AUTHOR'S NOTES: So there's quite a bit of skipping around, thanks to our favorite Trickster who also gives Fiona something of a break.

To help keep the TV jumping straight, each show will be labeled in bold.

Question: With as much as I'm weaving NCIS into this, should I reclassify the story as a crossover?

Chapter 17

Changing Channels

"When you're a hunter, you get comfortable with things that are hard to explain. The idea of something being unbelievable goes out the window and it gets harder and harder for you to be surprised.

"But every now and then, something happens to make you say 'What the fuck is going on?'"

Watership Down

Fiona awoke to find herself lying in a patch of soft grass, a soft breeze ruffling her fur. She slowly got up, scratching one ear with her back foot. As if suddenly realizing something was amiss, she stopped, looking at herself.

"Oh, my God," Fi said in disbelief. "Oh, crap…" She reached up a paw and felt one long ear. Running for a nearby pond, she looked at her reflection, still not believing what she was seeing.

"Fi!"

Looking up, Fiona saw two other rabbits running towards her. It took her a moment to recognize that it was Sam and Dean.

Sam was long and lean in his new form and his fur was sort of a caramel color and maybe a touch longer than the normal rabbit.

In contrast, Dean was shorter and stockier, with shorter ears. His fur was a darker brown and he had an odd tuft of fur on the top of his head. Even more strange was the fact that he still wore the amulet around his neck. "What the hell is going on?" Dean asked, looking from Fiona to his brother.

"Good question," Fiona asked. But after a moment, she grinned and suddenly took off, running as fast as she could, not even aware that Sam and Dean were on her tracks. When she finally stopped, she was breathless, but happy.

"What was that about?" Sam asked, looking confused.

Fiona shook her head. The boys could never understand, but she just said, "It felt good to run again."

Dean caught on and nodded. After being in a wheelchair in her normal human form, he could understand that Fiona might like to be able to move about without any restrictions. But to his dismay, Dean saw Fi and Sam looking at each other and before he could stop them, Sam batted Fiona's left ear with one paw and the two took off for a clump of nearby bushes.

Deciding to look around a bit and keep his mind off what his brother and best friend were up to, Dean hopped over to a patch of clover and took a hesitant nibble. While ordinarily greens weren't a big part of his diet as a human, as a rabbit, the stuff tasted pretty darn good, especially the purple blossoms.

"Hello, Dean."

Dean jumped and spun around, instantly on alert. He stopped, going up on his hind legs as he stared at the rabbit in front of him.

Her fur was a reddish brown and she had the most dazzling blue eyes he'd ever seen.

"Well, are you just going to stand there or are you going to say 'hello'?" The strange rabbit said with a smile.

Dean could tell he should know her from somewhere, but for the life of him, he couldn't recall from where. "Do I know you?" he asked, hoping his new companion could jog his memory.

The rabbit just gazed at him, her blue eyes twinkling. "Yes, you know me, Bigwig."

It was her eyes that gave her away.

Dean couldn't even believe it. He dropped to all fours and gaped at Kelly Gibbs. She was so beautiful he couldn't even believe it. "What are you…? Aren't… Aren't you dead?"

Kelly laughed as she reached up a paw and gently batted Dean's right ear, grinning as he took a step back, touching the ear with one paw. "I am. But a friend of yours wanted me to see you for a little bit."

"Who?" Dean wanted to know, his mind immediately going to Castiel.

"Someone you may not have gotten along with in the past," Kelly replied, cryptically. "But Dean?"

"What?" Dean asked, not sure what to make of Kelly's presence.

"What you have with Ziva?" Kelly said, giving her old friend a look. "It's real. Don't fight it and don't push her away. You'll need her someday."

Dean didn't say anything as he watched Kelly head off into the brush.

Burn Notice

Dean almost felt like he'd suddenly jumped out of a moving car as he suddenly found himself not only human again, but also standing on a busy street corner in what looked like Miami, Florida.

Next to him, Sam stood, looking a bit confused as he also found himself human again.

Even more surprising was the fact that Fiona was standing next to Sam. "Okay—what is going on here?"

"Call it a little vacation from your present troubles," the Trickster said with a smile.

"Why?" Sam asked, confused. After everything the Trickster had put them through, why was he now doing them a favor?

But Loki just smiled as he looked at Fiona. "Look, I'll be honest. You weren't supposed to kick off the apocalypse."

"Say what?" Dean said, not sure he was hearing things right.

"That's the bad news," Loki went on. "The good news is that maybe—after you spend a couple days… channel surfing—I'll fill in some of the blanks for you. Maybe even help you get a leg up on the end of the world." With a snap of his fingers, he was gone.

