Saving people, hunting things. Sam and Dean grew up on those words and now, over a decade after being cursed to live out their lives at a fraction of their height, Jacob Andris will help them live up to their destiny.
Characters: Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester, Jacob Andris, Melanie
Jacob Andris thought that 'strange' ended at the sprite village he discovered in the Wellwood forest, but that's only because he hadn't stopped at the Trails West motel and met two of its most curious residents...
Characters: Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester, Jacob Andris
Welcome to the AU lounge! A place of relaxation conceived and helped designed by all the readers and visitors to the world of Brothers Apart! Stay awhile, kick up your boots, and have some pie!
Current AUs in the Lounge:
Brothers Together (Teenager big Dean; tiny kiddo Sam; tiny kiddo Oscar)
Brothers Apart (The original Dean and Sam)
Brothers Lost (Big Jacob with the tiny bros)
Brothers Found (Big Dean and Jacob, tiny Sam)
Brothers Adopted (Big Dean, tiny Sam and tiny Jacob) ****** Departing
Brothers Asunder (Big Jacob, spritely Sam and Bowman) ****** New Arrivals
The door to the Lounge opened, and two green blurs swooped in, one spiraling around the other, who kept up a steady pace as he always did.
Sam Winchester, a knight of Wellwood, was surprised to find himself in a darker area, one that had no resemblance to his home in the forest. There, sunlight trickled in through the vibrant green leaves, giving life and warmth to the sprites who called it home.
Here, there were no trees rising up into the air. Instead, walls hemmed them in, containing a large space that was full of massive tables and chairs, laughing voices--
Sam pulled up on his glider, nearly halting in midair as he saw who was in the room.
“D-Dean?” he said in disbelief, spotting a man leaning over a pool table aiming up a shot to sink the eight ball.
Then, he nearly twisted in place, seeing another man dressed just like Dean at the bar, joking around with a slice of pie.
“W-what is this place?” Sam asked, his voice shaking.
"How about you land before asking questions!" Bowman answered, even as he banked around to take hold of the handle bars atop Sam's glider. With his extra momentum, he dragged the glider forward through the air so Sam didn't plummet, and aimed them for one of the many tables.
As much as Bowman wanted to meet Dean Winchester himself, he wasn't about to shirk his duties. When Sam flew with him, they had to look out for each other.
"There's two blasted Jacobs, too," he groused as he lead the slow dive to their landing. A glance behind showed that the Jacob they knew was still waiting in the (annoyingly square) doorway.
"Dude, what the hell..." the newest Jacob muttered, staring around the room. Hesitantly, he stepped across the threshold so the door could close behind him, and followed the descent of the two green shapes he already knew among a room full of people he only thought he knew.
The new entrants to the room had not gone unnoticed by anyone. With their green clothing and vibrant wings, they stood out among the drab colors of a dive bar, nearly glowing in the luminescent light.
And, naturally, were recognized.
“Bowman!” one of the Deans called, the one loitering around the pool tables. A broad grin split his face as he saw the sprite landing on the table with a second winged ally.
He didn’t get the sense from Bowman that he was the same sprite they’d met a few cases back, but that didn’t much matter in a place like this.
“Who’s that with him?” Sam asked, motioning for Dean to give him a lift.
Dean scooped him up and dropped him on his shoulder with a bit more casual of a motion than normal. “Dunno,” he said, wandering towards the new trio. His eyes widened as the other person came into focus, removing belts that held him to a pair of wings designed much like Bowman’s.
“Sam? ”
The spritely Winchester looked up, briefly filled with hope as he saw there was a Dean standing there. A mountain of disappointment hit him as he saw a second figure sitting on his shoulder, his face falling. He glanced around, looking for a Dean without a Sam.
But there was none.
“What is this place?” he asked again, looking back at the original Dean and Sam.
