Alright, so now we're gaining some ground on the story. If everything goes the way I'm planning, we'll know how Lindsey survived the fire in 1983 and why the age gap between her and the boys is bigger than it should be next chapter. This chapter isn't so much plot building, but sibling bonding time. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: Supernatural belongs to our wonderful creator, Eric Kripke, not me.
Now onto the story!
When Castiel winged his way out of the hospital room, Lindsey scoffed.
"He sure knows how to make an exit, doesn't he?" her brothers chuckled.
"He can be a real pain in the ass, but he's helped us a lot in the past year," Sam explained as Dean nodded his agreement.
"Was he serious about the apocalypse?" Lindsey asked, fearing she already knew the answer.
"Yeah, he was," Dean answered solemnly. "Welcome to Armageddon, sister." The siblings let the weight of the situation settle in the room. By now, Sam and Dean were used to the idea of the world ending. Lindsey was having a little trouble keeping up.
"So what do we do now?" she asked after some time and much contemplation.
"Now," Dean replied, "we get you out of here and bunker down until Cas gets some news."
"Oh no," Lindsey shook her head. "If you want me to drop my life and follow you two lunatics off to god-knows-where, I'm at least leaving my life somewhere that I can pick it back up."
"What the hell are you talking about? We've gotta get you somewhere safe, now," Dean insisted.
"I need four days. That's it," Lindsey nearly begged. "I've got to take my exams."
"You're kidding me," Dean snorted. "We're not hanging out here to get wailed on by angels and demons just so you can take a few tests!" Sam looked at Lindsey sympathetically. He understood what it was like to need to finish a semester before dropping everything.
"Dean, come on. If things go the way we want, she'll be back to her life next week and we'll be nothing but a bad memory. We can hang out a few days to let her finish out the term," Sam reasoned with his brother.
"And we're already five hours from my campus," Lindsey bargained. "My friends and I didn't go camping in our backyard. That'll give us some distance. Give me four days and I'll go wherever you tell me." Dean sighed, running his hand over his tired eyes. Little siblings were the worst; now he had two.
"Fine, but we're doing this my way. We get to ward where we're staying. Sam or I will take you to your classes and pick you up when you're done," Dean huffed. Lindsey smiled thankfully at Sam.
"Hayley and I are renting a studio apartment in downtown Boston. We can stay there. We've got a guest bedroom and a couch for you guys to crash on," Lindsey offered.
"Good," Sam nodded, "we'll be able to hide among all the people there."
"Or get them all killed by freaking angels and demons," Dean muttered sourly.
"Dean," Sam cautioned, shooting his brother a look. Lindsey gave him her best puppy dog eyes.
"Dammit," Dean swore, "you do those even better than Sam." He nearly chuckled. The girl actually shared several of their mannerisms.
"I'll do everything you say," Lindsey promised earnestly, "and anything I can do to make this easier."
"Yeah, yeah. Let's get you discharged," Dean conceded. Sam and Lindsey shared a conspiratorial grin. As the boys left the room to find her doctor and go get the car, Lindsey began to think she might just like having these two as brothers.
Two hours later, the siblings were in an old '67 impala, heading towards Lindsey's apartment. To Dean's amazement, his newfound sister was singing along to all of his cassette tapes. When he asked about her extensive knowledge of classic rock, she shrugged and said her parents raised her on good music and she had a record player back at the apartment.
"I could show you my record collection when we get home, Dean," she partially shouted over the music and the wind coming through the open windows.
"Yeah, I'd like that," Dean chuckled, turning the radio back up and belting out ACDC's 'Hell's Bells'.
After four hours of heavy traffic, they finally pulled up to the apartment. Dean let out a low whistle.
"Nice digs," he commented appreciatively as he swung the impala into a parking space.
"Thanks," Lindsey replied, opening her door and sliding from the backseat. "Hayley's dad knows the owner so he gave us a great deal on rent. I've got extra scholarship money from Hopkins and Hayley got a little bit from the grad school she's going to." Sam nodded along. He remembered the days of making scholarship money stretch as far as it could go so he wouldn't have extra expenses.
