Well final chapter, hope you like.

Thank you for all and any reviews that you may have left and the alerts that have been added to this story, it means a lot.

And thank you if you have just read and enjoyed too!

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Chapter 18

Dean opened his eyes. He was in a room he recognised. It was the room he and Sam shared when they went to Bobby's. He sat up. The room and the house were no darkness except for a small flicker of light coming from the bathroom that cast a shadow across the hall and over the room he lay in.

He was alone. He didn't like to be alone. He called for his brother but the silence was his only reply.

He got up. The light called him to it, like a moth to a flame. He wondered briefly where his brother was; looking round as if expecting him to appear beside him, reassure him that everything was ok. His chest hurt and every step was agony but he knew that he had to reach the light.

Reaching the partly closed door he pushed it all the way open and stepped into the room, grabbing the basin to steady himself, the effort of the short walk draining almost all of his resources.

The light was a small candle in a jar which was resting on the shelf in front of him.

He watched it hypnotised as it flickered and waned in front of him and then grew bright again. He knew that there was a mirror above the shelf and wanted to look but was afraid, afraid that if he did nothing would be there, he would still be a vampire or have simply ceased to exist.

Finally he raised his head.

He smiled as his reflection stared back at him, ghosting in the light.

He felt the pain as it started in his head, felt the warmth on his face as the blood started to seep slowly from his eyes and nose. He groaned and the candle flickered again, the light dipping, almost failing and then the pain in his chest increased, driving him to his knees. He tried to catch a breath but his lungs were filled with blood and he felt like he was drowning in it.

He coughed and he felt the weight in his lungs shift, blood slowly beginning to run from his mouth, a tide of red that covered him completely. He collapsed onto the cold tiles of the floor, the pressure in his chest and lungs now immense, trying to crush his very existence. He felt hands on his head and turned to stare into the face of Helena.

"You could have come with me."…..she gently stroked his face…" I could have spared you from this."

"Help me, please." His words were a sobbing plea, laced with pain and fear.

"It's too late." He watched as she lent over him, raising the stake in her hand, placing it over his heart. "You killed me, remember. I can't help you now."

She forced the stake down through him and he screamed his brother's name as she drove it home. He watched as his body spun out as hers had, thousands of little pieces glittering briefly in the light of the candle.

Her bloodline was dead.

She stood, and blew the candle out.

Sam had fallen asleep in the chair next to his brother's bed, Dean's hand held tightly in his, the same chair where he had been sitting for the last six hours.

The events of the day had finally flicked his off switch, forcing his body to shut down, allowing him no further say in the matter.

Had he not been sleeping he might have felt the warmth that flowed into his brother's hand almost reach up and tap his, trying to draw his attention to the fact that it was back, that a little bit of his brother's life had snuck back in unnoticed as he slumbered.

Had he not been sleeping he might have caught the movement as it started. The gentle uneven rise and fall of his brother's chest as his lungs struggled to remember the rhythm of life that would allow Dean to breathe, to force the life-giving oxygen back into every part of his body.

But the warmth and the breath had failed to raise either brother from their repose so life took a different approach for its final task, one that neither brother would be able to ignore.

One of attack.

Sam was ripped from his sleep by his brother screaming his name.

"Dean!" Sam slid over and sat on the bed next to his brother.

Dean threw his head back and screamed again. He screamed an unholy scream of absolute pain and misery. Sam flinched at the sound and gripped Dean's hand tighter in his.

"Sammy!"

Sam lent down to him." It hurts, Sammy, it really hurts. Help me, please." Sam felt the tears prick his eyes. He had no time to rejoice in the fact that Dean was alive and awake as his brother writhed in agony on the bed.

The scream had brought Bobby and Lenore to the room. Lenore sat on Dean's other side and helped Sam hold him down.

"What the hell's happening?" It was Bobby that had spoken.

"He's coming back, he's warm and breathing." Lenore lent down to Dean, tried to calm him. "Just one more thing left to do Dean."

"One more thing?" Sam looked at her. She caught his free hand and raised it to Dean's neck. There was still no pulse. Dean halted their conversation with yet another scream.

"My chest hurts," Dean's breathing was ragged again. "Oh god, oh no." It was the worst pain that Dean had ever known. He couldn't get a breath again; he made choking sounds as he clung to Sam, the pain in his chest climbing again.

"Sammy. Hurts." Dean felt that his heart was about to burst out of his chest. He screamed again.

Sam realised that his brother had been calling him Sammy since this started a good indication of just how much pain his brother was actually in.

Sam looked to Lenore. "Can we give him something, painkillers, anything?"

She shook her head. "Drugs won't work; it's not that kind of pain." Lenore looked at Dean. "It may get worse."

"How much worse can it get?" His brother answered that with another scream as he pulled himself up into a fetal position.

"Dean. It's gonna be ok. I'm here. You're gonna be fine ok?" Sam climbed on the bed and grabbed a pillow for his lap, then gently pulled Dean up onto him. "Its ok big brother, I got you, its ok." Sam used his free hand to stroke his brother's hair and then rub his back, trying to calm him the way Dean used to do for him when he was little and had had a nightmare. He felt the sobs wrack his brother's frame and tears sprung again to his own eyes.

He looked up at Lenore. "What now?"

"Now we wait."

Sam bent forward and kissed the top of his brother's head. "It's going to be ok. It will." It has to be. He laid his arm over Dean's side and settled back.

