How to Save a Soul 2.0

Sam's words were caught in his throat as he saw the redhead, swallowing hard before he looked around frantically for Kerica. "Dean, if she's under the Dream djinn's power, then that means...that means her partner is under the Fear djinn's spell. We have to go." He said, only to see the look of hesitation on his brother's face. "I don't like leaving her like this either, but if we don't hurry, her insides will literally turn to jelly." He said, earning a silent nod from Dean and they rushed out to search for Kerica.

It was hard to see through the darkness, even with the half-moon shining through the stone windows. This made Sam very anxious, and he could tell that his brother was tensed up as well. They turned a corner to find Kerica in the very back of the room, causing the younger Winchester to rush over to her and kneel down by her side, noticing a blue hand print on her arm. "Damn it...!"

"Just take the damn Dream Juice," Dean ordered, tossing him one of two bottles from his pocket, "Go on, hurry up. I'll keep watch."

Sam caught the Dream Juice in his hands, frowning at his brother before opening the bottle and instantly chugging the liquid down his throat. He coughed for a moment before sitting beside the unconscious Kerica with his eyes opening and closing several times. Soon he was out cold, and found himself in the brunette's head once his eyes opened.

From the looks of the scattered pieces of wood and how abandoned this place felt, this must be an old warehouse of some sort. It was dark, but there were small blotches of light coming from the window, which made it easier to see where he was going. He could hear a voice, one that belonged to a woman. Her tone was degrading, and filled with scorn. This made Sam's eyes narrow and he walked around to find the source of the voice.

"You know you cannot kill me, little sister," the dark woman's voice was silky smooth and sickeningly so. "You tried so hard, and got so far...only to get here and fail. I am going to kill /you/ now, though. Nice and slow. Rip you into pieces and..."

The voice was cut off as she rounded the corner. She was a very tall woman, five foot seven with the top of her head coming to Sam's chin, "Oh, what do we have here?" she smirked saucily at him, cocking her hip and placing her hand on it. She had long musician's fingers, and her pitch raven black hair was stark against skin that was super pale like paper. Her greenish-yellow eyes seemed to glow like acid, and her smirk was feral as it was seductive, "What a handsome man. You look sure and strong," she reached out and slid her hand along his arm and squeezed his bicep, "That long hair sure does make you look rugged, but you have the eyes and face of a gentleman." Her body got even closer, and her triple D breasts pressed against his chest, "I bet you aren't much of a gentleman in bed, though." She purred, her dark burgundy colored lips promised filthy things with how they pursed together, "A tiger in the sheets, hmm? The gentle ones usually are."

The moment their eyes met was when Sam found himself frozen in place, unable to move his legs forward. What the fuck was going on...?! Why was he suddenly so mesmerized by this woman? His body would not cooperate with him, and his mind was racing with warnings on how bad this situation was. He tried to tell her to get away from him, but his words were caught in his throat as his mouth was completely dry. The way this dark haired woman pressed up against him, eyes filled with lust made his entire body shiver, cursing himself mentally for reacting the way he was, like he was attracted to her when he wasn't.

'Stay away!' He wanted to shout out, but instead his body was speaking for him. It was then that he found himself pressed against the wall, eyes ever so slightly widening. God damn it all! Why couldn't he push her away!?

The black haired woman's eyes flickered, but where Sam expected to see black or even red, he saw green. She flashed her fangs at him, but they were not like vampire teeth. They reminded him more of the fangs on a viper or a cobra. She went to go bite him...

When suddenly Sam stumbled forward, broken from the spell as he heard shouting and an 'omph' from a body hitting the ground. "You leave him alone, Nerieta!" Kerica shouted, scrambling to her feet and she was glad Nerieta's back was to Sam now. Hopefully when she glanced his way he got the hint, but she focused on her sister.

