"I'm in too deep, I sold my soul, I'm out of reach and I can't let go, I'm in trouble, I'm in trouble, I made my way, a dead end road, I can't turn turn back so I walk alone, I'm in trouble." - Sleeping With Sirens

• • •

"And that's when you guys showed up," Sam concluded. He had explained the entirety of the events that occured while he was stuck with the other five.

"That's awful," Dean blinked, staring at the table, "Poor Andy." Noah took a deep breath, taking a bite of pizza.

Sam nodded in agreement, "The demon said he only wanted one of us to walk out alive."

"He told you that?" Noah inquired. "Yep," Sam scoffed, rolling his eyes, "He appeared in a dream."

"He tell you anything else?" Dean's green eyes bored into the side of his brother's head, the intense stare telling both of the other's just how revved up the man was.

Sam pursed his lips, shaking his head, "No, no, that was it, nothing else," He dismissed, "You know, what I don't get, Dean, is if the demon only wanted one of us, then how did Jake and I both get away?"

Dean looked to Noah, Noah stared back as if to say 'Don't you dare', " Well, I mean they left you for dead, I'm sure they thought it was over."

"Now that yellow-eyes has Jake, what's he gonna do with him?" Dean questioned, biting into his pizza as he stood up. Noah's eyes remained trained on the curtains.

"I don't know," Sam raised his gaze from the table, "But whatever it is, we've gotta stop him."

"Hold on, alright? You need to get your rest, we've got time," Noah piped in.

"No, we don't," Sam shook his head. "Sam, oceans aren't boiling, okay? Frogs aren't raining from the sky, let's get you your strength back first," Noah argued.

Sam stared at him for a moment before caving with a sigh, looking back to the food in front of him, "Well, did you call the Roadhouse? Do they know anything?"

Noah and Dean both tensed up. "Yeah," Dean answered lowly. Sam noticed.

"Dean..." he caught his brother's attention, "What is it?"

Dean took a seat as Noah clenched his eyes shut, taking a breath, "The Roadhouse burned to the ground, Ash is dead, Probably Ellen, a lotta other hunters too," Noah sipped on his beer.

Sam's stress already running high made tears blur his vision quickly, "Demons?"

"Yeah we think so," Dean nodded, "We think because Ash found something."

"What'd he find?" Sam asked. Noah bitterly chuckled into his bottle as he raised it to his lips, "Yeah, good question."

"Bobby's working on that right now," Dean informed him. "Well, come on then, Bobby's only a few hours away," Sam stated, having been told of Bobby's whereabouts when they sat down to eat. He went to stand, attempting to use his arms as leverage to stand and ended up hissing in pain as he stood up, his face twisted in pain. Dean jumped to action, stepping in front of his litle brother.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Sam, stop! Dammit," Dean sighed when Sam gave him a look, "You almost died in there, I mean, what would I have..." Dean's voice died off as he stopped before it cracked.

Sam's eyes scanned his brother's pained expression. "How about you just take care of yourself for a little bit, huh? Just a little bit," Dean persuaded.

Sam stared at his brother, "I'm sorry, no."

Dean shook his head in exasperation as Noah sighed into the bottle at his lips. They both knew what driving to Sioux Falls entailed.

• • •

A few hours of driving with an overly affectionate and exhausted german-shepherd and several country and classic rock CDs, plus a lot of nervous tapping of his foot the closer they got to Sioux Falls, Noah was parking his Jeep in front of Bobby's house, beside the Impala. Sam and Dean stepped out, and Noah was right behind him, with Delta very shortly after him.

It was Noah's error, however, that made him fail to notice the 2006, silver, Dodge Ram parked on the other side of the empty part of the yard.

The four approached the door and Dean hesitantly knocked on the wood. Bobby opened the door and his eyes widened at the sight of Sam, alive and breathing. His eyes darted to Dean who stared at the wall, and Noah, who stared at the ground.

Sam quirked his lips slightly. "Hey Bobby," Dean gave a bittersweet smile, greeting the man. "Hey Bobby," Sam greeted, much more cheerfully. Noah didn't look up, only raising a hand and waving guiltily.

"Sam," Bobby exhaled, "It's good to see you... up and around."

"Yeah, well," Sam stepped inside the threshold, "Thanks for patching me up," he placed a hand on Bobby's shoulder.

"Don't mention it," Bobby quietly stated. It was when Dean's eyes darted over Bobby's shoulder and he saw the other man standing behind Bobby, staring at Noah. He bumped Noah's shoulder, prompting Noah to look up and as he met eyes with his pseudo-father, his only thought was 'Oh shit.'

