The Return of the Shadow Huntress

The Return

Alex walked through the forest, a small smile gracing her lips as she remembered meeting the Winchesters here so long ago. After the Titan war she had tried to find the Winchesters and prayed to Castiel but nothing had happened. Then came the Giant War, and she had almost given up hope of finding them. She really hoped they weren't dead.

Alex looked around, wishing she would see two idiotic brothers trying to fight off hellhounds. What did I call them again? Moose Man and Abercrombie? I almost forgot. Well, it has been four years, Alex, it's only natural, she thought to herself. Soon, she stumbled upon a path that lead to what looked like a clearing.

Alex pulled out her necklace as a sense of deja vu hit her. She clicked her necklace and took a minute to admire her beautiful sword. It was still the same, but now it wasn't as heavy as before since she was no longer a weak 10 year old girl. However, a few modifications had been made. There was a little skull with wings on the handle that matched the tattoo on her left wrist. Leo Valdez had personally upgraded Alex's sword, and sharpened it.

Alex's felt her cheeks heat up as she thought about the son of Hephaestus and decided to think about anything but him. She walked a few more steps before stopping, all senses alerting her that something was coming.

That was when she heard the growl.

Alex turned and looked around, but there were no monster in sight. The growl must be coming from somewhere else. I should check it out, maybe it's a demigod in danger, she thought as she began to jog down to the clearing, hoping to hear what direction the growl came from.

Alex followed the multiple growls and occasional grunts as her stomach began to clench. She began to pick up the pace and stopped when she saw the sight in front of her.

No, it can't be-

Two brothers were fighting hellhounds, and by the looks of it, they were losing. Alex's heart beat faster as she took a closer look and realized it was Sam and Dean.

"It's them," she breathed out softly. She stood there, frozen, until she saw the mass of hellhounds that were swarming Sam and Dean, ready to kill. She groaned, and began to run over to them. She stopped a few feet away from the hellhounds and raised her hand. Her tattoo tingled as she willed the shadows to take away the hellhounds and send them back to her father, Hades. Alex smiled smugly as the hellhounds disappeared with the shadows. The perks of being the adopted daughter of Hades, she thought.

Alex turned to look at the Winchesters, who had now turned to look at her, their eyes wide in shock and some other emotion that she couldn't decipher. She smiled at them, her heart fluttering and her eyes watering.

"I guess I'll always have to be around to save your guy's butts, huh?" Alex finally said as she clicked her necklace and put it around her neck again.

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"Why is it always hellhounds in this forest?"

Sam chanced a glare towards his brother as he ducked under the claws of one of the monsters they were fighting.

"There's probably some kind of supernatural attraction thing here," Dean continued. "I mean, come on, what are the odds of them popping up here twice?"

"Dean," Sam said through gritted teeth as he slashed at one of the hounds. "Shut up and kill."

"You got it, Sammy."

Unfortunately, the Winchesters suck at fighting hellhounds. Evidence being the last time they fought them in the exact same forest in the exact same clearing. What a coincidence.

"Maybe Alex will show up?"

Sam snorted. "Unlikely." It was obvious they were losing. Alex would be a blessing.

So a blessing they got.

A red-head quickly darted from the trees, stopping a few feet away from the hellhounds. Sam and Dean stared as she raised her hand and the shadows around them seemed to stretch towards the hellhounds. The darkness swallowed the fierce beasts, and the next thing the Winchesters knew they were alone with a teenaged girl in front of them.

When she turned to face them there was a smirk on her face. It changed into a warm smile as she said, "I guess I'll always have to be around to save your guy's butts, huh?"

Alex clicked her necklace back into place with ease. She stuck her thumbs into her belt loops and rocked on her heels as her smile became tentative, eyes wet.

"I don't suppose you remember little old me?"

"Not so little anymore," Dean said, a large smile overtaking his face as he got a good look at her. She was taller, and her formerly bright red hair had darkened into a pretty auburn. It was styled differently, too, long and wavy on one side, and cut right below her ear on the other. She had a tattoo on her wrist, and a few more scars. "Get over here."

