Summary: 1-shot set after 15x19 Inherit the Earth. Dean's POV as he muses about finally being free of others pulling their strings and how it might affect him and Sam now. (Just brother bonding and some fluff)

Tags: 15x19 Inherit the Earth

Spoilers: Possibly some since this happens after the episode and will have some mention of things that happened in it.

Warnings: None really as it's mainly just Dean musing with some brotherly schmoop.

Just Us

"We're finally free to be just us."

It's been so long that I can't even remember when it was just me and Sammy. When it's just been us and we've been free to just drive and see where life takes us.

Of course I guess knowing that our lives were always being controlled by Chuck, maybe it's been never but now with Chuck out as God and Jack saying he won't do things that way, Sam and I can find out what being free really means.

There have been moments when I wonder if leaving Chuck alive was smart but I'm trusting Jack to know that he was fully depowered. I meant what I said to him. I'm not a killer despite what so many tried to make me into and to be honest, it's probably more painful for him to be forced to be a normal human.

I have called around to a few distant contacts just to get a feel of things in a world post-Chuck. There seems to still be the everyday run-of-the-mill monsters out there but if it all worked out like Jack said it would, like I silently hope it does then Sam and I won't have to be battling world ending crap every day anymore.

It's been weird this past week that we've been on the road. I'd nearly forgotten what it felt like to just be in my car with my pain in the ass little brother and just drive on the open road with the windows down and the Impala's radio blasting classic rock.

Back roads, open highways, cheap motels… I never thought I'd miss those things but after the first day of leaving the bunker, the first time Sam actually laughed his real, full laugh and I realized I was laughing along with him I understood how much I had.

There has been so much pain, so much crap that's come between us these last few years. We've both been to Hell literally and figuratively, we've both died, and we've both been played by people we thought we could trust.

I don't think either of us really know what we're going to do when driving and just taking time to see things, go to places that we never could before gets old and I really don't care. All I care about is we're free and with every day that passes I see a little bit more weight lift from Sam's eyes when he wakes up either next to me in the Impala or in some ratty motel room with the worst wallpaper and he understands this is real. We are finally free to just be Sam and Dean Winchester, whatever that means or wherever that takes us.

"Are you bored yet?"

Glancing over to where Sam sat beside me on the hood of the Impala near park that Sam swears there is a geyser or something where we'd decided to pull over and eat the diner food we'd grabbed in the town, I wondered when he'd finally get around to asking me that since if there's one thing I can still do, it's read Sammy like a book. I knew he was starting to get concerned I might be getting bored since for the last 15 years, there had only been one time I had gone this long without hunting and that's one time I don't even think about now.

Deciding to take my time in answering by taking a bite of burger, I do consider his question before putting the burger aside to reach over to give his neck a light squeeze like I had when he'd been kids growing up and Sam needed support or some type of connection from me.

"I've got my car, my music, and my little brother sitting beside me with no one gunning for us, trying to eat us, or manipulate us. I don't have to worry about angels or demons knocking on the door. So no, Sammy, I'm not bored. Are you?" I ask even as I feel him relax again, feeling his shoulder bump against mine in a way that we hadn't in years.

"No. I mean, I know that sometime when we're both ready and a case pops up that we'll hunt again. That's just who we are regardless of who's writing our story." Sam took our trash over to a can to toss it and I see him turning to catch the sun just starting to set behind the trees. "Hunting things. Saving lives."

"The family business." I finish the quote with a smirk but understood his meaning.

Despite being free of Chuck or anyone's manipulations, being able to make a change, to even be free of the life we were forced into I honestly don't think either of us right now could go to 9-to-5, go to work, come home. I did that for a year and nearly ate my gun. But I'll go where Sam wants to and we can see where this freedom takes us.

Sliding off the hood, I wait until Sam's close enough to pull the keys out of my pocket to give them a toss. I see his eyes follow them before moving to mine with a brightness there I hadn't seen in years. It was when I dropped those keys into his hand that I got what I'd been waiting to see, the full dimpled smile that still reminded me of when both of us were younger and hunting Wendigos had been the worst thing on our list of monsters.

"You're driving the next two hundred miles… bitch." I tell him, letting my hand rest on his shoulder a moment as I pass him to go to the passenger side when I hear his laugh.

"Fine, but then I get to pick the music for the next two hundred miles… jerk."

Okay, fine. I set myself up for that one but I've missed the times when we used to bicker about music or his driving so I make some comment just to get Sam to laugh again as he turns the key and the Impala roars to life and soon the sounds of one of my old cassette tapes comes on and I look over in surprise to see Sam watching me with a smile.

"We write our own story now," he shrugged, running his fingers through his hair that once again I start to notice is falling into his eyes like it had once. "Maybe I don't hate all your music. Where we going?" he asked curiously.

"Your choice, little brother." I tell him as the Impala is given an expert turn in the parking lot to put up back onto blacktop.

"Grand Canyon it is then."

It might be odd to have this freedom, to not worry like I had grown up doing but for right this second so long as Sam's happy and safe, I'll take it and we'll keep carrying on.

The End