Supernatural does not belong to me, although I wish it did. I am simply playing in Kirpke's sandbox for a bit. All rights and ownership are the property of Kripke and the CW network. I am not making any money from this; it is for my own personal pleasure.

Synopsis: Set at the start of Season One, Dean had been in a wheelchair since his father disappeared more than a year ago and he finally has to tell Sam… There'd been an accident that night and Dean had paid a very high price….one he still doesn't understand. The story will have some hunts from season one and possibly into season two…the brothers will continue their search for their father…there will be alterations to the hunts to accommodate Dean's new situation. I have every intention of returning Dean to good health before this ends…but getting there is going to be bumpy.

WARNING:These chapters can contain a lot of angst and can get a little graphic with the pain and blood...consider yourself warned. Don't like...Don't Read...

Please keep in mind that I do not have a Beta, so all grammatical errors are my own. Not Slash. Brotherly love and Angst only…

Please Review: So I know there's still interest in this little story.

From the Previous Chapter

"Dean, I've only seen this stuff like twice." Sam turned and shook his head as he processed what he was seeing and started to connect the dots.

Well, I guess we'll be having a conversation about this later…connecting all the suspicions. Dean thought with interest. He'd missed having those types of conversations with his little brother. The ones where they were collaborative and not argumentative about what they were hunting.

They were just starting to take a serious look at the place when a familiar voice floated through the hallway, causing them both to stop and listen. "Yeah, I mean I just really wanted to get a new place in the city. My boyfriend and his friend should be here soon…if they're not here already."

Dean's eyelids dropped closed as he recognized Jo Harvelle's voice. She'd gone on the hunt even after her mother had begged her not to and Dean and Sam had refused to take her with them.

Shit… The thought ran through Dean's head and he looked over at the similar look on his brother's face….they had unwanted company on this hunt after all.

XXXX

Chapter 36

Winchesters, Wheelchairs, and Ghosts…Oh my

Dean rolled around the corner and there talking to the super-attendant of the building was none other than, Jo Harvelle. She was laughing as they walked toward the door to the apartment where he and Sam were currently at. She noticed him rolling toward her, she grinned and then her eyes flickered over to Sam. "This is my boyfriend Dean and his friend Sam." Dean's eyes widened in shock and he looked over at his little brother for some sort of support. Sam just smirked at him and patted him on the shoulder. "So what did you think of the apartment, honey?" She asked as she slipped over and stood next to Dean's stunned figure. Her fingers reaching up to bush along his hair in a gesture that shouldn't have felt weird...but did.

"Wait, how did you guys see the apartment already?" The manager asked in confusion.

"You gave us the key earlier." Sam supplied through his grin. He wouldn't ever admit it to Dean…but he found this whole 'uncertainty' that his brother had developed...a bit amusing. Growing up, Dean had always been so at ease around women and Sam had been the odd little wall flower. But now as he watched his older brother's lips twitch in frustration at the ruse Jo was weaving, he found he kinda wanted to laugh. But I won't….Dean might be in a wheelchair, but I'm still pretty certain he can kick my ass if he really wanted to.

Besides, the crap-life that his brother had been forced to live over the last four years wasn't funny…on any level. Thoughts of their father and his abusive behavior toward Dean…It's not healthy for me to even think about that yet. He thought. The things about Dean that had irritated him as a kid were missing from the man that sat in the chair in front of him. And he found that he really missed the obnoxious person his brother used to be.

"It's pretty nice…there are a few things that would need to be repaired…" Dean started. He was thinking about the large crack that ran through the living room and the stain of black ecto-plasm on the wall.

"Oh well, we can take that off the rent. The last tenant just disappeared on me…" The guy interrupted quickly. Jo's face split into a smile and she winked at Dean behind the man's back…although Sam saw it. He raised an eyebrow and shook his head in wonder at his brother's ability to completely befuddle the opposite sex.

"If Dean-o likes it…" Jo said as she sidled up closer to Dean's knees, purposely rubbing her hip against him.

"Oh sweetie…" He bit out as he glared at her and plastered a fake smile on his face. The super looked at the kid in the wheelchair and the woman that was obviously crazy about him. It was strange…love had no rules. He shrugged his shoulders and took the wad of cash that she flashed in front of his face.

