XVII. CONFRONTING DEMONS

Adelaide stirred as she felt a hand on her shoulder, shaking her awake.

"Adelaide?" An unrecognized voice called, their voice echoing as they continued to shake her awake. "Come on, sweetheart. Get up."

Adelaide recognized the nickname quickly as she slowly opened her eyes. She was wildly disoriented, feeling like she was slogging through molasses.

Her voice, scratchy and on fire, croaked out, "Dean?"

The older Winchester's blurry figured came into view as he helped her into a sitting position. As Adelaide's vision stilled, she could see a bump on Dean's forehead.

"Ew, what happened to you?" She asked, gesturing to her own forehead as her strength slowly returned.

Dean was quiet for a moment. "Sam happened. Waited until I got back to the room, hid behind the door with the lights off, knocked me in the head with his gun. Woke up a few minutes ago and noticed you on the floor."

Adelaide blinked as she processed the information. She frowned, wondering why Sam would do such a thing.

She remembered her conversation with him, she remembered how he injected her with dead man's blood. She sighed, rubbing a hand at her neck.

"Someone's not winning any medals today," she murmured, still groggy.

Before Dean could reply, the two heard someone knock on the door. Adelaide turned to Dean with confusion.

Dean slowly got up, still groggy himself, as he limped to the door. He opened it slightly.

"Hey. It's past your checkout." The motel manager spoke, poking his head inside the room.

"What?" Dean asked, not processing the manager's words.

"It's past checkout, and I've got a couple here needs your room." The manager spoke.

Adelaide slowly got up with a groan, coming up behind Dean as she leaned on him slightly.

"What time is it?" She asked the man.

"Twelve-thirty," the manager replied, bored.

Dean blinked, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "That guy who was with us, have you seen him?"

The manager nodded. "Yeah, he left before dawn in your car, and you should have gone with him, because now I'm gonna have to charge you extra."

"Oh, son of a..." Dean muttered.

"It's just policy, sir," the manager replied smugly.

Adelaide shot the manager a dry look. "Well, aren't you a ray of sunshine?" she retorted.

The manager gave her an equally unimpressed stare.

"I need to use your computer." Dean said a moment later.

The manager blinked. "Now, why would I let you use my computer?"

Adelaide quickly gathered up her and Dean's things as Dean and the manager headed to the lobby. The manager walked with a skip in his step as he happily counted his money.

As Adelaide moved to leave the room, she brushed past the couple waiting to enter, seeing an embarrassed businessman with a female entertainer.

"No glove, no love," she reminded, continuing her walk down the hallway.

By the time she arrived downstairs, Dean was wrapping up his phone call. The vampire appeared behind him as she saw a gps screen tracking Sam's cellphone.

Duluth, Minnesota.

Adelaide furrowed her eyebrows at the location, then briefly wondered how much money he had spent on gas.

"Ready, sweetheart?" Dean asked with a grin ad the two exited the motel.

***

Dean and Adelaide had stopped for fast food as they drove to Sam's location. Adelaide was drinking her water bottle filled with animal blood as she turned to Dean.

"How can you enjoy that stuff?" Dean asked with a wrinkle of his nose.

"I don't," Adelaide huffed. "But, apparently, it's better than killing people. Only downside? Makes my powers weaker."

Dean furrowed his eyebrows. "It does?"

Adelaide hummed.

"Oh," Dean replied. He shifted as he changed the subject. "Any clue what's going on with Sam?"

Adelaide shook her head. She didn't dare tell him about the gun in the motel room, but she had told him about the dead man's blood.

Dean frowned. "I just wish...I don't know, I wish I could help more, you know?"

Adelaide agreed. "I mean...the drinking, the smoking...it's all so...not Sam."

"Not Sam at all," Dean nodded his head, before stiffening as he turned to Adelaide. "...What if it's actually not Sam?" He asked.

"We know it's not a shifter, Dean," Adelaide reminded him of the lack of camera flare from the tapes.

"Yeah, I know," Dean replied, pausing. "What if it's something else? Possession, maybe?" Dean probed, as Adelaide turned to him.

Adelaide's eyes widened at the mention of possession. "Possession? Seriously?" She exchanged a glance with Dean.

When she noticed how serious he was, she felt fear instill in the pit of her stomach, realizing just how right he was.

***

Hours later, the two arrived to Duluth, Minnesota. They drove up to a parking lot of a dingy bar in the middle of nowhere, the area barely illuminated by any streetlights.

The Impala was the only car in the lot. As Dean parked, Adelaide opened her window a crack.

