JustAnna

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Duke

Duke simply stood there, being whatever emotional support that Esme needed in the moment. She and Mika were in a full civil conversation, and it was heavenly. They could potentially be friends. For once, Dean’s inability to have closure in relationships might not hurt the two women that Dean would call his ‘big ones’.

His ears perked up and he frowned with slightly widened eyes, turning his eyes down to Esme’s face as she mentioned being in the asylum at the same time as Nat. Duke’s mind flashed to that time, as the story was told by Dean, and he closed his eyes with regret instantly. Dean had called him, asking him to come and help with a demon situation. Duke had let the call go to voicemail, figuring that it was just a ploy for Dean to try and speak to him again, when Duke wasn’t ready to bridge the gap between them after the fallout. He listened with his eyes closed to Esme’s explanation of how things went down, realizing that maybe…just maybe if he had been the extra set of hands, he would have thought to even check for other rooms, or maybe he could have heard a noise. Deep down, he knew it wasn’t likely, but the guilt was still there.

As Mika spoke her own guilt and apologies, Duke sighed, clenching his jaw at the fact that Dean had brought Mika along and Duke hadn’t even bothered to answer the phone. He should have been there to back her up. It was a miracle, from what he had gathered, that they all made it out mostly in one piece. As the room fell silent for a brief moment, Duke shuffled on his feet a bit and he turned his eyes down to the floor, “I should…I should have been there too. Dean called me and I was so wrapped up in tryin’ to stay away from him that I didn’t come. Maybe…m-maybe I could have felt you there or somethin’. I could have looked for the door…or I don’t know. But I should have picked up the phone.”

He sniffled, not even realizing that he was getting emotional, he was so used to repressing emotions around everyone but Mika. He tilted his head, trying to push all those emotions away, “Just like if I hadn’t got hurt, because of my own stupidity, I could have protected you back at the farm. I guess…I guess I’m just sorry, like Mika. We didn’t know.”

Dean

Dean kept his gaze on Natalia’s eyes as she took in his words. The look in her eyes once again reminded him of Sam, and it was then that she realized how much the two looked alike. Both his baby siblings had the same eyes, and it was a bit of a weakness for him. He almost sighed with relief at her little nod, before she wrapped her arms around him, her face buried in his chest. With a deep breath, Dean released her hand and wrapped both his arms tightly around her body, holding her to him. At her words, Dean closed his eyes, pressing his lips to the top of her head, “I know. I know you have.”

Dean brought a hand up, stroking his fingers through the back of Nat’s hair as he held her, just letting her cling to him until she didn’t need to. He didn’t care how long it took. He wasn’t losing his little sister…not after all that time. Not after managing to get her back from that horrible place all over again. It was time to put pettiness aside, and be her brother.

As Nat spoke, Dean nodded, a small scoff shaking his chest as she mentioned that both she and he were horrible with their feelings. Again, they were a lot alike, mores than they would ever admit, and Dean had to wonder if that’s why John never said anything to Dean about her. Maybe John thought that if she was around someone who she could see herself in…she would become all the parts of Dean that John hated. At the idea of Esme helping Nat, Dean nodded against her head and he petted her hair a bit more, “Esme’s a good ally to have for…dealing with uncomfortable emotions. That’s all a story for another time, but yeah…I do know that much.”

Bringing up the situation with Anna almost caused Dean to shake his head. He didn’t want to talk about that, while she was so fragile, but what he thought was going to be more calling him out for lying turned into her practically begging him not to kill Cason. Dean frowned, staring off at the gravel with hazy eyes as he let her begging sink in. He didn’t want her mixed up with demons. A huge part of him wanted to tell her that he couldn’t accept Cason. He probably never would, but couldn’t he? Cason was proving to at least be docile with Natalia. Dean didn’t quite believe that they loved each other. Sure, Nat seemed madly in love with the guy…but a demon feeling love? Nah. Dean couldn’t subscribe to that idea.

As he glanced up from the gravel, his eyes found Cason standing against a car in the distance, minding his own business and smoking a cigarette. He scanned Cason’s demeanor, and how he could tell that Cason had an ear ‘pointed’ at he and Natalia. At the very least, Cason seemed to care.

Dean’s heart clenched at Nat’s last words, and he held her a little tighter, turning his attention back to her as his heart dipped into his stomach. He pressed his lips tightly to the top of her head, and sighed, “I’m not going to do anything to him and I’m not going anywhere. I’m here. Alright? I’ve got you. I’ll talk to him…”, he promised, glancing back up at Cason again, before petting the back of Nat’s head.

Anna

Anna had to admit that she believed Sam about Mika. Mika seemed to be able to twist Dean’s arm in whichever way that she needed to. If anyone was going to break through his stupid shell, it was Mika. When he brought up Natalia breaking the windows out of the Impala, a pang of guilt hit her chest at first, but the idea of Nat going ton a full rampage and breaking the other five windows out of the car did bring a small smirk to the corner of her lips.

