"A NASTY LITTLE VIXEN."
Chapter One
Alex sits on a bed in a typical second rate motel room; the contents of her hunting duffel bag dominated the lumpy bed. On the second bed sits her duffel bag of clothes and her favourite canvas army jacket. The clothes are neatly, obsessively folded and stacked up in tight rows, like soldiers on a parade square. Her socks are rolled into neat balls, all with happy smiley faces, the bras folded cup-in-cup with the straps tucked in, even her underwear is obsessively folded up into neat squares.
Alex hums her favourite Led Zeppelin tune "When the Levee Breaks" and grabs a dull black semi-automatic pistol out of the bag and takes it apart. She carefully lays the pieces out on a towel in front of her, right to left, each piece exactly two inches from the other. She grabs a cleaning kit, pulls off the Velcro strap and unrolls it to reveal a neatly packaged cleaning kit. She screws together a brass bore snake and carefully pulls it through the barrel. A knock on the door interrupts her humming and she carefully climbs off the bed. Relaxed Alex flips, and Hunting Alex pops up, tense, alert, and focused she slowly slides a knife out of the duffel bag and flips it in her hand so it runs down the length of her forearm and peeks through the peephole. She relaxes and smiles, then swings the door open. Dean and Sam enter, both clumping into the room like two big bulky Rottweilers. Alex smiles to herself at the idea and slides back onto the bed. She slips the knife back into its sheath in the bag.
"Good morning! I've got coffee made, want some?" she asks, gesturing got the half-full coffee pot.
Both boys glance around the room, Dean shoves his hands in his jacket pocket and raises his eyebrows at the weapons collection in the bag and looks at her, then at the collection spread out on the bed. Sam smiles and shoves his hands in his jacket pockets and answers her.
"Ahhh, well we were just heading out for breakfast and thought you'd like some." Dean does a quick count of the guns on the bed and narrows his eyes calculating in his head. She puts the handguns back in the bag when she's finished, so seven in, half an hour each, knives are already done...six hours.
"Didn't you sleep last night?" Alex's face falls for a split-second, and then she pastes a smile on her face and smiles up at Sam.
"I'd love some breakfast, my guts are churning from too much coffee on an empty stomach. " She looks down at the pistol and gives it a wipe with a piece of not-so-white cotton square and then looks up at Dean. Their eyes lock for a second. Nope. Dean thinks. Nightmares again, Huh? She drops her eyes and looks back down at the handgun.
"Gimme a sec I'll put this away. What are you thinking of having?"
Alex grabs the pieces of the pistol and assembles it in seconds despite the bandage around her arm. Dean's eyebrows pop up at how quick she does it. He glances over to Sam and makes a face at him, Sam smiles at Dean and then sits down in the old mismatched kitchen chair around the small wooden table.
"Ahhh, the manager said there was a pretty good restaurant around the corner. Home-style breakfast and such. Typical stuff I guess."
Sam glances over at her open laptop and then down at the sheets of paper carefully stacked beside it. Charts, coordinates, and complicated maps covered with symbols are also stacked alongside. Sam frowns at a map and then glances up at Alex. Alex tosses the pistol into the bag and then scoops up the cleaning kit and dumps it into the duffel. She jumps up and grabs her jacket off the bed and pulls it on over her t shirt.
"Alright, then, I'm starved. My turn to buy, right?" Dean smiles and rubs his hands together and smiles at her.
"Oh ya and you're not the only one starving." Alex glares at him as the boys clomp out the door.
"Why are you always starving when I'm paying?"
The restaurant is so painfully typical Dean almost hesitates to even look at the plastic laminated menus, sick of seeing the same old staged hamburger and fries platter and impossibly tall cheeseburgers with delightfully fluffy lettuce, and sparkling tomatoes. A quick peruse reveals the typical one paragraph of breakfast choices, and the list of accompanying add-ons that are suppose to make it feel like you're getting something wonderful. Fried mushrooms for 25 cents! He sighs and tosses it down on the table and glances over at Alex across from him. She doesn't even look up when she speaks to him.
"Pretty typical. Let me guess, sausages, two eggs over easy, white toast, and coffee." She glances up at Dean just long enough to catch the look on his face, then returns to the menu. Sam snorts a laugh from his spot beside her and glances over to Dean. Dean gives Sam his best, Shut the hell up, face and then looks back at Alex. How she managed to read his freakin' mind sometimes really irritated the hell out of him, was he that shallow and transparent or was she really as good at reading people as Bobby and Sam both seemed to think? A smile rolls over her lips and he realises he was staring at them again. Damn it!
"What's so freakin' funny?" he grumbles. Alex looks up at him, her eyes look through him, analyzing him, tearing apart his little secrets and weaknesses, exposing him. Finally she smiles again and for a minute her eyes go soft, like green grass on a foggy morning. I wonder what they'd look like when she was...Sam loudly clears his throat at the two of them, Dean glances over and Sam jerks his chin at the waitress who has suddenly materialised out of nowhere to stand beside him. Dean looks her up and down. Ummm, chunky little thing, great rack though.
"I'd like three pieces of French toast, a double side of bacon and coffee, black." He smiles at her, then glances over to catch the look on Alex's face. Ha! Got ya! He thinks watching her face when she realises he's ordered her breakfast. She smiles at him and hands the waitress the menu.
"Make that two please, but I'll have two sugar and a cream in my coffee." Sam orders his typical breakfast of oatmeal and coffee with a side of whole wheat toast. Dean smirks at Alex and jerks his chin at her.
"See I pay attention too, ya know." Alex smiles at him and then glances over at Sam.
"Humm I have to admit, he is getting better. What do you think?" Alex bumps Sam with her shoulder and for a second Dean feels a pang of jealousy. She was always so open with Sam, teasing him, laughing with him. Hell she even grabbed his ribs once and made him jump when they were watching a scary movie. Those freakin' eyes of her's caught him looking at her again and he quickly looks down before she could read his freakin' mind again. Sam clears his throat and watches Dean for a second.
"I think there's a lot more to him that we both don't see." Dean looks up at him for a second, then rolls his eyes at him. Leave it to Sam to say something completely intellectual and deep, maybe that's why they both got along so well, both of them were way smarter than him. Whatever, maybe Alex had decided that the smarter brother was the one she'd put in her little fantasy life at the lake and not him. Why the hell did that bother him so much? It was way too quiet, Dean searched his brain for a way to divert the topic off himself, get it onto something safer. The waitress arrives and pours them a round of coffee, he watches Alex's face.
"Sooo, looks like it's going to be quiet for a bit. Any ideas on what to do?" Alex perked up and leaned across the table closer to him, she grabs her coffee cup and slides it across right beside his.
"Gun show in Arizona..." She smiles, Sam grunts his protest and then looks at Alex.
"Ummm, how about New York? The Met has the New Greek and Roman wing open." Alex face lights up, and she turns back to Sam.
"Oh! Yes! You haven't been there yet? I got through half and had to call it a day. The Black Bedroom is incredible!"
Sam smiles down at her, excited to have a co-hort in his educational pursuits.
"No way! When did you go?"
"Ahhh, 2008? maybe?"
Dean groans and is about to protest when his phone rings. He sighs and digs it out of his pocket and checks the number, he stares at it for a second, puzzled, then answers.
"Ahh, hello?" A small, bubbly at the other end hesitates for a second then answers him back.
"Dean? Dean Winchester? You probably don't remember me but we met in Canonsberg PA. Ahh shape shifter though I was Mina and you were Harker..." His mind flips through the monsters, shape shifter; Mina and Harker; the blond, bubbly voice is what finally flips the switch.
"Jamie?"
His stomach does a flip for a second, and he immediately glances up at Sam and Alex. Both of them have stopped their chatter and are listening to him. Crap! Well at least it's not the pregnant phone call... He was religiously careful about wrapping the little fella but there were a couple of nights when things were just way too foggy to remember if he had managed it, but he never done the down-and-dirty with Jamie. So that meant...
Chapter Two
He never thought he'd be walking the streets of Canonsberg again but Dean finds himself standing beside the Impala with Sam waiting for Alex. Alex's truck pulls in behind and parks behind the Impala. Alex jumps out and glares at Dean as she stomps over to them.
"Ya know it's more fun to race when the other person knows what you're doing!" Dean smiles and watches her approach him. He glances over to Sam and then looks at her. She plants both feet and then tosses her backpack over her shoulder and glares up at him. Her green eyes are flashing green sparks, her cheeks are flushed, and she's breathing heavy. Oh shit, she's so damned hot when she's mad. Dean snaps to the present and glances at her old truck.
