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It was late by the time they pulled into Bobby's salvage yard. Dean parked, and then got out and went to the backseat. Alec was asleep in the little car seat they'd gotten for him; he was wiped out since he'd tried to stay awake for as long as he could. He'd sat quietly the whole trip, but his focus was trained on the outside world. But he was just a little kid now, and sleep won out a few hours after the sun went down.

"Hey kiddo," Dean whispered, unbuckling the straps that were holding Alec in. "We're at Bobby's." Alec didn't wake up, but Dean didn't expect him to. He picked him up though and carried him around the car. Sam met him on the other side carrying one of their duffle bags.

Sam knocked on Bobby's door and they waited for him to answer. Dean chuckled at the look that appeared on Bobby's face when he saw Alec. His mouth dropped open and his eyes widened seeing baby Alec in his arms.

"Told you," Sam said.

"How did this happen?" Bobby breathed out.

"We don't really know," Dean said. "But he's really Alec. He's got a barcode and he's got bright green eyes. There's no one else it could be."

"How old is he?" Bobby asked.

"We think two or three," Dean said. He'd thought three at first, but now he was leaning closer to two. He spoke pretty well for a two-year-old, but the clothes they bought for him were for two-year old's and the car seat was for a two-year-old. "Actually, I'm thinking more like two…"

"Well, come on in…" Bobby said, holding the door open for them.

Dean carried Alec inside and sat down on the sofa with him. He was exhausted, but he knew Bobby had a million questions for them. He didn't want to answer any questions right now, but they owed it to Bobby.

"So, you just found him like this?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah, we were searching some house and he was just lyin' there when we found him," Dean said. "He was a little boy when we found him, wearing Alec's clothes that were way too big for him, and a gash on the back of his head."

"He doesn't remember anything?' Bobby asked.

"He didn't know who I was," Dean said. Alec had been so scared when they'd found him and he didn't want to see Alec that scared ever again.

"He's cute," Bobby said after a moment. "Haven't seen a kid that small since Sam was little." Bobby adjusted his hat, and then said, "I guess he trusts ya ok…Looks like he does anyway."

"Yeah, he likes us," Dean said, running his hand over Alec's head.

"He thinks Dean's Dad and I'm Uncle Sammy," Sam said. "It only took him a minute to warm up to Dean."

His eyes started to drift shut as Sam and Bobby kept talking. Alec was so warm against him, making him even more sleepy. "Listen Bobby, I'm worn out," Dean said before Bobby could ask another question. "I'm gonna take Alec upstairs and go to bed."

"Alright kid," Bobby said with a small smile. "Hollar if you need somethin'."

Dean nodded and slowly walked up the stairs. He opened the first door on the left and went inside. He stretched out on the bed, moving Alec a little so they could both be more comfortable.

Dean frowned when someone poked his cheek. He was still sort of asleep, but someone poked his cheek again, and then again.

"Dean," Alec whispered, poking his cheek again.

Dean opened his eyes and pretended to bite at Alec's finger when he moved to poke him again. Alec giggled and tried to poke him again. Dean grabbed his little hand, but then tickled him instead. Alec laughed and tried to get away, but Dean held onto him. Dean blew a raspberry on Alec's tummy, and Alec burst out in more laughter. Dean finally let him go and asked, "You hungry?"

Alec nodded and wrapped his little arms around his neck. "And a bathroom break…"

"Alright kiddo," Dean said with a smile. He took Alec to the bathroom, but he looked confused when he came back out. He knelt down in front of Alec and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Where are we?" Alec asked, his voice small. He was looking away from him; he didn't like not knowing where he was.

"We're at a friend's house. His name is Bobby," Dean said, reaching out to grab Alec's hands. "He might seem a little grouchy, but he's not mean, ok?"

