Sympathy for the Devil

 

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Chapter 11

 

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Thanks to Tenchi for being the most amazing beta in the world and to Rogue for running the mailing list for me.

 

 

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When Dean emerged from the shower, he found that he and Sam were once more alone. Lucifer, it seemed, had wandered off to do whatever it was he was planning, leaving them alone. On one hand, the older brother was unnerved by that but, on the other, he liked it. He just wasn't sure which one was going to override the other. Waffling, trying to decide what to do, Dean finally gave a mental sigh and plopped back down. The way he figured it was that Sammy would be hurt if he just bailed and vanished for the day. He didn't want that. Shoveling move food on his plate to replace what was cold, he began to dig in once more, his appetite returning slightly. Around mouthfuls of the stuff, he asked, “So, dude, since you have a day's break from Lucifer, what do you want to do with your first day of freedom?”

 

Giving a snort and a slight grin, Sam shook his head then said, “Don't count on that, dude. He probably won't be gone long. The first few days, it probably won't last more than a couple hours before he has to turn back up. It's going to take some time to get it to where it can be longer periods of time. To answer your question, though, I don't know. I'm fairly tired so, unless you want to do something, I would prefer to just lay around for a while this morning. Maybe this afternoon we can go down to the pool.”

 

Twitching, internally, at the thought of being cooped up in a room all day with Sam, especially after what happened the night before, Dean swallowed his mouth full of food and was about to object to it when he looked at his brother's face. Indeed, Sam looked tired and as though he could go back to sleep. Considering the sexual gymnastics that had taken place the night before between the three of them and the fact that the other two had been going at it for who knows how long before he made an appearance, his brother probably was tired. Unable to stop himself since it had been so long since he had a chance to do it, Dean grinned then let his voice take on a sultry tone before saying, “Yeah, dude, now you understand why the girls flock to me.”

 

Groaning, rolling his eyes, Sam picked up another pillow and chucked it at his brother, shaking his head. “Don't even go there, dude!”

 

“Bitch!” Dean chuckled, ducking the projectile

“Jerk,” Sam shot back automatically.

 

Grinning, Dean then said, “Yeah, the sleep will probably do you good. When I'm done here I'll go grab some clothes and come back. See what movies you two have that I don't and watch those while you nap. Work for you?”

 

“Yeah, Dean, that's good. 'Cause, sorry, dude, but I'm tired,” Sam said, rubbing a hand over his face. “While you get your clothes, I'll have someone come in and clean real fast so we won't be bothered until either Lucifer comes back or they bring lunch.”

 

After nodding, Dean replied, “Works for me, Sammy.”

 

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A couple hours later, just as he was starting to feel the first stirrings of the 'itch' that told him he needed to spend some time in closer proximity to Sam for a while, Lucifer stepped back into his chambers. Though he had gotten no reports from those watching the boys that there was an issue of some kind nor had Chien alerted him to anything, he was still wary. One never knew with Dean when it came to such things. So, he was going to proceed with caution lest there be a problem he had to deal with.

 

Not seeing them in the main room but sensing their presence still around close, Lucifer cocked his head and heard the TV going in the bedroom. Nodding, he headed in that direction. When he stepped inside, he was pleased to note that all was calm. Sam was sprawled out across the massive bed, draped partially over his brother, sleeping. Chien was curled up beside Dean while the older brother petted the dog absently. Dean, himself, was glued to the TV, watching one of those adult soap operas that Sam seemed to enjoy so much. Stepping closer to the bed, Lucifer made a noise and was about to speak when Dean held up his hand.

“Dude, no offense, but can you give it a minute? This is almost over and I want to hear this,” Dean told Lucifer distractedly, eyes glued to what was going on when it came to the scene playing out on the TV.

 

Grinning, slightly, at the audacity from the older brother, Lucifer shook his head then seated himself on the other side of the bed, reaching out to run his fingers through Sam's hair. The more the two of them touched, the quicker the 'itching' would ease up and he could get back to doing what he had been before.

 

When the program ended, Dean hit the pause button then leaned back, looking warily at Lucifer, waiting to see what he wanted.

 

“Good show, isn't it, Dean? Sam likes it as well,” Lucifer smirked.

Giving a sheepish grin, Dean nodded slightly, stroking Chien's head. “Yeah, got kinda' hooked on it.

