It's in the Genes

Author: Cheryl W.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or any rights to Dark Angel or Supernatural, nor am I making any profit from this story.

Summary: Crossover with DA and Supernatural -AU– It's the Winchesters who break Alec from jail in Hello/Goodbye and then they start road tripping together. No slash.

Author's note: Well this is actually the final chapter of this tale. I've so loved writing this AU that it's hard to bring it to a conclusion. However, since I've always made a promise to complete any fics I post here, there had to be an end somewhere and this seemed the right spot. Hope you enjoy it! And by the way…sap ahead.

SNDASNDASNDASN

Chapter 25

SNDASNDASNDASN

"So I say we check out another bar tomorrow night," Dean suggested, anxious to get back fully into the swing of things.

But the vote from his brothers was a unanimous, "No!"

"Killjoys," he grumbled as he sulked back against the couch, already scheming to go for a run tomorrow morning, to prove to his body…and his brothers that he could take charge again.

SNDASNDASNDASNDA

But Dean's plan, it sputtered and died when he crept quietly into the kitchen at dawn and found Alec sitting at the table, coffee cup in hand and smug smile in place.

"Going somewhere?" Alec greeted, a knowing look in his eyes.

"Ah, yeah, walking to the lake," Dean supplied, heading for the door but Alec was suddenly in the doorway, blocking his exit. "I told you not to go all Speedy Gonzales on me," he growled, taking a step backwards so he wasn't in Alec's personal space.

"If you weren't so stubborn, I wouldn't have to," Alec retorted, shifting to a casual lean in the doorway and folding his arms. "I knew that you would think you were all mended now. Go one round with some lightweight at the bar and…"

"Lightweight?!" Dean sputtered, "Guy was…."

"Not in your league…if you were at your top form," Alec stated, the harshness of the statement buried in the gentleness of his tone and the pride and compliment that the words conveyed. "Which you're not. Not yet."

"And how am I supposed to get there if you and Sam won't let me increase my training, do a little sparring…and running," Dean railed, feeling trapped and useless suddenly again. The confidence of the prior night fading at Alec's roadblock and words, not to mention the stiffness and pain he woke up with.

"Dean…" Alec softly entreated but Dean cut him off.

"And don't tell me how I almost died, that I'm lucky to be alive, that it's going to take time," Dean growled back, stance radiating his frustration. "I've heard all that and I need to know, in my gut, that I can rebound from this."

"You can," Alec instantly proclaimed, abandoning his slouched position to stand toe to toe with Dean, ready and willing to knock some sense into his brother.

"Yeah, this coming from the genetically empowered one who has super blood coursing through his veins," Dean jeered, shaking his head.

"Which I graciously shared with you…" Alec joked back but could see his humor was unappreciated.

With Alec cutting off his exit, Dean headed to the refrigerator, yanked the door open and retrieved a soda. A soda which Alec promptly snatched from his grip, sat back in the refrigerator and then tossed a bottle of orange juice to him. "What are you my nutritionist now too?!" real anger sparking in the biting words.

"Whatever you need, right? Blood donor, hunting partner, nutritionist," Alec lightly began. But when Dean shouldered by him, headed for the door, he tacked on one more role Dean had asked him to play. "Executioner," the word came out as a harsh accusation but it had been burning in his gut for weeks, setting his soul on fire until it was a ball of flame that he had to either choke out or be consumed by.

Hand raised to push out the door, Dean halted mid-step, felt as if some supernatural force was preventing him from moving…breathing. Suddenly he knew that his past sins were coming due, had consequences as severe as his crossroad deal. Consequences that could cost him his new little brother.

"No job too small…or too big, right?" Alec directed at Dean's back, the lightness he wanted to carry non-existent in his voice.

The anguish in Alec's tone broke through to Dean, gave him the courage to turn around, to look at Alec. Alec gave him that small smile that was supposed to conceal his real emotions but Dean saw the truth in his brother's eyes, saw his brother's pain. Pain he had caused.

