Dean drove, heading to the location that Castiel had told them. He turned to Katie. "How much has your mom and Grace told you about our family? About me and your uncle?"

She shook her head. "Not much," she answered. "Grace told me that Grandma Mary died in a fire. And that Grandpa John died in an attempt to save you. And that you were really close to Uncle Sam. That you practically raised him, which is why Grace thought you'd be perfectly okay with having a kid."

He nodded. "Okay. Sounds like she brushed over some details. Um…you know the brief statement that Yellow-Eyes told me in seventy-three. Well, it's true. Azazel bled in Sam's mouth the night that mom died. Dad interrupted him which is why the house was set on fire would be my guess."

She nodded. "Okay. If he bled into Uncle Sam's mouth, what's that mean exactly?"

"It means that Sam was to be recruited when Azazel got his army off the ground-which never happened, because I shot him before he could win and put it together. However, the year I made the deal-"

"The deal that sent you to hell? The one that forced you to leave me.

He nodded. "Right. I did it so that Sam could live. I've been taking care of him since I was four years old. I just…"

She nodded. "What about it has to do with what we're about to do?"

"Well, your uncle's got some kind of freaky ESP thing because of the demon blood in his system."

She nodded. "Okay. Dad, I'm not really seeing the point in this conversation besides to give me family history."

"You may see your uncle doing some freaky stuff. I just want you to be okay."

She nodded. "I'll be fine. I saw mom being ripped apart by demons…" she sighed, "I think I can handle this."

He smiled. "We're gonna talk about what you've seen and what you haven't."

She nodded. "Noted…." she smirked, "….daddy."

She got out of the car when he threw it into park and he laughed.

They walked into the warehouse and quietly watched. Katie covered her mouth, covering the gasps as she watch her uncle exorcize a demon with his mind. She glanced up at her dad. He held out his hand and she gladly took it.

They walk into view so that Sam could see them. Katie glared at the dark haired girl and then back at her uncle. "I gotta say, that's a pretty cool parlor trick, Uncle Sam."

"Katie…." he gasped.

"So…" Dean said, "Anything you wanna tell me, Sam?"

Sam looked at his brother innocently. The dark haired girl stood behind him, just watching Dean. Dean walked toward him as he talked.

"Dean, hold on, okay? Just let me-"

"You gonna say, "let me explain"? You're gonna explain this? How about this? Why don't you start with who she is, and what the hell is she doing here?"

Dean is staring at him hard, Sam turns back and looks at Ruby who looked completely calm. She smiled at Dean as she said, "It's good to see you again, Dean."

"Ruby?" He looked at Sam. "Is that Ruby?"

A memory flashed into the little girl's mind, she gasped. "She's that girl you met up with at the store!"

Dean glared at him. "You let her near my daughter?!"

"Dean-"

"Your daughter?" Ruby asked and then started laughing. "Maybe God does have a sense of humor."

Dean turned on Ruby and took her by the front and slammed her against the gated part of a wall. To Katie's horror, instead of defending her father or helping him, Sam wrestled the knife from Dean. Dean turned on Sam and slammed him against a wall, Katie quickly moved out of the way. Ruby then slammed Dean against the same wall she was just again.

Katie glared at her uncle. "Do something. You started this whole thing."

"Ruby, stop it!"

Ruby stared into his eyes, but keeps a chokehold on him with her right hand. Dean's staring right back at her, angry. Finally, Ruby lets him go with a shove.

Dean gasped, "Well, aren't you an obedient little bitch?"

Before Ruby could attack him again, Sam got her attention. "Ruby." She keeps looking at Dean. "Ruby, he's hurt." He signaled for her to leave. "Go."

Ruby prepares to get the man out when Dean calls to her, "Where the hell do you think you're going?"

"The ER... unless you want to go another round first."

Dean starts walking out, with just a glance at his brother. Katie sighed. "Dad, stay."

He stopped. "What?"

"You wanted to know what happened to mom. Stay. I'm sure it'll come out once I got out what I have to say to Uncle Sam."

"Katie, let-"

"No!" She screamed. "I won't let you explain. God!" She growled. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Katie-"

"You're working with demons, Sam! De-mons!" she screamed. "I can't believe you'd do this to me!"

"Do what?"

