Hey All,

Welcome to our group ff that we started a while back. If you want more details, you can look on the thread called, 'People Wanted.' But basically, this story has been written and made up by a random bunch of people (all very talented), who have been writing it blind really. A lot harder than it seems. So I hope you like it.

:)

Thanks,

Jo.

***

Dean and Sam go to investigate a mysterious drowning in Ruston, Louisiana. As the story unfolds, tensions run high, fears are revealed and a girl called Tegan, just seems to make things more complicated…

***

Chapter 1

Writer: JHNNangel13
Prompt: Blink182rule

Sam was sitting in the small motel room in Hereford, Pennsylvania, waiting for Dean to come back with their usual breakfast, coffee. They had been in the same, small motel room for close to a week now, helping an old friend of Dean’s deal with a group of kids getting into some dangerous stuff with the black arts. Not that Sam was complaining too much, but there wasn’t exactly much to do, which seemed to be a common theme with the small town jobs they had been working on recently. He was getting restless, he wanted to move on and Dean…well he was restless after about an hour anywhere, complaining that there weren’t nearly enough bars or girls.

To keep himself occupied, while he waited for Dean, knowing full well how side-tracked his brother could become if there was a girl involved. Sam opened up his laptop and began searching the news for anything unusual, and as much as he hated to admit it, he was looking forward to a new hunt. As this realisation started to sink in, he shook his head thinking that Dean was rubbing off on him too much. He carried on scrolling through the screen passing all of the gruesome, yet completely normal human news until he landed on a series of deaths in Ruston, Louisiana.

He clicked on it, his eyes scanning the article quickly. It said there had been numerous deaths dating back to the earliest records in the town, all of which were focused around the same lake. By this point, Sam was intrigued and began to dig deeper into the surrounding area and the names. But before he could even hit the search button on the area though, the door to the motel room slowly creaked open and Dean entered holding two coffee cups and a bag of doughnuts with a very smug look on his face.

Before Sam could even get a word in, Dean spoke, “here’s breakfast. You wouldn’t believe the trouble I had to go through to get this for you.”

“What, a bunch of evil ghosts were trying to keep you away?” Sam questioned as he took the full cup from Dean.

“Close…except much prettier,” Dean replied as he took a seat in one of the chairs and had a massive bite out of his doughnut.

“Whatever. Can’t we go anywhere without you trying to hook up?” Sam asked, glaring at Dean.

“Dude, I can’t help it if I’m irresistible…” but he didn’t get to finish, as he started to choke on his doughnut.

Sam laughed loudly at his brother, “you need a band-aid for that?”

“Shut up, I bit my tongue…what was I saying?” Dean said, throwing the rest of the doughnut to the side.

“You were saying you were irresistible…”

“Oh yeah, well…I am and anyway, I got interrupted by a text,” Dean said, getting out his phone.

“Yeah, ok…you do realize that there are more important things in the world than chicks, right?”

“Like what? Please share with the rest of us, Sam,” Dean replied sarcastically.

Sam rolled his eyes, “I think I’ve found our next hunt.”

“Yeah, well, whatever you found will just have to wait ‘cause I got a text…”

“You already told me that,” Sam said, cutting in.

“Why, Sammy boy, you never let me finish. It was from dad,” Dean replied dryly.

“Oh…”

Dean tossed the phone to his brother, “there’s our next hunt.”

“But what about…?”

“Sam, I’m older one so that means I'm wiser, so shut up,” Dean retorted.

“Fine,” Sam muttered, reading over the numbers in the message.

After a second, he quickly pulled out the map and began to figure out where they lead. Dean as always continued to drink his coffee, leaving it up to him to find out where they were going. It bugged him a little…actually it bugged him a lot that Dean just assumed they would go on a hunt because their father told them to. One of these days, Daddy’s little hunts were going to get Dean killed but he didn’t seem to care, he followed their father faithfully and blindly.

Then finally as the numbers pointed to their destination, Sam’s mouth fell open with shock. He ran the numbers again, a few more times but the same place kept coming back up, Ruston, Louisiana.

“Well, did you find it or do I have to show you how to do it?” Dean questioned as he interrupted Sam’s thoughts.

“We both know that you would never do that, mainly because it would involve work. And anyway, this is the same place that I was interested in. It’s a bunch of drownings at a lake in Ruston, Louisiana,” Sam responded slightly annoyed at his brother’s arrogance.

“Huh, interesting,” Dean responded, as he made his way over to the computer to look at what Sam had already found.

They both started to read over some of the obituaries, although Dean didn’t for long, getting bored after a few minutes. He then began to throw everything into the bags with no respect to organization at all. It was obvious he really just wanted to go and take out whatever evil thing he could. Sam was even pretty sure that at this point, Dean would probably shoot a dog just for peeing near his impala because he was so restless.

Sam was still reading when he heard the engine of the love of Dean’s life and decided that he better hurry before Dean left without him and possibly got killed. Sam took another few minutes to pack away the laptop before heading out to take up his familiar position at shotgun along side his brother, ready for their long drive to Louisiana.

***

A few days later, the brothers entered yet another motel room. Sam walked in first, the room was pitch black.

“Get the lights, Sammy,” Dean called, peering for the beds.

“Yeah, hang on…” Sam replied, moving carefully in the dark for the light switch when suddenly…

“OW!”

“What the hell…?” Dean asked, looking into the darkness.

“Walked into the lamp,” Sam said painfully, as he clicked it on.

Dean nodded and started to smirk.

“Shut up, you bit your tongue!”

Later on when they had both found the light switches and moved the lamp, they settled down to some research. Sam didn’t mind but it drove Dean crazy, books and facts weren’t really his thing. Although after a while both boys had settled down and were pretty concentrated on their reading. It had been so late when they arrived that they figured, they would do as much research that night as possible before quizzing the locals the next day.

As Sam read through the latest local newspaper, he found out since they’d left Pennsylvania there had been another death. This time to a young husband and father of two named Scott Cooper. He had gone out to the lake one night after getting home from work, and when he hadn’t come back his wife had gone out to look for him. She called the police after she found the lake empty and then the next day, his body had been found at the side of the lake, dead. The cause of death was drowning which was odd since Scott had been a State champion swimmer.
As Sam added his name to the long list of deaths, it just didn’t seem to make sense. There seemed to be no pattern. The type of person didn’t matter and there wasn’t a certain number each year. At first he had thought that it might have been a situation like that of Andrea and Lucas but it didn’t seem to be a spirit because there was no common connection between the victims.

“Well this sucks,” Dean said as he put the stack of papers down on the table.

“Did you really expect it to be easy?” Sam questioned as he began searching through the history of the lake.

“Well yeah,” Dean said, leaning back on the chair.

“Since when has this ever been easy?” Sam asked, looking over the pictures of the victims.

“I just wanted to come, kill something, and get back to finding dad,” Dean said with a heavy sigh.

“I’m with you there. But we’re here now and you wanted to do it and to be honest, life has never quite been that easy and simple for us anyway, has it?” Sam added, putting the papers down mimicking his brother’s sigh.

As this thought settled into their heads, they both fell silent taking in the atmosphere of the situation until they heard a scream. They both sprang up in action and ran outside to find a woman yelling and shouting while a police officer tried to calm her down. She was frantic and both Sam and Dean were trying to catch what she was saying. It had been lucky for them, or so they thought, to have found a motel right near the lake. In fact they even had a view of it from the door of their room. As they got nearer, they saw a small boy next to the woman presumably her son. Dean was about to go over and diffuse the situation when Sam held him back.

“What?” the older Winchester asked, giving him a questioning look.

Sam didn’t say anything but shot him a glare wondering how exactly he was planning on playing an officer in such a small town without a badge or any other valid excuse.
Dean shrugged and stood back again, to watch. They both stood intently listening to the lady yell something about a horse and her son trying to get on it before she stopped him. And then how this mysterious horse had then disappeared into the lake. The cop kept trying to calm her down but she just kept rambling on and on about the horse. Her son on the other hand was as silent as a mouse, as if he was in some sort of a trance or something. Eventually, the police officer convinced her to stop talking, telling her that there was definitely no horses in that area. But still the look on her face said that she didn’t believe him and that she knew what she saw. Then after another couple of minutes, the woman and her son were escorted back home and Dean and Sam both made a mental check to themselves to talk to her and her son in the morning.

As they walked back to their room, neither noticed the young woman that had also been looking on at the same scene with just as much, if not more interest. She watched the brothers as they left and wondered how strange their reactions had been, it was like they already knew what was going on. I’ll have to keep an eye on them, she thought to herself because nothing was going to stop her from finding out what happened to her brother.

Bum bum bum... that chick is kinda creepy... GREAT start!!! Please update asap!!!!!!!!! :D

Good start, looking forward to reading more!!!!!!!

YIPPERZ!!! Can't wait. :D Hehe! That was really good. :)

yey! great start cant wait for more!

Can't wait for the next chapter!!! It's so exciting to finally get to read this after all that time. :lol:

:clap So now it begins.... wow! JHNNangel13 great start indeed! JHNNangel13 prompted by Blink182rule set it up! lets see how chapter two's jadams04 aided by Freelancer knock 'em down. now i feel like bowling.... *is excited* is it friday yet??? :jacket

awesome start. update soon...

dude! great start! ive been looking forward to this and now its finally HERE!!! *rampant squee*

Hey,

Glad you're all enjoying it.

Here's the 2nd chapter. Probably will be posting a chapter a day, since they're all finished, so no waiting around for new stuff.

:D

Jo.

p.s. Forgot to mention, there is some mild swearing in some of the chapters, can't remember which ones but yeah, you've been told. LOL.

