THE FAMILY BUSINESS: TWELVE


Summary: Hermione's peaceful, yet boring life is disrupted when notorious hunter, Dean Winchester, walks into her book shop. Dean's life is completely changed when he meets, Hermione Granger, Brightest Witch of her Age. But maybe that's just what they both needed. A series of one-shots based on their lives together. Mostly Dean's POV. Rated M for a reason.

Disclaimer: I do not own canon events and characters, they belong to J.K Rowling and the creators of Supernatural. I am not making a profit from writing and posting this fanfic.

AN

I honestly hadn't meant for this chapter to be so long, I'd been aiming for about 5000 words and when I checked the word count, it was 10,000. I don't know why I can't stop myself. I think I have a problem!

Q&A

I haven't yet decided if I do or don't want John to find out about Hermione's magic, but I do have both outcomes planned out on how I would want them to happen or not to happen.

Padfoots'myMan - Welcome!

Black Magic99 - No pressure, lol.


Page count: 20


One week later...

"I'll get the rooms," Sam said, climbing from the car and waiting for the three cats to jump on out to stretch their legs before closing the door behind him.

"Make sure to get two this time," Dean replied.

Sam rolled his eyes. "It wasn't my fault they only had one room available," he muttered as he walked towards the office and Dean's eyes searched his new surroundings, taking note of how many rooms there were and how many cars were already parked in the parking lot.

It'd been a week since Hermione had left and if Dean were being honest, he was worried. He knew she said she'd be gone a few days, but at this point, he couldn't help worry. Especially when he hadn't heard from her in almost five days. As soon as she'd left, he, Sam and their father all headed off to bed, Dean receiving a text from Hermione not even fifteen minutes after she'd walked out the door, letting him know she'd arrived in Paris safely.

The two days that followed she texted him a total of four times which he couldn't be upset with, after all, he knew she was busy trying to catch a super-vampire. She never told him how things were going for her and her team, just that she was fine and she'd see him soon. But since her last text, he hadn't heard from her. He knew that she was fine, if she weren't, if she'd been badly injured or his worst nightmare happened and she'd been killed, he knew her family would find a way to contact him. And because they hadn't, he assumed it meant she was back in her world and was unable to send or receive any messages or calls which would explain why he hadn't heard from her. But it didn't explain why she still wasn't back.

Sam knew he was worried, the cats had picked up on his anxiety at her being gone and more often than not they followed him about, and his father had definitely picked up on his worry though, thankfully, he never brought it up. He was just glad he had his brother and father to help keep him distracted and focused on the task at hand, finding and killing the demon that had killed his mother when he was child, and now that they had the Colt, it was possible.

Dean hadn't been pleased when he'd been woken by his father barely hours after he'd gone to sleep after Hermione had left, informing them he'd been listening to a police scanner and had heard of an abandoned car that he wanted to check out, but still, he'd pulled himself from bed and dressed.

Of course, things from that point only got worse. Sam and his father barely stopped arguing and he was stuck in the middle trying to be the mediator but he may as well have not been there at all. He didn't want to lose either of them now that he had them back in his life, but he knew from experience there was nothing he could do to stop them from fighting and whatever was going to happen, would happen and he should just prepare himself for the fallout.

One argument led to another, which led to another, and before he knew it his father had told them more information about the Colt gun, and he knew that if Hermione were there, she'd have punched him from keeping such information from them.

He couldn't quite remember how they'd found the nest of vampires, plural, but they'd done so and in a move that neither Sam nor Dean had approved of, and seeming to forget Hermione's warnings, their father approached without a plan of action, both brothers grimacing at the thought of what Hermione would do to them if she ever found out they'd gone in without checking the perimeter, without having a plan, and without a backup plan, too. He was sure she'd murder them. Dean wasn't afraid to admit everything had gone to shit as he thought it would, his father not being able to retrieve the Colt and they'd been forced to run for their lives, Dean had almost used Hermione's necklace to get them back to her house safely, but he'd stopped himself knowing it was only to be used in a life or death situation, and despite being chased by vampires, he didn't count that as one.

After Dean had broken into a funeral home to retrieve Dead Man's Blood, his father used it to trap a vampire, blackmailing their leader into giving them the Colt. Whilst he did that, he and Sam infiltrated the nest, killed the vampire on watch, released the hostages and then saved their father's life, in which they learned the Colt really did work. After another endless argument, they'd finally been able to convince their father to let them help him with his mission to kill the demon.

Days later, that was how Dean found himself at a random motel in Lincoln, Nebraska. Once they'd dealt with the vampires and despite not having any leads or idea on what they should do next or where they should be heading, his father was adamant they leave Hermione's house and get back on the road. For the sake of avoiding another argument, Dean agreed and the next morning, he made sure to turn off the power in the house, throw out all the perishables, wrangle the cats into the car and lock up the house.

They hadn't been on the road long when Bobby called, speaking of a case and seeing as they were the closest Hunters to the location and they had no other plans yet, they'd accepted. It was a werewolf. After a few days of being holed up in the little town, they'd taken care of it and left. As they stopped for an early lunch, Dean swearing he was so hungry he could eat a damn dragon -something Sam had found funny and that had confused his father- they pulled up at a diner, where Sam had picked up the trail of a possible case, which is why he stood in the motel parking lot.

"You okay?"

Dean shook his head and shut the car door behind him, turning to look at his father who stood on the other side of the Impala, leaning against it with his hands pressed against the roof of the car.

"Fine, why wouldn't I be?" He replied, slipping his hands into his pockets and leaning against the car, briefly catching sight of Domino and Sadie darting beneath the other cars in the parking lot whilst Crookshanks sat on a patch of grass, lazily licking his paw as he watched them, much like a parent watched their children when at the playground.

His father raised an eyebrow. "That girl of yours, you haven't heard from her in a while."

