Killing Me Slowly

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We were all camping out in an abandoned house for the time being. Sam was out like a light, Dean was where he always was…on the laptop, Googling Dick Roman…and Brit and I were hanging out in the bathroom, just sitting on the sink counter, drinking some beers.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this but…what if we really can’t make it out of this one” Brit said.

“We will” I told her.

“But what if Dick Roman gets what he wants. What if…”

“Brittney. We wont let Dick get his way. We’ll find a way out of this. I promise” I assured her, looking right into her eyes.

She looked at me for a second and then looked down. “Ya know…for the longest time, whenever you said that to me I felt safe. Like I knew you were going to be right. Like everything would be okay. But this time?”

“This time won’t be any different. Geez, between you and Dean, I feel like you’re always trying to find ways to doubt me and prove me wrong. Sam’s probably the only one who believes me still when I say everything will be just fine”

“I’m sorry” she sighed.

“It’s okay” I wrapped an arm around her. “Come on” I said and we headed out to the boys to see Sam on the phone with someone.

I was about to listen in but then I saw Dean intently staring at the laptop so I walked over to him and stood directly in front of him. I placed a hand on my hip as he stared up at me and I smirked. “I think you’re done for the night. Did you get it all out of your system?” I asked him as I placed a hand on the top of the laptop and closed it.

He just smiled smugly at me. “Funny” I just smiled back.

Then Sam hung up. “Sherriff mills. She caught us one”

“Awe and we didn’t get her anything” I replied as I crossed my arms, leaning on the table, still in front of Dean. I felt his eyes on me but I didn’t look back at him.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this but I hope you were watching cartoon smut because re-reading Dick Roman crap is just self punishment” Sam said to him.

His eyes went off me and to his brother as I looked back at him. “It’s called anime…and it’s an art form” he corrected him. I rolled my eyes.

The next morning we headed out to Ohio and found another abandoned house to stay in while this case went on…that was our thing now, obviously. Abandoned houses. “Well this looks nice, doesn’t it darling?” Dean joked as we pulled up in front of it.

I still hadn’t found a car for me and Brit yet so we were still tagging along with the guys. Sam and I fought sometimes to get the passenger seat…this is one of the times that I won. “Oh it looks just peachy. Even has a perfect yard for little Sammy and Brittney to run around in. Lets check around back” I joked back.

“Oh you two are just hysterical” Sam said.

“Yea we think so” Dean said, winking at me. What was I doing?

We walked in and the boys were carrying a table and chairs into what I assumed was the living room as Brit and I set up the sleeping bags and quickly sat down on them, grabbed beers and then whistled as we lifted our beers to the boys. They just shook their heads at us. I know we’ve all been joking a lot lately but it’s how we’ve been getting through this. I mean, how else are we going to survive? Dean was right. We have to fake it. And keeping things light between us may only help a little and may only last for oh so long but it still works.

“Well, there’s a…semi-functioning bathroom and one un-rancid bedroom” Sam said.

“Define semi-functioning, and do not use the words ‘hole in the floor’” Dean said.

So then the two of them held their fists out to each other and I sighed. “Might as well get Dean’s tools ready for him” I sighed as I stood to my feet. Brit chuckled.

Dean lost…obviously. And he disappeared for a bit but then came back. “How does paper beat a rock? It's stupid” he said. I had to laugh. He was stalling. “Oh be a man and just fix the damn toilet already” I said to him.

“Yea I’d like to see you in there” he replied.

“Fine” I smirked and sauntered passed him. We both walked to the bathroom and just stared at the toilet for a long moment, then we looked up at each other. “Okay umm…”

“Yea?” he smirked as he crossed his arms.

“Shut up…obviously you have to turn this…” I said and started to turn a pipe with a wrench, like I knew what I was doing. Cars: I knew. Home appliances? Not so much.

“I wouldn’t…” he started but it was already too late.

The pipe fell off and water started to squirt everywhere, on the walls, out into the hall, in our faces, drenching our bodies. “Dean, do something!” I yelled.

He quickly jumped forward and did something that made it stop. When it did we both looked at each other and then just started laughing. “That’s a good look for you” he said and I looked down to see my shirt was now see-through.

