Author's Notes: This is an updated Christmas fic for those of us who'd like to see Christmas in the Bunker! Set between Tombstone (13x6) and War of the Worlds (13x7).
Major kudos (Ha ha, see what I did there;-)) to RooBear1968 on Twitter, my wonderful beta for helping me tweak this, and to all my pocket (internet) friends who've cheered me on along the way. I love you guys! Posting schedule will be in notes below.
Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural, or any of it's characters or places or things.
Dean drove the Impala out of the bunker, keeping a firm hand on the wheel as he maneuvered her along the gravel lane, and then onto the highway that led to town. He and Sam were headed in to purchase and/or pick-up their presents for Christmas, with Cas volunteering to stay behind and decorate the bunker. Apparently he'd already "collected" his gifts. He glanced over at Sam in the passenger seat, once he got them onto the empty stretch of highway. Sam appeared to be quite busy on his phone. Tapping and scrolling, his fingers were almost a blur on the screen.
"What are you doing, Sam?" He gave his brother another quick look, meeting his eyes for a second as Sam glanced up at the sound of his name.
"I'm double-checking that the package I ordered arrived at the post office," answered Sam as he continued looking at the small screen in his hand.
Confusion filled Dean's eyes. "What like, online, you mean?"
"Yeah, of course." Sam lifted his head up, doing a double-take at just how incredulous the look on Dean's face was. "You just need the tracking number, Dean." The last said with only a little bit of mocking.
He immediately feigned momentary ignorance. "No, yeah, right, sure. Knew that."
Sam gave him a look as Dean turned his head away, quietly mouthing tracking number? to himself in bewilderment. He gave his head a shake as he completely turned back to the road.
"Well, I have to head to the post office too, so we might as well stop there first." He glanced at Sam, checking to see if that was okay. The gargantuan's eyes stayed glued to his screen. "Then we split up from there?" This time Sam gave a nod of agreement as he simultaneously slipped his phone into his back pocket. The Impala rumbled on, the acres of farmland rolling past, blurring through the windows, as they continued down the stretch of two-lane asphalt towards town.
They arrived back at the bunker after about two hours of picking up ordered gifts and doing some last minute grocery shopping. Along with the ingredients for homemade waffles (a new Christmas morning tradition), they'd also found some extra decorations that they thought would look good around the bunker.
Well, Sam thought they'd look good. Dean didn't really see the point. All of his Christmas memories involved dirty motels, spiked eggnog (if they were lucky), and in more recent years, feeling pretty crappy after being tossed around by the latest "monster of the week". He cocked his head, remembering that Charlie had called them that once. But this was one of their first Christmases in the bunker, and if Sammy wanted to make it special, then Dean would give him the red flannel shirt off his back for a Christmas rug if he thought it would help!
Dean pulled Baby into the garage and put her in park. Sam immediately got out, heading to the trunk to grab his own bag of presents. It had been Sam's idea to bring black garbage bags to put their stuff in. That way they'd both be surprised at their gifts. Ever the smart one outta the two of us, Dean thought with pride.
They each grabbed their own stuff, and split the grocery bags between them. Spose we coulda called Cas to help, Dean mused. Oh well. After so many years, it'd just been automatic to work as a two-man team.
As they headed down the other hall that led to the entrance part of the main room, Dean called out jokingly, "Honey, I'm home!" He liked to do it just to see the exasperated looks on both Cas' and his younger brother's faces, honestly. He tried to get Sam's attention from behind so he could get a look at his expression, but Sam had stopped dead at the end of the hallway, staring out into the main room. He was also blocking the whole entrance.
"Yo, Sammy," Dean spoke, trying to get his attention. He nudged his brother out of the way with his shoulder. "Hey, earth to Sam!" he chuckled, his eyes fixed solely on Sam's, which were wide and staring, as he stepped around his giant moose of a brother. "What are you..." Dean trailed off, as he finally got within view of the main room. He also stopped dead. "H-holy craaaaaap..." Dean managed to get out, as both Winchesters stared in awe at the glittering, glowing, red and green decorations that covered every inch of the room. Cas had outdone himself this time.
Out of the corner of his eye, Sam saw Dean stop next to him at the edge of the room, jaw slack in astonishment. Did he say something? Sam honestly wasn't sure, he was so distracted by the spectacle in front of him.
