Ok this chapter is not the hunt, but it will happen the next chapter for sure! Hope you all like this!

"So, what's first?" Max asked curiously.

Dean and Alec had come back inside and told her that Alec was going to go on the hunt. She had calmed down some, so Alec had run back to Command to get the rest of their clothes. They had waited until he had gotten back and they had both gotten dressed before they started talking about the hunt.

"We, as in me and you, are going to do research," Dean replied, but he had a spark in his eye, that she knew from Alec, meant trouble.

"What are we supposed to do?" Alec asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You and Sam can stay here and look stuff up on the laptop," Dean said offhandedly.

"So we're actually doing research while you're doing…" Sam said, trailing off with a question.

"We're researching," Dean said seriously. "We're just going out to research."

"Why can't we go too?" Alec asked petulantly.

"Because this is your punishment for telling on us to your girlfriend and Sam's going to babysit," Dean said simply. Alec scowled back, but he didn't argue, which surprised Max. "C'mon Max, we're wasting time."

Max looked to Alec, but he was ignoring them so she shrugged and followed Dean out of the house. They went to Dean's car without saying a word, and then he drove them out of Freak Valley.

"First rule of hunting," Dean said after a few miles. "Always try to get out of doing research. It sucks and it's stupid, but it's still necessary for hunting."

Max let out a surprised huff of amusement at Dean's statement. "So, we're not actually doing research…" Max guessed.

"No way," Dean said with a smile. "I hate research."

"So what are we doing?" Max asked.

"We are going to go make some money," Dean replied, shooting her a cocky grin. It was Alec's cocky grin and Max reacted to seeing it without thinking. She punched Dean's arm and he scowled back at her, "Hey! What was that for?"

"Sorry," Max apologized quickly. "You looked just like Alec then and I reacted without thinking."

Dean chuckled, "Well don't go jumpin' my bones tonight just because I look like him, because that would be awkward."

Max shot him a look of disbelief, and then crossed her arms and glared out the window. Dean was just as bad, or worse, than Alec was and it was infuriating. She couldn't believe she agreed to go wherever they were going.

She watched the trees flash by as they drove, but her curiosity was starting to stir again. "What's another rule of hunting?" She finally asked, loosening up a little so she could turn and glance at Dean.

"Nope, my lips are sealed because you're not very nice to me," Dean stated.

Max groaned and rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I'm not sorry because you were a jerk first."

"I was not!" Dean said, pretending to be affronted.

"Whatever," Max said again, but she couldn't stop her small smile. "How are we making money tonight?"

"It's a surprise," Dean said with a smirk.

"Sam, I'm bored," Alec said again. As soon as Dean and Max left, he went over to the sofa and flopped down on the cushions. Sam had gotten his laptop out and started researching, but Alec wasn't interested in research.

"You could help with the research," Sam suggested with a smile. He knew Alec wouldn't want to do that, but it was fun aggravating his little brother. He understood now why Dean tried to aggravate him so much.

"Research is boring," Alec replied. He sounded like he thought Sam should know this already.

"If we get the research done then we could go do something else," Sam suggested.

"We don't have a car," Alec whined.

"We don't need a car to do something else," Sam said in amusement.

"If it's going to be fun then we need a car," Alec mumbled under his breath.

"Well we can't do anything until the research is done," Sam replied. He tried to hide his smile, but Alec popped up over the back of the sofa to glare at him.

"Sam," Alec tried to reason. "You know Dean isn't actually doing any research, so it doesn't make sense for us to do research either…"

"Y'know, Dean tries this all the time; it's not going to work."

"How about we research after we go have some fun," Alec tried again.

"Or," Sam drew out. "We research, and then go have some fun."

Alec sighed dramatically, but then got up and headed over to Sam. "Fine. What are we lookin' at?"

