The family stood in front of a funeral pyre -- John's. The only light came from the wrapped, burned body. Standing behind, hands in pockets, were Sam, Dean, Harriet and Lucie, holding Cadence. Sam was near tears and fidgeting, Dean was staring into the flames silently, Harriet looked confused, and Lucie wiped away a tear.
"Before he... before, did he say anything to you? About anything?" Sam asked.
Dean didn't look at Sam as he answered, "No. Nothing."
JUNKYARD - ONE WEEK LATER
Dean was underneath the Impala working on it, only his legs sticking out. It was still a rusted frame, but looked less crunched.
Sam approached. "How's the car coming along?"
"Slow," Dean answered.
"Yeah? Need any help?"
Dean dropped a tool heavily. "What, you under a hood? I'll pass."
"Need anything else, then?"
Lucie stepped outside and joined the brothers. Harriet and Cadence were taking a nap.
Dean pushed himself out from under the table and stood. "Stop it, Sam."
"Stop what?"
"Stop asking if I need anything, stop asking if I'm okay. I'm okay. Really. I promise."
Sam pursed his lips. "All right, Dean, it's just... We've been at Bobby's for over a week now and you haven't brought up Dad once."
"You know what? You're right. Come here. I'm gonna lay my head gently on your shoulder. Maybe we can cry, hug, and maybe even slow dance."
"Don't patronize me, Dean, Dad is dead. The Colt is gone, and it seems pretty damn likely that the demon is behind all of this, and you're acting like nothing happened."
"What do you want me to say?"
"Say something, all right? Hell, say anything. Aren't you angry? Don't you want revenge? But all you do is sit out here all day long buried underneath this damn car."
"Revenge, huh?"
"Yeah."
"Sounds good. You got any leads on where the demon is? Making heads or tails of any of Dad's research? Because I sure ain't. But you know, if we finally do find it -- oh. No, wait, like you said. The Colt's gone. But I'm sure you've figured out another way to kill it. We've got nothing, Sam. Nothing, okay? So you know the only thing I can do? Is I can work on the car."
Dean crouched by the car again, getting back to work.
Lucie, who'd been listening, spoke. "Well, we've got something, all right?" She pulled out a cell phone. "It's what we came by here to tell you. This is one of your dad's old phones. Took me and Sam awhile, but we cracked his voicemail code. Listen to this."
She handed the phone to Dean, who stood and took it reluctantly.
"John, it's Ellen. Again. Look, don't be stubborn, you know I can help you. Call me."
"That message is four months old," Sam told his brother.
"Dad saved that chick's message for four months?" Dean asked.
"Yeah."
"Well, who's Ellen? Any mention of her in Dad's journal?"
Lucie shook her head. "No. But I ran a trace on her phone number and Sam and I got an address."
"Ask Bobby if we can use one of his cars."
Lucie made her way inside. "Hey, Bobby, is there a car we can use?"
Bobby thought for a moment. "Towards the back, there's an old minivan. Here. Keys."
She took the keys. "Thanks."
Lucie picked up Cadence who let out a tiny sigh, but didn't wake. Harriet had woken up and was all smiles.
She rejoined the brothers and held up the keys. "Old minivan."
Dean frowned. "Seriously, Luce?"
"Only car he's got. Take it or leave it."
Dean took the keys from his wife and muttered, "Fine."
---
They drove off and pulled up to the Roadhouse Saloon in the beat-up, poorly maintained minivan.
"This is humiliating," Dean said. "I feel like a friggin' soccer mom!"
Sam glanced at his brother. "It's the only car Bobby had running, as Lucie said."
They looked around and Sam called, "Hello? Anybody here?"
"Hey," Dean called. "You bring the, uh-"
"Of course." Sam tossed something to Dean, who caught it.
"Daddy, it's scary quiet," Harriet said quietly.
"Stay with Mommy," Dean told her. "Uncle Sammy and I'll keep you, Cady and Mommy safe, okay?"
"Okay."
They opened the door and went inside. The saloon was quiet except for a fly buzzing. A lightbulb blew out. They went to the back and saw a man passed out on the bar.
"Hey, buddy?" Sam called. "I'm guessing that isn't Ellen."
"Yeah," Dean and Lucie, holding Cadence and Harriet's hand, agreed.
