SPN fic: Last Fair Deal Gone Down
Fandom: Supernatural
Title: Last Fair Deal Gone Down
Author: alphabet26
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Sam, the crossroads demon, Dean
Word Count: 1660ish
Spoilers: Up until 2.08
Notes/Warnings: Written for the summer_sam_love 2010 celebration. I volunteered for the episode "Crossroad Blues." The beginning is taken directly from the episode with a few tweaks and throughout the fic, some lines of dialogue are lifted from the episode as well. Title taken from another song by Robert Johnson. It seems only fitting. Thanks to faye_dartmouth for looking this over.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Summary: What if Sam had been the one to go down to the crossroads and deal with the demon for Evan Hudson's soul? AU sort of situation.
*****
"Because I don't like where your head is at right now, that's why not."
"What are you talking about?" Dean demanded.
"You know, you've been on edge ever since we found that crossroads, Dean, and I think I know why."
Dean shook his head and started to walk away. "We don't have time for this."
"Dad," Sam said, and Dean stopped. "You think maybe Dad made one of these deals, huh? Hell, I've been thinking it. I'm sure you've been thinking it, too."
"It fits, doesn't it? I'm alive, Dad's dead. The yellow-eyed demon was involved. What if he did? What if he struck a deal? My life for his soul."
Sam swallowed.
"I think I hear it! It's outside!" Evan called.
"Just keep him alive, okay?"
Sam made a split second decision. "You keep him alive," he said, pushing the goofer dust back at Dean. "I'll take care of the demon."
"Sam--"
"Go!"
So Sam buried the box in the crossroads and waited. Evan had made the deal, yeah, and of his own free will, but they had to at least try to get him out of it. He looked around--surely he wouldn't have to wait too long--and caught a glimpse of somone out of the corner of his eye.
The demon raised an eyebrow as he turned around. "Sam Winchester. Of all the crossroads in all the world. What can I do you for?"
He looked at the petite brunette. "You need to let Evan Hudson go."
She sauntered up to him, pouted a little. "So direct. Takes all the fun out of it."
Sam folded his arms. "Well, I'm not here for fun."
She reached up and traced his jaw. "Oh, we could have a good time."
It took almost all his willpower not to shudder away at her touch. "Not interested," he said firmly.
She shrugged. "To business, then. My job is simple. I'm here to make and collect on deals. And Evan? He's due. But was there something else?" She glanced over at Lloyd's. "You could be a sport, buy me a drink."
Sam shook his head. "He did it for his wife. His dying wife. He didn't ask for anything for himself."
"Are you...are you trying to make me feel sorry for him?" She started laughing. "That's just--well, that's just adorable, Sammy. Completely useless, but adorable."
Sam rolled his eyes. "Fine."
She covered her mouth and widened her eyes innocently. "Oh, are you disappointed it didn't work?" Her eyes flashed red as she dropped her hand. "Demon, Sam. I'm a demon, remember?"
Sam leaned back against the water tower. "I know what you are."
She dropped her teasing demeanor. "But do you really know what that means? What I can do?"
Sam knew he shouldn't get sidetracked, he needed to lure her to the trap, but they needed this information. They needed to find out as much as possible about their enemies. "What you can do?" he repeated.
"All it takes is a deal. We saved Julie Hudson." She examined her nails for a moment, then met Sam's eyes with an arch little look. "We saved Dean."
Sam closed his eyes, took a few steps backward, under the water tower. So there it was. Confirmation that their father had made a deal with Yellow Eyes. It wasn't a surprise, but still, hearing it...
And Dean worried about the lengths he'd go to for family. It wasn't Dean who'd crossed the line to save someone. No, only Sam and their father could claim that.
"No one I love is dying right now," Sam finally answered her.
She gave him a predatory smile. "It's not just for people who are dying, Sam."
She kept dangling carrots and Sam kept taking them, but he couldn't just walk away. "What do you mean?" he asked warily.
She stepped up to him, ran a finger across his chest. "You still feel guilty about your precious Jessica, don't you? And your last words to your father! Telling him go to to Hell during that fight in the hospital." She shook her head, clicking her tongue. "Talk about your poor word choice. Oh, the fun they're having with him downstairs."
Sam took a deep breath and backed away from her. "What are you offering?"
She was all sweet sympathy now. "I can fix all those nasty mistakes. And give you ten good years to enjoy it on top of that."
Sam froze. He hadn't understood before, not really, how tempting it was. It was dizzying, it was thrilling, it was terrifying. The the son, the brother, the lover parts of him had to know more. The hunter side of him was shrieking at him to end this, finish this, get out, that this conversation simply would not end well.