“I smell like the sewer” I made a face.

We both just kept laughing. I don’t think we laughed this much together in a very long time. “Is everything okay over here?” Brittney asked with a smile as she and Sam came over to us. We both just laughed some more like two kids who couldn’t control their own laughter. It was nice.

Once we got cleaned up, we headed out to check out this case. Apparently people were being found dead, looking like they had been mummified…old and wrinkly, I guess. But they could be as young as me or Brit. So then we went to go talk to a witness…which was, of course, a nutcase in himself. He was only able to tell us that the guy looked like his grandpa wearing a Justin Timberlake hat which was oh so helpful. We had also checked out the dead body. It couldn’t have been a vampire because there was still blood in the body…300 year old blood, but still blood. So then we went back to researching…found nothing…then found something. Dean decided to show his genius for us as he pulled up camera feeds around some corners at different times…which totally made Sam jealous. But it got us the guy we were looking for…and with just a little more digging, we found out where he lived.

And then…we staked out his house…until he came out. “Wait, wait” Brit said.

“What’s the plan?” Sam and Brit both asked.

“Don’t die” Dean and I both replied as we all got out of the car.

We followed the car with the Justin Timberlake hat down the sidewalk and then he made a turn. “Okay. We’ll follow him down the alley, you two take the street. We’ll meet up in the middle” Dean instructed and we all nodded.

I wasn’t sure if we should’ve been on the same team or not…we were still trying to just get back on two feet with each other…but being with each other just felt natural. Being a team felt natural. I don’t even think he was thinking when he planned out which directions we would all go in…it was just an automatic reaction to pair me with him and to pair Sam and Brit. It’s how things are now. It’s how things have been. For such a long time….

We followed this guy around a corner and then saw him up ahead holding some other dudes head in his hands as a red light was pouring out of him and into the hat guy. “Son of a bitch” we both grunted and raced toward him. He dropped the guy since he was now dead and right as he did, Dean and I both dove into him but then…everything was…red.

~

We all hit the floor hard and I actually went rolling away from the two of them as Dean tried to get a hold of him but he managed to get away and take off. I wanted to help him…but something seemed different to me.

“Melissa!” Dean grunted so it snapped me back to him and I shot to my feet, whipping out my gun as he did the same.

We ran out of the alley and lost sight of the hat guy…but a cope car had rolled up in front of us. “Put the guns down!” a cop yelled at us.

Dean and I looked at each other with wide eyes and then set them down slowly. I looked around and saw how everyone was dressed…how the shops had bright lights for signs…I didn’t like the feeling I was getting in my stomach.

We had both been taken in and we were sitting side by side at a table, in hand cuffs, with a cop sitting across from us. “Look can I just…” Dean started.

“Don’t”

“Listen to me…”

“If you tell me you’re from the borough again, I’m gonna air you out myself…what are you, some kind of jerry spies?”

“Jerry who?” Dean asked.

“And sending a woman to do the work? They must be desperate”

All I did was glare at the table. “Dean, I think we’re…” I started to whisper.

“No conspiring either. You stupid? I’m right here”

“I wasn’t conspiring you meathead”

“Melissa, now isn’t the time to start fights with the nice man” Dean warned with a fake smile.

“He started it” I muttered.

“And these badges? They were issued 68 years from now”

My eyes widened. “68? So…” Dean started and I saw he started to try and do the math in his head. I shook my head. “44, Dean. I’ve been trying to tell you that we’re stuck in 1944” I snapped at him.

“Sweetheart, we’re all stuck in 1944” the cop said to me.

And as I said “Don’t call me sweetheart” Dean said “Don’t call her sweetheart”, causing us both to look at each other but I was the first to look away. I can’t keep doing this…whatever this is….

Then someone else walked in and the cop in front of us stood up immediately to face the other guy and he seemed to have dismissed him…but I couldn’t hear what he said to him. I couldn’t hear him. “Oh my god…Dean” I said and pointed to my ears as I shook my head.

“Well I think this just got more difficult” he sighed.

The guy walked over to us and he was wearing a fancy hat too so we couldn’t really see his hat. “This would be so cool if we weren’t in cuffs and being interrogated right now, with no way home” I said.

