chapter two, act one
i miss you, i'm sorry

Dean knew, from the state they had found her, that Freya was in serious condition. So waiting for the doctors to update them on her state was getting frustrating.

He couldn't ask about her either, as he wasn't her family. And if he showed his real concern, Henry and Peter would start to ask questions. Sam was trying to distract him, telling him about possible cases, but Dean was barely listening. He hadn't even been able to kill whoever or whatever had done this to his ex-girlfriend.

"Holloway?" The doctor's voice pronouncing her last name brought him out of his thoughts.

Henry quickly stood up, while Peter closed the comic book in his hands to pay attention to the doctor's explanation. Sam and Dean remained seated, listening closely.

"Yeah. Hi. It's me, I'm her father." Henry answered, approaching the doctor. "Is she okay?"

"Mr. Holloway. I'm doctor Ross." The man introduced himself, shaking his hand. "I am the one who took care of her." He explained. Henry nodded in silence. "She had a head concussion. But the CT came back negative. There is no sign of brain damage. She also has a couple of broken ribs and lost a lot of blood, so we've had to give her some transfusions. All of that said, we think she is going to be fine." Henry sighed with relief, while Dean felt how his breathing became normal again. Beside him, Peter could sense his relief, squinting his eyes at him in confusion. "She is still asleep. We're waiting for her to wake up, hopefully it won't be long. Everything seems normal. She's been lucky."

"Thank you, Doctor. Thank you so much." Henry said. "When will we be able to see her?"

"I will have a nurse take you. Although only family is allowed at the moment."

Dean was afraid he would say that, but a part of him already knew. He wanted to see her, but he also knew he had no right to.

"Guys, I haven't had a chance to thank you yet." Dean and Sam stood as Henry approached them. "I am very grateful that you found her. We both are, aren't we, Peter?"

"Yeah, of course." He nodded. Sam gave him a little smile. "Although I'm actually the one who found her."

"Peter."

"What? It's true."

"We're just happy she's okay." Sam interrupted their little discussion. Feeling secretly jealous of the father-son relationship the two seemed to have.

Henry smiled at him in appreciation.

"Do you think maybe we could see her?" Dean asked, drawing the man's attention. "To know what she can tell us about the thing that attacked her?" He quickly clarified.

"I'm sure she'll want to hunt it down herself." Henry answered.

"No. Yeah. Of course. But she's hurt, and that thing can still hurt people."

"Yeah, you're right." He admitted, thoughtfully. "When she wakes up I'll ask her. I'm sure she would like to thank you too."

"Thanks."

"In the meantime, you can go back to our house." Henry declared, pulling the keys out of his jacket and holding them out to Dean, who looked at them in confusion. "If she tells me anything I will let you know. It's late, you should rest."

His concern for them was rare for the Winchester brothers. Although deep down they appreciated it.

"You should take Peter with you. If it's no problem."

"No. It's okay." Dean answered.

"Wait, wait, wait." The boy exclaimed, looking up at his father. "No. I want to see Freya."

"Peter, it's late." He answered. "And you have school tomorrow."

"Do you seriously think I'm going to class after today?" He asked in disbelief. "Freya needs me by her side."

"Freya is in good hands." His father assured him, crouching down to be at his level. "The doctors will take care of her. I will take care of her."

"What if that thing comes after me?" He then asked.

"I doubt it. But if that's the case, that's what they're here for, isn't it? To hunt it down." He said, pointing to the Winchester brothers.

"Because they've been doing so well so far." He scoffed, rolling his eyes.

"Hey, cut the attitude." His father requested, frustrated. "They've come here to help without expecting anything in return. Be a little nice to them, okay? "

"Whatever."

Henry rose back up, giving Dean and Sam an apologetic look.

"Hey, kid." Dean called him. "How about a pizza? We can stop and get some on the way back to your house."

Peter narrowed his eyes at him.

"You're not buying me off with food. I'm not that easy." He assured him.

"Unlike you, Dean." Sam muttered with amusement.

"Shut up." He answered, but Sam keeps an amused smile on his lips.

"All right. I'll go with you." Peter finally accepted with a sigh. "But I won't go to class tomorrow. I want to be with Freya." He looked back up to his father.

"We'll talk about it later." He answered him. "Thanks guys."

"Yeah, no problem."

Peter didn't went to school the next day. When he woke up, his father still hadn't come home. Henry had spent the night in the hospital, in an uncomfortable chair next to his daughter's bed, waiting for her to wake up.

