CHAPTER ONE — UNCLE SAM
pilot — part one
"I adopted her." — dean winchester
STANFORD UNIVERSITY
JOHN WINCHESTER WAS MISSING. He had been for a few days now, without as much as a call to assure them he was safe, so the two remaining Winchesters had started to worry. It wasn't uncommon for John to vanish for periods of time, but this time was different. Not a call, not a note, not any sort of goodbye and then he was gone. Dean and Grace woke up one morning to find their shared motel room one person short. All his things and guns were gone, the only thing he left behind was the Impala; other than that, there was no trace of John Winchester anywhere.
Grace Winchester didn't remember who she used to be before waking up in those woods alone, so the only people she really knew now were her Father and Grandfather. Sure, she had met tons of other people in different towns and motels during their travels, but they were always gone just as quickly as they had arrived. It was how hunters rolled after all.
With John Winchester who knows where, Grace was, of course, concerned. But whether her concern laid in the wellbeing of John or those around him, that was something else entirely.
Dean had asked, and practically begged, Grace to use her abilities to locate his Father. But they didn't work that way; as far as she knew anyhow. Her powers, just like her new life, were a learning curve she had to figure out on her own. So unfortunately, it meant that finding John Winchester was going to be much more difficult than they had previously imagined.
Luckily, her Father had a plan. And that plan apparently involved breaking and entering.
She knew exactly whose apartment they were sneaking their way into: her Uncle Sam's. Which was why she didn't understand why her Father didn't just use the front door. Perhaps he was worried Sam would slam the door in his face. Grace had never met the man personally, but from what her Father had mentioned over the past year or so, her Uncle left behind his family and his life to start anew somewhere else, to become someone normal. She couldn't blame him for that.
Shushing her to be more quiet, Dean then jimmied open the window and crept into his brother's apartment. He then turned back and helped her through the open window, not that she needed the help. Upon planting her feet on the fortunately unsqeaky floorboards, Grace was suddenly hit with a feeling she couldn't place. She often got strange feelings from certain objects, people or locations, it was part of her psychic thing. Still, she couldn't figure out what the sudden chill down her spine was coming from.
As Dean ventured into the dark apartment, Grace slowly followed him. Guilt flared inside her as they continued down the hallway; her first time meeting her Uncle Sam and it was going to be after they broke into his apartment. Gracie still believed they should have knocked the door.
Dean glanced back at his daughter, noticing the nerves clearly on her face, before returning his eyes forward and making his way to where he believed his brother was. He was about to reach back and grab her hand, when a shadowy figure suddenly lunged, grabbing the hunter by his shoulder. Grace jumped back suddenly, startled, as her Dad and the figure started to fight. After knocking the arm away, Dean attempted to hit back, only for his opponent to duck his throw. So Dean grabbed whoever it was' arm, swinging him around before pushing him aside.
Grace, meanwhile, was doing her best to stay out of the way. Not wanting to get caught up in it. After all, it was obvious who her Father was fighting.
A kick came her Dad's way, but he blocked it and then shoved the figure back again and into another room. Again, Dean attacked, this time with an elbow to the face. In response, his opponent threw another kick, to the head this time but Dean dodged this one too. Finally, her Dad managed to pin the figure to the ground, disabling him from any further attacks.
With his smile being illuminated by the street lights, Dean stared down at his brother. "Whoa, easy, tiger."
Sam, the figure he was previously fighting, was breathing heavily as he recovered from their spar. "Dean?" Her Father simply laughed and Grace then smiled. "You scared the crap out of me!"
"That's 'cause you're out of practice." Dean smirked cockily as he offered his little brother his hand, only for Sam to turn the tables and yank the outstretched hand, throwing Dean onto the floor next to him. The eldest chuckled. "Or not." Shoving his brother slightly, he groaned. "Get off of me."
Seeing her Dad with her Uncle made her smile, he was never like this around her Grandfather. Grace had seen him this way a few times before, enough to know that this was his true self, not the version he presented to his Father.
After pulling his brother to his feet, Sam inquired. "Dean, what the hell are you doing here?"