"A spirit," Sam answered. He hooked another chair with his foot and dragged it over so Alec could sit next to him. "A girl named Paige Dwyer died about 10 years ago in the Pan Pacific Hotel." Before Seattle had been destroyed, the hotel had been an elegant, 4 star hotel, situated just right for the perfect view of the Space Needle. Now, it was just as run down and destroyed as everything else. No one stayed there anymore; it was just crumbling with disuse.

"I know the place," Alec threw in. He looked a little troubled hearing the hotel and Sam decided to keep note of that and ask him about it in a little. "Who was Paige?"

"She was one of the housekeepers," Sam answered. "One of the other housekeepers found her body in one of the elevators, but when they had gone back, she was gone. The cops think that whoever did it came back and did something with her body before they could."

"Any leads on who did it?" Alec asked curiously. He didn't like research, but once there was a problem to solve, he was invested. He was actually really good at figuring out what was going on and how to solve hunts. Sam figured he just didn't like research because Dean didn't like it.

"There were speculations that one of the guests, Ian Malcolm, had something to do with her death, but he died a week after she did."

"How? And where?"

"Hung in the hotel," Sam answered.

"Sounds like Paige got her revenge…" Alec muttered.

"Well, if she did, it still didn't give her peace," Sam replied. "She kills any male-"

"Male that she can get her hands on," Alec finished.

Alec had a look that Sam knew meant he wasn't telling him something. "You know something about this, don't you?"

"I didn't know anything about Paige, but I knew something weird was going on with that hotel, I just didn't know what it was," Alec said quietly. Sam looked over at his little brother and waited patiently for him to continue.

"I was dealing some parts there, selling them to a group of thugs to make some money," Alec said. "I liked the spot because there's a big spiral staircase in the lobby where I could watch them walk in and make sure they weren't trying anything. I'd only been there a few times before, but this time was weird.

I got there early and I sat in my usual spot and waited. After a while I heard something mechanical running, which didn't make sense because the building was ruined. I heard other things too, but I just thought the guys I was dealing with were trying to mess with me. The guys showed up after a few more minutes, but before I could jump down to deal with them, they were thrown around by something that wasn't there."

Alec stopped, lost in thought and reliving the past. Sam wanted to find out what else had happened, but he waited a minute to let Alec work through it.

"I thought they might still be messing with me. I'd dealt with them before and they liked to mess around before they actually traded…anyway, they actually seemed scared, and after a few minutes I figured out that whatever was going on, they weren't behind it. I ran for it, but something threw me back before I could get to the door. Whatever it was, it killed the other guys, but I made it out…"

"You said you'd been there before and nothing happened?" Sam asked curiously.

"Yeah. Two other times to deal, but it was just briefly."

"Alright, we know for sure the place is haunted, now we just need to find her remains," Sam said.

"A bar? Really?" Max asked in disbelief, turning in her seat to shoot Dean a dirty look. He just smirked back and got out of the car. He didn't wait for her to follow; he knew she was curious enough to see what he had planned.

"I'll make a deal with you Maxie," Dean said with a smile as they walked to the door. "Whatever we make tonight, I'll split it with you 50/50."

"What exactly are we going to be doing?" Max asked suspiciously.

"We're going to trick people into giving us their money…" Dean replied easily.

"How?" Max drew out.

"Well, I found out recently that transgenics can't get drunk," Dean said.

"You mean when you and Alec decided to have some kind of drinking challenge and you lost miserably and ended up on a roof?" Max asked sweetly.

"He told you about that?" Dean asked in surprise.

Max nodded, "Yeah, we talk on the phone all the time. And I gotta say, I wish I would've seen Alec when you numbed his mouth."

Dean threw his head back and laughed, "Oh he was so mad! He kept trying to talk, but no one could understand him!"

Max laughed too, but then said, "It sounds like I'm going to be doing most of the work here, so I think I deserve more of the cut."

"Ok 60/40, but I'm not going any higher than that," Dean bargained.

"70/30"

"60/40 and I buy the drinks."