Sam went into a back room, looking around. Dean, Harriet and Lucie went down the steps, and Dean paused as he felt the point of a gun touch his back. Lucie, who'd noticed the gun, darted behind a wall with her daughters.
"Oh, God, please let that be a rifle," Dean said.
The gun cocked and the blonde girl replied, "No, I'm just real happy to see you. Don't move."
"Not moving, copy that. You know, you should know something, miss. When you put a rifle on someone, you don't want to put it right against their back. Because it makes it real easy to do..." He turned fluidly, grabbed the rifle and cocked it. "That."
Jo punched him in the face and took back the rifle.
Dean doubled over, clutching his nose. "Sam! Need some help in here." He began muttering, "I can't see, I can't even see."
Lucie set Cadence down and motioned for Harriet to stay back and snuck up from behind, knocked the rifle from Jo's hands, and put her in a headlock. Jo struggled against the huntress, but Lucie held on.
The back door opened to reveal Sam, both hands on his head and entered slowly.
"Sorry, Dean, I can't right now. I'm a... little tied up," Sam said.
Sam nodded, indicating Ellen, who was behind him, handgun pointed at his head.
Ellen looked between them. "Sam? Dean? Lucie? Winchester?"
"Yeah," the three replied.
"Son of a bitch."
"Mom, you know these guys and girl?" Jo asked.
"Yeah, I think these are John Winchester's boys and Dean's wife. Which means his and Lucie's daughters are probably around." She lowered the gun and laughed. "Hey, I'm Ellen. This is my daughter Jo. Lucie, you can release her. Hattie, Cady, wherever you are, you can come out."
Lucie released Jo and stepped back. Harriet ran up to her father and he picked her up. Cadence crawled up to her mother who picked her up. The little girl was starting to learn to walk, but liked crawling as it was easier.
Dean smiled at Jo and she looked at him. "Hey."
"You're not gonna hit me again, are you?" Dean asked.
Ellen handed Dean a small towel filled with ice. "Here you go."
"Thanks. You called our dad, said you could help. Help with what?"
"Well, the demon of course. I heard he was closing it on it."
"What, was there some sort of article in the Demon Hunters Quarterly that we missed? I mean, who are you? How do you know about all this?"
"Hey, I just run a saloon. But hunters have been known to pass through now and again. Including your dad a long time ago. John was like family once."
"Oh yeah? How come he never mentioned you before?"
"You'd have to ask him that."
"So why exactly do we need your help?"
"Hey, don't do me any favors. Look, if you don't want my help, fine. Don't let the door smack your ass on the way out. But John wouldn't have sent you if..." She stopped, realizing. "He didn't send you." Dean looked down, then at Sam and Lucie looked at him worriedly. Harriet touched her father's cheek and smiled. "He's all right, isn't he?"
"No," Sam said. "No, he isn't. It was the demon, we think. It, um, it just got him before he got it, I guess."
"I'm so sorry."
Dean nodded. "We're all right."
Ellen looked between them. "Really? I know how close you and your dad were."
"Really, lady, we're fine."
Lucie took Dean's hand and gently squeezed it.
Sam changed the subject. "So look, if you can help, we could use all the help we can get."
"Well, we can't. But Ash will," Ellen answered.
"Who's Ash?" Dean questioned.
"Ash!"
The man passed out on the bar jerked awake and sat up, flailing. "What? It closin' time?"
"That's Ash?" Sam asked.
"Mm-hmm," Jo hummed. "He's a genius."
A brown folder was slapped down on the bar. Sam, Ash and Lucie, with Cadence on her lap, were sitting, Dean, still holding Harriet, was standing behind them. Jo was on the other side of the bar, pouring glasses of water.
"You've gotta be kidding me, this guy's no genius," Dean said. "He's a Lynyrd Skynyrd roadie."
Ash smiled. "I like you."
"Thanks."
"Just give him a chance," Jo said.
Dean sat and opened the folder. "All right. This stuff's about a year's worth of our dad's work, so uh, let's see what you make of it."
Ash pulled out the papers and started rifling through them and shook his head. "Come on. This crap ain't real. There ain't nobody can track a demon like this."
"Our dad could," Sam told him.
