I'm Back! (ish)

College has been getting me down, so finding time to write is a pain... okay, it's mostly laziness, I'm sorry...

Seriously though, learning to code in r and then matlab sucks.

This one is a bit short but it gets kinda real, I suppose. Admittedly, this is more filler than side plot or whatever, but you learn a little bit more about the sister and The Keeper's struggle.

Also, I found a few small errors that irk me in previous chapters, so if you get a bunch of alerts (those that are following) and only one chapter, that is why.

I miss your guys' input

Read and enjoy (and please tell me if my grammar is the suck because it irritates me when it is)

The days and nights blurred together, much like they always do. The Keeper's vague sense of time only came from the waves of busyness. Even that wasn't reliable. Patrons came from all over Earth Hell, and once-upon a time, Heaven. The only plane that didn't meet up with hers was Purgatory. It was probably for good reason. She didn't fancy fighting off leviathans, the only species she has, to date, fully banned. Nowadays they were stuck in Purgatory, so they weren't a concern.

The concern was the demons talking about a certain Winchester's deal. He had not yet found a way out, and the demons were getting antsy. The Keeper was sure they had no idea what this meant. Granted she didn't know any of the details either, but she did know that it's not good.

Especially when said Winchester walked in alone.

"Ditch your brother?" She poured him his usual.

He gave a non-committal grunt.

The Keeper rolled her eyes and moved to tend another patron.

When she returned, she leaned over the counter. "How long?" She asked softly.

"'Bout a month."

"Your brother is still trying."

Dean nodded as he threw back his drink.

Ace promptly refilled it.

"I'm goin' to hell."

"I hope your brother succeeds," she offered. As far as she was concerned, the two hunters deserved something good for once.

"Me too," he admitted, his voice barely audible above the buzz around them. "He wants to work with a demon to do it," he said a little louder.

"That generally tends to be a bad idea."

"That's what I told him, but he's too freaking stubborn for his own good." He finished his second drink.

Ace handed him a half a bottle. "So are you. Ever the protective older brother."

"Are you making fun of me?" He narrowed his eyes menacingly.

"I have a little sister." She huffed. "I get it."

Dean immediately leaned back and relaxed. "I forgot," he admitted.

She shrugged. "Most people do. That's why I make it my job to remember."

He poured himself another drink. Then another.

Ace tended the various patrons, solving some issues that arose. She spotted Wren out on the floor doing silly magic tricks for some customers. The sight made her smile.

Looking back at Dean's pity party, she felt a stab of loneliness. She remembered someone telling her about a saying that was about feeling alone in a crowd. She couldn't remember the quote, but that was how she felt. Ace cursed herself. Damn human emotions.

Back at the bar she took Dean's last drink and downed it. He looked up in surprise at her frown.

"I needed it. Don't bother paying tonight." She grabbed a new bottle and glass and walked around to the barstool next to him. "Just because I can't get drunk, doesn't mean I can't try."

Dean held up his glass. "Amen."

The rest of the night (to Dean), they shared a few bottles. Ace had never commiserated like this with anyone and while it was a nice bonding moment, she knew better than to let it happen often.

"Technically, Azrael's my niece, but not really. I mean maybe as much as you and Joe are cousins. As far as I'm concerned, she's my sister and one way or another, I will find her."

"You're pretty close, aren't you?" Dean question as he drained his last drink.

"Yeah," she stared into the amber liquid. "Very."

She continued staring into the drink long after the hunter gave his goodbyes. Ace just kept thinking about her sister and whether she would ever see her again. Or if she was even alive. She tried not to think of that possibility, but as the whiskey swirled so did her thoughts into the depths of her fears. The one thing she tried to ignore was clawing at her heart like an angry panther after seeing the hunter in such low spirits.

"Ace?" Someone called from behind her. "Ace?"

She looked up to see Fae with a concerned look on her face.

"Why don't you take the night off. Maria and I've got this." She took the empty bottle.

The Keeper finished off her drink. She noticed a piece of paper with a number on the table and a name written above it. Bobby S. Realizing it must have been from Dean, she pocketed it. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Go," she urged.

Ace trudged to the hidden door and entered her room until whenever the next 'day' would be. Hopefully then, she would feel better. She sincerely doubted it.