She was drained, her eyes said it all. They were expressionless and looked aged. Bags sat under them from days with little sleep. She was wary from all she had been through. She did not recognize her reflection. I did not see myself…

Covered in soot, lungs raw from smoke inhalation. Not this shit again. I thought to myself. I can't do this all over again. The sirens rang outside; I could hear the sobs and screams of others. I bowed my head, looking into the sink, I held back a sob. A hand lightly rested on my shoulder. Emma looked at me, softness in her eyes.

"You can't blame yourself. Not again." She said quietly.

"Don't you dare say that. You know this is about me. Cat is dead because of me."

"Addison… You stopped hunting… This has nothing to do with you."

"Yeah, well maybe this happened because I stopped. These... these abominations took my family from me. Now one of my best friends? They're just trying to break me…"

"Maybe they are…But you can't let it get to you. You have to keep a clear head. We need to find what we're up against."

"We? We? No, there is no "we" in this one Em. I'm taking this one alone."

She was quiet for a moment. "They won't let you."

"I don't give a flying fuck about that. I'm 18, technically. Therefore, they have no say."

"You don't think they won't go after you?" Emma glared and crossed her arms.

"They wouldn't know where to begin."

"Addy, you don't either. Now stop it. Think rationally for a moment. You know what happens when hunters lose their cool and rush off? They die. They fucking die."

I stared at her, annoyed. "Do you really think I care?"

"No, but I do. I'm not going to lose another friend. Not like this. I can't lose you again…"

"Yeah, we're not having this discussion right now. If you'll shut up, I'll stay tonight. Now excuse me, I'm going to my room."

"You think I'm gonna let you be alone? Really? I'm not stupid."

"I never said you were, Emma. I just want time to myself to grieve. Okay? Just a little while to cry it out."

"Nice try. You have vodka in there, don't you?" Now she was the one who looked annoyed.

"Why do you ask?"

"You drink when you're upset… I know you. Besides, she was my friend too."

"Fine kid. You can join me."

"Good. My mom said she would get here as soon as possible."

I nodded and turned the direction of my room. We walked inside and I locked the door. Emma seemed to know exactly where I hid my stash. She looked at the bottle. Almost empty.

"There's few more." I whispered.

"You drink too much."

"You would too." I gave a cynical chuckle. We passed the bottles around in silence for quite some time. The next thing I knew a bright light shined through the windows. It was 6 in the afternoon.

I groaned loudly. Emma was nowhere to be seen and for a second, I panicked. Then, I heard her soft voice down the hall.

"She's not okay. Not at all."

"We know. None of us are." Her mother this time.

I decided to end this conversation before there was too much thought. I pushed over some books on my shelf and exited the room. They looked at me. A look of pity. Emma's mother, Theresa, opened her mouth to speak, but I cut her off.

"Save it. I don't want your damn pity." She only nodded at me. I looked at Em. "I'm gonna get a shower and go take a walk. You wanna join me, kid?"

"I will. Should I get some stuff ready?" She asked.

"Already packed stuff. Just in case. Holy Water, salt, blades. We'll be okay if there would be trouble."

"Alright."

I hurried off to the bathroom and cleaned myself off as quickly as I could. I toweled myself off and shook out my loosely ringleted hair. At this point, appearance didn't matter to me. I hurried to my room and threw on some black shorts and a tight, white V-neck shirt.

There was a light knocking on my door. "You ready?" Emma asked from the other side.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm good." I opened the door to let her in. I quickly slipped on a pair of black Vans, grabbed my bag and exited.

"Let's go." I told her. She said nothing and studied me. I groaned and walked outside.

She looked at her mother. "We'll be off then."

"Be careful." Was all she said.

We walked outside in silence. Our neighbors who were out stared at us. I shot them glares and they immediately looked the other way. A car in front of Cat's house caught my eye; it looked like an old, black Impala. I looked at Em.

"Now, that is sketchy." I whispered as I strained to see two men in suits talking to the police. Then, the officer looked our way and pointed. The two men glanced at us, then each other.

"I suggest we walk away for now." Emma said, nervously.

"You don't say?" I inquired sarcastically.

"Shut up." She muttered.

We walked through town, down to a little diner. We almost crossed the street when we noticed the car we had seen was following us. Not too close, but enough to raise suspicions.

"How long have they been trailing us?"

"A good while. Should we-"

"Trap them?" I nodded. "To the allies, we'll spilt. Take some stuff from my bag, okay?"

"Got it." She took a few things out and we parted. Soon enough we heard an engine stop and doors slam shut. Then footsteps, going to each part of the allies. Shit. I thought to myself. We shouldn't have done this. I hid myself and held my breath. A young man surveyed the area. He didn't even notice me. I looked behind him. No one. I pounced on him and we fell to the ground, my arm tightly pressed to his neck as I sat on his stomach.

"Who the hell are you and why are you following us?" I hissed at him. He gasped and writhed and pushed me off. Now he pinned me. I reached for my sliver knife.

