A/N: My apologies for not getting this chapter up quicker. Writing has been hard lately. This is super short, but I just needed to get something up so you all didn't think I'd forgotten about this story.

Though short, I hope you enjoy.

Gibbs stared at Dean Winchester with cynical wonder. "So you're telling me that this blue paint is to keep her—this Boo Hag thing—out AND lure her in?"

Dean half-nodded. "Kinda, yeah."

"That makes no sense."

"It does seem odd," Sam chimed in. But—it's basically a challenge she won't be able to resist. It's basically a trap. The blue paint, applied around the doors and windows, etcetera, will keep her out of the cabin. But," Sam held up a finger, "if we leave one spot—a relatively small one—unpainted she'll be able to get through."

Gibbs raised an iron gray eyebrow. "And why would we want to do that—let her in? I though the point was to keep her out of here and away from Tony."

"It is, but we need to distract her," Sam replied.

"AND keep her busy," added Dean.

Tony leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Why?"

Dean pulled the paintbrushes they'd brought out of a plastic bag. "Because while she's busy here trying to get to Tony, Gibbs and I are going to be getting the skin she wears during the day."

Tony nodded once. "So I'm going to be the bait in the trap."

"Yes. Sam will stay here with you."

"Ooohhh, my very own bodyguard. Just promise me you won't pick me up in your arms and sing 'I Will Always Love You' ala Whitney Houston."

Sam laughed. "I think you're safe."

"Yeah, you really don't wanna hear him sing," joked Dean as he handed a paintbrush to the rest of them. "When he does, he makes small children cry."

"As if you're any better. I've seen windows crack when you hit those high notes." Sam retorted albeit with a grin.

Gibbs interrupted the banter. "So what do we do when we find this…skin?"

Sam eyed Gibbs and rubbed at the back of his neck. "Well…umm…you're going to think this is really weird…"

"What about this ISN'T weird?" grumbled Jethro. He motioned for Sam to continue.

Sam sighed and said, "We have to sprinkle the inside with salt and pepper."

Gibbs looked a little stunned. "You mean to tell me that while this…thing…is here going after my agent, we're going to be out there somewhere playing Top Chef?"

Dean shrugged. "Essentially."

"What happens after we do that?"

"According to the lore," Sam again continued, "she should slip back into her skin and…uh…burn up."

Again Gibbs' eyebrows traveled upward. "According to the lore?" He shook his head. "This is insane! So you don't really know what's going to happen…"

The Winchester brothers both hesitated ever so slightly before Dean said, "We've never actually hunted one of these before…"

Sam picked up the thread. "So, yes, we're simply basing this on the research we've been able to do."

Again Dean shrugged. "It wouldn't be the first time. Sure as shit won't be the last."

Gibbs' eyes narrowed as he gazed at the elder Winchester, making it clear he wasn't particularly happy with his seemingly flippant attitude.

Seeing Gibbs' displeasure, Dean's hackles rose a little but he offered a half smile and clapped his hands together. "All right, let's get on with the redecorating."

DiNozzo reluctantly stood, gripping his paintbrush tightly in one fist. "Ah, my friend, Matt, is gonna kill me when he hears about this."

"So don't tell him," advised Dean.

"What—and let him come up here to find his cabin trimmed in 'Adriatic Sea'?"

"Sure." Dean shrugged. "Tell him you were bored on your long weekend."

Tony bent down and picked up a can of paint. "Yeeeeah, somehow I don't think that's gonna fly."

It didn't take long for the four men to paint around the doors and windows in the cabin, leaving just a tiny decorative window unpainted.

Gibbs eyeballed the window skeptically. "Not a very big window for her to get through."

"Hey, I said we needed to let her in," responded Dean, "I didn't say we needed to make it easy. So once this dries, we need to do a second coat…"

"Because that's what the lore says, right?" Gibbs bit out.

Dean tensed. "You got it, Mr. Special Agent-in-Charge Leroy Jethro Gibbs."

Sensing the rising tension between his brother and the government agent, Sam quickly interjected before things could escalate. "I don't know about anyone else, but I could use some coffee and food while we wait to throw on that second coat."

"I second that," muttered Tony through a yawn. "We've got plenty in the kitchen."

The tension between Dean and Gibbs eased a bit and the foursome headed to the kitchen. They were soon all seated at the round table with sandwiches and big mugs of coffee.

Around a bite of roast beef on rye, Dean directed some questions at DiNozzo. "So are there any other cabins or houses around here?"

After a swallow of coffee, Tony responded. "Not that I know of."

"Caves?"

Tony shook his head. "I don't know."

"Hollows? Tunnels? Anywhere this hag may be hanging out?"

"Sorry, but I have no idea," Tony's voice was full of regret. "I've never been up here before. Just heard about it from my buddy."

"And he's never said anything about neighbors or other people around up here?"

"Nope, not a word other than how fantastic this place was."

"Great," muttered Dean around another bite, "we don't even have a place to start looking."

"I hate to ask this," Sam said, "but what if she's flying here?"

"FLYING?" Gibbs and DiNozzo exclaimed simultaneously.

Sam's gaze shifted from his brother, darting between the two other men. "Yeah. At least that's what some of the lore says," the younger Winchester nodded. "Unfortunately, there are conflicting accounts."

Gibbs put his coffee cup down with a thump. "This just gets better and better."

"I don't think she's flying here," Dean disagreed, shaking his head. "If she's targeted him," he paused to point at Tony, "for a new skin, that's gotta mean that her current one is wearing out. I think she's sticking relatively close by."

"But we don't know that for sure," argued Sam.

Gibbs scowled. "Doesn't sound like we know anything for sure."

Tony swallowed the last of his sandwich and cleared his throat. "Well, I know one thing for sure…if we're not successful in taking her out…I'm screwed."

TBC…