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“Look Sam, don’t worry about it.  I told you I was taking care of everything.  You’re last night on Earth as a free man is going to be something to remember.”
 
Sam took a deep breath as he shook his head.  He wasn’t sure what his friends had planned for him, but he was sure it involved a steady stream of alcohol, truly embarrassing stories, and amazingly hot bodies.  He wasn’t opposed to any of the three, truth be told.  It was a week before the wedding, but he was willing to allow the ‘last night’ bit because there was no way he was getting out after tonight, with all the plans Jess had for the wedding and the last minute things he needed to do.
 
He looked around at his friends and felt the tinge of remorse at the people who weren’t there, but he had grown used to that over the years, used to looking over his shoulder and expecting green eyes to be looking out for him, for the sound of a muscle car that he associated with home more than almost anything, for the scent of leather and gun oil and the press of arms that truly were home. 
 
“If I die of alcohol poisoning, Jess will kill you.”
 
“Don’t worry.”  Tony said with a smile.  “We have no intention of letting you get pass out drunk.  Just stupid enough to do anything and stay that way all night drunk.”
 
“Oh, just that.  Great.”
 
He took the offered shot though and accepted the cheers of his friends as he downed it. 
 
 
 
 
The night was late, in fact it was early by the time Sam’s friend led him away from the club to the hotel.  It was down to Sam and Tony and he knew that this was a Tony moment.  If he wasn’t in that pleasant state of inhibition-less alcoholic haze, he probably would have been a little more worried about what was behind the hotel room door. 
 
Tony smiled as they reached a set of doors.  “Each room has a different occupant.  Take a look.  Stay where you want to stay.  No questions asked and I’ll see you in the morning.”
 
Sam shook his head and pushed open the first of two doors.  Tony was exactly the kind of idiot who would buy a guy a hooker for his bachelor party.  He was rich enough to be able to buy twenty if he so wanted, which meant that the people he had were clean and willing and well paid.  Sam looked in the first door and watched as a small brunette stood by the window.  She looked over at Sam when she heard him, smiled a beautiful, if vacant smile, and he took a long look over her body.  Sexy as hell, with almond eyes and a waist he could wrap his hands around.
 
He closed the door and looked at the other one.  He was almost hesitant to open this one, though mostly because Tony knew his type.  Of his group of friends, Tony was the closest and had been since they met his freshman year in the dorms.  They weren’t roommates but they’d both hated their own and so they’d spent a lot of time together instead.  It was in those first days when everything felt weird and out of place and he’d missed Dean so bad he could hardly breathe.  He probably would have run home to him if he hadn’t been afraid to.  Afraid that he’d show up and Dad would force Dean to chose between them and he knew he couldn’t stand so blatant a rejection from the man who was everything to him. 
 
Tony was the one who realized Sam had two different types.  The fact that Tony recognized his preference to small waisted brunettes to the blonde he was marrying said something about himself, but he’d always known Jess didn’t fit into his pattern.  But she was everything he’d ever wanted, his perfect normal life all wrapped up in a beautiful, caring woman.  How he managed to keep her, he’d never know.  Tony claimed it was her only character flaw and Sam agreed.
 
He opened the door of the second room and it didn’t take long to see the long line of leg and beautiful curvature of the back that was lying on the bed.  He shook his head as he handed the first room key to Tony.  “I should be saying no.”  He said. 
 
Tony laughed.  “Yeah, but we both know you won’t.”
 
And there it was.  He should say no but he wouldn’t because though Jess was everything he’d ever wanted it wasn’t the thought of her than made him blindingly hard with no effort.  It wasn’t her image that he jacked off too.  When he looked at his future, he didn’t picture himself dying old and gray with her.  He loved her, he truly did, but it would always be secondary to the one he couldn’t have.
 
“Yeah.”
 
Tony knew Sam better than anyone at Stanford, including knowing which room he’d pick when given these two choices.  His preference waited for him there, a man of a certain build, silent and with his face pressed away from Sam’s.  “We have the weekend, so don’t worry about rushing.  If you don’t want to come up for air, well... they have good room service here and it’s all on me.”
 
Sam shook his head and pushed Tony towards the first door.  He closed his own behind him and took a few steps towards the bed.  This would be the last time, his last act to rid himself of this because he wouldn’t cheat on Jess once they were married.  This was the end and he intended to make it worth remembering.
 
He let his fingers trail along the bed to let its occupant know he was there.  Fingertips brushed lightly over those long legs, up the strong expanse of back and across broad shoulders.  The man’s hair was dark blond with honey highlights, and per Sam’s request the guy wore a blindfold and kept his face carefully away from Sam’s perusal. 
 
Sam turned the lights down and began stripping his shirt off.  The guy with the blindfold tapped on the night stand twice to draw Sam’s attention to it and he saw the guy’s business card there, along with a bottle of lube and a box of condoms.  He saw the name and didn’t know if it was better to call him Cain, or to continue to think another, less acceptable one in his head.  That was the whole point really, needing to be buried balls deep in him, able to say the name that would damn him without anyone knowing what it meant, but he still only managed to think it in his head.
 
The guy, Cain by the card, was still lying on the bed, but he moved to sit back on his heels then, back arched with his arms over his head, stretching languorously like a cat.  He wanted to lick a long strip up his spine but held off at first, running a hand from fingertip to ass, down the bent hips and curved knee to his feet. 
 
He got a moan for it and Sam decided it was enough with the clothes.  He stripped the rest of his clothes then moved up to the bed, crawling on it and letting his thighs rest on the outside of his new friend’s. 
 
“So fucking hot.”  He said, reaching a hand out to touch the base of his back, leaning forward slightly, letting his hands walk up his spine where he pulled lightly at the hair at the nape of his neck.  “Gonna make you feel so good, make both of us feel so good tonight.”  He said, leaning even closer to lick a stripe up that skin just like he wanted. 
 
Another moan came from the guy and Sam watched him turn the lamp down all the way, leaving the room bathed in nothing but moonlight.  Sam’s stipulation.  If they looked at him, if they turned around and faced him he wanted it dark.  He had a face he wanted to see and it wasn’t going to be this one so he made it easier on himself to pretend. 
 
The guy shifted as he came back to Sam and knelt, facing him.  With the lights off Sam felt free to run his hands across the broad shoulders and down the center of his chest.  The guy caught his hand in one of his own, the other wrapping around the back of Sam’s neck and pulling him close, kissing him gently.  It was a light kiss, an offer of his mouth and Sam took it, leaving that gentle kiss behind and turning it into something harsher, far more primal than that. 
 
Cain moaned into his mouth and Sam felt himself leaning forward, pushing Cain back onto the mattress.  The man went under him, his hands pulling Sam down as he went.  When he broke the kiss it was to work across Cain’s neck, biting and licking at the skin between neck and collarbone.  The other man’s hand gripped the back of Sam’s neck then worked up into his hair.  The other hand moved down his arm then up his shoulder before he felt the blunt nails digging into the flesh of his back, pulling him down harder.
 
He could feel Cain’s erection against his own, could feel the silky sweet heat of his body and he wanted to be buried inside of him.  He moaned at the thought and worked his way further down the other man’s body.  He took his time, licking at the darkened nipples and biting his way across the narrow hip bones.  By the time he licked the head of his cock the guy was already leaking pre-come and moaning into his touch.
 
He lapped at the tip and took his time licking around the base, Cain’s cock shiny and wet in the room lit only by the moon shining through the open curtains.  When he opened his lips and took him down he didn’t think he’d ever tasted anything like him.  Something about this man was pushing him closer to the fantasy he’d always had in mind but had never been able to truly fulfill. 
 
He sucked hard on him, humming low in his throat as he did so.  When he pulled up, just the head of his cock still in his mouth, he licked into the slit, taking his time to feel the way it shifted against his tongue.  Cain pulled him away by the hair, pulled him up his body and to his mouth and Sam could feel how sensitized he was as he let his fingers brush over his skin. 
 
“Need to be inside you.”  Sam finally managed to say against Cain’s mouth. 
 
“Yeah…” The other man mumbled back, rough and sex deep, against Sam’s stipulations but he was too far gone to care and the voice wasn’t all that different from what he wanted it to be.  Sam leaned over and grabbed the lube, then handed it to Cain. 
 
“Wanna watch you do it.”  He said, shifting over to lie on his back.  Cain just nodded, opening the bottle and covering his fingers.  He crawled up Sam’s body, straddling his waist as he reached back, pressing a finger slowly inside himself.  Sam’s hands gripped his thighs tightly, probably enough to bruise but he didn’t care.  Cain bit his lip and Sam wanted to kiss him again, wanted to feel those plump lips under his again but then Cain was pressing a second finger inside himself and he couldn’t help but watch as he slid them in and out.  He couldn’t help himself then but reached his hand down between them, felt Cain’s hand sliding in and out of his body and Sam slid one of his own fingers inside of him, in time with Cain.  The man groaned, and for the first time he almost wished the blindfold wasn’t there.  He needed this illusion tonight though, needed this so much more than any other night.  When he slid his second finger inside the man he felt Cain’s body clenching around him and he pressed up hard, forcing both their fingers up deeper. 
 
“Now…” was the whisper that broke the silence and their fingers slid out of him together.  Cain leaned over him and across the bed to the condoms and ripped one open, putting it on Sam with practiced ease and lubed his cock up, taking his time to squeeze and pump him until Sam’s hips were thrusting into his hand.                 
 
When Cain shifted he knew what he was doing and he felt one hand at the base of his cock.  He bent his knees up until he felt Cain resting slightly against them and then the other man was dropping down, spearing himself on Sam’s cock.  “Fuck!”  He didn’t try to hide how good it felt as Cain slid down him. 
 
His hands gripped the other man’s hips and he felt Cain come to rest on him, his cock buried as deep inside him as he could be.  The other man took a deep breath, then started to lift himself.  Sam helped steady him, held him as he rose up and down, riding his cock with a rhythm that was insatiable and wild. 
 
Cain was biting his bottom lip and he could see the drop of red in the moonlight.  He leaned up then, pulling Cain to his chest as he dropped his lips to his, kissing away the blood.  Their tongues fucked in and out of each other’s mouths as Sam continued to thrust up into Cain.  The other man rolled his hips, riding him harder until Sam reached between them, taking his cock in his hand.  His orgasm was coming close and he wanted them both there together. 
 
He stroked Cain with long smooth strokes that matched the thrusts of his hips.  He was leaking over Sam’s hand and he resisted the urge to lick his hand clean of it, instead using it to slick his cock as he continued to work it.  When Cain finally came, it was with a hot flush against Sam’s chest and stomach and his body clenching tightly around Sam.  He thrust up a few more times but the tight heat, the way his body convulsed around him, and the way Cain gripped his forearms with bruising force was enough to send him over the edge.  He spilled inside Cain, wishing he was coating his insides with his come instead of filling the condom.
 
Cain reached his hand forward, Sam still buried inside him and found Sam’s hand.  He pulled it to his lips, licking his come off it.  Sam didn’t stop him, but he leaned forward, his tongue lapping at the other man’s, Cain cleaning Sam’s hand and Sam cleaning his tongue after. 
 
When Sam shifted his hips slightly, Cain pulled off of him, coming to sit on the bed beside him.  Sam didn’t want anything else right then, didn’t think he could think of anything else but sleep, so he pulled the blankets up around him and pulled Cain back into his arms, spooning up behind him.
 
He’d learn more about the man in the morning, see if this was something he wanted to continue for the next two days that had been offered to him, but he couldn’t imagine saying no to that. 
 
