Fic: Bitter Seed
Nov. 13th, 2010 12:13 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
serafina20Title: Bitter Seed
Fandom: SPN
Pairing: Dean/Rachel, Sam/Nathan
Rating: Mature
Warning: mentions of rape (a little late, I guess; sorry)
Summary: The fallout from Rachel's abduction by the YED continues when she discovers she's pregnant.
Series Captured Soul, Kitsune, Another Kind of Trap, The Greater Good,and Picking Up, Lethe
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, 5, & 6, Part 7
The sun was beating against the door of the motel room, making a warm spot against it in the chilly morning air when Sam stepped outside. For a moment, he stood there, leaning against the door and let out a sigh of relief.
To say yesterday had been awful would be an understatement. Nathan wasn't exactly the easiest travel companion under normal circumstances. He hummed songs that weren't playing on the radio, always slightly off key. He randomly described the scenery, as if everyone else couldn't see it. He started conversations in the middle, sometimes in the middle of sentences, and just expected others to follow along. He kicked the back of the seat and started wiggling nonstop after being on the road for over an hour.
And that was when he was in a good mood.
When he was in a bad mood, well. His personality was so big, it filled the car. And when he was dark, everything was dark. The atmosphere of the car was just oppressive.
Luckily, he wasn't in a bad mood often. Even the day before, it wasn't that Nathan had been in a bad mood so much as worried. And the longer they drove, the further away from Rachel they got, the quieter he got. Sam had tried to keep up the conversation, keep things light, but by the time they'd finally pulled into a motel around midnight, Nathan hadn't spoken for almost two hours.
Nathan had been restless all night, tossing and turning and hogging the covers. He hadn't wanted to make out, hadn't wanted talk, hadn't wanted to be held. Sam might as well have gotten two beds; maybe then he could have gotten more than a half an hour of sleep a time. He definitely wouldn't have bruises on his side from Nathan's kicking.
Around five, Nathan had gotten out of bed. Sam had fallen asleep to the sound of the shower starting up; when he woke around nine, Nathan had been sitting in the corner of the room, eyes closed, legs crossed, meditating. He'd still been like that after Sam had showered and shaved. He was so still, Sam wasn't completely convinced that he was even awake. Meditating or sleeping sitting up, though, at least he was quiet and still.
Sam opted not to disturb him. Nathan needed to relax. Sam needed coffee.
Dear God, he needed coffee.
Sam stretched, trying to work out the kinks in his back. For being so small, Nathan somehow managed to take up the whole bed, forcing Sam into uncomfortable positions.
Of course, he was going to be gone pretty soon. Back to college. And Sam would have the bed to himself again.
He sighed and let his head bang against the door.
There was no way he could ask Nathan to stay. It wouldn't be fair. Not to any of them. Nathan was working on his masters. He had a real life and a chance to make something of himself. Sam was, well. Sam had given that up. His life was hunting now, at least until they killed the demon.
Maybe Rachel could be convinced to go live with Nathan. Or at least live in the same town. Then Sam would have a reason to visit him.
Speaking of…
Sam reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. There was a message from Dean waiting for him.
"Hey, Sam. So, Rachel's okay. Her parents got this doctor out to treat her. He's an asshole, but he seems to know what he's doing. Maybe. Look, we need to talk, and there's a lot of stuff I need to tell you that isn't good for voice mail. Call me when you get this. Just, two things. Mom was a hunter. Her whole family was hunters, can you believe that? Rachel's parents dug up all this stuff on her. Oh, and someone in her family made a major deal with the demon, and your powers probably have something to do with it. So, you know. Stop using them. Call me."
"Dean!" Sam heard Rachel call in the background.
"Oh! But not tonight, 'cause I’m kind of busy tonight. Tomorrow. Later."
Sam winced. Then stopped.
Shit.
* * *
Nathan jumped at the sudden loud bang, eyes flying open. He barely had time to register the fact that Sam had thrown open the door so hard that it cracked the wall he'd hauled Nathan to his feet and pinned him to the wall.
The thunderous expression on his face clued Nathan into the fact this wasn't foreplay.
"Did you know?" Sam demanded.
Nathan blinked. His vision swam from where his head had smacked into the wall. "Did I know what?"
"About my mother? About her being a hunter?"
"What?"
"You said that someone probably made a deal, that's why my mom died. That's why the demon was there. You said it was probably my grandparents. Did you know?"
