Lupo Mutaret (12)
Breakfast the next morning was tense, to say the least, but Dean was grateful to note the absence of the silver knife from his father's belt loops. It seemed that, for all that John was unmistakably hard-headed and stubborn, he was wise enough to note the truth to Dean's promise of taking Sam and going.
Sam, of course, noted was something was up almost as soon as he made it down the stairs, still muzzy-eyed and sleep warm. The kid had been raised a hunter, and if there was one thing that he excelled at it was observation - almost in the same moment that he stepped into the kitchen, his eyes fell to his father's belt and then proceeded to flicker between Dean and Jim. The elder Winchester brother could only be thankful that the kid didn't see fit to call them all out about it right there and then, choosing instead to shoot Dean a wary look and sink into his chair.
Ivan leapt into his lap moments later, purring contentedly as he flopped down in the youngest Winchester's lap. Sitting opposite each other at the table, Dean and John sent the cat identical glowers, each of the subconsciously tucking their hands out of the way. Sam grinned at the sight, effectively breaking the tension, and Dean scowled at him.
"You won't find it so funny when the moggy finally turns on you." He sniped. "Don't worry, when you're left scratched to ribbons and bleeding, we'll try not to say 'I told you so' too often."
Sam rolled his eyes. "Ivan's not going to turn on me, he's just got good taste. He picked the best of the Winchesters to buddy up with."
Dean snorted. "No, he picked the one that's the most susceptible to the kitty-version of puppy dog eyes, that's all. Dad and I just weren't fooled by his innocent exterior, and he's been taking it out on us ever since. Heck, even Jim knows to be wary of the thing."
"I'm not wary," Jim defended, sliding two still-hot plates in front of the two youngest Winchesters, heading back to collect one for himself and John. Dean couldn't help but leer appreciatively at the large breakfast, letting the Pastor's words wash over him as he reached for the ketchup. "I simply don't see the point in taking unnecessary chances. Ivan can be somewhat temperamental and I wouldn't wish to upset the poor creature, that's all."
"Wouldn't wish to anger him, more like." John snorted, grinning a thanks at his friend as the elder man returned with the last of the food. Ivan, as if pleased by the statement, chose that moment to purr loudly, and Sam chuckled to himself, rescuing the ketchup bottle from his over-eager brother.
Relieved that they appeared to have reached a stalemate for the moment, Dean relaxed back into his seat and began to dig into his food with gusto. The elder hunter couldn't help the swell of pride when Sam's shoulders relaxed a second later, as if he'd simply been waiting for his brother to signal that everything was okay.
"You told Dad off about the knife, didn't you?"
"Jesus Christ!" Dean yelped, slamming his head off the underside of the Impala. He pushed out from underneath the car, glowering lightly at his brother. "I'm telling you kid, this family is destined for heart attacks."
Sam rolled his eyes at his brother’s typically melodramatic response, settling cross-legged onto the garage floor a few feet away from the elder hunter. Understanding that his brother obviously wasn’t just going to let this one side, Dean pulled himself up into a similar position, propping himself up against the Impala’s flank.
“That depends,” He frowned. “Are you gonna be pissed at me if I say yes?”
“I probably should be, but no.” Sam admitted with a small grin, scuffing his hand through the dust that lay on the garage floor.
Dean’s eyes followed the path of his fingers, tracing runes and sigils into the floor, before sweeping a hand through them. “Kind of appreciate it, actually. I was kind of worried that I might accidently bump into him and stab myself with the thing, with the way that my luck’s been going of late.”
Dean couldn’t help but grin. “Right. When was the last time that you accidently bumped into anything?”
Sam shrugged dismissively, an easy grin on his face. “Like I said, Lady Luck hasn’t exactly been favouring me of late.”
Dean nodded, figuring that he couldn’t exactly argue with the kid on that front. Still, he wasn’t about to let it slide by completely without comment.
“Yeah, well. I figure Lady Luck owes us a few good turns, don’t you? Maybe things will look up soon.”
He didn’t expect Sam to laugh, but he couldn’t help but be pleased when he realised that it wasn’t forced or bitter - it was the innocent, carefree laugh that only then realised that he’d missed fiercely. There’d been a time in their lives when that sound came often and easily; gradually their father had forced them more into the world of hunting, had slowly cut back the small pleasures that they’d enjoyed until it was a struggle to remember what having fun had felt like.
Their life had become coloured in bursts of crimson; blood and adrenaline, danger and fear. They’d grown to be warriors quickly than they’d had any right to, and whilst Dean was undoubtedly proud of the man that his little brother was becoming, he couldn’t help but regret that Sam had never had a chance to experience a life without the overbearing weight of dozens of innocent lives resting on his shoulders.
If this curse had taught him anything - and, in reflection, Dean could recognise that it had taught him a lot - it was that there was still ample opportunity for the two of them to salvage a little of that freedom.
They were hunters through and through, their father had - however misguidedly - ensured that there would never be any doubt about that, but Dean was just now beginning to see that being a hunter didn’t automatically mean a life of loss and pain. There was still time to have fun, to let go a little and just have fun, and he fully intended to ensure that both him and Sammy did exactly that.
Smiling at his brother he stood, brushing dust and dirt off his pants and holding a hand out for his brother.
“Lunch time, Sammy.” He grinned. “Burgers sound good?”
By dinner time Sam was grinning like he’d never stopped, and Dean was pleased to note that the Impala had been left purring sweetly in thanks of the brief tune-up. Jim had refused both boys’ offers of doing the dishes, grinning when he’d announced that he was most certain that it was John’s turn to partake in the chore.
Sam and Dean had laughingly retreated to the study, Sam resolved to beat his brother at poker, and Dean determined that the kid wouldn’t ever beat him.
Their father and Jim joined them a while later, the four hunters crammed comfortably into the small room - Jim had claimed the rickety old desk chair, which Sam had relinquished with a grin, perching on the arm of Dean’s chair. John, at the lack of any more seats, had fashioned a few stacks of books into a makeshift perch. He looked, quite frankly, more than a little ridiculous, his large body hunched over in an effort not to topple over any of the books supporting his body weight.
The four of them joked and jested throughout game after game, throwing out light-hearted insults and bantering back and forth in the knowledgeable manner of people that knew each other well.
It was the closest to normal that any of them had felt in a long time, and they stayed there for the most of the night, finally retreating to their rooms when Sam started wavering on his narrow perch, knees tucked up to his chest, and Jim’s back began to seize from sitting in one position for such a long time.
Dean couldn’t help the wide smile spread across his face for all to see as he climbed into bed, and he didn’t need to turn the light on to know that his brother’s expression would be matching his own. The kid hadn’t stop grinning all night, and Dean’s chest felt inexplicably light at the realisation that he’d been right - hunters though they were, it was possible for them to have fun every once in a while.
A/N: Please don't kill me! My laptop and netbook died within days of each other, so you can imagine the stress of that, plus uni work and getting a new job... it's been a stressful month so far! Kind of a bleh, chapter, but we finally get to move onto the good stuff next time!