"Ok…"

"And I'm not going anywhere," Dean reassured. "You ready for some food?" Alec nodded and wrapped his arms around his neck so he could be picked up. Dean carried him downstairs and into the kitchen. He made some cereal for him for breakfast. He sat down with Alec on his lap and dipped out a spoonful for him. Alec looked at it in disgust though and shook his head no. "You don't like cereal?"

Alec shook his head no again and turned to hide his face against his chest. Dean kissed the top of his head before he stood up again and started searching for something else. He should've known Alec wouldn't want cereal for breakfast; Alec didn't even like cereal when he was older.

"What about…um…" Bobby didn't have very much food in his house. They were going to have to go shopping again. "Y'know, we're just gonna have to go out to eat again…" Dean said. "Let me wake Sammy up and we'll go."

He walked back upstairs and opened the door to Sam's room. Sam turned over when he opened the door and asked, "Wha's goin' on?"

"Bobby doesn't have any food and Alec's hungry," Dean said. "We're goin' out if you wanna come."

"Yeah…alright," Sam muttered. "Better tell Bobby too."

Dean nodded and walked to Bobby's room next. He knocked this time before he opened the door and Bobby grumbled, "Yeah?"

"Alec's hungry and you don't have any food," Dean said. "We're goin' out."

"Alright…" Bobby said, suddenly much softer. Alec was hiding against him, which was probably why he was softer this time.

"You wanna go with us?" Dean asked.

Bobby's gaze shifted to Alec and he nodded. Dean smiled; Bobby was such a softie. "Yeah…I'll go with ya."

Dean nodded and started for the car. "Alright kiddo, we're gonna get some food…" He buckled Alec into his car seat, but Sam and Bobby hadn't come out yet so he didn't move away from Alec. "You sure are cute…" Alec looked at him with his big green eyes, but he didn't say anything. "Alec, do you remember anything from before I showed up?" Dean asked.

Alec's eyes teared up and he barely nodded back.

A tear slipped free and streaked down his cheek. Dean gently wiped the tear away and soothed, "It's ok. You're not there anymore, and I'm going to protect you. I promise I will always protect you and love you."

"What does love mean?" Alec asked.

Dean smiled, "That one's a little complicated to explain…But I think it means when you'll do anything for someone because you really care about them, forever."

"Do you love Uncle Sammy?" Alec asked, still trying to understand.

"Yeah, me and Sammy are brothers and I would definitely do anything for him," Dean said.

"And you'll make sure the mean people won't get me?" Alec asked.

"Those mean people will never get near you again," Dean said.

"And you're sure Bobby's not mean?" Alec asked.

Dean chuckled, "Yeah kiddo, I'm sure Bobby's not mean."

"Hey guys, we ready to go?" Sam asked, suddenly opening the back door and sliding in next to Alec.

"Yeah, we're ready," Dean said. He rubbed Alec's head before he got into the driver's seat. Bobby got in on the other side and they were on their way. He drove into town and stopped at the little diner not far from a park.

He got Alec out of his car seat and carried him inside while Sam got them a table.

"Can we get pancakes again?" Alec whispered against his chest. He was hiding against him and he wasn't sure if it was because of Bobby or because he'd never been here before.

"Yeah, we can get pancakes again," Dean replied. "You wanna color?" Alec shook his head no, but he barely peeked over at Bobby before he hid again.

"He's a shy little thing, huh?" Bobby asked with a small smile.

"He might take a while to warm up to you," Dean said.

"It's alright," Bobby said. Alec looked over at him curiously, but immediately hid again when Bobby's gaze shifted to him. Bobby chuckled and adjusted his hat.

"What's that?" Alec asked him as quietly as he could so no one else would hear.

"What's what?" Dean asked back.

"That," Alec said.

"I don't know what you're talkin' about, kiddo," Dean said. "Point to it." Alec shook his head no so Dean guessed, "Is it something Bobby has?"

Alec nodded, "It's on his head…"

"Oh, that's a hat," Dean said.

