AN: Happy premiere night! I'm back with the second chapter. I have a lot of things to say about this story, but I'm going to save it for the end of the chapter. So be prepared for a big long info dump at the end of the chapter.

Chapter title from the poem ''Sweet and Low'' by Alfred Lord Tennyson.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.


slower, slower

Written by Becks Rylynn


Chapter Two

''Father will come to his babe in the nest''


''It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.''
- Fredrick Douglass


Nervous doesn't sound like the right word to use.

He's not nervous exactly. He's just a little...hesitant. Yes. Hesitant. That's the right word. He's worked so hard over the years to keep these two worlds of his from colliding and the idea of the two finally melding together is a tad unsettling. Don't get him wrong, he's glad Sam finally gets to meet Piper. That's not what he's having problems with. It's about time those two met. It's everything else in his hunting life that he doesn't want touching his daughter.

It may sound stupid and illogical but for years some part of him has thought that if he kept everything separated then he could keep her safe. He and Ruby have never kept what's out there a secret from Piper - it'd be really hard to keep that a secret considering the part of Ruby that makes her stronger than Buffy, braver than a Halliwell, and about ten times less whiny than all of the aforementioned Girl Power - but they have both made sure to tell her that she never needs to worry about anything because they'll take care of it. He has kept the bad things from her for twelve years. He's just terrified that combining his two worlds once and for all will put her in constant danger. Her life doesn't need an open invitation for danger. Her life needs to be normal.

Hey, it's not like he can promise he'll be there to protect her forever, right? He can promise to protect her for one last year, he can probably even promise to stand outside her room every night for a year to keep her safe until the hounds come for him, but he cannot promise to always be there. And that kills him a little bit, it really does, but...but...

He is a man of two worlds. One of his worlds is Piper. It's a world full of infectious laughter, sunshine, Michigan suburbs, Kelly Clarkson and Avril Lavigne, and an undercurrent of guilt and regret over everything that happened with Beth. The other world is Sam. Plain and simple. It's Sam and motel beds and the open road and the only home he has ever known.

The funny thing is, he's always had a sneaking suspicion he'd die for one of his worlds. He just always assumed he'd die trying to keep his worlds apart.

.

They arrive in town on a Friday just after school has let out.

Three Rivers, Michigan is the same place it's always been, and the suburban street his daughter lives on is just as Pleasantville as it was the last time he was here. One might think the suburbs is an odd place to find Ruby Daniels, which is a perfectly understandable viewpoint given her not so sunnypersonality, but she actually fits into this world better than you'd think. Maybe it's because she had a fairly stable upbringing for the first fifteen years of her life so she knows what normal looks like and how it works, or maybe it's just because she's a chameleon and can blend in anywhere like some sort of spy or ninja. Whatever the reason may be, Dean has it on good authority that to the outside world, Ruby is just another single mother, albeit a somewhat bitchy one.

She's like a female Clark Kent.

On the flip side, he's about ninety eight percent sure the entire neighborhood thinks he's a flighty, irresponsible loser of a dad. Perhaps if he tucked in his shirt and wore jeans without holes in them? You think that would help? Maybe if he shaved more often?

Fall in Three Rivers is...bright. Everything is sunny and colorful on Elm street (nope, he's not even joking; Ruby and Piper seriously live on Elm street). The world is made of bright oranges and yellows as the trees shed leaves onto the green grass, there are Halloween decorations blowing in the wind and hanging in windows and from trees, and kids roam the streets like they belong there. It's October so it's getting chilly out, but the sun is still blinding and the neighborhood kids seem to take that as a sign that it's still playtime. There are kids on bikes, kids playing with dogs, little boys chasing after little girls, there's a family out on their lawn carving pumpkins, and there are two little girls across the street with an honest to God lemonade stand. It would all be so sickeningly sweet and cliched and aggravating if he didn't want it all so much.

He could do that if he tried. He could be normal. He knows he could. He just doesn't have the time.

''Dear God,'' Sam mutters as he climbs out of the Impala, breaking Dean out of his self induced reverie in the process. ''Have I died and gone to Wisteria Lane?''

