I don't think this is out of character of Sam (at least of what we know from the last episode of season 5 and the first episode of season 6). As the season goes on, I hope there was this part of Sam and then something changed - maybe a slip back into his behavior in the past few seasons of doing what is necessary to become a better hunter - instead of him just being a callous man who attaches to strangers instead of reaching out to all he has left in his family.

great job on this one too!

Hey hon

you got Sam just right, it was a beautiful little ficlit a perfect scene with Sam and Bobby I could see it happening as I read it.

well done

hugs Shelley

I think your best point was this:

"Bobby had listened to the impassioned plea and wondered who Sam had been trying to convince, Bobby or himself, but as he stared at the young man hovering on the periphery of his porch tonight, there was no doubt about it."

No question that Sam wants what's best for Dean, and at the time, he felt that he needed Dean to stay where he was and try and get a chance at life that he never had. You hit it right on the head.

While I think the opener was awful, I don't want to hear about how awful it is that Sam didn't tell Dean he was alive. There is a faction of this fandom that will never be happy and writing to try and please them is equivalent to banging your head against the wall. Sam will always be wrong, so write because YOU want to and those of us that love your stories!

:D

Caroline

Ah, man, this just gets to me. Interesting that you made it more Bobby's idea than Sam's.

Great fic, i hope we get to see or hear about what happened at this time on the show, i think it would go pretty much how you wrote it.

I think you captured the pre-flavor of 6.1 quite well. Bobby and Sam did both feel Dean needed a break and really, I can't blame them.

I think he needed time to emotionally repair himself, and Lisa and Ben were that for him. It also gave Dean focus and a place to channel all that first-child caretaker instinct without it being life and death.

And while our old Sam maybe wouldn't have made that choice, the Sam that returned from hell was (and IS) definitely not operating at full impulse power. In fact, emotionally shutdown would be an understatement.

Nicely captured here in those early, first days when confusion and indecision would have warred with him and this decision until he could gain some kind of footing.

Loved it.

I'm torn about the whole keeping this from Dean thing. It aggravates me that they wouldn't let Dean make his own decision about it, but I see their side of it, too.

It couldn't have been an easy decision for Bobby at all.

I think you handled this very well. :)

Aww, I really liked it! I think you did a great job on this! :D

Ohhh my, this is perfect-amundo!

I love this line: wondered who Sam had been trying to convince, Bobby or himself.

For sure this would be hard on Sam, and he would question himself. I hope Dean can come to realize that, sooner than later.

Wonderful tag. So happy to see you posted. Been missing you!

Sunshine,

Karen

PS: Sam's new ride - sucks. LOL.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!

I can not tell you how much I needed this after watching the season opener last night. So many hints in the show of a wrecked & shattered post caged Sammy yet all we get on screen is something a kin to 'Mystery Spot' perfect hunter Sam.

I was so afraid the show was gonna to this route - Sam not telling Dean he was back - & I knew that decision was gonna break me. *sigh*. I really don't want to go back to my boys being broken & separated (not after feeling all redeemed & all that brotherly love from Swan Song). I will have to give the show a few more eps to see where they are gonna try to take it but at the moment I feel utterly disappointed with the writers.

I would love to give you a big hug for writing this fic & capturing some of the emotion & grief Sam & Bobby both had to have felt making this decision. This fic is cannon as far as I'm concerned. Thank you.

Please feel free to make it a multi-chapter fic. I would also love to see a scene of Sam breaking down somewhere alone post ep 1 - regarding his decisions not to tell Dean he was back, not to share his trauma in the pit with Dean, & even why he made the comment to Dean that he wouldn't have tried to save Dean's neighbors & even going so far as to imply that he thought he never would have made that kind of decision (I mean where the heck did that come from Sam was always the first to try to save the impossible in the past.)

Sorry for the long post. I just really need some good fanfiction to fix the empty places this season's premiere left me with.

As always you rock beyond belief. Thanks for sharing another excellent fic! I really needed it.

I do like this- I think you did a wonderful job with it. I could see it playing out. :)

While I'm glad for the attempt to help salvage the season opener, I still can't get on board with the new direction the show is going. I just cannot believe that Sam would leave Dean in the dark for a year after all he went through when Dean went to hell. How could Sam think that Dean was living the apple pie life knowing what hell was like and that Sam was locked in there with Lucifer and Michael. He had to know Dean was being eaten away by it, despite the facade.

Further, what the heck was the story about in general. Random Djinn's showing up at Dean's? No real back story, just coincidence? And all kinds of relations, to boot? Yeah, they've got a long way to go in my book. I'll keep watching, because I almost always like Sera Gamble's stories, so I'm hoping she pulls out a better reason down the road to explain why Sam has done this. Hopefully the fans will help her recognize some of her shortcomings...

well written, but makes no sense. DOes Bobby also remember drinking himself into a stupor when Dean was in Hell, and Sam sleeping with a demon and drinking demon blood in his own grief? I understand Sam being messed up - but seriously Bobby should know better.

this is brilliant!