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Ari smiled as she came back in the room with Sammy Doo. The puppy had caused distress for Megan as he sucked on her toes while she and Amber tried to sleep on the floor, together. Cassie had given into staying a few days so Dean could spend time with his daughter and Megan could get to know the other part of her family. Cassie was set to stay in the guestroom while Megan bunked sleepover style with Amber. The two girls had become fast friends, no one dared to tell them they were going to be sisters, yet. Ari thought that would involve too many questions though they had a plan to get married the following weekend.
“What if the dog tells the girls what we do when the doors are closed?” Dean asked Ari teasingly while Sammy Doo sat on the floor with a yelp.
“Nothing to worry about he knows better,” Ari said with a grin as she lay back down on the bed.
“If you say so,” Dean said as he caressed her body with his hands.
She sighed while she watched him; his thoughtful expression had her wondering what was going on in that pretty head of his.
“What are you thinking,” she asked, hesitantly.
“How I ended up with so much good in my life,” he said as he kissed her neck. She reached to stop him.
“It’s not like you are a bad person, Dean, you need to get that in your soul. So you hunt things that most do not know exist; it’s a service that's needed. You are a special person; I wish you would get that in your head.”
Dean crushed her lips with his own. He hoped she was right but it was still hard for him to see himself in a good light.
When he pulled back from the kiss, his face was solemn.
“Ari, I’m sorry about all this mess with Cassie.”
“It’s okay your daughter should be in your life,” she said as she moved to her side to look down at him. He pulled her head down for another kiss, not a simple brushing of the lips but something deeper. Ari felt it all the way to her toes. She smiled as her heart beat hard against her chest. Something told her that it was an expression of how he wanted to accept himself they way she did. She would help him the best she could to do that very thing. She moved closer before she raised her leg onto his thigh. He grinned as he took the hint; the position left her open enough for him to slip inside her easily. It wasn’t for vigorous lovemaking but some slow easy loving the kind they enjoyed often. Dean loved Ari’s initiative as much as he loved her. She knew how to make him feel like he could do no wrong.
Sam and Cassie sat in the den while they talked a bit.
“I wonder how Ari feels about Megan,” Cassie said a she sat on the sofa with her hands in her lap.
“I know Ari and I have learned about you over the last year, you are both what Dean needed at different times in his life. This is Ari’s time and I’m certain she will make sure that Dean makes time for Megan though from what I have seen my brother is thoroughly in love with his baby girl.”
Sam went on to give Cassie an overview of Ari’s life, though he left out her past for obvious reasons.
“She sounds almost too good to be true,” Cassie said with a smile.
“Dean is happy that is what matters,” Sam replied as they got up to go off to bed.
They next morning they all got up early to go to the Milwaukee Zoo. It was a fun family day where everyone made an attempt to get along. Dean even apologized to Sam for his anger.
“No man you had a right to be upset, but it wasn’t easy for me to keep the information from you either. All I could do was to keep bugging Cassie to tell you without you finding out that she and I were in close contact.”
“Yeah, well it all worked out,” he said as they walked toward the ape section.
Dean had Megan up high sitting on his shoulders but put her down so she and Amber could run ahead to look at the chimpanzees. Ari took his hand as they all went into the section together. Cassie, Sam and Jo walked together behind the couple as they kept an eye on the girls as they laughed at the monkey’s antics in the windows.
Dean put his arm around Ari’s waist as they stopped to watch the apes and the girls.
“I’m glad you wanted to do this, Amber has wanted to come forever.”
“I know I had planned it for next week,” he said as he kissed her cheek.
“Yeah?”
“It was going to be a surprise, now the marriage ceremony is her surprise.”
Ari laughed, it was a sweet sound to Dean’s ears. It wasn’t that she didn’t do it often but she had been a bit quiet since Megan and Cassie showed up. Of course, he wasn’t blaming her. He hoped she knew he had no designs on getting Cassie back. He was thoroughly satisfied with where he was in this life with her.
That evening Cassie and Dean finally had a chance to talk.
“I don’t want you to apologize any more,” Dean said as he sat across from her in the den.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean we have a beautiful child and it would be beneficial for us to work together.”
“I agree,” she said after a few moments.
Neither of them saw Ari as she stood near the door, she bit her lip as she felt guilty for listening to them. She sighed a she walked back to the kitchen to prepare herself a cup of tea. She wanted to be gracious to Cassie but she didn’t want to be stupid. Dean had spent a couple of wild weeks with the woman and now she shows up with his kid. Focus, focus on Dean, I am with him. Breathe. We are getting married, Cassie only has one thing Dean had interest in, his daughter, Breathe, relax.
“Good, would you mind if I visited her every few months?” Dean asked.
Cassie was surprised by the offer.
“Uh, no, of course not but won’t you be busy with the twins?”
“I’ll make time. I want her to know me, Cas. Don’t get me wrong the whole crew will come, there will be more visitors then you know what to do with,” Dean laughed.
Cassie smiled.
“I know Amber will be glad she seems to be crazy about Meg.”
“So you’re okay with the plan?”
“Oh absolutely, Thank you for all this, Dean, I don’t deserve it.”
“It’s for Megan,” he said with almost a straight face, but he ruined it by smiling at her.
Two days later, Cassie and Megan prepared to leave. Amber was sad and so was the rest of the household. Megan was inconsolable. Dean picked her up to take her out to the car. She put her head on his shoulder as she waved at Amber who sat in Ari’s lap at the kitchen table. Outside Dean didn’t want to let the little girl go. He stood by the car as Megan cried into his neck.
“Daddy I want to stay here with you and Abby,” she said as he gently untangled her from his torso and sat her on the hood of the car.
“I want you to stay too but I will visit with Amber real soon. I promise.
