Hi! It's been a while since I've written anything for Supernatural – as I've been so focused on my Falling Skies stuff. And for those waiting for an update for The Last Night- I've kinda hit a wall. I know exactly where it's heading, but I just can't seem to get it written. Don't worry though, it will be finished!

Enjoy.

GUARDIAN

DancerInTheDark101

"Protect Sammy." That was his task; his duty. What happens when one day his protection isn't enough to spare his brother from serious harm? Dean 16, Sam 12. Hurt Sam, Angsty/Hurt Dean.

-SUPERNATURAL-

He was shaking. Looking down at his bruised and bloody knuckles, Dean noticed that he was still shaking. Whether it was from the adrenaline, or shock, he didn't know. It could even be a combination of the both. His head was pounding in tune to the beating of his heart and he lifted a trembling hand to probe the slash on the side of his head, feeling the warmth of blood.

Lowering his hand, Dean leant forward and attempted to control his breathing. He was sitting in a hospital waiting room, doing just that – waiting. Sam had been brought in several hours ago, being wheeled straight into a surgery bay. His dad had gone with them. He hadn't heard a thing since.

Several doctors and nurses had attempted to get him checked out, but Dean had refused every single time. He wasn't going anywhere until he knew Sam was okay. He hadn't meant for it to happen. He hadn't meant for Sam to get hurt…

SEVERAL HOURS EARLIER

"C'mon Dean, let's go!" his younger brother called out from by the front door of the seedy motel room they were currently staying in.

"Jeezus Sammy! Hold on!" he called back, grabbing his wallet, keys and slipping his gun into the waistband of his jeans. It was a Friday night and Sam had finally persuaded their father to let him go to a movie with friends. On one condition – Dean went with him.

Even though he'd already had plans (with a girl by the name of Candy), Dean had postponed their date and agreed to go see some horror flick with his brother and his nerdy friends. The movie started in a half an hour.

Exiting the room the two brothers shared, Dean entered the main area of the hotel room and immediately spotted Sam standing by the door, bouncing on his heels in excitement.

"Come on," he called again, jittering slightly. "The movie starts in half an hour and we still have to pick up Jeremy!"

Dean rolled his eyes. Why was he doing this again? He could have been having a very good night with Candy, but no, he was instead playing chauffeur and babysitter to his brother and his friends. Sam was going to owe him for this!

"Yeah, yeah," he answered as he reached Sam. "Get a move on then."

Sam immediately flung the front door open and raced out where the gleaming black Impala was parked.

"Dean."

The young hunter turned to face his father. John Winchester was an intimidating man at the best of times, but when it came to the safety of Sammy, there was no rivalling it.

"Take care of your brother. If anything happens…" The warning was clear. Swallowing, Dean nodded.

"Got it, Dad. I'll look after him. The Impala's fully stocked and I've got my gun and knife with me." He lifted up his shirt to show the gun resting against the small of his back, before pulling up his jean leg and pulling out the knife hidden in his boot.

John nodded. "Good boy. I expect both of you home by midnight."

"Yes, Sir," Dean replied before rushing of the motel room after his brother. Sam was waiting impatiently by the passenger side door. Unlocking his precious baby, Dean slid into the driver's seat and waited for Sam to do the same. A few seconds later the black beast rumbled into life and Dean pulled out of the motel car park, tyres squealing.

-supernatural-

"Did you see that part where the dude's head went flying? It was legendary!"

"Oooh ooh yeah! And what about that part when…"

Dean tuned out as the two younger boys starting chatting animatedly about the b-grade horror movie he had just been forced to sit through. The older hunter never understood why Sam liked watching those kinds of movies. They pretty much lived in a horror movie. Wasn't that enough?

"Okay Jeremy, here's your stop." He pulled over and let Sam's friend out. The two boys said their goodbyes and as soon as the door was shut, Sam climbed over the seat and slid into the front.

"Thanks for doing this for me, Dean."

"No worries," he replied, checking the mirrors before pulling back out onto the road. It was just past ten o'clock, which meant they had just less than two hours before curfew. "You wanna get something to eat?"

"Sure!" was the earnest reply. His kid brother was like a freakin' garbage disposal. He never seemed to get enough food these days.

They drove for around ten minutes before Dean spotted a gas station that was open late. Some pie sounded good.

"You coming?" he asked as he slipped out of the car. Waiting for Sam to exit the car, Dean locked his baby before heading towards the store part of the gas station. He failed to notice the four menacing figures lurking around the side of the building, hiding in the shadows.

"Can I get a Coke, Dean?" Sam asked, holding one of the red labelled bottles up. Dean thought about it, wondering if letting the twelve-year-old have sugar this late at night was a good idea. He looked at Sam and was suddenly caught what he had dubbed the 'puppy dog eyes' look. Fuck.

He exhaled slowly. "Okay," the young hunter said at length. "But you can only have half. I don't think Dad will appreciate having you on a major sugar high this late at night.

Dean grabbed the Coke off Sam before heading to the warmer where the pies were kept. Grinning, he grabbed a large apple pie and headed to the register. As he was placing the items on the counter, Dean chucked the keys at his brother and told him to unlock the car. As Sam exited the store, he looked out the window just to make sure he made it to the Impala safely. You could never be too careful.

The attendant rang the pie, Coke and a bag of crisps through. He handed over a 20 dollar bill. The note had just left his fingertips when the screaming started.

