#'the normal world thinks sam and dean are serial killers' thing worked so much better in the earlier seasons

[spn2006]

in lieu of watching the last two episodes of season five (i've been watching spn on dvd with a friend of mine so i don't want to watch it without them while were on winter break) i watched a couple episodes of season seven that weren't plot important and jesus christ, yall weren't kidding about supernatural going downhill after season five. it was all just completely devoid of the love and warmth you find in the earlier seasons?? where even when things are devastating, theyre devastating for an actual reason, not just needless shock value. in one episode dean kills a woman bc she's a kitsune right before her young son walks in and sees her dead body, and he threatens to kill the kid too?? what the fuck was that?? obviously dean has always been the "kill the freaks instead of empathising with them" kind of guy, but that just crosses a line. he had zero remorse or emotion the whole time. that doesn't make any sense. the whole thing was so fucked up that it became stupid.

it just frustrates me so much because there is something so special and beautiful about supernatural when it was good--there was horror, there was violence, there was gore, but it almost always meant something more than just what it was. i think about how emotionally devastating it was to watch an episode like heart or metamorphosis which both have the same type of sympathetic monster plot, and its easy to see when that trope is done well and when it isn't. these season seven episodes don't even feel like supernatural to me, they feel like some asshole's supernatural fanfiction that got turned into a tv show. shit sucks so bad

[prairiedust]

Gimme Shelter livewatch under the cut.... I was on my phone when I wrote it so apologies for the typos

“Patchwork Community Center: Care Given to All” with a huge, lurid heart. Hmmm.... patchwork having two meanings here.....

Pastor (?) has 2 Timothy 2:22 tattooed on his arm! “Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” (NIV) Are we looking at growth and found family in this episode?!?

Oh that’s the alleyway!

Hitting mythology themes— Connor is an Anglicized version of an Irish name— Conchobar mac Nessa is maybe the most famous bearer of the name, from Irish mythology— he’s the king who lusted after Deirdre and had her locked up until she came of age, which is probably neither here nor there as far as this poor Connor is concerned...

That thing has a big lurid heart on his overalls better run lol— Oh shit it’s an evil Teddy Ruxpin!!!! Thanks Davy Perez!!!!

That’s the thing animal control uses to manage aggressive animals??? Is this saying something about the Patchwork people?

And that’s it for the cold open.

——

The uh, the mcfuckin what, the Camelot Palace Casino? Is this a tour of the legends of Ireland and Britain all of a sudden? What’s with hitting this theme so hard so fast?

Uh-oh the whole Highway to Heaven reference has me side-eyeing Dean’s suggestion for Cas snd Jack to leave the bunker... Dabb even “spoiled” that line in a tweet lol... in that show the cop and the angel got their (vague) assignments from the big guy.......

Oh SHIT “we’re standing in what I call ‘the trap zone’” Perez is coming for my whole life with this episode!!!! And they’re doing highkey “season one totally-normal Winchester investigation questions script” I love it!!!!

“Slasher flick” Oh we’re revisiting Mint Condition. This is fine.

AND TOMBSTONE THIS IS NOT FINE DAVY! We’re running the good times backwards what did I say about this being the flipside of Last Holiday!

H2H again but this time it’s sus... plus I’m with Zack, I totally want the cozy murder spinoff I imagined Adam and Michael doing plz

Oh the Cas and Jack dynamic here is so sweet.

Pastor just leaving his door open like there’s no such thing as a thief bless his heart. They must be torn up about Connor but Pastor was the last one to talk to him so he’s sus I don’t make the rules.

Oh no Red’s a THIEF!!! Who ever would have guessed. Okay I did NOT expect that jumpscare because of the way Connor’s murder primed me, that was masterfully done.

That’s vaguely an Ohio Star quilt square on the sign behind her except um I forget what that tilted square in the center turns it into? It’s chiming with something... I’ll have to look that up later.

“Divide and conquer” no never split up in a slasher movie that’s how you get murders use the buddy system!

Gonna stop a sec because I just realized that Zack is two-faced. The British dandy was an act. The killer is wearing a Cinderella mask. Ok I’m gonna make a prediction that Zack is actually the killer, a la the demon in Repo Man...

Okay there was definitely a beat after Dean said “Glad soneone’s taking charge” [ofHell] and the focus shifted to Sam. Hm.

“We’ve got to set her up for her own death” so meta, these writers are gonna shred us.

I love being shown how much Castiel has changed throughe Jack not understanding the Kool-Aid reference. And the cats line lol. That’s both amazing and poignant.

That’s a log cabin pattern in the cafeteria. Home. Makes me think back on other quilts we’ve seen this season and if “weaving” is the right metaphor for writing lol. I mean, the action of “patching” is synonymous with “mending” or even healing, but patchwork is also a craft with a long, long history in America (idk if quiltmaking is called patchwork everywhere) of taking a few often mismatched fabrics and cutting and sewing into something beautiful. There are generally two kinds of quilt tops— patterns, like we’ve seen so far in this season, which are carefully planned and involve precise measurements, and “crazy quilts” which also require skill but are often more freeform and piecemeal. But both aspire to be beautiful. That’s an interesting way to conceptualize a serial text... as both creating and mending....

That prayer was sweet and not at all what I was expecting.

I get the finger-cutting for Valerie (stealing=sticky fingers) but not for Connor? Tenuous connection still betw lying and writing? It’s evocative of Se7en but the killer seems to have the same MO for all the killings (I attended CSI for a while.)

Snow White is making me uneasy. Oh she’s the preacher’s daughter... we’ve seen that in early days, too.... oh.... oh....

It’s not the AV guy despite having seen all the AV equipment around Valerie. That’s too easy.

“A saint is a sinner who keeps trying-“ no scroll back, the important part was “we all have to take care of each other.” That’s a theme in the series.

She’s all in pink....

dean and amara on the same wavelength about food lol

Ha ha inversion of “oh you’re a fan of religion? name all seven gods then.”

Castiel’s testimony just wrecked me.

“Members serve the gift of food” hmmm the signs in this episode are tip-top

Gonna just watch for a while.

Oh crap “each is a finger” oh it’s about the sins of the father— No Cas no, you’ve fallen for the misdirection!

Oh okay good, Chuck’s not done snuffing worlds. That had me REALLY WORKED UP ha ha because Amara has no reason to lie right?

That was a really good conversation.... and implying that Former Death bent the truth...

Oh fuck I’m gonna cry “I wanted younto see that your mother was just a person” YES! DISMANTLE THIS MYTHOLOGY AMARA!!! Name it!

THE MYTH THAT YOU’D HELD ON TO FOR SO LONG did they just— THEY DID

rigging the game— ftfoh with the casino metaphors already we know the house always wins except when it doesn’t

Lying, lying, lying,

Do we even know Snow White’s name yet? And why was Connor a liar? Because I think we can make a guess at this point.... ah ha ha her name is sylvia— “forest spirit” she’s Mrs Butters— and she’s after hypocrites— but the killing isn’t supernatural, just churchy?

Oh shit SHE IS A DEAN MIRROR IF SHE STABS JACK I’LL FLIP A DAMN TABLE

....

....

prairiedust.exe has encountered an error and must be restarted

....

....

Okay so “Dad” steps in and stops Sylvia’s attack on Jack...

Why is that Zack? What????

“I’ve been lying to you” oh here we go

Oh it would be death #3, remember what Dabb said about threes a long time ago, two attempts that are unsuccessful and one that satisfies the parameters— but no he’s a jack :((((

I have to stop watching for a while.

Okay I finished it. Holy cats do I have some Thoughts about this episode.

What I loved: Revisiting Dean’s anger, BUT the parental mirror here (in retrospect, at least for me) was a John mirror-- all the mothers (exc for Rowena) in this episode are dead. And Pastor Joe didn’t apparently embrace his wife’s faith until she had died, and then his vision was radically different than his wife’s was-- much like John’s reasons for becoming a hunter were vastly different from Mary’s... but much like “patching” this subtext was possibly even more “healing” than having John back in the 300th ep... This was... looking at a child’s anger when they’re in the middle of their own family mythology. Am I implying that Dean’s anger is immaturity? Eh, it’s... unripeness. I have an old meta in my drafts about the heroine’s journey and why Mary’s story conformed to it while feeling totally unfulfilling in her actual character arc and I’m so glad I sat down and examined that rather than finish it. I have a lot I want to say about Cas’ testimony too, but that has to sit a while. ALSO also, Cas has already thrown away his shot by making the Empty deal, right?....

LANGUAGE! Cas saying “I found myself lost” is a bonkers sentence, right? It’s like when people say someone “turned up missing”-- AND it does not have the same meaning as “I realized I was lost”-- you get a double whammy of the connotation “to search for.” I loved loved loved how language was such a big deal in Last Holiday and then again here, I need to rewatch while paying closer attention to Sylvia and things she says... but these two were sister episodes in so many ways, that when I said there was a “lack of narrative mirrors” in Last Holiday, that’s only because the lens for that kind of reading is Gimme Shelter. That is not the first time spn has played with a “coin” or paired structure-- I think the first time I noticed it was Fan Fiction/Ask Jeeves but I was a transfer student from another fandom at the time lol. But of course, we get a huge truth bomb at the end of the episode, and again that splashy cymbal all over lying...

What I got wrong-- Zack wasn’t the killer but he’s fishy as hell-- he stole Sylvia! Is this part of Rowena’s “people generally end up where they deserve to be” except she’s built in an express lane? “Do you need a driver” is that his actual job now? Taking unripe souls to Hell Orientation? What’s up with him being there... the other shoe did not drop. So there is a third episode out there somewhere where this might get wrapped up? The conversation between Dean and Cas can easily be something that happens offscreen, and I don’t think that it would be the first time we miss an “important” conversation, especially since we know roughly what will be said and how it will wrap up-- it’s an “open text” of a sort. Maybe a fanfiction gap lol, I can’t wait for the codas.

Also, the fingers thing being Sylvia’s father’s favorite analogy is where she got her MO, something that I definitely didn’t see, although it fits right in with her father’s slightly pithy character. I think it’s interesting again how we’re playing with threes and fours. Three fingers got cut off but it was apparent that Valerie (valorious one) wouldn’t die until finger #4.... Jack really seems to be our last hope.

[shirtlesssammy]

4x22: Lucifer Rising

Then:

We met this fearsome warrior this season. I don’t think anything else really happened. 

Now:

St. Mary’s Convent

Ilchester, Maryland

1972

A priest is possessed by a demon. Later, at a service with the nuns, his prayers are a little uncouth.

He locks everyone in the chapel. He starts to ramble a little more about fathers and then his eyes flash yellow. He pulls out a big knife and well, I guess service ends little differently than normal too. 

Meanwhile, Sam stares pensively into the distance. Is he making the right choice? Did he condition his hair too much this morning? Ruby snaps him out of his morose contemplations. Sam’s sad about how he and Dean left things. He knows that there isn’t an “after” for him once they do what they’re planning. 

Dean, meanwhile, stares morosely out Bobby’s window. 

For Elfen Ears and Freckles Science:

Bobby snaps him out of his thoughts. Bobby wants Dean to reach out to Sam again. He shouldn’t give up on his brother. Dean goes into full soap opera mode and makes it clear that “Sam is gone.” He’s not even sure Sam is even his brother anymore --if he ever was. I’m just lol-ing over his overdramatic ass, but Bobby loses his shit and gives Dean the football coach speech. Then he compares Dean to John. And he calls John a coward. SHOTS FIRED! Bobby then makes it clear that Dean is a better person than John (to which Dean scoffs at...grr, Dean!). 

Dean turns away and the next thing he realizes is that he’s in the Green Room. Cas is there. He tells Dean, “It’s almost time.”

At a hospital, a nurse takes a baby from its parents presumably so they can get some rest. In reality, it’s a demon set on nefarious ways. She’s stopped by Sam though. 

Dean wanders his prison and finds beer and burgers...and Zachariah. 

He wants Dean to relax before go time. All the seals are broken, but one. Zach tells Dean that it’ll happen the following night at midnight, and Lilith has to be the one to break it. 

Sam is torturing the demon for Lilith’s location. She doesn’t really see a reason to give it up --she’s dead no matter what. 

Dean calls and leaves a message for Sam. His apology gets cut short. And Sam doesn’t get it anyway because he’s really going to town on torturing the demon. The demon admits that Lilith will be at a convent (the very same one from the cold open) tomorrow night. Ruby wants to drain her of her blood. The demon reminds them that she’s possessing a human, and lets the human come out to play. 

We then flashback to the convent in the aftermath of the possessed priest’s bloodbath. He prays to Lucifer, who responds through the voice of a dead nun. Lucifer tells him that Lilith can break the seals. Then Lucifer instructs old Yellow Eyes to find him a special child. 

Cut to Sam Winchester doing research on the convent. He’s all nerding out over what I can imagine is the serial killer aspect of the murders. 

Ruby’s ready to roll and wants to pack up the nurse and get going. Sam’s showing a little reluctance for murdering the possessed woman. Despite her pleas, Sam still throws her in the trunk of his car. Yowza. 

Like a bored house cat, Dean starts knocking things over in the Green Room. Cas shows up. “I need something,” Dean says. “Anything you wish,” Cas responds. Boy, doesn’t that sum up their relationship for the past 12 years? Dean wants to see Sam. Cas doesn’t think it’s a good idea. 

Dean wants to leave. It becomes clear that the angels are not going to let him leave. And Cas is gone without a word. 

Over the constant, horrible symphony of nurse Cindy’s screams from the trunk, Sam and Ruby chat as they drive. Sam’s horrified by Cindy’s terror and Ruby reminds him that every demon he drains dry is like this: a scared human trapped in their own body. (She accuses him of trying to grow a “persqueeter” -- for which I tell her to go fuck herself.) Sam’s having doubts that he’s on the right path. 

Dean tries to break his way out of the beautiful room. I bet you could use a GRENADE LAUNCHER right about now, eh? Nothing he does seems to make an impact. Zachariah flaps down to rub it in. Dean demands to see Sam, and asks how to kill Lilith. It’s now that Zachariah drops some truth bombs. Heaven’s plan all along has been for the final seal to break. “The end is nigh. The apocalypse is coming, kiddo. To a theater near you.”

Not every angel knew the grand plan, Zachariah admits, but Heaven’s top brass allowed all the seals to break. While Zachariah talks about Heaven’s glorious victory in the coming battle, Dean takes another look around the room. This time, he realizes that the beautiful paintings are full of depictions of angels versus demons, and bloody war. People are just acceptable losses. Dean insists that Sam will save the day.

Zacharian tries to “comfort” Dean, telling him that he his role in the apocalypse is actually to stop Lucifer after he rises. No pressure! And where’s God? “God has left the building,” Zachariah says smugly before he peaces out again. 

At a spooky convent, a security guard patrols when he’s confronted by Lilith! It’s show time, baby. 

Still trapped in the room, Dean’s trying to call Sam when Cas arrives. “You’re outside your coverage zone,” Castiel, cell service technician of the lord, says. He tells Dean that all the trouble Sam’ll get into will be entirely his own doing. But Cas has flapped down for Dean. “We have been through much together, you and I. I just wanted to say I’m sorry it ended like this.” (I have no regrets for the gleeful series of pictures of Dean and Cas that are about to follow.)

Dean’s not receptive to an apology, and takes a swing at Cas.

“This is long foretold,” Cas insists. 

Dean refuses to condone this argument. “Destiny? God’s plan? It’s all a bunch of lies, you poor, stupid son of a bitch!” The apocalypse narrative is Heaven’s way of keeping the grunts in line.

“You know what’s real?” Dean asks. “People. Families. That’s real.” (Excuse me while I make the EYEBALLS EMOJI at season 15 because dang, ya’ll.)(Boris, curled in a ball in the corner: “We are.”)

Cas demands to know why the world ought to be saved when there’s suffering in it. When paradise descends it will bring peace. This is such an angel line it KILLS ME. (Especially with all we now know about Heaven.) “You can take your peace and shove it up your lily white ass,” Dean says quietly. 

Dean would rather have pain, guilt, and dark!Sam than be some “Stepford bitch in paradise.” A super valid, excellent point, even if I am going to take a moment to picture Dean Stepfordized. Dean insists that there is a right and wrong side, and Cas is currently on the wrong end of it. 

Dean begs for Cas’s help to get to Sam and stop him from opening the last seal. Cas knows if he rebels, they’ll all be killed. “If there’s anything worth dying for,” Dean insists, “this is it.” Cas looks conflicted but nevertheless doesn’t immediately swing over to the rebellion, and Dean disgustedly tells him that they’re “done.” Cas flaps out.

Outside the convent, Sam contemplates what he’s about to do. Ruby prods him to act, playing with her demon-smiting knife impatiently. Sam finally checks the voicemail that Dean left near the beginning of the episode. Only, it’s not quite how we remember it. In the voicemail, Dean now accuses Sam of being a “blood sucking freak” and a monster, and promises to kill Sam. Um. Behind Sam, Ruby smirks.

It’s go-time now. Sam decides he’s his own only hope and tells Ruby to pull the screaming nurse from the trunk. 

In the beautiful room, Dean finally gives in to temptation and picks up a burger when Cas arrives, spins him around, and pins him to the wall. 

For Mark Me Down as Scared and Horny Science:

Cas pulls out a knife, cuts his forearm, and inscribes a sigil on the wall with his own blood. When Zachariah shows up, pissed off, Cas blasts Zachariah away. 

Cas tells Dean that they’re heading off to stop Sam from killing Lilith who (surprise!) is the final seal. When she dies, Lucifer pops out like a dancer in a birthday cake. 

Cut to Chuck, who’s pacing around his house ordering women on the phone. EXTREME SIDE EYE. Dean and Cas flap in, looking for answers. 

At the convent, Lilith holds court when Sam arrives. The lesser demons fall insta-dead while Lilith closes the doors to her chamber. Dun dun DUN!

Chuck hands over information on Sam’s showdown with Lilith to Cas. “You’re not in this story,” Chuck says accusingly to Cas. 

“We’re making it up as we go,” Cas says. 

Chuck’s house starts to rattle. An archangel is descending to nip this little angelic rebellion right in the bud. Castiel vows to “hold them all off.” He zaps Dean to the convent and awaits the approach of the archangel.

Sam makes his way into Lilith’s chamber and pins her to the altar with his mind mojo when Dean arrives on the scene. Ruby smirks at Dean before slamming the doors shut between the two brothers. Sam burns Lilith out with his fancy demon-blood powers while Dean shouts through the door and Ruby screams at him to finish the job. Lilith laughs at Sam, mocking him for his hesitation, and that’s what does it. Sam kills her with demon-black eyes. 

Lilith’s blood seeps across the floor like it’s on a mission. Actually, it IS on a mission. It oozes into a circle. Ruby’s ecstatic and tells Sam that he opened the door for Lucifer. She may have been hated by demons for her apparent betrayal but “I was the best of those sons of bitches,” Ruby insists. “The most loyal.” Sam tries to pin what just happened on Ruby but she throws it right back at him. His choices brought him to this point. She just gave him the options. Horrified, Sam asks why he was the one to unleash Lucifer. “Because it had to be you, Sam.” OUCH. 

Dean breaks through the doors at last and storms over. Sam grabs Ruby so Dean can stab her. Hooray! They’re working together again! And then the cage starts to open. WHERPS. Sam apologizes futilely as the room fills with impossibly bright light. Lucifer’s on his way out. 

The End Quotes are Nigh:

Well, boo hoo, I am so sorry your feelings are hurt, princess! Are you under the impression that family's supposed to make you feel good?! Bake you an apple pie, maybe? They're supposed to make you miserable! That's why they're family!

We'll throw in Mary Ann for free

Would we really let 65 seals get broken unless senior management wanted it that way?

This isn't the first planetary enema we've delivered

You spineless soulless son of a bitch. What do you care about dying? You're already dead

You turned yourself into a freak. A monster. And now you're not gonna bite? I'm sorry, but that is honestly adorable

You didn't need the feather to fly, you had it in you the whole time, Dumbo

Want to read more? Check out our Recap Archive! 

[thewincestgospel]

Do you have an established relationship wincest recs? Where they are in love and together :) thank you!

Of course!

I live for the boys getting their HEA and just growing old with each other.

