Wendigo.

CHAPTER SIX , WENDIGO

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Athena catches up to the boy. "Hi!"

Ben slightly jumps from the girl appearing beside him. "Uh...hi...?"

"I'm Athena."

Ben nods, "Like the Goddess of Wisdom and War."

Athena smiles, "You like Mythology?"

"Who doesn't?" Ben lets out a breath.

Athena's eyes light up. "I was clueless about Mythology until my brother Sam explained my charm bracelet."

Athena lifts her wrist up, revealing the sterling silver bracelet that had a Charm of a Book, Sword, and a Peace Symbol.

"Sick."

"Right?" Athena looks down at it, smiling warmly.

"Where'd you get it?" Ben asks.

"I think...my mom gave it to me. I mean, I'm positive it wasn't my dad." Athena chews the inside of her cheek. "The only time he gave me a gift was my Gameboy and that was for...different circumstances."

Ben pulls his brows together when Athena's bright tone drops slightly. She inhales, noticing her attitude become small and she recovers. "But I love the game, seriously!"

Ben had to admit, when he first met Athena, he thought she was younger than she actually was. She was shorter than the average preteen and she was less mature as well. Athena's appearance was immature, sure, but her mind was beyond her years.

"Tommy bought me my first Gameboy."

Athena looks at Ben with wide eyes. A sad smile appears on his lips. He unzips his bag and pulls out the blue Gameboy. Athena's eyes brighten once again and she unzips her bag, pulling out her pink Gameboy covered in stickers.

Ben's eyes widen. "Wow. Those are...a lot of stickers."

Athena's smile falters. She waits for him to tease her like the other kids did at her school. She waits for him to call her a name.

"Can I have one?"

Athena's pulls her brows together, but she smiles. "Of course!" She grabs one o her sticker pallets from her bag and holds it out to him. "Choose your character!" She voices, trying her best to sound like a game narrator.

Ben softly laughs and Athena giggles.

"Looks like someone's got a crush..." Dean says, nudging Sam.

Sam turns his head to the two kids laugh and he rolls his eyes. "Not a crush. Just friends."

Dean pulls his brows together, "Oh, yeah? And how do you know?"

Sam smirks, but he then frowns and shrugs. "Just a guess."

Dean scrunches his face and looks back at the two kids to see Ben placing a Hello Kitty sticker onto his Video Game.

"Awesome choice!"

"It was difficult, but how could I resist Hello Kitty in a frog costume?" Ben questions.

Athena laughs again.

"Can you two keep it down?"

Ben and Athena look at the glaring Roy.

"Sorry."

Roy lets out a huff and looks forward. Athena and Ben look at each other and quietly snicker.

After walking for another half an hour. Athena caught up with Sam and Dean at the front, all three of them noticing the same thing.

"You hear that?" Dean asks.

"Yeah. Not even crickets." Sam says, softly.

"I'm gonna go take a look around." Roy speaks.

"You shouldn't go off by yourself." Sam advises.

Roy chuckles in a mocking manner, "That's sweet. Don't worry about me." He starts brushes past the three.

Dean turns to everyone else, "All right, everyone stay together." He says. He guides Athena to stand between him and Sam. "Let's go."

☆

Roy was ahead of the group, scoping out the area, while everyone else was looking across another side of the forest.

Athena runs her hands across the Boulder, hoping to find any marks that would give them something. But nothing was found.

"Hailey! Over here!" Roy shouts from his side.

Hailey was the first to sprint after the voice with Dean following along with everyone else. They all abruptly come to a stop, seeing the bloody wreck in front of them.

"Oh, My God." Hailey whispers.

Tents were ripped up, blood splashed across them, with everything splayed across the forest floor.

"Looks like a Grizzly." Roy states.

Athena inhales a shaky breath and cautiously makes her way over to the tents, to observe anything.

"Tommy?"

"Tommy!"

Sam quickly shushes Hailey, running over to her.

Athena spots the deep crevices in the dirt. She slips her goggles on and leans down toward the trails, following after them with her hands gripping the straps of her backpack.

"Why?" Hailey asks.

"Something might still be out there." Sam states.

