Chapter 21 Somebody That I Used To Know

A new, emotionally charged update. Hope you enjoy it. Happy reading. Feedback always welcome.

The next evening:

Dean and Sam climbed out of the car after returning to their motel. Dean winced in agony as Sam spat out a wad of blood from his split lip. He prodded at the other cuts on his face. As they slowly ambled to their room, a small puff of purple smoke wafted up from the ground.

Dean held his breath in anticipation as a form took shape within the purple mist.

"Xander? What are you doing here?"

Xander scowled with annoyance.

"Haven't you checked your messages lately? I've been trying to get a hold of you."

"Sorry man but we've spent the past twenty four hours chasing a ghoul family across four counties."

"Well, you picked a fine time to be unreachable. I had to have Willow do a locator spell on you."

"Okay, well, you found me, so what's going on?"

Xander's face tensed with immense anxiety.

"It's about Buffy...she's lost her mind," he said bluntly.

Xander followed Dean and Sam as they walked into their room. As soon as he stepped inside, he started sputtering frantically.

"At first, when she came back from the past, you know we were all so happy and things seemed normal, business as usual but then...at some point, I don't know when, Buffy started acting differently. She'd skip all the big meetings, she'd patrol on her own without one of us…."

Sam lumbered right into the bathroom to clean up the wounds on his face while Dean gently levered himself onto a lounger and groaned. Every muscle in his body ached after going forty rounds with that damn ghoul family. He needed a drink or ten to numb the pain but mostly, he needed to catch up on sleep. He was barely running on a handful since they started working this case and he'd looked forward to crashing for the next two or three days until Xander showed up.

"…..and then she was like, "well, you're just too soft Xander and that's why you're gonna die!"

Xander waggled his finger in a mock glare before continuing on his rant.

"…...hate to say it but they were glad she was gone cause it was like walking through a minefield with her…..."

As Xander kept animatedly ranting at a rapid fire pace, Dean shot a hand up.

"Woah, woah, woah, man, just slow it down, alright? Take a deep breath, focus and…...get to the point of this visit," he urged gently.

Xander inhaled a long breath and spent a long minute to calm himself down. The lines of panic on his face shifted into fear.

"Buffy made an unscheduled appearance at the manor the other night and just laid into everyone about...well, just about everything. None of the girls want to train with her or even be near her because she scares the crap out them. Andrew said she hasn't been sleeping or eating, she just hunts or trains and lashes out at anyone who makes a comment about her new fighting style….We thought giving her space would help with whatever's been bothering her but all it's done is unleashed this...pissed off, get outta my way or I'll kill you kind of person. I've known Buffy a long time and she's overcome a lot of crap but this – this time it's swallowing her up. If she keeps going on like this she's gonna end up …..."

Xander stopped himself at the horrible thought.

"You have to do something Dean," he pleaded.

"Well, if you got any ideas, throw 'em my way cause I've called, I've dropped in on her but she keeps slamming that same door in my face."

"But that's never stopped you in the past. Come on man, you two are famous for having these knock down, punch your face kind of fights and yet…...you always end up back in each other's lives. When you pushed her away, smashed her heart to bits, we all thought she was done for good….and yet here you are. No matter what kind of crazy, ugly history you've had with her, you out of everyone have the best chance at breaking through this barrier she's shrouded herself in. So please Dean, you gotta help her."

Dean absorbed Xander's emotional plea before he slowly sat forward and released a heavy sigh.

"Okay, alright. I'll take another shot at her. Do you have any idea where she is?"

Xander nodded and anxiously unzipped his backpack. He took out a rolled up piece of parchment paper. He unrolled the parchment and flattened it out on the table. Dean slowly rose and walked to the table.

"What's this?"

"Willow did this lifeline spell to get a lock on Buffy since she kept um, killing those magical tracking flies."

Dean shook his head and sighed.

"Dude, I told you that wasn't gonna work."

Dean glanced at the parchment and realized it was a map of the United States. He showed his surprise when footsteps glowed across various states. Xander pointed to a city where a white heart faded in and out.

"Looks like she's here."

"Okay, so that's about seven, eight hours from here, I'll get there in four."

Dean rolled up the map and stuffed it in the inside pocket of his jacket.

"You sure you don't want to use this?" Xander held up the vial of purple potion. "It's a lot quicker."

Dean gulped when a memory popped up in his mind.

"Can't you travel the normal way?"

"Don't knock it, til you try it mister. I mean, once you get passed portal sickness, it's a pretty convenient way to get around. Plus, never have to scrounge up money for a bus ticket or gas."

"Portal sickness?"

"Oh um yeah, the first time you experience some degree of side effects, like a bad headache or dizziness, or um…. a little pukage – worse case, a little bit of everything all at oncebut it all goes away after awhile."

Dean put his hand up and shook his head.

"Hard pass."

Sam stepped out of the bathroom after stitching up the gash on his forehead.

"Let me just grab my bag."

"No, that's okay. It's better if I handle this."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, there's no point in getting both of our asses kicked so I'll be back, or not."

Four hours later:

When he arrived in the small town of Oakmont, Dean checked the magic map. The white heart still faded in and out and a new set of glowing footprints appeared. He got out of his car and followed the footprints. After trekking down a dirt road for a quarter of a mile, he spotted a rundown cabin.

Retrieving his machete, he stalked toward the cabin. When he stepped onto the porch, he noticed the cabin door hanging off its hinges. Bathed in darkness, he padded silently through the door. He heard a scuffling sound toward the back of the cabin and moved swiftly. Scanning over the three bodies, one male, two female, scattered along the living room floor, he noticed the gaping stab marks in the hearts. Werewolves.

Dean pocketed his machete and extracted his silver bullet loaded pistol from his jacket. He peered cross the cabin and caught sight of the Slayer as she finished off a male werewolf, shoving her katana into his neck. The body slumped to the floor as the head flew through the air and hit Dean's boot as he trekked toward the Slayer.

"Well, you're just batting a thousand these days, huh?""

The Slayer fixed him with an annoyed glare.

"What do you want?" she vexed. "No, you know what? I don't care!"

Buffy pushed past him and charged away. When she heard him following, she whipped around and glowered up at him.

"Go away Dean and leave me alone! Stop with these impromptu visits and stop leaving a dozen messages for me every day!"

Dean reciprocated her steely look as she got in his face.

"When you start answering 'em, I will," he shot back.

Buffy exhaled sharply as her hands curled into fists. For a long, tense moment, she seethed at him before she unwound her hands.

"Go away!"

She shot him a fierce glare, one that made demons and humans cower and retreat but he didn't quiver with fear nor did he hightail it out of there. No, her look just rolled right off him.

"Not happening sweetheart, sorry."

Buffy groaned in her throat as she pivoted and snapped a lightning fast punch at his face. When he deftly caught her fist in his hand, she roared with aggravation. She threw a left hook at his chin but he dodged out of the way. He snatched up her other hand and gripped it firmly.

"Cut it out," he grunted.

Buffy ripped her hands out of his grip and stomped away from him. She paused by the door and trained her focus on the sounds outside. The bright beams of moonlight shone through the cracks of the shuttered windows. Adrenaline rose and fell rapidly in her lungs as her scowl tightened. Dean watched her pensively before he strode toward her, seeking a closer examination of her physical state.

Buffy growled softly when she heard his heavy footfalls nearing and felt his assessing gaze thickening. Knowing he was there, watching her, studying her, unnerved her because just being in his presence was a danger to her steely composure. The longer he was there, the quicker she would break because he always found a way to smash through her defenses. He had succeeded in the past and she knew if he tried hard enough, if he didn't take her shit, he would latch on and tear away at the walls until he found the girl he was searching for. So she wouldn't give him the chance. She had to keep that girl locked away, that girl who lived and breathed and…...cared…...no, she wouldn't open herself up.

Dean circled around until he was facing her. His heartbeat stopped when he got a long look at her under the streaks of moonlight washing over her. Her gray tank top was soaked through with werewolf blood. She had a deep cut in her left shoulder. Her right cheek was red and swollen. She had dozens of fresh and old cuts on her face and a bloodied scab on the corner of her mouth. He'd also noticed the raw, open wounds on her knuckles when she had tried to beat the crap out him.

"Jesus Christ," he gasped softly.

Buffy stamped her eyes shut when she heard the heartache in his tone. Moisture churned at the back of her throat but she kicked it down. When she opened her eyes, she settled them through the slits in the shutters, scanning the horizon. Distraction and distance were her best defenses against Dean.

"Let me guess, the Mopey Party sent you to check on me? Did Willow run out of ideas to spy on me?"

Dean noticed she avoided meeting his eyes at all costs. She would look out the window or at the scabs on her hands or the dried blood stuck in strands of her hair but never directly at him. The dark circles around her eyes had thickened ten fold since the last time he'd seen her. She needed sleep more than he did.

"They're worried about you."

Buffy rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm worried about you," he added softly.

Buffy refused to look at him when she heard his admission. She knew what expression was on his face at that very moment. If she risked a glance, he would make that little crack. She pushed off toward the window on the opposite side of the cabin and looked out.

"When is everyone gonna get that I can HANDLE MYSELF."

"No one says you can't," Dean replied. "But they're still gonna about you, especially when you're running on little to no sleep, killing every demon in sight."

She turned slightly but didn't look back at him.

"That is my job description," she said brusquely.

"Kicking their ass, wasting 'em, sure, but torturing 'em? That's never been part of your skill set."

"Well, maybe I've learned some new tricks since I came back," she seethed.

