Blue Moon Demon

By: Coffeemaniac

This story is an adventure that spans from pre-series and into Season 7. It's liberally dosed with Bobby Singer, and includes appearances by John Winchester, Crowley and Gabriel (aka the Trickster, aka the Archangel)

Reviews are welcome and appreciated.

Thank you to all those who have followed this story all the way through.

CONCLUSION

In the end the plan to summon Belial rested on simplicity.

They painted the Devil's Trap, circled it with holy oil and placed the grill in the center.

Clouds crowded in the sky, gray and foreboding. The moon hid behind them, likely frustrating amateur astrologists and curiosity seekers who wanted to experience the unusual event.

For the purposes of summoning Belial, the cloud cover was inconsequential. Some believed that the full power of the moon lay in its visibility but Dean rejected that idea. He knew that as long as the full moon rose, they could access it to trap the demon.

He added a thermal undershirt to his layers as he prepared to meet Sam outside. With the temperature hovering at thirty five degrees, he didn't know how long they'd be out there and he didn't want to start shivering in the damp cold.

As he stepped off Bobby's porch he spotted Sam walking the perimeter of their trap. Bobby stood nearby reading an old book, his gloved fingers skimming over the page.

"I think we're ready," he said to Dean.

"If you would let me do the summoning, we're almost guaranteed his appearance," Sam said as he reached them.

"We've already been over this," Dean said. Irritation flared up that Sam was revisiting the argument.

"I'm more interesting to him."

"Yeah, more interesting, like a piñata that needs filling." Bobby said. "We're not using you as bait."

"He can possess you more easily than me," Sam said. "I have the tattoo. And I'm in better physical shape to fight him off. It makes more sense."

Dean glared at Sam while Bobby scowled. Sam looked between the two of them, his emotionless gaze reminded Dean of a serial killer. But, Dean couldn't deny that Sam had made a valid point.

"I'm still pretty spry for an old man," Bobby said, contempt dripping from his words.

"You're making this personal," Sam said.

"Wait, wait," Dean said, hating the role of peacemaker. He'd been doing it so long it was a natural reflex but he still hated it. "Bobby, he has a point."

"Excuse me?"

"About the tattoo. Not the other thing. So, let me do it. I have a soul and I know the incantation."

"This is my wife, Dean, my fight. I can't ask you to…"

"Bobby, we're family. This isn't about asking."

Bobby stopped. Dean watched him, the steps playing across his face as he reached the same conclusion. He looked ten years older as he said,

"Okay. Do the spell. But, if that demon kills you, I'll never forgive you. Understand me?"

Dean nodded. "It'll be okay."

Sam hesitated as if he might argue but he didn't. He strode to the edge of the circle.

Bobby patted Dean's shoulder as he walked towards the other side.

Dean glanced around at the other hunters. Mist poured from their mouths and noses as their breath met the bitter cold. Both of them stood like soldiers, alert and ready for battle. Surrounded by decimated vehicles and bare trees, the scene looked like the end result of a cataclysm.

With the herbs prepared by Bobby, Dean was ready to start the incantation. He took a last breath, checked his pockets for holy water and lamented the fact that Meg had stolen their demon killing knife.

He opened the book that Bobby left on the small table beside the grill. As he read the words, he sprinkled more ingredients, equally gratified and worried as the herbs billowed and sifted independent of the wind. The aroma of herbs filled the air and heat wafted towards him. Gradually a spark snapped igniting the ingredients with a sudden flash. Dean drew back a step with the intensity.

A shadow, gray and indistinct slowly formed inside the flames. The gray and black color reminded Dean of the flicked ashes inside an ashtray. As it took human shape, it grew until long legs stepped through the grill, shattering the metal with a screech. Dean stared at the oval shape above the widened shoulders searching for expression but the facial features hadn't developed.

With flames burning orange and gold behind the ash, the creature planted its feet against the cold, cement. Dark crevices carved out of the blob, leaving flat red circles where eyes should live. Gradually a mouth cracked through like a deep wound opening in skin.

Dean grabbed his head with one hand as he clutched the holy water with the other. A booming echo, like remnants of a jet engine rammed into his brain making his head throb and his eyes water. Meaningless sounds pummeled him; words but no meaning pounded through his skull.

"Wait," he gasped. The pain collapsed him as his knees shook with the effort to stay on his feet.

