Sneak peek!

Since the title was guessed a bit ago, the sneak peek for M&Ms and Lucky Charms has arrived!


Before Sam could try thinking of another method, the door barged open. Jumping slightly in place, he curled his hands protectively around the tiny balled-up kid he’d found, and saw Dean sauntering back in.

“Got some grub,” Dean said, walking past Sam and tossing a package of bread on the table, followed by peanut butter and jelly from his jacket pockets. Last, he pulled out some peanut M&Ms from his back pocket and grinned proudly. “Even remembered the chocolate.”

Sam didn’t react to the food, just watching Dean over his shoulder, still sitting on the ground facing the dresser from catching the tiny kid and wondering how he was going to break this one for Dean.

Naturally, this immediately alerted Dean to the fact that something was off in Sam-land, and he narrowed his eyes at Sam.

“What? No grabbing for the M&Ms?” Dean asked suspiciously. “Whatcha doing down there, anyway?” He stepped closer to Sam, his eyes falling on the cupped hands. “What did you find?” he demanded, squatting down next to Sam. “You know what Dad says about keeping pets!” He went to grab for Sam’s wrist.

Oscar, in all the excitement of being swept off the floor, had forgotten about the other human. How he could forget about the second tenant in the room, he didn’t know. He hadn’t even considered him when thinking about running out in the open for that candy. There was a chance that he’d have been caught by the other kid instead.

The older human was loud. Oscar squeezed his eyes shut as he came nearer, and wished he could curl up into an even tinier ball so he might go unnoticed.

It was no use. He was trapped in the younger human’s hands anyway.

He peeked one eye open to chance a look past his arms, and sucked in a gasp. Another hand, bigger than the ones that held him, was fast approaching. It could snatch him up even faster, and this human might grab him too hard.

He yelped, kicking out to push as far as he could into the curve of his current captor’s fingers. More tears burst out of his eyes and his head hurt from all the pressure, but Oscar couldn’t help it. He waved his hands in front of himself weakly, as if they’d be some defense, and then the moment was over and he was curled up again in his ball of fear.

The cry of fear from in Sam’s hands galvanized him into action, and he squirmed away from Dean’s reaching hand. “No!” he cried out, protesting his older brother’s grab. He twisted out of reach, keeping his hands shut tight around the kid. “You’ll hurt him! I promised!”

There was a moment of silence, and Sam looked over his shoulder to see Dean frozen. “Sam,” Dean said slowly, his eyebrows pinching in concern. “What do you have in your hands?”

Is there another sneak peek for brothers united?

We’ve actually paused on writing that story just like Brothers Discovered, and ended up working on a bit more angsty stories while work was stressful, but we can spare ya a peek!


The cry of fear from in Sam’s hands galvanized him into action, and he squirmed away from Dean’s reaching hand. “No!” he cried out, protesting his older brother’s grab. He twisted out of reach, keeping his hands shut tight around the kid. “You’ll hurt him! I promised!”

There was a moment of silence, and Sam looked over his shoulder to see Dean frozen. “Sam,” Dean said slowly, his eyebrows pinching in concern. “What do you have in your hands?”

“Promise not to grab?” Sam asked, sticking his lip out stubbornly.

“Promise, shorty,” Dean held up his hands and wiggled his fingers. “But I need to know what you have. No secrets.”

Sam sighed, and shifted onto his knees. “He’s real scared,” he explained, cracking his hands open slowly. “You gotta be careful.

Dean blinked in surprise at the ‘he,’ then leaned forward as Sam’s hands opened to reveal the world’s tiniest kid. “Sonovabit–

“Dean!”

The scold cut Dean off, and all he could do was close his mouth and stare, for once rendered speechless.

Oscar was speechless too, though he felt like his heart had to be pounding loud enough for them to hear it. His ears throbbed after their short bickering, and his hands were clamped over the sides of his head. Somehow, he’d managed to stay curled up even when Sam moved around and jerked him away from Dean.

