A/N----- Just as an FYI, in this AU Ash never died, and there are other things I changed around cause it wouldn't go with the story in my head, but I'll let you know before they show up.

3 Months Later

Jo had spent the last couple months thinking, planning, and just plain balling her eyes out. It didn't take her long after her initial joy to figure out that she was alone. She knew it was irrational, that she had her mom, Bobby, and Ash, hell even Sam if she told him, but she felt alone all the same. She couldn't help but wonder why fate would play such a trick on her and Dean. She spent years hoping that Dean would figure out all his drama and open his eyes and when she finally got her wish, she hated it. Even though he was basically on his own death watch when he told her, she would never doubt the feelings behind his words. But that didn't mean she had to like the fact that it took his impending death for him to man up. Then after finding out she was pregnant, she grieved the fact that Dean's death was the catalyst for the family he always wanted and now would never have.

Jo knew she had to deal with all of this before she returned to the Roadhouse or her mother would see right thru her mask. Jo wasn't too keen on the idea of lying to her mom about something this big, but she would have to get over that as well. She was going to protect her last piece of Dean from everyone, even her mother. She had thought about telling Ellen, but she could already see the looks of pity if she did. She could deal with that, but she didn't want her child to have too.

Now Jo was standing on in front of the Roadhouse bracing herself for what was to come. She hadn't called to check in, and never answered when someone tried to call her. At one point just tossed her cell and bought another. Her mom was going to be pissed, so she might as well just get it over with. When Jo reached to door she took a deep breath and walked in. The first thing she saw was Ash at the corner of the bar with his laptop, and she couldn't help but smile as she walked toward him. He must have felt eyes on him cause he shifted and looked around the crowed bar. When he spotted Jo his eyes bugged out.

"Holy Shit!" Ash jumped off his bar stool and almost squeezed the life out of her, but when he pulled away he had a confused look on his face and was staring at her stomach. Jo forgot had forgot her bump, she was about 4 months along and her small frame was not helping to disguise her condition.

"Ahhh Jo, I'm real happy your home, but you might want to tell your fella to start runnin, cause your mama's gona kill him."

Ashes words struck a nerve, but Jo pushed the pain back like she had been practicing, and took another calming breath before answering.

"That won't be a problem. There is no fella." She saw his eyes get wider and was going to explain but someone cut the music.

"JOANNE BETH HARVELLE!" Jo froze, then slowly turned around and watch as the crowd made a path for her mother as she came striding towards Jo.

I can't believe it! That child thinks she can just walk into this bar, and start chatting with Ash like nothing happened. Like hell! Ellen walked over to the jukebox and ripped the cord from the wall. "JOANNE BETH HARVELLE!"

She saw Jo freeze then turn, Ellen thought Jo looked petrified. She better be scared, after 3 months and not a single word!

"Hey mom, I was gona…" Jo started weakly, but Ellen cut her off with a wave of her hand.

"No! You be quite. Ash watch the bar, me and the prodigal daughter are gona have a nice chat upstairs." She didn't even bother to see if Jo followed her or not, she just headed for the stairs. As Ellen made her way up the old stairs to wait for Jo, she noticed someone plugged to music back in.

Jo took a look at Ash before following her mother. She knew she was going to get it, and after the last few months of silence, she knew she deserved it. So her plan was to just let her mom rage and not say a word, but she was I little nervous about her ability to keep her mouth shut. She had grown up a little while away, but she still had a temper. So when she reached the top of the stairs, and headed to her mother's room, she was shocked to see her mom in tears. It had only happened a few times in Jo's life, so it was always disconcerting to see.

"Mom?"

Ellen looked up, and pulled Jo in for a crushing hug. Jo couldn't help but hug her back, she had spent so much time alone, she craved the human contact. It wasn't long before Ellen put her away and started yelling.

"Where the hell have you been! You think you could just take off and not give a single indication to where you're going? Do you know have any idea the thoughts going thru my head these past months! Vampires, werewolves, demons, poltergeist, and only god knows what else could have gotten you, and I wouldn't have known the dam difference!" Ellen kept going, but Jo found it very easy to just let her ramble and let her mind wander.

"Well what to have to say for yourself?" Jo realized it was her turn to talk but was cut off. "You know what I don't care! You shouldn't have run away! You should have…" That was it, Jo was pissed. Yes she left, but she didn't run away. She just needed time dammit!

"Mom. Mom. MOM!" No matter how loud Jo yelled, she wasn't going to get Ellen's attention. So Jo did something she knew would be a bad idea, but it would shut her mom up. She striped off her T- shirt, and waited, hands on her hips, for her mother to notice.

"You never answered any of my… JO!" Jo watched as her moms eyes took in her stomach, then snap up to glare at her. "That better be from eating your dam feelings!"

"No its not." Jo said in what she hoped was a calm voice, but she knew she failed. Ellen spun around and walked back towards the stairs leading to the bar. "Where are you going?" Jo was scrambling to get her top back on.

"I'm going to shoot whoever put my daughter in the family way without a ring first."

Jo felt like she was sucker punched. She instinctively started to fiddle with the ring that Dean gave her. That was just like Dean, always doing it backwards. She quickly got her emotions in check before she spoke again.