Dean shrugged his shoulders, trying to act nonchalantly. His father saw right through it. "I'd rather her be focused on what she was doing than be distracted by replying to my messages. If she was hurt her family would let me know, and since I haven't heard back, I'm going to assume she's fine."

"No news is good news," his father mused and Dean nodded, being thankful when he saw Sam approaching with two room keys in his hand, which he caught when he threw one over to him.

"Rooms 4 and 5, I got the last two," his brother said.

Dean knew it would be him sharing with his father because although they seemed to have put their differences aside, he knew that Sam sharing a room with their father would be a nightmare. Rounding to the back of the car, he pulled their duffle bags from the trunk, them each taking their own before they made to cross the parking lot to their rooms, only they didn't make it.

"Uncle Dean!"

Dean had never turned around so fast in his life and he made himself so dizzy, his vision blurred for a moment. When it refocused, it showed the sight of two little familiar wizards, darting across the parking lot and towards him. Dean's face lit up with a smile knowing they would only be there if Hermione was back. Dean heard Sam's snort and his father's noise of disbelief but he paid them no mind as he dropped his duffle bag to the ground and prepared himself for an assault.

The two little boys barrelled into him, laughing loudly when Dean hurled Albus up over his shoulder and he picked James up, holding him up beneath his arm and against his waist, spinning around until they cried of their dizziness. Chuckling, he set them back on the ground and they grinned up at him before latching themselves onto him, Albus his leg and James his waist.

"We missed you," James said.

Dean smiled down at them. "I missed you, too, Little Potters," he replied, ruffling their hair, not that it did anything to it, it had already been messy beforehand.

Dean spied from the corner of his eye his father looking very much like he was contemplating stabbing him with a silver knife and drowning him in holy water, while Sam sniggered from beside him. He soon dropped his own duffle bag to the ground when the two little boys detangled themselves from him and they darted over to Sam who was a little ways behind him.

"Uncle Sam!" They cried, and with him being taller than Dean, they both had to latch onto his legs, not being able to reach any higher.

"Hey, kids," he grinned down at them. "Where's your mom and dad?" He asked.

They pulled back and looked up at him, craning their necks due to his height and Dean snorted, closing the distance between them. James was all too happy to be picked up and perched on his hip whilst Sam did the same to Albus so they wouldn't get neck ache.

"They're sleeping," James answered. "Aunt 'Mione said we could stay with you so they can sleep. Lily cries all the time and wakes us up," he scowled and he and Sam snorted at him whilst his father watched them both carefully, his eyes darting between them and the kids.

"That's 'cause she's a baby," Sam said. "You used to be the same and when she gets older, she'll stop crying all the time."

James didn't look convinced and Dean snorted.

"Who's he?" He asked, looking to his father curiously but cautiously, much like he'd done when they'd first met.

Dean prayed he didn't say something about magic, with Hermione not knowing about the plan to help his father, she wouldn't know he was still with them and so she wouldn't have warned the children about keeping magic a secret.

"This is our dad, John," Dean answered, sharing a look with Sam that didn't go unnoticed by his father. "Dad, this is James and Albus, Hermione's nephews."

His father raised an eyebrow and Dean's stomach twisted when the young child hugged him tightly as he looked at his father appraisingly, apparently not being comfortable in his presence. Dean didn't blame him; he was his father and sometimes even he felt uncomfortable around him.

"It's nice to meet you, boys," his father said, giving them both a smile that calmed James a little, but his grip didn't loosen. "Do your parents live in America, too?" He asked, obviously noting James' very distinct British accents and he and Sam shared yet another look.

"No," he frowned.

"They probably came for a visit with Hermione, they do that sometimes," Sam lied, but his father wouldn't know that.

"Can you do magic?" Albus asked his father.

Dean froze, as did Sam, them both looking to each other in panic.

"Magic?" His father questioned.

"Magic," James nodded. "My daddy's very good at it, so's mummy, but Aunt 'Mione's the best,"

"Where's your Aunt?" Dean asked the little boy on his hip, distracting both him and his father from his previous comment.

"Right here,"

Dean turned to look over his shoulder, his eyes landing on Hermione as she approached. His gaze trailed her body, seeing no injuries yet but they could very well be hidden by her clothing, but that fact didn't stop him from letting out a sigh of relief at seeing her after a week. He set James on the ground and walked towards her, only just noticing that she had a backpack slung over her shoulder, her carryon case on the ground beside the Impala and she carried a car seat in her hand, it facing away from him but he knew baby Lily would be inside it.

Taking that into account, he was careful when he pulled her into a hug, holding her tightly against him, his face burying in her neck and his nose brushing aside her curls so he could breathe in the scent of apples and place a kiss to her skin.

"Miss me, Honey?" She asked softly, burying her face in his chest and her free arm wrapping around his neck.

"Like crazy," he admitted. "And I see you brought some extras."

She chuckled and pulled back from him, looking up to his face. "Well, after it was all and done with everyone returned to London. We chased them into my world, that's why I haven't been able to contact you for the last few days. I stayed with Harry, Ginny and the kids for the night to get some much-needed rest and when they learned I was coming back, they begged for me to bring them with me so they could see you, and given how tired Harry and Ginny are, I saw no point in denying their request, especially so Harry and Ginny can a little time to themselves. And I just couldn't deny you the right to see the little lady," she grinned and Dean scowled, knowing she was right.

He carefully reached for the car seat, taking it in his hand and turning it to face him, bringing it up to his eye level and when his eyes immediately locked gazes with the bright green eyes staring back at him, his heart all but melted.

He couldn't believe how much she'd grown. When he'd last seen Lily she'd been a newborn and tiny, and now, despite her still being small, she'd grown massively. Her red hair looked to be thicker and a little longer, as did her eyelashes and she looked adorable in her little lilac coloured dress and white tights as she kicked her feet and let out little squeals.

