This Was an Accident? - August 8th
Twisted Shorts August Fic-a-Day Challenge - Day 8
Title: This Was an Accident?
Author: hermione2be
Rating: PG/FR13/K+
Crossover: BtVS/Supernatural
Disclaimer: I do not own any of BtVS/Angel or Supernatural people, places, or ideas. This fiction is done simply for pleasure and I receive no profit.
Summary: Sam and Dean take Willow to a friend for some help figuring out who - and what - she is.
Notes: Part 3 of “A Redhead in the Impala” - Links Page
Seasons: Post-Series/Late-Season 1
Word Count: 2210
“Are you boys sure about this?” Bobby asked as he watched them pack up the Impala.
“What choice do we have?” Dean replied in irritation. “If someone is trying to sideline us, a week of staying here has already done exactly that.”
“You’re taking a kid out on Hunts… You both know exactly what it’s like,” he pointed out.
“And motel rooms are boring when you’re a kid,” Sam agreed, “but we know how to be careful.”
Bobby looked like he wanted to argue some more. Instead, he bit his tongue, he had already yelled long and loud about what he thought. But they were also right, they couldn’t figure out what was going on with Yellow-Eyes or their dad without being out in it. “Be careful,” he ordered gruffly.
He walked back to the porch, watching as Sam added Willow’s things to the back of the Impala. Dean was putting her in the backseat.
The one thing he knew for sure was that Willow was smart. The same kind of bookishness Sam had displayed at the same age. She could solve simple math problems and read complex words, though not always understanding them. She could remember telephone numbers, reciting them when asked. And she had advanced perception, knowing there were things she didn’t know, even if she couldn’t explain how she knew it. A sixth sense that would serve her well.
They were headed to an old friend to see if she could glean more from Willow.
Bobby listened as the Impala roared to life. He gave final wave. “Idjits,” he cursed on an exhale.
88888888
Sam looked in the backseat again. It was a touch surreal. All he could see was himself as a child. At least he had had Dean at that age. Sure, they could guess what she was going to do, they could prepare as much as possible… but there wasn’t really a way to know. And that didn’t even address their mission, their jobs, their enemies, or their father.
“I can actually hear your teeth grinding,” Dean accused, his tone causal.
Sam unclenched his jaw but gave no response.
Willow looked up from the book she was reading, Charlotte’s Web. She seemed to consider him a moment before returning to her book.
“We’ll be in Lawrence in a few more hours,” Dean reminded him. “Then we’ll know.”
Sam wasn’t holding out hope. Missouri Mosely had the ability to read people, but that didn’t mean she could give them a clear answer.
Dean flicked on his radio, starting some old tape and filling the uncomfortable space between them.
88888888
The parlor of Missouri’s had not changed since they had last been there. She was already in a reading when they entered. But it was only a few minutes before she ushered her client out.
She turned to face them with an exasperated expression. “You boys never come without a world of warning,” she accused.
“Missouri, this is Willow. Willow, this is our friend Missouri, she’s a psychic.”
Missouri waved them into her kitchen. She went to the fridge and pulled out a can of clear soda. She opened and handed it to Willow. “You really need to learn to ask for what you need, honey. These boys can’t read minds.”
Willow took the soda with both hands. “Thank you.”
“Well?” Dean asked.
Missouri gave him a glare and directed Willow to her table to sit and drink. She fished out a pack of graham crackers and set it in front of the redhead. Then she gestured Sam and Dean to follow her into the hall. “Where did you get that little girl?” she said softly.
Sam quickly explained their last week. “When Bobby couldn’t make any headway, we thought we’d see if you could get anything.”
She sighed. “It’s definitely something I’ve never seen before.”
“Is she supposed to be distracting us?” Dean asked.
Missouri shook her head. “Whatever happened, she was trying to save someone.”
“Do you know someone who can reverse it?” Sam asked.
“You don’t understand,” she replied. “Willow is powerful, innately magical. What brought her to you, turned back the clock on her mind and body, was the kind of convergence that is one in a billion mistake. It brought her from a world different from ours. A world that there may not be a way to return her to without the aid of a powerful magic. Even then, recreating the accident would take several witches.”
“This was an accident?” Dean said in disbelief.
“The Willow I see when I look at her…she’s about your ages. She’s seen a lot of bad things, done some bad things…but she is good.” Missouri considered. “That may be why her magic returned her to innocence…” She waved a hand through the air. “Whatever else, she is something of a blank slate.” She looked at Sam. “If you think you can kill a child, Sam Winchester, it is no wonder she fears you.”
