Happy New Year guys! It's 2018!~~ ^^
Note: This version does refers to Side story 1. It was right after the younger Sam and Dean fought in the motel apartment in Side story 1 when they got time-travelled into the bunker.
Version 3
14yo Sam & 18yo Dean
"What the…" Dean exclaimed as 2 beings appeared in the bunker out of nowhere.
"What is that…?" "Where are we…? Who are you?" The two "intruders" blabbered in shock and confusion.
Sam and Dean stared at them with wide eyes and dropped jaws as they recognise those two teenagers.
"What are you and what do want?" The older of the two demanded, as both of them back into a defensive stance against the wall. He felt around his pockets but did not seem to find what he wanted.
"Whoa, it's ok, we're not the bad guys," Dean said as he stood up from his seat with his palms up. Apparently, it was a wrong move as he looks even more threatening now, towering over both teenagers.
The older one jumps forward, fist swinging, but Dean avoided it with lightning speed, catching the attacking fist and twisting it to his back. Undeterred, the teen wields his other fist but it got caught like the first and before he knows it, he is pressed, face down onto the table, with both his hands locked securely behind his back.
"Dean!" A panicked voice shouted from behind, and the younger, and much shorter teen started towards Dean. However, Sam intercepts him before he reaches them.
"Sam! No! Urg…!" Dean yelled and struggled against his captor but he is simply too strong, locking him securely in place. "Don't touch him, you son of a bitch!" He cried in heightened frustration as he watches the giant man overpowers his little brother, holding Sam from behind by clinging both his skinny arms around his long, muscular ones. Like Dean, Sam struggles uselessly against the unbreakable hold.
Dean trashes wildly against Dean, using all his might to break free, oblivious to the increased pain in his locked wrists.
"Dude, you're gonna break your wrists," Dean warned.
"Let him go!" Dean ignored the warning as he growled at Sam.
"Ok, ok! Calm down…" Sam said appeasingly as he lets go of the younger Sam while Dean releases his younger self too.
The younger brothers immediately return to each other's' side as they retreat into a corner, back to back as they face their much stronger opponents as a united front.
"You alright?" Dean asked while keeping his eyes fixed upon the threats, especially Sam, who he is glaring daggers at for daring to lay his hands on his kid brother.
"Fine. You?" Sam asked in return.
"Awesome," Dean replied while rotating his wrists gingerly. They are aching a little but fortunately, unbroken.
"Dean, they're good," Sam said in a low, cautious voice.
"Well, thank you, captain obvious," Dean replied back.
"Guys, listen… We don't want to hurt you. You need to calm down. Let's talk about this," Sam said sincerely.
"Huh. Then why kidnap us here? For tea parties?" Dean said sarcastically. "What are you?" he raised his voice.
"What… We're people, alright, not monsters," Dean told him.
"Not monsters… So you guys are… hunters?" Sam wondered.
"Well… yes, we are," Sam confirmed.
"How.. Why bring us here?" Dean asked again.
"Actually, you just er, fell out of thin air," Dean replied.
"But I think we have an idea what made that happen," Sam look at Dean and then at the hourglass.
"Oh crap… Why can't it just be some stupid old timer like it should be," Dean groaned.
"What are you talking about?" Dean asked, confused.
"It's…a long story," Sam sighed.
"Whatever. We're going. C'mon, Sam," Dean said as he takes his strides towards the stairs, pulling Sam along with him.
"Whoa hey, wait there, cowboy," Dean stood in his way.
"Get out of my way," Dean glared at him warningly, hands coming up in front of him, prepared for attack or defence.
"You can't go," Dean said.
"Why not?" Dean challenged.
"Because this is not the world that you know! You won't be able to return to… wherever you were by walking out that door," Dean told them.
"What?!" Dean had not understood a single word he just said.
"It's hard to believe, but er, we are…"
"D… Hey! Can I, er, talk to you for a sec?" Sam cuts across Dean and looked at him meaningfully.
"Sure," Dean understood and then he turned to the boys. "We're underground and that is the only exit," he pointed to the door upstairs. "You'll have to get past us to reach it, which you won't. So stay here, for like.. five minutes," Dean told them.
The two adult brothers walked to the above platform, still in sight of the two at the bottom, and a whispered conversation ensued.
Dean: "What the hell?!"
Sam: "That hourglass. It must be some kind of enchanted object."
Dean: "Cursed object more like…"
Sam: "Yea, but Dean, I don't think we should tell them about… us. That we are them. It may, you know, change the past, which will cause distortions in their future - our present…"
Dean: "Ok… ok, I get it. But then what now?"
