Anna scanned Sam’s eyes as he spoke, her brain buzzing with all the ways she just wanted all of this to be over. She wanted to hope that things would go back to normal, and they could just forget all this. She knew that it was impossible, but she hoped, nonetheless. Part of her wished she could wipe the whole night from her brain, and just go back to blindly following them around, clinging to the idea of Sam Winchester.

Then Sam kissed her forehead, causing her to close her eyes briefly at the soft touch, and the tenderness of his actions. He said the most patient and loving thing she could ask for in that moment, that he would simply wait for her to work through her emotions and be ready to love him again.

“Well. Thanks for loving me, I guess.” She shrugged, a small echo of a smirk touching the corner of her lips. Just then, the alarm in the hospital sounded, and Anna instinctively whipped her head to look toward the emergency bay, as a ton of nurses and security guards ran into the hospital. “I wonder what’s happening? After tonight, I don’t know that I want to find out…but what if it’s the demons?”

The trauma of the night was definitely settled into her brain, as a simple emergency alarm being tripped was causing her to want to run away, as far away from demons as possible.



Cason was a little jumpier than he normally would be, teaming up with an angel against his will. Once Esme told him she was okay, even if she wasn’t all…okay, he sighed and nodded, staring off into space for a moment until she screamed at Castiel. The sound, and the fact that she was yelling at an angel caused Cason to tense up, the flinch switching his eyes to black for a split second and then back to blue.

“I would watch it. That’s an angel.” He frowned and murmured to Esme. He didn’t get much else out, before Mika shoved the seat forward and stumbled out of the car at his feet, running over to Dean the second Dean sat up straight. He wasn’t surprised, really. Mika and Dean struck him to be almost as dangerously co-dependent as Sam and Dean.

At that moment, he noticed that Nat had opened her door and stepped out of the car, and his instincts instantly kicked in. He ran over to her, and frowned at the words that came out of her mouth, that both he and Esme had heard.

“If it wasn’t them, it would have been me.” Cason scolded Nat, his eyebrows furrowed and great offense on his face, “Someone would have come after you, Esme’s right. If it wasn’t them…it would have been me, alone. I…”

Cason cut off his words before he said something he would regret and sighed, turning to stare off into space again, while wrapping an arm around her waist to help her stand.

“I was coming either way…”



Dean heard Esme’s voice, and his heart leapt into his throat, as he turned to look at her. He was about to stand from the ground when Mika practically tackled him, causing him to groan with the stiffness that was taking over his body. He barely managed to hold himself upright as she hugged him. He wrapped his arms around Mika’s body, holding her tightly to him as her hair covered his face and a familiar comfort took over. He had almost left her alone. The odds of her forgiving him so quickly for that were slim. When she scolded him, he wasn’t surprised, but he tightened his grip.

“I know. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I um…I didn’t know what else to do.” He croaked out, his throat a little dry and scratchy, as he rubbed her back, trying to at least soothe her. It was then that he realized Cas was still there, awkwardly standing like a statue, just watching Mika and Dean. He uncovered his face from Mika’s hair and looked up at Cas with a grimace. “Hey, man. You think you can help the girls? Nat’s pretty banged up, and Esme can’t…she can’t be doin’ too hot.”

“No.” Castiel said simply, not moving from his spot. Dean tilted his head, giving Castiel a look of disbelief.

“No? Why the hell not? You can patch me up, but they don’t get a pass?”

“I only saved you. I didn’t…patch you up.” Castiel said simply, once again not moving. “You’ll still be sore for a few days.”

“Yes. I get that. But Nat is hurt bad, man. You can’t help her?”

“Natalia Winchester, yes. The other one? No. She’s not human, Dean. What more do you want me to say about it?” Castiel explained, holding his hands out to his sides. Cas didn’t give any of them time to process things, as he began to walk casually toward the Impala. Dean’s eyes were saucers as he pulled back from Mika’s hug, and turned to look toward Esme, echoing Cason’s own expressions as they stared at her. But then Cason noticed Castiel was walking toward Nat.

“No no no. No. We don’t want anything to do with angels.” Cason stepped in front of Nat and put a hand out, trying to wave Cas off.

“Move.” Castiel barked at him and Cason sighed, his eyes turning black as he stood firm, shaking his head. “Move or I will move you.”

“I don’t want you touching her. I don’t want your buddies having her scent. She will heal.”

“And you’re willing to allow her to suffer great pain, to keep her away from an angel, because of your fears as a bottom feeding hellspawn. Am I wrong?” Castiel spoke with disgust, and Cason began to growl, shaking against Nat’s chest as he backed up to her.

“Can you guys stop measuring dicks and help my sister? Fight in a parking lot somewhere later!” Dean called to them, as he sat on the ground with Mika, still trying to get himself back together, while thoughts of Esme’s humanity flooded his mind. He turned to look at Mika, scanning her entire face for a hint on how to react to this whole thing, and the only thing that came to his mind was the question, “You’re human, right? Like…you’re gonna stay human.”

Cason reluctantly tilted his head to the side, watching as Castiel’s hand passed over his shoulder, and he touched Natalia’s forehead, healing the worst of her wounds, outside of some soreness and a few scratches. Cason flinched as Castiel dropped his hand and turned back to Dean.

“Try to keep yourself alive. We have a lead on something that I will be bringing to you in a few days. I need you rested…and alive.” He ordered Dean, before disappearing.

Dean furrowed his brow at Castiel’s order, rolling over in his brain what the hell he could possibly be talking about. All they could really do is wait for his call.

As Castiel flew off, Cason released the breath he was holding in and turned to Nat, brushing her hair away from her face. He took his jacket off, in that moment, and draped it over her shoulders, brushing his thumb over her nose.

“I don’t like it. I don’t like angels spreading their grace all over everything, but how do you feel?”

MIKA

Feeling Dean's arms wrap back around her after she basically gave him no choice in the matter, she felt relieved that she was even having this moment. She kept a hold of him as he apologised for almost leaving her and accepting the scolding she gave him, glad that he didn't fight her on this. For once in his life, he took the scolding. She did feel a sense of comfort when he rubbed her back, as she always did by him doing that exact action. He always seemed to calm her down as she did him and she never took that for granted, even if sometimes it seemed like it.

As he lifted his head up, she turned her own enough to see Castiel still standing there and watching them both. In all honesty it creeped her out how Castiel did that and she wasn't sure she would ever get used to it. For an angel, he seemed so devoid of any kind of personality of welcoming aura. Yet the way Dean felt he could talk to him, it made her wonder if it was just her that thought this. She watched the exchange between the men as Dean asked Castiel to heal up Nat and Esme, she could hear the break in his voice as he clearly still was processing how Esme was even alive. It made her curious to what exactly happened in that damn building.

What she wasn't expecting though was Castiel refusing to help the girls. She couldn't even hide the annoyance from her face and it seemed Dean was just annoyed, as she tried her best to just let Dean handle this. Nat didn't deserve to be left the injuries she had endured on this night. The poor girl had gone through far too much trauma fir one person, let alone in one night. It wasn't fair! Natalia deserved the same treatment Dean got!

Mika's eyes went wider than they ever had before when Castiel explained exactly why he couldn't help Esme after agreeing to help Nat. Esme wasn't even human!? Oh this just got better she thought to herself in a sarcastic manner. 'what other bombshells are gonna land on us tonight?' she couldn't help but think. She let Dean let go of the hug, but she stayed close to him on the ground. She watched as Castiel turned his attention to Natalia and began to walk over to her and Cason, much to Cason's disgust and refusal to accept his help. She watched as the two men argued over Nat, seeing how protective Cason was being made her see another hint that this was no act he was putting on. He truly was protective of Nat.

Dean shouting at the two of them to shut up and just heal his sister made her smirk slightly because she felt like somewhere deep inside, the old Dean was still there. She then looked at him back as he scanned her face before asking the question about her own humanity, making her nod and smile, a soft small chuckle escaping her lips. "I will always be human and always have been. Your hopelessly romantic stubborn to a fault human" she told him, stroking his cheek.

When the argument broke out between Castiel and Cason, she rolled her eyes, glad that Dean was telling them to knock it off. She decided to ignore it mostly, making sure to fuss over Dean to check Castiel really did do a good enough job, before her fussing got interrupted by Castiel telling him a lead will be coming for him in a few days. With Castiel gone, she sighed, "well that don't sound great....but he is right about one thing. You need to be more careful and stay alive" she told Dean.

NATALIA

When Natalia muttered to herself what she did, she wasn't expecting anyone to have heard her. She thought she muttered it so quietly it was impossible for anyone to hear her, yet Esme and Cason both reacted to her words and tried to convince her that what she said was absolute crap. At first she looked to Esme, trying to find the words to respond but she was at a loss for what to say. It was only then that the reality of Esme having also been trapped there really sunk into Natalia's mind. With words failing her, she gave the woman a tiny nod before looking at Cason, his words hitting even harder than Esme's did.

She gave a small shaky nod at his words, wondering what he was going to say that made him cut himself off mid sentence. She saw the offence he took to her words, something she never wanted to cause him, making her instinctively grab for his coat when he wrapped an arm round her to help stay upright. "I'm sorry...." she told him, letting her head flop onto his shoulder, clinging to him as her only source of comfort.

Her stance didn't last long though when Castiel came walking over and Cason instantly stood in front of her protectively like a guard dog. She listened to him refuse Castiel's ability to heal her and at first wondered why until he elaborated about risking other Angels having her scent and putting her on their radar. That whole idea made her feel like she would be in just as much danger under an Angel's watch as she would a demon's and it didn't sit well with her in the slightest. However the pain she was in was just as unbearable and she didn't want to be in pain anymore.

"Dont call him that!" she defended Cason when Castiel called him bottom feeding hellspawn. She was also thankful that Dean told them both to stop arguing and just fix her. She glanced at Dean and gave him a look of thanks before she looked back at Castiel, cautiously watching where he was about to place his hand whilst Cason growled and stepped closer to her, being a barrier. A gasp escaped her as she felt the worst of her injuries heal up, her shoulder didn't feel broken but incredibly sore, her head felt like it was never hurt.

Glancing down at her other injuries, she saw the deep cuts healing, but not so well that they disappeared. She was about to thank Castiel but he spoke to Dean and then just disappeared completely, letting Cason relax finally. She clutched his coat firmly round her when he gave it to her, instantly feeling more comforted with it on her like a security blanket a child has when they're very young. "I'm okay...I feel sore and stiff but I don't feel like I'll pass out at every second that goes by." she explained truthfully.

"But mostly just cold and soaked through" she added with a small smile, in the hopes the smile would prove to him she was okay. Lifting a hand up, she grabbed his that was stroking her nose, holding it before leaning up and kissing him briefly. "thank you for protecting me just now".

SAM

The 'thanks for loving me' comment that Anna made caused Sam to smile a bit more. It felt like such an appropriately and accurately Anna thing to say and it brought a sense of familiarity to his mind. "I will always love you" he told her. The echo of a smirk in her words just made him see the Anna he knew so well slowly attempting to come back out in the open.

He enjoyed the next little moment of silence when it was completely broken by the emergency alarms going off in the hospital and utter chaos unravelling outside. He sat up, wound the window down and looked outside for a brief moment before he wound it back up. "I don't think it's demons, there's no other signs of demons being around here, just nurses and doctors running around headless. I'm going to guess they've got a runaway patient or something" he replied, not for a moment thinking it could and infact was, Duke being on the loose.

"We're safe in here until the others come back. Duke has this truck seriously kitted out but there's absolutely no sign of demons, that I can say with certainty" he explained to her, hoping his words would be of some kind reassurance, even just a tiny bit.

Esme watched Natalia as she processed her words but couldn’t find the words to respond. When Natalia nodded at her, Esme softly smiled and nodded back. She wasn’t expecting her to say anything back; she just wanted to try and comfort her a little. When her attention went to Cason, Esme looked down at Sarah, still lying at her feet. Her eyes then went up to Dean and Castiel, who were conversing deeply about healing her and Natalia. A light smile came to her lips at his concern for them. She felt Natalia was much worse off than herself and needed to be healed more than herself, but it was nice to hear him include her. She listened to the back and forth between them, getting upset that Castiel wouldn’t heal Natalia. Then came the words from Castiel’s mouth that took everything out of her. She wasn’t human. She felt Dean and Cason staring at her before she completely zoned out. Esme’s gaze dropped to the ground in front of her. She saw and heard nothing else but her thoughts. “If I’m not human….. Then what the hell am I? A monster that needs to be taken care of before I kill someone close to me?

Was everything Valdin told her true? Am I like them in a way? If it was all true, why didn’t Father or Sassy tell me anything about it? How could they keep this from me?” By the time Esme came out of her thoughts, Castiel had already left. Esme painfully lifted her shaking body from the Impala and stood on shaky legs. Sarah immediately stood up and pressed herself close to Esme to support her so she wouldn’t fall. Esme placed a hand on Sarah’s back, leaned against her, and looked at Cason. He was the last person she wanted to talk to after everything that had happened, but she figured he’d be the only one who could give her answers. “Is it true….. Am I not human?” she asked, tears welling in her eyes. “And is what Valdin said true? I should have never been born. The only reason I’m here is because of a deal that was made?” Standing there with Sarah’s help, waiting for Cason to answer, she felt she would be sick. Her whole body screamed in pain as she stood against Sarah. Her head hurt, she was dizzy, and her vision was blurring, but she wanted answers to all the questions burning in her mind.