Established Fics aka Curtain Fics

Anniversary by sonofabiscuit77   The Smith-Wessons go away for a ghost-hunting mini-break to celebrate their anniversary. Just a slice of life, domestic Smith/Wesson thing where they salt and burn the ghost, have brunch and Dean gets tied to the bed.      

Backseat of My Brother’s 67 Chevy by  NaughtyPastryChef  Extended scene from “Baby”. Dean’s feeling proud of Sam’s hookup until he hears that Sam tried to give that waitress his number. Uncharacteristically, he lets Sam force him to talk about it.

Better Homes and Gardens  by  chick (orphan_account)   After getting whammied on a hunt, Dean wakes up a househusband in Lawrence married to his little brother. Trapped in this world where down is up and up is completely fucked, Dean desperately tries to figure out a way to get back to a world that makes sense without completely losing his mind in the process. Featuring: spice gardens, bridge clubs, and the power of incestuous, gay love.

Cat’s Cradle by  saltandbyrne   My version of curtain fic, with human furniture, the Outback Steakhouse, and brutal, loving BDSM.            

The Chicago Verse by  compo67 After angels and demons and things that go bump in the night, Sam and Dean want a place of their own. Finding a place is easier said than done; and settling somewhere isn’t taken lightly. They take a chance on the city Death spared because he liked the pizza. The boys settle in a Mexican neighborhood just south of the Loop called Pilsen. Sam looks back at how they got here.

Crush by  sonofabiscuit77   Five years after the apocalypse didn’t happen and Sam and Dean have settled down, or as much as the Winchesters can ever settle down. Sam is a college professor and Dean a well-respected small business owner and they’re learning how to balance work, hunting and dog-ownership while coping with the metaphorical and literal scars of war. Life’s not perfect, not for a (sort of) out and proud couple in small town USA with a lot to hide, but they’re dealing, that is, until Dean employs one sexually-confused teenager who develops an unhealthy obsession with both of them. Switching between five years earlier and now, we learn how the boys came together, how they made it through the big fight and whether they’ll ever manage to find that flighty temptress, happily ever after.

Give Him What He Needs  by  brokenlittleboy   Sam wakes Dean up for some good old-fashioned morning loving and Dean is more than happy to comply. They’ve been going at it for almost eleven years now, and it seems like every day Sam gets dirtier and dirter, and more and more desperate for it. Dean’s not complaining–he’s just a little worried someday he won’t be enough for little brother’s needs.              

How Does Your Garden Grow by majesticduxk From the prompt: Sam getting his hands all dirty, Sam getting bad knees as he ages, Sam being excited about his bean crop, Sam bringing vast quantities of zucchini to the Bunker kitchen and expecting Dean to figure out something to cook with it, Sam being wrathful and indignant about caterpillars, Sam out there all day with the sun hot on his neck and the soil cool in his hands thinking about nothing at all but the tactility and the way he’s having this small, steady good effect on the world and coming back HAPPY.

 A Life Most Ordinary  by  sonofabiscuit77   Sam and Dean Winchester are two ordinary brothers living ordinary small-town lives. Okay, so having a mother who was brutally murdered by one of America’s most notorious serial killers and a father who was forever mentally scarred by the event is not that ordinary, but the rest of their problems: marriage breakdowns and relationship failures, job disappointments and sexuality crisis, and Dean’s two kids, 9 year-old Jonah with his disturbing passion for the music of Lady Gaga and 6-year old Simon with his severe hearing loss, well they’re all completely ordinary. The only thing extraordinary about Sam and Dean is how they fell in love.Written for 2010 spn_j2_bigbang challenge    

Just Another Day  by  selecasharp   When rain keeps them in a motel for another night, Sam settles in for a quiet day of movies, popcorn, and cuddling (and maybe more) on a couch with Dean — until he realizes what day it is.      

Just Say My Name by  leonidaslion   Dean turns into a complete and utter nympho. It takes Sam a while to notice the difference.              

The King and The Lionheart by waywardelle     After the disastrous but effective removal of the Mark, Sam and Dean Winchester suddenly face a life without allies or a reason to keep hunting, so they leave their old life behind them in flames. They re-emerge from the ashes as Sam and Dean Wesson, residents of Misty Luna, Maine– a town with a personality all its own. As they settle into civilian life, they gain careers, a home, good friendships and the kind of fulfillment they never thought possible. But with nothing left to fight, the underbelly of their particular kind of love is thrown into sharp relief, especially considering the whole town thinks they’re married, anyway. After dancing around their feelings for the past twenty years, Sam and Dean find a peace they never knew existed, and through it all, they find each other again. And maybe, just maybe, forever. Curtain!fic. Canon divergence after 10x21, “Dark Dynasty.”            

Like a Fish Out of Water by nyxocity AU after Plucky Pennywhistle’s Magical Menagerie. During the final battle with the Leviathans, God finally makes an appearance and deigns to intervene. After granting Sam and Dean a few final requests, he ‘packs his bags’ and takes everything supernatural in existence with him. Left with nothing to hunt, Sam talks a reluctant Dean into settling down in a small town outside of Sioux Falls. Sam seems to want them live a normal kind of life, but between the ridiculous estate sale Sam bought to furnish the house, the arrival of a very human Castiel who’s overwhelmed by human emotions, and their quirky, invasive neighbors, it’s anything but. Dean’s having a difficult time adjusting, convinced everything couldn’t be more abnormal until Sam reveals exactly what kind of life he wants to have with Dean. Dean can’t deny the part of him that wants it–but can he accept it? 

Love is Never Blind  by Calysta18 Love is the only game that is not called on account of darkness!!

Milk Me  by LittleSparrow69   Fill for this kinkmeme prompt:  A knocked-up Dean’s lactating and he hates it but it hurts. Sam “milking” him is less humiliating (barely) than leaking all over his shirts. Sam, though, lives for this.              

On A Friday We Call Good by  gaialux   One unlucky moment. That’s all it took to turn Dean’s life upside down. Sam seems to be on board with the fallout; insisting they take a break from hunting and set up in suburbia. While Sam finds himself assimilating, Dean is far from Mr. Domestic. If he can’t hunt - if he can’t save people - he has nothing. Or so he thinks.                      

Over the Hills, Far Away by roxymissrose   Somewhere in the middle of season seven, this world careens towards the left.Dean looks at Sam and decides enough is enough. They need to settle down for a while, take a breath.                      

The Psychology of Genetic Sexual Attraction by  sonofabiscuit77   “…50% of of reunions between siblings, or parents and offspring, separated at birth result in obsessive emotions…”This story begins in 2001 in a garage in Palo Alto when 18-year old Stanford student, Sam Sharma plucks up the courage to ask car mechanic, Dean Cooper, out for a cup of coffee.   Their attraction is instantaneous and overwhelming, and the relationship that develops seems perfect.  Except nothing is really perfect, and this particular love story started a long time before Sam and Dean even met.  Wincest non-hunting AU. This is my attempt at a boys-don’t-know-they’re-brothers story.  

The Theory of Relativity by wutendeskind   The Apocalypse is over. Sam writes it all down, and the result tops the New York Times bestseller list for an entire year. Dean loves that Sam’s found something to do with his life, but doesn’t know how he fits in. And when Dean reads Sam’s second novel, things get even more confusing for him.     

Trust Me, I’m A Doctor by  checkthemarginsThe one where Dean is a pediatric neurosurgeon and Sam is a law student and they figure out they’re in love.            

Walkin’ the Tightrope by  non_tiembo_mala  It’s 2036, and twenty years since Sam and Dean called it quits on hunting to take up a secluded, quiet life. Maybe Jesse and Cesar gave them the idea, but after Amara, they realized they’d done enough. And they wanted a proper life together even more.Known as Sam Wesson and Dean Smith to the residents of the nearby town they call home, Sam and Dean keep mostly to themselves, their immaculately kept ‘67 Chevy Impala, and their cabin in the woods. That is, until someone from their past tracks them down, desperate for help.Sam and Dean can’t say no, not when it’s their dear friend Jody Mills in deep trouble – she’s missing – but the wedding bands they wear make going back to their old life just that little bit more complicated…              

Wanna make your motor run  by  cordelia_gray   Four times Dean got road head, and one time he gave it.      

I could literally go on and on with this list so I might make a part two of this list.

[winchester19-67]

Dean x Reader Oneshots Masterlist

Just Like Her Daddy - Dean gets caught giving your daughter her favorite treat.

Not my Kind of Lullaby - You're pregnant and can't go to sleep. Dean does the only thing he knows will help settle the baby down. Sing.

Twilight? Seriously? - Dean regrets letting you pick the movie.

The Best Moments - (Photographer!Dean x Reader) – Dean's determined to capture his favorite memories with you

Already Fell - (Detective!Dean x Reader) – When you move in beside of Detective Dean Winchester, your life gets completely flipped around. Not only do you find out that you're a possible future victim of a serial killer that he's been trying to catch, but you're also finding yourself falling for this man.

Never Walk Away - (Mechanic!Dean x Reader) – You find yourself in the middle of a fight with Dean, only to realize how petty it all is when he gets hurt.

I Want You - After a date gone wrong, you vent to Dean only to find out that you have both been wanting the same thing all along

Memory Road - Dean's fixing up the Impala after a bad wreck, but he can't do it without help from your two little mechanics.

Better on You - Dean helps to calm you down after a rough hunt, and he even lets you borrow some of his clothes.

Just Stay - You wake up before Dean and take the time to admire how peaceful and carefree he is when he's asleep.

Like a Broken Record - Sam makes the wrong move by making fun of your need to do a double take of everything before leaving for a hunt, but Dean puts him in his place.

Your Soldier - (Soldier!Dean x Reader) - Just a few weeks after Dean is deployed, you find out that you're pregnant. You couldn't be happier until something terrible happens and takes your happiness away. Sam does everything that he can to take care of you and the baby, but all you need is for Dean to be there with you both.

She Still Needs You - Seeing your daughter grow up is bittersweet, and Dean is starting to worry that she doesn't need him as much anymore.

I Believe You - You're thinking about leaving the bunker after Dean starts acting mad at you. When you find him drunk in the kitchen, you decide to confront him and you find out that maybe you were wrong about how he feels about you.

Fake Mrs.Winchester - You have to pretend to be Dean's wife for a case, but it gets difficult to hide your true feelings for the man.  

Let Me be the Strong One for Once - When Dean starts feeling like he has to hold everything in, you remind him that even strong people need to break.

Bacon’s Important - You're cooking breakfast for Dean, but he's not patient enough to let you get it on the table before he starts eating.

We can be a Mess Together - Having anxiety isn't fun but it's a little bit easier when you have somebody to lean on.

My Home is Wherever You Are - You're beating yourself up after you messed up on a hunt, and Dean tries to cheer you up some.

Our New Life - You're getting tired of house hunting but Dean talks you into looking at just one more.

See You Soon - You're a camp counselor and you and Dean have a yearly tradition of sneaking out of your cabins to meet up.

Just Tell Me it Was Real - Dean just wants to be sent a few days into the past to fix a mistake that he made. When Dean winds up in a world that he doesn't recognize, he gets to live out a life that he's always dreamed of having.

I’ll Never Doubt Us - Dean starts having doubts that maybe you're not happy in your relationship.

Jealousy Looks Good on You - Dean starts having doubts that maybe you're not happy in your relationship.

The Wrong Table - (Mechanic!Dean x Reader) -What happens when you mistake Dean for your blind date, and he mistakes you for the person he's supposed to be interviewing for a job?

Unexpected - (Doctor!Dean x Nurse!Reader) You're stuck in an elevator with Dean Winchester, and he's mad at you over something that you don't think is that big of a deal. When you start having a panic attack and Dean has to help you calm down, you both start talking things over and something unexpected happens.

You’re my Everything - (Dean x Reporter!Reader) When your job puts you in a dangerous situation and Dean is forced to see it happen on T.V. without being able to do anything about it, he panics. When you start acting like it isn't that big of a deal, it makes Dean that much more frustrated with you and you have to calm him down.

I’ll be Waiting - (Tattoo Artist!Dean x Reader) When an opportunity for Dean pops up and he has to leave, you are not too happy about your friend and roommate moving away from you. When your goodbye brings up some pushed down feelings, you have to think of a solution.

You're the One - You're questioning your abilities as a hunter, but you're afraid to tell the boys because you don't want them to make you leave the bunker. When you finally talk to Dean about it, you find out that maybe you mean more to them than you knew, especially more to Dean.

Believe Me Now? - Dean decides to get away from hunting and encourages you to follow your dreams. But when your job moves you away and Dean has trouble dropping everything, you have to learn how to make a long distance relationship work.

Merriest Christmas Ever - You're trying to give the boys Christmas at the bunker, but when a case pops up Dean tries to bring the Holiday spirit to the hotel room. Little does he know that you've got something that is more than enough to brighten up anybody's Christmas.

Tough Love -  Sam calls you to help with a case, but Dean can't quit making a comment about everything that you do. You think that Dean hates you but you have a talk with him and you learn that maybe his heart is the right place after all.

Bittersweet - When you fall into a depressive state after suffering from a terrible loss, Dean reminds you that you both can fight through the sadness and find a way to be happy together.

My Turn - Dean thinks that it is his turn to pick the movie. You think that it's yours. This leads to a struggle to see which one of you gets to control the remote.

Everywhere and Nowhere - When your anxiety keeps you from hunting, you start to feel useless, so Dean takes you on a ride in Baby to cheer you up.

Poor Sam - You've had a crush on Dean for a while, but you've been too chicken to admit it to him. When you finally talk to Dean about it, he admits that he has feelings for you too and you both act on those feelings, much to Sam's dismay.

Your Safe Place - When a little girl at your daycare is being abused, you convince Dean to help you do something about it.

Simple - You need to get away from the bunker for a while, so Dean takes you on a drive where you confront him about something he said that hurt your feelings.

Who Cares? - When your neighbor, Dean, tries to cheer you up after a date with someone you've met online goes wrong, the feelings that you've both been pushing down get harder to keep to yourselves.

My Girl - After breaking your leg, Dean makes you stay at the bunker when him and Sam leave on a hunt. It makes you feel useless and Dean feels bad that he made you feel that way.

Being Neighborly - You're new to the neighborhood and your neighbor's nephew just threw a ball through your kitchen window.

We’re the Lucky Ones - Dean finds out that you're having a little girl and that causes his overprotective side to take over.

Girls can be as Tough as Boys - When you find out that you're pregnant, Dean goes on a rant about how girls need to be treated as if they're fragile. When your daughter is born she teaches him a lesson.

You’re Not Broken - When your anxiety takes over, Dean tries everything to get you out of your head for a while. When your anniversary rolls around, he decides to try a big gesture that just might help.

For Better or Worse - You find out that Dean is not who you think he is, and now the only thing that can save your marriage is remembering the vows that you made to each other.

Like Normal People - Dean has gotten so used to seeing you being a strong, independent hunter that he's forgotten that you also have a softer, more vulnerable side too.

Something Special - You have been friends with Dean ever since you both were kids, but somewhere along the way you started falling for the man. You don't want to tell him because you're afraid that he won't feel the same way and you don't want to ruin the friendship that you have with him.

You’re My Inspiration - You’re an artist, but after you marry Dean you pack everything away in boxes because you don't want to take over. This concerns Dean, and he tries to convince you to do what you love.

Unfortunate - Dean is your next door neighbor who absolutely hates you. After a car accident takes away your independence and you've got to let Dean take care of you for a while, you find out that maybe your little feud was because of an unfortunate misunderstanding.

Spoiled - Your and Dean's week old daughter is already spoiled by her Daddy.

Pinky Promise - Your daughter wants Dean to read to her but he's exhausted after a hunt, so he promises to make it up to her.

You’re All I Need - After a rough hunt, Dean's mind starts to play trick on him but you're there to calm him down.

There’s Nowhere I’d Rather Be - (Doctor!Dean x Reader) - You pass out and hit your head, resulting in a trip to the emergency room where Dean refuses to leave your side.

I’ll Take Care of You - After you lose your bakery in a fire, your husband, Dean, swoops in and fixes everything.

Love Yourself - Dean's meeting your parents, but things don't go too smoothly when you let all of your insecurities get in the way.

Just Jump - When you wind up pregnant at 17 and your parents try to make a decision for you and the baby, Dean tries to talk you into running away with him so that you and him can make your own decisions.

Taking Care of You - Dean gets upset with you when you forget to take care of yourself while helping him and Sam with a case.

Halloween is for the Big Kids Too - Dean and Uncle Sammy carve pumpkins with your and Dean's two daughters.

Thankful for You - When you get discouraged trying to give Dean a perfect Thanksgiving, he helps you to slow down and see what's truly important.

You Started It! - You're trying to finish cookies for your daughter to sit out for Santa, but things go sideways when Dean decides to help you.

Run Away With Me - You haven't seen Dean since five years ago when he broke your heart. But when you two run into each other while travelling for Christmas, you both finally find out what happened.

On Your Bad Days - When your anxiety has to go and ruin plans that Dean made, you feel bad and yet Dean tries everything that he can to show you that it doesn't matter as long as he gets to spend the whole day with you.

[mittensmorgul]

I’ve been holding off starting 14.13, because I could literally scream about EVERYTHING in this episode gaining weightier significance after 14.20, but I realize I’m on a time deadline at this point to finish s14 by tomorrow at noon so...

The Winchesters (including Cas, and even Jack now) have transcended the story of their own lives already, having become spooky legends in their own town:

ELIOT: I mean, think about it. Where do they even come from? Them or their weird sidekick with the trench coat. And what about that kid with the dumb Bambi on his face all the time? MAX: So what? That doesn’t mean that they kidnapped Bigfoot or whatever.

LOLOL Bigfoot isn’t even real, but they’re kinda on the right track, right? And then Max steals Baby, and poor Eliot thinks they’re gonna kill him...

Serial killer clown-- that popped out of yet ANOTHER box. And another reminder that locking stuff in boxes never works.

Also, reminder of how they now deal with normal people finding out the truth.

Dean wishes for Michael out of his head, and instead gets John pulled out of the timeline from BEFORE any of the last 15 years could happen-- from before they could uncover what killed Mary, from before they learn the truth of the destiny written for them by Heaven and Hell. Give them what they want in a way they don’t expect... because “Michael out of his head” when Michael had been paralleled to Dean’s Father Baggage all season long? This was... an interesting twist.

Because what Michael wanted? Or so he said? Was for Chuck to return to his world after he fulfilled his end of the Apocalypse plan. This was a different-level-of-the-narrative fulfillment of Michael’s inner desire, as well.

But also, it was an interesting distortion on the rest of the world-- the apocalypse never happened because John wasn’t there to push and be pushed around by it. And therefore the angels in 2019 showed up to “fix” what Dean “broke” with that wish. Which, knowing what actually has happened over the last 15 years is hilarious. I mean, Zachariah being all righteous about still believing his apocalypse would go off as scheduled if they fixed this anomaly now? DUDE. The Winchesters cancelled that in reality like a decade ago. I love the fact Sam got to stab him too, though. Fair’s fair.

As the rest of the changes set in, it’s so easy to see how horrific their lives would be in comparison-- for ALL of them. Jack doesn’t exist, Cas is a brainwashed soldier of heaven with no love for humanity, and they themselves will become completely different people too. Maybe better, maybe for the worse, but they don’t want to change their past. Which is something Dean has been wrestling with since the very first time Cas ever sent him into the past with the order to “stop it,” and discovered he couldn’t change anything in 4.03.

Much as the real estate lady in Dean’s Mind Bar in 14.10 forced him to recommit to his own belief in his illusion, this confrontation with John and what their lives might be like if they could change their past, effectively forces them to recommit to their lives as they stand-- including all the manipulations Chuck inflicted on them from the start. All the apocalypses, all the times they were pressed into sacrificing themselves for each other and the world, they’d do it all again because it all contributed to making them they people they are today.

The one thing John would’ve wished for Dean was for him to have a normal, peaceful life and a family... but Dean tells him he has one.

And then there’s food. Winchester Surprise (borrowed from 14.11 and the tales of the distant past Mary and Dean shared then, taking those sad memories and making a happier one in the present).

