JustAnna

"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.

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Dean and Duke

Mika stepping up and hugging him caused Dean’s shoulders to fall just a bit more. He needed the closeness, even if right now, his whole body felt like it was on fire with conflicted emotions and adrenaline from being punched out of nowhere. He settled, crossing his arms over his chest as Mika explained what she thought was the best method to break through to Nat.

Dean didn’t like the idea of approaching Natalia this early, but Mika was right about the way to approach it. Nat wouldn’t want to hear reasoning, or explanation. She wouldn’t want to hear any sort of ‘greater good’ lies, when she would be able to tell that Dean was lying. Dean had left Cason behind for no other reason than he wasn’t willing to fight for him, and would rather Nat not be around him. He would rather Cason be dead, than with his sister.

“No explanations…no lies…” Dean whispered, nodding his head with a sigh. The thought of even standing in front of his sister gave him a nervous pause, his heart hammering in his chest as he moved himself so that he could also see out the window. Of course it was Esme that was trying to diffuse the situation. She had always been so good with quick anger, and reasoning. Dealing with himself and Duke, she had to get good at it. Mika pulling his hand away from his chest caused him to look down at their hands for a moment, and he sighed.

“I can do my best. I mean…I don’t know how to be the caring brother. That’s Sam’s job…” Dean started, his eyebrow twitching with the awkwardness of having to open himself up to Nat, when he had always wanted to portray himself as the strong, quiet boss of the family. But that was the exact opposite of what Nat would want to hear from. He was broken from his thoughts by Sam coming through the back door, and keeping his head down.

“Sam?” He called out to him, but Sam just marched straight over to the bags, grabbing his own and then Anna’s. Dean nodded, not moving from his spot, as he was definitely not feeling being punched in the face by Sam, of all people. After his outburst, he was a bit surprised that Sam hadn’t already decked him.

He listened to Sam and Mika talk, and hearing that Anna was scared of him, Dean clenched his jaw and closed his eyes, letting a sigh leave his nose. Duke shifted a bit at his side, and came to stand next to him with a shrug.

“It can’t be that surprisin’ from what I heard…” Duke muttered, and Dean simply shook his head.

“No. It’s not surprising.”

“Looks like a famous Dean Winchester apology tour.” Duke teased him, as Dean saw Mika hand Sam a set of keys, after he missed Sam saying that he and Anna were headed out overnight. He straightened a bit, as Duke reached an arm over and squeezed Dean’s shoulder, “Don’t you dare chase him. Let them go…C’mon. Fresh wounds. Let him go.”

Dean didn’t move, just watching Sam from the corner of his eye until he couldn’t see him anymore. He heard the door open and close and he let his brother go.

“That’s my boy…” Duke murmured, patting Dean roughly on the chest. “Now, lets get you simmered down enough to go talk to that little sister of yours.”

Cason and Anna

Cason didn’t say anything when Nat was working through her emotions, wrapping up on him a bit tighter. He knew the renewed anxiety was her fear of being left alone with a very pissed off Dean Winchester. He could understand the sentiment. Dean was pretty terrifying on his best day, and he was at peak terror inducing when angry. Cason didn’t even want to think about the look Dean had given him, before trying to kill him at the barn. It’s a look that most demons don’t survive.

As Nat held onto him, oddly asking Esme for help, which surprised him, Anna suddenly approached but didn’t say anything. She just stood to the side of the metal awning and wrapped her arms around herself. Cason perked up and glanced over Nat’s shoulder, before wrapping his fingers around her wrist to remove her hand, “Hey. I um…I’ll be right back, alright? I’m just gonna check on something.”

He slipped off the hood of the car, nodding to Esme to tell her to stay and talk to Nat, and to keep an eye on her. He then crossed the small gap between the cars and covered bay, where Anna was standing.

“Are you good? I don’t want to get roasted.” Cason teased, to test Anna’s mood. Anna didn’t say anything at first, just tightened her arms around herself, before sighing.

“I’m going with Sam.”