Anna watched each person that ran by, checking them for injuries or any sign of demonic activity. Her hands were shaking as she placed one on Sam’s knee, trying to calm her heart before she had a panic attack over the idea of demons being around. She believed him, though. He would know better than she would, if there were demons trying to go undercover to kill them, or something.

“Okay. We’re okay…” She sighed, her breath shaky as she closed her eyes, hoping that her racing heart wasn’t transferring to Sam in any way, while she was touching him. A hand banging on the window nearly caused her to scream, as she spun around to see a security guard standing there, asking her to roll down the window. Anna scooted away from Sam, reluctantly, and with a shaky hand, she cranked the window down, just enough to hear what the man was saying.

“Ma’am, we’re putting the hospital on lockdown. Once those doors are locked, you won’t be able to get inside. So, if you’re planning to come in, you need to do it now.” The security guard ordered, as if reading from a script.

“What’s going on?” Anna asked in a small voice, her eyes wide as she looked around behind the guard. He stepped away from the truck, realizing she wasn’t going to come with him and pointed to the doors.

“A murder victim got up and just walked out of here. The suspect? Also gone. I don’t know what you’ve got going on. You look pretty busted up, but I suggest you get somewhere safe.” He finished, and turned to guide other people from the emergency bay into the hospital. Anna turned back to Sam, not bothering to roll the window up and snarled her nose in confusion.

“A murder victim? That doesn’t seem right…”



Dean shied away from Mika’s fussing, making her chase his face as she looked him over, and finally he pulled both her hands down, holding them to his chest as she commented on Castiel’s statement. He shook his head. There was no way that whatever the angels were wanting was anything good, especially if they needed him to be physically ready for the call. In his limited experience with the winged dicks, that usually meant they were sending him into an impossible situation, in false hope that he would come out alive. If he didn’t? They would just resurrect him and move on with their day. That much was apparent, now.

He pushed Mika back by her chest, gently, so that he could move to stand up. His legs felt like lead and his neck was so sore he could barely move it, but he was able to stand with a groan of pain.

“He wasn’t wrong about the soreness. Damn…” Dean grumbled, moving his joints around to make sure they were all still functional. His ears were still ringing, which he chalked up to surviving what was basically a nuclear blast. Dean looked over at Esme, cracking his neck loudly before turning his attention back to Mika. “I need to talk to her. I know…how you feel about all of it, and if you want, when all this is over, I’ll explain everything. I should have explained it sooner, but it’s complicated and messy.”

He reached down and picked up Mika’s hand, bringing her knuckles up to his lips with a soft kiss and a knowing look that he used often to tell her he was being 100% honest with her. He then pulled her close to him, and began walking over to the group.



Cason breathed a sigh of relief as Nat’s wounds seemed a lot less dire than before. She even sounded a bit better, other than being super cold in the fall air around them. Although a part of him wanted to question whether she was okay, all over again, like a record on repeat, he looked into her eyes and saw nothing but honesty. She was telling him the truth, and he didn’t have to worry about her for the next several weeks, due to the fragile human nature of her body.

The string of thoughts almost made him smile, thinking about the difference between them, and how fragile humans were. But he was drawn out of his thoughts by her hand wrapping around his and the kiss that came soon after. He furrowed his brow, closing his eyes as that pesky human emotion he couldn’t place burned the back of his brain like acid and he inhaled a deep breath through his nose, returning the kiss. As she broke away and thanked him, he shrugged his shoulders.

“I don’t like angels. I definitely don’t like angels touching…those I feel compelled to keep alive.” He muttered awkwardly, not quite sure what to call Natalia in that moment. Suddenly, he whipped around as Esme spoke to him, his body language tense after the exchange they had shared in the asylum, before she went nuclear. He frowned at her, wondering why she was asking him about her life, as if he knew everything about her, just by being a demon. “I’m…I’m not sure, honestly. There was a deal? I can um… I can ask around some of my circles and see if anyone knows of anyone who has the kind of juice to turn a human child into a virtual nuclear bomb. But I’ve never heard of anything like this, myself. I will tell you, though, it’s above my pay grade.”

Cason stood for a moment, just trying to read Esme’s emotions as she seemed upset, and the last time she was upset, the boom happened. He held a hand out to her, speaking a little softer, “I promise you, I’ll find out whatever I can, but you need to calm down.”

As he got the words out, Dean scooted in, turning Esme carefully so that he didn’t hurt her any more than necessary. He then wrapped his arms around her gently, bringing one hand up to the back of her head as he hugged her. He didn’t know what to make of the ‘not human’ thing. He wasn’t even sure if he was afraid of her or not, but he did know that she was okay and he hadn’t lost her, “I’m glad you’re okay. Holy shit your head.”

He pulled his hand back and groaned as he noticed his hand was covered in aging blood, at least telling him that the wound was trying to stop bleeding. But moving his head around her shoulder, he took a look at the wound, “Did that happen on the way down? We need to get you somewhere and get you looked at…as soon as possible.”

“Alright. I’ll take Nat.” Cason said simply, turning back to Nat and wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

“Whoa! Hold on. You’re not going anywhere with her until we talk. Get in the car.” Dean snapped at him, and Cason turned to look at him like he was insane. He wasn’t riding in a car. There was no way he was willingly riding in a car. But he also knew he wasn’t leaving Natalia in the hands of a bunch of sore, tired hunters, after the night they had just had. “Either get in the car, or we’ll meet you at the hospital.”

“Dammit…” Cason groaned, closing his eyes and putting a hand on his hip, as if it would make Dean feel any different. Dean simply raised his eyebrows and held out a hand, driving home his point with one look. “Fine. I’ll…ride in the damn car.”

With a huff, Cason opened the back drivers door and ushered Natalia in. It was then that he realized Esme would be sitting in the back with them, and he had just set himself up to ride in the center…between Nat and Esme.

“As if it couldn’t get worse.” He grumbled, sliding in next to Nat, squeezing as close to her as possible.

SAM

Sam was concerned and on high alert himself about what could be going on, but he outwardly made himself come across as calmer for the sake of helping Anna calm down. Her hand on his feet showed him just how much she was panicking and wanting to calm before it came out as an anxiety attack. He truly didn't think that it was demons in the slightest, but the idea of an dangerous patient or unpredictable patient on the loose wasn't exactly anymore reassuring in his mind. At least he was right in telling Anna that they were in fact very safe in Duke's truck.

The security guard knocking on Anna's side window made him jump ever so slightly as it was seemingly out of the blue, but his rational brain was telling him it was bound to happen, and rather a guard come to them than him leave her alone in the truck whilst he went off to get information. He let Anna wind the window down a bit and listened to what the security was telling them both. A murder victim walking out of the hospital? Their suspect also on the loose? That didn't sound at all right, to the point he rose an eyebrow at what they were being told.

"I agree with you, that doesn't sound at all normal or right." He agreed with Anna's statement, now debating exactly how to take their next course of action. He instantly went into thinking about what their options were. "I don't particularly want to go finding this so called murder victim on the off chance its our kind of weird, so I guess our options are one of two things- we get out of the parking lot and just park somewhere nearby until the others get back, or we stay put in the truck for the others." he thought out loud.

"I'm going with leaving the hospital and park up nearby to wait for the others" he finally said after thinking about it intensely. Sighing and readjusting his sitting position, he turned the keys and started the car up once more. Reversing out of their parking spot, he made a mental note of Natalia's car's spot knowing one of them would have to come back for it somehow or Nat would never forgive them. She loved that thing too much. Putting the truck into drive, he drove out of the lot and drove just a couple of corners down before finding a new spot to park up and stop.

Rummaging for his phone, he pulled it out of his jeans pocket and scrolled through the names before deciding that if Dean was driving it would be safer to call or text Mika instead. So, he went with texting for the time being: 'runaway murder victim and suspect loose at the hospital, left parking lot and parked just down the road round the corner. Will explain when you can call.' and clicked send. "Ok, I've just text Mika to let them know where we are" he told Anna.

MIKA

Dean waving her hands off of him to stop her fussing made her feel a bit better as well as annoyed at him, mostly because it meant he must be feeling better than he was if he's able to try and fight off her checking him over. She just wanted to see for herself that he was indeed okay. "Okay okay..I'll stop fussing" she told him softly as he pushed her back slightly and he insisted on standing up.

She stood up after him, staying close by just in case he lost his balance for whatever reason, but luckily for them both he didn't- just complaining about how sore he was. "I'd rather you be complaining about being sore than dead" she said to him as she dusted her jeans off from having skidded on the floor to reach him. She didn't even care what she must have looked like when she went full blown crazy seeing Dean be pulled out of the rubble, even she knew she could looses all her senses at times when it came to Dean.

When Dean looked over at Esme, Mika followed his gaze and she didn't know how to take it. She knew he would always be worried about Esme, whether she liked it or not. She also knew that Esme did try and help get Nat back for them, even though they purposely left her at the hospital to be with Duke. Then there was another little niggling part of her that partially blamed Esme for Natalia being taken in the first place. She felt so conflicted on how to feel and what opinion to have, it made her head want to spin. She looked back at Dean as he turned back to her and sighed, but nodded.

She let him speak, looking right into his eyes to see if he was telling her truth and he gave her a look she knew all too well. He was being truthful. As he brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her knuckles, she gave him a nod, "okay...okay, go check she's okay and when we're gone from here we can discuss everything..." she replied, agreeing to his terms. With that, she let him pull her close and walked over to the others. When they reach the others, she reluctantly let him go so he could go hug Esme, her heart feeling another tug as she watched the woman who basically saved him all those years ago when she was too stubborn and hurting to keep him around.

NATALIA

Natalia let him speak after he was satisfied that she was indeed okay. The way he began to say something else, but landed on 'those I feel compelled to keep alive', she couldn't help but wonder what it was he actually wanted to say but was seemingly too nervous to say it. She didn't press him on though. Esme's voice breaking through their little moment, made Nat sigh but the moment Esme asked Cason what she did she truly felt sorry for the woman.

If she had been told she wasn't human, she wouldn't be anywhere near as composed as Esme was and Esme wasn't being composed at all. She wanted to hug her herself and knew that if it wasn't for her links with Dean, Mika would actually like her. She also noticed Cason's nervous body language when being confronted by Esme, making her wonder what exactly he had witnessed on that upper floor. Whatever it was, it was to do with Esme and it clearly scared Cason enough to make him feel cautious around her.

She remained silent as he replied to Esme, swearing he would at least try and get her answers even if it may not come to anything. To her, this just showed how different Cason was to any other demon. That he wasn't evil like the others, even if he wasn't perfect. She then glanced across as Dean came in and hugged her instantly even after what he just heard from Castiel. She knew whatever their history was it was clearly strong as he wouldn't have gone anywhere near Esme if she was anyone else, infact Nat was convinced that he would have left Esme on her own right here and now if she wasn't well...her.

Then came the discussion about leaving and Nat couldn't wait to leave once and for all. She let Cason wrap his arm over her shoulder in a very protective manner. The moment he opened his mouth, she knew however that Dean would not go for what he just suggested. Dean snapping proved her thoughts instantly, making her sigh and feel uncomfortable about a possible looming argument over her. The only difference this time round was that she saw valid points from both sides. She wasn't surprised that Dean wouldn't want her out of his sight, but it also wasn't surprising that neither did Cason and certainly want her around her family when the last time that happened she was kidnapped.

As Cason seemed to huff and give in to Dean's orders, she walked with him to the driver's side of the car and went to get in the back seat but not before lifting her hand up and grabbing his arm. "Welcome to the club of not changing Dean's mind" she quietly said to him, then carefully got inside and scooted right across so there was room for him and Esme. This car ride was going to be absolutely mentally painful and cramped, something she was not looking forward to. As Cason got as close as he could to her, she welcomed it, partially hugging him and turning her head to the window.

Looking out the window, she saw Mika pull out her phone and read a message, before hearing her speak to Dean through the window. "Sam and Anna had to move from the hospital parking lot, they're still nearby but something happened about a murder victim and a suspect on the loose." she heard Mika say.

Esme watched Cason, seeing how tense he was. She couldn’t blame him for how she was before she went nuclear. As soon as he frowned, she knew he was confused about why she was asking him, and she probably wouldn’t like his answer. She was right. She didn’t like his answer. He knew nothing. He couldn’t give her the answers she was seeking at that moment. However, she lost a little hope in finding answers when he said he could ask around his circles about someone who could make someone like her and that he never heard of anything like that happening. Mostly, she just wanted to know what in the hell she was since she just found out she wasn’t human. Esme watched Cason studying her. She’d seen the look before. He was trying to read her emotions. She knew he was worried she’d go nuclear again with how upset she was, but she had nothing left. It was a wonder she was actually on her feet. She looked down at his hand as he held it out, then back to his face as he spoke softer. Before she could respond to Cason, Dean came over, turned her, and hugged her gently. Even with his gentleness, she softly whimpered.

