SERIES FINALE SPOILERS AHEAD (to skip, don't read paragraphs 2 and 3):

Lynn was curled up on the couch, wearing one of her many Supernatural shirts, Hunter Check List sweatpants, anti-possession symbol slipper socks, and completely wrapped in her favorite Supernatural blanket as she watched the series finale. She had lasted the entire season without coming across any spoilers so she could watch it all in one sitting and now she was on the very last episode. All of her Sam, Dean, Castiel (and friends) Pops watched her as she started sobbing five minutes in. They were so happy.

Then they weren't. Lynn bawled with such uncontrolled intensity that she almost couldn't hear the brothers' last goodbye. Or 'Brothers in Arms' by Dire Straits playing when Sam was all alone with Miracle before shutting down the bunker forever. Or when Dean was met by Bobby in Heaven and took that epic ride to 'Carry On My Wayward Son' by Kansas while Sam lived the rest of his life with his son, Dean. Lynn found no moment to breathe and no matter how often she wiped the tears away, she could barely see the screen. So when the reimagined cover of 'Carry On' started to play when Dean said goodbye to Sam the same way Sam did to his brother, well, Lynn almost had to pause it.

But then Dean rolled up to the bridge in the Impala and got out to enjoy the view. It was his blissfully content smile that allowed Lynn to finally fill her lungs. "Hey Sammy." And there he was, in the same outfit he wore in the pilot episode, smiling at Dean like no time had passed at all. "Dean." Then they hugged and Lynn started sobbing again. As they looked out into the vast paradise of Heaven, finally together and at peace, Lynn clung to everything Supernatural around her to feel them close. As Jared and Jensen said their thank you's and goodbyes to the fans, Lynn caught a bright flash outside.

She wiped her eyes and turned to the balcony door of her apartment. Nothing, just blackness. She looked back at the screen as the credits rolled with their instrumental music and felt another wave of emotions crash down and drown her from the inside out. It was over. 15 years of her favorite show and most beloved characters had ended. Lynn had watched Supernatural since the beginning and spent basically half her life with them. Her connection to Sam and Dean had lasted longer than any kind of relationship she ever had and now… it was over. And what an ending it was – profoundly, beautifully, and utterly heart wrenching. She would have them forever but the loss she felt was more powerful than anything she had grieved before.

Another blinding flash broke open the night outside and this time Lynn was able to fully notice through the tears. There wasn't any thunder or rain, but the lightning continued to flash more and more. It was so bright that it didn't illuminate the complex outside – just flashed an impossible white light. Lynn was forced to shut her eyes every time it cracked the dark sky. She dried her eyes and went to the door. The wind was starting to pick up and in minutes the windchime hanging from her balcony light was violently swinging. Lynn slid the door open and walked outside to take it down before it shattered against the wall. As she grabbed the dangling metal, another flash of lightning struck and Lynn felt its force –

Jerk her awake right as Dean pulled up to a gas station and parked at the pump. Shooting up in the backseat, Lynn dropped her bag on the floor and frantically looked around. She wasn't back in her apartment after watching the final episode. She was in the Impala. Lynn tried to catch her breath as she remembered what happened. That lightning flash had turned into headlights nearly running her over. And Sam and Dean… Lynn focused her eyes and saw them staring at her. It was real. They were real! She was somehow with Sam and Dean in the pilot episode of Supernatural!

"Hey, it's ok. You're ok," said Dean as he leaned over the bench seat. "Remember us? Found you on the road last night and gave you a ride?"

"Glad you were able to get some sleep," added Sam in a soft voice. "Do you think you might be able to talk with us so we can try to figure out what happened to you?"

Lynn's eyes burned to the point of tears. How was this possible? How was she there with them? Too many of those tangled thoughts spun around and around in her head and every time she looked at the Winchester brothers, those thoughts tightened in her throat like a noose. Sam and Dean stared at her, confused and concerned, as she rubbed her eyes before the tears could spill.

"Sorry, we're not trying to overwhelm you or freak you out or anything," Sam said.

"No, no, it's uh… It's ok," Lynn replied as she shook her head, forcing herself to laugh so she wouldn't lose her nerve and give into tears. "I'm ok. I'm so ok that I'm pretty sure I'm dead."

"What? Lynn, no. You're – You're not dead."

She found Sam's sympathetic gaze and replied, "Oh I'm very convinced that I'm dead and a ghost. Nothing else makes sense."

