Ok, I've decided to be nice and present a preview chapter for each of the ideas that are posted on my profile. I actually feel a little stupid for not doing this sooner; you lot, as Supernatural readers, are my target audience after all. So, since this one seems the most popular, we'll start with the Tall Tales AU, shall we?
Sam had been told long ago that he had unusual blood inside of him by a psychic. His father and brother called it demon blood but Sam knew better; he was part Kitsune and Kitsune are spirits, not demons. Originally, John had tried to suppress and eventually destroy the powers that came with the blood. Sam knew that this was wrong and foolish; Sam knew that the blood was a part of him now, and knew that it would never really go away. When had they had seen that Sam had been given the unusual ability of blocking and binding other Supernatural creatures powers, Dean convinced John that this had been a blessing in disguise all along. John had grudgingly agreed and they started on honing Sam's abilities and John's motto eventually became 'Fight fire with fire', especially once they saw what Sam's fire could do to the monsters it hit.
However, when one creature they were hunting asked Sam how he felt going after his own kind, Sam started doubting of this was how he was supposed to live; he was something of the Supernatural, so should he really be hunting creatures that were like him? It was one week later that he applied to colleges in hopes of getting away from this life. When Stanford offered him a full ride, he and his dad had a screaming match to and all screaming matches. Sam had said that he didn't want to hunt a part of himself and his father said that if Sam could honestly connect to those monsters, then he could run, but he had better be careful because some hunter might just kill him, which was what you did to anything that wasn't human. Sam had run and never looked back, ignoring all of Dean's calls, knowing that if anyone was going to agree with John, it would be John's favourite son.
While at Stanford, Sam had been introduced to Jess Moore, a woman who had been fascinated with Japanese folklore since she was a little girl. She knew all about it, from the Abumi-guchi, a type of tsukumo-gami formed from a stirrup, usually one that once belonged to a fallen soldier, to the Zhong Kui, a vanquisher of ghosts and evil beings, and reputedly able to command 80, 000 demons. When Sam had asked what she knew about Kitsune, she had had quite a bit to say, seeing as how she favoured the Kitsune quite a lot.
In Japanese folklore, the kitsune are often presented as tricksters; sometimes very malevolent ones. The tricksters kitsune employ their magical powers to play tricks on people; those portrayed in a favourable light tend to choose as targets overly-proud samurai, greedy merchants, and boastful commoners, while the more cruel kitsune tend to abuse poor tradesmen and farmers or Buddhist monks.
Despite their role as tricksters, however, a kitsune will keep a promise it has given and will strive to repay any favour it owes. Occasionally a kitsune will take a liking to and attach itself to a certain person or household; as long as it is treated with respect, it will use its powers for the benefit of its companion or hosts.
"So, you see, the Kitsune are basically the Japanese version, as well as pack version, of Anansi of Africa and Loki of Scandinavia. I believe that Kitsune are the rightful judgment callers of Japan. I think that those who call them cruel and say they go after the weak and humble, are the ones who were scorned by the Kitsune, and want everyone to believe that they were the victims of an unjust prank." Jessica explained while they had been drinking coffee.
"You believe that they really exist then?" Sam had asked when she finished her story/explanation.
"Of course; I believe in Angels, and as much as I wish it were other wise, you can't believe in one, and not the other." It was not long after that, that they moved in together and soon, Dean was breaking and entering, dragging Sam with him to try and find dad and then the... horrible 'accident'. Which led them to this university that had a ghost that attacked and killed a pervert, a hazer who slow danced with an alien, then the animal experimenter gets eaten by an alligator. Bobby had of course been right; if they hadn't had their heads so far up their asses, Sam would have realized that he had finally found another Trickster, something he thought that he would never actually run into.
"I don't get it though Bobby, if it's a Trickster, why didn't Sam pick it up?" Dean asked and Sam had to resist the urge to smack Dean; he was a radar for demons not demi-gods damn it! Besides that he found them, he didn't identify the damn bastards!
"My guess? This Trickster is older than most that Sam is used to; he started working on that ability last year in order to find Yellow Eyes but he just started being able to sense Cross-Road demons, and only the employees at that; he can't get even a whiff of the big boss."
"Well excuse me for being a weak ass radar system but it took me five years before I was able to fully bind the powers of a pissed off poltergeist! Now, stop talking about me as if I'm not in the room and try to figure out just who the bloody Trickster is here!"
Right well, that should be enough of a sample for now, you'll get more, six more to be exact. There are seven ideas for you lot to choose from. I think I'll do the college one next, as that one is the one with the least description.