Mirror 3/3
Previous
Epilogue
July 4, 2011
Cicero, IN
“Not more books!” Dean cried when he looked in the box Sam had just brought into the house. “Where the hell did Gwen get these from?!”
“EBay-I think,” Sam replied. “Or maybe an estate sale. I don’t remember. Anyway, she said earliest possible, but it’s not urgent.”
Dean muttered something uncomplimentary about their third cousin in Mandarin, since it wasn’t one of the languages he’d taught Ben yet.
“Ash hook you up with the new version of Trados yet?”
“Yeah, but for most of these texts, the only good it does is give me a concordance. It’s not like they repeat themselves much.”
Sam blinked. “I thought-”
“Yeah, I’m still workin’ for the agency, but it seems like half of my projects anymore are for hunters. Those creeps from Garber tried to stiff me again, by the way.”
Sam sighed. “I’ll see if Olivia can knock some sense into ’em. They obviously didn’t listen to Ellen, and they still think I’m the Antichrist.”
Dean snorted. “What about Gwen?”
“Too young and too pretty. They’d blow her off-at their own peril, granted, but still.”
“Dude,” Dean laughed. “I’d pay money to see that fight!”
Sam paused to picture it, then laughed. “So would I!”
Dean returned to the box of books. “So let’s see what she sent this time...”
The folio volumes were old but well cared for, and a quick glance at each showed them to be a set of Latin bestiaries. Several of the creatures described were far from the run-of-the-mill animals that usually showed up in such texts, however, and Dean suspected that Gwen suspected the lore might be useful.
Sam tapped him on the shoulder, and he realized he had been muttering. “What were you saying? It sounded like Latin but you were going so fast...”
Dean shook his head. “Nothing. Just looks like good reference material, that’s all.”
“Cool.” Sam smiled, then sobered. “Hey, you’re bruised.” He reached out and ran a fingertip down the pinky side of Dean’s right hand. “Did you fall again?”
Dean snorted. “Just stumbled. Caught myself on the doorframe.”
Sam nodded. He knew Dean was telling the truth - the price for his polyglot gifts was what Dean had termed “Terminal Clumsiness” - balance issues and a severe hit to his hand-eye coordination. In a civilian life, it was no big deal.
But it had been the death knell to Dean’s ability to Hunt.
So Dean had followed through on his idea to reunite with Lisa. She was good for him, patient with his occasional fumbles and pratfalls, and their son Ben practically worshipped Dean. Plus, there was a translation agency in Indianapolis that paid better than a garage would pay a mechanic, so Dean was set. Then, after the incident with the changelings, they had decided to make their relationship official.
Dean Braeden had even been called in by FBI Agent Victor Henricksen to translate symbols left behind in the aftermath of hunts gone sideways. Dean had hesitated to give up the Winchester name legally, but in the grand scheme of things, it had turned out to be worth it.
“So,” Dean said, loading the books back into the box, “is Adam coming or not?”
“He is. He and his mom are going to spend Thanksgiving Day here.”
“I meant today, for the barbeque.”
“No. Neither of them could get off work.”
Dean nodded. It had taken some time for him to get used to the idea that they had a half-brother, but Sam had told him long enough before the ghouls turned up in Windom that they had not only saved the Milligans but managed to build a friendship with them. Adam didn’t know what the family business was-Dean’s cover was “pest control,” and Sam went with it-but he didn’t need to know now. And even if his relationship with Sam and Dean was less than brotherly, it was still better than what Sam remembered from that other timeline.
Not to mention that both Milligans were still alive. Always a win in Dean’s book.
“You seen Jo lately?” Dean continued. “Heard she went after a Leshii a couple months back.”
“She did. Came home wearing a matching set of leg braces. She’s still in PT and Ellen thinks she can graduate to a cane next week.” Sam took a sip of his beer. “She said not to stare at her girl.”
Dean frowned. “Is she... is she done?”
