InsaneJournal

Knock Me Down (Dean&Dinah, complete)
Dinah didn’t know why Dean was staying. A part of her wanted to ask, but not in front of Belia or anyone working for her. So instead she remained silent on the walk back to their quarters. Not to mention that there was a lot to process.

The ‘quarters’ appeared to be an apartment. It smelled of cleaning products of some sort, and it was a fairly generous size. It was furnished, almost as if it had at one time been a home.

She realized with a start that it most likely had. From what she’d seen, there was a lot of city inside the wall. She wondered if there were many people to fill that space. From what Belia had said about the last outbreak, she doubted it.

It was only after she’d had the chance to check the apartment thoroughly for any bugs or anything else that might have allowed Belia to spy on her that she settled into combing through the boxes of comic books. Boxes. As in plural. Her stomach twisted at the thought.

There was a lot to go through, but she made it through quite a few of the books in the time since she’d been shown to her new place. With each book that held memories best forgotten, she’d had to avoid the urge to hit something or throw up. There were a few tear tracks down her cheeks, not that she bothered to pay attention to it.

It wasn’t every second of her life, but it certainly felt pretty damn close. The time she’d been tortured was in there, the time Ollie had kissed Marianne, finding out about his death, starting to work with Barbara.

She didn’t know how much time had passed since she’d been reading and she didn’t notice that she might have missed a meal. All she knew was that everyone here possibly knew too much about her.


----

The new space was nicer than most places Dean had stayed, and oddly that bothered him. There should have been more people, or there should have been few digs. Honestly, the wall for Belly’s little city should have been closer, easier to protect. How did they plan to protect such a large area if there were so few people that Dean Winchester could stay in such a nice, well furnished place. Of course, now and then the water would be cold, or the heat wouldn’t work. Sometimes the lights flickered, which meant the hunter spent time checking all doors and windows to make sure they were salted. But, this was too nice. Something else was at work here.

The oldest of John Winchester’s boys spent the following days searching the city as much as Belly would allow; unfortunately, because he was new, it wasn’t very far. He had seen the small market, where things were bartered more than paid for. Of course, some were still taking money, but just as many were taking objects, items. That made sense to the hunter. Money meant nothing when it came down to it.

Dean had also seen the garage/shop. It was a large area with more vehicles than he’d expected. Many of the vehicles had been altered in order to help with venturing outside the city’s wall, and some of them even looked full on military. Some part of him was expecting an assault vehicle or tank to show up. Maybe some heavy duty weaponry - it never showed. Dean suspected it was somewhere though. Belly was hiding things.

Finally, after working on his baby, and making sure that no one got any bright ideas and tried to upgrade her, Dean decided to check on the little seen Dinah. He remembered how it felt to know that there was a book series, fans, and even a rather ridiculous tv series based on his life. He remembered that he wanted to hide, but fate or life or circumstances wouldn’t allow that. Not literally - he did always have drinking, eating, sexing, and hunting to hide behind.

With some locally brewed alcohol - Dean was convinced it was turpentine cut with a little bit of apple - and a few baked sandwich things - Dean had decided not to ask what the meat was as he’d seen little in the way of livestock - the hunter found Dinah’s address and knocked on the door.

----

Dinah hadn’t spent much time outside of her apartment. She was still spending too much time reading her own life story and trying not to be horrified. She’d also made sure to check the place for any bugs or any other sort of device that might allow Belia to keep an eye on her. She knew that the leader of the city was going to be watching her regardless, but that didn’t mean she wanted to make it easy for every single word she exchanged to be overheard.

She’d also spent the past few days familiarizing herself with the history of this place and getting as much information as she could about the prophecy. Infuriatingly, it wasn’t available to be read and Belia insisted that no one was allowed to see the entire prophecy until the ‘time was right.’ Whatever that meant. All the same, Dinah had tracked down as much information as she could and had started to outline a plan of action. Strategy had always been her strong suit, and ending up in some strange parallel reality just meant that she had to work a little harder to come up with a strategy to make sure that this Earth-and all others that were apparently affected-stayed in tact.

She would eventually have to talk to Dean, since he was the closest thing to an ally she had in this place. She wondered if he still thought she was crazy. It would be nice to have someone she could trust who didn’t think she was out of her mind, though beggars couldn’t be choosers. And if she was honest, her apartment felt very empty after spending her first few days here in such close quarters with the hunter. Not that she would ever admit that, of course. It was also just a little bit lonely to be here without anyone that she knew.

Since she hadn’t exactly made friends with anyone yet, it was a surprise when there was a knock at the door. She put aside the comic that she’d been staring at in half-horror and answered the door.

She couldn’t help the slight quirk of her eyebrow as she took in the sight of Dean and the aroma of food from the bag in his hands. Food and... a bottle of something that she assumed was the local moonshine.

“Hi.” It wasn’t much of a greeting, but she was still a little bit surprised by his sudden visit.

----

“Hey.” Dean’s smile wasn’t overly suggestive, but he did know how to give one of those pause worthy smiles. He looked into the apartment, what he could see from the open door without looking as if he was peering in, and then looked at her, brow raised. Was she going to ask him in?