She was hit with Sam's scent, knowing they had tracked his phone to the right place. However, his scent wasn't the only scent she picked up on.

After a moment, she recognized the scent as Jo Harvelle's. She hadn't seen the girl in months, not since the case she and the Winchesters had worked on months prior.

She felt pity that Jo got wound up in the situation.

"He's with Jo," Adelaide explained to Dean, gesturing to the bar's front door.

"Jo?" Dean repeated, confused. "Why is he with..." realization struck Dean as he realized she was bait.

A little random, sure, but still someone they cared enough about to come save.

"Here," Dean called, catching Adelaide's attention. He shuffled through his bag for a moment before he pulled out one of his pistols.

He handed the metallic weapon to Adelaide, his hand over hers as she held it firmly in her grip. "What's this for?" She asked.

Dean shrugged. "In case you need to use it. Plus, you kept bothering me about getting you one, so..."

Adelaide cracked a half smile at Dean. She appreciated the gesture and tucked the weapon away in her back pocket. "Thank you, Dean. We better go."

The vampire had assumed they were going for a stealthy route as she and Dean exited the Impala, until Dean practically kicked the door of the bar open.

He shouted Sam's name as he held his gun.

Adelaide's fingers grazed over the pistol in her back pocket as she stood beside Dean. Her cramping fingers made her unsure that she would actually use it.

Adelaide's eyes shifted from Sam over to Jo, who had a scarf in her mouth to keep her from shouting as Sam tied her up around a pillar. She tried her best to be brave, but Adelaide could hear her hammering heartbeat.

When Sam noticed the two, he grabbed the large knife that he had wedged into the wooden pillar, holding it to Jo's throat. He heaved desperately.

"I begged you to stop me, Dean." Sam pleaded desperately, his gaze shifting to Adelaide as he gazed deeply into her eyes. "I really begged you to stop me."

Dean furrowed his eyebrows. "Put the knife down, dammit."

"I told you, I can't fight it! My head feels like it's on fire, all right?" Sam shouted. "Kill me, or I'm going to kill her. Please. You'd be doing me a favor! Shoot me."

Sam turned to face the two, his arms outstretched. "Shoot me!" He yelled.

"No, Sammy, come on." Dean pleaded, his gun steady. After a moment, he turned away, lowering the gun.

"What the hell's wrong with you, Dean?" Sam mocked. "Are you that scared of being alone that you'd rather let Jo die?"

Dean continued to face the opposite side of the room as he turned to Sam, splashing water on his face. The water steamed upon touching his skin.

"That's holy water, you demonic son of a bitch!" Dean yelled.

Sam turned to Dean, his eyes solid black as he hissed. Dean flung more holy water at Sam as Adelaide rushed home to Jo, cutting her free with the knife Sam left behind.

Adelaide noticed Jo's forehead sported a similar bump to Dean's as she briefly ran her finger over the wound to make sure she hadn't broken any skin. Jo winced.

"Sorry," Adelaide replied.

The possessed Sam was fast acting as the attention was briefly turned away from him, turning to the back window as he shattered it and jumped out. Adelaide heard his retreating footsteps down the road.

Dean was quick to move to the window, staring at it for a moment before leaping through.

"He was possessed?" Jo shouted angrily.

Adelaide took a breath, nodding her head. "Apparently."

***

Adelaide had tried to convince Jo to remain in the bar to wait until everything blew over. She should've known better, as Jo was adamant in helping. Adelaide wasn't sure if she was impressed or annoyed by Jo's determination.

Still, Adelaide walked beside Jo moments later as she tracked down their scents. They had realized the two had gone towards the docks, where they walked quietly to try and pinpoint the two down.

Jo was more focused on finding Dean, and Adelaide had a sneaking suspicion as to why. Jo's crush on Dean wasn't hidden very well.

It wasn't long before Adelaide pinpointed Dean's scent towards the water, where he laid up against the bottom of a ramp, unconscious. She was hit with the strong scent of blood, hoping Dean hadn't whacked his head on the wood.

"Dean! Dean!" Jo shouted as she ran up to him.

Dean awoke with a groan, coughing. He was soaked from head to toe.

"Take it easy," Jo soothed.

"Where's Sam?" Dean groaned out, shuddering in pain.

"I don't know, I've been looking for you. Come on, get up." Jo replied.

As she and Jo helped Dean up, Adelaide realized where the strong scent of blood had been coming from, noticing Dean had been shot in the shoulder.

It wasn't long before they brought Dean back to the bar, where Jo was dressing his wound. Adelaide wasn't quite sure if she trusted herself with such fresh blood.