Sam smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “You know Jo. Soon as she heals, she’ll be back out there. Rufus is gonna be her partner now. He thinks he can do a better job than those idiots who were training her and using her as bait.”
Dean shook his head and cursed under his breath again. “Well, at least Rufus knows better than to take stupid risks with other people’s lives.”
“Exactly. Word is he and Bobby and Ellen teamed up on the bastards.”
“Now there’s another fight I’d pay money to have seen.”
“Bobby taped it.”
Dean’s eyebrows shot up. “Really?”
“I’ll call him and have him bring it.”
Dean grinned, then sobered. “Nah, better save it for the next time I’m up there. Lisa wouldn’t want us watching it where Ben might see.”
Sam shrugged.
“Anybody home?” a familiar voice called from the front door.
“In here,” the brothers chorused.
“Aha! Thought you muttonheads might be out back already.”
Loki had taken some explaining, given that he’d showed up at the JP’s office uninvited for Dean and Lisa’s wedding. He didn’t drop by often, but he showed up often enough and at strange enough times that Dean felt he needed to give Lisa what little information he knew about the guy.
Dean stood, swaying dangerously. “It’s about that time, isn’t it?”
Sam instinctively reached out to steady him.
“Thanks, man.”
“You okay, dude?”
“Sat too damn long.”
“Can you walk?”
He tested it. “Yeah, world’s stationary again.”
Sam blew the air out of his cheeks. “Good. Let’s head on out there.”
Ben had volunteered to man the grill while Dean was inside, and Dean was pleased to discover that he was actually doing a good job with the hamburgers.
“Hey, not bad,” he praised.
Ben grinned up at him proudly. “Thanks, Dad.”
Ruffling his son’s hair, Dean got a beer for himself and Sam. Loki, on the other hand, made straight for the desserts.
“Figures,” Dean quipped.
“What? Not my fault your wife makes the best apple crumb cake in the state.” Loki helped himself to a large slice and shoveled a huge bite into his mouth
“It’ll BE your fault if I have to make another one!” Lisa snapped as she came out back bearing a tray of drinks.
“Oh, fine.” Loki snapped his fingers, and a new slice grew to replace the one he’d taken.
Lisa just rolled her eyes and shook her head, used to his antics by now. “Hey, Sam! Are you here alone?”
“Nah, Bobby’s a half hour or so out.” He kissed her cheek, stealing the tray from her grasp as he did so.
She chuckled. “You know you’re welcome to stay as long as you like. Sioux Falls isn’t exactly close.”
“Thanks.”
“I take it the skinwalker hunt went well?”
He blinked, then smiled. “I’m still in awe that you are so accepting. Yeah, it went well.”
She shrugged. “After the thing with the changelings, I kind of have to be. I’m still amazed you were able to stop it so fast, before it could take Ben.”
Sam set the tray down. “It was our job. But hey, it brought you back into our lives before-” As if on cue, Dean tripped on his own feet and nearly faceplanted into the garden, but managed to get his feet back under him. Sam sighed. “Before his coordination got completely blown to hell.”
Lisa sighed, too. “You okay, honey?”
A thumbs-up shot their way and Dean checked on Ben and the grill again.
“I’m glad he’s here,” Lisa whispered to Sam. “Knowing what... well. I’d worry.”
Sam nodded, then slid her a teasing smile. “I just wish I could have seen your expression when you realized he wasn’t as shallow or dumb as he was playing at.”
Lisa drew herself up in mock offense. “Why, Sam Winchester, whatever makes you think I was surprised?”
His teasing smile morphed into a knowing smirk. “Because you were pretending the same thing.”
She laughed.
And Sam grinned so big his dimples threatened to crack his face as he looked around at the back yard and the supernatural creature mingling with the humans. At Bobby’s battered Chevelle pulling up beside the ever-present Impala. At his brother who was having a high-spirited discussion with his son, switching easily between English and German and Latin and Spanish.
Sam felt ‘home’ settle into his bones like it hadn’t since Stanford.
Freedom felt fantastic.
