Chapter 5

Dean knocked what was apparently the fifth time on Angela's door. He knew that it was the point of ridiculousness but he wanted to make sure that she was okay. Plus he wanted to make sure that she wasn't mad at him. He had made a few blunders before and he wanted to make sure that he hadn't done anything and didn't know it.

He could tell that she was still miffed because she hadn't walked by singing one of her songs. Still he woke up early and found that Sam had fallen asleep over the laptop again. There was a bit of drool on his hand where his head was resting. It was a perfect opportunity to take a picture and he did but it was halfhearted at best. His mind was concerned with how to fix this.

Dean knew that his time was short and he didn't want the two people that mattered to him to be at odds over something stupid. He knew she wasn't petty but whatever Sam said to her must've really hurt her feelings for her to be avoiding them the rest of the day before and now it seemed like she was doing it today.

Dean heard his phone ring and buzz. That meant he had a text. He pulled it out and found a text from her. It said, Found a lead. Going to check it out. Will call later.

Dean sighed. She was going off alone again. He didn't doubt that she could take care of herself but the last time she did that when her feelings outweighed her usual rationality, she got shot and that led to a mess with that douche. This time he couldn't run to catch up and she didn't leave a clue as to where she was going so he was left holding the empty sack. He trudged back to the room he and Sam had shared to find that the shower was in use.

Dean decided to busy himself with the reports that they had gotten and do a little cross checking on the database that Sam had shown him. Maybe he could figure out what she had figured out and they could stop her from doing something foolish. It vaguely occurred to him that she was doing this to get them to work together but that idea sounded a bit stupid since he and Sam really weren't fighting per se. Then again this was Angela and her mind sometimes worked differently though not surprisingly Sam could follow it quite well.

Sam finished his shower and peered out the door before coming out to grab his clothes. Dean couldn't help but smile. Ever since Sam walked out with nothing but a towel and she was in the room, he always checked. It was hilarious to Dean since it was just one of the things that added up to the fact that Sam really liked Angela but just couldn't see it. Dean sobered quickly and immersed himself into the reports until Sam came up. Then he said, "Morning Sunshine."

Sam acknowledged the change in greeting accordingly, "Morning Dean." He looked around and saw that there was no coffee or Dean's idea of breakfast. "No coffee?"

"What did you expect?" Dean didn't look at his brother. "The pot's on the stand."

That meant it was Sam's cue to make it himself. Sam went to do that knowing that he deserved what he was getting. He thought a lot about what happened and he knew he was being unfair to her. She didn't deserve to be called what he implied. He also pissed off his brother with his implication too. He really messed things up and he just couldn't get why. Usually if something was bothering him, he tried to talk it out with her.

Sam knew that this started when he saw Nick kiss her. Deep down Sam knew that kiss wasn't one given in friendship but that Nick's intentions were serious. As far as he knew, Angela had never been serious about a relationship and the idea she might be was well like when Dean started leaving him at those kid places to chase girls.

Sam put the pot on and chose the coffee that might spark a reaction from Dean. He knew that Dean drank his coffee black and that anything else was for pansies. She did say that sometimes the smallest of gestures meant more than big ones. Maybe this was time for one of those moments.

The coffee was finished in no time and Sam had two cups poured. Dean still was looking at the database. Wordlessly he set Dean's cup down and sat down in the chair opposite. He pulled one of the abandoned reports towards him and out of the blue pulled out the tweezers with the lock of hair. Sam took to studying it while Dean kept reading and he watched for Dean to take his cup.

Dean for his part was surprised that Sam actually made a pot. He half expected him to say something that would have them arguing. Maybe his little brother was sucking it up and owning up to his being an ass. He kept quiet though thinking that Sam would need to make the first move and barely acknowledged the gesture of giving him a cup of coffee. Food was not even considered but hey, baby steps.

Feeling sleepy and frustrated that he wasn't getting any closer to what the thing was, Dean reached for his cup. One of the great things about the job was that no matter how bad the coffee was, it was consistent in providing the necessary fuel to get going and keep going when on the job. Black was the best way to go. Adding all that sugar and cream crap and them lattes were just a pansy way of getting caffeine. Taking his cup, he took a big sip and was caught off guard by the… orange taste? "What the hell?"

