summary: Dean and Sam get settled into camp life.

word count: 1,671

He made it back to the Infirmary and slipped in through the back door, finding a corner where it would hopefully be believable for him to have been hiding all evening. And if Cade had noticed his absence, he didn't comment on the fact as he took them back to their cabin and led them through a Bible study.

Dean was pretty sure they were studying some part of John, but that was the only thing he remembered about the study. His entire mind was occupied with the hunt and the phone he'd found. He was pretty sure he could rig a battery pack for it. He had extra batteries in his duffle for his flashlight, and in the hidden part of it, he had some various wiring for situations exactly like this one. He knew he could do it on his own, but he was hoping if he let Sam help, when he was already fulfilling a lifelong dream on a hunt, it would soften him to their supernatural work and thus stave off some of the tension between him and Dad once they were reunited.

He and Sam hadn't discussed a meet-up plan, but, shortly after lights out, Dean headed in the direction of the shower house, grateful that there weren't really rules for bathroom trips, at least not for Crew. Cade didn't even sleep in the cabin with them, staying instead in a nearby cabin with the other Crew counselors, and that would no doubt make his life infinitely easier over the days to come.

As he'd expected, Sammy didn't miss a beat. He'd been waiting only a few minutes when he heard footsteps approaching, and over the hill appeared his brother and another boy his age. He glanced at Dean where he was half-hiding in the shadow cast by the showerhouse only briefly, but it was enough that the older brother knew he'd seen him. He went inside with the other camper without giving him away, only to come out alone a minute or so later, rushing over to Dean like a much younger version of himself.

"Dean!"

He couldn't help but smile at the boy. "Hey, Sammy. Having fun?"

"Oh, yeah!" the younger brother exclaimed with fully genuine enthusiasm. "It's just like I imagined it! And no one's parents are around, so no one even looks at me funny!"

Dean was jealous of that one, but relieved that he was the only one being grilled about their home life as of yet. "I'm glad, Sam," he said seriously. "For real. I know you've wanted to do this for a long time."

He glanced back at the door the twelve-year-old had just come in and out of, arching one amused eyebrow.

"Did you ditch your bathroom buddy?"

"Well, yeah," Sam replied uncertainly. "I mean, I'll go back for him…"

"I'm joking, Kid. It's funny."

"Oh. Okay. So… how's the hunt?" The boy's tone said he didn't particularly like remembering that was why they were actually there, but it was progress just for him to ask about it.

"Yeah, it's alright. Managed to go down there and poke around a little," the older brother told him, trying to stay casual. "Found this in the river bed. Gotta be the counselor's."

He pulled the device out of his pocket and held it out to Sam, who accepted it uncertainly before his entire face lit up in excitement. "Whoa! Dean, this is an IBM! You remember me telling you about these?"

Dean nodded slightly. "Thought you might like that. I've got some batteries and crap in my duffle. Didn't know if you'd want to help me rig a battery pack for it sometime tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I do!"

It had been such a long day, and Dean was completely drained in every possible way, but his little brother's excitement continued to bring a smile to his face.

"I've got freetime before lunch tomorrow," the boy continued. "Maybe we can do it then?"

"Sure," Dean confirmed. "I'll bring the goods. I'd let you hold onto that, but I'm pretty sure we're not supposed to have phones."

"Yeah, we're not," Sam confirmed, handing it back. "I'll let you do the rule breaking."

"Just like you to be so generous," the older boy replied dryly. "But speaking of that, you should probably get back before your buddy freaks out completely. I think I hear him asking for you in there."

"Yeah, I probably should." Sam went to turn away, but Dean's voice paused him before he could open the door again.

"You're okay, though, Sammy?"

"Yeah, Dean. I'm great!"

"Your counselor's being nice?"

"He's awesome."

"Okay." The teen pushed out a long breath, but nodded once in satisfaction. "Don't let him milk too much info outta you, okay?"

A matching nod confirmed it, so Dean turned back towards his own cabin.