"Well, I was looking for a beer." Dean joked with a lighthearted smile.
Grace couldn't resist any longer and rushed forwards, throwing her small arms around Sam's waist. He stiffened in her grip, shocked at the sudden appearance of a small girl. Looking over at Dean for an explanation, he found his brother smiling at the sight of Grace embracing her Uncle, but there were no words coming from his lips. Gracie grinned like a Cheshire Cat at having finally met her Uncle after so long.
Chuckling, Dean warned. "Gracie, if you keep hugging him like that, you're going to squeeze all the air out his lungs." At his words, Grace finally relaxed her grip and stepped back to stare up at Sam Winchester with awe.
The mop of brown hair bent down to look at the girl, offering his hand out politely. "Hi, I'm Sam, what's your name?"
She shook it, her grin never leaving her face. "I'm Grace Mary Winchester." Sam's face faltered ever so slightly at her middle name.
"I adopted her." Dean informed at the sudden appearance of a raised eyebrow from Sam as the latter glanced between the young girl in front of him and his brother.
He arched his eyebrow further, dubiously, at his brother's response. "No sane person would let you adopt a child."
"Hey!"
Grave was giggling to herself at the whole interaction whilst her Uncle shook his head at his brother's offended look before returning to the matter at hand. "What the hell are you doing here?" He repeated, more forcefully this time.
Dean sighed and then admitted, sparing a look at Grace. "Okay. All right. We gotta talk."
Raising his eyebrow again, Sam asked. "Uh, the phone?"
"If I'd had called, would you have picked up?" Dean questioned in response. Grace didn't have to know her Uncle much to know he wouldn't have answered the phone if her Father called. And by the look on Sam's face, she was right about that one.
Suddenly, the lights in the room were switched, causing Grace to squint as her eyes adjusted. The girl instinctively moved closer to her Dad, who grabbed her hand, just as a blonde woman entered. She looked tired as she leaned against the doorframe, clad in a cropped Smurf's shirt and pair of short shorts.
"Sam?"
Both Winchester brothers turned their heads to face her. Dean immediately plastered on a smirk at the sight of the pretty blonde before him.
Sam made his way to the woman's side, before looking back at his brother and the small girl, his niece. "Jess, hey. Dean, Grace, this is my girlfriend, Jessica." Tugging at his hand, Grace tried to pull his locked gaze on her Uncle's girlfriend, but to no avail.
"Wait, your brother Dean?" Queried Jess with a small smile and Sam nodded.
Before Dean could make a step forwards, Grace let go of his hand and made her way over to Jessica, offering her hand for the woman to shake just like her Uncle had some with her earlier. "I'm Grace, my Dad's Dean." The blonde smiled kindly, shaking the girl's hand. But as soon as their skin touched, Grace's face fell. She could feel something — not that anyone noticed her sudden change in demeanour. She could feel heat and pain, like fire was licking her skin. She could feel something dark and something that scared her.
Quickly, she pulled herself up from that rabbit hole. And Sam watched as a hint of pride made its way onto his brother's face at her words. No one the wiser as do what she had just experienced.
"Hi Grace, I'm Jess, it's nice to meet you." She introduced herself, then let go of the girl's hand. Grace tried to keep up her smile as she slowly stepped back, returning to her Dad's side.
"Oh, I love the Smurfs." Mentioned Dean as his gaze settled on Jess's chest. "You know, I gotta tell you. You are completely out of my brother's league." His smirk widened and his eyes continued to rake her body, checking out his brother's girlfriend.
Jess just smiled awkwardly. "Just let me put something on."
"No, no, no. I wouldn't dream of it. Seriously." Dean quickly responded as he made his way back to his brother, his attention remaining undivided on Jess. Even Grace tugging harshly on his sleeve didn't break him from his trance. Sam glared at his brother, his expression stony and annoyed. "Anyway, we gotta borrow your boyfriend here, talk about some private family business. But, uh, nice meeting you." Grace went to wave goodbye to Jess, the strange feeling in her stomach still there and brewing.