Lindsey led the way to the building and pulled out a card to scan at the door. Dean made note of the building security as they walked in, figuring out what wardings would be best to keep them hidden.
"We're in apartment 214," Lindsey explained as they walked up the stairs. They had to go up two flights because all the apartments in the complex were lofts and consisted of two floors. She sighed in relief as she slid her key in the lock. She was glad she could come home for a few days and leave things in some order.
"Home sweet home," she smiled as she let her brothers in. The loft was open with cream walls and exposed beams of dark wood. They had a fireplace in the living room and the walls were lined with bookshelves. Her record player and vinyl collection sat on proud display on the coffee table beside the window next to the big armchair.
"Ok, so mine and Hayley's bedrooms are upstairs," Lindsey pointed to the stairs. "The guest bedroom is down the hallway to your right. There's two twin beds in there and the bathroom is across the hall. Towels and shampoo and stuff are already in there. Kitchen's over here," she indicated by flipping the light on. "Lucky for you two we spoil ourselves for finals so the cupboards and fridge are stuffed full. Please grab anything you want, there's no need to ask." Her brothers smiled at her and nodded their thanks. "I'm just gonna go tell Hayley you guys are staying here. No need to spook her," she chuckled.
"Thanks for letting us crash here, Lindsey," Sam said sincerely.
"No need to thank me," she shrugged. "We're family, right?" Dean laughed and ruffled her hair.
"You got that right, little one. Now go study for these tests that are oh-so important," Dean pretended to be stern and Lindsey felt genuine fondness begin to grow.
"Aye aye, cap'n," she mock-saluted. "You guys go get some rest. We've got Dish so you can watch TV if you want and a ton of movies. Dean, you're free to play with the vinyl. I'm gonna hit the hay." The boys told her goodnight as she walked up the stairs and collapsed into her bed. She pulled up her red and gold comforter and snuggled down into her memory foam and pillow top. She chuckled to herself. The boys would probably tease her if they saw her room. She had accidently decorated it in Gryffindor colors and upon realizing it, found it completely necessary to buy a miniature lion statue.
Half an hour later, she was just beginning to drift off when she heard her door drift open just before a body jumped on top of her.
Her scream stopped in her throat when she saw it was only Hayley. Scrambling into an upright position and pushing her wide-eyed roommate off her, Lindsey huffed, clearly irritated.
"What the hell, Hayley?" she demanded.
"What the hell? 'What the hell?' she says," Hayley babbled. "It is I who should be asking you 'what the hell?'!"
"What are you talking about?" Lindsey asked grumpily. It had been a long two days and she wanted to sleep, dammit.
"I'm talking about the two very hot, half-naked brothers of yours that are in our apartment." Oops. She had forgotten to tell Hayley the boys were here.
"Half-naked?" she asked.
"YES," Hayley nodded furiously. "I walk downstairs to get a glass of water and the first thing I encounter is the short, pretty one flipping through your records in nothing but sweatpants! They were so low, I could see his hipbones, Lindsey! And he's ripped, I mean ripped. So after I get past male model, I go to the kitchen and the tall, sexy one is in there in a towel, still dripping wet! I cannot describe to you how well built that man is. I mean the short one has got muscles, definitely, but that tall one, he's freakin jacked! So I'm standing there, gaping like a fish, and what does he do? He runs his hand through his wet hair all shy-like and apologizes! I'm thinking 'oh honey, I'm enjoying the show" and then he just walks off like it's nothing to be dripping wet and half-naked in my kitchen! Then, I tried to come back upstairs and the other one tells me we've got a nice place and winks at me!" Hayley was throwing her hands in the air and pulling her hair in wild angles. Lindsey had lost it halfway through her outburst and was clutching her sides as she rolled with laughter. Hayley looked at her expectantly, clearing wanting to know why she had encountered two very attractive men in her apartment at 1:30 in the morning.
