New Beginnings

A Fateful Decision

From Dean's POV:

We walked outside hand-in-hand to our little sanctuary in the woods, climbing up to the top rock. I reached out and touched her cheek. "I know you saw the note about where Sam and I had gone. I also bet you are probably wondering what happened while we were there," I finished.

"All I want to know is how did the hunt go, and did you get the answers you were looking for," said Maggie.

"Well, the hunt was a no-go on both fronts. The hotel does all that weird ghost-type stuff for the tourists. Nothing real. And the Psychic Fair was a bust also," I explained.

I paused before answering the second part of her question. "As far as getting the answers I was looking for....Yes. I did. I wanted to make sure that Lisa and Ben had moved on, and from what I saw, they have. The best thing I did was to burn that letter move on from them with you. I'm so sorry if I hurt you, Maggie, I would never do that on purpose. It was a really boneheaded move on my part. I hope you can forgive me," I said as I hung my head.

She was silent for what seemed like an eternity before finally speaking. "I understand why you went. Believe me, when I read your note about where you'd gone, I was angry and scared, but....hopeful," she said. When I looked up, I must have had a confused look on my face, because she continued.

"I was angry, because you intentionally put yourself in that kind of situation where you may have to choose. Scared because you might make a choice other than me. Hopeful because I realized that I had faith and trust in you to make the right decision. And you proved me right, because you came home to me," she finished, tears brimming in her eyes. "Of course I can forgive you. I already have. Now you have to forgive yourself."

"Maggie....." I said softly just before I pulled her close and my mouth came crashing down on hers. It felt like I couldn't get enough of her. The feel of her soft lips, the curve of her neck, her sparkling hazel eyes--everything about her said to me, this is home, this is where I belong.

"I love you and only you, Maggie. Always and forever," I promised. "And I love you and only you, Dean. Forever and always," she smiled.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

From Maggie's POV:

I was running down an alleyway, alone. We were tracking a shapeshifter that had come out of Lucky's Bar and Grill, but somehow we lost it and I got separated from the team. I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I whipped around, ready to fight and saw that it was Dean, who said he had been looking for me. He took my hand and we started running towards where he said the Impala was. Then, I heard my name being shouted from another direction. I looked down the alley and saw....Dean? Trying warn me about something? I turned my head back around just in time to feel a blow across my face, knocking me unconscious.

The next image I have is of me being tied to a chair in some dirty basement. The shapeshifter came down for a little chat. He said that he's been tracking me for some time, waiting for the right time to grab me. I asked what makes me so important that he's spent all this time focused on capturing me. He said that due to my level of psychic ability, he's going to keep me here for a while, continually feeding off of my psychic energy. He said eventually he'll kill me, but not until he's extracted every bit of my power. Then he heard a noise and disappeared.

Footsteps are coming down the stairs. It was Dean, but the shifter saw him first and hit him in the head, hard. Dean went down like a rag doll and didn't get up. Sam made it down the stairs and tried to stab the shifter with his silver knife, but it punched him and the knife went skittering across the floor. The creature effortlessly picked Sam up and threw him across the room, where he slammed against the wall, not moving.