Don't Worry, Be Happy , 1/1, [PG13] Dean, Sam, Bobby & OCs
Title: Don’t Worry, Be Happy
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: None, Gen.
Word Count: 6,528
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Warnings: Possible spoilers for first and second seasons with a bit of limp/hurt!Sam and a heavy helping of cuteness.
Beta: The wonderful Gidgetgal9. She’s responsible for the ideas as well. All remaining mistakes are mine.
A/N: Written for the March Sam Love prompt at Summer_Sam_Love, which was anything involving Sam and spring. This follows my story Double Dose of Angels but it can be read alone. Just know that Sam and Dean saved the little girls and have become like uncles to them. Also, the twins are part of another generation of special kids. Thanks to faye_dartmouth for allowing me to run this contest at her community and for her support as well as guidance!
Summary: For their first duty as Uncles, Sam and Dean are roped into taking the twins to their spring dance recital. However, the girls seem to find trouble just as easily as the Winchesters and it’s up to Sam and Dean to save the day once again.
~*~*~
*This follows my story Double Dose of Angels but it can be read alone. Just know that Sam and Dean saved the little girls and have become like uncles to them. Also, the twins are part of another generation of the Yellow eyed Demon's special kids. *
Dean can’t think of anything worse than spending his Sunday sitting in a room filled with proud parents and their bratty daughters in tutus and tap shoes. Then again, he could be off chasing after monsters, covered in dirt and blood rather than glitter.
When Dave had called and asked if they could step in and take the twins to their spring recital Dean had really wanted to say no. The look on Sam’s face had changed his mind-not that he had a choice since Sam immediately agreed without asking him.
So now he’s sitting on the couch beside his brother, watching Meghan twirl around in her green tutu as Sam attempts to pull Mackenzie’s curly hair into a bun. He tries really hard not to laugh at his brother but fails. Sam can tie any knot in the Boy Scout handbook but he can’t seem to find the trick to hair tying.
Dean doesn’t have much room to talk. He won’t even try it.
“Maybe Audrey’s Mom could do our hair, Uncle Sam.” Mackenzie turns her head slightly, wincing when the brush Sam is using pulls at a knot.
“Give it up, man.” Dean laughs and carefully grasps Sam’s wrist. “Put the brush down and let the girl go.”
Mackenzie giggles but takes the distraction to move away from Sam. Sam glares at Dean, pulling his arm away but setting the brush on the coffee table.
“Can’t you two just wear your hair down?”
Dean doesn’t even try to stifle his laugh this time as Sam turns on his puppy dog eyes for the girls. The Master trying to show he’s still better than his students. Dean has to admit that the girls are good, but they haven’t perfected the art that Sam’s been practicing for twenty-four years now.
Meghan stops her twirling and frowns, “It’ll get in our face when we dance. Then we’ll fall over. But don’t worry, Uncle Sam, I’m sure Audrey’s mom will help.”
“Who’s Audrey?”
Dean and Sam have been receiving almost daily phone calls from the girls for over two months now and in all the chatter of their friends and school, Audrey has never come up. However, the girls eyes light up and they both skip over to the boys, perching themselves on the coffee table in front of the couch.
“She’s our friend from dance.” Mackenzie says with a bright smile. “We met her at rehearsal last weekend but she left before Daddy could meet her.”
“Yeah,” Meghan chimes in. “She’s really cool! She’s in an older group but she knows all kinds of neat tricks that she promised to show us.”
“Well then I definitely look forward to meeting her.” Sam smiles as he stands from the couch and lifts the girls up, one in each arm. “What you say you two go grab your bags so we can get there early?”
“So someone can finish Uncle Sam’s job,” Dean tugs at Meghan’s hair that hangs in a loose pony tail at the back of her neck.
Meghan swats his hand away playfully and Sam glares as he carries the girls toward the stairs, gently dropping them onto the first step. They both tear off up the stairs in lightening speed, returning in seconds with matching dance bags.
Dean opens the front door and the girls run outside, skipping toward the recently cleaned and well adapted Impala that’s parked in the driveway. It hadn’t taken Dean long to realize that if the girls were going to be a permanent fixture in their lives that he’d have to do something about his baby.
Since he had no intention of selling her for a soccer mom update, he did the next best thing and had seat belts installed in the back seat. Really, when he thought about it, Dad probably should have had it done a long time ago when Sammy and he were little, but people back then didn’t know what they know now. Yet kids still turned out okay.
He watches from the steps as Sam easily manages to make sure the girls are buckled in and have everything they need before his brother slips into the passenger seat. It’s been a long time since he’s seen such a genuine happiness in Sam and he constantly wonders if he did the right thing dragging Sam back in to the hunt.
Sam won’t back out now that he’s driven by the death of their mother, father, Jess and the girls’ connection to all of it. He knows Sam won’t give up until they find the thing that tore apart their family, ruined Sam’s chance to have a family of his own and now threatens to take away the small family they have managed to create amongst the devastation.
When he finally got around to telling Sam about the girls connection to yellow eyes, one that is nearly identical to Sam’s, he had been sure his brother was going to lose it.
The night Jess died and after the deal their father had made, Dean only saw sadness and regret. Now all he sees is Sam’s fury, anger and determination to fix it. He’s going to save not only himself but the girls as well.
Dean feels the same way but sometimes he’s worries about the lengths Sam will go to because he knows it’s the same lengths he will go to save Sam.
“Let’s go, Dean!” He snaps out of his thoughts at Sam’s shout and quickly closes the front door, making sure it’s locked before he turns and heads to the car.
The girls are in the back chatting about the recital. Dean knows it’s at least the tenth time today that he’s had to listen to the girls sing their version of Don’t Worry Be Happy. Of course all they know are those four words and the WhooHoo’s.
He feels guilty but he tunes them out after a few moments and turns up the radio slightly. Sam sends him a knowing look and shakes his head but turns in the seat to pay attention to the girls, which makes Dean feel a bit better. At least one of them has the patience to listen to the chatter.
By the time they reach the high school where the recital is being held, Dean can tell his brothers heard enough but Sam’s smile never wavers. The girls continue their happy chatter as they latch onto Dean and Sam’s hand and skip across the parking lot, practically dragging the brothers along with them.
Dean cringes when they finally find the auditorium and it’s already filled with loud girls and even louder tap shoes. Luckily he’s able to drown out the noise when the girls drag them toward a young brunet with a gorgeous smile.
“You two must be Sam and Dean.” She holds out her hand and Dean jumps to take it first.
“That’s us.” He smiles. “And you are?”
“This is Miss Kelly, she our dance teacher!” The girls answer for the young woman.
“That I am,” Miss Kelly laughs and crouches down in front of the girls, giving them each a quick hug. “Dave called to let me know the girls’ uncles would be bringing them. He said he had to go out of town on business?”
The girls quickly nod and Dean and Sam smile.
Dave was currently on a strange hunt involving a possessed Bambi and possibly other forest critters. Animal possession is rather rare but its Dave’s specialty and Dean had to admit he’d probably pick dealing with little girls in tutus rather than possessed forest creatures.
“Could I ask you a favor?” Sam’s cheeks go red as he pulls a brush out of one of the girls’ bags that he has slung over his shoulder.
“Do you need some help with hair?” She laughs and takes the brush from Sam before kneeling down in front of the girls again.
“Uncle Sam tried to do Mackenzie’s bun but he’s not too good at it. I think its cause he’s a boy.”
“Well it was certainly nice of him to try.” The dance teacher carefully pulls the brush through Meghan’s hair and easily twists it into a bun. She smiles up at Sam as she pulls pins out of her pocket to hold the hair in place. “It’s not as easy as it looks but after you’ve done it a million times you become an expert.”
Dean watches as Sam laughs and pulls Meghan up into his arms, giving Miss Kelly room to finish up Mackenzie’s bun. He shakes his head at the obvious flirting and how oblivious his brother is to it.
Typically he would probably be pissed that an attractive woman is choosing to ignore him and flirt with his brother instead, but he can handle it. Sam’s a good guy. He’s stupid and oblivious, but he deserves to win the chick once in awhile.
