[Though Dean missed out on some of the more crucial aspects of the conversation between Sam and Crowley, he saw enough. And that emotional call back? Yeah, it's time for a brief intervention. Dean gets it — Crowley is a piece of shit demon in serious need of being put down just like they put down his dog once, but they can't rush into anything, and Dean half-expects that Sam'll be gearing up to go. Without him.
Because let's face it, there are still some serious trust issues there that they haven't quite patched up.
So he seeks out Sam, finds him, and sees that he's looking for something.
[Sam just flat out ignores him, too engrossed in the task of pushing things to the side, knocking books over because those don't break, whatever, not important — he sees red, and his hands are vibrating with it and maybe a little something more hurt, because if that's true — demons lie. They lie, and Crowley could just be saying that to piss him off. There's no proof she's gone. There's none. But then he rewinds through that conversation and knows what Crowley's capable of.
He talks to himself, quick and bitter and confused.]
How did he know — how —
[How did he know about Sarah. How did he find her. Why her. Why can't he get one single break? Fucking hell, did she really have a kid? A normal life? Something worth holding onto? And it got fucking ruined by Samuel Winchester. Great. Mr. Cursed, Mr. Ladies Man, murdering anyone he bothers trying to love.
Well, fine, whatever. He can handle the misery. He deserves it. But they don't — Sarah and Jess sure didn't fucking deserve it, and he couldn't save Madison, couldn't help Amy, couldn't do anything but sit back — ]
[Well, Sam's still kind of blanked out thanks to Dean's door, and Crowley and Pitch's was pretty intense, too; kinda just tired the hell out of him mentally, which is why the response is a little slow on the uptake. When should he admit to Dean what he saw? Dean knows what's in his door by now, but...
He sends it after a while.
Because this can't be a great addition to the week.]
[Dean's had about a day to digest what Crowley told him, and he doesn't feel any better about it. He's basically been sitting at the same conclusion that he reached after Crowley hung up on him. That he and Sam need to talk — they need to come up with a better game plan regarding the trials — something that isn't just get back, figure out the problem, and do what we need to do to fix it, because it's not as simple as that, now that Dean has a general idea of what happens.
Not if it's going to hurt Sam. And not if it's going to get them hunted, because they screw up so badly.
They need more information so they can avoid screwing up in the event that they do get out of here with their memories in tact. Dean has a couple of ideas about how to get that information, but they both involve Crowley. One is coercion, which is kind of dangerous considering Crowley's army of hellhounds, and the other is actually trying to be nice about it — but Crowley is pissed about his situation, so Dean figures that won't really fly. Besides, the bastard will probably try and make a deal or overly complicate a simple arrangement — and really, Dean doesn't want to go down that path. At all.
But for now, first thing is first. Telling Sam about what Crowley said, and getting on the same page about these trials.
Dean finds Sam in his room. He doesn't wait for an invitation — just strolls in.]
Hey.
[Before taking a seat and launching into the discussion, though, Dean takes out Ruby's knife and holds it out to Sam.]
Here. I found something else, so you can have it back.
[Because you need more weapons, Sammy. While Ruby's knife is handy and good for killing demons, Dean wants to carry around something that he can use to take off a head in one swing — something like his Purgatory blade. And Jenny gave him something that's probably as close as he's going to get. It makes him feel a little more comfortable, even if he hasn't really had need to gank anything yet.]
[It's in a decent mood, because even though he was pretty damn roundhoused by the meeting with Castiel and Dean, he was... well, he was bouncing back well enough. You don't deal with all those years of trauma, bounce back, and then get K.O'd by admissions like that. He's still stewing in thoughts and he couldn't help but be upset with Castiel, sure, but... well.
Whatever. Dean's here for some reason, and he seems like he's got something he wants to talk about.
Sam's testing angel feather pens (Castiel not approved) on paper after he'd been trying to find a good solution to mix for ink; so far, natural berries and soot and things that left a good stain tended to be the best ingredient for it, but if there's one thing Sam hasn't learned to make in school, it's inks. Like, who could ever need to, right? Right. Look at him now.
