Author's Note: GUESS WHO'S BACK IN TOWN?! (I'll give you a hint: It's Cas XD Sorry I'm really punchy right now.)

Okay, I know it's been forever. Like, ages. A lot's been going on. Primarily Tumblr *sheepish grin*. But I'm back! And with a brand new fandom that makes me bawl my frickin eyes out. You may have heard of it.

It's called Supernatural.

Now, I'm not entirely caught up with the series yet… I'm still wrapping up Season 7. But I have a Tumblr. So yes, I know what happens. Yes, I'm aware of the how Season 9 ended. (Actually I was aware from the morning after the season finale aired. Thanks, GoddessOfOlympus.) But since I'm not entirely sure of all the specifics, please excuse any errors I may make as I will get much of my info for the plot of seasons 8 and 9 off of the SPN Wiki. Corrections, of course, are welcome.

Also, I'm not doing full-blown Supernatural yet. I'm just starting to get

And now, as Charlie Bradburn would say…

Peace out, bitches!

GiroGirl723

It's not like the books make it out to be.

There's no "dark and stormy night". No feeling of dread. No shivers or sense that something might go wrong. At least, there wasn't for me.

It was actually a fairly normal night. I got home from school, yelled at the stupid frog, said hi to Giroro, checked up on Fuyuki, and got started on my homework. Then around 6:15 I went downstairs to fix dinner.

Tonight it was a Hinata family classic – beef stew with carrots. By 6:45 the kitchen was filled with the smell. "Fuyuki!" I bellowed. "Dinner's ready!"

Fuyuki darted into the living room, Keroro not far behind. "Isn't Mama going to be home tonight?" my brother asked.

"Yeah, but she told us to go ahead and eat. Called an hour ago to say she's working late again. She's got to finish another draft."

My mom was an editor at a manga company, and it took up a lot of her time. She was almost never home, and our dad was dead, so Fuyuki and I mostly were home by ourselves, but we didn't mind. The platoon made life more than interesting.

Living with aliens will do that to you.

Speaking of aliens, Keroro was now hopping his tiny green body up into a kitchen chair. "Let's eat!"

"Hold your horses," I laughed. "I haven't even gotten the table ready yet. Help me out, will ya?"

As Fuyuki and Keroro got the table set and the food on serving plates (okay, more like Fuyuki got the table set and the food on serving plates while Keroro ogled everything), I went to the backyard and stuck my head outside. Giroro was at his usual place by the firepit, cleaning one of his guns. "Hey," I said.

He gave a terse nod in return.

I sighed. Antisocial as usual. "Dinner's ready. You can join us if you want," I said, not even expecting a response, let alone an acceptance.

To my surprise, he nodded. "Sure."

Less than a minute after we walked back inside, the phone rang. "I'll get it," I said. "You guys can start without me."

Walking over to the phone, I picked it up. "Hello? Hinata residence."

"Hello, this is Dr. Sakura Kazami from Inner Tokyo Hospital speaking. Is this a relation to Aki Hinata?"

"I'm her daughter… Is something wrong?"

"Well…"

As Dr. Kazami began to explain, I felt myself growing pale. I didn't know what to say- I was barely processing her words.

"Yes… alright… okay. We'll be over as fast as we can. Thank you, Dr. Kazami." I set the phone down, hand shaking, and let out a shuddering breath.

Turning around, I found everyone staring at me in concern. "Something wrong, Nee-chan?" Fuyuki asked.

I felt my vision began to swim. Breathe, I told myself. Breathe.

"It's Mama," I said finally. "She's been in an accident."

"Natsumi and Fuyuki Hinata," I said breathlessly at the reception desk. Fuyuki stood anxiously behind me, as did Giroro and Keroro, unknown to any human eyes. Kururu was there as well, though I had no idea if he was feeling any emotion whatsoever. God knows if he ever did.

The receptionist looked up with pity in her eyes. "Here to see Aki Hinata?"

I nodded, a lump in my throat.

"Alright, I can escort you back soon. It's past visiting hours, but…" she sighed. "Why don't I call Dr. Kazami. Give me just a minute."

I nodded again, and Fuyuki and I sat down in two of the waiting room chairs as Giroro, Keroro, and Kururu stood nearby. After a few brief moments of tense silence, my brother spoke.

"Have you told the others yet?"

I shook my head.

By 'others' I'm sure he meant the rest of our close friends, all of us bonded by our knowledge of the existence of aliens or them being aliens themselves: Tamama, Momoka, Koyuki, Dororo, and Saburo. "We need to think of a name for us," I said, trying to pass the time and get Fuyuki's mind off the fact of our mother, injured and lying in a hospital bed, possibly on life support, the beep beep beep filling the room…

Name. Right.

"The Big Hinata Family," Fuyuki suggested.

"Cheesy," Giroro shot down, and I glared at him.

"Team Pekokeron," Keroro chimed in.

"That sounds like something out of Gundam, asshat," I grumbled.

"It's supposed to sound like something out of Gundam," he replied cheerfully.

I rolled my eyes.

"What's even the point of-" Kururu began, but I gave him a look that said shut up or you will regret every year of your miserable frogging life.

At that moment, a kind-looking middle-aged woman- I assumed she was Dr. Kazami- walked into the waiting room. "Fuyuki? Natsumi?"

I stood up, as did Fuyuki. "That's us," Fuyuki said.

She gave us a pitying smile. "Your mother's this way."

We followed Dr. Kazami through a door and down a several hallways. She stopped in front of a girl's bathroom, then asked, "Do either of you need to take a restroom break before we visit?"

