SPOILERS FOR SEASONS ONE THROUGH ELEVEN
This storyline follows after season eleven of Supernatural. May contain spoilers for the rest of the seasons so if you're not caught up, read at your own risk. Characters, universe, and concept are copyright to their respective owners. Plotline/new characters are copyrighted to me. Do not reuse/repost without my expression written permission. And most of all, ENJOY!
5:30am. The smart phone resting on the bedside table began to chime, quivering as it vibrated against the old, worn wood. From within the mess of pillows and blankets upon the queen sized bed a pale, slender fingered hand stretched out, groping about clumsily. The small desk lamp was the first casualty, clattering to the rug as the hand slid about the bedside table almost violently. Then the photo frame fell, landing with a soft thud, picture side up. A family of five stood smiling in the frame; an older man with greying blonde-brown hair and an older woman with dark brown hair streaked with silver sat before a trio of similar faced offspring, two boys and a girl, all looking well into their twenties, perhaps older.
The searching hand knocked over a pen and book next before finally finding it's target. The hand slid back into the blankets, and a moment later the chiming stopped. The white walled bedroom was silent for a moment, save for the soft instrumental sounds of music coming from a laptop at the opposite end of the room. It was another minute or two until the heap of black covers began to shift again. A pillow tumbled off the bed, revealing a golden haired head slowly rising like the sun from amid the dark hills. Albeit a matted, tangled sun, which flopped about the girl's pale shoulders as she sat up and rubbed at her face.
She blinked crystal blues eyes a few times, hands still resting on her cheeks as if she had simply forgotten to lower them. Another moment and she rubbed at one eye, stretching her other hand out to the side with a wide yawn pulling at her rounded chin and straight jawline. She rubbed at her face one more time as she swung her legs over the side of the bed, standing up slowly and adjusting the oversized brown night shirt which fell to her knees, featuring some sleepy looking long necked cartoon giraffes with fixed eyes sitting below the text "it's been a loooong day".
Bare feet padded on the cream-colored shag rug as she walked around the end of her bed. She ignored the items on the floor and made her way into the closet, groggily picking up clothes off a pile on the floor. Right pile dirty. Left pile clean. Maybe.
One pair of pants, a pair of panties, and a shirt later, she stumbled out of the closet and to the door of the room, pulling it open with a muffled creak. She turned left, into the small bathroom, its door perpendicular to the bedroom's, left ajar with two beach towels hanging off the corner. A bra hung from the towel rack, and the girl slowly changed into her outfit, not bothering to close the door.
A soft yawn and the sound of scratching on the rug announced the tan coated pup before the girl turned around to see him.
"Morning Gronk." She mumbled, bending down to scratch the dog behind one floppy ear. He looked up at her with his doe-brown eyes, his black nose wiggling at her.
Within fifteen minutes the girl's rat nest of hair was brushed out and pulled into a pony-tail on the top of her head, a quick layer of foundation makeup was applied to her pale cheeks to cover up old acne scars, she was dressed in jeans and tank top, deodorized, and had a minty wisp to her breath. The short, stocky dog sat in the doorway of the bathroom, waiting with a soft whine every few minutes.
When the woman turned to leave the bathroom, flicking off the light switch and stuffing her phone into her pocket, the pup's curled tail wagged vehemently and he bounded off across the small living room to the front door. She followed him, yawning again and grabbing his leash and her keys off the hook by the door. A click resounded as she snapped on his leash, followed by a thunk and shwick as she unlocked the padlock and chain on the door before sliding it open.
Struggling to pull the dog back closer to her as she locked the door again with the same hand, the girl let out a final soft yawn. Then she turned, half skipping down two flights of stairs to the ground floor and out the apartment complex. Left she went, past the parking lot full of Maryland plated cars and down the sidewalk towards the grassy areas between the rest of the old brick buildings of the complex. The black '67 Impala didn't even register to her as she passed it by.
"That her?" Asked the gruff looking man behind the steering wheel, nodding his tightened jaw at the blonde.
"Must be. Came out of the right apartment." Replied his companion with a sigh, a taller but younger looking man with long light brown hair. His brow was furrowed, his lips thin.
"Alright then. Let's get this show on the road." The driver began to shift, reaching for the car door handle.
"Dean, wait," The other man started, eyes dropping to the side forlornly. "Maybe we should just watch her for a bit. I mean, the other leads didn't pan out. Maybe she's just another dead end."
