♛ twentieth hunt - video;

[ofletters]

[ Today, most are getting to see a side of Sam that they haven't seen before. The expression he's sporting and his general air exude the hunter slice of his identity. His eyes are sharp, narrowed, face collected and cold. This is the expression of a man on a violent mission, of a man who's been to Hell and back, of a man who cuts the heads off of monsters.

It isn't the quiet, thoughtful younger brother. Not today. ]

I'm gonna make this quick. Whoever strung up my brother isn't getting off with a slap on the wrist. Doesn't matter that people come back a few times here after they've been offed; as far as I'm concerned, that's just a push toward a permanent ending.

I've got a few hunches. If you did this, then I guess you don't know us well enough. Winchesters don't stay dead, but they do stay pretty friggin' pissed.

[ And they're glorified serial killers, which is why, right now... Sam Winchester looks decently scary. ]

Comments

text;

[oversight]

Can we meet?

text;

[ofletters]

You don't need to be involved Blake

[Video/Private]

[lightgunhustler]

Sam...

[Jo takes in a sharp breath, steeling herself before she continues.]

If you're going to hunt them down, you're not going without me.

[Video/Private]

[ofletters]

[ Sam's expression falters at that, not having expected encouragement from anyone. Especially not from Jo, not after what had happened between them. ]

... I don't know what I'm doing yet. Still working on it.

[ Okay, that's pretty much untrue. He's out for blood. ]

ACTIONISH?

[dissemble]

[Lucifer cannot be there in person, the wards on Sam's bones prevent that, but finding his mind has never been an issue.

To Sam, he will appear in the background, watching the Winchester with a thoughtful expression. He is relaxed, but serious.]

Hunches, huh?

[ofletters]

[ It's been a while since this happened. He knows it isn't a Hell hallucination, since that had been taken from him, but he remembers well enough that Lucifer had found him in his dreams before they'd ever met. Had disguised himself as Jess... ]

I'm not talking about this with you.

video ; private.

[ganking]

[ dean half expects this, yet it still comes as a surprise. he knew sam would be angry, upset -- he is, too -- but this won't lead to anything good.

he's waving his hands as the feed clicks on. ]

Dude, dude, hey-- [ jesus, sammy. ] Take it easy, alright? I appreciate the-- whatever, but look, we don't need to double up the body count of strung up Winchesters.

[ and because he doesn't want you being alone right now. ]

Where are you?

video ; private.

[ofletters]

[ Sam heaves an enormous sigh. Usually, Dean isn't around after... well, after his death. And Sam has seen Dean die (murdered, every time) over and over and over and over and ]

I'm being careful. We've dealt with worse.

[ Maybe it's so bad because it makes him think of the Hellhounds. The first time. The strike of midnight descent into Hell. ]

You can't talk me out of this.

[video]

[freewill]

[Castiel's seen Sam like this before. He's seen both of the Winchesters like this: angry, desperate, dangerous. It can also make them foolish, though, and so where Sam searches for revenge, Castiel has to maintain some level of calm and reason.

Which isn't to say that he isn't angry. Someone in this very mansion killed and mutilated his closest friend. Of course he's angry, but an angel can let that wrath simmer far beneath the surface, until the time is right.

He appears on the feed, his face firm and controlled.]

Who do you suspect?

[video]

[ofletters]

Network's not safe, Cas. [ But he can't invite the angel to meet with him, not when he knows Cas will try and stop him from... well, doing something stupid. ] ... I'm sorry. I know you--

[ Understand. Maybe. Sam isn't sure if he knows how Cas feels about this. ]

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[humanities_strongest]

[He has nothing useful to tell you, but he does have a question--]

Exactly how many times can a person come back from the dead in this shit hole?

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[ofletters]

Five. [ Like it's a freaking game. ] That's the magic number.

Video

[fiendfries]

[ Okay, so maybe Ruby had thought it was kind of funny. She'd fully believe Dean might have deserved it, but that's hardly her concern. At least he's moved on from the brooding stage. ]

Rallying the forces?

Video

[ofletters]

[ He can guess that Ruby thought it was funny. Considering they'd already spoken right after the broadcast, Sam is a bit less hostile toward her than he might've been. ]

There aren't any forces. This is just me.

video;

[wordvomit]

[As soon as he chooses to leave a video message, Ned regrets leaving a video message. But it's already recording and he's not technologically savvy enough to keep from sending it once he's started, so his long face and distressed expression will have to suffice.]

I heard about the- um. The thing.