Part of him felt a little guilty for it, for taking advantage of Jessica’s trust like that, but he knew it was the last time.  Once they were married he’d stop playing around even if it slowly killed him. He loved Jess, he did.  It just wasn’t the same as what he should feel and he knew it.  It was what he had always wanted though, what he knew he could have.  Anything else was too far out of his grasp. 
 
He pulled Cain closer, kissing lightly at the nape of his neck as he did so.  Cain sighed as he settled closer to Sam.  He ran a hand through Cain’s hair and felt the band of the blindfold moving.  Cain pulled it off and slipped it quietly onto the night stand and neither said anything, neither made a move to break the comfortable peace that had settled between them.  When he closed his eyes, it was the first time in months he didn’t have to fight off thoughts of his brother.  For the first time in months, he slept peacefully.
 
 
 
When he woke the next morning Sam carefully pulled himself away from the sleeping man before him.  Not that he really wanted to leave the bed, but he had a few needs to take care of and he thought it might be good to take care of that before waking the other.  He was already half hard just thinking about the night before. 
 
He stretched as he walked to the bathroom, taking his time in there to relieve himself then brush his teeth and wash his face.  When he got out of the bathroom he went to the other side of the room and picked up the phone to call room service. 
 
He heard Cain moving behind him and caught sight of his amazing ass as he closed the bathroom door.  He wondered what the other man liked for breakfast but Sam decided to just order a lot of everything so they didn’t have to leave until lunch at least.  That was if he didn’t just order room service again for lunch. 
 
Sam didn’t normally take advantage of his friend’s money, but Tony’s dad was into some shady politics, according to Tony himself and his father’s idea of being a good father was to simply give Tony anything he wanted.  Tony spoiled his friends whenever he could because he could and because it made him feel that even if the money wasn’t sent with love, it was spent that way.  Sam was more than willing to let the love keep going today.
 
He heard Cain settling back in the bed and finished his order as quickly as he could.  He set the phone down and crawled back into bed behind him.  Cain pressed back into him, his ass rubbing Sam’s cock in invitation and it was more than Sam cared to resist.  Breakfast would be there in half and hour and it was a good way to spend the time.  The bottle was handed over to him, Cain still careful to keep his face away from Sam even if he didn’t put the blindfold back on. 
 
Sam covered his fingers and slipped one inside the other man.  He was still tight even after last night’s activities and Sam bit into his shoulder softly.  Cain arch under the sensation and Sam slipped a second finger inside him.  He pushed back into Sam’s hand and it was enough for him.  He slipped his hand free and reached over the other man to grab for a condom when Cain’s hand on his wrist stopped him.  He placed Sam’s hand behind him, gripping his cock with it, then pressed back against Sam. 
 
He wondered if he’d said something last night by accident, asked for this without realizing it.  Either way, Cain was offering to let him do this without a condom.  He knew enough from Tony to know about the screening that went on in places like this and also wondered if Tony had somehow gotten them his own clean medical records.  He wouldn’t put it past Tony.  It was still a gift though because even if they were clean the other man didn’t have to offer this.
 
He kissed his way across his shoulders as he guided himself inside his body.  “God, you feel so fucking good.”  Sam said, his hand running over the other man’s arm and down his thigh.  “Wanted to feel this so bad last night.”  He admitted into his hair.  “Feel so perfect with nothing between us.” 
 
Sam thrust his hips forward and Cain pushed back, forcing Sam in deeper and he was so close to losing it already.  He pressed forward, letting his hand fall over Cain’s hips until he was wrapping his fingers around his cock. 
 
Cain’s hand reached back, his fingers painting bruises in Sam’s hip as he thrust up into Sam’s hand and back onto him.  “Want you to say my name.”  Sam said, breathing into the man’s ear.  “Want to hear my name when you come.”  
 
He pushed harder, with hips and hand and it wasn’t long before he felt the other man’s body begin to tremor from the sensations.  “Say it.  Come on, say Sam when you come.”  He bit the words into Cain’s flesh.
 
He bit hard enough to draw blood and it sent Cain over the edge.  “Fuck!”  He cried out, voice deep and gravely.  “Sammy!”
 
He knew the voice, knew it as well as his own and it forced his own climax as he bit down again on Cain’s shoulder, bit down and whispered breathlessly into his shoulder.  “Dean…”          
 
 
When his breathing calmed down, Sam sat up, pushing Cain back onto the bed.  An arm came up automatically, keeping his face shielded from Sam.  “No, I want to see you.”  He said.
 
“The contract said-”
 
“Yeah I know, but I want to see you now.”
 
It was wrong, all of it was wrong.  He knew what he’d see when that arm moved away but all his scars were gone and Sam had to see the eyes to know for sure.  The other man hesitated and Sam took his arm by the wrist and pulled it down. 
 
He took a deep breath because as soon as he’d heard his name he’d known.  It was Dean beside him, Dean whose body he had been buried in.  Dean who looked up at him with those green eyes and those fucking lips that begged to be licked and sucked. 
 
Dean, who showed no recollection of who he was. 
 
“Do you know me?”  He asked Dean.
 
Dean looked up in confusion and Sam knew the look so well.  He didn’t know what had happened to his brother’s scars but he figured if someone had taken his memories they’d had no problems with his scars. 
 
“No, should I?”
 
 
 
Sam was about to knock down the door when the brunette finally answered it.  “Where’s Tony?”  He asked.
 
She looked up in surprise, but nodded back towards the bathroom.  “I ordered room service for us all.  Why don’t you join D- Cain in my room?”
 
The girl smiled at him.  “Thanks.”
 
“Hey, what’s your name?”
 
She smiled again at him and he wondered how his night would have turned out if he’d just taken door number one.  “Erin.”
 
“Make sure Cain doesn’t eat all the sausage before I get back.”  She winked at him and he felt a little sick to his stomach, wondering if she had a family somewhere that she didn’t recognize anymore either. 
 
She went to his room and he could see Dean sit up on the bed, still naked and he smiled at her over the tray of food that had been delivered.
 
“Sam?  Everything okay?”  He heard Tony as he walked into the room.  Sam closed the door behind him and had Tony pushed back against it immediately. 
 
“Where did you find him?”
 
“What?”
 
“Where did you find him?”
 
“What happened man?  Come on Sam, you’re scaring me.”
 
“I know him Tony.  I fucking know him and he doesn’t know me.”  He said, finally letting go of Tony.  He was pissed and he knew it.  He didn’t have any idea what had happened but Tony was the connection somehow, he was the next step to figuring this whole thing out. 
 
“Wait.  You know Cain?”
 
“Yeah.”
 
“Man, maybe he just doesn’t remember you.”
 
“No.”  He said, gritting his teeth.  “He would never forget me Tony.  He would never… he wasn’t just someone I met.  He knows me better than anyone.”
 
“Holy shit.”  Tony said, walked back to the bed and sitting down hard.  “He’s the one.  The real one.”  Tony laughed bitterly.  “I was buying you a substitute for the guy you could never have and you got the real thing instead.”
 
Sam felt his hand shaking he was holding his fists so tight.  “That’s right, only somehow, he doesn’t remember me.  So tell me, where did you find him?”
 
“Look Sam, I like you, but I’m not giving you the name.”
 
Sam took a deep breath to steady himself.  “I need to find out who hurt him.”
 
“Maybe he doesn’t want to remember Sam?”
 
“He says he’s been with the agency since he was 18.”
 
“So?”
 
“I was living with him until he was 22 Tony.”  He was talking through gritted teeth now.  “He would forget his own name before mine.”
 
“Jesus Sam.”  His friend looked scared and alarmed and completely lost.  “Alright.  I have the number.”
 
He pulled out his cell and gave Sam the number.  “It’s not the same as the one on Cain’s card.”
 
“You memorized his number already?”
 
Sam didn’t answer because there was no real way to say that their father had trained them to learn number sequences at first glance for easy retrieval.  It didn’t last for long, but it helped when they were on the hunt and they needed to remember something for later investigation.
 
“What’s the name Tony?”
 
His friend took a deep breath.  “It’s huge Sam.  Whatever happened to this guy, this place is big and you don’t want to make trouble with them.”  When Sam just glared at him he shook his head.
 
“They call it the Dollhouse.”

Sam took a deep breath as he watched the two eating their breakfast together. Tony was hiding in his room really. He seemed to think Sam was going to hurt him and he didn’t blame him for the feeling. It wasn’t like he’d come on light earlier, pinning him against the wall. Sam was well known for being laid back and easy going by their friends. No one thought him capable of the type of violence he’d just shown. They really didn’t know the first thing about him, only the ‘Sam’ he allowed them to see. He wondered what Jess would think about him if she had seen it.
 
“Did you guys save me anything?”  Sam asked as he put the phone down.  He had some time to kill and he was antsy with it.  He’d called Ash and asked him to find out what he could about the Dollhouse because everything he’d come up with was just legend.  Nothing solid to work on and that was just bits and pieces of people being turned brainless and turned into other people.  It seemed like there might be some validity to it, but he had to know what they did before he could figure out how to reverse it. 
 
Erin smiled warmly at him.  “Come on over her sugar and we’ll make sure you get everything you want.”  Her voice was warm, like honey dripping from the comb and Sam turned his eyes to Dean.  His eyes were on Sam, but one hand moved up Erin’s arm and wrapped into the hair at the nape of her neck.  A smile curved her full lips up and Dean was licking his lips and tugging her to him.  She turned her upper body to him, her long legs stretched out beside her as they closed the distance.  Dean stopped her right before her lips reached his, teasing lightly as he breathed against her lips, his tongue coming out to lightly trace the seam of her mouth. 
 
Her laugh was light and playful and Sam couldn’t help the groan that escaped his lips as he watched her open up.  Dean’s lips covered hers, soft kisses like rolling waves on the sand.  Her hands stroked up Dean’s arm and then over his collarbone and down his chest.  He heard Dean’s rumbling laugh as her hand disappeared between them and he could guess well enough what she was doing to him.
 
He should get up and walk out, should tell them to stop because he was watching, he was there and even if Dean didn’t remember, Sam did and it was his brother there.  But he’d already fucked his brother twice and watching seemed little in comparison to that. 
 
He saw Erin’s hands move to the hem of her shirt and she pulled away from Dean long enough to tug it off.  She looked back at Sam, smiling at him and offering so much in that one small moment, before turning back to Dean.  His hand reached up, cupping her breast gently before letting his finger and thumb pinch her nipple lightly, rubbing it between them.  She arched into the touch and then Dean was pressing her back into the mattress. 
 
Sam didn’t realize he was moving until he found himself sitting on a chair next to the bed.  He watched as Dean leaned down, taking her other nipple into his mouth, sucking lightly as she moaned.  He nipped lightly at the underside of her breast and her fingers draped over his shoulders, pushing him further down.
 
Dean didn’t need the direction and he was crouched between her legs as she looked up at Sam.  Dean gave him a smirk as he lowered himself down, watching Sam even as his tongue darted out to taste her.  There was a challenge in his eyes and Sam didn’t realize he’d accepted until he found himself kissing Erin.  God it was all so wrong and he was drowning in it, but he was too far down to swim for it now.
 
He kissed her deeply, his tongue tracing the path where Dean had already been.  His hands reached for her breasts and he teased her nipples lightly as Dean lapped at her.  Her hand came up to his and she pulled it away, pulled it down further and he let his hand follow the path of her hip, down her thighs and back up the inside of her leg.  He felt the soft hair between her legs and moaned into her mouth as he felt Dean’s tongue against his skin as he thrust his fingers inside of her.
 
She bucked up into their joint ministrations and her eyes opened wide.  “Come on Cain…”  She said, one of her hands fisted in each of their hair.  He looked down her body as Dean shifted.  He pulled his fingers away only to have Dean grab his wrist and wrap his tongue around his fingers, sucking each of his digits clean.  He watched as Dean entered her, watched the way his hips flexed as he moved slow and sure inside her. 
 
