A/N: Thanks for the reviews/Alerts. They're really appreciated. Thanks to GenGen for the Beta- you rock hun :D Now chapter two and a little humour… And Remember That Muffins Are Love :)

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Chapter Two: One Ordinary Day

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The smell of black coffee wafted through the manor from the kitchen where breakfast take-out of hash browns, greasy McMuffins and pancakes was laid out onto three plates. Dean entered the medium sized kitchen to find Sam and Kate just sitting down at the counter at eleven-thirty the following morning. The two younger Winchesters had woken up around ten and had taken the Impala to get some breakfast from the nearest fast-food restaurant, where Kate normally headed when she had nine AM classes.

"Oh God, what is that heavenly smell?" Dean asked jokingly as he sat down in one of the spare stools. He took one of the coffee cups and took a generous helping in order to fully wake up.

"Morning Dean," His semi and half-awake siblings chimed in unison as Kate tucked into not one of the hash browns with one hand on her newly opened soda can. She was like Dean in the morning when it came to her need for caffeine but was much more respondent than her older brother; while Sam still retained his normal 'morning person' facade.

"Sleep well?" Sam asked as he set his coffee down.

"Oh God, yes," Dean murmured with pleasure. This house was the one place he could return to when he wasn't hunting, a place he could call home where he had his own bed that no one else ever slept in and a room which was totally his. It was a place where he could leave his belongings, like the Boom box Kate and Bree had bought him with a collection of CD's from his favourite bands knowing they would be waiting for him.

"I think I'm just going to curl up on the sofa and do some research on the comp today. Have a lazy day," Kate said softly, after swallowing a piece of her sausage and egg muffin. "You guys got any plans today?"

"Same here, might just take a break and relax," Sam shrugged. "Maybe check out what people call 'daytime television' and relax."

Dean looked thoughtfully at the hash brown and shrugged. "Might take my baby out in the lovely California sunshine and do some work on her. Got a few repairs i need to do."

Kate rolled her eyes, placing some food onto Dean's plate as she finished off her last hash brown and grabbed a swig of soda, wiping the back of her hand across mouth before asking, "Do you think you can take a look at my bike too? Think maybe there's something wrong with the frame, but it could just be me..."

"Okay, if you wash my car," Dean said, now awake, and only half-serious.

Kate shrugged. "Done."

"Wait, you'd wash his car just like that if he checks out your bike?" Sam said with raised eyebrows. "I seem to remember that you detested the whole idea of washing the Impala without being paid or treated to something."

"Well, 'cause I was wondering if Dean could give me a… um, driving lesson," Kate mumbled, causing Sam to choke on his coffee and Dean to look up with raised eyebrows.

"You're… serious," Sam frowned curiously as Kate's cheeks turned slightly pink and she fixed her gaze to the table. "Where did this come from all of a sudden?"

Dean eyed the eighteen year old, before sharing a look with Sam, who looked baffled. He knew that Kate was serious and thought he knew where this sudden interest in driving was coming from. "This wouldn't have anything to do with that Demon you and Willow tipped me and Bobby off about would it? The one that was after that chick's boyfriend. What was his name… Jay… Jared?"

Kate shrugged. "Maybe a little, and maybe because I just want to drive so I can borrow Bree's Jeep when she and Amy are caught up in the club."

"Club, what club?" Sam asked.

"What, I didn't tell you about the club?" Kate asked lightly.

"No," Both men answered simultaneously.

"Oh, I thought I had," Kate shrugged, glad at the change of subject. "It's a nightclub called Starlocket. Amy decided to team up with Bree to make some extra money coming in. I'm working this evening. You should check it out, it's pretty awesome."

Dean's eyes widened. Like Sam, Kate was the kind of kid who chose to go to the library rather than party. But since the argument with John just over three months ago, Kate was becoming more independent and a lot more stubborn. Like Dean and Sam, she was growing up.

"Who are you and what have you done to our adorable- yet geeky- little sister?" the older Winchester joked as he finished off his coffee and placed his cup down

"Ha ha," Kate smirked sarcastically. "Despite your attempts at wit, Deano, I actually get paid legitimately. Oh, and there's a pool table, but any funny business and I'll tell Ellen it was you and not Ash who started the bar fight at the Roadhouse."

"Deal," Dean cut in, seeing Sam's eyebrow's shot up.

--

"No, no, Dean, aahh."