“I think he’s out numbered, at the moment…lots of women.” She joked softly, feeling a bit better just at the reminder to her brain that she wasn’t in danger. She wasn’t near Dean, and didn’t have to deal with his judgements or his mean words. She didn’t have to see the fall out of her dropping a bombshell on Natalia. She could just exist here with Sam.

When Sam’s phone vibrated, Anna sat up slowly, crossing her legs into a pretzel as she leaned into Sam’s chest, “Is that Dean? You can answer it if you need to. I’ll just…not be here.”, she offered, not necessarily wanting Sam to ignore his brother. She just wanted him to make his own decisions and to not blindly follow his brother into the pits of Hell, which seemed to be where Dean wanted to return, half the time.

“I hate this. You have so much bigger issues to worry about than squabbles between me and your belligerent brother…” Anna scoffed as more tears threatened to spill over her eyelids. “It just all seems so petty…self centered. And yet…I’ve craved being this close to you, alone for a while. I’ve wanted you to choose me…like there’s some meaning to our hearts beating in time, or me being guided to you. Something good can come out of this, you know?”

As Anna rambled, finally spilling all the thoughts she hadn’t been able to express while high that morning, she aggressively wiped tears from her cheeks, “Now everything is quiet, and it’s just me and you...we have a chance to talk, and to be close and I feel selfish…”

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean

Dean expected but hated the reaction from both girls. He had known Cason for so long that him being a demon just never came up, unless they had an accident with some iron, or the odd devils trap in some random hunters house. It was rare that Cason ever made it very obvious. Sure, he could disappear at will. He could control hellhounds. He was vicious when it came to those he cared about, which pretty much only included Natalia. But to Dean, he was just any other human, after years of fighting himself over Cason’s nature.

Dean sighed, hearing Lexi’s mix of disbelief and what almost sounded like disappointment. He glanced over to her, and held her eyes as she explained that she would agree to trust Cason if he did. He nodded slowly, and raised his eyebrows, “Good. You can trust your gut instinct around him, just don’t look at his smile. He’s manipulative.”

Deans words were partially teasing her and partially serious. Cason was really good at getting his way, for better or for worse. At Lexi’s musing about Nat being ‘quite the sister’, Dean nodded, “Yeah. She is. We got a bit lucky, I guess.”

Dean glanced over to Anya, who still looked uncomfortable with the idea of having a demon in the bunker. He just let Sam calm her, as he could see her face brightening a little with how calm Sam seemed on his own. Dean turned and looked at Lexi, quickly standing from his chair as she mentioned that she was going to go wash up, “I’ll help. We might work quicker together and I’m good company.”

He gave a sheepish grin, and followed close behind Lexi

Anya

Anya took in Dean’s words but she was still shocked. She couldn’t imagine a world in which Dean Winchester would be okay with having a demon in his home. Sam’s hand being placed on her knee pulled her attention away from Dean’s face, as she glanced down at the hand. Anya narrowed her eyes at Sam’s explanation, and she pulled her phone up, typing a short message.

“Demons can feel love?”

She was a bit surprised, and in a way, intrigued by this demon. If he could feel love, then he could feel empathy. At least, he could feel something akin to empathy, she had to assume. So, maybe he was actually nice, in his human ways. The more she thought about it, the more intrigued she became, and the idea of meeting this demon didn’t feel as scary. It felt exciting. She wanted to ask him a million questions.

Hearing Sam call Cason a puppy only made her want to meet the guy more, and she giggled, pulling her phone back onto the table top, as Lexi stood and walked off to the kitchen, with Dean in tow. She was about to ask Sam more questions about the demon his sister was lovin’ on, when he asked about her clothes and things back in her motel room. With a short nod, Anya stood from her chair, brushing her fingers over the back of Sam’s neck as she walked to the library. She pulled her backpack off the chair she had left it on the night before, and dug out a motel room key, walking back to him with a small skip. She tossed the key on the table in front of him, and then typed.

“I’m coming with you, though. I mean…it is my stuff. I should ride along. Maybe we can kill two birds with one stone and do the whole tattoo thing while we’re there.”

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Duke

Duke felt Esme tense against him a bit, and glanced down when she looped one of her fingers through a belt loop. He didn’t acknowledge it, keeping his attention on her face. She was obviously tired, and what little he knew about her empathy, she had to be emotionally overwhelmed around everyone, with all the tension. He moved his hips a bit closer to her, keeping his hand on her hip as she and Mika spoke.

Mika and Esme speaking so calm with one another was a relief, as Duke turned his eyes from Esme over to Mika as she thanked Esme for her efforts with Nat. Duke didn’t know Nat as well as he knew Mika and Dean, but he could tell that she was a lot like Dean. She was more like Dean than she would ever admit, he had to assume.

“Well, I mean, who better to have out there than someone who knows her type…” Duke chimed in before he realized he had spoken up. “I mean, you and Esme know Dean like the back of your hand. Nat doesn’t seem that much different. Maybe a little more closed off…different trauma and all that.”