Once they were inside the apartment, Dean spun around and glared at her, the smile long forgotten. "Where did you get all that money?"

She furrowed her forehead and threw her backpack down on the table. "Waiting tables at the Roadhouse."

"Hunter's don't tip that well." Dean shot back quickly. He was finding that he admired her tenacity, but he wasn't feeling too optimistic about her ability as a hunter.

She narrowed her eyes at him and folded her arms across her chest. "Well, they're not that good at poker either." Jo snarked and watched as Dean's mossy green gaze widened and then a small smile slipped onto his lips as he shook his head.

"You want the bed?" She asked. Dean watched as Jo pulled her own version of the research out of that pack and he knew deep down that her mother had no idea where she was.

"Your mother know you're here?" He asked.

"I'm an adult Dean. I can go where I want…she thinks I'm in Vegas." She added as an after-thought when she saw the leery expression on his face.

"Really?" Sam asked as he walked back into the room, a glass of water in one hand and fist full of Aspirin in the other.

"I had Ash lay a credit card trail all the way to the casinos." She replied. Jo again folded her arms across her chest. "Why? You two think I can't handle this life?" The expression on her face was one of absolute determination. Dean knew that no matter what he and Sam thought…she was going to stay.

"Well actually…" Dean started to answer, but the ringing of his cell phone had him biting off the rest of the answer. He pulled it out of his jacket pocket and then sighed when he recognized the number. This isn't going to be a fun phone call. "Ellen, hey…" He glared at Jo as her eyes widened. She started whispering rapidly at him and waving her arms in the air. "Jo?" She was still whispering 'animatedly' at him. "Haven't seen her." He finally said. Jo shrank back from him and smiled triumphantly, which made Sam snicker and Dean groan. "Yeah, if we see her…we'll send her ass packing your way." He hung up and then shook his head at her in disgust.

XXXX

"Are you going to buy me dinner?" She asked as Dean rolled along next to her. That got his attention, he stopped suddenly and then stared at her in question.

"What?" Dean managed to spit out.

She shook her head. "It's just…that if you're gonna ride me this hard…it's only fair that you buy me dinner." Jo watched as Dean shifted uncomfortably in his chair, his gaze searching for Sam. He's on the third floor dummy…he can't save you from this little girl.

"Look…this isn't some summer camp sweat-heart. People die out here." He knew he was being a bit of an ass…but frankly he was concerned about whether or not he would be able to get this girl back to her mother...safe.

"Yeah, I know. That's what I want to prevent jackass. So why don't you quit treating me like a child and let me help solve this case so no more girls go missing. Okay?" She had stopped, forcing him to stop as well. He clenched his jaw in irritation that she was right…they needed to stop whatever pissed off spirit was abducting these women.

"Fine." He muttered as she pulled out her phone and dialed Sam's number.

"Did you find anything?" She asked.

"Nope…I'm not seeing anything up here. I think we should meet back at the apartment and try to put our heads together a little more." Sam answered quickly. He'd been squeezing through the upper crawl spaces and he wasn't finding a single hint of the gooey black substance that had been in their apartment.

She hung up and leaned against the wall. Dean sniffed the air and then cocked his head to the side. Something about what he was smelling was familiar to him. But he couldn't place the scent.

"What if I walked through the building alone?" She asked casually. Dean's gaze snapped up to meet hers and his mouth dropped open in surprise.

"You want to be bait? You're kinda the ghosts type..." He said as he shook his head. "Not sure if you noticed that or not."

"Quickest way to draw it out and you know it." Jo bit out as she pushed off the wall and started walking again. Dean struggled to keep up with her…damn she moves pretty quickly for such a short girl.

"There's no fucking way Jo. You're not going to be bait. I'm not gonna get your blood on my hands. I have enough as it is. I don't need yours." Dean growled. His cheek was jumping as the muscles bunched in anger. He could never explain to Jo's mother the loss of her only daughter. And he had no intention of putting himself in a position where he had to figure out how to do that. He knew what it felt like to lose something that means so much to a person. He'd lost his mother after all...and later he lost his father to that demon.

They didn't say anything as he pushed the door open and she stomped through it. He sighed and then rolled after her, wincing as his shoulder twinged. "You okay?" Sam asked as he stepped around the corner. He'd seen Dean's expression and he knew that it was due to the injuries coming back to haunt his older brother.

