Chapter 6

A peacefulness follows any decision, even the wrong one. ~Rita Mae Brown

"I can't believe you just made an impossible situation worse by trying to play hero." James paced the floor like a tiger in the small space allotted to him. Gentry and his unstable gun-wielding wife had forced them back into their original prison with Rodney outside guarding the door. Gentry and his wife were preparing for the ritual. Ben was back on the bed, JT sitting next to him. "I shouldn't be surprised. This is typical JT, martyrdom up until the end, making me look twice as bad in the process."

"You have to admit, man, it was pretty impressive how he saved that guy." Cy was hovering by his side, purposively staying out of his room. "He's going to be a good Guardian."

"Shut up, Cy. Your fan boy routine is embarrassing."

"What are you talking about?" JT snapped from his position by Ben, passing Max a bandage.

"I'm talking to Cy." James waved at the spirit no one else could see. "You know? Dying kid-soon to be either your new best friend or my big brother if a rescue party doesn't get here."

"I was referring to the hero crap." JT glanced at him. "I wasn't trying to be hero, Jimmy. I was doing my job, protecting an innocent, trying to buy us some time by distracting Gentry."

"The only thing you did was put us in a horrible position." James ran his hands through his hair. "And Max is just as much an idiot as you are."

"Hold onto that anger, Jimmy," Max finished rewrapping Ben's injury, shooting him a crooked smirk. "You'll need it when it comes down to you giving me the shaft, 'cause you are going to choose me."

"I'd like to give you the shaft." JT took the bloodied bandages, crumpling them before tossing them in the trash. "You were supposed to follow my lead, damn it, not change the plan. What the hell happened to being on the same page?"

"The same page, J? You were pulling shit from a completely different play book." Max snorted. He wiped his hands on his jeans, rocking back on his heels. "I'm not going along with any plan where you wind up a sacrificial lamb for some punk ass criminal."

James rolled his eyes at Max's typical rhetoric. He stepped closer to his brothers and Max. Ben had his eyes closed, but James knew from the lines of pain on his face that he was awake. "Killing either you or my brother does not qualify as a better alternative to wasting a drug dealer who was going to prison in the first place."

"You all need to calm down." Ben opened his eyes to green slits and looked disappointed in them.

James threw his hands in the air, turning to Cy for some sympathy. He should at least be able to count on the spirit realm for something. "See what I put up with?"

"Yeah, guys willing to do everything to protect you. That's a real problem, Winchester." Cy shoved off the wall. "Try being an only child with terminal cancer."

"Can we give the self pity routine a rest, Gentry?" James pinched the bridge of his nose. "Your emotions are giving me a headache."

"Excuse me for succumbing to my malady." Cy rolled his shoulders. "I don't think I have much time left. I feel weird, dude."

"Wonderful." James groaned. "Try doing something productive with your last minutes in the physical plane like popping outside to see what your father is doing." James assumed he was securing the prisoner, gathering the things they would need for the ritual. His lack of presence was an unknown, and James hated variables he couldn't control.

"I want to hear the plan." Cy pouted.

James pointed to the wall, and Cy huffed, then phased through, but not before offering James a crude gesture of body language.

"Nice."

"It is all about stalling," Max said. "We just need a little more time for the second rescue party to arrive."

"Is Dad on his way?" James only needed to look at his brother for his answer. "Let me guess, you two didn't talk to him."

"My Dad and Sam are coming," Max said. "They were trying to reach Dean and Uncle Caleb."

"Uncle Caleb will know." Ben bit his lip, his gaze landing on James once more for confirmation. "Right?"

"In theory. I tried to contact him on the way here, nearly fried a circuit, but with you being shot…that should have come across loud and clear." Caleb should have sensed something was terribly wrong. Pain was a strong ripple in a psychic's circuit, but knowing didn't help if said psychic were in South Carolina.

"He knew when I broke my arm in high school," Ben's eyes fluttered. "Dying has got to rank much higher on the telepathic scale."

"You're not dying," JT gripped Ben's wrist as if he could will their brother to remain tethered to them. He lifted his gaze to his best friend, the very familiar Winchester scowl of stubbornness in place. "Neither is Max."

"Jimmy is picking me. End of story," Max stated. He lifted his hand up to stop any protests from JT. "I'm supposed to be the next Knight, J. It's my job. Just like it was your job to save the punk ass drug dealer."

"I'm picking you, but it has nothing to do with your noble delusions of grandeur," James interrupted the two, pissed that once again they were leaving him out of the conversation that had everything to do with him.