"Then take it back."

"I take it back, I take it back," Kate yelped as Dean continued his playful interrogation, picking the teenager up and using her old tickling spots in order to make her confess. Dean's hair now stood up in damp tufts and his grey t-shirt was now much darker after Kate's hand had 'slipped' while she washed the Impala, the offending hose now sprawled harmlessly on the lawn while the car dried in the afternoon sun.

The morning had been quiet as Dean had started repairs on the Impala on the sun soaked drive and Sam flicked through the seemingly large amount of channels the girl's had on the widescreen in the sitting room, while Kate flicked through a book she had checked out of the campus library to help her with her history assignment. Everything had been calm until Kate had finished making the relevant notes from the book and had become bored while she waited for Dean to finish the repairs she that she wash the car. Like her oldest brother, Kate was easily bored and became annoying to the people around her.

Sam came out after hearing the commotion amused that it had taken just ten minutes for his siblings start acting like children. Sam's chest to tighten slightly as he watched them, the bond the three siblings shared was remarkably strong, as people often pointed out, but Sam couldn't help the stab of jealousy when he watched Dean and Kate. Although the two younger Winchesters were close, their respective relationships with Dean were a hundred times stronger. Probably because he was a father figure to both of them when John was hunting, Sam mused.

Noting the discarded hose on the lawn, Sam's mouth curved into a grin he usually gave when he and Dean were playing pranks on each other. He snuck down the few steps leading from the front door, making sure his siblings were preoccupied, before he picked up the object of his evil plan and took aim

--

Kate finished off the hood and bonnet of the Impala, after spending the last forty-five minutes giving the dust and mud covered Chevy a well deserved pampering; while Dean sorted maintenance. The two siblings both loved the old car and shared a similar taste in music- though Kate and Sam both tried to modernize some of the music by adding some of their favourites to their older brother's old stand bys- but Dean was the only one who still called the Impala 'baby'.

Brushing her hands against her faded jeans, Kate eyed Dean as he checked on her bike frame. He made a few adjustments with the same sort of concentration as he would the car, and Kate quickly became bored. She could go back insider and get started on her essay, but she knew that she worked better in the evening and so had nothing to do other than nap for a few hours.

In a moment of insanity, Kate quickly flipped the hose on Dean, who, oblivious to his sister, was he tightened one of the bolts of the frame. Suddenly, he found himself under a shower of ice-cold water, raining down on his kneeling form, drenching his shirt and causing his hair to stick to his forehead.

"Son of a Bitch!" Dean growled as he wiped water form his eyes and he used his hand to shield his eyes from the water only to find Kate turning the hose away. She turned too late for Dean not to see her trying to keep her giggling from become obvious.

"What the hell did you do that for?" he demanded, his brow furrowing as he glared at his sister, who was failing miserably at keeping a straight face.

"I was bored," she said innocently.

"So?" Dean growled.

"You smell," Kate smirked, sticking her tongue out childishly.

"Why you-" Dean began as he got up.

--

Dean smiled at the tickle revenge he was getting on his sister as they continued their play fight. Dean hadn't had this much fun in ages, basically since his two younger siblings had chosen to study ay two different parts of California. For once, he thought with a warm feeling deep down, the day was perfect…

Whoosh…

"Aahh."

"Damn it!"

Kate and Dean yelled as Sam aimed the hose, on full blast, at his to siblings. The force of the water causing them to both fall onto the lawn, still entangled as Sam laughed. It was always the quiet ones, Dean mused as he and Kate tried to prevent water from getting into their eyes.

Sam turned the hose off as he leant against the stone steps, his mood lightening as he saw the shocked looks on his siblings' faces after landing on the lawn. Kate shocked was colored with amusement, while Dean set his intense glare on his brother. Sam shrugged innocently under Dean's glare, biting back his own smile.

"You are so dead," Dean growled as Kate immediately scrambled away from Dean, going over to get the bucket she had used to wash the car with, preparing for the water fight she knew was about to start. Water fights were the youngest Winchester's speciality, harmless in comparison to her brother's usual style of pranks which usually escalated one of them got hurt, usually Sam.

Uh Oh, Sam and Kate thought, knowing that Dean was about to get his revenge. Big Time.

