Not What He Seems

Chapter 3

Is Sam a government spy?

That's the question on Riot's mind on repeat as he watches his owner work. He definitely missed most of the context as he was trying to find his way here, but he's not sure what context would make anything that's happening right now make sense.

Sam's always been a good mechanic, so it shouldn't surprise him that the guy's good with computers. He managed to mess with the audio from a phone call from some guy named Kevin enough to hear the background noise that was so faint, even Riot couldn't make out the words, and he has super hearing.

Centerville might be the vaguest place Riot has ever heard of. In his time on the run, he has to have passed through at least 10 of them, and that's just when he was paying attention to where he was. Between city and street names, it could mean anything, and Sam still somehow manages to pinpoint one specific location — Centerville, Michigan. There is no way a normal person should be able to do that. He's got to be some sort of spy.

Dean's a little more skeptical, though, which makes Riot feel a little better. He calls it a thin lead, which implies that they probably do this type of weird shit a lot, but also that the way Sam figured out with this mysterious Kevin is was just a shot in the dark. Maybe he's not a spy. Maybe he's just into something illegal and knows some shady things.

That doesn't actually sound any better.

"It's the best lead we've got," Sam says.

Dean seems taken aback by that, and maybe even a tad judgmental. "We?"

That seems to break Sam, if only for a few seconds. Riot, who had been lying down next to his chair, sits up immediately, prepared to distribute his infinite supply of snuggles when needed.

"You were right," Sam says finally. "He was our responsibility, so let's find him."

Riot can't help but feel bad for him. He doesn't know who this Kevin guy was or what happened to him, and, for all he knows, Sam could have thrown him at a bunch of terrorists and ran. This could be all his fault. But Riot still wants his owner to be happy, so he decides to do what he does best.

Riot rests his head on Sam's lap. It's not very comfortable — Sam and his chair are both too tall for him to put his head head out straight, so his neck is awkwardly cranes — but a snuggle is a snuggle. Sam smiles slightly and gently pets Riot's head. He might be smiling, but he still seems sad. How is Riot supposed to cheer him up now?

"Alright," Dean says finally. "Let's go."

Sam gets up, and Riot follows him closely as he packs his things. Dean doesn't seem to have anything to pack, but then again, the guy supposedly came back from the dead. He was probably kidnapped by some evil dudes — maybe the same ones that have Kevin now. Everyone knows you can't break out of anything by taking unnecessary baggage with you.

Riot trots after them as they head for the car, their bags in tow. He watches from a safe distance of a few feet away as Sam lifts the fake bottom from the trunk. Anyone who has a fake bottom for their trunk is automatically suspicious, but Riot had figured that out already.

He gets a little more wary when he sees that the false bottom was actually covering weapons — and not just, like, one or two guns; there's a whole damn arsenal in this car. Sam slips something in there, and Riot would like to think that it's just a knife or something and all these guns and dangerous weapons are actually Dean's, but he already knows that's wishful thinking.

"Hey." Sam tosses the keys over the top of the car, and Dean catches them easily.

Dean eyes the car for a few moments. "No visible signs of douchery, I'll give you that."

Sam just chuckles.

Riot just takes a few cautious steps away.

"Hey, c'mere, buddy," Sam coos, holding a hand out towards his dog.

Riot eyes him warily. This isn't the Sam Winchester he knows. Maybe he should just go back to Amelia. He can't imagine how she's feeling right now, knowing Sam walked out on her in the middle of the night with no warning and no goodbye. Maybe Riot would make her feel better. It would make him feel better, at least.

But, then again, Riot left the same night Sam did. If he comes back, Amelia's going to be looking for Sam, and he doesn't want to get her hopes up. It looks like he doesn't have much of a choice. He'll have to stick with Sam and try to convince him to go back home.

"Hey, Riot, come on." Sam opens the door to the back seat.

Riot starts to walk towards him, but Dean breaks that up immediately.

"Woah, woah, woah!" he says loudly, and Riot freezes in his place. "What are you doing?"

Sam's brows furrow together. "Helping Riot in?"

"Dude!" Dean glares at him. "You know the rules, man! No dogs in the car!"

Sam scoffs. "So, what, you want me to duct tape him to the roof? Shove him in with the engine? Tie a rope to the back and hope he can keep up?"

"No, I want you to ditch the dog," Dean snaps.

Riot barks at him, and Dean jumps backwards instinctively.

"Dude, I'm not leaving my dog.".

"Didn't you leave him before you came here?" Dean asks. "You told me you didn't bring him. Or was that a lie? Because I'm getting the feeling you don't want me to know what's going on with you."

"I left him with my..." Sam trails off, earning a puzzled look from his brother. He swallows hard, then tries again. "I left him with somebody. Clearly, that didn't work, and I'm not ditching him in the middle of the woods."

Dean groans, exasperated. "Fine. We can find the nearest animal shelter or whatever, but —"

Riot barks again, louder and more vehemently than before, and this time, he doesn't stop after one bark. He's been to the shelter before, and the place is worse than a prison. He is not going back there.

"Hey, buddy, calm down," Sam coos, crouching on the ground and holding his arms out to the dog.

Riot walks over, and Sam scratches his back, which always feels nice. It would probably feel weird in human form, but something about having fur makes it a lot nicer. He stops barking, too content with Sam's company to keep yelling.

Still petting the dog, Sam looks up at his brother. "Look, Dean, I will do everything else your way, but I'm keeping my dog."

Dean scoffs. "Like hell you are."

"If you don't want us, I'll take him back to Texas with me," Sam says. "You can look for Kevin on your own, or you can suck it up and we go back to normal but with a dog in the car. Your call."

Dean narrows his eyes at the man, but, after a few long moments of deliberation, sighs in defeat. "Fine. Put the damn dog in. But he does not sit in the front under any circumstances."

Sam beams. "You hear that, Riot? You get to hang out with us."

Riot licks his face, hoping that's enough to show how happy he is. Sure, he's also really wondering what the hell is up with these two and if he's putting his life on the line by going with them, but hey, he gets his human, so he's happy.