A/N- Another chapter, this time from Bobby's POV! I grudged and grumbled about writing from his eyes, but as it turns out, I like writing from his crotchety POV. He has a way of seeing right through things and calling bullshit that I love. And also, I realized a minor mistake I made. At this point in canon, Bobby's supposed to be in a wheelchair and have a bed instead of a couch. Now that I realize it, it's actually a bit more than a minor mistake. However, at this point, I've already written Bobby walking and people sitting on his couch and such, and I don't feel the tremendous need to go back and change it. So, for my purposes, Bobby for some reason has use of his legs. Sorry for the slip up :/ Thanks again to those who reviewed - AlaskaForever, you are a doll.

Chaper 13

Bobby couldn't help but grumble to himself as he put away his precious stock of morphine. He had seven of the little glass bottles left, and that was not enough of safety blanket in his opinion. It's not like the stuff was an especially rare commodity, but he was no doctor and to get the stock he had built up, he had to go through several channels and trade in favors that he would rather save for a rainier day. He had enough sense to know that you saved those up, especially in the middle of the damn Apocalypse.

But other people, namely hunters, didn't always appreciate his thrifty attitude. With them, it was always all hands on deck, give me what you got ASAP, all the time. 'Give me what you got Bobby'. 'Look this up for me Bobby'. All day, every day, the phones never stopped ringing and Bobby rarely was away from his books long enough to eat meals himself. He understood the cause (hunting the evil sons of bitches that the Apocalypse had caused was no easy feat, and hunting was about as hands on as it got), but occasionally he wished the seasoned men in his field would use the brains God gave them for a little more thinking than just aiming a gun.

He loitered around the door into the living room, observing in silence as Sam sat vigil over his inert brother. Those two…Right now, he couldn't even pin point the strongest emotion he felt at the moment towards the brothers. Everything was vying for his attention at once.

On one hand, he was pissed. Oh, was he pissed. They had expressly told Dean they were close to a solution, to finding a weapon they could use on Achlys. And what did the idjit do instead? He'd gone anyways, no plan of attack, no nothing, and now he was lying in Bobby's living room far too battered for Bobby's taste. He was pissed at the kid for making him and his brother worry – especially his brother. He may have stood in for their absentee father a long time ago, but Sam was more than just a brother to Dean. They were more like yin and yang, two pieces of a whole that couldn't be separated without leaving damage to both of them. God, the two were practically married.

On the other hand, he sympathized. He didn't just understand Sam's emotions, he also understood Dean's, as much as he hated to admit it. Maybe it was part of being their semi-surrogate dad, or maybe it was the fact that he had once loved a woman enough that he would do anything to save her too. What Dean may have done was beyond stupid (it was reckless to a fault, in fact), but it was also sparked a little something in Bobby's heart that had been dead for a long time.

It was who Dean was to save people, even at a cost to himself, but Bobby had an inkling of a feeling that it was something a little more. And that thought in itself made Bobby both proud and nervous. Proud because Bobby had never seen Dean pursue a long term relationship. Nervous because he had never seen Dean pursue a long term relationship. Dean had always taken a hunters approach to women, admiring them but never for longer than a well-spent night. It was easier that way, most of the time. But Bobby also understood the difficulties, possible better than anyone. Having someone who he'd lost to this life before he was even in it himself…sometimes he didn't blame John for turning out the way he did. Only sometimes.

All Bobby knew was that Sara had to be something special for her to hold Dean's steady attention. He drifted quietly over to where Ellen and Jo were finishing up stitching her wound as she lay unconscious on the couch. Looking down at her, he couldn't help but size the small girl up. He could certainly see how she would catch Dean's eye initially. A cascade of blonde, straight locks fell over the couch, the tips brushing the questionable carpet. She wasn't tan (no one in South Dakota really was), but she wasn't pale either, and her cheeks were a light pink. Long, dark lashes swept over clear skin, and her straight nose had a light dusting of freckles across the bridge. Bobby had seen pictures of Mary, and Sara was just as beautiful.