“Promise Daddy?”
“Oh absolutely, I already miss you,” Dean said as Cassie motioned for him to put Megan in her car seat. He buckled her in before he said goodbye.
“I love you, Sweetie,” he said with a sad smile.
“I love you too Daddy,” she said as he kissed her cheeks.
Cassie started the car after her hug from Sam but Dean stopped her before she was able to get in the car.
Dean hugged Cassie but he didn’t see Ari at the door. For a moment, Ari was jealous again. If Cassie didn’t have Dean’s child she wouldn’t ever have to see him again but in their case, she would always be in his life. She bit her lip as she saw Dean whisper in Cassie’s ear.
“Thank you for keeping her, Cas, I know you had other options.”
“No I didn’t, I love…d you Dean, I couldn’t give up your baby,” she said as she got in the car.
Dean didn’t reply he only waved as his sad faced little girl in the back seat before he headed toward the house. Cassie remembered something and stopped him before he put his hand on the door. She motioned for him to come back and gave him a binder of pictures she had brought for him of Megan when she was smaller. After he held the item in his hands he realized that he needed to give Megan something for her to remember him by so he went back inside to grab a snapshot.
When that was done he could no longer ignore the fact that Megan was still noticeably upset. He opened the door to take her out of the car seat for another hug.
“Don’t be sad,” he said as he dabbed at her tears before he held her close again, as a sighed escaped his lips. He had to be strong for her.
“K,” she said as she sniffed.
Amber came outside to hug Megan again as well as Sam who had stood with Jo as he half-heartedly began to wash the truck as Dean had said his goodbyes. Nevertheless, Sam couldn’t resist hugging his niece again so he put the water hose down so he could go over take her from Dean. Dean smiled at his brother as Megan began to smile. Ari smiled at them all before Megan and Cassie finally drove away. She would deal with Cassie and Megan because they made their family complete. Dean grinned at Ari as he went in the door while Amber went off to help Sam and Jo finish the washing of the truck.
****
That night after a nice evening, but subdued dinner with the family and Jo, Dean and Ari settled in bed to go to sleep after they made love. Dean spooned up behind Ari and dozed off to sleep. He kissed her neck as he wrapped his arm around her, before he caressed her stomach. The place where their babies resided was special to him as much as the woman who carried them, he loved them all, dearly. He sighed with contentment. But, he sat up in bed what seemed a few minutes later. Ari stood before him with fear in her eyes, her gown was bloody and she held their twins. They babies were both dead and tears streamed down her cheeks. Her face was full of anger and he felt it was directed at him. Dean was full of sorrow, then he saw the yellow-eyed demon as he stood with a smile across the room. Sammy Doo howled.
“NOOOOOOOOO,” Dean yelled out.
{Invisible Realm}
Mary felt the evil presence and followed Dean’s eyes to see the demon across the room near the window..
“You shouldn’t be here,” he said as he glared at her.
“Leave them alone, they have given enough,” she said.
“Who’s fault is that?” he said as he laughed before he faded away.
Mary cringed as she watched her eldest, before she faded away also.
{Back to the visible world}
Ari shook him in as she turned to see he was thrashing around in his sleep.
“Dean, wake up,” she said as she moved away from to keep from being hit in the face.
Dean’s heart rate slowed down when he saw Ari as she looked concerned at him.
“Hey you were dreaming, you okay?”
“Uh, yeah, Are you okay?’
“I’m fine.”
He reached to touch her stomach as she moved beside him again. The babies kicked and he smiled.
“I am good now, I dreamed that they died and the…”
He was relieved that the twins were fine. He looked at her afraid to tell her the rest.
“The yellow eyed demon was here. Our babies were dead and you looked so sad, but the scariest part was I could tell you blamed me.”
She swallowed hard as she pulled him as close as she could.
“Well we’re all fine, don’t worry.”
“Ari are you afraid? What if something happens?”
“Of course I am a bit frightened of the whole having a baby process it can be a bit iffy under the best conditions.’
“But…”
“If something went wrong I wouldn’t blame you. I chose to be with you because I love you.”
He kissed her slowly and deliberately, but in the back of his mind, he knew that the demon had not given up on trying to use Sam. He was afraid it would do everything in its power to keep all the Winchesters from having happy lives. Then he began to worry about Megan again, how was he going to keep her safe? Though maybe the fact that she was almost four had to mean something, not knowing about her may have been a good thing, at least for her safety. He sighed before he snuggled up with Ari again. Ari assumed the dream was because of Dean’s anxiety about the changes in their lives she hoped it was not some sort of premonition of the variety that Sam experienced.
Dean told Sam about the dream the next morning after breakfast. They were set up in the study as they contemplated getting in contact with their relatives.
“Sam I think we should just forget the relatives for their own sakes.”
“What?’
“Think about it, they are safer not knowing us.”
Sam shook his head he let his brother know that he really want to meet his kin.
“Haven’t you ever wanted to meet your grandparents? Dean this is our family, Dad was selfish in this even you said that.”
“Maybe he was protecting them,” Dean said as he got up to stretch his legs and look out the window.
Ari was with Jo and Amber outside playing with Sammy Doo. He could see Chet in the distance as he sat nearby reading in a lawn chair under a tree.
“If they don’t believe where we have been all these years we at least have to let them know why we never knew them.”
Dean stood in front of his brother; he didn’t want to let him down. Sam had been through enough with losing their mother than his girlfriend and finally their father. Maybe family was something that could help Sam. However, he realized that Sam would agree to do whatever he decided. He needed to take the step to let others help with their burden, if they had that desire at all.
“Okay, you’re right. Maybe Dad told someone let’s try his family first.”
Sam’s face lit up.
TBC