Still traveling so chapters may be less detailed. I do what my brain allows.

### ###

Kate chatted happily with Aphrim under Dean's watchful eye. She instantly trusted Aphrim and asked dozens of questions.

Dean stepped into the hallway and asked Castiel what he knew of the angel.

"Aphrim belongs to a different garrison than my own. I have heard nothing bad aside from what has been said about her loyalties. However, those loyalties are to Kate and Taylor." Castiel answered.

Dean realized he trusted Castiel a bit too easily as well. "Are they still in danger?"

"Yes. Not immediate at this point but I will continue monitoring angel radio." Castiel said.

Dean sighed and stepped back into the room that Aphrim was in. "So, do you eat?"

Aphrim felt of her abdomen. "Yes, now I do."

Kate grinned and held out her hand. "Come, Taylor's nana makes the best food."

Dean shook his head. Kate was ecstatic and that made him happy but Aphrim wasn't a simple being. "Taylor, what's up?"

Taylor was sitting on his bed, swinging his feet. "Just thinking."

Dean sat down beside him and moved Liam. "What about?"

"Aphrim said that she sent the kittens. She said that they are not supernatural but that she saw them wandering and made sure that I'd see them." Taylor said.

"Yeah." Dean said.

"How many times has that been done with different things?" Taylor asked.

Dean leaned back on Taylor's bed. "I have been wondering that myself. Was Brian's death just a means to an end? Did my mom really have to die?"

Taylor nodded. "I'm glad mine did but-"

"Taylor." Dean said.

"No, I feel bad that she died but I'm not missing much." Taylor said.

"You missed out on a whole lot, kid." Dean said.

Taylor thought about his childhood. "Compared to yours, my childhood wasn't that bad."

Dean didn't know what was worse. "I'll do my best to make sure the rest of it isn't horrible."

Taylor smiled. "It will be interesting."

Dean sighed. "Yeah, there are two angels hanging out in our kitchen like it is a normal day of the week."

"It kind of is." Taylor said.

Dean put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "I guess so."

Taylor followed Dean to the kitchen. He couldn't help being hungry yet again. "Could my nana see this place?"

Dean chewed his cheek. "I don't know about that."

"It would be nice if she could. Maybe they could stay here if things got dangerous outside." Taylor said.

Castiel interrupted. "They would be susceptible to possession and a demon would have access to their memories, so would an angel."

Kate rested against the counter. "Not if I compelled them to forget without mention of a keyword."

Dean looked at Kate. "Can you do something like that or are you pulling ideas out of thin air?"

"I don't know until I try." Kate said. She put up her hands. "Which I will not do without permission."

John called Dean's phone to let him know he was on his way. "Is there anything else any of you need."

Dean looked around the room. "No, I don't think so."

Kate was so enthralled with Aphrim that she didn't pay attention to how much time was going by. She had forgotten about John's promise and the nerves fluttered back into her stomach as he spoke to Dean. She wanted to ask Aphrim questions about Nephilian and her own family history but she was told to wait.

John had his own questions for Aphrim. The whole operation went so smoothly that he had reservations.

Taylor mainly kept to himself as Kate talked to Aphrim. She was already asking most of the questions he had and he was content to hang out with Liam. He was still intrigued by the kittens and couldn't wrap his head around them being normal animals.

Dean felt some of the tension lifting off of his shoulders as John got closer. A second set of trusted eyes were very much needed. He got the final call and opened the garage doors.

Taylor ran after Dean. He waited half a second after the truck was in park to open the back door. "Where are they?"

John chuckled.

Taylor stood back. "Hi. How was your drive? Where are the tags?"

"They are in a brown bag in the floorboard. I'd like some help with all of this stuff before you set down with those."

Taylor nodded quickly. "Yes, sir."

"Where is Kate?" John asked.

Dean sighed. "Avoiding you."

John chuckled again. "Understandable." He put his things in his assigned room and went to greet Aphrim.

Aphrim knew who John was. She stood and introduced herself.

"Good to know you are in one piece." John said.

