Disclaimer: I do not - in any way - own any of the characters from any TV shows mentioned in my work. I only own my original characters and plotlines. Any similarities to real life people whether living or dead is purely coincidental.

Dean sat back in his chair with a fatigued sigh. He'd been working on his weapons all afternoon, ensuring they were in perfect condition for the next mission. He found it almost soothing, sharpening his blades and cleaning out the barrels of his guns. Yet no matter how hard he tried, Dean couldn't relax. There was a kink in his neck that just wouldn't go, and Chuck had been on his ass all day about supplies. He sighed at the thought, knowing that meant he and some of the others would have to go and get rations. It was hard enough trying to find food to feed the hundred or so living in the camp, let alone the other necessaries everyone needed. It was times like this that made him think back to the past, a simpler time when all he had to worry about was hunting and looking after... Sam. Dean clenched his jaw; he couldn't allow himself to think about his brother, not after everything that had happened. It was his fault Sam was gone, he'd gone and let him get killed after that mission two years ago. Dean hadn't really been the same since then. Truth be told, he hadn't been the same since the whole damn Croatoan thing started.

It began four years before, when Lucifer gave Sam an ultimatum; say yes, or watch humanity get wiped out. Neither brothers thought he was bluffing, after all, he was Lucifer. Sam had prepared to say yes, said his goodbyes to the ones he loved and went with Dean to Detroit to meet Lucifer. Yet just as he opened his mouth to speak, to give his consent, both he and Dean were sent away by an unknown force. To this day, no one knows what stopped him from saying yes, although some believe it had something to do with the angels not allowing Dean to be harmed, which would have likely happened if Lucifer was allowed into his true vessel with Dean present.

Soon after the events in Detroit, mass infection began spreading all over the globe. Eventually, the world was in shambles, a broken shell of what it used to be. The Winchesters blamed themselves, Dean most of all. He threw himself into missions, becoming almost reckless with killing Croats. And it was this recklessness that allowed Sam to be separated during a mission, to go missing without a trace. He left with some of Dean's best, and they came home without him. Dean and his men searched endlessly for the lost man, but eventually they gave up hope and Sam was presumed dead.

Things had finally got quiet around camp when Dean heard some shouting outside. He ignored it, figuring it was just some of the teenagers messing about, until the warning sound rang. What had originally been used as a bell to let children at summer camp know when food was ready was now used to tell people that danger was nearby. Letting out a deep breath, he pushed himself to his feet and turned towards the cabin door, grabbing his shotgun on the way out. What now?

It was almost dark out, the sun just beginning to set in the west, covering the camp with a soft, dusky glow. The camp grounds were almost vacant, which was expected as it was late in the day and everyone was in the mess hall eating their evening meal. Dean had grabbed something from there earlier, not wanting to spend his afternoon surrounded by children asking him about the latest mission he'd been on. Usually he could do it, even enjoyed talking to them, but they reminded him too much of Sam. Adoring, innocent faces, clinging onto every word he said. He could handle it on a good day, but sometimes the loss of his brother was too much to bear.

He followed the worn, dirt path towards the entrance of camp, nodding to the various people that weren't stationed at the fence. The camp itself was heavily guarded, but it was nothing compared to the one barrier between the grounds and what had once been Kansas City. The fence was separated by a single gate and was under constant surveillance. At least four guards were on duty at all times, monitoring what came in and out of camp and keeping enemies and Croats out.

Arriving at the entrance, his eyes instantly narrowed in on what was causing the uproar. A woman was on the other side of the chain link fence, a tall, slim thing with blonde hair, ripped clothing and blood covering her mouth and chin. Croat. He noticed several of his men (some who were on their shift, some who weren't) were stood near to the wall separating the camp from the rest of the city, but weren't shooting. For a split second, Dean wanted to reprimand them for this, until he took a closer look at the Croat. She wasn't running towards them in a violent rage, as infected people usually did, but rather was stumbling forwards, shiny tear tracks painting her cheeks.

"Please. Please, help me." she mumbled, over and over.

In corner of his eye Dean saw that his men had realised their leader had arrived, and they raised their guns towards the girl opposite them. Cold panic filled him, and he rushed forward.

