chapter five, act one
witch city

Since Freya had told them that she wasn't going to join them on the next hunt, Dean had been trying to hide his concern for her. The Holloway girl had decided to go to the address Bela had left written down for her in hopes of finding answers. She didn't know exactly what answers, but if they were about her older brother or the demon that had possessed him, Freya needed to find them.

Part of Dean's concern came from where Freya wanted them to leave her while they headed to Albany, New York for a vampire case. Truth was, Freya felt the same way as he did. It seemed like a twisted joke that the address where she was supposed to find answers would be in Salem, Massachusetts, of all places.

Witch City, people called it, due to the trials that took place in 1692.

"Are you sure you don't want us to go with you?" Dean asked as he stopped the car in front of a motel.

"I'm just gonna visit an old friend. I'll be fine." She assured him. "Besides, you guys need to go to New York and stop those vampires before more people end up dead."

"Yeah, I know. It's just... it had to be Salem of all places?" Dean sighed, looking at her through the rearview mirror. Sam couldn't help but smile with amusement at his brother's obvious concern for the girl.

"Believe me, I thought the same thing when my friend sent me the address." Freya admitted, leaning forward against the back of their seats. "But she doesn't know anything about hunting or the supernatural."

"Okay. Just... call if you need anything, okay?"

"You know, you're really cute when you worry." Freya said before leaving a kiss on his cheek. That gesture caught Dean by surprise, making him blush slightly. "Sam, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"And who's gonna make sure you don't do anything stupid?" Dean asked, as if nothing had happened.

"I'm not going on a vampire hunt."

"No, you're going out with your friend."

"Yeah, and I know how to protect myself from pervs." She assured. "Be careful, okay?"

"You too." Dean sighed.

Freya smiled slightly, waving goodbye and grabbing her duffel bag to leave the interior of the Impala. Once alone, Dean noticed his brother's gaze on him and an amused smile on his lips.

"What?" He asked, letting out a annoyed sigh.

"Nothing." Sam answered, looking away from him. "I thought you were mad at her about the crossroads demon."

"I was. I am. But I also know her well enough to know when she's lying. I don't know what she's hiding, but she's not going to visit an old friend." Dean stated, starting the car up again as he watched Freya walk into the motel lobby.

"You think she's gonna try something else to save you?"

"I don't know. But I'm sure you'd like her to." He sighed. "It's okay, Sam, I get it. I mean I'm not blind, I see what you're going through with this whole deal, me going away and all that. But you're gonna be okay."

Sam looked back at him.

"You think so?"

"Yeah, you'll keep hunting, y'know, you live your life. You're stronger than me." Dean declared, leaving the motel parking lot. Sam cleared his throat. "You are! You are... you'll get over it. But I want you to know I'm sorry, I'm sorry for... putting you through all this, I am."

Staring at him with narrowed eyes, Sam lost his patience.

"You know what, Dean? Go screw yourself."

"What?"

"I don't want an apology from you! And by the way, I'm a big boy now, I can take care of myself."

"Oh, well, excuse me." Dean snorted.

"So would you please quit worrying about me? I mean that's the whole problem in the first place. I don't want you to worry about me, Dean, I want you to worry about you! I want you to give a crap that you're dying!" Sam exclaimed. Dean said nothing but smirked annoyingly. "So, that's it? Nothing else to say for you?"

"I think I should call Henry. He'll make sure Freya doesn't do anything stupid." Dean spoke again, changing the subject completely.

"You are unbelievable." Sam snorted angrily, rolling his eyes and turning his gaze away from him.

─── ❖ ── ✦ ── ❖ ───

After Dean informed Henry that Freya had made a stop in Salem, the man wouldn't stop calling his daughter. However, the girl decided to ignore his calls for the time being. Her head focused on what she had gone to do in the Massachusetts town.

Although she didn't know exactly what she was looking for her confusion only grew when she saw that the address Bela had given her led her to what looked like a mental institution.

"Freya, I didn't expect you to call me back so soon." Bela admitted when she answered her phone.

