Chapter three, enjoy people :)
January 1984.
Dean had officially turned five on the twenty-fourth, John had bought him a store made pie and had given him a crash course on the Browning. Alexandra had made Dean a birthday card with the help of Pam, after Dean's birthday they had finally left the Roadhouse; John was taking them around the country while he hunted, he was paranoid of leaving them alone in a place for too long, he didn't feel safe and he needed to lookout for his children.
February 1984.
John had been moving around from city to city, learning all he could, partly living in motel rooms. The kids had adapted to this way of living, Sammy didn't cry much anymore, not with Alexandra and Dean alert to his every whim. Sometimes John wondered if he was pushing his eldest children too far. He had begun drilling to Dean that Alexandra and Sammy were his responsibility until Alexandra had asked if then Dean was her responsibility, John figured that if his girl was smart enough to know what the word responsibility meant then she and Dean could share it. So he had changed tactics and started telling both Alexandra and Dean that Sammy was their responsibility.
May 1984.
They were in Colorado visiting a Hunter named Daniel Elkins who lived in a cabin in the middle of nowhere. The children seemed to like the scenery as Alexandra and Dean enjoyed running around in the yard with the soccer ball that he had given them on Christmas while Sammy watched. Sam had also taken his first steps towards, Dean while Alexandra walked quietly behind him in case he lost balance and fell, his first birthday was spent in Elkins cabin learning about Vampires. Sam was also blabbing even more now, and like Alexandra before him first word had been Dee, followed by Lex.
They spent a week in Colorado before moving again, another town another motel.
August 1984.
Alexandra's third birthday arrived without much flair. John had gotten her another hair bow, and had seen Dean braiding her long hair into a really intricate braid that morning before placing the bow at the end of the braid, she had thanked her brother and the two had started kicking their soccer ball in the motel room that they were while John poured over some books he had acquired. He probably should have realized that Alexandra's hair bow collection was growing steadily, not that the girl minded as it was the only girly thing that she really owned.
September – December 1984.
The rest of the year passed in the same fashion, Alexandra and Dean often watching over Sammy whenever John had to leave them in a motel room for too long. They had developed a sixth sense regarding their youngest sibling and had to learn the hard way what was the best way to feed an irritable one year old. Alexandra was usually shorter tempered than Dean whenever Sammy started crying, but they worked well together. A small voice in the back of her head wondered how Dean could have done it alone the first time, a small voice that usually went unheard or ignored in favor of playing with her older brother of caring for the youngest one.
1985.
Dean had turned six and they had been locked in a motel room, nothing new for them while John hunted a Myling. John had started telling Dean and Alexandra about the monsters that he hunted, not the truly horrifying things that he knew but enough that his children knew how dangerous the world was. For Dean's birthday Alexandra had given him the last of their Lucky Charms cereal and she had opted to eat an apple instead. Dean had thanked her and they had spent most of the day reading the books that Pam had given them, not that they really remembered Pam anymore, but that was the way a child's mind worked.
By the time Sammy turned two, they were once again in Colorado, Dean and Alexandra basking in the wilderness like the children they were, as being in Elkin's cabin gave them a kind of freedom that they rarely had when staying at hotels. They played in the ground, now including Sammy who liked to run after the ball. And even if Daniel Elkin never told John, he liked hearing the children laughing; it brought a sense of pureness to their dark lives that the retired hunter was not sure that John really appreciated it.
When Alexandra turned four they had been in blue earth visiting a man named Pastor Jim, the pastor was a kind man that had helped Sam and Dean make a birthday card for their sister, that year John had gotten her a pair of small silver cross earrings from the Church bazar. A nun that had been visiting had taught Dean how to put Alexandra's hair in a ponytail as it was even longer than before and she threw a tantrum every time John suggested cutting it. He had given up on the subject.
When September rolled around both Dean and Alexandra had been accepted in first grade. The school had been wary of accepting Alexandra but she had passed all the tests with flying colors and they didn't want to actually stunt her knowledge so skipping grades had been their only option. Both kids had enjoyed their first day at school and had babbled all afternoon about what they had done. Pastor Jim had looked at John with a sad expression on his face when Sam had said that he wanted to start school too and promised that he would pray for his friend's wellbeing.