"No, he's right," argued Dean. "If you were a ghost you wouldn't have scraped your hands and knees when you fell. And Sam wouldn't've been able to help you up." He hung his arm over the back of the seat and held up his hand to her, saying, "And you wouldn't be able to high five me." Lynn stared at his open hand as he smiled at her. "Come on. Let me prove to you that you're not dead. High five me."

Lynn looked at his hand and felt the tears clench in her throat. She glanced at Sam giving her a small smile, eyes searching hers to understand, and brought her focus back to Dean. He moved his hand closer with a bit of a smirk and said, "One little tap. Come on. You can do it."

She slowly lifted her hand and lightly pressed it against his. Dean's hand was warm against hers, rough from all those years hunting, but still gentle. Lynn inhaled a trembling breath at how small and slender her hand was against his. She let her eyes drift to Dean's and saw he was doing his best to smile, but when she caught Sam's gaze, the dam of emotions broke.

All she could see was their clasped hands in the finale. Lynn gasped back a wave of tears ready to spill from her eyes and pulled her whole arm into her chest. "I'm sorry," she cried and scrambled for the door handle. "I'm sorry, I just – I just need a minute." Lynn hurried out of the car and walked around the side of the building.

She hadn't had the time it took for the credits to finishing rolling to process the series finale and now… Now she was with them! On their very first hunt of the series! It shouldn't be possible. The lightning had to have hit her, burned her to a crisp, and this was her Heaven. How else could this be happening? Lynn found a wooden bench at the back of the gas station and sat down. She leaned forward, elbows on her knees, and clawed her fingers through her frizzed curls. Lynn forced in several deep breaths in order not to be carried out on the tearful riptide.

Lynn heard Dean get out of the car and put the pump in the tank. Sam opened his door and within moments, she heard them walk over to her. Lynn drew in a sharp breath and wiped her eyes, hoping they didn't look red. She smiled apologetically as they walked over, but nearly broke down at seeing them. It was all just so much.

"Look, I didn't mean to, uh…" Dean trailed awkwardly. "Whatever happened back there, I'm sorry."

Lynn's eyes widened as Dean shifted in place, having a hard time maintaining eye contact. But Sam found her gaze and with a comforting smile, said, "You don't have to worry, ok? You're not a ghost and whatever did happen to you, we'll figure it out. When you're ready, yeah?"

Lynn shook her head and felt her mouth gape in wonder. "What? How can – I don't –" She sighed and rubbed her eyes before looking back up at them to say, "I literally came out of nowhere and you guys not only gave me a ride, you're apologizing to me because I–" Lynn got to her feet, gulping back tears she would not let spill to finish, "You have nothing to apologize for. I'm the one who's sorry for just bursting into tears, it's just… I can't thank you enough for–for everything."

"We weren't just gonna leave you out there," Dean shrugged in reply. "Besides, it's kinda what we do."

Lynn pursed her lips into a smile and nodded. "Y–It means everything to me. Really."

"We can't promise that we'll figure this out fast, but we'll do what we can." Sam said as he put his hands in his pockets.

"In the meantime, want some breakfast?" asked Dean, turning to walk back to the gas station.

Sam headed back to the Impala and answered, "No thanks."

"I would." Lynn said and got a more relaxed smile from Dean.

"Awesome. Whad'ya want?"

Lynn thought for a moment and replied, "Sprite and HoHos please."

Dean smirked approvingly of her snack choice and went inside to get the road food. Lynn made her way back to the Impala and caught her reflection in the window again. She lightly touched her cheek and leaned in closer to the face staring back at her. Espresso curls tumbling down a few inches above her elbows – longer than she'd been used to for many years – and dark eyes to match that made her fair complexion have a youthful glow. Is this all really possible? Lynn thought as she glanced down at her hand touching the window and rolled her palm upward to reveal the superficial scrape.

"Hey," called Sam. "You alright?"

"Y-Yeah, I – erm – I just can't believe how crazy my hair looks," stammered Lynn as she got into the backseat.

Sam chuckled and replied, "After teleporting in a lightning storm across the country, I'd say your hair looks great."

Lynn smiled, trying to hide her warming cheeks, and mumbled, "Thanks."

She lifted her bag off the floor and was about to open it when Dean came around to their side of the car and said, "Breakfast is served." He handed Lynn her snack and drink, holding onto his own stuff while he checked on the gas.

Sam went back to looking at the box of cassettes, asking his brother, "So how'd you pay for that stuff? You and Dad still running credit card scams?"

Lynn's eyes darted up to watch them both as Dean replied, "Yeah, well, hunting ain't exactly a pro-ball career." He took the pump out of the tank and added, "Besides, all we do is apply. It's not our fault they send us the cards."

