Nature Versus Nurture

Irwin, now clad in a newly pressed mustard suit, entered the hospital room, passing by the on-duty police officer and the arcane scans of the Ward Of Obviation.

His eyes noted the injured form of his companions. Andy had a neck brace and bandages on his left arm, having been slightly injured by the Elder Vampire.

Sam and Dean, however, had cuts, scrapes, and minor bruises on their bodies. Still, they stood tall, for such wounds were nothing new to them, having been hunting since they could barely read.

"How's everybody doing?" If his entrance did not attract their attention, then his concerned question did.

"Bad." Andy replied, groaning soon after.

"Badly." Sam corrected.

"Nerd." Dean murmured.

Irwin grinned, walking towards Ansem's artificially comatose body. Not much has happened to the special child in the past day or two that they were away, save for a couple of nurses being led astray by the warding and complaining about it to the administration.

"Alright. I'll be suppressing his powers now. It's a temporary measure, and an expensive one at that." He explained, taking out an empty pill bottle, save for one tablet, from his suit jacket and placing it atop the tray attached to the bed frame.

"Once ingested, the pill will release chemicals in his brain that will short-circuit any psycho-kinetic signals releasing out of him. That will allow you to talk to him, but only for an hour." He reminded Andy.

"It only lasts for an hour?" Sam asked, curious about the pill.

"It'll last for 24 hours, but we don't know how powerful he really is. Best to cut it when we still have him contained." Irwin expounded. He then gazed at the other Winchester, silently motioning for him to leave the room.

Although he knew the pill would work almost instantaneously, it never hurts to be cautious.

Dean gave a tired sigh, leaving the warded room.

Andy exhaled, calming his dreadful nerves, before he quickly closed his eyes. "W-what do I even say to him?"

Sam gave Irwin a look, shrugging his large shoulders. "Maybe ask why he wanted to kill Dr. Jennings first?"

"Or if he knows that you two are brothers." Irwin added, taking out the cap of the bottle and placing the sole pill into Ansem's mouth. "Stop the sedatives."

Sam got off the couch and halted the flow of the sedative, the removal of which immediately taking effect. Ansem's eyes fluttered continuously as he gradually awoke from his artificial slumber, a testament to a special child's constitution.

His eyes opened, revealing his reddened sclera and a finger full of eye mucus. Ansem's mouth was as dry as the Sahara. His voice cracked and barren. "W-where…"

As his mouth opened, the pill dropped into his throat as he reflexively swallowed it whole. The pill broke down into fine particles, traveling down his esophagus before being absorbed into his bloodstream, whereupon it joined the millions upon millions of crimson blood.

It did not even take two seconds before the pill took effect, reaching his brain and placing dormant neuron-sized deterrents if he ever activates his powers.

Irwin nodded at Andy, taking a step back to let him talk to his brother.

"A-andy?" Ansem blinked his eyes repeatedly, steadily adapting to the sudden bright light. "W-what are you doing here, bro?"

"Why'd you do it, Weber?" Andy's voice almost came to a yell, but he quickly restrained himself. "Why did you try to kill Dr. Jennings?"

Ansem tried to defend himself, but once he saw Irwin, his eyes turned vicious. "Because he tried to separate us!"

"What?"

"H-He wanted us to be apart. If he hadn't, then we could have been together!" Ansem explained his reasoning. "And that bitch, too. She didn't love us! She wanted us to grow apart. If it weren't for… for that man, then I wouldn't have known that we were supposed to be together!"

Irwin tuned out their argument, instead opting to figure out his latest spell.

■■

▪︎Summon Wildling▪︎

Level: 01

Type: Automatic

Classification: Utilitarian; Ritual; Fairy

Invocation: Cluinn mi… O, a chlann abhaloin… tog a mach companach cuideachail aig a bheil neart co-ionann riumsa… biodh mo chridhe agus m' anam mar fhear-iùil a' chreutair a ghabh pàirt de m' mhaoin 

Components: Rabbit's blood, gold dust, an offering of sweets or with sentimental value

Summoning Duration: 24 hours | Twenty-four (24) hours per level

Procedure:

(1) Inscribe a large circle using the rabbit's blood on a flat vertical surface

(2) Invoke the name of a Guardian of Avalon while sprinkling one hundred (100) grams of gold dust around the circle

(3) Place the offering below the circle whilst chanting the invocation.