Dean just chuckled at me…I think it was involuntary but I didn’t really have time to ask. “Okay, I don’t even like sauerkraut so lets just skip the…” Dean started…and to be honest I didn’t even know where he was going with that one.

“What happened in the alley. And paint me a real picture” the guy, in front of us, said.

“Alright well we’re gonna be called crazy wither way so why not? We were chasing this dude and we had just seen him mummify a guy. He lights up red and poof we’re in 1944” I explained. “Tell me more about the red light”

I eyed him. “You’re seriously asking…” Dean started but I grabbed onto his arm to stop him.

“You two want out of this jail? You will tell me everything you can about that man and this will go down light” the guy continued.

I leaned forward a little on my elbows. “We saw it…and now we’re here” He eyed me back and it seemed like he was getting agitated with me but he was trying to be patient.

“Would you say it was…all around you? Or did it come more from inside this fella?” I smirked. “You believe us. You’re a hunter” I stated.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about” he lighted.

“Demons, ghosts, shifters. We’ve killed them all and you’re the same…just 68 years before us” I said, excitedly, not grinning. I felt Dean watching me carefully.

“Huh…and you’re name?” he asked, offering his hand.

I shook it. “Melissa Stern…and Dean Winchester” I said and then gestured to Dean so they could then shake hands.

“Ness. Eliot Ness” he told us and I felt my heart stop. My wide eyes met Deans and then we looked back at him.

He un-cuffed us and then went to get the file. “Dean, can you believe we’re in 1944? I mean how crazy” I said, excitedly as I looked out the barred window and looked back at him.

“What’s with you and the 40’s?”

“I don’t know. It kind of revolves around it all. Inequality. War. Depression. It’s all so sad”

“That would be your reason”

I snapped a glare at him. “I mean I wish I could warn them, ya know? We’re here aren’t we?”

“Mel, you know as well as I do…”

“Yea, yea, I know. Can’t alter time. Blah, blah, blah, whatever”

“Ya know, I’m really enjoying this right now”

“What?”

“The fact that you have a weirder fetish than I do when it comes to different time periods”

“What?! I do not!

“Oh. You do” he insisted.

“Yea, okay. Because your fetish that has to do with people who wore blankets for fun is no weirder than mine” I said, rolling my eyes and then winking at him.

“Hmm funny” he glared.

“I thought so” I shrugged, walking away from the window.

Then Eliot walked back in. “I gotta tell ya, Untouchables is one of my most favorite movies ever” Dean said right away.

“Mmhmm and I have the fetish” I smirked.

“You’re the one that got me into it!” he claimed. “I must have seen it like 50 times” he continued to Eliot.

“Seen it? Like I’m in the…”

“Oh yea, like you don’t even know!” I said, excitedly.

“Okay, slow it down a little okay…now time travel, is that something you find up a lot of sleeves in the future?” he asked as we all sat down again.

“No. It’s not normally on the menu. We’re just as surprised as you are that we’re here” Dean said.

“So we’re on the same thing…just in different centuries” he smiled.

“Okay, two bodies. Few days apart. Just a little over a month ago. One witness said she saw him light up red, after sucking life out of a man” he explained, showing us the file.

“Awesome” Dean said, sarcastically.

“How does that fill you with awe?” Eliot asked, honestly confused. We didn’t know what to say to him. “Look Dean. Melissa. This thing. It kills in…”

“In threes”

“In threes”

“You already know that” Dean laughed nervously.

“He’s two down” Eliot added and I felt him watch us as we looked at the file. “Your coming with me, we gotta get this thing before it grabs the last one” he said, standing to his feet.

“Oh! Please let me come too! Please, please, please! I can be a really good untouchable. Please” I begged Eliot.

“You sure you can handle it?”

I put my hands on my hips. “Can I handle it? I’m from the future, where the woman save the men. So at the end of this case I think I’ll be asking you if you can handle it”

He actually smiled. “Yea, we’ll see”

“So this means we’re untouchables now?” Dean asked as we both grinned.

“It means we gotta get you both some new clothes. You look like some kind of bimble stiff…and you? I don’t even know what you look like” he waved me off and walked out.

