Unexpected Help, for lisabird (gen, PG-13)
Title: Unexpected Help
Author: lullaby_gg / James Taylor
Recipient: lisabird
Rating: PG-13
Author's notes: 4660 words. Pre-series. Dean is 17 and Sam’s 13. I own nothing related to Supernatural, they all belong to Kripke and the WB. I did my best for lisabird, hope she’ll like it. Additional author’s notes are at the end.
Summary: Dean's first solo hunt doesn't go quite as planned.
Dean Winchester sat in the motel room staring out the window. The rain had finally stopped; there had been awful weather ever since they arrived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Under any other circumstances, Dean would have been bitter and bored, only this time, it wasn’t the case. The eldest Winchester son was too ecstatic to worry over some stupid weather; he was even more thrilled than when he went out to bars and pools to pick up hot chicks. If he had the chance to mix it all together that would be just sweet. The reason for all that excitement was simple: his first solo hunt.
Dean had thought for a long time he was ready to fly solo but John hadn’t exactly agreed. The discussions over this subject had started as soon as Dean managed to kill the first demon on his own; which happened about a year ago. The young man had managed to disobey his father, who had clearly told him to stay put with his brother Sam and wait outside while he searched the place. The stubborn Winchester son thought he could handle it on his own, which he did indeed, but the only thing he got out of it was a very stern lecture and two weeks of grounding.
“Way to thank me Dad,” Dean said right after being sentenced to his fate.
This time was different; his greatest dream was finally coming true. It had all started about a week ago when they first arrived in Milwaukee...
One week ago…
“Heeeey!” Sammy’s yell was like a sharp knife to John’s ears. He had been driving for over three hours and couldn’t wait to get settled in this new town once and for all. His sons were fighting all the time, now John was tired and damned if he was going to stand for another fight. He turned to his right and looked at his eldest son who had a video game in his hands. Now it was clear to John what was going on between his boys.
“Dean, don’t fight with Sam; give it back.” His tone was gentle but firm, something his sons called the ‘John Winchester no-nonsense voice’.
“But Dad…” Dean whined. “Sammy’s had it like forever, now it’s my turn to show him how to kick some video game ass.” The oldest Winchester boy pretended to press the buttons not really knowing how the gameboy worked.
“You don’t even know how to play jerk. It’s like it requires intelligence and ability,” Sam said, stretching over the back seat, putting his arms out to reach for his gameboy.
“Samuel, sit your ass down!” John commanded, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter than necessary to keep from yelling. “Dean, give your brother his toy back, NOW and watch your language!” ‘That should do it’, John thought. His sons might not be the best behaved children of all time, but they sure knew to back off from their father when he used that tone of voice.
Dean gave Sammy the video game back, but not without a comment which John couldn’t quite hear, but was sure it was something like bitch. The older hunter looked back at his son who returned his gaze innocently.
The youngest boy immediately sat down, muttering in annoyance how a game boy wasn’t a toy and what a jerk Dean was.
*****
After a few more minutes of driving, the Winchesters finally managed to get a motel room just outside of the city; they got as settled as possible. The drive had been long and all three guys were tired and in desperate need of rest. Sammy was the first to fall asleep. He got into his pajamas and slipped under the covers of the bed he was sharing with his brother as soon as they entered the room.
Dean was sitting on John’s bed reading the local newspaper, looking for more hints on the hunt they had been following. Meanwhile, John was sitting with the coffee table in front of him, brooding, and thinking how to start this conversation with his oldest son. When he finally decided this couldn’t wait, he called to his eldest. “Dean, would you come over here a moment,” John asked softly, in an attempt not to disturb Sammy from his sleep.
Dean was startled at first, since he was concentrating hard on reading through the paper. He got up just as he saw John making a gesture with his hand to invite him to sit next to him.
“Dad I know what it looks like…,” Dean paused and started to lift his arms trying to look as innocent as he could, “I swear it was all Sam’s idea to get your weapons out, I really didn’t mean to scratch that knife, but it just fell and…”
“What the hell are you talking about Dean?” John was puzzled, he had no idea what his seventeen-year old son was talking about. He’d find out about that later, though. The older hunter decided there were more important things right now than a scratch on a weapon.
“Son, I wanted to talk to you,” he began, not really wanting to approach this subject, but knowing he had to because of its importance.
“Yes Dad?” Dean’s respectful response was music to John’s ears. No matter what his eldest son was, he always maintained the good little soldier.
“Dean, we’ve had this discussion before, but now I think you are ready to go on a hunt of your own,” John said, trying hard not to look at his son’s face, which he guessed was extremely excited.
“You serious? Are you shit… err…kidding me sir?”
John had to laugh at how nervous his son seemed and the look on his face when he almost let a curse word slip out. John didn’t like those. He made it perfectly clear to both his sons that that kind of language was not acceptable. He still smiled at Dean’s surprise. “Of course I am serious son, this is an easy hunt in Minnesota, which is not really that far away and I’m confident you can handle it by yourself.” John tried to sound as calm and relaxed as possible, but underneath, he was just terrified that something would happen to the young man. ‘You have to let them grow up sometime right? I can do that,’ the older hunter tried to convince himself. “Do you think you can handle it Dean?”
John was proud at the confidence his son portrayed. “Yes, I’ve waited for this like forever, dude.” Dean was too excited to notice he called his father dude, but realized it as soon as he saw his father’s expression. “I mean sir,” Dean corrected himself.