(4) Optional: If a certain creature has been identified beforehand, imagine calling its name, species, image, or laugh as the caster opens the portal.

Effect #1: Once a circle is inscribed, the circle will open a portal to Avalon. A Guardian of Avalon will take half of the caster's offering and, if it is fond of said offering, it will authorize the portal, letting the inhabitants of the realm hear the caster's plea.

Effect #2: If an inhabitant hears your plea, they will consume the remaining offering and, if they are fond of said offering, will complete the binding ritual on their end. Once the binding is complete, the caster can summon the bound inhabitant Fae to the material world within the next twenty-four (24) hours.

Effect #3: If a summoned inhabitant dies in the material world, its soul will transfer back to Avalon, whereupon it cannot be summoned or bound by the same caster again.

■■

Irwin thought that he definitely made the right choice. Not only for its versatility, but because Summon Wildling was his first conjuration spell.

If he was lucky enough to summon a leprechaun who liked his offering, then he would be set for the next twenty-four hours. He could raid demon bases all around the world as long as he had one of them under his employ.

But what garnered his interest the most was the term 'Guardian of Avalon'. It seemed quite strong to be able to authorize portals and rituals. In fact, to supposedly bring order to an archaic creature such as the Faes, they might be as strong as angels.

'Maybe they are angels in disguise. Chuck wouldn't just create Avalon without powerful guardians.' His thoughts ran rampant. 'Purgatory has Eve and the Leviathans; Hell has the Hellhounds and the Princes, albeit absent from their stations. Shit, this is new info.'

And just like that, Irwin gave a silent sigh as he added another mystery to solve once he was back in the manor.

Seeing the argument between the two long-lost brothers nearly devolving into a fistfight, which Andrew would have won, Irwin snapped his fingers, gaining both their attention.

"So, what did you decide?" He asked Andy, whose eyes were red with anger.

"I-I don't think he deserves to die." Andy shook his head as if to relay the difficulty of his decision. "I, crap, I think the demon got to him. He just wants to… to be with his brother."

Irwin nodded, half expecting his answer. After all, thanks to him, Ansem did not kill Dr. Jennings and their biological mother, as well as kidnap, rape, and control Tracy to commit suicide.

That was actually one reason he rushed here in Guthrie once Sam and Dean knew about the existence of the special children here.

He hid his smirk as he wore an understanding smile. "I understand. I have a facility in California, maybe he can rehabilitate there. Be free of demonic persuasion."

"We're just going to let him go?" Sam raised his voice. "Dude, this… he tried to kill someone and your response is to rehabilitate him?"

"He's a human being, big guy!" Andy retorted.

"No! That's our point coming in here. If we actually are human." Sam pointed to himself, eyes turning hurt. "What if that demon's blood turned us into something else, huh? What if we hurt the people around us?"

"Oh, cry me a r-" Ansem tried to interrupt, but Irwin was on him like a cheetah as he knocked him out in a flash.

"Sam." Irwin's tone was stern. "As long as Ansem is under my care, he will neither harm nor kill anyone. If he does, then I will stop him with my full might. For that I promise you."

Sam's face a dilemma. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because no human is truly demonic." He replied with a soft smile. "As long as they live, Ansem, you, the special children, they all can be good. To use their powers for good. Just like you."

Sam gave a weary sigh, his shoulder slumping over Irwin's last words. "Fine… I-I need some fresh air."

He left the room without waiting for the other's response.

Irwin gave a relieved sigh, thankful that his little speech had deescalated the encounter. Frankly, he did not care, even if they were to turn demonic in nature as long as they served their purpose. And, to him, that purpose was to serve humanity until their last deaths.

He turned towards Andy.

"I don't know if you're going to take my offer from the previous night, but it's still available." He smiled when Andy's eyes locked onto his. "Come to California. Train your powers and maybe, just maybe, the demons coming after you… maybe you can kill them with a single word."