Dean pulled to the side of the road in an area that was dark, deserted, and in the middle of nowhere. "Why are we stopping?" Isadora asked. She wasn't sure exactly how long they'd been driving, but it had to have been less than half an hour. She was no expert on running from law enforcement, but she was pretty sure they needed to get farther away than this.

"Your neck might need stitches," Dean said. "We need to take care of it now."

"Oh," Isadora said. She'd been using her jacket to press down on the wound and hopefully stanch the bleeding, though she couldn't tell how successful she'd been. Sam and Dean both got out of their seats. Isadora slid to the side of the car away from the road and opened the door.

"Stay seated," Sam told her. He held a flashlight up to provide better lighting as Dean leaned over her.

"Let me see it," he said, carefully tugging the jacket away. She winced as the cloth tugged at some of the cuts. The vampire had bitten in the juncture between her shoulder and neck. It had felt like he'd gotten his teeth in deep, but it was hard to properly judge when she hadn't actually been able to look at the injury.

"Yeah," Dean said, "some of these will definitely need stitches."

Which meant, Isadora knew, that she was going to have scars. Guess that means no more tank tops or strapless dresses for me.

Dean dug through the first aid kit and pulled out some alcohol wipes to clean the bite off first. Isadora let out a hiss at the sting. "Sorry," Dean said.

"It's fine," Isadora said. He was being gentle, but there wasn't really a way for this not to hurt. She dreaded the thought of the stitches, because they obviously weren't going to a hospital for them. "You wouldn't happen to have some pain meds though, before you start sticking a needle through my skin?"

"'Fraid not," Sam said, his tone apologetic.

Of course not.

Dean finished cleaning off the area and dug back through the first aid kit. He pulled out a pack of needles, and Isadora decided she'd rather not watch, instead looking out into the distance. She couldn't actually see anything beyond their small circle of light, but that hardly mattered.

"This is going to sting," Dean said, "but I'll be quick."

She sucked in a sharp breath the first time the needle pierced her skin. It hurt exactly as much as she had thought it would. Luckily, Dean kept his word and was quick about his work; Sam and Dean probably had plenty of experience stitching each other up if this was what their hunts were like. "Hurt anywhere else?" he asked once he was done.

"No, that's pretty much it," Isadora said. She might have some bruises from the night's events too, but there wasn't anything that could be done about that.

They loaded back up in the car and kept going. Exhaustion weighed down Isadora's limbs. It had been a long, long day, and she really wanted to curl up in the back seat and sleep after everything. But there were some things they needed to discuss first.

"What are we doing now?" she asked.

"Putting distance between us and the town," Dean replied.

Isadora frowned. "That's not what I meant. I'm talking about, well, me I guess. What am I going to do? We've established that I'm a criminal now. That means I can't go home. I'd just get arrested. I don't know anything about running from the law. So, what…what am I supposed to do?"

She knew what she wanted to do. She'd just sacrificed everything to keep them out of prison, so Isadora would rather stay with Sam and Dean. But given the way Dean had reacted to finding out she was his soulmate, Isadora wasn't completely sure that he actually wanted her around. She couldn't just assume; she needed him to say it.

Sam turned his head to look at Dean, apparently deciding to let him answer. "I guess," Dean said slowly, "I guess it depends on what you want. If you want to try striking out on your own, we can help. We know how to get fake IDs and things set up so you could make a new identity for yourself."

Her heart sank, because that was the option she didn't want to do. "Or," Dean continued, and hope flickered in her chest, "if you wanted you could stay with us. That's probably not your safest option but, well, it's an option."

Relief made her feel lightheaded. Or maybe that was the blood loss, Isadora wasn't sure. She stifled a yawn with a hand. "I think I'll stick with you guys then. Since that's an option." Her eyelids were heavy, and her exhaustion harder to ignore now that her course was settled. She shifted, settling down in the backseat and curling one arm under her head as a makeshift pillow. With the hum of the car as background noise, Isadora drifted off to sleep.

Pale early morning sunlight and the feel of the car slowing down helped wake Isadora. Her body ached, especially where the vampire had bitten her, and she still felt tired. A few hours of sleep in the back seat of a car didn't make for a super restful night. She could tell she wasn't getting any more sleep though, and the car seemed to be coming to a stop, so Isadora pushed up into a sitting position. That was when she noticed that at some point while she slept, Sam and Dean had traded places; Sam was driving, and Dean was sleeping in the passenger seat.

"Good morning," Sam said.

"Morning." Isadora stifled a yawn. They were pulling into a rest stop that amazingly had no other vehicles around.

"I thought now might be a good time for us to get cleaned up," Sam said, parking in a space close to the restrooms. He reached over and shook Dean's shoulder. "Hey, man, wake up."

Dean jerked a little, his eyes blinking open. "What?" he asked, his voice rough with sleep.

"We're at a rest stop," Sam said. "We need to clean up before we hit a town."

