09x01 - Summertime Blues - Part Five: A Little More Human
Episode number: 09x01 of Season 9 Fan Fiction (S9FF)
Title: Summertime Blues
Subtitle: A Little More Human
Author: dracox-serdriel
Word count: 1,348
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: violence, language
Garth accompanied Linda and Kevin Tran to Kansas, "Fer old times sake."
Aiden, Krissy, and Josephine were packed and ready to go when Garth pulled up.
"Wow," Kevin said. "Other people. Real people. Well, almost-real people."
"Don't fret, they're real," Garth said. He smiled at Kevin through the rearview mirror.
"Well, they're hunters," Kevin replied. "But they have lives outside of stabbing monsters and hanging out with angels. That's nice."
"Josephine seems really smart," Linda said.
"She goes by Jo," Garth said. With that, he popped the trunk and got out of the car, waving them over. "You ready already?"
Jo nodded as she tossed two bags in Garth's trunk. She said, "I'll be driving the car Victor left us, but we packed it so much it can only fit one passenger.
"Me!" Kevin shouted out the window. "Shotgun!"
"Yeah, all right," Jo replied with a smile.
The Impala rolled up to its special hideaway outside the Men of Letters Bunker. Dean hadn't said a word to Sam since the day before, when he tersely agreed that stopping at a hotel would be better than driving through the night.
Sam broke the silence. "I'm going to see what I can dig up about that shifter. Was he after us or Krissy, you know?"
Dean didn't reply.
Sam continued, "Are you going to talk to Cas?" He waited a few seconds before adding, "Like, now?"
"Fine, Sam."
Before Sam could stop his brother, he got out of the car and stamped over to the bunker.
Sam quickly thought up a list of reasons to excuse himself from the vicinity. He decided to head out for a beer, but then realized that Dean had taken the keys.
Dean hated the entire situation. He tried to recollect what it was like when things were simpler, before his feelings for Castiel changed. He remembered how hard it was to forgive the angel when he broke Sam's brain; he must have loved Cas then. That's why he took the betrayal so hard.
But that didn't make sense. Dean didn't love Cas for breaking Sam's head. No, he must've loved him before that.
Why was this so difficult?
He pushed his way into the bunker, stuck in his own head. He stopped at the smell of... bacon? Yes, he definitely smelled bacon.
"Hi," Cas said from the war room.
The angel had set the table with three plates of bacon and eggs. Sam must've gotten around to showing Cas how to use the frying pan.
"Hi... how did you..?" Dean began.
"Sam called when you were an hour away, so I thought I'd try to cook," Cas replied.
Sam came in behind Dean.
"I made some for you, too, Sam," the angel said.
"Actually, I've gotta look into this shifter. You know, figure out why he was there. Library's still open, but I need the keys," Sam said.
"Dude, the Men of Letters have better books than the library," Dean replied.
"Do they have social worker records from this century?"
"Fine, but don't ding her," Dean said as he tossed Sam the keys.
"But I made some for you, too," Cas said to Sam.
"Thanks, Cas. Dean can have my bacon. Call me if you need me."
He left as quickly as he could without actually running.
With that, Dean walked down to the table. "So you just, made some bacon?" he inquired.
"I thought you'd be upset over the outcome of our last trip."
"You think?"
"And I thought it would be a good way to show you that I can be... a little more human," Cas said. He ended the statement lamely, like he wasn't sure the phrase was right. "I just need some practice."
Just like that, all the agitation that had built up in Dean's brain, that had radiated down into his body, melted away. A few words and the smell of bacon were all he needed.
"Look, Cas, I just helped Krissy and the other tween hunters move across the freaking country so they could take a shot at a normal life, even if it's not safe."
"You don't sound happy."
"I'm not. But, she is. They are. And until they're not, I'm gonna let'em be."
Cas's smile brimmed over his face. His usual blank stare lit up with it.
"But Cas, man, this is my limit, okay? I can't take too much more of it."
The words themselves said very little, but implicitly the angel understood, "You mean you want me to stay here, all the time."
"I know - "
" - I can do that," Cas cut Dean off. "At least for a week or two. Tamandriel found me the second time because he was keeping a close watch."
"Letting the trail go cold? I like it. But what about after that?"
Castiel didn't respond; instead, he insisted that Dean sit and eat. The food wasn't half bad.
"I don't want you to be on Angel Lock-down," Dean said. "I want you on the road with us, it's just..."
"I understand."
"Okay, so, training regimen... close quarter combat, like my dad taught me, marksmanship, the whole nine. As long as we're hold up here for a week, we might as well put that time to good use, right?"
"I did have one other project in mind," Cas said.
"More important that this?"
"I - uh... no, but, we talked about it... making a room with nothing to explode," he replied. He suddenly felt embarrassed. Perhaps Dean no longer held interest in constructing the 'safe sex' room they discussed.
