Title: Advice for Dean

Date: December 18th, 2008

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural. If I did John and Ash never would have died. Jo wouldn't have existed and Cassie would have died after breaking Dean's heart.

Summary: As his and Autumn's relationship gets more serious and begins to look permanent people begin to advise Dean on how to play the game.

A/N: This would have been up yesterday but I got a bit distracted by watching Pride and Prejudice. I enjoyed the book and the movie was pretty good itself. Hopefully I can get my ass into gear and until at least the end of January you'll get 2 updates a week. Whether those updates be a new chapter or a oneshot/songfic I don't know yet. I'm getting things more organized and have a cork board now of plot bunnies to work on which scares me. It seems to grow while I'm sleeping. Anyway R&R!

"Dean?" Sam asked coming out of his motel room to find his brother laying on the hood of his beloved Chevy staring at the night sky. Dean lifted his head slightly to prove he'd heard him but otherwise didn't move. Sam moved to his brother's side. He didn't think Dean would have left Autumn's side yet. They'd only had her back, what six hours? "What are you doing out here?"

"Same thing I did when you would have nightmares." He admitted. He was deflecting and Sam knew it.

"Why don't you just wake her up?" Sam pressed.

"So she can avoid us?" Sam shrugged leaning into the car.

"Has she said anything?" This wasn't a general anything this was the kind of anything that usually followed a confession of love. Dean swallowed but didn't verbally respond leaving Sam to sit quietly.

"She didn't hear me. Her heart wasn't beating, Sam." Sam cringed to remember that small detail. Autumn had been dead. She wasn't breathing, her heart wasn't beating. She was so limp so completely lifeless laying there on the ground. Dean worked on her for nearly a full minute before her heart started back up. But her heart was beating when he had said he loved her. Autumn was alive when Dean had told her she couldn't leave him that he loved her. Sam couldn't imagine what it would have done to his brother to have lost Autumn before admitting that to her. It was always clear that she knew it but if Dean had never actually spoke it he would have been a wreck if they'd lost her today.

"You'll have to tell her again then." He advised. "Do—Do you really think you two can last all of this?"

"Sam," Dean warned. There was a rule here: No chick flick moments. What was he doing?

"I know but seriously? She isn't going to hunt forever. She does have a career and family outside of all of this. She doesn't have to hunt and she won't. You live on this."
"Did you really think you could pull the college boy routine off?" Dean shot back sitting up. "I'll give it a shot. If it doesn't work its no skin off my nose." Sam shook his head.

"Whatever, man. I just can't see you taking the trash out and mowing the lawn."

"Sam!" Sam put his hands up in surrender. After a moment Dean leaned back into the windshield again and Sam returned to his room where Athena was waiting to be updated.

The quartet arrived back at the Resort to find John Winchester in their cabin. When a hunter does something stupid, reckless, and completely against their training it gets talked about. John had heard about it and was headed down to the actual hunt to protect his kids but was called to the Resort instead since the kids had handled things and were on their way back. The initial greeting was stiff and awkward. Where on a normal meeting Autumn and Athena would have been ecstatic to see their surrogate father Athena had recently shut down his son and wasn't sure if he knew or how to act if he did and Autumn knew she had disappointed him and was due for a lecture. Sam and John had never been on good terms so there wasn't a real loving reunion on there part and Dean wasn't one to show real affection.

"Sam, Teenie unload the cars. Autumn and Dean kitchen." He ordered. Sam and Athena glanced at their older counter parts.

"Just run to the bar tell Dar and Jen we got in OK." Autumn said offering them a lighter task. This only served to ruffle John's feathers more though he didn't say anything. Dean and Autumn moved to the kitchen as they younger two left the cabin. "Yes, sir?" Autumn asked her arms folded over her chest. Dean stood beside her wondering which one of the two would start the fight.

"You were ordered to hand the case over Red." he started off and she gave him a dead look.

"When the boys were little had you ever come across a case where kids just like them were becoming victims would you not have run straight to it no matter what it meant to your own well being?" she challenged.

