Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural, or any of the characters etc., etc. … so don't sue me…

N/A: Following my last fic, Travishu, but can also be a stand-alone. Any kind of feedback would be appreciated…

Party

Part 1

Sam and Claudia stood at top of the stairwell, Sam a little higher up on the stairs. They were both armed, though neither had their weapons drawn. Claudia was resting her head against the wall. She was small, especially in comparison to Sam. She barely reached his shoulders. She had a long brown hair, tied up in a tight pony tail, and the sweetest smile Sam had ever seen. Oh, yeah, and she was a hunter.

"It's different with demons, Sam." She said, "Spirits might haunt someone or something because they have some unfinished business, but demons…" she shrugged, "They just want to have fun."

"Then how would you explain Jess?" Sam asked, resting against the wall looking down at her, "Twenty years, and nothing, and then, all of a sudden, Jess dies the exact same way, above my bed."

"Did you do anything to provoke it?" Claudia asked, "Did you try to summon it? Did you post an ad in the paper saying 'come and get it'? No! Your girlfriend dying wasn't your fault, Sam." She said for the tenth time. She's only been with them a few weeks, but it felt like he's known her for ages. He looked away self-consciously.

"What?" Claudia asked.

"Nothing." Sam said.

"Sam, trust me, there's nothing you can say that would freak me out." Claudia said confidently. Sam smiled bitterly.

"I'm not sure about that." He said.

"Try me. Hi, what's the worst that could happen? You and your annoying brother drive away and we never see each other again." She shrugged, looking up at him. Sam hesitated. They've talked a lot in those past few weeks. He told her about his dad, about his mom, even about Jess. He told her about the job, and about not wanting to do it for ever. And she got it. All of it. She understood his will to stop hunting after he killed the thing that killed Jess. She understood his desire to find his dad. She seemed to understand everything about him. That was refreshingly pleasant. But he hasn't told her about his visions. He wasn't sure why he kept that to himself. Probably because he could really talk to her. Because she looked at him, and didn't see a freak. He didn't want to lose that. But she kept looking at him, waiting.

"I have these dreams…" Sam started hesitantly. She nodded lightly. "Nightmares. And sometimes they come true." He added, waiting nervously for her reaction. Claudia raised a brow.

"What, like premonitions?" she asked. Sam nodded, and her face seemed to light up. "Nice! Can you control it?" she asked. If he hadn't been standing with his back against the wall, he probably would have fallen down. She still didn't think he was a freak. At least, she didn't seem like she thought so. Even Dean seemed freaked out when he found out. Sam shook his head slightly.

"No." he answered. Claudia nodded her head.

"Well, you win some, you lose some." She said. "So what about them?" she asked. Sam hesitated again.

"I saw it. Jessica dying, I saw it, and I didn't do anything." He said in a small voice.

"Why not?" Claudia asked. Just like that. No games. He liked that about her.

"I don't know." He sighed, "I didn't think it was real. I thought they were just nightmares…" he was about to say more when Dean popped his head from the hallway.

"Hi, you two, if you're done making out, we've got a job to do. That is, if you wouldn't mind."

Claudia rolled her eyes.

"Party pooper." She muttered, "I'll go check downstairs again. We'll talk later, okay?" she asked, touching Sam's arm before heading downstairs.

Dean was sitting in the motel room, reading the paper and looking for their next gig. He sipped the terrible coffee he got from the machine outside, turning the pages. It was late. Well, actually, it was seven thirty in the morning, but considering Sam still hasn't come back, it was late. But on the other hand, it was time his little brother got over his girl. It's been a year now. Dean only wished Sam hadn't chosen someone as annoying as Claudia to hook up with. He finished the paper. Nothing there. But he has found a couple of interesting things online. Maybe they should check that out. If Sam ever got back. He did, half an hour later, looking like he hadn't slept at all. My man! Dean thought to himself, smirking.

"Looks like you had a good night." He said, and his smile widened at Sam's reaction. Sam didn't say anything. He just slumped down on one of the beds, taking a deep breath. He seemed… happier, Dean thought. And I bet I know why. "So, what, you and that chick hooked up or what?"

"None of your business." Sam said after a short pause. Dean's smile grew even wider.

"That's my man! About time, Sammy." He cried, "So, tell the truth, was she worth the trouble?" Sam looked irritably at him.