---

If Dinah had been expecting some sort of explanation right up front as to why he was here, she might have been mistaken. But still, he came bearing food. Plus, she had been wanting to talk to him anyway.

She stepped away from the door and gestured inside the apartment.

“Come in. So what brings you all the way up the third floor?” she asked with a friendly smile.

She was stressed, but she hoped she wasn’t letting that show too much.

----

Dean walked in and paused just inside the door. He finally gave her an obvious once over then looked at her. Well, at least she was clean. Why would he think this? Because he knew she hadn’t been out much, or that was what he heard.

“Had to see how the rich live.” He smirked. “So, the sandwiches are good. The bevo is okay, especially since it’s 90 proof.” He held up the food which was definitely something he liked, and the liquor. “Thought you’d like some food.”

He started walking again, looking around. The set up was somewhat similar to his place; things might have matched, as if someone took the time to put together a room for her rather than the more high end stuff found in the dumps he was used to shacking up in. He hmphed softly; they probably did it to suit whatever style they thought the ‘chosen’ liked. That word bugged the shit out of him, and this treatment did too.

“Nice place you’ve got.” He knew where the kitchen was, or could guess. They lived in the same building with the same floor plans. Did she have a little more room than he did? Well, if she did, he wasn’t bothered by it, much.

----

90 Proof? She wasn’t quite sure if he was kidding. All the same, she smiled her thanks as he held up the food.

“Thanks. That was really nice of you.”

She shrugged and disappeared into the kitchen for a minute before returning with plates.

“Maybe it is nice, but I prefer to earn my homes, not just...” she gestured helplessly. “Be handed one.”

She didn’t like the emptiness of the building, as if they had just kept it reserved for anyone else that might show up-or as if they’d either chased out the previous occupants, or something had happened to them. And she didn’t like being in a position where she had to depend on handouts, especially from someone she didn’t trust.

“Still think I’m crazy?” she asked.

Nothing like getting straight to the point. But when it came down to it, she needed to know where she stood before she decided how much to confide in him-if anything.

----

Dean smiled; she did get right to it, didn’t she? He set the bottle down before opening the bag with what certainly smelled great. He knew diner food, and this was better than that. Once the plates were set out, he set a wrapped sandwich on each plate.

“Just need a couple cups. I don’t care about sharing a bottle, but...” The hunter shrugged, taking a seat at her table. “Yeah. I think you’re batty. They told me who you were, or at least who you’re supposed to be. Kind of fucked if you are.” Dean didn’t throw the ‘no offense’ in there because it wasn’t nice.

“You’re from Gotham. You know Batman. It’s real. I’ve been through some crazy shit, sister, but this takes the cake.” He didn’t hide how much her existence bothered him. “Before you get all superhero on me and kick my ass.” He had a feeling she could certainly do a number, but he’d held his own against a demon or two - he wasn’t afraid of a powerful chick. “That’s kind of awesome. Batman. Bruce Wayne. The Batman. Did he have a thing for little boys because you have to wonder with the way he always has one around.” That last bit came with a smile to suggest he was joking; Bobby had taken Sam and Dean in, and he’d done it because it was the thing to do. Bobby was more of an Alfred, but he was a good man. Dean was doing his best not to think about Sam or Bobby; he hoped that once again, he was stuck in some bizarro world alone...sort of.

----

Dinah’s eyebrows practically disappeared into her hairline. She still hadn’t quite gotten used to the idea that anyone knew this much about her life, let alone everyone here. All the same, she could appreciate the honesty. Even if it wasn’t exactly the most comfortable situation. She sighed.

“So... glasses,” she said, getting up again and slipping into the kitchen.

She returned with two glasses and set them down on the table.

“For what it’s worth, I’m starting to wonder if maybe I have lost it. If I’m lucky, this is all going to be some crazy nightmare and I’m going to wake up. Hopefully not in Arkham. And hopefully not anywhere I shouldn’t be.”

After all, if it was all one big long dream, that meant she would have gone down in the middle of a fight. She didn’t like the idea of waking up at the mercy of some two-bit street thugs.

“You didn’t seem too surprised about your books. How do you know about them?” she asked.

----

“Yeah. Not the best written, and I don’t know why people read them. Our lives - Sammy and me - aren’t exactly meant for public consumption.” The oldest and seemingly only Winchester boy opened the bottle and poured a couple sips worth into each glass. “There are fans, and conventions, and stuff called fanfiction. And...” He didn’t know if he should laugh or cry about it. “Larping. People pretend to be us. Live action role play.”

Dean took a sip of the liquor, someone had called it Apple Jack, but it wasn’t anything like what he’d had before. He winced and set the glass down. “Smooth.” He wheezed out. It was harsh stuff, but it would dull a few pains.