Now, though, he trembled so much it was amazing he could keep any position. Loud voices, huge hands, huge eyes, the sensations all swirled around him in a confusing whirlpool

He hiccupped and scrubbed at his eyes with the back of a hand. More tears replaced what he’d wiped away, and he kept the hand in front of his face to hide the only way he could.

“Dude, where’d you even find him?” Dean shot at Sam, rapid fire.

The Lounge || Sams of a Feather (4 of 4)

While Dean went to order, Sam knelt down next to Oscar, his drab clothes matching the small kid’s the best out of the group. “I grew up in a motel, too,” he said, looking between the spritely Sam and Bowman and Oscar. “When we visited Wellwood, it was a lot brighter than my old home.”

“You went to Wellwood?” spritely Sam repeated, respect in his face.

Sam grinned. “And Dean went and snatched Bowman right out of the air, so you better watch out if you ever run into him.”

As expected, Bowman bristled. His wings puffed up and he straightened. “He better not try,” he warned. “I’ll bop him if he does. Just figures I’d wait to meet him and he’d try to grab me!”

Oscar smiled faintly. “W-well, Dean’s not the worst human to grab ya,” he admitted. He shared a look with the Sam next to him; they’d both been grabbed at first, only for it to turn out to be one of the best things that could have happened to them. If they had simply run away, their stories never would have begun.

“Do you really, um, bop humans? That’s real brave!”

Jacob, feeling like more of a giant than ever with such a tiny kid at the table, rested his head on his arms. “He definitely will if he gets the chance,” he replied. “Hell, Sam might join him if the human earns it.”

Spritely Sam snickered. “You should know.”

After ordering food at the bar, Dean enlisted the kids help in carrying it all over to the table with the new trio at it. Dean had the drinks on his tray (since he didn’t quite trust his younger-self alone with the mugs of beer), while the other Dean had the food on his tray, and balancing carefully on it was Sam with the smaller tray of food and drink.

“Whoa, that’s awesome!” the teenager declared when he spotted the glider sitting on the table.

“C’mon, put the tray down!” Sam bugged him, almost hopping in place where he waited.

Both Deans did so, the teenager mussing up Sam’s hair for the barked commands.

“We’ve got a round of drinks on the house,” Dean said, passing off a mug for Jacob and putting his own to the side. The younger Sam bolted to the small table sitting at the center of the table, putting his tray down and separating the drinks and food.

“Pine tea,” Dean said as Sam put a mug down on an empty spot, “milk for growing bones, and juice.” He gave his younger self a smirk.

“Plus the bartender gave us these mintcakes!” Sam announced, his short arms just able to reach to place one in each spot. “Oscar, ya gotta try one!”

The mention of food caught Oscar’s attention, to no one’s surprise. His eyes lingered on the glider for a second more, but soon enough he turned to wander curiously towards the table and his own Sam. “Mint cakes?” he echoed, already eyeing one of the places next to a glass of milk.

“No way,” Bowman said, following. He reached the table just as Oscar did and stared dubiously at his setting. The steaming pine tea and mintcake looked like they could have been made in Wellwood itself. “How–”

“The man at the bar can make any food we want!” Oscar explained with a delighted grin.

Jacob sat up so he could spy on the miniature settings on the table. The tiny cakes were familiar indeed. They looked no different from the ones Sam had shared with him.

“Better try it out, Bowman. Make sure it’s up to par.”

Bowman shot him a glare, even as he picked up the mug of tea. “I don’t know what that means!” he groused, before taking a sip.

“Do ya like it?” Oscar asked, watching Bowman closely. He’d never seen someone with wings before, so both Bowman and the new Sam fascinated him.

Bowman sighed and shrugged. “It’s like my aunt made it,” he admitted begrudgingly.

“Dean, you should try!” the younger Sam enthused, holding up an extra mintcake for his brother.