Normally Sam would have burst out laughing but he didn't feel doing that. He managed a slight grin and said, "You said the pot was over there. I made coffee so deal."

Dean caught the slight grin and realized that Sam was trying to make things up. In his mind though Sam should be trying with Angela since he hurt her feelings but then again he concluded that Sam was probably practicing and he felt that he owed Dean an apology too. He replied, "But did you have to poison me with this…" He motioned to the cup that he put back down on the table.

"It's orange liqueur. You should be happy," Sam replied as he took a sip and studied the hairs.

"I like my alcohol plain thank you very much and not in my coffee… unless it's Irish coffee," Dean replied as he amended his statement. "So why are you trying to poison me?" He asked the question in a casual-friendly tone.

"Just trying to expand your horizons," Sam replied. He twiddled the tweezers in between his fingers. "And I want to apologize for what I said. I know you care about Angie but not in the way I implied and I know I owe her one too."

"That's a start," Dean replied. "So are you going to tell me what got your boxers in a twist in the first place?"

"Not really," Sam replied. At the look Dean gave him, he hastened to add, "It's not that I don't want to tell you… it's just something that I need to talk to her alone about."

Dean gave a slight nod, "I'll buy that for now Sam but it seems to me that this will eventually be a group discussion."

"I don't think so Dean."

Dean knew that he should let it lie and for once he was going to follow through with that. He left well enough alone and turned his attention to what he had been researching. "So I've been going over the reports and this database that you are addicted to seems to pop out one that matches all the clues and I think it is a load of crap." Dean flipped the laptop so that Sam could take a look. "This thing says that our monster is Bigfoot."

Sam peered at the screen. That couldn't be right. What the hell was going on?

Take the western trails. It will bring you close but stay to the path if you don't want to meet it.

Angela fastened the belts with an expert hand. She made sure the girth belt wasn't too tight but not too loose either. She gave a slight rub as if to tickle and she made a chuckle as a slight rumble sound happened.

"Where you want to go, most people don't go. Only seasoned hikers and riders do that."

Angela looked at her guide. He was a young man, probably eighteen and he had been recommended by the old man. She had gone back to the Scout house and asked about the specific trail and its accessibility. She had an idea of what it was they were hunting but she wanted to check it out before they did anything.

She had rounded up a few shotguns and her handguns along with her chakram. She debated on taking Absolution but decided against it. The boy who was to be her guide to the main trail, Kyle, had looked at her suspiciously when she showed up with the guns and her gear. Even when she showed him her fake ID, he was kind of nervous but he relaxed when he saw that she knew a thing or two about handling tack.

Mr. Scout gave permission for her to use his horses. Kyle was the boy who took care of them since he couldn't do it all anymore. He introduced the two of them and mentioned that she was a detective and that seemed to mollify the boy a little about the guns. She looked at the boy and replied, "Well most of the hikers disappeared around those areas so I think I should check it out."

Kyle looked at the gear that had been packed. He had seen at least two shotguns and two handguns so far and not to mention that weird metal circle thing that was just dangling from the saddle horn. "Seems to be a lot of gear for one bear and don't the rangers have it under control?"

Angela checked the gear on the horse she had been given. She had plenty of iron and silver rounds loaded and spare cartridges and the chakram had its own unique abilities. She replied, "I've been on hunts before. I know what I'm doing. When we get to the main trail heading to Lake Como, you can turn back." She went to the head of the horse and began stroking the nose while smiling slightly.

Kyle finished his tack. He patted the shoulder of his mount and rubbed it. He studied the cop that he was supposed to guide. He then said, "Out of two years since I started taking care of the Scout horses I have never seen Starkhaven take to anybody. He's the right size for a lady but he has a temperament."

Angela smiled as she stroked the top of Starkhaven's nose and he gave a rumble of approval. She moved her hand to the cheek of the animal and stroked it. She had sensed the tension in the animal when she first entered the stables. The boy was going to get her a gentler mount but she insisted on Starkhaven and saddled and packed him up herself. The horse responded favorably. She replied, "We understand one another. He's just a free spirit."

"Mr. Scout said the same thing. Maybe that's why nobody but him could get the horse to cooperate," Kyle replied as he led his mount outside.