 

“Understandable,” Lucifer nodded. “I don't 'want' anything, actually. It was just time to be closer to Sam for a while is all, so that he doesn't get uncomfortable. Nothing more. Though, if you're willing, there is something you can do for me later this afternoon.”

 

That is where Dean stiffened up and looked more wary. “What's that?” There was no way that he was going to agree to do anything without knowing what it was first. Especially with who this was.

 

“The puppy we got for Jesse is ready to give to him. As I'm going to be busy for most of the afternoon, I was wondering if you could give him to him for me. I know he's been waiting for him and I don't want to disappoint.” Lucifer explained, trying to look innocent about it. None of what he said was a lie but it was also a manipulation of a sort to get Dean to relax around him. He thought that if he asked Dean to perform a few innocuous tasks here and there that weren't things he would balk at that the uncomfortable air between them might lessen to a degree. There was no doubt that he could deal with things as they were but it would make it easier on him, and Sam, if it weren't so tense.

Grinning, Dean nodded then said, “That I can do. Jesse will probably love it! Any commands or anything he needs to learn?”



“No, Jesse has already been taught what he needs to know. Just tell him to name the dog whatever he wants. Sam already gave him a name but as it's Jesse's dog, he can change it if he wishes.”

 

Knowing Sammy's big brain and his propensity for complicated names, like Chien's, Dean just groaned and nodded, “Gotcha. Renaming is probably in order.” Glancing at the evil archangel, he asked, “Just out of curiosity... what strange ass name did he tag that poor dog with?”

 

Chuckling, Lucifer said, “It's not a bad name. Rather fitting, actually. It's Rufus R. Bad Attitude.”

 

Grinning, Dean replied, “Not a bad one at all!” Given that he remembered someone telling him that the dog and Chien were from the same litter, he was sure it was probably really appropriate.

 

“No, I didn't think so. However, it's Jesse's dog so he can call him what he wants,” Lucifer nodded. Glancing back at Sam, feeling the 'itch' was gone, he said, “Well, I'm going back to what I was doing. I'll have someone deliver Rufus with your lunch and you can proceed from there.” With a nod, he then stood and left Dean alone.

 

Narrowing his eyes, Dean stared at the door that Lucifer had vanished through wondering if there was more of an agenda behind what happened than what it appeared. Deciding, quickly, that was probably the case, he vowed to keep on his toes and wary for such things then unpaused the DVD player and fast forwarded to the next episode on the disc. Settling back after checking to ensure that Sammy was still fast asleep, he petted Chien while delving back into the show.

 

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After lunch, Cas and Bobby were both in the pool, sitting on one of the underwater perches, watching Jesse frolic happily with his new puppy. From what the child said, it had been a gift from Lucifer, from the same litter as the one Sam had. Cas, in a soft tone, told Bobby that it was a hellhound cross of some kind but was no danger to them or the child. Both dogs, apparently, had a purpose and attacking or killing, unless those they were charged with guarding were in danger, wasn't part of what they did. The way they gathered, it was probably more of a bodyguard type thing than anything else.

Chuckling at the boy and dog as Jesse tossed the ball then Rufus, as the dog was called, chased it, Bobby sipped at his beer absently. He was wondering about Dean. He hadn't seen the boy since the day before and was worried about him. It wasn't like the older brother to just keep to himself. No, Dean preferred company rather than brooding alone. That had him slightly worried, especially with what was in the house. Couple that with how strangely Dean had been acting for the last couple weeks and he was fairly concerned. One never knew with the older Winchester boy what was going on in his head. With the situation they were all in, not to mention the predicament Sam was, he worried more about Dean than he did most times. And the longer that he didn't see him, the more he worried about him.

After talking with Cas, they both assumed that he was spending time with Sam. Spending time with Sam, though, could be part of the problem because when you did that you also got to spend time with Lucifer. They were both certain that was the issue and part of the reason that Dean wasn't around. Seeing Sam being ridden by that evil bastard caused Dean to have 'issues'. That's what worried Bobby the most. There would, probably, be a crash coming, and it would be a bad one if something didn't head it off at the pass. Though he was all for the brother's spending time together, something that could only do both of them a world of good, spending too much time together could make the whole situation worse. He was wondering if that wasn't getting to be the case.

