Dean banged on the bathroom door. "Sam! Stop taking forever in the shower, man!"

"Shut up Dean!" Sam yelled back.

"You've been in there an hour!" Dean yelled.

"Oh that." Cass snickered, walking past. "Sam has a c-r-u-s-h on some foreign girl."

"Foreign...you mean Japanese? Does she have alarming red hair and green eyes, even though she's from Japan?" Dean asked.

"That's her." Cass said. "Caught him dialing her and hanging up ten times last night. Malaka."

Cass scampered off.

"Dude Cass was a weird fledgling." Dean said to himself, then resumed pounding on the door.

Sam came out, fully dressed, and looking rather spiffy.

Dean whistled. "So you have a thing for foxes?"

"Not. A. Word." Sam said. "Considering you continue to strike out with Kuri. And we need them to get home."

Xxx

Later Sam was at his locker working out what he was going to say to Reiko.

He found that as a teen again, he was back to total awkwardness with women. Not that he was particularly smooth like Dean to begin with.

"I'll just say..." Sam said to himself. "You're looking foxy!"

Sam blushed. "No...no..."

"Who's looking foxy?" Reiko grinned, and closed his locker door. "Hopefully me. I shampooed my tail last night. I am, after all, a very proud fox."

Sam found himself turning bright red and at a loss for words. He wasn't usually this bad with women; it was just she had something other girls didn't.

Whatever 'it' was, Reiko seemed to realize the effect, and stopped doing it.

"Sorry bout that." Reiko grinned fangishly. "That was 'enchantment.' It comes naturally to me...like pheromones for others. Can you talk now?"

"I...I...uh. Yeah. Sorry." Why was he apologizing? "Reiko do you know a way out of here?"

"I'll tell you. Come closer." Reiko said.

Sam leaned in warily.

"Play your roles." Reiko said. "If you want more of a clue, it's simple. You'd just have to beat me academically. But Sammy, you'll never outwit me. I'm a Reiko, the wise fox."

Then she was gone, leaving Sam breathless and confused.

Sam rather prized his intelligence, but this creature made him feel absolutely witless.

He didn't know if it was love or magic, but Sam was infuriated with her and himself.

It was simple.

He just HAD to beat her!