Kingpin Motel (Supernatural G/T)

Chapter Twenty-six

Dean could feel it when he slowly started to regain consciousness. Before he even opened his eyes he noticed something. He could move his fingers. He could ball his hands into a fist. Not only that, but he didn't feel like he was being weighed down by cement blocks anymore.

He groaned groggily, forcing his green eyes open. The light almost blinded him, but he stared at the ceiling while waiting for his body and mind to wake up.

Sam glanced over at his brother and smiled widely. Finally. Standing up from the chair in the motel room, he made his way over to the bed and folded his arms over his chest. "About time you get up."

Dean's gaze wandered over to Sam. "Shut up," he groaned out, but then caught something else. Sam wasn't looming over him. He wasn't lying on a pillow. "Yes, normal!" He started to sit up before a sharp pain ripped through his chest and he had to lower himself back onto the bed. "Ow. Shit."

"Yeah, I was able to get the stake out of your chest. The wound looked really bad, but it'll heal over time. You've been out three days at the most, you grew back to normal about a day and a half ago." Sam sat on the opposite bed, glad to see his brother awake and looking better than he had. No more scared looks. He didn't feel like a freak anymore. It was just his brother.

"Wait...where's Starla?" Dean muttered, recalling the events that took place in that building. Starla was carried off and he never got to see if she was truly okay or not.

"Over there," Sam gestured to the Borrower that was sound asleep on the pillow next to Dean's head. "She barely left your side. She was worried as all Hell about you man. She's also been seeing things. Things that she says look like memories," he briefly averted his gaze. "Which is why I need to show you this."

Sam stood from the bed and dug through the pocket of his fed suit. From there, he pulled a wallet-sized photo out, holding it out to Dean. "Look at this."

Dean took the photo from Sam, eyeing the young brown-haired, blue-eyed girl in the photo. She couldn't be any more than seven. "Holy shit...that's Starla."

"Look at the back."

Dean turned the photo over, reading the date and name out loud. "Lily Henrickson, 2008. Damn...so she-"

"Is one of the missing girls from back when this vamp had started taking people. She was human. She has the same scar you'll have. Only...he can't be fixed. The vamp ripped that barb out of her himself to ensure it. He replaced her memories. Only after he died did she finally start remembering everything as it once was." Sam spoke in a solemn tone, watching Dean observe the photo with a concerned gaze.

"Do we take her home?" Dean lifted his head slightly, meeting Sam's gaze. "I mean, what would her mom and dad think about their daughter who'd been missing showing up barely the size of a finger?"

"All I know is taking her home would be the right thing to do, and we'll let her decide if she wants to stay with her real parents or come with us," Sam ran a hand through his brown locks, a slight frown on his lips.

"And if she chooses to stay with her parents?" Dean questioned, setting the photo off to the side. 

Sam didn't respond and instead looked at the resting Borrower. He reached out, his finger gently touching her hair which made her stir in her sleep. 

Dean knew what Sam was thinking. He was thinking it too. If Starla stayed with her parents, they'd have to leave without her. And they might never see her again. "Sammy? Wake her up. Let's get this over with."

Sam nodded his head and nudged her with his finger until the small female finally grunted out an annoyed response. He chuckled, carefully taking her in his palm. "We're going to go see your mom and dad."

Starla's eyes shot open at that, and she was instantly in an upright position. "Th-The people I've been seeing? The ones who call me Lily? That's...that's who I really am huh? There's a lot that's still foggy but it's been coming back. I was human...I-I had a family."

"You have a family," Dean slowly sat up from the bed, one hand touching his chest where he felt bandages wrapped under his shirt. "Us, and these people we're going to see."

Starla hesitated and looked back and forth between the brothers. "What if they don't want me?"

"Then they're stupid sons of bitches that should go to Hell for not wanting their own daughter just because she's a little shorter," Dean muttered jokingly, but it was clear in his eyes he was serious. 

"Thank you. Both of you." Starla smiled at the two of them. She was so grateful, he didn't even fight it when Sam delicately slipped her into his flannel shirt pocket.

She was going to see her parents. She was going to see the life she's only just remembered. However, a part of her felt sad. If she stayed here, she'd have to watch the Winchesters leave without her for the second time. 

She listened as the doors of the Impala opened and closed, giggling to herself as she could hear Dean's excited voice.

"Oh, I'm back Baby. Did you miss me?" Dean lovingly caressed the steering wheel with a grin, ignoring the look he got from Sam in the passenger seat beside him. 

Sam closed his eyes with a small smile, leaning his head back against the car seat. Things felt normal for the first time in a few days. And he could say that even with a Borrower in his pocket.