Dean smirks weakly and tears his eyes away from the peaceful happiness of the neighborhood with a sigh. ''Don't know,'' he says, ''you see any cougars?''

''I'm not going to admit that I watch Desperate Housewives or anything, but they're not all cougars.''

''Just saying that proves that you do.''

Sam lifts a shoulder in a half shrug. ''I regret nothing.''

''Hey, ladies. You wanna get your asses in here or would you rather stay out here in Munchkin land with the Doublemint Twins across the street?''

Dean throws a look over his shoulder, arching an eyebrow when he spots Ruby leaning against the doorframe. ''You know,'' he turns to face her, shaking his head at her in disappointment. ''You shouldn't scowl so much. One of these days, your face will get stuck like that. ...Unless that's already happened.''

''Eat me, Winchester.''

''Why don't you just go back to your cave, you grouchy little midget? Send Piper out here so I can enjoy the sunshine with her.''

When Sam glances at Dean out of the corner of his eye, Dean shrugs and watches as Ruby scoffs and spins on her heel, marching back into the house. Cheery, she is not. But he's still going to wind up following her in the house, away from all the lollipops and rainbows of the outside world. ''Well,'' Dean says. ''That's Ruby. She ain't no delicate flower,'' he warns. ''You piss her off and she will cut you. And you're new, so I'd be careful if I were you.''

That's some sound advice...

...Sam doesn't wind up needing any of it.

.

Dean doesn't think it's at all fair that Sam and Ruby bond immediately. He's been a part of Ruby's life for over thirteen years and she still loathes him with every fiber of her being. Other than meeting him briefly when they were kids, Ruby has known Sam for all of five minutes and they're already best buddies. There's something incredibly not right about that. It bothers him. It bothers him a lot actually. A little more than it probably should. What's that about? It's not - It's definitely not jealousy. That's ridiculous. Why would he be jealous?

After a few minutes of watching in discomfort as Sam and Ruby charm each other (and it really bugs him, man, what is that?) Dean powers through the unpleasant feeling in his gut and gets right to the heart of the matter. His kid's in trouble, there's no time for jealousy. ...Not that there was any jealousy to begin with, of course.

The stories of the strange events that started about a month ago don't really leave much wiggle room. It's all pretty clear. They're dealing with a spirit. That much is obvious. Ruby tells them of sudden cold spots in the house and minor things like rearranged furniture or missing keys. Basic mischievious poltergeist shit there. Things get freaky when Ruby tells them about the floating knives and the car turning on by itself. The icing on the cake is learning about the mysterious scratches and bruises on Piper's body.

Okay, so they're dealing with a badass ghost who needs to be taken out. That is not hard to figure out. What's really hard to figure out is why this ghost is here. Why it's targeting Piper. Ruby and Piper moved into this house five years ago. Dean remembers that because he was the one who had to lug in all their heavy crap. Both Beth and her mother were cremated and most of their possessions are either boxed up in storage or with Ruby's father. Not to mention they've both been dead longer than the haunting has been going on and neither of them would ever want to hurt Piper. So, as it goes, they've got fuck all on the identity of the ghost or the reason why.

Well, whatever. Doesn't matter. Dean may not know who is haunting his daughter or why, but he knows Casper is going down.

Then again, things are never that cut and dry when it comes to the Winchester's and their problems.

.

His daughter, while supremely awesome in his slightly biased opinion, is incredibly hyper and enthusiastic. One might say she's possibly a little overly hyper. Dean learned that when she could bounce before she could walk. Sam learns that when Princess Piper makes her grand entrance. Everyone learns that Dean's choice to stand below the stairs isn't the wisest idea he's ever had.

First, there's this:

''Piper!'' Ruby calls up the stairs, still glancing at Dean with contempt. ''Your dad's here!''

There's a pause before Piper's high pitched voice floats back down the stairs. ''What?''

''Your. Father. Is. Here!''

''What?''

''Take your headphones off!''

''...What?''

''Take your...TAKE YOUR DAMN HEADPHONES OFF AND GET YOUR SKINNY LITTLE ASS DOWN HERE!''

