Title: Puppy Love

Author: Moonfairyhime

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I don't own the lovely Winchester boys.

Characters: Sam, John, Dean, the Hell Puppies, two OCs (demons)

Summary: "I didn't realize I was Naming them, Dean." Although the comment was directed to Dean, John could not ignore the power or the capital letter Sam used in the word "naming".

Feedback: Please and thank you.

Author's Notes: Titled is borrowed from the song by Paul Anka. So, I once got a comment asking how John would react to Sam getting the hell hounds. This is that fic – it's basically an AU of an AU. It's also a little more serious than some of the other pieces I've written for this 'verse, as well as being a longer piece. Sam is 14 in this fic and Dean is 18. This is unbeta'ed, so all mistakes are mine.

"Dean, where's your brother?" John asked, getting back from his job as a mechanic. He had taken a day job when he and the boys moved to Farley, Iowa for the month. Although Dean was done with high school, Sam wasn't. John expected Dean to know where Sam was after school, because Dean always knew where his brother was. It was quarter to four – normally Sam would have been home fifteen minutes ago.

"I don't know. He was supposed to come straight home after school," the eighteen year old looked worried and was putting on his leather coat.

John grabbed his keys. "Let's go find him. You go on foot; I'll drive to the school and see if he left yet."

Sam walked home as quickly as he could. He knew he was late and that Dean was probably pacing by the front door of the house they were renting this month. It wasn't his fault – his gym teacher wanted to ask him—again—if he would be willing to joining the track team. Sam wasn't sure how to explain to the teacher that there was no sense in joining since he'd be gone by the end of the month, if not sooner. He heard a twig snap behind him and he quickly turned around. Sam exhaled when he realized there was no one behind him, shaking his head at himself and his jumpiness. He turned around and managed not to jump when he saw two people in front of him. Both the woman and the man appeared to be in their late twenties and when they realized they had Sam's attention, they both smiled at him. However, it was the man who spoke to Sam. "Hey, Sammy."

Sam narrowed his eyes, wishing that he hadn't ignored his father when he told Sam to take a knife to school with him. "Who are you?"

The woman smiled and took a step towards Sam. Although the smile on her face was meant to be reassuring, Sam was unsettled by its unnaturalness. "Oh, baby. We're your real parents. We've come to take you home with us."

Sam shook his head, taking a step back. "I don't think so. Christo!"

The man's eyes shifted from blue to black as he flinched. "Boy, I do think so."

Sam took a step back, but the woman was behind him and she grabbed his arms. "Sorry, sweetheart. You're coming with us. We're going to be a family again. Baby, it's going to be us and the pups."

As Sam fought her hold, he saw his brother start down the block on the opposite side of the street. He wasn't sure if his brother could hear him or not, but he had to try and get his attention. "Dean! DEAN! HELP!"

The man glared at the woman when he saw Dean realize that something was happening and his baby brother was in the middle of it. He quickly knocked Sam out with a strong punch. "Dammit, Viola, couldn't you keep him quiet?!"

"Oh, do shut up, Rotherham. Go get the van."

"SAMMY! Let him go, you bastards!" Dean yelled as he came closer to them.

Viola turned to Dean and sneered as she held him in place with her telekinesis, cradling Sam in her arms. "Listen to me, boy. Your brother is ours. He's always been ours. Now you're going to let us take him and that's that."

Dean glared at her, fighting her hold. "Let my brother go, bitch!"

"I told you, boy. He's not yours. He's ours." A black van pulled up next to them and Viola put Sam into the backseat before getting in on the passenger side. "Ta-ta now."

Dean watched as the van barreled down the street. He felt the telekinetic hold break at the same time he heard the Impala, but the van was now out of sight and Dean didn't know where the demons had taken his brother. His dad was coming back and Dean wasn't quite sure how to explain what just happened.

"Are you sure he's the one?" Rotherham didn't sound too sure as he looked into the rearview mirror at the unconscious fourteen year old. Sam looked more like a four year old when asleep and while it was cute to John and Dean (not that they would never admit it), he didn't look very impressive to a demon.

Viola shrugged. "Azazel said that the youngest Winchester boy was the one he marked and had great faith in. Even you can't deny that you there's something – some power – that he will grow into one day. I can feel it buzzing underneath his skin. It has to be him – the prophesies say so. We'll find out for sure when we get him back to the house and introduce him to the puppies."

"True. If he isn't the Anti-Christ, the pups will just eat him."

When Sam woke up, he was in a room by himself. He was laying on a bed that was in the middle of the room – there were no windows or anything else in the room for him to use to escape. He gingerly sat up, rubbing his head. God, he had such a headache. He heard the door open and he turned and glared at it. Viola walked into the room, carrying a large basket with her. She sat down on the bed next to Sam, placing the basket at her feet. "Hey, baby. Glad to see you're up and okay."

Sam glared at her, sliding as far away from her as possible. "Stop calling me that! I'm Sam!"