"What about Dad's deal for Dean?" was what came out.
"All deals are final," she reassured him. "Your father sold his soul to save Dean's life. You'd be saving your father, and Dean wouldn't be affected."
Sam couldn't stop a spurt of laughter. Wouldn't be affected? Dad back and Sam with a ticking clock, but Dean wouldn't be affected.
He wouldn't have to feel guilty, though. It would all be on Sam. And for Dad and Jess...
He shouldn't still be listening to her. She was pushing too hard, and there were so many unknowns. Dad and Jess were gone. Neither of them would want him to make a deal. And Dean...if he went back to Dean and told him he'd made a deal, too...
"It's a good deal, Sam." She looked strangely earnest. "For you, too. It's not..." She pursed her lips, considering what to say. "For you, it wouldn't be as bad as you're thinking."
A sudden chill went down Sam's back. "What are you saying?"
She gave him an almost pitying look. "You know you're special. You know there are plans for you." She looked almost reverent as she continued. "Oh, Sam, the things you can do, the things you will do! If you only knew, if you only understood."
Sam stared at her, mind racing, and stepped away from the water tower. "I have a counteroffer," he said resolutely.
"Oh?"
"Stop channeling Dr. Seuss, for one. You let Evan out of his deal and I'll let you out of the devil's trap."
She looked up and then gave Sam a flat look. "Really, Sam. And things were going so well."
"Are you going to let Evan go?"
"I can't break a binding contract."
Sam shrugged and pulled out the journal. "Regna terrae, cantate Deo."
"Don't you want to know our plans?" she asked quickly.
Sam faltered, but forced himself to keep going. "Psallite Domino, qui fertis super caelum caeli ad Orientem. Ecce dabit voci Suae vocem virtutis, tribuite virtutem Deo."
She began twitching. "Don't you want to save Daddy from the pit?"
Sam ground his teeth together. "Deus caeli, Deus terrae humiliter majestati gloriae Tuae supplicamus."
She shook her head. "All you want is Evan Hudson," she mused. "Fine."
Sam stopped. "Fine?"
She gestured for him to come closer. "Once we seal the deal, he'll be free."
"Seal the deal?"
She pulled his head down. "Just lie back and think of England," she suggested before giving him a lingering kiss.
"Seriously?" Sam asked.
"Sealed with a kiss--it's not just for letters to the boys overseas. Now let me out."
Sam glanced back at the journal.
"Oh, no. You don't want to break a deal with a demon. You don't keep your end, I have no reason to keep mine."
Sam reached up and broke the devil's trap.
She gave him a pitying look as she stepped out. "You're going to regret this, Sam. If you realized what you just did--but I guess that's going to be part of the fun, now, isn't it?When you figure out that you could have fixed everything and just threw the chance away?" She patted his cheek. "And you thought you felt guilty before."
Sam grabbed her arm. "Wait--"
She pulled away. "You know where to find me once you change your mind. But the deal's never going to be as good as it was tonight." The girl's head jerked back and the demon began pouring out of her.
Sam kicked at the ground. "Dammit."
*****
"You cut it close," Dean said once they were on the road.
Sam was startled. "What?"
"The Hellhounds were right there, man."
"Oh. Sorry. She wanted to talk, to make a deal," Sam explained.
"For what?"
"To save Dad--and Jess. And to tell me what Yellow Eyes' plans for me are."
Dean glanced over at him. "Christ, Sammy."
Sam took a deep breath. "I didn't...but Dean--"
Dean cut him off. "No."
"With you and Dad working on it, and you'd have ten years--"
"No," Dean repeated. "Oh-nay. Non. Nein. That clear enough? I'm out of languages."
Sam sighed.
"I'm serious, Sam. Don't you do that, don't you even think about that. Don't--" He cut himself off and took a deep breath before starting again. His voice was almost pleading when he spoke again. "Look, we lost Dad already."
But you'd be getting him back! I'd fix all this was on the tip of Sam's tongue, but he just nodded. "Yeah, you're right."
Dean looked over again and turned up the radio. "Great song," he said, and began singing along, loud and off-key.
Sam rolled his eyes and heaved a sigh. Dean relaxed a little. Sam knew he wasn't fooled, but if Sam didn't push the heart-to-heart, Dean wouldn't force it, so they could just table the whole thing.
Sam rubbed his temple. Situation normal, all fucked up. He leaned his head against the window and closed his eyes as they drove. It had been the right decision. It wouldn't fix anything, making a deal. Of course she made it sound good, she was a demon and in their equivalent of sales.
He just had to keep telling himself that, and at some point, he might even believe it.