Dean gestured towards the bar, a wistful smile on his face as he realized just what was bothering the little guy. This was the first Winchester who didn’t have his brother with him. “Just a place to chill for a bit before you go find your own Dean. Plenty of booze to go around.”
Bowman stood near Sam, if only to keep close to the only familiar part about the room. He stared up at this 'Dean' that had called him by name, but just like his own Sam he'd noticed the figure on his shoulder.
That was a weird sight. He'd grown up knowing Sam to wear the greens of the forest, in the proud uniform of the knights. The other Sam didn't even appear to have a sword on him.
He crossed his arms. Even as he addressed Dean, their Jacob hesitantly wandered over to join them. "What is 'booze?’ "
Jacob glanced at Dean with wide eyes before chiming in his answer. "It's a human drink, Bowman. Means it has alcohol in it."
"Dude, you just missed the mini-us," another deep voice joined in. The oldest of any Jacob there wandered over to greet the newcomers. "There was a Jacob that got cursed, apparently. They left before you guys showed up, but you'll probably get to meet them next time."
Bowman leaned away from the even-more-giant giant and then glanced to his Sam. "One of him is sprite-sized? "
Jacob waved a hand at the two very green little guys on the table and grinned. “Stands out almost as much as you do, buddy,” he greeted. “Dude, did you teach your Sam to fly?”
Sam grinned encouragingly. “Bowman thinks he taught me to fly,” he said as he caressed one of the wings of his glider. He could see the attention it was getting, and from looking around the Lounge at all the other Sams, could understand why.
He was the only one, aside from Bowman, wearing the colors of Wellwood.
“I ended up in the Wellwood when I got cursed,” Sam explained as Dean sat down, a fascinated look in his eyes for the leaf glider. The other Sam started to climb down so he could join them. “Figured if I can’t fly like they can, I’d just make my own wings.”
To demonstrate, Bowman stretched out one of his own wings next to the glider. The wingspan was nearly the same, and there was definitely a resemblance between the two. After years of poking at Bowman’s wings, Sam had been able to make his own, and all teasing aside, Bowman was proud.
“We look after Wellwood as a team,” he boasted, shooting both the Jacobs a grin. The younger one shrugged sheepishly and Bowman snickered. “Even gave that giant right there a reason to think twice.”
Jacob nodded even as he joined the others in sitting at the table. He held up his hand to show off the bandaging over the back of it, hiding a long gash in it. “Sam jumped up onto my hand when, uh. When I tried to grab him.”
Dean snorted, and his Sam sent him a scolding look. “Yeah, uh, so far we’ve seen all the Jacobs making… quite an impression,” he said with a smirk. “We’ve got big and tall over here,” he nodded at the oldest Jacob, and then at the next table over where a matching set of cursed Sam and Dean played a game of pool, “who managed to get sliced up twice for grabbing those Winchesters. Shorty by the bar definitely regretted grabbing Sam…” That Jacob still had a black eye to match his sliced hand. “The only one who made it out in one piece is half-pint, who’ll be back later. So far as I can tell.”
“Dude, don’t miss out on saying high to him when he gets back,” the older Jacob said, lightly punching the newest Jacob on the shoulder. “Seeing double is already a trip, right? Imagine seeing yourself pocket-sized.”
“Pocket-sized?” Bowman interjected with a wary glare.
The taller Jacob put his hands up in surrender. “I’m sure someone else said it before me,” he insisted. When Bowman only gave him a flat look in return, he shrugged in defeat. “Either way. You guys have fun chillin’ in the Lounge, it’s a great place. They’ll even make whatever food you want.” He gave a wave to his younger self, who returned it in a daze, and then wandered over to see what his own Winchesters were up to.
Dean slowly approached the table with a pair of him and a pair of Jacob standing around, then realized there was someone on the table, stalking angrily off like he had the biggest chip on his shoulder.
Past pool balls almost as tall as he was.
“Is that a mini-me! ” Dean sputtered when he realized the guy looked familiar. In fact, identical, once you looked past the handwoven clothing.
