Alright, I'm already doing better than normal! Second chapter just a short time after the first! To be honest, I like this one a lot better than my others… (don't tell them that!)

Thank you to my wonderfully amazing reviewers and alerters! You guys made me smile

Same warnings/disclaimer. Forget it? Go to the first chapter.

Enjoy!

The interior of the Impala on the road had a distinctive atmosphere in that moment that could only be summed up in one word…

Awkward.

There was no hiding it, no small talk that could mask the truth behind the situation. Dean relaxed in his throne, the driver's seat of his precious baby, lost in deep thought as his eyes focused on the seemingly endless labyrinth of roads and street signs. His mind kept flashing to the girl currently hanging out in the back seat with his little brother, Kate, and how little they knew about her. His hunter's instincts weren't ringing, but his firm paranoia had kept them out of many a jam before, why not now? He glanced into the rear view mirror every so often, easily feigning a routine check for authorities for a check on the young huntress sitting behind him. His mind's eye kept flashing repeatedly to the sight of her packing her meager bag at the bushes.

He didn't know what to think.

Meanwhile, Sam was thinking along the same lines. He found himself simply questioning everything about her. Who was she? Well, her name is Kate. Where is her family? Assuming she actually has one, and our theory of abandonment or death or runaway is wrong. How had she become a hunter? Was she like them? God, I hope not…

Bobby was unsure of what to think. He didn't feel like she was a threat, and Sam seemed to trust her. But then again, Sam had a trusting nature, always seeing the good in people. He wasn't sure he liked the idea of her coming back to be alone in the motel room with his boys, but he knew Dean would keep a wary eye on things. In the meantime, Bobby could only hope that they would be smart about this, and keep his number on speed dial.

Kate sat in the back seat of the strange vehicle in silent awe and wonder. She'd never been in such a nice car, and had all kinds of questions about it. Instead of voicing her curiosity, she decided that maybe now was a good time to stay quiet and simply stare out the window. So she did. As the trees and buildings blurred past, she wondered absently about these strange boys she'd just met. Why on earth would they help someone they'd only just met? Sure, she could understand the intrigue and suspicion, but inviting her back to their room? Something didn't smell right… And yet… Her alarm bells stayed still, not a peep out of them. What could she say? The only thing she felt when she was there with them was something totally unfamiliar. Something warm, something strangely soothing. Something…

Safe.

The idea gave her chills and almost put a smile on her face. Wouldn't that be the day?

After what seemed like an eternity of silence, the beautiful '67 Impala made its way into the parking lot of the crappy, run-down Sunny Days motel(1). After throwing the gear into park and switching off the engine, all of the boys immediately exited, heading to the room farthest down the hall. Kate hesitated a moment, suddenly completely unsure of what she was doing.

Come on Kate, you're supposed to be smarter than this! What if it's a trick? They might just take you all the way there, give you all this false hope and slam the door in your face…

She cringed outwardly at the thought. She dared to hope that maybe she could at least be spared sleeping outside again for just one night, that she wouldn't have to wake up to every noise and breath around her. She wanted it desperately. As she looked at the boys she traveled here with, her subconscious seemed to give her the answer she needed. She looked at them and felt that strange sensation again, that foreign idea of safety.

She prayed desperately that her subconscious was right.

Sam paused his footsteps when he sensed no one following. Dean and Bobby had just arrived at the door, but no Kate. Turning toward the car, he saw a sight that both confused him and tore at his heart. The pretty teenager sat silently in the back seat, clinging to her duffel bag, her eyes locked on the window facing the motel room entrance. Everything about her expression screamed fear, doubt, and a tormenting uncertainty. He waved at her, trying to catch her attention to signal her to follow. When he did, her soulful eyes met his, and he was slightly overwhelmed by the emotion in them. Smiling at her, he tried his best to warm his demeanor and show her openly that they meant her no harm. After a moment, this seemed to satisfy her, and she slowly climbed out of the car, shutting the door behind her.

Dean and Bobby watched the whole silent exchange, casting each other knowing looks every so often. They both knew exactly what had happened, and it seemed to help build a small amount of trust in her. She was one young and clearly wary girl, and they were three experienced and dangerous hunters. Not much competition.

However, it wasn't the strangeness of the girl that caught Dean's attention and rattled his nerves. It was the ease of emotion the brothers showed now that she was there. He noticed it himself in the car, as he found himself wanting to talk to his brother about how sorry he was for all of their petty fighting earlier in the hunt. He wasn't sure what it was, but she seemed to emanate a calmness that encircled them all and made things more… peaceful. It didn't seem to be magic or hoodoo, or any kind of creature effects, but it did shake Dean a little at first.

Opening the dingy little room's door, Dean stepped inside, unconsciously checking the salt that lined the door and windows. None seemed disturbed, and the room was exactly as they had left it. Deeming it safe, he invited the rest of the crew in, Kate following closely behind Sam, clinging to her bag like a life raft.

"Home sweet home." He muttered sarcastically, dropping onto the couch and placing his feet on the table. Sam rolled his eyes.

"Way to be polite, Dean." He glowered. "Kate, you can drop your bag anywhere you're comfortable. You want anything to eat or drink?"