"Or what? What could you /possibly/ do to me you haven't tried to do before?" Nerieta hissed, holding her hands out to her sides in a shrug. Kerica rushed her and she laughed, taking the stab to her stomach without batting an eye. She bitch-slap backhanded her sister across the face and sent her flying, and she slid the knife from her stomach with even more evil cackling, "I could poison you a thousand times over for the amount of hurt you-AAAH!" the laughter turned to a gasping scream as her body glowed and flickered red as if she had been electrocuted or was burning on the inside.

Sam had twisted the demon knife into Nerieta's spine, letting it linger for a moment before swiftly pulling it out of her body and watching her fall to the ground. He panted softly and looked to Kerica with tender eyes once he saw her shocked expression. "It's okay... She won't hurt you anymore." He said in a soft tone, trying to reassure her.

"I thought she couldn't be killed," Kerica murmured, "She became a demon and nothing I did mattered...not even exorcism..."*

"The knife that I used on her..." Sam showed her the knife in his hand, its blade stained with Nerieta's blood. "...was made specifically to kill demons." He explained, moving closer to her.

She scrambled away, "No! No, please don't come any nearer," she ended up with her back to the wall, "A knife to kill demons. That is...remarkable..." she bit her lip and then tears started to fall, "It's a good thing you have that..." her eyes flicked black, "Because I sold my soul to kill her."

Sam felt a sudden jolt of pain in his chest, eyes wide once he saw her eyes go black. No...! He couldn't believe it; he didn't /want/ to believe that she was a demon. His eyes slightly narrowed and he knelt down in front of her, his gaze never leaving hers. "Give me your arm." He said, watching her carefully. If she really was a demon... She could be pretending to have human emotions, deceiving him. Yet, he had to be sure.

Her arm? But if he was going to kill her wouldn't he just stab her like he did with Nerieta? She had bit her lip so hard now it was bleeding but she sniffed and handed her right arm to him, not wanting the left to be touched. She already had a scar on that one along the length of her forearm.

Sam gently took her arm in his hand, caressing his thumb against her pulse to help calm her down and slowly slid the blade against her flesh. When he noticed that she was bleeding pure red blood, and that there was no sign of burning or anything that would cause a demon harm, he pulled it away from her. "Listen to me... You're not a demon, and you never will be. You're under the spell of a djinn that creates a nightmare in your head. If you don't wake up, your insides will literally melt, and you'll die..." He said, a soft expression on his face.

"Djinn..." Kerica blinked a few times and the black faded, "I'm not a demon?" she looked up at him in disbelief before looking back down at her arm, the cut faded but now there was a blue handprint.

He nodded once, then took her hand in his. "Even if you were, there is a cure. As long as it wasn't a deal, I could bring you back as a human." He reassured.

Kerica did not feel a shock like she did the first time, but the warmth was strong and comforting. This wasn't real, she wasn't a demon and her sister was not here. Her breath hitched and the surroundings turned black before even he faded completely.

~

"Come on, Sam...hurry up with your chick so we can save the other one," Dean grumbled, feeling even more tense as more time passed. He heard rustling behind him and turned to see Sam stirring, "Sammy! C'mon," he patted his brother's cheeks, "Hey! You okay? How's your girl?"

Sam groaned as he fluttered his eyes open, soon looking up at his older brother. "Yeah, I'm fine..." He said, then turned his head to see Kerica stir as well. He immediately moved over to her and helped her stand on her feet once she regained full consciousness. "Are you all right?" He asked, worry etched in his voice and was evident on his face.

Kerica leaned heavily on Sam, shaking her head, "My head feels like it's going to explode, but I should be okay for right now. Amalia!" She gasped, looking up at him and then at Dean, "Did you find her?!"

"We found your dagger close to the room where she was, you were so close," Dean admitted, slipping it from his belt and handing it to her. So what was the redhead's name? He shook his head and turned tail, heading back out the door and heard Sam and Kerica follow.