*****
The next day was all about getting Dean prepared to go on a hunt that would probably take him no more than a couple of days. Sam worried about his brother being gone alone for that long. Although he didn’t really want to admit it, he was going to miss him. The youngest Winchester was upset because he believed his father didn’t seem worried about his brother being gone at all.
*****
Dean arrived in Minnesota without too much trouble. He worked to find out as much as he could about the thing that was hunting the area. The young hunter observed a coffee shop located near the woods where it was rumored the ghost was appearing. He decided to stop and ask around about it.
Dean found out by interviewing some of the people in the coffee shop that according to a guy who went into the forest one night with his friends, there was a woman dressed in a black gown that appeared in front of them. The local legend was that the woman frequented that area of the woods and anyone crossing her path would be approached by her, asking for help. When she was asked if they could help her, she changed her face into a demonic one and killed them…the man who told the story escaped by mere luck. He was so frightened he wouldn’t go near the woods ever again; he was still too shocked by the fact that his other two friends had died that terrible death.
Dean was excited about all this. He didn’t think it would be much of a problem to hunt what sounded like a regular vengeful spirit. This couldn’t be more perfect.When he got into the Impala, he threw an empty can of soda he had been drinking into the back seat.
Dean then heard a strange noise. What the hell? He stopped the car slowly, turning around to check on what was in the back seat. He saw a lump under a blanket and whipping off the covering, found his brother Sammy hiding back there.
“Sammy, what the hell are you doing here?!” Dean yelled, surprised to find his little brother hiding. Even though he would never admit it, it freaked the young hunter out that, somehow, he would fail his father on this hunt.
“Well, I was hiding so you wouldn’t see me,” Sammy responded innocently with those puppy dog eyes his older brother usually couldn’t resist. Dean generally didn’t stay mad at his little brother very long when this happened, but this time it was different. Dean was not only upset with him, but stayed mad at him despite his best effort to look small and forlorn.
“You’ve been freaking riding with me all this time you little…,” Dean scolded his little brother with all his might. ‘How could he do this to me? Unless…’ The older Winchester brother addressed the little boy in the back seat, “You are Sammy aren’t you?” His face was pale and he looked concerned. ‘In this job you can be easily fooled by your eyes,’ Dean thought.
“Of course I’m Sam you jerk, and it’s Sam, not Sammy!” the youngest Winchester cried annoyed at his brother acting so strangely toward him.
Dean had to make sure, “Christo,” he whispered just loud enough for a demon to hear.
“What did you just say?” Sammy was startled. Could his big brother be this dumb?
Dean was relieved it was his little brother and not some nasty demon trying to look like him. “You know damn well what I said. I had to make sure; and don’t call me jerk you bitch,” he added laughing at his little bro. “What exactly have you been doing back there squirt?” he continued, “Are you hungry or thirsty?” Dean got all serious again as he realized his little brother had been in the back seat for almost an entire day. He wondered if Sammy had eaten or drunk anything. He hoped his little brother was all right.
“I’m not really hungry,” answered Sammy with a wry smile, “I ate some crackers that I brought from home while you stopped at that diner. With all the junk food you have back here I could have lasted at least a month!” he said, smiling while propelling himself into the front seat to sit next to Dean.
“By the way, Dean; what were you thinking going all exorcist on me?” Sammy said, still a bit offended about the way his brother had reacted when he found him in the back seat.
“Well, I just wasn’t expecting you to be there; with our lifestyle, one can never be too sure,” the older Winchester brother said, looking his younger brother right in the eye.
“I was worried about you, I thought I could help.” Sam’s response made it even harder for Dean to stay as stoic as he planned to with his little brother, but he tried his best.
“What did Dad say about all this?” Dean asked sternly.
Sammy’s face got very pale and he ducked his head, finding his shoes quite interesting.
The older Winchester said, “Of course you didn’t tell Dad. He doesn’t know you’re gone does he?!” Now Dean’s heart was pounding hard enough to make it feel like he was having a heart attack. He wanted to kill Sam and tell his Dad he had confused him with the spirit he was hunting. He knew, however, that that wouldn’t work and that his father would kill him too.
“I couldn’t let him know I was going to leave, you know he wouldn’t have let me!” Sam defended himself. He knew it was a weak argument. He continued to act as hard-headed as a Winchester should.
“Damn right he wouldn’t! You can’t just come with me without telling him! You’re in so much trouble little boy!” Dean had his head in the palms of his hands; his elbows were supported on the steering wheel of the Impala. He was really amazed at just how stupid his little brother could be sometimes.
“If Dad were worried he would have called you on your cell phone already and obviously he hasn’t”
‘Man that kid is smart,’ Dean thought.
“Well the thing is, I lost my cell phone somewhere so I don’t have it with me,” Dean confessed. He was embarrassed, since he had violated one of John’s cardinal rules, always bring your cell phone with you and have it on at all times.
“So you mean he is probably worried sick over not finding me and not being able to reach you either?” Sam finally seemed to get how deep in trouble they were. The boys were very certain their father would have more than a word to say to them when he finally caught up to them.
“Yeah, so let’s get this ghost killed so we can find a phone and call Dad. He will be so happy that I did so well with my hunt he won’t think of killing anyone but you little bro,” Dean said with a smartass grin.
“Ha-ha, very funny,” Sam replied dryly. He wondered why he came in the first place; his big brother was just annoying. If he died during this hunt it would only mean less stupidity around the house. “So what have you found out about this spirit?” he inquired, turning his head to Dean, who he noticed was distracted looking at a hot chick walking by.
