Incubus, Arc 13: Progeny, Part 1: The First Meeting

It had been almost five months since they saved the world. Sasha's birthday was nearing. So was Dean and Sasha's anniversary. They weren't exactly sure what date to consider for the honor—their first kiss, when they decided to start slow, when they first made love, when they first said I love you—so Dean chose Sasha's birthday to commemorate both the incubus' life and their life together. Easier to remember that way.

A year. It had only been a year. Over a year since they had met, but only a year that they had been together. So much had happened in that year. Seven extra years happened for Dean. It was a lifetime, but so short when he actually thought about it. A year. Just a year. And they were practically married. Then again so were Sam and Sarah.

Ah Sammy. He still hadn't gotten around to getting Sarah a proper ring. A little bit of tied white string was wrapped around her finger where a ring should be. Would be. Sam hadn't found the right one yet, he kept saying. Not that that had stopped the girls from starting on plans. Dean just hoped he wouldn't have to wear a suit. He got that enough on the job.

Sasha kept dropping hints that Shiarra was expecting them to have a promising ceremony too once Dean was finally ready to become an incubus for good.

About that. Yeah. Dean was still working on that. He knew what he wanted—he wanted Sasha. And he had accepted some time ago that he wanted Sasha forever. That didn't even scare him all that much anymore, but being initiated, well, that would really be it. The end of Dean as he was. It had been easy to go along with that when the Trickster forced being an incubus on him, but now that he could choose it made him want to enjoy his humanity just a little bit longer. Sasha was a saint for understanding.

The world had a lot of rebuilding to do after the darkness and chaos Malak put it through. Dean and the others hadn't really known how bad it was until they were able to go out into it and see the damage. There was no doubt that a lot of people died while they were fighting the brunt of the war at the Roadhouse, but a lot more would have died if they hadn't stopped Malak when they did. Now they had to help rebuild.

They had started in the fae plane, a break, really, more than rebuilding. When they got back it was clear that stopping the apocalypse didn't mean their lives as hunters were over. And for once Dean was really okay with that. He had no regrets. He loved his life. He saved lives, and he did it with the people he loved most at his side.

Right now he, Sasha, and Sam were finishing up a hunt in Clinton, about two and a half hours southeast of the Roadhouse. The little towns were actually doing better than the cities. They were used to dealing with less, unlike city folk who had all panicked when the sun disappeared and the electricity went, trying to escape in cars that suddenly stopped working halfway down the highway. Ghosts and creature-features were having a hay-day with it all, picking off people more easily because they were frazzled and exhausted trying to piece their lives back together.

That's where the trio came in. Clinton had less than 10,000 people but Dean, Sam, and Sasha had been chasing after a gang of revenants from Kansas City for miles, leaving the whole damn state of Missouri, and Kansas no doubt, terrified that the zombie apocalypse had come to finish off the regular one.

Revenants were not zombies, more like dead bodies possessed by evil spirits, often even possessed by demons bent on terrorizing humans with the dead body of a loved one.

Dean hated revenants.

There were still five of them left. The trio had been chasing them down since the night before, and it was already nearing sunset. Dean was exhausted. And hungry. And really fucking horny. He just wanted to get back to the Roadhouse, grab a burger, and drag his incubus upstairs for a few rounds before falling into a deep slumber. Nothing sounded better.

"Dean! Left!"

Dean whipped around, shotgun ready to fire the moment he turned to his left as Sammy's voice had instructed him. Headshots wouldn't always kill a revenant—beheading then salting and burning was better—but a few good shots usually slowed the bastards down. Dean hit one in the back of the leg, a disrupting enough shot to make it stumble.

As Dean was advancing on the creature, Sasha swooped down on top of it from out of the sky, black wings spread out behind him like a cloak, white skin gleaming in the dimming light, red hair wild, claws and fangs deadly sharp. Damn that sight just did something to Dean every time.

While Sasha kept the revenant on the ground, Dean rushed up with a blade brandished, beheading the thing in moments. Sasha shifted back to human, back to T-shirt and jean-clad with his black leather jacket. He had salt and matches, more than willing to stay back and send that revenant packing. Looking up at Dean with a grin and a wink, it was clear he had things covered. Dean never could resist grinning back when Sasha looked at him like that, feeling warmth spread throughout his chest.

Okay. Four to go. Dean leapt back up, sprinting ahead to catch up to Sam. Even after five months, Sam's powers hadn't come back as strongly. He still had them, all of them, but to a minimal extent. Sam could send a demon flying across the room and force it out of a host with barely any effort, but he wasn't so powerful anymore that he could do that to twenty all at once. He was still so strong, so agile, he still had the melting power, and he could still send messages right to Dean's brain. Sam swore he couldn't read minds as easily anymore though, only if he really concentrated, but Dean wondered sometimes.

They figured the depowering had to be because Malak was no longer feeding directly into Sam, the source of Sam's power to begin with, but that didn't mean the powers completely went away. They were a part of Sam. Forever.

And they really came in handy.

"Demon!" Sam shouted back at Dean as Dean came up behind him, gesturing to the next revenant nearest them. Some of the revenants had been vengeful spirits, but a few of them were demons, and that required a different kind of cleansing.

Sam waited until he was close enough, then he shot out an arm and the demon jerked forward into the ground as if it had been pushed. A brief minute of concentration was all it would take for Sam to banish the demon, leaving only a rotting body.

Dean surged onward, leaving Sam to his work. There were still three left and they had lost sight of them now. The town wasn't all that big, but running through the streets was a real pain. Half the town seemed to be deserted, the other half staying inside, having already dealt with otherworldly things, probably, and not in the mood to deal with any more.

It was nice, in a way, not having to hide as much as they once would have, not having to pretend they were something other than hunters. It still came in handy to have aliases—the majority of the world would never stop trying to deny that something unexplainable had happened, even when the sun was blotted out—but brandishing a gun in the middle of a town square, not having to worry that a civilian was going to freak, was a nice change.

The plus side with these creatures was that they almost always set off an EMF meter. Dean had one out in seconds, rushing alongside buildings, trying to see if he could get a reading on where the last three had gone. So far nothing.

A thud alerted Dean that something had dropped down behind him. He spun, but saw the welcome sight of Sasha, mid-morph from incubus to human, walking toward him. "Three left?" Sasha asked.

Dean nodded. "Lost 'em. Can't have gotten too far. Stay with me til Sam catches up. Don't want them ganging up on us or catching us by surprise."

Frankly, Dean would have preferred dealing with plain old demons, but it seemed there weren't too many of those around now, only a few stragglers that hadn't been there for the battle, ducking into dead bodies because they were afraid—afraid—hunters would find them. Hiding among revenants was not winning demons any points in Dean's book.

They moved quickly, waving the EMF meter at every building they passed. It was barely blipping, but the revenants had to be close. Sasha kept on guard, watching Dean's back while Dean watched the readings. The familiar sound of Sam's feet on the pavement caught up to them just as the needle jumped. Dean looked at Sasha and then at his brother, nodding his head toward an antique shop before them.

Sam went ahead of Dean, taking point, since he was still fairly good at sensing demonic and otherworldly presences. Even though it was closing time and the lights were all off inside the building, the door was unlocked, busted, actually, they saw when Sam opened the door for them to go inside. Jackpot.

