❰❰ ୧ ⋅ ˚ ₊ ·┊ೃ ' 🏹 016.
BOHEMIAN ✩ ‧ ₊ ૪
❛ and don't cuss at me! ━━ ❜

"𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐃𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄?", The unsteady fear in Jenny's voice caused Bowie to uncross his anxious arms from over his chest and narrow his eyes in alarm. The blonde stood at the door, holding her little boy against her hip━ the toddler's cheeks tinted red from the cold of the fridge. Jenny looked startled, her eyes scanning between them at the door.

"Hey, Jenny," Sam responds, "Um, this is Missouri━"

"What's wrong." Bowie cuts in abruptly, stepping an inch forward. His fist curled against the red leash that locked Stevie's harness━ the dog himself sniffed the air inside on high alert, "Did something happen?"

He knew something had without her having to say it. He could feel it crawl up the sides of his arms and settle in the back of his neck.

She grows defensive, not wanting to talk about things that would make her seem like she was losing her mind, "Nothing, just. . .toddlers getting into trouble."

Dean frowns, "Ease up," He mumbles to his brother, turning back to Jenny with a kind smile, "If it's not too much trouble, we were hoping to show her the house, for old time's sake."

Jenny shakes her head, "No. You know, this isn't a good time. I'm kind of busy." She turns around, hands on the door to shut it, but Dean steps forward in urgency.

"Listen, Jenny, it's important━ow!" He winced at the slap against the back of his head, whipping his neck around to stare at Missouri with wide eyes.

"Give the poor girl a break," She scolds, "Is your brother the only one who can see that she's upset?" Bowie smirks at Dean, "Forgive this boy, he means well. He's just not the sharpest tool in the shed, but hear me out."

Jenny swallowed nervously, "About what?"

"About this house."

"What are you talking about?" She falters.

"I think you know what I'm talking about," Missouri continues, "You think there's something in this house, something that wants to hurt your family. Am I mistaken?"

Jenny's breath goes unsteady, "Who are you?"

"We're people who can help," Bowie responds, "Who can stop whatever this thing is but you're gonna have to trust us a little," He paused, "Trust me and I'll give you my word that your kids will be safe."

He knew that was all she worried about. He could see every ounce of hesitation on her face but the thought of her children's safety seemed to override the insane feeling she felt. He can sense, without even knowing Jenny, that she was willing to put her life on the line for her children.

It was a quality he wished all parents had.

"Okay," She swallows, stepping slightly to the side as she motioned for them to come inside, "I trust you."

𖤐┊

     "𝐈𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄'𝐒 𝐀 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊 𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐆𝐘 𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄," Missouri motioned her hand into Sari's room, the three brothers crowding at the door with cautious frowns, "This room should be the center of it."

     "Why?"

     "This use to be your nursery, Sam," She explains, "This is where it all happened."

     In sync, the brothers slowly raise their gaze up to the ceiling. Bowie felt his stomach churn, his eyes water if he stared too long. Dean pulls his EMF out, dragging it around the room in hopes not to hear the familiar whirling ━ for it all to be a mistake.

     "Is that an EMF?" Missouri asked.

     "Yeah."

     "Amateur," She responds. The woman hovered her palm over Sari's desk, her eyes closed shut as she tried to feel for something lingering in the room. Just as she turned near the closet, Dean's EMF goes haywire, "I don't know if you boys should be disappointed or relieved, but this ain't the thing that took your mom."

     "Are you sure? How do you know?" Sam pressed.

     Bowie moves slowly toward the closet, his hand hovering over the handle with a hesitant frown. He felt his heart beating in his throat, his stomach tightening at the feeling of being watched by something. His eyes turn up, where Missouri was looking at him with a knowing twinkle in her eyes ━ instantly, she turned away.

     "It just isn't the same energy I felt the last time I was here," She explained.

     To that, Bowie frowned, "You said yourself that you haven't been here for years, how could you possibly remember the exact feeling?"

     "The way you can remember the exact feeling when you're in this room," Missouri firmed, giving him a pointed look, "I know my stuff, boy. It's something different."

     The psychic walks over to Bowie and takes his hand off the handle of the closet, opening it up without a second thought. The man stepped back as if opening the door had burned him physically.

     "Not it, them. Them," She continued, "There's more than one spirit in this place, and they're here because of what happened to your family. You see, all those years ago, real evil came to you," Her eyes shift to Bowie.