"I don't believe that for one minute. I don't believe any of this."

Buffy held in a breath as those footfalls echoed closer and quicker. And there it was. He was taking a stand where others had backed down. He was ready to dig his heels in and take a shot at demolishing her icy fortress. She needed to end this discussion now and send him on his way. She was going to have to hit him harder this time, much harder. When his footfalls stopped behind her, she pivoted around to face him. She bore her eyes into him and fired off a shot.

"That's because right now, you don't believe in anything unless someone tells you too! You can't even stand on your own two feet anymore! You've been so beaten down that you have to come crying to me for help in saving the world, well you know what? I'm so sick and tired of always having to clean up your messes! And all you've EVER done is make a mess of things," she barked.

The stony lines on his face started to crack as she lobbied another shot…..

"Because you're a screw up Dean. Your whole life is one big fuck up. Everyone you ever cared about has walked out on you and it's messed with your head and you..."

Dean clapped his hands on her upper arms and frowned at her.

"Alright, enough!" he growled. "Enough with this crap!"

She cut him a callous look as she yanked out of his hold. Though his jaw had clenched in anger, his eyes flickered with anger and hurt. She sent off another shot, determined to break him down.

"Can't handle a reality check, huh?"

"I said ENOUGH."

As her expression remained hard, he shook his head and huffed with frustration.

"You're going down a road you can't turn back from."

And another…...

"You'd know a lot about that, wouldn't you?"

He was completely dumbfounded by the rage burning in her eyes.

"What the hell is wrong with you?! Why do you keep pissing on the people that are trying help you?"

"You always seem to think you know me so well, you tell me."

Dean gazed at her for a long minute, desperately searching for some hint of the girl he knew so well. The face was the same gorgeous face that always lingered in the back of mind, the body was the same fantastic little body he had explored over and over, but the eyes…..it was the eyes that completely unsettled him. Instead of that lively glow that always warmed him up on his blackest days, instead of that teasing sparkle that drove him wild on their best days, he saw only a thick veil of iciness. That cold front punched him hard in the face as she narrowed her sights on him.

He looked a little deeper, a little longer, hoping to catch a flare of unwavering optimism or even just a hint of a smile. God he missed her smile. He missed everything about her.

"I thought I'd get out here and see what was happening and then you know, I'd eventually figure out what's going on with you. But I'm realizing now, after everything I've seen, that the girl we've all been looking for, she never came back from 1978. Because that girl, she'd never shut out her friends and treat them like crap. She doesn't break people down."

Dean looked off, lost in his own memories.

"She always sees the upside even in the darkest, bleakest moments. She gives people who've made mistakes a second chance. And when someone she cares about is feeling their lowest, she reminds them of their best qualities, she builds them back up, she inspires all of us to keep fighting every day. THAT'S the girl I know."

Dean shifted his sights back on the girl standing before him.

"But when I look at you…...I don't have a clue who the hell you are."

Catching the flare of sadness in his eyes, Buffy bit down on her lip when it wanted to tremble.

"Maybe I don't want people to know," she said bitterly. "Maybe I'm tired of people expecting me to be a certain way. Maybe I...maybe I just don't care about anything or anyone anymore."

"If that's true, then this world really has lost you."

"So what, I'm a lost cause? There's no hope for me, is that it? Always trying to help everyone but can't help me," she said. "Sorry you wasted a….."

Buffy ripped her sights to the doorway when her instincts bombarded her. Four male werewolves growled when they noticed all the bodies of their pack on the floor.

"She's caked in their blood," one of them said.

"Then we'll bathe in hers," another said.

As the werewolves lunged toward her, Dean raised his pistol. Buffy frowned resentfully when she saw Dean prepping for a fight.

"No! These are MY kills Dean," she roared.

Buffy smashed something against him and flung him out of the path of the werewolves. When he glanced down at the purple mist on his shoulder he groaned with dismay. He gasped desperately for air as the thick purple mist started curling tightly around his body. His head swirled madly as the world disappeared.

After what seemed like an endless minute, he was abruptly spat out to the ground. He heaved several ragged breaths and clenched his head as it pounded with pain. Bile churned violently from the bottom of his stomach and he lurched forward, spewing it out.

"Christ," he muttered.

When the world finally stopped spinning, he looked out at his sparse surroundings. He took out his phone and frowned when he had no service bars.

"Terrific," he groaned.

Later:

Sam frowned curiously when he glanced at his brother, popping a handful of aspirin dry as he shuffled into the room with an irascible look on his face.

"Hey, that took awhile," Sam said. "So uh, how'd it go?"

"It went," Dean grumbled.

Dean moaned softly as he peeled out of his jacket and then slowly eased onto his bed. Sam pushed his laptop aside and got up from the table. He narrowed his eyes on something glowing on his brother's shoulder.

"What's that?"

Dean rolled his eyes open and followed his brother's gaze. He frowned as he dusted off the purple powder.

"Damn magic portal."

Sam brimmed with surprise.

"You took a portal back here?"

"Not by choice and it dropped me out in the middle of nowhere. Had to snake two rides just to get back to my car. I don't know why anyone would willingly want to stuff themselves inside a tornado," Dean groused.

"Well, were you able to help Buffy?"

Dean gazed past Sam, reflecting silently for a long minute.

"Honestly? I have no damn idea."

Sam sat back on the edge of his bed and sucked in a breath.

"I really thought you'd get through to her."

Dean glanced at the clock and shook his head. He'd spent four hours driving, an hour with the Slayer, then six more hours of driving two different cars to get back to the motel. Before that, he'd raced around the state hunting down that damn ghoul family. His body ached, his eyes stung with fatigue and his head still hurt from that friggin' magic ride.

"So what are you gonna do now?"

"I'm gonna crash."

Dean burrowed his head into the pillow.

"I meant about Buffy."

"I know what you meant Sam but the way she's acting and operating, I can't even wrap my head around it now, not without a couple hours of shuteye. So please, just let me sleep on this and then….I'll figure something out."

Sam absorbed his brother's apprehensive look and nodded encouragingly.

"Yeah, I know you will."

Late the next evening:

New Orleans, LA

"I'm told you have what I want."

The mystic woman opened an intricately carved box and pulled out a necklace.

"It will not keep you hidden from the vampires," she said in a thick accent.

Buffy glared resentfully at the mystic woman.

"I'm not trying to hide from them."

"But you are hiding from someone?"

Buffy clenched her fist, irritated by the mystic lady's nosiness.

"Will this keep people off my back? If I don't like your answer, I will punch you in the face."

The mystic woman frowned and dropped the necklace in Buffy's hand.

"Yes, it will cloak you from any magic used to find you."

"Good."

Buffy clutched the necklace and turned on her heel.

A few days later:

"Dean, are you sure about this?" Sam frowned skeptically as they passed the Arkansas state line.

"Yeah Sam. It's a hunter's funeral and not just any hunter but Duke Whitman. That old man was a legend. We need to pay our respects."

"No, I mean yeah, of course we should but...you realize the chances of his nephews showing up are pretty high?"

"And?"

Sam balked with disbelief. "And? Dean, the last time you saw Duncan Whitman, he beat the crap out of you."

Dean scoffed loudly. "You must have heard the wrong version of that story, cause I was there and he TRIED to beat the crap out of me but failed miserably. Not to mention he had to jump me to get the advantage."

"You didn't exactly get out of it bruise free," Sam recalled.

"Alright, so he got a couple of good shots in but when it was over, I wasn't the one hobbling away."

Dean drew a small smirk of satisfaction when he lingered on the memory.

"That's what I'm talking about. There's bad blood between you two and now you're just gonna walk into the lion's den?"

"We do that every damn day man," Dean replied. "And that shit was nine years ago. I haven't even thought about that night until now. Besides, I don't give a crap whether he has a problem with it or not. I'm going for Duke. That man taught me a lot. Hell, he taught every hunter something. Even Dad loved the guy."

"What? You told me that Dad hated Duke. That they were always fighting over something."

"Yeah, okay, so they had their share of disagreements but at the end of the day, they'd make amends. Duke was just that kind of person, you couldn't stay mad at him. He wouldn't let you. He may have looked like Santa Claus but he could be one tough sonofabitch."

When his cell phone hummed, Dean shifted in his seat and took it out. Sam spied a glance at the caller ID.

"Xander, what's going on?"

Sam bubbled with curiosity when his brother's face twisted with apprehension.

"What do you mean you lost her?" Dean bellowed with a sigh. "….no….by the way, that magic map spontaneously combusted after twenty-four hours. Thanks for the warning, that thing almost blew my frickin' head off…"

Dean veered onto a highway interchange as he continued his conversation. After several minutes, Dean expired a sigh and scrubbed his face with one hand.

"No, if they need you then you should go."

Dean hung up and put his phone away. Sam glanced at him expectantly.

"They can't find Buffy?"

"Yeah, they were using this magic eye thing to glimpse into her whereabouts but as of a few days ago, she dropped off the radar again. According to Xander, Willow's tried every tracking spell she can think of but they've still got bupkus. They think she somehow shielded herself from magic. They were going to look into other ways but then they got called away on business."

Sam watched the stress lines thickening over Dean's face.

"You know, why don't you go on ahead to the funeral and I can try to track down Buffy. I mean, I didn't know Duke as well as you did."

Dean steered his sights to Sam and shot him an annoyed glare.

"Oh so you get on my case about walking into the lion's den but now you're gonna just go there huh?"