See, where Bobby knew the Winchester boys, better than their on father had at times, Brian knew Noah better than anyone on the planet. He had watched the boy grow into a man and he had been there in his best and worst moments. There were times where Brian was the only thing that kept Noah alive, whether that meant feeding and housing him or being there when Noah needed someone to be a father.

And as Brian stared at Noah in that moment, having gotten the story from Bobby not ten minutes ago, he could see the guilt. The misery. The relief. The fear. The pain was gone, and Brian knew to look for it too, having been the only one who knew of his diagnosis.

And he knew as Dean stepped in the door, and Delta followed him, and Sam stepped around him... there was a conversation that needed to be had.

Noah followed behind his dog and stepped in as Dean began, "Well, Sam's better, and we're back in it now, so... what do you know?"

Bobby just stared at Dean for a moment, still processing. Noah and Brian could both see that he thought Dean was the culprit. Sam was just confused, furrowing his eyebrows as he saw the scrutinizing look that Bobby stared into Dean with.

They all stepped over to the table and Bobby shook it off for a moment, "Well I found something, but... I'm not sure what the hell it means."

"What is it?" Sam asked.

"Demonic omens, like a freakin' tidal wave..." Bobby pulled out a map, unfolding it, "Cattle deaths, lightning storms, they skyrocketed from out fo nowhere, here," he placed the now unfolded map on the table.

Little blips covered it, every hundred miles maybe, there was a huge cluster. The map displayed the mid-western states, and Bobby gestured around, "All around here, except for one place," He placed his finger in the center of a large blank spot, "Southern Wyoming."

"Wyoming?" Dean inquired. "Yeah," Bobby nodded, "That one area's totally clean, spotless, it's almost as if..." Bobby trailed.

"What?" Sam prompted. "The demons are surounding it," Bobby concluded. "but you don't know why?" Noah furrowed his eyebrows.

"No, and by this point our eyes are swimming," Bobby turned to Sam, "Sam, would you take a look at it? See if you can catch something we couldn't."

"Yeah, sure," Sam agreed. "Come on, Dean," Bobby stared at the man intensely, "I've got some more books in the truck, help me lug 'em in," Bobby grabbed his flannel. Dean took a deep breath before following after Bobby.

Brian looked to Noah, "Hey, I think you left a bag in my truck the last time you came down to visit, will you come out and see if it's your's?"

Noah gulped, nodding and following after his mentor.

Brian led Noah outside, his shoulders tense and his face pensive. Once they were in a secluded spot, Brian abruptly stopped and turned to Noah, making Noah bump into him before backing up once more.

Brian huffed, clenching his jaw as he stared at Noah. Noah stared back, biting his lip. "Are you stupid?" Brian practically hissed. "No," Noah wavered, shifting his weight.

"What the fuck did you do?" Brian clenched his fists. Noah shifted his gaze to behind Brian, not answering him. Brian grabbed his jacket collar, jerking him to face him.

"What. did. you. do?" Brian repeated. "Something stupid," Noah's lip quivered as his voice cracked. Brian let go of his shirt, staring at him, "Why?"

"I couldn't- I couldn't let either of them lose someone else, I couldn't let either of them die, they don't deserve that," Noah stammered.

"Noah," Brian shook his head, his eyes flooding with tears, "What, and you do?"

Brian sighed, dropping his eyes to the dirt. Noah kicked up dust in the dry soil. "How long?" Brian questioned. "A year," Noah answered.

"Oh, Noah! My God, I outta strangle you!" Brian grabbed him by his jacket again.

"That would defeat the purpose," Noah quirked a small smile as a tear ran down his cheek. Brian let go of him, shaking his head and chuckling in disbelief, "Boy, you could be smart ass to a brick wall."

Brian stared at Noah for a moment, he watched all of the lingering emotion that hung in his eyes and through his facial muscles, everything that spoke the level of pain Sam's death had caused him and that's when Brian realized he had seen that look on him before, and it dawned on him. His eyes widened, and his mouth gaped slight, "You're in love with him."

Noah's lips quivered again, his nose twitching as he held in the sobs, more tears falling, and he nodded. "Oh kid," Brian sighed, reaching for Noah's shoulder, "I know."

Noah turned his head into Brian's neck, releasing a sob that shook his entire body. Brian held onto Noah, keeing him grounded so he wouldn't fly into a full-on panic attack, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I couldn't-I couldn't let him go, not now, I couldn't," the love-sick boy babbled through sobs.

When Noah finally caught his breath again, Brian pulled back, keeping him at arm's length, as Noah raised a hand to wipe the tears from his cheeks with a sad chuckle, "To be fair, they gave me six months last week, so at least this way... it has a meaning, it's not just because I was a stupid teenager," Noah gave a watery chuckle.