Giving his older self the side-eye, the teenager sat down right by where Sam’s seat was. “Mintcakes?” he asked dubiously, reaching out and letting Sam put one down on his fingertip.

His worries washed away the moment he bit down on the candy-sized morsel. “This is almost as good as pie.”

“Told you,” Sam said smugly.

Dean finished off his bite, then begrudgingly drank the juice the original Dean had ordered him. It was good, just not as good as a ice cold mug of beer. He eyes that up, then looked for something else to distract him.

Bowman and the newest Sam were obvious choices.

“How fast are you, anyway?” Dean asked, poking at one of the sprite’s leafy wings.

The offended wing twitched back from the contact and fanned open. He barely resisted slapping his wing against the intruding hand; Dean was just a kid. This one was, anyway. More than one of most blasted humans should be more confusing.

Faster than anyone in Wellwood!“ he boasted proudly.

"Where’s that?” Oscar asked, already up on his chair and swinging his legs back and forth. He’d made some progress on his mintcake but now he watched Bowman’s twitching wings.

Jacob smirked. “He’s got a point, Bowman. Not in Wellwood now.”

“So, I’m plenty fast,” Bowman protested. “Right, Sam?”

“Faster than my glider,” Sam said indulgently. “And faster than the other sprites. He sneaks out to race the others at night.” He looked up at the teenager, smiling. It was like looking into a mirror of the older brother he’d lost so long ago. His Dean would be older, like the other one sitting with them, but it was nice to remember. “We’ll have to show you after we eat.”

“While you eat, how ‘bout you tell us what brought you to Bowman?” the other Sam offered. “We’ve got a collection of stories going so far, and I have a feeling you might have one of the more interesting ones.”

“Then maybe I can try the glider?” asked the younger Sam from where he was sitting, his legs kicking back and forth under the seat.

Spritely Sam smiled and nodded. “I think I can manage a ride or two,” he said, eyeing up his younger self and judging his size. “There’s a few extra belts in my supplies I could rig up.”

The Lounge || A Dean in the Hand (2 of 3)

The taller of the two Jacobs wandered over last, drawn by the bickering. Sam was back on his shoulder, a good perch for someone his size to still be able to see what was going on. Especially around all these other lookalike Deans. Jacob watched his step as he joined the others there, in case anyone else was also heading in the same direction to see what the commotion was.

Seeing Dean standing on the table, surrounded by pool balls that would outweigh him by several times, made him raise his eyebrows. Glancing between the two taller Deans and finally his younger counterpart, Jacob wondered at the fact that the little guy was … not as upset as he could be.

A number of lectures over his month or so knowing the cursed Dean came to mind. He was definitely taking this prank very well.

Jacob was ready to offer him a hand anyway, and get him out of the dangerous spot, but something else drew his attention. The door to the Lounge opened, and both Jacobs turned in unison to see who else was coming in.

It looked like another Dean, judging just by the posture and the spike of hair on top of his silhouette. What set him apart from the others, though, was the fact that there were two small figures on his shoulder, not just one.

The newest Dean blinked, working to focus on his strange new surroundings. One minute he was in the car, falling asleep under the stars with his two brothers– one related by blood, the second adopted into the family that day– the next, he was here. Fully clothed, his hair a sharp spike, he was certainly dressed for a night on the town.

On his shoulder, Sam wasn’t alone. Next to him was a second familiar figure clinging as Dean took a swaying step into the lounge.

“Dude, come on in!” The original Dean beckoned them over, tossing his pool stick from one hand to the other. “You’ve gotta see this place!”

With him distracted, the smaller Dean set out determinedly for the edge of the table.

The taller of the two Jacobs standing near the pool table kept an eye on Dean for a second, making sure he could get himself to safety unhindered. Then, assured the little guy wasn’t about to tumble into a side pocket, he offered the new Dean a welcoming smile and a wave as he approached. “Just be sure to look out for Oscar. He could be wandering anywhere.”