"They killed my mom!" She yelled almost at the top of her lungs. "They killed my mom. Actually enjoyed watching as they tore flesh off her body," she said. "And they wouldn't let me or Grace leave as they did it." She sighed, paced away from her family and then whirled back on them. "They killed Grace's dad and now, you're chumming it up with one of them!" She glared at him, the pain, hurt and anger there. "Not to mention that they killed three very important people to you, Sam. What is wrong with you?!"

"Katie, wait-"

"No!" she screamed. "I won't wait as you try to justify your actions. There's nothing…" she exhaled and walked out.

Dean followed. She got into the front seat where Sam usually sat and Dean got into the driver's seat. He watched her for a minute, silently fuming. "Do…d-d-do you wanna talk about it?"

She shook her head. He started the impala and just drove. She wasn't just hurt and pissed at her uncle. She was hurt and pissed at everyone in her life. Her mom for never wanting her and for rushing into that cabin that night. She was even more pissed at her mom for allowing the demons to put her and Grace in that position to watch as they killed her. She was pissed at Grace for leaving her to figure this all out on her own. If either of those women cared about her they would have stayed and treated her better.

Then her dad….he was such an idiot! Why in the heck would he make the deal with that crossroads demon to bring Sam back? So, it was true that he didn't know about her, but he wasn't here when she needed him to be and that was because he had to 'bring him back'. So, she had to figure it all out on her own. She had to make her own judgments about her father on her own because he wasn't there to correct them.

Then Uncle Sam has to go and betray them all by working with them?! Why would he do something like that when they had caused so much pain to their family. She could feel her anger coming off of her, in waves, vibrating through the car. "Dad, pull over."

"What?"

"Pull over," she said more firmly.

Dean did as she asked and pulled over. She got out of the car before it even stopped rolling and walked across the gravel. He quickly got out of the car. She balls up her firsts and tilts her head toward the sky and just lets out this sad frustrated scream.

"Katie…?"

She took a couple of deep breaths, in and out, in and out. "Why is it that the adults in my life do stupid crap?"

"Excuse me?" he asked, that question coming out of nowhere.

She seriously felt like punching something. "Why in the heck would you make such a stupid deal?!" she yelled. "Huh?" She knew that this wasn't fair to pour this all out on him, but she had to get it out. Negative emotions made her close people out. "I needed you!" she exclaimed.

Dean had no idea where all this was coming from but he had a feeling from watching the tears that slid down her cheeks and glistened in her eyes from the moonlight and the coming and going headlights, that she needed to get it out. Besides, he had a feeling it wasn't all directed toward him. "Katie-"

"It was a stupid deal," she told him, fire in her words. "It was beyond stupid. It was boneheaded." She turned and ran her hands through her hair and turned back to him. "All I wanted to do was meet you. Be with you. Finally get to know my dad. The man who helped the woman who was never my mother give me life in hopes that maybe you'd want me. Then I got to Uncle Bobby's and Grace…" her voice shook as the tears slid down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away. "When Bobby told us you went to hell I was…" She looked into his eyes. "I was devastated. Then I was angry because I thought what you did was the stupidest thing I had ever heard of. Who in their right mind would sell their soul to Hell?"

She exhaled slowly, trying to take control of her emotions, but it didn't work. "And where do I even start with the stupid stuff mom did?!" she almost screamed. "One, never telling you you were going to be a dad and why? Because she wanted to hurt you. And for some reason she thought hiding me from you would do that."

"It would have, Kate." He pressed a hand to his chest and said, his own voice shaky with tears, "I've always wanted to be a dad, but I could never imagine it because of the lifestyle we lead. And I sure as hell didn't want you in this."

"Which is why she did it," she said. "She knew it would hurt you to know that your only child was raised in a business that could kill her at every corner." She sighed. "Mom didn't want to be a mom. She had told me enough. And now, Grace doesn't want me."

Dean's chest tightened in agony as he heard his little girl bursting into tears. He hated messy emotions, but she needed to know that there was going to be one person-

"No!" she exclaimed. "I'm not done." She sighed. "Let's just chalk it up to mom being a horrible mother and decide that she should have never been a mom. Then Grace ditched me with people I barely knew so that she could go hunt with Mike." She looked at her dad. "Why doesn't anyone want…" her voice stuttered with tears, "me, daddy?"

Dean walked to her this time and Katie pounded her fists into his chest. She shoved at him. "I needed you! And you weren't here! I needed you to be the one person who wanted me!" she said as she pounded her fists into him.

