Supernatural Finale: With or Without You – Part 11

Welcome Back to my vision of the end of Sam and Dean’s fight to save the world! “With or Without You” is a multi-part, complex tale that brings the Supernatural saga to a close in a way that’s quite different than the “Unity”/”Despair”/”Inherit the Earth” finale that was presented  in season 15. Yes, there’s mystery, danger, old friends and familiar enemies, but the ending  – well, that just might surprise you. Begin with part 1, or drop into the story in whatever chapter you may have missed by using the links on our Fan Fiction tag. Then over the next several weeks, return with us to the Supernatural universe to again immerse yourselves in the lives of Sam and Dean Winchester!

“With or Without You”
PART 11

***** Dean***** 

The door to the bunker opened with a loud squeak. Hearing it, Claire raced to the war room with a shotgun in hand to greet whomever was coming in.

“Hey, did I miss anything?” Dean asked as he stepped inside and spread his arms.

“You’re alive!” Claire cheered.

Dean was barely able to make it down the stairs before she had thrown her arms around his chest and squeezed with all her might.

“I won’t be for long if you don’t let me breathe,” he gasped.

Claire released him and took a step back, her apology drowned out by the scream and bundle of energy that shot into the room and leapt at Dean.

“Hey there, buddy,” he said, catching his son and lifting him up so the tyke could wrap his tiny arms around Dean’s neck.

Jo couldn’t help but smile as she walked into the room carrying Samantha. “Glad to have you back.”

“They didn’t give you too much trouble, did they?” asked Dean.

Jo shook her head. “They were little angels,” she said with a wink.

Anna, keeping her head down, brushed by Dean and quickly headed towards the bunker’s dorms, saying nothing.

“Is mommy ok?” asked John.

“Was that an insensitive pun?” asked Jo.

“No! She’s just had a very long drive and is really tired,” Dean answered as he sat the boy onto the war room’s central table. “Give her some space for a bit, ok?”

Jo and Claire agreed.

Leaning over to look John in the eye, Dean said, “How about you go find your Legos and Daddy will help you build something in a minute?”

John nodded and took off running to the library to gather some scattered bricks while Dean headed to the bunker’s kitchen.

Anna’s back was to the entrance, but Dean could hear the force of her chopping from there. He knocked twice on the door frame and called her name.

She sniffed and wiped at her cheeks. “Can this wait until after dinner?”

“No.”

Anna slammed down her knife and whirled around, revealing her red, swollen eyes. “Fine. Get it out then. Yell. Shout. Call me whatever. Let’s hear it.”

Dean reached up and gently wiped a tear off her cheek. “The only one here mad at you, is you.”

Anna put her hand over her mouth and began trembling.

“You did what you had to. I’m the last person who is in any position to judge you for that.”

Anna shut her eyes and Dean pulled her into his arms. The floodgates broke and she began sobbing into his chest, her hands clutching at his jacket. “Why don’t you hate me? I’m the worst mother ever.”

Dean kissed the top of her head. “Why don’t you hate me? There’s a lot of awful stuff I’ve done.”

Finished sobbing, Anna pulled back. “Because you keep fighting to make sure everyone’s safe, Dean Winchester.”

“And you have the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever met.”

Anna gave him a small smile.

“Do you want me to take care of dinner.”

She shook her head. “I need to do something for this family.”

Dean kissed her forehead. “I’ll be playing with John if you change your mind.”

They both lingered a minute in each other’s embrace.

“Any regrets?” whispered Anna.

“Never.”

“Until everyone comes home,” she said, before letting her husband go.

“Until everyone comes home,” he echoed.

***** Sam *****

The front door of River Grove’s city hall opened and Donna entered with Eileen, both of them dragging overflowing grocery carts with them. “Dinner time!” shouted Donna.

“Bring us something good?” asked Victor as he and Sam walked over to help the ladies.

“You betcha!” said Donna. “Loads of steak and fresh lobster.”

When Victor started digging through the carts, Donna playfully slapped the back of his head.

“I’m joshin’ you, silly! Where would we cook them anyway? In the breakroom microwave? This is survival time. We be eatin’ like lumberjacks,” she said, holding up a can of Dinty Moore beef stew.

Eileen noticed Sam’s downcast expression and tapped him on the shoulder. “How bad is it?” she asked vocally as well as in sign language.

Sam let out a deep sigh. While the two ladies had been on a supply run through any grocery store or mini-mart they could find in the area, Sam and Victor had gathered the bodies they could find, along with their identifications, and then cataloged them. Beside the computer he had commandeered, there was a stack of drivers’ licenses he had just finished cross-checking against the town census. “At least four adults,” said Sam, “and twenty-three children.”

Donna’s and Victor’s smiles vanished. Eileen covered her mouth in horror.

“Any children left?” she asked verbally and with sign language again.

