A/N: I do not own any of the characters except my OC, unfortunately. WARNING: Slight slash scene between Kennedy and Willow; nothing major, just a little cuddling and an eventual kiss. Reviews are greatly appreciated

___________________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER THREE: IT'S STARTED

Abbey walked up to her room, slowly turning the knob and pushing the door open. Everything was just how she remembered it. Willow had told her that it would be, but she needed to see it herself. Walking inside, she felt a sense of familiarity sweep over her; she was home. Smiling, she walked over to her dresser, opening the second drawer and pulling out her pajamas. She slipped out of the red shirt and athletic shorts she had been wearing, replacing those clothes with her warm plaid pajama pants and a baby blue camisole.

Finally, she crawled into her big, warm bed, ready to sleep. She and the gang had been researching since seven, and it was now eleven o'clock. Unfortunately, they were no closer to figuring out how to prevent this most recent apocalypse that presented itself. However, after four hours of searching and not finding anything, they just lost the edge and agreed to pick up where they left off tomorrow.

Willow had asked Sam and Dean if they wanted to stay the night, and they had accepted. There was only one extra bedroom, so naturally, Sam and Dean flipped for it. Sam won and was able to sleep on the comfy bed in Dawn's room, whereas Dean had to sleep on the lumpy sofa. It seemed as though Sam always won, meaning Dean always had to have the uncomfortable sleeping spots when the occasion presented itself. Abbey felt kind of sorry for him.

Although Abbey was ready for sleep, it didn't come. Each time she closed her eyes to allow sleep to draw her in, she would see the faces of all the people she loved; her mother, her father, her little sister. It had happened often before, but she had never lost sleep over it. However, everything was different now that she had died and come back. She had seen her family in Heaven, and they were all together again, happy and a family once more. That was until Sam and Dean killed the demon, ripping her out of paradise and slamming her into Hell.

Soon, she gave up on trying to sleep, figuring it was no use. Crawling out of bed, she walked down the stairs, needing to get a drink to relieve her dry throat. As she got closer to the bottom of the staircase, she noticed that the T.V. was on. Therefore, instead of making the left to head into the kitchen, she made a right, into the living room.

"Hey," Abbey said, causing Dean to jump. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"Oh, you didn't scare me." Dean sat up, scooting to one side of the couch. "Want to sit?"

Abbey glanced down at the newly empty space on the couch. Slowly, she walked around the couch, sitting next to Dean. There was a long moment of awkward silence as they both sat. "So, what are you watching?"

"The news. There's a strange thing happening down in the southern half of Sunnydale."

Abbey shifted in her seat. "Something strange? What do you mean?"

"Well," Dean said, muting the television and turning to look at Abbey, "a woman was visiting her husband's grave, when suddenly, he crawled out of the ground." Dean smiled at Abbey's reaction. "Needless to say, she didn't survive much longer."

"Zombies?" Abbey asked in disbelief.

"Oh yeah. And he's not the only one. Every dead person in Sunnydale is raising from their grave. It started slow, but the pace is quickening. Three of the cemeteries are completely vacated already."

"Why?"

"Um...I don't know." Dean shifted, suddenly feeling restless. "So, you want to go check it out?"

Abbey looked at Dean, seeing how eager he was to get on this case. "Sure. Let me get dressed." Abbey got off the couch, walking up the stairs and back to her room. Moments later, she was walking back down the stairs in a tight blue tank top and her favorite pair of faded blue jeans. On her feet, she wore her trusty black high heeled boots. She walked over to the door, grabbing her leather jacket off of the coat rack before opening the door. "You coming?"

Dean walked over to her, laughing when he saw the boots she wore. "Are you sure those shoes are appropriate for the job?"

She gave him a look. "Yes, Dean. I've worn them on many patrols." She was suddenly annoyed with him.

Dean shook his head, a big smile on his face as he walked out of the house and into the night air. Abbey closed her eyes in annoyance as she followed him, closing the door behind her. She stopped as she watched him walking to the impala. "What are you doing?"

Dean stopped holding the now open driver's seat door in his hand. "Getting into the car so we can get to the cemetery. What are you doing?"

"You don't have to drive there. It's like ten minutes away."

Dean looked at her as though she was crazy. "You want to walk there?" Abbey nodded. "But...with the car it will be like five minutes away. And with me behind the wheel, two."