Even if it was, he wasn't sure if they should even say anything to Dean about it. He could act... strangely to things like that and one never knew what the reaction would be. Dean was, because of the way John had raised him and how he took after his dad, someone that saw himself as the one that was always right about everything, even if he wasn't. To tell him he wasn't, could lead to arguments that he didn't want to have with Dean. However, it needed to be imparted to him somehow, in some way, before it got out of hand anymore than it already was. Balls, they were already in a really bad situation that none of them knew how to get out of so they didn't need to make it worse by one of the members going into a meltdown.

 

Since Dean had been allowed to see Sam, he had discussed this with Cas a couple times. Though Cas wasn't easy to get things across to most times, even the angel had understood what he was going for. The angel, too, had expressed concerns that a big crash was coming over this before some form of resolution came from it. Though, like himself, he had no solution to it either. Nor did they have a clue as to what might be coming as a way to rectify what was going on to resolve the situation with Lucifer. Either way, none of this was going to end well, no matter what, and they had no way to go about fixing it or getting Dean to see reason.

 

With a chuckle and a shake of his head at the boy and his dog playing, he said to Cas, “At lease Jesse doesn't seem to be bothered by any of this and can roll with the punches.”

 

“Yes, Jesse seems quite content with things. Nor does he appear to be going down that dark path so many of us predicted for him.” Cas conceded. He wasn't normally all that comfortable with sitting in the pool in what was called 'swim trunks', preferring his trench coat and suit, but it was somewhat relaxing so he was willing to do so. It was just another of those things that seemed so foreign to him was all.

 

“No, he doesn't. At least not now. Hell, he's a typical kid. Hopefully, he stays that way but, like with everything else, I ain't counting on that one,” Bobby huffed dejectedly. Looking at the puppy the boy was playing with, Bobby gave an internal shiver. Cas had told him bluntly that the creature was a hellhound cross of some kind, being mostly hellhound. Knowing what those creatures could, and would, do, he winced at the thought of the child having him but, so far, the dog seemed to be friendly and keeping an eye on the child. He doubted, considering who it was gift from, that the creature would hurt the child but one never knew.

 

He was finally startled out of his thoughts by another pup, one that looked a great deal like the one that Jesse was playing with, jumping into the pool with the child, barking happily. Then, quickly, he noted Sam was standing on the edge of the pool, talking quietly to a grinning Jesse. As was normal now, Bobby's gaze slid to the walls of glass from the house that were around the pool. Though there were no mirrors outside like there were all over in the damned house, the glass would act the same way, just not as clear was all. Frowning when he could see no image of Lucifer, he was slightly confused. Lucifer was always there, you could see him, even in the glass, though it wasn't as distinct. Pondering that, he couldn't figure it out. Though he didn't have much of a chance to try when another body slid into the pool beside him.

 

Warily, he glanced over then relaxed when he saw it was just Dean. With a nod, signaling for another beer for the older brother, he gruffed, “'Bout damned time you showed up, boy. We were beginning to worry about you.”

 

Chuckling, Dean sipped at the beer he had been handed then settled in. “Nothing to worry about, Bobby. I was just spending time with Sammy is all.”



Frowning slightly, Cas was looking at the younger Winchester then glancing at the windows, not understand what he was seeing, or, more appropriately, what he wasn't. “I can see Lucifer's tether to Sam but not Lucifer. How is this possible?”

 

Looking down where Sam was talking to Jesse, he said, tone distracted, “Lucifer explained it but I'm sure he left enough out that we'll never figure it out. Best I can explain it is that he has a longer tether and can be elsewhere for a while, leaving Sam alone.”



Glowering at him, Bobby huffed, “Tell me you didn't make a deal for that to happen, boy!”

 

“Nope, no chance! You should know better than that, Bobby!” Dean snorted. “It's something Lucifer came up with it himself. Can't say I'm complaining, though. Sam gets a break, I get to spend time with him, stuff like that.”

 

Nodding, Bobby squinted down the pool at Sam, wondering about the whole thing.

 

Cas, too, was looking at the younger Winchester, pondering how this could be done. Nothing he had ever heard of could manage something like this though he was certain, as he didn't have nearly the power his older brother did, that he couldn't manage such a thing and wouldn't know some of what Lucifer does. “Lucifer can go where he wants then? Without Sam?”

 

Scratching his head, Dean sighed then said, “Not exactly. He'll probably turn up here shortly to get rid of some kind of 'itching' the two keep talking about.” Then he went and gave a brief rundown of what he had been told. Shrugging when he was done, he told them, “I don't get it or even have a clue as to how he manages it but if it gets Sammy away from him for a while, I'm all for it.”

