Sorry for the long break! I changed the pacing of the story a bit so had to make sure to fix it before I went on!

I don't own Supernatural

"Boys!" Mary called from the beach. "Don't go too far. We're having dinner soon!"

"No worries, Mom!" Sam waved back at Mary and Jess who sat under an umbrella.

"Heads up, Sammy!" Dean warned as the football torpedoed toward Sam. Dean grinned proudly as his younger brother caught the ball one handed and sent it back. The throw went wide and the football sailed down the nearly empty beach. Dean jogged after it. "We still gotta work on your aim," he laughed over his shoulder. He bent to retrieve the ball which had rolled to a stop inches from the shoes of a man.

Dean straightened and frowned as he gave the man a once over. The trenchcoat and suit were definitely not the usual beach attire. The man seemed to be sizing up Dean as well, his head cocked to one side and a slight frown wrinkling his forehead.

"Dude, you might wanna rethink the shoes."

"Why?" the other man asked in a gravelly voice that didn't seem to fit his body.

"You're on a beach. Usually its sandals or barefoot." Dean saluted with the football and ran back towards his brother.

"Who was that?" Sam asked.

"No idea. Some weirdo with shoes." Dean brought back his arm and watched the ball as it arched through the sky, disappearing momentarily against the bright sun.

The cough jolted him awake. He muffled the sound against the crook of his elbow, but Sam shifted in the driver's seat to look at his brother anyway. Dean waved away the concerned look. In that hazy, half-dream state of just waking up, Dean could still see the unknown man in his mind's eye, looking at him in that odd way. He had a nagging feeling like he'd seen him before, but with each passing second of wakefulness the feeling and the memory were fading.

Dean laid his head back on the headrest, trying to hold on to the slivers of his dream that were important, his smiling mom, his carefree brother, attempting to etch them into his brain as real memories. The man with shoes was forgotten in light of the more important people.

"Woke up just in time." Sam parked and turned off the ignition. "We're here."

"That didn't take long." Dean stretched and blinked the sleep from his eyes.

"You just slept for seven hours. I even stopped for gas and you didn't wake up."

"You mean I missed a chance for pie? Son of a bitch," he mumbled as he left the car. The Roadhouse looked the same as always. The neon sign buzzed in the dimming daylight. Sam rolled his eyes and got out of the car, grabbing his bag out of the backseat. Dean moved to follow, surprised by how tired he still was. Usually he bounced right back from a nap. Maybe he slept too long. His own bag's heaviness surprised him and he grunted as he shouldered it, a little winded.

"What'd you put in here?"

"What do you mean?" Sam frowned back at his brother. "I didn't do anything."

"Sure." Dean brushed past. "Come on. I could use a drink."

The Roadhouse was quiet. The usual bunch wouldn't show up for a few hours more, out finishing jobs and the like. Jo was behind the counter, wiping down some pint glasses and putting them away. The clinking was interrupted by the brothers' entrance.

"Closed. Open at six." Jo said without looking up.

"No exceptions?" Dean smiled as Jo looked up shocked.

"Sam! Dean!" She hopped over the counter in one smooth motion and ran to give the brothers a quick hug. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We're in-between jobs. Just thought we'd stop by and see if you guys knew of anything," Sam explained.

"Mom's out getting pretzels. She'll be back soon. I think Ash is in his room, but I'm not sure if he's actually awake. Haven't heard him all day."

"We can wake him up." Dean dropped his bag on a table and marched over to Ash's door. He banged on it, making "Dr. Badass is In" sign swing. "ASH! YA IN THERE?" he yelled. A moan and a dull thumping sound came through the door. "I CAN HEAR YOU. COME ON OUT!"

Muffled cursing and the sound of empty beer cans being crushed proceeded Ash cracking open the door and peering out. His mullet stuck out oddly and his narrowed eyes weren't impressed with the Winchester. "What the Hell you doin' here?"

"Nice to see you too, Ash." Dean grinned.

"Don't you know not to wake a man when he's sleeping?"

"Aw, come on Ash. You know you like to see us."

Ash continued to stare shrewdly at Dean. "That all you want for me?"

"Actually we were wondering if you had anything for us to go after. You being you and knowing everything and all," Sam said as he joined Dean at the door.

After a few more seconds, Ash sighed and relented. "Guess I gotta go put on some pants then." The door shut and the brothers exchanged a triumphant glance.

"You guys want a drink?" Jo had gone back behind the counter and had already pulled out three beers.

Dean coughed into his elbow, the simple act escalating into one that had him stopped and hunched over. Sam paused half-way between the bar and his brother, a concerned look on his face as he tried to decide whether he should go back or not. "Phew," Dean said as he stood back up and saw the confirmed faces of Jo and Sam. "I'm good, I'm good. How about that beer."

The three drank and shared stories until Ellen came back.

"Well, look at what the cat dragged in," she said as she plopped a bag down on the counter and hugged the boys in turn. "Dean, you need to get some meat on them bones! You guys must be working too hard."

They all laughed a bit, but Dean noticed Sam had that look on his face he got when he was overthinking and worrying. Before he could question his brother, however, Ash burst from his room and sauntered to the bar. "Ya all gonna start the party without me? I don't think so." He grabbed the pretzel bag and ripped it open. "The party don't start till the mullet says it does." He grinned and crunched a few of the salty snacks. "Oh, and I think I might have found somethin' interesting for you guys down in Georgia. Shapeshifter or somethin' terrorizin' a small town."

"But that can wait until we catch up. Don't need you boys rushin' off when you just got here."

The talk dwindled to less pressing things. Stories from the road and the bar passed the time and soon other hunters were joining the small group until the Roadhouse was full of old friends, challenging the brothers to games of darts and telling big fish stories.

There it is! Finally! I just really wanted to get the Roadhouse in here, some Jo and Ellen and Ash fun.

Hope you liked it. Read and Review! The story will start pickin' up now. Promise.

~ABrokenCastiel