Remaining quiet and moving stealthily, Dean gestured Sam on straight ahead to the back of the shop while he and Sasha split to scan either side of the front. It was a creepy little place in the dark, filled with crammed in pieces of junk like an old record player and one of those standing globes that still listed Russia and other countries as the U.S.S.R. Dean did spot an old guitar that might be worth checking out, but mostly there was just knick-knacky stuff for old ladies to fill their houses with. And, as far as he could tell, there were no revenants.

"Dean!"

Shit. Sasha.

Pushing through a stack of old magazines, Dean hurdled the things blocking his way and rushed for the cashier desk where he had heard Sasha call for him. At first he couldn't see anything, no sign of the incubus at all, but the rustling sounds of struggle made it clear enough what had happened.

Dean moved quickly around the desk, shotgun out again, ready to take a revenant's head off. Only when he finally found where Sasha had been jumped, Sasha was on the floor with the revenant on top of him. Dean couldn't get a clear shot like that. Sasha should have been able to overpower the thing easily, but it had its nasty mouth latched onto Sasha's neck like it was trying to take a bite out of him.

Tossing his shotgun onto the desk, Dean reached down and grabbed the ugly-ass creature around the waist, hoisting it off of Sasha. These things might not be true zombies, but damn did they smell, all rotted flesh and open wounds. Dean practically threw up his lack of recent meals all down the revenant's back.

Instead, he managed to toss the thing up against the wall and hold it in place, while Sasha scrambled to his feet, grabbed Dean's blade, and hacked right into the wall through the revenant's neck. Yet another pleasant decapitation. They would have to haul this one outside and burn it after they took care of the others. For now Dean let body and head fall to a heap on the floor.

"Gross," Dean wiped some black corpse goo from his fingers onto his jeans, "You okay?" he looked over at Sasha.

The incubus had a look of distaste on his face as he scratched at the wet teeth marks on his neck. "Urg…I think so. Might have zombie-sex dreams for a week though," he grimaced.

Dean had to laugh at that. "Good thing this ain't the movies or I'd be the one having sex with a zombie tonight," Dean snickered, wrinkling his nose at the marks on Sasha's neck that looked like something had been gnawing on him, which something was.

In the movies, getting bit by a zombie almost always meant you were next in line to become one. Dean grinned to himself as he remembered having a zombie conversation with Sasha after they watched "Slither" the first time, both promising they would do the other in if something like that ever happened. It was a good thing that the creatures that were most like zombies in the real world didn't actually work that way.

Of course, in response to the comment, Sasha made a face. Then he smirked and moved quickly into Dean's body with a ravenous expression, snapping his teeth.

"I think I'd end up looking for your brains in the wrong place," he snarked.

"Ooo, baby," Dean joked along with him, awaiting the stolen kiss that was about to happen, and thinking that they had to be two of the only people in the world right now who could kiss beside a decapitated body and think nothing of it.

On the way to Dean's lips, Sasha suddenly froze. "Is it…too quiet in here to you?" he asked.

Dean's eyes immediately shot wide. "Sam!" Turning without thought, Dean swiped his shotgun from off the counter and sprinted straight for the back where Sam had gone. Even if Sam had found nothing it should not be this quiet.

He slowed as he neared the back wall, listening for signs of where Sam might be. Sasha was right behind him. At first there was nothing, not even creaks in the foundation as night fell, but eventually Dean began to hear the low murmur of voices. Slowly, quietly, he headed in the direction of those soft tones, eventually coming upon a closed door in the far corner of the shop. He could hear them, the last two revenants. He knew immediately that they weren't just angry spirits but more demons instead.

And they had Sam. Dean could hear them taunting him.

"…matter, huh? Not strong enough…finish…both of us?"

The other one laughed. "Getting…flabby. Might as…just go…kill him now."

Dean looked back at Sasha. The incubus' hearing was sharper than a human's; he didn't need to press his ear to the door like Dean. Sasha still had the blade. He nodded.

Without pausing to consider other options, Dean reared back and kicked the door practically off its hinges, rushing right in and immediately spotting Sam being straddled by one of those bastards on top of a desk, the other one standing nearby.

Both revenants pulled back ready for a fight, but Dean was too fast for the one nearest him. He fired at it point-blank in the chest and it toppled as Sasha rushed forward to spout the words of exorcism. Then Dean turned to the other one, but Sam was already working his mojo, no longer outnumbered. The revenant was holding its rotted hands to its head, as if to block words Sam wasn't even saying. Sam was just staring at it, his eyes gone yellow. Sam wasn't strong enough for his eyes to flash white anymore.

In moments black smoke was pouring from the mouths of both revenants, leaving only corpses. Dean breathed for the first time since he realized Sam was out of sight, lowering his shotgun and going over to Sam to slap a hand to his brother's shoulder. "You okay, man?" he asked, amazed sometimes that he could look at his brother, his brother with eyes like the bastard that had haunted their family for years, with nothing but love and encouragement.

Sam was nothing like a demon. His eyes flickered back to hazel when he turned to look at Dean. "Yeah, I…I'm okay. I keep forgetting…I'm not as strong anymore. They cornered me. I'm sorry, Dean, I should have been paying more attention." That little crease of frustration formed between Sam's brows. Dean really hated when Sam got that defeatist look on his face.

"Oh yeah, such a pain you can only kick ass one demon at a time now. I feel so superior with my lack of any super powers at all," Dean spat sarcasm, smirking all the while, "Get over yourself," he smacked Sam's shoulder a little harder, "So you gotta get used to being a little less Super Freak. That's why it sucks for us to be on hiatus for so long. We've been busy with so much other stuff we haven't had a real good normal hunt til now. We're all out of shape. Tell ya what. I'll buy you a beer on the way home."

There was a time when Dean thought Sam had outgrown him, and all the ways he tried so hard to make life lighter and filled with humor, but when Dean looked at his brother now and saw how Sam's dimples creased his cheeks, he knew Sam could never outgrow him for long.

Sasha came up, wiping his brow and scratching again at his revenant bite marks. He was all smiles, all brilliant white teeth and shining blue eyes like they had just had a blast.

"I kinda had fun," he said, not trying to hide his mirth, "Like it used to be, you know, just the three of us kicking some monster ass. Without the entire fate of the world resting on it. It was…fun." He shrugged, his smile quirking one side of his mouth so adorably that Dean kind of wanted to kiss him right then.

Without the fate of the world at stake Dean supposed that actually had been kind of fun. He couldn't help grinning at his incubus, unable to deny that he agreed, and then he passed his gaze over to Sam, who, despite being a little out of breath, had the shadows of a smirk forming too. "Yeah, we're hopeless. Guess there's no denying we're hunters for life now," Dean joked, reaching for Sam's hand this time to help his brother off the desk.

Sam accepted the help gladly. "Family business," Sam said, matter-of-factly, and for the first time as if that wasn't the worst thing in the world. He said it with pride, content with that fact, because now their family was bigger. "Let's go home, though, huh? I'm starving," Sam cracked his neck.

"I hear that," Dean agreed.

At risk of other revenants possessing the bodies left behind, they had to carry those corpses out and salt and burn them still. But somehow the weight in Dean's arms felt light as he scooped up a body. This was a job well done. Easy. Painless. No casualties. It was the way Dean liked his hunts to go. And he had to agree with Sasha that he really liked it just being him, his brother, and his lover, like it used to be so long ago now.

Dean could almost forget that Hell or the Apocalypse ever happened.