Abbey gave a frustrated sigh, walking over to him. "Come on." She grabbed his jacket, pulling him with her. "Don't be so lazy."

Dean allowed her to pull him alongside her for a while before he shrugged her off. He knew he was lazy, but driving to the cemetery would have been so much faster. And besides, he didn't need the exercise; the job made sure he stayed in shape.

Willow was unable to sleep. She had too much on her mind. The end of the world was coming. Again. And so soon after the last time. Also, everything was different now that Abbey was back. Willow had gone through this same phase when she brought Buffy back. She had questions. However, she knew her questions probably had no answers. A sigh escaped from Willow as she began to become more frustrated. Suddenly, she felt an arm wrap around her waist.

Kennedy looked up at her girlfriend, wrapping her arm around Willow's waist and propping herself up on her elbow. "What's the matter, baby?"

Willow stared into Kennedy's big brown eyes. "I'm just a little concerned about Abbey, I guess. I mean, did she seem okay to you?"

Kennedy shrugged. "She seemed fine. She never liked research, so it's understandable that she wasn't paying much attention to us."

Willow smiled, knowing Kennedy was right. She wrapped her arms around Kennedy, pulling her body closer to hers. "I love you," Willow whispered in Kennedy's ear.

"I know," Kennedy replied, lifting her head off of Willow's bosom, staring into her perfect green pools. "I love you, too." She kissed Willow's soft, pink lips passionately before laying her head back on Willow's chest, cuddling next to her.

Dean didn't know what was worse; the fact that Abbey had made him walk, or the fact that she had walked so fast. She was almost sprinting. Finally, they reached the cemetery. "Did you have to walk so fast?" Dean complained.

Abbey looked at him, confused. "I wasn't. That was a slow."

Dean scoffed and smiled at her. "Sure it was. God, I'd hate to have run after you."

Abbey rolled her eyes, wondering why Dean was complaining so much. "Look, I thought you wanted to check out this zombie thing."

"I do."

"Then let's go. We can get a lot more covered if you would stop complaining so much."

Dean huffed as he watched Abbey walk further into the cemetery. Soon, he followed her, not wanting to get too far behind in case she needed him to back her up. As they walked, he listened for anything that may have been out of the ordinary.

Suddenly, Dean was tackled to the ground, someone falling on top of him. As he looked at his attacker, he let out a groan of disgust. Staring back at him was an old man, his skin rotting and peeling from his bones. Quickly, Dean raised his leg, his foot connecting with the zombie's gut as he thrust his leg upwards, knocking the thing off of him.

Again, the zombie rushed him, knocking him against a tree. Dean punched the thing in the mouth, his hand connecting with the rotting flesh with a wet sound. He pushed the thing backwards, causing it to trip over a tombstone. Then, he searched the cemetery for Abbey.

Abbey squirmed under a fat bald man whose throat had been cut. He had her wrists pinned against the ground, and he was trying to bite her. "Hey!" she heard a familiar voice yell. "Stay away from her you slimy son of a bitch!" Suddenly, the zombie's head was knocked off of it's body with the butt of a rifle. She let out a breath as she scrambled to get the body off of her.

Dean extended his arm out to her, pulling her off the ground when she took his open hand. "Thank you," Abbey said, brushing the grass from her jacket and pants.

"No problem. Come on, let's get out of here before any more come." Dean grabbed Abbey's elbow and lead her to the exit. She didn't protest, which was good. They didn't know nearly enough about zombies to actually kill them. They were going to have to do more research. Damn.

"I vote we get a drink," Dean suggested, looking at Abbey and smiling. "So, where's the closet place we can get some alcohol around here?"

Shaking her head, Abbey answered. "The Bronze, but Dean, I don't think--"

"Great. Let's go there."

Yeah, let's go to the Bronze. That's a brilliant idea. Abbey struggled with the lock as she held Dean's limp form in her arms. She knew they shouldn't have gone drinking. She had a ginger ale, but Dean had beer after beer after beer. He even tried a few purple nurples. Continually, Abbey had yelled to Dean that it was getting late and they should go home, but he just kept drinking. Now, he was hammered.

Finally, she got the door open, shoving Dean inside. He moaned as she kicked the door closed. She figured she should take him to her room so he could sleep off his beer on a nice, comfy bed instead of a lumpy couch. Besides, she wasn't going to use it tonight anyway, so someone should.