"No, you're not." JT's voice rose in anger, his face reddening. It took a lot to push his calm, levelheaded brother over the edge, to make him lose control, but once past that point he was a force to be reckoned with. "I'm the hunter in charge. You will damn well listen to what I fucking say."

"Actually, I'm the oldest, and hunter in charge." James was surprised the challenge didn't come from Max, but from Ben. The softness of his voice should have made it less commanding, but had an opposite effect. Ben seemed to garner clarity as he held JT's gaze. "Big brother or not, Kiddo, this is James's decision. Let him make it."

JT looked like he wanted to argue. James watched him open his mouth to disagree, but then something seemed to pass between his brothers, and JT's shoulders slumped in defeat. He rubbed a hand over his face before looking to James. "Ben's right. You're the medium. This is your show."

James grinned. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm not picking Max because you're my big brother and he's a pain in my ass." James wasn't entirely sure that was true, but it soothed his conscious.

"I'm sure that will bring comfort when I watch you stab my best friend." JT didn't return the smile like James hoped, but he seemed less conquered and more like his larger than life self James was accustomed to.

"What wins me the prize?" Max had the good graces to try and hide his satisfaction, but James still felt the need to bring him down a notch.

"It is most definitely not your amazing latent crafting ability if that's what you're thinking. Echnon was an amazing alchemist, and we all know Josie got all the talent in your family." James had considered Mac's magical knowledge, but his friend chose not to bear the mark of his father's coven, and therefore was excluded from some of the protection his lineage could have heralded. "I chose you because you're tainted."

"Tainted?" Max arched a brow. "You chose me because I'm not pure as the driven snow? You do realize JT's not a virgin, right? "

JT sighed. "I don't think he's referring to your non-existent virtue, Max."

"Shawna Larson? Your senior year?" James looked from Max to JT. "That crazy goth chick you told him not to go out with."

Max paled. "How the hell was I supposed to know she was into some freaky girl-power cult?"

"I think the first time she asked if you liked to drink blood should have been a dead giveaway," JT replied.

"She was insanely hot." Max shrugged. "I thought she was joking."

"Until her and her friends practically drained you." James remembered the hunt clearly. It was one of the first ones he conned his way into, considering it had been a ghost of a former victim that gave them the information on where the cult was hiding out. "You almost died before the Triad got there."

"I remember. We were miles away from a hospital." JT nodded, glancing at Ben. "Ben saved your life. He rigged up a way to give you blood."

"Uncle Caleb's blood." Max arched a brow at James, seeming to finally grasp James line of thinking. "Your giant brain really does come through sometimes, Boy Genius. Way to pull out the future Scholar card."

"What's he talking about?" Ben asked with a grimace, proving he was still alert enough to follow the conversation.

"Echnon's Blade takes an exception to demon blood. It's how Uncle Caleb saved Dad from Hughes and his witch," JT explained. He glanced to James. "But that transfusion was years ago. Are you sure it will still make a difference?"

"It's a calculated risk." James had thought about what could go wrong. He wasn't merely trying to show how clever he was. It was their best shot. "Demons leave a mark, one that isn't easily erased by time. I believe the blade will recognize it."

"Don't look so smug, Max." JT rain a hand through his hair. "I've read Uncle Sam's journal. James is going to have to stab you with the blade."

"Good thing it has healing properties." Max flashed James a look. "Hopefully the brat has taken his medium studies more seriously than he has school."

James clenched his fists. "Says the guy who got in to the University of Miami with a conditional entrance."

"At least Grandpa Mac didn't have to build a new business wing to get me a spot."

"I got into Columbia on my own." James couldn't deny the taunt hitting way too close to home. He knew his test scores and soccer accolades only went so far with the admissions board, especially in light of his subpar grades and conduct record. The Ames name had paved a way for him.

"Guys!" JT snapped. "Now is not the time to be arguing amongst ourselves. We need to come up with a plan and fast."

"He's right." Cy chose that moment to reappear, hovering at James's side. "My father tossed the prisoner in his trunk. He's on his way now with Echnon's Blade and the journal."

"Great." James took a breath, getting a grip of his anger. He relayed Cy's message to the others. "Gentry's coming."

"It's okay. We can do this." Max surprised him by reaching out and giving him a light shove. "Just like that summer we all decided to become blood brothers."

James shook his head. "I was ten. You, in all your fifteen year-old superiority, didn't let me near the knife."

"The point is, I was wielding the blade and you trusted me then. I trust you now."