It was a new world now, new enough that when townspeople stuck their heads out of their homes and businesses to see what the strange men were doing to decayed corpses, the hunters didn't have to lie. Not everyone wanted to believe that unearthly things had happened all those months ago, but enough of them did, enough of them had seen strange things in the darkness without a sun, and a few people even came over to help them stack the bodies. They burned a large pyre of salt and gasoline and fire right in the middle of town.

Hunters no longer had a thankless job, but there wasn't praise and songs, either, just nods of understanding and a few words spoken, before the boys were back in the Impala headed for the Roadhouse.

Dean drove, Sam beside him, while Sasha sat in the back and patched up his neck. Just a little bandaging, nothing serious. Dean was going to be dropping zombie comments for days though.

It was late enough, and they were tired and hungry enough, that once they made it through Kansas City they were about ready to pull over and crash. Instead they got off the highway at a bar a few towns before Rushville and the Roadhouse so they could get a bite and some beer. They called ahead to let the crew back home know they were okay.

"I might fall asleep in my burger," Sasha blinked his eyes hard and stretched as he folded himself out of the car. There was a lazy grin on his face though and Dean couldn't resist grabbing for a handful of Sasha's black leather jacket and tugging him in for a quick kiss, right there in the parking lot. It was a brave new world for Dean too, he figured.

"Good," he growled against Sasha's lips before smacking the incubus' chest and sauntering away, "More burger for me then."

Sasha snorted. "Jerk," he said.

"Hey. Don't steal my lines, man," Sam came up beside Sasha and bucked him in the side.

Brave new world indeed, strange and beautiful and everything Dean wanted. He couldn't have been happier.

Getting ahead of his boys to grab the door, Dean noticed a sign out front. He tapped it with his finger. "Hey, look at that. Live music tonight, boys. Seems we picked the right place to party."

"Oh god, it better not be bad metal covers again," Sam groaned, "Manfred's band was more than enough of that for me in a lifetime, thank you."

"Well, it sure doesn't sound bad from here," Sasha said, craning his ear as they opened the door and headed inside, hearing the music wafting out to them. Dean didn't know the song playing, but it sounded pretty good, guitar and bass and drums. At least it wasn't some local with an acoustic and no tone.

"Let's get a table," Sasha led them away from the bar and booths, being such a music fan and no doubt wanting a closer seat to enjoy the band. Dean and Sam followed. The place was pretty rocking but not too packed, and the band sounded better and better the further in they went. Finally, they snatched up a small table and waved over a smiling waitress.

"I hope the kitchen isn't closed," Sam said.

"Not at a place like this," Dean assured him. He grinned over at the waitress as she came up, turning on the charm by instinct. "Hey, sweetheart, we can still get a few burgers and fries, right? And a round of beers. Whatever's best on tap."

The waitress, with a tag that said 'Shirley' and a head full of curls that made Dean think of the child actress, smiled wider and nodded as she jotted down the order. She was a cute thing and obviously liked having a table full of young good looking men. Sometimes Dean almost felt bad that he wasn't still available.

Until he caught a glimpse of the redhead across from him and felt a familiar foot hook around his ankle discreetly.

A burger was just what Dean needed. A couple beers. Good music. The band had switched to a Breaking Benjamin song Dean had learned to recognize from Sasha, "So Cold". The kid singing was doing one hell of a job on it too. Looked real young. There was a chick with hair as red as Sasha's on bass doing backup vocals, and another young guy on drums.

"These guys are pretty awesome," Dean tugged on Sasha's foot after the waitress had left, "After your heart, babe, with these songs. Cute chick on bass too." Dean glanced at his companions and noticed that both of them were already staring at said hot redhead with perplexed expressions. "What?" he said.

Sasha snapped out of his scrutiny first, looking over at Sam. "You…getting the same feeling?" he asked.

Sam just nodded, a little amazed. "Yeah." He smiled and looked at Dean. "She's a succubus. I didn't feel it right away, but then I'm not as strong as I used to be."

"And females are harder for me to sense, remember?" Sasha added, "But there's no doubt in my mind now."

They hadn't run across another of Sasha's kind since they were in the fae plane. Dean looked back at the performing band to check out the girl. She was hot alright, and damn talented. He couldn't help grinning to himself as he noted her hair color again. "Should have guessed right off with that 'dye job' like yours," he said to Sasha, "Didn't see many redheads in the sex demon camp, or over in the fae world. Here I was thinking you were special."

Sasha threw his head back in a laugh. "I think you know I'm still one of a kind. But you better watch it," he kicked at Dean's ankles.

If you find your family, don't you cry
In this land of make-believe, dead and dry

You're so cold, but you feel alive
Lay your hands on me one last time

Show me how it ends…

"You know her?" Dean had to ask. There weren't many sex demons, really only the amount that could fit in a single town. Of course Sasha had been out of his world for many years.

The incubus shook his head, admiring the succubus. "No. We can sense each other faintly, but not age, so there's no way to know if she's as young as me or if she's ancient. I'd guess younger by her look and career choice, but that doesn't stop some succubae from staying in the world. Damn, you see how tight those leather pants are she's wearing?" he whistled.

Now, Dean had to chuckle at that. "But the boys are just human, huh? Lucky them. So, guys," Dean shifted in his seat, ready to change the subject as they waited for their first round of beers and food, "What's our plan after this? Rest up tonight and tomorrow, sure, but we got any leads on more hunts?"

"Well, Bobby's been gathering intel from home, he might have a few new things for us," Sam said, "And we have feelers all over the states now with all the hunter contacts we made, and all the non-humans. Smartest thing might be to just work our way in an outward radius from the Roadhouse, making sure things are okay. There are hunters all over the place checking on things, and we actually have a system now, a home base, and the hunters trust each other. There could be a whole new way of doing our job if we play this right."

"What we need is secondary Roadhouses on opposite coasts," Sasha leaned over the table, excited like a kid making plans in the backyard, "A real network of all the hunters, you know? Right now would be the perfect time to try and get something like that together. Everyone's in each other's good graces, people are more willing to believe. That's what we should work on. We can do hunts as they come up, but we should think big here. Oh, I love this song." Sasha closed his eyes suddenly and smiled.

The band had moved to a duet, focusing more on the chick for lead vocals. She had some damn fine pipes too. Low, sultry. Dean definitely felt the succubus vibe with the way she smiled around her microphone.

Along your way
Abandon my faith
In being alone always
It's what you undo
(You make your presence known)
And why I'm unglued

The waitress came over with their beers, a local brew Dean didn't recognize but liked the taste of. His stomach was so empty that the first sip went down cold with a warming bliss that settled in his throat. "I like the way you're thinking," Dean said to Sasha, "But it's going to be a pain to put it all together. I mean, we've been communicating pretty good these past few months with everyone, but being a whole organization about it would be pretty big. You really think we can handle something like that?"

"Dean," Sam practically laughed into his beer, "You led an army of humans, sex demons, fae, and angels against Hell and the Devil himself. Not a one of those hunters would say no to you if you said you had a plan to make this easier on all of us. And if we're all working together…shit, we could really pull it off. It'd be like…hunters gone corporate," he choked down another gulp.

Sasha and Dean laughed around their beers too. "You think that would take the fun out of it?" Dean smacked his brother's shoulder. The last thing he would ever want is to be a suit, running things without getting his hands dirty. He liked being out in the field. But hunters with a plan, united, it was a novel idea.