END
Epilogue
July 4, 2011
Cicero, IN
“Not more books!” Dean cried when he looked in the box Sam had just brought into the house. “Where the hell did Gwen get these from?!”
“EBay-I think,” Sam replied. “Or maybe an estate sale. I don’t remember. Anyway, she said earliest possible, but it’s not urgent.”
Dean muttered something uncomplimentary about their third cousin in Mandarin, since it wasn’t one of the languages he’d taught Ben yet.
“Ash hook you up with the new version of Trados yet?”
“Yeah, but for most of these texts, the only good it does is give me a concordance. It’s not like they repeat themselves much.”
Sam blinked. “I thought-”
“Yeah, I’m still workin’ for the agency, but it seems like half of my projects anymore are for hunters. Those creeps from Garber tried to stiff me again, by the way.”
Sam sighed. “I’ll see if Olivia can knock some sense into ’em. They obviously didn’t listen to Ellen, and they still think I’m the Antichrist.”
Dean snorted. “What about Gwen?”
“Too young and too pretty. They’d blow her off-at their own peril, granted, but still.”
“Dude,” Dean laughed. “I’d pay money to see that fight!”
Sam paused to picture it, then laughed. “So would I!”
Dean returned to the box of books. “So let’s see what she sent this time...”
The folio volumes were old but well cared for, and a quick glance at each showed them to be a set of Latin bestiaries. Several of the creatures described were far from the run-of-the-mill animals that usually showed up in such texts, however, and Dean suspected that Gwen suspected the lore might be useful.
Sam tapped him on the shoulder, and he realized he had been muttering. “What were you saying? It sounded like Latin but you were going so fast...”
Dean shook his head. “Nothing. Just looks like good reference material, that’s all.”
“Cool.” Sam smiled, then sobered. “Hey, you’re bruised.” He reached out and ran a fingertip down the pinky side of Dean’s right hand. “Did you fall again?”
Dean snorted. “Just stumbled. Caught myself on the doorframe.”
Sam nodded. He knew Dean was telling the truth - the price for his polyglot gifts was what Dean had termed “Terminal Clumsiness” - balance issues and a severe hit to his hand-eye coordination. In a civilian life, it was no big deal.
But it had been the death knell to Dean’s ability to Hunt.
So Dean had followed through on his idea to reunite with Lisa. She was good for him, patient with his occasional fumbles and pratfalls, and their son Ben practically worshipped Dean. Plus, there was a translation agency in Indianapolis that paid better than a garage would pay a mechanic, so Dean was set. Then, after the incident with the changelings, they had decided to make their relationship official.
Dean Braeden had even been called in by FBI Agent Victor Henricksen to translate symbols left behind in the aftermath of hunts gone sideways. Dean had hesitated to give up the Winchester name legally, but in the grand scheme of things, it had turned out to be worth it.
“So,” Dean said, loading the books back into the box, “is Adam coming or not?”
“He is. He and his mom are going to spend Thanksgiving Day here.”
“I meant today, for the barbeque.”
“No. Neither of them could get off work.”
Dean nodded. It had taken some time for him to get used to the idea that they had a half-brother, but Sam had told him long enough before the ghouls turned up in Windom that they had not only saved the Milligans but managed to build a friendship with them. Adam didn’t know what the family business was-Dean’s cover was “pest control,” and Sam went with it-but he didn’t need to know now. And even if his relationship with Sam and Dean was less than brotherly, it was still better than what Sam remembered from that other timeline.
Not to mention that both Milligans were still alive. Always a win in Dean’s book.
“You seen Jo lately?” Dean continued. “Heard she went after a Leshii a couple months back.”
“She did. Came home wearing a matching set of leg braces. She’s still in PT and Ellen thinks she can graduate to a cane next week.” Sam took a sip of his beer. “She said not to stare at her girl.”
Dean frowned. “Is she... is she done?”
