Secret Santa for Anilkex (Supernatural, Sam & Dean)

[Bongo]

Merry Christmas/Happy New Year to Anilkex, who wanted a SPN fic with the boys taking care of each other.

I have never written Supernatural before, so I decided to write an alternate ending to season three's A Very Supernatural Christmas, to give myself a story to fall back on. The episode took turns with Sam and Dean fighting Pagan Gods on Deans last Christmas before the deal is over, and Sam and Dean as kids on Christmas.

It's a little light on the plot, but I hope the wee!cheester care taking sort of makes up for it.

And, though it goes without saying, I own nothing.

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Sam took another sip of the eggnog and fought a grimace. It certainly didn't need any more kick. The brandy he had found at the gas station mini-mart while Dean was in the bathroom wasn't the best quality, so he'd tried to make up for it by adding twice as much, figuring the burn would hide the taste.

He pondered the cup, wondering if a buzz would help him stomach what was about to come. He and his brother were about to celebrate Christmas. Dean's last Christmas, for that matter. The idea made Sam's stomach clench and his throat fill with acid, but he swallowed it down and shook his head to clear it of negative thoughts. This was Dean's last Christmas and, so help him God, Sam

was giving him the best damn Christmas he could have.

He fidgets with the tinsel for the hundredth or so time. It's small, insignificant really, but it's something he can control. He can take as long has he wants to make the tree decorations perfect. An itch found his nose, drawing his attention away from the task at hand, and he rubbed it with the arm that didn't have a gash across it.

Just as he's shifting it a half an inch higher, the door opens and Sam's head shoots up just in time to see his older brother walk in. He dropped the tinsel and grabs his eggnog, raising it in greeting to his flabbergasted brother. "Hey. Get the beer?"

Dean paused a minute, taking everything in, before joining his brother in the living room. "What's all this?"

"What do you think it is?" Sam looked around, taking in the dollar store decorations and unenthusiastic lights. "It's Christmas."

"So it is," Dean chuckled. "What made you change your mind?"

But Sam didn't answer. Dean couldn't know why he changed his mind. He had managed to hide the fact that he was coming down with a cold during his brother's last Christmas this far, through crazy Pagan Gods and creeping out girls dressed as elves. He wasn't about to let Dean focus too heavily on him now, and have it all have been for nothing. And Dean would waste some of his precious time left worrying about him. And that couldn't happen.

"Eggnog?" Dean took the offered cup and winced as the liquor burned itself down his throat. "Does it have enough kick?" The itch

was back, causing Sam to turn away and wrinkle his nose tightly, pretending to check out the tree. "I was going to add more..." The

itch didn't abate, and he pinched his nose between his fingers, hoping to stave it off.

"It's fine."

They both sipped their egg-flavored cheap liquor, sitting on the couch and enjoying their last minute gifts until Sam finally had to turn

away from his older brother.

Dean raised an eyebrow. "You alright, Sammy?"

"Fine," Sam answered quickly, though the loud sniffle he had no choice but to succomb to made Dean snort.

"Mmhmm."

"Why are you staring at me?" Sam demanded, sniffling loudy as he asked.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Go blow your nose, kid. Come on, it's Christmas. You gotta have a little class."

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"I'm fine, Dean! Just leave me alone." Young Sam threw himself on the bed into the corner of the old couch, crossing his arms and

huffing.

"You're not fine. You're sick and I have to take care of you," Dean responded. He was heating soup up Campbell's chicken noodle

soup in the kitchen.

"I don't want you to take care of me," Sam pouted. "I want Dad."

"Dad's working. And why would you need Dad to take care of you if you're fine?" Dean handed a mug of soup off to Sam and joined

him on the couch with a mug of his own.

"Because he's my dad. He should take care of me in general. That's what dads do."

"It's what big brothers do too." Dean pulled the blanket off the back of the couch and draped it over their laps. Sam ignored it, and

ignored the box of tissues Dean dumped on his lap as he sniffled loudly. "Blow your nose, kid."

"I'm fine!" Sam repeated, more firmly.

"Fine, spill. What's the real problem? You're obviously sick, why can't I just take care of you?"

Sam looked away, but admitted under his breath, "You shouldn't have to take care of me on Christmas Eve. Dad shouldn't have

made you."

Dean rolled his eyes. "You know I don't care about Christmas. And Dad didn't make me. I want to."

Sam shook his head. "That isn't what you said. You said you had to"

It took Dean a minute to come up with an answer to that.

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Sam came back from the bathroom, to find Dean reading his skin mag. "How ya feeling, Sammy?"

"It's Sam" Sam responded, "and like I said, I'm f-"

Sam groaned as Dean lifted his face out of the elbow he had thrown up. "Oh come on, you did not catch my cold."

Dean stood up and walked over to the beds, where he began rooting through his duffel bag. "Thought you were fine. And no, I didn't.

You caught mine." He tossed Sam the bottle of cold pills he had been steadily making his way through for the past week.

After taking a couple with a sip of eggnog, Sam threw the bottle back on Dean's bed and plopped himself onto the couch. "Why didn't

you say anything?"

Dean joined him. "I didn't want you to have to take care of me, especially since, you know..."

"Because it's Christmas," Sam supplied, giving his brother an out, allowing them both to avoid the real reason.

"Yeah, Dean agreed "Because it's Christmas."

Sam left his brother long enough to snag a blanket from his bed, which he threw over them. "Then I guess we'll just have to take care of each other."

[Anilkex]

Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh I just found this!!! Yay! Thank you thank you! A little angst, a liitle sick, and Weechesters!

Parts I loved:

Sam looked around, taking in the dollar store decorations and unenthusiastic lights.

The itch

was back, causing Sam to turn away and wrinkle his nose tightly, pretending to check out the tree.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Go blow your nose, kid. Come on, it's Christmas. You gotta have a little class."

HAHA

Sam shook his head. "That isn't what you said. You said you had to"

It took Dean a minute to come up with an answer to that.

That last line is awesome.

Adorable and perfect. Thanks again!!!

[Bongo]

Yeah, I had some sneezing in the flashback, and it got flagged for underage sneezing so they took it down and removed that. So it was invisible for awhile, Sorry about that! But I'm glad you liked it, SPN was hard for me. I liked the excuse to go back and watch it though

[HPG]

That was really sweet.