"You guys about finished," Bobby asked in a low voice. Ellen and Jo both turned to look at him, and gave nods of their heads. He could see the weariness settling in the lines on Ellen's forehead and the corners of Jo's lips. He couldn't blame them. Hints of light were starting to show outside, as it started to transition from night to dawn. All that sounded good right now was sleep or a fresh batch of coffee. Maybe some whiskey…

"Alright, you ladies go ahead and get some shut eye. We're good here." His eyes gestured to the beds upstairs, which were open and ready for people to sleep on them. At least some people could get some actual rest, even if it wasn't him.

"Robert Singer, we aren't just going to leave you two to fend for yourselves. We'll be in the kitchen makin some coffee if you need anything," retorted Ellen in that no-nonsense voice of hers. Bobby saw Jo give her mom an exasperated look before they both headed into the kitchen. Stubborn woman. Oh well. He certainly wasn't going to sleep.

"Maybe I could get some of that?" Bobby spun around, and behind him, he could hear Sam doing the same. Sara's soft voice, inflected upward with the question, seemed as loud as a shout in the quiet room. Of course, it could be the fact that Bobby wasn't expecting her to be a functional human being for quite some time. But there she was, sitting up on the couch as if she'd been awake the whole time, her piercing blue eyes fixed on him. Bobby had to admit, he was slightly unnerved.

"Well hey there. I don't know about coffee, but I can hook you up with some water." An eyebrow raised, but she nodded nonetheless. Bobby sidled into the kitchen, filling a glass with tap water, his mind somewhat frazzled.

Returning, he found Sam settling into a chair next to Sara's couch. He couldn't blame the kid – he was more than a little curious about the girl whose great blue eyes could rival Cas's wide stare. He could practically see the gears running in Sam's mind. Handing her the glass, he took a step back. She gave him a small smile over the rim, and took a small sip.

Bobby stayed silent – he knew Sam was bursting with questions but was also trying to play it cool and give Sara a little space after the ordeal Dean and her had been through. He knew the kid would break soon though. True to his prediction, Sam spoke up quietly the next moment. "How're you feeling?". Caring, that's what Sam did best.

Her eyes slid from Bobby's to Sam's in one smooth move, and she seemed to roll over her thoughts before she let them out. "Good, I guess. Whoever stitched my leg up did a good job."

Sam clasped his hands together, twiddling his thumbs in no particular rhythm as he watched Sara. "That was Ellen. And you didn't just injure your leg – you've got possible breaks on your arm, knee and hip, and a definite concussion. Are you feeling any pain?"

Sara raised her bandaged arm in response, and tapped on her bandaged forehead. "Don't worry, I noticed. And like I said either, I really am good."

Bobby decided it was his turn. "Honey, you're not good. You were severely beaten not more than a few hours ago, and you've got to be in a mountain of pain. It's alright to admit that."

Her eyes narrowed, almost imperceptibly. "Listen, I'm fine. When I say that, I'm not joking. Dean is the one who needs your medical attention, not me. He shouldn't have even been there."

Bobby turned and met Sam's shocked eyes. Sara's stubborn attitude was giving Dean's bullheadedness a run for its money. "I agree, he shouldn'tve been there, but he was also saving you, so I think we can all agree it needed to be done."

She shook her head vehemently. "He should not have come. I had a plan, and I had it handled until he showed up. He just put himself in harms way for no reason."

Bobby was getting angry now. She really was a little too much like Dean – she was pushing his buttons in all the right places. She had no clue what she was up against, none at all, and yet still she insisted that she was in the right. "You had a plan did you? You had it all figured out? Listen, I don't know what kind of situations you normally get into in your free time, but you had no clue what you were dealing with. Dean may have been an idiot in going after you, but I can assure you he knows what he's doing." His voice seemed to increase in strength until he was fairly sure the conversation in the kitchen ceased.