"Dude, I was gonna say that," the taller Jacob quipped, eyeing the littler of the guys on Dean's shoulder. He offered himself a smile, and got one in return, although the smaller Jacob was still shell-shocked by the strange place.
"Woah, wait," he said, breaking out of his daze to notice the guy his Dean was staring at. "Is that what you'd look like if you were like us?" he asked. He waved, trying to get the smaller Dean's attention with a greeting.
All he got in return was the bird flipped at him. “Why is everyone so fascinated by me,” the smaller Dean griped. He grabbed to the edge of the pool table and hauled himself up so he was no longer standing on the green.
“Oh, I dunno,” the original Dean drawled, placing his pool stick back on the rack. “Could be because you’re the only one of us that got cursed?”
The little Dean huffed. “I tried my best!”
Dean offered him a smile and held out his hand invitingly. “Never said you didn’t, shortstop,” he said warmly. “You’re one of us.”
“Just the smallest one of us,” said the younger Dean lurking nearby and keeping an eye on his Jacob, who continued to be on probation.
The newest Dean walked closer, his two little brothers watching avidly. “So… this place is safe for them?”
“Made for us!” Sam called from his perch with the tallest Jacob there.
That prompted the smaller Jacob to glance around and observe more closely. After trying to greet the smaller Dean had backfired, he figured he'd stick with the Dean he knew for now, but his eyes widened when he saw a miniature pool table just like the huge one laid out before them, over on one of the other tables.
"Dude, he's not kidding," he told his Sam. He glanced over to the bar, with its miniature stools, and even places for them to climb up with ease. "Holy shit, this is cool!"
“That’s what I said!” the little Dean called over from his place. “See?” He turned his annoyed look up at the Dean who’d kidnapped him from his chosen pool table, and got only a look of innocence back.
The newest Dean in the room chuckled at that, walking over to the table to let his smaller brothers off. “I doubt I’ll fit at the table, but you two could probably manage a game or two without me,” he said wryly.
The television over the bar rippled, and the words The Water’s Fine took over the entire screen.
The pair of cursed brothers, Sam and Dean, along with Jacob, could feel a strange echo inside them at that, and Sam glanced at the door.
“I think that’s our ride,” Sam told Jacob.
Jacob nodded. "Yeah, I guess, time to go find some trouble," he mused. Back in the real world, they hadn't gone on a hunt as a team yet. Hell, the Impala was fresh from all the work Dean had had him do on it. Jacob liked the Lounge, but he was ready to see what was next for them.
"Dean, wanna make bets on who's the big hero in this one?" he joked, holding out a hand for the smaller Dean.
Once he had both brothers back to their perches on his shoulders, the tallest Jacob there bade everyone an amiable farewell wave.
Meanwhile, a much smaller Jacob was making himself comfortable in the Lounge for his stay, climbing down to the table after his Dean helped him there. He glanced between the many tall Deans around, and realized that, despite them all looking identical, he knew which one was his without any trouble. There was just a feeling.
The third and final Jacob, one who was still careful not to crowd any of the little guys, inched closer, still fascinated at the sight of a tiny version of himself. "So ... what's your story?" he asked the three newcomers.
Sam grinned up at him, beyond thrilled to know that there were other Jacobs out there besides his own, ones that managed to escape the curse, whether he’d escaped it himself or not.
“I found Jacob a few years back when he got cursed, and dragged his ass out of the line of fire, and then this guy,” Sam jerked a thumb over his shoulder at Dean, who simply arched his eyebrows innocently and poked Sam in the side, “blunders on in and sticks my adopted brother under a vase…”
Welcome to the AU lounge! A place of relaxation conceived and helped designed by all the readers and visitors to the world of Brothers Apart! Stay awhile, kick up your boots, and have some pie!