"Everyone else has tried to get through to her, I should try too."

"Dude, no offense, but a pep talk from an ex demon blood junkie probably ain't gonna work. She'd go to town on your ass," Dean said derisively.

"Well, what about the fang trail?"

Dean groaned when he hit a traffic pile up at a highway interchange.

"She's caught on that we've been sniffing it out so she's let it go cold for awhile. Now she just hops around tagging any evil thing she comes across."

"It's only a matter of time before she picks it up again. I wouldn't think she'd just let it go after chasing them around the country."

As they rolled through the downtown district, Sam surveyed the store fronts.

"I can do some research on these vamps, see if I can figure out where they are."

"Just leave it for now Sam."

"Dean, you can't just leave this alone," Sam persisted.

"I'm not. I'll take care of this. I will. But for right now, just let me pay my respects to Duke, okay?"

Absorbing his pleading look, Sam nodded.

By the late evening, Dean pulled into the large dirt lot in front of the bar simply named, Pool, Drinks, Eats. Every square inch of dirt was taken by a beat up truck, off road Jeep or car. Dean squeezed into a space on the edge of the lot and turned the car off.

Hearing lively chatter inside, Dean and Sam pushed through the door of the bar.

"Wow," Sam gasped as he acknowledged the huge turnout. "Everyone's here."

"As it should be," Dean cheered.

As they wended through the crowded dining area, other hunters shot them looks, some friendly, some not. Uneasiness crept into Sam's veins when he noticed most of the glares were directed at him. Dean nodded in acknowledgment as he ambled by a few hunters. Most of the male hunters were gathered in small groups, drinking, playing pool or swapped stories.

A pretty brunette carried a tray of shots and handed them out to the hunters she passed by. Dean and Sam slipped past the shoulder to shoulder throngs of people. The brunette noticed them and sauntered over. She had on a black baseball cap over her shoulder length hair and she wore some fitted camo pants. The ends of her dark green flannel shirt were tied in a knot and the sleeves were rolled up to display her intricate tattoos.

"Dean. Hey."

The brunette flashed him a friendly smile. Dean studied her face and drew a blank.

"What, you don't remember me?"

Dean feigned acknowledgment, shooting her back a smile.

"Uh, of course I do. How are you since the last time we...you know."

"Yeah, I'm messing with you. We've never met," she snickered.

"Oh. Okay."

"Although the way Trevor talks about you, I feel like I do."

"You know Trev?"

"You could say that," she said slyly. "Drinks?"

Dean took one but Sam politely declined. As the other hunters noticed the brothers, some conversations stopped abruptly.

"Dean! How the hell are you man?"

Trevor Whitman sauntered over with an enthusiastic expression. He was in his late twenties wearing a Dukes of Hazzard tee shirt. His lanky brown hair was tucked under a weather worn Braves baseball cap. He patted Dean on the arm as he set down a case of whiskey on a table.

"Hey Trev. It's good to see you. Been a long time."

Dean and Trev shook hands.

"Yeah, man, a lot of shit's happened since then."

"Sucks about Duke," Dean replied.

Trev hung his hands on his hips and sighed.

"Yeah. We always knew he'd either live forever or go down fighting like Hell."

"You got that right. How you holding up?"

Trevor shrugged as he took a seat at a table that freed up.

"I'm alright. Taking it day by day is all you can do," Trev said. "That one helps me out a lot."

Dean followed Trevor's sights to the brunette.

"Oh. So that's how it is. Well, good for you."

Trevor shook his head and smiled modestly.

"Dude, it's more than that. It's kismet."

The brunette turned and smiled at Trevor as he glanced at her affectionately. She sashayed toward the table and dropped into Trevor's lap, latching an arm around him.

"Nice crowd you hang out with babe," she said with a hint of sarcasm. "I never get tired of the eyebrow pumps and suggestive looks around here."

"You promised you'd be on your best behavior."

"I haven't broken any noses yet."

"The night's still young."

Trevor nodded toward the brothers.

"Guys, meet Reese, my Mrs."

Dean hung his glass in the air, stunned by the news.

"Your what?"

Trevor and Reese flaunted their matching jade rings.

"Well, when did that happen?"

"Last June," Reese chimed.

"Congratulations."

"Thanks man."

"Who the hell invited him?" demanded a gruff voice.

Trevor and Reese turned their sights on Duncan Whitman as he marched over, a scowl permanently knitted over his face. His hair was cut military short and his entire neck was covered with an elaborate tattoo of the Grim Reaper. He sported a black eye and swelling in his right cheek.

"It's a hunter's funeral," Reese said, frowning at him. "Everyone is welcome."

"Not everyone," Duncan grunted.

"Gee Duncan, guess you're still the life of the party," Dean chirped.

"And you're still an arrogant sonofabitch who thinks he's better than everyone," Duncan sneered.

Duncan curled his hands into fists and glowered at Dean. Sam gulped apprehensively while his brother maintained a cool composure.

"What's your problem?"

"You're my problem, asshole."

Dean slid off his stool as all the hunters hushed up. He heaved a deep sigh.

"Are you still bitching about that crap from a million years ago? Cause the world's got bigger problems than some grudge you can't get over."

Duncan tramped closer to Dean, tightening his disgruntled frown.

"The world's in this mess cause of you and HIM," he barked, pointing at Sam. "Everyone here knows that. They won't say it but I will. You ain't welcome here. So get the hell out of my uncle's place or I'll throw you out."

Muffled whispers spread like a wildfire throughout the bar as all the hunters converged to watch the confrontation.

"You're gonna throw me out?" Dean snorted as he circled Duncan. "You're gonna throw me out. Huh. Well, I guess all I have to say to that is..."

Dean stopped in front of Duncan, well within grappling range.

"I sure as hell would like to see you try. Or did you forget how I handed you your ass the last time?"

A wicked grin slowly rose over his face, sparking Duncan into a rage. He charged toward Dean like an angry rhino. Dean swiftly dodged out of the way. Duncan tumbled forward but quickly regained his footing.

"Duncan, just stop!" Reese shrieked. "You're drunk and making an ass of yourself!"

Duncan shot a finger at Trev, not looking at Reese.

"Put a lid on your woman Trev or I will," Duncan snarled.

"Suck it Duncan," Reese howled. "I really wish that girl had beaten you up some more!"

Dean sputtered his sip of whiskey and smirked with amusement.

"You got beat up – by a girl? Sounds like an awesome chick."

"Crazy little blonde bitch," Duncan said with a peevish frown.

"That girl was awesome," Reese cheered. "And you only hate her cause she was stronger and faster and hit harder than you."

"Wait, are you talking about Buffy?" Sam interjected. "The Slayer?"

Trev widened his eyes. "That girl was a Slayer? Woah. It all makes sense now."

"Bitch is still crazy," Duncan chided. "Punched me for no reason."

"She clocked you for no reason?" Dean frowned doubtfully at Duncan. "You always were lousy at poker. What's the real reason she popped you one?"

Duncan bore contemptuous eyes at Dean, shaving the distance between them in a few heavy footed steps.

"Cause she ain't nothing but a damn crazy b..."

Dean glared at Duncan, anger boiling in his eyes. He crooked a finger at him, cutting him off.

"You call her that word one more time and you'll have a matching set," he grunted, glancing at his black eye.

Duncan grumbled under his breath and turned slightly. Then he swung around and sucker punched Dean square in the face. Dean lunged at Duncan and the two swapped brutal punches. Sam shook his head as he dove between them and pushed them apart.

"You two, just cool it!"

Dean spat out a clot of blood and scoffed.

"You know what Duncan? After nine years, I thought maybe this life would have changed you a little but...you're still an ass."

Duncan barreled toward Dean but Trevor got in front of him and held his cousin back.

"Just leave him alone man," Trevor moaned.

Duncan grunted as he swiped a bottle of whiskey from a table and chugged it down.

"If she hadn't been there, the three of us would be dead, so just shut your damn mouth Duncan," Reese admonished.

Reese and Duncan exchanged hard looks.

"She's right Dunc, Millicent was a clusterfuck of a hunt," Trev conceded.

Duncan simply grumbled and downed more liquor.

"What were you hunting in Millicent?" Dean asked.

"We got a lead on the fang gang that killed Duke," Trev revealed. "Only when we got there, the Slayer had already cleaned out the nest."

"Nest? It was more like a damn colony," Reese clarified with wide eyes.

Trev nodded. "I'd never seen so many of them in one town. Anyway, we tracked some of them down at this roadhouse but she was already fighting them."

"She was kicking their asses," Reese lauded.

"And then she got pissed when Dunc wasted one. She said something about how that fang was hers. Wasn't too long after that more of 'em came around to bust her up. Just when I thought things couldn't get any crazier, a bus unloaded a bunch of people across the street."

"We went to help but those vamps were so fast, they took out the driver and locked up the door to the bus with people trapped inside," Reese added.

"I was about to shoot out a window but the Slayer kicked the door in and then..."

Trevor's voice trailed off.

"Then what?" Dean pressed.

"It was madness. Just complete madness. I can't even remember all of it because everything just happened so fast. I just heard screaming and shouting and then there was blood everywhere..."

"She got the door open and just started wailing on them," Reese imparted. "She started shouting at everyone to run. But a lot of the people were scared to death and weren't moving so the vampires had a free for all. Trev and I had to fight out way in to get people out."

"We barely got out of there," Trev acknowledged.

"She saved our butts," Reese said.

"Screw that, we didn't need saving," Duncan snarled.

Reese glared up at Duncan.