Suddenly Dean has tiny arms wrapped around his leg and he smiles when he looks down at Mackenzie before picking her up and tossing her over his shoulder. She squirms and giggles until eventually Dean slides her down so she’s resting comfortably in his arms.
“Thank you for the help, Miss Kelly.” He playfully tugs at Mackenzie’s bun.
“It’s no problem at all.” She smiles but her eyes never leave Sam. Dean’s half tempted to grab the girls and give them time alone if it weren’t for the fact he’ll go crazy in this place if Sam’s not there to keep him sane.
“Well we should probably go and find our seats,” Dean elbows Sam in the side, smiling when his brother blushes in embarrassment. “Want to make sure we get good ones.”
“Right,” Miss Kelly shakes her head but smiles. “I’ll take the girls with me if you don’t mind. We should be heading backstage now anyways for a final rehearsal.”
“But we wanted Uncle Sam and Uncle Dean to meet our new friend.” Meghan frowns.
“I’m sure we’ll have time after your performance,” Sam assures her. “She’s probably backstage already anyways.”
Reluctantly the girls give in and squirm out of their arms, giving them both a quick hug before taking their bags from Sam and dashing over to Miss Kelly’s side. The teacher grabs her own dance bag and gives Sam one last flirtation smile before waving goodbye and walking the girls toward the stage.
They watch until the girls disappear backstage and then finally head down the aisle, picking the two end seats in the middle row. Dean plops into the seat and sighs, rubbing at his temples as an older group of girls practice on the stage, their tap shoes echoing in the room. So much for tuning out the noise.
“You better not fall asleep, dude.”
He raises an eyebrow at Sam and looks up at the stage, “How could I with all this excitement?”
~*~*~
Sam shakes his head but smiles as he takes the moment to look around the auditorium. It’s a pretty large room with three sections and at least twenty rows of seating. The ceilings are high, giving the room a nice acoustic for performances, which Dean obviously isn’t too impressed with right now.
He refocuses his attention when a couple sits down in front of them with a green program in their hands. He watches as they read through it quickly and hears their whispered conversation that definitely spikes his interest.
“It’s such a shame,” The woman whispers. “That poor girl. She was hit right outside her home too. I can’t imagine how devastated her parents are.”
Obviously Dean had been paying attention too because he quickly jumps out of his seat and grabs a program from the back of the room before plopping back down beside Sam. They quickly leaf through the pages before they make it to the last one.
There’s a black and white photo of a young girl, probably around eight or nine, in a dance outfit and tiara. The top of the page says In Memory of in a fancy font and then below the picture is the name that sends chills down Sam’s spine.
Audrey Dustman 2000-2008
“What are the chances this is the same Audrey?” Dean asks.
“With our luck? I’d say it’s pretty good but what do we do about it?”
Dean shrugs but quickly pulls out his cell phone, “I’ll call Bobby and have him find out where the girl’s buried just in case and-”
Sam glares at his brother and nods toward the people sitting around him and Dean shakes his head but lowers his voice.
“I’ll have him do the research while you find out if it’s the same Audrey. Then if it is, I’ll torch the corpse and try to get back here before it’s over.” He whispers and points toward the stage. “You just keep an eye on the girls and let me know if it’s the same girl.”
“It’s still daylight and there’s no way you can dig a grave that fast. Plus Audrey’s probably back stage with the girls as we speak.”
“Then get your ass back there while I figure something else out.” Dean starts to get out of his chair but Sam quickly latches onto his wrist. “Maybe our lucks changed, and this Audrey isn’t the girls’ friend.”
“I doubt it.” Sam shakes his head. “What the heck am I supposed to tell the girls if Audrey’s a ghost?”
“That their new friend is imaginary.” Dean smiles and pulls his arm away.
“Not funny, Dean.” he jumps out of his chair too and follows close behind his brother.
“I don’t know, Sam.” Dean stops and turns around so that he’s face to face with Sam at the auditorium exit. “Don’t tell them anything I guess. Just check if it’s the same girl and if it is then make sure the ghost doesn’t turn on them. She probably doesn’t even know she’s dead.”
“Great,” Sam rubs at the back of his neck and turns away from Dean to head back down the aisle. “Just hurry up.”
He doesn’t need to turn around to know that Dean’s most likely mimicking him but he ignores it and quickly makes his way to the stage, ducking behind the curtain at the side. The room is filled with girls in different colored outfits and glittered hair sparkling under the bright lights.
Sam looks around and tries to spot the girls but he can’t seem to find them in the crowd. He carefully dodges through the dancers trying to make sure he doesn’t knocking into or trip over anyone in the process.
He takes a look at his watch and cringes. They have approximately an hour to get this job done-if there is a job-before the show starts and he hopes they can manage. He doesn’t want to think how disappointed the girls will be if not only has their new friend disappears but their uncles aren’t in the audience to watch them perform.
~*~*~
“Having fun, Dean?” Bobby laughs through the phone but it dies off into a coughing fit.
“You’re lucky you’re sick, old man.” Dean shakes his head and quickly makes sure no one else is around before he continues. “So apparently the girls are as good at finding trouble as Sammy and me.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Seems they may have made friends with a ghost.”
Dean holds back his laughter as the older man begins to talk but starts coughing instead.
They had asked Bobby to join them and Dean knows the older man would have been here in a heartbeat if it weren’t for the common cold slowing him down. For some reason Dean found it hilarious that Bobby Singer was being held captive by a measly cold.
“If you’re done hacking up a lung,” Dean smiles as Bobby grumbles at him with a hoarse voice. “Do you think you could do a little research for me?”
“What’s the dead kid’s name?”
“Audrey Dustman. She died a couple of weeks ago in a car accident.”
Dean listens to the clicking of Bobby’s keyboard and waits impatiently as Bobby’s ancient computer feeds him the information they need. After nearly ten or twenty minutes of waiting, where it usually takes Sam less than five, Bobby finally gives him the information he needs.
However, it’s not the information he had been hoping to get. It seems Audrey’s parent’s decided to have the little girl cremated so there isn’t a corpse to torch which always causes more hassle when trying to get rid of a spirit.
Bobby did find out that the dance school kept a pair of the girl’s ballet slippers to use in a memorial for the young dancer.
It takes a few moments for the information to sink in before Dean realizes that the slippers are most likely in the Auditorium somewhere. So if the girls’ Audrey turns out to be a ghost they’re going to have a problem. He has no idea where the slippers are and there’s a crowd full of people to fool if he does find them.
~*~*~
He hadn’t imagined that the backstage area would be so large but after what feels like forever he still hasn’t been able to find the girls. The problem is that all the girls look the same to Sam. He should have made the girls keep their hair down, at least then it’d be easier to pick them out of a crowd. Lord knows he’s tall enough to see nearly everyone in one sweep.
Finally his eyes fall on the girls’ dance instructor and he jogs over to her, searching the immediate area for the girls but still not seeing them. He’s starting to panic, especially when the teacher turns to him with a smile only for it to fall when their eyes meet.
“Hey, Sam.” She excuses herself from her previous conversation and closes the distances between them. “Is everything okay?”
“I just saw that the recital is dedicated to a little girl named Audrey.” Miss Kelly nods sadly as he continues. “The twins always talk about a girl named Audrey from dance but I didn’t know if it was the same little girl.”
“Well we only had one Audrey in our program.” She frowns. “Meghan and Mackenzie probably don’t know she passed away yet. It just happened recently and we haven’t exactly broadcasted it. I honestly didn’t realize the twins knew Audrey since she hadn’t been in my class.”
“Do you know where Meghan and Mackenzie are?” Sam rubs at the back of his neck nervously. “I’d like them to hear it from one of us first.”
“That’s probably best. They were right over-” She points toward a small group of girls in green tutus but the girls aren’t there. When she turns back to Sam he notices the panic on her face but he chooses to ignore it and return to his search.
“Uncle Sam!” He stops before he goes too far and turns around quickly, stooping down as the girls run into his open arms.