The surprise is that they’re all able to just share this one meal together, because Amara brought back Mary and Dean’s wish brought back John. Which is interesting now in context that, like Jack, Mary is another piece on the board that Chuck didn’t choose to put there. Amara did.

But this is remarkable foreshadowing for Michael being permanently evicted from Dean’s mind. Because this is the moment where Dean stops being like Michael, at all, because of this:

DEAN: You saying you wish things would be different? SAM: Don’t you? Can you imagine – dad in the past, knowing then what he knows now? I… I think it would be nice. DEAN: Yeah. I used to think that, too. But, uh… I mean, look, we’ve been through some tough times. There’s no denying that. SAM: Yeah. DEAN: And for the longest time, I blamed Dad. I mean, hell, I blamed Mom, too, you know? I was angry. But say we could send Dad back knowing everything. Why stop there? Why not send him even further back and let some other poor sons of bitches save the world? But here’s the problem. Who does that make us? Would we be better off? Well, maybe. But I gotta be honest – I don’t know who that Dean Winchester is. And I’m good with who I am. I’m good with who you are. ‘Cause our lives – they’re ours. And maybe I’m just too damn old to want to change that.

But Michael? This spells his doom right here. Because after this moment, Michael is no longer a mirror for Dean in the way he’s always been to this point. Michael will eternally resent his own father, but Dean? Doesn’t. This is him setting that baggage down.

So what must happen now for Chuck’s story to work anymore? Dean must become the father figure, and Jack conveniently serves as the son ready to be sacrificed. What an interesting nudge that little pearl proved to be...

[CAS walks in from the door at the top of the stairs. SAM, DEAN and MARY walk out from the library to see him.] CAS: Mary, Sam, Dean. What happened? [SAM scoffs.] SAM: What happened? [SAM looks at DEAN.] DEAN: Well, there’s a story.

YEP. THERE’S A STORY. Chuck’s favorite story, in fact. And around it turns again.

[disappearinginq]

First of all: Thank you for replying :) What do I want to see wrapped up...? God appearing would be a bit too much wouldn't it be? Maybe a sign or something from his side? But I don't know, like Chloe knows everything. Maybe one of the archangels fixing the mess that happened. and oooh hugs. thank you for considering my thoughts :)

I will always answer asks from people who bothered to read anything I wrote. The day I don’t, assume I’m dead. 

But no lie - God actually was going to make an appearance. The original version went that Samael and his brothers in an all out fight accidentally killed Chloe (I think I made it that Ragiel, in an effort to hit Samael, missed and got her instead) and that’s what snapped him out of Delilah’s influence. Except then it got super complicated, because it’d originally been based on everyone thinking Samael was the worst of Lucifer, when really, Lucifer was the worst of Lucifer, and Lucifer in a fit of rage destroyed the Earth by ripping apart the boundaries between Earth and Hell and letting everything from Hell swamp the Earth....and God showed up because Chloe wound up meeting him a la Sam and Dean in the Garden in Heaven style, but...anyway. It was already almost 100k words, and I figured I should be wrapping things up, not making things more complicated, so I decided Lucifer was going to save himself instead. 

BUT - because you were kind enough to give me an answer, here’s a preview of what I have written (but I’m not married to), and lemme know if this is a direction I should pursue, or if you would prefer the final chapter be IMMEDIATELY following the previous one. 

 There was no such thing as normal.

One of those beautifully crafted lies humanity liked to sellitself.

After everything – everythingbeing an entirely mind-warping view of the world, the universe, life afterdeath, the cosmic forces of the existential nightmare that was being human, andthe new found and not easily ignored knowledge that her partner and her friendwas proof of a higher power – Chloe didn’t know what to do. What to think. Everythingsince meeting Michael and Gabriel and allof them, there’d been no time to stop and think about what exactly was going on. To consider all of theramifications, and all that it meant that Lucifer wasn’t human, that there wasa God with a capital G, and…now that she hadtime to process it, it just made things worse.

Somehow, breaking through to Lucifer was the easy part.

Which just explained how much of a shit show circus herreality had become.

The part that really, well and truly threw her though, wasjust how fast everything tried toreturn to normal.

After the better half of…weeks? Months? It felt like yearsfrom her point of view – of investigating serial killer cultists who used magicto try and steal Lucifer’s soul or rip him in half to jump start an apocalypse,of seeing him destroy downtown LA with an epic battle between his brothers andbarely managing to avoid Lucifer killing himself out of spite…

After all that…

Monday mornings at the precinct seemed surreal.

She burned herself twice at the coffee pot because she wasn’tpaying attention where she was reaching, zoning out as she tried to go over again what exactly she’d witnessed. Shewalked face first into a glass door, much to a patrolman’s amusement, becauseshe couldn’t keep her mind off the sight of magnificent, damaged wingssprouting from her partner’s back. She misfiled three separate warrants becauseshe couldn’t stop herself from picturing the almost reptilian features of afully enraged archangel as his brothers threatened to literally drag him toHell bound in chains.

But most of all, she couldn’t stop thinking about the look onhis face when he admitted just how lost he truly was – not just as Lucifer, butas Samael.

And she didn’t know what to do about it.

She stayed away. She didn’t know what to say, or what to do.There was no one to really talk to – Dan hadn’t been there for the finalbattle. He hadn’t seen just how far gone Lucifer had been, or what he wascapable of. Hadn’t seen him turn a crowd with little more than a whisper in aneager ear.

She wanted to talkto Michael. Or Gabriel. Or even Ragiel or Azrael. Any of them. All of them. Itdidn’t matter. But no matter how many times she tried to…contact them…she wasmet with stoic silence. It was like past the moment where Lucifer savedhimself, they ceased to exist. They didn’t stay. They didn’t warn they wereleaving. They said nothing and were simply gone. Maybe she was doing it wrong.But she had asked Dan how exactlyprayers worked, because maybe she was just doing it wrong. Maybe she didn’tmake the right gesture, maybe she hadn’t said the right words.

She just wanted toknow what she should do.

After days of silence, she understood Lucifer’s frustrationwith his biological family. Prayers became littered with vague threats ofviolence, and language that would make a sailor blush. She even caught herselfonce doodling a haloed stick figure getting whacked with an umbrella before shesighed and crumpled the paper up in frustration.

If she was being truly honest, she was more frustrated withherself than angels.

The desk across from her remained noticeably empty, a starkreminder that all was not right in the world.

Lucifer hadn’t come in since…well, actually, he hadn’t beenat the precinct since before he wastaken. It’d been weeks since she’d seen him at work.

She eyed her cellphone.

She could call him.

She should callhim.

But every time she her finger hovered over the ‘call’ buttonon his number, she chickened out.

Because what couldshe say?

Despite her confidence that Lucifer could make his owndecisions and save himself…she felt ridiculous thinking she could offer animmortal being with phenomenal cosmic powers anything like advice.  Or comfort. She’d thought she could look pastthe new reality she found herself in. Lucifer was still Lucifer.

Except he wasn’t.

And she wasn’t the same, either.

And every time she thought back to a moment or an instancewhere she lectured Lucifer on humanity and what was right and wrong, she felther cheeks start to burn from embarrassment. It must’ve been like listening toa talking monkey try to tell a god about the world. And now, when she suspectedthat they both needed that connectionto someone who maybe understood, she found herself flailing.

She tried to rationalize that he hadn’t called her either.That must mean he wasn’t ready to talk yet, right? Or maybe he just needed timealone. He had narrowly avoided death.Ish. An undoing of a soul. That must be traumatic, right? She hadn’t wanted tosee anyone, except her daughter, after she’d been shot, either. Maybe he wasthe same way?

Facing mortality for a mortal was one thing.

She couldn’t even begin to imagine what the sameconfrontation meant for an immortal. Lucifer once treated his mortality as agame, but it was one thing to experience the novelty of pain for the firsttime. It was an entirely different matter to consider death.

Chloe stared at her phone. Maybe he wouldn’t pick up.

Maybe he would.

She wasn’t sure which scenario was worse.

Every time it buzzed, she snatched it like a fat kid snaggedfree cake, hardly daring to breathe until she realized that it was just ane-mail from someone else. A text from her mother. A picture from the babysitterand Trixie.

At night, when her shift was over, she purposely took thelong way home, cruising past Lux, telling herself every time that this time would be the time she stoppedin.

Except it wasn’t.

Lux remained shuttered and closed, devoid of the pulse thatgave the building a life of its own. Somehow, what happened there seemed tolinger. It might have been her imagination, except that others seemed to feelit too. No one lined the sidewalks waiting to get in. No one approached thebuilding, peering in windows to see when it would re-open. People skirted thesidewalk, crossing the street without really seeming to know why, because oneblock later, they stopped and looked around, confused as to why they crossed inthe first place when their destination was the other side of the street.

There was no evidence of what happened. Nothing every made itto YouTube, or the news, or any other media platform. She assumed it was thearchangels at work – or at least, some other cosmic force. She had nothing elseto explain why one night, downtown LA looked like an aftermath scene for amonster movie, and the next day like nothing happened.

And stranger still…the more she tried to recall exactly whathappened in the aftermath, the less clear her memories became. Was it stress?Was it shock? Was it the frailty of the human mind? Was it something…or someone…else entirely?  

She sat in her car outside of Lux, parked just beyond thehalo of a streetlamp, staring up at the darkened building. Lucifer couldprobably answer her questions. Now that he didn’t have to answermetaphorically, or she knew that he wasn’tbeing facetious, it would probably help them both. Right?

Or maybe it would just make it worse. At least now she had abunch of ‘maybes’ or ‘what ifs’ that she could easily shrug away or make up ananswer that while perhaps being utter BS would make her feel better at night,and not like someone was staring at her from on high no matter where she was.

God saw all, right? How much was all? What kind of pervy God were they talking that?

She sighed and growled in frustration, grabbing the steeringwheel with both hands as she let her forehead drop against it. “Uggghhhh, why does everything have to be so goddamn difficult?”

“Because that’s how the world works.”

Chloe screamed, and almost hurled herself out of the carbefore her brain even processed who’s voice it was.

Maze sat in the passenger seat, feet up on the dash, one armpropped on the open window, sucking on a lollipop of all things, lookingcompletely unimpressed by Chloe’s cardiac arrest.

“Maze,” Chloehissed through clenched teeth as she reflexively put a hand to her heart. “Areyou trying to kill me?”

Maze considered it for a moment, cocking her head to one sidebefore pulling out the stick candy with an audible ‘pop’. “No,” she said. “I am wondering what you’re doing with yournightly drive-bys though. Seems a little stalker-ish, even for you.”

Chloe declined to answer, because she didn’t have one.Instead, she changed subjects. “Where have you been, anyway? I haven’t seen yousince…” she actually had to think about it. When was the last time she saw Maze? The night Lucifer disappeared fromthe penthouse? And how long ago was that?“Since before Michael and Gabriel showed up.”

Maze flat out laughed at that. “Well, duh,” she sneered, lips pulling back an almost feral snarl. “Demonsand archangels are no bueno. We gothistory. I wasn’t about to get in the middle of all…” she waved her lollipoparound in a vague circle, “that.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be Lucifer’s bodyguard or something?”Chloe pointed out.

Maze pursed her lips, raising one eyebrow. “Aren’t yousupposed to be his partner? Where have you been, besides skulking outside theclub like some sort of creeper?”

Chloe cringed, looking away.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Maze said. She fell silent fora moment, sucking on her candy. “It’s the kind of tragedy I expect from his Dadby now.” Maze glanced skyward through the open window of the car. “Giving himexactly what he wants, in the worst way possible.”

She considered it for a moment. “How…” she stopped, trying tothink of exactly what she wanted to ask, whether or not she wanted to know thetruth. She chewed her lower lip. No. She didn’t need to what Maze meant – notreally, not from her. “How is he?”

Maze leaned forwards, looking up at the darkened penthousethrough the windshield. “Different.”

Chloe didn’t ask any further.

Thunder rolled gently in the distance. Another spring storm,coming across the Pacific.

“What are you waiting for? Permission?” Maze snapped. “Go.”

Chloe reached for the ignition. Maze was right. She didn’thave the right to sit out here and stalk someone who clearly wanted to be leftalone. Lux was empty for a reason. He hadn’t come to work, hadn’t called,hadn’t reached out for a reason. Sheshould know well enough what it was like to have someone who didn’t listen toboundaries.

Maze slapped her hand away from the keys. “Not leave go, go see him go.” She pointed towards the club’s front doors. “It’snot locked. He’s in the penthouse. Go.”

Chloe began to shake her head. “No, he hasn’t invited me, hehasn’t reached out – I need to respect that –”

Maze growled in frustration, and for a moment, sounded lessthan human. “Oh, for the love of – he’s not thatdifferent. He hasn’t reached out because youhaven’t said anything. He thinks you’re just like everyone else who’s everfound out the truth about him, and so far, he’s right. Now go.” She wavedtowards the club.

That hit Chloe like a sucker punch to the gut. It was onething to stay away because that’s what Lucifer wanted.

It was another thing entirely to abandon a friend in need whodidn’t know how to ask for help.

“Okay, I just…do I need-” she glanced back over and Maze wasgone. Chloe heaved a sigh. “Of course she vanishes into thin air. What demonninja bartender doesn’t? Using a door would be unrealistic, right? Who does that? No need to say good-bye, oranything. Pfft.”

She made sure the windows were up, the door was locked, anddarted across the street before she could change her mind.  

(*(*(

Lux was silent. Eerily so. Not like the sound proofing Samaelhad, or the frigid temperatures, but like all the electronics were shut down.The bar was dark. The screens were off. The central air wasn’t on.

The last time she was here, she witnessed Samael rend his brother’swings from his back and throw him down into Hell through a tear in reality shewatched him create.

The columns were repaired. The piano replaced. The glasspicked up and everything polished to a glass-like shine.

Everything looked exactly the same as it had beforeeverything started on the surface, and yet somehow…still felt dead underneath.

As she watched the numbers climb towards the penthouse, shehad a sudden urge to hit the emergency stop and climb the rest of the way bystairs just to draw it out.

She needed the extra time. She had no idea what to say. Shedidn’t even know where to start. Would he even see her? She hadn’t felt thisnervous facing down Samael, and she’d seenwhat he’d done.

Lucifer was a friend. A bestfriend.

Who was an archangel who fell from Heaven, ran Hell, andthen…took a vacation in LA.

Yeah. She could do this. She could totally do this. Yep. Onehundred percent, she owed this to Lucifer, she owed it to herself, she –

The final ‘ding’ echoed like a gunshot in the tiny space. Shefelt her heart hammering in her chest like she’d run a marathon and she wasn’teven sure why. She wasn’t afraid ofLucifer. She hadn’t been afraid of him as Samael. Michael, Gabriel, Death – she’d faced them all withoutfeeling like this. What the hell waswrong with her?

Maybe she should leave. She should go, she hadn’t beeninvited, it was too soon it was-

The doors slid open and she froze.

The penthouse was destroyed.

Absolutely destroyed.

The piano was upended against the marble walls, the bench inpieces flung to the other side of the room. The bar and every bottle shattered.Bits of glass peppered the floor. Expensive alcohol leaked from broken bottles,drying where it lay on the black floors.  

Ta daaaaah! 

[hale-of-stiles-heart]

🕵️‍♂️👨‍🚀👬

To be honest, I had a little bit of trouble coming up with a plot but I think it turned out pretty good! (also on ao3!)

"So what's our cover?" Dean asked before stuffing his face with a heaping forkful of fluffy, golden pancakes slathered in butter and drowned in syrup. Vermont maple syrup really was the best.

"Well FBI's out," Sam replied as he raised his mug to his lips, taking a sip of coffee to wash down a bite of his veggie omelet. Leave it to Sam to order some vegetarian crap in a place that offered mountains of pancakes and decadent French toast platters.

Dean nodded as he chewed, conceding Sam's point with a tip of his head. They had already seen a few actual feds poking around town and the last thing they needed was to get arrested for impersonating federal agents.

Especially since there were still arrest warrants out on them in several states and Dean was still officially dead as far as the U.S. government was concerned. He'd have to ask Cas about that when he got back to the Bunker, see if there was anything he could do with his mojo.

After a few more bites of his boring, probably tasteless breakfast, Sam swallowed and announced, "I'm thinking we should just pretend to be a couple. That'll actually get us into the resort."

He took another sip of coffee after speaking, completely nonplussed. Dean, on the other hand, nearly choked on his pancakes.

Dropping his fork with a loud, metallic clatter, he thumped his fist against his chest. Coughing and hacking, desperately trying to breathe, he gawked at Sam, his eyes practically bulging out of his head.

Still coughing, he reached for his own cup of coffee, downing some to help him wash down the pancakes and disbelief. Clearing his throat, he managed to wheeze out, "Uh... You know we're brothers, right? And I don't care what Chuck's groupies think, that actually matters."

"What?" Sam asked, his face scrunching up in blatant confusion. Dean didn't think that Sam had any right to look so incredulous when he was the one that had just suggested they play boyfriends.

Not that his suggestion was completely out of place.

They were in Grafton, a small town that was more of a village than anything else, nestled in the mountains of southern Vermont. It was full of beautiful scenery, bed and breakfasts, and something that was killing people at a local couple's resort.

The first victim had been found a few weeks ago. A woman from Boston who had been honeymooning with her new husband.

Her body had been discovered in the back garden of the resort amongst the ornamental cherry blossom trees. There had been signs of a struggle, broken fingernails and a pair of shoes with the high heels snapped off, but no conclusive manner of death.

The medical examiner had ruled the death as undetermined, making a note about a potential heart attack. But an otherwise healthy woman in her late twenties having a sudden heart attack with no prior history of any cardiac issues was pretty suspicious.

The second and third victims had been found shortly thereafter. A week after that, the other three victims had been found.

The cause of death was still unknown. There were no strangulation marks or gunshot wounds. No scratches or stabs or bashed in skulls. Just several people dead, leaving their significant others behind to grieve.

Dean probably would have written it up to some everyday serial killer —which just went to show how screwed up his life was that a serial killer was something banal —had it not been for the strange power outages in the area. Apparently, there had been a blackout every time someone had been killed.

After learning that little tidbit of information, Dean had officially been convinced that they were dealing with something much more supernatural than a regular old serial killer. On the long, nearly twenty four hour drive from Kansas to Vermont, they had debated various theories.

Sam guessed that it was another Qareen, like the one they had dealt with while the Darkness was still running amok. He based his theory on the possibility of the creature luring its victims out into the garden by appearing as their loved ones.

Dean disagreed, pointing out that the last Qareen they had encountered had brutally slaughtered its victims, ripping their hearts out, not killing them without leaving a mark. His money was on a starving, overzealous shtriga feeding off people's life forces until they were dead.

Cas had remained quiet throughout the brothers' bickering, occasionally piping up to point out why it couldn't be a siren or a demon. He had spent most of the unbearably long drive gazing out the window at the passing scenery, humming under his breath along to Led Zeppelin.

He hadn't shared any theories of his own but Dean was sure that he had a few bouncing around his skull.

So, after two days of constant traveling and one night spent in some crappy motel in Indiana, they finally found themselves in a homey diner just outside of Grafton where the pancakes were fluffy, the syrup was thick, and Sam posed potentially traumatizing suggestions for their cover.

Dean was still taken aback, trying to process what his younger brother had just said. He really hoped that he had somehow misheard Sam, even though he was pretty sure that he hadn't.

He seriously needed a vacation. On a beach. With his toes buried in the sand, a cold bottle of El Sol in his hand as he basked in the sunshine and the sound of waves crashing.

He didn't even care if there were screaming kids and seagulls squawking their heads off begging for food. He just needed a vacation from his crazy life and gross, incestuous covers.

Sam must have been watching too much Game of Thrones. All that Cersei and Jaime bullshit must have rubbed off on him.

Ugh. Dean should have known better than to subscribe to HBO.

Just as Dean shivered, disgusted by Sam's suggestion, realization gradually dawned on Sam's face. Frantically shaking his head, he hurried to amend, "Dude, no. No. That's not what I meant."

"Then what the hell did you mean?" Dean asked, sagging back against the plush leather cushions of the booth. He was infinitely relieved, letting out a heavy sigh.

He may have helped save the world several times over but there were just some things he couldn't deal with. Pretending to be in a romantic relationship with his brother was one of them.

