#deanpov

[fightevilandthengetblownup]

FIC:  In This Town...

---

“Party City Red Hood, huh?” Jo quipped with a grin, reacting out and tapping the front of the red bike helmet the other hunter was wearing. “Or, I’ll pay that it’s a step up from that.”

There was a chuckle from somewhere behind the full helmet before he reached up and pulled it off, exposing a black domino mask across his eyes. “You’re one to talk. What are you supposed to be - Sandra Dee?” Dean’s lips quirked up into a smirk as he ran an eye over her for a moment before grinning roguishly. “Surprised you’re not running about being Batgirl.”

The blonde smiled in return, doing a little twist and bob that swung her circle skirt and petticoats about herself, before sticking out her tongue. “Sorry Deano, wasn’t lookin’ to run about in spandex tonight. I’ve gotta be able to move after all-”

“You can in that wide a skirt?” “It helps push customers out of the way at least.” “That seems true enough.”

“Speakin’ of - two beers and some fries for you and Sammy?” Jo asked cheerfully as she spotted the taller man moving to claim one of the booth seats near the doorway to the upstairs. “Tell him I’m sorry we don’t have any salads on the menu these days.”

“Oh no, you have to be the one to break that to him.” Dean smirked in response, fumbling around before throwing a few twenties on the bar top. “Guessing that’ll-”

Jo turned about back to him as she poured two beers for the both and placed them down beside the money before raising a brow. “Yeah, I’ll start a tab for you boys, but you know-”

“Nuh uh, Jo,” The surprise of hearing the other brother’s voice managed to startle both hero and bartender as Sam popped up beside his brother. His usually freed hair was tucked down under the deer stalker on his head, and he seemed to have appeared out of the crowd with the same sense of theatric timing and clairvoyance as his chosen costume would as well - though without the jacket that was thrown over the table saving it for them, it was hard for most to work out he was the famed detective instead of simply a hipster for that year. “I know we’re family, but this is still a business. And business?”

“Is business.” Dean finished in unison with his brother, jostling the other’s shoulder for a second as they both stared down the blonde’s chagrined expression until she finally reached a hand out to take the notes. “That’a girl! Start us up a tab, would you?”

“Sure thin’. I’ll swing round with those fries, and maybe I can ask Grey to bring  something healthier from home if you guys need.” “Don’t worry about it, Jo. It’s Halloween - time for candy and alcohol.” “Surprised to hear that from you, Sam!”

The taller of the brother’s shrugged a shoulder before delivering a foppish grin back. “Hey, it’s better than some of the Halloweens we’ve had. I figure I deserve a treat.”

“Right on.” Jo giggled back, smiling and giving a short wave as they turned towards their table before slipping the notes into the cash register beside the other barmaid with a grin and a quick debrief on the brothers’ tab before turning to more customers.

---

“Well, well, well, I’d say look what the cat dragged in - but I had nothing to do with it.” The sultry tone did wonders for the joke as the two girls slid into the free edges of the booth.

The Winchesters had been there for the last half an hour, going through a few plates of fries, exchanging a few pleasantries with Harry when he’d come rushing down from upstairs to help behind the bar as the dock crowd slowly gave way to the assorted collection of dressed up college students. The influx seemingly marking the change of clientele that made the space more and more friendly to the sisters’ arrival.

“Say what now?” Dean asked with a grin as he lifted his arm naturally to rest across the back of the booth seat, though he was glad he’d left his helmet beside himself. It gave enough space that he didn’t feel too cramped by the new arrivals. Running an eye over the skin tight black dress, that appeared to him to be more sheer-than-not fabric and left a lot of skin and the lace bodice underneath visible above the skirts ruffles, he couldn’t quite work out what she was supposed to be. He let out a laugh as he caught the shadow’s eye, raising a brow. “What are you supposed to be anyway? Didn’t know Victoria’s Secret Model was a costume option or I’d have cracked out the panties.”

Shada let out her own laugh before pointing a purple manicured finger towards the two little eats attached to the top of her head. “I’m a cat. Dah.”

“I’m pretty sure the joke is that you’re supposed to be a mouse.” Sam quipped from his side of the table, a warm smile directed across at the other for a moment. “I mean, you were going for a Mean Girls reference weren’t you?”

“A what now?” “It’s... It’s a movie. Ask Jo sometime.”

“You and your chick flicks.” Dean laughed, turning to rib as his brother. “Surprised you picked Sherlock when you had so many other options to choose, Fabio.”

Before Sam could respond, the blonde beside him chirped up with a confused look upon her face. “What’s a... Fabio?”

The taller hunter let out a bit of a laugh, and slid the fries plate a little closer to the younger girl as he caught her eye dipping down to look at them curiously, before replying. “Dean here’s just mad he doesn’t have the flowing locks or the six pack to be him. He’s basically the poster art on any romance novel from the eighties.”

“Oh! Like the novels big sister reads?” “Yes, just like those, Ombre.” “Ah, tre bien! You do have the hair for that!”

Shada let out a laugh as the younger shadow had been chewing on a fry before exclaiming happily at working out the reference. It was bemusing to watch the enraptured way her little sister reached out a hand to tug on the loose locks popping out under the ear flaps of the hunter’s hat and the confused and them equally amused look that crossed the man’s face at the innocent gesture.

“Who are you both supposed to be then?” She asked conversationally as she turned to run a disproportionately assessing eye over each hunter. “I am unfamiliar with both your choices.”

Sam smiled back as he picked up a fry, chewing quickly before replying quietly. “I’m being Sherlock Holmes. And please don’t tell me if you don’t know who that is. Your brother already pranked me with that-”

“Oh that sounds just like him.” The brunette shadow laughed, shaking her head quickly when she noticed her sister’s mouth open to voice her confusion. “He’s being a fictional detective, Ombre. A very famous one.” As the other snapped her mouth shut before picking up another fry decisively instead, she figured she’d have to talk to her brother about what other tricks and taunts he’d played on the hunters and to leave some for her. Quirking a curious brow at the man beside her, Shada waved her hand for him to answer her instead.

“Red Hood, at your service.” Dean said with a smile, dropping his hand to pick the helmet off the seat between them for a moment before resettling it. At her blank look the cocky smile drooped slightly and he coughed uncertainly. “He, uh... It’s a comic character. Batman series? Jason Todd? He was a Robin?” At the continued blank look, Dean finally gave a shake of his head and ran a hand through his hair mussing it before smirking widely. “Well, I guess we’ll just have to educate you sometime.”

“Perhaps you will.” Shada didn’t stop the flirtatious tone as she batted her eyes enough to turn the hunter a bright pink before laughing as the dark haired barmaid came hurrying over with a new plate of fries as well as what looked like two fruity drinks. “Um-”

“Jo sent these over, says Grey’s running late. Harry said something about stopping by when it calms down.” The barmaid spoke rapidly, the words a rapid fire as she seemed to be glancing about the space rather than making direct contact. As she turned back from looking towards the bar to look at the motley crew accumulated in the booth, there was a second before a wide, friendly smile grew across her face. “Oh hey! Nice Alice costume! I was thinking of that but Ha- I wanted to go for something a little more musical-theatre that Classic Lit. Okay, sorry, give us a shout if you need anything else!”

As quickly as Sophie had appeared, decked out with bright green skin all over as she had been and the comfortable black dress, she disappeared away again - only noticable by the black witches hat weaving between the crowds of drunken patrons.

“Oh, she liked my costume. She’s so nice!” Ombre’s smile was wider than it had been since she had met up with Shada to get ready, all bright white teeth and crinkled eyes, as she looked about the booth. “I like her!”

“Sophie’s lovely.” Sam replied with an amused smile before nodding his head. “And she’s right, that’s a lovely Alice In Wonderland, Ombre. It’s very accurate too.”

“Merci beaucoup, I adore Alice! I love my socks so much.” “Socks?” “The little frills! Along with all the à fanfreluches - frilly - skirts.” “Ah, I see. Well, it’s a very pretty costume.”

“Merci, merci, merci!” The blonde’s grin was so wide and bright it was almost blinding before she clapped her hands happily.

The group lapsed into a moments quiet as each either had some of their drinks or ate a few of the french fries or onion rings that had just been delivered to the table before the conversation turned towards other things as usual - games, or their mutual friends, or Dean’s attempts to explain just who the Red Hood was as the black cat would look more and more confused hiding her smiles.

---

“Yoo-hoo! Guess who made it to the East- wait...” There was a pause as the red haired woman did a spin as she bounded towards the bar. “ Jo - this isn’t on the East coast is it. What is this area even called?”

“We’re in the Midwest, Charlie.” “Uh uh uh - tonight I only answer to my witch name-” “Oh! You’re dressed as Willow!” “Of course. What did you think I was?”

“Some 90′s grunge femme lesbian?” Jo grinned as she ran an eye over the extremely dated clothes the other was wearing, with her bright yellow bucket hat, oversized jean overalls and the colorful yet somehow dull rainbow sweater underneath. “So, I guess, accurate costume.”

