Climbing Up The Walls

by kripke's keepers

Sam and Dean get off of a hunt and get word from Ellen about a case of disappearances in the Boston area. The brothers take the mission and are pulled into a tangled web of violence, dark pasts, and the lifes of two mysterious hunters. A/U & OOC

7. Falls and Breaks

A/N: Heya kids. Advice for this chapter: get a snack, curl up somewhere comfortable, and tuck in for a hearty installment of Climbing Up The Walls. Talk to you at the bottom!

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Climbing Up The Walls

Chapter Seven: Falls and Breaks

By: kripke's keepers

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The sun slowly rose over Tyler and Tosh's dorm, showering the rooms with different shades of orange. Tyler was the first to wake, scratching her eyes and taking in her surroundings. Suddenly, everything that had happened the night before flooded into her memory. As she blinked rapidly she could still see the shape shifter with Sam's face looming over her. She scanned the room, seeing Dean, still asleep and sprawled out on his pallet. Then her eyes met Sam, also still asleep curled up next to her. With a heavy sigh, she slowly detangled herself from Sam, not wanting to wake him up. After she was successful in doing this, she heard her stomach rumble.

"Well, now is as good a time as any to start the most important meal of the day," Tyler whispered to herself, heading for the kitchen.

Tyler found eggs and bacon in the fridge and proceeded to turn the stove on and place a skillet on the surface. Before she could get some eggs in the pan, she heard movement from the living room. Upon looking to see who it was, she could only see a little tuft of brown hair.

"Hello, Sam," Tyler greeted, smiling as she cracked an egg with another egg.

"Hey Tyler," Sam said, walking into the kitchen and looking into the pan and back at Tyler. "You break eggs with eggs?"

"Yes I do," Tyler replied, grinning. "It's just always been how I've done it."

"Must be an English thing," Sam retorted.

Tyler gave him a look as she poured the eggs into the skillet, still not sure how comfortable she was with him when she was sober. "Whatever."

Sam chuckled as he watched Tyler stir the now sizzling eggs. "So, while Dean and Tosh are still sleeping, I was just wondering..." Sam paused for a second, looking down at his hands. "Are we good? I mean, after all the stuff that happened yesterday...I mean...well..."

"I know what you mean," Tyler said, cutting him off, and putting the eggs on a plate a bit nervously. "And we're good. That water is now under the bridge." Tyler lied smoothly, handing the plate to Sam. "Dig in before they get cold, but leave some room. I'm starting on the bacon next." Tyler said, with a half smile.

Just as the bacon started frying, Tosh entered the kitchen, scratching her head and yawning.

"HAPPY FALL BREAK! MUHAHA!" Tosh yelled, faking an evil laugh. "Let us see what we can get into this time, eh Ty?"

"Holy crap, is that this week? Man, if it will be anything like last year, we better get ready to be prepared!" Tyler replied, non-chalantly flipping the bacon.

"What happened last year?" Sam inquired.

Tyler and Tosh made eye contact and completely lost it, laughing loud and long.

"Forget I asked..." Sam said, taking another bite out of his eggs.

"Where's Dean?" Tosh asked looking from Sam to Tyler.

"He's still asleep. Actually, go wake him. He hates being asleep while others are awake." Sam replied.

"Gladly," Tosh responded, practically skipping to where Dean lay, and kneeling beside him. Playfully slapping Dean on the face, Tosh yelled, "Wakey wakey, hands off snakey!!!!"

Dean grunted, pulling himself up. "And good morning to you too!" Suddenly, his eyes got wide, almost like a kid's. "Is that bacon I smell?"

"Tyler's cooking it," Tosh replied, as she ruffled Dean's hair, stood up and walked back into the kitchen to sit on the counter that Tyler wasn't working on.

Dean half walked half jogged to the kitchen.

"Is it done yet? Please tell me it's done!!" Dean said.

"Almost. Hold your horses," Tyler said, as she flipped the strips of bacon one last time and drained them on another plate.

"Dig in," Tyler said.

Dean pounced on the bacon, shoving a piece hungrily in his mouth.

"Geez Louise, don't take them all!" Tosh said, grabbing a strip of bacon, earning a look of mock hatred from Dean.

The phone rang in the kitchen. Tyler was the first to grab it.

"Hello?" Tyler said.

"Hey Tyler, it's Ellen. Is Tosh there too?"

"Yes she is, in fact the Winchester boys are here too."

"Well that's even better because this concerns them too. I heard through the grapevine that Harvard's fall break is this week. Now I know the boys don't have anything going on, but are you two free?"

"Yes mum, we're free, at least right now, to our knowledge."

"Oh good!"

Tyler heard Lenny squeal in the background.

"If it's not too much trouble, I'm trying to get the Roadhouse rebuilt and back to up and running. I want it done soon but don't have enough money to hire laborers to come and rebuild and you know that me and Lenny will take forever to do it by ourselves. Will you four help me out? I don't have anything to pay you with, other than food on the table and a haphazard roof over your head, but any help would be greatly appreciated."

"It's more than fine with me, let me check with the other three." Tyler put the phone receiver to her chest and turned to Sam, Dean, and Tosh.

"How would you feel if we spent Harvard's fall break helping Ellen and Lenny rebuild the roadhouse?"

"It won't be as crazy as our last Fall Break, but I'd absolutely love to," Tosh replied.

"So would we," Dean and Sam nodded in agreement.

Tyler put the phone back to her ear. "It's on, Ellen. We'll be out to Nebraska as soon as we can. We'll leave here in about an hour."

"That's great!" The relief was apparent in Ellen's voice. "See you when I see you!"

"Bye bye Ellen. Take care of yourself."

"I sure will. Bye bye."

Tyler hung up. "Well, it looks like we know how we're going to spend our fall break this year," she said, retreating into her room to pack, her three friends following suit.

After about an hour, as promised, Tosh, Tyler, Sam, and Dean were inside the Impala, ready to go. It would take roughly 27 hours to get there. They all decided to drive for roughly 13 hours, stop in some cheap flea-bag motel, and then wake up early to drive in remaining 14 hours and arrive at Ellen's late.

"SHOTGUN!" Sam yelled, plunging himself into the Impala.

"He says that like it's a good thing. I hate riding shotgun with him," Tosh whispered aside to Tyler with a light chuckle.

"I heard that, miss!" Dean said, sliding into the driver's seat.

Tyler and Tosh got in, Tosh behind Dean and Tyler sitting behind Sam. Dean cranked up the radio high, Metallica and AC/DC meshing together like a blurry life story. Dean, rather annoyingly, sang along to every tune at the top of his lungs, Sam jumping in occasionally.

"Kill me now!" Tosh yelled over the music

"That can beeee arrannnnnged!" Dean sung.

Tyler and Sam laughed and exchanged looks. The ride went on like that for hours, the road seeming to never end. Sam was the first to doze off, Tyler second. Dean looked in his rearview mirror at Tosh.

"Hey Tosh, is there a spoon back there?" Dean asked with a grin on his face.

"Excuse me?" Tosh said, a look of disdain on her face.

"A s-p-o-o-n!" Dean spelled out for her, overly patient.

"I see a white plastic one in front of me... do you want it?" Tosh said, reaching for the spoon and handing it to Dean.

"Abso-freaking-lutely!" Dean said, looking back quickly to snag the spoon from Tosh's hand.

"But your not even eating anything..." Tosh said, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Little lady, this spoon is most certainly not for eating. Check this out, I used to do this to Sam when he was younger. Let the prank wars begin!" Dean slowly inserted the spoon comically into Sam's gaping mouth. With one hand on the wheel, Dean got a picture on his cell phone.

"Let's wake these lazy bones up, huh?" Dean said, turning up his radio and startling Tyler and Sam. Sam realizing he had a spoon in his mouth and the sheer look on Tyler's face made both Tosh and Dean laugh hysterically.

"What the hell, man? Please tell me you are not starting this again..." Sam said in an irritated tone.

"Come on, every good road trip has a prank war. It's a simple fact of life." Dean glanced in his rear view mirror. "And females are not immune. So get ready."

"Shit..." Tyler said with displeasure.

"Freaking awesome," Tosh responded. Tyler looked over at her in surprise. Dean lightly laughed in acknowledge to Tosh.

And the prank wars started. Sam struck second when Dean got out to pump some gas and get food inside of a random gas station. Sam placed a plastic rat in Dean's seat.

"Dean hates rats. If anything will make him scream like a girl, it's this." Sam giggled. "Just be sure to act cool when he comes out and he won't suspect a thing."

Dean came out carrying a bag with an assortment of snacks and drinks, his unsuspecting grin almost causing Tyler and Tosh to lose it, but for the sake of the joke, they remained calm.

Dean handed his purchases to Sam. "Here, Sam. I got some stuff for the girls too." Dean sat down in his seat.

"What the hell?" Dean said looking between his legs.

"What is it, Dean?" Sam said covering his mouth with his hand to keep his laughter from escaping.

"RAT!" Dean screamed. "A fucking rat! A RAT!!!" Dean threw himself out of the car and screamed again, frantically rubbing his legs.

"Ha! It's fake, Dean! Calm down, it's fake!" Tosh said in between her laughter, tossing the rubber rat toward Dean, who jumped out of its path.

Dean quickly got himself under control, got back in the Impala, and slammed the door.

"Not. Cool." Dean said, revving up the engine of his beloved car.

"Oh, come on Dean!!! Every good road trip must have a prank wars. It's a simple fact of life." Sam said, laughing heartily now.

"Kiss my ass and eat! We were going to go to a restaurant, but screw that now!" Dean said spinning out of the gas station and back on to the road.

After Dean was too tired to drive anymore, the four of them decided to rest at a cheap motel called "The Submarine."

Walking in a surveying the room, Sam lightly chuckled, looking around the room at the cheesy decor. Sam picked up a tiny exact replica of a depth charge and gazed at it with a smirk. "Wow, you really picked a good one this time! What should we do about rooms?" Sam inquired.

"Well, if it's okay with the ladies, I'd rather stay in one room instead of wasting the money to rent two rooms. We'll just have to share beds. And Lord knows that me and you have had to share a bed or two. That okay with you guys?" Dean looked at Tyler and Tosh for approval.

"Sure, that's cool. Ty?"

"Yeah, whatever." Tyler responded, nodding her head in understanding.

When Dean opened the door, he immediately pounced on the nearest bed taking off his shoes, socks and starting on his belt.

"Dude! Don't forget! There are girls here!" Sam warned.

"And they can watch if they like, but I'm getting undressed and going to sleep. End of story!" Within minutes, Dean was under the covers and snoring lightly.

"Man, when he says he's going to do something, he means it," Tyler observed, retreating toward the bathroom.

After everyone got settled in and into bed, the exhausted hunters slipped gratefully into sleep.

Sunday

"I'm hungry as hell," Tyler said in the back seat. "We left Cleveland at eight in the morning and it's like two in the afternoon now!"

Tosh flexed her back and replied, "Me too, and I'm so tired of being in this car. You guys want to stop somewhere and eat?"

Dean looked over at Sam. "That good with you?"

"I thought you would never ask. I could eat an elephant right about now," Sam said, lightly rubbing his stomach. "There's a place right in front of us, if you guys are ok with having Mexican. I know I am!" Sam pointed to the restaurant, Los Primos

"Let's do this," Dean said, pulling in to the restaurant. He whirled the Impala into a parking spot.

"It's a really nice day," Tyler said as she got out of the car.

"Not a cloud in the sky," Tosh observed getting out and stretching her arms in the air.

"We should totally sit outside," Tyler said looking at Sam and Dean. "Does that bother you guys?"

"After being in the car all day, it seems like the perfect thing to do," Sam said walking behind Dean into the establishment.

Once outside, they seated themselves, Sam and Dean sitting across from Tyler and Tosh, and they ordered.

Thirty minutes later, the four travelers had full stomachs and were deep in conversation.