***

Chapter 2

Writer: jadams04
Prompt: Freelancer

Dean slammed the door of their motel room shut, causing the door frame to rattle precariously, and dropped down onto his bed nearest the door with a sigh. Sam coughed pointedly and knocked on the door. Dean looked up and realised he’d just slammed the door in his brother’s face; wearily he opened the door to a very annoyed looking Sam.

“Cheers, Dean” he said sarcastically, pushing past him and shutting the door.

Both were freezing cold and had the exact same thought at the same time about the thing they needed most. They looked at the bathroom doorway, and then turned to face each other. Each stealing glances at the door, calculating both theirs and their opponents’ moves. It was war and it could turn violent at any time, and it was going to be tricky, since they both had an advantage over the other. While Dean was closer, Sam had longer legs. As Sam edged forward, the TV suddenly blasted out as his foot pressed down on the remote that had been thrown onto the floor earlier. Distracted by the sudden talk of the weather presenter, Dean took advantage of Sam’s hesitation and leapt for the door, slamming it behind him. Sam gritted his teeth as he heard his brother’s muffled hearty laughter echoing through the door.

He rubbed his eyes tiredly and sat down on the edge of the bed in front of the TV. In the bathroom he heard the familiar sound of the shower running; watching the annoying weather presenter as he described tomorrow as being stormy and just overall, dismal.
Great, thought Sam distractedly. They still had the kid who almost got taken that night and his parents to interview yet. Not to mention, they needed to find out more about the victim called Scott, and figure out what this thing was before anyone else got hurt or even killed.

His musings were then interrupted by a horrible, screeching that cut through his brain like a physical punch. He abruptly fell off the bed with a thud, but was quickly running hurriedly across the motel room floor to the window. The lake was covered with an eerie fog, and above the fog the heavens thundered and flashed menacingly. But even the boom of the thunder wasn’t a match for the howling that drifted across the lake and penetrated the walls of the motel. Startled, Sam stared out the window intently, trying to figure out where the hell this god awful noise was coming from. His ears were starting to hurt, as the wailing carried on, and as Dean’s hand clapped on his back forcefully, Sam nearly went into cardiac arrest.

“DEAN! What the hell is your problem?”

“You of course geek boy,” Dean retorted, flashing his million watt smile which faded when he shivered, as a chill passed through the room that had nothing to do with the weather.

As Dean was just wearing a towel that hung around his waist, and there were still beads of water running through his hair and down his chest, Sam figured that Dean had come to investigate the racket. The brothers’ brains registered the fact that the annoying news presenter was still talking on the TV, but neither paid it any attention, as their thoughts had strayed elsewhere. Almost as if stuck in a trance, Sam and Dean eyes’ remained fixed onto the lake, the fog swirling and creating patterns, inviting them in, calling them in, and they felt themselves slipping….

Then the howling stopped, leaving a silence behind that was suffocating. Sam and Dean stood stunned as they tried to work out what had happened. And if they weren’t confused enough already, through the fog they saw a dark shadow. But it was gone as quickly as it had come. Sam shook himself firmly, deciding that it was definitely time for that shower.

***

“I’m sorry but I don’t know where they’ve gone”

Dean and Sam glanced at one another and Dean turned away from the man’s infuriatingly calm face before he was tempted to smash it in. Guys like him really pissed him off. Sam picked up on his brother’s rising anger and quickly stepped in.

“Look Mr. McHauligan I don’t think you understand the situation. We need to find the boy that was attacked last night. This is a matter for the state police, and it seems they left without telling us where they went.”

The hotel manager contemplated for a moment longer, before he gave in to Sam’s beseeching gaze. He sighed resignedly and pulled out a piece of yellow paper and scribbled something down hastily. He looked guilty as he held it out to Sam and sensing his hesitation, Sam quickly took the paper in case he should change his mind.

“Look” the hotel manager started awkwardly, “don’t tell them I showed you where to go. They’re good friends of mine and I promised them I wouldn’t say a thing.”

Sam nodded understandingly, and walked out the room, with Dean following close behind.

***

AT A DINER

Dean pointed to a middle-aged woman who was sitting with a teenage boy. Both were hunched over and pretending to be interested in a newspaper, while secretly staring at everyone in the room, in turn. Their gaze drifted over to Sam and Dean, but they looked away quickly when their eyes met.

They walked over and the woman looked up suspiciously, glaring at them both, “can I help you boys?” she asked stiffly.

“Um…yeah you can actually,” Dean confirmed, plonking himself in the seat next to the mother. Sam followed suit and sat between Dean and the boy who nervously smiled at him. Sam smiled back.

“Mrs. Richards,” Sam started, “we wanted to talk to you and your son about the incident last night.” The tension at the table instantly rose and Sam shifted uncomfortably under the intense scrutiny he was getting from Mrs. Richards.

“What do you wanna know?” the boy called Sebastian said unexpectedly.

“We just wanna know what happened, no matter how crazy it sounds. We just want the truth,” Dean replied.

Sebastian took a deep breath, “I was taking a walk along the lake, when I kept hearing this wailing sound coming across it. Then this thick fog started to come down and I knew I had to get home before I got lost or something, but I couldn’t find my way back. I turned around and tried to find my way, but I kept getting this feeling something was watching me or following me or something,” he swallowed and looked up at the other people at the table nervously.

“It’s okay, Sebastian. Keep going,” Sam said softly.

Sebastian nodded and looked down at the table again, “I started to walk faster and then there was this man in front of me. He was hunched over, and all hairy, like an old hermit. Then he reached out his hand and tried to grab me. I tried to run but he grabbed my legs and pulled them out underneath me…” the boy continued as his voice got caught in his throat and unshed tears appeared in his eyes. “He was dragging me back towards the lake, but I managed to get free long enough to scream, and crawl up the bank. That’s when I met Mr. Boxer from the room next to us in the motel. But when I looked back the old man had disappeared….but I think I know what it was.”

Sam and Dean leaned in closer.

“There’s this local legend about a Kelpie-”

“Seb! Don’t say things like that! You know they aren’t real!” His mother snapped harshly, which earned a stern glare from Dean.

Sam turned back to Sebastian.

Sebastian carried on, “I don’t know exactly what it is, but it’s rumoured to change into an old man. I’m sorry that’s all I know”

Sam stood up, “thanks very much, Sebastian.” And without another word, Dean got up too, but not before saying his thanks stiffly to Mrs. Richards.

They then left leaving a stunned Mrs. Richards behind them.

***

Sam researched the Kelpie when they got back to car, while Dean blasted Metallica from the speakers.

“Okay…” Sam started, but the rock metal was too loud.

“Okay,” he started again, turning the volume down, “a kelpie is supernatural shape-shifting water……Oh god….” Sam swallowed hard, and looked up at Dean sheepishly, but when Dean looked at his little brother he saw the fear that underlined the worry in his eyes.

“Sammy, what is it?”

“Umm…Dean did I ever tell you…”

“Tell me what, Sammy?” Dean’s patience was running out.

“Well I have a…..this thing it’s a ….I don’t know-”

“Just spit it out, Sammy!” Dean spat, cutting him off mid-ramble.

“It’s Sam,” he huffed, “and I’m scared of horses okay! Really scared of them. And this thing is a friggin’ horse! Ya happy now?!”

Dean paused, trying his best. Honestly trying. But he couldn’t do it. He burst out laughing and didn’t stop until he started to swerve on the road and got sworn at profusely by a passing driver, but even then he continued to giggle quietly.

“SHUT UP DEAN!”

But his brother didn’t stop.

“I SAID SHUT UP!”

***

They arrived at the lake and began to walk around the edge of it, where they thought Sebastian might have gone. Sam walked in front and Dean brought up the rear. A mischievous glint came into Dean’s eye, he was bored and felt like making Sam suffer. So he made a horse’s neigh in Sam’s ear and watched in amusement as Sam jerked his head up in shock and reflexively turned around and lashed out with his fist. Sam’s eyes were wide with terror and Dean didn’t see it coming until it was too late. He fell to the floor, but managed to bring Sam down with him. They collapsed on each other in a pile of arms and legs, and before they knew it, they were having a wrestling match in the mud. Sam was panicking and Dean knew he had to calm him down before he seriously hurt himself. Sam wasn’t calming down though, and the mud was going into his eyes, so Dean resorted to knocking his brother flat on his ass and restraining him. They were dangerously close to the edge of the lake, but then Sam punched Dean in the nose, and Dean went from kneeling by his brother to landing on him. They suddenly stopped fighting as a voice came from above them.

“Well, well, well…if it isn’t the deleted scene from Broke-back Mountain.”

Dean and Sam both raised their heads to see woman standing with her arms across her chest. She had pale blue/grey eyes and brunette hair that was cut to the jaw-line. They untangled themselves and stood up, caked in mud, and their hair flattened to their head. They were a sight to see.

Dean cleared his throat, “I’m Dean and this,” pointing to Sam who smiled weakly, his face flushing, “is my brother Sam.”

As the girl watched them for a second, Dean silently evaluated her. She was hot.

“Right. So what the hell are you doing out here?”

Feisty too.

“We’re police investigators-”

“Bullshit.”

“Excuse me?” Dean was slightly stunned.

The woman rolled her eyes and started to play with her hair, “I said bullshit. You’re no investigators. Now, you gonna tell me what you’re really doing out here or are things going to get nasty?”

Dean visibly tensed and his voice became hard. “Who the fuck are you to tell me what to do,” he said, unconsciously standing in front of Sam, who stood back to get a better view, his interest piqued, yet feeling slightly unnerved at the same time.