"Hey, Lily Petal," he murmured softly, a smile pulling at his mouth as he reached up with his free hand to right her dress.

"She's grown so big, hasn't she?"

Dean nodded, not taking his eyes off the little lady before him. "It's only been what? Two months?"

"Nine weeks," she nodded.

"Uncle Dean!" James called and Dean twisted to look over his shoulder. "Can we go in your car?"

"And to the movies?" Albus asked.

Dean's mouth twitched, well, he did promise them. He turned and took the backpack from Hermione, slinging it over his own shoulder whilst she picked up her carryon case and they crossed over to the little group, Hermione pulling Sam into a hug and Albus laughing when he was squished between them, and when she pulled back she and his father eyed each other before nodding to one another.

"Sure, we can do that today," he responded.

"But the case..." His father started but he cut them off.

"Can wait until tomorrow," Dean replied, surprising his father. He'd never put a case on hold before and they both knew it. "Let's drop your things off in the room, we need to have a quick chat with your Aunt but we'll go soon, I promise."

James and Albus both look saddened at having to wait but they nodded. Sam set Albus on his feet, picked up his duffle bag as well as Dean's and they all made their way to their rooms. Sam knowing that he'd have to share with their father went with him, and Hermione opened the door for them and they stepped inside, seeing the motel room was a lot cleaner than the ones they were used to staying in but that didn't stop Hermione from casting a few cleaning spells or changing the sheets on both of the double beds.

To keep Albus and James entertained, Hermione removed two colouring books and some crayons from the backpack and set them on the table, and then she removed Lily from the car seat, apparently her being due a diaper change as she pulled out a clean one and some wipes, before quickly dressing the wriggling baby and throwing the dirty diaper into the trash can in the bathroom.

"So, your father?" Hermione asked.

"I'll explain later," Dean replied, his eyes darting to the kids briefly.

When Hermione sat herself on the bed preparing Lily's bottle, he sat beside her, leaning back against the headboard, his back propped up by pillows, his legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles as he held Lily in his arms, absentmindedly humming to her. There was a knock on the door and before Dean could stand, Hermione handed him the bottle, gestured for him to feed Lily and she stood from the bed and crossed over to the door, opening it with the three cats darting inside, winding themselves between her legs, brushing themselves up against her and meowing in greeting. She laughed and bent to scratch them each on the head, before opening the door wider for both Sam and their father to step.

The cats soon left her alone, instead moving over to the table, jumping up on the surface and rubbing themselves against James and Albus before sprawling themselves out on the table, covering their colouring books and drawings and the children laughed at them.

Sam didn't bat an eyelash at the sight that met them but he crossed over to the table, picked Albus us from the chair and took a seat, setting the young child on his lap. He didn't even acknowledge his presence other than accepting the blue crayon Sam held out in offering. His father, on the other hand, did a double take at seeing him lounging on the bed with a baby in his arms as he quietly fed her. Dean didn't look to his father, rather he ignored him, giving the little lady that was grabbing at his shirt his full attention. Though Dean wasn't surprised by his father's reaction. Seeing him interacting with young children was one thing, a baby was another thing entirely.

"So, how did it all go?" Sam finally asked Hermione, accepting the green crayon from Albus and colouring in the section the young child gestured to, his eyes darting between the page in front of him and Hermione.

She let out a sigh and pushed a hand through her hair, pushing it back from her face. At the sound, Dean lifted his eyes from Lily and to her, frowning slightly.

"Not well," she admitted. "I'm not saying we didn't get him because we did, it just wasn't easy," her eyes darted to James and Albus and seeing them engrossed in their colouring, she continued. "He wasn't alone."

"Meaning?" His father questioned.

"Meaning, the reason he'd been gone so long was that he'd been building an army."

"Of vampires?" Sam asked with wide eyes and Dean felt his worry make a reappearance.

"Yes," she sighed. "So not only did we have to defeat Lazarus but his army, too."

"How many were there?" Dean asked.

"Last count was thirty-six,"

"Shit," he muttered quietly, not wanting to the children to hear but Hermione still smacked him on the leg and Sam still sent him a glare from across the room, apparently having heard him.

"Exactly, and his gift...We discovered it was mind control. He could control the minds of anyone he either nipped with his fangs, or he drank the blood of."

"Shit," Sam whispered this time. Hermione threw one of Lily's shoes at him and Dean sent him a glare this time. He might've cursed, but he didn't have two impressionable young children right beside him.

"He turned some of our own against us, it took nearly forty-eight hours to kill Lazarus and nearly four days to track and destroy the rest of his army. We returned to London and needing some sleep, I stayed with Harry, Ginny and the kids for the night before leaving the next morning."

"Injuries?" Dean asked.

"A few bruises but otherwise fine," she replied but he didn't quite believe her, not that she'd admit to injuries in front of his father, after all, how would she explain them miraculously healing so quickly? "All that matters is that he's gone and Jake's finally gotten justice, as has his other victims."

"Uncle Dean, can we go now?" James asked, interrupting the conversation.

Dean looked to Hermione and she nodded. "Sure, grab your coat and we'll head out," he replied.

James and Albus both grinned, sliding down to the ground and picking up their coats from the floor and putting them on. By this point, Lily had finished her bottle and Hermione took her from him, preparing to burp her as he stood, grabbed his leather jacket and slipped it back on.

"You coming with us?" He asked her.

"No," she shook her head. "I think me and the little lady will have some girl time today, you just take the boys. Lily will only get in the way and you certainly wouldn't be able to take her into a movie theatre with you."

Dean nodded, turning to his father. "No thanks, I'll stay behind and do some digging into the case," he spoke.

Dean gave him a suspicious look but didn't comment. He didn't bother asking Sam, he'd already stood from the chair and was crouched down helping Albus to zip up his coat as it appeared to have gotten stuck.