"I loved that movie!" Tosh said, a huge grin across her face, "The death scenes were exquisite!"

"I enjoyed those too. They completely made the movie," Dean replied, taking a sip from his drink. "Sam got grossed out though, didn't you Sam? Sam had bad dreams about Wade for a month."

Tyler laughed hysterically, along with Tosh. "Shut up!" Sam exclaimed.

Sam scoffed, then, all of a sudden, he had a "light bulb" moment, his eyebrows furrowing in realization.

"Hey, Dean, does this area look familiar to you?" Sam said looking around.

"I don't think so..." Dean replied.

After a few moments, it dawned on Sam.

"Dean, this is where we came to watch you compete in that hockey championship! Look!" Sam pointed across the street to a building. Dean followed his eyes.

"Glenview Ice Center..." Dean whispered.

"Do you remember?" Sam said. "1992?"

"Yeah, I remember. It was the only time I can remember Dad choosing to travel for me and not for hunting. It was the last time I remember him paying attention to anything I did." Dean said matter-of-factly, like it was simply a fact of life. He turned his head around to see Tyler and Tosh wearing faces of pity.

"Excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom," Dean got up and wasted no time in disappearing.

"Whoa. I take it he didn't enjoy it?" Tyler said, "Do you mind telling us?"

"Well, it's not that he didn't enjoy it. He loved playing hockey. It was his getaway, something to take off stress. Dad was following up with a hunt in Minnesota, when Dean was in 7th grade. It was particularly long hunt, maybe six months, and by then, Dean was hooked. He's always been good at sports. He made the team quickly and was, by far, the most valuable player on the team. He was made Captain, even, and he single-handedly took the team to the national championships. I wouldn't have believed he was as good as people made him out to be if I wasn't at every practice after school. Dean could keep an easy eye on me that way." Sam explained.

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Dean let the hot water in his hands cascade over his face. He was frantically trying to get himself under control.

'This is stupid. I need to let this go' Dean kept thinking, that game running through his head. Dean reached inside his jacket and opened his wallet. inside, in a hidden compartment, Dean took out a picture, captioned, Dean Winchester, Captain of the Jets, 1992. Dean looked at his smiling 13-year-old self, remembering better times.

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"But, I don't understand, the way he acted just now...I don't know.." Tosh began.

"That's because I haven't finished the story. See, they made it to the championships, along with a hockey team called the Hawks, I forgot where they were from. But, they were good. Almost too good. The game went into overtime, with a tied score of 15. Then, Dean, by some divine intervention, got a penalty shot. But I knew he hated that. On the drive over, Dean told us that he had heard that the other team's goalie was really good. And he was a good player too. He was the Captain as well, and the team would alternate, because they had two goalies, and, when he played, he would give Dean a run for his money. Dean did his signature move for the shot and the goalie blocked it. But, even though it sucked, that really wasn't the zinger. The goalie took his helmet off, and it was a girl. Dean was devastated. A Winchester beat by a girl. And his teammates..." Sam's face reflected sadness fro his brother. "Well, let's just say kids can be cruel."

"That sucks," Tyler said, mulling it all over in her head.

"Dad tried to act like it was ok, but it was obvious that he was disappointed. 'There ain't no reason in doing stuff like this if you're not going to win, so we're you're not going to do that stuff anymore' he told Dean. Dean basically views that game, that moment, as his one time that he was normal. And maybe, if he had beat her, he could have had a more normal life down the road, ya know? He even has a picture in his wallet of himself in his uniform. As a reminder of the one thing he didn't accomplish. I think it's morbid, but only Dean, huh?" Sam continued.

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Dean put the picture back in his wallet, shoved the wallet forcefully inside his jacket and took a deep breath. He looked at himself one last time in the mirror.

"There ain't no reason in doing stuff like this if you're not going to win," Dean said to himself. He turned to go back to the table.

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"Just don't bring it up anymore, ok?" Sam said when he saw Dean coming. Tyler and Tosh silently agreed.

"Hey guys, can we crash for the day? I'm really tired, and I would love to sleep," Dean said his eyes slightly drooping.

"That's fine with me," Tosh said, along with Tyler and Sam.

"I'll pay and pull the car around," Dean replied, retreating.

"Shit... he seems pretty messed up about it," Tosh said to herself.

Once they had checked in to yet another famous flea-bag motel, Dean took his jacket off and was out like a light, snoring loudly.

"He must have taken something. He only snores like that when he has taken something. He'll be out for a while. Hey, it's only 3:30, do you guys want to go driving around and hang out or something?" Sam asked.

"I'd love to," Tyler replied, putting her coat back on.

"I'll stay here. I could use some shut eye as well," Tosh said, taking her shoes off and putting them beside her and Tyler's queen bed.

"Ok, that's fine. We'll be back later," Sam said, him and Tyler exiting the room.

"Later," Tosh replied, lying down.

Once Tosh heard the Impala exit the parking lot, Tosh slowly went over to Dean's jacket, taking it gently in her hands and sitting down at the only rickety table in the corner of the room. After some rummaging around, she found his wallet in the inside pocket, thankful that she didn't have to go through Dean's pants to get to it. Finally, she found the secret compartment and the picture that resided inside of it.

"Shit..." Tosh said, dismayed at what she was seeing. Clutching the picture in her hands, she let a few tears drop. "I had no idea, Dean..."

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Dean could feel his pulse rising, the blood boiling in his face. This was it. His one shot to normalcy. Dean slowly skated toward the prepared goalie with the puck, a surge of happiness waving through him. 'I can do this, I can do this, I'm a Winchester,' Dean kept chanting in his head.

He shot, and time seemed to stand still. Dean's eye's followed the puck as it ricocheted off of the goalie's gloves. Dean felt devastation course through his entire body, feeling as though he had been shot at point blank range. The goalie slowly stood up straight and removed its helmet, revealing her long brunette hair. He fell to his knees and held his head in his hands. The Hawks were going wild, having just realized they had won the game. The goalie slowly sailed over to Dean and knelt in front of him.

Dean took his helmet off and raised his head, physically shaking with embarrassment and shame.

The goalie patted his shoulder. "You did good, man. Real good. Just not good enough. Better luck next time." And with that, she skated away to await her grateful teammates.

Dean followed her with his eyes, the "9" on the back of her jersey glistening in the light. The girl out of earshot, Dean replied to himself, his eyes watering with anger, "There won't be a next time...."

Dean skated over to the Jets, who were already snickering. He looked up in the crowd and could both see and feel the disappointment on his father's face.

Dean woke up in a cold sweat, his mind still fresh from the dream he had just had. He could tell it was dark and looked over to find Sam lightly snoring beside him. He looked over at the clock that read 10:00. Eight hours of sleep was like a lifetime for Dean. He got out of bed and stretched.

"I'm glad you're up," he heard Tosh whisper. He looked around and saw her sitting at a table in front of him.

"Why?" Dean asked, trying to hide that she had scared him.

"I wanted to take you somewhere," Tosh replied, handing Dean his coat. "Put this on and meet me at the Impala. I'm driving."

"Yeah, right," Dean smirked to himself.

"Yeah! Right!" Tosh said, dangling the keys in front of Dean's face.

Dean frowned and slight shook his head. "If I wasn't so groggy, I'd protest and wonder how you got the keys out of my pants, but you seem to know where we're going, so it's fine. But just this once, you thief!"

Tosh slid inside Dean's car and revved up the engine. She was as nervous as she ever thought she'd be. When she saw Dean emerge from the motel room, Tosh ran her hands over the steering wheel to try to calm herself down.

Dean seated himself into the passenger's side of the car. He looked over at Tosh and patted her arm, a rare moment of affection that broke Tosh's heart because she knew what she had to do.

"I'm ready when you are," Dean said, leaning back into the seat, laying his head back and running his tongue over his teeth.

Tosh drove to their destination, while Dean drifted in and out of sleep. Tosh patted his knee, waking him up.

"We're here. And, by the way, we're breaking in, so be quiet and on your toes and just follow me," Tosh got out and walked to the back entrance, taking out a pick and starting to work on the lock

"What about the alarms and security cameras and stuff?" Dean sighed and rolled his eyes. "You needed to do some homework here! Let's go," Dean grabbed her arms and pulled her away from the door.

Tosh yanked her arm out of Dean's hand. "Will you give me a little credit!" Tosh hissed, "This place closes at 9. While you were asleep, I disabled everything. God!"

"Sorry, my mistake," Dean said, raising his hands in surrender.

Once inside, Dean took his sunglasses off and quickly scanned the place with his eyes. "Tosh, I really don't want to be here right now."

Tosh took Dean's hand. "You need to get over this. That's why we're here. That's why I'm here."

"I don't understand," Dean said, his eyebrows furrowing in frustration.

Tosh went behind the equipment counter and handed Dean the appropriate hockey outfit. "Are you a large or an extra large?" Tosh asked, crouched behind the cheesy Formica counter.

"Maybe you didn't here me, Tosh. I. Don't. Want. To. Be. Here." Dean said, raising his voice with every word.

"You're here, and you're not going anywhere," Tosh placed a rental uniform on the table, giving it to Dean. "If these are too tight, tell me and I'll get you the next size up."

Dean smirked and turned to walk toward the dressing room.

"No, no Dean. You're changing out here. You can easily escape through the dressing rooms."

"Tosh!" Dean whined, "could you be any more difficult? I promise I won't escape."

"I'll follow you in there, if you want it that way," Tosh said, a smile playing on her face.

Dean sighed in defeat. "Whatever. Let's just get this over with. Close your eyes, you perv. I don't want you seeing me change."

"Oh Dean, you and I both know that you'd love it if I watched."

A combination of a smirk and a smile graced Dean's features. "Just cover your eyes, so I can do this."

Tosh complied, covering her eyes, stealing a glance every couple of minutes, Dean totally oblivious.

"Ok, I'm done. You can open your eyes now."

Tosh opened her eyes and was glad to see the uniform on Dean. The look on his face, though, was a look of sheer, unadulterated displeasure.

"Dean, don't you think you're overreacting?" Tosh said as Dean walked over to the skate rack.

"Oh, yeah, I think I am. I'm only in the place where my worst childhood memory resides. And my mom got killed by a demon."

"Wow." Tosh laughed loud, but meeting Dean's glare, she immediately stopped. "Sorry, Dean, I shouldn't laugh. I know that this is hard for you."

Dean scoffed, picking the right skates out and grabbing a helmet.

"Go down there and start skating. I'll be there in a minute."

As Dean skated on to the ice, he closed his eyes, remembering that game, remembering the glowing "9" drifting away from him.

"Yo!" Tosh yelled. Dean was pulled out of his flashback. He looked in front of him and Tosh, in full goalie garb, was skating pretty fast toward him.

"Hey, you can skate? I thought you were from Texas?"

"I've played a game of hockey or two in my day. I was pretty good once," Tosh said, skating around the goal, then positioning herself in front of the net.

"I think you should take me on," Tosh said.

"Bullshit! The force of my puck could really hurt you!" Dean said, chuckling.

"I have pads on dumbass. Take me on," Tosh said, not moving, prepared.

"Ok, fine! Just don't sue me little miss!" Dean said, getting ready to shoot.

"Wait! Come here a sec," Tosh commanded.

"Tosh! I was just fixing to shoot! What the hell do you want?" Dean said skating toward her.

Tosh put her gloved hand on Dean's shoulder. "It's really important that I tell you that I will try my very best to beat you right now, ok? My very best."

"Ok?" Dean said, skating back to his original position.

Tosh got ready, bracing herself. Dean shot, and Tosh blocked it instantly.

Dean was visibly taken aback but he did not talk, he just shot. And shot. And Tosh blocked and blocked.

Sweat dripping down his face, he slammed his stick in to the ice.

"God dammit!!! I can't do this! Have I really gotten this bad?"

"Dean, calm down and try again. We're not leaving until you beat me."

"Why? Why the hell is this so important?" Dean said skating up to her and taking his helmet off, his normally stick straight hair was wet with sweat and sticking to his face.

