Death in the Mountains

Dean hoped they hadn’t taken a wrong turn. Nora had given him directions to Vera’s house, but it was almost dark and Vera was in no condition to help him. He and Sammy almost had to carry her out to the truck when supper was over. She was sleeping now in the seat beside him. Vera looked like hell. Dean guessed that she was tired enough that she had dropped all of her magical disguising. She was curled into a ball and holding her head. She moaned whenever the light of an oncoming car hit her as dusk fell.

Dean had gone by the library to drop Sammy off. He was going to take the Impala and get a change of clothes for them before coming out to Vera’s place. He wanted Sammy and Vera separated for a while, he sure as hell wasn’t going to leave him alone with Vera the way she was right now.

They had turned off a paved road almost a mile ago. Dean was about to try to wake Vera up when he saw a house ahead. When he pulled up closer he almost couldn’t believe what he saw.

The place was huge. He was told she lived in a large farmhouse. Dean was expecting something like Nora Bonesteel’s place, just a little larger. This thing was a two story monstrosity that looked like it was trying to be something from Gone With The Wind. There were four cars parked in front of the house. How many people normally lived here? Vera had mentioned something about her coven being gone. Did all of them live here? Dean left Vera in the car and went to see if her house key would open the door. He was glad when it did. At least they were at the right place.

“Shit!” Dean yelled. There was a Chow and three cats charging him as he entered the door. The dog tried to stop, scrabbling across the hardwood floor. The cats stopped more gracefully. One of the cats yowled at him.

The black Chow was looking at him and the weirdest cat he had ever seen was sniffing his boots. The cat was solid black and looked like it was half rabbit. The cat’s hind legs were long out of proportion to the body and it had just a little stub of a tail. Dean slowly eased out and shut the door. He hoped that they would be friendlier when he brought Vera in.

When he pulled Vera out of the car she moaned in what looked like pain and tried to struggle. Nora Bonesteel said she’d be okay, she just needed rest and quiet, but she could get worse before she got better. Sammy had really done a job on her. He manhandled her through the front door. Dean stopped to get a good look at the place when they were inside. They were in a large foyer with a grand staircase directly in front of them. The floor was of some light-colored wood and it had been pegged, not nailed, into place. There were hallways and doors leading off the foyer. Dean knew from working haunting jobs the place was well over a hundred years old. It would have been beautiful if it wasn’t for one thing.

It looked like it hadn’t been lived in for thirty years. Plaster was crumbling off the walls in places, showing the bricks beneath. The floor was scuffed in places and there were pieces missing out of the handrails on the staircase. There was evidence of extensive work being done on the place, but it looked only partially finished or barely begun.

Dean shook Vera. “Okay sweetheart, where’s your bedroom?” He had to shake her a few times and repeat the question before she answered.

“Stop calling me that…living room…on left…couch.” Dean sighed in frustration.

“Do you have a bedroom?” Dean asked.

“Upstairs. Let me lay down” she said, holding her head and trying to lie down on the floor where they stood. It was obvious she had a killer headache and making her stand was torture. Oh well. Dean started dragging her up the staircase. When they got to the top he could see a bathroom directly in front of them and long hallways leading down to each end of the house to the left and right. He started shaking Vera again. She actually sobbed in pain.

“Where’s your room?”

“Left” she managed to get out. “End”

A fluffy grey-and-white cat kept meowing and rubbing his legs as he tried to walk. Dean grunted in annoyance. At the end of the hallway there was a door to the right and a large open space to the left that looked like a sun room. Dean opened the door and turned on the light. This room looked like it had been mostly renovated. There were plaster patches on the walls, but they hadn’t been sanded smooth or painted yet. He lowered Vera onto a queen-sized bed and took off her boots before covering her with a light blanket. The weird-looking black cat had followed them and jumped up on the bed beside Vera, looking at him malevolently. It hissed at him. Dean decided to ignore it and check out the rest of the house. The grey-and-white cat followed him.

There were five other rooms upstairs besides what he had already seen. Four of them looked like bedrooms and one was storage. All of the bedrooms but one looked like there was someone staying in them. That bedroom just had a king-sized bed and a few other pieces of furniture. Dean decided that he and Sammy would sleep in there. It was close to Vera’s room and looked like a guest room. Downstairs he found a kitchen, two bathrooms that looked like they had recently been installed, a dining room, a living room and sun room. There was an enormous screened in back porch. The kitchen was trashed. It looked like Vera had just been scarfing down something and then running. He also found a room that was empty except for four altars along the walls and one in the center. Dean backed carefully out of that one. Who knew what was going on in there? He found another bedroom and a storage room.

Then he found the office.