"Keep your guard up. Remember there's a monster around here. I'll see ya tomorrow, Kid."

time-skip sponsored by the dreamers, wide-eyed believers, hanging onto hope by a thread

He slept deeply that night, but unfortunately for him, he was also deeply immersed in a plethora of nightmares, mostly of dark, faceless creatures grabbing Sammy while he slept.

He was put out of his misery at 5:00 sharp, when Cade woke them up to attack the day. They were allowed ten minutes to run through the showers and get dressed, then he found himself sitting on the porch, doing another Bible study.

It was going to be a long few weeks.

Cade explained that they'd been assigned to kitchen crew, so they'd help serve or clean up after one or two meals a day for the kids. During the third, they'd have their own program time, while on days they didn't have a second rotation, they'd have freetime to themselves. During the mornings and afternoons, they'd have activities rotations–help the counselors run the various activities for the kids–quiet time to do their personal Bible studies, and some guaranteed time to themselves, and after dinner, they'd have crew-wide events such as campfires and worship nights.

It was good news and bad. Dean wasn't all too interested in going on nature hikes or serving camp food to hundreds of children or handing out lifejackets or singing Jesus songs in the woods, but the freetime a few times a week would be invaluable to the progress of his hunt.

They were "on for breakfast", as Cade put it, so after Bible study, they headed that way to learn the ropes before the kids got there. Dean was surprised to see the younger kids trooping down towards the lake in their swim trunks on the way there, despite the fact that the sun was barely beginning to rise.

"They're swimming already?" he asked mildly.

Cade chuckled a little. "Kind of. That's dippy club. They line up and jump in the lake first thing in the morning, and if they do it every day, they get a tag at the end of the week."

Dean searched his face for any sign that he was kidding, but there was none. "...Why?"

That made the counselor laugh harder. "To say they did."

"Are you for real?" Everything about this place made him feel like he was being pranked for a reality tv show.

"He's for real," Peter put in. "I did it every year growing up. Still have all my dippy tags." He pulled something resembling a dog tag out from under his shirt and held it up for Dean to examine. "This is the first one I ever got. I was eight and almost cried the first morning."

"And you did it again?"

Dean knew he was making it clear just how different he was from these people, but he simply couldn't wrap his mind around camp logic.

"Yep," the other boy confirmed with an easy grin.

"Why?"

"So I could say I did."

Dean looked at him for one last, long moment before finally shaking his head and giving up on understanding it. The thing was, jumping in a freezing lake at 5:45 in the morning wasn't that bad. Bad in the moment, sure, but then they'd run off to showers which would feel a hundred times warmer than they would have otherwise, feel accomplished about their little lives, and move on. Maybe it was just that… it was nothing compared to the life he'd been living when he was that age, so he couldn't imagine needing to do something so trivial but nonetheless unpleasant just to prove you were tough when it really didn't prove a thing.

It would have taken Reaves daring him to or his dad ordering him to for him to jump in a freezing body of water before sunrise at eight years old.

He winced a little at the thought of his best friend.

God, he'd murder him.

Yes, he'd murder his dad first, but now, Dean was accessory to what Caleb would see as utter, irresponsible stupidity, because he was going along with the plan all by himself instead of calling someone, and he would get his own verbal lashing if the psychic ever found out.

Which sucked, because he had the feeling he was going to have a hundred stories he would want to tell the older man by the time he was finished here.

He was pulled from his thoughts by a soft bump on his shoulder, looking up to see that Cade had fallen in step next to him, and was looking at him with mild concern.

"You good?" he asked quietly enough so that the other boys, talking amongst themselves a few yards ahead of them, wouldn't hear.

"Yeah," Dean confirmed hurriedly, his eyes racing back to the ground passing beneath their feet. "Just got lost in thought, I guess."

Cade nodded a little, and Dean stepped ahead to catch up with the others before he could press the issue.

He really needed to get his head screwed on straight.

What Caleb didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

Please let me know what you think! Love ya.

- Line