Phoenix - Chapter Five

[parenthetical]

Chapter Five

The Areys' old house was the obvious place to do the ritual, even if Dean was worried about the possibility of strong-smelling and overly affectionate neighbours interfering. It only took a few minutes to establish that the basement would be the best place for the job. The only other room with enough clear floor space for the circle was the ruined nursery, and there was no way they were putting the kid through that.

Sam disappeared upstairs to call Joshua and give him the location. Dean watched him go, still feeling far from happy about the way the old man had managed to get himself in on this. He had to admit, though, that if they were going to try the exorcism, then it was probably a good idea to have someone around with half a clue about how it was supposed to go. He'd had enough bad experiences to be wary of going into any ritual blind. Especially one where the stakes were so high.

Dean sighed and got on with clearing the furniture out of the way. Whatever his misgivings, they were doing this thing. After he'd cleared the floor, he started packing as many of the sharp or flammable objects as he could into a box. He didn't really believe it would help much if there was a fire - they'd seen the previous day at the school that Jacob's fires didn't exactly follow natural rules - but he needed the distraction. The last time he'd been involved in an exorcism, Sam had been the one sitting in the circle.

It was a relief when his thoughts were interrupted by the creak of the stairs under Sam's weight. Dean glanced up to see his brother nodding to himself as he looked over the room.

'I spoke to Joshua, he's not far away. He should be here in a few minutes.' Sam held up his duffel. 'I grabbed the rest of the supplies from the trunk. Joshua said to go ahead and set up like for a standard exorcism.' He clambered up on a box and set to work drawing a protective circle on the ceiling.

Dean watched, then shifted uneasily. 'I'm gonna go find a good chair for the kid,' he said. Sam hummed in acknowledgement and Dean gathered up the box of stuff and headed for the stairs.

He decided on a desk chair, in the end. He needed something with arms so they could tie Jacob up (and god, the thought made him sick, but he'd better get over it fast, because they were doing this), but he wanted it to be reasonably comfortable too. He was about to drag it down into the basement when he heard a car pulling up outside. He moved to look out of the window, careful to remain out of sight.

Well. 'Car' might be pushing it slightly. It was a piece of crap, ancient and battered. In fact, it looked like something Mrs Robinson would drive. Dean cringed and ducked back out of sight, just in case, only to pause as the driver emerged. Goddammit, it was Joshua. OK, so the guy was pretty ancient - for a hunter, at least - but a man should have his pride.

Dean hurried to the door to let Joshua in. If Mrs Robinson spotted the old man with that car, she'd probably decide Joshua was her soulmate. Although admittedly, Dean thought, better Joshua than him.

'Well, if it isn't Dean Winchester,' Joshua said, stepping inside and offering Dean his hand. 'How are you? I was glad to hear things worked out for you last year.' He looked at Dean assessingly. 'No ill effects, I hope.'

Dean closed the door and shook Joshua's hand, tensing a little at that reminder. 'You know how it goes, Joshua. It's good to see you. It was... good of you to come down, you didn't have to do that.'

'I couldn't leave you boys to manage this on your own, now could I? Now your father's passed -' He caught Dean's gaze for a moment, eyes uncomfortably sharp. 'Well, hunters have got to watch each other's backs, isn't that so?'

Dean grinned a little, no humour in it. 'That's right. Come on, Sam's setting up in the basement.'

'Oh yes,' Joshua said, following him. 'I am looking forward to meeting Sam again.'

Dean led the way downstairs, feeling far from reassured. Oh, Joshua sounded interested in seeing how much Sam had changed, all right; only problem was, Dean didn't think Sam's freakish growth spurt was the kind of change Joshua would be looking for.

They entered the basement to find Sam marking out the circle for the ritual, brow furrowed in concentration. He looked up and smiled briefly as they came in, but finished sprinkling the last line of holy water around the edges of the circle before he came over.

'Joshua,' he said, extending his hand and smiling. 'It's good of you to come.'

Joshua took his hand and shook it, eyeing him thoughtfully. 'You've certainly changed since the last time we met, Sam Winchester.' He released Sam's hand several moments later than Dean would have liked. His eyes flickered over the scene, clearly appraising their work. 'Did you bless the water yourself?'

'Not this time,' Dean said, before Sam could say anything. 'We do that when we have to, of course, but we take it from churches whenever we can - Dad taught us to be prepared.'

Joshua nodded. 'Well, he certainly trained you both well.' He turned to Sam. 'Now, I've been doing some research into this, and I think you're right that K'daai is the most likely demon. That has some interesting implications for the choice of ritual. The demon comes from Yakut mythology - it's an elemental, a fire demon. Technically, it would be more effective if we could use a shamanic ritual in the Yakut language, but that would involve a significant delay while we found an expert. Theoretically, I think an exorcism ritual conducted in the Old Slavonic language of the Russian church should also work - it will be very interesting to see how effective it is...'

Dean groaned mentally as Sam and Joshua started discussing the ritual together. He ducked back upstairs to fetch the chair he'd selected before. God, give him a shotgun any day.

When he returned, they were still at it. Sam was poring over Joshua's notes, totally absorbed. Joshua also seemed absorbed, but his eyes were fixed on Sam.

'I'm gonna go collect Jacob, if we're about ready?' Dean said, voice a little rougher than he'd have liked.

Joshua's eyes flicked up to him. 'Of course. Sam and I can just talk over a few things.'

Dean hesitated in the doorway for a moment, holding Joshua's gaze.

Sam looked up, frowning slightly. 'Dean, you OK?'