"There are non-parametric, statistical overviews, prospects and correlations, I mean... damn! They're signs. Omens. Uh, if you can track 'em, you can track this demon. You know, like crop failures, electrical storms... You ever been struck by lightning? It ain't fun."
"Can you track it or not?" Lucie asked.
"Yeah, with this, I think so. But it's gonna take time, uh, give me... fifty one hours." He got up to leave.
"Hey, man?" Dean called.
"Yeah."
"I, uh, dig the haircut."
"All business up front, party in the back." He flipped his hair in the back.
As he left, Jo walked by, flirting a little with Dean. He glanced at Harriet who nodded, then got up to follow her.
Sam and Lucie noticed something behind the bar and he asked, "Hey, Ellen, what is that?"
"It's a police scanner," Ellen replied. "We keep tabs on things, we..."
Lucie cut her off. "No, no, no, no, the, uh, the folder."
"Uh, I was gonna give this to a friend of mine. But take a look, if you want." She took the folder and placed it between Sam and Lucie. It had some newspaper clippings attached to the front, and on the front, in red marker: COUPLE MURDERED, CHILD LEFT ALIVE, MEDFORD, WISC.
At the window, Dean sat by Jo. "How did your mom get into this stuff, anyway?"
"From my dad," Jo replied. "He was a hunter. He passed away."
"I'm sorry."
"It was a long time ago. I was just a kid. Sorry to hear about your dad."
"Yeah. So. I guess I've got fifty-one hours to waste. Maybe tonight we should, uh..." He looked up at her. "No, you know what? Never mind."
"What?"
"Nothing, just, uh, wrong place, wrong time."
"You know, I thought you were gonna toss me some cheap pickup line." Dean chuckled, embarrassed. "Most hunters come through that door think they can get in my pants with some... pizza, a six-pack, and side one of Zeppelin IV."
"Well... what a bunch of scumbags. I'm married and wouldn't hurt Lucie like that."
"Not you. How long have you two been married?"
"A few years."
"And then me!" Harriet exclaimed. "And then Cady."
Dean chuckled, ruffling her hair. "That's right, Hattie. And then you and Cady."
"Dean, come here, check this out," Sam called.
"Yeah."
Lucie pointed to the file. "A few murders, not far from here, that Ellen caught wind of. Looks to us like there might be a hunt."
"Yeah. So?"
"So, Lucie and I told her we'd check it out," Sam answered.
---
The five of them got into the minivan and drove. It was raining. Sam had the research open on his lap.
"You've gotta be kidding me," Dean said. "A killer clown?"
"Yeah," Sam confirmed. "He left the daughter unharmed and killed the parents. Ripped them to pieces, actually."
"And this family was at some carnival that night?"
"Right, right. The, uh, Cooper Carnivals."
Dean frowned. "So how do you two know we're not dealing with some psycho carnie in a clown suit?"
Lucie leaned closer to the boys. "Well, the cops have no viable leads, and all the employees were tearing down shop. Alibis all around. And plus, this girl said she saw a clown vanish into thin air. Cops are saying trauma, naturally."
Dean gave a small grin. "Well, I know what you're thinking, Sam. Why did it have to be clowns?"
"Oh, give me a break," Sam muttered.
"You didn't think I'd remember, did you? I mean, come on, you still bust out crying whenever you see Ronald McDonald on the television."
Sam frowned. "Well, at least I'm not afraid of flying."
"Planes crash!"
"And apparently clowns kill!"
"Boys, don't wake the girls," Lucie said.
"Sorry, honey," Dean apologized. "So these types of murders, they ever happen before?"
"Uh, according to the file, 1981, the Bunker Brothers Circus, same M.O. It happened three times, three different locales," Sam replied.
"It's weird, though, I mean, if it is a spirit, it's usually bound to a specific locale, you know, a house, or a town."
"So how's this one moving from city to city, carnival to carnival?" Lucie questioned.
"Cursed object, maybe. Spirit attaches itself to something and the, um, carnival carries it around with them."
"Great. Paranormal scavenger hunt," Sam muttered sarcastically.
Dean glanced at his brother. "Well, this case was Lucie's and your idea. By the way, why is that? You two were awfully quick to jump on this job."
"So?" Sam and Lucie questioned.
"It's just... not like you, that's all. I thought you were hell-bent for leather on the demon hunt. Luce, you seemed to agree."
