MEETING THE MOUNTAIN

It was a cold and snowy night when Kerri Harrison first met Dean Winchester.

Hello all, this was originally going to be a oneshot about the first day Kerri met Dean. (if you dont know who kerri is, she was introduced in my story 'something lost'. though you dont have to read that to understand this.) however, i have also written this is several different points of view.

let me know what you think and if you would like it to be more than just a oneshot. :)

D: this is all just for fun, i dont own either winchester brother :(

Six year old Kerri Harrison sat on the window ledge in her large living room, staring out over the snow covered fields around her. She could see headlights glowing in the distance, weaving their way down the long drive. She didn't like new people, which was fine since most new people didn't seem to like her. She wasn't what you'd call a 'girly' girl and that was the first thing people would tell her father when they met his eldest. She was also a lot quieter than the normal child. And that seemed to be just another thing for strangers to gossip about.

Now Evelyn, well that was a different story. She was the only two year old she had ever known to wear heels. And her talking. Every hour of every day, that toddler seemed to have something to say. Heck, there were times when Kerri wished that her little sister had never even learned to speak. She was so much cuter when she just smiled and pointed at things. But well, strangers seemed to love her, and that was more than Kerri could say about herself.

Evelyn would walk up to anyone that came in the door, and tell them all about her day, invite them to a tea party, and talk their ear off as she showed off her newest hair-tie. Mrs. Miller, the lady that ran the general store, would often tell Kerri that she had been like that when she was smaller, that is, until the night her mother, Elizabeth died.

But Evelyn didn't remember their mom, and so she didn't know that she shouldn't be so happy. After all, how can you be that happy and carefree when you only have a daddy? Kerri watched as the black car grew closer, nothing more than a shadow charging through the dark night. Her daddy told her that there were kids coming, but she didn't really care. If it was at all possible, other kids were worse than strangers.

They didn't know the things she knew, hadn't lived through the things she had had to live through. They told ghost stories, but they were the kind that were written for babies. Kerri would sometimes tell them the real ones, but that often ended with some mom yelling at her as her wimp of a child cried. Kerri didn't mean to be mean, it was just that if they wanted to tell ghost stories, then they should know what they were getting themselves into. Needless to say, Kerri didn't have all that many friends in school.

But her father, well, her father didn't know any of this. He was far too busy, and Kerri knew that she was fine on her own. She could take care of the chatterbox that was Evelyn and still finish all her school work before her dad even made it home from work. She'd like to see that little brat Timmy Collins do that. No, kids were the worst, and Kerri wasn't looking forward to meeting these two at all.

"Kerri?" Her father began leaning around the corner.

"Yes, dad?"

"They'll be here in just a few minutes. Now, their daddy and I have a lot of business to deal with, so I want you to show them around."

"Yes, dad."

"I mean in, Ker. I need you to look out for them for me. They don't meet many strangers."

'Luck them.' Kerri thought as she turned back towards the window, the black car disappearing around the back of the house.

A few minutes later the little girl heard the tell tall sound of boots on the back stairs. It was something that she had grown used to over the past two years. There were always so many men coming and going, and they all wore heavy boots and smelled of beer and smoke. Kerri didn't mind them though, since the majority of them were nice, and reminded her of her daddy.

But, every once and a while, some of those men would come and they would scare the little girl. It wasn't that they were evil, or that they were trying to be mean, they were just the men that were more lost than the others. She could see it in their eyes, in the way they scanned the room like some kind of cornered animal. They didn't come often, but when they did, she knew to keep Evelyn away.

Kerri had learned to read people based on the way they walked. The nicer men seemed to bound up the back steps quicker, their booted feet lighter on the warn wood. But the broken men, the scary men, they walked heavy. It was like every step was a great feat for them, every move forward like a battle of waning wills. And this new man walked like one of the broken ones.

Kerri straightened unconsciously when she heard the gruff voice echo in from the kitchen. The new man spoke like a soldier, and Kerri could instantly sense that he was not someone to be messed with. But there was something else about his voice, something else about the way he walked that she just couldn't put her finger on. Even when he appeared in the living room a few moments later, a small boy in his arms and another at his heels, Kerri still couldn't quite figure out what made this new man so different.