He shrugged his shoulders, sinking into the calm in the room, between two women that he loved more than anything.

“Seems like we’re all makin’ strides tonight, right?”

Dean

It was Dean’s turn to listen, and listen he did. He waited patiently as Nat gathered her words, and glanced over to her when she finally did speak. Of course she just wanted him to respect her and to see her as a sister, and not some kid to babysit. He was her big brother. But when she mentioned that he resented her, he frowned, shaking his head instantly. It was a gut reaction, and he hoped that she would take it for what it was. He didn’t feel that way at all. There were times that he wished she felt she could come to him the way she came to Sam, but resentment wasn’t the word…

Dean didn’t voice what he was thinking. He just let her vent to him, the way she had probably needed to for a while. This had been brewing for a while. He had lost her trust, completely. He had taken away her agency, under the guise of protecting her…a habit of his. As soon as her eyes met his, Dean’s own eyes began to well up in tears a bit. He snarled his nose to try and press them down, but it was hard to deny the feeling in his chest that told him that he was the one who broke her spirit. He had done a lot of damage, in the heat of the moment.

“I don’t know…” He whispered in response to her question of ‘how can I believe anything you say to me?’. He wasn’t quite sure what he wanted, here. On one hand, he wanted forgiveness but on the other hand, he wanted to hear it all…to be tortured with it. He wanted her to hate him for his actions, and match his own internal feelings.

But her next words sobered him up a bit, and he almost stopped breathing. She felt unwanted. She felt like he didn’t want her around…like he didn’t love her. Dean shook his head quickly, and had to choke back his own sudden overwhelm as she sobbed.

“No no no. You’re wrong about that.” Dean stopped her, clearing his throat and sniffling. He scooted a little closer to her, grabbing one of her hands to wrench her hands away from her knees. He placed the hand on his chest, and used his other hand to push her legs down so he could pull her close to him.

“I want you to listen to me. Take a deep breath and listen to me…” Dean took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling under her hand. “There has never been a day that I regretted saving you. I don’t want you to ever…ever think that. And you’re not half of anything. Nat look up here at me.”

Dean pushed aside any bravado or facade that he had ever put on. They were alone. Nat needed him. His protective brother side took over before he even realized it, and for a moment…he saw Sam sitting in front of him. He remembered these sorts of conversations with Sam, after one of John’s rampages at the boys. Sam would be left feeling helpless and small, while Dean took the brunt of John’s anger to protect him…and then he picked up Sam’s pieces too.

He dipped his head to find her eyes, and he brought his hand up to cover hers.

“You feel that? That’s blood pumping. Our blood. You have that same blood pumping through your veins. You’re my sister…my blood. That ‘half’ crap doesn’t matter. You’re…a Winchester. You understand?” Dean spoke softly, his eyes wide and pleading, “And you’re going to do plenty of stupid shit because of that name. Me and you? We’re a lot alike. But don’t you ever…ever think that I don’t want you. If you can’t believe anything, please believe that.”

Anna

Anna nuzzled into Sam’s leg as he began stroking her hair. For a moment, at least, she felt safe and heard. Hearing that he stood up to Dean was a bit of a surprise to her. Sure, he had followed her out of the house, but she had assumed that he likely just walked away in an angry huff and left all the opinions in the air. It seemed very on par with Sam and Dean. But he actually stood up to him, and voiced an opinion. That was relatively new…

It was then that Anna remembered that Dean had hurt her arm, and she pressed her arm against Sam’s leg, forcing her jacket sleeve up so she could glance at the bruise that was forming. As Sam continued, Anna began to shake her head softly, barely moving it against his leg as the sobbing threatened to break out of her chest, all over again. She believed what Dean had screamed at her. Dean only wanted her around because he was afraid of her. They all were. In some small way, the whole group felt like she was a danger if she wasn’t tied to them.

But as he brought up the way Nat and Duke felt about her, she mulled it over in her mind. She could see Duke’s friendly smile, and sweet way that he called her ‘little one’ and Nat taking the time to talk to her and hug her in the bathroom at the restaurant. He was at least right about the two of them. They seemed to actually see her as a person, mostly because they hadn’t seen anything else from her…the way Sam and Dean had.

If it was everyone’s opinion against Dean’s, no one would win. Dean took over every situation. In a moment of panic, Dean could send her into a meat grinder, and someone would make an excuse for his decision, as if she died for some ‘greater good’. But yet, Sam was saying everything she had been practically begging him to tell her for months, before the situation at the barn happened.

He needed her. He loved her. He wanted her.

“It’s a bit hard to argue with someone like Dean, though.” She finally murmured, staring off into space as she spoke. Her crying had calmed, but the thoughts were now flooding in, and Anna couldn’t help voice them out loud. “No matter how much you love me…if Dean doesn’t want me around, then he’ll do everything he can to make sure I don’t…stay around.”

