A/N: Sorry for the long wait, life got in the way.

Chapter 14

"Claire," John shouted as he opened the door of the motel room, Sam following in behind him, having been picked up from school. "We're goin to go get your stuff from your hotel, let's go."

Dean, who had been lying next to Claire since she had sprawled out unmovingly on the bed the moment they had been brought back to the motel that morning, turned his head to look behind at him to glare at his dad. Claire on the other hand remained staring emptily at the ceiling, the spark that normally resided there in her eyes now dead and her expression blank. Sighing at the angry look her received from John, Dean took the arm that wasn't underneath her to smooth her hair, stroke her cheek, something to garner some sort of response from her.

"Cummon, Clairey." He encouraged her quietly.

Finally, after having not moved the entire afternoon, Claire's eyes slowly to meet his; and the pain and anguish that Dean found there utterly heart breaking. Slowly sitting up, he guided her as she too sat up, keeping an arm behind her back to support her as she did so. When she was sitting on the edge of the bed, Claire leaned heavily into him for support, her breath small pants as she tried not to cry. Tightening his arm around her shoulder, Dean kept her in his embrace, moving with her to keep a comforting arm around her shoulders still as she stood up and shuffled towards the door. Slipping her boots on, the only thing that had survived her icy dip save for her vest and undergarments, Claire was soon enveloped in a hug by Sam, whom she immediately hugged back, burying her face in the shoulder of his jacket.

"You okay, Claire?" Sam asked, rubbing her back soothingly.

Remaining silent, Claire shook her head.

Continuing to rub her back, Sam looked up to meet his brother's gaze and nodding himself before pulling back Claire who sniffled. The moment Sam had let go of her she latched onto Dean's side, to which he pulled her close to him once more. From in front of them, John sighed in annoyance before gesturing to the open door.

"Come on, let get going." He ordered.

Dropping his school bag on the ground, Sam then walked out of the motel room ahead of Dean and Claire, then John who locked the door behind them. Walking down the stairs to parking lot, Dean went to open the backdoor for him and Claire to sit in when his father's voice stopped him.

"She can sit up front, Dean."

He turned to look at John with shock and slight anger. "Dad-" He began to argue before being cut off.

"Now, Dean!" John shouted.

Looking down worriedly at her, Dean found Claire staring up at him with calm red eyes. She placed a reassuring hand on his chest before she smiled at him. After a moment of silent arguing, Dean finally relented and smiled slightly back at her, placing his own hand on her cheek. Claire leaned into his touch in appreciation before pulling away and getting into the passenger seat. With a frown and a shake of his head, he climbed into the backseat with his brother.

After a couple of painstakingly quiet minutes of driving to Claire's hotel, they finally pulled into the parking lot, and as soon as the car had come to stop, the three teenagers were out of the vehicle and standing next to each other, Claire literally latching onto Dean as though he were her oversized talisman.

"Let's go." John barked from the other side of the car before he stalked toward the hotel doors, annoyed by the childish antics. The three quickly scurried in after him into the lobby, and once inside, the man at the counter smiled sympathetically when he saw Claire tucked into Dean's side.

"Hey, Claire!" He called to her. "I heard about your parents, so sorry that happened."

She gave him a small thankful smile. "Thanks, Carl."

"If there's anything I can do, just let me know." Carl nodded to her.

"Actually, I'm going to get my stuff and check out, if you don't mind." Claire told him.

"Alright, let me know if you need anything." He said helpfully before disappearing into a room behind the counter.

Smiling weakly, Claire watched him leave before looking to the Winchesters. "Right then," She sighed before marching past them and toward the elevator. Pushing the button to go up, she stood back and waited, Dean's fingers braiding themselves together with hers as Sam and John walked across the lobby to join them at the elevator doors. When it finally dinged and opened, the small group quickly piled into the small compartment. Pressing the sixth floor button, Claire stood back and against Dean's chest as the elevator made its slow ascent upwards, the awkward silence deafening as there was no music playing in the elevator. There was only Dean's absent minded humming as he held Claire close.