“That’s a good idea. Actually, I think that’s a great idea.” Cason beamed at her, causing Anna to narrow her eyes at him, before sniffling. She then remembered out of nowhere that she was wearing his jacket, and she began unwrap herself and shrug the jacket off her shoulders. “You can take it.”

“No. Because I don’t know if I’m coming back…” Anna muttered honestly, removing the jacket from her arms and holding it out to Cason. Cason sighed, frowning at the thought of her running off with Sam…and possibly Ruby. But he didn’t say anything. He just took the jacket from her, and then nodded his head toward the Impala.

“C’mere…” He muttered, holding his hand out to her. She didn’t take his hand, but she did follow him as he walked over to the busted window of the Impala, his boots crunching in the pile of glass next to the car. He carefully reached into the backseat through the window, and pulled Anna’s jacket, shaking it a bit to make sure it wasn’t covered in glass. “I thought you might want this.”

Anna reached out and took her jacket, her face softened and neutral. Cason reached into his pocket as he watched her put her arms through the sleeves, pulling the front around herself. He pulled out a vial of his blood, holding it up in front of her face. Anna reluctantly took it from him, placing it into her pocket as if he was giving her illegal drugs in a parking lot.

“That will help, if you guys are gone for a few days. If you’re gonna be longer, Sam can summon me. I give full permission. Don’t…take anything from Ruby. Nothing. No matter what she tells you, or tries to convince you of, you summon me…only me.” Cason explained and Anna nodded, her eyes tearing up again with a bit of fear. “Hey…don’t cry. You’ll be safe with Sam, remember?”

Anna nodded as Sam came out the back door and walked over to her. Anna stepped forward, wrapping her arms around Cason’s waist, causing him to pause for a moment, before he wrapped his arms around her, patting her back.

“You’re gonna be fine.” Cason muttered against the top of her head, before letting her go. She grabbed Sam’s hand, stepping back from Cason slowly to head over to Mika’s car.

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Dean and Duke

Dean’s shoulders relaxed a bit when Mika stepped in between him and Duke, telling them to simmer down. He almost became mad all over again when Duke cracked his neck and nodded slowly at Mika’s response. It was amazing to Dean that Mika was still able to get through to Duke so easily. They were linked, like they were using the same brain like twins. Duke took a step back and crossed his arms, leaning against the kitchen counter as Mika turned to Dean.

He came back to on edge as Mika said the words ‘don’t be mad when I say this’. He knew that whatever she was going to say was going to smash him in the face. But she said exactly what he had been thinking, how his fear was the reason he was so angry. He wasn’t angry that Anna told Nat about the barn. He was angry that she found out, because he had to deal with her anger before he was prepared to. His face softened a bit as he listened to Mika’s explanation, and her reasoning for him stopping the warpath he was on.

She was right.

Nat had been through so much in such a short amount of time, Dean didn’t even want to think about it. And he was sure that to her, he was the most untrustworthy person to come into her life, regardless of whether or not he was her brother. Hell, half the time, he didn’t even feel like her brother. She had Sam. She and Sam were so close, for good reason, and Dean protected her as best he could, similar to Sam. If something he said was going to hurt her, he would never let it slip from his mouth, no matter how big. And in this particular case, he had really messed up with Cason and he was too scared to tell Natalia, only to have it blow back in his face…hard.

“C’mon brother…” Duke reasoned with him, as Mika’s eyes pierced into Dean’s. Between the two of them, Dean’s eyes softened a bit, turning almost into Sam’s signature puppy eyes as the green overwhelmed everything else. He took a deep breath, and tapped his hand on the kitchen table, needing something to touch.

“I’m sorry.” Dean muttered, glancing over to Duke, who just held his hands up and shook his head.

“Ain’t the worst fight we’ve had. You really do need to get some ice on that eye, though.” Duke replied simply with a small lighthearted smirk. Dean reached up and touched his swelling cheek with a shrug.

“I’ll be fine.” Dean said. “I just don’t know what to say to her, now. I was wrong and I admitted it, or so I thought. But now…it’s all fresh again. I mean, what do I say to her?”

