alwaysenduphere (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
alwaysenduphere) wrote2008-10-13 09:41 pm
alwaysenduphere) wrote2008-10-13 09:41 pm
Entry tags:
Fic: Once Again
Title: Once Again
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Kat (from 1.10 Asylum), OCs
Word count:1,219
Summary: She never wanted her children to experience the same things she went through as a teenager, but now she must save them.
A/n: written for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
krazykipper for the Fall Fandom Free-For-All. My first foray into the SPN verse. More notes at the end.
The shotgun feels heavy in her hand, but she’s glad she’s never thrown away her daddy’s dual barrel. For awhile she’d toyed with getting rid of it so the kids wouldn’t accidentally find it, but now she was glad she’d listened to her inner voice and kept it. The same gun she had been so afraid would hurt her kids was now going to save them. At least, she hoped. If anything happened to Brett or Libby, the shotgun wouldn’t be enough.
The dried cornstalks in the field slice into her thighs. She felt like she’d been running through them for hours now, trying to reach the old house she’d forbidden her children to explore. She hadn’t even thought to change out of her pajamas once she discovered her kids weren’t in their beds. She just hit the ground running.
The cornfield thins as the house comes into view, tall and foreboding. Five of the windows appear to have been boarded up at one point, but even the wood as aged, as holes into darkness show. There's a giant hole in the center of the front porch Kat can see the foundation through. She carefully steps over it.
Pausing outside the door to catch her breath, she glances down at her legs. Her flannel pajamas hang in shreds, little drops of red patterned all over them.
She’d heard her children discussing the house and forbid them from going. Somehow, she thought that’d work.
“I swear, Libby, it’ll be fun. If it’s not, I won’t barge into your room for a month, promise.”
“Kyle’s going to get you in serious trouble one day. You know that right?”
She places a hand on the weathered old front door. It’s open, creaks when she brushes it open. Inside is dark and dusty, and it takes her eyes a moment to adjust.
Stop. Breathe.
All she has is a moment, though, and then a scream comes from the upstairs, and she charges. It’s been awhile since she’s held a shotgun in her hands, but it’s a part of her now, an extension of her hand. When she reaches the second-to-last stair from the top, she sees Libby, standing paralyzed in the hallway, barely off the stairs. Her eyes are fixed to her brother, who stands in the doorway of the nearest room. The wallpaper’s peeling over his head, a flower pattern long since faded away.
My children are in danger. It’s a mantra through her head, the only thing keeping her from being just as frozen in place as her daughter. “Libby!”
The girl’s head jerks in Kat’s direction. Her eyes widen. “I’m sorry. I knew he was set on coming. I came to make sure he didn’t get in trouble…”
Kat shakes her head, puts a finger to her lips. Her attention flips back to her younger child’s, his wide eyes glazed over, focused on everything and nothing at the same time. She calls his name, but he doesn’t respond. Climbing the last stair to the second floor, Kat carefully steps to where Libby stands. “I can’t move, Mom. We got here, and now…I can’t move!” She’s frantic again, and it’s taking Kat all she has not to touch her, comfort her. Or become just as frantic. “Libby!” she whispers harshly. “Focus.”
Libby nods. “Brett wanted to come. Kyle told him a story at school about how weird things happened in this house, doors closing, lights flickering, things that couldn’t possibly happen but do. I didn’t want to come, but I didn’t want him to get in trouble. So much for that, right?” A choked laugh escaped her.
“It’s okay. You did what you could. What is it?”
“It’s…I don’t know. A man, I guess. Or it was. I only saw him for an instant. Brett was the one who got the good look.”
“Why can’t you move?”
Libby’s voice rises with each word. “If you think I knew the answer, would I still be here?!”
Kat nods. “Okay. Do you know where it went?” Libby nods toward the room directly in front of them, the room Brett is standing directly in front of. “Okay. The moment you can move, the MOMENT, Elizabeth, you take your brother outside as fast as you can, okay? Don't look back, no matter what you hear in here.”
“Okay,” Libby whispers.
The floorboards creak as Kat walks over them. Brett’s still frozen in place. She gets close, tries to draw his attention, waves her hand in his face. Nothing. “Damnit, Brett.” Taking a breath, she walks past him into the room.
“Let my children go. We’re gonna go, and we’re gonna walk out of here and leave you alone, ok?” She’s stepping slowly now, each footfall deliberate on the groaning floor. The shotgun’s up, shaking slightly within her two hands. Slowly, “Let. Them. Go.”
A floorboard behind her groans, and she turns, just a moment too late. The face of a man, pale, translucent, flickers in front of her and she's frozen in place. The gun drops from her hands. She can see the man trying to say something, but the only thing coming out of his mouth is silence. He reaches for her, eyes burning. She takes a deep breath, hopes her kids are safe.
