While These Visions Did Appear (1/8)
“If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended:
That you have but slumbered here-“
Dean held up a finger to his lips, trying to silence his brother. Sam was still reading A Midsummer Night’s Dream and he hadn’t noticed the tension in his brother. As much as Dean would love to go back and help his brother reread the play, remembering how much they’d laughed as he and Dean had voiced the characters when Sam had trouble following the plot the first time he’d read it, something wasn’t right and he needed answers.
“John, you’re a fool if you do this,” they could hear Bobby’s angry voice through the door.
Sam might be his younger brother but he wasn’t stupid enough to make noise once he realized Dean was trying to listen in on Bobby and their dad in the middle of a fight. Instead he creased the corner of the page he’d been reading and dropped the book on the bed, then crept along the floor to crouch at Dean’s side to hear better.
It wasn’t that they were trying to eavesdrop really but something happened on their last hunt and ever since their dad had gone out of his way to exclude them from his current project. He stopped looking for new hunts, began researching, and left them out in the dark. It wasn’t all that odd for him to leave Sam out of things, but even when he was going to leave Dean behind he let him know where he was going and what he was up against. They were only getting a brick wall though, being left behind with no way of tracking down their father if something went wrong. It didn’t set well with Dean and Sam worried almost as much as he did about it. So it wasn’t really eavesdropping. It was survival and their father had always taught them to do what they needed to stay alive.
“You know what he said.” John answered impatiently.
“Demons lie.”
“And demons tell the truth when it suits them too. You can’t deny that my boys could be used against me Bobby.”
“Hell John, they could be used against you, me, Caleb, even Pastor Jim.”
“All the more reason to make sure they’re safe.”
“Don’t expect me to be a part of this. Of all the damn fool things you’ve done this is the most, and doing it without those boys knowing? Dean’s not stupid. You think he won’t figure out what you’ve done?”
“As long as it keeps him alive I don’t care if he hates me for it.”
Dean heard the two men getting up and pulled away from the bedroom door. Sam jumped back into his bed, grabbing his book up and flipping it open halfway through. Dean dropped himself onto his back beside his brother.
No one stormed in immediately and Sam looked over at Dean. “What’s going on?”
Dean looked at him and shook his head. “No idea Sammy,”
He wanted to say something that would make the concerned look fade from his brother’s eyes but there was only so much he could do. At sixteen Sam was too smart to be fooled and he’d been a hunter all his life. There was no way his false platitudes would do any good. It still worked when he was sick or hurt, but not when faced with a puzzle.
Before he could think of anything else to say the door banged open. “Come on boys, your dad says it’s time to go.”
“I thought we were staying the night, maybe the weekend?” Sam was about to go into a full blown pout, though Dean knew his brother would deny it if he said anything. They’d both been looking forward to it. Bobby gave Sam his space, let him explore and read all but a few of his books and Dean was allowed to tinker with anything he wanted, from fixing cars to taking apart car radios to see what made them work. Bobby let them be themselves while still making them keep up their father’s training schedule. It was more than their father normally did, forcing them into doing his dirty work when he didn’t have the time for it.
“Sorry Sam. We’ll have to make up for it next time, right?” Bobby’s smile was his con smile though, fake and just a little too charming for the gruff man they knew he was.
When he closed the door Dean smacked the side of Sam’s leg. “Come on Sammy. If he’s running this fast he’s on to something and that means he’ll leave you alone for a few days, right?”
“Yeah, I guess.” Sam conceded. “Maybe I’ll actually get to study for my history test.”
“Don’t know why you want to. You know that stuff backward and forward. Too bad it’s not that Shakespeare stuff again. I’d help with that.”
“Dean, you just liked Puck.”
Dean smiled. “He made her fall in love with an ass dude, what’s not to like?”
Sam just shrugged though and Dean didn’t say anything else as his brother got up and threw his book back into his duffle. So long as Sam was heading out without a fight, he was ready to relax a little, just a little. Dean knew that his father would never do anything to hurt them, but with Bobby’s misgivings in his head and his father’s words about safety and hate, he followed Sam out, allowing himself one last lingering look at the only room he’d ever come close to calling his own.
“Dad, where are you going?”
They’d been waiting for it. For two weeks Sam and Dean had been waiting for their father to try to do something but for all their theorizing and questioning they still didn’t know what it was about. The look on his father’s face said he was ready to face off against something though, and Dean didn’t have the slightest idea what sort of monster he was hunting.
“I told you, I’ll be back before long. Just keep an eye on your brother and keep him safe.”
“You’re just going to go out by yourself? What if something goes wrong? I don’t even know where you’re going,” he kept his voice strong, not allowing the fear and concern to color his words. John Winchester wasn’t a stupid man though, and while some people might question the way he’d brought his boys into the world of the supernatural, no one doubted that he loved them and did his best for them.
John looked at Dean for a second before he gave a visible sigh. He put a hand on Dean’s shoulder. “Dean, this is… it’s just … something I have to see to. Don’t worry about me. You two just stay in and I’ll be back in a few hours. I promise I’m not going out to hunt tonight,” Dean nodded and then his father was turning away, walking out the door.
