A/N: Vivi here! NEW FIC! This one takes place a few hours after Family Practice ended because I'm the kind of author who hates big time jumps for some reason (I'm working on that though). Yes, this is a continuation of two earlier stories. I'm trying to write this one so that if you haven't read both Internal Medicine (which introduces our protagonists, antagonist, and plotline) and Family Practice (which clarifies the plotline to this fic and develops the characters a bit more, also introduces our second antagonist) you should still be able to follow along. That being said, it will mean so much more if you take the time to read those two MASSIVE fics before this one. If you say to yourself 'Self, I'm a busy person and I really don't want to read a story with 118,009 words and another with 209,977 words before I start this one', then I'll give you a quick summary (the very next paragraph in this author's note) before I plunge you into the lives of Sam, Dean, and my OC, Ali (who is called Ali by Sam, and Li (pronounced Lee) by Dean, for reasons explained in Internal Medicine).

Summary of Internal Medicine (without spoilers): Ali was a medical student when she was possessed by a demon named Francesca. Cas saves her (see my fic titled Saving Allison) and brings her to the Winchesters for help. She lives with them at the bunker for five months in suffocating fear before they really get to know each other. From there it's a whirlwind of wendigoes, a de-aged character, a weakened angel, some more-than-friendly bonding, bloody pants, and one mysterious bright spot on Ali's soul.

Summary of Family Practice (this has some spoilers for IM, so if you want to read Internal Medicine, turn back now!): Ali's pregnant. Cas knows it. She knows it. She makes Cas promise not to let the Winchesters know it. They train her up as a hunter, causing some scary situations, near-misses, awkward heart to hearts, and heart-warming bonding before she's allowed to help them on cases. Her first real, big case turns out to be a little more than she can handle. She couldn't hide the baby forever, after all. The main plotline of FP wraps up with a neat, happy, pretty little bow in the last chapter.

This new fic, Enter the World, is a continuation of the loose ends left in IM and FP (if you couldn't already guess). I'm not sure how long it will be; I've only got the first two chapters written. But it certainly won't be short! I'm not into that sort of thing.

Just FYI, this is an AU timeline. It diverged sometime during season four, the guys got the bunker way earlier, and the year is 2010. Dean is 31, Sam is 27, Ali is 25. It's early September-ish when this fic starts.

Warnings for language (just expect that in all the following chapters, half the time I can't remember if I've thrown those words in or not), references to rape, self-harm, and miscarriage, violence, abuse, pregnancy, kidnapping, and sex. If any of these are a problem for you, it's not worth reading this story. Your health and wellness should come first!

And by the way, the first scene or two are purely dialogue; the whole fic is NOT like that. I promise.

Now, to those of you who are returning to continue reading my words, welcome back! I've missed you! Please enjoy 'Enter the World'.

"Took you long enough."

"You ever replace an oil filter on a car from the dinosaur age, Princess?"

"I'm still not a princess, and no. Can't say that I have."

"Exactly. And you didn't even have to learn that valuable skill 'cuz motor oil is teratogenic. How's the view from that pedestal, Your Highness?"

"Dean, it wasn't even that hard. It only took us like ten minutes and half of that was you bitching at me for spilling some oil on the floor. And in case you haven't noticed, Ali is definitely not on a pedestal here. Ever wonder why our shirts don't smell like beer anymore? Yeah, that's because she doesn't use alcohol to iron when she does laundry."

"You could have ironed your own shirts, Sam. You're just taking her side because she has you wrapped around her little finger. I bet you're glad we were sentenced to all the heavy duty chores."

"I am. Unlike her, we can't kill the baby by breathing in chemicals or lifting things over ten pounds. Y'know what? Can we just go already? Arguing isn't helping anything. We're just wasting time."

"Oh, now both of you are trying to rush me?"

"Dude. Seriously? Just because you're sick doesn't mean you can turn into a frickin' drama queen. I'm sick, too, remember? Do you see me having a meltdown?"

"Yeah but you don't have the pukes, Sam."

"I have a fever and a headache to kill a rawhead, but no, I have not been puking. And you haven't thrown up in hours, dude. You probably had some kind of twenty four hour bug."

"Don't belittle my condition."

"Guys, can we just go? We really do need to get Sam's fever down and we ran out of ibuprofen earlier."

"Y'know what? Whatever. Load up, we're wasting daylight."

"Alcohol?"

"No."

"Meds?"

"Just safe ones."