Aphrim smiled uneasily. "Yes, thanks to the children."

John looked around. "Kate?"

Kate stepped into the room. "Yes, sir?"

"Making sure you are alive." John said with a smirk.

Kate smiled. "I am."

John pointed to a small box. "Take a look at that."

Kate opened the box and picked up some of the metal tools. She poked one with her finger. "Lots of stabbing."

John nodded. "There is a separate folder with the symbols that you need."

Kate buried herself in studying the symbols and tools. She had seen leather that had designs in it but never thought about how the designs were put there.

Dean spoke briefly to John before excusing himself. He made a phone call to Bobby to loop him in and then went to check on Taylor.

Taylor was sitting on his bed, turning the tags over in his hands. He felt the ridges with his fingertips and used a magnifying glass to study the designs.

"Geek." Dean said.

Taylor looked up and smiled. "These are super cool."

Dean took one and squinted his eyes. "Looks like metal scraps."

"No, this one and this one have different metals." Taylor said and handed Dean two.

Dean stared at them. "These are the same exact thing."

Taylor scoffed. "This is why I got this job and you got stuck with babysitting duty."

Dean snorted. "Do I need to knock you back down?"

Taylor shook his head. "It was just an observation."

Dean rubbed his face and mumbled. "Observation my ass." as he walked out of the room. "You'd think you gave him diamonds to assess."

John chuckled. "They may be more valuable if we can use them how they are intended."

Dean shrugged. "Better him than me."

Kate stopped paying attention to the symbols and moved the pieces aimlessly in order to not attract attention to herself. She had a pit in her stomach and just wanted to go to her room. If she did that she'd draw John's attention and she didn't want that.

Dean watched Kate and knew she was antsy. "Are you actually going to spank her again?"

John nodded. "I told her I would. Do you think I don't need to?"

Dean sighed. "I think she earned it but she is sick over it."

John nodded again. "I'll talk to her."

Kate heard boot steps and knew who they belonged to.

John tapped the table. "Kate."

Kate pushed the papers away and looked up at him.

"I want to talk to you."

Kate frowned and chewed on her fingers. "Now?"

"Yeah, now." John said and tilted his head.

Kate squeaked. "There are so many people."

John sighed. "I don't really care either way."

Kate gave Dean a pitiful look.

Dean nodded and got Taylor to go to the garage with him.

Kate followed John although she did do the mental math to figure out her chances of being able to make it from the library to the outside door before he did.

John sat down on her bed and patted the mattress beside him.

Kate sat down and stared at her hands.

"I don't want to come in and deal with this right off the bat. Honestly, I'd rather get a drink and some grub." John said. He watched Kate's reaction. "You are going to continue avoiding me and work yourself up over it though."

Kate cringed.

"I think that it is best to go ahead and get it out of the way." John added.

Kate frowned but nodded.

"Can you tell me why you acted the way you did?"

Kate sighed. "I was bored and angry. I got grumpy and I know it was wrong."

"Do I need to give you the lecture?" John asked.

Kate shook her head.

John stood up and unbuckled his belt.

Kate's eyes flew open. "Wait! Dean already did that. You don't have to."

"If you get it from him, you get it from me." John said.

Kate's breath hitched. "Please."

"I'm giving you half what he gave you." John said as he sat back down.

Kate shifted.

"If you are worried about the car bet, he was never going to give it to you in the first place." John said with a smirk.

"Well.. I uh... I thought I would make it a while." Kate said.

"You can tell him I used my hand if you'd like." John said.

Kate wrung her hands. "Or you could just do that so I don't have to lie."

John shook his head. "No bargaining." He took her arm and pulled her over his knee. "I expect you to follow orders and be respectful. So just expect things to be doubled up on if you can't get that through your head."

Kate held onto the leg of his jeans and held her breath. The lick drew the breath out of her and caused her to try to move.

"Stay or I add on." John said.

Kate groaned and stopped trying to get off of his lap. She yelped with the second and tears stung her eyes with the third.

John paused and shifted her. "Last three better make an impression."

