Chapter Nine: The Price of Love

The gang caught their first lucky break at twelve o'clock pm, when Bobby learned of a murder in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska. A young blonde woman had killed a twenty something brunette outside of Harley's Designer Clothes for Less, by bashing her head into the window of a 2007 Ford Explorer. It wasn't the murder itself that made the case strange, it was the fact that one girl had killed the other at seven o'clock in the morning on a street filled with witnesses. But what had caught Bobby's attention was that she'd killed for a pair of green high-heeled shoes. That was the strange part.

Currently, Bobby had dragged Erin off with him, leaving the boys and Kelly to investigate the scene of the crime.

Outside of Harley's Designer Clothes for Less, Sam Winchester and Kelly Jones were moving silently through the thick crowds. Their eyes examining the blood soaked scene, the broken car window and the detectives from the Lincoln PD gathering up evidence as they tried to suss out what really happened. Sam's eyes swept over the car, the detectives, and the blood, finding nothing out of the ordinary. Silently, he turned to his partner.

She was standing beside him, her hands hidden deep in the pockets of her leather duster. Kelly was sniffing the air thoughtfully, her gaze going from the blood to the officers and then back to the broken window. The thick smell of iron hung in the air, but it was mixed into the foot traffic. The thousand different kinds of chemicals, nicotine, menthol, perfume scented by lilacs, roses, honey, vanilla mixed in with personal body odors and the scents of cotton and leather. Each person had their own unique scent and the more there were the harder it became to filter them out. But she had gotten rather good at tracking and it was growing easier to center in on the smell she wanted. Still, all she could smell was the blood and it only belonged to one person. Despite the obviousness of the struggle, the perpetrator hadn't bled. She glanced up at Sam.

"Find something?" He asked. His voice low and he glanced around at the crowd before looking at her.

"Yeah." She said. "You smell nice today." There was a wicked gleam in her eyes as she leaned over and sniffed his arm. "Did you change your deodorant?"

Sam repressed a flush. He both liked and hated it when she teased him. "Couldn't find mine this morning." He muttered. "So, I borrowed Dean's."

"Old Spice." Kelly nodded. "A classic choice." She glanced up at him again, a warm smile coloring her lips. "Suits you."

Sam looked away. "Find anything?" He asked. "Anything else, I mean?" This time he really did flush. He just hoped that she couldn't see it.

"Besides the fact that my life would suck without you?" Kelly asked. "No."

With her free hand, she poked Sam in the ribs, and despite the grim scene before them, found that she was smiling. Sometimes, teasing him was way too easy. He needs to get a tougher shell. But at the same time, ease at which she could make him flush was adorable. And joking like this, it's easy to forget about Dean and his deal. And the little time they had left to save him. Then it'll just be us. With no buffer in between. She dreaded that day, afraid of what might happen and what she might feel.

"Really?" Sam asked. "Nothing?"

"Seriously!" Kelly threw up her hands. "Not a single thing!" That was code for there having been no interference by a demon. One girl had just killed another over a pair of shoes, and strange as that was, she couldn't find any evidence. There was no sulfur lingering in the air, not even a trace scent mixed with the blood. Maybe Erin will turn up more when she talks to the girl's corpse. If her spirit hadn't already moved on. Kelly was certain that was the reason why Bobby had taken the inexperienced Erin with him.

Because honestly, she's not useful for much else. Not yet, anyway. And Kelly had little confidence in her ability to train the younger fey. Less that she has any desire to be taught. Erin seemed to fluctuate between hot and cold, sometimes she was like an adorable little sister, the rest of it made Kelly want to shoot her in the head and dump her body somewhere inhospitable.

Kelly sent Sam another hard glare and then turned heel, heading inside. They weren't going to find anything useful out here. Maybe inside'll get us different results. Kelly hoped so. She had a feeling that this was linked to that strange murder in the farmhouse. But that was only her gut and she had no hard evidence. There wasn't a trail of sulfur from there either. Which was troubling. Hearing Dean's voice over the swishing of electronic doors, Kelly looked up.

"I know what happened outside makes you realize how fragile life really is."

Dean was standing in the middle of the store, his hand on the shoulder of a pretty girl with curling blonde hair cascading down past her shoulders. Her curls hung loosely around her face, framing her high cheekbones and sharp nose. Dean was staring into her eyes with an earnest expression. It was the kind that made Kelly snort as she glanced back over her shoulder at Sam.