The redhead on bass went right into another song leading the vocals, something Dean had heard on the radio when Sam was manning the Impala's stereo.

I got a lot to say to you
Yeah, I got a lot to say
I noticed your eyes are always glued to me
Keeping them here
And it makes no sense at all

Dean would swear her eyes landed right on their table. She smiled. She must have sensed Sasha, Dean figured, a kindred sex demon.

"Maybe I'm just overtired, baby," Dean grinned at his incubus, and then over at Sam as he raised his glass, "But I think going corporate, as long as I still get to have some fun, sounds like one hell of an idea."

They finished off their first beers quick, enjoyed a second with their burgers that were absolutely awesome, being from a small town bar and all, and then they went ahead and ordered round three. Well, Sam and Sasha got round three; Dean had a twenty minute drive left ahead of him once they were done here.

The kid on guitar was singing again. They liked their modern covers, this young band, but they were consistently good, and Dean had liked all of the songs so far, so he didn't mind. He still liked his classics, but he had at least a little appreciation for newer stuff these days too thanks to Sasha. Once in a while, anyway.

What if I wanted to break
Laugh it all off in your face
What would you do?

What if I fell to the floor
Couldn't take all this anymore
What would you do, do, do?

Come break me down…

They sat and chatted awhile longer until the band announced they were taking a break. Sam suggested they head out now, since he was practically falling asleep in his beer, but Sasha begged for them to stay just a little longer, hear a few more songs since he liked the band, and then they could leave. Dean was fine with that and Sam gave in pretty quickly too. The band would only be breaking for fifteen minutes or so; they could stick around for a half hour to let their burgers digest.

"It's not going to be like that. We're shooting for simple. We're hunters," Sam was defending his masculinity against the accusation that the girls were planning a traditional wedding behind his back.

"Yeah, but unlike anyone else in our crazy family, you're going to have a father-in-law to worry about, remember?" Dean reminded him, "I don't know if we can pull off a 21-gun hunter salute outside the Roadhouse with Mr. Blake, curator of snobby art supreme, around. You discuss that part with Sarah yet?"

Sam went a little green around the edges at that comment and took a long gulp of his beer. "With everything's that's happened, Sarah says she wants to tell him the truth before the wedding. She really hated it when we went to tell him we were getting married and she had to lie about everything. He had a hard time during the blackout, had a lot of his business wrecked, you know? He asked her to stick around and help put things back together, but she didn't want to leave the hunter cleanup. It's all a big mess. I don't know what we're going to do."

Dean let out a whistle. "That's why I don't see the point of it all sometimes. Why can't people just be together without all the drama?"

"Dean," Sasha shook his head, "There doesn't have to be drama. It's a matter of compromise. Sarah will figure out how to deal with her father in her own time," he turned to Sam, "And you two will have a simple, awesome wedding however you want it, no problem. You haven't even set a date yet. You don't need to stress. Wait til you two have kids. Then you can stress," he chuckled.

Sam's face went about two shades greener. "Kids," he huffed a nervous laugh, "Don't get ahead of me, Sash. I mean…I know this is what I want. I want Sarah. I want this life. And I don't want to wait around anymore, second-guessing myself. I waited too long to find her again as it was. Or…have her find me," he glanced down at the tabletop, "But thinking kids, it…just makes me think of our life growing up, ya know?"

Now it was Dean's turn to frown. "Hey," he nudged his brother's shoulder, "Nothing says you need to be like Dad just coz you're choosing this life. Dad didn't want to be like Dad. Besides, we're different, in totally different situations. We're choosing this life, not using it as a means to an end. Why can't we have the picket fence and the shotgun, huh? Raise our kids to know this life, but so they can make up their own minds about what they want to do. You'd be a great dad, Sammy."

"Gee, Dean," Sasha leaned over the table with a mischievous grin, "That speech almost sounded like you're admitting you want kids some day."

Damn incubus. "Don't get ahead me either, baby," Dean pointed a playful finger.

"Hey. Enjoying the show?"

An unexpected deep voice sounded from over Dean's shoulder, and a moment later a fresh mug of beer was set in front of Sam. It was the drummer from the band, moving passed their table. He turned a moment, taking a few steps to walk backwards, and smiled at Sam.

Seeing the drummer up close, Dean had a strange sense of déjà vu, like he had seen this kid somewhere before, seen that smile. He was tall, as tall as Sam, and had longer floppy hair too in light brown with vibrant, dark eyes. He was kind of hot, Dean could admit, and that just made this that much funnier.

"Dude," Dean barked when the drummer moved on, returning to the stage to join his bandmates, "That guy was totally hitting on you." Feeling a strong sense of irony at the situation, Dean couldn't help busting out laughing. Sasha didn't take long to join him.

Sam looked rightly shocked, peering over his shoulder to stare after the drummer then turning back to his new beer. To Sam's credit, he managed a smile and even cocked a confident eyebrow, not ruffled at all. "Hey, who am I to say no to free beer," Sam shrugged, raising his glass to take a drink.

Sasha clapped his hands together at that and laughed again.

Yeah, this was a good night, Dean thought. The band was going to start again, they would listen to a few more songs, then, no doubt disappointing Mr. Drummer, they would head on home for a good night's rest.

Dean's attention suddenly focused on the bottom of Sam's mug as his brother took a long drink. A napkin was stuck to the glass, and as the condensation melted through the thin material, Dean could make out writing bleeding into visibility. "Uhh…Sammy? I think he left you his number too," Dean snickered.

It seemed Sam had also noticed the napkin, because he slowly brought the mug down, brow furrowed, and tugged the napkin free. He didn't crack a grin or throw out some compensating comment though. He actually looked a little spooked.

"What is it?" Dean prompted.

Sam turned the napkin around for Dean and Sasha to see. Written plainly was the message, 'FIVE MINUTES'.

Normally, Dean would have just made a joke about Sam being propositioned, and that drummer boy was obviously looking for a romp backstage, but something felt off. Something felt much more serious about all this, especially with the way Sam looked so scared.

"They must have been blocking me somehow," Sam said, as if to himself, "But I can feel them now." His eyes drifted over to the stage where the band was getting ready to start their next set. He wasn't looking at the succubus. He was looking at the drummer. And the lead guitarist who barely looked old enough to be in a bar. "They're not human either," he said.

At that exact moment both of the boys in the band looked up to stare at their table, grinning. Dean shivered. "Okay. That was creepy."

"Wait, what do you mean they're not human?" Sasha hissed across the table, "What are you sensing from them?"

Sam was gripping the napkin tight as he stared at the stage. "I don't know," he said in an equally hushed voice, "There's power there. Familiar. But…I don't know what it is. What…they are. I'm only sensing them now because they want me to. Nothing's ever been able to block me before, not since the stronger demons and Malak."

That was a disturbing thought. "Well…you are a little de-mojoed lately, right?" Dean tried, "Maybe it's just that."

"I don't think so," Sam shook his head.

"What does 'five minutes' mean?" Sasha leaned further over the table, "Do you think they're planning something? Are they trying to taunt us?"

"Calm down," Dean reached over to touch Sasha's arm, "We don't know anything. They're…smiling. Maybe it's a friendly warning. Maybe they're good non-humans wanting to help some hunters with a possible case."

"That's wishful thinking," Sasha grumbled.

"Don't be a pessimist."