''Okay! Geez!''

''Sometimes,'' Dean mulls, ''I think about what being in a sitcom would be like...and then I realize it's pretty much this.''

''Those are the thoughts that keep you up late at night?'' Sam asks dryly.

Then Piper appears at the top of the stairs. Yeah, so he knows he's awesome and all, and he is all too aware that as she grows older, her squealed greetings are getting louder and louder, but he is not at all prepared for this. When she sees him, she lets loose a squeal that sounds oddly reminiscent of a baby pig at feeding time and when she's about halfway down the staircase, she full on launches herself at him. Now, Piper's a tiny little child. Girl weighs like three pounds. So it's more the shock of a screaming prebubescent girl smacking into him that sends him to the ground. The upside is, sometime before he lands hard on his back, he manages to push Ruby out of the way and Sam stumbles backwards. At least they can say they avoided a domino-like situation.

''Piper,'' Ruby sighs, ''you have got to stop greeting him like that. You're going to throw the old man's back out. Also, you're not a dog.''

Even when Dean finally manages to pick both himself and Piper up off the ground, she's still crawling all over his back like a friggin' wild animal. She has always talked fast so it's pretty hard to catch whatever she's chattering animatedly about while she hangs off his neck and won't even let him get in a, ''hi, baby, it's good to see you'' edgewise but he's certain he heard her throw in an errant plea for money into her rambles. She always does that.

''Dude,'' Sam cuts in, talking over Piper's babbling. ''Your child's a monkey.''

And so that's how Sam met Piper.

.

Here's a life lesson for you: There is nothing creepier than a twelve year old girl's bedroom. There's freaky looking stuffed animals everywhere, everything's pink, and sugary pop stars are staring at him from the posters plastered on the walls. He remembers the last time he was in her room there was a giant poster of Jesse McCartney right beside her bed. The last time he was in her room, there were a ton of glittery, sparkly objects, Jesse McCartney and his surfer boy look were leering at his daughter from beside her bed, and there were posters of Christina Aguliera, Britney Spears, and Madonna everywhere. That was a mere two months ago.

My, how things have changed.

When he steps foot into her room today, the glitter is gone, Britney and Christina have been edged out by Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, and some chick whose name cannot seriously be JoJo, and some other dude has taken up residence in the coveted bedside spot. Dean resists the urge to sigh. Can't she just have pictures of puppies and kittens on her wall like she did when she was all cute and less bratty? He flops down on her bed with The Little Mermaid sheets, pulling a stuffed rabbit out from behind his head. ''Who's the new guy?'' He questions, jerking his thumb in the direction of the smarmy dude with the crew cut, who is actually startlingly familiar.

''That's Justin Timberlake, Daddy,'' Piper says in a tone of voice that tells him this is information everyone in the world should know.

''Right. The guy from N'Sync?''

She rolls her eyes. ''Daaad.''

''What?'' He tosses the rabbit at the foot of the bed. ''It was a question! How the fuck does that get a whine?''

''That wasn't a whine,'' she mumbles under her breath, climbing onto the bed next to him. ''And Aunt Ruby says you're not supposed to swear in front of me.''

''What Aunt Ruby doesn't know won't hurt her,'' he fires back.

She eyes him closely. ''Aunt Ruby,'' she starts slowly. ''Knows everything.''

He chuckles and doesn't argue, staring up at the glow in the dark stars that have been on the ceiling for five years, have lost most of their glow, and won't come off no matter what. Piper frowns at him, eyes narrowed in suspicion as she reaches over to steal back her stuffed rabbit from where Dean has so carelessly dumped it. This would be one of those moments where all he can see is her mother when he looks at her. She stares at him closely for an unnerving moment and then hauls herself to her feet. ''I know you're not here just to visit me,'' she states, beginning to roll up the sleeves of the shirt that is much to warm to be wearing on a sunny and mild day like today. She's not looking at him as she thrusts her arms out towards him, displaying the numerous bruises and scratches on her arms, at least one of them hand shaped as if someone has wrapped their hands around her wrists and squeezed. ''And,'' she clears her throat, wincing briefly and staring at the ground when he gently pulls her closer to him. ''There are...There are some scratches on my back too. I haven't told Aunt Ruby about those ones,'' she admits shakily. ''I didn't want to worry her more than she already is.''