     Bowie's fingers twitched.

     The familiar twitch that he hated more than anything. He could feel his body burn up, his palms sweat. A feeling in his chest that made him want to explode on everything and everyone. He wanted to scream so loud, he wanted the thumping in his head to stop ━ the ringing in his ears was picking up again.

     "Maybe even stared you in the face. It walked this house. That kind of evil leaves wounds, and sometimes wounds get infected."

     "I don't understand," Sam sighed.

     "This place is a magnet for paranormal energy. . ."

     "Stop," Bowie says breathlessly, shaking his head.

     ". . .It's attracted a poltergeist, a nasty one. . ."

     Bowie's eyes watered, "Don't━"

     ". . .and it won't rest until Jenny and her babies are dead."

     "I said stop!" Bowie slammed his fist so hard into Sari's wall that it broke through the paint and drywall. The skin on his knuckles split and bleed, but at least the suffocating feeling he felt had instantly left his body.

     Dean jumped back at Bowie's sudden outburst, his eyes wide as he subconsciously raised his hand up in front of Sam, watching his other brother with a cautious frown. Sam scoffed under his breath, smacking Dean's hand away from him.

     Dean would blame reflex but Sam couldn't help but question it. What did he think? That Bowie was going to hurt them too? Thankfully, Bowie hadn't noticed the exchange, too busy backtracking out of the room.

     "Sorry, I━," He cuts himself off, looking between them all, "I need some water. "

     He doesn't give any of them a chance to stop him, already out the door before the last word left his lips. He walks down the long hallway that he hardly remembered now, passing the room that was once his own with a second glance before stumbling down the stairs and into the kitchen.

     Jenny leaned against the counter, watching Stevie entertain her son with a soft smile, her eyes scanning around the room with natural paranoia. Sari wasn't home from school yet and the thought of packing their things up and leaving again had crossed her mind more than once.

     "Hey," She greets him, a frown tugging at her lips when she saw how red his face was, the thin coat of sweat noticeable on his forehead, "Are you okay?"

     "Yeah, Yeah," He waves away, "I just need some wa━" A glass of water was already placed in front of him before he could finish, Jenny forcing him down into a chair and not taking no as an answer.

     "You look shaken up," She notes, eyebrows furrowing, "Did you guys find anything upstairs? Should I be worried?"

     He stops mid-swallow, giving her a look of hesitation.

     "Please, tell me." She begs softly, brushing a piece of hair behind her ear, "I hate not knowing these things. I don't want my kids to be in danger━"

     "I'd never let anything happen to your kids," Bowie says quickly, his tone so firm that Jenny was slightly taken back. He sighed, "Whatever it is, my brothers and I are going to handle it. I promise."

     Jenny nods, shoulders sagging, "Thank you." She paused, taking a moment to watch her son play with the Labrador happily, she mirrored his sigh, "I just want what's best for them. . .be a better mother than my own," She admits.

     "If you're worried about not being a good mother then you're already doing something right," He tells her softly, giving her a reassuring smile, "Trust me, those kids are lucky to have you."

     "I'm sorry about your mom," She blurts, looking down at her shoes, "I-I looked into it when you boys left the other day, the fire here. . .it all sounds horrible."

     He closed his eyes, gathering himself, "It's okay, Jenny, really, I hardly remember my mother━"

     "It doesn't make it hurt any less," She says softly. With a bit of hesitation, she reaches over and squeezes his hand, "Look, I'm not a psychic but. . .I can tell this whole thing is hurting you."

     "You don't know me," He tells her lightly, "You don't know anything about me, Jenny." He stands up, clenching his jaw and pulling his hand out of hers, "I don't need anyone telling me how to grieve my mom, because I'm not grieving her. I didn't even know her, any memory I have of this house is from stories! So, please don't sit here and pretend you know what I'm going through because I'm fine," The chuckle dies on his lips, "I'm perfectly fine."

     Jenny pinches her lips together, nodding. Her retreat made him sigh out, rubbing his thumb against his bottom lip to calm his nerves, but she didn't seem to react the way he thought she would. Instead, Jenny gives him a soft smile, looking at him with the understanding that he didn't feel he deserved.