The younger Jacob forgot his manners in a stunned silence for a second. His eyes were on the new guy’s shoulder and the pair perched up there. “Dude,” he hissed, elbowing his counterpart in the side.

A third Jacob had arrived, and he was cursed-size.

“Holy shit,” both the tallest and smallest Jacob muttered, one amazed and one apprehensive.

The newest Dean blinked as he looked around the room. “Ain’t I seein’ double?” he asked the figures on his shoulder. “Is that–”

Sam shook his head, his hair flying into a mess at the violent action. “That’s Jacob!” he exclaimed, pointing at the shorter of the two, then he hesitated, his arm drooping as he looked at the second Jacob, taller and broader than the first.

As though a six-foot tall Jacob wasn’t big enough.

The Lounge || Time to Go, Champ

Interlude


The Lounge was a lively place, but for once Oscar didn’t mind. Back in the motel, if a room was full of humans being loud or boisterous, he had to avoid them at all costs. They couldn’t find out he was there, or he’d be in danger.

It wasn’t the same in the Lounge, where they all knew he was around and they all seemed willing to look out for him. He could walk across the open floor safely, and the most he’d get was a hello from a Dean or a Jacob standing high overhead. He could explore as much as he wanted, and even go get food whenever he felt like it.

When he got a strange feeling in his core that he had to leave, he didn’t like it at all. His eyes strayed to the tall doorway and he frowned.

Beyond this strange place, he would be alone again. Left behind just when he thought he might get to leave his motel and not be afraid anymore. He’d go back to hiding away from everyone and hoping he might find enough crumbs to eat every day.

He didn’t want to leave. It was just like his Dean had mentioned so early on, when others first started arriving. He didn’t want to leave.

Oscar glanced around to see what the others were doing, but no one else seemed to notice anything amiss. With a sigh, he found a space under one of the tables and huddled down. Maybe, if he didn’t come out for a while, it would be like he had left, without actually going anywhere. Maybe.

A pair of shiny black leather shoes and black slacks ambled towards the table. They definitely didn’t belong to any of the Deans or either of the Jacobs. Those guys all wore jeans. Oscar wasn’t the only one, in fact, watching the progress of those steps with rapt attention.

The bartender never came out from behind the bar, it seemed. Until now.

Oscar huddled even smaller as the steps came towards the very table where he hid. He tried to scoot around the base to put something between them, but stopped just as the footsteps did. As he watched, the man knelt down so he could see under the table.

Golden eyes that usually lit up with some hidden mischief fixed on him right away, and Oscar froze. There was almost pity there. He was so surprised that he didn’t even argue or try to squirm away when a hand reached under the table to scoop him up. He clung to the bartender’s thumb as he was lifted up, out from the shadows.

“Hey, champ,” Gabriel greeted him, smirking at the kid. Even to him, a head shorter than any of the other human-sized folk in the Lounge, Oscar was small when seated on his palm. “You got a job to do.”

Oscar huffed quietly and pushed himself to his feet. He felt like it hardly made a difference at all; he still looked so tiny on a hand. Whoever was still watching from other tables could probably hardly see him.

“I … I don’t want to,” he admitted, his voice breaking in the middle. His eyes stung and his vision blurred, but he tried to keep it together. He really tried.

The bartender’s eyebrows went up and he shrugged in a ‘what can you do’ manner. “I know it, kid. I put together a pretty sweet place to hang out. But right now you gotta go.”

Oscar took a steadying breath and some quiet tears raced down his cheeks. He couldn’t quite find the words to explain just how lonely he would be if he left. Here, he had multiple copies of his only friends in the whole world, and then some. Here, he was warm and safe and fed.

“I don’t wanna leave,” he echoed. He didn’t even try to brush away the tears this time and he sniffled. “Why can’t I just stay here?”