Kerica yelped as she was pulled back by her jacket just as they left the room she had been held in, "Let me go!" she shouted, twisting her knife and she stabbed the hand that touched her throat, causing the monster to scream and let her go. It hadn't had time to poison her thankfully, but she still gripped her neck and panted heavily as she stumbled away. She still felt so weak, and she clenched her eyes closed as she saw a blue hand flying towards her.

Without hesitation, Sam pulled Kerica away from the djinn and immediately gripped his own dagger, stabbing the monster in the chest. Once the djinn had collapsed lifeless onto the stone floor, the younger Winchester turned to his older brother who had come rushing back in. "Go! I'll catch up!" He reassured, looking around cautiously to see if the second djinn would show up.

Dean didn't need to be told twice, and he quickly backtracked to the room Amalia was in. Pulling out the second jar of Dream Juice, he chugged it and sat down in the corner, clutching his dagger close and closed his eyes. What could her dream be? When the older Winchester woke up inside the world her desires created, his stomach immediately sank. It couldn't be.

Her dream was his own.

Seeing her laughing and having dinner with her mother and father brought back memories of when he was stuck in that world. He hadn't thought about that wish in a very long time, disregarding it as fantasy and something he would never have. Heart clenching, he walked up to the door and knocked.

"Hey...Amalia," Dean said slowly. God, no...don't make him do this...He swallowed hard, "Can I...uh...come in? Meet your parents?" he wanted to indulge. Just a little bit. Sam could handle himself.

She grew wide eyed as he said her name, realizing that she never told him. How did he know...? She shook it off mentally and gave him another smile. "O-Of course...! Come in!" She said sweetly, moving out of the way for him to walk in. Once he did, an older man walked into the room with a look of confusion the minute he saw Dean.

"Who's this? A friend of yours?" He asked, his voice rough and deep. He looked like the kind of man who had been through many hardships, yet he also had an air of dignity.

"Yes, he is. Though, I wasn't expecting him to show." Amalia smiled at her father without hesitation.

"Just a friend?" Dean stepped through the thresh-hold and once the door shut he swung his arm around Amalia's shoulders, "We met during a Masquerade Ball, on a Hunt with her partner two week ago, and we've been keeping in touch since," half the truth, and hopefully it would help jog Amalia's dream loose. He did not want to drag this out any further than he had to. He grinned at her father and reached his hand out, "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

Her face burned at his words, soon realization clicked which caused her heart to nearly skip a beat in pain. She watched the scene carefully, seeing the friendly smile on her father's face as he shook Dean's hand. "The pleasure is all mine! A friend of my daughter's is a friend of mine; make yourself at home." He chuckled, tilting his head to the side before his wife came walking in. She had red hair that matched her daughter's, only it was much more faded and had a natural ginger color.

"You're just in time for dinner! Would you like to join us?" The older woman asked.

Amalia's hair had to be dyed then. Interesting tidbit of information, Dean thought with a hum and nodded, "What's a guy like me to say no to food?" he agreed, following the two into the dining room. He observed the house, how neat and tidy it was. He looked down and closed his eyes briefly, remembering his dream, his mother's smiling face, Sam happy and getting married to Jessica...he fucked everything up, everything he touched, and no one could ever convince him otherwise.

It...took a while. They sat, talked, and he ate...but it all just faded away on his tongue. It had no substance. It wasn't real. It...it was awful. Homemade food he couldn't even taste and he had to pretend it was amazing. If anyone doubted his acting skills he would punch them. Yet, during all of this, he could not figure out the factor to her dream that would make her want to hold onto it so fiercely. He stood, eyes and demeanor dark. The laughter...it was all too flawless.

Amalia blinked a few times at the sudden change of mood in the man beside her, swallowing hard before smiling at her parents in apology. "Excuse us for a moment, please." She said, taking Dean's hand and walked out of the dining room to another part of the house, where they could talk in private. She stopped walking and turned to face him with a look of concern. "What's wrong...?"

"Amalia, turn around. Watch your parents. Watch how they interact," Dean told her, motioning to the table they had just left, his stomach twisting more.