Esme welcomed Dean's hug. A tear slid down her cheek as she closed her eyes, rested her forehead on his shoulder, and put her arms around him, feeling the mixture of emotions coming from him. How could he not be feeling a mixture of emotions after learning she wasn’t human? But she knew he was glad she was okay before he said it. “I’m glad you’re okay, too.” she said as he checked her head. At his next question, she softly shook her head. “No, it happened before.” It must have looked worse than she thought if he was that concerned. She could only nod in agreement when Dean told her they needed to get her somewhere and looked over. She knew there would be no arguing with him about not being looked over. She was just starting to feel herself calming when Cason spoke up. Esme sighed through her nose and carefully pulled herself away from Dean before he snapped at Cason. She knew Dean wouldn’t react well to Cason wanting to take Natalia. After stepping back from Dean, she leaned against Sarah again, using her for support while Dean and Cason had their back and forth about Cason getting into the car.

As she leaned against Sarah and listened to the back-and-forth, she knew Cason was in a losing battle; he’d never win this argument against Dean. But she also realized what situation this put her in. She would be crammed in the backseat with Cason and Natalia. It wasn’t until Cason finally gave up, agreed, and got in the car that she groaned inwardly at the situation. Cason had put himself right in the middle, which meant she’d be right next to him. “God, this is going to be one hell of a ride.” she thought with another inward groan. She wasn’t about to bring up her unhappiness about it to Dean. She knew she’d never win that argument, not to mention she didn’t have the energy to fight it. Sighing heavily and with Sarah’s help, Esme made her way over to the open door. Before getting in, she saw that Cason was sitting as close to Natalia as he could get. She mentally shook her head and slowly lowered herself in the seat. “I really did a number on him in there.” she thought as she pulled in her feet. She shifted so her back was to him and rested her head on the back of the seat.

“I’m not going to do anything to you.” she told Cason. “I’m not going to blow again either. I have nothing left.” She looked at the open car door and heard what Mika had said to Dean. “Murder victim and a suspect on the loose. That doesn’t sound right. “ she said softly to herself. Sarah’s head then popped into view. She stuck her head in and softly nuzzled Esme’s cheek, which made her smile. Esme lifted a hand and rubbed Sarah’s head. “I’ll be alright, girl. I’ll see you at the hospital, or you can follow us there.” she whispered so only Sarah could hear her. Sarah gave Esme another soft nuzzle with a soft whine before pulling away, then pushed the door closed with her head. After Sarah closed the door, Esme pressed herself up against the door and looked out the window.

Anna didn’t like the tension she felt in her chest, thinking about why a murder victim would just stand up and walk out of a hospital. Sam brought up exactly what she was thinking. There was a small chance it was their kind of weird, which meant demons, or ghost possession, or zombies. None of those options were things she wanted to deal with after barely making it out of a hunt alive, just a few short hours beforehand.

She simply nodded her head in agreement to his plan. She wanted to leave this place, at least until they met back up with the others. Hopefully Duke was still safe and sound, locked into whatever room that they had put him in after they patched him up. It would be easier to come back and bust him out, than to try and run in and save him, while he was unconscious.

“I think that’s a good idea.” Anna replied to Sam as he turned he engine over and pulled them out of the parking lot. As soon as they made it a couple of blocks down, Anna did a once over of their surroundings and then relaxed in her seat, rubbing her hands on her legs nervously. She glanced over and watched Sam text Mika, the first step in hopefully getting back together and getting the Hell out of this town…as far away from Missouri as possible.

“Hopefully they hurry. The faster I’m locked in a room with a gallon of salt in front of the doors, the better. I definitely need to…to process some things.” She muttered nervously, silently pointing out that she was about to be on her way back down from the demon blood high.



Dean let his shoulders fall as Cason finally agreed to get into the car and he watched Nat and Cason both climb in. Dean took a deep breath, placing his hands on his hips as he leaned forward a bit, giving his brain time to adjust to both being alive and relatively uninjured. But then Mika pulled her phone out and Dean raised an eyebrow at the message she relayed.

“Well that doesn’t sound like anything good. Could be nothing. Could be something.” He frowned, rolling through all the possibilities in his mind. Part of him thought of the possibility that the ‘murder victim’ could be Duke, but he chalked it quickly up to false hope and the refusal to believe that Duke was actually gone. The sudden memory of Esme breaking the news to Dean flew through his mind like lightning, and he brought a hand up to wipe his face. “I don’t know how else to tell you this…so I’m just gonna say it. Um…”

He broke his words off, and dropped his hand back to his hip with a shuddered sigh, tears welling up in his eyes again, “Duke um…Duke didn’t make it. Esme told me he um…he…well he didn’t make it.”

Dean let the news linger in the air, almost feeling like he was hearing it for the first time as well. Duke’s smiling face haunted the back of his mind, and the anguish of losing someone so good, a bright spot in his life threatened to wash over him like a wave. But like he had many times before, while in crisis, Dean shook himself out of it. He buried those emotions and cleared his throat.

“But we have to go. Mika, we gotta go. C’mon.” He croaked out, reaching out and grabbing her hand. He pulled her toward the passenger side of the car, opening the door for her as he sniffled, and helped her in before closing the door and glancing up at the sky for a moment. He then stepped around to the drivers side, and quickly got in, turning the engine over without hesitation. If he didn’t keep working, he would fall apart and if he fell apart, there would be no one to hold everyone else’s pieces together.



Cason draped an arm over Nat’s leg as she settled into the car, and Esme got into the car beside him. He took a deep breath, but then she admitted that she didn’t have the power to hurt him, even if she wanted to. He would have sighed in relief, if he believed for a second that her skin couldn’t hurt him, even with her calm and burned out.

He pulled Nat’s knee a little closer to his own, even though they were already scrunched against each other and he sighed, still keeping himself as far away from any open skin on Esme’s body.

Nat mentioning Mika’s text from Sam perked up his ears and he tilted his head to the side, “Normal human murder stuff or demon stuff?” He asked honestly, trying to figure out if maybe Sam was mistaken, or if it was supposed to sound as strange as it was. Either way, they couldn’t just go back to the hospital and he was tempted to poof himself and Nat out of the car, to some random hotel and then call ahead to Dean. Any reason to piss Dean off just a little more and clear the tension.

As Dean stepped into the car and pulled away from the field, onto the road back to town, Cason leaned forward, close to Dean’s ear and smirked, “You know, I could go ahead and get us a hotel room. I’ll take Nat with me.”

“I’ve already told you no. We’re not going to a hotel in St. Joseph. We’re pulling through.” Dean grumbled simply but Cason scoffed.

“With the shape everyone’s in? Just seems like you’d use the tools you have to get everyone safe.”

“You’re not a tool in my tool kit, asshat. You’re only alive because…” Dean cut himself off, and stopped, staring with a scowl out the windshield as he drove.

“Go on…” Cason teased him, and Dean slapped his hand on the steering wheel, tempted to turn around and deck Cason right then and there, but he rolled his eyes.

“You’re here because Nat’s here. Nat wants you around. Otherwise, I’d blast your ass back to Hell in a heartbeat.”

“Right. That’s the reason I’m still alive.” Cason teased some more, not able to help himself. Dean fell silent, gritting his teeth as he continued driving down that familiar road, trying his hardest not to incriminate himself before he was able to talk to Nat. Cason was pushing him on purpose, and would probably never let him live it down.

After what felt like forever, the town was in the distance, and the Impala headlights caught a figure in their beams. Dean squinted, trying to make sure he didn’t hit the poor guy, as the blonde man seemed disoriented and was walking as if he wasn’t sure where he was. He was wearing an open flannel and a pair of jeans, and Dean couldn’t tell if he was even wearing shoes.

“It’s a little early in the week for drunks to be walking down side roads in the middle of the night, ain’t it? Poor bastard. If we had room, I’d pick him up.” Dean grumbled, right as they passed the guy.

“Wait. That’s…” Cason started, but closed his mouth as they passed, frowning at the back of Dean’s head to see if he would recognize the guy.



Duke looked down at his hands, absentmindedly rubbing them together every now and then, and then placing one over his stomach as he carefully navigated the highway, just wanting to find a trucker or someone that could pick him up. He wasn’t sure why he was alone, but he was. He had to assume something had happened to the group, if they had left his body at the hospital. But had they? Was he even alive? The nurse seemed to think so. Had he actually died? Again…the nurse seemed to think so.

A familiar rumbling engine approached from his back, and Duke didn’t dare turn to face it. He couldn’t afford the false hope that somehow the group had found him, or at best…Dean himself. He tilted his head down and kept walking, the cold air biting his bare skin with every step.

NATALIA

When Cason pulled her knee closer to his, even though it was impossible to do so, Nat let him. She could sense his discomfort of being so close to Esme after whatever happened in the asylum, happened. Putting all the body language together and hearing Esme saying she wouldn't and couldn't hurt him, she figured out what may have happened. She gave his arm a reassuring squeeze yet again after she snaked her arms into the sleeves of his coat. It was large on her but it was a sense of comfort like a blanket.

His question about whether the subject of the text she overheard Mika read out to Dean was a human or demon thing, she shrugged her shoulders even though it ached to do so. "Dunno but if it's the latter I don't want any part of it...no offence. I've had more than my fill on crazy demon things tonight" she replied to him, hoping he would understand she wasn't meaning him, just all the other demons. Even if it was the former, she still didn't want a part of it and wanted to be as far away from any drama as she could possibly get. All she could focus on was trying to warm up and hug her.....boyfriend? Demon partner? She wasn't even sure what to call Cason at this point. Either way, she just wanted to be cuddled up to him and feel safe.

She watched as Dean and Mika finally got into the car, Dean taking up the usual spot behind the wheel and Mika in the front. As they began to drive away, she rested her head on Cason's shoulder as she stared out the window, seeing what was left of the asylum get left behind once and for all. "good riddance" she thought to herself, beginning to finally feel exhausted. That was....until Cason moved forward, making her have to sit upright and he gave Dean lip. She glanced at Esme and gave her the look of 'oh here we go again......' before sighing and slumping as much into her side of the seat as possible. She was so done with the two of them arguing and giving each other crap all the time, she wished just for once they could leave each other alone and stay quiet.

She sighed once again when Cason brought her into the mix to torment Dean, lifting one hand up, propping her elbow on the window and her chin into her palm. "Just stop whilst you're ahead Cason....please" she mumbled when she saw Mika turn round from the seat of her seat and flare at Cason, she knew Mika was about to lecture him like never before making this ride back even more awkwardly silent than it already was going to be.

MIKA

Mika honestly hoped that whatever Sam meant by his words that it was nothing to be of concern. She really didn't want to get involved in anything else tonight. "I hope it's nothing, I really do" she told him back, quickly replying to Sam, Okay, hope it's nothing to worry about. We're on our way back, we got Nat back. She's sore and best up but she's okay. Will explain all when we're back as one group. Cason showed up and saved her. We'll find you two. she typed out and pressed send. She figured it was important to mention Cason and his good deed so he could relay to Anna that Cason was still alive. It was her way of giving Sam an extra bit of good news to help Anna forgive him.

Shoving her phone in her pocket, she was about to walk to the car when he shakily told her what happened to Duke. She froze in her spot, not sure how to take the news. Duke was like her brother, her by mere months younger brother. When her and Dean were apart, Duke was the one secretly keeping her up to date with his well being, secretly being her friend and platonic companion when they were both at Bobby's. They practically grew up together even before all that. Bobby raised them together. She couldn't imagine life without the dorky guy. Her bottom lip quivered as she tried to figure out what to say.

So many memories flashed through her mind, right up to one of the most recent one of him asking if Dean had put a ring on her finger yet when they reunited. A single tear fell from her right eye and down her cheek. It was only when Dean forced her out of her mind, that she snapped out of it and nodded. She knew what he was doing, and it was the right choice to make. They had to stay focused or they'd completely all crumble like the asylum did moments ago.

"R-right...right, let's go" she stammered getting into the front passenger seat, seeing how the others were all cramped up in the back seat. If Dean hadn't dropped the bombshell on her, she would have smirked and found amusement in it, even a joke possibly but all that snark and sass was gone from her mind and soul. She just stared forward as Dean began the drive back towards the hospital even though they weren't stopping there. She hated the silence as it just made her sink back into the pits of her own head once again, but when Cason just HAD to push Dean all over again, she gritted her teeth trying to remain quiet. She really really tried to hold her tongue as she could see what Cason was trying to do and it was clear that even Nat wasn't in the mood for it.

Eventually she snapped, turning her head to face Cason in the back and glared at him, "you need to quit while you're ahead right now or I will make Dean turn this car around and I will beat you myself into Timbuktu. Do I make myself clear?!" She lectured him, her tone of voice making it very clear that this was not up for discussion or negotiation. He was to remain silent and not piss her or Dean off in any way.

----

When they pretty much got back into town and passed the seemingly drunk guy down the highway, she sighed and nodded in agreement at Dean's words. After everything that had gone down this night it didn't even twig to her that it was Duke. "hopefully he'll be alright" she replied back, glancing behind her to look at the guy and it still not falling into realisation that it was their Duke.

As she did look behind, she saw Nat was near enough asleep on Cason's shoulder, her arms now wrapped round his arm, his coat looking like a sleeping bag on her. It was the first time during the drive that the tiniest hint of a smile appeared on her lips. "You're staring" Nat's sleepy voice spoke up, klsensing Mika's eyes upon her even though her own were shut. "just glad you're getting some rest sweetheart" she commented before looking forward again.