Cason

Cason watched as Nat spilled her guts to Esme, a little surprised, but glad that she was actually talking to someone. Bottling things up was the reason these little explosions happened. Cason knew that. That’s why he was trying to make it a personal mission to pull her away from the group every now and then to just have her let things off…

He just let them talk for a bit, seeing a lot of why Esme, Duke and Dean were so tense around each other at times and why those that were around Dean Winchester tended to stick around. He was what they needed, when they needed it. But he also tended to pick up people he needed…only to drive them away when he didn’t feel he needed them anymore.

When she looked up to him, he caught her eyes, lowering his eyebrows into a relaxed and polite neutral gaze. He wasn’t as afraid of her, now. While he appreciated her apology, it wasn’t necessary. It wasn’t hard to see why she was so angry at the asylum, and hopeless…

“It’s alright.” Cason told her honestly, “That was more than just emotions, Esme. I can tell how much you love that blonde idiot…I can’t imagine how it felt when they told you he was dead. I was blunt. I was unkind and coming from a demon, this may sound hilarious, but I’m sorry for that. I really am.”

Cason paused and he sighed, “And then everything else that happened, all that anger and…you know what? Let’s chalk our situation up to wrong place, wrong time. How about that? You don’t have anything to apologize for.”

Anna

Anna held onto Sam for dear life as long as he was willing to hold her. His voice cut through all of the chaos and the anger in her mind. Her heartbeat slowly shifted, from frantic and anxious to calm, if not a little nervous. She could feel it in Sam’s heart, too, the little stutters of his heart every time she took a deep breath. She eventually pulled her head to just press her forehead against Sam’s chest, signaling that she was at least calming down a bit. She always seemed to. There was a reason it was so hard for her to be angry at Sam. His voice brought her down from the worst of her anger, sadness, anxiety…anything. He could get through to her when no one else could, and in some ways, that could be dangerous.

When Sam spoke up again, not just soothing her but actually offering ideas, Anna stopped and listened, catching her breath against his chest. She mulled over his words, not wanting to necessarily sleep outside in the cold, even in a car. But she also wasn’t staying in that house, with Dean under the same roof. After a moment, she nuzzled her forehead against Sam’s chest and then pulled away from him, her nose bright red and her eyes still flooded with tears. She knew she looked pitiful, but Sam wouldn’t judge her for it.

“I think um…I think I want to leave.” Anna told him honestly, as a fresh bit of crying came up, causing her to scrunch her nose as the tears poured down her cheeks. “I can’t be around him. I can’t even go get my clothes, because I don’t want him to look at me. Can we go? You don’t have to stay with me…I just…I just don’t think I can drive right now.”

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Dean and Duke

Dean knew before he ever turned to his brother that Sam was seething. He could feel it in Sam’s grip as he pulled him back. Sam stepping in front of him caused him to pause, and for a second, he just stared at Sam’s chest, before raising his eyes to Sam’s face as his brother began to scold him.

“She told her!” He tried to argue with Sam, but Sam was probably right. Once Dean calmed himself down, Sam was right. This wasn’t Anna’s fault. She was just the catalyst to the consequences of his own actions. He didn’t back down, not wanting to show that he knew he was at least partially wrong. He simply glared at Sam until Sam finally shoved him back, Dean rocking back awkwardly on his feet at the force. Dean wiped a frustrated hand down his face, just as Duke walked through the door and asked about what was happening.

Dean turned to Duke and he huffed, staring him down as Mika explained what had happened, “I didn’t almost suffocate her! I just wanted her to hear every damn word I was saying.”

“Every word? So, you told her to leave, right?” Duke defended Anna, knowing all too well how Dean could be when he was this particularly mad. He tipped his hat back and stood with his hands on his hips.

“No I didn’t tell her to leave. I just told her that she’s not going to take my brother…” Dean started, but he didn’t like the way that Duke’s eyes narrowed at him. So, he continued. “She gets close to people, because of those big baby eyes and her soft voice. She digs into them. And then she turns them against each other!”

