Chapter 2a -If The Shoe Fits
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em, Just love 'em. Wished ta Hell I worked for Kripke
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Dean watched the front door to the house close behind Jim then glanced back at Ms. Coulter with his 'everything's cool' look back on his face. And his eyes met the same compassioned filled expression that she'd had when checking the boy's injuries.
"I, uh, just have to get the rest of my gear in," Dean said as he rubbed the back of his neck and nodded his goodbye. He could still feel the weight of that concern in her eyes as he walked back to the Impala. "Man, Missouri could take lessons from her!" He mumbled to him self as he grabbed the last of his stuff and slammed the trunk closed.
He looked up and saw that she hadn't gone in but was waiting for him, leaning against the screen door to hold it open for him, arms crossed and head tilted at an angle. "Shoot, why couldn't she have just gone in ahead of me? Wait… when was the last time Dean Winchester was intimidated by a girl, uh, woman? OK, Ellen but that's different" He slung one of the duffels over his shoulder and started toward the porch. As he approached he felt like she was daring him to walk past her. He stopped in front of her and put his radiant smile back on and said, "So what's the movie?"
She looked up at him and gave a little nod starting to smile and for the first time he noticed the color of her eyes "Deep blue, no gray-blue, no…blue, they're blue."
"Godzilla-the original black and white" she said with her arms still crossed and that appraising look still on her face.
"Awesome! I love a good rubber monster movie," Dean said with honest enthusiasm.
"Rubber monster?" She asked and tilted her head a little to the side.
"Well yeh," Dean reached over her head to hold the door and gestured with the duffle for her to enter first. For a moment his body surrounded her, arms open, corralling her; even with his hands busy with duffle and door the symbolism made a blush rise to her cheeks and she quickly moved into the house.
Dean followed behind her saying, "When the costume is so hokey you can see the zipper, it just makes the movie less.."
"Scary?" she supplied.
"Less real" he finished… and there it was again. The animation that had been on his face moments ago was gone replaced by that mask of impassiveness.
She stopped and he moved past her to climb the stairs. Her hand moved up to her chin and she absent-mindedly began to stoke her thumb across it in a contemplative manner. She watched him while he carried his bags up the stairs; his head down for a few steps then he straightened and marched up the rest of the way with his head up.
The pinch in her heart made itself known again and she turned and walked toward the kitchen. How does a person go through so much damage and still be so brave? She thought.
As soon as Dean heard the footsteps he chanced a look down and watched her heading to the kitchen. How does she hold it together, man? How can she be there for so many and still hold it together like that?
Sam had just come to the top of the stairs as his brother was watching Ms. Coulter leave. Dean was looking down at her when he almost bumped his head into Sam's chest. The sudden jostle made him loose his balance and Sam grabbed him before Dean and the duffels made a very ungraceful tumble back down the stairs.
"Dean!" Sam said as he grabbed his brother and steadied him.
"Jeeze man," Dean grunted as he collected himself. "Why don't you lie in wait for the big bads instead of your own brother!"
Sam smirked, "I wasn't lying in wait and you were totally checking out Ms. Coulter"
"Was not, and she's way too old and anyway she creeps me out the way she looks right through a person like, like Missouri…or somthin."
"Well, she does have a keen judge of character so that puts her totally out of your league' teased Sam.
Dean smiled and huffed, "She does have cahones I gotta give her that, she must be tough for all the hunters around to trust her with their kids."
As they walked back to Dean's room Sam agreed, "Yeah, I wouldn't have wanted to go up against her in court, Bobby said she ate Defense Attorneys for breakfast."
Dean looked back toward the stairs and said, "Oh, she'd have your ass on a cracker." And Sam gave him a punch in the arm as Dean dropped his stuff on the floor of his room.
"So you wanna finish the recon of the house and the out buildings before supper?" Dean asked.
"Yeah sure, but what's the rush?" Said Sam. "Shouldn't we take it building by building?"
"We can do a rough out of any defense weakness now and detail it tomorrow for anything missed." Dean replied as he stowed his gear. "Besides tonight's movie night and they're showing "Godzilla-the original!"
Sam smiled and rolled his eyes.
"Hey, you've never fully appreciated that classic and tonight will set the perfect mood what with all the kids screaming an all." Dean beamed at him.
"And maybe if we're lucky a popcorn fight will break out" Sam snarked
"Only if we're very lucky." Dean grinned back.
Sam shook his head at his big brother's unbridled enthusiasm for all things juvenile and said, "I'll meet you down stairs Dean-san".
