Le Feu Follet
Summary: It’s been 10 years since you and Dean split up. Bobby calls you in to assist on a hunt with the Winchester brothers. When you and Dean meet again, will the two of you change course, or just continue on the flow you’ve been on for the last decade?
Pairing: Dean x Reader
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 3712
Warnings: Few - some canon-level violence, hunter’s funeral, probably language because I’m married to a Marine and it’s ingrained.
A/N: I combined two challenges for this: @deangirl93 and her 500 follower celebration and @tvdspngirl314 and her birthday challenge. Prompts are Ten Years Gone by Led Zeppelin and “She’s the love of my life...I’d go back with her in a heartbeat.” Le feu follet is explained a little further in but! It’s a Cajun folktale, similar to the will o’ the wisps in Scottish folklore. It’s a little ball of light that draws its prey into the swamp and drowns them. Ominous, right? I added some to the lore because as most oral folktales go, there isn’t a full story.
Credit: header and beta by @padalelli, divider by @firefly-graphics, lyrics in italics, dialogue prompt in bold.
Then as it was, then again it may be. And though the course may change sometimes Rivers always reach the sea.
It was just a hunt, you told yourself. It was just a hunt. You could do this. It had been a decade since you and Dean split. You were different people then; both barely adults, no idea what you wanted to do with your lives. You were both too headstrong to compromise on your goals and your dreams. Love just wasn’t enough.
Now, in your late 30s, Bobby called you up to assist on a hunt. You owed Bobby Singer your life - literally. You didn’t want to follow your dad’s footsteps and be a hunter. You wanted to be normal. You’d gone to college and gotten an accounting degree, the most normal thing you could think of. You had been so far gone from this life that you didn’t notice the signs that your boss wasn’t human.
Bobby busted in just as your boss, the literal, actual demon, had you pinned to the ground choking you out. He killed the demon and sat you down to explain everything before you interrupted him and told him who you were. He made sure you were okay and you exchanged cell numbers. A few days later, you left your apple pie life behind and picked up hunting again, joining Bobby at his house for the first few months before hooking up with Jody and Donna for some training hunts.
You’d been back hunting on your own for several years now, only getting the occasional assist. Now it was your turn to be called up as a backup. And for the bloody Winchesters, no less.
Okay, you didn’t hate the both of them. Just Dean. And it wasn’t really hate...no, it was more like...dread. You didn’t want to see him again. That part of your life was over. Done. He didn’t love you anymore and your feelings towards him were not the same kind of love either.
Or so you tried to convince yourself.
“Hey, Bobby,” Dean greeted when the older man answered the phone. “We’ve got ourselves a bit of a tough case. Anyone around the…,” Dean paused to check his brother’s notes, confirming the location, “Whiskey Bay, Louisiana area?”
“I’ll check in with a few people. Might have someone,” Bobby responded.
“Alright, thanks.” Dean hung up the phone and told his brother the news.
Sam’s phone rang a few hours later. “It’s Bobby,” he told his brother, answering the phone. “Hey, Bobby. What’s up?”
“Sam, the only hunter within driving distance of your case is Y/N,” the older man told Sam.
“Wait, you mean?” Sam questioned, hoping that he didn’t have to go into further detail where his brother could hear him.
“One in the same, Sam, one in the same. I take it you’re regretting calling now,” Bobby joked in a way that only he could.
“Yeah, you could say that,” Sam responded, glancing at his brother cleaning his weapons.
“I don’t envy you, boy. But those two are idjits. Stubborn and bullheaded idjits,” Bobby chided, his gruff voice echoing in Sam’s ears.
“Yeah, thanks. I’ll let you know what we find.” Sam hung up the phone and faced his brother. “Help is on the way,” Sam informed Dean. “Bobby called in another hunter. Said we’d know ‘em when we saw ‘em. Whatever that’s supposed to mean. Should be here in the morning”
“Yeah, Bobby’s kind of cryptic that way,” Dean agreed.
“Okay, well I’m going to hit the hay,” Sam told his brother, silently urging his older counterpart to follow suit and not go out tonight. Not with knowing what was coming tomorrow.
You pulled up at the motel in Henderson. It was the closest to Whiskey Bay. You guessed that’s where the brothers Winchester would be. You weren’t wrong; the classic Impala was sitting at the end of the row. You pulled your ‘67 C10 next to it and took a deep breath. You figured you’d be here a few days so you grabbed your bag and headed to the office, determined to get a room of your own.