It was one of the largest rooms in the house. There were floor to ceiling bookcases on almost every wall and three desks. The bookcases were crammed with books. History, science, grimoires, folklore, the occult, feminism, ecology, organic farming, magic, ghost, parapsychology, archaeology, horse breeding, gemstones, tarot, Hermeticism, and Native American theology were some of the subjects that jumped out at him. There were multiple copies of some of the books. Was this several personal libraries combined? He and Sammy would never have to hit a public library again except for local information if they had all of these books. There were thousands of them.

He looked through the desks and found Vera’s. He saw a red light blinking under some papers and moved them. An answering machine? Looks like she was keeping it low tech. He hit the play button.

A rough female voice had left the first message. It sounded like she had been crying.

“Vera, this is Sahba. I’m sorry but I have no idea what time it is at home right now. Michael died earlier today. Jeremy is ok, but he and his mom are pretty broken up. Jeremy will probably be released from the hospital tomorrow, so I booked a larger room for the two of us. I’m going to try to rent a car; there is no way he can take the public transportation system. Margaret seemed to be doing alright, she only had a broken hip and arm, but she’s not looking good since Mike went. We might need you to help with getting Mike’s body shipped back home.” Sahba gave a bitter laugh. “Never thought I’d be using my college French for this. I’m glad that Jay is done with summer school and is up there helping you hold down the fort. I’ll call later.”

Dean swallowed and sat down at the desk. Shit. The next message began to play.

“Hi Ashera! This is Amber Cat. We missed you at Lammas. It was a kick ass gather! Hope you can make it to Mabon. Heard your coven is having a hard time right now, we’ll all light a candle for you. B. B.!”

Amber Cat? Who was Ashera? One of the room mates? The next message was playing.

“Aunt Vera, please pick up! It’s me! Mom just found out that I’m Pagan and she is throwing me out! She said that this is the final straw after getting expelled! Please call! I need you to come and get me! Dad has talked her into letting me stay until someone can pick me up! Call my cell ASAP!”

Crap. The next message was playing.

“Vera, this is Emma, Tonya is doing okay but we had a bad scare night before last. Rob had to take her to the ER because she was going into labor again. I stayed home with Jimmy. The doctors want her to hold on at least another two weeks. I know it’s tough right now, but just hang on. Make Jay work his lazy ass off. Call me when you get the chance.”

Another beep.

“Aunt Vera, this is Jay again. A friend of mine from Pigeon Forge came and got me. Mom destroyed my altar and trashed my books. I managed to slip my Book of Light and Shadow, pent and athame out. Where are you? I need you! Please call me! I don’t know how long my cell will still be working. Call me on my friend’s line.” Jay rattled off a string of numbers.

Dean realized she had not told her room mates anything about the situation. Two of them were apparently in France, one was hurt and the other was caring for him. The other sounded like she was taking care of a pregnant relative. They all thought Jay was helping her. But she wasn’t letting Jay come up because she was afraid he’d be hurt. Vera had tried keeping the situation a secret from him and Sammy to protect them. She hadn’t told anyone anything. Dean resisted the urge to go upstairs and bitch her out. That could wait until tomorrow afternoon. Instead he called Jay. That damned grey-and-white fluff ball was still rubbing against his ankles.

“Aunt Vera?” Jay asked anxiously as he came on the line.

“Uh, no, this is Dean.”

“Dean?” Jay’s voice was suspicious.

“Yeah, we met on that job in Chattanooga, remember the Uk…”

“I remember,” Jay said, cutting him off quickly with a sharp warning in his voice. “Let me talk to my aunt.”

“She’s asleep right now Jay. She’s sick.” There was a hostile pause on the other end of the line.

“She didn’t say anything about you being there.”

“We’re up here on another job; Vera doesn’t seem to be very good at sharing. There’s a…” Jay cut him off again.

“I’m glad she gave you a job helping out with the farm. Does she have a, um, migraine?” Migraine? Jay seemed to being very closed mouthed on the phone. What did Jay really know about his aunt?

“Yeah, I think so. Headache, dizzy, sick to her stomach.” Jay was quiet again. It was amazing how much hostility this kid could radiate over a phone line.

“Aunt Vera hasn’t had one of those in a very long time.” There was outright accusation in his voice now. “I have migraines sometimes, but Aunt Vera can usually take care of them.” Jay was psychic? He should have known after what Nora Bonesteel said. Why hadn’t he told them in Chattanooga? Was that why he believed them so easily and was willing to help with the Uktena?

“Yeah, Sammy had a migraine the other night. I think the work on the job was getting to him.” There was another pause.

“Do you think she can come get me tomorrow?”

“I’m not sure. Tell me how to get to you and I’ll come pick you up tomorrow if she can’t.” Dean wrote down the address and sketchy directions he could fill in with Map Quest. Vera wasn’t going to be able to pick Jay up. He’d make sure of that.

