Tigers Are Awfully Protective...

Red Sky at Morning

Author's Note: I've only half finished editing this chapter, but posting it because Wattpad is giving me so many issues, sorry!

"I've been waiting since Maple Springs," Dean broke the silence of the car as he drove, "you got something to tell me?"

Sam broke his gaze from the window, where nothing but trees zipped by in the cool night air. His gaze is confused and he talks slowly, not sure what he should say and playing dumb, "it's not your...birthday...?"

"No."

Sam thinks for a moment, "happy Purim?" He scoffs a laugh as Dean cuts him a look, "dude, I don't know."

Dean's voice is tense, "there's a bullet missing from the Colt. You want to tell me what happened? I know it wasn't me. It was either you, or," Dean glanced at the back seat where Sasha was sitting up but was slumped, asleep with papers and pictures scattered about her and her book open in her lap. Dean knew there was a big chance Sam was the one to use the bullet and mess with his deal. There was a slimmer chance that Sasha had used it, but it was also possible that the Klouvi caught up with her and maybe she had used it in an emergency. No, Dean thought, it was probably Sam, and Sasha wouldn't be totally innocent either.

"Unless you were shooting at some incredibly evil cans," Dean went on and Sam tried to speak up.

"Dean..."

"You went after her didn't you? The Crossroads Demon? After I told you not to," Dean asserted.

Sam looked like he couldn't care less, "yeah, well."

"You could have gotten yourself killed," Dean reprimanded.

"I didn't," Sam retorted back.

"Or Sasha," Dean continued.

"Who said she was there?" Sam said, not roping Sasha in if he didn't need to.

"I know she was there," Dean huffed, "she wouldn't have let you leave without her."

"Sorry Dean," Sam's voice was sarcastic, "we're really sorry for wanting you to live."

Dean dodged Sam's statement, "and you shot the demon!"

"She was a smartass!" Sam fired back. There was a long pause.

"So, what? Does that--does that mean I'm out of my deal?" Dean asked, trying to hold back his hope.

Sam was slow to answer, disappointed in himself, "don't you think I would have mentioned that little fact, Dean? No," he continued, "someone else holds the contract."

"Who?" Dean asked, his gaze hardening.

"She wouldn't say," Sam mumbled. Dean glanced in the mirror at Sasha, surprised she was still asleep. He knew she hadn't slept recently and it was all catching up to her; the gashes on her shoulder didn't help, he's suppose to take the stitches out the next time they stopped.

"Well, we should find out who holds that contract," Dean leaned towards Sam without taking his eyes off the road, "of course our best lead would be the crossroads demon," after a moment, Dean's mouth opened in an 'o', "oh wait a minute."

"It's not funny," Sam mumbled.

"No, it's not," Dean told him, "it was a stupid freaking risk and you shouldn't have done it."

"Shouldn't have done it?" Sam asked the king of hypocrites, "you're my brother, Dean, and no matter what you do, I'm going to try and save you. And I sure as hell am not going to apologize for it, alright?"

**********

Sasha isn't happy about being woken up and her mood declines even further when she realizes she left her research strown about the back seat. "Fucking hell," She muttered, picking up pictures and papers that were on the floor and at risk of being crumpled or lost. When everything was tucked into the book again, she followed the boys into the motel room. Apparently they had found a case and the first thing to do was get dressed up. Sasha argued that if Dean took her stitches out today, they would have no time to interview anybody. With the blouse she wore, she had to take the time to conceal her scars in cosmetics. Knowing she was already in a piss poor mood, Dean didn't push it.