"Deal," Max said with a smile. They shook on it, and then headed into the bar. It was a grungy place with dim lighting and stains on the floor. It was packed in the bar, which was both good and bad. It was good because that gave them a lot of people to hustle and it was bad because that meant there were more chances for Max to be recognized.

He ignored that for now and went to the bar to get them their first round. They were going to ease into it, and then he was going to pretend to be drunk and challenge someone to outdrink him.

"Have you ever hustled before?" Dean whispered to Max. He set down Max's drink in front of her and took a sip of his own.

"I've lived on the streets of Seattle for years. I know how to hustle," Max stated with a glare.

"Ok, ok," Dean said with his hands raised in defense. "Just follow my lead for a bit, ok?"

"Fine," Max hissed through her teeth.

They drank a few rounds, and then Dean challenged a guy to a drinking game. Dean bet some money, but he tipped around and pretended that he was already gone. The guy was close to being drunk, but Dean figured he could go a few rounds and would be the perfect first target.

Dean knocked his drink over after the third round, and the guy declared that he was too drunk to win. Dean argued for a few minutes, but then Max stepped up.

"Dean, I think you've had enough," Max said sternly.

"I c'n keep goin'," Dean slurred.

"I think you need to listen to the girl, buddy," the guy said with a smile.

"You don' tell me wha ta do…" Dean mumbled. "My money, I keep goin'…"

"I won this money fair and square," the guy argued.

"My money!" Dean yelled, but Max held him back.

"How about I win it back?" Max asked him. The guy behind her laughed so she turned on him. "What, you think I can't?"

"No, I don't think you can," the guy said with a smirk.

"Fine, double or nothing," Max said with determination.

"You're on."

"Her body has to be in the hotel, Sam," Alec said again. He was still bored; he'd been intrigued for a minute, but now he just wanted to get on with the hunt.

"We don't know that for sure," Sam replied. Sam had looked up briefly from his laptop, but then back down. Alec rolled his eyes and got up from his perch on the back of the sofa. He went over to Sam and shut the laptop. Sam looked up and glared at Alec.

"Sam, I'm bored," Alec stated. "We figured out that the place is haunted for sure. The only place her body could be is in the hotel. You said we would research, and then have some fun. We researched, now it's time for fun."

Sam sighed, but then finally replied, "Fine, what kind of fun are we talking about here?"

Alec's eyes widened in surprise at Sam's agreement to stop researching. "We get to have fun?!"

"Don't look so surprised," Sam said with a laugh. "I went to college; I know how to have fun."

"Coulda fooled me," Alec said with a smirk.

"You're just as bad as Dean," Sam said. "Now, do you wanna have fun or not?"

"What'd you have in mind?" Alec asked with a glint in his eyes.

"Alright people! Place your bets!" Dean called out to the crowd gathered around. He had pretended to sober up some once the first guy had passed out. Another one had stepped up to take his place, but Max just kept drinking.

More people handed in their money; Dean had a pile for Max and a pile against her. All together it was over $1,000 and they'd made a good haul even before people started betting.

Max tossed back another shot, and then looked over at Dean with a smirk. The guy she was drinking against took his shot, but teetered on his bar stool. Max rolled her eyes at the man, and then turned to the rest of the bar.

"I think he's done. Who's next?" Max called out.

"This is bullshit!" Someone yelled in the crowd.

"Sounds like we've got a sore loser," Dean called back with a smile.

"You're cheating somehow!" The man said, pushing his way to the front of the crowd. He was middle aged with a scruffy beard and grungy looking clothes. He was a skinny guy and Dean almost smirked at seeing him.

"How would we cheat?" Dean asked with a laugh. "You can ask the bartender, she's the one pouring the drinks."

"They've all been alcoholic," the bartender said, her voice bored.

"Then you're cheating some other way!"

"Dean, I think it's time to make a graceful exit," Max whispered in his ear.

Dean barely nodded back; he could sense that things were starting to take a turn against them. People didn't like to lose, and they'd been taking their money for a while now.

