Kate was sitting at the table shuffling her feet and studying the grain of wood on the table.

Bobby and Dean had stepped outside to talk.

She looked up when the door opened.

"Shop, let's go." Dean said.

Kate gave Bobby a pleading look but didn't argue.

Dean walked with her out to the shop and had her sit on the work table. "Want to explain all of that?"

Kate swung her feet. "I don't have a good explanation."

"Why did you try that stuff right after I asked you to wait?" Dean asked.

Kate frowned. "I knew it was faster and I felt like I could handle it."

"Why keep hiding stuff?"

"Well if I had told you you wouldn't have let me do it and Craig could still be out there. I was worried about Taylor and didn't want him to show up here." Kate answered.

"Wait means wait. It doesn't mean no." Dean said.

Kate sighed. "I'm sorry. I messed up."

Dean could see how crushed she was. "I want to be mad about the memory planting but I can't say it isn't pretty cool. We just don't know the after effects. Dick needed to see things through Taylor's eyes."

Kate was confused. "So.. you aren't mad?"

Dean leaned against a shelf. "I understand why you felt the need to do all that. I do."

"But?" Kate asked.

"But you went behind our backs and disobeyed a direct order. Add lying to that. Aren't those the three main things that you seem to always have issues with?" Dean asked.

Kate dropped her shoulders. "How do I always mess this up?"

Dean flicked her knee. "Don't beat yourself up. Your heart is in the right place."

"How much trouble am I in?" She asked.

"How much should you be in?" Dean asked.

Kate startled. "What?"

"When you were weighing if you should search for him, what was your deciding factor?" Dean asked. "Did you take into account that it was an order?"

Kate sighed. "Yes. I just figured that Taylor's safety kind of outweighed what ever trouble I landed in."

"Self sacrificing." Dean commented.

Kate shrugged. "Would you have done differently?"

Dean rubbed the back of his head. "I follow orders a little better."

"Orders suck." Kate said.

"Ah, I know they do, kid. They are there for a reason though. If you can't follow orders on something smaller like this and wait an extra few minutes before trying something, how are you going to follow orders when you get your mojo and something big comes up?" Dean asked.

Kate hated that he made sense. "I made a bad choice. I understand."

Dean held his arms out. "Come here." He wrapped his arms around her. "You are a good friend to Taylor. I know why you made the choices you made and I'm not even going to lecture you about what you did to Craig. Don't do it again but maybe that will wake him up."

Kate tensed. "Then why are we out here?"

Dean chuckled. "Those big three that you struggle with so much."

Kate frowned. "But you said you wouldn't lecture me about what I did."

"Initial choice is what got you here. All you had to do was wait." Dean said.

"Okay. I understand." Kate said, sadly.

Dean cleared his throat. "I'm not a hard ass, you know."

Kate squinted her eyes.

"Dad is a hard ass and he would have kicked my ass into next week." Dean said.

"He is mad isn't he?" Kate asked.

Dean rubbed his head. "Told me to handle it."

"Great." Kate sulked.

Dean tilted her chin. "It wont be so bad. I'll cut you a break on that memory trick."

"It was a good trick, wasn't it?" Kate said with a small smile.

"It was. Just wish you had told us before trying it." Dean said and patted her back. He sat down on a tool box.

"Can't I just run laps?" Kate tried.

"I had you run laps and you still ended up here." Dean answered. He patted his leg.

Kate groaned but put herself over his leg.

Dean put his left arm on her back. "I want you to understand that I sympathize with why you did all this. I had worse in mind before Bobby had me run. I just need you to start listening when I tell you to wait and for the love of god stop hiding stuff." He swatted her.

Kate shifted. "I understand."

Dean reminded himself why he had to be hard on her and started working his way over her entire backside and sit spots. He didn't feel like he needed to lay into her to get the point across.

Kate put her hand back.

"Hey, you know not to do that." Dean said.

Kate tried to wiggle away. "Wait, wait. It hurts."

Dean grabbed her hand. "This isn't your first rodeo. You should know that it is going to hurt."

Kate drummed her toes. "Give me a minute."

Dean furrowed his brows. "I hadn't planned on blistering you but if you want to keep fighting me I can change that."