Shaking off those thoughts, he focused back on Sam who looked just about as horrified as Dean felt. Still shaking his head, whipping his long hair around, he clarified, "By we I meant me and Cas. We can go undercover as a couple. I figure you ca—"

"Whoa, whoa," Dean interrupted, straightening back up as he raised his hand to cut Sam off. Glancing between Sam and Cas, who was ignoring his coffee in favor of working his way through a crossword puzzle in the local newspaper, he demanded, "You and Cas? Undercover? As a couple?"

"Uh, yeah, Dean," Sam answered, exasperation bleeding into his voice. He set his own fork down with a beleaguered sigh, looking at Dean with one of his patented bitchfaces as he sniped, "It's not exactly rocket science."

"No, I get it, I just..." Dean trailed off, shifting his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose with another sigh of his own. Dropping his hand, he flicked his eyes over to Cas who was still absorbed in his puzzle. "Is Cas cool with this?"

"I have no objections if that's what you're asking," Cas responded primly, not bothering to look up at Dean. He was too busy filling in another answer, mumbling under his breath, "Five letter word for a relationship... Union."

More like fraud, Dean thought, narrowing his eyes at the angel who was much too complacent for his taste. Fixing his skeptical gaze on Cas, he questioned, "No objections? None?"

"Of course not," Cas replied easily, crossing out another clue in the across column. He was already more than halfway done, too engrossed to even bother touching his cup of coffee or the plate of blueberry French toast.

Not that he really needed to eat. Because of the whole angel thing.

"So you're just cool with pretending to be Sam's boyfriend?" Dean pressed, keeping his voice low to avoid anyone overhearing what was one of the weirdest conversations in entire life. And he'd had conversations with Death and God Himself, to name just a few.

"I don't see any reason why I shouldn't be," Cas answered, sparing a glance at Dean. Lowering his gaze again, he filled in another crossword answer.

Dean couldn't understand why Cas wasn't freaking out about the whole thing, why Sam wasn't. They should be working their asses off to come up with another cover, another plan that didn't include them playing house at a couples' resort.

"You're just gonna, what, act like some happy couple on vacation?" Dean squeaked, glancing between Cas and Sam who was in the middle of rolling his.

"Yes, Dean," Sam sighed, exasperation clinging to every syllable. With another heavy sigh, he continued, "We'll check in as a couple, act all lovey dovey for a few days, and gank whatever's killing these people."

"The crocotta," Cas murmured, drawing Sam's attention. The younger Winchester broke out in a wide grin, nodding his head in understanding.

"Whatever it is, you're just gonna share a room? A bed?" Dean blurted, waving his hand around aimlessly. It was Cas' turn to roll his eyes.

"Yes," Cas confirmed with a firm nod. Dean's jaw nearly dropped at the angel's unabashed nonchalance but then Cas continued, pointing out, "I don't require sleep so there will be no conflict."

"It's not really a big deal," Sam insisted as he curled his arm around Cas' shoulders and tugged him closer. The gesture was so casual, so normal, that it briefly made Dean wonder if they had done it before.

Especially when Cas instantly relaxed into it, shifting close enough to actually lay his head on Sam's shoulder. It was enough to make Dean want to throw up.

As bad as the potential of playing newlyweds with his brother, watching Sam and Cas play happy couple was even worse. Mostly because Dean had been in love with the angel for years.

"I agree with Sam," Cas tacked on, reaching for his cup of coffee, only to find that it was empty. Frowning down at the mug, he continued, "It's the easiest way to gain access to the resort. And if my suspicions are correct, the crocotta will target one of us within the first few days."

Dean opened his mouth to say something but found himself speechless. What was there to say?

Cas made several good points. He and Sam going undercover together was the best way for them to solve the case, as much as it killed him to admit it.

Before he could tell them as much, having every intention of keeping his messy feelings out of it, their waitress flounced by. Sam waved his hand to get her attention, flashing her a bright grin.

"Could my boyfriend get some more coffee, please?" He asked innocently, gesturing at Cas' empty mug. He was the picture of an attentive, dutiful boyfriend with his arm around Cas and a guileless smile on his face.

"Oh, of course!" She replied cheerfully, beaming back at him. Throughout their entire meal, she had been making eyes at Sam but her demeanor was suddenly different as she gushed, "You two make such a cute couple, by the way. How long have you been together?"

"We've known each other for almost eight years," Cas explained, setting down his mug so the waitress could pour him some more coffee. Glancing back at Sam with an amused grin, he added, "But we've only been romantically involved for a short time."

The waitress just smiled even brighter before moving on to another table, offering an elderly couple some coffee. Sam and Cas shared a conspiratorial laugh that sent Dean over the edge.

"Yeah, no," he announced, shaking his head. Sam and Cas turned their heads to frown at him in confusion. He pointed at them, glancing between them as he growled, "This? Not happening. I'll be Cas' fake boyfriend, you can stake out the rest of town or whatever."

He punctuated his statement by reaching over to take Cas' hand in his own. He intertwined their fingers as he raised a brow at Sam, silently challenging him to argue.

But Sam just dropped his arm from around Cas' shoulders, raising his palms in surrender. He turned back to his omelet, smirking to himself.

Who knew all it would take for Dean to finally act on his feelings for Cas was to suggest a fake dating cover? He should've suggested it years ago.

Then again, as he watched the way Dean's cheeks flushed deep red while he ran his thumb over Cas' knuckles, Sam figured his timing was perfect.

Send me emojis for a Destiel fics!

[hekate1308]

The Baggage We Carry, Chapter Nine

“Ah, just like the old days. You, me, and a disdain for the world at large”.

Dean rolled his eyes but accepted the cigarette Crowley handed him.

“Thought you were quitting”.

“It’s my first and only one this week, Squirrel”.

They were skipping geography, ostensibly against Cas’ wishes, but all in all their friend hadn’t seemed to upset.

He never missed a class, of course; meanwhile, Crowley’s attendance had steadfastly increased, although he insisted on keeping it “just under half” of their weekly lessons because he had “a reputation to uphold”.

Dean wasn’t sure whether he should mention the pictures or not. Technically, he had been snooping, and it really was none of his business what Crowley did in his room.

And quite frankly he was glad there was anything in this house that felt personal.

“Say, did your mother use an interior decorator?”

“Of course”.

“Thought so.”

He was silent.

“It’s alright, I hate it too”.

“Hey, only one and a half years to go”.

Crowley grinned.

“Can’t wait to get out of here”.

“You don’t even know what you’ll study yet”.

“I’m sure I’ll find something... whatever it will be, I doubt it’s going to be difficult.”

Dean snorted.

“For you, maybe”.

“Of course for me. As you well know, I don’t care for others”.

Again, he could have mentioned the pictures, but chose not to.

“On another topic, when are you going to ask choir boy out on a date?”

It was a bad time to inhale smoke.

He coughed for five minutes until he managed to say, “What?”

“Please. It’s obvious. Even your brother has noticed, and if I didn’t think your parents are as observant as a block of granite, I’d think they must have realized it too”.

“There’s nothing to realize”.

“Who are you trying to fool here?”

“Myself, I think” he admitted. “But even if – no. Cas would never...”

“Do you have eyes? Functioning ones? That guy is so gone on you, it’s not even funny. Didn’t you realize how jealous he was of me in the beginning?”

Dean could have sworn they’d got along quite well immediately.

“What do you mean, jealous?”

“All that squinting and tilting his head? He could tell, you know. Our little arrangement...”

“How is he supposed to – “

“God, you’re helpless. Why are we friends again?”

“You’re the one framing pictures of us!”

Now he had mentioned them after all.

“Yes I am” Crowley replied carelessly. “Doesn’t mean I can’t annoy you when I want”.

Dean sighed.

“If I’d known I signed up for another little brother – “

“I’m older than you”.

“By how much anyway? You won’t even tell me when your birthday is”.

“You wouldn’t celebrate the day either if your mother routinely just that date to drown a bottle of scotch and tell you how much she regrets the orgy you were conceived at”.

“Man, she’s a piece of work”.

He knew better than to react in any other way. Crowley didn’t want his pity.

“You have no idea. Used to fantasize how to get rid of her when I was younger. Now I just want to leave”.

Dear God, Dean thought, I think I might have saved the world from a future serial killer.

“Good for you, I don’t think they’d like a murder on a college application resume”.

“With all that back stabbing going on, they should.”

Yes, it somehow felt exactly like old times and yet it didn’t.

Because Dean had finally stopped feeling guilty about his best friend.

Cas shook his head at him when he resurfaced in their next class.

“I thought you were going to concentrate on your education”.

“You know how it is, I can’t neglect Crowley. He’d just get bad ideas”.

“Lisa was right” Cassie suddenly interjected, “You sound like a couple talking about their teenage son who’s going through a phase.”

“Crowley isn’t going through anything, I’m pretty sure he was born that way.”

Yeah, his life was definitely looking up, even with all the school work he had to do.

Especially because today, Cas nervously invited Crowley and him over for the afternoon.

“Are you sure that’s wise, angel boy? You come from a pretty saintly family, and...”

“Trust me” Cas interrupted him, resigned. “They won’t even notice who you are”.

Dean couldn’t imagine there was anyone in the world less likely to be overlooked than Cas, and he was rather curious what his parents and siblings were like, after everything he’d heard.

Their house was smaller than Crowley’s or Dean’s, but that didn’t really surprise him. There had to be a reason Cas liked to be outside so much he even made them go to the park when it rained.

“They probably won’t notice I’ve come home, but in case... They can be rather intense, guys”.

“Have you met me, Feathers?”

Crowley’s fascination with Cas’ name would never fail to amuse Dean.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine” he said, even though his throat was dry and he would have liked to hold Cas’ hand.

You’re not meeting your boyfriend’s family, for crying out loud. You’re just friends. Suck it up and be nice. They can’t be that bad, certainly.

He learned that they indeed could as soon as Cas opened the door.

“YOU ALWAYS DO WHAT FATHER TELLS YOU, HOW PATHETIC ARE YOU – “

“I AM JUST A DUTIFUL SON, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO TELL BY COMPARING US – “

“And I thought Mother could get loud if she wanted” Crowley said. Even he looked taken aback.

“Lucifer and Michael are always fighting” Cas informed them casually. “It was a bit quieter around here when they went to college, but since they moved back in – “

“THERE IS NO REASON TO – “

Something was thrown against a wall.

Good God.

“We should not go into the living room” Cas assured them as if it was no big deal.

“I’d say...” Dean agreed.

On the stairs up to Cas’ room, they met another one of his brothers, smaller than Dean and even Crowley.

“Hey, Cassie!”

Somehow, Dean had the feeling this went beyond the gentle ribbing Crowley intended when he used the nickname.

“Gabriel” he greeted him tiredly.

“Who are your friends?”

Alright, Dean didn’t want him to know his name. That mischievous glint in his eyes... And if he wasn’t wrong, there was a hint of cruelty there too that he’d weirdly never detected in Crowley of all people.

“That’s Dean and Crowley”.

“Rowena’s son?”

He clicked his tongue.

“Growing into quite the rebel, aren’t you”.

“Gabriel...”

“Wanna play our old game? How long until I annoy them enough to leave?”

Good God.

What the Hell?

“Don’t make me throw you down the stairs” Crowley said.

“Oh my God, you are adorable! Why don’t you – “

With ease, Crowley moved past Dean and punched Gabriel in the gut. While he was busy kneeling over and coughing, he said, “You wanted to show us your room, right?”

“You shouldn’t have done that” Cas said quietly, “Gabriel loves to retaliate”.

“I’m not scared. Let him try”.

Cas still looked worried but showed them his room.

It was smaller than Dean’s, but very clean. As expected, it was full of books...

And hey, wasn’t that the small stuffed bee Dean had given him two months ago as a joke after he’d learned how passionate he was about saving them?

“I had no idea you kept that”.

For some reason, Cas blushed.

“I like it”.

“Hey man, no harm done”.

A door slammed downstairs, followed by more shouting.

“Do they ever shut up?”

“My mother is very strict when it comes to fighting at the dining table”.

“I bet” Crowley said. “I always think I would have hated whatever sibling Mother might have thrown my way, but even I can’t imagine we’d be that bad”.

“Me and Sammy fight sometimes” Dean said.

“You still love one another as brothers though” Cas said matter-of-factly.

Dean could have sworn Crowley cursed under his breath.

“Yeah, well...”

“It’s alright. I know. To be honest, I am looking forward to college too”.

A knock on the door. Cas winced and for a second Dean thought Gabriel was about to enact his revenge, but instead a young woman came in.

“Castiel! Gabriel said you had friends over! Can I help you with anything, would you like something to eat and drink?”

She sounded nice enough, but there was a sort of mute desperation in her expression, as if she was forcing herself to be happily polite.

Cas eventually managed to get her to leave after repeatedly assuring her that no, they weren’t in want of anything.

“She’s either like that or completely silent” he informed them.

“Okay, I give up. Tell us the secret. How did you end up normal?” Crowley asked.

“I’m friends with you”.

“Fair enough”.

The front door closed with a bang and the shouting stopped.

“Father has come home”.

“And that means silence?” Crowley asked hopefully.

“It means he’ll go to his office to drink and try to write”.

“How do you even study in this place?”

“I barely do, I mostly sleep here”.

A good call, Dean had to admit that.

Really, he was starting to think he didn’t have it nearly as bad as he’d always believed. Sure, he’d have to stand up to his parents a little, but Cas and Crowley didn’t even have the hope that things would get better.

They had him, though, and he’d make sure they always would have.

“Man, I don’t know about you guys, but anyone wanna go grab a burger?”

“I thought you’d never ask” Crowley said and Cas gave him a small, pleased, private smile, that he only understood later when he whispered to him in the diner “Usually everyone runs away”.

“So this was a test?” he muttered back.

“No, I already knew you wouldn’t”.

Dean looked into his sparkling eyes and could have kissed him.

The next few weeks passed quietly; Dean studied and spent time with his friends and his brother.

His father was growing a bit nervous, though. Dean didn’t think he’d behaved much different at home, but he’d still noticed something was off.

“How’s the training going?” he asked that evening.

“Well, although I’m studying a lot right now”.

“Yes...” he appeared to be a little lost.

“And what are you... studying?”

“Oh, physics. I like it a lot actually, there’s...”

“Yeah, yeah, Dean, doesn’t matter, I probably wouldn’t understand it” Dad, who always let Sam ramble on, interrupted him.

“Just trying to tell you about my day” he snapped.

“That’s no way to speak to your father”.

“I was just clarifying what I said.”

He didn’t add the “sir” Dad was undoubtedly expecting, because all of a sudden he felt tired of it all. Here he was, putting in an actual effort to do well in school, and on the other side were his parents, ready to judge him and make him live his life as they saw fit instead of the other way around.

“Dean – “

“John” Mary interjected calmly, “Please. You forget he’s a teenager”.

So his feelings weren’t valid because of his age? Dean got up.

“We don’t leave the table before everyone’s done –“

“I am done, Dad”.

And he went to his room.

He should have known that this was not a good way to ensure his parents’ trust in him, especially because Gabriel Novak was still out there, seething because of Crowley’s punch.

Sam came to his room later that evening.

“Dad was pretty pissed.”

He grinned.

“It was awesome”.

“Yeah, yeah, you freaking rebel”.

And they watched a movie on Dean’s laptop.

For the next few days, they all pretended as if his outburst at dinner had never happened, and he had hopes that this would continue, until he came home one evening to find his father waiting for him, seething.

“I knew there must be a reason you’ve changed so drastically. What do I hear about you and that Crowley boy?”

[winchesterenthusiast]

Beautiful Dreamer

A Dean x Reader

A/N: This is my entry for @avasmommy224 ‘s Birthday Writing Challenge! I’m not sure what genre this is, it’s just something that came up when I thought of my prompt. I haven’t written much, so be gentle. Let me know what you think. I hope you like it, girl! Happy Birthday! ♥

Prompt: I dreamed of you. I dreamed you were wandering in the dark, and so was I. We found each other. We found each other in the dark.

Word Count: 2,056

Warnings: - language.

Tags: (at the end)

*gif is not mine.

When Dean Winchester walks into a room, he demands attention. Not the ‘look at me I’m so attractive’ type of attention, but the ‘fuck with me and I’ll literally kill you’ type of attention. It’s intoxicating and disgustingly arousing, something you’re not even close to being used to. Your entire life had consisted of working at your family’s diner, busing and waiting tables for measly tips that couldn’t even buy you a box of tampons. Your life had been painstakingly boring, until that one unforgettable day your entire life changed.

A reoccurring dream had been haunting you for weeks, your brain never able to comprehend where it came from or why it kept happening; yet somehow, you always remembered every detail. A man, at least 6 foot tall with piercing green eyes, like emeralds plucked right from earth, was leaning against the wall outside the diner by the dumpsters. It was frighteningly dark, only the solar light hanging above the back door illuminating his worn, brown boots. However, the man didn’t frighten you, which confused you the most. You wanted to go to him, to bring him into the light and see his face. But you didn’t have to. Right before the dream ended he’d step into the glowing aura that surrounded the door, and you’d catch a glimpse of his face.

His eyes were the best part, so green the most luscious meadow would weep with jealousy. Freckles dusted his cheeks and nose, his lips so perfect you wanted to know what they felt like on your own. He would smile and your heart would jump in your chest, his teeth just as perfect as the rest of him. And then you’d wake up, pining over a man you’d never even met, not knowing if he even existed or if you’d ever have the pleasure of seeing him in person. You hadn’t told a soul about the dream. You felt silly. Somehow, your heart was aching for this person, desperate to find him. But where would you even start?

It was a normal day at the diner, even more boring than any other day. It was your turn to take out the trash, and you huffed as your mother harassed you to get it done before it got too late. You looked out the front window, the darkness looming over the cars parked on the street, their shadows cascading across the asphalt. Grabbing the two heaping bags of garbage from by the backdoor, you managed to finagle the handle and swung it open, pushing it with your hip before it slammed behind you.

Standing outside by the dumpsters, you were suddenly reminded of your dream. It was so quiet, only the sounds of mosquitoes and moths buzzing around the light above the door could be heard. It was dark too, just like in the dream, except maybe darker. You shivered, the wind blowing up your pant legs, causing goosebumps to rise on your skin. It was then that you decided it was time to get the fuck out of there, and get back inside as soon as possible. You tossed the bags in the dumpster with all your might, and turned back around. A girl shouldn’t be in a dark alley alone. Except you weren’t alone.

Your mind became fuzzy, as you processed what was in front of you. There they were; the worn, brown boots that had been in your mind for countless nights, crossed under the light as if someone were resting against the wall of the diner. Your eyes slowly scanned up and sure enough, a dark figure could be seen leaning against the exact spot you knew he’d be. Were you still dreaming? What on Earth was happening?

As if he heard what you were thinking, the man came away from the wall and stepped into the harsh light. Everything was there that you remembered; the mesmerizing jade eyes, the freckles speckling his face like stars in the sky, and the soft inviting lips that curved into a dazzling smile. There were also new things you noticed, that you couldn’t see in the dream. His hair was light brown, spiked up and styled so perfectly he could’ve used it as a weapon. About a week’s worth of dark scruff lined his cheeks, and soft crinkles formed by his eyes. You swallowed hard, taking in the man you had thought didn’t exist until this very moment.

“Hi,” he said softly, his voice like liquid velvet, flowing over you in waves. Just one simple word almost caused your world to fall apart.

“H-Hi,” you managed to reply, your hands rubbing up and down your arms. You were cold, even though it was the middle of summer. “Can I help you?”

His tongue emerged from between his lips to swipe over the bottom one, that smile still plastered on his face. Now you noticed he was dressed in distressed denim jeans that hugged his legs perfectly, a navy blue jacket hugging his shoulders. You could tell how broad they were, even through the fabric.

“No, you can’t,” he said, shaking his head. “Because I’m here to help you.”

His eyebrows furrowed, causing a deep V to appear on his forehead. You were confused.

“I-I don’t need any help. I was just taking out the trash…”

“I don’t have much time to explain,” he replied quickly, scanning the dark corners of the alley with shifting eyes. Your heart was thumping so loud in your chest the sound filled your ears. “Will you please just come with me? I can explain on the way when you’re safe.”

