Season 7 Episode 23

They stood on the porch of Rufus' cabin, stealing a few minutes before they had to hit the road to take down Dick Roman. Dean was checking over Sophie's gear. She'd been on dozens of hunts now. Over a hundred probably. But he still kept the habit. When he'd finished reviewing every item, every buckle, every single detail, he pulled her into his arms and held her, both of them acutely aware this might be the last chance they got.

"Hey Sophie," Dean murmured against her forehead, "I want you to promise me something?"

"Of course," Sophie pulled away and gazed at him with those big blue eyes, "What is it babe?"

"You know how, before Sam got back, we were gonna have a baby?" Dean asked.

"Yeah?" Sophie's eyes flashed with excitement for half a second, but then she furrowed her brow, "Why?"

"If we both make it out of this," Dean took a deep breath, "We're having that baby. Promise?"

"Promise," she murmured.

He bent his head to kiss her.

"Promise," she whispered again when he pulled away.

Season 8 Episode 1

"You were gone, Dean. Cas was gone. Bobby was dead. What did you expect me to do?" Sam challenged.

"What about Sophie?" Dean demanded, "You walk out on her?"

"Dean I was on my own," Sam countered, "Completely alone. And I didn't have a road map."

"Alone?" Dean snapped, "What the hell did you do with Sophie?"

"I put her on a flight," Sam replied, "She's in Myrtle Beach."

"Why?" Dean asked.

"She wanted to look for you. Hasn't stopped for the last year far as I can tell. She's developed a pretty fanatical obsession with medieval church history in the process. She calls every few weeks. We catch up. She's fine," Sam assured him.

"So you bailed on her?" Dean asked, "You had one person left and you abandoned her?"

"Dean...look...I couldn't," Sam stammered.

"You couldn't what?" Dean snapped.

"Honestly?" Sam paused and took a deep breath, "I could hardly even look at her. I was worried sick about you, but I wasn't about to start digging. She was. So I put her on a flight. She went to live with one of her best work friends down in South Carolina. Ella from finance...she's probably mentioned..."

"Because she was trying to find me," Dean murmured.

"Best I can tell she didn't stop for a second," Sam replied.

"Thanks for bailing on my disabled wife," Dean snapped, clapping Sam on the shoulder and making for the door.

SPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPN

It was after dark when a car pulled up and someone pounded on the door. Sam reached for his gun but Dean waved him off.

"It's Sophie," Dean replied.

"How did she..." Sam began, but trailed off when his brother answered the door and pulled Sophie into his arms. It felt rude to interrupt. Intrusive to just be there as Dean clutched her to his chest and kissed her head.

"I missed you," Sophie whispered, her voice heavy with tears, "I missed you."

"I'm sorry baby," Dean murmured into her hair, "I'm so sorry."

After a long moment Sophie pulled away and looked at Sam. She had on one of the dresses she'd sewn back in Fayetteville with one of Dean's work shirts over top. And she had that same leather backpack and nylon duffel she'd brought out of her apartment in Windsor nearly a decade before.

"Go pay my cab driver," she snapped.

"What?" Sam looked flustered.

"You heard the lady," Dean added.

"Why did you..." Sam began.

"Do you know how freaking hard it is to get from South Carolina to Whitefish, Montana when you can't drive?" Sophie asked.

"Fair point," Sam conceded, fishing in his pocket for his wallet and making for the door.

With Sam outside dealing with the exceptionally disgruntled cabbie, Dean pulled Sophie down next to him on the couch. It felt like if he broke contact, even for a second, she'd disappear again. He couldn't bear the thought. She curled into his chest, their bodies remembering each other perfectly. She still smelled the same, even straight off a flight. Incense. Baking bread. Lavender.

"So before I left you promised me something," Dean murmured into her hair, trying to tuck her even closer into his side.

"I remember," Sophie giggled.

"What do you say I lock Sam out for half an hour and we get to work on that baby?" Dean offered.

"Best idea you've ever had," Sophie replied, climbing onto his lap and kissing him.