You were in luck. There was a room a couple doors down from the end where you parked. Close enough that you could hear if the car started but far enough that you didn’t share a wall with Mr. One Night Stand himself.
You got to your room without incident. Now it was just a matter of time before you met your ex face to face.
Sam got his wish; Dean didn’t go out last night. He woke up before his older brother and ran out for good coffee. As he walked out, he saw her truck parked outside. Sam sighed; well, it was going to be an interesting case.
Dean was in the shower when Sam returned. He chose to set up his laptop at the table and continue to research what they were looking for. Dean met him at the table, taking his coffee and sitting across from his brother.
“That hunter got here yet?” Dean asked, sipping his coffee.
“Uh, yeah,” Sam replied, nervous about the next questions. His eyes never left his laptop, refusing to meet his brother’s gaze.
“Okay, so who is it?” Dean questioned suspiciously, knowing Sam’s aversion was hiding something important.
“It’s...It’s Y/N,” Sam sighed. “I saw her when I was getting coffee.” He looked up at his brother with his patented puppy dog eyes. Dean’s face revealed nothing; his eyes were focused on his coffee.
Changes fill my time, baby, that’s alright with me. In the midst I think of you and how it used to be.
Ten years ago
Dean walked into the motel room, you trailing behind him, slamming the door behind you.
“Dean, why are you acting like I’m asking you to take a bullet for me? I just want to have a normal life, something where I’m not chasing a monster that no one believes exists every day! I want that with you, just to TRY,” your yelled, your voice raising with each sentence.
“Because this is OUR LIFE, Y/N!” Dean responded, his voice as loud as yours, hands flying with passion as he spoke. “I can’t just leave this life. Someone has to do it; someone has to stop the world from ending every other week!”
“WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE YOU?!” The tears were falling down your face now; you knew what was coming. You and Dean wanted different things; you were both stubborn and neither wanted to compromise.
“Because there’s no one else,” Dean said, resigned. “Dad’s gone, Bobby isn’t in the field anymore. Hunters are dropping left and right.” He sank down on the bed, head in his hands, and muttered “It’s only us now.”
You sat next to him and looked at your hands. “Dean, I was accepted into the fall class at Northwestern State. I’m going to go get a degree and live a normal life. I would love for you to join me,” you paused, looking over at him, his posture unchanged, and continued, “But I understand. You don’t want to come with me. I’ll be gone in the morning.”
You got up and went to take a shower, not looking behind you at Dean, not seeing the hurt etched onto his face or the tears falling down. Before you started the shower, you heard the door slam. You haven’t seen Dean since.
Now
You woke up early, not remembering where you were for a moment. Then everything came back to you with a vengeance. Bobby called you to help the Winchesters. You groaned and got out of bed in search of coffee; you were going to need it.
The kitchenette didn’t have a coffee pot and the continental breakfast at the hotel had awful coffee. Lucky for you, there was a CC’s across the street. You walked in and the smell of dark roast coffee woke you up slightly. You hopped in line and browsed the menu, considering straying from your normal tall black coffee with two sugars.
The door to your right opened and out of the corner of your eye, you saw a very tall man with long hair walking in. As soon as you saw his face, you stiffened. Great, you thought. It’s Sam and I haven’t had coffee yet. Maybe he won’t recognize me.
Fate was on your side; Sam didn’t seem to realize who you were. You got your coffee and headed back to your hotel room. It was going to be a fun hunt.
Sam had seen you going into your room as he walked out of the coffee house. He chose to let you keep your distance as long as you could. He knew it wouldn’t be easy for either of you, despite Dean insisting that you were the one who walked out.
Bobby had kept Sam updated on your progress in school. Sam wasn’t sure if it was because Bobby knew he’d want you to be safe or if it was Bobby’s way of showing him that he could go back to school, too.
What Bobby didn’t tell him was that you were hunting again. So when he said that you’d be coming in for the assist, Sam almost didn’t believe him. What could have happened to make you get back in the life after your blowout with Dean over getting out?
Dean had been uncharacteristically silent since Sam told him which hunter was helping out. Sam was a bit worried that this hunt was going to hurt one, both, or all of you. He considered calling Bobby for more backup but he had said that there were no other hunters in driving distance.
As much as he didn’t want to, Sam knew it was time to fill you in on what was going on. He took a deep breath and walked out of the room to go to yours. He knocked on the door and waited.
You were sitting hunched over your coffee cup when there was a knock on the door. You pulled your gun from its holster at your side and checked out the peephole. You saw it was Sam, but you refused to holster your weapon. You did lower it though.