“Where were you two?” He asks, squeezing them tightly.
“We were playing in the back.” Meghan says softly. “Did we do something wrong?”
“No,” Sam pulls back and smiles up at Miss Kelly to let her know that everything’s okay and she reluctantly returns to her conversation, giving them some privacy. “I was just worried because I couldn’t find you. That’s all.”
“We’re sorry,” Mackenzie points toward the back of the room that’s cluttered with stage equipment. “Audrey is upset because she can’t find her mom so we were keeping her company till her mom found her. She’s supposed to stay in one spot.”
“That’s a good idea but you two should tell someone first, do you understand?”
“Audrey said the other grownups ignore her and that we shouldn’t tell them.”
“You two know better though.” He stands up and tries to look as stern as possible. “Next time you tell someone, okay?”
“Okay.” They both nod but then share an identical quizzical look. “Where’s Uncle Dean?”
“He’s…” Sam thinks for a second and tries to come up with a good cover, they are only six so it should be easy but it’s not. “Still in his seat. I just came back to see if you two wanted to go to Chuck E. Cheese after your recital.”
Meghan and Mackenzie squeal with excitement as they once again attach themselves to his leg and all he can think about his how pissed Dean’s going to be. His brother hadn’t been happy about the recital and now Sam has to tell him they’re going to Chuck E. Cheese afterwards. He doubts Dean’s going to be anywhere near as thrilled as the girls are.
Still, he can’t help but smile and enjoy the excitement from the girls. He can no longer make fun of Dean for being such a push over because there’s no doubt that Sam would do anything to make these girls happy.
His phones begins to vibrate in his pocket just as Miss Kelly calls the girls over for a quick head count and run through. The girls give him another hug before skipping off toward their class and he carefully ducks in to a quiet corner of the room.
“There’s only one Audrey.” He answers quickly. “Did Bobby find where she’s buried?”
“Not exactly.”
“Dean,” Sam pinches the bridge of his nose and takes a deep breath. “The girls go on in a half hour. There’s not enough time for you to dig and get back here, what the hell am I supposed to do? They’re not going to let me stay back here and I can’t possibly pull a gun out and start shooting at a little girl ghost.”
“There is no dig, Sammy.” He hears the familiar sound of the Impala’s trunk slamming shut. “The family didn’t bury her but they gave the school a pair of ballet slippers so Audrey must be attached to those.”
“Well then find them and burn them instead.”
“I’m trying.” Dean sighs. “They’ve got to be somewhere in the auditorium. I just don’t know where or how to snatch and burn them with all those people there.”
“Well you’re on your own with that, Dean. I can’t look after the girls and find the slippers.” He looks over toward the girls’ class but doesn’t see them amongst the other dancers. His heart starts racing and he quickly scans the room for the girls again but is unable to find them. “They’re gone.”
“What?”
“The girls,” Sam runs a hand through his hair as he jogs back to the crowd of young girls and dance instructors. “I don’t see them anymore. I have to go find them and you have to hurry up and finish this job.”
Sam ends the call and shoves the phone in his pocket as he dodges through the crowd. He does about three laps around the room, panicking more and more as the seconds tick by but he still doesn’t see the girls.
When he comes around to the stage entrance he decides to take his chances and check the vacant stage. He probably should have thought about checking sooner since it makes more sense for a ghost to lure new friends somewhere no one will see, but the stage hadn’t even crossed his mind.
However, as he ducks behind the small curtain on the side stage he can hear the familiar giggles not too far away. What worries him is that they don’t sound like they are coming from the stage.
His eyes drift up to the catwalk above him and his chest tightens in fear when he sees the girls tiptoeing across the shaky structure. He doesn’t want to frighten the twins in fear of them falling so instead he quickly finds the stairs and carefully climbs up to the catwalk himself.
The girls are already halfway across but with his long legs he easily closes the distance between them, gently grabbing Meghan’s shoulder to stop her progress. She yelps in surprise which cause Mackenzie to stop too but when they see Sam their smiles turn to guilty frowns.
“We just wanted to help Audrey find her mom, Uncle Sam, honest!” Mackenzie defends, turning around toward where Sam assumes Audrey had been. “We told Miss Kelly we were helping her. Audrey thought she could see her mom from here.”
“It’s not safe up here.” He carefully kneels down and pulls them along so that they are behind him now. “Why don’t you go back down to the stage while I help Audrey find her mom, okay?”
Sam doesn’t miss the sudden chill that passes by and the catwalks creaks slightly as he nudges the girls toward the stairs. They reluctantly shuffle across the narrow path before Audrey appears, blocking their way.
“You can’t leave me.” She whispers and the hairs on the back of Sam’s neck stand up. “You guys promised you would help me.”
Meghan steps forward and reasons with the Audrey’s spirit, “Uncle Sam is going to help you now.”
“He can’t help me.”
“He’s really good at this kind of stuff.” Mackenzie pipes in. “When Meghan and I were lost, he was able to find us. It’s okay, Audrey, he can help.”
“No he can’t!”
The girls flinch and move closer to Sam, turning to him with worry and confusion when their previously nice friend suddenly becomes angry. He keeps his eyes focused on Audrey’s spirit, pushing the girls behind him just as Audrey disappears once again.
The girls grab on to his legs as the three of them carefully walk toward the stairs and Sam’s ready when Audrey appears behind them. He quickly pulls the girls behind him and motions for them to head for the stairs that are now less than two feet away.
Thankfully Mackenzie catches on and quickly grabs her sisters’ arm, pulling Meghan toward the stairs. He can hear their foots steps as the two run down the stairs but he doesn’t hear Audrey’s menacing giggle until he’s suddenly losing his balance, unable to keep himself from falling over the weak railing.
~*~*~
Dean sprints into the auditorium and jogs up to the stage, ignoring all the odd looks he receives from the relatively packed room. It’s going to be tough torching the slippers with a crowd full of witnesses but he has to find them before he can start worrying about the after.
Just as he’s about to climb the side stairs he sees the large frame resting against the base of the stage, front and center. He nonchalantly walks closer and sure enough there is a larger version of Audrey’s picture from the program, along with the pair of ballet slippers.
There are parents sitting all around and he knows there’s no way of getting the frame and slippers out without anyone noticing. He wracks his brain for a brilliant idea but forgets all about it when he hears the familiar screams coming from behind the curtain.
His eyes dart around the room until he sees the fire alarm on the right wall, right near the stage stairs. He quickly rushes over and pulls it, ignoring the shocked screams from everyone in the room as parents frantically rush to find their children and make their escape. If anyone saw him, no one questions him.
As the families file out of the crowded room, Dean pushes his way through the crowd and back toward the frame that still rest against the stage. With everyone’s attention now on leaving, no one notices him as he grabs the frame and hops up onto the stage before slipping behind the curtain.
“Uncle Dean!” He nearly drops the frame when Mackenzie barrels into him, pulling at his pants leg. “You have to help him!”
It’s then he remembers the screams.
His eyes follow Mackenzie’s frantic pointing until he finally focuses in on Sam and Meghan. He lets the frame fall to the floor-the glass shattering on the stage-as he practically flies to Sam’s side, falling to his knees beside Meghan.
He’s afraid to ask what happened and afraid to move Sam but as the fire alarm continues to buzz, he realizes he has to do something. He settles for curling his fingers gently around Sam’s wrist until he can feel his brother’s steady pulse.
Satisfied that Sam is alright for the moment, he stands back up and grabs the ballet slippers from amongst the shattered glass. The girls shriek from behind him and when he turns around he sees Audrey’s spirit standing over Sam. Without a second thought, he quickly pulls out his lighter and flips it open, letting the slippers ignite before tossing them at the base of the curtain.
Dean rushes back to the twins and his brother, crouching down beside them and shielding the girls as Audrey’s spirit flares up in flames along with the stage curtain. He can hear the roaring of the growing fire and feel the wetness on his shirt where the girls have buried their head.