SAM

Sam initially didn't get Mika's reply as he was driving out of the parking lot to get to their new spot. He was glad that Anna agreed with his idea and thought it was the best option in this moment. When they reached the new parking spot, he pulled his phone out to see that Mika had replied to him, so he opened the text and read what she put, a massive sigh of relief escaping him. He couldn't help but smile as he exhaled, slumping into his seat, "they got Nat back...and you'll be pleased to know it was Cason who saved her. He survived and got out Anna" he told her.

"Apparently she's a bit beat up but she's okay, Cason saved her and they're on their way back to us. Said she would explain everything when they get here if we want explanations. But honestly I'm just glad both Cason and Nat are alive and with them" he told her honestly. He really did mean it when he said he was glad Cason survived. He still felt guilty about leaving him and following Dean's orders but that didn't outmatch the relief he felt at this new bit of news. he just hoped that Anna would be as relieved, if not more so than he was.

If anyone deserves a bit of good news right now it was her.

Esme barely listened to Cason as he questioned the news they just heard. But he did have a good question, seeing as it could be supernatural-related. Her mind didn't even go to the possibility of it being Duke, even if she wanted to refuse that he was really gone. Plus, none of them were fit to go and investigate the situation. Esme closed her eyes with a heavy sigh, and she could see Duke’s face with a smile so bright that it reached his blue eyes. The image made her heart hurt. She closed her eyes tighter and wiped away a tear on her cheek. “You didn't deserve to go out like that. I'm so sorry, Duke. I should have tried harder to keep you with us.” she told herself. Esme pulled her jacket tighter around herself as she hung onto the image of Duke. When Dean got into the Impala and started it, she opened her eyes, watching as they left the field and got into the highway. She was more than happy to leave this place behind and all the memories connected to it, but she knew those memories would be hard to forget, no matter how hard she tried.

But as soon as they got onto the highway, she was pulled from her thoughts of Duke by Cason pushing Dean’s buttons. “Really? You just couldn’t keep quiet?” she groaned quietly. As they bickered, Esme tried to tune them out, but it was proving difficult and getting irritating. This trip was long enough with all the tension build-up. They didn’t need Cason pushing Dean. By the time she had enough, Mika turned around and lectured Cason. Then everything went quiet. Her thoughts went blank as she stared out the window. After what felt like ages on the road, she saw the town come into view and a figure lit up by the Impala’s headlights. Esme watched the figure as they got closer, noticing they had blonde hair and were wearing an open flannel and a pair of jeans. When Dean spoke as they passed the man, Esme’s eyes widened in surprise. She knew that blonde hair. She knew those scars. “Duke?” she whispered, confused. She bolted up in the seat, ignoring the pain shooting through her body, and yelled at Dean, already reaching for the door handle to jump out. “Stop the car! Now!”

Dean flinched like he was shot when Esme suddenly lurched forward and yelled at him to pull over. He slammed on the breaks, reflexively and the Impala came to a screeching halt in the middle of the empty highway.
"What the hell?! Are you trying to get everyone killed?" He scolded her, turning his rearview mirror down to look back at her like an angry father.

Esme already had the door open before the Impala came to a complete stop. She looked at Dean briefly in the mirror, catching his look, but she said nothing back as she quickly scrambled out of the Impala. She didn’t care he was upset with her for yelling for him to stop. She had to know if that was really him or if her eyes were playing tricks on her because of her grief. If it really was him, could he possibly be a Zombie or possessed? She was told that he died. There’s no other way he could be up and walking unless he was a Zombie or possessed. She ran a few feet past the Impala's back end and stopped, staring at the man walking away in front of her. “Is that really you?” she asked herself, tears already welling up in her eyes. There was only one way for her to be sure, one thing she could call out that she knew he’d react to. “Jason!” she called out to him.

Dean sighed, watching Esme glance to him before jumping from the car like a maniac after the drunk guy. He turned and looked at Mika, slapping his hand on the steering wheel. He couldn't let her just get out on her own and go after some random guy in the shape she was in. He opened his door and stepped out after her, following her around the back of the car, but keeping some distance behind her.

Duke had stopped walking, staring at the back of the Impala blankly as it screeched to a stop. There was no way it was real. He was now seeing things. Whatever had brought him back was making him see things...
He squinted, trying to make out what he was seeing. Suddenly, Esme's voice rang out in the dark, a snappy call of his real name and his body flinched as if shocked by electricity. He winced as if he was scolded by a parent. Raising his hand, he covered the tail light of the Impala to see her better, but said nothing at first. She knew his name. She used his real name. It was like a jolt of lightning to his heart and let out an exasperated sigh.
"Esme?" He called to her, his voice hoarse and broken. "I-I don't know what I'm seein'..."

His southern drawl was almost thicker than ever with his confusion, and he sounded like a confused little boy. Dean gasped, his eyes saucers behind Esme as he heard that voice, Duke's scared voice. It was like heaven to his ears in that moment but he couldn't move, just staring at him, tempted to pull Esme back, in case it was a trick. "Duke?"

Esme had stepped forward when he stopped walking and turned to face them. As soon as he flinched and winced at his real name being used, she knew it was him. There was no doubt in her mind that it wasn’t him. He hated being called Jason and would get angry if anyone called him that. He always referred to it as his government name. Then he called out to her. His southern drawl coming in thicker than she ever heard was full of confusion and fear that it broke her heart to hear. Tears were now streaming down her cheeks. It took Dean’s voice behind her to get her to move from where she was rooted. She stepped away from Dean and then broke into a run toward Duke, almost slipping as she went. When she was close enough, she jumped into his arms, wrapping her arms and legs around him and burying her face into his neck. Esme couldn’t control her tears as she held onto him. “How?” she sobbed. “How are you here? I thought I lost you.”

Duke didn't know whether to walk toward Esme or to stay planted in case she thought he was some kind of monster. He wasn't even sure that he wasn't some kind of monster, if he was being honest with himself. His hand was beginning to shake as he held it in front of his face, and then suddenly, Esme broke into a run toward him.
He turned a bit, ready to run away from her, or at least brace himself for an attack, when she threw herself into his arms. With a loud groan, he caught her, his knees nearly buckling as he wrapped his arms around her to keep her from hitting the ground. He stared over her shoulder at Dean, who was still just standing there, watching them with wide teary eyes.

The questions Esme asked both made perfect sense and no sense at all, to Duke. Obviously, he had died, somehow. But he didn't have an answer as to how he was alive. He didn't feel like he was fresh from death, other than a sore throat and a few stitches. Duke brought a hand up to the back of Esme's neck, trying to provide her some type of comfort as he frowned and buried his face into her shoulder. The emotions of it all weren't hitting him, yet, other than fear. He was scared to death, and his heart was racing. He could feel it in his neck as it hammered away, "I don't know, babydoll. I don't even know if this is real..."

Esme clung to Duke, fearing that if she let go, he’d disappear right before her eyes. Feeling his hand rest on the back of her neck, his face on her shoulder, and his racing heart, she nuzzled her face into his neck. She knew he was scared. She could feel it. She was also scared. She feared this was some sort of sick joke the universe was playing on her, and once she thought she had him back, he’d be gone again. Then he called her by his nickname for her and confessed he didn't know if this was real. That tore at her heartstrings, and she cried more. She never thought she would hear him call her that again. She pulled her face from his neck, took his face in her hands, and looked into his fear-filled blue eyes with her own. She sniffled, then lifted a hand from his face to brush his hair from his face, then played with the hair at the back of his neck. “I know, my dear, sweet, bright-eyed cowboy.” she said softly. She leaned in and softly kissed his nose, wishing she could take away his fear and help him see this was real. Esme pulled back and lovingly ran her thumb over his cheek.

“After what you’ve been through today, it must seem like you’re in a dream. But I am here.” she told him. She softly kissed his cheek, then kissed his lips sweetly. After a moment, she broke the kiss and rested her forehead against his. “Come home with me, Bright Eyes?” she whispered as a tear slid down her cheek. “If this isn’t real, then what harm will it do?”

Duke wasn't sure what Esme was going to do as she pulled back from his shoulder and looked into his eyes, her hands on his cheeks like little slices of heaven. He was so relieved to feel the warmth of her skin against his, even if every part of him was telling him to pull away from her and keep walking. He hated seeing Esme cry. It wasn't anything he ever wanted to cause, and it wasn't making his emotions any more stable as his eyes welled up in tears, staring down at her with scared eyes.

As her hand began to move his hair around, he was reminded of how comforting the simple action always was, back even before she loved him. That alone was enough to send memories rushing in, behind his teary eyes. He closed his eyes, a couple of tears streaming down his cheeks as she kissed his nose, and then he sighed, taking in her words. I'm here.

He didn't shy away from her kiss, closing his eyes once again as he kissed her back, his own hand coming up to cradle her jaw as he allowed his shoulders to relax, just enough to try and enjoy kissing her in such an impossible moment. He sighed, slowly opening his eyes as she broke the kiss and asked him to come home with her, her nickname for him slipping off her lips like second nature. He nodded slowly, another tear slipping down his cheek.
"Okay. I-I think I can do that."

Esme smiled as she lifted her head from his, leaning her face slightly into his hand still on her jaw. His touch calming her. She was happy that he agreed to go with her. She didn't know what she would have done if he had refused. She lovingly brushed his tears from his cheeks and kissed his nose ever so gently. “Please don't cry, Bright Eyes. It’ll be okay.” she told him softly. She placed a soft kiss on each of his eyelids, then his cheek, before she unwrapped her legs from around him and placed her feet on the ground. Then, she let her arms slide from around his neck so her hands rested on his bare chest and looked up at him with a warm smile. She then turned slightly to look back at Dean, who was still standing by the Impala. She could just barely make out his face from the taillights, but she saw his tears as he looked at her and Duke. Esme then turned back to Duke, took his hand in hers, and squeezed it as she brought it to her lips and kissed his fingers. “Come on. Let’s get you out of the cool night air.” She then lifted his arm and draped it over her shoulders, then wrapped her arm around his waist, pulling him close to her before pulling him towards Dean and the Impala.

Duke breathed another sharp sigh of relief as Esme brushed his tears, and spoke his nickname once again. It almost felt too good to be true, to hear it again. He closed his eyes, not flinching away from the kisses to his eyelids and his cheek. If it was a dream, or fake, or whatever it was...It had to be a good thing, right?
As Esme lowered herself to the ground, he held onto her a bit tighter, until he knew she was steady on her feet. He reached up and wrapped his fingers around one of her hands on his chest as she turned to look at Dean, following her eyes to another face he never thought he would see again. He nodded his head, and Dean nodded back, wiping a hand down his face before turning to walk back to the drivers side of the Impala. Dean opened the door, looking back at them briefly with a sigh, and then leaned in.

"One of you climb up front." Dean barked to Cason and Nat in the backseat.

Duke looked back down at Esme, squeezing her hand tightly as she brought it to her lips and kissed his fingers. He simply nodded at her, barely even realizing that part of the numbness in his body was due to him being cold. He leaned his head to the side as she draped his arm over her shoulder, and he kissed her hair, a simple gesture to try and prove to himself that he was indeed touching her as they walked back to the car.

Esme smiled when Duke kissed her hair, then she held him tighter. She wanted to let him know that she was really there and not some dream or illusion. She walked back to the Impala slowly for him and also for herself as she could feel her pain returning. She was also starting to feel the cold settling in despite wearing a jacket. But she didn’t care about herself at that moment. Her focus was on getting Duke in the car, warmed up, and giving him a good looking over. Then, later, figure out how he was even alive. Everything in her screamed that he shouldn’t be at her side while she helped him walk to the Impala. He had died in the hospital. She couldn’t think of any explanation that could explain how he was there. When things settled down, maybe she could ask Bobby to help her find the answer because this confused the hell out of her. As far as she knew, none of them made a deal to bring him back, and she surely couldn’t see the angels stepping in to bring him back. She shook the thoughts from her mind and focused back on Duke and getting him to the car. “Almost there.” she said softly to him after a bit of time had passed.

Once they reached the Impala, she looked up at him and smiled warmly, but she didn’t let him go. Even though he had agreed to come with her, part of her was still afraid he’d run as soon as she let him go. She then looked at everyone sitting inside, wondering how they were going to do this, someone was going to have to move up front, and she knew Cason would have a problem being moved away from Natalia. Esme then looked back up at Duke, studying his face for a moment. “You doing alright?” she asked in a concerned tone.

As Duke and Esme reached the Impala, Duke stilled a bit, his eyes fixed in position as he zoned out and stared off into space over the top of the car. He barely even noticed the shuffling happening inside the car, as Cason quickly found a solution to keep Nat near him, and lifted her up, scooting underneath her. Cason sat Nat down, across his lap, and held his hands up to Dean who glared at him for a moment and then sighed, rolling his eyes. Dean simply got into the car, and sighed again, "I work with children. We just found Duke, walking half naked down the side of the road, and the biggest issue the demon in my backseat has is possibly touching skin with one of us..."

Duke glanced down at Esme, flinching from his thoughts a bit as she asked if he was doing okay. He nodded quickly, pasting a sweet smile to his face, "I'm good. For now, I'm good."

"So, there's room." Cason called to them, gesturing his hand for the newly empty seat beside him. "I'll take the cowboy!"