“What needs to be done in the morning? Tell me about the animals?” Dean asked.

Jay warmed up towards him as he launched into a long monologue about the farm. Dean was glad he had a pencil and paper ready. There were two barns, one for storage and another for eight horses! There were six goats, a half dozen house cats and about two dozen feral barn cats. Then there were four dogs. Dean was glad that all the horses were in the pasture. All he had to do for them was spread around a few bales of hay for them and for the goats. He found out where the dog and cat food was. He had a feeling that they’d keep them awake if they weren’t fed. The grey-and-white cat kept meowing at him. The weird black one came back into the office and jumped onto the desk.

The grey and white cat head butted Dean’s leg again and pounced on an imaginary mouse, trying to get Dean’s attention. Dean was too busy talking to Jay to notice. The black cat hissed and lashed out at Dean’s hand.

“Shit!” Dean jumped up and looked at his now bleeding hand. “What the hell is it with this weird-looking black cat?” Jay laughed at him.

“That’s Shade, Aunt Vera’s fam…cat. Try to stay on Shade’s good side. She can make your life miserable if you don’t.”

“Okay, we’re talking about a cat. You sound like she’s intelligent or something.” Shade hissed again, causing Dean to stare. “What’s the story about this grey-and-white fur ball? I can’t walk without tripping over him.”

“That’s Griffin. He’s about six months old. Last time I saw him he looked like he is going to be a monster when he grows up. He doesn’t have a human yet.” Griffin heard his name, looked up at Dean and mewled again.

He jumped up on his hind legs and put his paws on Dean’s knee. Dean just stared in disbelief at the furry half-grown cat. He was already bigger than most of the cats here.

“Uh, yeah, okay. Where are the car keys? There are four cars here besides the truck. I might need to move some of them around.” Jay told him all the keys were marked and hanging off nails in the wall next to the back door. They finished making arrangements for Dean to go pick him up.

Dean hung up the phone and sat back down at the desk. Taking Vera home had certainly given him a lot of answers about her. The house had been a shock. Her coven had a small farm they were running as a commune. They were all gone and she was trying to do all the work, plus her job and deal with whatever monster was out there. He understood why she was tired. Dean wondered if he should leave the messages for her or erase them. Someone she knew had died, did she need to know yet? Shit. She might have to help get the body home.

Well, she was resting tomorrow. She couldn’t train Sammy the way she was now. Dean was going to take all of the car keys and lock them in the glove box of the Impala when Sammy got back. Then he was going to unplug her alarm clock and be sure all of her curtains were drawn tight. He and Sammy would take care of all the animals and clean up the kitchen.

Then he would be waiting for her when she woke up.


Sam made a quick decision on his way back to the KOA. He was almost done with the work at the campground. He wasn’t just going to get a change of clothes for him and Dean. They were moving in with Vera. He stopped by the lobby to talk with Betsy Rice to let her know he’d be back on Monday to finish up the last of the cabin maintenance. Then he packed up all of his and Dean’s belongings. He was glad he made a sketch of everything Vera had done to the cabin. He used it to find all the crystals. He didn’t want to leave any of them behind. Sam also scuffed up the symbols, just to be safe. From what Nora Bonesteel and Rattler told him this wouldn’t hurt anything and Vera would definitely want these crystals back. Dean would probably be pissed off at him at first, but this was going to be home. They were going to have a real home where people understood. No one and nothing was going to ruin it for them.

As he was getting into the car he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to look, and in the half light of early dusk he saw Katie Wyler. She appeared to be just as solid as before. She looked at him with a sad yearning.

“There is always danger when you’re going home. Be careful.”

Her whispered words caused Sam to get goose bumps as she disappeared. He knew her words were a warning, not a threat. “Thank you Katie.” He whispered back. Anything out there that was going to try to fuck this up for them had better get ready. Sam’s heart was more into this Hunt than any he’d ever been on.


Dean was getting worried; it seemed to be taking Sammy a lot longer than he needed to get a few things from the cabin. Dean had already cleaned up the kitchen and was starting on the living room. He was relieved to see the Impala pull up.

“Sammy” Dean called out as he came out the front door. Griffin was still following him around. Dean had already fed the cats and dogs. What was it with this one? “What took you so long?”

Sammy was pulling duffle bags out of the trunk. “It took me a while to pack everything up. Come give me a hand.”

“Why did you pack everything? We don’t need all this just for a few nights.”

Sam looked Dean straight in the eye. “We’re moving in.”

“What?”

