Lullaby |Dean Winchester|

Chapter 1: How To Properly Save Someone's Ass

At this I clenched my fists, grinding my teeth and almost growling my response without hesitation. "Being born human doesn't stop you from becoming a monster." My answer must have been enough for her because- even from a distance- I could see the understanding flood her face. Giving me a curt nod in acknowledgment, she took my words and my keys before disappearing from sight with the slam of the door. Sighing, I pulled my knife back out from my belt, thankful it had all gone smoothly.

Ignoring the blood that stained the floor, I began cleaning up. My research had been extensive, so I knew no one would be looking for him, meaning I had plenty of time to clean the area better than normal. Carving my sign—four lines that ended up looking like one capital A on top of a sideways one—into the wall in case anyone went looking for information, I made sure everything else remained unchanged. As I hummed 'Dirty Deeds' under my breath and dragged Edgar Fanthen to the burn pile I had seen in the back, I was glad for the company the music brought. Hunting wasn't a career that was usually done in groups, so I suppose the loneliness came with the territory.

A couple of old pallets, some gas and a lighter later, the fire blazed a warm glow. There's something almost haunting about watching a fire. The way the flames licked up the side, devouring everything it touched, always hungry for more. The smoke tendrils stretched toward the sky, as though they wanted nothing more than to touch the stars with their wispy fingers. It was beautiful in a way that couldn't be repeated.

And creepy, of course, considering I was burning a body.

Once I was all done, the night chill having left my bones after warming by the corpse fire, I scanned the area and started walking west. Sunrise wasn't far off, and I figured since I finished so much sooner than expected, I could watch it come up over the Kansas country side before heading back to South Dakota to check up on an old friend. After maybe a two mile walk, I found what I was looking for. There was a rusty fire ladder on the side of this warehouse, unlike the last one and it was taller, and my car- Stanley- was parked in the lonely lot. This part of Kansas seemed to be as untouched as broccoli on a werewolf's plate. I quickly stashed my knife in my own car- glad I had had some foresight before going into this- and grabbed a stick of jerky. Swinging up one leg after the next, I made it to the roof without any trouble. After turning to face the east, I sat down on the edge of the roof so my legs could dangle over easily.

I loved times like this. Times where it was no one but me and the quiet world. One by one every star began to disappear until the blazing sun finally decided to honor me with his presence. A smile flitted across my lips as I watched the colors change from purples to pink to red and orange, setting the the horizon ablaze. My hands moved quickly, tinkering with the gun in my hand. It was a small hand held I only took to hunts when my prey was not particularly supernatural.

"Got another one today, mama." I whispered into the wind. "I saved a mother and her child. They're actually really good people. She volunteered at the soup kitchen, did you know that? It's not her fault she was born like that." I pursed my lips. Talking about the hunt out loud to nothing but the sun and the breeze made the whole thing a little easier. It's not like this whole ordeal was easy to begin with, having gotten much worse since Lucifer had been apparently let out of his cage, but death wasn't something I took lightly. Swallowing the small lump in my throat, I pushed my light brown hair out of my face, wishing I would have put it up before it got so gross. "I couldn't save him though. Her husband." My eyes wandered down to the gun in my hand as I whispered, "And I tried, mama. Believe me. I tried."

A single tear slipped from my eye without permission before I angrily wiped it away. Suddenly, the phone in my back pocket rang out loud and annoying. Reaching for it with a quick clearing of my throat, I answered in a grunt instead of a greeting.