He knew he should move, should get off the bed, but even as he started to sit up her hands came to the few buttons on his shirt that he’d bothered to do up this morning and she started unbuttoning them.  She kissed him hard as she pushed the fabric from his shoulders and he felt hands undoing the button of his jeans, the zipper sliding down.  He looked up to see Dean’s hands on him, one hand rubbing over his cock while the other held him steady as he continued to move in and out of Erin.
 
He thought he just might black out from it, but then Dean was leaning closer to him and his lips were sealed over his, Erin’s taste between them and her nails running over his back in tantalizing circles.  “So fucking ready for you.”  Dean said as he rested his forehead against his.  “Need you inside me, want you to fuck me into her Sammy.” 
 
It was more than he could resist and he found himself stripped out of him jeans and kneeling on the bed behind Dean.  He rubbed his cock over Dean’s crack and the other man shivered from it. 
 
“Just do it Sammy, come on.”
 
He trusted Dean not to hurt himself so he believed him.  He didn’t prep him, just slicked himself up and thrust into him.  Dean and Erin were both still as he slipped inside him but as Sam pulled back Dean followed him.  When Dean pushed his hips into Erin Sam followed him.  They found a rhythm and Sam watched as Dean let a hand slide between he and Erin, playing at her clit as they sank further into the mattress together.  She screamed out, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the sheets and Dean muttering “Fuck” as she came around his cock. 
 
Sam bit down on his shoulder.  “Don’t you come yet.”  He said, thrusting into Dean, fast and hard.  He didn’t try to make Dean come, didn’t attempt anything other than his own orgasm and when it hit he felt like he was about to black out from the intensity of it.
 
When he pulled out Dean shivered with need and Sam pulled him away from Erin.  Sitting him at the end of the bed, Sam sunk to his knees on the floor and wrapped his lips around Dean’s cock.  He felt the bed shifting, looked up to see Erin behind Dean, her lips kissing at his back and neck as her hands moved over his arms and nipples. 
 
Dean’s hand came up into Sam’s hair and he felt his hips thrusting up slightly into his mouth.  He wanted it, wanted all of Dean and he groaned into the motion.  Dean’s eyes were glued to Sam’s as he opened up, taking as much as Dean down his throat as he could.  “Fuck Sammy.”  He heard his brother say.  It was the only warning he got as Dean came in his mouth.  Sam swallowed him down, milking it all out of him.  When Dean pulled him off by his hair, he moved up his body, straddling him as he leaned forward to kiss him. 
 
Erin was there, her arms pulling Sam closer in, her lips brushing Sam’s neck and working at both of them.  When Sam and Dean broke from the kiss, they all fell in a heap on the bed.  Sam thought he should make a few more phone calls, but he was wrapped up between Dean and this amazing woman and he had no desire to move.  Whatever happened next was going to be unpleasant so he decided to enjoy this moment, just for a little longer before reality returned and he lost his brother for the second time.
 
 
 
Both Dean and Erin were napping as Sam pulled himself away from them.  He grabbed his jeans from the floor and pulled out his phone, moving to the far side of the room to make a phone call that he really was dreading.  He dialed the number and waited for an answer.
 
“Hello.”
 
“Bobby?  It’s Sam Winchester.”
 
“Sam?  Boy, how are you?  I haven’t heard hide nor hair of you in too long.”
 
“Yeah, sorry about that Bobby.  I was… school.”
 
“Yeah.  Look Sam, I know you and your Dad had it out, but that don’t mean you have to cut the rest of us out too.  Not everyone is as hard headed as your old man.”
 
Sam nodded not sure what to say to that.  He knew it was true, but he also knew that talking to anyone in the community would just have made it too easy to ask about his Dad and Dean and he’d never get over it if he’d called.  It was all a bit moot now though.  “I know Bobby and I’m sorry.”  He sighed, trying to figure out what to say next, but it was Bobby and in the end he didn’t need to beat around the bush.
 
“What’s wrong Sam?”
 
“When’s the last time you talked to Dean?”
 
“What?”
 
“Dean.  When’s the last time you talked to him.”
 
There was a sigh at the other end of the phone and he knew it wasn’t good.  “Look Sam, last time I talked to Dean he said his good-byes.  He said he needed to get lost for a while and that we shouldn’t go looking for him.”
 
“Why?”
 
“There was a shape shifter.  He got Dean in some trouble with the Feds and your brother said he found a way out of it but it meant he was gonna disappear for a while.”
 
“What was it?”
 
“He wouldn’t tell me Sam.”
 
“And you let him?”
 
“Dean’s a grown man Sam.  No one could stop him when he got his mind set on something.  You know that.  Hell you got it from him.”
 
“How long was he going to disappear for?”
 
“He didn’t say for sure, but he asked me to keep an eye on you.  I know you haven’t seen him since you left for school but he was up there in Palo Alto quite a bit that year.”
 
“That year?  How long ago did all this happen Bobby?”
 
He heard the hesitance again.  “I haven’t talked to Dean in over three years Sam.”
 
“What about Dad?”
 
“They weren’t on very good terms after you left Sam.  Dean kept trying to get your Dad to call and talk to you, to admit he didn’t want you to stay at Stanford all the time, but your Dad’s a stubborn man and kept telling him if you wanted to come home you would, with or without his approval.  Dean didn’t bother to call him when he was taking care of this Sam.  He knows less than I do.”
 
Sam took a deep breath.  “Perfect.”
 
“What is it Sam?”
 
“I…  I found him Bobby.  I found him but I think he’s messed up in something bad.  You know of anything that could steal your memory?”
 
“What the hell happened to him?”
 
“I don’t know.  He doesn’t know who I am.  When he looks at me, there’s no recognition at all.  He’s part of something called the Dollhouse.  You ever heard of it?”
 
“Can’t say that I have.  I can make some phone calls though.”
 
“Thanks Bobby.  And can you keep our names out of it?  If someone is looking for Dean I don’t want to bring them down on him.”
 
“Shouldn’t be a problem.  The memory thing though… Sam, you know how many things out there could be used to mess with someone’s memory?”
 
“I know.  That’s why I’m thinking figuring out this Dollhouse lead might get us somewhere quicker.  I called the Roadhouse too, got Ellen’s guy working on it.”
 
“I’ll coordinate with him then.  Just keep your brother out of trouble Sam.” 
 
“Of course Bobby.”
 
“And Sam?”
 
“Yeah?”
 
“It’s good to hear from you again, no matter the circumstances.”
 
He smiled for the first time since the conversation started.  “Yeah, you too Bobby.”
 
“If you feel it’s safe, you know you’re welcome to bring Dean here.”
 
“Thanks Bobby.  Let me know if you find anything.”
 
“Will do.”  He hung up the phone and let out a relieved breath, feeling a little more like himself after talking to Bobby, like he might be able to figure this whole thing out.
 
“Who was that?”
 
Sam turned around to find Dean staring at him.  “Dean, you scared me.”
 
“Look, I know last night was about Dean, but my name is Cain.  I don’t care what you call me in bed, but outside of that I have my own name.”
 
Sam took a deep breath and shook his head.  This was all so messed up.  “Yeah, sorry.  I… you just look like…”  He wasn’t making it any better so he stopped. 
 
“So who was on the phone?”
 
“A friend of mine.  He’s been helping me look for something.”
 
“So… the good kind of friend?”
 
Sam smiled, thinking back to Bobby and all the things he’s learned at his place.  How Dean used to spend days on end under junkers with Bobby when he was younger, learning the ins and outs of cars.  That was back in the day when Sam has still been trying to get their father’s approval and he’d spent all his time with their Dad while Dean was under cars with Bobby. 
 
When it got too late out Dean would pass out in front of the television and Dad would be studying whatever it was he had come for, and Bobby would sit with him for hours, talking about translations and lore and how to tell which books were the best for their kind.  Bobby was the only uncle they’d had and in some ways he nurtured their individual talents far more than their father ever had.
 
“The best really.”  Sam said.  “Thought you were asleep.”
 
Dean smiled.  “Erin’s still out.  Seems like your friend didn’t let her go to sleep until pretty late last night.  Guess I’m lucky you picked my door.”
 
“You knew what was happening last night?”  Sam asked.
 
Dean shrugged.  “Your friend talked to me for a while.  You had… specific needs he wanted to make sure I understood before you had a chance to see us.”
 
Sam ran a hand down the back of his neck feeling a little uncomfortable.  “Yeah, about that…”
 
“You don’t need to explain Sam.”  Dean said.  “It’s your fantasy.  Your friend wanted you to have the weekend of your life and he was willing to give you the best.”
 
“Ah the modesty…”  Sam said before he could stop himself.
 
Dean grinned as he took a step further into Sam’s space.  “Erin and I get top billing for a reason.  Modesty has it’s place but you pay the sort of money he did for an escort, you get what you asked for.”
 
“And he asked for a cocky, arrogant bastard who likes to get in people’s faces?”
 
Dean smiled.  “Yeah, pretty much.  Guess he knows your type pretty well.”
 
He was saved by the phone ringing.  Dean stepped back and left Sam to his phone call, dropping onto the bed next to Erin, making soothing noises as she turned over, reaching for him.  She fell back asleep without really waking up and Sam wondered if Dean was just as tired but didn’t feel he could sleep since Sam was awake.
 
He opened the phone instead of letting himself think about it anymore.  “Hello?”
 
“Sam?  It’s Ash.”
 
“Ash, please tell me you got something.”
 
“It’s not much man, I’m sorry.  Whatever this is though, if it’s real, it’s big.  The FBI has been trying to crack it, but no luck.  They had a guy working in LA though, got in some trouble and they canned him for it.  If you want to stay low key with the Feds and still take a look, he might be your best bet.”
 
“Perfect.”
 
“His name is Paul Ballard.  He worked the case for the last year but got called off after a few violent incidents.  He continued to say there was a Dollhouse but his superiors closed the case, saying there was nothing concrete.  The guy seems obsessed.”
 
“Sounds like our kind of guy.”
 
Ash laughed, knowing that almost all hunters started out with an obsession about something.  He got the phone number and made note of the name in his journal.  “Bobby Singer might be in touch.  He’s trying to see what he can track down also.  You know him, right?”
 
“Yeah man.  Don’t worry about it.  I’ll call Bobby and see what we can come up with together.”
 
“Thanks Ash.  I owe you man.”
 
He dropped the phone and walked over to the bed, taking a seat at the edge of it.  None of it made any sense.  He couldn’t imagine what could have happened to Dean since he’d left.  The idea of him and John fighting was enough to throw him.  Dean had never fought with their Dad.  The closest he’d ever seen was when Dean drove him to the bus stop the night he left for Stanford.  Dean having to hide from the Feds?  Telling Bobby he didn’t want him to come looking for him at all?  None of it made sense.
 
It made even less sense when he felt Dean’s hand on his back and he felt himself relax a little.  This wasn’t Dean, not his Dean.  Not yet.  He needed to adjust to that because right now it was Cain and Cain wasn’t like him.  Cain didn’t know about hunting and he didn’t know how to handle this sort of thing.  He needed to keep an eye out on Cain.  And Erin.  They were both broken and he needed to find a way to fix them. 
 
When he looked back at Cain he was smiling at Sam.  Erin was wrapped in his arms and Sam didn’t think he’d ever seen him happier.  He wanted to fall back into Cain’s arms, to let him sooth his unease with whispered words and soft lips and hands that knew him better than they should, but he had to take care of them now.  Tony said they had the weekend before anyone would come for them and he needed to do what he could before there was an active hunt for them.  Instead, he leaned down and brushed his lips over Cain’s.  Cain tried to pull him in and Sam smiled, cupping his face in one hand before pulling back.  “One more call Cain, then I’m all yours.”
 