"That vamp was about to rip your throat out until she pulled him off you! And then Trev got knocked out. Not to mention they started ganging up on me."

"Cause you need more training."

"How about I train my fist up your ass?"

Reese turned her eyes back to Dean and Sam.

"She killed five out of the six onboard and dragged the last one off the bus. That's when Duncan got into it with her, he called her something nasty."

"So she popped him one," Dean deduced. "Then what happened?"

"She told us to stay out of her business and then took the vamp back to the bar. I don't know why."

Dean took a moment to absorb all the details and then formed a theory.

"Tell me something, did you happen to notice if these vamps had a tattoo on their hand? Looks like this."

Dean fetched his phone from his pocket and pulled up the photo.

"Yeah, the one she dragged away had that," Reese confirmed. "What is it?"

Duncan clapped his empty bottle on the table and bounded angrily toward Reese and Dean.

"What the hell does it matter?" he said indignantly. "She dragged one off instead of wasting it. I would have killed 'em all. What did that pain in the ass think she was doing barging in there, taking all them bloodsucking motherfuckers for herself?!"

"Her job," Dean declared.

"She ain't entitled to every damn demon in the world."

"Maybe not, but she's the reason you're still breathing. So instead of pissing on her, you should show her a little gratitude!"

Duncan stormed toward Dean, getting in his face again. Sam hustled over as Duncan loomed over his brother, intent on finishing their fight.

"You realize what a Slayer's born from? She's evil like all the rest of them and yet you're here defending her like she's one of us!"

Duncan stepped another inch closer to Dean.

"She IS one of us."

"She ain't! You've seen the things she can do. It ain't natural, it ain't human. Guess you're just too far up that tight little ass to see it," Duncan said snidely.

Sam passed Dean a look of warning. Dean let out a breath and shook his head. He turned away but just as quickly swerved back around and decked Duncan hard in the face. Duncan stumbled back a step. He scoffed and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

"That's probably why she dragged that fang off. So she could screw his undead brains out. I hear she likes that."

"Shut up. Just shut up," Dean snapped.

Duncan snorted as he spat out more blood.

"She must be some good pussy."

Dean sprung toward him and pummeled him several times in the face.

"Shut your fucking mouth!" he growled.

Duncan drew a gratified smile as he took a swing at Dean, Dean leaned out of the way and snapped his fist into Duncan's nose. Duncan's head whipped back and the two grappled a little longer. Sam grabbed Dean and yanked him back.

"Dude, stop, he's not worth it."

Sam kept his hand against Dean, who was heaving breaths of exertion.

"Come on you sonofabitch, let's finish this," Duncan taunted, taking a fighting stance.

Dean swung around and stared at Duncan for a long moment. All the Hunters watched, chatting softly among each other.

"You know what Dunc? I take it back, you're not an ass, you're just a dick," he grunted.

Dean ambled out of the bar as Sam took off after him.

"Dean," Sam called.

Dean stopped by his car and leaned against the trunk. He prodded at the blood and cuts on his face.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fantastic," Dean said sourly.

Trevor and Reese strolled over, cradling two unopened bottles of whiskey and a bunch of glasses.

"Dude, I'm so sorry about all that shit," Trevor lamented.

"It's not your fault."

"Yeah, Duncan's always been an asshole but tonight, he's the king of sonofabitches," Reese remarked.

Dean glanced at Reese and burst into laughter.

"You got yourself one hell of a woman there Trev."

"I sure do," Trev cheered.

"How'd you two meet anyway?"

Reese gazed at Trevor and grinned.

"Oh, when I was still on the force, I threw his ass in jail."

"For real?"

"Yeah, I was working a case and got caught on the scene. Anyway, long story short, I convinced her to help me clear my name and…."

"I found out what the things that go bump in the night are."

Reese dipped her head on Trevor's shoulder.

"Well, here's to you two."

Dean raised his shot glass and they all toasted.

Later on in the night, in the back lot behind the bar, the hunters gathered around the ceremonial pyre. Jethro Tull's greatest hits blasted through the speakers. Trevor and Reese refilled everyone's drinks for the tribute toast.

Trevor hiked up onto the fence and raised his glass. The hunters followed suit.

"To Duke! May he be spending his eternity on his llama farm!"

The hunters chuckled and whooped before they all sunk their shots. Some of the hunters dispersed or gathered in conversation. Trevor and Sam fell into a conversation while Dean stationed himself near the edge of the property line. In quiet reflection, he watched the flames of the pyre curl up to the sky

Reese caught his eyes and wandered over.

"Hey. Can I top you off?"

"Sure."

Reese refilled his dwindling drink and pulled herself up to sit on top of the fence.

"So, Trev filled me in on all the stories and rumors about the Slayer and there's one that I found pretty interesting."

"Oh yeah, what's that?"

"You and her had a thing. Is there any truth to that?"

Dean stared into his glass as he swirled the liquid around.

"It's uh, complicated."

"I'll bet. That girl is a beast." Reese said with an admirable smile. "I don't know her at all but from my one encounter she was pretty intense. Is she always like that?"

"I guess she is now," he muttered.

Reese frowned in confusion.

"Never mind."

"I didn't mean to pry. I just wondered when the next time you see her again, if you could tell her thank you, for saving my ass, for saving Trev. I don't care what she's made of, I was damn glad she was there, you know?"

"Yeah, I know."

Reese hopped off the fence and turned toward the crowd.

"Can I ask you something?"

Reese nodded. "Sure."

"Are you happy with this kind of life? I mean, most of us didn't have a choice but you did. Why haven't you and Trev just hung it up and go have something normal? You two have the best chance at it."

Reese lifted her eyes to the night sky for a second before she settled her sights back on Dean.

"Honestly, we've thought about it a lot lately. But then when Duke got killed…...we're just not quite done with this yet…...maybe sometime soon."

"Well, good luck to you."

"Thanks and I hope you and Buffy get a shot at something real someday too. It might be complicated but by the way you defended her, how you kicked Duncan's ass, it's obvious your feelings are not."

Reese smiled encouragingly before she drifted off. As thoughts about his long and complex history with the Slayer delved through his mind, trepidation gripped his bones. He fished into his pocket and took out his cell phone. Even though he figured his efforts would be futile, he hit speed dial. When the automatic message system picked up as expected, he hung up. He scrolled through a different contact list and tried the secondary number. Again, no answer.

"Dammit," he moaned softly.

When a group of hunters approached Dean, he tucked his phone away and eyed them curiously. The tallest one of the group, Mac, glanced around before he spoke.

"Hey Dean, could we talk for a second?"

Dean tensed when he looked over the group, anticipating another confrontation.

"About what?"

"About that girl of yours, Buffy? Duncan isn't the only one who's had a run in with her lately."

A little while later, Dean was back inside the bar, sitting with Mac and the rest of the group of hunters.

"And they all had these same tattoos?"

"There was one that was a little different," Gus pointed.

"Different how?"

"It wasn't ink, looked more like a bad burn wound."

A few minutes after that:

"By the time we got there, she'd cleaned out some of the nests," Gabe stated.

"Some? Well how many were there?"

"We found two. Mac found one a couple hours away. And Holt found the last one on the other side of the state."

Dean folded out a map across the table.

"Show me exactly where."

As the midnight hour approached, Sam weaved his way through the dispersing crowds of hunters heading for the parking lot. When he stepped outside, he didn't see his brother among the handful of hunters still hanging around. Sam went back inside and caught Trevor's attention as he was cleaning up behind the bar.

"Hey Trev, have you seen my brother?"

"Yeah, he asked me if he could check into some stuff so I told him he could use Duke's office. It's upstairs. Go on in."

"Thanks."

Sam trekked up the stairs and saw a door at the end of a short hall. He pushed through the door just as two hunters, Mac and Gabe exited. He nodded at them and stepped out of the way.

To his left, he saw a small lounge with a water cooler and coffee maker. He kept walking and peered inside a conference room that had been turned into a personal library.

Sam heaved a breath in amazement at the rows of bookshelves lining every inch of space in the room. Two white boards were filled with information. More ancient texts were spread out over the long table in the middle of the room.

Not seeing his brother, Sam continued down the hall where he heard the echoes of rock music.

Dean was standing behind an oak desk, with his back facing Sam. He pushed a colored pin to a map tacked to a bulletin board on the wall. He scribbled a note on the map while on the phone.

"Alright man, thanks."

Sam glanced around Duke's office. A chalkboard hung opposite the bulletin board and was taped with dozens of printouts. Wicked looking swords, daggers and blades were displayed on another wall. On the closet door, hung an original Jethro Tull concert poster. On one of the filing cabinets, some old album spun on the record player.

Dean glanced at Sam as he came around the desk.

"Where the hell have you been?"

"I was helping Reese restock stuff."

Dean regarded the time and frowned.

"That was hours ago."

"Yeah I uh, I got tired of all the weird looks so I went for a walk. What's all this?

Sam nodded at the thick stack of opened books, numerous journal entries and loose leaf note pages scattered over the desk. He noticed a familiar symbol on one of the pages of the books.

"Is that?"

"Vamp stamp? Yep. It's called a Gaelic eternity knot."

"No end and no beginning."

"Turns out it's a fang family crest. Take a look at this."

Dean moved over to a folding table where a long scroll was rolled up. He unfurled a section of the scroll along the length of the table.

"Duke's been on their trail for quite some time. He traced the family tree, goes back quite a ways."

Sam glanced at the intricate lines representing extensions of the family. He nudged the scroll out a little further.