"Vitamins?"

"Yes."

"Never saw any around."

"I hid them in an aspirin bottle in my sock drawer."

"Why hide 'em? You could have taken vitamins and that wouldn't have been weird at all."

"It says 'prenatal' in big red letters on the bottle and on the capsule itself."

"What about doctors? Have you seen anyone yet?"

"Just Cas. He, uh, he knows when something happens to the baby. That's what my latest tattoo does; it links Cas and the kid so he can help out if anything goes wrong."

"How long has Cas known?"

"He was the one who told me. He saw the new soul right after he got his juice back. Y'know, when the Cas-plosion happened and that book hit my head?"

"Seriously? Gonna kick some halo-ass here pretty soon."

"Dean, cool it. At least she had someone to monitor the baby."

"I'm just sayin', someone should have told us."

"Dude, she said she was scared. Don't be a jerk about it."

"I also made Cas promise not to tell you."

"Why?"

"I wasn't sure you'd want to be a part of his life."

"Ali, of course we would. You're already family. That kid is guilty by association."

"Yeah, you've known you're family for a while now. Why wouldn't you ask for help, Li? I mean, come on. The nausea, the cramps, the cravings; those were kind of hard to miss."

"You- you noticed that stuff?"

"Your 'stomach issue' cover went further than you'd think."

"I knew it all along."

"Dean, shut up. You did not."

"Well I was thinkin' it."

"But you didn't do anything about it."

"I asked a couple times. She said she wasn't."

"No, I didn't. I just accused you of accusing me of being pregnant all the time. That usually steered the conversation in my favor. I didn't lie to you."

"…clever girl."

"Look, we all know it would have been helpful to acknowledge the kid as soon as someone knew about him, but what matters is that we know now. And it's only been twelve weeks."

"I just can't wrap my head around the fact that you voluntarily went through training- intense, dangerous training- while carrying a tiny human around inside you. I could've killed him during any one of our combat sessions. He could've died when you fell in that grave. What if a demon hurt you when we were clearing Bobby's house? You were drugged on the last case. Y'know, I can't even count how many times that kid has been in danger. And you know what it would feel like if we found out you miscarried because we didn't know about that baby?"

"…You'd feel like you killed him yourselves."

"Damn straight."

"I was careful, okay? I didn't take unnecessary risks and-"

"I think I'd call hand to hand combat training, digging a grave in the rain, taking down a demon and a shifter solo, investigating a gross, sweaty, alcohol fueled club knowing you might get attacked or freakin' drugged, and, oh, I don't know, attempting to take down a siren with your bare hands unnecessary risks."

"Dean."

"What, Sam?"

"It's over. So get over it."

"Bitch."

"Whatever, dude. Look, Ali, I'm not saying I condone what you did, but I understand why you did it. I wouldn't want to be isolated for weeks on end either. But if you'd have just let us know what was going on, we could have been more careful. We could have provided for you, chosen safer cases-"

"I didn't want to be treated any differently. I'm not some delicate little princess who has to be kept in a tower. Tell me, honestly, what would you have done if I would have told you guys I was in the family way when Cas first told me?"

"You'd have been grounded. Bunker nerd 'til that kid could go to school."

"Dean, c'mon. Not helping. Ali, you know you could have taken up another role. Less foot soldier and more… brains of the operation. Bobby taught you- hell, he taught all of us- how to research for cases and help on the fly. You didn't have to be with us in the field all the time."

"So, basically, I'd be an isolated bunker nerd."

"Yeah, but at Bobby's house. No way would we leave you unprotected. And if we did, knowing you, you'd just try to follow us. Couldn't take the risk, Li."

"Now Bobby's house is my tower, huh, Dean?"

"Guess that makes Bobby a dragon, don't it?"

"Okay, it doesn't matter what we could have done. Let's focus on what we do now."

"Well, now we're on our way to pick up baby fertilizer and fat pants."

"We're going to the store for tissues and cold meds, Dean. For you and Sam. And I'm well stocked in the vitamin department, thank you very much."

"But you're starting to show, right? Your belly is getting bigger?"

"Yeah…"

"So, maternity clothes. We get them now before you need them and have to walk around looking like Chunk all the time."

"Did you really just make a Goonies reference?"

"It's a valid comparison. Don't hate on the little dudes."

"I didn't say a word."

"I won't need new clothes for like eight weeks, Dean. He's not growing that fast."

"I stand by my plan of action."

"Whatever."