"No, I didn't. I was just speculating. I mean, if you dad didn't know about demons, then maybe it came from your grandparents. But I was thinking his parents. Or… I don't know." He shrugged. Put his hands on Sam's chest. "I don't know anything about your family, Sam."
Sam's face was still twisted, but his hands relaxed just a little from their death grip in Nathan's shirt. His chest rose and fell somewhat unevenly.
Nathan slid his hands up Sam's chest and laced his fingers behind his neck. "What happened?"
"Dean called last night." Sam let out a long breath. His head fell forward, resting against Nathan's. "Apparently, your parents traced my family's history. All Dean said was that our mom and her family were hunters. That, and someone made a major deal. Which is what you said."
"Because it's obvious." At Sam's look, Nathan winced and said, "To someone on the outside looking in. Because it's how things usually work, but no one wants to think their family is involved."
Sam nodded. "So what about Rachel?" he asked, eyes distant.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do think that was a deal, too?" He looked back at Nathan. "Do you think maybe she made a deal with it for… something?"
His stomach clenched, and he closed his eyes. "I don't know," he whispered, surprised to find a lump in his throat. "I mean, I've been looking at demonic pregnancies in those books from Bobby. Most of the time, if there's a deal, someone else makes it. Like in Rosemary's Baby, the asshole husband sells Rosemary so he can have a career. But, in a few cases, the woman agreed for some reason." His voice cracked on the last word.
Lips pressed against Nathan's forehead. "Sorry, Nathan," Sam said against his skin. "I know Rachel wouldn't do something like that. I shouldn't have asked it."
"It was a fair question. I mean, if not her, then who?" He hated how his voice shook.
This time, Sam kissed him properly, mouth warm on his own, huge hand cradling the back of his neck. "Okay," he whispered, resting their foreheads together again. "Let's not do this. Okay? We're just running in circles. Dean said Rachel was fine. She didn't make a deal. No one probably did, except for, you know. What I just told you." He sighed and kissed Nathan again. "I need to call Dean."
"You didn't talk to him?"
"Not yet." Sam bussed his lips over Nathan's and pulled away. "He left a message, and I got distracted by the idea that you were holding out on me." He sat on the bed.
Nathan smirked. "Baby, I'd never hold anything out on you."
Sam rolled his eyes as he pulled his phone from his pocket. "Don't think that you're going to start calling me 'baby.' I'm not sure I want you calling me Sammy."
"Did Jessica call you Sammy?" Nathan asked, straddling Sam.
His thumb hovered above the call button, eyes turning inward. "No," he said with a shake of his head. "She didn't." He put his hand on Nathan's back and pressed call.
While the phone rang, Nathan settled his head into the crook of Sam's neck. Kissed, pressing his mouth against Sam's warm skin. He expected Sam to push him away, but the other man just stroked his hand over Nathan's back until he wanted to purr.
It hurt to think that this was going to be gone in a few days. That he had to go back to school, and Sam would stay on the road, hunting. Nathan had no idea if they were going to continue this or what. Sam was, up until recently, a straight guy. And Nathan was just, for the most part, really persuasive. And, yeah, he knew that wasn't all it, because if someone was totally straight they didn't have relationships with people of the same sex. Or, if they did, it's because they really, really like that person.
But he didn't know how much Sam liked him. Okay, yeah, that was stupid because obviously, Sam liked him a lot. Liked him enough to go outside his comfort zone and share a bed with him and talk and everything. But they never talked about their feelings or really where their relationship was going. All Nathan knew was they were finally starting to do more in bed than rub off while clothed, and he was very interested in going further. Like, a lot further.
But he was leaving. And he didn't know if he was in a relationship or a fling. And he didn't know how to ask.
It'd be so much easier if Nathan wasn't going back to school. Or if Rachel would come live with him. At least then, it'd be guaranteed that Sam came to visit him occasionally. If Sam was there, Nathan was fairly sure he could seduce him.
But without Rachel, there was no real reason for Sam to stop by.
"Dude, it's way too early to call," Nathan heard Dean say on the phone. "Time zones, man. "
"We're in the same time zone, Dean. It's nine-thirty."
"Call back in an hour."
"Dean, don't…" Sam abruptly stopped talking. Pulling the phone from his ear, he redialed.
Nathan crawled off Sam and grabbed his phone from the dresser. "I'll try Rachel."
"Your funeral," Sam said. "You know what she does to people who call her before ten."