“You say that about a lot of people that call you out on your crap.” Duke reminded Dean, and Dean took a step toward him, as if he was going to go after his next. But Duke held his hands up, and he tilted his head with his eyebrows raised, as if to say ‘wait a second. Let me finish.’. “Ever think that maybe her tellin’ Nat was a floodgates thing? You and the little one haven’t seemed exactly close since you got back. Seems like it might be weighin’ on her shoulders a bit.”

Dean unclenched the fist that had balled up for Duke, and he frowned at him, before taking in Duke’s appearance, “And where the hell have you been during all this?”

“The RV. Esme was fixin’ me up and stuff. This ain’t about me.” Duke continued to try and diffuse his older brother, holding his hand up. He then pointed that hand at Mika, “You okay? You didn’t catch an elbow or anything…”

“Oh don’t do that!” Dean shouted, and Duke dropped his hand, letting his face go blank as he tilted his head back, a look that Mika knew well. He was challenging Dean, because Duke’s frustration was growing.

“Do what? Check on your girlfriend that you tend to conveniently leave out of the conversation…forcing her onto my tailgate in the middle of the night?” Duke asked condescendingly and Dean balled his fists back up, causing Duke to smirk, “I’m just sayin’ that if you’re this mad, maybe we should give you a breather.”

“And you’ll fix it and be the good guy.” Dean grumbled.

“I didn’t say that. But if you’re thinkin’ it, then I’m pretty sure you know that you’re makin’ your self look like one hell of a bad guy, right now. I’m talkin’ about coolin’ off. No good guy. No bad guy.” Duke explained simply, placing his hands back on his hips. Dean took a deep and shaky breath as he unclenched his fists and Duke nodded, “Or we can all calm down together, hmm?”

Cason

Cason caught Natalia’s nod, and he took it at face value, matching it with his own nod. After everything, at least they were okay. He let her just sit in silence and stare at the damage she caused, while eating, until she was ready to start talking. Cason had already kind of figured out what she was going to say. Dean had made her a promise that he never intended to keep. He had such a mean on for Cason that he had just completely obliterated Nat’s trust…willingly. He had assumed she would get over it, or it would be forgotten long enough that when it finally came out, it wouldn’t sting so bad.

Cason just nodded a few times. Everything Nat was saying seemed to be the absolute truth. Dean was an all or nothing type guy. Since he was ripped from Hell, it seemed like whatever personality type he went in with had only been elevated to a point of almost constant rage, fear, and control issues. He finally decided to speak up when she mentioned Mika, and he scoffed, “She stays with him, because despite all his faults, he’s still Dean. There are echoes of that old him, in there.”

Her next words, as she wrapped her arm around his and laid her head on his shoulders caused his chest to tighten a little. He felt a tiny pang of guilt rumble in his stomach at the fact that he had almost failed to escape the impossible situation in the barn. He blamed Dean, sure. But even after Dean let him go, he almost failed.

Cason brought his hand up, and brushed it across Nat’s cheek, before sliding it back into her hair, leaning his cheek against her head with a soft sigh, “Well, that’s over, alright? I’m not going anywhere. You’re not going to lose me, baby…I know there’s no way to convince you to not think about what could have been. But I’m here now. You’re touching me. You’re breathing the same air. We’re okay.”

As Esme approached them, Cason glanced up at her and he didn’t say anything. If anything, Esme might be good to be around, for Nat in the moment. Maybe being around Esme could curb a bit of her anger, and settle her down. He glanced down at Sarah and smiled at her, reaching a hand out, which she nuzzled gently, but stayed at Esme’s side.

“Let’s just say that the powder keg finally exploded…” Cason explained to start helping Esme understand the situation.

Anna

After running into Duke, the last thing Anna wanted was to see literally anyone else from the group. She was tempted to run off. She was tempted to just start walking down the back road behind Bobby’s and hope that she ended up somewhere that she could take a bus straight back to California. She wanted to be anywhere that wasn’t with the Winchesters, especially since it was obvious that Sam was going to stick to his brothers guns on literally everything.

