Dean returned to the cell in which Sam and Avery were being held, a somewhat smug smile on his lips as the officer behind him unlocked the door and ordered them to get the hell out. Despite their confusion, they did as they were told, following closely behind Dean as he led them back out onto the street, a slight skip in his step.

"Come on then, how did you get us out?" Avery asked the question on their minds somewhat reluctantly, not looking to boost Dean's ego any higher than it already was. He looked over at Sam.

"Convinced the Sheriff you were a freshman and we were hazing you." Sam hummed and Ava quirked a brow.

"And he bought that?" She questioned, quickly followed by Sam's own question.

"What about the gun?" They climbed into the car, Sam in the front and Ava in the back.

"Told him you were hunting ghosts and rock salt repels them." Well, it wasn't a lie.

"Makes sense... but what about me?" Ava asked, pulling her belt on and glancing at Dean in the rearview mirror.

"Oh, you're my loyal girlfriend who agreed to help me out with the whole thing." He smirked, blowing a kiss at her in the mirror, "Thanks, honey."

"Oh, lucky me." Avery grimaced as her phone began to ring, Aubrey's name flashing up on the screen with all the urgency the younger sister was feeling on the other end of the line. The brothers' attention, however, wasn't on the phone call, but the police who had begun charging out of the station and jumping into their cars, sirens blazing as they sped away from the precinct.

"Hey Bree, sorry for the silence, Dean..." She narrowed her eyes at the back of his head, "got us arrested."

"Hey, I also got us un-arrested!" He argued, and Sam laughed.

The brothers couldn't hear what Aubrey's response was, but by the way in which Ava's smile dropped so suddenly, and her eyes widened slightly, it couldn't have been good. Avery quickly relayed to the boys what Aubrey had told her, Taylor being dead, Lori being in shock, again, and had requested that they drop her off at the Sorority house immediately. Dean had complied, throwing the car into gear and taking them straight to their destination with no argument.

Lori and Aubrey were sitting on the front steps when they arrived, and Ava was out of the car before it had even come to a complete stop. Neither brother attempted to stop her as she rushed across the front lawn, dropping to crouch before Aubrey and Lori, placing a hand on each of their knees.

"Are you guys okay? What happened?" Her eyes flicked between the girls, Lori looking rather shellshocked from the whole fiasco while Aubrey merely looked irritated. Ava had been expecting a response from her sister, so was surprised when it was Lori who spoke first.

"Taylor... she's dead." Her voice was quiet, and somewhat devoid of anything other than exhaustion, which was no surprise given the week this girl had been through. Ava parted her lips, eager to continue the questioning but thought better of it when her sister shook her head sharply, tears beginning to well in Lori's eyes.

"Come on Lori, I'm taking you home." The voice of the reverend from behind Ava captured their attention, and Lori nodded silently, rising from her seat and allowing her father to lead her away, sparing the sisters a grateful smile as she went.

Aubrey sighed. "Poor girl really can't catch a break huh." Ava hummed in agreement before turning to her sister.

"Go with them, she could use the company." Bree nodded in agreement.

"What are you gonna do?"

"I'm gonna check out this crime scene. Anything I should know?" Bree grimaced.

"Only that it's damn lucky you aren't queasy at the sight of blood." Avery's response was a dry laugh as she waved away her sister, watching her break into a slow jog to catch up to the father and daughter, a weak smile from Lori and a sharp nod from her father confirming that Aubrey was welcome to keep them company.

With a quick glance back over her shoulder, Aubrey climbed into the car and Ava turned back towards the house, only sparing a hurried look around the place before realising how truly easy it was going to be to walk straight into this place without anything stopping her.

Police mingled around, though they were too busy keeping bystanders at bay to notice the young woman stroll through the main doors of the house and ascend the stairs, ducking into an open room only momentarily to allow a police officer to pass before she could continue towards the scene.