Kate let tears fall. "I'm not healing."

Dean paused. "I'm guessing your pain tolerance is back to normal too."

Kate nodded her head.

Dean shifted her. "I'll keep that in mind. It is supposed to hurt though."

Kate pulled her hand back and put it in front of her.

Dean went back to swatting but curbed how hard the swats were. He started in on her sit spots and stopped when he was satisfied that she would feel it for an hour or two. He rubbed her back. "What are you going to do differently?"

Kate sniffled. "I'll listen and not hide things."

Dean helped her stand. "Told you it wouldn't be so bad."

Kate rubbed the sting from her sit spots. "Why am I not healing?"

Dean furrowed his brows. "Kind of defeats the whole purpose when you do that."

Kate melted into his arms. "I'm sorry."

Dean hugged her. "I know. Slate clean."

Kate stopped sniffling. "Thanks for not being mad about the last part."

Dean rested his chin on her head. "You do have a weird way of making it hard to be mad."

"You still spanked me." She grumbled.

"Did you earn it?" Dean asked.

Kate sighed. "I'd rather not comment."

Dean squeezed her. "Head back inside."

Kate stepped away but stopped. "This stays between us, right? Please do not tell Taylor."

Dean laughed. "I'm not going to embarrass you like that."

"Thank you." Kate said.

Dean looked at her. "Have I ever embarrassed you?"

Kate scoffed. "Any time I am in public with you."

Dean gently shoved her. "Brat."

"Jerk." Kate replied. "Maybe I should find a different name for you since Sam calls you a jerk."

"How about we have a repeat of me busting your butt?" Dean said with a smirk.

Kate scrunched her face. "I was thinking world's best brother but never mind."

Dean stuck his foot in front of hers so she would stumble. "How's that healing thing going for ya?"

Kate groaned. "Maybe it is gone."

Dean shrugged. "Keeps me from wearing my hand out."

Kate gasped. "Can I try something?"

Dean sighed. "Why do I feel like this is going to land you in trouble?"

"Hey, I am asking first." Kate said.

"What is it?"

"Let me cut my hand." Kate said.

Dean lowered his voice. "You have got to be kidding me."

Kate stepped back. "I want to know if my body heals with things like cuts but not with things like..."

"A sore butt?" Dean teased. "Taylor healed."

Kate frowned. "How do you know what he was healing wasn't cuts?"

Dean clinched his jaw. "Tiny cut. Not deep."

Kate poked the palm of her hand and wiped the blood away. "Look at that, healed."

Dean rubbed his head. "So your body can tell the difference."

"Makes you wonder exactly what happened to Taylor." Kate added.

Dean walked to the house. "I'm going to kill the son of a bitch."

Kate jumped up and smacked the back of his head.

Dean spun around and looked at her.

Kate grinned. "You seemed reckless."

Dean chuckled. "Fair. I will not commit murder."

"And I will not compel or alter anyone's mind." Kate said.

"Or murder." Dean said pointedly.

Kate nodded. "No murder."

"Murder?" Bobby asked from the doorway.

"No one is going to commit murder. We've agreed on it." Kate said.

Bobby shot Dean a look and shook his head. "I didn't know we needed a spoken agreement for that."

Dean shrugged. "Apparently we need a spoken agreement for a lot of things."

Kate blushed. "I got your point, okay?"

Bobby ruffled her hair as she walked by. "As long as you abide by it."

Kate ducked. "I'll do my best."

Dean scoffed. "At least her healing ability doesn't cover getting her hide tanned."

Bobby raised a brow. "How is that?"

"Cuts healed. Sadly this did not." Kate said and winced.

Bobby smirked. "Perhaps we should write some of this down."

Kate scrunched her nose. "I think we will remember with no problem."

"You were the one wanting to discover the next kryptonite." Bobby said.

Kate threw up her hands. "For monsters, not me!"

"She does kind of remind me of a gremlin." Dean said with a smile.

Kate kicked the back of his knee.

Dean grunted but caught himself. "Watch yourself."

Kate put her hands on her hips. "Did you or did you not trip me outside."

Dean furrowed his brows and thought about it. "I guess I did."

Kate raised a brow at him.

Dean looked at Bobby. "See what I mean?"

