"Okay Red don't dick me around here. If you're not straight with me this time, I'm not calling back." Dean said, having called her back after she abruptly ended the call last time. This tone softened from an order to a request. "What's going on with you?"

Mae closed her eyes. The sound of his voice was irrationally soothing at the moment. How had she become so use to talking to him every day in such a short period of time? God, she missed him. And she wondered if this wouldn't have happened if they'd stuck together. It very well might have but he would have been looking for her every second that she was missing.

"Hey, you still there. You call me late at night, hang up, ignore me, and when you finally do answer you hang up again? C'mon Mae,"

A distinct knot was forming in her throat and threatening to break out with a strangled snivel. A ragged breath escaped. The voice in the back of her head told her to hang up before he figured out something was wrong. It was too late for that. She shouldn't have called in the first place because everything she had done after that only served to raise suspicion.

"Mavis. Talk to me."

"Yeah. Okay."

Her words were terse and loaded, no matter what she was doing to cover it up. It worried him. They hadn't spoken in far too long for his liking. As his mind was flooded with feelings of regret over pushing her away and the need to pull her back, he shook his head. That wasn't what this call was about. "Are you okay, Maeby?"

The question twisted deeper than it should have. She heard genuine concern and suddenly all of the implications of his notion of taking a break slammed into her with painful realness. there. A list of responses ran through her head, from denial to a full out rambling explanation of why she called. What came out was nothing. She couldn't vocalize her thoughts then.

"Mae. Are you okay? I need you to give me a yes or no here."

The firmness in his tone snapped her back. "I don't know." she tried to speak louder but it just came out as a whisper.

"That's not an okay answer Mavis. Are you hurt? Do you need help?"

His worry was barely constrained, which made Mae feel all the worse. She didn't want him to be right about her not being safe on her own nor did she want him to feel guilty about it. They knew they loved each other and neither believed this break had anything to do with losing that. They both still cared and worried about the other just as much as if they were in the same room.

"Where are you?" She asked, an almost curious whimsy in her voice.

"Not important right now. I need to know if you're okay or safe or what's going on with you. Right now, babe."

"I don't remember."

"You don't remember if you're okay or safe? That's not clearing things up."

"No, I'm telling you what's wrong; I don't remember what's happened for the last few days. Nothing. I can't put it back together. I can't even...There's nothing that makes sense and I just...I don't know."

"Mae-"

"Don't. The last think I need is a lecture here. You know, I shouldn't have even called."

"Hey, whoa, hold on a second. Don't hang up on me again. I will track you down if you do but I'm not doing anything except trying to figure out what's happening here."

"I told you, I don't know." She snapped back.

"Okay. Tell me what you do know, okay? Please? No lectures from me, I promise."

Sighing, she stood to pace the room. Mae proceeded to fill him in on the parts she knew for sure and a few of the guesses she had so far.

"Okay," Dean finally said, "Just stay where you are, alright? Sam and I'll help put the rest together and we'll figure this out."

"You don't need to do that. I can—"

"Stop. No matter what, if you need anything, I'll do it. You know that, right?"

She shook her head, not that he could see or respond to it, but the silence was more than enough to tell him that no, she wasn't aware of that. He had to admit that he could have been smoother when they broke things off. But in all honesty, he hadn't expected her to need him or wanting anything to do with him after that. He meant it all the same. Even if she hated him, he'd drop anything if she needed something from him.

"It's true, Red. So, give me the address, and just stay where you are. We'll be there ASAP."

She didn't tell him she couldn't promise she would be there. Hell, she didn't know how she got here or when. Whatever was happening, she had no idea if it would happen again. All the same, she gave him the location of the motel and her room number. Mae was reluctant to hang up. Those few minutes on the phone had been the closest to normal she had felt all day. She thought maybe if she kept him on the line, maybe she wouldn't lose any more time. Dean probably would have stayed on the line if she only asked. But she didn't.