She peered through the door, immediately greeted by the sight of a truly unhealthy amount of blood, grimacing for a second before heading through the doorway to get a closer look. Heavy footsteps from behind her sent her heart racing as she turned over her excuses in her head, ready to face a police officer and talk her way out of this. Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, it wasn't an officer that she came face to face with.

"How the hell did you get in here?" Ava groaned, taking a step back.

"I walked through the front door," Her response was blunt, and matter of fact. "You two really are everywhere. I got this one." Sam merely smiled at the girl who stood before them, hands on hips and a firm stance despite being almost a foot shorter than him. Dean narrowed his eyes, lips set into a firm line.

"With all due respect, we got this." Avery quirked her head with a frown, which quickly morphed into a smirk.

"What, like I can't handle a little ghosty?" A quirk of his brow and the pull at the corner of his lips betrayed his thoughts.

"Oh, I'm sure you can handle plenty. But I'd prefer if you did it somewhere else."

"Come on Dean, you don't have to pretend you don't love havin' me around. I'm a delight!" A slightly strangled laugh came from Sam as she spun on her heel, back towards the blood-covered room that was the whole reason they were here.

Silence fell between the trio as they assessed the scene, from the pool of blood on the floor to the red-stained sheets and finally the crude, dripping writing that painted the walls.

"Aren't you glad you didn't turn on the lights," Avery muttered, followed by a sigh, "it's right out of the legend." Dean joined her, pausing at her side with a quiet hum.

"Yeah, that's classic hook man alright. It's definitely a spirit." Avery glanced at Dean out of the corner of her eye, giving him an unamused look.

"Really? you don't say."

"Can it, Cooper." Sam was ignoring their interaction, instead, studying the bloodied writing on the wall, which appeared to be punctuated with an odd-looking symbol.

"Hey, come here, does that look familiar to you?" Dean and Ava studied the symbol and Ava shrugged.

"Nope, does it to you?"

The sound of voices and footsteps from the hallway gave them little time to discuss what they had just found, and Sam was heading back towards the window they had entered through with hurried steps, Ava being ushered along behind him by Dean.

Despite the fact that, for some unknown reason, the Winchester brothers seemed to think Avery was highly incapable of most simple tasks, she managed to descend the side of the house and reach the floor with arguably more grace and skill than either of the boys. This hadn't stopped them from standing at ground level, eyes locked on her every move, ready to catch her should she fall. Of course, she didn't fall.

They had returned to the impala, where Avery was now perched on the hood of the car, Dean mirroring her position to her left, and Sam standing to her right.

"Same symbol. Seems like it is the spirit of Jacob Cairns." Sam addressed the pair, directing them towards an old paper that displayed the symbol they had just seen.

"Alright, well let's find the dude's grave, salt and burn the bones and put him down." Avery nodded in agreement with Dean, looking up at Sam for confirmation of the plan, however, he continued to read from the paper instead.

"After execution, Jacob Cairns was laid to rest in an old north cemetery," He paused, slapping the paper with the back of his hand and breathing out a sigh before reading on, "in an unmarked grave."

Avery and Dean groaned practically in unison as the girl hopped off the hood and ran her fingers through her hair in frustration.

"Super." Dean followed her lead, heading round to the driver's side of the car and resting his hands against the roof. Ava dropped her hands to her sides, looking between each of the brothers in turn.

"Okay, so we know it's Jacob Cairns, but not where he's gonna manifest next... or why." It was Dean that responded, Sam only offering a halfhearted shrug of agreement to Ava's comment.

"I'll take a wild guess about why, think your little friend Lori has something to do with this." In referring to Lori as 'your little friend' Ava assumed Dean would have been directing his comment towards her, however, he was currently quirking a brow at his brother, who had narrowed his eyes in response. Ava made a mental note of 'not my business', clapping her hands together in front of her as she passed behind Dean, opening the back door of the car.

"Great! So what now?" They shared a look between them before Dean also opened his door and climbed inside, Sam and Ava following his lead and closing their doors behind them.