Viola reached a hand out to brush Sam's bangs out of his face, but Sam flinched away from her. She looked hurt. "Sam, I would never hurt you. You're everything I ever hoped you'd be. But there's one more test you have to pass." Viola opened the basket and pulled out three squirming puppies. All three were black with red glowing eyes. One of the pups sneezed and fire erupted from his nose. In shock, the pup fell down on his butt. He then rubbed his nose with his paw before he and his siblings turned to Viola. They sniffed Viola, unconcerned by her. However, the smallest of them caught Sam's scent and she yipped happily and stumbled over to him. She started licking his face and the other two came over and demanded Sam's attention as well. Sam couldn't help but laugh as he petted the trio of puppies. Viola grinned widely, a look of adoration appearing in her black eyes. "Oh, you are the one! You will do such magnificent things!"

"What do you mean? What one do you keep talking about?" Sam pushed the puppies off him, staring at Viola.

"Oh, sweetheart. It's nothing you have to worry about right now. Just know that you, my dear, will do such wonderful things for us!"

"I'll never do anything for you!"

"Darling, never say never. I have to go now and spread the word that you have been found. I'm going to leave these hell puppies with you. They like you and you seem to like them."

Sam looked startled and stared at the puppies, all of whom were eagerly wagering their tails. "Hell puppy?"

Viola stood up and walked to the door. "Of course, Sammy. You didn't think hell hounds just spring into existence as a full-grown dog, did you? Of course not. They start off as puppies. These are hell puppies and they're yours. They'll protect you forever, darling. They'll keep you safe when Rotherham or I am unavailable. Now, rest, Sam. I know you have a headache from earlier. We'll bring you some supper in a little while."

Viola had sent Rotherham out for food for the child. Rotherham didn't understand what the human child would eat, but Viola had pushed him out the door and told him that pizza would suffice for Sam.

Of course, Viola had also said that Sam was the child they had been searching for, but Rotherham didn't believe it. To borrow a human cliché, he sneered to himself, he wouldn't believe it until he saw undeniable proof with his own eyes.

As Rotherham walked out of the restaurant, pizza in hand, he swore to himself as he saw a familiar black Impala at the gas station across the street. As he watched John and Dean talk to the gas station clerk, Rotherham wasn't sure how the Winchesters found Sam so quickly, but he would be damned (again) to let them take the child back so quickly or so easily.

Sam regarded the hell puppies, all of whom looked back at him, obviously wanting his attention. It really wasn't their fault that they were different from other dogs. They didn't seem to act like the hell hounds and black dogs that Sam had run across in hunts with his family. In a way, Sam thought sadly, they reminded Sam of himself. Just looking for a little understanding and a little love. Later, Sam would pinpoint this moment as the moment he fell in love with the hell puppies.

Sam looked at the biggest of the puppies and petted him. "Hello there, dog. You seem to be trapped here just like me." The dog licked Sam's cheek. Sam, who had been expecting to smell and feel hellfire and brimstone, was pleasantly surprised when the dog smelled and felt like a real, normal puppy. Sam smiled warmly at the puppy, who eagerly waged his tail. The other two pups clamored on top of Sam, demanding his attention. "I guess you all need names." Sam paused, thinking about some of the books he has been reading lately. He pointed to the only female dog. "How about Agnes Nutter for you?"

Agnes Nutter yipped happily in response and Sam considered the matter settled. He then turned to the smaller of the male dogs. "…Do you like Adam?"

Adam seemed to ponder the matter for a moment before yipping in response. Sam smiled at him before turning to the largest of the dogs. "I think I'll call you Terry."

The hell puppy snorted at him, literally shaking his head no. "Okay then. How about James?"

Another snort.

"…Fred?"

A snort followed by a rolling of the eyes. Sam wondered if this was how his dad felt when he was talking to Sam. "George?"

A tilt of the head that clearly said "Dude. Try again."

"Fluffy?" Sam asked, snidely.

The dog yawned, carefully showing all of his puppy teeth.

Sam thought back to the conversation he had with the biggest puppy. "You have got to be kidding me. You want to be called Dog?"

Dog yipped at Sam and Sam smiled at him, a little amazed by Dog, but before he could say anything else, the door to his room opened and Rotherham walked in.

"It's time to go." When Sam didn't get up fast enough, Rotherham went to grab his arm to force him up. All three hell puppies barred their teeth at the man and growled. Rotherham quickly aborted his attempt to touch Sam. Although hell puppies are nowhere near as fierce or lethal as hell hounds, they are still something that shouldn't be messed with. Sharp puppy teeth combined with no discipline could shred the skin and muscle of the arm of a host's body in five seconds flat.

Sam looked confused, but silenced all three puppies with a glance. A look of triumph flashed through Rotherham's eyes – Sam was the one who the prophecies were about. His easy command of the hell puppies proved it to be so. "We have to go. Your brother and father are only a few blocks away. I don't know how they found us so quickly. Viola hasn't had enough time to let anyone know that you've been found, so we have to get your out of here and to somewhere safe. You're ours now."