“Har har, very funny.” Charlie jibed back with an eye roll, drumming the black painted nails on the bar top. “Who are you supposed to be? Scarlet Witch has red hair, though I suppose it’s sorta blonde in that latest trailer. And her dress is red.”

“Ugh, no and don’t get me started on corporate America, not tonight when I have to keep the masses libationed up.” “Very true, though at least you seem more comfortable than Hermione over there.”

Jo and Charlie both turned to look to see where Sophie was struggling to do the most comfortable bend and pour technique on the bar taps from her height while also not have her Elphaba hat fall off. There was a split second before the black hat went tumbling to the floor and the barmaid had to pick between grabbing it before it’d get beer soaking into it or sticky patches from the floor or drop the patrons glass. The glass won out, and it was another few seconds before the witch got her hat back - now with a few extra dark patches that would likely pick up any dust or crumbs that comes in its path.

“Pity.” Charlie said with a sigh as she turned back to the blonde. “Where’s the rest-”

“Over in the back corner, I’ll take you - gotta drop off another round of drinks anyways.” The bar owner smiled as she raised a brow. “Tequila sunrise, right?”

There was a beat before the redhead found herself fluttering her lashes with a grin. “Oh, Jo, you know the way straight to a woman’s heart don’t you. Such a pity you’ve got such a pretty boyfriend already.”

“Sorry, Charlie, been there, done that, not signin’ up for the newsletter. Gimme a second, will ya?” “Sure thing!”

As soon as the cocktail was ready, Jo plated up the round of drinks for the small hodge-podge group of hunters, shadows and hunter-adjacent arrivals in the back corner, and ducked out from the end of the bar, bringing the researcher over with her.

“Squish up you lot - the party just arrived!” Charlie exclaimed happily as she bounced down into the seat beside the blonde shadowgirl who was gesticulating wildly about some story or other. “What’re we all talking about? When are the rest of the boys due?”

“Ed texted Harry about thirty minutes ago to say Spruce lost one of his bolts, so they’re going to be about ten more.” Sam replied with a grin, somehow shimmying his frame further down the bench and around to make more room for the newest arrival. “And what’s taking Grey so long, Jo?”

As Jo slowly set down her tray and started handing out the array of drinks, her brows creased into a tiny frown and everyone bit back a laugh at the borderline pout on her lips. “All the trick or treatin’ kids in the neighborhood are freakin’ Nana out. So Grey’s stayin’ put for another hour until it dies down and she calms down.”

“That’s a shame,” Dean remarked, though the flash of a grin on his face didn’t match at all to the words before he shrugged and added more genuinely with a serious look. “No, actually, that’s a bummer. It’ll be... nice to catch up more.” There was a pause as he drank a sip of his beer before he finished quietly. “Truly. Hope he gets here soon.”

“Thanks. Okay, you guys are set, I’ll be back ‘round with another lot soon.” The blonde gave a bounce which flounced the skirts of her outfit a little before she span on her heel and clicked away in the pink heels to deal with the still onslaughting group of customers.

“Really Dean?” “What Sammy?” “Don’t be a dick.”

“Yeah, that’s not cool, Deano.” Charlie remarked with a smirk as she took a sip of her drink - the tequila and orange juice one of her favorites - raising a brow back at him. “Besides, it’s much more fun annoying Jo when she’s in a good mood than bad. So wait until Grey shows up and then we can tease the both of them.”

That got a round of laughs from the table as a whole, and the redhead felt a surge of pride noticing the way Dean turned to genuinely apologise to the scowling dark haired woman before asking Ombre to start her story again from the beginning.

---

“Who ya gonna call?!” “Ghostbusters!” “Fuck yeah!”

The shouts coming from the trio as they emerged from the stairway brought about a round of laughs from the group as all three men moved towards the group.

“Well, better than calling on the last group - what’d you used to call yourselves?” Sam asked jovially as he shifted another time and held a hand out to shake each of the three men’s hands as they sat down, before resting it over the top of the bench seating spanning behind both blonde and redhead.

“Facers, Losechester, the Ghostfacers. You know that.” Ed snapped back with a smirk as he slid into the space beside the dark haired woman at the table and ran a quick eye over her before grinning wider. “Hey, surprised you’re not dressed up in a bright purple Sombra this evening, Shada.”

“Well, I do enjoy simplicity.” Shada replied with a smirk of her own, picking up her drink and shuffling a little further down the bench as Spruce tried to fit in. Glancing at the small sliver of space left, she turned back towards the hunter that had yet to have to bunch down. Batting her lashes and tapping a manicured finger against the top of his red helmet between them, the girl’s lips twitched into a knowing smirk. “Oh, Dean, you’ll have to make some more room. Or else I might just think you’re scared of little old me.”

“Don’t worry Shada, if he won’t move you can always use my lap instead.” Ed’s quip was met with an immediate scurrying from the hunter to shove the red motorcycle off the bench seat and between his feet with a slightly unfocused scowl towards him. “Oh too bad.”

“Awww, sorry Ed, looks like I’ve got some more room.”

“Can you three stop flirting and move the fuck over so I can sit down?” The last of the Ghostbusting trio growled out as he raised an eyebrow at all three and got laughed at by Harry, Charlie, Sam and Ombre on the other side of the booth. It took a moment for Shada and Ed to shuffle enough, packed like sardines and the brunette girl sitting almost partway into the hunter’s lap at the other end before there was enough room for Spruce to slip in. “Oh thank god, the sweaty drunks were getting boring.”

“Hey guys, another round?” Sophie’s voice suddenly appeared, and the green girl was smiling brightly at all of them as she set down her tray and started handing out drinks. Though there was a second as Harry reached for one of the glasses at the same time that their fingers caught, and if she hadn’t been covered in green paint everyone at the table was sure that she’d have turned bright red. “No, no, Harry, you’re off for the night! Please, let me.”

“Oh come on. You’re being run off your feet-” “Yeah, but I’m being paid-” “-And you don’t need to dote so much-” “Of course I do!”

“Oh my god, you two are such doux amours!” Ombre’s voice finally cut through the bickering pair, catching Harry and Sophie’s attention to confused looks. There was a second before the blonde waved her hand happily across Charlie towards them. “Harry, Harry, don’t forget to kiss your girlfriend goodbye if she is having to work!”

The round of laughter that followed that statement in the face of the bright red that colored the researcher’s face and the stammering from the green-faced barmaid. There was another round of laughter when Sophie actually dropped the glass in question, and Harry floundered quickly with napkins to try to clean up the spilled drink.

“What’d I say?” Ombre asked quietly, her eyes darting about the laughing group and blushing herself until Spruce lent across to give her hand a pat. “What did I-”

“It’s fine, Ombre.” Spruce grinned wickedly back as he plucked his own beer from the tray while Harry and Sophie were awkwardly attempting to mop up the drink but not touch one another. “Harry’s not gotten around to asking Soph yet. You’re just a little early.”

“Oh. Okay!”

“Dude!” Harry hissed the words out across the table, glaring at the taller man before blushing under scrutiny further. “Don’t-”

“It’s okay, Spangler. You’ll get there eventually.” “Dude, not the point.”

“I... I’ve got to get back to help Jo.” Sophie stammered for a moment, glancing around at the group as she pressed the tray up against her chest and rushed away while Harry thunked his head onto the table top.

There was a pause before a hand fell on his shoulder, Sam leaning past the two girls between the both of them, to pat his shoulder a few times. “That’s rough, buddy.” The words sounded genuine, but the laughter that started up at the table from Harry’s groan and the wicked grin on the hunter’s face as everyone turned into ribbing the researcher about his unfulfilled crush.

---

The crowd in the bar was winding down - the cheap drinks advertisement Jo, Sophie and Harry had devised doing exactly what they had planned in encouraging an influx crowd of youngsters earlier in the evening that would chase out the dock crews and hunters for the evening, and then as the hour got nearer to midnight the crowds would slowly filter out to the hipper, more aesthetic or club-like spaces around town as the three hours of cheap base spirits faded off. It was strategic - not only to make sure the bar would be shadow-friendly for most of the evening, but also to capitalize on a large influx and then giving both Harry and Jo the opportunity to enjoy the later hour with friends.

It took until almost 11 for the door to finally open and the last of the remaining large group of friends to arrive.

“I hate this holiday.” Grey seethed harshly as he made his way towards the booth and looked around in surprise at how squished and yet uncaring the group was. “Hey, what’d I miss?”

“Grey!” “Brother, finally!” “Hey man, how’d it go with the dog?” “Did you bring the puppy, brother?”

“No, I didn’t. Bloody Trick or Treaters kept freaking Nana out with the screaming and laughing.” He sighed quietly as he glanced to the side and pulled a seat over towards the end of the table, tugging with a sigh on his tie. “They all finished about two hours ago but she was so worked up I couldn’t leave.”

“Did you have many people stop?” Charlie asked, raising a brow at him. “I put up a big sign back at home that I only believe in giving out edibles so I suspect a lot of angry stoners that I wasn’t home.”