“Mom!” Libby shouts, standing in the doorway.
“Damnit, Libby, I told you to get Brett out of here.”
Libby snatches the shotgun off the floor, aims it at the figure. “I took him outside, Mom, just like I said I would. Now it’s your turn.” Fires. The ghost disappears as the pellets hit him.
Kat thinks to shout “run” again, but Libby’s already out the door before the words are out of her mouth. Kat follows suit once she can move.
Once outside, Kat wagers a glance back at the house. She can see the man standing in the upstairs window, glaring. She shivers, turns to Brett and Libby. “Lets get the hell out of here, okay?”
Libby nods, as does Brett, his face not as pale but his eyes still just as wide.
“Mom?”
“Brett, don’t worry about it. What’s done is done. I’m just glad you’re safe.” She grabs a shoulder and pulls him close to him. A moment later, she reaches for Libby and pulls her close too.
Libby watches her mother closely. “What, Lib?”
“It’s just…”
“Yeah?”
“What the hell was in that gun? And where did the gun come from, for that matter?”
Kat chuckles. “I wasn’t born yesterday, you know. I’ve seen a few things I’ll never forget, learned a few things here and there. To protect you, to protect myself. I didn’t think I’d ever have to use it, though. I wished you’d never seen all that. And besides, I came here to rescue you and you’re the one who ends up saving me in the end. Thanks for that, by the way.”
Libby shrugs, rubbing her chest. “It hurts…But seriously, Bullets, on a ghost?”
Kat chuckles to herself. “Rock salt, actually. Lesson learned long ago. Seen things, remember? Can we go now? Actually, you know what, I don't know why I'm asking. We’re going. And you’re both grounded. And for God’s sakes, when someone says a place is haunted, don’t go in.”
She snatches the shotgun from her daughter’s hands and shoves her children toward the cornfield. The ghost still stands in the window.
End notes: This was a hell of a lot harder to write than I thought it would be. For starters, I had the whole thing basically written and then accidentally saved over it with another story, so I had to start from scratch. But itworked out okay, because I like this version better than the last. It's still not that great, though. After re-watching the episode, I discovered we didn't really learn all that much about Kat, so I had my hands full creating a future Kat, and her children, pesky little things. I was imagining Brett to be around 13 and Libby around 16, if that helps any.
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Kat (from 1.10 Asylum), OCs
Word count:1,219
Summary: She never wanted her children to experience the same things she went through as a teenager, but now she must save them.
A/n: written for
krazykipper for the Fall Fandom Free-For-All. My first foray into the SPN verse. More notes at the end.The shotgun feels heavy in her hand, but she’s glad she’s never thrown away her daddy’s dual barrel. For awhile she’d toyed with getting rid of it so the kids wouldn’t accidentally find it, but now she was glad she’d listened to her inner voice and kept it. The same gun she had been so afraid would hurt her kids was now going to save them. At least, she hoped. If anything happened to Brett or Libby, the shotgun wouldn’t be enough.
The dried cornstalks in the field slice into her thighs. She felt like she’d been running through them for hours now, trying to reach the old house she’d forbidden her children to explore. She hadn’t even thought to change out of her pajamas once she discovered her kids weren’t in their beds. She just hit the ground running.
The cornfield thins as the house comes into view, tall and foreboding. Five of the windows appear to have been boarded up at one point, but even the wood as aged, as holes into darkness show. There's a giant hole in the center of the front porch Kat can see the foundation through. She carefully steps over it.
Pausing outside the door to catch her breath, she glances down at her legs. Her flannel pajamas hang in shreds, little drops of red patterned all over them.
She’d heard her children discussing the house and forbid them from going. Somehow, she thought that’d work.
“I swear, Libby, it’ll be fun. If it’s not, I won’t barge into your room for a month, promise.”
“Kyle’s going to get you in serious trouble one day. You know that right?”
She places a hand on the weathered old front door. It’s open, creaks when she brushes it open. Inside is dark and dusty, and it takes her eyes a moment to adjust.
Stop. Breathe.
All she has is a moment, though, and then a scream comes from the upstairs, and she charges. It’s been awhile since she’s held a shotgun in her hands, but it’s a part of her now, an extension of her hand. When she reaches the second-to-last stair from the top, she sees Libby, standing paralyzed in the hallway, barely off the stairs. Her eyes are fixed to her brother, who stands in the doorway of the nearest room. The wallpaper’s peeling over his head, a flower pattern long since faded away.
My children are in danger. It’s a mantra through her head, the only thing keeping her from being just as frozen in place as her daughter. “Libby!”