He stops in the middle of swirling a line over the paper to glance at the knife. His brow furrows, but then Dean's talking about other weapons and Sam's taking back Ruby's knife with a nod. Was that it?]
[Normally, after the conversation that they had, Dean wouldn't be so eager to talk to Sam, but this is more important than their argument and the shit that Sam said to him. This is about a hunt, and Dean's not going to let that pass by without taking on the job.]
[Dean has spent the morning in his room. He may have given Sam crap about his hobbies, but Dean's found a couple of his own that have kept him busy. He's very much a doer, and can't stand to sit around useless. There's only so much research he can stomach, and sitting around twiddling his thumbs while he waits for the opportunity to get out of this place lost its appeal a long time ago.
Messing with that car he found, just to see what he can manage, has occupied him a little — but more importantly, he's also been working on putting together some weapons, thanks to the tools he acquired and the supplies Jenny gave him. He's made a basic bow already, and Jenny helped him out with a crossbow, too, on which he's finally putting some finishing touches. He and Sam will both be able to do some decent long-range damage with these, once he gets some arrows made — which will be good for hunting and self defense.
The table in his room has become a work area of sorts, and that's where he leaves everything when he decides to emerge for lunch, deciding to see if Sam's around to join him. He goes to his room — and sure enough, there's Sam, napping with that smelly dog of his, all curled up together in bed in a way that makes Dean shake his head. He considers leaving Sam, since he needs rest with that sickness of his, but decides instead to just wake him. Eating is just as important as sleeping, after all, and Dean knows Sam's not a big eater as it is.
He enters the room and walks over to the bed. Riot raises his head at him, but Dean ignores him.]
Sammy.
[He says it without trying to stir Sam at first, but after a moment Dean gives his shoulder a light shake.]
[He sits up and blanks hard, wondering how long he'd passed out for; couldn't have been more than an hour or two. Riot licks him across the face and it helps to get him bright-eyed as he gets up and has the dog follow quietly behind (probably hoping for a snack or two, he's gotta be hungry). Sam's been aware of Dean's extracurricular activities making weapons, and Sam doesn't butt in much for that to help -- he knows it's something purely Dean territory, something to occupy him while Sam is occupied elsewhere.
He clears his throat deeply, already being difficult from just a few hours of disuse. Still, the last few days have been relatively okay; it was only this morning that he felt a little shitty, but even then, it wasn't anything he couldn't just ignore.]
Right, right, you're Gordon Ramsey.
[Smoothing back some unruly hair, he snaps his fingers and motions, and Riot's finding the designated place to curl up and sit. Sam'll have to check in on Castiel soon, too, especially after all that crap in the Wastelands, getting his ass hurt. As he gets comfortable in his usual chair:]
Progress report?
[In general. Pertaining to you. The usual conversation.]
[He'd sat around telling her about pirates, and Castiel puts enough faith to at the very least venture into the Wastelands with her. Besides, she's just a kid. A bratty one at times, but still a kid whether he's species-ist or not. Sam's just not intimidated there.]
[After the unfortunate encounter with someone who looked and sounded like Azazel, Dean has a stab wound that he needs to get stitched. He tried to do it himself, but the angle is too awkward for him to do a decent job of it. Since it isn't serious enough to bother Cas, Dean decides to text Sam.]
[Seriously Dean, when's the last time he replied to that question oh, no, I'm super busy, sorry. And don't even try to snarkily bracket something about the year with a girl, I will punt you.]
[Dean can tell that Sam is still upset — thanks to the way he's been keeping their interaction to a minimum since the event ended. Truth be told, Dean doesn't mind the extra space. The event was pretty rough for him, between getting stabbed a couple of times and seeing people and demons from Winchester past showing up left and right.
It isn't as easy for him and Sam to set their disagreements to the side here in Adstringendum as it was back home. Back there, they were often put in a position where they had no choice but to communicate for the job — and because they were stuck in a vehicle so much of the time. Here, there's nothing forcing them to communicate beyond bare necessity, which means that Dean has to put an end to this himself.