Alex grinned as she shot forward into Dean's arms.

"Hey kiddo," Dean said quietly. "We missed you."

Alex smiled as she pulled away, "I missed you guys too. Now give me a hug, Samantha."

Sam grumbled at the nickname, but gathered her up in a bear hug (moose hug?) anyways.

When Sam finally let her go, and she could breathe again, she gave them a half-hearted glare. "Where the hell have you guys been? I've looked for you guys everywhere and I couldn't find you. All I found were some asshole angels that were very happy to meet the 'Winchester Weakness'."

Sam and Dean winced simultaneously. "It's kind of a long story."

"If you mean the Apocalypse, then yes I know," Alex said with an accusing look.

"You do?" Dean looked surprised for a moment, then resigned. "Of course you do."

"I have my sources," she said casually, before straightening up, placing her hands on her hips, and glaring at the brothers. I am so ready to chew them out for being complete idiots, she thought. "What the hell were you two thinking anyway. Sam saying yes to that jerk Lucifer, and Dean for letting him." She sighed then continued, "Well at least you two are okay now."

Dean rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, I admit that that probably wasn't our best moment, but yeah, we're okay now, everything is fine."

"Good. Not that I don't love talking to you guys, but can we go somewhere else that isn't a clearing in some random forest?" Alex asked as she looked around.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Yeah, come on."

Dean started walking down the path. "Impala's this way."

Alex's eye widened and she jumped in happiness, something she hadn't done in a very long time. "Ooh the Impala, I almost forgot about her! Come on, I want to see her again."

Alex picked up the pace and Sam and Dean could barely keep up with her.

"Slow down," Dean said. "We're almost there."

Alex scoffed as she slowed down. "You guys are so out of shape. I was barely even speed walking"

They glared at her half-heartedly. "No, we're tired after fighting hellhounds after only a couple hours of sleep."

"Well I once fought for five days in a row with only a little sleep," Alex countered.

The Winchesters stared at her. Alex winced as she realized what she just said, and hopped into the backseat of Impala. She smiled brightly at the familiarity of it. Dean and Sam slid into the car a moment after her.

"Would you believe that we got the same room at the same hotel as the last time we were here?"

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"So," Dean said as he closed the door to the room. "What's happened since we last saw you?"

"Just jump straight into it, why don't you," Sam muttered under his breath as he settled into a chair. Alex winced. This was going to be a long story, she thought.

"Well, after I left I met my family, and my best friend, who are a crazy dysfunctional bunch, let me tell ya. I went with them to get my cousins, Nico and B-Bianca," Alex stuttered out as a bittersweet smile came onto her face, "Nico is, like, the weirdest, darkest dork out there and Bianca is-was-the most caring sister in like, the history of ever. During a quest, Bianca, um," Alex cleared her throat. "Bianca died, and Thalia, my cousin, you know, the daughter of Zeus, became a hunter of Artemis so the prophecy was on my brother Percy's shoulders. Not much happened after that except Luke, the guy that was on Kronos's side became his vessel. After that there was a battle at camp. We lost some good people that day."

Alex stopped to catch her breath and try to get the image of the dead Lee, and sobbing Pollux standing near his brother's corpse out of her mind.

"Whoa," Sam said softly. "I'm sorry, that-yeah, that's really awful."

"Yeah," Alex said as she regained her posture, "After that Nico and I created a plan to help better our chances, although my brother was very reluctant to go through with it. We finally convinced him. and then, well, I joined him. You see, Percy and I ended up bathing in the River Styx."

The Winchesters stared at her.

"Uh, is that supposed to mean something important or…?" Dean looked confused.

"Dean, while I am around I want you to brush up on your knowledge of Greek mythology, no arguments. Its the river that Achilles was dipped in when he was a baby. Therefore, I was invincible except for my Achilles's heel."

"That's incredible," Sam said.

"I know, I'm angry it only lasted one war. It would've been really useful in the second one," Alex said and then stopped when she realized what she said. Shit, she thought.