The girl’s head jerks in Kat’s direction. Her eyes widen. “I’m sorry. I knew he was set on coming. I came to make sure he didn’t get in trouble…”
Kat shakes her head, puts a finger to her lips. Her attention flips back to her younger child’s, his wide eyes glazed over, focused on everything and nothing at the same time. She calls his name, but he doesn’t respond. Climbing the last stair to the second floor, Kat carefully steps to where Libby stands. “I can’t move, Mom. We got here, and now…I can’t move!” She’s frantic again, and it’s taking Kat all she has not to touch her, comfort her. Or become just as frantic. “Libby!” she whispers harshly. “Focus.”
Libby nods. “Brett wanted to come. Kyle told him a story at school about how weird things happened in this house, doors closing, lights flickering, things that couldn’t possibly happen but do. I didn’t want to come, but I didn’t want him to get in trouble. So much for that, right?” A choked laugh escaped her.
“It’s okay. You did what you could. What is it?”
“It’s…I don’t know. A man, I guess. Or it was. I only saw him for an instant. Brett was the one who got the good look.”
“Why can’t you move?”
Libby’s voice rises with each word. “If you think I knew the answer, would I still be here?!”
Kat nods. “Okay. Do you know where it went?” Libby nods toward the room directly in front of them, the room Brett is standing directly in front of. “Okay. The moment you can move, the MOMENT, Elizabeth, you take your brother outside as fast as you can, okay? Don't look back, no matter what you hear in here.”
“Okay,” Libby whispers.
The floorboards creak as Kat walks over them. Brett’s still frozen in place. She gets close, tries to draw his attention, waves her hand in his face. Nothing. “Damnit, Brett.” Taking a breath, she walks past him into the room.
“Let my children go. We’re gonna go, and we’re gonna walk out of here and leave you alone, ok?” She’s stepping slowly now, each footfall deliberate on the groaning floor. The shotgun’s up, shaking slightly within her two hands. Slowly, “Let. Them. Go.”
A floorboard behind her groans, and she turns, just a moment too late. The face of a man, pale, translucent, flickers in front of her and she's frozen in place. The gun drops from her hands. She can see the man trying to say something, but the only thing coming out of his mouth is silence. He reaches for her, eyes burning. She takes a deep breath, hopes her kids are safe.
“Mom!” Libby shouts, standing in the doorway.
“Damnit, Libby, I told you to get Brett out of here.”
Libby snatches the shotgun off the floor, aims it at the figure. “I took him outside, Mom, just like I said I would. Now it’s your turn.” Fires. The ghost disappears as the pellets hit him.
Kat thinks to shout “run” again, but Libby’s already out the door before the words are out of her mouth. Kat follows suit once she can move.
Once outside, Kat wagers a glance back at the house. She can see the man standing in the upstairs window, glaring. She shivers, turns to Brett and Libby. “Lets get the hell out of here, okay?”
Libby nods, as does Brett, his face not as pale but his eyes still just as wide.
“Mom?”
“Brett, don’t worry about it. What’s done is done. I’m just glad you’re safe.” She grabs a shoulder and pulls him close to him. A moment later, she reaches for Libby and pulls her close too.
Libby watches her mother closely. “What, Lib?”
“It’s just…”
“Yeah?”
“What the hell was in that gun? And where did the gun come from, for that matter?”
Kat chuckles. “I wasn’t born yesterday, you know. I’ve seen a few things I’ll never forget, learned a few things here and there. To protect you, to protect myself. I didn’t think I’d ever have to use it, though. I wished you’d never seen all that. And besides, I came here to rescue you and you’re the one who ends up saving me in the end. Thanks for that, by the way.”
Libby shrugs, rubbing her chest. “It hurts…But seriously, Bullets, on a ghost?”
Kat chuckles to herself. “Rock salt, actually. Lesson learned long ago. Seen things, remember? Can we go now? Actually, you know what, I don't know why I'm asking. We’re going. And you’re both grounded. And for God’s sakes, when someone says a place is haunted, don’t go in.”
She snatches the shotgun from her daughter’s hands and shoves her children toward the cornfield. The ghost still stands in the window.
End notes: This was a hell of a lot harder to write than I thought it would be. For starters, I had the whole thing basically written and then accidentally saved over it with another story, so I had to start from scratch. But itworked out okay, because I like this version better than the last. It's still not that great, though. After re-watching the episode, I discovered we didn't really learn all that much about Kat, so I had my hands full creating a future Kat, and her children, pesky little things. I was imagining Brett to be around 13 and Libby around 16, if that helps any.
no subject
I like the idea of Kat basically having a normal life but she's still not forgotten what happened in the Asylum and that ultimately helped her children out.
Thank you again! *hugs*
no subject
Yeah, she didn't strike me as the type of person to go off hunting because of one experience, but I imagined she'd probably do a little research just in case it'd come in handy sometime, which...I made it happen. :P
Glad you liked it. :)