Sam looked startled. “I wasn’t - I don’t-”
“It’s crossed your mind,” Missouri told him. “And she has the potential to be one of the most powerful witches ever seen. But that doesn’t mean she’s any more dangerous than you were at that age.” She stared at him. “That’s what it is. It’s not about Willow at all…you think you’re looking in a mirror. Oh, honey, nothing is ever as simple as that.”
Dean looked between the two. “Why us?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. It could be an anchor point, it could be an unconscious return to a specific spot.”
“But the Impala?”
She stared at him hard. “Do you really think it’s the car that she’s returning to?” She did not give him a chance to reply. “Willow is attached to you. There is a link from her to you.”
“Why me?”
Missouri spread her hands in front of her. “Magic is complicated. I can sense the connection, but not what caused it.”
Dean felt irritation well up in him. First Dad had given him Sammy. Now, somehow, he was responsible for Willow.
Missouri swatted his arm. “Some people are meant to be pretty, others shape those around them.”
“You said you can’t read the reason. But do you have an idea?” Sam asked.
She wasn’t sure if he sensed it or was simply smarter than she gave him credit for. Either way, her answer was not one either of them would appreciate. Instead, she shook her head. “No.”
“So what are we supposed to do?” Dean demanded.
“Raise her,” was Missouri’s simple response. “That girl needs someone who cares, more than either of you could ever understand.”
Both of them mentally scoffed at that.
Missouri pointed a finger at Dean’s chest. “You two always had each other. You don’t know what it means to truly be a child alone in this world.” She switched her focus to Sam. “Not when the situation is out of your control.”
Her own disappointment in her son dismissing the supernatural and her granddaughter’s gifts, made her continue. “Just because she was something doesn’t mean that what you do has no bearing on her. Someday she will be a witch, but what that means…for her, for you, for the world…that’s still to be determined. If you are afraid of that gift, her magic; if it isn’t properly nurtured, she can hurt a great many people, including herself.”
Missouri looked between them. “You’ve been putting off figuring out how to incorporate a child into your lives. I would suggest you sit down and talk it out somewhere else. Willow and I are going to have some lunch. We’ll be done by the time you get back.” She didn’t wait, shooing them out the door.
Willow was still sitting at the kitchen table.
“Do you like turkey and Swiss sandwiches?” Missouri asked.
Willow shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Of course, sweetie. I’m making that for lunch.” She set about getting out the ingredients. “Those boys… they are going to be hard to train, but they will be worth it.”
Willow just watched her.
“You need to tell them what you need. Something to drink, something to eat, something to read. To stop for a bathroom. And they’ll get grumpy and they’ll be upset and they’ll make a lot of fuss.”
“I don’t like fuss.”
Missouri shook her head. “You are a peacemaker at heart, Willow, but you are also determined. Make a fuss, because it’s the only thing those boys understand. Then one day, they’ll not have to be asked to pack snacks or stop every couple of hours for a bathroom, they’ll just do it.”
Willow swallowed and looked down at her lap.
“Oh, child…” Missouri said, pausing in her preparations. “Do you really think if you’re difficult they’ll just leave you somewhere?”
That they already had, crossed her mind.
“You were hurt and they wanted to get you better. But I can see why you think that.” Missouri finished making the sandwiches and added a cut up orange to each plate before making her way to the table. “The problem is, those boys have a difficult time seeing the easy solutions.”
Willow slurped down an orange, her green eyes fixed on Missouri. “Why?”
“Because it makes them uncomfortable, and they will avoid anything that makes them uncomfortable.” She smiled. “The thing is, it is the solution that you may have to initiate.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You will,” Missouri promised.
88888888
After a lunch at a local diner that didn’t include them actually saying words, Sam and Dean sat in the Impala in front of Missouri’s house.
“What the hell are we supposed to do with a kid on the road?” Dean finally said.
“Teach her how to operate a remote?” Sam suggested.
“Sam…”
“You were six or seven the first time Dad left you alone with me. All we’d be asking her to do is look after herself in a motel room.”
“And the time we don’t come back?”
“She knows Bobby’s numbers. Learned them in a few hours, she can call him if we we’re gone more than a day without calling her.”
“How easy it is to suggest that when you’re no longer the kid.”
“No, it’s not. But what choice do we have? Are you going to give up Hunting?”
Dean looked out the front window.
“That takes care of Hunts,” Sam continued. “But what about for our covers, or even just food runs. She’s a very recognizable kid.”
