Legal Disclaimer: I own my stuff, but not the original source material. That belongs to whoever. Also, the opinions and interpretations I use here may not reflect the same in said whoever that owns the source material. Look, I'm just a poor college librarian. Suing me isn't going to get you anything but tears.

Warning: This work may be offensive to some readers. Feel free to back out if need be.

Author's Note: I should be working on projects that are due Friday. Instead, I decided to feed Harry.

Submitting Info:
Stacked with: Hogwarts (Term 12); MC4A
Individual Challenges: Gryffindor MC; Magical MC; Hunter MC (x3); Immortal MC; Neurodivergent; Rian-Russo Inversion; Ethnic & Present; Booger Breath; Claimed; Hold the Mayo; Zed Era; Old Shoes (Y); New Fandom Smell (Y); Above Average Natural; In a Flash; The Real MC (Y); Two Cakes (Y); Eating Cake (Y); Green Ribbon
House: Hufflepuff
Assignment No.: Term 12 – Assignment 6
Subject (Task No.): n/a
Other Hogwarts Challenges: Insane Prompt Challenge [516](Hurt/Comfort); 365 [260](Reaper); Crazy Cone Contraptions [18](Blushing/Flushing); Hello Spring [05](Lemon & Blueberry Cake); Days of the Year [4/10] (Write about a strong bond between siblings); Tarot Card [05] (New Beginnings); Hufflepuff Prompts [T02] (Dedicated)
Other MC4A Challenges: Sp Bingo [3E](Sweet); Tr Bingo [4C](Damsel in Distress); Hunt [Sp Consumables](Sandwich)
Representation(s): autistic Harry Potter; Bisexual Dean Winchester; Team Free Will as Family
Primary & Secondary Bonus Challenges: Persistence Still; Odd Feathers; Pocky Pockets; Wabi Sabi; Demo (Found Family; Muck & Slime); Demo (Machismo; Tomorrow's Shade; Unicorn; Soul-Like; Hot Stuff; Misshapen Pods)
Tertiary & Generic Bonus Challenges: T3 (Terse; Tether)
Word Count: 858

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Needs and Wants
Chapter 7: Reading In
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Dean knew how to spot a lot of different things. He had learned it growing up on the road, and it had kept both him and Sammy alive more than once. It wasn't exactly a talent that he could shut off when it wasn't needed, but that only kept him sharp. When monsters can look like anyone, a hunter had to be able to spot the tiny tells that gave them away, the little things that marked them as different.

Despite his protesting to the contrary, there was something different about Harry. It wasn't just how interested Death and the reapers were in the kid either. Something in how he carried himself was just off. He had no problem standing up to anyone, no matter how potentially dangerous, and yet when Bobby had gotten gruff, the kid had clammed up faster than an angel banishment worked. His clothes were clean and in decent repair (very worn but without rips or tears), but they were all at least three sizes too large for Harry's scrawny frame.

That was another thing.

Harry was tiny, nowhere near the size that a kid his age should be. Now, his defensiveness of his being nearly thirteen made sense in that regard, even if Dean would have tried using the assumption of a younger age (and presumed innocence that accompanied it) to his advantage. There were only a limited number of reasons that a kid would be that small. There were even fewer reasons that were accompanied by sharp features and knobby wrists.

The real clincher was when Harry made a chunk of cake wrapped in a paper napkin disappear without Dean being able to tell where it went. That kind of slight of hand was definitely typical of a hunter. Not all clues could be collected in an official manner, after all. Now Jody's lemon and blueberry cake was tasty, but the way that Harry was stashing portions, Dean wasn't certain if Harry knew that.

By the way that Bobby kept signaling for Sam to put another piece in front of Harry, Dean knew that he must have noticed it, too.

The kid still needed something more than cake.

"Hey, Sammy," Dean asked, "did you see any sandwich fixings while you were rummaging through the fridge?"

"What? Oh, yeah—uh, just let me—" Sam went to stand up, but Dean clapped him on the shoulder and got up instead. As Dean was pulling out Bobby's surprisingly extensive supplies, Sam cleared his throat. "Should we—I mean, Harry probably isn't aware of the current situation, so we should explain, right?"

"I'm sorry," Bobby interrupted, "but what part of he's a kid did you not understand?"

"The part where you already mentioned the Apocalypse," Sam countered drily, "and if we don't explain how we're not religious nuts, Harry may decide to take off?" Dean hummed in agreement as he set about making a stack of plain turkey and cheese sandwiches. Emboldened, Sam continued. "Look, no one is saying that Harry needs to be front and center on this—even if Death hadn't pretty much demanded that the kid and you stayed put, this kind of stuff isn't safe. But this place is, like, hunter central even when it's not the end of the world, and hiding things is not gonna work out for anybody."

"Then there's the little tidbit about how potentially being possessed by a demon is not the weirdest thing to happen for the kid," Dean commented as he began putting away the sandwich supplies. He glanced at Harry, whose dark face was flushing just like Sam's had at that age whenever he figured out that he had spoken too much. He had pulled both his hands into his overly long sleeves and was worrying his bottom lip, too. All while being obvious about not looking anywhere near where Castiel was standing nearby. "Kid says his entire life is strange enough that he doesn't worry too much about it, even when he gets dragged to the middle of a different country. Something tells me that he isn't exactly a stranger to these kinds of things."

"Fine," Bobby agreed, "but you had better top me off before you sit down, because ain't no way I can handle this with only one cup of coffee."

Rolling his eyes, Dean grabbed the coffee pot and did just that for both Bobby and Sam. Putting the coffee pot back on the warming plate, Dean picked up the plate of sandwiches. He sat it on the table in front of his spot as he sat back down in his spot between Harry and Bobby. Sam raised an eyebrow at him from across the table before taking one of the sandwiches. Almost absently, Sam then pushed the plate towards Harry.

"You know about demons and reapers being real," Bobby started, "but they ain't the only ones. The whole kit and kaboodle are, too. Angels, werewolves, vampires—pretty much all of the creatures from folklore. Magic's real, too."

"Okay," Harry commented, dragging out both syllables and sounding a bit more like a teenager. "Is that supposed to be news?"