Lenore stood and joined Bobby at the door. "Call me if you need me." She grabbed Bobby's hand and pulled him out into the hallway. "He'll be ok." Bobby nodded and then followed her down the passage.

Sam lay there for a long time, talking to his brother constantly, gently stroking his head. He was unable to do anything but listen as Dean's torturous screams finally turned to small cries of pain that slowly faded in intensity, the gap between them lengthening.

Sam smiled as he finally heard Dean's breathing even out to a sound that Sam recognised. He raised his fingers to Dean's neck, his smile widening as he felt the faint pulse beneath his fingers.

His brother was sleeping. Dean was alive.

Dean woke; the sunlight coming in the window had roused him. He had no idea were he was at first then he realised he was at Bobby's. He tried to sit up but the effort was just too much so he settled back down, knowing from the long legs stretched out before him that he was lying on his brother. He felt different. Something had changed. He just didn't know what.

Sam shifted under him.

"Dean? Dean? Are you awake?" He felt Sam's fingers pressed down on his neck obviously checking for something and then Dean knew what his brother was looking for, knew what had changed.

"What the hell happened?" Dean thought that his voice sounded strange, strained somehow.

"What do you remember?"

"Pain. Just pain. Sammy, everything else is a blank."

"You killed Helena."

"I did?"

"Yeah, staking her worked."

"It worked? I'll be damned."

"Hopefully not anymore your not." Sam gave a weak little laugh which Dean echoed.

"How are you feeling?" Sam was still worried by the fact that his brother was fully awake now and hadn't tried to get up again.

"Like someone drove over my chest in the Impala. How'd we get to Bobby's? And speaking of it, where is my car?"

"Car's fine and that is how we got to Bobby's. The rest of it's a long story." Sam smiled. Dean had been awake less than five minutes and already his mind was the damned Impala.

"You ok?" Dean rolled slightly to look at Sam. Concern hit him when he saw just how bad his brother looked.

"I am now that you're back and breathing." Sam paused. "I thought I'd lost you again there for a while." Dean watched as the tears formed in Sam's eyes.

"Dude, you're such a girl." He managed a weak smile, feeling tears fill his own eyes.

"Bitch." Sam could see exhaustion creeping back into his brother's eyes.

"Jerk." Dean settled back down and closed his eyes, almost instantly drifting back off to sleep.

"Seriously dude, where are we going?"

Sam had been driving for hours and Dean was beyond bored. He picked at the sandwich in his hand and threw a piece at his brother, bouncing it off the side of his face.

"Dean! How old are you? Five?" Dean's reply was to fire a slice of tomato at Sam that landed a dead shot on his ear and then slipped down the inside of his shirt, coming to rest against his neck.

"Seriously Dean, quit it!" Dean knew Sam was on the edge of a hissy fit so he retrieved the tomato from his neck and ate it.

Sam face took on a look of disgust.

"Dude, that's just so gross. Are you sure you're my brother?"

"Bite me." Dean realised his slip and laughed.

Sam glared at him.

"Sorry, couldn't help it, force of habit." Dean gave him a sheepish grin.

Sam just rolled his eyes. "Try." He went back to watching the road.

Dean had just decided it might be in his best interests to settle back and go to sleep as Sam pulled the car off the road and into the gas station.

"Go fill her up."

"Dude we've got over three quarters of a tank."

"Just go fill her up, get out of the car and give me some damned peace for two minutes."

"Ok, ok, don't get your panties in a knot, I'm going." Dean hauled himself out of the car and topped off the tank giving his brother a confused stare through the back window. Finishing he replaced the pump and walked into the shop.

He missed the smile on Sam's face.

The counter clerk sprang to instant attention as he opened the door, sorting her top and smiling as he walked up to the desk.

She lent over towards him and craned her neck to see out of the window. Sam smiled at her and Dean realised that he was missing something here.

"So, nice car, what is she, a '67 Impala?" Dean smiled at her. "She a beauty, I bet you rebuilt her yourself?"

Dean looked out the window. Sam avoided his eyes.

Dean's interest was peaked. "As a matter of fact I did. You've got a good eye for cars."

She reached out and touched his hand that was resting on the counter. "Yeah, I like to admire good body work." He raised his eyebrows as she lent over and emphasised her comment by running her fingers down Dean's chest.

Dean's smile widened. "I bet you do." He did some body work admiring of his own, liking what he saw, definitely his kinda girl.

"So….you must be the brother."…..she flicked her head at the car….. "Always wanted a ride in a classic car, like to take me for one?" She had the good grace to blush as Dean's smile changed to an enormous grin.

Nothing backward about this girl, I like it.

"Hell yeah."

He held out his hand.

"Dean."

"Tracey."

"Well Tracey, shall we?"

She called to the other clerk and grabbed her jacket.

Sam was already climbing out the car as they came outside. "I'll be in the diner. Just don't get lost."

"Hey handsome." She waved her phone at him. "You were right, he's cute." Sam's face caught fire. He knew that Dean hadn't missed their little exchange.

"Figured you were more my brother's type."

Tracey smiled at him as she walked round and slid into the passenger side. "Think you might be right."

Sam watched as his brother fired up the engine and tore out onto the road. He walked to the diner, ordered and then opened his book.

Somehow, he didn't think that his brother would be back that quickly.

He smiled quietly as he settled back in his chair.