     "You need to just let it out," She tells him, eyes watering at the thought, "Every little thing that hurts you, no matter how old it is, no matter how much you thought you've gotten over it. Just let it out, trust me. If I didn't do it, I wouldn't have gotten this far. It makes everything so much better," Jenny takes the empty glass and squeezes his shoulder, "You're helping me out, might as well help you out, too."

     With that information burned in his brain, Bowie swallows thickly, nodding in defeat.

     Sam and Dean had come down moments later, Missouri had smiled at the women, telling Jenny that tonight she should take her kids out to the movies and let them handle the entity inside the hose while she was gone. When the brothers came back with the things they needed from Missouri's house, they could leave.

     "Hey, you good?" Sam asked lightly, walking up beside his brother as they walked into Missouri's home, "You were a little shaken back there."

     "A little?" Dean pipes in, looking Bowie over with a frown, "You went full psycho in there, do you know how hard it's going to be to explain to Jenny about the hole in her kid's wall?"

     Bowie didn't say a word, thinking too hard to form sentences as he rubbed behind Stevie's ear in Missouri's living room.

     Dean sighed at his lack of response, and turned his attention towards the table, "So, what is all this stuff, anyway?"

     "Angelica root, Van-Van oil, crossroad dirt, a few other odds, and ends," Missouri lists.

     "And what are we supposed to do with it?"

     "We're going to put them inside the walls," She explained, "In the north, south, east, and west corners on each floor of the house."

     "See, my hole helped," Bowie finally says.

     "And this will destroy the spirits?" Sam asked.

     "It should purify the house completely," She nods, "We'll each take a floor, but we work fast. Once the spirits realize what we're up to, things are gonna get worse."

𖤐┊

     "𝐈'𝐌 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐒 𝐀 𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐀," Jenny said only a few hours later. Bowie walked down the steps beside her, holding her son at his hip as he drank another cup of juice, keeping him steady as Jenny walked towards her car holding Sari's hand, "I'm not sure I'm comfortable leaving you guys here alone."

     "What? Am I gonna steal Richie's juice supply?" He jokes. Jenny smiled, still looking hesitant, "Look, just take the kids and Stevie to an ice cream shop, maybe even a movie," He pulls out his wallet and hands her the cash he had.

     Her eyes widened, "I can't just━"

     He shoved it into her hand, "Take my free money, Jenny, Jesus!" Bowie smirks, "You'd be doing me a favor by taking this blind-bat off my hands, and by the time you get back this will all be over, alright?"

     She nods lightly and Bowie placed Richie in his car seat and waves them goodbye as they pulled out of the driveway.

     From there, the plan was set in motion.

     When he walked back into the house, Dean could be seen in the kitchen, picking out his weapon to knock a hole into the wall. He chose an ax. Bowie tries to turn around, wanting to avoid a conversation with his brother but ━ like always ━ Dean was persistent.

     "Hey, what's been going on with you?" He asked accusingly, moving things around the counter to make room for the hole he was going to make, "I thought kicking you to Katherine would do you some good, but you came back looking worse than ever."

     Bowie frowned, hovering in the doorway, "I'm━"

     "If you say you're fine, I'm gonna Slasher you in the face," He warns, holding the ax up, "How many times do I gotta remind you? We made a deal. We're supposed to be a team, remember? That involves telling me when you aren't one-hundred percent," He pauses, "You can lie to everyone else, but I see through you, Bohemian."

     Bowie grimaced, "Don't, full-name me." He tilts his head at Dean's words, feeling a bitterness rise in his chest, "You saying if we didn't have a deal then you wouldn't have cared to ask if I was okay?"

      Dean hesitates. He could lie and say no because it was a lot better than admitting that he's grown to depend on his little brother more than ever before, or that he'd physically drop dead than allow him to get hurt ━ but Dean was never one to admit anything like that.

     "Course not," He grumbles, pressing the ax to the wall once before slamming it into the drywall again and again, "You're like knock-off me! Just hard of hearing."

     Bowie clenched his jaw, scoffing a bitter laugh.

     Suddenly, the hair on Bowie's arms sticks up, a chill of knowing running up his spine and into his brain like an electric shock. Without much thought, he runs up and tugs at the collar of Dean's neck, dropping them both to the ground just as a sharp knife sticks into the cabinet.

      "How do you always know how to do that?!" Dean bellowed, eyes wide.

     "You're welcome!" Bowie snapped.