"Do you think there are others like me?" Kate asked.

Bobby sat down at his desk. "No but we have no way of knowing. It wouldn't hurt to document all of this."

Kate looked toward the stairs. "It is lunch time. Should we wake Taylor up?"

Bobby looked at the clock. "You could see if he wants anything to eat."

Dean went upstairs with her to check on Taylor.

Kate called Taylor's name and put a hand on his arm.

Taylor startled and threw his arm.

Kate fell back and hit the floor. She hissed loudly and yelped.

Taylor sat up. "Oh my god. I'm sorry. I was confused. Are you okay?"

Kate stood up. "Yeah, it is okay. You didn't hit me."

"Are you sure?" Taylor's eyes were fearful.

Kate nodded. "I fell back but didn't get hurt."

Taylor rubbed his eyes. "You yelped and I thought I hurt you."

Kate's face turned a few shades of red.

Dean choked and had to walk out of the room to cover himself laughing.

"What?" Taylor asked.

Kate grumbled and threw one of Taylor's shoes at Dean.

"Are you okay?" Taylor asked.

Kate hid her face.

Dean walked back in the room.

"Shut up. It isn't funny, Dean." Kate grumbled.

Dean cleared his throat. "You may want to give him a heads up. You didn't hurt her, Taylor."

Taylor touched Kate's arm. "I am lost."

Kate bit her cheek. "I did something I wasn't supposed to... when I fell off the bed I landed in a way I wish I hadn't."

Taylor blinked a few times before understanding. "Oh.. Oh!" His face got red too. "Sorry." He gave her a sad look.

Kate gave him a smile. "It wasn't your fault."

Dean studied the look on Taylor's face. "Kate can you give us a minute?"

"Why?" Kate asked.

"I want to ask Taylor something." Dean said and flicked his eyes to the door.

Kate sighed but left the room.

Dean sat by Taylor's feet. "I need you to be honest here."

"Yeah, of course." Taylor said.

"You haven't told us exactly what your dad did. I'm not going to force you to but I saw your face just now. I would never raise my hand to her like your dad did to you." Dean said.

Taylor swallowed. "I didn't think of it like that. It doesn't mean I didn't feel bad for her."

"I can understand that. I have whacked your head a few times and I didn't think about how you process that." Dean was trying to find the words.

Taylor chuckled. "Are you asking if I can tell the difference between you smacking the back of my head and my dad beating me?"

Dean tilted his head. "Basically."

Taylor stretched. "Yeah. You don't scare me like that. I've gotten my fair share of whoopin's too so I know what ever happened to Kate isn't like what happened with my dad."

Dean let a breath out. "Good. I didn't stop to think about it until I saw the look on your face."

"I kind of assumed what ever she did to get on your bad side had something to do with me." Taylor answered.

Dean whistled for Kate.

Kate opened the door. "Not a dog."

"Yet you still come when I whistle." Dean said. "Want to tell Taylor about what happened?"

Kate grimaced. "I thought you weren't going to embarrass me."

"He connected the dots." Dean said with a shrug.

"I found your dad." Kate said.

Taylor held his breath.

"He is with John now." She added.

Taylor relaxed. "And?"

Kate hung her head. "I compelled him to sleep until Dean could pick him up and take him to John."

Taylor wasn't understanding what she had done wrong.

Dean poked her side.

"I can apparently plant memories and put him in... your... shoes." Kate answered, afraid that Taylor would get mad.

Taylor's mouth fell open. "He is going to kill me."

Kate frowned. "I wasn't trying to make it worse. John will talk to him."

Taylor shook his head. "Is that why?"

Dean sighed. "No. I asked her to wait and she didn't. I think we all agree the memory trick was not undeserved."

Taylor rested his elbows on his knees. "I don't even know what to say."

"I'm sorry. I didn't think it would upset you. I guess I didn't think in general." Kate said.

Taylor gave her a small smile. "Something tells me you already had that conversation."

Kate turned red again. "Yup."

"I'm not mad. I am worried that he is though. I'm worried that he is going to be angry that I left the house in the first place." Taylor said.

Dean put his hand on Taylor's back. "Let us take care of that. He isn't getting anywhere near you any time soon." He was quiet for a minute. "Kate, can you go help Bobby with lunch?"