Cain kissed the palm of his hand as he took it away and Sam took a deep breath, stealing himself to walk away.  He had an FBI agent to call before he could figure out their next step.
 
 
 
The next step wasn’t as hard as he thought it would be.  The agent wanted to meet him and see the ‘dolls’ himself.  Sam got a little upset about the term doll but as he listened to Ballard he realized that the term was used derogatively towards the Dollhouse but with concern and fear for the people themselves. 
 
Ballard wanted Sam to drive to Los Angeles to meet them but Sam wasn’t about to give the former agent, or inactive agent or whatever they called it, the upper hand.  He needed the information but he wasn’t about to turn his brother over when he’d had problem with the Fed’s before.  Instead he said he’d meet the man in Monterey.  It gave Sam plenty of time to get there, pick a place to stay and a good place to meet with Ballard.  It was only an hour and a half drive for them, but for Ballard it was a good five hours. 
 
Ballard agreed to it in the end and Sam said he’d call him with exact information when they got there.  Tony had been more than happy to give Sam both Erin and Cain for the weekend considering what he’d already been told.  Sam told him to lay low at the hotel for the weekend and that if he thought of anything else about the Dollhouse he should call.  Tony nodded and Sam could tell his friend was freaked out by the whole thing. 
 
He tried to let him off the hook.  After all, if he hadn’t done this he’d have never known about Dean.  If he hadn’t been so generous Sam would haven’t the means to do what he needed to do now.  He hadn’t known what it was all about and they still didn’t really.  It was only because Tony did this in the first place that he had a chance to save his brother from it.
 
Tony called for a rental car and Sam had Cain in the passenger side and Erin riding in the back, sitting forward and smiling and laughing the whole way.  Tony told her it was Sam’s weekend and that he wanted to take off on a little adventure.  She was thrilled at the idea and Cain had just wrapped a hand in her hair again, tugging her against his chest as he smiled warmly at Sam.
 
 
The drive to Monterey had been beautiful and they stopped for lunch when they got into the city.  Sam wasn’t sure if they should be in public or not, but he knew what would happen if he took the two of them back to a hotel right now with all that time to kill and the last thing he needed was to spend this time in bed, as opposed to figuring out the right move. 
 
In the end, he decided that meeting at the aquarium was the best bet and he called Ballard and set up a time for the next morning.  Ballard wasn’t happy with the delay and neither was Sam really, but he didn’t want to meet the agent where he couldn’t watch him and giving their hotel away was a bad idea all the way around. 
 
After lunch the three of them took a walk to the aquarium and then around Cannery Row.  Erin seemed to love it and Cain smiled indulgently at her.  Sam bought her anything she wanted since Tony was footing the bill.  That half her purchases were for Cain might have had something to do with it as well.
 
They made it back from shopping and Cain threw their bags on the bed before throwing himself back on it.  Before he could stop himself or think better of it, Sam was on top of him, straddling his hips as he leaned over.  Cain reached up to meet him, lips crashing into one another. 
 
He felt Erin’s hands on his back, felt her lips against the nape of his neck and he moaned at the dual sensation.  She was unbuttoning his shirt and he felt it slide off as her fingers danced over his flesh.  “Come on.”  She said, pulling Sam off of Cain.  “You are taking us out to dinner.”  She informed him.  “Which means we all need to get cleaned up.  Shower.  Now.”
 
Sam looked at Cain and smiled.  “She always this bossy?”
 
“I’d do what the lady suggests.”  He was about to make a smart ass comment when Cain was standing in his space again, his hands reaching for Sam’s belt.  “She’s got some really good ideas…” he bit at Sam’s collarbone “for taking care of things…” he bit at Sam’s bottom lip “in the shower.”
 
Sam let himself be led into the bathroom then.  The water was already running warm and he found Erin inside, waiting.  He didn’t know where Cain had disappeared to but by the time the other man made it into the shower Sam had Erin against the wall, her legs wrapped around his waist as he thrust into her.  Cain came up behind him, his hands gliding over wet skin.  He pressed his body forward and Sam felt his hard length against his ass.  “God yeah…” he moaned into Erin’s skin.
 
He felt Cain’s fingers playing at the crease of his ass then, felt them slide between his cheeks and rub at his opening, teasing and playing until Sam felt he was ready to explode.  When Cain finally thrust a finger in, Sam pushed hard into Erin.  She laughed, her voice wild and free as he learned this new rhythm between them.  It didn’t take long until Cain was pushing into his body, his cock filling Sam, pushing him deeper inside Erin’s body.  She welcomed the both of them, ran fingers over Cain’s arms as she kissed marks into Sam’s skin.  When he came he almost fell to the intensity of it but Cain was there, holding him up, pushing him forward so that Erin was still trapped between them and the wall. 
 
When her feet hit the floor, Cain thrust back into Sam again, this time taking his leisure as he fucked into him.  It was the hottest thing he’d ever felt, Erin in front of him and Cain behind, both focused on him and his needs.  He’d never felt so cared for in his life and when Cain finally came inside him, he’d never felt so safe or loved either.

The aquarium opened at 9:30 and Sam was there with Cain and Erin in tow.It was a good place to do this, public enough that they could cause a scene if they needed to and open enough that they could get out.They’d had breakfast at a small restaurant right outside the aquarium so Sam had been able to watch and see what was happening.There was nothing unusual before the opening and he was pretty sure that this Ballard guy was going to keep his word and come alone.
Sam pulled his phone from his pocket and told Cain and Erin to wait for him by the Kelp Forest.“Meet me at the ocean view deck.” Sam told Ballard as he answered the call.“I’ll have on a red shirt and I’ll be the tallest guy you see.”
“You’re sure you’re taller than me?”
“How tall are you?”
“6’2””
“Yeah.”Sam said with a smile because there was something almost amused in the voice on the other end of the phone.“Look for the tallest guy you can see.”
Sam stood against the rail.The deck was still pretty clear, not a lot of people out on it just yet and he was glad he’d left Cain and Erin inside.He saw him the moment he came outside, saw the way his eyes found him and didn’t look away.
“Sam?”
“Agent Ballard?”
“Paul.”
Sam took the hand that was outstretched and nodded to the other man.“Thanks for coming up to meet me.”He said, trying to start things off in a civil manner.
“You said you were interested in the Dollhouse.What can I help you with?”
Sam sighed.He didn’t know how much to reveal.He’d thought about it most of the night.He’d fallen asleep easy enough with Cain between him and Erin, but it only lasted a few hours before he was up and pacing.It all came down to his impression of the man in front of him.He seems fairly aggressive over the phone but in an honestly frustrated way.“I think… I think someone I know might have been involved in the Dollhouse.I found him.I got the name, but I got nothing else.He’s… he’s not the same person he was.”
Paul’s eyes had tightened slightly at his words and Sam wondered if he’d already trusted too much.“Not the same person?Like he thinks he’s someone else.”
“Exactly.”
“The Dollhouse is everywhere.”Paul said quietly.“I’ve been trying to get to them for a year.I can’t find someone who’ll get me in, can’t even find a way in.What they do there, it’s just not right.I’ve been trying to get to them, but I can’t get a break.”
“I just might have one for you then.But I want my friends to get their memories back.And I want them to walk away clean of whatever they might have done before hand.”
The agent looked at him for a minute.“Friends?”

“I have a friend who knows how to get in touch with the Dollhouse and I have two people who were from it.My friend, he didn’t know what it was.Just thought it was some sort of high priced call girl type thing.The others… I just want them to get their lives back without forfeiting whatever they were supposed to get.”
“I can’t guarantee anything, but you get me in there and I’ll do everything in my power to help you.Where are your friends?”
“Close.Safe.I didn’t know if I could trust you.”
“And you still don’t.”
“I’m not comfortable around Feds.Nothing personal.”
Paul shrugged.“Not too comfortable around them myself these days.”He admitted.
Sam watched him for a second and then decided to trust his father’s advice.Trust your gut.He smiled at the other man then.“Let’s take a walk.”They were close to Cain and Erin but Sam felt the agent stop before they got close enough for him to say anything.
“Caroline?You have Caroline?”
He was looking at Erin and before he had to say anything Cain’s eyes looked up and met his.He pulled Erin a little closer, whispering something in her ear that had her laughing and that kept her attention away from the others.He wanted to walk over there and kiss him for it, for reading him as well as he did when they were hunting together but he didn’t think the agent would appreciate that.
“Her name is Erin.”Sam said.
“No.Her name is Caroline.”
Sam understood then.“They call him Cain.His real name is Dean.He doesn’t remember me, but he should.We spent most of our lives together.”He wasn’t going to mention the brother part.Cain didn’t know it and neither did Erin.Just what he needed to bring into it all was his currently incestuous relationship with his brother who didn’t know he was his brother.
“How did you find a way to contact me?”
“A friend hacked into the FBI files.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah.”Sam said with a smile.He owed Ash a lot of really cheap beer for this one.“He said there wasn’t a lot to tell, but he got me your name and number.Now, I don’t know what to do.I want Dean back but I don’t know what happened to him.”
Paul looked down for a second.“I don’t know if I can help you.I want to.They wipe their memories like some kind of a computer disk.They program them to be someone else.I don’t know how or where or when or why.”
“So there’s no hope.”
He watched the other man sigh.“I didn’t say that.You said your friend knew about the Dollhouse.Would he be able to help us out more?”
Sam shrugged. “I don’t know.His Dad is a politician and he’s got old money to back it up.He only knew about the place because of him and he had no idea what they were.”
“And what do they think they are now?”Paul asked suddenly, motioning to Cain and Erin.
Sam took a deep breath and looked away.He caught Cain’s eyes and Cain smiled at him, something warm and affectionate.“High class hookers.Well paid, clean, and with me for the weekend.”
“Your friend bought you two dolls for the weekend?”
“Bachelor party.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah.I didn’t know last night.I thought that’s what they were.”
“And you didn’t have any trouble with that?”
Sam laughed.“There are a lot of nasty things in this world but prostitution isn’t really what I consider one of them.”
“And you missed the fact that the guy in your room was your friend?”
Sam felt his face flushing slightly.“He was wearing a blindfold.”
Paul gave him a funny smile.“Why exactly?”
“To make it easier to pretend he was someone else.”
“Who?”
“My friend.”
Paul shook his head.“This sounds complicated.”
And even though the conversation made Sam uncomfortable as hell, he was relieved by it also.They guy was observant and had good instincts.“You have no idea.”