--

All three siblings sat on the front steps, ice cold drinks in hand, their clothes soaked through but all with smiles on their faces as they dried off in the late afternoon sunshine. Towels hung on the small porch rail, used to dry off their hair after almost the two hours of water fighting which had ensued.

Between bouts of water fighting, the car was given a final rinse, Kate's bike was fixed, and the lawn was mowed- something Dean had insisted upon undertaking himself- while Sam and Kate took care of the windows and gardening to prevent weeds growing out of the basement foundation. Kate also ensured the protection spells and sigils were still in place and were strengthened to prevent and evil to cause ill on the manor's occupants.

John had managed to salvage some of Shannon's personal belongings including her diaries of Books of Shadows which - like John's Journal- contained everything Kate's mother had learnt as part of her initiation and study. Kate had begun to read and experiment with them just a little over a year ago without her father's knowledge, much to her brother's uneasiness until Bobby had given his God-Daughter a number of a local magic practitioner who helped he and John out a few times.

Dean took a mouthful of beer and let out a content sigh. This was the first time in a long while, the twenty-eight year old had felt… normal. No dingy motel, no need to keep a knife under his pillow, no worrying about his siblings and whether or not they were safe and well. They were here now- all together and safe- on the porch of the San Francisco manor acting like normal people who knew nothing of what lay in the dark. It was almost perfect, almost, there was only one person missing. John Winchester.

The oldest member of the family was on a hunt in one of the surrounding states and, unbeknownst to Kate and Sam, had planned on dropping by after finishing up the case concerning a Lady in White. Like Sam, Kate and John had a somewhat tumultuous relationship which had been made worse over the past year or so as Kate had chosen to leave the family business.

For the upcoming summer, Kate's witch mentor, Melinda Gaiman, had been encouraging her to travel to Scotland to study with some gifted witches after the older witch had recognised the large potential within Kate. Kate's power had lain dormant and her teacher had refused to teach her to tap into them until the teenager had studied everything in theory. Then, when Melinda believed Kate was ready to practice, she had chosen the task of levitating a salt shaker; a task that Kate had been able to perform months ago, without much conscious thought or effort.

Kate had left a message about the trip after talking to Sam, who had suggested she phone Dean and their father. The phone call had led John to arrive during one of Dean's visits and to discover that his daughter had been secretly looking into her magical inheritance. This had resulted in an almighty row, ending with John slamming the door without a backward glance at his daughter, leaving Dean to comfort Kate after she had displayed her telekinesis to her father nearly three months ago.

Dean had been scared of Kate's power at first, but soon became accustomed to her weirdness and was rarely surprised by it. Until the time a demon had come for him and she had shot blue fire at it, to both their horror.

"What's up?"

"What?" Dean asked, seeing his brother and sister staring at him, obviously they had been trying to get his attention for a while.

"You look like you were re-living a chick flick moment," Sam noted, recognising the look on his brother's face. it was the same look which had crossed Dean's features when they had left Cassie two years before after a case involving a monster truck which had targeted four men- including Cassie's father.

"Just thinking is all," Dean murmured as he took in the peaceful neighbourhood.

"Uh oh, that's dangerous," Kate smirked as she looked up from the lower step where she sat between the two pairs of long legs belonging to her brothers.

"Bite me," Dean retorted sarcastically as Kate gave him a sheepish grin as Sam took a swig of his soda to hide his own smile.

"What were you thinking about?" Sam asked casually as Kate lay back awkwardly on the steps, her eyes closed.

"Stuff," Dean replied, not wanting to go into detail in case he caused tempers to flare. Sam and Kate had strained relationships with John, who had accepted their choice to go to college, but who was still uncomfortable that his family was separated because of his younger children's decisions.

"Elaborate," Kate murmured, lazing a little before she had to get ready to leave in about an hour or so for work at Starlocket.

Dean Sighed. "Dad," He answered simply.

The reaction was instantaneous as Kate's eyes shot open as she sat up- turning abruptly to Dean- her gaze narrowing, while Sam lowered his can of Soda and stared off into the distance.

"Dean…" Sam sighed, after a pause, without turning to his brother. "Dad made the choice he did and nothing will change his mind. He practically told Kate to give up on a part of who she is or he'd disown her- figuratively speaking- and he and I just ignore each other again, back to the way it was before… before Jess…"

Kate sent the younger of her brothers a sympathetic glance as she followed Sam's stare to the bay where the Golden Gate bridge reflected the afternoon sun. Both knew that Dean idolized their father, but sometimes it seemed that Dean was just the good little soldier doing what he was told by keeping an eye on his younger siblings instead of having his own life and making his own choices, regardless of what their father would say.