"Not if I was told to lay off." John argued.

"I've read the journals and I've talked to Bobby. You've been told to lay off the demon. More so when the boys were kids. But you never did. You're still chasing him. That yellow eyed bastard actually toys with you Dad. You are in no position to tell me I'm wrong." Autumn told him not backing down. "If it helps you any I learned my lesson. I know to at least take back up with me next time. I know to accept help when its offered. They could have brought me home in a body bag this time. I won't do it again. Next time you get a lead on the demon are you going to give us a heads up or are you off on your own again?" John was reaching his breaking point fast and Dean knew it was time to pull them apart before someone lost it.

"Aut, babe, why don't you go run the dog?" Her hazel eyes rolled over Dean before she nodded stealing a quick kiss and called for the dog, leaving the room. "She's been through enough this week." He told his father in a rare moment of disrespect. John sighed and washed a large bearlike hand over his face.

"You love her." He stated more than asked. Dean didn't reply. Was there a damn billboard? It wasn't that it was a secret it was just that he thought he had himself guarded better. "She won't stay. She has kids to go back to."

"We've talked about that." John was obviously surprised by that. Who wouldn't be? The two of them were exactly famous for facing personal matters head on. "I'm going back with her. I don't want to be hunting alone in my sixties."

"It won't be just the two of you, Dean. Kids are a lot of responsibility."

"You mean like raising Sammy?" He shot. "I know what I'm getting myself into."

"These aren't just going to be three normal little girls. They're going to have a lot of problems. Has she told you anything about that town?"

"She's told me she was raised to be the perfect wife and mother. Autumn said that continuing the family business, keeping the farm going was her father's main concern until her mother got sick. Darcy says both her parents committed suicide, I don't know how true that is. She's only said her dad did though in her mom's shoes its understandable. I know Billy-Jack beat her and that his parents turned a blind eye. I know to keep from meeting the same end as her father she worked constantly. She's told me a lot Dad. I don't expect to got back there with her and there be an easy transition for any of us. It won't be smooth and fluid. The girls are going to have serious issues. I know that. They deserve better than Billy-Jack though."

"Is it to save the girls or is it a compromise for Autumn?"

"What if I want them?" He countered his father. At first it had been something he had merely enjoyed the thought of: Three kids, a dog, big house, and Autumn in some small ghost free town. But as time had gone on and Autumn had become more than a flavor of the hunt or even month, easily surpassing Cassie. As she talked about the triplets and he saw pictures of them he grew attached to the little girls. He didn't mind taking phone calls from them when they'd call Autumn in tears after a nightmare or when they were sick. He actually liked that they would ask to talk to him. He had never thought he'd be called Uncle Dean.

"Dean, if you follow through on that you can't walk out. Autumn—She's the kind of girl who will give you every possible chance to leave and never hold it against you while you're gone. But you won't be able to come back. She will always put the girls before you. Whatever the two of you have going here isn't anything like what you'll have if you stay together. Sleeping with her and hunting is completely different than raising some other man's children."

"You're not going to talk me out of this. If I can't handle it I can leave. Autumn and I have talked about all of it." Dean argued.

"Don't get too deep Dean. You're only going to hurt everyone involved." John cautioned. He started for the door. "Keep a closer eye on her. I don't care what her reason is she isn't to be left alone like that again."

Dean sank into a kitchen chair which is where Will found him a few hours later. Sam and Athena had been distracted by Darcy and Autumn had been cornered by Jen who was ripping her a new one. As soon as Will released that bit of information he'd wanted to go find her and save her but knew someone needed to yell at her and after seeing her dead he couldn't. Will sat down next to him studying him for a long moment before finally addressing the reason he'd come. "You got damn lucky, man." He shook his head. "Teenie told me what happened. I don't know if she'd be better off dead or alive had I been there. I'd have been tempted to beat her into next week for that stunt."

"Believe me it was on my mind." He admitted.