“It messes with your head. To know that there are people out there who may know your life better than you do, but then you forget about it. Or try to. It’s always there, it never goes away. Hell, in one reality, I’m not me, and my life is some tv show.” And not for the first time, Dean pauses to think about Dr. Sexy being a real person. Sure, he’d met the Trickster Sexy, but a real Dr. Sexy? He couldn’t help the strange little smile.

----

Dinah didn’t get the reason for the smile, but he seemed to be describing pretty much what she was going through now.

“It’s hard to believe that people consider that,” she gestured vaguely in the direction of her books, “entertainment. It’s sick. Some of the worst...” she stopped and instead chose to take a sip of her drink.

Wallowing wouldn’t help. And especially not wallowing in front of someone who was still questioning her sanity to some extent.

“Do you trust Belia?”

She had been about to say that she didn’t like the fearless leader knowing enough to potentially exploit her weaknesses, but she needed to know what side he was on first. From the first meeting, she was pretty sure that Dean trusted the leader of this camp as much as she did, but things could have changed over the last few days.

----

“Lady’s got a serious control issue.” As if he were one to talk about it. Dean just nudged her sandwich closer. “It’s pretty good. I don’t know exactly what they put in it, but they burn it right.” He smiled, but he really wasn’t going to go into what was in it. “Seriously, she’s not telling us something. Or a lot of things. And, there’s more to all this. I don’t like being kept away from people - actually have to make an effort to see them. She’s also got some major military grade shit down in the garage and elsewhere.”

He didn’t think Dinah would run tell Belly what he’d just said. Dinah stood up to the woman, made demands. Of course, he realized that she might have been a plant of some kind, but he doubted it. He picked up his own sandwich and took a big bite, moaning softly. Yes, he did like what he was eating.

----

Dinah finally took the hint and took a bite of the sandwich. She was a little more at ease knowing that Dean seemed to be on the same page as she was in regards to the woman. She looked over at him in response to the moan. She’d known guys to enjoy their food, but he seemed to really enjoy it.

She couldn’t help but smile a little bit.

After she’d finished the sandwich, she took another drink of the drink, which was still way too strong. She did her best not to grimace, and failed miserably.

“I don’t trust her either,” she said. “It’s obvious she’s got her own agenda and that we’re just the means to an end. And I don’t like her knowing as much as is available in those books.”

Dinah had a nasty feeling that Belia had used both of their books to figure out exactly how to deal with them. She knew she was being manipulated, but the trouble was-she didn’t know how to avoid it. Not with someone who possibly knew her better than she knew herself.

The alcohol was definitely strong. She didn’t drink much or often, and certainly not anything like this. It was starting to get to her head, just a bit. But maybe that was a good thing. This was a strange enough conversation to have as it was.

“What made you decide to stay?” she asked.

She’d wondered about that a few times. Especially since he’d seemed ready to go and had just down a complete 180 and decided to stay for the time being.

----

“Don’t trust the woman. Can’t leave a man..woman behind. Usually I do this alone or with my brother. You’re just as screwed as I am, so I can’t just abandon you.” Dean shrugged, thinking that was enough of an explanation really. It seemed like the best honestly. He took another sip of the rot gut that was going to work fast on those who weren’t used to drinking; Dean was definitely used to drinking.

“I don’t know how much she knows, or how much these people know. There’s a prophet or whatever you want to call them. A channeler, psychic, whatever. They probably know something, know everything. She just has a few in her pocket, right?” He ate the last few bites of his sandwich and settled back to look at her.

“You’re not happy that I stayed?” He was teasing of course.

----

Dinah smiled.

“Not happy at all. I always hate it when people do nice things for me.”

Her smile faded just a bit and she sighed. She appreciated him staying, but didn’t exactly want to be responsible for forcing someone to stay here.

“Look, I thought staying was the best chance to figure out what’s going on here and where to go from here. But that might be easier if we could work together. Assuming you can suspend your disbelief on my sanity for a bit?”

The smile returned, just a little twitch at the corner of her mouth.

She would prefer that he didn’t think she was delusional, but she knew that she was sane and that would have to be enough if he wasn’t ready to accept that her world was real just yet.

----

“I can’t say that I believe you, but I can’t say that I don’t. I’ve lived through some really crazy shit, so saying you know or don’t know Batman really isn’t up to me.” Dean thought she was a little out of it, but then he’d have to give her the right to think he was ape shit with what he was about to add. Then again, most people thought he was a little crazy when he said...”The people we came up against, they weren’t zombies. Zombies go for brains. They were something else. If they were those at all - they were suffering from a demon created virus.”

Dean took yet another sip, finally finishing his first glass. He waited for the looks though he doubted many would come. She was the one who faught along side Batman after all. Everyone knew Batman faced down a good deal more than the crazy maniacal super villain.

----

Etrigan was a demon, so yeah, Dinah was not exactly a stranger to demons. Still. She raised an eyebrow.

“So, you’ve seen something like this before?” she asked.

It took her longer than Dean to drain her glass, and it probably hit her harder than it might have hit him too. The first glass had gone straight to her head. She leaned back in her chair, now finished eating.