However, Dean had cottoned on quickly to Cas's suggestion, and any doubts the angel had were erased by the smile that turned up on his face.
"You're right, that'll be a good project."
Sam sat happily, eating a salad without snide comments about rabbit food, a novel experience since living with Dean at the bunker.
On an off chance, Sam called the office of Daniel Coopers, and the man actually picked up his phone.
"Coopers," rasped the man's voice.
"Hi, is this Daniel Coopers?"
"Yes, it is. How can I help you?"
"Did you ask me to meet with you?" Sam asked.
"Sorry?"
"My name is Sam Smith, and I got a call about a meeting. You and another social worker wanted to talk to me about a teen emancipation, I think?"
"That's odd," Daniel interrupted.
"What?"
"I do work teen emancipation cases, sure, but I don't have the name Sam Smith down anywhere. You know who set the date?"
"You know, I don't remember," Sam lied quickly. He hadn't expected Daniel Coopers to be real or alive. "But it must've been a mistake, right?"
"Sorry about that, I can check - "
"No, you know, that's fine. Thank you for your time."
Sam hung up.
What kind of shifter doesn't take out the guy he's replacing? And if he's alive and answering his phone, why didn't the other social worker, the woman, figure it out?
He moved on to coffee and desert when something caught his eye. As if coming to answer his question, the woman he had met earlier, Dodge, glided over to his table and sat across from him.
"Dodge?" Sam's eyes glanced around to see if she had any friends with her. She didn't.
"Glad you remember me."
"What are you -"
" - doing here?" she finished. "Well, for one thing, you're name isn't Sam Smith."
Sam did his best poker face. "Does that mean you're not a social worker?"
"I'm not. Daniel Coopers is, though, so it wasn't all a lie. You didn't actually meet him today, but I'm guessing, since the man with me didn't return to the car, you already knew that. For future reference, emancipation doesn't - "
"What do you want from me?" Sam interrupted.
"Relax, I'm not your enemy," she replied. She discreetly pushed something in front of him: an FBI Badge. A real FBI badge. "My name is Special Agent Dakota Gage, but like I said before, most people call me Dodge. And we have so much to talk about, Sam Winchester."
<<< Previous:
Part Four: Emancipation
Next: >>>
Episode 09x02 Gimme a Bullet
Episode 09x01 Summertime Blues
Primary Post: Season 9 Fan Fiction (S9FF)
Title: Summertime Blues
Subtitle: A Little More Human
Author: dracox-serdriel
Word count: 1,348
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: violence, language
Garth accompanied Linda and Kevin Tran to Kansas, "Fer old times sake."
Aiden, Krissy, and Josephine were packed and ready to go when Garth pulled up.
"Wow," Kevin said. "Other people. Real people. Well, almost-real people."
"Don't fret, they're real," Garth said. He smiled at Kevin through the rearview mirror.
"Well, they're hunters," Kevin replied. "But they have lives outside of stabbing monsters and hanging out with angels. That's nice."
"Josephine seems really smart," Linda said.
"She goes by Jo," Garth said. With that, he popped the trunk and got out of the car, waving them over. "You ready already?"
Jo nodded as she tossed two bags in Garth's trunk. She said, "I'll be driving the car Victor left us, but we packed it so much it can only fit one passenger.
"Me!" Kevin shouted out the window. "Shotgun!"
"Yeah, all right," Jo replied with a smile.
The Impala rolled up to its special hideaway outside the Men of Letters Bunker. Dean hadn't said a word to Sam since the day before, when he tersely agreed that stopping at a hotel would be better than driving through the night.
Sam broke the silence. "I'm going to see what I can dig up about that shifter. Was he after us or Krissy, you know?"
Dean didn't reply.
Sam continued, "Are you going to talk to Cas?" He waited a few seconds before adding, "Like, now?"
"Fine, Sam."
Before Sam could stop his brother, he got out of the car and stamped over to the bunker.
Sam quickly thought up a list of reasons to excuse himself from the vicinity. He decided to head out for a beer, but then realized that Dean had taken the keys.
Dean hated the entire situation. He tried to recollect what it was like when things were simpler, before his feelings for Castiel changed. He remembered how hard it was to forgive the angel when he broke Sam's brain; he must have loved Cas then. That's why he took the betrayal so hard.
But that didn't make sense. Dean didn't love Cas for breaking Sam's head. No, he must've loved him before that.
Why was this so difficult?
He pushed his way into the bunker, stuck in his own head. He stopped at the smell of... bacon? Yes, he definitely smelled bacon.
"Hi," Cas said from the war room.
The angel had set the table with three plates of bacon and eggs. Sam must've gotten around to showing Cas how to use the frying pan.