He wants to console them and get Sam out at the same time but when the distant shouts finally make it through the blaze he knows he’s out of time. Dean makes a quick decision and pushes the girls back gently as the shouts of the local fire department get closer.
“Listen carefully,” he waits till their scared eyes focus on his before giving them careful instructions, not even doubting that they’ll follow them. “I need you two to go tell the firemen that Sam and I are back here. Just tell them Sam’s hurt and can’t move, but then listen to them when they take you outside, okay? Sam and I will be right behind you.”
They both nod and take a deep breath, surprising Dean as they straighten their shoulders, grab each others’ hand and then make a run for the stairs. He can hear them yell over the roar of the flames and it feels like seconds before two firemen appear beside him.
“What happened, sir?” One of them asks as he crouches down and checks Sam’s pulse as well.
“He fell.” Dean answers quickly, trying to avoid any further questioning. “I was afraid to move him.”
He can hear the shouting around him but he can’t make out what is being said. The slightest movement from Sam has his full, undivided attention, and he quickly drops to his knees again, rubbing gently at Sam’s back as his brother starts to come around.
“That’s it, Sammy.” He encourages, hand stopping to squeeze Sam’s shoulder. “Wake up, man.”
Sam lifts his head up slowly and turns it to the side, allowing Dean a good look at Sam’s busted nose and lip. He slips his hand under Sam’s head and smiles as Sam’s eyes finally blink open.
“You’ve definitely looked better,” Dean teases as he wipes away some of the blood from Sam’s chin. “Are you feeling okay?”
“Sore,” Sam answers as he fights to keep his eyes open. “Where’re the girls?”
“They’re safe.”
“Audrey?”
“She’s gone.”
“Good.” He slowly slides his hand away and lets Sam’s head gently fall back to the floor as Sam loses the battle to stay awake.
“We’re going to move him now, sir.” Another person, a woman this time, is suddenly beside Sam with a lowered stretcher.
He nods and reluctantly backs away from Sam, allowing them room to lift his brother onto the stretcher before rolling him out to the awaiting ambulance. Dean follows closely behind them, only stopping for a second to pick up the girls before hopping into the ambulance with Sam.
The paramedics give him a funny look but they don’t question him. There’s no way he was making a choice between letting Sam go alone or leaving the girls behind so this was the best option. Besides, he doesn’t know exactly what happened so it’s probably best the girls get checked out as well.
All he does know is that Audrey’s spirit is gone and the simple easy fix he and Sam had hoped for once again turned complicated. However, from the looks of things, Sam is going to be fine and the girls simply look frightened. It definitely could have been worse and for that, Dean thinks they’re rather lucky.
~*~*~
“You okay, dude?” Dean glances over at Sam for the fiftieth time in the last five minutes.
“Yes,” Sam rolls his eyes and shifts uncomfortable. “I’ve had worse.”
“It was a pretty big fall, Sam.”
Sam has had worse though and it hadn’t been as bad as it could have been, especially if Sam hadn’t gotten there and it had been one of the girls that took the fall instead.
“Dean, I’m fine!” Sam turns just enough to glare at him, keeping his voice low. “Now focus on the stage and stop staring at me.”
“I can’t help it,” he holds his hand up, finger inches from poking Sam’s face. “You look like a chipmunk.”
Sam bats Dean’s hand away but there’s no hiding the smile, even in the dim lighting.
As unlucky as the Winchesters are, Dean feels like they finally caught a break. It had only taken them a little over an hour at the hospital, which was just enough time for the doctors to figure out that Sam hadn’t broken anything except his nose.
That plus a fat lip and the colorful bruises that decorate his face make Sam and sight for sore eyes. But nothing major had broken so Sam was released quickly with a puffy face a very sore body, giving them just enough time to rush the girls back to the recital.
The fire had been easy to extinguish so the stage and rest of the auditorium was salvaged. The only thing lost was the ugly orange stage curtain, which Dean doesn’t think will be missed.
And of course the show must go on.
It took awhile to sort out the mess and to calm everyone down but the dance school decided to give it one more shot as to not disappoint the dancers or the parents. Dean thinks it’s just so the school can prove that the parent’s money hasn’t been wasted on useless dance lessons. Then again, Dean might be a bit bitter that after everything, he still has to sit through the recital.
“Dave owes us big time,” He grunts as he shifts lower in his seat and folds his arms across his chest.
“Shut it,” Sam warns. “The girls are about to come on.”
Dean reluctantly sits back up and watches as the Meghan and Mackenzie take the stage with their class. He glances once more at his brother and knows they’re both thinking the same thing.
Those girls are definitely the cutest, most talented dancers on stage but they might be a tad bias.
The twins glide across the stage and Dean finds himself watching their every move, unable to look away for more than a second-only checking Sam’s reaction once in awhile. Forget boring, he’s pretty certain that this performance is the best thing he and Sam have seen in a very long time. Not that they have much to compare it to, but still.
He knows the girls can’t see them in the crowd, especially with the bright light, but they both keep smiling as Don’t Worry, Be Happy plays in the background. When the song comes to an end, Dean and Sam jump to their feet to applaud, not even caring if they were the only two doing so.
Dean knows Sam agrees that those girls are amazing in just about every way.
It hadn’t taken them long to bounce back to their lively selves after the hospital, but Dean suspected it had to do with finding out that Sam was okay. They haven’t asked about Audrey and Dean wasn’t telling but he knows that in some way the girls understand what happened.
They had sat with Dean at the hospital, much like they had after the demon kidnapped them, except this time there were no tears. The crying had stopped once Dean forced them onto the ambulance with him and had quickly turned into what he could definitely recognize as protectiveness.
Once Sam was cleared and they were back into the Impala, the girls had been the ones bugging Sam about taking his medicine and taking it easy for awhile. In a way it kind of annoyed Dean how easily the girls got away with it when he would get dirty looks and smart as remarks for his efforts.
He shakes himself from his thoughts when Sam grunts beside him as his brother carefully and slowly stands from the uncomfortable seats. Dean stares at him for a few seconds before realizing that that the lights have gone back on and that everyone else in the room was now standing.
They fight their way out to the lobby just a few moments before Meghan and Mackenzie walk out with their class. As soon as the girls spot them, Sam and Dean have their arms full of wiggly, tutu wearing little girls.
In a flash, the girls have suddenly become very serious and Meghan’s tiny hands reach up to gently cup Sam’s face. She looks at her sister for a second, then Dean, before turning back to Sam with a wide smile.
“Thank you for saving us again, Uncle Sam.” She lets her arms fall around Sam’s neck and hugs him close before kissing him on the cheek.
“What about me?” Dean asks, pretending to be hurt even as he smiles.
Mackenzie wraps her arms around him and repeats Meghan’s actions, “You saved Uncle Sam, silly.”
“Prince Charming can’t always save the princesses on his own.” Meghan adds with a giggle which only escalates as Sam’s tickles her sides.
“I guess we make a good team then, huh?” Dean shifts Mackenzie to his hip and slaps Sam’s on the shoulder as they make their way out to the car. “Next time you should try landing on your feet, like a cat.”
Sam glares at Dean with a wicked smile, “Who’s ready to go to Chuck E. Cheese?”
The girls let out loud shouts of confirmation and Dean groans as he slaps Sam on the back of the head. There’s no way he’s getting out of it but he has to admit, being stuck in a room full of ankle bitters and a under paid employee in a mouse costume seem like a very fitting end to their very strange and eventful day.
Despite that fact, Dean can still think of a million places he’d rather be but one look at the excitement on the girls’ faces and he knows he’s stuck. A part of him regrets agreeing to their newly found positions as uncles if this is the stuff he’ll have to put up with but Sam’s enjoying it-is damn good at it-and Dean had to admit that it definitely has it’s perks.
The End.
I promised you all I wasn't done with Meghan and Mackenzie yet so here you have it.
Hopefully this was a nice little addition with some cute Uncle moments but I still have plans for more.
Thanks for reading and please go check out the other submissions at summer_Sam_love.