Instead, the vampire was in the back of the bar, grabbing some extra supplies that Jo requested to aid Dean's wound.

As Jo and Dean spoke in the other room, she was tempted to eavesdrop on their conversation, though was too clouded by her own thoughts.

She frowned as she remembered Sam's possessed face. She wondered how long he had been possessed—she briefly wondered if he had been possessed since Bobby's. She hoped not. It left a nasty pit at the bottom of her stomach to think so.

Adelaide was broken out of her daze when she heard Dean calling her name, signaling it was time to leave. She came out the back, her backpack heavier than it was before.

Jo was handing Dean a bottle of pills for the pain that the bullet caused. Dean smiled gratefully.

"Thanks. I'll call you later, okay?" He spoke, already halfway out the door as Adelaide lingered inside the bar. 

As she waved to Jo, she could hear the girl mumble to herself, "no, you won't."

***

Dean and Adelaide were driving up to Bobby's. Dean had realized the closest Hunter to Duluth was Bobby back in South Dakota, as the two were on their way to try and get there before Sam.

Adelaide could hear Dean's heart rate increase everytime Bobby declined his call.

It was a long, tiring drive as the two arrived at Bobby's just before dawn, though it seemed Sam had already made his way inside. Bobby handled the situation, however, as Sam was unconsciously tied to a chair, inside of a devil's trap.

"We're a little late, huh?" Dean spoke as the two made their way inside.

Bobby shrugged, shaking his head. "It's been handled."

Bobby led Sam and Dean further into his house, where Adelaide stiffened at the sight in front of her. Sam was tied up in a chair, unconscious. His head was lowered as his hair covered the majority of his face.

Above the chair, the ceiling held a devil's trap, ensuring Demon-Sam would remain in place.

Bobby explained the only way to save Sam would be an exorcism to rid Sam of the demon that had taken control of him. It was risky, but what other choice did they have?

The three stood a few feet away from Sam as he remained asleep. Dean furrowed his eyebrows, growing impatient as he stepped forward, smacking Sam in the face to wake him up.

"Hey!" he shouted.

Adelaide glanced to Dean with unease. "Easy there, cowboy. We're here to help Sam, not rearrange his face."

Dean huffed as he took a step back from Sam, though was seemingly too late as Demon-Sam stirred, opening his eyes as he realized he was in a devil's trap.

"Dean," he greeted with a smug grin. "Back from the dead. Getting to be a regular thing for you, isn't it? Like a cockroach."

Dean was unimpressed as Demon-Sam looked around the room, his eyes landing on Adelaide. "Well, if it isn't the vampire. Bet you didn't expect the dead man's blood, did you?"

Adelaide rolled her eyes. "Bet you didn't expect the devil's trap, did you?" She mocked.

Demon-Sam grinned. "You'll just have to see."

Adelaide could feel herself growing annoyed, though Dean stepped in before she could accidentally jeopardize the plan. "How about I smack that smartass right out of your mouth?" Je spoke.

"Careful, now," Demon-Sam reminded. "Wouldn't want to bruise this fine packaging. Not when Adelaide over there is so fond of it."

Adelaide narrowed her eyes into a death glare as she clenched her fists. "Go to hell."

"Already been." Demon-Sam shrugged, beginning to laugh. "You know, it's funny."

"What is?" Adelaide hissed.

"I've heard so much about you, and I've gotta say, I'm a little disappointed by the Crimson Shadow. You were powerful, and mostly importantly...feared. But now? Seeing you refuse to kill Sam back at the hotel room, even when he was begging for it, made me realize something." Demon-Sam laughed again. "You've gone soft." 

As Demon-Sam spoke, she could feel Bobby and Dean's eyes on her. She paid no attention to them as her anger increased the more the demon spoke.

"Soft?" Adelaide repeated with a hostile scoff. She grabbed the bucket of holy water from Dean's hands forcefully, throwing it onto Demon-Sam.

"How's that for soft?" She hissed. "There's a whole lot more where that came from."

Demon-Sam shook his head. "I wouldn't. Sam's still my meat puppet. I'll make him bite off his tongue."

"No, you won't be in him long enough," Dean replied. "Bobby," he then called.

Bobby began to read from one of his old Latin books to exorcise Sam. "Exorcisamus te, omnes in mundus spiritus omnes satanica potestas, omnes incursio..."

Bobby continued to speak as Dean turned back around. "See, whatever bitch-boy master plan you demons are cooking up? You're not getting Sam. You understand me? 'Cause I'm gonna kill every one of you first."