After what felt like a small infinity, the lift came to a stop and its doors slid opened. Immediately the four of them burst out of the tiny space, and after looking around, Claire took an unnecessary breath to calm herself before leading the men down a hallway. After a minute or so of walking down the empty hall, she led them to a stop in front of room 40, and upon unlocking the door, Claire flew into the room and started grabbing her belongings and placing them on the second large bed near the window in the room.

Stepping into the room, the two younger Winchesters saw their friend's hotel room was quite smaller than their own, as well as neatly organised. Dean smiled to himself slightly as he walked further into the room, watching the young woman hurry about as she folded her clothing into her small duffle bag. Meanwhile, John studied the thick lines of salt lining the door and window in approval.

"Dean, pass me my music." Claire's voice interrupted his staring, making him shake his head slightly. This made her smile lightly, then, tucking her hair behind her hair, she walked over to him to stand on her tip toes as she placed her small hands on his chest and brought her lips up to his ear. "Feel free to look later." She whispered. As she took a step back, Claire felt rather proud of herself when she saw the shocked look on his face. Biting her lip, she smiled a little wider at him before pointing to the chest of drawers behind him. "Music." She reminded to him before turning away. "Sam, mind passing me my book?" Claire called as she hurried around the room, gathering more of her belongings.

"Yeah, sure." Dean barely heard his brother reply as he stood there rooted to the spot in shock. After a moment, he started to smile as turned to face the dresser. He was starting to figure out that Claire wasn't as quiet as she had originally let on.

And he liked it.

So when he felt a pat on his bottom, Dean jumped almost a foot high before he whirled around to see Claire walk by him with a wink and teasing smile.

"Focus, sweetheart." She told him.

He smirked back at her. "Sure thing, sugar."

"Clairey." She chided him before returning to her packing.

Looking to the dresser, Dean studied the CD Walkman and connected clunky headphones that sat neatly to a respectable number of CDs cases. Quickly sliding through them, he read the names printed on the covers: Loreena McKennitt, Reba McEntire, Survivor, Phantom of the Opera, Jesus Christ Superstar; she had two Meatloaf CDs, a Kansas CD, and the last one he came across made him smile widely. It was ACDC.

Atta girl, Dean thought to himself, rather impressed, and not going to lie, was slightly turned on by this new information.

A pair of small pale hands reached out and took the CDs from him before reaching around to grab the Walkman and headphones. "Judge my tastes later." Claire mumbled with embarrassment as she placed the last of her belongings in her duffel and zipped it up. Throwing the bag over her shoulder, she surveyed the room one last time before nodding to John. "Okay. I'm ready."

He nodded stiffly. "Let's go." John gestured for them to leave the room, Claire bring first to leave and John himself last.

As they walked through the hallway towards the elevator, Dean tried to take the bag from Claire, to which she firmly shook her head. "I've got it." She promised quietly with a smile. After this, no words were exchanged once again as they went downstairs this time. When they reached the lobby, Claire made a straight beeline for the front desk where Carl sat waiting for her with a smile.

"So, Clairey. What are your plans now?" He asked her as he handed her some papers. At the use of her nickname, jealousy flared up within Dean. Only he, and Sam, called her that. Who did this man think he was, thinking he had a right to call her that? However, Dean calmed slightly when he caught Claire peeking at him with a grin on her face before she bent over to sign the forms.

"I'm going to stay with Sam and Dean's family while my god father arranges for me to go stay with him." She said before returning the papers.

"Ahh... Staying with the boyfriend, huh?" Carl teased her, immediately making Claire blush in embarrassment. Behind her, Sam started to laugh uncontrollably as Dean looked at the floor bashfully.

"They're not dating." John said gruffly, glaring at the poor man behind the counter.

Despite the response from John, Carl simply looked to Dean and winked. "Coulda fooled me." He said before printing a receipt and handing it to Claire. "There you go, hon, and good luck."

She took the receipt and put it in a side pocket on her duffle. "Thanks, Carl."

"Any time. Sorry again about your parents."

"Thank you. See you around!" Claire waved good bye as she walked towards the doors. The Winchesters began to follow her out when a voice stopped Dean in his tracks.