Sam: "*sighs* I'll call Cas, see if he knows anything."
Dean: "Ok. I'll, er, try to settle those two."
Sam left behind to make the call while Dean went back down to find their two counterparts having their own little meeting. He can't hear what they are saying but there seems to be a disagreement. They instantly stop talking as Dean approaches.
"Everything alright?" Dean asked.
"None of your business," Dean replied rudely.
"Ok… Anyway, we're finding a way to send you back. So, for now, just sit back and make yourselves at home," Dean told them,
"Why don't you just let us out and we'll send ourselves back, what you say?" Dean made a counteroffer.
"Sorry kid, can't do that," Dean replied.
"Why not? You said you want to get us back, didn't you?" Sam chirped in.
"Yea, I did. Look, I don't want you here any more than you do…"
"Then let us go!" Dean exclaimed exasperatedly.
"I can't do that," Dean said.
"Why?" Sam demanded.
"Because… Just trust me on this, ok," Dean sighed heavily as he tried to sustain his fast-depleting patience at dealing with those two.
"Trust you, ha," Dean let out a humourless laugh. "I know why you catch us here, you freaks. You got a beef with our dad, isn't it? You're trying to get him here by using us as bait!" Dean assumed.
"What?! No! No, seriously," Dean assured them as Sam came up from behind, having finished his call.
"Cas'll be reaching in an hour or two," he whispered to Dean.
"I'll stay, let him go," Dean said.
"Dean, no!" Sam objected at once but was hushed by a deadly glare from his brother.
"What are they talking…?" Sam asked, confused.
"They thought we're using them as bait for da.. for their dad," Dean updated Sam on their latest theory with a roll of his eyes.
"What?!" Sam exhibited the same reaction as Dean when he first heard of this.
"Let him go, alright? He's just a kid," Dean said again as he slowly moves closer to the stairs with every side-step he takes and with Sam half a step behind him.
"I told you, that's not what's happening over here, we're not using you as bait," Dean explained again.
Then, out of a sudden, Dean topples two library chairs in between them and the other two.
"Run!" He gave Sam a quick push towards the stairs as he lowered his stance in preparation to keep the two at bay. But Sam didn't run.
"No!" He said firmly.
"I said go!" Dean exclaimed in panicked frustration.
"Ya, and I said no!" Sam retorted stubbornly, feet planted steadily on the floor.
The current version of Sam and Dean were about to take them down again but seeing as how Sam is determined not to run, they changed course and block the exit instead.
"Great… Perfect!" Dean straightened up and throws his hands in the air in annoyance at the roadblock which ruined his Plan B. "I thought we had a plan, man! What's wrong with you?!" He raged at Sam.
"No, you had a plan! I said I'm not leaving you behind," Sam countered.
So this was what they were secretly arguing about, Dean thought.
"Right, cause we should just cuddle up and die together, is that so?" Dean countered back.
"Guys, stop, nobody's dying around here, alright!" Dean said in a definite way. "And your dad's not involved in this either. You guys have to just sit around for a couple hours and you'll get back to where you came from, I promise," Dean repeated, noticing the disbelieving snort coming from young Dean. "I don't want to do it, but if you run, I'll tie you down and I know my knots, believe me," he threatened mildly, looking straight at his younger self as he said so, and seeing a pair of defiant eyes glaring back.
Then, he drags a chair and the carved-out book and sits right in front of the only staircase to the exit, flipping through the book in an attempt to look for a counter-spell.
There was an awkward silence following Dean's speech, which was then broken by Sam.
"Err, you guys can just sit, and chill, and nobody will get hurt. It's confusing, I know. I'm sorry, but we have our reason we can't explain everything to you," Sam told them evenly.
"Reason like you guys are actual psychopaths?" Dean scoffed and Sam considers him with an amused smile.
"Hey, are all these books yours?" Came young Sam's voice from beside the shelves.
"Hey.. no, you can't read them!" Sam started towards young Sam who was looking at the book titles with great interest.
"You stay away from him," Dean growled as he stationed himself between Sam and Sam.
"Ok! Ok, easy… I wasn't gonna hurt him," Sam took a step back just as Sam steps away from the shelves. Sam knew better than to make a further move towards the kid when Dean has got those looks in his eyes. Even though he can definitely take down this Dean, no problem, it will be a pointless and unnecessary fight, so he's avoiding it if possible.
"Where did you get all these books? They're all records of supernatural stuff, right?" Sam peered around Dean as he asked with clear enthusiasm in his voice.
