currently on my first watch on spn, and as someone who adores Sam and Dean's relationship, I can not get over the opening for season 14, episode 12 .
For a refresh , Dean's having a nightmare of being trapped under the ocean in a box to contain Micheal and himself.
He looks so afraid , I genuinely don't think I've ever seen Dean this openly terrified through the whole show, likely because he's not performing his big, tough persona he usually does.
What's really getting me with this scene though , is not just how afraid he is , but how , in this fear , the only person dean crys out for , screams out for in the darkness and into the void is his baby brother sammy. It actually shatters my heart because there are more people he could easily call out for who he trusts and cares for. Cas for example is one that comes to mind , but no , even now with a bigger family than he had in the past , with his mum back who he should likely feel most protected by , it's still always Sam he calls out for.
I really love this detail as it's something that's pretty consistent in the show. Despite Dean being the older brother and protector of sammy , he still feels the most safe , most content, and most protected around his brother.
I think people forget Sam protects Dean as well as Dean protecting Sam. They've both got each other's backs , to a point it's very unhealthy , and they both know that. They know they would go to hell and back for the other, which is why, even with Dean being the older of the pair, he still finds safety in him.
Another thing I want to point out in season 14 is something i noticed to do with Sammy in episode 15, where Sam is Justin. As Cas holds Sam off from stabbing him with the angel blade , he starts telling Sam he can't give up on himself , as that would be giving up on everyone else too in relation to his grief . He starts mentioning people that he would be giving up on and while everyone else ofc gives a reaction, Dean's name is the thing that makes his stop and snap out of it almost instantly.
I think cas most certainly knew Dean would most likely be the one to snap him out of it, as it's the final card he plays on him when it seems like he's not going to drop the angel blade. He was right as well LOL, and it worked.
They are brothers , best friends , protectors of each other and just care for each other to an extreme length it makes my heart hurt I adore them sm.