"Five hundred… four hundred and ninety-nine... four hundred and ninety-eight…"

Dean's voice filled the air in the motel room. He stood in a corner, one arm against the wall and leaning his head against it with his eyes shut. After getting home from school that day, they'd decided to try out a game that Oscar had suggested back the first week they'd found him.

Hide and seek.

"Four hundred and ninety-seven…"

Dean counted down slowly and deliberately. Considering the size of his two opponents, he wanted to give them plenty of time to get around the room. Sam had come a long way with climbing around on his own, but he was still climbing a cliff just to get up to the table. If he felt rushed, he might make a mistake and slip.

So Dean took his sweet time, both ears tuned to the room around him to try and pick up the whispered hush of the children trying to hide from him.

"Four hundred and ninety-eight…"

Oscar ran as fast as he could on his short legs, with Sam alongside him. He sported a smile on his face and glanced over his shoulder once at the towering teen in the corner. Still facing away.

They'd decided that, in order to keep it fair, they had to stay inside the room. That meant no climbing in the walls for him and Sam. Dean wouldn't be able to get to them there, and he'd probably worry too much about Sam for it to be fun for him.

But Oscar still knew plenty of hiding spots in the room. It was part of how he got by.

Oscar had survived on his own for around a year before ever meeting Sam and Dean. It was a harsh existence, but he made it. Now, his cheeks were a lot fuller than the gaunt appearance they'd had for much of that time, and his eyes were brighter, healthier than they'd ever been. It was all thanks to his unlikely friends.

While they ran across the floor, he turned his head to Sam and pointed upwards, at the bulky TV sitting on the dresser. It'd have plenty of space behind it to hide, and it even left them plenty of room to duck out of the way if Dean came looking. "There?" he whispered, in the quietest voice he could manage.

It would mean they had a climb ahead of them. But Dean was still counting in several hundreds. They probably had just enough time to climb up their pin-and-thread climbing lines and dash behind the TV.

"Perfect!" Sam giggled back as he kept up with the younger boy. Oscar might be shorter than he was, but he was fast at darting across the room, as he'd discovered during tag. Now they were working together to find the perfect spot to hide.

There was another foot to run to the dresser, and Sam put his all into the dash. A distance that Dean could cross in just one step, and they crossed it faster than they ever had before.

Skidding to a halt at the edge of the dresser, Sam pulled out the hook Oscar had given him and gauged the height of the wooden cliff that stood before them. With his tongue sticking out in concentration, he carefully tossed up the paperclip. All the practice he'd done paid off, and it landed up on the surface.

Sam gingerly pulled it towards himself, just barely keeping in a shout of triumph as it caught on his first try. They needed to keep quiet. Dean would be listening and trying to pick out any clues that would help him find their hiding spot. His voice was a constant, comforting background noise as Sam tugged the thread to make sure it was anchored and could hold up his weight.

Oscar bounced on his feet and grinned proudly. Sam had come a long way in learning how to climb, and Oscar was glad to have been the first to teach him. The older boy took to the skill naturally.

Soon, Oscar's own safety pin hook was sailing upwards, landing on the dresser as softly as he could make it. At least Dean was talking, so he probably covered up the sound with his own rumbling voice. Oscar began climbing hand over hand up his thread towards the top of the dresser.

Sam was still careful and deliberate with his movements, and so despite his slight head start, Oscar matched his height after a while and managed to barely overtake it on the way up. He hastily stuffed his pin in his bag, possibly tangling the string, before crouching next to where Sam's pin was hooked into the side of the dresser.

"C'mon," he muttered with an encouraging grin, reaching over the side to grab Sam's arms and help him up the rest of the way. Normally, he wouldn't have rushed, but they still had some distance to cover and the count went right on, numbers called out over their heads.

"Thanks," Sam said as he finally made it over the edge. Oscar was stronger than he looked for such a scrawny kid, and had no problem getting Sam up. It never ceased to amaze Sam to see a kid that stood so much smaller than he did, lifting up weights that should daunt Dean.

Sam almost stumbled as he got to his feet, and shot a glance towards Dean's towering figure standing in the corner across the room from them. The teenager was steadily counting down and hadn't moved when Sam and Oscar talked. Hopefully he hadn't heard them climbing, or them talking.

Snatching up his paperclip, Sam coiled it around his arm. "He'll never find us," he giggled as he followed Oscar to their hiding spot.

Oscar grinned in agreement, a quiet giggle escaping him, too. Luckily they were across the room. The farther they got away, the less likely Dean was to be able to hear them.

