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The storm had knocked out all power. Thanks to Sam, the coffeeshop was still open, but thanks to the snow, it didn’t look like many people realized that. Sam wasn’t complaining. He loved these quiet nights where he could still get paid for being at work without actually having to do any work. He could take advantage of the time to get ahead on his studies. Tonight’s goal was to make some headway through his developmental psychology class.
He had just opened a video about Piaget’s developmental stages when he heard the door chime, and he set his laptop aside with a soft sigh. Hopefully, whoever it was wouldn’t be too demanding. “Hello, welcome to the Beanery, how can…”
He trailed off when he got a good look at the two men in front of him. He recognized them, of course. Everyone recognized them. Foresight and Farsight, two of the biggest superheroes in the country. For the most part, they followed the friendly neighborhood superhero model, breaking up small crimes and guiding people to resources to help them avoid or escape lives of crime. Every once in a while, though, when there was something huge on the horizon, they joined up with larger organizations.
Foresight ignored the unfinished sentence. “Greetings, citizen. We got a report that there was an employee trapped at your fine establishment. Are you in any danger? Do you require assistance to get home?”
“No.” Sam had his suspicions about who, exactly, had made that report. His big brother was completely ridiculous. “I’m not trapped here. Well, technically, I suppose I am, but not like I’m in trouble.” And he was babbling. He needed to stop and reassess. “When the weather forecast came up, my boss asked me to work this shift. I agreed. If there are people who are trapped out in the snow, they can come here and I can get them hot food and something to drink, we have toilet facilities, and there are emergency camping supplies in the basement. As long as my battery packs for my laptop and cell phone hold out, I’m perfectly happy.”
“But there’s no power,” Foresight argued. “How can you provide hot food?”
“I, um, I have some superhuman powers. Nothing particularly useful for fighting crime or anything, but perfect for doing things like this.” Sam got a coffee cup, filled it with water, added a tea bag, and then wrapped his hands around it. When the steam came up off the cup, the heroes gasped. “I can warm up food, but aside from inflicting mild burns, not much I can do to the bad guys. It’s just not powerful enough. So I help how I can.”
“Thank you very much for your service,” Farsight said, inclining his head slightly. “People get so caught up in the flashier antics of those like the Guardians or the Supermen that they forget about the everyday heroes far too easily. Don’t make that mistake. What you offer is every bit as important.”
Sam ducked his head. Of course these two would think that, but really, it’s not even like all that many people took advantage of the service the Beanery provided. Sam wasn’t a hero. He was just a guy doing his best. “Is there anything I can get you guys, since you’re here? Coffee or something?”
Farsight started to decline, but Foresight interrupted. “I would love a coffee, Sam. And my brother would, too, if he can get his head out of his ass.” Sam ignored the quiet bickering as he heated up water to make the coffees, except for a pang of amusement at how similar it sounded to him and Dean arguing over something stupid. Like whether Sam should be working tonight. He could keep himself warm, if anybody needed him he’d be there, and Dean was going to spend the night with one of his girlfriends anyway so what did it matter if he wasn’t home?
Both heroes saluted as they left, and Sam went back to his psychology. A message from his brother caused him to roll his eyes and call back. “It’s not enough to bug the Twin Towers to come rescue me when I don’t need rescuing, you’ve gotta interrupt your hookup to yell at me too?”
“Sam do you even know what tonight is?”
“It’s November 2nd. Yeah, I’m aware. So?”
“So you shouldn’t be alone on tonight of all nights! You know what happens when you are!”
“What happens? I get lonely? I miss Mom? Dean, I don’t even remember Mom! You’re the one who remembers her, and you’ve always gone out and hooked up so you can concentrate on something else! I don’t need a hookup. I’m sure whoever you’ve got there is perfectly nice and all, but I can distract myself just fine with studying.”
“You are such a nerd.”
“Yes. I am. Suck it up and deal.”
“But when you’re alone, that’s when the more literal demons start coming after you. Or did you forget Jess?”
“Jess is a perfect reason why I should be alone, so no one’s caught in the crossfire,” Sam snapped, hanging up before he could hear Dean sputter out some kind of excuse or apology. It had been years since Jess was killed by a demon trying to get to Sam, and most of the time Sam was over the pain and just enjoyed the memory, but having it thrown in his face like this? Sam refused to tolerate that shit.
A couple hours later, the professor’s monotone drawl and the joy of learning new things had helped calm Sam down. When the door opened, he was able to summon a real smile, not the terrified smile he would have had right after hanging up on Dean.
It was a good thing, too, as Foresight and Farsight had come back. “Need another coffee, heroes?” He was already heating up the water. Why else would they come back alone?
“The snow’s gotten thick enough that there seems little point to patrolling,” Farsight explained. “If we get a call, of course, that’s different, but it’s unlikely we could spot anything in the snow.”
“And my danger sense is flaring low-key everywhere anyway, because of the snow, so it’s not much help,” Foresight admitted with a grimace. “If you don’t mind, we’d like to hang out here.”
“Of course,” Sam said automatically, even while his brain went into shutdown. These two could make it anywhere. They had homes, he assumed, and the Guardians had a base nearby that they would likely be welcome at. That had a generator, so they could have proper power and whatever they wanted to eat or drink, not whatever Sam happened to have on-hand. “Are you hungry? I can make a couple muffins or something…”
“Thank you,” Foresight said, once again overruling his brother’s attempt to decline. “I’ll be right back.”