“Tony?”
“I don’t know if I can help you with this Sam.”
“Tony.I have to help him and I need you to do that.”Sam didn’t have a lot of patience.Cain and Erin were walking around the aquarium as Sam and Paul walked a ways behind, watching them and trying to think of a next step.Without Tony there was no next step.
He watched as Cain said something to Erin, watched as she pulled him close and kissed him lightly.They were supposed to be high class hookers, the types that were given expensive lofts and designer clothes and the best of everything.They acted like the lovers they were.He didn’t know if it was all an act or not.
He’s never seen his brother so close to someone and it hurt.How much of Cain was Dean if he’d been brought up differently?Or was any of it Dean at all?The openness he shared with Erin was distracting to him, something he craved and pushed away over and over again.He was going to get Dean back and when he did, shit was really going to hit the fan.Dean would never forgive him for what he’d made them become, but at least Dean would be himself again.
He heard the loud sigh at the other end of the phone.“Where are you?”
“Monterey.”
“Alright.I’ll call you when I’m close.I don’t… Sam I don’t know what all I can do, but I’ll help you get your friend back.I didn’t… I’m not that kind of person.”
“Yeah Tony, I know.That’s why I knew you’d come through now.”
Paul looked at him as he closed the phone.“He’s coming.He doesn’t know how much he can do, but he’s coming.”
“We’ll work from that then.”
Sam nodded.“Until then, I think it’s time you met Erin and Cain.”
“How can you call them by the wrong name?”Paul asked.“How do you pretend like that?”
Sam shrugged.“Because when he answers to Dean it’s an act on his part and I’d rather pretend I don’t know Dean right now, then to watch him try to pretend to be Dean.Because if you call her Caroline and tell her that’s who you want her to be, she’ll try.”
Paul’s mouth thinned, lips pulled taut in an angry white line.“I can’t tell you how much I hate this whole thing.”
Sam nodded.“We’ll find a way.We have to.”He caught up with Cain and Erin and smiled.“Hey, this is a friend of mine.Paul Ballard, this is Cain and Erin.Guys, this is a Paul.”
Cain looked him over and smiled widely.“Exactly how friendly are you Paul?”He asked as he shook the extended hand.
Paul looked surprised and Sam felt a flash of jealousy at the way his brother fell so completely into this.“Not that type of friend Dean.”
Cain’s eyes hardened slightly as his eyes came up to Sam’s.“Dean?”
Sam shook his head and took a deep breath.“Sorry.Cain.”He hoped he sounded more apologetic than he felt.He didn’t want to upset Cain with the use of the wrong name and what he’d said to Paul was true.However, Cain was his in ways that Dean never would be and he didn’t like the idea that Cain was willing to sleep with whoever walked up, even if he was supposed to be a hooker.
“It’s nice to meet you both.”Paul said, stepping into the conversation before it could become more awkward.Erin smiled at him, taking him by the arm and showing him the eels that she and Cain had been examining.
“I’m sorry.”Sam said as he watched Erin and Paul.
“I might be your guy for the weekend, but I’m not that guy Sam.”
“Yeah you don’t need to remind me.”
“Apparently I do.”There was anger in his voice and Sam looked up in surprise.
“Look I didn’t mean anything by it so what’s your problem?”
Cain shook his head.“I just thought… after that first night we were past that.I might be a whore Sam, but that doesn’t mean I don’t feel anything.It doesn’t mean I didn’t think…”He ran a hand over his face in a gesture that was so Dean he nearly chocked on it.“Sometimes, the people you get are assholes and you do what you have to.Some times you actually like them.Other times… you start to think maybe they like you too.”
Before he could respond Cain was walking away and talking animatedly to Paul.He took a deep breath and wasn’t sure what to even think of that.He decided after a minute that he really needed not to think about it at all.He was getting Dean back and the more he thought about Cain and how different Cain was from his brother then the harder it would be to stuff this all back down when he did get Dean back.
His phone rang, saving him from having to examine anything else in his head.He was a Winchester after all and even though he was the one most likely to tackle his emotions head on there were some things he was just as happy to bury as his brother or father.
“Hello?”
“Hey Sam.I think I found something that might help you out.”
“What have you got Bobby?”
“A spell.I don’t know what those people did, but I don’t see why a memory spell shouldn’t be able to get Dean’s memory back.”
“Aren’t those spells normally to erase or change people’s memories?”
“It’s why it took me so long to find it.I emailed you the information already.Most of it’s probably stuff you already have with you anyway.”
“What if his memory has been modified Bobby?”
“That’s what the spells for Sam.”
“I mean... will he remember all of it?”
“I don’t know for sure.There are some vague references but it seems like it depends on what changed the memory in the first place.”
“Thanks Bobby.You have no idea how much I appreciate this.”
“Just… have your brother call me when you get him back Sam.”
Sam closed his eyes for a moment, wondering what he’d have done without Bobby and shook his head.“Sure thing Bobby.”
Sam took a deep breath as he looked at Cain and Erin waiting in the car.He was sure Paul was on their side now, but the other man didn’t know what was out there.“I think we have a way to bring them back tonight, their memories, but you’re going to have to trust me.”
Paul’s look was a mix between surprise and concern and anger.He wasn’t sure where the anger came from but it was enough to make Sam feel defensive.
“Why didn’t you do it before then?”
“I got the call while we were inside.I didn’t know about it until then.”He’d checked his email as soon as he’d gotten off the phone with Bobby, making sure he had everything he needed.He didn’t because he wasn’t hunting anymore but there were some interesting shops in the area and after letting Erin do a little more shopping he’d been able to get everything pretty discretely.
“Sure.You just happen to know a guy who can fix them and you didn’t get it done until now.”
“What are you trying to imply?”
“That you wanted to have a little fun before you gave them back their memories.”
Sam felt his fists clench.He couldn’t remember wanting to hit anyone so badly in his life, his father included.
“Sam?”
Cain was there then, at his back, his hands on Sam’s shoulders.Paul’s eyes went to Cain’s and then back to his as if to add to the implication.“I’ll do it tonight.Be there by 8:00 if you want to see what I’m doing.”
“And before then?”
“Show up early if you want to see what I’m giving up.”It was a gauntlet that he knew Paul wouldn’t pick up.Sam didn’t want to lose this thing with Cain and Erin, didn’t want to lose the closeness and security he felt with them.It was more than sex with them and he felt like it was more for them too, like Cain had been trying to explain to him earlier.He didn’t want to lose that but he couldn’t keep it if it meant the Dean was gone forever and that Cain and Erin were just slaves that didn’t now they were in cages.
He felt Cain’s hand squeeze lightly at his shoulder and Sam forced himself away from Paul Ballard then, turning into Cain’s gaze.“We’re good.Let’s get back to the hotel.”
“Lunch?”Erin asked from the back seat of the car.He could see she was worried about what was happening but she focused on something else instead.
“Yeah.”Sam said with a smile.“Lunch.Wanna go out or stay in?”He asked her.
She winked at Cain.“Oh, I think room service works just fine for me.”
He felt himself smiling then and let out a small laugh.Cain sat in the passenger seat of the car and he winked at her.“Girl after my own heart.”
Sam watched them for a minute, knowing this was going to be it.He had a few more hours with them before he’d do the ritual that would hopefully give them back their memories.Then Erin would disappear and he’d get to meet Caroline and Dean would be back and Cain would be gone.As much as he wanted his brother back, he couldn’t help but mourn a little for the two people that sat in the car waiting for him to drive them away.
 
 
 
Paul showed up at a quarter to eight dressed in jeans and a tee shirt and looking far more comfortable than he had earlier.  Sam wasn’t sure if that was good or not, but he didn’t really care.  He’d said his good-byes in his own way without ever saying it, knowing that neither Cain nor Erin would understand. Oh, he could say it was because their weekend was almost over but he doubted either of them would believe it. 
 
He still wasn’t sure what they’d say when he showed them to the other room.  He’d ordered another room, taking the one next to them and making his preparations in there while Erin and Cain had taken another nap that afternoon.  Everything was set up, the protective runes and necessary enchantments had been set in salt and chalk. 
 
He took a deep breath as Erin and Cain looked at him from their seats around the table.  He didn’t know how to explain it and he’d already decided that it wouldn’t help to tell them what he was really doing.  Instead he smiled.  “I have something… a game … I wanted to play tonight.  Do you trust me?”  He asked.
 
“Of course.”  Cain said instantly.  Sam wanted to kiss him but he figured that if this really worked he didn’t need to have Dean remembering that so quickly.  If he remembered any of it. 
 
He held a blindfold out and Erin came up to him, letting him wrap it over her eyes and tie it in place.  He handed her off to Paul who looked just as confused as Cain did.  “I’d never hurt you.”  Sam said to Cain.  Paul made a noise beside him and there was something in his eyes then, something passing between them like a sense of camaraderie that had been lacking since he’d told Paul he could do this. 
 
Cain nodded.  “I know Sammy.” 
 
He turned around and Sam put the blindfold over his eyes and pressed a kiss into his hair as he tied it. 
 
He took Cain’s hand and opened the door to make sure the hallway was clear.  He led them all to the room next door and shook his head when it looked like Paul was going to say something.  He led Cain into the center of the designs and sat him down then took Erin and sat her next to Cain.  Her hand reached for Cain’s and Sam watched him take it, watched as his thumb stroked over the back of her hand in a soothing gesture. 
 
He had the herbs crushed already and the solitary candle was quickly lit.  He opened his journal to the right page and took a deep breath.  “This part will be over in a minute and then we’ll be on to the fun part, I promise.”
 
“What is this?”  Erin asked.
 
“It’s… a cleaning ritual.  It’s supposed to make you clean of spirit.”
 
“You didn’t seem like the new age type.”  Cain said with a smirk.
 
“It’s just for fun so shut up and enjoy the blindfold.”  Sam said.  He was half afraid of what he was saying and half hard because he knew without a doubt that if he was doing this as just a game that both Cain and Erin would have indulged him and been active participants.  He had some rather clear images of what would happen once he crossed into that circle and started to touch one of his blindfolded lovers.
 
He took a deep breath and looked away from them, leaving Paul in the dark as well.  When he started speaking the words rolled off his tongue and he felt the power in them.  He knew it was a real spell; something old and strong seemed to breathe through him as he continued.  Cain sat up straighter as if he could feel it as well.  He wondered at that, wondered if somehow Dean’s muscle memory included the feel of power. 
 
He called down the spell, calling the memories back into Dean and Caroline’s bodies, calling their spirits, their true selves to awaken.  When the words were done he tipped the candle into the bowl of herbs and the there was a sharp blast in the room that blew hard enough to send Sam back into the wall. 
 
Paul was looking at him like he was crazy.  Erin was cradled in Cain’s arms but as Sam straightened himself up he saw Cain pull the blindfold off.  He murmured a quick “It’s all right.”  To the woman in his arms and then pulled away from her.  She watched, her eyes wide and frightened and Sam wondered if he was seeing Caroline for the first time.
 
“Cain?”  He asked as the other man came closer to him.
 
He didn’t see it coming and since he was already off balance when the fist hit him he crumbled to the floor.  He looked up, wiping blood from his mouth with the back of his hand to see the anger simmering in those too green eyes.
 
“Hey Dean.”  He said in a voice that was remarkable steady considering there was nothing steady in him at the moment.
 
“Sammy.” 
 
Dean held a hand out to him and Sam took it, letting Dean pull him up off the floor. 
 
“Who are you?”  Paul asked as he watched Sam and Dean. 
 
Caroline sat on the floor still in the circle, her arms wrapped around her knees but watching them warily.  Dean ignored the men but crouched down beside her.  “I’m Dean.”
 
She took a deep breath.  “Caroline.”
 
Dean smiled slightly and brushed his hand over the back of her cheek.  “Much better than Erin.”  He said.  She let him pull her up to her feet and when she stumbled slightly he pulled her into his chest, letting her rest against him. 
 
Sam could see the steel in her, could see it as she built herself back up as he watched.  Her breathing slowed and her spine straightened.  When she pulled away from him she was looking for something more from Dean.  He nodded.  “Much better than Echo.”
 
She smiled then.  “Much better than Charlie.  Though I don’t know, Cain was kind of fun.”     
 
Dean smiled at her but when his eyes glanced over at Sam there was something hard and cold there that he had never associated with his brother.  He kissed the top of Caroline’s head and smiled down at her.  “Just wait until you get used to Dean.”
 
She looked back at Sam and her eyes were a little wide.  “You know each other.  You …”
 
“Sam and I go way back.”  Dean said and there was a little relief because Dean obviously wasn’t going to throw out the whole brothers’ issue in the middle of this.  He was sure the other two were curious about the punch but they hadn’t said anything yet.    “How did you get our memories back?”  He asked, the hostility dialed down as they got through to the facts.
 
“Bobby.  He found a spell that would restore the memories.”
 
