Don't own the boys and Bobby.

A very Special thanks to Muffy, Abni ,Nana56 for all the encouragement 

Thanks a lot for the Abni for beta reading and making the chapter awesome 

Dedicated to my big sis Muffy Morrigan for her special day!

Chapter 2

Ani watched Sam as he swallowed hard before starting. His eyes looked distant as he was lost in whatever traumatizing incident the younger boy had gone through. Ani gave him a small smile, offering him encouragement to continue. Sam looked at her with glazed eyes, almost as if he was not looking at her at all. "We were at Illinois when Bobby called and asked for help with a hunt," Sam began in a soft voice.

Ani narrowed her eyes. "Wait… wait …wait….. You're a hunter?" she asked, glaring at Bobby. Bobby shrugged and looked away. Sam gave her a weird look. "Yeah, my whole family are hunters! Didn't Bobby tell you?" Sam asked with curiousity, looking at Bobby.

"Well, apparently Bobby here has a few things he doesn't like to share with me," Ani said indignantly, crossing her arms.

Sam looked at her and Bobby, bewildered. "What's going on Bobby? " Sam asked tiredly. He pinched his nose, worrying about the headache he had been having. He glanced back at Ani, whom Bobby had brought in saying she might be able to help them. Something was going on between Bobby and Ani that Sam couldn't put his finger on. And Sam wasn't that interested in it now. He had to figure out what was wrong with Dean, right now that's all he cared about.

"You want to continue your story? Or maybe you should rest. You don't look good, Sam," Ani said, gently squeezing Sam's hand. Sam felt some of his headache ease away and sleep settling in. He blinked at Ani then shook his head and cringed as pain exploded again behind his eyes. He barely felt Ani squeeze his hand, but slowly the pain eased and he relaxed his tense muscles.

"How long ago were your brother attacked?" Ani asked, looking at Sam who had his eyes closed tightly. "Four day ago," Bobby said in a gruff voice, and when Ani looked at him, Bobby looked away.

"You didn't come to me when this happened four days ago? How did it to come to that?" Ani asked, anger bubbling inside.

"I wasn't sure that you'd help," Bobby said, looking at the floor. Ani raised her eyebrow at Bobby , and if eyes could, kill Bobby would have died right there. She was almost about to leap out of the chair and demand an explanation, but she was stopped by Sam's pained whisper, "Please… just help us". Ani looked back at the younger boy who was leaning heavily on the chair. She sighed and gently squeezed his shoulder trying to ease some more pain from Sam. "I will help, Sam, if there is anything I can do. No worries." Sam blinked at her. "Right now I really think you should get some rest. You'll be no good to Dean like this," she said gently, but Sam shook his head.

"I have to stay… What if the demon comes back?" Sam said, his gaze falling on Dean again.

"What are you going to do, Sam? What exactly are you hoping you could do, if the demon came back?" she asked.

Sam shook his head. " I have to be here… just in case he wakes up."

"Sam… You should rest, boy. I'll be here, and you know the room's protected. Lee made sure of that," Bobby said gruffly.

Ani smacked her forehead. She knew Lee Travis was a hunter. Not the regular kind, but he hunted nevertheless. "So there ya go. Dean will be safe here. You can crash at my house. It's protected, for starters, and anyway it's better than a motel. You know, hot water, good beds," Ani said in one breath.

"Are you starting to rant?" Bobby asked, amused.

"So what if I rant?" Ani asked, glaring back at him. Sam let out a small chuckle despite the dark hole he felt he was existing in. "So Sam, what are you gonna say? You can tell me what happened to you and your brother at home, and, well, I might have books that we could use for research… If you know what sort of a demon it is," Ani said.

Sam frowned a little. "I'm not sure what exactly it is. Might be Anglo Saxon … but that's just a hunch," Sam said, scratching his head.

"So, will you come back with me to my house… rest up and get some food inside you?" Ani suggested.

Sam shook his head. "I need to find the demon, which means I have to research to find out what the hell it is. I don't have time to go and rest ."

Ani opened her mouth and then closed it, lost for words. She didn't want to be harsh, but right now she wanted nothing but to smack the kid on the back of his head. She looked at Bobby, made a "you talk to him" face and walked out of the room. She knew the kid was frustrated, but someone had to talk him into taking care of himself.

…………………………………

Bobby watched Ani walk out the door. He turned to Sam, whose attention was back on Dean. "Listen, kid… You need to rest, " Bobby started, but Sam cut him off, grabbing the laptop. "I need to be alert. I need to be here with Dean when he wakes up."

