this is me trying, spn [ 3 ]

012. space bubble

"Okay. So, wow, um, Chuck--" Sam chuckles. "Well, I guess we don't call you that, huh?"

"I prefer it." Chuck says.

"Okay, uh, Chuck it is." Sam says. "I'm sorry. You're gonna have to, uh, give Dean, Lissy, and me a moment to start to process. We didn't even know you were around. I mean, we knew about Chuck, but we just didn't know about... Chuck. I mean, I-I-I was hoping you were around. I-I prayed and I-- but I don't know if they got, uh, lost in the spam or if--"

"Sam?" Dean calls.

"Yeah?"

"Babbling."

"Okay."

"Is that what I sound like?" Daphne quietly asks her brother.

"Every day since you were born." Billy mutters.

"I'm getting that not everyone's totally on board." Chuck says.

"Here's the thing, um... Chuck -- and I mean no disrespect. Um... I'm guessing you came back to help with the Darkness, and that's great. That's, you know, it's fantastic. Um, but you've been gone a... a long, long time. And there's so much shit that has gone down on earth for thousands of years. I mean, plagues and wars, slaughters. And you were, I don't know, writing books, going to fan conventions. Were you even aware o-or did you just tune it out?"

"I was aware, Dean."

"But you did nothing. And, again, I'm not trying to piss you off. You know, I don't want to turn into a pillar of salt."

"I actually... don't do that."

"Okay. People... people pray to you. People build churches for you. They fight wars in your name, and you did nothing."

"You're frustrated. I get it. Believe me, I was hands on -- real hands on for... wow, ages. I was so sure if I kept stepping in, teaching, punishing, that these beautiful creatures that I created... would grow up. But it only stayed the same. And I saw that I needed to step away and let my baby find its way. Being overinvolved is no longer parenting. It's enabling."

"But it didn't get better."

"Well, I've been mulling it over. And from where I sit, I think it has."

"Well, from where I sit, it feels like you left us and you're trying to justify it."

"I know you had a complicated upbringing, Dean... but don't confuse me with your dad."

"Well, that's a little out of line." Larissa says.

+++

"You have to understand this about the Darkness... she's relentless, a force beyond human comprehension. It's the only reason I came off the sidelines." Chuck says.

"Must have been great being her brother, huh?" Sam remarks.

"It was the worst. Always telling me what to do, making me do what she wanted. I mean, you guys know how that works." Chuck says.

"She definitely sounds like dad." Ophelia comments. Dean gives her a look and she shrugs.

"So, where is she?" Dean asks.

"No freakin' idea, fellas, lady fellas. She's warded herself specifically against me. What have you come up with?" Chuck asks.

"Zip, and we've been at it for months." Dean says.

"Well... matter of time. I've always had faith in you... even if you don't return the favor. Where's the guest room? I could use a shower." Chuck says.

"Uh, it's, um... just down the hallway -- the fourth door on the left." Sam says.