Demon-Sam struggled at Bobby's chanting for a moment, before throwing his head back and laughing maniacally. Adelaide felt her body freeze up with discomfort.

Bobby's words came to a halt as he watched in surprise.

Demon-Sam scoffed. "You really think that's what this is about? The master plan? I don't give a rat's ass about the master plan."

Bobby continued his exorcism, though Sam was unaffected. "Oops. Doesn't seem to be working. See, I learned a few new tricks," he lowered his head and began chanting in Latin himself.

The fire behind him flared as the room shook. Adelaide jumped back with surprise as she looked to Dean.

"This isn't going like I pictured," Dean stressed. "What's going on, Bobby?"

Adelaide could hear the panic in Bobby's voice as he spoke. "It's a binding link!" He realized, horrified as he lifted Sam's sleeve to reveal a burned mark on his skin. "It's like a lock! He's locked himself inside Sam's body!"

"What the hell do we do?" Dean shouted.

"I don't know!"

Demon-Sam shouted painfully, the room's shakiness coming to a peak as the ceiling cracked down the middle, breaking the devil's trap. Demon-Sam's eyes turned black as he lowered his head.

"There," he grinned. "That's better."

He proceeded to jerk his head to the left, making Bobby go flying. He switched directions, sending Dean flying. After a moment, he lifted his head upwards, as Adelaide hit the floor, crashing into Dean.

Adelaide instinctively moved to shield Dean as Demon-Sam ripped off his restraints and stalked towards them.

"Can't hurt you," Demon-Sam spoke, referring to Adelaide's vampiristic invincibility, "but I can hurt him."

DemonSam proceeded to throw Adelaide across the room with a wave of his hand, sending her hurdling into Bobby. She huffed, turning to the older man to make sure he wasn't hurt.

As Demon-Sam taunted Dean, Adelaide and Bobby took this as their chance to spring into action. She quietly made her way to the other side of the room so she'd be able to grab Sam from behind, waiting for Bobby to be prepared.

She watched with unease as Demon-Sam grabbed Dean by the collar of his shirt, punching him repeatedly. She heard the demon introduce itself as Meg—and though the name had no significance to her, Dean stiffened.

Dean was met with multiple more hits, before Meg-Sam rubbed her thumb into Dean's bullet wound. Adelaide winced for him. "By the way. I saw your Dad there...he says 'howdy'." Meg-Sam pressed harder, as Dean tried to pull away in pain.

"All that I had to hold onto, was that I would climb out one day, and that I was going to torture you. Nice and slow. Like pulling the wings off an insect." Meg-Sam shoved Dean.

Adelaide turned to see Bobby prepared for their plan to move forward. The older man held a hot poker in his hand, and Adelaide knew they had to act fast before Meg-Sam could smell the faint burning in the air.

As Meg-Sam moved to hit Dean again, Adelaide was able to use her super strength to hold his arm back. Bobby appeared beside her as he pressed a hot poker into the binding link on Sam's arm.

Meg-Sam screamed in pain, screaming again as black smoke exited out of his mouth and up the chimney. Adelaide moved to help Dean into a sitting position as Sam fell back beside her.

She was quick to grab his arm to steady him, feeling his fingers graze against hers. He looked at her for a moment, before scrambling back in confusion. He grabbed his burned arm in pain.

"Sammy?" Dean asked hopefully, blood running down his nose.

Sam blinked. "Did I miss anything?"

Dean looked relieved for a moment, before the pain of Demon-Sam's punches set in. His upper lip curled upwards into a frustrated sneer, as he leaned forward and punched Sam in the face as payback. Sam grabbed his cheek in pain and confusion.

***

The atmosphere in Bobby's living room hung heavy with exhaustion and tension. Sam nursed the remnants of Meg's influence on his arm, while Dean applied an ice pack to his bruised face. Adelaide leaned against the desk, her piercing gaze drifting between the two brothers.

Sam, trying to ease the mood, commented on Dean's appearance. "By the way, you really look like crap, Dean."

Dean tiredly shot him a half-smile. "Yeah, right back at you."

Adelaide, unable to resist chiming in, added, "Well, isn't this a touching family reunion? Beauty contest winners, both of you."

The banter was interrupted by Bobby's approach, wearing a furrowed brow. "What is it, Bobby?" Sam inquired.

Bobby's gaze shifted between the three of them. "You three ever hear of a hunter named Steve Wandell?"

Dean hesitated before asking, "Why do you ask?"

"Just heard from a friend. Wandell's dead. Murdered in his own house," Bobby revealed. Sam's guilt was palpable. "You wouldn't know anything about that?"