Shooting a worried look into the living room, down the hall, Dean lowly said, "Outside" not wanting Sam to be privy to this. Didn't want Sam to know how weak he had been or, under some misplaced loyalty, place any blame on Alec for the promise that he had emotionally blackmailed from him. Walking out of the cabin, he was uncertain if Alec would follow him, couldn't find one good reason why Alec would follow him anywhere after the crap he had laid on his shoulders. But he heard the cabin door open and close behind him as he leaned against the railing. Drawing in a steadying breath of forest air, taking a moment to gather the strength to face Alec's righteous anger, he then turned around. But what he read in his brother's eyes wasn't anger, wasn't even betrayal…as much as it was apology.

"Sorry. Manticore didn't teach me how to civilly switch from 'nice morning we're having' to 'I know I promised to kill you but I just couldn't do it,'" Alec lightly opened, retreating behind the façade of humor because it hurt too much to say the unvarnished truth.

Dean's chest tightened painfully and he croaked out, "Alec, don't," didn't want to have this conversation, couldn't. Couldn't face how selfish he had been, that he had wanted the option of a cowardly escape badly enough to risk Alec's wellbeing to get it.

Running a trembling hand over his mouth, Alec bolstered his courage with the conversations last night, the conviction that Dean would not disown him now. Raising his eyes to Dean, he exhaled, voice teetering on breaking, "The knife…it was right there and I…" he shook his head, felt a tear burn down his cheek. "I was never going to do it, Dean. Never. I lied to you…maybe even to myself."

"Don't, Alec," Dean implored again, voice hoarse with the emotions he was struggling to suppress. Coming forward, he reached out to grip Alec's shoulder but Alec pulled away, stood on shaking legs, face pale and eyes filling. Letting his hand drop, Dean took a step back, forced himself to meet Alec's eyes, to own up to how much he had screwed everything up. "Ok, yeah. You have every right to be furious with me for being such a chicken sh.."

"Crap Dean! It's not you I'm mad at!" Alec heatedly threw back, wondering how Dean could so severely misunderstand. That Dean couldn't see what he had done..had not done. "You were going to Hell and you counted on me to spare you that!"

"Which you and Sam did," Dean quickly put in, not comprehending why Alec would think there would be blame doled out when all he felt was gratitude…and love for his two brothers, for saving his life, revoking his all expense paid visa to hell.

"Which we almost didn't!!" Alec shouted back and then he stepped off the porch, stood with his back to Dean and his eyes shut. Only found the strength to speak when he felt Dean's shoulder brush against his. "I was going to let you go to Hell, Dean. I wasn't going to kill you with Ruby's knife."

For a beat, Dean's reply was silence and Alec thought it was a worst condemnation than any words Dean could say. A string of curses looped in his head as he fisted his hands and squeezed his eyes closed tighter, wanting this to be someone else's life, to be on some undercover operation that he was not emotionally vested in.

But in that silence, Dean was reliving Meg-possessed-Sam handing him his gun, asking him to kill him; at the clinic after Sam was infected, Sam ordering him to give him his gun and leave; his Dad's whispered words in the hospital, if you can't save Sam, you'll have to kill him. The most awful, impossible requests anyone had every asked of him. Oaths that he would rather die …go to hell before ever fulfilling…and he had turned around and made a similar request of Alec, risked Alec's soul as surely as he had condemned his own.

"I'm sorry, Alec," he choked out. Watching Alec's profile, he saw his brother flinch. And he wondered how he had managed, by saving his brother, by doing an act born out of love, to deeply hurt everyone that he loved. "There's no excuse for what I did to you. I'm the last person who should have laid that on you. If anyone knows what it's like to be asked to do the impossible…promise to do it and yet have no intentions of carrying it out, it's me," Dean confided, felt some relief when Alec opened his eyes, though his brother didn't face him. 'He probably doesn't ever want to lay eyes on me again.' And that thought, the chance that it was true, had him scampering back behind his barriers, offering up a joke instead of revealing that he felt like he was coming apart at the seams. "You not being able to waste me? That's actually a good thing, pretty high marks on the awesome brother scale in my book."

