I do not own Supernatural or any of the characters found there in. Alex and the Mayfair mythology are my own.

Chapter 7

Dean watched silently as Alex began to back the motorcycle out of it's spot before revving the engine and driving away. The pleasant smile he'd put on just for her vanished as soon as she began to fade into the distance. Once she was gone, he turned and walked back into the motel room to confront his brother.

He found his brother staring out the window, a solemn expression on his face.

"What the hell happened? I leave you guys alone for ten minutes and suddenly Alex is hitting the road. What did you say to her?"

"Nothing."

"Really, Sam?" Dean didn't believe him for a second. "If it was nothing why did she leave?"

He couldn't answer that question. All he could think about was what she had said to him.

"Was it really 300 years?"

Dean was surprised by his brother's question. "What?"

"Were you guys really in Purgatory for 300 years?"

This was a topic Dean had hoped never to discuss. It was kind of like talking about his time in Hell. Everybody knew that it happened, but nobody was going to talk about it. That's what he wanted Purgatory to be like. Apparently he was not going to be that lucky.

Taking a seat on one of the beds, Dean ran his hand down his face in an attempt to prepare himself to relieve one of his many waking nightmares. "I was only there for part of it."

"Well how long were you there?"

Dean rubbed his hands together. "About a hundred years." He could see the brokenness beginning to take hold when he looked up at his younger brother. Sam looked to be on the verge of tears. "She'd already been there for a long time when I showed up."

Sam brought a hand up to his face and rubbed his jaw as he fought to regain control of his emotions. "No wonder she hates me."

"She doesn't hate you, Sam. She's just pissed. She was off fighting for her life while you moved on to another girl. How would you feel if you were her?"

"If what she told me was true, I'd never want to speak to me again."

That caught Dean by surprise. "What did she tell you?"

Sam sat down on the other bed and began to recount his conversation with Alex. The part that he had the most questions about was where they were supposedly in Heaven together. How was that even possible?

"She told me about that."

Sam was shocked. "She did?"

"Yeah. It sounded like you guys were really happy." Sam looked away. "Just answer one question for me. If you guys are soul-mates or whatever, why don't you guys just start over?"

There it was. The crux of the entire situation. As soon as the question left Dean's mouth, Sam knew that his next answer was most likely the reason Alex wasn't' with them know.

"Because I don't know if I'm in love with her anymore."

The feeling of being on the open road by herself was soothing to Alex's soul. She'd forgotten how peaceful it felt to just jump on a bike and ride. No music. No conversation. Just the sound of the wind and her own private thoughts. It was good.

Off in the distance, she could see the Sioux Falls city limits sign. A small feeling of trepidation settled in her gut as she neared what was left of Bobby's house. She wasn't sure what to expect. The boys had never gone back after Bobby's death. There was no point. So Dean hadn't had much detail to give her. She had tried to prepare herself for the worst, but what she found almost hurt more than anything her imagination could have conjured up.

The yard looked exactly like it had the last time she'd seen it. Tons of old junkers piled on top of each other for a good quarter mile. It was so familiar that she half way expected to arrive at the house and see Bobby walk out onto the front porch to great her. Instead she found a charred ruin at the end of the long driveway.

Alex stopped the bike several yards off and just stared at it in shock. She jerked the helmet form her head as if the visor was causing her to see things, but the lack of tinted fiberglass did nothing to erase the horror before her eyes. She dropped the kickstand and grabbed her bag before she slowly began walking towards what was left of the place she had once called home.

The second story was completely gone. What little remained of the ground floor was merely ashen pillars and a few porch stairs. She gently placed her foot on the first step and watched it crumble underneath her foot.

Each piece that fell away broke off a small piece of the wall that she had formed around her heart. This was where Bobby had first brought her when he took her under his wing. It had taken her years to realize just how important he was to her. They may not have been blood, but they were family. He had been her father in every way that counted.

Desperate for something to hold on to, Alex dug threw her bag and pulled out the journal that Garth had given her, Bobby's journal. She dropped the bag and used it as a seat on the dusty ground. She gingerly opened the inside cover and began flipping through the well-worn pages. Her fingers graced the scribbled writing with a tenderness most would reserve for a newborn child. She didn't even realize she was crying until the first teardrop fell onto the page.

