Yes I know I suck for taking so long to update. I have good reasons though, such as severe writer's block, I was sick, and I am working two jobs (applying for job number three as soon as this is posted). I'm so sorry it took so long and I'll try to do better! I just wanted to thank all of you who reviewed last chapter and all of the other chapters. Your reviews mean so much to me and they really do help me push through those times where I couldn't come up with relatively creative to save my life. Also a special thanks to my beta Hawkeye'sBowGirl for catching my mistakes and fixing what needs to be fixed.

Tigereyekum had a good question about the last chapter and why Aubri would go with Dean when he went to Lisa's house even though she knew it was going to hurt. I like to think that despite all of the good qualities Aubri has, she is kind of a glutton for punishment and maybe a little too curious sometimes. Sure she knew seeing Dean with Lisa would hurt, but she also let her curiosity about Lisa get the better of her so she decided to deal with the hurt to satisfy her curiosity.

They made a pretty hasty exit after Lisa told them about all of the "accidents" happening in the neighborhood. "Something is definitely wrong here." Aubri muttered as she followed Dean to the car, trying to keep up with his longer strides.

"Yeah, maybe, we'll tell Sammy and then we'll check it out." Dean said, climbing into the driver's seat and grimacing as he wiped a glob of slobber that Folsom had left behind, off of the steering wheel.

Aubri shook her head as she climbed into the passenger seat after letting Folsom into the backseat, "Dean, there is no maybe about it, something nasty is happening here. Did you see that little girl whose dad fell on the power saw? She was majorly creepy. Folsom growled at her Dean. I actually thought he was gonna take a bite out of her for a second and she didn't even flinch. And to top it all off, her mom didn't even seem pissed; it was like she would have been ok with my dog eating her kid. It just doesn't feel right."

Dean glanced at the dopey dog sitting in the backseat, tongue lolling happily out of the side of his mouth. "Yeah that does seem pretty weird."

"Pretty weird? " Aubri questioned, "Dean, that dumb dog loves everyone. The only time I've ever heard him growl was when he thought he was protecting me. So if he growled at that kid then something is wrong with her."

"We'll check it out Aubs, don't worry." Dean said, reaching out and grabbing her hand, giving it a quick squeeze before dropping it and putting his hand back on the wheel.

Aubri stared at him, mouth hanging slightly open. She just didn't get this guy. One minute he is hot and heavy, trying to get her into bed. The next, he all but ignores her so he can hook up with some old flame. Then he's back to doing things like grabbing her hand. She shook her head and turned to look out the window, trying to figure out what the hell was going on with this case, and with Dean.

After a few minutes of silence, Aubri spoke up again, "So is he yours?" She tried to push down the bitterness and slight jealousy she felt as she waited for his response.

"What?"

With a sigh she turned around in her seat to face him, "The kid, Ben, is he yours?"

Dean stared at her blankly for a moment before pulling his phone out of his pocket with a shake of his head, "Nah, Lisa said he wasn't."

"I guess that's good then." Relief flooded Aubri and she tried to hold back a smile. Sure she was still jealous of Lisa for being the reason they came to Cicero, but at least she didn't feel some unnecessary hate towards the lady for being the mother of Dean's child. She knew it was ridiculous for her to feel that way to begin with, Dean wasn't hers, but she didn't know this Lisa and her existence had already kind of screwed up whatever had been happening between her and Dean, at least for the time being. But if Ben had actually been Dean's kid, who knows what would have happened? Would he have wanted to stay? And what would that have meant for her and Sam? Sure Sam would have been welcome to stay, but her, she wasn't family, she was just the girl who showed up out of the blue. They were still trying to find a way to get her home, which meant that they didn't want her to stay. She shook her head trying to get the dark thoughts out of her head, they had a hunt to focus on; it was just what she needed. "You gonna call Sam and let him know what's going on?"

"Yeah," he said, nodding as he dialed Sam's number and put the phone to his ear. He glanced at Aubri out of the corner of his eye as the phone rang. She seemed upset and it was more than the usual Aubs is pissed at me cause I'm an idiot kind of upset, she looked like she was about to cry and he sure as hell didn't want that. He elbowed her gently and gave her a quick wink and a smile when she looked at him, earning him a faint blush on her cheeks accompanied by a small smile as she shook her head at him.

Finally Sam picked up, "Hello?"

"Dude, there is a job here. You know that one freak accident we read about in the paper? Turns out there's four more that never even made the paper. All in this Morning Hill gated community. There's people falling off of ladders, drowning in their Jacuzzis all over the neighborhood."

"That is weird…"

"Yeah, there's something these big gates can't protect them from. We're heading your way so be ready." Dean cranked the engine, hanging up as it roared to life.