"Oh yeah? And what names did you write on the application this time?" Sam challenged, sitting back inside the car and closing the door as his brother walked back to the driver's side.

"Uh… Bert Aframian and his son, Hector." Dean smiled as he sat down and dropped his snacks on the middle seat. Sam smiled with him when he bragged, "Scored two cards out of the deal."

"Sounds about right." Lynn could feel her smile widening the longer she listened to them and it was a welcome change to the tears. She watched Sam look into the box as he said, "I swear, man, you gotta update your cassette tape collection."

"Why?"

"Well, for one they're cassette tapes. And two, Black Sabbath, Motorhead, Metallica?" He held an example of each up to his brother and stated, "It's the greatest hits of mullet rock."

Dean grabbed the last one his little brother lifted up to make a point and responded, "Yeah, well, house rules, Sammy –" He put the cassette in and declared, "Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cake hole." Dean dropped the case back in the box and turned his attention to the Impala.

"You know "Sammy" is a chubby 12-year-old. It's Sam."

Lynn relaxed into the back seat as AC/DC's 'Back in Black' began to play and Dean sarcastically replied, "Sorry, I can't hear you. The music's too loud." With a smirk, Dean turned up the music and revved the engine. They drove out of the gas station and continued on their way. Dean glanced in the rearview mirror to see Lynn slightly banging her head to the beat and mouthing the lyrics. With a grin, he asked, "You like classic rock?"

"I like a lot of different kinds of music," she replied. "Classic rock is one of the kinds."

"Awesome," chuckled Dean and shot Sam another smirk. "Two against one."

Sam shook his head but huffed a bit of laughter with them. "So, Lynn, do you mind if I ask why you thought you were a – um – a ghost?"

Lynn curled her lips over teeth before replying, "Last thing I remember was a bolt of lightning hitting near me. Or at least, I think it had to be near me. It was so bright and suddenly that brightness was your headlights barreling forward. So it wasn't much of a stretch to think it actually hit and killed me instead."

"Right, but why would your ghost be with us?" Dean asked. "And what do you mean by ghost? Just another way to say you're dead or –" Lynn frowned when his question was cut off by Sam's sneer. "What?" he groaned as Sam clenched his jaw.

"I meant that if I was dead then my spirit left my body and attached itself to you guys." It was a risk and Lynn honestly couldn't tell if it was a smart one by the way they were staring at her. "But I don't think I'm dead anymore, so… there's that."

"Right…" said Dean, glancing at his brother in confusion before bringing his eyes back to the road. "So you believe in that sort of thing? Ghosts and…"

"Witches?" Sam twisted his head over his shoulder to stare at her and Lynn saw Dean's eyes shoot to the rearview mirror. Nodding, Lynn continued, "That's why you asked to look in my bag, right? To see if there were any hex bags that could've teleported me?"

"So you don't just believe in the supernatural, you –" Sam stumbled to find the words and asked, "Are you a hunter?"

Lynn searched for the strength to smile and replied, "No, just saved by two of the best."

Sam and Dean exchanged looks, touched by her words, and returned her smile. Dean turned the music down to ask, "If you're not a hunter then how do you know that we are? How do you know the things that go bump in the night are real?"

"Believing it could be real because you're... sensitive to that kind of stuff is one thing and knowing it is after you're teleported in a lightning storm is another."

The brothers laughed and Sam mused, "Well, the fact that you know it's all real should make this a lot easier, especially with everything else that we have to do."

Dean turned his head to catch Lynn's eye and shared, "Our dad was on a hunting trip and hasn't made contact in three weeks. That's why we're heading to Jericho."

"And we gotta find him before Monday," added Sam. "I have an interview for law school at Stanford that I can't miss."

Lynn felt her heart leap into her throat and her stomach flip like an undercooked pancake. With a gulp and a breath, Lynn said, "If you want, I could help."

"Really?" they both asked, eyes sparking in shock and gratitude.

"Are you kidding? After everything you've done for me, it's the least I can do."

Dean smiled and excitedly accepted, "Alright! You help us find our dad and we help you figure out the whole storm traveling thing. Whad'ya think, Sammy?"

Sam shook his head and partly laughed in reply, "I think this job just got a whole lot better."

Lynn smiled and pulled her legs up to cross them over the seat. She watched them closely, lovingly, as they settled in the front seat to go over the next steps in finding their father and how to start researching what happened to Lynn… but she wasn't listening to their words. It was the sound of their voices, the movement of their gestures, the way they would glance at each other… it was them. Sam and Dean. And it was no longer about how they ended. It was how they began, and Lynn was inexplicably – miraculously – a part of it.