"Hey, bro, can you lay off that nerdiness for like 5 seconds? We're being held captives right now if you haven't noticed," Dean said to Sam.
"I'm just asking," Sam shrugged off-handedly. "Hey! Let go!..." Sam then hollered as Dean yanked him away from Sam and sat them down at a further table.
"Sit, and don't touch anything," Dean told him.
"Stop dragging me around, Dean!" Sam hissed irritably as he shakes off Dean's hand and plopped down on a chair next to him.
Both Sam and Dean look upon the familiar scene with amusement. Sam then found himself a time-travel related book and sat down at the other table as he flips through its pages.
"This is like some crazy collection of a hunter's library, isn't it, Dean? Even Uncle Bobby doesn't have this many books at his place," Sam said, and it is easy to hear the amazement in his voice, like he's simply itching to lay his hands on these books.
"Yea, but Mr Bigfoot over there says no touching so stop drooling over dusty covers, geek brother," Dean told him. Sam pouted unhappily as he continues looking around the stacks of incredible book collections sitting in their midst.
Sam raised his eyebrows at Dean, who did not know this himself, but he'd just managed to name-call him twice in one sentence. And at the other end of the room, Dean is smirking quietly as he silently approved of his younger self's attitude.
"And I'm not done with you. Next time I say run, you run, you hear me?" Dean said to him seriously.
"And I'm telling you, no. We either both get out of here or we stay and fight – together," Sam said to him in equal seriousness.
"Those guys are friggin' kungfu warriors, you want to go at them head on?! I'm not telling you to run and never come back, I'm saying go and get help. Call dad, and come back with a plan," Dean reasoned.
"What if they kill you?" Sam challenged.
"If they're looking for bait, a dead one won't do them much good!" Dean told him.
Meanwhile, Dean had come over to the library to look for more books.
"Fine, next time I'll stay and you go and get help," Sam told him.
"No," Dean shot him down immediately.
"Why not?" Sam retorted.
"Cause… Cause you're a midget, that's why," Dean blabbered.
"What?!" Sam exclaimed exasperatedly.
"What, you think you can hold them off? They'll just walk over you and get to me before I reach the first step on the stairs! So, I should stay. It's call being strategic, genius," Dean said.
"It's not. It's stupid and it won't work," Sam concluded.
"Actually, kid, it might work. Not over here of course, but maybe in another scenario. You run fast enough and he might just hold them off long enough for you to escape, and get help. When the opponent's too strong, you've got to do the Plan B and call for back-up," Dean told Sam.
"See, even the bad guy says so!" Dean said and Dean rolled his eyes while Sam pouted unhappily, but couldn't come up with a convincing enough argument just yet.
However, Sam, like Sam, didn't agree with the Deans.
"That's a crap plan. They should have laid low and figure out what the bad guys really want before making a move. What if they weren't looking for a bait, like what they'd wrongly assumed over here? A wrong move may just set those monsters off and kill the one that's left behind," Sam argued.
"What he said," Sam smirked at Dean, pointing at the older him.
"Whatever, smartass," Dean quipped at the adult Sam and went to sit down beside him at the same table. Both of them are sitting in the way to the exit, which makes it impossible for the teens to escape.
Sam still has a triumphant grin on his face, thus earning himself a kick on the leg from under the table.
"Ow!" He complained and tried to get back at Dean but failed as Dean had quickly moved out of his leg-range.
"So, you guys are really not using us as bait? You're just some usual pschos that like to kidnap people for fun?" Dean sneered.
Although it is sometimes hard to differentiate who's the bad guy and who's not, both Sam and Dean could tell that the two trained fighters that are holding them there are not the malicious type, despite all the secrecy and confinement. Even so, they aren't letting their guard down as they can't be 100% sure.
"No. Really. We'll get you out of here as soon as we can," Sam told him.
"But you can't tell us why," Sam said.
"Sorry," Sam replied.
"Hey. Do I know you?" Dean suddenly asked as he fixes his eyes upon Dean. Now that things have calmed down a little, he couldn't help but see the resemblance between them.
Sam and Dean exchanged a brief look.
"Not yet," was Dean's carefully careless reply. And he wasn't exactly lying.
Both the younger brothers began to zoom in onto Dean, eyes roaming over the somewhat familiar features of the supposed stranger.
"Never seen handsome before? Stop starring," Dean began to feel self-conscious at their scrutiny.
"Dean, were you adopted?" Sam blurted out.
"Dude!" Dean exclaimed in outrage.
"No, really, you look just like him, it's kind of creepy…" Sam spoke the truth. "Mister, what's your name," he asked Dean.
