The Magnificent Seven
I wasn't sure how to escape this conversation yet but wanted too badly. After last night, we heard of a murder in town and headed to check it out. A girl had her head bashed in by another woman because she bought the last pair of shoes.
Messy, I know.
Anyway, Dean and I were in the store when an officer approached me. I had wandered off from Dean, spotted a cute dress that was on sale. At first, I thought he was going to arrest me because, you know, I'm wanted by the FBI, but he didn't recognize me.
He was flirting with me, and I didn't know how to get out of this awkward conversation and be polite about it.
Sam was outside, talking with people, trying to figure out what was going on. I could see him through the shop window.
"So maybe I could show you around town sometime since you're new." The officer suggested, smiling at me.
"Um--" I began, but was quickly cut off by Dean.
"What's going on, Si?" He asked, glare set on the man before me.
"Oh, I, uh--"
"He's not bothering you, is he?"
The officer didn't back down either.
Jeez, what is up with men and the testosterone today?
"No, Dean, I'm okay. Let's go." I said, taking his arm and pulling him away. "What was that about?" I asked, moving to stand in front of him.
Dean dipped his head, lips meeting mine as he pushed me back against the wall.
"What are you doing?" I asked quietly, pulling back as a blush rose to my cheeks.
"Nothing." He leaned in to kiss me again.
"Is has nothing to do with the officer hitting on me?" I asked.
"Definitely not." Dean mumbled.
"What are you doing?" Sam asked, making us pull apart.
"What are you doing?" Dean countered.
"Working." Sam stated. "Dead body. Possible demon attack, that kind of stuff."
Dean faked a cough. "Sam, I'm sorry. It's just, you know, I don't have much time left, and, uh--" He faked coughed again. "I gotta make every second count."
"Yeah. Right. All right. I'm sorry." Sam said.
"What?" I asked. "Are you serious?"
"Apology accepted." Dean said. "And Si, I would like an apology for you thinking I had an ulterior motive."
I blinked. "Sure, okay, um. Why not? I am so sorry for thinking you were trying to prove a point to the guy hitting on me when you totally were."
"Much better, thank you." Dean said as Bobby walked up to us. He was dressed in a suit and tie, hair combed and everything. Dean whistled. "Whoa. Looking spiffy, Bobby. What are you, a G-man?"
"Returning from the DA's office." Bobby answered. "Just spoke to the suspect."
"So what do you think? Was she possessed?" Sam asked.
"Don't think so. No blackouts, no loss of control. Totally lucid. Just think she really wanted those shoes." Bobby shrugged. "Spilled a glass of holy water on her, just to be sure. Nothing."
"Maybe she's just some random whackjob." Dean shrugged, setting a hand on my waist.
"If it had been an isolated incident, maybe. But first the family, now this?" Bobby asked. "I believe in a lot of things. Coincidence ain't one of them. Did you three find anything around here?"
"No sulfur." Sam said. "Nothing."
"Well, maybe something." Dean suggested, looking toward the security camera. He looked back at Sam. "See? I'm working."
___
"Anything interesting?" Dean asked as we stood around the tv, watching the footage from right before the murder.
"I don't know yet. Might just be a guy." Sam said as a man walked in the store, stopping to talk to a woman. "Or it might be our guy."
The man set a hand on the woman's shoulder, gesturing across the room.
___
Dean pressed a kiss to my lips before turning and walking down the street with Bobby.
Lady followed close behind me as Sam and I went the opposite direction. Suddenly, a chill washed over me. An odd feeling settled in my gut. It felt like there was someone watching me.
Suddenly, Sam stopped, turning.
He must've felt it too.
But nothing seemed out of place.
___
It was barely past midnight when Sam and I reached Bobby's car. Sam beat his hand against the window of the passenger seat where Dean sat, making the older Winchester jump.
I laughed a little as Sam pulled open the door and shoved Dean's seat forward to climb in the back.
"It's not funny." Dean said, sounding rather annoyed.
"Yeah." Sam replied. "All right, so--so John Doe's name is, uh, Walter Rosen."
Instead of climbing in the backseat next to Sam, I just settled in Dean's lap, my legs between his, feet brushing the floorboards. Dean pulled the door shut.
"He's from Oak Part, not far from Chicago. He's been missing for a week." I added.
"The night the Devil's Gate opened?" Dean asked.
"Yep." Sam nodded.
"So you think he's possessed?"
"It's a good bet." Sam said. "So, what, he just walks up to someone, touches them and they go stark raving psycho or something?"
"Those demons that got out, they'll be able to do things we haven't seen." Bobby explained.
"You mean the demons we let out." Sam corrected.
"Oh, Si, I got another one." Dean slipped a hand under my shirt, tracing the stab wound on my stomach.
"Okay, shoot." I said, knowing it was probably worse than the last pick up line he used.
"Knock, knock."
"I thought this was a pick up line?"
"Just play along." Dean said.
"Fine. Who's there?" I asked, shaking my head.
"Where when."
I cast Dean a look, unsure of what was happening. "Where when who?" I asked slowly.
"My house, tonight, just you and me."
I blinked, smiling a little. "First of all, you are the biggest dork ever, second of all, you don't have a house."
"Fine, your house."
"Guy." Bobby said suddenly, making us look forward.
Walter Rosen was walking across the parking lot toward the bar.
"All right. Showtime." Dean said.
"Wait a minute." Bobby told him.
"What?" Dean asked.
"What did I just say? We don't know what to expect out of this guy." Bobby stated. "We should tail him till we know."