He rounded the side of the TV, nearly skidding on the dust on top of the dresser and toppling over. He caught his balance with a gasp and kept running with Sam until they were behind the enormous plastic casing of the television. It was dustier back there, but the particles of dust were too big for them to worry about breathing in. It merely clung to their clothes harmlessly.

When they were back in the secure hiding place, Oscar crouched down, his knees close to his chest. It made him look extra small. He covered his face with a hand to hide any excited giggles. They'd picked a really good hiding spot!

Sam squatted next to Oscar, attempting to brush some of the dust off his own arms. It didn't go willingly. They were so small, Dean would never find this place!

"Five… four… three…" Dean had to grin as he counted down the last few numbers. Small giggles had drifted to him on the still air in the motel room. Not enough to know exactly where they'd gone, but plenty to let him know they were having fun, and that's all that mattered.

"Two… one… Ready or not, here I come!"

Dean turned around at last, brushing back his spiky hair with a huge smile. "Now," he said to the empty room. "If I was two kids that could fit in a hand, where would I hide?"

He took a few careful steps away from the wall, watching the ground as he always did while he searched for a tiny leg or arm sticking out from a hiding place. He didn't see any sign of their climbing ropes in any of the usual spots, so hopefully they'd had enough time to get themselves to a hiding spot. He'd figured five hundred would be a good number to go with for counting. He could always make it longer or shorter the next time.

"Would I… hide under the bed?"

Dean peeked under the bed, searching for any sign of them or any tracks through the dust. He was always surprised at the sight of either kid looking comfortable with the mess. Bright green eyes scanned the floor, and he couldn't even try to hide his grin.

Oscar's eyes lit up with mirth and he grinned at Sam. Of course Dean would check under the bed first. It was the most obvious choice. Which was exactly why they couldn't hide there.

Oscar ducked his head to hide his face as a faint snicker shook its way through him. He couldn't help it. He was too proud that they'd managed to make it to their hiding spot before Dean was done counting, and he was too giddy from the chance to actually play around.

He could hardly believe that he was sitting there, hiding from a human, and not feeling the least bit scared. Normally, a situation like this would be the scariest thing he could imagine. But this was actually fun.

Sam giggled along with Oscar, and tried to shush them both. It didn't really work, and Sam covered his face with his sleeve.

Dean pulled himself off the ground. Tiny giggles reached him, and years of training with his dad helped him track the sound to the dresser in the room. His eyes flashed towards the television for a second, but that was it. He occupied himself with searching out other hiding places instead.

The game wasn't over yet.

"Would I hide under the nightstand?" Dean wondered as he walked between the two beds. He poked his head into the dark shelf of the nightstand. He nudged the room's Bible out of the way, pretending to check behind it.

"Hmm…" Dean hummed to himself as he stood back up. "I'd never hide on the table, would I?" He paced back over to the table, dramatically searching the table and lifting up the empty food wrappers. "Or under my homework…" he joked as he shuffled the pages and checked under them. Every so often his eyes would flash to the dresser to see if his antics were having the desired effect.

The sound of rustling papers nearly made Oscar burst out into giggles right then and there. He couldn't help it. It was so funnythat Dean was really checking the table for them. They were small, but not small enough to hide under his papers!

Both of his hands were covering his mouth to stifle the giggles, though his belly almost hurt from holding it in. He turned his head to the side, knowing that the table was on just the other side of the dresser. He could see Dean's shadow on the wall.

He scooted just a bare inch or two further along behind the TV, leaning just enough to catch a glimpse of the back edge of the table. He still didn't see Dean, though. He bit back a giggle and scooted back to his original spot.

"Where else?" Dean put his hands on his hips as he feigned thinking over the other options in the room. "I'd never hide behind the television…"

The giggles that made it to him made him smile. It was good to hear both of the kids enjoying themselves after everything they'd both gone through. Sam being cursed, Oscar losing his mom over a year ago… The young boy had been on his own all that time, stubbornly surviving against all odds.

Dean walked past the television and opened up his duffel bag. "Would I hide in the clean clothes?" he asked the empty air, extending the game for a few more seconds of fun.

Sam snickered at that and crawled to the edge of the television to peek out. His big brother was hunched over and all he could see was his back as he rummaged through the clothing.

Oscar pursed his lips, but failed to conceal his grin, and giggles still kept escaping him here and there. He crawled forward, too, not minding a dust clump that was hopelessly stuck to his shirt. It wasn't hurting anything, and it wasn't nearly as interesting as trying to keep an eye on the human in the room.

