The Family Business

It Takes a Village....

From Maggie's POV:

Later that evening, Dean and I put the twins to bed in their room and went back out to the living room. We sat on the couch together, my back against his chest and his arms around me. Sam, Ruthie, Jim, Charlie and Cas had not yet gone home. Sam spoke first. "So what happened earlier, Maggie? Are you okay?" he asked.

I sighed deeply before answering. "I don't know any more, Sam. I remember being in the kitchen to cut the cake. I was feeling kind of dizzy then, but I was determined to do what I needed to do, you know, hold it together. Ruthie and Dean were telling me sit down and take a break, but I yelled at them that I was 'fine'. I think I blacked out not long after that," I said. "Then, I felt Dean shaking me, trying to wake me up. In between, I had another vision, where I had been kidnapped by a Knight of Hell named Kieran. His twin brother was Keenan. He's the one who grabbed me before and tortured me with a poisoned blade," I explained.

"Did Kieran tell you what he wanted?" Charlie asked.

I nodded. "He said that Sam and Dean took something from him on their last case, a very powerful Rune Stone. He was going to use that to take over as the new King of Hell, like Keenan tried to do. I told him that I didn't know what item he was talking about, so he slapped me around a bit. Then he took this knife from a little silver tray. It had a saw-toothed blade, and he used it to make a long jagged incision on my right forearm." I shuddered at the memory and turned to bury my face into Dean's chest. In response, he tightened his arms around me and kissed the back of my neck.

I continued. "Dean came in first, with his gun, but Kieran flung him across the room and knocked him unconscious. Sam, you came in with a demon blade, but Kieran overpowered you, kicking and punching you till you didn't get up. I pleaded with him to let me go find the thing that you took from him and give it back. I just didn't want him to hurt you two anymore. He refused that offer and....stabbed me in the leg for my troubles," my voice trailed off. "That's pretty much it, because about that time Dean was trying to wake me up. At first, when I opened my eyes, it didn't register who was talking to me. It took longer this time to come out of my vision, which kind of scares me," I said.

Sam stood up from his chair. "Why don't we talk about this a little more in the morning? I don't think we're going to solve anything more tonight. We can all get some well-deserved rest and pick up tomorrow where we're leaving off now. There's plenty of room for everyone to stay. Charlie, you can have your old room," Sam directed, winking at her.

"Thanks, Sam. Well, lights out, bitches," Charlie called as she walked towards her room.

I got up from the couch so I could show Ruthie and Jim to their room. As we got to their door, I turned to Ruthie. "Hey....I wanted to apologize for yelling at you earlier. I know you were just trying to do what was best for me and I....I'm um....sorry," I said.

"You think snapping at me like you did is going to drive me away? Not a chance. You're my best friend, Maggie, my sister. You're right, I do want what's best for you. Right now, I think that may mean you handing over some responsibilities to your husband. At least for a little while, and I'm sure he can handle it. From what I understand, he had plenty of practice with Sam, while they were growing up," she finished. I gave her a long hug and heard her whisper, "Don't worry, girl. I got your back." Then she and Jim closed the door for the night.

I went back out to the living room to pick up any remaining dishes, like glasses or plates. Sam saw me, and came running over. "Here, Maggie, let me help you," he said as we took stuff to the kitchen sink.

"Thank you, Sam," I said. As I turned to leave, Sam caught my hand. "Maggie, wait. Listen. You have to let me and Dean help you around here. You can't manage the bunker all by yourself and take care of the kids. We're worried about you. I don't think you're sleeping much, and I haven't seen you eat very much lately either," he gently chided.