"Be good for your Uncles," Hermione warned. "If you're naughty you won't be allowed to go out with them again."

"We'll be good," James replied. Hermione didn't believe him.

"Right, let's go," Dean said, grabbing the car keys from the bedside table and making sure he had his wallet with him.

"Remember the rules," Hermione said amused as Sam opened the door and the two young children darted out of the room with Sam following after them.

"No swearing, don't take your eyes off them and no fear," he responded.

"And don't let them walk all over you, you're too soft."

"I'm not," he denied with a scowl.

"Honey, they have you wrapped 'round their little fingers, and you know it."

He didn't reply, instead, he stalked out of the room, closing the door behind him with Hermione's laughter being loud in the room and his father's curious gaze watching his retreat.

~000~000~000~

Hermione felt a little disorientated when her eyes fluttered open to the early afternoon light filtering in through the uncovered window. The last thing she remembered was putting Lily down for a nap and she turned her attention to helping John with research for the case, him quietly sitting at the table whilst she'd spread out papers on the bed.

Given that she was now laying on her side with papers surrounding her and covering the bed, she understood she must've fallen asleep and given the lack of sleep she'd had during the last week, it wasn't surprising to her. Not only did she find it difficult to sleep without Dean beside her, but she'd been so busy helping to track and destroy the vampires that barely anyone assigned to the mission had slept, not to mention, she hadn't gotten any sleep when she'd stayed at Grimmauld with the children being excited to see her and Lily waking during the night.

She let out a tired yawn and stretched her body out, her eyes darting beside her where the blanket looked disturbed and a pillow had been blocking Lily from falling off the bed, only she wasn't there, the space beside her was empty. Panic shot through her and she bolted upright, her wide eyes scanning the room, seeing the bed beside her empty except for the three cats sprawled out on it, and the table John had occupied was empty, too. She automatically reached for her wand when she caught movement from the corner of her eyes and peering over her shoulder behind her, she let out a small puff of air, seeing that it was only John and much to her surprise, he held Lily in his arms, cradling her against him as he muttered softly and paced back and forth, rocking the little lady in his arms.

"Don't shoot," he said, obviously noticing her being awake and reaching for her wand, which he'd automatically assumed was a gun. "She's was a bit fussy when she woke, and since you didn't wake, I assumed you were exhausted. She needed changing which I did and she's probably due a feed soon."

Hermione blinked in surprise, twisting her body to face him and planting her feet against the floor. "You didn't have to do that; you should've just woken me."

He shrugged his shoulders, not looking at her but at Lily as she waved her little arms and kicked her legs, his mouth twitching at the corners. "It's been a while since I've to care for a baby, but you never forget. She's a pretty little thing," he commented.

Hermione eyed him carefully. "She is," she agreed. "If you saw her mother, you'd see why."

"She's pretty?"

"Stunning," she replied. "Vivid red hair, dark eyes, flawless skin, athletic..." He looked up to her, raising an eyebrow. "What? I have eyes and can appreciate the beauty in both men and women, despite my preferences for dating men."

He snorted at her, crossing over to the table, retaking his seat and shifting Lily so that she lay pressed against his chest, her ear resting over his heart, the sound of his heartbeat lulling her back to sleep. She noticed that he'd removed his leather jacket and now sat in a t-shirt, jeans and boots, similar to how Dean usually dressed, she realised. Despite Lily being asleep, he made no move to return her to the bed, instead just made himself more comfortable in his chair and gently patting her back.

Hermione could see the resemblance between him and his sons, but she thought he looked most like Sam, which meant Dean looked most like his mother. She knew from Dean that he was in his mid-fifties and Hermione thought he'd aged well despite all the things he'd been through in his life, but that still didn't make up for him being an arsehole. Aside from some grey hairs and wrinkles, he really didn't look his age.

"He's changed," he commented after a short while of Hermione awkwardly trying to avoid the gaze he'd had locked on her.

"Sorry?"

"Dean, he's changed."

"Has he?" She questioned.

"It's because of you, I know it is. I never thought I'd see the day Dean settled down."

She frowned. "He hasn't,"

"No? Then what's he doing with you?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. "Dean's never been a relationship type of person, that was obvious from the moment he was old enough to start taking an interest in women. I've never heard him speak the name of a woman more than once, I've never seen him with the same woman more than once, I've never seen him stay the night at a woman's house. And yet, here you are. A woman who not only caught his attention, but that's managed to tie him down for as long as you have."

"I haven't tied him down," she denied. "From the moment I met Dean I pegged him as being a non-committer, and when I agreed to leave my life behind and hunt with him, I knew he had an interest in me, I just didn't know it was more than him wanting to sleep with me. And when it did happen months later, I assumed that would be it between us and we'd carry on with our lives like adults, accept he surprised me."

"He was the one that wanted more, he was the one that wanted a relationship, that wanted labels and exclusivity. I knew having a relationship with him would require patience and effort but by this point, I knew the man he was, and I was certain he was worth it. He struggled for a while, not with being faithful which I admit, did surprise me, but with his own emotions. He felt guilty that he couldn't seem to stop flirting with other women, I knew he was a flirt and so I took no offence in it, especially since it was harmless and he had no intentions of doing anything that would hurt or upset me, unfortunately, he couldn't forgive himself. He struggled with how to behave in a relationship, but he soon realised I had no expectations of him and I had no intentions of trying to change who he was and since then things between us have been easy. There's no drama or awkwardness, the only arguments we have are food related, accusing the other of cheating at card games and picking the music during long journeys. I don't force him into anything, I don't belittle him or try to hurt him."

"Instead, I try to be what he needs, before we got together I was his best friend which I think is what helped him to see the potential between us. Everything between us is equal and shared. When I asked if he wanted to return to London with me when my niece, Rose, was born, he was a little nervous but he wanted to go with me. When Lily was born, he was the one that insisted we head over to meet her. My family thinks he's a good man and as you've seen, my nephews just adore him. I haven't tied him down, he's with me because he wants to be."