Brian shook his head, sighing before pulling Noah back into a tight hug once more.

"Does Dean know?" Brian questioned. "He knows I did it, he doesn't know how long I got, and he sure as hell doesn't know why," Noah answered. Brian nodded, "Okay, um..."

Noah panicked, "Please! Brian, please! Don't tell either of 'em yet! I... I gotta figure that out myself, I need time for that, just please..."

Brian stared at Noah's begging eyes and he caved, nodding. Noah sighed in relief.

• • •

While Dean was explaining the situation to Bobby, Ellen had stumbled onto the salvage lot. When Bobby and Dean saw her, the immediate relief was quickly followed by fear and caution, which is why they now all sat around Bobby's kitchen table as he poured holy water into a shot glass.

Bobby sat his holy water flask back on the table, screwing the lid back into place before sliding the shotglass across the wood, where Ellen caught it, "Bobby, is this really necessary?"

"Just a belt of holy water, shouldn't hurt," Bobby replied. Ellen leveled her gaze with Bobby, meeting his challenging gaze before tossing back the shot with no problems, slapping the glass back to the table,"Whiskey now, if you don't mind," She slid the glass back across the table for Bobby to pour her liquor.

"Ellen, what happened? How'd you get out?" Dean questioned as Bobby poured a shot of whiskey. Dean, Bobby, and Noah were all respectively shocked, they had seen the smoldering ashes of the Harvelle Roadhouse, they had fully expected for no one to come out of it alive, and yet here was Ellen, relatively unscathed, at least physically.

"I wasn't supposed to," She stated, a haunted look in her eyes, "I was supposed to be in there with everybody else."

She scoffed, titling her head, "But we ran out of pretzels, of all things," She caught the glass that Bobby slid to her, "It was just dumb luck."

Raising the alcohol to her lips, she tossed it down, feeling the relief the buzz gave her. Noah's thoughts were all over the place, and he stared at his hands as Delta nudged them with her nose, putting her head on his knee, he was unable to focus on one thought for more than a second before another one took its place.

Ellen exhaled sharply, "Anyway, that's when Ash called me, panic in his voice," This caught Dean, Noah, and Bobby's attention as Ellen sighed, "He told me to look in the safe, then the call cut out, by the time I got back, the flames were sky-high, and everybody was dead, I couldn't have been gone more than fifteen minutes." Ellen glared at the table, she was caught in an odd limbo between anger, guilt, and sorrow.

"I'm sorry, Ellen," Sam offered his condolences. "A lot of good people died in there," Her voice cracked as she slowly raised her eyes from the grain of the tabletop, "And I got to live," She scoffed, "Lucky me."

"Ellen, you mentioned a safe," Bobby inquired. "A hidden safe we keep in the basement," She nodded. "Demons get what was in it?" Bobby asked.

"No," She shook her head, opening her jacket. She pulled a map out of her pocket, placing it on the table and unfolding it. Dean flipped it around for all of them to see, "Wyoming?"

Noah and Brian met eyes as the Winchester's shared a glance with Bobby. "What does that mean?" Dean questioned, skimming his fingers over the marked places on the map.

• • •

"I don't believe it," Bobby shook his head, staring at the large book in his hand. Each of the hunters were scattered through two rooms in Bobby's home, flipping through as many books as they could find to figure out what was going on with these places in Wyoming. And it was Bobby's statement that made everyone turn away from their books.

Bobby dropped the book onto the table Dean was seated at, while Ellen, Noah, Brian, and Sam made their way to stand next to them, Sam asked, "What? You got something?"

"A lot more than that," Bobby stated, leaning over the table, "Each of these X's is an abandoned frontier church, all mid-19th century, and all of them, built by Samuel Colt."

"Samuel Colt, the demon-killing, gun-making Samuel Colt?" Dean raised an eyebrow. "Yep, and there's more," Bobby flipped a page in the book, "He built private railway lines, connecting church to church," he picked up a marker, "And it just happens to lay out like this." When he lined in the connections, it made a star. A pentacle. A-

"Tell me that's not what I think it is," Dean stated in shock. "It's a devil's trap," Sam said, staring at it as Dean raised a hand to his mouth, "A 100-square-mile devil's trap."

"That's brilliant," Dean shook his head in disbelief, "Iron lines, demons can't cross."

"I've never heard of anything that massive," Ellen spoke. "Neither have I," Brian crossed his arms, furowing his eyebrows. "No one has," Bobby pursed his lips.

"And after all these years, none of the lines are broken?" Noah questioned, stepping closer to the table, "It still works?"