"Dean... you have to do this. Once and for all."

Dean sighed and took his position again. He shot four more times and then finally made the score buzzer sound.

"Yeah, baby!" Dean said, taking his helmet off and skated toward Tosh, hugging her in a moment of emotion.

"Sorry! That's awkward." Dean said distancing himself away from her.

"Dean, you've beat me," Tosh said, tears in her eyes.

"I know," Dean said, smiling.

"No, you don't know. Stand back," Tosh pleaded. Dean, confused beyond belief, complied.

Tosh took her goalie pads off and started taking her rental uniform off.

Dean's smile grew wider. "Well, I like what I'm seeing."

"Shut up," Tosh said, successfully removing the rental jersey to reveal, underneath, a tattered Hawks jersey. Dean's face fell, visibly paling. "Tosh...this isn't funny. Where did you get that jersey? You're being a bitch!" Dean basically screamed.

"Dean," Tosh said softly, "I'm sorry about what happened to you all those years ago."

"But..." Dean said, tears in his eyes, "It wasn't your fault."

"It was Dean. I was the goalie," Tosh said, upset, tears falling down her face. She turned around and on the jersey it said "Banks, 9"

The goalie patted his shoulder. "You did good, man. Real good. Just not good enough. Better luck next time." And with that, she skated away to await her grateful teammates.

Dean followed her with his eyes, the "9" on the back of her jersey glistening in the light.

"What about the other one?" "Tosh a.k.a. Natasha Marie Banks was raised in good ol' San Antonio, Texas." Tosh… Tosh Banks… Natasha Banks… Banks…

"I didn't realize that boy was you until Sam told me the story of what happened. And now you've beat me, Dean. Now you can move on," Tosh cupped Dean's face in her hands.

"Don't touch me," Dean said, his voice low and warning. He squeezed Tosh's hands and forcefully pushed them away.

"Dean, don't do this. I was 13. I didn't understand how much it meant to you," Tosh said, furiously wiping at her eyes.

Dean, anger coursing through his body, grabbed Tosh and slammed her into the nearest wall. "You ruined my life!" Dean said, his eyes red and puffy, squeezing Tosh's arms as hard as he could.

"Dean, you're hurting me," Tosh said calmly, trying to get Dean to understand.

"Not as much as you hurt me," Dean released her. "I can't even look at you right now."

Tosh let her body sink to the icy ground as she watched Dean storm away on his skates.

"If you're not in the Impala in five minutes, I'm leaving you!" Tosh heard Dean scream as he slammed the door with enough force to make it sound like the door could come off it hinges at any minute now.

Tosh got herself up and left the hockey stuff on the ice, simply not caring. They would be out of town soon anyway. She grabbed her jacket on the Formica counter and zipped it up making sure the Hawk jersey could not be seen.

Tosh jogged out to the Impala, with Dean waiting behind the wheel.

Dean said nothing, acting like Tosh wasn't even in the car, driving at break neck speeds to get back to the motel. When they made it to the parking lot, Dean spoke, his voice deep and monotone.

"Better go pack your things. We're leaving here," Dean wouldn't even look at Tosh.

Tosh hung her head low. "I didn't unpack anything."

Dean said nothing. He just went inside and Tosh couldn't bring herself to go after him.

"Well, that didn't go as well as I expected," Tosh said in to the air, taking deep breaths, trying to calm her shaky nerves.

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Dean burst through the hotel door, waking and startling Tyler and Sam.

"We're going. Now," Dean said, his voice shaky.

"Dude, it's one in the morning," Sam complained, nearly falling out of bed.

"I. Don't. Care," Dean responded grabbing his bag and Tosh's in the same hand.

"Ok, then," Tyler said, her accent particularly thick. "Be a jerk." She stumbled to the bathroom and slammed the door.

A few moments later, Dean, with a sleepy Tyler and Sam, emerged from the room, all of them carrying bags.

"What is Tosh already doing in the Impala?" Tyler asked.

"No questions, let's just go," Dean said throwing his bag in the back.

Tyler and Sam met eyes. Tyler glanced in the passenger seat and saw a sleeping Tosh, her cheeks wet with tears.

"Dean," Tyler said, looking Dean in the eyes. "What the hell did you do?" Dean didn't answer, he just met her glare coldly. She glared back, about to lay into him when Sam put a hand on her shoulder, making her flinch.

"Dean?" Sam inquired. Dean looked from Sam to Tyler and boldly said nothing, sliding into the driver's seat.

"Prick," Tyler said, finally getting into the car, Sam following her with his eyes, concerned.

"Yeah, he can be that," Sam said with a sigh, getting in the car beside Tyler.

Dean turned the radio on loud, waking Tosh up.

Tyler leaned up and whispered in Tosh's ear. "Sweetie, what happened?"

Tyler's kindness caught Tosh off guard and her eyes filled with tears when she glanced at Dean's indifferent face, but it was dark and she did her best to hide them from Tyler. As well as she could, she mustered up the best 'I'm fine' voice she could manage.

"Nothing. Nothing happened, at least to your knowledge. I really don't want to talk right now," Tosh said, turning her face away from Tyler and trying her best to go back to sleep.

Tyler backed off and laid her head back against the seat. "I don't understand. She was fine this morning," Tyler whispered to Sam, distress in her voice.

Sam nudged Tyler's shoulder with his own and said, "You can't force these kinds of things. Something obviously happened and if Tosh wants to tell you she will tell you."

Tyler sighed in agreement, falling asleep shortly after, her head inevitably falling onto Sam's shoulder as Dean drove into the night.

Monday

Tyler slid out of the Impala with a look of discomfort, stretching her shoulders and rubbing her lower back. "I hate long drives. What is the time perchance?"

Dean got out, slamming the squeaky door of the Impala with a scoff, completely ignoring Tyler and going straight for his bags. Tosh did the same, her eyes heavy and tired, despite the fact that she had slept the whole way from the motel to the Roadhouse's site. Tosh passed Tyler, not seeming to notice, her hair in her face.

"Anyone?" Tyler said to no one in particular, her face turned toward the sky and her arms raised in exaggerated frustration.

Sam walked up behind Tyler and massaged his neck muscles for a second before answering. "It's two in the afternoon. Beautiful day," Sam chuckled, his eyes slightly creasing at the edges.

Tyler turned around and looked at Sam, sending a shiver down her spine when their eyes connected. "Yes," Tyler said. "Extremely." Tyler walked to the back of the car with Sam to get her bags.

Dean strode into the beginnings of the Roadhouse first, Tosh a careful distance away from him, which Tyler mentally noted as she too, along with Sam walked into the project that awaited them.

Dean and Tosh lowered their bags with a gentle thud, silent with identical hard looks on their faces, neither one wanting to be the first to talk. It was as if they were playing the quiet game with each other, the first one who talked is the one to lose with embarrassment to the immense pleasure of the other one.

Slightly shaking his head at the two, Sam scanned the room quickly, his eyes narrowing in focus. The new Roadhouse looked shockingly good for the short time from when the old Roadhouse had burned to the ground. The frame was completely done, but still lacking a roof. There were tarps folded in the corner, waiting to be put up to cover the overcast clouds that hovered above them, as well as a few visible electrical wires waiting to be tampered with and covered up.

"Wow," Sam said, nodding his head and glancing over at Tyler. "Ellen and Lenny must have been hauling ass for the past few days.

A distant clanking could be heard from the back of the makeshift building. Ellen emerged, covered in dirt and grime from some wreckage, and came through what could be construed as a back door. With a warm smile, a hearty laugh and an enthusiastic wave, Ellen welcomed the newly arrived hunters.

"Am I glad to see you guys! And to correct you Sam, I wish Lenny and I had done all of this. Fellow hunters, you know how they do with their gossip, got wind of the situation down here and decided to take detours and help me out. I had five hunters helping me out until earlier today. I told them that I had some special friends coming, so how are y'all doing?" Ellen rushed forward to hug Sam, Dean, Tyler and Tosh.

"I really do appreciate this, guys," Ellen said her eyes suddenly turning sad.

"I know you would do the same for us, Ellen," Tyler said, placing a comforting hand on Ellen's arm.

"Well, I know Lenny would bust my chops if she knew you were here and I didn't go get her so..." Ellen walked over to where the hunters had entered, stuck her head out into the open air and yelled, "LENNY! THE GANG IS HERE!"

The elephant-like pitter-patter of Lenny's running feet weaving through the wreckage could be heard seconds before Lenny made her presence known.

"Toshie!! Tyler!!! BOYS!!!" Lenny squealed like a three year old, lunging herself at each hunter, giving them a hug, roughly squeezing the life out of every hunter in the room, including Ellen at the very end.

"Hey, Lenny," Tyler said, lightly chuckling, then turning her attention back to Ellen. "So," Tyler said, shrugging, "where in the world would you like us to start?"

"Well, I was just tinkering with the electricity before you guys got here. I think I'm going to take a little break," Ellen turned to sit on a bar stool spared by the fire in front of a newly-built bar stand. "Y'all can start there if you want."

"Who else's good with electrical wiring?" Tyler asked into the room.

"Dean made an EMF meter out of a walkman when he was just a kid," Sam replied, nodding his head over to Dean.

Lenny let out a surprised laugh.

"No! No way!" Dean didn't respond. "Really?" Tyler asked, turning to look at Dean.

"I could take a look at it," Dean said quietly, visibly mulling over the prospect of having to perhaps work with the woman that hated him the most.

Tosh watched as Tyler walked away with Dean, silently praying that, even though Dean had hurt her, Tyler wouldn't give him a hard time.

"So, where should we sleep, you think?" Sam asked Ellen, scratching his head.

When Tosh turned her attention to Sam, she had already realized that her hopes would most definitely not come to fruition.

"Well, actually where you're standing, in the open floor plan, that's actually the safest place to put up shop. Me and Lenny like to sleep in the back, but there's simply no room for y'all. Sorry about that," Ellen shrugged.

"No, no," Tosh said, almost making Sam and Lenny jump, as it was the first time Tosh had really spoken since they had gotten there. "No, Ellen, this is more than fine. Do you mind if we get started soon? Setting this up might take a little longer than we might think."

"Oh, yeah!" Ellen said. "Knock yourselves out. I'm going to go see if I can find some pillows or something for you guys. Come on, Lenny, you can help me too."

The silence was cruel and deafening until Sam decided to break the silence. Turning to Tosh, Sam furrowed his brow and ran a hand through his hair. "Soo...." he began nervously, "Do you want to talk about it? I mean, I know how bad Dean can sometimes be. Maybe if you get it out you will feel better?" Sam looked at her hopefully, reminding Tosh of a little boy looking into his Halloween candy for the first time, hoping there was something in there worth a night of trouble.

"It's pretty unbelievable," Tosh said, monotone. "Pretty damn unbelievable. Even for somebody like you."

"Try me," Sam said, kneeling to grab and unravel his seldom used sleeping bag from his worn out bag. Tosh paused, kneeling to do the same, trying to decide if it was right to tell Sam about something that was so hurtful, so fresh in her memory, a gaping wound on her soul.

Sam looked up and reached a steadying hand to rest on Tosh's shoulder. "Please," Sam pleaded, looking Tosh in the eyes. "If you hold it inside like Dean, you'll let it fester and it won't end well. Believe me."

Tosh said nothing, and Sam thought that the whole conversation was a lost cause. He had just broken his eye contact and went back to the task at hand when Tosh cleared her throat, causing Sam to look up.

"Ok," Tosh said, so quiet that Sam had to strain to hear her. "Might as well. It's too damn hot in here anyways." Tosh pulled her jacket off, tossing it to the ground, revealing the old Hawks jersey. She turned around, showing Sam the name and number. "It was me," Tosh said, silently praying that Sam would not react the same way.

