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rsadelleI told you I'd take requests, so of course I got up this morning and wrote something completely different.
***
Jo
One minute Dean's cleaning weapons and Sam's reading and the next minute there's a girl on their couch. Not the kind of girl Dean would like to have on their couch, but a kid with blonde curls and pink Converse on her feet.
Dean's body moves on autopilot and he has a gun pointed at her the moment he notices her. She goes rabbit still and that's when Sam looks up at her too.
"You're hunters," she says, and her voice shakes. "My daddy's a hunter too."
"Who are you?" Sam asks.
She's still warily watching Dean's gun, but she answers the question. "Joanna Beth Harvelle. Jo."
Sam and Dean exchange a look. Yeah, right.
"I'm Sam," Sam tells her. "That's Dean. Christo."
She looks at him weirdly, and Dean just shakes his head.
"What?" Sam says. "I had to try."
"You suck with kids." Dean puts the gun down and goes to crouch in front of Jo. "What year is it?"
She frowns at him. "1993," she says like he's stupid or something.
There's a beeping to his right, and he looks up to see Sam holding the EMF meter on her. Dean's not surprised when nothing happens. This is too weird for that. Jo shrinks back from it anyway.
"I want to go home," she says, and her lip trembles a little.
Dean pats her knee. "Sam's going to get you a glass of water, and I'm going to be right over there," he points to the other side of the room, "making a phone call."
Sam puts the EMF meter down and does as Dean's said while Dean scrolls down his phone to the entry for Jo. He gets her voice mail so he hangs up and calls the Roadhouse.
"Have you talked to Jo recently?" he asks Ellen.
"Jo? Yeah, she's here."
Okay, that wasn't what he expected. "She's there? Can I talk to her?"
"Yeah, sure." Ellen hands the phone over to Jo.
"Dean?"
"Jo." Dean looks at the girl on the couch. "Has anything strange happened to you recently?"
"Not any stranger than usual. Why?"
The Jo on their couch is easily drinking the water Sam brought her, which is kind of a relief. Dean saw Sam adding holy water to it, so at least she's nothing that reacts to holy water.
"Look," Dean says, "you just have to see this. We're coming to you. We're a day out." He looks at the girl and tries to remember what it was like traveling when he was six, or when Sammy was six. "Maybe two. Just stay there. Don't go anywhere."
"Dean, what's going on?"
"Just promise me," Dean says. "Promise me you'll stay there until we get there."
"Okay," Jo sounds bewildered, but at least she gets that it's important. "I won't go anywhere."
The Jo on their couch is kind of shrinking back from Sam, and, man, does he really suck with kids.
"Okay, good. We'll see you in a couple of days." Dean hangs up and goes back to take over. "Sam, pack up. We're leaving."
It takes them almost two full days. Dean had forgotten just how much you have to stop when you have a little kid in the back seat. Potty breaks and breaks to stretch because she fusses a little when they've been driving for too long and stops at grocery stores for peanut butter and juice boxes. She doesn't like Sam much, but she'll let Dean take her hand so they don't get separated.
She perks up on the approach to the Roadhouse. "You're taking me home!"
Dean glances at her in the rearview mirror. "Yeah."
It's late afternoon when they get there, late enough for there to be a few people in the place, not so late that it's packed.
Ellen blinks at them when they come in, and then Jo is yelling, "Mommy!" and running towards her and Ellen comes around the bar and bends down to scoop her up.
"Jo, baby," she says, pressing the girl into her arms.
"Mommy, I was reading and then I was in a hotel room with them and they're hunters and I missed you so much." Jo started crying the moment Ellen picked her up, so most of that comes out jumbled.
And then the grown-up Jo comes out from the back room and sees her mother clutching a kid who looks familiar, and she remembers those shoes.
"What the hell?"
Ellen turns to look at her, and she looks happier to have this girl in her arms than she ever does to see Jo.
"How can they both be here?" she asks.
Sam shrugs. "We don't know. I've been doing research, but I haven't found anything."
"We were hoping Jo might know," Dean says.
"That's me?" Jo asks. She can see it now, the same nose she sees in the mirror every morning, even if her cheeks aren't as round anymore.
"We think so," Sam says. "She didn't react to holy water, and she didn't set off the EMF meter." He hesitates, and then says, "She thought it was 1993."
