The Hunter of Swan Lake
A/N: So I was watching Black Swan and this story hit me in the face. It's probably based more on the cartoon The Swan Princess, because I've never seen the ballet Swan Lake and I haven't seen the Barbie version in years. And this is a Sam/Dean story, so please don't criticize for that. If you don't like this kind of stuff, then please don't read it.
It was a quiet town in upper Maine, the place that wouldn't appear on any map, no matter how hard you look. It set on the Little Black River, protected by a mountain from the rest of the world. It was beautiful, nestled there in on a piece of land. Sam thought it was absolutely beautiful, Dean thought it was boring.
"I mean, what are we even doing here?" Dean asked as they arrived in town. Sam sighed.
"I've told you a million times." Sam said. "Bobby said there's a Wendigo running loose up here. He asked us to take care of it. Dean sighed.
"Well, let's get this done fast." He said. "This doesn't look like the kind of place that is very nice to outsiders." He said. He looked over at Sam for a long moment before turning his eyes back to the single road that led up to the tiny town. As they drove along the river, Dean could see the water moving into the forest, and in the distance a huge house that almost looked like a castle.
Dean found them a motel, he was thankful there actually was one, and paid for a room. He had spotted one bar, called the Swan's Head, and he knew that's where he'd get most of his research done, making sure there was a Wendigo in town. And he'd have to convince Sam to go with him. He needed to get out more. So he pulled the Impala up in front of their room and started to carry their bags in.
"Come with me to the bar." Dean said. Sam had been staring at the sign that said Swan Lake Motel. Dean noticed and was wondering what the town's deal was with swans.
"Dean…" Sam said.
"Sam, you need to get out more." He said. He stared at Sam, the toned muscles hiding underneath all those layers. He tried to push all those unholy thoughts from his mind, but he couldn't. That's when he heard Sam sigh.
"Fine." He said. "But if I don't want to stay, then I'm coming back here. Understood?" He asked. Dean nodded.
"Let's go then." Dean said. He smiled as they walked to the bar.
The minute they walked in, Dean spotted a pool table that needed to be hustled. Sam sighed and set at the bar, flipping through a newspaper he had found there. While Dean was off making new friends with the locals, Sam was bored out of his mind. He was about to get up and leave when a handsome young man set down by him. He seemed to sense the way Sam felt hurt about being abandoned by Dean.
"Boyfriend ditch you?" He asked. Sam looked over at him, completely enthralled by his good looks.
"He's not my boyfriend." Sam said. The name smiled and nodded.
"Well, in that case, my name is Roth." He said, extending his hand. Sam shook it.
"I'm Sam." He said. Roth smiled.
"Well, Sam, can I buy you a beer?" He asked. Sam smiled.
"Sure." He said. It was three rounds later before Dean even noticed the man flirting with his brother. Sam was tipsy by then, running his hands all over him before Roth leaned in and kissed him. That made Dean turn green with jealousy, but he bit his tongue, unable to say anything.
"Can I take you back to my place?" Roth whispered into Sam's ear. Sam looked over at Dean and gave him a thumbs up before nodding to Roth's question. Roth smiled and grabbed Sam's hand, leading him out of the bar. Sam wasn't usually one to go off with a random stranger, but there was something about Roth that was…different. He couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Dean watched as his brother left the bar and climbed onto the back of Roth's motorcycle, strapping on a helmet with the shadow of a bird painted on it before they drove away. Dean felt his jealousy rising, and once Sam came back to the motel, he was going to tell him exactly how he felt.
Roth's house was deep in the woods, far away from the town. The river ran right behind his…palace? Sam wasn't sure it kept running or pooled up behind it. He was too amazed by the large towers and beautiful scenery.
"Do you like?" Roth asked Sam. Sam nodded sleepily. Soon, his eyes fell closed and he laid his head against Roth's back. Roth smiled as he picked up Sam and walked him into the house, depositing him on the bed.
