After a long and draining day at the police station, Spencer was more than ready to just crawl into bed and fall asleep. Unfortunately, his life was just too bizarre for that kind of luxury.

Dialing Dean's cell number, Spencer shut and locked the door to his motel room. As he waited for Dean to answer, he began to rummage through one of his bags until he found what he was looking for.

Before he had thought about joining the FBI, Spencer had decided to try living the life of a hunter. Dean and Sam weren't happy about that at all, but they had decided to go along with him. After all, that was the only way they could be sure that he would be as safe as possible. Originally, it was supposed to be both Winchester brothers hunting with Spencer. But after the disastrous fight between Sam and John, Dean and Spencer were the only ones willing to go hunting together.

Spencer only hunted with Dean for about a year before he decided to go study at CalTech, much to Dean's relief. But in that time, he and Dean had managed to compile their own journal filled with as much information and lore about every monster they hunted. Before they went their separate ways, Dean had insisted that Spencer keep the journal.

"Hey, this is Dean's other cell. If I'm not answering, I suggest you call the other other cell phone-" with an aggravated sigh, Spencer snapped his phone shut, cutting off the rest of Dean's snarky message.

He cracked open the journal and began leafing through the pages, searching for information on revenants, all while dialing the number for the other other cell.

"Hey, this is Dean's other other cell. If I'm still not answering, then I'm probably lying in a ditch somewhere with some sort of limb torn off-"

"I'm going to kill him," Spencer groaned. Tossing the phone onto the bed, he found the information he was looking for, quickly storing it away in his vast memory.

A detached part of him marveled at how easily he slipped back into the role of a hunter, even after all this time. It was just too easy for him to ignore everything in the "normal" world-for lack of a better term-and immerse himself once more in the supernatural world.

And the reality was, Spencer was very good at being a hunter, whether Dean and Sam liked it or not.

His cell phone rang, cutting into his thoughts. "Hey Dean," he answered. "It's about time. Where are you?"

"Don't get your pocket protectors in a bunch Poindexter," Dean teased. "We're about five minutes away from the motel. Grab your stuff; we're going a-hunting."

"Joy," said Spencer drily. Nonetheless, he cut the connection and began to round up the things necessary for tonight. Fortunately there wasn't much. Whatever he didn't take, the Winchesters were bound to have with them.

As soon as he spotted the headlights flashing past his window, Spencer grabbed his bag and walked out the door. Being the cautious bastards that they were, Dean parked a little away from Spencer's actual room. Jogging over, he leaned down to grin wryly into the driver's side window.

"You know, this wasn't exactly how I envisioned our reunion going," he remarked.

"Yeah, but you can't really say that you're surprised, can you?" Dean replied.

"No, not really. Hey Sam," Spencer greeted the younger Winchester.

"Hey Spence. You ready to get back in the game?" Sam grinned.

"I don't think I ever really left," Spencer mused, yanking open the Impala's back door. He slipped familiarly into the back seat and shut the door, not noticing the curious set of eyes that had seen everything.

As they drove away, Spencer shifted so that he sat in the middle of the back seat and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hand. In any other car, Spencer normally would have instantly buckled up and sat back. But there was something about the Impala that made him feel safe and a tad reckless.

Or maybe it was the fact that he was with Sam and Dean again.

It was illogical and completely irrational, considering these two were the world's strongest magnets for death and doom. And yet Spencer felt such a strong sense of ease with them that he just couldn't get with the BAU, no matter how much he wanted that.

The others didn't know anything about his other life and he would make sure that they never knew.

He and his teammates have one of the best and worst jobs in the world. On one hand, they get to make sure that there are people who can sleep better at night believing that there are people out there working to keep them safe. The relief in their eyes and the reverent thank-yous are what truly keep them going.

On the other hand, they have to live with the nightmares and the constant paranoia and the fear that one day they won't be going home again.

But Spencer knew that while they did suffer in their jobs, hunters had it ten times worse. There was no way that he would willingly expose his teammates and beloved friends to the darker side of his life. They needed to cherish what happiness they had in their lives without knowing about and fearing the supernatural.

"Spence. Hey Poindex!" Dean's fingers snapped repeatedly in front of his face, snapping Spencer out of his thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"You okay? You look way out of it."

"I'm fine," Spencer said dismissively. "Where are we headed?"

"Cemetery. We figure that we should at least make sure that we're dealing with a revenant before actually hunting this thing."

"…Her name was Shelby."

"What?" both Sam and Dean turned back to look at him. Spencer narrowed his eyes at Dean.

"My team talked to some of the students that went to the same school as all of the victims. Everyone mentioned a girl named Shelby Harper." Spencer lowered his gaze downward to hide his sudden anger remembering the dismissive tone used by the teenagers in describing her and her situation.