She lashed out, her right leg kicking Dean in the gut. He quickly recovered, and blocked the oncoming punch. He swiftly gave a punch of his own. This continued for a while, and Sam could tell that this girl was a professional. But he didn’t sense any danger from her, and left them to it. After what Dean had done to him he was royally pissed off and as he as started to walk off, he noticed some hoof prints in the mud…..

10 MINUTES LATER

Dean was finally beaten, and the woman had to admit, this guy was rather good; the best contender she’d been up against in a long while. She ended up straddling him, and they both were out of breath.

Dean was dazed and said confusedly, “a girl who kicks ass? That’s so last season…” then comprehension dawned on his face. “Hey, you beat me!” he said, turning indignant, “you aren’t supposed to beat me!”

“Ain’t that a bitch. Now tell me why you’re here.”

“Okay. We’re here to investigate the deaths around the lake. Not with the police, but we think something odd is going on, and we’re just here to stop the same thing happening to other people.”

This seemed to enough for her and with a brief nod of the head she got off Dean and helped him to his feet. She thrust out her hand, “Tegan,” she announced.

Dean shook her hand, “so which martial art was that?”

“Taekwondo, first degree black-belt,” she stated proudly. She turned to leave but then turned back. “Just be careful okay?” She said, chewing her lip before disappearing back into the fog.

Meanwhile, Sam had been following the hoof tracks, but now they had suddenly stopped at the water’s edge. Sam shook his mud encrusted bangs out of his face and looked around, confused. He scratched his head and bent down, fingering the marks. He sighed and stood up, ready to go back and tell Dean what he’d found. But instead he was greeted by the most horrific yet beautiful sight he’d ever seen.

In front of him was a glossy black horse, whose coat shimmered in the non-existent light. Its face was right in his, its nose touching almost his. Their eyes connected, scared hazel ones looking into confident midnight blues. And somewhere a voice in Sam’s head told him to reach out and go for a ride on the horse. Another part of him was screaming for him to run away, to call out for Dean, to do anything, but his body was frozen, his voice lost. Its mane was blowing in the wind, and Sam’s mind was taken over, a sense of bliss coming cover him, and before he knew it, he was reaching out for the horse...

okay see excitement doesn't begin to cover what i'm feeling!!! jadams04 damn girl!! dean dipping wet in a towel.... the boys fighting in the mud..... dean getting his ass handed to him by a girl..... someone clearly had way too much fun with this chapter ;) and i'm not just talking about me! round of applause for an excellent job jadams04 and clever prompting Freelancer. :clap

And tomorrow????? Eyelyo and noelle take our hopefully cleaned up heros onward! I SO CANNOT WAIT!!!! it feels so wrong calling you girls by your usernames again... thank god Jo's posting one a day!!! :jacket

Have not read anything yet! lol,.....but I will...oh I will :D I'll be back later the RAVE about this :D hahaha... ttfn, cheers

DW

Great chapter!
“Well, well, well…if it isn’t the deleted scene from Broke-back Mountain.”
“a girl who kicks ass? That’s so last season…”
Hehehe. Those lines were hilarious :lol: Amazing job and I can't wait for the next update!!!

LOL Ash! its wierd indeed ;) :lol:

great chap!! Tegan kicks ass, although i am biased :P

Fantastic chapters you guys!!!!! I'll be skipping tomorrows (already read it ;)) But I can't wait to read the rest of this story!!!! GROUP HUG!!! WE KICK ASS!!!!! :D

Well that can't be too good. Please update asap!!!!!!! :D

Hey,
Another day, another chapter.

Enjoy.

Jo.

***

Chapter 3

Writer: Eyelyo
Prompt: noelle

Dean rubbed the bridge of his nose tenderly, fighting against the threatening onslaught of a headache. Thank God, Sam hadn’t seen that embarrassing display of inadequacy. How the hell had Tegan managed to get that drop on him? Her expertise had been surprising, to say the least. It made him think more closely about who he was dealing with exactly.

He stood up and dusted off all the sand that had stuck to his clothes, wondering precisely where his brother had gotten to. Sam wasn’t one to just randomly wander off and with an aggravated sigh, he pulled out his cell phone and picked his brother’s number from his contacts list. He couldn’t imagine how this situation could get any worse.

When he heard his brother’s ring tone drifting over the wind he immediately regretted the thought. In his life, things could always manage to get worse.

Sam was transfixed by its magnificence, by the beauty of its gleaming black coat, by its spellbinding dark eyes. The voice in his mind whispered enticingly to him, coaxing him to wrap his fingers in that shining black mane and pull himself up onto the horse’s back. It begged for him to ride this glorious beast, and his body was only too willing to oblige. The only thing stopping him was that nagging thought in the back of his mind that prevented him from reaching out and doing as the voice pleaded.

Anxiety. Fear.

But it was so hard to be afraid of something so wonderful.

Dean was running now, following that annoying, tinny tune that was Sam’s ring tone, and he was scared. The sound was becoming more audible, fuller, louder. He was getting closer. He just hoped there was no justification for his fears. And, as though karma had decided to give him a major bitch slap today, he looked into the distance to see Sam, face to face with a massive black horse.

“Oh no,” Dean gasped.

Sam’s fingers brushed the soft mane as his hand drifted closer. He was vaguely aware of a familiar voice shouting words his mind couldn’t comprehend. They didn’t matter, the voice assured him.

“Damnit, Sam, get away from it!” Dean cried as he ran. His feet sunk into the soft sand, slowing him down. He tried to pick up speed to reach his brother but his boot slipped. Catching himself before he landed face-first in the sand with his hands, he scrambled back up and continued running. He was distantly aware of the fact that he was still shouting to his brother, but Sam couldn’t hear him.

The long black hair twisted itself around Sam’s frozen fingers, turning in knots around his wrist that he couldn’t have undone if he’d wanted to. A force settled against the small of his back, gently coaxing him forward. He obeyed and took that first, slow step toward the animal.

“NO!” Dean screamed. He stopped short, eyes dancing across his surroundings for something he could use to distract his brother before he lost him forever. He bent and retrieved a handful of rocks, some little more than pebbles. He just needed to steal Sam’s attention for a moment, just long enough to break the spell the kelpie seemed to have over his younger brother.

Something small flew before Sam’s eyes, but he paid it no attention to it. He was so close, now. Close enough to brace a hand against the horse’s back. Close enough to start to pull himself up.

Dean heaved another rock, and this one bounced off the kelpie, unnoticed. He watched as Sam stepped even closer so he was next to the horse, facing Dean and yet unable to see him.

Damnit! Dean thought, sprinting forward a few more feet to try again, this time managing to throw a rock so it whizzed past his brother’s ear. Sam blinked, but Dean’s efforts warranted little more attention than that.

Sam started to pull himself up upon the horse when something hit him square in the forehead. He blinked again, and touched his forehead lightly. What the hell?

“Sammy! Away, now!” Dean shouted as he noticed his brother’s attention turn. He started running again, his legs straining to gain traction against the sand.

Sam lifted his gaze to see Dean running toward him, shouting to him. He struggled to make out the words over the incessant pleas from the voice in his mind.

“… kelpie! Get away from it!”

Reality came rushing back to Sam in a torrent of emotion, the greatest of which being his fear. He stumbled back, wrenching his hands away, trying to pull his fingers from the tangle of black hair around his wrist but he couldn’t untangle himself. His mind working furiously, he remembered the small pocket knife he always kept on him in case of emergencies and pulled it from his pants pocket, nearly dropping it as the horse reared suddenly.

Dean had his gun drawn, aimed at the kelpie. He shot once, aiming for the thing’s head, but missed as it reared. It started to run, somehow managing to drag Sam with it. Dean’s heart flew into the back of his throat.

Sam was helplessly pulled along, his wrist bending painfully as the kelpie started to run. He fell onto his back, his feet kicking out, trying to brace himself against the pull, but he couldn’t catch anything to stop himself. He had to find another way to break free. He lifted the knife and slid it beneath the hair on his wrist, ignoring the biting pain as the blade sliced over his own skin. He flicked it hard and suddenly came free to land hard upon his shoulders. He rolled in an unintentional backward somersault and winced as he landed hard again upon his knees. The sound of retreating hooves silenced all too suddenly and he looked up as the kelpie disappeared into the lake with a massive boom that resonated as loudly as thunder. He clutched his ears against the sound until even the ringing in his ear subsided. Convinced it was over, Sam let himself collapse onto his side.

Dean ran to his brother’s side, who lay motionless, and skidded on his knees as he landed next to him. He rolled him over, checking him for injury, and was relieved when Sam swatted his hands away.

“I’m okay,” Sam wheezed, his breath coming to him in short, sporadic bursts as he struggled to regain composure. His heart was beating way too fast and hard. Nausea swept over him as Dean helped him sit up. Leftover adrenaline, he decided.

“God damnit, Sam, that’s the last time you ever get to wander off, do you hear me?” Dean groused in false anger. “What the hell were you thinking?”

Sam shrugged away from his brother’s hands and started to stand up. “Where did Tegan go?” he asked, ignoring the question.

Dean waved a dismissive hand, “doesn’t matter,” he snapped, looking out over the lake. “Let’s go back to the motel. I don’t wanna be around here if that thing comes back.”

***

It had been nearly two hours since they’d returned to the motel and still Dean was grumbling. Sam had tuned him out long ago, but the comments that registered in Sam’s mind now were enough to draw his attention from the laptop screen he’d been staring at mindlessly, since he’d turned the machine on.

“… and then you were about to go prancing off to a whole new world, you little mermaid!” Dean was complaining as he cleaned their guns with a manic fervour.