She paused and she brought a hand up to wipe tears from the tip of her nose, “And with all this stuff with Lilith and Alastair, I have a feeling he wants me as far away from you as humanly possible. Me telling Nat the truth is just the excuse he needed…”

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean

Dean shook his head at Sam’s reminding him of all the ways he had tried to kill or just torture Nat’s boyfriend over the years. It was true that the two were almost sworn enemies, making the others life hell in any way they could, but Dean had grown. If it meant that Natalia would come and see them, he was willing to play nice. Plus, Cason had ears on Hell that they didn’t have access to, outside of Crowley, who he wasn’t really ready to hear from…just yet.

“I’ll give her a call in a bit. I’m sure they would just be chomping at the bit to come all the way to Kansas.” Dean scoffed sarcastically, although, the thought of hearing Nat’s voice echoing through the bunker halls brought a small smile to his face, “Yeah. I’ll call her.”

Dean gave Sam a look when Lexi asked about Natalia, not really sure how to bridge the conversation about her boyfriend being a demon. He was hoping she wouldn’t ask. But after Sam explained that Nat was their sister, Lexi asked the million dollar question, and Dean sat a bit straighter again with a sigh. He turned his eyes toward Sam. Seeing Sam’s expression, he raised his eyebrows as if to say ‘really? You’re going to leave me alone with this?’

“Um…Natalia’s boyfriend is different from…us. He’s not exactly the stereotypical hunting partner.” Dean started, glancing down at the table as he drew a devils trap on the glass with his finger tip, “He’s a demon. BUT…before anyone says anything, he has proven himself to be…docile.”

Anya

Anya glanced quickly between Sam and Dean, as Sam leaned his head down and whispered straight into her ear about going to get her stuff. She was just as intrigued as Lexi, as to what could be so dramatic about their sister’s love life that Dean seemed nervous. She turned her eyes to Dean and the second ‘he’s a demon’ left his lips, Anya stiffened a bit.

A Winchester was dating a demon? Wait. Sam and Dean didn’t seem bothered by the fact that their sister was shacked up with a demon. That seemed out of character for them. She pulled out her phone and typed, pressing play and holding the phone out to Dean.

“And you’re planning to bring him here?”

“Like I said…docile. Cason won’t hurt anyone. He proved that years ago. He’s a good ally to have, right now.” Dean explained simply, his face stone still as he looked Anya in the eyes and then turned to Lexi, “I promise. Nat wouldn’t be out there alone with him, if we didn’t trust him.”

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Duke

Duke almost breathed the largest sigh of relief as Mika explained what she and Dean had talked about. Other than a few details about Dean’s time with Esme, and what drove Esme away…it didn’t seem that Mika knew much more about the dynamic between the three of them. At the very least, she didn’t know any more than what he had told her about his involvement with Esme back in the day. He just really didn’t want the confusion and ‘what were you thinking’ speeches, when he was actually pretty happy with the way things were back then. It could have worked…if Dean had been able to let go of Mika.

“I remember those days all too well.” Duke muttered, tilting his head down a bit as the memories of Mika being shattered into pieces in his motel room flooded his mind, as well as the memories of her phone calls. Duke had no good answers to give her when she called, but he picked up…no matter what. “You guys always manage to come back together. Now, you just gotta work on all that brutal honesty together, if you’re gonna make it work long term, this time.”

He paused, just before Esme stepped in and as the back door opened, Duke nodded, “Yeah…we’re the best we’ve ever been, if I’m honest. Waitin’ around was worth it, this time.”

As soon as Esme was in the room, Duke stepped over to her and he wrapped an arm around her waist. He pressed a gentle kiss to her temple, and dragged his hand down to rest against her hip. He could feel the pressure change in the room, the second Esme came in, and when he glanced back over to Mika, he was happy to see that she had on her kind face. She was ready to be patient and civil toward Esme, which caused Duke to smile a bit and turn his eyes back to Esme’s face. Bringing his spare hand up, he wiped a spare tear away from her face and sighed.

“Well he walked out there in a much different mood than he had when I first walked in. He was simmered down quite a bit. I don’t think Natalia has anything to worry about.” Duke said softly. He turned his attention back to Mika for a moment with a smile, “Seems like we’re all workin’ toward civil.”

Dean

Dean watched as Esme pulled away from the hug with Nat and started her walk toward the house to give Dean and Nat some space. As she passed, and echoed Mika’s words, Dean gave her a soft smile, even though he was terrified that he couldn’t do what they asked. He wasn’t exactly good at expressing anything toward his siblings other than protection and anger when they made stupid mistakes. But he had to try, or he would end up losing Nat…and from the feeling in the air, Sam was on his way out, too.

As Nat patted the car next to her, Dean sighed nervously, stepping forward with a bit of a foot drag. She was definitely more calm, and seemed less likely to hit him again, which he was thankful for. As he climbed onto the car, his nervousness in the pit of his stomach grew. Where to even begin?