Despite the twin feelings of overwhelming rage and terror that assault him at the sight of the bruises on his daughter's pale skin, Dean clenches his jaw and puts on a brave face for her. Panicking is only going to make her panic, which is something he does not want to do. Plastering a patented Winchester brave face on her young face, Piper draws in a deep breath and turns around, lifting her shirt just enough to show him the scratches on her back. Dean swallows and runs a hand over his face. She turns her head ever so slightly. ''It's not that bad, right?''

He eyes the scratches warily and then, as gentle as he can possibly be, he touches one. She flinches and he draws his hand away quickly. Well, there's no blood if that's what she means. When she drops her shirt and whirls around, peering up at him with wide, frightened eyes, he fixes what he hopes is a convincing smile on his face and brushes hair out of her face. ''Nah, it's not so bad. But...'' He tugs her to him and pulls her onto his lap. ''Baby - ''

Piper's eyes narrow and her lips pinch. ''Dad - ''

''Piper, now is not the time to debate over whether or not you're still a baby,'' he says sternly.

She sighs heavily and rolls her eyes.

''Listen to me,'' he starts, using his best Dad voice. ''I get that you didn't want to worry your aunt, but if anything else happens, you need to tell someone, all right?''

She nods, sliding off his lap and clasping her hands. ''Okay. Is it...'' She fidgets, shifting from foot to foot. ''Do you think it's a ghost?''

He nods. No use in keeping it from her. ''I do.'' He stands, offering her a smile. ''But don't worry. We'll get it.''

''Oh.'' She nods again, biting her lip. Hesitant and thoughtful looking, she nervously tucks a strand of brown hair behind her ear and looks up at him. ''Dad?''

''Hmm?''

''You don't think...I mean, the ghost or whatever... It's not my mom, is it?''

He pauses and his breath catches. For about a second. Then he waves it off and shakes his head. ''No way,'' he declares firmly. ''Your mom was crazy, darlin', but she wasn't that crazy. Now come on.''

''Where?''

''Have you put anything on those scratches?''

''No. I tried to, but I couldn't reach them.''

Dean crooks a finger at her. ''Then move your little butt.''

''Aw,'' she wrinkles her nose, but doesn't try to dig her heels into the ground when he starts to lead her out of the bedroom. ''But it's going to sting.''

He shrugs. ''Yeah. Probably. Suck it up, little bit. The scratches aren't bleeding, but they're pretty deep. They need to be bandaged. When did they show up?''

''Day before yesterday.''

''Then they need to be cleaned too.'' He steers a still grumbling Piper into the bathroom, completely unaware of the presence behind him, and he shuts the door.

The dark, angry eyes watch closely, narrowed into angry slits. ''Dean Winchester.'' The voice is a garbled sounding snarl, full of rage and hate, venom laced into the tone like a snake bite. The shadowy mass of dark eyes hovering in the hallway transforms into a human figure. The figure of a pretty young woman with an ugly sneer on her young face. She has dark, stringy hair, chapped lips, and pale, pale skin. The black nightgown she's wearing, streaked with barely visible dark red dried blood, hangs off of her frame and the thin robe she's wearing almost drags across the floor as she pads across the hardwood floors in bare feet. She stops at the closed bathroom door, tilting her head to the side. Slowly, she glides forwards and presses her hand flat against the door, painted black nails splayed out against the white door.

''Ouch!'' Piper's screech of pain from inside the bathroom sends the woman jolting backwards, lip curling back as she lets out a hiss of discontent. ''Dad, that stings!''

''I know, baby, I'm sorry.''

The woman backs away from the door like it's more of a monster than she is. She spins on her heel abrputly and starts to stride down the hallway, slowly disappating into nothing as she goes. Just as she disappears, the bathroom door swings open and Dean steps out, eyes scanning the hallway for any immediate signs of danger. His lips curve downwards when he sees nothing.