"Is it just me?" She asked. "Or is he going for cheesier lines?" This time it was easy to swallow her jealousy. Mostly because the lines he was using should have been tossed into the dumpster along with Dean's manual titled 220 Easy Pick Up Lines, the Perfect Way to Score! He denied ever having possessed it, of course. But Kelly knew it had existed, after all, she'd been the one to throw it out.

"You gotta make every second count."

Sam winced. "The cheesiest." He agreed and together they shared a quick smile. "It's more of a make your life memorable and spend the evening with me." Sam shook his head, his mouth curved in an imitation of Dean's smirk as he gazed down at Kelly. "I promise it'll be the time of your life." Then, to complete the impression, Sam gave her a slow and exaggerated wink.

Kelly pretended to swoon. "Oh, Dean, take me in those big manly man arms and make my life worth living!" She cast her arm across her forehead and stared down at the ground. Sam just looked at her with a raised eyebrow. She broke the pose and glanced up at him. "What?" She asked. Sam just shook his head. "What?"

He started walking away. We both know that's only half a joke. Sam thought. He suppressed his irritation and glanced back at his brother.

"Oh come on, Sam." Kelly groaned as she followed him. "It was just a joke!"

Sure, sure. Sam wasn't about to start an argument here about whether or not she still had feeling for his brother. The whole universe knows she does. But this wasn't the time or place. And it's not like I should care. I'm not jealous. Of course he wasn't jealous that she only seemed to have eyes for Dean. Despite the fact that she kissed my cheek this morning. That had been a friend thing, something for her to show her affection towards him as a partner. And any flirting she does is to tease me. Maybe even to tease Dean. He's jealous enough as it is. But what Sam didn't get was the why of the equation. Dean obviously wants to be with Kelly and pretends to hide it, but gets testy when any guy starts sniffing around. Kelly pretends she doesn't want to be with Dean, but really wants to and gets jealous when he sleeps around or even flirts. So, why wouldn't his brother just apologize and get everything back on track. Instead they're both torturing me! Kelly by being her wonderful and irritating self, Dean by being a stubborn asshole. Sam blinked. He needed to get his mind back on the job.

The blonde was beginning to nod thoughtfully, staring at Dean with wide doe-like eyes. Better break this up before he goes in for the kill. Walking forward with Kelly in tow, Sam walked up to his brother and cleared his throat. Saying nothing, he flashed a quick smile at the blonde and felt Kelly's irritation in the back of his mind.

Dean could practically feel his ex-girlfriend's eyes boring into the side of his head. Ignoring her, he smiled nonchalantly, realizing that fun-time was at an end. Flicking his head to the side, he shifted from foot to foot. "Excuse me for a moment, would you?" He asked, hoping that she would stay. He hated letting her leave, knowing that he might miss his chance to do something other than boring research. Still, after a glance at his brother and Kelly, she turned around a walked off. Dean heard his brother sigh. Sam was obviously irritated with him.

"She was nice." Kelly said. Her voice lilting a little as she watched the blonde saunter off. "I'll give her a seven, no, maybe an eight for being all Midwestern with a side of warm apple pie." She glanced back at him, a wicked grin on her lips, exposing her shiny white teeth. "Judges score? Two thumbs way, way up."

Dean didn't like the way his brother glanced at her, or the way he grinned. "And what's his percentile for 'hittin't it'?"

"How about Sammy plus slang equals a bad combination?" Dean asked.

"Oh," Kelly sighed dramatically, her hands still shoved in her pockets. "The Judges gave him a two point oh for that one." She shook her head sadly. "The combination of not enough time references, combined with the overall cheese factor and obvious scoring attempt label this as one for the record books." She pursed her lips in a mocking smirk. "By massive failure." Kelly tilted her head. "As in, Do Not Reattempt."

"Got it." Dean grumbled. "Though I kinda recall someone falling hard for those lines." He fixed her with a meaningful stare.

"Guess I'm lucky the relationship never got off the ground." Kelly smiled back. "But I'm with you on the 'No, Sam can't have Slang' rule." She glanced up at the taller brown haired brother. "Makes you sound like a nerd."

Sam rolled his eyes and cleared his throat again. Keeping these two on topic was like herding a group of cats. They never seemed to go in the direction you wanted. And it's a headache to make them try. "Dean," he sighed, letting his disappointment filter into his voice "What are you doing?"

Dean shrugged and glanced around. "I'm comforting the bereaved!" She's going to make a snide comment! I know it, I just know it! He nearly flinched as she patted him comfortingly on the arm.

"That's very thoughtful and sweet of you, Dean." She said. "I'm proud of you."

He blinked. She sounded sincere. Maybe she wasn't going to snipe him after all. "Really?" He asked.