“That’s Aladdin,” Sam corrected him, suddenly unsure of where Dean’s thought train was leading him to. When had Disney movies come into the picture? And when, exactly, had Dean deigned to watch them?

“Shut up, Ariel!” Dean sniped. He shoved the clip into the gun with a sharp snap and pulled the slide violently, his mood lightening a little. At least Sam seemed to be breaking out of his stupor. Dean had been a little worried that the spell Sam had been under had left some residual effect upon him, but it appeared he was wrong.

Sam sighed and kicked his foot into the mattress he was sitting on in frustration. He hated that Dean was so worried. He hated that he was the cause, again. But most of all, he hated that he’d been stupid enough to wander off on his own. That was why he’d let Dean gripe on as long as he had. He felt he deserved it for his carelessness. But now they needed to focus.

“Look,” Sam said sharply, “it’s over now, so let’s just focus on finding a way to stop this thing before it kills someone else, okay?”

“Fine,” Dean said in agreement. He stood and made his way to a window, eyes scanning the darkness warily, though both men knew they were relatively safe within the walls of the room. Old habits, as the saying went. “What have you got on kelpies then?”

Sam blinked, for an instant forgetting that he was supposed to have been researching, and snatched up the laptop quickly. “Uh, kelpies are shape shifters of Scottish lore that haunt rivers, lakes, and streams. They usually take the form of a beautiful tame horse,” Sam muttered, clearing his throat as Dean gave him a look, “but can also take the form of an old man.”

“Like Sebastian said, right,” Dean said, “now skip to the part about how we kill the bastard.”

Sam scanned his reading quickly. “It’s said that its power to shape shift resides in its bridle. If someone manages to find it, they would have power over the kelpie.”

“So we find this bridle and we can kill it?”

“I guess so. But there has to be another way…” Sam trailed off as his ears caught the faint sound of police sirens. His eyes locked with Dean’s and he scrambled from the bed, hoping against hope that the kelpie hadn’t claimed another victim already.

***

The street was buzzing with paramedics, policemen, and many curious spectators dressed in bathrobes and sweat suits - late night wear that was easy to don at one in the morning – and Sam was amongst them, awaiting Dean’s return from the crime scene, where he’d gone in under the guise of an off-duty officer. There was an incessant buzz of excited conversation that Sam couldn’t help but listen to. There was talk of a serial killer, gossip that the husband might be involved, worry for the children entangled as well. Sam’s stomach twisted into knots. Children.

Those knots tightened with his trepidation as he saw Dean emerge from the cluster of officials gathered around the densely packed forest that lined the brand new housing development and started toward him, his expression grim. Sam dropped his gaze and screwed his eyes shut. Damn.

“Lauren Breame, 38 years old, found dead in her backyard by her husband, Jordan,” Dean recited from memory to Sam, who stared, with head bowed, at the developing hole in the toe of his sneaker. “Her neck was crushed, cops can’t figure how. There’s bruising that suggests a pair of human hands caused the damage, but no human being possesses that kind of strength.”

“It was the kelpie,” Sam said unnecessarily, his voice low and empty.

“Hey, look at me,” Dean ordered. Sam lifted his eyes grudgingly to meet his brother’s, already certain of what was coming. “This isn’t your fault,” Dean told him forcefully.

Sam snorted. Sure, he hadn’t killed the woman, but…

“Don’t you dare blame yourself for this,” Dean fairly snarled, “you couldn’t have stopped it if you’d tried!”

“Yeah, maybe…”

“No, not maybe. You couldn’t have stopped it,” Dean snapped. God, he was getting so tired of Sam’s guilt complex. Dean couldn’t understand why Sam was so willing to believe he was responsible for everything.

“How long has she been dead?” Sam asked, trying to change the subject. He didn’t need any more pep-talks from his brother right now.

Dean sighed, recognizing the tactic easily, but decided this wasn’t the time or the place to call Sam on it. “Little over an hour. Husband left to go to a poker game with his buddies and when he came back he found his wife dead in the yard.”

“An hour,” Sam echoed, his mind working furiously to process this information and put words to the growing sense of confusion within him.

“Sam,” Dean started again in irritation.

“How far away from the lake are we?” Sam interrupted absent-mindedly.

“About twenty miles, give or take,” Dean answered, the realization hitting him hard. Sam was right. The housing development in which they stood was at least twenty miles from the lake, and he couldn’t see a natural water source within the vicinity. “Kelpies haunt lakes, rivers, and streams. I’m willing to bet there aren’t any out here. So what the hell was it doing out here?”

Sam shrugged. “I don’t know. Seems a little out of the kelpie’s way, doesn’t it?”

“You thinking it might have come out here specifically?” Dean asked uncertainly.

“Maybe. I don’t know,” Sam answered absently. Something didn’t seem right about that theory. As far as he knew, kelpies weren’t too choosy about who they attacked. So why the hell would it come all the way out here?

“You said someone could control this thing, right?” Dean said suddenly.

Sam looked up, conclusions forming in his own mind, “you think someone found the bridle?”

“It thinks it’s a definite possibility,” Dean answered, “which means there might be someone behind all this. And when there are people involved, there are always patterns. Always.” He pulled his keys from his pocket and started for the driver’s side door.

“So we need to look for a connection between the victims,” Sam said as he slid into the passenger seat.

“Exactly. So we need to start getting together information. I’ll go the police station, you can go to the library, geek-boy.”

Sam shot his brother a dirty look. “Dean, it’s one o’clock in the morning.”

Dean frowned, as though failing to see the problem, and sighed, “fine, we’ll sleep and then I’ll go to the police station while you go to the library. How much beauty sleep do you really need there, Sammy.”

Sam rolled his eyes, “shut up.”

***

Dean leafed through the pile of photocopies he’d collected from the station and snatched up the one labelled “Richards” as Sam strolled through the door, an armful of files in tow.

“What did you do, clean out the whole library?” Dean teased.

Sam shot him an impatient look and closed the door to their room behind him. “I collected every bit of history I could on the town. Founders, records of anything weird happening that might tie with what’s going on now, census rosters from as far back as I could find, basically everything I could think of.”

“You may have gone a little overboard there, Sammy.”

Sam dumped the files onto the other bed and sat down, ignoring Dean’s use of his hated nickname. “I’m just being thorough,” he retorted.

“All right. So, did you find anything?” Dean asked, “cause I’ve got nothing on the police end. Except a phone number,” Dean added with a smirk.

Sam rolled his eyes. Dean was always collecting phone numbers. “I was in a bit of a hurry, so I haven’t managed to take a look through it all yet. But I did find out something interesting. Turns out Sebastian Richards and Lauren Breame were related. Sebastian’s father was Lauren’s cousin.”

Dean shrugged. “Could be just a coincidence.”

“Or it could be more,” Sam countered.

“Maybe,” Dean agreed unenthusiastically, as there was a knock at the door and he looked up. Who would be coming to see them?

“Wanna get that, Sammy?”

“No,” Sam answered automatically as he stepped into the bathroom.

Dean sighed huffily and dragged himself off the bed in a subdued manner. He was halfway to the door when he heard the person on the other side yell his name angrily.

“Dean, I know you’re in there!” a female voice cried. “Open up!”

Crap. Tegan.

He opened the door tentatively and leaned against the frame, trying a mechanical, friendly smile. He did not like the fact that she was here. It could only mean trouble.

“Tegan. What are you doing here?” he asked curtly.

She almost seemed to growl at that question, her eyes flashing with anger. “What the hell are you doing investigating my brother? Why did you want his records?” she demanded heatedly.

He frowned. “Your brother? Who’s your brother?” he asked.

“Scott Cooper!” she snapped.

Double crap, Dean thought. This hunt just seemed to be biting him in the ass.

wow that great! update soon

OMG. OMG. and OMG. LI!! HOLY CRAP!! I LOVED IT!!! LOVED!!! I mean all of it! My heart was pounding in chest and I was yelling at Sam and screaming at Dean to hurry up! omg the kelpie description was amazing!! I wanted to ride it! And the moment when Sam freed himself and the.... *takes breath* I felt for him! *does happy description dance* THANK YOU from the bottom of detail loving heart! Details! Wonderful wonderful details!!! Li, Vally awesome job!!! I will continue my gushing later tonight. Bravo loves!

Alright peoples, the always astounding Eyelyo aided by the thoroughly astonishing noelle (god it still sounds wrong to call you girls by your UNs) owned the deuce-ace chapter!! Can't wait to see how the dulcet One Song Glory assisted by the lovely White_werewolf lay down the little joe!

And in case anyone was wondering....I had LOTS of caffeine!! My heart's doing the irish jig in my chest. Ignore my insanity. EXCEPT the I love this chapter part!!!

Thanks for posting Jo!!!! and organising and commencing but I have a long thank you for you later.

It it Sunday yet?!

Haha! Wow, Solitaire. I'm not even that hyper after a full dose of Red Bull. LoL! And I've only ever had one. :lol: But I must follow your lead in saying that this is only getting "awsomer" by the second. Or day, in this case. I absolutely love it. Please PLEASE try to update the SECOND you get up, JoKing. For all our sakes. LoL! Otherwise, we might be forced to cause a little "vandilization" to our dear beloved computers. And I'm pretty sure I'll regret doing that afterwards. Hehe! Anyhoo, thanks again for the update, and, as always, can't wait for the next one. :D ttyl!

Incredible chapter! The action was amazingly described. I loved the line "Sammy! Away, now!" for some reason. Hehehe. And the whole disney movie thing. Great job!!! :D

LOL!! Ash! u goof ;)

beautifully done, Aili! ;) :wub:

val

Dumb Tegan. Ruining... stuff. And poor Sammy all afraid of horses. Please update asap!!!!!!!!!! :D

LOL, I'll try and update as fast as I can...if only to stop the destruction of computers up and down the country. Haha.