They hung up. She sat back down on the bed, phone pressed between her hands as she pulled her knees against her chest. She couldn't fall asleep, despite how tired she felt. If she did, she was sure she lose track of herself again. There was nothing more she could do help herself right then. She could bang her had against the wall looking for leads she hadn't found yet. She could keep speculating but it was all busy work. It was all killing time until something happened to her or the boys got there.


It took Dean and Sam the better part of the day—or rather night as it had been late when Mae had called—to get to the motel. It was around seven in the morning when they arrived at her door. Dean was itching to get to her to make sure she was safe with his own eyes. But he knew she wasn't and knew he was walking into something he might not be ready for. He still needed to do it.

He felt a distinct chill ran down his spine and he was absolutely sure that he was about to go through hell. He'd never been under the illusion that dating her, that striking up a relationship with anyone whether or not they were a hunter, was going to be some sort of fairy tale romance. There would be more than their share of moments like this, where the realities of their work came right up against being emotionally connected to someone else.

An unfamiliar sense of trepidation moved uneasily through his body when he knocked on the door of the motel room. After a minute or so, she came to the door. There was the scuffing sound of the deadbolt being turned before the door opened, only as far as the chain allowed.

"Hey Red."

Her eyes narrowed a second as she took him in, seemingly evaluating if he was real or an illusion. The lanky redhead disappeared behind the door again followed by the rattle of the chain being undone. This time when the door opened, it opened wider.

Mae looked tired. Exhausted, really. He hated that sad, distant look that was in her eyes. Of course, it would have been better if he had looked at her eyes first rather than letting his eye fall directly to her generous cleavage in the incredibly low-cut top. "Jesus Mae, those tits."

"Okay, I can deal with this on my own. Thanks." She started to close the door, but Dean stopped it with a hand, pushing it back open.

"Hey okay, sorry. It's just very...distracting, you have to admit. Very...mmm." He made a cupping gesture at his own chest.

"Dean! Focus." Both Mae and Sam chided him at the same time.

His eyes snapped back to hers. At least now, she was a little annoyed, which chased everything else away and brought life to those steely gray eyes. He didn't expect joy, happiness, or love when their eyes met this time but that what he got now was worse.

There was a distinct pink that crept over her unusually pale cheeks. Her hair was a frizzy tangle of red and darker than normal circles were cast under her eyes on her makeup free face.

She stepped back from the doorway, letting the boys inside. Dean watch her turn and walk away, taking in the rest of her outfit. He tried to remind himself he was here to help her, not ogle her, but he did love seeing her bare legs in those short shorts.

"What the hell are you wearing here?"

"Seriously? This is your question?"

"No offense Red, but normally, you dress like a lumberjack. A hot lumberjack but...never trailer trash. Again, no offense-and don't get me wrong, I'm thoroughly enjoying both the tits and ass here but..."

"All of my clothes were ruined. So, it's either this or nothing."

"Huge fan of nothing, if you're taking votes."

The motel room had a southwest theme but ultimately was just the same as almost every other one they'd stayed in over the years. It was messier but Mae seemed to be dealing with too much to care.

Mae sighed but it was Sam who spoke first. "Keep it in your pants, man. So..." Sam asked, picking up one of the many bottles she'd tried to tidy up but hadn't thrown away yet, "just on first impressions are you sure you don't remember anything because you've been on a big date with Johnny Walker?"

"No. I mean, maybe. Someone certainly seems to have been drinking a shit ton. But I don't..." She threw her hands up in surrender before dropping back to the edge of the bed, "I don't have any memory of doing it."

"Okay, so tell us what happened." Dean took his jacket off and draped it over the back of the chair before taking a seat.

"I told you everything I know. I had wrapped up a job in Oregon. It was pretty easy, straight forward, you know. I was going to head out in the morning, back home maybe or something...I hadn't planned that far ahead."

Sam looked over the notes and documents she had put up on the wall from the last job. "A kitsune?"