"Forget I said anything." Dean murmured, feeling the light mood that had survived throughout the day dissipate as if a heavy blanket had settled upon them, weighing it down.

After a few moments of awkward silence, the sun began to lower itself under the city horizon of houses and skyscrapers as Kate suddenly got to her feet, using Sam's outstretched leg as leverage to boost her up as she stretched and rotated her shoulders.

"Where are you going?" Sam asked gently, breaking the silence as Kate stepped carefully between her two brothers. Dean lifted the beer to his lips, feeling his little bit of happiness fade away- falling into the torturous pit that he felt himself slipping into when he didn't have his family.

"To get ready for work," Kate mumbled as she picked up the small towel she had used to dry herself. "I'm in charge while Amy and Bree are away and I'm already running late. We have a band in and I haven't started the stock check I was planning on doing before we open."

"It's only 4pm," Dean murmured as Kate turned to him with a slightly flushed face, her cheeks now pink through the hurt boiling under the surface, which surprised her.

"Well I wouldn't have decided to start earlier than six, only someone decided to bring us back to reality with a vengeance," Kate shot back, causing Dean to cringe, recognizing the same anger he and his father's voices portrayed in similar situations. "Just one day, Dean. One day when we were normal- like a normal family- and you mention the one person who took us away from that."

The bluntness of her words reverberated with a harsh truth; John had taken away their normalcy in order to help train them to fight what lay in the darkness. It had cost them their freedom, a freedom Dean thought jealousy, his siblings had reclaimed through their academic success.

Kate had chosen to help by providing information to Ellen, Bobby, or Dean. She used the chance to learn new elements of hunting and about the supernatural creatures themselves. She probably would have done the same if she had grown up with her witch mother, Dean mused, but it may have been further down the line as she would have grown up in blissful ignorance.

Sam, meanwhile, was slowly returning to his previous life as he started his first year at Stanford as a law student. He seemed to enjoy the course- though he still worried about the rest of is family while he was away. If their mother hadn't died Sam and Jessica would probably still be happy together and he would be living his own life separate from his family.

His close bond with Sam would never be have been as strong if they had lived normally. They wouldn't have a little sister they both couldn't imagine living without since the day John had brought her back with him to a seven year old Sam and an eleven year old Dean.

--

John Winchester carefully laid the one year old baby girl atop the motel bed as Dean and Sam sat on the opposite bed. They watched their father's unreadable face take in the little girl's features, as if for the first time. He traced his finger across her face, before turning to his son's- but more importantly, Dean.

"This is your little sister, and her name is Kate. I want you and Sammy to watch out for her, d'you hear? She's going to be staying with us so I need you to keep her safe, do you understand?"

"Yes Sir," The two boys mumbled quietly at their father's tone of voice, a voice not to be reckoned with…

--

"I'm sorry," Dean murmured with a sincerity he rarely portrayed, which stopped Kate midway through the door, while Sam turned his gaze to his brother empathetically. The siblings rarely argued, but when they did, it was Dean who fared worse with the aftermath as his brother and sister were the two constants in his life after their father disappeared into the darkness without a glance.

Kate glanced at Sam, before meeting Dean's eyes as he looked back to her, his shoulders down. Kate's chest constricted slightly, she knew how Dean felt; the hopeless at the thought of being without the support of his family- even if he would never admit to others- because family meant everything to him.

"Fancy earning some legit money tonight?"

Sam smiled at her offer. Only Kate could turn a mood like Dean's around. Sam had a part-time job around Stanford to earn some money for books, but Dean hadn't shared their experience. Dean looked unsure at the offer, unsure whether his sister had accepted his rare apology or not.

"Is that accepting an apology?" Dean asked guardedly as he watched Kate's face.

"Dean how can anyone not accept an apology from you, when you pull those hurt puppy eyes on them," Kate shrugged with a smile. "So, is that a 'yes' to working? You get training and there are a couple of free drinks thrown in after closing too?"

Dean shrugged as he noticed Sam choke on his soda at the mention of Dean's 'hurt puppy eyes', causing Dean to hit him around the back of the head, before turning back to his sister with his usual cocky and flirtatious smile.

"Why not?"