound, but she didn’t know if she would put it past him, either.

It was then that she realized her voice would have been the best tool. She couldn’t sign to the nurses, not like any of them actually knew ASL. She had no idea where her phone was and there was no one in her immediate eye sight that could translate or even listen to her. As she whimpered silently, the nurse pressed her tightly against the mattress and signaled to one of the other nurses, as the doctor began to work on wrapping Anya’s wrist. She had a bruise on her cheek that had been tended to, but other than that and the soreness she could feel in her body, she assumed she was mostly fine.

“I’ll go get him. Hold on.” One of the nurses voices broke through the haze in Anya’s brain. She walked out into the small waiting room, stopping her steps as Dean stood from his seat and began to approach her. She held out her hand and turned her eyes toward Sam. Dean turned to look at him, as Anna released Sam’s arm she had been holding onto, in order to keep him as calm as she could. The nurse took a deep breath and smiled, “Sir, she’s awake and a little scared if you wanna come let her know you’re alright.”

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Anna and Dean

Dean cried quietly into Sam’s shoulder as everyone seemed to be preparing to get him cleaned up, around him. He barely even heard them as they spoke, through the roaring in his head as a lot of hard truths sunk in. Dean unwrapped his arms from Sam as he felt him begin to walk after a few moments, wrapping an arm around his shoulder as he tried to help his brother with his own weight. Dean was exhausted, and he was emotionally spent. He honestly felt like he was going to pass out from a mixture of lack of sleep, the fight, and finally getting his emotions out of his system. But he took each step slowly.

Anna stepped back into the bathroom, when she heard Nat and Sam bringing Dean up the stairs. She took an extra towel out of the small linen closet, and quickly wetted it under the bathroom faucet, before stepping back out into the room, just as they walked through the door. As she expected, the second that Sam lowered Dean onto the bed, Dean basically passed out, and Anna sighed sadly, dropping her shoulders.

“Poor guy.” She sighed, turning to look up at Sam as Nat picked up Dean’s hand and Sam asked if she wanted them to stay. Anna shrugged her shoulders, walking to the small dressing chair Bobby kept in the corner of the room, by the window. She picked it up, and turned it where Sam could straddle the back the way that he preferred. She sat it down on the floor and patted the seat, “Then why don’t we all stay for him. Until Duke comes home, I think we should focus on keeping Dean sane and resting…”

Anna didn’t like taking control of situations, especially after what had happened with Dean, but she couldn’t just let him bleed and suffer because she was angry with him. Whether he saw her as family or not, she was his family. Anna unfolded the towel in her hand and she stepped up to the bed, sitting on the edge near Dean’s head. She reached across and began cleaning the blood from his nose, forehead and cheeks. As she wiped the damp towel across his busted eyebrow, he opened his eyes and frowned, “Anna?”

“Shh. Be still. I’m gonna clean you up.” Anna stopped him, shaking her head. Dean scanned her face and his own melted into sadness all over again, but Anna shook her head once again. “Don’t even think about apologizing while you look like this. I want you in your right mind before you bother with groveling.”

Anna smirked softly, brushing the wet rag over the last of the blood near Dean’s ear. She gave his earlobe a slight tug, and shrugged her shoulders, watching as he seemed to almost smile before closing his eyes. Anna brushed the wet towel over his neck, cleaning up the drips of blood that had trickled down, and then reached across, handing the towel to Natalia.

“If you want to clean up his hands, I’m about to start working on his face. He doesn’t need stitches. A few butterflies and an ice pack and he should be alright. But he’s gonna sleep like a rock and be sore tomorrow. I would ask if we should undress him, but he looks like dead weight right now.” Anna explained. She reached her hands down and lifted Dean’s t-shirt up, brushing her fingers over his stomach gently, trying not to wake him as she checked for any sign of bruises or pain. Other than some bruising on his elbows, knuckles and probably his knees, he seemed pretty unharmed. “I think he’ll be alright until he can shower tomorrow.”

Anna opened the first aid kit, and she pulled a hand full of butterfly bandages and some ointment. She then started to work on Dean’s eyebrow, which seemed to be the worst wound.