That morning Dean had been the first to get up after sleeping only a few hours. As the younger Holloway went into their home kitchen, Sam was reading on his computer looking for possible cases for him and his brother. Meanwhile, Dean was reading Freya's hunting journal looking for any clues about the man who had kidnapped her and Kaila.

"If it was a demon it will be gone by now." Sam said, looking up at his brother.

"Unless he's still hell-bent on following Freya." Dean answered. "If we find him, we could finish him off."

"You can't kill a demon." Peter's voice drew the attention of both brothers as their gazes traveled to the kitchen doorway.

Looking at him, Dean took a sip of his coffee cup before answering his statement. "Yes, you can. If you have the right weapon."

"Like what? The Colt?" Peter asked, frowning.

"You know about the Colt?"

"My dad wrote about it in one of his books." He shrugged his shoulders as he walked toward the fridge to pull out a carton of milk. "He thinks I don't pay attention, but I do."

Sam and Dean shared a look.

Walking past Dean, Peter grabbed his sister's diary from the counter and a box of cereal from the nearest cupboard before sitting down next to Sam.

"I was reading that, you know?" Dean looked at him in disbelief.

"It's private." Peter said, fixing a bowl of cereal. "Read a newspaper. Or a book. There's plenty of them on every shelf in this house."

"It's a hunting journal. There's nothing private about it."

Peter squinted silently, watching him closely for a few seconds. Dean turned to his brother, confused.

"You know, my sister knew a Dean once." Peter then said, gaining back the attention of both brothers.

"She did?" Dean asked.

"Yeah." He answered with a nod, looking down at his bowl of cereal. "He was a jerk. Well, I never met him, but he dumped her in a motel near Chicago. He never called or gave any explanation. "

"Yeah, that sounds like a jerk." Sam whispered, turning his attention back to the computer in front of him as he earned an annoyed look from his brother.

"Sharing a name with him doesn't help me like you." Peter admitted, pretending not to notice that little interaction between the two of them.

"Maybe he had a reason for leaving." Dean said, looking back at him.

"Maybe." Peter repeated, staring straight into his eyes.

Dean gulped harshly at his watchful gaze, feeling as if the boy could see right through him.

"You know." He noted after a few seconds, not taking his eyes off him. "You've known since we got here, haven't you?"

Sam turned his head to look at the boy.

"I know my sister like the back of my hand. I know where she keeps everything. Of course I knew." Peter answered, placing on the counter one of the photos Freya had saved from her time with Dean. "So, what exactly are you doing here? Trying to make up for what an idiot you were?"

Dean sighed, taking the photo in his fingers to look at it carefully.

"Bobby sent us here. I didn't know she was the one we had to look for until we got here." He explained. "I was trying to protect her, you know? When I left."

"You don't have to give me any explanations. Although leaving in the middle of the night seems like something an asshole would do."

Dean didn't know how to answer that, and he was thankful he didn't have to when the phone started ringing. Sam was the one who answered the call, getting up and approaching the phone placed on one of the kitchen walls. Peter looked at him with interest, hoping it was news from his sister.

"It was Henry." He announced, as he hung up the phone. "Freya woke up."

"Great. I'll wait for you in the car. Be quick or I'll go alone." Peter exclaimed, rising to his feet and leaving the kitchen in a matter of seconds.

"Don't... touch my car." Dean warned him, leaving the coffee mug on the counter as he followed him.

Sam smiled in amusement, grabbing his jacket from the back of the chair.

─── ❖ ── ✦ ── ❖ ───

Dean could feel Freya's eyes on him as he enter the hospital room after his brother. She didn't seem surprise or confuse to see him there, which funny enough made him more surprise and confuse.

"My father said you saved me." She smiled politely, shifting her gaze to Sam.

"I wouldn't say that much." He answered. "We couldn't finish the guy off, he left pretty quickly. We didn't even saw him."

"It's okay. I think I scared him."

Her response brought a smile to Sam's face. While Dean didn't know how to act now that he stood in front of her.

"I'm glad you're better." Sam said. "I'm...

"Sammy." She completed, looking at him fondly. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Right." He nodded. "So have I, about you."

Freya's gaze then turned back to Dean, whose eyes had been locked on her. A sense of familiarity as their green eyes finally met. Part of Freya was still angry at him for leaving without explanation, another wanted to hug him and tell him how much she had missed him. Dean felt an ache in his chest, as if that meeting was just the beginning of another goodbye.