He fought her and held her as she cried, himself crying. "I'm here now, Katie," he whispered. "I'm here now and I do want you, Baby. And if it takes me the rest of my life to prove it to you I will. I won't go anywhere and I promise to try not to make stupid decisions again."

She gave him a watery laugh and then pulled away from his hug. "Why would Uncle Sam work with demons, daddy when demons have done so much damage to not only him, but our entire family?"

"I don't know, baby," he said softly. "Can we get back in the car? We'll go to one of those all night diners and get some food, okay?"

She nodded. "Chili-Cheese fries?"

"All you can eat," he chuckled. "Oh, Baby, you are so my daughter."

They got back into the car and Katie waited until they were down the road a little before she said anything more to her dad. "I knew you wanted me, daddy. I've known for awhile."

"How?"

"Well, one, you believed me when I told you stuff. And two, you held me after a nightmare. Mom or Grace never did that. I know it may seem like Grace was affectionate, but most of the time she wasn't." She looked at her dad. "It means a lot to me that you would care enough and want me enough to care about my bad dreams."

He smiled and looked at her before turning his eyes to the road. "Anytime, Sweetheart. And I mean that."

In the morning, Dean pulled into the parking lot of the motel and turned to Katie. She had fallen asleep, with her head in his lap before the sunrise even finished. He touched her soft light brown hair gently and looked into her face. She was beautiful….and he made her.

This might sound horrible of me, Elle, but I'm glad some parts of you never changed and you charged in without a plan. If you hadn't I wouldn't be sitting here now, mesmerized by the one thing we did right. He gently caressed her face, moving the hair out of her face. "Hey, Beautiful. We're here. You need to get up so we can pack."

"Okay," she said groggily. She sat up and ran her hands through her hair. She slid across the seat and opened the passenger side door. She stretched. "How long was I sleeping?"

"About an hour maybe." He stopped her at the door. "Now, remember, let me and Sam duke this out, okay?"

She nodded. "I'm just gonna pack. Just don't beat him up too bad. He seems like a whiner to me." She walked into the motel, Dean laughing.

"Hey, Katie," Sam attempted.

"Good morning," she said in response. She picked up her duffle bag and looked inside, realizing she didn't really unpack all that much. She walked into the bathroom.

Dean started packing his own bag. Sam stood and went after him. "Dean, what are you doing?"

Dean ignored him and continued packing. "What, are you, are you leaving?" Sam asked as Dean packed up the rest of his clothes.

Katie walked into the room and handed Dean his toothbrush. He looked at her. "Thank you, Baby." He looked at Sam. "You don't need me. You and Ruby go fight demons."

She finished packing, zipped up her bag and waited for her dad. He grabbed the bag and started for the door, when Sam moved in the way. "Hold on. Dean, come on, man."

Dean spun and punched him in the face. Dean stopped and watched his brother.

Sam turned and looked at his brother. "You satisfied?"

Dean hit him again, then threw his bag on the floor. Sam touched his lip, it's bleeding. "I guess not."

"Do you even know how far off the reservation you've gone? How far from normal? From human?"

"I'm just exorcising demons."

Katie scoffed.

Dean yelled. "With your mind!" At a loss for words he just stared at him. "What else can you do?" He asked more calmly.

"I can send them back to hell. It only works with demons, and that's it."

Dean grabbed him and walked him backwards. "What else can you do?!"

"I told you!" Sam pushed his hand away and they stop.

"And I have every reason in the world to believe that." Dean walked away.

"Look, I should have said something," Sam insisted.

Dean stopped and turns back to Sam.

"I'm sorry, Dean. I am. But try to see the other side here."

Dean faced him. "The other side?"

"I'm pulling demons out of innocent people."

"Use the knife!"

"The knife kills the victim! What I do, most of them survive! Look, I've saved more people in the last five months than we save in a year."

"That what Ruby want you to think? Huh? Kind of like the way she tricked you into using your powers?" He shook his head, sad. "Slippery slope, brother. Just wait and see. Because it's gonna get darker and darker, and God knows where it ends."

"I'm not gonna let it go too far."

Dean smiled at that, walks over to one side of the room and knocks a lamp to the floor. He turns back to his brother, looking angry. "It's already gone too far, Sam. If I didn't you know... I would wanna hunt you."

Katie gasped. "Daddy."

"And so would other hunters," Dean told him.

The brothers continue to talk about it until they get interrupted by an old family friend named Travis.

They pack up and leave the motel. She tossed her bag into the backseat. "So, who's Travis?"