"Sorry, Hayl," Lindsey gasped, trying to regain her breathing. "I forgot to tell you they were staying. And quit objectifying them! Those are my brothers you're talking about," she mock-scolded. Even before she knew they were her brothers, Lindsey hadn't been attracted to the boys, though she could not deny their great looks. Must be some innate sibling thing.
"I'm sorry, but damn," Hayley laughed. Lindsey shoved her shoulder lightly. "Why are they here, again?"
"We're staying until I'm done with finals," Lindsey explained, deliberately avoiding where they were going after. She really had no clue herself.
"Wait a minute," Hayley's brow furrowed. "We?'
"Yeah, I'm going with them," Lindsey shrugged, trying to be nonchalant.
"Going where?" Hayley asked suspiciously. Lindsey internally groaned. It was too damn late for this conversation.
"I'm not really sure," she sighed. "Just…away."
"Does this have anything to do with you killing that thing and the dude in the trench coat who can Apparate?" Lindsey laughed at that.
"I guess I owe you a bit of an explanation." Hayley nodded. "Well, I really don't know much myself. You already know they're my brothers, full-blood, and for some still unknown reason, I knew how to kill that monster. They said it was called a wendigo. Uhm, the guy in the trench coat is named Cas and he's an angel—" Hayley cut her off.
"Angel? You mean the ones from the Bible with fluffy wings and halos?"
"That's what I asked on the car ride here," Lindsey chuckled. "Yes, like the angels in the Bible, but they're not like we think. They're warriors of God and tough as nails, according to Dean. He also said a lot of them are dicks. Apparently God's not in heaven anymore so the kids decided to throw an apocalypse while daddy was away."
"Apocalypse? Like Armageddon?" Hayley asked with wide eyes.
"Pretty much," Lindsey nodded. "Cas realized heaven had been corrupted and started fighting to save the earth. He said my soul was surrounded by grace and a lot of it."
"What's grace?"
"It's like an angel's battery pack. It's where their power comes from. He said I would've had to have been surrounded by it when I was still developing to have the amount that I do. That's where the big mystery comes in. The angels wanted me for some reason. Sam and Dean think that's why I knew how to kill the wendigo. After it, right before I passed out, I had these flashes of how to hunt and kill everything that creeps around at night. The guys seem to think the angels gave me those memories. What really doesn't make sense is the age difference."
"Age difference?"
"Sam and Dean's—and I guess mine, too—mom died when Sam was six months old, but somehow, Sam's three years older than me. We don't know how far along she was with me—the boys said their dad, John, never mentioned her being pregnant—but it doesn't matter because I should've died in that fire with her. Something must have pulled me out and let me finish incubating," a shudder ran down her spine at the thought. It made her feel almost like some kind of test tube baby. Hayley patted her knee comfortingly.
"I feel like I should know your brothers' names. After everything that's happened, I seem to have forgotten them" she said lightly, deliberately changing the subject. Lindsey shot her friend a grateful look. She was already exhausted from having learned this information from the boys and wasn't eager to repeat it. Lindsey took a breath to steady herself and shake off how freaked out she was.
"Sam's the 'tall, sexy one' as you described him, and the 'male model' is Dean," she laughed, using air quotes. Hayley nodded seriously as if she were taking in classified information before dissolving into a fit of giggles. Her laugh was infectious and soon Lindsey was laughing too. She through her head back and laughed freely as the weight of the past few days momentarily lifted from her shoulders.
"Thank you, Hayl," she said as she calmed down. She didn't say what she was thanking her for, but Hayley understood. She shook her head with a gentle smile. There was no need for thanks; this is what best friends did for each other: accept the unacceptable and make you laugh about it.
"Goodnight, Linds," she yawned as she got up from the bed.
"Night, Hayley," Lindsey responded as she sunk down into her blankets.
"We still cooking Big Breakfast in the morning?" Hayley asked from the doorframe. Big Breakfast was a tradition of the honors program Hayley and Lindsey had been in. Even after they graduated from undergrad, the girls had kept the tradition alive by cooking a ridiculously large breakfast the day before finals started.
