Author's note: Here a little story I came up with for Mother's day. My mom is really important in my life so a story about the brother's mom came naturally.
Thanks to my two betas (yes I'm very lucky to have them): Tara and Jude.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Description: It started as a simple game: each year Sam could ask Dean one question about their mom. But it became more serious over the years…
It started as a game…
By alwaysateen
It started as a game, really.
One day, five years old Sam Winchester returned home from kindergarten and asked his older brother Dean a simple question.
"Why haven't we celebrated Mother's Day before?"
Looking up from the comic book he was reading, Dean asked.
"Why you're asking me this, Sammy?"
"Our teacher asked us to prepare a Mother's day card and I was wondering why I had never heard of that holiday before today," Sam answered simply; waiting impatiently for his big brother's answer.
Dean thought about it for a second and decided to answer frankly.
"Our mum is in Heaven, Sammy, so we couldn't really celebrate her."
Sam was disappointed by that answer so Dean decided to start a new tradition. Every Mother's day, Sam could ask him one question about their mother. Any question was possible, no restriction, but only one per year.
Sam got all excited and went to their room to prepare his first question.
At nine years old, Dean still found it difficult to remember the good times he spent with his mom, so he rarely spoke about her. But Sam needed to know her so he could make this little exception for his little brother once a year.
At first the questions were easy.
"What color was her hair?"
"What was her favorite song?"
"Which movie did she knew by heart?"
"How did she meet dad?"
"Did she love the Impala as much as you and dad?"
"Where did our names come from?" To that one, Dean asked more details, like whether Sam had meant their given or surnames?
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Every New Year a new question, that's simple enough right? That's what Dean thought but he didn't count on Sam getting that smart…
He started asking questions that become a long explanation or developed into more questions but Dean saw through most of them and didn't fall into Sam's traps, well most of the time.
But as Sam grew older, his questions also became wiser but mostly more difficult to answer…
"Did mom died because of me?"
"Why was the demon was in my room when mom died?"
"Do you think she resents me for dying?"
"Are you sure she doesn't regret having a second child?"
Even though they were difficult, Dean always answered Sam truthfully and with as many details as he could remember. But one thing was also clear: never ask dad any question about mom.
Around Mother's day and Mary's birthday, John would become very depressed and some tougher years, he'd even stop hunting; when he was between hunts not in the middle of one of course. So Dean didn't want to bother him or add more grief to his broken heart.
So this little tradition was between the brothers only, John never knew anything about it. Most holidays were ignored in the Winchester household anyway so why the boys would celebrate Mother's day? Christmas was always celebrated, Easter of course (who can resist the call of the chocolate?) but Mother's day? Some years, John had even forgotten Father's day so…
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Is this little tradition still going you might ask me? Yes, even more now that they revisited their childhood home and Sam learned that Dean saved him from the fire.
Between that hunt in Lawrence and the next one, Dean answered all Sam's questions about their mom, who he truly meets for the first time that day, and their childhood. After what they been through he could do that little exception.
It really restarted there because all of their secret traditions had abruptly stopped when Sam left for Stanford. They had rarely spoken during their time apart so they hadn't even realized they stopped.
And it wasn't easy to resettle into their old habits now that they were hunting together again. They both had changed a lot in their four years apart and maybe grown out of these childish traditions.
But Mother's day will always remain on their calendar. It was their special way to remember Mary and the important part she played in their lives, then and now.
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They even started a new tradition since John's death: a once a year Father's day question, but that's another story…
The end
End notes: Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think. There's always place for improvement, especially in my case, so reviews will get me there.
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there, we love you.