"I say we pay Lori a visit... what was that party you mentioned she invited you and Bree to? Any room for a couple of plus ones?" Ava snorted a laugh, leaning forward towards the driver's seat and offering Dean an amused look.

"Plus ones? This isn't a high rolling gala Dean, it's a frat party. I was at a frat party once, and a pack of stray dogs wandered in from the street. No one even noticed." He twisted in his seat, furrowing his brow at her comment with an air of scepticism.

"You, at a frat party? Didn't realise you went to college..."

"Not all hunters have to be dumbasses, Dean." She joked, and he responded with a look of mild offence, sending Sam, who had found the comment quite amusing, a warning glare.

"C'mon, stop wastin' time, we got ourselves a party to get to." Her hands slapped down on each of the brother's shoulders before she scooted back into her seat and buckled her belt.

"Swing by Lori's on the way will ya, Bree would have my head if she found out I went to a party without her."

"We're not going there to party, Ava." Sam reminded the girl with a frown, but she simply waved him off.

"Oh c'mon Sammy, get that stick out of your butt. Bein' a hunter don't mean you gotta be all serious all the time. Live a little." Sam clearly disagreed with this statement, however, his brother, surprisingly, did not.

"Yeah, Sammy you heard the girl, live a little." With that, and his most charming grin, Dean threw the car into gear and they were on their way.

Avery had lost her sister a few minutes earlier, as well as the Winchester brothers, as she had been distracted by a group of far too rowdy boys who tried to drag her into a game of beer pong. Yes, she was supposed to be working, but the job didn't have to be all doom and gloom right? She'd said so herself just a few hours earlier. Live a little.

"1932, clergyman arrested for murder... 1968-" Dean was reading from the papers Sam had found when he was cut off by his younger brother, jabbing a finger at the paper.

"There's a pattern here, in all cases the subject was a man of religion who openly preached against immorality, and then found himself wanted for killings that were the result of an invisible force, killings that were carried out with, get this, a sharp instrument."

Unbeknownst to the brothers, Ava was very good at beer pong, and had long since completed the game, of course emerging victorious, and had been following behind them during their conversation.

"Spooky stuff, huh?" Dean's head whipped towards his shoulder to regard the girl, who was clutching a near-empty red plastic cup, a look of irritation on his face.

"Are you drunk?" She took a step back at his sharp questioning, folding her arms over her chest defensively.

"We've been here for like thirty minutes, who do you think I am?" Dean simply raised a brow, parting his lips to respond when she stopped him. "Actually no, don't answer that."

She turned to Sam instead, ignoring the older brother entirely out of pure childish annoyance.

"So, what's the connection to Lori?"

"A man of religion... who openly preaches against immorality... except, maybe this time instead of saving the whole town, he's just trying to save his own daughter." Dean nodded with a look of understanding.

"Reverend Sorenson."

"You think he's summoning the spirit?" Ava cut in, taking another gulp from her cup before noticing Dean's eyes on her and holding it towards him in an offering, which he ignored.

"Maybe... or you know how a poltergeist can haunt a person, instead of a place?"

"Yeah, the spirit latches on to the reverend's repressed emotions, feeds off them, yeah okay." Dean cut in before Ava could.

"Without the reverend even knowing it," Sam confirmed and Dean nodded thoughtfully, Ava glancing between the two of them with somewhat of a proud smile.

"You boys are a hell of a lot smarter than you look." She rested a hand on Dean's shoulder, shooting him a wide smile. Surprisingly, he didn't do as she expected and shrug her hand away, instead rolling his eyes and allowing her hand to remain attached to him. Sam quirked his head with a look that didn't quite portray offence or confusion, but a little mixture of both.

"Thanks...?"

Dean shook his head. "Either way, you should keep an eye on Lori tonight."

This comment was directed to both Sam and Ava, who quietly agreed. As they'd already established, there was no telling when this guy would show up again, or what he would do. Better to be safe than sorry and have eyes on her at all times.

