but oh what a year

[patrols]

Comments

[imnot_likeyou]

[All of it is the most accurate option, honestly.]

And you're sure this is the it you want?

[camber]

More sure about it than anything I've been in a while.

( Basically, yes. But, also, Ben, which has coalesced into a whole thing now. )

[imnot_likeyou]

[Sam takes a deep breath but he's not going to but into the Ben end of things. It's not his business.]

Alright, well. What I said is still true. It all starts with weird deaths. So ... if you see something that seems off to you just ... shoot me a text with the details, alright? And we'll see if it's more on your side of the fence or mine.

[camber]

Yeah, okay.

( He produces his phone and hands it over to him, looking around him while Sam gives him his number. Maybe to see if Ben's in spitting distance. He hopes not. He looks back at Sam. )

Thanks.

[imnot_likeyou]

[Nope, Ben is busy talking with Sam's girlfriend. It's fine. Also he told you you could talk to Sam, dude.

Sam takes the phone and adds his number, before texting himself so he knows who it is when Dickerson calls.]

I can also put you in touch with a couple of other cops that are in the know. We're good friends with the sheriff in Stillwater, Minnesota and Sioux Falls to start.

[camber]

( A lot is going on, okay? )

Yeah, sure. Cool. I'll pass things along, too, if it comes through the wire but it's not mine. ( He holds his phone up as a thank you. ) Sorry for coming in hot. Kinda' off footing.

[imnot_likeyou]

[He shakes his head.]

Don't worry about it. Already forgotten.

[Which is also the benefit of pissing off a Winchester. Once it's resolved, they tend not to hold grudges. Unless, of course, someone is dead. They have bigger things to worry about.]

I'll set up a text thread to introduce you to Donna and Jody.

[camber]

Kay. ( He nods. Shaky on the dismount, but he landed. ) Don't... tell Ben I uh -

( A beat. You know. Love him. )

He knows I was going to talk to you. But, not uh. I haven't.

[imnot_likeyou]

[Sam shakes his head.]

Not mine to tell.

[But he's glad that Ben knew he was going to talk to him.]

[camber]

Thanks. ( He winces. This is awkward now. ) I'm gonna get a beer. You want a beer?

[imnot_likeyou]

[Sam shakes his head before holding up his own.]

I'm good. Thanks though.

[And he'll probably go get some air.]

[camber]

( That could have been more awkward. Altogether, he's about to be in a whole group chat. Feels like a new start. Steered things back. Maybe the same can be said for him and Ben.

He finds the bar, though, and picks through the beer choices in the tub of ice. )

[decoys]

[Jo swings around to get a refill herself, eyeing the same tub but willing to give the guy a chance to go first.]

If you want a beer that isn't completely fancy, I'd look in he next tub over.

[camber]

Good call.

( He takes a step down, finding a Corona. He holds one out to her, offering? )

[decoys]

Thanks.

[She'll take it and easily pop the top.]

I'm Jo. You're Ben's friend, right?

[camber]

One of his best. Dickerson.

( He pops the top and clinks his glass against hers. )

You know Ben?

[decoys]

Just met him. I know Sam and Dean.

[So she's heard all kinds of things.]

Our dads hunted together back in the day, and we worked a few jobs together here and there.

[camber]

Shit. You guys are everywhere. Hunters.

( He sips from his beer. )

What's it like?

[decoys]

Hunting?

[She's not sure what he's looking for from that question, so she shrugs.]

It's a job. Granted, it's a job I enjoy, I didn't get into it for the usual reasons.

[camber]

Yeah? What's the usual reasons?

( Maybe his reason falls under the usual column. )

[decoys]

Grief, revenge and alcoholism is the usual hunter package. After that comes family legacies - that would be me and the boys - and then there's people who accidentally stumble into it and can't look away. Though that's a pretty small percentage.

[Mostly Jody and Donna, from what she understands, though she hasn't met them yet.]

[camber]

That last part might be describing me.

( He tips his beer pointing at her and then back at him. )

Though, it's giving car crash or train accident. In this case, I can't shake it. I don't know how much you ... know about Ben's involvement or how he found out about everything.

[decoys]

Just bits and pieces. I know Dean made a fucked up decision, as Dean is prone to do, but he thought it was the least fucked up of all the fucked up options. But I never knew Ben.

[She died before he really came into the picture.]

[camber]

Yeah, well, he crashed back into his life thanks to some detective work. And I was there when it all came back out. Including the angel in the room.

( He even had an interesting conversation with Elena. )

Can't unknow it all, you know? World feels bigger than it did.

[decoys]

[Jo shakes her head.]

Honestly, I think it's better that way. The more people that know how to keep themselves safe, the less deaths wind up on our plate.