"Should we get pickles and fries and milkshakes while we're in town, too?"

"Don't mock me, Winchester."

"We do need to think of something for dinner. Anything sound good, Ali?"

"You're just trying to butter her up, aren't ya? None of that funny business in the bunker while I'm around."

"Dude, shut up."

"Uh, too late."

"Aw, c'mon! That's weird!"

"Did you hear it? Did you even know?"

"No!"

"Then I don't see how you would know about it if it happens again."

"Do not. Even. Think about it."

"Dean, you're gonna miss the turn-"

I was half certain that the little red car was up on two wheels as Dean made the hard right into the parking lot of the local superstore. "No backseat drivers."

I just rolled my eyes. "I'm literally right beside you, in the front seat."

"We have to be quick in there, okay?" Sam started. "The last thing we need is to be ID-ed in our hometown."

"What do we need, exactly?" I crossed my arms, trying to make a little more room in the tiny two seater. Not an easy task with two obnoxiously tall, solidly built people encroaching on you from both sides. Dean pulled into a parking space, far from most of the vehicles so our only remaining car wouldn't get scratched. We'd had to listen to him throw a mini-fit over Cas leaving his Baby in Utah when he zapped us out of danger after the last case, but he got over it quickly enough when Sam said they'd go get it as soon as they could.

"Tissues, cold meds…" Dean started. "Pepto. And lemon juice."

"Lemon juice? For what?" I asked, boggled by the bizarre request.

"Morning sickness."

"M-morning sickness? Dean, is there something you aren't telling us?" Sam asked, a huge grin on his face.

Dean might have blushed, just a little. "I might have read a couple things on the internet. Said it could help. Sue me."

"Thanks, Dean." My heart kind of melted. Cas couldn't have picked a better family to plop me into.

Sam shook his head and laughed. "I need ibuprofen, coffee, milk, and apples."

"Health nut."

"Well, we ran out of cereal this morning, and I need lotion and cheap flip flops."

"Flip flops?"

"Easy to put on. Think about it."

"Right."

"You don't want one of those baby name books?" Dean sent his best shit-eating grin at me through the rearview mirror.

In all honesty, I hadn't even thought about a name yet. "I- uh- I don't think I'm ready for that yet."

"We've got a while before any of that needs to happen." Sam said, sensing my discomfort. "Let's just get this over with."

Our game plan was to split up- Dean to the pharmacy section and Sam and I to the market section. I knew Dean wouldn't let me go off on my own, which was probably a smart thing, but I wanted so badly to make a scene. Trouble was, I was so tired of arguing. And I would get to spend more time with Sam, which was something I still craved, especially after last night.

"Okay, so Dean's getting the medicines, tissues, and lotion, right?"

"Yup." I replied, lazily taking in the huge store, which was as empty as I would expect for mid-afternoon on a weekday. Housewives browsed cheap clothing and wine while their children hid in the clothing racks and ran, some of them screaming or yelling, through the aisles.

"He won't be like that, right?" Sam watched a kid run into a nearby aisle, followed closely by her mother, who was pleading for her to stop and quiet down. Sam looked mildly terrified.

"At some point, yes. He will be. All kids are. But it doesn't last, especially if the parents are attentive and consistent. We'll be fine." I said, tugging his hand away from the scene and towards the produce section. "How's that shoulder?" I asked, trying to get his mind off of the impending doom he was probably feeling. Ah, fatherhood.

"It, uh, it's okay. Dean just bruised it. The sling helps but I won't need it for very long. So, he's really going to do that?"

"Relax, Sam. One step at a time."

We picked up the apples and coffee, then the lemon juice and milk. Our last stop was the cereal aisle; we paused just inside, to get out of the way of a mother and her three children. The object of our quest just so happened to be right where we stopped. "Do you like the stuff we've been getting? Cuz it's too sugary for me and I don't think-"

"Run!" I instinctively grabbed Sam's arm as he leaned out of the aisle to look around the corner. Alarmed, I moved to see what was going on.

There was Castiel, sprinting at us from far down the main aisle.

He ran headlong into an overweight woman as she hurried out to see what was going on.

Actually, scratch that. He tackled the woman and stabbed her with his knife. Light literally left her eyes and flashed a few times before she went limp.

"Sam." I gasped and pulled hard on his sleeve, putting us both into motion, sprinting back down the cereal aisle. "Ambush."

A middle aged man with black eyes blocked our escape route; I slowed. This time, Sam grabbed ahold of me and kept right on going.

