Disclaimer - Please see earlier chapters.

As I have said all along please let me know what you think.

The van pulled into the lot a little after dawn, two days later. Alec, John and Ellen stood waiting beside the truck as the occupant got out of the driver's seat. He moved cautiously, scanning around him as he moved forward, as did Alec. They still weren't one hundred percent sure, how other hunters were going to react to the news of the transgenics.

Alec smiled as the newcomer held up his hands to show that although he was carrying a pistol, he was carrying it between his thumb and finger on the handle, and didn't have a finger on the trigger. As they reached each other, they hugged warmly before the larger transgenic stood back and pulled down his hood.

"Long time no see, Princess, though what's going on with the do?" Mole said jokingly, looking at Alec's hair.

"You're just jealous that you have to use floor polish in the morning," Alec replied. "Good to see you, Mole."

"Yeah, right," Mole said, turning to the van and giving it a nod.

The door opened and seconds later Alec found himself spinning around and around. Ellen raised her weapon in alarm, as did Mole in response, causing John to react in kind, pointing his gun in Mole's direction.

"It's okay, it's okay," Alec rasped, trying not to lose his breakfast. "Josh, put me down, put me down."

As Alec's feet found the ground, Ellen relaxed a little. She lowered her gun, as did Mole and John. Alec was still being held in a bear hug. "Breathing, Josh, need to breath."

"Sorry," Joshua said, easing his grip though he still held Alec close.

"Joshua missed Alec," the large transgenic said, patting Alec on the head.

"Yeah, getting that, big guy, and I missed you too," Alec replied, shaking Joshua off.

"That's nice to know," a voice said from the side of the van.

Alec stilled, looking at the owner of the voice. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Missed you too, Alec," Max said sarcastically. "Jesus, if I knew I was going to get such a warm welcome, I would have dropped by sooner."

Alec turned to Mole. "Who is running things back home?"

"Christ, Alec, everything is taken care of," Max said, walking toward him. "You said it's a pick up."

"Yeah, a pick up doesn't need your attention," Alec said, more than slightly riled by Max's presence; this wasn't going exactly the way he had planned.

"If you are going to be such a jackass, can we get this over with?" she said, turning back toward the van.

"Cindy asked us to bring her," Joshua said.

Mole turned to Alec. "Don't even ask."

Alec exhaled loudly. "Fine."

The children were trying to get their heads around the concept of board games. Mo was finding playing with Billy's old toy aeroplanes a lot more enjoyable than the snakes and ladders thing – she had kept asking - why were snakes bad? Billy had given up trying to explain it to her, and Smurf couldn't help; he sat there watching, still unsure of things himself, although he did know that they were being cared for at this point. The little girl was running around the living room, making the noises like she'd heard from the big planes that flew overhead their old camp in the cave, when the door opened.

When she looked up, she just stared.

Mole looked uncomfortably at the child before him. "Er…hi?"

Mo took a sharp intake of breath and ran off to find the others.

Alec slapped Mole on the back. "Congratulations, pal, it's a girl."

Mo pulled Larry out of Billy's bedroom as Smurf and Curly followed behind. The two small DAC's stood staring at the larger version of their kind.

"And a boy, too," Alec said, smiling as Mole looked back at the kids.

"Very funny!" Mole replied. "Do you want me to find a box of kittens that I can dump on you?"

"Kids, this is Joshua and this is Mole, and the mouthy one at the back is Max," Alec said, smiling at the children. Smurf stood in the doorway.

"Guys, this is Smurf and ehm…Larry, Curly and Mo," Alec said, rushing the end part.

"Excuse me?" Max asked. "What was the last part?"

"Larry, Curly and Mo," Alec repeated, waiting for the fallout.

"Alec, did you name them?" Max asked seriously, cocking her head to one side.

"They're better than some of the names you've come up with."

She glared at him. "Sometimes I really wish I had gone with my second choice."

"Glad to see that stick is still firmly stuck up your butt, Max," Alec said quietly.