"What? The clunker can't keep up?" He digs her, teasing. Alex's eyes fire up again, and she leans in closer. For just a second he can smell the shampoo she uses in her hair.
"My clunker can keep up just fine if somebody stays on the route; you took a short cut smart ass." Sam shakes his head and sighs and shoves his hands in his jacket pockets. Dean glances over at him and then stops arguing with Alex. He makes a snotty face at Alex, spins on his heels and heads towards a small house. Alex rolls her eyes at his back and falls in behind him, Sam brings up the lead. Dean looks around and then knocks on the door. A beautiful blond opens the door and immediately grabs Dean in a hug.
"Dean! You came!" she squeals in one of the high pitched girly excited voices.
Dean smiles at her and gives her a squeeze back, mainly to get her off of him. Alex glances over to Sam and grumbles under her breath.
"Oh god spares us the details, chatty Kathy."
Sam smirks and tries not to laugh at Alex's obvious jealousy directed the pretty blond. Dean lets Jamie go and glares at them both to behave themselves. He smiles politely down at Jamie and then gestures to Alex and Sam.
"Jamie, you must remember Sam, and this is Alex...we're babysitting her for a while."
Dean smirks at the glare Alex levels at him, satisfied that the dig hit its mark. Why he felt the need to dig her again, he didn't know but seeing her jealous over Jamie made him smile. He's immediately thrown off guard when Alex smiles sweetly to Jamie and extends her hand towards her in a handshake. Oh god, please don't hurt her, she's just a civilian. Dean thinks for a second, ready to jump to Jamie's defence.
"Nice to meet one of Dean's friends, he usually doesn't bother remembering names. You must be special."
Sam chokes a laugh at the look on Dean's face and then steps in and shakes Jamie's hand. Alex glares at Dean behind their backs, and then smiles at Jamie. Jamie glances between the two of them, sure something is up but smiles at Alex anyway. Jamie lightly punches Dean in the shoulder.
"Dean saved me from this shape shifter creature. What a nut. Sad, but a nut."
"No, as I remember you were the one who saved me."
"Yes, that's true isn't it? Anyway, I called because I think there is another one."
Jamie's kitchen is clean, not particularly neat but very clean and homey. A big orange cat has claimed a spot on the top of a chest freezer, curled up comfortably on top of a black sweater. It smells like cinnamon and apples, probably from the many candles spread around the place. Jamie pours a round of coffee and then slides back into the empty chair at the table. She fiddles with a sheet of paper for a second then glances around.
"Sooo, what do you think? It seems a little odd..."
Alex reaches over and picks the paper up and reads it, then nods her head and puts it back down. Alex looks at the girl with a begrudging respect and smiles at her.
"That's some pretty tight detective work. Looks like there is definitely something going on. What it is might be a little harder to figure out."
Jamie frowns, Alex grimaces inside as she watches her face. She was the type of girl that is cute even when she was frowning. Alex knew what she looked like when she frowned, and it wasn't cute to say the least, at least she could be smart.
"Problem is there are a half a dozen different kinds of shape shifters out there, it's kind of a general term. A werewolf is actually a shape shifter, and incubus is a shape shifter..."
"Ummm, Succubus too." The all look at Dean, who looks back at them all, he at least has the courtesy to blush faintly. He immediately bristles to his own defence.
"What? I'm just saying..." he takes a sip of coffee and avoids their eyes.
"We get the idea." Sam finishes. Alex picks up the paper and reads it through again, and then slides it over to Sam.
"Ya, but incubus and succubus drain their prey of energy till they die. This doesn't sound like that. Multiple victims, all mildly affected for several days, like a flu. They've all recovered. Doesn't make sense." Dean shrugs, Sam looks around the table at them.
"Well, looks like we've got some research to do. How about we go get started, we can keep you posted."
The group nods in agreement and stand up ready to go. The slowly make their way out of the little house, Jamie chatting the entire time, by the time they are at the door both Sam and Alex are grinding their teeth in irritation. At the door Jamie grabs Dean's arm and pulls him back, Sam smiles and keeps walking, hoping that Alex will follow his lead. Alex sticks with Sam but glances back at the two in the doorway and glances at Sam.
"I take it we're headed back to the motel." Sam nods and glances around the yard. "You want to come with me in the truck?" Sam glances back at Dean, who is focused on Jamie who is running her hand down his chest.
"So maybe later...if you want...why don't you stop in? We can have a few drinks and catch up."
Dean glances at Sam and Alex who are standing at the vehicles and then looks back at Jamie. The memory he had of her was different, now she just seems a little flat, boring.
"Ya, I'd like that, but you know first we should find this thing before anybody else gets hurt. I think we'll hit the bar tonight and see if we can find this thing. That seems to be its hunting spot. You stay here and keep safe."
Jamie smiles up at him and flips her hair back. Dean sighs at her obvious flirting, if it was socially acceptable she'd probably be out of her t-shirt and sweatpants already, climbing his leg like a stripper pole. She giggles at him when she replies.
"Okay, it's a date then. But I'd feel safer if you were here with me."
Dean walks across Jamie's front yard and smiles, then glances back at the door where she stands and watches them go. Sam watches Dean approach, reading his body language, something isn't right but the way Dean is smiling back at her; it looks like they've made plans.
"So...should I assume you'll be busy tonight?" Alex asks, jerking her chin in Jamie's direction. Sam groans silently to himself when he sees in what direction things seem to be going in. A series of little digs between Dean and Alex designed to irritate and make the other as jealous as possible that will cumulate in a huge blow up.
"No! Work first. Play later! Let's go!" Dean smiles a wicked grin and him and smacks Sam in the arm. Alex rolls her eyes and shakes her head at him, she shifts her feet impatiently and heads over to her truck.
"So are we heading back to the motel we passed on the highway?" Dean looks a little disappointed that the dig didn't hit its mark, watches her unlock the truck door.
"Yep, looks good to me."
Alex follows behind the Impala, U2's song "Sexy Boots" blasts out of the truck speakers; she smirks a bit and turns the volume down, then picks up her cell phone and speed dials. In the Impala Sam picks up his cell and sees Alex's number; he glances over to Dean and then answers it, wary.
"Ya! Okay I will."
Sam hangs up and laughs, then glances over at Dean. He's slouched in the driver's seat, one arm casually resting across the steering wheel, the Impala floats along, Kiss's "Beth" drifts from the radio. Dean glances over at Sam, waiting.
"Well? What's up?"
"Alex says you're driving like an old woman." Dean glances over to Sam and frowns, then glances in the rear view mirror at her truck. Sam sighs and pinches his lips together, irritated at being drug into their petty little digs.
"What?" Dean asks. In reply the truck roars behind them and Alex pulls over into the other lane and drives alongside the Impala. She pulls up level with its bumper, then pulls ahead a bit, then falls back so the bumpers are in line again, challenging him, tossing down the gauntlet. Dean glances out his window at her. Are you freakin' serious! Nobody beats Paula, nobody!
"Oh! So that's how we're playing is it!" Dean takes a grip with both hands on the steering wheel and steps on the gas, slowly accelerating, pushing Alex to go faster, daring her. He knows without a doubt she'll take him up on the offer and give him a run for his money. But how far will you go honey?
The Impala surges forward, the truck matches it and stays even with the car. Both vehicles fly down the old highway, neither one giving an inch. Alex's truck slowly pulls ahead of the Impala, she leads by a hood. Alex laughs out loud, then reaches over and cranks the volume on the stereo and yells. AC/DC blasts out of Alex's speakers and the truck loud enough for Dean to hear it over the roaring engines, Dean shakes his head and laughs when he hears the music and yelling from her truck. He cranks up his stereo and yells back, then pushes the pedal to the floor, the car surges ahead and pulls out in front of her.
Sam grabs the dash and the door jam and watches the motel looming up ahead at the curve on the road. The Impala is gaining speed; the truck roars alongside, Sam looks over at Dean, then back at the road certain he is going to die in a horrific accident.
"Dean!"
Both vehicles pull into the gravel parking lot in front of the motel and come to a sliding halt. The Impala is just a few seconds ahead of the truck and wins the impromptu race. Alex jumps out; laughing and smiling like an idiot and jogs around her truck to the Impala parked to the right of the truck. She lovingly runs her hands over the hood of the car and looks up at Dean when he climbs out.