His dark eyes watched her silently. "He's settled down," he said. "I know my son. I've never seen him behave the way he does when he's around you. He hates cats. He hates kids or babies. He hates it when anyone else drives the Impala, even myself and Sam. And yet, he travels with three cats and has his own, he's with your nephews right now, spending the day with him of his own free will and I saw the way he was with the baby," he gestured to the sleeping child on his chest with a tip of his head.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know what to tell you."

"Do you love my son?"

She blinked slowly at the unexpected question. "What?" She asked surprised.

"Do you love my son?" He repeated, not tearing his eyes away from her.

Hermione's brow furrowed briefly. "Yes, I do," she answered truthfully. "I love him more than I've ever loved anyone else, and I have from the moment he took care of me. It's usually the other way around, I'm a bit of a mother hen, always have been if I'm being honest. I'm not used to someone taking care of me but during the early stages of our relationship, I got food poisoning and I admit, I'm stubborn, but Dean refused to leave me alone. He refused to let me take care of myself and that day, when I felt like I was dying, he sat with me, feeding me soup he'd been out and bought for me, reading aloud from one of my books until I fell asleep and when I next woke, he hadn't moved despite hours having passed. He's protective of me, where my previous relationships were possessive, but he trusts me just as I trust him. You and I both know he's not a feelings kind of guy, but that doesn't stop him from opening up to me, from telling me about his worries and fears. He's not afraid to accept my help or comfort, he's not afraid to show me his weaknesses. He's kind to me in a way I've never experienced before, he's very considerate and thoughtful. He doesn't judge me for things I've had to do and he doesn't lie to me. I can take care of myself but that doesn't stop him from making sure I'm eating and sleeping, from putting me to bed when I fell asleep at the table researching, from comforting me when I have nightmares. So, yes, I do love him, and I'd kill anyone that dared to harm him. I'll protect him just as he protects me, even if that means it's from you."

He watched her carefully, his eyes silently scanning her face and she was dying to know what was going through his mind at that moment, but whatever it was, he just gave a small nod, a look of acceptance on his face.

"You say he's changed, but I don't think he has. Dean may have struggled a little at first, but he was doing all of those for me even before we started dating. He's a good man and I know from experience there's not a lot of those in this world. I didn't think I'd ever be able to trust anyone again after what happened with Jake, but Dean proved me wrong. If I'm being, I'm the one who's changed, not Dean."

The sound of a ringing phone drew them both from their staring match and Hermione reached over, plucking her phone from the bedside table, the caller ID showing it was Dean and a smile pulled at her mouth as she flipped it open and accepted the call.

"You're still alive I take it," she said in lieu of a greeting.

He snorted at her. "For now, they changed their minds and wanted to go visit the park first, which turned into a game of hide and seek, it took an hour to find the little monsters. They kept changing hiding positions."

Hermione laughed. "I told you, Dean, they've got Marauder's blood, they're bound to be mischievous, it's not their fault they outwitted you."

"I expected that with me, but Sammy... They've been running circles around him," he said amused and she snorted. "Anyway, they've had enough of the park and we've just arrived at the movies. I thought I should check in and see if they have any allergies I need to know about before getting them some snacks."

"Don't be buying them too much, I don't want their appetites to be ruined, we'll be having dinner soon and if they don't eat, they'll be waking us up in the middle of the night complaining of being hungry."

"You mean like you do?" He replied amused and she could hear the damn smirk on his face.

She narrowed her eyes. "Watch it, Winchester!" She warned. "Or I swear, you'll have to find someone else to bake you pies."

"Bit harsh," he replied and she could practically hear the pout in voice.

She rolled her eyes. "Avoid anything with nuts, James is allergic. It's not a major allergy but it's better to be safe than sorry, as for Albus, too much dairy can upset his stomach so maybe stay away from that, too."

"Will do, we should be no more than a couple of hours and then we'll head back. We'll pick up something for dinner, what do you fancy?"

"It'll be easier just to get pizza given how many of us there are, but stop somewhere and grab some juice for the kids."

"Okay, before I go, how are things with you and my dad?"

"Fine,"

"Really?" He asked disbelievingly.

"Really, everything's fine," she replied, her eyes seeing the way Lily shifted against John's chest and she knew she would soon wake for her bottle which she was due to have in fifteen minutes. "I better go, Lily's about to wake for her bottle, so be careful."

"I won't let anything happen to the little monsters."

"I know, it's not them I'm worried about, it's you. If they can hide from you in broad daylight in a park, how do you think you'll fair in a dark room with numerous people?"

"Ah hell!" He muttered, realising she was right.

And her mouth twitched in amusement. "Exactly, rule number two, keep watch and constant vigilance."

"Great, now I'm on edge."

"You'll be fine, I'll see you later," she said, snapping the phone shut once he'd returned the words, and she turned her attention to preparing Lily's bottle.

Usually, she would've just heated it with a spell but with John watching her carefully, she had to settle for using hot water from the bathroom sink. When she turned with a sufficiently heated bottle for the little lady, she took her from John who, much to her surprise and amusement, was reluctant to let her go, but as she perched herself on the bed, Lily was soon awake and happily drinking from her bottle.

"Why did the kids ask if I could do magic?"

Hermione froze and almost dropped the bottle. Slowly, she lifted her eyes from Lily to him, seeing that he was watching her carefully and with slightly narrowed eyes.

"They're obsessed," she lied. "They love magic tricks."

He didn't look convinced. "Yeah? They said their parents were good at magic but you were the best."