"Kerri." Her dad began as the small family moved into the living room. "This is John, and his boys. Sam and Dean." Her dad pointed to the two boys as he said their names. Sam, asleep in his father's arms, and Dean standing just behind the formidable man that was John.

"Hi." She answered, but there was no real warmth in her voice. She didn't like strangers, plain and simple.

Her father seemed to pick up on her discomfort, but instead of voicing his disapproval, he merely introduced the three to the sleeping form of Evelyn.

"Have you and the boys eaten yet, John?" Tom began with a sigh, Kerri still watching them with eagle eyes from her perch on the windowsill. Her dad knew how she felt about them, she had been telling him for over a week now. It was bad enough that she didn't like strangers, but these three were actually going to be staying at her house. And that wasn't something that she had particularly liked.

"No, we drove straight through." John began, hoisting Sam further up on his hip.

Kerri eyed the gruff new hunter suspiciously. She knew he was a hunter, all the men in boots were, and she knew that he had come here to get help from her daddy. But, what she didn't know was if he was a good man or a bad one. He was one of the lost, of that she was certain, but his eyes weren't as dead as those of the men that scared her. He was still holding on to something, and that made him a mystery to her.

"Well, why don't you rest him on the sofa, and I'll get something ready."

"What about their room?"

"I'll have Kerri show them up there after we all eat."

"Thanks, Tom. Again, I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but Jim wasn't available."

"It's no trouble."

The man named John nodded his head, a tired smile spreading across his face. Kerri still watched him though, her sharp blue eyes studying every movement he made. But, as she watched him lay his small son on the sofa, something else greeted her curious mind. The boy called Dean.

He hadn't moved since they entered the room. He just stood, silently, behind his father, lost in the shadow the older man cast. But, as soon as John moved, so did Dean. It was like someone had thrown a switch, the blonde haired boy jumping on the couch, reaching out thin arms for his baby brother. And still, he had yet to say a word. And it was at that moment, that she understood what was so interesting about John.

It was that little boy, that child that had made the man such a mystery. And it was that same child that was currently breaking his heart. Kerri could see the guilt, see the longing in the hunter's face as he looked down at his two small boys, Dean shielding Sam like his life depended on it. But, as quick as the moment had begun, it passed, and John followed her daddy back into the kitchen, leaving the four small children alone.

Neither one spoke for the longest time, both just listening to the steady breathing of the two sleeping toddlers. Dean hadn't looked up since John had placed Sam in his arms, the little boy staring almost transfixed at the child before him. Kerri didn't know what to make of him, his demeanor so different from any other child she had known. It was obvious now, that he knew just as much about the shadows as she did.

"You can put him in the playpen, you know." Kerri began coldly, wondering why he was still holding on so tightly to his brother. After all, it wasn't like something was going to jump up and get him while they sat there.

"We're fine." Came the almost inaudible answer. And after that, the heavy silence reigned again.

"Where's your mommy?" Kerri asked again, wondering why she wasn't there to hold the baby.

"None of your business."

"I was just asking."

"And I answered you."

"My mommy died." Kerri blurted out. That was always the way she said it, just to see how people would really respond. So often people would just pass it off, tell her that they were sorry without ever really meaning it. But when you just blurted it out, well, then you could catch them off guard, and she loved watching the adults flounder for answers.

But Dean, he didn't even flinch, didn't even look away from Sam. And Kerri didn't know what to make of it. So, she continued.

"She died in a fire."

"I know, my daddy told me about you."

"Oh, then why didn't you say something?"

"What's to say?"

"Did your mommy die, too?" Kerri asked, not even the least bit put off by Dean's sharp response.

"Yeah, same as yours."

"Is that why your daddy's a hunter?"

"Yeah, and I'm gonna be one someday, too." It was the first time he had looked up at her, and she could see his eyes light up when he spoke of becoming a hunter.

She didn't really understand why, though. So many of the hunters she had seen were such sad and broken men, why would this kid want to be like them?

"Really?"

"Yeah, my dad took me shooting last week and I hit every can, first try."