Here you go...

Jo.

***

Chapter Four

Writer: One Song Glory
Prompt: white_werewolf

Dean tried to think of a way to lie to Tegan about why he wanted her brother’s records when Sam bared out from the bathroom in just a towel.

“Hey Dean have you seen my…Oh hi, Tegan. I didn’t know you were here,” Sam said his cheeks burning with embarrassment.

“Yeah and she was just leaving, so if you don’t mind…” Dean said, trying to push Tegan out of the open door, but she wouldn’t budge.

“No, I’m not leaving until you tell me what you want with my brother!”

“Who’s your brother?” Sam asked, completely in the dark about what was happening.

“Scott Cooper. And you better have a good reason why you’re investigating him, or do I have to remind you what happened the first time we met?”

Dean’s head flashed with their fight and he absentmindedly ran a hand over his old wounds.

“Well you see… we were ah…” Sam started trying to think of a good lie to tell her.

“We heard that your brother was good with horses and worked at a stable and we were looking through his records to see if…” Dean cut in.

“He was legit and stuff. We’re looking into horses for our aunt ‘cause she wants to buy one for our cousin,” Sam continued.

Tegan stood there baffled at what the brothers had just said to her, not sure whether she should believe them or beat the crap out of them. Dean used her confusion to his advantage and started to push her out of the door.

“I think you’ve gotten everything you needed, so if you don’t mind, my brother if half naked and would like to get dressed,” Dean rattled off, pushing her the rest of the way out before Tegan was able to fight back.

“That was close,” Dean sighed as he leaned against the door

“Yeah, but what was that ‘we heard he is good with horses and works at a stable’? What were you thinking?” Sam asked as he started to look through his bag for clean clothes to put on.

“Well you weren’t coming up with anything better genius, so I had to think of something. And it worked, didn’t it?” Dean replied, slightly annoyed.

“Just can’t do anything right, can I…” Sam muttered under his breath

“And what is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing,” Sam sighed, starting to walk back into the bathroom, but Dean blocked the way.

“Don’t you start this up again…” Dean threatened

“Start what up?” Sam replied, trying to play innocent and keep the peace.

“You know what I mean, you’ve been acting strange lately ever since the kelpie killed Lauren Breame.”

“Well maybe I just feel a bit guilty, because if it weren’t for me she would still be alive now,” Sam snapped, trying to push Dean out of the way so he could escape into the bathroom, but Dean wouldn’t move.

“So that’s what all this depression is about, you feeling guilty?” Dean asked fiercely, pushing Sam onto the bed

“Yeah, what if it is?”

“God, would you just get over your self, Sammy. How many times do I have to tell you it wasn’t your fault?”

“Yeah it is, if it weren’t for my stupid fear of horses that thing could have been killed and that women would still be alive.”

“Your fear has nothing to do with that woman’s death, besides you know we can’t control the kelpie without its bridal. So fear or not, it wouldn’t have made a difference.”

“Yeah, maybe. You should have just let it take me…”

“You don’t really mean that?”

“Maybe I do, it would have done a lot more good if me and my stupid fear weren’t here,” Sam muttered, walking towards to the window to look at the lake.

“No, it wouldn’t have. Look Sammy, I know how you feel but you can’t let the guilt consume you,” Dean said gently, joining his brother

“Hey, did you see that?” Sam asked, staring harder at the edge of the lake.

“Don’t try and change the subject,” Dean warned.

“No I’m being serious, look…” Sam said, pointing outside the window to a blurry figure standing by the lake with what appeared to be a horse next to him.

“That can not be good,” Dean murmured, as the two ran out of the room.

Ah! :o Cliffhanger! Another great chapter and now another day to wait... <_<

is it wrong that all i can think about is towel clad sammy running out the door all dripping wet and muscled *melts* towels... lots of towels... *dies*

what was i saying? ah yes the chapter! awesome job One Song Glory!!!! i not allowed to gush anymore because people will start looking at me strangely.... but GREAT JOB! the melodious One Song Glory assisted by the lovely White_werewolf hit us with little joe folks!!! now it's time for the marvellous Samoli aided by the adorable Miss. J to lay down little phoebe tomorrow!! no longer shall it be known as blue monday when an update is to be had!

okay i only had one cup of caffeine today. happy?!

edit: i forgot to replace Miss J. with Amethyst... sorry sweetie!!

Poor Sammy, he should listen to Dean. Please update asap!!!!!!! :D

eeeek!!! cliffie!!! omg, i sooo know wut im doing as soon as i get home tomorrow! i shall even leave my comp on to get back here faster ;) :lol:

OK...we're at the half-way mark! Yeah!

It seems to be going so fast...

:D

***

Chapter 5

Writer: Samoli
Prompt: Amethyst

Sam pushed his legs to their limits, as hard as they would allow without collapsing beneath him. He could barely just hear Dean’s heavy, booted foot-steps behind him, and even though his older brother was fast, his legs were no match for Sam’s much longer ones. But right now, that wasn’t it. The only word to perfectly describe his reckless haste was determination; his determination to stop this “thing.”

“Sam!” Dean shouted above the roar of the waves crashing up onto the weather-beaten shore. “Stop!”

Confused as to why his brother would call out such a command, Sam skidded to a halt, only to find that the shadowy figure, along with the horse that had been standing beside him, had mysteriously disappeared. Disappointment immediately etched itself across every one of his features. Dean, on the other hand, appeared rather indifferent.

Letting out a growl of frustration, Sam turned on his heel and abruptly stormed back towards to their stuffy motel room. As soon as Dean had shut the door behind him, the younger Winchester turned to face his brother with bitter resentment practically dripping from his character.

“What?” Dean asked, feigning complete innocence.

“Do you even care about the outcome of this whole little escapade that we’ve managed to get ourselves in?” Sam half screamed at Dean, his anger getting the better of him. “I mean, you could at least show a bit of interest in what’s going on, Dean”

“Sam, look…” Dean raised a hand in a futile attempt to calm his brother down. “I know you’re upset, but when you’ve been in the business as long as I have, you learn to take what you can get. There’ll be another chance to catch this thing. So don’t worry, okay,” he raised his eyebrows, waiting for a response.

“You know what? Forget it! I’m sick and tired of playing this game with you. You think that just because you’ve been doing this a lot longer than I have that you’re suddenly the expert about everything, and that I’m just an additional carry-on that you’re taking along for the ride.”

“Hey! Now wait just a God damn second! That’s not how it is and you know it. Do you honestly think I treat you like that?”

“As a matter of fact, I do. You bark orders at me. You constantly tell me what to do, thinking that I’m too incompetent to do anything on my own. Well, from now on, I’m not gonna sit around and act as your little piñata to bash around as you please. The next time that old man, or Jesus, that horse, shows up again, I’m going after it by myself,” Sam stated stubbornly, daring Dean to say anything against his bold outburst.

“Now that’s just plain stupidity. Even you can see that, I’m sure,” was all Dean said as he made his way over to the double bed situated at the far side of the room.

Sam simply watched in utter contempt as Dean sat himself down upon the bed and proceeded in taking off his boots and socks, acting as if their argument hadn’t even happened.

At last, laying down and pulling the covers over him, Dean added, “Get some sleep, Sam. You’re just tired.”

Sam would have argued if not for the fact that he knew his brother was right. So, deciding to follow suit, he removed his own shoes and undressed until he was in nothing save his boxer shorts and socks. Then, turning out the light, he nestled himself under the warm covers and attempted to erase the last ten minutes from his mind so that he might stand a chance of letting sleep claim him.

***

The chilly wind whipped him in the face repeatedly as the creature beneath him continued to gather speed. His wayward strands of hair were constantly striking him in the face so that it was almost painful. Completely confused and bewildered, Sam peered down to look at the animal upon which he was seated upon, already knowing what his eyes would find.

The immense black horse maintained its steady speed as its hooves pounded against the sand, sounding like a foreign drumbeat that caused Sam to feel tired and lethargic, as if the rhythmic sound was trying to hypnotize him.

And then, they were standing still, facing the vast, black waters of the lake. Sam didn’t know how, but he knew something big was about to take place, so he sat there and watched; and waited.

Suddenly, the lake itself seemed to rise and take the shape of something; something remotely close to the form of a human being. Upon closer examination, Sam found it to be the shape of the old man that he had seen earlier down by the shoreline.

Gradually, Sam found his fear mounting. So high, in fact, that it blocked his throat until he could scarcely breathe. And then, the wave decided to come down, until it had completely masked them under its icy blanket of blackness and the unknown. Sam shivered violently, and wondered why the horse wouldn't move, but instead stood there and allowed them both to become swallowed by the old man.

When his vision failed him, a pounding became evident in his ears, which steadily moved inward until it was right inside his head, mimicking the incessant beat of the drum, except louder and more painful this time.

He put his hands to his ears, hoping to block out some of the sound. But, seeing as it was inside his head, this only succeeded in making the noise worse, as it then decided to reverberate loudly against the palms of his hands.

“NO!” his voice struggled to be heard through the think, inky blackness that had engulfed him.

“Sam! Wake up,” came a harsh, yet concerned command from the other side, and Sam’s eyes snapped open to see his brother standing over him, worry deeply evident in his soft, hazel-coloured eyes.

The early morning sun was already shining through one of the low windows beside the door, and Sam blinked as it made his eyes water and sting.