She looked at him for a moment, and as a hunter he knew when he was being sized up… analyzed. Especially by someone who knew what they were looking for. Her next words only solidified his suspicions in concrete. "Listen, Bobby, I knew what I was up against. You can stop dancing around the subject like a scared little girl. There was a demon there, and two major goddesses, Achlys and Eris. I'm not an idiot, so you can stop treating me like one."

The sliding door to the kitchen squeaked open, and both Ellen and Jo stood in the doorway. Ellen looked like she always did at the first sign of confrontation – eyes full of fire and lips tight. Bobby knew she wished she had a gun in her hand. He could also see the steel reflected in Jo's eyes, although her natural curiosity ruined the image as her eyebrows curved skyward.

Ellen held up Sara's black leather jacket for all to see. "Interesting what you can find when you rifle through someone's pockets. What would a nice, regular bartender need with a pistol, a demon killing knife, and an angel blade?" Her other hand clenched said objects.

Bobby's head did a quick rotation from Ellen's hardened face to Sara's. She looked shocked, but not overly so. If anything she looked… guarded, like her cover had been blown. And that's when it hit Bobby like a cement truck. She was a hunter. "What Dean thought was true, wasn't it?"

Sapphire eyes met his. "And what exactly did Dean think?" Her voice was cool.

Ready. Aim… Fire. "Dean had a suspicion you were a hunter." Judging from the look on her face, as her careful façade slipped yet again, Target is Hit.

She sent a look toward the still sleeping hunter behind Bobby. If Bobby didn't know better, he would've guessed there was a hint of respect in her gaze. He definitely shared that opinion – if anyone was to find a hunter in a crowd, it would be Dean. Sometimes the boys senses were scary accurate. Guess that was the advantage of being raised by a man who believed in constant vigilance.

She barked a short laugh that was devoid of humor. "As usual, full marks for Dean Winchester. As for your statement, not anymore I'm not. That hasn't been my life for a long time, and I'm not heading back anytime soon."

Bobby was surprised and torn. Not that he didn't get it, because he did. The men (and women) in this line of work simultaneously loved and hated the job. Judging by the equipment… the girl had to have been good at one point. Good or lucky. Because he'd only ever seen one demon killing knife that Sam and Dean had, and never had he seen a hunter with an angel blade. Having an angel blade either meant killing an angel or having friends in very high places. Still… she'd taken the Sam route, which he knew many hunters hadn't. Obviously, it wasn't working out the best for her.

Bobby was just trying to wrap his head around this. "So, you're retired. Understood, and no judgement. You haven't been hunting here, though, have you?"

"No," she replied curtly. "I knew this was your territory, I wasn't going to intrude."

Bobby snorted. "Sure. Getting information from you is like pulling teeth, but of course, I should believe you. How did you know this is my area?"

She raised an eyebrow, and pointed at herself. "Hunter." Derision coated her words, and Bobby could feel tension radiating off Ellen to his right. He had to admit, she was rubbing him the wrong way too.

To Bobby's surprise, it was Jo who decided to make her move. "Yeah, you're a hunter. But what kind of hunter are you? I disagree with Bobby – total judgement for sitting around and doing nothing in the middle of the Apocalypse. This is an all hands on deck situation, and here you are sitting on the sidelines twiddling your thumbs. This isn't a game, this is the end of the freaking world." Jo's small fists were clenched into fists at her sides, and Bobby could see why. Jo had fought to become a hunter, and here was a capable female hunter right in front of her saying she'd opted out.

Sara stayed seated, but her lips had narrowed to a thin line. "Don't you dare judge me. You may have wanted this, but this was never what I wanted. I have people that I need to protect, people that aren't safe if I die in this fight. You think you have it rough?" Her voice, so soft when she'd woken, was now as close to a snarl as Bobby had ever heard it.