"An old friend of the family," Dean told her. "He helped teach us about hunting."

"Oh…cool." She heard a muffled ringing sound and began digging through her backpack. She finally found her cell phone and answered, "Hello?"

"It's me, Sweetheart."

She looked at the number on the display and then put the phone back to her ear. "Grace?"

"Yeah. Who'd you think it was?"

"You got a new phone, I wasn't sure. What's up?"

"Is your Uncle Sam right there?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"I need to talk to him, Katie."

She scoffed. "So, call his phone."

"Katherine-"

"No! You don't get to use my full name as if you're an actual adult who cares about me, Grace! You ditched me and I'm just supposed to be okay with that?!" She sighed. "Well, I'm sorry but I'm not. Call his phone and stop using me as a go-between because you're afraid to talk to him." She sighed. "Here he is." She held out the phone to the other man. "Just so you know, either of you ditch me and I reserve the right to kill you both myself."

Dean laughed. "Noted. But baby, we talked about that."

"And I don't plan on going anywhere, Kate."

She smiled. "Good. Now talk to Grace. Apparently she's using me as a go-between."

On the way to Carthage, they talked about 1973 and what happened. By the time they had gotten to Jack Montgomery's place, Katie was asleep in the backseat, softly snoring. Dean pulled over to the curb and pulled a blanket it from the floor of the car. He threw it on her.

"You guys seem to be doing better."

He nodded. "Much."

"She's calling you 'dad' now?"

He nodded. "Yeah." He sighed. "I thought I'd never say this, but it's a very cool feeling." He smiled. "I never thought I'd like being called 'dad' or even being one, but…."

Sam had never seen his brother like this. He seemed happy and maybe, just maybe content. Could having Katie be around be exactly what he needed?

They pulled up to the address Sam had found and sat outside the Montgomery home. "Are you sure that's him?"

Dean looks through the binoculars into the kitchen window. He just sees an average Joe type of guy. "And we're looking for…"

"Travis said to keep an eye out for anything weird."

"Weird?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, well, yeah, I've seen big weird, little weird, weird with crazy on top. But this guy? I mean, come on, this guy's boring."

"I don't know, Dean. Travis seemed pretty sure," Sam said.

Both brothers watch as the man picks up some hamburger still in the plastic packaging. He ripped it open and began eating it, scarfing it down actually like a starving man.

"Oh, that's gross!"

They turned and both smiled as Katie, groggily, looked out the window at the man who was eating the raw meat like it was his last meal. Sam looked back through the binoculars at the man. "I'd say that qualifies as weird."

"That qualifies as disgusting, Uncle Sam."

Dean chuckled. "Hey, Sleepyhead."

"I'm 'Uncle Sam' again, huh?"

She pulled her gaze to her father and then looked at the back of her uncle's head. She pulled herself forward and wrapped her arms around the large man. She kissed his cheek. "Even though I disagree with your choice of friends, you will always be my uncle. Nothing will ever change that."

He wrapped his large hands around her slender arms and squeezed affectionately. "Thank you, Katie."

"Sit back, Sweetheart." She sat back down and Dean pulled away from the curb.

They walked into the motel and Katie stopped when she seen the older man sitting at the table, one arm wrapped in a cast from his thumb to his elbow. Dean smiled. "Travis." He looked over at Sam. "See, Sam, told you we should have hid the beer."

"Get over here, Smart ass."

Dean moved past his daughter, whispering, "It's okay, Baby." He hugged the older man.

"Ahh, good to see you," Travis said.

"You too," Dean commented.

They break and Dean moves aside so that Sam can hug him. "Good to see you."

"You too, Travis." They come apart.

And thinking she's been forgotten, like she was with mom and Grace, she dropped her bag. Dean looked at Travis and then Katie. "Travis, I want you to meet someone. Katie, baby, come here, please."

She walked over to her dad and looked at the tall man. Dean began the introductions, "Travis, this is my daughter, Katie. Katie, this is an old friend of ours, Travis."

Travis was stunned. "Your daughter?"

He nodded. "Yep."

"Hi," she said. "Good to meet you." She tapped his cast. "I hope the other guy looks worse."

"We can hope," he chuckled. He looked at Sam. "Damn, you got tall, kid."

"How long has it been?" Travis asked.

"Ah, gotta be 10 years," Sam said.

"You still a.. oh, what was it... a mathlete?"

"No."

"Yep, sure is."