'Yeah, fine.' Dean glanced from Joshua to Sam, and back. 'Awesome.' Hell, the guy was in his seventies, right? Sam could handle him for fifteen minutes. 'I'll be right back, OK?'

'OK,' Sam said slowly, sounding slightly puzzled.

Dean hesitated for a second longer, then turned and started to climb the stairs, uncomfortably aware of the two sets of eyes watching him go.

~*~
Dean took a while to return with Jacob, long enough that Sam was beginning to worry the kid had backed out. By the time the basement door swung open, he and Joshua had been over the procedure for the exorcism three times. Despite the fact that Joshua was performing the bulk of the ritual himself, he cross-examined Sam on almost every point, so exacting that Sam felt like he was being prepared for an exam in Slavonic Ritual 101.

'Sorry about the delay,' Dean said as he pushed into the room. 'Rebecca's a little antsy about leaving Jacob on his own.'

'Figures,' Sam said. If he'd been in Rebecca's shoes, he wasn't sure he would have let Jacob out of his sight at all. 'Gave us time to be sure of what we're doing, anyway.' He expected to see Jacob following Dean into the room, but the kid didn't appear.

Before Sam could open his mouth to ask the question, Dean cut in quickly. 'I sent Jacob to the bathroom before we get going. Figured he might need a minute to collect himself, and I'd rather get my head around how this is gonna work without him having to hear it all.'

Sam nodded in approval. 'It's not too far off the usual exorcism, although these Orthodox rituals sure do like the holy water. And... we think there might be a way to help Jacob through this, make up for any damage when he's not being healed by the parasite any more.' Dean's expression wavered between scepticism and relief, and Sam forced himself to sound more confident than he felt. The truth was, this part of the plan was pretty much based on supposition and rumour, but even the chance that it might help was better than nothing. 'A lot of the Yakut rituals use wooden objects - symbols of the tree of life, it's a pretty important part of their mythology - and Joshua thinks maybe a birch twig might work to sort of draw the damage away from Jacob. I'm not too clear on how it works, but Dad always said to use the local lore if you could.'

'Sam, a freaking birch twig ?' Dean hissed, shooting a glance in Joshua's direction. 'Where the hell are we gonna get that around here? We're not exactly in the Big Woods, in case you haven't noticed.'

'Dean, I wouldn't have even brought it up unless we could actually do it,' Sam said, torn between exasperation and understanding. 'Joshua's got one - he sure did his research before he came over here.'

'OK,' said Dean, relaxing a bit, although he still looked sceptical. 'So what do we do, wave a magic wand?'

Joshua moved over to join them. 'It simply requires that the wood be immersed in water for the duration of the ritual,' he said, holding out the smooth stick of wood, which admittedly did look more like a wand than anything Sam had seen outside of Harry Potter. 'My reading suggests that it is most effective if the object is held by someone who wishes well towards the person being healed. I imagine that you would like to assume this role?' The old man calmly offered the stick to Dean, who hesitated for a moment before seemingly coming to a decision.

'Fine. What do I have to do? Just hold it? No mumbo-jumbo or anything?'

Sam couldn't help a slight smile at the disdain in his brother's voice. Magic and rituals really weren't his thing.

'No chanting will be necessary,' Joshua said dryly. 'It might potentially interfere with the exorcism. You must simply be sure to hold the rod completely steady within the water, that is all.'

The door swung slowly open and Jacob stepped inside. He was very pale, unsurprisingly, but he managed to smile tremulously at Sam and Joshua when Dean introduced him. He sat on the chair in the centre of the circle without having to be told, and Sam had to look away as Dean tied the kid to it, talking reassuringly all the while, explaining what would happen and what to expect.

Finally there was no way to delay any more. Dean gave Jacob one more reassuring pat and stepped out of the circle. He accepted a bowl from Joshua and placed the stick of wood carefully in the water before taking up a position on the west side.

Dean nodded to Joshua. 'OK, let's go.' His voice was steady, but Sam knew that tone well enough to know his brother was still far from comfortable with what they were attempting.

Joshua cleared his throat and took his position at the east side of the circle, finding the correct page in his book. Sam gave Jacob what he hoped was a reassuring smile, and moved up to the south point of the circle, facing him straight on.

'Very well, if everyone is ready?' Joshua asked, glancing from Dean to Sam. He peered at the book more closely and began.

Old Church Slavonic wasn't a language Sam had any experience with. He'd performed countless rituals in Latin, and even a few in Sanskrit, but this time he had nothing to contribute. Apart from sprinkling holy water from time to time, all he could do was watch. The cadence of the chant was vaguely familar, close enough to the rituals he knew to be reassuring, but he was uncomfortable at not knowing what the words meant. It was too sharp a reminder of how it had felt to hear Bobby reading the exorcism over him, words reduced to meaningless sounds under the relentless crackle of interference which the demon had put between him and the world.

It was a reminder Sam could have done without.

The first part of the ritual was fairly standard, calling upon the names of god for aid. Sam watched Jacob closely, but it didn't seem to be affecting him at all, for good or ill. Even when Sam sprinkled holy water in time with Joshua's invocations, Jacob only flinched a little.

Then Joshua launched into the second section, the exorcism proper. On cue, Sam cast more holy water into the circle. The effect was instantaneous: Jacob arched up against the restraints, eyes glowing fiery red for a moment before subsiding to blue.

'It hurts,' he gasped out.

'We're right here, Jacob,' Dean said reassuringly. He sounded calm, but when Sam looked over at his brother he could see that Dean's fingers were white-knuckled as they gripped the bowl of water.