Dean nodded. Willow’s bright red hair made her easy to describe and spot. Which meant, it always had to look like things were above board. He suddenly appreciated how hard it was to travel with him and Sam before Sam could go to school. But even school was a difficult proposition, they were always on the move, too much to attempt what Dad had in leaving them alone together for weeks or months at a time while they attended school.
They got out of the car and headed into Missouri’s house. They found Missouri and Willow looking over a book.
Missouri looked at them, giving them a peeved expression. “You two are being difficult.” She tapped Willow’s shoulder. “It’s up to you, honey.”
Willow’s face reddened. But she stood and approached Sam, looking up. She waved him down to her. Once Sam went from being a giant to someone she could reach, she whispered in his ear.
He drew back in surprise. His gaze going from Willow to Missouri. Then he looked up at Dean and managed to smile. Sam focused back on Willow. “Okay.”
Willow’s eyes widened. “Really?”
Sam nodded. “Really.” Then he stood up.
Dean looked between the three. “Well?”
“Willow and I have solved the problem for you,” Missouri answered. “And Sam agrees with it.”
Sam’s smile had slowly widened as Dean tried to figure out what Missouri was talking about.
“We felt,” Missouri continued, “that ‘Uncle Sammy’ sounded right given his age.”
Dean chuckled. “Ah.”
“Given Willow’s red hair and her Star of David necklace, we have embraced that her mother was Jewish. There was a name in the ether - Tara - we’ve taken that to be her mother’s name.”
“She died,” Willow said softly, unreasonably close to tears given it was a fiction. But the emotion of the name stuck with her.
“Our mom died too,” Sam told her sympathetically, “before I even met her.”
“Which has left her to be raised by her father,” Missouri concluded.
Dean took a half-second to catch the meaning of her words. “No. No no no no no. No!”
“You wanted to know the best way to travel with a kid? As her family.”
“Then I can be Uncle Dean.”
“That doesn’t really work,” Missouri told him. “There is far too much paperwork involved and traveling with two uncles…well, in this day and age, people will look at you strangely, which is what you’re trying to avoid.” She held up her phone. “Besides, I’ve already got a friend working on it. The papers will go to Bobby Singer, since Willow knew the address.”
Dean clenched his jaw. Cursing in his head everything he felt was responsible.
Willow watched as his face grew thunderous and then he stormed out.
“Give him a few minutes,” Missouri told Willow. Or days, she thought.
Title: This Was an Accident?
Author: hermione2be
Rating: PG/FR13/K+
Crossover: BtVS/Supernatural
Disclaimer: I do not own any of BtVS/Angel or Supernatural people, places, or ideas. This fiction is done simply for pleasure and I receive no profit.
Summary: Sam and Dean take Willow to a friend for some help figuring out who - and what - she is.
Notes: Part 3 of “A Redhead in the Impala” - Links Page
Seasons: Post-Series/Late-Season 1
Word Count: 2210
“Are you boys sure about this?” Bobby asked as he watched them pack up the Impala.
“What choice do we have?” Dean replied in irritation. “If someone is trying to sideline us, a week of staying here has already done exactly that.”
“You’re taking a kid out on Hunts… You both know exactly what it’s like,” he pointed out.
“And motel rooms are boring when you’re a kid,” Sam agreed, “but we know how to be careful.”
Bobby looked like he wanted to argue some more. Instead, he bit his tongue, he had already yelled long and loud about what he thought. But they were also right, they couldn’t figure out what was going on with Yellow-Eyes or their dad without being out in it. “Be careful,” he ordered gruffly.
He walked back to the porch, watching as Sam added Willow’s things to the back of the Impala. Dean was putting her in the backseat.
The one thing he knew for sure was that Willow was smart. The same kind of bookishness Sam had displayed at the same age. She could solve simple math problems and read complex words, though not always understanding them. She could remember telephone numbers, reciting them when asked. And she had advanced perception, knowing there were things she didn’t know, even if she couldn’t explain how she knew it. A sixth sense that would serve her well.
They were headed to an old friend to see if she could glean more from Willow.
Bobby listened as the Impala roared to life. He gave final wave. “Idjits,” he cursed on an exhale.
88888888
Sam looked in the backseat again. It was a touch surreal. All he could see was himself as a child. At least he had had Dean at that age. Sure, they could guess what she was going to do, they could prepare as much as possible… but there wasn’t really a way to know. And that didn’t even address their mission, their jobs, their enemies, or their father.
“I can actually hear your teeth grinding,” Dean accused, his tone causal.
Sam unclenched his jaw but gave no response.
Willow looked up from the book she was reading, Charlotte’s Web. She seemed to consider him a moment before returning to her book.