Sam looked in horror as Dean missed the shot. Dean never missed. He was the best, a rock in Sam's life, always knowing what to say, always knowing all the answers to all of Sam's questions. Sam simply couldn't believe it. If Dean wasn't the best at this, even though he said he was, what else would he fail at? He felt his heart drop to his stomach when the opponent, the enemy, removed her helmet, stopped to say something to Dean and went off, unaware of the unbearable weight she had placed on the hearts of all three Winchesters.

"God dammit," John said shaking his head, grabbing Sam's little chubby hand and leading him out into the front of the building to wait for Dean in silence. Sam, not wanting to look at his father's disappointed face focused on the building in front of him, especially the glistening letters plastered to its surface.

Glenview Ice Center

Sam lost track of how long they were there, John finally deciding, when the masses of both hockey players and parents started flooding into the parking lot, to wait by the Impala for Dean. Vans upon vans, containing hockey moms and their offspring players, many of them probably uttering 'you're still a winner to me' as they disappeared into the mist. Sam frowned at the thought. Even a nine-year-old boy could understand that there would not be any of that comfort here between Dean and John.

Dean was the last to emerge, in a ratty t-shirt and patched up jeans, clutching a duffle bag filled with hockey gear in his hands. Slowly, with his head slightly hung in defeat, Dean made his way to the car. Sam could tell that Dean had not been crying. He never cried when John was around, he had to be strong for both him and for Sam too. He stopped in front of John, waiting for his father to speak, Dean's head still hung low in shame.

After a minute, John tilted Dean's face to meet his own. "There ain't no reason in doing stuff like this if you're not going to win, so we're you're not going to do this stuff anymore. There's a hunt in Calumet City. If we leave soon we can make it before dawn," John said with a crushing finality in his voice. Sam could tell by Dean's eyes that his soul was crushed. "Get in the car," John said non-chalantly, opening the back door for both Dean and Sam while getting in the front and turning the ignition. "Yes sir," Dean said with a sigh as the Impala roared to life. They rode home in silence, Dean looking out the window, trying with all his strength not to lose it, especially in front of his dad, the King of "no click -flick moments."

Later that night, when the Winchesters had settled into yet another flea-bag motel, little Sam awoke to a sound coming from the bathroom that was so small he wasn't sure he had heard it. Sam arose, slowly brushed his brown locks out of his face, and, after methodically checking the salt lines on both the windows and doors and finding a note from dad that said he would be back in the morning, he decided to check it out. Excruciatingly slow, Sam tiptoed to the closed bathroom door and confirmed his thought. Dean was not in his bed, he was inside the tiny bathroom, clutching his jersey in his hands, oblivious to his younger audience.

"I hate her...I hate her....," Dean whispered, sniffing and resting his forehead on his knees.

Sam, as he looked helplessly at his devastated brother, found that he felt the same way.

"I mean..." Tosh said, breaking Sam out of his thoughts, "I would understand if you felt the same way as Dean. You had just as much riding on that game as Dean did."

Sam shook his head. "No, I forgave you a long time ago," Sam replaced his reassuring hand on her shoulder. Tosh almost felt like crying, needing to feel someone's comfort, especially now. Sam continued.

"I figure that, even though Dean had won that game, Dad would have given any excuse to keep hunting the demon that killed mom."

"So we're good?" Tosh asked, a hopeful tint in her voice.

A genuine smile spread across Sam's face. "Yeah, of course! I just can't get over the fact that the world can be so small!" Sam laughed, throwing his head back for a second.

"Yeah, Dean didn't find it so funny...." Tosh turned her back to Sam and finished unpacking her and Tyler's sleeping bags.

"Y'all must be having fun in here!" Ellen said with smile, pillows in her hands. Lenny was right behind Ellen with pillows as well, throwing then at both Tosh and Sam.

"CATCH!" Lenny said throwing all of the pillows in her possession toward Sam, giggling as her hair was comically moving in all directions.

Sam barely caught two of them and let the other one fall on his sleeping bag.

"We found 5 pillows; one extra. I guess you'll have to fight for it!" Ellen said, moving to the back of the rooms. "I'm going to go with Lenny to get us something to eat. What do you eat?"

"Anything is fine with me Ellen, as long as it's food. Food would be nice." Sam patted his stomach for a second.

Tosh chuckled. "Same with me. Life of a hunter, ya know? I guess it's safe to say the same with the other two. I am calling dibs on the extra pillow tonight, though." She pointed at Sam. "Witnessed." The tall hunter nodded with a mock serious expression.

Ellen, looking at Tosh for more than a couple seconds for the first time that day, saw the dark circles under her eyes.

"You feelin' ok?" Ellen asked, walking over to Tosh and feeling her forehand.

Tosh felt embarrassed, hating it when people fussed over her. "I'm totally fine Ellen, just really sleepy."

Ellen nodded understandingly. "Well, you don't have a fever, so that's good enough for me. I'll be back later with the food. See you in a minute!"

Lenny trotted after Ellen as Sam and Tosh glanced around and fell into a comfortable silence, working on filling the gaps left in the walls.

----------

Dean and Tyler glanced warily at each other as they went around the corner and stared at the mangled electrical wiring.

"I'm really not up for electricity just yet, since I'm cramped up beyond all reason from the insane car ride here. I also can't stand your face right now. So why don't you and I split up for a while and then meet back later that way neither of us gets hurt?" She walked off and disappeared around a pile of lumber, leaving Dean standing dumbfounded.

That was surprisingly non-violent, Dean thought to himself as he stood for a few moments. That also didn't sound like a request. He shrugged and walked off, mildly frustrated and shaking his head.

----------

Tyler dusted off her hands and pulled her jeans up again, mentally scolding herself for forgetting to wear a belt to hold the tool belt up better. She ran the back of her hand over her forehead, grimacing and flexing her gloved hands.

What next? She thought idly as she glanced around the work site. She spotted the main electrical box and shrugged, dusting off her gloves against her pants as she strolled over to the jumble of wires. She figured she could bear Dean's company now, so why not?

She whistled for the other hunter and sat in front of the mess, starting on untangling the stiff new wires for a few minutes, hooking up the switches, when she heard footsteps behind her and turned, squinting into the sun. Dean looked down at her before sitting next to her and taking a stubborn set of wires from her hands.

"Here. You obviously have no idea how dangerous this is for someone to do." He didn't notice the blonde's flashing eyes as she tightened her lips in anger. Maybe I'm not ready for his company.

"Oh?" She asked calmly, her eyebrows rising in curiosity. "So why don't we work together so neither of us gets hurt, since this is so dangerous after all?"

Dean looked at the English girl suspiciously, his eyes narrowed. Her face was all innocence. "Okay." He finally agreed, handing her the other end of the tangled wires. "Pull lightly on whatever one you're untangling so the other one of us doesn't keep trying to untangle it."

Tyler nodded and smiled slightly at the condescending tone before pulling a few of the wires. She subtly slipped one of the wires from the active fuse box into the mess and moved her hands out of the way as Dean's fingers brushed the active wire.

----------

The smell of burning hair followed Tyler as she ran around the corner, surprising Sam and Tosh from their cutting of boards. The blonde's expression was filled with glee, but she ran like something was after her, giggling lowly.

The other two hunters saw why as Dean came around the corner like a storm, his eyebrows furrowed down into one line, hands fisted at his side.

"So, is the power hooked up?" Sam asked, looking from Tyler's laughing face on the incomplete roof to Dean's angry expression as he glared at the blonde.

"Oh, yes, I'd say that it works quite well, wouldn't you, Dean?" Tyler said through her giggles.

Dean nodded stiffly, his jaw clenched in anger. "Oh. Yeah… I'd say it works." He started walking slowly towards Tyler's perch pulling a girlish squeal from the blonde who climbed higher onto the roof. "Come on, Ty. Don't you wanna come down and we can work on the electricity some more."

"No, no, Dean. I'm staying up here, thanks." She stretched out, crossing her ankles and propping up on her elbows. She turned her face up to the sun, closing her eyes in pleasure. "It's quite lovely up here, actually."

"Mm. I'll just bet it is." Dean growled, moving away as Ellen came around the bend in the road, dust flying from her car as she hauled to a stop, Lenny climbing out of the car and running over to plop herself at the bar.

"Food's here." Ellen bellowed as she placed two plastic bags on the half built bar.

"Yes! Finally one thing to go right for me today." Dean muttered to himself as he grabbed two burgers and plopped on another barstool further into the room.

Tosh snorted quietly and Sam and Tyler glanced at each other.

"Hey, you comin' down?" Ellen asked the blonde reclining on the half-a-roof. Tyler shook her head and Ellen shrugged.

Lenny tossed two burgers up to the blonde before joining her on the shingles. Everyone ate in relative silence, heavy thoughts weighing them all down.

----------

Eventually, Tyler came down from the roof and got a face full of sawdust from Dean for her trouble. Growling in frustration, the blonde stalked off to work alone, waving Dean a one-fingered salute as she walked away.

She began to measure out the planks for a new bar, humming quietly to herself to keep her mind off of what had probably happened last night. Shaking her head, she jumped at the sound of footsteps behind her.

Sam held out his hands in a show of harmlessness. "Hey. Sorry. Didn't mean to startle you."

Tyler snorted. "You didn't startle me, Sam. I assure you. I'm just… jumpy that's all."

Sam nodded with mock seriousness. "I'm sure you're right." He hooked his hands in his belt. "You need any help?"

Tyler thought about it for a moment before nodding. "I could really use you to steady this board. I can't do the measurements if it keeps wiggling around this way."

Sam smiled and gripped the board obligingly. "So we're working on the part of the bar that's left over?" Tyler nodded absently, pulling a pencil from her pony tail and marking small lines on the wood. "Are we trying to rebuild in the exact same style or are we trying to do something different?"

Tyler stood up and drug the back of her hand across her brow. "Well, I think that, judging by the plans Ellen gave me, the general idea is pretty similar to the first plan, but I think she's adding compartments to keep some more tools and such, just in case." She glanced up to see Sam staring at her intently. "See something interesting?" She asked with a smile.

He grinned, his laugh warm. "No, nothing interesting."

Tyler faked an affronted look. "How dare you, Mr. Winchester? Not interesting? My heart is fairly broken at the thought." She put the back of her hand to her forehead and sighed, the very picture of maidenly woe, complete with tool belt.

Sam snorted and rose, walking toward her and affecting a stuffy accent. "Pardon me, mademoiselle, I meant no offense. I beg your forgiveness for this discretion as I am a worthless servant who wants nothing more than to serve you." Sam fell to his knees and clasped his hands to his heart, looking at Tyler beseechingly.

The blonde laughed and tried to pull him back to his feet by his shoulders. "Come on, you great idiot, get up off the ground."

"No." Sam protested, his body loose as Tyler tried to haul him up. "Not until you forgive me for what I said, my dear lady!" Sam grinned up at Tyler's sound of exasperation.

He locked his arms around her hips and refused to let her go, looking up at her, charm shining out of his eyes. He stared at her. "Please say you forgive me." He murmured quietly.

Tyler's chest tightened at the low tone of his voice. She nodded and he smiled, slowly rising under her hands until he stood looking down the few inches into her eyes. His hands found their way to her hips, his touch light on her still sensitive skin.

Tyler had no idea how, but suddenly Sam's lips were a lot closer than before. She licked hers slowly, nervously, unable to take her eyes off his mouth. Slowly, the distance between their mouths got smaller and smaller until they brushed. Tyler's eyes flew open and she jumped back. She shuddered, looking away and clearing her throat.

Sam, noticing her discomfort, frowned and went to step closer to the blonde. "Oh shit. Tyler, listen, I-"

Tyler jumped out of the way and around the other side of the wood. "We should get back to work. It's gonna be a long day, and we should get as much work done tonight as we can, don't you think?" She smiled nervously and he sighed.

"Yeah, yeah, you're right." His voice was filled with anguish, realizing that he had scared her. He leaned down and put his hands on the wood to steady it. Tyler's eyes were locked to his hands and she shivered again, taking another step back.