“Ummm… A guy told me that in the forest there is a woman dressed in black who asks people for help and then kills them,” Dean said as he regained his focus.
“Back home before you left, I did a little research and found out there was a legend about a woman in this town who lived near the woods in the mid 1800’s. Apparently her husband was crazy. Supposedly, one day he tied her to a tree and left her there to die. It said that she spent days shouting for help but no one ever came. When she was finally found, she was dead,” Sammy said, pulling out a small wrinkled piece of paper he had in his pocket.
“Well, you certainly made this a lot easier. Did your toy say where she was buried?” Dean had a huge smile on his face. Suddenly having his little brother following him didn’t seem too bad.
“I’ve told you it isn’t a toy. It’s a laptop computer; and Dad got it for me for research so yeah, the article did say what happened to her, the interesting thing is that she was cremated.” Sam, realizing the significance of this piece of information, turned to Dean with incredulous eyes. This might be a little more complicated than it had seemed at first.
The younger Winchester got a look on his face, one that made him seem wiser than his years. Dean hated that look since it made him feel like he was losing his baby brother.
“Unless…,” Sammy began.
“Unless what, Samantha?” He just couldn’t hold back the insult, he needed some cheering up.
“I’ve been thinking that if she was cremated then the only thing that she could still be attached to is that old tree which she was tied to. What do you think?”
‘Who are you and what did you do to that little kid who I used to read stories to at night and clean up after making a mess at dinner?’ Dean frowned, Sammy was growing up; and damn he was too smart for his own good. He wondered if that would become a problem between them someday.
“Dean…? Earth to Dean…” Sam leaned down to look at his brother, who seemed to be too absorbed in his own thoughts to pay any attention to him. ‘Wonderful, he must be thinking about some girl and imagining her without clothes.’ “Dean!” he screamed.
Dean flinched, but then he nodded as he said, “Yep, we should definitely go and check out that tree.”
Sam wondered what Dean must have been thinking about, but just smiled softly and let it go.
*****
When they finally arrived at their destination, they parked the Impala and got some weapons out of the trunk along with some salt, gas and a few matches. They went into the woods and just when Dean was thinking that they had gone too far, Sam pointed at a tree which seemed a lot different from the others and wasn’t surrounded by anything but dirt. That was it.
Dean resolved to salt and burn it but just as he was drawing up his plan of action in his mind, he was surprised when he heard Sam scream. ‘Damn kid, I just lose sight of you for one second and you manage to get yourself killed.’
He followed the sounds and saw the ghost choking Sammy. Dean didn’t even hesitate and shot the spirit which made it disappear. But to Dean’s dismay it appeared just behind him as if trying to reach for him. Dean shot it again, and yelled at Sam, “Sammy, go to the tree! It’s all prepared! All you have to do is light the match!” Dean ran in a different direction making the spirit follow him.
“But Dean…” Sam was scared he never thought his reckless idea would land him in danger.
“Just do it Sam!” He heard his brother scream distantly. ‘C’mon Sammy you have to do it,’ he said to himself.
The youngest Winchester ran as fast as he could to the tree and found it prepared just as Dean had said. Just as he was about to light the match, he felt something grabbing his hand. It was Dean, who took the match and lit it himself, with the ghost just on his heels. As the tree burst into flame, the spirit vanished for all time and eternity.
Turning to a pale Sammy Dean said, “Couldn’t let you have all the fun, besides this is my hunt.” Dean was smiling, happy that the spirit was now defeated. He and his brother were both alive and that felt good.
*****
“That was great Dean!” Sammy was so happy he forgot all about the nervousness he had before. He was telling Dean what a good team they made just as they were walking back to the car.
“Yep Sammy… I know.” Dean was also happy, but wouldn’t let it show because he couldn’t afford to look that excited about such a thing in front of his little brother; he had to maintain his dignity.
“Dean… I was thinking that maybe we shouldn’t tell Dad where we are until we arrive back home. That way, he won’t have time to plan our murders.” Sammy had a dark look on his face. He really didn’t like being in trouble. No one would want to experience the wrath of John Winchester if he were their father.
“Maybe you have a point there kiddo.” Dean was considering the suggestion since he wasn’t looking forward to explaining to his Dad about the lost phone. They kept on walking and talking about whether or not to tell their father when they finally arrived at the spot where they had parked. Both of them were startled at what was supposed to be there, but was not.
“Where is it?!” Dean was shocked. He couldn’t believe his bad luck. ‘How can a car as big as the Impala get lost, for Christ’s sake?!’
“I don’t know,” Sam said, as he looked around preoccupied. His brother loved that car with all his soul and he must be pretty upset that it was gone.
“Dean?” Sammy spoke softly seeming a bit disturbed.
“What?!” Dean demanded through gritted teeth, desperately trying to remain calm.
“I think we should change plans and call Dad,” his brother said innocently.
“Yeah, when he finds out I lost the Impala he’ll probably roast me!” The older Winchester was really upset; like he wasn’t in enough trouble already over a stupid phone; allowing Sammy to hunt with him; now he had lost the car! ‘Fuck, just fuck!’
“Hey!” a voice behind them called.
Dean and Sam startled, turned to see where it came from.
“Who’s there?” Dean asked, not really wanting to find out, since he had enough on his hands already to have something more added to the plate.
“It’s me,” the voice said as the boys looked with open mouths at who just stepped out of the shadows. Dad! “You guys seem a little surprised to see me. Didn’t expect to find me here, did you?” John asked, obviously upset.