“The work is almost done at the KOA and Vera needs help here. It’ll make it easier for her to train me. We…I just feel like we need to be here.” Sammy said a little defiantly. Dean stared at him. Sammy wouldn’t look away. He was standing his ground on this.

After the time they had both spent with Nora and Rattler, Sam and Dean had both been thinking about their relationship, both as brothers and as their own small Hunting group. Sam did want to settle down, eventually. Right now he knew he needed this training. Things were changing to quickly; he wasn’t going to leave Dean to Hunt alone or with anyone else for a while. If they were to be the beginning of a new Hunting bloodline, they needed to get established. Dean may be in charge of the Hunt, but Sam still had a say.

Dean kept staring at Sammy. He had made a decision for both of them on his own. He hinted that he decided this due to his psychic abilities. Logically, it made sense now that Sammy had explained it. Dean tried to control his temper. Sammy was right. Dean bit his lip.

“Okay, come on. You’re not going to believe this place.”


About an hour later Sam stood alone on the back porch. It looked like it was one of the first parts of the house that had been renovated. He turned off the porch light and sat down in one of the mismatched chairs. The moon was full tonight so he could see the area around the house pretty well. This was the porch he saw in his vision. He laughed. It was strange to have good memories of a place he had never been before. He heard his brother calling for him from the office.

“Out here!” Sam called. As Dean walked towards him through the moonlight Sam began to get a sense of his brother’s future. They were not going to go on two radically separate paths as Dean feared. The Hunting and Guardian community would let them be brothers while still having their own lives. And Dean could become a legend, even among Hunters. Eventually, Dean would have others wanting to join him. Other Hunters would ask his advice, his bravado, cunning, instincts and viciousness on the Hunt would make him a hero to younger generations. Dean would be one of the very few that could take more than one or two psychics out into the field with him. When he could no longer go into the field he would be one of the most in-demand trainers until the end of his life. Dean would emerge from their father’s shadow and quit being a follower and become a great leader himself.

If the dumb fuck didn’t get himself killed doing something stupid first.

“Dude, what are you grinning at?” Dean asked as he sat down next to Sam.

“It’s a psychic thing, you wouldn’t understand.” Dean smacked him on the back of the head. Sam just kept grinning at him.

“Seriously Sammy, what is it? I could use some good news.”

Sam smirked. “I just have good memories of this place.”

“You’ve only been here about an hour. What happened, you have a quickie with a goat?” Sam just continued grinning and looked out the yard. Dean tried again.

“Come on, what’s up with the spidey sense?” Sam continued looking at the yard, his mouth pressed closed and his face serious at Dean’s continued questioning.

“I’m not sure you’ll believe me.” He said after a moment. Dean felt like Sammy just wasn’t concerned about not being believed, but he was afraid, too. Shit, no matter how much a psychic could help out it sounded like they were all whiney little bitches at times. Nora and Rattler weren’t. Hopefully Sammy would get over it soon.

“We won’t know if you don’t tell me. Didn’t you get that part of the lecture where you’re supposed to tell me if you have a vision or feel something and I’m supposed to pay attention? I thought Rattler was going to go on about it until we were his age.”

Sam shrugged. “Okay. This is home now. We are going to be setting up our Hunting base here. Vera, Jay and the rest of her coven and some other people are going to be helping us from now on. We’re not alone anymore and probably never will be again.”

Dean and Sam sat there on the back porch in silence, watching the moon and stars move through the sky. Griffin jumped into his lap. Dean absently began petting him.

Dean realized that Sammy has said “We.” “We were going to set up our Hunt base here.” “We are never going to be alone again.” Sammy wasn’t going to leave him, not for a “normal” life or for another Hunt group. Dean reached out and took one of Sammy’s hands.

Having psychics around wasn’t all bad. You could let them know how you felt without having to say anything at all.

The phone in the office started ringing a few moments later. Dean walked back into the office but didn’t know if he was going to answer it or not. He was going to listen to see if Jay was calling again. He sat down at Vera’s desk and began rearranging things with a smirk. He knew that would piss her off. Then the caller started leaving a message.

It wasn’t Jay. It was Jay’s mom.

“You stupid Satanic bitch! You’ve destroyed my family! Jay is going to Hell because of you. I hope you’re happy. You’ve wanted to take him away from me since he was a little boy, and now you have. You’re evil, and God knows it. That’s why you can’t have children. I can’t believe I let Josh talk me into letting you be around him, you freak of nature…” Dean could hear a man’s voice in the background telling her to calm down. He was saying something about she was the one who threw Jay out, otherwise he’d be home. The man’s voice came on the line, sounding tired and tearful.

“Sis, I’m sorry Lisa is like this. Take good care of Jay for me and tell him I love him. Thanks for keeping him out of jail. If you can find a school to take him, let me know. I’ll pay for it. Call my cell.” Vera’s brother hung up the line, but not before Dean heard her sister-in-law spit out more verbal venom.