He had the knife. The knife. I'd asked a few times why they always insisted on having it with them. Now I knew.

The man was dispatched and we heard screaming from the far side of the store. Then someone was yelling something about an ambulance from near where Cas was before we ran. "Not good. Not good." I panted, trying to see all around us as we made our way to the exit.

Apparently I wasn't a very good lookout.

Something grabbed my free arm and jerked me backwards, breaking Sam's grip. I fell to my knees, but something hauled me to my feet and started dragging me away backwards. Sam slid to a stop on the polished concrete floor before coming back at us.

I suppressed a scream as Sam ran at me with murder in his eyes. My whole body went rigid and my eyes slammed shut, bracing for the impact I knew was coming. Adrenaline flooded my body, but still, I couldn't move. Get out of the way, move, run, he'll kill you! He'll kill you both! Images of that club, the blood on the floor, the dying siren, Sam standing over me, kicking me, killing me; all of it flooded my head and paralyzed me.

The hand on my arm fell away with the gurgling sounds of death and was replaced by a bigger one. It pulled, but I couldn't move aside from the strong tremble that had begun to make my body useless.

"No, Ali, it's me. It's Sam. Please don't do this now. Not now." The hand pulled harder and I stumbled forward, almost losing my balance. The only think keeping me upright as I ran was that hand.

"Stop."

I peeled my eyes open and there, in front of us, beyond Sam, stood an employee of the store. Just a kid, probably not even twenty one yet. His eyes flashed black and part of me mourned for his loss. He didn't deserve this.

Sam and I cringed as a loud, piercing ring popped a few lights. Then a burst of pure white had us looking away, covering our eyes. The ground even shook a little.

"Cas." Sam whispered, horror in his voice.

Something hard and heavy hit the back of my head. I was gone.

Gasping for breath, my eyes flew open, closing immediately when water flooded them. I went to wipe the stuff away, but I couldn't. My hands were tied in front of me with zipties. My feet were bound at the ankles. Slowly, I pushed myself up to sit, momentarily getting lost in the pounding in my head.

Dread settling in my stomach, I looked around. Three people, a tall woman and two average men in employee uniforms, surrounded me. One behind me, the others to my sides. We were still in the store, but only a few lights still flickered overhead. Most of the illumination in the building came from skylights, giving the place an eerie, otherworldly glow.

Directly in front of me was another set of demons- I was just assuming that everyone left in the store was a demon now- standing over something else on the floor. There were eight of them there, all facing inwards, whereas my watchers were all facing that circle, like I was.

I jumped when the sound of a struggle started up behind me. To my horror, I watched two demons in big guys- wearing biker gear- as they dragged Dean. He bound like I was, but with his hands behind his back. They hauled him past me as he struggled with all his might, a thick strip of duct tape across his mouth keeping him from sending them all back to where they came from. They tossed him into the circle of demons before me, where he seemed to land on something fleshy rather than the hard floor.

Sam. I realized quickly, trying to get to my feet so I could see if he was even still alive. What the hell happened? They couldn't have- They can't-

"He woke up on the way over."

"Don't matter. They can't hurt us."

A strong hand shoved me back to the ground as soon as I made it to my knees. Probably bruised my tailbone with that fall.

"Don't try anything."

"Exorcis-" I cried out as the demon to my right kicked my hip hard enough to leave a deep bruise. Various muffled sounds came from beyond the tight circle of demons in front of me.

"Percy, he said not to harm the game pieces."

"No, he said not to 'defile' the 'pawns'. She's fine."

"Where's Cas?" I demanded, seeing as I was apparently allowed to talk- no duct tape on my face, yay- just not spout out any words that would rub those black eyes nasties the wrong way.

"There's another one?"

"I think that one was the angel."

"Oh. Good. He's back there." The demon to my left pointed a thumb over his shoulder. "Never seen an angel go so long losing that much blood."

"What did you do?" I shouted, struggling to turn around. Red hot blood rushed to my face and everything in me wanted to sink that stupid blade as deep into these SOB's as possible. Multiple times.

"You worry about you, sweet cheeks." The demon behind me turned me back to face the circle with it's foot. This time it didn't hurt.

I was very familiar with the sound of steel-toed boots colliding with delicate fleshy areas of a person. That being said, I flinched when it met my ears, even though I wasn't the target. I heard Dean groan. "Quiet down."