"Woah, the Gallagher line is…...huge….."

Sam rolled out another section and widened his eyes at all the extensions.

"1600s?"

"Keep going," Dean prompted as he went back to marking cities on the map with pins.

Sam drew in a breath when he spooled out the entire length of the scroll.

"1458? These vampires are over five hundred years old?"

"Just the founding family members," Dean clarified. "They called themselves the Celtic Seven after they were turned."

Sam shook his head in amazement as his eyes roamed over all the names.

"No end and no beginning," he muttered.

Sam went back to the desk and looked over the wealth of information. He thumbed through a folder of drawings, painting and photographs depicting various vampire ancestors.

"The crest is slightly different the further back you go," Sam remarked.

"Yeah, the originals branded themselves the old fashioned way."

Sam turned one of the photos of the vampire hands, studying the raised flesh in the form of the knot. He moved on to a large stack of crime articles dating back to the 1600s and skimmed through the details reporting mysterious deaths and missing persons across Europe. Sam picked up an old map of Europe and reviewed all the handwritten notes.

"So the originals, these Celtic Seven went on a murderous rampage all across Ireland, the UK, Croatia, Germany, Hungary….Latvia until…...1924? There's not much in here about them after that."

"Yeah, they've been laying low up until recently when their great great great grandkids picked up their bloody family traditions."

Dean tapped a city on the map as Sam sat on the edge of the desk.

"A couple of months ago, Mac and a bunch of other hunters came across four fang nests inside and along the border of Idaho."

Sam glanced at the red dots over various cities and calculated the distances between nests.

"Trev and Reese were in Ambrose, Oklahoma and they found two nests fifty miles apart. A week before that, Jeb and Drake were tracking another group of these fangs in Howard, Colorado," Dean moved his finger across the state lines. "Chaz and Odette hit one in Dawson, Wyoming while Damon was working up along the border. And I just confirmed with Krieger that he followed the Slayer to Rossmore, Washington. She racked up twelve fangs between four different nests."

Sam glanced back at the map and studied the cities as Dean continued to impart more information.

"They hit a state and scatter all over, setting up shop in some remote town where the nearest law enforcement agency is over a hundred miles away."

Sam reviewed all the notations on the map. He noticed dozens of names scrawled over cities across the United States. Only a few states had no names.

"Okay, so do you want to hit Kentucky or Indiana?'

"I put a call in to Beck – he's got some property in Louisville so he's gonna gonna take a run and see if he can sniff anything out."

"Then we hit Indiana."

As Dean started to clean up and pack things away, a cluster of pictures on a credenza caught Sam's eye. He picked a particular one up and conveyed his surprise.

"When was this?"

Dean returned the books to shelves and then swung around and glanced briefly at the photograph.

"Oh, hell, ages ago, probably not too long after you left."

Sam took a longer survey of the photo of his brother from many years ago. Dean was standing in front of a sign that said Colinwood Forest. Duke was in the center of the picture and Trevor was beside him.

"I didn't realize you were that close to the Whitmans, well, with the exception of Duncan."

"We were for awhile, yeah. Man, I forgot about the picture. That was the first time Duke took Trevor on a hunt."

"You hunted together?"

"Yeah, whenever I was in town. I told you Duke taught me a lot, well, that was one of those times. That was right after this case in Vicksburg, Dad got so frickin' pissed at me he dumped me at the motel and took off. So I went to Duke's and just played pool and had a couple of beers. Trev was there and we hung out for awhile and then Duke was about to head out on a hunt so he took me and Trev along."

Dean paused in rolling up the scroll as a wistful look painted his face.

"The three of us were rolling down the highway, Trev and I were telling these lame ass jokes when Duke cranks up Jethro Tull and starts singing along and when we didn't join in, he gave us this rough look and said, "hey, I don't hear no singin' and if you ain't singing' you ain't really living."

Dean chuckled to himself at the fond memory.

"So me and Trev and Duke we start rocking out the entire drive to Louisiana. I almost blew out my vocal chords. That was a fun trip."

A little while later, Dean and Sam trudged down the stairs to find the bar had emptied out significantly. Trevor was wiping down tables and nodded at them.

"You guys out?"

"Yeah, you mind if I borrow these for a bit?"

Dean angled the duffel bag full of Duke's old texts.

"No, I told ya before to take whatever you needed. "

"Alright man. Thanks. It was good to see you."

Dean clapped a hand on Trevor's arm.

"Oh, almost forgot. Hold up a second."

Trevor ran over to the bar and reached under it. He ambled back to Dean, cradling something under his arm.

"Duke had some stuff he wanted to pass along when he finally kicked the bucket. He asked me to make sure you got this."

Trevor gripped a sheathed blade and held it out to Dean. Dean looked over the weathered handle and sparked with recognition.

"Is that? No, not Sheila, no way."

"Yup."

Sam cast a strange look at his brother.

"Sheila?"

Dean was speechless as he held the sheathed blade. He slowly removed the blade from the sheath and moaned gleefully.

"Oh, sweet Sheila."

Dean stared admiringly at the twenty-four inch machete with a curved edge. As he slashed the machete through the air, Sam noticed dozens of little hash marks scratched into the blade.

"What are those?"

Dean shifted his eyes to Sam's attention.

"Oh, demon kills," he said with a grin.

"No, there's got to be hundreds," Sam gasped.

"I told you he was a legend."

Dean swiped the air a few more times.

"You look good with that Dean," Trev said.

Dean slid the machete back in its sheath and shaded with a guilty look.

"Are you sure you want me to take this? I mean, this was part of his legacy, it should stay in your family."

Dean held it out to Trevor. Trevor shook his head.

"He was very adamant that you have it. He knew how much you admired it and that you knew what it meant to him. Dunc was pissed off of course but Duke didn't give a crap. So take Sheila, find the fangs that killed Duke and chop their fucking heads off with it. I can't think of a more fitting tribute to his legacy."

Trevor patted him on the back before Dean and Sam departed the bar. Dean raised the machete and drew a nostalgic smile.

"Let's go show those fangs what you're made of."

Sam cocked an eyebrow in amusement as they got into the car.

Later the next evening:

Sam scribbled a note on a map as Dean weaved the car through the outskirts of Bayetteville, a small town near the border of Indiana.

"Okay, so since the last three nests we found were in an industrial area, we're gonna want to check out the old chemical plant on Ellison, it was shut down last year after an explosion."

"Big, dark and abandoned. That with fits their mo."

Meanwhile:

Buffy twirled her bloodied katana as she weaved around the headless bodies littering the floor of the plant. The last two vampires snarled at her as they barricaded the main entrance.

"Where is he?" she demanded.

The vampires simply hissed at her.

"You can either tell me what I want to know or I'll make you."

"Burn in hell Slayer. You're gonna pay for killing our brothers and sisters!" one of the vampires howled before leaping toward her.

Dean pulled to a stop in front of the tall chain link fence surrounding the chemical plant. He and Sam got out of the car and circled around to the trunk. They quickly loaded up their weapons and bounded toward the fence. Dean took out a pair of bolt cutters and snapped through the lock wrapped through the entrance gates.

Buffy raised her katana and swung it toward one of the vamp's heads while she kicked the other one flying toward her, blowing him back.

"Enough!" a voice commanded.

Buffy whipped around to see the leader of the vampires standing in the doorway. He was tall and ruggedly handsome with reddish brown hair. He wore a crisp dark blue suit and tie. He was surrounded by eight other vampires wearing suits. They glowered at her with yellow eyes and flashed their fangs.

"I heard you've been looking for me love," the leader said in a thick Irish brogue.

Buffy surveyed the vampires as they hovered around him in a protective manner. The two vamps she had been fighting cowered behind the others.

"Finally crawled out of your hiding place, huh?"

"I wasn't hiding. I just prefer to live a low key life."

"You shouldn't be 'living' at all," she berated. "But I'll take care of that right now."

Buffy sauntered confidently toward him with her sword. The vampires hovered in front of him, hissing. He snapped a hand up and the vampires obediently retreated.

"I got your message," he said as he eyed the headless bodies. "And it needs to stop."

"What needs to stop are your bloodthirsty fangbabies killing innocent people," Buffy growled.

"I made them but I'm not responsible for them."

Buffy scoffed as she stomped closer to him.

"Talk about worst parent of the century."

"Oh bloody hell Aedan, let's just kill the damn girl already. She's so annoyin'"

Buffy snapped her eyes to the curly haired vampire on Aedan's right side as he started to lunge at her.

"Leave her Desmond. I'll handle this."

Desmond growled fiercely at Buffy before he backed off.

"Forgive my brother, he's been restless for many centuries."

Buffy gave her katana another twirl.

"I can put him out of his misery."

"Oh, she's gotta die," Desmond growled as he shoved Aedan aside and dashed toward the Slayer.

Dean and Sam stalked the grounds of the plant, gripping their machetes. When they heard a crash, they raced off toward the sound. The brothers readied their machetes as they reached the main doors of the plant.

Dean and Sam bolted in their tracks and shifted their sights around. A bevy of suit wearing vampires encircled the Slayer as Aedan leaped into the air and kicked her down. As Buffy and Aedan exchanged brutal punches, the vampires turned their sights to Dean and Sam. The brothers blinked in surprise when several vampires had rushed as fast as lightning toward them. Sam was throttled across the plant while Dean was thrown down by two vampires.

While Dean faced off against a tag team, Sam fought ruthlessly against one of the underling vampires. As Sam pummeled the vampire in the head, the demon glanced at the other vampires just standing around.

