Chapter 2 - The Sound of a V8

Nikki

When Nikki woke up the next morning, it took her a second to realise where she was. She went from lying down to sitting in less than a second, scanning the room in slight panic.

She let out a breath. Shabby motel room, snoring friend in the bed next to her, salty floor, all was as it should be. All as it should be? Yeah right, this is the farthest from alright ever. She got up from the bed and desperately longed for a change of clothes.

Jenny shot up into sitting position with wild eyes, and Nikki had to laugh. "Yep, that was my exact reaction when waking up as well. Are you alright?"

Jenny's expression relaxed and she gave Nikki a smile. "Yeah, I'm alright. You?"

Nikki rolled her eyes with a smile. "Surprisingly, yes I am. Why are we not traumatized?"

"I have absolutely no idea. This whole thing is absurd."

"Keep calm and stay in the salt circle?"

Jenny laughed. "Keep calm and stay in the salt circle."

-o-

A little while later she heard a knock on the door and went to open.

She opened the door to Dean Winchester. Dean-friggin-Winchester. She had a second of complete awestruck brain-malfunction before snapping out of it. "Uh, good morning?" She stepped back and let Dean in. He smiled at her, causing another awestruck-brain moment. She really had to get over this. He went to sit down on the edge of her bed, resulting in her feeling a hysterical bubble of laughter from the fact that Dean Winchester was on her bed. She supressed the bubble and looked at him. "Well? What did you find out?"

He let out a chuckle. "Fairies? Really? You got to be kidding me."

She giggled. "But we were correct, right?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yep. Parallel universe, huh? Awesome. Where is your friend?"

Nikki nodded towards the bathroom. "In the shower." She sat down on the other bed and looked at him. "What are we going to do? It seems we are stuck here, for now at least."

He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, we can't really leave you here, you don't have any money, or.." His eyes met hers, making her traitorous heart skip a beat. Something unreadable flickered in his expression before he continued. "You don't have anything at all, do you? No money, clothes, friends or family. You were just brutally ripped away from everything familiar in a second." He raised his eyebrows in disbelief at her. "How the hell are you so happy?"

She let out a laugh and rolled her eyes. "Well thanks, that helped. I feel much better about the situation now." He gave her a sheepish smile that actually did make her feel better, and she could see he was about to apologise. Christ, she knew this man. His expressions, gestures, moods. What made him happy, what made him sad or angry, his humour, and his interests. It was beyond surreal.

Nikki decided there and then that he would not die by Metatron's hand if she could do anything about it.

She interrupted him as he was about to speak. "It's alright, Dean, I was kidding. Jenny and I have talked about it, and we both are feeling okay. Why exactly we are feeling okay is unknown to us, though. We should be paralyzed by fear at this point if there was any logic to the situation."

Dean gazed at her. "How much do you know?"

She avoided his eyes. "A lot. Too much."

His voice was almost a whisper when he spoke again. "Sam? What will happen to him?"

Nikki didn't know what to say. "She couldn't really tell him exactly what would happen, but if she didn't say anything, he would probably think the worst. Deciding on a different approach, she looked back at him. He looked so fragile right in this moment that her heart ached for him. She knew he was broken in this moment. Pouring all the honesty she could muster in her expression and tone of voice, she gave him a small, but genuine smile. "The show is always about two brothers, Dean. Two brothers who are there for each other as they battle the surreal evils of this world. It will be alright. Just don't give up."

Dean let out a shaken breath, and his body visibly relaxed. In the next moment he sat up straight with a broad smile and clapped his hands together. Dean Winchester was not really one for letting his vulnerability show. He was practically glowing with awkwardness when he spoke. "Well, uh, anyway. We're not leaving you here. I think we should go to Bobby. You know who Bobby is I guess?"

Nikki raised an eyebrow. "Idgits."

Dean laughed, resulting in her grinning like a fool. He got up from the bed. "First of all we need to go shopping. You need clothes, cell phones, and, uh, girl things. Things that girls buy. Makeup..and..stuff?" Nikki grinned, and he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Nikki was about to say something when Jenny spoke, and she had obviously heard the last part of the conversation. "Don't forget to pick up a small animal for the weekly blood sacrifice. Can't do without our rituals, after all. You know, girl things."