He sat up, rubbing a hand over his face. Isadora realized the two of them must be even more exhausted than she was. She might not have slept well, but the two of them had gotten even less sleep than she had, since they'd been taking turns driving.

"I managed to grab your stuff, Isadora," Sam told her as he opened the car door. "It's in the duffel bag."

"You didn't happen to grab my shoes, did you?" Isadora asked, remembering that her shoes had been tossed in a corner away from everything else. She wasn't super eager to walk in a public bathroom in only her sock feet.

Sam paused in the act of getting out of the car. "Uh, no. Sorry."

Isadora sighed. She guessed she should be glad he'd managed to grab anything, and her shoes had been off in a corner by themselves. It had been a pretty rough moment. Still, she'd need shoes, and it wasn't like she could just borrow some from Sam or Dean. She started mentally crafting a list of things she'd need to get her hands on soon, and shoes went at the top.

Once they were all out of the vehicle, Sam got her stuff out of one of the duffel bags and handed it over. He had managed to grab her purse and the bags of stuff that he'd gotten her. Items in hand, Isadora retreated to the women's restroom.

She almost didn't want to look in the mirror. If she looked half as bad as she felt, it wasn't going to be a pretty sight. Steeling herself, Isadora turned and looked. The image that greeted her made her wince. "I look like I crawled out of a horror movie."

Most of her hair had fallen out of the braid she'd had it in, and it was definitely starting to be noticeable that she hadn't washed it in the past two days. Her skin was unusually pale, which only served to emphasize the circles under her eyes. And of course, the left shoulder of her blouse was stained by the now dried blood from her injury.

Slowly, Isadora reached up and tugged her shirt away so she could see the wound itself. She grimaced. "It's going to look like something tried to maul me." Which, okay, was basically what had happened. But Isadora didn't like the idea of having a permanent reminder.

There's not enough time for this.

The rest area was empty for now, but there was no way to know how long that might last. She didn't want to have to try and explain her appearance to anyone right now. Discarding her ruined blouse, Isadora washed up as best she could with paper towels and water. Then she pulled on the tee and sweat shirt that Sam had gotten her, and for once she didn't mind that they were too big. The extra cloth helped to cover up the stitches. She brushed her hair and pulled it back into a ponytail, then made use of her concealer to disguise the circles under her eyes. Once done, she studied herself critically. It was hardly her best look, but she was presentable, which was all that mattered right now. The only thing about her appearance that might raise a stranger's eyebrows was the fact that she didn't have any shoes.

She packed everything back up, but hesitated over her ruined blouse. Isadora didn't exactly want to carry it around, but where was a safe place to get rid of it? Would it go unnoticed if she buried it in the bathroom trashcan? Maybe, but it felt like a big risk. She shuffled things around, so that everything she was taking with her was packed up in her purse and just one of the plastic bags, and then tied her shirt up in the empty plastic bag to at least hide it from view. She'd ask the guys about where to toss it. Presumably this was the sort of thing they'd had to deal with before.

Isadora wasn't surprised to find the guys waiting for her when she left the bathroom. They'd washed up too, and changed out of their bloodstained shirts. They must have hit up the vending machines already as well, because Dean had an energy drink and Sam a bottle of water.

She held up the plastic bag she'd bundled her blouse in. "So, what am I supposed to do with the shirt covered in blood?"

"I'll take care of it," Sam said, stepping forward. "I spotted a dumpster I can toss it in."

Isadora handed over the bag, then Sam walked away leaving just her and Dean alone. They stared at each other for a second, neither of them speaking. In all her teenage daydreams, Isadora had never imagined that being alone with her soulmate could feel this awkward.

Dean cleared his throat and held out a bottle of water towards her. "We, uh, got you water, but if you want something else…"

Isadora took the bottle from him. "No, no, water's fine." Cold from the sidewalk was seeping through her socks; January wasn't exactly the best month to be hanging out outside without any shoes on. "Um, maybe we should head back to the car."

Dean's eyes dropped to her feet. "Right, yeah, let's go." He led the way back to the vehicle, going to the driver's door as Isadora slid into the backseat. She stashed her purse and bag on the floorboard, then settled back and sipped from the water they'd gotten her.

It felt almost absurd, when she thought about everything that had just happened, and now here she was, sitting in the backseat of a car drinking water like her whole world hadn't just been stood on its head. "Is this what life is like for you guys?" she asked. "Fight monsters, run from law enforcement, clean up at rest stops and hope no one spots you?"

He turned in his seat so he could look back at her. "Usually there's less running from the law; we're pretty good at flying under the radar most of the time." Right. Most of the time being when people weren't calling and reporting sightings of them. "But, yeah, this is kind of our life."

Isadora nodded slowly. It was a far cry from the life she was used to living, or any life that'd she'd consider remotely normal. What have I gotten myself into?

She couldn't see how she could have done anything differently though. There was no way she could have ignored Dean's presence when she'd first seen him and thought he was a serial killer, just as there was no way she could have let him and Sam get arrested after realizing that they'd been telling the truth. She'd made the best choices that she knew how with the information and resources she'd had at the time, and those choices had all led to this.

