Disclaimer – I don't own these boys, but I like to play with them!

Flames

Chapter Three

"Yes" Sam said, "Unfortunately."

"That's not possible," she said looking back up the slope.

"Well, sweetheart, you're the one it was trying to toast." Dean told her.

"Oh shit," She said remembering the other jumper. "It got Snookie, we need to go help him." She dropped her backpack pulled out an axe and without warning started running up the slope towards the ridge where she had last seen the dragon.

Dean ran out after her grabbing her by the waist and pulling her back to the safety of the rocks. She fought him the entire way struggling to go help her friend.

"Put me down you idiot, I've got to go help him," she shouted at him.

Dean put her down, pinning her between him and the rock so she couldn't get away from him. "You're calling me an idiot? You are about to go chase down a dragon with nothing more than an ax and you have the nerve to call me an idiot?" Dean asked. "Are you always this stupid, or is this a special occasion for you?"

"Well, I can't just leave him up there!" She yelled.

"I think it's too late to help him." Sam said quietly.

She looked at Sam sighed with resignation, knowing it was probably true. "What the hell do we do now?" She asked.

Dean released her and said, "Well, for one, we don't panic."

She looked up at him fiercely, balled her fist and punched him as hard as she could in the face. "I was not panicking," she hissed. "Smoke Jumpers never, ever leave anyone behind. EVER! And we don't panic."

Dean's head rocked at the power behind the blow. For such a woman of her size she had one hell of a punch. He grabbed her before she could strike again and said, "Look lady, why don't you go back down the hill and find the rest of your buddies. Go fight the fire and leave us be to take care of this bitch. After we kill it you can come back and get what's left of… you can get your friend." He released her again and took a cautious step back keeping a closer watch on her this time.

"And how do you intend to kill it?" She asked shaking her hand. "Your guns didn't seem to work on it."

Sam, who had been stunned at the exchange between the two replied "We're still working on that." Then he asked, "Got any suggestions?"

"On how to slay a dragon? How the hell do I know? Do I look like King Arthur to you?" she replied tersely.

Dean looked at her lewdly from her head to toe. "Nope," he said with a grin, "but King Arthur didn't kill the dragon. Lancelot did."

Sam rolled his eyes at his brother but declined to say anything. This woman was either getting on his brothers nerves or he was falling for her. Either way it would be insane to add fuel to the fire.

"Whatever," she said. You two must be related and you both must have the IQ of a peanut if you intend to try and kill that… that thing, with anything less then a bazooka."

"We're brothers, I'm Sam, this is Dean" Sam replied trying to calm down the situation.

"I'm Kate," she said reaching into her backpack and digging out a canteen. "And I'm not going anywhere until this thing is dead. It killed Snookie I can't let it get the rest of the team."

"Well, it can't be that hard to kill a dragon, knights did it all the time with nothing more then a sword or spear." Dean said.

Her jaw dropped open and she guffawed at him, "You are nuts do you know that. You can't possibly be firefighters. I know most of us are a bit crazy, but you take it to a whole new extreme."

Sam grinned deciding he liked this girl. He looked at his brother who shrugged and nodded. "We're not, we're… um Hunters." Sam told her, "We specialize in unusual creatures like this one."

"Unusual creatures?" she asked. "Well, I guess this qualifies, but I'd be willing to bet you've never had to hunt a dragon before."

Dean laughed, "No lady, this is a first, even for us."

"You must not be any good at what you do. You don't seem to be very prepared for this."

"Blame it on geek boy here," Dean told her pointed at his brother. "He though we were chasing a salamander."

"A what?" she asked.

"Never mind, suffice it to say we never expected to come across a dragon."

"You should always expect the unexpected."

"Look lady, I've fought some very strange things, but this is weird, even for me. Would you have been prepared for it?"

She laughed at him, "No, but that's why I fight fires. I know what I'm doing in a fire."

"Well this dragon is starting your fires and if we don't kill it you are going stay busy for a very long time. But I still think you should go back to your team and leave this to us."

"Not gonna happen, so drop it," she said and asked Sam, "Come up with anything?"

"I think we need to get closer to the nest. Above it if possible it's always best to be on higher ground. It might help to see exactly what we're dealing with," he said. "I think if we stick to the outcroppings of rocks over along the edge of the ridge we'll be relatively safe."

"Unless it sees or smells us. Then it can just char us with one breath." Dean said.

"Hey, I'm not seeing to many options here Dean." Sam replied, "We really need to get a good look at it, see if there are any chinks in its armor."

"Okay then, let's do it," he said taking out a gun, cocking it.

"I know they don't work very well against this thing, but have you got another one of those?" Kate asked.

"Do you know how to use it," Dean asked taking a spare .45 out of their duffle bag and handing it to her.

"Daddy told me the end with the hole was the dangerous end." She said with a grin, chambering a round and checking the safety before putting it in her belt.

Dean grinned at her, picked up the duffle bag and nodded to his brother. Sam took the lead and with Kate following and Dean brining up the rear the headed closer to the nest of the dragon.

A/N Thanks for reading! Please take time to review and let me know what you think. I'll try and post another chapter or two tomorrow.