----

“I have. I’ve seen it five years in the future - don’t know when this is. This now, not when I saw it. Fuck, I’m not going to think about it.” Actually, Dean would think about it later, but for now he’d focus on the moment. “Croatoan virus - you know the group that disappeared, one of the first colonies way back whenever? We think that’s what took them. That could be what has those people going batshit outside the walls.”

He didn’t pour another drink, not yet. He wasn’t going to get too drunk with a possibly crazy stranger in a definitely crazy place. He just sat there watching her. She wasn’t bad looking, even if she wasn’t wearing fishnets and a corset.

“If it’s not what infected them, I don’t know. Maybe it’s something else along the same lines.” He shrugged. “I think Belly knows more about it than she’s letting on. We have to find someone who’ll give us answers.”

---

Dinah wasn’t itching to get drunk herself. Not with a guy she didn’t know, even if he was attractive. She rested her chin on her hand, thinking.

“If what they say is true, it could be that or it could be...” she sighed. “Almost anything, from anywhere. From what I understand, the rules don’t exactly stay the same from reality to reality.”

Which, if taken at face value, would explain why there were superheroes in one reality and all manner of supernatural beings that Dinah would have thought didn’t exist in another. And apparently an end of days scenario in this one.

“Finding someone who can give us some straight answers would be a good thing. Have you talked to many people around here? The few times I’ve ventured out, it’s been sort of...”

She spread her arms out, struggling for the words to describe it. There seemed to be a sort of mixture of hero worship and fear written on the faces of the people she’d encountered so far. Neither sat right with her.

----

“They don’t know what to do with us. They knew we existed, but they didn’t believe it. It’s like meeting fairies or angels. Actually it’s nothing like meeting them - we’re not screwing them over in some way.” Dean did have a bit of a problem with both of those beings. He looked at the bottle and considered pouring yet another glass. He’d had a few glasses of the local moonshine, and it had gotten him buzzed...

“It’s hard to talk to someone you thought was only a story or someone you knew you’d never meet.” Again, Dr. Sexy came to the hunter’s mind. That was really starting to bother him; that this figment of some guy’s imagination could be real and show up in his reality. He didn’t like that at all. More because he felt like a complete tool when he..what was the word...”fangirled” than anything.

----

Dinah opened her mouth to argue that angels weren’t real and then closed it promptly. Different worlds, different rules. She was a little bit more willing to give Dean the benefit of the doubt than he was with her, but that was fine. He’d eventually either realize she was sane or he wouldn’t. It couldn’t be helped either way.

“Yeah, that’s about it. And I don’t like that they’re just handing us everything. I don’t know if we’re the ones who are supposed to save this world or if it’s just a happy accident.” She shrugged helplessly. “I just wish Belia was willing to pony up the exact wording of the prophecy.”

She stood then, clearing away the plates and the bags that the food had come in. She returned from the kitchen a few minutes later and returned to her seat.

“I’m also wondering how many other people are going to end up here. Or at one of the other encampments. And who?” she frowned. “For that matter, I suppose it’s possible some of them are already here, isn’t it?”

----

“Sometimes knowing prophecies isn’t exactly worth it. I wouldn’t want to know half the shit I know.” Dean knew too much as far as he was concerned. There were times he wished he was blissfully ignorant.

“I don’t know. I’m hoping not many. This could really fuck with some people’s brains.” He was wondering if the fucking hadn’t already started. It could be very bad indeed; he thought of all those he knew and how well they’d handle it. Sure, Bobby could take it, but he’d drink more. Sam was screwed in the head enough. The wall wasn’t exactly the best thing, and he knew it’d fall eventually. Nothing in their lives were exactly permanent other than the misery brought on by the buttmonkey/asshats that were angels.

“If they are here, I haven’t seen any. Just you and me, kid. Unless they have them in another building. Didn’t get the feeling that they were in a different building. They kind of sectioned us off.” He shrugged, glancing at the bottle of hooch. Bobby wasn’t the only one who liked to self-medicate.

----

“Great,” Dinah said with a shrewd smile. “Normally I’d make a joke about you being the last man on Earth, but I don’t know you all that well.”

She poured herself a little bit more, though she didn’t fill the glass all the way up.

She didn’t even want to think about how some of the people she would know might take ending up here and finding out about the comic books.

“Once we get our bearings, we might want to visit some of the other camps and see if there’s anyone else out there. Or worse-see if anyone’s out in the wild.”

Maybe she was assuming a lot by talking about them doing things together, but she would do what she was planning whether he helped her or not.

----

“If there are any other camps. I think I’d just like to get out of here in general, but I like having a roof over my head.” The hunter was being honest. “But, we can go looking, sure.” See, he didn’t mind using the ‘we’ either. Plus, he wasn’t about to let her go roaming on her on; if she was what he expected, then she’d go on her own. He didn’t save her ass just to have her to and get herself killed by doing something...well, something he’d do and do it alone.

“I got a bad feeling though that Belly likes to micromanage things. She might have us report in. Not too sure I like the idea of being one of her little foot soldiers. The woman gives me the creeps.” That was saying something. Dean was usually good at reading people and he did love the women. If a woman was bothering him, especially a nice looking one, then there was something definitely off about her. He just couldn’t put his finger on it.