"Sam, Dean." They hear their little sister call out, gaining their attention.

Sam and Dean both look at each other, before seeking the auburn-haired girl out. They find Athena crouched down, waiting for them like she was a detective.

"Someone's living for the dramatic antics, aren't they?" Dean quietly chuckles.

"No..." Athena slightly turns her head, her goggles still over her eyes. She notices Sam and Dean smirk with amusement. Athena touches her goggles, noticing them still on and sets them on top of her head again.

"The bodies were dragged from the campsite." Athena states. "But here..." she points at the deep crevice trail that disappears. Sam and Dean notice. "...the tracks just vanish...weird."

"I tell you what." Dean sighs. "It's no Skinwalker or Black Dog."

"So we were both wrong." Athena says. She then frowns. Me wrong?

"I don't like it."

The Winchesters rejoin the group once again, still inspecting the damaged campsite.

"Help!"

Athena, along with everybody else turns toward the voice.

"Please! Somebody help me!" The voice shouts again.

Athena's chest tightens. Roy bumps Athena's shoulder when running past her, causing her to stumble forward. Dean follows after Roy and everyone else does as well.

As soon as the screaming stopped, every one else stopped in their tracks, waiting for an order or waiting for the man to let out another scream.

"It seemed like it was coming from around here, didn't it?" Hailey asks.

Athena pulls her brows together. Why did the man stop screaming? It would make sense if they heard him dying, but there was no sound of any scream of pain or blood gurgling.

What the hell is going on?

Athena's eyes widen and her throat tightens.

"We have to go back." Athena says.

Sam and Dean look at the preteen. Her eyes were wide and her legs were shaking, she couldn't move.

"Everybody back to camp!" Sam orders. He grabs Athena's arm lightly and guides her back to the campsite.

Everyone's bags were gone.

"Our packs!"

"Some much for my GPS and Satellite phone..." Roy grumbles.

Athena had to admit, she was relieved she never took her bag off. It made her back feel warm, also it's the only thing that has stuck by her side most of her life, and never tried to argue with her.

"What the hell's going on?" Hailey snaps.

"It's smart." Sam states. "It wants to cut us off so we can't call for help."

"You mean someone—some Nut Job there just stole all our gear."

"Can I speak with you guys?" Athena looks up at her two brothers. "Privately."

Her face was stern, but she was fumbling with her fingers. She had fear written all over her face. The only reason you could see a firmness to it as well, was because she was frustrated with herself. She froze. Again.

Athena starts to walk away from the group, Sam and Dean follow the muttering girl.

"Athy—"

"Dad's journal?" She turns to them.

Dean pulls her brows together, but he pulls the journal out of his inner jacket pocket. He hands it to the girl and her eyes widen. She stuffs her hands into her jacket. She knew was she had to look for in the journal. But John never let her touch the journal.

Dean notices her hesitance. "It's fine, Athena, seriously."

Athena bites the inside of her cheek and exhales a breath through her nose. She grabs the journal hesitantly and gently flips the old pages.

"Okay, here..." she points at the page. Sam and Dean slightly lean down, getting a better look.

"I'm not that short..." she grumbles.

"Nobody said you were, Squirt." Dean pats the top of her head and she scrunches her face.

Dean looks across the page and chuckles. "Oh, come on. Windigos are in the Minnesota woods or Northern Michigan..."

Athena winces as Dean says the name, but she stays silent about it.

"...I've never even heard of one this far West."

Sam slowly nods his head, everything becoming clear to him now. "Think about, Dean—the claws, the way it can mimic a human voice."

Dena exhales a scoff, "Great." He holds his gun up. "Well, then this is useless."

Athena closes the journal back to how it was and hands it to Dean with her lips pressed together in a sympathetic manner. Dean grabs the journal.

"We got to get these people to safety." Sam states.

"I second that." Athena holds a finger up, following after Sam.

"All right, listen up. It's time to go." Sam says, walking back into the campsite, more inpatient than ever. "Things have gotten more complicated."

"What?"

"Kid, whatever's out there, I think I can handle it." Roy huffs.

"It's not me I'm worried about." Sam brushes the man off.