But Alec looked away, into the forest instead of to Dean. Dean's willingness to forgive him, his levity was only digging the knife of guilt deeper into his gut. Brokenly, he confessed, "You don't get it. What I did…it was about me, not you. Was about what I needed…not about what you needed from me." Then he faced Dean, had to tell his brother the full truth, even if it cost him everything. "When I chose not to pick up Ruby's knife…I knew I was also choosing to let you go to Hell if I couldn't stop the hellhound. And, the worst part was, I didn't even believe I could stop the hellhound…I just knew I couldn't kill you, that at least, if you went to Hell, there was a chance to get you back. But if I used that knife on you….You would be gone. Forever. And that, that I couldn't face, Dean. I was too selfish to let that happen," he breathlessly admitted, felt sick to his stomach, waiting for Dean's reaction. Found that, it wasn't better, speaking the words aloud, claiming them but he knew it was the right thing to do, was what Dean and Sam had taught him to do. Knew that he was being the person they had shaped him to be and at least, in that, he could be proud.

Instead of anger or betrayal, understanding and forgiveness sparked in Dean's eyes as they met Alec's tortured gaze. Exhaling, he gave a nod of his head, solemnly said, "I know. You think my bringing Sam back wasn't selfish? My making the deal? My asking you to kill me if you couldn't save me? Alec, that crap about love being selfless…it's not true. Loving someone, at least in this family, means being as selfish as you possibly can, especially when the odds are against us."

"So you're not mad? I haven't ruined your trust in me?" Alec anxiously asked, every sense tuned to his brother.

"No," Dean chuckled with a tender smile. "I'm not mad, Alec. And there is no one I trust more than you and Sam." Tagged on, "And that's saying a lot with my trust issues.." his tone turning teasing.

"Trust issues I get," Alec sympathized with a smile, feeling like a weight had been lifted, like he could breathe, could feel heat and light instead of the blanketing dread and guilt. Shifting so his shoulder rested against his brother's, he tilted his head down closer to Dean's and lowly promised, "Just so we're clear: If you ever ask anyone to kill you again, you'll answer to me and Sam both."

Dean gave a small, bitter laugh. "Lining up an executioner isn't as easy as I made it seem. There are numerous applicants you have to look over, then there's the speech you have to word just right…"

From behind them, Sam's voice qualified the hardest element of the transaction. "And then you have to make sure that they only fill the vow if they really, really, really have to." Coming down the stairs, he met startled Dean gaze. With one look, he offered up an apology for asking such a promise from Dean, hoped his brother knew just how blessed he felt to have his love and his loyalty. "Getting a hitman who's too eager, it's so not the right way to go," he flippantly pointed out, shot Alec a look of gratitude for agreeing to Dean's oath…and not fulfilling it.

Dean felt the weight of his oath to Sam lighten, knew that Sam, viewing the oath from a new perspective, could see it wasn't the way to go. That dying just wasn't an option for them, not for their family. Created more pain than it would ever generate solutions. "So, what we're saying is we're in it for the long haul? No cashing in early…"

"No more deals," Sam insisted, eyes pointedly settling on Dean.

"And no more running away," Alec added, knew that he would fight, tooth and nail to stay with his brothers.

"No arguments from me," Dean exhaled, not keen on facing any more death sentences, his or Sam's, or having to chase wayward little brothers around the continental US. Even awesome big brothers could only take so much before they broke.

Suddenly Alec snapped his fingers and turned to Dean as if something just occurred to him. "Oh, there is one little thing that slipped my mind, what with the bar fights and medical drama…"

Dean waved his hand impatiently in the air, "Today would be nice."

"Ok. Don't freak out but there could be some possible side effects of my blood transfusion to you," Alec announced a frown creasing his features. "Well, just…hold on," and then he was going back into the cabin.

"What kind of side effects?" Dean demanded warily, raising his voice so he could be heard through the screen door.

"No need to shout, super hearing, remember?" Alec sniped as he came back down the stairs, carrying a bag.

"Super hearing that couldn't detect Sammy sneaking up on us?" Dean challenged, suspicions rising with his eyebrow.

"Who said I didn't hear Sam," Alec brazenly returned, smiling widely. "Like I said me and Sam would kick your butt if you made another death wish." At Dean's scowl, he turned his focus to digging in the bag, gave a wink to Sam before he schooled his features and again faced Dean. "Now, just remember, possible side effects were not the same in all the animal test subjects."

