WBY Living Winchester
Author: Saberivojo
Characters: Sam, Dean, John, Jamie(OC)and River Winchester (OC) AU
Summary: River starts to learn about what it means to Live Winchester.
XXX
River Winchester.
It sounded strange to Riv, but he never really had a last name anyway. Sunshine had said that last names were unnecessary. It somehow interrupted her life energy and did something to her chakras.
River never bought that for one minute, but when your mother was the poster child for bizarre lifestyles like Sunshine was, who knew?
River tried to relax, tried to breathe deep even breaths as he sat on his bed. It was the waiting that was hard. River had no idea when or if his mother would come back. In the past she had - but this time seemed different. There appeared to be some kind of significance associated with being introduced to and dropped off at your father's home. There was finality in this last abandonment that River wasn't used to.
River considered his recent induction into becoming a Winchester and of living with a real family. A last name was kind of nice. Just like living in a house instead of a commune was nice. There were some definite pluses to being a Winchester.
There were also some definite minuses too.
And although Sunshine had never believed in organized school, River was more than capable when it came to math.
Did the pluses overwhelm the minuses?
He thought that maybe they did but jury was still out on that one.
XXX
River glanced over at his cousin quietly reading in bed. It was a perfect Texas afternoon, far too nice to be inside reading but Jamie seemed content to do just that.
River was content to lay in bed and listen to his iPod.
"So whatcha reading?" River asked, curiosity finally getting the better of him.
"To Kill a Mockingbird." Jamie answered distractedly.
"Why would you want to read something like that?"
"Summer reading list." Jamie stated.
"Dude, tough school."
"It's not from school, it's from Uncle Sam."
River laughed from his bed. "You mean my dad has given you a summer reading list and you are fucking doing it?"
Jamie glowered over his book at River. "Hell, yeah. Have you met your father? Oh yeah, that's right…not really."
"What do you mean, have I met him? Of course I've met him, I live here don't I?"
Jamie slammed the book shut.
"You barely live here. Sitting on your bed listening to your iPod is not living Winchester. Trust me."
River snorted. "Living Winchester. What the fuck does that mean?"
"It means you have it easy. Uncle Sam lets you get away with everything. You got nothing to do but sit there and listen to that damn emo shit that is probably rotting your brain away. I've got chores and training and yeah, a fucking reading list, so how about you just leave me alone. Get on back to your relaxation."
River grinned. "I guess I'm just the lucky one huh? It sucks to be you."
XXX
River sauntered into the kitchen, opened the fridge and grabbed a quart of milk. Ass against the open fridge he opened the cardboard spout and chugged half of it down.
"OWE!" The open handed slap hurt more than he cared to admit.
"Dude! Were you raised in a barn!" It was his uncle.
River rubbed hard at the back of his head.
"No a commune. And a bus."
"Well, you aren't livin' there anymore. Grab a damn glass and pour the milk into it."
"What's the point of that? Is the great Dean Winchester afraid of River germs?" River taunted. He turned back toward the fridge, dropped the milk into it and slammed the door.
His uncle gave him a look that was a cross between exasperated and irritated. "No, but if your grandfather saw you, your head woulda really rattled."
River paused for a moment, remembering his first, last and only encounter with his grandfather's hard hand. Dean had a point.
"So what was that then? " River gestured toward his sore head.
"That kiddo, was a Winchester love tap."
XXX
River considered his cousin's earlier comment.
What the fuck was Living Winchester?
The only real information that River seemed to be able to glean from his new family was sketchy at best.
Everyone seemed to think that "yes, sir" was the answer to everything. Except when it was "no, sir" and really River didn't hear too many "no, sirs" being thrown around.
His new family spent a lot of time exercising. They called it PT and for some reason it was expected that everyone do it. They all ran together in the morning like a pack of wolves and it seemed they did pushups and crunches for fun. So far no one seemed to expect him to run with them. That was more than fine with River, he had no intention of running anywhere unless someone was chasing him.