"If you shoot this thing, you're just gonna make it mad." Dean adds.

"We have to leave now." Sam says.

"One, you're talking nonsense, two, you're in no position. To give anybody orders." Roy speaks.

"Relax." Dean says, his voice firm.

"We never should have let you come out in the first place, all right?" Sam lets out a frustrated breath.

"We're just trying to protect you." Athena adds.

Roy looks at the young girl and he laughs. Athena pulls her brows together and her throat tightens. He just continues to laugh at her like what she said was the dumbest thing in the world.

"You protect me?" Roy's laughter dies down and he was left feeling angry. "I was hunting these woods before your mommy made the mistake of having you—"

"Hey!" Sam and Dean chorus, standing beside their little sister.

Athena presses her lips into a firm line. She swallows the painful lump in her throat. She felt like smiling, Sam and Dean being protective over her. But that moment quickly died down when she realized that she wasn't able to stand up for herself.

She made the mistake of having me?

Sam takes a threatening step toward Roy along with Dean. "It's a damn-near-perfect hunter. It's smarter than you."

"And it's gonna hunt you down and eat you alive." Dean adds.

"Unless we get you out of here." Athena adds, finally able to speak.

Roy starts to laugh again and Athena's nose flares. She feels an electric feeling run through her body, her fingertips start to tingle and she shakes the nerves out of them.

"You know your crazy, right?" Roy stares directly at the auburn-haired girl.

Athena's anger gets the best of her and she squints her eyes. "Yeah? You ever hunt a Wen—"

Dean grabs Athena's wrist and pulls her to the side. Athena lets out a painfilled gasp.

"Hey—chill out!" Dean whispers harshly.

Athena whimpers quietly from the bruising grip on her wrist. Dean's face relaxes when he sees the tears in Athena's eyes. He looks down at his hand grasping her wrist. Dean releases her wrist with wide eyes.

"Athena, I-I'm sorry." Dean quickly says, regret instantly filling him.

Athena rubs her wrist, and rolls her lips into her mouth. She inhales a shaky breath through her nose. "N-No, it's fine...I got angry." She shrugs a shoulder. "It won't happen again."

Dean slightly opens his mouth, "Ath—"

"Look, Tommy might still be alive." Hailey catches everyone's attention. "And I'm not leaving here without him."

Sam and Dean exchange a look. The younger brother rolls his eyes, but he doesn't disagree.

"It's getting late." Dean states. "This thing is a good hunter in the day, but an unbelievable hunter at night. We'll never beat it—not in the dark. We need to settle in and protect ourselves."

Dean looks at the auburn-haired girl who fell silent, and was looking at the ground. "I could use your help."

Athena adjusts her bag and walks past him. "Sure."

Dean lets out a deep breath and swallows. He looks down at his hand and shakes the nerves out of his hand. Dean didn't mean to hurt Athena. And the look that she gave him, made him feel like...

Dean's gut twists and he shakes the thought out of his head.

☆

Dean and Athena were always awkward around each other. Athena never knew how to talk to Dean since he was by John's side all the time. Taking his side. Anytime she tried to speak about the way John treated them, Dean would brush her off or tell her never to bring it up again, hoping that John wouldn't overhear and punish her.

Dean felt more comfortable keeping space from Athena. He couldn't look at her everyday after what John told him. Just seeing her smile at him, like he was the honest big brother she's always known. It killed him everyday not being able to tell the truth. But whatever John wanted. John got.

That's one thing Dean and Athena both had in common. They both wanted to do anything to please their father. They wanted to make him proud. And hopefully one day, they would be proud of themselves.

Athena finishes the circle in the dirt and Dean finishes his. "All righty..." she sets the stick down and pats her hands onto her jeans.

"You're good?" Dean asks.

Athena gives him a curt nod, "I'm good."

Dean stands there for a moment, wanting to say something about earlier. "I didn't mean to hurt you." He says.

Athena turns to Dean and blinks at her brother. He looks at the stick in his hand and sighs. "I didn't mean to scare you."

Athena's eyes soften. "I was being hotheaded, y'know?" She shrugs. "I almost revealed...everything just because a mean old man laughed at me. And called me a mistake."