"I don't know, I just think, this job, it's what Dad would have wanted us to do," Sam replied.
"What Dad would have wanted?"
"Yeah. So?"
"Nothin'."
---
They eventually pulled up to the carnival and saw what looked to be detectives talking to some of the carnies.
"Check it out. Five-oh," Dean noted.
Sam stood with his hands in his pockets and Lucie stood, holding Cady, hand as a three-foot-tall woman in a clown outfit passed them. Sam stared at her, nervous, and she stared back before moving on.
Dean, holding Harriet's hand, approached and asked his brother, "Did you get her number?"
Sam scowled. "More murders?"
"Two more last night. Apparently they were ripped to shreds. And they had a little boy with them."
"Who fingered a clown," Sam said as Dean and Lucie gave him a weird look. "What?"
"Yeah, a clown, who apparently vanished into thin air."
Lucie frowned. "Dean, you know, looking for a cursed object is like trying to find a needle in a stack of needles. They could be anything."
"Well, it's bound to give off EMF, so we'll just have to scan everything."
"Oh, good, that's nice and... inconspicuous," Sam said.
Dean saw a 'Help wanted... S. Cooper' sign.
"I guess we'll just have to blend in," Dean replied.
They made their way to a blind man's tent. A man was throwing knives at a target. The knives all landed near, but not quite on the bullseye.
"Excuse me, we're looking for a Mr. Cooper, have you seen him around?" Dean asked.
"What is that, some kind of joke?" the blind man questioned, pulling off his sunglasses.
"Oh. God, I'm, I'm sorry."
"You think I wouldn't give my eyes to see Mr. Cooper? Or a sunset, or anything at all?"
Dean asked the other two quietly, "Wanna give me a little help here?"
"Not really," Sam and Lucie replied.
"It's super funny, Daddy," Harriet added with a smile and a giggle.
"Hey, man, is there a problem?" a short man questioned.
Dean turned and looked to see an extremely short man in a red cape.
"Yeah, this guy hates blind people," the blind man said.
"No, I don't, I..." Dean was cut off.
"Hey, buddy, what's your problem?" the short man demanded.
"Nothing, it's just a little misunderstanding."
"Little?! You son of a bitch!"
"No, no, no, no! I'm just, could somebody tell me where Mr. Cooper is?" Sam and Lucie laughed and Harriet giggled. "Please?"
MR. COOPER'S OFFICE
"You boys and girls picked a hell of a time to join up," Mr. Cooper said. "Take a seat."
Dean looked at the available chairs; one was normal, the other was pink with a giant clown face on it. Dean rushed for the normal chair. Cady held her hands out to her father and he took her and settled her on his lap. Sam scowled and offered Lucie the clown chair.
Lucie, deciding to be nice, sat in the clown chair. Harriet sat on the floor, kicking her legs up and down.
"We've got all kinds of local trouble," Mr. Cooper told them.
"What do you mean?" Dean asked.
"Oh, a couple folks got themselves murdered. Cops always seem to start here first. So, you three ever worked the circuit before?"
"Yes sir, last year through Texas and Arkansas," Sam answered.
"Yeah," Dean and Lucie agreed.
"Doing what? Riding jocks? Butcher? ANS men? Trapeze artist?"
"Yeah, it's, uh, little bit of everything, I guess," Lucie replied.
"You three have never worked a show in your lives before, have you?"
"Nope," Dean said. "But we really need the work. Oh, and uh, Sam here's got a thing for the bearded lady. Lucie really likes the tigers and the girls adore the elephants."
"You see that picture? That's my daddy."
"You look just like him," Sam noted.
"He was in the business. Ran a freak show. Till they outlawed him, most places. Apparently, displaying the deformed isn't dignified. So most of the performers went from honest work to rotting in hospitals and asylums. That's progress. I guess. You see, this place, it's a refuge for outcasts. Always has been. For folks that don't fit in nowhere else. But you three? You should go to school. Find a couple girls. Find a guy for the lady. Have two point five kids. Live regular."
"I already have him, and we have two beautiful little girls," Lucie said, pointing to Dean.
Dean nodded and was about to say something, but Sam leaned forward, eyes serious. "Sir? We don't want to go to school. And we don't want regular. We want this."