Amalia swallowed hard before hesitantly turning to her parents, watching them carefully. They looked so happy, laughing together. As she watched for a little while longer, her eyes stung as her heart ached painfully. "It's...almost too good to be true, isn't it?" She asked him, turning to him with tears already forming.

"I'm...so sorry..." Dean's voice cacked just a bit and he felt it tight with emotion, "Which one died?" he murmured after another moment.

Amalia hung her head for a moment before she turned her gaze to the couple. "Papa..." She whimpered, trying really hard to fight back the tears. "He was killed by a demon.... Right in front of me. We were on a hunt together..."

"Something similar happened to mine...and my mom is also dead," Dean stepped closer and placed both hands on her shoulders, "I'll be right here, Amalia. You need to let them go. This is a dream. Your partner is worried about you. You're strung up right now, your life being drained away."

"Make it quick, the sooner we get you back the quicker we can help you," Dean let  her slip away and walk back into the dining room. It...broke his heart, watching her hug and cry on her father's chest.

~

Dean gasped as he shook his head and jerked awake, blinking rapidly and wiped his eyes when he felt that his lashes were wet against his cheek. Thank god it was dark. Moving to stand, he smacked his own cheek to come back around before he got in front of Amalia, lifting her head as he cupped her cheeks again, "C'mon, wake up so we can get out of this dump."

After a minute had passed, Amalia gasped as she opened her eyes in an instant, her face wet with tears as she let out shaky breaths. She groaned as a sudden jolt of pain ran through her body, realizing that her blood was being drained from her.

"Shh, I'm right here," Dean soothed, gently removing the IV from her arm and grimaced at how much blood was already in the bucket. He tried to reach for the bindings, but that was something for Sam. Looking around, he spotted his brother at the doorway. Kerica was crumbled on the floor and he was smoothing her hair from her face. So she had passed out. "Sammy, sorry to interrupt but I need your help over here."

Sam looked up to see that Amalia was awake, immediately rushing over to them and took out the demon knife to cut the binding off. Once he did, Amalia clung to Dean for dear life, her entire body trembling as her arms were wrapped around his torso. Her face was buried in his chest with eyes tightly shut, causing Sam to sigh gently in relief and walked back to Kerica.

"We're not out of the woods yet," Dean murmured, "Can you stand on your own, Amalia? We have to get out of here and who knows where the other Djinn is. Sam has to carry your partner there, so someone needs to have their hands free to fight and that someone happens to be me."

She nodded once and pulled away from him slowly, wiping her face to be rid of the tears before she pulled out a dagger from her belt. "I'll fight too... I know I just lost a lot of blood, but..." she paused, looking up at him with a look of purpose. "That bastard will pay for messing with my head."

"You won't be able to kill him if you stab him with that; no lambs blood. Take Kerica's instead," Dean nodded and gripped his own close, "Let's go."

They weaved in and out of the complex, but just as they broke out into the open Sam was knocked over from behind and he ended up dropping Kerica, landing on his face. "Sam!" Dean shouted and looked to the side where the figure had darted. Tattoos glowing blue, his eyes widened and the last pieces of the puzzle fell into place. They had gotten sloppy because the woman that attacked them was pregnant. Not very far along, but they needed more than just tourists to sustain them. As it was off-season they went out of their way, and that was their mistake. "Awesome. Come at me, ya ugly bitch," he taunted.

Angry, she jumped at him but while she was focused, she did not notice Amalia sneak up behind her.

The female djinn didn't see it coming. Amalia had waited for the right moment before stabbing the dagger coated in lamb's blood into her back, twisting it slowly as the djinn turned to the redhead with a surprised look on her face. Her eyes met Amalia's dark expression, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth before she swiftly pulled the blade out of her, watching her crumble to the ground lifeless.