“When push comes to shove, you’ll leave me too…”

Her own words played over in her head and she squeezed her eyes closed, letting out a soft sob. She lost everything. She did the right thing, and lost everything, all at once. Because no matter how mean he was, or how much he hurt people, Dean was ultimately the one that they would all follow…off a cliff.

When she heard the heavy footsteps on the gravel, she instantly assumed it was Duke, and she started walking again. She didn’t want to talk to Duke. She didn’t want his blue eyes searching her soul, asking her to forgive Dean, or to come back to the house. She didn’t want to hear his voice as he tried to reason out ways that Dean was wrong…but misguided. She didn’t want to hear Duke, arguably the one that should have left years ago, talk her out of being upset, as the pain in her wrist throbbed and told her otherwise.

But then Sam’s arms were around her, and she turned quickly, her face pressed against his chest. His warmth washed over her like a tidal wave, and she fisted his jacket in both her hands, her body melting as he held her. To her surprise, Sam had come to…her. Sam had picked a side, and it wasn’t his brother.

The dam opened up against his chest, as he held her, her sobs shaking her whole body. She took a step closer to him, letting go of all her control and tried to concentrate on his voice without saying a word.

All Roads Lead To You

Dean and Duke

Dean listened intently, half expecting that Duke might have lashed out at Esme. But it seemed that he was relatively calm, even if his internal emotions were a mess around her. When she said that she could feel Duke lying about not leaving ‘because’ of her, Dean frowned, and he glanced away from her face for a few seconds as she turned her gaze up to the ceiling. Duke was quick to try and not impose himself on people, or to let THEM get attached to HIM, but Duke normally didn’t just run because he had a nice moment with someone. He didn’t seem particularly upset when Dean had walked away from him the night that he left. He seemed chill…almost too calm.

As she continued, Dean turned his eyes back to her face. He could see how upset she seemed about the whole situation. Duke wasn’t the lying type, unless he was trying to protect someone. He was actually pretty brutally honest most of the time. He could hurt your feelings with a smile, and mean every word of it, only to apologize later. He and Dean were alike in that fact.

Her eyes coming back to his as she said she didn’t want to think about it anymore caused Dean to smile softly, softening his expression to watch her eyes, “Alright. Well…”

Dean paused, as Esme, like always, turned her worry to his mental state. He scoffed, and relaxed his arm, just letting her kiss his hand. He sighed, keeping the smile on his lips, “Alright. I won’t worry about how pale you look if you don’t worry about any of this stuff. Duke runs off. He does it for a million different reasons and I’m pretty sure that even if it has a tiny…little bit to do with you, it’s not all because of you. Something got into his head.”

He paused, and pressed his lips tightly together, before leaning down and kissing Esme’s forehead. He had an idea, “How about this…You catch your breath, and you get comfortable. I’ll go get you some of that chocolate you like so much, and after a little rest, I’ll take you out tonight. How does that sound?”

A little bit later

Dean stepped into the kitchen, bag of goods in hand, and Duke was sitting at the kitchen table. Dean raised his eyebrow as Duke toyed with the top of a beer bottle, and seemed a little spaced out.

“You good Bub?” Dean asked, not an ounce of frustration in his voice. He was just checking on his baby brother’s mental state. Duke didn’t speak for a moment, and then he turned and gave Dean the fakest smile he had ever seen.

“Yeah, I’m good.”

“You sure? I mean, you’ve been pouting since you got back, and after talking to Esme, I’m still confused, man.” Dean checked on him further, while unpacking the grocery bag. Duke glanced up and held out a hand, as if Dean should have been able to read his mind.

“How am I supposed to be around you guys, if she doesn’t want to be my friend?” Duke asked, and it was then that Dean could tell Duke was a little tipsy…in the afternoon. It was odd and a little extreme that Duke would be so upset about all of this. Esme being a little agitated and not wanting to open herself up to Duke because he lied was something that would blow over eventually. Even Dean knew that. “And I can’t talk to her about it…she doesn’t even want to talk to me.”