When Dean shifted and looked like he was about to stand up straight again, Oscar grabbed Sam's arm and tugged him back into the shadow of the TV, trying to shush him while failing to be completely shushed himself.

Sam almost tumbled over, trying to catch his balance as he scrambled away from the edge. Dean's shadow straightened, and this time they could hear the smile in his voice. "Nope, nothing here…" the teenager drawled.

That was the last thing they heard before a hand swooped around the television from the other side, scooping under Oscar as he tugged Sam back. Both children tumbled over backwards into the waiting fingers and they curled gently around the little forms, cushioning them as they were lifted out of their hiding spot.

Dean held the two kids up closer to eye level, a huge grin across his face. Sam untangled himself from Oscar, batting one of the fingers around them with a small fist. Even Sam couldn't stop a smile, though, laughing from the fun of the game and full of adrenaline from the catch at the end.

"Took you long enough!" Sam called up. "We almost fell asleep waiting!"

"Oh, did you?" Dean poked Sam in the side with a finger, nudging him in a ticklish spot. Sam collapsed into giggled that were egged on by the adrenaline. "I'll have to get sharper next time."

Oscar let out his suppressed giggles at last, no longer needing to hide the noise. His laugh was still quiet by comparison, but it was mirthful all the same and he was just as wired from adrenaline as Sam. It was supposed to be scary to be grabbed up in a human's hand, but he'd only been startled. Otherwise, Oscar found he didn't mind all that much. He knew he could trust Dean.

He pushed himself up onto his knees and braced his hands against the base of Dean's thumb while he peered over the side of the hand. Dean had whisked them right out of their hiding spot from the opposite side they'd expected.

Oscar twisted around to look up at the human. "Behind the TV is one of the best spots," he explained. "That's why it took so long for you to figure it out."

"It is?" Dean leaned over, peering behind the television to check out their hiding spot. If they weren't playing a game and were actually hiding, he could see the merit to staying back there. There weren't many reasons for people to go behind the television so long as it was working, so the back existed under the mantra of 'out of sight, out of mind.' If people weren't actively searching out a person Sam or Oscar's size, they could go completely unnoticed back there.

"Well, since you're such an expert," Dean said, stepping back from the television to kneel by the bed for a minute. "I'm sure you'll figure out exactly where I'm gonna hide." He placed his hand on the soft surface of the bedcover to let them off.

Sam didn't just step off, he bounced onto the bed. His grey bag thudded against his side as he tumbled on the surface. He couldn't wait to go find Dean.

Oscar took careful steps off Dean's hand, but once he set one small cloth shoe on the surface of the bed, he stumbled, too. He rolled over and pushed himself up shakily, his eyes a little wide as he concentrated on standing.

He looked up and nodded, a cautious confidence on his face. "I bet we can find you," he insisted with a nod. "You can't go outside either, so there's only so many places for you to hide!"

He darted over to Sam's side, a bashful look on his face as he looked up at the older kid. "I dunno how high we should count," he said, and then, in a quieter voice, "M-maybe you should do it, 'cause I don't ..." Oscar trailed off and his cheeks turned bright red. "I dunno how to count past thirty," he whispered.

"Don't worry, I got this," Sam said, just as quietly. He pat Oscar on the back. "If you want, I can teacha when we walk back to your house." It wasn't Oscar's fault he'd never had the chance to learn. Sam would do what he could for his new best friend.

Sam straightened and jabbed a finger up at Dean. "You get a count of fifty!" Sam declared. Since the teen didn't have any trouble getting around the room, he didn't need the extra time they'd gotten. "Better get hidden!"

"No peeking!" Dean said with a playful nudge against the kids to send them tumbling.

Oscar fell over with a quiet oof and sprawled on the cover of the bed. But, instead of standing again, he just put his hands over his eyes while he faced the ceiling. It was his best bet for not peeking, considering Dean was really hard to miss.

"Thanks," he whispered to Sam, feeling his blushing diminishing already. He was glad the older kid hadn't found it weird or funny that he didn't know how to count very high. Even up to thirty was shaky for him, because he'd never been able to learn the pattern before his mom disappeared.

Then, in a louder voice, Oscar said "Okay! Go hide! We'll come find you next."

Sam rolled over and buried his head in his hands. Neither kids were afraid of closing their eyes with Dean around, giving the large human their trust.

Dean grinned and stood as his little brother started to shout out numbers. Sam didn't bother counting backwards (partly because he didn't want to but mostly so Oscar would get to hear the numbers in a way that made sense).