Katie smirked up at him. "Aww, Uncle Sam was a geek."

"Hey, hey, hey," Sam said. "I wouldn't say much, Miss ninth grader."

Dean stopped and looked at his brother. "What?"

He nodded. "That's what the phone call was about from Grace. She wanted to let me know that the test I had Katie take a week ago came back and it would seem that intelligence runs in the family. Your daughter is a high school freshman."

"And thank God, I don't gotta go to a regular school. Can you imagine how much crap I'd get for only being twelve and in the ninth grade?" She looked up at her dad and uncle. "I'm gonna jump in the shower."

"Okay, baby."

She grabbed her pajamas and then headed into the bathroom. Travis waited for the door to close and then looked at Dean. "Your daughter?"

Dean nodded. "Yeah, I thought that too."

Travis looked at the kid. He looked extremely happy to be one, proud even. "You're liking it."

"Well, I've only had her for a few days, but I love it."

Travis nodded. "Been too long, boys. I mean, look at you. Grown men." He looked at Dean. "You're a dad." He looked at both boys. "John would have been damn proud of you. Sticking together like this."

"Yeah. Yeah, we're as thick as thieves." Dean glanced at Sam, who's smile was disappearing with his words. "Nothing more important than family."

Travis walked over to the table, as Dean followed, ignoring Sam. "Sorry I'm late for the dance."

They sit at the table, Sam sits on the bed next to Dean, across from Travis. "Thanks for helping out an old man. I'm a little, uh, shorthanded." They all laugh. He looked at both boys. "You track down Montgomery?"

"Yeah, we found him at his home," Sam said.

"And?" he insisted.

"Well, he had a hell of a case of the munchies, topped off with a burger he forgot to cook."

"That's him alright."

"What's him?"

"Boys, we got a rougarou on our hands."

"A rougarou?" He looked at Sam for a second. "Is that made up?" He looked back at Travis before Sam could answer. "That sounds made up."

"They're mean, nasty little suckers. Rotted teeth, wormy skin, the works."

"Well, that ain't this guy. I mean, he was wearing a cellphone on his belt."

He'll turn ugly soon enough. They start out human, for all intents and purposes."

"So, what? They go through some kind of metamorphosis?"

"Yep, like a maggot turning into a bull fly."

"But most of all they're hungry."

"Hungry for what?" Dean asked.

"Daddy."

Travis shut up and waited for Katie to come closer. Dean turned. "Yeah, Baby?"

"Do you have cash on you for a pizza?"

He stood and pulled some cash from one of his front pockets. He handed it to her. "Remember to get-"

"Meat lovers," she finished for him. "I know, daddy." She wrinkled her nose at her uncle. "So, you still want veggie pizza?"

He nodded. She shook her head. "You are not normal."

"What?" he laughed.

"Vegetables do not belong on a pizza, Uncle Sam. Unless it's peppers and onions. And even at that point they're not considered vegetables."

Sam laughed, hard. "Oh, man, she is so yours!"

"And it used to make mom really mad too," she tossed over her shoulder.

"Yeah, well…"

She pulled her cell phone from the front pocket of her duffle bag and then walked over to her father. She kissed him on the cheek and hugged him tightly. For Dean, this was paradise right here. To hold in his arms something he created, to already feel the love that was already there for the little girl. He kissed her hair.

She turned her face into his neck and whispered, "I already love you more."

He didn't need to hear anything more. He hugged her tight. "I love you too, Baby," he whispered. And he had never said those 3 words and meant them more.

By Katie's reaction to him saying that, he could tell that Elle never said it and Grave probably hardly ever did. He hugged her tighter again and said, "Go order the pizzas, Kit-Kat."

She walked away and Dean looked at his brother. "Shut up."

He held up his hands in a 'don't-shoot' pose and said, "I would never."

Dean looked at Travis, "So, what are they hungry for?"

"At first, for everything, but then... for long pig."

Sam scoffed a little at that, understanding what he meant by it. Dean looked at both them confused. "Long pig?"

"He means human flesh."

"And that is my word of the day."

Katie smirked as she hung up the phone. "Ten to one says it was never on Seasame Street."

They laughed. Travis continued, "Hunger grows in till they can't fight it. Till they got to take themselves a big, juicy chomp, and then it happens."

Katie cringed. "That just sounds disgusting."

"What happens?" Sam asked.

"They transform completely and bite's all it takes. Eyes, teeth, skin; all turns. No going back either. They feed once, they're a monster forever. And our man Jack's headed there on a bullet train."

