DISCLAIMER: Do not own the boys or this universe. I do own Holly, though, and the credit goes to famke302 for creating Holly with me. :D

A/N: Hello, all, and welcome to another new fic of mine. :D

This one was a bit impromptu - something I wanted to write for Dean's birthday, and as a one-shot, but Dean's birthday also happened to be my little brother's 18th birthday and I was busier than I thought I'd be in that time. This fic also grew tentacles, so it's now two parts instead of just one.

And yes, to anyone who's read 'It Was a Dark and Stormy Night', yesss, this is another Holly fic. :D A companion, and I hope you'll like this just as much! To all new readers - this is based on a 'verse where Sam finds out he has a daughter with one of the women he hooked up with, while he was soulless. The fic is set during season 7, after episode 7.16, 'Out With the Old'.

This fic is only warned for swearing, and canon mental disorders. Other than that, it's not dark or anything, and I hope you enjoy reading Holly with the boys, because I sure as hell love writing her, and am unabashed to admit it. :) Either ways, I do think they all need some extra cuddling in their lives, haha.

There's no beta, though. So all mistakes are mine.

One: The Screw-Up

"Dammit," Sam cursed, running across the pebbled pathway in the park. Sweat beaded on his forehead and his philtrum as he waited for Dean's phone call, hoping his brother had some answers. The baby sling hung from his chest, the straps loose and cutting through his shoulders, and he paused midway to pull it off and held it in his hand as he continued to run.

His heart was racing in his chest and a feeling of utter fear and foreboding bubbled in his gut as he made his way to the precise bench where he and Dean had been sitting with Holly. As he had feared, (and kinda expected), it was deserted. Sam let out a huff of frustration and reached for his hair, only to the find clothespins there, holding bunches of his hair in little ponytails.

He pulled a couple of them off, feeling helpless and angry. His chest also constricted in fear.

"Dammit," he muttered again. He knew it. He just knew it. He knew he'd screw up. He'd been screwing up too many things of late and he should have known he'd mess this up too. But Holly… Holly was just a baby. How could he have done this? How could he have been so horrible at this?

A lump formed in his throat and he took a deep breath, before swallowing it down. No, no. He had to concentrate. He had to take care of this. Oh God, oh God… how on earth could he have been so careless?

His phone rang in his pocket. Sam picked it up and glanced at Dean's name, before taking the call. "Anything?" he asked breathlessly to his brother, staring unconsciously at the baby sling in his hand.

"Sam… I c-can't… did you…?" Dean took a breath, and Sam knew Dean's answer, just from his question.

His heart sank. Dean was saying something on the other side — something frantic, but Sam wasn't listening. Holly wasn't here. Oh God. Holly wasn't here. Their last resort — the last place they could look, and…

"Sammy?" Dean asked suddenly, stopping in the middle of his talk. He didn't say anything, but Sam could hear his unspoken question.

"She's not here, Dean," Sam replied in a small voice. He paused. There was no use denying it. He took a small breath, and his voice shook as he spoke. "Dean, Holly is missing. I lost her."

~o~

Two hours ago

"Fammy!"

"Yeah, baby." Sam smiled down at the little, squirming figure bundled up and strapped to his chest, and was rewarded with large, sunflower green eyes blinking back at him. The air was bitingly cold, and Holly had been bored enough to climb the walls back at the cabin, because they hadn't been able to get her out to play in a few days. She had gotten screechy and cranky, and she'd started crying for her mom again, which made it all a disaster-in-waiting.

As the only solution they could think of, Sam and Dean had tucked her into a fuckload of sweaters and blankets over her warmest onesie, and then a cap, before getting her outside, making the crying and shrieking stop altogether. They knew Holly tended to get frustrated in the restriction of the cabin sometimes, but she'd been recently sick, and Sam and Dean hadn't wanted to take her out in the cold. But, it looked like venturing out today was a good idea. Holly was definitely happy about the outing, since she hadn't stopped babbling ever since they'd begun to walk to the park.

Sam raised a gloved hand and pushed back a strand of hair from Holly's eye. "You enjoying?"

"Deaa balayayay!" she replied excitedly.