Something didn’t feel right and Dean couldn’t figure out what it was. His father didn’t lie to him, but he’d never kept secrets before either. He didn’t know how to deal with that.
“Dean, I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
Dean took a deep breath but he was nodding automatically for his brother. “Yeah, course he will Sammy.” He looked away from the door and turned to his little brother. Sam was sitting at the table, a book set out in front of him and his notebook full of scribbled writing to the side.
“We could watch something?”
There was a hint of insecurity in Sam’s voice and Dean understood that Sam was trying to take his big brother’s mind off whatever was happening with their dad. Sam might not be as in tune with John as Dean was, but he could read Dean better than anyone. He knew Sam could read the worry in his body, in the inflection of his words, and his brother was offering to pass up a couple of free study hours to try to help.
Dean smiled as he kicked off his shoes. “I’ll salt the room, you find something good.” Dean looked back and saw Sam smiling as he got up from the table. Long legged and slightly awkward as he was trying to grow into the lean body, he was still muscular and graceful in his own way. He closed his notes up and shoved them into his school bag with his other books before kicking his shoes off.
Dean finished up with the salt, making sure a thick line lay over the doorway and windows. When he came out of the bathroom and dropped the rest of the salt into the duffle he found Sam sitting back against the headboard in nothing but his boxers, flipping through channels.
Dean stripped down, deciding to get comfortable for the night since Sam was obviously giving up the whole night to his entertainment. He felt a rush of affection for his brother and smiled as he pounced on the bed, making Sam jump with the movement.
“Find anything yet?”
“Nah, just waiting for you.”
“Anything promising?”
“A few blow ‘em ups. A B-horror movie marathon.”
“Your pick Sammy.” Dean said as he sat back, fixing the pillows behind him to the right angle before he settled in.
Sam chose something with explosions and Dean grinned as he settled in to watch.
“You know Dean,” and Dean knew it had been coming ever since his father had walked out but he just hoped it was short. “No matter what, you still have me. I mean, we have each other, right?”
Dean looked at his sixteen year old brother and even with his height and the growing muscle on his frame, with the intelligence and the experience he had, he looked like the little boy who’d curled into his bed, knowing the monsters were real and asking his big brother to keep him safe. “Yeah Sammy.” He said, looking at the bed closest to the door where his bag still sat. He realized as he said it that he was still doing it, still sleeping between his little brother and the monsters of the world. “No matter what, we’ve always got each other.”
On to Chapter Two
Think but this, and all is mended:
That you have but slumbered here-“
Dean held up a finger to his lips, trying to silence his brother. Sam was still reading A Midsummer Night’s Dream and he hadn’t noticed the tension in his brother. As much as Dean would love to go back and help his brother reread the play, remembering how much they’d laughed as he and Dean had voiced the characters when Sam had trouble following the plot the first time he’d read it, something wasn’t right and he needed answers.
“John, you’re a fool if you do this,” they could hear Bobby’s angry voice through the door.
Sam might be his younger brother but he wasn’t stupid enough to make noise once he realized Dean was trying to listen in on Bobby and their dad in the middle of a fight. Instead he creased the corner of the page he’d been reading and dropped the book on the bed, then crept along the floor to crouch at Dean’s side to hear better.
It wasn’t that they were trying to eavesdrop really but something happened on their last hunt and ever since their dad had gone out of his way to exclude them from his current project. He stopped looking for new hunts, began researching, and left them out in the dark. It wasn’t all that odd for him to leave Sam out of things, but even when he was going to leave Dean behind he let him know where he was going and what he was up against. They were only getting a brick wall though, being left behind with no way of tracking down their father if something went wrong. It didn’t set well with Dean and Sam worried almost as much as he did about it. So it wasn’t really eavesdropping. It was survival and their father had always taught them to do what they needed to stay alive.
“You know what he said.” John answered impatiently.
“Demons lie.”
“And demons tell the truth when it suits them too. You can’t deny that my boys could be used against me Bobby.”
“Hell John, they could be used against you, me, Caleb, even Pastor Jim.”
“All the more reason to make sure they’re safe.”
“Don’t expect me to be a part of this. Of all the damn fool things you’ve done this is the most, and doing it without those boys knowing? Dean’s not stupid. You think he won’t figure out what you’ve done?”
“As long as it keeps him alive I don’t care if he hates me for it.”
Dean heard the two men getting up and pulled away from the bedroom door. Sam jumped back into his bed, grabbing his book up and flipping it open halfway through. Dean dropped himself onto his back beside his brother.
No one stormed in immediately and Sam looked over at Dean. “What’s going on?”
Dean looked at him and shook his head. “No idea Sammy,”
He wanted to say something that would make the concerned look fade from his brother’s eyes but there was only so much he could do. At sixteen Sam was too smart to be fooled and he’d been a hunter all his life. There was no way his false platitudes would do any good. It still worked when he was sick or hurt, but not when faced with a puzzle.