He backed up a few steps, seeing the ash flake away from the body as a man materialized through the flames. The red eyes remained, hard and marbled, but the limbs grew long from a narrow torso. A black suit wrapped around the scarecrow frame with a starched white shirt and narrow tie. Above its head a black fedora appeared over black curls emphasizing the stark red orbs peering out of its newly formed skull.

"You…summoned…how dare…"

Dean barely managed to make any meaning of the baritone echo attacking his brain.

The ground flamed up and the heat sent Dean stumbling backward as he dropped the holy water and clutched his head.

"Wait." He knew the word left him but he couldn't hear his own voice or make sense of the figure towering above him.

"Hey," Sam's voice cut through the noise and Dean latched on to the familiar sound.

Another explosion erased the short relief. Dean thought he cried out as the agonizing volume decimated his eardrums, making his brain tremble inside his skull. Dean wrapped his arms around his head, crouching on the frozen cement hoping he died before he imploded.

When the thunderous echo diminished, it took some time for Dean to notice. His ears still reverberated with the sound until gradually he realized the words filling his brain were comprehensible.

"Who are you to summon me?" Belial said.

Dean cleared his throat as he backed away from the well-dressed demon hovering over him.

"We want to make a deal."

Dean continued moving, making his way to the burning circle of holy oil.

"You have nothing," Belial said. "Except possibly…" his voice trailed off as he searched the outside of the circle, his attention landing on Sam.

"Where is your soul?"

"Hey, pay attention," Dean said. He dove through the flame, heat slicking across his exposed hands and face, and landing gracelessly several feet away.

He rolled to his feet to find Bobby had moved closer to Sam. The two stood shoulder to shoulder watching Belial glide slowly inside the burning circle.

"You have something we want," Dean said. "And now we have you."

"You overestimate your control. But, I am willing to hear your demands."

Bobby took a step closer. "My wife's soul is incomplete and it's preventing her from entering heaven. You have it."

"I have many kernels to fill me. Tell me more of this one you seek."

Bobby spilled the tale of Karen and her sister, of the mistake and the panicked action that led to Belial's summoning. He ended the story by emphasizing Karen's innocence and requesting again that the essence of her soul be returned.

Belial's form grew more tangible as time passed. He seemed disturbingly solid by the time Bobby finished talking.

"Her marrow is of little consequence to me. I will trade. The soulless boy will suffice in return."

"That's not on offer," Sam said.

"No, it's not," Dean said. "We'll let you out of this circle after you release Karen Singer's soul…part. That's the deal."

"You cannot hold me here. I grow stronger as we speak. Your trap is temporary. I offer you your life in return for this abomination. And I will give you the kernel as a gesture of goodwill."

"No," Bobby said. "We won't trade. The devil's trap and the holy oil will hold. You're bluffing."

Belial lurched towards the fire, standing so close, Dean expected his clothes to burst into flame. Bobby stood rooted to the spot, meeting the creature's gaze. An instant later, Bobby yelled out, grabbing his skull as he collapsed to his knees. Sam rushed towards him, grabbed his arm and dragged him a few feet away from the circle. Sam marched back but kept a greater distance between him and God's monster.

"Without a soul, I'm no use to you," Sam said. "You collect the essence for power. What are you going to do with an empty human?"

Dean winced at Sam's words. He had thought of Sam as empty but hearing the phrase uttered with cold, indifference chilled him.

"Empty is the perfect vessel to fill."

"You're an angel so you need my permission and I don't care if his wife goes to heaven. There's no deal to be made."

"I'm also a demon."

Dean glanced at Bobby who was standing now. Dean motioned for him to stay back then moved closer to Sam's side.

"Angels can't possess humans without consent," Dean said. "That's the reason you haven't entered this realm, isn't it? Your demon side keeps the devout and holy away, and your angel side needs permission."

"It's the soul that protects humans from angel possession, isn't it?" Sam said. "The soul is the reason angels need consent."

Belial's eyes narrowed. A slow smile spread across his face.

"When I held you in the cavern, freezing and starving you to death. Brutally and deliberately convincing you to grant my brother entrance, you had a soul, didn't you? How careless of you to lose it, to make yourself vulnerable to me."

Sam grabbed his skull, barking out a pained yell. As his legs buckled, Dean shoved him backward. He stumbled, falling away from the circle and landing near Bobby. Bobby moved in front of him, protectively blocking Belial's access.

"Give us Karen's soul and we'll release you," Dean said. "Keep attacking us and we'll just leave you here."