"So, we going to check out the houses where these guys died?" Aubri asked, her eyes lighting up as she smiled at the thought of the upcoming hunt.

Dean nodded as he looked her up and down, taking in her plain white t-shirt, jeans, and Chucks. "We should probably make a quick stop if you're gonna do any real helping."

Aubri's brow furrowed, "Why?"

"Cause Aubs, you gotta look the part." He explained.

~TFS~

They stopped by a little clothing store and Aubri settled on a black blazer, a light blue, flowy blouse paired with a just-above-the-knee-length black pencil skirt that she thought border lined on the tight side, but Dean assured her it was fine, and a pair black pumps that her grandma would have called "hooker heels" even though they only had a four inch heel. She straightened her skirt as she walked out of the store, Dean trailing just behind her, "Ok so I get that I have to look the part and all, but what use am I going to be to you guys if we have to make a getaway and I can't run in these shoes. Maybe we should take them back and I can get those flats." She said nervously, turning slightly as if she were going to go back and return the heels.

Dean grabbed her by the arms, stopping her mid turn, and forced her to keep walking towards the Impala, "The shoes are fine Aubs." He said, rolling his eyes. He wasn't a fashion consultant for crying out loud, but there was no way in hell he was letting her take those heels back when they made her legs look that good.

Sam had walked from the motel to meet them at the store since it was only a couple blocks away and was leaning on the Impala waiting for them, already in his suit and tie. "Looking good Aubs."

She pulled her arms out of Dean's hold as she walked the rest of the way to the Impala, "You don't look so bad yourself and you get to wear normal shoes. I'm gonna be easy pickings for anything that moves faster than a leisurely walk."

"At least now you're not so short." Sam said, opening the car door for her.

"I am not short Sam; you two are the abnormally tall ones." Aubri said with a huff as she tried to gracefully enter the car in a skirt and heels.

"Whatever you say Aubs." Dean said with a laugh as Sam handed him the bag that his "professional looking" clothes were in.

Sam climbed into the front seat as Dean went back inside the store to change. "So I guess you guys do this pretty often." Aubri said, leaning forward in her seat.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, turning slightly to look at her.

"This," Aubri gestured at his clothes, "the whole dressing up and pretending to be someone official thing."

Sam nodded, "Yeah, it's easier to get into people's houses this way. It's a hell of alot easier to say you're FBI or that you work for the insurance company than to knock on someone's door and say 'Hey you've got a monster in your basement, do you mind if we come in and take care of that?'"

Aubri nodded as she settled back in her seat, looking out the window and watching the front doors of the store, waiting for Dean to emerge. "That makes sense. It's kind of fun in a way don't you think? I mean it's like playing dress up, but not in a weird kinky way."

"Yeah, I guess so." Sam laughed.

Aubri continued to watch to store doors for Dean and when he emerged, her heart started slamming in her chest and her face got really warm. She had to admit, the jerk sure did clean up nice and there was nothing she liked more than a well dressed man. A cocky grin spread across Dean's face as he caught her staring at him and Aubri quickly looked away, face blushing a deep red. Get it together Aubri, she mentally scolded herself. She was mad at him, wasn't that supposed to make it easier for her to not want to pounce on him when he smiled at her like that?

~TFS~

They made their way back to Morning Hills and stopped by a few of the houses where men had died in the supposed accidents. Aubri helped Sam ask questions while Dean walked around the houses, looking for clues that would lead to something supernatural. After they left the second to last house on their list, they started to head back to the Impala. Aubri took off her shoes, leaning down to rub her feet quickly before hurrying after Sam and Dean. "Should've gone with the flats." She muttered as she slowed down between the two brothers. "So that little girl, Dakota, she was pretty terrifying wasn't she? I mean in a, she probably watches you while you sleep and cuts the heads off of her dolls kind of way."

Sam and Dean both nodded in agreement, "Yeah, and did you see the red marks near the windows and fences?" Sam asked, turning to look down at Aubri.

"Yeah, do you think that means something?"

Sam shook his head slightly, "Probably, I'm not sure yet." He looked down at the shoes Aubri was holding in her hands, "Why don't you guys go ahead and head back to the room, I can handle this last one on my own."

"You sure about that?" Dean asked, turning to look at his brother.

"Yeah, it's fine." Sam reached out and put a hand on Aubri's shoulder, giving it a light squeeze, "You did good today Aubs."

Aubri beamed up at him, "Thanks Sam."

Sam turned with a wave and headed towards the last address on the list while Dean and Aubri continued walking to the Impala, which they had left parked by the small park that was in the gated community. Folsom was waiting patiently in the car, big head hanging out of the window that had been left rolled down for him. Dean opened the door and let the big dog out so he could stretch his legs, "Get out of here you big drool machine." He muttered, trying to sound mad at Folsom, who took off running towards the park with a quiet bark.