"Guys," Sam broke in. His brow was tight, those puppy eyes out in full force with worry and reprimand. "We can't do anything right now anyway. They're on stage. We'll just have to wait it out. See what happens in…five minutes."

There Sam went, being the voice of reason like always. Dean unconsciously checked his watch. He so wasn't in the mood for another hunt to jump out at them, possibly literally. He had figured these kids were just a good cover band, a little alternative and modern, but not too bad, and hey, good for the boys that they had a hot succubus as part of the crew. But now the boys weren't human either?

Five minutes was going to feel like an hour.

Young Mr. Lead Singer introduced the band back for their second round, all smiles, easygoing. They all looked so damn calm. Then they started in with a familiar riff, so familiar that Dean wanted to smile as soon as he heard it, five minute countdown or not. It was a little old school, but Dean still knew to appreciate the genius of the Beatles. The surprise came when the succubus was the one who started in with some hot, jazzy vocals.

Here come old flattop he come grooving up slowly
He got joo-joo eyeball he one holy roller
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker he just do what he please

If Dean thought she had some pipes before, damn, now that was real singing. Since Dean was paying a little more attention to the band members now, he took some closer inventory.

The drummer Dean had got a pretty good look at when the guy walked passed and gave Sam that beer. Tall, light brown hair, dark eyes, good-looking and well-built. Typical college kid with a widely dimpled smile despite his laidback disposition. He was wearing jeans, a black T-shirt with a black button down over it. Nothing about him was terribly unique or stood out.

The lead singer was shorter. A lot shorter, as in maybe average height if he was lucky, and definitely less than six feet. He was in great shape though, and had a certain curve to his lips and look about him that was all charm. That's probably why he did most of the talking and introducing of songs. His hair was short, gelled, black. He had the same dark eyes as the drummer, wearing a grey Henley with tight black jeans.

The chick was the interesting one. She looked hardcore, almost like a biker. A really hot biker. Her red hair was short, chin-length, layered and styled in every direction. Her lips were dark red, her eyes heavily lined and shadowed in black. She was wearing all black too, black leather pants, tight black top like a corset, with leather armbands, and a lot of tattoos. Like more than the normal succubus ones. Her neck. Her arms. There was even some kind of design around her left eye. This chick looked like she could mess you up, but damn would you have one helluva time along the way.

He wear no shoeshine he got toe-jam football
He got monkey finger he shoot coca-cola
He say "I know you, you know me"
One thing I can tell you is you got to be free

Come together right now over me

"Something's coming," Sam whispered, not as a warning but as fact. Sam could feel it.

"Then it can't be them. They're already here," Sasha said.

"They're trying to warn us," Dean stared at the succubus, the lead guitarist, the drummer.

Sasha, like all of them, was twitching to reach for a weapon. "Warn us of what?"

Come together right now over me

They were too far from the stage for Dean to clearly see what color the succubus' eyes were, but as she finished the last word of the verse she was on, her eyes flicked right to him and he somehow saw that they were green. Really, really green.

Five minutes was up.

The explosion came from behind them, toward the front of the bar. It wasn't really an explosion, as in with dynamite or something else manufactured, but an explosion in the suddenness of figures rushing inside, conjuring screams from the patrons. Dean, Sam, and Sasha were on their feet with guns ready in moments, but the band was already ahead of them.

Instruments were discarded for weapons, the most visible being the succubus, who dropped her bass and suddenly had knives. The reality of what was really going on hit Dean before he even had the chance to figure out what was attacking them. The band members were hunters.

The next thing Dean noticed was that they were dealing with vampires. Fucking vampires. Which were supposed to be extinct back when they ran into their last two packs of them. And yet here a group was, at least seven of them, rows of teeth showing, eyes glinting like animals, looking for blood. Very specific blood too. Theirs.

Dean had assumed whatever was coming must be coming for the band if they knew about it, but there was no doubt that the vampires wanted Dean and his crew instead. They gunned right for them, forcing Dean, Sam, and Sasha to all start firing. The bar was in an instant panic.

The other thing that sucked was that Dean's gun was currently armed with iron. Not so good against vampires. Nothing was good against vampires. The only way to kill a vampire for good was to cut off its head. But since all Dean had was iron, it was going to have to do to bring a few vamps down until they could properly behead them all. They also had to manage all of that without catching any civilians in the crossfire. Awesome.

One vamp fell right away, all three sets of bullets from Sam, Dean, and Sasha's guns striking it at once. Another two fell immediately afterwards thanks to the band rushing to their aid. The guitarist and drummer both had machetes, prepared for this, apparently, aiding each other in taking one vamp down and beheading it properly, while the succubus hurdled a table and criss-crossed her knives like a damn ginsu chef, taking off a vamp's head before it even knew it was being attacked.

They might be kids, but these guys knew what they were doing. Dean almost wished he had time to appreciate the young hunters' work, but there were still at least four vampires left. The damn things weren't even taking advantage of the mass panic of easy meals. They were letting the civilians bee-line right out of the bar, which made the hunters' job both easy and hard. Easy because they only had to worry about themselves, but hard because they really had to fucking worry about themselves.

Dean wanted to be more watchful of Sam and Sasha's backs, but suddenly there was a chick with fangs rushing him and he didn't have enough time to re-aim his gun before she was on top of him. Dean crashed back into the table he had been sitting at with Sam and Sasha, grappling the vampire bitch as the table buckled with their weight.

It didn't make any sense, but she didn't seem to want to bite him. She was trying much harder to get her hands around his neck. These vampires didn't want to kill them; they wanted them knocked out. They had come to this bar to take them somewhere.

Over the din of the room, Dean could hear names being screamed in warning and hopes of aid. He heard the band members calling to each other, names Dean tried to remember. He heard Sammy and Sasha too.

"Dean!"

"Robbie, there!"

"Sasha, behind you!"

"Connor!"

"Janey, help Dean!"

Dean could barely focus on all of it, mostly because he was busy trying not to let the bitch with fangs on top of him actually get her hands around his neck like she wanted. But Dean was no super-powered freak like his brother and best friend. He was just human. And vampires are stronger than humans.

Losing his one-on-one battle, Dean managed to place a well-aimed knee into the vampire's hip, tossing her off balance. He rolled, chucked her off, and was about to get up and find his gun when the succubus landed down beside him and took the vampire's head off.

"Do you always suck this much?" She winked at him, her voice low like when she was singing, as she reached out to offer him a hand up.

This chick was something else. "Do you always come to the premature rescue of complete strangers?" Dean shot right back, even though he did take her hand, because hey, he had gotten a little winded landing on a table like that.

The succubus bassist didn't stay to quip further. She produced Dean's gun and pressed it to his chest, grinning a little wider at him before rushing back off into the fight.

Three vampires left. Damn, Dean felt like he had just done this countdown with the revenants. He caught up with Sam and Sasha easy enough, helping them take care of a few vamps. Sasha was the only one still carrying a large enough knife for beheading. It helped that the vampires didn't seem to want to kill them. They didn't seem to want to kill the band members either.

At least not until there was only one left, and in a panic the bastard grabbed up the succubus, tight arm around her throat and one of her own knifes turned toward her stomach. If the blade was iron then that could be a problem for the sex demon.

The bar had cleared out by this point, and with the other vampires dead now, the fighting was over, leaving only silence and one vampire with a hostage.

Dean was busy working out a plan in his head already, noticing the concerned looks on Sam and Sasha's faces for the succubus' sake. The strange thing, however, was that her companions, the boys from the band, didn't look concerned at all. They actually dropped their weapons and started laughing.