Duke nearly laughed as Cason volunteered him to sit in the middle. He had no idea why Cason was suddenly so weary of Esme. Despite the obvious background Cason and Esme had, Cason had never seemed particularly scared of her. Duke bent down, hissing a bit as his stitches pulled in his cold skin, and he opened the drivers back door letting go of Esme only to crawl in. It was awkward, sitting knee to knee with a demon, but at least Nat's legs gave a small buffer as Duke folded his hands over his lap. He tried not to notice that Dean was staring at him through the rearview mirror, tears in his eyes and a constant look of disbelief plastered on his face.

Esme took note of how Duke flinched when she asked if he was alright, as if she had pulled him out of his thoughts, but she gave a sweet smile in return to his reply. As she looked up at him, she knew something was bothering him and she wished she knew what, but she wasn't going to press him for answers. It wasn't the time. Hopefully, he’d be up to talking about it later. When Cason called to them, Esme looked away from Duke and into the backseat to see that Cason had placed Natalia in his lap and had scooted all the way over. She sighed at what he said. Of course, he’d choose to have Duke sit in the middle over herself. He was still scared about what she might or could do to him. When Duke bent down and hissed, Esme winched at the same time, but said nothing as he opened the door. After he let go of her, she stayed close as he crawled in and sat next to Cason. She knew it had to be awkward for the guy, even with Natalia’s legs as a buffer. Esme stood at the door and sighed heavily through her nose, the realization of having Duke with her washing over her once again.

She tilted her head back and looked up at the sky, fighting the tears that were threatening to show themselves again. “Please. Please, don’t let this be some sick joke.” she whispered so no one could hear her. It was still hard to believe he was actually there, sitting in the backseat. Dropping her head, she sniffled, closed her eyes, and wiped her face clear of tears with both hands. Then, she got into the backseat with a wince next to Duke and closed the door. She looked up and saw Dean staring at Duke with disbelief in his teary eyes through the rearview mirror. She gave him a look that said, “It’s hard to believe he’s really here.” Dropping her eyes to the back of the front seat, Esme snaked her hand under Duke’s arm, wrapped her arms around his, and rested her head against his shoulder. She just wanted to hold him close and let him know everything would be okay and she was there for him. Turning her head, she buried her face into his shoulder and rubbed her thumb soothingly on his arm.

NATALIA

When Esme yelled at for Dean to stop the car, it jolted Nat awake. She groaned in tired irritation as she readjusted her position as much as was possible to try and get comfortable again in Cason's side. She just wanted to sleep, was that really too much to ask for? Clearly it was she thought. "now what..?" She complained as she saw out the corner of her eye Dean also annoyed but follow Esme out of the car. She tried to ignore everyone seemingly on high alert and whatever was going to happen outside of the car. She didn't even want to acknowledge that even Cason seemed to recognise Duke before Esme did.

However she could hear Esme scream Duke's real name and for a moment didn't even put the two things together, until she overheard Dean outside saying Duke's name. This woke her up more, making her sit upright and look out the back window. It was then she did infact see Esme and Dean staring at Duke before Esme just ran at him and leapt on him. "Oh damn! That IS Duke!" She gasped, watching the whole thing unravel out on the empty road. She couldn't believe he actually got out of the hospital even if he looked utterly confused and dazed about how he was standing there. Although she didn't know he was perceived as dead, she still found it surprising that he was out of the hospital. They were just heading back towards there to get Sam and Anna and possibly see how Duke was doing. This night was really giving more surprises by the hour it felt like.

When Dean came over telling them one of them had to go up front, she was prepared to volunteer herself when Cason just found a loophole in the situation and put her on his lap so he could scoot into her spot. It wasn't in the least bit safe but she wasn't going to argue, instead just deciding to be as comfortable as she could be on his lap. She watched as Duke painfully got into the car, sitting next to Cason, making him the new piggy in the middle, her legs becoming a barrier between Cason and Duke's legs. He looked awful, but he was alive and that was the best she figured they could ask for right now. "glad to have you back Duke" she told him.

She looked forward as Esme got in the car after him and saw Mika just staring at him like he was a ghost and she couldn't help but wonder why Duke was getting such looks. "Jeez guys... You're looking creepy with the way your staring at him" she remarked, draping one arm over Cason's arms holding her and gave Duke a friendly pat on his knee before wrapping her other arm on Cason's. A part of her wanted to make a quip like 'look at us...all couples together!' but she refrained from it because she wasn't sure how anyone would take it, especially Cason as they hadn't had a moment to discuss what they even were to each other.

MIKA

"Esme for crying out loud!" Mika called out as she watched the woman jump out the car even before Dean managed to come to a full stop. She really couldn't help but wonder what kind of death wish Esme had if she was doing such reckless things. she looked back at Dean as he glanced at her and gave him the nod to go after Esme, "go before she gets herself hurt" she told him with a sigh, putting her hand in her hand, running it through her hair in defeat almost. She was just so tired of the day and wanted to go to a bed and hope tomorrow brought a better day for them all. She really couldn't take anymore surprises whilst she sat in the front seat still processing the night and the news that Duke was dead. Only for all of that to get turned on it's head as she hears Esme scream Duke's real name. Her head remained forward but her eyes went wide in disbelief. "did she really say Jason?" she thought to herself. "surely I'm imagining things, Esme told Dean he had died in the hospital...Duke is gone. Wait...is Duke the one the hospital is searching for?! Is this real?!" she kept thinking, with more and more thoughts racing through her head.

Yet she couldn't bring herself to look out the window or get out of the car to look for herself. She was too scared that she was mishearing the names and just having a force sense of hope that he was back and found them all. "Meeko it's really him!" Nat said to her, still watching the reunion between Esme, Duke and Dean. Yet Mika shook her head, "nope...can't be...nope, I refuse to believe it" she replied, eventually wiping her eyes from the build up of tears that suddenly refused to fall.

She only turned her head when Dean came back, opened the back door and told Nat and Cason to pick who was going to buddy up in the front so Duke could fit in the back. If Dean was saying this then it meant it was true. Duke was back from the dead somehow and they had to find out the answers. Yet Cason made her roll her eyes once more when he lifted Nat up just enough to scoot underneath her and put her on his lap. "always gotta find a loophole..." She scoffed, looking forward again for a moment until Esme walked Duke back to the car and Duke got in first carefully.

It was then she turned her head to look at him and she just stared with bewilderment. She couldn't even talk or say anything to him, all she could do was stare even when Esme got in after Duke. She saw how Esme linked arms with Duke and held onto him as if he would just vanish at any given moment. She realised she must have looked like a strange person just looking at him, but she was convinced if she looked away, he wouldn't be there and this was all a dream.

Anna glanced over from her peering around like an anxious prey victim, as Sam let out a sigh of relief. The mission had gone well, to get Nat back. She could already tell, by that sigh of relief. But that didn’t change the fact that they were down a man…and a demon, and now they were stuck waiting around to be able to leave this stupid town.

“Good…” Anna nodded, genuinely happy that Nat was safe, but exhausted. But then his next words completely stopped her heart for a brief second, as her eyes went wide and she turned to him, “What? Cason’s alive?!”

She turned back to stare at the console in front of her as tears welled up in her eyes. This whole thing had worked out. The principle of what had been done was still going to linger in the air…for a while. But Cason was alive. As far as Anna knew, they were all alive, somehow. Against all odds, they had all survived such a hopeless situation.

“Wait. Cason is with Dean? I can’t imagine that is anything but Nat twisting arms. Dean tried to kill him. If not for the optics, Dean wouldn’t have left him, he would have killed him.” Anna grumbled, although her breathing was quick and overwhelmed as she grappled the the news, and the confusion of it all. “But at least they’re alive. Now hopefully Duke pulls through and we can all get the hell out of this town.



Dean lifted his eyes to meet Esme’s as she gave him a look that he echoed. He truly couldn’t believe that Duke was sitting there, whole, in his car. It was odd, still, to see Duke and Esme so close, even if he had felt like they would end up together, if they ever found themselves close enough. They had been huddled up close and cozy ever since Duke had stumbled onto their little family, and part of him was just happy to see both Duke and Esme happy…even if it was awkward after all these years.

Duke tried to ignore the looks he was getting, as he pulled his elbow tighter to his body, holding Esme’s arms to him as she wrapped up on his arm. So, it was true. He had died. Like…dead dead. The way Mika was staring at him. The way Dean was staring at him. The way Esme was clinging to him for dear life. He had died, and the world he had seen after passing out in the Impala must have been Heaven.

“Yeah. It’s like you’re all looking at a ghost.” Cason followed up Nat’s comment, and Duke sighed and gritted his teeth for a second before holding his free hand out.

“Because they feel like they are. I mean…I did die, right?”

Dean tensed suddenly, and tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

“No. No you didn’t. The people at the hospital just made a mistake is all. We…we will figure it all out, alright? But I don’t want to talk about it right now. I just want to be glad you’re with us, man.” Dean stopped the conversation cold. Duke nodded his head, his hair falling into his eyes as he looked down at his lap, staring at the dried blood spatters on the denim. “Alright?”

“Alright.” Duke responded, his voice small and unconvinced. Cason glanced between all four of them, narrowing his eyes. If Duke was alive, and Esme, Dean and Mika didn’t expect him to be…something brought him back. He didn’t dare mention it, as Dean would have likely broken his nose, whether Nat was on his lap or not. But he had his questions that he would be trying to find answers to later.

“Let’s figure out where we’re going from this place. Do we know of any place that’s near us?” Dean asked Mika, trying to help shake her out of her shock, as well. But Cason spoke up and Dean shrugged his shoulders at the answer that came back.

“Sioux Falls is four hours Northwest. Doesn’t your…Bobby live there?”

“Yeah. Meeko, what do you think. Bobby’s?” Dean answered, and Duke suddenly broke his own silence.

“Call him. Let’s go home. Safest place I can think of.” Duke murmured, trying not to drive any sort of conflict. He didn’t want any conflict, while he was still processing his own humanity or…whatever. “I mean, if you guys want to…”

“That sounds great Duke. Really. Now, rest, dude. Snuggle up with your girl. Get some rest. You’re home. You’re safe with us. We got you.” Dean reassured Duke as he glanced back and saw the light that he loved so much about his other half…just missing. Duke wasn’t acting like Duke. Even on death’s door, Dean had never seen him this dark, scared and quiet. No teeth glaring in the headlights on the road, as Duke smiled. No bright blue eyes twinkling. He was just…a shell. “Don’t you forget it, alright? We got you. I’ve always got you.”

“Yeah. Thanks…” Duke muttered, forcing his best polite smile before dropping it and turning his eyes back down to the blood spatters on his jeans.

MIKA AND NATALIA

Mika tried all her might to snap out of her shocked state and turn away from Duke, but it was difficult. When she did manage to break away from looking at him, she found herself looking back at him quickly again to make sure he was still there. The short moments she did try and look away, she noticed a look of awkwardness mixed in with the shock of this discovery on Dean's face. She knew his every single expression, even micro ones that his awkwardness after seeing Esme and Duke so close didn't go unnoticed on her. Although it was clearly wasn't jealousy or anywhere near that, it was awkwardness and way back in the back of her mind, she knew when her and Dean finally chatted once more about this, no information kept back, she might finally get some answers as to why he felt awkward about those two being close. For now, she couldn't think about this whole other situation as she still tried to ground herself whilst in the car which was proving difficult to do.

When Duke replied to Nat and Cason's comment, she felt her hand clench in her lap and a tiny quick, blink and you'd miss it twitch in the corner of her eye appeared. She didn't want to think about Duke being dead, even though that was all she could think about right now as it made no sense why he was alive in the back of the impala. Even Natalia found herself looking at them all to try and study their reactions and she came up with the same conclusion as Cason did. If they truly believed Duke had died, then what the hell brought him back? She felt like she could almost hear Cason's mind as it raced through the same question as hers did. She only stayed more grounded than the others because she was convinced she was dying earlier, she didn't know Duke had technically died and sheer exhaustion was creeping up on her once more.

When Dean asked Mika about where to go from here and Cason mentioned Bobby's name along with Dean calling her by her nickname that Sam gave her when he was a young kid, did she snap fully out of her trance like state. "right...right. Bobby, I'll call him now" she said, gathering herself and pulling her out, "Nat do me a favour if you can and text Sam to tell him where we're headed and just to follow on?" She asked her, "sure" Nat replied, pulling out her phone of her pocket only to find it was soaked right through to the inside and now didn't work.

"It's broken...ya know, from my drowning?" She spoke up, shaking her phone to show Mika and Dean, only for water to splash out of every nook and cranny the phone had onto her already wet body. Mika sighed, "okay, I'll tell him after I've spoken to Bobby...unless someone else wants to let Sam know?" She replied, before glancing round at the group then back at her phone, pressing the quick dial on Bobby's name and holding her phone up to her ear.

"Hey Bobby....yes I'm aware....yes I'm sorry I haven't checked in sooner, the job was more complicated than initially thought...but listen, we're four hours out of your place and we really need to do the drive to you. I'll explain better when we get there but we need to come home.....thanks......oh! And if possible, pull the old girl out of the garage? We're gonna need the space created." She spoke on the phone, knowing she was cryptic on her last remark, but didn't care. She knew Bobby still had the old rv and figured it would be the perfect thing to have as extra places to sleep. She also figured it might help Duke feel a bit more grounded and alive if he saw it. Once she was done talking, she hung up and then focused on texting Sam once more.