Kate nodded. "I'm lacing your food with vegetables again though."

Dean furrowed his brows. "Is that why my organs were happier this morning?"

Kate giggled. "Probably."

Dean nudged her and gave her a smile.

Taylor scooted off the bed and stood up. His head hurt and he felt stiff.

"I am saying this because I'd need it said to me if I was in your position. Don't go off trying to get revenge." Dean said.

Taylor turned and looked at him. "What do you mean?"

Dean raised a brow. "I can see the wheels turning. Kate's heart was in the right place when she compelled him but it is dangerous stuff. Trust me, there have been times I have wanted to take a bat to my dad's head. It was a gift that I didn't have your kind of abilities because I may have let myself lose control. You are a good kid and you don't want to hurt anyone. If he doesn't get his shit together I will toss you the bat. Just don't go using your abilities."

Taylor's shoulders dropped. "It is hard not being angry."

"Oh hell, be angry. If you want to break stuff, Bobby has a car or two out there that you are free to go at. I just do not want you trying out abilities on your dad's head. I still stand by asking you two to be careful with that stuff." Dean said.

Taylor nodded his head. "I wont."

Dean studied the floor. "I'm not trying to embarrass Kate. We just realized something that doesn't make a whole lot of sense."

"What is it?" Taylor asked, and sat back down.

"As you saw from her tumble into the floor she hasn't.. uh.. healed." Dean tried to word the phrase tastefully.

Taylor nodded. "Did it only work yesterday?"

Dean shook his head. "She nicked her finger to test that theory out."

"That is weird." Taylor said.

Dean looked back at the floor. "It may be that the healing stuff only works on injuries or something that breaks the skin."

Taylor wasn't following.

"Which makes me think that yours would work the same way." Dean added.

Taylor held his breath. "Yeah?"

"And if that is true, what you healed from wasn't just marks." Dean said and looked at him.

Taylor cringed. "I'll be honest if I have to but I don't really want to go into it."

Dean nodded. "Had you not healed yourself, would you have needed first aid like last time?"

Taylor didn't answer.

Dean patted his knee. "That is all I need to know."

"What is going to happen?" Taylor asked.

Dean stood up. "I don't know. You have a say in all of this but that isn't okay."

Taylor frowned. "I know."

"Come on. You could use some food." Dean said and opened the door.

Taylor went with him downstairs and felt less heavy than he had earlier in the day. He gave Bobby a small smile and sat at the table.

Kate sat plates down and helped dish out the food. She was happy to see Taylor less tense.

#############

Craig opened his eyes and tried to sit up but he was groggy. He blinked a few times and then grabbed his face as pain spread from his cheek bone back to the base of his skull.

John shook the pain from his knuckles.

"Winchester, what the hell?" Craig mumbled. He was disoriented and had woken from a nightmare.

John threw water on him. "Wake up."

He sat up straight and wiped his face with his shirt. "Where am I?"

"What is wrong with you?" John asked, sitting across from him.

"What? I just woke up here!" Craig shouted.

"Hunting?" John prodded him.

Craig shook his head. "What?"

John fought the urge to punch him again. "Dean got a panicked call from Taylor because you were hunting him."

Craig tried to shake the haze from his head. "Shapeshifter."

John threw more water on him. "Your 12 year old, you son of a bitch."

Craig was too dizzy to fight. "What are you talking about?"

"The thing that you were hunting this morning wasn't a shapeshifter. It was your 12 year old son who was scared out of his mind." John said.

"That wasn't Taylor." Craig said.

John sat down. "What makes you think so."

Craig started to talk but shut his mouth.

"Is it because you laid into him last night and he wasn't bruised up this morning?" John asked.

Craig found a sprig of fight. "Mind your own, Winchester."

"Do you even remember or were you too drunk?"

"I don't know what the little shit told you all." Craig defended himself.

"Taylor isn't a shapeshifter. He can heal himself. After that lightshow, he and Kate both got that nifty little ability." John said.

"How the hell was I supposed to know that?! Tell me you wouldn't assume shapeshifter if one of your kids..." Craig's head was still jumbled.