The next prompt is up so if you’d like to join in the fun please do! Hope to see more awesome entries this month!
Thanks again!
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: None, Gen.
Word Count: 6,528
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Warnings: Possible spoilers for first and second seasons with a bit of limp/hurt!Sam and a heavy helping of cuteness.
Beta: The wonderful Gidgetgal9. She’s responsible for the ideas as well. All remaining mistakes are mine.
A/N: Written for the March Sam Love prompt at Summer_Sam_Love, which was anything involving Sam and spring. This follows my story Double Dose of Angels but it can be read alone. Just know that Sam and Dean saved the little girls and have become like uncles to them. Also, the twins are part of another generation of special kids. Thanks to faye_dartmouth for allowing me to run this contest at her community and for her support as well as guidance!
Summary: For their first duty as Uncles, Sam and Dean are roped into taking the twins to their spring dance recital. However, the girls seem to find trouble just as easily as the Winchesters and it’s up to Sam and Dean to save the day once again.
~*~*~
*This follows my story Double Dose of Angels but it can be read alone. Just know that Sam and Dean saved the little girls and have become like uncles to them. Also, the twins are part of another generation of the Yellow eyed Demon's special kids. *
Dean can’t think of anything worse than spending his Sunday sitting in a room filled with proud parents and their bratty daughters in tutus and tap shoes. Then again, he could be off chasing after monsters, covered in dirt and blood rather than glitter.
When Dave had called and asked if they could step in and take the twins to their spring recital Dean had really wanted to say no. The look on Sam’s face had changed his mind-not that he had a choice since Sam immediately agreed without asking him.
So now he’s sitting on the couch beside his brother, watching Meghan twirl around in her green tutu as Sam attempts to pull Mackenzie’s curly hair into a bun. He tries really hard not to laugh at his brother but fails. Sam can tie any knot in the Boy Scout handbook but he can’t seem to find the trick to hair tying.
Dean doesn’t have much room to talk. He won’t even try it.
“Maybe Audrey’s Mom could do our hair, Uncle Sam.” Mackenzie turns her head slightly, wincing when the brush Sam is using pulls at a knot.
“Give it up, man.” Dean laughs and carefully grasps Sam’s wrist. “Put the brush down and let the girl go.”
Mackenzie giggles but takes the distraction to move away from Sam. Sam glares at Dean, pulling his arm away but setting the brush on the coffee table.
“Can’t you two just wear your hair down?”
Dean doesn’t even try to stifle his laugh this time as Sam turns on his puppy dog eyes for the girls. The Master trying to show he’s still better than his students. Dean has to admit that the girls are good, but they haven’t perfected the art that Sam’s been practicing for twenty-four years now.
Meghan stops her twirling and frowns, “It’ll get in our face when we dance. Then we’ll fall over. But don’t worry, Uncle Sam, I’m sure Audrey’s mom will help.”
“Who’s Audrey?”
Dean and Sam have been receiving almost daily phone calls from the girls for over two months now and in all the chatter of their friends and school, Audrey has never come up. However, the girls eyes light up and they both skip over to the boys, perching themselves on the coffee table in front of the couch.
“She’s our friend from dance.” Mackenzie says with a bright smile. “We met her at rehearsal last weekend but she left before Daddy could meet her.”
“Yeah,” Meghan chimes in. “She’s really cool! She’s in an older group but she knows all kinds of neat tricks that she promised to show us.”
“Well then I definitely look forward to meeting her.” Sam smiles as he stands from the couch and lifts the girls up, one in each arm. “What you say you two go grab your bags so we can get there early?”
“So someone can finish Uncle Sam’s job,” Dean tugs at Meghan’s hair that hangs in a loose pony tail at the back of her neck.
Meghan swats his hand away playfully and Sam glares as he carries the girls toward the stairs, gently dropping them onto the first step. They both tear off up the stairs in lightening speed, returning in seconds with matching dance bags.
Dean opens the front door and the girls run outside, skipping toward the recently cleaned and well adapted Impala that’s parked in the driveway. It hadn’t taken Dean long to realize that if the girls were going to be a permanent fixture in their lives that he’d have to do something about his baby.
Since he had no intention of selling her for a soccer mom update, he did the next best thing and had seat belts installed in the back seat. Really, when he thought about it, Dad probably should have had it done a long time ago when Sammy and he were little, but people back then didn’t know what they know now. Yet kids still turned out okay.
He watches from the steps as Sam easily manages to make sure the girls are buckled in and have everything they need before his brother slips into the passenger seat. It’s been a long time since he’s seen such a genuine happiness in Sam and he constantly wonders if he did the right thing dragging Sam back in to the hunt.
Sam won’t back out now that he’s driven by the death of their mother, father, Jess and the girls’ connection to all of it. He knows Sam won’t give up until they find the thing that tore apart their family, ruined Sam’s chance to have a family of his own and now threatens to take away the small family they have managed to create amongst the devastation.
When he finally got around to telling Sam about the girls connection to yellow eyes, one that is nearly identical to Sam’s, he had been sure his brother was going to lose it.
The night Jess died and after the deal their father had made, Dean only saw sadness and regret. Now all he sees is Sam’s fury, anger and determination to fix it. He’s going to save not only himself but the girls as well.
Dean feels the same way but sometimes he’s worries about the lengths Sam will go to because he knows it’s the same lengths he will go to save Sam.
“Let’s go, Dean!” He snaps out of his thoughts at Sam’s shout and quickly closes the front door, making sure it’s locked before he turns and heads to the car.
The girls are in the back chatting about the recital. Dean knows it’s at least the tenth time today that he’s had to listen to the girls sing their version of Don’t Worry Be Happy. Of course all they know are those four words and the WhooHoo’s.
He feels guilty but he tunes them out after a few moments and turns up the radio slightly. Sam sends him a knowing look and shakes his head but turns in the seat to pay attention to the girls, which makes Dean feel a bit better. At least one of them has the patience to listen to the chatter.
By the time they reach the high school where the recital is being held, Dean can tell his brothers heard enough but Sam’s smile never wavers. The girls continue their happy chatter as they latch onto Dean and Sam’s hand and skip across the parking lot, practically dragging the brothers along with them.
Dean cringes when they finally find the auditorium and it’s already filled with loud girls and even louder tap shoes. Luckily he’s able to drown out the noise when the girls drag them toward a young brunet with a gorgeous smile.
“You two must be Sam and Dean.” She holds out her hand and Dean jumps to take it first.
“That’s us.” He smiles. “And you are?”
“This is Miss Kelly, she our dance teacher!” The girls answer for the young woman.
“That I am,” Miss Kelly laughs and crouches down in front of the girls, giving them each a quick hug. “Dave called to let me know the girls’ uncles would be bringing them. He said he had to go out of town on business?”
The girls quickly nod and Dean and Sam smile.
Dave was currently on a strange hunt involving a possessed Bambi and possibly other forest critters. Animal possession is rather rare but its Dave’s specialty and Dean had to admit he’d probably pick dealing with little girls in tutus rather than possessed forest creatures.
“Could I ask you a favor?” Sam’s cheeks go red as he pulls a brush out of one of the girls’ bags that he has slung over his shoulder.
“Do you need some help with hair?” She laughs and takes the brush from Sam before kneeling down in front of the girls again.
“Uncle Sam tried to do Mackenzie’s bun but he’s not too good at it. I think its cause he’s a boy.”
“Well it was certainly nice of him to try.” The dance teacher carefully pulls the brush through Meghan’s hair and easily twists it into a bun. She smiles up at Sam as she pulls pins out of her pocket to hold the hair in place. “It’s not as easy as it looks but after you’ve done it a million times you become an expert.”
Dean watches as Sam laughs and pulls Meghan up into his arms, giving Miss Kelly room to finish up Mackenzie’s bun. He shakes his head at the obvious flirting and how oblivious his brother is to it.
Typically he would probably be pissed that an attractive woman is choosing to ignore him and flirt with his brother instead, but he can handle it. Sam’s a good guy. He’s stupid and oblivious, but he deserves to win the chick once in awhile.