Sam lifted his head to see the djinn laying on the ground before staggering towards Kerica and carried her in his arms once he was back on his feet. Soon after, the four of them went back to the Impala, with Amalia taking shotgun and Sam taking the backseat with Kerica in his arms. The younger Winchester couldn't even begin to describe how right it felt to have the brunette sleeping against his chest. He barely knew this woman, but being with her like this made him want to get to know her, get close to her. What bugged him the most was that he didn't know her name. He lifted his head to gaze at the redhead who wiped her teary eyes, with Dean rubbing his hand on her shoulder as if to comfort her.

God, he wanted to ask what happened, and yet, he didn't want to pry. It was obvious that something was bothering the both of them, and it made him worry.

~*~

A few hours passed by after they got back to the hotel, and Amalia had told them vaguely that the other woman's name was Kerica before conking out. Dean and Sam had taken to just sleeping against the beds of the girls they had taken to on the floor. Dean knew his little brother had questions, but was glad he didn't coax it out of him just yet...and Sam was also pondering whatever he saw in Kerica's head, too, for her nightmare. Both would be an interesting topic of discussion.

Sam had passed out at least two hours ago, and Dean was on the verge of it when he felt and heard Amalia's bed rustle and move. Waiting, he glanced under to see her feet on the ground and moving towards the door. Once she was gone, he took a moment and got up, popping his neck before also leaving.

She had gone all the way outside, just wearing a jacket and was crying just off to the side. Dean felt awkward about comforting her. So...he just spoke, thumbs in his pockets and looking up at the sky, "I hadn't wanted to break you from the dream, but that would have meant you dying...and I couldn't let that happen. You know that, right? I just...want to make sure..." 'That you don't hate me for it...' he finished in his head.

Wiping her face, the redhead let out a shaky breath before turning to him. "If you're thinking that I hate you for waking me up... That's not true." She smiled weakly, looking down before speaking again. "It's the opposite, actually... I'm very grateful to you for getting me out of that dream. I just... I started thinking about what happened to Papa; about how I didn't tell you the whole story."

"Hey, you don't need to go there about the 'whole story' and stuff," Dean waved his hand, "It's fine, we met once and it wasn't for very long, and meeting earlier we were on the run, so don't feel like you left me in the dark or anything," he assured and came closer, reaching out and gently wiping at her tears, "Just take deep breaths, okay? We can all talk about it when you're ready. I'm sure Kerica has some thing to share, too. Hey, do you think you'll be going to sleep anytime soon? If not, we can book it out of here. Sam and I have a bunker, like the Batcave," he grinned, "It's an eleven hour drive back, though. If you're fine giving Sam the keys to that Mustang, he can drive it."

Amalia felt her face heat up as he wiped away her tears, her heart skipping a beat before a soft smile graced her lips. "Thank you..." She whispered, taking a few deep breaths before calming down. The tears stopped falling now, and she felt a million times better now that he was here with her. She tilted her head at the mention of booking out of the hotel, then giggled gently with a much brighter smile lighting up her face. "I would like that." She accepted his offer, giving him a firm nod before wiping her eyes again.

~*~

Kerica jerked awake. She didn't know what did it, but she suddenly noticed they were...in her car. Parked...at a gas station? It was just barely dawn, too. She was also laying down in the back seat with a blanket over her. Amalia didn't drive. Who was it? Her head did not hurt as bad, but er bladder was full, so she jumped out and did not care what her state of dress was, she ran into the store and quickly found the restroom.

When she came out, she spotted the tall one and he was ruffling through his wallet, pulling out a twenty, "Hey," she said, voice raspy still from sleep, "Sam, was it?" she rubbed her forehead, "What time is it? Where are we?"

Sam blinked a few times before his eyes lit up as he turned to Kerica, a small smile flashing on his face before it faded in a split second. He muttered a thank you to the cashier before walking over to her, a look of relief on his face. "Hey, you're awake! How are you feeling? We're heading out to the bunker Dean and I stay in, and it's a little past five in the morning." He explained, his words rushed with concern in his voice. He then realized something and handed her a bottle of Ibuprofen. "I saw that your bottle of pain killers was empty, so I bought you a new one."