Dean and Lucie looked at Sam. Harriet frowned as she looked between the three with a confused expression. Cadence's face scrunched in confusion.
The five of them made their way back out to the carnival and Dean said, "Huh."
"What?" Sam asked.
"That whole, uh, I don't want to go back to school thing. Were you just saying that to Cooper or were you, you know, saying it? Sam?"
"I don't know."
Lucie, holding Cadence and Harriet's hand, stepped back, not wanting to be part of their fight.
"You don't know? I thought that once the demon was dead and the fat lady sings that you were gonna take off, head back to Wussy State."
"I'm having second thoughts."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I think. Dad would have wanted me to stick with the job."
"Since when do you give a damn what Dad wanted? You spent half your life doing exactly what he didn't want, Sam."
"Since he died, okay? Do you have a problem with that?"
"Naw, I don't have a problem at all."
LATER
Sam was wearing a red Cooper Carnival jacket and picking up trash while he surreptitiously scanned with the EMF reader. He went into the funhouse, still scanning. A skeleton fell from the ceiling; Sam scanned it, not getting a reading, but got an idea.
Dean and Lucie, wearing a similar uniform jacket, were putting trash in a dumpster when his phone rang. Harriet copied their motions, wearing a smaller uniform jacket as she wanted to be like her parents and uncle. Cadence was in a baby sling attached to her mother, asleep.
He answered. "Hello?"
"Hey, man," Sam greeted.
"What's the matter? You sound like you just saw a clown."
"Very funny. Skeleton, actually."
"Like a real human skeleton?"
"In the funhouse. Listen, I was thinking. What if the spirit isn't attached to a cursed object, what if it's attached to its own remains?"
"Did the bones give off EMF?"
"Well no, but..."
"We should check it out anyway. The girls and I are heading to you."
As he hung up the phone, the blind man grabbed his arm. "What are you doing here, kid?"
"I'm... I was just sweeping," Dean stammered.
"Bull. And what were you talking about? Skeletons? What's EMF?"
"Dude, your blind man hearing is out of control."
"We're a tight-knit group, we don't like outsiders, we take care of our own problems."
"We got a problem?"
"You tell me, you're the one talking about human bones."
"Do you believe in ghosts?" Lucie asked.
"What?"
"His brother, my husband, our daughters and me... we're writing a book about them."
The blind man walked away after a moment.
Dean smiled in appreciation at his wife. "Nice save, babe."
She smiled. "You're welcome."
"Mama's so good at saving the day," Harriet said.
Dean chuckled. "Yes she is."
Dean, Harriet, Lucie and Cadence approached Sam.
"What took you so long?" Sam asked.
"Long story," Dean replied.
"Mommy, look at the clown!" a little girl cried.
"Mommy, Daddy, lookit!" Harriet said, pointing at the clown.
Dean, Sam and Lucie looked over to see the little girl and Harriet pointing at something. Cadence was staring at what seemed to be air.
"What clown?" the mom wondered.
There was nothing where the little girl and Harriet were pointing or where Cadence was looking.
"Come on, sweetie, come on."
Dean, Sam and Lucie shared a look.
Harriet frowned. "Mommy? Don't you see it? I think Cady does."
Lucie shook her head. "No, sweetie, I don't. Daddy and Uncle Sammy don't see it either."
That night, they made their way to the family's home.
Sam frowned. "Dean, I cannot believe you and Lucie told Papazian about the homicidal phantom clown."
"Lucie told him an urban legend about a homicidal phantom clown. We never said it was real," Dean said, pulling a gun and cocking it.
Sam grabbed at it.
"Keep that down!" Sam warned.
"Oh, and get this. I mentioned the Bunker Brother's Circus in '81 and their uh, evil clown apocalypse? Guess what."
"What?"
"Before Mr. Cooper owned Cooper Carnival, he worked for Bunker Brothers. He was their lot manager."
"So you think whatever the spirit's attached to, Cooper just brought it with him?"
"Something like that. I can't believe we keep talking about clowns."
Lucie shrugged. "Well, that's the case. Hattie, it's time to go to sleep."
"I'm not sleepy," the little girl protested. "I wanna see my clown friend again."
"Sweetie, the clown is dangerous."
"No! He's my friend!"
Lucie let out a sigh and said, "You boys go in. I'll stay here with the girls."