Gabriel sighed and his invisible wings shifted uncomfortably. He was all about playing pranks whenever possible. He reveled in the kinds of things humans could come up with on their own, and when it called for it a playful nudge was always ready. And, when he thought they needed to be taught a thing or two, he was right there with a lesson tailor made to them. Just desserts, like a cake with their names iced on the top right before he tossed them into a wormhole (to name one of his simpler examples).

This kid … as far as he knew, there wasn’t a lesson he needed to be taught. He’d definitely earned a chance to stay in a place as awesome as the Lounge, but…

“Sorry, kid. I don’t make the rules … well, I did. But they’re like that for a reason.”

Oscar stared imploringly for a second longer before ducking his head and brushing at his eyes. It only made room for more tears to come, as he all but gave up on his argument. He didn’t have it in him to fight hard like the Winchesters did.

“Woah, woah, buddy,” Gabriel said, interrupting the kid’s crying and ignoring the others completely. “I didn’t say you couldn’t come back, now did I? You just gotta go take care of something and then,” he snapped the fingers on his other hand, “you’ll be back and your friends will be waiting.”

Oscar didn’t look up, but he nodded anyway. He knew the Lounge would welcome him back, but he wished he didn’t have to go. Not back to what he had in his actual reality.

“I’ll getcha to the door, kid. You just gotta walk through it,” Gabriel told him gently. Oscar swayed on his hand as he moved, but Gabriel had steadier hands than any human alive. He knelt smoothly by the door to let the kid step off, never once jostling him on the way.

Oscar stood in front of the huge door while the bartender stood back to his full height and pushed it open with one hand. No one could really tell what was beyond that threshold. It was just outside the Lounge. Nothing more, nothing less.

Oscar glanced over his shoulder to see the others in the room one last time before he faced forward and walked through it.

The Lounge || A Jacob a Day (4 of 5)

Jacob mirrored Sam’s smirk, though he tried to make sure Dean didn’t spot it. He took his leave of their table and felt less like he was looming over Sam and Oscar so much. Even up on the table, they could easily fall into someone’s shadow.

He wandered closer to the entertainment area where his counterpart stood. The kid on the arcade machine was intent on it, and Jacob noticed belatedly that someone else was on the mini-version of the arcade console, too. The systems were put together so well that Jacob couldn’t even tell who was playing who.

Getting closer, he realized there were two small figures at one of the tiny pool tables. The other Jacob was absently watching both games, hands in his hoodie pocket.

“Hey,” Jacob greeted, unsure. He couldn’t pass up the opportunity to talk to himself face to face, but wasn’t actually sure what he’d say.

The older Jacob grinned. “Hey, dude, good to see another me around. But who gave you the shiner?”

The newcomer Jacob touched faintly at the bruised skin around his eye. “I uh. The Dean I know actually decked me pretty soon after meeting him. Didn’t … make a good impression on him.”

“Score one for the Deans!” Dean called up to the Jacobs as he bridged his fingers on the pool table, pulling back and striking at the cue ball. The tiny clinking of pool balls could be heard from down on the table as he took the first shot, scoring two balls in the pocket holes. “Awesome!” he declared, prowling around the side of the table to size up his next shot.

Sam was standing to the side, absently rubbing the tip of pool stick. Having shrunk at ten, he only remembered a few vague lessons from Dean on the game, all done furtively at the bar while their dad was busy. Dean had declared it time for some overdue lessons the second he discovered there was equipment tailored to their size, including pool sticks aplenty to choose from. He’d tested the heft and weight of a few, finding one that felt perfect to him and had Sam test out some.

Dean lined up his next shot, and sunk it in the side pocket. “See that, Sammy? Just gotta learn from the master,” he said, just this side of preening as he took another shot. This one bounced off, and he surrendered the table to Sam.

“So, Dean got the best of you?” Dean called up to the new Jacob by their table, smirking. “Godzilla over here is regretting the first time he grabbed me, let me tell you.”

The taller Jacob rolled his eyes, but didn’t deny it. Instead, one hand emerged from his pocket and he held it out to show off two healing scars. One adorned his fingertip, and the other had been a nasty gash closer down on his arm. “They definitely make an impression, these Winchesters.”

