Six months after the events in "Fire", we catch up with the Winchesters on the road again. Things are going as usual and the boys are just doing what they do best: kicking supernatural ass. Only their goal has changed: having sent the Yellow-Eyed Demon back to the depths of hell, the boys now have to stop the hordes of demons set free on earth and save Dean's soul from hell in under 10 months. So much for down time…

In spite of the threat from demonic activity, life has gone on for the extended family of Winchesters and Harvelles. Construction has begun on a new Roadhouse. Erin has returned to college to finish the work she put into a degree and moved back home with the Arlingtons. Jo has begun a job at Janey Cox's coffee shop/supernatural bookstore.

Regardless of his womanizing past, Dean's managed to keep his relationship with Jo intact (despite Ellen's repeated death threats). Sam, on the other hand, has established a close friendship with Erin through phone calls and email, despite only seeing her twice since the hunt for Kelsey.

In light of the recent events, and with Dean and Jo's sixth month anniversary approaching, the Winchesters return to Nebraska for an extended stay. While there they meet a variety of people, including a real life "Cheaper by the Dozen"- the Arlingtons and their 14 kids- and a group of hunters that have commandeered Bill Harvelle's old deer camp since the destruction of the Roadhouse. Not mention Janey's gay coworker and supernatural raconteur, Abe, and Erin's ex fiancée Case.

But things aren't as serene as they seem. Dean and Jo struggle to keep their relationship intact despite the mark on his life. Meanwhile, Erin and Sam must deal with errant psychic powers. Sam's telekinesis is growing exponentially and Erin has developed a unique form of telekinesis: the ability to manipulate inaudible vibrations. It just gets worse when more problems arise to threaten the little foursome: an ex, the job, and an appearance by Erin's father.

But it's the resurfacing of Kelsey that threatens everything. With the Yellow-Eyed demon eliminated, another reason must be the cause of Kelsey's homicidal tendencies. When Erin hears the news of her sister's crimes against fellow hunters, she must make a heartbreaking decision.

Will she make the choice to eliminate her only sibling to protect her new family? Or will she sacrifice everything (including Sam) to save a lost cause?

And Dean, torn between his own feelings and the job, must make one as well. Will he stand up and take on the responsibility of killing Kelsey to save his new 'sister' from her own guilt? Or will he forgo Erin's well-being to ensure the outcome of a hunt?

Whatever the outcome, Erin will learn that there's only room for one set of siblings in this business. In order to save one, the other must be sacrificed…

Phoenix Rising

"Dean, would you cut it out?"

The request came from none other than the youngest Winchester brother, who was slumped in the passenger seat of the Chevy Impala. Beside him, Dean was pushing 80 on the speedometer, rocking out some Metallica song. The older brother paused briefly in his singing to glance sideways at his sibling.

"Cut what out?"

"Your singing."

"Why?"

Sam gestured to the phone in his right hand with an annoyed look. With a sigh, Dean obligingly turned the radio down and waited.

It had been six months since the hunt that had almost ended Erin and Sam's lives. Their injuries had healed, and the mental strain had begun to dissipate. Despite the severity of the encounter with Kelsey, the four of them had grown close. Dean had managed to keep his relationship with Jo semi-solid, and Sam was talking to Erin on the phone nearly every day.

Things had taken a turn for the worst when, after kidnapping Sam and forcing him to play a demonic version of "Survivor", the demon almost accomplished his plan by unleashing an army of demonic spawn on the earth. Fortunately, the demon was taken out before he could assume power.

Unfortunately, even with the yellow-eyed demon eliminated things weren't looking so optimistic for the side of good. The gate to hell had been shut, but not before a staggering number of demons escaped. The Roadhouse had burned to the ground, drastically lowering the number of hunters able to fight.

Ellen miraculously survived, saved by a run for pretzels. Erin and Jo were fortunate enough to be out on a hunt, but Ash hadn't been so lucky. And due to the demon's twisted sense of humor, there were few known "special kids" left. Sam, Erin, and Kelsey were the only ones that were left out of the original list. Not to mention the Winchesters hadn't fared so well in the last fight.