"Thomas," Dean replied, swiftly and naturally.
Sam: "Last name?"
Dean: "Smith."
Dean: "Thomas Smith?"
Dean: "That's me."
However, the two youngsters continue to be doubtful, and rightly so.
"Are you a shapeshifter?" Sam asked all of a sudden - the latest theory.
"Shapeshifters don't age their victims, Sammy," Dean replied and the young ones look even more suspicious now. Sam had to literally force himself not to kick Dean under the table. That nickname that he just used, along with that tone, was so "Dean", he might as well admit already that yes - he is Dean Winchester.
"He even sounds like you… Dean, does dad have a brother?" Sam asked.
"You know as well as I, his old man bailed on him when he was a kid. So, who knows?" Dean shrugged his ignorance.
"So… he could be our uncle?" Sam wondered. "Mr Smith, who's your biological father?"
"Ok! That's it! I am not your uncle, or father, or some long-lost relative of either of you. Some people just look alike, alright!" Dean is getting jumpy and annoyed from all their wild guesses and continued probing. "Now shut up so I can read this stupid book," Dean said, and he shifts his chair to an angle such that they could only see a small side view of his face.
The room fell silent again – for 2 minutes.
"When do you think dad'll be back?" Sam asked Dean.
"He said tonight, didn't he," Dean replied, sparing a glance at his watch. "My watch's dead," he gave it a little shake, but the hands wouldn't budge.
"Mine's too," Sam looked down at his own watch. "It's stuck at 3.04."
"3.04? Same here," Dean raises his hand to show Sam his watch.
"That was around the time we got here, right?" Sam said.
"I guess… Hey, Sasquatch, what's the time now?" Dean asked Sam.
"3.47," Sam told him after a glance at his watch.
"We've been here for 40 minutes," Sam muttered to themselves.
"Where are we, exactly?" Dean directed his question at Sam again, who seemed hesitant to tell him.
"Oh, come on! You can't even tell us where we are?!" Dean complained.
It wasn't so much a matter of where, but when…
"We're still on earth, right?" Sam asked in a half-serious kind of way.
"Yes, you're still on the continent of USA," Sam could tell him that much at least.
"Which state?" Dean asked.
"I can't tell you, stop asking," Sam replied shortly and he groaned again in frustration, slumping against his chair.
Both Sam and Dean are obviously bored by the lack of activity as they sit in their chairs, tapping their feet on the bunker's floor, unable to even read a book even though there are at least a few thousands all around them. So, they end up making small talks again.
"Hey, Dean, if we make it back in time, I'm going for that soccer match," Sam told him, not knowing just how accurate his statement was, if taken the right way.
"You mean if we ever make it back at all," Dean corrected him.
"Does that mean you'll let me go? You won't tell dad?" Sam sat up straighter, with his eyes lighting up with hope.
"No! That's not what I said! If we do make it back, you better hope you have enough time to practice on those guns before dad comes home or your ass will be his soccer ball," Dean scoffed while Sam kicks the leg of his chair since he couldn't reach his actual leg.
"How about I'll run all your errands for you for the next whole week if you let me go?" Sam tried to bribe after a moment of consideration.
"I'm sorry, did I hear that right? Sam Winchester just willingly signed up to be my bitch?" Dean sneered.
"Is that a yes?" Sam ignored his gibe and asked.
"No," Dean turned it down right away.
"… Two weeks?" Sam up the stakes.
"Nope," Dean repeated.
"Ok, a month," Sam doubled the prize and Sam presses his lips into a tight line, not liking the sound of it at all. That is definitely something that he will advise against, knowing how Dean will take full advantage of that pact.
"Tempting, but no," Dean replied and Sam is somewhat relieved to hear that.
"Come on! You get to boss me around for a whole month, it's a good deal!" Sam whined in persuasion. But Dean just shook his head unwaveringly.
"Fine," Sam suddenly had a change in his tone as he tries a different tactic. "What about you let me go or I'll tell dad you stole all his beers when you went to Katie's place that night." Dean's eyes flashed towards his brother.
"Oh yea? That's how you want to roll? You think dad will want to know who spilt salt all over his bag and jammed his guns with all those salt chunks?" Dean threatened back.
"The salt bag split, it's not my fault!" Sam exclaimed.
"Salt bags don't split on their own, do they?" Dean said. Sam glared at his brother for an angry moment and then turns his back towards him with his arms crossed, settling over his stomach. The air between them seems to turn a little chilly from the fight, and the accompanying silence.