Sam frowned. "No." He made his way over to his girlfriend, wrapping his arm protectively around her waist. "No, whatever you want to say, you can say it in front of her." Now it was Grace's turn to frown.
"Okay." He sighed, turning to look them both straight on. Both him and Grace knew now they would have to tell Jess, because according to her Father, they needed her Uncle Sam to find John Winchester. And Grace wasn't going to argue. "Um. Dad hasn't been home in a few days."
Shrugging nonchalantly, Sam mentioned. "So he's working overtime on a Miller Time shift. He'll stumble back in sooner or later." Unfortunately, the Father and Daughter already knew that it wasn't the case.
Dean looked down with a sigh, wrapping his fingers around Grace's hand before he looked back up at his brother and his brother's girlfriend. He tried again, hoping this time to word it so Sam would understand the gravity of what they were saving. "Dad's on a hunting trip. And he hasn't been home in a few days."
Sam glanced between Dean and Grace, growing tense from his words. Having noticed the change in him, Jess looked up at Sam with slight concern. "Jess, excuse us. We have to go outside."
Despite being confused by what was happening, Jess nodded in understanding and left the three Winchesters alone. Sam snatched up a jacket as the three made their way out of his apartment. The college student was obviously not thrilled by the appearance of his brother nor by the announcement he had made. Even Grace knew that Sam had done his best to get out of the hunting life, it wasn't for everyone after all.
"I mean, come on. You can't just break in, middle of the night, and expect me to hit the road with you." He stated as they journeyed down the stairwell, Sam growing exasperated by his brother's antics.
Grace ran a hand through her wavy hair as she tried to keep up with the two men. Sighing, Dean explained. "You're not hearing me, Sammy. Dad's missing. I need you to help us find him."
"You remember the poltergeist in Amherst? Or the Devil's Gate in Clifton? He was missing then too. He's always missing and he's always fine." Sam reminded him, knowing fully well what his father could be like when he was hunting. The mention of these events caused Grace to frown in confusion, she hadn't been told those stories yet. But still, if her Dad was worried the way he was, then this time had to be different.
Dean halted, stopping Sam and Grace in their tracks as he turned back to face his brother. "Not for this long." He stated and then asked the vital question. "Now, are you gonna come with us or not?"
"I'm not."
Dean frowned at his brother's response. "Why not?"
"I swore I was done with hunting. For good." Sam informed him, rather determinedly.
"Come on." Scoffed Dean. "It wasn't easy, but it wasn't that bad." He then continued his way down the stairs and Sam and Grace were quick to follow.
"Yeah? When I told Dad I was scared of the thing in my closet, he gave me a .45." Sam argued, his anger slipping off his tongue. Fiddling with her hands, Grace looked down as she too had had similar interactions with John Winchester.
Dean stopped by the door, pausing momentarily at Sam's words. "Well, what was he supposed to do?" He kept his hand firmly against the wood, preventing any of them from exiting the building.
"I was nine years old!" The younger brother exclaimed and Grace frowned: she was nine years old. "He was supposed to say, 'don't be afraid of the dark'."
Scoffing in disbelief, Dean retorted. "Don't be afraid of the dark? Are you kidding me? Of course you should be afraid of the dark. You know what's out there." Whether she would have preferred to be kept in the dark about the world of the supernatural, Grace didn't know, and she never would. But some part of her was glad that she did.
Her Uncle knew his brother had a point. "Yeah, I know, but still. The way we grew up, after Mom was killed, and Dad's obsession to find the thing that killed her." A sad sigh left his lips, and he glanced at Grace with what she recognised to be sympathy. Her Dad had told her one night about the reason they had started hunting in the first place, about what happened to his Mum, and what two decades of fruitless hunts had done to John. It was pleasant. Dean gazed outside as Sam continued. "But we still haven't found the damn thing. So we kill everything we can find."
"We save a lot of people doing it, too."
There was a brief pause, a silence that had settled around them. Grace hadn't spoken since introducing herself to Jess, after all, she felt she could do little to help.