Mole turned to Joshua. "And you said bringing her would be a good idea."

Joshua shrugged his shoulders at Mole as Max strode over to Smurf and the kids.

"They sure did a number on you, didn't they?" she asked the Logistic unit, examining his face.

Smurf nodded. "Thought they were ours, ma'am, didn't think that they could be from something else."

"Something else?" Max asked before turning to Alec. "Alec?"

Alec looked over at John and Ellen.

"Yes, ma'am, as it was we were lucky that 49…, sorry, Alec, was in the hunting party. If it hadn't been him, I don't know what would have happened."

"Hunting party?" Joshua asked.

"Guys, have you met everyone else?" Alec asked, quickly changing the subject.

John had to be impressed by Alec's skills when he heard Alec explain to the other about finding the kids. He told them they'd heard some story in the Roadhouse about gremlins in New Mexico, and that he and John had gone down there to see what people had been talking about.

When he was finished, Max narrowed her brow. "Right? And you went because of the some sightings?"

"Well, found them, didn't I?"

"Why is it I smell a brand of bullshit I haven't smelt in a while?" she asked. "Oh yeah 'eau de Alec'."

Joshua smiled, as did Mole: they had missed this.

"Maxie, I'm hurt. How can you say I'm spinning you one?"

She didn't say a word, instead just raising an eyebrow, causing Ellen to hold in a laugh as she watched Alec squirm in front of his friends.

"Okay, you want the truth?" Alec said, spinning around to look at John, hoping that somehow that he could get out of being the one who was about to be called crazy. He stood up and walked around the table, gesturing to Max to follow. "I was hoping to ease you guys into this, but if you're going to call me a whack job, I'd rather we did it in private."

Mole turned to follow, but he found himself faced with two small children, one of whom was holding a picture for him.

"Billy said that we should give you a present, so we drew this for you," Mo said, handing the paper to the larger DAC.

"Thanks, kid," Mole said uncertainly, glancing over a Joshua.

Joshua smiled. "Daddy Mole?"

Mole glowered at his friend.

"You've been doing what?" they heard coming from the outside of the house.

Max stormed into the house, followed by Alec. She looked at John and Ellen. "It was nice to meet you but we're going to go." She turned to Mole and Joshua. "Get the kids. We're going, and Alec is coming with us!"

"What?" Joshua asked.

Alec sighed. He hadn't even got half way through his first sentence of his explanation. "No, I'm not, Max."

She turned around to face him. "You are coming back with us."

"Fine, Max," Alec said, realising that she wasn't going to listen and was about to go into full flow, so he hit her, just a quick jab which she easily dodged, but it gave him the opportunity to pick her up and fling her over his shoulder.

"Alec, Alec!" She started trying to find some way to gain some leverage to get free.

"Excuse us," Alec said as he started to march out the house, holding Max firmly over his shoulder as she futilely started hitting him in the kidneys.

Alec continued to walk on as she continued to hit him. "Max, you know that doesn't work with me. Not 'ordinary', remember?"

"You son of a bit…"

"Maxie, language," Alec curtly said, cutting her off as he walked through the front door.

Mole looked at Joshua before turning to John, who was watching all of this.

"He is going to regret doing that," Mole said.

She had stopped hitting him by the time they got to the garage.

"Will you listen to me?"

She didn't say a single word, and he started to spin around with her still over his shoulder, which after a few seconds made him feel as ridiculous as he looked. "I'm not putting you down until you are willing to hear me out."

She huffed. "Fine."

He put her down, sitting her on one the benches that lined the side of the garage, before resting his hands at either side of her.

"I'm not crazy."

"You stand there and say that you are going on 'hunting trips' and these trips hunt down monsters, and you don't expect me to think that you are crazy?" She put a hand up, stroking his face. "Alec, we can get you help. It hasn't gotten too far yet. Please let me help you before it gets..."

He pushed her hand away. "I'm not Ben!"