"Second war?" Dean's eyebrows stretched up. "What do you mean, second war?"

Alex coughed awkwardly. "Um. Can I-um, I'll get to that later. Anyway, after we fell in the River Styx, we had to leave the Underworld, and my F-Uncle betrayed us. He had us caged in, in hope that Nico would be the one to take on the prophecy, it hurt. Literally, he almost blasted me across a room when I mentioned Nico's mother"

"What," Dean said dangerously. "What."

Sam frowned. "I have a hard time picturing that. But continue."

"Relax, Dean, he was bitter and angry, I don't blame him. I knew the consequences, but I still said it. Anyway, Nico managed to help us escape and we fought against my Uncle. We won, well, he ran away, still. We told Nico to convince him to fight. After that the main battle began, and Kronos managed to put the city under a spell so that no mortals got relatively hurt. We were left to defend Olympus, and we lost people as we tried to stop Kronos from invading from all the tunnels and stuff. Good thing the hunters were there. I helped Percy destroy a bridge and I saved Michael Yew from drowning by protecting him under water. That was before I had these powers."

"Your shadow thing?" Sam asked. "That's how you got rid of the hellhounds, right?"

"Yeah. After I was adopted by my Uncle Hades, I got all the powers of a child of Hades but it weakened my powers and connections to the sea."

"Oh, I see. That makes sense." Sam nodded.

"Continuing on, after that was more fighting, I swear, it was five days of fighting. I also got this scar," Alex pointed to the scar that started from her chin to just below her lip on her left side, "From a traitor son of Athena. Lucky bastard managed to cut me before I knocked him out."

"Sorry, kid," Dean said. "But good on you, knocking him out."

"Thanks," Alex beamed. Four years and you're still looking for his approval, a voice that sounded suspiciously like Gaea mocked. Alex flinched and shook her head. Avoiding Dean's eyes, she continued.

"We all did the best we could, but we were losing because we were one cabin short."

"What?" Sam looked astonished. "Why? Did something happen to them?"

"They weren't dead, if that's what you're asking. But Clarisse and Michael. Gods, those two idiots and their pride. They had an argument about a stupid chariot. Michael ended up apologizing, but no, it was too late for Clarisse. She convinced the whole Ares Cabin not to fight. Anyway, Annabeth got really got hurt, she's a daughter of Athena and Percy's girlfriend. Will managed to save her. Then there was the Drakon, which Clarisse defeated with the help of her father, but Silena, one of my good friends died. She died a hero."

Alex sighed, she knew her death was coming up and she couldn't handle it. She'd have to skip over it, but it still hurt. Alex wiped her wet eyes and continued to avoid eye contact with both of the Winchesters. She coughed.

"After that we ran to Olympus where Rachel was. She's a mortal, and also one of my best friends. We told Percy something about the prophecy. Percy managed to convince his father to help the Olympians with Typhon. Kronos then surprised us and we would've lost had it not been for Father, Mother, Aunt Demeter, and Nico. He was really badass," Alex admitted.

"I'm flattered, sis," a voice said from the shadows. Sam and Dean reached for their guns. Alex squealed and yelled "Nico!"

Alex skipped over and hugged Nico who had appeared from the shadows. Nico smirked at the shocked Winchesters over his sister's shoulder as he hugged her.

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Dean would really like to know exactly who this punk thinks he is.

Showing up out of nowhere? Hugging Alex? Smirking? Seriously?

But Alex seemed to know him. That was something. Nico was what she shouted? Oh right, her brother. Dean kind of feels like an idiot for not noticing that. His inner Sam is laughing at him. Urgh.

Sam cleared his throat. "Uh, Alex? You wanna introduce us?"

Alex seemed to realize that she had just hugged Nico and both Winchesters had no idea who he was. She blushed a little before clearing her throat, "Right. Dean, Sam, this is Nico di Angelo. Nico, this is Sam and Dean."

Nico raised an eyebrow, and gave them a once over, "So you're the famous Winchesters. Alex never shuts up about you two, you know."

