Why big brothers shouldn't be in charge.

Dean makes a bad parenting decision that haunts Sammy for years to come. Short, little, Weechesters fic! Fluff and nonsense.

With the remake of Stephen King's "It" coming out, I started to think about Sammy and his fear of clowns so I did a little bit of quick math.

If Sam was 22 in 2005, when the Pilot aired, then he would have been 7 in 1990-when the original "It" came out-and Dean would be 11.

This is nonsense but it ended up kinda cute.

I do not own the Winchesters, or that stupid clown for that matter. But I bet if Sam and Dean had fought that thing it would have died a lot quicker.

Children Shouldn't Watch Stephen King Movies

"This is one reason you should always bring a chick to the movies."

Dean says as he tries to stuff a bag of beef jerky and 2 cans of cherry Pepsi in the pockets of his jeans.

"They can stash all your snacks in their purse."

Sam rolls his eyes "Or we could just buy snacks at the theater like everybody else..."

"Yeah, sure, Sammy, except we don't have an extra $10,000,000 laying around. Anyways, we're sneaking in. We don't need to draw attention by carrying a huge bucket of popcorn and a trough of soda. Your clumsy-ass would spill it for sure, and then we'd get kicked out."

Sam makes a face at his big brother and puts on his coat.

"You better not get freaked out on me, Sammy," Says Dean. "I'm not hauling a crying baby out halfway through the movie."

"No way, Dean!! I'm not a baby! I'm 7 years old I do not get scared of movies anymore!" Sam scowls at his big brother and his messy, brown hair falls down into his eyes.

Dean laughs and smooths it off his forehead but it flops, resolutely back.

He sighs wonders if he should be spending his precious little money on a haircut for Sam instead of on movie tickets.

"Alright, alright, come on then" says Dean, and the brothers head out for the theatre.

Dean buys two tickets for "whatever bullshit kid's movie is playing" from the suspicious teenage girl at the counter and the boys ascend to the top row in the auditorium. Far away from any adults who might notice children at an rated R movie.

The theater is filled mostly with amorous teens who will spend the entire three hours making out.

No one sees the two little boys in secondhand clothes who brought their own snacks and despite being "not scared at all" sit a bit too close to each other.

Throughout the movie Dean keeps a careful eye on his brother. Even though Dean himself is only 11, he's seen too much of what really lives in the dark, so a little makeup and cheap special effects don't do much to make him jump. Sammy, however, is still very much a kid. Dean would (and already has) shed blood, sweat and tears to make sure he stays that way as long as possible.

The movie is really long and bloody but at least it has some semblance of a happy ending.

When the credits roll Sam swears he loved it but Dean notices the way he's stuck to his side the whole walk home. They always stick close to each other; it's already an ingrained habit for Dean to keep his little brother close-especially after dark when ghosts and ghouls and long-legged beasties seem to lurk around ever corner. But this time Sam is so close that Dean keeps knocking into him and tripping over him.

"Sammy! What are you doing? That was too scary for you, wasn't it?"

"No!" Sam shouts, but his voice sounds funny and when Dean kneels down in front of him he sees Sam's lips tremble.

"Dammit, Sammy. I'm sorry. It's not real, dude it's just makeup."

Sam nods, his little chest still heaving as he fights not to cry.

Dean takes a deep breath and scoops Sam into his arms. Sam is too big for him to carry but he does it anyway, hauling his not-so-little brother all the way back to the motel.

"Dean, are those kinds of clowns real?" Sam asks as Dean tucks him in.

"No way, Sammy!"

He tries to say it convincingly but he thinks of all the monsters lurking in the shadows; of the thing that killed their mom, and the awful wounds his dad comes back with. He thinks of the terrible fear he's seen on his dad's face after a long night away, of the pictures of those twisted creatures pasted in his dad's journal. His heart speeds up as he remembers the screams he's heard coming from the darkness when Sam was sleeping on one of those eternal nights spent waiting in the car for his dad to come back. He thinks of all this and his voice comes out high-pitched and afraid.

Sam is a kid but he's far from stupid. He has an uncanny ability to see through lies and he knows his big brother.

"Dean?!" His hazel eyes widen and he starts to tremble.

"Dean, are they real?!"

Dean takes a deep breath and pushes aside his fear with a strength of will that would be impressive in an adult.

"Of course not, you little dork!"

Dean suddenly has a thought.

He gets his duffel bag from the other side of his bed and takes something out of it, hiding it behind his back.

"Remember those comic books we're always reading?" He says. "Remember how Batman protects Gotham from the Joker?" Sam nods "Well, the Joker is a clown, right?"

"Yeah..."

"And Batman totally kicked that Joker's ass, didn't he?

"I guess." Says Sam

"Wellll...here ya go!"

Dean hands his brother a somewhat battered, used, Batman action figure.

"I was gonna save it for your birthday but I guess you can have it now."

The paint has chipped and worn a bit, there's a little tear in the cloth cape, and faded letters on the toy's foot read: "Timothy Murphy". Proof of a previous owner.

Sam doesn't notice any of this. His face lights up and Dean looks just like a proud dad.

"If you get scared just remember I'll always protect you, I'll keep you safe just like Batman keeps Gotham safe. You don't ever have to be afraid, Sammy."

Sam sighs in relief and clutches the toy with a desperate excitement, all thoughts of killer clowns temporarily erased from his mind.

"Time for bed, Sam" says Dean

Sam settles down under his blankets with his new-old Batman toy next to him.

"Dean?" He asks through a yawn. "If you protect me from the clowns...does that mean...you're Batman?"

Dean laughs

"Sure, Sammy. MINUS the cape and tights."

The end

Well, I don't know...silly but cute.

Sorry for wonky formatting as always...eye roll..

Thanks for reading!

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