"I thought we was family!"

Sam sheared through the vampire's neck as Dean rammed one of his into a stairwell. The vampire bounced back onto his feet as Dean charged him. Dean hammered his elbow and fist into the vampire's face. Another vampire jumped on his back. Sam dove in and tore the vampire off Dean's back.

Buffy grappled with Aedan across the entire length of the plant. Every time she hit him, he hit her back harder, faster and stronger, he blocked each punch and kick she sent toward him. She growled in aggravation as he easily deflected her punch combo and threw his own powerful strike at her head. She sailed backward into a metal cage. Shaking off the impact, she snapped off a grate from the cage and launched herself into the air. She landed behind Aedan and swung the grate like a baton at his head. He caught her hand and wrenched her wrist until is snapped. Buffy howled in her throat as she countered with her good hand. Aedan barely flinched as he snapped his foot into her torso.

Dean watched apprehensively when the Slayer started to falter after a devastating blow to the head. He could tell she was fading fast by her sloppy punch combos and slow counterattacks. Every time that bastard struck her, she stumbled or fell backward. She was getting her ass kicked up and down the block. She wasn't going to last much longer without some backup.

Aeden snatched the Slayer up by her neck and hurled her across the floor. She crashed landed in a pile of bricks and groaned inaudibly.

"Dean!" Sam barked.

Dean snapped his eyes back to Sam as he wrestled a vampire to the ground. Sam held him down as Dean shoved the machete through its neck. The other vampires roared and launched toward them.

Aedan jumped over and landed at her feet. He raised his foot and stomped ferociously on her right leg. Buffy shrieked in pain as he cracked the bone.

As vampires piled on top of him and Sam, Dean shot fearful eyes at Buffy when Aedan gripped her by the neck and lifted her in the air.

"Leave my family alone," he snarled.

Aedan wound his fist back and pounded it her in the rib cage. Buffy howled in agony as a cracking sound pierced the air. Her head slumped down against her neck.

Aedan drew his fist back to deliver another brutal punch.

"No!" Dean growled as he sawed through another vampire's neck.

Dean took off running toward Aedan when he was hit from the side. He went sliding across the floor as two vampires jumped him and started hammering him. He felt a vise grip around his neck and then he was lifted up and slammed against a railing. Dean struggled to take in air as he tried to pry himself out of the vampire's grip. His eyes darted to Sam. One vampire had a loafer clamped against his neck, two others pinned his arms to the ground. One of the vampire underlings sniffed Sam and roared with bloodlust.

"Are you mad? That's Sam Winchester, you can't touch him," Desmond warned.

The vampire underling moped until he targeted his bloodlust toward Dean.

"What about that one?"

"If Ronan doesn't kill him, you can eat him."

Dean shifted his eyes to Buffy as Aedan slammed her head several times against a large metal container.

As the Slayer lay lifeless on the floor, Aedan gripped the hair on top of her head and roughly pulled her up. He slashed at her neck and watched the blood flow. He leaned closer and inhaled the blood rolling down her collar bone. His fangs flared and his eyes went red.

"Next time, I'll be hunting you!"

Aedan released his grip on Buffy. Her head hit the ground with a sickly thud.

"We're done here! Let's go," he commanded.

The vampires holding Sam down let go and fled in a flash. Dean dropped to the ground and desperately sucked in air. He rubbed his neck and then steered his eyes around. He glowered in disappointment when the Gallagher vampires had disappeared.

Hearing soft moans, Dean and Sam rushed over to Buffy. Sam grimaced when he looked down at the Slayer, her body crumpled against the ground. Dean staved off the panic blooming through his system as he knelt down and checked for a pulse. He exhaled in relief when he finally caught it, faint but present. Her eyes were swollen shut and blood streamed from the corner of her mouth. She had a large gash in her cheek and dozens of cuts and bruises all over her face and arms.

Dean bit back the grief gathering in his eyes as he gingerly scooped her up and carried her out of the plant.

"You gotta drive Sam."

Sam slid into the driver seat as Dean carefully placed Buffy in the backseat. He scooted in next to her as Sam fired up the car. Buffy whimpered before she lurched forward slightly, violently spewing dark blood from her mouth.

Dean gritted his teeth, beating back the horror invading his system.

"Shit, I think that bastard punctured a lung."

Dean hovered over her, checking her vitals when her body went pliant against him. Her face was sallow, her breaths were slow and her eyes were still shut. As Sam flew toward the highway on ramp, he frowned with anxiety.

"The only major hospital is fifty miles out."

Dean pulled his eyes away from Buffy and glanced through the windshield to gauge where they were. Sam intended to head into the metropolitan area of Indiana.

"No, not Indiana. Get us to the border."

After Dean rattled off directions, Sam pooled his geography knowledge as he made a sharp U turn. Jasper Creek was a small border town just inside the Ohio state line.

"And drive faster Sam."

Sam tamped down on the gas pedal, pushing the car passed one hundred miles an hour. Buffy mewed softly. Dean brushed his hand over her hair and cradled the back of her head. She moaned very softly again.

"Hold on honey, okay? Just hold on," Dean pleaded as he kissed her forehead.

After three miles, Sam saw the signs for the Jasper Creek off ramp. He spied a glance in the rear view mirror and caught his brother's anguished expression as he frantically checked Buffy's vitals.

After a half mile, Sam weaved the car up a dirt road through dense patches of forest until he was spat out onto a private road. He took the road until he saw a lone two story cabin sitting on three acres of land.

Dean swung the door open before Sam turned the car off. He delicately extracted Buffy out of the back and trudged quickly to the porch. He rapped anxiously on the door. After a minute, a light inside snapped on and then they heard a shuffling. A peek hole window slid open and a pair of blue eyes surveyed Dean and Sam cautiously.

"Calliope?"

"Who are you?"

"My name is Dean. Willow gave me your address in case of an emergency. Well, I've got a big one for you."

Calliope glanced at the badly beaten girl in his arms.

"Who is that?"

"Buffy Summers, the Slayer."

Calliope shut the peek hole window and quickly unchained the latches on the door. The door swung open and she stepped aside to let them in.

"You can put her down over here."

As she lead them through the house, Sam noticed all the occult and magic books on the shelves along with strange ingredients in jars. A framed document drew his immense interest as he hung back in the living area.

Dean set Buffy down on the bed as Calliope looked her over. She uttered a word and a blue light emanated from her hand. She slowly washed the light over Buffy.

"She has extensive internal injuries," Calliope said grimly.

"Can you fix her?" Dean asked anxiously.

"It will take some time," Calliope said. "You can wait around if you want."

Dean followed Calliope into the living room, her back length black hair swayed around her black jeans as she moved. Her blue heels clicked on the hardwood floors as she traipsed around the living room, collecting jars and vials from shelves and drawers.

Dean scanned the extremely tidy living area. He sauntered over to a cabinet that had several glass decanters inside. Sam eyed his brother as he plucked the lids off and took a sniff.

Dean flinched from the pungent smell wafting from one decanter. He snatched up the last decanter at the end and sniffed the brown liquid.

"Who puts blood in the same cabinet with cognac?"

Dean poured himself a glass as he glanced at Sam, perusing through a stack of magazines.

"What are those?"

"Medical journals. Did you know that Calliope went to Harvard Medical School?

Dean knocked back some cognac and snorted. "You're kidding, she's literally a witch doctor?"

"She practiced medicine for six years, she's been published in medical journals, she's very well respected in the medical community."

Sam tossed the journal back in the stack and glanced at the glass cabinets lining the room.

"I just wonder how she ended up from practicing medicine to practicing magic."

After refilling his glass, Dean shrugged and strolled through the room.

"Doesn't really matter as long as she can work some type of magic."

Sam absorbed the heavy knot of worry on his brother's face. Dean stopped at the window and stared out.

"We gotta find that sonofabitch so I can rip his fucking head off."

Buffy shuddered as a cold frost blasted through her. A thick fog roiled along the ground as she passed neighborhood after neighborhood of burnt down houses and buildings. The smell of death and destruction permeated the air. Hearing an eerie whisper, she stopped and honed in on the sound. Her gut tensed with dread as she swung around to see red glowing eyes staring at her through the fog.

The dense fog dissipated as Lucifer sauntered toward her with a cavalier smile.

"Hi honey, have you missed me?"

Dean wandered back into the bedroom to check on Buffy. He stood in the doorway as Calliope dusted Buffy with a strange colored powder. The powder glowed and absorbed into her body. Calliope turned her eyes over her shoulder.

"I stopped the internal bleeding and patched the hole in her lungs. She has three broken ribs, a fractured tibia and her right wrist is broken. I gave her something to help her sleep. She'll be out for awhile."

Dean drifted into the bedroom and paused beside the bed. Calliope had cleaned and dressed the wounds on Buffy's face and arms. A cast was fixed on her right wrist. Calliope dropped a blood soaked gauze in a small trash can.

"I hope whoever did this to her is in a lot worse shape."

"Not yet but he will be."

Buffy ran. She ran as fast as she could away from Lucifer but her efforts were always futile. He disappeared and reappeared wherever she was with that wicked grin. He snapped his fingers and she found herself sitting in a classroom. The temperature dropped to below thirty degrees. She shivered violently and her teeth chattered. Battle reenactments and pictures of Big Bads were plastered all over the walls of the classroom.

Lucifer stretched back in a chair, his feet planted on a desk, his hands cupped behind his head. He watched a film reel of the huge battle against the Turok Han vampires.