"She was being bullied by Jay Oliver and the other victims, wasn't she?" Sam asked, the sympathy evident in his voice.

"They didn't care!" Spencer suddenly burst out, jerking his face back up to face the boys. "None of them did! Not the teachers or the students. And according to her parents, it got so bad that she couldn't even leave her house."

Spencer's mind alternated between showing him the dispassionate faces of the witnesses and his own memories of his high school days. In these types of cases he really tried to keep his distance and view everything objectively. But it was hard when he had to deal with a mind that wouldn't let him forget his own suffering.

"Spencer." Dean's voice managed to bring his mind back to the present.

"I know, I know. I just need to…to distance myself. But you know how hard it is for me, Dean," Spencer said almost pleadingly.

"Spence, believe me, I know. But right now you have to be able to focus on the case. You can't let yourself think of the revenant as a person because we all know that she can't be saved. The best we can do is stop her from hurting other people," Dean said gruffly, half his attention on the road and the other half on Spencer. Spencer only sighed and leaned his head against the back of Sam's headrest while closing his eyes.

Eventually, he felt Sam's hand land gently on his shoulder. "Wake up Spence. We're here."

He blinked a few times before groggily climbing out of the car. "How long was I asleep?" Spencer asked as he stretched his arms.

"Not long; about 10 minutes. You looked like you could use the rest," Sam said carefully, watching Spencer closely. Spencer eyed Sam critically, and then gave a small chuckle.

"Sam, I'm a profiler. And I know when people are trying to do the same to me," he said, looking around and seeing Dean at the trunk of the Impala pulling out a couple of shovels and sawed-offs.

"Are you okay, Spence?" Sam asked quietly. Spencer turned his head back to face him.

"I'm as fine as can be, Sam. My job has its psychological hazards, as does yours. It's only a few nightmares."

Sam had the look on his face where he wanted to keep pressing, but luckily Dean arrived at that moment.

"Well alrighty then ladies, let's go," Dean drawled with a jerk of his head towards the cemetery gates. Pulling out a flashlight out of his bag, Spencer began shining the light on the tombstones, looking for Shelby Harper's grave.

"You guys do realize that if we don't find evidence of a revenant here, then we'll have to go back to the ghost theory," Sam pointed out.

"I…don't think that will be necessary, Sam," Spencer said. Dean and Sam, who had been walking ahead of him, stopped and turned to look at him. Meanwhile he was staring at Shelby's grave.

Or what was left of it.

Before anyone could say anything about what they were seeing, all three heard a twig snap behind them. Dean, Sam, and Spencer whirled around, guns pointed and ready to shoot, only to come face-to-face with…

"Emily?"

SPN~CM

Well. Wasn't this awkward.

Judging from the stunned horror on both Spencer's face as well as the lovely and very attractive brunette's face, their newcomer was one of Spencer's teammates.

"Emily?" Spencer croaked out. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Dean cataloged that name in his memory. Right now, however, the rest of his mind was busy figuring out the damage control needed to fix this unexpected situation.

"Reid…what the hell is going on?" Emily asked, taking in the shotguns pointed at her body. Almost on instinct she had raised her hands in a placating gesture. Spence must have noticed at the same time he did because he hurried to lower his gun and motioned for him and Sam to do the same.

"How did you find me?" Spencer asked, effectively deflecting her question.

"I saw you getting into a car back at the motel, and since I knew it wasn't with any of the team I decided to follow…I needed to make sure you were okay," she said. Emily looked glanced around and locked eyes with Dean. He was all set to deliver one of his snarky-one liners along with a roguish grin when she inhaled sharply, recognition dawning in her eyes.

"Dean Winchester," she breathed, her right hand automatically going for the gun at the small of her back.

"No! Emily, please calm down. I can explain everything, but I would really appreciate it if you could refrain from shooting Dean. He's not what you think," Spencer pleaded as he moved to stand in front of Dean.

"He's not what I…Spencer, how can you say that? You saw what he's done! And he's supposed to be dead! They both are!" Emily said, her voice rising in panic as she glanced pointedly at Sam.

"Well apparently I'm not," Dean interjected. Sam wisely decided to stay silent.

"Shut up," Spencer and Emily said at the same time. Dean rolled his eyes but kept quiet.

"Just let me explain! Okay, you know how it said in Dean's case file that he was possibly suffering from a mental breakdown because he thought he was hunting ghosts and demons and all of that? Well, he's not crazy, Emily. It's all true, everything," Spencer said earnestly. Dean could practically feel his puppy eyes burning a hole in Emily's face.

"…You mean to tell me that you actually believe in…ghosts, and stuff?" Emily asked slowly, obviously not comprehending what was being told to her.

"I don't just believe it Emily. I…" Spencer sighed and ran his hand through his girly hair.