"Ah, she'd never hurt me."
The ringing stopped. "Oh, I'm gonna kill you," Rachel mumbled.
"Ah, come on, don't be like that," Nathan said sweetly. "I'm just calling to see how you are."
"I'm tired. What do you want?"
Sam took the phone from Nathan and put it on speaker. "What's this about my mom being a hunter?"
Rachel sighed heavily. "It is too early for this," she muttered. "And can you believe that asshole is in the bathroom? I've got little demon hooves dancing on my bladder, and he's hogging the toilet."
"Really?" Nathan frowned at the image. "It has hooves?"
"It does not have hooves," Dean's voice called distantly. "Check your e-mail. It looks completely human, except for its huge head. But that's totally normal." His voice was closer now, right on top of the phone.
Sam and Nathan exchanged looks.
"E-mail?" Sam repeated. He scooted up the bed and grabbed his laptop from the nightstand.
"Yeah, I sent you a copy of the sonogram the doctor took yesterday. You need to see this, man. It's just this little bulge thing with a big-old alien head." He sounded proud.
Nathan raised his eyebrows at Sam, who just rolled his eyes and shrugged. Apparently, Dean had swung from being justifiably freaked out about maybe having to kill a demon baby to proud papa again.
"Dean just remember that just because it looks human…" Sam started, but Dean cut him off with an irritable, "I know, I know."
Sam grimaced as he pulled up his e-mail. "So, how's Rachel handling it?"
"Well, she refused to have sex with me until I took the picture off the wall," Dean answered. "Said it was too much like it was looking at us. But, honestly, she seems a little better since actually seeing the ultrasound and everything. Relieved there weren't any tails or horns or anything."
"You hung the sonogram on the wall?" Nathan said. He moved next to Sam and looked over his shoulder.
There was a pause, then Dean said, "You know what, just wait until one of you gets someone pregnant and see what you do. And don't even say what you're thinking, because I know, I get it, but she's my wife and I am not going to justify myself to you two."
Sam put his hand over Nathan's mouth before he could say anything. "It's cute, Dean. The baby, I mean." He squinted. "What we can see, anyway."
Dean snorted; Nathan could imagine him blushing and looking embarrassed right now as he said, "Okay, you know what? Conversation over. Why'd you call?"
"Um, Mom was a hunter? She made a deal?"
"I never said Mom made a deal!"
Nathan winced. He hadn't realized that Dean could hit that pitch without being kicked in the crotch.
"Okay, so what did you say? How could Mom be a hunter and Dad never told us?"
"Dad never told us a lot of things, did he? Maybe he didn't want us looking up her family, or maybe they're dead or something, I don't know. I've given up trying to guess the hell Dad was thinking anymore."
"Her family's old, though," Rachel said, apparently returning from the bathroom. "Old enough to rub in my grandfather's face."
Nathan jumped off the bed and crossed the room. "Mom and Dad have a file on them?" he asked, opening up his laptop.
"Yeah, but stops with Mary's death. There could still be cousins or whatever."
"But, here's the weird thing. Both her parents died the same day. And her dad was possessed before he died," said Dean.
"Possessed?" Sam repeated.
"Yeah, there were traces of sulfur and everything. He was stabbed, which was how he died, but who knows how long he was possessed before?"
"When was this?"
"Uh, May 1973," Dean answered.
Sam frowned. "Isn't that when Mom and Dad got married?"
"Yeah."
Nathan looked up from his computer, frowning. "It waited ten years?"
"Ten years for what?" Sam asked.
"Well, if you're the deal," Nathan said, "it waited ten years until it… it did whatever."
"What did it do to me?" Sam asked. "What was this deal?"
Silence.
Then Dean sighed. "I don't know, man. But did something to you. You and all the kids. That's why you have powers."
"What did it do?" There was a hysterical note in his voice.
"We don't know, Sam," Dean said. "But Dad found out, at the end."
"And he told you?"
"No. Not exactly." He cleared his throat. "But, uh. He told me that it did something, and I needed to save you."
"Save me from what?"
Silence fell again.
Sam shook his head and looked over at Nathan. His eyes were bright and he had a look on his face saying he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
A sort of ache spread through Nathan. He quickly opened his e-mail on his computer, opened the expected e-mail from his parents, and began downloading the file they'd sent him. Then he slid out of his seat to go to Sam.