Younger Jacob’s eyebrows shot up. He held up his thumb, displaying the bandaging wrapped tightly around it. His ‘impression’ from his own Sam was much more recent. “Sam really caught me off guard with his knife,” he agreed mulishly. He knew he’d earned it.

“Looks like your Dean had something to say, too,” older Jacob said with a grin. “Don’t worry. If he’s anything like this guy,” he pointed a thumb down at the tiny, smug Dean on the table, “he’ll probably come around eventually.”

Young Jacob nodded, glancing between the three of them. “So … I’m guessing you found them together?” he asked his older self. “I just found Sam, we had to go find Dean.”

Sam focused on his shot, trying to ignore the banter around him. His pool stick hit the cue ball, and the white ball jumped.

“Scratch!” Dean said sternly. He picked up a tiny blue square from the edge of the table and tossed it at Sam. To either Jacob, it would look the size of a grain of rice, but for the brothers it would serve its purpose. “Don’t rub the chalk off the tip,” he chided as Sam begrudgingly chalked his pool stick. “Try again.”

The Lounge || A Jacob a Day (3 of 5)

“Oh,” Oscar replied, finally edging all the way out from under the table. He glanced past the new Dean to the new Jacob, noticing that the other human didn’t opt to sit at the table, too. Oscar couldn’t blame him; sometimes Dean (any Dean!) could be intimidating.

Oscar fidgeted with his little cloth bag while the other Jacob glanced around the room. The others were probably picking up the facts about the place like anyone new did. The Lounge had that weird effect, but no one really questioned it.

He decided he could always help it along, too. These were another Sam and Dean, new versions of his best friends in the world.

“You can go talk to anyone and rest wherever,” he explained to the nearby Sam. “There’s lots of everyone here, the other Jacob even came with a Sam and a Dean our size! The smaller Dean really likes the pie the bartender makes, I tried some and it’s good.”

“I bet it was,” Jacob answered with a smile. He was endeared by the tiny child hovering near Sam, but opted to keep some distance. He didn’t want to give the Dean he knew a reason to snip at him again; Jacob had hurt his Sam, and was still on probation for it.

“Yea, I think we already met those two,” Dean grumbled, remembering the mini-him that had snipped at him first thing.

“Dean got himself in trouble,” Sam chimed in. “Gotta watch his step around… himself.” He was bemused by the entire concept of a brother standing at his scale. A snicker leaked out, unable to contain it anymore.

Oscar covered his mouth with a hand, but it didn’t stop a quiet laugh of his own, catching it from Sam. He was only keeping up with how many Deans there were because the atmosphere of the Lounge helped him. He couldn’t even imagine what the actual Deans and Sams were feeling, seeing so many doubles of themselves. Part of him hoped a group might arrive with another Oscar so he wouldn’t be the odd one out.

“It’s kinda scary walking out in the middle of the floor, but I kinda like that we can,” he mused. Going back home after this would be a bitter disappointment. “I can show you around, if you wanna, when you’re done resting. I’ve been exploring since I got here.“

Jacob smiled faintly. Oscar was opening right up after starting out hiding from them, though he stayed close to Sam. It probably comforted the kid to have someone his own size nearby; he was so tiny.

"I might go and say hi to … me,” he said, offering the kid a little wave. “But I’ll take you up on your tour if you want to later.”

“Kay,” Oscar answered shyly, tilting his head back to meet Jacob’s gaze. He wasn’t as tall as the other Jacob just yet … but he was still a big human.

“Just don’t bugging any of the smaller guys,” Dean warned Jacob, glued to his seat so long as Sam remained near Oscar. “Me or not.”

Sam rolled his eyes and stalked over to Dean’s hand to deal a sharp kick at it. “Dean! You’re the one that’s making a bigger deal out of things than you should!”