"Mom please stop and listen to me. STOP!"

Ellen turned around, eyes wide in surprise. "You won't be shooting anyone, cause there isn't anyone to shoot." Jo was happy to finally tell the truth, even if it was the only one in her story.

Ellen's stance became very stiff. "And EXACTLY what does that mean?"

Jo took a minute to debate one last time before lying, but in the end there was no question. So she told the best lie she could cook up. "I was really messed up the first couple weeks after I left, I didn't want to deal with it, so I didn't. I threw myself into hunting, anything and everything. I wasn't my best idea, but I wasn't thinking then and I know that now. But at the time it worked." She wasn't lying about hunting, it did take the pain away for while, but then reality would set in. Jo kept talking to keep her mom from interrupting. "One night I finished a job, and I got drunk, really drunk. I remember going back to my room with a man, but not much else till the next morning. It wasn't for another 2 weeks till I found out."

"Why didn't you come home? Why did you wait so long?" Jo could hear the hurt in Ellen's voice even though her face was impassive, and it nearly made her cry, but she held back.

"I needed time to figure it all out. I just found out I was going to be a mother; I couldn't go running home like a child needing to be bailed out. I know I always said I'm a grown woman, but I wasn't, not really. But after Dean, and now the baby… I needed to wake up and get real. So I stayed away until I knew I could honestly a real mother to this baby. So please can you be my mother now? Cause I could really use her." Jo hated asking for help so she hoped her mom took that as a sign.

Jo waited for her mother to make a decision; she didn't have to wait long. While she knew that her pregnancy would never be a problem with for her mom, Jo was worried about how long it would take her to stop being angry with her for keeping it a secret. Ellen gave Jo a long look, followed by another bruising hug. "Ok, I'm gona be a grandmother." Ellen stepped back and put her hands on Jo's belly. "So I won't have to worry about some man showing up looking for my grandbaby?"

Jo made herself blush for this next part, which really wasn't that hard, she just had to think of her last night with Dean, and her face turned a bright pink. "Ah no, he was kind of gone when I woke up and the only part of his name I have is that it started with a D." She hated lying, but she had to sell it or her mother would never let it go. When Jo looked up she could see the understanding in her eyes, and it made Jo feel even worse, so she turned away.

Ellen thinking Jo was embarrassed said. "Now Jo you know I ain't going to judge you. We both know I can't expect you to be an angel, cause god knows I wasn't."

"MOM!"

"Oh hush, now you gona tell me what you plan on doing? And how far along are you? You look about 4 months."

"Hey! I'm only 3 months; the kid is just gona end up being huge!" Jo lied once again.

"And honestly, I have no idea, but I know that I love this baby" Jo cradled her unborn baby, "and will do anything to protect them. So until their born, I'm not going to worry about it and I know it's not really a plan but it's what I got. "

Ellen closed her eyes as if praying for patience's, and took a deep breath. "Ok."

"OK?" Jo was surprised that her mother wasn't putting up more of a fight.

"Yep ok. Now let's get downstairs before Ash gives away all my beer."

When they got downstairs Jo fell right back into working the bar. She had to answer some questions from a bunch of the hunters that she had known since she was a kid, but she had that lie memorized too.

"So Jo where am I going to find the coward who got that bun in your oven?" A hunter named Jeremy, who taught her to play darts, asked while ignoring Ellen's glare. Ash was about to step in when Jo answered for herself.

"I'm not sure but if you find him, you might want to tell about the baby before you actually kill him." Her comment caught the attention of a couple of people including her mom and Ash. Her mother just raised her eyebrows questioningly. Ash, having not been told anything, was as curious as the other hunters as to how she got pregnant. Jo sent her mom a look saying that she would explain later. Ash saw the look and gave his own to Ellen showing that he refused to be left out.

"You mean the guy doesn't even know he knocked you up?" Another hunter named Keith asked.

Ash did step in then. "You fellas really think that this any of your business?"

Everyone but Ash and Jo looked over to Ellen to see what she had to say, but she just turned around, walked into the backroom of the bar and shut the door. The hunters took Ellen's departure as a sign that it was up to Jo if she wanted to answer. They all looked at Jo expectantly.

Ash was watching the girl he always thought of as a sister, waiting for answers like everyone else within earshot. He wasn't sure what was going on but after spending the past couple hours with her, he could tell there was something different about her. He didn't know if it was because Dean died, the baby or a combination of both. But one thing he did know was he was that she wasn't the same girl, no girl didn't fit any more. She was definitely a woman now, maybe that was it.

When she finally answered Keith's question he noticed she was twisting a ring on her finger. That was something else too; he had never known Jo to be into jewelry.

"No he has no clue, and can almost guarantee that he never will."

Ash couldn't help but be surprised by her answer, not the words but the absolute certainty in her voice. Ash smiled to himself. Oh yeah, Jo-Jo was definitely up to something and he was never one to just let a mystery like that go.

A/N------ Sorry about the delay, but I didn't think I would be continuing the story so I hadn't nothing when I was asked for more. Lol. Please tell me what you think, be honest if you don't like the direction I'm going in. I know there's no Dean in this chapter, but I promise he will show up. Thanks for reading.

Davis395