It was the dead of night and the Winchesters were resting peacefully in yet another motel room. Well, Dean and Sam were resting peacefully. Hayden was tossing and muttering in her sleep. She was muttering and whimpering so much that Dean immediately woke up. Not even a second later she started screaming and woke up Sam. Both brothers quickly went and started trying to wake her.
She had been having night terrors since she and Sam were kidnapped. She never wanted to admit it but the entire endeavor left a mark on her because she was tortured like she was with her previous family. She tried to hide it to not worry Sam and Dean but they knew everything.
After a couple of minutes, Dean got her to wake up. She said nothing and began crying. The brothers shared a worried glance as Dean held her. They didn't get a chance to ask her what happened because she cried herself back to sleep.
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It had been a week since the incident. Hayden still had night terrors but not as bad as that one. They were, however, costing her her sleep. Sam and Dean had tried asking her about them but she wouldn't say anything. In fact, Hayden had become more quiet than usual and she was jumping at her own shadow. No matter how worried the brothers were or how much they asked, she wouldn't talk.
Dean had pulled up across the street from an apartment complex. Sam had found them a new hunt. He quickly got out and went to the trunk. Sam sat in the car a little longer and examined the building. He then turned to his niece making sure she was still asleep before he got out the car.
"Alright Dean. This is the place." He said as Dean approached him. He turned checking on his daughter who was sleeping soundly.
"She'll be alright Dean." Sam said.
"Will she though? It's freaking Bloody Mary all over again but this time she's not talking." Dean stated.
"Listen, she'll get through whatever is going on because she's got us. Let's take care of this case for right now." Sam said. Dean nodded and the two started to the apartment complex.
"You know I gotta say, dad and me did just fine without these stupid costumes. I feel like a high school drama dork." Dean complained. The brothers were dressed as home security workers. The two chuckled before Dean remembered something.
"What was that play you did? What was it? Our Town? You were good. It was cute." He said.
"Look you wanna pull this off or not?" Sam asked.
"I'm just saying. These outfits cost hard earned money." Dean stated.
"Whose?" Sam questioned.
"Ours. You think credit card fraud is easy?" Dean said.
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Sam and Dean were starting to do their investigation after talking with the landlord about the victim and the murder.
"So the killer walks in and out of the apartment. No weapons, no prints, nothing." Dean said as he pulled out a EMP device.
"I'm telling you, the moment I saw the article in the newspaper, I knew this was our kind of gig." Sam said.
"I think I agree with you." Dean said as the EMP read went off.
"So you spoke with the cops?" Sam asked as the both stood up to get the investigation started.
"Uh, yeah. I spoke to uh, Amy, the charming, perky officer of the law." Dean responded with a smirk.
"Yeah? What'd you find out?" Sam asked.
"She's a Sagittarius. She loves tequila. I mean... whoo. Oh and she's got this little tattoo-" Sam cut him brother off.
"Dean!"
"What? Yeah. Uh, nothing we don't already know, except for one thing they're keeping out of the papers. Meredith's heart was missing." Dean explained getting back on topic.
"Her heart?" Sam asked.
"Yeah. Her heart." Dean replied.
"So what do you think did it to her?" Sam asked.
"The landlady said it looked like an animal attack. Maybe it was. Werewolf?" Dean suggested.
"Not a werewolf. The lunar cycle's not right.plus if it was a creature, it would've left some kind of trace. It's probably a spirit." Sam suggested.
"Daddy?" Hayden's voice came. The brothers turned to see her standing by the door. Dean immediately went over to her.
"Hey, did you have another nightmare?" He asked. She nodded.
"Do you wanna talk about it?" He asked. Hayden silently refused. She had been staying silent on the topic of her nightmares mostly because she couldn't remember them. Well she couldn't remember the ones that weren't memories. She could only remember being terrified. Dean sighed.
"Are you alright?" He asked. Hayden silently shook her head and hugged her dad. Dean picked her up and walked back over to Sam. Sam raised an eyebrow at him to which he shook his head.
"Anyways, it's probably a spirit." Sam repeated going back to their previous conversation. Hayden looked down at the blood stains on the floor and frowned.
"It's a picture daddy." She said.
"What?" Sam and Dean asked in union.
"Look. It's a picture." She said pointing to the blood stains. Dean tilted his head before turning to Sam.
"See if you can find any masking tape around." He said.