On the adjacent table, the two adult brothers listened to their younger selves' squabbling with a mixture of amusement and slight awkwardness – but mostly amusement. They also tried to recall the very incident that the young them were going on about, but so far came up empty. It seems they'll need more information to remember the exact circumstance.
"It's just a stupid soccer match, 's not like it's the end of the world…" Dean muttered under his breath.
"I promised I would go," Sam said sulkily, still facing the other way, which, funny enough, is where the other two are sitting and Dean can get a full view of Sam's salty look with just a slight tilt of his head.
"You can go for the next one," Dean said placatingly.
"I already missed the last two and I gave them my word that I'll be there for this one. It's like the most important match this season!" Sam turns back around and is now giving Dean this pitiful puppy-dog look that Dean is always weak against. Now, it is Dean's turn to cross his arms as he struggles to stand his ground.
"Don't look at me like that. You heard when I promise dad I'll watch you practice…"
"Oh, so now your promises count and mine don't?"
"No! I didn't say that! Sammy…" And Sam turned his back to Dean again. "Look, we don't even know if we can get back at all, it's a little early to get all mopey, i'nnit?" Dean said in a soft yet reasonable voice, reminding him of the main issue at hand.
Sam heaves a sigh and lay back on his chair, and from his expression, Dean can see he is letting it go - for now. The kid may be stubborn but he isn't unreasonable. The tension between them resides noticeably.
"I'm sorry…" Sam mumbled as he thought of something.
"What's that?" Dean didn't catch his rambled apology.
"I said I'm sorry – for what I said before.. in the apartment.. right before we got here…" Sam stared down at his hands as he said that more audibly, though, it was still soft enough that the Sam and Dean from the next table had to strain their ears if they wanted to hear him. And they did.
"Oh," Dean realised what Sam was saying and he shifted in his seat, clearly uncomfortable with this new subject. And then, he thought of something too. "Sam?"
"Hm?" Sam replied, while Sam almost raised his head in response but caught himself at the last second. Dean noticed and he bites his cheeks to stifle a smile.
"What you said before… Don't say it to dad," Dean requested, sounding unusually serious. Sam glances up at him and their eyes meet for a second.
"I won't," Sam said as he looked away, seeming rather abashed. He had learnt, since a long time ago, that "mum" is a taboo topic in the family.
"Ok," Dean said, in a tone that suggested the end of this particular conversation.
On the other table, Sam and Dean both had a muddled look on their faces.
[What are they talking about?] Dean mouthed at Sam when he catches his eyes, but Sam lifted his shoulders and shakes his head to show his cluelessness. It is frustrating how their younger selves are talking in a way that only they could understand, and they couldn't even ask them about it since there's no way they would be telling them. Just when they've roughly figured out the soccer match case, the two throw in another thing and this time, they were even more vague about it than before. Very much distracted from research, they each take their respective trips down memory lane in their own heads, hoping to match whatever the boys have just said to their far-away teen memories.
"Just how long are we supposed to sit here?" Dean asked the two with annoyance.
"As long as I say so," Dean replied, a bit of his own annoyance seeping through, and Dean was just giving him the death glare when the door sounded and Castiel walks in.
All four Sams and Deans rise from their seats as they go into the war room to receive the angel.
"Cas, thanks for coming," Sam said gratefully.
"Hey, Cas, we er, got a problem," Dean nodded towards the two teens, standing a little distance away.
"They are.. you. From 1998," Cas said after a scrutinising stare at the two young ones.
"We are who?" Dean steps forward and asked.
"Er…Cas, I thought we are not supposed to tell them that? Won't it, you know…alter the past and mess up the future…?" Sam asked in a lowered voice.
"No. As space-time contorts, the journey halts," Cas recited the first half of the spell. "If I am able to find the counter-spell, they will be sent back to the exact space-time where they came from. They won't remember ever coming here. Only we would," Castiel explained.
Sam and Dean sigh in relief at this new piece of information while Sam and Dean look absolutely bewildered.
"Wait… Are you saying that we.. they.. are us?... In the future?" Sam stammered what he had inferred from their exchanges.
"Yes," Cas affirmed.
"No way…" Dean uttered in disbelief.
"Welcome to the future," Dean said to them both.
The two young brothers seem to be struggling a bit to comprehend the situation while Castiel suggested asking Liutprand, the dead monk, for the counterspell.
"How are you going to ask him if he's dead? Are we summoning his ghost?" Sam asked tentatively.
"No, I believe he is in heaven," Cas replied.
"Then how…"
"I'm an angel, Sam. I still have some connections that I can utilise…"
I'm sorry, you're a what?" Dean cut across him and asked.
"An angel," Cas repeated.
