77th Hunt [Video | Action for those in the house]

[dudeimbatman]

[The device is nudged and turns on accidentally. There's a sleepy yawn coming from the bundle of blankets on the bed. After a moment a head emerges, the spiky hair and freckled face of a little boy. If one looks closely though, it's clear that this is still Dean. He's simply eight years old today rather than thirty two. He looks a bit confused as he crawls out of bed, barely catching the sweatpants at the waist. They're much too big for him.]

Sam! Sammy!

[He was pretty sure when he crawled into bed that night, Sam was already asleep. He pads into the bathroom.] Sam! Where'd you wander off to?

[And that tone of voice, that is eight year old panic. Dean rushes back into the room and reaches under the bed, grabbing the sawed off shotgun there. Yes, even at eight he kept a sawed off shotgun under the bed.]

Comments

[iwatchtjhooker]

No, he doesn't.

[Seeing him like this reminds Sam just how amazing Dean is. And no matter how annoying his hovering may have been, no matter how often he forgets it, and wants to tell him he's not a kid anymore... this kid deserves to know it.]

But you know, aside from the girl thing, I turn out okay. And obviously [He gestures to himself] I got fed pretty well.

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[That gets a big, toothy grin from Dean. Whether Sam realizes it or not, he's always going to be a kid to Dean and there's no way around that. It's entirely too ingrained in him, Take care of Sam. Hell it's one of his first really clear memories.]

I keep telling people that Funyuns are a vegetable. [Honestly, it's a small miracle they both survived.]

[iwatchtjhooker]

They totally are. [Sam is not helping, he realizes. And then he has bizarre circular notions that it was he himself who set up the whole Funyuns cycle, just now. Not that he really thinks Dean is from that time. This is... Dean here, reduced. It's confusing.]

So what are you gonna do today? You've got Mom and you don't have Sammy to take care of.

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[Dean considers this while eating his waffles. After a moment he answers.]

Build forts with legos. You wanna play war with me? [He realizes Sam is technically too old to do this but figures he might anyway.]

[iwatchtjhooker]

[Sam grins, losing some of his anxiety that he would be too uncool for little Dean, either because he was his uncool younger brother or because he was old. He's not even sure they have any legos.]

Yeah, that'd be fun. [He can't get over how young and trusting Dean is. How innocent, in a way, only it reminds him how he never really got to be.]

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[Yeah, Dean not having time for Sam, like that's ever gonna happen. He just gives him a harder time when he's older.]

Then maybe Mom will make sugar cookies.

[iwatchtjhooker]

I bet she will, if you ask. [He's betting Mary will do just about anything--just like he will. It's odd, getting to take care of Dean for once.] Let's go see if we can find those legos, yeah?

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

Okay. I'll ask her when we run into her.[Dean jumps off the stool with a big toothy grin that's so unlike adult him.]

I bet Mom has 'em in one of the rooms upstairs.

[iwatchtjhooker]

[Sam wants to frame that smile. He wonders if Mom has a camera. Dean will hate him forever, and Sam will love it.]

Yeah, okay. We'll go look.

[He lets Dean lead the way, because it has to be familiar.]

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[Dean does take the lead out of instinct and tromps up the stairs, checking over his shoulder to make sure Sam is following him.]

Bet Mom won't care if we play down in the living room with cartoons on.

[iwatchtjhooker]

[Sam was pretty sure Mom wouldn't care about a lot of things.]

Bet she won't. That sounds great. You got a favorite?

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[This is a very serious question so Dean takes a moment to answer.]

GI Joe or Scooby Doo. Super friends are cool too.

do they even have tv?

[iwatchtjhooker]

[Sam smiles.]

Those are all good. We'll have to see what we can find.

I think so. I'm guessing Mary has one for movie night or something

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[Dean returns the smile with a crooked grin.]

You still like cartoons? Even though you're ginormous?

Oh, I meant do they air cartoons and stuff

[iwatchtjhooker]

Sure. You don't have to stop liking cartoons, no matter how big you are. You just start liking other things, too.

Oh! Yes just not from the canons that are here I think.Same with the vid store

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[Dean considers this for a moment.] Like what?

cool

[iwatchtjhooker]

Uh... Well, like movies with kissing in them. Or you know, stuff in black and white. Doesn't mean you can't still watch Scooby-Doo.

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[Dean screws up his face in a disgusting expression.] Kissing movies suck but the black and white horror movies are cool.

[iwatchtjhooker]

Oh, that's right. Horror movies are cool. Well, you'll still think they're cool, so don't worry about that. [They're upstairs now, and Sam has no idea how or if they'll find Legos.]

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

[Dean heads toward one of the spare rooms. He is at least going to act like he knows where Mom keeps the legos. He opens the closet and looks up to the top shelf. There's a plastic tub of legos and a bucket of green and brown soldiers. He stretches up, completely frustrated because he's too short for this shit.]

[iwatchtjhooker]

[Sam blinks. Wow. Like everything else in this house, things are turning out weirdly perfect. Slightly smug--he hadn't shot up until well into high school--Sam reaches up and retrieves both buckets.]

Oh man, army men. [He hands the legos to Dean.] We'll take these, too. Make a fort, or something.

[He can't really recapture the enthusiasm, but god, it's so amazing to see Dean just concerned with having fun. And not the self-destructive kind he's used to. And his delight in that almost makes up for it.]