Safe? From what? What about the diner? Mom and dad? They’d be so so worried.

You tried to reason with yourself that leaving with a perfect stranger never turned out well. He could be a murderer, a serial killer…

“My name is Dean Winchester,” he interrupted your thoughts, your teeth biting at your bottom lip as your brain worked in overdrive. You looked up into his eyes and saw the sincerity there, your doubts of him melting away like ice cream on a hot day. He extended his hand and you stared at it. “I promise you, I would never hurt you. Please, just take my hand and I’ll take you somewhere safe.”

With your own shaky hand, you entwined your fingers with his, feeling the roughness against your palms that you already knew was there. He squeezed your hand with encouragement, and led you down the dark alley. You didn’t speak, but just watched him as he fluidly moved. With military precision, he looked around every nook and cranny of the alley, looking for something unknown. His hand never left yours.

Finally, you broke out into the street on the opposite side of the diner, and the streetlights flooded the area with light. Getting a better look at your hero, you could definitely tell now he was over 6 feet. Finally, he left go of your hand to open the passenger side door of his car. It was a shiny black 1967 Impala, and you were entirely impressed.

“Nice car,” you blurted out, your brain no longer using your filter feature.

“Thanks,” he smiled, gesturing for you to get inside. “Will you please come with me?”

All you could do was nod, as you climbed into the car. The squeak of his door filled your ears as he appeared beside you. He started the car quickly, checked his mirrors, and pulled off.

You both sat in silence for quite some time, only Led Zeppelin came from the radio. Even if he was a murderer, he had a great taste in music. Glancing over at him, you saw his eyebrows were furrowed again, and you could tell it meant he was thinking.

“So, are you going to tell me why you abducted me from the alley?”

You watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed, his knuckles whiten as he gripped the steering wheel.

“Y/N, it’s very complicated. I don’t want to scare you. I’d like to wait until we’re somewhere safe, so we can talk about this…”

“Where is somewhere safe?”

“The Bunker. My brother Sam and I live there…”

Suddenly, something clicked in your brain. It was nice to know it was actually somewhat functioning.

“Wait… how do you know my name?”

“Like I said,” he retorted quickly, cocking his head to the side. “It’s complicated.”

You stayed silent the rest of the way and, after about twenty minutes, Dean pulled into a spot right beside a door that looked like something the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would crawl out of.

“So,” you said, breaking the silence. “Which one are you? Michael Angelo or Raphael?”

He laughed, and it was like wind chimes on a perfect breezy day. Your entire body lit up at the sound.

“I always preferred Raphael, although the inner Michael Angelo in me can’t turn down pizza.”

He winked, before opening his door and walking around to open your own. Taking your hand again, he led you to The Bunker.

It wasn’t anything like what you were expecting. You stood at the top of the staircase and took it all in. This wasn’t a serial killers house.

Dean led you down the steps and pulled out a chair for you to sit down. The table was a map of the world, the shelves around you lined with books.

“Can I get you anything to drink?” he asked, pouring himself a glass of whiskey.

“No, thank you,” you replied, tapping your fingers on the table. This was all becoming so much. “I’d just really appreciate an explanation.”

Dean took a huge gulp of his liquor and set the glass down lightly. He looked at you hard, his hand still in your hand, as if you’d known each other forever. He looked away quickly before continuing.

“As I mentioned before, my name is Dean Winchester. I’m a hunter.”

“Like… deer?”

“Like monsters.”

Oh. So he wasn’t the killer, he was the killer of the killers.

“Like… murderers?”

He chuckled, taking another swig.

“No, like vampires and werewolves and ghosts. To name a few.”

You felt yourself about to pass out, your free hand gripping the table because it was sold; the only thing keeping you afloat.

“Okay so… those things are real. What does that have to do with me?”

His tongue swiped over his bottom lip again, and you shifted in your seat.

“You’re special, Y/N. I think you know that already.”

“I don’t follow…”

“There are people that want you dead, that’s all I know. I’ve been watching you for weeks, assessing you, trying to see if you were dangerous. But I don’t think you are…”

“I’m not.”

“Tell me something…” he said, letting go of your hand to refill his glass. You immediately wished he didn’t. “Do you dream things and then they just… happen?”

Of course. It’s happening right now. It happened when I dreamed of my first puppy, my first car, my first… everything.

There was no use in lying. You could tell he wasn’t dumb, almost reading your mind.

“Yes.”

“I don’t dream, hardly ever. But I dreamed about you. Every night for… weeks. Then I get a call from these scumbags we’ve been working with to check you out, make sure you weren’t causing any trouble. I came to the diner and saw you working there and I just knew.”

“Knew what?” you asked quickly.

“That I was meant to protect you. Keep you safe. It’s crazy… I don’t even know you and yet I –“

“Love you,” you finished his sentence abruptly and his gorgeous eyes grew wide. You could tell by his reaction it wasn’t something he threw around lightly. Neither one of you could explain what was happening, but you knew it felt right.

“Yeah…”

“I dreamed of you,” you said. “I dreamed you were wandering in the dark, and so was I. We… found each other. We found each other in the dark.”

With those words, Dean Winchester leaned across the table and kissed you softly on the lips. As he pulled away, his thumb grazed your cheek and your skin blazed.

“Welcome to the light,” he whispered, kissing you again, this time longer. “I’ll risk my life to keep you safe.”

@kayteonline @manawhaat @winchester-writes @winchestersnco @callmesweetheartifyoumeanit @aprofoundbondwithdean @oriona75 @bovaria @eyes-of-a-disney-princess @sis-tafics @salvachester @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog @nichelle-my-belle @sandlee44 @autopistaaningunaparte @16wiishes @starswirlblitz @ashleychinrock @evansrogerskitten @lovebelievelive97 @xtina2191 @findingfitnessforme @captainradicalpassion @sis-tafics @when-the-day–met-the-night @jayankles   @my-supernatural-dreams @betterlattethennever

*I don’t know who to tag in my fics anymore, so if you want to be added to my tag list, please send me an ask.

[the--blackdahlia]

Cat Scratch Fever Chapter 4 (Dean x Reader)

Title: Cat Scratch Fever Chapter 4

Summary:  The hunters head to Friday Harbor, Washington to investigate. But what if everything isn't as simple as they think, especially when one of their own becomes a target...

Warnings: None

AN:  This is the mask mentioned in this chapter and this is a sistrum

It was about 10:30 before (y/n) even so much as stirred. She groaned and dragged herself to the bathroom, enjoying the feeling of the sun peaking though the little slits in the blinds. Normally, she loved the shower, but for some reason today she wasn’t big on it. She didn’t bother replacing the bandage on her arm. It wasn’t bleeding anymore anyway. She dressed in some fresh clothes and made her way out of the room to see Sam and Dean heading out of theirs.

 “Morning boys.” She said, waving. They headed over to her.

 “Feeling better?” Dean asked. (Y/n) smiled.

 “I feel better than I have in a long time.” She laughed. “Come on. Let’s go get something to eat. I’m starving.” She headed over to the Impala. Dean raised an eyebrow.

 “Where are you going?” Dean asked. (Y/n) looked back at him.

 “I figure if we’re working this case together, might as well save my case running to get food.” She slid into the backseat, just like old times. Dean and Sam looked at each other with a shrug before they climbed into the car. Dean drove to a little place not too far from the motel. They headed to a booth in the back, and both brothers were surprised when (Y/n) scooted into it beside Dean. Dean wasn’t upset or anything, but it was strange. Not after that horrible argument that sent you separate ways or the way that you had acted when they showed up in town.

 “Figure anything out while I was asleep?” (Y/n) asked. She was sitting by the window, glad that the warm sun was touching her skin.

 “Not really.” Sam said with a shrug. “There’s a lot of Egyptian mythology that keeps popping up in my research, but I haven’t quite gotten around to reading a lot of it.” (Y/n) nodded. The waitress came over and took their orders. Sam and Dean got their usual meal; a salad for Sam and a burger for Dean. But (Y/n) surprised both of them and ordered a seafood platter.

 “I didn’t think you were big on seafood.” Dean said. (Y/n) shrugged.

 “New leaf?” She asked. She drank her water, listening to Dean and Sam talk. There were a lot of cat sanctuaries in this town and the population of cats to humans was pretty high. (Y/n) was half listening, but she heard some of their conversation.

 “It could be just some witch experiment gone wrong to become a cat?” Sam suggested. Dean groaned.

 “I hate witches man. They’re so…” He made a noise and shivered. Sam laughed some.

 “Glad to see that you still hate witches.” (Y/n) giggled. Their food came and (Y/n) dug into her seafood with suspicious eyes from Dean and Sam. “And none of the victims in this town worked at a cat place. The only thing that might be possible is the last one adopted a feline friend.”

 “There’s no pattern. There’s nothing to explain why these women were taken and their significant others getting their hearts clawed out. They didn’t have the same hair color, they didn’t even go to the same school.” Sam said. (Y/n) shrugged.

 “Maybe it’s a serial killer.” She suggested. Dean looked at her, worried now. It wasn’t like her to just easily dismiss a case like that. She was stubborn and hard headed. That’s why he had fallen in love with her in the first place.

 “I’m gonna pass that one off as you are just suffering from some sort of nutrition lack.” Dean said. (Y/n) looked over at him before shrugging and going back to eating her food. Sam watched her as she scarfed down the food before he turned his attention back to his salad. They were all silent for the rest of the meal.

 “So, what is our next move?” Sam asked as they made their way out of the diner. Dean sighed.

 “I think we should still check out one of those cat sanctuaries or something.” He suggested. “Doesn’t hurt to check out everything.” He looked at (Y/n). “You look tired. Wanna go back to the motel?”

 “Nah. I’m good.” She said, stretching out her muscles. “Let’s just do some investigating and then take a nap. Naps are nice.” She headed off to the Impala, Sam and Dean hanging back.

 “There’s something wrong with her.” Dean said. Sam just nodded.

 ****

 After hours of checking out different places around town, the hunters had about as many answers as they had before they went out on their search. The only difference was that they had confirmed that Lacy had adopted a cat. Other than that, they had nothing. Tired, they all three walked into the Winchester’s room.

 “Well, that was eventful.” (y/n) said as she flopped on Dean’s bed. “What now?”

 “It’s Sammy’s turn to get us some food.” Dean explained. Sam groaned but grabbed the Impala keys. He headed out, deciding he was getting tacos from the Taco Bell just down the road. (Y/n) laid back on Dean’s bed, her eyes closed. Dean sighed some. He had wanted to talk to her about why she was acting off, but he decided that it was probably best not to try to push it right now. Especially if she was tired. Instead, he headed into the bathroom to clean up some.

 While Dean was in the bathroom, (Y/n)’s stomach started to hurt some and the claw marks on her arm were itching like crazy. She opened her eyes and headed over to the duffle bags on Sam’s bed to find something to help her out. She grabbed a bottle and looked up at the painting above the bed. She dropped the bottle then when she saw that her eyes were yellow cat eyes, instead of the normal color.

 “What the hell?” She whispered to herself as she staggered back. She looked down at her hands to see the bones moving into new positions and claws growing out of where her fingernails should be. She could feel her teeth sharpening and the fact was confirmed when one of the teeth ran across her tongue and cut it open. The most inhuman catlike howl came out of her mouth then and her back arched, her body shifting into something new.

 The last thing (Y/n) remembered before she lost control of her body and her world went black, was seeing her reflection in a mirror on the wall. It was the monster that had attacked her the other night.

 Dean came out of the bathroom just as Sam came back into the room. He had made it halfway to the restaurant when he realized he had forgotten his wallet. The creature in the middle of the room hissed at them, claws ready for the attack. Both of the boys drew their guns on it, until Dean got a look at the right arm of the thing.

 “Sammy wait!” Dean said, stopping his brother from shooting.

 “What? Why?” Sam asked. Dean lowered his gun some, eyes wide.

 “I think that’s (Y/n).” He said. Sam looked unsure but slowly lowered his gun. He shut the door then he made his way into the room, hands in the air.

 “(Y/n), it’s me.” He said. She hissed at him but made no move to attack. “I’m not going to hurt you. Just calm down.” Her eyes stared him down. Outside, there was a loud chorus of meows and hisses. The cats that had been hanging out outside the motel were crying out for something. Dean and Sam were about to make their way to (Y/n), to talk her down and subdue her, when the door flew open.

 In the doorway was a cloaked figure wearing a cat mask. The mask was black with gold inlay and what looked like black braids coming down off the side. (Y/n) looked at the new figure with fascination while Sam and Dean went for their guns.

 “I believe you have something that belongs to me.” A clearly feminine voice said. With her right hand, she flicked the air, sending Dean flying back into the bathroom and Sam landing on the small table. She made her way over to (Y/n). She raised a sistrum in her right hand and shook it, causing (Y/n) to bow her head. “Come with me.” (Y/n) meowed back and followed the woman out of the room. Dean pushed himself out of the bathroom to give chase, but by the time he got to the room door, they were both gone.

Tag List: @petrovadixon @smoothdogsgirl @tornjeansandabrokenheart @theas-bedtime-stories @aiaranradnay @jewelsbaby98

[crazygingerwitch]

The Curse of Magic Pt.1

Rating:PG-13 Language, Abuse, Inappropriate Relationships, Mentions of Death, Goriness

Word Count: 2,733

Pairings: None, just good old family bonding time.

Hello everyone! This is my first fic ever, so I hope you all enjoy it. This is supernatural themed, but there will be no pairings. It is set in season 11 between episodes 7 and 8. There should be at least three other parts to this. Feel free to like, comment, and re-blog everywhere!

-----------------------------------Third Person POV------------------------------------------

Boring.

That was the one word that could be used to describe the bunker lately. Ever since the case with Sheriff Donna, there had been absolutely nothing to do. All the cases Sam had found had been a few days away, and some other hunter was always closer than them, which of course meant more people saved, but it did not help with the cabin fever of Team Free Will. And there was still no headway on the Darkness, except for Sam’s ever increasing dreams. They had been like this for a week, until Sam came bounding into the kitchen.

“Hey Dean, so get this. In Sturgis, South Dakota there has been a few grizzly homicides, no broken entries, no suspects, and they are all young single men in their early twenties. Sounds like a case to me. Maybe a vengeful spirit, witch, or demon. What do you think?”

“I don’t care.” said Dean, with a  mouth full of bacon “It sounds like a case so I’m gonna take it.”

Sam shook his head, an amused grin on his face, “When should we head out?”

Dean jumped up, “Right effing now.”, he said, striding out of the room. Sam counted to five in his head before Dean came bounding back in “Almost forgot my bacon.” Dean shoved the rest in his mouth and grumbled out “Now we can go.”

The boys rolled into town around mid-afternoon, Dean’s eagerness for a case getting them there in a record eight hours. They walk into the Sheriff's office with their FBI suits. It takes a little extra persuading to let them look at the case files and bodies, but they get around to it. Each of the young men had their chests ripped open, and their hearts literally torn in half while it was still pumping.

“You mean that these kids were still alive when this happened?” Dean inquired.

The coroner nodded in agreement. “Whoever did this, really wanted them to hurt before dying. We found a lot less blood than normal outside of the actual bodies, implying that the killer kept the wounds closed up enough for them to keep living and hurting. These boys were awful, but no one deserves that much pain.”

“Awful?” Sam asked, “From what the police have told us, these boys have no known enemies.”

The coroner sighed, his shoulders showing the weight he carried. “Listen, this breaches my code of confidentiality, but with these guys dead, I think the rules need to be bent. With a town this size, it’s rather obvious that coroner is not my full time job. I also double as the high school counselor. I have had at least six girls this quarter come in and confide in me about their ‘secret relationships’. They would tell me about how they were in love with this older boy that their parents wouldn’t approve of, but in their words, these boys were sweet and made them feel special. As far as I could tell these boys weren’t hurting them, and they weren’t having sex, so nothing illegal was happening.”

Sam narrowed his eyes, “You said that they weren’t having sex or hurting them. Did that change?”

The coroner slumped in a nearby chair defeated. “These girls wouldn’t tell me anything. Eventually, they would come in with tears in their eyes, saying that these men broke their hearts. A few of these girls even said that they had given everything to them. When I asked them to elaborate, they would clam up and say some cheesy crap about how they had given their heart completely. A few of them spiraled down a dark path. One of them hung herself three weeks ago. Seeing her on my table was the worst thing I had to do in this job. Now, I’m not saying that these girls did this crime, nor that these boys deserved it, but I am looking forward to the day when the other two boys are put behind bars, or at the least,” he concluded, with a glare to the medical table, “on my table.”

Sam nodded, “I understand that these boys deserve some level of pain, but personally, I would rather have the suffer for years in jail, than for a few hours by a psychopath. I understand if you can’t give us the names of these girls, but if you could tell us who these other boys are, we could connect the dots, and stop anyone from ending up on your table again.”

The coroner rubbed, his eyes, and nodded reluctantly “I’ll give you all of their names so you can stop this as soon as possible. Just give me a moment.”

Fifteen minutes later, the brothers walked out of the coroner’s office with a full page of names. “Sammy, this case is literally in the bottom ten for  most depressing. Although I have to wonder, why did you want that list? Isn’t it kind of obvious that the suicide girl is the one causing all of this? Her death works with the time frame.”

Sam rubbed his forehead, “I know. But if it isn’t her, then we at least have a list now so we can work ahead of the curve. What’s our next step? Do you think we should head up to the high school, interview some of the students?”

Before Dean could reply, someone tapped him on the shoulder. He whirled around and came chest-to-face with a 20-something year old woman, with big, curly red hair and eyes that were so blue they looked almost purple. She was dressed in a button down flannel, a smart grey jacket, and black skinny jeans. Her ears, neck and wrists were adorned with different kinds of charms. “I’m sorry to bother you, but I heard you were heading up to the high school, and my car broke down. I need to be there in the next fifteen minutes, or my sister will be kicked out of volleyball.”

Dean looked at her like she was crazy. “Do we know you?”

The lady shook her head. “No, but I heard there was FBI in town, and you guys look it. Besides, I know plenty of self defense, so I can handle myself. So please may I have a ride?”

Dean and Sam looked at each other, communicating through facial expressions before Dean turned back to her, and agreed. “Thanks!” She cried. Dean gestured toward the backseat, and she hopped in.

While the Impala roared down the roads, they had some idle chit chat. The boys figured they might as well get some info about what was going on at that high school.

“So I suppose you boys are in town about the heart breaker?” After the blank looks, the young woman said “The serial killer? The one who tore those boys’ hearts in half?”

“How did you hear about that?” Sam inquired. “From what we understand, the police are trying to keep the investigation as private as possible.”

She rolled her eyes, “Three gory murders in a town like this? Word gets around pretty fast Agent Smith.”

Dean glanced at her “When did we tell you our names again?”

“When I first got in the car amnesia man. And I take it you forgot my name as well?”

“Maybe.” Dean mumbled.

“Well it’s Minerva Heflin. But you can call me Minnie. Everybody does. How in the world did you forget my name so quickly?”

“Forgive my partner, MInnie,” Sam interrupted, “He’s a dunderhead. I was wondering, with your sister in the high school, could you tell us a bit more about the recent suicide. We think that someone is out looking for someone to blame, and is taking it out on these young men.”

Minnie shrugged, “My sister is seventeen years old. She doesn’t tell me much of anything. But you can ask her in a few seconds.”

“A few seconds? We’re at least a few min.......” Dean trailed off. There on their left was the high school. “Wow. I must have been going faster than I thought.”

Minnie hopped out of the car. “Just a minute gentleman. I’ll get my sister, and if she agrees, you can question her while you give us a ride back to my home.” She walked off in search of her sister.

Sam looked at Dean, “Think it’s worth it? Or is this just some dead end?”

Dean shrugged, “We can maybe learn something, and besides, might as well help these damsels in distress. Here they come now.”

It wasn’t hard to spot Minnie, with her fireball of hair. Next to her was a petite, tan brunette, about half an inch shorter than Minnie. They looked nothing alike at first glance, but taking a closer look, you could see the same facial structure, the shared crooked smiles and tiny dimples. And just like Sam and Dean, they had an undeniable bond between them that everyone could see.

“Hello Agents. This is my sister, Diane. She agreed to ask some questions as long as you don’t tell anyone else in town.”