"Okay, what is this? A bad joke?" Freya asked angrily. Her hands gripping the steering wheel of the car she had rented and her back leaning back against her seat.

"I know what it looks like, but that's as far as my leads got me."

"What leads? Why the hell were you investigating my family?" Freya questioned as her eyes traveled back to the mental institution.

"Someone paid me to do it."

"Who?"

"I don't reveal my..."

"Oh, cut the crap." Freya cut her off. "You brought me here, so talk."

Bela sighed, taking a breath of air before speaking again.

"A woman name Christine Lockhart." She answered. "She lived in Salem when she hired me. She wanted to know what happened to Laurel Holloway, your mother."

"And what did you tell her?"

"I told her I didn't investigate normal crimes or disappearances. I explained that my job was to sell supernatural objects and she offered to pay me with something very valuable in addition to informing me of the necklace I stole from your father."

"So you took both items and left the investigation." Freya assumed.

"Oh, no. I kept my deal." Bela assured her. "But your father, or whoever, covered up very well everything about your mothers death. Would you mind telling me what happened? I know you were 10 years old at the time."

"I'm sorry, it's a family secret."

"Whatever." Bela sighed. "I didn't find anything, except for a donation record. From your father, to that mental institution."

"I don't understand." Freya frowned in confusion.

"Neither do I. But after Christine died, I stopped investigating."

"Christine died?"

"Uh-huh." Bela nodded. "The same day I went back to Salem to tell her what I knew. Her daughter Maddie found her stabbed to death in her kitchen."

The resemblance of Christine's death to her own mother's was obvious. And so her curiosity only grew on her. Did Christine know her mother? And if she didn't, why did she care enough about the circumstances of her death to hire someone like Bela to investigate it? Why was her father donating money to that mental institution? And on top of all those questions were the doubts that the crossover demon had given her. Was all this related to Carter?

Without a word, Freya ended the call, grabbed one of her fake badges and exited the interior of the vehicle to head to the building located on the opposite street.

She had a slight suspicion, a suspicion that didn't quite fit with what her father had told her all those years before. She didn't know where her older brother was. After the incident her father had made sure to erase traces of his existence and send him away from home, away from her and Peter. But after the crossroads demon's comments and Bela's information, Freya couldn't help but make her own conclusions.

"Agent McVie, FBI." She said to the receptionist at the mental institution, flashing her badge. "I'm looking for what I believe is one of your patients. Carter Holloway."

The woman nodded, looking down at the reception computer.

"I'm sorry, we don't have anyone by that name here." She then answered.

"Oh, that's okay." Freya murmured, frowning in confusion. Then an idea popped into her head, causing her to pull her wallet out of her jacket to show her a picture. "Uh... do you know either of these two men?" She pointed to her brother and father in that old family photo she had managed to save after the incident.

The woman shifted nervously, as if she recognized one of the men. Or maybe both of them.

"I'm sorry, I can't answer that."

"Why is that?" Freya frowned.

"It's confidential."

"Confidential, right." Freya sighed, putting the photo away. "Well, I'd like to speak to the director of this place."

"Sorry, she is not here right now. You can come back with an order."

"Right, I'll do that. Thanks." Freya assured before leaving the building.

With the doors of the institution closed to her for the time being, Freya decided to investigate her other lead, Christine Lockhart. And for that she had to find the address of her home. So, with her phone buzzing from her father's continuous calls, Freya headed for the motel where she'd decided to stay.

"Want to tell me why you weren't answering your phone calls?" Henry asked when his daughter finally answered one of his calls.

"Because I know what you were going to tell me." Freya sighed, resting her head on her hand with exhaustion. She had been searching for hours and had found nothing on Christine.

"Then listen to me and get out of Salem." Her father ordered her.

"Why?" She frowned. "What are you hiding from me, Dad?"

"Nothing you need to worry about."

"If it has to do with Carter, I think I do have to worry." She stated.

"Carter is not a problem." Henry assured her.

"No? Then, why do demons care so much about him?"