Jo honestly can't think of anything that might have made this happen, but she steps behind the bar and tells them everything that happened on her last job while her mom takes this new version of her back to the kitchen to get her something to eat.
***
Sam
When Dean wakes up, there's a kid sitting cross-legged on Sam's bed, watching him.
"Dean," the kid, no Sammy, says, "I don't think I'm supposed to be here."
"How'd you know who I was, Sammy?" Dean asks while he sits up.
"Who else would you be?" Which, actually, he has a good point. Sam alone in a hotel room with someone who isn't dad, so it has to be Dean. "But I'm not supposed to be here, am I?"
Dean rubs a hand over his face. He needs a gallon of coffee and a plate full of food. "Probably not." He gets out of bed and ruffles Sammy's hair. "We'll figure it out."
He takes a shower and gets dressed and gets them packed and into the Impala. He settles Sammy into the front seat and checks them out. Somebody might notice that he arrived with another adult and is leaving with a child, so he waits until they're almost out of town to stop for breakfast. He gets Sam settled in front of a plate full of waffle and goes outside where he can call Bobby and still keep an eye on Sammy through the window.
"I think it's my fault," he says when he's finished explaining and Bobby's sworn at him a little. "I think I wished it."
"Dammit, Dean, you know better than that," Bobby scolds.
"I know that!" Dean glances through the window and catches Sammy stealing potatoes off of his plate. That's right. Sammy'd gone through a growth spurt about then. Dean makes a mental note to order Sam a second breakfast and stock up on car snacks. "I didn't say anything out loud or even think 'I wish.'"
Bobby's sigh sounds heavy as it comes at him from his cell's speaker. "What did you do?"
"I just thought that if I could do it all over again, I'd do it right this time."
There's silence and then Bobby says, "Oh, Dean."
Dean looks down at his boots. "I know. It was stupid."
"Damn right it was, but your heart's in the right place. You're bringing him here, right?"
"Yeah," Dean says. This time Sammy sees him watching while he steals potatoes and they make faces at each other. "We'll be there tonight."
"All right," Bobby says. "You take care of him."
"Of course." Dean hangs up and goes back into the diner where he smiles at the waitress and orders more potatoes.
***
Jo
One minute Dean's cleaning weapons and Sam's reading and the next minute there's a girl on their couch. Not the kind of girl Dean would like to have on their couch, but a kid with blonde curls and pink Converse on her feet.
Dean's body moves on autopilot and he has a gun pointed at her the moment he notices her. She goes rabbit still and that's when Sam looks up at her too.
"You're hunters," she says, and her voice shakes. "My daddy's a hunter too."
"Who are you?" Sam asks.
She's still warily watching Dean's gun, but she answers the question. "Joanna Beth Harvelle. Jo."
Sam and Dean exchange a look. Yeah, right.
"I'm Sam," Sam tells her. "That's Dean. Christo."
She looks at him weirdly, and Dean just shakes his head.
"What?" Sam says. "I had to try."
"You suck with kids." Dean puts the gun down and goes to crouch in front of Jo. "What year is it?"
She frowns at him. "1993," she says like he's stupid or something.
There's a beeping to his right, and he looks up to see Sam holding the EMF meter on her. Dean's not surprised when nothing happens. This is too weird for that. Jo shrinks back from it anyway.
"I want to go home," she says, and her lip trembles a little.
Dean pats her knee. "Sam's going to get you a glass of water, and I'm going to be right over there," he points to the other side of the room, "making a phone call."
Sam puts the EMF meter down and does as Dean's said while Dean scrolls down his phone to the entry for Jo. He gets her voice mail so he hangs up and calls the Roadhouse.
"Have you talked to Jo recently?" he asks Ellen.
"Jo? Yeah, she's here."
Okay, that wasn't what he expected. "She's there? Can I talk to her?"
"Yeah, sure." Ellen hands the phone over to Jo.
"Dean?"
"Jo." Dean looks at the girl on the couch. "Has anything strange happened to you recently?"
"Not any stranger than usual. Why?"
The Jo on their couch is easily drinking the water Sam brought her, which is kind of a relief. Dean saw Sam adding holy water to it, so at least she's nothing that reacts to holy water.