''What are you doing?'' Piper asks, trying to crane her neck to look at her back.

''Nothing,'' he answers quickly. ''I just thought I...'' He trails off, shaking his head. ''Nothing. Nevermind.'' He turns around only to stop in his tracks when he sees what's on the bathroom door. Burned right into the wood, paint chipped around the edges, is the shape of a human hand.

.

Ruby turns the tap on, letting the water run over her fingers until it grows warm. Absently humming under her breath, she looks out the window, watching Piper meticulously practice her ballet steps out in the backyard. A small smile covers her lips as she watches Piper twirl expertly. Ruby shakes her head and plucks a dirty dish from the sink, rinsing it under the tap water before depositing it in the dishwasher. Grabbing another dish, she repeats the action, periodically looking out the window to check on Piper, rinsing dishes, and listening to Dean and Sam trample around upstairs with their EMFs.

''Well, congratulations,'' Dean had said, jerking his thumb towards an apparently ghostly handprint burned into the bathroom door. ''You're haunted.''

Ruby just can't figure it out. She and Piper have been living in his house for five years now and they had never had a problem with it. In fact, both she and Dean had made sure to check out the history of the house before she bought it. And she never shopped at flea markets or estate sales because of the possibility of buying something haunted so there was little to no chance of the culprit being a haunted vase or silverware set. She had certainly experienced loss in her life, what with both her sister and her mother passing away only a few years apart, but they had both been cremated. She had nothing of Beth's in her house, except for, you know, Piper, and while she did have a few things that belonged to her mother, she refused to believe her mother would do something like this.

It doesn't make any sense. Why now? Why them? What makes them so special?

With a shake of her head, Ruby decides to put all thoughts of ghosts out of her mind for at least five minutes. She's almost finished rinsing her stack of dishes when there's a sudden loud crack. She whips around to look at the dishwasher, slowly putting down the bowl in her hand and drying her hands on the dishtowel. Frowning curiously, she examines the dishwasher carefully, eventually pulling out a plate that has somehow managed to crack in half.

Okaaay.

She shrugs it off, and dumps the broken glass in the garbage. Strange, but not an impossible occurrence. She turns back to the running water to finish her mundane task and instantly lets out a sharp gasp, heart skipping a beat. The running water has turned into a thick red goopy substance that looks unnervingly like blood. She dives forwards and pushes the tap down to shut off the water. As soon as she removes her hand from the tap, however, it turns back on and sends gruesome red liquid spurting from the tap, sloshing over the edge of the sink. She grimaces in disgust, but before she can open her mouth to call for Dean, another sharp, loud crack sounds.

Ruby turns around slowly just in time to jump back as a glass in the dishwasher cracks and explodes violently, sending glass spraying everywhere. The pipes shake and moan as red goo continues to spew from the tap. Her eyes instinctively stray towards the window and she searches desperately for Piper, but the little girl's not there. ''Piper!'' She tears away from the window and catches sight of the back door opening. Another crack sounds and the mug Piper made her for mother's day when she was five explodes like a bottle rocket. ''Piper, stay outside!'' Ruby throws herself at the door, slamming it to keep her niece safe outside as the dishes begin to explode one by one.

The sound of frantic footsteps echo through the house, followed by Dean's urgent holler of her name. Somehow, over the sounds of the pipes rumbling and the dishes shattering, Ruby swears she hears someone whispering her name. Dean and Sam come skidding to a halt, guns blazing, just as everything stops. All unnatural activity ceases, leaving behind a mess of broken glass all over the floor and red gunk so thick it clogs the sink.

Ruby's shoulders slump in relief. Breathing heavily, she surveys the shattered glass all over her kitchen.

''Ruby...'' Dean's boots crunch over the glass as he rushes towards her, somewhat foolishly discarding his rocksalt filled shotgun on the counter. He eyes the sink, then lets his hand fall to the small of her back, guiding her away from the mess. For a brief moment in time, the only sound is the sound of the EMF in Sam's hand going crazy. ''Where's Piper?'' Dean asks, breaking the silence.