"You talked to a demon?" Henry asked. His voice sounding alarmed and concerned. "Freya, tell me you haven't made a deal."

"I haven't made any deals, but apparently you did once."

"That was a long time ago and I never got to close the deal. It was a stupid idea, and I'm glad I didn't do it."

Freya sighed, keeping silent for a few moments. In her hand she held the family photo with her parents and Carter on her ninth birthday. Her last good and happy birthday until the one she spent years later with Dean. It was a bit ironic to think that at the current rate she was going with the investigation she would surely spend her next birthday alone.

But Dean wouldn't let that happen, would he? He'd come back for her before that happened. At least the Dean she had known years before wouldn't let her spend her birthday all by herself. This Dean... Freya wasn't so sure she knew him.

"Do you know a woman named Christine Lockhart?" Henry sighed at her question, running a hand over his face.

"She was one of your mother's best friends." He answered. "Why?"

"She died the same way Mom did."

"I know." He sighed.

"It had to be the same demon, Dad. I think I'm close."

"Maybe you are." Henry admitted, knowing how important this was to Freya. "But it wasn't Carter who was possessed that time. It couldn't have been him."

"Because he's in that mental institution, isn't he?" She asked. "The one you donate money to from time to time."

"It's for his own good. He was traumatized..."

"We all were." She cut him off.

"Yeah. But you didn't see him like I did, Freya."

"Yeah, I guess I didn't." She sighed.

─── ❖ ── ✦ ── ❖ ───

Reviving the memories of that night wasn't good for Freya. It wouldn't be good for anyone knowing how traumatizing it had been for the whole family. Except, perhaps, for Peter. He didn't remember anything, he was just a baby. But like Freya and Carter, the little boy had also lost his mother.

She and Henry had sworn never to tell him anything. They had promised. But Freya wanted to tell him, she wanted to tell him once she had made sure she had killed her mother's killer.

During all the hours of searching, Freya had failed to find anything about Christine Lockhart. No one by that name lived or had ever lived in Salem. So there were only two options. Either Bela had lied to her completely, which was more than possible. Or Christine had another name.

So, as she suspected, Freya came across the case of a stabbing murder five years earlier. A woman named Andrea Summers had died murdered in the kitchen of her home, with several stab wounds found on her body. Her 21-year-old daughter, Hope, had found her and called 911. The case was still open, with no clear suspects or leads.

"Hi." Freya smiled as a slightly older girl with brown hair opened the house door she had just knocked on. "Agent McVie, FBI"

The girl narrowed her eyes, looking at the badge Freya flashed at her.

"Hi." She responded, confused by her presence. "Can I help you?"

"That depends. Are you Maddie Lockhart?" Freya asked.

"I'm sorry, I think you've made a mistake." Taking a nervous step backwards the brunette tried to close the door but Freya placed a foot in the way to block her.

"I just want to ask you a few questions." Freya insisted.

"Yeah, I don't think so. Like I said, you made a mistake." She answered, using all her strength to try to close the door.

"No, I didn't. I'm Freya Holloway."

"And you expect me to believe you just like that? You could be..."

"I could be... What? A demon?" Freya cut her off. "You can test me if you want. Salt, holy water, whatever you have on hand will do."

Maddie sighed, slowly opening the door again. "What do you want?"

"Like I said, I just want to ask you a few questions." Freya took a step back. "Talk about your mother and mine and why they knew each other."

After Maddie agreed to talk to her, she stepped aside letting her into her home and leading her into the main living room. Freya's eyes roamed the room, noticing the pictures above the fireplace and next to the table lamps beside the sofa.

All the pictures were of Maddie, but she was always accompanied by someone. Always the same person. A woman who Freya assumed was Christine. She was a beautiful woman, and one who seemed to have raised her daughter all by her own.

"Laurel and my mother met at summer camp here in Salem. They became friends very quickly, along with another girl named Harper." Maddie explained, handing Freya a cup of tea as they both sat on the couch. "My mother told me that Laurel moved to California to attend college and that's where she met her husband."