Dean didn’t have time to question his brother about the nightmare, however, because the pounding continued to sound through the room, which momentarily distracted Dean’s attention. “Someone’s outside,” he added, moving himself away from the bed and shuffling over to the door. “So throw something on before I let whoever it is in.”

Tossing the covers off in a mad haste, Sam reached for his T-shirt that lay strewn at the end of his bed, and threw it over his head, covering his bare chest and stomach.

He then nodded at Dean to signal that he was ready, and the older Winchester finally answered the irritated knocking sounding from the opposite side of the wooden door. Not surprisingly, there stood Tegan, looking more annoyed and infuriated than ever.

“You women really are persistent, aren’t you?” Dean half joked as he motioned for her to come in.

“Ha Ha, very funny,” Tegan replied, her voice obviously dripping with heavy sarcasm. Looking around the room, she immediately noticed the flushed appearance of Sam’s face, along with the small red spot on his nose. “What happened?” she asked, motioning to his nose with a pointed finger.

Sam’s hand immediately shot up to feel the small, yet sore bump on the end of his nose, not having felt anything there previously.

“Bug bite?” Dean suggested.

“I dunno. Probably,” Sam said, rubbing the spot vigorously with his hand as if that would make it go away.

Then, having remembered the real reason she had driven all the way out there, Tegan turned back to face Dean. “So, do you wanna tell me why you lied to me the other day?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest in an almost motherly kind of way.

Sam and Dean exchanged a quick glance before Dean decided to play dumb. “Uh, I’m not so sure I know what you mean… exactly,” he half-laughed, trying desperately to put on his best “childlike” face.

Sam snorted and shook his head slightly. He quickly turned this into a bad cough, however, as Tegan shot a dirty look his way. “Don’t pretend to be stupid. You know perfectly well what I mean,” she said, turning her heated gaze back to Dean. “I know you were being anything but truthful when you told me you were looking for a horse for your aunt, or cousin, or whoever the hell it was.”

“Oh really? And how do you pretend to know that?” Dean challenged.

“Because,” Tegan answered. “I looked both of you up, and it just so happens that both your parents were an only child. Therefore, according to your family tree, you don’t have any aunts, cousins, or uncles for that matter,” she admitted smugly, watching with delight as Dean’s smile deflated practically instantaneously. “So, when you guys do decide to tell me the truth, just give me a call. K?” she concluded, preparing to head out the door.

“Wait!” Dean spoke up, grabbing Tegan’s arm and pulling her closer towards him.

“What are you…” she started to ask but was soon cut off when Dean’s lips met hers in a rough kiss that lasted only a couple seconds because her hand quickly met the side of his face.

“Who the hell do you think you are?” she screamed, her voice filled with shock and fury. Rapidly, she stomped out of the door, slamming it sharply behind her; but not before dealing another hard blow to Dean’s face.

“What was that?!” Sam asked in disbelief as soon as he heard Tegan’s engine rev and her car pull out onto the road.

Still rubbing his sore cheek, Dean turned to face Sam, mischief playing in each and every line of his handsome countenance.

“Well?” Sam continued to press, completely bewildered at his older brother’s behaviour.

Finally, Dean smiled a wide grin and raised his hand to reveal a small, brown, leather-bound wallet. “Lookie what I found!”

“Dean!” Sam gasped, hardly daring to believe what his eyes were telling him. “Please don’t tell me you stole that from Tegan,” he pleaded, eyeing the wallet with extreme guilt, despite the fact that it wasn’t even him who had taken it in the first place.

“What? She didn’t give me her card. How was I supposed to know her number?” Dean smiled even wider, his eyes absolutely laughing with rebelliousness. “Hopefully she doesn’t need this anytime soon,” he added as an afterthought, proceeding to open the wallet and rifle through its contents.

“Dean, you're returning that to the police station. If Tegan finds out, you could get into some serious trouble,” Sam said, trying desperately to convince his brother to do the right thing.

“Oh, come on! This could prove to be really useful,” Dean countered, his voice sounding dangerously close to that of a whining infant.

“Dean...” Sam said, raising his eyebrows as a warning.

“Yeah, yeah. I will,” Dean said with an absent wave of his hand without even bothering to look up.

Against his better judgment, Sam shook his head for the second time that morning, and moved to stand beside his brother. After searching though it for a while, Dean’s brow wrinkled with puzzlement, and he looked over at Sam, who was wearing the same expression.

“This isn’t Tegan’s,” Sam said finally. Leaning in closer, he bent his head over one of the photo I.D. cards to better read the name imprinted at the bottom. He was stunned when the name read: “Lauren Breame”.

“I guess we’re not the only ones working on this case,” Dean concluded, glancing up to meet his brother’s eyes which were clouded with surprise and suspicion.

Another hunter... interesting. And Sam's vision better not come true. Please update asap!!!!!! :D

“Lookie what I found!” Hehehe :lol: Loved it!!!

*strokes Raoul's beard* inteeerressttinng......:lol:

OMG.. How long did it take me to get here??? Jeez I'm slack. I just been so busy and stressing about things I have to get done, so hopefully, when I read this I can take time to relax.

WE DID MY CHAPTER!!!!!!!!! YAY.... I AM SO DAMN EXCITED... I know I was only a stand in prompt but I was dying to see what mine turned out like. I haven't actually read it yet, but I plan to read it and then come back and review... see if it was anything like they expected it to be.

And ASH!!!!!!!!!!! Fancy forgetting about me. I know I'm quiet and because of that people forget about me but I never thought you would :cry Well, at least you corrected yourself. Thanks. I'm glad you did. :wub:

Wow. So I'm feeling like a star at the moment so just let me get this out. I WAS ACTUALLY PROMPT FOR A GROUP FAN FIC!!!!!!!!!!!! I PROMPTED THAT CHAPTER!!!!!!!!!! YAY :thud .... does anyone want my autograph??? :cheer MAN... I should quiet down a bit now. BUT OMG I'M SO EXCITED.... I feel so famous :supes Well. Maybe I should don my superman outfit and stop talking and go and save some fan fic from the cracks of doom!!!!!!!!!!!!

TA-TA. I'LL BE BACK :bruce (Sorry, they don't have an Arnie S smilie :cry )

Wow...I missed the last two updates, but they were good!

I laughed when Sam went running out the door in his towel. And I could see myself repeating Dean's line from pilot (No I wouldn't dream of it...seriously) when Dean told Sam to put his shirt on.

Great s**t great s**t.

LOL, I'm glad, everyone is enjoying themselves.

Amethyst...you crazy kid. Haha.

But anyway, without any further ado...

The Chapter!

***

Chapter 6

Writer: shmexxydean
Prompt: Dean.W.-KAZ2Y5

“So, why would Tegan have Lauren’s wallet?” Sam asked.

“No idea, but we’re going to find out,” Dean replied with a wink.

Sam sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed his eyes, “what do we do now?”

“Now? Now we get some more sleep,” Dean said as he flopped back on the bed.

“But Dean we…” Sam scolded but was interrupted by a sharp knocking on the door.

Getting up, Sam opened the door, only to find a fuming Tegan standing on the other side. Pushing her way past Sam, and into the hotel room, she slammed the door.

“Alright,” Tegan yelled, “which one of you took it?”

Dean rose from the bed and stood in front of Tegan, “took what?”

Tegan balled her fist and spoke through clenched teeth, “my wallet.”

“Oh, you mean this wallet?” Dean asked, holding the item teasingly in front of her nose.

“Yes,” Tegan replied, trying to grab it.

“Not so fast. One, it’s not nice to grab. Two, this isn’t your wallet.”

Tegan lowered her hands and stared hard at Dean. Sam stood behind her, ready to grab her if she tried anything.

“No, it isn’t mine.”

Then moving toward the bed, Tegan sat down and bowed her head.

“You want to tell us why you have Lauren Breame’s wallet then?” Sam asked.

“I need to know what happened to her.”

“Why?” the boys said in unison.

“Because…”

“That doesn’t really explain why you have the wallet.”

“Look, just give it back, alright?”

“I will, once you explain yourself,” Dean stated, sitting on the bed next to her.

Tegan eyed him before directing her gaze at Sam, “you’ll think I’m crazy.”

“I highly doubt that,” Dean said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“I think whatever killed Lauren, killed Scott.”

“Whatever?”

“Yes,” Tegan whispered, “look, I know you’ll think I’m crazy but nothing the cops have said makes sense. The way my brother died…it doesn’t fit. Plus, I found something.”

At this Dean perked up, “What you find?”

“Give me the wallet and I’ll show you,” Tegan replied, her eyes sparkling.

Dean handed over the wallet and looked over at Sam with interest.

“So you don’t think I’m crazy?” Tegan asked hesitantly.

“We said we wouldn’t,” Dean retorted.

Tegan glared at Dean then rose from the bed. “Alright then, let’s go, you might want to wear boots though,” she said, eyeing Sam’s sneakers with disapproval.


* * *

Tegan opened the door and walked out and down the path leading toward the lake. Once at the edge of the water, she veered right, towards the bush surrounding the water. Getting down on her hands and knees, she poked through the greenery, seeming to be looking for something.

“Uh, Tegan?”

“Hmm?”

But before either of them could answer, Tegan pulled away a thick bushel of branches that gave way to a tiny path, trodden with leaves and mud.

“In there?” Dean asked.

“In there.”

Tegan led the way, followed by Sam, then Dean. Once they were on the path, Tegan started to lead the way, trudging down the muddy path. After walking for nearly half an hour, Sam spoke.

“Tegan, where exactly are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

Sam was about to say something more, when he heard a loud, rather angry groan, followed by a string of obscenities, come from behind him. Looking back he spotted his brother lying face down in the mud.