Winchesters seem to have an unnatural affection for weapons. When they weren't trying to kill themselves with PT they were cleaning their guns or sharpening knives. They had a lot of guns and their assortment of knives put a butcher to shame.
Then there were the horses. River didn't think that he liked horses. They were big and smelled. Plus they required far more effort to take care of than River ever going to expend doing anything. River knew he was lazy, why shouldn't he be? Why they hell would you want to make more work for yourself?
River ran it through in his head. PT, firearms and horses.
The only obvious conclusion that Riv came to was that his family was a part of an insane paramilitary cowboy sect.
It turned out it was much worse.
XXX
Two weeks after River came to live in the gray farmhouse his father rapped on the door of his and Jamie's room.
River was watching TV but he grunted in the general direction of the door.
"Come in."
River flicked a glance toward his father as he walked in and settled his huge body against the against the doorframe. Damn the man was big.
"Can we talk a minute?"
"I'm kinda busy."
"It looks like your watching a game show."
"It's riveting TV, Sam. "
His father reached over and tapped the remote.
"I won't be too long. It's important."
"Now that was rude." River shifted his hips on his bed to face his father and dropped sneakered feet on the floor. At least he offered the pretense of paying attention.
Sam stepped further in the room and shut the door quietly. Then he settled himself on River's bed, hips almost touching River's. The bed sagged under the weight of the man and River found himself tipping toward his father as if the bed was an oddly shaped see-saw.
"I spoke to your mom today."
"And?" River tried to sound distracted. It wouldn't do to have Sam think he really cared one way or another.
"We both came to a decision…we think that it is best for you to stay here. Stay with us and become an official Winchester."
So his mother had called and she and Sam had a little parental discourse and no one even bothered to talk to River? Although it was typical for Riv to be ignored by Sunshine, it didn't mean he had to like it. River stood abruptly, blue eyes flashing bright. "Oh, you two came to a decision? Don't I have any say in it?"
Sam looked steadily at River. "No, son, you don't. Not about this."
"Well, that's some stupid shit. This is my life. Mine. I don't even have an input on whether I want to stay here or not? I should be able to make choices for myself, Sam." River leaned on the name, made sure that his father realized that as far as River was concerned – Sam was just another person in his fucked up life – no more important than anyone else.
Sam seemed to flinch a bit at that and River wasn't sure if it was the first name basis or the sentiment it implied.
"Yeah, well there will come a time when you can make decisions about your life but right now as the adults in the picture, your mom and I feel that this is in your best interest."
River snorted hard then. "Since when has Sunshine ever done anything in my best interest?"
Sam raked a hand through his hair and then took a deep breath. "Well, I have to admit that she hasn't always been the most responsible of parents, but that has all changed since I came into the picture. She realizes that you need more stability than she is able to provide. Me, your uncle, your grandfather and even your cousin, we are gonna give that to you."
"Don't put yourself out, Sam. I don't need your charity or your pity and I surely don't need your fucking stability." River breathed in sharply.
"Yeah, kiddo, you do." His father stood and reached over to River and dropped a hand to the nape of his neck. It felt good there, warm and big but River wasn't gonna fall for the comfort of Sam Winchester's grizzly sized paw. He ducked out of his father's hand, willing the hot prickle of tears away. He did not need Sunshine and Lord knew he didn't need the Winchesters.
"Sam, just leme alone." River knew his voice was cracking but he hoped it would just encourage his father to leave. Give him the privacy he needed to figure out what he wanted.
It worked.
"Okay, River. I'll be downstairs. We still have a lot to talk about but take all the time you need to get yourself together."
It was then that he came to a startling conclusion. He didn't need time to get himself together. He needed to be away from these people.
River Winchester was better off completely on his own.
XXX
River wasn't stupid; he knew that sneaking out of a house full of Winchesters was not going to be easy. But he decided to shoot for the "I may be an angsty kid but I'm trying to understand" approach.