Dean nodded. "That's a good idea."
Later, Dean was dozing as a light went on in the dining room. Sam shook Dean awake. Inside, the little girl went to the front door, where the phantom clown was waiting.
"Wanna come in and play?" the little girl asked.
The clown nodded, took her hand, and was led inside.
The little girl led the clown down the hallway and the brothers were hiding in wait, weapons ready. Lucie stayed in the car with Harriet and Cadence to make sure the older girl didn't run.
"Wanna see Mommy and Daddy?" The clown nodded. "They're upstairs."
Sam leapt out and grabbed the girl, who started screaming as Dean shot the clown in the chest. It fell on its back, then got up as Dean was cocking his shotgun again. It leapt out of the window and turned invisible as it ran away. The parents came rushing out.
"What's going on out here?" the dad demanded.
"Oh, my God, what are you doing to my daughter?!" the mother yelled.
Dean and Sam left the car and ran away terribly fast. Lucie, watching them run, grabbed Harriet and Cadence and followed.
"They shot my clown!" the little girl cried.
The next day, the five parked the minivan off the side of a road and were digging out their belongings -- including the license plates.
"You really think they saw our plates?" Sam asked.
"I don't want to take the chance," Dean replied. "Besides, I hate this friggin' thing anyway."
They started walking down the road and Dean said, "Well, one thing's for sure."
"What's that?" Sam and Lucie, holding Cadence's hand, as she wanted to walk with her mother, questioned.
Harriet was following behind, trying to skip.
"We're not dealing with a spirit. I mean, that rock salt hit something solid."
"Yeah, a person?" Sam guessed. "Or maybe a creature that can make itself invisible?"
"Yeah, and dresses up as a clown for kicks?" Dean wondered. "You or Lucie see anything in Dad's journal?"
"Nope," Sam answered, pulling out his phone.
"Who are you calling?"
"Maybe Ellen or that guy Ash'll know something. Hey, you two think, uh, you two think Dad and Ellen ever had a thing?"
"No way," Dean said.
"Then why didn't he tell us about her?"
Lucie thought for a moment. "I don't know, maybe they had some sort of falling out."
"Yeah. You two ever notice Dad ever had a falling out with just about everybody?"
Dean nodded casually and Sam lowered the phone. "Well, don't get all maudlin on me, man."
"What do you mean?" Dean asked.
"I mean this "strong silent" thing of yours, it's crap."
"Oh, God."
"I'm over it. This isn't just anyone we're talking about, this is Dad. I know how you felt about the man."
"You know what, back off, all right?" Dean warned. "Just because I'm not caring and sharing like you want me to."
"No, no, no, that's not what this is about, Dean. But you have to deal with it, man. Listen, I'm your brother, all right? Lucie's your wife. We just want to make sure you're okay."
"Dude, I'm okay. I'm okay, okay? I swear, the next person who asks me if I'm okay, I'm going to start throwing punches. These are your issues, quit dumping them on me and Lucie!"
"What are you talking about?"
Dean eyed Sam. "I just think it's really interesting, this sudden obedience you have to Dad. It's like, oh, what would Dad want me to do? Sam, you spent your entire life slugging it out with that man. I mean, hell, you, you picked a fight with him the last time you ever saw him. And now that he's dead, now you was to make it right? Well, I'm sorry, Sam, but you can't, it's too little, too late."
"Why are you saying this to me?"
"Because I want you to be honest with yourself about this. I'm dealing with Dad's death! Are you?"
"I'm going to call Ellen." Sam left to go call her.
Lucie motioned for Harriet to follow Sam, while she kept Cadence, then turned to Dean. "Dean, I get you're hurting. You and Sam both are. But you need to put that aside right now."
"Don't tell me how I should and shouldn't act, Lucie," Dean retorted.
"Honey, someone could get hurt. It could be me, Sam, or even Hattie or Cady. And I know you don't want to hurt our girls. Sam and I care about you. You're his brother and my husband. We just want to help you. You're not okay. We can see that."
"Luce-"
"Baby, if you ever want to talk or to cry on a shoulder, I'm here. I always have been and I always will be."
"Thanks."
Sam hung up the phone. "Thanks." He said to the others, "Rakshasa."
"What's that?" Dean and Lucie asked.