Sam shook his head. “We haven’t found any body under seventeen years old. And twenty-three is just the number of children we know should be here and can’t be located. We suspect—” Sam pointed to another desk where piles of cell phones and wallets waited to be examined for pictures connecting one person to another, “—that there might be even more missing.”

“The fairies took them all?” asked Donna.

“It would be consistent with their lore,” noted Victor.

“And what demons do to kids tends to… leave signs,” said Sam.

“I’m less upset now that Alex used my truck to hit one of them,” said Donna.

A light chuckle rippled through the group when the front doors opened again, this time admitting Jody and Alex. Alex was practically giddy as she hugged the old spellbook against her chest and said, “We did it!”

Sam took a step forward. “You did?”

Alex nodded. “We found where the fairies invaded the town. And we can use the book to go the other way.”

The group broke into a flurry of activity. A wagon and backpacks were prepared and stuffed with supplies while guns, ammo, and knives made of iron or silver were gathered up.

“You made the right call, Sam,” Victor said between the two of them.

“It was a lucky guess that Rowena’s journal would even have the spell we needed.”

“You’ve got good instincts, Agent Winchester. I’m glad you joined the Bureau.”

“Sounds like you’re getting all mushy on me Agent Henricksen.”

“I’ve put in the cover. Took some time off for this trip. You know what to do if I… get delayed.”

“Don’t think you can hang out over there and I’ll do all your paperwork,” Sam said with a playful punch to Victor’s shoulder.

“You boys need time for your chick-flick or can we get this show on the road?” Donna asked as she walked over to them.

“Last chance to back out,” said Victor as he zipped up his FBI duffle bag.

“Now agent Vic, you should know that every midwestern girl dreams of a trip to fairyland,” Donna said with a wink, resting her shotgun on her shoulder.

“More of us should go,” said Sam.

Victor shook his head. “We all know you’re the brains of this partnership while I’m the looks. Donna and I need you over here, saving the world, so all those kids we rescue have a home to come back to.”

“You sure I shouldn’t go?” Alex asked as she packed some brown paper bags labeled with spell components. She held up some sheets of paper and said, “I wrote down the spell, but I don’t know how well you can do it.”

“If we can’t do it, you bring us back on your own in a week,” said Donna.

“Or if you all fail, open the door and get as many people to evacuate to fairy world as possible,” said Victor.

“We’ll stop this by the time you get back,” Jody said with a smile. “You two just concentrate on getting those kids.”

Donna nodded and gave everyone a hug while Victor shook their hands.

“Until everyone comes home,” he said.

Sam nodded as Alex led everyone out of city hall towards the way to fairyland. “Until everyone comes home,” he muttered to himself.

 ***** Jack *****

“Jack, listen closely,” Sam said as he finished reloading his shotgun. “These things always nest on the first floor of the house and keep their victims on the upper levels. While Dean and I are distracting them, we need you to go upstairs and get the people out.”

Jack looked down at the curved knife he had been given. Sam said it was an old favorite of his. “I don’t—”

“Hey,” Sam interrupted, placing his hand on Jack’s shoulder. “First rule of the family business, ok? ‘Saving people.’ You can do this. No matter what you face in there, push forward and keep pushing forward until you get those people out.”

“What about you and Dean?”

Sam gave Jack one his reassuring smiles. “We’ll fight as long as you need.”

Dean nodded in agreement. “Don’t worry about us, Jack. Sam and I will never stop fighting until everyone comes home.”

Jack took a deep breath. “I’m ready.”

Sam and Dean readied their weapons. Then over his shoulder Dean told Jack, “Though if everyone’s safe, we would appreciate you letting us know so we can cut loose.”

Chuck blinked and turned to Jack. “You sent him away.” The author’s gaze became unfocused as Jack slid down from the table. “To Aldrich, Missouri. That’s… not where Sam and Dean are.”

“Leave him out of this. It’s between you and me,” said Jack.

“You’re right. Tell me where Sam and Dean are.”

Jack shook his head no.

“Guess I’ll take it out of you the hard way, then,” Chuck said as he raised his hand.

Jack flinched and stumbled back against the table as he gritted his teeth. The entire room started to shake as Chuck’s eyes narrowed. One glowed white as the other became pitch black. Jack doubled over again, but he put his hand on the table and held himself up.

“Well. Someone’s been eating their Wheaties. – Wait didn’t I write that line before?”

Jack, clutching his stomach, looked down and realized he had put his hand on where the initials D.W. and S.W. were carved. His fingers traced the letters and Jack felt a new resolve well up within. Pushing himself up and turning to face the enemy, Jack declared, “I’ll never tell you.”

“Never, is a very very long time,” Chuck said before he snapped his finger.

This time Jack did hit the floor, falling to his knees as he screamed in agony.

*****To Be Continued*****

Find out what happens next Sam, Dean, Castiel, Jack and friends in Part 12 of “With or Without You”! Until then, enjoy WFB’s other Supernatural fan fiction, found at the Fan Fiction tag on the bottom of every page!

Story and Illustration by Nate Winchester
Edited by Nightsky