As she half walked, half dragged Dean to the stairs he began to mumble. "Mmm...strong."

Abbey rolled her eyes as he continued to mumble. "Come on, Dean," she strained. "Up the stairs. We need to get you to bed."

"Bed?" He chuckled. "Me likey." He leaned into her, allowing her to drag him up the stairs. "Are you going to be joining me, beautiful?"

"Ew, no. Dean, listen to me, you're drunk. Just...sleep it off." She was relieved as she pushed her bedroom door open with her shoulder, walking over to the bed.

Dean moaned as he was thrown onto the bed. "Mmm...rough. I like it like that." He grabbed the body that was suddenly getting too far away. "Wait. Stay."

Abbey pushed his hands off of her as she attempted to walk away again. "Dean, just relax. And go to sleep. You'll feel better in the morning."

"No!" Dean protested, pulling Abbey on top of him. "Stay with me."

Abbey gasped as Dean pulled her on top of him. "Dean...stop." She pushed on his chest, feeling his muscles tense under her hand.

"No, please," he begged. "Want you." He reached behind her head, pulling her closer to him. "Kiss me." Suddenly, their lips met and his tongue begged for entrance.

Abbey's entire body tensed as Dean's lips connected with hers and his tongue traced the outline of her lips, trying to gain access. She spread her arms out around her, breaking Dean's hold on her so she could pull away. "Dean, come on, this is ridiculous. You don't even know what you're doing."

"Yes, I do. I want to be with you."

"No, you don't." Abbey pushed herself off of Dean before he could try anything else. She heard him moan in protest. "I'll see you in the morning." Pulling the door closed, she sighed, the feel of Dean's lips still present on hers. Finally, she walked down the stairs, going straight to the kitchen and pouring herself a glass of water. She rested her head in her hand as she drank, unable to forget what it felt like to kiss Dean.

Sam wiped at his eyes as he rose from the bed. Slowly, he walked down the stairs, turning to the couch. "Dean?" he asked. There was no answer. "Dean, come on, get up." No answer. "Dean?"

"He's not down here," came a voice behind him, causing him to jump. He turned to see Abbey standing behind him. "Sorry."

"No, it's okay." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Um, where is he?"

"In my room. We went on patrol last night and he insisted that we get drinks afterward. He got drunk...really drunk, so I let him sleep in my room."

"Where did you sleep?"

"I didn't." Abbey walked back into the kitchen, Sam following. "You want coffee?"

"Uh, sure." He sat on the bar stool next to the counter. "Why didn't you sleep?"

Abbey shrugged, pouring Sam a cup of coffee. "I don't know. I just couldn't."

"Thanks," Sam said, taking the cup. He took a sip, wincing as the hot liquid connecting with his lips.

Suddenly, Sam and Abbey were joined by Willow and Kennedy. Willow looked at Abbey, wondering why she looked so worried. "Abbey, what's wrong?" Willow asked.

"Nothing. It's just...zombies."

"Zombies?" Willow asked, shocked.

Abbey shook her head. "Dean and I went to the cemetery last night to check it out. It was all over the news." She shrugged. "It's true. The dead is rising. And we don't know how to stop it."

"I do," Willow said excitedly. "All you have to do is kill their master." She smiled, nodding her head.

"Great," Sam piped up. "Now, we just have to find out who their master is, where he's staying, and how to kill him." He mimicked Willow's smile. "Sounds easy enough."

"Yeah, it does. All I have to do is a little locator spell." Willow rushed up the stairs and into her room. She placed twine on the floor in the shape of a square, four different colored crystals at each point it connected; the square represented Sunnydale. Next, she reached into the bowl which, pulling out a handful of the potion inside. It was a mixture of a green powder and a white powder. Willow closed her eyes, chanting, "Thespia, we walk in shadow, walk in blindness. You are the protector of the night. Thespia, goddess, ruler of all darkness, we implore you, open a window to the world of the under being." She blew the powder out of her hand. "With your knowledge may we go in safety. With your grace may we speak of your benevolence." Willow opened her eyes, smiling as she looked at the ground.

Willow rushed down the stairs and into the kitchen. "I found it. It's holed up in the last mausoleum in Mount Joy cemetery. It's about thirty minutes from here."

"Okay, how do we kill it?" Abbey asked, feeling her blood start to pump through her veins faster.