Cason and Duke

Cason sighed and gritted his teeth so hard he thought they would shatter out of his mouth when Esme instantly uttered the words he was hoping she wouldn’t. Of course she wasn’t going to do anything he was asking of her. It was the way of practically every human he had come in contact with in this dysfunctional little self sacrificing mess of a family. He almost reached his hand up to choke her, but remembered that it wasn’t the way he handled his problems anymore. So, instead, he closed his eyes and let an angry sigh leave his nose as he contemplated his next words to convince her not to run the clock out on Duke, by arguing with Cason.

“Fine. Fine you can…” Cason paused, looking around as he tore his eyes away from Esme’s and attempted to find some way that she could go in with him safely. But the longer he scanned the building, he couldn’t find a single way to guarantee her safety. Her next words took him off guard, and he turned his eyes down to look at her once again, furrowing his brow at the mental image of Nat even getting herself into a situation like the one Duke was in. He didn’t even want to fathom the things he would do to get her out alive, and unfortunately, Esme had found his weak spot, “I would kill every single one of them in five seconds…and I would bring her home.”

He sighed, and glanced around the warehouse once again, pointing to the demons that hadn’t seen or heard them yet, perched around one of the entrances, “I’ll need you to fight your way in. I won’t be able to save you, if I’m trying to pull him out. So, don’t get overwhelmed or knocked down. Take out as many as you can, and meet me inside the door, quietly, in the dark, until I can take care of the rest. Mess this up and you die. I don’t know any other way to explain it to you…”

Without saying another word, Cason disappeared, and he reappeared in the warehouse, directly in front of the head demon. Cason stepped out of the shadows and Duke’s eyes instantly flashed with fear as he recognized him, and began to glance around for Esme. Cason snapped his fingers at Duke, causing his eyes to turn back to his, and Cason simply shook his head, telling Duke that he wasn’t stupid enough to have brought Esme with him…at least inside.

“Cason. I never thought I’d see you with my own two eyes again. Wow.” The demon in front of Duke called to Cason as he stepped into the light with a smirk.

“Yeah, yeah. Lilith wants my head on a pike. We can skip the chit chat. I’m here for the Cowboy.” Cason quipped across the room, his voice echoing off the walls, almost as clearly as the laugh that followed.

“See, he came for us. I figure he’s fair game. The Winchesters would understand…and wait a second.” The demon released Duke, stepping forward while pointing the long silver blade in his hand at Cason. Cason didn’t flinch or move, still smirking, “Why would the Winchesters send a demon to pick up their strays? Which one of the hot little pieces are you rolling with, hmm? The blonde one? No. The tall drink of water? See last I saw, she was…”

Duke growled, and the demon chuckled as Cason’s eyes darted to Duke’s teary eyes and Cason shook his head.

“The sister? Oh…oh this is good. This is real good. Two Winchesters bedding down with demons. Won’t Hell just be tickled…” 

“You know. You always did talk too much, Sal. So, why don’t we get this overwith. You and me. I win, Cowboy comes with me. You win? Well, the Winchesters have a couple more bodies to burn.” Cason offered, holding his hands out to his sides. The demon spun the blade around his hand, causing Cason to watch every move of the bright silver. “What do you say old buddy?”

“Deal.” Sal growled, and rushed forward, swinging and missing Cason’s face by centimeters. Without missing a beat, Cason caught his hand, turned the blade with a crack of Sal’s wrist and shoved it through his sternum with a bright light and a scream from Sal’s burning body. Cason’s eyes widened, and he stared at the blade for a few seconds. Another weapon that could kill demons?

Footsteps alerted him that demons were moving in. So, he dropped Sal’s body and turned, slicing two demons throats before they could fully approach him. From across the room, he could hear Duke fighting his own battles, demons being killed. So, he decided to turn and back his way toward Duke. The mission was to get Duke out of here, not to kill every demon in the building. As soon as he and Duke touched, their shoulders bumping together, the demons stopped coming, realizing that they had no weapons to use against Cason and Duke both…who had weapons that could fully kill demons.

“Don’t you smoke out now…C’mon!” Cason screamed at them, but the remaining six demons began tilting their heads back, smoking out of their bodies with a chorus of screams. With a growl, Cason stepped forward, chopping one of their heads off. And then it was quiet as the bodies dropped to the ground around Cason and Duke. 

