Learn to shoot, Katniss!
Title: Learn to shoot, Katniss!
Category: Supernatural
Characters: Kevin Tran, Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester
Rating: PG-13
Wordcount: ~ 1500
Summary: Tag to 9x02 so SPOILERS for that episode. Learning to shoot isn't that of a bad idea for Kevin. At least Dean thinks so.
Disclaimer: Not mine, I'm just playing with other people's toys
Learn to shoot, Katniss!
Kevin crashed in one of the backrooms. Just before he drifted off to sleep he thought that he probably should claim one of the rooms as his now. At least the beds here were way more comfortable than the one on Garth's ship.
The last few days taking their toll Kevin slept in the next day and it was nearly noon before he crawled out of bed and hit the shower. After that he nearly felt human again and he tried really hard to not think about his mom. And about Crowley in the basement. And facing Sam and especially Dean after their little encounter yesterday.
Kevin followed the smell of bacon and coffee to the kitchen where he found Dean busy at the stove. Sam was nowhere in sight and used dishes indicated that the brothers already had their breakfast.
"Grab a coffee and sit down." Dean didn't even turn around, a critical eye on the two pans in front of him. "This should be ready in a minute."
Kevin barely had time to sit down before Dean placed a loaded plate on the table and shoved it in his direction. Toast, bacon and scrambled eggs, followed by a big glass of orange juice and a stack of pancakes Dean had stored in the oven to keep them warm.
"You awaiting an army or something?" Kevin asked but his stomach grumbled and his mouth watered. Eating hadn't been top priority over the last few days.
"Dig in, kid." Dean gave him an encouraging nod and poured himself a coffee. Kevin didn't have to be told twice. He bit back a moan when he had his first bite of the scrambled eggs, however, the way Dean smiled into his mug he had heard it.
For a while they sat in comfortable silence. Kevin couldn't even remember the last time he had a real home cooked breakfast, probably back when his biggest problem had been his college exam essay which brought his thoughts back to his mom and he didn't want to go there. So he focused on the eggs Dean had cooked for him, along with the bacon and the pancakes. Dean had prepared that just for him and it proved more that he really meant what he'd said about the whole family thing than words ever could.
"I was thinking about yesterday." Dean broke the silence.
Or maybe not. Kevin kept his eyes on his own coffee mug. Dean had said he considered him family but in the light of a new day Kevin wasn't so sure if Dean just had said it to keep him in the bunker. Maybe the breakfast was just for sugar-coating the harsh truth.
"Yeah?" He rolled the mug between his hands.
"You know, you are a crappy shot." Dean said with a lopsided smile and took another sip of his coffee.
Taken by surprise, Kevin had other things on his mind than his shot at Dean, Kevin's head snapped up and for a second he just stared at Dean.
"What?" Dean shrugged his shoulders. "You are a crappy shot. And why did you choose that toy weapon? We have a whole arsenal here."
Half of that on the walls of your room, Kevin thought. Not sure what to say Kevin said nothing. He had looked through the weapons the Winchesters, and apparently the Men of Letters before them, kept in the bunker but with half of them he wasn't even sure how to handle them. And with the other half he was pretty sure he was more of a danger to himself than to anyone else. That small crossbow had looked like the best choice. And he had dipped the tips of the arrows in salty holy water, though.
"You done?" Dean stood up and put his mug in the sink and then stored the leftovers in the fridge. "Okay, let's go."
He strolled out of the kitchen expecting Kevin to follow him.
"Where are we going?" Kevin had to speed up a little to catch up with Dean, damn long legs.
"Shooting range." Dean said it as if it should be obvious.
"Okay?" Kevin didn't get it. He was the geek, he was the one stuck in the bunker with books and tablets and research. He didn't need to practice at the shooting range. The bunker was the safest place on earth. Nothing short to a supernatural catastrophe of apocalyptic dimension should be able to threaten them here.
When they bypassed the library Sam joined them with a short "Hey." and a grin on his face and Kevin took a moment to just look at the brothers walking in front of him.
Okay, he probably should learn how to shoot.
Dean had planned this because there was already a gun waiting for Kevin on the counter, clip laying right next to it.