"Alec, please. I couldn't help my brother, but let me help you," she pleaded.

"Max, I never said I believed it, I just said that I went with them."

"Then why go?"

"Why do you think?" Alec said. "John believes it, they all do."

"Alec, stuff like this doesn't exist."

"I know that, but think about it; White and his goons deal in this stuff, is it hard to believe that other people do as well?"

"Yeah, but White is a nut job."

"You should see here at closing time," Alec said, sarcastically. He took a step back. "Max, the things they go after, they ain't human."

"Then what? Manticore?" she said bitingly. Was he back to hunting his own kind?

He shook his head. "They don't have barcodes before you ask. I checked."

"What then?"

He took a breath. "There have been hunters doing this a lot longer than Manticore has been around. John's been doing this since the 1980s and he's known people who've been doing it since before that."

"But how?" she asked, confused.

"Way I figure it, is that someone has been letting some old school mutants out for decades, and these guys, the hunters, the only way they can explain what they were seeing was to grab the nearest book of fairytales."

"So why go with them?"

"They're my family, Max, and if I can stop them from getting hurt, I will."

"There are other ways to help them."

Alec sighed. "Yeah, getting John and Ellen to set foot in a shrink's office, Max, I can see that happening. Anyway, that doesn't solve the problem of the things that are out there."

"So, what?" Max asked. "Don't these things deserve to be left alone? Don't they deserve as much of a chance as us?"

"Yeah, they do, but, Max, a lot of these things that I've seen on these hunts are dangerous. These 'hunters' go after the ones they hear about, and to hear about them, kids, campers and families have probably disappeared, as well as a hell of lot of other shit having to have gone down, before they are willing to make a move."

Max was confused. "But Smurf said…"

"That's the thing – it was going to happen at some point. At some point, a hunter was going to come across a bunch of our kind who were trying to stay off the radar. Those kids were damn lucky it was me and John that found them or we'd be burying them. Coflax and Rowl are okay, but from what they understood, a human child had been drained, and they wouldn't have had any problems in ending anything that could possibly have been responsible if it didn't come in anything less than a pink and squiggy packaging."

"They'd kill us?"

"They don't understand us, just as Smurf didn't understand what he was walking into. He thought that he was going to talk to another group of escapees from Manticore."

Max wasn't sure what to say.

Alec continued, "As it is, I don't know how much longer I'm going to be able to stay here."

"What do you mean?"

"The two we were with know that I'm an X5; they said they'll keep their mouths shut, but what with the kids being here and the fact that the guys in the bar know I'm from Seattle, they are going to start putting two and two together unless I come up with a good reason for you guys being here. And I'm not going to be the cause of problems for Pop and Ellen."

"Alec, what did you guys tell people?" Max asked carefully, not sure she wanted to know what other mess he had probably gotten himself into.

"Don't take that tone with me, Max!" Alec said bitingly. "You were the one that said I had to get along with people here."

"What did you guys tell people?" she repeated.

"Considering we didn't think telling people the whole truth would go down too well, we told people that I was Dean Winchester's kid."

Her eyes widened. "You told people what?"

"What with the dates and all, it's possible that the guy had a kid my age."

"Right," Max said slowly. "And you couldn't think of anything else?"

"What – say I was John's son?" Alec asked.

"It's the truth, isn't it? Genetically, he is your father."

"And how the hell do you think people round here would take that? How would you expect Ellen to play it, considering we haven't told people that I'm not a hundred percent human? If we said that I'm John's son, then she'd have to pretend to act all righteous about him keeping things from her, and we couldn't ask her to do that."

"So now she has to act like a doting grandmother?"

He cocked his head to the side. "Ahh, she kinda said that if I ever called her Grandma, she'd make me sing soprano. She also said she'd do that if I broke John and Billy's hearts. Thinking about it, Ellen actually tends to say that a lot."

Max couldn't help but smile. "I am warming to this woman more and more. How do the rest of your family take it?"