Alex's blush darkened as she glared at her brother, "Shut up, Death Breath."

Dean frowned at the smirk edging its way up on the boy's face.

"Hi," Sam said before Dean could start. "Nice to meet you."

Nico gave a small, polite smile. "Nice to meet you, Sam, I've heard good things. You seem likeable, I guess."

Alex smirked at Nico, and the two shared a glance that ended with Nico's face turning a bit pink.

"So," Dean said. "It's nice to meet you and all, kid, but Alex was in the middle of a story? So stay and listen, or get the hell out of my room."

Nico glared at him, but before he could say anything, Alex spoke. "Play nice, Dean. Nico is my brother, and although I care a lot about you, I won't hesitate to do something. I'm sure you'd do the same for Samantha."

"Whatever," Dean grumbled. "Are you going to tell us what else happened or not?"

"Sure, now, where was I?"Alex said and turned to Nico, who shrugged. "Something about me being badass, probably when Father and all of us showed up."

Alex nodded. "Yeah so after Nico and everyone showed up, Kronos felt threatened by Father and decided to barricade them. After that it was all up to me, Percy, Annabeth and Grover. Thalia would've helped but a statue of Hera fell on her. Stupid Hera," she grumbled.

"I wouldn't say that, Ally, remember what happened to Annabeth? Hera's revenge is gross," Nico interrupted.

"Ally?" Dean stared at Nico and Alex questioningly. Nico smiled fully for the first time and Alex beamed. "Nico, Jasey and Percy call me that. It's their cute little 'baby sister name.' Kind of like how you call Sam, Sammy."

Dean nodded approvingly. "Okay. Continue."

Alex nodded, "Well after that we came to the throne room where Kronos was trying to take over. Ethan Nakamura, a traitor son of Nemesis tried to help us but he was killed by his own sword. Annabeth decided to try a less lethal method, and tried to get Luke to listen to her, to help gain consciousness from his vessel. It worked after Annabeth got a few bruises, and Luke managed to stab himself in his Achilles heel to end it all. It was really sad. I didn't know him personally except that time he tried to recruit me, but I can say he died a hero."

Alex let a moment of silence pass in honor of Luke. "The Gods came in later and decided to reward us. Annabeth became Architect of Olympus, Grover became Lord of the Wild, Percy was offered immortality, which he denied, and Father chose to adopt me."

"Yeah, I still can't believe Uncle Zeus let him," Nico said with a raised eyebrow.

Alex smiled smugly. "Well, Uncle Zeus likes me because I was his only niece at the time, and I don't hit on his kids."

Alex wiggled her eyebrows, and Nico's face turned bright red as he turned to glare at her.

Sam sighed. "I'm not going to ask. Neither will Dean." He jabbed his brother in the ribs when Dean opened his mouth.

"Good, she won't tell you either way," Nico said, his glare still aimed at Alex. Alex shrugged with a sly smile on her face before she looked at the Winchesters.

"So you guys are all caught up on the first War. What do you think about all this?"Alex asked uncertainly.

Dean shifted in his seat before he replied, "I think that you went through too much shit for a teenager and you came out stronger. Good for you. Now go take a five year nap."

Sam rolled his eyes. "You did good, Alex," he said honestly. "You came out better, and you're still alive, which is a plus."

Nico gave them a cold smile, "If you think that was bad, you're in for a very unpleasant surprise."

(A/N): Hello again. Sorry for the long wait but school is very time consuming. We finally have the reunion and I hope it lives up to your standards. Also Nico! Yes! I hope he's not to OOC. Also this will follow some canon, so yes Nico is not interested in females. If you have a problem with that, that's cool everyone has their opinions but it is not okay for you to state your homophobia or dislike in the reviews. Please respect that. And the name change is a symbolization of Alex growing up and Arc 1 was the Sea Huntress arc(That am I'm to lazy to go change all the chapters. Shhhh.). Get ready for teenager badaass Alex. Oh boy.

Bye!

-A