     He wasn't paying attention, too roped up in scolding Dean to notice the knives starting to rise up from the draw. Dean, of course, had noticed it. The eldest grabs Bowie's head and pushes it down, rolling in front of him to flip the dinner table on its side, just as a phantom force slammed all the kitchen knives into the wood.

     Bowie turns to his brother, "Th━"

     "You're welcome!" He grins.

     Bowie slapped him, "I was gonna say it!" His eyes widened, in realization, "Sam!" He bellows.

     They scrambled to their feet, bellowing Sam's name as they ran up the stairs, ignoring the flickering lights and crashing shoulder first into a locked room where Sam was struggling on the floor against a lamp wire.

     "Dean, the wire!" Bowie orders. Dean grabs at the wire around Sam's neck, but it was too tight to wrap his fingers around, "Damnit! Shit!" He screamed in panic.

     His eyes land on the hex bag on the ground, scooping it in his hand and using his already bruised fist to slam another hole in the wall, shoving it inside.

     The room stops shaking, and the wire around Sam's neck loosens.

     With an uneven breath, Bowie skids on his knees in front of Sam, right beside Dean as they tried to keep him conscious. Dean pulls him up into his chest as Bowie checks for any bleeding or bruises.

     "You're okay, you're okay," Bowie muttered.

     "You did good," Dean agreed scatteredly.

     Sam, even though his wheezing panic, looked between his brothers ━ the same brothers who couldn't stand to be in the same room most days, wrapping their arms around him, protecting him with their bodies without even realizing it. Like worried parents. He smiled, giving them both a nod.

     When Sam was right to stand, they met Missouri downstairs in the aftermath of whatever Poltergeist had swept its way through the house, taking everything off the shelves with it.

     "Are you sure this is over?" Sam asked her.

     "I'm sure," Missouri says, "Why? Why do you ask?"

      Bowie narrows his eyes, "Because I'm not so sure," He firmed. Sam nods in agreement, "I mean, it just can't be that easy. It never is."

     "I can assure you, it's over." She repeats.

     The lights flick on and Jenny walks into the kitchen with wide eyes, her kids at her sides and Stevie happier shuffling over to Bowie, able to smell the man's scent of cinnamon and charcoal anywhere.

     "What happened?" Jenny looked around.

     Bowie winched, "Damage control, honestly Dean's fault."

     Dean scoffs.

     "We'll pay for all of this," Sam continues.

     "Don't you worry! Dean's gonna clean up this mess," Missouri volunteers him. Dean's scoff turns into surprise, "Well, what are you waiting for, boy? Get the mop and don't cuss at me!"

     "So, it's really over?" Jenny asked Bowie.

     He gave a soft nod, "Of course, did you doubt me?"

     "How could I?"

𖤐┊

     "𝐒𝐎, 𝐓𝐄𝐋𝐋 𝐌𝐄 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐈𝐍," Dean ran his thumb against his bottom lip in frustration, his other hand drumming against the steering wheel of the Impala as they camped outside of Jenny's house, "What are we still doing here?"

     "Cause Bowie and I still have a bad feeling," Sam responds.

     Bowie, who laid on his back on the bench seat with Stevie over his chest, a pair of sunglasses over the man's eyes even if it was three in the morning, "Yep."

     "Why? Missouri did her whole Zelda Rubenstein thing," Dean shook his head, "The house should be clean. This should be over."

     "I don't trust Missouri, she's hiding something," Bowie says calmly.

     "Is it your tingle thingy?" Dean asked.

     Bowie frowned, "I don't have a fucking t━," He sighed, composing himself, "We just want to make sure they're okay, that's all."

     Dean sighed in defeat, rolling his head back on the bench seat, "The problem is, I could be sleeping in a bed right now."

     Sam sees something in the window of the house. He narrows his eyes on it, only for panic to rise in his chest when he sees Jenny banging on the window, screaming for help. The brothers quickly jump out of the car, Bowie leaving Stevie in the backseat.

     "You two grab the kids, I'll get Jenny!" Bowie orders.

     Bowie is already up the stairs long before either of the brothers could enter the house, screaming the women's name. The door was locked when he reached it, Jenny screaming on the other side.

     "I can't open the door, Bowie! Help!" She screamed.

     "Back up!" He orders.

     He takes a single step back, before kicking his foot straight into the doorknob, the door swinging open. Jenny rushes forward, throwing her arms around him, "I got you! I got you," He tells her.

