Jensen leaned way back at the bottom of the pocket, angling his cell-phone up at the top of the pocket. A miniature flash lit up the pocket for a fleeting moment, capturing the view of the fabric walls arcing up over his head. It was out of pure habit that he pulled up Jared's number and opened up the long line of text messages between them.
Pocket travel. Not a great view, he typed in.
Incredibly, the microscopic phone was able to hold a decent signal. The text message sent with no problem whatsoever. Slipping the iPhone back into his jeans pocket, Jensen pulled himself to his feet, stretching up to pull the buttonhole down to his eye level.
"Careful of Gina," he called up to Sam. "Ten-o-clock. Blonde, red shirt. She'll be messing with your hair for an hour if she gets ahold of you."
He heard Sam rumble some sort of non-committal reply before veering to the right according to his instructions. The thud of the hunter's steps shook Jensen right to his core, threatening to jostle him back to the bottom of the pocket.
"Right. Now the props warehouse is just past the catering tent," Jensen announced, starting to feel a burn in his throat.
"Got it," Sam replied, his voice much quieter to hopefully keep from drowning out Jensen. Even with the other man's shouting, Sam could barely make out what he was saying past the hustle and bustle of everyday life on the set.
He made sure to turn away from the woman Jensen indicated, thankful for the pointer. The last thing he wanted was anyone messing with his hair, especially with everything else going on. He sped up his pace, determined to get this all over with as soon as possible. Especially since Dean's life was probably on the line with the imp after him. She'd only shown any interest in 'protecting' Sam from anything bad happening, with Dean she only seemed determined to piss him off or egg him on.
Another woman walking along the pathway drew Sam's eyes, since she seemed to be veering in his direction. They widened when he saw her face, beyond shocked at the sight.
"Ruby?! "
"Honey, you can keep making that joke, but don't expect me to keep laughing." Oblivious to Sam's horror, she sauntered up with a scarlet smile on her lips. Rising on her tiptoes, she wrapped an arm around his neck, pressing a tender kiss to his lips.
Dread lurched within the shrunken actor as he watched the beautiful woman approach. It was impossible not to feel the wall of Sam's chest tense up, ready for a fight. This could so easily go from bad to worse as he remembered Sam's experiences with the woman that wore that face in his own universe.
"No, Sam wait!" Jensen aggressively hammered an open palm against Sam's chest. "It's not Ruby! Not Ruby!" The pocket lurched as Sam pulled away from the kiss. Jensen winced, praying dearly Gen hadn't heard him.
The panic in Sam's posture wasn't faked by any means. Ruby, Ruby, how is this possible, how'd she find me? Jensen's words started to sink in, his tiny voice shouting up from the pocket. They were both lucky Ruby... not Ruby? hadn't pulled him into a hug. That could have smooshed the tiny actor without a chance of him escaping.
"I, ah... I'm..." Sam couldn't manage to form a coherent thought with the appearance of his past demons resurfacing. It brought back to mind the demon blood, his betrayal of Dean, the freakin' apocalypse... all previously suppressed to the back of his mind.
Ruby, or whoever the hell she was peered at him in confusion, looking him up and down. "Do you have your cell phone on? I could have sworn I just heard Jensen's voice yelling..."
Thinking fast, Sam pulled out his cell. "Uh, yeah! Me and him were just talking... about stuff, you know... things on set and all that..."
Jensen couldn't say a word. Couldn't move a muscle. Not with Gen half a foot away, her eye level right at Sam's chest. The tiny actor could only sit back and hope that Sam was truly as skilled a hunter as nearly a decade of episodes had made him out to be. At the very least, better than his acting abilities- Good Lord! He kept a hand flat on Sam's chest, ready to signal him again if anything changed. He rolled his eyes up to the lip of the pocket, warily eyeing the crack of light flooding in. Never had he felt more out of place, more exposed. A simple slip of fabric keeping him from discovery.
Gen raised her eyebrows at the shut phone in Sam's hand. Whatever conflicting thoughts ran through her head were shaken off with a smile and a demure shrug.
"Well, tell him he's got to share you," she said, reaching up to affectionately comb his hair back behind his ears, a natural movement. "I got us reservations at The Moor tonight for nine. Promise me we don't have to cancel another sitter."