She was about to answer that yes, she was starving and incredibly thirsty, after having run dangerously low on funds recently, but realized that she had gotten so much from them that she couldn't possibly take anymore. So against all better judgment, she shook her head and smiled. Sam shrugged and headed to the fridge to grab himself a beer. Kate bent to place her bag gently on the floor by the door, when her stomach chose that moment to rebel against courtesy in the loudest possible manner. When the embarrassing rumbling started, she quickly threw an arm around her waist, trying desperately to quiet the pangs and roar of her empty stomach. Grimacing, she saw the expressions on Sam, Dean, and Bobbys' faces.

"Complete betrayal." She giggled nervously. Sam smiled, Dean chuckling at the poor kid's embarrassment. Bobby rolled his eyes.

"Alright, I'm gonna go do a grub run. You kids sit tight, relax a little. I'll be back in a minute." He stated gruffly, no room for argument, no questions asked. The boys nodded, Kate standing there looking slightly uncomfortable.

"You don't have to, I'll be ok-"

"That's definitely not what your stomach just told us." Dean teased, good naturedly. Kate's blush deepened and she suddenly found the wall extremely fascinating. Bobby nodded and disappeared out the front door.

And then, there was silence.

Sam and Dean made themselves comfortable, casually hanging out in their own respective areas, trying to disguise their curious glances to Kate as she took in the room, slowly starting to walk around and inspect everything as a child would a new toy. There was a gleam of wonder in her eye that made Dean curious.

"So, Kate." He started, catching her attention immediately. "Why don't you sit down and tell us a little about yourself." Kate shrugged, walking to the couch and awkwardly sitting on the end.

"Alright, what do you want to know?" She asked. Sam stepped closer.

"Why are you out here hunting alone?" He interrupted, begging the question that had been plaguing him the whole hour- wow, it had already been an hour?- that he'd known her. He noted her shape intake of breath, tensing muscles, and sudden flash of defeat on her face, peaking his curiosity. She sighed.

"Yeah, I guess there's really nothing to hide from you at this point, you've earned my trust." She resigned, steeling herself to tell her story. "Well, let's see. I guess it all started when I was born. My mom was fresh into college and partying it up one night when she met a man she apparently liked. After the obvious, she found out she was pregnant. When she told him, he said she needed to get an abortion. Being as afraid as she was, my mom went to the clinic to do so. Well it just so happens that a stupid pro-lifer lunatic threatened her life, telling her she would die if she killed the baby inside her. That terrified her more, so she didn't go through with it. My father was long gone at that point. Long story short, she had me and I was a disgrace. She hated me more than anything in the world. I ruined her life. Things got really heavy over the years, and finally she couldn't take it anymore and kicked me out when I was 14. At first, I had no idea what to do with myself. I'd never really been on my own that long, just the occasional nights she kicked me out and locked the door. This time, there was no going back. After about 5 months, I met some people who were suddenly very interested in me, kept asking me to come back to their 'nest' and play…" Dean scowled.

"Vampires?" She nodded.

"Yeah, I didn't realize at the time, though. Didn't think these things existed yet. Anyway, one day they just kinda overpowered me, stuck me with some drug and took me to their place. I woke up to teeth in my neck. I screamed and fought and it seemed like I'd never get out. I was there for a week before someone got careless. While the youngest one of them was feeding on me, I faked a seizure and collapsed. She panicked; afraid she took too much and killed me. I held my breath and calmed my heart enough to make her think it wasn't beating. She started beating my chest, doing what she thought was CPR. That's when I hit her. We fought a bit and I managed to knock her out and escape. I freaked out and started doing research, trying to learn something. I met some hunters, followed the grapevine, and after a month or so, I learned that my father was a pretty famous hunter. His name was one that everyone seemed to know. I decided then to keep hunting, train myself, and find my father. I figured maybe he could help me…" She paused, taking a breath and turning away. "Not that anything's come of my search yet."

Sam's heart ached at the tragic story. Sure, his mother was dead and he and his father weren't best friends, but he knew that neither of his parents hated him. He couldn't imagine what this girl really went through growing up, and found that he just didn't want to. Dean was also finding it hard to swallow. That was some pretty heavy stuff, especially for a kid.

"Wow." He said softly. "and I thought our family was messed up…"

Sam elbowed his brother, hard. Dean jumped and rubbed the now bruised spot, glaring at his little brother. Sam gave his ever popular bitch face and glared right back. Kate giggled at the boys' antics.

"It's ok Sam. I know it's pretty crazy. I didn't believe it myself when it happened and I lived through it!" She laughed. Sam nodded, smiling at the poor girl.

"I can imagine." He said. Then he remembered. "You said that your father is a 'famous' hunter?" He asked. She nodded.

"Yeah, almost everyone I asked at least knew of him." She said.

"Well, what's the name already?" Dean asked impatiently. Sam raised a hand to his brother, Dean wincing and prepped to block it.

"Winchester." She stated solemnly. "John Winchester."

(1)- I have no idea what their motel was called in that episode… So I'm going with that. Lol

I know, super short chappy, but this seemed like the right place to end. I'll get going on chapter 3 right now!

If you want to review, that would be extraordinarily helpful thanks!