Current AUs in the Lounge:
Brothers Together (Teenager big Dean; tiny kiddo Sam; tiny kiddo Oscar)
Brothers Apart (The original Dean and Sam)
Brothers Lost (Big Jacob with the tiny bros)
Brothers Found (Big Dean and Jacob, tiny Sam) ****** New Arrivals
Dean blinked, hard, trying to clear his eyes.
Seconds ago, he’d closed his eyes to fall asleep. Next thing he knew, he was on his feet, standing in the dark outside some door with The Lounge glowing above in neon letters. A puff of warm air left his mouth in surprise, mixing with the chill of the night to turn into a brief smoke cloud, vanishing as he watched.
“Can we go in?” came a voice from his hand, and he glanced down in surprise.
Crouched in his palm, Sam was rubbing his hands up and down his arms, trying to warm up. At only four inches tall, that wasn’t the easiest thing in the world.
“Yeah, got it,” Dean said, automatically bringing his hand to his chest to try shielding Sam from the cold air. He put a hand on the door, expecting it to be closed, but it opened right up.
The cold vanished as he stepped over the threshold, and Dean felt himself relax as he stepped in, automatically looking around for any threats to Sam. Though they’d only been reunited for a night, Dean’s protective instincts from childhood had reared, and he was on guard for Sam’s sake.
“Watch it!” a voice bitched from the ground, and Dean nearly stumbled, eyes widening as he saw not one person by his boot, but two.
One hand on his hip, the other wrapped around the world’s tiniest glass of whisky, the smallest Dean glared at the newcomer. The Sam with him took a few quick steps, getting out of the giant Dean’s way as fast as he could, but his brother stood his ground.
“You can’t go walking around blind,” Dean snipped up at his counterpart. “What happens if Oscar’s around, huh? Watch your step!”
With that, he hitched his duffel up and stalked off, following Sam on their journey towards the pool tables and leaving a very, very confounded Dean standing in their wake.
Not far behind, Jacob found himself staring in confusion at the neon sign above the door. The deep bruising around one eye almost blurred the sight of it. He shrugged inwardly and gave the door a test push.
He was surprised to find the place open, but then again if he was dreaming, why wouldn't it be? He stepped inside, only to stop short.
There was Dean, standing there with Sam on a hand. He looked shocked, like his brain was rebooting after seeing something he hadn't expected.
Just a second later, Jacob understood why.
The place looked like any normal bar/diner kind of place. Tables for chatting, as well as tables for poker or pool were arranged all around, with arcade consoles against the wall. Some teenager only a year or two younger than Jacob stood playing, and standing nearby watching the game...
Himself?
It was definitely Jacob, wearing a hoodie like was his signature. The main difference was in height; he was several inches taller and quite a bit broader.
"Uh. Does this usually happen after you take care of a restless ghost?"
Dean was distracted enough by the strange, swaggering double of himself that was walking around down on the floor, making a beeline for the pool tables, that he didn’t glare at Jacob for getting close to Sam. As far as he was concerned, the kid was on probation for injuring Sam during their first encounter.
Jacob’s main redeeming grace was the fact that Sam was there, safely cupped in Dean’s hand. Protectively cupped, with the way Dean was eyeing up their strange surroundings even as the atmosphere of the lounge began to work its magic on even him.
“Dude,” Dean hissed at Jacob, “there is a mini-me walking around over there!” He didn’t have any more of an idea what was going on than Jacob.
Welcome to the AU lounge! A place of relaxation conceived and helped designed by all the readers and visitors to the world of Brothers Apart! Stay awhile, kick up your boots, and have some pie!
Current AUs in the Lounge:
Brothers Together (Teenager big Dean; tiny kiddo Sam; tiny kiddo Oscar)
Brothers Apart (The original Dean and Sam)
Brothers Lost (Big Jacob with the tiny bros) ****** Departing
Brothers Found (Big Dean and Jacob, tiny Sam)
Brothers Adopted (Big Dean, tiny Jacob and Sam) ****** New Arrivals
Time, that endless flow that the Lounge existed without, passed outside the doors. Within, the different groups mingled, each with their own stories and tales to tell the others. From time to time, the smallest member of the Lounge, little Oscar whom even the bartender loved to see come around and peek out into view, would have to leave, called by a mysterious summons.