“I’m not going to beat around the bush, because that’s not what you need from me.” Dean began calmly, his voice low as he glanced up at the busted window of the Impala. He took a deep breath, and continued, “I’m sorry that I kept things from you, like you couldn’t handle it. I treated you like a kid, which is probably what you’ll always be in part of my brain. For that, I’m sorry.”

Dean paused and frowned, glancing out into a random spot in the lot, before turning to look at Nat’s face, “I don’t want you to ever think that there’s anything you could do to change how much I love you. Alright? Take swings at me. Wreck my car. It doesn’t matter. When I told you ‘I’ve got you’ back when we first found you, I know I didn’t deliver. I was horrible to you, for the longest time. But I mean it, now.”

He knew that he needed to let her get her own feelings out there, if he was ever going to try and fix any of the mistakes he had made that had led to this level of distrust and vitriol between them. Dean wasn’t a fixer. He didn’t do the whole ‘I’m sorry I made you feel that way’ dance…but he was willing to try for his baby sister.

“I just feel like we’ve needed to talk for a while…”

Anna

Anna was a little zoned out as Sam booked their room, standing close to him, and moving even closer into his side every time someone passed. She really just wanted to be behind a locked door, safe and sound for the night while she processed Dean’s outburst, and where to go from here. If the tension with Dean was going to be as thick as it was before she and Sam had left the house…Anna had no desire to be around the older Winchester.

As Sam led her outside, she just followed along, handing Sam’s heavier bag off to him. Her own bag bounced against her leg as she walked absentmindedly, her body a bit numb, toward the room with Sam. She took his lead and walked into the room as soon as he unlocked the door, walking over to the side of the bed she preferred and dropping her bag on the floor. She then kicked her own boots off, realizing that she desperately needed a shower, but she was too keyed up to deal with it at that moment.

At that moment, Sam was holding his arms out to her, asking her if she wanted a hug. She simply stood there for a moment, his arms looking way too inviting to say no to, especially now that they were alone, and she could fall apart if she wanted to, without prying eyes. After a moment of watching Sam, Anna walked around to him. She stepped up to the end of the bed, climbing up beside him, instead of into his arms, and laid down beside his legs, using his thigh as a pillow. She brought both her arms up, covering her eyes and just absolutely fell apart.

Dean’s words, mixed with the feelings she had dealt with not long before, when she ran away…were all enough to drive her into another fit of tears. As if she felt like part of the family before, she definitely didn’t now. If not for Sam’s actions, choosing her in the moment that she broke down, she would have run off. She was no good to them as anything other than a weapon…that she didn’t even want to be.

“Thank you…” She whispered, her voice shaky and heartbroken as she wrapped an arm around Sam’s thigh.

All Roads Lead To You

Duke and Dean

Duke was a little surprised when Esme was willing to talk to him, and hadn’t left the table, considering their meeting outside. When she told him that he would know if he crossed a boundary with her, he nodded but then tilted his head with a confused scowl when she mentioned that he was drunk. He was probably drunk, but he didn’t want to admit it. Plus, he would just blame Bobby’s top shelf ‘who knows how long it’s been open’ whiskey.

He watched every move she made as she took a bite of chocolate, and continued with her terms. He nodded, turning his eyes down to the table briefly, but when he lifted his eyes, she was staring straight at them. Duke swallowed heavily, and he opened his mouth to speak, before closing it. But then he found his words, “I might need clarification on that. I gotta know where that line is between keepin’ something to myself and lying, for you…”

Duke adjusted in his seat and he tapped his fingers on the table in front of him before nodding, with a smirk, “I’ll get back to you on that.”

“Alright then. Was that so hard?” Dean asked just as a knock at the door jarred both Duke and Dean. Dean glanced over to the kitchen door, and he turned back to Duke. Duke narrowed his eyes in confusion, “Who would be knockin’ on the kitchen door?”

Duke stood up, stumbling just a bit and walked to the kitchen door, before turning to give Dean a look that said ‘you could have told me’. He opened the glass door and leaned in the doorway, failing to block the view of the person standing there. She was a much shorter girl, her long brown hair was pulled up in a messy bun and she looked honestly devastated. She wore one of Duke’s flannels, and jeans, and the second Duke opened the door, she seemed confused, hurt and angry all wrapped in one.

“There she is…” Dean muttered, as the girl began to speak.

“So, you just run off…just like that and now you’re back? You didn’t call. Duke what’s going on?” The girl whimpered, scanning Duke’s face frantically. Duke sighed, and reached his hand out, grabbing for her wrist.

“Not here. Let’s go outside, alright?”

“I’ve tried to call you for weeks, Duke. Weeks…” She continued, as Duke pushed her out of the doorway and into the garage. Dean stood from his place at the table, and he stepped over to the kitchen window, gently raising it to be as sneaky as he could. “I mean, I knew that you did this, the whole disappearing act. But you had changed. My dad has even called you.”