"So he kills someone and we sit here with our junk in our hands?" Dean asked.
"Um, can we not--" I began.
"We're no good dead." Bobby snapped. "We're not gonna make a move till we know what the score is."
"Hey, Bobby. I don't think that's an option." Sam said.
"Why not?"
Sam nodded across the parking lot where Issac and Tamara were walking toward the bar.
"Damn it."
___
After trying to break the door down, Bobby and Dean gave up and came up with Plan B.
Plan B consisted of driving straight into the bar.
I'm not even kidding.
Issac lay dead on the floor in a puddle of blood. Dean, Bobby and I all poured holy water on all of the demons as Sam grabbed Tamara and began pulling her toward the car.
She was screaming, fighting against him as she cried out for her husband.
I slid into the backseat, next to Sam and Tamara as Bobby sat in the driver seat. "Dean, come on!" I yelled as he shoved a demon into the trunk of the car.
___
"And I say we're going back." Tamara argued as we stood a room away from where the demon was tied up under a devil's trap.
"Just hold on a second." Sam pleaded.
"I left my husband on the floor." Tamara exclaimed.
I was torn. I knew it I was in her shoes, I'd be saying the same thing. I'd want to go back. But I also knew right now it was a bad idea, but that was only because it wasn't me and Dean wasn't lying on the floor of a bar dead. That was the only reason I was thinking logically.
"Okay, I understand that, but we can't go back." Sam argued.
"Fine, you stay. But I'm heading back to that bar." Tamara
"I'll go with her." Dean offered, already moving toward the door.
"Wait a minute." I said.
"It's suicide, Dean." Sam snapped.
"So what? I'm dead already." Dean replied.
"Dean." I said, moving toward him.
"How are you gonna kill them? You can't shoot them." Sam pointed out. "You can't stab them. They're not gonna wait around to get exorcised."
"I don't care!" Tamara yelled.
"We don't even know how many there are." Sam stated.
Suddenly, the small ringing sound I've been dealing with for the last day got louder and louder until it almost drown everything else out. My hands prickled. Voices filled my head. All indiscernible. I blinked rapidly, trying to act as if nothing was happening.
Shadow Lady--the Sorceress--appeared next to me.
"Yeah, we do." Bobby's voice cut through it all.
Everything calmed.
"There's seven. Do you have any idea who we're up against?" He continued.
"No. Who?" Dean asked.
"The seven dwarfs." I suggested weaky.
"The seven deadly sins." Bobby stated. "Live and in the flesh."
Dean scoffed. "'What's in the box?'" He laughed a little.
Everyone just stared at him for a moment.
"I thought it was good." I said with a shrug.
"Brad Pitt? Se7en? No?" Dean asked.
"I got it." I laughed a little.
Bobby tossed a book at Dean, who caught it. "What's this?"
"Binsfeld's Classification of Demons." Bobby answered. "In 1589, Binsfeld ID'd the seven sins. Not just as human vices but as actual devils."
"The family. They were touched by Sloth." Sam realized. "And the shopper."
"That's Envy's doing." Bobby filled in. "The customer we got in the next room. I couldn't sus it out at first, until Isaac. He was touched with an awful gluttony."
"I don't give a rat's ass if they're the Three Stooges or the Four Tops." Tamara yelled. "I'm gonna slaughter every last one of them."
"We already did your way." Bobby stated. "You burst in there half-cocked and look what happened! These demons haven't been topside in half a millennium! We're talking medieval, Dark Ages. We've never faced anything close to this. So we are gonna take a breath...and figure out what our next move is!"
I've rarely seen Bobby this worked up and angry, but it made me uncomfortable.
"I am sorry for your loss." He continued, voice softer.
With that, we all made our way into the next room.
Envy laughed. "So you know who I am, huh?"
"We do. We're not impressed." Bobby stated.
"Now, why are you here?" Sam asked. "What are you after?"
"He asked you a question." Dean said once no answer was received. "What do you want?"
Envy laughed as Dean pulled out a flask of holy water. He splashed some on the demon, making his skin sizzle and he cried out in pain. Envy groaned. "We already have what we want."
"What's that?" Dean asked.
"We're out. We're free." Envy stated. "Thanks to you, my kind are everywhere. 'I am legion, for we are many.' So me, I'm just celebrating. Having a little fun."
"Fun?" I repeated.
"Yeah." Envy's eyes turned to me, tracing up and down my body. Dean moved to block me mostly. "Fun. See, some people crochet, others golf. Me...I like to see people's insides on their outside."
"I'm gonna put you down like a dog." Tamara spoke up.
"Please." Envy laughed. "You really think you're better than me? Which one of you can cast the first stone, huh? What about you, Dean? You're practically a walking billboard of gluttony and lust. I've got my claws in Saige over there. Always longing for the normalcy she's surrounded by. And Tamara. All that wrath? Ooh. Tsk, tsk, tsk. It's the reason you and Isaac became hunters in the first place, isn't it? It's so much easier to drink in the rage than to face what really happened all those years ago."
Tamara swung her fist, catching his jaw before Bobby pulled her back.
"My point exactly. And you call us sins." Envy continued. "We're not sins, man. We are natural human instinct. And you can repress and deny us all you want but the truth is, you are just animals. Horny, greedy, hungry, heh, violent animals. And you know what? You'll be slaughtered like animals too. The others? They're coming for me."
"Maybe..." Dean admitted. "But they're not gonna find you because you'll be in hell. Someone send this clown packing."
"My pleasure." Tamara said.