“I really don’t like being told when I can come and go.” Dean finally gave in and poured himself another glass, more than what Dinah had poured herself. He was definitely the self-medicating sort. He would never say he was as bad as Bobby, but then what was bad about being like Bobby?

----

“I don’t either. So we don’t let her.”

Dinah had already locked horns with Belia and she had no problem doing so again. If it came down to it, she had already started thinking about escape methods, though she was pretty sure that Belia would be a lot more subtle about keeping them under her thumb.

All the same, Dinah wasn’t going to just fall in line for a leader that she didn’t trust.

----

“Okay, then, tomorrow we can try our hands at getting out. You look like you could use it.” There was the Dean Winchester smirk before he finished off his glass. “I’ll leave this with you.” He held up the bottle before setting it back down on the table and standing.

“I’ll pick you up in the morning. It may be safer to get around at dawn or not long after.” Dean wasn’t in the mood to be up early, but it might work to their advantage. Not many people liked being up before or with the sun.

----

“I’m not going to drink all that,” Dinah protested.

She stood up when Dean did. Regardless of her reservations about him, he’d stayed behind to watch out for her and he was willing to work with her. That went a long way where she was concerned.

She took a few steps toward him and stood on tiptoes, placing a light kiss on his cheek.

She gave him a little bit of space immediately after to hopefully avoid any awkwardness.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

----

“Not yet anyway.” He smirked again, but it soon faded to a genuine smile. He really did mean it. As she stepped forward, his hand went up to lightly touch her side. Nothing gropey or pervy, just a touch. He even leaned down a little to let her kiss him, and she wasn’t the only one who stepped back to give space. He threw in a possibly embarrassing wink though.

“Tomorrow. And you’re in charge of breakfast. I like pie.” He walked to the door and opened it. He was about to walk out, and he paused. “Also, if I were the last man on Earth, you really think you could say ‘no’?” He didn’t stick around for an answer. Just smiled that knowing and cheeky smile of his before closing the door quickly behind him.

----

If Dean knew Dinah, he probably wouldn’t have put her in charge of breakfast. Cooking was never really something she excelled at. But damned if she didn’t try. She was up before the sun, ready to sneak out and explore what was outside the city walls. She’d packed a bag of some supplies-a few weapons that she’d managed to sneak out of the city’s stash-and some bandages. Just in case.

Whenever he showed up, there were slightly crispy scrambled eggs (though the eggs hadn’t looked like any chicken eggs she’d ever seen) and a loaf of some sort of bread thing that she’d picked up in the marketplace after he’d left. It was actually fairly decent, compared to some of her culinary disasters. Though she still swore that her chili wasn’t as bad as her friends said it was.

She was dressed for function. Instead of fishnets, she wore thicker cargo type pants. She was wearing a t-shirt under her leather jacket. If they ran into anything, she wasn’t going to leave much skin exposed and unprotected.

----

Dean hadn’t meant for her to cook breakfast, and he didn’t complain when he showed up and was allowed to sit down to an interesting meal of overdone eggs. He just smiled, gave her a “But, honey, you shouldn’t have,” and dug in. He didn’t complain once, but he couldn’t help the smile; it was funny that she couldn’t cook. He was also smart in not asking what eggs he was eating; he’d had some bad eggs, but they didn’t taste quite like this. Then again, Dean had taken on the mantra of not asking where the protein came from.

He had somehow managed to get clothes that looked a lot like what he’d arrived in. Jeans, boots, jacket over shirt over tee. He probably had a few weapons hidden away, some that weren’t as obvious as others. He was surprised, somewhat, that it was easier to get ammo for a particular Colt model than it was to get a good amount of salt. It actually bothered him.

“So, I don’t want to leave my car behind.” He was good enough not to call the Impala his baby. “But, might be the only way we’re getting out of here this morning.”

----

Dinah raised an eyebrow at him.

“Hey, you asked for breakfast. Sorry it’s not...” she shrugged. It was a little fruitless apologizing for her poor cooking. After all, it wasn’t like that was something she could change all that easily.

“It might be a little bit harder to sneak out in a car as opposed to on foot.” she frowned. “Though a car would be safer, if we can get it out.”

Once breakfast was eaten and she’d cleared the plates away, she shouldered the bag of supplies.

“Let’s go check out what the situation at the gate is. Then again, Belia did say that she’d let us go if we wanted to.”

Of course, Dinah suspected that Belia had just been giving them lip service with that. Sure, she probably wouldn’t openly stop them if they tried to leave. But if they left and expected to come back, there was a chance she’d pull some sort of power play on them.

----

“Yeah, leaving probably isn’t an issue. It’s the getting back in that may be the problem. Again, not big on the idea of leaving behind the Impala.” Dean helped her pick up this and that. He hadn’t complained once about the cooking. Women were strange, and that was in no way a deterrent for the older Winchester boy.