"You wouldn't want to do that, sweetheart. It won't do much to me." He gave a little half grin and struggled against me, causing me to drop the blade. I took a deep breath and elbowed him right in the jaw. Emma and the other guy came running as I had him pinned again.

"I'll ask you one more time. Who the hell are you?" I held up a different blade, but he was just out of reach.

"Whoa, whoa. Calm down. You don't need to do this!" The other guy yelled.

Em looked at me. "Relax Addy, they're good guys."

I raised my eyebrows and pulled out the bottle of holy water I had in my bag. I doused the man on the ground. Now he just looked annoyed. I backed off.

"Explain. Now." I hissed.

"Oh, a feisty one. I like them feisty."

"You won't like it if you're dead honey."

"Dean, back the hell off." The other guy said.

"Wait, Dean..? What's your last name?" I asked, eyes wide.

"Winchester. Why?" He asked.

"Related to John?" I questioned.

"Uh…Yeah. You know him?"

"My dad used to hunt with him sometimes…"

The boys exchanged both shocked and puzzled looks.

"Well, this has been unexpected. We should continue this elsewhere. Those things might still be here…" Emma stated cautiously.

"What things?" Dean and I'm assuming Sam said in unison.

I felt eyes on me. I turned my head slowly to see over my shoulder. "Demons. They have been screwing with me for quite awhile." I growled and then sighed. "We need to move. Then we can talk."

"Lead the way sweetheart." Dean said with a slight grin. I shot him a glare and rolled my eyes.

I looked at the other guy. "He's a real charmer, huh?" I joked as I grabbed my stuff from the ground.

"I'm sorry… He's just…"

I smiled at him, lost in a distant memory. "I know what it's like."

Emma and Dean looked at us, obviously confused.

"So, where do we go from here?" Dean asked.

"The diner maybe?" Emma suggested. "My mom won't appreciate us bringing older guys over unannounced like that."

"The diner will work." I replied absently, my eyes scanned the area as we walked into the open.

"Paranoia?" Dean asked Emma quietly.

"When the hunter becomes the hunted, paranoia is a must." I hissed as I crossed the street, heading the direction of the little diner.

The man I assumed was Sam rushed in front of me and held the door. I smiled up at him, "Why thank you sir." He just smiled back. I walked up to the counter. Margie, the owner, saw me first. She gasped.

"Addison, honey… How are you holding up?"

I sighed. "I'm… doing the best I can. Cat was my best friend, you know?" I let out rueful laugh.

Emma gave me a quick hug. Margie gave us a sad smile. "If you girls need me, you know where to find me."

"Thanks Margie." Emma said. "Do you think you could seat us at a quiet booth, away from everyone? We need to…catch up with some old friends."

"You got it baby girl."

She showed us to a quiet area and we all sat. Em spoke first.

"So, who exactly are you?" She asked them.

"Dean and Sam Winchester. We're brothers, hunters." Dean told her.

"What brings you here?"

"Business. What about you two?"

"Emma Thompson and Addison Farley." Emma started.

"Best friends and practically sisters." I added.

"Practically?" Sam asked.

"Em's family, uh, kinda adopted me about a year ago. They were good friends of my family."

"Where's your family?" Dean questioned.

"You know, I don't exactly feel like talking about it…"

Sam looked at me, sadness clear in his expression. "I'm sorry." He said in a low, comforting voice. His hazel eyes locked onto mine across the table. In them I saw everything I felt. He knew.

I swallowed hard and broke the gaze. "It doesn't matter anymore."

"Any idea what happened to your friend?"Sam started.

"I think the same bastards that killed Cat were the ones that killed my family." I paused for a second, " Em, call your mom. Tell her we'll be out late tonight."

She didn't say a word, she just did as asked. She walked away as she explained the situation. I still didn't look directly at the brothers. Out of my peripheral vision I examined them. They were very attractive. Dean radiated confidence, while Sam was more reserved. They both watched me. Trying to analyze what they saw. Sam looked at his brother for a second. Then he spoke to me.

"Where's a good place to stay?" He asked quietly.

"There's a little motel on Henderson Street. We can show you. Would you mind if we stuck around to chat? Might be safer than here."

"That'd be okay. How old are you girls anyway?" Dean asked.

"I'm almost 19 and Emma is almost 18. So yeah, watch out for Jailbait over there." I grinned a little.

"Ha, so she is human!" He smiled back at me.

I felt my smile falter a little, but I chuckled lightly. "Basically."

Sam raised his eyebrows at that. Dean didn't seem to notice a thing. I ran my fingers through my hair. Their eyes flicked to my wrist.

"Nice tattoo." Dean smiled slightly.

"Thanks." I grinned a little

"We have the same ones." Sam smiled and pulled his shirt down a little to reveal the same tattoo on his chest. As did Dean.

"Huh, well how about that." I grinned at them. Emma looked at us and smiled too.

She turned to me. "Holy Hell, you're making friends."

"Shut up." I glared at her.

"Oh stop that. Addy, seriously." She soundly slightly annoyed.

"Sorry Em. Rule 1. Remember?" I gave her a pained little grin.

She sat down next to me and sighed. "I know…"

"Cardio..?" Dean asked, trying to change the mood. Sam studied me.