"So, what do you think this deal was? I mean, you think it, like, possessed Dad and…"
"No," Dean interrupted.
"Oh, come on. Is it really that difficult to imagine? I mean, what if it asked Dad for permission to give him one of us? And by us, I mean we. What if…"
"John wouldn't have agreed to that," Rachel said. "He wouldn't have agreed to let it have either of you. It wouldn't have let it possessed him."
"How do you know? You don't know what happened back then. What it said to him."
"You don't know it was him! Considering how long it took him to figure out what the demon was, I doubt he knew anything. I'm sorry, Sam, but your mom probably made a deal."
Sam screwed his eyes shut. "She couldn't have. Dean, you know. She couldn't have."
"Sam," Nathan said softly, putting his hand on Sam's shoulder. "Even if your mom made a deal, that doesn't mean… anything, really."
"What does that mean?"
"Well. It's a demon. Since when do demons tell the truth?"
"Or even the whole story," Rachel said. "If it was your mom—and it could have been one of your grandparents—but if it was your mom, she might not have known what she was saying yes to."
"Did you know?" Sam asked bluntly.
Nathan heard Rachel's sharp intake a breath. Mattress springs squeaked and a door slammed.
"Not cool, Sam," said Dean, voice dark.
Nathan pulled away from Sam and grabbed his phone. "Dean, give your phone to Rachel. I'm gonna call her."
"You know, I really hate you both. Why couldn’t you just sleep in like normal people?" There was a soft thumping sound. "Okay, she has the phone."
Without another word to Sam, Nathan left the motel room, calling Dean's phone. He had to call it three times before she finally picked up.
"You gonna defend your boyfriend?" Rachel answered, nose clogged, voice full of tears.
"Naw. He was an asshole," Nathan answered. He climbed onto the hood of the Impala, which was parked outside their room.
She sniffed loudly. "What if he's right? What if I agreed to bring the anti-Christ into this world?"
"You didn't."
"You don't know that."
"Okay, you're right. I don't know that. But why would you?"
"To save my life?"
Nathan shook his head. "No. That wouldn't be enough."
"I don't want to die, Nathan. I was about to be eaten by a troll. I don't want to be eaten by a troll. Maybe it offered to save me in exchange for this."
"No, because the demon didn't rescue you. The guy did."
"Maybe the man was authorized to make deals on its behalf."
"And then stuck around a couple weeks to sleep with you? Didn't you say you knew the man? I mean, if anyone made a deal, it was this mystery man."
"Maybe." She sighed. "Dr. Flynn, the doctor friend of Mom and Dad's, is doing a DNA test. He said he should have results in a week or so."
"That's good."
"If nothing happens, like his memory's erased or the test results don't disappear. The demon really doesn't want me finding out for some reason."
Nathan reached into his pajama pants' pocket and pulled out a small spiral notebook. Inside he'd written what he'd found of Rachel's message in A Dark Night. He thought he had most of it now, but he wasn't having any luck working with it on the computer. So, he'd switched mediums. Next up was Scrabble tiles.
"I just wish I knew what it wanted," Rachel whispered. "What his endgame is. What's he's doing with Sam and the other kids."
"What would he want a bunch of psychic kids for?" Nathan asked. He frowned down at what he'd written: back, wants, not, with, brought, baby, j, n, d, e, n, h, m, o and o.
"Depending on how many there are, I guess create an army."
Nathan snorted. "Well, two of them are dead. Two of them went psycho with their powers, and considering how power corrupts, I don't think they're the only ones."
"That's why Sam can't develop his powers. Dean was right. John was right. They're dark. They're evil."
Brought baby didn't make sense. Baby back did, if you were talking about ribs. There were enough letters for demon, which just left…
And suddenly, Nathan saw it.
He swallowed. "Rach? Didn't you say you guys thought John made some sort of deal with this thing for Dean?"
She sniffed wetly. "Um, yeah. Best we can tell is John traded his life for Dean's."
"To bring Dean back."
"Yeah."
The sun was warm on Nathan's back. Sweat beaded on his upper lip, but he felt cold. His stomach had contracted into a knot.
Demon brought back John. Baby.
"You don't make an army out of a bunch of power-hungry, psycho kids," he whispered.
"What? Nathan?"
"A bunch of power-hungry psycho kids won't let themselves be led. He's not making an army. He's…"
The phone was ripped from his hand. "Sorry, princess. Nathan's a little busy right now."