"Well, how'd you find this guy if he's a walking, talking human?" Dean asked as Katie leaned her head on his arm.

"Lets just say it runs in his family."

"You mean, uh…"

"Killed his daddy back in '78. Son of a bitch mangled 8 bodies before I put him down. Guy used to be a dentist. Cadillac, trophy wife... Little did I know, pregnant trophy wife. She put the boy up for adoption. By the time I found out, he was long gone, lost in the system."

"You mean to tell me you couldn't find someone?" Sam sounded surprised.

Travis sighed, "I'm not sure I wanted to. The idea of hunting down some poor kid... I don't think I'd have the heart. No. I wanted to wait, make damn sure I had the right man. Apparently, I do." He took a swig of his beer.

The room fell silent and Katie sighed. "Well, that just brought down the room."

"Hey, Katie-it's cool if I call you that?" Travis asked.

She nodded. "No one calls me Katherine unless they're mad at me. Mom used to call me 'Katherine' all the time."

"Can I ask you some questions?"

She nodded. "Sure."

"Who's your mom?"

"Elizabeth Manning. Patrick Manning's daughter."

His eyes widened and he looked at Dean. "I didn't know you and Elizabeth were together."

"Not many did and we weren't together long. I didn't even know Katie existed until a couple of weeks ago."

"Really?" he asked a little surprised.

He nodded. "Why?"

"By the way you guys act you'd think you've known this whole time."

Dean smiled, proud. "Thanks. But no. Had no idea she was pregnant."

Katie cleared her throat. "Next question."

"When were you born?"

"Um….July 4, 1996 in a motel room in Oklahoma City. And before you ask, my mother was killed by demons about eleven months ago. Took me awhile to convince my mother's best friend, Grace to help me find my dad."

"Is your last name Winchester?"

She had a feeling she knew what this was. She stood from the bed she was sitting with Sam and walked over to her duffle bag. She dug around for something and then pulled out sealed folder. She walked back over to the bed, pulled it out of the plastic and opened it on the bed. She pulled something out of the folder and handed it to him.

Travis looked at it. Sitting there in printed black was Dean's full name listed as father. He looked at Dean. "Did you ever get anything in the mail about a kid?"

He shook his head. "But I couldn't in the eyes of the government Dean Winchester's dead, so…." He took the paper and looked it over. She was 6 pounds, 3 ounces and 23 inches long. He looked at Katie. "You shouldn't be holding these, Sweetheart."

She nodded. "I know. I just didn't know where to keep them."

"Uncle Bobby would have kept them, Baby," he said and looked through the rest of it out of curiosity.

There was a knock on the door and Katie turned to get the pizzas.

A couple of hours later, Katie was curled up in bed sleeping as Travis and Dean prepared to take out Jack with blow torches. Sam walked into the room, papers in hand. "Not wasting any time, are you?"

"None to waste. The guy hulks out, we won't be finding bodies, just remains."

Sam walked further into the room and seen Katie sleeping. He pulled the covers up around her a little more, then sat on the bed next to the table. "What if he doesn't hulk out? I did a little homework. Uh, I've been checking out the lore on rougarous."

"What? My 30 years of experience not good enough for you?"

"What? No. No, I-I- I just wanted to be prepared. I mean, not that you didn't.."

"Sam loves research. He does. He keeps it under his mattress right next to his KY. It's a sickness." He gave Sam a matter-of-fact look. "It is."

"Look, everything you said checked out, of course, but uh. I found a couple of interesting stories about people who have this rougarou gene or whatever. See, they start to turn, but they never take the final step."

"Really?"

"See, if they never eat human flesh, they don't fully transform."

"So what? Go vegan, stay human?"

"Basically. Or in this case, eat a lot of raw meat, just not…"

"Long pig," Dean said, smiling.

"Right."

"Congratulations, daddy. You finally got to use it."

"Hey, you're supposed to be sleeping."

"Voices carry," she said as if that's explanation enough.

Entire time Travis was quiet as Sam explained. He stands, "Good on you for the due diligence, Sam. But those are fairy tales."

He walked to the pantry as Katie got out of bed. "Don't pacify him like that."

"What?" Dean said.

"Don't pacify him like that. He's an adult now. He's not the scrawny little kid that needs to be placated." She looked at her father. "I have been told by Grace, you and Uncle Sam that this job is about sixty percent research."