"I should... leave you two alone." Sam's voice brought them back to reality, reminding them that he was still in the room. "It's good to meet you, Freya."

"Likewise." She responded with a kind smile on her lips.

As Sam left the room a heavy silence settled between the former couple. Dean's eyes had drifted away from her, looking everywhere and nowhere in particular. But now it was Freya who couldn't stop staring at him, trying to read his body language.

"I should have known." She was the one to break the silence. Dean's eyes fell on her with a sense of confusion.

"What?"

"That you were a hunter." She clarified with a nervous smile peeking through her lips. "It was pretty obvious now that I think about it."

"That you were wasn't." He admitted, feeling slightly less nervous in her presence. "I really believed the whole 'art student traveling the country' thing."

"That wasn't entirely a lie." She assured. "I was an art student, but that's not why I was there."

Dean nodded slightly, his eyes dropping to the floor before he spoke again. "Listen, Freya, I'm sorry... I left the way I did. I really thought it was for the best."

"For me or for you?"

"You know how this job works. If anything had happened to you... it would have been because of me. I couldn't have that."

"Yes, I understand." She nodded with a slight tone of bitterness in her voice. "But you could have said goodbye, don't you think?" Dean opened his mouth to answer, but Freya was quick to cut him off. "It doesn't matter now, Dean. I'm over it."

"Right." His voice came out as a whisper. "I'm glad you're okay." Freya looked away from him, feeling that same pain she had felt when she woke up that morning years ago without him by her side and no explanation. "I'm... I'm sorry."

As quickly as Dean left the hospital room Sam approached him, following him down the hallway.

"Did you tell her?" He asked him.

"Tell her what, Sammy?"

"Are you kidding? You know what."

"Why would I do that?" He asked, not bothering to look at him.

"Oh, I don't know. Because you've been wanting to call her for months." Sam shrugged. Dean stopped in his tracks, turning around to look at him. "Yeah, I pay attention too. You think I haven't seen you looking at her number in your phone? Well, I have. You want to tell her."

"No, I don't." He assured. "Why would I what to? Tell her I was an idiot back then, that I don't want to leave her again, but then do that exactly in a few months? No, thank you. She doesn't deserve that."

"She deserves the truth."

"Well, I was never good at giving her what she deserves. I'm back to being the jerk who leaves without explanation. I can live with that." He declared, turning away from his brother.

"Dean, you're dying. It's not the same..." Sam insisted, but Dean had already walked away far enough not to hear him.

"He is dying?" Peter's voice caused Sam to turn around quickly.

"What?" He frowned. "It's complicated."

"Listen, I don't even like him." He admitted. "But I know my sister and she loves him, I think. At least she deserves an explanation."

"I know she does. But I'm not the one who should give it to her."

"She's always wanted to get away from here, you know? To travel. She did a job once near Chicago. The only one she's ever done outside of San Francisco. That's where she met Dean." He explained as Sam listened carefully. "You guys do that, you travel around hunting monsters. I think she'd like something like that."

It wasn't hard for Sam to understand what Peter was asking. And the idea of Freya traveling with them didn't bother him at all. Part of him hoped that she wanted to help Dean as much as he.

"You know that would mean you may not see her for a long time."

"I don't care. I want her to be happy."

One thing that neither Peter nor Dean nor Sam knew was that Freya already knew about the deal Dean had made to save his brothers life. She knew Dean had little time left before he would be sent to hell. That demon had told her everything, with the sole purpose of hurting her. Because that's what that demon had been doing since she turned 10.

Her battle with that demon was hers alone. That was why she had lied to the Winchester brothers when they had asked her about her attacker. And it was also one of the reasons why going with them and leaving San Francisco seemed like the best idea. So she could hunt him down.

Except for the fact that it would mean spending a significant amount of time with Dean.

─── ❖ ── ✦ ── ❖ ───

Freya left the hospital the following day. She had to rest and take some medicine, but the injuries weren't too serious and her ribs would heal on their own. Besides, she was already used to the bruises.

When she and her father arrived at the house, the Winchester brothers were still there. Dean wanted to leave as soon as possible, but Sam had insisted on waiting for Freya to return. So while Dean was gathering his things, Sam was with Peter. At the younger Winchester's request, the boy was showing him some of the books on supernatural history that his father stored.