Sam's fingers clenched tight around the flask in his hands as he remembered the sense of skin burning under holy water, the demon's pain bleeding into his own. But it was the demon's pain, he reminded himself; it didn't look like they were damaging Jacob. He looked over to Joshua, seeking confirmation. The old man glanced up at Sam for a moment, seemingly unconcerned, then turned the page and continued with the exorcism.

Jacob was breathing hard, biting his lip. As Joshua continued his chant, he threw his head back and screamed, before subsiding again, his chest heaving now with muffled sobs. Sam shifted uneasily, wishing there was a way to reduce the pain. It'll be worth it, he told himself, feeling the poker burn on his arm throb in sympathy.

'Jacob...' Dean said.

'Keep going,' Jacob gasped out. Sam could see tears streaming down the kid's face, but he looked determined. 'You said... you said it'd hurt. I'm not gonna chicken out.'

The kid was brave, Sam had to give him that. He nodded at him in acknowledgement, and glanced across at Dean, who met his eyes with an unhappy glare.

Joshua hadn't broken his chant, voice still rising and falling in the same smooth, calm cadence.

Fire was rippling out from around Jacob now, dancing over the chair and pushing at the edges of the circle. It didn't seem to be burning anything - Sam guessed that the restrictions of the circle prevented that - but he could feel the heat of it, straining to get free. When he cast more holy water the flames surged towards him, crackling and spitting sparks.

Jacob screamed again, but weakly this time. He sucked in gulps of air, his breathing harsh and laboured.

Sam watched in horror as burns started to blossom across Jacob's face, eating away at the skin as if under the heat of a fire, although none of the flames were touching the kid. It wasn't just the demon being hurt now... this looked more like what had happened with Meg

'Sam!' Dean called out urgently. Sam looked across and caught his breath. The birch twig was on fire: the flames leaping up, unnaturally tall, despite the fact that the wood was still immersed in the holy water. Dean was still holding on tightly to the bowl, but his eyes were flicking from the twig to Jacob.

Sam tried desperately to think of what to do. 'Should I pour some more holy water over it?'

Joshua paused in his chanting and looked from Dean to Sam. 'If either of you move from your positions, the circle will be broken. I rather thought you knew better than that, Sam. If you stay where you are, we'll be done in another few minutes.'

'No,' Dean said. 'We're not finishing this fucking ritual. Joshua, stop, this is torturing him.'

'No, go on,' Jacob gasped, almost inaudibly.

'Oh no,' Dean said. 'No, we are stopping this right now. Sam, we've got to stop.'

Joshua had already resumed his chant, and Sam stared as more burns appeared across Jacob's neck and arms, creeping down to his hands.

'Sam! We're killing the kid!' Dean said urgently. He was clutching the flaming bowl tightly, face strained.

Sam was still staring, torn. Jacob had said to keep going, even though he'd been in pain. And when the alternative was a life spent fearing what kind of damage the demon might do... There was no way Sam wanted to condemn someone else to that kind of uncertainty. Surely they had to respect the kid's wishes?

He looked helplessly over at Joshua. The old man had raised his eyes from the book and was observing the scene dispassionately, chanting steadily while his eyes darted from Sam to Jacob and back again.

Sam looked at Jacob's hands, white and clenched, and saw burns blister across the skin.

There was a clatter and hiss as Dean dropped the bowl and started to move, but Sam was there first, striding across across the circle to Joshua, heedless of the flames that licked up at him as he passed the salt line.

'Enough,' he said, and tore the book from Joshua's hands. 'Enough. We'll find another way.'

Joshua didn't resist as Sam slammed the book shut, just regarded him intently, eyes assessing. Sam had expected an argument or something, but Joshua merely said, 'I see. Very well,' and stepped back.

Sam stared at him for a long moment, confused, then Joshua's eyes shifted towards Jacob and Sam turned to look as well.

The circle had broken when he'd crossed the line, and the fire had left dark marks on the floor where it had burned for a moment. It was pulling back now, though, slowly sinking into Jacob's body. As the flames disappeared, the burns marring his skin gradually healed to red marks, then faded away to nothing.

Dean was already crouching beside the chair, cutting the rope away and calling Jacob's name.

The last of the flames vanished into Jacob's body, and he drew a shuddering gasp and opened his eyes. 'Is it... is it over? Is it gone?' With an obvious effort, he managed to lift his head and look from Dean to Sam, eyes still only half-focused.

'I'm sorry, Jacob,' Sam said softly. 'It didn't work. We had to stop the ritual - it was hurting you too badly.' He felt a pang at Jacob's stricken expression.

'We'll find another way, Jacob,' Dean said, his voice firm. 'I know you were hoping this would work and it would all be over, but sometimes life just ain't that easy. You did great, though, kid, you really did.'

'Why did you stop?' Jacob asked, his voice wavering. 'I would've - I said you should -'

'Yeah, you did,' Dean agreed. 'You're a helluva brave kid, your family should be damn proud of you. But -'

'- death is too high a price to pay, Jacob,' Sam finished. 'At least unless there's absolutely no other way.'

'We're not there yet,' Dean said. 'No reason we ever should be.'

His eyes met Sam's as he squeezed Jacob's shoulder, and Sam felt the corner of his lips turn up in a faint smile.

~*~
Dean helped Jacob to his feet, checking that the kid could stand OK before letting go of his arm. He looked around the room and was suddenly hit by the oppressive atmosphere. If he never smelled smoke again, it would be too soon.