"Yeah, and maybe she's in danger right now. Maybe a hoard of demons is just waiting around that corner to jump her bones and drag her down to hell." Shot Dean almost angrily, his frustration and impatience dragging down the corners of his mouth. He glared at his companion, tight jawed. "I'm not letting any angel or demon jackass get their hands on-"
"I know, I know." His brother interrupted. "But we're about to ruin her life! She has no idea what's out there right now. Don't.." He sighed, shaking his head slightly. "Don't you think we should be absolutely sure she's the one we're looking for before we throw her into this life?"
Dean sighed as well, his jaw loosening as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright fine. We'll play it cool, keep an eye on her. But we're not sitting in here all day." He proclaimed, reaching into the glove box and pulling out fake FBI badges. He tossed one at his brother and opened the door.
"And what do we tell her?" Asked his brother, coming out the other side and looking across the top of the Impala.
"We'll just tell her we're...investigating something in the area, looking for witnesses." Dean offered haltingly, throwing his hands out to the side as he shrugged.
"Witnesses to what?" the taller man scoffed.
"That's classified information, Sammy." The older brother replied with a smirk, closing the car door and making his way to the sidewalk.
Sam sighed again; it had been a day full of sighs. He shook his head as he closed his door and pocketed the badge. "Maybe we should wait for Cas."
Dean put his hands in his pockets as he strode across the road, glancing sidelong in each direction as he did. "I'm not putting all my eggs in one angel, Sam." He retorted. "Cas will get here when he gets here. He'll confirm she's who we think she is - or isn't- and then we'll take her back to the bunker with us or let her get on with her life." He stared down at his worn boots, his brow drawn tight. "Until then, just in case, we're going to stick to her like flies on shit."
"It's Friday. She's probably gotta go to work." Sam noted, skipping a bit to catch up to his brother.
Dean paused at the other side of the road, stepping up to the sidewalk and turning to face the taller Winchester. "Not today she doesn't. She's a material witness in a federal investigation."
Sam released another deep breath, putting his own hands in the worn tan coat's pockets and shrugging his broad shoulders. "Okay. Let's go."
The older Winchester shook his head as he turned back down the sidewalk the girl had taken only a minute or two earlier. "I really hope this is a damn wild goose chase." he grumbled as he went. "After Amara, and before that Cain and the Mark, and before THAT the Leviathan and before THAT the damn apocalypse-"
"Yeah," Sam interrupted with a chuckle. "We could really use a break from saving the world."
Dean huffed, amused. "You can say that again."
They saw the girl and her dog come back into view again ahead of them. For a few more strides they walked in silence, slowly gaining on the girl.
"You know, Dean," Sam began, glancing at his brother briefly. "If she's... well, you know... maybe after she's safe..."
"You think she's the answer?" Dean finished. "The 'peace on earth' bullshit ending everyone hopes for?" He sounded skeptical, mocking.
"Maybe." Said Sam. "I mean, if she's what God was hinting at and what that lost tablet says, maybe she's destined to bring about a normal world."
"Relatively normal." Dean pointed out. "There'd still be monsters and demons."
"Yeah but no more 'end of the world' stuff," Sam countered "No more big bads or apocalypses. We can just go back to hunting. Regular hunting. Saving people from ghosts and fangs."
Dean gave a small smile, clicking his tongue. "Yeah, those were the good ol' days. Simpler times." He looked up from the cracked sidewalk with a half-laugh. "Hell, we get in good with this girl we might able to retire. Grow old."
It was Sam's turn to scoff. "Seems like the most impossible thing we've ever encountered." He half-mumbled forlornly.
"Excuse me, ma'am?"
The girl turned, pausing mid step to look over her shoulder towards the source of the voice. To men- two very handsome men- were walking up to her. They were both in jeans, one with a black t-shirt the other in white, each with a worn looking work coat. The shorter one had cropped hair with the tips brushed up as if he had just run his hand up through it, and the taller one had long hair that fell in a frame about his strong jaw.
"Hey. Can I help you?" She replied, tightening her grip on the leash as Gronk jerked at the other end, straining to reach the men.
"We hope so." Said the taller of the two. Bother of them reached into their inner coat pockets, looking about as if worried they'd be seen. The girl stiffened a bit, but relaxed when they pulled out small black, wallet like things.
"I'm Special Agent Smith, FBI" Said the shorter of the pair, flipping open the wallet to show her his badge. "This is Special Agent Smith, no relation." He gestured to his partner who flipped open his own badge. "We'd like to ask you a few questions." He continued as they tucked their badges back away.