Leaving the food on the counter, Dean raced outside. His heart jumped into his throat as the scene became apparent to him. His hand immediately slipped behind his back and fingered the gun resting there.

There were four men standing around the Impala, brandishing knives and guns. One of them had their arm wrapped around Sam's neck from behind.

"Let him go…" Dean warned lowly, his hand clasping the grip of the gun tighter. He advanced slowly, eyes locking with his brother's. He could see the fear shining in Sam's large eyes.

None of the men responded. Instead they moved forward, waving their weapons around like some prized possession. Dean swallowed. Three against one weren't fantastic odds and factoring in the fact he had one gun and a knife to their three… It wasn't looking good. But he had to get Sam out of there. As long as Sammy was safe, there was nothing to worry about.

"Dean!" Sam cried before a hand was slapped across his mouth to silence him. Tears started to run down his younger brother's face, combining the fear and pain racing through him.

He lunged. Whipping out the gun, Dean flicked off the safety and brandished it in full view of the thugs. He used their moment of hesitation at seeing the weapon to strike, stretching out a leg and kicking the closest one right where it hurt the most. He grinned in satisfaction as the man crumpled to the ground, clutching the sore area.

Dean Winchester was not afraid to fight dirty.

The rest of the fight was a little bit of a haze; fists, knees and feet flying everywhere. A couple of times the thugs managed to land good hits on his face and upper body.

"Sam! Run!" he shouted as he fought with the thug that had his arm wrapped around his brother's throat only moments before. Dean looked over his shoulder quickly and saw that Sam hadn't moved. That second of hesitation cost him.

The thug slammed a fist into the side of his face, his head snapping sideways. Dean felt the world start to tilt and spin, his legs bucking beneath him. "I mean it, Sam! Get outta here! I'll be fine!"

He hit the ground, his knees slamming against the concrete painfully. The thugs stood above him, a ridiculously large knife gripped in his hand.

"What the hell do you want…?" Dean asked, trying to keep his grip on reality. Everything was swaying and twisting in front of his eyes.

Dean would never remember what the thug said. He'd never know what they had wanted… because in one second, his world fell apart.

Tyres screeching…

A petrified scream…

A hollow thud…

The crack of a body hitting a windshield…

The still silence of horror and disbelief…

"…SAMMY!"

NOW

"Dean?"

The shattered young hunter looked up wearily as someone spoke his name. It was his dad.

"Dad?" he whispered. "S…Sammy?"

His dad sat down next to him and wrapped his arms around him. Dean froze, shocked at the display of affection coming from the normally stoic man. His breathing started to speed up as the implications of his father's actions raced through his mind.

"Oh god…" he moaned, "oh my god… No…"

"Shhh…" his dad whispered into his ear. "You gotta calm down, Dean. Just focus on your breathing."

Dean didn't know how to do that. Why would he want to do that? His brother was dead and it was all his fault!

"Sam's gonna be fine, kiddo. He's a little roughed up, but he's gonna be okay."

Dean froze again. What? Sam was… Sam was okay?

"Okay? He's… he's gonan be okay?"

His dad nodded and that's when Dean broke.

He brought his hands up and covered his face as the tears started to fall. No matter how hard he tried to contain them, they just kept on coming.

"I failed… I failed you, I failed Sammy… Oh god…"

"What?" John asked, bewildered. "What are you on about, Dean? You haven't failed anyone."

"I was s'possed to watch out for Sammy," he mumbled. "He got hurt on my watch… my fault."

His dad tightened his hold, Dean leaning more into the embrace as he did.

"It was an accident, kiddo. One of the police officers told me what you did – how you took on those men to save your brother. You saved Sam, Dean. It was just an accident."

Dean said nothing. He was exhausted and hurt all over, his head still pounding. He hadn't even noticed a nurse approaching them, needle in hand, until his dad pushed him away and nodded to the nurse, who proceeded to inject him with something.

Looking at his dad questionably, Dean found it harder and harder to fight whatever drug was invading his system. Within a minute he was fast asleep.

-supernatural-

John looked at his sons as they slept. They had been put in the same hospital room. Dean was lying in the far right bed, hooked up to an IV that was giving him a hefty dose of painkillers, antibiotics and sedatives.

Sam was in the left bed, attached to far more machinery than his older brother. A heart monitor, oxygen mask and several IVs were only a few of them. A cast covered his right wrist, several bandages wrapped around his chest and there was a small white plaster covering the nick on his neck from where the thug had rested a knife at one point.

He looked back over to where Dean was lying and was surprised to see twin pools of moss green staring back at him from beneath heavy lids. John smiled as he ambled over to his oldest son.

"Hey there kiddo. How're you feeling?"

"Okay…" Dean rasped, blinking sluggishly. "Sam?"

John had to fight not to roll his eyes at the typical question. "Sam's okay. He's right over there," he pointed to Sam's bed as he said it. Dean turned his head and followed his father's hand, visibly relaxing when his eyes caught sight of his brother.

"'kay…"

"You did good, Dean. I'm proud of you son."

No doubt his eldest wouldn't remember a thing when he woke up next (as he'd always had a peculiar reaction to hospital-grade painkillers), but seeing his son's pale and drawn face morph into a lopsided smile was worth it.

As he watched his son's sleep, John couldn't have been more proud of both of them.

A nice!John moment there at the end :) Well, I hope you all enjoyed reading this little ficlet. Hopefully a new chapter of The Last Night will be out soon.

Is everyone as excited as I am for the Season 8 premier? I can't wait!

Thanks for reading.