“Hello.” the younger girl said, quiet where her sister was loud.

“Hop in the back ladies, and we’ll take you home.” Dean said, gesturing to the backseat.

Once Minnie gave some initial instructions, Sam started the questions. “So Diane, could you tell us a little bit about Taylor, the girl who hung herself?”

Diane thought, “We share an AP Lit class, and a lunch period, but we barely talked. She was a cheerleader, and she had some friends, but the few weeks before she died, everyone could tell she was changing. She started to sit alone, our teacher had to take her outside of class for mouthing off, and she quit the squad.”, she sighed obviously saddened, “A few days before she died, I walked on on her cutting herself and crying in the bathroom. She begged me not to tell anyone, and I agreed. She said that she was getting better and that she was talking to people about it. I guess I was wrong. When I heard the news, I wished there was something I could’ve done, but I don’t have any magic powers to make everything better. I’m just glad that those stupid jerks are getting what they deserve.” Venom began to fill the young girl’s voice.

“Those boys are bastard heart-breakers, and I think they have earned every punishment they have received. I just hope the other two suffer just as much.”

“Diane!” snapped Minerva, “You take that back right now.”

“No!” cried Diane, “Those boys hurt at least half of the senior girls, and I know for a fact that Taylor wasn’t the only one to start cutting because of their cruelty. I’m just glad justice is finally being served.”

Sam cleared his throat, “You do realize that you’re not helping yourself here? I don’t think you committed these murders, but other people will think differently. So please, can you tell us if anyone at the school would have acted on Taylor’s suicide? It would really help the investigation.”

Diane huffed, “Fine. I don’t think any of the people at school would have done anything like this, but I know that everyone single one of the girls at school are happy that this is happening. They deserve it after what they did to me!”

Diane stopped short as if realizing what she just said. “I don’t mean me, I mean, uh,..Well look at that we’re home. Have a nice day agents!” With that, she ran out of the car and into the run down apartment building.

Minerva was still in the car shell-shocked. “My sister...she was hurt by those bastards?” She started to shake, and hurriedly unbuckled, “I’m sorry gentlemen, but if you wish to speak with us again, you’ll need a warrant. Good luck with your investigation.” She left quickly, her hair bouncing as she ran after her distressed sister.

After much deliberation, the brothers decided to salt and burn Taylor’s body. If the information from Diane was correct, nobody from the school would actually have the guts to do these grizzly murders. The next day, they learned that they had gotten muddy for nothing. One of the last two boys had gotten the same treatment as the others.

“I just don’t know man”, said Dean, “I really don’t think any of the girls would have the guts or means to do this. And if they did, it probably wasn’t a demon or witch, since they don’t think they exist.”

Sam rubbed his eyes, “I know that these guys are jerks, but the police aren’t going to catch the killer, even if they are human. I think our best bet is to check out this Diane person. She wasn’t on the coroner’s list, and she said that at least half the girls in the senior class were hurt by these boys. I think we should check her apartment for any demon or witch activity, and see if we can’t find out more about these girls.”

And so they did. That night, the brothers sneaked into the apartment after the lights were out, around 2 AM. It was going pretty well, until Dean walked into the kitchen and stumbled into a kid.

The little girl was looked to be about ten years old, with dirty blonde hair, sky blue eyes, and a chubby face. There were a few seconds of silence before she opened her mouth and screamed louder than a siren.

A loud crash was heard in a couple of places, which was soon accompanied by Minerva and Diane running through one door, and Sam by the other. When their siblings appeared, they both retreated to their respective family.

Minnie stepped in front of the two younger girls protectively, “Listen, I swear we don’t have anything valuable here. Just leave before we call the real police okay?”

“Shut up witch!” cried Sam, “I saw your supplies in the living room, don’t pretend.”

Minnie straightened, obviously startled. “Gosh, I knew you weren’t real FBI, but hunters!”, she shook her head, “This is bad. My warning stays the same, leave before I charge you with breaking and entering.”

“Yeah right”, said Dean. “We’ve dealt with too many witches to leave you alone. Now if you burn all your supplies and turn yourself in, we’ll leave your sisters alone.”

“No!” cried the little blonde. She began to run straight at Dean, fists raised in anger. “Leave my sister alone! She’s a nice witch!”

“Sammy, NO!” Minnie threw her hands forward, sending Sam and Dean crashing against the wall, breaking a few chairs on the way. She grabbed her little sister and handed her to Diane. “Leave my sisters alone! I don’t know what you think I did, but I only use my magic for protection. I swear. Please just leave us alone.”

Tears were streaming down the blonde’s face. “You are mean, mean men. Leave us alone. She’s a nice witch!”

Sam stood up on shaky legs. Something about these girls made him think of his brother, and he knew that Minerva would do anything to protect her sisters. It would be best to act nice for now. “We won’t turn you in okay. I believe you, but that doesn’t mean we trust you.”

“Sam!” snapped Dean, “What the hell? She’s a witch. The less of them on this planet, the better.”

“Shut up Dean.” hissed Sam. “Listen lady, how about we put our weapons down, and you can tell us what’s going on here, okay?”

Minnie slowly lowered her hands. “Fine, but Diane gets one of your guns, and Sammy goes upstairs. Okay?”

Dean looked puzzled “Why in the world would my brother go upstairs?”

Diane rolled her eyes, “Our sister dummkopf. Her name is Samantha, but we call her Sammy.”

Samantha added, “And I don’t like it”

Sam snorted, “That makes two of us kid. And we accept you deal.”

After exchanging guns and dragging the little girl to bed, it was time to get down to business. They all stood there, waiting for the other to do something first, the silence thickening like a dense fog.

Finally Minerva broke the silence, “So, are we gonna get this party started or what? Have a seat boys.” With a wave of her hand, the chairs that broke on the Winchester’s landing repaired themselves. “We have a long night ahead of us.”

Continued in Part 2. Don’t forget to re-blog and like!

P.S. Dummkopf means stupid-head in German.

[elizabethrobertajones]

12x09 watching notes

Oh no we haven't even talked expectations...

Well, it's Dabb, and despite spending hiatus working through the apocalpyse arc and season 6 and therefore picking up mooost of the weirder episodes with his name on (oh dear, still got Becky to come) his later episodes are all like, islands among nonsense at times and I still trust him despite the ridiculousness of the plot twists this season. Normally he seems to act like clean up crew to Buckleming but he IS steering the boat now so he's cleaning up something HE was in charge of... :P Also a brave decision to sneak in an episode in the middle of the season - though Carver had other engagements while Dabb, like Gamble and Kripke, appears to have nothing else going on in his life except Supernatural so can spare the time to write an episode I guess :P

(Seriously, look him up on IMDB)

Anyway. I'm expecting a good, inoffensive episode by someone who loves the show, and will maybe let us in a bit on where he thinks he's going. Pre-episode interviews stressed clearing up Lucifer to get back to the BMoL stuff, which I think is wise. These are all very human power structures as the enemy now, whether it's the govt. stuff, or the secret magical society on their asses, and honorary Winchester, Cas, is probably in the most danger from them. I keep having flashbacks to that bit in Splash where they have the poor mermaid in a tank, which I am assuming is what the BMoL would do if they got their hands on an angel.

Let Cas return to the sea :<

-

I am also very tired and have migraine blech bisecting my vision so there's a good start

-

The recap basically tells us nothing exciting with the editing. Season 12 so far happened. I can't identify the song. Moving on :P

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I like the menu next to Mary says "FREE* Coffee refills!" - Freedom is in trouble here :P

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I hope this is the "I'm scared and alone - can you come get me mom?" phonecall from Cas

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Well it's Cas...

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I really don't understand this vs the promo because Cas appears not to have been waiting for like, six weeks or whatever. He's still standing at the motel where everything went pear shaped. He sounds suitably distressed for "it's been fifteen minutes and I'm sort of concerned" - I love that Cas stammering over it is immediately showing he's really out of his depth. He's been faking it all season but he's as messed up as ever and he doesn't have answers here. This is such a messed up situation and he doesn't know what to do, and he immediately starts to fall apart a bit.

This IS a much better opening than I was expecting because I was bracing myself for the 6 weeks passing bullshit forgetting Cas and Mary exist, and leaping right in with Sam and Dean until like, 15 minutes into the episode. So I have to award a few points right away for that, and I'm starting to think I have been emotionally injured by Carver era despite thinking I was doing very well to stay afloat above the deep seas of Cas bitterness :P Got to remember that Dabb loves Cas. I'll get a tattoo or something.

If this means a horrible time passing montage with Cas & Mary in a lil bit I'm not sure I can hack it :P

Bonus thought - this puts Cas and Mary first, who of course have been on the same emotional arc all season and is now throwing them at the same problem, they can deal with together, so from the moment Cas catches Mary up to all the plot nonsense she's missed, they're running absolutely parallel, so the compare and contrast will be delicious. They've only had a couple of meaningful conversations so working on their dynamic will be really interesting. Opening the episode like this prioritises them by stopping them from being lost in what will assumedly take up more of the story's emotional energy in the Sam n Dean stuff, as well as giving us a pre-emptive reminder that they're the family out there who will be looking for Sam and Dean - and the family that Sam and Dean will be missing in turn.

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"Sam and Dean Winchester attempted to kill the President of the United States." "... oh. ... Do we know why?"

Pfft.

Hey if you can't laugh about it you're not enjoying making the show any more.

I know this guy from the promo last night is the one who sticks Sam n Dean in isolation, but the scariness is yet to be sold on us. Immediate impression from that little exchange, is he's a guy with folders on his desk catching himself up (so not an enemy like Victor was back in season 2/3, or Toni was with her moodboard about them, or any other villains who already knew and were out to get them) and therefore he's got a certain "just doing my job" guy who sits at a desk vibe, which is exactly how they introduced Zach to us in 4x17 by showing him in the office heirarchy before the Heaven one... As it is in Heaven... I'm guessing these are the muggle versions of the angels, especially since they're all wearing suits and stuff, and are the behind the scenes, very powerful desk-sitters like Zach or Naomi would have been to Michael, so this guy and the secret service dude are to the President. Zach told us his greatest reason they should be scared of him is because he was petty, not because he was powerful, and when it comes to due process, pissing off the people in charge and inspiring them to be mean to you as petty retaliation is a great way to ruin your own week :P

(Sam and Dean have the advantage they are being held unjustly and genuinely did not try to kill the President, but this also works against them because in this society the very fact of being held by Muggles over a supernatural misunderstanding is a problem. They can't explain WHY they were there and generally all round they have an impossible situation because of their job vs what the rest of the world thinks. Of course secret service dude has been told by Lucifer they're religious whackjobs who thought Prezifer was, hahaha, possessed by Lucifer. Throw in years of issues with law enforcement, not being believed, and how they were raised to behave towards the law and in self-preservation or for protecting the family/their secrets, Sam and Dean have it hammered into them not to talk. Only something like ghost attacks or demons possessing their pursuer have cleared up this problem before - if they can't demonstrate that the supernatural is a real problem and they deal with it, they have NO story whatsoever. I might be wrong and Dabb has something great to pull out of his sleeve, for them to explain away what they're doing, but I'm guessing their silence when questioned really says it all... or not. :P)

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"Quiet types. Okay."

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hehehe them saying Mary is deceased. Oh boy you're wrong there - I hope it comes back to bite them, as it did the BMoL earlier this season. No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!

Listing their family as Sam n Dean, Mary and John also has a weird imbalance that 3 of those are alive, but the 4th is now Cas, nominally a 3rd brother, and being also unknown to the authorities (while the BMoL had "Cassiel" on the board because they can allow for angels to exist)... I guess he flies even lower on the radar.

I would be quite amused if they had random security footage and "known associates - Jimmy Novak??? for some reason???? who is this guy??????"

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Ahahahaha the clarification on "the same corpse?"

it matters.

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Sam and Dean share an obligatory soulful look (well, Dean looks mournfully at Sam who is just scowling at the door) before being shoved into cells carefully separate from each other by at least 1 empty cell. Good thinking.

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All this said, it's really interesting to know what is and isn't on the public record - for Muggles or not - for the Winchesters. Though we saw Toni's moodboard back in 11x23 it still counts as being part of this story, since it was all just the seeds for what happens this season with the BMoL, and we see stuff like them not having good records on the Campbells, not knowing who Cassiel is... Having a lot of grapevine info but incomplete pictures and understanding of it. The government knows even less, despite multiple investigations, as every time law enforcement hit on the truth, they suddenly become extremely unwilling to file accurate paperwork. The detail of the grave desecrations is the most troubling, the thing that sets them aside from regular weirdoes as being serial killers with a clear Thing that makes all their activities so hard to understand and worth commenting on, and it's always interesting to watch the Proper Authorities get all weird about that :P

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Hard to tell at this point if Secret Security dude's response to them being "the tip of some nasty ass iceberg" is scepticism or he is genuinely out to get them representing some threat like Lucifer or Hell in general. He does suggest immediately killing them, which sounds a lot like someone with a once in a lifetime opportunity to get rid of the Winchesters by surprisingly conventional, easy means, or he could just be really into taking an early lunch and thinking Sam and Dean aren't worth the paperwork :P

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Now we have context on this guy, he seems somewhat more... idk, less threatening. Especially as he wants to keep them alive he's now technically in their corner even if he thinks they have info. He's not incompetent and he's not on their side, but it all adds up to make it clear he's SO much not the worst thing they've ever encountered. His mistaken beliefs about what groups they may represent add to his dramatic irony-laden out of his depth-ness, but his interest in interrogating them is a best case scenario when the other is having them shot out back...

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He threatens them with "nothing" as a way to get them to talk, which is ironic considering they literally have nothing that they can say and they're trapped by that nothing.

bring on the Empty metaphor.

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this also like 2x07 establishes that sort of parallel closeness between Sam and Dean by parallel experiences, this time having him give the exact same speech to the both of them. He doesn't try to get all personal like Victor did, digging in about their father to Dean, or Linda Blair did to Sam in 2x07, telling him he's smart and just being dragged along by his big brother and still has a chance for a life and college and all that if he talks. Same speech for them both - which is again a good sign he doesn't really know how to deal with them, and also says he's working off past experience of it working. I suppose this is all riding off of 2x07's success as an episode by having Sam and Dean separated, but they react differently to these words, while the man reciting them doesn't change. He is inflexible - Sam and Dean have their own ways to react to the scenario.

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Not sure if Sam showing visible nerves is worse than Dean's blankness covering over what's going on underneath...

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We ALSO get Sam's reaction to the door closing with a big flinch - paralleling Mary leaving I guess - while we get the door closing ON Dean hiding him from us, covering him up... Yeah, their differences are on display here

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Woah title card. You're a bit late :P Forgot we hadn't seen you.

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Unlike Bucklemming pacing disasters, they needed Cas n Mary up first as I was saying, but Sam n Dean are the cliffhanger to break on, that the end of the Cas n Mary scene just didn't have the ooomph for, so...

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Oh god it's Mick and he has a typewriter. I think I've dated this man.

Well, he's the aggregate of the Irish hipster I crushed on at uni and the... Bognor Regis... hipster I crushed on later.

tl;dr what a douchebag

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It's probably gonna be a magic typewriter and I'm trying to remember if it was JUST Fringe or if there was something I watched more recently that ALSO had a magic type writer to send reports home and basically this is going to be borrowed from somewhere or other unless he really does just like typing his reports on a typewriter, in which case see above: do not date this douchebag

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I like his ring though

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Lizzy, no.

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Oh hey it is the typewriter from Fringe/wherever I saw it more recently

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Am fighting a suspicion that was just Metatron's typewriter from when I recently watched 9x18

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Which makes an interesting parallel because he then talks directly into the camera ("let me paint you a picture" / "let me tell you a story"), trying to sell a story to this rando hunter, but obviously not doing well. His story is one of failure :P The talking directly into the camera is of course something that works to make it look like the character is talking directly to the audience. Knowingly in Metatron's case, but in this case Mick is just trying to talk to what we're being given as an example of any of the hunters he's talked to. We're on their side, because the BMoL clearly suck and we've been set up to root for the American hunters' way of life, which has a lot of freedom going for it, and this show is inherently anti-establishment, so if we've been following along this far we know to instinctively distrust a business proposition like this.

"all we're asking is that you go where you're told and do what you're told. for the greater good." See, they're anti-freedom, and throwing in the mantra from Hot Fuzz, aka a classic of British cinema... (for anyone who hasn't seen it, the village neighbourhood watch becomes a creepy cult, chanting "the greater good" for justifying murdering anyone who ruins the village and gets in the way of them winning the village of the year competition - like the BMoL, Sanford Neighbourhood Watch want the village under an iron grip where no one steps out of line or doesn't act always in the best interest of the village. They have everyone under constant surveillance and there's a lot of sneaky social commentary in there, just like the BMoL who have the country on lockdown from monsters and anything that will ruin the rustic aesthetic :P

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And the American hunter replies about how they "ain't looking to take any orders from anyone" - and judges Mike for his soft hands :P

(This whole cowboy hunter mentality rejecting foreign regulation does probably have some unfortunate implications in the current political climate, but this is an attitude at the core of the show that goes back to 2005, so may just be bad timing >.>)

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Love the transition from Mick to Cas n Mary; we don't know what Mick knows about this, but then Cas and Mary don't know all that much either about where Dean and Sam actually are and what happened to them after they were last seen alive. But we transition in with Mick apparently about to write about Sam and Dean, and we get this scene about how Cas and Mary don't know anything, so.

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Oh no Cas is looking tortured. Mary opens with "You LEFT them" which is immediately horrible to hear :P Her right to be protective I guess but *clusters around Cas and hugs him*

Oh Cas no you're so stammery. Someone help him :<

This is especially awful after watching so much of season 5 & 6 lately, and getting used to snappy, angry and totally sure of himself season 6 Cas. Like, yeah, the character benefit in the long run from softening him up is great, but aaargh this is like being dunked in ice cold water :P This is the same character who stared down Soulless Sam threatning to kill him and said, "Will you, BOY". He's so broken.

*pauses on Cas looking miserable after Mary tells him to stop making excuses* :<

She doesn't knooow that he tries his best and he's, well, NOT the great powerful Castiel that once was. She didn't even KNOW that Cas but Dean's vouching for him possibly over-sold Cas because DEAN hasn't realised how fragile Cas is these days either.

I don't wanna keep watching this argument :P

(This reminds me of 11x06 where Dean and Cas were angry with each other for letting Metatron and Amara go, respectively, only now Mary is upset with Cas for losing basically everything at once, and he has to just stand there and take it :P)

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"If they needed help, why didn't they call me?" and there's the real reason Mary's so upset. That she only finds out after the fact from Cas that ANY of this had been going on. Haven't hit play yet after that line but not 100% sure Mary even knew about Lucifer.

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I love how without Sam and Dean around the Bunker is dark like, okay, it's symbolic of them being gone and all, but it's also really funny like Mary and Cas don't know where the light switches are and only worked out how to turn the map table on, and like, good enough, we have more important things to worry about.

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Like Cas saying "you were out" which punts more back at Mary that her leaving to find herself is now being equally to leaving Sam and Dean to their fate.

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I mean we all know Buckleming are to blame here, and then probably just Fate who is still pissed at them (Yeah I watched 6x17 a couple of days ago :P) and then if not any of that, bad luck and non-apportioned blame for bad decisions.

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"How did we let this happen, Castiel?" Okay the "Mary calling Cas "Castiel" gifset got more tragic. Also this brief argument also manages to smooth this out so with this line she's making it clear she understands that if either of them to blame, they're both to blame.

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we're 10 minutes in and Dean might finally do something on screen other than sit or walk silently.

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Hahahahahaha he has a loose screw

on the nose much

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He gets steak here. Not bad.

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Well, again going back to season 2, 2x19 Dean was great with the prison food, Sam not so much. Sam can't even take the smell of it and Dean not only tastes it but gives it a "not so bad" shrug. So much meta was already written about them and food in relation to that episode I guess it doesn't need a whole lot of repeating here about what it implies about their characters, but I really like the consistency across 10 years of the show.

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The real question is, does Dean's hair actually grow.

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Love the transition from crappy prison food to Crowley's drink.

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Ooh an El Sol.