Dean had a moment of confusion before he saw the amusement in Nikki's eyes. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Ha-friggin-ha. Hilarious. I'm going to find Sam. Come outside when you're ready?" He went outside just to come right back in again. "I should probably un-demon proof the room."

-o-

About an hour later the room was once again open for demon-visits, and Dean, Jenny and Nikki were sitting in the impala waiting for Sam to arrive. They saw him approach and Dean started the engine. Nikki felt like purring from the sound. Turning to Jenny, she could see the exact same expression on her friend's face. "Oh my God, Jenny! Reminds me of old times! This has to be one of my favourite things in this world. The sound of a V8 engine, oh Lord!"

This statement got a prompt reaction from the driver's seat as Dean spun around, doing a fabulous imitation of the girl in The Exorcist. "You like cars?!"

Nikki blushed furiously. "Uh, yes. We were members of an American Car Club once upon a time. I can't declare myself as an expert of any kind, but I do recognise the sound of a V8."

Dean looked more or less star struck and his voice was an intense whisper when he spoke. "Awesome."

This was the end of that conversation, as Sam entered the car. He looked at his baffled brother. "What?"

Dean kept up the awestruck expression wonderfully as he spoke in a way that sounded like he was describing the inventor of the wheel, the car, and everything motorized. "She recognises the sound of a V8."

Sam, obviously unimpressed by this, shrugged with a 'meh' sound, resulting in Dean snapping his jaw shut and turning stiffly towards the steering wheel with an expression that showed clearly how he felt about Sam's reaction.

-o-

Jenny

They spent ages trying to convince Bobby that their story was, in fact, legit. Jenny was about to explode from frustration and threw her hands hopelessly up in the air. "Please, Bobby. We are telling the truth. What can we do to convince you?"

Bobby looked at her with a stubborn expression. "How do I know you ain't working with Crowley? Maybe he's been feeding you all this information."

Jenny sighed sadly. "What if I tell you something that nobody else knows?" When Bobby just grumbled in reply, she walked over to him and leaned down to whisper in his ear. "I'm so sorry for bringing this up, but I see no other way." She hesitated for a moment before whispering very quietly. "Your father was beating your mother, and you shot him with a rifle. His last words to you were 'you break everything you touch'."

Bobby stared at her in disbelief and she took a step back and gave him a sad look. "Do you believe us now? When Bobby, after a moment that felt like a small eternity, gave her a short nod, she sighed with relief. "Thank you."

-o-

The girls were sitting in the living room when Bobby entered and joined them, slumping down in an armchair. Bobby and Dean had vanished into Bobby's office for quite a while, obviously discussing what to do with the situation. Bobby surprisingly removed his shabby caps and placed it on the table before sighing. "I'm sorry for being harsh with you, girls."

Jenny shook her head. "Please don't apologise, Bobby. It's me who should apologise. I am really sorry for what I said."

Bobby grumbled. "I didn't leave you a choice, now did I?" He leaned back in the chair, folding his hands over his belly. "Now, girls, we've been discussing your situation, and got a suggestion for you." When both girls nodded, he continued. "Well, you're stuck here, and God knows how long, since we have no clue how this happened in the first place. Maybe it's permanent, we don't know. I don't even think the bastard that kidnapped you knows anything." He paused for a moment, giving them a serious look. "I sure hope we won't regret this decision. Girls, we are inviting you to stay. You have no place to go, and I don't think it was just a random accident that landed you here. It seems a bit too random, if you ask me. So for now, you are welcome to stay here."

Jenny didn't know what to say. So she ended up stuttering. "I..I don't know what to say.. T-thank you."

Bobby waved a hand dismissible. "Don't. You'll probably regret that thank you, and soon. This ain't exactly a white-picket-fence kind of life. You have no idea what you're getting yourselves into." He paused for a moment. "Or maybe you do? What are you gonna do with everything you know?"