"I could have taken you! I eased up so you would hurt her. You can't red-line her like that you turkey! You should have let me win!" Dean laughs and leans against the car and pats it affectionately, then watches Alex. Her hair is a mess, her eyes sparkle with life and laughter, her hands run over the hood of the car stroking it. She talks to my car like it's a person, sweet. I wish she would touch me like that. The thought pops into his head before he knows it, and his groin tightens in a positive response, he takes a breath and refocuses.
"Oh don't worry about Paula; it would hurt her feelings more if I let you win." Both laugh and smile at each other, just for a minute they connect again. They both stand too close to each other; Dean rubs his hand at an invisible mark on the hood, almost bumping Alex's hand that is still resting on the hood. Alex smiles a shy smile and then jerks her chin at Sam. Sam hasn't moved from the car.
"What's up with Sam?" she asks quietly, a grin still plays around her lips. Dean tears his gaze away from her face and glances over to his brother.
"I think he pee'd his pants." They both erupt into peals of laughter. Dean runs his fingers over the back of Alex's hand before he spins away and heads to the direction of the office. Idiot, get you're freakin' mind on work, Alex is way too good for you to mess with.
Chapter Three
The bar is full of people, the dance music is blasting, it's elbow to elbow. Dean, Sam and Alex walk in and glance around. A large group of men cluster around the pool tables at the back of the bar, several tables are full of couples; the dance floor is packed with dancers. Waitresses are steady back and forth between the bar and tables. Dean stops at the bar and orders three beer and then points over to an empty table. The bartender does a quick double-take at him, then smiles and nods. The three slide into a booth, Dean glances around the bar checking for exits and problems. Alex does the same and then glances over to Dean.
"Oh don't worry there's enough to keep your attention for a little while." Dean looks at her for a minute and glances around again. For some reason that dig hurt a bit, and he wasn't sure if it was because she was questioning his professionalism at hunting or if she was calling him a tramp.
"Is that really what you think of me? I'm hunting Alex. Everything says this is the spot; now keep your eyes opened for a female, long brown hair, Asian eyes, funny accent." Alex looks at him for a long minute, and then looks around the bar.
A smile plays faintly around Sam's lips for a second, the chink in Dean's armour was getting bigger, the game was getting serious and it was only a matter of time before both Alex and Dean would blow up and reveal their feelings for each other. As much as Sam loved his brother he couldn't wait for it to happen, Dean needed Alex and she was perfect for him, if they would both just give up the tough guys acts.
"Ahhh, why don't you say Oriental or Asian woman? It's easier." Sam says, scoping the place out.
"Because Sam, none of the victims say Oriental or Asian, they say white girl with funny Asian eyes, geeze Sam." Dean growls at him, impatiently. The conversation stops when the waitress brings over a tray full of beer and sets it down. She glances at Sam, and then smiles at him.
"Three beer. If you'd like to order from the menu the kitchen closes at 11." Dean glances over to Sam and then at the waitress.
"Sounds great! Are you on it?" She gives Dean a drop-dead look that makes it clear she's not playing with him, and then glances over to Sam again.
"No. Six bucks please." Dean tosses some bills on her tray and Sam leans in.
"Hey, listen I'm suppose to meet a friend here. White female, tall, long brown hair, Asian eyes?' The waitress glances around the room for a second, then picks up the tray.
"Doesn't ring a bell right off. Sorry. The crowd usually picks up at eleven, she might be one of that crew."
"Thanks!" He watches her go across the room to the group of men at the pool table, they yell and hoot in distinctive English accents. Alex frowns for a second and turns to look at them, her eyes narrow as she watches but it's too crowded to get a good look at who was making all the noise. Alex turns back to her beer and the boys. Sam looks around again, and then focuses on Dean and Alex.
"Maybe we've got the wrong bar." Alex shakes her head at him.
"Only one on the street, next one isn't for another two blocks over."
"Just relax, we'll drink these and keep an eye out and then if nothing shows we can head over to the other place." Sam rolls his eyes and takes a drink of beer; Alex and Dean take a drink and look around. Dean stops and smiles at someone at the other end of the room. Jamie steps through the crowd and looks around, then sees them and heads over to the table. Alex rolls her eyes and looks at Sam.
"Oh great, Giggles is here. Who the hell invited her?" Alex asks, glaring specifically at Dean. Dean shrugs innocently and looks around the table.
"This is not a good idea, Dean." Sam grumbles, shifting on his chair.
"I did not tell her I was going to be here. She's the one who recommended the place."
Dean growls at them, glaring back. Inside he's seething mad at the silly blond for not following his directions. The entire evening was going to be one big hassle with Jamie tagging along; just because she had the balls to shoot the other shape shifter didn't mean she was hunter material. At least he could keep her close and hopefully safe, safer than he had kept Alex. Guilt twists a little in his gut at that thought and he quickly shoves it aside and greets a smiling Jamie.
"Hey, what are you doing here?"
"I couldn't just stay at home waiting. It was driving me nuts." Alex rolls her eyes, then looks at Sam.
"I think I'll go walk around, see if I can spot her." Sam nods; Alex grabs her beer and slides out of the booth, while Jamie slides in beside Dean.
"Hey! Be careful, don't drink anything." Dean shouts as she stands up. Alex jerks her chin at him in acknowledgement and then slips into the crowd of people.
The crowd was so packet together it was hard not to get through without banging into somebody or getting bumped back. After the fourth bump, Alex was wondering how the Fire Marshal would feel about the obvious safety violation when a hand suddenly clamps down on her right bicep and jerks her backward. Years of military training kicks in and she steps around and breaks the grip, then plants the offender face-first firmly against the wall.
"Whoa, whoa there my love. I just wanted to see if it was you or not!" a thick British accent yells. Alex freezes and releases the back of the leather jacket and then grabs his shoulder and spins him around. Her stomach hits the floor and her heart stops when she finds herself looking into a face from her past.
"Is everything okay here dear?" a familiar voice growls in her ear. Alex looks over and finds Dean standing there, obviously ready to step in and pummel the guy. The guy laughs at Dean and then glances at Alex, and straightens out his jacket.
"Dear, certainly doesn't need your help. She could kick the whole bars ass without breaking a sweat. Couldn't you Alex? Unless of course he doesn't know what you were."
Alex looks at him, her eyes narrow and her voice is ice cold when she speaks.
"He knows everything. Except what you had to do with the whole situation. Should I tell him?" The Brit looks at Dean and then smirks and shrugs and looks back at Alex.
"There's a couple more boys over in the corner you might like to see. And they would love to see you my dear, black leather pants! Really Alex! Better make it quick, they just got last call."
He shoves past Dean and Alex and then disappears into the crowd. Dean watches him go, and then turns to Alex.
"Who was he?"
"My old boss, the one who left me and my team in the desert to die."
Before Dean has a chance to ask her anything else she spins around and pushes her way through the crowd to the back corner of the bar. It's a little quieter here and not as crowded, the majority of the people at the bar were interested in dancing. The group at the tables here were definitely not interested in dancing, just the dancers. It was obvious to anybody there were military just by looking at the haircuts alone, but six olive green t-shirts, jeans, and six biceps with similar tattoos pretty much sealed the deal.
Alex confident stride falters for a second and slows to a stop several feet away from the table. The group is chatting amongst themselves when one guy glances over and sees Alex. His face freezes in shock, the group immediately notices him and looks at her, silence falls over the table.
"Alexis." He breathes in a heavy Scottish accent, not taking his eyes off her. Alex blinks and nods and tries to smile. Dean looks between the two of them; the looks on their faces say everything.
"Haggis." She whispers. The Scot slowly climbs to his feet and grabs a walking cane; he leans on it heavily and takes a few steps towards her. It's obvious he's lost part of his right leg, and several thick scars across his right arm and cheek gives Dean an idea of what kind of injuries the guy had gone through. Still, he was built like a tree, and the dark tanned skin and bulk under the t shirt indicated he was in great shape. Alex silently steps closer and the two embrace, Alex burying her face in his chest. Dean swings around to leave and comes face-to-face with a familiar form, the British accent yells at him over the music.
"Ha! I see she didn't tell you about the ex-husband, now did she. Well, well, well."
He is carrying two fresh pitches of draft beer smirking at him. Dean glances back at the two of them still holding each other, then shoves his way past.
"Go choke on your bangers!" he growls.
The bitch, the lying deceitful, lying bitch! Was the first thought that popped into his head as he stomped his way back to the table where Sam and Jamie was waiting for him. It wasn't as if she had to tell him about it but getting blindsided by an ex-husband was something kinda big as far as he was concerned. Sam's eyebrows almost hit the back of his head when Dean crashes into the booth and grabs his beer.
