Sorry I didn't post yesterday. The Forth of July is a bit hectic. Also, you probably didn't notice, but I name all of my original works after eighties songs. (Although this story is a little bit canon. It's at the beginning of Free to be You and Me, which is tomorrow's chapter)

...

"Possible vamp case in Kansas." Dean spun his laptop towards Alex. It was the next day, and they were both sitting in a bar, hungry after having dug and burned the bones of George Bellwood. "You up for that?"

"Sure." Alex took a long sip of her Mountain Dew. "Okay. If that's what you want to do." She watched as Dean's gaze wandered away, coming to focus on a pair of two hot women. She kicked him under the table playfully. "You said there was a case?"

Dean glanced back at her, grinning. "Don't tell me you don't think that's sexy."

Alex shrugged, eyes focusing on her half-eaten plate. "I spend too much time with you," she insisted. "It's like every time I see a girl, I think, 'Is she hot? Damn she's hot.' " She looked up at Dean. "I'm not gay! Hell, I can barely stand being around girls!"

Dean grinned. "Gay."

Alex kicked him again. Then she rested her elbows on the table, head in her hands. "I'm as gay as you are."

In retaliation, Dean stole an onion ring.

...

They were on the road by 6 pm. They drove, the only sound coming from the Styx blasting from the car's stereo. At one point, when the road was dark, Dean reached over and turned off the music. "I was thinking," he began.

"About what?" Alex glanced at the hunter.

"You know in porn, they usually have music in the beginning?" Dean looked over at her. "How do they choose that music? Is there like band that specializes in porno music?"

Alex turned the music back on.

...

December 7th, 2009

Salina, Kansas

They arrived in Kansas early the next morning. Dean crashed, leaving Alex once again to fend for herself for breakfast. She eventually shook him awake around noon, and the hunter reluctantly got up. They went out for lunch, and then returned to the motel.

"I'll be back in an hour, maybe two." Dean stood in front of the bathroom mirror, tightening his tie. "Then we'll hit the morgue tomorrow, alright?"
"Can I come for that?" Alex watched the Winchester pull on his suit jacket.

"We'll see. Call Bobby, see what he says."

Alex frowned. "Fine." She turned back to the tv.

...

When Dean came back, his face was grim. "Definitely sounds like vamps." He took off his tie, tossing it onto the bed.

"What happened?"

"Sheriff said the vics were exsanguinated. Not a drop of blood in 'em." Dean sat down, reaching for his laptop.

"Okay. Any suspects?"

"Nope."

Alex persisted. "Patients? Doctors? Janitors?"

Dean shook his head. "Probably not a patient."

"Yeah. The doctors would likely notice. Different physiology, and all."

Dean just grunted. Alex gave up.

...

That night, Dean went out to a bar. Alex, like always, stayed behind. Around ten o'clock, she decided to take a shower. She got up, grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, and went into the bathroom.

She was in there until the water ran cold. Then she got out, reaching for her towel, slowly drying herself. Then she pulled on her clothes and pulled out the bun she kept in her hair to keep it dry. She stepped out of the bathroom. And froze.

Dean was laying on the bed. With another woman. Both were mostly unclothed. Upon seeing her, the woman sat up. Dean quickly followed suit. He and Alex stared at each other for several second; neither spoke. Alex felt herself start to blush, and she quickly walked over to the other bed, grabbing her phone.

One unread text from Dean: Bringing home hot chick. Get out.

Alex shook her phone at Dean, face slightly apologetic. Then she grabbed the comforter off of her bed, a pillow, and the keys to the car, and then, she left.

She spent the night in the car.

...

"What the hell?" Dean snapped. It was the next day, and the Winchester was obviously still pissed.

Alex looked incredulously up at Dean. "Are you fucking serious? I'm not the one who brought a girl back to a room that was already occupied!"

"I told you I was bringing her!"

"You texted me. I was in the shower! If I don't reply, I didn't get it, capisce?"