“I just needed to get away from Sioux Falls for a bit, Rachel. I don’t know any other way to explain it, than that.” Duke explained as best he could.

Dean leaned down, dipping his head so he could whisper to Esme, “That…is Rachel. She’s what we call ‘Duke’s big one’. Off again. On again for about two years. Things kinda worked with them until about a month ago.”

“So, I just get thrown away, when you decide to leave?” Rachel asked a bit louder, and Duke said nothing, standing there with his arms crossed and his eyes on the ground at her feet, “You’re all beat up again. You said…that you would eventually tell me about your life. You would let me in. Where is that Duke, now?”

“I can’t do this right now.” Duke grumbled, turning away from Rachel, who instantly followed him, grabbing his wrist. “Rachel…”

“I’ll stay the night and take care of you. But you can’t run off before we can talk.” Rachel whispered, as Duke smirked, his eyes glassy from being a bit drunk.

“You’re pissed at me and you want to take care of me?”

“I love you. So, of course…” Rachel almost whispered, stepping up to Duke’s chest. She wrapped her arms around his neck and she leaned up on her toes, pressing a sweet kiss to his lips. Duke, in his alcohol induced lapse of judgement a mile long, kissed her back. He stepped backward as she continued to kiss him, walking back toward the RV.

“Okay. So that was awkward…but this is what they do. They’ll be running around here like nothing happened, in the morning. Rachel is the only girl Duke has ever ‘dated’ for more than a hook up.” Dean chimed in, grabbing a chair and pulling it closer to Esme. He placed his elbow on the top of the table, and then placed his head on his fist, close to Esme’s face. “So, how are you feeling about the dynamic in the house, now? Did I help…like at all with this situation?”

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Anya and Dean

Anya dropped her smirk when Lexi brought things back to the seriousness of hunting. She nodded her head, letting Lexi know that she fully expected her to be rough during training. She also interrupted briefly to type a ‘I can do that’ in response to being serious when learning. Anya could be deadly serious, when she needed to be. She just used her wit to counter men that thought they were going to run over her, or explain things to her like a child.

Anya also nodded at the question about training clothes. She typed a simple, “I have workout gear in my bag. I like to run.”, and then she pressed play with a soft smile. In fact, this was one of the first mornings she hadn’t been out on a jog in a while, but it wasn’t like she could just run around the streets of Lebanon in her underwear and an oversized tshirt. The locals might get more of a show than they bargained for.

She turned her eyes up to Sam as he spoke, watching the way that his hair ruffled when he moved his head, and she realized right then that she would be as serious as she had to be, in order to learn more about the way he lived, survived…and to survive to keep the tension out of his eyebrows. When she had met him, there was no way he didn’t have a constant headache from all the tension in his face, as if he was just getting through the day by the skin of his teeth. But now? He seemed relaxed, on mission, and…happy.

Dean turned his eyes from Lexi back to Anya, smirking to himself at the way she looked at his brother. Any other time, he would make a comment, or say it was pathetic and weird, but the girl seemed enamored by him. The look he could read in her eyes was almost laughable, but she seemed to be looking at him like someone she could protect…whether from himself, or others.

He didn’t say anything, just watched them, until Sam spoke up straight to him and he cleared his throat, sitting up a little straighter in his chair.

“Yeah. I heard from her a few days ago. She and Cason are working some…’string of bear attacks that left no real bodies behind’ up in Northern California. She said…and I quote…’I’ll come by to visit when I know the door to the dungeon is locked’. She acts like I’m just gonna lock her boyfriend up the entire time she’s here.” Dean waved his hand with a scoff. He then had a slight thought, “Although, I wouldn’t mind picking his brain about this…”

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Dean and Duke

Dean watched Mika as she walked over to stand in front of him and Duke, echoing Duke’s advice. Dean agreed that he would probably feel better if Nat didn’t go to bed hating him for all of this. He would at least feel better if they were just…okay. Then, he had a lot of work to do with Sam. But first thing had to come first…the catalyst of all this, Natalia. He had never been good at showing Nat that he cared about her. For a while, he chalked the behavior up to not believing she was real. He held her at arms length. But the time for not getting close to her had passed a long time ago. She had been right there, every step of the way, for a while…and Dean never acknowledged it.

Duke’s eyes widened at Mika’s words and the look on her face. He wondered how much Dean had actually told her about his relationship with Esme. Surely, she wouldn’t be so calm and collected and non judgmental if she knew everything…right? But he didn’t speak on it, just in case Dean had conveniently left out parts. He just turned his attention back to Dean and took a deep breath.

“So, should I go, now?” Dean asked, his eyes turning to the floor, as Mika’s hand began rubbing his back, and the fear of approaching Natalia at all filled his chest. It was strange how afraid of confrontation he was, considering his job. He could handle almost anything, except apologizing for being legitimately wrong. That was scary. Demons? Nothing. Accountability? Terrifying.

