Waking up to the smell of bacon frying was one of Dean's favourite ways to wake up, if not his favourite. It was something that he'd never tire of, however old he got. His baby sister waking up early just to make him breakfast. It was clear that Sam was already awake, so he heaved himself out of his makeshift bed on the sofa and walked into the kitchen, seeing Sam leaning against the counters with a coffee in his hand, and Clara busying herself over the stove, toast popping up as she started plating up sausages and bacon. With a smile at the sound of his heavy boots, Clara acknowledged his presence.

"Morning." She said, the smile on her face evident in her voice, not even having to turn around. She always seemed to be the most cheerful of the three. Dean nodded his reply and sat himself down, letting out a groan of delight in the simple pleasure that he didn't get quite often enough. "I figured I'd make you two a decent breakfast. God only knows how many you get on the road. You should come visit more often, y'know I'm a pretty good cook." Clara smiled, burning her fingers slightly as she put the toast onto two plates. Sam smiled down at his sister, shaking his head.

"You know we're busy, we don't really settle down much. Actually, we're just here because we finished a job, thought we'd come say hi. Couple of demons inβ€”"

"Stop right there." Clara laughed, shaking her head as she poured some beans on top of the toast. "It's good to know I was the reason you came, so stop talking about your work. You're having today and tomorrow off, at least." She insisted, putting an egg on each plate before she carried them over to the little table. "I don't see you boys anymore; the least you can do for me is stop talking about work and just enjoy the free food and my company." Clara said, leaning herself back against the counters and watching as Sam sat himself down opposite Dean, the two hungrily tucking in to the breakfast. Deciding that the silence as they ate was probably the closest she'd get to a compliment, she crossed back over to the sink and started washing up, looking up at the window sill, checking for any gaps in the salt lines. None there, even though she'd had the windows open overnight. She couldn't help but smile, plunging her hands into the sink and washing up the pots. Sure it was a lot more effort than she normally put into making breakfast, but this was her brothers. Just seeing them alive made it worth it.

"What d'you do out here on your own?" Sam asked, looking over to his sister. They may not see each other much anymore, but both of the boys still cared for her and worried about her when they needed to. And when they didn't. "Doesn't it ever get lonely out here?"

"You say that like you think I'm some kind of recluse. I do have a boyfriend." She reminded them. "Anyway, I rang Danny last night. He's okay with us putting back our date, he's heard all about you both so he's happy for me to spend some time with you." Clara said, turning back around to them. "I actually thought we could just do something that isn't hunting. I mean, I'll take you on a supply run for salt if you need it, but otherwise we're not going to mention it. We can go to the fair, the beach, whatever you want." She suggested, looking as the two boys exchanged glances between each other.

Dean cleared his throat before speaking. "Look, Clara. We don't really do much other than hunt these days. I mean, nothing we could ever do with our baby sister."

"Strippers?"

"Strippers." He laughed, smiling over at her and shaking his head. "We appreciate the sentiment, but we should really get going."

"Don't even think about it. Stay tonight, then go tomorrow, but you're staying for at least tonight." Clara warned them. "Get some proper food in you, get proper showers, proper rest. I'll make you take care of yourselves while you're here; God only knows what you do when you've not got me to keep an eye on you."

That was where the conversation ended, the two boys silently agreeing with their sister as they tucked back into their breakfasts (which were incredible, but neither seemed to want to boost her ego any more) and as Clara finished cleaning up after herself. There was a strange, contented lull over the house. Neither of the boys could remember someone else looking after them like this, at least not recently. And at the same time, they could both think of nothing other than how much Clara had grown up since they'd last seen her. She must've been 15 when John had gone missing, and they'd both felt guilty as hell for leaving her alone, but they wouldn't let her go hunting with them. It was far too dangerous. Sure she'd been on a couple of hunts before, but that had been something completely different. The thought of her having a boyfriend was scary enough for them, but she was 19 now, she could have a boyfriend if she wanted and they couldn't stop her. Not that they would, they wanted her to have a normal life. Hell, that was another reason they hadn't taken her on many hunts. But she had still picked up the tricks of the trade from John, she had still insisted on going on hunts with Dean, and had been more than a slightly good hunter (in fact, she was probably better than Dean had been at that age). If nothing else, it gave the boys a sense of comfort that she could handle her own if they couldn't come and help her out when she was in trouble.