"Um...well, how did you kill the other one?"

"I broke it's neck. And then Dean set it on fire."

"Then do that," Willow said, guessing it would work.

Dean rolled onto his back, his head pounding. He groaned, holding his head in his hands as he leaned forward. He needed to get up. To get out of this room and get some coffee. Slowly, he stood, walking to the door and to the stairs, holding the wall for support. Continuing to use the wall, he stumbled down the stairs and into the kitchen.

The house was quiet, leading Dean to believe everyone else was still asleep. He put his head down on the counter as he sat alone. He knew he wanted coffee, but couldn't bring himself to move. God, his head hurt.

"How are you feeling?" a voice came from behind him.

He grunted in response.

"You want coffee?"

"Yes."

"Here."

Finally, Dean lifted his head, seeing Abbey holding a big cup of caffeine. Gladly, he took it, taking a large gulp, not caring that the contents burned his entire mouth and throat as it trailed down. He put the cup on the counter. "Thank you."

"No problem," Abbey answered, fidgeting.

Noticing that she wouldn't look at him, he asked, "Abbey? What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Why won't you look at me?"

She shrugged. "No reason. Just, not looking."

"Yeah, but why?"

"I just don't want to."

Dean shrugged. "Fine. But you're missing out on my adorable face." He smiled.

Abbey looked at him, unable not to. He was so cute. And sexy. Unintentionally, she allowed her gaze to trail down to his lips. Quickly, she looked back up, looking away from him completely. "Um, so, Willow found the demon. And we know how to kill it."

"What demon?"

"The one responsible for the zombies."

"Well, hell, let's go kill it now." Dean smiled, suddenly forgetting about his head ache.

"Are you sure you're up to it? I mean, you were pretty hammered last night."

"No! I'm fine. Let's go kill the bastard." He raised his eyebrows, smiling again.

"Okay." Abbey felt the adrenaline rush through her body again as she followed Dean out the door and to the impala. They quickly sped off in the direction of Mount Joy Cemetery.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Dean asked as he followed Abbey into the mausoleum.

"No," Abbey admitted, but it's the best thing we've got."

He knew she was right, so he didn't say anything else about it. They were quiet as they walked in deeper. He could smell sulfur all through the air, making his adrenaline shoot through the roof. He was so ready to kill this thing. His body was itching for a fight, and he was about to get one.

Suddenly, Dean ran right into Abbey who had stopped moving. "Ow! What are you--"

"Shhh!" Abbey ordered. "Do you hear that?"

Dean listened. "No, I don't hear anything."

"Listen. It's like a...chanting."

Again, Dean listened, closer this time. Finally, he heard it. "Okay, yeah, I hear it." Suddenly, Dean was grabbed from behind. "What the--?!"

Abbey turned to see Dean in the arms of a very grotesque looking zombie. "Dean!" she yelled. She was about to take a swing at the thing when she was grabbed. "No! Get off of me!"

The zombies moaned as if trying to speak to each other. Suddenly, the demon appeared before them. "Abbey Hanson and Dean Winchester," it spoke. "It's an honor to finally meet you."

Dean stared at the thing before him, shocked. "You're-You're human."

The man chuckled. "Oh, no, I just look it." Suddenly, his eyes flashed black. "Aaron here is merely my meat suit." The demon smiled at them.

"What do you want?" Abbey spat. "Why are you here? Raising the dead?"

"Well, I'm here to prevent you from stopping the apocalypse. Why else?"

"And you had to raise the dead to do it?"

He laughed. "Oh, no. I just did that for fun. Tell me, Abbey, do you miss mommy."

She struggled against the zombie, trying to get to the man standing before her. "Shut up, you bastard! I swear to God, if you do anything, I'll--"

"You'll what? Kill me?" Abbey just glared at him. "You won't be alive long enough to have the chance." He took a step closer to Abbey, whispering in her ear, "It's started, Slayer."

With the snap of his fingers, he vanished, and the zombies attacked. Abbey stomped her boot into the zombie's foot, breaking the bones. The pain caused it to release her, throwing her into the wall. She gasped in pain as her back slammed against the concrete. It rushed her, but she was ready for it. Her fist connected with it's face, knocking it to the ground.