"Yeah," Sam grinned to his brother who was walking beside him. "It's Dean's birthday." It was January the twenty-fourth, meaning Dean was now thirty-five. He was nonchalant about it, though — it wasn't as though Sam or Dean really celebrated their birthdays, after all. Sam had gotten Dean apple pie with a candle on it — their usual Dean-birthday tradition, and he had gifted Dean a new pair of jeans. Apart from that, there had not been much celebration. In fact, the only person who was really excited about this was Holly.

"Aaavi gaga," Holly said in a very matter-of-factly tone, and Dean sniggered.

"Sure, munchkin," he replied. Sam glanced at him again, to see Dean's lips twitch some more, and he could make out that his brother was keeping from outright laughing. Sometimes, they could make out what Holly meant, but then there were other times — times like this, when her babble only ever made sense to her.

"There are only two people on this planet who are allowed to invent words, apparently," Dean said fondly, as they entered the park, "that Shakespeare dude, and this one." He extended a hand and placed it on Holly's head.

"Well, she is a Winchester," Sam reminded Dean. "Apparently, our family can do all kinds of stuff."

"Legit," Dean replied, prodding Holly's cheek with his finger, to earn himself a dimpled smile from her. "She'd probably cute Satan back to his cage."

"Or scream in his ear," Sam replied. "Either ways, she'd do it better—" He stopped, when he saw the look on Dean's face. His previously jolly brother was frowning at him, and Sam put his arms around Holly, before turning a questioning expression to Dean.

"Don't say that," Dean said quietly, before Sam could ask. "I know it was all fucked-up, Sammy," he continued, and Sam licked his lip, trying to look away, because, fuck, the shit he had done — soulless — and before that, with the demon blood and Ruby…

"Sam," said Dean, interrupting his thoughts, and Sam looked up to see earnest green eyes looking into his. "You did good, okay?" He paused. "Don't make me punch you now."

"Dean—"

"You get me?" Dean asked him, seriously, stopping briefly in his steps.

Sam sighed, and nodded. Dean nodded back, and smiled lightly. "Good. Now," he turned to Holly, "where do you wanna sit, munchkin?"

~o~

"I'm going to throw these clothespins away. Burning the shit out of 'em. I swear," Dean muttered as he stared ahead of him, at the shining heaps of snow, scattered over the landscape in front of them. He moved his head, to look at Sam, but was interrupted by Holly.

"Deaaaaaa!" she protested, her little hand going to clutch at a bunch of his hair.

"Ow! Okay, sorry," Dean sighed, and continued to look straight. Beside him, Sam sniggered.

"Laugh, bitch," Dean told his brother. "It's gonna be your turn soon."

"But it's not right now, is it?" Sam replied, as he continued to chuckle. "Man, those ponytails are just precious on you."

Dean strategically flipped him off, so Holly wouldn't see. Sam just continued to enjoy the view.

Holly had chosen a park bench for them and once they'd settled, she'd asked for her toys — her bunny and her beach ball, which Dean had stuffed into a bag for her, before they'd brought her out. Turned out, Holly had made an addition to the bag, and it was for her favourite pastime — the one that Sam and Dean dreaded the most. The moment Dean had opened the bag for her, she had thrust her hand in and pulled out the clothespins with a big grin, and then proceeded to stand behind him on the bench, so she could play with his hair and make those wretched ponytails (which were so fucking pointless — because Dean's hair never held, and Holly never seemed to give up). Both Sam and Dean knew that Sam's turn was next.

Presently, Holly's shoes squeaked as she moved a little, and grasped at another tuft of Dean's hair. She noticed the squeak and stomped her foot once on the bench, giggling. She loved these shoes. They weren't amongst the stuff that Sam and Dean had got her — but she usually insisted on wearing them. They made noise, and they were incredibly loud and very pink and flowery.

"I'm burning those too," Dean muttered to Sam, as Holly stomped her foot again and laughed at the squeak.

"Don't forget to salt them," Sam uttered back, but Dean found himself smiling, while Holly made her shoes squeak a couple more times, before concentrating on his hair again.

"She's my niece," he told Sam fondly. "She has to be badass and awesome at the same time."