     Bowie tried to drag her out of the room, but she wouldn't budge, "No! My kids. Where are my kids?!"

     "My brothers got them! I promise, now come on!"

     "Bowie!" Dean bellows, the pair crossing the hallway, "Bowie, have you seen Sam?"

     His eyes widened, "What? He's not with you?! Where are the kids?" Before Dean could respond, Bowie hands Jenny over to him, "Get her outside, I'll find them!"

     Dean nods firmly at the order, dragging Jenny out of the house.

     When he had turned the corner, the last thing Bowie expected was to see Sari and Richie running down from the bedrooms, looking panicked.

     "Where's my brother? What happened?" He drills.

     She shakes her head, unable to form words.

     "Sari tell me!" He snapped.

     "He's back there! That thing got him!" She cried.

     Bowie felt his whole heart stop, his face pale at her words, "Okay, alright. Go outside, your mother is out there, don't come back in this house, understood?"

     She runs past him, Richie at her hip.

     "Sam?!" He bellowed, "I'm coming!"

     He was in the kitchen when Bowie found him, pressed up against the cabinets by a phantom force that he couldn't break out of.

     He takes a step toward him. A firey figure walks out of the nearest room, standing in the middle of the kitchen. He froze. The thing in front of him looked scary, looked murderous, yet━ he felt the opposite looking at it.

     Sam seemed to feel the same way because when Dean had entered the room, guns blazing, he screamed at him to stop.

     "Bowie, get out of there!" Dean orders.

     But the man stayed planted still, so close to the figure that he could feel the fire against his skin.

     "Don't shoot!" Sam yelled.

     "What? Why?"

     "We know who it is," He says, "We can see her now."

     The fire had fizzled out, the outline now becoming a familiar woman with blonde hair and a haunting white nightgown. Bowie's knees buckled at the sight of her, so close to him that he thought he was dreaming.

     "Mom?" He whispered.

     She smiled softly, coming forward and placing a cold phantom hand on his face. Instantly, his eyes watered. Bowie began to cry, holding back the sob that bubbled out, "Mian," She says.

     She looks behind him, at his brothers, "Dean. Sam."

     Mary moves her hand away from his face, walking past him. Bowie drops to his knees, unable to look back and see where she had gone. Everything after that was white noise to him, not hearing the apology she uttered to a teary-eyed Sam.

     She turns to face the ceiling, "You, get out of my house. And let go of my son!"

     She erupts back into flames and disappears.

     Sam feels the phantom weight release him.

     "Now, it's over."

     "Bow?" Dean says softly, kneeling in front of him. Bowie didn't respond, rocking back and forth, "Bow, it's okay. I got you, come on."

     He holds his hand out for Bowie to take, but with a single look Bowie slaps it away and stands up on his own. Dean hid his hurt instantly, replacing it with a glare.

     By morning, everything had been put back to how it was. Jenny had given them an old box of their things, a thankful smile on her face as Sam and Missouri check the house one last time.

     "Can you do me a favor. . .?" Bowie asked, squinting at the sun as he stood in front of Jenny.

     She looked away from her kids, who were crowding over Stevie and giving him the attention he adored.

     "Anything," She says, "I mean, you saved my life."

     "Can you," His eyes water, trying so hard to keep himself together, "Can you, uh, look after Stevie for me?" Her eyes widened, "I just, I move around too much and a dog in his condition can't handle it, besides. . ." He gives a shaky breath, "I don't think I have the mental strength━"

     "He'll be safe with us, god knows those kids need it after all this," She smiled warmly, squeezing his shoulder, "You're doing a good thing. I just hope you'll come back?" She hesitates.

     He forced a smile, "You can count on it."

     "Are you going to say goodbye to him?"

     Bowie turns his head away from the dog, shaking it  firmly, "No, I━ I don't think I can."

     She nods in understanding.

     "Sam, you ready?" Dean asked him.

     Sam gets off the stairs, waving goodbye to Missouri.

     "Don't be strangers!" Missouri calls to them.

     "We won't," Dean responds, looking around with a frown, "Aren't you going to grab Stevie?"

     Bowie shows no expression on his face, "No, he's better off without me, especially now." He responds firmly and gets into the car.

     Dean hesitates, looking back to the dog with a longing frown. Still, he says nothing and gets into the driver's seat.

[[ oh god you're gonna hate me next chapter. ]]