Vrskaandrea: Sorry keep getting your hopes up but I promise Sam will figure it out, just not yet. And no, not Enochian so no Cas yet.

Valleygirl: Thanks for the review. Your not entirely in the minority. I, obviously, adore them and so do a few others. Ask and you shall recieve. They have a bit of a moment in this very chapter.

CHAPTER 49

Sam and Caleb watched her storm out the door with confused expressions on their faces. Caleb put his own knife down and followed after Dean. He found her pacing back and forth near Bobby's wood pile, running her hands through her hair and muttering to herself.

"Dean? What's going on? Are you okay?" Caleb asked.

"How the fuck are you okay with this?" She asked, clearly distressed.

Caleb looked over toward the house and could see Sam on the verandah watching them. He shook his head and waved him back indicating he had this covered. Sam nodded and walked back inside, trusting his friend to take care of his brother.

"Okay with what?"

"With this!" She said waving a hand back and forth between them. "Us. With what we've been doing!" She began pacing again. "I mean, me I understand, I've got this stupid circuit breaker in my head, but you? How are you not losing your shit? I mean you know who I am. Who I really am, deep down, in here." She said pointing to her chest. "How, how are you okay with it?"

Caleb reached out to stop Dean pacing. What he really wanted to do was pull her close to his body and hug her tightly but he knew that Sam was somewhere in the shadows watching them, so he tried to keep his contact with Dean casual looking.

"I get it. Yes, I know who you are, who you really are, under all that." He said indicating to Deans female form. "And yeah, I should be freaking the fuck out about it but I'm not."

"Why?" Dean asked, dropping down to sit on the large log Bobby uses as a chopping block.

Caleb crouched down in front of her and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Dean, you are my closest and oldest friend. I've known you since you were a smart arse little six year standing up to kids twice your age trying to trade for a candy bar for your brother. I knew then that you were always going to find trouble and when Pastor Jim took me in, and I really got to know you, I promised myself that I would always be there to protect you, and I guess, in some fucked up way, I believe that that's what I'm doing. I'm trying to protect you from all those scum bags out there. You and Sam are the only 'family' I have left and I'd do anything to keep you safe."

"Really?" Dean asked.

"Really." Caleb answered. "And it's more of a dial."

"What?"

"That thing...in your head." Caleb said waving a finger around in front of Dean face. "I see it as more of a dial. Like when we're just chilling or hunting, it's turned to full Dean. When you're hustling or trying to weasel some info out of someone, then it's kinda half way between Dean and Dana. But when it's all the way around the other way, well that's when Dana comes out. The differences are subtle but I've become adept to reading you now."

Dean stared at Caleb for a moment before looking away.

"Well, whatever it is, this...it's...It's gotta stop." Dean said quietly, standing. She wanted to reach out and touch his face but could feel her brothers eyes watching from the house so she stepped back instead.

"Is this because of what that arsehole tried to do to you?" Caleb asked.

Dean crossed her arms in front of her and gave him a 'you've got to be kidding' look.

"Oh, yeah, right." Caleb said remembering the 'negotiations' over deleting the picture of Sam. "So why does it have to stop? We're having fun. We're not hurting anyone. It's easy and...and..."

"Convenient?"

"Yeah, That too."

"Yeah it's convenient, and dangerously close to slipping into relationship territory." Dean said, arching an eyebrow.

"How do you figure?"

"Tell me truthfully, how many chicks have you hooked up with since we started this?" Dean asked.

Caleb just looked at his friend.

"Okay, just the last three months then."

Caleb just chewed his lip and diverted his eyes.

"Would zero be a close count?" Dean asked.

"Maybe. But why would I bother when you're right here and..."

"Its all so convenient?" Dean finished for him.

"Like you can talk." Caleb shot back.

"Three." Dean said.

"What? You've hooked up with three other guys?" Caleb asked suddenly, and irrationally, jealous.

"Chicks, Caleb. Three chicks."

"Chicks really? If I'd known you swung that way our time together could have been a lot more interesting " Caleb said suddenly feeling something else.

"Why wouldn't I? I am a man!" Dean said. "But I'm tired dude. I'm tired of the sneaking around, of lying to Sammy. Caleb, I almost slipped up in there, I can't do it any more." She looked up at Caleb with a defeated look before sighing. "Besides, Bobby said he was close and, I don't know about you, but Dean isn't interested in continuing this when he gets back."

"Yeah, I'm kinda with him on that one."

"Friends?" Dean asked.

"Friends." Caleb said pulling Dean in for a friendly, but not too friendly, hug.