"Look," Dean says, "you just have to see this. We're coming to you. We're a day out." He looks at the girl and tries to remember what it was like traveling when he was six, or when Sammy was six. "Maybe two. Just stay there. Don't go anywhere."
"Dean, what's going on?"
"Just promise me," Dean says. "Promise me you'll stay there until we get there."
"Okay," Jo sounds bewildered, but at least she gets that it's important. "I won't go anywhere."
The Jo on their couch is kind of shrinking back from Sam, and, man, does he really suck with kids.
"Okay, good. We'll see you in a couple of days." Dean hangs up and goes back to take over. "Sam, pack up. We're leaving."
It takes them almost two full days. Dean had forgotten just how much you have to stop when you have a little kid in the back seat. Potty breaks and breaks to stretch because she fusses a little when they've been driving for too long and stops at grocery stores for peanut butter and juice boxes. She doesn't like Sam much, but she'll let Dean take her hand so they don't get separated.
She perks up on the approach to the Roadhouse. "You're taking me home!"
Dean glances at her in the rearview mirror. "Yeah."
It's late afternoon when they get there, late enough for there to be a few people in the place, not so late that it's packed.
Ellen blinks at them when they come in, and then Jo is yelling, "Mommy!" and running towards her and Ellen comes around the bar and bends down to scoop her up.
"Jo, baby," she says, pressing the girl into her arms.
"Mommy, I was reading and then I was in a hotel room with them and they're hunters and I missed you so much." Jo started crying the moment Ellen picked her up, so most of that comes out jumbled.
And then the grown-up Jo comes out from the back room and sees her mother clutching a kid who looks familiar, and she remembers those shoes.
"What the hell?"
Ellen turns to look at her, and she looks happier to have this girl in her arms than she ever does to see Jo.
"How can they both be here?" she asks.
Sam shrugs. "We don't know. I've been doing research, but I haven't found anything."
"We were hoping Jo might know," Dean says.
"That's me?" Jo asks. She can see it now, the same nose she sees in the mirror every morning, even if her cheeks aren't as round anymore.
"We think so," Sam says. "She didn't react to holy water, and she didn't set off the EMF meter." He hesitates, and then says, "She thought it was 1993."
Jo honestly can't think of anything that might have made this happen, but she steps behind the bar and tells them everything that happened on her last job while her mom takes this new version of her back to the kitchen to get her something to eat.
***
Sam
When Dean wakes up, there's a kid sitting cross-legged on Sam's bed, watching him.
"Dean," the kid, no Sammy, says, "I don't think I'm supposed to be here."
"How'd you know who I was, Sammy?" Dean asks while he sits up.
"Who else would you be?" Which, actually, he has a good point. Sam alone in a hotel room with someone who isn't dad, so it has to be Dean. "But I'm not supposed to be here, am I?"
Dean rubs a hand over his face. He needs a gallon of coffee and a plate full of food. "Probably not." He gets out of bed and ruffles Sammy's hair. "We'll figure it out."
He takes a shower and gets dressed and gets them packed and into the Impala. He settles Sammy into the front seat and checks them out. Somebody might notice that he arrived with another adult and is leaving with a child, so he waits until they're almost out of town to stop for breakfast. He gets Sam settled in front of a plate full of waffle and goes outside where he can call Bobby and still keep an eye on Sammy through the window.
"I think it's my fault," he says when he's finished explaining and Bobby's sworn at him a little. "I think I wished it."
"Dammit, Dean, you know better than that," Bobby scolds.
"I know that!" Dean glances through the window and catches Sammy stealing potatoes off of his plate. That's right. Sammy'd gone through a growth spurt about then. Dean makes a mental note to order Sam a second breakfast and stock up on car snacks. "I didn't say anything out loud or even think 'I wish.'"
Bobby's sigh sounds heavy as it comes at him from his cell's speaker. "What did you do?"
"I just thought that if I could do it all over again, I'd do it right this time."
There's silence and then Bobby says, "Oh, Dean."
Dean looks down at his boots. "I know. It was stupid."
"Damn right it was, but your heart's in the right place. You're bringing him here, right?"
"Yeah," Dean says. This time Sammy sees him watching while he steals potatoes and they make faces at each other. "We'll be there tonight."
"All right," Bobby says. "You take care of him."
"Of course." Dean hangs up and goes back into the diner where he smiles at the waitress and orders more potatoes.
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