Dean and Sam went through the kitchen on their way out back. The place was beginning to get busy with the production of the dinner for tonight. The older girls and boys that were on kitchen duty were getting vegetables washed and peeled. Big stainless steel cooking pots simmered on the stove and filled the room with a delicious beef aroma.
As they walked through to the back yard Dean noted that Emma was wearing an apron (do women in real life still wear those?) and chopping up peeled potatoes. He stopped by one of the big pots on the stove and inhaled audibly. "What's for supper?" he asked with his widest grin. Sam stopped by the back door, turned, and with a small smile on his face watched his brother shift into major shmooze mode in trying to converse with their host. Emma didn't bother to turn around and Dean's cheek aching grin was lost to her back. "Pot Roast" she said and kept chopping. The "MMMMmmm" Dean uttered was entirely genuine. "Sam, did you hear that? Ms. Coulter said Pot Roast that's your favorite!"
At that Emma stopped chopping and cast a sidways glance to Sam. He looked behind her, at Dean who was nodding his head up and down enthusiastically. And Sam said in a flat voice as he turned to Ms Coulter, "Yep, it is."
"Well, that's good then," She said. "Anyone who loves Pot Roast like you do won't mind pitching in with the serving when it comes time."
Sam glanced at Dean and Dean came up to him and gave him a big pat on the shoulder aligning himself to be in Emma's eye line.
"What, this guy? Just try to keep him out of a kitchen when Pot Roast is being served." And Dean turned his smile's wattage up a notch higher.
Emma looked at the two men. Sam's face was stoic and blank and Dean was grinning at her like a used car salesman. "What's the plan?" She asked directing her question to Dean.
His grin faltered a little. "Plan?" he repeated.
"Yes, you do have a plan, don't you?" she said as she wiped her hands on the apron and turned to them.
Dean blinked, "Oh, the Plan" he said. "Well, we thought we'd do a walk through. Check the yard and the outbuildings for anything that could be a breach in security. And tomorrow do a building-by-building recon. Beef up what you do have, assess what you need…it's complicated."
Emma frowned. "You shouldn't find much that we 'need'. The place is surrounded with protection charms, sulfur alarms and electromagnetic field fluctuation detectors all installed by hunters like yourselves to keep us safe."
Dean's eyebrows went up, she was not completely unaware for a civilian, "You've got SA's and EMFFD's around here?" he replied impressed. And he looked at Sam who looked equally impressed.
"Bobby himself installed the last lot of them," She confirmed.
"Well, that makes our job a whole lot easier, sounds like you and the kids are well protected." Dean nodded and smiled nudging his brother's arm with his elbow.
"Uh, yeah" Sam said smiling back as well. "It sounds like you've got things well in hand."
Clapping his hands together Dean turned smooze mode back on and asked "Soooo, what time do you want me to get Sam back here to help with the serving?"
"Just Sam?" Emma leveled her gaze at Dean.
Dean found himself dropping into the depths of those grey blue eyes, "Uh..no..WE…I'd love to help!" Dean heard himself saying (and they're blue, deep grey blue-definitely)
"Fine, Do you think you'll wrap up your first recon by six?"
"Yes, Ma'me," both men said in unison.
And turned as one to leave by the back door.
Emma watched them leave and the screen door creaked back shut. There's that Ma'me thing again and she looked down for a moment saying to no one in particular, "I wonder if it's the apron?"
Dean and Sam stepped off the back porch and walked toward the first outbuilding in silence. Nothing but the sounds of their steps crunching the dry earth could be heard. Once out of ear shot from the screen door Dean said to Sam, "Well, there's one weak spot."
"What, they have all those alarms?" Sam said surprised.
"Yeah, but what if the demons cut the power and if they have back up batteries…"
"I'm sure Bobby'd set them up with back ups" Sam replied.
"But those can get drained pretty damned quick by all the freakin' spirit energy that would manifest during an attack" Dean said darkly.
"Soooo, all the fancy high-tech warning alarms were installed to, what, just make Ms Coulter feel safe?" Sam said doubtfully.
"No, I'm sure that they work and serve their purpose, but Sam high tech doesn't cut it when you don't have the power to run it. And in a worst-case scenerio that would leave just the protection Charms and us" Dean said and stopped to look directly at his brother.
Sam paled a little at the realization. Bobby'd recommend them for this guard duty. "If things get that bad, then we're really all they got." He said flatly and huffed an exhale.
Dean raised his eyebrows and nodded. Then he and Sam made there way over to the nearest large out building.
Continued
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