"What about you?" Sam asked, sparing a fleeting glance at Ava, who was busy downing the rest of her drink in preparation to leave.

Dean's attention drifted to the space behind Ava, which was now inhabited by a very pretty girl in a red dress that left little to the imagination. The girl smiled at him with eyes that worked hard to lure him in, but he just sighed, turning back to the pair looking disappointed.

"I'm gonna go see if I can find that unmarked grave." His expression was one of despair as he turned to leave, though he hadn't made it more than two steps before Ava was calling him back.

"Oh hey! Take Bree with you will ya, she's gettin' a little too friendly with sweater vest over there." She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder in the direction of her sister, who was leaning, hip popped and head quirked, against the wall talking to a guy who was standing far too close for a big sister's liking. Despite the way Dean crinkled his nose in distaste, he marched past Sam and Ava, grabbing Bree's arm in passing and dragging her towards the door as she called her hurried goodbyes towards the guy. Avery and Sam shared a laugh before Ava headed towards the table that displayed a wide variety of drinks, filling two cups and returning to Sam's side, holding one out for him.

"Might as well enjoy yourself, Sammy, nothin' in life is definite, we could get offed by a ghost any minute."

Despite his initial reluctance, this comment convinced him to take the drink from her hand, taking a sip before leaning back against the table behind him and watching the Cooper girl with scrutinising eyes.

"What?" She frowned at the way he was looking at her, a smile playing at her lips.

"You've changed Ava." It didn't appear to be a negative statement, his smile said that much, though it was still a curious and unexpected thing to hear.

"Yeah Sam, I'm not sixteen any more."

"Yeah, yeah I know it's just..." He paused, tapping his cup with the tip of his finger as he considered his next words, "You're just not what I expected."

She laughed. "God forbid I don't meet Sam Winchester's high expectations!"

"That's not what I meant!" He replied with an equally as loud laugh, quickly trying to backtrack but stopping when she hushed him and took a seat on the table by his side.

"You're not what I expected either." He folded an arm over his chest, taking a sip of his drink while watching her over the brim of the cup.

"I'm not?" She shook her head.

"Nuh-uh, what happened to that skinny little nerd I knew and loved huh? Where did these come from?" She used her free hand to squeeze at his tricep, which was unexpectedly firmer than she had anticipated it would be. He threw his head back in amused laughter, shrugging her off of him before mimicking her action and squeezing her arm in return.

"Hey, I could ask the same!"

"A girl can't take out a vamps nest with skinny little arms, Sammy. What do you expect." His grin and silent nod relayed his agreement, before he paused, simply looking at the girl beside him with curious pride.

"You're kinda impressive, Avery Cooper." She raised her hand to her heart before fanning her face and leaning against him with fluttered lashes.

"Oh Sam Winchester, you flatter me!" With a quick nudge of her shoulder against his, she hopped off the table, finishing the liquid in her cup and holding out a hand towards the man.

"C'mon Sammy, we got a damsel in distress to go protect." He finished his drink, placing the empty cup down on the table behind him before taking her hand and allowing her to lead him towards the exit.

They'd been sat outside of Lori's house, perched on the curb, for around 25 minutes. The house had been quiet and they had occupied themselves catching up on everything they had missed over the last eight years, which was a lot. Raised voices from the house behind them had quickly cut off their conversation, and they had descended into silence, unsure whether to listen in or try to ignore whatever was going on between Lori and her father.

Avery had resorted to fiddling with her car keys, looping the keychain around her finger and spinning it, the metal of the keys jingling against each other as she did so.

"No way!" The keys were quickly snatched from her hand, much to her confusion, and she turned to Sam for an explanation. "You still have this?!"

She understood immediately as she saw what he was holding between his fingers, turning over the braided leather in his hands with a slightly awed look on his face. She laughed, reaching over and flicking the coin with her finger.