"Like an angel from heaven? Angels are real?" Sam said with awe.
"No, there's no such thing," Dean scorned as he eyes Cas with wariness and distrust.
"That's what you said - the first time we met," Cas remembered and Dean and Sam smiled reminiscently at that initial phase of their acquaintancy.
Then, Cas promised to be back before the sand falls and hurried off to recover the spell.
The heavy metal door clangs shut and the bunker is left with the two pairs of brothers once more.
"Well… Cat's out the bag! Ha…" Dean rubbed his hands awkwardly as they stared at each other in stunned stillness.
"I'm sorry we couldn't tell you earlier because of… you know, we're worried that…" Sam began.
"That there will be a butterfly effect if we know about our future," Sam finishes his sentence.
"Exactly," Sam agreed.
"So you are us, in our.. thirties? You are me and he is Dean? And we are friends with an angel?" Sam asked.
"Yes. It's kind of.. a lot to take in, I know…" Sam said empathetically.
"Sam, I want to talk to you," Dean said out of the blue and he pulls him into the library, a distance away from their future selves.
"You can't seriously believe that," Dean confronted Sam.
"Why not? It all makes sense…"
"Makes sense?! I mean… time travel? Angels? Even for us, this is… this is insane! Those guys are friggin nutjobs!"
"Dean, relax! They are us. It was that hourglass that brought us here and they're trying to get us back…"
"With the help of an "angel"? A dude in a trench coat? Angels aren't real, Sam."
"Ghosts are real. And werewolves and demons. Why can't angels be real too?"
"Oh they can. They're as real as those Easter bunnies when you were twelve," Dean taunted.
"I was eleven!" Sam said in chagrin. "You just don't want to believe that I'll be taller than you in the future!" Sam retorted.
"What?!" Dean screeched.
"Hey guys, can it. You're making my head hurt," Dean said as the two got louder and louder.
"You don't have to argue. I've got evidence to prove we're us," Sam told them.
He then proceeds to bring out several items like dad's diary, a current newspaper, modern technologies like smartphones and laptops… After going through all of those, Dean was finally forced to accept the crazy truth.
The four of them sit around the table, Sam and Dean on one side while Sam and Dean on the other.
"Hey… uh, me, where'd you learn all those moves?" Dean asked with a kind of reverence.
"Practice. You be on the job long enough, you get all kinds of practice, with all kinds of things," Dean replied.
"Yea, I guess. What have we been hunting?" Dean asked, and the older pair gave a very long list.
"Wow… That's.. a lot of practice," Dean low whistled. "And we hunted all those? On our own? What about dad? He just let us loose like that?" He noticed that John hadn't been in the scene when they described all those hunting experiences.
Sam and Dean stiffen a little at the mention of their deceased father.
"Kid, we're in our thirties. We can do a job without parental supervision," Dean told him, acting casual.
"Ah… of course. Does dad still hunt then? Does he live here too? Where is this place anyway?" Dean lets out a string of questions.
"Dad's out of town, visiting old friend. And this place, it's the Men of Letter's bunker…" Sam glossed over his enquiry about dad and went into details about the bunker's history, and their legacy. Dean understands that Sam, like him, wanted to protect each other's younger self. Even though they won't remember any of this, they still don't want them to prematurely feel the pain of having lost their father, albeit it being temporary.
"Whoaa... Sammy, you hear that? We're legacies! All these nerd collections of paranormal encyclopaedia sure come in useful when hunting, huh," Dean said in amazement.
"Mhm…" Sam agreed, but it is clear that he has something on his mind. "So.. so we've just been hunting? I mean, that's what we're doing our whole lives? Being hunters?" He asked, with a less-than-happy tone.
"Yea, pretty much," Sam replied, recognising the disappointment on Sam's face as he heard the confirmation.
"Oh. And I thought… Mm…" Sam trailed off into nothingness.
"You thought what?" Dean asked.
"Nothing," Sam lied unconvincingly, shoulders slumping dismally and eyes cast down on his hands.
"Just spit it out," Dean pressed on, concerned and curious at the same time.
"I said nothing!" Sam's voice went higher as he said defensively.
"Fine. You. What was he trying to say?" Dean turned to the bigger Sam instead.
Sam snaps his eyes up at once, a mixture of emotions across his face as he makes eye contact with Sam. But one thing is clear – he doesn't want to talk about this, not now.
"Nothing," Sam replied lightly and Dean narrowed his eyes.