Cason turned to Duke, expecting him to just come with him, “Let’s go.”

“No!” Duke screamed out of nowhere, turning his exhausted teary eyes up to Cason’s face as he pulled the knife out in front of his body, pointing at Cason’s chest.

“Duke…I promised them I would bring you home, and I will bring you home, one way or another. I don’t want to hurt you.” Cason explained slowly, and Duke simply chuckled. Cason held the blade out in front of himself, and dropped it to the sandy floor at his feet, holding his empty hands up. “I don’t…want to hurt you.”
“Well that’s the mistake right there, ain’t it. I’m DONE losing people. I’m DONE runnin’. And I’m real sick and tired of bein’ saved…” Duke choked out, his voice rising as he spoke and distraught tears falling down his cheeks, over his nose and off the tip of his chin. Cason nodded and kept his hand out toward Duke.

“I know. As a demon, you’re not gonna believe me, but I know. I know that right now, this feels hopeless. You just lost the one person who believed in you, no matter what. She was the one person who never pointed out your faults, she never picked you last, even when it came to Dean. I know…” Cason attempted to explain, stepping forward slowly. He placed that outstretched hand on Duke’s shoulder, and Duke reacted immediately, stabbing the knife into Cason’s stomach with a sob. Duke quickly removed the blade as Cason sparked a few times and stepped back with a gasp, holding the open and sparking wound.

“NO! You don’t get to talk about her!” Duke screamed, rushing Cason. He tackled Cason to the ground and pointed the knife down at Cason’s face, trying to force the tip into his eye socket. Cason grabbed both his hands, resisting as they both growled loudly, Duke’s growls a sob of mixed emotions. Cason almost managed to flip Duke, but in the process, Duke buried the knife deep into Cason’s shoulder, causing Cason to scream, echoing through the warehouse as he sparked, his skeleton showing behind the brilliant gold. Duke removed the blade and held it in his hand, so tight that his knuckles were white.
Duke leaned back, beating at his forehead a couple of times as he growled out a regretful sob and Cason took the opportunity, throwing a heavy punch that landed against Duke’s temple, knocking him almost completely out. Duke slumped over onto the dusty floor, the knife still clutched in his fist as Cason gasped for air, growling between ragged breaths. This felt nice and familiar…

Duke groaned, rolling onto his back as Cason rolled over onto his stomach, standing from the ground as quickly as he could. Now on his feet, Cason stepped away from Duke, trying to put some distance between himself and Ruby’s knife while his wounds began to slowly heal.

“I’m…I’m taking…” He inhaled a breath, barely able to fully breathe in, and then spit some blood onto the floor. “I’m t-taking you home.”

“No…” Duke groaned, slowly rising to his knees and then his feet. He stumbled, but stood on confident feet as he squared up. “Kill me. Let’s go.”

“I’m not going to kill you and I don’t want to hurt you, kid. There’s a girl who is likely about to walk through that door and she would…well…she wouldn’t survive that. I’m done losing people too....”

Duke punched Cason across the face, breaking his nose instantly, which Cason reacted to by punching Duke in the stomach, doubling him up before connecting an uppercut to his chin, knocking him completely back like a tree falling in the forest. But as soon as Duke hit the ground, he rolled onto his stomach, coughed, and began to rise again, causing Cason to sigh and roll his eyes.

“Stay down. I’m not going to kill you, idiot.” Cason groaned, standing over Duke. Duke swiped the knife from the ground as he stood to his shaky legs and turned to swipe it at Cason’s throat. Cason tilted his head back and the blade barely missed but somehow ended up lodged in his thigh, straight to the bone. With a growl, Cason started to reach for the blade, trying to take control, but Duke grabbed it first, twisting and pulling it from Cason’s thigh. Cason reached out, catching Duke’s wrist and snapping it with one flick of his own. Duke cried out, the knife slipping from his hand. Cason caught the knife, and quickly pulled Duke to his chest, jamming the tip of Ruby’s knife into Duke’s chin, small drops of blood pouring down the sides.