"My father, yes. I've heard that story many times. He needed a tutor for his chemistry classes and my mother needed a history tutor. They fell in love instantly, or so they said." Freya smiled wistfully, remembering how as a child she used to ask her mother to tell that story over and over again.

"My mother always envied their relationship. She... got pregnant with me by accident. My father... well, he left her when he found out."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. My mom was the best mom in the world. I was lucky to have her." Maddie admits with a faint smile.

"That other woman, Harper, do you know her?" Freya asked after taking a sip of tea.

"No. My mom always avoided talking about her. I don't know why, though."

"Mine never talked about any of them." Freya admitted, looking down at her cup of tea.

"Well, my mother didn't talk much about that camp either." Maddie said, gaining back her attention. "She talked about Laurel, remembering her as a very good friend. She always regretted that their relationship drifted apart."

"Why did they drift apart?"

"No idea." Maddie shrugged. "I always thought something had happened in that camp. That that's why she never talked about Harper." Freya nodded thoughtfully, while Maddie tilted her head in confusion. "If you didn't knew any of this, the how come you're here?"

"I heard what happened to your mother five years ago." Freya explained. "My mother... she died in a very similar way."

"She did?" Maddie frowned.

"Yeah." Freya murmured. "I guess I wanted to know if you knew anything. They never found my mother's killer and I... I can't get the image of her body out of my head."

"Yeah, neither can I. The police here didn't do much. There wasn't any evidence in the house, and... they just dropped the case. I've done everything I could to put it behind me, you know?" She explained.

"Yeah. No. I understand. I shouldn't have come here to stir all this up. I'm sorry." Freya answered nervously.

"Oh, no. It's okay, you can come back anytime." Maddie quickly assured her. "I'm glad to put a face to the daughter of the woman my mother talked so much about."

Freya smiles slightly, not knowing how to respond to her words.

"Uh... One more thing." Freya said, pulling the family photo out of her jacket pocket. "Do you know him?" Maddie frowns, leaning forward to look at the photo with more clarity. Recognizing in it a younger Freya and Laurel, and fixing on the boy the girl was pointing at.

"No, I'm sorry. Should I?" She asked, looking back at Freya.

"No. Uh... I'm sorry about what happened to your mother." Freya repeated, setting the teacup down on the table and standing up. "And thank you for your time."

Maddie smiled, standing up and shaking her hand in goodbye before walking her back to the door.

Knowing she had to find more information, Freya grabbed the false police order she had prepared and headed back to the mental institution where she now knew for sure that her older brother was being held.

The same receptionist attended her upon her arrival, but soon the director of the center appeared before her to take her to the high security room where Carter was being held. Freya's nerves only grew with every step she took, knowing that after 14 years she would once again see the face of the man who had murdered her mother. And not only that. Carter had also chased her around the house with a baseball bat in his hand. And...

Her memories were interrupted when the door to the visiting room opened before her. Handcuffed to a table in the center of it was him. Carter, dressed in a white robe, as white as snow and mimicking the color of the room's padded walls, raised his gaze to meet hers. A gleam of confusion appearing in his eyes as he recognized his little sister. Who wasn't so little anymore.

"Hi, Smarty." Carter smiled at her. It was hard for him to see her so grown up. The last time he had seen her, Freya was a scared ten year old girl and now she was a much braver woman. And the seriousness on her face showed it. Though hearing that nickname come out of his mouth, Freya couldn't help but feel like a little kid all over again.

"Don't... Don't call me that." Her voice trembled as she spoke for the first time, but Freya did her best to pull herself together quickly as she walked to sit in the chair placed on the other side of the table, directly across from him.

"I thought you would never come to see me." Carter admitted, watching her closely. "Dad said you hated me."

"Not I... I almost killed you that night, Carter. And you... you... I was traumatized. And Dad never told me where he'd taken you." Freya explained.

"I'm a taboo subject at home, aren't I?" He smirked, looking down. "At least I've accomplished something in life."

"Don't joke."

