"Domain of the Beloved" by Tidia

Author's notes: This portion is from Sam's point of view. It also has lots of 'thought' though there is an action sequence coming.

Chapter 2

Dean had zoned out early-early to bed, early to rise. But, six to seven hours of continuous sleep were beckoning, and Sam hadn't met his quota yet. He gripped the scratchy sheets to him once again.

Two hours later it was time to awaken. He opened his eyes, and covered them for a moment to adjust to the light streaming through the blinds. It was in that light that Sam saw Jess. The rods and cones of his eyes made her a static-like figure. Then one, two blinks and she was gone.

Perhaps her visage had been engrained in his eyes. Six hundred mornings of waking up beside her left an impression. Maybe it was the dust, kicked up in the room and the particles were dancing on the light. Either way, when it happened it lingered with him.

She was not there. He swung his legs over, and with his mind still vacant he went into the bathroom. It was the warm shower water that resumed his thinking once more, greeting him into the day.

Dean was still out. Sam saw the evidence of a long hot shower, and a shave. Accordingly, the younger Winchester calculated his brother would return soon with breakfast. Breakfast would be six donuts-two honeydew, two powered, and two chocolate. Dean was consistent in the variety he chose. It was dependable, like the large coffees that would accompany the donuts.

In the meantime, Sam wanted to do some research and decide on a plan of action. With a towel around his waist, he came into the room and turned on the computer. While the laptop brought up the desktop screen he dressed.

He brought the laptop to the bed, and placed his pillows, plus one of Dean's behind him for comfort. There was also a phone jack near the bed, which made internet access easier. The desk chair just didn't look as comfortable.

Sam typed in happy to see the legal website, and even happier that his ID and password still gained him access. He had fallen through the cracks and no one had removed his name. It made him still have a connection to his education. Sure a few thousand people had access to lexis, but it was still nice to be one of the few.

Forty minutes later, when Dean walked in, Sam had formulated a plan. "Hey," he greeted his brother, who was balancing two coffees in a tray and a bag. Dean tossed the paper sack to him. Surprised, Sam found three bagels, cream cheese, a few napkins and a plastic knife. Dean popped the large coffee out of the tray, and placed it on the nightstand. He threw the tray away and sat on the other bed cradling the Styrofoam cup in his hands.

Sam pushed the laptop aside, and cut into the cinnamon raisin bagel, spreading a generous amount of cream cheese on one side, and then placed the other half on top. He gestured to Dean, to offer him a bagel, but got a waved reply. "I'm all set."

Sam glanced at his brother, taking in his appearance. Dean had that look of him-when someone was tired, but there was cleanliness about them that they hoped would mask the exhaustion. Dean cleared his throat. "Are you ready for school?"

Sam grinned, finishing the bagel and contemplating having another one, the wheat one looked tempting. "Yeah, I was thinking asbestos."

Dean shook his head, puzzled by his brother's comment. "The carcinogen?"

"Exactly," There were times like this, when Dean would use words that revealed his intelligence level. When they were growing up, Sam remembered thinking that Dean was smart, but then Sam started to understand that an education was his ticket to normalcy, and he stopped paying attention to Dean's academics. He wondered how well his brother had done in school.

"Do I win anything?" The older hunter asked, as he took another gulp of coffee. He had removed the plastic protective lid for easy access.

"Yes," Sam was hesitant. He decided on the wheat bagel and bit in, not adding any cream cheese. He chewed slowly. "I figure we could use those uniforms from Chicago. . ." He had said it-Chicago, the beginning of the end for them. Dean's emotions had leaked out. Sam had seen their father for the first time. Meg had revealed herself. They had all been propelled forward, and so much had changed.

Dean gave a nod, and looked down into his coffee. He swirled the remnants of the cup, then brought it to his lips and finished off the last gulp. He returned the lid to the Styrofoam cup and tossed it for a three-point shot in the waste basket. "Well, at least we're using them again."

"We're nothing if not economical," Sam replied, closing up the laptop, and pushing the paper bag with the remaining bagel away.

They pulled on the overalls in the car before walking into Dumas High School. A few cars were parked outside, signaling to the boys that people were milling about the building.

They walked down the hallway, painted red with a white linoleum floor. Paper signs littered the walls proclaiming the "Demon Spirit." Sam looked at the signs disgusted that after what demons had put them through that anyone should be allowed to herald them. It was sacrilegious-a demon had taken Mom, Jess, and so much from them. "That's just fcked isn't it?"

Dean grinned back at his brother, knowingly. Sam was surprised that his brother hadn't taken down one of the signs, accidentally on purpose.Dean was the bold one. But, there was still time. "Office," he stated.

There was a secretary in the foyer, typing away at her computer. She stopped when she saw them. "Can I help you?"

Sam quickly glanced the nameplate on the principal's door. "We're here to see, Mr. Wafferian. We're the asbestos inspectors." Sam's research had led him to discover that the school board was accepting bids from companies to remove asbestos from the schools. It was the perfect cover, which would give them privileged access to the school.

"One moment," The receptionist replied. She pressed the intercom button and spoke loudly into it. "Jeff? Two men from the asbestos company are here."

They watched the closed door with the sign that said, 'Principal's Office.' Sam started to bite his lip, until Dean elbowed him. The younger Winchester was nervous as he remembered their father's words from childhood. 'Don't get into any trouble. If I ever have to come to the principal's office. . .'