Suddenly Dean has tiny arms wrapped around his leg and he smiles when he looks down at Mackenzie before picking her up and tossing her over his shoulder. She squirms and giggles until eventually Dean slides her down so she’s resting comfortably in his arms.
“Thank you for the help, Miss Kelly.” He playfully tugs at Mackenzie’s bun.
“It’s no problem at all.” She smiles but her eyes never leave Sam. Dean’s half tempted to grab the girls and give them time alone if it weren’t for the fact he’ll go crazy in this place if Sam’s not there to keep him sane.
“Well we should probably go and find our seats,” Dean elbows Sam in the side, smiling when his brother blushes in embarrassment. “Want to make sure we get good ones.”
“Right,” Miss Kelly shakes her head but smiles. “I’ll take the girls with me if you don’t mind. We should be heading backstage now anyways for a final rehearsal.”
“But we wanted Uncle Sam and Uncle Dean to meet our new friend.” Meghan frowns.
“I’m sure we’ll have time after your performance,” Sam assures her. “She’s probably backstage already anyways.”
Reluctantly the girls give in and squirm out of their arms, giving them both a quick hug before taking their bags from Sam and dashing over to Miss Kelly’s side. The teacher grabs her own dance bag and gives Sam one last flirtation smile before waving goodbye and walking the girls toward the stage.
They watch until the girls disappear backstage and then finally head down the aisle, picking the two end seats in the middle row. Dean plops into the seat and sighs, rubbing at his temples as an older group of girls practice on the stage, their tap shoes echoing in the room. So much for tuning out the noise.
“You better not fall asleep, dude.”
He raises an eyebrow at Sam and looks up at the stage, “How could I with all this excitement?”
~*~*~
Sam shakes his head but smiles as he takes the moment to look around the auditorium. It’s a pretty large room with three sections and at least twenty rows of seating. The ceilings are high, giving the room a nice acoustic for performances, which Dean obviously isn’t too impressed with right now.
He refocuses his attention when a couple sits down in front of them with a green program in their hands. He watches as they read through it quickly and hears their whispered conversation that definitely spikes his interest.
“It’s such a shame,” The woman whispers. “That poor girl. She was hit right outside her home too. I can’t imagine how devastated her parents are.”
Obviously Dean had been paying attention too because he quickly jumps out of his seat and grabs a program from the back of the room before plopping back down beside Sam. They quickly leaf through the pages before they make it to the last one.
There’s a black and white photo of a young girl, probably around eight or nine, in a dance outfit and tiara. The top of the page says In Memory of in a fancy font and then below the picture is the name that sends chills down Sam’s spine.
Audrey Dustman 2000-2008
“What are the chances this is the same Audrey?” Dean asks.
“With our luck? I’d say it’s pretty good but what do we do about it?”
Dean shrugs but quickly pulls out his cell phone, “I’ll call Bobby and have him find out where the girl’s buried just in case and-”
Sam glares at his brother and nods toward the people sitting around him and Dean shakes his head but lowers his voice.
“I’ll have him do the research while you find out if it’s the same Audrey. Then if it is, I’ll torch the corpse and try to get back here before it’s over.” He whispers and points toward the stage. “You just keep an eye on the girls and let me know if it’s the same girl.”
“It’s still daylight and there’s no way you can dig a grave that fast. Plus Audrey’s probably back stage with the girls as we speak.”
“Then get your ass back there while I figure something else out.” Dean starts to get out of his chair but Sam quickly latches onto his wrist. “Maybe our lucks changed, and this Audrey isn’t the girls’ friend.”
“I doubt it.” Sam shakes his head. “What the heck am I supposed to tell the girls if Audrey’s a ghost?”
“That their new friend is imaginary.” Dean smiles and pulls his arm away.
“Not funny, Dean.” he jumps out of his chair too and follows close behind his brother.
“I don’t know, Sam.” Dean stops and turns around so that he’s face to face with Sam at the auditorium exit. “Don’t tell them anything I guess. Just check if it’s the same girl and if it is then make sure the ghost doesn’t turn on them. She probably doesn’t even know she’s dead.”
“Great,” Sam rubs at the back of his neck and turns away from Dean to head back down the aisle. “Just hurry up.”
He doesn’t need to turn around to know that Dean’s most likely mimicking him but he ignores it and quickly makes his way to the stage, ducking behind the curtain at the side. The room is filled with girls in different colored outfits and glittered hair sparkling under the bright lights.
Sam looks around and tries to spot the girls but he can’t seem to find them in the crowd. He carefully dodges through the dancers trying to make sure he doesn’t knocking into or trip over anyone in the process.
He takes a look at his watch and cringes. They have approximately an hour to get this job done-if there is a job-before the show starts and he hopes they can manage. He doesn’t want to think how disappointed the girls will be if not only has their new friend disappears but their uncles aren’t in the audience to watch them perform.
~*~*~
“Having fun, Dean?” Bobby laughs through the phone but it dies off into a coughing fit.
“You’re lucky you’re sick, old man.” Dean shakes his head and quickly makes sure no one else is around before he continues. “So apparently the girls are as good at finding trouble as Sammy and me.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Seems they may have made friends with a ghost.”
Dean holds back his laughter as the older man begins to talk but starts coughing instead.
They had asked Bobby to join them and Dean knows the older man would have been here in a heartbeat if it weren’t for the common cold slowing him down. For some reason Dean found it hilarious that Bobby Singer was being held captive by a measly cold.
“If you’re done hacking up a lung,” Dean smiles as Bobby grumbles at him with a hoarse voice. “Do you think you could do a little research for me?”
“What’s the dead kid’s name?”
“Audrey Dustman. She died a couple of weeks ago in a car accident.”
Dean listens to the clicking of Bobby’s keyboard and waits impatiently as Bobby’s ancient computer feeds him the information they need. After nearly ten or twenty minutes of waiting, where it usually takes Sam less than five, Bobby finally gives him the information he needs.
However, it’s not the information he had been hoping to get. It seems Audrey’s parent’s decided to have the little girl cremated so there isn’t a corpse to torch which always causes more hassle when trying to get rid of a spirit.
Bobby did find out that the dance school kept a pair of the girl’s ballet slippers to use in a memorial for the young dancer.
It takes a few moments for the information to sink in before Dean realizes that the slippers are most likely in the Auditorium somewhere. So if the girls’ Audrey turns out to be a ghost they’re going to have a problem. He has no idea where the slippers are and there’s a crowd full of people to fool if he does find them.
~*~*~
He hadn’t imagined that the backstage area would be so large but after what feels like forever he still hasn’t been able to find the girls. The problem is that all the girls look the same to Sam. He should have made the girls keep their hair down, at least then it’d be easier to pick them out of a crowd. Lord knows he’s tall enough to see nearly everyone in one sweep.
Finally his eyes fall on the girls’ dance instructor and he jogs over to her, searching the immediate area for the girls but still not seeing them. He’s starting to panic, especially when the teacher turns to him with a smile only for it to fall when their eyes meet.
“Hey, Sam.” She excuses herself from her previous conversation and closes the distances between them. “Is everything okay?”
“I just saw that the recital is dedicated to a little girl named Audrey.” Miss Kelly nods sadly as he continues. “The twins always talk about a girl named Audrey from dance but I didn’t know if it was the same little girl.”
“Well we only had one Audrey in our program.” She frowns. “Meghan and Mackenzie probably don’t know she passed away yet. It just happened recently and we haven’t exactly broadcasted it. I honestly didn’t realize the twins knew Audrey since she hadn’t been in my class.”
“Do you know where Meghan and Mackenzie are?” Sam rubs at the back of his neck nervously. “I’d like them to hear it from one of us first.”
“That’s probably best. They were right over-” She points toward a small group of girls in green tutus but the girls aren’t there. When she turns back to Sam he notices the panic on her face but he chooses to ignore it and return to his search.
“Uncle Sam!” He stops before he goes too far and turns around quickly, stooping down as the girls run into his open arms.