"You think Mom would have wanted this for us?" Sam wondered. Dean didn't answer and instead rolled his eyes and shoved the door open. Leading the way, Dean made his way up a small set of stairs and towards his Impala, his Baby. "The weapons training, and melting the silver into bullets?" Sam carried on, intent on making his point — a point Dean knew all too well. "Man, Dean, we were raised like warriors."
They approached her Dad's treasured Impala, a sleek and slightly bruised classic passed down to him by his Father. Dean loved his Baby like it was his other child, not that Grace minded, she adored the car too. Over the past two years, the years since they found her alone in those woods, they had bounced across the country from motel to motel and the only consistent thing had been the Impala. So, if the Winchesters had a home, it was the four wheeled piece of cherished metal.
"So, what are you gonna do? You're just gonna live some normal, apple pie life? Is that it?" He turned back to his brother inquisitively.
"No. Not normal." Sam amended. "Safe."
"And that's why you ran away."
Dean looked away from Sam again to settle his gaze on his daughter who was telling him to be nicer with her eyes, so he sighed. By now, he had her expressions and their meanings down. "I was just going to college." Argued Sam. "It was Dad who said if I was gonna go I should stay gone. And that's what I'm doing."
"Yeah, well, Dad's in real trouble right now." Announced Dean and suddenly Grace found her battered boots more interesting. She couldn't find John Winchester, and for all they knew he was bleeding out in the middle of nowhere. She had the ability to find him, she knew she did, but her abilities flowed like a river and you can't control water. "If he's not already dead. I can feel it." Uncle Sam fell silent. "We can't do this by ourselves."
Sam, having faith in his brother's abilities, spoke up, breaking the silence. "Yes, you can."
Glancing between Grace and the ground, Dean then looked back up at Sam. "Yeah, well, I don't want to." He admitted awkwardly.
"We don't want to." Grace added with a small smile which spread to the corner of her Uncle's lips infectiously.
Sighing heavily, Sam remained silent and Gracie could tell he was thinking it over. Thinking about leaving Jess behind to help them find his Dad, even though the Winchester father/daughter duo could probably handle it themselves. But Sam was a Winchester too and apparently Winchesters stick together. "What was he hunting?" Sam finally gave in.
A smirk grew on Dean's lips as he opened the trunk of the Impala and then pulled up the spare tyre compartment to reveal the tools of his trade. Stacks of guns, knives and fake IDs lined the space, filling ever nook and cranny. Everything you could ever need to fight and kill the supernatural was right there, snugly hidden in the bottom of their car. Dean used one of his many guns to prop open the compartment as he dug through the messy hoard of weapons and equipment. Grace had once offered to tidy and organise it all whilst he was out hunting, but her Dad refused, because even though it was chaos, he knew exactly what went where.
"All right, let's see, where the hell did I put that thing?" He mumbled to himself as he sifted through the assortment.
"So," Sam began as curiosity took over, "when Dad left, why didn't you go with him?"
"I was working my own gig with Gracie." Informed Dean as he continued to rummage among his miscellaneous collection of hunting things. "This, uh, voodoo thing, down in New Orleans."
Sam looked at his brother with surprise and raised his eyebrow at the thought of what Dean had just said. "Dad let you go on a hunting trip by yourself? And with a seven year old?"
"I'm nine." Corrected Grace with a small glare at her Uncle.
Sam just shook his head as Dean spun around to look at his brother. "I'm twenty-six, dude. And I can look after my daughter." Smiling, Grace glanced up at her Uncle who sighed as her Dad continued, finally finding what he was searching for. "All right, here we go. So Dad was checking out this two-lane blacktop just outside of Jericho, California. About a month ago, this guy." Dean handed Sam one of the papers from his pile. "They found his car, but he vanished. Completely MIA."
"So maybe he was kidnapped." Sam suggested dismissively after taking a few seconds to read the sheet Dean had given him. He was looking for a reason, anything, for it not to be supernatural, so then he would have an excuse not to go.
