An Apple Pie Life
AU. One year after the events of Swan Song. POV Ben B. and Dean W. Spoiler warning: Seasons 3 – 5.
Disclaimer: Eric Kripke owns Supernatural and all the fantastic characters.
Chapter 1 - revised
"Hey Ben, wait up. My family is going to the carnival this weekend. Want to come?"
"Can't. My uncle's in town. Dad, Grandpa and me are taking him hunting."
"Hunting? For what? It's not hunting season."
Ben smiled and shrugged. As he turned away he mumbled, "What we hunt is always in season."
As Ben climbed into the beat up old van, Grandpa Bobby asked why he was smiling like an idgit. Ben laughed and said he was excited to see Uncle Rufus.
"Now I know you're an idgit. You take after your Dad. Don't understand why the two of you like that old son of a bitch so much."
"Cause he's so sweet and loveable. Unlike some people."
Bobby slammed on the brakes. "Get out! You're walking home. I mean it kid." Ben laughed as he got out of the van. This wasn't the first time Ben had been dumped on the side of the road by his adopted grandpa. And every time Grandpa came back and got him within ten minutes. Anymore, Ben just found a comfortable spot and settled in to read his Grandpa John's journal. His dad had given Ben the journal on his 10th birthday along with his first butterfly knife. (Mom had a fit. But Dad finally convinced her and she gave in.) It was a little weird at first to call Dean "Dad", but now it just felt right. If a guy was going to discover his long lost father, Dean Winchester was the coolest dad anybody could wish for.
Dean showed up about a year ago looking tired and beaten. Ben still remembered how sad and lonely he was. Shortly after Dean had arrived, Cas appeared and dropped the bombshell. He had been going through some records Upstairs and found out that Ben was Dean's son. The DNA test Lisa had done when Ben was born had been tampered with by the upstairs guys. Cas believed it had been done to protect Lisa and Ben from the downstairs guys. Ben didn't like talking about angels and demons and stuff. It was easier for Ben's young mind to think of them as just upstairs and downstairs guys.
After Uncle Cas' big announcement Dad packed them up and they all moved in with Grandpa Bobby. Dad said he wanted his family within running distance of the panic room in Grandpa's basement. The house was spooky and dirty when they arrived. Grandpa said he wasn't a good housekeeper. Mom said he wasn't a housekeeper period. It took a lot of time and work but Dad, Grandpa and Uncle Rufus managed to fix up the old house. And it was worth it. Now they lived in a nice home. Ben still didn't understand why Dad and Grandpa laughed so hard while they were putting up the white picket fence in the front yard.
As Ben expected Grandpa's van was heading back towards him. Ben laughed; he really loved his grumpy Grandpa Bobby. And he knew his Grandpa loved him just as much. The van made an illegal U-turn and stopped right next to Ben. And there in the passenger seat sat Uncle Cas! Man this was going to be an awesome weekend!
As the van pulled into the lot of S & W Auto Parts & Custom Design, Ben could see Uncle Rufus standing in the drive in front of the house waving. Grandpa mumbled something about morons and gunned the engine like he intended to run Rufus over. Ben wasn't worried, Uncle Rufus and Grandpa might gripe at each other but they both loved 'their family' and would never do anything to hurt them.
Ben was flying out of the van before it came to a complete stop. He ran over to Uncle Rufus and was swept up in a big bear hug. When Rufus finally released him, Ben saw how troubled and worried his beloved adopted uncle looked. Before he could ask what was wrong, Grandpa and Cas were greeting Rufus. And his mom was standing on the porch with his little bro, Gabe. Everything else would have to wait; this was Ben's time with Gabe. He loved his little brother and enjoyed watching him each evening while Mom made dinner.
As Ben grabbed Gabe and tossed him into the air he could hear his grandpa and uncles arguing. If Ben had been paying closer attention, he would have realized they weren't arguing; they were worried and surprised. But Ben's world always shrank to just him and Gabe when they were together. He tossed his backpack onto the white porch swing and cuddled Gabe against his shoulder like Mom had shown him. "Ok Gabe, let's go find Dad."
Dad was working on his latest project. A 1939 Dusseldorf. The owner wanted the car restored to its original condition. Dad had made a name for himself as one of the best at restoring and customizing classic cars. Grandpa said it made sense for Dad to work on classic cars, since he had spent so much time keeping the Impala running. Ben kicked his father's boot sticking out from under the car, "Hey Dad,"
Dean Winchester still got a jolt every time Ben called him Dad. He swallowed the lump in his throat and slid out from under the car. Looking down at him were his two beautiful sons. Sometimes Dean had trouble wrapping his head around how lucky he was. Who would have thought Dean Winchester would be rocking the family life including the white picket fence? Dean smiled every time he thought of that stupid fence in the front yard.
"Guess who's here?"
"Besides Rufus? "
"Ya. Uncle Cas just popped in." Dean shook his head as he stood up. They had a very strange family. Gabe gurgled toward Dean wanting his father's attention. But Dean was covered in grease so he brushed Gabe's check with the back of his knuckle. Dean began shutting down for the day. If Cas was here then something was up. The trip to hunt a chupacabra might have to wait. Ben would be disappointed, but if Cas had something he wanted hunted, then Ben wasn't going. On that point, Lisa and Dean agreed. A chupacabra or a ghost was one thing. But Ben was only ten years old. He just wasn't ready for most of the things out there. Ben was a Winchester and he had taken to hunting like a duck takes to water. But Dean wanted him to have some semblance of a normal life while he was young. Well, as normal as a kid who had an angel for an uncle, and a dad, grandpa and another uncle who were all hunters could have.