When November rolled around and John had returned to their temporary home after a rough hunt he had decided that Dean could start shooting, on the fourteenth he took Dean shooting, leaving Alexandra and Sam behind with Pastor Jim, thing that hadn't been easy as Alexandra had wanted to shoot too, it had taken a promise that he would teach her once she turned five to get her to calm down. That tantrum reminded him, if only for a while, that he was dealing with children, three of them.
1986.
When Dean turned seven, John took him shooting again. Alexandra and Sam had made a birthday card for Dean with the help of the kids that visited the church, it had surprised John that he had stayed so long in one place, but it was Dean and Alexandra's first year of school. And he just couldn't bring himself to take them out of the school, not yet.
Spring Break brought a sour mood to John, and it sort of ended his close friendship with Ellen. Bill had died, a demon had possessed him while he and John had tried to close a Hell Gate and he had asked John to kill him, it had been a mistake, a mistake that had taken Bill's life, now Jo was left without a father and John could only think of his little girl, how would she take it if he were to die? And what of his boys? He didn't want to think of it, he had apologized to Ellen, but he never told her the real story, how could he?
When Sammy turned two John bought an ice-cream cake he had let the kids eat it as they liked, he ended up with three covered in ice cream and the worse bath time ever. Long hair tangled even more when covered with sugary substances; he learned it the hard way. But it had been a good birthday and the sight of his three kids sleeping, huddled together in the same bed brought a smile to his face.
When Alexandra turned five John gave into his promise putting the smallest gun he could find in her hand, she was good, almost as good as Dean, it was scary how good his children were but he was damn proud of them, once she had hit the bull's-eye on most of the bottles she had looked up at him and smiled, dimples and freckles in display and he had patted her head mindful of the bow that she had insisted on wearing.
They returned to Blue Earth for Dean and Alexandra's second grade, Jim was still teaching John about demons and other supernatural beings. John had noticed that his children were mindful of Sammy, going so far as to make him promise that he would take care of their baby brother while they were at school. John hurt whenever he watched his two eldest children caring for their little brother, that was supposed to be his job, but he needed to find and kill the thing that had killed Mary, he needed to avenge his wife.
Dean and Alexandra liked school, but the thing they liked the most was teaching their little brother whatever they learned, they had taught Sammy the alphabet and to write his name, they also attended Sunday school with Pastor Jim whenever John was not out hunting, Pastor Jim taught them about angels and God, not that Dean truly believed in God, because surely if God was alive then he would have saved his mother, right?
"You have to take care of Sammy and Alexandra, okay?" asked John crouching down to Dean's height, Alexandra looked at her father and frowned, John looked at her and smiled softly. "And you have to take care of Sammy and Dean, you two are a team remember?"
"Yes Sir" they chorused, and John failed to notice that his children no longer referred to him as Dad or Daddy whenever he gave an order, he was Sir now, but John had been too caught up in his hunts to notice.
"Sammy is your responsibility," he said and the kids nodded again, he patted their heads before leaving.
Dean and Alexandra exchanged glances before returning to the motel table to finish their homework so they could watch TV with Sammy until it was time for dinner. Dean was almost eight years old and he already knew all the ways to make Macaroni & Cheese in small motels kitchens, while Alexandra at five knew all the best ways to carry and feed a baby. If an outsider had seen their small family he would have thought that Alexandra and Dean were Sam's parents, not John.
That year John had forgotten Christmas for the third year in a row; Alexandra and Dean had spent Christmas locked in a motel room somewhere in Arkansas while John tracked down the complete exorcism. The children exchanged the cards that they had made at school and had sit with their brother until they fell asleep with the TV on. They knew the drill, make little sounds, you're not there at all or the bad men would come and take you away from Dad and your siblings.
1987.
Second grade was great, when Dean turned eight the classroom had thrown a little party for him, and after school John had taken them to Chuck E. Cheese's. It was weird that John was doing the family thing, but the kids had loved it. Dean and Alexandra had taken the arcade in stride and between the two they had gotten enough tickets to get a prize. Alexandra had given all her tickets to Dean as a birthday present and he had gotten the giant rainbow slinky that he had wanted at the time. Alexandra had felt something strange at seeing her brother with the slinky, a feeling of rightness and successfulness. Her teacher had said that sometimes she was a really insightful person and that was why she was allowed to be in second grade while she was younger than the entire class.