"No," Belial said. "I don't think you will."

The creature waved his arm. A wind blew colder than the freezing night and the flame of holy oil died at their feet. Dean cursed as he took a step backward.

Belial's eyes grew darker, the red swallowed by black. As he stepped across the edge of the devil's trap, a spark ignited sending the bitter smell of sulphur into the air as if someone lit a match. He stood in front of Dean.

"Hey," Bobby yelled out. He charged forward, using a handgun that looked more like a water pistol, he shot holy water over the monster.

Belial sizzled, smoke rising from his clothing as he flinched away from the attack. Bobby continued sending streams of demonic acid until Belial punched out his hand and sent Bobby flying across the hard packed ground.

"Feeble bee," Belial said, disdain dripping from his tone.

Dean jumped into the fray, drawing out an angel killing blade. Just as he darted forward, the creature knocked the knife out of his hand then backhanded Dean. The blade flew off in one direction while Dean took a sickening flight in the other.

He tumbled into a tree, pain flaring up along his side and shoulder. He ignored the injuries as he rolled back to his feet. He scanned the ground for the angel knife, knowing it was their only hope but didn't see it. When he looked for Belial, the monster was gliding towards Sam. Dean charged him, throwing his weight into the scarecrow frame, knocking him sideways.

Sam leaped on both of them, wrapping his arms around Belial and dragging him away from Dean. The creature flicked his hand to send Dean tumbling into one of the salvage cars. He hit hard against the body, feeling his frame shake with the impact. Rolling on to his side, he struggled to stand, his ears ringing and the tinny odor of blood filling his nose. He reached up, wincing when he found a gash just above his neck.

Unsteady, dizziness blurring his vision, Dean managed to get to his feet. As he steadied he looked in the direction of the battle, his legs already tensing to dive back in. He couldn't let Sam be possessed even if it meant failing Bobby.

As Cas gained solidity, Dean stopped. His friend arrived with friends of his own and several angels surrounded Belial and Sam who were locked in battle. Cas put his hand on Sam's shoulder and pulled him away. He shoved him away sending Sam stumbling towards Bobby.

"You may die here or you may return what you stole from Karen Singer. She is slated to enter our Father's kingdom and you have interfered long enough."

"You think you can stop me, brother?" Belial roared.

"Perhaps not alone but as you can see, I am not alone. Do as I ask and live. You will not touch this human," Cas pointed towards Sam. "You will not live in this realm but I will grant your life."

Belial straightened his narrow shoulders, the suit rustling around him. He lifted his hand slowly, palm up and a tiny, glowing light formed. Orange and red, it flickered and grew. The angels lifted their blades as one, arms extended, their shimmering weapons poised above their mutant brother. Belial squeezed his fist, stamping the light out with an angry grunt.

His hand rose again, this time a white light glowed, almost colorless. It floated slowly towards the trees, rising passed the tallest branches until it disappeared from view.

Dean looked from the sky towards Castiel and the other angels. Belial puffed his narrow chest.

"It's done," he said.

"Yes," Cas said. "She is saved. And so are you."

Belial nodded, his eyes fading back to red as his body shrank, turning gray as ash flaked off in the cold breeze. His image collapsed into a circle of dust and a plume of smoke.

Cas turned to his companions. "Thank you brothers and sisters. You may return to heaven."

In the midst of a sound like birds taking flight, the other angels disappeared.

Sam and Bobby joined Dean at the edge of the circle. Bobby's age showed in his reddened face and pronounced wrinkles. A bruise darkened one of his cheeks. Sam rubbed his shoulder but Dean didn't see any obvious injuries on his brother.

"Are all of you well?" Cas said as he faced them.

"We'll be fine," Dean said. "Thanks for the save."

"Thanks for getting Karen into heaven. It means more than you know," Bobby said, his voice cracking at the end. He cleared his throat. "Is she okay?"

"Heaven heals. In time, she'll be whole."

Dean squeezed Bobby's shoulder, lending him some support as Bobby worked to contain his emotions. His surrogate father trembled under his hand. When Bobby swiped at his eyes, Dean told him they needed to get some sand to cover the holy oil. Bobby grumbled and nodded and walked towards the garage.

Dean turned back to Cas to find the angel glaring at him.

"This was extremely dangerous. If Belial had possessed Sam, he would have been free to create havoc on earth."

"Bobby asked for our help," Dean said.