Angela followed and gave a slight chuckle when she felt the playful bump from Starkhaven. He reminded her so much of Thunder of the Sky with the playfulness and the spirit. She wondered if the horse was a reincarnation of her old friend since they were similar. Once they got outside, she mounted Starkhaven with ease and turned his head towards the road to follow the boy.

Easing the animal into a trot, she kept up with the boy. She paused only once to look back at what civilization was. She was anxious to follow this lead but she wondered if she should have given at least Dean something to go on. In her mind though she justified it as making sure of what the thing was before they launched out on an attack. At least she made sure of some reassurances but it depended on the boys looking for it. Closing off that train of thought, she turned towards the trail and galloped to catch up. She had to make sure of what it was and she suspected that she knew what it was.

It occurred to her after she told Crowley to get lost that maybe she was missing something. She was lying on her bed and flashing her UV penlight on the roof. She flashed it on the rook on the broken devil's trap. Staring at it, she got the idea. She pulled out the map of the area and began making marks on it. She also had a few of the hairs she had found at the scene.

When she was finished, she pulled up what she knew from her pad and set it beside the map she had marked on and stood back to study it. She used her fingers to move the pages as she sifted through the information and looked at her notes she had tacked up. It went like that for at most she thought for two hours.

Only thing I could think of was Bigfoot.

It clicked when she looked at the few strands of hair again and she immediately went to her pad and started tapping near furious. When she pulled up the information she was looking for she grinned. It made perfect sense but there was one thing off about it. It was the nature of the kills. That was what she wanted to find out about and that was why she went back to see Mr. Scout for some last minute details.

He was the one that offered the use of the horses after she asked a couple of pertinent questions. She of course refused stating that she could make it on foot. However the old man insisted since she was a nice girl and the only one who actually believed what he had to say. It was on the tip of her tongue to say that she suspected the attacks were not a normal animal attack but centuries on the job had taught her that the less that people knew that she knew what they told her was real, then the better it usually was. She couldn't say that was the case with the bank job in Minneapolis.

Well now they were on the trail heading towards the wilderness area. She heard Starkhaven rumble under her as she followed Kyle. It took about nearly an hour to reach the border of the wilderness area. Angela brought up Starkhaven to a halt. She looked at the boy and said, "Well this is where we part ways."

"I don't know."

Angela looked at the boy. She could see that he wasn't sure about leaving her there. She smiled, "It'll be alright. I've hunted before and I have plenty of fire power."

"A shotgun ain't gonna do much against a bear if he's pissed."

Son, it ain't no bear. Angela kept the thought to herself. "Only if you miss. Besides, I have a rifle right here." She patted the Winchester rifle that she had brought in addition to the shotguns. Maybe it was overkill but it was better to be safe than sorry.

"Seems a little bit of an overkill and the slopes can get slippery. In the higher elevations there is still plenty of snow and ice. This down here is nothing. What if you take a spill?" Kyle looked at Angela with a worried expression. He wasn't sure about leaving her there since she wasn't from around the area.

"I've taken a tumble before. I know how to fall." Angela looked at the boy. She couldn't risk his life up there if she was right. She couldn't have his death on her hands. She added, "Don't worry. I know cell reception stinks but I do have a radio and Ranger Wilkes knows where I'm at. Go on and tell Mr. Scout thanks for letting me use Starkhaven."

Kyle eyed his charge warily before turning the plug he was on and headed back down. He kept looking back as he went back. He had a bad feeling about this but Mr. Scout did say that he was to do whatever she said. He would do it.

Angela for her part watched the boy go down. He was a smart boy to suspect something was up. He knew that she was not from around there. Her confidence was enough to get him to go and she suspected he was obeying the old man. She waited on the horse until he was further down before turning to head up the trail. As she started up, she felt a chill from the breeze work its way up her jacket and down her spine.

It was getting onto noon or rather past that and there was no sign of Angela. Sam was waiting in his room while Dean went out to get food. He knew that he was giving his health up to chance letting Dean get them food but he wanted to wait and see if she would come back soon. He knew that she would have to be getting hungry by now.

It was a poor excuse that he gave to Dean in that he wanted to figure out what the thing was. It was someone's idea of a practical joke in putting the Bigfoot entry in the database. He thought that since it was one that Angela used frequently, there were others that used it and wouldn't mislead others with false information.