Nathan looked up into yellow eyes.
They were the last things he saw.
Fandom: SPN
Pairing: Dean/Rachel, Sam/Nathan
Rating: Mature
Warning: mentions of rape (a little late, I guess; sorry)
Summary: The fallout from Rachel's abduction by the YED continues when she discovers she's pregnant.
Series Captured Soul, Kitsune, Another Kind of Trap, The Greater Good,and Picking Up, Lethe
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, 5, & 6, Part 7
The sun was beating against the door of the motel room, making a warm spot against it in the chilly morning air when Sam stepped outside. For a moment, he stood there, leaning against the door and let out a sigh of relief.
To say yesterday had been awful would be an understatement. Nathan wasn't exactly the easiest travel companion under normal circumstances. He hummed songs that weren't playing on the radio, always slightly off key. He randomly described the scenery, as if everyone else couldn't see it. He started conversations in the middle, sometimes in the middle of sentences, and just expected others to follow along. He kicked the back of the seat and started wiggling nonstop after being on the road for over an hour.
And that was when he was in a good mood.
When he was in a bad mood, well. His personality was so big, it filled the car. And when he was dark, everything was dark. The atmosphere of the car was just oppressive.
Luckily, he wasn't in a bad mood often. Even the day before, it wasn't that Nathan had been in a bad mood so much as worried. And the longer they drove, the further away from Rachel they got, the quieter he got. Sam had tried to keep up the conversation, keep things light, but by the time they'd finally pulled into a motel around midnight, Nathan hadn't spoken for almost two hours.
Nathan had been restless all night, tossing and turning and hogging the covers. He hadn't wanted to make out, hadn't wanted talk, hadn't wanted to be held. Sam might as well have gotten two beds; maybe then he could have gotten more than a half an hour of sleep a time. He definitely wouldn't have bruises on his side from Nathan's kicking.
Around five, Nathan had gotten out of bed. Sam had fallen asleep to the sound of the shower starting up; when he woke around nine, Nathan had been sitting in the corner of the room, eyes closed, legs crossed, meditating. He'd still been like that after Sam had showered and shaved. He was so still, Sam wasn't completely convinced that he was even awake. Meditating or sleeping sitting up, though, at least he was quiet and still.
Sam opted not to disturb him. Nathan needed to relax. Sam needed coffee.
Dear God, he needed coffee.
Sam stretched, trying to work out the kinks in his back. For being so small, Nathan somehow managed to take up the whole bed, forcing Sam into uncomfortable positions.
Of course, he was going to be gone pretty soon. Back to college. And Sam would have the bed to himself again.
He sighed and let his head bang against the door.
There was no way he could ask Nathan to stay. It wouldn't be fair. Not to any of them. Nathan was working on his masters. He had a real life and a chance to make something of himself. Sam was, well. Sam had given that up. His life was hunting now, at least until they killed the demon.
Maybe Rachel could be convinced to go live with Nathan. Or at least live in the same town. Then Sam would have a reason to visit him.
Speaking of…
Sam reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. There was a message from Dean waiting for him.
"Hey, Sam. So, Rachel's okay. Her parents got this doctor out to treat her. He's an asshole, but he seems to know what he's doing. Maybe. Look, we need to talk, and there's a lot of stuff I need to tell you that isn't good for voice mail. Call me when you get this. Just, two things. Mom was a hunter. Her whole family was hunters, can you believe that? Rachel's parents dug up all this stuff on her. Oh, and someone in her family made a major deal with the demon, and your powers probably have something to do with it. So, you know. Stop using them. Call me."
"Dean!" Sam heard Rachel call in the background.
"Oh! But not tonight, 'cause I’m kind of busy tonight. Tomorrow. Later."
Sam winced. Then stopped.
Shit.
* * *
Nathan jumped at the sudden loud bang, eyes flying open. He barely had time to register the fact that Sam had thrown open the door so hard that it cracked the wall he'd hauled Nathan to his feet and pinned him to the wall.
The thunderous expression on his face clued Nathan into the fact this wasn't foreplay.
"Did you know?" Sam demanded.
Nathan blinked. His vision swam from where his head had smacked into the wall. "Did I know what?"
"About my mother? About her being a hunter?"
"What?"
"You said that someone probably made a deal, that's why my mom died. That's why the demon was there. You said it was probably my grandparents. Did you know?"