John pulled his chair closer to Craig. "See, I can understand the shapeshifter bit. Those things do happen. What I can't quite wrap my head around is what shape you were expecting him to be in that would be so different than his normal appearance that you jumped straight to shapeshifter the moment you saw him."

"I'll handle my kids, you focus on your own." Craig said.

"Did you wake up from a weird dream?" John asked as he sat back.

Craig eyed him. "I'd say weird."

"How did it feel?" John asked.

Craig didn't answer him.

"Was it scary?"

"What are you getting at?" Craig asked.

"I don't know what Kate cooked up but she wanted you to be in Taylor's shoes for a bit." John said.

"That little bitch." Craig said before his head rocked back.

"No, being a little bitch is beating the shit out of a child for no god damn reason." John said.

Craig was beginning to hear the rage in John's tone. "I had too much to drink and was confused the next morning."

"That doesn't excuse it."

"Oh you have never gotten drunk and been too hard on your boys?" Craig threw back.

John eyed him. "You know what. I have. I took a belt to Dean for sneaking off to a girl's house. He wore those stripes for a few days. Never broke the skin, never hit him anywhere but his seat."

Craig started to comment.

"I realized what I did and felt like shit. I tried to make it up to him. Bobby threatened to blow my head off if I got within a mile of either of them until I got my head on right." John said.

"Lovely for you. That is your family." Craig spat.

John looked him in the eye. "If you get within a mile of Taylor, I will blow your head off."

"He is my son." Craig said and tried to stand up.

"You know who hurts kids like that? Demons. It would be really unfortunate." He said and stomped Craig's bare foot. "To have." He punched him in the stomach. "you seriously injured while trying to exorcise a demon." He finished his sentence with another punch.

Craig fell back and cowered. "I start having dreams about my unit and it messes me up."

John flicked his knife open and closed. "Then you get help."

"There ain't no helping it. It was one night. I don't slip like that every night." Craig said and nursed his broken toes.

"One night too many. That boy is terrified. If all this is from your ptsd, then I suggest you check yourself in somewhere until you can tell the difference between a monster and a kid." John said.

"Butt out. I'm going." Craig slurred.

John stopped him. "Phrased that wrong. I could just shoot you now. God knows I want to. I sympathize enough with what happened to your unit that I am inclined to offer you a second option. You go to the nearest ward and check yourself in for a nice long stay."

"I'm not going to a ward." Craig said.

John chuckled. "Yeah you are. If you try to tell them about our little conversation they wont believe you. How are you going to explain what you did to Taylor? Either wind up in jail for hitting your kid or the ward because you thought he was a shapeshifter."

Craig was seeing red. "You son of a bitch."

"I kill monsters every day. It is second nature to me. Now most of them are of the supernatural variety and one could reason that what they do is in their nature. That makes the human monsters so much worse. Do you know what I consider someone who hits their kid?" John drew his gun.

Craig backed away. "I'll go. Tell Taylor I'm sorry."

John put the gun away. He shoved Craig out the door toward the truck. "Glad we are on the same page." He drove to a hospital and checked Craig in. He told the receptionist that he found him walking the road, beat up and hallucinating. A small part of him knew that Craig wasn't in his right mind and an extended stay in a loony bin might do him some good. The other part of him knew he was prepared to keep good on his promise should he ever hit Taylor again.

Kate and Taylor were working on the shed when they heard John's truck.

Taylor was apprehensive, expecting to see his dad.

Kate walked over to John's window. "Where is Craig?" She lowered her voice. "Did you kill him?"

John chuckled. "No."

Kate pulled a face.

John ruffled her hair. "You are a little too comfortable with this whole killing people business."

Kate shrugged.

John motioned for Taylor to walk over. "I talked to your dad."

Taylor felt panicked.

"I dropped him off where he can get some help. He is going to stay a while to get some psychological help." John said.

Taylor wasn't sure how to feel.

"We had a talk of a different variety." He held up his hand with the busted knuckles.

Taylor turned white. "I'm sorry."

John actually hugged him. "Part of the hunter's code."

Taylor fought back tears.

John could feel him shaking. "He will get help he needs and wont be around to bother you for a little while. You are a brave kid."

Kate backed away to give Taylor some privacy.