"Dean!"

Turning around he saw Carl waving him over. Looking between his family and the man, Dean thought for a moment before making his way over to Carl, leaning over the counter while remaining on guard when he was motioned to come closer. "Take care of her, okay, Dean?" He told him. "She's going to need care and support I bet for the next few days."

Dean nodded dutifully. "Yes, sir."

The hotel worker smiled kindly at him. "Claire's told me a lot about you and your brother. I know she cares a lot about you two. You especially. You mean something to that girl, and by the looks of it, she means a heck of a lot to you too." Carl's smile grew wider as he studied Dean. "Claire's shy, but she'll come around. You might have to coax her out of it though, show that you care."

"I don't think care is a strong enough word, sir." Dean mumbled under his breath, earning a laugh from the older man.

"See?" He laughed. "That's exactly what she said to me when I talked to her last time she came back from your place." When Carl saw the pleasantly surprised and hope filled look on Dean's face, he clapped him on the shoulder. "Keep her close, Dean. I think you two have something more than a stupid teen crush on each other."

At this, Dean gave him a true and genuine smile. "Thanks, Carl."

Carl smiled back. "No problem, kid."

"Dean! Let's go!" John shouted impatiently from the front doors.

Looking to Carl, Dean found him just smiling before nodding to the door. "Go get her." He told Dean with a final wink before walking away.

With a determined smile on his face, Dean ran towards his Dad and out the door, a feeling of hope and determination blazing in his heart. When he clambered into the back seat of the Impala, Claire met his gaze in the rear-view mirror, her eyes crinkling when she saw the smile on his face, a smile of her own beginning to form as they exchanged a knowing look.

The following day saw Claire staying in the Winchester's motel room. When Sam and Dean had gotten around for school, she had simply remained in bed in a similar fashion as she had been the previous day; staring at the ceiling blindly with a mask of empty agony. No one had said anything to her in an attempt to make her move, instead choosing to allow her to lay in her silent mourning. Only before the boys left to walk on their own to school did they approach her, Sam squeezing her hand sympathetically before moving aside to make room for his brother.

Dropping onto one knee beside the bed, Dean wordlessly put a hand to Claire's cheek, making her turn her eyes to look at him. Silently they stared at each other, he brushed his thumb against her cheek, her eyelids fluttering shut at his soft caress. Sighing, he leaned over to kiss her forehead before getting up and leaving the motel room with Sam. The moment the door quietly clicked shut, Claire opened her eyes to look at the door before silently rolling out of the bed to land in a crouch. Straightening up, she moved to her duffle bag in the corner of the room, opened it to retrieve her beloved Walkman and CD's before returning to the bed. Then, after setting herself up, she relaxed onto her back, blanketing her worries and sadness with music while John sat on guard at the table, his journal in hand.

That afternoon the motel room door slammed loudly as Dean and Sam made their way into the room, both relieved to be back after the long school day. While they had been walking home, the brothers had come to the agreement that it was weird being there without Claire, and were sure to haul ass back home to see if she was okay. However, there she was, still lying on the bed, with John watching her from the kitchenette table. This time however, Claire had headphones covering her ears, with her Walkman and CD's sitting next to her.

Smiling to himself in relief to see that she was still alright, Dean kicked off his boots before making his way to her. Sam on the other hand, walked over to join his Dad at the table. "Hey, Dad." He said, setting his bag on the table and pulling out his homework.

"Hey, Sammy." John said tiredly, taking a gulp from his mug of cheap hotel coffee. "How was school?"

Knowing what his Dad really meant by asking that question, Sam kept his eyes on his work. "No one asked about Claire."

John nodded to himself in satisfaction as he watched his eldest son's actions. "Good." He muttered.

Meanwhile, paying no attention to his Dad's glare, Dean crawled on to the bed and then over Claire to hold himself over her as he watched her peaceful expression. Glancing once again at the headphones she wore and the CD Walkman it was connected to, he returned to simply studying her almost perfect features in quiet wonder. After a moment, Claire slowly opened her eyes to look up at him. Once she focused on his face inches above her own, she smiled.