He tried everything to get around that entry but nothing happened though he really wasn't trying since he was looking out the window every two minutes. He spent energy trying to get the three of them back together and he probably jeopardized that with his own stupidity. He hoped that wasn't the case but since she hadn't checked out, there was still a chance she was still around. She wouldn't leave her stuff behind.

He got up to make another pot of coffee. This time he made the regular stuff since he felt like he needed it. While it was percolating, Sam went to look out the window. It had started snowing lightly, quite normal for this time of year and it looked nice. It reminded him of Christmas with Dean and she really hadn't been there for it except when they were working the case. Those pagan gods certainly wanted a piece of her… literally which meant her blood. She didn't stick around though and left for something or other but she came back.

As Sam was staring out, he felt a chill come upon him. It went down his spine that it felt like little needles of cold were pricking him. It was instinct to rub his upper arms. He had no idea why that would happen since the room was heated to be comfortable.

Suddenly his phone rang. His first impression was that it was Angela finally talking to him. He had left a few voicemails on her phone that day. He picked it up and answered, "Angie?"

Is she available?

Sam narrowed his eyes slightly. He recognized the voice. "What do you want?"

You used to be cordial with me. Did putting you back to your normal size change that?

Sam paced slightly while taking a deep breath. He could afford to be polite but it didn't mean that he was going to make friends. He replied in a controlled voice, "Just being reasonable but that was before you made your intentions clear."

What intentions are you talking about?

"Don't play dumb, Nick," Sam replied as he paced around. He saw that the pot he put on was finished but he didn't care at the moment. "You're the one that decided that it was okay to kiss her at your own pace."

She didn't protest.

The voice did sound a bit taunting and Sam didn't appreciate that. He replied, "She has a thing about strange people touching her and I have a big problem with people taking advantage of her."

And that is very admirable about you Sam.

"Look I need to know if you are serious about her. You've been calling her the last couple of weeks and she seems happy and then she gets quiet. If you do anything to hurt her, I swear…"

There is a reason for that.

"Then spill," Sam replied willing to listen. His assumptions had gotten him into trouble already. He was going to do this one right and get his facts straight. "No riddles or even pretending thing. I'm not in the mood."

Alright, alright. Listen, the reason I called was because it had to do with the Venator.

Sam stiffened when he heard that name. That guy still evoked strong feelings of being scared and angry. He had been scared because he had not been his normal size and he had been angry because the guy hurt her. He took a breath and called, "What about it?"

I was calling because I needed to know protocol.

"Protocol for what?"

Protocol for a hearing in front of this council of higher powers. I called because I was not familiar with the appropriate procedures.

"And how did you figure out that she would know?" Sam knew he was being a hard ass quizzing Nick like this. However he did find it strange that he would assume that she would know everything about that. Truth was she did but how the warlock found out was what Sam wanted to know.

The guy who gave me the summons. Some guy named Horus and he dropped the comment about asking Absolution for help.

Sam listened. He remembered Horus. It wasn't that farfetched that he would give a hand. "Okay so what was this about?"

Just information on procedures since they wanted to know why I used a spell to summon intervention and plus I needed to get information on where to go so I could keep her out of it.

"Why would you need to keep Angie out of it? She knows how to respond to them." That was a little puzzling to Sam. He knew that she would have gone in front and own up to everything.

You know the answer to that Sam. Since you saw me and her, I am assuming that you would know the reason why. I am not blind. I knew that you saw what she did even though the details may have been hazy. You overheard that there was a danger if she stepped over the threshold she may never come back and she would have been on that train the fallen take.

"You don't know that," Sam replied. "Are you telling me this to reassure me and so you can impress her? If that is the case you're gonna have to work a little harder than that but don't you go hurting her."

I know what I'm talking about Sam. I don't know what is up with you. It's obvious you don't trust me and your reaction tells me that there is a reason for it. You need to figure it out. Now the reason I called was because I was updating her on something that she was looking into. I've tried her number but it went straight to voicemail.

Sam listened and he wasn't sure how to respond. At least he had the other side of things even if he didn't like talking to the guy. It didn't occur to him how Nick had gotten his number until he felt a second chill rush down his spine. He looked out the window and noticed the snowfall had increased. Something wasn't right. He replied, "She had been out all day. How did you get this number?"

A/N: Looks like Sam had a little chat with Nick and got a few things straightened out. Angie's set off to find the thing. What happens next? Stay tuned...