'Let's get outta here,' he said, already shepherding Jacob towards the door.

They wound up in the kitchen, sitting awkwardly around the table like they were at a coffee morning; only Joshua remained standing, leaning against a counter next to the doorway.
Dean was uncomfortably aware that the position gave the old man a far better view of them than any of them had of him. He didn't appreciate feeling like every movement he and Sam made was being observed and silently graded.

His main concern was Jacob, though. The kid was still pale and shaky, nervously licking dry, cracked lips. Dean got up and filled a glass with water, taking advantage of the movement to shift to a seat where he had a better view of the room himself. He set the glass in front of Jacob. 'Here.'

'Thanks,' Jacob mumbled, taking a sip. He looked from Dean to Sam and back again, a little nervously. 'What happens now?'

'We figure out the best way to make sure no one gets hurt,' Sam said, eyes flickering to Dean's for a moment.

Dean gave a short nod.

Sam smiled briefly in return, then turned back to Jacob, face considering. 'This sort of thing only started happening recently, didn't it?'

Jacob nodded silently.

'OK, well that's good,' Sam said encouragingly. 'We know the parasite must have infected you when you were a baby, so if you went all these years without it causing any problems, it must be influenced by you somehow.'

Dean felt a stab of gratitude towards his brother. 'Yeah,' he agreed. 'And we already know you can control it, Jacob - you stopped that fire at the school. We just have to figure out a way to make sure fires don't even start in future.'

'But how?' Jacob looked from one to the other. 'What... what if I can't? he added in a small voice, suddenly looking very young and tired.

'You already have, Jacob,' Dean reminded him again. 'You still got that knife I gave you?'

Jacob pushed back from the table. 'You said to keep it on me,' he said, sliding up his baggy jeans to show the sheath strapped to his skinny leg. He drew the knife carefully, holding it out for Dean to see.

'That's good,' Sam said. 'You said at the school that the fire wanted to go to it, didn't you?'

Jacob clutched the handle tightly. 'It did - when I concentrated and tried to get it to move, it - it went that way, went into it.'

'OK, so the knife helps,' Dean said. He thought for a minute. 'Hey, Jacob? Have you ever tried to start a fire?'

'No!' Jacob said. His lip wobbled a little. 'I would never - why would you think that?'

'No, Jacob, listen to me. If you could choose to start a fire, it would probably mean you had more control over this thing, right?' Dean looked to Sam for confirmation.

'Yeah... it makes sense,' Sam said slowly. 'When we were kids, our dad wanted us to learn how to undo knots, in case someone ever tied us up.' Sam paused at that point, as if suddenly considering how it might sound to an outsider. Dean smirked, just a little.

'Anyway,' Sam hurried on, 'first of all we had to learn how to tie the knots ourselves. We had to know how that worked before we could learn how to untie them again. The same sort of principle could apply here, Jacob - it's about knowing how it works and that you can control it.'

Jacob stared at him doubtfully. 'You want me to start a fire?'

'We trust you, Jacob,' Dean said encouragingly. 'You can control this thing, you just need a little practice.' Jacob still looked uncertain, and Dean felt a twinge of doubt as to whether this was a good idea.

Joshua shifted slightly from his post by the door, body radiating disapproval, and Dean squashed his doubts down. He fished in his pocket for a box of matches. 'See if you can get that to light,' he said, taking one out and laying it on the table.

Jacob stared at him, then at the match, and then back at him again. 'Like... now?'

'No time like the present,' Sam said with an encouraging smile. 'You can do this, Jacob.'

Jacob looked back down at the match and took a deep breath, then let it out in a rush.

For a moment, nothing happened. Dean watched closely, then glanced across at Sam, who gave a near-imperceptible shrug in return.

Then the entire table caught on fire.

Jacob gasped and scrambled to his feet. 'Oh god!'

Dean jumped back from the table, pulling Sam with him. Joshua remained motionless and impassive, although Dean saw him frown a little, the same kind of expression Sam sometimes wore when doing a particularly difficult bit of research.

'OK,' Dean said, making sure his voice remained steady, raising it a little to be heard over the crackle of the flames. 'That's... good, Jacob. You're just an overachiever like Sammy here, that's all -'

Sam shot him a glare, then turned a more reassuring expression on Jacob. 'How about you try to bring it under control again now, Jacob? Focus on the knife, like you did last time, see if you can extinguish it.'

Jacob held the knife out before him, his brow furrowed with concentration, while the flames continued to burn merrily.

Then, slowly, they started to draw towards Jacob, flowing into the knife and disappearing.

'Dude!' said Dean, clapping Jacob on the back. 'You did it!'

'It's a good first step,' Sam said, more conservatively. 'But it shows you can do it, Jacob. If you work at it, you can control this.'

Joshua cleared his throat. 'Very possibly. But if you boys are set on the idea that the child can - er - coexist with this demon, I feel you're neglecting something.'

'What?' demanded Dean. 'The kid can control it.'

'It appears so,' Joshua said, unruffled. 'But in my experience, these parasites have a tendency to take a toll on the host. If that's the case here, then the demon will eventually take the upper hand. Is that a risk you're willing to take?'

'Take the upper hand?' Sam said slowly. 'You mean... it would take control of him? Or kill him altogether?'

'Possibly both. I have no experience of this precise type of creature, so it's impossible to say for certain.' Joshua regarded Jacob from over the top of his glasses. 'The fact remains, even if the child can control it, the demon will outlive him, one way or another.'