Farsight looked curiously at the computer, causing Sam to realize he’d forgotten to pause the video explaining Spanish past tense conjugation. “How do you have wi-fi? Batteries for your router?”
“My other power,” Sam deadpanned. “Human hot spot.” Useful while he was working through college, he had to admit. He’d been incredibly popular back then. Not so much now, which is how he preferred it. “Even with my computer in airplane mode to preserve battery, I can use the internet.”
“Very useful,” Farsight said. “Sam, I hate to impose on you any more than we already are, intruding on your solitude like this, but…”
“Yes, you can use the wi-fi, there’s no password,” Sam interrupted with a grin. “Not like I could stop you if I wanted to, but please, feel free.”
“That’s not what I meant.” Farsight looked toward the door. “My brother has a high sensitivity to cold. You’d mentioned camping gear earlier. Does that include a blanket or something he could use to maintain body heat?”
“Oh, sure, no problem.” Sam would forever blame Dean for the next thing out of his mouth. He didn’t even need to look at his phone to know that the ping was a text from him. “Or, y’know. I’m a pretty warm guy, I could just cuddle him.” He didn’t even wait for an answer before he was running for the basement. Quickly, he checked the text from Dean. Sure enough…
Here. Not alone but they’re not easy to kill. See if you can get laid, huh?
Sam would murder his brother, but it wouldn’t work. Why would he even think either Farsight or Foresight would want him that way? Besides, what happened to the twins Dean was trying to get Sam to hook up with? Novak or something like that? Dean wasn’t the type to give up on a stupid idea. More the double down…
Well, shit. The Twin Towers’ secret identities weren’t known, but it was known that they were brothers, a lot of people speculated that they were twins, and the stories Sam had heard about the Novak twins fit the stories he’d heard about Foresight and Farsight. Dean knew Castiel and Jimmy pretty well; they might have confided in him about a secret identity. He’d never just come out and tell Sam, but if Sam figured it out on his own…
He grabbed a couple blankets and made his way back upstairs, still lost in thought as he handed one blanket to each hero. Then he sat back down with his computer. To his surprise, Foresight sat next to him, leaning up against him. “My brother said you offered, and, well, that power of yours… seems like a great idea to me!”
“Fair enough, then.” Sam wasn’t stupid enough to argue, anyway. He nudged some warmth into the arm Foresight was leaning on, letting it flow into the hero who was, indeed, rather chilled. “Hope you guys don’t mind listening in on Spanish grammar lessons, I didn’t bring my headphones.”
Neither hero objected, so Sam restarted the video. It was somewhat hard to concentrate with a hero curled up on either side of him, but on the other hand… it did feel good, having that contact. He could always rewatch the video later on, right?
“Sam? May I ask you something?” Farsight said.
“Sure, go ahead.”
“Do you have an older brother Dean?” Foresight jumped and stared between his brother and Sam. “Dean Winchester is a very good friend of ours, and I just remembered the brother he keeps wanting us to meet is also named Sam, and according to Dean, a ‘goddamn saint of a hero except he refuses to believe it’. Accurate of you, certainly.”
“Now that you mention it…” Foresight mused. “Certainly explains why Dean would suggest we come back here.”
“Yes, I’m Dean’s little brother.” Sam decided not to reveal his guess about their identity, despite the fact that he was now fully convinced.
Not that he needed to. “Jimmy Novak,” Foresight confirmed for him. “And my brother Castiel. Don’t give me that look, Cas, you know Dean’s brother is going to be safe.”
“I’m not worried about Sam revealing our identities to anyone,” Castiel grumbled.
“Oh, right,” Jimmy said, face lighting up in a huge grin. “Now you don’t have any excuses not to talk to him and do something about the pining.”
“Nor do you, and we both know how that works out.” Castiel pulled away from Sam. “It always goes the same way.”
Sam looked between them. From Castiel’s resignation and Jimmy’s exasperation, he had a pretty good guess what that was, but still. “And what way is that?”
“Castiel thinks they’re going to choose me so he takes himself out of the running at all. Dean swears this one will go differently, that you would never do that to us – especially since we’re brothers.”
“I, uh… Dean told you that, huh? Not just that I’m polyam and wouldn’t pick unless you made me, but that I like the idea of siblings?” Sam was still a little mad at Dean for dragging that out of him in a game of Truth or Dare in college. On the other hand… hot twin brothers who were literal goddamn heroes and who seemed to like him? Who were seemingly looking for someone to share? Who better to trust with that little secret? “So… I take it you guys are looking for that?”
“Yes,” Castiel said. “However, before you go getting the wrong idea, Jimmy and I have no romantic or sexual interest in each other, only in sharing a partner. Your relationships with us would be independent of each other, for the most part.”
Fine by Sam, although he was curious. “For the most part?”
Jimmy shrugged with a grin. “If things progress to sex, three-ways or voyeurism are on the table, although in a three-way we’d both be focused on you. No problem if you’re not interested.”
“Well. Huh. I’m… it’s certainly interesting,” Sam had to admit. Certainly a great offer, and worth a try, but did they really know that much about him? What sort of reputation had Dean given him to live up to? “If you guys are interested, I am, too.”