"I'm so sorry," she said. "I should have been there." She looked around at the destruction around her. "I could have stopped all of this from happening, but I wasn't there. I'm so sorry, Daddy."

Alex wasn't sure how long she just sat there crying. It was the first time she'd cried since hearing Sam's confession the night she was supposed to be taking a shower. She cried for the father she had lost. She cried at the memory of the painful tortures of Hell and the unrelenting anguish of Purgatory. But most of all she cried for everything she could of had. Thoughts of what if and what could have been filled her racing mind as the contemplated her past and looked towards the future.

She'd spent centuries dreaming of the home she'd left behind only to return to find that not only had everything changed, but that home no longer existed. The man she loved more than anything no longer seemed to want her. Her soul ached for him to hold her, but he seemed to only feel guilty for not finding her. The longing that she had once seen in his eyes when he looked at her had been replaced with sorrowful pity.

Once Alex had cried all of the tears she had to shed, she closed Bobby's journal and said goodbye to the life she had once known. Those days were over. It was time to forge a new path. She didn't know where it was headed. Her only hope was that there would be some small happiness waiting for her at the end of the road.

The vibration on the cushion next to him drew Dean's attention. Looking over, he found his phone ringing. One look at the caller ID had a small smile forming on his face.

"Hey Alex."

The sound of her name instantly caught Sam's attention.

"Is she okay?"

Dean waived him off as he listened to the woman on the other end of the line.

"Okay, yeah. Take care of yourself you hear? Bye."

Dean hung up the phone and propped his feet back up on the table as if nothing had happened. Sam quickly became agitated as his brother continued to ignore him.

"Dean?"

"What?"

Sam shrugged his shoulders. "What did she say?"

"Nothing much. She went by Bobby's. There wasn't much left so she's staying at a hotel in town for a couple of days."

"And?"

"And what Sam?"

"And what is she gunna do after that, Dean?" Sam could not understand why his brother was so nonchalant about the whole thing. "When is she coming back? Is she going out on a hunt first? Does she want us to come meet her there? What's going on?"

Dean turned his body completely so that he would be fully facing his brother. "You know, for somebody who isn't sure if he loves her anymore you sure do ask a lot of questions. Why is that Sam?"

He slumped back in his chair.

"I don't know."

News articles began popping up on the internet about a spree of children disappearing down in Texas. All of the disappearances were happening in the same quarter mile radius near a popular park for families with young children. Alex had arrived two days ago and started scouting the place.

Nothing unusual had really jumped out at her. She'd spent the first day visiting the families of the missing children. They'd all said the same thing. They'd looked away from their playing child for just a moment only to look up and see them disappearing into the trees. Once they followed them into the woods, they were gone.

The lore about woodland creatures that liked to take kids was limited. She needed more to go on, so she went to the park. There were children running and laughing everywhere. It brought a smile to her face as she lost herself in a memory.

It was one of the rare times that Sam and Alex got a few days to themselves. Dean had decided to go off on a hunt with Bobby for a few days. That meant that they had the house all to themselves. They spent their days like any normal couple would, waking to the other's company before going about the business of getting ready.

Today found them in town walking through the local park hand in hand. It was the little moments like these that Alex loved so much. They were so rare. Their lives were filled with monsters and mayhem not hand holding and kisses.

Alex leaned her head on Sam's shoulder as they sat on a bench watching a group of children running and playing as she sighed in contentment. An idea suddenly came to her.

"Sam?"

"Humm." He placed a tender kiss to the top of her head.

"Do you think we'll ever get to just sit here and watch our kids play like that?"

Sam was taken aback for a moment. The future wasn't something they talked about often. It was a dangerous thing to do with lives like theirs. But as he thought about it, a small smile began to form on his face. He could see a little hazel eyed girl chasing after a little boy with auburn hair.

"Yeah," he said. "I think we will."

Alex shook her head to clear the vision away before wiping a small tear from the corner of her eye. That's when she noticed the white rabbit slowly moving towards the children. It was something that most people wouldn't notice. Seeing a rabbit in the park was not something unusual. What caught her attention was its behavior.