"One! Two!"

Dean stepped quietly back from the bed, glad he was standing in his socks. He was light on his feet even in boots, an important lesson he'd learned from his father, but being light on his feet when two kids the size of his fingers were around was a whole new challenge.

With his destination in mind, Dean padded silently away from the bed.

"Forty-nine! Fifty!"

Sam rolled back over, bouncing to his feet on the bed. "Ready or not, here we come!" he hollered across the still and silent motel room, blinking in the light after having his eye covered for so long.

Oscar sat up and rubbed at his eyes to get used to the light. For him, being in the dim walls was far more comfortable. Being out in the light all the time was actually not very normal for him, and he had to get his eyes used to it after covering them for so long

He stood and bounced a few times on the plush surface of the bed, before stopping to look around the room. As he focused, he was nearly frozen. Trying to find where humans were in a room was one of the most valuable skills his mother had ever told him about. Not knowing could mean capture, and most of the time capture didn't get you two new best friends.

Oscar frowned faintly. He still wasn't as good at it as he needed to be. He couldn't hear over the sound of air in the vents to pinpoint the sound of Dean's breathing, but then again the human could be holding his breath or something. They didn't hear a door, so they knew he didn't go outside.

"I don't think he's close to the bed," he determined, scanning the other furniture curiously. "I don't hear him at all."

"Weird," Sam said, wandering over to the edge of the bed. His focus was distracted, trying to listen for any movements beyond their small area, so he stumbled a time or two while walking. He peered off the edge once he reached it. "He wouldn't hide under the bed, would he? All we have to do is climb down to find him there!"

Sam worried his lip as he tried to think of other places to hide. His memories of what a room like this looked like from a human's vantage rose to mind. They were growing soft around the edges, but still bright enough to come up with other ideas.

"Maybe the closet," Sam came up with as he peered across the room. There was a small closet opposite the bathroom where Dean hung his clothing (sometimes). There'd be space to hide between the clothes, and room enough for a human his size.

Oscar wandered to the edge of the bed near Sam, eyeing the closet. "That's a good idea," he agreed with a nod. "Let's check that out first. Maybe we'll hear him when we get closer."

He leaned forward to check how far down the blankets reached from the bed. Near the corners, they extended almost all the way to the floor, leaving a gap about half Oscar's height. It would do nicely to climb down that way. He looked back over at Sam with a hopeful grin. "Come on, let's go find him!" he said excitedly before settling himself down near the edge so he could grip the fabric and slide over the side, clinging to the blanket like a webbed ladder.

Sam swung down after him. The bed was much easier to climb down than the nightstand, the table or the dresser. Their fingers found easy purchase in the thick fabric, clinging to threads that humans couldn't even see.

Down was faster than up, so it took almost no time at all before their feet touched ground. Sam hit the thick carpet in his boots and Oscar in his fabric wraps. One day Sam would outgrow his boots and then he'd have to find an alternative, but until then he was thankful for his boots.

With his luck Dean would find him pink shoes from a dollhouse set if he gave him a chance.

The bed was empty underneath, just like Sam had assumed. No Dean.

"We've totally got him," Sam giggled as he set out across the room. There was no other place that he saw for Dean to hide in the area.

Oscar followed Sam, his cloth shoes making no noise on the carpet as they made their way towards the closet. Sam had had a good idea. Oscar never would have been able to think about things from a human perspective. In his eyes, the closets in the rooms were still expansive and not the best choice for something to hide behind.

He glanced up at the ceiling as they walked. It was so far away. Oscar wondered absently if Dean would be able to reach it when he was done growing. He wasn't finished yet and he was already so tall. Oscar was really really hoping to reach three and a half inches, while Dean would probably get to six feet before he stopped getting taller.

The closet door loomed closer and closer, and Oscar stared at it with wide eyes. It was only slightly ajar, and almost pitch black within. Oscar squinted at it, seeing the outline of a coat hanging in there. "I don't know if I see Dean in there," he whispered as they approached. "Maybe he squished himself into the corner."

"If he's in there," Sam whispered back, "we'll find him." The darkness inside kept him just as subdued. He tried to walk quieter, knowing Oscar's cloth shoes gave him an edge in staying silent.

Unseen by either kid, Dean peeked from around the shower curtain in the bathroom. He grinned at the sight of them approaching the closet, the complete opposite direction from where he was actually hiding. The bathtub was perfect. It was big, it was deep, and he could duck down in it if they came around. And of course, the shower curtain hid him from view.

