❝ You think you're tough, don't you? ❞
❝ I think I'm a badass. ❞
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in which Dean Winchester is the father of a female version of his teenage self
[ STORY DISCONTINUED; REWRITTEN VERSION COMING SOON ]
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Lawrence, Kansas
2005
Three days after Jessica Moore died
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Natalie looked up from her coloring book when she heard a shout from her Uncle's bedroom, her head tipping to the side. Her father had tucked her in at about 9:00 and after about two minutes of lying there, she decided there would be no sleeping that night.
She scooped up her favorite stuffed moose and her joke book before tiptoeing out of her bedroom and into the hallway. She peered around the corner and into her uncle's bedroom, frowning when she once again saw the older man in tears in his bed.
"Uncle Sammy?" she called quietly, making the man jump slightly.
"N-Natalie," Sam stuttered, wiping at his face with his hand to try and rid himself of his tears. "What are you doing up, sweet pea?"
Natalie padded over and clambered into his lap, draping a little arm around his neck. "I'm not sleepy." she shrugged, looking up into his teary eyes. She frowned. "Why are you sad?"
Sam sighed softly and wrapped his arms around the little girl, wiping at his eyes again. "It's nothing. I just had a bad dream, that's all. I'm fine." he smiled down at the younger Winchester.
"I'm sorry." Natalie said, reaching up to pat his head in what she thought was a comforting way.
Sam laughed gently. "That's okay. It's not your fault." he whispered, his voice still choked from tears, though he refused to let anymore fall in front of his niece.
"I have bad dreams too sometimes." Natalie said, leaning her head on her uncle's chest and gently stroking the fur of the plush moose in her arms.
Sam's brow furrowed. "Yeah?" he asked, rocking his niece gently in his arms.
"Mhm. Sometimes, when Daddy goes to work for a few days, I dream that he doesn't come back." she admitted. "Sometimes I get scared that he went to heaven like Mommy and Grandma and I won't see him again."
Sam's heart ached at his niece's words. His brother had made him well aware that the little girl had no concept of the supernatural part of their lives, that as far as she knew, he was just a cop who stopped bad guys. But Natalie was smarter than the average six year old. She knew that even police work was a dangerous job. If she was haunted by something as simple as that, then God help her if she ever found out about the supernatural.
"I dream about that too sometimes." Sam admitted, brushing a gentle hand through her hair. "But then I remember that your Dad loves his family more than anything in this world, and he would do anything to get back to it."
