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Free Supernatural Fanfiction – Chapter Summary:

Analina receives tragic news of her grandfather’s death, prompting a cross-country drive with Dean and Sam. Dean provides crucial emotional support, and her family’s cautious reunion highlights the stark contrast between her two lives.

Rating: PG-13
Contains:  Emotional Intensity, Supernatural Undercurrent, Mild Language, Brief Mild Action 
No Explicit Content: There is no graphic violence, sexual content, or strong language.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN:  
Death and a Funeral 

End of 2010

WE STARTED TO RESEARCH MORE into the horsemen’s rings. It was another lead that could possibly help us. They had looked into the four horsemen before, but not their rings. However, the rings weren’t well documented. I learned early on that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed.

Shortly after, we ended up doing another case, which didn’t take too long. We just finished up and headed back to the motel to regroup.

The phone call was unexpected—which was usually how these types of calls went. We had just pulled into the motel and booked our adjoining rooms. I stepped into what would be my room when my cell rang. When I noticed the caller on the phone, my heart stopped. My parents never called me. I always told them that I would call them, and tried to check in with them within a certain time. Maybe it was nothing, I thought in disbelief. I answered it.

It wasn’t good. My grandfather had passed away peacefully in his sleep. My mother’s father was the last remaining grandparent that I had. We were close. Well, until I ran off with Sam and Dean to help stop the end of the world. I tried to remain calm while on the phone. My mother told me what had happened that day. They were planning a funeral and wanted to see if I could come.

We weren’t exactly close. In fact, we were all the way across the country. Dean doesn’t fly. If I did go, we would have to drive, or I could just fly there myself or maybe with Sam if they didn’t want me to travel alone. I was not sure how that might float over with them. I felt obligated to go. I owed my grandfather that much. The viewing was in two days with the funeral on the third. I wasn’t sure how fast we would be able to get there if we went. She offered to see if they could push back the funeral a day or two, but I said to keep it as was. I knew other family members would be traveling and no doubt arrangements were already being made by them to go. I told her that I would talk to Sam and Dean, and I would try to be there as soon as I could.

I hung up with her and noticed my hands were shaking a little already. I swallowed the lump in my throat and took a breath. I told myself to stay together a little bit longer. I had to tell Sam and Dean. It was a little late to start out tonight… maybe tomorrow morning?

First things first, I thought. I crossed the room and went into the adjoining one that belonged to them. We always kept the door unlocked between our rooms. For one, it was easier to get to each other if something happened. Secondly, we all could pick a lock. And, I’m sure they could kick down the door anyway.

Sam was on the laptop at the table, and Dean was listening to music on the bed, which was vibrating. Looking up from the computer, Sam noticed me first. He must have sensed something was wrong.

“Analina, what’s wrong?” Sam asked and stood. Dean noticed Sam and then looked at me. He took out his earbuds and sat up.

“It’s alright,” I said at first. I didn’t want them to think it was an attack or anything. “My mom just called. My… grandfather just died.”

I was going to say more, but a lump formed again in my throat.

“Analina, I’m so sorry,” Sam said quietly, moving closer and stood next to where Dean sat on the bed.

“Thanks. He—uh—died in his sleep, so they found him late this morning. They’re planning a funeral in three days for him. I—” I stopped again.

“Of course you should go to the funeral,” Dean said and stood. He looked around at their things. He rubbed his face, obviously tired from the day’s drive already.

I couldn’t make them leave now. “Oh, Dean, not tonight. It’s too late, and we’re too tired to do that. We can go tomorrow. We’ll—we’ll have time if we start tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah, I’ll make sure we make it,” Dean said softly.

“Thanks,” I managed to say. I could feel the tears starting to build up, so I turned and went back to my room. I closed the door. I could hear them talking very softly, but I couldn’t be bothered with what they were saying. I started to get everything ready so we could leave at a decent time tomorrow. I got my clothes ready for the next day and took a quick shower.

That was when it all started to hit me. I started to feel immensely guilty that I left the way I did. I was sure he was worried about me. I didn’t think he would be mad per se, but…

I heard a soft knock on the door. I realized I had tears pouring down my face. I grabbed a tissue, blotted what I could, and I opened the door. It was Dean.