"Hey, we found Duke walking the highway. Think he might have been your escaped murder victim. So get on the road- we're driving straight to Bobby's to lay low." she pressed send and put her phone away. She then looked at Nat via the rearview mirror, "we'll get you a new phone once back at Souix Falls okay?" She told her, feeling like she needed to truly mother the girl even though Nat wasn't a kid. Nat nodded at Mika's words relaxing on Cason's lap, but not before giving Duke a little reassuring nudge with her leg. She really felt sorry for the guy and felt like she could partially relate to what he must be feeling. She was close to welcoming death and he actually died.

SAM

Sam felt beyond elated that Nat was found and alive. He hadn't even realised through his fear of maybe loosing Anna, and their talk that he was also harbouring so much fear of Dean finding Nat dead and he wasn't there with her. Then the reality kicked in what he said and he watched Anna's eyes go wide. He nodded at her question that was seeking confirmation of what he said before seeing her turning forward and just crying. He knew it must have been of great relief for her to know Cason wasn't dead and gone just yet.

"Yeah.... I figured as much as well, I'm also guessing as it was Cason that got to Nat, Dean is probably feeling he owes Cason by not killing him right now. There's no way Nat isn't involved somehow in this" he replied, agreeing that it had to be Nat twisting Dean's arm in some way that was allowing Cason to still be with them all. "I'm just happy they're all alive and coming back" he added, wanting to hug her, but wasn't sure if she wanted him to right at this moment. So he kept his arms to himself and remained sat in the driver's side.

He sat in silence for a while as they waited for the others to show, unsure of what else to say to her that they hadn't already discussed. The silence becoming deafening almost, until his phone went off again, almost making him jump. Pulling it out, he read the text, then read it again. "uhh...seems we're heading straight to Bobby's. They found Duke wandering the high way on their way back. So we gotta go..." He relayed the message onto Anna, seeing if her mind could catch up to what he read as he was still partially trying to figure that one out.

"I swear this night is getting more confusing as it goes on" he sighed, "ready to get outta here?" He asked Anna, knowing it was a stupid question but he asked it anyway.

As Esme sat in the backseat clinging to Duke’s arm, her fear for him was growing stronger by the minute. She had been trying to push it from her mind since she realized it was him walking down the road. Sure, it was apparent he was scared and confused when they found him on the road, but she thought he’d be more happy to see them by now. She thought she’d see his bright smile by now and his blue eyes twinkling brightly, but they weren’t. She had never seen him this dark, not even in the most dire situations. It scared the hell out of her to see him in that state of mind, and she knew it was probably showing in her eyes by now. He wasn’t the Duke she had met all those years ago, nor the Duke she had fallen in love with. He had returned to her a different man, as if something inside him was missing. Esme would give anything to see him as she always knew him, to hear him tease one of them. Just a smile would make her feel better. But she could see she wouldn’t get any of that soon.

When the conversation started, Esme pulled her face from Duke’s shoulder but didn’t lift her head from it. It was then she caught Mika staring at Duke, realizing Dean must have told her about Duke dying before they left the field. Cason’s and Duke’s following words made her feel sick; she couldn’t open her mouth to respond, but Dean did. He stopped the conversation cold, not allowing anyone else to discuss it. Esme lifted her eyes to the rearview mirror, watching Dean as he spoke to Duke. The way Duke responded broke her heart more than it already had. He was like a child being scolded. Esme lifted her head from Duke’s shoulder when the conversation of where they should go started. Even before Cason said it, she was thinking about Bobby’s. That was one place where she had always felt safe and comfortable. Her eyes turned to Duke as he broke his silence. She tried to smile but couldn’t. She couldn’t even force one. Before she could respond to Duke, Dean had. It caused her to look back in the rearview mirror. He said something she never thought she'd hear him say to Duke, ‘Snuggle up with your girl.’

It shouldn’t have surprised her, but it did. She and Duke were together now, but it sounded strange coming from Dean’s mouth. Everything else was spot on. When Dean glanced back at Duke, she could see that he felt the same way about Duke as she did; she could also feel it. She would have smiled at Dean’s last words to Duke if she could have. She knew Dean would do anything for Duke, just as she would. Esme looked back at Duke as he responded to Dean in a mutter and gave him a forced smile. This was not her Duke at all. She unwrapped one of her arms from around Duke’s, brought her hand up, and placed it gently on his cheek as she turned towards him, even though it hurt like hell. “Duke?” she said softly. “Duke, please look at me.” She lovingly rubbed her thumb on his cheek, unwrapped her other arm from around his, brushed his hair from his face, and placed it on his other cheek, looking into his eyes. “We will figure all this out…… I promise you, Duke. I won't stop looking until I have the answers…. You hear me? I won't stop looking.”

Esme did her best to drive home what she was saying to him, hoping she was getting through to him. Hoping that some part of him deep down believed what she was telling him. After looking into his eyes for a moment, she gently pulled his face to her and sweetly kissed his forehead. Releasing his face, she wrapped her arms around him, pulled him into her, hugged him, and stroked his hair. “I love you, Bright Eyes.” she softly whispered, hugging him a little tighter and closing her eyes. “I’d do anything for you…. I’d do anything to bring back your bright smile and that twinkle in your eyes.” Esme didn’t care if the others heard her. Everything she was saying to Duke was true and she prayed he knew that. She pressed a soft kiss to his head as she held him to her, fighting the tears that burned at her closed eyes as she continued to stroke his hair. “I’m here. We’ll get through this together. But for now, just rest.” she told him, dropping her voice more. Esme sniffled and opened her eyes and softly sighed. She was terrified she wouldn’t be able to bring him out of this, even with the help of Dean and the others.

Anna nodded along with Sam. She was more than excited they were all okay. There wasn’t much reason to still be upset, other than the principle of trying to kill Cason, after all the help he had provided, against Hell’s wishes. Cason had risked his entire existence to keep her safe, and then stayed…when he didn’t have to. He had gotten close to the Winchesters, and not run away when things were the worst for him. But he was alive, and she couldn’t wait to see him again…and if anything, thank him for helping her stay alive, while they waited for Sam.

The thought of the demon blood still in her system crossed her mind, as she thought of Cason. She wondered if they would end up drying her out again, something she wanted to absolutely refuse, or if Cason would give her more blood. She was drawn from her thoughts by Sam speaking up about another text.

“Wait. We’re going to Bobby’s?” She started, deciding not to fight him on it just yet as the rest of of the text hit her. Duke was roaming around on the highway after being skewered? Duke was practically dead when they were in the barn. There was no way he was just up and walking around, unless…”Duke is the murder victim. That means one of us is probably the murderer. Damn. Yeah we gotta go. They’re probably sending out every cop in the state to find him and whichever one of us they think…killed him.”

She had trouble finishing that sentence, but she sighed in unison with Sam and nodded her head, “Yeah. Let’s…let’s get to Bobby’s, I guess.”



Dean was relieved, when Mika finished the phone call with Bobby. Bobby seemed more excited for them to show up than they were to get there. Bobby’s was a safe space. Some of them would have to sleep on the floor in the living room. They would likely have to deal with Anna’s demon blood situation. And it sounded like at least one or two of them would end up in the RV. But they could figure all of that out when they got there. At that moment, they just needed…to get there. Dean glanced back at Duke once again as Esme called Duke’s name.

He sighed, not wanting to watch anymore. He wanted to talk to Duke alone, when he wasn’t stuck in an impossible to understand situation, when he was home, and safe.

Cason simply wrapped his arms a little tighter around Natalia. The whole situation and vibe jarring him, as he thought about how close Nat had actually come to dying in that asylum. He wasn’t the least bit excited to walk back into Bobby’s booby trapped hell hole. But he knew Nat would be safe there. He knew that Bobby would do everything to keep the ones he considered his ‘kids’ safe. That was good enough for Cason, even if the house was rigged to literally bite his ass.

“He’s gonna be okay…” Cason whispered in Nat’s ear, as she nudged Duke. The guy honestly seemed like he needed space that he couldn’t have, but also seemed like he would melt away if he wasn’t touched by someone he trusted. It wasn’t an emotion Cason would wish on his worst enemy.



Duke nearly flinched when Esme pulled her arms from him, his brain telling him to reach for her arms, to hold her as close to him as he possibly could, but then her hand came to touch his face and she said his name. He closed his eyes tightly, at the soft touch, until she asked him to look at her, which he opened his eyes and turned to do. He followed her eyes, his own eyes darting between both of hers as she spoke to him. Duke took a deep breath, not moving as Esme pushed his hair from his face and he began to shake his head.

“I don’t want that…”, He started, but he pressed his lips together and stopped resisting, and conceded with a soft nod. He didn’t want any of them going out there and trying to find anything. That never ended well for anyone. They ended up digging up bad crap every single time that they went for answers. He honestly just wanted to try and soldier his way through whatever the feeling in the pit of his stomach was. But he knew Esme was stubborn, and she would do whatever she had to to get the info she was looking for. Taking another deep breath, Duke scanned her eyes and nodded once again with a soft smile. “Okay.”

He closed his eyes, furrowing his brow as Esme pulled him in and kissed his forehead. It felt so real. He just couldn’t decide if all of this being real was a good thing or not. But the hug drove home the point that this was…in fact…real. He wrapped his arms around Esme, holding her so close to him that he was afraid of breaking her in half. His nickname settled in the pit of his stomach, and made him wish that he could just take her and run away. No more fighting. No more hunting. As rare as it was, they could get out. He knew better, but the wish was still there.

“I love you…” He whispered into Esme’s hair. He sat there silently, just hugging her for a while, her words, punctuated by ‘just rest’ causing him to sigh. He could feel that his general demeanor was making people uncomfortable. The biggest of them…Esme. He was always the one who brought things back to funny. He was always the one who laughed his way through mortal injuries and impossible situations. He was always the one who managed to come out of traumatic experiences with a bright smile on his face and not a trace of sadness. But this felt different, and he felt guilty as hell for not being the person they needed…that she needed. He pulled back from her just enough to slump down in his seat, his knees bumping the front seat of the Impala. He leaned his head back, but tilted it so that Esme could snuggle up to him if she needed to. “I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

Esme was glad when Duke didn't argue with her about finding answers. But whether he wanted her to or not, she was going to find out how in the hell he cheated death. She had to know what had brought him back to her even though she knew she should let it go and just be happy he was there in her arms. It nagged her from the back of her mind. Other than her giving him her blood, what else happened in the hospital? When Duke returned her hug and pulled her close, Esme winced but didn't let him go. His hug was genuine, telling her she had gotten through to him, and he now knew she was real. It brought her a little relief that she was able to get him to realize that it was a start to bringing him fully back. When he returned her, ‘I love you,’ Esme softly smiled and closed her eyes. The words echoed in her mind as they hugged, but it faded when she felt his guilt. Why was he feeling guilty? She saw nothing that he should feel guilty for unless he was picking up that his demeanor was making them uncomfortable.

For Esme, it was more worry than anything, but she still saw no need for him to feel so guilty about it. Whatever he went through, it must have really shaken him up for him to lose that bright smile and humor. When Duke pulled back to slump in the seat, she opened her eyes and watched him. He had left room for her to snuggle up to him, but it hit her hard when he spoke, making it even harder to hold back her tears. “Sorry?” she repeated. She softly shook her head, then leaned in and kissed his cheek. Then, she settled into the seat and snuggled up to him, resting her hand on his chest. “Don’t apologize, Love.” she softly whispered to him. “You don’t have to apologize for this. Not at all.” Esme fell silent as tears slid down her cheeks from Duke’s apology. The fact that he felt he had to apologize for not smiling or the person they expected him to be bothered her greatly. Yes, they were worried about this new side of him, but that didn’t mean he had to apologize for it. She sighed heavily and snuggled into Duke a little bit more. As tired as she was, she didn’t see herself getting any sleep on the drive to Bobby’s. A little time passed, and the car fell silent.


As she predicted, Esme didn’t get any sleep on the way to Bobby’s. She was awake the entire four-hour drive while snuggled up to Duke, staring at the back of the front seat. Her thoughts raced with thoughts from Duke to what Valdin had told her before her nuclear moment brought the asylum down and what Castiel had said. Once they figured out how to help Duke, how in the hell would she break the news to Duke about her not being human and being the product of a possible deal? And if he asked what she was, what could she tell him? She had no idea what she was at this point other than an Empath who could become a nuke. She kept being an Empath from him for so long, but how could she keep this from him? Everyone but Duke knew she wasn’t human. They all heard it from Castiel’s mouth. And how would she bring it up to Sassy when she got the chance? She felt she had a lot on her plate right now. She was pulled from her thoughts when the car stopped, and she could see Bobby’s house through the windows.

With a heavy, tired sigh, Esme pulled herself away from the snoring Duke and looked at him. She hated to wake him, but they couldn’t leave him in the car. Reaching over, she brushed his hair from his face before resting her hand on his cheek, rubbing it with her thumb lovingly. “Hey, Love. It’s time to wake up. We’re here.” she said softly but loud enough for him to hear her. She didn’t want to talk too loud and startle him out of his sleep.