"Animal test subjects?" Dean repeated, a tinge of outrage in his tone as he looked to Alec then Sam, who simply shrugged his shoulders. Fixing his glare again on Alec, he prodded, "You're telling me Manticore never actually did a real blood swap with an Ordinary?"

"Well I kinda tuned out the science classes since they didn't pertain to my assigned duties. But hey, you're alive, on the mend. So what if you develop some new quirks, right? Small price to pay for surviving," Alec nonchalantly said, waving a hand in the air like it was a minor issue.

"Quirks?" Dean tersely asked, liking the way this conversation was going less and less.

Unable to contain himself, Sam decided to join in on Alec's antics. Coming to Dean's side, he looked at his brother, "When Alec warned me about the …consequences, they were worth the risks to save your life."

Eyes flying from Sam's to Alec's, Dean growled, "What consequences? What quirks?! I haven't noticed anything."

"I didn't want to point things out, Dean," Sam solemnly admitted. Turning to face Alec for a moment, having his back to Dean, he almost broke into laughter, barely managed to control himself to speak evenly. "Well, Alec, you should just tell him."

Sighing as if he dreaded the task, Alec approached Dean, keeping one hand buried in the bag. "They will probably wear off…in a year or two," loved that Dean's eyebrow rose at that dark prediction. "But until they do I got something that might help…." Revealing his hidden hand, he opened his palm and picked up the first item and began explaining its usefulness to Dean. "This play mouse isn't as rewarding to chase as the real thing but since you're barely able to move…."

"Oh you're a dead man…" Dean growled, as Alec dangled the cat toy mouse in his face and he could see the other cat toys in his brother's hand, namely a small ball and a piece of bright string. He reached out to snag the mouse out of Alec's grip but Alec pulled his hand back, smiled his best Cheshire cat smile which incited Dean to make a small lunge for his hand. However, Sam preempted his move by sliding between him and Alec.

Even as Alec was laughing at his back and Dean was shooting glares over his shoulder, Sam played peacemaker…sort of. "Calm down Dean. Remember what Dad taught you.." this earned him Dean's eye contact. "Don't pick a fight you can't win," he quoted, his repressed smile breaking free.

"Oh you're both dead men," Dean drawled with a deadly, determined gleam in his eyes.

Alec shrugged, sporting his cocky smile. "I don't know about you, Sam, but I feel pretty good for being a dead man."

Dean pointed a threatening finger at Alec, "That's it. You're walking out of here instead of riding in the Impala."

"That's OK. I can probably run faster than that old antique can move…" Alec taunted, enjoyed the spark that came to life in Dean's eyes.
"Tell me you didn't just insult my baby?" Dean darkly asked, his next words outraged, "After I let you drive her…"

"Let me!" Alec sputtered. "I beat you to the driver's seat and you whined the whole way here."

"I didn't whine," Dean snapped back.

"Yeah, you did. Like you needed some cheese to go with it," Alec countered, daring to throw a smirk in for good measure.

"Sam?" Dean called to Sam, demanding that his brother side with him.

"Couldn't hear a thing from the back seat," Sam wisely lied.

"Chicken," Alec and Dean snapped to Sam in synch before they headed back into the house, their bickering non stop with Sam trailing behind them, smiling.

SNDASNDASNDASNDA

Sitting on the dock by the lake, feet dangling in the water, Dean tilted his head back and shut his eyes to catch the direct rays of the sunlight, basked in the familiar presence of his brothers flanking him. Found he was somewhat glad his fishing pole hadn't been shaken with a fish on the line.

Eyes skimming over the shimmery, still water, Sam exhaled, "I love it here." Meaning it, with every fiber in him, and knowing it wasn't the world around him he was loving but the peace that was there as he was encompassed by his family, all in one place, enjoying life instead of running for their lives.

Dean's head snapped over to Sam in surprise. It had been a long time since Sam had claimed to love anything…well except for him but he wasn't going there…not ever again. But this declaration, it was heartfelt, was light, came easy and naturally. And suddenly Dean loved it too: the cabin, the woods, the stupid porch he had been restricted to for nearly a week. Loved it because Sam loved it, because Alec was there, because for one shining free moment they were family. Not hunters even, just brothers.