''She's outside,'' Ruby murmurs breathlessly.

Dean flicks his eyes towards Sam and nods his head towards the door. In an instant, Sam's lumbering to the back door to check on Piper, passing off the EMF to Dean as he goes. Once the door clicks shut behind Sam, Dean moves back over to the sink to take a closer look at the blood like crap. ''Okay, who the hell is this little shit?'' Ruby demands sharply, guarded eyes scanning all around the house for any more signs of supernatural trouble.

''I don't know,'' Dean says gruffly. He experimentally turns on the tap and clean water spurts out like it's mocking them. ''But whoever the hell it is, it sure doesn't like Sam and I poking around trying to get rid of it.''

''Jesus fucking Christ,'' Ruby moans, rubbing her forehead. She can already feel a stress headache forming. ''Fuck my life. How could this even happen?''

''I don't...'' Dean trails off, twirling around in a circle, eyes searching for something. ''Do you hear that?'' He spins around again, trying to work out where the strange noise is coming from.

Ruby listens for a moment, and then her own ears pick up on it. It's a quiet, continuous cracking sound. Almost like a ripping. ''Yeah, what...what is that?''

''I don't know.'' He moves quickly around the counter and grasps her wrist. ''But I think we should go now.''

Too late. One of the glass cupboards shatters noisily. Dean and Ruby both turn their attention to the kitchen window and the quickly moving cracks.

Ruby can bitch a lot about Dean Winchester and what he does and does not do, but she can't bitch about his reflexes. He has killer reflexes. In the span of what feels like a millisecond, he's got his cell phone pressed to his ear and he's dragging her out of the kitchen. It's no use really. All of the windows in the living room have fine spider web like patterns growing on their smooth surfaces. ''Sam,'' Dean barks into his phone, looking around for any possible escape that doesn't involve glass. ''Get her away from the windows.''

...Christ, has this house always had this much glass?

And then the windows implode.

Every window, every dish, every vase, every lightbulb, every piece of glass blows up, sending sharp shards spraying inwards. Even though Dean has shoved her to the ground and is practically on top of her in an attempt to shield her from the blast, Ruby can still feel the sharp sting of glass cutting into her skin. There's a scream coming from somewhere outside the house - Piper - and Ruby can just barely hear Sam's frantic voice over Dean's phone.

And then, just like that, it's all over and everything goes quiet. Somewhere in the distance, a dog barks.

Dean rises first, shaking glass off. There's blood dripping down his cheek from a cut above his eyebrow, but he doesn't even seem to notice it, offering her a hand. She reluctantly takes the hand she is offered. ''So...definitely a pissed off poltergeist then?''

He nods. ''Without a doubt.''

''Dean,'' she says carefully, looking over his shoulder nervously. She reaches out to grasp his jacket slowly. ''I think we need to go now.''

Dean turns his head to look at whatever she's looking at and tenses when he spots the gang of four floating knives, pointy and lethal ends pointed right at them. ''Good plan.''

.

Joey Daniels glances out the front window at the setting sun briefly before letting the curtains fall back. Whistling cheerfully, he checks his watch and then moves back into the kitchen to check on his dinner. Absently stirring the pot of chili on the stove, he idly thinks about having a barbeque sometime. It's been a long time since he had a good and proper barbeque. It'd be a good excuse to see Ruby and Piper, that's for sure. Those girls are always so busy. He and Victoria used to throw barbeque parties all the time. They'd invite the whole neighborhood and proudly show off their two perfect daughters. He sighs. Yes. It's been a long time.

His eyes go to the picture on the fridge, taken the October right before Beth's death, at the last party he ever had with all three of his girls. Leaving the chili simmering on the stove, he plucks the photo off the fridge and studies it, a painful melancholy feeling starting in his chest. He remembers that Halloween party. Beth would have been five months pregnant with Piper then. He squints his eyes to study the picture of Beth, forever seventeen. Maybe it's something he should start to let go of, but he still doesn't understand why. Why did Beth keep it a secret? Didn't she trust them? Was she that afraid? How could she have kept it a secret for that long? How could he and Victoria have been so clueless?