"Figures… Hey, you know what they're on about?" Dean asked the older him and Sam turns his eyes upon Dean. Does he know? Although the 18-year-old Dean is aware of Sam's attitude towards the hunting life, he doesn't yet know the full extent of it- that Sam wants an out, even considering leaving his only two family members to live his own life.
"… Nothing," Dean said daintily and Sam felt a sense of relief, and even more questions because Dean obviously does know something.
"Dude, I thought we are on the same team…" Dean said in soft disappointment and Sam and Dean smiled in response, even Sam lifted one end of his lips at Dean's exasperation.
"By the way, what were you guys talking about? The bit about not telling dad?" Dean finally got this off his mind, and the young brothers immediately look uncomfortable for being asked about this.
"Nothing," Dean emphasized in retaliation.
"Come on! I know we said this before, just give us a hint," Dean prompted but both teens are still reluctant to tell. "That bad huh," Dean inferred. "You'd have thought we'll remember something this serious," he said to Sam, who humph in agreement.
"I do remember that soccer match though. I did go for it in the end," Sam revealed.
"You did?" Sam instantly sat up on his seat, leaning forward across the table with hopeful elation.
"Yeah. I think I sneaked out for it," Sam smiled at the memory.
"Ow! What is that for!" Sam cried in protest as a hand flew up and smacked the back of his head.
"For sneaking out – on my watch," Dean nodded at Sam while raising his eyebrows at Sam.
"I didn't do anything!" Sam complained indignantly.
"Yet. But you will," Dean said with certainty. Sam glared at Dean as he rubs his head with a palm, unable to find a retaliation.
"How did you do it?" Dean confronted the older Sam.
"I guess I just slipped out when you looked the other way," Sam replied vaguely.
"Oh, Sammy… Did you really think you could give me the slip without me knowing?" Dean asked rhetorically, lips twisted into a smug smile.
"What?" Sam, like the other two, had no idea what Dean is saying.
"I knew how badly you wanted to go, so I deliberately look the other way for you to sneak out," Dean revealed.
"You did?" Sam said in mild surprise, looking from Dean to Dean. "Thanks, Dean!" He beamed radiantly at his brother, who isn't as ready to accept the thanks.
"Wha… no, I didn't do that!"
"Yet. But you will." Sam returned Dean his very own words, but with glee and sincere gratitude. And it is Dean's turn to be stumped.
"So… 1 month of free slavery, yay for me," he came up in the end, steering away from the touchy-feely atmosphere in the air.
"No! You didn't accept the offer," Sam objected, that gratuitous attitude evaporated at once.
"I'm accepting it right now," Dean sneered.
"It's too late, I'm not offering it anymore," Sam said.
"It's ok, kid, you guys won't remember any of these when you get back, he won't even know that you offered it in the first place," Sam assured him.
"Oh yea, but he will. Never too late to repay the kindness, right?" Dean referred to the older Dean. Sam widened his eyes.
"No. Not happening," Sam said, scoffing away.
"That. Is an excellent idea. I could use a maid around here," Dean praised young Dean for his quick thinking and Dean winks at him in comradeship.
"I'm not doing it," Sam told Dean staunchly.
"Me neither," Sam added.
"You're going back on your words, little brother?" Dean teased.
"No, we never had a deal!" Sam insisted.
"Oh, hadn't we?" A devilish smile playing on Dean's lips, he pounces without warning, right onto his astounded little brother. "What about now? We have a deal yet?"
"Ah, ah… Ow! Let go! Let go of me!..." With one arm clinging around Sam's neck and the other hand fisting his head, Dean had him squealing and struggling against his chest.
"Dude, stop it," Sam finally came to his rescue when Dean still hasn't let go after several seconds.
Dean eyes the larger Sam across the table, considering him for a split moment, and then uncoils his arm from around the younger's neck. As the arm loosens, Sam counter-attacks by swinging a fist towards his head. However, Dean dodges the flying fist easily; catching it by the wrist; and then throws it back at its owner.
"Urg… You just wait... I'll get back at you when I'm bigger than you are…" Sam grumbled, sitting up straight as he rubs the sore spot on his head. Both Deans look at Sam with disdain.
"Hey. It doesn't matter if you grow into the Hulk, I'd still kick your ass. 'm I right?" Dean turned to Dean at the end, throwing his feet onto the table and laying back on his chair, leaning on only its two hind legs.
"Damn straight," Dean said without a doubt while Sam snorted at the side, shaking his head at Sam in reassurance.
After sitting around a while longer, squabbling away carelessly, Sam announced that he needed the bathroom and got up from his seat. As he passes the back of Dean's chair, a mischievous look flashes across his face.