"Ahhh, Dean. Is Alex okay?" A litany of blistering remarks is perched on the tip of his tongue but he clenches his teeth and looks at Sam.
"Oh she's just ducky. Her and her ex-husband are just great!" he sneers before taking a large drink of beer. Sam sits there for a second taking in what Dean was just told him; he leans forward and looks hard at Dean.
"Her Ex-husband?" Dean makes a face at Sam, and then glances over at Jamie who is sitting in the booth beside him. "Mozzeltoff!"
Sam walks around the bar and glances at Dean and Jamie in the booth, Dean has been distracting himself with Jamie and looking for a busty Asian babe. Alex on the other hand was sitting in the back corner with the British army guys reliving old days. Sam glances around the bar and sees a beautiful woman sitting there; she has long red hair and huge green eyes. He's eyes narrow; she wasn't there the last time he came around. She catches Sam looking at her and smiles at him but then looks away.
Sam smiles at her then glances at Dean, and catches his eye. Sam jerks his head in her direction. Dean nods and picks up his bottle and toasts Sam. Sam smiles and shakes his head and turns back to the redhead. He slides onto the barstool beside her and smiles. The bartender glances at Sam and Dean and smiles a small smile, then slides a beer down the bar towards Sam. Sam catches it and nods back to him. Dean shakes his head and turns back to Jamie.
"Ahhh...looks like it's me and you."
"Great, I couldn't ask for better." Jamie smiles at Dean and adjusts her chair so it's closer to him.
The bartender flips a towel over his shoulder and yells over to the other guy at the other end of the bar. He gestures to the back wall and the other guy nods, then turns back to his drinks. The bartender walks though the bar and out into a back room, he walks outside and lights a cigarette, then he pulls a phone out of his pocket and dials a number. He smiles when someone answers, his eyes flip to black, no pupils and he smiles an evil grin.
"This is Darcy in Canonsberg, PA. You are not gonna believe who just walked into my bar. The Winchester boys with the girl, Alex. Yes, I'm friggin' sure, you've had photos spread all over the damned country. It's them, three of them, the older guy Bobby hasn't been spotted yet. Do I get to kill them? No, I understand completely, not a hair, yes sir."
He hangs up the phone and grumbles under his breath, then takes a last drag off of his cigarette and flips it away, his eyes flip to normal human eyes and he smiles and evil grin before heading back into the bar.
Sam shifts in his seat and chats with Susan but keeps an eye on the folks moving through the bar. Nobody matches the description of the Asian girl Jamie gave them, he leans over to Susan and smiles, as much as he liked her company they were supposed to be hunting and the other bars on the street might be harbouring their shape shifter.
"Listen, I feel like a bit of a jerk leaving my brother alone for this long. Do you mind if I go over and check on him for a second?" he yells over the loud music.
Susan smiles and shakes her head, then leans in close to him, her lips tickle his ear when she talks to him, it has an immediate effect on him and sends little shivers though him that seems to concentrate right in his groin.
"I think it might be a good idea to let him know you may be coming home with me tonight."
Sam blushes and smiles at her, then slides off the bar stool and makes his way over to Dean. Dean looks up at him when he approaches and slides away from Jamie a little.
"Sammy, looks like you've got your hands full brother. If you need some help..." Dean teases. Sam gives Dean a look and then slides in beside him in the booth.
"Ya she told me to tell you that I would probably be going home with her tonight." Dean laughs and takes a drink of beer, then glances around the bar.
"Well you know what I always say, don't pass up on a freebee." Sam shakes his head at Dean and looks over at Jamie, then leans in close to him.
"Dean, we're supposed to be hunting here, not picking up. What happened to heading over to the other bar?"
Dean snorts and looks around for a second, then back to Sam.
"Do you really think we're going to get Alex out of here? She's back there enjoying old home week, sipping tea with the Ex. I think we're stuck here tonight Sammy, might as well enjoy it."
He throws his arm around Jamie and leans back in the booth, then takes a long drink of beer. Jamie laughs and snuggles up to him and clinks bottles together with him. Sam shakes his head at him and stands up to go.
"Hey, why don't you bring over the redhead, come on over." Dean says glancing over to her.
"Susan, her name is Susan, and no thanks. I think we'll stay over there." Dean shrugs and turns back to Jamie who giggles and wiggles against him, Sam rolls his eyes at her and walks back over to Susan. She smiles at him, and pats the bar stool, Sam slides into it and smiles back at her. She slides over two glasses of whiskey and then holds her's up, Sam smiles and clinks glasses with her and takes a drink.
Chapter Four
The sun is barely coming up when Alex's truck pulls into the parking lot of the motel and parks beside the Impala. Music is blaring out of the truck, "Back For More" by Ratt echoes and bounces around the parking lot. She slides out of the truck and makes her way over to her motel door yawning a huge yawn. She is fumbling with her keys when Dean comes stomping out of the adjoining room.
"Where the hell were you! I was calling your cell all night!" Alex looks at him, surprised, then smirks at him.
"Same place you were, at the bar."
"I mean after that!" Alex finally gets the door opened; she steps inside and tosses her jacket on the bed and spins around to face him. Dean follows her inside and looks around the room trying to gather his wits and calm down enough to hear Alex's response, his patience gone hours ago. It was bad enough Sam wasn't answering but to know Alex actually stayed out all night with those army guys bugged the hell out of him.
"What? "
"When did you leave the bar? Was Sam still there?" Alex frowns and thinks for a second.
"Ya...I think he was at the bar sitting with the redhead. Why?"
"Because neither of you seem to be answering your cell phones. That is not like Sam. Even when he picks up he always calls to tell me where he is." Dean is right, Alex frowns and checks her phone, she walks over to a small table and plugs in her cell, then speed dials. It rings several times then switches to Sam's voice mail. Alex hangs up and frowns, Sam always answered.
"Well maybe it's out of batteries. Mine is almost out too." Dean shakes his head and paces around the room.
"Well if you were both here to plug the freakin' things in you wouldn't be out, would you? He keeps a spare in his pocket, just in case. Something's wrong."
Alex frowns and slides into a chair at the table and flips open her laptop and boots it up, the sleepy feelings being replaced by worry. Her fingers fly over the keyboard as she plans her strategy.
"We don't have time to surf the net." Dean grumbles as he paces around the room. Alex glares at him, her fingers flying over the keyboard punching in passwords and opening websites.
"I'm looking for him." Dean looks at her, then steps in behind her and leans over her shoulder. Her laptop has a map of Canonsberg and several little people flashing on it. Dean leans in closer, there is a little stickman called Dean flashing at the motel and several more grouped together at hotel across town. His eyebrows pop up when he reads the name labels.
"Okay who's Tuggs and Smoothy? Chatters? Seriously? Are these grown men or muppets?"
"They're my buddies from the bar. They're on leave from the Base. Sam's cell phone is off...no wait there he is." A little stick figure with a 'Sam' label pops up, way out in the woods outside of town, almost immediately Dean's pocket rings. He yanks it out and checks the number and then almost yells into it.
"Sam! What the hell is going on?" The weak, groggy voice on the other end says more to him that the words do.
"Dean, help."
The Impala slowly rolls down a dirt road and then pulls off to the side and stops. Dean jumps out and immediately goes to the trunk; he pops it open and grabs the duffel bag and loads up with the shotgun, knives and his pistol. Alex emerges from the passenger side, holding her cell phone and GPs. She shoves the phone in her jacket pocket and sets the GPS on the roof of the car and pulls out her pistol. She quickly checks inside her jacket, two large Kukri knives hang off her belt. Dean joins her at the passenger door.
"Can you use those with your arm the way it is. You haven't worn them before."
Alex's eyebrows pop up at the implication that he's been watching her and keeping notes.
"Ya, so far so good. Haven't given them a hard run though."
"Well I don't think now is a good time to try it out."
"Dean, I have a gun in my hand. The Kukri are just back-up and I don't think I'll need t hem at all with you here. I just feel better with them on."
Dean smirks at her for the veiled compliment and then shakes his head.
"Ya, okay I get it. Are you sure this is gonna work?"
Alex grabs the GPS and starts walking through the heavy woods, taking reading from the machine. Dean falls in beside her and watches the woods around them. The birds chirp, the wind blows, it's a beautiful day no ominous threats.
Alex hikes up a small rise and looks around, Dean trudges up behind her. Suddenly Alex takes off at a run and Dean looks up to see. Sam is sitting at the base of a large tree, his back leaning against it, sleeping. Alex drops to her knees in front of him and touches his face. Sam is groggy but manages to wake up.
"Hey, you found me."