The shadow gave the other a disbelieving look for a moment before raising an eyebrow right back at her. “There’s a lot of children along the road, and being near the school means a lot of visitors. Went through about fifteen bags of candy before I decided enough was enough.”

“That’s far too much sugar to be giving out, brother.” “Oh really?” “Yes, really.”

“Well, I suspect Jo will be sad there isn’t any leftovers when we get home.” Grey smiled gently across at his sister, not even blinking at her choice of costume or lack there of, before doing a double take at noticing her sitting almost fully in the hunter’s lap and the way Dean was simply talking across her back towards his brother and the blonde shadow. “I see I missed more than a little trick or treating here too.”

“So many treats, you know.” Shada rebutted with a loud laugh. “I’m just embracing my choice of costume.”

“Oh?” “Cats must sit on laps, right?” “Ah.”

“Don’t worry man,” Ed spoke up then, giving a huffed laugh. “Dean lost a bet an hour back, he’s only got another five minutes before she’s got to get off.”

“Only if he remembers to ask though, or wants me to.” “Oh I’ll want you to, you foxy minx. You keep stealing my drinks before they get to me.” “Shush, Dean, chairs can’t talk.”

Blinking a few times at the array of banter, Grey simply shook his head before pushing back to his feet. “I’m going to go get a dri-”

“Doctor!” The squeal came high and clear over the subdued murmur of voices and lowered but atmospheric volume of the jukebox in the corner, and Grey found himself letting out a laugh as he turned to see a flurry of baby pink skirts and blonde hair spinning about behind the bar before scurrying from around the end of the bar itself. “Oh about bloody time!”

“Sorry, time got a little away from me.” Grey chuckled as he replied, pushing his chair a little back as Jo finally came bounding up to his side and threw an arm around his waist with that dazzling smile he loved so much. “You know how it is-”

“Oh of course, the man with all the time in the universe can’t keep a single track of it.” “That’s exactly how it is.” “Very wibbly-”

“-Wobbly.” He finished with an equally wide smile, tucking a strand of hair back behind Jo’s ear before leaning in to press his lips to hers in a click of teeth at just how wide their smiles were before they were kissing properly for the barest moment and he pulled back. “Sorry it took so long though, pretty one.” Grey said quieter, leaning down to whisper against Jo’s ear. “Nana was scared on a scarey night and wanted her mommy.”

“No problem, hunny, we’ll be home sometime tonight and I’m sure she’ll be okay until then.” Jo replied sweetly, pecking his lips a last time before turning towards the table as a whole. Her whole face shifted from the wide grin into a sneer. “Well now, can you guys tell who I am yet?”

There was a moment before Harry and Spruce had looks change from confusion at Jo’s dragging the table out of their conversations before they started smiling and nodded, with awkward laughter between them. It took another moment before Ed and Sam followed suit, with Ed crying out sharply “Oh! That makes so much more sense than Betty Draper!”

“That guess was so fuckin’ bullshit, Ed.” “Well it’s not our fault your couples-stume only makes sense together!” “It’s not my fault you clearly aren’t a fan enough to recognise this on sight.”

“Jo, stop being mad,” Harry shook his head smiling up towards the couple and playing mediator like he had been all night between Jo and others when the question on who or what exactly she was dressed as had come up. “Besides, it’s cute that it needs Grey here to make it work for both of you.”

Grey raised an eyebrow in confusion and looked down at his gym shoes and then further up towards his brown, pinstriped suit and the skinny tie in confusion that it might not be clear who he was, but then he felt the same looking at Jo in her quasi-beehive hairstyle and the flouncy baby pink dress and blue jacket that pulled her waist into a tiny point before the poofy nature of her skirts. He thought it was obvious who they both were, and that the blue tipped screwdriver poking out of his jacket pocket was really unnecessary for anyone to know the star-crossed lovers they were dressed as that night.

“Anyway, I’m off duty for the night now - but if Sophie needs a hand you and I might need to pitch in, Harry.” “And with closing down once us lot are done and she’s gone home for the night, I know.” “Oh actually, I had mentioned once we call last drinks to the rest of the kiddies here at one that Soph’s welcome to stay and hang out a little while. You don’t got a problem with that do you Harry?”

If Jo’s question sounded been innocent, the wicked twitch of her lips gave away any chance of innocence and any thought there wasn’t any intent behind it, which got a large laugh from Spruce and Charlie at Harry’s spluttering before Grey found himself getting pulled into the good natured teasing.

---

The night was a bit of a blur but in the way in which a night of good conversation, good companionship and good feelings was lost.

Shada eventually returned to sitting on the bench but a lot later than she was expected to, and at one point had her cat ears joined by the black domino mask that covered her smokey eyes but made her smiles seem a little more wicked and flirtatious as she batted her eyes out of the darkness.

Sam and Spruce found themselves eventually sitting beside one another and discussing in depth the problems with higher educations toll upon students and the pressures of achieving grades. They were both surprised to learn that’d both been pre-law, and that neither had felt the push to continue through the loss of either girlfriend in Sam’s case or friend in Spruce’s. And then that they both found bananas disgusting.

Charlie and Ombre spent an inordinate time standing up after it was found out that the tall blonde knew nothing of dancing - and the string of dance favorites that were set up on the jukebox for the two, and then three when Sophie had scared the last of the customers out of the bar and joined them both, made for an amusing range of background music.

Dean slowly got drunk on his beers but kept to himself for the most part, simply content after a while to rub at the small of the back of the girl on his lap with a thumb and listen to her and Jo’s talk about some shopping spree or birthday or something coming up. And once he was a free man again, turned his attention back towards his beer and the odd conversation he was pulled into.

Grey was pleased to find himself moved onto the booth seating after a bit beside Jo, hands held together in her lap or an arm around her waist, as he spent until the wee hours talking with Ed and Harry or even Dean about anything and everything so long as he had the warm presence of his sunshine pressed up against his side.

Nothing could go wrong so long as he could just look out the corner of his eye and see that smile in an instant. And when they got home, he was sure they’d have their fluffy baby curled up on the end of the bed to make that feel just as warm as sitting in the warm atmosphere of friendship there.

---

[bukatra]

Heard this new song and now I hate that I dont have skills for making fanvideos because its perfect for an angst DeanPOV for his relationship with Sam. I can see the screne transitions so well. Here are the lyrics.

Guess I never gave up Playing golden child Don't drink and don't do drugs So I'm not cool enough But I hid you in my room When mom and dad were fighting Back when we were young Wouldn't let you hear too much Yeah, I'm good at that stuff

Maybe growing up to fast Was the only choice I had

Chorus: Wish I wasn't controlling It's the just weight I'm holding Trying to live up to the boy they see Cause I knew somebody had to be Steady, safe, and focused If I'm not sure, won't show 'em When I fall, I feel all eyes on me But I guess somebody had to be

Oldest, Oldest Oldest, Oldest Oldest

Call me when your high school Girlfriend breaks your heart You know I'll pick up I'm the one you trust

But you don't wanna tell me Bout that party last night Where you got too drunk You think that I'll judge Makes me feel Like no fun

Maybe growing up to fast Was the only choice I had

Chorus

I can make the way for you No, I don't mind jumping first I could wait up if you want me to Cause that's just the way it works Where your Oldest

Chorus

[wayward-wheels-blog]

"Imagine helping Dean fix the Impala" - Very nice! I loved the story from Dean's perspective.

Hey, thanks! You’re rad for saying so!

Tonight, I’ll be posting a part two of "Here's looking at you kid," where I experiment with a bit of Dean POV again. 

I'll post the link below because tumblr hates me.

Anyway, I’m glad you liked it! It was kind of fun to knock around in his head. 

And holy crap I just had to come back and edit because Tumblr just went, "Nope, you're done!" And posted the damn thing. What the crap?! Here's looking at you kid: http://wayward-wheels.tumblr.com/post/130092429850/heres-looking-at-you-kid(I'm not a newb or anything. Heh.)

[fightevilandthengetblownup]

CANONFIC: ...Two Turtle Doves...

—

19th of December

Shrugging out of her jacket, Jo heard her shoulder pop loudly as she stretched her arms high and fell back limply onto the hard motel bed with a groan. It had been a long, long night dealing with the exorcisms, and they always took far more out of her than some of her more physical hunts ever did. But a demon is a demon is a demon - and this little nest was a particularly nasty shade of darkness that needed taking care of for sure.

It had been hard enough locating the demons themselves in the small town in Wyoming that they were slowly turning into their own playground of destruction and horror - the building number of electrical storms and lightening strikes in the usually sleepy and mild-weathered town had been the draw card for Jo to begin her investigation; before getting to the town to find an unnatural number of deaths in increasing horrific ways was running rampant throughout the town in such ways that had originally been identified as suicides until the deaths were determined not to be physically possible for the victims to have truly done such acts to themselves. The pain and injuries should have stopped them by far before the the results that the bodies were found with as the cases had piled up - what had started as explainable deaths had escalated quickly over two weeks, and the medical coroner had almost vomited when the last body had been brought in unexpectedly while Jo was being given a tour around the morgue.