“Let’s do a walkby, see what security’s like, then decide. If we float it out there like it’s just a stretch the legs and get a good feel for the place, it may not be that big a deal when we come back.” Dean rubbed the back of his neck in thought. “That’s if we come back.”

This was a real bitch. He looked around at Dinah’s place then at her. “Anything you want to take with you?”

----

Dinah looked back at Dean, not bothering to look around the apartment.

“No. None of this is mine anyway.”

Her expression might have been a touch wistful. She was a little homesick, though they didnt have time for her to sit around and mourn the home and the friends that she’d lost. There were things to do here and now. And there was always the hope that they’d somehow find a way to put things right and return home.

----

Dean nodded, understanding. He was ready to go, and he really wasn’t overly worried about returning, other than his baby. He started toward the door, hands moving to make sure things were all in the right place: gun, holy water, salt, extra clips, knife. He wasn’t as prepared as he would have liked, but it was better than being completely weaponless.

“I get it.” He sighed leading the way out.

“We check it out and see what’s happening before getting the car or not.” He really didn’t want to leave it behind, but he didn’t want to think of what could happen to it if he pissed someone off. He loved that car too much not to.

----

Dinah nodded and allowed Dean to lead the way downstairs. Once out on the street, she slipped her hand into his. She hoped he would just go along with it. It was a lot easier for them to look like they were just out for a stroll this way. Of course, she wasn’t quite sure how they’d explain it once they got to the gate, but better to not raise any questions before that.

----

Once they got to the gate, or close enough to see it, Dean’s lips thinned as he realized taking his baby out would be a pretty bad idea. There were too many guards, and he had a feeling taking the car out would raise one too many flags. He claimed Dinah’s arm before she could get too far, pulling her to the side.

“We can’t leave here that way.” He sighed softly. “There’s got to be another way to get out of here that doesn’t have so many people around.” He absently petted her arm, softly rubbing. His eyes were searching for another way out.

“Think there might be a way out in the garage.” He actually winced a little; going by the garage reminded him that he was leaving his baby behind. They were going to be exposed, not something he really wanted. They’d have to move on foot, and that just didn’t seem like the best idea with the damn monsters outside the walls.

---

Dinah nodded her agreement. She didn’t like the idea of going out that way any more than he did. She hadn’t been in the garage, but she had a feeling that they weren’t going to find any exit that was totally unmanned. The best they could hope for was maybe one or two guards as opposed to half a dozen.

She again allowed Dean to lead the way, and leaned on him just a bit as they walked. A couple out for a walk was a lot less threatening then a pair of potential ‘chosen ones’ who seemed to be scouting out the place.

She didn’t like the idea of going out on foot any more than Dean did. Not with everything that was out there, but she didn’t see how they’d get the car down the street, let alone past the guards without any notice.

----

Dean didn’t seem to mind that she was leaning against him. In fact, he moved his arm to wrap around her shoulders, squeezing her softly. Yes, they looked more like some local couple than the chosen who were recently escorted through the city’s streets to the quarantine which was followed by yet another escort to their current living quarters.’

The garage wasn’t empty, but it didn’t have as many vehicles as it usually did. His baby was waiting for him, yet he didn’t go to it. His fingers tightened on her shoulder; it was painful to simply leave it there. Yet, there was the door that he was thinking about. He hoped it was actually going to lead them through the wall.

“There.” His head leaned toward the door. “There may be something through there.”

----

Dinah caught the look of longing that Dean cast toward his car. She could relate. She missed her bike a hell of a lot. Especially being in this garage. She slipped her arm around his waist and gave him a reassuring squeeze.

There weren’t many people in the garage, and luckily no one was looking as they slipped over to the door.

Dinah shrugged.

“It’s worth a shot. Better than door number one at least.”

----

Dean growled as the door didn’t open as soon as they got there. It was locked with a damned keypad too. Why hadn’t he noticed it earlier? Because he really hadn’t thought he’d needed to break out of the compound the last time he was in here.

“You’ve anything your bag of tricks for this because I could crack it, but it would take longer than I like. Especially since we’re being watched.” Something Dean had caught was the rotating camera. Belly liked to keep her goods under regular surveillance. Of course, he was curious to know where else she had those little gadgets, and where the main room was.

“We’ve got a short time before they realize we shouldn’t be standing here.” His hand was steadily rubbing up and down her back. He could pick the lock on the door, the actual lock, and he probably could do something to the keypad; but, it wasn’t something that was quick and easy.

----

Dinah eyed the keypad and moved closer to it.

Without waiting for anything else, she opened out her mouth and let out a soft cry. It was just one wavering note. The keypad let out a feeble beep and then the display lights went black.

“You have anything to pick the lock?” she asked quietly.

Already, her eyes were scanning the garage for any sort of tool they could use, just in case he wasn’t carrying a lock pick.

----

Dean didn’t exactly scoff at her, though he was doing his best not to whistle after that little show. He’d seen some things, but never anything like that, which was saying something. He pulled the practically always with him lock pick case out of the new to him jacket. They hadn’t gotten all his toys from his baby after all.