"Hey," Dean said, and Isadora refocused on him. "Look, I know this life is crazy, and if you're having second thoughts about coming with us – "

"No," Isadora said flatly, cutting him off. "Absolutely not. I mean, yes, you're right, this is crazy. You guys hunt down monsters that would have any sane person running in the opposite direction. But I just – I just threw my whole life away to keep you guys out of jail. You are not allowed to get rid of me. Not after that."

Dean winced. "I don't want to get rid of you, Isadora. I just don't want you to get hurt…again. This isn't the life I would've picked for you."

Not the life he'd have picked…with that sentiment, it clicked for Isadora why he'd never found her before, why he hadn't recognized her when they'd met. Dean had never looked for her. A simple google search would have done the trick; she was a fashion blogger, being easy to find online was part of the job. And the reason he'd never looked for her was because long before they'd ever met, Dean had decided he needed to protect her.

Her nervousness eased away. None of this had gone the way she'd imagined it would, and she couldn't even begin to guess what might be coming next. But she was suddenly sure that whatever happened, her and Dean, they could make this work.

"Maybe not," she said, "but it's the life I'm picking now."

The passenger door swung open, and Isadora started. She'd been so focused on her conversation with Dean, she hadn't noticed Sam's approach at all. With Sam back, Dean started the car, and they pulled out of the rest area's parking lot.

"So, do we have a specific destination in mind now?" Isadora asked. "Or are we just…going?"

"South Dakota," Dean answered. "We've got a friend there, Bobby Singer. I think he'll be willing to let you stay with him."

"Stay with him," Isadora repeated. Her temper began to spark; hadn't she just told him five minutes ago that he wasn't allowed to get rid of her? And now he was immediately turning around and telling her he expected her to stay with someone else?

"It's too dangerous for you to travel with us on hunts," Dean said. "You don't know anything about monsters or hunting. If you came with us, you'd just be in danger. It's not happening."

Isadora wanted to argue with him, but, well, he was right. She didn't know anything about monsters, or even fighting for that matter. If she was with them, she'd be a liability, which wouldn't only put her in danger, but them too. And as last night had shown, going with them and just staying in the hotel room wouldn't necessarily be enough to keep her out of the way either. Leaving her behind in a safe place was really the only logical choice in this situation.

That didn't mean Isadora had to like it though. It was another unexpected curve ball; she'd really thought she'd be travelling with them. If she was staying behind while they went off hunting, how often would she even get to see Dean? Just what kind of life exactly were they going to be building?

We're soulmates, Isadora thought stubbornly. We'll make this work. Somehow.

She swallowed her frustration and said, "I guess your friend knows about hunting then."

"Bobby's a hunter too," Sam said. "He doesn't go on as many hunts anymore, but he's got a ton of information and resources he shares with other hunters. He helped teach us a lot of what we know."

Isadora nodded slowly. Sam's comment brought to mind something else she'd been wondering. "How'd you guys get involved in all this stuff anyway?"

They didn't answer right away, sharing a look with each other. Isadora got the feeling she'd somehow stepped on a landmine. She couldn't see how though; she felt like the question was an obvious one that anybody would ask.

"Same way most people get involved," Dean finally answered. "We lost someone."

Oh. She felt a little bad for bringing up what was clearly a painful topic for them, and made a mental note not to ask any other hunters how they'd gotten started.

"It was our mother," Sam filled in without Isadora asking. "But it was a long time ago. I was just a baby when it happened. A demon got into our home, and…our dad got us out, but Mom didn't make it. That's what got Dad into hunting; he wanted to find the demon that killed Mom and get revenge. So, Dean and I kind of grew up in the life."

Isadora mulled over that information for a minute, wondering if she dared keep poking at the topic with her next question. Finally, she decided to just go for it. "Did your dad ever find the demon?"

There was another heavy moment of silence, and Isadora noticed the way Dean's hands tightened on the steering wheel. "Yeah," Sam said. "But it got away." His answer was tense and short. Between that, the way he'd been speaking of their dad in the past tense, and the generally heavy atmosphere her questions had generated, Isadora decided she didn't need to ask her next question. It seemed clear enough that whatever had happened when their dad had located the demon, the man hadn't survived. And if she didn't miss her guess, based on their reactions and the way Dean wouldn't even talk about the situation, it had probably happened relatively recently. Isadora decided that she didn't need the details.

"Are we going to get something for breakfast soon?" she asked. Not a subtle topic change, but Isadora figured they wouldn't care.

"Soon as I find something," Dean said.

"Good," Isadora said. "Also at some point, I need shoes." She paused for a second. "Actually, at some point very soon, I need a shopping trip. I have next to nothing now, and I need some essentials." Like shampoo. Clean underclothes. Pajamas. An outfit that fit. Her list was growing.

Dean glanced back at her in the rearview mirror, his eyes crinkling in a way that made her think he might be smiling. "Don't worry. We'll take care of you."