#spn:tlr

[mirainawen]

chasm, straw in the wind, and crooked storm on carson pass

chasm.

summary: rising from the dead is practically another tuesday for winchesters. a milligan, however…

it immediately follows getting garth'd. sam and dean went off grid after the trials to allow sam time to heal and dean time to nurse his regrets. the two are on the rocks after dean's stunt with gadreel, not the least of reasons why being gadreel's attempt on kevin's life (an angel of the lord is supposed to protect a prophet of the lord, so the attack awoke another latent power of prophets, smiting).

finding out that their long locked up half-brother is topside again is somehow the best and last thing the two of them need right now. the chasm, as they say, isn't fixed yet.

Dean stares across the room, index finger tapping the table—one, two, three, an unconscious mimicry of the clock. The ticking was the only other sound in the room.

“Okay,” he finally says, letting his hand fall. Sam stirs at his voice. “Walk me through it again.”

Benny doesn’t sigh. His expression says it, loud and clear. “Story ain’t gonna change, Dean.”

He glances at Sam, who, arms braced on his knees and hands clasped, lets his shoulders rise heavily and fall under the look. The lines around his eyes and mouth are deep again, and not just from the lack of sleep. The knife’s edge they’d all been balanced on was crawling down their spines.

He leans away from it. “So you’re sayin’ Adam…what? Just waltzes outta the cage, takes a little jaunt through hell til he finds an exit and just…stumbles into the only monster in all of Purgatory who isn’t gonna tear him limb from limb on sight?”

Benny’s lip curls in the shadow of a smile. “Looks like it.”

::

straw in the wind.

summary: there's a crack in sam's glass house. (adam's on the warpath.)

concussed after a particularly bad exorcism, sam speaks to adam about the cage for the first time. he implies that adam doesn't quite...fit with him and dean. that adam's not relentless or aggressive enough to make a good hunter, unaware not being okay with sam tends to push adam over the edge. thus pushed, adam goes on a reckless hunting spree (affectionately termed the "fuck you sam tour" by writer and captive audience of a bff who must be hit by ideas thrown her way until she cries "ow!"). distracted by sam, dean doesn't put the pieces together about a "hunter off the rails" and adam's (not...atypical) radio silence. when garth finally calls dean to "come get your boy", sam and dean hit the road to find him and talk him down off the ledge. sam makes an old yeller reference. dean hears the first distant sounds of sirens.

“Dean?” he called, but there’s no answer. He could try his other brother…other brother? Adam. Right. It was about Adam. He was gonna tell Dean something about Adam, it was…they needed to tell Adam something. He groaned, rubbing his forehead.

Connecting the threads of his thinking lately had been a killer. The pieces often had sharp edges, slipping through his grasp. Getting this far hurt like a bitch. The meds couldn’t kick in fast enough. But when they did, he didn’t really think any clearer, just hurt a little less. He clung to  the pieces, finding his phone in hand.

Call Adam. Adam hated that. Couldn’t be bothered to answer texts. Everything was always on his terms. Sam hated that.

“Sam?” Adam’s voice sounded…surprised? Maybe a little worried. Definitely a bit distracted.

“Hey. Adam.” Those two words felt like they took a lungful each.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah?” He pressed the heel of his hand to his head, fighting back the dizzying little edges of light dancing about his peripheral.

Adam hissed. “Well it’s not like you call. Why are you calling?” The demand annoyed him.

He huffed a sound that takes all the air out of his lungs again. “Because you…don’t want us to.” It was like, one of so many rules Sam did not understand.

“Cause Winchesters only call when they need something.”

The implication irritated him further. “Okay, well, I need to tell you something.”

“If it’s that Dean is overbearing, he’s your favorite brother, Sam, I don’t want to hear it. Why’d you crack your skull open anyway?”

He opened his mouth, and yanked the phone away as a messy, confusing sound crackled over the line. He forgets the line of questioning as bright spots dance behind his eyes.

“Sam?” Adam’s voice broke back through. “I’m really busy. Can we not play-at happy family right now? I’m sure Dean will be overjoyed to make sure you have company while you recover.”

::

crooked storm on carson pass.

summary: accused of a crime he didn't commit, joe wiles his time in a carson pass jail while adam tries to prove his innocence. at every turn, the local sheriff seems to be one step ahead. has adam finally met his match?

“JOE!” He barked, causing Joe to jerk clean out of the bed, rolling off onto his back in a graceless heap.

Joe groaned and touched the back of his head as he half-sat up. “Galldang you, Adam,” he protested mulishly, peering at his brother in rebuke. “What’s the big idea, huh?” He prodded at his head and winced.

“Well, Joe, that’s what I’d like you to tell me.” Adam gestured at himself before folding his arms and peering down at his brother.

Joe groaned again as he sat up, and glanced at his brother under knotted brows. “Well maybe you should tell me - you’re so smart.” Which was Joe’s way of saying he didn’t appreciate Adam’s tone of voice.

“Then I will.” Adam shot back, censure bordering on condescending in that way that was Adam’s of saying that Joe was in for a lecture. “You’re supposed to be in Zephyr Cove.”

This time when Joe groaned it was pure frustration. “Yes, well, obviously I’m not.” He threw out a hand, encompassing the jail, and climbed to his feet. “So go ahead. Lecture away, Older Brother - I don’t really have any other option, do I?”

And maybe it was the set of Joe’s jaw or the fact that he was so mulish, standing there framed by cell bars with the bed clothes piled about his feet, but Adam found he derived no pleasure from fighting with someone who couldn’t fight back. And Joe loved to fight back.

If anyone had ever pointed out to Adam that Joe did follow his examples, he would have argued the opposite - but if someone had ever pointed out that Joe had learned how to argue with authority from watching Adam argue with their father, he would have stormed away in a speechless rage.

[mirainawen]

i associate adam with you obvs but also shawn and gus

Aw, perfection. 🥰🥰 This makes me happy.