"You're not awesome," Sam replied. "And she can be exactly as annoying as you can be, so yeah, she is definitely your niece."

"Of course I'm awesome," said Dean, rolling his eyes. Holly tugged at his hair again, and he cleared his throat. "You almost done there, baby girl?"

"No," Holly replied sternly.

"Make it quick," Dean told her. "Or it will be dark before you can get to Sam's hair."

"'Olly Fammy poviyay," she declared, letting go of Dean's hair. She held on to his shoulders as she slowly began to squat behind him, her face coming out from behind him to peer at his.

Dean twisted around and plucked her from her place, to rest her on his lap. He reached for the bag where they'd kept her blankets. "You cold?"

"No," Holly said, trying to stand up on his lap and Dean let her, grabbing her from under her armpits to support her. She took a toddling step forward and put her arms around his neck, resting her cheek on his shoulder.

Dean placed his hand on her back. "You're tired."

"Noooo." She pulled away and peered at him, eyes huge beneath long eyelashes. "No jo-jo."

"Hey, if you fall asleep after saying you won't, we're leaving you here," Dean teased, cupping her cheek and planting a kiss on her temple.

"Deaaaaa!"

"Holly!"

"No, Deaa!" she said, and she looked up at him. "Deaa yuv 'Olly." She seemed extremely confident about it.

Dean's heart melted. "Yeah, I know," he replied. Then he smiled. "I was kidding, okay? But are you sleepy?"

"No jo-jo," Holly repeated.

Dean sighed, and thumbed her cheek. "Okay. Can I at least undo these ponytails?"

"No!" Holly pouted. She turned to Sam, and held out her arms. "Fammy!"

Sam smiled and leaned forward, looping an arm around her waist. "Come here." He lifted her off Dean's lap and she reached up to touch his dimple. She did that a lot, and Dean was glad she did, because it made Sam smile longer and harder.

Sam leaned forward, letting her tiny fingers brush against his cheek, and then, like a sly bastard, pointed at the baby sling. "Walk?"

Holly was too good for him, though. She simply shook her head. "No. 'Olly Fammy poviyay."

Holly Sammy ponytail.

~o~

They left the park an hour and a half later, Sam and Dean both sporting ponytails that Holly wouldn't let them undo. Sam had tried, but she'd started crying, and then he'd just bundled her up and held her, promising that he would keep them.

Of course, that had been a very bad idea, because now, as Sam and Dean walked back to the cabin with Holly in Dean's arms, people were casting very strange glances their way. Some seemed to realise the cause of the ponytails, though, and they cast glances at Holly and either quietly 'aww'd, or smiled in amusement at Sam and Dean's plight.

Sam felt good, though. Light-hearted. The ponytails were embarrassing, but he didn't care so much, because they seemed to make Holly very happy. This was also like a reassurance of Holly's fondness for him, and it made everything around him seem a lot warmer.

He had always wanted a normal life, but he'd never thought he'd admire this cockamamie of a normal-weird life he was leading with Holly and his brother right now. It seemed to lighten all the crap he had faced in the past, and after all the trouble Sam had gone through for this, this situation was perfect for where he was, and his life right now. He couldn't have hoped for anything better.

"Sam," Dean called out from beside him, breaking Sam out of his reverie.

"Yeah," Sam replied, turning to his brother.

"You wanna get some beers after putting the firecracker to sleep? We can sit on Baby's hood — it's gonna be dark soon."

Sam considered it. Sitting on the hood of the Impala and looking at stars while he and Dean shared beers and teased and insulted each other — it had been an old tradition; a tradition long gone; ever since Sam had leapt into Hell, because they'd barely had time in the debacles their lives had become. But… now, they hadn't been hunting a while — and had decided not to hunt until they knew how to manage it with Holly in their lives.

He felt a rush of nostalgia. "Sure, Dean."

Dean grinned at him. "I'll go get us a six-pack. You take this one back to the cabin." He extracted Holly from himself and extended an armful of her to hand over to Sam.

Sam beckoned to Holly. "Come on, sweetheart."

"No!" she protested, moving closer to Dean.