Dean’s eyebrows went up in mock offense, moving his hand out of range of Sam. “I’m not the one who got myself caught!”

Sam flipped Dean the bird and turned back to Oscar. “I’d love to hear what you know about this place,” he said welcomingly. “It’s a good start before we go… pissing off any other Deans.” He smirked.

The Lounge || A Jacob a Day (2 of 5)

Jacob’s eyebrows shot up and he followed Dean’s gaze. He couldn’t see the two small figures very clearly, since they’d already made some progress walking away, but something insistent in his head said that it was indeed a mini-Dean. With another mini-Sam of his own walking with him.

“There’s a … a bigger me over there too,” he pointed out, eyeing the others in the room. The ones he could see. He glanced at the floor again, wondering if anyone else would be underfoot.

“Th-there’s lotsa everybodies,” a tiny voice piped up from the nearest table. Jacob glanced over, but he didn’t see anyone there.

A tiny table and chairs sat in the center of the table, and he stared at it for a second before noticing an extra shadow near it. Someone was hiding behind it, though the little voice was so faint and timid he could swear he’d imagined it.

He almost stepped around the table to peek at whoever was hiding there, and then reprimanded himself. He hadn’t had a great first impression on Sam. He could do better with another little person, no matter where they were.

“I guess this is the place for ‘em,” Jacob finally answered.

Dean had to suppress his first instinct to see who was hiding from them same as Jacob. The little shadow looked tiny– not even as big as Sam.

Lowering his hand to the table, Dean jabbed a finger at Jacob. “Behave!” he snapped as he felt Sam step off his hand, going over to the table and chairs made for his size.

Sam rolled his eyes at Dean’s overprotective instincts. “Dude, he’s been fine, lay off a little.”

Then his attention was drawn to the small setup at the center of the massive, human-sized table. A table and chairs, along with placemats, napkin holders, utensils set up at each seat… it was unreal. And all small enough to go in Dean’s pocket.

Sam didn’t get too close, only crouching down to see if he could spot the new person. “Hey,” he said warmly, hoping to meet another person his size, “my name’s Sam, what’s yours?”

Oscar’s cheeks warmed and he offered Sam a sheepish smile from where he crouched, under the table next to one of the chairs. His wild hair actually brushed the underside of the table, something that never happened with normal ones. He wished he could say the novelty of the mini furniture was what prompted him to hide under it. But in reality, he’d simply been startled by the entrance of more giants.

“Hi, Sam,” he greeted, inching closer. He could lean out to peek up at the others, finding another tall adult Dean but a younger Jacob.

“I’m Oscar. I like exploring in here … I was gonna go try games with my own Sam but I keep finding new things I wanna look at.” As he rambled out his explanation, he scooted further out into the open, staying near the new Sam.

Jacob, though he’d been warned to keep back, couldn’t help his fascinated staring. Oscar was even tinier than Sam, something he hadn’t even considered possible.

“Hope we didn’t interrupt your exploring, Oscar,” he said quietly.

Oscar’s eyes widened and he shook his head so fast that his wild hair was ruffled. “Uh-uh, I-I was just under the table because…. because I wanted to try hiding like a human can!”

“Don’t worry about it,” Sam said, a smile blossoming over his face at the little guy. He pushed himself to his feet to give Oscar a little room to come out if he wanted, and glanced fondly back at Dean. “I know they’re a little big, but they both try,” Sam told Oscar. “I only just found Dean again yesterday.”

Dean took a look around to make sure there were no other little people about to appear underfoot, noting that his tiny counterpart was already over at the entertainment section with the other tiny Sam, setting up a pool table made for their size. Then, he stepped forward and cautiously took a seat near his Sam, unable to completely avoid hovering close.

He’d only just found Sam, he wasn’t about to let him out of arm’s reach.

“You’ve got nothing to worry about,” Dean promised Oscar, folding his arms.

The Lounge || A Jacob a Day (1 of 5)

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.