When Dean finally surfaced next morning, he was met by Karl and Grace sitting in the kitchen. There was still food on the table but they were done eating.

"Morning sleepy head," Karl said.
"Fuck, your bed is awesome," Dean cracked his back. "Mmm, bagels."

He grabbed one and devoured it quickly without anything on it. He winked at Grace when she couldn't stop smiling at the sight of him.

"Do you wanna come into town with me?" Karl asked.
"What's in town?" Dean asked.
"Nothing, I suppose. I just figured since you're staying here for a while that you wanna see it. I got a job interview with a security company and you can do whatever meanwhile," Karl said.
"Sure, I'll take a look around," Dean said.
"Alright, let's go," Karl said.

He stood up and grabbed the car keys from the top drawer. He walked out to the car and when he turned around, both Dean and Grace had followed.

"We're not gonna be long, Grace. A couple of hours maybe," he said.

Dean frowned at the way Karl said those words. It was clear the message was for her to go inside but it looked like she wanted to come along. Dean chose to ignore Karl's unspoken message and instead opened the door to the back seat.

"Your carriage awaits you, angel," he said.
"No no no, she's not coming," Karl said.
"Why not?" Dean asked.
"She never goes into town. Not since..." Karl stopped himself. "She doesn't like to go into town."
"Looks to me like she wants to go," Dean said. "What do you say, angel? You wanna come?"

She held her head up high and got into the back seat. Dean closed the door and smiled at Karl before both men got into the car as well. Karl was quiet all the way. Clearly he wasn't happy with the turn of events.

"You don't let her out of your sight," he hissed once they had arrived.
"I wasn't planning on it," Dean promised. "Go nail your job interview. We'll be fine."
"Grace?" Karl looked at her.

She nodded and shooed him away with her hands. He took a deep breath and finally turned and walked away.

"So where to first?" Dean turned to take a look around.

He felt fingers against his back, skin on skin contact which shouldn't be possible since he was wearing a tee. He looked over his shoulder with a boyish smile.

"There's a hole in my tee, isn't there?" He asked.

She nodded and pointed at a store across the street. It was a store that sold clothes for both men and women.

"Alright, new clothes for me. You must know beforehand that I hate shopping though," he said.

She crossed the street and he followed her inside the store. She guided him to the men's section and he shook his head.

"Pick something. I don't care what colour as long as it's a tee or a wife beater," he said. "Wife beater. What a stupid name for a piece of clothing. I'm not gonna start beating up women when I wear that."

He got a smile in return and he wished she would laugh or just let out a little giggle when she was clearly amused by his words. Instead she turned her attention to the clothes and quickly picked up a smoke grey wife beater.

"Looks fine to me," he said. "Now let's find something for you."

She shook her head but he grabbed her hand and pulled her into the women's section. She looked completely out of place as he started searching through racks of clothes. He finally held up a knee long, turquoise green skirt. She shook her head frantically and looked down at her light blue denim jeans.

"It's way too hot to cover up like that. Your skin can't breathe," he said.

She looked at him with pleading eyes. It was clear she wanted to say something but she couldn't. He stepped close to her and snaked a hand around her to touch her lower back through her long sleeved blouse.

"I know," he said. "Karl had to tell me to stop me from fucking up around you, and trust me, I would have fucked up big time. I don't care about your scars. If you knew some of the shit I saw when we were at war. People got limbs blown off. You're still intact, angel, and so far I like what I see when I look at you."

She still looked uneasy but her eyes constantly went to the skirt in his hand. She clearly liked it.

"How about you just try it on? You don't have to buy it. Give me a private show," he put on a flirtatious smile.

She finally nodded and took the skirt from him. He followed her to the fitting room and waited outside. It seemed to take forever and he could only imagine the struggle in her head.

"Are you alright in there, angel?" He asked.

Of course he didn't get an answer.

"Okay, I'm coming in so I hope you're dressed," he said.

He grabbed the curtain and pulled it aside. She stood in front of the mirror in the skirt with tears in her eyes. What he could see of her legs matched her arms when it came to scars. He walked up behind her, placed his arms around her stomach and leaned his head down on her shoulder while catching her eyes in the mirror.

"You look beautiful," he kissed her cheek.

She smiled at him in the mirror and nodded slowly. He smiled back and walked out of the fitting room so she could change back into her jeans. Shortly after she came out with the skirt in her hands.

"Do you wanna buy it?" He asked.

She nodded and he felt happy. It surprised him completely when she walked out to put it back on the rack where he had found it.

"I thought you wanted to buy it," he said.

She shrugged. She didn't know how to explain it to him.

"Oh, you don't have any money," he shook his head. "Of course you don't. You don't work. Karl usually pays for you, doesn't he? Well, fuck that, angel. You're getting the skirt. I'm buying it for you."