"Don't even try to act mad." Aubri said, shoving Dean's shoulder playfully, "You know you like him." She switched the painful heels for her chucks she had left lying in the floorboards of the Impala before standing back up and looking over the roof of the car. "Where did he get off to?" She muttered quietly, scanning the green park for any sign of her dog. She spotted him sitting next to a bench, big head resting in a kid's lap as his tail wagged slowly. A smile spread across Aubri's face when she realized who the kid was and her elbow shot out to catch Dean lightly in the side, "Look who he found." She set off towards the park bench, Dean trailing close behind her.

When they got to the bench, Folsom looked at them briefly before sighing and putting his big head back in Ben's lap. "Hey Ben." Dean said with a wave.

"Hey, you guys were at my party." The little boy looked up at them, sounding a little sad when he spoke. "This is your dog right?"

"Yeah, well, he's her dog." Dean said, pointing at Aubri. "This is Aubri and I'm Dean."

"And this is Folsom," Aubri added, crouching down next to Folsom and scratching his head, "He really seems to like you." She smiled at Ben as Dean went to sit next to him, bothered by the fact that the little boy looked so sad, "Are you alright Ben?"

Ben just looked down at this lap and shrugged, not saying a word. Aubri noticed the empty case in his hands and looked at Dean, nodding towards the case when he made eye contact with her. Dean looked from the game case to a group of boys who looked a little older than Ben who were all huddled around one boy playing a game. "Is that your game they're playing with?" He asked, looking back at Ben.

"Brian Humphrey borrowed it, and now he won't give it back." Ben said without looking up.

"You want me to go..." Dean started to stand up before Ben grabbed him and stopped him.

"No! Don't go over there, only bitches send a grown up." Ben said forcefully.

Aubri laughed, a little shocked by the kid's language, while Dean smirked, "You're not wrong." He had to give it to the kid, he was pretty tough.

"And I'm not a bitch." Ben said, settling back against the bench with a shake of his head, reaching a hand out to pet Folsom on the head.

Dean looked back over at the kids playing the game and leaned in towards Ben, "Is that Humphrey? The one that needs to lay off the burgers?" When Ben nodded, Dean leaned in a little closer, "Here's what you're going to do." He glanced up at Aubri and, realizing that she probably wouldn't agree with what he was about to tell the kid, whispered his instructions to Ben so she couldn't hear.

When Ben got up and started walking towards the group of boys, Aubri took his spot on the bench next to Dean. "What did you tell him?" She asked suspiciously.

"Something every kid his age should know how to do." He replied with a shrug.

"And what is that exactly?"

Dean nodded his head towards the huddle of boys, "Just wait and see Aubs."

Ben looked back at them when the group of boys wouldn't let him into their group and when Dean gave him a thumbs up, Aubri got a bad feeling that the advice he had given Ben wasn't necessarily the normal advice one would give a kid in this situation. She smiled as Ben turned to walk back towards the bench, but that smile was quickly replaced with a look of shock as Ben quickly turned back around and kneed Brian Humphrey in the groin. She couldn't help but smile just a little as the bully rolled on the ground and Ben took back his game, running back over to them with a huge smile across his face. "Dude that was awesome!" The little boy said as he came to a stop in front of them. His huge smile was contagious and Aubri couldn't help but beam back at him.

Dean stuck his hand up, "Up high, that's right!" He said encouragingly as Ben sat down between him and Aubri.

Celebrations were cut short by a disapproving voice, "Benjamin Isaac Braeden, what's gotten into you?" Lisa asked angrily.

"He stole my game!" Ben explained.

"So you kick him? Since when is…" Lisa trailed off when her eyes landed on Dean, "Did you tell my son to beat up that kid?"

Aubri grimaced as Dean began to defend himself, knowing that whatever explanation he had wasn't going to go over well with Lisa, "Somebody had to teach him how to kick a bully in the nads." He reasoned.

"Who asked you to teach him anything?"

"Just relax." Dean said, trying his best to get Lisa to calm down. He was starting to feel kinda bad about telling Ben to kick the kid now, if only because Lisa was about to tear him a new one.

Lisa reached out and grabbed Dean's arm, pulling him off the bench, leaving Aubri sitting with Ben who was looking down at his hands in his lap. Aubri couldn't help but feel a little bad for the kid, all he wanted was to get his game back. Sure kicking the kid maybe hadn't been the best way to do it, but kids fought. Hell, even she had kicked a couple boys in the shins for pulling her hair and making fun of her glasses growing up. She reached out and gave Ben's shoulder a light squeeze, smiling faintly when he looked up at her. "She's pretty pissed isn't she?" He said quietly.