MIKA AND NATALIA

Both the girls were pretty quiet for the most part during the four hour drive. Mika remained awake the entire time, keeping Dean awake in the process whilst he did the driving as well as making sure that everyone in the back was okay, even if she didn't ask them all the time. She just felt the maternal need to constantly look behind her one way or another to check the four of them were in fact still alive and fine. Natalia tried to sleep on Cason's lap whilst he kept a firm hold of her, but she could only cat nap here and there, but never really fell into a proper sleep once. The cat naps just made her all the more tired and she mentally cursed herself for not getting any rest, putting some of it down to fear of not waking up again as the last time she truly closed her eyes, she was almost ready to welcome death in her watery grave.

Having Duke beside her back from the dead didn't help all the thoughts running through her mind about her own mortality and what her family, as well as Cason, would have done if she had died. Would they have gone full blown destructive on anyone and everyone? Would they have just slipped into themselves and fallen apart or would they have gone on a total killing spree out of a need to relieve themselves of the anger and hurt? All options didn't sit well with her and it made her want to just curl up in a ball on Cason's lap, but that was impossible to do in the back of the car. So when they all eventually arrived at Bobby's, she couldn't wait to get out of the car, opening the door and stretching her legs and arms even though it did hurt to do so. "Urgh....such a long ride..." she complained, glad that her and Cason had discussed quietly about finding a way to get her car back as soon as.

Mika was glad to be home even though the last time they were all at Bobby's Cupid decided to mess with them and almost break her relationship with Dean completely. Getting out of the car, she saw Sam pull in behind them in Duke's truck, glad they managed to keep up with them once they caught sight of each other on the way back. "I need my bed so badly...and a drink...preferably drink first." she remarked, making Nat give the tiniest of a smirk briefly. "Drink sounds good right now" she agreed, waiting for Cason to get out of the car before grabbing for his hand as she still felt like she needed to keep a hold of him to truly appreciate she was even still able to do so. As she did, her mind reminded her that Dean still wanted to look her over himself, despite Castiel having done a lot of the healing and as much as she was too tired for it, she knew it was her only time to tell him she loved him and glad he came after her even though she always gave him a hard time over Cason.

Mika saw how Nat did not want to leave Cason's side which lead her to realising that she would have to warn Bobby about those two and to not do or say anything that will make Nat go on defence. "I'm gonna go on ahead and open the door and see where Bobby is, everyone alright to get each other inside?" she asked everyone, waiting for their replies before walking to the back door and unlocking it with her key. "Bobby, we're back! You awake?" she called through, not sure if he would have waited up or not as it was rather late.

Nat glanced at Cason, a yawn escaping her before she got to speak. "Shall we head in?" she asked him, still wrapped up in his coat like it's a blanket and thankful that four hours later, she was finally dry.

SAM

The realisation of Duke being the assumed murder victim and one of their group being the so called murderer did not leave his mind the entire drive back to Bobby Singer's place. It haunted him that the hospital took that stance, even if it was completely and utterly valid. If Duke technically died in their building then of course they would have been freaking out that he just woke up and walked out dazed and confused. When they reunited, Duke's state was also haunting, even by looking at him through the window of the impala whilst he and Anna stayed in his truck. He could barely make conversation to Anna during the drive but he make sure to make enough whilst they were both awake so he didn't fall asleep at the wheel.

At Bobby's, he pulled in behind the impala, pulling up beside them round the back. Once they had stopped, he leaned back in the seat for a moment to take a breath before opening the door- the cold night breeze hitting him straight in the face. "Well this is going to be interesting inside. Just hope it's less drama fuelled than last time" he remarked before realising that Anna was once again out like a light, making him smile softly. Leaning over, he gently put his hand on her shoulder and shook her lightly, "we're here baby girl" he cooed to her, not wanting to scare her awake but wanting to wake her promptly.

He waited for her to wake before he even thought about, grabbing the truck keys and getting out to meet up with the others. He could see everyone was absolutely exhausted and ready to just crash wherever they sat once inside, he just hoped Bobby was able to make enough space for everyone. The only ones he figured who were sorted without much issue were Mika and Dean as they had Mika's room to retreat to. As for everyone else, he couldn't say for certain. He took a guess that Bobby wouldn't want Duke out in the RV as no one would be able to keep an eye on him properly, so no doubt Duke would have the couch, as for them? He really couldn't say one way or the other. He saw Mika heading inside ahead of them all which wasn't much of a surprise.

Duke tried his best to not give into the overwhelming emotion of someone telling him not to say ‘sorry’ when he felt like he was bothering the whole group. He felt sorry. He felt sorry he was an inconvenience. He felt sorry that he wasn’t lifting Esme and Dean up the way he tended to, relieving some of the tension. He was sorry that he had died, and scared them so bad.

But he had to accept it for now. He sniffled as Esme laid her head on his chest, reaching a hand up to just pet the back of her head, frowning when he felt the dried blood in her hair. He would have to look at that when they got back to Bobby’s.



At some point, Duke had dozed off. Images that were oddly familiar had brushed through his mind, the entire trip. Old memories of laughing, and running around in the sun…Working on cars with Dean…Esme’s face behind a tall champagne flute at a party…The day Dean showed up at Bobby’s when he was a kid and changed his life…

Then Esme’s voice jarred him from the memories, and he frowned, inhaling a sharp breath of air as he opened his eyes and looked up at her. He could feel the warmth of her hand on his face, and for a moment, he assumed it was just another memory, but why would she be so busted up in his dreams?

“We’re at Bobby’s…” Duke rationalized, watching her face for a moment, before glancing out the window as he sat up straight with a soft groan. He reached up and ruffled his hair, before gesturing for Esme to open the door. He was ready. He was ready to be home. He was ready to see Bobby and the house, and to have a beer. He climbed out of the car behind Esme, feeling a little straighter on his feet as he stood up and stretched. A small smirk teased the corners of his mouth as he looked down at Esme and reached for her hand, “I need a beer.”



Dean had fallen into silence as soon as Duke seemed to doze off. He probably would have snapped at anyone who made much of a sound, while Duke was sleeping. He could barely believe he was sitting in the backseat, and if he needed rest, it was the least they could do for him. But as they pulled onto Horseman way, and Bobby’s metal sign passed over the Impala, Dean took a deep breath.

For the time being, they were safe. Duke was safe. Nat was safe. They were all safe with Bobby.

He pulled into his usual parking spot, the house looking like a beacon in the middle of the night, even though it was dawn. He opened his door quickly and stepped out, stretching his back and legs as the others began unfolding themselves from the car. He smirked as Mika began making plans for the morning, and Dean had to nod in agreement.

“A drink sounds like heaven, right now.” He agreed, hearing Duke seem to echo his own response with what he could almost hear as a smile. His heart hammered for a moment with relief to hear that tiny hint of a smile in his voice. He turned to Mika, as all of the doors closed, and nodded. “Go on. We’ll all make it in.”

But then Dean was alerted to Sam pulling up behind them, and he turned just as the lights of Duke’s truck went off. He didn’t even know how to look Anna in the eyes. It was going to be awkward, no matter how they sliced it.

Cason stepped out of the car behind Nat, quickly grabbing her hand as she reached back for him. He wasn’t the slightest bit excited to be back at Bobby Singer’s house. Nor did he figure Bobby would be too happy to see him. But there was no way he was leaving Nat’s side. He nodded as Nat asked if he was ready to go in, shrugging his shoulders, “I’m as ready as I’m gonna be. Just check…check before I walk in. Bobby tends to keep devils traps in front of his doors. I’m not really in much of a mood for that conversation…”



Anna slept hard on their way to Bobby’s. She didn’t even dream. A lot of it might have been the coming down from the demon blood, but either way, she felt like crap and passed out. As Sam shook her shoulder, she jolted awake, but didn’t flinch, turning to look at Sam with confused eyes. After a few seconds, she realized where they were, and realized that Sam had called her a pet name, which was more of a reason for her to try and smooth all of this over with him, since Cason was alive…and Dean was the one at fault for her anger in the first place.

Cason.

Anna quickly sat up, wiping her face with her hands and then with a struggle, due to soreness and stiff muscles, she opened the door and quickly jumped out. As soon as her boots hit the gravel, she took off in a sprint toward Cason, which caused Dean to raise both his hands and take a few steps backward. She didn’t even look at him, running straight to Cason and stood in front of him, gasping for air.

“Hey sunshine…” Cason smiled, and Anna threw herself onto his chest, wrapping her arms around his neck. He caught her with his free arm, smiling over at Nat in an attempt to not let her in on what the whole scene was about.

“I thought you were dead! How did you…how…”

“I have tricks up my sleeve. You know that. How about this…” Cason muttered against the side of Anna’s face as he peeled her arms off his neck. “Why don’t we get some rest, and then we’ll talk, alright? It’s good to see you mostly in one piece.”

Cason pointed out with his hand open that Anna had torn a couple of her stitches, and now her arm was open and bleeding. Anna glanced over at it and then shrugged her shoulders, “It doesn’t hurt. But my head does.”

“I know. We’ll figure that out too. Let’s go inside, alright?” Cason spoke softly, like speaking to a child. Anna nodded, her eyes full of tears as she stared at him. She didn’t really want to leave him, but it was evident that Nat needed his attention, and she had Sam. She awkwardly nodded at Natalia, and then stepped away from them, crossing her arms and walking past Dean, on her way back to Sam.

“Anna! Hey…can we talk?” Dean called to her, stopping her in her tracks for a moment. She glanced down at the gravel, grinding her boot into the rocks and then shook her head.

“No. We’re done, Dean. You and me are finished.” She said simply, no hint of emotion in her voice as Dean pressed his lips together, giving a long and disappointed nod. He didn’t try again as she stepped away from him and over to Sam, wrapping her arm around Sam’s elbow.



Bobby stood from his desk, closing the book he was reading. He glanced down at his watch as he heard the rumble of vehicles driving onto the lot, seeing that it was almost 6 am. He had made a point to take a nap on the couch while they were on their way, and was already on his second cup of coffee by the time they showed up.

He stepped into the kitchen, grabbing a six pack of beer from the fridge. He sat it on the table, and then went to the cabinet, pulling several glasses to sit next to them. Around that time, Mika opened the front door and Bobby smiled, “I’m in the kitchen, kid.”

Bobby grabbed some ice trays from the freezer and tossed them on the table, before walking out of the kitchen, wiping his hands on his pants, “Well, you look less like Hell than I expected…”, he teased Mika, before walking over to give her a hug. He wanted to rip her apart for not calling sooner, but for now, he would settle for a hug.

“How bad are the others?”

Esme listened as everyone got out of the Impala but didn’t take her eyes off Duke as he woke up. The small smile she had on her lips faded when she saw him frown, making her wonder what he was dreaming about. And even though his eyes were open, did he still think he was dreaming? When he rationalized, she softly nodded her head. “Yes, we’re at Bobby’s.” she replied. She let her hand fall from his face as he looked out the window and sat up. Her slight smile returned when he ruffled his hair, a small sign of him being himself. At his gesture, she turned and opened the door and slowly got her sore and stiff body out of the car. Esme stifled a hiss as she stretched a bit, then turned to Duke as he stepped out of the Impala. The smirk she saw playing at the corner of his mouth brought a new smile to her lips as she took his outstretched hand. “You and me both.” Esme responded after Dean agreed. She pulled her gaze from Duke to Mika as she asked her question. “Yes.” she said with a nod at the same time Dean answered.

Before she could turn her attention back to Duke, Sam and Anna pulled in with Sarah coming in behind them. She trotted over and sat next to Esme, who rubbed the back of her hand against her. Esme watched Anna get out of the truck, make a beeline to Cason, hug him, say a few words, and head back to Sam. Before she made it, Esme heard Dean call out to her. The conversation caused her to wince at the harshness, but she couldn't blame Anna. It was Dean who told everyone to leave Cason to die in the barn that night. Pulling her attention back to Duke, giving him a warm, tired smile, and interlocking her fingers with his. “You ready to head in and have Bobby fuss over us?” she asked. “Then we can grab that beer and relax.” She hesitated briefly before walking towards the door. Bobby had never seen her this busted up and tired, except for maybe that night she met Duke. Esme felt she looked a lot worse off than she did that night, and she felt a lot worse too. She thought back to what she did those days.

Yep, today was a lot worse than that day. That day consisted of a handful of demons and four ghosts, two of which gave her hell before she could get their items salted and burned. She unconsciously gripped Duke’s hand tighter as the entire memory invaded her mind. She softly shook her head to clear her thoughts after she brought her free hand up to it. As happy as she was to see Bobby, she felt that she looked like she’d been put through the wringer almost every time she walked through his door. She could only remember a handful of times she had walked through his door unscathed or with only a few scratches and bruises. Esme sighed heavily as they reached the door and then stepped into the house, pulling Duke inside with her.

MIKA

Hearing Bobby call out that he was in the kitchen made Mika smirk. ‘Of course you are’ she thought to herself as she began to walk through the corridor, meeting him half way and just hugging him back gladly. She didn’t realise how much she needed it until she felt his arms around her. “Oh I could be worse looking that’s for sure.” she told him before sighing, pulling away just enough to look at him so she could give him the run down on everyone’s states. “They’re not great in all honesty Bobby. The job went south real bad….they kidnapped Nat, but we got her back thanks to Cason but it was bad Bobby…she came so close to dying” she began to explain, trying to hold it together as saying those words out loud was too much.