Blinking at him in confusion and surprise, she slowly reached her hand out towards the bottle, her fingers brushing his, "Thank you, Sam. You're a lifesaver," she smiled at him. She opened the lid and popped out two before heading back towards the water fountain. Chugging the pills and the refreshing liquid she returned to him and they left, "I must have slept at least eight hours. Whatever that Djinn did to me...you guys did beat the hell out of them, right? Amalia's safe?" She found she had been walking closer to him by accident when her arm bumped his, "Ah, sorry...still not all here," she blushed a bit, feeling embarrassed because she just wanted him to sling his arm over her shoulders.

Sam chuckled softly at her words, shaking his head slowly. "Don't worry about it. Amalia is just fine. A little shaken up, but she's tough; she's with Dean in the Impala." He told her, walking to the car and opened the passenger door for her. Once she got inside, he closed it and rushed towards the driver's side, closing his door and buckling up before starting the car. "Amalia was actually the one who killed the djinn that messed with her head. She handled the situation pretty well... I'm glad you're safe too."

"Speaking of handling it...you did okay I think...when you were in my head," Kerica reached back and grabbed the blanket, wrapping up in it and shuddering, "If...we're all going to talk about it back at this hideout of yours, you don't have to respond to that. I'm sorry. Still trying to get my head in the game. It usually takes an hour for me to wake up fully, but unless you talk to me and keep my mind active, I will probably fall back asleep. Car rides do that to me unless I am driving."

Sam glanced at her from the corner of his eye, smiling a little before focusing on the road ahead. "Don't be sorry. It's okay, really." He said, turning to her again. "Get some rest; we'll be there before you know it." He reassured her, earning a nod from her before she fell asleep yet again. The younger Winchester found it amusing on how little coaxing it took for her to pass out, then began to wonder how she slept with nightmares such as the one he found her in. On top of that, she was also a hunter, only allowed four hours of sleep if she was lucky. The thought made him chuckle silently to himself before focusing on the road again.

~*~

"Ugh, we're finally here," Dean sighed, tossing his coat on a chair and plopping down into a recliner, "That was one hell of a trip. Nearly spent twenty four hours just driving," he shook his head and leaned back, hands behind his head, "Welcome to the Batcave, ladies."

Amalia's eyes immediately grew wide at the size of the place, a bright smile soon lighting up her face. "Oh, my God... This is amazing!" She laughed, rushing over to the several bookshelves that were stacked neatly with books about the supernatural world. "So many books...!" She beamed, wandering from room to room for her curiosity got the better of her. "You have a world map?!" She called out from another room, causing Sam to laugh.

Dean chuckled to himself as he closed his eyes, "That world map has been a big help to us," he called back, but his voice was fading. He was home, he was safe. He had been awake since before Sam and him had left on that hunt, and he was dead tired. Yes he could stay awake for at least thirty-six hours out of sheer stubbornness but he had not really done that in a long time.

Kerica looked around with just as much awe, but not nearly as much enthusiasm. Not outwardly, anyway. Inside she was jumping up and down like a kid in a candy shop, "You could sit down and read for a century and still have more books to go through," she commented, "I bet you guys have learned so much. How long have you had it?"

Sam shook his head with a small smirk as he saw his older brother passed out on the chair, turning to Kerica at her question. "Two and a half years. This place belonged to a group the uh...heh...Men of Letters." He said, seeing the confused look on the brunette's face.

"Men of Letters... Why does that sound so familiar...?" Amalia said once she walked back into the room, a thoughtful look on her face. "Oh! Papa told me about them once! They research every monster in the world, right?"

Sam blinked a few times before he scoffed a little, slightly impressed that she knew of them. "Something like that, yeah."

"You can definitely tell," Kerica nodded, "Mind if we just look around at all, Sam?" she asked, "Or even give us a tour?"