The girl looked surprised, her eyebrows raised, her eyes widened. "Oh, umm, what about?"
Dean shifted uncomfortably as the dog lunged toward them again, its tail wagging. He took a small step back, clearing his throat and glancing from side to side. "We're looking for witnesses to a crime that happened in the area recently."
"Oh wow!" The girl exclaimed, pulling on the leash. "Gronk!" She hissed at him. Then she looked up at the pair apologetically. "Sorry, he's very friendly but he comes on a little strong."
"No problem." Replied Sam with a smile. "So does my partner sometimes." He dropped down to one knee "Hey bud!" He exclaimed, scratching the dog behind both ears.
"I wish I could help you guys, but I can't think of anything that might have been related to a crime." She said, looking over at Dean.
"Well, we can't release many details now, still being an ongoing investigation and all, but has there been anything, anything at all, out of the ordinary recently?" He asked.
She shrugged. "No, not really. Not that I can think of."
"No strange sights, sounds..." She shook her head to each. "...Smells?"
"Smells?" She echoed.
"Yeah. Maybe, sulfur, or smoke?" Sam suggested, looking up from the ground. The fat dog had comfortably sat himself leaning against the "Agent's" knee, panting as Sam rubbed at his offered belly.
"Umm, no... no, nothing like that..." She said, tracing her bottom lip as if really thinking about it. "I mean, a while back there sounded like a big group arguing with each other late at night, over by the leasing office, but I couldn't even hear what was being said. And I didn't get close enough to even see anyone."
"Ah-ha, interesting!" Dean latched on eagerly with a smile, pulling out a small notepad. "That could be helpful. When was this?"
She shrugged, "Ummm, I'm not sure. I don't really remember. Maybe... a week ago? Perhaps longer?" She passed one hand through her hair. "I'm sorry, the days all kind of blend together..."
"No problem, no problem." Said "Special Agent Smith". He smiled his most charming smile. "But hey, why don't I take down your name, hmm?" He asked, pen at the ready. "For the report."
She hesitated momentarily. "Uh, Alexandra." She said after a pause. "Alexandra Hart."
"Alexandra. Hart." Dean echoed, scribbling it in his pad almost dramatically.
"And you live in the complex?" Asked Sam, giving the dog one final pat and standing slowly.
"Um, yeah, yeah." She nodded. "Right over there." She pointed towards the building they had come from.
"Now, pardon me for prying, but that accent, that's not a Maryland accent." Dean noted, still giving his best, most winning smile.
"I didn't notice I had any accent." She said, returning his smile, although her's was a few molars less. "But you're right, I'm uh, from Massachusetts. Just recently moved down."
"Oh really? How recently?" Sam chimed in.
"Uh, February. Early February."
"That's a big move." Dean pointed out casually. "You got family in the area?"
She shook her head. "No, no... just uh, some college friends. The family's all in Massachusetts."
"Big family?" Dean inquired, still smiling.
Alexandra looked at him, seemingly puzzled at the line of questioning. "Depends on your definition I guess? I have two older brothers, both married. And my folks live up there."
"Interesting! Uh, what made you move down?" Asked Sam.
She looked between the two, confusion furrowing her brow. "Um, not that I mind answering these questions, but uh, what does this have to do with-"
"Oh! Well, nothing. Nothing, just uh... making conversation." Sam said quickly.
She looked at him skeptically. "Riiight... well, I mean, I have to get to work so-"
"What's your profession?" Dean interrupted, sounding very matter-of-fact, raising his pen again.
"Um, I'm an infant teacher at a daycare in Bethesda." The brother's exchanged a look. "...What?"
Sam sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Alright look, I'm gonna be honest with you. We're not looking for witnesses for a crime." Dean looked at him with shock, glancing sideways over at the girl as he tried to figure what his brother's plan was. "Actually, we're canvassing." He said with a small nod, looking down at his feet briefly. "There's been some, ah, abductions recently. And the victims all fit a very particular profile."
"Right!" Exclaimed Dean, a bit too enthusiastically as he caught on. "Right. The victims were all new to the area, with no family nearby. Young. Blonde. Pretty." He flashed her a smile. "Lived alone and worked in childcare."
"Oh my god!" She exclaimed, raising one hand to her chest.
"So you can see why we'd be concerned about your safety." Sam stated.