Dean wrote down what Vera’s brother had said about Jay and then erased the message. She didn’t need to hear this one.

Then he went upstairs to check on her.


Dean and Sam were both asleep. Dean planned on getting up early to pick up Jay and be back before Vera woke up and recovered. Sam was going to take care of the animals and keep an eye on Vera. Dean wasn’t very happy with leaving Sammy and Vera alone, but he didn’t know of a better plan. He told Sam to try to stay away from her if she woke up before he got back. Dean didn’t want Sammy around a lot of people until he had some training. Hopefully Vera wouldn’t be so hair triggered after some rest.

Sam had closed the door as he went to bed, but the doors in the house were loose. All it took was for Griffin to jump against the door just right to open it. Griffin jumped up on the bed and snuggled down against Dean’s side. Another cat came in, a kitten really. She was a tiny little thing and pure white except her tail, which was dark grey. Her blue eyes shone in the moonlight coming through the curtains. She was too small to jump up on the bed, she had to climb up. When she managed to get up Griffin looked at her.

“Hey Star! You’re being daring tonight.” Griffin said approvingly. Starlight was the kitten of one of the feral barn cats. She was the runt of the litter and was dying when Emma found her and brought her into the house about two months ago. She said nothing but rubbed her head against Griffin in greeting. Griffin pinned her down with a paw and began grooming her.

After a moment Griffin said proudly “This is going to be my human.” Starlight sniffed Dean delicately.

“He’s not very psychic.” She said quietly.

“Yeah, that’s what Shade said.” He whispered. Shade was sleeping with Vera across the hall and he didn’t want her to hear him. She was rather cranky because she was shielding Vera so she could heal enough to do it herself. Then she planned on letting Sam and Dean know how pissed off she was with them.

“Shade doesn’t think he’s good enough for me, but he’s a warrior. That’s what I am. I’m not very psychic either, but I can help him. Why did you come in?” Griffin asked. He liked her company, but she was still very shy and didn’t come around the humans very often. Starlight walked over to Sam and began sniffing and licking his hand. She walked up Sam’s sleeping form and snuggled down into the crook of his neck and shoulder.

“I like him.” Star said quietly. “I’ll be his familiar if he’ll let me.”


Dean woke up as soon as Sam began whimpering and writhing on the bed. Interesting how in tune he was getting with his baby brother. He could sleep well now but wake up the second Sammy started acting strangely in his sleep. He was beginning to understand why Vera said the slight psychic link he had with him could be useful. Dean rolled his eyes. God, he was having another erotic dream. Sammy was getting more action in his sleep than Dean had in months. He was going to have to ask Vera about this. It would be hard enough talking to Vera about it; he couldn’t imagine trying to bring it up with Nora or Rattler. He felt something against his side; he looked and saw the grey-and-white, long-haired cat curled up against him. When Dean shifted Griffin’s head snapped up and he started purring. Dean sighed and stroked the cat’s head. He turned over on his side to look at Sammy. He was moving slightly in the bed and whimpering. Dean was startled by a pair of blue eyes under Sammy’s chin. A little cat he hadn’t seen before was snuggled up to his brother. He wondered what he should do. Acting on instinct, he eased over to Sammy and gingerly held him.

Sam was cushioned in a soft bed between two bodies. His dark-haired lover from his previous dream smiled at him and traced Sam’s lips with a thumb. Sam smiled as the brunet closed in for a slow, long kiss. Far too soon, Sam was waking up.

Dean held Sammy as he shuddered awake. Dean noticed that the little white cat was licking his cheek and ear. Dean smiled, she was cute. He could tell that Sammy was comforted by being held, but after a few moments Dean moved back over to his side of the bed. Neither of them said anything. Sammy went to clean himself up and came back to bed.

Sam and Dean got up around six that morning. Sam went out to take care of the animals while Dean got ready to pick up Jay. He looked in on Vera and saw that she had barely moved from where he had put her the night before. Shade was still with her, and she glared at him from Vera’s side. Dean just shook his head and left to pick up Jay. What he didn’t notice was Griffin slipping into the car and into the back seat as he was leaving. Griffin wasn’t going to let his new human out of his sight.

About 15 miles from Vera’s Dean was surprised by Griffin jumping into his lap. He nearly ran off the road.

“Damn it cat! Vera is going to try to kill me if anything happens to you.” Griffin perked his ears forward. “Only if you make me leave. You’re my human now!” Of course, Dean only heard this as a meow. He frowned. He decided to just keep the windows rolled up and hope for the best.