'When … not if.' Bobby closed his eyes. "Are you going to fight a demon like that? You're dead on your feet, boy. You won't be any good to any of us like that. So tough it up and go with Ani. Her place is safe and protected. Demon might not be able to come there. It's safer than a crappy motel. So get your gear up and go with her, " he said sternly.

Sam sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes. Bobby reached out and squeezed his shoulder. "Don't forget… You're suppose to rest, Sam," Bobby said grimly. The kid had also been hospitalized, and he would end up in there again if this continued.

----Three days ago----

Bobby had rushed to the hospital. The hospital personnel had informed him that the Winchester boys had been brought in yesterday, and Bobby had been on his way within minutes.

He had been preoccupied with a hunt and had asked the boys to take care of this particular demon. If something had happen to the boys, he'd be responsible for it. Once he got to the hospital, he got the room number from the nurse's station by telling them he was the boys' uncle, and he'd hurried as fast he could to the boys' room.

When he walked into the room, Sam jumped in the chair where he was sitting. He was bent over, working on his laptop. The boy heaved a sigh of relief when he saw Bobby. The older man walked towards Sam and pulled him into a hug. Sam clung to him for a moment before breaking away from the hug. Bobby clapped the youngest Winchester softly on the shoulder, looking at the exhausted boy. Sam nodded at him and dropped back onto the chair. Then Bobby looked at Dean. The kid didn't look very well. He was hooked up to a lot of machines, which seemed to be the only way for his brother to be assured that he was still alive.

There was another bed in the room, and Bobby looked at it and then at Sam. Sam shrugged. "Bed rest?" Bobby raised an eyebrow. "And you're in the chair?" Sam shrugged again. "What happened, kid?" Bobby asked.

Sam swallowed thickly before he explained what had happened. The older man was worried about the concussion Sam revealed he'd got, and the kid seemed to be still in shock. Sam didn't seem to remember most of the details, he told him about the encounter with the demon, but he was not able to give Bobby any clear information about what had attacked them. That worried Bobby more. According to Sam, they had been attacked in their motel room, and the demon had left after taking its prey, Dean, which meant that there was more than one demon involved. Bobby sighed gloomily.

The demon's MO had been puzzling Bobby. He had been in a middle of a hunt when he got the call about this particular one, and the MO didn't immediately fit any demon he knew about. What Sam had said was not enough to further their research.

"So what's up with Dean?" Bobby asked, focusing back on the older brother.

"He's in a coma. They did surgery on him because of internal bleeding… I… Bobby… He was hurt like after the accident… Exactly the same way," Sam said in a strangled voice. Bobby reached out and squeezed his shoulder, worried about him. Sam stared at Dean and Bobby stood next to him offering the encouragement the younger brother needed, waiting patiently for him to relate what had happened.

Bobby wasn't exactly sure how it happened, but suddenly their peaceful silence was broken by the wailing of the machines. Both of them got startled, and Sam leaped out of the chair. Bobby watched in horror as the heart monitor flat lined. He gripped Sam's shoulder and pretty much dragged the unresponsive kid away from Dean's bed. Sam was whispering to himself, his eyes fixed on Dean when the doctors and nurses rushed into the room.

"Bobby?" a surprised voice said, and Bobby tore his stare away from Dean. He found himself looking at Lee Travis, one of his hunter friends. "Lee?" Bobby asked in the same surprised voice. Lee looked at Dean and then at Sam. "Get him out of here!" He pointed at Sam and hurried towards Dean.

Bobby was pretty much on autopilot as he dragged the younger boy out of the hospital room. Sam stumbled along with him, his stare fixed on Dean. Bobby's worry for him increased. He guided Sam into the waiting room and gently made him sit down. Sam sat down bonelessly onto a chair, his eyes unfocused.

"Sam….Son?" Bobby gently shook Sam, trying to get him back into the real world. Bobby's worry increased as the youngest Winchester stayed in the same state, staring with unfocused eyes and whispering to himself. The kid was definitely in shock. Bobby cupped Sam's face and leaned closer to hear what he was saying. He caught a few words, things like "Not again" and "Please". Bobby's heart clenched at the words.

"Sam….Come on, kid, snap out of it!" He sat down beside Sam and gently slapped the kid. After a few minutes, Sam blinked, finally focusing on Bobby. The older man almost staggered in relief. "Hey, kiddo," Bobby said, and Sam looked at him. The kid looked lost. "I… Bobby?" Sam asked in a strained whisper. "Yeah… I'm here," Bobby said, cupping Sam's cheek. The younger boy leaned into the touch.

"Bobby… I… Dizzy," Sam said in a whisper and leaned heavily onto Bobby. For the third time panic made Bobby's heart race. He immediately guided Sam's head onto his knees and kept rubbing his back. He was lost in the action when Lee came back from Dean's room.