"Damned straight! What the hell happened? Why didn't you call?"
Dean asks as he digs around the duffel bag and produces a bottle of whiskey. He twists the top off and hands it to Sam. Sam takes a short drink, then hands it back.
"I woke up here this morning, naked. I found some stuff but couldn't find the phone till Alex rang it this morning."
"But I rang it all night! Were you out here all night?"
Sam shrugs and looks at Alex beside him.
"I can't remember. I remember the bar and bad English accents singing songs."
Dean snickers and glances at Alex, she glares at him and then stands up.
"Wow that was early. So what happened to redhead?"
Sam shakes his head, Dean leans forward and grabs him under the arm, Alex leans in and they help him up to his feet. Sam wobbles and grabs the tree for support. Dean drops the duffel bag and grabs him. Alex grabs the bag and throws it over both shoulders like a backpack and grabs the GPS.
"That's not too heavy for ya is it?" Alex shakes her head at him and steps ahead of them.
"No, I'm fine. Let's get Sam back to the room, and then maybe later we can come back and search for clues. Sounds like Sam might have come in contact with our shifter."
"Bull! Sam's better than that!'
"Oh yes, and he always passes out in the woods naked!" Their voices fade off as they argue their way back to the car, Sam stumbling along silently beside Dean.
Back in the motel room Sam sleeps in one of the beds, Dean hovers over him watching, his cell pressed to his ear. Alex hammers away at her laptop, then flips Sam's over closer to her and works on it for a minute. She flips back to hers and types more.
"Yes Bobby, I'm sure. We all saw her, a redhead at the bar, but she doesn't show up in the security cameras anywhere. A what?"
Bobby sits behind his desk in his house and flips through a musty leather bound book, old Chinese style ink drawings decorate the pages of beautiful women and men, all sporting fox tails. He leans forward and reads from the book outloud in fluent Chinese, then translates into English.
"You have a Huil jing on your hands, and it's probably got its spell into Sam."
Dean gestures to Alex who grabs a pen and paper from beside her laptop and waits for Dean to relay the message.
"A what? H-U-L-I J-I-N-G. Huli jing Ninetailed Fox. Okay then and I can guess this thing is from what Japan? Oh, China, great. How do we kill it Bobby. Fine! Fine!"
Dean hangs up the phone and rolls his eyes, then looks at Alex.
"I hope you got that because I don't think I could spell it again."
"Got it. Sounds a little far from home. China."
"Good old America, the melting pot of the world. Can you get anything off the net or are we waiting for Bobby?"
"Gimme a minute. These motel connections are freakin' slow."
Alex pokes at her laptop keyboard, then flexes her fingers on her right hand and faintly winces. Dean pinches his lips together and watches her read from the computer screen.
"Got it! Huli jing, Ninetailed Fox, Immortal Fox, appears in the guise of a beautiful woman or a man. Lays a spell on its victims and Not only master at shapeshifting, Huli jing are also said to transport persons in the air as well as giving those who worship him the ability to enter a house passing through walls. A fox disguised as a woman is usually beautiful and seductive, as a man he is usually handsome, scholarly, charming, and ready for a good time."
Alex raises her eyebrows at looks at Dean, pointedly, then looks back at the screen and reads more.
"When the spirit is in female form, get her drunk in order to revert it to its true shape. Once discovered it will vanish. If caught off guard in fox form and its tail, the source of its power, will be cut off, it will leave never to return again. To get rid of the spirit paper charms must be burnt, their ashes mixed in tea and drunk by the victim. Well at least we have options."
Dean's eyebrows pop up a little and he pinches his lips together for a second.
"Do you think we can trust the net?" he asks cautiously.
Alex shrugs and looks at the screen again frowning.
"I don't know. Let's call Bobby back and see if he can confirm it."
Dean swears under his breath and paces around the room, then glances back down at Sam. He's still sleeping peacefully, snoring away. Dean spins on his heel back to Alex, still fuming mad and growls at her.
"This wouldn't have happened if you would have kept your mind on the job."
Alex looks up at him, the expression on her face shows she's completely astounded at this comment, her fingers come to a halt on the keyboard.
"What?" she snaps, an incredulous look on her face. "If I kept my mind on the job? The whole reason we're here is because you're trying to get laid! Since when is that a job?"
Dean glares at her and stalks around the room, not taking his eyes off her face, her eyes were positively blazing green fire, and he was surprised she wasn't hissing at him like the little fluffed up cat she reminded him of.
"We are here to hunt, not for some freakin' family reunion. You're the one who took off with the blokes for a pint and left us."
Alex jumps up and advances on him, her eyes narrow and she glares at him, she stops inches from his face. He towers over her and glares back, daring her to keep going.
"Your little blond bimbo showed up first Romeo. In fact you drug us half-way across the country just so you could go for round two!"
"Oh Alex is wrong again! We went for round two and three and four long ago honey! How many rounds did you go last night, there were what six, seven of them! Was it two each or did you just settle for the Ex?"
The words are out of his mouth before he even realises what he's said, and the long seconds of silence say more than the look on Alex's face does. For a second he wishes he could rewind time and suck those words right back into his big mouth, then she smacks him. Her left hand administers a stinging slap to his cheek; the sound of it's like a bullet in his ears, and his right eye waters with the impact. He'd been smacked before but not from someone who thought doing handstand push-ups against a wall was normal exercise. His head was ringing like a bell, and he was thankful it hadn't been a fist; he'd be out cold on the floor right now. For a second he gets a glimpse of her face before she spins away and grabs her jacket and laptop, he could have sworn he saw tears in her eyes and that hurt more than his cheek did.
"Alex!" he snaps at her, trying to get her to stop before she gets out the door. She does stop, her hand on the doorknob, her back to him, waiting. His temper rises again and he glares at her back for a second. If she though he was going to apologise she was nuts! She left them; she could damned well say she was sorry. Sam was hurt because of her. If she hadn't been so god damned distracting I'd be focused on hunting, not on getting laid.
"Don't take my damned notes." He growls at her back.
Alex spins around on her heel and grabs all the sheets of paper jammed in her laptop and pulls them out. She walks back to him and slams them against his chest and holds them there, glaring up at him. Any hint of tears was long gone, her eyes were cold enough to freeze him to the spot, and the ice in her eyes matches the ice in her voice.
"The only reason I'm staying is because Sam's hurt. I owe him that."
Before he has a chance to reply she spins around and yanks open the door, it wobbles on the door hinges and bounces against the wall before Dean can get to it, and leaves a perfect imprint of the door handle in the wall.
"So much for the room deposit.' Sam grumbles from the bed.
Chapter Five
The bar is not as rowdy as the last time they had walked in; in fact it was almost dead. Dean slides up to the bartender and orders them beer, Alex asks for a shot of whiskey and tosses it back, then chases it with beer. Dean eyes her, and then looks around the bar.
"We're hunting you know, do you think that's a good idea." Alex looks around confused for a second, then realises he's talking about the whiskey; she shakes her head at him and looks at him, then around the bar.
"Back off Dean." she growls, she looks around the bar and shakes her head again, then takes a drink of beer. He waits for a second surprised at the venom in her voice. He though she'd be over their little agreement by now, not still mad at him. He looks around the bar and takes a drink.
"I have a responsibility to keep you safe." Alex opens her mouth to reply and then stops when a handsome man walks into the bar, her eyes narrow and she watches his every move. Dean notices and watches him, he looks like any other guy in the bar, and Alex is still watching him.
"So...is that our guy?" Alex glances at Dean then back to her beer, she takes a sip and then smiles.
"My spidey-senses are definitely tingling. I think we should keep an eye on him." Dean hums to himself and glances around. He groans out loud when Jamie walks into the bar, she glances around and sees Dean but makes a bee-line for the guy they are watching.
"You have to rein in your bimbo!" Alex growls, she turns to Dean, her eyes snapping."If you want her on this hunt than the least you can do is tell me. It's called common courtesy."
"Believe me I didn't invite her. I don't want her here anymore than you do!" Dean growls at her. Alex looks at him hard reading his face, then looks around the bar.
"So what then? Do we wait and let her do her thing?" Alex finally asks. Dean pinches his lips together and thinks, then shakes his head.
"We don't have much of a choice, if we move in now we risk scaring it away. We have to sit and wait."
Alex looks hard at him, then turns back to look around the bar. The night drags on, either of them barely speaking, both watching Jamie and the Huli flirt and share drinks. Alex sighs and rubs her face, bored and tired, when suddenly Jamie stands up and grabs her purse. She glances quickly over at Dean and Alex then heads to the Ladies Room.