"Right."

"So the one time that he actually did what you taught him and the fountain of knowledge on these…things is going to trumps all that?"

Dean didn't say anything. Travis smiled. "Look, you're just a little girl, you don't under-"

"Do not tell me I don't understand!" she almost yelled. "I understand a lot more than you think, Old Man!"

"Katherine!"

She glared at her father. "Huh. This must be what Grace meant by you bending to the will of men who remind you of your father."

"Excuse me?"

She turned on him and said, "You heard me." She looked into her father's eyes. "He's not grandpa. You don't have to stand at attention every time he walks into a room and you sure as heck don't have to follow everything he tells you like grandpa did. You're a dad now. Act like it." She grabbed the pillow and blanket off the bed. "I'm sleeping in Baby."

"Fact is, every rougarou I ever saw or heard of... took that bite," Travis said as Katie started walking out.

"Katie. Please, stay."

Sam stood while speaking, "Okay, well, that doesn't mean that Jack will."

Dean watched Sam rise, and rose himself. Travis said, "So what do we do? Sit and hope and wait for a body count?"

"No, we talk to him. Explain what's happening. That way he can fight it."

The conversation continued, but honestly Katie tuned him out, unable to listen to this old man anymore. Finally she tuned back in, "I don't know. But we're not gonna kill him unless he does something to get killed for."

Katie looked at him, just as her dad did. Sam took a couple of breaths and left. Travis looked at Dean, a bit puzzled by Sam's reaction. "What's up with your brother."

Dean looked at the door and then Travis. "Don't get me started."

Katie scoffed. She knew where this attitude was coming from. She'd been playing in her mind what Castiel said to them about Sam. You stop him or we will. And she couldn't but think that they'd kill him. "Don't get you started?" she asked. "Dad, you know exactly what is wrong with him, because you did it."

"Outside," Dean barked.

Katie's face paled slightly and she walked out. He stopped her. "First off, you will not speak to me like that again."

She nodded solemnly. He continued, "And second, what is wrong with you?"

She sighed. "I'm sorry daddy."

He sighed and looked her in the eyes. "It's okay, Baby. Tell me what's wrong?"

"Well, Travis is acting like there is no other way and even in the short time I've known you and Uncle Sam you've shown me there's always another way." She exhaled. "Plus…would you really kill Uncle Sam?"

He looked taken aback by her question. "Of course not." He remembered what he said and knelt down to her. "Sweetheart, you have to remember, I took care of Uncle Sammy. I would never intentionally hurt him, but you know-"

"But Cas said they'd stop him!" she reminded him. "And I keep thinking that they'd kill him without even batting an eye."

"They probably would," Dean said softly. He smoothed out her hair. "But Baby, I would never let them hurt him. Just like I would never let them hurt you, okay?"

She nodded. Dean looked her in the eyes and said, "Now, please, go back to bed. You need sleep."

She nodded. He tucked her in and then went back to the table and helped Travis.

The next morning, Katie woke up to quiet. She stretched and glanced at the bedside table clock. 9:30. Wow….mom never let me sleep past eight-thirty. "Daddy?"

Silence.

She sat up, pushing the covers back. She looked around and didn't see anything. "Daddy?"

Still…silence. She looked at the table and smiled when she seen a plate of donuts. She walked over to the table and looked at the sweets. That's when she saw the note She picked it up and read:

Katie,

Good morning, Sweetheart. Uncle Sam and I went to talk to Jack. The donuts on the table are all yours. There's orange juice in the mini fridge. And we should be back before you're alone too long.

We love you,

Dad

Uncle Sam.

She sighed. Dad knew how much it bothered her growing up to be alone. They had talked about it at the diner after Uncle Sam's secret was revealed. She finished one of the donuts and then decided on her outfit for the day. She cranked the music up and then headed for the shower.

Dean parked the impala and they both got out of the car and headed for the motel room, when they heard the upbeat 80s rock coming from their room. Dean unlocked the door and pushed it open. Sam snickered as they both watched the young teenager, rocking out, dancing like she hadn't a care in the world. She hopped up on the bed and danced around before she noticed that they were standing.

Dean watched as her cheeks tinged pink and she hopped off the bed. She walked over to the radio and flicked it off. "Sorry," she said softly.

Sam looked at her curiously and then at Dean. Dean walked into the room after his brother and closed the door behind him. "Why are you apologizing?"