Rotherham grabbed Sam's arm successfully this time and began to drag him from the room, the hell puppies crowding around Sam's feet. Sam, trying desperately to remember the full Latin exorcism, did the only thing he could think of. He shouted Christo and ran for it the second Rotherham was stunned by the name of God. The hell puppies quickly scampered after their new master, eager for an adventure with him.

It was because of Bobby that John and Dean even had a vague idea of where to find Sam. Bobby had heard reports of demonic activity two towns over from where the Winchesters were staying. A quick talk to a gas station attendant confirmed that people who matched the demon's description were living in a house on the outskirts of town. It had to be where Sam was – John couldn't even begin to imagine what he would do if his baby boy wasn't there. John was afraid of what Dean would do if they didn't find Sam soon. His oldest boy was kicking himself for not being able to save Sam when the demons nabbed him. Although John didn't blame him – he himself had been at the wrong end of a demon's telekinesis and knew how hard it was to break free from the feeling of cold, dark evil holding you in place – that didn't stop Dean for blaming himself.

The fear of what could be happening to Sam right now caused John to push ever hard on the gas pedal. He needed to get to his youngest. He didn't know what the demons wanted with Sam, but John knew it was nothing good.

When Dean and John pulled up to t abandoned house on the outskirts of town, the last thing they expected was to see Sam come bursting out of the house with three puppies on his heels. When he saw his father and brother, the teenager all but flew into his big brother's arms. "DEAN!"

Dean eagerly caught his younger brother. "I gotcha, Sammy. You're okay now."

John was about to ask what was going on, but two demons appeared at the door of the house his son had just vacated. Dean pushed Sam behind him while the three pups growled at the demons. John cocked the shotgun in his hands. "You! What do you want with my son?!"

The woman cackled. "Your son, John? I don't think so. He will be ours. You may keep him for now, but he will be ours in the end."

John opened his mouth to begin an exorcism, but the demons vacated their hosts in plumes of black smoke. John walked up to the hosts and shook his head – both where dead. He would have to salt and burn the bodies later. He turned his attention back to his boys. Dean had finally released Sam and was looking at him and the three puppies sitting by his feet.

"Who are your friends, Sammy?" Dean was trying to appear charming and disarming because the one puppy definitely seemed ready to rip him to shreds with the slightest signal from Sam. Dean was a little unnerved by the red, glowing eyes staring at him.

"That's Adam, Agnes Nutter, and Dog." Sam said, as he pointed to each of the puppies as he named them. "They're my hell puppies."

John managed to stop himself from snorting in surprise and checking to see if his son was possessed. "Your hell puppies?!"

Sam looked defiantly at his father. "They'll grow into hell hounds, but I promise you that they won't cause any trouble, Dad! They listen to me really well."

Dean decided to ignore the obvious comment and go with a big brother reply. "Dog. Really, Sammy. That's a dumbass name." Dean didn't look impressed at all with Sam's choice in names for any of the hell puppies. The one called Dog growled at him and Dean smiled at him and took a step back.

"I didn't realize I was Naming him when I called him that, Dean." Although the comment was directed to Dean, John could not ignore the power or the capital letter Sam used in the word "naming". There was a look in Sam's eyes that John had never seen before and never wanted to see again. It was the look of someone who had survived and thrived for millennia. The look of an old soul who had seen much death and had somehow lived to fight another day; the look of someone who knew that the future was bringing him opportunities to do great and possibly terrible deeds.

Then Sam blinked and all John saw was his tired fourteen year old son looking at him with Mary's eyes. Mary's baby boy. Mary who took secrets about herself and Sam to her grave. John took a step towards Sammy and one of the dog's hackles – Agnes Nutter's? – rose. Sam shushed her with a look. John sighed, not sure if he even wanted to broach this topic. "Sam, you know we can't bring them with us."

Four sets of puppy dog eyes stared at John. "But, Dad… I promise that they'll be good! I told you, I can control them! I'll walk them everyday and clean up after them and feed them… well, I don't think they need food, but I'll make sure they don't attack anyone!" Sam nodded enthusiastically, puppy dog eyes at their sincerest.

"Sam," John started, but he noticed all three pups staring at him and John wasn't sure what they could do – would do – to keep Sam with them.

Dean looked at Sam and then John. "Dad, maybe we should go with it. I'm not sure we can separate them. Besides, I'm not sure what three hell puppies could do on their own with no master to control them, but I know it's not good."

John nodded in agreement and watched as Sam knelt down to play with his puppies. John was perturbed – what did it mean that his son could so easily control hell hounds? What did the demons want with his son? Dean smiled as Sam laughed out loud when Dog tugged on his sleeve, tail wagging. John sighed. It was obviously something to worry about, but for now, his son was happy – something that was happening less and less as Sammy got older – and safe. So perhaps he could worry about this latest mystery concerning his youngest another day.