"I'm on it." Alex mutters as she slides off the bar stool and follows Jamie into the bathroom. Jamie is fluffing her hair when Alex walks in.
"Just what the hell are you doing?" Alex growls at her.
"I'm getting the info you need. Why?" Jamie smiles, she digs around in her purse and pulls out a lipstick and reapplies it. Alex glares at her and steps up closer to her.
"Because you're not a hunter. You're going to get yourself hurt, or killed." Jamie levels a look at Alex that says 'Ya, right' she snorts in derision at her and blots her lipstick. Alex glances around the room automatically and gets her temper under control, then turns back to the blonde.
"Dean wants to know what you've got. We've got to get this done before Sam gets worse."
Jamie glances up at Alex for a second, then back into the mirror and pulls out a tube of lip gloss.
"How is Sam?" Alex looks at herself in the mirror and then over at Jamie's reflection, she looks down at the counter top.
"He's in bed, sleeping running a low fever, tired." Jamie watches her closely and then applies the gloss. She closes the tube and gives her hair a final flip.
"Huli boy has a place outside of town; he's staying in a motel on Route 23, about a half an hour away, he didn't tell me the name. We're going to be headed back there in a bit."
Alex frowns and pulls out her telephone, she flips up a map and then frowns again and looks back up at Jamie and stuffs the phone in her pocket.
"Jamie you're going to be driving right past the woods where we found Sam. You've given us enough info, I think you should go home now."
Jamie watches her closely then leans against the counter top . She cocks her head over to one side and half smiles at Alex.
"You know, waitresses watch people too. We get pretty good at reading them, like you do. I can see you reading me when you think I'm not looking."
Alex raises her eyebrows at Jamie and waits without saying a word; she shoves her hands in her pockets. Jamie waits for Alex to respond but when Alex's face goes blank she pushes her.
"You're in love with Dean." In response, Alex spins on her heel and heads towards the doorway.
"He'll never say it you know, but when you're not looking at him, he looks at you. He has a very expressive face sometimes, when he thinks you're not watching him."
Alex stops in her tracks and waits for a second, then spins around to look at Jamie.
"And I see the way you look at him. So I'm wondering what your motives are, my dear."
Jamie smiles at her and then walks past her out the door, on the way past she stops in front of Alex and smiles.
"Dean's a great guy, don't hurt him." Alex waits a minute, her hands shoved in her pockets, thinking before she turns and follows Jamie out the door.
Dean sighs a breath of relief when both females emerge from the bathroom intact. Jamie smiles at Dean as she walks past and joins the shape shifter. Dean slides off the barstool and tosses a few bills down on the bar and joins a surly looking Alex half-way across the room.
"Jamie is heading to his motel room; they have to drive right past the woods where we found Sam. I think we should get ahead of them and wait at the woods."
Dean frowns and rubs his face a little; Alex glances past Dean and sees Jamie watching them. Alex shoves her hands in her pockets and shifts a little so Jamie can't see her face. Finally Dean shoves his hands in his pockets and looks at Alex; they slowly walk towards the exit of the bar.
"If this was you, I'd say sure, good plan, but this is Jamie. She's in way over her head and if things go wrong she's toast."
Alex heaves a sigh, and follows him outside. They slid into the Impala. Dean pulls out his cell and speed dials.
Chapter Six
The motel is exactly where Jamie said it was. The Impala blends into the darkness, almost invisible. Dean shifts in the driver's seat impatiently. He hated stake outs, they were freakin' quiet and boring and the time when by so god damned slow, but this was possible the worst one ever. Alex would hardly look at him and barely spoke, even when he asked her questions. Sam was back in the room sleeping fighting off the fever that had hit him, so Dean couldn't call him for a chat without waking him up. He shifted in the seat and glanced around the woods, then at Alex.
"Are you sure you got the right place?"
"Yes." She snaps, glaring at him from the passenger seat. "It's the only one out here."
"Where the hell is she?" Dean grumbles under his breath. Alex glances at him, then shifts around to look at him straight on.
"Did it ever occur to you that she's the problem, that she might be the fox?"
Dean glares at her and then shifts around to look at her.
"You know, that is so completely stupid I don't even know how to respond. Jamie, the bad guy, please?" he says, the sarcasm dripping from his voice. "You're so freakin' jealous of her you're going to accuse her of being a monster."
Alex's jaw twitches under the skin and she looks out of the windshield and avoids looking at him for a minute. She gathers her thoughts together as best she can with her temper threatening to blow up and takes a breath.
"Dean, she called us her, she handed us all the research, she sent us to the bar, she identified the male Huli, and she'd getting involved in something she has no business in. Why now? Don't you think that's a little odd?"
Dean hesitates and considers everything Alex has just said; as much as it pissed him off she had a point, when she put it like that, it did look pretty bad. And she never denied she wasn't jealous either. Alex would have spit and argued and swore at him if it wasn't true, hell she probably would have ploughed him one again, but she didn't. Why the hell would Alex be jealous of Jamie? Alex was smarter, prettier, got to hunt with him and Sam, she could kick anybody ass she wanted to, what the hell was up with that? He clears his throat a little and then glances over at her.
"You're right, it does look a little odd."
The quick glance she shoots him tells him more than she thinks, she didn't expect him to agree with her. He grabs his phone out a dials Sam's number, it rings several times and Dean is just starting to panic when Sam answers the phone.
"Dean? Everythin' okay?" Sam slurs, half-awake. Dean lets out a sigh of relief then glances over at Alex; she also visibly relaxed a little with Dean.
"Sam? Sorry, I didn't want to wake you but Alex just brought up a good point and I just wanted to check on you." Sam grunts from the other end.
"What was the point?"
"She thinks Jamie might be the Fox and she's setting us up." Sam is silent for a second, then grunts again, he sounds very awake this time.
"That actually makes sense. Shit." Sam mutters. "Are you guys safe, are you okay?" Dean smiles and glances around the car, the atmosphere seems to be a little lighter than it was a few minutes ago.
"Alex and I are just fine. Go back to bed Sam, keep your eyes opened just in case." Sam grunts a reply and Dean promptly hangs up the phone. He shoves it in his pocket and looks around at the trees and the stars above. He smiles faintly when he thinks about Alex telling him about the constellations and Orion, he wonders for a second if she ever thinks about that night. How did it get so complicated?
"So what did Sam think?" she finally asks, looking out the window. Dean glances over at her and watches her profile for a second, then looks away back to the motel.
"He agrees with you. Makes sense." Alex doesn't move and keeps looking out the window. This was probably the part when she expects him to apologise and say she was right, well she was, and as much as it bugged the hell out of him he would do it for her. He takes a breath and gets ready to say it when his phone rings. He swears under his breath when Jamie's number pops up. The apology would have to wait.
"That's her, time to move."
Jamie and the shape shifter climb out of the car. He fumbles for his phone then stops when the shape shifter unlocks the motel room door and walks in. Jamie hesitates, and looks around outside, then steps inside. She barely has time to close the door when the room erupts in battle.
Alex steps out of the bathroom and throws two knives; both bury themselves deep in the shape shifters chest. It hesitates for a second, and then snarls at her, its eyes and head momentarily morph to a fox's head and then shifts back to human. Jamie jumps back against the wall and then looks around the room; she grabs the nearest weapon and smashes the lamp across the things back. It stumbles and lands on its knees, then jumps up and slams Jamie against the wall, it snarls in her face its canine teeth bared, it snaps its teeth at her, then releases her and turns back to Alex. It looks down at its chest then grabs one blade and yanks it out, then the second one, now armed with two very sharp knives it begins to stalk Alex. Alex looks around the room and side steps away from the bathroom door and adds a little space between her and it.
"Alex down! Dean's voice yells, Alex drops to the floor and several shots ring out, the shape shifter staggers backwards and the bullets slam into its chest, the shots stop and the shifter slams back against the wall and gasps for breath. It slowly sinks down the wall and kneels on one knee. Alex looks behind her and sees Dean climbing through the door that opens out into the small balcony. She jumps up and sees the shifter is slowly climbing back on its feet.
"Didn't you use silver bullets?" she yells at Dean.
"What the hell do you think?" he yells back.
He brushes past Alex and grabs a terrified Jamie and drags her back past Alex and shoves her out onto the balcony. The shifter snarls at them and then dives at Alex. Alex ducks, the shifter almost grabs her then spins and throws a knife at Dean's back. Jamie sees it coming and yanks him around out of the way; blade buries itself harmlessly in the wall near his head. Dean looks at the blade wobbling in the wall and helps Jamie off onto the parking lot.