It ends up behind Crowley while Cas has a tequila sign behind him.

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"Do you even care that they're gone?" I like that Cas sounds a bit more like himself (nothing like having Crowley around to make Cas scowly and clearly feel like he's a superior lifeform :P)

But yeah - Cas assumes Crowley might care. Cas betrays his OWN caring by saying that, like it should be obvious they care enough to do something about it.

Crowley has apparently already found out what he can about it before Cas came asking, so that MIGHT betray his caring, and he's already drinking his favourite drink, which has Drowley connotations all around it. Is this why there's an El Sol - he's lying about that?

"Do you know how many all-powerful beings have tried to kill them?" "Roughly, yes." Honestly, I feel like there's a newsletter.

Crowley comparing the Winchesters to herpes and suggesting that someone "has" them with a double meaning is probably my favourite thing this season :P Especially when you've been binge watching several seasons recently, following all the minor and big time villains the Winchester work through... Yeah :P

Cas's "wtf Crowley" face gives me life.

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AAAH Mary is in Dean's seat at the table red alert she's at that table

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Oh crap she's doing like, a reverse Amara - lured to Dean's room by a ringing phone, we see her walk through the Bunker corridors on the way there and she goes a-snooping... Well, to find the phone. Anyway. AAAH Dean's room. Aaaaaaah outside eyes on it. Aaaaaaaaaaaah how in multiple occasions that's been used to show Mary as the heart of the room (10x03, 10x22, 11x22, off the top of my head) after Dean put her pic there (hi Dabb in 8x14)... Now MARY is the one going in the room.

I'm all overcome with Mary feels and not sure I can hack seeing her in Dean's room.

Aaaaaand she found the pic of herself and Dean

*slides out of my chair*

(Also aawwww Alicia! She and Max continue to exist outside the narrow window of their episode I AM SO HAPPY)

(Please don't get eaten by werewolves off-screen, that would literally be the worst way for you to come back ever)

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Mary, stop being emo and go help

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yay!

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Did they just show Dean shaving himself to explain his hair if he has access to clippers because

i mean i'm not complaining i just...

Dabb let me throw scrunched up bits of paper at you. I don't know any other way to be.

leave me a meaningless little plothole to fixate over

just one?

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"Listen, team. Lizbob Jones will be watching this episode. I have suffered too much indignity at her hands. You are now all on plothole duty. No stone is too meaningless and silly to turn"

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Sam and Dean montaging doesn't give me a lot to work with :P

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*returns after watching 6x19, 6x20, 6x21 and 6x22*

As you might guess I am Not Okay and I now have to go rewatch the start of the episode and deal with Miserable Season 12 Cas when the last image burned into my retinas is Godstiel

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This is surreal. :P I just saw Sam Smith as Eve, and Sam taking on his Hell memories and now the recap is all hi Mary, and Sam like "I've been tortured by the devil himself" and I know JUST how much he means it.

Jesus christ the font of the diner Mary's in looks like the one Eve was parked in

Mary looks so much younger than she did in season 6 because of the hair

I am considering cutting my fringe (bangs for Americans) again

Also the end of season 6 takes place in Kansas - my mum and I were talking about how everything takes place in Kansas when it's important.

I have just remembered Mary said in 12x06 she had been in Lawrence, so she is definitely going in circles now since she's back in Lawrence, moping, which means she has pretty much reached the end of her rope on places to go

wow Dean's face is so much longer and sharper than it was in season 6. Well, he was especially round-faced in season 6-8, but... Yeah, he looks so different.

Sam is also way more angular. I miss his hair and sideburns from season 6.

... God that scene where they're told they're being left alone is peak performing!Dean

I still don't get the typewriter thing unless this is like govt. offices using Windows XP still because it's more secure and all the systems work with it... the MoL invented this typewriter and now use it for all their correspondance because, well, the whole thing is set up to work properly. Field reports come in and you can file them as they are. I assume it's so arcane and outdated no one can imagine you'd actually still be using something like that when email exists.

Mick saying he never hunted anything makes me kinda want him to have to do a MotW with Sam n Dean and to just scream like a girl when a ghostie comes for him.

he's obscenely stubbled.

*resumes petting Cas's hair* Can Winchesters just... stop... shouting at him and questioning his choices? He's had a very tough week. His sad face hurts.

"You were out" definitely sounds more sympathetic this time around because I've heard a lot of tones of voices from Cas playing sorry and actually feeling like crap.

The "chow time" unseen extra is definitely my favourite character in this episode.

I know we went over Dean's eye twitch ages ago but AAAAH

CAS NO DON'T GO ASK CROWLEY FOR HELP

I can't believe they're still hanging out after everything ever. I mean. We need to appreciate Cas n Crowley more.

Cas's look. He's like... I could have exploded him when I had the chance. Why did I let him go. Why. I smushed Raphael like it was nothing.

Oh yeah Lisa had a ring design necklace in 6x21 which is funny now Mary.

Alicia is the first character who is not surprised that Mary would answer the phone instead...

Aaaand I'm back. That was so much quicker without having to comment in detail.

I still don't know why Dean decided to sit on the toilet with a blanket

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Oh no now Cas and Mary are drinking and comisserating about how awful they are. Please stop :P

Cas feeling like he should have stayed with Sam and Dean is awful, but also pretty funny because he'd have been arrested and that changes the entire tone of this episode imagining them trying to have him in prison with them

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Cas counting the hours while we've seen Dean counting the days... Yeah, that sucks :P

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Are Cas and Mary going to go hunting? I love how Mary just has not had time to get used to Cas yet - she tries to reassure him like "we're doing our best" and he's like "no"

You two should go work a case together.

Go do it.

Stop reminiscing and go save people.

Oh shit no he already went

CAS :<

"I don't know what I did wrong" and I have to pause it to collect myself because I have ingested waaaaaaay over the legal limit of Cas angst today. I'm taking my Cas!funko down from the shelf to hug. Brb.

This also parallels them working cases in this time; I should hit play to see what the verdict is.

Oh Cas.

I've just had it paused with nothing to say but I have been sitting here staring at Cas's face.

I kind of feel like a miserable Cas girl is not the right person to analyse the horror of Cas saying he ran away, but I've been thinking vividly about 6x20, and how Cas says "I was me again" and then he's not Cas for like... another season or two. And when he takes on Sam's hell memories, and he's all "don't like conflict" and runs away and -

mmmmhm. nope. nah. I'm out.

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If Cas cries I might go to bed and watch this tomorrow :P

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AND MARY OFFERS TO GO WITH HIM AND HELP. MARY I LOVE YOU

LOOK AFTER MY CAS FOR ME

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Cas no you can't tell her that you'll only get in her way :< :< :<

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Cas feels so useless and it's terrible

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side note: now I'm staring at the hand of the "chow time" character and not Cas's face... I really really really appreciate what was starting to seem like a dropped storyline of Cas's mental health issues being brought back into the main text, because after early/mid season 11 I answered a hell of a lot of asks about this reassuring people that there was no way they'd make such a big deal of this and not do anything, and then after season 11 I was like hey now Cas is free of Lucifer his story has to be about this and then it still didn't really happen yet and then Cas left and I was like great this is how we get to this part of his character arc, and we're HERE and I am delighted that the show telegraphing this plot worked out and I was right but

*takes a slice of cold processed meat from Dean's lunch tray and eats it while staring directly at Dabb*

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oh yeah btw Sam is dead or something

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Oh, Dean is too.

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I can't believe Sam and Dean invented the sport of synchronised dying

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was this because the Cas stuff was getting too grim?

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I like how the show lays them out top and tail because they don't wanna make it remotely suggestive

Sam n Dean are at a sleepover

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Oh yeah no the secret service guy totally doesn't have a personal bone to pick with Dean.

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"well that's totally mentally normal" I'm starting to really like this guy

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Cas hasn't changed his phone background since season 9 despite changing phones...

if he's listening to voicemails from Dean I'm going to scream

Oh thank god it's Mary

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I mean. Fuck.

Caaas

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I had a point somewhere or other about Cas and Mary's journies being paralleled over this time and I was meaning to make a comment about them hunting over this time because it seemed like the simplest side to side comparison of how they're dealing... Then of course Cas completely went to pieces, ran away... Mary is clearly in a terrible place too but she has coping methods and is able to hunt and repress and keep herself going, very Dean-like. Cas is... well, going into this fucked up in a way even Mary can't reach for all the adjusting she has still to do; Cas has at least, say, five to six seasons worth of trauma and it's been worse than usual lately because it's been catching up to him and he's not been able to deal in time before the next thing. End of season 10/start of 11 really piled it on and started the PTSD thing openly, and here we are - something terrible happens and Cas completely shatters. >.>

At this point I feel so terrible for Cas I've pretty much transcended any Destiel points scoring I would have made about his sadness being more overt than Mary's, because I signed up for the lite version of this episode :P

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Hey Dean now you're awake and not dead, go save your angel from himself.

He's literally in such a better place, and he has Sam with him and they're cool - their only problem is getting the fuck out of here, plus minor, throw-it-on-the-trauma-pile stuff to deal with their time in isolation. And they've had a plan for a little while and are in the middle of enacting it and appear to have been able to communicate, so :P Ball's in Dean's court now. We see Mary keeping her chin up, Sam and Dean rescuing their own damn selves (though - halfway point of the episode), and... Cas crumbling.

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sue me now I'm with Dean again I'm just like, you know what, this is the perfect episode to end with a Destiel snog.

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I can't remember what shirt Dean was wearing when they were caught but I assume they're not getting it back. I wonder if it would be one we'll miss.

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Yes I am aware that the next thing appears to be the phonecall we were teased SO long ago and no I do not want to watch it :P

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I think Dean wearing a plain grey shirt is always a bad sign because he has an endless supply of them and keeps like, leaving them on doomed submarines and stuff

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It has been raining for like the entire episode

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Oh good Cas isn't answering. Love the parallel AGAIN with Cas and Mary this time with the dark library with one lamp on - Mary sat here at the start of 12x03 while soul-searching and reading John's journal. Now Cas's phone with Dean calling is in the same place. (And also Mary is summoned across the Bunker to Alicia and more work - Cas when he assumedly eventually answers because I have been spoiled that there IS a phone call... comes to answer Dean.)

Honestly though, Dean keeps calling Cas instead of trying another number... Has he just not memorised any others?

Is Cas in Dean's room sniffing his pillow?

hit play again, Lizzy

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Cas's voice cracked and I'm going to go lie on the ground outside the house

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Cas's fucked up fake heaven in 9x22 was in Colarado... He's gonna find Dean there now

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Mary is still killing shit to make herself feel better

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Someone telling Cas to "slow down" - WOW. When does Cas EVER speak fast?

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Poor morgue guy in his morgue drawer.

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"hey"

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This is why I love Dabb

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"You got here quickly" "Yup"

"Seatbelt on. I drive fast"

LET MARY DRIVE THE FUCKING IMPALA

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In between that, she vetoes the King of Hell as back up because they can do better than that and this is why she is good and important and I love her

-

Also she's speeding my OTP towards each other at top speed

-

Cas knows all about seatbelts.

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I love how the guy from the facility is wheezing and out of breath. He's a weirdly human character for minimal screentime. A+ writing and acting.

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Oh hey Cas and Mary seem to be near/in the woods already

And Mick and Mr Ketch looking smug and yeah I agree with comments on the promo pics - sort of married. Full on smug about being asked to help.

Mick's problem with telling the other hunters he's there with help and resources is that they don't get into such epically fucked up situations as the winchesters and need to call for ridiculous back up. You're letting the whole side down.

Mary sassing Cas about who he phones for help gives me life, but now is not the time, Mary.

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She's so like Dean and I love her

-

Except she apparently got hold of a better version of her car from the past :P

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Mary, do not fall for Mick's rugged good looks, I'm warning you, he's a douchebag and probably drinks like a whole bottle of wine every night because he thinks alcoholism is cool

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But their reaction to the whole Lucifer thing was hilarious. The MoL geniunely don't know what they're dealing with when it comes to the Winchesters and the level they work on. Cas just like, yes to knowing lucifer and yes to winning against him now can we get to business? :P

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"Do you have any idea the sort of trouble we're walking into?"

NOW Cas says "no" after all that Lucifer hilarity.

"Oh i do like a surprise" Mr Ketch trust me you are not ready :P

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update: also want him to scream and cry before this is over

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When Dean tells the guy there's been a "failure to communicate" I am pretty sure that is the exact moment his screw goes loose - after that, saying they're trapped in the woods with him... Yeah, we're in Purgatory now.

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I was going to make a comment about him being a woodsman anyway before that, but yeah now

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OH LOOK ABANDONED CABIN

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Something terrible clearly happened here.

-

I love that one bit of Dean's hair at the front that always goes down

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Oh NOW Sam talks and tells them everything :P

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I've just noticed there's finally not much of this episode left now that I've managed to watch a good long action- sequence. Sam and Dean still haven't talked about what they did to get out of here and the whole thing screams Billie (Red Meat from last season, especially, but both of them doing their synchronised dying instead of trading back and forth) so I feel worried they've incurred a group debt here, whatever they've done. Likewise Cas and Mary are working with the BMoL for better or worse, sooo... I guess mild consequences ensue?

I say mild, I just watched 6x20 in the last couple of hours, consequences don't really... mean very much any more after that :P

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"We're the guys that saved the world" Oh that is definitel being used in the Road So Far Montage at the end of the season. There is almost no reason to have that line aside from gratuitous re-use

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While I was typing that Dean stumbled out of the treeline in front of Cas and I'm not ready :P

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Dean too stunned to hug, Sam goes for it.

Dean probably still double checking he's not hallucinating until Sam interacts and proves he sees Cas too

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Mom's there and Dean's already messed up once this season, so thumping Cas's back and "hey buddy" is is :P

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I assume this is also to make Cas feel bad especially because we get a shot of Cas looking bad.

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I just watched the hug 3 more times (Sam's hug. Where Dean's still processing in the background)

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"Space" *dabb puts a coin in the jar*

-

Oh dear, the ethics of slaughtering everyone who mildly inconveniences you.

Mr Ketch must be a dick on the Tube.

-

"This man was holding up the barrier because his Oyster card was still in his pocket"

"I assume you killed him"

"Naturally"

"innit"

*Mick and Ketch clink their glasses of red wine together while reclining in corduroy pyjamas in their flat*

-

The fact there are a full 5 minutes left is extremely worrying. A lot can happen in five minutes on this show.

-

The most alarming thing I realise is with 5 minutes to spare, Dabb gave absolutely no car continuity issues which were SO bananas they broke immersion

-

Oh my god Dean and Cas are sitting together in the back

They're holding hands I guess

-

Oh dear this is why electric cars are a bad idea

-

Is Billie going to come reap them?

-

Hey Billie.

I saw you coming from a mile but

-

I can't work out what they dealt with because I am assuming they're NOT TRADING MARY for their freedom? They would NOT do that.

-

That is the dumbest deal a Winchester has cut to date.

-

Also the fact Cas didn't cut in "I'm a Winchester" because he secretly married Dean is like... wow Cas. You're such a fake friend.

-

also they now appear to be ACCIDENTALLY trading Mary for their freedom because she's all decisive and Sam n Dean are too slow and emo to say stuff in good time.

-

*insert a minute of unbroken screaming*

-

Okay, so I will forgive Cas for not being a Winchester for the fact he stopped this

I am very conflicted about the backstabbing I've witnessed Cas do today.

-

"Cas what have you done" "What had to be done" Oh hello again.

This episode is like Red Meat but turned upside down and shaken for thigs to scavenge into a plot episode.

-

The worst part about this is that Cas can't marry Dean and take his last name now or he'd be a Winchester and therefore liable to the latest Winchester Family Curse they all brought on themselves.

It's like the COLLECT fucking family curses

-

It's been five minutes and I already miss Billie intensely

-

Oh no and this is Cas's speech about the world needing them

He's the family guardian angel, as he said... back in... 6x20.

OH SHIT HE'S CRYING.

Dean is crying too.

They're all crying.

Someone get this family some fucking therapy.

-

Cas being bitchy about saving them already, because wow he's in a bad place and Dean needs to chase after him and kiss him now k thnks

-

he's not actually walked away yet but I paused it at the place that in season 6 Cas would have flapped away so I assume when we hit play he's going to stand there awkwardly and then say, "I need a ride"

-

"Sorry about the family curse"

-

Oh shit Mick's been writing the whole time - this is going to need some serious meta beyond what I churned out earlier, comparing him to the other writer characters, because you can't use typing out the story as a framing device on this show and NOT have it come back to Metatron or others who've tried to control the narrative. Now the BMoL want to control the narrative, and, well, good luck to them, the other poor bastards who tried needed more than that :P

-

Aw noooo not the morgue guy. I liked him. :< Or "Chow time" guy. He deserved better.

-

Fucking Mr Ketch. What a dick. First Magda then these hilarious side characters.

-

None of whom I ever learned the name for but oh well :P

-

Mick is as bad a typist as Metatron

-

He's still trying his "let me paint a picture" thing again. Who's he talking to now? Better not

- oh yeah, it's Mary.

of course it is. Now Dean and Sam are isolated from Cas and Mary - their paralleled experience lead to the same place in THAT respect but this time, Mary seems to have that belonging with Sam and Dean (nothing like entering into a death pact together to forge bonds) but to protect that she's willing to listen and do anything to stop things like death pacts ever happening again. Which means accepting Mick's offer and getting in with the BMoL without knowing for sure that they're AS horrible as they are. The whole mother's love thing - new territory for the show to have it as an actual dangerous wild card force that has just as many dangers as the other sorts of loves they explore, instead of being an abstract concept...

Cas is the more pragmatic one who would kill for the family but was NOT allowed to demonstrate he'd kill HIMSELF for them. His issues were all over the place this episode and now are obviously a thing in his story again after a little holiday where they were shevled... But it's taken him away from them. He loves them so strongly but clearly felt his actions were being judged, or that by inviting cosmic repercussions (the old "did what I had to do") instead of allowing Winchesters to die, he's perpetuating the cycle this time by not wanting ANY of them to die.

(Cas would have the Gordion knot solution to this >.>) (I miss Billie)

But yeah, preserving the family unit and speaking reverently of the Winchesters as a unit further serves to isolate him from them and have him looking in on them. His pissy response to their shock he did it also underlines his sense of not being appreciated, which takes him further away again... He's the unconditional love looking in on them... And since I just watched 6x20 I'll point at "watched him rake leaves" as the extreme example of where this can go when it comes to Cas saving the Winchesters on his terms...

Draaaaaaaaaaaama.

I'm sending Dabb a fruit basket.

[waywardwhiskeycat-blog]

Killing Comes Naturally

Summary: Nyx is a hunter looking to keep things simple. Until two gorgeous brothers start showing up on every hunt making a simple life...not so simple.

Words: 2604

Warnings: Swearing, eventual smut, violence

A/N: Decided to finally give this writing thing a go this has been sitting around for a few months now. there may be errors and I'm sorry if there is. please let me know what you think if I should keep going or stick to reading :p

The cold night air filled my lungs as I took a deep breath. I glanced up at the sky. There was no light out here, I had nothing but the moon to guide me back to town. I winced slightly as I stumbled over a small hole in the side of the road. My hand fell to my side feeling the warmth of my own blood seeping through my shirt. I silently cursed myself for getting into this situation in the first place.

“Son of a bitch,” I muttered under my breath. The distant purr of an engine caught my attention. I stumbled again. I could feel myself getting light headed from the blood loss. The vehicle's headlights lit up the road in front of me. I spun around pulling my jacket tighter over my bloodstained shirt. Putting on a smile I held my thumb out ignoring the pain this caused me. To my dismay, the car kept driving.

“Asshats,” I growled before taking a few steps forward. I heard the sound of tires screeching on the pavement before the dull red of reverse lights broke the darkness in front of me once again. The car pulled to a stop beside me. In the front sat two men, shrouded by the darkness. I could see even with what little light I had, they were both easy on the eyes.

“Need a ride?” The driver asked his voice sounded friendly but I could see he was annoyed. I glanced quickly at the man beside him, then to the back seat. In any other situation I would have toughed it out and kept walking but tonight I had pushed myself past my limits.