You opened the door and looked at the younger Winchester. He’d filled out quite a bit since you’d last seen him; overall, he looked good. “Sam,” you greeted.
“Hey, Y/N. Thanks for coming,” he quietly replied.
“You want to come in?” you offered.
“Actually....would you mind coming to ours?” he asked with the famous Sam Winchester puppy eyes. “It’s just easier since I have all my notes and stuff there.”
You sighed and closed your eyes. You had to do this at some point. At least Sam will be there. “Does he know?” you questioned, holstering your gun.
“Yes.” Sam responded, almost whispering.
“I guess there’s really no avoiding it is there?” you asked rhetorically, grabbing your keys and your bag. At the last second you turned around and grabbed your coffee cup for the short walk to their room.
Your nerves were getting the best of you as you walked closer to the room your ex was staying in. Every step towards him was another unanswered question. Had he moved on? Was he still angry with you? Was your departure discussed between the brothers? Was he still as handsome as he was? Did he still love you?
You shook your head to clear your mind of the last question. Of course he didn’t love you still. He’d only told you twice; once, on your first anniversary, and again, a month before you left. He showed affection in other ways, and you didn’t need verbal reassurance, but you sometimes wondered.
You were pulled out of your thoughts when Sam opened the door. You hesitated a moment too long and heard Dean’s voice.
“Close the door, Sam,” he called out in his gruff voice. Your heart fluttered at the sound and your stomach cut a flip.
You walked in the room and stepped to the side, allowing Sam to close the door. Dean looked up from his place on the couch and saw you, his jaw dropping slightly. You managed a small smile and let Sam guide you to the table where his research was spread out.
“So get this,” he started, turning his laptop towards you. “There have been five drownings in the swamp in the last month. The problem is that all of them walked into the water on their own accord.”
“This sounds really familiar,” you told him, straining to think of where you’d heard a tale like this before.
“It happens fairly cyclically, all random victims but it’s always the same time of year in the fifth year of a decade,” Sam informed you.
“And the last time it was the fifth year of a decade, we were dealing with a much bigger problem,” Dean chimed in, his eyes barely flitting over you, his voice strained.
Then
The pyre burned bright; John Winchester’s body reducing to ash before their eyes. The three hunters stood silently side by side, watching until only embers remained. Sam walked back to the car, leaving you and Dean alone.
“I can’t believe he traded his life for mine,” Dean whispered.
“Let’s go find this demon and put him under. Then we can have a break,” you coaxed him back to the car.
You had a monster to hunt.
Now
“Oh my god,” you cried as you shot up in bed. You threw a robe on over your pajamas and rushed down the sidewalk to Sam and Dean’s room. You banged on the door for a few minutes before Dean answered with a Colt in your face.
“Jesus, Y/N,” he said, “you couldn’t have just called?” He lowered the gun and
“Would you have even answered?” you snapped, pushing your way into the room where Sam was sitting up in his bed, wiping the sleep out of his eyes.
You turned around and faced Dean, waiting for him to shut the door. He closed it harder than necessary and put his Colt on the dresser. He turned to glare at you, folding his arms across his chest in annoyance.
“Well, I know what we’re dealing with. And I know what we have to do,” you told the brothers.
That’s how you ended up in the middle of the swamp, in hip waders, chasing after Le Feu Follet, a Cajun will o’ the wisps that lures people to their drowning death in the marsh. That’s how you ended up walking with Sam several paces behind Dean, covering the rear and sides.
You weren’t prepared for the feelings you had for Dean to resurface like they did; you kept staring, hoping neither brother would notice the longing glances you sent to the oldest Winchester. Sam, however, was incredibly observant and decided that things wouldn’t be any worse for the wear if he addressed it.
“He misses you,” Sam told you quietly.
You sighed. You somehow knew this was coming. Sam had been your best friend at one point. “He doesn’t even know me anymore. I doubt he really misses me.”
“You didn’t see him the second your name was mentioned, Y/N/N. It’s like he was that scared guy at the pyre again,” Sam explained, “Dean is really good at hiding things from other people. But I can see through his bullshit. He hasn’t been the same since you left.”
“Neither have I, Sam.” You stopped and turned to face your former best friend. “I got out of this life. I wanted Dean to come with me. He refused. I got back in a couple years ago after Bobby saved my ass from a demon that was in my boss’s body,” you informed him, nearly yelling at the tall man. “I nearly died and the last thing that crossed my mind was ‘I want Dean’ before I passed out.” You shook your head and kept walking, only getting a few steps before stopping again. “I couldn’t believe that I still loved him after all of that.”