He cleared his throat, “May I come in?”

“Uh, sure.” I stepped aside to let him in. He closed the door and just looked at me for a second.

I really couldn’t hold it together much longer. He took a step forward and wrapped his arms around me. And basically, I lost it. I don’t remember if he said anything to me. If he did, I didn’t notice.

After the first wave went through, I took a step back. “Sorry. Did you want something?” I asked, not meeting his eyes for fear of crying again. I noticed a small wet spot on his T-shirt. I bit my lip at this.

He took my hands, and we sat on the edge of the bed. “You said that the first twelve to twenty-four hours were the hardest so.” He shrugged. “Here I am.”

I managed a weak smile. “I believe I also said I would make you extremely uncomfortable.”

“I’m good,” he said nonchalantly. “Are we—uh—in the middle of it now?”

“Tip of the iceberg,” I replied with a sniffle and another small smile.

He nodded. “Well, come here.”

He pulled me into another embrace.

“You don’t have to do this,” I whispered, as I felt my chest tighten again.

“I know,” he mumbled. He started to stroke my hair.

And, that’s how the night went. I cried in his arms until I wore myself out. It was just the way I grieve. No one had ever witnessed me do this before Dean.

I woke up the next morning a little stiff but still in Dean’s arms. We lay on top of the bedspread still dressed from yesterday with a handful of tissues in my hand. I had tried not to soak him in tears, but eventually I gave up.

I remained still, just fully waking up. Dean stretched a little.

“When you said it hits you hard and fast, you weren’t kidding… And, now you’re okay?”

I shifted my head to see him. “I rarely lie. But yeah, that was about it. I should be fine now.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” I propped myself up on my elbow. “Well, not bursting with happiness, but realistically functional.”

“Hmm.”

“I’m sorry about,” I looked down at the small wet spot that still remained, “that.”

He glanced down and smiled. “That’s alright.”

Pause.

“So you never let anyone see you like that?” he asked.

“No, you would be the first one.”

He studied me for a moment. “Don’t worry. Your secret crying is safe with me.”

I chuckled quietly. “Thanks… and thanks for being there. I think it helped.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

We smiled briefly.

WE GOT READY AND HEADED OUT. Reflecting back on that night, I didn’t think Dean would be the type to have done what he did. He tended to shy away from touchy-feely moments. Not that I was complaining. I never had someone around when I went through my grieving process, but having Dean there for me… well, it felt right. I felt comforted in a way that I didn’t think I could feel before. He didn’t have to say anything. His presence was enough. It made me calmer, more at peace. And surprisingly, he didn’t seem to be that uncomfortable as I cried. Despite my grandfather’s death, something was changing between us. I could feel it.

For being across the country, we made good time. We estimated that we would just make it for the funeral. I had called ahead and told them we definitely wouldn’t make it for the wake, but that we should be there for the funeral. I wasn’t sure how long we would stay. I imagined it wouldn’t be too long. The closer we got to home, the more my stomach started to turn into knots.

Not completely over my grandfather’s death, I was still a little sensitive with my emotions. I realized about halfway that this was the first time that I would see my family (and vice versa) since I had left about half a year before. Had it really been that long? I had no idea what I would say. How would I explain what I was doing to those who didn’t know everything? What about my parents? I suddenly didn’t want to go back—even though I did want to see them.

Sam and Dean were mostly quiet on the way. They never argued that I shouldn’t go back home for the funeral, and they didn’t complain that I took time away from everything else. That helped me a lot. They were like two solid rocks that I could lean on. I hadn’t realized how much they moved into my life since I met them. They were like best friends or even family now.

The funeral was at ten o’clock, and we had just reached the Pennsylvania border just after eight o’clock. We weren’t going to make it to the funeral home for the small prayer service prior to the funeral, which was starting at 9:30. We would have to go straight to the church. Since we had a little more time, I had them stop at my parent’s house so I could change into a dress instead of what I was wearing—my clothing choices were a little limited for things other than hunting.