"Don't you hurt them." I growled, tears starting to come to my eyes. Hopelessness was beginning to replace the adrenaline I had been running on. There's got to be a way out of this. There's gotta be.

"Aside." A single male voice, not even that loud, broke the relative silence in the aisle we sat in. Immediately, all the demons stepped far to the left or right, leaving me with a perfect view of Sam and Dean.

Dean looked bad. His nose was bleeding, he was on his side curled in on himself, scratched all over and panting against the tape on his face. Those calculating, desperate green eyes flashed between me and the person in front of him.

Sam looked… slightly better. He was scratched a little, but he wasn't bleeding all that much. What worried me was that he was out cold.

Beyond them, I saw the ringleader of our current escapade, walking confidently directly toward the guys.

The man was young; around Sam's age. He was classically handsome; y'know, like the David statue, or old paintings. Sharp jaw line, straight nose, strong chin, the works. Not really my go-to, but people have idolized those features in art for centuries. He wore black pants and sturdy boots, not unlike Dean's. The white button down shirt, top two buttons undone with the sleeves rolled up to just below his elbows, looked flawless; if that guy had a demon, he hadn't for very long. Or the thing kept up with cleaning his clothes, at least. Brown hair not quite as long as Sam's but certainly not as short as Dean's was tucked back behind his ears, leaving his face to show the world its sinister, smiling glory. There was nothing but business in his expression, those piercing black eyes scrutinizing the three humans first, then each and every demon in the group. When he stopped a few feet beyond the guys, his stance screamed absolute power, demanded perfect obedience. Not one of the demons looked at him. They just stared forward, into space.

After a few moments of paralyzed stillness, he spoke. He sounded just like he looked. "And the angel?"

"He won't be a problem anymore."

The demon's eyes snapped to the demon beside me. Percy. "Percival. Have you chosen an earless host?"

Percy stiffened beside me. "No, sire."

The demon came closer to me and I leaned away, trying to scoot as far to the side as possible without getting kicked again. It was like anger and command just rolled off of him in overwhelming waves. He stopped directly beside the demon, who was facing me. "What were you in life, demon?" The sound was strong, but not loud. A shiver ran down my spine.

"B-blacksmith, sire."

"Father? Brother?"

"Father of four, sire."

"And you sold yourself for them?"

Percy swallowed hard. "Yes, sire. There was a famine…"

"And your children are now in the light?"

"They are, sire. I-I've searched Hell. Couldn't find 'em."

"Then you must understand, smith, that the family bond is a force stronger than life itself. Am I in error?"

"No, sire. I agree with you wholeheartedly."

"You lie." The demon lifted one of his hands, palm up, before him. Percy's eyes grew wide and fear consumed his expression. Within seconds, he was coughing black smoke, the substance rising and pooling just a few feet above where he stood choking. The rest of the demons tried not to look, or shuffled nervously on their feet. Once all the inky material had left the body, it dropped. Breathing.

The demon closed his palm and the blob overhead began to collapse in on itself, writhing and warping until nothing remained. "Soldiers. Percival served well, earned his keep until today. Let it be known that anyone who goes against my command will be no more. You shall not kill man. You shall not defile life. You shall not disobey."

"Yes, sire." The company replied in unison.

"I may have been made into darkness but I will not stand by and see man be disrespected in such a way. If you have gained nothing, know this: Percival was borrowing a host. The angel was borrowing a host. Percival killed a man. He earned his punishment."

"Yes, sire."

"Why is the lady in restraints?" The demon's eyes fell on me and I flinched, wide eyed as he moved closer to me and knelt down to be at eye level as I tried to move further away. I ran into a demon's legs, but didn't stop trying to escape the terrifying thing. "We do not restrain women. Particularly a woman with child."

"Yes, sire." The demon to my left stooped down and used its finger to snap both ties, leaving me free.

I scrambled to my feet immediately, but couldn't run. They had Sam and Dean hog-tied. I couldn't leave them like that.

"Allison the Huntress. I am Tristram, Knight of the Round Table."

A/N: Well, that was the first chapter. What do you think? Let me know in the review box below and don't forget to follow this story for weekly updates. Sometimes I even update mid-week.

If you liked this and haven't read my work yet, I encourage you to read Internal Medicine and Family Practice. Or, if you want something without Ali in it, I'm also writing a fic called John's Boys. It's one of those 'Dean is lost as a child and found by John as a teen' fics.

I hope you decided to tune in next week! Can't wait to hear from you! See you in a few days!