•

Sam had been watching his brother and friend from the window. He didn't know what had set Dean off this time but trusted Caleb to calm him down. It was an uncomfortable feeling, letting someone else be responsible for Deans emotional welfare but in this case it seemed to be the right call as he watched Dean visibly calm and then Caleb pulled Dean close for a quick hug and pat on the back before they headed back inside. Just as they reached the back steps Sam heard his cell phone ringing from where he had left it on the coffee table in the lounge. The ringing stopped before he could reach it but after checking the caller ID and seeing it was Marnie listened to the message then stepped outside to call her back.

•

Dean and Caleb were sitting at the table eating lunch when Sam walked back in.

"So that was Marnie." He said waving his phone around.

"Cool. I made you a sandwich." Dean said pointing to a plate in the table opposite him.

"Thanks." Sam sat down and took a bite. "Good sandwich."

"Course it is. I made it." Dean said. "Anyway...Marnie?"

"Oh Yeah." Sam put his sandwich down and dusted his hands. "So get this. She's found us a hunt."

"Wait, I thought they weren't going to go after that shit anymore?" Dean said, slightly more than a little concerned.

"No, they aren't but she was talking to their cousin from Portland and he mentioned there had been three bodies turn up near his work."

"And? What makes her think it's our kind of thing?" Dean asked.

"They were missing their hearts."

"Werewolf?" Caleb suggested.

"Cycles not right, full moon finished over a week ago. Did she say when the bodies were found?" Dean asked.

"Last one was two days ago."

"Could be a pure blood." Caleb said.

"Could be. So you up for a road trip?" Dean asked her brother.

"Shoulders all good. I'm right to go." Sam said rotating his arm to demonstrate.

"Cool. Werewolf hunt!" Caleb said.

"Not you." Bobby said as he walked into the room and pointing at Caleb. "I need you to come with me. Garth's gone and got himself in some more trouble. We gotta go dig him out."

"No! I wanna go kill a werewolf." Caleb pouted.

"Too bad. We leave in a hour." Bobby said, leaving the room and ending the conversation.

"Wow. Sucks to be you!" Dean said to Caleb before turning back to her brother. "So did she say anything else?"

"Like what?" Sam asked around a mouthful of sandwich.

"Like...about Megan?"

"You know, if you want to know how Megan is doing you could just call her."

"No can do, little brother, that would insinuate that I'm interested and as we all know this particular road dead ends."

"Who are Megan and Marnie?" Caleb asked.

"Just some girls we meet." Sam said with a casual shrug.

"Yep and Sammy and Marnie really hit it off. Again and again and again..."

"Enough Dean!" Sam snapped. "He gets the picture."

"Sorry." Dean apologised. When Sam wasn't looking she held up five fingers and mouthed 'five times' while pointing at Sam. Caleb's eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Really?" He whispered back.

Dean nodded.

"I can see what you're doing Dean." Sam said rolling his eyes.

"Sorry." Dean said again.

"Wait so Megan is one of your three..." Caleb began.

"Yep." Dean said picking up her plate and taking it to the counter. "And that's the end of that conversation. Don't you have to get ready to go with Bobby?" She asked before Caleb could make any further comment.

"Yeah." Caleb groaned. He rolled his head back. "I don't wanna go with Bobby. Garth's a hugger and Bobby drives like a maniac."

"You'll be right princess."

"I could die out there and you don't even care!" Caleb cried with mock indignation.

"If you do can I have your Zepplin collection?" Dean asked.

"Only if I can have his graphic novels." Sam countered.

"Deal." The brothers shook hands and left a shocked Caleb sitting at the table.

•

Arriving in Portland two days after leaving Bobby's, having decided to split the drive and stop overnight mid way, they settled into a cheap motel. Dean was scanning a local map on the table.

"Hey Mount Hood." She said.

"What about Mount Hood?" Sam asked.

"Don't we know someone from there?"

"Hmmm, not that I can think of." Sam said.

"Huh, could have sworn I did. Anyway." She said shaking her head. "The bodies were found here, here and here." Dean said pointing to different locations on the paper in front of her.

"Okay, so what's around there?"

"Not much. Warehouses, a few industrial type businesses. A couple of self storage places."

"I'll check out the traffic cams around the area. See what I can find." Sam said, opening his laptop and powering it up.

•

"I got something." Sam said.

"What?" Dean asked, tearing her attention away from the Scooby Doo-a-thon playing on the crappy motel television.

Sam pulled up some vision.

"This was from the night the last victim was killed. See there?" He pointed at the screen. "And this." He said pulling up another screen. "This was from one of the other kills. See there it is again."

Dean squinted at the screens and saw the shadow Sam pointing at.

"You think that's our wolf?"

"I think so. It looks as though it's coming from this building." Sam enlarged the screen so they could read the name on the building.

"Okay, so I say we go check the place out." Dean looked back at the tv. "Tomorrow."

Sam just shook his head.