"It's the only thing I can do, sis." He shrugged, looking back at her. "Be honest, does little Peter know that I exist? No, I'm sure he doesn't. Dad must have erased all traces of my existence. Drawings, home movies, that Christmas ornament I made for him at school. What a dick." Freya remained silent, which was confirmation enough for him. "What are you doing here, Smarty? Sorry, you don't want me to call you that. Freya."

Taking a breath of air, Freya was finally able to look him in the eyes again.

"Have you talked to any demons lately?" She asked.

"Yes. There's a crossroads here in the west wing hallway. I go there every night." He smiled sarcastically. Freya rolled her eyes, annoyed by his response. "No, I haven't spoken to any demons since that night. This place is strangely protected from demons."

"It is?"

"Uh-huh. There's symbols written all over it. But they're invisible."

"If they're invisible, how come you...?"

"It's not just me. You could too if you wanted to. All it takes is a little bit of magic and..." He explained, extending his arms until he reached her hands. Freya tried to pull away from his grip, but Carter was still stronger than her.

"What the hell are you talking about?" She cut him off.

"Magic, sis. It's what started all this." Carter answered, releasing her hands and leaning back against the back of his seat. "It's why the demons were after mom. She made a deal, promised she'd never use her magic again and neither would her children. She broke the deal, and they sent a demon to kill her. It's why I'm here, why you're traumatized, and why Peter grew up without a mother."

"So you're saying Mom was a witch?" Freya raised her eyebrows in confusion.

"Ding, ding, ding. You're just as smart as i remember."

"Okay, you're crazier than I thought."

"Crazy? Crazy for what?" He asked in disbelief. "Because I can still hear his voice in my head? Because I remember how helpless I felt as that demon used my body to torture you, kill mom and haunt our baby brother? Okay, I'm crazy, but it's not my fault. And what I am saying is the honest truth."

"I don't believe you." Freya stated firmly, standing up.

"That's okay, I'm not the one who came all the way out here looking for answers." He shrugged. "You should talk to Dad, or that friend of Mom's. Chrissy? Caitlin? Cl...?"

"Christine." Freya completed, interrupting him. Carter smiled, looking up at her.

"That's the one."

─── ❖ ── ✦ ── ❖ ───

Freya had not done much research on the false identities of Christine and her daughter Maddie. Andrea and Hope Summers were false names under which they were registered in the city, with which they had signed over ownership of their house and car and with which they donated money to the psychiatric institution. But it was not only that, Christine was also part of the board of the center and a doctor there, she had been in charge of admitting and treating Carter personally.

So it was no surprise to her to find the house empty. With no car in the garage and the doors unlocked due to Maddie's rush to escape. But Freya also knew she couldn't have gone far, and because of the roadworks, there was only one way out of town.

Seeing Freya's car in the middle of the road, Maddie slammed the breaks on before she ended up crashing into it. Freya was leaning against her rented vehicle, arms crossed and a serious look on her face.

"Going somewhere?" She asked.

Letting out the air she was holding, Maddie got out of her car, staring at Freya in disbelief.

"Are you out of your mind?!"

"Well, it's not the first time someone has asked me that." Freya shrugged. "We're not all very mentally stable in my family, but I guess you already know that."

Maddie scoffed, walking over to Freya. "Okay, I lied, but you can't blame me for it. The reason my mother died was because she helped your father to hide your brother."

"Why would your mother want to investigate the circumstances of my mother's death if she already knew them?" Freya asked with confusion.

"When your father brought Carter here he didn't explain much. A demon had possessed him and killed your mother, but he didn't mention anything about a deal." Maddie explained. "My mother hired Bela to see if she could find anything else."

"Bela didn't find out about any of that, how did your mother figure it out?"

"Carter confessed to her the day before she died." She answered. "He said he heard him. That the demon had told him he was after my mother, that it didn't matter if she knew because she was going to die very soon."

Maddie's explanation seemed plausible, and from the look in her eyes Freya knew she could trust her words this time.

"Do you know why my mother made that deal?" Freya then asked, dropping her arms on each side of her body.