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Hayden and Dean sat on the floor as she instructed Dean on how the picture looked.
"Connect those two... then those... then go that way... there, cut it there. That's the picture." She instructed. Dean ripped off the last piece of tape and stood up from sitting on his knees. Hayden moved to stand between him and Sam as the three of them stared to the picture.
"You ever seen this symbol before?" Sam asked.
"Never." Dean replied.
"What about you Hayden?" Sam asked.
"It feel familiar for some reason but I haven't seen it. At least I don't think I have." She replied.
"Well I think I have. I don't know where though. But I've definitely seen that somewhere." Sam stated.
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Sam walked into a bar where Dean had been chatting up a waitress. Dean took his shot and walked away from her as he spotted Sam going to sit at a table. Sam pulled out their father's journal and began going over the new article as Dean walked up to him.
"How's Hayden?" Dean asked as he sat down.
"Same. She's not talking about her dreams. She didn't want to come in. She said that she'll be fine in the car." Sam said.
"So I talked to the waitress." Dean stated.
"Well, did you get anything... besides her number?" Sam asked.
"Dude I'm a professional. I'm offended that you would think that." Dean stumbled over his words. Sam just gave him a look.
"Alright." Dean smiled happily as he held up a napkin with the waitress's number on it.
"You mind doing a little bit of thinking with your upstairs brain, Dean?" Sam questioned.
"Hmm? There's nothing to find out. Meredith worked here. She waited tables. Everyone here is her friend . Everyone says she's normal. She didn't do or say anything weird before she died. So... what about that symbol? Did you find anything?" Dean said.
"Nope. Nothing. It wasn't in dad's journal or in any of the usual books. But I swear I've seen it before. So I guess I'll just have to dig a little deeper." Sam explained.
"I did." A new voice said. The two looked behind Dean seeing Hayden standing there with her sketch book in hand.
"Well I didn't find much. But I drew it." She added as she sat down at the table and showed the brothers the picture.
"That's where I saw it. I was up late one night and I saw you draw that." Sam explained.
"When?" Hayden and Dean asked in unison.
"Last month I think. I'm not sure." Sam answered.
"There was a first victim, before Meredith, right?" Dean asked.
"Yeah. His name was Ben Swardstorm." Sam started as he handed Dean another newspaper clip. "Last month he was found mutilated in his townhouse. Same Deal. The door was locked the alarm was on."
"Is there any connection between the two?" Dean asked.
"Nothing I can tell. I mean not yet anyways. Ben was a banker. Meredith was a waitress. They never met, never knew anyone in common. They were practically from different worlds." Sam explained.
"I think I might've had a dream about the Ben guy then, when I drew this." Hayden said.
"What do you mean?" The brothers asked.
"I can't remember any of my dreams lately. Well I can't remember the ones that aren't memories from my last family. It's like the same thing with Max and grandma. There's a black cloud over it. I just remember being scared of something dark." Hayden explained.
"So to recap, the only successful intel we've scored so far is the bartender's phone number." Dean said sarcastically.
"Seems like it. I'm sorry." Hayden said.
"What are you sorry about?" Sam asked.
"I shut you guys out. We're in this together and I- I'm sorry. I don't know why I keep having visions like this. They used to be so clear. Now it's like someone's blocking them." She explained as she turned her eyes to her lap and started stretching at her wrist. Dean quickly grabbed her hand, stopping the action.
"Don't worry so much over something you can't control. We'll figure it out. We always do." He reassured her. Hayden nodded at him. The two looked up at Sam as something behind them caught his eye.
"What?" Dean asked as he turned around to see what Sam was seeing. Sam said nothing and got up from the table walking towards a short haired woman at a different table. He tapped her shoulder making her turn to him.
"Meg." He said.
"Sam, is that you? Oh my gosh!" She said happily as she hugged Sam.
"What are you doing here?" She asked pulling away.
"I'm just in town, visiting friends." Sam lied. Meg looked around confused.
"Where are they?" She asked.
"Well they're not here right now. But what about you, Meg? I thought you were going to California." Sam said as Dean and Hayden approached the two.
"Oh I did. I came. I saw. I conquered. Oh and I met, what's his name- something Michael Murray, at a bar." She explained.
"Who?" Sam asked.
"It doesn't matter. Anyway, the whole scene got old, so I'm living here for a while." She continued. Dean cleared his throat waiting for Sam to introduce them. Hayden just quietly glared at the woman. Something about her rubbed Hayden the wrong way.