Dean shook his head. "No sir."

Adelaide raised an eyebrow. "Never heard of the guy. Was he on your Christmas card list?"

"Guys—" Sam's guilty plea was cut off by Bobby.

His stern expression returned as he spoke. "Good. Keep it that way. Wandell's buddies are looking for someone or something to string up, and they're not going to slow down to listen to reason. You understand what I'm saying?"

Dean nodded slowly, rising from his chair with  a heavy sigh. "We better hit the road," he began, turning to Sam. "If, uh, you can remember where we parked the car."

Sam let out a scoff as he stood up, shrugging to himself. Adelaide figured they'd task her with sniffing out the Impala's whereabouts.

Before anyone could move, Bobby interrupted, handing each of them a small metal charm. They examined the trinkets, and Sam asked, "What are they?"

"Charms. They'll fend off possession," Bobby explained. "That demon's still out there. This'll stop it from getting back up in you." 

"That sounds vaguely dirty," Dean commented. "but uh, thanks."

Bobby managed a small smile. "You're welcome. You be careful now."

Sam added with a genuine smile, "You too, Bobby."

Adelaide eyed Bobby, determined to leave a positive impression. "Don't go breaking a hip or anything."

As the trio headed to the door, Dean tossed the ice pack back at Bobby with a smirk.

***

The three had only managed an hour of driving before Dean needed to pull over at a nearby motel to crash for the night. Adelaide wanted to give the brothers their space as she got her own motel room for the night, wanting nothing more than to take a shower and relax.

In the soft glow of the bedside lamp, Adelaide lounged on the motel room bed, a worn-out book in her hands. She could hear other inhabitants of the motel watching tv through the thin walls, but after being alive for so long—she didn't quite understand the appeal of tv.

The ticking clock on the nightstand echoed in the quiet room as she heard a knock at her door. She cautiously stood up, sock-cladded feet padding to the door as she unlocked it, catching Sam's scent on the other side of the door.

Sam tiredly shuffled in, his eyes meeting hers with a mix of apprehension and remorse.

He glanced at the clock. "It's late," he noted, as if the hands on the clock held the weight of the hours he'd lost to Meg.

"You're the one who came here, you know? Plus, vampires don't exactly have a bedtime," she quipped, her usual sarcasm tempered with a gentleness reserved for Sam.

Sam chuckled softly, before glancing up to Adelaide. His eyes bored into hers for a moment, his voice smooth like honey as he spoke.

"I remember." He said slowly, as the vampire tilted her head with slight confusion.

"Hm?" Adelaide said, her head turning to face him.

"I remember everything," he clarified, his voice tinged with emotion. "And I remember that night with you."

Adelaide swallowed harshly, her mind flashing back to their conversation at Bobby's. She was unsure if her heart had ached or skipped a beat. Maybe neither.

Maybe both.

"I'm so sorry," he spoke once more, hoping Adelaide would say something. "For everything that's happened this week."

Adelaide looked up, her gaze meeting his sincere eyes. "Sam, it wasn't you. I know that," she said softly, a hint of a reassuring smile on her lips. "It was that demon. I get it."

He took a step closer, the distance between them gradually diminishing. "I should've fought harder, I should've found a way to resist it. I should've—"

Adelaide grabbed Sam's hands, steadying him as his words came to a halt. Her fingers gently grazed his knuckles. "It's not your fault. I know that. Beating yourself up isn't going to change what happened, but we're good, okay? We're...."Adelaide paused as she broke their gaze, clearing her throat. "We're good. We're still friends, if that's what you're worried about. A rough few days isn't going to undo the months we've spent together."

"Rough is an understatement," Sam chuckled out. It was silent for a moment before he spoke again. "I meant what I said, Adelaide. You mean a lot to me."

She nodded, her expression softening slightly. "Thanks, Winchester," she spoke, her hand reaching out to smooth down the wrinkle of his pajama shirt.

His hand grazed over hers, their fingers sparking together. Adelaide was quiet to remove her hand as she settled on a smile geared towards Sam.

He reciprocated the expression, and as they sat there, unspoken words lingered in the air, there a quiet acknowledgment of something deeper between them.

The motel room held a warmth that went beyond just flickering lights.

— argentsires
sorry there is no gif at the top i was lazy lol
also here is finally an update!! ive been so busy so hopefully this is enough to tie u guys over for a bit lol
if anyone is interested in my ex situationship thing its still very much messy since we're in the same friend group😵‍💫😵‍💫
anyways, as always im happy to answer any questions or comments! enjoy!
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