Maddie nodded slightly.

"It all happened at that summer camp. There was a massacre, a boy went crazy and started killing all the kids and monitors there. Your mother was the only survivor, and she made the deal for my mother to be saved." She explained. "When she broke her part of the deal, the demons killed her. They left my mother alone, but... something changed. And they killed her too. I was there that night, hiding while they interrogated her to tell them where Carter was hiding, and when she didn't answer I heard them stab her to death."

"You said 'they'." Freya pointed out, confused. Maddie nodded. "Was there more than one demon in your house that night?"

"Two. They disappeared after that. I don't know why."

"Well, they're back, at least the one that killed my mother is. He set me up and tortured me. But he didn't ask me any questions."

"Freya, I understand that you want revenge, they destroyed your life. But I want nothing to do with all this." Maddie stated, before walking to her car to pull a backpack out of the back seats. "Here, this is the only interesting thing my mother had about the supernatural world.  It's all yours. I don't want it, I was going to throw it in the ocean."

Freya frowned, opening the backpack to find a mysterious book along with a knife whose blade had various symbols written on it.

"I'm serious, Freya. I want nothing to do with the supernatural world. I'm not a hunter or a witch or anything like that. I've only seen two demons in my entire life."

"You think you can describe them to me?" Freya asked, looking back at her. "I studied art, maybe I can draw a portrait and identify them."

"I've got something better. I studied photography." Maddie said. "It was dark that night, but I was able to take three pictures. They're all yours. They're inside the book inside an envelope. I hope you can find them, send them back to hell or kill them, I really do."

"I'll do it for my mother, and for yours." Freya assured her, closing the backpack.

"I appreciate it, I really do. But like I said, I want nothing to do with any of this."

Freya nodded, giving her a slightly smile.

"That's ok. Thank you."

Maddie nodded, getting back inside her car to leave the city that had been her home for her entire life, not knowing exactly where she would be headed. Freya watched her disappear down the road, her head filled with more doubts and questions. Each thing she found out about her mother or the demons complicated everything even more.

When Freya went back to the motel, the first thing she did was check out that mysterious book. On its brown leather cover was a strange mark formed by several geometric figures. The pages inside were ancient and rustled when opened. Dust covered them and hid the words and figures written in black ink. Blowing the dust from them, Freya couldn't help but cough. Her eyes narrowing as she saw what was written inside the book. Words and drawings that even she wasn't able to understand. That certainly looked like a witch's grimoire. And the most intriguing thing of all was the name written in small print on the back cover of it. Ophelia.

Freya stayed up all night, studying and searching for the meaning of every word and drawing written on it, until sleep overcame her.

That same night, in the safe room where he had lived for the past fourteen years, Carter had one of his recurring nightmares once again, although this one was different. After five years of peace, the voice of that demon was once again echoing in his head. Threatening him about the near death of his little brother.

Meanwhile in Albany, New York, Dean Winchester was awakened by the ringing of his phone. With his eyes still closed and half asleep, the hunter grabbed the phone and held it to his ear without looking to see who was calling.

"What's up?" His voice sounded sleepy as he spoke.

"Wake up, you idiot. My sister is going to spend her birthday alone." Peter Holloway's voice on the other end of the phone made Dean wake up quickly, confused by the fact that he was the one calling him.

"She won't. Her birthday is tomorrow and it's four in the morning, what are you doing calling me you should be sleeping, you little runt?"

"It's one in the morning here." Peter pointed out. "You better go to her before midnight."

"You're a pain in the ass, you know that?" Dean grunted, sitting up in his bed. "I'll be there."

"Before midnight."

"Yeah, yeah. Before midnight." He assured the kid. "Anything else?"

"Well..."

"What is it?"

"Would you buy her something from me?" Peter asked. "I've only spent one birthday away from her, but I was still able to send her something. Now you guys are traveling and I don't know where to...."

Dean sighed.

"What do you want me to buy her?"

Peter smirked before answering him, giving him all the necessary indications to make sure his sister had a memorable birthday.