“We weren’t ever supposed to remember all of it.”  Dean said.
 
Sam swallowed hard against the lump in his throat and wished there had been a way to just take away the last day or two.  “Bobby wasn’t sure if you’d remember just… the parts that were you… or if you’d remember everything.”
 
Dean nodded.  “Everything.  I remember treatments and being in the chair.  I remember my handlers and the jobs I was called out on.”  He looked down at Caroline.  “You?”
 
She nodded.  “I remember you.”  She said, looking over at Paul.  “You were trying to help me.” 
 
Paul nodded.  “Yeah, I was.  I wanted to get you out of there.  I wanted to help you get away from them.”
 
Caroline nodded then, her knees going out from under her and Dean was there, helping her over to one of the beds.  “It’s alright Caroline.” He said, his hands running to the nape of her neck, pulling her in closer to him.  She let him and Dean just rocked her slightly.  “Tell you what.” He said into her hair.  “Tonight Sammy is buying us the biggest fucking steaks he can find.  Not a salad in sight.”
 
She shook slightly at his words and it took a minute for Sam to realize she was laughing at that.  He wanted to go over and wrap his arms around her, to try to comfort her but he didn’t think it’d help any.  
 
He saw Dean look up at him then and nod to the other room.  “Sam, I think you owe us dinner.”
 
“Dean?”
 
“We’ll be over in a few minutes Sam.”
 
He had to trust to that.  Dean had never broken trust with Sam and no matter how Sam might have fucked that up this weekend, he knew Dean never would.
 
 
 
 
He walked into the other room with Paul right behind him.
 
“How the hell did you do that?”
 
“You saw it.  Either believe or don’t.”
 
“That… you’re saying… magic?”
 
“Yeah, I’m saying.”
 
He was about to pick up the phone to order room service when his cell phone rang.  It was Tony and he was on his way to their hotel.  Sam placed the order with room service and took a deep breath.  It was going to be a long night.  And when everyone left for the night, he had a feeling it was going to be even longer.
 
 
“So you don’t know where they are either?”
 
Tony shook his head.  “You tell them the when and where and they supply the people.  It’s not like you go shopping, pick them off the rack, and go your merry way with them.  This place has a lot of security and they like to keep things quiet.”
 
“So then how do we figure this out?”
 
“You don’t.”  Dean said from the doorway.  Caroline’s eyes went wide when she saw Tony but she didn’t step back.  She walked in past Dean and went to sit on the bed behind Sam.  Dean took the only empty chair at the table and Sam felt a little relieved as the two of them were close enough to touch.
 
“We can’t let this go on.”  Paul said with a shake of his head.  “There has to be a way.”
 
“Stop.”  Sam said to Paul.  He knew his brother and he watched as Dean stood again, pacing the room.  “How long did you have us for Tony?”  Dean asked.
 
“Um… tonight.  Midnight.”
 
“Shit.”  Dean nodded though as if he was putting that into the equation in his head.  “So we’ve got two hours to figure this out.”
 
“Two hours until what?”  Sam asked.
 
“Two hours until Boyd and Taylor come to take us to treatment.”
 
Caroline gasped and Dean looked at her, their eyes meeting for a moment before she took a deep breath and nodded. 
 
“Dean, no.  I just got you back.”
 
Dean snorted.  “Really?  We’re you really looking Sammy?”  He plowed on without waiting for an answer though and Sam was grateful because there was no real answer for that.  “We’ll go back in.  There’s got to be a way to track us, right?”
 
“But they’ll erase our memories again.” 
 
“No, it shouldn’t.”  Sam said as he understood where Dean was going with this.  “The protective aspect of the spell should keep anything from being able to take those memories again.”
 
“Can you track us?”
 
Sam cocked his head for a minute.  “Dean…”
 
“I don’t see Dad here to worry about it Sam.  Can you scry me or not?”
 
“It’s been a long time since I’ve tried Dean.”
 
“Hope you still got it because I don’t see any other choice here.”
 
“What are you talking about?”  Tony asked, his eyes wider than Sam had ever seen them. 
 
Sam sighed.  “Scrying is a form of divination.  I’ve used it before when Dean was in trouble.”
 
“Can you really do it to track them now?” Paul asked.  He was still skeptical but in face of what he’d already seen he was giving Sam the benefit of the doubt. 
 
“If I have to, I should be able to.  I’d prefer not to though.”
 
“Why?”
 
Sam looked up at Dean and shook his head.  “I don’t like trusting in magic.  If something is blocking me, if there’s a powerful witch or something like that in the area then it might interfere.”
 
“Are you serious?”  Tony asked.
 
“We’ll work this through Sam, then it’s time to start practicing.”
 
Sam nodded.  “Alright.  So what’s the plan?”
 
“Caroline and I…”  He looked back at her.  “Echo and I will go back to the house.  We’ll just pretend to be what they want us to be.  When they put us in the pods, we’ll get up and come let you in.”
 
“Pods?”
 
“It’s okay Sam.  It’s just where we sleep.”
 
“Alright.  So we get you in and then you’ll let us in.”
 
“Are you sure you can get through their security?”  Paul asked Dean.
 
Dean cocked his head slightly, giving his best smile.  “They think they got Charlie.  They won’t know what hit them when Dean shows up.”
 
Sam let out a small laugh and when Dean looked at him it was full of cocky amusement.  “We haven’t met a building Dean couldn’t charm or break his way in or out of.”
 
“Really?”  Paul asked.  “That have anything to do with our earlier agreement?”
 
Sam shook his head.  “No, Dean wouldn’t get caught in a simple breaking and entering.”
 
Paul looked at Dean and shook his head.  “You’re sure about this?  These people, we know they’re willing to go a long way to keep their secrets.  No one would fault you for backing out and trying to run from it now.”
 
Dean looked at him for a second and then laughed.  “There might be a few things I’m afraid of, but a skinny assed computer geek and a bunch of I–don’t-wanna-care-handlers aren’t anything to be afraid of.”
 
Sam could see the curiosity in Paul’s eyes but before he could ask Dean turned back to Sam.  “So we get you guys in and we find the head honchos and take them down.  Anything else to discuss?”
 
Sam wanted to laugh at Dean’s direct nature.  When you were dealing with the Supernatural there were a lot of hunts that were just that straight forward.  He knew Paul wanted to talk more but Dean and Caroline didn’t need all the details just yet and Sam knew there was something else that he had to do before it came to that.  “Go get lost Dean.”  Sam said, reaching for the paper on the desk and grabbing for a pen.  “Give me twenty before you come back.”
 
Dean nodded and walked out. 
 
“Where’s he going?”  Caroline asked as she moved closer to Sam. 
 
“I need to be able to scry for him and I’m out of practice.  So now, we’re playing hide and seek.”
 
 
 
 
It took three attempts to find him.  The last two times he got it within just a few minutes though and he’d handed his map over to Paul who had followed it to the waiting man.  Paul seemed impressed but still a little skeptical.  “If you can do that why can’t people do that for missing persons?”  He asked.
 
Sam shrugged.  “I don’t know that someone else couldn’t but I’ve tried for other things.  I can only find Dean.”
 
“Why?”
 
“Familiarity maybe.  Need maybe.  It’s not really something I advertised I could do.  I only did it a few times because there was no other way.”
 
“But you said you had just found him.  If you could do this all along-” There was a knock at the door and they all looked up.  He saw Caroline take a deep breath and Dean stepped closer to her, wrapping an arm over her shoulder.  She relaxed a little.  “Come on Erin, let’s put on a show.”
 
He didn’t meet Sam’s eyes as he pressed her back down onto the bed.  Paul hid in the bathroom and Tony stayed at the table, watching Sam as he moved to the door.  He opened it and cocked his head to one side.
 
“Yes?”
 
“Good evening sir.  I’m here to pick up Erin.”  The voice was pleasant enough and the African-American gentleman seemed to be professional and polite.  It made Sam want to punch him but he didn’t react to it, just stepped back to let him in.
 
He nodded as the man passed and to the older gentleman who followed right behind him.  They both came in and walked to the bed.  The older gentlemen held a hand out to Dean and smiled.  “Are you ready for your treatment?”  He asked.  Dean nodded.  “Yeah I am.” 
 
Caroline was asked the same thing by the other man and she agreed.  When she came up to Sam her smiled was pure Erin and he felt a rush of sadness at the façade and that it was one to begin with.  “You ever want another adventure, you boys be sure to call us.”  She said with an outrageous wink.
 
Sam coughed to cover a small laugh but then Dean was in front of him, the look in his eyes flirtatious and the hand he placed on Sam’s chest pushed him back into the wall.  “Next time, be ready for more than a weekend.”  He said, his voice low and husky as he leaned in and bit at Sam’s bottom lip. 
 
When he backed up, there was a swagger in his step and a wide smile as he wrapped an arm around Caroline’s shoulder and ushered her out into the hall.
 
The two men watched and it was the first man who cleared his throat.  “Glad you enjoyed your weekend sir.  If you’ll excuse us.”
 
They were out the door and Sam sagged against the wall for a second.
 
“I didn’t get a feeling from Dean that you two were-”
 
“We’re not.”
 
“That was-”
 
“That was Dean and Dean is a damn fine actor when he needs to be.”
 
“That was-”
 
“I told you.  Complicated.”
 
Paul nodded.  “Alright then.  Let’s go.”
 
 
 
It wasn’t near as bad as Sam thought it would be.  They were in the car and ready by the time Dean and Caroline were settled.  The streets were busy enough that Paul was able to follow them without the trouble of being spotted and yet not to heavy that they were hard to keep up with.  It helped that as soon as they could they hit the nearest highway and stayed on it.  He didn’t have to scry them at all that night and it wasn’t until they were driving in the downtown of Los Angeles that he needed to give it a go. 
 
Sam just closed his eyes when Paul lost them and set the paper on his lap, letting his mind go blank and focusing only on his brother.  It only took a moment before he felt it start, the automatic writing that would give him the map to his brother. 
 
When he showed the map to Paul he nodded and followed it.  They passed a parking garage that seemed to fit the end of Sam’s map.  It was an open garage with no gates but the way it dipped low there was no way to see what was inside.  It was a good place to hide in plain sight and Sam shook his head at the idea of a secret organization that left itself so close to the everyday mundane.
 
“This is going to be a long fucking day.”  Sam said softly.  Paul snorted next to him and Tony was already asleep again in the backseat.
 
 
They parked the car a block away, hoping it would be close enough if they needed to make a quick escape.  It was after ten o’clock that night when they made their way to the parking garage and snuck towards the opening.  There was no one there but Paul was quick enough to point out the cameras and they moved to the side, away from them and hid behind one of the cars, waiting for Dean and Caroline. 
 
They were only there a few minutes before a door opened and Sam saw Dean looking for them.  He let out a relieved breath and walked quickly to his brother.
 
“Worried Sammy?”  Dean asked as he got close.
 
“Of course not.  Things always go the way we plan ‘em.” 
 
Dean’s smile was all the answer he got and it was more than enough.  “Now what do we do?”
 
Dean nodded to another door that stood open.  “You get dressed.”
 
“What?”
 
“There’s a lot of people that won’t know if you’re an operative or not.  Only the head people ever really know everyone so if you dress the part you might get out of here without anyone noticing you.”
 
“Makes sense, except we’ll be moving around late and isn’t everyone supposed to be asleep?”  Paul asked. 
 
Sam just nodded and took the clothes that Caroline handed him.  He trusted Dean’s instinct when it came to a hunt and even if there was nothing supernatural here, it was still a hunt.  He was already shrugging his shirt off when he heard Dean’s answer.
 
“Yeah, but people come in late sometimes and if we need to take this to the morning you’ll be better off.”  Paul only looked at him a minute before nodding.  “We get actives in sometimes that haven’t been here before.”
 