"Hi... how did you..?" Dean began.
"Sam called when you were an hour away, so I thought I'd try to cook," Cas replied.
Sam came in behind Dean.
"I made some for you, too, Sam," the angel said.
"Actually, I've gotta look into this shifter. You know, figure out why he was there. Library's still open, but I need the keys," Sam said.
"Dude, the Men of Letters have better books than the library," Dean replied.
"Do they have social worker records from this century?"
"Fine, but don't ding her," Dean said as he tossed Sam the keys.
"But I made some for you, too," Cas said to Sam.
"Thanks, Cas. Dean can have my bacon. Call me if you need me."
He left as quickly as he could without actually running.
With that, Dean walked down to the table. "So you just, made some bacon?" he inquired.
"I thought you'd be upset over the outcome of our last trip."
"You think?"
"And I thought it would be a good way to show you that I can be... a little more human," Cas said. He ended the statement lamely, like he wasn't sure the phrase was right. "I just need some practice."
Just like that, all the agitation that had built up in Dean's brain, that had radiated down into his body, melted away. A few words and the smell of bacon were all he needed.
"Look, Cas, I just helped Krissy and the other tween hunters move across the freaking country so they could take a shot at a normal life, even if it's not safe."
"You don't sound happy."
"I'm not. But, she is. They are. And until they're not, I'm gonna let'em be."
Cas's smile brimmed over his face. His usual blank stare lit up with it.
"But Cas, man, this is my limit, okay? I can't take too much more of it."
The words themselves said very little, but implicitly the angel understood, "You mean you want me to stay here, all the time."
"I know - "
" - I can do that," Cas cut Dean off. "At least for a week or two. Tamandriel found me the second time because he was keeping a close watch."
"Letting the trail go cold? I like it. But what about after that?"
Castiel didn't respond; instead, he insisted that Dean sit and eat. The food wasn't half bad.
"I don't want you to be on Angel Lock-down," Dean said. "I want you on the road with us, it's just..."
"I understand."
"Okay, so, training regimen... close quarter combat, like my dad taught me, marksmanship, the whole nine. As long as we're hold up here for a week, we might as well put that time to good use, right?"
"I did have one other project in mind," Cas said.
"More important that this?"
"I - uh... no, but, we talked about it... making a room with nothing to explode," he replied. He suddenly felt embarrassed. Perhaps Dean no longer held interest in constructing the 'safe sex' room they discussed.
However, Dean had cottoned on quickly to Cas's suggestion, and any doubts the angel had were erased by the smile that turned up on his face.
"You're right, that'll be a good project."
Sam sat happily, eating a salad without snide comments about rabbit food, a novel experience since living with Dean at the bunker.
On an off chance, Sam called the office of Daniel Coopers, and the man actually picked up his phone.
"Coopers," rasped the man's voice.
"Hi, is this Daniel Coopers?"
"Yes, it is. How can I help you?"
"Did you ask me to meet with you?" Sam asked.
"Sorry?"
"My name is Sam Smith, and I got a call about a meeting. You and another social worker wanted to talk to me about a teen emancipation, I think?"
"That's odd," Daniel interrupted.
"What?"
"I do work teen emancipation cases, sure, but I don't have the name Sam Smith down anywhere. You know who set the date?"
"You know, I don't remember," Sam lied quickly. He hadn't expected Daniel Coopers to be real or alive. "But it must've been a mistake, right?"
"Sorry about that, I can check - "
"No, you know, that's fine. Thank you for your time."
Sam hung up.
What kind of shifter doesn't take out the guy he's replacing? And if he's alive and answering his phone, why didn't the other social worker, the woman, figure it out?
He moved on to coffee and desert when something caught his eye. As if coming to answer his question, the woman he had met earlier, Dodge, glided over to his table and sat across from him.
"Dodge?" Sam's eyes glanced around to see if she had any friends with her. She didn't.
"Glad you remember me."
"What are you -"
" - doing here?" she finished. "Well, for one thing, you're name isn't Sam Smith."
Sam did his best poker face. "Does that mean you're not a social worker?"
"I'm not. Daniel Coopers is, though, so it wasn't all a lie. You didn't actually meet him today, but I'm guessing, since the man with me didn't return to the car, you already knew that. For future reference, emancipation doesn't - "
"What do you want from me?" Sam interrupted.
"Relax, I'm not your enemy," she replied. She discreetly pushed something in front of him: an FBI Badge. A real FBI badge. "My name is Special Agent Dakota Gage, but like I said before, most people call me Dodge. And we have so much to talk about, Sam Winchester."
<<< Previous:
Part Four: Emancipation
Next: >>>
Episode 09x02 Gimme a Bullet
Episode 09x01 Summertime Blues
Primary Post: Season 9 Fan Fiction (S9FF)