The shifter tackles Alex to the floor; the other blade still in its hand, Alex grabs the blade and holds it off with her good hand. It ripples and shifts to a fox face again and then snaps its teeth dangerously close to Alex's neck, snarling and growling at her. Alex grabs it by the throat and holds it off but grits her teeth in pain from the strain on her hurt arm. It's a losing battle and just as Alex loses her grip the shifter suddenly jerks. Dean drives the throwing knife into its back, and then grabs it by the hair on the top of its head. Dean jerks its head back and yanks the blade of his hunting knife across its throat, once, then twice. Blood sprays over Alex, covering her face and body in the sticky goo as Dean takes its head off. The headless torso falls across Alex and she shoves it away and scrambles to her feet. She winces and cradles her right arm against her body, then wipes the back of her left hand across her mouth and spits. She looks at Dean; he's holding the half-shifted head in his hand by the hair, his bloody knife in the other.
"You okay? Your arm is it okay?" he gasps at her. Alex nods, and then shakes her head.
"Adrenalins going to hard, ask me in a half an hour or so." She smiles, she leans over with her hands on her knees and breathes out, then she grabs the front of her t-shirt and pulls the sticky, bloody shirt away from her body.
"That's a pretty good way to kill a shifter. We better get out of here. Those gun shots are going to attract attention." She laughs.
Dean nods and tosses the head down on top of the body; he leans down and wipes the knife off on its shirt, then tucks it into the sheath on his belt. Alex disappears into the bathroom and comes out wiping her face off with a towel, she tosses one to Dean and he wipes his hands off. He then reaches down and grabs Alex's throwing knives and wipes them off and then hands them both to her. She takes them and tucks them inside her jacket, then tosses the towel on top of the body.
"Thanks for the save." She smiles at him. Dean smiles back and steps over the body and then stops in front of her, he wipes his hands again on the towel and then tosses it down on top of hers.
"I've got your back you know." he mutters at her. Alex smirks at him and starts out onto the balcony.
"I wouldn't be hunting with you if you didn't."
Chapter Seven
Alex takes one long look at herself in the mirror then flips her hair and stops. She just did the Jamie-flip, she snorts at herself, then shakes her head and walks out into the motel room. She glances at her watch, then grabs her truck keys off the dresser and opens the door. She stops in her tracks when she sees Dean outside leaning against the Impala, a beer in hand looking at the stars. He doesn't say anything till she's almost beside him, her keys are almost in the truck door, she almost made it away.
"So going to see him?" Dean asks the sky. He doesn't really want to know the answer but it idea of her with her ex still bugs him.
"Does it matter to you if I am?" she counters, watching him. He knows she's watching him, reading him and glances over at her, making sure his body stays still so as not to give away his secrets.
"Maybe, I need to know your mind is on hunting." He says nonchalantly. Alex snorts in laughter and looks at him, astounded at his attitude. Her hand drops away from the lock and she rounds on him.
"You are such a hypocrite Dean Winchester. You, who picks up a new girl in every town we land in and spends half the hunt getting laid but I don't have my mind on hunting? You have got to be kidding!"
Dean shrugs and takes a drink, then smiles at her.
"I'm not emotional about it, you are. Besides I don't know anything about this guy, he might not be safe."
"You don't know anything about him and you never will. And to hell with you and your emotional bullshit." She growls.
She steps closer to him and then glances around the parking lot for a second, then glares back at him.
"You think getting laid and being cocky and arrogant makes you tough? You're wrong. Feeling makes you tough. Being strong enough to deal with feelings makes you tough. Are you so dead inside you can't feel us or are you just such a shit you won't?"
Alex spins around and yanks open the truck door, the engine roars to life and she squeals out of the parking lot leaving Dean standing there with his beer. Dean watches her go, his head spinning with what she just said. Are you that dead inside you can't feel us...us...like she had feelings for him too but was to...what? Shy? Scared? What if all this time she was reading him right and she'd been waiting for him to say something.
"Shit!" he shouts at the sky.
Chapter Eight
The sun is hardly in the sky, it shines with faint pink streaks across the floor and over her feet. Alex takes a stack of neatly piled t-shirts and places it into her duffel bag, then tucks in her rolls of socks around them. She zips up the bag and then tosses it onto the bed beside her weapons duffel bag. She glances around the room. It's spotless and clean, everything packed up and ready to go. There is a knock on the door and she glances around the room and swears under her breath, then reluctantly opens it up. Sam is standing there looking fine; Dean just behind him she steps aside and lets them both in the room, Sam looks around and frowns, Dean looks around and stops in his tracks.
"Ahhh, are you going somewhere? I thought we were staying a couple of days?" Sam asks, looking back at Alex. Alex sighs and closes the door to the room, and leans against the door, she shoves her hands in her pockets.
"Ahhh, change of plans, for me anyway." She murmurs, she looks at the floor and then up at the two boys in front of her, she shifts her weight off the door and walks past them to the other side of her bed and zips her duffel shut. She flexes her fingers on her right hand and then smiles a small grin, then looks up at them.
"I have to go back to South Dakota." Sam looks at Dean and frowns, then looks back at Alex.
"Check up? Fine we can go with you, I don't think Bobby minds the company." He says looking at Alex. Dean watches Alex, his eyes narrow and shoves his hands in his pockets. Alex glances up to see him watching her and wilts a little under his gaze.
"You're not telling us something." He says simply. Alex shoves her chin in the air and takes a breath.
"I'm losing the feeling in my fingers again..."
"And, there's something else." Dean says glaring at her. Alex pinches her lips together and looks at him.
"Depending on what the doctor says I'm either going out hunting again or I'm buying my cabin by the lake and settling down. Either one I'm doing alone." She finishes quietly. Sam shifts his weight and looks first at Alex then at Dean, both are silent. Sam finally looks back at Dean. The look on his face says everything; Dean's got his indifferent mask on. Sam shifts and looks at Alex.
"What do you mean you're doing it alone? You leaving us? Alex, we're a team! You can't leave. Dean!"
Dean can feel his jaw muscles moving under the skin and he takes a breath, trying to gain control over the emotions threatening to take over.
"Sam" Dean says, warning his brother to stop with the drama. Sam huffs at him and glares at him, obviously wanting a better response than the one Dean was giving them.
"If Alex wants to go her own way then that's up to her." He says looking anywhere but at her in a flat voice, he glances up at her and catches the look on her face. She almost looks disappointed. For a very long moment both Alex and Dean just look at each other, then Dean pivots on his heel and starts out the door, he pauses with his hand on the door knob before he gathers himself up and turns back to her.
"You know, if you need anything, anything at all you call. Right? And if you decide on the cabin on the lake don't be a stranger okay? I might want to go fishing."
Alex nods at him, then blinks hard and looks away from him, swallowing. Sam's eyebrows pop up at him and he shifts on his feet and glares at Dean.
"That's it! Call me?"
Sam looks between the two of them, Dean turns back to the door and heads outside before Sam can say another word. Sam watches him go, he looks back at Alex and looks like he wants to say something, then shuts his mouth.
"Sam... "Alex starts softly.
"You know he wants you to stay, right?" Alex smiles faintly, sadly, and then grabs her duffle bag and tosses it over her shoulder. She walks past him towards the door and then stops.
"I could use a hand with the other bag. I'm not supposed to use this one for a while." She says quietly, holding up her right hand.
Sam nods quietly and grabs the bag off the bed and follows her out to the truck. Dean is nowhere in sight. Alex tosses her bag on the floor in the front and then lets Sam toss his on the seat. Alex smiles up at Sam and then shoves her hands in her jacket pockets and looks up at him.
"Don't be a stranger, right?" she smiles. "I like texting...do you mind if I say 'Hi' once in a while?" Sam shakes his head at her, sadly and then manages a smile.
"You can text me every day, actually I'd like that. Alex, we can go to South Dakota with you. We don't mind waiting." Sam tries a last attempt to get her to stay. Alex smiles and looks down at the ground for a second, she looks back up at him and frowns.
"Sam, I can't stay. It's not just about hunting or my arm..." her voice fades away and she looks back down at the ground. Sam shakes his head and looks around the parking lot, frustrated and disappointed.
"Alex, I can see how you look at him, and I know he cares about you, a lot. You two just have to talk, really talk to each other. It's stupid...you two just dance around each other with your silly insults and arguments...everybody else can see how much you like each other. Why can't you both just...say it?" Alex shakes her head at him and kicks the gravel at her feet; she takes a deep breath and looks up at him.