"Actually, you know what? I needed a pair of scissors… yeah. I told Lenny to find me some… I d-don't know if she did, but it's really important." She smiled uneasily and walked quickly away, leaving a very confused, very sad Sam behind her, clutching a two by four forlornly.

Tyler turned the corner, pulled off her glove, and put a hand to her heart to try and calm herself. She sighed, shaking her head and tucking her free glove into her belt.

"Lenny!!!" Tyler called, looking around for the prodigy child in attempt to cover up her nerves. Tosh came up behind the blonde and looked around, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You know," she said airily, "you would think that a child genius would be able to find a pair of scissors."

The blonde jumped at the sound of her friend's voice. "One would think." Tyler snarled as she stalked away, embarrassed at being seen by Tosh while she was running away from Sam. "I've gotta find her." She tossed back as she disappeared behind the shed and whimpered in frustration with herself.

Come on, girl. Pull yourself together! She growled lowly and punched the wall of the shed, the pain in her hand clearing her mind a little. She glanced down at the blood and sighed. Can't do anything right today. Shaking her head, she went to find a bandage and maybe her dignity.

----------

Night came all too quickly, chasing the hunters into the half-built shelter as the temperature dropped. Everyone picked their own space, moving around tools and piles of lumber to find the softest part of the floor.

As soon as Dean lay down, he was asleep, face pressed against one pillow, body half on the extra pillow. Tosh growled as she saw the man collapsed on the extra pillow. Both Sam and Tyler cast her curious expressions.

"The bastard stole the extra pillow… dammit." She frowned and cracked her blanket to get it to lay flat as she continued making her pallet.

"I'm really sorry Dean has been acting so odd." Sam said softly, shaking his head as he reclined on his blankets.

Tosh shrugged. "What can you do, Sam? Some people just have to be mean. It's how they are." Tyler snorted and turned the sound into a cough as Tosh glared at her. "Don't get me wrong, I'd love to get him good, but I don't know how." She sighed and lay down too, tucking her toes into the warm woolen blanket.

Tyler lay sprawled like a cat, stretching luxuriously. Sam's eyes were locked to her form, Tosh noticed with amusement. The blonde's eyes flashed as she said, "Well he did start the prank wars. What's to say that's still not going?"

The three hunters sat there silently for a moment, lost in thought for the best way to get back at Dean, when Sam suddenly smiled.

"You know, I have the best idea…" He gestured the girls closer and they all crawled further from the sleeping, and quite oblivious, Dean to discuss their evil plan, grinning and giggling in a most un-hunterlike manner.

----------

Tuesday

Oh let the sun beat down upon my face, stars to fill my dream

I am a traveler of both time and space, to be where I have been…

Dean sang out loud every word, slightly off tune. But he didn't care. He was finally getting some peace and he loved it. Sam had gone off to help the girls with something, so Sam suggested that Dean stay and finish up the roof. So here he was, in the middle of another freakishly hot day in the fall, his head adorned with a black bandana to keep the wetness out of his face. With another pop of the nail gun, Dean thought with an inward smile that, after today, the four workers, along with Ellen and Lenny, would be done with the roof and walls. The girls could do the interior for all he cared. For the first time in a long time, Dean felt content. All of a sudden, out of Dean's peripheral vision, he saw something bright red move.

"What the?" Dean said to himself, putting down the nail gun that he finally got to use and turning toward the mysterious object. What he saw astounded him. It was Tyler, revealing a bright red bikini with two lime green beach towels directly to the right of Dean on the roof. Dean reached down and turned the bulky Walkman down. Tyler spread the eye-catching towels out and shaded her eyes as she looked up at the sun with a smile on her face.

"Not a cloud in the sky," Tyler said, just loud enough for Dean to hear her. "Perfect day to tan!" She looked around her for a second, a grimace gracing her features. "Natasha Marie Banks, you get your ass out here!"

Dean's heart constricted a little in his chest at hearing her name, and he almost looked away but couldn't bring himself to do it. But, like most of his emotions, he pretended it didn't happen, simply not acknowledging it. He turned back to his work for a brief moment, before looking once again to his right. Tosh stumbled out in a more conservative green one piece, with two bottles in her hands. "I'm here, don't have a cow, man…"

To sit with elders of the gentle race, this world has seldom seen

They talk of days for which they sit and wait and all will be revealed

Dean looked around briefly, making sure that nobody knew that he was doing with he was doing, took his headphones out of his ears, and feeling completely uninhibited, gazed at the scene that was playing out in front of him.

Tyler and Tosh were liberally slathering sunscreen and some sort of tanning oil on each other, prepared to indeed lie out in the sun that was so freakishly hot and relentless even in the fall.

"Can you get my back?" Tyler asked, offering the sunscreen both to Tosh with a smirk. "I always burn."

"Absolutely!" Tosh replied flamboyantly, flipping her hair out of the way and revealing a long line of tanned neck and collarbone, which made Dean's pants a little tighter than usual.

"Make sure to get it in there good, I don't want any funny spots or anything," Tyler said, laying out with Tosh after Tosh had finished with her back. Tosh followed suit, letting the warm sun darken her skin.

By this point, Dean was so enthralled in the sheer, simple, sexiness of the all that he didn't notice Sam sneaking up silently behind him. Sam thought, with an inward chuckle, that for once in his life Dean teaching Sam to be as quiet as possible for all the years that they had been hunting had finally come back to bite Dean in the ass. Dean moved slightly to the edge of the roof and craned his neck for a better view, giving Sam the perfect opportunity to strike.

Slowly, Sam crept up to a completely relaxed and oblivious Dean, who was now straining even more to see the two girls sun tanning. When the time was right, Sam grabbed Dean's shoulders and shook them enough to fully and thoroughly scare the crap out of Dean.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING???" Sam simultaneously screamed in Dean's ear while still shaking him.

"What?" Dean whipped himself around, losing his balance. With an amused Tyler and Tosh, who had turned around and sat upright to see him, Dean toppled over the edge, plummeting to the ground.

"Oh shit! Oh shit!" Dean chanted loudly all the way down.

Tosh found that she felt sick, and, looking over at Sam who had also turned a pale shade, she felt her heart fall to her stomach. He was supposed to be scared, that's all. Not falling to the ground. Tyler was already howling with laughter on her side, clutching her midsection. Tosh, her body moving toward the ledge, despite the protests from her mind, searched for Dean below.

"Dean, you ok man?" Tosh heard Sam, who had appeared beside her, shout.

Dean was motionless for about two seconds before he groaned and got himself into a seated position before looking up at the two worried people watching helplessly above him.

"Oh, shove it up your ass, Sam!" Dean grunted after that statement, checking for any dislocations, breaks, or sprains, sighing when he found none, not believing his luck.

"I just got the wind knocked out of me." Assessing the drop of his fall, Dean felt pure anger run through him. He could have died, and they didn't seem to care. He could hear Tyler and Sam with a faint Tosh laughing and for a moment he really wanted to kill Tyler. Dean stood up for a moment, got his bearings, and then pointed his right index finger accusingly at Sam and Tosh. God only knows what he would do if he could see Tyler, still doubled over in laughter at her clever little trick.

"I'll get you back," Dean hissed through his clenched teeth, "as God as my witness, I will get you so bad."

Sam raised his hands above his hand in surrender. "Alright mister big scary man!" Sam retorted sarcastically, sending Tosh into a fresh set of giggles as she watched Dean stomp back into the front entrance of the Roadhouse after he shouted, "Sam, you finish the damn roof! I'm gonna get a drink."

"It's like early afternoon, dude!" Sam called back, picking up the nail gun and setting a few boards where Dean had left off and went to work.

Dean emerged back outside quickly, shouting, "Maybe you didn't hear me correctly, little brother! Kiss my big, bronzed, perfect ass!" And with that, Dean Winchester went into the Roadhouse to get himself a drink.

That afternoon the sky opened up and poured her fury down on the hunters as they scrabbled from their different jobs and threw tarps over everything. All of them sat in a soggy circle in the half built bar, trying to avoid the spots on the roof that still hadn't been filled in.

"Man… this sucks." Tosh muttered as she stared out into the rain. Tyler was lost in thought, running her fingertips through a small puddle of water on the bar and staring off into the rain. Sam nodded in agreement and Dean… well he was separate from them all, at the other end of the newly finished bar area and stubbornly not speaking.

"We could play some card games or something." Sam suggested half-heartedly, expecting to get shot down. When neither Tosh nor Tyler laughed or made fun of him, he turned and glanced at them.

Tyler narrowed her eyes at the rain and pursed her lips. "It's such a waste of a day." She shrugged, finally pulling her eyes away from the outside and hopped off the stool to grab her much loved, much used pack of playing cards from her bag.

She returned with a smile and a glint in her eye. "I'm dealing for Rummy. You in?" The other two hunters nodded, completely ignoring Dean. If he wanted to act like a baby, they'd let him.

Unbeknownst to the three of them, Dean slipped away and found the bottles of tanning oil that had been keys to his downfall earlier that day and briefly thought about kicking them violently before a terrible thought crossed his mind and a smile of the same nature crossed his face.

Nightfall found them all in separate spots again, once again with Dean possessing the extra pillow, but the other three hunters had moved slightly closer together to form a quietly laughing circle of cards and friendly threats over the outcomes of the games.

Wednesday

The sun burned clear and bright the next morning, drawing Tyler and Tosh out, towels slung over their shoulders and tanning oil bottles in hand. They grinned cheekily at Dean as they passed him on his perch of scrap wood, his hand wrapped around an egg sandwich. He saluted back and got up, walking back around to start messing with varnish for the new tables.

The two girls looked at each other for a moment, wondering if he was up to something before shrugging it off and laying their towels down across the chairs. Tyler's white bikini had black pinstripes with red trimmings, Sam was pleased to notice as the blonde slathered oil on her friend's back. She turned to let Tosh do the same thing and Sam's eyes flicked to the old TV sitting on a milk crate.

"This is the hottest fall we've ever had!" The weather girl exclaimed, miming wiping her hand across her forehead and sighing prettily. Sam moved up next to the two hunters and watched as the temperatures rolled in. "It really is the oddest thing we've seen in a while! The high today is seventy five and it will get as low as forty tonight! Wow!"

Sam, Tyler, and Tosh all glanced at each other over the tone of the girl's voice and rolled their eyes, smiling.

"Have fun, girls." Sam said, pushing himself to his feet. "I'm off to do some work."

Tyler grinned. "Yeah, slave boy, go do something useful, like getting a fan and some grapes."

Tosh laughed and folded her arms under her head, mimicking Tyler. "I could really use a massage… also, those bricks won't lay themselves."

Sam nodded. "Right; grapes, fans, and sleeping with bricks. Anything else?"

Tyler smiled charmingly. "That should be all." Sam saluted and walked away, smiling until he saw his brother's scowl. He shrugged, setting about his work, an easy smile finding its way to his mouth.

A half hour or so passed and Tyler's phone went off, alerting the girls to the fact that it was time to turn over to tan their front side. Tyler went to move her arms and stopped as her skin on her back pulled painfully. Her eyes flew open and she saw a shocked expression surely similar to her own on Tosh's face.

A thought suddenly occurred to her and she felt her face heat up with a sizzling rage. "Oh Tosh, darling, did you happen to notice a distinctly buttery smell to our tanning oil this morning?"

Tosh frowned for a moment before realization dawned in her eyes and she took a deep breath. "Tyler, dear, I think I might have, now that you mention it."

They both paused, trying to gently move one more time before both of them screamed in unison, "DEAN!!!"

Sam looked over and saw that the skin on the girls' backs was a bright red and glanced over at his madly giggling brother.

Dean, catching his brother's look, laughed. "Oh man! I don't even care if they're mad! Haha! I don't even care!" He threw his arms in the air and started waving them back and forth in a fair imitation of Lenny, giggling and running in a circle.