"What the hell does that mean—channel surfing?" Dean asked, looking confused.

"Oh, shit!" Fiona exclaimed, as she had a sudden burst of realization. "Miami!"

"Fi, are you okay?" Sam asked, frowning.

"Miami, Florida!" Fiona said again, as though the explanation were obvious. "'Burn Notice'? Michael Weston, Sam Axe… Ring any bells?"

"Wait, wait," Dean said, thinking back to a few months ago. "You're talking about that show with that hot chick that loves to blow stuff up, right?"

Fiona gave Dean a glare but nodded in confirmation. "Yes, exactly."

"Okay, so what do we do now?" Sam asked, not sure of what to do with this new information.

"I got no friggin' clue," Fiona admitted. With a sigh, she looked around and with a dry laugh, said, "Well, at least we have the Impala."

As the trio went to the car and got in, Dean muttered, "When this is over I'm staking that son of a bitch on principle."

xxxxxxxxxxx

While Fiona Brendon and the Winchesters were trying to figure out their roles, Michael Weston sat with his girlfriend, Fiona Glenanne, and his best friend, Sam Axe, at their favorite café which was also their unofficial meeting place when talking about a case.

"So a buddy of mine asked if we could take a look into the disappearance of his girlfriend," Sam said, as he sipped his second beer of the day. "She's a property inspector and apparently she vanished last night. No phone calls, nothing."

Michael considered the situation for a moment and finally gave a half-shrug. "Okay. What about the house?"

Sam pulled out a folder and handed it to Michael. "The place was abandoned a couple years ago after some supposed ghost sightings."

"Ghosts?" Michael repeated, giving Sam a look over the tops of his sunglasses.

But Sam just shrugged and carried on. "My buddy is planning on remodeling the house. But now that his girlfriend's missing…"

"It does give credence to the whole 'ghost' theory," Fiona threw in as she supped her iced tea. "Maybe we should check out the house."

But Michael wasn't so sure. He wasn't a big believer in the supernatural and the idea of a ghost just felt… weird. But deciding to go along with the theory for the time being, he said, "Okay, Fi. You and Sam check out the house. I'll talk to your friend, Sam. See if there's another possible angle on this."

"His name's Brent Fisher," Sam said, handing Michael a business card.

xxx

Fiona Glenanne had been expecting a supposed haunted house to look more derelict. But the house that she and Sam Axe stood in front of was a charming two-story Tudor that looked to be in pretty good shape.

"Doesn't exactly look like a haunted house, does it?" Sam Axe observed as he went to the front door and opened it, stepping aside to let Fiona through. "Ladies first."

Fiona went in, looking around as she removed her sunglasses. "Very nice."

The two started walking through the house, looking for anything to indicate where Claire Reynolds had gone.

Sam had just stepped out of the walk-in pantry when the air temperature suddenly dropped significantly. It was so cold he could actually see his breath. Looking around, he saw a pale figure standing by the sink. "Can I help you?" he asked, reaching for the gun he liked to keep on him.

But the figure didn't respond and before he knew what his him, Sam found himself thrown across the room. Looking up from the floor, Sam saw the ghost bearing down on him but before he could move to get up or defend himself, there was the sound of a shotgun blast and the ghost vanished.

"You okay?" a woman said as she helped him to his feet.

"I could use a beer," Sam admitted, rubbing his head. "Was that a…?"

"Ghost?" the woman replied. "Yeah."

"Everything okay in here?" Asked a tall man also holding a sawed-off shotgun. Behind him was slightly shorter man who was holding a .45.

"It's cool, Sammy," the woman replied, nodding as she lowered her firearm and turned to look at the young man.

"'Sammy'?" Sam Axe repeated, eyebrows raising.

"Yeah," 'Sammy' said, holding out a hand. "Sam Winchester." Pointing to his companions, he went on. "This is my brother, Dean, and my girlfriend, Fiona Brendon."

"Fiona?" Sam Axe repeated again. Looking at the trio, he couldn't help laughing. "Oh, this is going to be fun."

xxxxx

"Ghosts?" Michael Weston said, doubtfully, as he looked at the hunters.

The group was in the kitchen of Michael's old house, gathered around the dining room table while Michael's mother made lunch for everyone.

"Yeah," Sam Winchester confirmed. "The house is haunted by a woman who killed herself up in the attic. Which is where we found Claire."

"Alive?" Sam Axe asked, hopefully.

"I helped Dean get her out of the house," Fiona Glenanne confirmed. Looking at the Winchesters, she asked, "So how do we stop a ghost?"