"Yeah. Well, here's another one in April." Apprised Dean. Then one after another, he tossed down article after article as he recited. "Another one in December '04, '03, '98, '92. Ten of them over the past twenty years." Grace looked over at the copies of Jericho Herald, the ones she had helped her Dad find, and stared at them curiously. After taking the sheet from Sam's hand, Dean returned it to the pile before slotting them back into their folder. "All men, all the same five-mile stretch of road." He dug around in the trunk again before withdrawing a bag. "It started happening more and more, so Dad went to dig around. That was about three weeks ago. We hadn't heard from him since, which is bad enough." Grave watched as the eldest of the three present Winchesters withdrew a handheld tape recorder, showing it to his brother. "Then we got this voicemail yesterday."
As Dean pressed down on the button on the side of the device, John's voice came playing through. It was distorted and staticky but there was no denying that it was John Winchester.
"Dean... something big is starting to happen... I need to try and figure out what's going on. It may... Be careful, Dean. Look after Grace. We're all in danger now."
With another button press, John Winchester was gone. Grace frowned in concern, just like she had done the first time she heard it. She didn't understand what her Grandfather was saying but she knew that his words struck fear into her heart.
"You know, there's EVP on that." Sam pointed out after listening to his Father's last known message.
"Not bad, Sammy." Dean complimented, his face lined with his cheeky grin. "Kinda like riding a bike, isn't it?" Grace didn't even know how to ride a bike, they just never seemed to get around to teaching her. She could fire a shotgun with accuracy and ward of ghosts but she couldn't ride a bike. Another non-normal thing to add to her already towering pile. Sam shook his head at Dean's words before the latter continued. "All right. I slowed the message down. I ran it through a gold wave, took out the hiss, and this is what I got."
Then he pressed play again.
But this time, instead of the familiar voice of John Winchester, a woman's could be heard, whispering.
"I can never go home..."
The recording was stopped again. Grace found herself feeling sadness at the tone of the woman's voice, she heartbreak she could sense beneath it. Her Uncle mumbled the words to himself as her Dad put away the tape recorder, slammed the trunk shut and then leant against the now closed lid. "You know, in over two years I've never bothered you, not even when I adopted Grace. I never asked you for a thing."
At this, Gracie took her Uncle's hand and he looked down at her as she looked up at him. She knew they couldn't force him to come with them, but she wanted him to. After all, she had just met her Uncle and wanted to spend some time with him even if that time was spent looking for John. And unbeknownst to her, Sam was feeling the same. The college student sighed. "All right. I'll go. I'll help you find him." Grace gave him a bright smile. "But I have to get back first thing Monday. Just wait here."
Sam let go of his niece's hand as he turned to go back into his apartment, to pack some things he'll need for their trip and to say goodbye to Jess. He was close to the door when Dean called out. "What's first thing Monday?"
"I have this... I have an interview."
Her Dad responded nonchalantly. "What, a job interview? Skip it."
Sam shook his head. "It's a law school interview, and it's my whole future on a plate." He told them. It sounded wonderful and Grace was very happy for him so she smiled.
"Law school?" Echoed Dean as he smirked at his brother. By his side, Grace was rocking on the balls of her feet, getting rather excited for her Uncle.
Sam raised his eyebrow. "So we got a deal or not?" Dean didn't reply, so Gracie nodded her head in agreement. It sounded like a good deal where they would get the help they needed as long as Sam was home in time for something that will change his future.
Gracie gave her Dad a look causing Dean to furrow his eyebrows. "What?" It wasn't long after that that Sam Winchester exited the building, making his way back towards the Impala with bag in hand. He handed his older brother his bag which was then tossed into the trunk — that he had to reopen — before sticking his hands deep into his pockets and sighing heavily. "Ready, Sammy?"
"Ready." The brunette nodded.
Gracie grinned and added. "Ready."
Slamming the truck shut once again, Dean then strolled over to the driver's side door, opening it. "Well then, let's get this show on the road."