He wasn't prepared for Sam to look his way, and ask, "Don't you?"

His voice was hoarse and nearly inaudible when he replied, "Yeah." So he tried again, instilled strength in his next agreement, "Yes."

Smiling widely at the exchange between his brothers, Alec looked from Sam to Dean and back again to Sam before he concluded, "Me too." And sitting there, shoulder to shoulder with his brothers, the woods could burn down for all Alec cared. What he loved was his brothers. And he knew that family was truly worth fighting for, was worth dying for…but more than that, they were worth living for. No matter what.

Just then, Dean's fishing pole jerked and he nearly lost his grip on it before his other hand wrapped around the pole even as the tip bowed under the pressure. "I got one! I got one!" he crowed, forgetting his early acceptance at going home empty handed.

"Reel it in!" Alec ordered even as Sam shouted, "Pull up on your pole!"

"I am, I am," Dean gritted back, following both of this brother's advice. The pole jerked left then right as the fish fought for freedom but Dean was as much a determined fisherman as he was a hunter. Nothing would get in his way.

"Here, I'll take it," Sam offered, big hand reaching to snag the rod from his brother's hands before Dean either tore some stitches or toppled over into the water.

"Forget it, get your own catch," Dean denied, tightening his grip on the rod as he reeled more line in and kept the rod arched higher. "I almost got the sucker. Get the net! Get the net!"

Scrambling for the net which was a few meters behind them on the dock, Alec returned to Dean's side and crouched down, preparing to scoop up Dean's catch. Finally something dark was just under the surface and he dunked the net under the water and brought the ferocious, mighty….four inch sunfish out of the water. He gave an exaggerated whistle, "Man, they don't get much bigger than that. You should stuff it…

"And it will even fit in the trunk of the Impala…" Sam joined in the taunting.

"Another fish was on the line…"Dean protested.

"Maybe this is shapeshifting fish? Switched from a fifteen pound trout to this itty bitty sunfish," Sam tried to theorize with a straight face.
"Or maybe it's an off spring of the Lock Ness. Packs a wallop for such a small guy," Alec drawled, reaching for the flopping fish but Dean slapped his hand away,

Catching the fish in his hand, Dean cooed, "Easy little buddy," as he slid the hook free of the sunfish's mouth then he brought the fish up close to his face. "Learn from this. If you're going to die for something, at least be smart enough to make sure it's for real food and not a rubber worm, alright." Then he leaned forward, submerged his hand in the water and let the fish swim free of his touch.

"Ahhhh, big bad hunter can't even kill a fish," Sam teased, laughing.

"Like you said, if it's evil we kill it. Did he look evil to you, Sam? Are you afraid of a little itty bitty fish, Sammy?" Dean taunted back, enjoyed Sam's stammering for a come back before he turned to Alec. "And what about your feline genetics, why didn't you get it out of the water with your teeth, too fresh a catch for your sensibilities?"

"Dude, that's gross," Alec said with a shiver at the mental image. "I knew you liked Lord of the Rings but you're a Gollum fan, really?"

"Oh, funny," Dean laughed, bouncing his shoulder into Alec's.

"So, guess if we're having fish tonight it's going to be fish sticks," Sam sighed as if he had been relishing, instead of dreading, the idea of cutting the head off a fish and skinning it.

Silence fell over the brothers as they each kept their lines in the water, as if they really cared about fishing. "There is lore that says each lake once had one dominate prehistoric animal, and that there are good odds that it could have survived the changing environments."
Excitement gathered in Dean's eyes as he looked to Sam, "Anything particular about this lake?"

"Well, I did pick up some books and there have been sightings.."Sam hesitantly revealed.

"NO. We're on vacation," Alec protested, leaning forward to glare at Sam around Dean.

"Sightings of what?" Dean early demanded, attention tuned to Sam's every word.

"Sam, you promised," Alec warned, eyes blazing at Sam, could see the crumbling resolve on his brother's face.

"Come on, Alec. We're here already. We can take a few days more, do some scouting on the boat, do some reading, make some phone calls," Sam prodded when he realized that his biggest opposition was Alec.