"Well, I'm yet to be possessed, so I'd say it's been a pretty good thing to keep around." He turned to look at her with a soft smile.

"You've had it with you all these years?" She crinkled her nose with a small shake of her head.

"I gotta admit, I forgot it existed until not long ago. Bree found it in a bunch of old boxes." He hummed in response, running his fingers over the leather once more before handing it back to her.

"I can't believe it's lasted this long." She fiddled with it herself for a moment before stuffing it back into her jacket pocket and resting her elbows on her knees, her chin in her palms.

"Maybe you should go into the keychain makin' business, instead of huntin'." He was clearly just as amused hearing this as Ava was saying it.

"Ha, yeah maybe then I wouldn't nearly die every other day."

"Perks of the job." She leaned in, nudging her shoulder against his and catching his eye with a smile, which he returned before his expression dropped, suddenly becoming serious.

"You know, I always thought you'd get out." She didn't reply to this, eyes leaving him and focusing on the tarmac instead. So he continued.

"When we were kids we always talked about it, having a normal life, settlin' down somewhere. Kids, family home, white-picket-fence." Avery crinkled her nose in disgust, a quick shrug of her shoulders, though her eyes remained on the road.

"Somehow I don't think that kinda life would suit me."

"You used to think it would." he retorted in argument.

"I grew up." She responded shortly.

"You've turned into Dean." She winced, sucking in a breath and holding her hand to her heart as though she was wounded.

"Ouch Sammy... don't hold back." Her dramatic display did wonders to cut through the tension, and Sam laughed.

"At least tell me there's a little bit of that kid left in you?" She turned to face him, brow raised.

"I could ask you the same." A sigh was all Sam managed to offer in response before the voices picked up behind them again. They turned in sync, just in time to see Lori storm out of the front door, slamming it behind her.

She hesitated for just a second at seeing the two of them sitting outside her house, but quickly recovered and made her way over to where they were, dropping to sit on the curb beside Avery.

"I saw you from upstairs, what are you doing here?"

"Keeping an eye on the house." Avery started.

"We were worried." Sam finished, and Lori smiled.

"About me?"

"Sorry," Sam replied, clearly starting to realise how weird it was for the two of them to be hanging around in the dark outside her house.

"Don't worry, I already called the cops." She laughed, and Sam and Avery joined in, though Sam's laughter seemed just a little forced. "No it's fine, thanks guys, you're sweet. But you should probably stay away from me. Pretty sure I'm cursed."

"Lori honey, you're not cursed," Ava replied, slipping a hand into hers and squeezing comfortingly.

"I dunno, people around me keep dying." Sam shook his head.

"Trust me, we know how you feel."

Bree was well aware of the way that, despite the cool night air on her skin, sweat was beading at her hairline, her muscles beginning to ache a little as she and Dean worked together to uncover the body of Jacob Cairns. It hadn't taken them long to find the correct grave, as there weren't many unmarked graves in the north cemetery. She paused, wiping the sleeve of her shirt across her forehead before digging out another pile of dirt and throwing it over her shoulder.

"Next time, I get to watch the cute girl," Dean grumbled to himself stabbing his shovel into the compacted earth with a huff. Aubrey paused, forcing her shovel into the ground and leaning against the handle with a frown.

"You sayin' I'm not a cute girl? Dean, I am wounded." Dean simply laughed, not looking up as he continued to dig.

"Gotta say, I'm surprised your sister's lettin' you hunt. She's a stubborn... angry little thing." Aubrey frowned.

"My sister ain't lettin' me do a thing. She couldn't stop me huntin' if she wanted to. Where do you think I get my attitude from?" Aubrey's next scoop into the dirt was a little more forceful than before as if to drive home her point.

"Yeah, I can see that." She ignored his short tone.

"Any update on your dad?" He paused momentarily, eyes flicking up to the girl before he went back to digging with a shake of his head.

"You and your sister sure do like to get into other people's business, don't you?"