“That’s not true. You just hurt her feelings, is all. Man, I can’t make her talk to you. I wouldn’t, even if I could. Whatever reason you had for leaving…she can read you like a book. You left because of her.” Dean told him plainly, and Duke raised his eyes up, slightly drunk blue eyes searching Dean’s face for clarification. So, Dean continued, “You need to tell her the truth.”

“No no no. The truth is a world of trouble. You wouldn’t understand.”

“You like her a lot.” Dean admitted, and Duke scoffed, but Dean continued. “You got attached to her pretty quick, because you guys talked and it scared you. God forbid you let yourself feel anything, man. If you tell her, she’ll get it. Esme’s good like that. She’ll get it.”

“And if it’s more complicated than that?” Duke asked, tapping his beer bottle on the table.

“Then uncomplicate it, and talk to her.”

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Dean

Dean’s body was tense as it seemed like everyone in the room was trying to keep him from being light hearted with Anna, and they all seemed worried about what was going to happen when Nat got into the house. Even Sam seemed to be warning him not to say anything to Natalia, and he didn’t like it. He didn’t like it one bit.

He took a step back when Mika pulled him back, and Nat stepped into the kitchen. Dean raised his arms out to his sides, questioning Nat with his eyes as she ignored him and walked straight for the kitchen table. He turned, following her with his eyes, and before he even knew what happened, she had shrugged out of Cason’s grip and hit him. The blow landed heavy against his cheek and the side of his eye, and he groaned loudly, stumbling backward. His hand instantly came put to press against his cheek and he shook his head roughly to get rid of the stars that were swimming around in his brain.

“Son of a bitch!” He cried out, cracking his jaw a bit to make sure Nat didn’t break anything as she started to scream at them, mostly him. Dean’s angry expression fell and he reached a hand out for her as she screamed at him, “Nat wait. I know what this is about. I can explain…Nat!”

As he reached for her, she stormed out of the kitchen and Dean brought his hand back to his face as he turned almost in a complete circle, the anger and confusion rumbling up in his stomach. “Dammit! What the hell?! She goes out for an hour and suddenly she comes back and…”

Dean’s words were broken off as the smash of glass echoed in the lot. He figured, at first, that Nat had taken her frustration out on some random stacked hunk of metal in the lot. It was something he had done seemingly a million times. You go out in the lot with a crowbar and you beat the hell out of the beaters there, in order to vent some frustration. But as Sam walked over to the window, and warned Dean not to look outside, Dean quickly pushed Mika’s hand away and jogged over to the window. The Impala’s passenger side window was missing, and glass covered the gravel beneath it.

“MY CAR?! She punches me in the face and then she goes after MY CAR?!” Dean shouted in anger, studying the broken window as his anger and frustration bubbled like a boiling pot. He turned back and his eyes instantly fell on a target…Anna.

Anna

Anna stood still against the kitchen counter as the others walked in. She knew that the tension was going to boil over, right there and then, but she wasn’t quite prepared for what happened as Nat walked through the back door. The punch knocked the wind out of Anna, as she raised her eyes to look at Dean’s expression, trying to read what level of anger her actions had caused. He didn’t seem to even begin to blame her at first, until the glass smashing outside caught everyone’s ears.

…please don’t be the Impala…

The second that Dean cried out about his car, Anna closed her eyes with a sigh, and tightened her arms around herself. Nat’s outburst wasn’t going to be the end of this fight, not my a long shot. Anna almost regretted ever saying anything to Nat, until Dean’s eyes landed on her.

“What the hell did you do?” Dean practically growled at her, like an animal. Anna stepped away from the counter, and she walked toward the door, planning to just walk away from him before she listened to another one of his lectures. Suddenly, he crossed the room and wrapped an arm so tightly around her upper arm that she thought it was going to snap in half in his hand. He then turned her and shoved her aggressively into the corner by the door. “You’re not walking out of this house. I should have never let you walk INTO this house…”

“Dean…” Anna warned, glaring up at him as he pressed a little harder against her. “Let me go…now.”