*****
Comments and criticism always appreciated.
Title: Last Fair Deal Gone Down
Author: alphabet26
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Sam, the crossroads demon, Dean
Word Count: 1660ish
Spoilers: Up until 2.08
Notes/Warnings: Written for the summer_sam_love 2010 celebration. I volunteered for the episode "Crossroad Blues." The beginning is taken directly from the episode with a few tweaks and throughout the fic, some lines of dialogue are lifted from the episode as well. Title taken from another song by Robert Johnson. It seems only fitting. Thanks to faye_dartmouth for looking this over.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Summary: What if Sam had been the one to go down to the crossroads and deal with the demon for Evan Hudson's soul? AU sort of situation.
*****
"Because I don't like where your head is at right now, that's why not."
"What are you talking about?" Dean demanded.
"You know, you've been on edge ever since we found that crossroads, Dean, and I think I know why."
Dean shook his head and started to walk away. "We don't have time for this."
"Dad," Sam said, and Dean stopped. "You think maybe Dad made one of these deals, huh? Hell, I've been thinking it. I'm sure you've been thinking it, too."
"It fits, doesn't it? I'm alive, Dad's dead. The yellow-eyed demon was involved. What if he did? What if he struck a deal? My life for his soul."
Sam swallowed.
"I think I hear it! It's outside!" Evan called.
"Just keep him alive, okay?"
Sam made a split second decision. "You keep him alive," he said, pushing the goofer dust back at Dean. "I'll take care of the demon."
"Sam--"
"Go!"
So Sam buried the box in the crossroads and waited. Evan had made the deal, yeah, and of his own free will, but they had to at least try to get him out of it. He looked around--surely he wouldn't have to wait too long--and caught a glimpse of somone out of the corner of his eye.
The demon raised an eyebrow as he turned around. "Sam Winchester. Of all the crossroads in all the world. What can I do you for?"
He looked at the petite brunette. "You need to let Evan Hudson go."
She sauntered up to him, pouted a little. "So direct. Takes all the fun out of it."
Sam folded his arms. "Well, I'm not here for fun."
She reached up and traced his jaw. "Oh, we could have a good time."
It took almost all his willpower not to shudder away at her touch. "Not interested," he said firmly.
She shrugged. "To business, then. My job is simple. I'm here to make and collect on deals. And Evan? He's due. But was there something else?" She glanced over at Lloyd's. "You could be a sport, buy me a drink."
Sam shook his head. "He did it for his wife. His dying wife. He didn't ask for anything for himself."
"Are you...are you trying to make me feel sorry for him?" She started laughing. "That's just--well, that's just adorable, Sammy. Completely useless, but adorable."
Sam rolled his eyes. "Fine."
She covered her mouth and widened her eyes innocently. "Oh, are you disappointed it didn't work?" Her eyes flashed red as she dropped her hand. "Demon, Sam. I'm a demon, remember?"
Sam leaned back against the water tower. "I know what you are."
She dropped her teasing demeanor. "But do you really know what that means? What I can do?"
Sam knew he shouldn't get sidetracked, he needed to lure her to the trap, but they needed this information. They needed to find out as much as possible about their enemies. "What you can do?" he repeated.
"All it takes is a deal. We saved Julie Hudson." She examined her nails for a moment, then met Sam's eyes with an arch little look. "We saved Dean."
Sam closed his eyes, took a few steps backward, under the water tower. So there it was. Confirmation that their father had made a deal with Yellow Eyes. It wasn't a surprise, but still, hearing it...
And Dean worried about the lengths he'd go to for family. It wasn't Dean who'd crossed the line to save someone. No, only Sam and their father could claim that.
"No one I love is dying right now," Sam finally answered her.
She gave him a predatory smile. "It's not just for people who are dying, Sam."
She kept dangling carrots and Sam kept taking them, but he couldn't just walk away. "What do you mean?" he asked warily.
She stepped up to him, ran a finger across his chest. "You still feel guilty about your precious Jessica, don't you? And your last words to your father! Telling him go to to Hell during that fight in the hospital." She shook her head, clicking her tongue. "Talk about your poor word choice. Oh, the fun they're having with him downstairs."
Sam took a deep breath and backed away from her. "What are you offering?"
She was all sweet sympathy now. "I can fix all those nasty mistakes. And give you ten good years to enjoy it on top of that."
Sam froze. He hadn't understood before, not really, how tempting it was. It was dizzying, it was thrilling, it was terrifying. The the son, the brother, the lover parts of him had to know more. The hunter side of him was shrieking at him to end this, finish this, get out, that this conversation simply would not end well.