"Hello." She said quietly.

Dean's face broke into a wide and gentle smile. "Hey." His voice was soft. For a while they simply stared at each other, and as cheesy as one may find it, getting lost in each other's eyes. Had it had not been for John's glaring and their equal shyness, Claire or Dean would have kissed the other, right on their lips. For now though, they settled for gazing into the depths of their eyes.

"What are you listening to?" Dean finally asked, nodding to her Walkman and the pile of CD'S beside it.

"I Would do Anything for Love." Claire replied, her voice breathy as she spoke the title, trying not to blush when she considered how close they were and the words that had just left her mouth.

It didn't help however when Dean smirked at the name of the song and her shyness, lowering his body slightly onto hers, pressing his forehead against her own while keeping their mouths a hairs breath away. "Oh really?" He teased, his voice low. Beneath him he could feel Claire tremble as her eyes fluttered shut. "And what would you do for love, Claire?"

She didn't speak at first, but when she slowly opened her eyes, she went to speak when John cut her off. "Dean, back." He barked.

Rolling his eyes, Dean pecked Claire's nose before sitting back lightly on her legs, Claire herself following him up as though attached to him by a string or magnet. Picking up the CD on top of the pile, Dean eyed the artful cover. "Bat Out of Hell two, Back into Hell." He read aloud, studying the strange figure on the motorbike in the picture. "Who would want to go back to Hell after breaking out of it?" He snorted.

Getting up from propping herself up by her elbows, Claire sat up to take the CD case from him. "I dunno, forgot his house keys, maybe?" She asked cheekily.

"You think there really is a hell?" Dean's seriousness caught her off guard, making her look at him startled.

"I-I, I don't know." Claire stuttered. "I suppose so, Bobby's seen demons before, and they have to come from somewhere. And with all of the stuff out there that we face, I guess so. But I'd like to think that Heaven exists as well." She whispered the last part.

"Yeah…" He agreed.

"It'd be nice if there was no hell below us, above us only sky."

Eyes flashing up to look at her, Dean's mouth twisted ruefully. "My Mom liked the Beatles." He said.

"That was John Lennon." Claire responded.

"Yeah, but he was a Beatle." He threw back.

"Fair enough." She shrugged. "My Mum cried apparently for days when he was killed."

"Big fan, huh?" Dean lifted his hands to absentmindedly play with her curls.

"Yup."

"My Mom would sing me Hey Jude when I was little, it was her favorite song." He looked to the CD player absentmindedly.

Studying him as took her headphones off to hang them around her neck, Claire thought for a moment before taking a CD hidden at the bottom of her pile to hand it to him with trembling hands. "My lullaby was Carry on My Wayward Son."

Biting back a but you're not a guy; Dean studied the obviously well-loved CD. "I'm guessing you haven't listened to it since..." He couldn't bring himself to say since you found out about your parents.

Her head bowed low, she shook her head. "I don't know if I could now." Claire whispered.

Sighing, Dean got off her legs to lift her onto his lap and to pull her into his chest. Immediately Claire wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms going to wrap themselves around his neck, relishing in the comfort he gave her. Slowing twisting a curl around his finger, Dean buried his face in her neck. "You should try; you gotta be brave for them." Pulling back, he put a hand against her cheek. "Look, forget the hunting. Screw that and the problem we've got right now. You just have to keep your head up and plow through all of this crap. We'll figure this out together, but right now you need to keep it together. Not just for my sake, but for yours too. I might not have met your parents, but I know that they'd want you to be brave." Here he stopped to take a breath and to smile reassuringly at her. "So I say we kick it in the ass and keep goin together, okay?"

All Claire could do for a minute was stare at him with wide eyes before nodding and throwing herself back at Dean, her arms tightening around him. He laughed at her response as brought his hands back around her body to press his hands against her upper and lower back, keeping her close to him as possible. "Thank you." She whispered into his ear.

Dean was about to respond when he was cut off, making him roll his eyes.

"Cummon, we got work to do." John called, his chair scraping against the floor as he got up.