"They're fine; Billy occasionally reminds me that I'm supposed to be his nephew, Pop is all right with it as it means we don't have to answer any awkward questions about things, and as for Molly, she's fine with it, too."

Max took a second before asking the next part. "These hunters – how do we stop them?"

Alec shook his head. "You can't."

"What do you mean?"

"Max, this isn't like White, the hunting isn't organized. It takes these guys half their time to work out they aren't stepping on each other's toes. This is a bunch of independents; half of them believe they are on a mission from God and the other half are on a type of revenge gig."

"So, what now?"

"Max, how many transgenics escaped from Manticore?"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

"How many of that number are not in Terminal City or in contact with us?"

"I don't know."

"Exactly," Alec said. "At some point hunters and transgenics are going to cross paths again, and unless we do something it isn't going to be pretty, because it won't be four kids stealing chickens that they'll come across."

Max swallowed. The idea of a bunch of nuts with guns taking on a group of transhumans in hiding didn't seem like a good idea. "If we can't stop them, then what?"

Alec bit his lip. He had given this a little thought. "Well, I've been thinking."

Max's shoulders fell, causing Alec to knot his brow. "Don't be like that, Max."

"Fine, what is the brilliant idea?"

"If we can't stop them, why don't we join them?"

"Excuse me?" she exclaimed before trying to jump down.

He stopped her. "Max, think about this; these guys go running after sightings of gremlins, weird dogs, anything that sounds out of the ordinary – the stuff most people, even Logan, think are a product of an overactive imagination and too much of the hard stuff."

"So?"

"Well, if there're more like Smurf and those kids hiding somewhere, who do you think is more likely to come across them?"

"And how is that going to benefit us?"

"Well, we ask John and his friends to keep an eye out for them."

"You want us to ask a bunch of nuts, who should be in straitjackets, to keep an eye out?"

"Yeah, and in return we offer them something."

"Like what?"

"Help."

"Help?"

"Yes, if they have a job that needs some heavy muscle we lend a hand. Max, I'm serious about this. There are things out there that have gone past the point of helping – just like Ben was."

She looked angrily at Alec when he said that. "You don't get to…"

"Max, I'm the only one who can say that. He might have been your brother, but I'm the one who gets the fallout from all his shit. I was the one pulled into Psy-Ops not once, but twice; I'm the one picked up every time the cops get it into their heads they messed up the collar the last time, not you. So, yeah, I get to say it."

She slumped a little, causing him to feel shitty for what he had just said.

"Max, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like it sounded."

"No, you're right, we both have to live with what Ben did," Max replied. "Doesn't mean I have to like you saying it."

"I get that," Alec said. "What I'm trying to say is if it comes to the point where these things decide that it is easier to go shopping for lunch down at the local elementary school, it is time for something to be done, not just for their sake, but for us as well. Because if it does happen, then the ordinaries are going to start pointing the finger in our direction –because even without a barcode some of these things look like they have relatives that now drink at Crash. So tell me how letting them run loose is good for us?"

She had to admit he had a point. "What do you want to do?"

"Talk to the guys who come to the bar. As I said, if we offer to scratch their backs, they might do the same for us."

"If they think that a transgenic is in the area they call us?"

"Yeah, basically. Also, they might be able to help with the cult thing; you and Logan have hit a bit of a dead end with that, right?"

"How do you know?" Max asked.

Alec shrugged. "I talked to Logan."

"You talked to Logan?"

"Yes, Maxie, I talked to Logan. Is there a problem with that?"

"No, I don't have a problem with that," she said, pushing away from bench.

"Did you tell him what you've been doing?"

Alec shook his head. "No."

"What have the two of you been talking about?" Max asked coldly.

"This and that. Why?"

"No reason," she said before walking off back into the house.

He stood for a second, confused. "All right then."

Joshua stood in the car lot in front of the Roadhouse. He swallowed. There was too much noise, too much; Joshua didn't like, he turned.

"It's all right, big fella, we'll be beside you," Alec said reassuringly.