"Ellen's best guess. It's a race of ancient Hindu creatures, they appear in human form, they feed on human flesh, they can make themselves invisible, and they cannot enter a home without first being invited."
"So they dress up like clowns, and the children invite them in," Lucie determined.
"Yeah."
"Why don't they just munch on the kids?" Dean questioned.
"No idea. Not enough meat on the bones, maybe?"
"What else you find out?" Lucie inquired.
"Well, apparently, Rakshasas live in squalor. They sleep on a bed of dead insects."
"Nice," Dean commented.
Harriet frowned. "No, not nice, Daddy. It's super duper icky."
"Yeah, and they have to end a few times every 20 or 30 years. Slow metabolism, I guess."
"Well, that makes sense. I mean, the carnival today, the Bunker Brothers in '81-"
"Right. Probably more before that."
"Hey, Sam, Lucie, who do we know that worked both shows?"
"Cooper?" Sam and Lucie questioned.
"Cooper."
"You know, that picture of his father, that looked just like him," Sam said.
Lucie frowned. "You think maybe it was him?"
"Well, who knows how old he is?"
"Ellen say how to kill him?" Dean asked.
"Legend goes, a dagger made of pure brass."
"I think I know where to get one of those."
"Well, before we go stabbing things into Cooper, we're going to want to make damn sure it's him."
"Oh, you're such a stickler for details, Sammy. All right, Lucie and I'll round up the blade, you take the girls and go check if Cooper's got bedbugs."
---
Sam picked the lock on Cooper's trailer and he, Cadence and Harriet went inside.
---
Elsewhere, the blind man was leading Dean and Lucie.
"Well, I've got all kinds of knives," the blind man said. "I don't know if I've got a brass one, though."
---
In Cooper's trailer, Sam pulled out a pocket knife and started slicing open the mattress. A shotgun cocked behind them; Cooper was there, pointing the gun at him and Sam stepped in front of his nieces.
"What do you think you're doing?" Cooper demanded.
---
In the blind man's trailer, he led Dean and Lucie in and tapped a trunk with his cane. "Check the trunk."
Dean and Lucie opened the trunk and found a red clown wig. They paused and stood.
"You?" Dean and Lucie questioned.
The blind man dropped his cane and pulled off his sunglasses. His eyes looked normal, then went cloudy and his face began to melt. He waved, then disappeared.
Dean and Lucie struggled with the door, trying to get out. A knife flew past his head to bury in the door. Dean jumped and Lucie screamed. Another landed with a thunk a little higher.
"All right!" Dean cried, managing to get the door open.
He and Lucie booked it out of there with a tumble.
Outside, Sam, Cadence and Harriet caught up with them.
"Hey!" Sam called. "Hey. So Cooper thinks I'm a Peeping Tom, but it's not him."
"Yeah, so Lucie and I gathered," Dean said. "It's the blind guy, he's here somewhere."
"Well, did you get the-"
"The brass blade?" Lucie finished. "No, it's been one of those days."
"I got an idea. Come on."
They entered the funhouse and as they went through, a door slammed between them. They struggled to open it.
"Sam! Lucie!" Dean called.
"Mommy! Uncle Sammy!" Harriet shouted.
"Dean! Hattie! Cady!" Lucie yelled.
"Dean! Dean, find the maze, okay?" Sam instructed.
Lucie noticed steam coming from a pipe organ and went to grab it, flinching from the heat. She looked down at her hand, which had turned red. She pulled out a cloth and wrapped it around her hand.
Sam pulled a cloth from his pocket and began pulling off the pipe.
Dean, holding Cadence, and Harriet came around the corner and the former greeted, "Hey."
"Hey!" Sam said. "Where is it?"
"I don't know. I mean, shouldn't we see its clothes walking around?"
"Not if it can turn all invisible," Lucie commented.
A knife flew past Dean, Cadence and Harriet, pinning his sleeve to the wall. Dean instantly pushed Harriet towards Lucie who picked her up, then grabbed a crying Cadence, and stepped back. Another pinned his wrist.
"Sam! Lucie!" Dean yelled.
Sam pulled the pipe all the way of and stalked forward slowly, keeping Lucie, Cadence and Harriet behind him. A knife flew past their heads and they dodged.
"Dean, where is it?" Lucie asked.