They left Blue Earth by mid February and started moving, changing schools had been hard for Alexandra, as she was young, but John had assured the staff that she was more than up to par, to her it seemed that she had been condemned to a life of taking the same IQ tests whenever they moved to a new state, but she would adapt, children always did. Three months and six new schools later found them in Colorado yet again visiting Elkin, they had spent Sammy's birthday at the cabin. Sammy was four now and the children had spent his birthday reading Elkin's books and pointing at the pictures.
Sammy was learning to read, Alexandra and Dean taking turns at teaching him at the best of their abilities while John talked to Daniel about Vetalas and Vrykolakas. Alexandra and Dean both knew that they were not going to be much longer in Colorado as John had mentioned something about Texas a few days before, and they tried to understand their father, Dean acquiring a more tolerant personality to the moving's than Alexandra who tended to become irritated.
Texas came and went as fast as any other state that they had been to and when summer rolled in John remembered to be a parent again and decided to take his kids to the Grand Canyon. It had been a memorable trip to Sammy and Alexandra as they had spent more than half the trip making fun of Dean and his gassy donkey.
After the Grad Canyon, in July, they moved to Portland, Maine. John was looking for a shaman and since it was still summer it meant that the children would be confined to yet another motel room while John found the man. It was supposed to be a quiet night in, John had remembered to buy dinner before going to find the Shaman and Alexandra and Dean were reading some comics that Dean had stolen from a stand.
"Batman is the best superhero ever!" he said proudly, Alexandra frowned at him.
"Nu-uh, its Wonder Woman, she is a goddess, she's the best" she said in a matter of fact tone, Sammy, who was jumping on the bed squealed getting their attention.
"The best superhero is Superman" he declared while jumping up and down, Alexandra and Dean exchanged glances and laughed.
"Superman is allergic to kryptonite, you could defeat him easily, Batman is cooler" said Dean with a smirk.
"Wonder Woman has powers, Batman only has his money, so she's the best" Alexandra said crossing her arms. "I'm gonna be her when I grow up, and I'm going to save the world from evil"
"I'm gonna be Batman" said Dean proudly, Sam looked at his siblings.
"And me?" he asked; Alexandra and Dean smirked.
"You can be Robin," said Alexandra "Right Dee?"
"Yeah, he can be my sidekick," said Dean and he was about to say more when John ran into the room, the kids immediately snapped in attention. They knew what to do.
Five minutes later and they were piled up in the backseat of the Impala getting the hell out of Portland, John started telling them about the Manitou that had killed the Shaman and that had escaped.
"Dad, but wont the Manitou go after other people now?" asked Dean, and through the rearview mirror John could see Alexandra and Dean exchanging glances, Sammy had fallen asleep mid-story.
"Dad are those people in danger now?" asked Alexandra and John only had the chance to make a sharp U turn and return to Portland.
"Stay in the car, I'll be back soon, don't go out" he told them before disappearing into the night, Alexandra and Dean looked at each other again and tried to get comfortable in the car as they waited for their father.
When John returned to the car, it was way past midnight, Alexandra and Sammy were sleeping, but Dean was not, his eyes were droopy, but he was awake watching over his siblings, sitting in the middle of them, Alexandra to his right, using him as a pillow and Sammy to his left sprawled on the seat. John sighed at the sight and told Dean to sleep before starting the car.
Alexandra turned six without much fanfare, John, for the fourth year straight got her a hair bow, and this one was in denim with a red button in the middle. Her collection was surely growing steady.
When November rolled around Dean and Alexandra had asked John about Mary, what she looked like, had she looked like Alexandra? Or more like Dean; was she like Sammy? John hadn't had the heart to tell them, so he told them the only thing he could.
"Your mother was beautiful, and she loved you two and Sammy most than anything in this world"
That year John forgot Christmas too and Sam, Dean and Alexandra celebrated to the best of their abilities. Dean made a variation of his Macaroni and Cheese recipe using Marshmallows instead of cheese, while Alexandra had managed to get grape juice at the nearest Gas n Sip. Sammy had found the entire thing fancy as they had served the juice in the glass whiskey bottles that the motel room had in the small pantry. They didn't have gifts to exchange so they had made cards with the Motel's room small note pad.