“The next round? I’ll break both your legs. You’re human. That arm’s gonna take long enough.” Cason growled in Duke’s ear, his eyes black and his head holding Duke’s still on the tip of the blade. Duke whimpered, trying to pull away, but Cason’s other hand reached around, caging Duke to his body, while putting pressure on his broken wrist. “Stop it!”

“Just k-kill me!” Duke cried out, nudging his own chin against the tip of the blade, but Cason turned the blade, pressing the sharp edge against his throat instead. Cason nudged himself a little closer to Duke’s ear, and softened his voice.

“I’m not going to do that. You have people who love you…still. There are people at that house who are depending on me to bring you home. I know this hurts. I know that everything in your body is screaming at you to run away, to do something stupid. But would your sister want you to tear yourself apart and get yourself killed because she died? We…will kill Lilith.” Cason almost cooed in Duke’s ear, feeling the poor guy nearly melting in his arms from grief. As he felt him relax, he kept the knife in place, but loosened his grip on Duke’s broken arm, “I will stand there with you…side by side if that’s what you want. I will hold her, while you drive this blade through her heart. But I will NOT let you die…here. I will not kill you and I will not let you continue down this path, because they need you. Esme…needs you. As much as you’re angry with your brother, he just lost the love of his life.”

“They don’t need me. They got each other.” Duke whimpered, now nearly limp against Cason’s chest. 

“And they don’t need another loss. None of them. Dean barely made it out of that room by the skin of his teeth. Your sister…she died. Sam fried half his brain killing Alastair and may be hanging on by a thread. Anna is trying to take care of everyone and hold them together. You’re the only one…the ONLY one that managed to come out of this situation fully…human and whole with someone on your side. I’m bringing you back as close to that as I can. I have to, man.” Cason whispered to Duke, and for the first time, Cason heard an emotion come out of Duke that wasn’t just rage screams and growls. He whimpered, and then a sob broke from his chest, deflating him as Cason loosened the hold on his neck. Cason shifted his arm, wrapping his arm around Duke’s neck to hug him to his body, “There you go. Esme?! A little help?!”

“I don’t know what to do…” Duke sobbed, and Cason nodded against the side of his head.

“I know. And that’s where the others come in. Let them…let them help you. Come back with me, and let them help. I got you…” Cason cooed to him, and even though Duke wasn’t entirely sure why, he tilted his head back on Cason’s shoulder and just cried, no more fighting. Cason sighed with relief, and just let him for a few moments before shifting his body to drape one of Duke’s arms over his shoulder, wrapping an arm around his waist. The poor guy was almost limp with exhaustion and grief. But at least he was going home, and Esme wouldn’t have to burn his body along side of Mika’s…

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Anya

Anya blinked at the sky as she lay there, trying to recenter herself through the pain in her arm and the shock to her system of actually fighting and killing something. She had killed something! She had won a fight that honestly, should have killed her. She knew she owed a lot of it to the whistle just happening to be enchanted. But she also had held on long enough to use the stupid thing. Dean would have so much fun with the fact that their idea had worked after all, with a little extra oomph.

As Sam showed up, his face appearing in front of hers, curtained by his hair, Anya smiled softly, releasing the whistle as he pulled it from her mouth. She held her broken arm close to her chest as he scooped her up, and she leaned her head against his chest with a sigh and a rumbling growl from her chest. Part of her was so relieved that it was all over. The other part of her was so disappointed that she couldn’t have her voice back. She couldn’t talk to Sam. She would always have to rely on her hands to communicate with him, complicating a lot of things, even if he didn’t seem bothered.

She brought her good hand up, trying to decide on the best way to sign to him one handed. She chose to just sign letters out slowly with the one hand, “I am good. But ow…”

Anya chuckled and placed that hand on Sam’s jaw, before the buzzing in her head grew a bit louder and she fainted with a soft sigh, falling limp in his arms.

“She’ll be alright.” Anna sighed, stepping up beside them as Anya fell limp. Anna crossed her arms, angel blade draped over her elbow as she listened closely for Anya’s breathing, confirming in her mind that she was okay. She was just in a bit of shock. “Hospital or home job?”