Before he could think of anything else to say the door banged open. “Come on boys, your dad says it’s time to go.”
“I thought we were staying the night, maybe the weekend?” Sam was about to go into a full blown pout, though Dean knew his brother would deny it if he said anything. They’d both been looking forward to it. Bobby gave Sam his space, let him explore and read all but a few of his books and Dean was allowed to tinker with anything he wanted, from fixing cars to taking apart car radios to see what made them work. Bobby let them be themselves while still making them keep up their father’s training schedule. It was more than their father normally did, forcing them into doing his dirty work when he didn’t have the time for it.
“Sorry Sam. We’ll have to make up for it next time, right?” Bobby’s smile was his con smile though, fake and just a little too charming for the gruff man they knew he was.
When he closed the door Dean smacked the side of Sam’s leg. “Come on Sammy. If he’s running this fast he’s on to something and that means he’ll leave you alone for a few days, right?”
“Yeah, I guess.” Sam conceded. “Maybe I’ll actually get to study for my history test.”
“Don’t know why you want to. You know that stuff backward and forward. Too bad it’s not that Shakespeare stuff again. I’d help with that.”
“Dean, you just liked Puck.”
Dean smiled. “He made her fall in love with an ass dude, what’s not to like?”
Sam just shrugged though and Dean didn’t say anything else as his brother got up and threw his book back into his duffle. So long as Sam was heading out without a fight, he was ready to relax a little, just a little. Dean knew that his father would never do anything to hurt them, but with Bobby’s misgivings in his head and his father’s words about safety and hate, he followed Sam out, allowing himself one last lingering look at the only room he’d ever come close to calling his own.
“Dad, where are you going?”
They’d been waiting for it. For two weeks Sam and Dean had been waiting for their father to try to do something but for all their theorizing and questioning they still didn’t know what it was about. The look on his father’s face said he was ready to face off against something though, and Dean didn’t have the slightest idea what sort of monster he was hunting.
“I told you, I’ll be back before long. Just keep an eye on your brother and keep him safe.”
“You’re just going to go out by yourself? What if something goes wrong? I don’t even know where you’re going,” he kept his voice strong, not allowing the fear and concern to color his words. John Winchester wasn’t a stupid man though, and while some people might question the way he’d brought his boys into the world of the supernatural, no one doubted that he loved them and did his best for them.
John looked at Dean for a second before he gave a visible sigh. He put a hand on Dean’s shoulder. “Dean, this is… it’s just … something I have to see to. Don’t worry about me. You two just stay in and I’ll be back in a few hours. I promise I’m not going out to hunt tonight,” Dean nodded and then his father was turning away, walking out the door.
Something didn’t feel right and Dean couldn’t figure out what it was. His father didn’t lie to him, but he’d never kept secrets before either. He didn’t know how to deal with that.
“Dean, I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
Dean took a deep breath but he was nodding automatically for his brother. “Yeah, course he will Sammy.” He looked away from the door and turned to his little brother. Sam was sitting at the table, a book set out in front of him and his notebook full of scribbled writing to the side.
“We could watch something?”
There was a hint of insecurity in Sam’s voice and Dean understood that Sam was trying to take his big brother’s mind off whatever was happening with their dad. Sam might not be as in tune with John as Dean was, but he could read Dean better than anyone. He knew Sam could read the worry in his body, in the inflection of his words, and his brother was offering to pass up a couple of free study hours to try to help.
Dean smiled as he kicked off his shoes. “I’ll salt the room, you find something good.” Dean looked back and saw Sam smiling as he got up from the table. Long legged and slightly awkward as he was trying to grow into the lean body, he was still muscular and graceful in his own way. He closed his notes up and shoved them into his school bag with his other books before kicking his shoes off.
Dean finished up with the salt, making sure a thick line lay over the doorway and windows. When he came out of the bathroom and dropped the rest of the salt into the duffle he found Sam sitting back against the headboard in nothing but his boxers, flipping through channels.
Dean stripped down, deciding to get comfortable for the night since Sam was obviously giving up the whole night to his entertainment. He felt a rush of affection for his brother and smiled as he pounced on the bed, making Sam jump with the movement.
“Find anything yet?”
“Nah, just waiting for you.”
“Anything promising?”
“A few blow ‘em ups. A B-horror movie marathon.”
“Your pick Sammy.” Dean said as he sat back, fixing the pillows behind him to the right angle before he settled in.
Sam chose something with explosions and Dean grinned as he settled in to watch.
“You know Dean,” and Dean knew it had been coming ever since his father had walked out but he just hoped it was short. “No matter what, you still have me. I mean, we have each other, right?”
Dean looked at his sixteen year old brother and even with his height and the growing muscle on his frame, with the intelligence and the experience he had, he looked like the little boy who’d curled into his bed, knowing the monsters were real and asking his big brother to keep him safe. “Yeah Sammy.” He said, looking at the bed closest to the door where his bag still sat. He realized as he said it that he was still doing it, still sleeping between his little brother and the monsters of the world. “No matter what, we’ve always got each other.”
On to Chapter Two