"Wait! I finally figured it out!" Someone in the crowd called out. "I recognized them from somewhere!"

"It's time to go. Now," Max hissed.

"They're transgenics!"

"Sam, where are we going," Alec whispered.

Sam smiled back at his little brother. He hadn't told Alec what they were doing, and Alec seemed excited and nervous to see what was going to happen.

Sam walked over to a 2-door Ford that was in the garage at Freak Valley. Alec looked over at him in surprise. "We're going to steal a car?"

"Don't sound so surprised," Sam said with a smile. "And it's not technically stealing because we're going to bring it back."

"Where are we going?" Alec asked as he got into the car.

"Dean's right, you ask a lot of questions," Sam replied.

Alec continued to ask questions as Sam drove towards the city. He stopped at a little gas station on the way and Alec looked at him suspiciously.

"A gas station? That's your idea of fun?" Alec asked, his eyebrows up in disbelief.

"Just stay here for a second," Sam said, rolling his eyes.

Sam ran inside and he was surprised that Alec actually stayed in the car. He paid for his things, but then had the guy put it in a bag so Alec couldn't see what he got.

"What's in the bag?" Alec immediately asked.

"You'll see."

"Sam," Alec said with a groan. He flopped back against the seat dramatically, "The suspense is going to kill me. You are going to kill your own little brother. Is that what you want?"

Sam chuckled, "You're not gonna die of suspense. You'll find out soon."

Alec groaned again, but he sat quietly the rest of the way. Sam caught him trying to peek into the bag, but he pushed it out of sight. Sam finally parked, grabbed the bag, and then got out. Alec quickly got out, but then stopped and looked up in surprise.

"The Space Needle?!" Alec asked, excitement creeping into his tone and lighting up his eyes.

"I thought it'd be fun even though it's kinda broken down now," Sam said with a shrug. "Dean, you know, doesn't like heights so he probably wouldn't take you…"

Alec broke into a wide smile, "Max used to sit up there all the time. I went up there once and it was awesome!"

Sam smiled too; he was overly happy to be doing this for Alec, but he was trying to keep his cool. He didn't get to hang out with Alec one on one very often. Dean was kind of a little brother hog when it came to Alec, and Sam didn't want to mess up his chance.

They went all the way to the top, and then sat out on the edge. Dean would have never done this unless he had to. Alec swung his feet as he sat at the edge and Sam sat down next to him. He brought the bag over, and then revealed the contents to Alec. His little brother's eyes lit up and he looked over at Sam.

"I thought you didn't eat these?!" Alec asked in surprise.

"Only when Dean leaves me alone with research…it's my cheat day," Sam said with a smile. He held out the bag of candy and Alec dug around, and then pulled out a Snickers bar. Sam had grabbed chocolate for Alec and gummies for himself.

"Dean doesn't think you like candy," Alec said around his mouthful of chocolate.

"I do like candy, I just don't overeat it like he does," Sam replied with a smirk.

"You're secret's safe with me," Alec said. "Y'know what?"

"What?"

"I secretly like the vegetables," Alec admitted, looking straight ahead. "Don't tell Dean, ok?"

Sam laughed, "Ok, I'll keep your secret since you're keeping mine."

"Well shit," Dean said.

He pocketed their money, and then shoved the first guy that came at them. Max pushed someone, and then kicked another guy in the throat. Dean ducked as another guy threw a punch, and then Max took him down. Max held them back as Dean moved back to the bar.

He grabbed the money from earlier and winked at the bartender before he turned. But before he turned all the way back to the fight, the drunk guy sitting on the chair was looking at him curiously. He squinted and pointed at him like he was trying to figure something out. Dean just smirked and barely touched the guy and he tipped over to fall on the floor.

"C'mon!" Max shouted. She grabbed his arm and they ran for the door.

They were lucky since most of the people in the bar seemed too shocked to react to them. They still ran though, they didn't want to get caught up with a bunch of transgenic haters and end up on the nightly news. They ran to the Impala and Dean floored it to get out of there.