“Stiff your rib bim…wait what?” Dean said and I raced to catch up with Eliot as Dean followed.

Eliot drove us to some tailor’s shop and when we got out, I couldn’t help but look around in awe. I don’t know why, everything to me looked so…vintage-like. People who passed by looked like they didn’t have a care in the world, but those were ones who had money and knew they were protected. Others seemed to worry. And I was just…amazed. This was real history. Dean’s time period is just crap.

Elliot had to pull us both along though because we were so in awe by everything. A woman in the store turned around to look at us. “What's the rumpus, Eliot?” she asked.

“Ezra Moore. Dean Winchester. Melissa Stern”

“Hey” Dean said. “Hi” I grinned.

“Who are they? Some farmer clown? And some whore house bum?

My jaw dropped as Dean snickered and I snapped my eyes at him so he stopped and just looked away. “They’re uhh from the future” Eliot told her.

“Yeah. Gas costs four bucks” Dean started.

“You can get cheese out of a spray can” I added.

“The President? He's a black guy” Dean finished.

“Woman have so much more rights and more respect…” I glared at Eliot. “We could go on” I shrugged.

“Well paint me impressed. I assume you need some clothes. Come on” Ezra said and so we followed her.

I was now dressed in a really nice dress that went down to my ankles and it hugged my curves nicely and my hair was really curly as my bangs was to the side and I had so much hairspray in it, it should’ve been against nature laws. I felt like I was meant to be in a 1940’s movie. I walked out of the dressing room at the same time Dean did and saw how good he was looking in his dark suit and how his hair was parted on the side. Then Eliot whistled, snapping us both out of it so we looked at him. Then we both turned to look in the mirror.

“Well, sweetheart, don’t you look ravishing this evening” Dean said to me as he changed the tone of his voice.

"Oh Mr. Winchester, always the sweet talker" I put a hand on my chest and bat my eyelashes at him.

"Are they okay?" Ezra asked.

"I think so...this is just something they like doing. Some kind of reenactment of something" Eliot said.

Ezra began to smooth out Deans jacket. "This is so awesome" he said.

"'Awesome'? You some religious kook?" she asked him.

"No, he also just likes saying that" Eliot explained.

"So, spill already. What bucket of syrup did you idjits step into" she asked.

Dean chuckled while I just looked down and smiled. "Something funny, sweetheart?"

"No, you, uh...you just kind of remind us of someone" I explained.

"Okay, Ezra...we need your help. It seems we're hunting a time traveler" Eliot said.

"Delightful"

So then she pulled out some books. "It's the infinite hourglass" Eliot said as we all looked at the symbol.

"That's the symbol I saw on his ring" Dean said as I just glanced at him, then back down at the symbol.

"Yeah, that's the mark of Chronos" Ezra said.

"Who?"

"The God of Time" I said. He stared at me for a moment. "So I have some extra time on my hands to study up" I shrugged.

"When?" he asked, not believing me.

"Don't worry about it. All I know is that with the Old Gods, they were kind of invincible. Got their power from their worshippers, from feeding off then"

"And These days, not so much" Dean said.

"Yea. They're not what they used to be. But they make up for lack of power with being twice as pissed and a lot more hands-on"

"Okay. So why's this God killing people?"

"Could be he's killing folks for his time juice" Eliot suggested.

“All right, well, how the hell are we gonna ride him back to 2012?”

“Well, you could let him grab you both, if you don't mind him using you two for gasoline”

I looked up at Dean with an uneasy look on my face as he looked back at me. “Look, let's just stick with what we know. Ezra, see if you can find something in all this junk that will kill a God” Eliot instructed.

“No trouble at all. Come in a few hours, see what I can scrounge up”

“You said you fellas found his house? Well, let's go see if it's been built yet. And then let's kill that bastard, because that…”

“Is the Chicago way” Dean said as he put on his fedora and I grinned a little.

“‘Chicago way?’” Ezra asked.

“Who talks like that?” Eliot asked.

“Sean Connery” I told him matter-of-factly.

“Come on” he shook his head, helping Dean into his coat.

“I’m never watching that movie again” I muttered as I walked out the door.