As Ben and his dad walked back to the house his excitement about the upcoming hunt began to fade. Last time Uncle Cas had been here was three months ago when Gabe was born and he branded Gabe's ribs. Ben rubbed his own ribs. Cas had branded his ribs the day he told Dean that Ben was his son. Between Uncle Rufus being upset and Uncle Cas showing up out of the blue Ben figured something was up and his hunt was going to be canceled. Ben loved his Uncle Cas, but his dad was right. The upstairs guys could be dicks.
While Dad was taking a shower and Mom was cooking dinner Ben sat on the sofa in the library and played with Gabe. Out of the corner of his eye, Ben watched his uncles and Grandpa through the window. They were still upset. Grandpa kept walking back and forth waving his arms and grumbling. Uncle Rufus kept putting his had over his heart like he was swearing that something was true. Uncle Cas was slumped against the fence just shaking his head in disbelief.
Dean walked into the kitchen, his hair still wet from the shower. He slid his arms around Lisa from behind and kissed the side of her neck. Lisa relaxed back into Dean's embrace and sighed. She knew every day with Dean was a gift. Lisa understood that one day he wouldn't come home from a hunt. So she treated each day as if it were the last they would have together. She loved this man and she swore his sons would know their father was a hero. And the gods help her she would make sure their boys carried on their father's work even if it killed her.
Dean breathed in the scent that was uniquely Lisa. Her hair smelled of shampoo and sunshine. Working out in the garage, Dean always knew when Lisa was bringing his lunch. He could smell her coming and it put a smile on his face and gave him a real sense of hapiness. Dean splayed his hand across Lisa's belly. She hadn't said anything yet but he knew she was pregnant again. This time he hoped it was a girl.
"Have they said anything to you yet?" Dean asked between kisses to Lisa's neck and shoulder.
Lisa was distracted but managed to answer. "No, but as soon as Rufus got here he asked me to call Cas. What do you think is going on?"
"I'm not sure. But I don't like it. When are these sons of bitches going to leave us alone?" Lisa stroked the back on Dean's hand and arm and he calmed down.
"There's another bottle of Johnny Walker Blue in the cupboard. Maybe that will loosen Rufus' tongue."
"No maybe about it," Dean chuckled. "Rufus can't help but tell all after a bottle of JWB. Maybe I should go get a couple more bottles. After all Cas is here."
Lisa laughed, "OK, ok there are three more bottles in our bedroom closet. I laid in a supply when you told me Rufus was coming."
"I love you!"
"I know. You have about an hour before dinner is ready. Try to find out what's going on by then. I don't want Ben hearing something he shouldn't."
Dean gave Lisa one last hug and kiss and grabbed four glasses and the JWB from the kitchen cupboard. Then he headed out to the front yard. Dean was sure he wasn't going to like what Rufus had to say.
Ben saw his dad in the front yard with the others. He whispered to Gabe, "Time to practice my lip reading."
"All right Rufus what's going on? Why did you want Lisa to call Cas?" To Dean's surprise, Rufus started talking without the aid of the JWB.
"I've been hearing about this new hunter for awhile now. He's supposed to be a real bad ass. He works alone and he takes on jobs any sane hunter would walk away from. The thing is, nobody seems to know his name and only a few young hunters have actually seen him. And that's only when he shows up to save their asses. These kids describe him as really tall and well, just big! With dark hair and angry green eyes."
"Sound familiar?" Bobby asked.
Cas added, "I've tried to zero in on this mysterious hunter and I just can't get a lock on him."
Dean's stomach was turning over and he felt like he was going to pass out. One word was shrieking over and over in his head. SAM. SAM. SAM. But he wouldn't let himself have any hope so he silenced the screams. Dean stared hard at Rufus and asked, "So what does this have to do with me?"
Bobby screamed at Dean, "You know what. It has to be Sam."
Dean downed his whiskey and shouted back at Bobby, "No, it doesn't have to be him. It could be anybody. No, it's not Sam."
Now Rufus was shouting, "We've put the word out that we want more info on this guy and a picture if possible. So far we've got jack back. But we're not giving up."
Cas raised his eyes from the empty glass he was holding and looked at Dean with compassion and pity in his eyes. It crossed Dean's mind that Cas had changed a lot since they had first met. Hell, they had all changed.
"It might be Sam. If there is even the slightest chance it is him, don't you want to know?" Cas asked quietly.
"No. It can't be Sam. If he was up top side again he would have come here to Bobby's looking for me. And if it is him, and he doesn't want to find me, then I can't believe he's the brother I lost at Stull Cemetery. No, I'm not going to look for him. I couldn't take it if I had to kill him and send him back to hell."
Ben stared at Gabe with wide eyes and whispered, "We have another uncle Gabe! A real blood uncle! Dad's brother! But Dad doesn't look too happy, he's afraid he'll have to kill him."