The smell of rotten eggs had hung heavily over the body, and Jo had known immediately that it had all been the work of a truly disturbing demon running rampant.

Unfortunately, it had turned out to be three of them - but by then the hunter had already begun working over the first demon she had captured, that had hissed and snarled and jeered under her interrogation as to why they were doing what they had. Her back and head had hit rather painfully on a door frame as the other two had arrived to free their compatriot - or perhaps to simply observe the spectacle of his exorcism originally - but it hadn’t slowed her down or kept her from being successful in the end for long.

The stab of the silver, elongated blade she had brought with her had crackled and shone as she was forced to slide the blade through the chest of the second demon as it had lifted her by her hair from the ground - the light casting eerie shadows upon the walls from the point of it sticking out the back of the demon for a long moment before Jo had shoved the now dead body off of herself and her angelblade with a groan. The third demon had tried to flee at that moment before also collapsing as the blade plunged into it’s back from her throw as Jo started towards it.

Two out of three was definitely bad in this case, and Jo had spent the next thirteen hours reciting the invocatio and Psalms until the sun had sunk back down behind the horizon and the moonlight and her flashlight had been needed to illuminate her journal as Jo finally began the twist on the Rituale Romanum she needed upon the demon without having had to draw any blood or damage the host in any way.

Normally such levels weren’t really necessary unless trying to uncover information from the demon, and if she had been with another hunter she probably would not have risked or tried the approach but simply jumped to the traditional exorcism to banish the demon to Hell again - but Jo smiled to herself as she ran a hand over her sweaty hair in the motel room and tilted her head to look at the smallish box beside herself that perhaps she’d never need to use that method again since this had worked.

As she let out a long tired sigh, the tinny sound of Rocky Mountain Way filled the room from her phone that signified one and only one person was calling her. Dragging the device from her pocket, Jo swiped her finger up before sliding the answer button and then speaker button in quick succession.

“Hey Bobby, what’s up?” The blonde asked around a yawn as she set the phone down on the quilt cover beside her head. “How’s it going?”

“Better than you sound. You busy?” “Just finished up a case-” “That business in Sundance?” “Yeah that’s the one.”

There was a pause on the other end of the phone for a long moment, and Jo rubbed tiredly at her eyes as she continued to stare across at her newest weapon in the fight against the forces that crawled out of that godforsaken place.

She hadn’t known at all what it was when she’d found it hidden in the depths of what had once been her dad’s storage unit years ago when she’d emptied it out into her own one closer to home. She hadn’t even thought about it until she was at Bobby’s the previous month on her way through from a shifter case on the East coast - Jo had seen the same symbols from the box written up on a board with small annotations and was how she had learned that it was the language of the Angels and after taking several photographs and several hours spent deciphering the markings she had managed to make out the words ‘demon’ and ‘trap’ along the bands that covered the edges of the box. It took another few days before she managed to crack the code of the puzzle to open it like a flower and look into the empty, inky depths that she so desperately wanted to see work.

And that night she had gotten to watch as the tied demon has finally been drawn out of the body it had inhabited and it’s smoking true form sucked straight into the dark center of the box as she finished the exorcism and closed the puzzle box around it’s screeching cries. The man tied to the chair had slumped before he started crying and Jo had managed to drop him home without a scratch upon him compared to the other two bodies.

Smiling to herself and biting down on another yawn, Jo jerked slightly upon hearing the gruff voice near her ear. “What’d it end up being? A baku? Soul-eater? Crocotta?”

“Jesus, Bobby, I’d have thought you’d know better - electrical storms in the area all week before it started.” “A demon then?” “Three of ‘em actually.”

“And you didn’t call in back up?” There was a tight sound to the other’s voice through the line as he spoke, and Jo rolled over onto her stomach with a groan at the tug to her sore back and the way she could just tell she was going to need to do some stretches as soon as she hung up as well as a long hot shower. “Ya idjit!”

“Hey! I only thought that there was one of ‘em when I got here-” “You best tell me you are okay, missy, before I go get my car in gear right now.”

That did get a laugh from the hunter as she nodded her head, before speaking aloud again and reaching out to run a finger over the intricate gold design along the edge of the puzzle box. “I’m fine, Bobby. I got two of ‘em with- uh… well I exorcised all three of ‘em and managed to save one of the people.”

“You managed to save one?” “The, uh, others were too damaged-” “Fuckin’ demons. Filthy fuckin’ things.” “You’re bloody tellin’ me, Bobby!”

Jo could hear a weary but satisfied sigh through the phone as she finally pushed herself to sit upright and picked up the phone to bring with her towards the small bathroom. Tugging her sweaty, dirty shirt off, she twisted slightly and could see the faint red mark from the doorway and frowned to herself realizing it would probably be bruising and a not so pretty purple color right in time for Christmas. It couldn’t be helped, and it could have been far far worse.

“Anyway, what were you callin’ for?” Jo asked cheerily aloud, as she pulled her hair down from it’s pony tail and shook her head to try to get some of the dust to fall off easily. “Please tell me it ain’t to say you can’t make Christmas, Bobb-”

“No, you idjit. I was calling to see if you wanted me to bring anything along actually. I..” There was another pause, but this one felt more significant for some reason as Jo frowned to herself slightly in the mirror and glanced down at the phone in concern. As she opened her mouth to speak, the hunter’s voice came through strong again. “I ain’t had to go to someone else’s for the day since my wife was around. Just thought I’d check if you need anything or a hand with something, Jo.”

Jo sucked in a breath of her own quietly for a second, a soft whistle sound pulling through her teeth before she shook her head to herself before vocalizing her response again. “We should be alright, I know Grey’s sortin’ out a roast of some sort - and I’m bakin’ pie once I get home to keep Dean happy-”

“That it definitely will.” “I thought it was a good idea - do you like pumpkin or apple?” “Girl-” “Which one Bobby?”

The gruff tone as the word ‘apple’ was muttered back was enough to make Jo laugh all over again as there was a grumbled growl from the other along with several interjections of the word ‘idjit’, ‘brat’ and ‘balls’ between other phrases as the older hunter grouched at her over her teasing.

After a good five minutes teasing and talking about what might be shaping up to be another case in the new year that Bobby promised to bring with him to Christmas for her to look over, the pair finally said their goodbyes and hung up with a parting “You take care of yourself, girlie, you hear?” and a quietly muttered “Love you” in return only after the dial tone could be heard bouncing off the tile bathroom; Jo gave another deep sigh as she stared herself down in the mirror, hands clenched tightly upon the counter top as she glanced out the open door to see her father’s box sat judgingly in the center of the bed before she finished getting ready for a nice, long hot shower to work the knots out of her back and shoulders before sleep would come.

—

22nd of December

“But why there of all places?!”

“Dean, are you really looking a gift-pie in the filling?” Sam’s voice was gratingly knowing and confident as he replied to the same question Dean had been asking for the last two weeks since they’d been invited to the celebration. “C’mon man, lighten up. You might even have some fun this year if you just relax about where and who we’re seeing.”

“Look, I get you two are growing to becoming bosom buddies or something-” “That’s a bit of a stretch, Dean.” “Is it though? You’ve been excessively chipper lately, and you were all too comfortable when Jo and I got back that last time-” “For fucks sake, he’s not a bloody mons-” “No, Sam, that’s exactly what he bloody well is.”

“God help us if that word can’t be metaphorical for once, Dean.” His brother growled back, a large clump of dirt that the taller man was shoveling out almost hitting him in the face as Sam dug a little deeper and more aggressively than the previous shovel full as they took turns digging up the remains of some angry, pissed off school janitor that had been wrecking havoc right before the school closed for the holiday season. It had taken barely three days to sort this haunting out for once, especially given the janitor had only died thirty years earlier and all of the victims were teachers who had been students at the school when the man had died in a freak accident involving hydrochloric acid and a faulty wash station. Finding the grave had been easy enough too, and they just waited for the night to fall before heading out there to finish up before heading towards the little lakeside city there after, regardless of Dean’s complaints according to Sam. “The guy is not even half bad if you give him a chance.”

“I’ve promised Jo I’d not complain-” “That barely means anything from you.” “And not to be uncivil to the sha- uh… guy.” “You can just call him Grey, Dean, it’s not going to hurt you.”

“What the hell’s gone and gotten you so positive lately, Sammy? You’re very pushy for me to go about forgetting and forgiving what the guy is all of a sudden.” Dean looked curiously, pinning his brother’s shoulders with a sharp eyed look as he watched the sudden sharp freeze of the other’s movement before the tall hunter began digging again with renewed vigor. He had noticed the change over the last week, that Sam was in equal parts argumentative, confident and almost cockily smug or apologetic, complying and co-operative - it was like one minute he would be buying Dean’s drinks and burgers with no complaint and the next digging at him about being more ‘friendly’ and ‘open to new ideas’ about the Christmas holiday, and especially about the shadow who’s house they would be visiting over the season. The way Sam seemed to freeze and his shoulders shifted into the rounded shape Dean knew to be clearly the other’s brooding shoulders, he knew there had to be something bigger than Jo and the shadow at play but God knew what. “You going to tell me what’s been up with you or not?”