As if conjured by the sound, the tangerine-haired girl appeared in the doorway and smiled at Dean. She immediately raised her arms and fell in behind Dean, laughing and giggling, which just set Dean off more.

Sam knew he should maybe feel bad that Tyler and Tosh were burned but he couldn't control the gales of laughter that attacked him at seeing his brother and Lenny running about so.

Ellen walked outside to see the two girls struggling to get up and cursing at Dean, Sam laughing hard enough to lose his balance, and Dean and Lenny having a crazed parade through the yard and decided pronouncing it lunch was probably in good measure.

----------

Tyler's back burned as she upended her bottle of cooking and tanning oil onto the floor that lead into the kitchen. She cursed Dean terribly under her breath as she spread it well with a bare foot before walking away and getting a white button up shirt out of her bag. She pulled the shirt on gently and winced as she realized even the softest of fabrics would hurt her. Evidently Tosh realized the same thing as she made similar sounds across the room, pulling on her cutoffs and a loose button up as well.

They looked at each other and both of them grimaced in pain. Tyler shook her head and walked stiffly back into the kitchen, skirting the oil slick at the entrance with a wicked grin. Tosh walked ahead, then stopped as she saw the floor shine in front of her. She glanced up at Tyler before smiling and walking around the spot too.

Sam nodded at them as he reclined in his chair, having witnessed Tyler's act earlier, and waited until Ellen laid the food on the table. "Would you like to do the honors?" He asked the blonde.

Tyler smiled and rose stiffly. "It would be my pleasure." She picked up a large brass bell and rang it several times. "Soup's on!" She bellowed, sitting back down with a smirk.

The sound of pounding feet met their ears and Dean appeared through the door, his feet suddenly coming out from under him as he slid and crashed into a free standing pantry, all the contents spilling over him. Lenny followed and slid through on her stomach, a shout of glee piercing the air as she slid up to Dean who lay groaning, clutching his side.

"Dean, what the hell?" Ellen asked, looking over the table in confusion at the pile of hunter, food stuffs, and techno geek.

"I think he slipped." Tyler commented, leaning her chin on her palm as she gazed at the groaning man with something akin to loathing shining in her eyes.

----------

The constant hammering of the nail gun could be heard overhead as Dean diligently worked on fixing all of the holes left behind before the torrential downpour. Tyler, up to her eyeballs in spackle, was helping Tosh lay bricks against the wall to once again give the Roadhouse a certain atmosphere that most hunters would like. Sam was focused on finishing the wall opposite by nailing together the remaining lumber pieces, his mouth full of nails and his eyes hard, making extra sure that , in the future, it would talk something a hell of a lot bigger than a fire to destroy his beloved Roadhouse once again. Ellen and Lenny had gone out momentarily to grab more groceries and supplies.

The three hunters were so focused that they didn't quite notice the ceasing of the nail gun above them as Dean, figuring he had about five minutes until Sam, with his trained ears, would notice that something was amiss, slipped down the roof and into the back unnoticed. True to Dean's expectations, within about five minutes, Sam rose his head up the roof in silent question. Sam did not want to disturb the other two workers, so he quietly made his way to the roof where Sam had noticed that Dean's consistent hammerings has died away. Sam wandered to the side of the Roadhouse, climbing the ladder and poking his head to have a good view of where Dean should be.

"Dammit," he muttered, as he quickly saw that Dean was nowhere to be found on the roof. Sam went down the ladder twice as fast as he had gone up and entered the common area.

Sam spoke into the unusually hot humid air. "Anybody seen Dean in the last few minutes?"

The two hunter looked up as if being pulled out of a trance.

"Nope," Tosh answered.

"Sorry, mate," Tyler followed.

A wave of dread flowed through him. Things never turned out good when Sam couldn't find his brother. "DEAN?!?!?!" Sam bellowed into the room.

No answer.

"Are you sure you completely checked the roof?" Tosh asked, a hint of worry lingering in the last few syllables of her phrase. Tosh was already heading out to climb the roof.

Sam ran his hands through his hair and took a deep breath to steady himself. "Yeah. But I'll go again with you guys, just to be sure," Sam replied, hoping to God that something hasn't gone wrong. He gave a hopeful smile in Tyler 's direction.

Tosh made it to the roof first, followed by Tyler and Sam. To all three's dismay, Dean had indeed disappeared, his tool laid forgotten next to the scattered pile of roofing.

"Shit. Did he say he was going anywhere? Does anybody remember?" Sam asked. Tosh shrugged hopelessly, already turning around to descend back to the ground.

"Sorry, Sam," Tyler replied, and before she knew it, she had put her hand on Sam's shoulder and had squeezed in apology. Sam, before he even knew it, had reached his hand opposite his shoulder to cover hers in thanks.

"Well, fuck him. He's been a dick once too many times," Tosh winced as she could still feel the scorched flesh on her back, "and this time, it's bit him in the ass."

It's too late. It's too late for me.

Tosh continued to work with renewed vigor, willing the thoughts of Dean to go away from her already troubled mind.

"DEAN?" She heard Sam bellow once more as she saw Tyler reappear with a defeated look on her face. "Sam won't come down, not just yet anyways. As if Dean is going to materialize on top of the roof."

"Just forget about it. If he wants to go, let him go," Tosh curtly replied, her lips pursed as she went on working faster than she ever had.

Tyler was taken aback at the venom that was practically dripping from Tosh's mouth. Her eyes focused on the ferocity in which Tosh was swinging her hammer. In a couple minutes, she would be doing far more harm than good.

Tyler lunged toward Tosh, grabbing the hammer while she had it in the air, ready to swing. "What is the matter with you?"

Tosh whipped around, her eyes wild with anger. "What, Tyler? He's going out to drink or something! Why does everything have to revolve around him? Who gives a shit?" Tosh forcefully took back her hammer, turned her back on Tyler, and carried on.

Fighting to remain calm, Tyler answered, after a long exhale. "Tosh, I wasn't even referring to Dean. That should tell you something."

"And what is that, oh wise one?" Tosh asked sarcastically.

"That we're not the ones who are worrying so much." Tyler raised her eyes in accusation. "That you're a little too worked up about this guy."

Tosh immediately stopped hammering and faced Tyler. "I ought to punch you square in the face." Tosh dropped the hammer. Sam's feet could be heard in the distance as Sam was finally coming down from the rooftop.

Tyler took a step toward Tosh, their nose centimeters apart as the blonde looked down and the brunette looked up. "Do it. I dare ya." Tyler growled lowly. Tosh coiled her fist and was milliseconds away from granting her friend's wish when Sam suddenly stopped them.

"Tosh, Tyler wait!" Sam urged, raising his hand to silence them. "Do you here that, or is it just me?"

Tosh and Tyler listened closely, Tosh's fist still comically coiled and hovering in the air for a few seconds before lowering, Tosh's brain focused for any sound. For a second, the Roadhouse was filled with an eerie, deafening silence.

It was coming from the coat closet, in an area of the Roadhouse that was spared in the fire. It was a scraping sound, almost like a teacher raking her fingernails on a green chalkboard.

"What the hell is that?" Tyler asked, walking gingerly to the door.

"No," Tosh said, stopping Tyler with a stern hand on the shoulder. Tosh gently pulled Tyler back beside Sam. "I'll check it out."

Sam grabbed the knife from his back pocket and got Tosh's back, Tyler staying behind, watching as she felt nervous tension fill her shoulders.

Tosh's heart was in her stomach as she silently prayed that the noise had nothing to do with Dean's disappearance. She closed her eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, reached her hand out, and opened her eyes. Please, Please. Please.

Tosh could hear her heartbeat in her chest now as she slowly opened the oak door. When she opened it, bile instantly rose to her throat and she said three simple words before she sprung into action: "Get him down."

In the split second before she grabbed Dean's waist and tried to hoist him up, she took in Dean's appearance. He had hanged himself from the pole a person would hang their coats. The noise had been the scrubbing of his well-worn boats on the dirty floor of the stuffy closet. His eyes and mouth were closed. He looked as if he was sleeping, if his head wasn't cocked so grotesquely to the side and if his face wasn't so very pale. Tosh, in many of the sordid events in her short weary life, had had the misfortune of seeing a person hang before. What made her blood run cold was what he was wearing.

"Why is he wearing your Hawks jersey, Tosh? That's weird," Tyler said, feeling slightly disturbed.

Tosh didn't hear her. She had grabbed Dean's waist, Sam jumping up to cut the rope to get Dean down.

"It's three minutes before he's brain dead. If we're lucky, Sam," Tosh glanced at Sam. Sam inwardly took in the look of sheer panic, frustration and sadness in Tosh's eyes.

"That's about right," Sam replied as he severed the last shred of rope sending Dean to the ground. Tears had already started to form in Sam's eyes as Tosh lowered him to the ground and Sam and Tosh dragged him away from the closet door entrance.

"Dean? Dean, don't do this to me man," Sam pleaded, tilting Dean's head back to check for a breath.

Tosh's face was stern as she looked into Dean's face for any signs of life, clutching his right so hard that her knuckles were white. She silently prayed that he surely wouldn't die on her watch.

Sam was patting his face, trying his best to revive his brother. "Dean, quit kidding around." A single tear fell from his face.

Meanwhile, a cardboard box in the back of the closet, past the coats and scarves of doomed hunters that had entered the Roadhouse on that fateful day, caught Tyler's eyes. Ignoring the attempts at saving Dean's life, she bent down and grabbed the sides of the box, having to twist it to maneuver it out. She smiled as a thought entered her head: Sam would love to look at her from the back if the situation wasn't so dire. She opened the box and a wide grin spread across her face.

Suddenly, Dean's eyes popped open and he burst out into a fit of laughter. Tosh let go of his hand like it was a hot poker, her eyes staring at Dean with disbelief and shock.

"HAHA!" Dean exclaimed, pointing his finger at Sam. "Sammy, you should have seen your face! I totally got you all! Dean Winchester is the King of the Prank Wars! HAHA!" Dean pulled the rope off or his neck. "I am too good."

Tosh rose, slightly shaking all over her body. "I don't believe it. I don't fucking believe it." She was backing toward the door, resembling a scared deer, wanting to be any other place than it was right at that moment.

Dean's laughs subsided as he realized that no one was sharing in his joy. He saw Tosh inching out of the Roadhouse, the anger, shock, and sadness apparent in her face. He knew then that this harmless prank had definitely backfired.

"Tosh?" He asked, standing up and wiping at the talcum powder that he had put on his face to give the appearance that he had succeeded in taking his own life. He was surprised at how quiet his voice came out of his throat. Dean made a move to approach Tosh.

Tosh's eyes had become glistened over as if she were reliving a memory. She started to slowly shake her head slowly from one side to the other, willing the thoughts what had just occurred to go away. She covered up her mouth with her hand, turned on her heels, and sprinted out of the hap-hazard entrance, harshly ripping the tarp that was acting as a door.

Sam furiously wiped at his eyes. "You are such a stupid ass Dean!"

When Sam spoke those words, Tyler, who had been oblivious during almost the whole thing, was called back in to the problem.

"Whoa, wait a second, what happened?" Tyler was at Sam's side in a minute and then looked accusingly at Dean, whose face had weird white streaks on it.

Sam pushed Dean's shoulder for emphasis. "This jerk pretended to hang himself in the closet. Tosh pretty much lost her shit," Sam shook his head solemnly. "You know better, Dean."

Tyler wrapped her hands around Dean's neck and pushed him into the wall. "You stupid git! Do you realize what you've done?"

Dean face resembled a child that had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "What in the hell are you talking about, women?" His eyebrows furrowed in thought.

Tyler released him, walked across the room, and grabbed Tosh's bang. In the front pocket, Tyler pulled out a piece of paper that was yellowing with age.

Tyler stuffed the paper in Dean's hand. Dean looked at the object as if it had come from an alien planet.

"Open it and read it, tough guy," Tyler hissed through clenched teeth.