It dawned on Sam," Definitely," All eyes turned to the youngest Winchester. "How do you know?" Dean asked.

"All those omens Bobby found, I mean, the demons, they must be circling and they can't get in," Sam explained. Brian nodded, agreeing with that logic.

"Yeah, well... they're trying," Bobby uttered. "Why? What's inside?" Ellen questioned. "That's what we've been looking for," Noah motioned between himself and Dean, "And uh, there's nothing except an old Wild West cemetery, right in the middle."

"Well, what's so important about that cemetery or..." Sam looked up, "What's colt trying to protect?"

"Well unless..." Dean trailed. "Unless what?" Brian inquired. Dean looked up from the map, "What if Colt wasn't trying to keep the demons out? What if he was trying to keep something in?"

"Well that's a comforting thought," Ellen stated sarcastically.

"Yeah, you think?" Dean agreed. "Could they do it, Bobby? Could they get inside?" Sam asked. "This thing's so powerful, you'd practically need an A-bomb to destroy it, no way a full-blood demon gets across," Bobby shook his head.

Sam had a moment of realization, "No... but I know who could."

• • •

Jake, drenched in the dark of the night, took hesitant steps forward. He was surrounded by gravestones, all as old as the Colt. He stared at the crypt in front of him, walking towards it. But he was interrupted by a voice behind him.

"Howdy, Jake," Sam stated, stepping out of his hiding place. The other five hunters stepped out, forming a circle surrounding Jake. Each of them held their guns high, aimed right at the soldier. Noah snarled, Dean's jaw was clenched, and Sam's eyes were aflame with pure, unadulterated rage. Delta growled, seething at the smell of sulphur coating the man.

Jake's eyes cast over the six hunters and huge german shepherd surrounding him, thinking through all of his options. But his eyes focused quickly back on Sam, in shock. He knew he'd severred his spinal cord. He killed him.

"Wait... You were dead," Jake stammered, "I killed you."

"Yeah?" Sam raised an eyebrow, "Well next time, finish the job."

"I did!" Jake shouted, "I cut clean through your spinal cord, man." That statement made Sam look to his brother and Noah, who both momentarily dropped their eyes to the floor in guilt.

"You can't be alive, you can't be," Jake shook his head, eyes wide.

"Okay, just take it real easy there, son," Bobby began. "And if I don't?" Jake raised an eyebrow.

"Wait and see!" Sam challenged him. "What, you a tough guy all of a sudden?" Jake questioned, a condecending tone to his voice that made Noah want to growl out in anger.

Sam just stared back, tipping his head. "What are you gonna do, kill me?" Jake squinted his eyes at Sam.

"It's a thought,"  Sam spat at him. "You had your chance, you couldn't," Jake dismissed. "I won't make that mistake twice," Sam snarled.

Jake chuckled. It made Noah sick to his stomach. "What are you smiling at, you sick son of a bitch?" Noah squinted his eyes, his lip curling in anger.

Jake met eyes with Ellen, "Hey lady, do me a favor, put that gun to your head."

Ellen's arm shook as she attempted to fight it but the command won, causing her to raise the pistol to her temple, her jaw clenched and tensed. Jake cracked a sickening grin, laughing under his breath.

"See, that Ava girl was right, once you give into it, there's all sorts of new Jedi mind tricks you can learn," Jake stated.

"Let her go!" Sam barked at the man who had once been his comrade and who had, both literally and figuratively, stabbed him in the back.

"Sh-hoo-t hi-im," Ellen stuttered, her entire body shaking as she tried to stave away the control over her body, her voice trembling.

"you'll be mopping off skull before you get a shot off," Jake taunted. "You really wanna test me?" Noah raised an eyebrow, his eyes hardened and glazed over as his posture held the most steady out of everyone. Jake just scoffed.

"Everybody, put your guns down," Jake commanded, "'Cept you, sweetheart," He smirked at Ellen.

Bobby was the first to cave, dropping his gun to the ground. Dean followed shortly thereafter, as did Brian. And then Sam. Noah was last still holding his gun, grinding his teeth, before sighing and dropping the pistol.

He found solace in the fact that he carried two, one strapped to his ankle, which was the one he just dropped, and one on his hip.

"Okay," Jake nodded, "Thank you."

"Believe me, sweetheart, it wasn't for you," Noah sneered. Jake just gave him a 'Go to hell' look. And Noah's only thought was 'That's the plan'.

Jake looked to Ellen, who still shook in her place as she attempted to fight away the compulsion to keep the gun held to her head, before he turned back around quickly, pulling the Colt out of his jacket. He placed the barrel of the gun into a small hole which was surrounded by some odd engravings and began to spin rapidly from the colt's insertion.