Hermione bit her lip and smiled slightly. "It's the family business," she said, slightly amused. "We all have a bit of a talent for magic seeing as the children love it so much, we each took the time to learn a few tricks. Their favourite is when I pull coins out from behind their ears, I don't know if it's because they love the trick itself or that they get money every time I do it."

He still didn't look convinced and she cleared her throat.

"Are you human?"

He blinked dumbly at the question before she laughed, shaking her head. "Don't be ridiculous, of course, I'm human," she told the truth.

"So you're not supernatural?"

She rolled her eyes. "Absolutely not," she scoffed. "If I were supernatural, why would Bobby be so protective of me? Why would he say I was an ally? Why would Dean sleep beside me every night? Why would he be in a relationship with me? Travel and live in such close quarters? There's no way I would be able to keep something like that from him, take away the time we split up and investigate during cases, we spend about eighty percent of our time together. So no, I'm not supernatural, and yes, I'm definitely human. If you don't believe me, you may do all the tests you wish, but you'll have to explain to Dean why my palm's been sliced open and I can't imagine him being happy about it."

He leaned back into his chair, crossing his arms over his chest and though he did look convinced by her words, she knew he was still suspicious. She wasn't sure if she should be annoyed or impressed.

"Why would you even ask such a question?"

"I've noticed some things, things that make me suspicious of you," he admitted. "The looks you share with Sam and Dean when I enter the room, the whispered conversations, your secret past."

She raised an eyebrow. "We share such looks because your presence has upset the balance we had as a team, somewhat. That and the fact you and Sam have issues that need sorting out and it can sometimes be a bit awkward when in the room with you two, especially for Dean who's stuck in the middle of it all. As for the whispered conversations, well, Dean and I don't particularly want you or Sam to hear what we're discussing giving the private nature," she said, her insinuation behind her words clear. "And I don't have a secret past, Dean and Sam both know of my past."

"But I don't."

"I'm not sure I can trust with my secrets, not yet, at least. Neither are Dean and Sam for that matter and until we're sure you can handle what my past holds, you won't be privy to anything I haven't already told you."

His eyes didn't leave her face, not even when she looked down to quickly check on Lily.

"Were your parents military?"

She frowned. "No, they were both dentists, why?"

He looked a little surprised by her words, but said, "You have certain habits that would either be a result of your parents being in the military, or yourself having been in the military. I should know, I served as a marine when I was younger."

She pursed her lips, not knowing what to say to that.

"I know you're the same age as Dean, I know you moved here four years ago now, which would've made you twenty-three at the time. I know you worked for a government department dealing with the supernatural for five years and you spent a year in the police force before that, making you eighteen. You weren't old enough to enlist."

"Actually, age of enlistment in the UK is sixteen," she replied, but he didn't have to know she wouldn't have graduated until she was eighteen if the war had never happened.

"So did you?"

She nibbled at her lip. "You could say that, I didn't have a choice in the matter."

His eyes widened a fraction in surprise. "Everyone has a choice."

"Not always," she sighed. "You want the truth, yes, I was on the front lines."

"In Afghanistan?"

"Sure," she lied, but he didn't need to know that. "Seeing the things I did, it messed me up as you can imagine. When I was eighteen I had PTSD and I retired. Despite almost a decade having past, I still have the occasional flashback and something that may trigger my war reflexes. Are we finished with the Spanish Inquisition, now?"

He nodded slowly and if Hermione wasn't mistaken, she would swear she saw a flash of respect cross through his eyes. Progress, she thought.

He was still an arsehole, nothing he did would convince her otherwise but she had the feeling he would be around for a while and with her relationships with his sons, she knew it would be best for everyone if they could at least get along.

~000~000~000~

Dean honestly never expected to walk into his motel room to the sight of Hermione sprawled out on the bed reading a book, and his father pacing back and forth in the room as he rocked a wriggling baby in his arms with a soft look on his face and mouth twitching at the corners. He did a double take.

"Aunt 'Mione!" James cried, he and Albus both darting over to the bed, climbing up and all but climbing all over her. She smiled and put the book aside, giving her full attention to them.

"We went to the park and played hide and seek! They couldn't find us 'coz they were too slow to catch us. And then we went for a drive and we went to see a movie. It was wicked! There was a big hairy elephant, and a tiger with big teeth, and a squirrel and lots of snow!"

"What?" She asked amused.

"Ice Age 2," Dean said, stepping into the room with his hands carrying several bags of snacks, juice boxes for the kids, and some beer for the adults whilst Sam lagged behind a little, his arms laden with a stack of pizza boxes, so many in fact anyone who saw would probably think they were having a pizza party.

"Oh, they made another one?"

"I guess it was a success at the box office," he shrugged. "Considering it was a kids' movie, it wasn't that bad," he admitted.

"Yeah, and we had lots of food," Albus said happily.

"Definitely have Weasley genes," Hermione said amused, her eyes darting to Sam when he stepped into the room, kicking the door shut once the cats had exited out the door.

Hermione stood from the bed and helped to sort out the food, ripping the lids off the pizza boxes for the children to use as plates and giving them a couple of slices each of their choice, before they sat on their own bed and quietly ate as Hermione managed to find children's cartoons on one of the channels on the TV.

Seeing Lily had fallen asleep, she took her from his father and settled her down on the bed, surrounding her with pillows and covering her with a blanket as it was starting to get a bit colder.

The four of them squeezed around the table, his father taking a seat, whilst he took another and Hermione perched herself on one of his thighs and Sam leaned against the wall as they ate.

"So, found anything with your research?" Dean asked.

"Salt and burn case," Hermione spoke before taking a bite from her pizza slice. "Only thing is, we're not quite sure who we're looking at. There was a mass suicide a couple of decades ago and they all happened around the same time."

"Great," Dean sighed, reaching for his beer and taking a swig.

"To make matters worse," his father started and Dean groaned, already not liking what he was about to say. "There were all cremated."