So he joined his family for dinner that night, suitably sullen and with enough of an attitude to make sure they knew he was not entirely happy about anything. Even his grandfather seemed to buy it, not really rising to the bait but allowing wiggle room for his grumpy grandson.
But he did help clean up the dishes, throwing slightly off color banter and remarks to Jamie. Jamie shushed him with an elbow to the ribs but laughed a little just the same.
River thought he might miss his cousin a little bit.
Not enough to change his mind really, but if he looked at Jamie objectively, he couldn't find too much wrong with the kid. Except that maybe he was a perfect Daddy's boy. But River wasn't going to have to worry about that much longer either.
He trotted upstairs after dishes and quickly threw his meager belongings in a duffle. A few change of clothes, his iPod and a light weight jacket. He didn't have much money, but he'd already knew where the household petty cash was and that was next on his list of things to grab.
He knew that Jamie was a light sleeper so rummaging around after lights out would cause him to wake up so he went to the window, peered down at the bushes underneath and dropped the duffel behind them.
Perfect.
Then he decided to be a good boy and go back downstairs to sit with his family as they watched TV.
XXX
A few video games and a movie later and it was almost 11pm. His father stood and pointed toward the stairs.
"Boys, it's getting late, go on upstairs and hit the rack." Jamie yawned and looked like he might protest but it had been a long day.
"Can I stay up a bit longer?" River asked quietly, "I'm not tired and well, I just need some time to kinda think some stuff through."
His father looked at his uncle who shrugged in the darkened living room. John had gone up an hour ago, mumbling about being old and needing his beauty sleep. Both of his boys had laughed out loud and even Jamie had grinned.
"Do you want me to sit with you River? I don't mind." His father's voice sounded gentle.
"No, Da…Sam. I'm good."
And that did it. His father smiled, leaned over and ruffled his shaggy head. "Okay son, don't be up too late though."
River settled himself back on the couch and turned the TV down a bit and smiled.
He should so get an Academy award for tonight's acting alone.
XXX
River left the TV running and padded quietly into the kitchen. It was easy enough to take the top off the coffee can in the cupboard and pull out the wad of money he found there. He shut the coffee can lid and then the cupboard quietly and opened the back door. A brief backward glance to make sure there were no random Winchesters around and then he stepped softly into the night. He figured he could make the main drag within an hour or so and then hitch a ride to Dallas. Dallas was a huge city and a kid could get lost there pretty quickly. River stepped around the side of the house and looked up at his bedroom window. Yeah, he was gonna miss Jamie but he was better off without the Winchesters and Lord knew they were better off without him. River grabbed the duffle off the ground and shouldered it with a low grunt turned and headed straight into the chest of his father.
"Uh, Sam!" River kind of squeaked it out. It was a decidedly unmanly sound but it couldn't be helped.
His father tilted his head just slightly and pursed his lips.
"That would be me."
"This looks a little suspicious, I suppose."
"It does at that."
"I was just watching TV and I thought I heard something out here. I figured I should just take a quick look."
Sam nodded. "You did huh? And you brought your duffle with you. How very boy scout of you to be so prepared."
River dropped a quick look at his duffle and started to come up with something else. "I uh… Hell, Sam. It's what it looks like. I'm heading to Dallas."
"You think so?"
River's eyes flashed at the implication of Sam's three words. Like Sam Winchester had any hold over River, like River couldn't decide that he didn't want to be living here.
"No…I know so." And with that River stepped quickly to the right, attempting to go around Sam. That route was instantly and effectively blocked by Sam's massive body. How could an old guy like his father anticipate River's moves that with such speed?
"Sorry, Riv. We've been through this already. This is your home and you are staying here with us."
"Look Sam, you are a decent guy and I get you feel some kind of obligation toward me, but guess what? You don't owe me anything. I got your DNA and that is enough for me. "
"Maybe but it is not enough for me River. "
"I'll send you a post card from Dallas. " River turned around Sam to the left this time and was once again stopped.