Meanwhile, Dean managed to get his right arm free, and he used it to elbow the zombie that held him in the mouth. He groaned as he pulled his elbow away, a piece of the zombie's skin sticking to his jacket. "Gross." He dove to the ground and picked up his rifle, shooting a round into the zombie's forehead. Jumping to his feet, he used the butt of his gun to smash the zombie's head in. Once he had the zombie down, it's head dented in where he had hit it, he turned just in time to see Abbey break her zombie's neck. He smiled at her. "Nice work."

"Thanks. You too." She wiped the grime from her hands on her jeans. "Come on, let's get out of here before more show up."

As they turned to the exit, Dean said, "Too late."

Two large zombies stood before them, their muscles protruding from their tight shirts. By the looks of them, Abbey figured they must have been either body guards, bouncers, or body builders before they died. Judging by their looks, they hadn't been dead that long.

"You take the one on the right, I'll get the one on the left," Dean suggested, smiling before he ran at the thing, tackling it to the ground.

The zombie on the right rushed Abbey, but she dodged the attack, causing the thing to stumble. Quickly, she kicked it in the lower back, but it didn't seem to phase it. The thing turned and punched her in the jaw, knocking her backwards. She fell to her back, groaning as she hit her head on the hard cement floor.

Meanwhile, Dean straddled the zombie he was fighting, repeatedly punching it in the nose. He felt the bones break under his fist, but he refused to stop. As he went to punch it again, the zombie grabbed his wrist. Suddenly, he was thrown off the things body, flying through the air and slamming into the wall on the opposite side of the mausoleum. He groaned in pain as he tried to get up.

As soon as Abbey had gotten up, she was on the ground again. She struggled to get back to her feet, but the zombie kicked her in the gut, causing her to fly out of the mausoleum and onto the damp ground outside. She crawled to the closest headstone, grabbing onto it for support. With it's help, she managed to get back to her feet. She punched the zombie in the head, then the stomach, and finally uppercut him. When she went to punch him again, he grabbed her arm, getting a good grip. Next, he reached down and grasped her leg, lifting her from the ground with ease and tossing her as if she were a rag doll. She groaned in pain as her forehead connected with the side of a tombstone.

Before Dean could get up, the zombie was attacking him again. It kicked him in the stomach repeatedly. He gasped for air, feeling a few ribs break as the zombie continued kicking. Finally, he managed to grab the zombie's boot, stopping it's assault. He twisted, not stopping until he heard the bones crack. He pushed the zombie back, knocking it to the ground. Using the wall for support, he rose. Looking around the room, he didn't see Abbey anywhere. Finally, he spotted her outside. Her head was bleeding, but she was holding her own. Suddenly, he was shoved back into the wall, the zombie pinning him there. He screamed in pain as he felt teeth tear into his shoulder.

Abbey was tired of this. Her head hurt, and she just wanted to get Dean and get out of here. She punched the thing in front of her one last time, smiling a little as it fell to the ground. She bent over it, grabbing the top of it's head and it's chin. Quickly, she jerked her arms, hearing a *snap* as it's neck broke. Suddenly, she heard Dean scream, causing her to look in his direction. She saw the zombie holding him against the wall, snacking at his shoulder. "Dean!" she screamed, running as fast as she could back into the mausoleum, ripping the stake from her back pocket.

When she finally reached him, she shoved the stake deep into the zombie's neck, causing it to let go of Dean and fall to the ground in a heap. She caught Dean in her arms before he could fall to the ground, gasping as he slumped into her body. She gently pushed him back into the wall, still holding him. She lifted his head, forcing him to look at her. "Dean? Dean, look at me."

Dean looked at Abbey, panting. "He bit me. That son of a bitch bit me."

"I know. Let me see." She looked as Dean's shoulder, noticing the bite wasn't too bad. "Oh, it's not that bad. It's not that bad." She looked at him again, noticing that he was a little more alert, also staring at the whole in his shoulder.

"Oh God, am I gonna turn into a zombie?"

Abbey chuckled. "No. You'll be fine."

"Are you sure? Because I don't want to turn into a zombie."

"I'm sure. But, we should get out of here."

Dean nodded. Abbey allowed him to use her as support as they stumbled out of the cemetery and into the impala. Favoring his good arm, Dean started the car and drove in the direction of Abbey's house. He tried to make his breathing shallow, not wanting to feel the pain that shot through his torso when he took a deep breath. He had broken his ribs before, but it didn't mean he was used to the pain it brought.