[Small correction: Ned was freaking teleported to Dean's mangled body by Lucifer, who apparently gets a kick out of putting the Pie Maker in stressful and awkward situations. Ned then brought Dean back to life after potentially compromising the integrity of the crime scene, talked with him briefly about who the killer may have been, and put him back into- er, his sleep.

As it were.

This must be Sammy, the Sammy that Dean was talking about. Ned would like to act as though he knows Sammy's name, as though he is familiar, but it would come off as questionable and this guy looks even taller than him, and he looks angry.]

I know Dean likes pie, so...so I thought I would bring one. Um. Up to you guys.

[Oh God. Why did he decide to do this. It feels awful.]

If you're okay with that.

video;

[ofletters]

[ "The thing." Sam doesn't shoot back a snarky response because he suspects the guy doesn't mean any harm. At the mention of the pie, his expression softens; he must have known Dean. ]

... Thanks. [ For Dean, he thinks. Might do him some good. ] That's pretty nice.

[ And unexpected, really. Responding to threats of murder with baked goods. ]

Yeah, I'm... I think he'll like it.

video;

[nascensibility]

[Sam isn't entirely like his brother, he doesn't seem as though he would be the sort to do anything overtly rash. Now Evelyn- Evelyn can understand the desire for revenge and the crushing hopelessness of seeing someone you care about strung up so horribly. She had to remind Blake to keep his head and not fly off the handle - people come back. Dean came back.

Death is impermanent here, as awful as it can be to witness. But this reaction is absolutely unacceptable, it's almost goading the killer to make another example of someone, in another public place.

It's the killer's own reward.]

Sam. Don't jump to conclusions.

[Her urging is gentle, but firm. Utterly convinced that the same person - man - who took Clarisse's and Jesse's lives is to blame for this new crime, Evelyn knows a spree of vigilante justice is not the answer.]

video;

[ofletters]

I'm not jumping to anything. [ Sorry, Evelyn. Sam knows and respects you, but he's not exactly in his right head at the moment. The younger Winchester glances away briefly, jaw set tight, and sighs. ]

It's just a matter of time. People make mistakes. There's a short list of suspect residents anyway.

[ As far as he's concerned. ]

Video

[seekinghome]

You are way too much like my little brother.

::Holy crap. Although with Sam, it's actually worse, because he's the one that's a trained killer, not Al.::

Don't do anything stupid, Sam.

Video

[ofletters]

I won't. [ Probably. ] ... But I have to do something.

Private text

[justrunsasaloon]

Who?

Private text

[ofletters]

Network's not safe.

video; private

[camebefore]

[To say something or not. That's the question. Given what he's learned about his name from the novels, he imagines he'll be on the list of people this man might be looking into, not to mention the snide comments some have directed at him. Unfortunate that. More unfortunate that Hannibal has blood traces around his room from Bigby, and he knows it.]

Given my name, I suppose I should step forward and say that it was not me. Should you wish to look around my quarters or the like, do let me know. I prefer not to be stormed in on.

video; private

[ofletters]

The other Hannibal Lecter, huh? [ Something sparks in his stomach at his own mention of the name. ] I might take you up on that later, since you offered.

[private audio]

[thepointisdolphins]

[Good, something to focus on that isn't high school.]

Who do you suspect?

[private audio]

[ofletters]

[ Amen for that. ... Or not. ]

Don't think it'd be smart network talk, do you?

[video]

[goesdown]

It should go without saying that as an ally, you've got my support and help in this. If there's anything I can do to find the culprit, I'm happy to help.

[ Also he doesn't want Sam thinking he did it. Mostly that, really. ]

[video]

[ofletters]

Assuming you didn't have a hand in this. [ Sam doubts that he did, but that's the thing about Crowley; he's fairly unpredictable in his methodology. ]

video » private

[samlicker81]

[ sam told her the network wasn't safe, so she isn't going to talk about... what happened over the network. but she is still concerned. about sam, about dean... and she knows she probably isn't anyone he wants to hear from, especially with how angry he is, but she still has to check in. it's sam. she just wants to make sure he's alright. he's dealt with dean dying before, right? ]

... Sam? [ she's hesitant to say anything more, afraid of overstepping her bounds. she's still not quite sure what her bounds are exactly. ] Are you ... gonna be okay?

video » private

[ofletters]

I'll be fine. [ Of course, Becky knows all about him and his problems, there's not point explaining himself to her. He does heave a sigh, though, looking worse-off than he has since they'd met. ] It's just-- You know. [ Though he hates to admit that she does. ] Nothing like that's ever... happened. To us. Not like this.