"That…" Sam was still off balance, thrown by the ghost of his past facing him down. "I, ah…" he didn't even know what he was doing with his hands anymore, vaguely waving them around to keep distance between them. "Wonderful! That sounds wonderful!" he finally managed to blurt out, eyes wide at how loud it came out.
He tried to ignore the curious glances he got from the crew scattered around the area. No one was surprised to see Ruby at all, so she must be a regular here. Jensen clearly knew her, and from the reaction of everyone around, she must be close to Jared. He slipped his phone into his pants again, hoping she hadn't noticed there'd been no one on the line. Jensen's tiny weight against his chest was motionless, waiting for Sam to move. Everyone seemed to be waiting for him.
"S...so. I'll be there," Sam said, backing away. He gave her a half wave, hoping she'd get the idea. "You, ah, you won't have to cancel another sitter. Promise. Jensen will have to wait."
The Ruby look-alike raised her own hand to parody his awkward wave. She didn't move from her spot, watching him with a bemused expression as if she'd been expecting something more. He turned his back on her and let himself into a door markedPROP HOUSE: AUTHORIZED CAST AND CREW ONLY. He didn't look back.
"I told him to cut back on caffeine," Gen muttered, slipping back on her sunglasses and shouldering her purse more securely. "But does he listen to me? No."
Jensen let out a halting sigh of relief as Sam shut the door behind them, shutting out the tumultuous sounds of the active set. The only footsteps around were Sam's rattling ones. They were alone, if only for a few minutes.
"Hey," Jensen patted the wall-like chest roughly. "Sam."
It still felt so strange to say that name. Even more so, get the man to answer to the fictitious name. The rumbling steps halted in reply to his shouts, and light flooded into the pocket soon after.
"Give me a boost outta here." Jensen called up. He braced himself as Sam dug in a couple fingers bigger than his entire body and gently drew him out in the palm of his hand.
Jensen swallowed a new wave of nausea at the paralyzing sight: a giant with his best friend's face, holding him in the palm of his hand under a face as big as an IMAX Screen. Sure, Jared had always been the taller one between them, but this was a whole other world of height difference. And he hated every second of it.
"Shit, it's good to be outta there... Listen, that lady back there- she's not a demon. She's just the actress who played one." Jensen explained, raising his eyebrows rather sternly at the giant hunter so he knew that he wasn't withholding the truth. At this ridiculous size, there wasn't much he could do to hold back a suspicious Sam Winchester. "Truth is, you're married to her. Or- er, Jared is."
Sam's eyebrows almost climbed off his face. "Married her? I actually… Jared actually married Ruby?" He had a hard time wrapping his mind around that. Married… he couldn't even imagine getting married these days after everything they'd been through. Jess had been his one chance at marital bliss in this life and with her gone, that chance was over. Hunting with Dean until the end was the only path he could see most days and he knew his brother felt the same with Lisa… Sam wished some days that he could point Dean towards her, give his brother the life he'd earned.
Sam shook his head, trying to clear those thoughts. "Can't believe he married her…" he muttered, pushing it out of his mind as best he could. His eyes scanned the room around them, trying to find their end goal of a crystal ball for the damn imp so this would be over with once and for all. "You have any idea where I'm gonna find this crystal?" he asked the tiny man standing on his hand. Sam got a strain in his chest, knowing Dean could be going through the same thing or worse if they didn't get it fixed, andfast.
Jensen faltered momentarily, peering between the monstrous fingers. It took his eyes an extra few seconds to read the labels on the clear plastic boxes lining the tremendous shelves, like his brain was still reluctant to admit his reality was so warped right now.
"Try down towards the end of that row," he said. It was a shot in the dark, seeing as they hadn't used crystal balls in an episode for over a season. But his instinct proved right. In a crewman's hurried lettering, a faded label listed off a number of assorted items- crystal balls included.
Sam gingerly set him down on the shelf above. Jensen felt like he was standing on an open scaffolding more than a simple shelf, and safely pressed himself far back as he could. The entire structure shook as Sam pulled out the box and was finally rewarded for his efforts. Crystal balls of a variety of coloring and size lay in foam containers.
While Sam took his pick of the lot, Jensen suddenly went rigid. His fair skin dropped a hue lighter as he very slowly glanced towards the corner of his eye. He couldn't see anything, but if the hair on the back of his neck was any indication, someone or something was certainly there. He whipped his head around, but saw only empty air. A whisper of a giggle floated taunting through the air. Jensen shuddered, his body tensed defensively as he glared all around him.
