Fanfic / Once Upon a Supernatural Time

Once Upon a Supernatural Time by all-mirth-no-matter is a Crossover between Once Upon a Time and Supernatural, which starts when Henry invites the Winchesters to Storybrooke for their help in breaking the curse. As a result, the Winchesters find themselves drawn into the mysteries of Storybrooke and the complicated lives of its inhabitants, with Dean and Sam each finding love in one of the residents while the forces of Hell advance on the town.

The fic can be read here and here.

Once Upon a Supernatural Time contains examples of:

• Abusive Parents: Acknowledged for Regina in particular as in canon, but Dean also finds himself reflecting on John Winchester’s flaws as a father even if he still admires him as a hunter.
• Adaptational Early Appearance: Reference is made to the Men of Letters- likely the British branch- over three years before Dean and Sam learned of their existence in canon.
• Adaptational Villainy:
  • With Dean now Emma’s romantic interest, Hook remains a more active villain for Cora, although he still "defects" to help the heroes during their time on Neverland.
  • Archie is briefly possessed by a demon until Sam and David manage to exorcise it.
  • Doctor Whale becomes the new ‘host’ for the Horseman of Pestilence.
• All-Loving Hero: Emma and Sam in particular each serve as subtle examples of this, even as they won’t explicitly say it to anyone else
• Beat Still, My Heart: When Dean is sent to the Enchanted Forest along with Emma and Mary Margaret, Cora takes Dean’s heart to control him and use him against the others.
• Beast and Beauty: As well as the canon example of Gold/Rumpelstiltskin and Belle, this comes up in a less explicit sense for Sam and Ruby, considering her true nature as a werewolf.
• Birds of a Feather:
  • Dean and Sam hit it off with Emma and Ruby respectively because of this, Dean and Emma each the lonely children who had to grow up too fast and Sam and Ruby the people whose lives were ruined by a family secret when they just wanted to be normal.
  • A more platonic version is formed between Sam and Regina, as Sam volunteers to help her by reflecting on his own experiences of becoming addicted to power in the form of his past addiction to demon blood.
  • Once on Neverland, Dean acknowledges that he and Killian aren't that different, as they're the ones more willing to acknowledge the shades of grey in situations where the Charmings are more focused on things being black and white.
• Broken Pedestal: Henry is devastated after meeting Baelfire when remembering the story Emma told him, to the point that Henry compares Baelfire to Dean and wishes that Dean was his father.
• The Bus Came Back: From the perspective of the Storeybrooke residents, Dean returns to the town rather than just go back on the road after the end of the Apocalypse.
• Canon Welding: Rowena is the mother of both Crowley and Cora, making Crowley Regina's uncle, and Tamara spent time at the Roadhouse before it burnt down, as well as being Gordon Walker's daughter.
• Cartwright Curse: Sam and Ruby end up bonding over their own experiences in this department, particularly regarding Sam having to kill Madison and Ruby accidentally killing Peter.
• The Chosen One: An important part of Dean and Emma's bond is their shared status as the 'Chosen Ones', even if Dean explicitly rejects his destiny as Michael's Vessel.
• Continuity Snarl: For the Storybrooke characters, the story begins just before “The Stranger”, but it is initially slightly more complicated to place it for the Winchesters, as it is set after the Winchesters learned that they could stop Lucifer with the rings of the Four Horsemen but Castiel still has enough of his angelic powers left to, among other things, show Emma his wings, when he was actually unconscious and powerless at this point in the series in canon. This is justified later with the explanation that Storybrooke’s residual magic had erratic effects on Castiel’s power, briefly giving him a boost before he lost them again.
• Crossover Relatives:
  • When Crowley visits Storybrooke, he reveals that his mother Rowena is also Cora's mother, as she fled to this world after teaching Cora her magic, which makes Crowley Cora's half-brother and Regina's uncle.
  • Tamara is revealed to be the daughter of Dean's old foe Gordon Walker.