"Stop!" he yelled, "Damn it, stop! Do not shoot. She's not one them."

His men stood down, looking at him in confusion. The blood and ragged appearance was a sure giveaway that a person was infected, and Dean was known to be ruthless about killing them. It was a shock to them all to hear their leader give the orders to not shoot.

"What are you talking about? Look at her, I mean, the blood?" The nearest guard, Miles, asked. He'd originally been a marine, until the virus took out most of the population. After that, he'd packed up his life and came seeking refuge at Camp Chitaqua with his wife and their six month old daughter.

"She's not one them, do not shoot her. That's an order. Do I make myself clear?" Dean asked, looking around at his men forcefully. He saw how they all swallowed and nodded quickly, lowering their guns even more. Satisfied, he turned back to the girl. She was staring at him with a thankful expression, but he could see the fear lying behind it. He sighed, and nodded for the guards at the gate to let her in if the coast was clear.

The girl moved quickly past the gates once they were opened, feeling a slight gust of wind as they immediately shut behind her with a dull 'thunk'. She looked around at her surroundings; armed men at the gates, intimidating leader in the middle of it all and the outlines of cabins over their shoulders. If she was correct, she was in Camp Chitaqua.

She'd made it.

There was a moment of silence before Dean broke it, "Okay," He began, "Anyone who's not on their shift go back to main base. Anyone who is, get back to work and be ready for shift change in two hours. And you," He added, pointing at the girl, "Come with me."

He turned away from the group, taking long strides back down the path, not looking back to see if she was following. He didn't need to; he knew she would. Caroline watched his retreating figure for a moment, before a cough from behind brought her back to reality and she hurried after him. They walked almost in silence towards camp, their out of sync breathing the only sound in the air.

"What's your name?" Dean asked almost stoically, tilting his head towards the haggard looking girl and breaking the silence once again.

"Uh," she swallowed back the dryness in her throat, "C-Caroline."

"Caroline." he nodded, "I'm Dean."

Caroline didn't respond to that. She didn't know how to. The man seemed threatening, the air of authority about him never leaving. She supposed that saying 'it's nice to meet you' would be out of place for her, perhaps even for him. So she kept quiet, and let him lead her to wherever they were going.

Dean's cabin was almost empty except for his bed, the large desk in the middle of the room with the wooden chair behind it and the bookshelf situated in the corner, housing several books that Dean hadn't read in years. There was a small kitchen area- if it could even be called a kitchen area, as it was just a tap and a camp stove on a counter. All meals were eaten in the mess hall, so there wasn't much need for a kitchen in everyone's cabin.

Caroline hovered uneasily in the middle of the room, shifting her weight from foot to foot nervously. She wasn't sure where to stand, or how to talk to the intimidating man stood behind the desk. She decided that complimenting usually worked, in her experience.

"It- It's a nice place you've got here." she said with a nervous laugh. Dean didn't answer. What was he supposed to say? Thank you? His cabin was a mess, but it was as close to home as he could get. And besides, he wasn't going to start with the pleasantries until he knew if she could be trusted or not.

"So where are you from?" he asked, turning to the 'kitchen area' to pour a glass of water. He made it look like he'd turned on the tap, but instead he grabbed the bottle of water with a rosary hanging inside it and poured it into the glass. Turning back to face her, he handed the glass towards Caroline with a slight smile. It was partially forced, to encourage her to drink it. She wasn't a Croat, but that didn't mean she couldn't be something else. Like working for Lucifer, one of his hell bitches.

Caroline took the water with a shy smile, and Dean watched as she took a sip, narrowing his eyes when nothing happened. Okay, so not a demon.

"I'm from Virginia, Mystic Falls to be exact."

Dean wracked his brain; he was sure he'd worked a case nearby Mystic Falls a few years back, before the whole Apocalypse business. Possibly a ghoul, but he wasn't completely sure.

"Well you sure are a long way from home."

Caroline's expression dropped, "Yeah, my friends and I fled Mystic when it was hit with the... virus. We'd heard about a safe place in Kansas City, so we headed here. I was... separated from them a while back, but carried on alone."