Dean parked the car in front of the house. It felt so weird. Everything looked the same. I noticed my car parked in the driveway that nestled between the two entrances. I had told my mother that she could use the car—especially in the winter since I had all-wheel drive and her car didn’t. We climbed out and stretched. We had gotten up early that morning to finish the trip. It shouldn’t take long to freshen up and change. The church was only five minutes away, closer than the funeral home. I started walking up to the door when I realized that I didn’t have my keys. I couldn’t unlock the door.

“What’s wrong?” Dean asked as I hesitated.

“I just remembered that I don’t have a key to get in.”

This wasn’t a problem since we could basically unlock anything that we encountered. I suggested we go around back so that the older neighbors didn’t see what we did and call the police. That would be all we needed.

Walking to the back of the house, I noticed the inside of my car had coffee stains and cigarette ashes everywhere. I grimaced as I remembered how nice and neat the car had been—not that I had to drive much when I had it. I considered how possessive Dean was with his car. He didn’t flip out over wrappers in the car, but anything that would jeopardize the car itself was enough to start World War III.

My duplex was on the second story. Instead of scaling the deck to get to the back door for my place, we broke into my parents’ part of the house located on ground level. I had forgotten about the cats. I had one black cat named Aloysius. My parents had two tabbies. My parents moved Aloysius into their part of the duplex to take care of him. At first, the cats ran in all directions and then poked their heads around the corners. It was like they remembered me, but they weren’t quite sure. Two tall figures standing not far from me probably didn’t help things, but eventually they came about and wouldn’t stop rubbing on my legs. I also found out that Dean was allergic to cats. I rectified this with an antihistamine that my parents kept in their medicine cabinet. Thankfully, those were non-drowsy.

After I disentangled myself from the cats, I took my spare key from my parents and went up to my apartment to get my dress. Sam and Dean freshened themselves up in my parent’s place since that was bigger than mine. As I opened my apartment door, I noticed that there were suitcases and things around the living room. It took me by surprise until I realized that obviously someone was staying here for the funeral since I wasn’t. I carefully tried not to touch anything that was around and obtained my dress from the closet—mostly still stocked with my things. Actually, not much was moved from my place. It was like they were expecting me back from a vacation.

I was ready a few minutes later, and that’s when I started to get nervous again. I didn’t want to take away my grandfather’s funeral by showing up after my long absence. This was a day to remember him, not me. But, I had to go.

We left through the front door, locking things back up. I had retained my keys and put them in my purse. After a few minor directions to Dean, we zipped over to the church. People were starting to go in. It was a windy and chilly day, although not raining. My hands were cold, and I didn’t think this had to do with the weather outside. I sat in the car.

“We going in or what?” Dean looked over his shoulder at me.

“Yeah, in a minute. I just thought I let everyone sit down first. I don’t want to make a scene at my grandfather’s funeral.”

“How would you make a scene?” Sam asked.

“Well, they haven’t seen me in how long? I just don’t want to take away from my grandfather’s funeral because I showed up… at least not in the middle of it.”

“Then we better get you in there,” Dean said. Looking out, we could see the funeral procession approaching the church.

Making our way in, I took them to the side. We sat near the back behind a cluster of people that I didn’t know. They must be some friends from the church that knew him. Although we didn’t live that far away, my parents and I attended another church nearby. I hadn’t had much of a chance to go to church since being on the road. I tried to keep up with the readings online to make up for things.

People started to enter from the funeral procession. Some were weeping and others just looked sad. No one really took notice of us as they took their seats, and I sighed a little in relief. I would talk to them afterward.

Finally, my immediate family started in with the casket, priest, and altar servers. They gathered in the front center pews of the church. As the procession song played, I whispered briefly who some of the people up front were to Sam and Dean. They both remained solemn throughout the mass, and we stayed hidden from view.

The eulogy was given by my Uncle Victor—the only son of the family. He told some cute stories about my grandfather, Arthur Evan Duncan—like the time he hit a boy in school because he was mean to a girl. My uncle did well and kept a steady voice. When the mass was over, everyone started to file out of the pews and out the church—immediate family led the way. I leaned back a little to stay out of sight, but I think my cousin caught sight of me. I could just see a few family members turn their heads back around to look in my direction, but they were already hitting the doorway. I wasn’t sure if they really saw me or not.