Dean lets out a breath and looks to the side. "That dickwad should've never opened his mouth." He growls. "You didn't have to hear that."

"Am I mistake?"

Dean freezes and sees the girl looking up at him with a genuine curiosity. Her eyes still had a light to her and Dean was too afraid to see that light leave her eyes if he revealed anything. "I don't know, Athy." He says.

Athena tenses and inhales.

Liar.

Athena cracks a small smile. "Of course. I'm sorry—I don't even think kids ask that kind of question."

Dean pokes the girl in the side with the stick and she snorts softly.

"C'mon, Chucky." Dean motions his head to the side. "Lets finish this side.

Athena nods her head, a smile on her lips. Dean was the first to walk away and her false smile drops, and Athena's left feeling like she's always has. Unwanted.

Don't cry now.

Athena wipes her nose and follows after Dean.

"One more time. That's...?"

"Anasazi Symbols." Dean states. "It's for protection."

"The Wendigo can't cross over them." Athena says.

And surprise surprise Roy laughs. Athena's right eye twitches.

"Nobody likes a skeptic, Roy." Dean snaps.

Athena looks forward, seeing Sam leaning against a tree trunk, almost in defeat. She steps over the symbols and makes it over to her brother. Dean follows suit.

Athena sits next to Sam in silence, not wanting to overwhelm him. The auburn-haired girl talks all the time. She didn't mine sometimes just sitting and doing nothing. Sam looks at the young girl and smiles softly.

"You wanna tell me what's going on in that freaky head of yours?" Dean sits on the other side of Sam.

Sam inhales a deep breath. "Dean..."

"No, you're not fine." Dean states. "You're like a powder keg, man. It's not like you. I'm supposed to be the belligerent one, remember?"

Sam looks off into space, he takes a moment to get a control over his emotions. "Dad's not here."

Athena chews the inside of her cheek. They all knew John wasn't there. But still, for some reason they never said it. Like they all collectively didn't want it to be true.

"I mean, that much we know for sure, right?" Sam inquires. "He would have left us a message, a sign, right?"

"Yeah, you're probably right." Dean nods. "To tell you the truth. I don't think dad's ever been to Lost Creek."

Sam exhales a sharp breath, "Then lets get these people back to town, and lets hit the road...go find dad. I mean, why are we still even here?"

Athena and Dean exchange a look of worry for Sam's grief that quickly changed to anger. Dean grabs the journal from his jacket and sits in front of his younger siblings.

"This is why..."

Athena pulls her brows together, not understanding.

"This book." Dean continues. "This is dad's single most valuable possession. Everything he knows about every evil thing is in here. And he's passed it in to us. I think he wants us to pick up where he left off—"

"Saving People, hunting things..."

Athena tilts her head.

"...the family business."

John always said it the other way around. Hunting the monsters down before acknowledging the people. It warmed Athena's heart, knowing Dean wasn't that way. Also, this way was a lot more catchy.

Sam rubs his face. "That makes no sense." He shakes his head. "Why—why doesn't he just call us? Why doesn't he tell us what he wants, tell us where he is?"

"I don't know." Dean admits.

Athena picks at her bandages.

"But the way I see it, dad's given us a job to do and I intend to do it." Dean shrugs.

Sam tenses, "Dean..." he slowly shakes his head. "No. I gotta find dad. I gotta find Jessica's killer."

"It's the only thing I can think about."

"Okay. All right." Dean says, nodding. "Sam, we'll find them. I promise."

"Sam..." Athena starts, finally speaking.

Sam looks at his little sister. She wasn't smiling, but she her face was relaxed and comforting.

"...you've got to prepare yourself." She says. "This search could take a while."

"And all that anger..." Dean adds. "...you can't keep it burning over the long haul. It's gonna kill you. You got to have patience, man."

Sam's eyes become teary from his siblings advice, he shifts his gaze to the floor and sniffles. "How do you do it?" He asks. "How does dad do it?"

Dean inhales, "Well, for one, them." He motions his head to Hailey and Ben. "I mean, I figured our family's so screwed to Hell, maybe we can help some others. It makes things a little bearable."