Kate didn't have time to comprehend what he said before the fourth lick landed on her thighs and sent her into panic mode trying to escape the fire. "Please! I will never even roll my eyes ever again." She let tears fall and screeched as another one hit her thighs.

John let her slide on fighting him because she could have used an ability to get free but didn't. "Last one."

Kate buried her face into her blanket and cried. "I'm sorry."

John patted her back. "All done." He pulled her to sit up and adjusted her so she could sit on one of his legs.

Kate sniffled and calmed down slowly. "What is that made out of?"

John rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "Good leather."

Kate rested her head on him. "It is cursed."

"You know, I've heard that more than once and neither of the boys thought it was cursed enough not to earn it more than once." John said.

Kate frowned. "You know, no one would earn it again if it was burned."

John ruffled her hair. "I wouldn't suggest doing that."

Kate sighed. "Are we goo now?"

John wiped a stray tear off her cheek. "Yeah."

Kate stood and rubbed at a particularly stingy spot on her thigh. "Good, I want you to show me stuff in the infirmary."

John stood and let Kate lead the way. Although she was firey, she bounced back more quickly than either of his boys did.

### ###

Aphrim was not accustomed to needing sleep. She followed the directions that Kate gave her and fell into a fitful rest. She had dreams of Naomi and the things she had endured. With grace, she could heal herself and power through. Without grace, she was too human to cope with such things. Had Kate not rescued her, it was likely that she would have broken.

At breakfast, John grilled Aphrim for information. "How long have you been assigned to Kate and Taylor?"

"Long before they were born. I was not given full details. I just went where they sent me." Aphrim said.

"Why didn't you intervene earlier?" John asked.

"I was told not to. Messing with human fate can throw an entire timeline off. Studying the children distracted me from my mission and I intervened." Aphrim said.

"Did you revive me?" Taylor asked.

Aphrim gave him a sad smile. "Yes."

"So my mom really tried to kill me?" Taylor asked.

John held up his hand. "Don't go down that road."

Taylor hung his head.

"You were saved because you are important." Aphrim said.

Taylor sighed and nodded his head.

"Why didn't you save our moms?" Kate asked.

"Those things are beyond my control." Aphrim said.

"Did you know Ada?"

Aphrim shook her head. "I was put on this case after the original experiment."

"They aren't an experiment." Dean bit.

Aphrim couldn't help but be intimidated. "They originally were. Over time I came to realize that they were more than that."

Kate moved closer to Aphrim. "You tried to reach out this year."

Aphrim explained as much as she could about her position and what Naomi did.

"You didn't tell her anything at all?" John asked.

"Due to my lack of grace, she could not use traditional methods to extract information. I did not tell her anything." Aphrim said.

Castiel kept a steady eye on the bunker and listened to angel radio for any information or sign that could lead Naomi's goons to the bunker. Taylor's efforts worked perfectly and Castiel felt confident that their trail had been covered.

John felt a little better about Aphrim but still wanted more answers. He didn't want to put any of the kids, including Dean in any form of danger.

### ###

Two days went by and Naomi was still unable to find where they had gone. Castiel was able to relax a little. "She will know that something happened but she will not know what."

"Can I do the filter thing more often? Wouldn't that protect us?" Taylor asked.

"It could but it takes a lot of focus. You wouldn't be able to keep it up for long periods of time. You are warded against angels but other beings can track you." Castiel said.

Taylor tilted his head. "If there was an emergency I could keep us safe, right?"

Castiel nodded. "That is likely."

Kate stayed with Aphrim and made her feel comfortable. "Would you know anything about how our blood works?"

Aphrim smiled. "A little."

"So why is Sammy allergic to my blood?" Kate asked.

"Azazel's blood tampered with him. It is that blood that reacts to yours."

Kate chewed her thumbnail.

"Under the right circumstances, you may be able to cure him." Aphrim said.

Kate's eyes got wide. "Wait, really?"

"It isn't simple but it is possible."

Kate ran down the hallway to find Dean. "Dean, I may be able to fix Sam."

Dean chuckled. "Are you a therapist now?"