"Awesome," he grumbled. "So not only do we have to find out which spirit we're dealing with, but what object it's attached itself to."

"Which means we need to look into each of the possible candidates," Sam said with a frown. "What if there's more than one spirit involved?"

"Is that possible?" Hermione asked.

"Not that I've seen," Dean shrugged, his father mimicking his actions.

"In any case, we should be on guard. How long are the kids staying?" Sam asked, his eyes darting over to them when they laughed loudly at something that was happening on the cartoon.

"Harry's coming to pick them up after lunch. I promised if the weather was nice and they'd were good that we'd go for a picnic like we did last time and climb trees and play baseball, they want you to teach than how to play football, our football that is," Hermione answered. "His father's not a big fan of the sport," Hermione explained to his suspicious-looking father.

"Soccer then," Dean corrected.

"Whatever," she rolled her eyes.

"Sammy's better at soccer than I am."

"Guess I'm taking up the mantle of coach," Sam said. "But once they're gone we can divide up the tasks, Dean and Dad can visit the families and check out the crime scenes, I'll take online research and Hermione can handle paper-based research."

It wasn't much later when dinner had been eaten, Hermione had sent the kids to wash up in the bathroom and change into their pyjamas and they were tucked up in bed, quietly watching TV. Seeing as it was the children's bedtime, both his father and Sam left them alone for the night and despite it still being early, both he and Hermione quickly changed for bed, too, snuggling beneath the blankets. By the time the boys had fallen asleep, Lily had woken for her bottle, been fed and burped, had her diaper changed and was dressed in her sleep suit. Hermione tried to settle her and being so exhausted, she'd drifted off before the baby.

Seeing that she was still awake, Dean carefully removed her from beside Hermione and a memory of his father from when he was a child flittered through his mind, a memory of Sam being a baby and when he wouldn't settle, his father would lay him on his bare chest, the heat of his skin and the sound of his heartbeat helping to calm him. With that in mind, he gently cradled the little lady against his bare chest –being dressed in only pyjama pants-, carefully rubbed his hand over her back and he muttered the words of some of his favourite songs. Lily soon fell asleep and no matter if it wasn't yet nine o'clock, he drifted off, too.

~000~000~000~

"Goal!" James cried happily, doing a strange victory dance that Dean just had to teach him, something he knew Hermione had found funny, Sam annoying and his father didn't look the least bit surprised.

"In your face, Sammy!" Dean called, stood at his place between the makeshift goalposts he was guarding.

That morning Dean and Hermione had been up early with the children which had only made him glad he'd gone to sleep so early the previous night, especially when Lily woke twice during the night, he and Hermione each taking a turn to tend to her. They'd woken well before his father and Sam and after readying for the day, they'd climbed into the Impala, went to the nearest diner to grab some breakfast and they stopped at a convenience store to grab some food for the picnic they had planned. When they'd returned to the motel with breakfast for his father and Sam, they'd been awake and ready for the day, and after eating, they packed up their things and took a short walk to the nearest field, Sam physically dragging his father along with them as he didn't want to go, but his brother hadn't listened or cared.

After setting down the blankets, Hermione sitting down with his grumbling father and Lily, he and Sam had immediately set to work teaching the children how to play soccer and a couple of hours later, he and James were on a team against Albus and Sam, the adults being the goalkeepers and the children kicking the soccer ball and despite Albus being younger and smaller, he was holding his own against his older brother.

"Dean, it's not about winning," Hermione's voice flittered over to them and he briefly looked over at her, seeing her absentmindedly reading a book whilst his father sat with Lily on his lap, keeping her entertained.

"Yes, it is," he muttered childishly.

"I heard that," she said lightly and he blinked in surprise.

How had she heard him? Not only was he too far away from her to hear his muttering, but the wind covered the sound, too.

"Papa John!" James called.

"What?" His father blurted out in surprise, blinking slowly, Dean and Sam mimicked his surprise.

"Papa, it's what he calls the elder male members of the family who aren't his Grandfather," Hermione explained, turning the page in her book without looking away from it.

"Papa John!" James called again. "Come play with us!"

"Yeah! It's lots of fun!" Albus added.

His father blinked once more. "No, thanks," he replied.

They didn't take no for an answer and instead ran over to him, Hermione having expected it taking Lily from his grasp as the two little boys took his hands in theirs and they tugged with all their might, trying to pull him to his feet and over to the makeshift pitch, Dean and Sam sharing a look of amusement.

"Come on," James encouraged. "We don't have to play this game, we can play baseball, too!" He promised and Dean snorted at the young child, stifling his laughter when his father begrudgingly climbed to his feet and let them drag him away from the blankets.

After some time of playing with the kids, his father seemed to relax a little more and both soccer and baseball were forgotten and it ended with them playing chases, and whilst they did that, Dean headed over to Hermione, taking a seat beside her and offering Lily his finger which she grabbed on to.

"Tired?" She asked him amused.

"I swear, they've worn me out far worse than any case or supernatural being," he replied and she snorted at him. "I'm glad you brought them back with you, we needed a bit of a break and they certainly provided it."

She hummed. "Your father asked me a lot of strange questions yesterday, I managed to talk my way around them."

He frowned slightly. "Like what?"

"If my parents had been in the military and if I were human or supernatural," she shrugged and his eyes widened, a choked sound of surprise leaving him. "The majority I was able to answer truthfully. He knows I was on the front lines, he just thinks I was in Afghanistan, and I think he believed me about my human-non-supernatural status when I brought you and Bobby up. But he's suspicious and we need to be careful."

"He may be around longer than you think," Dean said and she raised an eyebrow. "I haven't had a chance to tell you yet but we're staying together for the time being, at least until we find the demon that killed my mom. We managed to get the Colt." Her eyes widened. "We're not sure where to start looking and we only stopped here 'cause Sammy caught wind of the case. We'll have to make sure you're never left alone with him in case you need to use magic for something, if we split up you'll have to be with me or Sam."