"Salt and burn," Dean replied, matter-of-factly as he took a sip of his beer. "Find out where the bitch is buried and torch the remains."

Michael wasn't sure what to make of that information but decided to go along with things for the time being. "Okay," he said, slowly. "So how do we find where this woman's buried?"

xxxx

While the two Sams, Michael, and Dean went to check the local records, Fiona Glenanne grabbed Fiona Brendon and dragged the other woman to a local collection of boutiques.

"What are we doing here?" Fi asked as the other Fiona parked the car,

"Shopping, darling," Fiona G. replied as the two entered a shop. Looking over her counterpart, she smiled. "Something to impress your boyfriend."

"Yeah, I need something more functional, okay?" Fi B. replied, looking at the outfits hanging up.

But Fiona Glenanne was not to be deterred. "Trust me. When I'm done with you, you'll still kick ass and look fabulous doing it."

xxxxxx

When Sam Winchester next saw his girlfriend, he thought his lower jaw might just fall off.

Fiona Brendon strode towards him in a pair of strappy high heels and she also wore a pair of tight jean shorts and a sleeveless top that hugged her every curve perfectly. She had on a pair of sunglasses that matched the ones Fiona Glenanne wore and Sam couldn't help as his eyes roved over every inch of his girlfriend.

"You like?" Fiona B. asked, looking a touch embarrassed to be showing so much skin.

"Uh, I… I-I do," Sam W. stammered. "I like it a lot." He tried to repress the way his body was reacting to the sight of Fiona but he failed miserably. Looking at Dean, he gave his brother an apologetic look before grabbing Fi's hand and hurrying away towards the nearest motel.

Dean just watched the two go off, and to his surprise, he didn't feel the usual uncomfortable squirm that normally came when he thought of Fiona and Sam having sex. Instead, he felt happy. Maybe it was just the idea that his brother and his best friend were doing something other than worrying about the apocalypse or maybe it was the fact that Fiona seemed to be so lighthearted right now. He knew when the three of them got back to their own world Fiona likely be paralyzed again, but until then, Dean just wanted her to enjoy herself for as long as possible.

xxxxxxxxx

Years from now, Fiona Brendon would look back on this day as the best of her whole life.

She and Sam had spent the better part of 12 hours doing everything and anything they could think of. There had even been body shots and chocolate involved.

Fi felt spent and her adrenaline was only now starting to come back down to normal. She ran her toes up and down Sam's calf, before she leaned into him, savoring the feel of his hand against her bare thigh.

"I've loved you since I was 4," Sam whispered into Fi's ear as he slipped his hand between her legs, enjoying the way Fi's body shivered. "When I was 8 I told Dean I was going to marry you someday."

Fiona closed her eyes, thinking of all the lonely nights in the Middle East. "I used to go to sleep imagining you holding me when I was in the Marines," she admitted. "Never leave me?"

"Never," Sam promised as they fell asleep, intertwined.

Royal Pains

The couple woke up in a different motel but there was still a salty ocean breeze wafting in through the open window. But instead of the breeze being tainted by the air pollution of Miami, the breeze here felt clean and soft.

Fiona got up first and grabbed her bra and panties before going into the bathroom for a shower.

When she got out of the shower, she had to do her best not to scream in alarm when she saw Loki sitting on the sink. "Jeez! What the hell?"

"Nice to see you, too," Loki replied with a smile. "How's the vacation going?"

Fiona pulled a towel around her and sighed as she studied the Trickster. Slowly sitting down on the edge of the tub, she said, "I don't want to go back." Looking at the demigod, she added, "If I go back I'm stuck in that wheelchair having mediocre sex. At least with this jumping around, Sam and I can… Wait, why the hell am I explaining myself to you?"

Loki nodded in understanding as he said, "And that's just one of the hard choices you'll have to make. You need to be prepared for that. And look—just because it's destiny, doesn't mean it's set in stone."

"Who are you? Really?" Fiona wanted to know.

But the Trickster just smirked before vanishing once again.

xxxx

Sam and Fi found Dean at a local restaurant sitting in front of a burger and fries.

"Been wondering when you two would show up," Dean mumbled around a mouthful of food.

"Classy, Dean," Fiona said as she sat down next to Sam. She was wearing a slinky camisole top today and capris with strap sandals today and felt more like a girl than she'd felt in a long time. "So… anyone have a clue where we are now?"

"Somewhere in the Hamptons in New York," Dean replied after swallowing and taking a sip of his coffee.

"Okay, there are only two shows I know of that take place in the Hamptons," Fiona said, thoughtfully. "So either we're on an episode of 'Barefoot Contessa' or—"

But Fi was cut off when there an explosion in the direction of the kitchen.