Sam stayed back, casually leaning against the wall, while Dean and Kevin stepped closer to the counter. Kevin had a skeptical eye on the gun, this wasn't exactly what he'd signed up for. As if he'd signed up for any of this. He sighed.
"Okay." He was willing to give this a shot, literally. "What do I do?"
He was a quick learner and this couldn't be that hard. He wasn't that bad of a shot at Call of Duty, after all. And he tried really hard to blend out the memory of his frantic search for a weapon not that long ago.
Dean explained the gun to him, showed him how to insert the clip and how to flick the safety on and off.
"I think I got that." Kevin tried to mask his nervousness but when Dean placed the gun in his hand, Kevin couldn't hide how it shook.
"Easy." Dean's hand wrapped around his, steadying the gun. "Use both hands."
Encircled by Dean's arms and with Dean pressed against his back, Kevin let out a breath and tightened the grip around the gun. He could do this.
Eyes on the target he pulled the trigger.
The recoil hit him like a sledge-hammer and he slammed into the solid wall of Dean behind him.
"Whoa, easy there, Rambo." Dean flicked the safety on and pried the gun out of Kevin's hands.
"Did I hit?"
"The wall." Sam let out a soft chuckle.
"Shut up, Sam." Dean threw him a glare over his shoulder. "I still remember the first time I took you shooting."
"I wasn't that bad."
"I know an innocent tree who'd like to disagree." Dean countered. "You were supposed to shoot the bottles." He muttered something under his breath about little brothers before his attention was back on Kevin.
"Don't listen to him, you did good for your first shot." Dean reassured him, completely ignoring the fact that Kevin had just missed the broad side of a barn. "At least your hands are big enough to actually hold a gun."
Dean said it in a dreamy voice, lost in fond memories for a moment. Kevin swallowed thickly. That one statement implied so much he didn't want to think about. The Winchesters weren't exactly open with personal things and with all the stuff going on since Kevin had stumbled into this whole disaster there hadn't been time for an heart to heart.
"How old were you, Sam?" Kevin blurted out.
Sam thought about that. "Dunno, seven or eight?" Unsure, the question directed at Dean.
"Eight." Dean put the gun back in Kevin's hand and steadied it with a sure grip. "You know, that summer before you stole Dad's journal over Christmas?"
"Oh, yeah." Sam cleared his throat. "Right."
There was an awkward moment and Kevin bit back the question on his lips.
"Let's try this again." Dean changed the topic. "You were a little bit too hard on the trigger. Draw it back slowly until you hit the sweet spot. Feel it?" Kevin tried again, more gently this time. "Slow and smooth."
Being prepared the recoil didn't hit him that hard and Kevin actually hit the broad side of the barn, not quite bullseye but at least the white around the target.
"Not bad." Came Sam's comment from behind.
"Not bad?" Dean quirked an eyebrow at this brother. "The last time I've seen you down here I was afraid you'd shoot me. Don't let him irritate you, Kevin."
After three more shots with Kevin making his way slowly closer to the center of the target, Dean stepped back and let him try on his own. Without Dean steadying his hands Kevin had to find his balance again but managed to keep his aim.
Kevin went through a second clip, reloading was another tricky thing, and in the end every shot hit the target. Not exactly where he wanted them to land and in most cases hitting non vital spots but it was a start. However, it was getting harder to hold the gun.
"Okay, enough." Dean covered Kevin's hands with his own. "Your muscles are not used to this, you're starting to shake."
Kevin flicked the safety on and put the gun down. He wiggled his fingers which were a little stiff by now.
"And?" He asked, a critical eye on the target with quite some holes in it.
"Next time I knock before I take you by surprise." Dean grinned at him. "You could actually kill me now."
The compliment washed over Kevin and he smiled at Dean who caught him in an one-armed hug and led him out of the shooting range.
"A little more practice and you're going to kick Katniss' ass. Or at least Sammy's."
"Hey." Sam hit his brother's shoulder who just laughed.
Together they made their way upstairs and for the first time Kevin really felt at home with them. He let out a breath. They were a family.
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