As he did so, everyone's eyes widened. Delta ran at Jake, taking him to the ground as Noah reached for his second pistol at his hip. He was a milisecond too late in drawing as Jake had stepped back and Delta tackled him, but the Colt had already been put into place.

Bobby and Dean scrambled to move to gun away from Ellen's head as she pulled the trigger, sending another loud shot into the air. Brian and Sam hurried to grab their guns from the ground, raising them as Noah fired three rounds into Jake's chest, Delta backing off of him at Noah's command.

Sam quickly took his own shots, releasing his anger in the form of half of a magazine, and also reassuring the man's death, as blood poured from his mouth. Noah didn't hesitate to fire one last bullet into the man's brain, not the killing blow but one that would confirm that he wouldn't be surviving in any way, shape, or form.

Blood was spattered across the two men's cheeks as the other four approached them slowly. Each of their stares were cold and monotone. Bobby and Brian stared at them in shock as Dean stepped up to the two and looked at them.

Sam raised a hand, wiping the blood from his face as Noah allowed it to coagulate, like war paint across his face. Dean still stood in shock, he had never seen his brother like this, here he had seen it in Noah once before, with Gordon. That blinding rage driving them to murder a human being.

Bobby, Brian, and Ellen approached the doors as the gears whirred and clicked, attempting to piece together what it was. It was when it locked into place in the shape of a pentagram that it hit Bobby. "Oh no," Bobby stated. "Bobby, what is it?" Ellen asked.

"It's Hell," He answered, pushing the two others back away from the doors as rattling and banging was heard from within it. Dean grabbed the Colt out of the hole, before Bobby warned everyone, "Take cover, now!"

Everyone ran a different way, Dean jumped over a gravestone, tucking and rolling to land where he needed to be, as Sam slid to the ground, his back against the stone beside the one his brother hid behind.

Brian slid behind another stone, as Noah sprinted an dropped behind another, holding Delta as tightly to him as possible. Bobby and Ellen crouched behind a larger tombstone just in time. Right then, the doors blasted open and allowed a huge outpoor of demonic, black, smoke.

Lightning began striking as thunder sounded above them, the opening of the door sending a shockwave through the ground that sent all of the hunter's in the air for a split second, it had the force of an earthquake.

"What the hell just happened?!" Dean shouted over the nosie fo the wind and thunder. "That's a Devil's Gate, a damn door to Hell!" Ellen shouted back.

"Come on, we've gotta shut that gate!" Brian yelled. Everyone stood from behind their cover, msot of the black smoke had already made it's way elsewhere. Everyone but Dean sprinted forward, immediately leaning all of their strength and their weight onto the metal, digging their feet into the dirt for leverage, attempting to close the doors.

Dean, however, had a realizationa as he stood up, looking to the Colt in his hand, checking the ammo, "If the demon gave this to Jake, then maybe..."

He turned around, raising the gun. There stood the yellow-eyed-demon. Yellow-eyes raised it's hand, and within a split second, the Colt was in it's hands, "A boy shouldn't play with Daddy's guns."

It was no longer than three seconds when Dean was sent flying into the air and crashing to the ground on the other side of the cemetary. He crashed down onto a tombstone, hitting his head and his spine as he fell, causing him to coil up at the pain as he hit the grass.

Sam turned around, digging his hells into he dirt and putting his back to the door, trying to use his leg strength to help shut the door when he saw his brother on the ground and the yellow-eyed-demon standing with the Colt in hand. His eyes widened as they met with yellow irises, "Dean!" He darted off, leaving Brian, Bobby, Ellen, and Noah to close the door.

Yellow-eyes raised a hand, pushing Sam back into a tree, hitting his sore back hard. He was trapped against the tree, it felt like invisible ropes were holding him in place. Yellow-eyes turned back to Sam, "I'll get to you in a minute, Champ, I'm proud of you, knew you had it in ya'."

Dean grasped his bearings, grunting as he managed to lift himself back up on two feet. His glare met Yellow-eyes' and the demon raised it's hand, pinning Dean's back against the tombstone behind him, effiectively knocking him back off of his feet, "Sit a spell."

Dean grit his teeth, grunting as he tried to struggle free of the force holding him in place, but after a moment of the struggle resulting nowhere, he gave up. Blood dripped from his forehead and over his eyelashes as he raised his gaze back to the demon before him.

Yellow-eyes stepped closer to him. "So, Dean..." He crouched in front of Dean, "I've gotta thank you, you see, demons can't ressurect people unless a deal is made, I know, red tape, it'll drive you nuts, but thanks to you, Sammy's back in rotation," it laughed.