Dean opened his mouth to reply, but hesitated. Then he grunted angrily. "Fine. I see your point. But this better not happen again."

"Trust me," Alex huffed. "If I can prevent myself from seeing that again, I will."

Dean smirked playfully. "Couldn't have been that terrible. I mean . . ." He motioned to himself.

"Yeah, well, that plus another girl?"

"Jealous?"

"Try scarred for life."

...

That afternoon, she and Dean went down to the coroner's office. "Agents Harvey and Ford." They flashed their badges.

The coroner studied Alex. "Are you serious?"

Dean's voice grew crisp. "Of course we are. Now, we're here about the bodies from the hospital -"

'How old are you?" the woman asked Alex.

Alex pulled her shoulders back, straightening her spine. "I'm old enough," she replied politely yet cooly.

"Seventeen, eighteen?"

Alex's eyes flashed. "Twenty-two."

"She meets every qualification," Dean assured her impatiently.

The coroner didn't look convinced.

"If you don't believe us, call our boss." Alex glanced over at Dean, who nodded in agreement, fishing a card out of his wallet.

The coroner accepted it, pulling out her phone. "Yes, hello, I'm Catherine Anderson. I'm calling about two of your agents, Harley and Ford." She listened for several seconds. "Yes, well, she does look rather young-" She was cut off by Bobby. "Yes. Yes sir." She hung up. Then she turned back to Alex and Dean. "So how long have you two been working together?"

Dean shrugged slightly. "Few months. My old parter got reassigned, and I was handed new blood."

"Hm. Can I see your badges again?"

Alex glanced at Dean, who rolled his eyes, exasperated. However, he pulled out his badge, handing it to the coroner. Alex did the same.

Dr. Anderson studied them. Then she looked at Dean. "What's your badge number?"

"Twenty-one one sixty-two."

"And yours?"

"Eleven o ninety five."

The coroner handed their badges back to them. "Okay. The ones from the hospital, right?"

Dean nodded, and they were lead into the autopsy room. There, she pulled out two gurneys. "Here you go, agents."

"Thank you." Dean uncovered one of the victims. The face was pale and lifeless. "How'd he die?"

"Blood loss. Slit his own throat." The coroner tipped the man's head, revealing a deep cut. "Same with the other one." She dropped the arm, then stepped back.

"Can I have a word with my colleague, please?"

"Sure."

When the coroner didn't move, Dean cocked an eyebrow. "Alone?"

The coroner sighed, but left the room.

"Hm. Tough crowd," Alex said when they were alone.

Dean grunted in agreement. He tipped the victim's neck from side to side. "Definitely vamps."

Alex circled around to see the gaping wound. "Doesn't look particularly like a vamp bite."

"They probably tried to cover it up." Dean pointed to the end of the wound where the cut was wider.

Alex quickly checked the other vic's neck. "Same here." She covered the corpse back up. "Time to do a little digging?"

Dean led the way out. "Thank you for your time," he told the coroner before handing her his card. "If anything else turns up, give me a call."

He shot her a smile, and then coroner obviously blushed. Alex rolled her eyes. "Come on, Romeo."

They left.

...

They stopped by the hospital on their way back, and Dean went in to get the records of all new employees. Then they went back to the motel. On the drive there, the radio was playing. Suddenly, Carry On Wayward Son came on. Alex immediately cranked up the volume.

Dean groaned. "Are you serious?"

Alex gaped at him. "Are you serious? Dude, this is your fricken theme song! They played this song all the time in Supernatural!"

"Kansas?" Dean looked over at her disbelievingly.

"Not 'Kansas?'. Kansas!" She began singing along with the chorus. "Don't you cry no more."

Dean rolled his eyes.

"Are you serious? You don't like this song? Oh my God."

"It's okay," Dean finally grumbled. "Theme song, huh? Kind of a sad song."

"Kind of a sad life," Alex shot back. "Dude, this song is amazing! I mean, it about hope or something . . . I don't know, man. Just live with it."