Athena looks down at her converse, wondering how she does it.

"And I'll tell you what else helps..." Dean starts. "...killing as many evil sons of bitches as I possibly can."

The siblings share a small laugh.

"Help!"

Athena's heart jumps into her throat and she stands up along with everybody else. The Winchesters walk over to the group, standing around them.

Dean pulls his gun out as the voice lets out another scream.

"It's trying to draw us out." Athena states. "We just have to...stay calm. And stay put."

"Inside the magic circle?" Roy mocks.

"If you want to live? Then yes." Athena retorts.

"Help! Help me! Please!"

A growling cuts off the cries for help.

"Okay, that's no Grizzly..." Roy says, looking around.

Hailey reassured her little brother.

Growling zooms past Athena and she quickly spins around as Hailey lets out a scream.

"It's here."

The Wendigo continues to speed around them, hiding in the bushes. Roy fires off his gun and Athena flinches. He fires again, causing the Wendigo to cry out.

"I hit it!" Roy calls out, running out of the circle.

Athena's eyes widen, when Dean runs after him.

"Dean!" Sam runs after his brother.

Athena takes a step forward.

"Athena, stay in the circle!" Sam shouts.

Athena slightly opens her mouth, "But—"

"Now!" Sam and Dean shout, before disappearing in the woods.

She slumps her shoulders and takes a step back into the circle.

Athena looks at Hailey and Ben. "Hey, we're okay. We're gonna be okay."

☆

"I mean, these types of things—they aren't supposed to be real."

"I wish I could tell you different." Dean says.

"How do we know it's not out there watching us?" Hailey inquires.

"We don't." Athena states. "But we're safe for now."

"How do you know about this stuff?" Hailey asks.

Dean shrugs a shoulder, "It kind of runs in the family."

Sam makes it over to the group. "So, we've got half a chance in the daylight." He lets out a breath. "And I, for one...want to kill this evil son of a bitch."

Dean smirks, "Well, Hell, you know I'm in."

Athena inhales, "Uh—yeah. I've got nothing better to do." She looks at Hailey and Ben. "You should know everything then." She then turns to Dean. "And it's Wendigo. Not Windigo." She exhales a sharp breath. "That's been bothering me this whole time."

Dean laughs as Athena exhales. He hands Athena the journal. "Well then, Superstar, explain away."

Athena smiles softly and grabs the journal. She opens it to the page of the Wendigo information.

Hailey and Ben walk over to the young girl and lean down towards the journal, trying to read it.

"Wendigo is a Cree Indian Word." Athena states. "It means, 'Evil that devours'. They're hundreds of years old."

"Each one was once a man, sometimes an Indian or other times a Frontiersman or miner or hunter." Dean adds.

"How's a man turn into one of those things?" Hailey asks.

"Well, it's always the same." Athena voices. "During some harsh winter, a guy finds himself starving, cut off from supplies or help—becomes a Cannibal to survive, eating other members of his tribe or camp."

"Like the Donner Party." Ben says.

Athena nods her head, "Exactly!" Her smile falls. "I didn't mean to smile, but—yes. Exactly."

"Cultures all over the world believe that eating human flesh gives a person some certain abilities—speed, strength, immortality." Sam explains.

"If you eat enough of it, over years, you become this less-than-human thing." Dean adds. "You're always hungry."

"So, if that's true, how can Tommy still be alive?" Hailey asks.

The Winchesters tense. Sam and Dean look at each other, then look at Athena; saying she should be the one to explain.

Who would freak out on an adorable 10 year old?

Athena lets out a quiet breath, and adjusts the goggles on the top of her head. "You're Uh—you're not gonna like it."

Hailey looks at the young girl. "Please, tell me."

Athena shifts, "More than anything, a Wendigo knows how to last long winters without food." She continues. "It hibernates for years at a time. When it's awake, it keeps its victims alive. It stores them so it can feed whenever it wants. If you're brother's alive, it's keeping him somewhere dark, hidden, and safe."

"And we got to track it back there." Dean adds.

"And then how do we stop it?" Hailey inquires.

"Well, guns are useless—so are knives." Athena states.