Sam, Dean, and Fiona were thrown backwards by the blast and landed amidst the chairs and tables also thrown by the blast.

xx

Dean faded in and out of consciousness for a while, finally able to focus as a man bent over him.

"Hey, don't move okay?" the man said, briskly. "Can you tell me your name?"

Dean looked around, but didn't see Sam or Fi anywhere. "Where's my brother?"

"Right here, jerk," Sam said, stepping into view. He had some pretty good scratches on his face and his left wrist was braced.

"Your name," the stranger repeated, studying Dean intently.

"Dean Winchester," Dean replied, catching the slight nod from Sam indicating that it was okay to go with real names. "Where's Fi?"

"Your friend Fiona is helping triage the other injuries," the man replied. "Is she an Army medic, or…?"

"Marine," Dean said, slowly getting to his feet. His head ached but if he had a concussion, it felt like it was only minor. His ribs were sore, but it didn't feel like any were broken. Looking at the man who'd been examining him, he asked, "Who are you?"

"Dr. Hank Lawson," Hank said with a smile. "Listen, Dean, why don't you at least let me give you a once over? Make sure you're okay."

Dean was about to argue but when he saw Sam's stern look and sighed as he took a seat in one of the chairs nearby.

After finding nothing more than a minor concussion and a couple bruised ribs, Hank asked, "So what brings you guys to the Hamptons?"

"Vacation," Dean said, simply. When Hank moved off to check on some of the other injuries, Dean looked at Sam. "How's the arm?"

"Sprain," Sam shrugged. "Hank said just to keep it braced for 4 to 6 weeks. He said if it gets worse, give him a call and don't worry about insurance."

"Huh," Dean said, surprised by that. "That's nice of him."

"Yeah, apparently he and his brother run a concierge medical practice," Sam explained. "Hank's the doctor, and his brother, Evan, handles the finances." Noticing that Dean was wincing, he asked, "You okay?"

"Nothing a couple painkillers and some booze won't fix, Sammy," Dean assured his brother.

xxx

At first. Dean had thought he was dreaming. Waking up in the motel room in the middle of the night, he looked over at the other bed, but Fiona and Sam were still asleep.

Getting up and walking to the bathroom, Dean wondered why he kept hearing the sounds of crowds. Opening the door, he walked in, jaw dropping as he entered the room.

Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Dean looked to his left and right, noticing that Fiona and Sam also seemed confused as to what they were doing there. Sitting at the end of the row was a man Dean recognized, and with a sudden jolt, he realized what TV show they were now on.

"Welcome to 'Whose Line Is It Anyway?'!" said a heavyset man with a short haircut and glasses with thick plastic frames. "On tonight's show—He's not afraid of the dark…Sam Winchester! He killed the thing under your bed…Dean Winchester! She made the boogieman cry…Fiona Brendon! And he is the thing in your closet…Ryan Stiles! And I'm your host—Drew Carey—Come on down. Let's have some fun."

Drew went to sit behind a prop-desk and smiled at the TV cameras as he said, "Welcome to 'Whose Line Is It Anyway?'—the show where everything's made up and the points don't matter. That's right, the points are just like copyright laws to fan fiction writers."

The audience rippled into laughter and Sam, Dean, and Fi exchanged looks. How exactly were they supposed to play along with this?

Explaining the show, Drew went on. "If you've never seen the show before, these four actors are going to come up and make up everything you see here, right off the top of their heads. And at the end of each game, I give them points—Don't know why; just a gag to keep the show together. And at the end I pick a winner. Winner gets to do a little something special with me and the loser has to explain things to the cops."

Drew pulled out a red, white, and blue hat and gave it a shake as he said, "We're going to start off with a game called 'Scenes From a Hat'—this is all four of you."

The group stood and Dean stood on one side of the floor with Ryan Stiles, while Fi and Sam stood on the other side as Drew explained the game before reading the first suggestion. "Rejected State Mottos."

With a shrug, Fiona stepped forward, turning to face the audience. "Come to Michigan! We're #1... in unemployment!"

After Fi retreated back to her spot, Dean went next. "Visit Alaska! We're famous for having crabs!"

Fiona doubled over laughing and even Ryan and Drew cracked up.

"Oh, that was good," Drew said, pulling out another slip of paper. "Things you can say about your business, but not your girlfriend. Or boyfriend, I suppose."

The four thought for a moment and finally Dean stepped up. He was actually enjoying himself, really. "Do you offer two-for-one specials?" When he went back to his spot, Dean gave Fiona a grin which she returned before glaring at him as she stepped forward.