Normally the small creature would skitter away the moment a child moved towards it. This one seemed to be stopping and making sure that one of the children was following it. It would hop a few feet and then stop to look back at the little girl. As soon as she started moving towards it, it hopped a few more feet. Alex's eyes suddenly grew wide. It was taking the child towards the trees.

She was careful not to alarm anyone a she slowly moved towards a break in the trees a yard or so away from where the bunny was headed. She broke the tree line a few moments after the child disappeared into the wooded area, but she was too late. The child was already gone.

The sound of a twig snapping drew her attention. Her eyes darted in the direction the noise came from and could just make out a large hulking figure stalking deeper into the woods. Suddenly feeling like she was out of her depth, she called the boys for a little help with her research.

Sam's first instinct when he heard that Alex was off on a hunt by herself was to race off after her. Then Dean reminded him that she had hunted on her own for years before they met. So instead he settled down and began helping her in the only way he could, research.

Six hours and two cups of coffee later, Sam had finally found the answer. He hesitated for a moment before picking up the phone to call her. His fingers lingered over the call button for a moment. Does she even want to talk to me? Pushing his doubts aside, he completed the call. The phone rang a few times before her voice filled his ears.

"Sam?"

"Hey, Alex. Uh… I… I, uh, found what you were looking for."

He could hear her interest peak in the tone of her voice. "What've you got?"

"You're hunting a puca."

"A puca? Isn't that some sort of Japanese thing?"

"Celtic actually. It's found predominantly in Ireland. Prefers wooded areas and has the ability to transform itself into black horses, goats, and rabbits."

"That explains the bunny. How do I kill it?"

Sam sighed. "That's where things get interesting. The only bit of lore I can find on it says that it can be killed with a blade of pure stone."

Alex let out a groan. "Yeah that does make it interesting."

There was a moment of tense silence, neither knowing what to say to the other but not wanting to end the call.

"It's good to hear your voice, Sam."

He smiled. "Yeah, it's good to hear yours too. Do you need any help taking this thing down?"

She didn't miss the implication his question made. Yes! Her mind screamed. She wanted nothing more than to take his offer and beg him to come help her, but her heart wasn't ready for that yet.

"No thanks. I think I can handle it."

"Okay." There was another long silence. "Alex?"

"Yeah."

"When are you coming home?"

Tears threatened to fall. Alex mentally cursed herself for becoming so emotional yet again over him. "I don't know."

Her voice was so faint that Sam could barely hear her, but he was fairly certain there was a slight hitch to it.

"Hey, you okay?"

Alex wiped her eyes. "Yeah. I'm good. Just tired. I'm gunna head to bed and then go take this thing out tomorrow."

"Okay. Take care of yourself okay?"

"You too."

He held the phone to his ear until he heard the click before pulling it away only to continue staring at if for a while. There had been unmistakable sadness in her voice before she hung up. He sat down the phone with a sigh. His head was spinning. Ever since Alex magically reappeared he hadn't been able to think straight.

Everything had been wonderful with Amelia. It was the life he had always wanted and never thought he could have. They took care of each other. He loved her, and she loved him. Then he'd gotten that damned phone call and turned his world upside down.

Alex had been his whole world, and then suddenly she wasn't. He couldn't really explain it. It was like looking at her through frosted glass that was once crystal clear. A part of him still wanted to be with her, but something was missing. Until he could figure out what that something was, there would be no moving forward for any of them.

The light of the early morning sun was just beginning to peak through the trees as Alex approached the mouth of the cave. Search teams had been all over the area, but she could not find any records of them searching the opening that lead to a series of underground caves. It was the only logical place for the puca to be hiding.

As she descended farther and farther into the darkness, she could hear the sounds of children whimpering and crying. Her grip tightened around the stone knife she had made earlier. The sound grew louder as she came closer.

Alex moved around a corner and found several small children huddled together in a cage.

"Shh. Shh," she hushed. "I'm going to get you out okay."

Alex picked the lock as quickly as she could. The instant the cage door popped open she began ushering the children towards the exit. She didn't know how long the puca would be gone, so she had to move quickly.