Aubri could tell the kid was worried that his mom was going to lay into him when she was done with Dean, "Don't worry about it bud." She said, giving his shoulder another squeeze, "She's just mad at Dean. Ladies like your mom are always mad at Dean."

That earned her a brief smile that faded quickly when Lisa grabbed Ben's hand and pulled him after her, "Just leave us alone." She said tersely to Dean, glaring at him before shooting a warning look at Aubri as well.

Aubri stood up to go stand next to Dean, who was watching Lisa and Ben walk off with a slightly hurt look on his face. She stopped when Ben rushed past her and grabbed onto Dean's legs, giving him a hug and looking up at him, "Thanks." He said before letting go and moving on to quickly wrap his arms around Aubri in a tight squeeze before patting Folsom on the head and taking back off after his mom.

"He's a sweet kid." Aubri said, bumping Dean with her shoulder as they watched Lisa lead Ben away.

"Yeah…" Dean said not really focusing on what Aubri was saying. He was more interested in the three kids who were standing in a row, not playing, just staring.

Aubri looked up at Dean, she could tell he was distracted, "What is it?" Dean didn't say anything, he just nodded towards the three kids as they turned their heads in unison to stare at them. Aubri shivered slightly and moved to stand closer to Dean. She heard a rumbling sound coming from the ground by her feet and looked down to see Folsom standing in front of her and Dean protectively, hackles raised as he growled at the three children from afar. "He's doing it again Dean." Aubri whispered.

Dean looked from Folsom to the kids and then back down at Folsom, trying to figure out what it was that the big dog was sensing that he couldn't. He put an arm around Aubri's shoulders, "Come on Aubs, let's get out of here. We'll see if Sam found anything."

~TFS~

When they got back to the motel room, Dean didn't waste any time with hello's, "Something's wrong with the kids in this town." He announced, Aubri nodding in agreement as she followed him inside.

"Yeah tell me about it." Sam said, not taking his eyes off of his computer screen.

Aubri went to stand behind Sam, leaning over his shoulder as she looked at the screen of his laptop, "Got any ideas?" She asked, knowing full well that he did after she saw the open windows on his browser.

"Yeah, what do you know about changelings?" Sam said, turning to look over his shoulder at them.

"Evil monster babies?" Dean provided as he went through the stuff on his bed.

Sam shook his head, turning to look at the laptop screen again, "No, not necessarily babies."

"So the kids, like that creepy little girl we saw at that one house, and the kids Folsom growled at at the park?" Aubri asked, moving to sit on her bed next to Folsom.

"Yeah, there's one in every victims' house." Sam handed Dean a map of the neighborhood and Dean held it out so Aubri could look at it as she stood up and moved beside him.

"So what exactly is the story on these changelings?" Aubri asked, looking up from the map.

"Well, they can perfectly mimic children. According to lore they climb in the window and snatch the kid." Sam explained.

That rang a bell with Aubri, "Would that explain the marks on the window at that one house?"

Sam nodded, "Could be, they looked to me like blood."

"So a changeling grabs a kid, assumes its form, and joins the happy fam just for kicks?" Dean asked.

"Not quite," Sam said, "Changelings feed on the mom, synovial fluid, the moms have these odd bruises on the backs of their necks. Changelings can drain them for a few weeks before mom finally croaks."

Aubri's brow furrowed as she scratched Folsom behind his ears, "So is that why all the dads keep dropping like flies around these kids, cause they get in the way?"

"Yeah, seems like anything that gets between them and their food source ends up dead."

"And fire is the only way to waste them?" Dean asked, holding up his homemade flamethrower.

"Yep." Sam confirmed.

"Great, so we just bust in, grab the kids, drag them out and torch them on the front lawn, that'll go great with the neighbors." Dean said sarcastically.

"Sam, what do they do with the real kids? They don't…" Aubri trailed off, chilled at the thought that these things might kill the real children.

Sam shook his head, "No they don't. According to lore they stash them underground somewhere. I don't know why, but hopefully it's true and the real kids are out there somewhere."

"We better start looking," Dean said, standing up and then stopping as a thought crossed his mind, "So, any kid in the neighborhood is vulnerable?"

Aubri knew exactly who he was thinking about, "Looks like we have a stop to make." She said as she shrugged on her jacket, Dean nodded in agreement.

"If the real kids are out there we might not have time." Sam argued.

"Sam, we have to." Dean knew that Ben wasn't his, but he had started to like the kid and he didn't want anything to happen to him or Lisa.

Once again, I am so sorry for the wait. I really hope you guys liked this chapter! Please review, although I'm not going to promise a time for the next update because I just don't know how much time I will have to write because of my work schedule.