"It's a twenty minute drive into town." Clara told them, drying her hands on a cloth before she crossed to the hallway, looking for her purse and keys. "So I'll be back in about an hour or so, I need to get some more food in for tonight, I'll get some more salt for you two. Anything else you need?" She called, wanting to take care of them as well as she could. After all, she was returning the favour. They'd practically pampered her as a child. They were her big brothers, her knights in shining armour, and there was nothing she wouldn't do for the two of them.

"Burgers are always good." Dean called, before quickly adding. "And pie!"

There was a laugh, followed by a quiet goodbye as the door closed and the house was still, the two boys looking at each other over their empty plates. It felt strange to be on the receiving such treatment from Clara, since they normally gave it to her, but they couldn't help but enjoy it.

"Gonna let her paint your nails again Dean?"

"If she tries to plait your hair." He teased back, standing himself up and taking the two plates over to the sink. "So, what've you got?" Dean asked, deciding to help out and wash up before Clara returned. "Somethin' about faceless people?"

"Yeah." Sam said, thinking and pausing before he spoke again. "Uh, yeah. They've all been found faceless, literally faceless. Skin pulled right off their heads." He said, Dean pulling a face before Sam continued. "All young girls, and every time people have said they've seen some blue box nearby, weird British one, from the 60's."

"So, we've got something British with a fetish for girl's faces and 1960's blue boxes? Gotta admit Sammy, that's weird, even for us. How'd we find it? Go into town and offer free tea until some spirit shows up, and then give it salt rather than sugar?" He joked, though his tone was serious.

"It could just be some demon, or a spirit, or maybe it's something new. We need to see it first, 'cause I really don't know this time Dean." He admitted, before his brother interjected.

"You want us to go into town and wait around until some poor girl gets her face ripped off by something? Sammy that ain't happenin', if there's already been a couple we're not lettin' any more die. What if the next one was Clara? What if we had to let her die just to find out what this thing was? We need to know now." He said sternly, which took Sam aback slightly. But he wasn't overly surprised. Being around Clara seemed to change him, make him more protective, and when she was in danger he wasn't to be messed with. "I know she doesn't want us hunting, but I'm not leaving her in danger. As soon as she gets back, she's not going back out unless we're with her, or until we've got this sorted."

Sam nodded, agreeing silently before going to get his laptop and open it up. "I'll see what I can find out. You go get a shower or something, you smell like a dog's dinner." He joked, which managed to amuse Dean enough to make him laugh.

# # #

Dean showered, the hot water running over his body feeling amazing. Normally, they just got stuck with some crappy motel shower which was beyond cold, or lukewarm. It stung a little as it ran over one of his more recent cuts down his arm, but he paid no attention to it, he was beyond used to the painful sensation. Even if he did come out of the shower smelling like coconut with vanilla extract, he couldn't have enjoyed it more. It felt homely, all these little things made the time he was spending with his sister so much better, because he never got the little things like this. Coming out of the shower, he couldn't help but go into her bedroom and have a look around. He was nosey, and he wanted to make sure his sister was looking after herself right.

While he made her bed for her, he couldn't help but catch sight of a framed photograph, one he'd forgotten about. Him, Sammy, and Clara, one of his favourite memories with her. Sure it was old, but nothing made him smile more than a picture of Sammy in full makeup – pink lipstick and blue eye shadow – a young Clara looking more than slightly proud, and Dean just standing there smiling, the three looking into the camera happily. It made Dean happy, the fact that they'd been able to give Clara a proper childhood, and memories that she would cherish forever, rather than have her hunting demons from the tender age. She must've been about 10 in the picture, and by that age Dean would either be protecting Sammy and Clara, cooking meals, looking after the hotel room and shooting any demons that tried to come near. He hoped that Clara had been young enough then to have forgotten all that happening, but he knew she wouldn't. No one ever did, ever could. He was just glad that she wasn't a hunter now. At least, if she was, she kept it well hidden. Of course she had salt around most openings in the house, but he hoped that was just an old habit.