“No. See? You’re not all hopped up on demon blood. So, until you look me in the eyes and tell me what you said to her, we’re getting comfy.” Dean growled, pulling up an arm to press against Anna’s upper chest, just putting a tiny bit of pressure on her throat. Anna tilted her head back, but she kept her glare, tears pricking the corners of her eyes. Dean leaned a little heavier against her arm and Anna let out a tiny whimper.

“I just told her the t-truth. She deserved that much. You’re just angry you weren’t in control of the situation.” Anna spat at Dean through gritted teeth. Suddenly, Dean rolled his arm up and he pressed it harder against her chin, his own teeth clenched to the point that he was shaking with anger. He completely ignored that Anna was beginning to struggle a little more against him.

“You know…I’ve let a lot go. But I’m going to tell you this. You’re not a part of this. The only reason you’re still here is because everyone around here knows that if you’re out there, you’ll turn into some kind of monster.” Dean started, speaking through gritted teeth, disgust gracing his face in a way that made Anna whimper, a few tears falling down her cheeks as she struggled against his arm, “Ever since you showed up, it’s been nothing but chaos. It’s like you were sent here. You get a little demon blood in your system. You feel powerful, right? You think you’re in charge.”

“No. I don’t…” Anna sobbed, her angry scowl melting into desperation as Dean continued.

“I’m so close to just shoving you out that door, letting you become whatever monster you’re gonna be. Lilith…Alastair…they can have you.” Dean growled, pressing just a little harder against her throat, before finishing, “You knew what this would do. I was going to let her down easy. Nice and easy and painless. But you can’t leave well enough alone. You shut me out, and then you chose to bring the whole castle down, and for what? Hmm? To dig your claws into my sister the way you managed to do to my brother? No. I’ll fix this. But if you slip up…even once, I’ll be there.”

“You’re g-gonna kill me?” Anna struggled out, bringing a hand up to grip Dean’s wrist that was now pressed close to her ear.

“I’ll do what I have to do to keep my family safe. You’re not my family.”

And like that, Dean’s arm was gone and Anna didn’t even take time to catch her breath. She tore her eyes from his angry face, and pulled the door open, running out of the kitchen and onto the gravel. She nearly fell as she missed the steps on the back of the house, and as she stomped past Bobby, he called out to her, but she didn’t turn back. She just kept walking, toward the darkest part of the lot so she could cry alone.

“You’re not my family.”

The words rolled around in her head. She had been around Dean long enough, at this point to know what he meant by those words. She was just another thing for him to hunt. She was just another hunter for him to write off in the wind, and leave to her own defenses. She squeezed her eyes shut and growled as the fear, anger, and heartbreak overwhelmed her chest to the point of pain. And Sam? As usual, Sam would choose his brother…

Cason

Cason was fast, but apparently the little firecracker in his arms was faster. He wrapped his arms tighter around Natalia, as she moved, as if she was going to slip his grip. But before he could grab for her arm, the punch had already been thrown, and Cason groaned audibly. He reached back out for her, wincing for Dean, “Dammit. Nat!”

He shut his mouth as soon as he began her outburst toward Mika, not wanting to add fuel to that fire. But when Sam told him to go after Nat, he didn’t hesitate. He took the gentle order from the younger Winchester, and he quickly spun, following Nat out the door. He followed quickly behind her, but paused as she picked up the hammer, “Natalia…put the hammer down. C’mon. Lets just go eat some food and…”

And she had already thrown the hammer with a scream. Cason threw his hands up, his eyes landing on the breaking glass that was still falling all around the passenger door of the Impala, onto the gravel. There was no way this wouldn’t be an explosion. Dean would be out there any second to explode all over the place, because if there was one thing that meant everything to the guy, other than his family, it was his car. Cason quickly pushed off, no longer feeling the need to chase Nat as she simply walked over to her car and perched on the hood to eat. Cason slowly approached, and climbed up beside her, dropping his arms over his knees as he stared across the lot and sighed, “I know you’re mad. But…you know what? I’m not going to correct you or your decisions. I’m just gonna sit here with you, alright? We’re good?”