"But Dean wanted to hit the road…" Alec lowly bit out.

"I'm good here for awhile," Dean quickly inserted. "It would be wrong to leave without making sure it's nothing."

Alec's look swiveled from Dean's pleading look to the smirk turning up Sam's lips behind Dean's back. With a sigh, he caved, "Fine, we stay, check this out for a few days."

"Awesome," Dean enthused as he climbed to his feet, "I'll get some weapons," he announced as he abandoned his fishing pole on the dock and stalked back for the cabin.

Sam smile was smug. "That was almost too easy. How long before he realizes there's no local legend here?"
Alec boldly smiled back, "Oh long enough for him to heal up more. Especially since they're calling for a straight week of rain which means we'll have to wait the weather out."

"He'll get even with us, you know that, right?" Sam warned but there was no regret in his light eyes.

"Oh, I'm counting on it. We didn't do prank wars in Manticore," And there was honest to goodness eagerness in the transgenic's eyes.

"That's because they still wanted you to look pretty," Sam darkly pointed out, as he stood up.

"What's that mean?"Alec stammered, eyes tracking Sam, trying to read his expression, finding that he didn't like the implications.

Sam gave a devious smirk, "Oh you'll see." Gathering his pole and Dean's he began walking back to the cabin. Alec soon fell into step.

"You don't do anything that leaves scars, right?" Alec cross examined, nipping at Sam's heals like a puppy dog. "No limbs in jeopardy of being lost? No irreversible damage?" But Sam's smile only grew more sinister with each question he lobbied.

SNDASNDASNDA

The weather didn't turn out to be the deterrent to Dean's pursuit of a hunt that Alec thought it would. Or should. He cursed as his foot slid again on the muddy embankment, would have stumbled into the lake if Sam hadn't caught his arm.

"Thought cats had good balance," Dean called over his shoulder from his position in the lead of their 'hunt.'

"He's enjoying this way too much," Alec grumbled, again finding level ground at Sam's side.

"Hey, you're the one that thought he would have to "wait the weather out," Sam lowly accused.

"And you're the one who came up with this con," Alec hissed back but when Dean turned around, both of his brothers plastered on smiles, as if this was just what they wanted to do at six o'clock on a rainy, cold morning.

"Let's split up. I'll scout up ahead by the lake. You two fan out in the woods," Dean ordered, didn't wait to see if his brothers would offer up an argument at his directions before stalking forward, a man on a mission.

"At this rate, I'll have a cold by mid morning," Sam darkly predicted, objecting to the sharp, incredulous look Alec shot to him. "What?"
"Dean was right, you are delicate," Alec snorted.

"Am not," Sam childishly denied before he stomped off into the woods, could hear Alec's chuckle behind him. Pushing wet branches out of his way and finding, without fail, every deep crevice able to hold inches of water with his sneaked foot, he wondered if fate wasn't getting him back for conning his brother. Knew that, even if fate was returning him for his deception, it would be nothing compared to the retribution Dean would unleash if he found out that he had been played. His dark thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Dean's giving a frightened yell that was followed by a splash of something..or someone landing in the lake. Cursing Dean's ability to find danger even on a fake hunt, Sam ran toward the lake, yelled Dean's name as he went, uncaring that branches were wiping him in the face and his ankle nearly twisted on a root.

Bursting out of the foliage, he saw Alec dive into the lake, knew that his brother was reacting to the danger to Dean. 'God please don't put us through this again,' he thought as he too ran for the water, dove under, eyes opening under the murky green haze seeking the sight of Dean.

Only when his lungs threatened to burst with lack of oxygen did he resurface, gulped in air and saw through the rain, Alec breaking the surface a few feet away. "You see him?!" he called, heart pounding in his chest, felt sick when Alec shook his head. They both were about to dive back under when a whistle rent the air from the direction of the embankment, drawing their attention.

Leaning against a tree, Dean wore a devious smile that even the rain that was plastering his hair to his head couldn't weaken. "You're right, Alec. My cat instincts must be kicking in because I'm really not into swimming lately. Not like you two die hards. Me, I would have thought the water was a little cold today, what with it raining and all?"

Knowing that he had been duped, Sam exclaimed in outrage "I can't believe you did this!" Even as his relief made his limbs weak as he began swimming for shore.