Sam dug through the box, not noticing how tense Jensen had become. The box was full of all sorts of odds and ends that would be at home in that psychic town he and Dean had passed through a while back. He discarded a few of the crystal balls, expert eyes recognizing them for the fakes they were, but at last his hand landed on the real deal. The smooth crystal was cool to the touch under his fingers, sending a shock of ice through his arm.
Dropping the box on the floor, Sam straightened. He tucked the crystal ball into his jacket as he did so, keeping it safe in a deep pocket. Holding a hand to the miniaturized actor, Sam gave him an optimistic smile. "All we need now is that incantation for the spell to trap her and to find Jared and Dean," he promised, feeling hopeful with the crystal ball tucked close to his body. Hopefully this would all be over before they managed to screw up the actors lives any more, and he and Dean would be back where they belonged, on the road in the Impala once more.
Across the set, the director was having a fit about how his two lead actors had seemed to disappear into thin air. Security guards roamed the set, communicating brief messages through walkie talkies, communicating the men's basic descriptions.
Jared's luck was running thin as he tried desperately to stay out of sight for a while longer. Dean couldn't see exactly where the guy was going. All he knew, was that those massive, massive movements were getting less careful. Any next jolt or shake could send him plummeting down hundreds of feet to a death that no amount of hunting training or preparedness could prevent.
He lurched forward as Jared ducked around a corner. He was starting to taste that cheeseburger again. Dean cursed under his breath, glaring at Jared's ear and what he could vaguely see of his looming profile.
"Hey!" Dean barked hoarsely. His fair, freckled face was a hue of sea-sick green. "Jared! You... you gotta slow down. This ain't a friggin' rodeo."
Jared slipped further back in the corner. "I'm trying, alright? This isn't exactly easy on me, either. You ever have someone yelling at you in your ear?" A tiny bit of guilt rose up in him after he snapped, knowing it wasn't Dean's fault any of this was happening. But it wasn't Jared's either, and he was just trying to help.
Now that he was out of sight, he dug his phone out to respond to the message he'd received earlier on. At least one of them has a head on his shoulders, Jared thought to himself, almost snorting at Dean's stubborn determination to stay out of his pockets. For a moment he wondered if Sam would even have put up with the hunter's shit or just stuck him in the pocket anyway. Wasn't like the hunter could put up much of a fight, at least.
Where the hell are you two? I found Dean; we've been looking all over the place for you!
Clicking SEND Jared waited Jensen's response, almost desperate to find the others, and he was certain Dean felt the same.
Dean leaned over, peering between the dark strands of hair while still keeping a death grip on the shirt collar. Riding on a giant's shoulder didn't give him the best view in the house, but he could make out a name past the steep slope that was Jared's chest- it was that Jensen guy who had his face.
Within seconds of the text message going out, the little fine print underneath changed from "delivered" to "seen." And not long after that, to "-is typing."
The phone buzzed in Jared's hand: We got the crystal. Get to hair and makeup with copy of script ASAP.
Dean couldn't help but grin proudly as he squinted down at the oversized screen. Sammy had come through. "That's my boy," he announced to himself.
Jared tucked his phone away. "Looks like we've got a plan," he announced, grinning with the tiny hunter. "We might have a chance to get this mess taken care of before anyone catches sight of you or Jensen."
He took a moment to peer around the corner. No one seemed to be searching for him that second, and everyone was intent on their own tasks, the majority of the PA's with their heads down to avoid being drafted for other work. Now's as good a time as any, I guess, he thought to himself.
"Hang on, alright?" he said quietly down to the hunter on his shoulder.
Once he was certain Dean was secure, Jared walked out from the hidden alcove, trying to go for a casual 'I'm absolutely not up to anything' stroll, he headed back to his trailer, the closest place he could guarantee a script without other people hanging around like on set.
Dean buried his face into the side of Jared's collar, wishing every powerful step to be the last. He hated the damn plaid pattern of the huge shirt- it was identical to Sam's in every way. Hell, he was pretty sure he'd stolen this shirt from Sam once or twice over the years when all his stuff was dirty.