“Dean?”

Clawing his way out of the mud, Dean stood, and attempted to rid his face of the brown slime. Walking past Sam, who by this point was barely holding in his laughter, he growled, “damn tree root, I hate nature.”

At this, both Tegan and Sam burst out laughing. Dean halted and glared, “finished?”

Tegan stopped and smiled at Dean, who was still spitting out mud. “We’re almost there, Mud Man.”

Dean made a face at her before following her to the end of the path and into a large clearing. He was relieved to find that it was covered with grass rather than mud. Looking to the right, he saw Tegan already making her way across the clearing to another path. Groaning, he followed.

When they reached the path, Sam noticed it was much shorter. Following Dean they ducked under the low hanging branches and came out into a smaller clearing. In the centre, was an old broken and rotted cottage.

“This it?” Sam asked.

“Yah, this is it.”

“What’s so important about it?” Sam wondered aloud, as he bent over and sniffed at a flower.

“AGGGHHHH!” Sam exclaimed.

Tegan and Dean both turned around to find Sam holding his nose.

“Dude, what’s wrong with you?”

“I think I’m allergic to that,” Sam replied pointing at the offending floral item.

Dean rolled his eyes and turned to follow Tegan toward the cottage. Sam followed, still rubbing his now very red nose.

Once they reached the steps to the cottage, Tegan motioned for them to follow her to the back of the cottage.

“If we have to walk anymore, I am seriously going to need some foot lotion,” Dean groaned.

Tegan laughed, “look.”

Dean followed her gaze to a large mound of dirt that had a large stake planted in the ground behind it, hanging on a nail on the stake, was a horseshoe.

“I also found this…” Tegan said running back to the front of the cottage and climbing the stairs.

Sam and Dean followed and looked above the door where Tegan was pointing. Nailed onto the front of the cottage was a sign that read, “Breame”.


* * *


By the time they emerged from the bush, it was already growing dark. They headed back up the path toward the hotel and stopped in front of the door. Dean searched his pockets for the key, all the while hopping from one foot to the other.

“You alright there, Hoppy?” Tegan asked laughing.

Dean turned and looked at her with a pained expression on his face, “yah, thanks.”

As soon as the door was opened Dean flew into the room and dove into the bathroom. He emerged a few minutes later, looking clean and relieved.

“Finally,” Sam said and walked into the bathroom.

Dean lay on the bed and looked up at the ceiling. Tegan carefully sat next to him and asked, “so what do you think it means?”

Dean turned and looked her, “I don’t know, but I’m exhausted.”

“Me too.”

“You want a ride back to town?”

“No, I’ll just stay here if that’s alright?” Tegan replied, lying next to Dean.

Dean smiled and closed his eyes, feeling Tegan snuggle against him. He carefully put his arm around her and then drifted off to sleep.

Sam emerged from the bathroom and stopped dead when he looked toward the bed. Closing his eyes he shook his head, when he opened them Tegan and Dean remained, sound asleep on the bed…together. Sam rose and eyebrow and shook his head, before crawling onto the adjacent bed and falling asleep himself.

He always gets the girl... please update asap!!!!!!! :D

curse her...taking my spot......grrrr...:P

update soon! (y do we keep saying this? we know ur updating tomorrow LOL :P)

because we want to make sure she does ;)

*is sick* sorry no long commenting. great job Samoli! really enjoyed your work. laughed when dean took her wallet, nice cover too. what woman in her right mind would slap that man for kissing her?! *shakes fist* tegan! and the dream script was awesome. maddy, kido, you know i love you but seriously lighten up on the sugar hun or you're gonna be worse then me at my age. you're already too sweet ;)

great job shmexxydean! my feet hurt for dean. poor guy. and tegan?! little miss slap happy sleeping with dean?! no wonder sam did a double take. Dean.W.-KAZ2Y5 your presence was noticed ;)

all four of you laides did an awesome job! too sick to gush though i'm sorry. but you stellar jobs!

Fantastic chapter! Had me laughing with the whole trek through the forest :lol: . Great job you guys! Ahhh, but my chapter is next! :unsure: Hope I did your prompts justice Samoli. Can't wait to see how it ends! :D

Hey,
I thought as I'm still up and it is now 12:41am here in Britain that I would post the next chapter because you keep telling me to post asap, LOL.

And don't worry, Taiven, everyone will love it. I did. Plus it's nice and long...

:D

***

Chapter Seven

Writer: Taiven
Prompt: Samoli

Dean’s eyes flickered open as the dim ceiling slowly came into view, dark shadows playing along its smooth surface. He had no idea what had woken him. Groggily turning his head, he was able to make out the form of his younger brother sleeping soundlessly on the opposite bed, but as he returned his gaze upwards he suddenly recalled the slight warmth curled by his side.

A smile teased his lips as he remembered Tegan’s body snuggling close to his, her body heat slowly warming his skin as they both let sleep ease the exhaustion they felt. He let his head slowly twist to his left, Tegan’s slumbering face serene and – gone.

A wave of alarm ripped through the older Winchester as he bolted upright, his eyes probing the room for the missing girl. His search had him glancing first at the bathroom, but the entrance was wide open, the small room appearing dark and empty. Next he scanned the walls until his eyes fell on the motel room door. It was shut, but his gaze quickly shifted to the lock, he found the chain hanging loosely to the side.

Confusion swelled within him as he shuffled from the bed, standing by its side as he touched the sheets which Tegan had been lying upon.

Still warm…

And that’s when he heard it; the roar of an engine, the hum that followed, and the sound of wheels on pavement. Dean’s hand instinctively moved towards his pocket, the lack of a metallic lump confirming what he had feared. His keys were missing, and he had a damn good idea at who had taken them.

“Son of a…”

Stomping towards the door he swung it open just in time to view his Impala disappear into the gloom of the night. Anger seethed through Dean’s veins, his blood bubbling as he gritted his teeth and turned abruptly on his heels. The crash of the door slamming behind him seemed to have awakened Sam, for now the younger boy was sitting up in bed, eyes wide with distress and puzzlement.

“Dean? What’s going on?”

“She took the damn car!” Dean yelled in aggravation, flicking on the light and rummaging around the room to see if anything else was missing.

His brother remained silent for a moment before replying, “Tegan?”

“Yes, Sam.” Dean snapped, unable to hide the frustration in his voice. “She drove off with it a moment ago. What the hell does she think she’s doing?” A small sigh of relief escaped his lips as he reached into his back pocket and discovered his wallet within it. Still, this did not stop the self accusations being hurled within his mind. How could he have been so stupid? Especially after he had practically used the same trick to obtain Tegan’s wallet? There were no excuses. He had let his guard down.

And now Tegan was driving to God knows where, a perilous Kelpie lurking about. This was all exactly what they didn’t need. She was troublesome before, but now things had just become a lot more inconvenient for the brothers.

“How did she get the keys?”

His brother’s question caused Dean to pause for a moment, the humiliation and embarrassment he felt now slightly playing along his expression. Sam stared at the older Winchester for a few moments but then looked away, only muttering a single, “right” before slipping from the bed and throwing on a sweater.

“We better go find her. Before she opens the glove box or finds out what we have hidden in the trunk.”

“God Sammy you make it sound like we’re serial killers or something…” mumbled Dean as he shrugged into his faded leather jacket, the anger he felt slowly transforming into guilt.

“Well she might think we’re not that far off.” Bitterness clung to Sam’s words as he shoved past his brother and made his way out of the room. Dean silently followed, knowing very well he had screwed up.

***

A few minutes later, the two Winchesters were standing in the motel parking lot, a thin mist shrouding the few cars situated in the area. Dawn was approaching, thin strands of pink and purple reaching over the lake as its surface sparkled in the soft light. Sam would have thought it beautiful. Would have…

“I got to tell you I feel sorry for the poor sucker that has to get up this early and pick us up.” Dean chuckled as he tried to break the uncomfortable silence that had stretched between the brothers as they waited for a cab to arrive.

“That’s their job,” was Sam’s only reply, his eyes still set on the unmoving waters of the lake. Almost beautiful…

“Well, they better get here soon anyway. Every second I don’t know where my car is drives me insa-”

“Dean, she could be anywhere.” Sam swirled around to face his brother, his words laced with annoyance. “She could be miles away for all we know. And now that we don’t have a car, it’s going to be a lot harder to solve this problem. I mean, who knows when the next attack will be? Someone else is going to die and it’s because of you that we’re not going to be able to save them.” Anger was now fuming from Sam’s eyes, and though he didn’t mean the words spilling from his mouth, his face was serious and accusing.

Dean stared back, his voice grim and stiff when he spoke, “look Sam, I messed up, all right? But no one else is going to die. We’re gonna find who ever is controlling this Kelpie and then after we deal with them, we’re going to hunt the son of a bitch down and kill it. No one else is going to die. You got that?”

Sam looked as if he was about to object, but after a few more moments of staring at his brother’s firm expression, he adverted his eyes back to the lake. The guilt he had felt after Lauren Breame’s death was still playing heavily upon his shoulders, but his brother’s confident assurance was enough to settle his doubts for now.

“Yah,” he mumbled, just before their taxi appeared through the thinning mist.

***

Silence in the cab. Silence on the sidewalk. A tight friction had jammed between the brothers as they made their way into town, having only enough money to pay the taxi driver for a quarter of the distance. Sam was still upset over their newfound obstacle. Dean should have known something was amiss when Tegan attempted to get close to him. Hell, he should have too. But now, as his brother walked beside him, shoulders slightly slumped, Sam could not help but feel regret for what he had said earlier.