“Like November.”  Caroline said.  “She was out in the world for a while and they just brought her in.  No one notices.  Just use one of their names.”
 
“What do you mean?”  Tony asked.
 
“I’m Echo.  He’s Charlie.”  She said to Dean.  “Sam is still good.  It’s another version of Sierra.  Tony you get to be Tommy for the day.  Paul is Peter.”
 
“Charlie?  It doesn’t have the same kick your other aka’s do.”  Sam said, trying to calm his nerves.
 
Dean’s eyes held him hard as Sam slipped the shirt over his head.  “Would you prefer Cain?”
 
Sam froze and then Echo was there between them.  “You ready Sam?” She asked.  He could tell she was trying to stop the confrontation and also to test him.
 
“Yeah, I’m ready Echo.”
 
“If someone talks to you, just follow our lead.  You like everything they talk to you about.  Your body is lethargic and so is your mind.” 
 
“We’ll see what we can find now and if we need to be here in the morning, we’ll take you to the sauna.  Once everyone wakes you can come out of there and no one will notice.”  Dean told Sam. 
 
“Are you serious?”  Paul asked, looking from Dean to Sam.
 
“If he says we’re safe then we are.”  Dean gave him an odd look and Sam shrugged.  “You might be pissed at me but you’d still throw yourself in front of a bullet to protect me Charlie.”
 
He looked like he might say something else, but shook his head and walked out.  Tony and Paul were dressed by then and their own clothes were stashed in a bag by the door if they needed to grab them. 
 
“Alright.  Everyone ready?”  Dean asked.
 
They nodded and Dean led the way out of the room.  The hallway was bland like those you’d find in any business basement.  When they reached the elevator Sam noticed the dark wood and the expensive finish.  Wherever they were about to go, it was going to be nice.  Even the clothes they wore, soft and simple but fine material and good cut.  The cars in the garage had been expensive and tasteful.  When the elevator opened up in the building, they walked out quietly, going single file behind Dean.  Sam took the rear guard with Paul in the center, Caroline in front of him and Tony behind. 
 
The whole place looked like some sort of decorator’s idea of an expensive, classy Buddhist retreat.  He took it in for a second, wondered what Dean had been made to do that made something like this so bad.  He shook his head of that thought because just not being Dean was enough for Sam.  
 
Dean led them quietly up a set of stairs and then they were alone in a room with an entire wall that was a window overlooking the rest of the place.  “Damn.”  Tony said quietly, looking at the computer and the equipment there. 
 
Sam nodded at it.  “Think you can make anything out of it Tony?”  He asked.
 
“I can try.”  You’d think Sam had just given him a present the way he smiled but Sam knew him.  Tony was a technology junkie.  He’s gone so far into computers as a kid that he’d never come back out.  He wondered if he and Ash would get along and decided he’d have to introduce them after all this was over.
 
Dean walked over to Sam.  “Not a lot of security at night.  Topher will be here earlier than most so if he can’t get anything you might be able to get it out of him.”
 
“Topher?”
 
“Skinny ass computer geek who erased our memories.”
 
Sam nodded.  “How long?”
 
“Five hours.  Maybe.  You think your friend there can figure this out?”
 
“Only person I know of that’s as good as he is would be Ash.”
 
“I’d prefer Ash here.”
 
“Me too but didn’t have time to get him here.”
 
Dean nodded.  “You called Dad?”
 
Sam shook his head.  “Bobby didn’t seem to think I needed to.”
 
“Thanks.”
 
Paul drifted over to them even as his eyes kept moving, taking everything in.  “So we’re just supposed to sit here and wait?”
 
“We can’t just let these people go.  You don’t know what it’s like to be like this.  They couldn’t survive on their own.  We need to get their memories back first.”
 
“What about your way?”  He asked Sam.  “Can’t you just… magic them back?”
 
“The only reason it worked on them was because we knew their names.  If you’d been wrong about Caroline’s, she wouldn’t remember anything right now either.”
 
The light flicked on as they were standing there and Dean pulled Caroline back behind Sam and Paul.  When a man came walking in, suit and tie and eyes cold and hard Sam recognized him as security.  A gun was pulled as the guy smiled at them.  “Well, it looks like we have visitors.” 
 
“Can I have my treatment now?”  Caroline asked from behind the men.
 
The security guy looked confused and Dean stepped forward then.  “They said we were to come for treatment now.”
 
Two other figures came in and Sam recognized them from the day before.  “Echo, it’s time to go back to your pod.”
 
Dean smiled as he looked at the man.  “I like to take naps.”  He said, his voice soft and dreamlike.
 
Echo nodded.  “They are very soothing.”  She walked past the two men and Sam didn’t hesitate when he saw Dean turning.  He kicked out at the security man before him.  The guy didn’t seem to be expecting an attack like that and Paul was beside him.  It only took a second until the other guy was down. 
 
Dean’s handler was on the floor unconscious and Dean was about to hit the other over the head but Caroline came to his defense.  “No Dean!  No.”  They both looked at her in surprise.  “Tie him up or something but don’t hurt him.  He took good care of me.”
 
Dean snorted.  “I think you’re the only one whose handler did.”
 
“Echo, tell me what’s happening.  You trust me right?”
 
She shook her head.  “No, I don’t Boyd but you tried to keep me safe.  You had concerns about what they were doing.  My name is Caroline and I’m leaving tonight.”
 
He nodded.  “I’m not going to try to stop you.”
 
She smiled.  “I know you won’t.”  Then Dean was moving around her, taking him and tying him to a chair.
 
“If you don’t make a sound I’ll leave you without a gag.  You make a noise and I’ll shut you up.  You got that?”  He asked.
 
Boyd nodded and Dean put him in the corner out of trouble and out of sight.  “Any luck Tony?”
 
“Who the hell are you?”
 
They turned to find two people standing in the doorway.  Dean was still tying up the two men from earlier and Paul was looking over Tony’s shoulder.  
 
“DeWitt.”  Caroline said in surprise.
 
“Hello Caroline.”  She said, her voice sounding pleasant as she stepped into the room.  The man behind her seemed concerned, his expression ranging from fear to panic to anger as he saw someone else at the desk.
 
“Get away from that!”
 
“Tell us how to give them back their memories.”  Caroline demanded.
 
“I can’t.” 
 
“No, but he can.”  Dean said, coming up behind Caroline.
 
“Dean.”  DeWitt’s smile was brighter then.  “I would never have thought to meet you again so soon.”
 
“Of course not, after you stole his memories.”  Sam said, his fists gripped tight as he looked at the woman in front of them.  He knew a person of power when he saw it and he took a deep breath as he tried to let Dean take the lead in this.
 
“There is that, but most of our actives who have this sort of trouble do it for a specific reason.  I think Dean, of all the people I have met over the years, was the most eager to take our offer.”
 
Sam waited for Dean’s denial but it never came.  When he looked back at his brother there was only anger.  “Maybe, but what you offered isn’t the same as what you gave, was it?  Of course at the end of five years I wouldn’t have known that, would I?” 
 
DeWitt seemed taken aback by his words, as did the man beside her.  “Oh yeah, I remember it all.  I remember the treatments and the assignments.  I remember all three of my handlers and why they didn’t stick around long.  I remember the jobs I wasn’t supposed to be doing that you had me do anyway.  I gave you my body in that contract and you broke it.”
 
“Who else?”  Caroline asked.  DeWitt looked like she was about to ask but Caroline cut her off.  “Who else is having trouble?  You seem to expect me to be up here, but who else?  Who else are you going to put in the attic because they don’t behave the way you want?”
 
“We can’t give them their memories back.  Not like you have them.”  DeWitt said.
 
“Of course you can.”
 
“No, it’s not possible.”  The other man spoke up then.
 
“Explain yourself Topher.  And you’ve got about two seconds.”  There was something in Dean’s eyes, something that made him wonder about Topher and his relationship with his brother. 
 
“Look, you can’t have that many personalities in your brain.  It’s that simple.  You can’t take it all, it’s why you’re left as such a blank slate when you’re in here.”
 
“And do you want those memories?  Really Dean?  Do you want to remember all those men?  Do you want to remember the guns and the drugs and the filthy lies you told for them?”  DeWitt shrugged down towards the main floor.  “They don’t want to know and neither do you.  You came to us Dean.  You and Caroline and ever single person in here.  You came to us of your own free will.  We made you an offer and you signed your conscience off for five years.  We went above that for you and even removed your scars.  We filled our end of the bargain.”  She walked closer to him then, letting one hand rest on his wrist.  “We helped with all your problems, except the one you could never run away from.”  She said quietly, her eyes flicking back over to Sam.  “We can make it so that you forget again Dean.  We can erase it all, tabula rasa Dean, the blank slate you were looking for.”
 
He watched Dean close his eyes like he was making a hard choice.  When he opened his eyes though the anger seemed to have won out over whatever else he might be feeling.  “I want the actives you’re planning on putting in the attic.  These people made their choices, but we’ll take those off your hands.”
 
DeWitt watched him for a minute then nodded.  “Alright.  It takes the strain off me to find a way to fix them again.  However you did this though Dean, once they start glitching the memories don’t work as well as they used to.”
 
“Sam?”
 
“Give us their files.  We need to know their names and something about them before we leave with them.”
 
“November, Sierra, and Victor were all about ready to be put in the Attic.  You can bring them all up and I won’t fight you on it.”
 
“Why?”  Caroline demanded as Dean slipped out of the room. 
 
“Because I run a business.  They were good actives but they are past their usefulness.  If you take them they are no longer a drain on my resources.”
 
Sam thought it sounded weak but he didn’t fight her on it.  Caroline and Dean knew these people a lot better than he did.  He could tell Paul was thinking along the same lines.  They’d managed to get in here, but if they couldn’t restore their memories it didn’t do any good to bust these people.    
 
When Dean came back Paul stiffened visibly.  “Mellie?  Lubov?”
 
Sam saw the way Paul was looking at two of the new faces and he wondered if his own face had looked similar when he’d found Dean.  Of course he doubted Paul had just figured out he’d slept with his lost brother, but there was obviously something going on.
 
“You had better start explaining lady.”  Paul said.
 
“We needed to keep you in line.  We needed people close to you that would be able to take care of things if you got too close.  If it’s any consolation, she was barely programmed at all.  It was her own nature that drew her to you as we knew it would.”
 
“Paul?”  Sam said. 
 
Paul looked at him, nodding. 
 
“We’ll take those files then, and be out of your hair Ms. DeWitt.”  Dean said softly.
 
“Of course.  They’re in my office.”
 
“Paul, why don’t you help me with these two?”  Dean said, motioning DeWitt and Topher.  They watched as the two men led the others away.  He took a deep breath as they did. 
 
“You sure Dean can handle this if something goes wrong?”  Tony asked as he looked up from the computer.
 
“You don’t know anything about Dean.  Right now, I would pity anyone who got in the way of his anger.”
 
“What was he running from Sam?”  Caroline asked him softly. 
 
Sam shook his head.  “I don’t know.”  He said softly, “but if I had to take a guess, it would be me.”
 
They stayed silent after that, waiting for the others to return.  It didn’t take long and then Tony took the files and they took DeWitt and Topher with them out of the building, back the way they’d come.
 
They watched her as they walked out of the parking garage with her.  “This isn’t over.”  Paul said as he walked out. 
 
She smiled.  “No, I don’t suppose it is.  However the next time we meet face to face I expect the security in our new home will be a bit higher.”
 
It was obvious Paul wasn’t happy about walking out with something so small, but whenever his eyes rested on November he could see his resolve growing.  There was definitely something there and Sam knew he was putting her safety before his ambition to destroy the Dollhouse.
 