Dean snarled, before spitting in it's face, "Don't thank me, I didn't do anything."

"Details," it shrugged, "Either way, Sammy's back and I'm glad, I liked him better than Jake anyhow," it wiped the saliva from it's face, "I'm surprised, really, I mean... you saw what your brother just did to Jake, right? That was pretty cold, wasn't it?" It chuckled in a way that made Dean nauseous.

"How certain are you that what got brought back is 100% pure Sam?" It questioned, "Oh, then again, Noah did the same thing, matter of fact, he acted first... almost a match made in Heaven, aren't they? Or I guess in theses terms, a match made in Hell."

Dean met Sam's terrified gaze over Yellow-eyes shoulder, as the demon chuckled, Sam was steadily struggling against the force keeping him in place on the tree, the wood digging into his back. More demonic smoke and spirits that had yet to turn demonic moved past them.

"You of all people should know that what's dead, should stay dead," it taunted him. Dean's lip curled in anger as it stood back up, "Anyway... thanks a bunch, I knew I kept you two alive for some reason, until now, anyway, I couldn't have done it without your own and Noah's pathetic, self-loathing, self-destructive desire to sacrifice yourselves for your family."

It raised the Colt, aiming for Dean's skull when a figure materialized over it's shoulder. John.

John wrapped his arms around yellow-eyes, pulling the demon out of the vessel as he wrestled with it. The vessel fell to the ground, limp. Colt still in hand.

It overpowered John at a certain point, and pushed him off and to the ground, and flying back ot it's vessel. It had, however, given Dean enough time to grab the Colt. The demon saw it in his hands just as he cocked back the hammer of the revolver. His lip twitched in anger, his jaw clenched as he stared into those yellow eyes he had become so familiar with.

And with that, he pulled the trigger. The bullet struck the demon in the shoulder. It looked ot Dean in shock before it began flickering, showing the skeleton of the vessel, and electricty traveled all over it's body before it fell to the ground. And the yellow faded back to the cold hazel of the dead vessel. It was gone.

Sam dropped to the ground as Dean was able to move without strenuous force, the power holding the brother's in place now gone.

Finally in that moment, the other four hunters were able to force the Devil's gate shut, the red glare of Hellfire finally dying away. The same wheel from before began twisting and whirring again as the four hunters caught their breath, turning just as the door locked and just in time to see John stand, and smile at his sons. John stepped forward, towards Dean. He placed a gentle hand on his son's shoulder, and Dean reeled, his breath shuddering as he stared into his father's eyes.

John once more smiled proudly at his son, showing in his eyes just how proud he was of Dean. He looked to the side, where Sam stood, giving him that same look. John's eyes were full of tears as he and Sam shared a nod.

John stepped back as Sam's breathing grew just as uneven as his older brother's, hitching in his throat with every inhale. Sam and Dean's eyes were glossed over with unshed tears. And without a single word, John illuminated in a bright, warm glow, before flickering and fading away. The warm haze cast onto Dean's bright green eyes and Sam's own hazel, gently illuminating their tanned skin before it too faded away with John's spirit.

And that's when the tears fell from both Winchester's eyes as they looked to one another. The brother's shared a look that meant more than any one word could.

• • •

Sam stood above the demon's body, staring at the still smoking hole in it's shoulder. Dean stepped around to stand across from Sam, the Colt still in his hand. Sam was in awe. Almost all his life, he and his family had been chasing after this creature. And then it killed Jess the same way tht it had killed his mother, and that thirst for revenge sprang in his gut, he truly was his father's son.

But now... 24 years of his life, he had spent aspiring to find this thing, to kill it. And here it was. They had finally done it, they had acheived that ultimate goal. The rage he harbored for this thing... it was almost immeasurable.

It killed his mother, it ripped away any chance at a childhood he had ever had, it stole the love of his life from him, it burned down the normalcy he had built for himself, it fed him demon blood... it gave him these damned powers he had never asked for... it damn-near killed him. He didn't know what to do there, standing above the dead body of this thing that had taken one look at his life and decided to put it through the shredder and burn the remains...because that anger still lingered. That anger hadn't gone anywhere.

There was, of course, the relief of knowing it was dead, it couldn't hurt anyone else, his big brother had killed it. But he was still filled with so much rage, and he didn't know how to let it out, how to let it go. And he realized that it wasn't going anywhere. He would forever despise this creature, this thing for tearing apart his life.

