Disclaimer: Neither the boys nor anything related to Supernatural belongs to me. I'm just having some fun with the boys, playing around with Eric Kripke's sandbox.

TREASURES BEYOND MEASURE

By: Vanessa Sgroi

Sammy Winchester stared up in wonderment at the shiny silver balloon bobbing to and fro from the long blue ribbon tied to his wrist. The balloon had a picture of a smiling puppy in a silly hat on it. Sunlight glinted off its mirror-like surface, creating a sparkly rainbow dance around the balloon as it swayed.

"Deanie, thank you for my b'loon," Sammy's wide hazel eyes flicked to his older brother before returning to the circle of shiny silver. "It's so bootiful." A wide, happy grin decorated Sam's face. Delight brightened the often-somber countenance of the four-year-old.

Dean snorted as his kid brother's description but said, "Glad you like it, little dude. C'mon, let's go." Dean tugged at Sam's hand to get him to keep moving forward, toward the motel. They'd stopped a half dozen times already while Sammy admired his newest possession. At this rate, they'd never get back to the motel which was still three blocks away. A minute or so later, Sam stumbled over a weed-filled crack in the sidewalk and was saved from a fall by Dean's tight grip.

"Geez, Sammy, quit looking at the balloon and watch where you're goin'!"

"But it's so pretty, I don' wanna stop."

"Well, stop until we get to the motel room, okay? Then you can look at it all you want once we're inside."

Sam offered a heartfelt sigh. "O-kay." He concentrated on walking; only occasionally stealing glances at his circular silver dirigible.

The young duo reached the motel shortly thereafter, and Dean let go of Sam's hand to reach for the key in his pocket, trotting forward a few feet to open the door. Before he could fully turn the key, however, a sharp gasp echoed behind him, and he whipped around, as always expecting the worst.

"Dee! My…my…b'loon!" Sam yelled. The ribbon had slipped off Sam's tiny wrist and the helium-filled balloon was making a break for the wide expanse of sky above.

Dean made a valiant lunge for it, but it was too late. The foil orb bounced and swirled in the breeze, rising ever higher into the final frontier. The young boy watched its ascent with regret, not for the hard-earned dollar he'd just plunked down for it but for the sorrow its loss brought to Sam. The kid had so little to treasure. This one little thing was supposed to be special.

"My b'loon! My b'loon!" Sam wailed. The look of absolute joy on Sam's face was quickly replaced with one of utter devastation, and Sam's eyes filled with tears as he watched the beloved object float away. "I lost my b'loon." His lower lip quivered.

Dean knelt in front of his brother, pitted concrete digging into his denim-covered knees. "Awww, don't cry, Sammy. It's my fault; I didn't tie the ribbon tight enough, I guess. I'm sorry."

Sam rubbed at his brimming eyes with knotted fists and sniffled loudly, tiny trails of slick snot creeping from both nostrils and down his upper lip, persistent remnants of a recent cold. "Why did my b'loon go away?" He sighed miserably as he squinted upward.

Dean pulled the four-year-old into a hug. "You know, maybe the…uh…the angels…thought it was pretty too…and they decided they needed something pretty to look at." Dean cringed at the lameness of his statement but was desperate to make his little brother somehow feel better.

"But why couldn't they just get one of their own?" A wee touch of petulance laced Sam's voice. "You gave me that one."

"I guess they thought yours was the 'bootifulest'."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Really."

Sam was quiet for a minute as Dean stood and turned toward the door. A swift-moving contemplative expression flickered across his face. He tugged at the bottom of Dean's t-shirt. "Hey, Deanie," Sammy's breath hitched slightly.

"Yeah, Sammy?"

"Ummm…you think maybe…maybe…it was Mommy?" Sam paused. "That Mommy needed something bootiful to look at so she wanted my b'loon?"

Dean's throat closed up as it usually did at the mention of his mother, and he swallowed hard against the constriction. "Yeah, maybe that's it, kiddo. You picked just the right balloon and she needed it."

Sam took a final swipe at his wet cheeks. "Then it's okay that I don't have it anymore."

Dean ruffled Sam's unruly dark hair. "Hey, let's go inside and eat this cupcake!"

"Okay! Choc-late, right?"

"Yep, chocolate," assured the older boy, "with green frosting—just like you wanted it."

"And sprinkles, right?"

"You got it. I asked for double!"

"Yay! Can I have some milk too?"

"Yeah, but only a little—we're almost out. Hey, while we eat, we can watch the old Godzilla movie on TV."

"No, Deanie, no G'zilla. He's too scary."

"Scary?! Boy, you are such a baby!"

"I am not!"

"Keep tellin' yourself that, squirt!"

FIN