Crouching down, the hunter started working on the door with a lock that predated the keypad. He glanced at the keypad again as he felt his way around the lock with the picks. His lips pursed as he was wondering when and why that pad was added to the door for protection. He didn’t make any sound as the lock gave with a soft click. Standing, he opened the door.

“Com--” He didn’t finish the sentence. Instead he pulled her close for a kiss as he used the kiss to maneuver them out the door. It wasn’t easy, but the laughing from the men coming into the garage suggested that this wasn’t all that uncommon a scene. Dean was only playing a hunch.

---

Dinah had faced out while Dean picked at the lock, eyes trained for anyone that might have come their way. She saw the men in the garage at the same time Dean did, though he was quicker to act than she was.

“Mmf,” the sound escaped before she could stop it.

Then she shoved aside her surprise and kissed him back, moving as he did toward the door. One hand slid up his back, rubbing gently and at least making it look real while the other fumbled for the door handle.

They were at least going to need to wait for the some sign that their ‘audience’ had lost interest and moved on. Should happen soon... she hoped.

----

Thankfully, the men laughed and yelled something about not staying out too long. Bellia didn’t like it when people were outside the compound. Dean fumbled a little more, not at all bothering biting back the soft moan as the kiss was returned. One hand lifted to wave their audience away, the other finally got the door open.

They were outside. It wasn’t outside the wall exactly, but they had a clear shot to yet another door. As soon as he was able, he closed the door. Maybe he lingered on the kiss longer than he needed to, but never knew who was watching and from where, right?

He broke the kiss, absently licking his lips as if to taste her there one more time. His eyes turned to their surroundings. No cameras, two guards on a door in what was definitely the main wall, but what struck Dean was that there were empty pens on one side and a wall that ram from the garage to the main wall which blocked off view of the pens.

“Fuck me.”

----

Dinah was a little breathless once Dean broke the kiss. She focused on regaining her concentration as he closed the door behind them. It had been a long time since she’d been kissed like that. Too long. But she wasn’t going to think about that. Especially since it had just been an act to get them through that door.

She looked around at the empty pens and then at the guards. She didn’t know what was supposed to be in them, but she didn’t like the implications of yet another thing that Belia was hiding.

She didn’t want to draw too much attention from the guards, so she just took Dean’s hand and squeezed it, then looked up at him with raised eyebrows, as if to silently ask if he was ready to go.

They’d come this far after all.

----

Dinah wasn’t the only one who didn’t want to know. The last time he’d seen pens humans, or things that looked human, were standing, sitting, bleeding inside them. While he was a hunter and he often times willingly killed those penned creatures, the sight had made him ill. To find out it was demon experimenting on them...It was cruel and unusual. Dean was more the get them gone type than sit and watch them suffer.

Dean blinked at the hand hold, but it made sense he supposed. He squeezed her fingers and led her across the open ground, ignoring the guards who were already looking in their direction. They didn’t seem too willing to stop the pair, seeing as said pair had just come through a door only those in the know could really access.

“So, honey, I think a quick walk ought to do us before we go back.” The hunter wasn’t sure how to handle this exactly, but he kept walking. The guards shifted a little. People in the know didn’t always appear to be a pair of lovers.

----

Dinah didn’t ignore the guards. Instead, she flashed them both a bright smile and reached in her bag. She’d noticed that food wasn’t exactly plentiful here. Being one of the chosen ones had entitled her to anything she wanted and as much as she wanted, but it didn’t seem to be the same for others here. So she was taking a gamble that a bribe of food would convince the guards to look the other way. It wouldn’t have worked at the main gates-not with so many in charge. But here... well, she could only hope.

She offered up two loaves of a hearty bread and some cheese. The two guards looked them over suspiciously and then each accepted the food and gave them a nod. They stepped aside and pressed a button to allow the doors to swing open.

“Just don’t take too long. And make no mistake-we will throw you in quarantine if you come back with any bites.

“Thank you,” Dinah said with a nod.

She waited until they were outside before she reluctantly let go of his hand. The touch had brought her a little bit of reassurance. Once outside, she looked over their surroundings, senses already on high alert, watching for any sign of a threat.

“So, which way do we want to go?”

----

“We round to the main gate, then branch off before we come into view.” Dean seemed comfortable enough, even though he too was ready for whatever action he’d need. The gun was waiting at his back. The knife or knives were all ready to be used. The salt and the holy water. He was ready for anything.

“Unless you have another plan. We could follow the road, take alley ways, but follow the main road all the same.” He glanced around before motioning for her to go wherever it was she wanted.

----

“Let’s follow this road and stay out of sight with the main gate. See if we can catch up with the main road once we get to the outskirts of the ruins,” Dinah said, starting to walk in that direction.

It was a little sad to see the ruined buildings that stretched out ahead of them. Reminders of lives extinguished, of a world that had all but perished.

In an attempt to get her mind off of that harsh reality, she glanced over at Dean with a smirk.

“So, you make it a habit of kissing women when you need to escape someplace?”