Other than worrying about Griffin, the drive wasn’t too bad. Griffin kept hopping up and pitting his paws on the dashboard next to him to look outside. Dean hoped the cat didn’t get car sick. Dean was glad he found where Jay was staying pretty easily. He was relieved; he really didn’t want to get lost on these back roads with a cat in the car. Jay was certainly glad to see him, but Dean quickly picked up on the fact that Jay didn’t want to talk until they were on the road. They had a hard time keeping Griffin in the car, but he ran back to Dean when called and jumped into the car. Jay was surprised to see the cat, and was amused by Dean’s explanation of how the young cat had been acting. After discussing the cat, the talk in the car lapsed.

“So,” Dean said, trying to start a conversation in the awkward silence in the Impala. “How well do you know your aunt?’

Jay stared at him from the passenger seat.

“Well, she’s my aunt, what do you think?”

“Vera’s a pretty secretive person. It’s hard to tell what your aunt may have told you about.”

“Well, you said she was sick on the phone. What’s wrong with her?” Shit, Jay was going to play a game of ‘I’ll show mine only if you show me yours’. They didn’t have time for this, so Dean decided to come clean with him. Well, not completely.

“Dude, you know Sammy and I are Hunters. There is something bad going down in Wake County and we met your aunt and know she’s a pretty powerful psychic. She’s gonna be training Sammy and we are helping her with the demon or whatever it is up there. She doesn’t want you at her place because she’s afraid you’ll get hurt. She was trying to keep it a secret from you. Hell, she was trying to keep it a secret from us. She realized that Sammy was an untrained psychic and she was afraid he’d be hurt too. When I left she was still asleep and Sammy was checking in on her while doing stuff around the house. Sammy accidentally hurt her and we’re trying to take care of her, but she doesn’t want to let us. Vera doesn’t know I’ve come to get you. She’s probably going to be very pissed off when we get there.”

Jay looked horrified. “Oh man. Did she get any of my messages?” Dean took a deep breath.

“No. She was out of it by the time I got her home. I listened to her messages, that’s how I found out you were thrown out. Somebody named Sahba called. Do you know who she is?”

“She’s my auntie and one of Aunt Vera’s coven mates. She’s in Paris right now ‘cause Uncle Jeremy was hurt in a car accident while he was on a trip with his parents.” Dean was surprised.

“Vera has sisters and brothers other than your dad?”

“No, Sahba is my auntie, not my aunt. Aunties are adopted aunts. Jeremy is another of Aunt Vera’s coven mates.” Dean paused, not knowing how to tell him Mike was dead.

“How well do you know Jeremy’s parents?” Dean asked.

“I’ve met them a few times, they’re pretty cool. They know Uncle Jeremy is Pagan and they’re okay with it. I wish my mom was.” Okay, it didn’t sound like Jay was going to have a meltdown over Mike’s death. He guessed he should let him know so he could see what kind of reaction Vera would have to the news.

“I heard a message from Sahba that Mike died a few days ago. I haven’t told Vera yet because she’s so tired and stressed. How do you think she’ll take it?” Dean asked softly. Jay swallowed and his face became mask like.

“She’ll be upset. She knows them pretty well, but she’ll worry more about Uncle Jeremy. I’ll call Auntie Sahba when we get there to let them know Aunt Vera is sick and probably won’t call for a few days.”

“Sorry to hear about you getting thrown out. I’m sure you’ll get things worked out. I heard a message that your mom left.” Dean paused.

“Let me guess” Jay said bitterly. “She was calling Aunt Vera a freak and saying that she ruined the family and has condemned me to Hell and a lot of other really nasty crap.”

“Yeah, but I’m sure you’ll be able to work it out. Family needs to stick together. Maybe you can call your mom when we get there.”

“I wish Aunt Vera was my mom.”

“Hey, don’t say that” Dean burst out with a scowl. “You only have one mom. I know you think your aunt is…”

“Do you know what she did for me?” Jay interrupted and sounded furious. “She knew I was psychic from the day I was born and I would need help. She pretended to be Southern Baptist for years, just so she could help me. Mom wouldn’t have let her get anywhere near me if she hadn’t. When I first realized I was bi it was Aunt Vera who told me it was okay and I wasn’t sinful or going to Hell. She got me condoms and told me about safe sex. Aunt Vera kept things a secret and covered for me most of my life. I’m glad that my mom threw me out. Now I can go be where I belong. I can be with the only real family I have. So shut the fuck up about how I should stay with my family. Aunt Vera and the coven are my only family.”

Dean was shocked. He had spent so long with only Sammy and Dad as his family. Jay made him realize that most families were larger and more complex. From the message last night Dean had the feeling that Jay’s dad wouldn’t have thrown him out if it was his choice.