"It's not that bad of a song," Dean finally admitted.

"Good."

...

After several hours back at the motel, Dean groaned. "Anything?"

Alex looked up, rubbing her eyes. "Nope. Everyone here is clean." She thumped the table in annoyance. "Now what?"

Dean shook his head. "Yeah, uh, I don't know." He let out a breath, head in his hands. "Sam would probably know."

Alex stood up and got two beers. She handed one to Dean, who gratefully accepted. Then she sat back down, opening hers. She took a sip, then pushed it away, making a disgusted face.

After a few more seconds of silence, Dean suggested, "Maybe some older employee got bit."

Alex looked up. "Yeah, it's probable, but there aren't any other vamps in town."

"We don't know that."

"Well, there's been no other similar vamp-y deaths around here."

Dean grunted in agreement. "Maybe a doctor went on vacation and got bit." He rubbed his eyes again. "I'll go down later and get some other names."

"Okie dokie." Alex yawned, moving over to the bed.

"I'll get the list of staff that were on duty too." Dean took a long drink. "Probably should have done that in the first place. Damn. Some hunter I am."

Alex looked up. "It's fine. You're just worried about Bobby and Sam, man. Cut yourself some slack."

Dean shook his head. "You get sloppy, you get killed." He stood up. "I'll get those names."

"All staff," Alex advised. "Not just doctors."

Dean grunted. "Okay." However, instead of leaving, he joined Alex on the bed. "Okay. Let's talk this out."

"Talk what out?" Alex felt herself start to blush, thinking this was going to be personal.

"The case." If Dean noticed, he didn't give it away. "Our suspects. Go."

Alex narrowed her eyes. "Is this a test?"

"Suspects," Dean prompted her. "Come on. You're suppose to be smart." He flashed her a charming smile for good measure.

Alex rolled her eyes, but gave in. "Fine. It could be any doctor, patient, or other staff. These attacks occurred at night, correct?" She continued when Dean nodded. "That means it's probably not a visitor."

"Okay." Dean nodded, following along. "Can't be any staff that weren't on duty both nights. What about patients?"

"Well," Alex scrunched up her face, thinking hard. "Maybe any patients that complain of sensitivity to light and sound? I mean, vamps are super sensitive to that, aren't they?"

Dean blinked. "Not really. Newly turned vamps are, but not otherwise."

"Well, either our vamps are new at this, or they're new to town." Alex shrugged. "Just a guess."

"Well, you're right about that. So, I should look for new patients and staff that was there at both killings."

"Maybe not patients? Both victims were patients. Doctors would have access to both of them easily, while patients would have to sneak around . . ?" Alex trailed off. "Okay. Maybe just start with staff."

Dean nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Okay." He walked back over to the table, grabbing his phone. "Okay." He walked out, and Alex turned on the tv.

...

When Dean returned, it was late. He tossed a paper bag onto the table, filled with dinner. He was also carrying a folder. "New names," he grumbled. "Come and get it."

Alex, who had changed out of her nice clothes, walked to the table, sitting down. She pulled the paper bag towards her, taking out a hamburger and some fries. "Whose is whose?"

"Doesn't matter." Dean sat down across from her, sighing. "Okay. Narrowed down the suspects. Uh, handful of doctors, and some janitorial staff." He slid the file across the table to her. "See anything helpful?"

Alex shook her head, pushing it away. "I'll look at it after we've eaten." She handed him his food. "Now. Eat."

Dean did as she asked. As he did, he started humming.

"Kansas?" Alex smirked. "Admit it. You like that song."

"Fine. The damn song's growing on me. I mean, they really should have picked, like, Led Zep's Ramble On or something."

Alex huffed in amusement. "What took you so long?" she asked. "It's almost ten. You left almost five hours ago!"

Dean shrugged. "Got a drink, got a date, the usual."

"Oh. Well, thanks for not bringing her back here."