"Finally, after all these years." Roth, full named Rothbart, said as he stared at Sam. "A prince worth actually keeping." He moved to the podium in the back of the room, the stand that held a red orb that looked like it had fire in the middle. He laughed as he held it high. "The Forbidden Arts." He laughed. "I have used this to turn potential princes into the animal of their souls, but they have never been as pour as this one. He is the swan I have been looking for."
He walked to Sam, sprawled out on the bed. Rothbart set beside him, gently brushing his soft hair. A smile curled on his lips. Not a cheater, this one. Not so bad that he would be turned into a frog or turtle like the other two. He looked down at the orb.
"Now it's up to you." He said to it. "Show me his true animal." With that, the fire inside shaped and twisted, turning itself into a swan. Rothbart smiled. "Do your magic." He said. Suddenly, the wind picked up and Sam lifted off the bed a little bit. A red light surrounded him. When it disappeared, Sam lay back on the bed. Rothbart laughed. "By the light of day, you will be a swan, but in the dead of night, with the moon shining bright, you will be mine." His laugh echoed throughout the house.
The next morning, Sam could feel the warmth of the sun warming his body. But he could also feel water too. It was muddy, wherever he was. Where had he fell asleep at last night anyway?
Sam opened his eyes and saw a beautiful lake stretched out before him, surrounded by broken archways made out of lattice board. They were covered with weeds and there were dead rose bushes lining the lake. But the outer landscape was beautiful. Green grass as far as the eye could see. Sam wiped at his eyes then, and was shocked by what he saw.
He hands had been replaced by wings, covered in white feathers.
"What the hell?" He asked himself. He looked down at his feet to see they were orange and his toes were webbed. HE quickly ran to the lake and looked into the water. He was shocked to see he had a beak. He was covered in white feathers. He was…he was…
"You are a beautiful swan." Someone said. Sam turned around to see Rothbart standing there. Sam went to launch himself at him, but he was grabbed by his wings and thrown into the lake.
"What did you do to me?" Sam yelled. Rothbart smiled.
"I couldn't have you running off to that guy, now could I?" He asked. "So now you're all mine. By day, you're a swan, free to fly and go as you please. But the only way you can be human is at night, and you have to be on the lake by moons first light, or you will remain a sawn." Sam gasped.
"How could you do this to me?" Sam asked. "Am I going to be a swan forever?"
"The only way to break the spell is to have the one who loves you announce their love to you." Rothbart said. He threw some bread crumbs into the water. Sam watched as they gathered water and sank. "Don't give me that look. I did this for your own good."
"My own good?" Sam asked. "When Dean finds out what you've done to me, he'll kill you!"
"I'd like to see him try." Rothbart laughed. With that he walked away. Sam swam into the middle of lake and started to cry.
When Sam didn't return back to the motel, Dean began to worry. He hadn't liked the looks of that guy Sam had left with. He didn't like Sam flirting with all those guys. He got so jealous that he just wanted to take Sam, bend him over a pool table, and fuck his brains out in front of everyone.
Dean decided it'd best just to wait for Sam to come back on his own. If Sam was finally having some fun, then Dean wasn't going to be the one to stop him. But if he wasn't back by this evening, then he would go play mood killer. So Dean set down on the bed, turned on the TV, and waited.
Sam swam around the lake, the realization sinking in that this may be something he wasn't going to be able to get out of. He was so lonely, since the lake as empty except for him…at least that's what he thought. As he hit a lily pad, he heard someone yell out. He looked around to see a frog jumping at him.
"Watch where you're going!" The frog yelled at Sam. Sam blinked his eyes a couple times, unsure if he was seeing or hearing right. Was that frog talking? "Oh hello! Are you stupid?"
"Dude, ease up on him man." A turtle said. He walked to the edge of the lake and looked at Sam. "I'm Dustin. As you can see, I'm a turtle."
"I'm Sam." Sam finally answered. Dustin tapped the frog.
"I'm Josh." The frog said. His lily pad resurfaced, so he jumped onto it and started to float. "Let me guess, lead into Rothbart's trap by his ridiculous good looks?" Josh asked. Sam nodded his head. "Well, welcome to the animal club."