We waited a little longer in the pew to make sure that most of the family was out and in their cars by the time we left. Next we would go to the cemetery and then lunch at a local golf club restaurant. (My grandfather used to golf there.) As we exited the church, the cars were lined up to follow the hearse to the cemetery. I knew people would see me now, but they were almost ready to drive off. No one would leave their cars to greet me.

I noticed my parents and could hear my name through the closed windows and doors of the car. They quickly rolled those down. I walked over to their car with Sam and Dean trailing a little behind me. As briefly as I could, I said I would see them at the cemetery and then we could talk at the luncheon.

“I’m glad you made it,” my mom said.

“Yeah, so am I. Thanks to Sam and Dean, we basically drove nonstop to make it in time.” My parents looked behind me at them.

The cars started to move, so I stepped back. “See you in a few minutes,” I said.

The three of us went back to the Impala and followed the line to the cemetery. Since we were near the end, we didn’t get a close spot to the little chapel area where they held the burial service when it was cold or rainy. As we walked towards the small building, Dean asked how I was doing. I was fine. Technically with the funeral anyway, but I didn’t think that seeing my family was as bad as I thought. At least my parents didn’t seem mad at my brief return. I didn’t really think they would, but it was awkward just thinking about such things.

I entered the room and a hushed uproar spread around the room at my appearance. I felt Dean push me on ahead to stand by my parents during the short service there. They remained in the back.

“We just got in before the funeral started,” I explained. I didn’t get to say much else as the service started.

Afterward, I was bombarded by family greeting me and asking me all sorts of questions. I noticed that Sam and Dean conveniently stayed away at a distance during this time. I answered what I could and kept things vague on what I was doing. I told my parents that I would ride with Sam and Dean because they weren’t from around here—even though a whole line of cars was going to the luncheon.

I eventually made my way back to the Impala where Sam and Dean were waiting. Letting out a sigh of relief, I landed in the backseat.

“It looks like you didn’t make a scene after all,” Dean commented, revving up the engine. We had a few minutes to wait until the line moved in front of us.

“Yeah,” I answered and looked at the people ahead of us. “It feels very weird, though.”

“Well, you’ve been gone for a while,” Sam said. “It’s to be expected.”

“And are you guys ready for questions? Because it’s going to be a lot harder to fade into the background at this part,” I said.

“We were born ready,” Dean said with a grin of reassurance. The car in front of us started to move, and we were on our way.

THE LUNCHEON WASN’T TOO BAD. My family was busy enough with outside friends and acquaintances, so I wasn’t the complete focus. My parents wanted to know how long I would be in town. I was honest and said that I really didn’t know, but probably not too long—considering everything that was going on outside of the family.

My family was polite to Sam and Dean, who were considered my partners at my new job. I tried to remain with them throughout the whole thing. I didn’t want them to feel uncomfortable, and it was not the ideal situation to meet my family. However, they seemed to be fine. I guessed they crashed enough funerals in their profession to seem like they should be there.

After the luncheon, we went back to my parents’ house. The immediate family was going to regroup and then meet at my aunt’s for dinner and to go over a few things—splitting up the flowers from the funeral and things like that. Unfortunately, that’s when we got a call from Bobby that he was pinpointing big demonic activity.

That required us to leave that evening. I thought Dean and Sam would suggest that I stay for a little while, but this was too big for me to be left behind. The more hands we had in this the better, especially with my demon sensing abilities. My parents were disappointed, but they were glad that I had at least made it to the funeral. They also got to say goodbye this time. Meeting Sam and Dean was good for them. I saw them talk to my parents at the luncheon without me. My parents could tell that I was being looked after. I don’t think they were completely comfortable that I was traveling with two men or that danger lurked everywhere we were. However, they trusted me, and I assured them everything was fine. I was unsure about how the rest of my family felt. They probably would talk about what I did behind closed doors, but what they didn’t know was for the best.

Image by Copilot and tweaked in Krita

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