"Definitely," Lindsey grinned sleepily. Hayley nodded before turning her roommates fan on, as she knew Lindsey liked the noise. "Thanks," came her mumbled response as she nuzzled into her pillows. Hayley chuckled and went down the hall to her own room.
The next morning, Dean woke to the smell of frying bacon. Well if that wasn't enough to get a man out of bed, nothing was. He flipped back the covers and stretched lazily, taking note that Sam's bed was already empty and made. He snorted. His brother was such a priss sometimes. Still, Dean at least attempted to smooth down his blankets before pulling on a tshirt and walking to the kitchen.
"Morning, Dean," Lindsey smiled from the stove. She was keeping an eye on the bacon and sausage while Hayley flipped pancakes beside her without a spatula. She watched enviously as her roommate flipped the pan up and easily caught the pancake in the center—if Lindsey attempted that, her breakfast would end up on the floor.
"Morning," Dean returned groggily. Lindsey laughed as her brother rubbed his face sleepily and took mercy on him by motioning to the coffee maker.
"Just brewed it," she said, stirring the pot of gravy on the stove.
"Thanks ,"Dean said as he poured himself a steaming cup of coffee and moved to sit with Sam on the stools around the kitchen island. Hayley and Lindsey had no proper dinner table and preferred to sit at the island. "What's with all the food? Are we having a house party this morning?" Dean chuckled at his own joke while Sam shook his head with a light smile, amused by his brother's antics.
"No, just a finals tradition," Hayley answered as she poured more pancake batter into the pan. "Hope you boys are hungry. We've got enough here to feed an army." Dean patted his stomach as it gave an enthusiastic growl.
"I think we can manage that," he assured, eying the blueberry pancakes Hayley had just flipped out of the pan.
Once the girls had every thing ready, the boys helped them carry plates and dishes over to the island before tucking into their feast. Dean went straight for the biscuits and gravy Lindsey had made while Sam made for the chocolate chip pancakes. Dean wrinkled his nose in mock-disgust at his little brother—chocolate was not nor had it ever been a breakfast food. Biting into his biscuits and gravy, he nearly moaned around his fork.
"This is awesome, Lindsey," he enthused, taking overlarge bites and burning his tongue in the process.
"Thanks," Lindsey responded as she reached over the fruit bowl for some more bacon. Screw healthy eating; she had tests to study for. "I was raised in east Tennessee and gravy is a staple there. I can never get it quite as good as my memaw's, though."
"I seriously doubt that," Sam said as he stole some food from Dean's plate.
"Hey! Get your own," Dean demanded, batting his hand away. While he was distracted, Lindsey stole a piece of sausage from him! "Not you too! Ugh, little siblings are the worst," Dean griped melodramatically, now protectively guarding his food. Lindsey and Sam laughed, fist-bumping each other across the table.
Hayley sat back and observed the siblings quietly. Upon closer observation, Lindsey really did look like both of the boys. Her eyes matched Dean's exactly, but her cheekbones echoed Sam. All three of them scrunched their noses in nearly every expression they made. The boys were both right-handed while Lindsey was left dominant. They all drummed their fingers or bounced their legs, constantly moving. Their eyes darted rapidly around the room every so often before settling on each other. Hayley thought this was why Lindsey had such a hard time with eye contact during long conversations: it was hard-wired into her brain to be ever-vigilant of creatures straight out of nightmares. She watched the newfound siblings interact over her steaming mug of hot chocolate. She half-smirked—she felt very lucky that these two handsome specimens weren't her flesh and blood.
Sorry this took so long! Like Lindsey, I've been finishing up classes and finals. I'm on Christmas break now (yay!) so updates should be fairly regular for a while. What did everyone think of the mid-season finale? I would love to chat and talk theories! Message me if you want to talk! Thanks so much for reading and please review! I love getting feedback from you guys!