"You wanna see it?" Bobby asked. Alec nodded again and Bobby took the hat off and passed it across the table. Dean picked it up and plopped it on Alec's head.

Alec giggled and said, "I can't see!"

"You can't see?" Dean asked back with a smile.

"No!"

Dean stood Alec up and he balanced on his legs, "How 'bout now? Did that help?"

"No!"

He barely lifted the hat, but then dropped it back down. "I don't know, kiddo, I think that's just how hats are supposed to be…"

"No! It's too big!" Alec said. He took off the hat and held it up. Dean ducked his head so Alec could put the hat on his head. Alec pulled it down over his eyes though and he tickled his tummy.

"Alright, give Bobby his hat back and tell him thank you," Dean said once Alec threw his arms around him to make him stop tickling.

Alec took the hat and handed it back to Bobby, and then he said shyly, "Thank you."

Bobby smiled and put the hat back on, "No problem kid."

Alec bounced up and down on his legs as they waited for their food. Dean moved his legs apart making Alec lose his balance, but he caught him and Alec squealed with laughter. He set Alec back on his legs where Alec bounced up and down again until he moved his legs apart. He didn't know why this was so fun, but Alec seemed to be having a great time.

"Dean, we should get him some toys when we get some food," Sam said as they played their little game.

"That's a good idea. Maybe we could go to the park too," Dean said, glancing over at the park across the street. "Get rid of some energy…"

"Bobby, you cool with that?" Sam asked.

Bobby chuckled, "Yeah, I'm just along for the ride."

Dean managed to get Alec to sit down again once their food got there and it was an easy routine to get him to eat his pancakes. Alec sat on his lap and just ate his food once he cut it up and drank his milk without question.

"Let's go to the park first," Dean said, picking Alec up again once they were done.

Sam nodded in agreement and they walked across the street to the park.

"What's this?" Alec asked.

"It's a park where you can play," Dean said. He set Alec down and fixed his shirt, but Alec immediately reached up for him again. "Alec, this is going to be fun. Don't you want to play?" Alec shook his head no and kept his arms up. Dean picked him up again and asked, "What if me and Uncle Sammy play too?"

"Ok…" Alec said against his neck.

Dean walked over to the big jungle gym and went to the slide. "I'm too big for the slide, kiddo, but I'm going to set you up here, and then you slide down and Uncle Sammy will catch you, ok?"

"Are you sure?" Alec asked.

"I'm sure. You're gonna love it," Dean said.

He sat Alec up at the top of the slide and held onto him as he glanced over at Sam. He nodded back that he was ready, so Dean let go of Alec. He gasped as he slid down, but then laughed when Sam caught him.

"Again!" Alec yelled.

"Again?" Sam asked.

"Again, Uncle Sammy!" Alec said.

Sam picked him up and set him at the top of the slide. He let go and ran to catch Alec at the bottom. Alec squealed with joy and told Sam to go again. Sam picked him up and tossed him up before he caught him again.

Sam gave him a look and nodded that he had everything under control. Dean smiled and slowly walked back over to Bobby.

"You wanna keep him like this, don't you?" Bobby asked knowingly.

Dean rubbed the back of his neck, and then said, "Think about it Bobby. He never got to be a kid…he never knew what it was like to be loved or to have fun…I just don't think it's such a bad thing to keep him like this."

"I can see why, Dean, but…I don't know…It seems wrong for some reason," Bobby said. "He doesn't get a say in this…"

"You wanna ask him if he wants to stay like this? Because you can if you want to," Dean said.

"Dean," Bobby said with a sigh.

"Bobby, look at him," Dean said, pointing over at Sam and Alec. Alec was sitting on Sam's shoulders now and telling him where to go. He was laughing and smiling; it was the happiest he had ever seen him. "He looks so happy…"

"I know he does," Bobby said. "But I also can see another reason why you wanna keep him like this…"

"Oh yeah? What's that?" Dean asked.

