Vrskaandrea: I'll admit that I do have to remind myself he is now a she sometimes too, and now I'm on a new fic I have to remember that Dean is actually a male! Also isn't it funny how as soon as a random character is given a name we just know something wicked this way will cometh?

VegasGranny: Being the youngest of four, my siblings preferred "lets tickle her until she vomits"... I would have preferred "look" :). Anyway good pick up ;)

Blondie 20000: yes, yay Missouri! Hopefully she will help put some clarity on this situation and what Deans been going through. I've just got to mess with our favourite siblings a little first...

CHAPTER 30

Dean set out early the next morning for her daily run. She kept a steady pace as she ran through the streets of the small Californian town. She turned a corner and slowed her pace as she approached a group of people out side a house. She noticed a police car and ambulance parked outside.

"What's going on?" She asked one of the bystanders.

"Apparently the girl who lived there was found dead earlier this morning."

"Really? Do you know who it was?" Dean asked looking at the house.

"Yeah. Her name was Ally. She was a waitress at the diner. Poor thing. I didn't even know she was sick." The woman answered.

"Wow, that's sad. Thanks." Dean said as she moved through the small crowd of neighbours.

She remembered Ally from the day before. Staring at the house the wheels in her head were beginning to turn.

"Did you know her?" A voice beside Dean startled her from her scrutiny of the home.

"Ah, no. I'm just visiting here but I think she served me yesterday at the diner." Dean turned to the person beside her and noticed it was a local deputy.

"Visiting from where?" The deputy asked.

"Atlanta." Dean replied.

"Oh. Are you enjoying our small town?"

"Yes I am. This is a bit of a shock though. I read in the paper that there have been a few women found dead lately."

"Yeah." The deputy sighed. "It's really weird. Things like this don't usually happen in Cambria. It's a small town, you know. The most we usually get are some rowdy tourists or kids shoplifting."

"Do you know what's causing it?" She asked.

The deputy looked at her strangely.

"I mean. Should I be worried there's a serial killer on the loose?"

"No, nothing like that. The Sheriff and coroners not sure but they think it might be some kind of virus."

"Really? I actually work for the CDC, maybe I could call past the coroners office and speak with him?" Dean suggested.

"That could work, if you don't mind. You'd have to check with the Sheriff over there, but I'm sure he'd be okay with it."

Dean looked over to where the deputy pointed and thanked him before going over and setting up an appointment with the Sheriff for later that morning.

•

"There's been another one." Dean said as she entered the room.

"When? Where?" Sam asked.

"Remember the waitress from yesterday? She was found dead this morning." She explained as she started to dig through her box of fake I.D.s. "I've set up an appointment with the sheriff, hopefully I can sweet talk him into letting me chat with the coroner."

"How did you manage that?" Sam asked.

"Told him I worked for the CDC and was vacationing here. I offered to help and he jumped at it. Ah, here it is!" Dean said holding up her fake CDC identification badge.

"Dana Quinn." Sam read. "What didn't want to go with Scully?"

"Dana Scully seemed a bit too obvious, so I went with Dana Quinn, medicine woman." Dean replied with a flip of her hair.

"You want me to come with you?"

"Nah, you stay here. Maybe go back to the diner where she worked and talk to her colleagues, see what you can dig up."

Sam hesitated a moment. He really didn't like Dean going off on her own but knew better than to start an argument over it.

"Sure I can do that."

Dean grabbed some clothes and walked into the bathroom, returning half an hour later showered and dressed in some business pants and a blouse.

"How do I look? Do I look like someone capable of ridding the world of disease?"

"I'd trust you." Sam said.

"Okay, let's go get some breakfast and then I'll hit the station and you sweet talk the locals."

•

Dean walked into the station and was greeted by the deputy she had spoken to earlier.

"Deputy Gellar." She said, checking his badge. "Doctor Quinn. We met earlier. I'm here to see Sheriff Rhodes."