"You're from Chicago?" Sam asked.
"No, Massachusetts, Andover. Gosh, Sam. What are the odds we'd run into each other." She said.
"Yeah, I know. I thought I'd never seen you again." Sam said.
"Well I'm glad you were wrong." She replied.
"Gross." Hayden commented as Dean cleared his throat louder to remind his brother that he was standing there.
"Dude cover your mouth." Meg said. Hayden's glare hardened.
"Dude, watch your attitude." She said making Meg turn to her.
"Well that's not very polite." She said.
"Neither are you." Hayden shot back.
"Meg, I'm sorry. This is my niece, Hayden and my brother, Dean." Sam finally introduced them. Meg's jaw dropped.
"This is Dean?" She asked.
"Yeah." Sam said.
"So you've heard of me?" Dean asked with a smile trying to be nice.
"Oh yeah. I've heard of you. Nice, the way you treat your brother like luggage." She stated. Dean glanced at Sam confused before turning back to Meg.
"Sorry?" He asked.
"Why don't you let him do what he wants to do? Stop dragging him over God's green earth." She continued to chastise him. Dean frowned at the two.
"And who the hell are you to say that to my daddy?" Hayden said stepping in front of Dean.
"Hayden." Sam said pulling her back. Hayden finally turned from Meg to Sam as he shook his head at her.
"And another thing-" Sam cut Meg off.
"Meg, it's alright." He said.
"Okay. Awkward. I'm gonna go get a drink now." Dean said with an awkward chuckle.
"Hayden." He called as he held his hand out to her. She happily grabbed it and walked away with him.
"You getting a drink with your kid?" Meg asked disgusted. Hayden paused making Dean stop as she turned back to Meg.
"How about you mind your business." She said before Dean tugged her to walk with him.
"Sam I'm sorry. It's just, the way you told me he treats you. If it were me, I'd kill him." She said once the two were out of sight.
"It's alright. He means well." Sam said.
"We should hook up while you're in town. I could show you a hell of a time." She suggested.
"You know what? That sounds great. Why don't you give me your number?" Sam said pulling out his phone.
"Uh, 312-555-0143." Meg said.
"You know what? I never got your last name." Sam stated.
"Masters." Meg said.
"Masters?" Sam confirmed.
"So you better call." She said.
"Scout's honor." Sam promised.
"I hope to see you around, Sam." She said. Sam smiled at her before going back to the table where Hayden was currently sitting. Dean was taking a couple of shots at the bar.
"You done?" Hayden asked annoyed.
"Yeah. We-" she cut him off.
"Let's go then." She said grabbing their stuff and walking over to Dean.
"Let's go daddy." She said. Dean nodded as Sam walked up behind Hayden. Dean was pissed because Sam had trash talked him to some chick. Hayden was pissed for the same reason as well as she didn't like the woman at all.
"I don't like her." Hayden said as the three walked out of the bar.
"Yeah. Who the hell was she?" Dean asked.
"I don't really know. I only met her once. Meeting up with her again? I don't know, man. It's weird." Sam asked.
"What was she saying? I treat you like luggage? What? Were you bitching about me to some chick?" Dean asked.
"Look, I'm sorry Dean. It was when we had that huge fight. When I was at that bus stop in Indiana. But that's not important. Just listen. Now-" Dean cut him off.
"Well is there any truth to what she's saying? I mean, am I keeping you against your will, Sam?" Dean asked.
"No of course not." Sam argued.
"You can't blame him Uncle Sammy. Some random chick in a bar insulted him going off of your words." Hayden stated.
"Look, I'm sorry. Alright? Now will you please just listen?" Sam begged as they stopped on a corner.
"What?!" Dean asked.
"I think there's something strange going on here." Sam stated.
"Yeah, tell me about it. She wasn't even that into me." Dean complained.
"That's not what he means daddy. Our strange." Hayden said.
"Maybe even a lead." Sam added.
"Why do you say that?" Dean asked.
"I met Meg weeks ago literally on the side of the road. And now I run into her at some random Chicago bar. I mean the same bar where a waitress was slaughter by something supernatural. You don't think that's a little weird?" Sam questioned. Hayden paused in thought.
"I don't know. Random coincidence. It happens." Dean shrugged.
"No." Hayden said making to two turn to her.