"Gotta say little bit, you're tactical strategies are quite impressive."

Lucifer snorted derisively as he waved his hand and made all the film reels and pictures disappear. He snapped his fingers and Buffy's fearful eyes watched as all her loved ones were lined up in the front of the classroom.

Lucifer rose from his chair and strutted toward her.

"Now, let's pick up where we left off, huh? What scenario number is this? Five hundred and forty something?"

Buffy trembled as the cold became unbearable. Her face and fingers were stiff with frostbite and her lips were blue. Lucifer cocked his head and snorted.

"What's the matter Slayer? Cold got your tongue? Let me give you a little motivation."

"The more she sleeps, well, you know. You can come by in the morning and check in on her."

"Call me if there's any change," Dean handed her a card with his phone number.

"Of course."

Lucifer flicked his hand, sending Buffy sailing across the room. She crashed into a wall and sunk to the floor. She moaned softly and remained on the floor with a defeated look on her face.

"Nothing? No death threat? No annoying pun? Have you finally accepted that no matter what you do, you can't win?"

Met with silence, Lucifer sighed in frustration.

"Get up."

Lucifer pointed his finger at Buffy and yanked her to her feet and held her in place with an invisible grip. Her friends surrounded her with weapons or magical devices.

"Ready, set, off they go."

Buffy watched helplessly as her friends charged toward Lucifer. Lucifer raised his hands in the air like a conductor and began to hum a tune as he picked off each of her friends.

Willow flew through the air, a giant hole burned into her gut. She was planted against the wall as her skin was peeled off inch by inch. Willow roared in agony.

"Nnnnno," Buffy said weakly.

Xander and Faith attacked Lucifer next. He held them in the air with a mere finger.

"Poor Xander saddled with one eye. Let me fix that."

Xander howled as Lucifer made a fist, ripping his other eye out.

"Stop it. Stop!" Buffy shrieked softly.

Lucifer cocked his head. "Did you say something? Sorry I was too busy torturing and maiming your friends. Now, let's see, what to do Faith…."

"Leave….them….alone…."

"I couldn't hear you," Lucifer taunted. He flicked his hand and Faith exploded.

Blood and tissue splattered all over the room. Giles bravely lunged at Lucifer. Lucifer held his palm out, freezing Giles in place. He swiped his finger across Giles' neck. Giles folded to the ground, bleeding out.

Lucifer set his eyes back to Buffy.

"There, it's down to just you, me and lover boy here."

Lucifer drew an evil smirk.

"Shall we play our game now?"

"No. No. No."

Buffy was pulled to Lucifer's side in a flash as a game wheel appeared out of thin air. She screamed in her head to wake up. She had to beat Lucifer back into the depths of her mind. Something weighed heavily against her, kept her woozy and weak. She had to tear through it and get away.

"Wheel….of….Torture!" Lucifer cheered. "Let's get our next contestant over here."

As the dulling sensation encroached upon her body, she shook herself fervently. She had to break free. She had to wake up. She knew what was coming and she couldn't watch it again. She'd already seen it a thousand times, a thousand different ways and every time she fell completely apart while Lucifer laughed victoriously. She had to get out.

Lucifer gripped Dean by the hair as the wheel spun rapidly. The wheel slowed to a stop.

"Ah, viewer's choice, excellent."

Lucifer chuckled as Buffy's hand unwillingly snapped up and pointed to a colored bar. She shook her head and shrieked, trying to jostle herself awake. She tried to shut her eyes but they were pried open as Lucifer prepared to dish out his next batch of torture...and then the environment shifted.

Buffy was washed in white fog as she stood in a sparse green field.

Lucifer looked past her and glowered in dismay as heavy footfalls echoed. Michael, in the vessel of John Winchester sauntered toward Lucifer with a scolding glare.

"Is this really necessary brother? What do you expect to accomplish with these nightly games?"

Lucifer sneered at Michael. "Daddy's obedient little dog's come to spoil my fun again."

Michael looked over the lashings on Buffy's arms, her blue swollen lips, her tattered clothing. He snapped his fingers and Buffy exhaled a long breath. She was wearing a flowing white dress and the scars on her arms were gone.

"What do you think you're doing?" Lucifer growled.

"What I've always done, cleaning up your mess brother."

Buffy backed up as Lucifer and Michael's argument drifted into a brutal fistfight as it did every night in her dreams. The fog swallowed her up and for a long time she was blind until the thick mist pooled away and she was sitting on a bed in a motel room. Same Time Next Year played on the TV.

"It's about time you got here."

Buffy stamped down on her lips as they quivered with emotion.

"I've waited so long for you to come back."

She steered her sights away from him. It hurt too much to look at him, to see that despondency pooling in his eyes.

"I'm not back. That girl – the one you want…...she's…..dead."

"No."

The sheer grief in that one word stirred up emotions she didn't want to feel.

"I'll bring her back," he said. "I'll do whatever it takes."

"What do you care? When she's gone, you just find another pretty face to look at. That's how it always is with you. That's how it always will be."

The environment shifted to the backyard at Bobby's house.

"I had a moment of weakness, okay? I didn't intend to go there. I didn't intend to get that shitfaced that night but when you're gone….sometimes I just don't know how to deal with all this crap…..so yeah, I did something stupid…..again….."

"I don't want to hear this."

"Just let me finish, okay? We just talked for awhile and…..and then….she invited me home…."

"Shut up, please just shut up. Shut your mouth!"

The environment shuddered and Buffy blinked rapidly as she found herself in the car, staring out the windshield. An old rock song crooned through the radio. She watched him sitting on a large rock, looking out at the water, a cooler of beers beside him. She stepped out of the car, warmth and joy filling up the emptiness in her heart. As she padded toward him, he glanced over his shoulder. Her eyes tightened with suspicion.

"You're not Dean," she said warily.

He turned around as his eyes glowed white.

"Smart girl."

"Michael. What do you want? Why did you bring me here?"

"I didn't bring you here, you did."

"What?"

"Think about it. Every time the darkness tries to swallow you up, when it becomes too much, you run away and take shelter in this memory. Have you ever asked yourself why? Because this is where it all started, with you and him, the moment you found true happiness. The one bright spot you're desperately clinging onto in this dark world."

Michael gazed up into the dark pockets of her mind.

"Is that why you're wearing his face?"

"Of course. I figured with this face, you'll be more willing to listen to what I have to say."

Buffy scoffed indignantly. "You know, I'm so sick of you and your brother. Whatever you have to say, you can just shove it. Now get out of him and leave me alone."

As she turned around, he appeared before her.

"Haven't you wondered why my brother hasn't been able to find you here?"

"I don't care! But I'm sure being a know it all Angel, you're gonna tell me anyway.."

"This space in your mind was created for you. You put the memory here to keep the last remnants of yourself away from his corruption. This place, this memory is locked deep inside your mind. My brother cannot trespass upon this sacred space for it was created by His Divine Hand."

Buffy frowned with disbelief. "Divine Hand? Are you saying God put a….safe place in my mind?"

"Yes."

"For what purpose?"

"You know."

"I really hate cryptic Angel talk."

A light shined in the distance. Buffy looked up in the vast darkness to see symbols flickering brightly.

"Interesting," Michael said.

Buffy tugged her eyes back to Michael as he studied the symbols.

"You've said that before."

As the symbols hummed, Buffy glanced upward again.

"Why is that always here? That's not part of this memory."

"It was meant for me," Michael stated succinctly. "It is why I can find you here and my brother cannot."

Buffy gazed out at the beams of moonlight reflecting off the water. A door in the horizon opened up. Michael waved his hand, slamming the door shut.

"You're not leaving, not yet."

Buffy peered out at the horizon trying to will the door open but a heavy presence pushed against her.

"Get out of my head," she seethed.

"Not until you hear what I have to say."

"And why should I?"

"Don't you recognize those symbols?"

Buffy gazed at the symbols for a moment and then it dawned on her. "They're Enochian but I can't read them."

"I can tell you what it says."

"Somehow I doubt you're just gonna tell me without some sort of condition."

A slow, sly smirk curled over his face.

"Smart girl."

Buffy shot up in bed, heaving deep gasps of exertion. She whipped her sights around an unfamiliar bedroom. She winced as she swung her feet to the carpet. She glanced at the cast on her wrist and then the brutal fight with Aedan flickered in her mind. She wobbled when she brought weight down on her right foot. Pain seared through her body as she shuffled into a hallway. She limped into a faintly lit living room.

"Buffy? What….how are you awake?"

Buffy hobbled a few feet, grabbing the arm of a couch to steady herself.

"You shouldn't be out of bed."

Buffy studied the dark haired woman sitting on a stool in the kitchen. The woman sashayed over, her brows furrowed with concern.

"Who are you?"

"Calliope, I'm a friend of Willow's."

Buffy crumpled against the couch arm as she was hit with a spell of dizziness.

"How did I get here?"

"Your friend Dean, he brought you to me. You were in very bad shape. You still are. You need to rest."

Calliope reached out to help her. Buffy shook her head and frowned at her.

"No, I'm done here. You're a friend of Willow's so you must have a transport potion of some kind. Give me one. Now."

Buffy tightened her frown as Calliope hesitated.

"You really should take it easy."

"And you really should stop telling me what to do," Buffy snapped. "Now I've still got one good hand so if you don't give me what I want, I'll knock you out and find it myself."

