like a fever that just won't break.

*A/N: I deleted my own post last year about this WIP while going through a bad bout of anxiety. So, seeing as I've added a few new chapters since then, I thought I'd re-post. I really hope that's okay (and my apologies if I miss any PM's -- I'm apparently a complete moron, because I cannot for the life of me work the LJ inbox anymore. Not sure why).

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This started out as a Sam-centric fic, and it still is, so fair warning about that; but my fondness for Dean and his struggles snuck in soon enough. So, this fic has caretaker!Dean who is also increasingly revealing and dealing with his own trauma, and we get his POV as well. I think that might be relevant here. The next chapter I'm working on seems to be relatively Dean-heavy, too.

Title: Away from These Shores (10/?)
Author:ever_dimming
Genre: Gen
Summary: A simple hunt leaves Sam in an altered state no one seems able to explain – at first. Pulling him out of it is not nearly as easy as it should be, especially since Dean is dealing with his own trauma(s).
Triggers / warnings: A lot of dissociation (mostly not Dean's, for now); occasional self-harm in later chapters; post-trauma, past violence & torture in hell and the Cage; occasional mentions of the Winchesters' painful upbringing. Some grief, since in this slightly AU Cas did not survive Swan Song, and Bobby & Ellen are around (but Jo is gone).
Spoilers: The fic is standalone, but refers to the plot up to and including 8X01 here and there.
Disclaimer: Supernatural, its characters, plot lines etc. belong to their awesome creators. I am merely suggesting fun new ways in which those beloved characters could suffer and/or be comforted.

on AO3: from the beginning, or latest chpater (10)