He heads out of the Temple in search of Sam, planning to hit up some of Sam's main haunts. He finds him pretty quickly, though, not too far from the building, with a nice little area of paper targets with drawn-on bullseyes set up for bow practice. He watches for a moment, assessing Sam's form, and then he walks up to him.
Dean doesn't even acknowledge that things have been a little rocky — just jumps right in like it's business as usual.]
Nice shot, Legolas.
[Get it — 'cause your hair is kind of long and you're using a bow.]
It almost looks like you have a chance at beating me.
You sure? I don't think that'd fit into your 'dream world'.
[Said straight-faced, with all the petulance of a Winchester Trait, as he lets and arrow fly and hits beside the bullseye, the drawback so tightly clenched that it burrows heavily into the bark; his fingers are pretty abused from all the practice over the weeks, but he's starting to really get into the method of it. And hey, it's a great way to burn off energy while being completely unmoving and focused.
He reaches for another arrow, giving Dean a less-than-enthused look. Bitchfacey, if I do say so myself. He at least doesn't tell him to back off or stop trying to play 'nice', anyway. Because hell if Sam's any good at telling Dean to leave. He focuses back on the target, aiming again, not casting another look Dean's way.]
There are a lot of people around who know how to shoot. It's been helpful.
[Castiel is oblivious to a lot of social interaction, but he isn't that clueless; certainly not enough to miss the tension between two of the people he is most attuned to the moods of.
He's hesitated to mention it, but it's insufferable, and it's concerning as well; whenever they get like this it's usually because someone is hiding something or did something seriously stupid, and whichever it is Castiel wants to know. He's guessing it has to do with the conversations with Crowley, which is just more worrying.
He decides, finally, to seek out Sam instead of Dean, as he thinks he's more likely to get an answer from him. When he finds him, he frowns seriously at his friend for a few moments before just getting to the point.]
[Sam's not exactly surprised Castiel's coming over to talk to him about it; yeah, it's obvious, and the air is so heavy that even Riot is trying to avoid them in the same room together, which is hardly frequent. Sam's consuming the last of the jar of honey Akito had given him with his drink, finding it soothing for his slightly ragged throat. Apparently, getting pissed off and yelling at your brother doesn't do wonders for the esophagus. Who'd a thunk it.
He lowers his drink and frowns a bit, in that pensive way he tends to do.]
We're both angry at each other, yeah.
[And because Cas deserved to know, Cas is certainly right to think Sam would at least give him an accurate summary of that mess.]
Dean tried to go meet Crowley somewhere to pick a fight, Crowley agreed with all intent to kill. I told him if he went and pulled something like that by himself and with no clear reason, I'd ignore what he wanted and would either finish the trials or make a deal that Crowley could kill me off in the case of a broken truce.
He's pissed, I'm pissed, the world keeps spinning.
[And then he calmly, if not with silent, tired exasperation, drinks some of his honey-laced tea.
[ 0897 is an image of a Bugbear in the midst of turning something into salt; 0913 is a Katamari the size of the average motorcycle rolling up a Tonberry; 1001 is the most impressive - a close shot of a juvenile unicorn, coat still relatively golden, being fed a candy. ]
I suggest you leave the new demon resident Karasu alone. He kills through making things into bombs out of thin air and has no problem making people his bombs.
Looks human. Long black hair. Keeps his lower face masked.
[He pauses briefly.]
I've left a message for Dean saying the same thing.
Hey Sam, could I borrow you friday? I want to have a chat, but not over the PCDs. I don't think I'll be able to get out until then though since I'm still somewhat sick.
[ checking up on someone is a good idea. Ishtar was trying her best to do that with her currently new healing task. It's at least helping her get better at this and Raphael isn't nagging her endlessly to get better but she's genuinely concerned and periodically checks up on him when he gets the chance. ]
Do you want me to go ahead and make another stop today? It seems like it might be doing something. I'm not sure.
[Sam's writing in his journal when she messages him, Riot's ears perking at the familiar ping of contact. Sam answers and smiles a little.]
No, it's definitely helping out. If you're feeling up to it, a stop'd be fine.
[His hands are still shaking a little much and he staggers around a lot, but the trials have improved, bit by bit. He's not as feverish all the time, and his body battles it better. It's progress.]
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