I smiled at that. "You know, I think you and I could get to be great friends."

"I would hope so." He returned a smile.

I looked at Em. "What'd your mom say?"

An annoyed look painted her face. "I'm not allowed to stay out and she wants to talk to you about something."

"This better not be some 'older guys' kind of talk. It's a tad late for that one." I sighed. Dean grinned and his eyebrows rose. Sam shot him a warning look.

Emma looked at me as though I was an idiot. "Nope, she sounded kinda mad though. Said something about a warning."

"Oh. Even better." I replied flatly.

"Warning?" Sam asked.

"Well, if Em told her mother who you were, she knows what you do. Let's face it; we don't exactly have the safest line of work." I swallowed hard, I felt my chest tighten. "C-can you excuse me for a moment?"

I got sympathetic nods and looks from the boys. Em put her hand lightly on my arm then stood up. "It'll be okay honey." She said.

"I hope." I turned away and walked to the bathroom.

Sam's POV

Addison walked away, trying to keep herself composed. I looked at Emma. "Is she gonna be okay?"

"I ask myself that question everyday…" She said quietly. Once she realized she said it out loud she quickly said, "Addy is strong. She is the strongest person I know."

"But you question her?" Dean asked her.

She sighed and paused, gathering thoughts. "Yes and no. Addison knows right from wrong. She has common sense… But her emotions get the better of her. She's so…angry all the time. I-… I've said enough. Ask her, or maybe one day she'll tell you. It's not my place to tell."

"Do you really think she'll open up to us?" I asked, not buying it.

"If she's drunk enough, she'd basically tell you everything. Works for me at least. So I mean, you can try that."

"Wait, you're telling us to… Get your… sister drunk?" Dean looked over at me, confused.

"If you want information quickly it could work. She… doesn't trust people really. I think it could be good for her to get back in the game. She was good at what she did. Losing her family just destroyed the faith she had."

"What happened to them?" I asked Emma quietly.

"I really shouldn't say. A few things… You'll get it out of her eventually."

"You have a lot of respect for her, don't you?" Dean asked.

"She's my best friend. The only one I have left... You know? She's strong and brave and... Damn she's damaged. She needs closure. I feel like you guys could help with that."

"How can we help her?" I wanted to know all I could.

"As much as she's against it… I think she needs to get back to hunting. Whether she is hunting or not she blames herself for things that happen. She needs to accept the fact that shit happens."

"You've never felt responsible for the loss of a life, have you?" I knew the answer before I asked.

"No…" She responded.

"It's not exactly a walk in the park… But people die every day. If it was meant to be, it happens. It's no one's fault." My brother looked at me with sympathy. I caught a glimpse of white-blonde hair and pale skin headed our way. Addison's face and eyes were slightly red. She had been crying. She sniffled a little as she sat down.

"Did I miss anything?"

"Small talk, nothing much." Emma murmured looking at her. Kaelyn nodded slowly.

"Can we get out of here?" She asked nervously. "We can show them to a hotel and then I can go talk to your mom."

"It's cool with me. Guys?" Emma looked to us. Dean and I nodded.

Addison kept avoiding looking at us; she just walked out the door followed by Emma and Dean. I looked behind me in time to see Margie watching us.

"You look after her." She called.

"Yes ma'am." I nodded and walked out.

Dean was headed for his "baby."

"I gotta tell you man, that is one sexy car." Addison commented.

"Why thank you sweetheart. You a car girl?" He asked her.

"Sort of. I dated a few car guys. What is this? A…'67?"

"Damn, spot on." He laughed and grinned.

"My dad also talked about it a few times." She smiled as he let her in the car, Emma followed.

I got in, shotgun as usual. Dean turned up his music.

"I love this song." Addison was smiling a little again.

"She doesn't complain about my music." He glared at me.

"I don't complain. I just think you should up your system is all." I said, rolling my eyes.

"It's my car, man. I'll do what I want." He mumbled as he pulled on to the road. "Where am I going?"

"Keep going straight for a few blocks, turn right onto Jacobs and then a left onto Henderson."

After a few minutes we reached the hotel and got out of the car. Addison groaned to herself.

"You guys go get settled in and I'll be back eventually." She rolled her eyes.

"You're just gonna walk back by yourself?" Dean asked her, slightly shocked.

"No, Em is with me." The girl replied with slight sarcasm.

"That's not what I meant." Dean was getting annoyed.

"I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself. They won't do shit in broad daylight."

"Be careful." I told her before Dean could say anything else.

"I'll see you guys shortly." She jokingly curtsied and started to walk away.

"Bye guys." Emma said sheepishly and sped away to catch up to her.

We watched them until they disappeared from view. I followed Dean as he entered to office to get us a room. The woman at the front desk showed us to our room. As I shut the door Dean turned to me.

"Something is up with that girl."

"She's hiding something, that's for sure."

"You think she's dangerous?" He set his jaw a little.

"It doesn't seem like it, not to us anyway."

Author's Note:

So, this was kind of just setting up for the rest of the story. It will get better, I promise! Please stick with me.