"You wanna be a dad," Bobby said. He started to shake his head and argue, but Bobby cut him off. "Don't even try it. It would be impossible not to notice. You're so good with him…I just never thought you'd wanna be a dad."

"I don't know…I never thought I would be a dad, but now…I don't know…now I want to raise Alec. I want to be his Dad," Dean said.

"What if I find a way to fix this?" Bobby asked.

"Bobby…" Dean practically begged. He wanted to keep Alec like this; he didn't want to have to make the choice though if there actually was one.

"It's a big if, Dean," Bobby instantly backpedaled. "I've never seen or heard of anything like this…"

"Daddy!" Alec suddenly yelled, running at him.

Dean picked him up and spun him around as soon as he got there. "Where'd you hear that word, huh?" Dean asked, settling Alec against his hip again. He'd only told Alec that he was his Dad; he'd never used the word Daddy before.

"Uncle Sammy told me that I should say that," Alec said. "Is that ok?"

"Yeah Alec, that's ok," Dean reassured.

"Why did you stop playing?" Alec asked, messing with his collar.

"Well, me and Bobby had some things to talk about," Dean said. "Do you wanna keep playing or do you wanna go to the store now?"

"What's at the store? Alec asked.

"We're gonna get some food and some toys," Dean said.

"Toys?" Alec asked.

"You'll see when we get there," Dean replied with a small smile.

"Can we go to the store?" Alec asked.

"Yeah kiddo, we can go to the store," Dean said.

He carried Alec to the car seat again and buckled him in. Alec was quiet again as they drove; he seemed to really like looking outside. Alec smiled at him when he got him out of the car seat and he smiled back. Alec seemed a little more relaxed now even if he really didn't like doing new things at first. He reached up to be carried and Dean instantly picked him up and carried him into the store.

"Toys first?" Dean asked Sam and Bobby.

"Yeah," Sam said. "We should get a cart…he could ride in the little seat if he wanted too…"

Dean chuckled and nodded. Alec would probably like it and it would be pretty cute. They got a cart, but Alec didn't really want to let go of him. "Alec, it's like riding in the car. It's not scary," Dean said. "And I'm going to push the cart so I'll be right next to you."

"Ok…" Alec finally replied.

He put Alec in the little seat and smiled when he swung his little legs and giggled. "See, that's not so bad, is it?" Dean asked. Alec shook his head no, so he pushed the cart towards the toys.

The only problem now was, he didn't know what to get Alec. He really wanted to buy Alec everything, but he knew they didn't have the money for that. They'd already spent a lot of money on buying him all his new clothes, but Alec deserved everything.

"So, what kind of toy do you want?" Dean asked, walking down the aisle of toys. Alec was looking at all the toys with amazement, but he shrugged his little shoulders, not sure what he wanted. But it didn't take long for him to find something. He didn't say anything, but his eyes landed on a toy and he didn't look away. Dean rubbed Alec's head and reached out to grab the soft little bear.

He handed the bear to Alec, who carefully held the bear and looked up at him with surprisingly shining eyes. His lip trembled slightly, and Dean quickly picked Alec up and held him close.

"It's ok Alec," Dean soothed. He didn't know why the bear made Alec so upset, but he didn't think he really wanted to know. He rubbed Alec's back to try to comfort him, but Alec hid against his chest. He had a death grip on the little bear and silent tears streaked down his face. "Alec, kiddo, you wanna tell me what's wrong?"

"Can I keep it?" Alec whispered.

"Yeah kiddo, you can keep it," Dean said. "How 'bout we pick up a few more toys, and then do some food shopping, huh? And you can hold onto your teddy the whole time, ok?"

"Ok," Alec said.

"Sam, can you push the cart?" Dean asked. He wanted to hold Alec still since his little boy was so sad. He hated thinking about what Manticore did to Alec, but his mind was running wild. Alec's reaction was way too strong for this to just be something he wanted. "Everything's ok kiddo," Dean whispered.