 
 
 
Sam was ready to scream by the time they got back to the car.  He still wasn’t so sure they’d gotten away with anything, but the people with him were free and that was more than they’d had going in.
 
Dean was quiet and he didn’t understand what had happened, why they’d left so many people behind but he knew his brother and something more was going on here.  Instead of trying to get him to open up about it he decided to just wait it out.  At least until they were alone. 
 
They drove an hour out of town until Dean told Sam to pull off at a storage center.  He was surprised until he saw what was inside the thing.  Dean’s smile lit up as he looked at the Impala. 
 
“Damn.”  Paul said behind him.
 
Sam sat back and watched.  “That’s Dean’s baby.  I knew he had to have her somewhere safe.”  He crossed his arms as he waited, then realized there was no need for this.  “You got the name and address we gave you?”
 
Paul nodded.  “Yeah.  You sure about this?”
 
“Yeah.  Ellen will take good care of you and she’ll do what has to be done to get your friends back.  Tony and Ash will probably disappear with the information Tony was able to figure out and you’ll never see them again.  Just… don’t trust anything Ash might try to give you to drink, even if it looks like it’s come straight from the bottle.”
 
Paul nodded and shook Sam’s hand.  “It’s been an interesting weekend Sam.”  He said.
 
Sam snorted.  “Keep in touch Paul.”
 
 
When the car pulled away ten minutes later Sam was left with Dean and Caroline.  She’d refused to leave Dean point blank and Sam wasn’t sure how he felt about it.  He couldn’t force her to go though and Dean seemed to take comfort in her being there.
 
“Think she’ll make it to Bobby’s?”  Sam asked as Dean finally stopped tinkering with her.
 
Dean nodded.  “Gonna take it easy on her but we should be able to get there tomorrow.”
 
“It’ll be good to see him again.”
 
Dean ran his hand over his face and sighed.  “Yeah.”
 
“He was worried about you Dean.  He’s not angry.”
 
Dean nodded.  “Yeah.  Well we aren’t going to make it if we don’t get started.”
 
Sam smiled.  “Back on the road again?”
 
“So, where we going?  Caroline asked.
 
“A friend’s place.”
 
“Dean?”
 
“Yeah Sam.”
 
“I need to make a stop somewhere first.”
 
“Yeah?”
 
“I need to… see to some things in Stanford.  Why don’t you take Caroline and I’ll meet you there?”
 
“Sammy?”
 
“It’s okay Dean.  I need to close some things up and it’ll give you two some time to figure out what to do next.”
 
Dean nodded.  “Alright Sammy.”  He hesitated then continued on.  “You’ll come back though, right?”
 
Sam nodded.  “Yeah Dean.  Just need to see someone and pack a few things up in Palo Alto and I’ll fly back down to Bobby’s.”
 
Caroline leaned up from the back of the car.  “So… are you two going to explain the whole brothers’ thing or just leave me to guess?”
 
“What?”  Sam asked, eyes wide as he looked back at her.
 
“DeWitt’s files.  Dean’s closest living relative was listed as his little brother Sam.  I might not be a rocket scientist but it doesn’t take much to figure that one out.”
 
“I…”
 
Dean just shrugged as he popped a tape into the player and turned the music up.  Caroline looked surprised and Sam just shrugged.  She looked at Dean a second longer as he pulled out of the storage center, then just laughed.  They were on the freeway again and they had their own lives and it was enough to let the explanations rest.  For now.
 
 
 
It took a week for Sam to get everything settled in Palo Alto.The first thing he’d done was to go to Jessica and they had a long talk.It was painful for them both and Sam knew that he and Jessica would never be friends after this, but he couldn’t go through with a wedding when the weekend had shown him just how much he loved his brother.No matter that Jessica was what he had decided he could have, she wasn’t really what he wanted and she deserved more than that.
His stuff was packed up and he went to the college and explained that he had some family emergency that he needed to leave for.It took a few days to get the paperwork settled and he felt more and more uneasy as the days passed.
He thought about just running but he knew that Dean would never forgive him for it. Dean would hunt him down and he’d pretend to forget about it, pretend nothing had gone wrong, but he’d never forgive it.
Caroline surprised him with a call that first night in Palo Alto.Her voice was soft and concerned and Sam found himself, closing his eyes and imagining her on one of Bobby’s couches, legs tucked up under her and watching as Bobby and Dean sat at the kitchen table.
They didn’t talk long, just enough for them both to know they were okay.“You’re coming back to us, right Sam?”She asked as they were about to hang up.
“Yeah.Of course I am.Why would you ask that?”
“Because he’s afraid you aren’t.”
Sam took a deep breath and was torn between anger that Dean didn’t think he’d keep his word and relief that Dean still knew him well enough to know what was in his head.
“I’ll be there Caroline.”
It was three more days before he was on the plane.It was a red eye flight out and he found himself landing at some awful hour of the morning.When he came down the steps to baggage claim his heart stopped as he saw Dean waiting for him.
He took a deep breath and walked calmly over to him, wanting to run, wanting to crash into him and kiss him, wanting just to know that Dean would let him close in some way.Dean held out a coffee cup and Sam smiled.“I thought you might need something to wake you up.”His brother said.
“Thanks Dean.”He said, not meaning the coffee.“I could have taken a cab.”
“You got a lot?”
“Just a bag.I had the rest of my stuff shipped to Bobby’s.”
They grabbed his bag and then they were in the Impala again, taking the back roads to Bobby’s.Sam was only a little surprised when they stopped a few miles away from the salvage yard at an old field they use to go to when they were kids.They’d lie in the high grass, completely hidden from the rest of the world and just talk about whatever the hell was driving them nuts at the time.It had been easier as they got older, being able to confess trouble with girls and school bullies and the like without having to look each other in the eye, just the touch of a hand or the press of thigh against thigh to let them know it was alright.
Sam was pretty sure most of his problems with his brother stemmed from this field, that his love of his brother came from the times they shared secrets there.
Dean got out and made his way to the center of the field and Sam followed, not really able to do anything else.When Dean led them to the shade of the old tree and lay down in it, Sam hesitated.
“Come on Sammy.Just relax with me a little.”
He didn’t want to.What he wanted was to lean down over Dean and press those strong shoulders into the dirt, to strip him and press inside that body with the tree and tall grass as witness.He took a deep breath and before he could force himself to move Dean grabbed his wrist and wrapped his ankle around Sam’s, tripping Sam as he pulled him off balance.
He landed next to Dean and Dean’s arm pushed Sam onto his back, then settled down to rest next to him.Sam just did as he was told then, listening to Dean’s breathing until he felt his own match it.He shifted slightly, his hand moving over to Dean and his fingers sliding into his front pocket like he used to do as a boy when he just needed to feel Dean.He’d never needed a safety blanket of any kind in his life, except Dean’s touch.Four years of being constantly uncertain, of needing that reassurance made him antsy and now he was just worried Dean wouldn’t give him that small comfort anymore.
Dean didn’t say anything, but shifted slightly, letting Sam’s hand dig deeper into his pocket.
“Why?”Sam finally asked.
Dean took a deep breath and Sam felt him tuck a thumb into the pocket next to Sam’s fingers.“Why did you run Sam?You left first; I have a right to ask first.”
It was twisted logic that only really made sense to Dean, but considering what he’d already done he knew Dean was just asking him to voice it.“I could have accepted that I was never going to be good enough for Dad.I could have accepted that because I always knew you were the better hunter and I was proud of you for that.I couldn’t live with the way he threw you out into danger like that though Dean.I couldn’t live with the pain I felt whenever you got hurt and … I couldn’t live with the jealousy I felt every time you walked away from me to go with someone else.”
“I never left you Sam.”
“No, but you never left with me either Dean.I knew it was sick, knew that wanting you like that wasn’t right.So I decided if I couldn’t have you then I had to get away before I really messed things up with us.But…”
“Dad.”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t know what to say to all this Sam.Your friend explained why you liked things the way you did.If you wanted normal and safe then why go to all the effort?Why…”
Sam could see he was having a hard time saying the rest of it.“Why find someone I could pretend was you?Because you were what I wanted and I was making myself settle for something else.”
They were both quiet for a little while before Sam continued.“I didn’t realize it was you that night, or that morning.”
“I know.I was there too.”
He nodded.“Why did you run Dean?”
“It’s easy to say it was about the shape shifter, but I don’t think you’d believe me if I tried.I…”Dean took a deep breath.“I always knew Sam.Knew this thing between us wasn’t right.I knew what you wanted and I just kept trying to figure out what I’d done wrong to make you like that, to get you to see me like that.”
“When you went away, I fought with Dad a lot.I had to walk away because I couldn’t take it anymore.When I went to check on you, I realized it wasn’t just you… that all that protectiveness I’d had was just a way to channel it all.”
Sam pressed his fingers into Dean’s thigh, not able to say anything just yet for fear that he was misreading what Dean was saying, but needing to let him know he was still there.
“When the shape shifter thing hit, DeWitt was there.She offered to clear my name.Offered me a hell of a lot of money and all I had to do was give them my body.They’d take care of me, take care of the memories and I thought… I thought maybe Sammy… maybe if I let them have those memories for five years that it wouldn’t be so bad when I got them back.That maybe the time and distance would make things normal.”
“Only I told DeWitt no men.I knew what she was going to make me do but I didn’t want the muscle memory of it.I told her no more guns, no weapons, nothing like the life I’d already led.It was a lie, a nice one that she told me, but I wanted to believe Sam so I did.Right up until the time I woke up and realized that for all my running I’d still ended up fucking my baby brother.”
“Dean…I’m sorry.You have every right to hate me.”
“The thing is Sam, all I can think about is that if I had been on the other side of this, I wouldn’t have been able to stop either.”
He turned his head then and looked at Sam.Sam could see the pain there, the need and the desire that he’d kept buried over the years.Without thinking, Sam moved over his brother, one hand coming to his face as he leaned over and brushed his lips against his.
Dean went still under him, but Sam licked at his lips, begging for entrance and suddenly Dean was open to him, moaning as Sam’s tongue slipped between his lips.He was rock hard that quick and when Dean rolled him onto his back Sam felt Dean’s hard cock against his thigh.
“Fuck Dean…”
Dean’s laugh was deep and he felt delirious in its wake.“We need to get back to Bobby’s.”
“You have got to be kidding me.”
Dean shook his head but his eyes were lit with mischief.“Nope.Bobby’s on a hunt and Caroline will kill me if I don’t bring you home soon.”
Sam’s shock must have shown on his face because Dean dropped his mouth to Sam’s again.“Yeah Sammy, she’s still your girl.We had some time to talk and I told her all about us.She told me about herself and it all just sort of fit.She wants to do something good for the world Sam and she ended up doing some bad things to do it.She’s seen enough to know I wasn’t lying and she’s afraid to be on her own just now.She’s going to stay with us, see where this thing leads.Don’t know how long it will last, but I think it’s worth giving it a try.”
Sam just looked up in bewilderment as Dean smiled.He stood up and offered a hand to Sam.Sam took it, looking at their hands clasped together and wondering when his brain turned to mush so fast that he couldn’t touch his brother without this much awe.
Dean’s smile didn’t change but his eyes did, darkening with passion and heart.“Come on Sammy.Let’s get home to Caroline.”
Sam smiled.“Home?”
“Well... Bobby’s.”
“I don’t care where it is as long as there’s a bed involved.”
Dean pulled him in by the neck, the same as he had been doing with Caroline, and Sam opened to him.The kiss was heated with promises of what was to come and Sam didn’t have a second thought about it.He was going home, to Dean and Caroline and he doubted life would ever be quiet again.Whatever happened next though, there would be no more hiding and no more running.Whatever happened next they’d face it head on.Together.