After a long moment, Calliope sighed and reluctantly opened a drawer. She handed Buffy a small branch. Buffy glanced at Calliope with a questioning glare.

"Snap it in half after you think about where you want to go," Calliope said.

Buffy crushed the branch in her hand and disappeared.

"Have you found anything?"

Dean fixed an anxious gaze on Sam who was sitting across from him at the table, scrolling through web pages on his laptop. After leaving Calliope's they checked into the closest motel to dive into more extensive research on the Gallagher clan.

"Nothing that would help us find him."

Dean flicked a page in the thick text he had taken from Duke's library.

"Fan-fucking-tastic. This has been a big waste of time."

Dean slapped his book shut as his cell phone hummed on the table. He glanced at the unidentified number before answering his phone.

"Hello?"

Sam looked up from the laptop when he heard the immense anxiety in his brother's voice.

"What?! When was this?" Dean dropped his eyes to the floor and bellowed with a sigh. "God dammit."

Dean pushed his chair from the table and snatched up his jacket.

"Well, how the hell are you gonna find her, she's shielded from magic….yeah, I'm on my way."

Dean hung up and slipped into his jacket as Sam pieced together what was happening.

"Buffy's gone?"

"She coerced Calliope into giving up a potion," Dean groaned as he picked up his car keys and fumed. "What the hell is wrong with her?!"

Sam got up to get his jacket but Dean put a hand up.

"Just stay here and keep researching Sam. I'll deal with this."

Dean swung the door open and charged out to the parking lot.

A short time later, Dean pulled into Calliope's driveway and bounded up to the door. He knocked roughly and heard the patter of heels on the tile. Calliope swung the door open and hastily walked back into the living room. He followed her to the table where she had a bowl with the bloodied gauze in it along with some crushed powder.

"So explain to me why you think this is gonna work? Willow's already tried every spell she knows."

"When I was healing Buffy's internal injuries, I spotted the magic shield. This particular one had a marker I recognized. Her name is Evony, an old mystic in New Orleans."

"You can tell who cast the spell just by looking at it?"

"Magic is unique to each person," Calliope explained. "Anyway, I made a call and Evony told me how to power down the shield."

"Just like that?"

"Let's just say I made it worth her while."

Calliope went back to the bowl and chanted a few words until bright green flames ignited within. She chanted another phrase and the flames blotted away. A single wisp of smoke floated into the air. Calliope blew the smoke toward a map. She tapped on the lit up location.

"She's there."

Dean glanced at the map and glowed with recognition.

A quick drive later:

Dean veered sharply to a stop in front of the manor. He lumbered quickly toward the manor, looking over the darkened windows. He tugged on the front door and sighed. After picking the lock, he pushed into the house and trekked up the stairs. Her bedroom was empty. He wandered through the halls, peering into the war room and training room. After checking all the rooms in the manor, Dean bounded out to the courtyard. As he peered into the dark horizon, he remembered a personal project Xander had mentioned and headed off toward the back of the property.

After a short hike, he glanced out at a guest house in various stages of renovation. He noticed a pile of wood on the front deck as well as a sanding machine. He tugged on the front door and found it unlocked. All the lights in the house were off except for a bare bulb in the hallway. Hearing faint grunts in the back, he followed the sound to an enclosed sun room being converted into a gym.

He exhaled a breath of relief and then anger as she attacked a heavy bag with her injured wrist. She tapped the bag with her broken leg and whimpered softly.

Dean shook his head and gritted his teeth. "Are you kidding me with this crap?!"

Buffy hung her fists in the air and sighed in exasperation. Instead of snapping at him, she went back to hitting the heavy bag with one punch combos.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Buffy threw a left cross as hard as she could. She growled when her injured leg wobbled from the impact. Fury ignited through her bones as she struck out her injured hand, punching through the pain. Dean rubbed his hands over his face.

"Jesus Christ, will you please just stop this shit? You just went a hundred rounds with King Douchefang and you can barely walk. So just cut this shit out and take it easy."

Buffy blew out a deep breath as she tossed a dark look at him before brushing past him. She picked up a water bottle on the table, took a sip and then started rummaging through her weapons bag. Her face tensed with irritation as she searched more thoroughly through her bag.

"Looking for these?"

Buffy scowled when she turned her sights and saw the three transport vials tucked inside his hand.

"Yeah, you're not gonna flush me away like last time."

She hardened her glare as she went back to striking the heavy bag with her good hand. Feeling his assessing gaze, she huffed a hard breath and stopped her combos. She reluctantly faced him, her eyebrows tight, her eyes glowering at his quiet study of her.

"If you don't quit staring at me Dean, I'm gonna punch you," she snapped.

"Well, I guess the Ice Queen's still around huh?"

"Just leave me alone," she said quietly, turning back to the heavy bag.

A tense silence slipped in between the echoes of her punches.

Guilt laced his tone as he snatched her injured hand a second before it struck the bag.

"I can't. I never should have in the first place. I've been so wrapped up in my own thunderstorm of crap that I didn't pick up on what's been going on with you."

Buffy flicked her hand out of his grip and frowned.

"There's nothing going on with me. I'm fine and I'm sick and tired of everyone assuming I'm not."

Since she refused to look at him, Dean circled the heavy bag until he was directly beside it. Buffy huffed as aggravation riddled her face.

"Move Dean or you're gonna get hit," she warned.

Dean shrugged, challenging her. "Take your best shot."

Her eyebrows pulled tighter as she growled in her throat.

"If you're not gonna leave, then I will!"

She marched toward the door, tugged on it and then frowned. Using more force, she yanked on the door a second time but it didn't budge. She growled in her throat again as she struck the glass window with her fist. It merely shimmered instead of cracking. Fury flashed in her eyes when the realization hit her. She whirled on her heel.

"You used magic to lock me in here?!"

"Courtesy of a witch doctor, Miss Flight Risk."

Buffy charged over to Dean with her fists flying.

"Let me go or I swear I will kick the crap out of you!"

He deflected her one handed attack with a simple grappling move. She tumbled face first to the ground. She threw her good hand out as pain rippled through her body. She pushed herself into a seated position on the floor as he drifted closer.

"What do you want from me?" she groaned.

"I want to know who or what set you off on this destructive rampage. I want to know why the hell you're so pissed at the world, at your friends. I want to know what's going on inside that head, why you'd burn bridges with the people who've stood by you since the beginning."

Buffy snorted resentfully. "Did you draw the short straw in having to tell me I hurt everyone's feelings? Well tell them to grow a pair because the Apocalypse is coming. They're all so pa-"

Dean expired a breath as frustration flared in his eyes.

"That's enough," he barked. "Just lay off them, okay? They don't deserve this crap you've been dishing 'em."

"Then they should stop butting into my business."

Buffy swerved around and then shook her head when Dean took a seat in the chair in front of her.

"They just miss their friend and they want her back. They're doing everything they can to save her from drowning in this pool of hateful crap."

"Sometimes you can't save everyone. You know that."

"Maybe not but that doesn't mean we stop trying."

"When did you become such a beacon of hope?" she sneered.

"It was something you said to me once. Are you so far gone you don't remember?"

Buffy dropped her eyes when his look of longing threatened to stir up unwanted feelings.

"I don't want to talk about this."

"Well too bad because I'm not leaving you alone until you do," Dean said adamantly. "So you can hit me, you can throw shade at me, you can scream at me until you're blue in the face…...or you can tell me what was so bad that you shoved yourself into this nasty suit of armor."

Buffy curled her good hand into a fist when she felt her heart trembling behind the cold emptiness. She kept her eyes trained on the floor.

"I can't," she said breathlessly.

"Why not? You used to keep me up for hours talking about everything and nothing."

"Things are different now."

"Obviously. Tell me why."

"No."

After a long moment, Dean got up and sighed.

"Okay, I'll come bother you again in a few hours."

"It doesn't matter what you say or do, nothing's gonna change Dean! So just deal with the person you see now because she's here to stay."

Buffy spied a glance as he gazed intensely at her.

"Not if I can help it. I'm gonna find a way to smash through this armor and then I'm gonna go searching for that girl that we all want back so bad and when I find her, I'm gonna say…... 'hey' and that….I've missed her…..I've missed her so damn much."

Tears streamed down his face as he searched her eyes for a second. She tore her sights away as the immense sadness welling in his eyes speared through the glacial walls around her heart. She sucked in a breath as she felt sharp pangs rippling in her chest. Her hands trembled, her lips quavered and her veins flooded with emotion. She shook her head, furious that despite all her efforts, all her defensive attacks, she felt her barriers rapidly cracking apart. She inhaled a deep breath, struggling to wrangle in the feelings rushing through her. She had to cut them off, flush them down or that girl, that girl he desperately wanted back would find her way out. She frowned when she felt moisture on her cheeks. She batted the tears away, batted the emotions away, batted THAT GIRL away.

Buffy shook her head fervently again as tears escaped her eyes.

Damn you Dean.

He couldn't just leave her alone. He couldn't just let that girl he once knew fade away into existence. No. He was going to fight for her. He was going to kick down every door, every wall she had built around herself. He was going to keep coming back until he found her. And eventually, he would. She could feel the frost in her heart warming over, feel that incessant numbness seeping out of her bones, feel his love bleeding into the core of her tattered soul. He was bringing that girl back to life.

Buffy dipped her face in her hands as four words echoed from the depths of her mind. Four words from the girl that had lost her way. Four words that would steer her back to the one she fiercely loved.

I've missed you too.

Buffy looked up as that girl peeked out for a fleeting moment but Dean was gone.