Alec walked in first, followed by Mole and Joshua, with Max taking up the rear. Both Mole and Joshua kept their heads down as they walked to the bar.

Ellen put down two beers for the transhumans, nodding at them, before they both removed their hoods and turned to face the crowd.

The assortment of weaponry that appeared in response to their action was more than a little intimidating. In the end only two people in the whole bar seemed not to be packing: Molly, who was doing the glass run, and Max, standing beside Joshua, who for the purposes of this evening had decided that packing a gun might not be a prudent idea.

"This is my place, so everybody put the goddamn guns down, or I will personally put a hole in the first one who opens up," Ellen yelled, wielding a pump-action shotgun that seemed to be bigger than she was. "Are you lot hearing me?"

Mole and Max were more than a little shocked that most of the men in the bar, as well as Alec, seemed to follow the woman's instructions. Ellen turned to the two armed transgenics. "That goes for the two of you as well."

Joshua got the gist before Mole did, who took a second before lowering his weapon.

"Don't like the damn thing anyway," Mole said, tossing the gun on the bar as Ellen glowered at him.

"Ellen, what the hell is going on?" someone yelled.

"Yeah, who the hell invited the freaks?" someone else asked.

Somebody yelled 'Cristo' before the room fell silent waiting for a response.

"Okay, okay," John said, walking up to the bar. "You all have been talking about what has been going on at the house, and yeah, we have been putting up some visitors. These guys have come to collect them, but they have got a proposition for you."

"They have a proposition for us?"

"Yeah, my friends here have something they want to ask you," Alec said.

After about half an hour of screaming and jostling, something resembling a dialogue began. Well, it did after Joshua drank a hell of a lot of holy water to make up for fact that Mole was being stubborn and not wanting to do anything for anyone who didn't have the brains to realize that he wasn't the son of an iguana.

Alec decided to take a break, leaving Max do what she did best and play to the crowd. He escaped outside to find Kenny lounging against the wall.

"I expect you feel like top dog, then, or is that your friend?" Kenny asked a tired, stressed Alec.

"His name is Joshua, and no, I don't feel like top dog," Alec replied. "More like Top Cat sometimes – remember that show?"

"Benny, Officer Dibble, yeah, I think so," Kenny joked.

"What are you doing out here?" Alec asked.

"Needed some air, just like you."

"So, what do you think?"

"Of what?" Kenny replied. "Your plan? Or your friends?"

"Both."

Kenny thought. "Could work, if enough get on board. As for your friends, makes me wonder why you came out here."

"What do you mean?" Alec asked. He didn't really like Kenny's tone on the last part. "You know why I came here."

"No reason, just if the human ones are all as hot as her, why did you leave there?" Kenny said. "Can't tell at all that she ain't all girl."

"Wasn't her fault how they created her."

"I know. Can understand if you'd get all confused about who is what in that place."

"Right," Alec said, not sure what Kenny was talking about. "If you're having a problem with this, Kenny go back inside and talk to Max and Mole. This is a good idea for both sides."

Kenny nodded, "Yeah, I can see that. It's just you stroll in here and John and Ellen accept you, and then you bring them here."

"Is that what you have a problem with – John and Ellen not liking you?" Alec asked, knowing that Molly had mentioned something about Kenny being in a mood. "Kenny, the reason that John has a problem with you is that you keep shoving the fact that you are sleeping with his daughter in the man's face every time you see him."

"No, I don't."

"Kenny, last time you were here, you said hi to John and Ellen and then you and Molly disappeared," Alec said. "You can't tell me that you are stupid enough to think that John wouldn't have a problem with that."

"But he has no problem with you pawing over her."

"What?"

"Seems like every time I walk into that bar, there you are, hands all over her," Kenny said seriously. "There is me busting my ass trying to get somewhere with John and Ellen, and there you are getting up close and personal."

