[J1W] Gorgeous
[Set in Winchester Initiative. Sam is likely_evil and used with permission from his mun who made a request for a Sam/Ruby future!fic with the prompt “sunshine.” I tried for fluff, I did, but my brain can only do so much of it before it breaks.]
This wasn’t their first vacation. Ruby had managed to talk him into several over the years, as Michael started to get better and better at running the Initiative. Numerous trips to beautiful places where all they did was just enjoy the sunshine and get lost in each other. It was what he needed, the feeling of not being completely alone in all that was going on around him. The opportunity to take some of the worries off his shoulders. No, vacations weren’t anything new.
This was, however, the first one they had taken for her.
She didn’t think another trip to Hell would have this kind of effect on her. It wasn’t as though she hadn’t been before. She was sure she had spent more time in Hell than she possibly could have liked, but the thing was, she usually came out stronger for it-a little bit bitter, a little bit nastier, but stronger. This time was different. This time, they were pulling out all the stops to break her, and she hated admitting it, but she was pretty sure that they succeeded. Because she wasn’t stronger this time around. Because there was something wrong with her, there was something missing, and she really needed to get that back.
She stood in the sunshine that poured through the open door, just watching the people outside but not really focusing on anything in particular. It was times like this she wished that she was human. That she didn’t have centuries of that place in her mind, especially the last fifty years of it. It took five months for them to get her out of Hell this time, and that was too long, far too long. Not their fault, but still far too long. Closing her eyes away from the light, she wrapped her arms around herself, starting to curl in slightly.
“It’s gorgeous out.” She did her best not to tense when she felt Sam’s arms slide around her and pull her closer. She couldn’t help the subconscious jump before her senses realized it was him, but once she did, she relaxed against him a bit, letting him pull her closer. She was leaning on him for a change, as oppose to the other way around, and it was a little odd, but not a bad feeling. Not yet. Not until it was known whether or not this would fix her. “Maybe we could spend some time outside later.”
She nodded slightly. “I’m just-tired. Not really in the mood for people.”
“Fair enough,” he nodded, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Just let me know.”
She leaned back into him some more, and as she did his arms tightened around her. She hadn’t told him much-she didn’t want to tell him anything. Hell wasn’t a nice place and if he knew the things that Gordon and Bela had done to her, he wouldn’t take it well at all. And she didn’t want Sam going anywhere near these two, not with the weapon they had in their back pocket. That boy would obliterate Sam. In fact, he could destroy everything that Sam had tried to build over the past hundred years with just a thought, and Ruby wasn’t about to let that happen. She would let the kid destroy her before she let them touch Sam.
Not that that would save them. Not that that would do anything more than be another road bump between him and her son. But it would be enough, at least as far as she was concerned.
Sam was pulling her away from the door, back towards the couch and pulling her in to curl up against him. The light was fading as they got further away from the doorway, and she let her head rest against his chest, one strong arm curling around her head, brushing her hair back from her ear.
“I know you don’t want to talk about it,” he murmured gently. “But if you ever change your mind-”
“I know,” she sighed softly, curling in to him a bit more, and burying her face in the crook of his neck. “I know.”
“Good.” His lips brushed against her temple as he just let her stay close. “I love you, Ruby.”
“I love you, too, Sam.”
720 words
This wasn’t their first vacation. Ruby had managed to talk him into several over the years, as Michael started to get better and better at running the Initiative. Numerous trips to beautiful places where all they did was just enjoy the sunshine and get lost in each other. It was what he needed, the feeling of not being completely alone in all that was going on around him. The opportunity to take some of the worries off his shoulders. No, vacations weren’t anything new.
This was, however, the first one they had taken for her.
She didn’t think another trip to Hell would have this kind of effect on her. It wasn’t as though she hadn’t been before. She was sure she had spent more time in Hell than she possibly could have liked, but the thing was, she usually came out stronger for it-a little bit bitter, a little bit nastier, but stronger. This time was different. This time, they were pulling out all the stops to break her, and she hated admitting it, but she was pretty sure that they succeeded. Because she wasn’t stronger this time around. Because there was something wrong with her, there was something missing, and she really needed to get that back.
She stood in the sunshine that poured through the open door, just watching the people outside but not really focusing on anything in particular. It was times like this she wished that she was human. That she didn’t have centuries of that place in her mind, especially the last fifty years of it. It took five months for them to get her out of Hell this time, and that was too long, far too long. Not their fault, but still far too long. Closing her eyes away from the light, she wrapped her arms around herself, starting to curl in slightly.
“It’s gorgeous out.” She did her best not to tense when she felt Sam’s arms slide around her and pull her closer. She couldn’t help the subconscious jump before her senses realized it was him, but once she did, she relaxed against him a bit, letting him pull her closer. She was leaning on him for a change, as oppose to the other way around, and it was a little odd, but not a bad feeling. Not yet. Not until it was known whether or not this would fix her. “Maybe we could spend some time outside later.”
She nodded slightly. “I’m just-tired. Not really in the mood for people.”
“Fair enough,” he nodded, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Just let me know.”
She leaned back into him some more, and as she did his arms tightened around her. She hadn’t told him much-she didn’t want to tell him anything. Hell wasn’t a nice place and if he knew the things that Gordon and Bela had done to her, he wouldn’t take it well at all. And she didn’t want Sam going anywhere near these two, not with the weapon they had in their back pocket. That boy would obliterate Sam. In fact, he could destroy everything that Sam had tried to build over the past hundred years with just a thought, and Ruby wasn’t about to let that happen. She would let the kid destroy her before she let them touch Sam.
Not that that would save them. Not that that would do anything more than be another road bump between him and her son. But it would be enough, at least as far as she was concerned.
Sam was pulling her away from the door, back towards the couch and pulling her in to curl up against him. The light was fading as they got further away from the doorway, and she let her head rest against his chest, one strong arm curling around her head, brushing her hair back from her ear.
“I know you don’t want to talk about it,” he murmured gently. “But if you ever change your mind-”
“I know,” she sighed softly, curling in to him a bit more, and burying her face in the crook of his neck. “I know.”
“Good.” His lips brushed against her temple as he just let her stay close. “I love you, Ruby.”
“I love you, too, Sam.”
720 words