River threw the hand up that wasn't holding his duffle, slapping it hard against his thigh. "DUDE. MOVE." River shoved hard into Sam. It was like hitting a brick wall. Sam didn't even rock a little with the impact. Instead Sam grabbed his loose arm and turned half dragging River back to the front of the house. River slammed his tennis shoes into the soft grass, digging in and pulling back for all it was worth. His father didn't even give any indication that River's fighting was affecting him at all. It was then that River decided all out warfare was needed, he threw his weight back hard, bucking against the strong hand that was firmly grasped around his bicep.
"Leme the fuck alone, SAM!"
Instead of pulling, River shifted tactics and ran forward. It didn't seem to make a difference to Sam he just moved his weight to accommodate River's forward pull instead of backward pull. River panted lightly in the dark Texas night. It was like trying to drag a damn bull. But even bulls had their vulnerable areas.
River faced his father and then with a blazingly sharp kick, aimed for the family jewels with as much strength as he could muster.
Sam's sharp intake of breath made River feel so fucking happy he could almost laugh with the sound.
"Take that DAD!"
River pulled hard once more and almost felt Sam's grip give. Almost. But instead his father pulled him in closer and stood breathing deeply, in through the nose, out through the mouth like he was some kind of new age freak that his mother would have happily meditated with.
The pressure on his arm didn't let up again, in fact, River thought it might have gotten tighter.
Sam turned quickly toward River. "Shhhh. You'll wake everyone up and then your ass will really be grass."
"Like they care! Like anyone cares! Just let me go!"
Sam huffed low. "Damn it, River. I care. They care. Damn it. " And even though the pressure on his arm didn't change River could tell the kick had done some damage. Any person with boy parts knew how bad that hurt and River couldn't believe that Sam wasn't doubled over.
"Sam…you okay out there?" It was River's grandfather.
"Yes, sir. Me and River are just having a little discussion."
"Discussion? At 0200?"
"Yeah, Dad. We'll be in ina minute."
River heard the screen door slam and expected that his grandfather had headed back into the house.
"C'mon." Sam's voice was low and rough as if the nut bashing had done something to his vocal cords.
River slammed backwards again and this time Sam did let go but instead if giving River the opportunity to run he just repositioned his hand and then reached around to River's belt, hoisting the kid up by both the strip of leather and the jeans. River felt his upper body tilt downwards and then he was firmly laying across his father's knees as Sam carefully sat himself down on the front steps of the house.
Oh, nononono this was not gonna happen again! River doubled his efforts to get away but if he could do no more than run forward or back the length of Sam's arm earlier, he could do nothing but squirm in this position.
"SAM! DO NOT DO THIS!" River knew he sounded a little panicky but it was only a week and a half ago that his grandfather had decided to spank the hell out of his ass. This was not gonna happen again. There was no way that River was going to put up with…
Whack!
Sharp and hard his father's hand blazed down over River's denim clad butt.
"YEOWWW!"
Holy Mary, Jesus, Joseph and Buddha too.
Whack!
"SAM, DAD! THIS IS TOTALLY UNCESESSAR…"
WHACK!
River frantically tried to come up with something, anything that would stop his father's gargantuan hand from slapping his ass again.
"I'm sorry, Sam uh Dad. I'm sorry."
Sam's voice was low and growly.
"Me too, River."
Whack!
There was no reprieve, no slowing down or speeding up, just the rhythmic cadence of Sam Winchester's hand systematically covering every spot on River's ass with stinging warmth.
"We don't run away at this house. If you have a problem, we talk about it."
Another sharp slap hit River's rump.
"Okay..okay, I got it!"
"We don't steal! Especially from our family!"
River forgot about the wad of cash in his pocket.
"I uh, I uh, it wasn't stealing I'm a part of the family too? Right? C'mon Sam. If you needed the money you could take it right?"