"She never was a safe one to let hunt alone." Will chuckled. "Seemed like every time Teenie and I left her alone on something when I went with them she'd end up in a cast or something would catch fire or blow up."

"Well this time she ended up possessed and the demon wasn't keen on leaving her body." Will gave him a flat look.

"Once you got in there would you want to leave it too soon?" He asked quirking his brow to show just how perverted his mind was.

"Will." The native smirked leaning back.

"She's got it bad for you, dude. Jen's talking about splitting your party up. Autumn looked murderous at the thought. She's got a point though, Teenie and Autty got in their fair share of trouble before you two joined them but nothing like what they've been in recently. How many times have you lost one of them? The shape shifter, when Teenie came to find me, that ravana, you lose the constantly. Autumn got burnt up in that fire and you weren't even on a hunt. It might be best if you were split up." Dean watched him in a bored manner. He knew exactly how much danger the girls were in. He had been there for all of that. He had been the one to stitch them back together he didn't need a reminder. "Who would she chose though: you or Teenie?"

"Are you here for something?" Will cracked a smile and Dean was half surprised there was not twinkle sound or a voice in the background telling him that 'this tooth paste is recommended by 4 our of 5 dentists'.

"Good news travels fast, Winchester. You told Autty you love her. Welcome to the club, dude."

"What club?" Dean asked not sure he even wanted to know what Will was talking about now.

"Don't worry I'm not after your girl. One Daemon is enough for any man. Hell one is enough for a dozen men. I mean the 'This is going to kill me but I can't help myself she's a damned enchantress' club. It's a surprisingly large group. Gus is in it, I'm pretty sure your brother will be soon if he isn't already that Dar is toying with him like a cat with a mouse. Marc has spastic membership. Pretty much anyone fool enough to go with a huntress gets in."

"Oh joy." Dean rolled his eyes.

"I guess it comes with some sort of rules too?"

"Are you joking? Rules would mean they're stable enough to predict from time to time. Man we get guidelines at the best of times." Will told him. "I don't know if you've noticed but hunter chicks aren't just buckets but oceans of crazy." They fell silent for a few minutes before Will spoke again. "I'll tell you one thing though, you hurt Autumn, and I should have said this when I met you. If you hurt her her wrath will be the least of your worries. You will have every hunter Jen has signed on your ass and then some."

When Autumn finally dragged in he was in the shower and she didn't hesitate before joining him. He had spent the evening unloading the cars and checking over their health leaving him greasy and reeking of gas and oil. He kissed her as soon as she'd stepped in under the spray. She smiled wearily. He could see how tired she was. She was just dragging. She needed to sleep in her own bed and get a good meal in her still to recover from their last hunt. He turned her so her back was too him and began washing her hair. She relaxed occasionally mumbling something about that feeling good.

"How bad did Dad chew you?" She asked when they were just standing under the water for the sake of keeping their privacy from the outside world.

"Eh, wasn't too bad." he lied. It worried him how little faith there was in the two of them. It was almost as if everyone was betting against them.

"He found me. I think I was lectured. I'm not sure. He was talking about our girls and dragging you along behind me. Something about doing more damage than good too all of us." She said confused.

"Glad I'm not the only one getting that lately." He admitted to her wrapping his arms around her.

"Tell you what. If you promise to tell me when I'm mucking things up as soon as you see me mucking them up I'll do the same for you and maybe we can save some damage." Autumn bargained. Dean rested his head on her shoulder his cheek pressed against hers as the water beat down on his back.

"Sounds like a plan." He held her a few minutes longer. They were reaching the point where the water needed turned up again or they needed to get out and he didn't want to move to do either. "Aut?"

"Yeah?" She asked playing with the ring on his finger.

"Did you hear me the other night, when you were down?" She turned in his arms and kissed him. That was enough of an answer for him.

"I don't remember a bright light or anything. I remember being freaked out and kind of lost then I heard you." She smiled at him. "How was I supposed to ignore that? I just can't believe I had to die to get you to admit it." she teased.