“We’ll be in Lawrence in a few more hours,” Dean reminded him. “Then we’ll know.”
Sam wasn’t holding out hope. Missouri Mosely had the ability to read people, but that didn’t mean she could give them a clear answer.
Dean flicked on his radio, starting some old tape and filling the uncomfortable space between them.
88888888
The parlor of Missouri’s had not changed since they had last been there. She was already in a reading when they entered. But it was only a few minutes before she ushered her client out.
She turned to face them with an exasperated expression. “You boys never come without a world of warning,” she accused.
“Missouri, this is Willow. Willow, this is our friend Missouri, she’s a psychic.”
Missouri waved them into her kitchen. She went to the fridge and pulled out a can of clear soda. She opened and handed it to Willow. “You really need to learn to ask for what you need, honey. These boys can’t read minds.”
Willow took the soda with both hands. “Thank you.”
“Well?” Dean asked.
Missouri gave him a glare and directed Willow to her table to sit and drink. She fished out a pack of graham crackers and set it in front of the redhead. Then she gestured Sam and Dean to follow her into the hall. “Where did you get that little girl?” she said softly.
Sam quickly explained their last week. “When Bobby couldn’t make any headway, we thought we’d see if you could get anything.”
She sighed. “It’s definitely something I’ve never seen before.”
“Is she supposed to be distracting us?” Dean asked.
Missouri shook her head. “Whatever happened, she was trying to save someone.”
“Do you know someone who can reverse it?” Sam asked.
“You don’t understand,” she replied. “Willow is powerful, innately magical. What brought her to you, turned back the clock on her mind and body, was the kind of convergence that is one in a billion mistake. It brought her from a world different from ours. A world that there may not be a way to return her to without the aid of a powerful magic. Even then, recreating the accident would take several witches.”
“This was an accident?” Dean said in disbelief.
“The Willow I see when I look at her…she’s about your ages. She’s seen a lot of bad things, done some bad things…but she is good.” Missouri considered. “That may be why her magic returned her to innocence…” She waved a hand through the air. “Whatever else, she is something of a blank slate.” She looked at Sam. “If you think you can kill a child, Sam Winchester, it is no wonder she fears you.”
Sam looked startled. “I wasn’t - I don’t-”
“It’s crossed your mind,” Missouri told him. “And she has the potential to be one of the most powerful witches ever seen. But that doesn’t mean she’s any more dangerous than you were at that age.” She stared at him. “That’s what it is. It’s not about Willow at all…you think you’re looking in a mirror. Oh, honey, nothing is ever as simple as that.”
Dean looked between the two. “Why us?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. It could be an anchor point, it could be an unconscious return to a specific spot.”
“But the Impala?”
She stared at him hard. “Do you really think it’s the car that she’s returning to?” She did not give him a chance to reply. “Willow is attached to you. There is a link from her to you.”
“Why me?”
Missouri spread her hands in front of her. “Magic is complicated. I can sense the connection, but not what caused it.”
Dean felt irritation well up in him. First Dad had given him Sammy. Now, somehow, he was responsible for Willow.
Missouri swatted his arm. “Some people are meant to be pretty, others shape those around them.”
“You said you can’t read the reason. But do you have an idea?” Sam asked.
She wasn’t sure if he sensed it or was simply smarter than she gave him credit for. Either way, her answer was not one either of them would appreciate. Instead, she shook her head. “No.”
“So what are we supposed to do?” Dean demanded.
“Raise her,” was Missouri’s simple response. “That girl needs someone who cares, more than either of you could ever understand.”
Both of them mentally scoffed at that.
Missouri pointed a finger at Dean’s chest. “You two always had each other. You don’t know what it means to truly be a child alone in this world.” She switched her focus to Sam. “Not when the situation is out of your control.”
Her own disappointment in her son dismissing the supernatural and her granddaughter’s gifts, made her continue. “Just because she was something doesn’t mean that what you do has no bearing on her. Someday she will be a witch, but what that means…for her, for you, for the world…that’s still to be determined. If you are afraid of that gift, her magic; if it isn’t properly nurtured, she can hurt a great many people, including herself.”
Missouri looked between them. “You’ve been putting off figuring out how to incorporate a child into your lives. I would suggest you sit down and talk it out somewhere else. Willow and I are going to have some lunch. We’ll be done by the time you get back.” She didn’t wait, shooing them out the door.
Willow was still sitting at the kitchen table.
“Do you like turkey and Swiss sandwiches?” Missouri asked.