"You do know I'm going to have to give you more than a superficial scratch, Clueless." Max's middle name was simply an initial - C. Joshua had chosen it, unwilling to say what he had in mind, though Max insisted it stood for Cullen or better yet Caleb, a belief their uncle wholeheartedly agreed with. James lived to come up with new, creative and often vulgar speculations for the initial, depending on what situation they found themselves.

"You and J aren't the only ones who have read the journals." Max's mouth twitched. "I think I can take it."

James held Max's unwavering blue gaze. There were countless things that irritated the hell out of him about his brother's best friend, he was arrogant and egotistical. In James's book, the C in Max's name should have stood for cocky. "I just hope you don't cry, Sawyer."

"Stab him in the lower stomach." Ben shifted, trying to straighten himself. "Stay to the right. Pancreas and spleen are on the left."

"Right." Max nodded. "Healing properties or not, I'd rather you avoid organs I actually need to survive."

"Damn." JT rubbed a hand over his face. "I can't believe we're having this conversation."

"Maybe we can still convince my dad." Cy knelt beside James. "Let me talk to him. I don't want anyone else to be hurt. Please let me try. I don't want my mom or dad to get hurt."

"I told you that won't work. Your Dad isn't going to buy it."

"Then let me talk to him. Talk through you. I know he'll sense it's me. I'm his son."

"You don't know what you're asking," The definition of channeling seemed harmless- the receiving and relaying of energy from another plane of existence. The reality of it was terrifying. It meant giving up control, relinquishing a part of you to another, both things James bucked. Practiced mediums wielded control, learned to harness the energy and direct it with focus. James had no experience. He would have to rely on trust, another concept that did not come easily.

"I know you're scared, man, but how can it be any worse than what you are about to do?" Cy pleaded.

James shook his head about to vehemently deny that he was afraid of anything. The sound of the metal bar being slid away spared him the lie. He glanced to the door as did JT and Max, placing themselves between James and the door. For once, James wasn't annoyed at their overzealous protective streak.

"We need to get started." Gentry nodded to Helen as they stood in the doorway with Rodney aiming his gun at them. "Rodney will stay with Ben."

JT cut his gaze to Ben.

"It's okay," Ben said. "I'm not going anywhere."

It wasn't like they had any other choice. James followed his brother and Max out of the room, down the hallway to Cy's. He was relieved Hank and Helen had the forethought to salt the windows and doors. Sage was burning for purity. Echnon's Blade was a key, one that could open the portal between the living and the dead. They didn't need to risk letting anything out, or inviting something worse in.

"Time's almost up, Dude." Cy wasn't giving in He gestured to his body without actually looking at his emaciated form. "I'm almost done for. I can feel it."

"Cy's time is running out." Hank echoed his son's thoughts. He pointed to the table where Echnon's Blade lay. "You need to choose, and get on with it."

James hesitated, unable to force himself to move towards the knife. "My son isn't the only one dying," Gentry's voice was hard. "Ben's lost a lot of blood. You waste much more time and we'll be having two funerals."

James stepped forward, grasping the knife. He wished he could drive it through Gentry's heart. Helen had her weapon trained on JT and Max. He settled for pointing the weapon at the sheriff. "You're forgetting about your own service, Gentry. Then there are Helen and Rodney to consider. I hope you have family plots picked out. "

"Don't say that, Winchester." Cy was in front of him, huffing. For a moment, James thought the teen was up for another round of supernatural smack down, but then his face morphed. Anger disappeared, replaced by raw despair. The teen's eyes welled up, his lip trembled. He reached for James's wrist, the contact solid. It sent a burning cold racing along James's arm. Grief washed over him like a cold, storm-stirred sea. James brought his free hand to his chest, casting a quick look to Cy's body, which in a breath had become Cy's corpse. "Help me save them. All of them. "

"Jimmy?" JT's voice had him blinking, struggling for a deep breath.

"Cy's here." James looked from Gentry to his wife. It wasn't the first time he'd spoken for the dead, but it was the first time he'd been completely desperate for the living to believe what he was saying. "He doesn't want this. He's ready to move on. He wants to save you both, but you have to let him go."

"It's a trick." Gentry chanced a glance to his wife. "Don't listen to him."

"Why would I lie?"

"Do I really need to answer that?" Gentry nodded to JT and Max.

"Let me try." Cy's fingers tightened on his wrist. James felt the cold spread, his body growing numb. He'd learned to keep his blocks in place, preventing even strong spirits from compromising him. Not since his first encounter with a dead classmate when he was thirteen had he allowed a ghost to touch him. "Please. They're my family."

James thought of his mother and father, of his grandparents and two uncles. He thought of Ben dying in the other room and Max and JT counting on him for once to do the right thing.