"No, I didn't. I was just speculating. I mean, if you dad didn't know about demons, then maybe it came from your grandparents. But I was thinking his parents. Or… I don't know." He shrugged. Put his hands on Sam's chest. "I don't know anything about your family, Sam."
Sam's face was still twisted, but his hands relaxed just a little from their death grip in Nathan's shirt. His chest rose and fell somewhat unevenly.
Nathan slid his hands up Sam's chest and laced his fingers behind his neck. "What happened?"
"Dean called last night." Sam let out a long breath. His head fell forward, resting against Nathan's. "Apparently, your parents traced my family's history. All Dean said was that our mom and her family were hunters. That, and someone made a major deal. Which is what you said."
"Because it's obvious." At Sam's look, Nathan winced and said, "To someone on the outside looking in. Because it's how things usually work, but no one wants to think their family is involved."
Sam nodded. "So what about Rachel?" he asked, eyes distant.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do think that was a deal, too?" He looked back at Nathan. "Do you think maybe she made a deal with it for… something?"
His stomach clenched, and he closed his eyes. "I don't know," he whispered, surprised to find a lump in his throat. "I mean, I've been looking at demonic pregnancies in those books from Bobby. Most of the time, if there's a deal, someone else makes it. Like in Rosemary's Baby, the asshole husband sells Rosemary so he can have a career. But, in a few cases, the woman agreed for some reason." His voice cracked on the last word.
Lips pressed against Nathan's forehead. "Sorry, Nathan," Sam said against his skin. "I know Rachel wouldn't do something like that. I shouldn't have asked it."
"It was a fair question. I mean, if not her, then who?" He hated how his voice shook.
This time, Sam kissed him properly, mouth warm on his own, huge hand cradling the back of his neck. "Okay," he whispered, resting their foreheads together again. "Let's not do this. Okay? We're just running in circles. Dean said Rachel was fine. She didn't make a deal. No one probably did, except for, you know. What I just told you." He sighed and kissed Nathan again. "I need to call Dean."
"You didn't talk to him?"
"Not yet." Sam bussed his lips over Nathan's and pulled away. "He left a message, and I got distracted by the idea that you were holding out on me." He sat on the bed.
Nathan smirked. "Baby, I'd never hold anything out on you."
Sam rolled his eyes as he pulled his phone from his pocket. "Don't think that you're going to start calling me 'baby.' I'm not sure I want you calling me Sammy."
"Did Jessica call you Sammy?" Nathan asked, straddling Sam.
His thumb hovered above the call button, eyes turning inward. "No," he said with a shake of his head. "She didn't." He put his hand on Nathan's back and pressed call.
While the phone rang, Nathan settled his head into the crook of Sam's neck. Kissed, pressing his mouth against Sam's warm skin. He expected Sam to push him away, but the other man just stroked his hand over Nathan's back until he wanted to purr.
It hurt to think that this was going to be gone in a few days. That he had to go back to school, and Sam would stay on the road, hunting. Nathan had no idea if they were going to continue this or what. Sam was, up until recently, a straight guy. And Nathan was just, for the most part, really persuasive. And, yeah, he knew that wasn't all it, because if someone was totally straight they didn't have relationships with people of the same sex. Or, if they did, it's because they really, really like that person.
But he didn't know how much Sam liked him. Okay, yeah, that was stupid because obviously, Sam liked him a lot. Liked him enough to go outside his comfort zone and share a bed with him and talk and everything. But they never talked about their feelings or really where their relationship was going. All Nathan knew was they were finally starting to do more in bed than rub off while clothed, and he was very interested in going further. Like, a lot further.
But he was leaving. And he didn't know if he was in a relationship or a fling. And he didn't know how to ask.
It'd be so much easier if Nathan wasn't going back to school. Or if Rachel would come live with him. At least then, it'd be guaranteed that Sam came to visit him occasionally. If Sam was there, Nathan was fairly sure he could seduce him.
But without Rachel, there was no real reason for Sam to stop by.
"Dude, it's way too early to call," Nathan heard Dean say on the phone. "Time zones, man. "
"We're in the same time zone, Dean. It's nine-thirty."
"Call back in an hour."
"Dean, don't…" Sam abruptly stopped talking. Pulling the phone from his ear, he redialed.
Nathan crawled off Sam and grabbed his phone from the dresser. "I'll try Rachel."
"Your funeral," Sam said. "You know what she does to people who call her before ten."
"Ah, she'd never hurt me."
