A/N:
**Please see Chapter 1 for all warnings!** Don't like it? Don't read it!
Thank you Christine, goldacharmed, Kajensen07 and ANerdWhoWrites for the great reviews!
With Bowman's shadow flickering by above, Dean made his way through the aisles, trying to get to the main counter without making a scene. It should be an easy in, grab Jacob as gently as he could, easy out. Sam could make sure he was alright once they were in the pocket together. He held out the hope that it'd be that simple.
His heart fell when he saw a kid standing by the counter with a dusty old bin in front of him. Crap… his mind started up a stream of curses as the kid stood up with something tiny and dark clutched between huge fingers. There was no question in Dean's mind of what that kid had found. Fuck, we're too late…
He practically leapt the last few paces, coming to a halt only three feet away from the kid. "Oh, hey!" he said loudly, interrupting the kid before the fingers released Jacob over a deadly, terrifying plunge into a backpack.
Those fingers tensed again, tightening their hold on Jacob once more. At least he wasn't about to be dropped. Dean held himself at the ready, prepared to lunge forward to catch Jacob if he had to. Memories rose up of the time he'd tried to catch Sam like that. His brother had ended up with a sprained wrist from the collision. Jacob would be far worse off if Dean caught him even slightly the wrong way. His bones were a lot thinner than even Sam's.
A broken arm or leg would be better than dead.
"Whaddya want?" the kid griped at him, suspicious dark eyes staring at the tall man in front of him.
Dean held out a hand, waving at the 'toy' the kid was holding. "My kid brother… he's been lookin' for that for an hour now. I'm so glad to see you found it for us safe and sound." He gave the kid a broad smile, hiding any trace of the anger he felt at Jacob's precarious position. Holding out a hand, Dean twitched his fingers. "I'll just take it back now."
Jacob was whipped through the air as the kid held him closer. "Finders keepers," he said begrudgingly. He ignored the way Dean's face turned to a dark glare. "Didncha know that, stupid? "
Dean's eyes were locked onto Jacob. I'll get you out of this, he swore. No matter what it takes.
He took a step forward, closing the distance in case he needed to leap to catch Jacob. "Well, I don't want to brag, but that toy's nothing." Dean gave the kid a smirk. He had an idea. His hand dropped to his side and he started absently drumming against the pocket. Sam froze up, paying close attention to what Dean was conveying to him even as he continued to talk. "We've got way better toys than that."
Sam punched back a few times. He hated the idea, which was no surprise to Dean, but for Jacob… they'd do anything they had to. Both of them.
The kid looked critically at the toy pinched in his fingers for a few seconds. It was pretty life-like. It looked like one of those expensive custom made minis sold at the local toy shop. If he got bored of it he could pawn it off to one of his friends for something cool. He was still intrigued, as seen by the almost shark-like look on his face. He lowered the hand holding Jacob slightly and focused narrowed eyes at the tall guy. "Like what?" he asked, taking the bait but not giving back his find just yet.
Jacob was curious, too, but he couldn't even try to come up with ideas. The pressure on his ribs was nearly enough to bust them if the kid tightened up his hand again, and it stole half of his focus.
Jacob glanced over at Dean. The enormous giant standing what must only be four feet away but felt like the length of a football field was the only thing keeping him from plummeting to his death. The focus on the hunter's face was unmistakable. The huge green eyes were locked on Jacob without wavering and he could almost hear the trust me in that look. Though Jacob's heart was hammering in his chest with fear, he could tell the man already had a plan.
The twitching of Dean's hand caught Jacob's attention. Sam must be in on it. That hand appeared for all the world to be absently tapping against Dean's side, but Jacob knew better. Sam was inside that pocket, interpreting the message and probably giving his own feedback in the form of small punches that were unnoticeable to anyone else.
Briefly emboldened by the knowledge that his friends were working together to help him, he sucked in a shallow breath, hoping it wasn't too risky. The unending pinch around his sides constantly threatened to transition one of his ribs from bruised to snapped, and he doubted he'd be able to hold in his hoarse yelp of pain if that happened.
Jacob kept his eyes on Dean, hoping whatever idea he had cooked up would take effect in time to save him. At any moment the boy could decide he was bored humoring the adult and just toss Jacob into his backpack. The greedy glint in the eyes above him hinted that this was a growing possibility.
"For one thing," Dean said disparagingly, pulling Jacob's attention right to that huge face. The casual expression was dismaying even if it was only an act.
Dean went on. "That's one of our smallest toys. My brother just keeps it around because our dad gave it to him before he passed. I mean, when you hold it up to," his hand reached into his pocket, "this, there's really no comparison."
His fingers looped firmly around Sam's body. He could feel his little brother trembling even as he was withdrawn into the light. Regret hammered in Dean's chest in an accusatory pattern. He knew from experience that a child finding him and treating him like a toy scared Sam more than almost anything else, and here they were, pretending he was one. At his size, he looked like a super-realistic action figure. At the moment, it was the only chance they had, past Dean prying Jacob from the kid's hand. That would only result in a broken best friend, something he refused to ever let happen.
Once Sam was out of the pocket, he froze up. Every instinct in him was screaming at him to get away, get under cover and hide! One human had a hand wrapped around him, another was staring greedily at him like he was the world's coolest toy. His neck almost burst into flame at the sense of danger that crawled up it. He managed to keep from flinching or twitching even as Dean's other hand gently encircled him.
Sam was holding his handcrafted knife in front of himself in a defensive position, legs bent in one of the stances Dean had taught him. If he had brighter clothing on, he would fit right in with the action figures they sold at the toy stores around the country, only he was far more realistic.
Dean's voice went on overhead as Sam started to sweat. "This one we had custom made. The knife's sharp enough to cut if you ain't careful with it." A huge finger came up underneath Sam's elbow, nudging it to a new position. He let his arms and legs be manipulated until he was in an attacking position, knife held out like he was slicing towards an enemy.
Even the kid seemed impressed. The hand holding Jacob tight was relaxed in his distraction as his dark eyes were glued to Sam.
"But, hey. You've got that little thing that ain't even worth much. I mean, it isn't even big enough to really see, so what's the point?" Dean hefted Sam up. "Want to give this one a try?"
The kid narrowed his dark eyes. "Yeah." Once he got that one in hand, he could just dart out of the library. It was way more interesting that the figure in a hoodie he'd found.
Dean shrugged at Jacob. "You need two hands to make it work. Might wanna put that one down for a sec." He held out Sam's trembling form, offering to hand him off.
Jacob was dropped on the counter. Greedy hands reached towards Sam, the smallest hunter temporarily forgotten with the larger prize up for grabs.
When there was less than half a foot between the kid's hands and Dean's, Sam felt a finger come up beneath his boots and recognized his signal. Jumping into motion, he used it to spring up out of Dean's grip, landing on the top of his brother's hand. The hand was held motionless to give him a steady surface for balance.
The moment of shock was all he needed to make his escape. The kid froze, his eyes wide as the 'action figure' started to move on his own.
Sam darted up Dean's long arm, wasting no time diving under Dean's thick collar and out of sight. He huddled against the massive shoulder, feeling his shudders start to calm down even as Dean finished.
"Oh, guess he doesn't like you. Too bad, guess you'll have to find another one."
A/N:
Sam definitely doesn't like that kid.
Next: December 20th, 2017 at 9pm.
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