Then there was Dean. Standing above it, he didn't know what to think. He was more than anything, relieved. Just as it had Sam, it had torn apart his life. Torn away his mother, and with her, his childhood. Turned his father into a vengeful man. Hurt his baby brother in ways that even he couldn't fathom. Killed his baby brother, turned Sam into... well, God only knows. And... it took away any chance either of the Winchester's had of keeping Noah Marilynn in their lives.

Dean was indifferent because he also didn't understand why the pain wasn't gone. Why it still hrut so much. The demon was dead and gone, why did it still hurt so much? Well, because Sam was still in pain. Because he knew they were still gonna lose Noah. Because it still killed his father, it still killed Sam. And he knew there wasn't a damn thing he could do about any of it, not now at least.

This demon had caused so much strife in the life of the Winchesters. And here it was... finally dead. Each of the brothers had felt over the years that maybe the chase would never end, that they would die still trying to save people and find this demon. And here it was... the chase was over. But deep in each of their hearts, they felt that it would never be over, they both knew this somewhere in them.

Dean looked up to his brother, blood drying on the large gash across his face as a smile spread to his lip, "Well check that off the to-do list." He pushed back all the other feelings, revelling in the relief.

Sam met his brother's eyes, he decided that he too would focus on the joy, and he let his lips quirk up, tears still blurring his vision, "You did it."

"I didn't do it alone," Dean stated. Sam looked over, eyes still glossy, "Do you think Dad really..." He trailed, "Do you think he really climbed out of Hell?"

"The door was open," Dean turned around, slight amusement in his voice, "If anyone's stubborn enugh to do it..." he walked to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with his baby brother, "It'd be him."

Sam glanced at his brother, the corner of his mouth upturning once again, nodding in agreement, "Where do you think he is now?"

"I don't know," Dean answered honestly. "I kind of can't believe it, Dean, I mean..." He trailed for a moment, he now had the ghost of a smile on his lips, "Our whole lives, everything... has been prepping for this and now I..." he chuckled, "I kind of don't know what to say."

Dean met his brother's gaze, smiling, "I do," he crouched down next to the demon's head, staring into the vessel's cold, dead eyes, "That was for our mom," His voice was gravelly and rough as his anger spiked for a split-second, "You son of a bitch."

Noah watched the brother's and he smiled sadly, tears slowly dripping down his face. He took a shuddering breath as he let the smile fall, wetting his lips with his tongue. He took a quiet deep breath as Brian placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, grounding him. Noah nodded, shaking his head and clearing his throat, blinking away any remaining tears in his eyes and wiping away the ones that had fallen.

He looked to his mentor, giving him a small smile and patting the hand sat upon his shoulder, before stepping away. He ran his hand through Delta's top-knot as he walked where he would meet back with the Winchesters, the Impala.

• • •

Noah leaned against a tree in the woods, his eyes trained on the stars in the sky. It felt like forever since he had taken the time to stare up at the beautiful sights in this world. He knew to appreciate it now, though.

Glancing to his left, his eyes fell upon that of that infamous black '67 Chevy Impala. He quirked a smile as he heard the sound of footsteps on the trail, Sam and Dean's hiking boots crunching on the dead leaves.

He watched as they walked back to the Impala, and Sam leaned his back on the fenderwell of the car, while Dean opened the front door. Right before Dean could swing himself into the driver's seat, though, Sam spoke, "You know, when Jake saw me... it was like he saw a ghost."

Dean turned to look at his little brother, he knew what was coming. Noah felt the dread build in his stomach as he stared at the brothers. Dean shut the door to the Impala, turning to completely face his brother.

Sam scoffed, "I mean, Hell, you heard him, Dean... he said he killed me."

"I'm glad he was wrong," Dean tried, leaning against the Impala. "I don't think he was, Dean," Sam turned to look at Dean. Dean kept his eyes directed orward for a moment, gaping like a fish as he tried to find a way to explain. He spared a glance at the younger Winchester, taking a deep breath.

Noah took a deep breath, standing up off of the tree trunk, but he couldn't seem to make his legs move him forward. "What happened?" Sam tensely asked his brother, "After I was stabbed..."

"I already told you," Dean stated. "Not everything," Sam denied. Dean stared at Sam for a moment, "Sam, we just killed the demon, can we celebrate for a minute?"

Sam stared at his brother, narrowing his eyes. They filled with tears and he faltered, glancing to the side for a second, opening his mouth and closing it again when he couldn't muster the words. That realization hit him like a sack of bricks.

"Did I die?" He grit out. Dean turned around, "Oh come on."

"Did you sell your soul for me, like Dad did for you?" Sam questioned, that anger flooding back. "Oh come on! No!" Dean exclaimed. They stared at one another for a pregnant pause.