She shook her head and tried holding him back as he walked up to the rack and took the skirt.

"I'm stronger than you so you might as well give it up," he chuckled.

Shortly after they left the store with the wife beater and the skirt. He pulled off his tee and threw it in the nearest trash can. She forgot how to breathe as she stared at his naked chest that too soon was covered again by the wife beater.

"I don't mind you staring but try holding back on the drool," he teased.

She blushed and turned around while he chuckled behind her.

"Where to now?" He asked.

She pointed at a pet store and he wasn't even surprised. He followed her there and she seemed to come alive inside the store as she walked down and looked at all the animals. This was her world. She finally stopped by a cage and he could almost see the hearts in her eyes as she watched a Syrian hamster.

"She's very friendly," the store owner appeared. "Do you wanna hold her?"

Grace nodded and the store owner unlocked the cage and took out the hamster. It was clear to Dean that Grace had already lost her heart.

"Do you want her?" He asked.

She looked up at him and once again her eyes got wet.

"I'm not joking around, angel. If you want her, I'll buy her for you along with a cage and whatever the fuck a hamster needs. So give me an honest answer. Do you want her?" He asked.

She broke out in the widest smile while nodding. He turned his attention back to the store owner.

"Load me up on hamster stuff, lady," he said.

Karl's eyes widened when they met up again by the car as Dean came carrying a cage.

"What the fuck did you buy?" He asked.
"A hamster," Dean answered. "A very friendly one. Don't worry."
"Why do you want a hamster?" Karl asked.
"I don't. Grace does," Dean answered.
"You bought my sister a fucking hamster?" Karl couldn't believe it.
"Of course I did," Dean said. "How did the job interview go?"
"I got it," Karl said.
"Congratulations, man!" Dean grinned.

Once back at the house Karl excused himself with garden work while Dean helped Grace set up the cage for her new companion in her room. Her room wasn't much. It was simple with white walls and what was expected to be inside a bedroom. He watched her as she stood with the hamster in her hands.

"Have you thought of a name?" He asked.

She nodded and pointed at him.

"Dean?" He asked.

She twirled her finger around in the air to make him skip ahead.

"Ambrose?" He asked.

She held up her thumb and index finger to show he was close before holding up the hamster and pointing at its crotch.

"Right, it's a girl. Ambrosia then?" He asked.

She nodded and grinned. For a silent woman she sure was easy to understand.

"Perfect name," he winked. "Never had anything named after me but I feel kinda proud here. Ambrosia. You're gonna be the meanest hamster in town, little furball."

Karl stayed away all day and Dean buried himself with a book in his room. Dinner was something each individual did on their own this day. Around midnight he finally put the book down and went to the bathroom to get ready for bed. A faint sound of female singing hit him from downstairs and he quietly crept down the stairs towards the sound.

Inside the living room Karl sat with the tv running. Dean stared at the screen, realizing he was watching a very young Grace perform on a stage. She looked around 14-15 years old and it was probably a talent show from her school. She had a beautiful voice, angel like. His nickname for her was very fitting. Karl suddenly noticed him and dried his eyes while turning off the tv.

"Sorry," he said.
"Don't apologize," Dean said. "She has a beautiful voice."
"Had," Karl corrected him.
"It's still in there," Dean said.

Karl growled lowly and stood up from the armchair. He stared at Dean with angry eyes.

"What did I do?" Dean asked.
"Why the fuck did you buy her a hamster?" Karl sneered.
"Because she wanted it," Dean shrugged. "Maybe it can help her start talking again."
"Do you honestly think a fucking hamster will make her start talking again?" Karl said.

He rolled his eyes at how stupid Dean sounded to him.

"I once read about a man so depressed that he stopped talking and they couldn't make him start again until they put him in a wetsuit and had him swimming around with some therapy dolphins. Slowly he started talking to the dolphins and got better," Dean said.
"It's a hamster, Dean!" Karl said angrily. "Not some fucking therapy animal!"
"It doesn't matter. If she feels comfortable around it, it might work," Dean said.

He stepped closer to Karl and took in the man's anger.

"Why are you so eager to keep her in the victim role?" He asked.
"Because she is a victim," Karl said.
"But why not help her move on? Have you ever tried talking to her about it?" Dean asked.
"She doesn't talk!" Karl shouted.
"But you do!" Dean shouted back. "So talk to her. Tell her how you feel and maybe she'll start doing the same. Right now you're keeping her locked in that role and not allowing her to move on. It's not fair, Karl. She needs to step out of the darkness in her mind and back into the light."

Karl pushed Dean aside and stomped out of the room.

"Go to hell, Dean!" He growled.
"Truth hurts, doesn't it?" Dean shouted.