Jenny gazed at the gruff man for a moment. "What would you have us do, if the decision was yours?"

Bobby shook his head. "Hard to say. I think knowing too much of what's gonna happen is more a burden than a blessing."

Jenny sighed softly. "I am a bit worried that we will end up doing more harm than good if we share too much information. Or pick the wrong thing to tell you. What if we end up causing some major disaster over something seemingly innocent?"

Nikki nodded. "I worry about that, as well. But I'm not sure I could just sit back and watch, knowing something bad was about to happen."

Jenny sighed again. "Indeed. Let's try to find some kind of middle ground, perhaps?"

Bobby nodded. "That sounds like a plan to me." He got up and headed out of the living room, glancing over his shoulder at them. "There are empty rooms upstairs. It ain't no luxury hotel, but could be worse, I guess. Take your pick."

Stopping in the doorway, he turned to them. "Oh, and girls, if you're to live here, you need training. Hunter training. Wouldn't want you to get dead. We can start in a few days, alright?"

Jenny looked at Nikki to find an expression mirroring her own. Hunter-training?

"Nikki?"

"Yes?"

"Did he say what I think he did?"

"Hunter-training?"

"Hunter-training."

"Jenny?"

"Yes?"

"We just moved into Bobby Singer's house."

"So I've heard. And if that is not the most insane thing you have ever heard in your life, then I don't know what is. You know what else?"

"Do tell."

"Dean and Sam Winchester lives here as well. We are currently living with the Winchesters."

"I think my brain just imploded."

"Mine went offline days ago. I think I am down to two brain cells, one of them is on life support, and the other one is severely depressed from being so lonely."

"Huh. Do you want to go look at the rooms?"

"Does the pope wear an overly extensive hat?"

Nikki gave Jenny a bemused look. "What?"

Jenny grinned. "Oh, I thought we were asking obvious questions. Yes. Double yes. I want to look at the rooms."

-o-

They quickly figured out what rooms were already taken, or just too much work for it to be worth it. They tried the different doors, leaving alone the ones that were locked.

Nikki found her room first. They opened the door to a medium-sized room with warm-toned, brown wallpaper, embroidered with a random pattern of different sized blue flowers. A queen sized bed occupied the corner by the wall to their left, and there was a small desk and a chair. But Jenny had a strong feeling that this room was calling out to Nikki, because in the other corner was two armchairs that looked very comfortable, and between the two chairs was a small table. And then there was the selling-point; the corner behind the chairs and the table was a bookshelf that reached all the way to the ceiling, and occupied almost half of the wall to their right. Next to the bookshelf on the right wall was a quite large dresser, with tons of different sized drawers. The dresser combined with the bookshelf made the corner feel a bit separated; a place to snuggle up with a book and a blanket when you wanted to tune out the rest of the world.

Jenny smiled at Nikki. "This is yours then, I gather?"

Nikki grinned. "Definitely."

Jenny found her room two doors down from Nikki's. It was slightly bigger, the wallpaper was grey with black Victorian-style decorations. There was a queen sized bed, a dresser, desk and a chair, a single bookshelf, and the right corner had a table, a Victorian-styled black loveseat and armchair. All the black and grey could have made the room look gloomy, but the wooden floor was light, making the room more balanced. And in the corner behind the door she found a guitar. Having played the guitar since she was thirteen, Jenny was thrilled. This was most definitely her room.

-o-

Dean and Sam had gone mattress-shopping, and cursed their way up the stairs with the queen-sized, comfortable-looking things. Sam managed close to nine hundred eye rolls accompanied by heavy sighs before the mattresses were in place. Next came pillows and blankets, and a ton of curtains. When an amused Nikki raised a questioning eyebrow at Dean, he crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "What? I had no idea what to pick, so I just bought a ton. It's not like I go curtain-shopping on my spare time, you know."

Jenny clapped her hands when she found grey curtains with dark purple skulls.

After a couple of hours cleaning, the two girls stumbled to bed and fell into a deep sleep that would probably, on the scale of nap-to-coma, fall into the vegetable-category.