Kate smacked his arm. "No, his demon blood. I might be able to cure that."

Dean sat forward. "How?"

Kate shrugged. "I don't know yet."

"He seems to be okay." Dean said.

Kate shook her head. "Remember the whole blood thing was a catalyst to the apocalypse. Azazel is in a box but others aren't."

Dean rubbed his face. "You'd have to find a good way with no side effects. You'd need to run it by dad and get Sam's okay."

Kate kissed his cheek. "This is good news!"

Dean held his arms out to hug her and whispered in her ear. "Look into it but be cautious. Aphrim seems trustworthy but always remember that we must be careful."

Kate nodded. "Okay." She took Dean's words to heart without argument.

Dean ruffled her hair and let her go. "How are those 'stabby symbol' things going?"

Kate crinkled her nose. "I haven't worked on them."

Dean smirked. "Why?"

Kate drew circles on the floor with her toes. "I don't like leather very much."

Dean smiled. "You are fine. He let you off easy."

Kate rolled her eyes. "You could let me try giving you a tattoo with one of those tools."

"How about no?" Dean said.

"You really should get an anti possession tattoo." Kate said.

Dean sighed. "I have been a little busy lately."

Kate grinned. "I'm an artist and have sharp utensils, I could hook you up."

"No stabbing." Dean said and poked her stomach. "You are antsy and it may be a good idea to sit down and work on those."

Kate's eyes twinkled. "So I can get really good at it and give you a tattoo?"

Dean chuckled. "If I get a tattoo it isn't going to be in the bunker. I'll go to a professional."

"Suit yourself." Kate said as she walked away.

John called Dean to the other room. "I have a few jobs for you."

Dean hid his excitement. "Yeah?"

"I can take care of them if you want the rest." John said with a smirk.

"I can't rest anymore." Dean said.

John handed Dean a few pages of notes. "If you take this route, you can take care of each of these without having to drive in circles."

Dean nodded. "Am I doing a ghost tour?"

"This time of year, ghosts are more active."

"As long as it isn't demons. I'm sick of those." Dean mumbled. "Caleb said he'd help out on a few?"

John nodded. "He specifically waited for you."

Dean smiled. "Dumbass." He left John to pack his bag. He packed extra salt rounds and iron bars.

Taylor and Kate knew Dean was leaving and huddled in Taylor's room working on something.

John cleared his throat. "What are you two doing?"

Kate jumped. "Working on something."

John walked over to them and looked over Taylor's shoulder. "What is that?"

"A bracelet." Taylor said. He held his tongue at the corner of his mouth as he carefully twisted the thick wire.

"We aren't sure if it will work without snapping." Kate said. They had procured thin strips of iron and Taylor was bending it into a circle. "It is iron."

John smiled. "An iron bracelet. That is a new one."

"So the ghost can't knock it out of his hand." Kate said.

John watched Taylor work. "You should learn to weld."

Taylor smiled. "I'd love that."

Kate added a chain to the bracelet so Dean could take it off when he wanted to. She held it up for John to see.

"You two are geniuses when you put your heads together." John said.

Taylor blushed with the compliment. "Maybe I can figure out how to make rings."

Dean knocked on the open door. "Are we having a pow-wow?"

John handed Dean the bracelet. "They made this for you."

Dean tilted his head. "I thought friendship bracelets usually had beads."

Kate scoffed. "It is iron so you can backhand ghosts."

Dean grinned. "Okay, that is awesome."

"It is a prototype." Taylor said.

Dean put the bracelet on his wrist. "If I don't get to slap a ghost I'm going to be upset."

"Salt and burn." Kate reminded him. "Be safe."

Dean hugged her. "I will be."

Taylor assisted Dean with packing and added some food to a separate bag. "Add hot water to the soup powder. It is really good."

Dean looked in the bag. "Seems simple enough."

Kate stopped Dean before he left. She handed him a tube wrapped in soft leather.

"What is this?"

"A fail-safe." Kate said.

Dean opened the leather wrap and frowned. "Kate, I don't like this."