“Well…” Dean looked sheepish and didn’t quite meet his father’s eyes.
“Save it Dean, we’ll talk about this at home,” John cut him off, knowing this was a discussion for later. He walked towards his boys and said, “I saw what happened in there.” He then paused, pointing to the woods. “It was really impressive to see you working so well as a team.” He needed to tell them he was proud of how they managed the situation. They sure as hell could have done a great deal of things differently, but all in all it was a good effort.
“You think?” Sammy said, looking up at his father which made John smile.
“Of course son, you both did very well.” John hugged his sons really tight, glad that it all worked out in the end.
“So that means we’re not in trouble?” Dean asked hopefully as he got away from his father’s arms.
“Oh, definitely not; you’re both in huge trouble, but we’ll discuss that later.” John was amused by his son’s excellent timing for hopeful assumptions.
“I’m sorry I left without telling you.” Sammy did look embarrassed and seemed to mean it.
“I know, buddy; we’ll talk about it back at the motel,” his father said, hugging him once more.
“Dean, you and I are going to talk about the importance of cell phones,” John said, pointing at his oldest.
“Yes, sir,” Dean said, looking really upset and now staring at his shoes.
“What’s wrong Dean? I mean it’s not like it’s the worst thing you’ve ever done.” John approached him and lifted his chin with his hand
“That’s not it, Dad.” Dean looked like he was about to cry.
“What are you talking about?” John asked, with a suspicious look at his oldest child.
Dean ducked his head once more, and was silent for a long while.
“Tell me, son,” John insisted. It wasn’t quite an order, but it didn’t leave any room for disobedience.
“Well… It’s just that… we… err… I… kinda… maybe…” Dean was just babbling nonsense and John did not have the patience for it,
“Just say it, Dean,” he said, frowning and crossing his arms over his chest.
“The Impala is gone,” his oldest said, as he backed up a little, expecting a major reaction from his father.
“Oh, I know about that. I took it back to the motel so we could all drive back in my truck,” John said casually.
That just upset Dean even more. “WHAT?! You stole the Impala and knew all along that I was just freaking dying ‘cause I thought I lost it! Why the fuck would you do that?!” Dean stormed away. The boy was very annoyed and John knew he had to stop that runaway train immediately.
“First of all young man, I didn’t steal the Impala. Remember, I am the one who bought it. It is still under my name even though I told you that you could use it for hunting. Second, I would strongly suggest you watch that mouth of yours. I know you’re upset, but I won’t tolerate that kind of language. I only took the car to teach you a lesson,” John told Dean this in a calm tone, knowing that Dean wouldn’t push further when his father spoke to him in his dad voice.
“A lesson? What lesson?” Dean worked at controlling his temper. He knew he shouldn’t have said those things. He was in enough trouble and didn’t want to add more to the tally.
John, eyeing his oldest asked calmly, “Did you know I would be worried sick about your brother when you found him in the back seat?”
Dean, feeling a little ashamed tried the evasive tactic. “Well, I thought you might not be too worried, knowing how annoying he is; maybe you were happy…”
“Why didn’t you call me?” John inquired as he saw his son squirm. He had got to the point
“Uhm… I didn’t want you to be angry at me for not having my cell phone. I decided it could wait until after everything was over,” Dean said honestly. He wasn’t very proud of his decision but somehow he felt his father already knew that.
“So, now do you get how I felt?” John crossed his arms. His kid was smart he just lacked common sense sometimes.
“Yes, sir; I’m sorry,” Dean said, approaching his father who opened his arms and hugged him.
“I know, I know,” John said kindly, thinking how hard it was to be a parent sometimes.
“Ok, now that that’s settled we should probably head back to the motel. You’ve had a pretty hard day and you guys could use some rest. Tomorrow we’ll discuss all of these events, okay?” John said, patting Dean on the back, guiding both him and Sam to his truck.
Once the boys were riding in their father’s truck Sammy turned to John and said, smiling, “We did really great in the hunt didn’t we Dad?”
John had to laugh at his son’s insistence on talking about how well they had done.
“I was awesome in my first solo hunt right, Dad?” Dean had to put his own two cents into the conversation.
“It wasn’t a solo hunt! I was with you!” Sammy retorted, smiling lightly.
“Yeah, but no one invited you!” Dean retorted in return. He wondered now if that took points off for him with his dad.
Dean asked anxiously, “Will I be going hunting solo again, Dad?”
John didn’t answer, being preoccupied with his own thoughts.
“Daaad?” Dean asked again, this time sounding like a spoiled six-year-old.
“We’ll see Dean, but I think you did work great with your brother. You make an amazing team,” John told both his sons, really thinking they could be great together.
“Yeah!” Sammy said enthusiastically.
“I guess…” Dean said, trying to hide that he did enjoy working along with his brother. It just felt right.
John nodded and smiled back at them, thinking that he had raised a good couple of soldiers. No matter what happened in the future, he and the world were certainly going to be all right. It gave John great satisfaction knowing that these two were going to be together, looking out for each other and for everyone else in this world when things went bump in the night.
********************************* F I N *********************************
Additional author’s notes: I would like to thank, first of all, R. for her helpful comments and for providing the title; she was always there for me while writing this story and for that I am grateful. I would also like to thank C. whose suggestions made this story way better than it originally was. In addition, I’d like to express my gratefulness to my other lovely betas M., C. and A., because without them this story wouldn’t have been possible.
In a special note, I would like to thank the mods because they were very patient with me while sending this story. And of course, thank you all for reading!