"Absofuckinlutely, you are a part of the family. You need something you ask for it. " There was another series of blazing swats to River's rear. And Lord, he did not think that anyone could whack harder than his grandfather did but he was reconsidering that right now. Right this fuckin…
"OWWE, DAD!" It was heartfelt - the dad came out in a woosh.
Sam did pause but just for a second, long enough to reach under and unsnap River's jeans.
This was not going down, no bare assed ass whippings on the front porch!
But River felt the cool night air gently caress his blazingly hot ass. The reprieve was only momentary before what River was sure was the worse pain he had ever felt in his life scorched his ass. He could feel every finger of his father's big monster paws as that bare hand slapped his bare ass.
Once, twice, three times and then once more harder still.
River sobbed, tears soaking the wooden steps on the front porch.
"And that boy, was for kicking me in the balls! Nut bashing is for bad guys, not your family and certainly not your father."
River couldn't think. All that was going through his mind was how much his butt was stinging and how he would never sit again. There was nothing else running though his head but hoping to never, ever go through something like this again.
All River could do was nod. He couldn't even form words.
His father helped him pull up his pants. Ironically, River didn't care if his junk was hanging out in the wind on the porch at 2:30 in the morning . He didn't want his pants up and most certainly didn't want them touching his ass. But he felt he was in no position to argue anything with Sam Winchester. Not butt covering or ass whippings or the price of rice in China.
As far as River was concerned. Right now Sam Winchester was a demigod and he, River Winchester, wasn't gonna buck him on anything.
His father stood and pulled River in hard to his chest. River just stood there trembling just a bit but mostly crying into his father's hard chest. Sam wrapped his arms around River. It felt warm and comfortable and River just let himself cry. It felt like he was crying about the butt whipping but it felt like it was more than that too. He was crying about Sunshine and about living in a fucking bus and about being left here with a father he didn't know. It felt like every injustice he had ever been a part of just came out in his father's arms. Creepy "uncles" and the sweet smell of late night weed. A nomadic lifestyle that left River with nothing to sink his roots into. No home. No family. Nothing.
Until tonight.
His father raked a hand through River's sweaty hair, soft and gentle and then he curled his body into River's and dropped a brief kiss to his head.
"I got ya, River."
River stopped crying then and just shook quietly in his dad's embrace.
"Shhhhh." And then nonsensical words that were more noises than anything but River let himself relax then. For the first time that River ever could remember he just let someone take care of him and it felt like home.
XXX
They walked into the house with his father's arm still curled around River's shoulders. River felt so tiny, and yet empowered with a love that he couldn't even articulate. It should make him feel like a girl, but it didn't.
"Go on, get to bed, kiddo. We'll talk in the morning okay."
"Okay…goodnight, Dad."
River walked up the steps and into the room he shared with Jamie.
He flopped hard on his bed, belly down and sniffled once in the dark.
"Hey, Riv? Are you okay?"
"Yeah, Jamie. I'm good." It felt like it too. He felt good. Which made absolutely no sense at all. His ass hurt like a mo fo and physically he was so tired and drained. But he felt great.
River looked over at Jamie in the darkened room.
"I guess you heard that all didn't you."
Even in the dark River could see the bright flash of Jamie's smile.
"Dude…how could I not? I think the next farm over heard you yelling."
River spoke a little sullenly. "Well, anyone would yell like that if my dad was whaling on their ass."
Jamie laughed then. "Of course they would! Hell, I have!"
River laughed a little himself and wasn't that just plain stupid. Who laughed when they discussed getting their ass handed to them by fucking Susquatch.
There was a footstep outside their door and Gramps knocked briefly and opened the door, soft dim light filtered into the boys' room.
"Hey, you two, knock it off. Lights out."
River surprised himself by answering with his cousin.
"Yes, sir."
Jamie laughed again, low and then he spoke even lower.
"Now you're doing it."
River quirked an eyebrow at Jamie. "Huh? Doing what?"
"Now you're Living Winchester."
end