"Excuse me?" Alec asked in disbelief. "Me and Molly are friendly, that is it. If you think there is anything else going on then you got something loose in the wiring, bub. She's my family, and there is nothing going on."

"No she ain't, not really, and you know it."

"Well, I think of her that way," Alec replied. "Anyway, doesn't matter if she wasn't, there isn't anything going on."

"Maybe there is, maybe there isn't. Maybe I should ask your 'friend' about what she thinks about it? Must have been a while since you saw her," Kenny said, turning to go inside.

Alec faced off against Kenny, both men eyeballing each other. "Leave Max alone."

"Why? Scared she'll want to talk to the likes of me?"

Alec smiled and very calmly said, "Leave Max alone."

"Just want to ask her what she thinks about what you have been up to. She might need someone to talk to about it," Kenny said.

Alec narrowed his gaze as the other man walked off. "Then you'll just prove them right."

"Prove who right?"

"John and Ellen. They always said you had no respect for Molly, and I guess they were right."

Kenny stopped as Alec walked up to him. "But I guess I'll have to help pick up the pieces."

Kenny turned and walked off into the bar as Alec stood there watching him go.

"What the hell do you think you were doing?" Max asked from the shadows, as she watched the man she didn't know leave.

"Nothing, trying to keep someone in line," Alec replied. "Is everything going all right in there?"

"Yeah, it is fine," she said in a tone that he knew wasn't good.

"Right, and you're out here because?"

"That's my business, isn't it," she replied coldly before turning to go back inside. "As much as it is who I talk to."

He ran a hand through his hair. "And when I got up this morning I thought it was going to be a good day."

"Think that went all right," John said to Ellen as he got into bed that night.

She nodded. "Better than I expected. Though, wasn't sure if that Joshua guy was going to walk out of there alive after he started howling."

John smiled. "Maybe he should have laid off the Jaeger."

"Maybe. Everybody settled out there?"

"Sure," John said with a nod. "Yeah, Max is bunking in with Molly, and Smurf finally got the kids to go back into Alec's room – think Mo and Larry wanted in sleep in the living room with Mole."

"You can't really blame them. It's the first time they've seen a grown up that looks like them. Probably the first time they've realized that they can grow up."

"Seeing how Billy stopped Mo from trying to rescue the little people in the TV today, I don't think the growing up question plays a lot on the kid's mind."

"She's only a baby," Ellen said, raising an eyebrow. "Curly's taking it pretty hard. Poor kid's trying to hide it, but you can tell that she's disappointed."

"What do you mean?" John asked, confused.

Ellen shook her head. "Sometimes I think you need to get your eyes checked."

"Okay, what did I miss?"

"What do you think? The girl has been sticking close by Billy since Alec's friends arrived," she said, to which John just shrugged. "Larry and Mo have always had each other, and now they get to see that there are others like them, and what does she get?"

"She'll see others like her when she gets there."

"Those kids have been through so much as it is; she won't believe that there are others like her until she actually sees them."

"I suppose you're right," John replied. "At least the four of them will be able to stay together, that's good."

"Yeah, I know, though from what Alec told me that place is no plaza."

John turned to his wife. "They were living in a cave; running water is a gift from God to them."

"I suppose, just wish it wasn't going to be so tough for them."

"When did you get so sentimental?"

"They are good kids," Ellen replied.

He looked at her.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"It was you that brought a kid that is part cat and bird and God knows what else going on in him here," she said, huffing.

"Worked out all right, didn't it?" John asked.

"So far," Ellen replied. "You realize that Alec is kinda sulking on the couch."

John gave a little shrug as he got comfortable. "Not my fault that he gave up his room for the kids. Anyway, think he is trying to avoid that girl."

"I thought he had a run-in with Kenny?" Ellen said.

"What about?" John asked.

Ellen shrugged. "Not sure – but whatever Alec and Kenny said to one another caused Max to stop talking to Alec afterward. Just glad that Molly wasn't in earshot."

"Sooner that guy is out of our lives the better," John muttered.