"Is there anyway out of here?" Sam asked. Dustin shook his head.
"We're stuck here. I mean, you can leave if you want, but this lake has magical powers. We never age, or get hurt, or anything. It's safer just to stay here."
"I need to find my brother." Sam said. He started to flap his wings, stretching them wide. Soon, he was lifted off of the lake's surface into the air. "I'll be back by sundown. I promise." Sam said. Josh and Dustin looked at him.
"Be careful." They said. Sam nodded as he flew into town.
Dean was about to get in the car when a shadow flew overhead. He looked up to see a white swan flying over, one that landed on the hood of the Impala. Dean stared it down.
"Get off my car." He said. The swan kept standing there. "I'm not above shooting you." Dean said. The swan then flew at him, grabbing his shirt in its beak and flying, trying to pull him towards the forest. "What's your problem?" Dean asked.
The swan squawked and pointed his beak at a picture that Dean had taped to the dashboard. It was the picture of Sam that Dean had taken in Texas when they were dealing with Ed and Harry. Dean stared at it.
"Do you know where Sam is?" Dean asked. The swan seemed to nod. "Well, lead the way you stupid bird." Dean said. He could have swore it flipped him off, but he wasn't sure. Because before he kenw it, he was arriving at a lake in the middle of nowhere. He didn't see Sam though. He watched as the swan settled on the lake. "You said you knew where Sam was!" That's when the moon slowly rose.
A white light surrounded the swan and Dean had to shield his eyes. When the light disappeared, he was shocked to see Sam standing on the edge of the lake. He slowly walked forward, afraid this was just some sick joke.
"Sammy?" Dean asked. Sam smiled at him. "What happened?"
"Rothbart is a sorcerer." Sam said. "He turned me into a swan and those two into animals." He pointed over at Dustin and Josh.
"Well, it seems to have fixed itself so let's go." Dean said. Sam shook his head no.
"In the morning I'll be a swan again." He explained to Dean. "And the only way I can turn human is on this lake." Dean sighed.
"You don't really expect me to leave you here, do you?" Dean asked.
"Go talk to Bobby." Sam said. "Ask him to figure something out. Rothbart has the same kidnapping tactics as a Wendigo, only kidnapping a few people at a time."
"Sammy, please be careful." Dean said. He wanted to tell Sam he loved him, but he changed his mind. Sam had enough on his plate right now. He didn't need his brothers weird feelings piled up on him.
"I will be." Sam said. That's when a light turned on in one of the lookout towers. "Dean, you need to get out of here before he sees you."
"But Sam…"
"Go Dean." He said. Dean looked around and then silently crept away. He hid in the trees while Rothbart walked out to Sam.
"Who were you talking to?" He asked.
"No one." Sam said. Rothbart stepped closer to him.
"Your true love was here, wasn't he?" Rothbart asked. "He's a hunter, just like you. Well, too bad if he kills me before the spell is broken, you'll forever remain a swan." He laughed. He grabbed Sam and pulled him close to him. He put his lips on Sam's. Sam tried to pull away, but Rothbart was too strong. "You're never leaving me Sam." With that, he shoved Sam down and walked back to the house. Sam set on his knees and looked up at the sky.
The moon was setting.
Dean had returned to the motel after the sun had rose. He watched as Sam turned back into a swan and swam around the lake. He had to figure out someway to save his Sammy before Rothbart forced him to do more than Sam was willing to do. So he picked up his phone and dialed Bobby's number.
"Yes?" Bobby asked.
"It's Dean." Dean answered. "We have a problem."
"What do you mean you have a problem?" Bobby asked. Dean explained to him what had happened to Sam. Bobby set there for a minute.
"You need to confess your love to Sam." Bobby explained. Dean raised an eyebrow. He wasn't sure how doing that would change anything. "Only his true love admitting it to him will break the spell."