Dean unfolded the creased paper it see a newspaper article, an obituarary of sorts. A smiling man was to the right of the article. Dean read on.

Charlie "Chuck" Banks was found dead this morning in his home around 7:00 a.m. The police investigated after the mailman reported that an "awful stench" was coming from the house. The death has been ruled a suicide. His wife, Marie Banks, was murdered in the same house in 1994. Charlie Banks, charged for the murder of his wife, was exonerated five short months later. Two children survive him. Natasha Banks, 16, and Matthew Banks, 12. However, the children were no were to be seen when the police discovered the body of their father. If you have any information on the whereabouts of Natasha and Matthew Banks, please contact the Lubbock County Police Department at 763-190-0111.

"What have I done?" Dean whispered, running out of the Roadhouse in search of a woman who needed to be apologized to.

----------

Sam leaned stealthily next to the window, spying on his brother and Tosh as they argued with each other. He jumped at a sound behind him and turned questioningly. Tyler was half bent, pulling a large box out of the closet where Dean had pulled his stunt. Sam raised his eyebrow and ignored the drama unfolding outside.

"What are you doing?" He asked, walking over to the blonde girl.

Tyler looked up with a crooked smile. "While your brother was putting in his absolutely Oscar worthy performance, I noticed this box." She started to pull again, using her whole body and making scuffing sounds on the floor.

His attention piqued, Sam made a small noise of curiosity and walked over, glancing inside the box as Tyler pushed the lid back. "Holy shit. Is that left over or the new shipment?" He asked absently.

Tyler shrugged, pushing her hair back over one shoulder. "Who cares. Either way, I'm thinking we really need some chill time." She pulled out a bottle of José, cracked it open, and took a long gulp, barely wincing at the burn. She held the bottle out to the mildly impressed male next to her. "You want?"

Hn, you have no idea. Sam thought idly, reaching for the bottle. He took a deep swig himself and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Damn. That's good stuff." He stepped closer and looked more into the box. "You thinking of mixing some drinks up?"

The blonde shrugged, leaning back on her heels and nibbling her lip in thought. "I could I guess. Whenever the stupid twins get back inside, I can have some drinks ready." Pulling the box into the main room, she jumped as she caught sight of Ellen behind the bar, hands soapy as she washed the new glasses. Abandoning the box as she heard Sam's laugh, she raced around the corner to see what had happened.

"What? What's wrong?" She demanded then laughed at the bizarre expression on Sam's face. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

He grinned and held up an extremely colorful box covered with grinning cartoons and Tyler's jaw dropped. "I know." He let out a laugh and placed the box next to several more. "I can't believe these are in here. Where did they come from?"

Tyler shrugged, rubbing the bridge of her nose as her odd bracelet slid down her arm. She toyed with the charm and shrugged again. "Maybe they were Jo's from when she was little." She leaned down and found a smaller but still quite weighty box. Opening it, she grinned, showing its contents to Sam.

"Holy crap. That is a lot of pictures. Damn, look at the dates. These are from a long time ago." He handed the box back and Tyler placed the lid back on it.

The sound of Lenny's laughter filtered to them as she scream-sang, "The mis-adventures of FLAPJACK!!!" They shot each other a look and Sam shrugged.

Tyler smiled. "Let me guess, you've never seen an episode of The Misadventures of Flapjack, have you?"

Sam was about to say something when the door swung open and in walked Tosh. She said something to Ellen as Tyler grabbed a bottle out of the box and Sam held up one of the board games. Both of them waited until she turned around and made excessively happy faces, bordering on deranged.

----------

Dean had no problem finding Tosh standing about 50 yards from the building, her back to him and her arms lying defeated at her side.

"Answer me one thing," Dean asked, "and I won't bother you. We don't have to talk, if that's what you want." Dean moved one step closer to Tosh.

Tosh looked up at him with as much venom as she could muster. Her eyes narrowed in disgust, she nodded. "Fine."

"Why did you hold my hand like that?" Dean eyes softened for a moment, and then he put his carefully trained mask on to prepare for the blow of any answer Tosh could give. "I thought you were going to rip it off or some—"

"You were dying Dean! It's what I do when people are dying!" Tosh interrupted, screaming into the night air. Dean took a few steps back, surprised at her outburst. Tosh continued. "I can't believe it. You…you just don't know."

"I do," Dean said quietly, not wanting to upset her any further. "Tyler told me about your dad."

"It's not even that!" Tosh said, taking a seat on the ground. Dean immediately joined her. "It's just…I don't think I could handle..." She looked over at Dean, into his green eyes, those eyes that she had seen in her dreams. In that look Dean felt his heart flutter the little least bit, like a random muscle in a dead frog. He hadn't felt that in so long, maybe never. Dean, in an attempt to comfort her, placed his hand on her knee. Tosh immediately clutched his wrist and squeezed just like she had a few short minutes ago.

"Nevermind, forget it," Tosh jerked her head sharply to the side. "Don't ever make me feel like I felt in there again. You got that, Dean?"

"Absolutely," Dean replied nodding his head in her direction before redirecting his gaze out into the night air like Tosh was. After a few seconds of this, Tosh heard Dean whisper, so minutely that she had to strain to hear it.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too. For the roof thing, I mean."

Dean chuckled and ran his hands through his hair and over his face, feeling more relaxed now that he had successfully alleviated the pressure of the situation.

"Sorry for the sunscreen thing.

"Sorry for the oil thing."

"Truce?" Dean held out his hand for her to shake and Tosh took it, glad to end the dispute.

Afterwards, they sat there for a few minutes looking up at the stars that had made themselves known in the night sky.

"So," Dean said, breaking the awkward silence, "you're obsessed with me, eh?" Tosh realized that Dean had heard the conversation between herself and Tyler. She lunged and punched Dean square in the middle of the chest with all of her might. Dean's eyes widened in surprise as he doubled over from sitting position onto his side in the fetal position, gasping for air with his head bowed. Tosh grabbed Dean's chin in between her thumb and forefinger and jerked his head up to her eyelevel.

"You wish," Tosh let go and, leaving Dean to catch his breath, briskly walked back. "God, I hate chick flick moments!" Tosh said, each word punctuated with a stomp.

When Tosh made it back inside the Roadhouse, she saw that Ellen had returned and was behind the bar washing the new glasses she had bought. She could here Lenny in the back room laughing at a program on TV.

"Hit me up, Ellen. Anything will do," Tosh said sitting down on a barstool and patting the counter.

"Why don't you turn around, baby girl?" Ellen replied, a grin on her face as she nodded in acknowledge to the people behind her. Tosh whirled around on the barstool and chuckled at the sight that was laid out before her eyes. Tyler and Sam were standing beside each other with identical grins on their faces. Tyler, with a cardboard box placed at her feet, was holding up a bottle of Jack Daniels. Sam was twirling what looked like a board game in his hands. Dean sauntered in and, after glancing at Tosh, followed her gaze to the pair on the opposite side of the room.

"Look at what we found! Isn't this the best?" Sam asked with a laugh.

"I say we do some shots and play some games!" Tyler said, hoisting her forefinger in the air in a #1 motion. Sam nodded his hand enthusiastically in agreement.

"I say yes, because you guys have worked so very hard on the Roadhouse," Ellen lined up four shot glasses on the bar and poured scotch into them. "Here's something to start off with. I'm tired, so I'm going to bed but you have some fun, you hear me?" With that, Ellen retreated into the back of the Roadhouse.

After they all took the shots Ellen prepared for them, Tyler slid behind the bar and held up her arms with a smile that Tosh seemed to understand since the brunette's mouth broke into a wide smile and she spun around on the barstool.

"We got anythin' you could want, little darlin'." Tyler leaned against the bar with a burr of a Southern accent, toothpick in her mouth. She turned towards Dean, her posture stiffening momentarily before she smiled again. "Somethin' ta tickle ya fancy, Suh?"

Dean's lips twitched in an honest grin and he slid next to Tosh. "Double shot, whiskey." They said in unison and turned, smiling almost shyly at each other.

Tyler turned her eyes to Sam and her smile grew wicked. She leaned over the bar and close to his ear. "I'll make ya somethin' special, how 'bout that, Sugah?" Pulling back with a low laugh and a hop, she started making the drinks, oblivious to Sam's pounding heart.

Tosh slid her hand around her double shot and took a sip, savoring the dark taste on the middle of her tongue. "You guys ever played circle of death?" She eyed the two males who looked at each other in askance. "Didn't think so." She turned to Tyler and raised her glass, downing it and setting it before the blonde once more. "We're gonna need more to drink."

"Comin' right up." Tyler's accent was normal again as she set more glasses up on the bar and started filling them.

"Okay, guys, these are the rules. We'll pull a number from these cards, and each one stands for different things…"

"Need any help?" Sam asked, leaning on the front of the bar and watching as Tyler ran over all the bottles, making shots for all of them from all of the bottles and Tosh kept explaining the rules.

Her eyes glinting with mischief, Tyler shook her head and held out a shot of vodka. Sam leaned back slightly. "I thought you weren't supposed to mix light and dark." His comment belayed his actions as he reached out and took the shot glass.

Tyler's grin sent warmth flooding through him. "Why don't you just let me worry about mixing things that ought to stay separate, eh?" She downed her shot and set the glass down in one smooth motion.

Placing two shot glasses on the bar, she pulled out her cards and spread them in a circle around the glasses. The blonde grinned. "The Ultimate Rules: Draw the King, take a shot; break the circle, take both shots."

Dean rubbed his hands together and smiled. "Let's get started."

----------

"Your turn, Tosh, Truth or Dare?" Tyler asked, laughter dancing in her eyes, her body swaying from her intoxication.

"Truth," Tosh replied hiccupping and then chuckling, reaching for the bottle in Tyler's hand. After Tyler gave Tosh the bottle of Jack Daniels, she delivered her challenge after thinking about it for a few seconds, her body reclined back into the beanbag, arm barely brushing Sam's and taking the offered bottle of José.

"What's the most demeaning thing you've ever had to do?" Tyler asked, her lips quirked into an amused smile, sure that the answer would be entertaining.

"Tyler, we don't want to be here all night!" Dean said laughing heartily, play-punching Sam in the shoulder who was also laughing, although definitely not as drunk.

"Shut up, Dean! Actually, it's pretty easy to answer. I was a stripper for two years." She tipped back the bottle and took a deep gulp as per required for the game.

"WHAT?!?" Sam and Tyler exclaimed in unison, both bewildered beyond belief while Dean gasped and exclaimed, "Naughty!!!"

"Why?" Tyler asked, her body leaned forward in inquiry, her expression no longer hinting at any sort of contentedness or the simple happiness of having fun.

"Matt," Tosh took another long swig from the bottle. "He was my little brother, he had cancer and I was his legal guardian at eighteen. We had no health insurance and I worked minimum wage while trying to go to school. I had to get the money somehow." Tosh gritted out bitterly.

"And you never told me any of this? Why on earth would you not tell me this?" Tyler asked, her face as white as a sheet.

"I didn't want your goddamned pity, that's why," Tosh said even more bitterly, if that were even a possibility. Sam and Dean quieted down and listened intently, sensing the change in the situation.

"I've told you everything, Tosh. Everything," Tyler's eyes were slightly misted over and filled with hurt.

"Well, what's dead should stay dead. Literally, in this case," Tosh laughed.

"Oh, wow." She whispered, her voice filled with hurt and anger. "This isn't funny Tosh. Do you see me laughing? You're being such a selfish bitch."

"Listen," Tosh started, really brimming over with anger now, "just because I'm not an open book, and you are, doesn't give you the right to accuse me of anything," Tosh clutched the bottle of alcohol so hard her knuckles were practically transparent.

"Well, at least I'm an open book and not a pair of open legs!" Tyler retorted sharply as she jumped from her seat, hands balled into shaking fists.

Tosh was completely taken aback at this comment, the hurt going deep. She would have punched Tyler if the blonde hadn't have kept speaking.