Kate shrugged. "It is just a few ccs of blood. Just take it so I feel better."

Dean sighed and wrapped the syringe. "Thanks, kid."

Kate hugged him. "Inject it into a vein."

Dean nodded. "I know the drill." The syringe made him uncomfortable although he knew her blood could heal him. He didn't like using her.

"If you have to use it I will kick your butt. You need to be more careful than that." Kate said.

Dean used his thumb to wipe a stray tear from her cheek. "Deal."

"Maybe call and tell me what sunlight feels like." Kate said.

Dean smiled. "Brat."

Kate sighed. "Okay, go enjoy your freedom."

Dean kissed the top of her head. "Be good." He put the bags in the car and pulled out of the garage. He felt a little guilty that he was leaving and they had to stay. He would just get them something on his way back.

### ###

Naomi was seething as two of her subordinates returned with no news. "How did Aphrim escape?" She demanded.

"We do not know. The cell was not opened." An angel responded.

Naomi slammed her fist down on her desk and blew air through her nose. Aphrim was her best lead. She knew that the children were destined to be something but didn't know exactly what. She didn't know what level of power they held and couldn't track them. Someone else, aside from Aphrim, was working against her and she didn't like it. "Find them and bring them to me. Now!"

### ###

Dean drove to the closest destination and knocked on the front door of an old house.

A young woman answered the door with a baby on her hip. "Can I help you?"

"Uh, John Winchester sent me to," He saw a young boy standing behind the woman. "Take care of your pest problem."

The woman sighed in relief and let Dean inside. "Andy, go play outside, please."

Dean gave the boy a small wave and a thumbs up.

The woman introduced herself as April and waited for Andy to go outside before she spoke again. "It comes at night."

Dean nodded. "Has it hurt you?"

April shifted the baby to the other hip and pulled down the edge of her shirt to show a mark on her shoulder. "It grabbed me."

"Why haven't you left?" Dean asked.

"I'm a single mom. We will wind up on the streets." April said, sadly.

"I'll take care of the ghost so you can keep your house. Okay?" Dean said.

April nodded. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

Dean needed to know who the ghost was but April didn't know the history of the house. "I am going to look around. You can put salt around the baby's crib so he can take a nap. A ghost won't be able to make it through a salt line."

April did as Dean said and put the youngest down for a nap. "I thought ghosts were just scary stories."

Dean gave her a sad smile. "Sometimes those stories are true." He checked the house and found evidence that proved that a ghost did live in the house. He checked old records and called Bobby for help narrowing down the culprit.

April looked outside at the sandbox that Andy had been in. She didn't see him so she stepped outside to find him. "Andy?" She panicked and yelled his name.

Dean stepped outside. "What is wrong?"

"I can't find my son."

"I'll find him." Dean said and took off around the house. He barely saw the small form sitting in the front seat of his car. He turned to the window and gave April a thumbs up. He slowly opened the door and bent slightly.

Andy looked up at him with scared eyes. "I'm sorry."

"What are you doing out here?" Dean asked.

"The car is cool. I just wanted to check it out."

Dean tapped the top of the car. "Your mom was scared when she didn't see you."

Andy frowned. "I didn't mean to scare her."

"She knows you are safe now. The car is cool. My dad gave it to me. It used to be his. If you scoot over I can start it. The engine is the best part." Dean said.

Andy slid over into the passengers seat and watched Dean.

Dean turned the car on. "Hear that?"

Andy grinned. "Whoa."

April watched Dean and Andy through the window. She wanted to apologize for Andy's intrusion but Dean looked almost pleased. He seemed like a great guy.

Dean turned the car off. "After I take care of that pest problem you can ask your mom if you can go for a ride around the block."

Andy smiled but stopped after a moment. "Yeah, the pest."

Dean eyed him.

"It is a ghost. I'm not dumb."

Dean flinched. "What makes you say that?"

"I have seen it." Andy said.

Dean sighed. "How old are you kid?"

Andy puffed his chest out. "Eight."

Dean narrowed his eyes.

Andy slumped. "Six."