Their conversation got interrupted when the curly-haired blond rushed into his sister's arms, happy to have her back home. A groan of pain left the girl's lips at the jolt, but that didn't stop a loving smile from appearing on her lips.

Dean heard them from upstairs, but he made no effort to join them. Minutes later, he was too focused on his own thoughts to notice Freya's presence in the doorway of the room where he and his brother had stayed over those last couple of nights.

"A deal with a demon, Dean, really?" He turned around at the sound of her voice, meeting her gaze.

"How did you...? Did Sammy tell you?"

"No. He didn't tell me anything." She quickly assured, which only made him more confused. "I lied before. When he asked me about the man who'd attacked me and kidnapped Kaila." She admitted, sitting down on the edge of one of the beds. Dean watched her closely, listening to her words. "I lied. I did know him. Not with that face, though. He's a demon I tried to hunt down a few months ago. I didn't succeed and since then he's been after me. He told me about it. Somehow he knew about... us. And he wanted to hurt me."

"So you already knew I was a hunter."

"Well, he wasn't the one I wanted to hear it from. But yeah, he told me." She nodded, looking up at him. "Why'd you do it, Dean?"

"Sammy was dead. I didn't have a choice." His response surprised her. Although it was the only logical reason why anyone would make such a deal. "You would have done the same thing for Peter."

He was right and she knew it. But that didn't stop her heart from shuddering at the mere thought of losing Dean again. After just a few exchanges of words and glances, Freya felt once again so connected to him that the thought of losing him hurt just as much as the first time.

"They really only gave you a year?" She turned to look at him once again as he sat down next to her on the edge of the bed. Dean sighed and nodded. "How long do you have left?"

"A few months." He answered. "And if I try to find a way around it, they'll kill Sam."

"Is that why you came here?" She asked with a frown. "You wanted to apologize before it was to late?"

A sigh left Dean's lips as he turned to look back at her. "I've wanted to apologize from the moment I stepped foot out of that motel room, Freya. I cared about you too much. I didn't want you to get hurt."

Freya didn't know whether to believe him. The last time Dean had said something like that to her it had ended with her waking up in an empty room. But at that very moment, looking into his eyes, she knew he was being completely honest with her.

"I forgive you, Dean."

"You're just saying that out of pity." He said, turning his gaze away.

"No, I'm not." She assured him, gaining enough courage to take his hand in hers. That gesture made Dean flinch, but the familiarity of her touch quickly put him at ease. "That's not the reason. I cared about you too. I still do."

"I don't want to drag you into this, Freya."

"You're not. I want to help." She said. "I may not be able to break the deal, but you guys can help me kill this demon that's after me. Peter told me about the Colt. And if you're gonna die, I want to spend whatever time you have left with you. That's of course if you wan-"

"I don't know..." He cut her off, rising to his feet.

"Come on, Dean." She insisted. "We can help each other. Or are you gonna leave Sam just like that?" Dean remained silent, pacing up and down the room. "You were right when you said I'd like him. And if he were Peter... I wouldn't want him to be alone. Plus, I might be able to find a way..."

"You're not going to look for anything." He interrupted her. "I told you, if I try to find a way around it, Sam dies."

"All right." She sighed. "I won't do anything. But..."

"You're won't take 'no' for an answer, are you?" Freya shook her head. "We leave in 20 minutes." He then said, making her smile.

But, before Freya could go anywhere with the Winchester brothers, she had to convince her father. Despite being a grown woman of twenty-four, Freya didn't want to leave without talking to her father. She would rather leave things on good terms and discuss the situation.

She knew her father wouldn't be thrilled with the idea, but she had always been good at getting what she wanted from him. Henry also knew she could take care of herself.

What really worried Freya was leaving her father and brother alone. Henry was no hunter, he could barely shoot a gun. And even though she herself had trained Peter to defend himself and they both knew enough about supernatural creatures, she was still worried about leaving them.

"You're not going with them." He answered as he closes his office door.

"Why not? I'll find-"

"It's dangerous." He said, cutting her off.

"I wouldn't hunt alone anymore. And I'd help more people than here." She answered, watching as he walked around the desk to stand in front of her.

"You're hurt." He noted.

"I'll stay out of the fight for a while. I can do research."

"I don't know..."

"I'm going to find that demon, dad." She stated. "They have the Colt, I'll be able to kill him."

"If there's any bullets left. They could have used them all."

"They haven't."