"Yeah." He watched her smile turn wicked.

And here it comes.

"I never knew you were so good at multitasking. I mean, its one thing to comfort." She nodded. "But it's another to sound sincere while trying to score a piece of ass." She grinned at him, crossing her arms over her chest, her black jacket swirling around her legs. "You must be one hell of a con artist."

Sam shifted uncomfortably as he bounced on his feet. Is it just me? Or is it getting hot in here? He resisted the urge to tug at his collar. "Yeah," he muttered. "One for the ages."

"Sammy," Dean said in a patient voice. "You don't urge a cat to continue swiping with its claws." He cast Kelly another annoyed glance before looking back at his brother. "You encourage it to put them away!" He glanced from Kelly to Sam in irritation. "Anyway, to get back on topic." Again, he gave Kelly the stink eye and watched her giggle. He really needed to work harder on that attack. "What are you doin'?"

"Workin'." Sam replied. He stuffed his hands deep into his pockets and rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet.

"I get that." Dean said. He peered past his brother at Kelly. "But what's she doin'?"

"Making a strong moral commitment to society." Kelly said.

Herd of cats! Sam was on the verge of throwing up his hands and leaving them to go at it. The worst would be if Bobby brought Erin back and she wanted to know what a clothing rack was, how it was made, and why people couldn't just pop on whatever they wanted. The fey girl didn't smell and she'd been wearing the same outfit for three days. To be fair, she doesn't have the money to buy clothes. But that didn't make it any less irritating. Especially the fact that she doesn't smell like… He paused, wanting to groan. ANYTHING! He was brought back to earth by Kelly's fingers on his arm.

"She was with me."

"Right." Dean grinned. It was sick with jealousy. "The inseparable duo, a regular old team up of Batman and Robin."

"Don't be an idiot, Dean." Kelly sighed. "I'm Batgirl."

Sam's voice rose as he talked over them. "We were researching a dead body, possible demon attack, that kind of stuff."

Dean coughed into his hand. "Sam, I'm sorry." He said. "It's just that y'know, I don't have much time left and…" He coughed again, this time openly towards Sam's shoes. It was a big heavy cough, but it was dry and obviously fake. "Since I'm not getting laid anymore in a standard engagement…"

"Which, let's be honest," Kelly said. "Is your own damn fault."

Dean glanced at her in irritation. Did she always have to step on his toes? He loved her for it. Just not when she's doing it to me! "Means I gotta make every second count."

Sam glanced down at Kelly and she shrugged. Finally, he said in a low voice. "Yeah, man, I know, I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted!" Dean said with a wide grin. At that moment Bobby moved up behind them. In their squabbling they'd missed seeing him and Erin return. "Whoa!" Dean said. Turning around to catch sight of Bobby fixing his tie, he whistled. "You look spiffy Bobby, what were you G-man?"

"Attorney for the DA's office." Bobby replied. "I just spoke to the suspect."

Erin appeared at Sam's elbow and glanced at Kelly with irritation. Why did she have to follow him wherever he went? The two were stuck together like glue. They'd been together when she'd woken up this morning, been paired off to look at the crime scene. "And I got sent down to the death house." She glanced up at him. "What is it you mortals call it?"

"The morgue." Kelly supplied helpfully.

Erin glared at her and spat. "I was asking the mortals."

"So, that rules Sam out right?" Kelly asked. She stopped as Sam pushed his large hand down over her head.

"Don't start." He said in a low voice. Then, he mussed her hair.

Dean sighed in irritation. "She's not five, Sam." He was glaring at the two of them, his arms almost crossed over his chest. Erin gave him a curious glance and seeing her stare, he smiled widely as if he was trying to hide something.

Humans are strange. She watched Kelly push Sam's hand away, an odd feeling buzzing at the pit of her stomach. She didn't know what to make of it. It was strange as her eyes fixed on Kelly's annoyed expression and the way she was trying to hide a grin. It was like everything had suddenly melted away and Erin was left standing there. It was like staring in through a foggy window, like she was looking at something she couldn't have.

"Sam knows how much I like a good head scratch." Kelly said. She leaned against the taller Winchester like a dog whose tail was wagging. "Scratch my head again, Sam."

Bobby cleared his throat. "If you children would be kind enough to stay on topic."

"Sorry." Kelly murmured.

"Sorry." Dean and Sam chorused. Dean looked over and noticed that his brother was indeed scratching Kelly's head again. He swallowed his jealousy. They needed to get back on the topic at hand. Demons, death, mayhem. There would be time for girls later. And jabbing Kelly in the side with a pointed stick. He was looking forward to that. Trade irritation for irritation.