─── ❖ ── ✦ ── ❖ ───

When Sam and Dean arrived in Salem it was still October 30, but Freya was not in her motel room even though it was two hours before midnight. She was at the mental institution, having managed to sneak in to visit her brother, posing as a nurse and taking advantage of the fact that the receptionist who had received her the day before was off duty.

"You look very convincing, sis." Carter smirked at the sight of her dressed as a nurse.

"Shut up." Freya grunted, closing the door behind her and setting the food tray on the only table in the room. "Why the hell do you eat dinner at 10:00 at night?"

"I don't. If you don't eat on time they bring it back until you do. And I have to eat to take these precious blue pills." Carter explained, approaching her to show her the small plastic cup filled with pills. "What are you doing here? If I'm not mistaken your birthday is tomorrow, or did you like it here and want to keep me company? Sneaking into my room like when you were little and thought you saw monsters in your room."

"Those monsters don't scare me anymore." She assured him.

"That's clear, or else you wouldn't be talking to me." He smiled, walking back to his bed.

Freya narrowed her eyes, watching him closely. "You don't look so good."

"Yeah, I think I've been like this for 14 years."

"I'm serious. You looked a lot better yesterday. Today you're pale and the circles under your eyes... Did something happen?"

Carter shrugged his shoulders. "I had my session in the electric chair today morning."

Freya rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"Just the usual nightmares." He then explained.

"Just that? You sure?" Freya insisted.

"I would never lie to you, Smarty." He assured giving her a little smile. "Have you talked to Maddie?"

"You know her?" Freya frowned.

"I've seen her in dreams." Carter explained like it was the most normal thing. "And that book too. Tell me, what does it say?"

"I didn't come here to talk about that."

"No, you came because you don't want to spend your birthday alone. I can still see through you, sis. You're like an open book."

"Whatever you say." Freya rolled her eyes once again. "I wanted to say goodbye. I don't know if I'll ever see you again."

Carter smiled sadly.

"Oh, I have a feeling you will." He answered, looking down at his hands.

"Is that a threat?" Freya crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows with disbelief.

"No, it's a warning." He said, looking back at her. "Be careful, Smarty. He's still out there and he's not alone."

"I don't get it. Mom broke the deal and he killed her, okay. Then he went after Christine because the deal was made to save her life and he wanted to restore what should have happened in that camp. But why does he keep coming after us?" Freya asked as she paced around the room.

"Because we are special?" Carter answered as if it was obvious.

"Special how?" She asked, confused.

"Ask dad."

"Everyone keeps saying that." Freya complained with a grunt. "You've said it twice already."

"Mom was the only one who knew and she told him." Carter explained.

"But you know."

"No. I know what that demon told me. He also told me he wanted that book back so I hope you know where to hide it."

"This is the safest place against demons, so..."

"You hid it here?" Freya shrugged. "I like the way you think, Smarty."

"Don't smile so much, you won't find it." She assured him.

"We'll see about that."

"You're locked in the high security wing." She pointed out.

"And you snuck in." He shot back.

"Tuchè." Freya sighed.

"Look at that, we're back to being a team." Carter smiled.

"We never were."

"Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better." He shrugged. "We should never have been born, Freya. Deals with demons go way back in our family."

"What does that even mean...?" A noise in the hallway interrupted her question.

"I think you need to leave."

"Yes, I suppose I do." She sighed "Be safe, okay?"

"Aw, I'm glad you still care about me." Carter smiled making Freya roll her eyes. "You take care of Peter, okay?

"I always do. Why do you...?" There was that noise again. "I've got to go." She said a quick goodbye, leaving the room to retrace her steps before she was caught inside her brother's room.

Even after leaving the institution, Freya still wondered why Carter would be concerned about Peter's safety. He barely knew his little brother. That caused a knot of fear to appear in Freya's chest, forcing her to dial his number as she drove back to the motel.

"It's not your birthday yet, you've ruined my special midnight call." The young boy complained when he answered the phone. Freya sighed with relief as she heard his voice.