James let go. It was like falling into the pond during the middle of winter, the black water leeching every little bit of warmth as he was quickly pushed under. His legs and arms became lead weights, his chest constricted as the sudden frigidness threatened to freeze the blood in his veins. He couldn't catch his breath; there was no air to breathe.

His natural instinct was to struggle, to fight his way back to the surface. Instead he focused on the roaring silence around him, a pounding he soon recognized as his own heartbeat, very much alive and strong. It became an anchor, allowing him to bob to the surface. It was like watching through a rain covered window as Cy took over James's body and tried to convince Gentry who he was.

"Dad, don't do this."

"Jimmy?" JT took a step forward, but Max caught his arm.

"I don't think so, J."

"What are you playing at, Winchester? You really want to let your brother die?"

"It's not James, Dad. It's me, Cy. Cyril. You named me after your old man's favorite hockey player, Cyril Denneny, the Bruins Hall of Famer. Grandpa brought my first hockey stick to the hospital the day I was born." Cy pointed above his bed where an old wooden stick hung. "I hung it there after he died. How would Winchester know that?"

"Oh God." Helen moved forward. "Cy? Sweetheart?"

"Stay back!" Hank growled at his wife, swinging his gun to cover JT and Max. "You better cut this shit out, kid or I swear to God I will put a bullet in one of these boys. I only need one for the ceremony. I'm a much better shot than Helen."

"Dad, I'm telling the truth. Please, you have to believe me." Cy slowly moved closer to his father and James felt a wave of fear as Gentry's finger tightened on the gun that was pointed at his brother.

"Easy, Cy. Don't push him." He thought the words, hearing them echoed in his own head, hoping the spirit currently sharing his body could also hear and understand him.

Cy didn't respond to him, but kept up trying to convince his father. "When I was like seven, I was obsessed with Winnie the Pooh. You used to read it to me every night."

"Oh, Cy." Helen was crying now. She crouched on the floor, lowering her gun.

James watched Gentry, hoping the man was going to follow his wife's lead. The hunter's jaw clenched, tears brimming his eyes but refusing to fall. "Shut up! There's no way I'm going to let my boy die. I can't do it. I won't do it."

"You can do this, Dad," Cy kept up. "Remember, you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think."

James didn't know if Cy was quoting Winnie the Pooh or making syrupy shit up on his own, but for a moment Gentry seemed to buy into it. His hand wavered; his eyes searched James's face with intensity. Then just as quickly as the cracks emerged, Hank rallied. He fired the gun, the bullet hitting the wall above JT's head. He and Max ducked, covering themselves.

It was all the incentive James needed. He had given Cy his chance and it hadn't worked. Now they would do things his way. He easily resurfaced, shoving Cy under, and into the background of his mind. James could feel the other teen struggling, insisting to try again, but much to his surprise, James easily held him at bay.

"Alright, alright." He held up his hands, hoping to placate Gentry. "I'll do the transfer. Just take it easy."

Gentry motioned him forward, and James stepped toe to toe with Max. "I'm sorry. I tried."

"I appreciate the whole freaky séance thing, but I think we should really talk about you keeping appropriate boundaries with your ghost friends." Max tried for a shaky smile. "It is beyond creepy that you have another guy inside you."

"He's made his choice." Gentry gestured JT away from them. "Helen, for God's sake pull it together and watch this one."

It seemed to take a great effort, but Helen made it to her feet. She raised her gun to cover JT, but raked her eyes hungrily over James. "Is he really here? Is my boy still with you?"

James could feel Cy's presence. The channeling left his body feeling like he was standing outside in sub zero temperatures without a coat. James was surprised his teeth didn't chatter when he talked. "He is."

The woman looked over to the bed, realization that her son was dead sinking in. It seemed to strengthen her resolve. Her hand steadied, her face became stone. James knew there was no going back.

"Take his ring, and the pendant he wears." Hank's demands elicited a low growl from JT.

"You are going to pay for this, Gentry. I swear."

Hank ignored JT, waving for James to get on with it. "I've read the journal. The silver will block the transfer."

Max took his ring and necklace off, stepping over to offer them to JT. "Hold onto these for me."

JT gripped his wrist before he could turn away. "Whatever happens…"

"I know, man. I feel the same."

James met the future Knight's blue gaze when he returned. He tightened his grip on Echnon's Blade, closing his eyes for just a second. James indulged in a last childish fantasy that his father might somehow rush in to save the day- to keep him from doing the unthinkable. When he opened his eyes only Max was there. The older boy gave him a half grin.

"Just give the sonofabitch what he wants, Jimmy."