“Dude” Dean began. “I’m sorry. Listen, your dad said to tell you he loved you and that he’d pay for the rest of your college.”

“Yeah, Dad loves mo so much that he didn’t stand up to Mom last night. He’s so pussy whipped it’s pathetic. I’m better off with Aunt Vera. At least with her I can be who I really am. I’m not a freak or a weirdo, I’m just different. One thing that Aunt Vera taught me is that it’s okay to be different. Most people are sheep, they’re too afraid to be themselves because they’re afraid of what other people think. The only reason why Aunt Vera and I pretend to be something else is because of the rest of our family. Now we don’t have to anymore.” Dean sat in silence. Was this how Sammy had felt growing up?

“So, fill me in on what’s going on with Aunt Vera.”


When Vera woke up she felt like she was hung over from a three day drunk and someone had been beating her with rubber hoses. She groaned and tried to remember how she got home. She remembered Dean having something to do with it. She was surprised he got her to the right bedroom. Shade rubbed against her shoulder. Despite her headache she smiled and caressed her familiar’s head.

Vera groaned again, wondering what time it was. The alarm clock wasn’t working. With a grunt of annoyance she hauled herself out of bed. Well, if she was late feeding the animals she might as well get a cup of tea. Something that would help her head and stomach. She’d shower after feeding everyone. Maybe that would help her pounding headache.

Getting downstairs Vera noticed that the kitchen had been cleaned. Hmm. She wasn’t quite as cranky; it looked like the brothers had actually done something to help out. She pulled her favorite mug out of the cabinet and began looking through the herbs for a good combination. She decided on lavender, chamomile, peppermint, lemongrass and rosemary with a bit of honey. Vera was debating heading out to the garden for fresh herbs or just using dried.

“You’re not supposed to be out of bed!” Vera shrieked and dropped her mug onto the counter. She almost lashed out again psychically but when she turned and saw Sam she checked herself. She had just pulled the second psychic blow in two days. Her mind rebounded and she turned to the sink, retching.

“Sam, what in the name of all the Gods are you doing here?” She asked after a moment.

“Well, we knew you were sick so we thought we’d help you out this morning.” Vera rolled her eyes.

“Thanks for cleaning up the kitchen, but I really want some tea and then take care of the goats and horses. I’m going out to the garden. Why don’t you find your brother and head out? I’m sure y’all have something better to do today.” Sam frowned. He hadn’t thought about telling her that he and Dean had moved it. He was so concerned about Dean’s reaction he never thought about hers. Not knowing how to tell her, Sam decided to skirt around the subject until Dean got back. Nora Bonesteel and Old Rattler had said if a Guardian was not able to handle their area a Hunt group could come in and take over until they were “fit for duty”. Nora and Rattler had both said that they were too old to handle the situation and Vera wasn’t even up to doing training right now. That meant Dean was technically in charge, but it was understood that he would be guided by Nora and Rattler. Sam decided to let Dean break that news to her.

“Why don’t I go get the herbs for you?” Sam asked brightly, trying to change the subject. Vera looked at him suspiciously.

“Thanks Sam, but with my luck you’d manage to find hemlock and poison me. I swear you and Dean are literally going to be the death of me. Like I said, I have things to do today. Why don’t you come back tomorrow?”

“I’ve already feed all the animals for you.” Sam went on, heroically trying to sidestep all the suggestions that he leave.

“And what did you feed them? Some of the horses get a special mix of grains.” Sam noticed that Vera’s face was beginning to get red. The grimace on her face seemed to indicate that her headache and other symptoms were growing along with her temper.

“Err, well, Jay told us what we needed to feed the all the animals.” Vera closed her eyes.

“And how did you get hold of him?”

“His cell phone, we still had his number from the Uktena job.” Vera opened her eyes. Well, she had to give them some credit. It sounded like they weren’t total idiots. They had some problem-solving ability. She was just trying to figure out how the hell the two of them had managed to stay alive as Hunters for this long.

“Thanks Sam, I mean it, but I really have things I need to do.”

“Um, well, I can’t leave.”

“Why not?”

“Dean left.” There was no way Sam was going to tell her Dean was picking up Jay.

“When is he coming back?”

“Oh, he’ll be gone for another few hours or so.”

“Fine, I’ll put on some clothes and take you back up to the KOA. Do both of y’all have cells?”

“Nora said you don’t need to drive right now!” Sam protested.

“Oh, but I insist.”

“Um, yeah, but I’m afraid you’re not going to be able to take me back to the KOA.” Vera’s eyes narrowed and her face was getting red again.

“And why exactly is that?” She asked softly. Sam realized that she thought he had just threatened her.