Dean pursed his lips, but didn't reply. He sensed it was a hard subject for her to talk about. He could relate, he supposed. He definitely had his fair share of hard subjects and raw memories.

"Do you mind if I use the water to clean up?" Caroline asked, changing the subject quickly. She assumed she could shower later, if she was allowed to stay here, but her hands and face were starting to feel uncomfortable. Dean nodded, gesturing behind him to the tap with a nonchalant wave of his hand. She smiled gratefully, moving past him to reach the 'kitchen area'.

While her back was turned, Dean moved quickly to his desk, opening the top drawer and rooting around for what he needed. When his fingers wrapped around the familiar cool metal, he smirked to himself in triumph. Grabbing the handle of the knife, he hid it in his sleeve and turned to the girl by the tap. He moved silently until he was just behind her, then reached over as if to make it look like he was grabbing something from the drawer in the counter. He pulled back, purposely making the blade scratch against Caroline's arm as he did so. She yelped, drawing back her arm in pain with an incredulous look.

"What the hell!"

Dean frowned; it had hurt her, as it would have hurt any normal being. But there wasn't a burning, sizzling sensation when the silver touched her skin. He guessed he could rule out shapeshifter, skinwalker, werewolf or wraith then.

"Sorry," Dean tried to look apologetic, "Guess I'm clumsy."

"Uh huh." Caroline said, looking at him sceptically. She shook her hands quickly to remove the excess water, before moving over to her previous position on the other side of the desk. Dean unnerved her, so she figured a piece of furniture between them was her best bet until she knew she could trust him fully. Or at least, trust him enough not to harm her. She knew the knife was no accident, he hadn't even been convincing at trying to look like he was sorry.

Dean was silent, calculating as he looked over the girl in front of him. With the blood removed from her face, he could see her features properly. Her face was heart-shaped, with full pink lips and freckles dotted across her nose and cheekbones. Her eyes were a dark blue framed by shadowy lashes, and they stared right back at him. All in all, she was an attractive girl. Not what Dean used to go for, a little too good girl next door for his past tastes, but it had been a while since he'd considered any of that. There were more pressing matters at hand. Yet his gut was telling him that something was off. He took another look at her, quickly scanning her body with one glance before realising. She wasn't breathing. The slow rise and fall of her chest that usually signified that someone was alive wasn't there. Dean may have not hunted anything but Croats in a while, but he knew that wasn't natural.

"You're not Croat, but there's no way you're human. What are you?" Dean asked, putting his weight on the desk as he leant forwards, eyes glaring. Caroline opened her mouth as if to speak, but found she couldn't form the words. Dean's gaze narrowed. He stepped around the desk, standing in front of her with both hands gripped to her upper arms.

"Damn it!" he yelled, making Caroline jump at the sudden noise, "What. Are. You?"

He leaned in close to her face, their noses almost touching. Caroline leant away from him, trying to create as much space between them as she could. He growled under his breath, jolting her when he didn't get an answer.

"I said what are you?!"

Caroline pushed him away, "I'm a vampire, okay?!"

Dean's eyes widened, something Caroline wouldn't have caught if it weren't for her heightened senses, as it was gone as soon as it appeared on his face. Then he was stalking towards her, grabbing his knife from the desk and cornering her with the knife pressed against her throat.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you right now." He hissed, pushing the knife further against her neck.

"Because..." she gasped out, "Because I know where Sam is."

A/N: This is my first non-bandom fan fiction I've ever written, so I'm quite nervous about this! This story is set in end!verse as some people like to refer to it. It will (hopefully) be a full length, 30+ chaptered fic once it's complete, give or take a few chapters as I haven't written much of it yet. I'm not putting a set date/time period on how often I update or when I update, just know that I'll update asap and feel free to moan at me if I haven't updated in a while without giving you reasons beforehand. Also, if any of the characters seem OOC to you, there's a reason behind it. Obviously, Dean and Caroline won't be the same people we see in the TV show as such, as in this story both of them have lost a lot, the Apocalypse has happened and they've needed to adapt because of this. With all this being said, I hope you enjoy my fic! :3