“If it's not too much of a hassle,” I said cheerfully putting on my best smile. The man gestured towards the back. I hesitated at first. Not liking the idea of being locked back there. The throbbing in my side pushed aside my concerns and I slid into the back. I sat there silently eyeing the back of both men's heads. The passenger turned to look at me a small smile on his face.

“What are you doing out here?” He had a look about him that made me relax slightly. His eyes were kind and his voice soft as though he was talking to a frightened animal. I couldn't help but smile back at him.

“Oh my asshole boyfriend took me to a party and we got into a fight.” I shrugged my shoulders at him, mentally patting myself on the back for the quick lie, “I didn't realize how far out we were. Guess he wasn't lying when he said it was a country party”

“Sorry to hear that.” He ran a hand through his long hair. I couldn't help but admire how soft it looked “you're lucky we came by, I haven't seen another car on this road.” the driver grunted in agreement. I glanced towards him, he had a gruff look to him. I couldn't deny that from what I could see he was undeniably handsome. His jaw was perfectly chiseled shadowed by a bit of scruff. I looked between the two of them wondering if I could fight them if need be. I let out a small sigh accepting that I'd probably end up losing a fight in my state. I sat back wincing slightly as the movement pulled at the bleeding wound on my side.

The rest of the ride was Quiet. No one daring to break the silence. I was relieved when I saw the town lights in the distance. I carefully shifted in the back making enough noise reminding the two strangers I was still in the back.

“Where am I dropping you off?” The driver asked looking at me through the rearview mirror. I smiled slightly less enthused as before. The pain in my side was becoming almost unbearable.

“Do you know where motel lucky is?” I asked trying to hide the pain from my voice. The passenger turned to me a little confused.

“You're at the motel? You're not a local?” He asked.

“No just in town for work.” I bit the inside of my cheek hoping he wouldn't ask any more questions. I wasn't sure how to tie my phantom boyfriend into this whole situation. He simply nodded and looked ahead once more. More uncomfortable silence filled the car.

Relief washed over me as we pulled into the motel parking lot. The driver pulled into a spot not too far from my motel room. The engine shut off and both men got out of the vehicle. I moved stiffly trying not to bloody up this strangers car. Finally out, I took a deep breath in. My vision blurred slightly causing me to stumble. I leaned forward trying to steady myself. I felt a warm hand grab my shoulder. I looked up to see the man who was driving looking at me slightly concerned. His eyes were a brilliant green. I couldn't take my eyes off him as I straightened up.

“Woah there kiddo, you alright?”

“Y-yeah no I'm dandy.” I forced out.

“Dean…” I heard the other man's voice just behind me, “Dean she's bleeding.” I looked over to the man speaking. He came closer his eyes locked onto my bloody hands. In the dark, they couldn't see it before, but here under the neon light of the motel, my hands were painted crimson. My vision began to blur once more before I felt the world slowly fade to black.

***

“Covered in blood. It was tucked in her jacket.” I groaned rolling onto my side. A sharp pain caused me to sit up quickly.

“Son of a bi-”I stopped as I noticed the two men in the room. The same ones who drove me to the motel. They both looked at me curiously. I looked at the table between them and let my head roll back letting out a sigh.

“So, you hitch a ride in the middle of the night carrying a bloodied machete and a massive gash in your side.” The green-eyed man spoke. I kept myself calm despite the panic that hit me realizing I could be in a potentially dangerous situation.

“Dean…” the other man spoke almost warning.

“No Sam I want an explanation.” He looked at me once again the anger evident in his voice, “who are you?”

“I'm no serial killer if that makes you feel better,” I muttered shifting to the edge of the bed carefully. I felt a breeze hit my bare skin. I looked down only to see my top had been cut away. My side was expertly stitched up. I looked up at the two men once again my curiosity peaked. The stitching looked good, as though whoever did it had practice.

“Oh yeah no totally normal for a person to carry around a bloody machete.” I rolled my eyes and looked for something to cover myself with. Under different circumstances, I would have probably have given the man an earful, but I was sore, exhausted and in no mood to argue with these strangers. I wanted nothing more to be in the comforts of my own motel room. I let out a sigh and stood up.

“Listen I'll explain but I'm not doing it topless.” Both men let their eyes fall down to my bare torso. The long-haired one, sam quickly turned red. I couldn't help the small smile that played on my lips as he looked around for something to cover me with. He tossed me a nearby shirt, certainly one of his just by the sheer size of it. My eyes landed on the other man, Dean. I rolled my eyes slightly as he shamelessly eyed my body.

“Get a good look?” I asked him holding my hands out to the side. He looked at me flustered for a moment, then tilted his head shooting me a cocky smile. I pulled the red plaid shirt over my arms and did up a few of the buttons. I took a deep breath id hate to admit that the smell sent a warmth through my body, there was something almost comforting about it. I turned back to both men, they were looking at me like I had a third eye. I sat down on the edge of the bed trying to come up with a good reason as to why I had a bloody machete.

“I was out hunting.” I started simply. Smiling internally at myself. It wasn't a complete lie, and these men didn't need the full truth.

“Hunting? Without a gun?” Dean crossed his arms over his chest looking at me in disbelief.

“Hey can't blame a girl for wanting a little excitement in her life.” I now had both men looking at me in disbelief. I signed and stood up throwing my hands in the air, “ listen you can believe me or not I really don't care now if you don't mind.” I moved towards the blade only to have a hand stop me. I looked up to see Dean staring me down. The intensity behind his eyes sent a chill down my spine, something about him made me nervous.

“You really think we're going to buy that?” I shrugged and pulled my hand back.

“Honestly I couldn't care less if you believed me or not, but hey thanks for the ride into town and fixing me up.” I looked at the machete one last time before turning towards the door, opting to leave the weapon there. Before they had a chance to speak anymore I swung the door open and moved towards my motel room. I felt around my pants pockets relieved to feel the key still nestled in the fabric. I pulled it out and inserted it into the door. Letting out a sigh I swung the door open. As I did I saw dean exciting his room. I flashed him a quick smile before stepping inside and closing the door.

I stood with my back to the door for a few seconds before pushing up and moving towards the duffle bag I had sitting on my bed. I rummaged through it before finding a shirt I could slide on easily, not wanting to disturb the well-done stitch job. I tossed Sam's shirt onto the bed, pulling on my own. There was a light tap on the door. I stopped moving hoping whoever it was would simply leave. Though in the back of my mind I knew it was the two men. There was a louder more aggressive knock.

“We know your still in there.” Dean's voice echoed.

“Seriously?!” I muttered annoyed. I stormed over to the door and swung it open, “you find a girl with a machete covered in blood and you still insist on following her around? And you look at me like I'm the crazy one here” I looked at the man before me in disbelief. I ran a hand over my face and sighed. I would probably do the same in his shoes. I stepped aside allowing dean into the room, Sam followed close behind. Dean's eyes shot to a table full of weaponry. I mentally cursed myself for leaving them out like that. My mind was racing once again as I tried to form a good story to stop the men from calling the cops on me.

“Real silver?” He asked holding up a dagger, I looked at him shocked and nodded, “silver bullets, wooden stakes…” he started listing off a few of the items. I started at him in disbelief.

“You're a hunter?” Sam finally spoke up cutting his brother off.

“Of a freak for weird weapons.” Dean chimed in smirking at his brother. I looked between the both of them.

“your hunters?” I repeated the same question.

“Born and raised sweetheart.” I shot him an evil glare at the nickname. I looked back at Sam. I paused for a minute looking between the two men before my eyes widened.

“Sam and Dean,” I muttered the names realization washing over me. “Oh god… please don't tell me your Sam and Dean Winchester…” Dean flashed me a wide smile almost proud that I knew him, Sam, on the other hand, looked at me sheepishly.

“Yeah. That's us.” The smile on deans faces never wavered. I ran my hand through my hair and shook my head. I had heard of the famous Winchester brothers before, they were good hunters, but I've also heard of the trouble that surrounds them. Their father was the very reason I became a hunter. I mentally slapped myself trying to fight the urge to bombard them with the emotions I felt overwhelmed me.

“Yeah… I'm a hunter.” I spoke up answering Sam's earlier question trying to forget who was standing in front of me. They both glanced at each other an unspoken conversation passing between them both.

“the vamps nest, that was you?” Dean looked at me in disbelief. I nodded still in shock. In all the stories I've heard from other hunters not once did any of them mention that the Winchester's were so good looking. Though I could have guessed as much as their father was a handsome man himself.

“You took down a whole nest alone?” Sam seemed shocked by the idea. I couldn't help the pride that filled me.

“Well yeah, I wasn't about to sit around while they turned this town into an all you can eat buffet.” Dean laughed, quickly wiping the smile from his face as our eyes met.

“Listen I'm sorry I didn't know hunters were already on the case. I don't want any trouble…” I spoke quickly, hoping now to get rid of them as soon as I could. The brothers looked at each other once again before shrugging it off.

“You shouldn't be hunting whole nests alone,” Sam said. I couldn't help but smile at the genuine concern in his eyes, “you ever have a big job like that again, give us a call.” He handed me a small card with multiple numbers on it. I stated at it for a moment before looking up at him.

“I appreciate it I really do.” I tucked the card in my back pocket and flashed the two a smile. I scanned the room unsure of what to say.

“Well, we better get going.” Dean finally spoke up. I followed them to the door of my motel room, “don't be too reckless kids. Not enough of you female hunters out there.” He winked at me and flashed me a coy smile. Despite his cocky behavior, I couldn't help the blush that spread across my cheeks.

“You two take care now.” The two walked off. I shut the door and let out a long drawn out breath. I had no issues with other hunters, it was simply the Winchester's I wanted nothing to do with. I had known John Winchester when I was younger, the man made me what I was. But the brothers were a different story. People seemed to die around the brothers, and trouble was never far behind them. Shaking my head I couldn't help but giggle silently to myself.

“Who knew two of the best hunters were also model worthy.”

I glanced over at the motel bed feeling the exhaustion from my hunt finally kick in. I threw myself into the bed relishing in the comfort of the soft mattress. My eyes traced along the ceiling before slowly growing heavy. I tried to fight the sleep a bit longer but my eyes slowly fluttered shut.

[hekate1308]

The Baggage We Carry, Chapter Nine

Read it on AO3

“Ah, just like the old days. You, me, and a disdain for the world at large”.

Dean rolled his eyes but accepted the cigarette Crowley handed him.

“Thought you were quitting”.

“It’s my first and only one this week, Squirrel”.

They were skipping geography, ostensibly against Cas’ wishes, but all in all their friend hadn’t seemed to upset.

He never missed a class, of course; meanwhile, Crowley’s attendance had steadfastly increased, although he insisted on keeping it “just under half” of their weekly lessons because he had “a reputation to uphold”.

Dean wasn’t sure whether he should mention the pictures or not. Technically, he had been snooping, and it really was none of his business what Crowley did in his room.

And quite frankly he was glad there was anything in this house that felt personal.

“Say, did your mother use an interior decorator?”

“Of course”.

“Thought so.”

He was silent.

“It’s alright, I hate it too”.

“Hey, only one and a half years to go”.

Crowley grinned.

“Can’t wait to get out of here”.

“You don’t even know what you’ll study yet”.

“I’m sure I’ll find something... whatever it will be, I doubt it’s going to be difficult.”

Dean snorted.

“For you, maybe”.

“Of course for me. As you well know, I don’t care for others”.

Again, he could have mentioned the pictures, but chose not to.

“On another topic, when are you going to ask choir boy out on a date?”

It was a bad time to inhale smoke.

He coughed for five minutes until he managed to say, “What?”

“Please. It’s obvious. Even your brother has noticed, and if I didn’t think your parents are as observant as a block of granite, I’d think they must have realized it too”.

“There’s nothing to realize”.

“Who are you trying to fool here?”

“Myself, I think” he admitted. “But even if – no. Cas would never...”

“Do you have eyes? Functioning ones? That guy is so gone on you, it’s not even funny. Didn’t you realize how jealous he was of me in the beginning?”

Dean could have sworn they’d got along quite well immediately.

“What do you mean, jealous?”

“All that squinting and tilting his head? He could tell, you know. Our little arrangement...”

“How is he supposed to – “

“God, you’re helpless. Why are we friends again?”

“You’re the one framing pictures of us!”

Now he had mentioned them after all.

“Yes I am” Crowley replied carelessly. “Doesn’t mean I can’t annoy you when I want”.

Dean sighed.

“If I’d known I signed up for another little brother – “

“I’m older than you”.

“By how much anyway? You won’t even tell me when your birthday is”.

“You wouldn’t celebrate the day either if your mother routinely just that date to drown a bottle of scotch and tell you how much she regrets the orgy you were conceived at”.

“Man, she’s a piece of work”.

He knew better than to react in any other way. Crowley didn’t want his pity.

“You have no idea. Used to fantasize how to get rid of her when I was younger. Now I just want to leave”.

Dear God, Dean thought, I think I might have saved the world from a future serial killer.

“Good for you, I don’t think they’d like a murder on a college application resume”.

“With all that back stabbing going on, they should.”

Yes, it somehow felt exactly like old times and yet it didn’t.

Because Dean had finally stopped feeling guilty about his best friend.

Cas shook his head at him when he resurfaced in their next class.

“I thought you were going to concentrate on your education”.

“You know how it is, I can’t neglect Crowley. He’d just get bad ideas”.

“Lisa was right” Cassie suddenly interjected, “You sound like a couple talking about their teenage son who’s going through a phase.”

“Crowley isn’t going through anything, I’m pretty sure he was born that way.”

Yeah, his life was definitely looking up, even with all the school work he had to do.

Especially because today, Cas nervously invited Crowley and him over for the afternoon.

“Are you sure that’s wise, angel boy? You come from a pretty saintly family, and...”

“Trust me” Cas interrupted him, resigned. “They won’t even notice who you are”.

Dean couldn’t imagine there was anyone in the world less likely to be overlooked than Cas, and he was rather curious what his parents and siblings were like, after everything he’d heard.

Their house was smaller than Crowley’s or Dean’s, but that didn’t really surprise him. There had to be a reason Cas liked to be outside so much he even made them go to the park when it rained.

“They probably won’t notice I’ve come home, but in case... They can be rather intense, guys”.

“Have you met me, Feathers?”

Crowley’s fascination with Cas’ name would never fail to amuse Dean.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine” he said, even though his throat was dry and he would have liked to hold Cas’ hand.

You’re not meeting your boyfriend’s family, for crying out loud. You’re just friends. Suck it up and be nice. They can’t be that bad, certainly.

He learned that they indeed could as soon as Cas opened the door.

“YOU ALWAYS DO WHAT FATHER TELLS YOU, HOW PATHETIC ARE YOU – “

“I AM JUST A DUTIFUL SON, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO TELL BY COMPARING US – “

“And I thought Mother could get loud if she wanted” Crowley said. Even he looked taken aback.

“Lucifer and Michael are always fighting” Cas informed them casually. “It was a bit quieter around here when they went to college, but since they moved back in – “

“THERE IS NO REASON TO – “

Something was thrown against a wall.

Good God.

“We should not go into the living room” Cas assured them as if it was no big deal.

“I’d say...” Dean agreed.

On the stairs up to Cas’ room, they met another one of his brothers, smaller than Dean and even Crowley.

“Hey, Cassie!”

Somehow, Dean had the feeling this went beyond the gentle ribbing Crowley intended when he used the nickname.

“Gabriel” he greeted him tiredly.

“Who are your friends?”

Alright, Dean didn’t want him to know his name. That mischievous glint in his eyes... And if he wasn’t wrong, there was a hint of cruelty there too that he’d weirdly never detected in Crowley of all people.

“That’s Dean and Crowley”.

“Rowena’s son?”

He clicked his tongue.

“Growing into quite the rebel, aren’t you”.

“Gabriel...”

“Wanna play our old game? How long until I annoy them enough to leave?”

Good God.

What the Hell?

“Don’t make me throw you down the stairs” Crowley said.

“Oh my God, you are adorable! Why don’t you – “

With ease, Crowley moved past Dean and punched Gabriel in the gut. While he was busy kneeling over and coughing, he said, “You wanted to show us your room, right?”

“You shouldn’t have done that” Cas said quietly, “Gabriel loves to retaliate”.

“I’m not scared. Let him try”.

Cas still looked worried but showed them his room.

It was smaller than Dean’s, but very clean. As expected, it was full of books...

And hey, wasn’t that the small stuffed bee Dean had given him two months ago as a joke after he’d learned how passionate he was about saving them?

“I had no idea you kept that”.

For some reason, Cas blushed.

“I like it”.

“Hey man, no harm done”.

A door slammed downstairs, followed by more shouting.

“Do they ever shut up?”

“My mother is very strict when it comes to fighting at the dining table”.

“I bet” Crowley said. “I always think I would have hated whatever sibling Mother might have thrown my way, but even I can’t imagine we’d be that bad”.

“Me and Sammy fight sometimes” Dean said.

“You still love one another as brothers though” Cas said matter-of-factly.

Dean could have sworn Crowley cursed under his breath.

“Yeah, well...”

“It’s alright. I know. To be honest, I am looking forward to college too”.

A knock on the door. Cas winced and for a second Dean thought Gabriel was about to enact his revenge, but instead a young woman came in.

“Castiel! Gabriel said you had friends over! Can I help you with anything, would you like something to eat and drink?”

She sounded nice enough, but there was a sort of mute desperation in her expression, as if she was forcing herself to be happily polite.

Cas eventually managed to get her to leave after repeatedly assuring her that no, they weren’t in want of anything.

“She’s either like that or completely silent” he informed them.

“Okay, I give up. Tell us the secret. How did you end up normal?” Crowley asked.

“I’m friends with you”.

“Fair enough”.

The front door closed with a bang and the shouting stopped.

“Father has come home”.

“And that means silence?” Crowley asked hopefully.

“It means he’ll go to his office to drink and try to write”.

“How do you even study in this place?”

“I barely do, I mostly sleep here”.

A good call, Dean had to admit that.

Really, he was starting to think he didn’t have it nearly as bad as he’d always believed. Sure, he’d have to stand up to his parents a little, but Cas and Crowley didn’t even have the hope that things would get better.

They had him, though, and he’d make sure they always would have.

“Man, I don’t know about you guys, but anyone wanna go grab a burger?”

“I thought you’d never ask” Crowley said and Cas gave him a small, pleased, private smile, that he only understood later when he whispered to him in the diner “Usually everyone runs away”.

“So this was a test?” he muttered back.

“No, I already knew you wouldn’t”.

Dean looked into his sparkling eyes and could have kissed him.

The next few weeks passed quietly; Dean studied and spent time with his friends and his brother.

His father was growing a bit nervous, though. Dean didn’t think he’d behaved much different at home, but he’d still noticed something was off.

“How’s the training going?” he asked that evening.

“Well, although I’m studying a lot right now”.

“Yes...” he appeared to be a little lost.

“And what are you... studying?”

“Oh, physics. I like it a lot actually, there’s...”

“Yeah, yeah, Dean, doesn’t matter, I probably wouldn’t understand it” Dad, who always let Sam ramble on, interrupted him.

“Just trying to tell you about my day” he snapped.

“That’s no way to speak to your father”.

“I was just clarifying what I said.”

He didn’t add the “sir” Dad was undoubtedly expecting, because all of a sudden he felt tired of it all. Here he was, putting in an actual effort to do well in school, and on the other side were his parents, ready to judge him and make him live his life as they saw fit instead of the other way around.

“Dean – “

“John” Mary interjected calmly, “Please. You forget he’s a teenager”.

So his feelings weren’t valid because of his age? Dean got up.

“We don’t leave the table before everyone’s done –“

“I am done, Dad”.

And he went to his room.

He should have known that this was not a good way to ensure his parents’ trust in him, especially because Gabriel Novak was still out there, seething because of Crowley’s punch.

Sam came to his room later that evening.

“Dad was pretty pissed.”

He grinned.

“It was awesome”.

“Yeah, yeah, you freaking rebel”.

And they watched a movie on Dean’s laptop.

For the next few days, they all pretended as if his outburst at dinner had never happened, and he had hopes that this would continue, until he came home one evening to find his father waiting for him, seething.

“I knew there must be a reason you’ve changed so drastically. What do I hear about you and that Crowley boy?”