"Turn around's fair play, Sammy," Dean shot back, a hint of anger in his tone.

"You better run!" Alec darkly warned, making short work of the distance that separated him from his brother.

"Hold on," Dean forestalled, taking a few steps backwards as Alec came out of the water and began stalking toward him like a predator, Sam coming in a close second. "This is just what you two deserve, conning me into thinking there was a hunt here," he belligerently shot back. "Insulting the Impala, giving me friggin' cat toys, ordering me around for the past couple of weeks like I'm four. You two deserved this."

"Yeah?!?" Alec challenged, flinging mud off his arms as he continued to advance toward Dean. When Dean made a step to the right in a show of actual retreat, Alec was suddenly in his path, wide wet smile in place. "Going somewhere big brother?" He opened his sopping, muddy arms wide, "Come on, let's hug and make up." Advancing forward like Frankienstein's monster.

"Dude, I'm warning you…" Dean stammered, backpedaling from Alec's approach…right into Sam's all too willing arms. Like an octopus, Sam wrapped Dean in his grip and held on tight, wanted as much of his water logged clothing to connect with Dean as possible.. "Dude, get off!" Dean growled, struggling to extract himself from the straight jacket like grip Sam had on him as he tried to pry his brother's hands from around his forearms. But he made no progress, and eyed Alec with defeat.

"Ah, you're safe. I'm so happy," Alec mockingly drawled as he stepped forward, sandwiched Dean in between Sam's arms and his own. "Now we're one big happy family."

"Yeah, one big happy wet family," Dean groused, standing rigidly between his two brothers, knowing a losing battle when it kicked him to the curb. Emanating a low growl the hell hound would have run from, he endured Sam's big old, dripping wet paw rubbing the top of his head like he was a favorite pooch. "We done here, we calling it even."

Sam smiled over Dean's shoulder at Alec, "I don't know. This feel even to you, Alec? I think we can go a few more rounds. I have some cat food I was going to spike his food with…"

"Yeah, and I was going to dump some fleas in his bed," Alec returned, sounding disappointed to miss out on more pranks.

"You don't actually expect me to be stupid enough to tell you my next move do you?!" Dean drawled, shaking his head at the naivety of his brothers.

Tightening his grip on Dean and resting his chin on Dean's shoulder, Sam sighed, "Either we establish a truce here and now or we stand out here in the rain all day."

"I've never gotten a cold, I might be immune to them," Alec boasted. "Course I was designed to endure hypothermic temperatures without adverse…"

"Yes, Truce. Yes! Just stop the techno babble already," Dean conceded, eyes meeting Alec's. He rolled his eyes at his brother's triumphant smile and then he was released from his brothers' unwelcome hugs. Looking down at himself, at the mud coating him, he shook his head. "If this jacket's ruined, one of you is getting me a new one," he snapped, but he could tell his threat only caused further amusement. "Alright, let's head back before Sammy catches cold and your skin morphs into a polar bear coat," he suggested, eyes cutting to Alec.

"Funny, really. Bet you get enough tomatoes for a pizza with your routine," Alec said, following Dean and Sam's lead as they began trudging out of the forest toward the cabin.

"So, you two want to explain to me what this snipe hunt was about?" Dean inquired, shooting a look over his shoulders and finding that Sam and Alec's eyes dived away from his. "Maybe that sounded like a question…but it wasn't," he tersely enlightened them, eyes again focused ahead to negotiate the woods.

Instead of answering Dean's questions, Sam offered up his own, "When did you figure out it was a snipe hunt?"

"You forget, I'm not such a shoddy researcher. I've combed every local lore I could find hoping for something to kill or maim or even encourage to seek the light. Nothing. Nada. Boring with a capital BORING. Course I'm betting that's one of the selling points for renting this place," he concluded, pointing to the cabin coming into sight.

"Renting? No Bobby had a friend…" Sam insisted, unwilling to watch his whole house of cards fall.
"No hunter has rich friends with nicely kept cabins they loan to other hunters," Dean shot back, trudging up the stairs. Coming to a stop, he leaned against the wall to pull off his muddy shoes, eyes landing on his brothers performing the same ritual. "I might have been used as a hell hound chew toy, may have some of my DNA scrambled with Alec's kitty cat blood but I'm not off my game that much."