They had survived, but barely. Sam scarcely avoided death, but the price of his life had been the marking of Dean's soul. As it was, the older Winchester had a little over 10 months left. Something that Jo was not taking well, despite Sam's adamant vow to save his brother from an untimely death.

But perhaps the most surprising development during this entire disturbance was the growing relationship between Dean and Erin. At the hospital after the attack, Dean had joked about being Erin's pseudo-brother. But as time went on, it was becoming less of a joke. They talked regularly on the phone, and Dean had realized that Erin was one of the few people besides Jo and Sam that got him. At some point he realized that there were some things that Erin understood about him that the others would never get. At the very least, the brunette was becoming a close friend to the eldest Winchester.

After a few moments, Sam hung up the phone and cleared his throat uneasily. "Jo says hi."

Dean grinned at his brother's face. "What's the matter?"

"Dude, why can't you talk to your girlfriend? It's kind of creepy listening to her talk about you. She gets emotional and….mushy. Especially when she starts talking about…the thing. Then she starts crying. Or screaming. I really hate the screaming."

"Oh, get over it. I had to put up with the same thing when I called Erin last week. Every other word was 'Sam this' and 'Sam that'. I'm telling you, you've got a stalker."

Sam decided to ignore the jab about his and Erin's relationship. "What was that about anyway? You stayed on the phone with her for over an hour. What were you guys talking about?"

"Making plans. I had to talk her into going shopping with me."

"Shopping? Who are you and what did you do with Dean?"

"Haha, smartass. I want her to help me find Jo something."

"Not only do you have a girlfriend, but you're buying her stuff. Being faced with the threat of eternal hellfire has changed you, man."

"Just shut up until we get there."

The Impala pulled into the driveway of an old farmhouse around 3:00. The house was in slightly haphazard shape, but it was still an impressive structure nonetheless. A dingy white with blue trim, the house had a comforting, homey quality to it.

Before either one of them could make it out of the vehicle entirely, the front door banged opened. The sight of Ellen drying her hands on a dishrag greeted the brother's as they made their way up the walk to the house. She smiled, relieved to see the two younger men.

In the six months since the hunt for Kelsey, Ellen had changed slightly. It was true that the loss of the Roadhouse had hurt; Ash's and the other hunters' deaths had hurt more. But more importantly, that incident had given the older Harvelle a new strength. Sam had asked her about her new outlook one night, a couple of weeks after the fight in the graveyard. Ellen had regarded him somberly over a shot of Jack.

"That night in the graveyard, I stood and looked hell in the face. After that, Sam, I think I can handle any shit the other side decides to throw at us."

Now the older woman warmly embraced both of the brothers as they came up the steps. While no one could ever replace Mary Winchester in the boys' minds, Ellen was fast becoming like a second mother to them. And like any mother, she worried about them.

"What in the hell took you two so long? You were supposed to be here an hour ago."

Ellen threw the rag over her shoulder and glared at the two of them. Sam coughed uncomfortably while Dean rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Um, about that….Look, we're sorry."

"See, Dean got a craving for M&Ms."

Ellen shot Sam an incredulous look. "Sam, how the hell do M&Ms make you two late? Or do I want to know?"

"Well, Dean only likes peanut M&Ms. Unfortunately, we found out there's only, like, one gas station in the entire state of Nebraska that sells them."

"Who doesn't sell peanut M&Ms? It's un-American, I tell you!"

"All right Rambo, just calm down. Anyway, ya'll took so long that Jo got tired of waiting around here for you."

Dean raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Where'd she go?"

"Erin needed help, so she headed over to Monroe's. They said for me to tell you to come on over." She sighed and shook her head, amused.

"Viviane's got a whole feast fixed up over there for you guys. She's been dying to meet you two. Course, that's only because you're potential boyfriends and therefore must be interrogated."

"Potential? I thought I got a green light!" Dean's voice had a faux-whine to it, warranting Sam to elbow him in the ribs.

"Damn it, that hurt…" He shot his brother a look and sighed.

"All right, how do we get there?"

Author's Note: It lives! After months of neglect, I've finally managed to start working on this story again. Sorry it took so long for me to start writing the sequel, but I had other things going on. Please forgive me! Anyway, if it seems like the first chapter's boring, don't worry. Things will be getting heated up pretty soon.