It wasn't much longer before there was a knocking at the door of the motel. Oscar squeaked quietly and flinched, causing himself to tumble over where he sat. Dean glanced up and saw the time. It had to be their food.

"Okay guys," he said to the two others that were sitting in front of him. "Just sit tight. I'll take care of it."

Before getting off the bed, Dean grabbed one of the pillows from the top and put it alongside Sam and Oscar to shield them from view. He made sure that they couldn't be seen at all before he stepped up to the door. Even a simple glance by the delivery boy that revealed a tiny kid that was smaller than an action figure moving could put them both at risk. No one could know what was in Dean's room.

Dean had to remove the chain before unlocking the door. He'd learned at a young age that they had to take every precaution.

And sometimes not even that was enough to keep out the dark creatures that lurked in the night.

Angry eyes and a flash of light haunted him at the back of his mind as he stepped outside into the open air. He did his best to keep the delivery boy, who was burdened down with brown paper bags, from spotting the white marks on the floor from the salt they'd scattered around. Dean dug out his wallet as he let the door close behind him.

The door falling closed got another flinch out of Oscar, though not as bad as the jolt from hearing someone knock on the door. It was such a simple sound, one he'd heard plenty of times. Every time, he thought about how big someone would have to be to make so much noise against the impossibly big door.

He tilted his head back to peer at the top of the pillow Dean used to hide them, glad for it. Even just the brief breeze from the outside world put him on edge for just a moment. Out in the room, away from the walls with nowhere to quickly dive into to hide … it was unusual for him. He was enjoying himself, at least. But the lurking reminder remained in the back of his mind.

"That was so fast," he muttered, sitting up and loosely wrapping his arms around his legs. He spared his bag one glance to make sure it was still within reach before looking over to Sam. "I'm always a little surprised by how fast humans can do everything … Even just getting food."

Sam sat up next to him. "They've got cars," he said helpfully. "Plus bikes and trains and all kinds of ways to get around faster. Not to mention skateboards!"

His eyes were wide, and it was understandable why. When he'd been the size of a normal human, anything like that wouldn't be out of the ordinary. But now, the Impala alone was massive. It was like exploring a cathedral on the inside on the rare occasion he got the chance. He'd even braved going under the seat once with Dean curiously peering under after him. He'd found any quarters he could, and when John wasn't at the motel they'd skipped out for a few hours and hit up the local arcade. Sam got to enjoy candy from the machines while Dean entertained himself on the original Mario Bros., with helpful pointers from Sam when he dared to poke his head out of the pocket.

Oscar nodded along. He had heard about one or two of those things, of course. It was tough not to, living in a place that saw so many people passing through. Once someone even brought their bike into a room. Oscar had seen it from the vent, and marveled at how big it was. The wires of the huge wheels were almost as thick as his arms.

The TVs were also often filled with images of cars, so he knew what those looked like, too. Oscar realized, after a few seconds, how limited his experience must seem to the brothers. They knew all about what was out there, what the humans had. And he hadn't even been outside before. Oscar hadn't even gone to the other end of the motel by himself before.

"Mom told me that sometimes people like us try to get in cars and stuff to find new places to live. Gotta be real careful, but I think it's probably true. It can't just be this motel," he mused aloud. "I think I'd be too worried to try something like that."

If anything, Sam's eyes got wider. "But cars are really dangerous if the humans don't know you're there!" he exclaimed. "The doors are heavy, and high off the ground. If it closes when you try and get in, you'll get squished because it locks closed. Only a human can get it open. I have to be with Dean if we even get close to the Impala."

He tried to think of ways for people their size to stow away in a car. Getting in a bag would be safer than climbing, but all it would take was a second's glance inside the bag to be seen. If the human knew about them, it wasn't likely they'd be getting out of the car on their own… there was a good chance of captivity. He shivered, drawing his legs close. He didn't like his new perspective when he thought of what it was like without Dean around. Too vulnerable, too easy to get hurt.

Oscar frowned faintly, wondering what train of thought he'd inspired in Sam. He fully agreed with the other boy, of course. It did sound far too dangerous to try to get in a car. And yet, he couldn't believe that smaller folk like himself only lived in this one motel in the middle of wherever they were.

A sound beyond the huge pillow stopped him from continuing on the subject.

The door to the room creaked open, letting the last light of day spill in with a bright gleam. Dean was waving the other human off with a "Thanks, man!" as he pushed it the rest of the way open with his shoulder. He had two huge bags in hand as he let the door close again, putting the chain in immediately.

"Grub," he announced as he came back over to the bed. Instead of sitting on it, this time he settled to the side and pushed off the pillow he'd propped up next to the smaller pair. He wasted no time prying the staples off the bags that had been used to seal them shut. One staple he managed to catch, but the other shot off towards the dresser. Dean didn't notice, too interested in the mouthwatering smells that came out of the bag the moment it opened.