"What about Dad's deal for Dean?" was what came out.
"All deals are final," she reassured him. "Your father sold his soul to save Dean's life. You'd be saving your father, and Dean wouldn't be affected."
Sam couldn't stop a spurt of laughter. Wouldn't be affected? Dad back and Sam with a ticking clock, but Dean wouldn't be affected.
He wouldn't have to feel guilty, though. It would all be on Sam. And for Dad and Jess...
He shouldn't still be listening to her. She was pushing too hard, and there were so many unknowns. Dad and Jess were gone. Neither of them would want him to make a deal. And Dean...if he went back to Dean and told him he'd made a deal, too...
"It's a good deal, Sam." She looked strangely earnest. "For you, too. It's not..." She pursed her lips, considering what to say. "For you, it wouldn't be as bad as you're thinking."
A sudden chill went down Sam's back. "What are you saying?"
She gave him an almost pitying look. "You know you're special. You know there are plans for you." She looked almost reverent as she continued. "Oh, Sam, the things you can do, the things you will do! If you only knew, if you only understood."
Sam stared at her, mind racing, and stepped away from the water tower. "I have a counteroffer," he said resolutely.
"Oh?"
"Stop channeling Dr. Seuss, for one. You let Evan out of his deal and I'll let you out of the devil's trap."
She looked up and then gave Sam a flat look. "Really, Sam. And things were going so well."
"Are you going to let Evan go?"
"I can't break a binding contract."
Sam shrugged and pulled out the journal. "Regna terrae, cantate Deo."
"Don't you want to know our plans?" she asked quickly.
Sam faltered, but forced himself to keep going. "Psallite Domino, qui fertis super caelum caeli ad Orientem. Ecce dabit voci Suae vocem virtutis, tribuite virtutem Deo."
She began twitching. "Don't you want to save Daddy from the pit?"
Sam ground his teeth together. "Deus caeli, Deus terrae humiliter majestati gloriae Tuae supplicamus."
She shook her head. "All you want is Evan Hudson," she mused. "Fine."
Sam stopped. "Fine?"
She gestured for him to come closer. "Once we seal the deal, he'll be free."
"Seal the deal?"
She pulled his head down. "Just lie back and think of England," she suggested before giving him a lingering kiss.
"Seriously?" Sam asked.
"Sealed with a kiss--it's not just for letters to the boys overseas. Now let me out."
Sam glanced back at the journal.
"Oh, no. You don't want to break a deal with a demon. You don't keep your end, I have no reason to keep mine."
Sam reached up and broke the devil's trap.
She gave him a pitying look as she stepped out. "You're going to regret this, Sam. If you realized what you just did--but I guess that's going to be part of the fun, now, isn't it?When you figure out that you could have fixed everything and just threw the chance away?" She patted his cheek. "And you thought you felt guilty before."
Sam grabbed her arm. "Wait--"
She pulled away. "You know where to find me once you change your mind. But the deal's never going to be as good as it was tonight." The girl's head jerked back and the demon began pouring out of her.
Sam kicked at the ground. "Dammit."
*****
"You cut it close," Dean said once they were on the road.
Sam was startled. "What?"
"The Hellhounds were right there, man."
"Oh. Sorry. She wanted to talk, to make a deal," Sam explained.
"For what?"
"To save Dad--and Jess. And to tell me what Yellow Eyes' plans for me are."
Dean glanced over at him. "Christ, Sammy."
Sam took a deep breath. "I didn't...but Dean--"
Dean cut him off. "No."
"With you and Dad working on it, and you'd have ten years--"
"No," Dean repeated. "Oh-nay. Non. Nein. That clear enough? I'm out of languages."
Sam sighed.
"I'm serious, Sam. Don't you do that, don't you even think about that. Don't--" He cut himself off and took a deep breath before starting again. His voice was almost pleading when he spoke again. "Look, we lost Dad already."
But you'd be getting him back! I'd fix all this was on the tip of Sam's tongue, but he just nodded. "Yeah, you're right."
Dean looked over again and turned up the radio. "Great song," he said, and began singing along, loud and off-key.
Sam rolled his eyes and heaved a sigh. Dean relaxed a little. Sam knew he wasn't fooled, but if Sam didn't push the heart-to-heart, Dean wouldn't force it, so they could just table the whole thing.
Sam rubbed his temple. Situation normal, all fucked up. He leaned his head against the window and closed his eyes as they drove. It had been the right decision. It wouldn't fix anything, making a deal. Of course she made it sound good, she was a demon and in their equivalent of sales.
He just had to keep telling himself that, and at some point, he might even believe it.
*****
Comments and criticism always appreciated.