Dean almost laughed. "Yeah, not going to let that happen two nights in a row." He paused, looking at Alex. "Actually, something unusual did happen. Cas paid me a visit."

"Oh, really? Pray tell."

Dean let out a full laugh this time. "He asked me how I tell if a girl likes him."

"Ooh. Cassie got a crush?" Alex teased, swirling a fry around in ketchup. "Do angels get crushes?"

"I guess so. I mean, he didn't say why he wanted to know. But he kept asking stuff like how to tell if she's flirting with you, you know, stuff like that. He said I was the one who would know."

"Huh." Alex couldn't help the trickle of jealousy that ran through her, but she pushed it away. "Weird. I should ask him about that."

"Actually, he asked me not to tell anyone," Dean admitted. "So, don't."

"He wanted to keep it a secret, huh? Interesting. If he really wanted to know, he could have asked me."

"I suggested that, but he said I would know better."

Alex laughed. "I guess you have more experience."

Dean smirked. He looked down at his beer. "Oh, and there's this other hunter in town. He's working this case too apparently."

"Oh? Who?"

"Dunno. I've never heard of him. His name was Carton."

"Carton?" Alex grinned. "Yeah, I know him. He, he helped us with that Kappa case, remember?"

Dean looked thoughtful. "I remember that." He shoved three fries in his mouth. "He's a weird one."

Alex hurried over to her phone. She dialed Carton's number, waiting for him to pick up.

"What do you want?"

"Hey, Carton. It's Alex. Bobby's girl? I'm here in Kansas with Dean Winchester."

"Yeah, I know."

"So, you're working the same case as us."

"Yup."

"Wanna conspire? We're staying at the Frontier Motel."

"No thanks. I've got this."

Alex frowned, looking at Dean. "Are you sure?" When Carton insisted, she sighed. "Uh, okay. Fine. We'll call if we find anything."

While she was talking, Dean had finished eating. He took the folder and began pinning different suspects up on the wall. Alex watched, interested. After she finished, she walked over to him. "Whatcha doing?"

"Sorting." Dean pointed to one side. "Non doctors. Doctors."

Alex studied their names. "Hey."

"Hm?"

Alex pointed to one of the janitors. "This guy started two weeks ago."

Dean walked over to her. "Yeah. Around when the attacks happened. But both times, he's been working with . . . this guy. Both have alibis with each other." He pulled another file out of the large pile before pinning it next to the others.

"So maybe both are vampires."

Dean nodded. "Possible. Good work." He slapped her on the back, and Alex let out a breath as he hit her adjust a little bit to hard. However, she said nothing. Dean stepped away. "Let's see if we can find anything else."

...

They didn't. Alex retired to bed, crawling under the covers. Dean was still at the table, beer in one hand.

When she awoke, Dean was laying on the opposite bed, still wearing jeans and a jacket. It was only five in the morning, and Alex couldn't fall back to sleep. She crawled into the other bed next to Dean, closing her eyes again. She fell back asleep.

When she woke up again, she felt displaced. Something was pressed into her back and wrapped around her waist. As she woke up more, she realized it was Dean. Dean had his arm around her waist, keeping her close. Alex huffed. Dean often cuddled in his sleep. She quickly wiggled her way out. Dean didn't fully wake, rolling onto his back. When she had gotten dressed, she yelled, "Dean-o. Rise and shine, you lazy ass."

Dean grumbled something under his breath, not opening his eyes. He crossed his arms childishly. Alex jumped onto the bed next to him, making him bounce slightly. He cracked open one eye, looking over at her, a scowl on his face. Alex retaliated by planting her feet on his side, pushing him off the bed. Dean let out a cry as he fell. He stood up, quite pissed. Alex smiled up at him innocently, and he rolled his eyes. "What?"

"Breakfast?" Alex half asked, half begged.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Let me get dressed."

Alex watched him grab his bag and disappeared into the bathroom. After half a minute, he stepped out. Alex averted her eyes. "Dean. Pants."