"Basically..." Dean grips Athena's shoulder and shakes it. "We gotta torch the fucker."

"You really need to stop cursing." Athena sighs. "I'm only a child, y'know?"

Dean lets out a sputter, "Come on, Dr. Emmett Brown."

Athena lets out a sigh and grabs her bag. She takes out a rag, and looks at Dean. "I already know the answer. But I'm trying to be polite here..." she holds her hands out. "...do you have alcohol on hand right now?"

"Haha. You're killing me with your wittiness, Chucky." Dean ruffles her hair and she swats his hand away. "My hairs not even red."

"Patience is key, Athena." Dean crouches down beside her. He hands her the bottle of whiskey and she presses her lips together.

"Why thank you." Athena grabs the bottle and creates the Molotov. "Here..." she hands it to him.

Dean lets out a triumphant laugh. "Awesome!"

Athena stands up and so does Dean. "You know how to make Molotov's, y'know?" She slips her bag back on. "You didn't need me."

You never do.

Dean lets out a quiet chuckle and ruffles the girl's hair before walking past her. Athena rolls her eyes. Anytime Athena would open up, Dean would grow uncomfortable and close himself off. Emotions just wasn't his thing, I guess.

Or maybe he just doesn't care about you.

Athena tenses, "Yeah, that too..."

☆

"Guys...?"

Sam and Dean turn to the side, seeing Athena examining the trees.

They both make their way over to the girl. "What is it?"

They follow her eyes and see the deep claw marks across each tree in the forest, blood embedding in each claw mark.

"It is smart, I'll give it that." Athena nods her head.

"What do you mean?" Dean looks at the young girl.

"These claw marks, they're clear and distinct..." she looks at Dean. "...they seem almost too easy to follow, don't you think?"

"Son of a bitch..." Dean whispers softly.

"Indeed." Athena nods.

A growl is heard around them. Athena quickly turns to see the leaves rustling once again. Something is felt on the girl's shoulder. Athena pulls her brows together. She looks at her shoulder and sees droplets of dark crimson red liquid soaking into her jacket. Her breathing hitches and her chest tightens. She slowly lifts her head up and her eyes meet Roy above her, bleeding profusely.

Athena lets out a scream that rips through the forest. The body falls toward her and she stumbles back, before it lands on top of her. Athena trips over her feet and falls to the ground.

Sam and Dean run over to the girl breathing quickly, trying to wipe the blood off her jacket.

"Hey, Athy, you okay?" Sam quickly asks.

Dean looks over her, noticing the cut on her cheek, she gained from falling to the ground. Her eyes burn into Sam's then Dean's. She shifts her gaze to the body on the ground.

"I-Is that...?"

"Roy." Hailey gasps.

Roy: 1

Winchesters: 1

"Th-that's mean..." Athena whispers to herself.

"Athena."

She looks at Sam who had his brows pulled together.

"Oh. I-I'll be okay." She slowly stands up, with Sam's help.

"Remind me to teach you to stop tripping over air." Dean chuckles nervously.

"1 I tripped over my feet not the air." Athena states. "And 2 How do you teach someone to not trip over air?"

Dean frowns, "I...don't know."

"What happened to him?" Hailey asks.

Dean walks over to Roy's body, he crouches down and touches the sides of his neck.

"His neck's broken." Dean states.

The growls suddenly come back again. Louder than before, signaling that the Wendigo was close.

"Okay, Run! Run!" Dean voices, urgency in his voice.

Everybody starts to run in the same direction. Athena looks behind her, making sure nothing was there. She could see the bushes and leaves rustling around her.

Suddenly, the girl trips over a brand and slams into the ground. Athena lets out a loud gasp.

"Athena, come on." Sam grabs one of her arms while Ben grabs the other.

Athena quickly stands up. "Okay, lets go, lets go!"

A scream spreads through the forest and Athena's heart drops.

"That's Hailey..." Ben whispers. "That's Hailey!"

He starts to sprint through the forest with Sam. Athena follows after them. As soon as she caught up with them, she could see them looking around the area. Athena's breathing quickens, "Dean?" She whispers.

"Dean?!"

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