"Doesn't hunting scare you?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because. I'm a Winchester and nothing scares a Winchester."

"Who told you that?"

"My dad."

"What about your brother, is he going to be a hunter, too?"

"Yeah. But he's too little right now."

Kerri was amazed at how alive Dean seemed to become as he spoke about hunting. It wasn't normal, but what was normal in her life anyway? All of her earlier fears seemed to melt away as she spoke with him, his sleeping brother still held in his arms.

"Do you always watch him?" Kerri asked, gesturing to Sam.

"Yeah, it's my job."

"What about when he's bigger?"

"It won't matter, since I'll always be the big brother. Besides, I'm older, he'll never be bigger than me."

"How long's he been sleeping for?"

"A few hours. He was so excited about the snow that he spent most of the drive jumping up and down in the car. I think he wore himself out."

"You don't see snow?"

"No, we just spent a few months in Arizona. It doesn't snow there. Besides, my dad said we could go sledding here."

"Yeah, the hills in the back yard are great for that. I guess you can use my sleds if you want."

"They're not girly are they?"

"No, I have a racer, fasted one in the whole school. Evelyn's is pink and purple though and has a barbie on it."

"Ew. Haven't you taught her better?"

"I've been trying." Kerri smiled as the two smaller children began to awaken to the sound of their voices.

"Dea?" Kerri looked over, immediately on guard again as a small voice issued from the mop of hair Dean was holding.

"Yeah, Sammy?"

"We go sled now?" He yawned, rubbing his eyes and sitting up. If he was at all afraid of his new surroundings then the little boy didn't show it. He merely rubbed his eyes and spoke with his brother, the world beyond the sofa of no interest to him.

"No, it's too dark now. We'll ride tomorrow."

It was at that moment that Kerri's daddy and John returned to the room. Evelyn was now awake as sitting up in her playpen, eyeing Sam like he was her new puppy. Kerri couldn't help but noticed how much different John seemed in that short amount of time. Yes, he was still one of the broken that she had come to know so well, but he was still whole in so many ways. And Kerri found the smile he wore to be genuinely heartwarming.

Kerri watched as her daddy moved her table from the corner, setting the four small chairs around it. Both men then disappeared, returning a few moments with plates, cups, and flatware.

"We're gonna set you guys up in here, alright." John smiled, ruffling Sam's hair. "Tom and I have a lot of paper work on the big table."

"Ok, Dad." Dean began, his somber state firmly back in place.

Kerri watched as John's smile faltered. And at that moment, she understood. Dean had been a kid for a few short moments, but the minute his father returned, so did Dean's stoic demeanor. It was almost like the six year old didn't think that he could be a child around his dad, like he thought he had to be something more, something better. Something like a hunter.

The tension in the room was broken almost instantly when Evelyn looked from Sam to John, her pale eyes growing wide as she stared at him. "Hi." She smiled, batting her little eyelashes, and showing off her bracelets to the stranger.

John just smiled as picked up the small, beaming girl, the toddler immediately showing him her glittering hair-ties. Kerri couldn't help but roll her eyes. She had been trying to teach her little sister not to talk to strangers, and especially the hunters, but Evelyn never seemed to listen to her.

She just shook her head as she turned to Dean, ready to comment about her oh so trusting little sister. But her words were instantly silenced by the look on his face. If she didn't know any better, she would have said that he looked jealous, but there was so much more in his green eyes that just that. It was a look of longing. Dean was a big brother, he was a protector, and he would someday be a hunter. And in so doing, he gave up on being a child.

And instantly, Kerri knew, that her life would never be the same. Dean wasn't like all the other kids she had known, and she would never have it any other way. Finally, he was someone that would understand, that knew what it was like to be alone. For two years, she had lived the life of an adult. Since the age of four, she had taken on a responsibility that was far beyond her years. And so had he.

And suddenly, in that moment, the Winchesters were no longer defined as strangers or hunters, the only two categories she currently used. No, they were something else entirely, and she knew then that her life would never be the same. Yes, being friends with Dean Winchester would probably be as difficult as scaling a mountain, but it was a challenge she was willing to accept. After all, how often do you get a second chance at life?