Before 'Once Upon a Time': Chapter 3
Author’s Notes: Set around the timeline of the Supernatural comic “Rising Son”. After hunters have begun figuring out that there’s something different about Sam Winchester. Dean is 11, Sam is 7.
Summary: John’s been hearing whispers in the hunting world about his youngest. He and Dean will protect Sam.
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All In
John had been home for a week. He had gotten the boys settled, scraped up enough money that they would be able to get by when he left again, and called Pastor Jim to keep tabs on them for him should anything go wrong.
Recent events weighed heavily on his mind. Silas’s death, the hunters after Sam, the warning that Sam would bring something terrible, be something terrible when he grew up. He didn’t want to believe it, but…
The hunter sighed. He couldn’t deny that there was something…off about his youngest. Something different. What if they were right? What if Sam was a monster?
John shook his head, clearing the betraying thoughts. Sam was his son. He would die before letting anything happen to him. The others were wrong, crazy…
They had to be.
The man rounded the corner of the house headed toward the backyard where the kids had been playing. He saw them both splayed out on the grass, looking exhausted but perfectly content side-by-side. A smile emerged on John’s face. This is what their lives should be. Tag and hide-and-go-seek and no future but the afternoon.
His smile dropped a bit as he overheard their conversation.
“Dean?”
Dean’s eyes stayed closed, head resting on his arms.
“Yea?”
There was a pause and Dean opened his eyes to look over at Sam
“What, Sammy?”
“…What do you think I’ll be when I grow up?”
“I dunno. You got plenty of time to figure it out.”
Sam frowned.
“Yeah…”
Dean furrowed his brow at his sibling’s dejected voice and turned to look up through the leaves of the tree branch above them.
“You’ll be my brother.”
“Huh?”
“When you grow up, you’ll be my brother.”
“I’m your brother now.”
Dean rolled his eyes.
“I know that, idiot. You’ll still be my brother when you grow up.”
Sam seemed to think about that for a moment and slowly smiled, satisfied with the answer. He joined Dean in gazing at the canopy above them.
John was worried about what the future might hold for his sons, but maybe they would be alright. He sighed and leaned against the house praying to a god he didn’t really believe in that his boys could stay like this forever.
John called out.
“Boys, time for dinner. Come on in.”
They both stood, brushing dirt off their clothes and ran up to him. John walked ahead and the boys fell into step beside each other, trailing behind him.
As they got to the front porch, the widower heard the conversation behind him.
This time when Dean answered Sam, he didn’t pause a moment, didn’t even have to think about it.
“Dean, what’ll we be when we grow up.”
“Together.”
John smiled.
Summary: John’s been hearing whispers in the hunting world about his youngest. He and Dean will protect Sam.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All In
John had been home for a week. He had gotten the boys settled, scraped up enough money that they would be able to get by when he left again, and called Pastor Jim to keep tabs on them for him should anything go wrong.
Recent events weighed heavily on his mind. Silas’s death, the hunters after Sam, the warning that Sam would bring something terrible, be something terrible when he grew up. He didn’t want to believe it, but…
The hunter sighed. He couldn’t deny that there was something…off about his youngest. Something different. What if they were right? What if Sam was a monster?
John shook his head, clearing the betraying thoughts. Sam was his son. He would die before letting anything happen to him. The others were wrong, crazy…
They had to be.
The man rounded the corner of the house headed toward the backyard where the kids had been playing. He saw them both splayed out on the grass, looking exhausted but perfectly content side-by-side. A smile emerged on John’s face. This is what their lives should be. Tag and hide-and-go-seek and no future but the afternoon.
His smile dropped a bit as he overheard their conversation.
“Dean?”
Dean’s eyes stayed closed, head resting on his arms.
“Yea?”
There was a pause and Dean opened his eyes to look over at Sam
“What, Sammy?”
“…What do you think I’ll be when I grow up?”
“I dunno. You got plenty of time to figure it out.”
Sam frowned.
“Yeah…”
Dean furrowed his brow at his sibling’s dejected voice and turned to look up through the leaves of the tree branch above them.
“You’ll be my brother.”
“Huh?”
“When you grow up, you’ll be my brother.”
“I’m your brother now.”
Dean rolled his eyes.
“I know that, idiot. You’ll still be my brother when you grow up.”
Sam seemed to think about that for a moment and slowly smiled, satisfied with the answer. He joined Dean in gazing at the canopy above them.
John was worried about what the future might hold for his sons, but maybe they would be alright. He sighed and leaned against the house praying to a god he didn’t really believe in that his boys could stay like this forever.
John called out.
“Boys, time for dinner. Come on in.”
They both stood, brushing dirt off their clothes and ran up to him. John walked ahead and the boys fell into step beside each other, trailing behind him.
As they got to the front porch, the widower heard the conversation behind him.
This time when Dean answered Sam, he didn’t pause a moment, didn’t even have to think about it.
“Dean, what’ll we be when we grow up.”
“Together.”
John smiled.