[Private; audio]

[widows_kiss]

[ She doesn't know this man, or his brother. She's met a few acquaintances they have in common, nothing more. But she'd seen the video of what had been done to Dean - who hadn't? - and she didn't blame him for wanting what he wanted. She didn't know if he could accomplish it or not. The kind of detail that had gone into that display had been chilling and Natasha had encountered a lot of professionals in her day. If there was someone like that here...

Which is why, after an hour or two of debate, she sends a message back, carefully locking it as secure as she'd figured out how to do here so far. She's not sure how her offer will be received and if it's rejected, no harm no foul. But it doesn't sit well with her not to offer. It's not something she's sharing with the team just yet, however.

When she speaks, her voice is serious and businesslike, blunt and to the point. He can take her at her word or not at all, it's merely an offer. ]

We haven't met yet and because of that, if you'd rather ignore this message, I won't take offense.

If you need any aid in taking out the person responsible for this, I'd be interested in volunteering my services. I haven't been here long enough to know if this is a reoccurring trend, but it's something I'd rather not see happen again. I understand the need to handle this personally, but should you require any help, I might have skills that could be useful.

[Private; audio]

[ofletters]

[ It's not strange to get a message from a stranger; he can guess that she's new, can check up her information through the network. It's a little unsettling that she's offering to help without any clear incentive, though, aside from basic human decency... ]

Seems like I've accidentally started an army. [ There's a mirthless chuckle. ] ... I haven't set up any kind of plan yet, but I've got ideas. I wouldn't say it's a trend, but like you said, I'm not planning on letting this happen again. Ever.

[ Not to Dean. Not to anyone. ]

"Haven't met yet..." Guess you got here pretty recently?

private | video;

[glumshoe]

[ He's still collecting leads on exactly what threads surround Dean's death, but this is a conversation that needs to happen. Anyone Hannibal kills has to have done something to him to deserve it in his book, and while like Clarisse and Jesse, Dean is plenty capable of making the most reasonable person fly right off the handle; the brutality of the display belies a deeper offense that rudeness and Will is sniffing out what that might be.

But Sam. Will's not felt the bite of revenge quite like Sam has, even when his life was finished falling down around his ears. Bringing Hannibal to justice took precedent, and because his hands are free to do so in Wonderland, he has a blank slate from which to paint the real picture of Hannibal Lecter without having to resort to proxies.

The question remains: what was Dean doing? If Sam can answer that for him, Will might have something to offer. ]

Hi Sam. We should stop meeting like this. [ He genuinely likes Sam, and it's a shame he's only reminded to talk to the man after something awful has occurred. ]

I just wanted to let you know I'm investigating what was done to your brother. I don't want to talk details over the network, but if you'd like to meet I'll see what I can disclose.

private | video;

[ofletters]

What, surrounded by tragedy? [ It's light, but drowning in the deep weariness that shows in his expression. He's calmed a bit, but... well, not enough. ] Yeah, we probably should.

[ Investigating, huh? Will knows Hannibal, Sam thinks, and besides that, he's a smart guy. Dean wouldn't like this which, really, is only part of the reason he says: ]

Sure, let's do that. [ Because he can at least hear the guy out, right? ] Gimme... a bit, and then that'll work.

video;

[avoirfaim]

[ Hannibal had been hoping to meet the Real Sam Winchester, and even with the delay of that atrocious event, Hannibal does always get what he wants. He puts the right threads to tighten the noose rather than cause it to unravel. That was, in part, the reason for Dean's death. Humiliating him for his rudeness had been satisfying, but to watch Sam react...well, that was just the crème fraîche atop the oven-baked tart.

Were he the type to paint a target on his forehead, were he the type to confess, he might have smug words for you Sam. Namely the fact that nobody stays dead in Wonderland, and coming back to choke on his own thumbs while shitting out formaldehyde had been entirely the point.

He's not though, but rather the type to see how far the thread will tug before it snaps. He makes the connection with his person-suit contorted into a presentation of concern. ]

Sam, I'm sorry to hear about what happened to your brother. If there is anything I can do to help, do let me know.

video; dammit hannibal

[ofletters]

[ He had pulled the right strings. Once, when they'd been pretending to be psychiatric patients (the first time), Sam had been told by a doctor that he was filled with a rage like none he'd ever seen. Sure, Sam had been a little... vicious, sometimes, if there was an underlining of passion or righteous fury. For his friends and family, to right what he saw as wrong, he could get that way.

That's what Hannibal achieved in presenting the mutilated Dean and he can see it working full-force at the moment. ]

... I'm sorry, I'm not-- I can't really talk right now. [ He's in no condition to speak to a therapist. ]