"Apologies for thinkin' about your wellbeing, Dean," Bree replied, ignoring his grumbles.

"My wellbein' ain't your problem to be thinkin' about." He snapped back, this time forcing Aubrey to stop in her work and glare at the man.

"Sure it is, Dean. As much as you might disagree with the idea, you're family." Unfazed by the irritation in her tone, he didn't even look up when responding.

"Only family I got is my dad, Sammy, and that car." Aubrey shook her head, somewhat disbelieving of his response, before going back to digging, now eager to get this over with and get far away from Dean Winchester.

"Don't you let Avery hear you sayin' that," He breathed a sharp laugh.

"Why should she care?" With her irritation at the eldest Winchester now reaching new heights, Aubrey lifted her shovel, swinging it towards Dean and knocking his shovel out of his hands.

"What the hell?!" She ignored his cry, stabbing her shovel back into the dirt and locking him in a stern gaze.

"Ava and me, we grew up watchin' what this life did to you and Sam. We grew up with you through all the sleepless nights, all the stupid arguments and all the times your perfect superhero daddy dropped you off on our doorstep like a couple of unwanted puppies. Dean Winchester, don't you dare kid yourself into thinkin' Ava and I aren't as much a part of your life as your brother and daddy." He hesitated for a second, leaving his shovel laying in the mud as he silently regarded the girl, who he had obviously pushed just a little too far.

"Our dad did the best he could with the cards he was drawn." Aubrey sighed internally at the way he brushed over what she had said about her and Ava.

"Whatever you say, Dean. I ain't here to argue about your messed-up childhood, Ava's the one with a psychology degree. I'm just sayin', don't write us off like we don't mean a thing to you, because you and Sam sure as hell mean a thing to us."

She got back to digging immediately after that, channelling her irritation through the shovel, and thankfully it took only a few more minutes of silent digging until the sound of metal against wood was audible, signifying that they had finally reached the coffin.

They didn't speak again during their time in the cemetery, except for Dean asking Bree to hand him the salt, but that didn't really count. They got on with their job, throwing down the salt and the flame, creating a truly macabre bonfire, before returning to the impala in silence, and leaving the cemetery without so much as an uttered word.

Sam, Lori and Ava had been enjoying the quiet company they were offering each other, relishing in the silence of the night and the true normalcy of just sitting together in peace.

"Lori, come back inside." Lori rolled her eyes, turning to face her father who had called out for her from the doorway of the house.

"I'll come back in when I'm ready." She barked back, though no sooner than she had finished her sentence, a dark figure appeared behind her father, a shining silver hook coming down and piercing his shoulder, dragging him back into the dark house as the door slammed closed behind him.

Ava and Sam were on their feet in less than a second, charging across the front lawn, Ava pulling a small handgun out of her belt as she went. Sam barrelled through the front door, nearly throwing it off its hinges as it swung back hard into the wall. Gun already raised and ready, Ava was in hunting mode, eyes scanning the dark room for a sign of the attacker. No, the gun wasn't loaded with rock salt, it contained real bullets, but that would have to do for now. Spotting the figure at the far end of the room, still attached via hook to Reverend Sorenson, she took her shot, the bullet flying straight through the ghostly figure and lodging into the wall behind. It may not have done any damage to anything other than the wall, but this action appeared to send Jacob on his way, leaving the Reverend on the ground, groaning in agony.

It took no more than five minutes for the ambulance to arrive, whisking Lori and her father away to the hospital as the police ordered Ava and Sam to follow behind so that they could have a word. As it turned out, this word included the sheriff listening to their story in complete disbelief, not buying a word they were saying. They were still, unsuccessfully, trying to convince the sheriff of their story when Sam's name being called out from across the room caught their attention.

"Hey, I'm his brother." Dean was waving an arm past a couple of officers who were keeping him out of the room, a smile on his face that was wholly inappropriate for the situation. After a couple more stern words, Sam and Ava were sent on their way, joining Dean and Aubrey in the hallway where they waited, Ava noted, standing unnecessarily far away from each other, and working not to meet each other's eye.