She shrugged. Dean lifted a brow to his daughter. "Sweetheart…?"

She sighed and spit it out at about a mile a minute. "Mom used to get mad at me for turning it up because she said we had to keep a low profile."

He smiled. "Well, I don't know if you realized this but I'm not your mother."

She nodded slowly. "I know…."

Dean walked to her and wrapped his arms around her. "Baby, I'm not mad. And neither is Uncle Sam."

"However, did you finish that English assignment that Grace assigned you?" Sam asked her.

She nodded. "I finished it about twenty minutes ago. Hence the dance party." She shrugged. "It seemed appropriate."

"Was it hard?" Dean asked.

She shook her head. "No. Not hard. Just long. I've been working on the assignment since the beginning of September." She looked into his eyes. "Grace was a tyrant when it came to school. She liked to assign big assignments that would take me a long time to finish that way they could leave me for hours and do the case while I sat here doing homework."

"When you had a question who helped you?"

"Google," she admitted to her uncle. "Or there's this website, um…for students who need help in certain areas of school. I just ask the questions on there and they helped me with the answers."

Sam nodded. "Okay. Um…well, that won't be happening with me." He cleared his throat. "The only thing you'll be left with is writing assignments. Everything else I'll be here."

"And if you don't finish the homework Uncle Sam assigns you then you don't go hunting with us," Dean told her, with a hint of authority in his voice.

Her jaw dropped. "You mean I actually can go with you?"

Dean nodded. "Yeah. Um…between lessons with Uncle Sam I'll teach you about guns and stuff. I don't feel comfortable with you shooting at your age, but…"

"Grace taught me a little bit."

He nodded. "Good."

Changing the subject she asked, "How was whatever you went to go do?"

"We went to talk to Jack and of course, he didn't believe us."

Later that night, Dean and Sam left Katie in the motel room just in case that Travis came back. When he did he gathered stuff up and left again. Not liking the feel she got for him at that point, she followed him. He ended up at Jack Montgomery's place. She watched as the older man tied up Jack's wife.

She hid from Jack when he came home. She then watched as the man chloroformed Jack. She sighed. She pulled her cell phone out and dialed her dad.

"Katie, what is it, Baby?"

"Daddy, we have a problem."

"What?" he asked.

"Travis left the motel room without a word to me. I didn't like the vibe, so, I followed him. He's at Jack's house. He's tied them both up. I seriously think that your 'old friend' has gone certifiable, daddy."

"Okay, Baby, we'll be right there. Don't make yourself known, alright?"

"Okay."

She did as her dad said, but then she watched as Jack broke free and attacked Travis. She watched in horror as Travis tried to fight him, but it didn't work. Jack overpowered him, then started eating him. Katie moved away from the bushes and started throwing up.

That's how Dean and Sam found her. They rushed to her, Dean rubbing her back. "You okay?"

"You…" she panted…. "you need to get in there. Go. Mrs. Montgomery is already gone, but…Go."

"Okay," Sam told her. "Stay here, okay? Just stay here."

She nodded. She did as they told her and stayed put as they headed inside. She waited a little while and then went around the house, checking the windows. That's when she seen Jack, with her dad knocked out on the coffee table, but she didn't see Sam. Remembering what Travis said, she popped the trunk and looked for anything she could use to set this guy on fire.

Finally finding something, she dug into her bag and pulled out her hairspray. She rushed inside and slowly snuck in and got to the living room to see Jack inching toward her dad. "Get away from him!"

"Katie!" Sam yelled from the closet. "Katie, honey, you got to get out of here!"

Sam rushed out of the closet to see Katie raise the stick, then set it on fire with the lighter she had kept in her bag. She dropped the lighter and used her hairspray and sprayed the fire toward him. She waited until he was burnt to a crisp.

In between the time that Katie burnt Jack and Sam got out of the closet, Dean came to and watched as his little girl burnt someone alive. Sam took the stick and tossed it into the fireplace. She was in shock as she backed away. "Daddy…"

He stood and rushed to her. "It's okay, Baby. I'm okay."

"I had to. I had to. I had to," she kept repeating.

"I know, Baby. I know. It's okay," Dean told her, rocking her, soothing her. "It's okay. You saved us, baby."

"But…B-B-But I killed…I killed…" The acknowledgement of that seemed to have broke her control and she began to sob.

He rocked her, shushing her. "It's okay, Baby. It'll be okay." He lifted her in his arms and they walked out of the house, all three of them together.