Author: lullaby_gg / James Taylor
Recipient: lisabird
Rating: PG-13
Author's notes: 4660 words. Pre-series. Dean is 17 and Sam’s 13. I own nothing related to Supernatural, they all belong to Kripke and the WB. I did my best for lisabird, hope she’ll like it. Additional author’s notes are at the end.
Summary: Dean's first solo hunt doesn't go quite as planned.
Dean Winchester sat in the motel room staring out the window. The rain had finally stopped; there had been awful weather ever since they arrived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Under any other circumstances, Dean would have been bitter and bored, only this time, it wasn’t the case. The eldest Winchester son was too ecstatic to worry over some stupid weather; he was even more thrilled than when he went out to bars and pools to pick up hot chicks. If he had the chance to mix it all together that would be just sweet. The reason for all that excitement was simple: his first solo hunt.
Dean had thought for a long time he was ready to fly solo but John hadn’t exactly agreed. The discussions over this subject had started as soon as Dean managed to kill the first demon on his own; which happened about a year ago. The young man had managed to disobey his father, who had clearly told him to stay put with his brother Sam and wait outside while he searched the place. The stubborn Winchester son thought he could handle it on his own, which he did indeed, but the only thing he got out of it was a very stern lecture and two weeks of grounding.
“Way to thank me Dad,” Dean said right after being sentenced to his fate.
This time was different; his greatest dream was finally coming true. It had all started about a week ago when they first arrived in Milwaukee...
One week ago…
“Heeeey!” Sammy’s yell was like a sharp knife to John’s ears. He had been driving for over three hours and couldn’t wait to get settled in this new town once and for all. His sons were fighting all the time, now John was tired and damned if he was going to stand for another fight. He turned to his right and looked at his eldest son who had a video game in his hands. Now it was clear to John what was going on between his boys.
“Dean, don’t fight with Sam; give it back.” His tone was gentle but firm, something his sons called the ‘John Winchester no-nonsense voice’.
“But Dad…” Dean whined. “Sammy’s had it like forever, now it’s my turn to show him how to kick some video game ass.” The oldest Winchester boy pretended to press the buttons not really knowing how the gameboy worked.
“You don’t even know how to play jerk. It’s like it requires intelligence and ability,” Sam said, stretching over the back seat, putting his arms out to reach for his gameboy.
“Samuel, sit your ass down!” John commanded, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter than necessary to keep from yelling. “Dean, give your brother his toy back, NOW and watch your language!” ‘That should do it’, John thought. His sons might not be the best behaved children of all time, but they sure knew to back off from their father when he used that tone of voice.
Dean gave Sammy the video game back, but not without a comment which John couldn’t quite hear, but was sure it was something like bitch. The older hunter looked back at his son who returned his gaze innocently.
The youngest boy immediately sat down, muttering in annoyance how a game boy wasn’t a toy and what a jerk Dean was.
*****
After a few more minutes of driving, the Winchesters finally managed to get a motel room just outside of the city; they got as settled as possible. The drive had been long and all three guys were tired and in desperate need of rest. Sammy was the first to fall asleep. He got into his pajamas and slipped under the covers of the bed he was sharing with his brother as soon as they entered the room.
Dean was sitting on John’s bed reading the local newspaper, looking for more hints on the hunt they had been following. Meanwhile, John was sitting with the coffee table in front of him, brooding, and thinking how to start this conversation with his oldest son. When he finally decided this couldn’t wait, he called to his eldest. “Dean, would you come over here a moment,” John asked softly, in an attempt not to disturb Sammy from his sleep.
Dean was startled at first, since he was concentrating hard on reading through the paper. He got up just as he saw John making a gesture with his hand to invite him to sit next to him.
“Dad I know what it looks like…,” Dean paused and started to lift his arms trying to look as innocent as he could, “I swear it was all Sam’s idea to get your weapons out, I really didn’t mean to scratch that knife, but it just fell and…”
“What the hell are you talking about Dean?” John was puzzled, he had no idea what his seventeen-year old son was talking about. He’d find out about that later, though. The older hunter decided there were more important things right now than a scratch on a weapon.
“Son, I wanted to talk to you,” he began, not really wanting to approach this subject, but knowing he had to because of its importance.
“Yes Dad?” Dean’s respectful response was music to John’s ears. No matter what his eldest son was, he always maintained the good little soldier.
“Dean, we’ve had this discussion before, but now I think you are ready to go on a hunt of your own,” John said, trying hard not to look at his son’s face, which he guessed was extremely excited.
“You serious? Are you shit… err…kidding me sir?”
John had to laugh at how nervous his son seemed and the look on his face when he almost let a curse word slip out. John didn’t like those. He made it perfectly clear to both his sons that that kind of language was not acceptable. He still smiled at Dean’s surprise. “Of course I am serious son, this is an easy hunt in Minnesota, which is not really that far away and I’m confident you can handle it by yourself.” John tried to sound as calm and relaxed as possible, but underneath, he was just terrified that something would happen to the young man. ‘You have to let them grow up sometime right? I can do that,’ the older hunter tried to convince himself. “Do you think you can handle it Dean?”
John was proud at the confidence his son portrayed. “Yes, I’ve waited for this like forever, dude.” Dean was too excited to notice he called his father dude, but realized it as soon as he saw his father’s expression. “I mean sir,” Dean corrected himself.