Cason

Cason removed his hands from his ears and he gasped for air for a few moments, letting his vision return to normal as he looked around him, and finally his eyes settled on Anya, lying in a heap on the ground. Sam skidded to her side, and scooped her up, causing Cason’s head to burn with worry, as Nat reached him. He shook his arms and his legs, standing from his knees to crack his neck. He pulled his hand up and wiped a stream of blood from his nose, before nodding at Natalia.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m good.” He muttered, wrapping his arm around Nat’s waist after a moment. As she called out for Dean and Lexi, Cason checked her over, seeing nothing wrong with her other than a bit of dirt on her clothes from hiding. His shoulders relaxed, and he turned his eyes back to Anya, hearing Anna confirm that Anya was at least going to live, but he had misjudged the whole situation horribly, “I had no idea he had like…trickster levels of bullshit in his tank. Most of these guys are just Vegas magicians with a bit of hell power behind them. He controlled the whole area. And now Anya’s hurt. I couldn’t have seen that coming. I should have…but…”

Cason sighed, as the acid burn of human guilt washed over his brain, “I don’t know how I’m gonna explain that to her.”

Dean

Dean could barely concentrate as the moon turned the woods into a night club, but in slow motion. Anya’s voice screaming for help caused his heart to clench as he reached out for Lexi in the dark, half tempted to break his own rules and pull her to him, just to keep them both safe. He was also tempted to run after Anya, to find the source of her voice and save her. But then the light just came back on, accompanied by quiet, and the whistle blowing loudly through the echoing woods. Cason and the demon screamed with the whistle, and Dean knew right then that it was all an illusion. The light, the voices, everything.

Before he could really compute what was happening, his head turned toward Sam running after Anya, disregarding Dean’s instructions to ignore everything they saw or heard. He didn’t know if Sam had heard Anya screaming, or something else, but either way, his brother was running into danger, surely getting himself killed in the process, “Sam! Wait!”

Dean caught Lexi’s own concern for Sam and he nodded, running over to her. He grabbed her hand, shifting his blade into his opposite hand as he dragged her with him through the woods, trying to follow Sam’s footsteps. He stayed back, giving Sam a chance to defend himself from afar. But then Sam skidded to a stop next to Anya, and Dean’s eyes widened. He froze for a moment, only brought out of his worry by Nat’s voice calling for him and Lexi, “We’re over here. We’re all here.”

“Sam, what’s our move, here? Is this all over?”

Cason nodded, and held a hand out to Dean, “Yeah. Yeah, it’s all over. Demon’s dead. His contract that wasn’t valid in the first place is dead with him.”

“Good. So, we’re all in one piece? I mean, other than…” Dean stopped himself, dropping his hand at his side as guilt washed over his own face, matching Cason’s. “Demon’s dead. She’s good. The demon’s dead…”

All Roads Lead To You

Duke

Duke frowned playfully as Esme explained that of all people she had managed to get wrapped up in, the man was the owner of the place. He simply settled, noticing how relaxed Esme seemed to feel in his arms, safe and sound, like nothing in the world could harm her as long as he was around. If that’s what she was feeling, she was absolutely right. Unfortunately, or fortunately, he would kill every man in the room if she asked him to…without thinking.

As she thanked him for the offer, Duke shrugged, but he raised his eyebrows behind his mask as Esme kissed his cheek. He was about to quip about ‘impulses and protectiveness’. But his words were a bit lost in the haze of affection that she seemed to be showing, all the tension between them erased, finally. Duke watched her smirk carefully, as he could almost taste the mischief behind it, just as he tightened his grip around her waist, pulling her tight against his chest.

It was then that he confirmed what he thought he had felt earlier in the night. Either she was wearing some very intense shape wear, or Esme…had sticky fingers, like him. Maybe they were more alike than Duke had given her credit. He came out of his thoughts when Esme offered him the opportunity to beat up a couple of random guys that had obviously played the same game as the owner.

“Now see…this is why Dean sendin’ me out to dance with you is dangerous. I would love…nothing more…than to break all of their hands into tiny little pieces. But unfortunately, I’m supposed to be a good boy until Dean is finished upstairs. He said to give him thirty minutes, and then I can show my ass.” Duke chuckled, leaning in close to Esme’s face boldly. He brushed her nose with his, drawing even more glances from the rich folks around them, “And judgin’ by the metal that I can tell is just diggin’ into that pretty little chest of yours, I know why my sticky fingers didn’t bother you a bit. You’re a bandit…like me.”