Something he had read suddenly clicked together to make sense in Dean's brain. 'The firefighter that was the previous host - the one who passed it on to Jacob - the obituary said he'd been diagnosed with cancer not long before.'

'You think that's why the parasite moved on?' Sam asked.

'I think the fireman knew what he was doing,' Dean said slowly, piecing it together as he spoke. 'He knew it was over. And I think when he found you in that fire, Jacob, he figured he could go out quick, save your life instead of clinging on for months in some hospital bed. His widow, in the article, she said it was how he'd have wanted to go. I think that was truer than she even knew - he chose to do it.'

Jacob appeared to have lost the thread of their conversation after Joshua had chimed in; he was growing visibly more upset as he glanced sideways at the old man and then back down at the ground, fidgeting in obvious agitation.

'He thinks I can't control it?' he demanded finally, blinking back tears.

'No, Jacob, that's not what he's saying.' Dean shot a glare at Joshua, daring him to interrupt. 'I think you can control it. The guy who passed it on to you, he lived with it all his life, and it seems like it only passed on to you when he decided. It was what helped him save so many people from fires.'

'Wait, so you're saying the parasite was helping this guy?' Sam said.

Dean hadn't exactly framed that thought in his mind, but now it was obvious. 'Yeah - there's no way he could have done what he did without it. Hell, he must've been the perfect fireman - remember how even the smoke in the school didn't affect you, Jacob? And if it helped him control the actual fires... The parasite's not trying to kill anyone, it's just protecting its host, healing him, even. Except I guess cancer was a bit beyond its powers, or maybe he just figured he'd had his time. It was a what d'you call it, a -'

'A symbiotic relationship,' Sam supplied. 'It does fit.' He turned to Joshua. 'In the mythology, K'daai doesn't appear as a malign figure, does he?'

Joshua pursed his lips. 'No... blacksmith and healer, as a matter of fact.'

'Which explains the knife!' Dean said in sudden realisation. 'The iron's not deadening the magic - the parasite's trying to use the iron.' He thought for a second. 'Jacob, try focusing a fire on the knife. Maybe you can work the metal, get it to change shape.'

'Dean,' Sam said. 'It's nearly seven o'clock. We haven't got time for any more experiments - his parents are going to be frantic.'

Dean looked at his watch. Shit. 'And we've gotta clean the crap up downstairs, too.'

'I'll organise that,' Joshua said calmly. His manner had shifted in some way Dean couldn't define, as if he'd come to a decision about something. 'You boys get Jacob home, before his family launches a missing persons search for him.'

Dean eyed him for a moment, then decided to take the offer at face value for now. 'OK, great. We're staying at the Sunshine Inn. How about you meet us there later?' Without waiting for a response, he clapped Jacob on the shoulder. 'Looks like you get to ride in my baby again, kid. Let's get out of here.'

'OK,' Jacob said, looking relieved. Watching him follow Sam to the car, Dean was suddenly reminded of just how young the kid was. Fucking rough day's work for a twelve-year-old.

He speeded up his step and opened the passenger door for Jacob. 'You can get in back, little bro,' he told Sam. 'Shotgun's reserved for the people who've been doing all the work.'

'Jerk,' Sam said, but got in the back anyway. 'Big brothers,' he grumbled as they pulled away.

'We're the best,' Dean said, and turned the music up loud.

~*~
Dean pulled the Impala over in front of the house where the Areys were staying. His heart sank as the front door immediately opened to reveal a frantic-looking Rebecca.

Shit. They hadn't discussed how to handle Jacob's parents.

'Oh thank god, we've been so worried,' Rebecca was babbling. 'Where have you been, Jacob? Your father's out searching the streets for you.'

'Why don't we step inside?' Sam suggested smoothly.

Rebecca ushered them in, hands fluttering over Jacob as if to touch him.

'I'm sorry, Rebecca,' Dean said, still searching frantically for a good explanation. 'I - er - perhaps you're aware that Jacob's been having some problems lately, with the fires and all.'

Crap. This was about the worst explanation ever.

'That is,' Sam jumped in, shooting him a glare, 'we -'

'It's me, Rebecca,' Jacob said suddenly. 'I've been causing the fires. I didn't mean to - I never meant to hurt Zach, I swear -'

Rebecca stared at him in confusion, sinking down onto a chair. 'Of course you didn't, Jacob - I was there. You weren't anywhere near that, sweetheart, there's no way you could have caused it.'

Jacob swallowed hard. 'I - I'm -'

'Psychic,' Dean jumped in quickly, before Jacob could say something like 'infected with a demonic parasite', because really? There was no way to make that sound good. 'Jacob's been developing some, uh, special abilities'

'Psychic?' Rebecca said weakly. 'You mean to say - psychic?'

There was a short silence, and Dean worried that it was going to be too much for her to believe. Fuck, if he were in her position, he wouldn't give them the time of day.

'I'm sorry, Rebecca, I didn't know, but Dean found me, and I'm gonna learn to control it and -' Jacob paused for breath and suddenly, unexpectedly, burst into tears. All the unnatural calmness and resolve he had maintained throughout the exorcism and its aftermath dissolved in one instant, as he shook with messy, helpless sobs that reminded Dean just how young a kid he was.

Rebecca started to reach out, then hesitated for a fraction of a second before touching his arm. 'Honey... c'mon, it's OK.'

Jacob went to her, burying his head against her shoulder, and Dean watched the surprise and relief and pleasure flash across Rebecca's face before she wrapped her arms more securely around the boy, holding him close. 'C'mon, shh, I know you didn't mean it, don't cry, baby, it'll be all right.'