“Go now. Go later on…but don’t leave it sittin’.” Duke chimed in, glancing at Mika again, before reaching up, grabbing the back of Dean’s neck in a movement that instantly made Dean feel calmer. He turned his face to look Duke in the eyes, which was what Duke was signaling for him to do. “She’ll forgive you. I’ve been on this side of the Dean Winchester apology tour…and I forgave you. Mika forgave you. Just make sure that whatever you’re tellin’ her is the truth and you ain’t gonna stab her in the back later on…”

“Like I did you.” Dean muttered and Duke shook his head.

“This ain’t about us. None of it is. Me and you can have that conversation later.” Duke spoke calmly, tilting his chin up to show Dean with his body language that he was fine…they were fine.

“Alright. I’ll go.” Dean sighed, and Duke released him, stepping back for him to walk around. Dean turned and pressed a kiss to Mika’s lips, pulling away pretty quickly and just walking toward the back door. As Dean disappeared out the door, Duke turned to Mika.

“So…you and Dean are good, I see…”, he awkwardly addressed to Mika, pulling his phone from his back pocket, and texting Esme. He typed quickly wanting to head her off and just sent a simple.

‘Dean’s on his way out. He’s more civil and he wants to talk to Nat. I’m in the kitchen.’

Dean stepped onto the lot, his boots feeling a million pounds as the cold air hit his skin. He glanced toward his car, his brow furrowing at the fact that Bobby had to replace another window on the Impala. A tiny bubble of anger rolled into his chest, but he pushed it down, taking a deep breath as he stepped forward, his eyes set on Natalia.

He slowly walked over, and Cason’s head perked up, as he was walking back over to the girls. He approached Dean, placing a hand on his chest without thinking and Dean stopped in his tracks. Dean glanced down at the hand, and then back up at Cason’s serious expression, realizing that Cason was protecting Natalia…from Dean.

“I’m not coming to fight.” Dean said simply, looking Cason in the eyes. Cason watched his face for a few moments, saying nothing. But then, Cason dropped his hand, and turned to let Dean by, walking close behind him as he passed. Dean approached Natalia as if she was going to explode, the second that he got to her, and he crossed his arms over his chest. “Can we talk?”

Anna

Anna followed Sam to Mika’s car, holding his hand loosely as she did so. She felt safe with Sam…but after the last time they left, she didn’t know if she felt safe away from the group. But there was no way she was going anywhere near Dean Winchester. When Sam opened her door, she got into the car, placing her hands on her lap and staring at the glove box in front of her. The car was eerily similar to Dean’s car, and the thought made her almost smirk. Dean and Mika were a lot alike. It made sense that they were essentially soulmates.

As soon as Sam was in the car, and he spoke up, Anna couldn’t help but notice the smile he put on for her. He was already working to diffuse the situation, and she couldn’t help the polite tug at the corners of her mouth, “I like relaxing…”

Anna felt tension leaving her shoulders almost immediately when they passed under the ‘Singer Salvage’ sign and onto the road. She didn’t feel the need to talk, just staring out the window as pastures and warehouses passed in the foggy night air. But when they pulled into the parking lot of the B&B, Anna’s shoulders tensed a bit. The last time she was in a hotel situation with Sam, all hell broke loose and after the warning from Cason about Ruby, Anna was a little more than nervous about being in Ruby’s presence. She always seemed to be right around the corner…

When Sam spoke up, Anna nodded, glancing down at their hands as she laced her fingers with his. She didn’t expect him to fix anything. She just wanted him to be…with her, while she navigated all of this. And it seemed he would be. She didn’t say anything, only squeezed his hand back and turned to open her door. Before she could fully open it, Sam was already helping her out of the car, and handing her the car keys.

“I can get the bags. Go. Get the room. Let’s get to quiet.” Anna reassured Sam, taking the keys from him and walking around to the trunk. She quickly popped the trunk and grabbed both their bags, slinging them over her shoulders, before putting the keys in her jacket pocket. She walked toward the reception area, and quickly stepped up close to Sam, her shoulder nudging his side.

After a little bit, when Sam had the key to their room, Anna sighed, and looked up at him, “Thank you by the way. I really don’t want to be alone, right now…”

All Roads Lead To You

Dean and Duke

Duke shook his head at Dean’s words and he threw his hands up, “And it gets me into a world of trouble.”

“Why would it…” Dean started to ask, but he was interrupted by Esme’s squeak from out of nowhere. He didn’t know how long she had been listening, but he hoped she had heard everything from Duke. It was the first step in getting her and Duke on the right foot, and resolve this tension. But he was curious what Duke meant by ‘a world of trouble’.

Duke glanced up, seeing Esme step into the kitchen, and he sighed, “Well that’s great…”

He lowered his eyes to the table, watching out of the top corners of his eyes as Esme came to sit opposite him at the table. He almost laughed out loud as she broke her silence and said that she felt better after getting some sleep.