"Huh? Hang on, they're out here." Dean walked across the room and pulled on his jeans. "There." He looked down at Alex. "So, you still hungry?"

"Not after seeing that," Alex grumbled, but got up, searching for a jacket. Dean tossed her one of his, and she smiled thanks.

...

They ate at the diner a few miles south of their motel. They ate in silence until Dean spoke. "Remember when Zachariah took our memories and put us in that normal world-thing?"

"Uh, yeah." Alex looked up at Dean, unsure where this was going. They hadn't spoken of that since it had happened.

"You ever miss it?"

"Miss it?"

"Yeah. You know, normal life. I, uh, I've never had one, so I was wondering what you thought."

Alex studied Dean for several seconds. "I, uh - yeah. Sometimes, I do. It was nice not hunting."

Dean grunted in agreement, letting out a sigh. "It, uh, it kind of changed my perspective on things. I never really knew what life was outside of a hunter's life." He studied his food and snorted. "I can't believe he made you my daughter and Sam some stranger."

"I could totally be your daughter," Alex teased. "I mean, come on, Dad. You do act like a dad sometimes."

Dean shrugged, blushing only slightly. "Someone needs to stop you from being a total ass."

Alex huffed. "Thanks, Dean." She sighed. "Seriously. Thanks. Well, I can't say your the worst dad I've ever had."

Dean didn't look like he knew how to answer. "Well, uh, thanks, I guess. How many dads did you have?"

Alex lifted her hand, counting on her fingers. "Well, my real dad, adopted dad one, adopted dad two, Bobby, I guess, you. Five."

"Hm. Your real dad died, right?"

Alex shook her head, studying the table. "My mom died. My dad left a few years later. One day, he just didn't come home."

"Hm. Sucks."

Anger boiled up. "I was twelve!" she snapped. "And he blamed me. I didn't do anything!" She lowered her gaze. "I don't know. Maybe it was me."

"It's not." Dean promised awkwardly. "You can't control those things."

"Sure." Alex looked up the window, blinking back tears.

Dean sighed. "Well. You never really talked about your last family. You didn't seem to think they'd miss you."

"They won't care. They're probably glad I'm gone." Alex sighed. "I, uh, they were going to turn me out as soon as I was eighteen. In some ways, being here is an answer to prayers. I have you guys, which, believe it or not, is better than having no one. If I was still there, I'd have to find a job and some way to support myself. No chance of me getting into college, or really going anywhere. No one to fall back on or to go home to." She laughed dryly. "I'd probably just die. At least here, I'm helping people, you know? Even if they don't know it. There's pain and fear here, but at least it means something."

Dean took a sip of his coffee. "That's what keeps us going."

"Yeah, I guess so." Alex pushed her food away, no longer hungry.

"Do you miss anything about your other life?"

"I . . ." Alex hesitated. "When my mom died, I was sitting on her bed. Reading Fox is Socks. By Dr. Seuss, you know? I kept that book. Now . . ." The girl closed her eyes, looking away.

The a bell rang as the door was opened, and Alex glanced up. A man stepped in, dressed in stained jeans and a wrinkled button down. He looked around, running a hand through his tousled black hair. Not exactly handsome, but he wasn't unattractive.

Alex waved her hand. "Carton!"

The man turned, and his eyes flashed in recognition. He approached. Alex slid over, and Carton sat down. "Alex, right?"

"Yeah." Alex slid her plate towards him. "Hungry?"

Dean nodded at Carton, who grunted a greeting back. He took the rest of her hamburger. "Did you find out anything?" He took a bite.

Alex nodded, glancing at Dean. "Yeah. We were thinking the two janitors. Both could be vamps."

Carton chewed thoughtfully. "I was thinking the same thing," he agreed. He smiled over at Alex.

"I was going to go down to the hospital tomorrow," Dean added. His lips were twisted downwards into a frown, but it was so faint Alex barely saw it. She gently kicked him under the table. With a glance at the girl, he added, "You want to come?"