"I'm fine, Sam." Dean said evenly, slipping his mask into place.

XXXX

Dean slept on the couch. He was a lot of things, but he wouldn't allow a woman to sleep on the uncomfortable sofa when there was a nice comfy bed in the other room. He pushed his shoulders up and closed his eyes as a zing shot through his body and pulled in a loud breath. He shifted and waited for his fuzzy vision to clear.

Jo smiled at him from the table where she was reading a newspaper clipping and twirling a small knife over and over. He groaned loudly and pushed himself up into a sitting position. His eyes spun around the small apartment and he didn't see the ginormous form of his little brother...and that immediately worried him.

"Morning Sunshine." She said brightly and then went back to looking at her pages.

"Where's Sam?" Dean managed around the irritation that instantly rose up inside him when his back shot fiery pain through his body.

"Went to get coffee." She said without looking at him.

"How'd you sleep in that nice big bed?" He said in a gravelly voice that send little tremors down her spine. She did really love his voice. Jo pulled her drifting thoughts back to the task at hand.

"Didn't. I've just been going over everything." She continued to spin the silver blade and pulled her brown eyes up to look at Dean. Damn he's cute in the morning. She inhaled slowly and then blew out a breath and refocused...again.

He moved himself into the chair that had been left near the end of the couch and rolled over to the table. "Can I ask you something?" She said. He raised an eyebrow and nodded slightly.

"I guess…" Dean answered in a non-committal manner.

She licked her lips and sighed. "What's the first thing you remember about your dad?"

Dean knew that she had no clue just how fucked up his relationship with his father had become. But hearing someone actually ask about his father made his stomach turn. How did you tell someone 'that one of the most important people in your life thought you were a piece of garbage'? It hadn't always been that way…and thinking back to times when things were still normal with them was literally painful. His chest clenched and his eyes burned, but he pushed the emotions back into their dark hole. "Come on…tell me?" She repeated quietly, her eyes wistful as she watched him.

Dean's gaze met hers and he saw the sincerity reflected there. "I was six…he took me shooting for the first time. Old bottles on a fence post…that kind of thing. I bulls-eyed every one of them…" He looked up at her and nearly wished he hadn't as she smiled sweetly.

"He must have been really proud." She said softly.

The door pushed open to the apartment, saving Dean from having to figure out how to answer that. Sam came in and headed straight for the window. "Where's the coffee?" Dean asked. He really could use a pick-me-up at the moment.

"There are cops all over outside. Another girl went missing last night." He watched as Dean pulled back from the table and settle into the back of his chair. His face a mask of frustration.

"We're missing something." He said and shook his head.

"Ya think?" Sam shot back. He wasn't angry with Dean, but he was definitely angry that another girl had gone missing and they'd been right here…right fucking here.

XXXX

They headed out again looking anywhere that a girl might have been taken from. They had even gone so far as to bust open the walls and start checking every crevice for any signs of the missing women. Dean was currently seated near a hole that, against his wishes, Sam and Jo had gone into. He stared down at his legs as they listed off to the side of his chair and bit his lip in anger. If he hadn't gotten his ability to walk taken away again, it would be him inside the walls…and not Sammy. He hated that all he was good for was to sit here and man the phone.

"I think we found something. I'm too big to check it out, so Jo's going to do it." Sam said.

"What? No, you guys come back and we'll figure something else out." Dean shot back in a tight voice.

Jo's voice rang across the speaker. "We gotta find these girls…don't we?" She was obviously worried and excited all at the same time. It was evident in her high pitched voice and the way that she was making total sense…much to Dean's irritation.

"Don't you lose her Sammy." Dean said. He could almost hear the 'eye-roll' over the open phone line. But he definitely heard the loud sigh of indignation as Sam answered him.

"I won't, Dean."

Yeah…famous last words. Dean thought as sat back to wait for the other two to return.

TBC…

Author's Note: Here's the next chapter. It's getting into the hunt and the boys are going to get a bit of a surprise before the end of this. I am changing the hunt a bit to accomidate Dean's current wheelchair status. Thank you to everyone that read and reviewed and to all those that I couldn't PM.

Please Review: Leave one for Christmas? Thanks guys.