“It’s nothing, Dean - I’m just looking forward to Christmas is all.” The brooding shoulders sunk in on themselves even further, representative of an even deeper sulk growing in the other hunter as Sam continued to shovel the dark dirt up out of the grave as they were reaching the five foot mark. “I know it’s not really been a positive time of year for us-”

“You mean getting stranded in hotel rooms with me and spaghetti-o’s isn’t your idea of a good time?” “I mean, you were never the problem.” “I’d leave you to finish the digging on your own if you ever suggested I was.” “Of course. But anyway, like, I know it’s not our best time. I know you’ve got some hang ups all your own, and I’ve only ever had two good ones back when I was… well, when I was at Stanford.”

Dean was on his feet at that and then down into the grave itself, hands wrapping around the worn wood of the shovel with a frown as Sam looked straight back at him, a small apologetic and sad twist to his lips as he relinquished the hold on the implement to the other. As the taller man pulled himself from the hole with ease, Dean began his own digging with a pensive frown on his face.

“Regardless, I just think we could definitely end up having a good time this year.” Sam continued after a long pause, a dirty hand running over his hair to push the sweaty strands back with a sigh. “I mean, Jo’s around and happy, and Bobby is even leaving his junk yard for it.”

“Of course Jo is happy.” Dean growled the words out quietly to himself, piercing the hard ground with the tip of the shovel with a little extra force, before slamming one of his booted feet down on it, driving it deeper in still. “She’s made that abundantly clear - but I’m glad Bobby’ll be there. An extra set of eyes to make sure everything is okay.”

There was a pause, a beat long enough for Dean to do another two shovels worth before the other spoke. “You aren’t still thinking he’s brainwashed her or something, are you Dean?”

“….No.” “For fucks sake, Dean! You’ve heard the stories, I know Jo told you about them or something of importance - but if seeing them properly together, like properly a couple and doing normal shit like Christmas is what you need to get your head out of your ass-” “I do not-!” “Dean, man, I know you. I know how your mind works. And I can guarantee that you’ll see nothing suspect at all between those two from what I’ve seen of him and her lately.”

Shoveling another clump of dirt, Dean drove the point back down and let out a relieved noise upon hearing the cracking sound of wooden boards and the hollow thump of a coffin as he brought it down again, before he looked back up into the earnest smile of his little brother. It was so familiar - it was the smile that had Dean picking up ice creams every afternoon on the way home from high school when John was away on a job, or Dean letting Sam have control of the TV remote for them to watch some nature documentary, or even for Dean to shove the last slice of pie across a diner table towards the other when the waitress would say that it was the last one in the shop. It also reminded him sharply of the gentle, fond smile he’d seen shining up at him when the topic of their conversation had looked up at him and said that she was happy. Letting out a growl, Dean dug another clump of dirt up out of the grave before driving the shovel down to tear open the coffin lid before the other poured the salt and lighter fluid down once he’d climbed out of the pit gracelessly.

Flicking open one of his lighters, Dean looked down carefully at the grotty skeleton of the man that had let his resentment and bitterness get the better of him. Sighing, he dropped the lighter in resolving to burn away his very own just the same as the bones that lit up below him. “Fine, Sammy, I trust you - besides…” Dean brushed his hands off on his jeans, leaving trails of dust as he looked across at his smiling brother, returning it with his own twitch of the lips. “It might well be good to start a new tradition of having an actual merry Christmas.”

—

[fightevilandthengetblownup]

FIC: Tell You All The Things You Should Know

“I’m out, I’m out! You two win, Jesus Christ I surrender.” There was a round of laughter from the pair of them as the third of their little party lurched to his feet from the seat around the beat up table. Sam’s hands were like fleshy dinner plates at the size of them on the table as he pushed his way to his feet with a slight wobble and away. “You guys are crazy, I give up.”

“Aww Sammy, can’t hold your liquor any more?” Dean joked in response, shifting in his seat to watch as his brother caught his balance and rolled his eyes down at the smirking pair remaining at the table. Bobby had left with a snifter of whiskey several hours earlier and a hissed request that the three of them keep the celebrations down; and now Sam was giving into his weak will like Dean had called almost two hours earlier when Jo had brought out the whiskey and vodka rather than just the rounds of beers. “Go on then, get yourself up for a sleep you giant waste of potential.”

“Har har, Dean.” The other sneered back, rolling his eyes again before leaning down to ruffle the blonde on the other side of the table to Dean’s hair up into a mussed pile atop her head. “Don’t let him pass out when you win, Jo, you hear?”

“Sure thing, Sam. Sweet dreams.” Jo’s voice was softer, more conscious of the request for quiet from their host than Dean could remember to be in his current state, or maybe she just sounded softer than he could ever achieve. Dean felt a shiver of envy when she grabbed a hold of Sam’s hand like it was nothing and gave it a squeeze before the other lumbered off through the study towards the stairs.

There was a quiet pause as they could hear the heavy footfalls of the other walking up the stairs and bumbling about on the next floor, before Jo reached out to pour them each another double of whiskey in the same glasses they had been using all night. It was a night to celebrate after all.

—

It had been Sam who decided to call in for backup on the case, and Dean had been surprised when their hotel door had opened to reveal the short, blonde woman rather than the older, cap-wearing hunter they had called about the case.

“So, which of you chuckleheads went and got yourself spotted by the pretty deer-lady?”

The words had gotten a huffed chuckle from Sam as he jerked his head towards where Dean still staring as Jo’d made her way into the room and thrown her dufflebag down on the bed that had Sam’s special chiropractic pillow he’d started taking everywhere with him.

“Stands to reason she went for the cute one.” Jo quipped, smiling up at Sam as she was practically engulfed by his brother in a hug before there was the sound of a loud, girlish squeak. “Hey!”

“That’s what you get for under appreciating me!” Sam replied, releasing her and tugging on her hair sharply in the same jesting way he had before. “What are you doing here anyway? We thought Bobby was coming.”

“Ah he was, but Rufus called and you know how that goes.” The other replied, smiling and holding her hands out in a ‘ta-da’ fashion, before she finally looked over at him. “So voila! Your knight in shinin’ armour is here to save your asses.”

“Really? You’re our saviour, huh?” Dean remarked, raising a brow at her as he continued to work on cleaning his gun as the other hunter made her way into the room and towards the wall covered in newspaper clippings of missing and dead men in the area, the locations of last sightings (practically all being local nightlife hot spots where dancing and dim lighting and the loud thud of music would cover practically any and all noise) and some pieces of lore that they had thought it may be originally. Jo looked decidedly unimpressed and began removing pieces while the brothers’ looked on. “And what makes you think you’re the woman for the job?”

“Easy, Deano, because I, unlike you, will not be fallin’ under some pretty gal’s charms and getting myself on her deadly bed post.”

That had proved far too accurate as the hunt had progressed with Jo’s calm and efficient research added to their own, Sam’s thoughtful suggestions, and Dean’s overall ability to come up with unorthodox ideas on the fly when things went haywire.

It had started out downhill, given Dean had already found himself caught up in a dance with the strawberry blonde previously before they’d realised exactly what they had been hunting, with him having to play bait for the first time in a long while. Things had gone well though with the suggestion, shouted over the thudding music, to take things back to his hotel room going down smoothly with the beauty. From there, it had been Jo’s idea to fill the room with cigarette smoke through the vents from the unaffected pair while Dean attempted to avoid falling under the monster’s powers too far that he would be run through and drained by her hidden antlers like the rest of her victims before having his blood drank and energy absorbed.

While the Deer Woman had been subdued by the smoke and eventually collapsed and died from the inhalation of the tobacco substance in the cramped room, Dean had tried to hide the fact he had indeed fallen victim to her, the cut on his neck oozing slightly while Sam and Jo had wrapped the body in tobacco leaves and cut off the cloven hooves of her feet as per Bobby’s instruction. If either Sam or Jo wanted to comment about it, they’d both kept their mouths shut after a significant glance while Sam had carried the body to the impala’s trunk and Jo had set to the task of patching his neck up instead quietly.

From there, they had returned as a group to Bobby’s house to celebrate a hunt well down and relax some - and in Dean’s case, to be berated for being distracted “as always” by a pretty face by the older hunter for a good half an hour while the other two had watched on in mirth.

—

“Has it been long enough I can start with the jokes yet?” Jo asked, head tilted to one side as Dean tossed back his double whiskey with a hiss at the burning to his throat. She didn’t even flinch at the loud slam of his glass back onto the table, and he had to bit down a laugh at the bemused look on her face. “Cause, like, I very rarely get to be the white knight and I am so totally ready to rub it in your face.”

“Oh really? You think you saved me, huh?”