*****
The next day was all about getting Dean prepared to go on a hunt that would probably take him no more than a couple of days. Sam worried about his brother being gone alone for that long. Although he didn’t really want to admit it, he was going to miss him. The youngest Winchester was upset because he believed his father didn’t seem worried about his brother being gone at all.
*****
Dean arrived in Minnesota without too much trouble. He worked to find out as much as he could about the thing that was hunting the area. The young hunter observed a coffee shop located near the woods where it was rumored the ghost was appearing. He decided to stop and ask around about it.
Dean found out by interviewing some of the people in the coffee shop that according to a guy who went into the forest one night with his friends, there was a woman dressed in a black gown that appeared in front of them. The local legend was that the woman frequented that area of the woods and anyone crossing her path would be approached by her, asking for help. When she was asked if they could help her, she changed her face into a demonic one and killed them…the man who told the story escaped by mere luck. He was so frightened he wouldn’t go near the woods ever again; he was still too shocked by the fact that his other two friends had died that terrible death.
Dean was excited about all this. He didn’t think it would be much of a problem to hunt what sounded like a regular vengeful spirit. This couldn’t be more perfect.When he got into the Impala, he threw an empty can of soda he had been drinking into the back seat.
Dean then heard a strange noise. What the hell? He stopped the car slowly, turning around to check on what was in the back seat. He saw a lump under a blanket and whipping off the covering, found his brother Sammy hiding back there.
“Sammy, what the hell are you doing here?!” Dean yelled, surprised to find his little brother hiding. Even though he would never admit it, it freaked the young hunter out that, somehow, he would fail his father on this hunt.
“Well, I was hiding so you wouldn’t see me,” Sammy responded innocently with those puppy dog eyes his older brother usually couldn’t resist. Dean generally didn’t stay mad at his little brother very long when this happened, but this time it was different. Dean was not only upset with him, but stayed mad at him despite his best effort to look small and forlorn.
“You’ve been freaking riding with me all this time you little…,” Dean scolded his little brother with all his might. ‘How could he do this to me? Unless…’ The older Winchester brother addressed the little boy in the back seat, “You are Sammy aren’t you?” His face was pale and he looked concerned. ‘In this job you can be easily fooled by your eyes,’ Dean thought.
“Of course I’m Sam you jerk, and it’s Sam, not Sammy!” the youngest Winchester cried annoyed at his brother acting so strangely toward him.
Dean had to make sure, “Christo,” he whispered just loud enough for a demon to hear.
“What did you just say?” Sammy was startled. Could his big brother be this dumb?
Dean was relieved it was his little brother and not some nasty demon trying to look like him. “You know damn well what I said. I had to make sure; and don’t call me jerk you bitch,” he added laughing at his little bro. “What exactly have you been doing back there squirt?” he continued, “Are you hungry or thirsty?” Dean got all serious again as he realized his little brother had been in the back seat for almost an entire day. He wondered if Sammy had eaten or drunk anything. He hoped his little brother was all right.
“I’m not really hungry,” answered Sammy with a wry smile, “I ate some crackers that I brought from home while you stopped at that diner. With all the junk food you have back here I could have lasted at least a month!” he said, smiling while propelling himself into the front seat to sit next to Dean.
“By the way, Dean; what were you thinking going all exorcist on me?” Sammy said, still a bit offended about the way his brother had reacted when he found him in the back seat.
“Well, I just wasn’t expecting you to be there; with our lifestyle, one can never be too sure,” the older Winchester brother said, looking his younger brother right in the eye.
“I was worried about you, I thought I could help.” Sam’s response made it even harder for Dean to stay as stoic as he planned to with his little brother, but he tried his best.
“What did Dad say about all this?” Dean asked sternly.
Sammy’s face got very pale and he ducked his head, finding his shoes quite interesting.
The older Winchester said, “Of course you didn’t tell Dad. He doesn’t know you’re gone does he?!” Now Dean’s heart was pounding hard enough to make it feel like he was having a heart attack. He wanted to kill Sam and tell his Dad he had confused him with the spirit he was hunting. He knew, however, that that wouldn’t work and that his father would kill him too.
“I couldn’t let him know I was going to leave, you know he wouldn’t have let me!” Sam defended himself. He knew it was a weak argument. He continued to act as hard-headed as a Winchester should.
“Damn right he wouldn’t! You can’t just come with me without telling him! You’re in so much trouble little boy!” Dean had his head in the palms of his hands; his elbows were supported on the steering wheel of the Impala. He was really amazed at just how stupid his little brother could be sometimes.
“If Dad were worried he would have called you on your cell phone already and obviously he hasn’t”
‘Man that kid is smart,’ Dean thought.
“Well the thing is, I lost my cell phone somewhere so I don’t have it with me,” Dean confessed. He was embarrassed, since he had violated one of John’s cardinal rules, always bring your cell phone with you and have it on at all times.
“So you mean he is probably worried sick over not finding me and not being able to reach you either?” Sam finally seemed to get how deep in trouble they were. The boys were very certain their father would have more than a word to say to them when he finally caught up to them.
“Yeah, so let’s get this ghost killed so we can find a phone and call Dad. He will be so happy that I did so well with my hunt he won’t think of killing anyone but you little bro,” Dean said with a smartass grin.
“Ha-ha, very funny,” Sam replied dryly. He wondered why he came in the first place; his big brother was just annoying. If he died during this hunt it would only mean less stupidity around the house. “So what have you found out about this spirit?” he inquired, turning his head to Dean, who he noticed was distracted looking at a hot chick walking by.
