Different Roads: La Primera Feliz Navidad 1/4
SUMMARY: As the brothers face their first Christmas alone, Dean's mentor Cooper takes it on himself to make sure that it's a happy one.
December 12-13, 1995
It was the sound of breaking glass that woke Sammy. He silently took stock of his surroundings, finding nothing out of place.
But, still, Sammy slid a hand under his pillow and slid out the knife both boys had begun to keep under their pillows.
Their small house was heavily warded and secure against the supernatural -- but there were still plenty of human nasties around. Dean had drummed into his little brother that careful was always best.
Thus armed, Sammy crept to the stairs. The light was still on in the library/office, and Sammy crept there to check it out.
One glance in showed him where the breaking glass had come from. One of their frosted glass mugs -- a gift from Pastor Jim -- lay in fragments on the hardwood flood beside the desk. The strong coffee smell showed Sammy what had been in the mug.
Dean was slumped at the computer, his face mashed into the keyboard and an unbroken line of "++++++++" marching onto the screen.
Chuckling softly, Sammy put the knife down, and gently sat Dean back up, wiping his face and getting a small murmur in reply.
Pulling Dean to a standing position, Sammy guided him around the glass and up the stairs to their room. "What were you doing?" he asked as he tugged off Dean's boots and laid him down.
Instead of answering verbally, Dean's hands spoke for him. 'Crusaders...need bed.....Christmas....papers....'
"Okay, okay." Sammy drew the covers up over his big brother. "G'night, Dean."
'Night, Sammy.' And he rolled over.
Sammy went back downstairs and cleaned up the glass and coffee. He sat down at the computer and erased the fifteen lines of "++++++" that had resulted from Dean's unexpected faceplant.
"Oh, so that's it," Sammy muttered as the cleaned-up screen revealed Dean's mid-term paper for Mister Cooper's AP European History class.
Cooper had a sign on the back of his classroom wall that read "EXILE NAPOLEON BY CHRISTMAS", so they could stay on track for the test at the end of the year. When the lectures veered from the textbooks, Cooper would tape them so that Dean could listen to them. The mid-term paper was a more in-depth study of any one of the lecture-covered topics.
One of those had been the Crusades. And while Dean had had no love lost for the religious and political fervour that had surrounded them, the Children's Crusade of 1212 had broken his heart. Sammy now wasn't surpised to find that his paper was called "LOST GENERATION: HOW THE CHILDREN OF 1212 COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED".
Chuckling, Sammy inserted a "'S CRUSADE" into the title.
Knowing Dean's paper was due that Friday, Sammy went ahead and read through what was written. He corrected punctuation here and tweaked spelling there. He saved the paper right where Dean had fallen asleep -- mid-sentence.
Shutting down the computer, Sammy drifted about downstairs. He checked locks and salt lines. He made a pot of coffee, but did not turn it on. He set out plates and cups and syrup and made certain that fruit juice and frozen waffles were up front in the refrigerator and freezer.
Then, Sammy went back upstairs and made certain Dean was asleep. He set the alarm, replaced the knife under his pillow, and slid back to sleep himself.
On to Chapter Two
December 12-13, 1995
It was the sound of breaking glass that woke Sammy. He silently took stock of his surroundings, finding nothing out of place.
But, still, Sammy slid a hand under his pillow and slid out the knife both boys had begun to keep under their pillows.
Their small house was heavily warded and secure against the supernatural -- but there were still plenty of human nasties around. Dean had drummed into his little brother that careful was always best.
Thus armed, Sammy crept to the stairs. The light was still on in the library/office, and Sammy crept there to check it out.
One glance in showed him where the breaking glass had come from. One of their frosted glass mugs -- a gift from Pastor Jim -- lay in fragments on the hardwood flood beside the desk. The strong coffee smell showed Sammy what had been in the mug.
Dean was slumped at the computer, his face mashed into the keyboard and an unbroken line of "++++++++" marching onto the screen.
Chuckling softly, Sammy put the knife down, and gently sat Dean back up, wiping his face and getting a small murmur in reply.
Pulling Dean to a standing position, Sammy guided him around the glass and up the stairs to their room. "What were you doing?" he asked as he tugged off Dean's boots and laid him down.
Instead of answering verbally, Dean's hands spoke for him. 'Crusaders...need bed.....Christmas....papers....'
"Okay, okay." Sammy drew the covers up over his big brother. "G'night, Dean."
'Night, Sammy.' And he rolled over.
Sammy went back downstairs and cleaned up the glass and coffee. He sat down at the computer and erased the fifteen lines of "++++++" that had resulted from Dean's unexpected faceplant.
"Oh, so that's it," Sammy muttered as the cleaned-up screen revealed Dean's mid-term paper for Mister Cooper's AP European History class.
Cooper had a sign on the back of his classroom wall that read "EXILE NAPOLEON BY CHRISTMAS", so they could stay on track for the test at the end of the year. When the lectures veered from the textbooks, Cooper would tape them so that Dean could listen to them. The mid-term paper was a more in-depth study of any one of the lecture-covered topics.
One of those had been the Crusades. And while Dean had had no love lost for the religious and political fervour that had surrounded them, the Children's Crusade of 1212 had broken his heart. Sammy now wasn't surpised to find that his paper was called "LOST GENERATION: HOW THE CHILDREN OF 1212 COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED".
Chuckling, Sammy inserted a "'S CRUSADE" into the title.
Knowing Dean's paper was due that Friday, Sammy went ahead and read through what was written. He corrected punctuation here and tweaked spelling there. He saved the paper right where Dean had fallen asleep -- mid-sentence.
Shutting down the computer, Sammy drifted about downstairs. He checked locks and salt lines. He made a pot of coffee, but did not turn it on. He set out plates and cups and syrup and made certain that fruit juice and frozen waffles were up front in the refrigerator and freezer.
Then, Sammy went back upstairs and made certain Dean was asleep. He set the alarm, replaced the knife under his pillow, and slid back to sleep himself.
On to Chapter Two