A hushed conversation ensued as they made their way out of the hospital, arguing over whether or not they burned the correct bones, though Aubrey didn't contribute. Avery relayed the conversation that she and Sam had with Lori earlier in the night, where she had revealed that her father had been having an affair, how much she hated the immorality of it and how she was raised to believe that if you do something wrong you get punished. Sam had cut in at this point to pose the theory that the hook man wasn't linked to the reverend, but was in fact linked to Lori, which made a lot more sense given recent events.

"Remind me not to piss this girl off," Dean muttered as an afterthought, and Aubrey scoffed in response, earning a narrowed look from Dean. Avery cut in before an argument could ensue.

"But why didn't burning the bones work? Did you get the hook?" The group all paused, turning back to look at Avery as though she had just revealed the secrets of the universe to them.

"There was no hook..." Dean muttered and Ava threw her hands up in exasperation.

"Well, there's our issue! For christ's sake let's get back to the library and find out what happened to this freakin' hook so we can get this job over and done with."

She swept past the group, Aubrey hot on her heels, the brothers pausing to send each other a look before following after her.

It hadn't taken them too much researching to find out that the silver hook had been reforged after Jacob Cairns' death, though there were no specifics on what it had been reforged into to. This led them to the agreement that the safest bet was simply to find all the silver in the church and destroy it, to be on the safe side. They separated into their respective vehicles, and arrived at the church no more than ten minutes later, splitting up once inside and gathering all the silver they could possibly find.

They were in the process of throwing everything onto the fire when a creak in the floorboards above them plunged the group into silence.

"Sam, go check that out." Sam nodded at his brother, making for the door.

"I'll go with ya." Aubrey piped up, hurrying after him without a glance back. Avery turned on Dean, folding her arms over her chest and glaring at him.

"What did you do to piss off Bree?" His eyes widened and he scoffed, turning back to the fire and kicking a piece of silver back in that had tumbled out.

"Nothin'."

"Sure, I believe that." She replied, moving to lean against the wall.

"Ain't my fault she's so sensitive."

"You know for some insane reason, my sister looks up to you. Always has. So do you think maybe you could just not be a dick, Dean? For once in your life?" Ava snapped, which he clearly hadn't been expecting as he watched her warily, their gazes locked.

"Sorry." He finally spoke, and it hadn't been the reply Avery had expected, but it was one she truly appreciated.

"Thank you."

Bree and Sam stood at the far end of the church aisle, watching the girl who sat in one of the pews crying quietly to herself.

"Go talk to her!" Bree muttered under her breath, nudging Sam's arm in encouragement.

"What? Why me?" he replied with wide eyes at the prospect of having to comfort the girl.

"Because you're cute and girls find cute boys comforting." He narrowed his eyes at her and she smiled, shoving him down the aisle and watching him reluctantly make his way to Lori, before turning and heading back to the basement.

She had only just stepped back into the room when the sounds of a commotion came from above, all three of them sharing a panicked look before rushing back out of the door and up the stairs, greeted by the sight of Sam and Lori fighting off the hook man.

Avery spared a pleading glance at her sister, who looked equally panicked in response. Neither of them had their guns to hand. Thankfully, Dean moved between the two, his shotgun aimed and quickly sending Jacob on his way, though not before Sam was caught in the shoulder, tumbling to the ground with a grunt.

"I thought we got all the silver!" Dean shouted, rushing towards his brother and helping him to his feet.

"So did I!" Bree countered, pulling a frantic Lori towards her in an attempt to calm her.

"You must have missed something." Ava didn't miss the way Dean looked towards Bree when he said this.

"Maybe you missed something, Dean." Avery moved between them, her irritation evident.

"Will you two stop arguing?! I don't care what's got you both pissed at each other, but I don't wanna die tonight so pack it in!" They both fell silent, and Sam's eyes flicked between them in confusion before he clearly decided he didn't want to know.

