Disclaimer:
All rights, characters and known situations belong to their respective owners: producer Robert Singer, The CW broadcasting corporation and/or its affiliates. Everything else came from my own mind. In no way shape or form have I made- nor do I intend to make- a profit from this story.
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00- Little Toy Guns
There were times growing up when Dean Winchester longed for a baby brother- not a baby sister. At four years old, he'd watched his mother die in a house fire and after that, his little sister- Sammy- became the only female in his life with any semblance of importance. Their dad- John- loved her in his own way, but Dean had raised her and made sure she stayed safe. John couldn't bring himself to stay near her too long. She reminded him too much of his dead wife; John couldn't handle seeing Mary's looks on Sam's little face, knowing what had happened to her. He'd leave the kids with his most trusted friends, Bobby Singer or Ellen Harvelle, and only checked in via phone call once a week, sometimes two. Dean didn't like it, but he couldn't argue much.
When Sam turned 10, Dean noticed boys taking an interest in his baby sister and asked Ellen what to do. Their dad had gone out of town on another 'business trip' and had asked the woman to watch his kids, entrusting her with their safety. Ellen only chuckled, told Dean to stay at the house and watch over Jo, leaving with Sam to go shopping. An hour later, Sam walked through the front door with an entire new wardrobe- complete with training bras- that fit snug in all the right places and allowed the boys to see her as a young lady instead of a tomboy.
It only drew more attention to her.
Bobby called Ellen an idjit while Dean nodded his agreement, then took off running from the woman's glare with said boy in tow. In their defense, Bobby told Ellen- from behind the bedroom door- that Sammy didn't need more attention brought to herself and even offered to lock her in a room and have the key thrown away for good measure.
Dean liked that idea. Sammy would be safer that way.
Ellen, Sam and Jo refused to talk to them for a week after the remark. 'Let them make their own food,' She'd said after Sam and Jo repeated Bobby's remark to her. The girls found it funny that the adults in the house acted more like children sometimes than the actual kids, but kept their comments to themselves. Bobby and Dean learned their lessons about being 'pig headed men' after a week of eating burnt food. Ellen only shrugged and sat them down for a 'proper meal' after they'd apologized for their hurtful words and promised Sam that she was in fact growing into a beautiful young woman.
Another change came after Sam turned 12. She'd rushed home in tears, screaming she would bleed to death and wasn't ready to die. She'd gotten her first period and Dean looked like a deer in the headlights of an oncoming car at night, not knowing how to handle his kid sister's tears. Ellen came to the rescue again by offering to take Sam and Jo to the movies, even going so far as to get ice cream afterwards. Sam came home without tears and had even gotten Dean a tub of his favorite Southern Pecan Pie flavored ice cream as an offer of apology for terrifying him.
When the boys took even more notice in Sam at age 13- after she'd grown into her chest- Dean joked about making a deal with a crossroads demon to make Sam look hideous. He didn't want them sniffing around his little sister; he knew their type and he knew his sister was too good for them. Dean didn't want to see her hurt. John threw her into even more training, hoping it would keep her occupied- Mary had noticed him around the age of 13 and he didn't want Sam to neglect her duty to her family for some boy. He didn't want his little girl showing any interest in boys, period.
John only sighed, not knowing how he'd ever make it past the latest hurdle in his daughter's life. Another new town and another new job with a whole world of hormones that he didn't want to handle had put an even wider strain on their already distant relationship- something he longed to correct but didn't know how. They'd come to Yelm, Washington just over a week ago. Ten people reported missing- five boys and five girls- over the course of five months had caught the local newspaper's interest and another hunter had asked John for his help; The ages ranged from just past 10 to 19.
Tension mounted when Dean walked into the motel room in time to hear his 15-year-old sister scream that she didn't want any part of hunting before snapping that she'd be in the library if they needed her. Dean happened to agree with Sam; he didn't want her hunting either. John only scoffed and said even girls could be great hunters- just look at Ellen and Jo. Sam gave him her coldest glare and told him not to speak to her before she came back or maybe she wouldn't come back at all. John chose to ignore the threat.
Dean thought he'd given her an unfair comparison since Ellen had married a hunter but she didn't hunt herself. And Jo? Ellen didn't let her hunt at all. She let her waitress at the bar catered towards hunters, but hunting? Ellen refused to allow it.
Dean couldn't decide what to say, so said nothing, knowing Sam would be back after a while. He eyed the door and debated chasing after his sister. He understood she could handle herself well enough, but it didn't stop him from worrying. With a sigh, he sat down at the kitchenette table and started cleaning his gun. Sam knew how to take care of herself and she'd be fine.
John grunted and left Dean alone in favor of cleaning his own guns. The silence filling the room gave him time to think. Dean had turned into the perfect soldier; he listened and took orders without asking questions and he sounded his concerns with respect, always referring to his dad with 'yes sir' or 'no sir.'
Sam had turned out to be more like his late wife than he could imagine or understand. She challenged everything he said- his every command- just like her mother had. And when it came to looks? Samantha could pass for Mary on the best of days- right down to the way she placed her hands on her hips and held her head whenever she grew angry. It made John miss his wife that much more.
"Dad?" Dean cleared his throat and eyed the door again, trying to hide his worry.
John turned his attention to Dean and arched an eyebrow, waiting for his son to speak. He didn't miss the worry in his eyes and hid the pride he felt. Looking at the clock, he realized he'd lost an hour to his thoughts. "What Dean?" He huffed.
"I cleaned the rest of the guns. I'm gonna go get us some food. Should I pick Sammy up on the way back?"
"Let her alone. She'll be fine for a while longer. She needs time to cool off before getting her head back in the hunt."
"Yes, sir. I'll be back with food." He didn't wait for a reply.
He checked on his sister anyways, not able to shake the feeling in his gut that something bad was about to happen; he just didn't know what. With a chuckle at the sight of her nose pressed into a book, Dean left her alone and walked to the diner not too far from the library. Against Johns' wishes, he got Sam a salad and took it to her at the library as a peace offering.
Sam gave him a sheepish smile when he caught her talking- flirting- with 'Connor.' The boy blushed scarlet and scampered off to file more books when Sam introduced him as her big brother, causing Dean to smirk. Sam only rolled her eyes and sent him back to their dad with the promise she'd be back in two hours. She even went so far as to tell him if he didn't leave, she'd hug him where people could see. He left with a shake of his head.
He still held to the belief girls were trouble, but he'd never tell Sam that because he loved his little sister- even when she played childish pranks on him to pass the time. He only wanted her to be safe and happy and if that meant not being a hunter, he wouldn't object to it.
He just had to reason with their dad for her sake. After all, family meant everything to him and he'd do whatever he could to protect his little sister.