Carton studied a french fry before answering, avoiding Dean's gaze. "Sure," he shrugged.

Alex took one of Dean's onion rings. "How have you been?" she asked, changing the subject. "You sounded pretty bad when I talked to you last summer."

The hunter shrugged again. "I'm fine. Just got mauled by a shifter. Nothing big."

Alex huffed. "Right. That's nothing. Well, I'm glad you're better."

"Mm-hmm." Carton glanced at his phone, then at Dean, then suddenly stood up. "I should go." He hurried away.

Dean watched him go. "Dude's weird."

Alex kicked him under the table. "He's a little strange, but he's a nice guy. Once you get to know him, he's really sweet."

Dean just huffed. "I don't trust him."

...

They went back to the motel where they got the call of a third exsanguinated victim. Dean quickly donned on his suit and tie before leaving. Alex quickly grew bored. "Castiel?" she finally asked. "Are you okay? I haven't heard from you in almost a week."

"What do you want?"

Alex turned, letting out a long breath. "I'm sorry."

Castiel stepped forward. "Am I going to die because of this?"

That took Alex aback. "What?"

Castiel sat down next to her. "When I was in your head, I saw some things," he began slowly. "I tried not to look but . . . I died. I saw it. I . . . exploded. But I wasn't at Chuck's." He blinked. "It happens again, doesn't it? I don't know how, I don't know when, but I saw it." His eyes became unusually desperate. "I don't want to die."

Alex heart broke. She had never seen him like this. She pulled him into a hug. "Listen to me," she whispered. "If you were going to die, do you think I would be sitting here doing nothing?"

"I rebelled." Castiel extracted himself from her hug. "I'm hunted, and I'm weakened-"

"Yes, you die." Alex broke the news harshly. "But you don't stay dead. Castiel, you've already died once. God brought you back. He will do it again. And I would know. You've got many, many years left to live."

This seemed to appease the angel. His face returned to the expressionless look it always seemed to carry. "Are you certain?"

"Of course."

Castiel stood up before disappearing.

"Good talk!" Alex yelled after him, slightly annoyed.

A flutter of wings caught her attention, and she turned. "Now what?" She froze when she saw who it was, and a growl escaped her lips.

"We had a deal."

"And you took away my lungs," she growled back, knowing exactly what he meant.

Zachariah strolled forward. "You specifically promised that you would not deter Dean from being Michael's vessel. You're fortunate that I allowed that negotiation in."

"How'd you find me?" Alex hissed. "We're below angel radar, last time I checked."

"You are. But Castiel is not."

"Are you hunting him down?"

"He rebelled. That is our job."

"Leave him alone."

"Or what?" Zachariah stepped forward menacingly.

"Or Dean will never say yes."

"I think once again you're forgetting who has the upper hand here. I make the deals, not you."

"You kill Cas, and Dean will kill you. Me doing anything has nothing to do with it. You should know that."

The seraphim studied her with his cold gaze. Then he disappeared.

Alex snorted angrily. "What's wrong with you angels!" she yelled. "Allergic to ending a conversation?" She fell back onto her bed in frustration.

...

Half an hour later, the door opened and Dean walked through. "Narrowed down our suspect list." He dropped a folder next to her. "Here's the list of everyone present at the time of this death. Did some cross checking, and there were five. Five staff present at each and every murder."

"What about -"

"Those janitors? Yahtzee. So I did a bit of digging on the two of them." Another folder fell by her hip, and Alex sat up. "Franklin Shards and Jake Cooper. Cooper started two weeks ago, came from up near Muncie, Indiana. Turns out there's been a string of strange murders up there too."

"So it's definitely them."

"That's where I'm putting my money." Dean sat down next to her. "How was your morning?"

"Good." Alex, slightly cold, shifted closer to Dean. "Some a- yeah, it was fine. I watched tv."