“Ummm… A guy told me that in the forest there is a woman dressed in black who asks people for help and then kills them,” Dean said as he regained his focus.
“Back home before you left, I did a little research and found out there was a legend about a woman in this town who lived near the woods in the mid 1800’s. Apparently her husband was crazy. Supposedly, one day he tied her to a tree and left her there to die. It said that she spent days shouting for help but no one ever came. When she was finally found, she was dead,” Sammy said, pulling out a small wrinkled piece of paper he had in his pocket.
“Well, you certainly made this a lot easier. Did your toy say where she was buried?” Dean had a huge smile on his face. Suddenly having his little brother following him didn’t seem too bad.
“I’ve told you it isn’t a toy. It’s a laptop computer; and Dad got it for me for research so yeah, the article did say what happened to her, the interesting thing is that she was cremated.” Sam, realizing the significance of this piece of information, turned to Dean with incredulous eyes. This might be a little more complicated than it had seemed at first.
The younger Winchester got a look on his face, one that made him seem wiser than his years. Dean hated that look since it made him feel like he was losing his baby brother.
“Unless…,” Sammy began.
“Unless what, Samantha?” He just couldn’t hold back the insult, he needed some cheering up.
“I’ve been thinking that if she was cremated then the only thing that she could still be attached to is that old tree which she was tied to. What do you think?”
‘Who are you and what did you do to that little kid who I used to read stories to at night and clean up after making a mess at dinner?’ Dean frowned, Sammy was growing up; and damn he was too smart for his own good. He wondered if that would become a problem between them someday.
“Dean…? Earth to Dean…” Sam leaned down to look at his brother, who seemed to be too absorbed in his own thoughts to pay any attention to him. ‘Wonderful, he must be thinking about some girl and imagining her without clothes.’ “Dean!” he screamed.
Dean flinched, but then he nodded as he said, “Yep, we should definitely go and check out that tree.”
Sam wondered what Dean must have been thinking about, but just smiled softly and let it go.
*****
When they finally arrived at their destination, they parked the Impala and got some weapons out of the trunk along with some salt, gas and a few matches. They went into the woods and just when Dean was thinking that they had gone too far, Sam pointed at a tree which seemed a lot different from the others and wasn’t surrounded by anything but dirt. That was it.
Dean resolved to salt and burn it but just as he was drawing up his plan of action in his mind, he was surprised when he heard Sam scream. ‘Damn kid, I just lose sight of you for one second and you manage to get yourself killed.’
He followed the sounds and saw the ghost choking Sammy. Dean didn’t even hesitate and shot the spirit which made it disappear. But to Dean’s dismay it appeared just behind him as if trying to reach for him. Dean shot it again, and yelled at Sam, “Sammy, go to the tree! It’s all prepared! All you have to do is light the match!” Dean ran in a different direction making the spirit follow him.
“But Dean…” Sam was scared he never thought his reckless idea would land him in danger.
“Just do it Sam!” He heard his brother scream distantly. ‘C’mon Sammy you have to do it,’ he said to himself.
The youngest Winchester ran as fast as he could to the tree and found it prepared just as Dean had said. Just as he was about to light the match, he felt something grabbing his hand. It was Dean, who took the match and lit it himself, with the ghost just on his heels. As the tree burst into flame, the spirit vanished for all time and eternity.
Turning to a pale Sammy Dean said, “Couldn’t let you have all the fun, besides this is my hunt.” Dean was smiling, happy that the spirit was now defeated. He and his brother were both alive and that felt good.
*****
“That was great Dean!” Sammy was so happy he forgot all about the nervousness he had before. He was telling Dean what a good team they made just as they were walking back to the car.
“Yep Sammy… I know.” Dean was also happy, but wouldn’t let it show because he couldn’t afford to look that excited about such a thing in front of his little brother; he had to maintain his dignity.
“Dean… I was thinking that maybe we shouldn’t tell Dad where we are until we arrive back home. That way, he won’t have time to plan our murders.” Sammy had a dark look on his face. He really didn’t like being in trouble. No one would want to experience the wrath of John Winchester if he were their father.
“Maybe you have a point there kiddo.” Dean was considering the suggestion since he wasn’t looking forward to explaining to his Dad about the lost phone. They kept on walking and talking about whether or not to tell their father when they finally arrived at the spot where they had parked. Both of them were startled at what was supposed to be there, but was not.
“Where is it?!” Dean was shocked. He couldn’t believe his bad luck. ‘How can a car as big as the Impala get lost, for Christ’s sake?!’
“I don’t know,” Sam said, as he looked around preoccupied. His brother loved that car with all his soul and he must be pretty upset that it was gone.
“Dean?” Sammy spoke softly seeming a bit disturbed.
“What?!” Dean demanded through gritted teeth, desperately trying to remain calm.
“I think we should change plans and call Dad,” his brother said innocently.
“Yeah, when he finds out I lost the Impala he’ll probably roast me!” The older Winchester was really upset; like he wasn’t in enough trouble already over a stupid phone; allowing Sammy to hunt with him; now he had lost the car! ‘Fuck, just fuck!’
“Hey!” a voice behind them called.
Dean and Sam startled, turned to see where it came from.
“Who’s there?” Dean asked, not really wanting to find out, since he had enough on his hands already to have something more added to the plate.
“It’s me,” the voice said as the boys looked with open mouths at who just stepped out of the shadows. Dad! “You guys seem a little surprised to see me. Didn’t expect to find me here, did you?” John asked, obviously upset.
