Jessica dashes back to the hotel, hoping for a nice quiet night in. She can practically taste the pepperoni pizza already. Spending time with the Winchesters has definitely changed her eating patterns. She used to eat a lot more pasta and salads before taking to the road with them.
She's just heading to the lift when out of the corner of her eye she finds Dean and Bobby sitting in the small lobby. Her eyes fall to the bags sitting at their feet, hers amongst them.
"What's going on? Why are the two of you sitting down here? And why are our bags here?"
Dean holds his hands up in front of him. Too many questions for him to answer in such a short period of time.
"Hold your horses there, Jessica. Sit yourself down, and I'll tell you all about it," he says, patting the chair beside him. It's only when she gets a few inches closer to him that she notices he has cuts on his face, and his hands are a little cut up. She sits down, a bundle of nerves. Sam is up to something serious with Kristie, and now this? Could this day possibly get any worse?
"So, when I came back to the room, I was on my own. It's been a crazy day, so I decided to take a little nap. Next thing I know, there is a massive humming noise surrounding me in the room. The windows are blown in, the television has been destroyed, and everything is falling apart around me."
"What did you do?" she asks, sitting forward so she can see and hear him better. The cuts seem to be more superficial than anything, which she's very thankful for.
"There wasn't much I could do, the noise was so distracting, I couldn't do anything but hold my hands over my ears. Thankfully, Bobby came back and dragged me out of the room."
"Are you all right?" she asks, looking between both men.
"Yeah, we're both fine. Dean here just has a slight ringing in his ears, but he'll be fine, don't worry," says Bobby, smiling. She always feels at ease when Bobby is around. The time she spent with him recently has certainly helped, but he just has a very calming influence on those around him. Sure, he can be grouchy sometimes, but he's such a nice, kind man that a person can forgive him almost anything.
"What do you think did it?"
"I don't know. But I know someone who does. And I'm going to get an answer, right now. Jessica, I want you to get another room here for the night. Bobby and I will be back in a bit," he says, standing up.
"No, wait a minute, you're not going anywhere without me."
A little smile pops onto Dean's face.
"Jessica, I know you think you're ready for hunting, but I'm not willing to let you risk it just yet. I want you to stay here, and then I know you're safe."
"I appreciate the sentiment, I really do. But I'm not sitting alone in this hotel, wondering if the two of you are all right. I'm going with you."
He opens his mouth to protest, but Bobby steps forward.
"Maybe you should let her come with us. She was a great student when I was teaching her the ways of a hunter. I was very proud of her, as a matter of fact. Since we're walking into the unknown here, it might be a good idea to have some back up."
Dean sighs heavily.
"All right, but you do what you're told, understand. When I tell you to do something, you do it without arguing!"
She hates that Dean doesn't trust her enough to allow her to operate properly. She knows that he's only doing it because he's concerned about her, but she can't help but wonder if he will ever trust her completely.
"Ok. I promise."
As Dean and Bobby prepare the abandoned warehouse for the event to come, Jessica watches them intently. It's not very often she gets to see the two of them working together. It's nice knowing they are so in synch with one another. While Bobby makes strange markings on every available surface, Dean is getting his knives and guns ready, setting them out in front of him carefully.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" she asks, hoping for an answer from either one of them.
"No!" they both say in unison.
"Sorry, I was just trying to help."
While Dean returns his focus to his armoury, Bobby stops what he's doing to comfort her.
"We don't mean any harm, Jessica, but we don't have enough time to teach you everything you'll need to know at this stage. It doesn't help that we're not too sure what to expect, so we need to be on our guard."
Jessica nods her head.
"Ok, I see your point. I guess my enthusiasm can get in the way sometimes."
Bobby smiles, putting his hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, I know you're keen, and we all appreciate that. But in a case like this, we need to be careful."
Just then, the ceiling lights around the warehouse pop and explode.
"What's going on?" asks Jessica, ducking as though the shattered glass from the bulbs were going to fall on her.
"He's coming!" answers Dean.
The two large double doors on the opposite end of the room burst open, and in walks a young man. He's dressed up, ready for work, but the major wardrobe choice is a light brown trenchcoat.
The man keeps his focus directly on Dean. Bobby and Jessica are standing behind him. Bobby takes a knife from the table behind him, and flies at the man, the knife raised above him. The man turns around and simply touches his fingers to Bobby's head. He collapses onto the ground.
Jessica grabs the knife from Bobby's hand and thrusts it toward the man. He glares at her, reaching his hand out in her direction. She feels the cool touch of his fingers on her forehead, before the world goes dark.