Dean wasn't sure if she'd actually accepted the psychic story or not, but it seemed she was at least willing to accept it made sense to Jacob.

'I didn't mean to,' Jacob was sobbing quietly against her neck. Rebecca rocked him gently, murmuring reassurances until he calmed a little. Finally she disentangled herself from him a little. 'Jacob, you know that can't be true, right?'

Oh crap. Clearly it was too much for her to believe.

She fixed Dean and Sam with a look of disgust. 'I don't know what you thought you were doing, telling him these stories. I can only assume that in some twisted way you thought it would help, but I'll thank you both to leave. Now. Jacob's been through enough.'

Dean quailed under her glare.

'Rebecca, no!' Jacob exclaimed. 'They've been helping me, I swear. I'm not lying to you!'

'Oh, Jacob, of course I'm not accusing you of lying,' Rebecca said, returning her attention to him at once. 'They've just been filling your head with nonsense when you've had a difficult time recently, and -'

'Rebecca, you've got to believe me,' Jacob said. 'Honestly, I can show you, please.' He pulled out the knife.

Rebecca gasped. Dean winced again. Ah, hell.

Jacob furrowed his brow in concentration, obviously trying to conjure up a flame. 'Jacob, wait!' Dean said hastily. The last thing they needed was for the kid to accidentally set the whole house on fire. He fumbled in his pocket and brought out the matches. 'I'll light one, OK? And you can call the flame to the knife.'

Jacob seemed to see the sense of this. 'OK,' he said, and waited impatiently while Dean struck the match.

The four of them watched the flame flare up. It flickered for a moment and seemed to go out, then jumped across the room. It hovered on the end of the knife for a moment - almost as if showing itself off - before being absorbed into the metal.

Rebecca gasped again, staring.

'See?' Jacob said, beaming triumphantly, but with an edge of relief that told Dean just how uncertain he had been about being believed.

'Oh my,' Rebecca said weakly. 'I don't... this is some kind of trick...' She looked dazedly from Jacob to Dean and back.

'You know it's not,' Dean said quietly.

'No... this is real, isn't it?' Rebecca's voice was still faint. 'Oh, Gavril would say I was crazy to be taken in by this, but... Jacob really moved that flame, didn't he? I was right to say those fires were unnatural...' She trailed off, obviously still struggling to absorb everything.

'Rebecca, I realise this must come as quite a shock,' Sam said gently.

Rebecca was still staring at the knife. 'You could say that. Oh, I've always believed such things exist, but you don't expect a member of your family to suddenly turn out to be psychic.' She managed to smile at Jacob reassuringly, though she still looked a little dazed.

'Yeah, that sort of thing can come as a shock,' Dean agreed, pointedly not looking at Sam.

'I'm going to learn to control it,' Jacob told her again. 'I didn't mean - I didn't know before. I'm not going to let it happen again, I promise.'

'He'll need to practise,' Sam put in. 'But we're pretty sure that it's just a matter of gaining a little control.'

Rebecca looked at them. 'You're not from the fire department after all, are you?'

''Fraid not,' Dean said with an apologetic grin.

'So... what are you exactly?' Rebecca asked warily.

'This is... pretty much what we do,' Sam said, with his best we're-harmless smile. 'Dealing with things that are out of the normal, trying to help people, that sort of thing.'

'Well, thank you for helping Jacob,' Rebecca said. 'Will you be teaching him to control his... abilities?'

Jacob looked up hopefully, and Dean realised with a sinking heart that neither of the Areys had grasped that they wouldn't be staying. Sam started to speak, but Dean shot him a look and he shut up hurriedly.

'Jacob,' Dean said as gently as he could. 'I'd like to stick around and help you, but there're a lot of other people who need our help too, do you understand?'

Jacob stared at him. 'You're... you're leaving?'

'I'm sorry,' Dean said. 'But you don't need us anymore, man. You've got a grip on this thing.'

'I don't! I can't do it... I need you...' Jacob was obviously on the verge of tears once more.

'You don't mean to tell me you're just going to leave him,' Rebecca said in horror. 'He's only twelve, how do you expect him to figure something like this out on his own?'

'I'm sorry,' Dean said again, hating the inadequacy of the word. 'But we can't stay.'

'There's someone who can help Jacob, though,' Sam offered quietly. 'A friend of ours - he's very knowledgeable about this sort of thing. He'll probably be more use than us, to tell you the truth.'

Dean opened his mouth to object, then shut it again. It wasn't as though they had a lot of choice in the matter. Besides, he had a hunch that things might run smoother with Joshua once he and Sam were out of the picture. The way the guy had watched them deal with Jacob, catalogued their reactions... Dean suspected it wasn't Jacob he had a problem with.

'Joshua will help you.' Sam was addressing Jacob now. 'He lives pretty near here, and he doesn't travel around the way we do.'

Dean pulled a scrap bit of paper out of a pocket and jotted down his cell number on it. 'And if anything happens, anything at all - if you need us, call me and we'll come, I promise.' He held out the piece of paper.

Jacob met his eyes for a long moment, still blinking back tears, then took it, swiping one hand across his face and nodding. 'OK.'

Dean nodded too. Hell. He didn't want to leave the kid like this; he wished there was something else he could say, something else he could offer to make things better. But he was out of ideas.

'We'd better be going,' Sam said softly. 'Call us if anything comes up, Jacob, and good luck. Sorry for intruding, Rebecca, and for springing such a shock on you...'