• Dark and Troubled Past: Dean shares some of his past hunts with Emma and Mary Margaret, such as the time he and Sam had to deal with a ghost manifesting fairy tales, and Sam and Ruby talk about how their own history with werewolves cost them someone they loved.
• Deal with the Devil: Deals are made with Rumpelstiltskin and Crowley at various points, and Pan tries and fails to get the likes of Dean and Regina to make their own deals with him later.
• Demoted to Extra: Hinted at; Crowley’s words suggest that the demon that possessed Archie was in charge of distributing the Croatoan virus, which means that Sam exorcised the demon that possessed Brady and killed Jess without ever knowing it.
• Disappeared Dad: John Winchester disappearing from Sam and Dean’s lives, Emma’s parents missing for her entire life, Rumpelstiltskin essentially abandoning Baelfire… the list goes on.
• Fair Cop: Dean and Sam each appreciate Emma’s fair approach to the law when she appears to ‘just’ be the sheriff of Storybrooke.
• Fantastic Racism: Mostly defied; although the restored Storeybrooke residents are initially concerned when Dean reveals what he and Sam do for a living, Dean affirms that they're not dangerous just because they're not completely human, and Bobby shares that view when he comes to help, while Tamara wants to destroy Storeybrooke just because the residents are magical.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Mary Margaret confesses that she's slightly jealous that Dean and Emma bonded so easily where she has so much trouble getting Emma to tell her about anything whether they were roommates or mother and daughter, only confessing her issues to Dean because she recognises that she and Emma aren't in that place in their relationship yet.
• Heroic Sacrifice: As in canon, Sam does this to stop the Apocalypse and trap Lucifer.
• "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: As in canon, someone has to assure Roby that she has better control of herself in her wolf form than she believes while she's transformed, although in this case it's Sam rather than David.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Emma and the Winchesters naturally qualify as this, as they continually act as the hero regardless of the challenges facing them or their various personal issues.
• The Lost Lenore: As Sam and Ruby start to form a relationship, they reflect on Madison and Peter's fates in a manner that make it clear they still have strong feelings for their lost partner.
  • Tying into her hiatus from the show, Ruby struggling with this is why she disappears for a good number of chapters after Sam dies.
• Mama Bear: Emma retains this as always; even the prospect of facing a full demon (specifically Crowley) won't stop her protecting Henry.
• Noodle Incident: Crowley apparently had to deal with the plans to distribute the Croatoan virus by himself with the Winchesters and Bobby busy in Storybrooke.
• Not So Similar: Talking with Dean about how they both dedicated themselves to revenge, Hook observes that the difference between them is that Dean found a purpose beyond revenge in protecting others from the supernatural even after he killed his mother's killer, but Hook realised that he never had any idea what he would do with himself if he managed to kill Rumpel.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Used in a positive sense, as Dean realises when Emma asks him about it that he and Sam haven’t thought about leaving Storybrooke even after the curse is lifted, reflecting the depth of his and Sam’s feelings for Emma and Ruby.
• Outside-Context Problem: The people of Storybrooke might be aware of magic, but they’re still caught by surprise when they learn of the magic that exists in their new world, such as when Sam has to help David exorcise a demon from Archie, or Sam, Bobby and Castiel help Regina, David and Ruby confront Pestilence.
• Papa Wolf: Dean grows into this position for Henry, such as confronting Crowley to try and protect Henry.
• Parental Substitute: Dean becomes this for Henry, to the point that Henry explicitly states that he wishes that Dean was his father after they discover Baelfire.
• Place of Power: To a degree; arriving in Storybrooke initially restores some of Castiel’s powers, allowing him to manifest his wings when he was basically Brought Down to Normal by this point in canon, but this boost is erratic and he soon reverts to his seemingly powerless state.
• The Power of Love: In a town of fairy tales, it would be unusual if this didn’t come up; Dean and Sam in particular find themselves developing such intense feelings for Emma and Ruby that the girls are able to give them True Love's Kiss.