"You're something, you know? You just made up your mind about her, and that's it. You won't even give her a chance." He accused. Dean's smile faded, but he said nothing. That chick almost got him killed. She got him tossed in jail. And now she was riding with them? He would have left her ass a long time ago if he thought Sam would ever shut up about it after. Okay, so she wasn't half-bad hunting, but he still didn't trust her. Not the least beat. If Sammy wants to have some fun, then sure, why not. He needed to have some fun. And he had Dean watching his back, just in case. "And we didn't hook up last night, we just talked." Sam added, getting up from the bed and heading for the bathroom. At that, Dean smiled again.

"Right…" he said. Sam shook his head.

"Whatever." He said, getting in the bathroom. "You know, you should really get to know her better." He said as he got out of the bathroom and took out some fresh clothes from his bag. "She's amazing." He said, a smile spreading on his lips, "You know her family's been hunting for three generations? She's been around this stuff all her life. She knows so much, Dean, and she's so easy to talk to." Sam said, looking at Dean. "I don't have to lie to her all the time, you know? She's just like us."

"She's nothing like us." Dean said quickly.

"Actually, she's a lot like you." said Sam.

"What are you talking about? Chick's nothing like me." Dean protested. Sam smiled.

"Yeah, that's what she said."

"So, you and your honey finished whatever it is you were doing, or do you need some more smooching time before we get to work?" Dean said, a little irritated.

"I told you, it's nothing like that. We just… talk." Sam said. "So, anything interesting?" he asked, ignoring Dean's cocky look.

"A few things, actually." Dean said in his 'all business' tone of voice. "This is interesting. A woman swearing she's possessed in Nevada. We should check it out." he said. Sam gave a slight nod. Dean had tried that before.

"I told you, I'm not going to Vegas with you."

"Fine. Well, there's this thing in Minnesota, a college party gone wrong. There was an incident, twelve died. The ones that survived couldn't really tell what happened." Dean said.

"You think it's our thing?" Sam asked. Dean made a face.

"Well, the victims were mutilated. We should check it out."

Dean slowed the Impala down so the three of them could take a better look at the community college."This is the place?" Claudia asked.

"Doesn't say, but they all went here." Sam said, leaning over to get a better look.

"We should split up, talk to people." Claudia suggested, "I'll try the local police, see if they can give us some more information." Sam nodded.

"I'll go talk to the families of the victims. See if anyone suspects anything. Dean, you should check the place where it happened, see if there's any sign of supernatural activity."

"Oh, big shot, so you're giving the orders now?" Sam stared at him.

"Fine, you talk to the families." He said.

"No, I'll check up the place." Dean said quickly.

Dean walked in the motel room, taking his jacket off. Sam and Claudia both sat on Sam's bed. They stopped talking when he got in the room, giving him the annoying feeling they weren't talking business. He wondered what Sam was telling that chick behind his back. He still remembered what Sam told that Meg chick, about being dragged against his will, doing things he didn't want to do…

"Hi, don't let me get in the way, go on doing… whatever you were doing." Dean said, trying to sound as casual as he could.

"You found anything?" Sam asked him.

"Nah, they already cleaned the place up. No sulfur scent, no irregular EMF readings, no cold spots… Of course, that still doesn't mean there's nothing there." He said.

"Well, I went to a couple of families. Those kids were a very tight group for years." Sam reported. "They all grew up together. The parents didn't notice anything strange going on lately. The kids didn't seem any different. They say it was just a party." Dean gave a slight nod. At least he was still doing his job. Even with the distractions.

"What does the police say?" Dean asked Claudia. She indicated at her cell phone.

"Still waiting." She said, "Official response is to keep our noses out, but I'll know more soon."

Claudia hung up her mobile, returning to the table she shared with Sam and Dean at the diner down the street from their motel. She sat down, taking a fry from her plate.

"Well, break's over." She said, "My source says it looks like some kind of Satanic ritual gone wrong. Of course, he wouldn't know a Satanic ritual from any other but still…"

"Do they know what happened?" Dean asked.

"Survivors won't talk." Claudia said, "They say there was a power outage and then someone crashed the party and started killing people. That's the official police report, too. My guy thinks something else happened."

"Why?" Sam asked.

"Because of the shape of those bodies and the markings all around. He said there was a pentagram and all other Satanic symbols." She shrugged, "Like I said, not an expert."

"So now what?" Sam asked.

"I'll check that place again tonight, see if there's something hiding in the dark." Dean said authoritatively. "You try talking to the survivors, see if you can get anything out of them."

TBC