The feeling of how wrong this was never left. Dean couldn't shake the idea that Jared shouldn't even exist, that he was an imposter of sorts. Couldn't wait to say "sayonara" and move on from this size-ridiculed nightmare.
His complaints grew fewer as the ride drug on. It was like some rickety roller coaster from hell, with no safety restraints other than a shade of too-long hair and a oversized thread looped into his belt.
The steps up and down the trailers were the worst- Jared was just as big as Sam, but with a sincere lack of a hunter's subtleness in his gait. Each slamming step made Dean clench his teeth painfully as he was lurched against Jared's neck.
At long last, Jared slowed to a halt. Dean heard him fumble for a lock, the script rustling in his other hand. The lights in this room were only half on, but Dean could already sense they weren't quite alone. For the first time, he pushed Jared's hair out of the way behind the actor's ear. There, staring back at him from the other side of the cramped trailer, was his little brother. Dean's throat just about closed up just settling his eyes on him, and by the looks of it, Sam wasn't doing so hot either.
But he was the eldest. It was his job to set the example of steadiness, even at two and half inches high. Dean pushed himself to his feet and cleared his throat to be the first to break the ice.
"Heya, Sammy."
"Dean..." Sam breathed, taking a few steps forward. Jensen was still standing in his hand, the fingers curled up around the actor protectively. "Thank god you're alright."
He gingerly held Jensen out to Jared, allowing the actor to climb into his friend's hand before hesitantly reaching up to Dean, the tiny hunter standing on Jared's shoulder. "It has been way too long since I saw you," he finished, eyes shining a little more. Maybe this case would finally end now, with all of them back together. Finish off that imp bitch and make everyone the size they were supposed to be. His other hand tightened around the crystal ball he was gripping, knowing it was the last piece of the puzzle, fitting in perfectly with the script Jared had that contained the incantations.
His hand stopped next to Dean, giving the tiny hunter the choice of either climbing in or being scooped up. Sam knew one thing, and that was that he didn't want to waste another second with Dean away from him, not with everything that had happened on this case so far.
Dean chuckled, equal parts relieved and nervous. But god, was it damn good to see his face again. To see those big, dewy eyes of his and know for sure it was his brother looking back at him. The hand rose up next to him, making Dean feel embarrassed all over again at his lack of stature. But he wasted no time in untangling himself from Jared's collar and clambering onto Sam's hand. Just like Jared's hand, Sam's skin sank in a bit as Dean's boots pressed down, giving way to the point where every step had to be carefully weighed.
"Don't get too sappy on me." Dean smirked up at Sam and gave the crease of his palm a rough pat. He was still pale and clammy from the nightmarish height, but he pushed past it, knowing Sam likely needed equal reassurance right now.
Not even three inches tall in the younger man's hand, Dean visibly gave him a once-over. It seemed like Sam was catching a lucky break- no size quirks or injuries in sight.
Spotting Dean's pale face, Sam tucked his hand against his chest, trying to keep the heights out of Dean's line of sight. He remembered a time the year before when Dean had been worried about staying on the fourth floor of a motel, and even though that had been brought on by ghost sickness, it was obviously a very real fear in the hunter, as hard as Dean might try to hide it. Right now, Dean was even higher up, with far less in between him and the ground. Sam could remember how high it had seemed to him when he'd been standing on Dean's hand not so long ago. He brushed a finger over Dean's head to reassure himself the hunter was alright.
"Okay, so I think we have everything we need to get this reversed," Sam said, hefting the crystal ball in his other hand and gesturing at the script in Jared's hand. "All we need now is the imp and it's game time."
Dean clapped his hands together, the first real spark of hope surging through his downsized body. "Let's do this!"
Jared held up the script in his free hand, thumbing through the pages. It became obvious it was nearly impossible to do so with Jensen crouching in the center of his other hand. The two exchanged a nearly identical look, a passing grunt of acknowledgment from both men. With this unspoken permission, Jared moved over to gently set Jensen down on the seat of the black leather chair. Jensen gave it a weirded-out look, having sat in this chair countless times at the break of dawn. Jared stood up, but Jensen beckoned him back down to his level.
"Lemme see that." Jensen urged, jutting his chin at the script. He stayed his ground as Jared flipped through to the proper page of dialogue. He turned his head left and right, angling himself to read the massive letters. Finally, he nodded.
