Broken {Supernatural Fanfic}

1. Broken

"The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear"- H.P. Lovecraft

She crouched in the shadows of the sewer system, pressing her bruised frame up against the cold and slimy wall. Her eyes were focused on the scene before her, watching it the same way a normal seven year old would have watched television. Impassively. Josiah was taunting whoever he had tied up, his current face twisted up in a smirk she had seen far too often on far too many faces. She closed her eyes tight and held her hands over her ears, hoping it would be over soon.

He paused near her on the way out, fingers sinking deep into bruises. "Keep an eye on them," he hissed and she nodded rapidly, cringing back farther into the wall. He smirked, satisfied, and left her. Her breath came in little shuddering pants for a moment before she controlled them. Her mouth moved in a silent prayer for a moment before the whispery words escaped her.

"Rosanna, Caitlyn, Natalie." The girl's names dripped off her tongue and she shivered, picturing her sisters in her mind. Rosanna, the eldest with long strawberry blond hair and big blue eyes that had been wide even in death. Caitlyn, the second eldest, with reddish brown hair and the same blue eyes as Rosanna. Her head had been sheared from her body and her face had been unrecognizable, her eyes gone. Then there was Natalie. Just four years older than her, Natalie could have been her twin. The same red hair, the same almost almond shaped green eyes. Those green eyes that Josiah had torn out before he killed her. Natalie's face, marred with blood, seared itself in Autumn's mind. She tugged at her now reddish brown hair and closed eyes that she had changed to blue, shuddering.

A little whimper escaped her but she bit her tears down, tasting coppery blood in her mouth as her teeth clamped down on her tongue. She closed her eyes, trying to think of Natalie when she was still alive. It didn't work. All she could see were Natalie's empty eye sockets. All she could hear were her sister's moans. Eyes squeezed tight shut, hands covering eyes, teeth clenched so tight she thought they would crack, she rocked silently, her world a mess of agony. When the pain finally fell away the two men were gone.

Josiah came back an hour later. He sank clawed fingers into her shoulder and jerked her up, throwing her against the wall. "You let them go you little bitch," he snarled. Autumn tried not to scream as he dragged her up again. He slammed her up against the wall and she yelped in pain.

"Please," she squeaked out, tears running down her cheeks. He dropped her, disgust plain on his features. Then his foot slammed hard into her chest. She gave in this time and screamed, curling up in a tiny ball and sobbing as he stalked off to finish off the two hunters that were giving him so much trouble.

It twenty minutes for her to pull herself back together. Then she clambered into her hiding place, holding a hand over her bloody side. He had sliced it open when he had kicked her. Tears still poured down her face as she curled up and watched the outside area silently. An hour later Josiah returned, dragging an unconcious girl with him. He dragged her out of sight and Autumn braced herself for screams that never came. Instead he stalked out again.

It took two hours of shivering and staring with wide, pained green eyes into the darkness before she drifted off to sleep. In her dreams her sisters were alive and she was safe. She woke to footsteps echoing loudly down the tunnel. Far too loudly to be Josiah.  She forced herself upright, clutching her knees to her chest and all but holding her breath as she watched the tunnel, waiting for whoever would come into view soon enough.

~

Sam wasn't exactly pleased to be back in the sewers even if the shapeshifter was dead.  Dean walked beside him, knife in hand. "Well here it is," Dean said as they stepped into what had been the shapeshifter's home since he had begun to terrorize the area.

"Let's get to it then," Sam said. "After what happened I don't want to stick around any longer than we have to. Dean didn't say anything but Sam thought he saw a smirk as his brother turned away. They had come down here to make sure there were no other victims before they left. He sighed and turned back to the task at hand.

The shapeshifter's home was a mess. Chunks of blood and some other substance he didn't want to name were spattered across the ground.  Most of it was dried in gloppy piles and the stench made his eyes water. That was when he saw it, semi fresh blood staining the ground. There were drops and stains across the floor that led to a large pipe in the other side of the wall, big enough for someone to crouch in. Sam approached it warily, eyes struggling to catch a glimpse of anything in the gloom.

He jerked back, startled, when wide blue eyes met his own. The tiny figure concealed in the pipe whimpered, skittering back, and Sam dropped the knife. The girl inside the tunnel couldn't be an older than six with wide watery eyes and a small shivering form. Her eyes flashed reflective for a moment when he took a step forward and he froze. A shapeshifter. The little girl in front of him was a shapeshifter. Was she actually this little then or just messing with him?

"Hey Sam, check this out," Dean called, sauntering over with something in his hands. From what Sam could see it was a newspaper clipping.

"Sure," he replied warily, eyes never leaving the girl. "If you don't mind keeping an eye on this pipe."

"Dude," Dean started to protest and then saw the girl. "Okay then." He handed over the newspaper, eyes fixed on the pipe. Sam glanced down at the headline.

THIRD KILLING IN FOUR DAYS

Natalie Anderson, age 13, was found dead today in her families apartment. Natalie is the third killing in the last four days, all from the Anderson family. The first was the eldest daughter. Rosanna Anderson, age 19, was found lying in a puddle of blood outside the door of her own home. The next girl, Caitlyn Anderson, went missing on her way home from work. The seventeen year old was found decapitated a few feet from her home.

Thirteen year old Natalie and her remaining sister returned home last night to pack bags before being taken to a foster home. The police officer with them heard noise in the basement and went down to check out the situation, thinking perhaps the attacker was attempting to break in that way. While she was downstairs she heard scream and ran back up. She found Natalie missing her eyes and lying dead in blood from her own wounds.

Autumn Anderson, age 7, is still missing. Police have found no leads on who killed the Anderson girls or where Autumn might be.

The article cut off then, too stained by water to be readable anymore. There was a picture that was attached to the back of the article. It showed a tiny girl with a red braid and wide green eyes. Despite the fact that the color of the eyes was wrong the girl hiding in the pipe looked almost exactly like the girl in the picture. The label on the back was handwritten. Autumn Anderson- shapeshifter, age 7. Their shapeshifter, the killer, had been following the Anderson girls then. He glanced at Dean.

"You think?" he asked, allowing himself to trail off.

"Probably," Dean admitted, sounding almost angry. "He has a whole wall of pictures in such, including the ones from the other three murders." Sam handed over the picture. Dean glanced first at the picture and then at the girl.

"Flip it over," Sam said softly. Dean did so and Sam watched his brother's eyes narrow as he read the caption.

"I guess our friend couldn't take the competition," Dean drawled sarcastically before glancing up at the girl. "Hello Autumn."