"Our intel tells us this complex is where he's going to choose his next victim." Dean added. "So we've been staking the place out since yesterday, and you're the only young blonde who lives alone."
"You've been... watching me?" She echoed. Her face grew suspicious as she looked between the two.
"What?" Dean paused, leaning his head closer with his hands in his pockets. "What, oh, No! No no, I mean,..." He stammered and struggled around his words as he tried to evade her suspicion. "We've been watching everyone. Already questioned a few other blondes who lived here" he lied "Only one other lives alone and she's in ah, retail! So uh..."
"You just said I was the only blonde that lived alone." Alex pointed out. Dean sputtered and stammered uselessly.
"Look we're just trying to help." Sam cut in. "This guy, he's nasty. We don't know what kind of hell he puts his victims through but-"
"It ain't pretty." Dean interrupted, cocking his head to one side briefly with a grim expression. "We just want to stop it from happening again."
Alexandra was quiet for a moment, looking back and forth between the two. Her dog whined softly at her feet, looking up at her.
"How do I know you two aren't the abductors?" She asked guardedly.
"What? I mean... we're... we're FBI!" Dean said, smiling nervously. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his badge again. "See?"
"Yeah, I saw that..." She looked down at the badge again. "But I couldn't really tell a real badge from a fake one. Plus I've never heard of FBI in jeans and boots. And I have to get to work-"
"No!" Sam almost shouted. She looked at him, startled. "I mean, we can't let you go to work. It's not safe. This guy could grab you anywhere."
She shook her head, taking a step back. "I'm not calling out of work on the whim of some crazy people trying to convince me I'm going to be abducted!" She exclaimed, taking another few steps back. The brothers looked at each other, desperation starting to show in their eyes. "Look, I'm not saying you're lying, just... I don't know, I don't believe you. So uh..." She tugged at the dog's leash, continuing to back away.
"We know its a lot to take in, trust me, we've seen some crazy stuff out there." Sam tried, holding his hands out as if he could smooth over the situation with them. "A-and we're not saying you have to go anywhere with us or even let us into your apartment, ok?"
She hesitated, looking back and forth between them. "Then what?"
"Just..." Sam paused, dropping his hands and sighing. "Just call in sick today. And let us sit outside of your apartment and keep an eye on things, ok? And... and don't go anywhere alone."
She considered this for a moment, studying Sam's face.
"Well... I don't know..." she hesitated.
"Hey, I know." Dean put in. "We have a, well, let's call him an expert. A guy who knows this case inside and out." He nodded to the girl. "Let me give him a call, get him in here. He'll be able to know for sure if you're... ah... next." He shrugged his shoulders, holding his hands palms up at his sides. "If he clears you, we'll leave you alone, send a courtesy patrol for a few nights to make sure you're safe."
She looked him over. "And if he doesn't?"
The brothers exchanged a look. Dean shrugged again. "We'll cross that bridge when we burn it." He said with a coy smile.
Alexandra sighed deeply, running her hand over her head again. "Ok... yeah I guess." She said exasperatedly. "Give me a moment, I'm gonna call out." she turned, pulling her phone out of her pocket and walking a few paces away.
Sam and Dean huddled together. "That was close." Sam said quietly, careful that the girl wouldn't overhear them.
Dean scoffed. "Yeah. You can say that again. I'll message Cas, tell him to get his winged butt over here."
Sam paused, looking over at the blonde girl. He listened to her on the phone for a moment, making sure it wasn't the police on the other end. But it sounded legit.
"It's hard to believe, right?" He said after a moment.
"Hmm?" Dean had pulled his phone out of his pocket and was scrolling down through his contacts.
"About her." Sam nodded in her direction. "She seems so... normal. So human." He laughed softly. "She doesn't even know about this whole other world, and yet she's supposed to-"
"We don't know that yet." Dean interrupted, pointing one finger at him. "I'm still thinking this whole thing is just a flop and we're going to be leaving here empty handed tonight and that girl is gonna go back to her life, none the wiser." He concluded as he went back to his phone.
Sam sighed. "She's just... so young."
Dean smirked playfully. "Not that young." But then his face turned serious. "Older than we were when we were pulled into this life. She's an adult."
"Yeah but we didn't really have much of a choice."
"If she…. " he dropped off. "If she is what she might be..." Dean sighed, shaking his head slightly. "She's not going to have much of a choice either."