"That was close," Max said. She turned in her seat to make sure no one was following them.

"That was fun," Dean shot back. "It wasn't that close. And besides, we got all the money this way instead of just some of it."

"You took it all!?" Max asked incredulously.

"Yes I did," Dean said with a wide smile. He held up a wad of money and gave Max a quick glance, and then tossed her the cash. She smiled back at him and relaxed against her seat, counting her cut.

"That was pretty fun," Max finally relented. "And we made a pretty good team."

"And it was better than research," Dean said pointedly.

"I wonder how much Sam and Alec found out…" Max wondered out loud.

"Sam's like a research wiz and Alec is the best at figuring out mysteries, I'm sure they've got it all mapped out," Dean replied.

"What's another rule of hunting?" Max suddenly asked.

"Besides what we already taught you?" Dean asked in confusion. They'd told her the basics of hunting a ghost; they still needed to teach her some more, but he didn't really have actual rules to hunting.

"Yeah, I already know about the salt and the burning and what not, I wanna know more of your little rules, like research is the worst, but Alec and Sam are good at it. That kind of thing," Max said.

"I don't know," Dean said with a shrug. "Those aren't really rules; they're just…little things…"

"I know that," Max said with a huff, "I just want to know more of them."

"You mean you want to know more about…us," Dean said, amusement coloring his tone. Max just crossed her arms and looked out the window. It was quiet for a few minutes, and then Dean sighed, "Sam is terrified of clowns."

Max looked over at him hopefully, but Dean just stared out the window as he drove down the street.

"Alec takes a ton of naps. Sam refuses to cut his hair and I think it's because he knows it annoys me. Sam likes emo music and Alec likes it too and uses it to annoy me. He set some emo song as his ringtone and it plays constantly and gets stuck in my head. Alec likes heights and I hate them. He likes to scare the shit out of me and hang out on top of roofs. Alec knows how to play piano. Sam likes to play soccer. Sam went to college to be a lawyer and it was the worst four years of my life…" Dean stopped for a minute, and then said, "And this past year has been one of the best years of my life…"

Dean looked over at Max and saw that she was giving him a small smile of thanks.

"Alright, now if you want this money, this conversation is over," Dean said. This had already been too much of a chick-flick moment and he needed to get it over with.

Max laughed, "Alright, I won't make you keep going…but thank you for telling me all of that."

Dean shrugged as he pulled into Freak Valley and parked in the garage. "Let's go see what all they found out so we can get on with this hunt."

"Whatever you say," Max said with a smile.

Alec and Sam ran from the garage as Dean pulled in. He shot Sam a look and they both laughed as they ran back to the house. Sam ran to sit down in front of his laptop and opened it again. Alec jumped onto the sofa and kind of messed up his hair so it looked like he'd been sleeping for a while.

"You good?" Alec whispered to Sam.

"Yeah, I'm good," Sam replied with a smile.

Alec ducked back down and pressed his face into the cushions and slowed his breathing. A few minutes later the door opened and Dean and Max walked into the room.

"Did he help at all?" Dean whispered to Sam.

Sam chuckled, "Yeah, he helped a lot. The only thing we don't know yet is where her body ended up. We think it's in the hotel somewhere."

"You guys smell like alcohol," Alec mumbled, sitting up and pretending to rub the sleep from his eyes.

"We had a few drinks," Max replied. She gave him a soft smile, and then looked back to Dean.

"How was research?" Dean asked Alec with a smirk.

"Not bad," Alec replied.

Dean frowned, "Really? Not bad?"

Alec shrugged, "Yeah, it wasn't bad."

Alec shot a look to Sam and Sam smiled behind Dean's back. Dean looked between the two of them, but then shrugged.

"Alright, let's get on with this hunt," Dean finally said. He shot Alec and Sam one more suspicious look, and then sat down at the little table.

More soon...