It was Sam, who'd stayed silent for most of this, who finally rose and spoke a calming note. Bobby was definitely surprised – he'd thought Sam would pounce on the girl he once suspected, and who now knew far more than they anticipated, but instead Sam had just stared at her, like she was a mysterious ball of yarn to unravel. The girl his brother ran to save. "Alright, that's enough. Let's take it into the kitchen guys."

Bobby nodded, and ushered in the girls to the kitchen, Sam behind him. Sara's rimrod straight back was the last thing he saw before shutting the doors. Joining everyone at the table, Bobby waited for Sam to restart, and when he didn't, he cleared his own throat. "Before we return to raised voices and shaking fists, let me put my two cents in. I personally think she's about as courteous as Dean" he received a low chuckle from Sam at that "and bullheaded to match. She's been a pain in the ass to talk to. But if we're voting on kicking her off the island, I vote she stays. It's my house, and she's hurt."

Jo leaned forward, eyes flashing. Yup, that eye thing was definitely hereditary. "Bobby, she's a hunter. That means she's a player. Who knows what the real deal about her being in town is. Who even knows if she's human!"

Bobby could see that Ellen was trying to resist being baited by her daughters words, but it was obvious she agreed with her daughters frame of mind. Finally, Bobby could see the moment she caved. "Jo's got a point Bobby. You have to admit, her happening to find Dean in this town and just happening to get kidnapped… seems like a little bit more than a coincidence to me."

Sam stared at a beer bottle between his hands, eyes seemingly captivated by the lip before turning his eyes to Ellen. "You make a good point. But I think you should remember, by the sounds of it, Eris had been camped out at that bar for a while getting victims before we showed up. Maybe it was Dean going into that bar that put a target on her head. After all, you have to admit, we get our fair amount of supernatural attention just because we're vessels."

Ellen's head dipped to acknowledge Sam's reasoning. Good. Bobby was glad they were keeping this civil. "True. I'll give you that. But that doesn't explain how she had an exact replica of your demon knife and the angel blade."

"Who are we to question every weapon a hunter has on his person, Ellen," reasoned Bobby. "It's a personal thing, and she has rights not to answer. I personally have quite a few things hidden… here and about. Hunters are nothing if not paranoid." He caught Sam's eye and Sam ducked his head as he tried his hardest to suppress a grin.

Sam spoke after clearing his throat a few too many times for Bobby's taste. "I'm vouching for her. I know I had my suspicions, and honestly, I still do. She seems to know too much. But Dean vouched for her, and that's good enough for me. Besides, if she's as good as she sounds, maybe she'd be a good ally to have in the middle of this mess."

They all sat in contemplative silence for a moment. Bobby could tell everyone's mind was thinking as fast as his was, trying to come to terms with what they'd said about Sara. Bobby personally though Sam had a good point. If Sara could bring it upon herself to come out of retirement and join their crazy crusade against the devil himself, then Bobby would definitely say yes to the girl with the knife and the blade. A little experienced help could go a long way, and while he'd never seen the girl in action, he had a suspicion that she was nothing to be trifled with.

Ellen was the first one to speak. "I think me and Jo are going to call it a night. We can talk about this further tomorrow." With a nod to Bobby and Sam, her and her daughter rose and departed from the table, talking in soft whispers as they took the stairs to their room.

Sam rose too. "I'm gonna go back in Bobby. I don't think I can sleep right now." Bobby took a look at the kids face, and nodded. Sam wasn't going to be torn away from Dean right now, Bobby could see that. Without a word he stood and followed Sam into the quiet living room.

They both blinked in surprise when the sliding door opened. Somehow in the time they'd left, Dean had been transferred to the couch and the cot had up and vanished. Sara was sleeping in an armchair across from the couch, her head tilted up against the side and her breathing coming out in little breaths. Her arms were wrapped around her knees in front of her.

Bobby shook his head. Why was he even surprised anymore?

TBC- The story is far from over :) To all you ghost readers out there - please review. It motivates me and keeps me wanting to continue this story!