 

Listening, Bobby scratched his beard then mumbled, “Never heard of nothing like that before.”



Shaking his own head, Cas added, “Nor have I. However, Lucifer is far older and more powerful than I am so he probably knows a great deal I don't. For now, I would suggest we just take it as what it is and not ponder too much.”



“I'm with Cas on this. Questioning things would just lead to pissing Lucifer off. With as little good that happens, I'm all for taking this at face value.” Dean sighed.

 

About then, Sam wandered down and joined them, taking a beer from the servant that offered him one. Grinning at his two other friends, he said, “Hey, guys. How's it going?”

 

Nodding to Sam, Bobby snorted then said, “As well as can be expected. How you doing, Sam?”



“Good,” Sam nodded, looking away as he remembered what he and Dean had done the night before.

 

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Standing off in the shadows in the house, Lucifer watched the interaction between the quartet with interest. He knew there was no way the four of them, even with Cas there, could figure out just what he had done. Though he did expect speculation on it. It was something he didn't want to go too far, though, so he planned to keep an eye on it to ensure it didn't, sending someone out to break it up if it appeared to be going that way.

 

Rubbing his arm with the other hand he felt the first stirrings of that 'itch' begin. For now, he was going to ignore it to finish observing. He wanted a perspective he didn't normally get of the four without him being in the middle of it. It was his hope that it would give him a different frame of reference on the dynamics between them he normally couldn't get. Right now, he didn't anticipate he would learn anything that he could actually use but all the information he could get was useful.

 

After observing the interaction for a short time, he filed away what little he learned then focused on his vessel. Though Sam seemed a little wary about the whole thing, probably having to do with them questioning him about how this was possible and him not having the answers or wanting to reveal some things, he seemed content enough about it. It was his assumption that, as time wore on and everyone involved got used to it, things would go more smoothly for his vessel. He supposed that he could make it clear to those that watched over the group that such questions weren't allowed but didn't want to go about it that way. After all, they would figure out soon enough that, even if they did know what was done, there was nothing they could do. The big part of what brought it on wasn't something Sam or Dean would talk about, no matter what. So, he wasn't worried about that end of things.

 

Eyes lighting on Sam again, he couldn't help but smile slightly. Though he held no love for humans, thinking them little better than cockroaches, Sam might be the exception. They spent, when alone, many long hours discussing all kinds of things and what was going on in the world. Most times he didn't agree with his vessel on the way he saw things but Sam could give him some very thought provoking arguments about most of it, something no other had been able to do up until this point. In fact, over time, he had learned to look forward to talking with him and getting his take on some things. Even if it was just more for informational purposes and how to weave what Sam saw into a plan to do something better and more effective. He never told Sam that part though, as it would just upset his vessel. It also might stop the debates, something he didn't want. No, he enjoyed them too much to allow that to happen. It also gave him an insight into the human mind, something he hadn't had before. He understood, from the others around, that all humans were different but there were enough similarities that he now understood some things better. That he had thought would never happen. It didn't change things for him as he saw the majority of them as not worthy of being alive, but it was interesting to meld it together with everything else.

 

Shaking his head, he found himself wondering if he would be able to tolerate Dean being around so much since it would cut into the time he usually spent with Sam. Dean... well, Dean got on his nerves. He didn't like the older brother for a variety of reasons, finding his personality very off-putting. There was also the fact that the older brother could inspire all kinds of feelings in Sam that he didn't like and weren't at all productive in things. No, Dean was a being that was hard to take. He would have had him killed long ago if Sam wouldn't have been really upset by it. He supposed, to keep this whole thing up and give him the freedom that would come from it, he would have to tolerate Dean. It didn't mean he would have to like it but tolerate would come into it. Not to mention that it made Sam happy.

 

Feeling that 'itch' intensifying, he sighed and decided it was time to go out and join the cockroaches to get it to stop. He was pleased, though, that the time was getting slightly longer in between the times he had to do this. If it went on like it was, in a week he could spend most of the day apart from Sam and get a great deal more accomplished without having to interrupt.

Making sure his clothing was immaculate, he stepped outside, giving an internal smirk at the wary looks shot his way, then made his way over to Sam to do what was needed.

 

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