The question about how long it would be away was quickly answered when Alex heard a monstrous growl behind her. She turned ever so slowly as she prepared for a fight. The beam from her flashlight did not land of the soft fluffy bunny rabbit she had seen luring the children away. What she saw was a monstrous beast that stood nearly seven feet tall. It's red eyes glowed evilly as it took her in.

"They are mine," it said, gesturing to the children that had frozen in fear.

Her eyes drifted to the children.

"Run!" They didn't move. "Go! I'll be right behind you."

A small boy no older than 6 or 7 started to move towards the exit. The others soon followed. Alex released a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. With the children gone, she could focus on destroying the creature in front of her.

No sooner had she turned her attention back to it than the puca lunged for her. She dove out of the way of it's razor sharp claws and slashed wildly at its arm. It gave a sharp hiss of pain as the stone blade cut through it's blackened flesh.

It spun and came for her again. This time Alex was ready. Just before it reached her, Alex fell to her knees and thrust the dagger upward into it's chest. It's death cry echoed through the cave as the creature collapsed on top of Alex.

Her breath rushed out in a huff under the weight of the animal. She tried to lift it, but it was too heavy. Her head thumped onto the ground as a frustrated groan left her lips.

Alex wasn't sure where she was headed, but now that the puca was taken care of it was time to get out of town. She had just put the last of her things in her bag when she heard him speak

"Hello love."

Alex closed her eyes at the sound of the accented voice behind her. "What do you want Crowley?"

"That's it?" the demon asked. Alex rolled her eyes in frustration as she turned to face him. "Oh come now. Surely after all this time you must be at least a little happy to see me."

"The day I'm happy to see you is the day angels stop being assholes." He chuckled. "Now if you'll excuse me I need to be hitting the road. So if you wouldn't mind." She turned her back to him and grabbed her bag, hoping that the silence would speak for her. When he didn't leave, she pushed past him and headed for the door.

"Off to go see the Moose and his new pet in the next town over?" She paused with her hand on the door.

She turned and looked at him. "What did you say?"

"Oh didn't you know? Sam's just down the way a bit making nice with the little spitfire he replaced you with." Crowley knew exactly what his words were doing to her. He'd been looking forward to this moment for ages. "It must be difficult to have him as a soulmate when you're no longer his."

That didn't make any sense. Soul mates weren't that easily separated. They were two halves of a whole, each possessing a piece of the other's soul. What Crowley was suggesting was impossible.

Alex's brow furrowed in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

A little smile formed on his face. "I'm talking about the fact that the piece of your soul that holds Sam to you is gone." Her eyes grew wide. "Oh yes, I have it." He began to explain. "Torture's come a long way since I took over. You see, I've found a way to remove little pieces of a person's soul." Alex turned to face him. "When dear little Sammy's soul refused to be separated from you, the part that tied him to you just… lit up. So, I had one of my boys perform a little surgery. Now your soul is tied to his, but his soul however…. Well, I think you get the picture."

No, Alex thought. No this can't be happening. The thought was completely absurd. How could she possibly be Sam's soul mate without also being his in return?

"I don't believe you."

"Oh? Well then, how about your magic? Ever wonder where it went?" Her eyes snapped to him. "Oh yes, I know. I know that underneath that big scary title of yours, you're all bark and no bite."

"Where is my magic?"

"Oh it's safely tucked away somewhere safe, right next to that little piece of Sam's soul."

Alex sincerely wished that she could read the demon's mind to know if he was lying. She wanted him to be lying, but part of her knew, deep down, that he was right.

"Get out."

"So soon? You haven't even heard my offer yet."

"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus."

He began to hiss in pain. "Alright I'll go. For now. Just know that while you're here fighting with me, Sam's off sowing his wild oats in another bird's field." She shut her eyes against his words as he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

Opening her eyes, she began to shake as what Crowley said began to sink in. Not only was her magic really and truly gone, but Sam was missing part of his soul. Sinking to the ground, Alex let the tears she thought she was done shedding for the younger Winchester began to flow. Without all of the pieces of his soul, Alex feared that he was lost to her forever.

Was Crowley lying? If not, can Alex convince him to return the pieces of soul he too? Reviewers will get a special preview of the next chapter.