Pulling away, Claire looked from Dean to John in confusion. "What are we doing?" She asked in confusion.

Grabbing his journal, John said "We're goin to go see what you got."

"Dad…" Dean began to protest.

"And it'll give you boys a chance to practise again." John said. "We're going, and that's final. So get ready."

"Yes, sir." Claire said. At her response, Dean gave her a bewildered expression, surprised at her obedient response. When she saw the shocked look on his face, she placed her hands on his cheeks before leaning into whisper in his ear. "You're not the only one who was raised to be Daddy's little soldier." She told him before pecking his cheek. Slipping her legs out from around him, Claire got off the bed to grab a change of clothes from her duffle before making her way into the bathroom, leaving a shocked Dean behind.

It was after an hour of driving out of Portland that they finally reached a beaten up drive off the main road that lead to a decent sized clearing. It was far from any prying eyes, and far from anywhere anyone would call the cops about hearing gunshots. The moment the car was parked, its occupants got out and made their way to the trunk. Popping the lid, John grabbed a bag of cans and bottles and a riffle before making his way to a fallen log across the field to set up the targets. Standing back, Claire watched as her two friends grabbed their weapons of choice and began their check overs. As she watched, she noticed that while Dean's movements and attitude were very sharp and focused as he prepped his gun, Sam's was more slow and unwilling. Looking at him curiously, she walked around Dean to join Sam's side.

"What's wrong, Sammy?" She asked him quietly, sitting on the Impala's bumper.

Looking up at her cautiously, Sam stopped fiddling with his gun and sighed. "I don't really like doing this." He admitted, surprise filling his face when Claire gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Not quite your cup of tea, is it?" She said.

Sam smiled slightly and shook his head. "No, not really."

He laughed when a hand came up to ruffle his shaggy hair playfully. "Don't blame you." Claire agreed. "I hate it."

Pushing away her hand, he looked at her curiously. "How long you been hunting?"

"All my life. The moment I could walk I was trained to survive." She shrugged. Although her words were nonchalant, the look on her face showed her disdain for the job. "I was seven when I went on my first hunt."

"Seven!?" Sam repeated in shock. Even Dean, who had been silently listening in on the conversation raised his eyebrows in shock. "I was eight when I found out about the stuff out there."

"Mmmhhh, I always knew. No, it wasn't Cinderella and Snow White for me; it was lore and myth books I read." Claire continued. "Mum had me read those silly stories so I wouldn't feel left out at school and make it feel like I had a bit of a childhood, but it was mostly studying creatures, how do you kill them. That sort of thing. No toys either, it was weapons training. Even with small hands, my Dad made sure I was able to use them and fend for myself, with or without a gun."

"Sounds like your parents did things right with you." John claimed as he joined them and began prepping his own weapons.

She shrugged at the compliment. "Doesn't mean I never came out of a hunt without some sort of mark or something broken."

"No one does." He told her.

"Don't have to tell me that."

"Your family's gear is there," John pointed to the bag in the corner of the trunk. "Set up and let's see how well your folks did training you."

Silently, Claire hopped off of the bumper and opened the familiar weapons duffle, immediately finding her claimed gun of choice. From the corner of her eye, she could see John and Dean nodding in approval as they saw her black Colt in hand. Doing a quick once over, she nodded to herself before locking and loading it, turning to John when she was ready.

"Got the same as I do." He told her, holding up his chrome plated Colt.

"American soldier and hunter left it to me back in England." She said, looking to the targets set up in the distance.

Taking note of her readiness, John followed her gaze to the outfield and pointed to the cans and bottles. "First we can test your hand at a gun before we try hand to hand."

Nodding in understanding, Claire squinted her eyes before looking back to John. "Mind if I try from here?"

Everyone looked at her in surprise. "Think you can hit it from here?" He asked her in surprise.

"I know so." She nodded.

"Suit yourself."

The three Winchesters gave Claire her space as she aligned and readied herself. Lifting her gun, she didn't even take a breath before pulling the trigger. The bang echoed in the small clearing as her shot met its mark in the direct center of a water bottle John had set up, sending it flying off the log.