"Oh yes. I remember you. From Ally Holts house. How are you?" The deputy asked with a smile.

"I'm fine. Is the Sheriff around? I have an appointment."

"He's in his office. Here let me take you."

Deputy Gellar opened the door that separated them, had her sign the visitors log then led Dean down a corridor.

"We sure are lucky you chose here to spend your vacation." He said.

"Yep, what a coincidence." Dean replied taking in her surroundings. "So did you know the victim personally?"

"Why would you ask that?" Gellar asked.

"Oh, you know, small town. Everyone knows everyone."

"Right! I did actually. I really liked Ally. She was a nice person." The deputy answered sadly.

"And what about any of the others?"

"Like you said, small town."

They stopped at a door and the deputy knocked.

"Yes?" A voice from behind the door called.

Gellar opened the door and stepped into the room, Dean following.

"Doctor Quinn is here to see you." He announced.

The sheriff looked up from his paperwork and looked from the deputy to the woman standing beside him.

"Thanks Derek. Oh can you call the coroner and let him know I will be bringing the Doctor over to see him shortly? If that's okay with you?" The sheriff said directing the last part to Dean.

"That would be perfect." She said taking a seat. "Now what can you tell me about these deaths?"

•

Sam was sitting in the diner across from a girl who claimed to be one of Ally's closest friends.

"Poor thing. We've known each other since grade school but she wasn't exactly super social, if you know what I mean. We'd go out to a bar or something a couple of times a year, catch up for lunch every other week. It just breaks my heart that she died all alone. She didn't even have a boyfriend."

"So there was no one in her life that she was close to?" Sam asked.

"I mean I'd seen that deputy talking to her a few times, he even may have asked her out but she just wasn't interested in him like that."

"How has she been acting the last couple of weeks?" Sam asked.

"Fine, like the normal Ally, although she had complained she was super tired. She just thought she was coming down with something."

"Okay. Did she mention anything about cold spots or strange smells? You've been to her house, did you notice anything?"

"Cold spots? Smells? What would that have to do with anything?" The girl asked.

"I hate to ask but it could indicate that she had been sick or maybe a leak of some sort causing a very slow poisoning." Sam lied smoothly.

"No, she didn't mention it and I sure didn't notice anything."

"Okay. Thank you for your time." Sam go up and left the table.

•

"It sure is a lucky coincidence you coming here right now." Sheriff Rhodes said as the walked across to the coroners office.

"Yeah, really lucky." Dean said.

"So what made you choose Cambria to spend time in?"

"Oh, you know. Working in a highly stressful job, sometimes it's nice just to get off the beaten track and go somewhere quiet." The hunter answered.

The sheriff opened the door and ushered Dean through, placing a hand on her back.

The coroner was waiting for them and greeted Dean with a firm hand shake.

"Thank you for coming Doctor." He said.

"You're welcome." Dean replied, smiling.

"We are very grateful that you would break your vacation to help us. I tell you, I have never seen anything like this in my 40 years on the job. I am completely stumped."

The coroner lead them to his office and the trio sat.

"I'm afraid all the bodies have been disposed of with exception, of course, of miss Holt, but I have all their reports here and if you wish to, you can examine Miss Holt yourself."

"Thank you, maybe we can start there?" Dean said.

Standing in a morgue next to a dead body was something Dean still wasn't quite used to, but she was one hell of an actress. She checked over the body looking for unusual marks that might otherwise be over looked but a non-hunter.

"So all the other women were the same. Completely unmarked?" Dean asked flipping through one of the report folders.

"No marks or contusions that would indicate any kind of violence. Lungs, heart, brains, all major organs intact and healthy. It's almost as if they just went to sleep and decided not to wake up." The coroner said.

"What about their blood work?" Dean asked knowing enough to at least make it look like she knew what she was talking about.

"Well all of them came back clear. I asked for a rush on this one. Let me just see if I have anything back." The elderly man sat at his computer and clicked the mouse a few times. "Ah here it is. Hmmm that's strange."