Dean smiled over at her, and Alex's heart skipped a beat. She blushed for even thinking that way. "Good." Dean patted her on the thigh before standing up. "Shards and Cooper finish a shift tonight at eleven. We'll be waiting for them then."

"Okay." Alex crawled under the covers, feeling very cold. "Sounds good."

"You okay?"

"Just cold."

Dean walked over to the heater. "It's on full blast. You're probably just a wimp."

Alex huffed. "Probably."

...

That night, Dean pulled the car up to the back of the hospital. They got out, and Dean handed her a machete. She leaned against the Impala, waiting. "Is Carton coming?" she asked quietly.

"Don't know. I think he left town."

"Oh." Alex didn't ask why.

...

At exactly eleven o'clock, the back door to the hospital opened. Two men stepped out, eyes glittering warily. They looked up to see a black car parked in front of them.

Alex looked over at Dean, who smiled at the vampires, waving his fingers in false amiability. Her grip tightened on the handle on her machete. One of the men snarled, fangs unsheathing from their gums. Dean stepped forward and the vampires attacked. One jumped past Dean and launched itself at Alex. She immediately backpedalled to create more room. She ducked as something was thrown over her head, then fell as something caught the side of her head.

Alex staggered back to her feet, spinning the machete in her hand. She warily watched the vampire, who was circling around, waiting to kill. Against the Impala, Dean was struggling with the second. That momentary distraction was all the vampire needed. It launched itself at Alex, and she quickly backpedaled, swinging the machete at it's head. She missed, and tripped, falling to the ground. The machete fell from her hands, clattering to the ground by her feet.

The vampire loomed over her, lips pulled back in a snarl to display its teeth. Alex scrambled backwards and the creature lunged at her. Then it fell to the ground, headless. Alex sat up, eyes wide.

Carton stood there, machete in hand. "Am I late?" he asked quietly.

Alex grinned. "You're here."

"Couldn't leave you alone. And I couldn't let you die." Carton held out his hand. "You're my friend —" The hunter keeled forward as a blade slid through his neck. Alex's blood ran cold as the hunter's head landed next to her. Carton's body stayed upright for a second before falling.

A woman stood behind him, Alex's machete in one hand, teeth bared in victory.

For several seconds Alex just stared blankly at her friend's body. It was only Dean's yell that brought her back to reality. The vampire rushed at her, eyes flashing fire.

With a rush of adrenaline, Alex kicked out, catching the vampire's leg, sending it to the ground next to her. She grabbed the machete from Carton's hand and rolled over, quickly pinning the vampire down, straddling her so her arms were pinned beside her chest. Alex swung the machete downwards, and it buried itself in the vamp's neck. It let out a scream, thrashing around. Alex pulled the blade out again, striking out again. Blood spurted out from the neck, covering Alex. She swung the blade down again, second blow severed the head, and the vampire's movements faded, and the light died from it's eyes. Alex didn't move, trying to catch her breath. She stared down at the vampire, grief pressing down on her chest.

She heard a gurgle from behind her, and knew Dean had killed the second. Then a hand was on her shoulder, and Alex forced her gaze up upon Dean. He had blood spatters over his face and shirt, and Alex knew she looked the same; probably worse. Dean was breathing heavily, and he looked over at her.

She rolled off of the vampire, kneeling beside Carton. His body was already growing cold.

"Are you okay?" Dean asked quietly.

"Twenty three."

"What?"

Alex looked up, tears in her eyes. "He was only twenty three years old!" she snapped. "He still —" Her voice cut off with a sob. "He was my friend."

Dean knelt down beside her. "Come on," he said quietly. "You need to focus. Help me clean this up." When Alex didn't move, he added, "Alex. We'll take care of him later. But we have to go now."

...

Dean had taken care of the vampire's bodies within twenty minutes. Alex had eventually gotten up to help him, but she was anything but focused. Half an hour later, they were on the road. Alex was curled up in the front seat, watching the road.

"You okay?" Dean looked over at her.

"No."