Duke smiled brightly, tilting Esme back as he took a step forward and dipped her dramatically in the center of the dance floor. He whipped her up just as dramatically, pulling her back to his chest tightly as he turned them both in a circle and a few women began to hover. Duke politely pulled his hand away from Esme’s back, holding it up to turn the women down before they ever asked, “And something about you goin’ around with a bunch of rich folks, stealin’ their goods, drinkin’ up all their liquor? Well, it hits different when we’re both dressed like this.”

Duke chuckled, surprised at his own confidence, without any alcohol. Maybe it was the fact that he could get the entire party in their feelings with the smell of old money oozing off him, and Esme’s mingling. He could almost feel the jealous tension, as the men and women partnered up, the men trying to show him up, and the women glaring at Esme, like she was personally offending them by existing. Honestly, Duke didn’t care about any of them. He had about fifteen minutes to show Esme a good time, before Dean inevitably came back, whisked her away for the night, and Duke became third wheel again.

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean and Anya

Dean chuckled at Lexi’s response, but as he glanced over at Nat, he winced a bit, his smile still ghosted across his lips. If there was ever a time that he hoped Cason wouldn’t have to bare the brunt of a weapon, having Nat there as a favor was definitely that time. Dean turned his eyes to Sam and Anya, sighing as he watched his brother try to calm any of Anya’s nerves.

Anya melted into Sam as soon as he wrapped his arms around her, and she pressed her head tightly against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. She nodded slowly as Sam explained that they would keep her safe, one way or another. She had to believe him. It was the only thing she could hold onto, when she didn’t even fully know what they were up against.

As he pulled back, Anya nodded, and she signed a simple, “Okay.”, before walking over to Cason with him. Dean pulled Lexi with him, and he patted Sam on the back as they separated, carrying out a plan that Dean could only hope went off as simply as Cason seemed to think it would. He stepped off into the opposite direction in the woods, from Anna, giving plenty of distance for none of them to be seen during the exchange, and hopefully killing of this rogue demon.

“So, remember the plan. No matter what we hear or see. No matter what he makes us see, we don’t go after her until Cason himself calls an all clear, or comes for us.” Dean explained as they walked, “He said this demon is good at mimicking whatever it has to. We won’t be able to trust each other. So, don’t leave my sight.”

Cason and Anya

Cason nodded as Natalia asked him if he was okay. Other than the bleeding and ringing in his ears, the whistle was more like a taser, temporary, painful, and stunning. Cason pulled an angel blade for himself, and then situated all of the other supplies he needed for the summoning under his own arm. At Nat’s comment about the worry for Anya, Cason shrugged his shoulders, “He’s sweet on her. I remember a time where he didn’t let Anna out of his sight, even knowing she was just as powerful as he was. It’s not that surprising that a simple human would make him anxious. It’s not like she has much other than willpower and the ability to run…to protect herself.”

As he looked around the woods, he noticed that it was a perfect place to plan a circle. Which meant that there was an obvious place to put Natalia, “You’re one of the ones we need the closest, the sharpest. So, I need to you to walk directly that way…count thirty or so steps, and then find a place to hide. Make sure you can hear me, but you can’t see me. It’s the same plan I gave the others. Anya will stay with me. I’ll summon the demon. I’ll offer her up on a cute little platter, and then…she takes him out with Ruby’s knife.”

He turned to Anya and Sam, making eye contact with Anya, “You have the knife?”

Anya pulled the knife from the back of her pants, wiggling it in the moonlight, the light glimmering off of it bringing back a few memories for Cason as he nodded in understanding. He turned his eyes up to Sam, and then nodded in the direction not far from where he told Nat to go. Then, he turned himself back to Nat, “We’ll be fine. Go.”

Anya stepped up close to Cason, reluctantly releasing Sam’s hand, her fingers slipping from his as if she was terrified to let him go. She then followed Cason as he stepped into a clearing and began laying out supplies. He opened a few of the vials that he had brought with him, dropping the contents into the large bowl he was holding. He sat the bowl on the ground, reaching over to pull his angel blade closer and then held his hand out to Anya.