"I don't know," Dean admitted.
Dean reached up and pulled a lever. More steam poured from the pipe organ, giving a vague shape to the invisible attacker, which Dean saw.
"Sam, Lucie, behind you!" Dean called. "Behind you!"
Sam stabbed the pipe behind him without looking. He turned and saw it buried in the still-invisible creature, blood pouring from the wound. Dean managed to free himself. He looked to where it had fallen and saw only empty clothes and a bloody pipe.
Dean said, "I hate funhouses."
Harriet, who had covered her eyes, asked, "Is it over, Daddy?"
"It's over," he replied. "You were so brave."
Harriet ran up to her father who picked her up.
---
They made their way back to the Roadhouse and sat at the bar. Ellen laid down a couple beers and a soda. "You boys and girl did a hell of a job. Your dad would be proud."
"Thanks," Sam replied.
Jo, sitting on the other side of Dean, gave Sam a look.
"Oh, yeah, um, I've gotta... uh, I've gotta go," Sam stammered. "Over there. Right now."
Back at the bar, Jo cleared her throat. "So."
"So," Dean said.
"Am I gonna see you and your family again?"
"Do you want to?"
"I wouldn't hate it. Your girls are pretty cute."
"Yeah they are."
"How did you and Lucie meet?"
Lucie smiled. "We met at a bar and discovered we were both on the same hunt, and it's been him and me, soon joined by the girls ever since."
"Was it love at first sight?"
"Definitely not, but it was attraction at first sight I'd say."
Harriet, who'd been running around the tables, ran up to her parents and climbed onto the bar of their stools. "Hi!" She jumped down and ran away again. "Bye!"
Lucie laughed softly. "It would seem someone has the zoomies. That's good. It means she'll crash soon."
The back door opened and Ash entered, carrying the folder and an odd-looking laptop. "Where you guys been? Been waitin' for ya."
"We were working a job, Ash," Sam, holding Cadence, said. "Clowns?"
"Clowns? What the f-"
"You got something for us, Ash?" Dean questioned.
Ash set the laptop down on a table. It looked homemade, with exposed wiring.
"Did you find the demon?" Lucie asked, watching as Harriet ran around.
"It's nowhere 'round. At least, nowhere I can find. But this fugly bastard raises his head, I'll know. I mean, I'm on it like Divine on dog dookie."
"What do you mean?" Sam wondered.
"I mean, any of those signs or omens appear, anywhere in the world, my rig'll go off. Like a fire alarm."
Dean reached for the laptop and Ash gave him a look.
"Do you mind... yeah," Dean said.
"Hey, what's up, man?" Ash asked.
Sam looked at the computer, impressed. "Ash, where did you learn to do all this?"
"M.I.T. Before I got bounced for... fighting."
"M.I.T.?" Sam repeated.
"It's a school in Boston."
"Okay," Dean said. "You give us a call as soon as you know something?"
"Sí, sí, compadre," Ash replied.
Dean took another sip of his beer, then set it down. Ash picked it up. Dean, Sam and Lana got up to leave.
"Hey, listen, if you boys and girl need a place to stay, I've got a couple beds out back," Ellen offered. "I'm sure I can scrounge up more."
"Thanks, but no," Dean replied. "There's something I gotta finish."
"Okay."
"Hattie, time to go."
Harriet ran past them while yelling, "I'm a super fast mermaid!"
---
They made their way back to the junkyard.
Dean was working on the car again.
Sam paced and said, "You were right."
"About what?" Dean asked.
"About me and Dad. I'm sorry that the last time I was with him I tried to pick a fight. I'm sorry that I spent most of my life angry at him. I mean, for all I know, he died thinking that I hate him. So you're right. What I'm doing right now, it's too little. It's too late." He paused. "I miss him, man. And I feel guilty as hell. And I'm not all right. Not at all. But neither are you. That much I know." He paused again. "I'll let you get back to work." He left.
Dean was still for a moment. He picked up a crowbar and smashed the window of a nearby car. Then, he started slamming it into the trunk of the Impala, over and over. It clattered to the ground, and Dean looked after where Sam had gone, lip trembling.
Lucie walked up to her husband and pulled him into her arms. Dean fell into her embrace, relishing in her comfort. "I'm here, darling," she said softly.