Dean looked from the porch and furrowed his brows. From Taylor and John's reaction he was wondering if John hadn't killed Craig.

Kate walked toward Dean. "He hugged him."

Dean sat on the steps. "Did he kill him?"

Kate giggled. "I asked the same thing. He dropped him off at a psych ward. Looks like he smacked him around a bit too."

Dean handed her a few jellybeans. "Huh."

Taylor got control of himself and pushed himself back. "I'm sorry about that."

John tossed him a napkin but didn't acknowledge that Taylor had broken down.

Taylor was grateful that John didn't make a big deal of it.

John walked over to the porch. "Someone needs to have a talk with Misty too."

Kate furrowed his brows. "You can't punch women."

John snorted. "Not that kind of talk."

Kate folded her arms.

"Nope. Save it. You can have your opinions but let the adults handle it." Dean said.

John popped the back of her thigh. "Keep your mind in your mind only."

Kate hissed. "I was planning on it! I mean yes sir." she said and turned her butt toward the safety of the wall.

John shook his head and went inside.

Kate turned around and screamed inwardly. Taylor had saw that.

Dean chuckled and nudged her. "I'll be inside as well."

Kate stomped her foot instead of rubbing the sting away.

Taylor walked onto the porch and smiled at her. "You might want to breathe before you burst a blood vessel."

Kate blew air through her nose and looked out over the salvage yard.

"You don't have to be embarrassed."

Kate rolled her eyes. "That makes it so much better."

Taylor shrugged. "Suit yourself but I'm not judging you or your family. I don't think of you as a little kid or whatever you have rolling around inside of your head."

Kate calmed down. "Tell that to them."

Taylor shook his head enthusiastically. "Nope! I've seen how they deal with backchat." He grinned.

Kate giggled and relaxed. "Chicken."

Taylor nodded. "Proudly."

Kate felt a pit in her stomach. Taylor was such a good kid and his dad was an ass. She was a brat half the time and they still put up with her.

Taylor searched her eyes. "Don't do that."

"What?" She asked.

"Compare."

She stared at him. "Are you reading my thoughts?"

Taylor laughed. "No, just your eyes."

"Well stop that. Dean does it and it is annoying enough coming from him." Kate said.

Taylor smiled. "Sorry to break it to you but even if you get really good at controlling what you say, your face will always give you away."

Kate tried to school her face.

"See like that look right there would make a nun faint." Taylor quipped.

Kate covered her face. "Now what am I thinking?"

Taylor moved her hands. "That you hate that I'm always right."

Kate's mouth dropped open. "Taylor tell me now if you can read my thoughts."

Taylor shook his head and smiled. "You've said it about Dean enough times that I made the assumption."

Dean poked his head through the door. "Said what about me?"

Kate whipped her head around. "Don't tell him, his ego will explode."

Dean raised a brow at Taylor.

Taylor shrugged. "You are often right about things and it annoys her."

Kate smacked his arm. "Do you want his head to explode?"

Dean chuckled. "It doesn't effect my ego when you tell me something I already know."

Kate rolled her eyes and flicked her fingers around her head to mimic an explosion.

Taylor grinned.

Dean cleared his throat. "If you are done being a brat, I'd like if you came inside."

Kate scoffed. "Looks like I'm stuck out here forever."

Dean laughed. "Not sure if brat or sass is a better name for you."

Kate gave him a mischievous grin. "I can be brat and you can be something that rhymes with sass."

Taylor covered his mouth.

Dean smirked. "On second thought you and I can just walk back out to the shop."

Kate squeaked and ran by him and into the house.

"Ha, look at that." Dean said and held the door open for Taylor to go inside. "Where did the brat act go?"

Kate jumped up and hugged him. "It went away with your a..."

Dean swatted her. "Don't finish that sentence."

Kate kicked and let go of him. "Grumpy."

Dean poked her sides. "Your fault." He looked up and saw John standing in the hallway. "What does that face mean?"

John grinned. "I find a little amusement in this. Payback for the crap you pulled as a kid."

"I was an angel." Dean said and walked toward the kitchen.

Kate made a comment under her breath.

Dean turned around and raised his brows.

Taylor chuckled. "If I didn't know any better I'd say that look means run."