“Duke did die, but he’s somehow alive again and with us still but he’s in bad shape, needs so much rest. Esme isn’t in great shape either from trying to help save Nat but I don’t know what happened exactly. Cason is shit scared of her right now. Dean is barely holding it all together from everything and I’m about mentally in the same state.” she continued before sighing. “As for Sam and Anna I’m not a hundred percent sure, but she’s pretty beat up and not talking with Dean. Honestly? It’s just too much right now. But I will warn you now, Nat is stuck to Cason like glue….they seem to uhh….have something between them. So please just be civil?” she requested after finishing her run down on how everyone was.

A yawn escaped her lips, making her raise her hand to cover her mouth as she did so, showing that the four hour drive and everything prior to it was taking it’s toll on her finally. It was clear she hadn’t slept a single moment in the car even though she probably should have. “I really thought we were screwed Bobby, I really did. We nearly lost everyone but Dean hasn’t coped nearly loosing Duke and Nat.” she remarked as she waited for everyone else to make their way inside. A tear was threatening to escape yet again, making her wipe it before it did. “When I saw Nat being pulled out of a pool? I can’t begin to tell you what I thought… I never wanna see her looking lifeless and soaking wet again” she told him.

NATALIA

Feeling Cason’s hand wrap around her own was comforting. It became clear to her that he wasn’t willing to let her be out of touching distance from him as much as she was. His answer to her question made her nod in understanding. She knew what Bobby was like, just like the rest of them and she was determined in her tired state to make sure Bobby didn't do anything to make Cason leave, or trap him in one spot for the whole visit. “I will, I promise” she replied to him, just in time before she saw Anna arriving, jumping out the truck, over to Cason and throwing herself on him in a hug. The reaction seemed a little over the top to her, but she wasn't going to question it, at least not for a good long while.

She let Cason hug Anna back, even though he still refused to let go of her own hand in the process. Nat didn't need to be a genius to work out that Anna was about to or trying to say ‘how did you get out’, which made her raise an eyebrow. ‘just what the hell happened in that barn?’ she thought to herself, watching as Cason managed to calm Anna down before she walked back to Sam who was walking round the truck to meet everyone else. Her attention drew to Dean for a moment though when he called Anna asking to talk, only for Anna to say a pretty scathing remark back. ‘ok, I really gotta know what the hell happened back there when I was gone’ she thought again, not wanting to say it out loud just yet as she had a feeling she was not going to like the answer she wanted to know.

With a tired sigh, she led Cason to the house and inside, but not before pausing in front of him, kneeling down with a wince and checking the devil's traps. She found one next to the door which made her pull out a pocket knife and scratch a piece out to break the markings, making it completely void. Standing up again with a groan of pain, she looked back at Cason, “you're good” she told him. She didn't even pay attention to the fact that Mika was talking to Bobby just up ahead in the hallway opening that led to the kitchen. She just wanted to get them both inside so she could have a drink and collapse onto a seat.

She waited for Cason to walk in, as she then noticed Mika chatting with Bobby and overheating the very end of their conversation about how scared Mika was seeing her looking lifeless. It made her feel sad all over again, hearing how Mika felt in that moment broke her heart. It was becoming more clear to her just how much no one wanted to lose her and she did have a place in this family. “hey Bobby” she finally spoke up once she felt she could and Cason was back beside her. Seeing even Mika turn round and lean into him whispering something before heading straight to the kitchen for those beers.

SAM

Sam sat back when she woke up abruptly, not wanting to accidentally get headbutted in the process of her whipping her head up and looking around. He barely got to say another word before Anna was out like a shot and sprinting towards Cason. He understood why though, having mostly guessed that's what she would do the moment she saw him. They had a long history after all and he couldn't deny her seeing him after thinking he was dead in the barn. He also saw how Dean got completely ignored and he just knew she was still incredibly pissed at him.

Getting out the truck himself, slower than Anna did, he walked round to see the others, but leaned against the truck so he could stretch his stiff limbs after driving for so long. He didn't mind long drives, but more as a passenger, he didn't enjoy them as much being the driver. He didn't know how Dean could handle it without feeling like his hands and ankles would just seize up and get stuck in that same driving position. He ran his hand through his hair as he let the cold air wake him up a little bit, seeing Anna hug Cason and chest before deciding to come back to him.

When Dean asked to talk to Anna, he glanced over at his brother, not sure how Anna was going to take the request but knew it wouldn't be a polite reaction either way and he was right. Anna spoke to his brother with such callousness that it made him wince from second hand emotional pain of hearing those last words. It put him in the most awkward position as Anna's other half and Dean's brother, not knowing how to handle that situation whatsoever. Sure he had his moments where he said some scathing things to Dean, but this was different this time. He was on the outside of this conflict and he didn't know how to deal with it. “I'm gonna have to ask Mika for advice ..” he mumbled under his breath now getting an understanding of how she must have felt when he argued with Dean and she was the one in the middle.

With Anna back to him, he looked up and took her hand, “wanna head in? Get out of the cold?” He asked her, even though he had no initial plans to stay outside any longer than he wanted to. Looking round at the group, he saw Mika had already gone in and Nat was now leading Cason inside before he could even go to his sister himself. He also saw the full state and situation with Esme and Duke, seeing how bad they were. “I think we all need to get inside and relax” he commented to her, knowing he was ready to just get a drink and go to sleep, holding Anna so he knew she wouldn't disappear on him like she did at the barn thanks to the demons.

Bobby frowned as Mika pulled away from him. Before she even started explaining things, he had a feeling that there was a lot to this hunt, and the feeling was washing over him that he was lucky to have Mika standing in front of him. Then Mika began to explain and Bobby narrowed his eyes in a couple of spots: ‘thanks to Cason’ was the big one. A demon had saved Natalia? Unlikely for any good reason.

At the words ‘Duke did die’ Bobby’s eyes widened, and he gasped, but let it out in a deep relieved sigh. His boy was still alive, and was likely right outside that front door. He frowned once again about Esme, having seen Esme take out demons in his own living room not too long ago. He wasn’t that surprised that Cason would be afraid of her, but what could have happened that would have made him so scared after their…thing? There were a million questions.

“Be civil? When you say ‘something’ you mean…something? That don’t seem like Natalia to me.” Bobby argued with the idea that Cason and Nat were suddenly so close, and seemed to be possibly in a romantic kind of tie up. Bobby released Mika’s shoulders, and watched her yawn, his expression falling into a fatherly concern, “Well let me tell you this…if you’re all okay, you ain’t gonna fret over it, alright? We take the bumps and we move on. We regroup and we figure out how to move forward, even if that starts with just a beer. And if someone says they’re alright?…I think we’ve learned our lesson about holdin’ on too tight, haven’t we? Let me take over for a while, kid. You get some rest…”

He broke from his speech and left it at that, until he could talk to her alone…later on. It was then that he heard Nat’s voice from the other room and he sighed with relief, just hearing the girl speak, “Hey Nat! Pick your poison. We got bourbon, beer, wine coolers Shelby left in the fridge that might be good for the little one when she gets in. Just grab whatever. Ice is on the table.”



Duke watched as the tension around him unfolded, especially the venom laced way that Anna spoke to Dean. He knew that Dean and Anna weren’t particularly close, but he never expected to see that sweet girl speak to Dean that way. There was definitely something brewing that Duke hoped wouldn’t overflow any time soon. The fighting would send him over the edge, and he honestly just wanted to figure out his brain and have a beer.

He turned his eyes down to Esme and returned her warm smile as she asked if he was ready for Bobby to fuss. He hadn’t seen Bobby in what felt like forever. He had a gut feeling that it would be more arguing than fussing over his wellbeing, but it was a road he had been down with Bobby a million times. It was almost a situation he could chalk up as his expertise.

“Yeah. I’m ready…” He sighed, squeezing Esme’s hand as they walked up to the door. He took a deep breath as they stepped inside, and the familiar smells and odd lighting of the house hit his senses. Immediately, he felt safer, just like all those other times he ran away and came back.

As soon as he cleared the doorway, Bobby glanced over at them, and his eyes went wide. Duke didn’t even realize how pale he still looked, but Bobby was looking at him as if he was a ghost, and it caused Duke’s stomach to drop as the old man crossed the living room from the kitchen. First Bobby brushed a thumb over Esme’s cheek, giving her the warmest fatherly smile he could and then turned his attention to Duke, his eyes welling up in tears.

“It’s good to see you, son…” Bobby spoke in a shuttered breath. He quickly wrapped his arms around Duke, pulling him in roughly with a hug. After a moment, he pulled back from Duke, and grabbed his chin with one hand, turning Duke’s face side to side. “You look like warmed over crap. How you feelin’?”

“Um…alive?” Duke stuttered, not a hint of a smile on his face. The look in Duke’s eyes caused Bobby to frown, scanning his adopted sons eyes for something. He chewed at his lip and released Duke’s chin.

“Well. Then we need to get some of that spark back…yeah? Go get you a drink. Your favorite whiskey is on top of the fridge, brand new bottle, waitin’ for you to come home. Go on.” He urged Duke, gesturing toward the kitchen. Bobby then turned to Esme, wrapping an arm around her neck to pull her into him, and pressed a kiss to her forehead with a sigh. “You don’t look so hot yourself. Get a drink and lets start a repair line for you idjits.”

He smiled warmly and let her go, watching the door as the others stepped inside.



Cason walked with Natalia to the front door, glancing up at the ceiling of the porch to make sure Bobby hadn’t painted anything on the old wood. Once he was comfortable with the lack of magic to bite him in the ass, he continued to the door with Nat, stopping behind her as she ruined the devils trap there. He was careful not to touch the doorway, in case Bobby had coated it in salt, or built some new reinforcement of iron, which he had his fill of for the century.

As Nat confirmed that he was good to come in, Cason carefully stepped over the threshold and into the living room, instantly hearing Bobby and Mika speaking from the kitchen. He knew he wasn’t exactly welcome in the house, after what had happened with Cupid and the crap that had gone down before. Hell, he figured a lot of his blood was still staining the cracks in the wood of the living room, considering how much he bled in that house.

“Bobby…” Cason nodded politely, releasing Nat’s hand out of politeness for Bobby, and the fear that Bobby didn’t exactly know that he and Nat were close, or even civil with one another. He quickly followed Nat into the kitchen, picking up one of the glasses that Bobby had directed them to. He grabbed the bottle of bourbon that looked the least cheap, and cracked it open, pouring himself a very large glass before recapping the bottle. He looked up at Nat and smirked.

“Since I’m the least damaged person here, I’m just going to sit here and watch the family show. You need to get looked at, though. Would you rather me or the old man do it?” He asked her, as he took a long drink, and nursed his glass in his hand.



Anna nodded when Sam asked her if she was ready to get in and out of the cold. With the heat radiating from her skin, the air felt at least twice as cold as it actually was, and she was nearly shivering. She wanted to grab some clean clothes, warm up, and hopefully get drunk enough to go to sleep for the rest of the day. She still didn’t know where she stood with Sam in her mind. She was still a bit angry at him, but now that Dean was back, a lot of that anger was transferred to Dean.

She tightened her grip on his hand, feeling Sam’s anxiety of losing her again in his touch. Then she followed him across the lot and into the house, her eyes instantly darting to the stairwell door to the basement. As she stepped through the door, Bobby was there, smiling at her with sympathy. But she couldn’t help notice how pale Duke looked as he stepped away from Bobby and into the kitchen.

“Hey Anna…” Bobby almost whispered, handling her with kid gloves. She barely remembered being completely covered in blood, both her own and Cason’s, but Bobby seemed to notice, his eyes looking her over. “You want a drink? I got fruity stuff all the way to rot gut. You’re welcome to whatever.”

Anna nodded, glancing back at the stairwell door again, which made Bobby turn and follow her eyes. He shook his head at her, and glanced up at Sam, before sighing, “I ain’t even made the bed down there. Don’t worry…”



Dean sighed as Anna wrapped up with Sam and he was left alone in the lot. It felt like old times. He pissed everyone off, and scared the hell out of those who weren’t pissed, all in the same night. Great. He turned before Anna and Sam could walk toward the house, reaching into the Impala for his phone. As he stood there, he zoned out for a moment and only realized when an involuntary shiver took him over that he was alone in the lot.

Clearing his throat, he pocketed his phone and closed the door to the Impala, strolling away from it as casually as he could, before jogging up the steps of Bobby’s house. As soon as he stepped through the door, he could feel the safety and the tension that he couldn’t quite place. He didn’t even look Bobby in the eyes when he first stepped in, turning to walk straight for the kitchen.

“Dean.” Bobby called to him, stopping him in his tracks. Dean turned back to Bobby and furrowed his brow, causing Bobby to raise his own eyebrows. The kids were in bad shape, that was for sure. Bobby waved him off and sighed, following Dean into the kitchen to reconvene with everyone else, “Go on. Get a drink. I think we all need to have a talk.”

“Understatement.” Dean sighed, his voice a bit hoarse as he wiped a hand down his face, and stepped into the kitchen, quickly stepping up beside Mika. Placing a hand on her lower back, he picked up a glass, right as Cason poured it full of bourbon and slid it to Dean. Dean didn’t even question it, straightening up as Bobby stepped in.

“Alright. Now that we’re all here. Who wants to go first? What went wrong?”