But there was no way to apologize. No way to take his words back. Not now, because Tegan had their car, full of illegal weaponry and fake I.D.s, and to top it all off, a Kelpie was still on the loose and murdering people. There was no time to make amends…

So it was surprising how a small piece of gum could finally lighten the mood between the brothers. It was pink and gooey, mashed on the bottom of Sam’s shoe as he lifted it up to inspect what he had stepped on. The younger Winchester twisted his mouth into a disgusted grimace as he scraped his shoe on the pavement, but the gum still clung.

Dean could not help but snicker at his brother’s misfortune. “Dude, just pick it off.”

But Sam ignored him, stomping his shoe on the ground. Dean’s chuckle transformed into an amused laugh.

“Seriously, man.”

Sam glared at him, but his face was less tense as he finally tweaked the gum from his shoe and flung it away, the pink lump hitting a sign that read “Breakfast Buffet” leaning against a small restaurant.

The younger Winchester began to move forward again but Dean stopped him with an outstretched hand. “Give me a second man…” he said as he detached himself from the sidewalk and quickly disappeared into the busy restaurant. Less than a minute later he reappeared, slipping through the door with a saggy napkin clutched in one hand, and a styrofoam cup in the other. He joined his impatient brother once more with a smirk on his lips, letting the napkin fall open to reveal its contents to Sam.

“Pineapple and coffee,” he said, taking a sip from the cup and then balancing it in the crook of his arm as he popped a slimy yellow cube into his mouth. “The breakfast of champions.”

Sam shook his head but smiled slightly before they continued down the street, reaching the library shortly after. Dean’s swiveling head, no doubt searching the street for his stolen car, finally rested long enough for him to give the crumbling building a wary glance. “I think I’ll talk to the locals.” He offered, throwing the remains of his breakfast into a nearby trash can. “See if any of them know about the cottage.”

Sam was clearly aware of Dean’s unwillingness to spend his morning in a dank library shifting through dusty accounts, but was not in the mood to argue. He simply shot him an annoyed look before answering, “I’ll see if I can find anything about the cottage in the library. There should be something.”

“I don’t know Sammy. Looks like whoever built that cottage didn’t want it to be found.”

“Yah, well we’ll see.” Sam said before he headed into the library. “Call me if you discover anything important!” And with that he vanished, leaving Dean to search the area for any willing residents who may be able to shed some light upon the mysterious cottage.

The older Winchester began to walk down the main street, only passing a few people as they hurried to their destinations, the sky threatening rain. He went by multiple stores, entering a few that looked promising but never finding what he was looking for. It took him twenty-five minutes before he finally veered off the main road and onto a smaller street, the buildings suddenly turning from new and modern to old and worn. And that’s where he found it. “Morris’ Antique Store”; Dean’s years of hunting had taught him where to find answers.

The familiar ring of a bell met his ears as he entered the musty building, taking in the cluttered shelves as he did so. They were full of antiques. Tea pots, candle holders, clocks. A large wooden rocking chair stood to the right while the counter was situated on the left wall. A lady appearing to be in her mid fifties stood behind it, unaware of his presence. She was cradling an overweight cat in her arms, pressing her nose in its orange fur as the Winchester came to stand in front of the counter.

“My little shmucky-poo,” she crooned. “You enjoy your day at the spa? Of course you did my little-”

“Ahem.”

The cat jumped out of the lady’s hands as Dean purposefully cleared his throat, and the woman turned to him with a shocked expression. A smile quickly replaced it however, grey curls framing her round face. “Well hello there. Can I help you young man?”

“Um, yah actually. You see I’m, uh, a reporter from a few towns away. I was wondering if you knew the Breame family by any chance.”

“The Breame’s? Oh yes. It’s a mighty shame what happened...”

There was a skeptical grunt from the back of the store and Dean snapped his head in the direction to see who it belonged to. An elderly man stood unsteadily in the entrance of a back door. His skin was brown and leathery, worn by many years of hard work in the sun, and it appeared as if a scowl had imprinted itself permanently on his wrinkled features. Slowly shuffling towards the counter, he leaned on a wooden cane that looked as brittle as he did.

“I could tell you a story or two about the Breame family,” he spat out the last name as if it were a fowl piece of meat. “That may change your opinion, Lucy.”

The woman gave the man a disapproving look, but remained quiet. Dean turned to face him.

“Is that so?” the older Winchester asked, a hint of doubt carefully placed in his voice.

The old man glared at him. “You don’t believe me?” he asked irritably, a barely detectable whistle escaping from the gap between his teeth as he spoke. “You young kids, all the same…” he grumbled, but then seemed to carry on with the telling of his story.

“Sixty two years ago I was best friends with Marcus Breame. Our friendship had kept strong through thick and thin. We saw each other almost everyday even after we both married. We were just young kids then, early twenties...” Dean watched as the man’s eyes glazed over. The lines on his face seemed to almost soften as he remembered the past.

But suddenly his bony fingers gripped the cane until his knuckles turned white and Dean thought the piece would splinter. The man’s wrinkles grew deeper and darker, his voice returning louder and angrier. “Fact is, he stole my Bethany from me. Five years after I married the prettiest girl in town, I find out she’s been having an affair with my best friend.”

Dean’s expression must have shown the slight sympathy he felt, for the old man’s words were now full of bitterness. “Don’t pity me. I don’t need it. It’s that fool you should pity. When I found Marcus Breame with my Bethany in that godforsaken cottage of his, way out hidden where he thought I’d never find it, I swore he’d get what’s coming to him. No-good-cheating-liars like that always get what’s coming to ‘em.”

Dean stared at the man with attentive eyes. “Cottage?” he asked, the surprise unhidden in his voice.

“Yah,” the man sneered. “He hid it away, a place where he thought I’d never discover the truth, but I did. Oh, I did.”

“All right, Uncle Jerry,” the woman spoke in a soothing voice, trying to calm the livid man as she rounded the counter and gently gripped his elbow. “I’m sure this young man has things to do.”

The senior seemed to ignore his niece as was slowly led backwards. “Then he has the nerve to marry her! After me and Bethany separated and his wife divorced him... They raised a family too. His no good daughter! I tell you she deserved to die!”

Dean was still staring strangely at the man but the elder seemed not to notice, for he continued mumbling on while the woman ushered him out of the room and back through the door he had first appeared. She was shaking her head when she returned, grey curls bouncing. “I’m terribly sorry. My uncle has always been bitter after that incident. It seems it’s all he ever talks about.”

Dean cleared his throat. “No problem. Do you by any chance know where this cottage is?”

“Not exactly, I’m afraid. Uncle Jerry just rants on about being lost one day after a fishing trip and stumbling across it. He never went there again. I suppose it hasn’t been used in a while.”

With one last glance at the back door Dean returned his attention to the store owner. “Thanks for your help. I actually just remembered I have an appointment I need to be at.” And with a farewell from the cheerful store owner Dean rapidly exited the building. As soon as he stepped out into the foggy air he flipped open his cell phone and selected his brother’s name from his contact list. Holding the piece to his ear, he began walking quickly up the street.

“Found anything?” was the greeting he received after the second ring.

Dean snorted. “What, no hello?”

There was silence from the other end but Dean could sense the impatience his brother was surely feeling. “All right, I think I may have found a big lead, little brother. You still at the library? Good, because I need you to look up the Morris family.”

Dean briefly explained his chat in the store. “So,” he said afterwards. “I think we know who the cottage belongs to, but I could be wrong. Either way, she says it probably hasn’t been used in a while. I mean anyone could have found it in that time and placed that horseshoe there. But I was thinking-”

“Jerry Morris wants revenge,” Sam interrupted, his tone dour and low, “what’s to stop him from taking revenge? Killing off family members... I mean, you said he thought they all deserved to die.”

Dean stopped on the sidewalk. “You think Jerry Morris is controlling the Kelpie?”

“It’s a possibility.”

Dean’s forehead crinkled as he mulled over the prospect. “All right. It could be but we still don’t know all the facts. Is Marcus Morris still alive? The cottage we found might not even be his. Have you found anything on it?”

Dean heard his brother sigh. “There’s nothing to find Dean. Nothing about the cottage. But I overheard the librarian talking about a break in last night. Someone broke into the library and stole some books. And get this. They were all about supernatural creatures.”

“Supernatural creatures?”

“Mainly Kelpies to be exact. I don’t know, but I think it may have been-”

“Tegan” Dean cut in before his brother was able to finish his thought. His voice took on a low tone. “You think she… found something in the car?”

“Seems like it Dean.” Sam said, his voice matching his brother’s, wary and grim. “We better find her soon.”

“Yah… Look, I’m heading up to the library right now. I’ll be there in fifteen.”

“All right. I’ll check in to the Morris family,” Sam replied, ending the conversation.

Click.

Dean shoved his cell phone into his pocket as he looked around him. He was on the main street now, a rusty car shuddering pass. A light drizzle had picked up and the sky brewed above, threatening and dark. He burrowed further into his jacket as he crossed the street, tension twisting painfully in his head.

As he crossed the entrance of a narrow side street he abruptly halted, the black 1967 Chevy Impala catching his gaze from the corner of his eye. It was parked on the left side of the street, its interior visibly empty as he stared disbelievingly at it. Walking slowly towards his car – assuring himself it was actually his - Dean glanced around, searching for the thief. However, she was nowhere to be found and a wave of relief quickly flooded through the Winchester as he reached the Impala, placing both hands on the top as he grinned like a little boy. Muttering a grateful thank you he swung open the driver’s door and peered inside.

No keys…

“Who the hell are you?” The voice sounded from behind him.

Dean spun around, and was met with the demanding stare of Tegan.