"Dean's got some work," Sam told her. "I'll take you home." He gestured to the sling, still hanging loosely at his chest.

"No!" she replied. "'Olly wum!"

"Okay," Sam sighed. "You can walk along." Evidently, she was still mad at him for trying to get the ponytails off. Sam's heart sank a little. Holly was a kid and this was of small consequence, but something prickled inside of him whenever she got mad at him. He hated it.

Dean set Holly on the ground and handed over her bags to Sam, who slung them over his shoulder, as she wobbled over to his side and started walking, shoes squeaking discordantly, in a faltering rhythm. Dean waved goodbye and rounded a corner, where he no doubt, would undo the ponytails, before going for the beers.

Sam glanced at Holly and continued to walk, listening to the squeaks, until…

Oh, look whose little baby doesn't love him anymore!

Sam huffed at Lucifer, who appeared suddenly at his other side, and looked ahead. "Come on, Holly," he said, but he couldn't really walk quicker, because he wanted her to keep up.

The journey to the cabin was painful, with Lucifer passing snide comments in Sam's ear, and Sam was very relieved to get to the cabin, so he could concentrate on other things, and put Holly to sleep. He watched Holly waddle-run into the cabin after him, before going over and sitting her on the bed, so he could get her shoes off. She grinned at him, then, and extended a hand to his dimple, and that was when Sam knew that all was forgiven.

He smiled at Holly, and let her dig her finger into the dimple. "We'll get you into a warm bath," he told her, "and then you can have your milk and sleep, okay?"

"Otay," she agreed. She pressed his dimple again, and took her hand off, before yawning once.

"Aw, you're tired?" Sam asked her, taking the cap off and ruffling her hair.

"Jo-jo," she agreed. She yawned again.

"Okay," he said, setting her down. "Give me a minute, then. Let me get the warm water running. You can play until then."

He quickly got to the bathroom to fill the tub for Holly, because her acceptance of tiredness suggested that she was about to be snoozing in t-minus-ten, and Sam didn't want her sleeping on an empty stomach.

The water began to fill the small bathtub and when he bent over to test it, Sam realised that he was still wearing the baby sling. Sighing, he got out to put it on the bed, only to glance towards Holly's island of toys, and not find her there. He frowned, and turned to her crib, but he knew he hadn't put her in there. He looked anyway, and but she wasn't there.

Sam was going to call out to her, but then he noticed something. "No," he whispered, rushing to the doorway to the cabin. The wooden door was ajar.

"No, no, no," Sam muttered again. He had shut the door as he'd come in, hadn't he? He had held it open for Holly and she'd run in and…

Had Sam shut it?

Of course you hadn't shut it, you idiot, said a voice in his ear. Do you really think that your two-foot-tall disaster ball could have opened it by herself?

That made sense, but he couldn't, wouldn't listen to his own hallucination, Sam decided. He shut the door and glanced around the cabin again. "Holly?" he called out.

She's gone, Sam.

Sam tried to ignore Lucifer, as he willed himself to concentrate — to think. He checked around the sitting area and the sleeping area, and then went over to the stairs leading to the basement, and even down to the basement itself, where Holly was developmentally incapable of reaching. As expected, he didn't find her there.

Which meant…

She wasn't in the house.

Sam had accidentally left the door open, and now, Holly wasn't in the house.

Oh, fuck.

Sam rushed back up. No, no, this couldn't be happening… no, no, fuck no…

"Holly?" he called again, but he'd looked around the cabin already, and it was too small for anyone to stay hidden for that long. So Sam searched another time. He looked in the playpen, in the crib, in the bathroom, and in the basement another time, and behind the sofa and the table and the bed and the fireplace… but Holly wasn't here.

Holly wasn't here.

Sam let it sink in, as nausea bubbled in the pit of his stomach.

Uh-oh, Lucifer said in an amused voice. Looks like your kid ran away, Sammy.

A/N: Reviews? :D Update will come within the week!

Review Response:

Sara.B: Welcome baack, Happy Birthday, and thank you! I missed writing her too! And yes, I had forgotten some of her babble, and had to refer to the original fic, ha! As for where Holly is... hmm... :DD

I will update asap, and thank you, thank you so, so much!