"Bobby?" Lee was immediately by their side, and Bobby looked up at him wearily. Bobby lifted Sam gently and the boy leaned heavily onto Bobby. Lee called for some attendants to take Sam back into the room. He checked Sam again. The kid was no longer whispering to himself but the staring was still the same, much to Bobby's worry. He didn't look or talk when Lee and Bobby both tried to get his attention. Lee looked at Bobby and sighed. "I'm gonna prescribe him sedatives. He ought to be in bed… Resting," he said, running a hand through his hair.

"How's Dean?" Bobby asked once Sam was settled and they were out side the room.

"Not good. He's still in a coma. We lost him for a few moments there, but we got him back," Lee said, shuddering. "I don't get it, Bobby. I'm damned worried about him. He's in a bad shape, and we don't even have any idea when he'll come out of the coma. He was ripped apart inside. We had to do four surgeries to get him this far."

"This happened before. The boys had a run in with a real bad ass demon in August and Dean was pretty much ripped apart inside the same way. And he was in a coma. Well, he got out of it quite miraculously, if you need to know," Bobby said, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

"Who are they, anyway?" Lee asked, gesturing at the room.

"John Winchester's boys."

……………………………………..

"Bobby?" Sam's concerned voice shook Bobby out of his thoughts. He looked at the younger boy, who was looking at him with concern. Bobby almost snorted. It should be the other way round. He should be looking out for Sam.

After Lee had gotten to know about the boys, he had made sure that their room was protected as much as possible. Sam had been out for almost two days, and Bobby was quite glad to have him back, responding to him and in a better shape than before. Bobby still didn't let the youngest brother stay up long and made sure he got plenty of rest. Although Sam had been signed out, he kept him in the hospital room while he was there, not wanting to have him out of his sight. And for Sam, he didn't complain at all.

"I think you should go with Ani. Rest up there and come back tomorrow," Bobby said, straightening his cap.

" Why now, Bobby? I mean, you could have kicked me out sooner to a motel!" Sam said, shutting down the laptop.

"Because I'll be damned if I send you all alone to a motel unprotected."

"Well, I'm not a child, Bobby… I can…" Sam huffed and Bobby raised his hands. "I'm not listening to that crap, boy, and you know that." Sam scoffed and placed the laptop on the table.

"Why with Ani then? And why now? I mean, if she was here all along, why didn't you ask before?"

"Ani's house is safe. The demon is on the loose and if my guess is right, there is more than one demon behind this," Bobby said, pointing at Dean. "And about Ani… Well, I wasn't sure she'd help. But we really need her help. That's why I asked her… Even though it took some time."

"Why wouldn't she help us and why would you think more than one demon was involved?"

"Well, me and some of my friends had a bad run in with Ani. I was worried that she still kept the grudge of what happened, although things were sorted out somewhat all right. She doesn't like hunters, and I don't blame her." Bobby sighed. "I'm pretty sure more than one demon was involved. You were attacked in your motel room for starters, and what this demon has done is something I've never seen before."

"Yellow eyes did the same," Sam said darkly.

"Yeah, well, that's one damned son of a bitch."

Sam nodded.

"Please, Sam… You need to rest and keep up your strength. I don't want to see you in that bed over there again," Bobby said, his voice gruff with emotions.

"Ok… All right," Sam said with a sigh.

"Good. I'll go and talk with Ani," Bobby said, hurrying out of the room. He found Ani in the waiting room.

"Is he coming?" Ani asked, standing up.

"Yeah," Bobby said, nodding absentmindedly. "I'll tell him that you're going to meet Lee… And while I take him outside, you go to Dean and do your mojo thing," Bobby said quickly, then went back to the room.

"Ani is going to have a talk with Lee, we'll meet her at the car pack. Are you ready to go?" Bobby asked Sam, who was putting the laptop into the bag. Sam nodded.

"Do me a favor… Just relax for a little while… Ok kid?" Bobby asked, placing his hands on Sam's shoulders.

Sam nodded again. "Ok, I will," he said in a small voice. He patted Dean's hand and leaned in to whisper something to the older brother. Sam then straightened and followed Bobby outside.

………………………………………….

Sam was silent, waiting inside Ani's car for her to get back while Bobby was pacing around in worry. He saw Ani coming from a distance and walked towards her. She looked grim and shook her head in response to Bobby's hopeful look.

"I'm very sorry Bobby… I couldn't heal him. I can heal the body, but I can't bring your boy back," she said in a pained voice. Bobby's face fell.

"What to do you mean?" he asked, panic in his voice.

"I tried to feel him and I felt nothing. It's empty inside that body. You take the support system out of Dean, you'll end up with a dead body. I felt no life there… no soul."

TBC