"The necklace - Lori, where is your necklace from?" Lori clutched the pendant that hung around her neck, stumbling over her words slightly.

"My dad gave it to me, it's a church heirloom." Her words were overshadowed slightly by the high pitched screech of a hook scraping across the stone wall of the church.

Ava moved forward. "Give it to me now. Come on, now!" Lori fiddled with the clasp in a panic, throwing the thing into Ava's palm as Dean passed his gun over to Sam, ushering Ava back towards the basement and following her closely.

They reached the room, stumbling through the door just as Jacob Cairns manifested behind them, though Ava barely noticed, her focus solely on getting that necklace into the fire. She threw the pendant into the flames, turning to find Dean standing protectively between her and the spirit, arms outstretched to ensure she stayed behind him. She placed a hand on his arm, lowering it back to his side and breathing out a shuddered breath as they watched the spirit crackle and burn before them, just like the necklace was currently doing behind. And then, he was gone.

Aubrey had retreated to the car, playing around with the radio and pulling her jacket tighter around her, apparently not looking to say goodbye to the brothers. Avery and Dean had suffered yet another reprimand from the Sheriff, in which they had made it very clear that he didn't need to worry, they were leaving town immediately. Sam was with Lori, being tended to by a paramedic after his scuffle with Jacob.

"Hey Ava," She turned back to Dean, lips flickering in a weak smile. "You're not as bad a hunter as I thought you'd be."

"Oh Dean, don't flatter me." She replied flatly, "You're not too shabby yourself."

He breathed a laugh, turning to head back to the car before her hand on his wrist stopped him.

"You've got my number if you need anythin'." She paused, glancing at her hand that still clutched his wrist before letting go. "Don't be a stranger, Dean."

He nodded, reaching out and squeezing her arm, which she supposed must be his awkward way of showing affection, or maybe just appreciation. Either way, despite his poor people skills, she was thankful for it. He turned and headed for the impala, one brother taking the place of the other as Sam approached. Avery offered him a sympathetic smile as she rested a gentle hand on the sling that held his arm safe against him.

"So, you got another job lined up?" Avery shook her head.

"Nah, I think it's time for a couple of days off till the next one. Plus, mom and dad are probably wondering if we're ever coming back." He smiled sadly.

"They're good? Your mom and dad?" Ava nodded, stuffing her hands in her pockets with a smile.

"They're great."

"Tell them I say hi."

"I will..." Ava paused, glancing down before meeting his eye again, "Sammy, don't be a stranger. Our home is your home... you and your stupid brother." Sam laughed, reaching out with his good arm and pulling Ava into his chest, an action she found herself appreciating greatly as her arms wrapped around his waist.

"I've missed you, Ava." He muttered into her hair, before releasing her and stepping back.

"I've missed you too." Ava replied, before adding as an afterthought, "I'm sorry about Jessica."

"Me too." He nodded sadly, before smiling. "You two would have loved each other."

Ava liked the idea of this, and couldn't help but smile in response. The moment was stolen from them as Dean called out from his position beside the car, Sam offering him a quick nod before saying goodbye to Ava and turning to leave.

"Sammy." She called out, watching as he turned back to her with a questioning look. "Don't let it consume you."

His expression was stern as he silently nodded, before making his way to the car and climbing in. Dean watched his brother closely as he clipped on his seatbelt, eyes straight ahead and lips pressed firmly into a line.

"What did Avery want?" He asked as he stuck the keys into the ignition, bringing the engine to life with a rumble.

"Just sayin' goodbye." His response was quiet, and Dean drew out his nod in response, looking as though he was turning something over in his head as he did so.

"She got kinda hot." This comment managed to steal Sam's gaze from the road, a disapproving look shot at his brother.

"Dean." He replied with a tone of warning.

"What?!" Dean put the car into gear, carrying them away from the flashing lights of the ambulances and police cars. "Just sayin'."