“What?” She signed, and Cason held his hand out with a little more authority.

“Knife.” He ordered. Anya handed the knife over, but instead of simply taking it, Cason grabbed her wrist, taking the knife from her hand, and then forced her fingers open, slicing open her palm. She hissed in pain, her eyes widening as he held her bleeding hand over the bowl and then released her after he had enough blood. “Sorry. I forgot to mention that. Here…”

Cason pulled a bandana from his pocket, and handed it to Anya, along with the knife. He reached into his jacket pocket, pulling a book of matches, igniting one, and then dropped it into the bowl. The bowl flamed up, causing Anya to flinch, but then Cason pushed her away from him, signaling for her to stand up. She stood, holding the knife out in front of her as she turned in a circle, but everything went quiet.

After a few moments, the moonlight went away. The woods were plunged into darkness, and Cason reached out in the darkness, reaching for Anya.

“Anya? Anya, I know you can’t call out to me but follow my voice.”

“Oh, sweet baby boy. I’ve removed the little diva from the equation, because…I want to talk to you.” A voice called out in the darkness. Suddenly, the moonlight returned, but only in one place, above Cason and the demon that he had been expecting.

“And what would you want with me?” Cason asked, reaching to the ground to grab the angel blade. As he glanced down, the blade was nowhere to be found, and Anya…was nowhere to be found.

“You’re meddling in the affairs of other demons, and you’re back with the Winchesters. I just find it…curious. I can’t exactly just let go of the fact that you’re this close to the King.”

“What are you talking about? I haven’t seen Crowley in years.” Cason muttered, narrowing his eyes. The demon laughed, tilting his head back as he did so.

“Dean Winchester is on speed dial with the King of Hell and we’re all supposed to just believe that his pet demon isn’t in the same…pocket?”

“So, what? You’re going to parlor trick me to death? Snuffing the moon. Concealing the girl. What’s next hm? Unicorns? Rainbows? See…I know the parlor tricks. Even if I had a lead on Crowley, don’t you think I would have brought him with me? Creating fake deals with humans? That’s bad business…” Cason pouted, tilting his head to the side as he disappeared, causing the demon’s eyes to widen and the moonlight to return as he looked for him. Anya reappeared as well, and the demon simply picked her up by her throat, carrying her off into the woods. Cason appeared beside him, angel blade in hand, and swiped.

But the demon quickly tossed Anya, returning the moonlight so that Cason could see her flying through the air, before the moonlight disappeared again, and Cason only caught a glimpse of her scared face as she reached for him, begging for him to help her.

“No!”

In the woods around them, a voice began to echo, almost disembodied, and quiet. It was Anya’s voice, touching each individual person. To Dean, and Lexi, the voice was screaming from no particular direction. The loud scream of their names, and “HELP ME!” Called out in the darkness, causing Dean to flinch and turn, searching with his eyes narrowed, as if he could see through the piercing black.

To Sam, the voice simply called his name a few times, before whispering “We did it. My voice! It’s back. Come this way, Sam. I love you. Isn’t it perfect? We can move on now!”

And not far from Cason, as he trampled through the woods in the dark, trying to find Anya, Anya crawled, backing herself up with some effort and a broken arm to a tree. The demon stepped up in front of her, illuminating himself with a sickening grin as her own voice echoed through the woods, “Isn’t your voice beautiful? I was going to give it to you, you know. But then…you brought them. You brought the Winchesters.”

Anya reached behind her as he spoke, and she wrapped her fingers around the knife she had dropped. As soon as she picked up the knife, she held it still, just glaring at the demon as she cried, the pain in her arm intense. She groaned as she pulled her other arm up, before the demon could get any closer to her, and pulled the whistle to her lips, blowing it with every bit of force in her lungs.

She heard Cason cry out in the darkness, fully planning to apologize later, but as the demon in front of her bent double and covered his ears, Anya kept blowing the whistle, groaning as she rolled forward onto her knees, stabbing Ruby’s knife directly between the demon’s ribs. He sparked, his eyes wide and his ears bleeding, before he fell to the ground Dead and the moonlight illuminated the woods, almost brighter than before.

Anya collapsed, whistle still in her mouth as she nearly passed out, holding her broken arm to her chest.