"Yeah, it was targeting these dudes and draining them of their life force until they died."

"Maybe you got it wrong," Dean offered up, only glancing at her board before looking back at her, "Maybe it was some other creature. Could be a succubus and you just pissed it off."

"No. I killed the kitsune."

"It wasn't just a regular fox?"

Mae glared at Dean's suggestion but then sighed and fell back against the bed, draping her arm over her eyes. "Normal foxes can't turn into hot chicks. They don't have nine tails. And most importantly, they don't turn to ash when you cut the tails off. I promise you I didn't screw that job up."

"I wasn't saying you did. I'm just trying to figure out what happening, okay? Was anything else strange?"

"Yeah, all those guys the foxy lady took out were real pieces of shit."

"Shit how?" Sam asked.

"Violent, abusive, womanizing types. One of them had a lady cage hidden in his bedroom. I think the kitsune either targeted guys like that or he met up with her when she was in human form and then he took her hostage. When she had a chance to get free or take her revenge, she drained that dude right off. Then she started going after similar types."

"Huh." both boys said.

Folding his arms over his chest, Sam tried to scan the case she laid out, looking for some item, some key she hadn't seen yet. "Well, you're clearly not the type it would target if it was still alive. That kind of leaves us at square one."

"Yeah, I'm aware."

The room fell silent. "Are you really okay? I mean really. You seem kind of...rough." Dean finally asked.

Mae sat back up as Sam joined his brother, taking a seat in the other chair at the small Formica table in the kitchenette. Dean watched as her eyes moved up to look over his face. He had no idea what she was looking for or what she found there but saw something very exposed in hers. Her posture softened as she appeared to find something that was good enough for whatever she needed. "I don't know. I haven't slept since I turned up here. I'm afraid if I do, I'll wake up somewhere else and-" her voice broke, "I don't know what's going on and I can't figure out. I don't...I didn't want to ask for help but-well, here we are. So no, I'm not okay."

"Red, baby-"

She put a hand up. "I don't need you to...console me, or whatever you're about to do here. I just need you to help me figure this out before I end up in some new city with zero idea of how I got there or what I've done."

"I woulda helped to keep you awake while we were getting here, that's all."

She dipped her head, letting her hair fall to hide the distinct emotion that crossed her face. "Whatever. That's not really the issue, you know?"

Was there anything he could say or do to make her feel better, Dean wondered. He knew the answer before the question ever entered his mind. Instead, he stood and went over to the counter to make a fresh pot of coffee. He'd driven through the night too and while they weren't as tired as Mae, they could all use a hit of caffeine and then something more than coffee for breakfast.

"I hate to bring this up but there's every possibility that this...is a demon thing." Sam ran a hand through his hair and gave her a tight-lipped smile when her head snapped up. "I think we should try an exorcism."

It wasn't the worst idea. It was something she had considered as she struggled to figure out what had happened. Sam was right: it was possible. She didn't remember enough to say if she had run across a demon. Hell, the demon could have been following her since the hospital. It was even possible she had been possessed since then. She didn't feel possessed and had enough experience, she thought, to know what it felt like. That didn't mean it couldn't have happened as some point.

It didn't explain why a demon would let her come out of this now but then again given their recent demon playmates, it could have been something as simple as one of them wanting to toy or torment her. Or lure the boys out, which she had essentially done with ease. If it was possession by the kitsune, an exorcism would take care of that too.

"I won't stop you. If it is a possession though, it ain't me you have to worry about."

Sam smirked a little at the warning. "So... just to be safe, we should probably... tie you up. If you are possessed..."

"Whoa, let's slow down here." Dean brought Mae a cup of coffee, resisting the urge to kiss the top of her head. He returned to the kitchenette for the two cups for Sam and himself but didn't take a seat. Instead, he stood. "She's not possessed. We're certainly not going to tie her up."