She nodded. "Shouldn't be too hard, though I'll have to remind myself not to use magic for anything I could do for myself."

"Well, I told James and Albus he doesn't know about magic yesterday, after their comment, we can't afford any more slip-ups."

"Harry will be collecting them soon enough, London's five hours ahead of us and I've already sent him our coordinates, he'll port-key over after finishing his shift. I made sure to tell him to leave his Auror robes behind. And speaking of family, I've been meaning to ask, what are we doing for Christmas?"

"Christmas?" He blinked in confusion.

"Christmas," she clarified. "It's only a few weeks away, so what are we thinking plans wise?"

"We don't celebrate Christmas."

"Shut up, what do you mean you don't celebrate Christmas?"

"We just don't, haven't since we were kids. Christmas, Thanksgiving, birthdays, we don't do any of it."

"Merlin, that's unforgivable," she said horrified. "And we celebrated my birthday."

"That's different,"

"How is that different? I don't care what you say, we're celebrating this year. Not only is this going to be our first Christmas together, but Christmas is about family and not only do you have your father and brother back, but you've got my family, too. The kids will never forgive you if you don't visit them. We've been invited to Christmas at the Burrow, which is a tradition I've partaken in for over a decade, we all have. Of course, I haven't given them my answer yet and if your father's still with us, which he possibly will be, we'll probably have to turn them down and visit another time. At any rate, we are celebrating Christmas this year. I don't care whether or not we exchange presents, I don't care if we're in London, at my house in Manning or in a grungy motel, I just want us to be together."

Dean cleared his throat, seeing that having Christmas with him obviously meant a lot to her and hated disappointing her. "Okay, we'll do Christmas," he agreed, his eyes darting to Sam briefly before looking back to her. "We should probably get the kids fed so they won't be going home hungry," Dean changed the subject, reaching for the bags and removing the sandwiches first before calling them over.

A couple of hours later found Dean, Sam and their father playing with the children whilst Hermione watched from her blanket, Lily having fallen asleep and she was in the car seat they'd been carrying her around in. He'd had his attention on the game and hadn't noticed Harry arriving until he looked over to Hermione, seeing Harry crouched down beside her and they whispered to each other. But soon enough the kids noticed he was there and they shouted happily, leaving them behind as they ran over to him and he stood and hugged them both tightly, laughing when they talked over each other excitedly.

"I see you had fun with your Aunt and Uncles," he said amused, looking up at him when he approached, they shook hands and Sam came up beside them, doing the same.

"Thank you for keeping them safe," he said.

"Hermione would kill me if let them fall and scrape their knee," Dean replied.

Harry's mouth twitched. "She's a mother hen that one," he nodded.

"I know," both he and Sam agreed, knowing from firsthand experience.

"Who's the bloke eyeing me funny?"

Dean didn't need to look to know he obviously meant his father. "Our dad,"

"Oh, Hermione mentioned you'd found him," he responded. "He could give Hermione a run for her galleons at hide and seek."

Sam and Dean both snorted at his comment.

"Dad, this is Harry, Hermione's brother, Harry, this is John, our dad," Sam introduced. They eyed each other carefully and slowly nodded to one another in greeting.

"I'll help Hermione with the kids," Sam said, heading over Hermione to help her pack everything away.

"I wanted to talk to you actually," Dean said and Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Damon Ashton?"

His eyes flashed. "What about him?" Harry asked, Dean feeling his father's presence behind and knowing he was listening in.

"What can you tell me about him? I've had Bobby searching for him, but we can't find him. Bobby's reckons he's changed his name."

Harry frowned. "That's possible, the whole town knew about his treatment of her and I'm sure you've seen how they've taken to her. He probably changed his name and moved to keep his head from being bashed in. But I don't know what to tell you or how I can help you."

"Just anything that may help? Family members, friends, previous addresses, things like that."

Harry frowned thoughtfully, his hand coming up to rub at his forehead, disturbing his hair and revealing the lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead.

"As far as I'm aware, he has no family. His parents died when he was a teenager, his Grandmother took him and then died after he'd graduated. He was a freelance contractor, worked on building sites. I don't know about his friends or where he lived. His middle name was Michael, he has dark hair and eyes, pale skin and is about my height, he had a tattoo on his forearm, some kind of symbol, Chinese maybe. That's all I can tell you."

Dean frowned but shook his head. "Well, it's not much but it's more than we had before, I'll let Bobby know and he can work his magic."

"If you find him, let me know, yeah?"

"I will," Dean promised.

"Well, I better get the kids back to Gin, as much as she appreciated the uninterrupted sleep, she's been antsy all day," he said. "Thanks for watching them," he said, before they shook hands, Harry clapped him on the shoulder and he crossed over to Hermione, Sam and the kids, taking the car seat from his brother.

"What was all that about?" His father asked, stepping up beside him as his eyes curiously watched Harry.

Dean let out a sigh and ran a hand through his hair before he slipped them into his jean pockets. "Hermione's ex-boyfriend, I'm going to beat the shit out him when I find him."

His father raised an eyebrow. "Not a nice guy?"

"No, he put his hands on her and in front of James, too," he replied. He looked up at his father, seeing his eyes flash angrily. His father was a lot of things and he was capable of more, but he hated men that put their hands on women, especially when it was done in front of young children. "She took him to London to meet her family and when they returned to Manning, she said he changed. She broke up with him and he didn't the news well, he even threw a vase at her, it hit the wall and cut her up a bit. So, when I find him, I'm gunna kick the shit out him, and I'm sure Bobby'll want to get a one or two blows in, too."

"Rightly so," his father muttered darkly, watching as Hermione hugged and kissed the children and then she hugged Harry, too, before he turned and left with the children, leaving the four hunters alone.