“I don’t think, I know. You were all ready to get wrapped up and ruttin’ with that girl-”

“Monster-”

“Fucking girl, Dean. You didn’t know what she was to start with, so stop trying to pretend it matters what she was.” Jo laughed a little, shaking her head at him as she rolled her eyes.

Dean shrugged a shoulder in response, hand wrapping around the whiskey bottle and refilling his own glass and then adding another double pour to her own. If she was going to be drinking with him, he thought, she would be matching him like for like at least. “Of course it matters. I mean, maybe not to someone like you, but it does matter.” The moment the words were out his mouth, he knew it was the wrong thing to say, the wrong time to bring this up and the complete wrong emphasis to be making to try to make this point or bring this topic up.

“Someone like me, huh?” Jo asked quietly, a blonde brow raised across at him as she lifted her glass to her lips with a small frown. Dean felt like his tongue was ten times too large as he watched her, too large to correct himself correctly quick enough to stop whatever was going to come next. What did was the almost professional tip of her head as she polished off the entirety of her glass in one gulp and barely even coughed at the burn of alcohol down her oesophagus. There was a matching slam to his own before she was pouring herself a double and touching his up the same amount again with a sneer. “What did you mean by that, Dean?”

“Jo, you know I didn’t mean-”

“Oh yes you did. You meant a lot by that, so lets do this. You tell me exactly what you meant about someone like me.”

“I didn’t… That.. It wasn’t what I meant by that.”

“But what did you mean by it?” Jo practically hissed the question out, eyes sharper than they had any right to be from the amount of drinks they had both consumed so far that night; and Dean wasn’t sure what it was that was keeping her more focused than himself, but he was definitely feeling the draw to talk he would not usually do without copious amounts of liquor in his system.

Shaking his head and lifting his glass to sip at its contents slowly, the older hunter gave a weary sigh. “I just meant that you would think that what the monster was wouldn’t matter. Since it doesn’t seem to matter to you that you’re sleeping one with yourself.” The truth tasted better on his tongue for once than the lies or the bitten off remarks he had been struggling to keep a hold of ever since he showed up on her and the monster’s doorstep months and months ago. At the same time however, as Jo’s eyes seemed to flash with something he couldn’t recognise, Dean abstractly thought maybe he should keep this concealed and buried instead before the fuzzy thoughts faded that again. “It matters to me, but of course you wouldn’t see it that way.”

“And what does it make me to you that I’m… with a monster?” Jo’s voice was quiet and almost accusatory as she looked across at him, her own glass almost half drank already. “What’s it matter or mean to you, Dean?”

“It’s wrong is all, but you know that already Jo.” He scrubbed a hand across his face as he lent his elbow onto the table top and refused to drop his eyes from her widening ones - this talk was a long, long time coming, and made even more needed for him since that hunt a little while back. “I get that you’re all like… in fucking love with him or something, whatever the fuck that means with a manipulating, mind-controlling thing like he is, but Jo, you know that your whole thing is wrong. He’s a fucking monster, for God’s sake, you should know better than to think that’s okay."

“Would you say that I was a blood traitor? That my standards were gone? That I should just bow out?"

Dean balked at the first question, eyes zeroing in on the frozen, icy look on Jo's face as she spoke. There was something to her tone as she talked that Dean couldn't quite place.

"That's not quite-"

"Not quite how you'd put it?" Jo snapped back, her hand tightly gripping around her glass as she raised a brow at him. "How would you put it?"

“It’s just wrong, Jo. It’s Sam and Ruby all over again, and we all know how that ended!” He growled back, hands forming into fists between his knees under the table top as he tried to hold himself back from getting drawn into the anger about that situation again. Jo scoffed at him, flipping her hair and rolling her eyes, which just got another growl from him in response.

“Jesus Christ, I know how that did but this isn’t the same, Dean. Ruby was fuckin’ manipulating him and was so bad for him, this ain’t even remotely like that. This is good for me.”

"But you could do better. You deserve better." Dean found himself answering, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth as he thought. "I get that you think you're happy right now, and I'm glad you've got some in your life - I really am, Jo - but it's with a freaking monster of all things. You couldn't have found it with a real person?"

“He is a real person, you asshole.”

“He’s riding about in a real person.”

That got a scraping of metal chair legs upon the tile floor as the other jerked to her feet angrily. Jo looked furious, but Dean just couldn’t find the response to care. It was the truth, he was simply telling her the truth.

“Of course, of fucking course, that’s how you see it!” Jo flung a hand up with the inelegance of an angry, tipsy Sorority Girl as she span about on her heel in the centre of the small kitchen before pointing her finger at him, waggling it. “That’s how all your fucking assholes see this, ain’t it? Just seem ‘im as a fucking monster, another thing to fuckin’ hunt!” She clenched her fist as he looked back at her, unrepentant at all that he’d upset her and feeling the fuzzy buzz of the drinks smoothing his own need to get up and resettle her nerves right now. He was right and she was wrong, and that needed to get across to her. “Just another thing that needs to be dead, and I’m just a fuckin’ foolish little girl who’s a disgrace to the community, right? Bet you wouldn’t have lifted a fuckin’ finger for us if you’d known the truth.”

“Wouldn’t what?!”

“You heard me! You’d have let Walker do what he wanted if Bobby’d told you the truth, Dean. You’d have turned your back and let him do whatever he was planning to us.” Jo’s voice cracked slightly as she stared down at him, and Dean could see the slight shake of her hands as she pulled both arms in against her chest, staring at him like a drowning man desperate for help. He found himself rising to his feet as her words fanned to burning, scorching heat the flames of his own anger at the accusations. “I know you, Dean. You would have left me to face him alone if you knew it was over Grey.”

“Over a monster, you mean.” Dean snarled back, stepping right into her space and sneering down at her as Jo glared defiantly up at him. “Not over anything but a fucking monster.”

“But you.. you don’t deny it.” Her voice wavered then, eyes wide but clearly furious as they stared down one another. A battle of wills finally coming to a head. “You don’t deny you’d have let Walker do what he wanted. You gonna deny if you’d have helped him out too, or not?” Jo’s eyes looked glassy and shiny under the dim, old bulb of the kitchen light, and Dean could barely stand the way she hissed out the next words. “You want to deny you’d have killed Grey instead of wanting Gordon dead? You want to deny you haven’t thought about finishing the job?”

“Jo, I wouldn’t-”

“Oh, but just because it was Gordon yeah? Just because it was the guy that had been gunning for your brother, right? That’s the only reason you sided with me over him, innit? If some other hunter asked you to, you’d do it in a heartbeat.” Her words felt like bolts, spearing right through him and leaving him an open bleeding mess at how true they sounded. Jo’s eyes were staring through him and leaving him to the naked truth of just how he would behave if any other hunter, anyone other than Gordon Walker, had been the one targeting her and her monster. She shook her head when he remained silent, one shaking hand wiping at the wet track on her cheek. “I bet you’d not even disagree with his plan to cut the stain out from Grey would you. Bet you just see a trail of monster filth on me every second you look at me these days, huh, bet I’m nothin’ but monster-fuckin’ trash when you really think about it and you’d want to rid me of anything he’s touched... Even though it is every single part of me.”

That broke the heavy tension between them, his hands coming up to grasp her shoulders tightly and shake them harshly as the idea washed through his mind. If he had received a call about some monster being alive and fucking with Jo? If he had heard Gordon Walker’s take on the pair? If he’d seen them together and just known it was a monster with the ability to control thoughts, and memories, and feelings?

Dean could barely see Jo behind the watery film covering his eyes, snarling and shaking her harshly, with fingers dug in tightly as if afraid to let her go and have this be what she thought of him. “Jo..” He grunted the word out as he blinked, and suddenly he could see her clearly again - her eyes wide and her mouth open in a gasp of pain at his tight grip on her and the almost violent shakes, but making no move to stop him or strike back just a look of simple acceptance flooding across her face - and he let go as if his hands were burnt. “Jo I... I didn’t mean to, I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay, Dean.” There was an almost resigned sound to her voice as Jo lifted her hands to rub at her shoulders gently, a flash of pain on her face that rushed over his anger like a tidal wave of ice cold water to the hot flames.

“No, no, Jo I’m sorry. For everything.”

“No your not.”

He felt something constrict hard at that, the way she said it sounding achingly familiar to something she’d said before that he had barely heard and barely remembered when he’d stormed out of the old bar without a glance behind. The resignation, the acceptance and the heartbreak in her tone lanced him right through in a way it hadn’t that previous time. Before? She had just been like a little school girl in his mind, a capable and fierce one, but something off limits and far from what he could handle or desire at the time. Something to be protected from the world and most of all from himself in that tumultuous time they first crossed paths. But now? Now he saw her for what she had always been, and hearing that tone from her, just how much more responsible, accepting and mature she still was to him that she could read him like a book and still care and hurt from his actions, was enough to pierce it into his very soul to never do this again.

“You’re right. Maybe not for everything right now, but-” Dean let out a shaky breath as he stepped back towards her and replaced his hands where they had been, trapping her own beneath them as her stared down at her stubborn look. “Look. I don’t want to be on the same level as Gordon Walker-”

“Good, then don’t fuckin’ act like him!”