"Not to us, daddy. It doesn't happen to us." She said.
"Look, I could be wrong. I'm just saying there's something about this girl that I can't quite put my finger on." Sam stated.
"But I bet you'd like to. Maybe she's not a suspect. Maybe you got a thing for her, huh? Maybe you're think too much with your upstairs brain." Dean smirked.
"Gross." Hayden commented.
"Do me a favor. Check and see if there's really a Meg Masters from Andover, Massachusetts. And see if you can dig up anything on that symbol on Meredith's floor." Sam asked.
"What are you gonna do?" Dean asked.
"I'm gonna watch Meg." Sam stated. Dean immediately laughed thinking it was a lie and that Sam was interested in her.
"I just want to see what's what. Better safe than sorry." Sam tried defending himself.
"Alright you little pervert." Dean said.
"Dude." Sam complained.
"Alright. We're going." Dean said.
"Be careful Uncle Sammy. That chick gives me icky vibes." Hayden said before she and Dean left.
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Back at the motel, Dean was researching as Sam asked. Hayden had fallen asleep considering how late it was. Dean, who was surrounded by open books and a laptop, picked up his phone to dial Sam.
"Hey." Sam answered.
"Let me guess. You're lurking outside that poor girl's apartment, aren't you?" Dean asked.
"No." Sam lied. Dean stayed silent.
"Yes." Sam cracked.
"You got a funny way of showing your affection." Dean stated.
"You find anything on her, or what?" Sam asked.
"Sorry man, she checks out. There's a Meg Masters in the Andover phone book. I even pulled up her high school photo. Now, look why don't you go knock on her door and invite her to a poetry reading or whatever it is that you do. Huh?" Dean said.
"What about the symbol? Any luck?" Sam asked.
"Yeah. That I did have luck with thank to Hayden, who's now asleep. Turns out it's Zoroastrian. Very very old school. Like 2,000 years before Christ. It's a singular for a daeva." Dean explained.
"What's a daeva?" Sam asked.
"It translates to "demon of darkness"." Dean said.
"Maybe that's what was scaring Hayden in her dreams. She said it was something dark." Sam suggested.
"I was thinking the same thing. Zoroastrian demons, and they're savage, animalistic, nasty attitudes. Kind of like demonic pit bulls." Dean continued.
"How'd you figure that out?" Sam asked impressed.
"Give me some credit dude." Dean defended.
"I think I'll give Hayden the credit." Sam joked.
"Hey! You two don't have a corner on paper chasing around here." Dean said.
"Oh yeah. Name the last book you read." Sam challenged.
"Fine, it was Hayden's idea. So, I called dad's friend, Calleb. He told me. Anyway, here's the thing. He said daeva's have to be summoned, conjured." Dean said.
"So someone's controlling it?" Sam asked.
"Yeah that's what I'm saying. And from what I gather it's pretty risky business, too. These suckers tend to bite the hand that feeds them and the arms and the torsos." Dean explained.
"So what do they look like?" Sam asked.
"Well nobody's seen them for a couple of millennia. I mean, summoning a demon that ancient... someone really knows their stuff. I think we've got a major player in town." Dean said. There was silence as he looked over at Hayden, who was still asleep.
"I'm thinking... I'm thinking maybe we should keep Hayden out of this hunt." He said.
"Dean, she's stubborn. You know she's not just gonna sit this one out." Sam stated.
"I know. But this is something bigger than what we've dealt with before. This thing is vicious and these dreams she's having, they're taking a toll on her. She's more freaked out than what she's letting on." Dean explained.
"You can try but remember, she may be 6 in age but she's practically a teenager now. She's going to want to help and she's definitely going to do whatever she can to protect us." Sam stated.
"Oh leave my daughter to me. Why don't you go give that girl a private strip-o-gram?" Dean said.
"Bite me." Sam commented.
"Bite her. Don't leave teeth marks though." Sam hung up on him. Dean sighed and looked over at Hayden and she rolled over going into her star fish position.
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The next morning, Sam came into the door looking for Dean. Hayden looked up from her spot on the bed and quickly got off of it. Sam turned around seeing Dean and three approached each other.
"I gotta talk to you." They said in unison. Then they looked at each other in shock.
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"So hot little Meg is summoning the Daeva?" Dean asked.
"Yes. It was clear this time. There was nothing chasing me. I saw what Uncle Sammy saw." Hayden explained.