Duke

Duke smiled a little brighter as Esme’s hand moved up his chest and onto his cheek. It was another small movement of affection that would normally have had him squirming to get away, but he stayed still and allowed it, just staring into her eyes as she repeated the words he had been dying to hear again. He flinched, tightening his grip on Esme’s jaw accidentally, before releasing his grip and placing the hand against her chest with a confused frown.

“That didn’t sound like Mika…” Duke murmured, raising his head a bit to listen for voices. He heard Cason and what sounded like possibly Natalia, and then suddenly Dean’s voice, screaming at someone. That…was his ‘you broke my heart’ voice. Duke groaned, laying back down for a moment with his arm over his eyes, “I think I gotta go check it out. Dean sounds pissed. I don’t want you gettin’ wrapped up in whatever it is and possibly gettin’ hit in the face or somethin’. I’ll be back.”

Duke reluctantly pulled the blankets back, and slung his legs over the edge of the bed, looking around for at least enough clothing to get him in and out of the house in decency. He stood up, grabbing his jeans off the floor and quickly pulled them over his legs, buttoning them but leaving his belt undone. He turned and grabbed his hat off the sink, before gesturing toward Esme with it, “If you don’t want to hang back here…go check on whoever it is that just exploded in the lot. It sounded like Natalia. Oh…”

Duke covered the small space he had walked away, and he leaned a knee on the bed, leaning over Esme and pressing a tight quick kiss to her lips, “I love you. I’ll be right back.”

He then stood back up, stepping into his work boots, leaving his jeans bunched up around the tops. He quickly left the RV before he could change his mind. He jogged down the steps, just in time to see Anna barrel through the door, almost crashing into his chest. “Whoa little one! Hey…hey, what’s wrong?”

“Don’t…touch me!” Anna snapped at Duke, who pulled his hands he had been hovering over her into the air as if she had a gun on him. Without another word, she jogged away from him sobbing. Duke sighed, placing his hat on his head, and stepped into the house. He wasn’t even sure what he was walking in to.

“So what’s goin’ on with the ladies? Let me guess…” He started, but paused as he felt the intense tension in the room.

All Roads Lead To You

Dean

As Esme grabbed his hand and brought it down, holding it against her chest, Dean opened his eyes a bit wider with worry. He watched her face, keeping his eyes on hers as she opened her eyes and looked at him, her words causing him to sigh. Of course something had gone wrong with Duke. Dean tightened his own grip on her hand and he was tempted to bring the other one up to stroke her hair, or something that would help relax her. She seemed genuinely upset, tired and she was pale.

Dean couldn’t help the narrowing of his eyes as she continued to speak, rummaging around in his head to find a reason that either Esme or Duke would be frustrated enough to cause this sort of damage. Sure, she was aggravated at him and sure Duke was irritated at them for not welcoming him home with hugs and celebration. But it wasn’t quite so deep, or at least Dean didn’t think so.

And then Duke lied? That wasn’t all that much of a surprise, but it had affected Esme in an obviously negative way. And from the sounds of what had happened afterward, there was something about Duke that made Esme a sponge for his feelings, and possibly made him a sponge for hers. The thought of there being some sort of psychic weird connection between them caused Dean’s stomach to cramp with anxiety, but he pushed it down and covered that with a sigh as much as he could. He didn’t need Esme feeling any of his worry, on top of all this that she was already dealing with.

“Okay. So…maybe Duke just feels a little different when he has emotions. I mean, the kid’s not exactly an open book. He carries a lot of his emotions internally until he explodes. Even when he explodes, he just runs off to handle it. He doesn’t let people in. Maybe…maybe with your channeling stuff, he did it on accident.” Dean explained, trying to rationalize it all to himself. He scanned over Esme’s face and sighed once again, “Maybe he’s a little more hurt than we gave him credit for…or-or maybe something happened while he’s gone. It might not even have anything to do with you, is what I’m saying.”

Dean brushed his thumb over the back of Esme’s hand, and he leaned over on the bed, bringing himself rather close to her face, so he could talk a bit lower, “You wanna talk about the conversation? What was said that would have made things so tense between you guys?”