"And you didn't think you should contact me first."

"Hey," Sam said. "It's not like you've been around lately. Most of the time, you don't even bother to show up when we call."

Castiel's eyes narrowed as he squeezed his hands into fists. Dean thought he'd deny Sam's accusation but in the next breath, his face cleared.

"I understand. I have been busy. Please do not contact ancient celestial beings without praying to me first."

With that, Cas disappeared.

Dean looked at Sam. "Well, he sure told us," he said.

Sam smiled with that wooden, vacant expression that Dean hated. As the two of them waited for Bobby to return, Dean thought of something.

"Hey, you're not planning on going after Karen's sister, are you?"

"She's a witch," Sam said.

"Yeah, but, Bobby doesn't want her dead. He would've killed her already if he did."

"She's still a witch. Our job is killing monsters and we know there's one in the next town over."

"Sam, we're not killing Barbara. She's kind of like Bobby's family plus we don't know if she's done anything since she got her sister killed. We're leaving her alone."

Sam shook his head. "I don't understand."

"I know," Dean said, seriously. "That's why I'm here. This is one of those times when you have to trust me to know the right thing. Okay? No killing Bobby's sister-in-law."

"Fine," Sam said but Dean heard the disagreement in his tone.

Dean decided to keep a close eye on his brother until they left town again.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

**Set between "Season Seven, Time for a Wedding" and "How to Win Friends and Influence Monsters"**

Sam woke up just as Dean pulled into the dirt path that led to Rufus' abandoned cabin. Sleep crept in often as he recovered from Becky Rosen's demon tainted potion. The aftereffects of being poisoned into thinking she was his soulmate had left lingering doubts about reality. He still found traces of feelings that he knew didn't belong to him as well as pieces of memories that he didn't actually remember.

Dean assured him the effects would pass but between the Hell memories, hallucinations about Lucifer and the constant threat from Leviathan, Sam had nearly reached his limit.

The anniversary of defeating Belial and saving Karen Singer's soul gave them a good excuse to make a side trip to the cabin where they could regroup and recharge for a few days.

Bobby walked outside, greeting them as they pulled up.

"What's shaking, Bobby?" Dean said.

Sam just waved before traipsing to the back of the Impala to grab their gear.

"Made a stew for dinner," Bobby said. "It'll take the chill off. You boys hungry?"

"Have you met me?" Dean said.

Sam handed his brother a duffle then followed him across the porch and inside. They set their gear down. Sam glanced up when he felt eyes on him. Bobby stood a couple of feet away staring as he leaned at the back of the couch.

"You look like warmed over crap," Bobby said.

Sam narrowed his eyes as he frowned. "Good to see you too," he said.

"Have you slept in the last week?"

"All I do is sleep. Batteries are taking some time to recharge."

Bobby scowled. "That crazy groupie really did a number on you, huh?"

"The demon slash witch did the real damage. Becky is mostly just guilty of being naïve."

"And desperate," Dean said.

Sam moved closer to the fire burning at the back of the cabin. The flames dancing inside the fireplace provided the only warmth and it felt good on his skin.

Bobby walked towards the small, wood table where he had set bowls out near a loaf of bread. The small propane stove held a large, metal pot. Bobby used a ladle to start filling the bowls. He handed them one at a time to Dean who set them out. Sam regretfully abandoned the fire to grab three beers out of the small refrigerator.

The three of them settled at the table. The aroma of the hearty stew started to chase away the cold. As Sam dug in, he glanced at his family. Bobby kept his hat on and blew on the bowl to cool it before starting to eat. Dean tucked in with his head down and blowing on each spoonful before shoveling the stew into his mouth. Sam watched them for a moment until his stomach growled and he took some bread from the bag, slathered it with butter and took a bite.

Several minutes passed with just the sounds of spoons and chewing. Then Bobby picked up his bottle of beer and held it out.

"A year ago, we did the impossible. Here's to us," he said.

"We do the impossible all the time," Dean said. "To us."

Bobby and Dean clinked bottles then Sam clinked with them. No one mentioned Castiel or his contribution to sending Belial away, and saving Karen Singer. His betrayal with Crowley and of bringing the Leviathan out of Purgatory still confused the grief they all felt by his death. Talking about him remained too painful. So Sam chose not to think about it. He focused on the future instead. Being surrounded by his family gave him confidence that as long as the three of them had each other, they'd continue kicking "the impossible's" ass.