"I could be. You know I could be and if I am... demons don't like getting evicted," Mae shrugged. "But that does sound in keeping with my day."

"Sorry but if something is in you..." Sam said.

There was that thoughtful, remorseful look on his face that was somehow reassuring. Mae stared at the dark liquid in the cup for a second. It made her hate the state of things between her and Dean because the exchange was comforting. "No, I know. Safety first and all that." She took a sip of coffee, causing her stomach to rumble disconcertingly loud.

Dean frowned down at her. "When was the last time you ate?"

"I ordered a pizza last night, but I wasn't really hungry. It's in the fridge if you want some."

"Sam, go get breakfast."

"No," Mae protested, stopping him with a hand to his arm. "Let's just get this done with. I don't want to chow down only to have to barf all over myself later. Just strap me down, break out the Latin, and check this off the list, okay?"

Mae stood, walking the few feet to set her coffee cup on the table. Her stomach still left her sort of woozy, but this wouldn't take very long to get this done. If she were lucky, perhaps it put an end to the potential cause. She could live with a handful of missing days and not knowing what had happened if they managed to end to it here and now.

Task at hand, Sam went out to the car to get supplies.

"You know Mae, we don't have to do this."

"C'mon, the worst thing that happens if nothing is in me is that we waste our time. Best case, this is all over and we can go back to our break."

"That's not...fair."

"It is. Don't worry so much."

"I'm not going to be able to stop that."

Mae smirked at the sentiment. When Sam returned to the room, he tossed the book on the bed and handed Dean a length of rope. Mae pulled out a chair and sat down. Nervousness wasn't exactly what she was feeling. Her foot didn't get the message and wouldn't stop jiggling. There was a tension and an apprehension, but she was willing to accept the situation as it was. Having a spirit expelled from her body wouldn't be better than letting it stay.

Kneeling beside her, Dean brushed his fingers along the inside of her wrists as he tied her hands behind her back. tying her hands behind her back first. "Let me know if this is too tight."

Under different circumstances, there might be something arousing about this. Instead, it made her laugh. "You know, if I am harboring a demon, this kind, respectful thing isn't going to make things easier for you down the road."

"I don't want to hurt you."

"Just tie me up like you would anyone else, okay?"

Dean nodded, pulling the bindings a little tighter before wrapping around her body, tighter than was comfortable but she knew it wasn't as tight as he could or should have. As he stood, slightly out of her peripheral vision, he pulled a flask out of his back pocket, unscrewed it, and then threw it in her face. Had she not been tied up, she would have sprung up. Instead, she jerked away out of shock. She sputtered and tried to shake the water off her face, but it was no sign of demonic possession.

"What the hell!?"

"Holy water."

Mae huffed a little but nodded. She didn't see him walk away but he reappeared moments later with a hand towel from the bathroom and gently dried the excess water off her face. "I thought maybe if we knew for sure...but it didn't work with dad when he was possessed either. The demon said something about it not working on something like him so maybe it's just lower level demons or something."

"Well, I suppose I would have liked a little warning. So, let's just keep going."

The shocked reaction he got out of when he surprised her with the water was the most climatic event of the entire ritual. As Sam read the ritual, Mae simply sat and listened. And they waited. She wasn't possessed or they weren't reading the right incantation for expelling something possessing her. For good measure, Sam read it through one more time but there was no reaction.

"All things considered, that was probably the best outcome I could expect when I let two dudes tie me up in a motel room." Mae said.

"Except now we're back to square one." Sam added.

"Then we just keep looking, don't we?" There was determination in Dean's words. He leaned down to untie her. "Now, can Sammy get us something to eat?"

Mae nodded. Sam agreed, setting the book down and grabbing the keys to the car.

"You're not going with him?"

Dean shook his head. "Someone should stay here with you, so you don't go on walkabout."

He didn't leave any room for question about whether or not it should be Dean or Sam staying and Mae assumed there wasn't that question in Dean's mind.