"It looks like she was using that black alter to control the thing." Sam added.
"And there was a bowl of blood." Hayden added.
"So Sammy's got a thing for the bad girl. And what's the deal with that bowl again?" Dean asked.
"She was talking into it, the way witches used to scry into crystal balls. She was communicating with someone." Sam explained.
"With who? The daeva?" Dean asked.
"No. Those things are savages, remember? Whoever it was, they were giving her orders. I could hear a voice but not what they were saying. I'm pretty sure they're the one running the show." Hayden stated.
"The one that's going to that warehouse tonight." Sam added. Dean glanced over to the table before going to it and looking through the file placed there.
"Holy crap." He said closing the file.
"What?" Sam and Hayden asked in unison.
"What I was gonna tell you earlier. I pulled a favor with my... friend Amy, over at the police department. Complete record of the two victims. We missed something the first time." Dean started.
"What?" Sam asked as he and Hayden went over to Dean.
"The first victim, the old man. He spent his whole life in Chicago but he wasn't born here. But look where he was born." Dean said turning the file to show Sam.
"Lawrence, Kansas." Sam read aloud. Hayden stepped back in thought.
"Meredith, the second victim. Turns out she was adopted and guess where she's from?" Dean said showing Meredith's file to Sam. She too, was from Lawrence, Kansas. Sam sat down across from Dean.
"Holy crap." He said repeating his brother's words.
"Yeah." Dean said.
"I mean, it is where the demon killed mom. That's where everything started." Sam stated.
"I don't like where this is going." Hayden said catching the brothers' attention.
"What do you mean?" Dean asked.
"It keeps going back to Kansas. Back to the start. From Uncle Sammy having that vision of the family in your old house to Meg hand picking victims that were born in your hometown... I feel like you're being targeted. Coincidences don't happen like this. Not to us." She explained her thoughts.
"But Meg said that she didn't know we were going to come here. That's what she said into the bowl." Sam said.
"But did you hear the reply? Did you hear what was being said to her? You only heard what she said. For all we know, this could be a set up. It could be a trap." Hayden stated.
"So you think Meg is tied up with the demon?" Sam asked.
"I think it's a definite possibility. And if I'm right, then this is definitely a trap." Hayden said.
"But I don't understand. What's the significance of Lawrence? And how do these Daeva things fit in?" Sam questioned.
"Beats me. I say we trash that black alter, grab Meg and have ourselves a friendly little interrogation." Dean said. Hayden's head snapped to him.
"No we can't. We shouldn't tip her off. We gotta stake out that warehouse. We gotta see who, or what is showing up to meet her." Sam suggested.
"No!" Hayden yelled. The two turned to her.
"What if I'm right and it is a trap? It's too risky, both of your plans." She argued.
"You're right. I don't think we should do this alone either." Dean said.
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"We think we got a serious lead on the thing that killed mom. So uh, this warehouse- it's 1435 West Erie... dad if you get this, get to Chicago as soon as as you can." Dean left a voicemail to his father as Hayden sat next to him on the bed.
"Voicemail?" Sam asked as he walked in with bags. He set the bag of food on the table.
"Yeah." Dean asked.
"Geez, what'd you get?" Dean asked as Sam placed the duffle bag on the bed.
"I ransacked that trunk. Holy water, every weapon that I could think of. Exorcism rituals from about half a dozen religions. I'm not sure what to expect. So I guess we should just expect everything, huh?" Sam explained.
"It's a big night." Dean commented.
"Yeah. You nervous?" Sam asked.
"No, no. Are you?" Dean replied.
"No. No way." Sam answered. Hayden grinned at both of them.
"You're both lying." She said.
"Hush it." The brothers said in union as they continued to prep their guns.
"Did you get the uh..." Dean trailed off. Sam nodded knowing what he meant.
"Hayden, why don't you go take a shower while we get things ready out here?" Dean said. She nodded and got her clothes before going into the bathroom.
The brothers quietly turned to each other.
"You should this is gonna work?" Sam whispered.
"After knowing everything that she knows right now, this is the only way to keep her out of harm's way." Dean replied.
"I know but dude we might as well be drugging her at this point." Sam frowned.
"It's just gonna help her sleep, which will help keep her out of harm's way. I need her to stay out of the way if this goes down the way we think it will. I can't have her getting hurt again, not by this thing." Dean said.