"You think this is funny?" the vampire spat. He was clearly the leader of the group, but not much of one. He looked scared, and he should be, considering all of his companions had been dealt with so easily. Dean actually couldn't believe how easy it had been, but then it had been an almost even fight, hunter to vampire.

Sam, Dean, and Sasha were back a ways by some of the headless bodies, but the drummer and guitarist moved forward closer to where their companion was being held captive. They stopped several feet away, still casual, unconcerned.

"I don't care what they told me, what they threatened!" the vamp cried, anxious in the presence of such apathy, "I'll kill her anyway! I'll kill any of you!"

The guitarist kid snorted, looking much shorter when he was standing next to the tall drummer. "Yeah, good luck with that, man," he said.

"You obviously weren't paying much attention during the fight," added the drummer.

The vampire was looking panicked, ready to do something stupid. It made Dean kind of pissed that these kids weren't doing shit to help their friend. "I mean it!" the vampire shouted, backing away with the girl.

The drummer and guitarist just laughed again. "I'm sure you do," the drummer said, "But I'm sorry to tell you, between the three of us…" He even went so far as to put his machete away inside a sheath hidden in his pant leg. "…you grabbed the wrong one."

Dean couldn't possibly have seen it coming. 'It' being the impossible speed that the succubus' leg moved, kicking straight up in a vertical split until the top of her foot struck the vampire in the face and he stumbled back. She freed herself easily from his hold, spinning around in a low kick to knock the vampire's legs out from under him. Then she was down, on top of him, her knives out again like they came from thin air, ready to kill him with one swift movement.

It was really kind of hot.

"I only waited to make my move for dramatic effect," she snarked. She wasn't killing him though; she knew to keep him alive. He was the only one left and they needed someone to question so they could figure out what the hell was going on, which at least meant that these kids didn't know everything, even though they obviously knew more than Sam, Dean, and Sasha.

Slowly, waiting to see what would happen and what these young hunters would do, Dean started to move forward first, knowing Sam and Sasha would follow suit. The male band members were already moving closer to the succubus as she got the vampire up onto his feet and backed him toward a wall for better control.

"How much info do we need, Connor?" the succubus asked, staring the vampire down.

The drummer answered. "Not a lot. So the information you give us," he said to the vampire, "better be worth it. Why now? What's important about this time? What's going to happen?" He stepped around the succubus, taking point, and with a subtle raise of Connor's hand the vampire flew back the last few feet into the wall.

TK. Like Sam.

Dean shot his companions wary looks. They needed to play this carefully. Something big was going on and they were totally in the dark. Sam offered back a sharp look, while Sasha merely nodded. They were coming in behind the band now, not sure if they could trust these hunters that weren't quite human.

"I'm just muscle, I don't know anything," the vampire said quickly, pinned by the drummer's power.

"Haven't heard that one before," the guitarist huffed.

"We know this time is important," the drummer, Connor, went on, ignoring his companion, "We know you were trying to take them somewhere, so just be honest with us upfront and this will go a lot easier."

"I only look this nice, sugar," the succubus twirled the knives in her hands like a gunslinger, "Trust me, you really want to be straight with us right off the bat."

Kids or not, the vampire sure looked scared of these guys. "I don't know!" he shouted, struggling against the invisible force holding him to the wall, "We were just supposed to take them back with us. I don't know what the plan was. I don't know what's important about this time."

"You were taking them back?" the succubus said skeptically.

"Forward?" the guitarist jumped in.

"Why?" added Connor.

"I said I don't know!"

Connor's head tilted slightly to the right. "He's not lying. Too bad. You're not really helpful if you don't know anything. Janey," he said as he stepped away, letting the succubus take his place. She twirled her knives again and stepped up to the vamp.

"Hang on," Dean took a few steps forward. He was tired of this, of not having a freaking clue what was going on. "Just who the hell are you? How did you know these vamps were after us? Where were they taking us? And why the hell do you even care? We don't know you."

The three young hunters looked back at Dean, the succubus and guitarist apparently amused, like they were close to laughing. Only Connor remained stoic. He was about to answer Dean when the guitarist suddenly jerked, his dark eyes gone wide. Dean felt Sam's hand grip his arm tightly from behind as both Sam and the guitarist spoke at the same time. "Something's coming."

Dean tried not to focus on how weird that just was and turned to his brother. "I thought the vampires were the something."

Sam shook his head. "This is something else."

"Something else?" Sasha pressed.

"Robbie?" Connor turned to the guitarist.

"Fuck, Connor, I think it's…the water god," Robbie replied.

"Abzu?" Connor looked worried now.

The succubus, Janey, turned away from the vampire long enough to look worried too. "How the fuck did he follow us?"

"I told you that thing wasn't secure, Connor," Robbie spat, looking like he was checking his pockets for a change of weaponry.

"Damn, Connor, he's going to flood this whole valley," Janey said, "We gotta go now."

"What is going on?" Sam demanded from Dean's right. Dean was feeling the exact same way, clueless and pissed about it.

Connor glanced at them but turned back to Janey instead of answering. "Finish him. We'll make a break for the Roadhouse."

The succubus didn't even pause, just raised her knives and slashed off the vamp's head before the bastard even had a chance to protest again. It was a little cold, Dean thought, but then the hunter code didn't leave much room for second chances for monsters trying to kidnap or kill you.

The kid, Robbie, looked ready to bolt as soon as they were able, the succubus too, as all three of them turned to Sam, Dean, and Sasha, with Connor in the lead. Dean couldn't help it; his first instinct was to reach for his gun. These kids had way too many secrets they were keeping from them, and they had only just met.

"We don't have time to explain everything. We knew you'd be here. We knew the vampires were coming. That's why I warned you," Connor looked to Sam, "But something a lot worse than those vampires is headed our way, and if we don't get somewhere secure then we might never get the chance to tell you what's really going on. We have to go now." Connor moved right for Sam, grabbing Sam by the arm and pulling him along out of the bar.

Robbie came up to Sasha and Dean and pressed on their chests to get them to move too. "Come on," the kid said, and damn, did he look young close up, "No time. Trust us. Move, move, move."

If Dean didn't at the very least trust that something was coming, since Sam had said so too, he would have been really annoyed by some kid manhandling him. Instead, he allowed himself to be turned and pushed toward the exit to follow after Sam and Connor. Dean couldn't help noticing that the succubus turned back to look at him and Sasha, offering another wink.

Dean shared a questioning look with his incubus. How did these guys know them anyway?

Before they could reach the door, all of them jolted with a sudden eruption of thunder from outside. It had been clear when they reached the bar earlier, Dean remembered.

"When you said Abzu," Sasha questioned, "You didn't by any chance mean the Babylonian freshwater god who was the lover of Tiamat…did you?"

The gathered group turned to Sasha in disbelief. Sasha shrugged. "It's not as if we haven't dealt with gods before. Besides, I like mythology."

Dean snorted. "Show off."

"He isn't going to make this easy for us," Connor said, tugging Sam after him again, and managing quite easily since Sam seemed too stunned to struggle, "Come on." As they rushed out of the bar, Dean couldn't help wondering if maybe drummer Connor had a crush on Sammy after all. "Take care of the vamps, Robbie."

Then Dean had to wonder just what Connor meant by 'take care of the vamps'. They were beheaded, but they should really be burned as well.

