A/N: Hi! I'm so sorry I've been MIA. I really have no excuse except that I lost my motivation to write. I just reread my story and I really liked it, so now I'm motivated to write again. I really like Brinley and I love writing her attitude and I love giving John a hard time. He's just so serious. Lol. I hope you enjoy this update. More to come!

The motel room was silent as Brinley recovered from her encounter with John. She was embarrassed. And sad. And sore. Her relationship with John was so complicated and while she still wanted to hate him, she didn't. Every now and then she could see the glimpses of kindness in him and found herself wanting a father/daughter relationship with him, but neither of them had any experience with that type of relationship. She watched him from the other side of the room and imagined what their life would be like if things were different. She imagined her Mom, her Dad, and her, living happily ever after and smiled at the thought. She was quickly brought back to reality as she watched John write out a plan to defeat the vampires and get the colt back.

"Do you think Sam and Dean are angry with me?" Brinley asked. John turned to find Brinley still curled up under the blankets and smiled slightly. He felt bad that he had to come down on her so hard when their relationship was so fragile, but he also knew it was necessary. A precedent had to set so that Brinley understood that his rules needed to be followed. He didn't understand girls and their complicated emotions, and knew that barrier would cause many problems in the future as Brinley moved closer to her teen years.

"I don't know," he replied, "But you can go to their room and find out." Brinley sighed, worried about what the boys would say to her. John sensed her hesitation. "Go on, you can do it," he urged. "I do know that your brothers tend to be very forgiving." She pushed down the comforter and slowly slid herself out of the bed. John nodded, and then turned back and continued to review his plan. Brinley knocked lightly on their door and slowly pushed it open. Both Sam and Dean peered up from the table in the corner of the room. Weapons were scattered in front of them.

"Hi," she greeted quietly. The boys could barely hear her but nodded in response. She approached the table nervously as they kept their eyes on her. "I...uh...I...," she hesitated, "I just wanted to say I'm sorry I lied to you. And...I hope you don't hate me because if you guys hated me...I would be really, really sad and...and..." Tears filled her already tear strained eyes. She covered her face with her hands and tried to hold back her tears. She hated acting like a baby.

"It's ok Brinley, we're disappointed, but we don't hate you," Sam replied as he stood up from the table. He took her hands and moved them gently away from her face. "We could never hate you," he said reassuringly and then gave her a hug. Dean stood beside his brother.

"Lying to family is never an option," Dean stated firmly, "I hope you learned your lesson." Brinley released Sam and looked up at Dean with her big, brown eyes, and nodded her head. As he looked down at her, Dean wanted nothing more than to give her a hug and let her know that all was forgiven.

"I did," she replied remorsefully, "I really did. Disappointing you and Sam hurts more than the spanking that Dad gave me." Dean smiled slightly and then embraced her in a hug.

"Boys!" John called from the other room, "We should go!"

"Yes, sir," Sam replied. Dean released Brinley, and then he and Sam gathered the weapons on the table. They hurried into the other room with Brinley trailing behind them. Brinley took a seat on the bed while John reviewed the plan with them.

"What about me?" she finally asked when John was done speaking. They all turned in her direction.

"It's safer for you to stay here," John replied, "You DO NOT open the the door for anyone and you DO NOT go outside. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," Brinley replied disappointedly. She really didn't want to stay alone, but she didn't dare challenge John again. After giving her a few more instructions, John and the boys hurried out, and Brinley locked the doors behind them. She decided that this time she was going to do as she was told and stay out of trouble. She climbed under the covers of her bed and pulled them completely over head and waited.

John's plan went almost as planned. They killed Luther, and John was able to get the colt back. Within a few hours, they were safely back at the motel. Brinley hurried to the window when she heard the Impala roar to a stop. She was relieved to see her Dad's truck pull up next to it. She opened the door and stepped outside to greet them. "I was hoping you'd be asleep," John commented.

"I couldn't sleep until I knew you were all safe," she replied. John smiled and ruffled the hair on top of her head. "We're going to get packed and head out."

"Hey kid," Dean greeted as he and Sam headed into the room. Brinley followed them all inside.

"So boys," John stated. Sam and Dean stopped and turned to face him.

"Yes, sir," Sam replied.

"You ignored a direct order back there," John stated. Brinley's eyes widened with surprise. She couldn't believe they disobeyed their Dad.

"Yes sir," Sam replied.

"Yeah but we saved your ass," Dean replied. Brinley looked nervously at Dean, and then at Sam.

"You're right," John replied.

"I am?" Dean question.

"It scares the hell out of me. You three are all I've got. But I guess we are stronger as a family. So...we go after the damn thing that killed your Mom and Jess. Together," he replied. Sam and Dean smiled in agreement.

"Ummmm...Excuse me," Brinley questioned hastily as she crossed her arms against her chest. They all turned to face her.

"Yes?" John questioned.

"You're playing favorites," she snapped. "And I don't like it."

"Excuse me?" John questioned, confused and surprised.

"I disobey a direct order and I get a spanking, but Sam and Dean disobey a direct order, and you tell them they're right," she huffed, "That's not fair." Sam and Dean exchanged amused glances.

"Well...I don't owe you an explanation, but I will give you one," John replied as he approached her. Brinley tightened her arms and narrowed her eyes at him. "But first, lose the attitude," he ordered firmly, giving her the stern Dad look. Brinley took a deep breath and lowered her arms to her sides. "It's actually very simple, your brothers are adults and they can make their own decisions. You, on the other hand, are a little girl, and it's my job to give you guidance," John explained.

"I'm not a little girl," she stammered.

"You are," they all replied in unison. While John and the boys chuckled at their unified response, Brinley clenched her fists in frustration.

"Uh," she sighed.

"Sorry kid, you're not winning this one," Dean commented. He approached her quickly, scooped her up, and tossed her gently onto the bed, and then proceeded to tickle her. "Little girl, little girl, little girl," he teased.

"Stop," Brinley giggled as he continued to tickle her. Seeing Brinley with the boys made John happy, and it was reassuring to him that they would always be there for her.