Taking their appearance into consideration, they snuck past the guards to the Impala. Once they were speeding away from the plant, Sam reached for his phone to call Bobby.

"Really?" Sam exclaimed.

Raven gave him a sideways glance. "What is it, Sam?"

"I have five missed calls from Dean." No sooner were the words out of his mouth and his phone lit up. He put it on speaker.

"Why wouldn't you answer your damn phone?!"

Sam sighed, "I'm sorry Dean but I was a little busy drowning a bunch of supernatural rodents and sneaking away from the scene of the crime!"

"Whatever. Is Raven ok?"

"Hey, Dean, I'm fine. Went off without a hitch."

Sam interjected, "That's not exactly true. Could you get Bobby to check the lore and find out if there are any effects from a gremlin bite?"

"A gremlin bite? Raven, did you get bit?" Dean said, sounding a bit alarmed.

"Oh for heaven's sake, Dean, I got bit in the finger. I'm not dying or anything. Calm the hell down." Raven was exhausted and everyone's overreaction was getting on her nerves.

"Sammy, I'm on it. Take care of her, please."

"I am sitting right here and I am a fucking doctor! Both of you stop treating me like I am a child!" Raven half screamed.

"Call me back when you have something, Dean." Sam quickly ended the call and pocketed his phone.

Raven had the wound stitched up and bandaged before Sam had gotten out of the shower. She had doused it with holy water before disinfecting it, just to be sure. All the commotion was completely uncalled for. She'd been hunting by herself for years and had been injured much worse than a stupid bite.

She huffed as she was cleaning up her supplies. She could understand concern, especially from Sam but Dean went over the top. Wait a second, how did he know she had been hurt? That was the second time he'd called to check on her after she had felt pain. She felt a tingle in the base of her spine and reached for her phone just as it rang. It was Dean.

"Hello Dean, any news?

"Well, apparently there are no ill effects from a gremlin bite. So, good news there." His voice sounded relieved, even happy.

"That's good to hear. Thanks for letting me know so quickly." As much as she hated to admit it, it was good to hear from him.

"No problem. Just glad you are going to be ok. Sounded like it was rough."

Raven chuckled, "Nah. I was in a hurry because we were running short on time and tried to drown two of them at once. One of them slipped out of my hand and bit me when I grabbed for him. Little bastards are mean."

Dean laughed, "Sounds like it. Wish I could have been there for that one."

"Me too, Dean," she admitted, "I'll fill you in on all the details when we get back. Sam and I are going to grab some sleep and then we'll hit the road."

Dean sighed a little, "Good. I am going crazy here."

"How are your ribs?"

"Good, real good. The bruises are turning yellow and I haven't needed any pain meds today."

Raven smiled, "Excellent. I'll check them out when we get there. You just might be able to get back on the road with us."

"Awesome." He sounded pleased.

"Hey Dean?"

"Yeah?"

"You know, you've called to check on me twice now when I was hurt. How did you know?" She asked softly.

He paused, sighed, and answered just as softly, "I just did. G'night, Raven." And he hung up.

She took the phone away from her ear and stared at it, smiling.

Raven was sitting on the end of the bed, smiling at her phone when Sam came out of the bathroom. He took a second to look at her and it was wonderful to see her smile. Those had been few and far between lately.

"Any news?" Sam asked.

She jumped a little and grinned at him, blushing slightly, "That was Dean. There are no ill effects from a gremlin bite."

Sam let out a relieved sigh. "Let's get to work on bandaging you up then."

Raven lifted her right hand to show him her handy work. "Already done."

He had to admit, he was impressed. She did that with her left hand. It was so easy for him to forget she had a life before hunting.

"You ready for bed?" he asked gently.

She nodded vigorously. "I am exhausted."

He turned down the sheets and they both settled in. He was going to reach for her but thought better of it. After last night, he thought she might not want to be near him. But she rolled right over into his arms and sighed deeply. Having this woman trust him was a balm for his soul. He squeezed her tight and kissed the top of her head.

"Good night, Raven."

She did not answer as she was already breathing deep and regular. Sam smiled into her hair and inhaled the scent of her shampoo.

The trip back to Bobby's was uneventful. Basically driving non-stop, they made it in a little over two days. They were both eager to get home and the closer they got, the happier Raven seemed to be. She wasn't about to admit it but she could hardly wait to see Dean. She missed him. Sam tried not to notice but it was pretty obvious.

Sam and Raven told the tale of the hunt over grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. In hind sight, it was funnier than they had remembered it being. Even Dean was impressed with Sam's description of how Raven had taken out that guard. Sam was making her out to be some sort of ninja. Raven was blushing profusely. Dean couldn't help thinking that the warmth looked good on her peaches and cream skin. She was smiling and happy and he couldn't take his eyes off her. But neither could his brother. It was so obvious how Sam felt. There was a seed of jealousy growing in Dean's heart. She slept in her brother's arms every night. Who knows? They could have fucked by now. But as soon as the thought crossed Dean's mind, it was dismissed. Because when she returned Sam's stare, it wasn't love she was feeling. How he knew this, he had no idea. He shook his head to clear it and when he looked up from the table, her indigo eyes were on him. And god help him, there was love in her gaze. His heart squeezed in his chest and he stopped breathing. Holy shit, Raven loved him. How did he not see this before?

Sam asked her a question and she glanced away. Dean took that moment to excuse himself. He made a beeline for the door and outside where he could think. Oh man, this is not going to end well.

Raven stood and stretched, relaxed finally after such a tense few days. She told Sam and Bobby she was going to check her email and catch up on some correspondence from home. Going up the stairs to her room, she continued to smile, feeling content.

She was changed into her pajamas and was reading an email from her brother giving her a recap of her niece's third grade play when she heard a shrill ring from her duffle. It was her satellite phone. Dread filled the pit of her stomach. No one used that phone unless it was an emergency.

She answered it quickly, "Hello?"

Listening carefully, her hands started to tremble, "Oh god no. No. No. Oh please no."

A/N: If you are enjoying the story, please review and let me know. Reviews feed the muse. ;) I have another chapter fic I am publishing now as well. It's called From Here to Now to You. Check it out if you like. :) Also, if you have a request for a one-shot, drop me a PM and I'll see what I can do. Thank you for reading!