On their way out, there was a fuse box in easy access. This place wasn't exactly the most modern, well-kept building. Robbie walked up to the fuse box before they got outside and placed his hand flat on top of it.

"Shame. This was a nice place," he said, as the fuse box sparked at the touch of his palm and a sudden shock of flames started climbing up the wall. Old place like this would go up in minutes. Easy pyre.

This was getting freaky.

Most of the cars in the parking lot were gone when they got outside, the patrons having high-tailed it. Dean did notice an impressive looking chopper parked close to the building. It was silver, no design he had ever seen before. He hadn't noticed it when they arrived, but it was all that was left other than the Impala.

Robbie headed straight for the bike as the first bit of rain broke the now overcast sky and the bar began to burn behind them.

"I'll keep our tail clean as best I can," the kid called, scooping up a helmet and looking a little overeager to take the bike.

Dean suddenly noticed that the succubus was gunning for the driver's side door of his car. "You be careful with my baby, Robbie," she yelled over her shoulder, slipping into Dean's seat like it was no big deal, and leaving Dean to grab the passenger side, and Sam, Sasha, and Connor to get in the back.

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" Dean shot at her as he slammed his door.

The succubus tossed him a grin, red painted nails tapping the steering wheel and a glint in her green eyes that Dean would almost swear he had seen before. "You wanna waste time switching seats, or you wanna give me the keys?" she said.

Another crack of thunder sounded around them and a streak of lightening followed. The rain was pouring down around them suddenly. "Give her the keys, Dean," Sam hissed, "Abzu is not a pushover pagan god like the Trickster. He really could flood the valley."

"Alright, alright," Dean grumbled, digging out his keys and chucking them at the succubus. She looked so damn pleased with herself as she started up the engine. "You know where you're going?" he asked her.

Janey cocked her head at him as if that question was the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard. "I could find the Roadhouse in my sleep, Pops. Just sit back and enjoy the ride."

It took Dean a moment to actually register what she had just said. "Did you just call me 'Pops'?" he asked with some indignation. Okay, so in his head he had been calling them 'kids' this whole time, but there was no way he deserved to be called 'Pops'.

"Don't be so sensitive," she shrugged.

They drove off at a fast speed, slicing their way through the rain. Dean hated someone he didn't know being behind the wheel of his baby, but at least she seemed to know how to handle the car. If that bike back there was actually hers then it was no wonder she looked like a biker chick.

"Is Robbie okay back there," Janey asked over her shoulder, "I can't see anything."

"Use your head, Janey," Connor shot back, even as he was turned around, trying to peer out the back. Dean couldn't see anything but a downpour outside his passenger side window.

"I'm focused up here."

"Can we just slow down a minute," Sam said, holding up his hands like he was about ready to lose it. He quickly amended what he had said. "Slow down figuratively. We have time to hear the truth now, so who are you people? What's going on? Why is an ancient pagan god trying to drown us?"

Mentally, Dean added, 'I so second that'.

"And speaking of 'Robbie'" Sasha broke in, leaning over Sam to address Connor, "What exactly is he doing on that bike to…keep our tail clean?"

Connor looked understandably put on the spot and suddenly very uncomfortable being wedged in the backseat with Sam and Sasha, even though he was the one who had put himself in that position. "He's…making sure Abzu doesn't manage to drown us before we've reached the Roadhouse, okay?"

"Like he managed to blow the fuse box to burn down the bar just by touching it?" Dean called back between the seats.

"…yeah."

"How do you know the Roadhouse so well?" Sam went right on, "Were you there for the battle? I don't remember you."

"Uhh…not exactly."

"Oh, just spill it for 'em, Connor," Janey said with a touch of annoyance, blazing down the road almost as if she had been behind the wheel of the Impala before.

"They should be sitting down for this," Connor said.

"We are sitting down," Sasha deadpanned.

Connor blanched. He had seemed so much more like a leader before. "Preferably in a non-moving vehicle. I don't think you're going to like what we have to say. But you can trust us. I promise you that."

"Heard that one before," Dean grumbled, "Will you keep a better eye on the road there, sweetheart," Dean gripped the dashboard, really not caring anymore that this chick knew how to drive since the rain was pouring so hard around them that they couldn't see a foot in front of them.

"I told you, Pops" she glanced at him, "I could find the Roadhouse with my eyes closed."

Dean bristled. "Can you not call me that?" he spat. When he looked back at the succubus, she actually looked a little put out.

"Not now, Janey," Connor called from the back, "Look, just trust me, this will all be easier to explain when we're somewhere safe."

"How safe can we be, even in the Roadhouse, if some god is trying to flood us out?"

"I have a plan," Connor said.

Dean looked into the back again just in time to see Sam making a potentially dangerous decision. He was pulling his gun out of his coat and aiming it right in Connor's face. "Well, I don't think that's good enough," Sam said coldly. The temperature in the car immediately shot up a notch.

"Sammy…?" Dean spoke carefully.

"Not now, Dean," Sam didn't even look at him. His eyes were glued to Connor. "Why do I know you? Why do you…feel familiar? You used telekinesis back there. You're human…but you're not. And what Robbie did before, what he's doing now…just…just…tell me the truth!"

This was about as freaked as Dean had seen Sam in a long time. He did not doubt that Sam would pull the trigger if he didn't like how Connor answered, and that was just crazy. Dean also didn't like how worried Janey was right now, especially since she was the one driving. "Hey!" she called, checking frantically into the back while she drove.

Then, suddenly, before Connor could respond or Sam could do something supremely stupid, they hydroplaned. Janey was a smart driver, thank god, and kept firm hold of the steering wheel, taking her foot off the accelerator and avoiding the breaks.

"Shit! What the hell is Robbie doing back there? Sleeping?" she growled, steering on top of the water as best she could. They wouldn't be out of the woods until they hit pavement again.

"Please," Connor beseeched Sam, raising both of his hands in placation, "We need to get to the Roadhouse or we're all going to be in trouble out here. We're not your enemies, D—" Connor suddenly stopped, his brow furrowing. Janey," he turned to the succubus, "Robbie needs help."

As much as Dean wanted possession of his baby back, he was not prepared for Janey to act on that request. She turned to Dean, told him to take the wheel, rolled down her window, and started climbing out. "Jesus!" Dean called as he lunged across to take control of the car. Guiding a hydroplaning car from the passenger seat was not an easy task. The next thing Dean knew, Janey had leapt from the car entirely. He barely caught a glimpse of white and black as she shifted form and became lost in the rain.

"They'll be okay," Connor said, "Robbie has the ability to…control supernatural creatures. But Abzu is a tough customer. Robbie will only be able to divert him for awhile. Once we get to the Roadhouse, Robbie and I can create a barrier to protect all of us. I'll explain everything once we're there. I promise." He focused intensely on Sam, who Dean knew had to already be faltering in his choice to play it tough. "If you want to shoot me then shoot me, but you're not going to get any answers that way."

Dean really wished he could afford a little more focus spent on what was happening in the back, but he had to deal with keeping them on what was left of the road. By the time he crawled his way into the driver's seat, he could feel the stability of asphalt beneath them. Robbie and Janey must be doing something right out there. "We're not that much further from the Roadhouse," Dean mentioned, glancing in the rearview mirror to see that Sam had put the gun away, but wasn't taking his eyes off of Connor.