Dean felt a deep sympathy for him. Letting someone get close to this side of their lives was always a bitch, which was why they avoided getting close to anyone at all costs. But Spencer shouldn't have had to worry about that. Cursing himself, Dean could only blame himself for dragging Spencer along with them. If only he and Sam had taken care of the revenant without Spencer, they could have blown town in no time with the Feds none the wiser. But now with one of Spencer's teammates here and effectively connecting the dots, they were screwed.

"Spence."

Dean focused back onto Emily's face, and his heart sank. She thought he was crazy. He could see it in her eyes. And the only way to get that notion out of her head would be to show her proof of the supernatural. Unfortunately, it wasn't up to him or Sam. It was up to Spencer.

He could either show her the proof, which would mean opening a door that couldn't be shut and letting her in to that darkest part of his life. Or he could let her think he was crazy, which would mean protecting her from this life, but effectively ruining his own.

"Emily, I've—" Spencer began but was interrupted.

"Oh, hell," Sam groaned, looking just past Emily's shoulder. Dean leaned to look around both Spence and Emily and let loose a curse.

"Emily, get behind us," Spence's voice had hardened as he had spotted what Dean and Sam had. Unfortunately, Emily chose instead to whirl around and stare at what was coming.

"What the hell?" she gasped. "What is that?"

"That is Shelby Harper. Or at least what's left of her," Dean said grimly. In order to get Emily out of the line of fire, he grabbed her hand and yanked her back so that she wasn't in the way. Of course that also meant that she went and collided with Dean's chest. As Sam and Spencer aimed their guns at the revenant headed their way, Emily managed to stop her nose from smashing into Dean's torso by putting her palms up. Whipping her head up to face him, Dean clearly saw the fear and suspicion written on her face even in the dim moonlight.

"You have to believe us," he began urgently, pulling them both back so that Sam and Spence could get a clear shot. Of course now it fell to him to try and convince Emily that they weren't all a bunch of lunatics.

"Why the hell should I believe you?" she hissed.

"Because there's your proof right there," he gestured to the approaching monster. "That used to be Shelby Harper. All of the victims killed were connected to her because they bullied her. We believe that since they drove her to kill herself, Shelby came back to the world of the living to get her revenge on those who made her life miserable."

"So you're telling me that the person responsible for all of these killings is a zombie?"

"Not exactly. Look, if you'll let us, we'll explain later. But right now, we can stop the killings if we gank her," Dean looked over to the boys and felt his heart skip a beat as Shelby launched herself at Sam, clearly intending to take his head off.

"Sam!" Dean roared, letting go of Emily to raise and aim his shotgun. Fortunately, Spencer was faster and had a shot roaring off that blew Shelby off target. Shelby let out a shriek, showing off her rotting teeth, and decided to aim for the most vulnerable person in their merry group: Emily.

One thing about these revenants was that they were fast sons of bitches. Before Dean could even register the revenant's change of course, she had tackled Emily to the ground and was all set to tear her to pieces.

"Oh hell no bitch," Dean growled. He wanted to make a clear shot and aim at her heart, but that would have meant hitting Emily, and he wasn't going to risk that. So instead he aimed for a rib in hopes of getting the bitch away from Emily and gaining a clear shot in the process.

Shelby was blown off of Emily, who was now writhing on the ground moaning in pain. But she seemed smarter than she looked, because when she realized that she was outnumbered and being cornered in, she took off.

"Dammit, she's getting away!" Sam ran after her, shotgun in hand. Dean tracked his brother until he made it to the gates. When Sam turned back with an aggravated look on his face and a shake of his head, Dean turned his attention to Emily.

"We need to get her to a hospital," Spencer said from where he was kneeling next to Emily. Dean dropped to his knees to get a better look at her wound. Before he had managed to get Shelby off of Emily's back, she had managed to give her a semi-deep claw mark which ran from Emily's right shoulder to just short of her spine.

"No…hospital," Emily groaned as she turned her head so that her cheek was laying on the grass. "Can't have the team find out."

"Can you walk?" Dean asked as Sam rejoined them.

"Mm, I think so. Might need a little help, though," she gasped as both Dean and Spencer helped her slowly get to her feet.

"I'm so sorry Emily," Spencer began apologizing in earnest. Emily merely chuckled and looked at him.

"This isn't your fault Spencer. And you should look on the bright side," she said, trying not to show her pain as they walked.

"There's a bright side?" Dean asked incredulously.

"Yeah," she replied, turning her head to look him in the eye. "I believe you now."

SPN~CM

Ah! I'm so sorry for the big delay guys! I honestly didn't mean for me to put off writing the chapter, but I actually had some major writer's block with this chapter until about two days ago. But hopefully you like this chapter! Made it extra-long as my apology to you guys! Hope you enjoyed!