"I'm sorry, buddy. It's just... I was worried." She explained. "Is everything okay at home?"

"Well, it's a lot quieter without your music playing 24/7." Peter admitted. Freya smiled slightly at his response.

"Use the radio I bought you."

"It doesn't sound the same as your vinyl records."

"You know they are..."

"Banned territory, yeah, yeah. Relax." He cut her off. "Hey, It's midnight!" Peter exclaimed as Freya pulled into the motel parking lot. Her eyes quickly meeting Dean's Impala. "Happy birthday, Frey."

"Thanks, buddy." She smiled.

"I love you."

"I love you." She answered him. "And happy Halloween, by the way. Save me some candy, will you?"

"You know I won't."

"Well, at least remember to take a photo with this year's Halloween costume." Freya asked.

"I will." Peter assured her as his eyes traveled to the kitchen door. "Dad's here, do you want to talk to him?"

"No. I'll call him later." Freya replied as she saw Dean leaning against her room door. "I love you, buddy. Bye."

"Bye." Was all Freya could hear before she hung up the phone as she left the interior of the rented car. "What are you doing here?" Her eyes watched Dean with confusion.

"It's your birthday." He pointed out with obviousness."You didn't think I was going to let you spend it alone, did you? Sam's off to buy a cake. But in the meantime... do you feel like going for a drive?" He pointed to his car. Freya frowned, even more confused than before, but quickly nodded, following him into the Impala. This time settling into the seat that Sam usually occupied.

The drive wasn't very long until Dean slowed down in a large open field. Freya frowned even more confused. The ride had been quiet, though not uncomfortable. Each of them had their heads in different thoughts. Thoughts that neither had the strength to share with the other yet.

"You're not going to kill me, are you?" Dean chuckled at her question.

"No." He assured, opening the door to get out of the vehicle. Freya followed him close behind, interested. "Do you remember the birthday we spent together? We went stargazing near Lake Michigan in Chicago."

"Of course I remember. It's my second favorite birthday." Freya smiled making Dean frown. "Don't make that face. Peter has really good ideas. He's got you beat by a few points."

"Well, if I had to lose to someone..." Dean sighed which caused Freya to smile. "I haven't had much time to think of a better plan this year, and I wanted to relive that day." He explained, pointing to the sky. The smile on Freya's lips grew as she saw the stars in the sky, accompanied by the full moon that made the Halloween atmosphere even more magical.

"I love it." She assured, looking back at him. Dean quickly smiled back, feeling how his heartbeat started racing.

"Peter also asked me to buy this for you. It's his birthday present." Dean cleared his throat, pulling a small package out of the back seats of the car. Freya smiled, grabbing it with excitement.

It was a cassette of her favorite Fleetwood album signed by Stevie Nicks herself.

"He did an exhaustive search and luckily found a seller in New York. It honestly scares me what he can do." Freya laughed at Dean's confession, her eyes looking up at him tenderly before she returned to appreciating her brother's gift. "I don't think my gift is on his level at all, but... I hope you like it." Dean commented, handing her a small package. Freya smiled, clutching it in her hands and slowly tearing it open as they both settled on the hood of the car so they could look up at the stars.

"A brand new journal." Freya observed, her eyes sparkling with joy at the sight of the brown leather-covered notebook decorated with various patches from different music bands. Mostly her favorites, though there were some of Dean's favorites as well.

"I noticed you were finishing the most recent one, so I thought...."

"I love it." She assured him, cutting him off and giving him a loving smile. Dean quickly returned the gesture, happy to have gotten it right. "Thank you."

For the next hour, they lay on the hood of the Impala, admiring the stars in comfortable silence until Sam called to inform them that he had dinner and needed the room key to get in, forcing them to go back to the motel to meet him.

It may not have been her best birthday due to recent events and discoveries, but Freya was happy not to spend it alone. That thought scared her to death, since it had never happened before. But this birthday had been special nonetheless. She felt she had found a closure by seeing her older brother again, and as she shared dinner with the Winchester brothers she felt like she had found a new family.