"What?" Dean asked.

"Unlike the other deceased, her human chorionic gonadotropin levels are increased."

"What does that mean?" The sheriff asked.

"It means she was pregnant." Dean answered.

•

"I want to thank you for taking the time to look into these cases. Do you think it is a virus of some type?" Sheriff Rhodes asked when they were back in his office.

"I'm not sure. Unfortunately with most of the blood samples destroyed, all I have to go off are these reports so I will have a look over them and let you know." Dean answered.

"I'm sorry to disrupt your vacation but we really do appreciate the help."

"No problem at all." Dean answered with a smile. She picked up the copies of the case reports and moved to the door.

"If you could leave your details with Deputy Gellar and if anything else comes up we can contact you." The sheriff said as Dean left the office.

"Of course." She replied.

Dean walked back down the corridor to the front of the station.

"Deputy Gellar?" She called when she found the counter unmanned. "Are you around?"

The deputy appeared from a side door.

"Yes Doctor Quinn? What can I do for you?" He asked.

"Sheriff Rhodes asked me to leave my contact details with you just in case." Dean said, writing the name of her motel in the back of a business card. "This is where I'm staying."

The deputy took it and clipped it to a page in his log book.

"Dana, huh?" He said as he read the name. "So will you be staying in town long?"

"I was only planning on a week but if this turns out to be something, I guess I will be around a bit longer." Dean said as she walked through the door to the other side of the counter, the deputy walking with her.

"Your partner must be a bit peeved that your vacation has been interrupted."

"Oh no, I'm here by myself." Dean answered.

"Oh, really? Have you had much of a chance to look around?" He asked her.

"Um, no, not really. I've only been here a day or two." She replied.

"Okay, it's just that...well I was wondering if, maybe, you'd like to go for a drink or something?"

Dean studied the deputy for a moment.

"Sure. Why not?" She answered.

•

"I think I know what we are dealing with." Sam said as he entered the motel room, dropping a bag of sandwiches on the table.

"Okay, you first." Dean said looking up from the autopsy reports.

"Every one we spoke to said the victims were complaining they were tired before they died but other than that there were no other symptoms, right? I think we are dealing with an Incubus." Sam said as he sat. "They are entering the vics rooms and draining slowly them over a week or two then moving on."

"Yep that's what I thought too."

"I just don't get where Harper fits in. I mean, why suddenly go after a male then switch back to female victims?" Sam said.

Dean sat back and chewed on her sandwich for a moment.

"Oh my God! That's it!" She said dropping her sandwich and rising from her chair.

She rummaged around in her duffle before pulling out their fathers journal.

"Did you know Incubi are hermaphrodites?" She asked as she flicked through the pages.

"What?"

"Ah! Here!" She dropped the book in front of Sam, pointing to the page. "It was bothering me. The last victim, Ally, was pregnant."

"But the people I talked to all said she wasn't seeing anyone." Sam said as he skimmed the page.

"Right, but, what if the incubus suddenly decided they wanted a child? He selects a 'worthy candidate' and decides to impregnate her."

"Okay, but that doesn't explain the random male victim."

"Yes it does." Dean said sitting back down opposite her brother. "The lore states that they attack people in their sleep, having sex with them and draining their life energy at the same time but, Incubi are infertile. It wants a kid so it changes its form to female, a succubus, has sex with Dirk, collects his semen then changes back to the incubus and attacks Ally." Dean explained.

"How do you even know all that?" Sam asked.

"I do read you know!" Dean replied defensively.

"Okay, I'm sorry." Sam said shaking his head. "Anyway, why impregnate her if he was just going to kill her anyway?"

"That I don't know. Maybe he didn't think it worked or just got carried away." Dean suggested.

"Right so we know what we're are dealing with, any idea who we might be after."

"I think I do and I think I may have dropped myself smack bang in the middle of his radar."