"Whoa!" Dean gasped when his chair was suddenly yanked backwards, making his legs drop from the table onto the floor with a loud 'thud!'. When he spun around, half-rising from his chair, Sam has already run across the room and escape to the back of the bunker.
"Yea, you better run!" He shouted after him. Sam and Dean watch their younger selves with a reminiscing smile on their faces. It's been a while since they saw Sam acting so childish and silly, like a cute, immature little brother and Dean, as the annoying, older sibling that messes around with his kid brother.
"That little brat..." Dean then muttered under his breath as he settles into his seat.
"I heard that," Sam said and Dean fixes his gaze on the adult Sam instead.
"Good," he sparred. "Also, I've been meaning to ask… What's with the hair? You finally decide to come out as a girl now, Samantha?"
Dean barked a laugh at Dean's latest question while Sam glared from one Dean to another.
"Shut up. I'm getting a drink. You guys want anything?" He asked as he got up from his seat.
"Bacon and beer," Dean ordered.
"Make it double," Dean said.
"You're 18," Sam reminded him.
"And you're Ms Bigfoot. Go get them, sister," Dean retorted and Sam shakes his head in defeat before making his way to the kitchen.
Dean waits till he could no longer hear Sam's footsteps before leaning across the table towards Dean.
"You can really take him down right? That Bigfoot?" Dean asked in a low voice.
"You don't think I can?" Dean returned the question.
"No. I just… just wanna be sure…" he scratches his head nonchalantly, gaze flickering without destination.
"Come on, have some faith in yourself, kid!" Dean joked.
"Ya, I… Yea… Of course! Huh…" Dean leans back in his seat after that incoherent blabber, bringing a smile to Dean's face.
"Oh, and the thing that Sam said before; that can't be told to dad, what is it?" Dean asked again.
"Ah… that. Er… It's nothing, really… Sam was being stupid – as usual," Dean throws a glance towards the back of the bunker.
"So, what did he say, exactly?" Dean pressed on curiously.
"He doesn't want to hunt anymore, and that mum.. wouldn't want us to go the same way she did, something like that," Dean said quickly and reluctantly, as though rushing through the words would make it sound less bad.
"Huh. I see…" Dean understands now, why the two acted the way they did.
Sam saw Sam busying in the kitchen and he strolled in.
"Smells good," he commented, the sizzling sound of bacon filled the air in a mouth-watering way.
"Hey. Grab anything you want, there're chips in that cupboard. I think. If Dean hasn't wiped them out yet," Sam told him.
"Thanks. And, er, actually… can I ask you something?" Sam asked in a lowered voice as he walks to stand beside Sam.
"Sure," Sam agreed easily, somehow already knowing what Sam is about to say.
Sam confided in Sam about his desire in having a "normal life", and Sam assured him that he did not regret choosing the path of a hunter, and that he would understand eventually, because he did. (Refer to Chap 3: "I Don't Regret This, Sam" for the full conversation)
After the food and drinks, Sam and Dean brought their two young guests on a tour around the bunker, and it was almost like bringing little children to the zoo for the first time. They did not hold back at all in expressing their wonder and amazement for their future home. Both had loved their own, respective rooms and wowed at the fact that they have a gun range and a dungeon in the bunker. Of course, the biggest reaction came from Dean, at the garage, when it was revealed that John will eventually gift him the Impala. He was gushing over his future Baby so much that it took a combined effort to remove him from the car.
Castiel returned before the sand fall, as promised, and recited the counter-spell to which a bright white portal appeared in the middle of the room. Dean steps towards it determinedly before realising that Sam had trailed behind.
"You coming or what?" He said to the younger teen, who is looking at the light with apprehension in his eyes. "Get over or I'll hop in and leave your ass here, you hear me?"
Sam rolls his eyes at the empty threat and joins Dean in front of the portal.
"Hey, Sammy. Whatever happens, I always got your back," Dean said to Sam, noticing his nervousness. Sam looks up to meet Dean's firm, reassuring gaze.
"I know," Sam shares a knowing look with Sam, and then glances back at Dean, a genuine smile spreading across his face.
"Well, nice meeting you guys, cya!" Dean bids them farewell.
And with that, they step into the bright portal and disappeared in a heartbeat.
~ The End~
This is the longest version of this story yet~ I felt like I got impatient towards the back so the ending is kind of abrupt, opps ›‹ There are 3 more versions of this story in my mind, featuring an even younger Sam, Dean, and both. Though, it'll probably be a long time later before I start on those as there are a few other stories that I'm currently writing~
Anw, hope everyone is enjoying the holiday and have a great year ahead! ^^