It was spectacular! It reminded Sam of the way Hogwarts would look during Christmas time, all tan stone walls and lights everywhere. Boughs of green pine needles (fake, of course) had been strung with little, white lights, and were attached to any and all available spaces in the bunker. The railings that led to the door, the posts holding the ceiling up, even the small, grey door that housed the electrical circuits had one wrapped around it. A wreath hung on the door at the top of the staircase, another one over the doorway to the library, through which they could see that the library was similarly decorated. There were even paper snowflakes hanging off the backs of the chairs.
Sam finally pulled himself out of his stupor, as Dean bent down beside him, setting one of his bags next to the entrance, tucking it against the wall.
"Guess we won't be needing these anymore," stated Dean ruefully. Sam had to agree. Their small bag of holiday decor now looked pathetic in comparison.
"I can't believe Cas did all this!" Sam spoke with excited awe. He couldn't believe they were gonna have a real Christmas for once!
"But where did he find all this?" asked Dean in bewilderment. "It's... impressive, that's for sure, but where did it all come from?"
"I have no idea," Sam answered frankly. "But it's pretty nice."
"Yeah." Dean's voice had gone soft. "But where is he, anyway?"
"Dunno. Hey, Cas! We're back!" Sam projected his voice out, hoping Cas could hear them even if he was down another hallway. No answer. Sam shrugged. "Must be in his room." He couldn't think of anywhere else he'd need to go. He would've called them if he had to leave the bunker.
Dean seemed reluctant, but nodded his head anyway. "Hmm. Must be." Dean glanced toward the kitchen, catching his eye before nodding in that direction. "Better get these groceries put away." He hummed in agreement, already heading that way, Dean once again following behind.
When they got to the kitchen, after ducking underneath the snowflakes hanging in the doorway, they both quickly set their bags on the counter. Dean took off then, taking his own garbage bag of gifts, and heading toward his bedroom. Sam smirked as his brother left. Dean always hated putting groceries away. Must've seen this as two birds, one stone.
He went about putting stuff away, starting with the eggs, and quickly getting distracted by the mess that was left over from breakfast. Crumbs went in the garbage, dirty dishes went in the sink.
He was just about to grab a washcloth for the dishes when he noticed Cas had left his slippers by the door. Dean had gotten him these fluffy, blue slippers, almost as a joke, but Cas had enjoyed using them in the morning before the heat kicked in. He wondered why Cas had left them in here.
Speaking of, where was Cas? Usually he would've been in here by now, offering to help put stuff away. Sam stood there for a moment, mentally scratching his head, when Dean rushed into the room. His pupils were blown wide, and there was an almost panicked expression on his face.
"Dude, I can't find Cas!" Dean barked out.
"What?" Sam was incredulous. "I mean, are you sure he's not just... taking a shower or something?"
"No, I was just in there."
"Okay, well, where else have you looked?"
"Uh, he's not in his room, he's not in the showers or the regular bathroom, the hallways, the map room, or..." Dean wildly swung his arms outward. "...the kitchen!"
He suppressed his own flare of anxiety. Dean was getting more and more agitated with every word, and he needed to stay calm to better help his brother. He knew Dean was still sensitive after the massacre of their remaining friends a few weeks ago (or ally, in the case of Crowley). And Sam was too, he just knew he had to keep his own fears in check in order to better take of Dean. So he pushed down all of his own worries, anxieties, and fears and tried to think logically.
"Okay, so..." he paused, pinching the bridge of his nose to keep the quickly-forming headache at bay. "There's still a lot of places he could be, Dean. Try not to get too worried. At least not until we've looked everywhere." He stepped up in front of his brother, placing his hands on his shoulders, as Dean turned wide eyes on his brother. Eyes that were desperately trying to hide how terrified they actually were. Sam continued, "Okay? We're gonna find him, man. I promise." Sam could see the war waging in his brother's features, as Dean tried to fight down his emotions enough to get his own mask back in place. Sam knew he had succeeded when Dean ran a shuddering hand down his face.
"Okay." Dean's voice was steady. "Yeah, that sounds good."
"How about you check the storeroom and the dungeon, I'll recheck the library, and take a look in the garage," Sam said, suggesting the plan he had managed to come up with while watching his brother reign it in.
"Okay, sounds good," Dean repeated, giving his brother a quick pat on the shoulder, as he hurried off to his task. Sam gave one last glance at Dean's retreating figure before he headed out of the kitchen. He prayed to anybody listening that Cas was simply holed up somewhere with a book. For everyone's sanity.
Author's Notes: Unless there are unforeseen circumstances, I will be posting a chapter a day, starting today! Supernatural Thursday! Hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter! Don't be shy, leave a comment telling me what you think! And if Twitters your thing, come check me out at saileensamwitch :-)