“Where were you two?” He asks, squeezing them tightly.
“We were playing in the back.” Meghan says softly. “Did we do something wrong?”
“No,” Sam pulls back and smiles up at Miss Kelly to let her know that everything’s okay and she reluctantly returns to her conversation, giving them some privacy. “I was just worried because I couldn’t find you. That’s all.”
“We’re sorry,” Mackenzie points toward the back of the room that’s cluttered with stage equipment. “Audrey is upset because she can’t find her mom so we were keeping her company till her mom found her. She’s supposed to stay in one spot.”
“That’s a good idea but you two should tell someone first, do you understand?”
“Audrey said the other grownups ignore her and that we shouldn’t tell them.”
“You two know better though.” He stands up and tries to look as stern as possible. “Next time you tell someone, okay?”
“Okay.” They both nod but then share an identical quizzical look. “Where’s Uncle Dean?”
“He’s…” Sam thinks for a second and tries to come up with a good cover, they are only six so it should be easy but it’s not. “Still in his seat. I just came back to see if you two wanted to go to Chuck E. Cheese after your recital.”
Meghan and Mackenzie squeal with excitement as they once again attach themselves to his leg and all he can think about his how pissed Dean’s going to be. His brother hadn’t been happy about the recital and now Sam has to tell him they’re going to Chuck E. Cheese afterwards. He doubts Dean’s going to be anywhere near as thrilled as the girls are.
Still, he can’t help but smile and enjoy the excitement from the girls. He can no longer make fun of Dean for being such a push over because there’s no doubt that Sam would do anything to make these girls happy.
His phones begins to vibrate in his pocket just as Miss Kelly calls the girls over for a quick head count and run through. The girls give him another hug before skipping off toward their class and he carefully ducks in to a quiet corner of the room.
“There’s only one Audrey.” He answers quickly. “Did Bobby find where she’s buried?”
“Not exactly.”
“Dean,” Sam pinches the bridge of his nose and takes a deep breath. “The girls go on in a half hour. There’s not enough time for you to dig and get back here, what the hell am I supposed to do? They’re not going to let me stay back here and I can’t possibly pull a gun out and start shooting at a little girl ghost.”
“There is no dig, Sammy.” He hears the familiar sound of the Impala’s trunk slamming shut. “The family didn’t bury her but they gave the school a pair of ballet slippers so Audrey must be attached to those.”
“Well then find them and burn them instead.”
“I’m trying.” Dean sighs. “They’ve got to be somewhere in the auditorium. I just don’t know where or how to snatch and burn them with all those people there.”
“Well you’re on your own with that, Dean. I can’t look after the girls and find the slippers.” He looks over toward the girls’ class but doesn’t see them amongst the other dancers. His heart starts racing and he quickly scans the room for the girls again but is unable to find them. “They’re gone.”
“What?”
“The girls,” Sam runs a hand through his hair as he jogs back to the crowd of young girls and dance instructors. “I don’t see them anymore. I have to go find them and you have to hurry up and finish this job.”
Sam ends the call and shoves the phone in his pocket as he dodges through the crowd. He does about three laps around the room, panicking more and more as the seconds tick by but he still doesn’t see the girls.
When he comes around to the stage entrance he decides to take his chances and check the vacant stage. He probably should have thought about checking sooner since it makes more sense for a ghost to lure new friends somewhere no one will see, but the stage hadn’t even crossed his mind.
However, as he ducks behind the small curtain on the side stage he can hear the familiar giggles not too far away. What worries him is that they don’t sound like they are coming from the stage.
His eyes drift up to the catwalk above him and his chest tightens in fear when he sees the girls tiptoeing across the shaky structure. He doesn’t want to frighten the twins in fear of them falling so instead he quickly finds the stairs and carefully climbs up to the catwalk himself.
The girls are already halfway across but with his long legs he easily closes the distance between them, gently grabbing Meghan’s shoulder to stop her progress. She yelps in surprise which cause Mackenzie to stop too but when they see Sam their smiles turn to guilty frowns.
“We just wanted to help Audrey find her mom, Uncle Sam, honest!” Mackenzie defends, turning around toward where Sam assumes Audrey had been. “We told Miss Kelly we were helping her. Audrey thought she could see her mom from here.”
“It’s not safe up here.” He carefully kneels down and pulls them along so that they are behind him now. “Why don’t you go back down to the stage while I help Audrey find her mom, okay?”
Sam doesn’t miss the sudden chill that passes by and the catwalks creaks slightly as he nudges the girls toward the stairs. They reluctantly shuffle across the narrow path before Audrey appears, blocking their way.
“You can’t leave me.” She whispers and the hairs on the back of Sam’s neck stand up. “You guys promised you would help me.”
Meghan steps forward and reasons with the Audrey’s spirit, “Uncle Sam is going to help you now.”
“He can’t help me.”
“He’s really good at this kind of stuff.” Mackenzie pipes in. “When Meghan and I were lost, he was able to find us. It’s okay, Audrey, he can help.”
“No he can’t!”
The girls flinch and move closer to Sam, turning to him with worry and confusion when their previously nice friend suddenly becomes angry. He keeps his eyes focused on Audrey’s spirit, pushing the girls behind him just as Audrey disappears once again.
The girls grab on to his legs as the three of them carefully walk toward the stairs and Sam’s ready when Audrey appears behind them. He quickly pulls the girls behind him and motions for them to head for the stairs that are now less than two feet away.
Thankfully Mackenzie catches on and quickly grabs her sisters’ arm, pulling Meghan toward the stairs. He can hear their foots steps as the two run down the stairs but he doesn’t hear Audrey’s menacing giggle until he’s suddenly losing his balance, unable to keep himself from falling over the weak railing.
~*~*~
Dean sprints into the auditorium and jogs up to the stage, ignoring all the odd looks he receives from the relatively packed room. It’s going to be tough torching the slippers with a crowd full of witnesses but he has to find them before he can start worrying about the after.
Just as he’s about to climb the side stairs he sees the large frame resting against the base of the stage, front and center. He nonchalantly walks closer and sure enough there is a larger version of Audrey’s picture from the program, along with the pair of ballet slippers.
There are parents sitting all around and he knows there’s no way of getting the frame and slippers out without anyone noticing. He wracks his brain for a brilliant idea but forgets all about it when he hears the familiar screams coming from behind the curtain.
His eyes dart around the room until he sees the fire alarm on the right wall, right near the stage stairs. He quickly rushes over and pulls it, ignoring the shocked screams from everyone in the room as parents frantically rush to find their children and make their escape. If anyone saw him, no one questions him.
As the families file out of the crowded room, Dean pushes his way through the crowd and back toward the frame that still rest against the stage. With everyone’s attention now on leaving, no one notices him as he grabs the frame and hops up onto the stage before slipping behind the curtain.
“Uncle Dean!” He nearly drops the frame when Mackenzie barrels into him, pulling at his pants leg. “You have to help him!”
It’s then he remembers the screams.
His eyes follow Mackenzie’s frantic pointing until he finally focuses in on Sam and Meghan. He lets the frame fall to the floor-the glass shattering on the stage-as he practically flies to Sam’s side, falling to his knees beside Meghan.
He’s afraid to ask what happened and afraid to move Sam but as the fire alarm continues to buzz, he realizes he has to do something. He settles for curling his fingers gently around Sam’s wrist until he can feel his brother’s steady pulse.
Satisfied that Sam is alright for the moment, he stands back up and grabs the ballet slippers from amongst the shattered glass. The girls shriek from behind him and when he turns around he sees Audrey’s spirit standing over Sam. Without a second thought, he quickly pulls out his lighter and flips it open, letting the slippers ignite before tossing them at the base of the curtain.
Dean rushes back to the twins and his brother, crouching down beside them and shielding the girls as Audrey’s spirit flares up in flames along with the stage curtain. He can hear the roaring of the growing fire and feel the wetness on his shirt where the girls have buried their head.
He wants to console them and get Sam out at the same time but when the distant shouts finally make it through the blaze he knows he’s out of time. Dean makes a quick decision and pushes the girls back gently as the shouts of the local fire department get closer.
