Hey, look! It's been a week, and I'm on time posting! Yay! Stay tuned for one more shortie chapter next Sunday and then some serious plot the week after. Don't worry, there is going to be some actual development. :)
Chapter Rating: K+ (Pretty sure no warning is really needed)
John was worried about his eldest son. Dean had always been a very solitary guy, just like John himself. They buried their emotions in a locked box. While Dean had broken down a few times when he was younger, John had not expected he to do so this late. It was a huge cause for concern.
The oldest of the Winchesters had not meant to react in anger. It was a defense mechanism for when he was scared. He just really cared for his sons. He wanted them to be happy and to not fall into the Hell of despair he had for such a long time.
This thought lead John to thinking about what had made Dean come back to his senses. It had not been Bobby, or John, or even Sam. It had been his new partner, Castiel. John liked Castiel for some inexplicable reason. The man just seemed to click with Dean, and therefore by extension, John. It was one of those weird moments when you know someone at a glance. Castiel had a lot of sway in Dean's life, though, far more than John had ever had. It was disconcerting, to say the least.
John had been laying in his bed thinking about these things when his alarm went off. It was time to start another unremarkable day on the ranch. John loved the place, but the long stints of monotony it sometimes went through would be enough to make even the most enthusiastic ranch hand bored.
As John made his way to the barn, he noticed that Dean was already there with Castiel. They were both saddling up their mounts and talking. Something Castiel said made Dean laugh. The laugh is what hit John. He had not heard his son sounding that happy in a long time.
"Hullo, boys! You're here early, Castiel," John called.
"Howdy, Mr. Winchester! Dean invited me to come a little earlier today so we could go on a trail ride while it was cool. Is that alright, sir?"
"No worries. Sounds like fun. You'll be back before nine, right?"
"We won't be late, Dad. Promise," Dean replied.
John gave the two men a wave and went to the feed shelf to start preparing the feed for the day. He had his back turned, but he heard the other two swing up into their saddles and ride off around the outside of the barn. John was listening to the soothing clip-clop of horse hooves when they stopped suddenly. It had not been nearly long enough for the two to be out of hearing range. Curious, John set down the feed and circled out around the back of the barn. What he saw there shocked him.
In fact, he was still stuck in place thirty minutes after the subject of his shock trotted off into the distance.