“Well, it’s not what you think. Um, you see you can’t take me back to the KOA because Dean took all the keys to the cars.” Vera’s grimace deepened and her gaze was downright hostile. Starlight slipped into the kitchen, but neither of them noticed her.

“I don’t give a flying fuck or a rolling doughnut if you have to walk. You’re leaving.”

“Erm, well, Dean and I moved in last night.” Vera’s eyes began to glitter dangerously.

“And whose idea was this?” Vera asked again, closing her eyes. Sam could almost feel her counting to ten.

“Well, it was mine. You see, we knew you needed help here because you were trying to do too much. You need to train me, too. So I just thought it would be easier if we just moved in.”

“Where did Dean go with all of the car keys?” Vera asked through gritted teeth.

“Well, Jay’s mom threw him out of the house last night, so Dean went to pick him up.” Vera’s eyes flew open.

“HE’S DOING WHAT!!! I don’t want him up here right now. It’s not safe. Who in the hell do y’all think you are?” Vera collapsed back on the counter. Her head was killing her and she was about to retch again. “Get out of my house this second or I’m calling the police. When Dean gets here he can drop off Jay and give me the keys back.” Vera was struggling not to start throwing things. Sam hesitated. He and Dean agreed that she was resting today and they would literally sit on her if they had to. She had been trying to deal with the situation for so long on her own she seemed to be blind to help. He knew it was exhaustion. Sam decided to call Dean to see if he had picked up Jay yet. Maybe the two of them could calm her down. He looked down and saw the little white cat that had been sleeping with him earlier rubbing against his legs. She looked up at him anxiously. Vera seemed to be swaying slightly. Sam said nothing else to Vera and went outside. The little cat followed him. He was relieved when Dean picked up on the first ring.

“Dean, we have a problem.”

“What sort of problem?”

“Vera’s awake.” Sam quickly explained the situation. “Is Jay with you?”

“Yes, and he is pissed with her. He says that she should have told him about this a lot earlier. Let me talk to her, and whatever you do, don’t let her listen to her messages!”


When Sam walked back into the kitchen he found Vera was sitting cross legged on the floor with her back against the cabinets. Shade was curled up with her and looking anxious. Vera opened her eyes.

“What?” She asked dully. Sam guiltily realized that while finding out about Guardians and Hunters been liberating and good news for him and Dean, it was totally disrupting Vera’s life. How would he feel if all of this was dumped on him in his mid-40s?

“Dean wants to talk with you. He has Jay with him.”

“Fine” she said, reaching for the phone.

“What?” she asked Dean when she got the phone. Sam wondered when she was going to start speaking more than one word at a time.

“Listen, you’re sick and exhausted. Sammy, Jay and I will take care of the farm while you rest up. You can’t deal with all of this on your own. Damn it!” Dean was getting upset at her stubbornness and hit the steering wheel. “Like I told you, until you get rested up, I am in charge. Nora and Rattler agree with me.”

“Since when did those two start running my life and saying who lived in my home?’ Vera’s voice sounded very flat. Dean was beginning to realize that this was not a good sign in her.

“Fuck, you’re a Guardian, start acting like one! You know you are, or do I have to haul you back up to Nora’s? Guardians and Hunters are supposed to help one another. Don’t you realize you’re putting everyone in danger by being so damned stubborn?” Dean bit back on the rest of what he wanted to say. Calling her selfish and a coward probably wouldn’t help. Shit, he was learning something they called diplomacy.

Starlight was getting more and more upset. It was hard for her to stay in the kitchen with all the yelling, but Sam was her human. Shade gave her a sharp look.

“You should have waited longer to bond, child.” Shade’s voice was low and concerned. This frightened Starlight. Shade was the alpha of the indoor cats and Star usually avoided her. Shade was known to run the house with an iron paw. The fact that she was being kind to her must mean that something was very wrong.

Dean had handed the call off to Jay, and now Vera and he were arguing, and that seemed to upset Vera more than anything else. Starlight began crying in her high-pitched voice. Vera stopped and saw the little cat jumping up and putting her paws on Sam’s shin. Sam picked her up to cuddle, trying to ease both of their distress. Shade started pawing at Vera’s shoulder.

Vera stopped hearing Jay as she saw Sam with Starlight. The quietest and shyest of the familiar potential cats in the home was crying for Sam. She was allowing him to pet and handle her when she barely tolerated Emma, who had rescued and cared for her when she was starving to death. Shade was clawing lightly at her shoulder. Sam had a familiar. On her farm.

There was no way Vera could deny the situation now, or that Sam and Dean were supposed to be there. Vera and her coven believed familiars were sacred gifts from the Gods themselves. Both of the brothers had one now. The Gods were giving a sign that she could not refute.

Looking up at Sam, Vera said one word as she handed him back the cell.

“Okay.”