'We'll have to cook up a good story to tell your father, won't we, Jacob?' Rebecca said, obviously trying to distract the boy. 'Lord knows he'd never believe the truth. But I'm sure we can come up with something. Thank you, both of you, for all your help. This friend of yours will be in touch?'

'Yeah,' Dean said. 'I'll make sure of it.'

He clasped Jacob's shoulder. 'Bye, kiddo. You keep working on that gift of yours, OK? See if you can manage to shape that knife into something that won't get you expelled from school.'

Jacob swallowed hard and stood a bit taller. 'I won't let you down.'

'Not a chance of it,' Dean said confidently. He gave Jacob's shoulder one last squeeze, then turned to go.

He heard Sam murmur reassurances and goodbyes behind him, but didn't look back as he left.

Halfway to the street, he heard a voice calling his name and stopped in his tracks, swinging back round. It was Jacob, rushing across the yard towards him, knife still clutched in one hand. Dean had a moment to hope none of the neighbours around here were as nosy as Mrs Robinson before Jacob was stuttering to a halt in front of him.

'I've got to...' Jacob trailed off, looking slightly breathless and slightly desperate. Then he held out his left hand, the hand not holding the knife. A nickel gleamed dully in the fading light.

Dean stared at it, then at Jacob.

'For the knife,' Jacob said. Then, more quietly, 'So you'll come back again, sometime.'

Dean knew the superstition, of course - that a knife as a gift symbolised severing ties. He wasn't exactly a superstitious kind of guy, but there were some things he was too smart to mess with. Knives were the one kind of weapon Winchesters never gave each other. It had never occurred to him that Jacob might know it too, though.

Slowly, he reached out and took the nickel. Jacob's smile was still a little watery, but it was real.

'Where'd you learn about that?' Dean asked. He wasn't quite ready to say goodbye again yet.

'Rebecca,' Jacob said. 'She believes in all kinds of stuff, you know? I always thought it was just stories, but, well. Now...'

Dean nodded, glancing up to see Sam and Rebecca standing in the doorway, watching them and talking quietly. 'Yeah. Maybe you should try listening to her, kiddo.'

Jacob's lips twitched ruefully. 'Yeah. Yeah, I know.'

Dean grinned at him. 'You look after that knife of yours, OK?' He saw Sam say something to Rebecca and then start down the path towards them.

Jacob followed his gaze. 'Guess you have to go,' he said.

'Yeah,' Dean agreed softly. 'But we'll be back when we can, Jacob.' He slipped the nickel into his pocket, and they stood in silence for a moment.

Sam slowly came the last few feet towards them. 'OK?' he asked quietly.

'Yeah,' Jacob said. 'OK.' He gave Dean another smile, then turned back towards the house.

Dean got into the car, and Sam slid in next to him. 'Are you OK?' Sam asked as Dean started the engine.

Dean looked back at the house to see Jacob standing close by Rebecca in the doorway. He waved when he saw Dean looking.

'Yeah,' Dean said, and pulled out onto the road. 'I'm good.'

~*~
It was late by the time they got back to the motel. Dean winced at the sight of Joshua's Robinson-mobile outside and carefully parked the Impala at the other end of the lot, even though it meant they had further to walk to their room. He really didn't want anyone to connect his baby with that rustbucket.

'You think Joshua will be staying here tonight?' Sam asked, stepping out of the car and closing the door behind him. 'It's getting late. Be good if he did stay, we need to talk to him about helping Jacob.'

'Yeah,' Dean said without enthusiasm. 'We'll call him, see what room he's staying in, I guess.'

'Man, we stink of smoke again,' Sam said ruefully. 'I call first shower.'

'Not if I get there first, bitch,' Dean said, speeding up his step.

Sam sped up too, jostling him aside as they reached the stairs. Dean jostled him back, racing the last few steps up to the room. He dropped back as he reached the door, then froze as he noticed the tiny crack of light shining out from under it.

Sam came to a halt too, eyes alert as they met Dean's.

Dean pulled out his gun, Sam drawing his own and shifting to the right to cover his brother. Then Dean kicked the door open, gun sweeping the room.

'Did you boys forget your key?' Joshua enquired mildly, putting down the page of Sam's notes he'd been studying.

Dean exchanged a look with Sam and stepped inside, putting his gun away. 'Looks like you didn't. Good to see you making yourself at home.'

'I seemed to be attracting some attention out in the parking lot, so I let myself in,' Joshua said. 'I knew you wouldn't mind.'

'Mind? Why would we mind?' Dean said with a brightness he didn't feel, glancing around the room.

'You're staying the night, then?' Sam asked, shutting the door. 'That's great - I was hoping we'd have a chance to talk to you about Jacob.'

'Really?' Joshua said. 'You boys haven't come to a decision, then?'

'Ain't got many choices,' Dean said curtly. 'Either exorcise the kid, or trust him to keep control of this thing. I'd have been happier if we could have found a demon-free option, but judging by how things went today, that pretty much amounts to murder.'

'Indeed,' Joshua said. 'So you're going with the second option, then?' His voice was neutral, betraying nothing about what he might be thinking.

'Seems like,' said Dean. 'We told his mom you'd be around, keeping an eye out for him. That gonna be a problem?'

Joshua raised an eyebrow. 'Of course not. I live nearby, so it'll pose no particular difficulties. And it will be interesting to observe how this particular case develops - most unusual.'

'Do you think he can do it?' Sam asked Joshua, voice worried. 'Have you ever come across any references to something like this?'