Sam smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “You know Jo. Soon as she heals, she’ll be back out there. Rufus is gonna be her partner now. He thinks he can do a better job than those idiots who were training her and using her as bait.”
Dean shook his head and cursed under his breath again. “Well, at least Rufus knows better than to take stupid risks with other people’s lives.”
“Exactly. Word is he and Bobby and Ellen teamed up on the bastards.”
“Now there’s another fight I’d pay money to have seen.”
“Bobby taped it.”
Dean’s eyebrows shot up. “Really?”
“I’ll call him and have him bring it.”
Dean grinned, then sobered. “Nah, better save it for the next time I’m up there. Lisa wouldn’t want us watching it where Ben might see.”
Sam shrugged.
“Anybody home?” a familiar voice called from the front door.
“In here,” the brothers chorused.
“Aha! Thought you muttonheads might be out back already.”
Loki had taken some explaining, given that he’d showed up at the JP’s office uninvited for Dean and Lisa’s wedding. He didn’t drop by often, but he showed up often enough and at strange enough times that Dean felt he needed to give Lisa what little information he knew about the guy.
Dean stood, swaying dangerously. “It’s about that time, isn’t it?”
Sam instinctively reached out to steady him.
“Thanks, man.”
“You okay, dude?”
“Sat too damn long.”
“Can you walk?”
He tested it. “Yeah, world’s stationary again.”
Sam blew the air out of his cheeks. “Good. Let’s head on out there.”
Ben had volunteered to man the grill while Dean was inside, and Dean was pleased to discover that he was actually doing a good job with the hamburgers.
“Hey, not bad,” he praised.
Ben grinned up at him proudly. “Thanks, Dad.”
Ruffling his son’s hair, Dean got a beer for himself and Sam. Loki, on the other hand, made straight for the desserts.
“Figures,” Dean quipped.
“What? Not my fault your wife makes the best apple crumb cake in the state.” Loki helped himself to a large slice and shoveled a huge bite into his mouth
“It’ll BE your fault if I have to make another one!” Lisa snapped as she came out back bearing a tray of drinks.
“Oh, fine.” Loki snapped his fingers, and a new slice grew to replace the one he’d taken.
Lisa just rolled her eyes and shook her head, used to his antics by now. “Hey, Sam! Are you here alone?”
“Nah, Bobby’s a half hour or so out.” He kissed her cheek, stealing the tray from her grasp as he did so.
She chuckled. “You know you’re welcome to stay as long as you like. Sioux Falls isn’t exactly close.”
“Thanks.”
“I take it the skinwalker hunt went well?”
He blinked, then smiled. “I’m still in awe that you are so accepting. Yeah, it went well.”
She shrugged. “After the thing with the changelings, I kind of have to be. I’m still amazed you were able to stop it so fast, before it could take Ben.”
Sam set the tray down. “It was our job. But hey, it brought you back into our lives before-” As if on cue, Dean tripped on his own feet and nearly faceplanted into the garden, but managed to get his feet back under him. Sam sighed. “Before his coordination got completely blown to hell.”
Lisa sighed, too. “You okay, honey?”
A thumbs-up shot their way and Dean checked on Ben and the grill again.
“I’m glad he’s here,” Lisa whispered to Sam. “Knowing what... well. I’d worry.”
Sam nodded, then slid her a teasing smile. “I just wish I could have seen your expression when you realized he wasn’t as shallow or dumb as he was playing at.”
Lisa drew herself up in mock offense. “Why, Sam Winchester, whatever makes you think I was surprised?”
His teasing smile morphed into a knowing smirk. “Because you were pretending the same thing.”
She laughed.
And Sam grinned so big his dimples threatened to crack his face as he looked around at the back yard and the supernatural creature mingling with the humans. At Bobby’s battered Chevelle pulling up beside the ever-present Impala. At his brother who was having a high-spirited discussion with his son, switching easily between English and German and Latin and Spanish.
Sam felt ‘home’ settle into his bones like it hadn’t since Stanford.
Freedom felt fantastic.
END