----

Dean settled in to follow. He’d seen places like this before, felt the emptiness of a ruined city; he didn’t like it, but he didn’t have a choice. His eyes never stopped scanning the ruins, looking for movement that would no doubt signal an attack of some kind. His hands were at his sides, but he looked more than ready to pull the gun. He wished he had something more than the handgun; his Colt hadn’t let him down once - he wasn’t counting the time with the rabbit’s foot, there had been other factors involved in that.

Her question wasn’t answered immediately. Instead, he looked as if he were actually thinking about it. Had he used a kiss to get out of a bad situation? He remembered the time another woman had faked a little sexing, but he hadn’t kissed her. He would probably remember it, or perhaps he wouldn’t. He’d had a few.

“No. It was useful.” Dean shrugged. “Not bad on your feet.”

---

“I could say the same to you.” Dinah said with a smile. “You were pretty convincing.”

She let the subject drop as she turned a corner. They had walked far enough away that hopefully they could find a route back to the main road without being seen from the gate. She was starting to wonder if maybe they should have stayed in the camp for a few days longer to prepare. But what was done was done.

“So you hear anything more about that virus that they were so up in arms about when we first got there?”

----

“It fucks people up. No cure. Makes you a pretty damn fast moving zombie. It’s a real barrel of fucking laughs. “ Dean stopped now and then to listen. He kept waiting for the monsters in question to pop out at them, or to come running, screaming for their flesh. It wasn’t his favorite way to spend time with a pretty woman, especially one who wasn’t bad at kissing.

“The bite turns you. That’s all it takes.” He sighed, remembering what his future self did to some guy. Then again, he knew he’d probably do the same thing now. Somehow he managed to not cringe.

“Can’t say that I blame them for putting us in quarantine.” The hunter paused. Something didn’t seem right. He didn’t comment, just...There were markings here and there of gunfight. Last he heard, the Voltrons or Neutrons didn’t exactly carry guns.

----

“No, they had to do the quarantine,” Dinah agreed. “Don’t like how they did it, but I can’t blame them.”

She frowned.

“I was lucky I only got scratched. Did they say anything about how to kill them?”

She fell silent as she heard a footstep crunching in the rubble. She grabbed Dean’s arm, though she was sure he’d heard it as well. Dinah looked around for some sort of hiding place-anything so they were out of sight until they could figure out what was going on.

They were within two steps from a nearby building left that there was still a standing door frame. It would be a bit of a tight squeeze, but they would be out of sight long enough to figure out what was going on and hopefully get ready to fight if they needed to. She lightly tugged at his arm and then nodded to the doorway. If they were careful, they could hopefully get there without giving away their position.

----

“Chopping a head off usually works. Or that’s what they seemed to say.” Dean paused again, more at the touch than any sound. Something was definitely not right. He looked at her then at the doorway. He nodded slightly and motioned for her to head in. Sure, she seemed to be packing quite a vocal punch, but he was the one with the gun.

As soon as they were in the doorway, the man ran by. He scowled slightly. Not at the running man, but what he saw not far behind them. The man nor those following were familiar. “What the hell?”

The man looked scared, and the hero in Dean demanded he help the poor bastard out. “Stay here?” Yes, he asked. He had a bad feeling she wouldn’t. Those following were armed, and he really didn’t like the odds of the running man’s chances.

---

Dean was right in his hunch. Dinah wasn’t going to just hide while someone else risked their life to help a person in need. She shook her head and stepped out as well.

The man who had been running looked at both of them with eyes wide with fear. He was no longer running, even though the men with guns were closing in on them.

“Go,” Dinah urged him. “We’ll cover you.”

She turned her back and took a step in front of Dean, gathering her breath to let loose a cry.

What she didn’t expect was the group of gunmen that came at them from the sides and behind She whirled, ready to defend herself, but there were too many of them. Someone managed to crack her over the head with something heavy. White lights popped in front of her eyes before everything went back and she started to fall backward.

----

Dean had that gut sinking feeling just as they both decided to help the guy out. Whether he was in on whatever was happening or not, the hunter didn’t have time to considered. Instead, he was in a fight for his life, or that was how it felt.

They came at them from all sides, and the eldest Winchester boy might have gotten a few shots off, maybe actually touched his knife. It didn’t matter in the long run. There were too many, even if Dean was practically the never give up kind of guy. He yelled at Dinah to duck, but it was too late. He didn’t even get a chance to catch her before she hit the ground. Someone decided to knock him out too.

The men loaded the two would be heroes up into separate vehicles. They were proud because they had gotten not one but two of the possible chosen. Tonight would be one hell of a party. Although, some of the men suggested using the woman for something other than the ring, and some of the men suggested killing the hunter off quickly - he’d only cause trouble. Eventually they would find out just how much trouble.

The man who’d been running for his life waited off to the side, watching. He smiled cruelly before giving one of his “attackers” a slight nod. He had to get back to Belia to explain what just happened - that the chosen had got out and were mauled by some of the Netvors while trying to help him out.