Chapter 2: Attagirl

A/N: My muse informed me that this fic was not finished yet, and deannaG and LeeMarieJack wanted to see the aftermath and some brotherly interaction. This chapter choose Dean's POV, so here it 'tis.

Warning: Dean curses. Yeah, like you didn't know that.

Part 2 – Attagirl

Just past the Cali border into Nevada I decided to pull over. I'd been driving nonstop so it was time to take a break. That far out in the boonies there's nothing out there but sparse grass and some trees and bushes. Not even a rest stop, but that's okay. I'm not feeling real sociable anyway and I'm not hungry. At least not yet, anyway.

Soon as I pull over and turn my girl's engine off Cujo gets up and stretches. Then she climbs up over my shoulder onto the back bench and jumps out of the window onto the ground. She's got her eye on some mouthy old brown squirrel in a nearby tree. He's in for a world of hurt when she catches him.

I get out, groan a little as I stretch my legs. Can't roll out that knot of tension between my shoulders. I close my girl's door behind me and watch Cuje chase after the tree rat.

She's a funny little cat. I get the feeling she wouldn't like it if I told her that. Funny and bossy too. Six pounds soaking wet, but I trust her more than I'd trust a ninety pound Rottie or any other big dog, especially on a hunt.

Never really thought of myself as a cat person, y'know? Cats are for chicks, dogs are for dudes. Well, I was wrong. Pastor Jim said once that cats have one paw in Heaven and the other in Hell. Or was that Keenu Reeves in Constantine? Whatever. I believe that now. Animals can sense fuglies quicker than we can. I pay attention to her when we're on a hunt. When she starts growling and hissing and staring at something I can't see she's always on target, faster than any EMF reader I could come up with.

Me and Dad had to split up. I get that, I really do. We got a job to do out here, and with both of us mobile, him in that big black truck of his and me and Cujo in the Impala we can cover more ground this way.

Only…

Sometimes I don't feel like getting up when I'm not hunting. If I were alone, well…I don't know if I would. If I were alone I can see myself rolling into town, checking out the locals, getting the lay of the land, and if there was no fugly action hitting the sack early and not waking up until nightfall. Then I'd go out and hustle pool or pick up women at bars, but I might not even do that. Going to a liquor store and picking up Johnnie, Jack and Josè and drinking myself stupid sounds more like a plan too, but the downside to that one is I'd have to sober up pretty damn quick if Dad called, and I never know when he'll call.

With Cujo around I have someone else to look out for, same as I did when Dad and Sam were around. She wakes me up in the morning. I have to get my ass up and see that she's fed, scoop out her litter box and play with her. And it's not a matter of I have to, more like I want to. She's a damn good reason to get up, that's all. Cujo talks all the time about stuff she sees, tells me exactly what's on her mind. Reminds me so much of Sammy it's not even funny. She keeps me busy; I don't have time to think about how much I hate being on my own. She's with me, so I'm not alone.

Sounds girly, right? Too damn emo?

I try to avoid that crap as much as I can. What good does it do to think like that?

The best part is Cujo doesn't ask me about my damn feelings like Sam did. She doesn't rag on me about what I did or how or why I did it that way, like Dad does sometimes. They mean well. That's just the way they are. Doesn't mean she likes everything I do, either. She bitches me out when I clip her claws. She's never tried to bite me when I check her for bumps, cuts and bites after a hunt, but she'll drop her claws on me in a heartbeat if I try to give her a bath.

People that don't know 'em think cats are stuck up, and in a way they are. But what gets me is the way her eyes glow when she looks at me, and the head bump I always get.

Cujo slips into her duffel and I can take her just about anywhere with me, laundromat, library, you name it. Well, okay, I couldn't slip Sasquatch into a duffel, except when he was a baby, but you get the idea.

I lean back against my girl and watch the traffic go by. Good weather, nice and warm. I hope the next job's somewhere nice. Nearly froze our asses off on the last two jobs.

I'm pretty sure that Cujo peed on Sam.

I didn't have a clear view of her when she jumped down from the table. There were too many people walking around, and I couldn't take a chance being spotted out in the open. I saw enough, though. From the way Sam was jumping around cussing, I got a pretty good idea. I can fill in the blanks.

Might have to do some searches on the net to find out why she did that. Never heard of a girl cat marking. I've seen the boys do it. If she's sick I'll take her to the vet. No problem.

The bushes rustle and the mighty hunter comes back looking pretty damn pleased with herself. She's had her fun. Apparently all she wanted was to chase that squirrel, not catch him. Otherwise she would have caught him and given him to me as a present. She's done that before. Brought me dead mice, birds and a squirrel. I think she wants me to eat them.

No thanks. Pass.

Cujo jumps up on the hood and struts over to me. She pushes her head against my right hand. Wants me to scratch her ears, so I do.

When my cell goes off I keep right on scratching with one hand as I flip the phone open with the other. I don't look at the caller ID. I know who it is.

"DEAN WHAT WAS THAT WHY DID THAT CAT PEE ON ME YOU HAVE A CAT NOW A CAT AND DAD DIDN'T EVEN WANT ME TO HAVE A DOG WHEN I WAS A KID HOW THE HELL-"

Huh. Bitchface right off the bat. Time to amp this up.

"Hey, hold on, hold on."

We have industrial strength bitchface in five…four…

"Who is this?" I sound pretty convincing, like I really don't know.

…three…two…

"Wh-whaat?"

…one…

"I said. Who. Is. This?"

Bitchface. We have bitchface. "It's Sam!"

"Ohhh, Sam." I roll my eyes as I lean back against the car. "So what can I do you out of, Gilligan? To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"

"What's the deal with that cat? You have a cat now?"

Talk about being a total ass. No "Hello, Dean, how the hell are ya?" or "Hey, it's me." Sam hasn't called me in almost a year, and I'm in no mood for sharing and caring just because he wants me to, damn it.

"Cat?" I look down at Cujo and grin at her. She grins right back. "What cat?"

"Those symbols on the collar. Bobby has the same ones on his dogs-"

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about. You know how many hunters Bobby knows? A whole lot. So what the heck makes you think this mystery cat belongs to me? What's got your panties all in a bunch anyway?"

"It peed on me!"

Sweet.

"So what'd you do to piss this feline off, anyway?"

"Ummm…it jumped up on the table and I grabbed it."

"Uh huh." A few drops of piss versus teeth and claws. You got off light, dude. I don't say that out loud.

Let him wonder.

"Dude, next time you should keep your hands to yourself and not go around grabbing strange pussy - cats."

I smirk a little. Can't help it. That was soo damn dirty.

Sam's bitchface goes thermo-nuclear. I can feel the heat coming at me, and I know dummy's standing there glaring at his phone.

"So," I say finally. "Anything else you wanna talk to me about?"

There's a loud click, and my ear fills with dead air.

He hung up on me.

My give a damn's busted by this time. Our life, our family isn't good enough for him. He wants normal, even though he knows damn well what's out there. Shadows have teeth.

I close the phone and slip it back in my jacket pocket. When I stop scratching her ears and pull my hand away Cujo fusses at me: I didn't tell you to stop.

"So you peed on him, huh?"

She gives me that wide-eyed innocent look. Me? Oh, nooo. Not me.

Nice try, princess.

"Let's eat out tonight. You want seafood? Shrimp?"

Her ears stand straight up. She grunts at me and twitches that stubby little tail of hers. I take that as a yes.

Hey, the credit cards are good. It's the least I can do for a job well done.

-30-

A/N: Female cats (even spayed ones) will mark if they feel strongly about another housemate or if they are feeling territorial.

And now we're done.