'There have been documented cases of parasites, of course,' Joshua said. 'But every case is unique. Some of those parasites were exorcised. In other cases the host was killed. In this case, the host is a twelve-year-old child, and there's no telling whether that will work for or against him.'

Sam bit his lip. 'I wish there were another way... we're taking a hell of a risk. What if he does lose control?'

'In the event that the boy becomes a danger, I will take appropriate action, of course.' Joshua said calmly. Too calmly, as far as Dean was concerned, considering the guy had just spent an afternoon watching a kid nearly fucking burn to death.

Appropriate action. Dean didn't like the way this conversation was going. Especially as he wasn't convinced Joshua was talking only about Jacob. 'It won't come to that, as long as you keep helping the kid to control it,' he said firmly.

'Dean,' Sam said quietly. He didn't have to say any more. They both knew that sometimes it did come to that.

Dean met his brother's solemn, earnest gaze and had to look away. Fuck, he was really hating the undertones of this conversation. 'Yeah, well,' he said, feeling suddenly defeated. 'If it does come to that, make it quick and clean. I dunno what that parasite can heal, but that exorcism... no one deserves to die like that.'

'Death is never a pleasant option,' Joshua said, eyes intent. 'But sometimes it is the only one, as I think we all know.'

Dean narrowed his eyes. 'Maybe so. But it's always the last one, the way I see it.'

Joshua's lips quirked in a half-smile. 'Yes, you've made that much clear, Dean.'

Sam shifted uncomfortably. 'So... you'll check in with Jacob before you leave town? He told his stepmom what's going on, so you'll need to talk to her too.'

'I will,' Joshua agreed. 'I have their details, I think.' He gestured to the pile of notes on the bed.

Yeah, I bet you have, you bastard. Though Dean would wager good money that wasn't what Joshua had been looking for.

'Well, Joshua, I've gotta take a shower and put Sammy here to bed. We need to make an early start in the morning.' Dean held the door open for Joshua, half-closing it again as soon as the guy was through, and blocking the way with his body. Maybe it was a little rude, but hell, so was breaking into their room and going through their things.

'Thanks for your help, Joshua,' he said. 'You'll take good care of Jacob, I'm sure.'

'Of course,' Joshua agreed blandly.

'Good. And if you feel like there's any need for action, you call us first.' Dean looked Joshua in the eye. 'Wouldn't want you to come to any harm.'

'Likewise,' Joshua said, his voice cool. 'I'm sure you heard of what happened to Steve Wandell. He was a good hunter - I worked with him myself.' He paused significantly. 'But these are dangerous times for hunters, it seems.'

'Seems so,' Dean agreed, hoping the jolt of panic he'd felt at hearing that name wasn't showing on his face. 'Guess we all need to watch our backs.'

Joshua regarded him steadily. 'You're a lot like your father, Dean Winchester. You look after your brother, now.'

'Damn right,' Dean said, and closed the door in his face.

~*~
'Sam. Sammy. Wake up, slowpoke.'

Sam groaned and swatted at Dean's arm, which was currently engaged in pulling the comforter off him. 'What time is it? The sun's barely up, Dean.'

'So the roads'll be quiet. Let's get a good start, we could make Los Lunas by noon. I hear there's a haunting out there.'

Sam wasn't buying that explanation, but there was no point arguing when Dean got like this. He pulled on some clothes and followed his brother to the car, slightly mollified by the cup of coffee Dean had waiting.

'I guess it's a bit too early to swing by and say goodbye to Joshua before we take off,' he said experimentally, taking a sip.

'Way too early,' Dean agreed. 'Get in, Sammy, I'm ready to get outta here.'

Sam nodded to himself. Yeah, that was about what he'd figured. He didn't comment, though, just slid into the passenger's seat. He didn't miss the fact that Dean's eyes barely left the rearview mirror until they were out of sight of the motel.

As they passed the road that led to the Areys' part of town, Dean slowed a little, but didn't look in that direction. Sam glanced across at his brother, but Dean was focusing on the road ahead, his face unreadable. Sam guessed it wasn't just the Joshua issue that was bothering Dean: this wasn't quite like leaving one of their usual jobs behind.

'I think Joshua will look after Jacob,' he offered. 'I know he's a bit of an odd fish, but he does know his stuff.'

'Yeah, he knows his stuff all right,' Dean said heavily. 'I'm not worried about Jacob.'

Sam looked at him for a moment. 'OK, if you say so. He'll be OK, Dean. We've done all we can.'

'Yeah,' Dean said again.

Sam waited for more, but it seemed the conversation was closed.

Dean still hadn't turned any music on, and Sam could see the muscle in his cheek twitching. But before Sam could think of any way to draw his brother out, Dean suddenly pulled the Impala over.

'What are you -?' Sam started to ask, but Dean was already climbing out.

'Just a minute,' Dean said, and hurried across the street, where a young guy was just pulling the shutters up on his store.

Sam stared after him, then caught sight of the display of basketballs in the window. He felt himself break into a smile. Dean had some good ideas, every now and then.

When Dean finally emerged from the store, he was crumpling what looked like a delivery receipt in his hand. He got in the car without a word.

Sam grinned over at him. 'You find the perfect one?'

'Shut up, bitch.' Dean reached over and jammed a tape into the stereo, turning the volume up high. 'Let's burn rubber.'

Sam turned his head to look out of his window, but he couldn't stop smiling.

The Impala roared into life, and by the time they passed into the desert Dean was singing along with the music.

They left Phoenix behind them, bright in the morning sun.

[ Art | Artist's post]