I thought that was an odd question considering the circumstances, but Fuyuki nodded. "Actually, yeah."

"Boy's restroom is just around that corner on your left." Fuyuki thanked her and headed in that direction.

The moment he rounded the corner she turned to me. "You seem to care deeply about your brother."

I resisted the urge to turn around and give the Keronians behind me a puzzled look. "Of course. Mama's always been busy with work, so I've kinda cared for him most of my life."

"Then I'll leave it up to you how to break this to him," she murmured.

I cocked my head in confusion.

"Your mother… she's in bad condition." Dr. Kazami admitted.

My lips suddenly felt dry. "How bad?" I asked hoarsely.

Dr. Kazami sighed. "Your mother was hit by a drunk driver going at seventy miles an hour, Natsumi. She was on a motorcycle. She suffered severe injuries. Cracked ribs, broken hip, shoulder, and clavicle, multiple fractures in her arm, crushed leg, severe internal bleeding… I could go on." She gave me a pitying look. "If she wasn't wearing a helmet… frankly, I'm surprised she's still alive."

I could feel myself starting to hyperventilate. Behind me, Keroro gasped, and I even heard a sharp intake of breath from Giroro. But then Fuyuki rounded the corner, and I forced myself to calm down.

"Hey," I said, forcing a smile. "Let's go see Mama."

She was in the IC Ward.

You heard me right. She was in in-frickin-tensive care. Multiple IVs, heart monitor and all, apparently.

"She's awake, but…" Dr. Kazami trailed off as we stopped in front of her room.

"Fuyuki," I said finally. "She's doing bad, I think. Like, really bad."

Fuyuki gulped. "Well, then even more reason to see her, right?" He gripped my hand and smiled.

Huh. Maybe the kid was stronger than I thought.

"Right."

We opened the door to her room, and there she was, lying in her hospital bed, surrounded by the smell of antiseptic and the beep, beep, beep of the heart machine. She looked weak and exhausted, but when she saw us her face lit up like the sun.

"I'll give you a moment alone," the doctor said gently. We walked in, and she shut the door behind us.

I crossed quickly over to the bed, and grasped Mama's hand. "Hey," I said.

"Natsumi," she whispered weakly in return. Her smile widened as she looked past me. "Fuyuki. Kero-chan, Giro-chan, Kuru-chan. You all came."

"'Course we did," Fuyuki said, hugging her gently. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay," Mama replied, though she obviously felt like crap. "I could be worse."

Not really, I thought.

We all sat and talked for a few minutes, before Mama said, "Look… I have to be honest with you. I don't think I'm going to make it."

"Yes you will," I said, not even letting her get in another word.

"No I won't," she murmured. "Natsumi, Fuyuki… I have things I want to say to you. Both of you, alright? Please."

"You won't die!" I yelled.

"Natsumi," she said, putting a hand on my arm, and I quieted, beginning to choke up.

Don't cry, I told myself. Don't cry. You have to stay strong. If not for yourself, then for Fuyuki.

"Okay," I whispered.

"Fuyuki, can you and the Keronians leave the room for a minute?" Mama asked. "You can come back in right after. I just need to talk to Natsumi about some things for… after I'm gone."

Fuyuki nodded, eyes wet. "Sure."

After they had exited the room, Mama's tone became suddenly urgent. "Natsumi. Listen to me. This is important."

I started. "What's going on?"

"You and Fuyuki are still minors. You know your grandmother passed away a year ago, and we don't have contact with any other living relatives, so…"

I licked my lips nervously. "Right. Foster care."

Mama's voice grew more determined. "I don't want you two getting separated, Natsumi. I don't want you losing each other or your friends."

"You know I won't let that happen. I can negotiate-"

"You might not have to."

I gave her a puzzled look. "Excuse me?"

"There is… one person that might be able to help you," Mama whispered. "But you have to promise not to freak out."

I nodded, noticing how she was getting weaker by the minute. "Of course."

"Fuyuki… isn't fully your brother."

I blinked twice. "I don't follow."

Mama sighed and took my hand. "He's your half-brother, sweetie."

What?

I must have stayed silent for a significant amount of time, because she sighed yet again. "It's… complicated. Haru wasn't your biological father."

I gulped. "He wasn't?"

"No. I never told you because I didn't want you growing up being one of those girls that never knew your father. You weren't even born when I married Haru anyways; that's why his name is on your birth certificate. I wanted you to be part of our family. One hundred percent so."

"So that's who you think can help?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yes."

"So who is he?"

"I don't… exactly… know," she admitted.

I cocked my head.

Mama laughed. "I was just out of college, Natsumi. I was in America, living wild and crazy. You're a big girl, you can follow."

I turned red. "Yeah, I think so."

She sighed. "I got DNA testing done, but I never actually had them mail me the results. Can you get me some paper?"

I searched around and finally found a piece. She shakily wrote out a number. "That's the hospital that has the DNA results. Give it to the social worker, okay? Make sure they find your father. Please."

I nodded.

No sooner had I stashed it in my pocket than Aki began to breathe rapidly, and the heart monitor began to beep faster. I frantically called for Doctor Kagami.

Seconds later, she rushed in with Fuyuki on her heels. The rest was a blur: nurses shouting, Mama clutching our hands and telling us she loved us both, doctors calling for surgery. The last thing I heard before Fuyuki and I were sent back to the waiting room was Mama telling us both she was proud of us.

At 1:03 A.M. the next morning, Aki Hinata was pronounced dead.

End note: Of course, I will also be updating on my old stories, but I'm feeling some writer's block on them right now. I'll get to them as soon as I can.