Sam's jaw tightened with determination. "I'm gonna make sure she gets one." He said, looking over at her as she hung up the phone and walked back over.
"Ok... Smiths." She said. "They weren't happy, but I'm cleared for the day." She looked between them. "What now?"
"I texted our guy." Dean stated, holding up his phone. "He should be here as soon as he gets it."
"He's nearby?" She inquired.
Dean shrugged. "Close enough that he'll be here fast."
She sighed deeply, playing with the leash in her hands. "Alright."
Sam tilted his head, trying to get a better look at her face angled towards the ground. "You ok?"
She looked up at him. She sighed again, gave a little shrug. "I, I guess?" She replied. "I don't know. Not sure I believe you guys at all, but..." She shrugged again.
"Don't worry. We're gonna keep you safe." Dean firmly assured her.
She looked back at the ground, nodding slightly.
"Why don't you go back to your apartment. Have some breakfast, get some more sleep." Sam offered. "We'll knock when our guy gets here. Okay?"
She scoffed softly. "Ch-eah. I'm gonna be able to get back to sleep now." She gave a small smile, shaking her head. Then she nodded to them and turned and made her way back to her apartment. The boys followed behind, exchanging grim expressions behind her back.
They parted ways at the Impala, not saying a word, and she skipped up the stairs to her apartment door, unlocking it and going in. The brothers followed her progress with complex expressions.
"She's pretty hot." Dean noted with a slight tilt of his head, hands still in his pockets as he leaned against the Impala.
Sam looked at him incredulously. "Dude."
Dean shrugged. "Just tellin it like it is, Sammy."
He shook his head, "She's gotta be like, a decade younger than you."
"Hey, age don't mean a thing when it comes to love." He retorted, pulling out his phone to check the time and see if Castiel had replied.
Sam caught sight of Alexandra through the window, looking down at them. He offered her a small smile and a wave. She nodded, then disappeared back into the room. Sam leaned against the Impala next to Dean.
"Even if she'd give you the time of day," Sam continued "Being that she's... well, you know..." He looked over at his brother. "Would you really want to risk it?"
Dean shifted uncomfortably, shuffling his feet. "Right... Hadn't thought of that..." He offered one of his playful smirks again. "Still man. She's hot. In a plain-jane, girl-next-door kind of way."
Sam shook his head. "You're crazy."
"Don't act like you weren't checking her out too." He shot back. Now it was Sam's turn to shuffle uncomfortably. He jabbed his younger brother with one finger. "Hey." When Sam looked over, he smirked. "Dibbs."
Sam rolled his eyes. "I'm not calling 'dibbs' on a girl. We're not in middle school."
Dean shrugged again. "Well, we'll just have to see won't we."
Sam looked down at his feet, his expression becoming grim. "What's the plan here, Dean?" He asked.
"Well, I was thinking asking her out for drinks first-"
"Not about that." He interrupted. He exhaled softly, crossing his arms. "About her. If she..." He dropped off.
Neither one spoke for a moment. Dean watched the windows to her apartment, Sam watched his boots. Both of them had an idea of what the other was thinking. When you're together as long as they had been, sometimes not saying what you were thinking was easier.
"We're gonna save her." Sam said finally. He looked over at his brother. "The universe owes us a win. I don't care what it takes. It's not gonna come to..." He dropped off again, clenching his jaw.
Dean looked over at him with an equally grim expression. He shook his head slightly. "I hope it doesn't. Hell, I'm still hoping this is all some crazy hoax." His eyes swung back to the windows on the third floor above them. "But we're going to do what needs to be done, Sammy." His voice was emotionless, almost cold. "Just like we always do."
"Did you find her?" Came the sudden gruff question from behind the brothers.
They both turned to see the man who had appeared out of thin air, a serious expression on his handsome face, dressed in a dress shirt and trench coat.
"Well hello to you too Cas." Dean said coarsely, straightening and turning to face him properly.
Castiel shot him a look. "I'm sorry I am not in the mood to exchange pleasantries." He half-snapped. "I have been all over creation looking for answers and am not interested in-"
Sam patted the air before him. "Alright alright, Cas, relax."
The man took a deep breath, letting it out through his nose. "So. Did you find her?"
Dean crossed his arm and looked over his shoulder at the apartment with one eyebrow raised. "Yeah, maybe. She fits the profile."
"We were hoping you could confirm if she is or isn't." Sam interjected.
Castiel nodded, following Dean's gaze. "Very well. Let us see."