"This place is so small, you can't do anything in here," Fiona said with a smirk as she heard the groans from the other guys.

"Okay, changing things before this gets mean," Drew said, withdrawing another suggestion. "The wrong thing to say on a first date."

Sam grinned as he stepped up. "Just follow one rule: driver picks the music, shotgun shuts their cakehole."

Dean didn't say anything for a second, but when he finally stepped onto the floor, he said, "I call my brother 'Sasquatch' because it helps his self-esteem."

Fi grabbed her boyfriend's arm, holding him back before he could retaliate for the remark.

When Drew ended the game, Fiona sat between Sam and Dean, hoping the two wouldn't come to blows.

The next game was Hoedown, and Sam looked embarrassed at the prospect of singing in public—even more so when the subject of said hoedown was selected. Falling in love?

But the music started up and finally, Sam started to sing.

"I have loved a girl since I was 4 years old.

She's sexy, smart, lots of fun and has a heart of gold.

She's probably the best woman that I have ever seen.

She also happens to be a world-class Marine."

Fiona blushed at that and tried to think of something to say about Sam and finally came up with a verse.

"Well, I found Mr. Right—yes, he's the one for me.

He's got a killer smile and the best ass you've ever seen.

He really is a man like no other.

The only problem is my best friend is his brother."

Sam and Fi exchanged looks before both of them looked at Dean who seemed to be resistant to the current singing subject. But finally, he took a breath and sang,

"Falling in love never felt like my kind of thing.

Certainly not something about which I'd ever sing.

But I met a great woman—sexy with a lot of class.

And I can't break up with her, because she'd kick my ass."

The trio of hunters looked at Ryan Stiles who gave them a smile before doing his final verse.

"Oh, well I could jump with joy and shout.

Because they got what this was all about.

It's not about fate or your destiny.

It's all about love and family."

When Ryan ended the verse, he snapped his fingers, transporting the hunters back to Fiona's townhouse in the real world.

Sam and Dean had to grab Fiona quickly as she'd suddenly started to collapse and when they looked back to where Ryan Stiles had been, they found themselves looking at the Trickster.

"You know, this was supposed to have a different ending," The Trickster said, looking at the trio with newfound respect as he conjured Fiona's wheelchair. Once she was sitting down, he went on as he paced slightly. "I had this whole big speech planned about you two—" he pointed to the Winchesters. "—accepting your roles in the apocalypse."

"Why would you want that?" Dean asked, a trifle confused.

"Because I didn't understand then what I do now," Loki replied. "So… Let's start over, shall we? Hi, I'm Gabriel."

"Gabriel the archangel?" Fiona asked, floored by the sudden revelation.

"That's the one," Gabriel said with a shrug. "And as I said before—I'm tossing out the whole speech about accepting destiny. Screw destiny!" Looking at the group, he went on. "Hell… Dean, your father was supposed to be the one to break the first Seal. Sam, you were supposed to break the last one. And Fiona… well, honey, you're not supposed to be here at all."

Before Sam and Dean could ask about that, Fiona just said, "It's a long story that I'll tell you later."

"So what do you want from us?" Sam asked, still a trifle confused on the situation.

"A promise," Gabriel replied. "Well, two promises, actually. One—you end this your way. Forget the other angels telling you the only way out is by saying 'yes'. You find another way, you take it."

"Okay," Dean agreed. "What's number two?"

Gabriel smiled at Sam and Fiona and then at Dean. "Promise that you won't forget what's really important."

When Ziva David came home from NCIS that night, she was surprised to find a trail of rose petals leading to the kitchen where the table was set for two, complete with candles and wine chilling in a bucket nearby.

'Gimmie That Girl' by Joe Nichols was playing in the background as Ziva sat down just as Dean came into the room. "What is all this?" Ziva asked, surprised as Dean poured wine for the two of them before sitting down.

"It's our first date," Dean replied, silently thanking Gabriel for the assistance on the food. "I wanted it to be special."

"So this more than just sex to you?" Ziva wanted to know. She was hoping, certainly, but she'd never been lucky when it came to love and what she had with Dean Winchester always felt too good to be true.

Dean couldn't say the words 'I love you' but Ziva seemed to understand. And after a while, he finally said, "It's a lot more."

xxxx

While Dean and Ziva had their date, Sam and Fiona were in a motel room, lying naked in bed. The sex they'd had since getting back from TV Land was more tender and sedate that the wild fits of passion they'd had before, but that was understandable since Fi was once again paralyzed.

But as she lay against Sam's bare chest, Fi didn't care. She had a wonderful man who loved her and for now, that felt like enough.