“Will you let me fucking finish, God!” Dean let out a huff that was as close to a laugh as he could get at the impertinent look on Jo’s face and the stubborn set of her jaw as she raised an eyebrow up at him. Rubbing his hands slightly before squeezing in a much gentler, calmer way than he had before, the hunter gave a small sigh before continuing, “I want to be better about this, but it’s hard you know? This is not what I expected would be happening in either of our lives, Jo, and I’m just coming to terms with that let alone what your life really is now.”

“Dean, I know you’re trying to protect my feelings, but that’s long in the past-”

“Your feelings are not the ones I’m trying to be cautious of, Jo, you moron.” That time Dean did feel himself give a short bark of a laugh, feeling the heat in his cheeks as Jo pinned him with a raised brow at that. “You’re good, I know you are, I know that you’re happy and you say that you’re being treated well. Even Sam seems to be a fan of your shad- uh, guy.”

“You know his name is Grey.”

“Do I have to?”

“Yes.”

There was a long pause as they stared at one another, Jo’s hip jutted out and if her hands were free he knew they would be planted on either side of her hips and she would be the spitting image of her mother with the determined, forceful look on her face. A thought flashed through his mind watching her that this could have been what he could have had. It felt so real in that moment that this could have been it - they could have been fighting about a hunt or Sam doing something stupid, or her mother calling for the tenth time that week to check up on her - and he could have pulled her up in his arm and kissed that look off her face. Instead, Dean found himself tugging her close and wrapping her up in his arms.

“Dean.. what the fuck?”

“Just let me get this out without you looking at me like that okay?” Dean muttered into her hair, and he could tell the moment she recognised his request at the jerky nod of her head against his chest and the way the tense setting of her shoulders seemed to relax a hair. Sighing to himself, palms almost as big as her ribs across her back, he knew from the soft, fuzziness in his head that this would be the one and only time to get this out once and for all if it was ever to be spoken. With just enough drinks to make his tongue loose and his heart win out over his head; and inevitably to regret it in the morning.

“Jo, I’m sorry for it all. For ignoring you, for denying myself and you as well. For putting you in that position so many times to be hurt because of knowing me. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you, and I just couldn’t give you what you deserved.” He wasn’t sure when it happened but he found one hand stroking over her hair gently, and surprised at the slight shudder he felt run through her as he continued. “I’m sorry that you died because of me, and that you couldn’t rely on me when you came back. That it took Bobby calling for me to come around. I should have been there for you the way you always were for me, but I just.. couldn’t.”

“Dean-”

“Shush, I need to say this, Jo.” Dean’s voice rumbled quietly between them before he felt her nod again. Sucking in a deep breath, the taste of whiskey filling his senses from the drinks upon drinks they’d both had, he took a short step back and held the other at a small arms length away, hands on either side of her head. He found himself smiling at the confused bordering on concerned look that spread across her face, brows furrowed but eyes wide as she looked up at him and he didn’t have the will to fight off the little voice telling him to stroke his thumbs across her wet cheeks. “Look, I couldn’t face you, not after what happened. And by the time we got here, I was too late wasn’t I? You’re.. your happy now, and I swear that’s all I want for you these days. You deserve more than I could have ever given you, and if you can look me in the eyes and tell me that’s what you have, I’ll never ever bring this up again.” He could see the sharp jolt run through her eyes at that, and let out a deep sigh as he watched Jo’s eyes run around his face as if chasing what he was sure was an extremely confusing look upon his face for her. “If you can tell me he deserves you and you aren’t just...settling or have got yourself caught in something, then I’ll leave it be and never discuss this again. I’ll even shake his bloody hand, okay? I can’t promise to like him, but I can accept it.”

Dean almost forgot to breathe at the way her face shifted at his last words, from concerned and embarrassed and almost borderline angry into something softer than he’d ever seen from her before. It almost reminded him of the way his Mom had looked at his Dad back in ‘73. That thought sent a shock through him and his hands dropped immediately to his sides as he shifted to look over the top of her head rather than look directly at that look, knowing it was all for the shadow.

“Dean...” Jo’s voice was quiet as she tilted her head at him, drawing his eyes back down to her own against his own will, before she let out a sigh. Next thing he knew, her hands were on each of his cheeks and Dean groaned at the feel of her lips against his for just the briefest moment. They were gone a second later, and as he blinked his eyes open, that look was on her face again, stabbing right through him all over again. Jo was smiling so sweetly he wished he’d been by so much sooner. “Dean, he is the best part of my life. He makes me happy, and I really hope you can be happy for me.”

Clenching his fists, he found himself nodding along as her hands dropped back to her side and Jo stepped back from him without any sign that she had felt any of the shivers, shudders or heart thumping pain he was at it. Gulping thickly, Dean nodded his head at her and rubbed a hand across his face roughly compared to the way he wished to ghost his fingers across his lips but that wouldn’t do. “I’ll try, Jo. I promise.”

“Then that’s good enough for me.” Jo replied brighter than she’d spoken all night before she shifted her weight and pointed back towards the table. “Let’s drink to it being enough for now, right?”

Dean let out a chuckle at her attempt at a carefree suggestion before nodding and moving back to his own seat in sync with her. “Sounds good to me Jo.” He sank down into the rickety old chair, hearing the slight whine of the metal as she refilled both their glasses, looking for all the world as if a weight was off of her shoulders while he knew it had settled sharply down on his own instead. Taking the glass she slid across the worn table top at him, Dean stared at the brown liquor for a long moment. “Enough for now.”

Jo chirped the words back at him, and the sound of their glasses chinking filled the room as they moved to finish the drinks in a toast and Dean tried to hide the burning feeling being from the alcohol alone, before the other began retelling some story of some ‘sexy piece of wood’ she took care of a while back and he forced his lips into a corresponding smile. 

That she was happy was enough now.

[fightevilandthengetblownup]

FIC: All The Things You Told Me Not To Be

“So what the fuck was that all about?”

Dean gritted the words out, hands fisted around the beer as he sat across the dinky, laminate table from the other.

He had had all night and morning to stew over the events of the last night. He’d had so long to review the words and accusations and suggestions of the night before that Dean was sure he couldn’t think on it any longer and keep his mouth shut at the same time. He had to ask, he had to ask and find out the answers.

“What was what about, Dean?” Jo asked quietly, her own hands wrapped about her own drink - a diet coke, Dean had been surprised to see and notice her drinking only over the last two days - as she diverted her eyes from meeting his eyes. She looked about the hotel room, eyes darting about, and he knew she was trying to conjure Sam’s return from the local library to search out their next lead.

He felt himself slam his bottle down on the table before he spoke again, “You know exactly what, Jo. Stop playing goddamn dumb with me and answer the question.”

“Oh that that.” Jo replied, an incredibly fake looking innocent look upon her face as she flicked at the metal tab atop her drink. “Well, mostly it was a group of annoying goddesses behaving like they were on Sex and The City or something.”

“You know what I meant, Jo.” Dean growled harshly, glare in full force as he stared across the tabletop at the other. Jo’s eyes met his for all of a second before she was looking away, and if he didn’t know better, he’d think she was blushing. But Joanna Harvelle never blushed - not when he shot down her come ons, not when she shot down his own, not when he accused her of being a teenager sighing over her text messages and not when he’d made a comment about the white shirt that swam on her when she’d come out of the bathroom the night before, the same that was now sitting slightly askew off of one shoulder as they hung about waiting for Sam to get back with some new lead and whatever passed for breakfast that he found.

Jo rolled her eyes in response, her shoulder jerking up noncommittally - a flash of tan skin upwards before sinking back into white cotton - as she turned her head from him as if she didn’t want to meet his own.

“Jo, what was that all about?” This time Dean felt his voice dropping quieter than he had ever meant it to, but he had to know, and if he didn’t know better he’d have thought her eyes had been shiny when she’d turned away, wet and glassy with tears ready to fall. Sam was always the better one of them to deal with crying women, or crying anyone, and Dean hadn’t even seen Jo let a tear fall when she’d been bleeding out on the dusty hardware store floor. Her eyes had had the same shiny look though, and swallowing down the bitter taste that line of thought brought up, Dean tried his best to sound as non-judgemental as he could. “I can tell whatever was brought up was..bad for you, and I want to help. I’m..I can listen, Jo.”

“Okay, okay, I guess I can’t really hide it forever.” Jo replied, and Dean looked away as he noticed her hand lifting from the table to rub across her eyes for a moment before the blonde turned to look back at him. Blinking his own eyes a few times to force back the tight, prickling feeling he could feel taunting him, he raised an eyebrow at her.

She let out a sigh and ran a hand through her hair, that silver decorative ring he had not seen her take off any moment since they’d been reunited flashing in the golden light of the old ceiling light, Jo looked back at him and seemed to have reached a point of calm zen to handling the situation. Dean wished he could be even half as calm on the inside as she looked.