HOURS OF OPEN ROAD LATER, THE IMPALA PULLED OVER AT A GAS STATION TO REFUEL THE CAR AND DEAN'S STOMACH. Sam sat in the passenger seat with the door open, sifting through the car's large collection of tapes as he waited for his brother to return. Behind him, Grace was staring out of the window and into the woods, stuck in a daydream that looked so peaceful, Sam would have felt bad if he had bothered her. Music blared through the radio and Grace was slowly bobbing to the beat even if she wasn't aware she was doing it. One thing Grace Winchester had grown to love since she woke up was music and that was probably mostly her Dad's fault.
Ramblin' Man by the Allman Brothers continued to echo throughout the car and Sam wouldn't have been surprised if Dean could hear it inside the Gas station because of how loud it was playing. Speaking of, Dean emerged from inside the store, carrying an assortment of food in arms.
"Hey!" He called out, grabbing both Sam and Grace's attention. For the past few minutes she had allowed her mind to wander as she gazed at the nature around her, thinking about how peaceful it looked and how her life would be if it was that peaceful. But when you happen to be a part of a monster-hunting family, peace was out of the question. "You two want breakfast?"
"Yes please." Grace asked after her Uncle had politely declined. A wide smile spread across her lips as her Dad tossed her a packet of pretzels through the open window; they were her favourite. "Thanks, Dad!"
Sam glanced between Dean and the food bundled in his arms and inquired, raising a suspicious eyebrow. "So, how'd you pay for that stuff?" But it appeared he already knew the answer. "You and Dad still running credit card scams?"
"Yeah, well, hunting ain't exactly a pro ball career." Dean explained with a casual shrug as he removed the nozzle from the car and placed it back on the pump. "Besides, all we do is apply. It's not our fault they send us the cards." Well, there were worse ways to make money.
"Yeah?" Sassed Sam, swinging his legs back inside the car and closing the door behind them. "And what names did you write on the application this time?"
As Dean got into the driver's seat, he replied. "Uh, Burt Aframian." He placed down his food and drink before adding. "And his son Hector. Scored two cards out of that deal." After the number of times Grace had seen them pull off that scam, she was certain she could it by herself, not that her Dad would let her. Getting money this way wasn't something the young girl was thrilled about doing, because it felt wrong even though they were using the money to live and travel the country fighting monsters.
"That sounds about right." Sam commented with a scoff as he continued to flick through the Impala's collection of music. "I swear, man, you've gotta update cassette tape collection."
Both Father and Daughter wore the same confused frown. "Why?" They asked together.
"Well, for one, they're cassette tapes." Sam responded but Grace continued to frown. What were wrong with cassette tapes? "And two. Black Sabbath? Motorhead? Metallica?" Dean grabbed the Metallica tape from his brother's hands, almost protectively as if he was expecting Sam to suddenly toss them all out of the window. "It's the greatest hits of mullet rock."
"Well, house rules, Sammy." He smirked triumphantly as he popped the tape into the player. "Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole." Dean glanced at Gracie through the rear-view mirror. "And backseat usually agrees with the driver so shotgun's outvoted." Grace punched the air in victory causing the brothers to laugh softly.
Dean dropped the empty tape case back into the box as he turned on the ignition and the car started again.
"You know, Sammy is a chubby twelve-year-old." He told Dean as Back in Black began to play, reverberating through the vehicle. "It's Sam, okay?"
Dean grinned, turning up the music as both him and his daughter started to move freely with the beat. He turned to his brother teasingly. "Sorry, I can't hear you. The music's too loud!" Then he pulled the Impala out of the gas station and the Winchester trio were on the road once again.
First chapter!!!
First of all, I love Grace so much. She's so sweet and innocent, especially in the beginning (that will change *insert evil laugh*). Grace's powers are definitely going to be interesting to work with. And poor Grace, she sensed something when she touched Jess's hand. She doesn't know what will happen, but she can tell it's something.
I love Dean and Grace and their father/daughter relationship. They are so cute. And Gracie already supporting her Uncle's life decisions >>>. They've already bonded. I can't wait to develop them.
But for now, goodbye and thank you for reading!!!
Sincerely Rosie aka Winter326