"'M sorry Daddy," Alec mumbled against him.

"It's ok baby," Dean replied.

"Dean, what other toys should we get him?" Sam asked.

"Grab some playdough and…I don't know…a coloring book or something?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, I think those will be fun, and we can afford it," Sam said.

"And a bucket of these," Bobby suddenly said, dropped a bucket of duplo legos into the cart.

"Bobby…we really can't afford everything," Sam admitted.

"I'm getting the lego things," Bobby grumbled. "And maybe a little toy car too…" Dean and Sam both looked over at him in surprise and he quickly defended himself, "Hey, if we're gonna do this, then we're gonna do it right. If you're his Dad, then I'm his Grandpa, and he's gonna be spoiled rotten if I have anything to say about it."

Dean chuckled and kissed the top of Alec's head. He'd be ok with spoiling Alec; he wanted to give Alec everything.

"Now we just need food," Sam said.

"I'll leave that up to you," Dean said. "Just get him some snacks and some juice too, ok?"

"Where are you going?" Sam asked.

"We're just going to walk around. We might go out front so he can ride in that little car thing they have," Dean said.

"Ok," Sam said.

"Oh, and get him some bubble bath stuff," Dean said. "And maybe a little boat or a ducky or something. I think he should have a bath tonight…and maybe he should have a blanket for nap time."

"Dean, we're on a budget, remember?" Sam asked.

"No we're not," Bobby cut in. "I'll get him everything, Sam can get the food, and Dean, you can keep him entertained."

Dean nodded and started walking around the store. He tried to get Alec to come out of his hiding spot, but he refused. That was ok, he liked walking around and he knew Alec liked it too.

"You wanna go ride in the little car out front?" Dean asked. Alec shook his head no and wiggled closer. "How about we look at the big TVs or something?"

"No…"

"I'm gonna put you down for a second, ok?" Dean asked.

"No!" Alec said in panic.

"Ok, ok," Dean reassured. "How about we just sit down for a while and wait for Uncle Sammy and Bobby to get done?"

"Ok," Alec said with a shaky breath.

Dean quickly found a bench and sat down, shifting Alec to sit in his lap. Alec held his teddy as tightly as he could. "Alec, I promise, the teddy is yours, ok?"

"They'll find out and take it away," Alec whispered.

"No they won't," Dean said. "I won't let them, ok?"

"I'll-I'll get in t-trouble," Alec said, his lip trembling. "It's bad and it hurts…"

"Alec, look at me," Dean said. He waited until Alec looked up at him before he said, "They won't ever get you again. I love you, ok? And I'm going to protect you and keep you safe and no one's going to get to hurt you again. That is your teddy and no one is going to take it away from you."

Alec nodded, but tears were running down his face. His eyes were closed and his breathing was harsh. Dean held him close and gently wiped away the tears. He knew Alec was thinking about Manticore and he wanted to make it better, but he didn't know how. Alec was just a little kid and he shouldn't have been put through all of this.

He held Alec and tried to comfort him as much as he could until he calmed down. He managed to relax a little and held onto his little bear. "Daddy?"

"Yeah baby?" Dean asked back.

"I love you," Alec whispered.

"I love you too Alec," Dean said.

"Hey, I've been looking for you guys everywhere," Sam said, suddenly walking up.

"We got tired and sat down for a minute," Dean said. He lifted Alec up and held him against his chest so he could hide if he wanted to. He did hide, and Sam gave him a worried look. He shook his head no and stood up instead.

"I think I got enough food…Do you think he wants anything else?" Sam asked.

"No, I think he just wants to go home," Dean said. "Any idea where Bobby is?"

"He's still grabbing some things," Sam said. "I think he's taking spoiling Alec very seriously."

"Good, he needs to be spoiled," Dean said, kissing the side of Alec's head.

More soon...