Ellen peered at her husband. "We've been over this. Molly has to make up her own mind and better she does it here than somewhere else."

"Still don't like it," John replied. "Anyway, Alec and that Max girl aren't like that. She's got something going on with that Eyes Only guy."

"Right, just like Alec has with half the county. Seriously, John, what is it with your boys? Dean couldn't spend five minutes in a place without getting a reputation and as for Sam…"

"He wasn't as bad," John said curtly, cutting Ellen off.

"Yeah, but I'm sure if he had put his mind to it he could have been."

"The boys were free and single, and Alec is tough enough to deal with whatever that girl throws at him. Anyway, they'll be gone soon."

"That's another thing – I'm not sure how Billy is going to take it when they go."

"Why?" John asked, not sure how his youngest fit into this.

"I am seriously getting you a pair of glasses, because even though I can stick you in the middle of nowhere at midnight and you can find your way home without a flashlight, something right under your nose and you are as blind as a bat."

"For Pete's sake, woman, what have I missed now?"

"Him and Curly?"

"You said they have been hanging around each other," John replied. "So?"

"Jesus, John, the boy has got his first real crush."

"What do you mean?"

Ellen sighed as John looked at her confused. "He's been making sure she's okay, and didn't you see them at dinner? He pulled out her chair."

"Really?" John said before smiling. "Well, it wasn't exactly what I thought he'd go for, but at least I won't be worried about him disappearing to the local high school to hang around the girls' changing room after swim meets."

"What Dean got up to at Billy's age doesn't come into this."

John laughed. "Who said it was Dean?"

"That is exactly what I mean. What is it with your sons?"

"Come on, leave Billy alone. It's his first crush – better than him running after Gillespie girl that he used to be friends with. Let him run with it, Curly's going to be gone soon."

"John, you should talk to him."

"Thought you said Alec did?" John replied.

Ellen shook her head. "You are not getting out of this."

"I'm not trying to get out of anything."

"Seriously, John, I'm not sure what he and Alec talked about. You're the boy's father, you should talk to him."

"Great."

"John?" she said with a serious tone.

John sighed. "Sure, I'll talk to him."

"And don't think that handing the boy a Playboy, and telling him lock the bathroom door as he works it out for himself, is going to cut it this time."

John blushed. "How did you…?"

"What? You don't think me and Bill used to talk about things?"

John's shoulders fell; he remembered that day with Bill, after him failing miserably when he'd tried to talk to Dean. John remembered his friend bursting into laughter and telling him how glad he was that he and Ellen had a girl as it meant that he would not be responsible for that conversation.

"Look, Dean was never good with theory, especially at that age. He was more 'practical' type of kid."

"That explains a lot about Alec, then," Ellen replied with a shake of her head. "Anyway, who is that one trying to convince about that Max girl?"

"They had a falling out, that's all. They'll sort it out," John said. "From what I remember of the girl, the last time I saw her, she's like that all the time with him."

"And then he sulks after?"

"Sometimes, that's what Joshua seems to say. It doesn't mean anything."

"You don't get like that when someone stops talking to you without something being behind it."

He turned on his side to face his wife before smirking. "And tell me what you think is behind it, then?" He put his arm around her waist.

Ellen smiled. "You know what I'm talking about."

"Really? Maybe you should remind me?" he said, pulling her close to give her a long and tender kiss.

She stroked the stubble on his cheek. "John," she said sweetly.

"Mmmm," he said.

"Good night, John," she said, turning her on her side as her husband's face fell.

"You really know how to get to me, woman."

"Winchester," Ellen said, turning off her bedside light. "It isn't going to happen, so good night."

John slumped back onto his side of the bed, letting out a little grumble.

"Think of it as coming out in sympathy for your boys," she replied to his muttered comments.

"If I kick Alec up the ass to get him to do something about Max, can we get back to this?"

"Good night, John," Ellen said, settling into a night's sleep.

Thanks so much again to Twinkiecat and Rospberry for looking at this for me.