The door opened, and Sam knew he winced. The principal was not a formidable man-he was about 5'6" and rail thin. There was nothing to fear. Sam thanked all the gods and lesser gods that he knew that Dean was not able to read his mind. His brother would have tortured him with embarrassment.

"I called Lloyd, the janitor, and he'll be here in a minute." The thin man came out to shake their hands. "The superintendent told us to expect you, but you're the first-guess you want to get a jump on the competition." The principal gestured to his office. "Why don't you come in and sit down?"

"No, umm, no, thank you." Sam backed away. He tried to smile to lessen his obviously uncomfortable reaction. "Don't want to sit down since we just would have to get up again." The excuse sounded lame to his ears. The educator could probably tell that Sam had some kind of strange phobia.

"He has sciatica." Dean said, grabbing Sam's arm and steering him. "Thank you though. We'll just wait outside for Lloyd." Dean ushered his brother out the door.

Sam wanted to say something, and opened his mouth, but Dean silenced him. "Dude, chill. You're twenty-three; the principal can not hurt you. I'd say you could hurt him."

"What are you talking about?" Sam turned to study one of the walls in order to cover up his reaction. He was saved from any further conservation by the janitor.

Lloyd, the janitor, shuffled down the hall. He had dark hair, mixed with gray in a crew cut style. Pudgy face and overalls covered a soft, overweight body. There was no greeting just a, "Come on."

Sam looked at Dean who shrugged his shoulders and followed along. "We'd like to start at the top."

The janitor replied with a sigh.

Sam glanced at the hallway. It was funny how small everything seemed. He knew he was tall, even freakishly tall, but while in high school every school seemed so big-it was the whole small insignificant person in a big pond. Pictures of the graduating class were posted on the bulletin board in the stairwell. One of the girls stood out. She looked like Jess- blonde hair, wearing a cheerleading outfit. Jess had told Sam she had been a cheerleader. The image from this morning superimposed itself on the picture, lingering as he knew it would. He heard his brother clearing his throat to get his attention.

Dean waited patiently as Lloyd ambled ahead. Sam caught up, taking the six steps two by two so that he was on the landing with his brother. "Nothing," Sam said before Dean could ask him a question.

They made it to the fourth floor, and it was evident that Lloyd was an inconvenience.

"If you have something else to do…" Sam started, figuring he could ease the janitor along instead of babysitting two so-called asbestos inspectors.

Dean was blunt. "We're going to be awhile - work through lunch." His older brother knew those were the magic words because the janitor took a few steps back.

Lloyd smacked his lips, and glanced at the stairs. "Well, if you need me just go to the office."

"Will do," Dean gave a jaunty salute as they both watched the janitor move faster than the pace he had kept to get them to the top floor. "Thought he'd never leave."

Sam grinned. He placed the duffle bag with their tools on the floor by the water fountain. "Probably wanted to break into the exciting word of asbestos."

Dean crouched down and unzipped his bag, finding the EMF detector. They walked down the hallway, watching the EMF detector intently. The air conditioner was humming, bringing a cool breeze to the hallway, but talking could be distinctly heard. Dean shook his head, and pointed to the shut door further ahead. "Summer classes—that just sucks."

They walked over to the door, looking through the window. Sam could see on the board were algebraic equations. "Well in the end, it will work out for them." The younger Winchester hadn't gone to summer school. Summer was spent hunting, but he would have gone if it meant he would have gained freedom sooner from the hunt. Funny, that life came full circle and he was back in a place that had opened his mind up to the possibilities, only to be caught in the same web.

Dean rolled his eyes. School had been important to the older Winchester brother, but it wasn't a ticket to freedom or hope. "Yeah, I'm sure they will look back on this summer as real fun." The older Winchester gestured to the EMF detector. "It's slight, but there's something."

They continued to work their way down the high school, investigating each floor. The readings were consistent, and there had been some spots that had affected the EMF detector more.

They stopped on the second floor men's bathroom. "What does this mean?" Sam asked, knowing that usually they would have a distinct location for the ghost. His brother didn't reply being otherwise occupied.

Dean studied the bathroom walls, shaking his head.

Sam snapped his fingers to get his brother's attention, disgusted his brother could think about sex, women actually, girls, at this time. "You want a pen to take down some phone numbers?'

"Jail bait," Dean murmured and studied a writing a little more closely. "Just some of this stuff…you know, I wonder what the girl's bathroom is like?" Dean followed his thoughts out the door. Sam kept up, but stopped as he saw his brother push open the door across the hall.

"We are not seriously going into the girl's bathroom?" Sam watched as his brother entered the women's room. He hesitated. However, there was no threat of being caught, so Sam entered and was surprised that other than not having urinals it was the same as the men's room. "Back to my original question — we've gone through this place, and something is going on . . . but what?" He asked his brother.

"Christy 'n Shane," Dean had his finger to a spot on the wall. "With a heart around it." His older brother cocked his head to the side. Sam thought he saw a flicker of emotion cross his brother's face, but then it was gone. "Touching," Dean said and turned around to face his brother. "We need some more information about Christy."

Sam believed they had been prepared for this job. The students provided the lead that brought them to the high school, but perhaps they were missing some sort of connection. He analyzed the situation. It was applying logic, and research that led him to desire a legal education. Contrary to what most people thought—being a lawyer wasn't about arguing or debating. Logically, they needed to start at the beginning. "There's always the message board."

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