"Like I was saying." Bobby said. "I spoke to the suspect."

"I waited in the car." Erin added.

"And I'm sure you waited like a pro." Dean said. Sarcasm filled his voice, but to his surprise Erin didn't seem to notice. Or maybe she just doesn't care. But he gave her a thumbs up anyway.

"So," Sam whistled. "What do you think Bobby was she possessed or what?"

"I don't think so." Bobby shook his head. "There's none of the usual signs, no blackouts, no loss of control, totally lucid, she just really wanted those shoes."

"What we found confers with that." Kelly said. She glanced up at Sam again. "No traces of sulfur in the area around the murder or in the bloodstream." She looked over at Bobby. "Though only the deceased bled out, I have no idea about the murderer."

"Well, I spilled a glass of holy water on her, just to be safe." Bobby said with a shake of his head. "Nothin'."

"Well," Dean said. His head turning as he checked out the blonde again. She gave him a whimsical smile as she passed. He nodded as Kelly rolled her eyes. "Maybe she was just some random whack-job."

Again, Bobby shook his head. "If it'd been an isolated incident maybe." He said. "But first the family? Now this?" Bobby shrugged. "I believe in a lot of things, but coincidence ain't one of 'em." He glanced around the group. "Did you boys…" Kelly cleared her throat. "And girl." He smiled. "You guys find anything around here?"

"No." Sam said. "Like Kelly said, no sulfur, nothin'."

"I didn't turn up anything at this morgue." Erin added. "The woman just kept shouting about how the bitch was trying to steal her shoes. Wouldn't tell me anything useful." She glanced around as everyone's gazes returned to her. "The dead can be very incoherent." She added as if that was some kind of explanation.

"Ah," Dean coughed. "Yeah, well, maybe there is somethin'." He looked from one face to the next and then up at the camera at hanging up above the front of the store. His gaze stopped on Kelly's face and he grinned. "Can't believe those sharp doggy senses missed that." He tsk-tsked in the back of his throat as he shook his head at her. "Very disappointing."

Kelly smiled, her expression irritated. "Bite me."

Dean chuckled, imagining the responses he'd have if his deal wasn't weighing down on his shoulders. I'd take her up on that. He thought suppressing a grin. He glanced at his brother. A knowing nod colored his movements as he smirked and tapped his brow. "See." He said. "I'm workin'!"

A talk with the manager found Dean, Sam, and Bobby searching through video footage, while Kelly and Erin waited outside on the street. Erin watched as Kelly took a seat on the sidewalk, her booted toes tapping on the asphalt. Her arms over her legs as she watched the cars pass by. Patiently waiting for the boys to be done with their work.

Confused, Erin followed her example and took a seat between the parked cars. She looked out at the moving vehicles and shivered. Iron was the most dangerous to a fey, but for one of her weaker cousins anything technological could be considered a death sentence. And she sits here, easy as you please, not concerned at all. Erin knew the bond with Sam Winchester stabilized her. But one would think that she'd show some minor concern or strain. Maybe it was another sign of banality setting in. She glanced at Kelly, irritated as she watched the Hound's golden eyes scanning the passing bystanders.

"Why are we not inside?" She asked. "Why are we not looking at this…" She paused, her nose wrinkling in distaste. It seemed odd that humans would record their daily movements. It seemed foolish. "Film?"

"Because," Kelly replied. "The boys were passing as cops and Bobby was the district attorney." She swallowed a sigh at the confusion littered across Erin's pretty Chinese features. It was like she was speaking a foreign language. "They were pretending to be authority figures to get access to documentation that's restricted from the general public." There, maybe she would understand that.

"It was clear that they were breaking some sort of law, yes." Erin nodded. "But that doesn't explain why we didn't go with them."

"Too many authority figures at once would have been suspicious." Kelly replied. Her eyes didn't return to Erin's face, instead, she pointedly focused on the loitering blonde on the other side of the street. She was tall with straight, straw colored hair.

"So, why did you not go with them?" Erin asked. "I am not a foundling, I do not need an escort."

"Same deal." Kelly said.

"You did not want to fight with Dean again." Erin accused. She was staring at the side of Kelly's face, ignoring all social constricts, curiosity overtaking her. Why did Sam not stay? Why you? Her mind asked. The last thing she wanted was to spend any more time with Kelly. "You treat him strangely."

"No, I don't." Kelly said. Her chin resting on the palm of her hand as she propped her elbow up on her knees, looking anywhere but at Erin. She didn't want her failed relationship with Dean to become a topic of conversation.