"I hope you're right." He sighed, sitting down. "But, Freya, I don't want you to put yourself in danger again for this revenge."

"It's more than that and you know it." She answered, sitting in front of him. "I'm doing this to protect us. All of us."

"I know." He whispered, watching her closely. "You won't listen to me, would you?"

"I've never been good at it." She shrugged with an amused smile on her lips.

"No. Neither you or your brother." He sighed. "You two are just like your mother."

"I'll call every day." She promised him.

"You better." He said. "I love you."

"I love you too." She smiled, standing up. "I'll go get my stuff."

─── ❖ ── ✦ ── ❖ ───

Sam was glad to hear that Freya would be joining them from now on. Part of him hoped she could help him save his brother. Another part of him was just relieved that if Dean finally ended up in hell, he would no longer be completely alone.

He liked her. Without hardly knowing her, he could already see what had made his brother fall in love with her. Aside from being beautiful, Freya seemed to be a sweet, caring, strong and intelligent person. He honestly couldn't wait to get to know her more.

"Call me anytime, for anything. Seriously, Peter, anytime." Freya said to her brother as she crouched down in front of him.

"I will. Don't worry about it." He answered, his eyes traveling behind her, where he could see the Winchester brothers leaning against the car, waiting for her. "I've packed a couple of comics in there, in case you get bored and so you don't forget me." He said, handing her a backpack.

"As if I could." She smiled.

"Dad has also put a gift in there. I think it was something from Mom." Freya looked down at the backpack.

"Would you thank him for me?" She asked, trying not to show the sadness in her voice. Peter nodded.

"Sure."

Freya nodded slightly, looking back at Sam and Dean.

"Remember, salt, holy water and silver knife under the bed." She said, looking up again at her little brother. "You have the key to my guns and you know where to hide."

"Relax. I've got it." He assured her, as he had already heard her say that just a few minutes before.

"Okay." She whispered.

"We'll be all right."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." She nodded. "I know."

"I'll miss you." He said, wrapping his arms around her.

"I'll miss you too, buddy." Freya smiled, hugging him back. "I love you."

"Love you too."

Freya had never spent that much time apart from her brother. Peter was like a son to her. Sure, Henry was a loving and caring father, but he was also a very busy one. She had always felt like a mother to him. Every time he had a nightmare, Peter would appear in her bed. Every time something exciting happened to him at school, she was the one he told. She just hoped that the distance wouldn't break the bond between them.

Pressing a kiss to his cheek, Freya broke away from the hug, getting to her feet to join Dean and Sam in the car.

"Ready?" Dean asked as he saw her approaching him.

"Yup." She nodded.

"All right. The back seats are all yours. You won't be driving anytime soon, so make yourself comfortable." He said, opening the driver's door.

Freya frowned, her hand gripping the door handle. "Why not?"

Dean looked back at her. "Remember the last time I gave you Baby's keys? I won't make the same mistake."

"I've learned since then, you know." She answered. Dean raised his eyebrows at her, giving her a serious look. "Fine." She sighed, getting inside the car.

Imitating her action, Dean got behind the wheel. His eyes taking one last glance at Peter, who was waving goodbye to Freya.

"Come on, Dean, stop frowning." Freya leaned over the back of the front seats, resting her arms on it and placing her head between both brothers. "We might make a good team." She smiled, before slightly nudging the youngest's shoulder. "Right, Sammy?"

Normally Sam wouldn't let anyone besides his brother use that nickname, but he liked the way it sounded when she said it. So with an amused smile he turned to Dean.

"Yeah." He replied, receiving a not-so-amused look from him.

"Is the rule still the same?" Freya asked, gaining his attention back as he started the car.

"What rule?"

"You know 'driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole'"

"Right." He nodded.

"Well I'm not riding shotgun and I've got some pretty good cassette tapes here." She informed, looking inside the backpack her brother had given her.

"You're not the driver either." He pointed out.

"Come on, Dean." She insisted. Sam smiled in amusement, looking over at his brother. "I've got good taste in music. You said it yourself."

"I must have been drunk."

"Very funny." She said, rolling her eyes. "But, seriously, we can't listen to the same four albums all the time."

"I've been telling him that for years." Sam commented.

"Maybe on the next stop."

"Really?" They both looked at him with surprise. Freya with a gleam of hope in her eyes while Sam did with disbelief.

"I said maybe."

"I take that as a yes." Freya smiled, leaning against the back of her seat.