Beginning and The End!
By No1butjoe
Summary - Set after the season 11 finale. What happens next...
Dean has to blink several times, unable to believe what he's seeing in front of him is real. When Amara said she wanted to repay him, this wasn't exactly what he had in mind. But the tears still come and he fights to hold them back as the vision of his mother walks towards him, her eyes never wavering from his face. When they're face-to-face, it's only then that she speaks.
"Dean?"
Taking a deep breath, he nods, offering her a small smile.
"H-Hey, Mom."
A touch to his cheek and that's all it takes for him to wrap his arms around her and hug her close.
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Back at the Bunker...
The gunshot vibrates throughout the room, the bullet effectively finding a mark, just not where the shooter originally intended.
"That's impossible," she whispers, staring with wide eyes.
The bullet intended to end Sam Winchester's life hovers in mid-air for a moment before falling uselessly to the floor. Just as surprised as Toni, Sam looks down at it, then back up at her. Unsure exactly what just happened, he recovers quickly in time to subdue the intruder, disarming her.
"Look, I don't know who sent you, but you're too late," Sam tries to reason with her. "My brother fixed what he broke. Hell, it's what we've been doing our whole lives. O-Only this time my brother's dead and he isn't coming back."
The truth in those words hit Sam full force. He's lost his brother forever, just as Billie the reaper promised. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he motions his 'guest' to sit, where he ties her up until he can figure out where to go from here. He knows Castiel will be okay and he'll be back as soon as he can. Then, together, they can carry out Dean's final wishes.
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"I don't know what exactly is going on, but we need to find Sam," Dean states as he reluctantly pulls away.
It's the only other thing he can think about. Sam doesn't know he's still alive and probably thinks he bit the bullet. He has to tell him otherwise and then they, along with Castiel, can figure out what to do next.
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The Next Day at the Bunker...
The ticking of the clock wakes Sam in a haze. A second later, the events of the last few days hit him and unwanted tears fill his eyes. Looking around, he recognizes Dean's room, where he stayed last night. At around midnight, he had slipped from the confining walls of his own room and into his older brother's. Memories had assaulted him, prompting him to lie down and,
eventually, fall into a restless sleep.
Glancing around now, Sam can't help but feel like an intruder, even though he knows Dean will never be able to yell at him for it. Remembering Toni in the other room, he runs a shaking hand over his face and sits up, then stands. He's awake so he might as well start his day. He pauses with his hand on the doorknob, turning one last time to the empty room and all the momentos, photos, and everything that made Dean who he was. Regaining his composure, Sam opens the door to leave when sounds from the main entrance of the bunker reach him. Knowing Castiel would just pop in, Sam's immediately on alert. Could it be Amara? No, they defeated her, he's sure of it. Otherwise the sun would still be broken and the Darkness would've taken over the Earth.
"Sam?"
Frowning, he slips out of Dean's room and down the hall, briefly going into his own room to grab his gun before continuing on into the main living area just as Castiel reaches the last step. Confused, but relieved, to see him, Sam relaxes slightly.
"Cas, hey," he greets him. "Welcome back."
His friend greets him with a nod.
"Sam. I'm glad to see you're all right."
"Yeah. I-I'm good." The lie comes so easily now. "Where've you been? I thought you'd be back hours ago."
"That's a rather long story, but-."
The angel is cut off when the door above them opens and someone steps inside. Sam looks up, then at Castiel again, waiting for him to explain further. But he doesn't get the chance to.
"Sammy?!"
Every muscle in Sam's body freezes as the one voice he never thought he'd hear again reaches him. Boots pound down the staircase to reveal Dean, alive and well, and looking for all the world like everything was going to crash down around him.
Two pairs of eyes meet, one green, the other hazel. No words are spoken. They don't need to be. Sam doesn't give a damn if it's a figment of his imagination. It's DEAN! He finally gets his legs to move and crosses the distance between him and his older brother in three strides, grasping the collar of Dean's jacket and pulling him into a bone-crushing hug with no intentions of letting go any time soon. Dean relaxes into the embrace, hugging him back just as tightly. A slight squeeze to the back of his neck is all it takes for Sam's eyes to fill with tears. It seems like forever (when it's only been a few minutes) before they pull apart, though they keep a hold of each other's arms. Another movement at the bottom of the stairs captures Sam's attention and he freezes, eyes wide in shock.
"M-Mom?"
Mary Winchester smiles softly at her youngest son as she joins both of her boys in a long overdue family hug.
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"Cas told me some chick got the drop on both of you."
Sam looks up from where he's sitting on his bed to the doorway, where Dean leans against the frame.
"She did. She even tried to shoot me," he admits. "I don't know how, but the bullet stopped in mid-air and just fell."
Dean frowns and stands up straight.
"It did?"
"Yeah. Weird, right?"
"Freaky weird."
Sam shrugs and sighs, then looks up as if just remembering something.
"So, what happened? I mean, how did you defeat Amara without -."
"Exploding?" Dean finishes for him. "Turns out, all she really wanted was for her and Chuck to resolve their differences. "Go figure. Amara healed Chuck, Chuck took the souls from me, and they went on their merry way. I ended up finding Mom in the woods and we started making our way back. Only managed to get back here thanks to Cas keeping his ears tuned into Heaven otherwise we'd still be walking. He told us what happened and we hightailed it here as fast as we could."
Sam nods in understanding, then smiles.
"It's good to have you back, Dean."
His brother smirks.
"It's good to be back, Sammy," he agrees, turning to go. As an after thought, he turns back around. "By the way, stay out of my room."
That said, he leaves. All Sam can do is grin.