"Yes." Erin repeated. "You do. The way you look at him and Sam." She tilted her head to the side. "You treat them differently from other men. You watch them with strange eyes, more than sorrowful and more than happy. It is an odd thing."

"You wouldn't understand." Kelly said. She was watching the blonde move up the street, there was something about her that was off, ungainly. Interesting. "You're still new."

Erin let out a peal of laughter. It rang through the air like silver bells as she covered her mouth with her hand, leaning closer to Kelly with a wide grin. "I am that." She agreed. "But are you saying that you chose to stay with me because you love them?"

"I chose to stay with you," Kelly replied tersely. "Because I was the one least likely to put a bullet through the slope of your skull."

Erin paused, her eyes scanning Kelly's face, disbelief coursing over her expression. "No." She shook her head. "No, it cannot be."

"What?" Kelly growled. She was beginning to regret not bringing her gun.

"It's impossible!" Erin snapped. "You cannot possibly love them!"

Kelly glanced at her for a moment, her eyes sad. She blinked and looked away, feeling her tears close to the surface again. Her hands balled into a fist, her fingernails cutting into the flesh of her palm, biting down hard. She could feel Erin's eyes on her again. This time she knew there would be pity there. Knew that the younger fey would not understand. "I know."

"We are immortal." Erin said. "We cannot know regret, just as we cannot know love. Those things are forbidden to our kind, only knowable once we allow ourselves to become infected by order and insanity." She put out her hand and let it rest on Kelly's shoulder, but the Hound merely shrugged it away.

"We do not know love because it is meaningless for us." Kelly said. "Not because it is forbidden. Regret is an emotion we experience with loss and love only becomes important when our life spans are brief enough for us to appreciate it." She looked down at her hands. "When it is something we can lose."

"I have lost." Erin said. Her voice was indignant as she stared at Kelly. "But I do not regret."

"No." Kelly shook her head. "That's because you and I both know that for us death is not permanent. Those of us who die are not gone forever, Erin. Our fallen brethern will eventually gather themselves together and return to us." She swallowed. "You know as well as I that we continue to exist, even after death." She focused on the asphalt, holding back her tears. "And while it is a sad day when one of our kind dies, we do not mourn their loss. Not the way mortals do. Just as we cannot be revived by magic because we are not truly dead." She looked over at the younger fey. "You and I both know that one day you'll see your mother again, just as I will never see mine."

There was a silent moment as Erin considered what Kelly had said. A small part of her wondering if she had, in fact, misjudged the Hound. Kelly seemed to know more about her people than she'd let on. Something Erin would have to think on harder before she allowed herself to probe the Hound more deeply. Instead, she replied. "You fell once."

"And that is why I can love." Kelly replied. Her soft voice was tired and worn as she closed her eyes, pressing her forehead against her knees. "I have been mortal and I part of me still is."

"Your brothers would help you if you went home." Erin said. "They would treat you."

Kelly simply shook her head. Erin still didn't understand. But can I truly expect her too? No. She was fey. "No." She said. "Not all the treatment in the world can save me from what I am." She glanced at the younger and more beautiful fey. She watched the way Erin dismissed the glances of those around her. She was ethereal and did not know it, or perhaps she knew and ignored it. Beauty was something the others took for granted, the same with their immortality. Kelly knew that once she had been this cold and cruel and understood that she could never be the same again. "Not even the strongest of magic could reverse what has been done." She sighed. "And because of that, Erin, I can never go home again."

"Perhaps, you could try." Erin ventured.

Kelly looked up at the sky. "No." She said. "This is my punishment." She glanced at Erin, and for the first time the other fey caught a glimpse of the true sorrow that lay in the depths of those dark brown-gold eyes. It made her throat tighten and her stomach knot with fear. "For now and always."

"You cannot go home." Erin murmured. She looked away at Kelly, frightened that if she stared at her longer the stain of the Hounds disgrace would drip on her. "What did you do?" She asked finally. Her dark liquid eyes turned to Kelly's face as she examined the other woman. "What was worth this?"

Kelly smiled at her wistfully and leaned over her knees. "I don't know." She replied. "I can't remember."

AN: Shorter than the last one and got a bit philosophical at the end, I apologize for that. The Kelly/Erin conversation about love was inspired by the Last Unicorn, with Erin being the Unicorn before she becomes human and Kelly being the end result. It just seemed like something that was appropriate for the Fey and brings up an important question: What did Kelly do to get herself exiled?

I guess you'll have to keep reading to find out. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Remember, feedback=love!