He shakes it away and puts the picture back on the fridge. Ruby's always telling him to let go of the past and move on. He only wishes he knew how to do that.

That's when the doorbell rings.

The last person he expects to see on the other side of that door is Ruby. It's a Thursday. Piper's ballet class is tomorrow. The night before is always hectic, he knows that. But there's his youngest, standing there looking exhausted, sheepish, and frustrated all at the same time. A look she has mastered. Paternal instincts kick in and he zeroes in on the rips in her clothes as well as the bloodstains. ''Sweetheart, what - ''

''Long story,'' she cuts in. ''Also...Hi, Daddy.''

''Ruby, what happened?''

''It's a really long - ''

''Then shorten it.''

She sighs. ''Bottom line is...'' She looks over her shoulder and when he eyes follow her gaze, his body goes ramrod straight and his fists clench. Dean Winchester is strutting up the walkway, still as obnoxiously cocky as ever. Joey's gut instinct tells him to lunge, but Ruby's giving him that look of hers that tells him if he tries anything she'll never speak to him again. ''Basically,'' Ruby starts to say. ''Our house is kind of haunted and we need a place to stay for a couple days.''

Dean, lopsided smile and all, raises a hand in a half wave. ''Hi, Mr. Daniels. How've you been? How's life?''

''Boy, the fact that you're holding my granddaughter will only hold me off for so long,'' Joey monotones.

Dean snaps his mouth shut and tries to nonchalantly step behind Ruby. Piper looks around at the adults surrounding her and then she arches an eyebrow, whistling lowly. ''Whoa,'' she drawls. ''Awkward.''


''Old as she was, she still missed her daddy sometimes.''
- Gloria Naylor


end chapter two


AN: Okay, I have two long info dumps I need to get out.

First of all...Now you have officially met Piper. Isn't she something? When I was first writing this story, her character was a little different. She was more witty and blunt and Dean-like. But then I realized I was basically writing Lila Bray with a different name so I quickly realized that wasn't going to work out. I didn't want Piper to be a poor man's Lila Bray. I wanted her to be the exact opposite of Lila Bray. So, in time, Piper became a very stereotypical preteen girl who has an insane amount of love for pretty much everything her father hates. The fact that this opens up a lot of doors for possible humorous situations also helped mold her personality. Come on, who doesn't want to see Dean parading around a little girl who listens to nothing but sugary pop music? Who doesn't want to see him attempt to handle that?

And yes, as much as it pains me to admit it, I'm quite certain Piper is probably a Twilight fan.

Second of all, as I'm sure you've noticed, this is another story in which Joey Daniels (as played by Dorian Harewood in my only slightly deranged mind) appears. He's pretty much my go to guy when I need to give Ruby a family. However, there are some differences in the backstory this time. Usually, the story goes something like this: Joey and Victoria (Eva Tamargo) Daniels adopt Ruby at birth from a young teenage couple and they raise her in New Jersey to be close to Victoria's large and loud family. Unfortunately, Victoria dies in a car accident when Ruby is thirteen and Joey continues to raise her alone. At least that's the story I used in ''well, bless my soul'' and all related stories and, to a somewhat lesser extent, ''Until You.''

This story is a little different. As opposed to Ruby being completely human, in this story she is a half demon. Born to a human mother and a demon father (or a demon mother and a human father; I haven't decided yet), she was abandoned on the streets and taken in by a hunter, Joey, and his wife, Victoria. Instead of Jersey, the family lived in Michigan, away from Victoria's well meaning but controlling family. Eventually, Joey retired as a hunter and opened a bar and he and Victoria adopted another little girl when Ruby was three. Four year old Beth. Unfortunately, Beth passed away at age seventeen and Victoria still passed away in a car accident when Ruby was eighteen.

The reason I'm telling you this now instead of putting it in the story is because I'm not exactly sure all of this information is going to make it into story. I have very specific plans for this story and big long tales about her backstory may not make the cut, so I'm telling you all now.

And I'm going to shut up now.