"Well, that's just great." Dean said. He hadn't planned on ever telling Sam that he was in love with him, but now it looked like he was going to have to. "I'll talk to you soon." With that, Dean hung up. Little did he know that someone had been watching.
Rothbart was wearing a cape made of black feathers as he strolled out to Sam that day. Sam was swimming around in circles, hoping that maybe Dean and Bobby had figured something out. Rothbart stood on the edge of the lake and laughed. Sam looked up at him.
"What's so funny?" He asked.
"You think he's going to save you." Rothbart laughed. Sam backed up.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"Well, first off, it's a new moon tonight. The sky will be dark with only a few stars in the sky." He laughed. "And second, will he be able to pick out the real from the fake?" He grabbed Sam's neck and lifted him out of the lake.
"Let me go!" Sam yelled to him. Rothbart smiled and set him into a cage. Sam watched as Rothbart plucked two black feathers out of his cape and tossed them into the lake. Then he removed the red orb and started to say something. The two feathers suddenly transformed into a person. It was a Sam clone. Rothbart started to laugh.
"Now tonight, you will see who he is truly in love with." With that, Rothbart picked up Sam's cage and took him away.
Dean arrived at the lake at midnight, to see, dressed in all black, sitting on the edge of the lake. Dean rushed up to him and pulled him up and hugged him. From inside the house, Sam had managed to escape the cage and was rushing to get to Dean.
"Sammy, there's something I need to tell you." Dean said. "For so long I've been wanting to tell you this."
The real Sam flew into the sky just in enough time to see Dean with his clone. He arrived just in time to hear Dean say…
"Sammy, I love you."
Sam's heart started to hurt as he flew backwards. He made a squawk cry. Dean looked around to see the white swan flying away. He turned back around to Sam to see Rothbart standing there instead. Dean backed away.
"Poor, poor little swan with the broken heart." Rothbart laughed. Dean wrapped his fists in his shirt and shoved him against a tree. "He's going to die and it's all your fault."
"I know how to kill you." Dean said. He grabbed the orb Rothbart had been using for his spells and smashed it into the tree just to the right of Rothbart's head. He screamed as the fire inside the orb engulfed him and he died in a fiery way. Dean looked to the sky to see Sam flying towards the mountain just outside of town. And he wasn't looking too good.
"SAM!" Dean yelled. He ran after his brother, hoping to save him in time, before it was too late.
Sam slowly flew to the mountain. He landed on a ledge that looked out over the raging water. He turned back into his human form and clutched at his chest. His heart was hurting so bad. The sound of Dean telling another he loved them was killing him. He stood, ready to jump off of the ledge and drown himself in the water.
"SAM!" He heard Dean yelled. Dean and the Impala pulled up to the mountain. Sam could see him running towards him. But Sam knew he didn't really love him…right?
He didn't have anytime to think, because he fell over and drew his final breath. Dean ran towards him.
"Sammy! Sammy no!" Dean yelled. He ran up to Sam and cradled him. "Sammy I'm sorry. I thought it was you. I love YOU!" He closed his eyes and started to cry. He rested his forehead against Sam's, holding him close, as his tears dripped from his eyes. "I love you." He whispered. He gently kissed Sam's lips then.
"Dean?" Sam asked as he drew a deep breath. Dean backed away just a tiny bit to get a good look at Sam. He was alive. He was really alive.
"Sam?" Dean said. He hugged Sam close to him and gently kissed his forehead. "Oh thank god Sam!" Sam looked to the horizon to see the sun rising. But he remained human. Sam smiled.
"You are my true love." He told Dean. He then kissed him. "We need to go get Josh and Dustin. I need to make sure they're all right." He went to get up, but Dean held him down.
"After I destroyed the orb, they vanished. I don't think they really existed." Dean said. Sam set there, shocked. "Come on, let's get out of town." He helped Sam up and down to the car, gently setting him into the car. He got in and wrapped an arm around Sam, pulling him to his side. And as they drove away, Sam swore he saw the entire town watching them as they left, but he couldn't be sure.
The End