Supernatural G/t Snippets

A Breakthrough

He wasn't good with people. Even less with emotions. But he knew a panic attack when he saw when. He brought both hands around, scooping the tiny being from the floor and turning her over on her back in his palm. She fought him, but he ignored it. Maybe making it a little worse in the process, but once on her back, he knew she could take better control of her breathing. "Easy, kid. Easy. I know, big scary hunter but ya gotta breathe."

Valerie stared up into the green eyes that stared right back at her, focusing on them. On their color. On the way they weren't scrutinizing her or pitying her. Just on the way that they seemed determined to aid her. It was something solid. Something real. Something that could pull her from her thoughts and help her regain control of parts of her body. 

Dean knew she could be overwhelmed very easily. He hadn't seen how easily until now. Bobby never mentioned that she was prone to attacks like these. So maybe he'd never seen it, or maybe this had never happened before. 

The girl seemed to regain control of her breathing, though once she had that her coughs and hitching breath turned into soft sobs. Here he was, the Borrower in his hands, sprawled out in his palm and he had to figure out how to calm her down again.

Valerie was embarrassed. She was beyond that. She was absolutely mortified. How could she have let him see her like this? How could she have let this happen? And now she couldn't stop the tears that had started flowing. She turned away to avoid meeting his eyes any longer. 

Dean didn't know what to say. What he could even think to say to prevent upsetting the girl further. It wasn't hard to tell she was embarrassed. It wasn't hard to tell 'upset' was an understatement to how she was feeling. 

Now that the attack seemed to be over, he wondered if giving her space would be the best thing. So slowly, he lowered his hands back to the shelf and let her slide off his fingers. 

Dean was a hard person to be around. He was an even harder person to express any sort of emotion to, as the older Winchester tended to brush things off or be so uncertain how to react that he would make things worse. Or maybe he just wouldn't respond at all and change the subject entirely. But this wasn't one of those times. Bobby cared about this little creature. And he respected Bobby. His opinions. 

"Has...that ever happened before?" Dean finally spoke, watching the Borrower stand on the floor of her 'room' and dust herself off. She was still sobbing but was trying to collect herself. Trying to pretend that everything was fine. "Bobby didn't mention these."

"N-No." Valerie said through her sobs. Right now it wasn't Dean she was scared of, it was what had just happened. How hard it had been to breathe. How hard it still was to catch her breath and take control of herself again. She wanted away from him. Wanted to lock herself away from the world until she felt she was presentable again. "Th-That was new."

"Do you want me to get Bobby? Tell him what happened, maybe he'll know what exactly triggered it," the hunter suggested, leaning forward slightly in an attempt to read her expression. However, he noted how she stepped away from him quite quickly and that was what caused him to realize just what had flipped the switch.

It was him. Sam. All of them, and no doubt everything around them. This girl stood at only a few inches tall, and they were bombarding her with new situations. Situations she didn't have any time to adjust to, situations she had no control over. In fact, he didn't doubt that she had very little control over anything in her life. She was used to Bobby, used to having her own room, her own space. And it was being invaded without her consent. She hadn't even had any say on who would be sharing the room for the night.

Dean had gotten so lost in his theorizing that he'd almost forgotten he'd asked a question. His question seemed to make Valerie even more upset than before.

"No! D-Don't tell him. He already worries so much; I don't want to make him worry anymore." Valerie frowned deeply, but she still didn't lift her head to look at the man kneeling in front of her. 

He gave a sharp nod. "Fine. We don't tell him. But you gotta talk to me then. This isn't something that can go unchecked or ignored."

She didn't mean to, but she scoffed. "You? What could you possibly have to say or want to hear from me?"

"Not what I want to hear from you, what I want you to hear from me. See, I don't want to get in your way here. I don't want to be in your space. This is your room, like you said. And you want to make a compromise. You want Sam to stay in here, right?"

The Borrower hesitated momentarily, lifting her head just enough to glance at Dean. His hostile and snarky tone had vanished. It sounded like he was actually willing to listen to her. "Only because he's been a lot nicer and a lot more understanding than you've been," she responded in a soft voice.

"Fair enough." Dean sighed. He had really gotten off on the wrong foot with her. Sam had made far more of an effort with her than he had. "If that's what you want I'll go let Bobby and Sammy know I've got no problem with that. I'll take the couch downstairs. It doesn't bother me one bit."

Valerie was still quite confused as to where this sudden change in attitude came from and why he was speaking to her like an actual person. She wouldn't complain, but she was caught off guard. Something that could be quite dangerous for people like her. Despite her hesitance she did nod at him, telling him that was what she'd prefer. But then she stopped him before he could leave the room.

"I-If you're...willing to make an effort Dean, I will too. But you can't be...y-you can't talk to me the way you have been! I-I haven't done anything to you. I-I just exist, okay? I don't know why I do; I just do. Maybe you think I shouldn't because you're a hunter, but Bobby has been so good to me and he's a hunter too."

Dean didn't have a response this time, eyes scanning the small girl and his face shifted into a very visible frown. So that's how she felt. How she thought he felt. He was so taken aback that he didn't even argue the truth. "I'll try and be better about that. Especially since Sam doesn't seem to mind you too much either."

It was now Dean stood from the floor, watching the tiny being stumble away from him and take shelter in the safety of her little room. Standing so close to her at his full height, it was startling just how small she actually was. 

He wouldn't delay any further though. He'd leave the room and go tell Sam and Bobby what she wanted for the night. How she wanted arrangements to be.

He knew what it was like to have no say in what happened in his life. He'd dealt with that for a very long time when it came to dealing with John. Even now, a lot of what he did still focused around what his father had told him to do. How to act. And with almost no way to control what happened around her, he wanted Valerie to at least have a say in what happened when it came to her own room. She lived here. And after scaring her, treating her the way he had been, he at least owed her that much.

Of course, he'd never state that out loud. He'd be asked why he was acting different, but that excuse could be made up later.