Dean nodded. "What does this... ghost look like?"

Andy glanced at the house. "He is old. He wears a baseball hat and a jacket."

Dean tilted his head. That didn't really help him.

"Oh, his name is Jimmy." Andy said.

Dean took a deep breath. "How do you know his name?"

Andy shrugged.

"Buddy, I need you to tell me everything." Dean said.

"He said his name is Jimmy. He wanted me to go play catch with him but I told him I couldn't because I'm not allowed to go outside at night."

Dean's heart stopped. "Good job, Andy. That is a really good job." He called Bobby to ask about who Jimmy may be and why he would haunt the house.

Bobby found some information and read it out loud. "Jimmy Coleman was 32 when he fell asleep driving. His son was in the vehicle and died. A few days later he killed himself at home."

Dean looked at Andy. A 32-year-old probably did look old to the young boy. "Thanks, Bobby. Do you know where he is buried?"

Bobby gave him that information as well.

Dean walked back to the house with Andy. He told April about the man and said he'd go take care of the body. "I want you three to go to a hotel tonight."

April sighed. "We can't."

Dean rubbed his face. "I'll pay for it. I'll drive you there. Things can get hairy and I don't want you in the house."

April turned red. "No, I couldn't let you do that."

"We set aside money for this exact reason." Dean said.

April reluctantly took Dean up on his offer. "I will send a check in the mail."

Dean shook his head. "No need for that." He grabbed the baby's car seat and put it in the backseat. "I promised Andy a ride anyway."

Andy grinned. "I want to ride in the front seat."

Dean smiled. "Cops don't like that very much."

April gave Dean a house key and sat down beside Andy. "Buckle up."

Dean drove into town and got a motel room for the mother and kids. "I will let you know as soon as it is clear."

April waved as he pulled away. She ran a warm bath for the kids since their house didn't have the best hot water.

Dean drove to the cemetery and found Jimmy's plot. "Alright, Jimbo." He said as he stabbed the ground with the shovel. He suddenly wished Taylor was with him. He dug until he hit a casket and wiped the sweat from his face. He pried the lid open and grimaced. "Time to go, Jimmy." He poured salt on the body and tossed in a match. He stepped back as the flames grew. He tossed dirt back into the hole and patted it down. By that time it was dark and the moon was bright. He sent April a message to let her know ghost Jimmy was gone. He drove back to the motel for his own room. He took a long shower and dressed in clean clothes.

Andy looked out the window while April slept and brightened when he heard the impala. He left the room and walked down the balcony. He knocked on a few doors but no one answered. He reached the last door on that level and knocked on it.

Dean was about to go to bed when he heard a knock on the door. He opened it with his gun out. He quickly put the gun away when he met eyes with a scared Andy. "What are you doing here? Is your mom okay?" He pulled him into the room and looked down the walkway for any signs of creatures.

"I wanted to say hi." Andy said.

Dean rubbed his face. "You don't go to some strange guys motel room in the middle of the night. You don't leave your mom either."

Andy frowned. "Why?"

Dean sighed and grabbed his room key. "That is dangerous. Let's get you back to your mom."

Andy didn't move.

Dean snapped his fingers. "March." He walked back to April's room and knocked on the door.

April startled and opened the door. She saw Andy and gasped.

"He walked down to my room." Dean said. "How did you even know what room I was in?"

Andy shrugged.

Dean crouched down. "You have to stay here and go to bed. I have to take you home in the morning so you'll get to see the car then. Everybody is tired. Give your mama a break, okay?"

Andy nodded sadly.

Dean ruffled his hair. "If you listen to your mom I'll show you the engine before I leave."

Andy smiled. "Okay!"

Dean stood up and gave April a tired smile.

April thanked him and shut the door again. She felt bad for all that Andy was up to. She didn't know what had gotten into him.

Dean walked back to his room and plopped down on his bed. He swore he'd never have kids. They were too much work and too much trouble. They turned into teenagers and argued. He sighed. If he ever got out of the hunting life, he could see having a kid or two... maybe. He'd just make Kate and Taylor babysit.