"We're supposed to be close. We're supposed to have each other's backs. Knowing each other's secrets is part of that. I just don't know what to think anymore. I mean, how much do I not know about you? Are you a serial killer? A closet rapist? We've been friends forever and I feel like I've only just scratched the surface. Selfish. Just plain selfish."

Tosh, about to explode, stood up and threw the bottle across the room, causing it to shatter into a million pieces. "What do you want to know, huh? That I practically saw my mom get gutted from start to finish? That I got put into the hands of my mother's killer, my father? That Matt and me ran away from home after hanging our father by the neck, and that, after stripping for two years and agonizing trips to the hospital that you can't even begin to imagine, Matt died a horrible death and I had to bury him with my own two hands? So I didn't tell you, you didn't know. Boohoo." Tosh mocked, rubbing her eyes at Tyler.

"You're a fucking robot, Tosh. I don't even know you anymore," Tyler raised her hands in resignation and went to leave, then decided against it, turning around to get right in Tosh's face, intending to give Tosh yet another piece of her mind. But Tosh beat her to the punch.

"I've told you everything else. Just not that. Even that stupid dream I had about Dean before we even met the boys. Only after I told you did you tell me about the one you had about Sam. If I hadn't have said anything, I probably still wouldn't have known about it. Hypocrite, fucking hypocrite."

Tyler looked amazed, like she had been slapped in the face for no reason. Her breathing started speeding up until she was almost gasping in anger.

Sam and Dean looked at each other, both perplexed and slightly scared with this new information. Sam opened his mouth to interject in question, but Dean painfully squeezed his shoulder.

"Ow!" Sam yelped, turning to Dean to protest.

"Let them have it out," Dean whispered, his eyes glued to Tosh still, taking in everything she was saying, both Tyler and Tosh completely oblivious to Sam and Dean's prodding eyes.

"You have changed so completely in the last few weeks. You're not you anymore!" Tyler almost wailed.

"Yeah, well, having to put up with your lovesick ramblings has gotten really old. What'd'ya know? Maybe Sam will take care of you. Maybe you won't have to fight him off anymore and you can have a real life, but I wouldn't count on it too much."

Tosh made a faux sympathetic face as Tyler's lower lip trembled with the effort to keep from crying, her eyes wide and startled looking. Sam and Dean had a feeling that the 'him' they were talking about had nothing to do with Sam himself.

"You know what?" Tyler finally said lowly through her gritted pearly whites, her voice trembling, eyes filling with tears that threatened to spill over her bloodless cheeks. "I don't need this." Tyler turned around and stormed out, slamming the door so hard that Tosh, Sam, and Dean thought it would come off its brand new hinges.

The three hunters stood there for a second, Dean and Sam standing now, too, in the heat of the moment behind Tosh. Tosh started to go after Tyler, but a gentle hand firmly stopped her. Sam passed Tosh and turned to look at back at her.

"I'll go," Sam said softly, after giving Tosh somewhat of an understanding look before walking out the door in search of Tyler.

Tosh turned around to see Dean, with his hand still on her shoulder.

"What?" she said quietly with a sigh. "You gonna get pissed too?"

"What was the dream about?" Dean said, without missing a beat, keeping his stance.

"I can't…" Tosh said, her eyes starting to fill with tears. "I can't tell you."

"Why?" Dean asked, removing his hand and moving closer to her.

"It's too late. It's too late for me." The girl gazed into his eyes and suddenly the light was gone. The man was gone. Dean was gone.

After the brief flash in her mind, Tosh replied, "I'm afraid that if I tell you, then it will happen." Tosh was beginning to slur, her accent almost becoming indecipherable.

"I'll be okay. I'm freaking Dean Winchester, man!" He burped lowly and swayed a little. "Tell me. Come on."

Tosh wasn't sure if it was the alcohol or the pleading look on Dean's face but she gave in.

"You die. Plain and simple. And I can't stop it," Tosh searched Dean's face for any sort of emotion, any sort of concern, but failed to see any.

"Oh…" Dean said, narrowing his eyes as he carefully picked his words. "Well, it's just a dream. I'm still kickin'!" Dean motioned to himself. "My blood's flowin'!" It was silent between them for a minute, Dean waiting for Tosh to speak.

After a few minutes, Tosh whispered. "When I opened up that closet and you were hanging there… I wasn't just upset because of my dad, I don't care about him in the least. I…" Tosh paused, thinking for the right words. "I was upset because you were gone… dead… and there was nothing I could do."

Dean slowly closed the distance between them and kissed her, then proceeded to ravish her neck with kisses and small, soft nips. Dean separated from Tosh long enough to feel her pulling his shirt over his head.

"We…" Tosh began, her voice wavering with the contents of her blood, swinging Dean's shirt over her hand like a lasso, "…are so drunk…"

Dean laughed loud and grabbed Tosh in his arms and smiled down at her, wanting to kiss her again, but he held himself back. Tosh's smile faded when she looked up at him.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Tosh asked, her brow wrinkled in confusion.

Dean laughed again, and wasted no time.

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Tyler could feel her blood pounding in her ears as she stalked outside the half-complete building and looked around, her eyes searching for something she could destroy. She took deep breaths through her nose and breathed out in slow, long lines of air, her jaw slowly unclenching as her heartbeat slowed. She perched on the hood of the Impala and breathed in the cool summery air.

She dug around her pockets of her jacket until she found a half bent cigarillo. She sighed in appreciation and dug around again for a lighter. She lit the tip and puffed until thick smoke rolled from her mouth out into the night. She relished the faint taste of wine as she took two more puffs and blew smoke rings to rise and mingle with the stars. She heard the sounds of footsteps coming up behind her and she turned, eyes wide with surprise.

She smiled at Sam and he gestured silently to the cigarillo. "Yeah." She said sheepishly. "I don't usually smoke… I just save them for emergencies." She shrugged and he only shrugged back, coming over to sit next to her.

"So… do you want to talk about what that was in there?" He asked, his voice carefully neutral as he sat a safe distance from her so he wouldn't crowd her.

Her voice was warm with anger. "Nope."

Sam nodded and smiled. "Okay." He looked up at the sky and inhaled a deep breath of night air. "It feels really good out here at night." He commented, trying to take her mind off of the fight.

Tyler laughed warmly. "Oh Sam." She sighed, scooting closer and hesitating. "Oh, uh, unless you…" She waved the cigarillo a little and he shrugged, pulling her closer.

They were silent for a few moments before Sam cleared his throat. Tyler sighed, shaking her head.

"You have the most girlie sense of needing to talk, you know that?" Tyler commented, a half grin quirking her lips. Sam laughed and shook his head.

"Yeah. I know…" He smiled winningly. "So, since I have such a need to talk, will you please tell me what's up?"

Tyler snorted and took a puff, exhaling a cloud of bluish-grey smoke. "I would think it's pretty obvious what's up, Sam." She shook her head. "I just can't understand. I don't know why she would do that. I've told her so much… more than I've ever told anyone." She wrapped her arms tightly around herself. "I feel this really weird sense of betrayal. It's stupid and childish and I know I actually have no right to demand to know all of this, but… I don't know."

"Well, I can't really say anything, but I know that you feeling that way isn't completely unnatural. She's your best friend and you have a really deep attachment to her. You rely on her a lot."

Tyler's nose wrinkled in thought. "I guess so. But the truth is she depends on me a lot more than I do on her. She depends on me so much more than I depend on her. It's almost suffocating sometimes, but I really don't know what to do. I feel betrayed because she doesn't tell me, then I feel stifled when she gets close." She shook her head and rubbed at her face. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

Sam laughed slightly. "Sounds like a plan." His voice was rough and his hands tightened where they rested on Tyler.

Tyler leaned a little closer, her eyes narrowed in on Sam's lips. "I've almost forgotten how drunk I am…" Her accent thickened as she leaned closer and breathed gently on Sam's mouth, mingling the warm scent of wine and tequila.

His eyelids fluttered as he tried to concentrate, the feeling of intoxication coming not just from the shots and drinks before, but from the closeness of her mouth, the feeling of her hands sliding up his arms as she turned her body towards his. His hands slid down to her waist, gripping hard and pulling her closer. She kept her lips apart from his for a few seconds more before he growled low in his throat and wrapped his hand in her curly locks, pushing away the distance in a hard, bruising kiss.

She slid over him, pressing his back into the hood of the Impala and throwing her leg over him, ending up straddling him as she broke from the kiss to fling her hair over to one side. He reached up and pulled her closer by the back of her neck, pressing his lips to hers again. She slid her hips slowly over his, barely touching and driving Sam absolutely nuts. She smiled into the kiss, a laugh vibrating through into his mouth and he growled again, flipping her over and pressing her back into the same place his had been.

Tyler gasped as Sam broke from the kiss, pressing his mouth against the line of her jaw and trailing a hot, wet line down her throat. She tangled her fingers in his hair and pulled slightly as he ground his hips against hers. She fought off a moan and felt herself sliding down the car, the cold metal pressing against her bare lower back. The coldness brought back a sense of clarity and her eyes flew open just as Sam locked his mouth on her collarbone.

"S-Sam…" Tyler gasped. "Sam." She said more forcefully when he didn't answer. "Sam!" She wrapped her hand in his hair and pulled slightly. He looked up at her, expression confused and hair mussed, lips swollen from the kissing. "You have no idea how much I want to ravish you, right now, really. But do you think the hood of your brother's car is really the best place?"

It took several seconds for her statement to permeate Sam's hormone controlled mind. When he was calmer, he grinned sheepishly and stood up, adjusting his clothes and helping Tyler off the hood. He kept his grin while she pulled her shirt back down to cover her middle and adjusted her coat, hands shaking slightly.

"That was… great." Sam commented quietly as they headed back towards the half-built bar. Tyler laughed softly and quickly pressed a kiss to his lips, slipping away before he could get a hold on her. Someone had to be the responsible one.

"Yeah. But you know what's even better?" He quirked an eyebrow. "Sleep. Sleep is fantastic."

She grinned cheekily and walked into the main room of the bar to find it empty. They looked at each other curiously before spreading out the sleeping bags behind the bar, making a pallet of pillows and blankets and sleeping bags.

Tyler stripped off her coat and shirt, her blood red tank top a surprise of color that accented the curve of her waist. She quickly pulled off her jeans and Sam still found the will to turn away, catching a glimpse of tanned hipbone.

"Aw. Someone's certainly a gentleman." Her voice was gently teasing and Sam laughed.

"Gentleman nothing. I'm going to grope you while we sleep since I can't grope you while we're awake." They both laughed and Sam turned to see Tyler wearing a pair of guy's gym shorts with her tank top, her calves peeking out and her bare toes wiggling.

"I don't know why," she started as Sam pulled off his own coat and shirt, "but the sight of my own toes wiggling has always been one of the funniest things to me…" Tyler threw out as she plopped down and wriggled in the blankets to make herself more comfortable and watch as Sam's jeans hit the floor. She made a small sound of appreciation and Sam smiled.

"That's because you're strange." Sam slurred slightly as he settled next to her, throwing an arm over her waist and pulling her against his bare chest. She giggled slightly and they both settled into sleep, relishing the warmth of each other's bodies, Tyler holding her bracelet away from Sam's skin.

However comfortable they were, Tyler's free hand rested centimeters away from the hilt of her knife, Sam's likewise close to the butt of his gun, both hunters sleeping very lightly incase of some danger trying to sneak up on them while they slept and dreamed.

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A/N: So! It's about time we updated and we figured since we hadn't updated in so long, we made it super fantastic and SUPER long... about forty pages or so. Really hoped you enjoyed it.

Thanks to those who reviewed chapter six and to those who have added us onto their favorites and alert lists.

It may comfort you to know that chapter eight is already in the works, so the update time on the next one will not be almost six months like last time. Sorry about that, btw, we've both been super busy with school and work.

It would seem that is all. As always, please review and let us know what's up. Also, hey, tell your friends! :)

Lohvf,

kripke's keepers