Dean shifted silently in the tub, watching them to see if they'd take the bait and search for him in the closet.

Oscar grinned at Sam and stepped forward hesitantly. "We'll check," he said, and turned his gaze upwards again. The door was so tall. He knew he'd have difficulty getting it to even wobble, let alone move. Even when he was fully grown he probably wouldn't have the strength for it. It was made for humans, through and through.

He crept up to the small opening left by the door. The thought of sneaking around to find a human was kind of funny to him, and Oscar giggled breathily. Usually he'd be sneaking away.

He stopped by the door frame, unable to just stand in the middle of the opening. It was too nervewracking. He peeked around the edge of the door frame instead, leaning partially into the darkness in the closet.

Sam bumped into Oscar when he stopped, and then peered around the door the same. His eyes took longer to focus, trying to see what was hiding in the darkness.

They were so intent on trying to see if Dean was in there, they never saw the teenager climbing over the side of the bathtub. Hunched over, he padded silently out of the bathroom, making sure to keep his shadow from falling on them.

If there was ever a dead giveaway for him being around, that was it.

Dean dropped to his knees and swept a hand out in the same motion. His speed sent both kids tumbling into his grasp all over again, the motion carrying them all the way to his chest this time without hesitation.

With a laugh, he sat down on the floor. "You guys are fast!" he complimented them. He unfolded both hands under the kids to give them space to move around.

Disoriented, Sam lay flat on his brother's palm and stared up at the big green eyes in surprised. "Where'd you come from?" he asked in confusion.

Dean smirked and gave him a wink. "That's my secret," he joked.

Oscar clung to Dean's thumb for a second, his heart fluttering and taking its sweet time to settle down after all the rapid motion and having a human sneak up on him somehow. He'd been so focused on the closet and the contents of it that he'd forgotten to listen for breathing or check the rest of his surroundings.

When he finally got his bearings, Oscar peered around, trying to find where Dean was hiding. He found the open bathroom door and his mouth formed an 'O' as he realized it. Of the two choices in this side of the room, Sam and Oscar had checked the wrong one.

"That's sneaky!" he said, finally letting go of Dean's thumb so he could sit back and look up at the huge smiling face. "I wouldn't'a thought of the bathroom! I've never really been in one of them before, and it's a whole room so it doesn't look like a hiding place." In that sense, Oscar's separation from a human view of things was most obvious. The bathroom might seem downright cramped to Dean, a human, but to Oscar it was just as cavernous a space as the rest of the motel room.

"But we were supposed to find you! " he realized after a second with widened eyes. Oscar's face broke into a grin and he tapped his hand on Dean's hand below him. "So we found you! You came out of hiding!"

"That's right!" Dean said, feigning surprise at the declaration. "I guess that means you two win the game!" He curled his fingers over and mussed up both kids hair, grinning at the annoyance he got from Sam as the both tried to fix up the scattered locks. "I'll have to work on that next time. Keep you both guessing."

"You'll never best us at hiding!" Sam bragged as he dropped his hands from his hair. "We're too good!"

"Oh, you are, are you?" Dean asked with a smirk as he went to stand up. "If that's true, I guess I'll have to eat dessert by myself if I can't find you. I even found some pie to celebrate your win today. Best pie in the state."

Sam's eyes went round. "Apple?"

Dean nodded smugly. "There's nothin' better. 'Cept warm peach cobbler with ice cream. I've gotta find that sometime. Oz, you stickin' around for some snacks?"

Oscar nodded eagerly, and his eyes were wide. He'd never tried apple pie before. Or any pie, really. Every time the Winchester brothers invited him to try a new food, he was happy to eat it. The variety he got while they were feeding him (and even sometimes letting him take some home to his shelves) was incredible. Oscar's usual of crackers and crumbs was beyond bland by comparison.

He reached up to try one last attempt to fix his messed up hair, but it was wild after Dean's joking around. Oscar barely accomplished anything, but he didn't care. He bounced a little with excitement. "I wanna try it. I bet it's good!" he declared with a grin.

Oscar was having too much fun. He wished his friends didn't have to leave when their month was up.

None of them knew what might happen then, but at least for now, they were happy.

A/N

Dean, you cute dork. Making sure those kiddos have a good time.

Next: Sam Makes a New Friend, coming March 14th

If you have a prompt idea for the story, please tumble on over to the tumblr and drop it in my askbox!

Comments and reviews greatly appreciated! If you like the story, let us know! (or if you don't like it, we can take constructive criticism I promise)