"Whoah." Sam breathed in amazement, his eyes wide.

"Damn." Dean said in appreciation, bringing his gaze back from the targets and on to Claire. Who knew sweet, quiet Claire was a badass with deadly aim. To be honest, it was pretty hot to him. The thought made him smirk as Claire caught his appraisal and winked at him, making him wink back.

"Nice shot." John commented before walking away. "Let's go, boys. You guys haven't been practicing lately."

With a sigh, Sam grabbed his stuff before scampering off after him while Dean joined Claire at her side and slung an arm over her shoulder. "I have to say," He said still smirking. "That was kinda hot."

Looking up at him, she too smirked and played along. "Only kinda? Damn, gotta try harder." She delivered just as smoothly.

"Effort's appreciated." He told her as they walked to join the others.

"I'll remember that." Claire promised.

After a grueling two hours, as the sun was starting to set, John called for them to stop and to come to where we stood. When all three teenagers stood before him, he began to explain what they were to do next.

"Sam, Dean, I want you two over there. Claire, I'm going to throw you a couple of hits, see what you do."

The words alone were somewhat worrying to Dean, but seeing Claire accept his order without a word was actually terrifying. "What? Dad, cummon! Let me or Sam go against her!" He protested. Looking between his father's built 6'1 frame and Claire's much smaller and slender figure, he worried more so for Claire's physical safety rather than his father's.

"No. I don't want it being you or Sam if she does whatever she did to me back at the motel." John told him.

"Don't worry about me, Dean." Claire reassured him with a smile. "I might be 5'5, but I can take care of myself in a fight."

At this, Dean could only sink despairingly into grass next to his brother. "She'll be okay, Dean." Sam reassured him.

He was about to open his mouth to answer his brother when their Dad through a punch at Claire's head and her hand flew up to meet it. Quickly taking a hold of his fist, Claire stepped forward and followed through, throwing John to the ground behind her as she whirled around, both of her hands now free and in fists of their own, up for defense as she watched the sprawled out man.

"Whoah." Both Sam and Dean said lowly in shock.

Laughing on the ground, John got up and brushed himself off. "Good," He said. "Go again."

It was after an hour that John deemed it safe, albeit unwillingly, for Dean to practice against Claire. He knew his son was tough as nails though, the only thing that worried him was that Dean would be to love-struck to land an actual hit on her. "Let's go, Sam." He told the youngest Winchester, watching his oldest son as they gave the other two a respectable amount of space for sparring.

The moment they had enough space, Claire began to slowly circle around Dean in an almost predatory way. As she walked around him, he watched her with a smirk. "Did you have to change?" He said, referring to the dress she had been wearing at the motel and the white tank top and brown corduroy pants she wore now. "Would have been a nice a nice view."

She gave him a wicked smile in return. "Well next time if you ask nicely…" She suggested.

His green eyes went wide at this. "You know, you're completely different when-" Dean never got the sentence completely out when he was sent tumbling as Claire tackled him to the ground. As he lay on the ground stunned, Claire, who sat on top of him, leaned forward to whisper in his ear.

"That's just the adrenaline talking, sweetie." She told him, her warm breath teasing his ear.

Somehow through the haze Dean managed to regain control of his senses and grab Claire by her wrists and flip their positions. "Still like you no matter what, honey." He teased right back, dragging his lips across her cheek, and slowly towards her own lips. Beneath him he could feel her chest rise and fall quickly from her short breaths, making him smile as he held her arms above her head.

This small distraction proved to be enough though as Claire bucked her hips upwards, making Dean fall forward enough to let her flip their positions once more. With her hair hanging over her left shoulder as she looked down at him, Claire smiled sweetly at him like her normal, shy self. "The effort was appreciated, but nice try, babe." She told him.

Looking up at her in complete adoration, once her words registered in his mind, he smirked again. "Oh sugar we're only getting started." He said, his voice making her shiver above him before he sent them tumbling once more.

A/N: Major fluff on the way. :) Leave me with your thoughts if possible, and thanks once again for reading!