He got a pile of napkins and spread them out over the covers and started to dig out the myriad items that were inside. The duck sauce he tried to put on an entire pile of napkins, only vaguely worried about it spilling. This time, he was prepared for two smaller kids, and dug an extra bottlecap out of his pocket to fill with coke.

Grabbing some of the wontons, he started in on the food. "Help yourselves," he mumbled around the food, gesturing widely at the array.

Oscar almost forgot what he and Sam were talking about. The strong, savory smell of the food washed over him like a cloud of dust, clinging to him and making him realize how hungry he'd gotten over the course of the day. Before him was a veritablemountain of food, and he got slowly to his feet to survey all of it.

He had no idea where to even start. There was such an assortment arranged in front of the two smaller kids. One box was full of pieces of chicken bigger than they were, covered in a thick sauce that Oscar was willing to bet would be a nightmare to clean off. He focused his attention on the other foods while he knelt to pick up his bag and sling it over his shoulder again.

Oscar hesitated to walk any closer to the food. There were several things that looked so good they made his mouth water, even not knowing precisely what they were. But they still belonged to a human … and part of Oscar was still caught up on the idea that a human would share with him.

He fidgeted his hands absently and glanced over at Sam. "Wh-what, um. What should I have?" he asked curiously.

"Umm..." Sam thought it over as he came up to his own eggroll. Not that he wouldn't hesitate to snitch some of Dean's food, but his brother almost never ordered eggrolls on his own. So Sam had to make sure Dean got them if he was craving them. He'd never understand it.

"You can have some of my eggroll," he said with a grin. "There's plenty. And the pork fried rice has lots of good stuff in it, and the grains are easy to hold." It was better than trying to wield chopsticks, at least. He and Dean had always ended up trying to swordfight with them when John ordered Chinese and Japanese.

Sam pointed out the container that had the rice, then the duck sauce. "And that tastes good on everything," he said.

Oscar followed Sam to the eggroll after looking over the things he suggested. The rice looked good, too, and easier than anything else to eat. He'd have to give it a try. He'd have to give all of it a try, if he managed not to fill up on one thing.

The smell only got stronger once he was among the food. He made sure to pay attention to where Dean's hands were. At best, it'd be humiliating to accidentally be swept up with some food, and at worst, it'd be terrifying. Especially if the human teen wasn't paying attention when it happened. With all the things around them throwing off their own powerful aromas, losing one's guard could be disconcertingly easy.

The eggroll was bigger than both Sam and Oscar combined. It looked heavy, and a bit of heat haze wavered just over the top of it. Oscar could feel the warmth radiating off of it just as easily as he smelled its milder aroma.

"I don't think I've seen this much food all in one place from this close before," he told Sam in a hush, his eyes wide in appreciation for the feast around them. "Is Dean gonna be able to eat all of it?"

Sam couldn't help but grimace at that. "Oh, he will," he whispered back so Dean wouldn't hear them talking about them. "So make sure to grab what you want before he gets there."

It was odd. Once upon a time, he'd look at the food they had now, one meal and one (large) appetizer, and it wouldn't seem like an excessive amount of food. These days, he couldn't decide if it bothered him or not, watching the others in his family eat food that was bigger than he was. The fact that Sam could fit in Dean's mouth had terrified him in the beginning.

Now, he knew he was safe with Dean, but that was only one of the many reasons he didn't want any strangers to know about him. His size gave him a severe disadvantage with anyone else. He hated the fact that it felt like he needed Dean some days.

But now I'm learning to climb without help, he thought to himself. I'll be able to escape if I get stranded. I won't have to be reliant on them anymore.

Dean kept eating, only partially paying attention to the two kids that were standing in his food. His attention was having a hard time staying focused, with two tiny kids standing next to an eggroll larger than they were, and Star Trek playing on the tv to the side. He swallowed a large bite of food, arching his eyebrows when he saw Sam talking in a voice that was too soft to hear. But soon enough the television stole his attention away and he went back to the show.

Sam gestured at the steak teriyaki. "You should definitely try that," he said emphatically. "Those are great even if they're a little messy, and they'll be gone in no time."

Oscar already had a bit of eggroll shell in his hands, some shreds of the vegetables within cooling on top of it. He stared at the food Sam pointed out, the 'teriyaki,' thinking that it looked about as good as Sam said it was. Oscar looked more closely at the foods around them while he nibbled on the small bit of eggroll he'd taken. It all looked better and better the more he looked.

So far, Sam had recommended a number of things. Oscar glanced between them, his mouth twisted into a thoughtful little frown as he considered what he might try next. He finished off his small portion of eggroll and made a quick decision, inching towards the rice.

It was the easiest option. He could start with that. Oscar picked up one of the grains once he reached the box, and nibbled on the end. His eyebrows lifted from the simple flavor that had been cooked into the rice, and the grain was half gone before he paused, holding it in his mouth, to slip a few extras into his bag.

He couldn't help it, really.

A/N

Oscar needs some help stocking up his shelves, guys. Get that small kid some more good food!

Next: January 4th