You walked in silence with Sam for about ten minutes before coming to a crossroads. “You take the right path, I’ll take the left,” he told you, gesturing for you to take the path closest to the water’s edge.
You nodded and continued on your way, walking a few feet before seeing the lights of a cabin across the water on a tiny island. You knew the feu follet would often lure people by making them think there was a house or lantern, but you could see a boat tied to a tree and smoke rising from a chimney you could barely make out.
You started to cross the water, hoping the occupant could give you some information. Your foot slipped, making you twist into the water; the last thing you saw was an orb dancing in front of you at the water’s edge.
Sam was only a few paces down the path when he heard the splash come from the direction you had gone. “DEAN!” he yelled, just realizing his brother had disappeared while you were talking.
He started making his way to the path you followed, hearing his brother’s footsteps crashing through the marsh behind him. He skidded to a stop when he saw your body floating face-down. “Y/N?” he whispered, hoping it was an illusion of the crafty spirits.
Dean crashed through the trees, seeing you face down in the water and charged forward. “Y/N!” he shouted, hoping you could hear him as he splashed through the muck to get to you.
Dean’s cries snapped Sam out of his trance and he helped his brother pull your limp body out of the swamp. Sam kept watch while his brother started CPR, both begging you to hold on, just come back to them.
An hour later, after the spirits had been handled with a little iron and salt, Dean and Sam sat beside the bed in their motel room, watching your unconscious body and waiting for you to wake up.
Dean broke the silence. “I, uh...I wasn’t fully honest about why she left.” He looked at his brother who lifted his head to show he was listening. “She wanted out. After Dad; after Azazel. She begged me to go with her. I was so scared of having everything and losing it like Dad did. I pushed her out.” Dean hung his head, wiping the tears from his face. “I should have gone with her.”
Sam stayed quiet for a long time, picking his words carefully. “She may still want that with you, Dean. She’s avoided you for so long but,” he paused, looking over at your chest rising and falling, debating how much he should say. Ultimately, he chose to spill it all. Dean deserved to know. “She still loves you. It’s what we were talking about earlier. She’s back because Bobby saved her from a demon. Her last thoughts, well what she thought were her last thoughts, were of you.”
Dean’s head snapped to his brother’s face. “Are you serious? She...she still loves me?”
Sam nodded at his brother’s question. “Would you consider trying again with her? Even if it meant leaving the life?”
“She’s the first girl I ever loved,” he paused looking over to you laying on the cheap bedspread. “I’d do anything she asked. She’s the love of my life....I’d go back to her in a heartbeat. If she’ll have me.”
Some Time Later…
Vixen in my dreams, with great surprise to me Never thought I'd see your face The way it used to be Oh darlin', oh darlin'
You woke up to sunlight streaming in through the curtains. You stretched across the bed, feeling the cold sheets on the other side. You sat up, hearing some noises coming from outside the room.
You padded down the hallway on bare feet seeing Dean standing in the kitchen making breakfast for Joanna and Bobby. You stood and watched from the doorway as your husband interacted with your kids; laughing and smiling in a way you hadn’t seen in close to twenty years.
Dean noticed you in the doorway and his smile grew wider. He made his way over to you for a good morning kiss.
“Morning, babe. No work today?” you asked him.
“Well, Sammy has been on my case to take a break. He said I can trust the guys I have working for me and since I know the kids are off of school for Mardi Gras break, I thought we could have a family day,” he suggested, looking at you with those green eyes you’d never be able to say no to.
“Sounds great,” you agreed.
The last ten years of your life had been a dream. After that last hunt where you almost drowned, Dean confessed that he still loved you and that he was wrong for letting you go. You agreed to try again and quickly became as comfortable as you used to be. He suggested getting out of hunting, all of you, all the way out, and you and Sam quickly agreed.
Sam went to night school while working himself through it and got a degree in business management; Dean apprenticed under a shop owner and bought his business out about two years ago. Your accounting degree helped you get a job at a firm quickly.
Dean proposed one night under the stars on the hood of the Impala. The next day, the two of you went down to the courthouse and got married by the Justice of the Peace. You had Joanna Mary and Robert Samuel five years ago after being married for a year. The pregnancy had surprised you but you were both excited. When you found out it was twins, it was even better.
Your life had been a perfect dream since you woke up after the feu follet hunt.
I'm never gonna leave you I never gonna leave Holdin' on, ten years gone Ten years gone, holdin' on, ten years gone Ten years gone, holdin' on
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Dean/Jensen:
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