Dropping his mud encrusted shoes on the porch, Alec stood up and confronted Dean, "Fine, you want it nice and simple. We did pick this place because we figured that even you couldn't get in trouble here…"
"Remember who got us involved in a bar fight…" Dean interrupted.

"Yeah, that's on me," Alec accepted without protest. "And we played this con on you now because we think you could use a few more days…"

"Weeks…" Sam interjected.

"To heal up," Alec finished, not willing to back down, not when it came to his brothers' wellbeing.
"Thought it was because you loved it here," Dean said, turning to Sam, daring his brother to repeat his lies from the previous day.

"Sure, it's great here but it's more about the company I have than any place we stay a night or two. Thought you knew that by now," Sam quietly declared, eyes meeting Dean's, wondering how they could skirt around the truth time and time again and still have to prove it to each other that being together was worth more than any false security offered by any four walls, no matter how well enforced or chicly decorated they were.

"Thought you liked the stability, having someplace to call home," Dean pressed with more understanding, with an uncertainty that Sam hadn't expected. But Dean, he knew what Sam had loved about Stanford: the normalcy of it, the routine of knowing where he would be that night, the next night, even the next year.

"I already got a home," Sam firmly stated, daring Dean to challenge him on the truth. 'You and Alec are my home, you jerk.'
Chest tightening at the earnestness in Sam's eyes, Dean turned to Alec, quietly asked, "And what about you?"

"I'm going where you two go," Alec said simply. Then he drawled out with a teasing tone, "Course I think it would be awesome if you didn't faint or bleed out on our first real hunt back together. I think it sets the tone for our future endeavors and though that would be exciting, I…"

Dean rolled his eyes. "Oh for pete sake! Fine, we'll hang out here for awhile. I'll add a few more exercises to my routine.." At Sam and Alec's look of protest, he clarified, "No marathon runs through the woods or climbing a tree or whatever else you two are already objecting to."

"Sounds reasonable," Sam said, a smile turning up his lips and Alec gave a nod of agreement.

"I really must have pissed off someone to get stuck with you two girls," Dean grumbled as he entered the cabin. Only then did he let a smug smile like the cat who ate the canary blossom on his face. He would tell Sam and Alec later that he had already paid to rent the cabin for another month yesterday morning. Before they even sprung their con job on him.

Alec and Sam traded smirks of triumph, neither planning on telling Dean that they had turned down two hunts already that week. Big brothers didn't have the market on being protective…or conniving.

When Sam followed his big brother into the house, Alec stood on the porch a moment, stunned at how ridiculous it was to feel so content, so happy, soaked to the bone and slick with mud. Proved that, whatever life threw his way, he could endure it if he had his family at his side. Found he might even laugh through it. "Alec, you coming?" Dean's voice came from the cabin. With a smile of sheer joy, Alec entered the cabin to join his brothers, certain that there was nothing better in the world than to be a Winchester. That, it was pure foolishness on the part of the evil things that they hunted to think that they would stand a chance against the formidable bond of, not just two Winchesters anymore, but three. The odds had changed and the Winchesters, they were coming out winners. No matter the game.

SNDASNDASNDASNDA

THE END

SNDASNDASNDASNDA

This has been so much fun! And it's because of all of your encouragement and kind words and enthusiasm for the story! It was so overwhelming to find that you were all so willing to accept Alec into the Winchester family! I have to admit, it was reassuring to me that the boys had someone else looking out for them, because they get into so much trouble…even without my help.

I really will miss writing the three brothers. I'm not ruling out the possibility of penning some one shots of h/c. Course that's the premise that got this whole, gigantic, epic story started in the first place. It was you guys that turned it into a full fledged story with a plot and all by liking the AU concept. So, if anyone's interested in reading more tales of the 3 brothers, drop me a line.

Thank you so much for taking a chance on a crazy AU plot, for all your wonderful reviews of encouragement and for just tuning in chapter by chapter! I'm honored by the time you spent on this story!

Have a wonderful evening!

Cheryl W.