“So, I’ll start with the fact that, uh, after I came back I was stuck in a bit of a shitty situation, got helped out by Crowley before he went all insane, and befriended Grey.” Dean felt himself flinch three times as she started talking, glad to see that her hands were off the table and he would imagine in her lap as she spoke, eyes focused down on them rather than watching his own reactions. That Jo had felt so alone and separated from them all that she had had to call upon a demon flashed painfully like a lance, and hearing about the goddamn shadow monster getting his hands on her during such a vulnerably time felt like the burn of alcohol over the wound. “Grey helped me out of a few tight spots when I’d started hunting again and proved he was helpful and worth keepin’ around. As a friend, before you ask, Dean.”

“Oh yeah, cause he really wanted to be just friends with you, Jo.” Dean couldn’t help himself from grumbling, pulling his beer over for a swig while Jo looked across at him for the first time, a scowl on her face. He dropped the beer back to the table after two long chugs, raising a brow back at her and speaking a little freer than usual since Sam wasn’t around to keep him in line. “I get you might have been thinking you were friends, but he’s still a hot blooded male isn’t he?”

“Uh... In a sense.” The blonde responded, a strange look upon her face as one side of her lip curled up and her nose scrunched a little, before she shook her head. “Anyway, that’s so not the point. We didn’t even hook up until like, ten months after we’d started hangin’ out anyways.”

Dean snorted at that, rolling his eyes to himself as he thought over just another check against the intelligence of the creature.  Brushing that thought away, he made a ‘continue’ gesture with his hand as Jo’s face slowly morphed back into the almost studiously blank look. “Ignoring that, continue with your story.”

“Well, Grey.. he’s not the only shadow runnin’ about in a human-type form right now. He’s got a sister, who isn’t half bad - currently in a kitsune so stoppin’ it from eating a ton of people - and then the real problem is his, uh, twin.” Jo’s voice went up at the end of her sentence, as if she wasn’t sure of what she was saying, or perhaps the words she was using, and asking him a question all at once. Shaking her head, Jo began twisting the ring on her middle finger around nervously as a small frown formed between her brows. “So like, back then I was becomin’ friends with Grey and his brother who was kind of horrible, and hates Grey with a passion, was around trying to break anythin’ that made Grey happy...”

That phrasing struck him as a little off, his own browns creasing quizzically as he looked across at Jo who had fallen silent again. The news that there were more of them out and about sat wrong in his stomach as it was, even if one seemingly was restricting the dangerous behaviours of another type of monster, but that girl-shadow would be something Dean could question Jo over at another time. It was clear the sister was not the point of her concerns and awkwardness.

“And this...twin? Was trying to destroy what made ...your monster friend happy?”

“Yeah. Which unfortunately included me.” Jo let out a bit of a laugh there, it sounded like a harsh and brutalist sound, rough around the edges and a little too dry from what her usual tone was. She shook her head and tilted her can upright to get the last of her soda before setting the empty can down with a chink. “So this ties in with what the Aztec goddess was on about-”

“Which one?”

“The long dark hair. Super creepy laugh?”

“Oh.” Dean nodded in awareness, as he remembered with a shudder the barking laughter that sounded like the yapping howl of dogs and the way that was the one goddess that seemed to unsettle Jo more than the rest. Frowning, he lent forward as he realised this might answer some of the questions that had come up from the various goddess’ words. “So the, uh, twin is tied to the supposed.. lust goddess?”

“Yeah.” Jo answered sharply, jerking out of her chair and moving towards the small fridge and retrieving two fresh beers. “Basically, the short version is after in escalating ways of attemptin’ to kill me - first with a wendigo, then by throwin’ me off a building   - the guy and I were kind of.. trapped in a trap like the old Holmes case, you know? Ring of iron, trappin’ it in but I didn’t get out of the circle in time.”

Dean accepted the cold beer like he’d just been handed the Nobel Prize for Sitting Through Awkward Conversations, and he cracked his new one open as Jo sat herself down across from him again, that white shirt down to mid thigh but barely covering anything when she was sitting from what he remembered of last night. Jo rocked back and forth for a moment before opening her own bottle and taking a long, deep chug of the alcoholic drink like a dying man in the desert.

“So you got caught with this..twin?”

“Yeah, and uh, unfortunately he’s a bit of a nympho given that they usually don’t have that kind of activity in their normal shadow form.” Jo muttered the last half of the sentence under her breath, and Dean struggled to hear anything after hearing she’d gotten herself caught in a trap with a nymphomaniac, murderous monster. “Anyway, the only way I managed to escape was by initiating non-violent activity and basically screwin’ the guy instead. I mean, better not gettin’ carved up and killed like a Christmas turkey, and better to be willin’ than not, right?”

Dean could feel the acidic burn in the back of his throat as he fought back the desire to expel his stomach contents at hearing that sentence from Jo of all people. Jo who had held him at gun point and thrown such a great hook to the nose; Jo who hadn’t cried or whined being covered in dirt and grime and taken prisoner by and then used as bait for possibly the evillest sonofa bitch too grace their fine country; Jo who had saved him from being torn apart a second time by hellhounds and taken the brunt of it herself; the Jo that he’d felt some small part - maybe that little spark of hope that maybe, one day, it’d be the right time and place with the right girl for once - go up in flames along with as they’d made their escape from the hardware store.

Shaking his head, Dean stood up carefully from his seat and left the perspiring beer on the table top as he rounded the small table to grab a hold of the other by the shoulders. Her eyes were wide and confused as he pulled her up out of her chair and wrapped both arms around her as tightly as possible. She felt like nothing, so much smaller and delicate and fragile than when he did this to his little brother over such situations, and that just turned his stomach all over again. Was no one looking out for her back then? Did Jo have no one who could have helped her? Where was that fucking monster friend of her’s then?

“Uh, Dean..” Jo’s slighly muffled voice cut through his tumultuous thoughts, forcing them all back and down to be asked about at a later time. Mostly likely to Bobby. With a lot of shots of whiskey and a seriously dark glare for not letting him in on her return earlier when just maybe he could have provided the support she clearly needed. “Not that I don’t love me a hug, but.. are you good?”

“I’m fine, Jo.” He replied, voice thick and gruff for a moment before he got a hold of himself. Giving one last squeeze, Dean released the other from the tight embrace but left his hands on her tiny shoulders, his palms basically covered the entirety of each of her shoulders he noticed abstractly, as he guided her back to her seat and sank down to his knees next to her rather than moving back to his own seat. “So that..that was what the Aztec one was on about? Givin’ into that monster, huh?”

“Yeah, exactly. It wasn’t really my proudest moment but like... what’s done is done.” Jo shrugged her shoulder, not dislodging his hold but an almost sad smile blooming across her face. “Anyways, it only happened the two times - a second purely out of, uh, spite for how I was bein’ treated by some unrelated friends about it - but I guess it was enough for that goddess to decide she wanted to be a bitch about it.”

Dean found himself gritting his teeth behind snapping that clearly Jo had poor taste in friends at the time and should have called him or Sam or both of them rather than dealing with that on her own. That maybe if she had known she had their support as well, she might have made it through safer, less hut and less impacted. That perhaps she would never had relied upon and made friends with the shadow that had wormed it’s way into her heart so much that the Love Goddess had spoken at every chance about them. That she would never have been subjected to that shadow-twin’s behaviours if she had simply piked up her phone and called to say she was back.

Nodding his head at her words instead, Dean rubbed his thumb over the bareskin on her right shoulder before finally pulling his hands back to himself at the curious and uncertain look on the other’s face. “I guess that must be the case.” Coughing a little, he moved to his feet and shuffled backwards blindly for a few feet before sinking into the rickety dining chair he had vacated with a tiny frown on his face.” “Well, I’m glad that we got out of that place safely last night, without any additional casualties.”

“I’m just mad I didn’t get to finish exploring!” Jo’s voice was much lighter and the concerned look on her face melted and made way for that ten million watt smile he remembered and found himself unable to maintain eye contact through. “I always wanted to go to that place actually.”

“Really?” Dean leapt on the topic change, and lifting the beer to his lips as Jo started talking about the building itself rather than about the assortment of gods that they had run into inside, he could feel the slightly cool ice that had been forming inside his mind towards Jo and her lifestyle choices melting away piece by piece as she began to babble.

Nodding where necessary, and making the odd agreeing noise, the hunter found his chest aching as he thought about it and watched the lightness returning to the other as she spoke on and on. That light he remembered so fondly that would shine out of each of her smiles and her eyes whenever he’d cross the threshold to the Roadhouse back in the day seemed to be growing and growing as she talked, and he could feel that same unwanted ache he felt that first time telling her it was the wrong place and wrong time gnawing at his twisted, bruised and beaten heart all over again as she said something about the golden winged angel statues or some irradiated green piece they had passed by. That was a thousand years ago, and spotting the shinning ring again, Dean lifted his beer for another swig as he settled into listening intently and trying to drown the little part of him that swore he’d let the right girl escape him eons ago to be claimed by someone else, maybe more deserving than him.