He caught sight of a few other pictures by her bed, must've been the boyfriend she'd mentioned. They were certainly more recent, and she looked very happy in them. It was all he wanted for her, a proper life; something like a boyfriend was more than good in Dean's books.

Before he felt like he was prying too much, Dean made his way back downstairs and took out his own computer, sitting himself down opposite Sam and starting to type away, see if he could find anything out about what was going on, and how to keep Clara safe.

# # #

The two boys sat in silence opposite each other as they worked for a while, neither really watching the time pass for a while, before Sam piped up.

"When did Clara leave?" He asked, glancing down to the clock of his computer. It was past 1 by then, and he furrowed his brows. "She made breakfast, and we weren't up that late." Sam said, Dean too looking at the time and feeling worry build up in his chest.

"Maybe she just saw her boyfriend." Dean suggested, but he stood up and slipped into his jacket all the same, not wanting to take any risks. Sam got up and walked out of the house, his brother close on his heels as the two hurriedly got into the Impala, pulling away at speed and driving off towards the town.

# # #

When they arrived, the drove around more slowly, both looking out carefully for any sign of Clara or her car. They'd thought it would have been easier to spot, but almost every car seemed to look the same all of a sudden. Perhaps it was the worry running through their minds that made it harder for them to work, but after driving round in circles, Sam finally spotted it.

"There-!" He yelled, pointing at a car in a parking lot, Clara's car. Dean pulled over quickly, before jumping out and starting to look around for Clara, for any sign that she might be here, or that something had happened. Right now, anything was better than nothing.

"Excuse me," he said, grabbing the arm of a young woman walking past him, Sam getting out of the car. "Have you seen a girl? Shoulder height on that guy, brown hair, lovely smile. Said she was coming shopping but she's not come home yet." Dean asked, panic in his voice. It was a new side of him that Sam had never seen. He didn't like it either. This wasn't normal worried Dean. Normal worried Dean kept his fear under control; he kept his head and sorted things out. This was new. This was terrified, helpless Dean. The woman simply shook her head and walked away from him, Dean looking over to Sam.

"If someone had lost their face, people would know, right? There'd be a big fuss, that blue box, and there's been none of that, so she's got to be okay, right?" He asked, running his hand over his face in worry. Sam wanted to help, but he didn't know how. Seeing Dean this worried put him beyond on-edge, and he was only like that because he thought of himself as Clara's guardian now they didn't have any parents, a responsibility that he shouldn't have.

And then, there was a scream.

Both boys looked up in the direction of the voice, no idea whose it was, but it was definitely female. Within seconds, they'd opened up the trunk of the car and Sam had grabbed a gun, Dean grabbing a bag of salt and an iron bar, before they took off running. Their minds were racing. It hadn't sounded like Clara, but for all they knew it could be. That could be their sister losing her face, their sister dying in the most cruel and horrible way they could imagine. The fear spurred them along, leading them down and alley way to see a girl being held down by a group of very strange looking beings, certainly not human, and clearly fighting for her life. It wasn't Clara, but it didn't stop them from helping. Sam fired his gun once, hitting one of those monsters in the side and causing it to stumble back, the other's all pulling away from the woman to see their attackers. While Sam continued to shoot at the remaining creatures, which seemed more than easy enough to take down, Dean ran up to the girl and helped her to sit up, looking her over for injuries. It was primarily her face that had been wounded, leading him to believe that whatever was killing the girls in this way, they'd just gotten rid of. Though the thought that Clara was still out there was still in the front of his mind, he pulled out his phone and dialled for an ambulance, glancing over to check that Sam was okay, before he started speaking.

Normally, saving someone's life and killing whatever was trying to kill them was a victory in Dean's book, but it wasn't this time. Because he'd lost his little sister, he was supposed to watch out for her and she was gone. No trace of where she was, where she'd gone, where she could go, or even why she'd gone. All that was going through his mind was all of the worst case scenario's that could have happened, and the worst part was they could have all happened. He needed to know where his sister was, and he wasn't going to stop until he found her. Safe, and alive.

AN: Hope you all enjoyed the fic, please review and keep reading!