Sam's always been the idiot little brother, never seeing things from the other side. But when he accepts help from Zach, a nerdy fan of the Supernatural books, he bites off more than he can chew. But between loathing him and respecting the younger man, Sam finds himself understanding finally what it means to be a big brother. His life begins to converge around him when an old flame surfaces along with some old enemies.

Meanwhile, Dean is living the life his brother always wanted with one problem: it isn't him. Until an unexpected call comes revealing some shocking news: his brother it alive! Dean drops everything, only to find himself stuck between the two things that matter most to him: his brother that he's desperately missed and the girlfriend and child that he never appreciated fully until they were threatened.

This story is cannon completely if you accept my shorter fic, Angels Cry, happened. Otherwise its AU.

Sam had to admit, for all the times he had heard of his family digging themselves out of the ground; it wasn't as fun as it sounded. He owed Adam and Dean props. The dirt that got in his system alone…he could have drowned in it. You'd think when an angel or God or whatever brought someone back from the dead, they could at least do them the courtesy of digging them out. For Christ's sake, do they get a sick kick out of watching him stagger for breath?

But that was all over and done now. And now here Sam was standing, in front of Lisa's house. The street light flickering out ominously the moment he walked by. Great, now even inanimate object hated him.

He'd been standing out there as the thunder above rumbled and a distant dog barked, finding it hard to believe he was even here. On some street in Cicero, Indiana, trying to get up the courage to walk through that front door to tell Dean his pretty much dead little brother was back from Hell on steroids. That would go over well with the neighbors, watching an unconvinced Dean have a knife fight on the front lawn.

The thing was, Sam highly doubted after all that he'd been through, his work was finally over. There was still so much he needed to do. Sam had almost caused the full on end of the world because he was so determined to carve out his own path. To not live in the shadows of his father and of his brother. As much as he hated it, Lucifer had a point; they were more alike than anyone else Sam had ever met.

Cheesily enough, Dean had the solution to the Apocalypse all this time. Sam couldn't keep the smirk from his face. It had been love that separated him from Lucifer. Unlike Michael and him, Dean and Sam had put their relationship above everything else. Above Sam's need to pull out of Dad's shadow or desire not to be forced to do something that went against his every nature. Above Dean's loyalty and desperation to prove himself to his father.

Sam needed to change that. There needed to be a greater reason he was set apart from Lucifer. It was the only way they could keep this from happening again.

Sam fingered Dean's amulet, innocent memories of that Christmas filling him from so long ago. Then came the more bitter memories. That time in Philadelphia when Sam had gotten hurt on a hunt and Dean took the fall, only to be blamed and barred from hunting for years. Dean had been so angry, he ripped off the amulet. It became something of a beacon to the brothers. As long as Dean was wearing it, Sam was still important to Dean. He still would drop everything to come and rescue his little brother. It had hurt Sam more than any vile words Dean could say, any punch or kick or shot his brother could take at him.

Stealing the amulet away from Dean's cold body two years ago. How badly Sam had yearned to Dean steal it back from him. His brother, his best friend, his protector, had disappeared, leaving his younger to explore life without him. He couldn't stand the idea of living the lonely hunting life without his brother; it was as if he was missing a piece of himself. The meat shield who zealously guarded him. From danger but also from the world. Sam had grown up finally in those few months without his brother, but that didn't mean he had any clue about who to trust.

Dean confessing he had lost faith in the younger Winchester and disposing of it in the hotel's trash can. It felt more final than watching the life drain from Dean's eyes. Sam had been too stunned to even bother picking it up, rather he raced after the elder Winchester. It had been Dean's responsibility. If he wouldn't take it anymore, then it would stay in the trashcan and rot.

How had it found him?

He could think of an explanation. It was a sign. A trinket trying to tell him what to do next. He tucked the amulet neatly under his shirt. It would be his responsibility now.

He looked back to the window as a fine sheen of rain started to fall, watching as Lisa gently kissed Dean and Ben played with his game boy, rolling his eyes. Dean had a life now. A family. It had been four months (oh the irony never stops) since Sam had been topside. He'd made a life out of the splinters Sam had left him with. What right did Sam have to rip that away from him? Maybe at one time he might have rushed in there, embracing his older brother for what seemed like hours. Maybe at one time, Sam would have been jealous, wanting to be in Dean's place. But seeing Dean live the normal apple pie life filled Sam with a warm feeling. He needed to know one of them would be happy with what Sam had in mind. Dean would stay simply because Sam had told him to. He was determined to keep that last promise to his brother.

But if Sam even so much as let Dean know he was alive, he knew there was no way Sam could ever carve out his own path.

But all in the same, Sam couldn't just leave forever. Not after all that they'd been through. Just not yet. He grabbed a used napkin out of the hijacked car he'd driven here.

So Sam Winchester left his brother that night, without even telling him he was alive. But he did leave something. Five words and a time messily scrawled on a napkin, sitting in the same spot where, twenty years ago (had it been that long?) Sam and Dean had childishly exchanged notes. It was a game, try to catch the other when he was awake. They'd write down the time they woke up till one of them slipped up and lost.

Be safe

See you soon

8:34

This story is going to be a little bit...well...different for me to write. It follows a plan I've had for quite some time for Angels Cry, using the fourth and fifth seasons unlike I had origionally intended. I've worked this chapter over so much you guys don't even know and I was origionally intending on having a bottom potion set about a year from the top which involved Dean and what was happenning to him so you aren't Sammed out so fast. But its too hard to keep the plotlines on the same times, so I'm going to have about four Sam chapters at the beginning here and then move over to Dean. I have many chapters going on here, so if I get enough reviews, I'll post the next two when I get on tommorrow. Otherwise, updates could be very scatter brained, expecially over the next week.