The ringing stopped. "Oh, I'm gonna kill you," Rachel mumbled.
"Ah, come on, don't be like that," Nathan said sweetly. "I'm just calling to see how you are."
"I'm tired. What do you want?"
Sam took the phone from Nathan and put it on speaker. "What's this about my mom being a hunter?"
Rachel sighed heavily. "It is too early for this," she muttered. "And can you believe that asshole is in the bathroom? I've got little demon hooves dancing on my bladder, and he's hogging the toilet."
"Really?" Nathan frowned at the image. "It has hooves?"
"It does not have hooves," Dean's voice called distantly. "Check your e-mail. It looks completely human, except for its huge head. But that's totally normal." His voice was closer now, right on top of the phone.
Sam and Nathan exchanged looks.
"E-mail?" Sam repeated. He scooted up the bed and grabbed his laptop from the nightstand.
"Yeah, I sent you a copy of the sonogram the doctor took yesterday. You need to see this, man. It's just this little bulge thing with a big-old alien head." He sounded proud.
Nathan raised his eyebrows at Sam, who just rolled his eyes and shrugged. Apparently, Dean had swung from being justifiably freaked out about maybe having to kill a demon baby to proud papa again.
"Dean just remember that just because it looks human…" Sam started, but Dean cut him off with an irritable, "I know, I know."
Sam grimaced as he pulled up his e-mail. "So, how's Rachel handling it?"
"Well, she refused to have sex with me until I took the picture off the wall," Dean answered. "Said it was too much like it was looking at us. But, honestly, she seems a little better since actually seeing the ultrasound and everything. Relieved there weren't any tails or horns or anything."
"You hung the sonogram on the wall?" Nathan said. He moved next to Sam and looked over his shoulder.
There was a pause, then Dean said, "You know what, just wait until one of you gets someone pregnant and see what you do. And don't even say what you're thinking, because I know, I get it, but she's my wife and I am not going to justify myself to you two."
Sam put his hand over Nathan's mouth before he could say anything. "It's cute, Dean. The baby, I mean." He squinted. "What we can see, anyway."
Dean snorted; Nathan could imagine him blushing and looking embarrassed right now as he said, "Okay, you know what? Conversation over. Why'd you call?"
"Um, Mom was a hunter? She made a deal?"
"I never said Mom made a deal!"
Nathan winced. He hadn't realized that Dean could hit that pitch without being kicked in the crotch.
"Okay, so what did you say? How could Mom be a hunter and Dad never told us?"
"Dad never told us a lot of things, did he? Maybe he didn't want us looking up her family, or maybe they're dead or something, I don't know. I've given up trying to guess the hell Dad was thinking anymore."
"Her family's old, though," Rachel said, apparently returning from the bathroom. "Old enough to rub in my grandfather's face."
Nathan jumped off the bed and crossed the room. "Mom and Dad have a file on them?" he asked, opening up his laptop.
"Yeah, but stops with Mary's death. There could still be cousins or whatever."
"But, here's the weird thing. Both her parents died the same day. And her dad was possessed before he died," said Dean.
"Possessed?" Sam repeated.
"Yeah, there were traces of sulfur and everything. He was stabbed, which was how he died, but who knows how long he was possessed before?"
"When was this?"
"Uh, May 1973," Dean answered.
Sam frowned. "Isn't that when Mom and Dad got married?"
"Yeah."
Nathan looked up from his computer, frowning. "It waited ten years?"
"Ten years for what?" Sam asked.
"Well, if you're the deal," Nathan said, "it waited ten years until it… it did whatever."
"What did it do to me?" Sam asked. "What was this deal?"
Silence.
Then Dean sighed. "I don't know, man. But did something to you. You and all the kids. That's why you have powers."
"What did it do?" There was a hysterical note in his voice.
"We don't know, Sam," Dean said. "But Dad found out, at the end."
"And he told you?"
"No. Not exactly." He cleared his throat. "But, uh. He told me that it did something, and I needed to save you."
"Save me from what?"
Silence fell again.
Sam shook his head and looked over at Nathan. His eyes were bright and he had a look on his face saying he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
A sort of ache spread through Nathan. He quickly opened his e-mail on his computer, opened the expected e-mail from his parents, and began downloading the file they'd sent him. Then he slid out of his seat to go to Sam.
"So, what do you think this deal was? I mean, you think it, like, possessed Dad and…"
"No," Dean interrupted.