“Well…” Dean looked sheepish and didn’t quite meet his father’s eyes.
“Save it Dean, we’ll talk about this at home,” John cut him off, knowing this was a discussion for later. He walked towards his boys and said, “I saw what happened in there.” He then paused, pointing to the woods. “It was really impressive to see you working so well as a team.” He needed to tell them he was proud of how they managed the situation. They sure as hell could have done a great deal of things differently, but all in all it was a good effort.
“You think?” Sammy said, looking up at his father which made John smile.
“Of course son, you both did very well.” John hugged his sons really tight, glad that it all worked out in the end.
“So that means we’re not in trouble?” Dean asked hopefully as he got away from his father’s arms.
“Oh, definitely not; you’re both in huge trouble, but we’ll discuss that later.” John was amused by his son’s excellent timing for hopeful assumptions.
“I’m sorry I left without telling you.” Sammy did look embarrassed and seemed to mean it.
“I know, buddy; we’ll talk about it back at the motel,” his father said, hugging him once more.
“Dean, you and I are going to talk about the importance of cell phones,” John said, pointing at his oldest.
“Yes, sir,” Dean said, looking really upset and now staring at his shoes.
“What’s wrong Dean? I mean it’s not like it’s the worst thing you’ve ever done.” John approached him and lifted his chin with his hand
“That’s not it, Dad.” Dean looked like he was about to cry.
“What are you talking about?” John asked, with a suspicious look at his oldest child.
Dean ducked his head once more, and was silent for a long while.
“Tell me, son,” John insisted. It wasn’t quite an order, but it didn’t leave any room for disobedience.
“Well… It’s just that… we… err… I… kinda… maybe…” Dean was just babbling nonsense and John did not have the patience for it,
“Just say it, Dean,” he said, frowning and crossing his arms over his chest.
“The Impala is gone,” his oldest said, as he backed up a little, expecting a major reaction from his father.
“Oh, I know about that. I took it back to the motel so we could all drive back in my truck,” John said casually.
That just upset Dean even more. “WHAT?! You stole the Impala and knew all along that I was just freaking dying ‘cause I thought I lost it! Why the fuck would you do that?!” Dean stormed away. The boy was very annoyed and John knew he had to stop that runaway train immediately.
“First of all young man, I didn’t steal the Impala. Remember, I am the one who bought it. It is still under my name even though I told you that you could use it for hunting. Second, I would strongly suggest you watch that mouth of yours. I know you’re upset, but I won’t tolerate that kind of language. I only took the car to teach you a lesson,” John told Dean this in a calm tone, knowing that Dean wouldn’t push further when his father spoke to him in his dad voice.
“A lesson? What lesson?” Dean worked at controlling his temper. He knew he shouldn’t have said those things. He was in enough trouble and didn’t want to add more to the tally.
John, eyeing his oldest asked calmly, “Did you know I would be worried sick about your brother when you found him in the back seat?”
Dean, feeling a little ashamed tried the evasive tactic. “Well, I thought you might not be too worried, knowing how annoying he is; maybe you were happy…”
“Why didn’t you call me?” John inquired as he saw his son squirm. He had got to the point
“Uhm… I didn’t want you to be angry at me for not having my cell phone. I decided it could wait until after everything was over,” Dean said honestly. He wasn’t very proud of his decision but somehow he felt his father already knew that.
“So, now do you get how I felt?” John crossed his arms. His kid was smart he just lacked common sense sometimes.
“Yes, sir; I’m sorry,” Dean said, approaching his father who opened his arms and hugged him.
“I know, I know,” John said kindly, thinking how hard it was to be a parent sometimes.
“Ok, now that that’s settled we should probably head back to the motel. You’ve had a pretty hard day and you guys could use some rest. Tomorrow we’ll discuss all of these events, okay?” John said, patting Dean on the back, guiding both him and Sam to his truck.
Once the boys were riding in their father’s truck Sammy turned to John and said, smiling, “We did really great in the hunt didn’t we Dad?”
John had to laugh at his son’s insistence on talking about how well they had done.
“I was awesome in my first solo hunt right, Dad?” Dean had to put his own two cents into the conversation.
“It wasn’t a solo hunt! I was with you!” Sammy retorted, smiling lightly.
“Yeah, but no one invited you!” Dean retorted in return. He wondered now if that took points off for him with his dad.
Dean asked anxiously, “Will I be going hunting solo again, Dad?”
John didn’t answer, being preoccupied with his own thoughts.
“Daaad?” Dean asked again, this time sounding like a spoiled six-year-old.
“We’ll see Dean, but I think you did work great with your brother. You make an amazing team,” John told both his sons, really thinking they could be great together.
“Yeah!” Sammy said enthusiastically.
“I guess…” Dean said, trying to hide that he did enjoy working along with his brother. It just felt right.
John nodded and smiled back at them, thinking that he had raised a good couple of soldiers. No matter what happened in the future, he and the world were certainly going to be all right. It gave John great satisfaction knowing that these two were going to be together, looking out for each other and for everyone else in this world when things went bump in the night.
********************************* F I N *********************************
Additional author’s notes: I would like to thank, first of all, R. for her helpful comments and for providing the title; she was always there for me while writing this story and for that I am grateful. I would also like to thank C. whose suggestions made this story way better than it originally was. In addition, I’d like to express my gratefulness to my other lovely betas M., C. and A., because without them this story wouldn’t have been possible.
In a special note, I would like to thank the mods because they were very patient with me while sending this story. And of course, thank you all for reading!