Sasha's eyes caught Dean's then, concern radiating out of him that Dean could practically feel like it was his own emotion, connected as they were. They didn't know what was going on, and this was a little tenser than they had expected their relaxing night to be.

Then Dean had a sudden, frightening thought right before Sasha began to speak.

"Does he just need cover?" Sasha asked Connor, looking like he had made up his mind about something that Dean was so not going to like.

Connor nodded. "Enough to concentrate and keep Abzu off our tail."

Sasha started rolling down his window.

Dean had already rolled back up his because of all the rain pouring in and distracting his driving. He almost jumped out of his seat when he realized what Sasha was about to do. "Damn it, don't you dare!" Dean called, craning his neck around to look into the back, but Sasha was already climbing out, unfolding his wings and letting them catch on the rough wind outside. "Sasha!"

"They won't let anything happen to him," Connor said, like it was no big deal that the love of Dean's life just got out of a moving vehicle to help attract fire from a god, and keep some kid they didn't even know from being drowned on a motorcycle.

"You know, I'm getting real sick of your reassurances, pal," Dean grit out, gripping the steering wheel too tightly, "Seems to me we were having a pretty good night before you bought my brother a beer." Dean could see when he glanced up at the mirror that Sam had scooted over to distance himself from Connor, rolling up the window after Sasha and looking back out into the rain.

"Can you see anything back there, Sammy?" Dean asked.

Sam turned forward again and shook his head, looking halfway to broken. Dean hated it. He really wanted to know what Sam was sensing from these kids that spooked him so much.

They drove the last few minutes in silence. Dean almost turned on the radio several times but figured it was better to have all his senses alert in case they hydroplaned again. They just had to get to the Roadhouse. Even if these young hunters were full of it, at least there they would be able to regroup and think of what to do.

As soon as Dean brought the Impala to a skidding halt in front of the Roadhouse, he was halfway to opening his door before he even got the keys out of the ignition. He had to see Sasha. He had to see that his incubus was okay. He hated driving like that, not being able to see anything, not knowing if Sasha was even still there.

It was raining so hard when Dean got out of the car, he could barely see the doors to the Roadhouse, let alone an incubus flying in the air. He was frantic, tried calling out, but his voice got lost in the sounds of the storm. Bad guys you couldn't see or even really fight were the worst kind of evil.

Then, out of the dark of the storm, there was a light, one lone headlight that signaled the coming of the motorcycle. Dean dashed around the Impala as Sam and Connor got out of the car finally. Sasha had to be there. He had to be somewhere in the sky.

Dean saw the bike form fully first, then he saw wings and almost breathed relief, but it was Janey, the succubus, who landed in front of him. Her markings were black like Sasha's. With her hair wilder and longer, she looked eerily like Sasha's mother, all red and white and black. She was beautiful, like an apparition of Sasha that wasn't quite right.

She must have known, maybe sensed what Dean was feeling, because she went right up to him with a fanged smile. "He's fine, Pops," she said, placing black claws on Dean's shoulder gently.

A second later there was a thud behind Dean, and when he turned, there was Sasha, all large black wings and gorgeous, despite being drenched. "We have to get inside, Dean!" Sasha yelled over the rain, grabbing Dean's hand and practically gliding them over to the doors in his haste. Sam was already there with Connor, and Janey and Robbie were right behind Dean and Sasha until all of them had made it inside. They were soaked to the bone.

Dean spotted Sarah and Jo in the bar, the only people he could see as he stumbled in and tried to catch his breath. He had barely been able to breathe out there. At least everyone was okay.

While they were all gulping for air, Sarah and Jo immediately ran over to them in a panic, asking what had happened, where that sudden storm had come from, and who these newcomers were. There wasn't time to explain everything. When Dean glanced back at the doors he saw that Connor was standing in front of them.

Robbie darted over to him. "What are we gonna do!" the kid yelled.

Connor was strangely calm as he turned to his shorter companion. "We have to bind the Roadhouse. It's the only way to protect everyone," he said, extending a hand as if offering it for Robbie to take.

"Bind it?" Robbie shot back, "Are you crazy? We nearly blew ourselves to hell last time, Connor! We can't control it!"

"Yes, we can," Connor insisted, thrusting his hand out more insistently, "We can do this, Robbie. The Roadhouse doesn't have the right fortifications yet to protect against something like Abzu. We don't have a choice."

Robbie didn't look happy about this, but in the end he took Connor's hand anyway. "This is so gonna suck," the kid grumbled.

Dean was torn between being exhausted from the rain, like something in the water had been trying to drain him of energy, and being really fucking weirded out by these strangers with abilities he had only ever seen in Sam. And in the other special kids. But these guys weren't the right ages for that. They couldn't be some other generation of Azazel's, could they?

All of them watched as the two men from the band stood before the doors and Connor started to chant. Dean couldn't understand the words, didn't recognize the language, but a light started to grow where their hands were connected, and another moment more there was a sudden flash. Connor and Robbie went flying across the room, where they landed hard on the bar floor, their clasped hands torn apart with the force of it.

Janey rushed to them, transformed back to human with her shorter red hair, leather pants, and corset.

"God damn it, Connor, I told you!" Robbie sat up, rubbing his injured back.

"It wasn't as bad as last time," Connor countered.

"You say that every time, and yet I keep agreeing to it and ending up on my ass."

"Hey!" Janey stood over them, hands on her hips, "Geniuses, ya mind shutting up long enough to let us know if it worked?"

Dean was already looking to his companions, suggesting intently with his eyes that they needed to get themselves together now. They needed weapons, and the guns on Sam, Dean, and Sasha were soaked from the rain.

Aces with their intuition, the girls got the message, and by the time the young hunters had gotten up off the floor and were ready to face everyone again, Sarah and Jo had their own guns aimed. As he watched them get up, Dean would have sworn that for a moment Connor and Robbie's eyes were yellow.

"It worked," Connor assured the succubus as he stood and turned to see that they were not being welcomed into the Roadhouse with open arms. The storm sounded like it was passing, but Dean didn't believe this was just a small group of helpful hunters who got lucky and came to their rescue. Something really stunk about this, and Dean wanted the truth now.

"Ah, Hell," Robbie pulled a face, looking more annoyed than worried about the guns pointed at them.

Janey crossed her arms challengingly.

Connor didn't even flinch. "Please," he said.

"We're here. We're safe. You're not human," Sam accused. Inhuman wasn't usually a problem; it was things they didn't understand that made them worry, especially when there were lies involved. Sam stepped ahead of the others, obviously still sensing whatever it was about these strangers that had him so uneasy. "Just who the hell are you?"

Without batting an eyelash, Connor straightened and looked back at Sam squarely. "My name is Connor. This is my brother, Robbie," he gestured to the shorter man, "And our cousin," he nodded to the succubus, "Janey." Then he paused, his dark eyes moving to look at everyone, but coming back to rest on Sam. "Winchester," he said, "We're your children."

tbc...

A/N: I have returned! And damn do I need to go to bed. Okay, so this is an idea I've been kicking around awhile. I had initially planned to do a whole arc in the fae plane first, and I may still go back to that to give some of the side characters, like Leven and Adrian, a chance to shine. But I just really wanted to get to the kids. I worked out something BIG recently, and it got me all excited. I hope you'll all check back for updates, but don't expect the old weekly ones. I have alot of other things going on, like my blog, other fics, and original work. But this will continue. I promise. I've missed you guys!

Crim