"Here." Sam said handing him the bottle of juice.
"Pour it into a cup. Mix in 400mg. She should be out just before we leave." Sam instructed.
"And it won't do anything to her right?" Dean asked.
"Not a thing. She's just gonna sleep and if this goes well, she should sleep through out the night." Sam confirmed. Dean nodded and set the table for Hayden.
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"Hayden come eat before you brush your teeth." Dean called to her. She quickly came out of the bathroom ready to eat.
"Burgers?!" She asked happily.
"Absolutely, baby girl. They're your favorite." Dean said as he sat next to her. Hayden said down and began to eat.
"What are you up, daddy?" Hayden asked after eating more than half the burger. She had only taken a couple sips of her juice.
"What makes you think that?" Dean asked with an awkward chuckle. Hayden just raised an eyebrow at him as she swallowed her food. Dean sighed.
"Fine. I want you to stay here. I don't want you involved at all." He cracked.
"Daddy, I'm not sitting this out. You and Uncle Sammy could get hurt. You could die. What am I gonna do if you guys die?" She argued.
"Hayden this isn't up for debate. You're staying here." Dean stated.
"And what if grandpa doesn't show up? No offense to grandpa but he doesn't have a good track record for showing up. Meg could kill you guys!" She pressed.
"Hayden-" she cut him off.
"I have a better chance at protecting you. I have powers! I'm supernatural!" She yelled.
"And you still get hurt! You almost died!" Dean yelled silencing the room.
"Being supernatural doesn't make you invincible. It doesn't stop you from dying. I know how much you want to protect us but you're my daughter and it's my job to protect you. Your safety is my top priority. So you have to stay here." Dean said. Then he walked away from the table and began getting ready to leave.
Hayden sat there sadly. She wanted to help. She wanted to be able to do something to keep them safe because without them, she had no one. If they were killed, she was more ready to go with them than be without them. She stared at her burger trying to come up with a plan when her eye lids began to feel heavy. Against her better judgement, she laid her head on the table, falling asleep.
Sam looked at Dean shocked.
"Where'd you put it? She didn't drink her juice." He asked.
"I put it in the burger." Dean said as he picked her up and laid her on the bed.
The two then went to their duffle bag and began preparing their weapons.
"Man could you actually imagine if we found that damn thing? That demon?" Sam asked.
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, alright?" Dean said.
"I know. I'm just saying. What if we did? What if this whole thing was over tonight? Man, I'd sleep for a month. Go back to school, just be a person again." Sam said.
"You want to go back to school?" Dean asked.
"Yeah. Once we're done hunting the thing." Sam replied.
"Huh." Dean said quietly.
"Why? Is there something wrong with that?" Sam asked defensively.
"No. No, it's great. Good for you." Dean said dryly. He meant no harm with his reaction. He didn't want Sam to get his hopes up but he also wanted Sam to have what he wanted.
"I mean, what are you gonna do when it's all over?" Sam asked.
"This is never gonna be over. There's always gonna be others. There's always gonna be something to hunt." Dean replied.
"What about Hayden?" Sam asked.
"She's never gonna be able to live a normal life. No matter how bad I want that for her." He said.
"Well Dean, there's gotta be something. Isn't there something you want for yourself?" Sam pressed.
"Yeah. I don't want you to leave the second this is over, Sam." Dean said before walking away from Sam.
"Dude, what's your problem?" Sam asked calmly. Dean paused for a second before turning to his brother.
"Why do you think I drag you everywhere? Huh? Why do you think I came and got you at Stanford in the first place?" He asked.
"Because dad was in trouble. Because you wanted to find the thing that killed mom." Sam replied.
"Yes, that! But it's more than that, man. You and me and dad... I want us to be together again. I want us to be a family again, with Hayden." Dean confessed.
"Dean, we are a family. If do anything for you. But things will never be the way they were before." Sam said.
"Could be." Dean hoped.
"I don't want it to be. I'm not gonna live this life forever. Dean, when this is all over, you're gonna have to let me go my own way. And I think that you should try and find a better life for you and Hayden. Even though she is supernatural, you two can live a different life." Sam said.
"I don't think I can do that." Dean said.
"Why? Because you're screwed up? We all are. But after everything that we've been through, you deserve to try... if not for yourself, then for Hayden." Sam said.