Sam stepped away from the car, moving where his brother couldn't avoid looking at him, "Tell me the truth."

Noah shook his nerves off, taking another breath for courage, and one last one for confidence before stepping out of the woods with his hands in his pockets. The sounds of the leaves crunching beneath his feet accompanied by his voice cause the Winchesters to turn around to face him, "He is telling the truth."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, sensing the underlying tone. Noah gulped, sharing a look and giving Dean a nod of reassurance before turning back to meet the eyes of the man he had somehow fallen for... those beauiful, bright hazel eyes that had turned a similar dark green to those his brother had with his high emotions.

Noah cleared his throat, "Dean didn't sell his soul for you." That realization hit Sam like an anvil, as his mouth gaped open and tears stung his eyes with the wish to pour down his cheeks.

Noah's eyes trained on the forest floor as he built up that last bit of courage to tell the truth, and he then looked up, meeting Sam's eyes with a soft smile, "I did."

Sam blinked back the willing tears, his heart had begun to throb in pain for a reason he was unsure of, and he stared off into the wide expanse of the wilderness surrounding them, taking one more shuddering breath as he turned back to face Noah, "How long did you get?" his voice cracked on every vowel, and it was as shaky as his breathing pattern.

Noah quirked a small, pitiful smile, hoping to give some form of comfort with the bittersweet expression, "One year."

Dean's own mouth dropped this time, his eyes closng in despair. He had known of the deal, not of the time limit. Sam pursed his lips, nodding bitterly. That anger still flowed in his veins.

"You got a year?" Dean questioned in shock. Noah nodded in confirmation, biting his lip. God, that old nervous tic.

Sam stared at the ground, "You shouldn't have done that, " he whipped his head up, staring at Noah with those beautiful hazel gems that Noah had come to adore, glossed over with the anguish he was eeling in that moment, sure he was glad that it wasn't his brother, but he was still losing his best friend, "How could you do that?"

"Do not," Noah held up a finger assertively, "Get mad at me." Sam stared at him for a moment longer before scoffing and shaking his head. "Don't you dare," Noah continued, "I chose to do this, neither of you shoulder the blame for this, this was my choice, and if anyone is at fault, it's-it's-it's," Noah stammered," It's the fucking demon that caused your death, or it's Jake's, whatever you wanna place it on! But that blame does not belong to you! This was my decision, I made my bed, I'll lie in it, okay?" He raised his voice, his lip quivering as he staved away the breakdown.

Sam backed down, that angry flare dropping down into despair. "I made this decision for you and your brother, you did not need to lose Dean of all people, and he did not need to lose you, so I..." Noah sighed, "I made the choice to do what I had to, and I want you to understand that this was my choice to make, Hell, it might've been something I probably shouldn't have done, but it's happened now, and there's no going back, and just know, it will be a cold day in Hell before I regret making this decision."

"I don't care what it takes, but I'm gonna get you out of this, we're gonna get you out of this," Sam stated. His tone had a finality to it and Noah decided better than to argue.

"Well.." Ellen's voice caused the three of the men to turn back to the pathway through the woods, "Yellow-eyed demon might be dead, but a lot more got through that gate."

Delta ran over to Noah and he smiled as he ran his hand down her neck, her panting smile making him smile back. "How many, you think?" Dean questioned.

"A hundred, maybe two hundred," Sam stated, "It's an army... he's unleashed an army."

The combiend knowledge of the impending doom of these demons roaming the Earth and Noah's.... situation, made Sam's head spin. His throughts felt like he was swimming and trying to hear what someone was saying wiht his head underwater, their outlook from here seemed to hopeless.

Ellen and Bobby shared a look. "Hope to hell you boys are ready," Bobby stated.

"'Cause the war has just begun," Brian added. Dean licked his lips, "Well then.."

A smile cracked through his cheeks. He walked back to the trunk of the Impala, tossing the Colt in. Sam stood beside him as they stared down at their equipment.

"We got work to do," Dean said, smiling again before slamming the trunk closed.

• • •

Author's Note: And this concludes our first Act. Wild ride so far, huh? Do not worry, I do plan to get right on back to Act 2 soon enough, but I do want to take a break for a week or two. Act 2 will not be a seperate book, this book will continue all the way through season 4 if my plans go correctly. The next Act will be filled with a lot of tension, suspension, denial, and in the end... a little bit of love. Prepare for emotions, a whole lot of anger, and heartbreak... as well as the call for at least one brotherly intervention. Act 2 epigraph should be up tonight, around the same time as this one, and that will foreshadow sme things... I will be taking a break long enough to recuperate from all of this, recollect my inspiration, and watch season 5. But for now... fare thee well.