But he always came back, and always went back over to his young Dean and Sam, who were delighted to see him and managed to take away the sadness that fell over him each time.
Between serving whiskeys and pies and mysteriously bussing tables without ever being seen, Gabriel kept a sharp eye on the TV suspended above his bar. On it, the flashing colors belonging to each AU switched between different polls, and he was surprised to see the same group get voted in a second time. Family Ties turned into First Hunt, glowing its win.
Over at the table with the two Jacobs sitting, they watched the tiny Winchesters go through a few games, Dean quickly putting up a better fight now that he knew Sam was his equal at the game. It grew more heated between them, but all in good fun with the occasional call to “Rack ‘em, loser!” when one won.
The original Dean of the crew came strolling over to watch the game, his mouth quirked into a smile as he saw his tiny counterpart clearing the table with one stroke after the other.
Then, to the smaller Dean’s eternal consternation, Dean swept him right up off the table with a shit-eating grin right after his winning stroke sunk the eight ball in the corner pocket.
“What’s the big idea?” Dean griped up at his giant counterpart, batting at the fingers around him. As fast as this Dean was, his grip was always surprisingly gentle.
“Oh, nothing,” Dean said innocently. “Just figured you might want to see how the big boys play.” With a grin, he plunked tiny Dean right down on the pool table, still a mess from an earlier game with the solid balls still on the table, all the stripes gone.
“Jackass!” Dean shot up at him, shoving a yellow 1 out of his way as he stalked for the edge.
To the side, Gabriel watched all the happenings between the groups, always alert for any actual danger between the different sizes. Danger was discouraged, but jokes and pranks…
Well, those were fully encouraged and endorsed.
Both Jacobs were just as surprised by how quickly the larger of the two Deans had just swept up his tiny counterpart. The younger Jacob, still sporting a black eye that was doing a lot better since he came into the lounge, stood from his seat to wander over to the pool. Behind him, the other Jacob held out a hand for the Sam who'd been left on his own.
Young-Jacob stared at the 1 ball as it rolled slowly to a stop only a few inches from where it started. The mini-Dean looked so small among the normal-sized pool balls.
Ever wary of how his own Dean didn't want him around the little guys, Jacob didn't immediately move to offer a hand. "I think this table's more of a football field," he mused.
“A football field with a jackass giant!” Dean griped up from where he was walking. The edges of the table had places he could climb down without his hook and thread, so that’s where he headed.
The larger Dean chuckled, lining up a shot with the cue ball and lightly nudging it towards the 1. It was barely a love tap, sending the ball into Dean’s way as he stalked by. With a swear, the smaller Dean kicked at the ball.
A second Dean strolled over, his hands in his pockets as he looked over the pool table. “Mini-me’s having some issues there,” he commented to the Sam on his shoulder.
The original Dean frowned at him. “How old are you, anyway?” he inquired as he took aim at the yellow 1 again.
Dean scowled. “I’m 26, dude!” he griped, looking annoyed at the question.
Dean chuckled as he tapped the cue ball again to piss of the smaller Dean. “I’m 27.”
“Yeah, well I’m 28 which means I’m in charge around here!” the little Dean snapped, shoving the cue ball back at his larger counterpart only to make the man chuckle again as he steadied the ball.
While they bickered by the pool tables, the screen above Gabriel flickered, and this time there were four names listed above, flashing as it was decided which one would post next.
Like a Moth to Flame
Sam of Wellwood
The Water’s Fine
Bothering Bowman
Gabriel mused that if Dean couldn’t find his way off the pool table by the time the vote ended, he’d get a free ticket off if his story came up.