"Oh, come on. Is it really that difficult to imagine? I mean, what if it asked Dad for permission to give him one of us? And by us, I mean we. What if…"
"John wouldn't have agreed to that," Rachel said. "He wouldn't have agreed to let it have either of you. It wouldn't have let it possessed him."
"How do you know? You don't know what happened back then. What it said to him."
"You don't know it was him! Considering how long it took him to figure out what the demon was, I doubt he knew anything. I'm sorry, Sam, but your mom probably made a deal."
Sam screwed his eyes shut. "She couldn't have. Dean, you know. She couldn't have."
"Sam," Nathan said softly, putting his hand on Sam's shoulder. "Even if your mom made a deal, that doesn't mean… anything, really."
"What does that mean?"
"Well. It's a demon. Since when do demons tell the truth?"
"Or even the whole story," Rachel said. "If it was your mom—and it could have been one of your grandparents—but if it was your mom, she might not have known what she was saying yes to."
"Did you know?" Sam asked bluntly.
Nathan heard Rachel's sharp intake a breath. Mattress springs squeaked and a door slammed.
"Not cool, Sam," said Dean, voice dark.
Nathan pulled away from Sam and grabbed his phone. "Dean, give your phone to Rachel. I'm gonna call her."
"You know, I really hate you both. Why couldn’t you just sleep in like normal people?" There was a soft thumping sound. "Okay, she has the phone."
Without another word to Sam, Nathan left the motel room, calling Dean's phone. He had to call it three times before she finally picked up.
"You gonna defend your boyfriend?" Rachel answered, nose clogged, voice full of tears.
"Naw. He was an asshole," Nathan answered. He climbed onto the hood of the Impala, which was parked outside their room.
She sniffed loudly. "What if he's right? What if I agreed to bring the anti-Christ into this world?"
"You didn't."
"You don't know that."
"Okay, you're right. I don't know that. But why would you?"
"To save my life?"
Nathan shook his head. "No. That wouldn't be enough."
"I don't want to die, Nathan. I was about to be eaten by a troll. I don't want to be eaten by a troll. Maybe it offered to save me in exchange for this."
"No, because the demon didn't rescue you. The guy did."
"Maybe the man was authorized to make deals on its behalf."
"And then stuck around a couple weeks to sleep with you? Didn't you say you knew the man? I mean, if anyone made a deal, it was this mystery man."
"Maybe." She sighed. "Dr. Flynn, the doctor friend of Mom and Dad's, is doing a DNA test. He said he should have results in a week or so."
"That's good."
"If nothing happens, like his memory's erased or the test results don't disappear. The demon really doesn't want me finding out for some reason."
Nathan reached into his pajama pants' pocket and pulled out a small spiral notebook. Inside he'd written what he'd found of Rachel's message in A Dark Night. He thought he had most of it now, but he wasn't having any luck working with it on the computer. So, he'd switched mediums. Next up was Scrabble tiles.
"I just wish I knew what it wanted," Rachel whispered. "What his endgame is. What's he's doing with Sam and the other kids."
"What would he want a bunch of psychic kids for?" Nathan asked. He frowned down at what he'd written: back, wants, not, with, brought, baby, j, n, d, e, n, h, m, o and o.
"Depending on how many there are, I guess create an army."
Nathan snorted. "Well, two of them are dead. Two of them went psycho with their powers, and considering how power corrupts, I don't think they're the only ones."
"That's why Sam can't develop his powers. Dean was right. John was right. They're dark. They're evil."
Brought baby didn't make sense. Baby back did, if you were talking about ribs. There were enough letters for demon, which just left…
And suddenly, Nathan saw it.
He swallowed. "Rach? Didn't you say you guys thought John made some sort of deal with this thing for Dean?"
She sniffed wetly. "Um, yeah. Best we can tell is John traded his life for Dean's."
"To bring Dean back."
"Yeah."
The sun was warm on Nathan's back. Sweat beaded on his upper lip, but he felt cold. His stomach had contracted into a knot.
Demon brought back John. Baby.
"You don't make an army out of a bunch of power-hungry, psycho kids," he whispered.
"What? Nathan?"
"A bunch of power-hungry psycho kids won't let themselves be led. He's not making an army. He's…"
The phone was ripped from his hand. "Sorry, princess. Nathan's a little busy right now."
Nathan looked up into yellow eyes.
They were the last things he saw.