Willow shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Of course, sweetie. I’m making that for lunch.” She set about getting out the ingredients. “Those boys… they are going to be hard to train, but they will be worth it.”
Willow just watched her.
“You need to tell them what you need. Something to drink, something to eat, something to read. To stop for a bathroom. And they’ll get grumpy and they’ll be upset and they’ll make a lot of fuss.”
“I don’t like fuss.”
Missouri shook her head. “You are a peacemaker at heart, Willow, but you are also determined. Make a fuss, because it’s the only thing those boys understand. Then one day, they’ll not have to be asked to pack snacks or stop every couple of hours for a bathroom, they’ll just do it.”
Willow swallowed and looked down at her lap.
“Oh, child…” Missouri said, pausing in her preparations. “Do you really think if you’re difficult they’ll just leave you somewhere?”
That they already had, crossed her mind.
“You were hurt and they wanted to get you better. But I can see why you think that.” Missouri finished making the sandwiches and added a cut up orange to each plate before making her way to the table. “The problem is, those boys have a difficult time seeing the easy solutions.”
Willow slurped down an orange, her green eyes fixed on Missouri. “Why?”
“Because it makes them uncomfortable, and they will avoid anything that makes them uncomfortable.” She smiled. “The thing is, it is the solution that you may have to initiate.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You will,” Missouri promised.
88888888
After a lunch at a local diner that didn’t include them actually saying words, Sam and Dean sat in the Impala in front of Missouri’s house.
“What the hell are we supposed to do with a kid on the road?” Dean finally said.
“Teach her how to operate a remote?” Sam suggested.
“Sam…”
“You were six or seven the first time Dad left you alone with me. All we’d be asking her to do is look after herself in a motel room.”
“And the time we don’t come back?”
“She knows Bobby’s numbers. Learned them in a few hours, she can call him if we we’re gone more than a day without calling her.”
“How easy it is to suggest that when you’re no longer the kid.”
“No, it’s not. But what choice do we have? Are you going to give up Hunting?”
Dean looked out the front window.
“That takes care of Hunts,” Sam continued. “But what about for our covers, or even just food runs. She’s a very recognizable kid.”
Dean nodded. Willow’s bright red hair made her easy to describe and spot. Which meant, it always had to look like things were above board. He suddenly appreciated how hard it was to travel with him and Sam before Sam could go to school. But even school was a difficult proposition, they were always on the move, too much to attempt what Dad had in leaving them alone together for weeks or months at a time while they attended school.
They got out of the car and headed into Missouri’s house. They found Missouri and Willow looking over a book.
Missouri looked at them, giving them a peeved expression. “You two are being difficult.” She tapped Willow’s shoulder. “It’s up to you, honey.”
Willow’s face reddened. But she stood and approached Sam, looking up. She waved him down to her. Once Sam went from being a giant to someone she could reach, she whispered in his ear.
He drew back in surprise. His gaze going from Willow to Missouri. Then he looked up at Dean and managed to smile. Sam focused back on Willow. “Okay.”
Willow’s eyes widened. “Really?”
Sam nodded. “Really.” Then he stood up.
Dean looked between the three. “Well?”
“Willow and I have solved the problem for you,” Missouri answered. “And Sam agrees with it.”
Sam’s smile had slowly widened as Dean tried to figure out what Missouri was talking about.
“We felt,” Missouri continued, “that ‘Uncle Sammy’ sounded right given his age.”
Dean chuckled. “Ah.”
“Given Willow’s red hair and her Star of David necklace, we have embraced that her mother was Jewish. There was a name in the ether - Tara - we’ve taken that to be her mother’s name.”
“She died,” Willow said softly, unreasonably close to tears given it was a fiction. But the emotion of the name stuck with her.
“Our mom died too,” Sam told her sympathetically, “before I even met her.”
“Which has left her to be raised by her father,” Missouri concluded.
Dean took a half-second to catch the meaning of her words. “No. No no no no no. No!”
“You wanted to know the best way to travel with a kid? As her family.”
“Then I can be Uncle Dean.”
“That doesn’t really work,” Missouri told him. “There is far too much paperwork involved and traveling with two uncles…well, in this day and age, people will look at you strangely, which is what you’re trying to avoid.” She held up her phone. “Besides, I’ve already got a friend working on it. The papers will go to Bobby Singer, since Willow knew the address.”
Dean clenched his jaw. Cursing in his head everything he felt was responsible.
Willow watched as his face grew thunderous and then he stormed out.
“Give him a few minutes,” Missouri told Willow. Or days, she thought.