"Sam...take care of yourself. Take care of him for me."
Her voice catches in her throat, she pivots on her heels and walks around the truck and jumps in the driver's sides. The truck rumbles to life and backs out "Alone Again" by Dokken pours out of the truck speakers and then fades as Alex takes it down the road, she doesn't look back. Sam walks inside the motel room and finds Dean, drink in hand lying on the bed, the remote is beside him but he's not flipping. When Sam walks in he grabs it and starts to flip, trying to look nonchalant, Sam frowns and shakes his head at him.
"Give it up Dean. I know you're not watching TV. You were listening for the truck." Dean glances over at Sam and then takes a drink from a glass full of whiskey, then tosses the remote down on the bed beside him. Oh god Sam, please don't, not right now.
"So, she headed out." He grumbles, Sam shakes his head at him and flops down on the bed opposite him.
"What I want to know is why you didn't tell her to stay." Dean grabs the remote and flips the channels. Because she's beautiful, and funny, and smart and deserves peace and quiet, not this hunting crap. Dean snorts and glances up at Sam, then back to the TV, he raises his drink to his lips.
"Because nobody tells Alex to do anything. You should know that." He takes a drink and feels the cheap whiskey burn its way down his throat; it burns a hole in his stomach and adds to the churning feeling. She deserves peace and quiet, not all your crap, Dean Winchester.
Alex drives down the road keeping to the side roads for a few miles; the truck passes a "Your Leaving Pennsylvania" sign and she pulls over on a wide shoulder of the road and shoves the truck in park. Alex looks around for a minute, then folds her arms over the steering wheel and rests her forehead on them. Her shoulders shake for a second, and through the loud music she sobs her heart out, heartbroken and alone again.
Chapter Nine
Sam sighs and sets the menu down on the restaurant table and glances around the place, he kind of hoped restaurant in Arizona would look different somehow, unfortunately with the exception of a few decorations they were pretty much the same. The waitress wiggles over in a silly looking Mexican peasant uniform and pours more coffee. Sam glances over at Dean while he fixes his coffee, Dean hands the waitress the menu and rubs his face.
"I'd like three pieces of French toast, a double side of bacon and coffee, black." He mumbles. Sam's eyebrows pop up and he shakes his head at his brother. He orders his favourite, oatmeal and whole wheat toast and then smirks at Dean.
"If you miss her that much, why don't you call?" Dean shoots a glance over at Sam and then sirs his coffee absently.
"Because...because I wouldn't know what to say, Sam. It just seems..." he stops then shrugs his shoulders and takes a drink of coffee. Sam leans in, surprised that after three weeks Dean was finally ready to talk about it.
"It just seems what, Dean?" he repeats, hoping like hell he was actually going to open up for once. This time Sam gets his wish and Dean leans in closer.
"I thought it would be better being apart, the stupid little arguments and crap were so damned distracting. Half the time I didn't even know why I was egging her on. I spend half the time trying to win arguments and the other half the time thinking..." Dean stops in mid-sentence realising what he was going to confess to. The other half the time I was thinking about her naked under me, he finishes in his head. Sam rolls his lips together thinking, a half-smile on his face. Sam gets a soft funny look on his face and looks out the window for a minute before looking back at Dean.
"Did I ever tell you how Jess and I met? She was one of the best debaters on the class, we'd have class discussions and debates and we'd tear each other apart, it was ridiculous. It got to the point where we'd fight over everything. Finally the Prof put us together and made us work as a team on a moot court trial." Sam stops and smiles to himself and takes a drink of coffee.
"And? What?" Dean grumbles. Sam smiles at him and looks out the window then back at his brother. For someone who picked up women all the time, Dean was clueless about them; it made him smile when he thought about it.
"And I realised that I was the problem, because I wanted to be right all the time even when I knew I was wrong. Because I didn't want to be wrong in front of her. Because she was so freakin' hot when she was mad sometimes I made her mad, just to see her all worked up." Dean looks up at Sam on the last sentence. Sam catches it and smiles again, knowing that Dean was doing the same thing to Alex.
"What's so freakin' funny, smartass." Dean growls, he leans back so the waitress can slide the plate of food in front of him. Sam does the same and waits for the waitress to leave before he leans in closer to Dean.
"You do the same thing to Alex, don't you?" Dean's grumble from the other side of the table confirms it enough for Sam and he smiles. His victory is short lived when his phone beeps. He digs it out of his pocket and reads the text and grins a huge smile, then types a quick note back.
"What's that?" Dean asks jerking his chin at Sam's phone. Sam smiles at him then takes a bit of his oatmeal.
"A text. From Alex." He smirks, dropping the name at the last minute. Dean immediately looks up at Sam, and then looks quickly back down at his plate. Sam smiles and decides to put him out of his misery.
"She wrote, 'sausages, two eggs over easy, white toast, and coffee, right?'. So I wrote back, 'No, French toast, bacon and coffee.'" Dean almost chokes on his food, he glares up at Sam.
"You're kidding right? You didn't actually tell her I'm having French toast did you?" Sam shakes his head and pulls out his cell phone, he hits a few buttons and then hands the phone to Dean. Dean reads the screen and glares back at Sam.
"You...I can't believe you'd tell her that! What else did you tell her?" he shoves the phone back in Sam's hand and leans back from the table.
"Dean, that's the first time she's texted me, I swear." Dean glares at Sam but sees he's serious; he shakes his head in frustration and shoves a piece of bacon in his mouth. Sam's phone beeps again and he grabs the phone and hits a button, he waits then smiles a stupid grin. Dean watches him, and then looks down at the table.
"Are you gonna tell me what she wrote back?"
"No, here." Sam says and hands him the phone, Dean grabs it and tries to look only semi-interested and looks at the screen. He frowns and looks at the phone, then at Sam.
"I don't get it. What's LOL?" Sam shakes his head at Dean and translates around a mouthful of toast.
"She sent me a picture of what she's eating. LOL means she's laughing out loud." Dean smirks and looks back at the picture; it's a picture of a plate of sausages, eggs and toast. He hands Sam back the phone and takes a bite, a big stupid grin on his face. He jerks his chin at Sam and mumbles as he plays with a piece of French toast.
"So how do you do that?" Sam looks up from texting Alex back and stops, then smiles. He hits a few more buttons then puts the phone down.
"What? Text?" Dean grunts and then takes a drink of coffee, and looks around the restaurant.
"You know, in case something happens to you and I have to answer her back or something." Sam almost laughs out loud at Dean's sad attempt to look nonchalant about it.
"Gimme your phone for a sec." Sam says holding out his hand. Dean digs it out of his pocket and hand it over, then watches Sam as he hits buttons for several minutes. He hands it back to Dean and gestures to the phone.
"I made it easy, there's a shortcut on the screen that says Text, hit that button." Dean hits the button and looks at the screen.
"See the blinking cursor? Type in Alex and hit then hit the down button." Dean slowly types in the name and then looks up at Sam.
"Is the cursor blinking in the big box?" Sam asks. Dean nods and grunts at him, still looking at the screen.
"Okay then, type her a message, only keep it short or it will cost a fortune. That's why people use LOL." Dean pauses for a long minute, looking at the screen, he doesn't type anything. Sam smiles again, his phone beeps and he grabs it.
"Just say Hi, Dean." He hits a button on his phone and reads the text, then smiles up at Dean.
"She wants to know how you are, she says she heading to upstate New York on a hunt. Siren."
Dean starts typing, his fingers slowly pick up speed. He pauses a minute and reads, then looks up at Sam.
"How do I erase something?" Sam smirks and looks up from his phone.
"Ahhh, the arrow back button." Dean hits the button a few times and then types again, then waits a second. Sam glances up at him and watches him for a second. Dean frowns at the phone.
"Okay, how do I send it?" Sam smiles at him and pulls his hand down to see the screen, Dean lets him see the screen, then pulls it away.
"Okay you don't have to read it, just send it." Sam shakes his head and laughs at him for a second.
"The green button Dean, just hit it once." Dean pushes the button, the phone beeps in his hand and he watches it for a second then puts it down. It plays a short tune a minute later, Dean grabs it and reads the screen. He hits a button and reads the screen. A big silly grin spreads over his face for a second, and then he glances at Sam who is watching him closely. He stops smiling as big and shrugs, then looks away from the phone and takes a sip of coffee. He thinks for a minute and then starts punching buttons on the phone.
"Good news?" Sam asks, punching away on his own phone. Dean glances up at him for a second and smiles a big silly grin again.
"She LOL'd me."
THE END