“Listen carefully,” he waits till their scared eyes focus on his before giving them careful instructions, not even doubting that they’ll follow them. “I need you two to go tell the firemen that Sam and I are back here. Just tell them Sam’s hurt and can’t move, but then listen to them when they take you outside, okay? Sam and I will be right behind you.”
They both nod and take a deep breath, surprising Dean as they straighten their shoulders, grab each others’ hand and then make a run for the stairs. He can hear them yell over the roar of the flames and it feels like seconds before two firemen appear beside him.
“What happened, sir?” One of them asks as he crouches down and checks Sam’s pulse as well.
“He fell.” Dean answers quickly, trying to avoid any further questioning. “I was afraid to move him.”
He can hear the shouting around him but he can’t make out what is being said. The slightest movement from Sam has his full, undivided attention, and he quickly drops to his knees again, rubbing gently at Sam’s back as his brother starts to come around.
“That’s it, Sammy.” He encourages, hand stopping to squeeze Sam’s shoulder. “Wake up, man.”
Sam lifts his head up slowly and turns it to the side, allowing Dean a good look at Sam’s busted nose and lip. He slips his hand under Sam’s head and smiles as Sam’s eyes finally blink open.
“You’ve definitely looked better,” Dean teases as he wipes away some of the blood from Sam’s chin. “Are you feeling okay?”
“Sore,” Sam answers as he fights to keep his eyes open. “Where’re the girls?”
“They’re safe.”
“Audrey?”
“She’s gone.”
“Good.” He slowly slides his hand away and lets Sam’s head gently fall back to the floor as Sam loses the battle to stay awake.
“We’re going to move him now, sir.” Another person, a woman this time, is suddenly beside Sam with a lowered stretcher.
He nods and reluctantly backs away from Sam, allowing them room to lift his brother onto the stretcher before rolling him out to the awaiting ambulance. Dean follows closely behind them, only stopping for a second to pick up the girls before hopping into the ambulance with Sam.
The paramedics give him a funny look but they don’t question him. There’s no way he was making a choice between letting Sam go alone or leaving the girls behind so this was the best option. Besides, he doesn’t know exactly what happened so it’s probably best the girls get checked out as well.
All he does know is that Audrey’s spirit is gone and the simple easy fix he and Sam had hoped for once again turned complicated. However, from the looks of things, Sam is going to be fine and the girls simply look frightened. It definitely could have been worse and for that, Dean thinks they’re rather lucky.
~*~*~
“You okay, dude?” Dean glances over at Sam for the fiftieth time in the last five minutes.
“Yes,” Sam rolls his eyes and shifts uncomfortable. “I’ve had worse.”
“It was a pretty big fall, Sam.”
Sam has had worse though and it hadn’t been as bad as it could have been, especially if Sam hadn’t gotten there and it had been one of the girls that took the fall instead.
“Dean, I’m fine!” Sam turns just enough to glare at him, keeping his voice low. “Now focus on the stage and stop staring at me.”
“I can’t help it,” he holds his hand up, finger inches from poking Sam’s face. “You look like a chipmunk.”
Sam bats Dean’s hand away but there’s no hiding the smile, even in the dim lighting.
As unlucky as the Winchesters are, Dean feels like they finally caught a break. It had only taken them a little over an hour at the hospital, which was just enough time for the doctors to figure out that Sam hadn’t broken anything except his nose.
That plus a fat lip and the colorful bruises that decorate his face make Sam and sight for sore eyes. But nothing major had broken so Sam was released quickly with a puffy face a very sore body, giving them just enough time to rush the girls back to the recital.
The fire had been easy to extinguish so the stage and rest of the auditorium was salvaged. The only thing lost was the ugly orange stage curtain, which Dean doesn’t think will be missed.
And of course the show must go on.
It took awhile to sort out the mess and to calm everyone down but the dance school decided to give it one more shot as to not disappoint the dancers or the parents. Dean thinks it’s just so the school can prove that the parent’s money hasn’t been wasted on useless dance lessons. Then again, Dean might be a bit bitter that after everything, he still has to sit through the recital.
“Dave owes us big time,” He grunts as he shifts lower in his seat and folds his arms across his chest.
“Shut it,” Sam warns. “The girls are about to come on.”
Dean reluctantly sits back up and watches as the Meghan and Mackenzie take the stage with their class. He glances once more at his brother and knows they’re both thinking the same thing.
Those girls are definitely the cutest, most talented dancers on stage but they might be a tad bias.
The twins glide across the stage and Dean finds himself watching their every move, unable to look away for more than a second-only checking Sam’s reaction once in awhile. Forget boring, he’s pretty certain that this performance is the best thing he and Sam have seen in a very long time. Not that they have much to compare it to, but still.
He knows the girls can’t see them in the crowd, especially with the bright light, but they both keep smiling as Don’t Worry, Be Happy plays in the background. When the song comes to an end, Dean and Sam jump to their feet to applaud, not even caring if they were the only two doing so.
Dean knows Sam agrees that those girls are amazing in just about every way.
It hadn’t taken them long to bounce back to their lively selves after the hospital, but Dean suspected it had to do with finding out that Sam was okay. They haven’t asked about Audrey and Dean wasn’t telling but he knows that in some way the girls understand what happened.
They had sat with Dean at the hospital, much like they had after the demon kidnapped them, except this time there were no tears. The crying had stopped once Dean forced them onto the ambulance with him and had quickly turned into what he could definitely recognize as protectiveness.
Once Sam was cleared and they were back into the Impala, the girls had been the ones bugging Sam about taking his medicine and taking it easy for awhile. In a way it kind of annoyed Dean how easily the girls got away with it when he would get dirty looks and smart as remarks for his efforts.
He shakes himself from his thoughts when Sam grunts beside him as his brother carefully and slowly stands from the uncomfortable seats. Dean stares at him for a few seconds before realizing that that the lights have gone back on and that everyone else in the room was now standing.
They fight their way out to the lobby just a few moments before Meghan and Mackenzie walk out with their class. As soon as the girls spot them, Sam and Dean have their arms full of wiggly, tutu wearing little girls.
In a flash, the girls have suddenly become very serious and Meghan’s tiny hands reach up to gently cup Sam’s face. She looks at her sister for a second, then Dean, before turning back to Sam with a wide smile.
“Thank you for saving us again, Uncle Sam.” She lets her arms fall around Sam’s neck and hugs him close before kissing him on the cheek.
“What about me?” Dean asks, pretending to be hurt even as he smiles.
Mackenzie wraps her arms around him and repeats Meghan’s actions, “You saved Uncle Sam, silly.”
“Prince Charming can’t always save the princesses on his own.” Meghan adds with a giggle which only escalates as Sam’s tickles her sides.
“I guess we make a good team then, huh?” Dean shifts Mackenzie to his hip and slaps Sam’s on the shoulder as they make their way out to the car. “Next time you should try landing on your feet, like a cat.”
Sam glares at Dean with a wicked smile, “Who’s ready to go to Chuck E. Cheese?”
The girls let out loud shouts of confirmation and Dean groans as he slaps Sam on the back of the head. There’s no way he’s getting out of it but he has to admit, being stuck in a room full of ankle bitters and a under paid employee in a mouse costume seem like a very fitting end to their very strange and eventful day.
Despite that fact, Dean can still think of a million places he’d rather be but one look at the excitement on the girls’ faces and he knows he’s stuck. A part of him regrets agreeing to their newly found positions as uncles if this is the stuff he’ll have to put up with but Sam’s enjoying it-is damn good at it-and Dean had to admit that it definitely has it’s perks.
The End.
I promised you all I wasn't done with Meghan and Mackenzie yet so here you have it.
Hopefully this was a nice little addition with some cute Uncle moments but I still have plans for more.
Thanks for reading and please go check out the other submissions at summer_Sam_love.
The next prompt is up so if you’d like to join in the fun please do! Hope to see more awesome entries this month!
Thanks again!