• The Promise: Despite a moment where he seems prepared to go it alone, Dean keeps his word to Sam and returns to Storybrooke to be with Emma and Henry after Sam sacrifices himself.
• Related in the Adaptation:
  • In chapter 62, when Crowley visits Storybrooke, he reveals that Rowena is also Cora's mother, which makes him Cora's half-brother and Regina's uncle.
  • In chapter 67, Dean realises that Tamara is Gordon Walker's daughter.
• Right for the Wrong Reasons: Invoked when Dean refers to Leroy as Grumpy after the Curse has been broken before he learns that the man actually is Grumpy.
• Rousing Speech: David gives one to the rest of the displaced fairy-tale characters to talk them into staying in Storeybrooke.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Dean feels like he’s hit this point when he, Emma and Mary Margaret meet Killian Jones in the Enchanted Forest, Dean angrily proclaiming that Killian isn’t remotely like any depiction of Captain Hook he’s familiar with.
• Ship-to-Ship Combat: Dean feels that he's faced with this when he and Neal are trapped back in the Enchanted Forest with Neal attempting to argue about his own importance to Emma versus Dean's newer relationship with her.
• Shipper on Deck: Various characters encourage Dean and Sam’s relationships with Emma and Ruby respectively
• Shout-Out:
  • When the group learn that Cora was posing as Lancelot, Dean mentions his own experience with shapeshifters to justify how he suspected Lancelot was lying, although concedes that he wasn't expecting "the whole dude looks like a lady Mrs. Doubtfire thing".
  • When talking with Hook about how he found his life's purpose in hunting, Dean mentions " Great power comes great responsibility and all that Spider-Man jazz".
• The Shrink: As well as Archie’s official role as this for the town as a whole, Sam takes on this role to help Regina deal with her issues regarding her use of magic
• Spot the Impostor: While on Neverland, Regina quickly observes that Sam wouldn't ask her to betray the others or abandon Henry, and is put out that it took Gold some time to realise that he wasn't talking with Belle.
• The Stations Of Canon: Sam and Dean are more...add ons than complications to much of the original story of Once Upon A Time, since they're less likely to be able to effect big changes, but rather alter relations in the process.
• True Love's Kiss: As in canon, True Love’s Kiss breaks the curse in the form of Emma’s maternal affection for Henry, but Dean also delivers such a kiss to Sam as a sign of brotherly affection, and Ruby later gives Sam a kiss herself after she's had more time to get to know him to free him from the sleeping curse.
• Van Helsing Hate Crimes: Acknowledged but subverted; once the curse is broken, the people of Storybrooke are concerned that the Winchesters are going to kill them just because they're supernatural creatures, but Dean and Sam both affirm that they're not going to kill the residents of the town just because they're magical, and Sam is explicitly relieved to find proof that Ruby is different from the werewolves of his world as there are ways for her to control her transformation.
• What the Hell, Hero?:
  • Dean calls August out on him abandoning Emma after learning Pinocchio’s real history.
  • Crowley, of all people, delivers one to the Winchesters for getting caught up in events in Storybrooke rather than focusing on the bigger threat of the Apocalypse.
  • More "What the Hell, Man?"; Dean points out to Neal that trying to turn Henry against Emma for lying about him is completely unfair when as far as Emma knew Neal had completely abandoned her just to take the fall for his crimes, so she had good reasons for hiding the truth from Henry.
• Your Magic's No Good Here:
  • Castiel initially gets a power boost when he arrives in Storybrooke, but this boost soon fades to revert him to his canonically powerless state.
  • The relocated fairy tale characters still have trouble using their magic in Storeybrooke even with Dean and Sam's experience with witches confirming that magic is possible.
  • Regina’s magic renders her immune to the Horseman of Pestilence,
  • Gold can only contain Castiel with holy fire rather than using his own powers.
  • It seems clear that none of the Storybrooke characters could do anything against Death.