Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural in any way, shape, or form
Author's Note: Just a (short) one shot on the first time Dean heard that he needed to protect Sam. Set before Mary dies.
Warnings: None - very clean
It was two in the morning when John opened his bleary eyes to the noise of baby Sam's plaintive cries. He rolled over onto his side and gazed at his wife, Mary. Her eyes remained closed as she feigned sleep, but he could tell by her breathing that she was awake. He sat up, running his fingers through his hair, and slid out of bed. He gazed over at Mary again, and saw that a small smile was on her face.
"You'd be a horrible actress," he informed her, and her smile grew but she never opened her eyes. Instead, she pulled a pillow over her head.
He crossed the hall and stepped into the nursery. He blinked for a minute; what the…?
He chuckled a little bit to himself when he saw that Dean, his older son, was leaning into the crib and eagerly poking at the baby. "Dean," John groaned a little bit, "what're you doing?"
Dean jumped at his father's voice, and tumbled backwards onto the soft, plush carpet. This only made Sam cry louder until John reached into the crib and picked up the baby, bouncing him around a little bit like Mary always did when he was crying. "Shh, Sam…"
Dean sighed. "I had a dream," he confessed.
John knew that he was in for a long one, so he sat down on the rocking chair, cradling Sam in his arms, whose crying had subsided to a faint whimpering. Dean clambered up into his Dad's lap. "I had a dream that something happened to Sammy, so I wanted to make sure he was okay. But then he woke up, so I tried to make him sleep again and…"
John tried to keep his laughter to himself, as he could only imagine how Dean had tried to get Sam back to sleep. "I'm happy you came in to check on him, Dean," John said, ruffling his older son's hair with his free hand. "After all, Sammy is your little brother, and you need to protect him."
Dean looked up with interest at this. "Really?"
John nodded as he tried to lull a discontent Sam back to sleep. "Yeah Dean, remember how Mommy and I told you that you're Sam's big brother? That's part of being a big brother, Dean."
"Protecting him?"
"Yep," John said, slowing rocking the chair a little bit. Finally Sam stopped squirming, and his eyelids drooped a little bit.
"Forever and ever?" Dean asked, looking up at his Dad with a glimmer in his eye that only a child's could hold.
"Forever and ever, Dean, forever and ever."
John sat there with Sam nestled in the crook of his left arm and Dean perched on his right knee. Dean leaned across his Dad's chest and peered at his dozing baby brother.
"Don't worry, Sammy, I'll protect you forever," he promised the baby.
"Why don't you get back to bed, kid?" John said, and Dean slid off his Dad's knee. "I'll be right in there to tuck you in."
Dean made his way out of the nursery as John stood up and placed the baby in the crib, arranging the blanket around him. "I'll tell you one thing, kid," he whispered to Sam as he tucked the infant in, "you got really lucky with that brother of yours."