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Sam and Dean had gone to the warehouse and climbed up the shaft the same way Sam had the previous day. They saw Meg standing in front of the alter alone, chanting. Sam slid through the opening into the room and helped Dean in as well. Sam held his gun on Meg as Dean crept to the back of the room.
The two then hid behind some crates. Sam kept his eye and his gun on Meg as Dean grabbed a shotgun from the bag. He quickly switched guns with Sam.
"Guys, hiding is a little bit childish, don't you think?" Meg asked without looking at them. The brothers shared a look of disbelief.
"Well that didn't work out like I planned." Dean said. Meg then turned to them.
"Why don't you come out?" She said. The brothers came out of their spots with their guns held high.
"Sam, I have to say. This puts a real cramp in our relationship." Meg said with a smirk.
"Yeah, tell me about it." Sam replied.
"So, where's your little daeva friend?" Dean asked.
"Around. And that shotgun's not gonna do much good." She replied.
"Oh don't sweetheart. Shotgun's not for the demon." Dean smirked.
"So who is it, Meg? Who's coming? Who are you waiting for?" Sam questioned.
"You." Meg replied. Then the daeva came and attacked the brother. It's scratched Sam across the face and threw him onto the floor before throwing Dean into the pile of crates, knocking him out. Then it went back to Sam, knocking him unconscious as well.
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Hayden jolted awake feeling pain all over. She was still dazed as she looked around seeing she was alone in the motel room.
"Seriously?! They drugged me?!" She yelled, however considering she was drowsy, it came out as an angry whisper. They had never given her melatonin before and she had woken up sooner than she was supposed to, so it hadn't worn off yet.
Hayden stumbled to the bathroom, hoping that splashing water on her face would wake her up. She threw a lot of water on her face. So much so that the front of her shirt was wet. After a little bit, she was able to come to her senses.
She walked out of the bathroom and quickly realized she hadn't turned the lights on. Just then Sam and Dean walked through the door.
"Hey!" Dean said to the unknown man standing at their window.
"Hayden." Sam called her over as he turned the light on. Hayden quickly went to their side as the man turned around. It was John Winchester.
"Dad." Dean said. The brother were chocked up seeing their father in front of them, alive and well. Hayden quietly looked between the boys and John.
"Hey boys." John smiled. Dean immediately met John halfway and they hugged one another. Hayden moved with Sam and walked over to the two as they separated.
"Hi Sam." John said.
"Hey dad." Sam said quietly before placing their duffle bag onto the floor.
"Daddy?" Hayden called to Dean grabbing everyone's attention. She had moved to stand in between them brothers. John looked at her, shocked. He was still in disbelief that Dean had taken this child in.
"Uh, dad, this is my daughter, Hayden. Hayden, this is your grandpa." Dean introduced them. Hayden held Dean's hand as she waved at John with her other hand.
"Hello." She said quietly.
"Your... daughter?" John asked.
"After we split up, I saved her. Her family was going to sacrifice her. After I saved her I just kinda... couldn't leave her. So I took her in." Dean explained. John just silently nodded. Dean sighed.
"Dad it was a trap. I didn't know. I'm sorry." Dean said. Hayden frowned at him.
"Wha-" but John started talking before she could say anything.
"It's alright. I thought it might've been." He said.
"Were you there?" Dean asked.
"Yeah. I got there just in time to see the girl take the swan dive. She was the bad guy right?" John replied.
"Yes sir." Sam and Dean answered in unison.
"Well, it doesn't surprise me. It's tried to stop me before." John said.
"The demon has?" Sam asked.
"It knows I'm close. It knows I'm gonna kill it. Not just exercise it or send it back to hell, actually kill it." John replied.
"How?" Dean asked.
"I'm working on it." John replied.
"We can help you." Hayden said.
"No-" she cut him off.
"It's going through lengths to try and stop you. And if it knows that you're gunning to kill it, then it's probably going to try and kill you before you can. Maybe we could lend a hand. I'm not saying to go with you or that but we can still help." She said. Sam and Dean looked at her in disbelief.
"No. Not yet. And you won't be involved kid. It's too dangerous." John said.
"But if that's the case, we should help with something. You could get hurt." She argued. Dean tugged on her arm.
"Hayden." He scolded her. John smiled a little to himself. Even though the child had just met him, she was trying to protect him and that made him happy.
"No, Hayden's right. Let us help you." Sam said.