"Summoning is already in the first part," Jensen noted. "The uh, confinement comes next."
Jared nodded, his mouth dry as he watched Sam set down crystal in the middle of the small space. "You think, all these years..." He glanced slowly to look at the tiny, familiar face below him. "You think they've been giving us the real deal with these incantations?"
Jensen made a tiny noise of exasperation and shrugged. "Well, I think we pre-exorcised about a hundred poor saps if that's the case." He looked at the script and squared his shoulders. He already knew the words quite well from his read-throughs. And he was damn ready for his life to go back to normal. With a final look way up at the impossible doubles found in Sam and Dean Winchester, Jensen took a breath and started to recite.
"Regala, incitus pertus... ad ligandum eos, potiter et solvendum... Lianda porus me." Jensen finished and swiveled around, as if expecting to find the imp waiting directly behind him. With narrowed eyes, he surveyed the room. "Should I go for take two?" he asked uncertainly.
The room was silent after his words, everyone waiting with bated breath. Sam shifted uncertainly, peering around every corner.Maybe she's just hiding from us... he thought uncertainly.
Sam... I thought we really had something here. I'm disappointed.
Stiffening, Sam twisted around, finding the tiny girl floating directly behind him. Little, iridescent wings rippled into existence, keeping her aloft in the air. She gave a dark smile at them, fluttering into motion. The next thing they knew, she had knocked the script from Jared's hands, sending him on his hands and knees to grab it back.
She landed next to Jensen, eyeing up Dean's doppelganger with an intrigued eye while Jared climbed back to his feet. "You think you're gonna stop me? Please, I thought you boys would at least come up with a challenge for me!"
Though pallid with utter shock, Jensen managed to clear his head enough to aim a powerful blow to the side of her head. The imp nimbly ducked, making it look irritatingly easy. Jensen eyed her up, circling a bit to the left cautiously before making his next move. He wasn't entirely sure whether kicks and punches would hurt the demon girl at all, but she was there in the flesh, the perfect size to pin down. He may not have been able to do much, but getting his life back was worth fighting for.
"Come on, big boy," she taunted, biting her lower lip to keep from laughing. Jensen clenched his jaw and lunged- his next blow hit her squarely on the cheek. It was like hitting a sponge-coated cement wall. The imp did not so much as flinch, though she pouted at him disagreeably.
"Rude." Even as the giants moved behind them, the imp's speed and strength were in line with her demon kin. She gripped Jensen's collar with both hands and chucked him over the side of the chair.
Jared caught the movement out of the corner of his eye. Horrified words couldn't even make it out of his throat. Abandoning the script, he dove with both hands outstretched to catch his friend. The crystal ball rolled into the shadow of the next chair.
Even as Jared caught Jensen at the last second, thudding heavily to the ground, Sam dove for the crystal ball, cupping Dean against his chest for safety. He scooped it up, desperately backing away from the tiny girl that rippled into view in front of him. She dove for the ball, slicing at his hand with her tail. He gripped it tighter, determined not to let her win. His brother and Jensen were counting on them...
Jared scrambled to his feet, Jensen and script safely back in hand. He shared a glance with Sam and started the second incantation, the one that would trap the imp in the crystal ball, hopefully forever. Oddly familiar words rolled off his tongue, adjusted to it after years of pretending to be the man in front of him.
The sphere began to glow a faint red, gathering its own magical sheen. Reflections shot out among the room, making it all seem to shimmer. A loud ringing noise echoed in Sam's ears. "See if you can change them back to size!" he tried to shout over the roar, letting a disoriented Dean slide off his hand.
Jared's words changed, focusing on the two smaller men in the room. The red reflections concentrated on Dean and Jensen, making their small forms almost burn with an internal light. Sam backed away right as the other two shot up in size, returning to their former height. The ball of tension in his chest started to unwind for the first time in days.
Wind whipped through the room, twisting Sam's hair into a mess. You know, it was never going to be that easy, said a voice in his head.
Sam felt himself shrink inside at the menace directed at him. No, not possible, you're trapped...
Maybe you should have handled the latin yourself, big boy. This is gonna be fun. Your big brother can't do anything to save you now...
The red shattered on Dean and Jensen, both full sized, then all the beams hit Sam at once. The world wavered... then started to grow.
He was shrinking.