“You seemed like you needed it. Hold on.” Dean broke his own quiet, stepping away from the table to the grocery bags on the counter. He pulled the chocolate he had picked up for her, and turned handing it to her as if the awkward conversation had never happened, but Duke seemed quieter than he should have been. Dean returned to his place next to Duke, and he clamped a hand down on Duke’s shoulder, urging him to speak up.

“Um…I guess I owe you an apology.” Duke spoke up finally, his voice soft and awkward as Dean reached a hand up to pull the back of Duke’s hat down, showing more of his face and ruffled blonde hair. Duke sighed, “You didn’t do nothin’ wrong to make me leave. You showin’ up didn’t make me leave.”

Duke’s cheeks and nose were red, and Dean could really see it in the light, now that his hat wasn’t covering his face. He was pretty out there with whatever he had been drinking, and the sight caused Dean to scrunch his nose a bit with worry, as he took a seat next to him.

“I didn’t like the reaction Dean had when he came out in the yard.” Duke murmured, looking back down at the table and drawing little nervous circles on the wood with his fingers, “And I couldn’t stay away from you, after we talked. You were like…rattlin’ around in my brain. Your voice. All that stuff…”

Dean narrowed his eyes, but what he was feeling wasn’t jealousy as much as concern for Duke, and what he might say while a little drunk. But Duke hiccuped and continued, causing Dean to sigh.

“I didn’t want to be too forward. So, I just decided it was easier to…well…leave you alone. I shouldn’t even be talkin’ to you, now.” Duke pressed his hands against the table to stand up, but Dean reached a hand out, pressing him down by his shoulder.

“Stop stop stop. So, you lied about the reason you left…you said it wasn’t because of her, right?” Dean asked, helping Duke reason through things. Duke nodded.

“Yeah. Because it wasn’t really. It was mostly me.”

“And you really like her…” Dean urged Duke, but Duke’s eyes suddenly widened a bit, and he looked at Esme’s face, and then to Dean’s as if he was legitimately in trouble. Duke’s insides twisted and he was sure that Dean was alluding to what Duke could only assume was a crush on Esme, considering his inability to get her out of his head. But Dean continued, and Duke softened his expression with a nod. “You want to be her friend…”

“Y-yeah. Yeah…that’s all it is. I just didn’t know that was somethin’ that might be possible. Listen, I’m a little drunk, and I don’t wanna say nothin’ that will make me look any worse than I already look. I don’t wanna cross any lines.”

"From out of Nowhere" - SPN

Dean and Anya

Dean sat down at the table and he immediately delved into his sandwich, not really hearing anything else that was happening in the room, until Lexi asked his opinion about the plan for the day. Dean rattled the words that had been said around in his brain, picking out what he had actually heard that he could remember and he shrugged his shoulders.

“Since we’re at a bit of a halt on finding the Colt, we might want to prepare ourselves for whatever comes next.” Dean said simply, taking another bite as Lexi handed him his phone. He glanced at it, a bit of nervousness hitting his chest, sending his heart racing and then took it with his empty hand. He pressed the button on the side, to see if he had any texts, and then sat it face down on the table with a smile, “Thanks. I was a bit distracted and left it.”

“I wouldn’t mind learning some things, while we are kinda stuck here.” Anya’s phone chimed in, and Dean glanced up at her, seeing her with the phone in her hand. He smiled briefly, before taking another bite and nodding.

“I don’t see why not. I mean…I’m assuming you’ve handled a gun before, right?”

Anya nodded.

“Then you’re already on your way. The rest is learning how to defend yourself without the gun. You gotta learn how to take a hit…and you gotta learn how to keep your energy up. First things first, eat.” Dean ordered, and Anya pressed her lips tightly together, picking up her sandwich while looking at Dean. She took a bite and smiled, waving her sandwich a bit. “Good. Then, Lexi, being the other woman here…she can work on you. I would say work with Sam but judging by…looks of you, that ship has sailed. No need to add to the bruises.”

Anya blushed and looked down, before she typed a message and smirked, “Different kind of bruises, Dean.”

“Yeah yeah. Alright. Well, either way, it’s better for Lexi to help you with that. Then, sometime this evening, me and Lexi will comb the lines and you and Sam can go out and take care of that tattoo. You’re not leaving this bunker without it…other than to go get it.” Dean muttered before finishing off his sandwich with his eyebrows raised. Anya didn’t even complain about him being bossy. She could tell it was coming from a place of concern and care, not from malice, which from Dean, she would take as a win in her corner.

“A tattoo like Sam’s?” Anya typed, and Dean nodded, pulling down his t-shirt to show his own. “I’m fine with that! It’s not my first…”

“Well that’s good. Should be an easy trip…and before you type…” Dean held a hand up, and stopped Anya who was about to type something about where her other tattoos were, one he had already glimpsed on her thigh, “That’s between you and Sam.”

Dean glanced over at Lexi, communicating with his eyes that they weren’t being hard enough on the kids, and that Anya was winning the wit war. He was practically begging her for help.