"Listen, try to understand. This demon is a scary son of a bitch. I don't want you caught in the crossfire. I don't want you hurt." John said.
"Dad you don't have to worry about us." Sam stated.
"Of course I do. I'm your father... and apparently I'm a granddad now." John said as he looked at the three of them.
"Listen Sammy, the last time we were together, we had one hell of a fight." He started.
"Yes sir." Sam said with tears in his eyes.
"It's good to see you again. It's been a long time." John said.
"Too long." Sam added before the two pulled each other into a hug. Hayden suddenly got an ominous feeling. She looked around, seeing nothing but the feeling got stronger. Something was coming, something bad was about to happen.
"Wait!" She called to the men.
"What's wrong princess?" Dean asked as John and Sam pulled away and looked at her confused.
"Something's not right." She said. Then she paused.
"They're here!" She yelled before she moved away from Dean and shoved John to the floor. Not even a second later she flew back into the cabinets with a scream. She bounced off the corner and fell to the floor. The daevas were in the room.
It threw John into the wall and cut Sam with its claws.
"No!" Dean yelled before it threw him back.
The daeva pinned John by his wrist and began slicing him. Another was beating Dean. Another had Hayden pinned to the floor, stabbing its claws into her stomach. The room was filled with screams from John and Hayden.
"Daddy!" Hayden cried out. Dean tried to get to her but was threw back into the wall.
"Cover your eyes! These things are shadow demons! Let's light them up!" Sam yelled as he lit a flash, illuminating the room. All of the daevas vanished and the family were left in the bright room.
"Dad!" Dean called out.
"I'm over here." John replied.
"Sam, get Hayden!" Dean yelled.
Sam grabbed the duffle bad and went over to Hayden who was bleeding from her stomach. Dean helped John up while Sam picked up Hayden and they stumble out of the room.
They exited the building in coughing fits and quickly went to the impala.
"Alright, come on. We don't have much time and Hayden's hurt pretty bad. As soon as the flares go out, they'll be back." Sam said.
"Stand here. Can you stand?" He asked her as he set her down on her feet. She nodded and he turned and opened the car door tossing the duffel bag inside. Hayden leaned against the impala.
"Sam, wait wait!" Dean yelled stopping Sam in his movements. Hayden held her hands over her wound as she breathlessly leaned again the impala.
"Dad you can't come with us." Dean said.
"What? What are you talking about?" Sam argued.
"You boys- you and Hayden, you're beat to hell." John said.
"We'll be alright. Hayden can heal. She'll be fine." Dean said.
"Dean, we should stick together! Well go after those-" Dean cut him off.
"Sam! Listen to me! We almost got dad killed in there. Don't you understand? They're not gonna stop. They're gonna use us to get to him. I mean Meg was right. Dad's vulnerable when he's with us. He- he's stronger without us around." Dean said.
"Dad," Sam turned to John and put his hand on his shoulder, "No. After everything, after all the time we've spent looking for you. Please. I've got to be apart of this fight." He begged.
"Sammy, this fight is just starting and we are all gonna have a part to play. For now, you've gotta trust me, son. Okay? You gotta let me go." John said. Hayden frowned. Tears filled her eyes. They were right. John had to leave but she was with Sam, she didn't want him to go. She wanted to spend more time with him. She wanted to know him more.
Sam begrudgingly took his hand off John's shoulder. The men shared one final looked before John started to walked off. However he stopped just as he walked past the brother. The three looked down to see Hayden was no longer leaning on the car and was now gripping the back of John's jacket with her small, bloodied hands. She let go as John kneeled in front of her.
"You have to be careful." She said.
"Of course. I have to get to know my granddaughter once this is finished." He said.
"You promise?" Her voice cracked as she held up her pinky finger.
"I promise. We'll see each other again, Hayden." He said as he locked pinkies with her. Then she did something he didn't expect. She pulled him into a hug. It was short and sweet and caught him off guard. She then back away and leaned onto Sam's legs. John nodded at them before he stood to his feet and quickly left.
"Be careful." John said quietly as he got into his truck and drove away.
"Come on." Dean said. Hayden groaned in pain as he helped her into the impala.
"You alright princess?" He asked.
"It's okay, daddy. It's already healing." She said. He nodded at her before he and Sam got into themselves.
The three sat in silence as they watched John drive away and out of sight. Then Dean started the impala and drove in the opposite direction.